https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/how-to-make-extra-money2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/7-big-things-a-start-up-must-have-to-succeed2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/9-steps-to-starting-a-business2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/10-rules-to-build-a-wildly-successful-business2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-16-february-2023-i-shall-return-so-there-was-nothing-for-it-but-catch-the-bus-into-hythe-and-see-what-mischief-mayhem-and-malarkey-i-could-perform-i-decided-to-try-a-new-to-me-coffee-emporium-black-wax-coffee-and-records-the-on-the-door-was-a-sausage-dog-shaped-sign-which-read-dog-friendly-sure-enough-there-were-two-waggle-tailed-pooches-one-of-which-came-up-to-me-for-a-pat-on-the-head-when-i-sat-down-i-sat-in-the-bay-window-facing-a-collection-of-wheel-to-wheel-tape-decks-that-were-on-the-wall-and-decided-to-do-a-sketch-of-them-but-searched-my-rucksack-in-vain-for-my-pen-and-sketch-pad-that-s-the-bad-news-the-good-news-is-i-found-the-piece-of-isle-of-wright-blue-cheese-which-i-mislaid-the-previous-day-i-had-trouble-picking-up-my-coffee-because-of-my-essential-tremor-and-then-thought-why-not-ask-for-a-straw-which-i-did-and-what-a-very-nice-straw-it-was-too-paper-with-blue-barber-shop-stripes-eco-friendly-and-pleasing-to-the-eye-i-finished-my-coffee-and-decided-to-do-a-little-more-exploring-there-were-lp-s-displayed-in-racks-like-the-record-shops-of-yesteryear-and-posters-advertising-long-past-concerts-a-page-from-the-mme-caught-my-eye-it-told-how-marc-boland-had-decided-he-would-no-longer-do-live-because-of-security-issues-it-went-on-to-describe-how-fans-had-been-injured-during-t-rex-concerts-i-checked-to-see-if-they-re-was-a-wifi-connection-and-as-i-left-thought-in-the-words-of-winston-churchill-i-shall-return-roar-i-had-found-a-new-haunt2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant17-february-2023-oh-no-it-isn-t-it-s-friday-again-and-my-hectic-non-stop-go-getter-life-continues-with-it-s-customary-energetic-zeal-after-an-agreeable-sleep-i-finally-emerged-from-bed-at-around-1000-today-was-to-be-another-scrabble-tournament-with-the-legendary-quintessential-scallywag-and-i-set-out-early-and-had-an-early-lunch-in-be-be-s-i-met-a-friend-on-the-bus-margret-green-and-told-her-about-my-2023-coastal-diary-project-she-said-she-d-tell-her-son-richard-green-who-works-for-the-bbc-about-it-and-how-much-she-d-enjoyed-the-gammon-from-be-be-s-recently-so-i-had-it-too-i-had-it-with-pineapple-chips-and-baked-beans-after-be-be-s-i-went-to-black-wax-got-their-wifi-connection-installed-on-my-ipad-and-tried-unsuccessfully-to-get-a-vistaprint-postcard-printed-to-publicise-my-blog-but-by-making-this-attempt-it-will-be-easier-when-i-try-again-unfortunately-when-i-got-to-the-scallywag-s-abode-he-was-ill-in-bed-but-his-mother-aka-the-young-lady-gave-me-a-cup-of-tea-with-some-shortbread-i-told-her-about-my-coastal-diary-project-and-showed-her-the-email-i-d-written-to-becky-bettesworth-and-her-pa-s-reply-he-phoned-me-when-i-got-home-and-i-remembered-the-puss-in-boots-flyer-i-had-been-given-in-hythe-and-asked-if-he-d-like-to-come-and-bring-the-young-lady-with-us-on-saturday-my-landline-rang-it-was-kim-and-she-was-down-in-the-dumps-so-i-asked-her-to-come-along-too-to-cut-a-long-story-short-the-four-of-us-now-have-seats-booked-and-kim-and-i-will-wait-in-amalfi-for-andy-aka-the-scallywag-a-splendid-time-is-guaranteed-for-all-oh-yes-it-is-oh-no-it-isn-t2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-18-february-2023-the-day-of-the-pantomime-a-day-of-mixed-fortunes-i-woke-up-at-600-and-felt-chilly-and-thought-i-might-be-showing-the-first-signs-of-a-cold-this-calls-for-a-drop-of-self-administered-of-ltc-i-thought-so-it-was-on-with-the-trusty-throw-blanket-and-a-nice-warm-lay-in-until-800ish-then-i-felt-hungry-but-remembered-to-check-my-blood-sugar-before-treating-myself-to-a-couple-of-slices-of-bacon-cooked-in-my-air-fryer-which-i-had-with-my-last-slice-of-bread-helen-phoned-and-said-kim-couldn-t-make-it-to-the-pantomime-tonight-i-m-glad-i-took-out-insuranceduring-the-conversation-we-touched-on-the-subject-of-helen-s-sciatica-i-suggested-looking-up-treatments-on-the-nhs-website-and-that-ibuprofen-gel-might-help-and-to-check-on-the-pharmacy-website-if-it-s-in-stock-air-fryers-are-a-few-quid-cheaper-in-lidl-than-asda-as-i-cooked-the-bacon-i-remembered-a-conversation-i-had-yesterday-at-the-checkout-at-lidl-with-a-lady-who-was-buying-an-air-fryer-i-asked-her-how-much-she-paid-and-it-was-less-than-i-paid-for-mine-at-asda-as-i-wrote-this-my-alarm-went-off-to-tell-me-it-was-shower-time-i-had-set-it-half-an-hour-before-to-have-a-piping-hot-shower-without-wasting-money-the-first-thing-i-did-when-i-got-out-of-the-shower-was-turn-the-boiler-off-again-as-my-dad-used-to-say-it-s-no-good-getting-old-if-you-don-t-get-artful-i-did-some-work-on-setting-up-a-website-for-these-blog-posts-but-then-realised-it-was-lunchtime-i-planned-to-have-tomato-soup-with-a-slice-of-bread-but-i-was-out-of-bread-and-had-mislaid-my-wallet-after-a-panic-i-found-i-d-dropped-it-in-my-armchair-running-to-the-coop-was-today-s-exercise-ration-it-saves-time-too-when-i-got-there-i-went-straight-to-cut-price-clearance-self-i-find-food-from-there-especially-tasty-after-buying-groceries-i-continued-working-on-setting-up-my-blog-but-ran-into-difficulties-when-i-got-a-payment-declined-notice-by-site-123-there-were-messages-on-my-mobile-and-my-landline-rang-with-an-automated-message-to-check-my-recent-spending-was-authorised-and-i-confirmed-they-were-and-reapplie2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/blog-ivor-s-daily-gallivant-https-63f38a48518f6site123me-february-20th-2023-monday-things-didn-t-exactly-go-according-to-plan-i-had-great-plans-for-today-a-long-to-do-list-for-the-morning-and-then-to-go-to-october-books-for-lunch-but-alas-it-wasn-t-be-this-morning-was-a-mini-version-of-the-story-of-my-life-it-was-cold-and-i-was-nice-and-warm-in-bed-so-that-s-where-i-stayed-eventually-i-surfaced-from-my-pit-at-midday-it-was-a-bright-but-cold-day-breakfast-was-a-bowl-of-fruit-and-fibre-with-my-customary-cod-liver-oil-capsule-which-is-allegedly-good-for-my-joints-and-my-brain-since-an-early-age-i-ve-been-a-sucker-for-lost-causes-there-were-a-couple-of-envelopes-on-my-doormat-one-addressed-to-me-and-one-just-a-plain-envelope-i-opened-the-one-with-my-name-on-first-and-in-it-was-a-letter-telling-me-my-pension-was-going-up-must-be-our-wonderful-government-trying-to-soften-up-the-pensioner-s-ready-for-the-next-election-not-that-i-ve-a-cynical-bone-in-my-body-you-understand-the-other-one-was-a-sales-proportion-from-a-company-trying-to-flog-conservatory-improvements-i-gave-it-a-brief-glance-then-through-it-away-with-the-plans-for-the-morning-scuttled-i-decided-to-pick-the-most-important-items-and-do-them-the-first-thing-to-do-was-have-a-shower-and-then-see-about-arranging-a-blood-test-shower-done-and-feeling-amazing-i-hunted-for-the-test-forms-and-eventually-found-them-phoned-the-booking-line-and-arranged-an-appointment-at-southampton-general-for-1230-tomorrow-edited-the-previous-posts-for-ivor-s-daily-gallivant-adding-my-picture-it-s-starting-to-look-good-i-was-however-concerned-when-i-tried-googling-ivory-s-daily-gallivant-that-it-didn-t-come-up-with-my-blog-apparently-it-takes-a-few-weeks-for-a-new-blog-to-be-found-my-google-to-find-my-blog-and-at-the-moment-type-in-https-63f38a48518f6site123me-so-there-was-a-lot-i-didn-t-do-but-i-ve-set-up-my-blog-ivor-s-daily-gallivant-and-am-going-to-tell-all-my-friends-about-it2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-21st-february-2023-the-day-of-the-blood-test-yesterday-i-booked-a-blood-test-at-southampton-general-hospital-i-got-out-of-bed-at-800-a-respectable-time-by-my-recent-standards-my-first-stop-was-the-herald-office-in-hythe-to-pick-up-a-letter-which-i-d-had-printed-for-my-friend-richard-who-doesn-t-use-the-internet-and-lives-in-salisbury-on-the-bus-i-saw-a-friend-mike-and-told-him-i-was-working-on-a-blog-to-raise-money-for-diabetes-uk-and-he-told-me-he-makes-monthly-donations-to-cancer-research-and-a-dementia-charity-when-i-got-to-the-herald-office-much-to-my-dismay-i-found-i-d-left-my-check-card-at-home-thinking-there-would-be-plenty-of-time-to-get-to-southampton-general-i-decided-i-d-go-back-home-for-my-card-i-d-also-left-my-sketchbook-at-home-and-wanted-to-do-some-sketching-on-the-bus-i-also-showed-them-a-copy-of-my-book-of-nonsense-verse-the-buffoon-designs-book-of-mostly-comic-verse-and-asked-them-if-they-d-like-to-stock-it-they-said-no-they-don-t-know-what-they-re-missing-https-wwwlulucom-search-page-1-q-the-buffoon-designs-book-of-mostly-comic-versepagesize-10-adult_audience_rating-00-i-picked-my-things-up-and-caught-the-bus-into-southampton-but-by-the-time-i-reached-the-station-it-was-too-late-to-catch-the-bus-to-the-hospital-so-i-got-a-taxi-which-cost-1060-the-taxi-arrived-four-minutes-before-my-appointment-at-1230-so-i-had-to-run-to-be-on-time-the-waiting-room-for-the-blood-tests-had-new-chairs-and-the-receptionist-printed-my-test-details-which-are-both-firsts-before-going-out-i-started-work-promoting-ivor-s-daily-gallivant-by-working-through-some-my-friends-on-messenger-and-sending-them-a-link-to-the-blog-during-a-messenger-conversation-this-morning-with-kathy-she-thanked-me-for-making-her-famous-with-my-blog-i-replied-young-lady-you-re-already-famous-after-the-latest-assessment-of-my-diabetes-my-insulin-was-cut-from-daily-doses-to-weekly-doses-so-today-i-took-my-spare-insulin-back-to-the-pharmacy-in-the-hope-it-could-be-used-by-someone-else-sadly-i-was-told-that-once-it-leaves-them-it-can-t-be-reused-as-is-my-usual-h2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-22ed-february-2023-the-day-of-the-weekly-scrabble-tournament-my-day-started-at-about-1000-when-i-got-out-of-bed-and-checked-my-emails-there-was-one-from-becky-bettesworth-s-pa-which-suggested-some-improvements-to-my-just-giving-page-i-ve-decided-to-use-national-express-for-the-travelling-to-the-coastal-resorts-and-am-taking-a-friend-andy-aka-the-scallywag-along-for-company-another-was-from-october-books-advertising-a-new-writing-group-tomorrow-in-portswood-at-1830-which-i-booked-a-place-on-https-wwwoctoberbooksorg-then-i-wrote-an-email-to-the-press-office-at-national-express-telling-them-my-plans-and-giving-them-the-links-to-my-just-giving-page-and-my-blog-which-will-hopefully-a-rouse-their-interest-and-get-them-to-help-with-the-publicity-i-was-just-modifying-my-just-giving-page-with-the-suggestions-made-by-becky-bettesworth-s-pa-when-andy-arrived-and-i-unfortunately-lost-the-work-i-had-just-done-the-scallywag-and-i-had-our-customary-two-games-of-scrabble-drank-tea-and-shared-our-latest-news-and-as-is-almost-inevitable-he-won-both-games-before-bed-i-modified-my-just-giving-page-and-wrote-this-blog-post-and-advertised-it-on-facebook-and-twitter2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-23-february-2023-creative-writing-at-october-books-started-the-day-trying-to-get-my-attendance-allowance-sorted-out-by-phoning-my-doctors-surgery-and-asking-if-i-m-registered-sight-impaired-they-told-me-until-i-get-an-appointment-with-the-eye-hospital-i-m-not-registeredbeen-trying-to-buy-a-magnifier-online-which-was-more-difficult-than-i-imagined-but-eventually-managed-it-although-the-site-i-chose-said-there-is-currently-a-delay-with-deliveriessimon-cox-of-the-rnib-phoned-and-has-booked-a-telephone-appointment-for-3-3-2023-to-help-me-fill-out-the-attendance-allowance-formi-sent-a-message-to-age-uk-which-said-an-idea-for-the-clients-age-uk-who-can-t-keep-up-with-their-gardeninga-few-weeks-ago-i-was-at-the-bus-stop-in-holbury-and-got-had-into-a-conversation-with-a-young-ladyat-one-point-i-said-i-ve-got-an-overgrown-garden-which-i-would-like-to-lend-to-someone-who-likes-gardening-to-grow-vegetables-it-would-tidy-up-my-garden-and-they-would-have-fresh-vegetables-and-the-pleasure-of-doing-the-gardening-a-win-win-situation-she-replied-i-love-gardening-i-gave-her-my-phone-number-and-address-and-she-said-she-d-be-in-touch-on-the-way-home-i-realised-i-d-got-my-phone-number-wrong-and-wondered-if-the-opportunity-had-been-missedhowever-a-few-days-later-i-found-a-note-on-my-doormat-with-her-number-so-i-rang-her-and-a-few-days-later-she-and-her-partner-started-work-on-my-garden-and-they-re-doing-an-amazing-jobthey-also-offered-me-a-share-of-the-vegetablesthere-must-be-other-people-in-the-same-situation-as-me-who-could-make-similar-arrangementsage-uk-could-set-up-and-publicise-a-scheme-matching-up-gardens-with-gardeners-making-life-easier-for-all-concernedmany-thanks-for-reading-this-and-hoping-it-s-of-usebest-wishes-yours-faithfully-ivor-minard-the-only-unfortunate-thing-today-was-after-my-evening-meal-it-was-too-late-to-go-to-october-books-i-felt-exhausted-and-had-a-nap-in-my-armchair-but-overall-it-was-a-productive-day2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivory-s-daily-gallivant-february-24th-2023-the-title-of-this-blog-is-daily-gallivant-when-i-came-up-with-it-no-irony-was-intended-however-looking-back-at-the-past-couple-of-days-i-haven-t-left-home-so-there-hasn-t-been-any-gallivanting-as-such-i-hope-my-readers-will-excuse-and-bear-with-me-today-i-was-having-my-customary-lie-in-when-there-was-a-knock-on-the-door-it-was-the-postman-delivering-my-promotional-cards-i-opened-up-the-package-and-was-thought-they-looked-good-first-thing-i-did-after-getting-up-was-look-at-my-emails-and-check-my-bank-balance-my-pension-came-through-okay-and-i-ordered-a-bobble-hat-promoting-diabetes-uk-which-was-advertised-in-an-email-and-i-shall-wear-on-my-2023-diary-adventures-it-s-a-good-idea-to-advertise-your-health-conditions-whilst-wearing-my-epilepsy-society-tee-shirt-i-was-approached-by-other-epileptics-it-s-nice-to-know-you-re-not-alone-whatever-your-problem-my-internet-connection-and-word-package-went-down-for-a-while-which-as-can-be-imagined-was-frustrating2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-25th-february-2023-the-day-of-a-pleasant-surprise-according-to-my-organiser-saturday-mornings-are-down-for-going-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-but-this-year-prior-to-today-haven-t-actually-gone-my-day-started-at-about-six-when-i-woke-up-i-thought-getting-up-at-such-an-extreme-hour-was-too-spartan-so-stayed-in-bed-until-the-alarm-went-off-at-seven-although-i-put-the-boiler-on-before-getting-and-set-the-timer-for-half-an-hour-which-give-me-a-hot-shower-prior-to-today-i-didn-t-know-it-was-possible-to-have-the-alarm-and-timer-set-at-the-same-time-i-left-home-in-time-for-the-half-past-ten-bus-and-met-rory-on-the-bus-who-was-also-going-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-when-we-got-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-it-was-full-of-people-and-difficult-to-find-a-place-to-sit-i-started-a-brief-conversation-with-a-retired-lorry-driver-brian-who-had-spent-all-his-life-living-locally-rory-got-into-conversation-with-him-while-sarah-brown-and-phil-sat-in-another-part-of-the-room-i-asked-if-it-would-be-okay-to-hand-out-the-post-cards-promoting-my-blog-and-it-was-and-did-a-little-sketching-of-the-umbrellas-that-were-hanging-from-the-rafters-then-i-went-for-lunch-in-the-st-andrews-coffee-shop-with-phil-and-stewart-and-as-i-waited-much-to-my-surprise-and-delight-morag-who-had-worked-at-marcella-said-hallo-it-had-been-years-since-seeing-her-last-and-a-pleasant-surprise-i-gave-her-one-of-the-promotional-cards-which-she-liked-after-st-andrews-i-caught-the-bus-into-hythe-did-some-shopping-in-lidl-and-had-a-cup-of-tea-in-black-wax-records-and-coffee-gave-them-a-few-more-of-the-cards-and-caught-the-bus-home2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-26-february-2023-a-day-of-discovery-and-hope-i-continued-reading-reversing-type-2-diabetics-whilst-attending-marcella-and-later-in-the-evening-it-dawned-on-me-after-having-a-nap-just-what-a-valuable-book-it-may-be-my-plan-for-monday-morning-is-to-tell-the-dietician-at-black-health-centre-and-my-gp-about-it-and-see-if-it-s-suitable-for-me-margret-made-pancakes-which-i-had-three-helpings-of-and-seeing-me-struggle-to-read-my-book-suggested-i-should-go-to-the-optician-as-it-may-be-possible-to-do-something-about-my-eyesight-if-it-is-then-i-ve-discovered-a-new-and-important-principle-with-this-and-getting-my-garden-sorted-out-which-is-if-when-try-and-give-something-away-the-person-who-receives-what-you-give-will-pay-you-back-tenfold-and-exciting-thing-that-happened-whilst-at-marcella-was-an-old-friend-jill-came-and-visited-who-is-brilliant-at-art-she-had-a-lot-of-good-news-to-share-and-done-loads-of-new-artwork-clair-one-of-the-regulars-at-marcella-who-must-be-an-excellent-cook-described-how-cannelloni-tubes-can-be-filled-using-a-piping-bag-and-how-if-grapes-are-dropped-into-a-glass-of-lemonade-they-first-sink-to-the-bottom-and-then-when-bubbles-have-formed-round-them-rise-to-the-surface-and-sink-to-the-again-when-the-bubbles-are-burst-so-on-up-and-down-until-the-lemonade-loses-its-fizz-jill-gave-me-a-lift-home-which-saved-me-waiting-for-the-bus2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-27th-february-2023-not-much-gallivanting-done-today-it-was-cold-and-i-stayed-in-bed-getting-up-too-late-to-go-to-lunch-at-october-books-during-the-afternoon-i-ran-round-the-block-and-later-there-was-a-meeting-of-bootleg-art-club-wondering-what-was-going-on-with-my-glaucoma-i-phoned-southampton-eye-hospital-and-was-told-they-ll-get-back-to-me-in-a-couple-of-days-my-plan-to-see-if-the-treatment-recommended-in-reverse-type-2-diabetes-with-my-gp-never-got-done2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-28th-february-2023-once-again-not-much-gallivanting-done-today-my-only-hope-is-that-blogs-aren-t-subject-to-the-trade-description-act-and-i-m-not-summoned-for-being-too-dull-when-i-came-up-with-the-daily-gallivant-brand-i-thought-it-would-spur-me-on-to-new-and-exciting-things-but-that-hasn-t-happened-yesterday-the-plan-was-to-contact-my-gp-surgery-actually-happened-today-and-i-left-a-message-with-the-dietitian-to-get-back-to-me-about-seeing-if-i-m-suitable-for-the-reversal-of-my-diabetes-scheme-described-in-professor-roy-taylor-s-book-it-s-been-another-cold-day-that-i-ve-spent-mostly-sleeping-i-intended-to-go-to-hythe-market-and-waterside-art-group-but-it-was-never-anything-other-than-an-intention2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-march-1st-2023-sorry-folks-not-much-gallivanting-done-today-and-the-weekly-game-scrabble-postponed-until-fridaythe-way-things-are-going-i-m-thinking-of-retitling-this-blog-ivor-s-daily-sham-gallivant-things-started-out-with-work-on-the-pavement-outside-my-bungalow-meaning-access-to-my-bungalow-was-cut-off-i-asked-one-of-the-workmen-if-i-could-nip-out-to-buy-some-milk-and-it-was-okay-i-ran-to-the-nearest-shop-and-bought-some-it-then-looked-like-my-drive-was-blocked-so-i-phoned-my-friend-and-we-rescheduled-the-scrabble-for-friday-my-promotional-bobble-hat-arrived-from-diabetics-uk-and-my-magnifying-sheet-arrived-but-it-was-creased-so-i-requested-another-one-the-diabetes-nurse-from-my-gp-surgery-phoned-returning-the-message-i-d-left-for-her-yesterday-she-had-no-record-of-my-insulin-being-stopped-and-suggested-i-phone-the-diabetes-team-to-see-what-was-happening-and-gave-me-their-number-she-said-my-blood-sugar-levels-are-pre-diabetic-i-tried-phoning-the-diabetic-team-but-only-got-a-recorded-message-saying-the-number-was-not-in-use-call-again-later-getting-approval-for-the-reverse-diabetes-regime-is-proving-more-difficult-than-i-imagined-if-my-difficulties-continue-i-will-write-to-sir-julian-lewis-our-mp-my-meal-this-evening-was-chicken-curry-and-i-bought-some-fresh-ginger-and-chilli-to-make-it-with-cooking-and-eating-is-one-of-life-s-great-pleasures2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-march-2-2023-waterside-writers-the-joys-of-the-aging-process-the-alarm-went-off-and-i-stayed-in-bed-toying-with-the-idea-of-skipping-the-writing-group-but-my-conscience-got-the-better-of-me-so-i-went-it-would-be-an-opportunity-to-give-out-some-of-the-cards-promoting-my-blog-staying-in-bed-all-morning-doesn-t-make-for-a-good-daily-gallivant-i-got-to-hythe-and-had-enough-time-waiting-for-the-marchwood-bus-to-have-breakfast-in-be-be-s-when-i-got-to-the-writing-class-it-was-already-well-underway-it-impressed-me-how-much-less-i-knew-about-writing-than-the-others-or-perhaps-it-was-because-of-my-hearing-when-i-was-growing-up-the-one-thing-holding-me-back-was-dyslexia-these-days-i-m-deaf-in-my-right-ear-and-my-eyesight-is-failing-i-m-beginning-to-experience-the-joys-of-the-aging-process-at-one-point-one-of-the-ladies-said-she-found-little-substance-in-best-sellers-afterwards-i-wondered-if-it-possible-people-buy-them-because-they-re-not-too-challenging-does-anybody-really-want-to-be-made-to-think-too-much-it-s-a-question-of-not-going-too-far-beyond-the-reader-s-comfort-zone-when-i-was-growing-up-we-lived-with-my-grandparents-and-my-grandmother-often-remarked-about-tv-dramas-that-they-didn-t-finish-right-i-wasn-t-allowed-to-get-a-word-in-edgewise-but-if-i-had-would-have-said-life-doesn-t-finish-right-she-wanted-peaceful-entertainment-i-believe-the-majority-of-people-want-to-be-entertained-rather-than-educated-good-writing-does-both-we-looked-at-an-anthology-of-poetry-from-the-first-world-war-questioning-which-were-the-best-to-us-and-why-after-the-class-i-caught-the-bus-back-to-hythe-and-had-a-ham-salad-in-be-be-s-went-home-bought-new-batteries-for-my-blood-sugar-monitor-and-slept-until-6ish2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-march-3ed-2023-my-telephone-appointment-with-an-rhib-advisor-to-discuss-my-eligibility-for-an-attendance-allowance-was-this-morning-and-i-don-t-qualify-also-i-got-appointment-letters-for-diabetes-eye-screening-31-03-2023-an-appointment-at-eye-hospital-at-745-on-9-05-2023-elaine-from-the-diabetes-team-phoned-and-said-i-have-a-telephone-appointment-with-the-dietician-27-06-2023-and-wasn-t-able-to-find-a-record-of-my-insulin-being-stopped-she-told-me-to-take-three-blood-sugar-readings-a-day-one-before-breakfast-one-before-my-evening-meal-and-one-before-bedtime-and-phone-the-results-through-next-tuesday-there-was-an-email-from-soniya-dhariwal-of-diabetics-uk-about-my-fundraiser-page-on-just-giving-and-asking-if-she-could-be-of-help-i-ll-get-back-to-her-next-monday-morning-i-ve-requested-their-fundraising-pack-today-was-this-week-s-scrabble-tournament-andy-aka-the-scallywag-he-left-his-mobile-at-home-this-morning-and-went-back-to-pick-it-up-before-coming-to-me-the-tournament-results-were-as-expected-andy-winning-both-games-we-re-arranged-the-first-trip-on-of-the-2023-british-coastal-diary-adventures-for-16th-march-the-weather-forecast-is-good-for-that-day-andy-and-i-have-decided-to-go-by-train-the-plan-is-to-photograph-the-sunset-looking-across-the-sea-do-some-sketches-and-find-a-place-to-eat2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivory-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-4th-march-2023-got-out-of-bed-early-today-and-treated-myself-to-a-steaming-hot-shower-it-s-saturday-a-soul-caf%C3%A9-day-had-porridge-for-breakfast-which-i-sweetened-with-canerel-in-a-messenger-conversation-with-rick-last-week-he-suggested-aretha-franklin-was-the-manager-of-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-and-i-replied-thanks-james-joyce-said-mediocre-artists-borrow-great-artists-steal-i-m-going-to-steel-that-for-my-next-post-about-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-true-to-my-word-i-just-have-i-googled-aretha-franklin-and-watched-her-perform-respect-and-was-surprised-how-much-i-enjoyed-it-my-tastes-have-changed-after-breakfast-i-ran-to-the-bus-stop-and-noticed-some-sort-of-animal-in-the-road-throwing-itself-up-and-down-it-had-patches-of-black-and-white-fur-at-first-i-thought-it-was-a-stunk-a-couple-of-motorists-stopped-to-investigate-it-was-a-cat-which-had-just-been-run-over-and-this-was-its-death-spasms-a-man-picked-it-up-making-it-clear-it-was-a-dead-cat-and-put-it-on-the-verge-the-bus-was-late-and-i-stayed-at-the-bus-stop-rather-than-having-a-look-at-the-cat-because-i-didn-t-want-to-miss-it-somebody-will-miss-the-poor-creature-i-was-wearing-my-new-diabetes-uk-hat-with-the-organ-bobble-and-when-i-got-off-the-bus-at-dibben-purlieu-a-lady-complimented-me-on-it-and-saying-her-daughter-was-diabetic-and-had-bipolar-i-had-similar-experiences-with-my-epilepsy-society-tee-shirt-it-s-always-good-to-know-your-not-alone-and-there-are-people-who-care-entering-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-i-was-greeted-by-the-smell-of-freshly-brewed-coffee-in-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-and-it-was-chockablock-with-people-i-sat-near-the-serving-hatch-with-brian-the-lion-and-a-tall-bloke-with-a-neatly-trimmed-beard-name-roy-they-talked-to-each-other-and-as-i-found-it-difficult-to-hear-got-on-with-doing-some-thumbnail-sketches-of-the-surroundings-there-was-a-homemade-sausage-roll-that-caught-my-eye-and-within-a-few-moments-i-was-eating-it-and-boy-it-was-good-next-i-did-some-shopping-in-hythe-buying-a-magnifying-glass-in-k-j-mobility-and-some-groceries-in-lidl-i-asked-julie-how-my-blog-could-2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-5th-march-2023-a-day-when-the-gallivanting-was-a-non-starter-got-up-early-but-didn-t-do-much-been-writing-up-yesterday-s-post-i-imagine-the-these-early-mornings-are-a-result-of-the-coming-of-spring-found-the-photo-i-d-prepared-with-reasons-to-fight-diabetes-blindness-heart-attack-stoke-and-toes-dropping-off-paired-up-with-illustrations-beans-on-toast-for-breakfast-and-as-a-midday-meal-made-savoury-mince-for-my-evening-meal-looked-at-collars-to-protect-my-neck-when-i-fall-asleep-in-my-armchair-the-gallivanting-today-has-been-a-nonstarter2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-march-6th-2023-i-woke-up-with-a-cold-and-stayed-in-bed-rather-than-going-for-lunch-at-october-books-i-had-a-messenger-conversation-with-my-niece-and-she-told-me-the-link-to-my-blog-didn-t-work-i-checked-and-couldn-t-get-it-to-work-either-so-got-in-touch-with-the-blog-host-and-sorted-out-the-problem-it-will-take-24-hours-before-the-link-works-other-than-that-nothing-very-interesting-or-exciting-has-happened-my-only-gallivant-was-a-run-to-the-coop-to-get-a-few-groceries-i-hope-this-cold-recovers-in-time-for-me-to-play-scrabble-on-wednesday-and-go-on-the-nhs-demonstration-on-saturday-been-eating-an-extra-amount-of-food-to-fight-off-my-cold-had-chicken-curry-at-midday-and-chinese-fish-balls-with-rice-peppers-and-soy-sauce-as-my-evening-meal-plus-apples-and-strawberry-yogurt2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-and-wednesday-7th-and-8th-march-2023-wednesday-i-m-still-laid-down-low-with-this-cold-cancelled-the-scrabble-just-feel-crummy-and-am-looking-back-at-the-things-i-should-have-done-differently-in-my-life-now-all-i-can-do-is-make-sure-i-ve-pretty-to-eat-and-drink-and-keep-warm2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-9-march-2023-still-haven-t-thrown-off-this-cold-stayed-in-bed-and-when-i-did-get-up-found-messenger-wouldn-t-allow-me-to-send-a-message-to-one-of-my-friends-there-was-no-real-explanation-why-i-decided-that-by-saturday-i-will-still-be-infectious-and-sent-an-email-to-helen-field-saying-i-won-t-be-able-to-go-to-the-nhs-demo-in-london-ate-the-remains-of-the-vegetable-curry-i-made-yesterday-night-and-spent-most-of-the-day-keeping-warm-and-sleeping-hopefully-i-ll-be-fighting-fit-ready-for-the-st-patrick-s-day-celebrations-at-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-on-17-3-2023-i-ve-come-to-the-conclusion-with-plans-this-year-that-they-almost-inevitably-don-t-go-as-expected-andy-and-i-planned-to-begin-the-british-coastline-daily-adventures-on-16-3-2023-with-a-trip-to-bournemouth-by-train-but-i-learnt-yesterday-from-andy-there-s-a-rail-strike-so-we-wouldn-t-have-been-able-to-go-i-got-a-phone-call-from-my-gp-surgery-about-my-diabetes-and-found-out-the-phone-number-i-had-for-the-fenwick-was-wrong-so-i-tried-calling-the-correct-number-and-was-able-to-leave-a-message2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-10th-march-2023-i-still-had-the-tale-end-of-my-cold-and-stayed-in-bed-until-it-was-light-outside-so-any-electricity-i-used-was-generated-by-my-solar-panels-yesterday-when-a-technician-from-switch-energy-came-to-add-ventilation-to-my-loft-insulation-he-told-me-that-with-solar-panels-if-i-waited-in-bed-until-it-was-light-i-would-generate-power-for-free-saving-money-i-liked-the-sound-of-that-i-had-a-pain-in-my-back-from-where-my-mattress-was-uneven-or-perhaps-it-was-where-the-spring-in-my-armchair-was-broken-the-post-arrived-but-i-paid-it-no-heed-as-i-was-warm-and-comfortable-eventually-i-got-up-needing-a-pee-and-had-a-look-it-was-a-fund-raising-pack-from-diabetes-uk-and-an-epilepsy-society-tee-shirt-i-left-the-fund-raising-pack-unopened-on-my-food-preparation-surface-the-diced-beef-intended-for-my-evening-meal-had-thawed-out-ready-but-i-did-no-more-with-it-i-needed-onions-to-cook-with-it-the-adage-don-t-put-off-till-tomorrow-what-you-can-do-today-is-familiar-to-me-but-well-sufficient-unto-the-day-the-evil-there-of-is-another-favourite-not-very-much-gallivanting-done-today-in-the-evening-i-decided-to-go-to-the-co-op-and-see-if-there-were-any-tempting-offers-i-decided-to-give-myself-some-exercise-and-save-time-to-run-there-and-back-when-i-was-there-nothing-caught-my-eye-so-i-bought-a-kfc-chicken-and-chips-for-my-evening-meal-with-a-coffee-which-i-ate-in-the-restaurant-accompanied-by-the-bland-tedious-music-the-chips-resembled-cardboard-in-taste-and-texture-a-lady-stood-waiting-for-a-family-meal-which-made-me-wonder-do-people-really-give-their-children-this-rubbish-someone-should-inform-the-nspcc-the-coffee-was-surprisingly-good-white-americano-which-was-out-of-character-with-the-rest-of-the-place2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-march-11-2023-another-day-when-gallivanting-has-been-conspicuous-by-its-absence-i-find-these-days-nothing-is-very-pressing-all-i-ve-done-is-pick-my-medication-from-boots-have-a-nap-and-cook-a-beef-stew-my-cold-has-gone-is-this-going-to-go-down-as-the-most-boring-blog-on-the-internet-i-really-aren-t-doing-much-exiting-or-anything-much2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-12th-march-2023-another-day-without-gallivanting-i-stayed-at-home-and-did-a-little-work-on-my-reflection-in-a-puddle-painting-but-never-got-into-the-flow-next-i-did-more-to-antidotal-evidence-starting-a-piece-called-only-love-can-break-your-heart-it-brought-back-memories-of-misery-and-anger-my-right-leg-was-painful-this-morning-i-tried-a-bit-on-ibuprofen-gel-which-eased-the-pain-and-decided-to-google-pain-in-legs-to-see-what-the-causes-might-be-i-was-hoping-liv-and-russ-would-do-some-more-to-the-garden-but-heard-nothing-from-them-i-ll-phone-liv-and-see-what-s-happening-next-friday-to-be-fare-the-weather-is-horrible-today-which-may-explain-it-perhaps-their-still-in-iceland-plan-for-the-week-monday-october-books-and-bootleg-art-club-tuesday-hythe-market-and-waterside-arts-group-wednesday-scrabble-thursday-waterside-art-group-and-friday-st-patrick-s-day-party-at-the-soul-caf%C3%A92025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-13-march-2023-it-was-a-one-of-those-days-that-comes-in-3-s-13-03-2023-i-set-out-this-morning-with-the-intention-of-having-novel-experiences-to-write-about-and-got-more-than-i-bargained-for-not-allowing-myself-enough-time-i-made-for-the-bus-stop-the-last-few-passengers-were-getting-on-the-bus-and-the-it-was-a-long-way-off-i-decided-to-try-and-catch-the-bus-although-my-chances-were-slim-if-i-d-made-it-it-would-have-been-noteworthy-i-didn-t-the-bus-left-the-stop-and-i-tried-waving-at-it-but-in-vain-it-passed-me-by-now-i-would-have-to-wait-at-least-half-an-hour-i-thought-there-was-the-sound-of-loud-machinery-i-looked-and-the-large-conifers-in-the-garden-on-the-other-side-of-road-were-being-cut-down-with-chain-saws-and-their-trunks-fed-into-a-giant-shredder-there-was-now-at-least-half-an-hour-s-wait-the-next-bus-so-i-did-a-sketch-of-a-detail-of-the-shedder-stopping-when-the-bus-was-five-minutes-due-i-needn-t-have-worried-the-bus-was-half-an-hour-late-when-it-arrived-at-sea-city-museum-i-caught-the-next-bus-to-portswood-and-made-my-way-to-october-books-martini-was-sat-at-a-table-with-another-lady-nikki-we-ate-our-food-and-martini-left-and-nikki-went-out-for-a-roll-up-i-tried-showing-the-promotional-card-for-my-blog-unfortunately-nikki-is-sight-impaired-and-didn-t-know-what-to-make-of-a-penguin-saying-roar-come-to-think-of-it-that-s-a-very-good-question-i-browsed-the-books-but-asked-myself-when-are-you-going-to-read-them-which-deterred-me-from-buying-one-after-leaving-october-books-i-did-some-shopping-in-portswood-and-headed-home-got-to-my-front-door-and-found-i-d-lost-my-key-i-tried-raellia-and-ashley-s-door-to-see-if-they-could-help-but-there-was-no-one-in-i-thought-of-asking-glen-but-thought-again-how-about-one-stop-i-wondered-on-the-way-i-noticed-the-pet-shop-was-still-open-and-fortunatelyn-petina-was-able-to-help-using-her-internet-and-phone-she-went-to-a-lot-of-trouble-and-i-m-very-grateful-i-don-t-know-what-i-would-have-done-without-her-she-told-me-that-with-the-work-on-my-garden-a-rumours-were-in-circulation-that-i-w2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-march-14-2023-this-morning-was-cold-but-bright-and-sunny-the-plan-was-to-go-to-hythe-market-in-the-morning-and-waterside-art-group-in-the-evening-up-early-the-first-thing-i-did-was-shower-and-have-a-nap-i-felt-tired-and-after-the-nap-on-top-of-the-world-when-i-got-to-hythe-i-treated-myself-to-spaghetti-bolognese-followed-by-vanilla-ice-cream-in-be-be-s-the-ice-cream-was-a-special-treat-next-i-did-some-shopping-in-lidl-and-as-a-change-i-bought-a-tuna-pie-after-shopping-i-did-some-sketching-whilst-sat-in-the-car-park-drinking-coffee-the-afternoon-sunshine-warmed-my-face-rick-told-me-in-a-messenger-chat-this-morning-that-monday-is-the-first-day-of-spring-after-that-had-a-coffee-in-black-wax-where-i-did-some-more-sketching-just-thumbnails-to-keep-me-in-practice-i-wasn-t-fussy-about-how-it-turned-out-my-evening-meal-was-a-tin-of-tomato-soup-with-a-slice-of-seeded-bread-and-an-apple-some-of-the-soup-got-split-on-my-new-pullover-despite-trying-to-wash-it-off-the-pullover-is-still-stained-there-was-a-table-space-for-me-at-the-art-group-and-i-changed-the-colour-of-the-reflections-in-the-water-from-violet-to-blue-had-a-cup-of-lemon-and-ginger-tea-my-alarm-went-off-and-i-got-to-the-bus-stop-with-two-minutes-to-spare-andy-is-seeing-another-of-his-friends-tomorrow-so-i-ve-a-free-schedule-all-in-all-a-successful-day2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-15th-march-2023-halfway-through-another-week-where-does-time-go-today-s-scrabble-has-been-rescheduled-until-tomorrow-and-i-m-at-a-loose-end-there-s-loads-to-do-housework-washing-clothes-maybe-write-a-bit-more-of-anecdotal-evidence-or-a-bit-of-all-three-housework-when-done-properly-isn-t-a-chore-who-am-i-kidding-or-i-could-do-something-completely-different-maybe-i-could-go-for-a-run-round-the-block-a-thought-but-it-didn-t-happen-have-some-of-the-tuna-pie-i-bought-yesterday-i-did-and-wasn-t-very-impressed-read-the-fundraising-pack-for-diabetes-uk-i-ate-one-of-the-apples-i-bought-yesterday-and-settled-down-with-another-cup-of-tea-hum-i-could-try-catching-up-with-the-news-or-see-what-s-on-the-radio-facebook-would-be-another-possibility-it-was-on-with-the-telly-and-there-was-a-budget-special-if-you-believed-what-you-were-told-by-jeremy-hunt-the-tories-are-doing-a-marvellous-job-and-everything-is-going-to-be-splendid-soon-it-s-all-the-fault-of-the-pandemic-and-the-war-in-ukraine-and-nothing-to-do-with-their-13-years-in-power-i-decide-to-do-some-shopping-but-when-i-get-to-the-door-it-s-cold-with-rain-so-i-didn-t-go-i-had-another-apple-and-get-back-under-my-throw-blanket2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-16th-march-2023-i-can-take-the-despair-it-s-the-hope-i-can-t-stand-i-went-to-waterside-writers-this-morning-and-it-looks-very-promising-with-a-discussion-about-poetry-mike-sears-came-up-with-the-phrase-why-do-we-dream-of-liberty-at-one-point-i-m-not-exactly-sure-why-he-said-it-because-of-my-hearing-difficulty-as-the-meeting-went-on-i-started-writing-a-little-piece-using-it-as-the-first-line-barbra-read-out-the-draft-of-one-of-her-poems-and-handed-it-round-and-i-wrote-a-few-suggestions-on-what-i-thought-might-improve-it-peter-read-out-some-of-his-pieces-caught-the-8-back-to-hythe-with-peter-and-kim-had-lunch-at-be-be-s-and-then-got-the-9-back-to-holbury-andy-beat-me-at-scrabble-twice-as-is-almost-inevitable-winning-the-first-game-in-by-one-point-and-continued-revisiting-why-do-we-dream-of-liberty-i-can-take-the-despair-it-s-the-hope-i-can-t-stand2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-17th-march-2023-st-patrick-s-day-did-some-more-revision-to-why-do-we-dream-of-liberty-and-hung-up-my-dry-clothes-emailed-herald-and-advertiser-with-a-draft-of-why-do-we-dream-of-liberty-caught-the-bus-into-hythe-and-did-some-shopping-in-lidl-and-returned-home-i-was-tired-and-had-a-nap-and-missed-the-beginning-of-the-st-patrick-s-day-celebration-at-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-but-caught-the-later-bus-and-a-place-was-found-for-me-with-stewart-and-his-young-lady-i-asked-peter-who-helps-with-the-coffee-bar-his-name-trish-the-lady-vicar-introduced-herself-and-her-husband-richard-who-s-in-a-wheelchair-he-said-at-one-point-do-you-know-andy-burch-by-any-chance-i-replied-yes-you-must-be-richard-he-s-told-me-a-lot-about-you-said-richard-i-was-too-late-for-the-pizza-but-in-time-to-have-an-ice-cream-and-a-can-of-diet-pepsi-i-left-as-quickly-as-i-could-thinking-my-bus-might-be-any-moment-but-when-i-got-to-the-stop-and-looked-at-the-timetable-i-saw-it-was-a-long-time-before-the-next-bus-i-ll-get-some-exercise-and-run-to-one-of-the-stops-further-down-the-route-i-thought-and-buy-myself-something-to-eat-in-tesco-express-on-the-way-one-of-rory-s-friends-who-was-giving-him-a-lift-asked-me-if-i-d-like-one-too-so-i-didn-t-have-a-long-wait-at-the-bus-stop-after-all-it-seems-the-luck-of-the-irish-has-rubbed-off-on-me2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-18-march-2023-a-good-day-s-writing-i-intended-to-go-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-this-morning-but-it-was-warm-in-bed-when-did-get-up-i-got-onto-messenger-and-then-treated-myself-to-a-shower-i-put-the-washing-on-the-dryer-and-decided-to-do-some-more-work-on-my-memoir-anecdotal-evidence-it-went-really-well-telling-tales-of-traumatic-experiences-without-me-feeling-traumatised-time-is-a-great-healer-last-night-coming-home-from-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-the-car-stereo-system-was-playing-led-zeppelin-s-dazed-and-confused-i-ve-just-listened-to-it-again-this-afternoon-and-it-s-nightmare-ish-and-brought-back-a-another-memory-which-i-m-going-to-write-about-tomorrow-i-wanted-to-write-for-years-and-now-in-my-68-year-i-m-finally-ready2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-19-march-2023-i-went-to-marcella-margret-made-everyone-macaroni-cheese-and-aqid-did-some-garlic-bread-to-go-with-it-next-we-had-a-walk-to-the-marina-and-looked-out-across-the-water-to-southampton-i-think-it-was-margret-who-remarked-the-view-wasn-t-very-spectacular-we-looked-at-the-mud-flat-and-margret-said-there-s-an-annual-football-match-between-the-police-men-and-the-firefighters-after-marcella-i-did-some-shopping-in-lidl-and-as-there-was-a-long-wait-for-my-bus-i-had-a-coffee-in-costa-i-sitting-outside-to-enjoy-the-afternoon-sunshine-when-i-was-home-i-had-a-sleep-for-a-while-and-wrote-a-piece-called-it-s-a-shame-but-these-guys-die-it-wasn-t-exceptionally-good-but-at-least-i-d-done-something-unfortunately-i-accidentally-deleted-it-but-will-be-able-to-rewrite-it-tomorrow2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-20th-march-2023-a-rainy-monday-morning-the-sky-an-uninviting-grey-i-partly-rewrote-the-piece-of-anecdotal-evidence-which-i-d-started-on-sunday-but-accidentally-deleted-about-meeting-olivia-ran-along-to-the-bigger-co-op-and-bought-some-braeburn-apples-and-a-peppered-steak-slice-waited-at-the-bus-stop-when-i-saw-the-bus-reach-the-junction-i-thought-it-turned-the-wrong-direction-my-eyesight-must-be-getting-worse-i-arrived-at-october-books-and-found-a-seat-at-an-empty-table-a-couple-su-and-a-young-chap-mathew-who-was-carrying-a-musical-instrument-case-asked-me-if-i-minded-him-sitting-with-me-i-replied-please-help-yourself-i-see-you-re-a-musician-i-said-apparently-it-was-a-mandolin-which-had-just-been-fitted-with-a-pickup-and-the-neck-adjusted-a-young-lady-helen-joined-us-we-got-into-conversation-and-i-showed-them-my-sketch-book-and-told-her-about-my-blog-and-gave-them-one-of-my-promotional-cards-mathew-asked-me-if-i-played-any-instruments-i-replied-i-tried-playing-the-guitar-but-decided-there-s-enough-suffering-in-the-world-without-me-doing-that-and-gave-up-su-and-martin-when-they-d-finished-their-set-came-came-and-joined-us-they-re-friends-of-mathew-and-helen-i-said-my-goodbyes-and-went-into-the-bookshop-and-bought-orwell-s-politics-and-the-english-language-which-i-d-seen-the-previous-week-when-i-got-home-i-rewrote-the-part-of-my-memoir-anecdotal-evidence-which-i-d-accidentally-deleted-the-accident-seems-to-have-been-a-happy-accident-what-i-wrote-today-was-better-than-what-i-wrote-and-lost-yesterday-i-m-finding-getting-into-the-habit-of-writing-daily-is-paying-dividends2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-march-21-2023-spring-equinox-when-the-day-is-the-same-length-as-the-night-prior-to-today-i-didn-t-know-that-the-most-important-thing-i-did-today-was-go-into-southampton-and-take-steps-to-open-a-new-band-account-with-the-coop-bank-for-lunch-i-had-cottage-pie-at-be-be-s-the-reason-for-changing-banks-is-that-unlike-barclays-the-coop-bank-don-t-invest-in-fossil-fuels-there-s-no-doubt-in-my-mind-that-the-continued-use-of-fossil-fuels-will-have-dire-consequences-for-the-environment-and-i-want-to-do-all-i-can-to-avert-them-perhaps-it-s-only-a-small-contribution-but-it-s-the-best-i-can-do-i-caught-the-8-to-hythe-from-southampton-and-when-i-got-to-hythe-i-went-to-costa-and-much-to-my-surprise-barry-was-standing-outside-waiting-for-someone-we-had-a-chat-about-the-various-ailments-we-ve-developed-since-we-last-spoke-in-my-case-diabetes-and-glaucoma-and-he-s-developed-diabetes-i-showed-barry-my-sketch-book-and-he-was-complimentary-the-after-our-chat-i-was-walking-towards-the-bus-stop-and-my-bus-passed-me-i-tried-running-for-it-but-without-success-i-thought-rather-than-standing-round-i-would-get-some-exercise-and-have-a-run-and-did-i-felt-really-good-after-my-run-i-felt-marvellous-i-d-got-to-knighton-hall-and-had-a-runny-nose-so-went-into-the-tesco-store-and-bought-some-paper-hankies-it-was-a-short-wait-for-the-bus-home-the-only-unfortunate-things-about-the-day-were-that-i-forgot-to-go-to-waterside-art-group-and-i-forgot-to-book-a-blood-test2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-march-22ed-2023-like-yesterday-a-bright-and-blustery-day-third-time-lucky-with-the-trip-the-first-time-i-set-out-i-got-to-be-be-s-for-lunch-and-realised-i-d-forgotten-the-scrabble-set-so-returned-home-i-thought-i-d-make-use-of-the-few-spare-moments-writing-a-letter-to-an-old-friend-jim-but-as-i-was-distracted-forgot-the-scrabble-set-again-third-time-lucky-i-left-home-with-it-wonders-will-never-cease-although-things-weren-t-done-with-the-greatest-efficiency-there-were-some-happy-accidents-1-i-met-my-friend-michael-waiting-for-the-bus-when-i-got-off-it-at-hythe-2-i-met-nicola-in-be-be-s-when-i-was-having-lunch-3-i-had-a-brief-conversation-with-hopefully-a-new-friend-a-lady-called-michelle-whilst-waiting-for-the-west-totton-bus-she-s-a-teaching-assistant-who-lives-in-dibden-purlieu-i-gave-her-one-of-it-s-promotional-cards-4-got-some-exercise-running-to-the-bus-stops-it-s-said-that-heart-health-is-good-for-brain-health-and-judging-by-my-performance-today-my-brain-needs-all-the-help-it-can-get-5-had-a-chat-with-patrick-who-speculated-about-why-the-bus-drivers-sometimes-use-different-routes-i-would-never-have-thought-of-that-on-another-occasion-he-got-off-the-bus-at-one-of-the-mini-supermarkets-on-route-and-back-on-with-his-groceries-when-the-bus-route-came-back-on-itself-it-wouldn-t-have-occurred-to-me-to-do-that-6-met-pauline-and-introduced-her-to-my-blog-with-another-promotional-card-on-my-trip-back-from-hythe-to-holbury-andy-won-both-games-of-scrabble-and-gave-me-a-lift-home-it-was-a-good-day-and-i-m-flooded-with-endorphins-with-all-the-exercise-i-got2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-march-23-2023-in-the-early-hours-of-this-morning-i-woke-up-with-disturbing-thoughts-and-memories-when-got-up-i-did-a-little-more-work-on-my-memoir-anecdotal-evidence-and-received-an-email-from-the-herald-and-advertiser-saying-my-printing-was-ready-for-collection-there-s-a-quote-by-oscar-wild-every-saint-has-a-past-and-every-sinner-has-a-future-on-that-basis-i-guess-i-ve-got-a-future-nothing-out-of-the-ordinary-to-happened-to-me-in-hythe-after-getting-my-printing-done-which-i-paid-for-with-cash-i-went-to-the-hsbc-cash-point-and-found-someone-had-left-their-card-in-it-so-i-handed-it-in-it-to-the-cashier-she-said-they-would-destroy-it-i-looked-in-my-rucksack-for-my-sketch-pad-only-to-find-i-d-left-it-at-home-i-had-a-coffee-in-black-wax-coffee-and-records-where-there-were-no-dogs-and-came-home-i-had-a-benefit-check-with-simon-cox-from-the-rnib-which-showed-i-m-getting-everything-i-m-entitled-to-slept-for-a-while-and-made-myself-a-meal-not-the-most-action-packed-day-of-gallivanting-in-all-history2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-march-24th-2023-today-is-another-chapter-in-the-stories-of-the-treatment-of-my-diabetes-and-my-attempt-to-become-a-writer-first-i-had-booked-an-appointment-at-the-general-hospital-for-a-blood-test-for-200-i-got-up-late-and-didn-t-really-want-to-face-the-day-deciding-that-it-would-be-possible-to-fit-in-a-quick-shower-before-my-appointment-it-wasn-t-so-i-cancelled-it-and-booked-another-for-1616-which-because-of-the-roadworks-on-the-bridge-going-into-southampton-from-the-waterside-i-made-without-a-moment-to-spare-i-decided-the-best-way-to-get-to-portswood-from-the-general-was-to-get-the-bus-back-to-the-civic-centre-and-from-there-get-another-bus-to-portswood-when-i-got-to-portswood-i-it-was-530-and-the-portswood-writers-circle-meeting-was-scheduled-to-start-at-630-so-to-use-up-the-spare-time-i-bought-some-fish-and-chips-in-a-kabob-shop-with-some-diet-pepsi-it-was-possibly-one-of-the-most-underwhelming-culinary-experiences-my-my-lifetime-the-outside-of-the-fish-was-practically-burnt-to-a-cinder-and-it-was-hot-enough-to-burn-my-tongue-i-found-the-writing-circle-intimidating-with-the-work-that-was-read-out-of-a-very-high-standard-i-d-got-my-why-do-we-dream-of-liberty-verse-out-but-chickened-out-of-reading-it-if-i-continue-with-them-i-will-be-able-to-learn-a-lot2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-march-25-2023-this-morning-i-stayed-in-bed-too-long-to-go-for-my-usual-outing-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-it-s-the-second-saturday-i-ve-missed-it-i-wanted-to-take-my-blood-sugar-but-have-lost-the-test-strips-for-the-meter-so-i-ran-to-boots-to-get-some-more-test-strips-using-the-lampposts-along-the-way-as-sub-goals-on-the-way-what-i-do-is-run-to-the-next-lamppost-and-then-the-one-after-it-each-time-running-as-fast-as-possible-the-way-to-achieve-any-goal-is-to-break-it-down-into-easily-achievable-sub-goals-i-have-been-thinking-about-writing-rather-than-writing-today-which-is-an-unsatisfactory-state-of-affairs-it-s-now-getting-on-for-six-o-clock-and-all-i-ve-done-is-this-blog-post-it-s-time-i-cooked-myself-something-as-an-evening-meal-a-little-while-ago-i-bought-a-nut-loaf-as-something-new-to-try-that-will-be-this-evening-s-dinner-by-the-end-of-the-day-i-had-been-out-twice-once-to-boots-to-get-a-prescription-and-once-to-one-stop-to-buy-cereal-milk-and-chocolate-i-had-done-no-writing-except-this-blog-post2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-march-26-2023-a-happy-almost-gallivant-free-day-the-plan-was-to-go-to-marcella-and-do-some-shopping-in-hythe-but-i-was-in-one-of-my-inert-moods-and-stayed-in-and-did-a-bit-more-to-anecdotal-evidence-the-part-i-focused-on-was-the-period-when-i-was-playing-at-being-a-buddhist-and-met-up-with-a-group-of-others-who-were-in-a-similar-semi-delusional-state-i-messaged-kat-and-kathy-ran-round-the-block-and-did-a-little-shopping-in-the-co-op-bought-some-cheese-and-made-a-bacon-and-mushroom-risotto-went-to-bed-early-woke-up-at-about-three-in-the-morning-and-had-a-chat-with-patrick-where-i-played-at-selling-him-my-latest-picture-see-above-i-now-know-what-i-ll-write-about-next-time-i-m-working-on-anecdotal-evidence2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-march-27-2023-early-this-morning-i-looked-at-the-jackson-s-art-supplies-email-and-a-piece-about-the-value-artists-place-on-keeping-sketch-books-and-making-daily-entries-in-them-this-prompted-me-to-put-my-sketch-book-in-my-rucksack-so-i-could-do-some-sketching-today-i-went-into-hythe-to-pick-up-the-printing-i-d-required-from-the-herald-and-advertiser-had-a-coffee-and-a-cinnamon-twirl-outside-of-number-15-it-was-a-bright-spring-morning-and-the-sun-gently-warmed-my-neck-which-was-very-pleasant-as-it-was-a-monday-it-was-veg-out-day-at-october-books-when-i-got-there-i-was-greeted-by-one-of-the-young-ladies-who-was-serving-the-food-after-i-d-eaten-i-did-some-more-sketching-and-neil-made-a-friendly-remark-about-it-i-bought-some-onions-mushrooms-and-pickled-garlic-in-roebridges-a-fruit-and-vegetables-shop-near-october-books-and-caught-the-bus-back-to-southampton-when-i-arrived-in-southampton-i-went-to-the-works-and-bought-a-set-of-water-colours-and-brushes-in-the-works-i-wanted-to-add-colour-to-my-sketchbook-drawings-then-it-was-time-to-catch-the-bus-home-my-plan-for-tomorrow-tuesday-28-3-2023-is-to-start-an-oil-painting-during-the-waterside-art-group-session-based-on-the-lake-in-the-park-near-to-where-i-live-the-painting-will-be-based-on-a-photograph-which-i-shall-email-to-the-herald-and-advertiser-for-printing2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-march-28-2023-the-cable-on-my-latest-throw-blanket-is-broken-so-that-it-no-longer-keeps-me-warm-i-got-up-at-six-this-morning-and-took-my-blood-sugar-reading-which-was-within-the-target-range-an-email-arrived-from-the-herald-and-advertiser-telling-me-my-printing-had-been-done-so-i-caught-the-bus-into-hythe-it-was-a-cold-wet-missable-morning-a-lady-at-the-bus-stop-in-holbury-remarked-wonderful-weather-i-replied-do-i-detect-a-note-of-irony-i-picked-up-my-printing-and-realised-next-i-d-left-my-sketchbook-behind-so-bought-another-one-in-pebbles-for-1270-which-struck-me-as-expensive-in-the-article-about-artists-sketchbooks-i-d-recently-red-it-said-it-s-usual-for-artists-to-have-three-going-at-the-same-time-so-buying-another-wasn-t-out-of-order-then-i-went-on-to-black-wax-coffee-and-records-which-was-very-crowed-but-i-found-a-seat-and-ordered-coffee-there-was-an-old-fashioned-radio-in-front-of-me-which-i-had-a-go-at-drawing-but-not-very-successfully-so-my-attention-wondered-and-i-did-drawings-of-the-details-of-the-posters-at-one-point-i-wondered-where-my-coffee-was-and-was-about-to-ask-what-had-happened-to-it-when-i-looked-in-front-of-me-and-there-it-was-i-d-been-so-absorbed-in-what-i-was-doing-on-the-bus-back-to-holbury-i-noticed-during-my-ride-home-that-after-doing-the-drawing-today-i-was-more-observant-than-usual-another-reason-for-keeping-a-sketch-book-is-it-improves-visual-awareness-it-was-waterside-art-group-this-evening-i-set-up-my-ipad-so-that-the-alarm-went-off-to-tell-me-when-to-set-out-for-the-bus-to-hythe-and-when-to-set-out-for-my-return-journey-home-at-the-art-group-i-roughed-out-the-basic-areas-of-my-picture-using-a-graphite-stick-and-it-s-starting-to-take-shape-although-the-finished-picture-isn-t-likely-to-look-like-the-place-it-s-based-on-i-had-a-few-words-with-an-irish-lady-bernadette-who-was-doing-a-watercolour-of-a-group-of-penguins-and-showed-her-how-to-do-highlights-in-watercolour-by-applying-water-got-home-and-settled-down-with-a-cup-of-tea2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-march-29-2023-i-was-late-getting-to-sleep-last-night-because-of-the-cold-and-turned-the-heating-on-so-i-was-late-getting-up-this-morning-the-air-in-my-room-must-have-been-dry-i-was-very-thirsty-or-perhaps-it-s-my-diabetes-got-a-message-from-andy-saying-he-s-ill-and-to-reschedule-our-scrabble-until-friday-i-checked-my-mobile-there-was-a-missed-call-from-the-gp-s-surgery-i-phoned-them-and-spoke-to-the-secretarymy-hb1c-is-low-and-i-m-to-recommence-the-lantis-injections-spoke-to-the-duty-pharmacist-at-boots-holbury-and-it-looks-like-my-blood-sugar-is-low-i-m-shaky-she-suggested-i-have-a-sugary-drink-added-some-sand-mixed-with-pva-to-my-latest-painting-but-it-was-difficult-with-my-shaky-hands2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-march-30-2023-the-plan-for-today-was-to-go-to-waterside-writers-this-morning-and-had-a-call-from-the-diabetes-nurse-this-afternoon-but-i-didn-t-go-to-waterside-writers-and-don-t-know-why-not-i-haven-t-done-much-writing-recently-and-as-i-write-this-i-m-not-sure-if-i-ve-got-any-talent-for-writing-my-diabetes-is-nicely-under-control-it-s-been-one-of-my-lethargic-apathetic-sort-of-days-the-sort-of-day-i-ve-had-many-of-been-sleeping-rather-than-gallivanting-couldn-t-be-bothered-cooking-this-evening-so-went-and-got-myself-pie-and-chips-tomorrow-i-m-playing-scrabble-with-andy-in-the-afternoon-and-have-a-diabetic-eye-screening-appointment-in-the-morning-let-s-hope-i-m-feeling-more-motivated-tomorrow2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-march-31-2023-i-had-breakfast-in-be-be-s-before-my-eye-screening-appointment-it-seemed-to-go-okay-but-my-eyes-stung-and-i-remarked-i-m-glad-this-is-only-once-a-year-as-my-recent-blood-sugar-readings-were-pre-diabetic-i-imagine-today-is-a-formality-before-andy-came-round-i-had-a-sleep-in-the-afternoon-i-played-scrabble-with-andy-and-much-to-my-surprise-won-both-games-we-booked-our-train-trip-to-bournemouth-for-next-wednesday-and-have-agreed-to-meet-at-the-subway-near-the-station-at-1200-for-our-train-which-is-due-at-12562025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-april-1-2023-got-up-later-than-i-planned-too-late-to-go-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-there-was-an-item-on-facebook-saying-how-important-it-is-to-spend-time-wisely-which-made-me-reflect-that-much-of-my-time-hasn-t-been-put-to-good-use-eventually-i-went-to-hythe-had-lunch-at-be-be-s-scampi-beans-and-chips-and-did-some-shopping-in-lidl-and-caught-the-bus-home-there-had-been-a-major-accident-in-holbury-drove-and-the-bus-was-diverted-which-meant-i-had-to-walk-from-the-kfc-bus-stop-back-to-my-bungalow-some-extra-exercise-which-i-hadn-t-bargained-for-when-i-got-home-i-slept-until-about-900pm-caught-up-with-friends-on-facebook-and-had-some-tea-not-a-day-of-great-gallivanting2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-april-2-2023-as-is-often-the-case-i-was-reluctant-to-get-out-of-bed-this-morning-but-somehow-overcame-my-inertia-and-ran-to-the-bus-stop-to-catch-the-bus-into-hythe-it-was-a-sunny-day-and-the-first-thing-i-did-was-to-buy-a-cheese-and-ham-toasty-in-be-be-s-it-occurred-to-me-as-i-write-this-all-things-considered-i-spend-a-lot-of-my-money-there-i-continued-on-to-marcella-which-today-for-me-was-uneventful-but-it-s-good-to-have-somewhere-familiar-to-go-after-marcella-i-did-some-shopping-in-lidl-and-bought-myself-a-piece-of-sirloin-steak-for-my-evening-meal-when-i-got-home-i-cooked-it-in-my-air-fryer-and-did-a-jacket-potato-mixed-vegetables-fried-onion-and-mushrooms-with-gravy-to-go-with-it-it-was-a-good-meal-but-disappointing-the-potato-and-vegetables-were-cold-and-the-steak-tough-if-i-d-cooked-the-steak-longer-and-given-the-potato-and-vegetables-longer-in-the-microwave-it-would-have-been-an-improvement2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-april-3-2023-it-was-a-bright-sunny-day-in-accordance-with-my-weekly-routine-i-went-to-october-books-for-the-veg-out-lunch-did-a-little-sketching-but-wasn-t-really-in-the-mood-there-was-a-singer-with-an-electric-guitar-who-was-the-entertainer-for-the-session-neil-kelly-served-me-the-food-in-order-to-get-some-money-for-my-contribution-for-my-meal-i-bought-a-pizza-in-portswood-waitrose-a-couple-of-days-earlier-i-d-run-out-of-cod-liver-oil-capsules-and-i-stopped-off-at-boots-holbury-to-buy-some-more-along-with-another-packet-of-masks-i-thought-about-why-my-working-life-had-been-so-unsuccessful-the-problem-was-that-despite-getting-my-hnd-i-didn-t-know-the-basics-of-english-and-maths-this-came-home-when-i-was-writing-thirty-mostly-quirky-tales2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-april-4-2023-i-surfaced-at-about-1200-as-i-was-unable-to-get-much-sleep-last-night-began-the-day-by-taking-my-blood-sugar-and-messaging-a-couple-of-friends-i-planned-to-do-some-housework-but-it-never-got-beyond-the-planning-stage-another-intention-was-to-do-a-slow-cooked-beef-stew-but-that-didn-t-get-done-either-and-i-was-scheduled-to-go-to-hythe-market-this-morning-another-failed-deadline-i-gave-my-memoir-a-little-thought-but-didn-t-actually-do-any-work-on-it-and-what-i-thought-will-probably-be-of-no-use-this-evening-was-waterside-art-group-and-i-actually-went-to-that-spent-the-time-filling-in-colour-on-my-latest-painting-and-i-m-reasonably-pleased-with-how-it-s-coming-on-i-felt-nice-and-stroppy-as-i-painted-painting-is-a-great-way-to-burn-off-pent-up-anger-caught-the-bus-home-although-for-some-reason-i-don-t-understand-the-ticket-machine-wouldn-t-accept-my-bus-pass-had-a-word-with-bernadette-on-the-way-out-she-s-going-to-switch-from-watercolours-to-large-abstract-oil-paintings-everything-is-now-sent-for-the-bournemouth-trip-tomorrow2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-april-4-2023-the-start-of-my-2023-diary-adventure-fundraising-for-diabetes-uk-as-is-my-usual-habit-i-set-my-alarm-so-i-had-ten-minutes-before-the-bus-was-due-it-avoids-unnecessary-waiting-around-i-was-about-three-quarters-of-the-way-to-the-stop-when-i-realised-i-forgotten-my-mobile-which-was-an-essential-for-staying-in-touch-with-my-friend-andy-burch-aka-the-scallywag-i-would-just-have-to-run-back-home-and-get-it-and-there-was-now-a-real-possibility-of-not-getting-to-the-train-on-time-and-the-whole-day-messed-up-so-off-i-went-full-pelt-to-get-my-mobile-full-pelt-isn-t-exactly-an-olympic-gold-medalist-s-speed-i-m-68-and-have-a-tough-of-rheumatism-in-my-knees-but-i-managed-to-get-the-mobile-and-back-to-the-bus-stop-in-time-then-the-bus-arrived-late-whilst-on-the-bus-i-sent-the-scallywag-a-text-message-that-said-i-would-be-late-it-seemed-a-reasonable-assumption-ho%C5%B5ever-when-i-got-to-frobisher-house-where-i-had-arranged-to-meet-him-in-the-subway-he-wasn-t-there-when-i-got-to-the-bus-stop-i-realised-i-d-lost-my-diabetes-uk-hat-now-what-shall-i-do-i-wondered-and-made-my-way-towards-the-station-i-heard-him-which-was-a-lucky-break-i-m-deaf-in-my-right-ear-and-it-was-lunchtime-my-plan-was-that-we-would-eat-in-subway-but-we-decided-because-it-wasn-t-long-before-the-train-would-arrive-to-get-a-snack-in-the-coop-one-of-the-essentials-of-diabetes-management-is-eating-regularly-it-s-also-important-for-controlling-epilepsy-which-another-of-my-maladies-we-had-our-snack-and-got-on-the-train-and-were-off-at-one-point-the-train-passed-brockenhurst-college-where-we-had-both-taken-courses-i-did-a-city-and-guilds-course-in-photography-and-i-m-afraid-i-think-the-scallywag-did-a-gcse-in-ceramics-i-d-taken-the-course-about-the-turn-of-the-century-and-used-a-dark-room-develop-films-which-i-imagine-is-now-no-longer-in-use-during-the-train-journey-i-did-some-sketches-the-scallywag-not-wanting-to-be-drawn-made-stringent-efforts-to-hide-his-face-i-lived-in-bournemouth-through-most-of-my-childhood-had-my-first-jobs-and-a-good-deal-of-my-chi2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-april-11-2023-i-last-did-an-entry-for-april-4-and-here-i-am-on-april-11-at-this-rate-it-might-be-wise-to-rename-my-blog-ivor-s-occasional-gallivant-rather-than-try-and-cover-the-lost-ground-i-m-going-to-leave-a-gap-whilst-i-write-this-there-s-heavy-rain-outside-pounding-on-my-conservatory-roof-i-was-up-early-this-morning-when-the-weather-was-comparatively-fine-i-ran-round-the-block-and-am-feeling-good-had-a-messenger-chat-with-rick-who-s-got-health-issues-to-deal-with-i-went-to-bournemouth-on-the-bus-meeting-isabell-on-the-bus-stop-when-i-got-to-hythe-i-picked-up-my-printing-from-the-herald-and-advertiser-office-and-had-hunters-chicken-in-be-be-s-i-met-paul-and-his-daughter-in-be-s-i-had-a-word-with-her-she-s-9-and-says-she-loves-woodcraft-i-said-i-wish-i-was-9-again-my-planned-routine-is-to-go-along-to-the-waterside-art-group-this-evening-but-with-the-weather-the-way-it-is-cold-and-rainy-i-decided-against-going2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-april-12-2023-a-busy-day-but-a-day-without-gallivant-as-such-when-i-started-preparing-plans-for-the-next-2023-diary-adventures-and-something-else-which-could-prove-more-important-and-more-profitable-ran-to-the-co-op-and-back-buying-chillis-in-the-cut-price-section-pink-lady-apples-and-japanese-rice-snacks-did-some-cooking-quorn-mince-with-onions-peppers-chestnut-mushrooms-tinned-tomatoes-with-chilli-and-garlic-with-pasta-and-an-apple-i-had-a-messenger-conversation-with-a-friend-who-it-was-worried-that-what-is-in-all-probability-piles-but-could-be-something-more-serious-where-i-assured-him-using-google-to-back-up-my-argument-that-bowl-cancer-is-less-common-by-a-sizeable-margin-than-piles-this-prompted-me-to-write-an-article-suggesting-people-are-given-information-about-how-unlikely-serious-outcomes-are-and-how-giving-them-this-information-would-cut-down-their-stress-before-christmas-i-found-the-television-looked-blurred-which-surprised-me-as-i-had-recently-had-new-glasses-fitted-was-it-my-eyes-or-was-the-telly-on-the-blink-i-wondered-and-decided-the-former-rather-than-the-latter-was-the-most-likely-explanation-so-went-to-my-optician-and-they-told-me-i-had-glaucoma-like-my-mother-oh-merry-christmas-i-said-and-went-for-christmas-dinner-at-a-local-restaurant-to-cheer-myself-up-a-friend-advised-me-not-to-worry-about-it-but-i-remembered-reading-some-advice-for-students-with-exams-don-t-worry-work-a-couple-of-days-later-in-a-more-rational-state-of-mind-i-went-to-the-library-and-they-printed-out-the-rnib-leaflet-on-glaucoma-for-me-it-would-have-saved-me-a-lot-of-anxiety-and-i-would-have-arranged-the-follow-up-steps-a-lot-quicker-if-the-optician-had-referred-me-to-the-rnib-straight-away-why-not-make-it-standard-practice-for-opticians-to-print-out-the-rnib-leaflet-as-standard-practice-a-friend-told-me-on-messenger-yesterday-he-was-worried-he-might-be-bowl-cancer-because-of-blood-from-his-back-passage-and-in-his-poo-i-suggested-contacting-his-gp-as-soon-as-possible-which-wasn-t-easy-with-the-current-strike-conditions-i-asked-2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-april-13th-2023-if-we-were-to-believe-the-superstitious-in-our-midst-this-would-be-an-unlucky-day-but-my-experience-today-suggests-that-is-complete-bunkum-or-if-not-actually-complete-bunkum-a-sizeable-portion-of-bunkum-one-of-the-first-things-i-did-was-to-go-for-a-run-round-the-block-and-when-i-d-finished-i-felt-amazing-and-i-knocked-about-two-minutes-off-yesterday-s-time-i-woke-at-six-and-decided-to-stay-in-bed-until-seven-and-when-the-alarm-didn-t-go-off-and-i-looked-at-the-time-it-was-four-minutes-past-seven-which-to-those-with-a-really-keen-eye-on-the-clock-would-be-a-tragedy-of-epic-proportions-but-for-me-a-happy-retiree-no-big-deal-i-have-a-personal-adage-life-s-too-short-to-hurry-and-now-i-m-happily-retired-it-is-very-true-i-looked-at-facebook-and-saw-it-s-the-birthday-of-one-of-my-friends-which-is-further-proof-that-the-thirteenth-unlucky-is-bunkum-i-worked-through-various-bits-and-pieces-towards-the-2023-diary-adventure-project-which-went-well-and-set-out-to-southampton-to-sort-out-my-new-bank-account-and-do-some-shopping-as-i-ran-to-the-bus-stop-it-started-to-rain-and-then-the-rain-turned-to-hail-of-course-this-could-be-put-down-to-bad-luck-but-from-my-prospective-it-was-unfavourable-climatic-conditions-on-the-bus-i-met-patrick-and-we-discussed-various-things-which-i-would-be-better-able-to-recount-if-we-weren-t-both-of-us-a-little-hard-of-hearing-anyway-despite-our-difficulties-we-had-an-agreeable-chat-he-had-a-look-at-my-blog-and-said-he-d-kept-a-diary-when-he-was-11-and-described-the-various-types-of-blogs-that-are-written-come-to-think-of-it-i-started-a-childhood-diary-which-went-wrong-where-i-fell-behind-on-the-daily-entries-another-problem-with-my-early-diary-was-the-spelling-where-i-said-i-had-a-cup-of-ten-rather-than-a-cup-of-tea-a-more-literate-acquaintance-the-majority-people-in-those-days-pointed-out-the-error-finding-extremely-amusing-it-s-funny-how-you-lose-touch-with-people-i-showed-patrick-one-of-the-sketchbooks-which-i-d-intended-to-add-to-but-found-when-i-actually-started-work-on-it-i-d-le2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-april-14-2023-i-did-go-out-today-but-descending-it-as-a-gallivant-is-inaccurate-but-i-use-gallivant-in-an-attempt-at-humour-and-hope-my-readers-if-there-s-more-than-one-of-you-will-excuse-a-little-poetic-license-every-once-in-a-while-i-woke-early-but-felt-rough-my-cold-was-in-full-throws-i-have-reasoned-it-s-not-covid-and-think-it-is-caused-by-using-a-throw-blanket-in-a-cold-room-when-i-get-up-i-get-chilled-which-doesn-t-help-my-cold-i-went-out-with-two-things-that-needed-doing-fix-my-mobile-so-it-charges-and-sort-out-my-bank-account-my-mobile-was-the-cheapest-on-offer-in-tesco-and-i-have-a-top-up-pay-as-you-go-contract-for-it-which-as-i-use-it-sparingly-is-ideal-a-more-expensive-phone-with-a-better-contract-with-my-level-of-usage-would-be-a-complete-waste-of-money-it-was-almost-lunchtime-when-i-got-to-hythe-and-i-stopped-off-at-be-be-s-for-a-meal-there-was-a-new-item-on-the-menu-pasta-bake-with-mince-which-i-ordered-as-i-always-try-to-be-a-little-adventurous-with-my-food-it-came-with-either-salad-or-chips-i-chose-salad-because-it-s-more-diabetic-friendly-after-lunch-i-continued-on-to-applemore-tesco-and-bought-a-new-lead-for-my-mobile-which-is-now-happily-charging-then-onto-my-bank-when-i-got-home-there-was-a-package-waiting-for-me-i-opened-it-and-it-was-the-insulin-holder-which-i-d-ordered-i-would-now-be-able-to-go-on-holiday-more-easily-and-i-might-use-it-when-i-went-on-my-2023-diary-adventure-my-plan-for-the-evening-meal-was-a-tin-of-soap-but-i-looked-in-my-fridge-and-there-was-vine-tomatoes-corned-beef-mayonnaise-and-buttery-spread-i-had-a-hovis-loaf-and-some-english-mustard-so-i-left-the-soup-for-another-day-and-had-a-corned-beef-and-tomato-sandwich-with-mustard-and-mayonnaise-as-my-gran-used-to-say-how-the-poor-live-once-i-finish-this-post-i-ll-go-into-the-kitchen-put-the-oven-on-make-a-sandwich-for-tomorrow-and-cut-my-chestnut-mushrooms-up-and-put-them-in-the-freezer-i-used-to-just-have-the-cheaper-mushrooms-but-discovered-the-chestnut-mushrooms-are-tastier-as-my-dad-used-to-say-to-hell-with-the-expense-give-t2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-april-15-2023-i-still-haven-t-thrown-off-this-cold-and-am-wondering-if-it-s-covid-so-after-treating-myself-to-a-shower-phoned-the-pharmacy-to-see-what-the-procedure-was-for-picking-up-a-test-kit-the-test-kits-don-t-amount-to-a-lot-and-cost-2-which-was-expensive-i-phoned-margret-and-told-her-i-had-a-really-bad-cold-and-was-testing-for-covid-to-make-sure-i-was-safe-before-i-got-up-this-morning-i-was-thinking-about-food-cooking-it-and-eating-it-last-night-i-coated-the-beef-for-my-stew-in-flour-mixed-with-salt-pepper-and-mixed-herbs-in-the-frying-plan-i-was-cooking-the-onions-and-when-they-were-done-i-spooned-them-into-the-slow-cooker-taking-each-piece-out-individually-and-placed-it-in-the-olive-oil-i-saw-a-youtube-video-about-microwaving-sweet-potatoes-and-bought-some-coconut-oil-cinnamon-and-kitchen-paper-so-i-could-try-it-as-i-cooked-the-beef-i-put-each-of-the-pork-chops-from-the-family-pack-into-a-separate-plastic-bag-and-put-the-bags-in-the-top-of-the-freezer-in-the-frying-plan-i-put-dissolved-an-oxo-cube-and-added-the-remaining-flour-and-used-my-balloon-whisk-to-stop-lumps-forming-next-i-added-a-tin-of-chopped-tomato-and-chilli-and-once-everything-was-properly-mixed-added-it-to-the-meat-and-onions-and-finally-added-some-chestnut-mushrooms-the-remains-of-a-jar-of-english-mustard-and-some-worcesters-sauce-it-was-going-to-be-a-meal-like-no-other-i-ate-some-with-a-microwaved-jacket-potato-and-put-the-remainder-of-the-mixture-in-two-foil-dishes-and-put-them-in-the-freezer-for-when-they-were-needed-by-evening-i-d-still-got-my-cold-and-was-tired-so-i-had-another-cup-of-tea-and-went-to-bed2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-april-16-2023-another-day-with-no-gallivant-to-speak-of-still-got-this-cold-i-crawled-out-of-bed-later-than-usual-and-had-a-bowl-of-fruit-and-fibre-and-an-apple-still-not-100-it-was-back-to-bed-for-me-i-googled-dealing-with-the-common-cold-and-it-suggested-rest-and-fluids-so-that-s-what-i-m-doing-my-throw-blanket-is-keeping-me-warm-and-i-can-always-drink-another-cup-of-tea-for-my-midday-which-i-had-a-corned-beef-and-sweet-pickle-sandwich-the-pickle-was-an-own-brand-variety-rather-than-a-special-branded-type-but-i-doubt-if-anyone-could-tell-the-difference-or-at-least-i-can-t-especially-when-i-ve-got-a-cold-what-with-one-thing-and-another-my-bungalow-is-a-mess-there-would-be-too-much-to-do-if-i-just-settled-down-to-do-it-all-in-a-single-session-so-today-i-did-a-little-work-on-the-bathroom-setting-my-kitchen-timer-for-half-an-hour-to-give-me-cut-off-point-by-the-time-my-alarm-went-off-i-was-pleasantly-surprised-with-how-much-i-d-got-done-nothing-for-it-but-treat-myself-to-a-drop-more-tea-and-decide-what-to-do-with-the-rest-of-the-day-i-chose-to-look-up-a-few-more-of-the-coastal-locations-in-preparation-for-the-2023-diary-adventures-fundraiser-scheme-for-my-evening-meal-i-took-out-a-foil-tray-labelled-savoury-mince-which-i-heated-in-the-microwave-and-had-with-rice-i-ve-been-eating-potatoes-most-days-and-recently-had-pasta-so-rice-will-be-a-change-after-some-thought-i-decided-i-would-run-to-the-co-op-and-see-if-they-had-some-salad-in-their-cut-price-section-but-they-didn-t-however-i-bought-some-king-pawns-and-two-scotch-eggs-at-reduced-prices-and-treated-myself-to-two-orange-twirls-justifying-the-purchase-by-the-fact-my-blood-sugar-was-well-within-target-range-this-morning-when-i-came-back-from-running-to-and-from-the-co-op-i-felt-great-and-thought-i-m-soon-going-to-shift-this-cold-after-eating-i-watched-the-telly-for-a-while-and-decided-to-go-to-bed2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-april-17-2023-got-up-at-about-ten-and-i-still-haven-t-shifted-my-cold-so-will-skip-lunch-at-october-books-but-the-good-news-is-i-m-on-the-mend-no-matter-i-can-do-a-little-more-towards-my-ongoing-campaign-to-make-my-bungalow-look-like-it-s-inhabited-by-a-civilised-human-being-by-doing-half-an-hour-hoovering-which-will-bring-me-nicely-up-to-lunchtime-when-i-ll-finish-off-the-corned-beef-in-the-fridge-as-i-wrote-the-above-my-mobile-rang-but-i-couldn-t-find-it-immediately-because-it-had-fallen-into-my-armchair-when-i-did-it-was-the-bank-texting-saying-they-wanted-to-help-me-make-the-most-of-my-money-promoting-their-savings-products-was-of-course-never-in-their-thoughts-and-a-friend-had-tried-to-call-me-yesterday-i-tried-calling-her-on-my-landline-without-success-and-then-sent-a-text-message-which-with-my-cheap-and-cheerful-mobile-wasn-t-easy-then-i-realised-i-had-been-trying-to-phone-and-text-the-wrong-number-so-i-phoned-the-correct-number-and-got-through-after-our-chat-it-was-now-lunchtime-so-i-had-the-second-of-the-especially-tasty-scotch-eggs-which-i-d-bought-in-the-reduced-to-clear-section-of-the-co-op-with-some-pickle-and-a-cup-of-tea-rather-than-having-a-corned-beef-sandwich-as-planned-even-when-i-m-alone-my-anarchist-spirit-prevails-i-picked-up-the-rubbish-which-was-on-my-living-room-floor-so-that-i-could-do-the-hoovering-then-kitchen-timer-sounded-indicating-half-an-hour-had-passed-so-i-dutifully-downed-tools-and-treated-myself-to-a-tea-tomorrow-i-will-be-able-to-do-some-more-after-tea-i-ll-do-half-an-hour-on-my-latest-painting-whilst-doing-the-tidying-i-noticed-a-discarded-painting-in-my-spare-bedroom-and-thought-with-some-work-it-could-be-improved-also-i-ordered-a-portable-chair-from-that-prominent-online-retailer-whose-name-never-passes-my-lips-the-chair-is-for-use-on-painting-trips-and-waiting-at-bus-stops-i-googled-dealing-with-a-cold-and-it-suggested-rest-fluids-and-fresh-air-so-i-ran-to-the-one-stop-which-gave-me-exercise-and-fresh-air-and-bought-a-bottle-of-robinsons-orange-juice-and-checked-it-is-sugar-fr2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-april-18-2023-woke-up-at-about-1030-my-cold-is-better-but-i-ve-still-not-completely-recovered-got-up-took-my-meds-checked-my-blood-sugar-and-ate-some-breakfast-an-apple-and-some-fruit-and-fibre-got-a-text-through-about-my-diabetes-foot-screening-appointment-next-thursday-at-hythe-hospital-i-was-expecting-it-to-be-at-blackfield-health-centre-so-a-disaster-has-been-avoided-i-decided-it-s-too-late-to-go-to-hythe-market-today-as-it-was-almost-midday-when-i-finished-my-breakfast-for-lunch-i-finished-off-the-corned-beef-making-a-sandwich-with-some-mayonnaise-with-it-and-more-tea-my-plan-was-to-do-the-hoovering-next-but-decided-postpone-it-and-write-a-letter-to-a-friend-it-was-1431-when-i-finished-the-letter-and-i-sent-it-off-to-the-herald-and-advertiser-to-be-printed-at-1519-finally-i-did-my-half-hour-hoovering-ration-for-the-day-and-my-living-room-is-looking-more-civilised-by-1645-it-had-rained-and-was-colder-i-decided-to-miss-waterside-art-group-and-settle-down-for-a-warm-evening-under-my-throw-blanket-my-portable-chair-arrived-and-i-m-planning-to-leave-opening-on-my-birthday-i-treated-myself-to-a-portion-of-the-frozen-beef-stew-i-made-a-few-days-earlier-with-some-pasta-to-go-with-it-without-wishing-to-brag-it-was-delicious-1833-later-in-the-evening-i-tried-microwaving-a-sweet-potato-with-coconut-oil-and-cinnamon-sadly-it-was-underwhelming-not-much-favour-and-dry2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-april-19-2023-last-night-i-set-the-alarm-on-my-ipad-for-800-when-it-sounded-this-morning-i-didn-t-respond-at-1200-i-finally-drained-to-actually-rouse-myself-my-first-thought-was-i-d-missed-my-diabetes-foot-screening-appointment-but-looked-at-my-organiser-and-it-s-not-until-tomorrow-i-treated-myself-to-a-ham-sandwich-and-realised-i-hadn-t-taken-my-blood-sugar-reading-but-reasoned-that-as-had-been-well-within-target-range-for-quite-a-while-so-it-wasn-t-a-tragedy-the-most-important-thing-for-me-to-do-today-was-get-my-co-op-bank-app-working-so-when-the-transfer-was-completed-i-d-be-able-to-check-my-balance-daily-which-is-my-usual-practice-so-i-ran-to-the-bus-stop-in-the-interest-of-keeping-fit-my-usual-practice-and-when-i-got-there-felt-better-for-the-exertion-there-were-a-couple-of-young-ladies-at-the-bus-stop-with-a-pram-one-of-them-with-cigarette-when-i-got-into-town-and-was-at-the-bank-getting-my-app-sorted-out-was-child-s-play-i-realised-i-didn-t-have-a-sketch-pad-with-me-so-went-into-the-works-and-bought-the-cheapest-one-i-could-find-250-then-i-found-i-didn-t-have-a-pen-to-draw-with-and-decided-there-s-loads-of-pens-at-home-and-buying-another-was-wasteful-i-asked-the-lady-who-served-me-in-the-works-how-she-was-and-she-said-it-was-nice-to-be-at-work-because-her-daughter-is-a-lippy-13-year-old-i-remarked-i-m-sure-she-s-not-all-bad-and-the-lady-agreed-i-had-a-coffee-checked-no-one-had-handed-in-my-diabetes-uk-hat-with-blue-star-lost-property-which-they-hadn-t-bought-a-loaf-and-a-piece-of-ginger-in-lidl-and-caught-the-bus-home-i-was-undecided-what-to-have-as-my-evening-meal-there-was-the-fish-balls-i-d-bought-in-the-chinese-supermarket-which-i-cooked-in-a-saucepan-with-some-of-the-peppers-i-d-frozen-some-frozen-cauliflower-and-broccoli-one-of-the-cut-priced-chillis-from-a-recent-previous-shopping-trips-i-mixed-in-a-vegetable-stock-for-carbs-i-did-a-couple-of-slices-of-toast-it-tasted-good-a-couple-of-unfortunate-things-happened-the-handle-of-my-frying-plan-fell-off-and-i-set-fire-to-the-handle-of-one-of-my-knives-whe2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-april-20-2023-didn-t-sleep-last-night-and-i-got-up-early-today-was-the-day-of-my-appointment-with-the-diabetes-specialist-at-the-new-hythe-hospital-i-took-my-blood-sugar-and-it-was-63-well-within-target-range-breakfast-was-two-cups-of-tea-and-a-ham-sandwich-with-mayonnaise-using-hovis-brown-bread-i-would-normally-had-cereal-but-i-was-short-of-milk-i-set-off-for-the-bus-stop-full-pelt-and-when-i-got-off-near-the-hospital-it-was-full-pelt-to-the-reception-after-booking-my-appointment-i-collapsed-getting-into-my-chair-in-the-waiting-room-thinking-it-was-probably-low-blood-sugar-i-asked-for-something-sweet-i-m-not-exactly-clear-what-happened-after-the-surgery-water-the-crisis-team-took-my-blood-sugar-again-it-was-11-target-range-is-5-to-15-so-not-high-in-accordance-with-my-usual-routine-i-ran-to-the-bus-stop-and-when-i-got-off-the-bus-from-the-bus-stop-closest-hythe-hospital-ran-to-the-reception-as-i-went-to-sat-down-i-felt-lightheaded-and-hot-band-stumbled-i-thought-it-must-be-low-blood-sugar-and-asked-for-a-surgery-drink-and-was-examined-by-two-members-of-the-crisis-team-i-was-examined-by-the-diabetes-specialist-and-she-said-nothing-that-happened-that-morning-was-explained-by-my-diabetes-and-has-discharged-me-from-treatment-for-diabetes-she-noted-i-m-obese-and-sent-an-email-to-my-gp-to-arrange-i-m-put-on-an-online-weight-management-scheme-the-doctor-from-the-crisis-team-gave-me-further-blood-pressure-tests-and-an-ecg-and-let-me-go-i-d-collapsed-because-i-d-rushed-myself-too-much-probably-i-had-a-gentle-stroll-down-to-lidl-and-bought-a-few-things-and-caught-the-bus-home-when-i-got-home-and-feeling-better-i-remembered-wanting-to-get-some-printing-done-and-wanting-to-buy-a-replacement-frying-plan-so-returned-to-hythe-the-bus-arrived-and-i-saw-lee-waiting-i-put-the-ramp-down-and-hit-my-right-foot-on-it-later-in-the-afternoon-it-began-to-ache-at-first-i-thought-it-was-an-ingrown-toenail-and-i-tried-socking-it-in-warm-salted-water-the-i-thought-it-was-more-likely-a-browse-from-the-accident-with-the-wheelchair-ramp-so-a-cold2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-april-21-2023-slept-soundly-and-was-up-late-feeling-a-bit-groggy-but-my-foot-is-on-the-mend-weighed-myself-and-my-weight-is-down-for-the-third-week-in-a-row-the-scallywag-messaged-me-and-is-going-to-be-late-again-when-he-arrived-i-gave-him-the-humus-cream-cheese-and-reversing-type-2-diabetes-book-explaining-i-wanted-to-keep-him-healthy-so-he-can-keep-coming-here-and-thrashing-me-at-scrabble-got-an-email-from-trainline-offering-10-off-my-next-trip-when-andy-came-we-had-a-good-chinwag-and-as-is-almost-inevitable-he-won-both-games-of-scrabble-sent-a-message-to-october-books-asking-if-it-s-okay-to-display-my-paintings-there-still-haven-t-totally-thrown-off-this-cold-encouraged-by-this-weeks-weight-loss-i-managed-with-less-food-again-today2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-april-22-2023-this-morning-i-had-a-piping-hot-shower-a-breakfast-of-an-apple-followed-by-the-last-of-a-packet-of-fruit-and-fibre-as-usual-i-ran-to-the-bus-stop-and-when-i-got-to-hythe-ran-to-marcella-lucy-was-there-along-with-margret-i-haven-t-seen-lucy-in-ages-it-must-be-over-20-years-since-we-first-met-she-s-an-amazing-young-lady-who-now-has-a-partner-and-three-children-she-s-also-run-a-marathon-and-got-a-psychology-degree-from-the-open-university-it-was-midday-when-i-got-to-marcella-lunch-time-so-i-had-the-ham-sandwich-which-i-made-myself-earlier-i-was-the-first-service-user-to-arrive-which-gave-me-a-sense-of-importance-a-little-while-later-ben-arrived-ben-suggested-going-for-a-walk-which-was-a-good-idea-lucy-collected-the-glass-for-the-bottle-bank-and-we-all-made-for-the-car-park-and-they-eventually-found-it-then-we-went-to-the-hardware-store-in-the-precinct-where-i-bought-a-pair-of-rubber-gloves-we-continued-to-waitrose-where-i-bought-a-tin-of-chopped-tomatoes-and-a-packet-of-pumpkin-seeds-after-marcella-i-went-to-the-bus-stop-where-i-was-greeted-by-alf-who-was-his-usual-jovial-self-the-notice-above-the-stop-said-currently-no-service-and-not-feeling-very-patient-i-decided-it-would-be-nice-to-walk-i-got-within-running-distance-of-the-stop-and-heard-alf-call-me-saying-the-bus-had-arrived-so-i-got-on-board-and-everything-was-good-when-i-got-home-i-made-a-vegetable-crumble-frying-the-onion-and-mushrooms-in-coconut-oil-which-smelt-superb-and-it-turned-out-a-really-nice-meal-with-me-having-second-s-and-then-some-more-i-had-a-sleep-in-the-evening-woke-up-and-had-a-messenger-conversation-with-kathy-about-the-next-part-of-my-charity-fundraiser-i-mentioned-my-next-resorts-to-visit-were-dartmouth-and-exmouth-she-said-she-doesn-t-know-exmouth-but-liked-dartmouth-which-has-a-lot-of-artists-at-one-point-she-said-you-re-only-got-one-life-and-you-don-t-know-what-s-around-the-next-corner-if-i-d-heard-that-years-ago-and-taken-it-to-heart-my-life-would-have-been-much-better-later-i-realised-i-was-short-of-milk-and-fancied-some-da2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-april-23-2023-woke-up-early-and-had-nut-clusters-with-pecans-for-breakfast-took-my-medication-and-looked-up-each-of-the-british-coastlines-resorts-to-plan-our-journeys-made-a-cheese-and-tomato-sandwich-with-mayonnaise-and-put-it-with-some-olives-and-a-piece-of-chocolate-in-my-lunch-box-caught-the-bus-into-hythe-and-when-i-got-there-at-about-1100-marcella-was-closed-with-the-curtains-drawn-i-decided-to-have-my-lunch-with-a-takeaway-coffee-from-costa-and-do-a-sketch-of-superdrug-when-i-finished-i-took-10-out-of-the-hole-in-the-wall-and-checked-if-marcella-was-open-at-marcella-i-was-greeted-my-josh-and-aquid-i-did-some-more-drawing-and-margret-came-so-i-went-with-her-and-did-some-work-in-the-garden-deadheading-the-daffodils-and-pulling-up-some-weeds-david-collected-the-rubbish-which-had-been-thrown-into-marcella-s-garden-and-margret-did-an-expert-job-of-pruning-the-bushes-when-i-was-back-home-i-had-an-early-evening-meal-of-beef-stew-with-a-small-jacket-potato-which-i-followed-with-a-sleep-i-made-a-to-do-list-sort-out-garden-housework-go-to-october-books-artwork-plan-2023-diary-adventures-liv-phoned-she-tried-to-phone-me-several-times-and-thought-i-d-had-second-thoughts-about-having-her-do-the-garden-we-had-arranged-i-phone-her-on-13-5-23-when-she-will-have-had-her-tonsils-removed-all-being-well-work-on-the-garden-can-begin-soon-after-that2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-april-24-2023-woke-up-early-but-remained-in-bed-until-about-ten-where-it-was-warm-and-cosy-one-of-the-advantages-of-retirement-and-living-alone-is-you-can-get-up-whenever-you-want-eventually-i-got-up-and-ran-to-the-bus-stop-as-it-s-monday-there-was-a-lunch-appointment-at-october-books-the-weather-was-atrocious-today-it-started-raining-as-the-bus-made-its-way-into-town-i-got-off-at-sea-city-museum-and-ran-to-the-next-bus-stop-when-i-got-to-october-books-lunch-was-nice-but-i-didn-t-get-into-conversation-with-anyone-the-wifi-connection-was-available-and-i-realised-i-couldn-t-use-the-coop-bank-application-so-i-went-into-town-and-sorted-it-out-when-i-got-home-i-had-today-s-chocolate-ration-with-a-ham-sandwich-and-waited-for-bootleg-art-club-to-begin-during-the-club-i-did-more-to-my-latest-painting-adding-colour-to-the-trees-in-the-background-i-wondered-if-rather-than-just-taking-one-picture-to-october-books-as-i-had-initially-planned-if-i-could-get-andy-or-will-to-take-them-there-in-preparation-for-my-2023-diary-adventures-i-joined-the-yha2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-april-25-2023-woke-at-about-six-and-stayed-in-bed-until-seven-had-some-breakfast-and-my-customary-cod-liver-oil-capsule-it-was-a-bright-spring-morning-with-the-air-outside-cool-and-fresh-i-wanted-some-new-brush-heads-for-my-electric-toothbrush-so-ran-along-to-the-local-boots-and-ordered-some-having-a-run-saves-time-and-is-good-exercise-it-s-a-great-way-to-come-up-with-ideas-and-reflect-on-life-and-generates-a-sense-of-wellbeing-through-the-production-of-endorphins-after-ordering-the-brush-heads-i-waited-for-the-bus-into-hythe-which-was-a-few-minutes-late-i-got-off-at-hythe-ferry-and-made-my-way-to-the-market-where-i-bought-some-olives-at-the-greek-delicatessen-and-went-on-to-the-library-where-i-looked-at-the-audio-books-section-but-didn-t-take-anything-out-i-thought-it-would-be-nice-to-treat-myself-to-a-salad-in-be-be-s-but-when-i-got-there-it-was-crowded-so-i-gave-the-idea-up-the-bus-back-to-holbury-was-at-the-hythe-pier-stop-when-i-was-at-the-door-of-be-be-s-so-i-made-a-dash-for-it-and-reached-the-bus-in-the-nick-of-time-the-bus-was-crowded-at-the-knighton-fields-stop-tim-got-on-i-called-him-and-he-came-and-sat-with-me-we-had-a-conversation-and-i-gave-him-some-cards-promoting-this-blog-and-told-him-i-would-mention-him-in-today-s-post-an-email-arrived-from-clare-at-october-books-about-my-request-to-hold-an-exhibition-of-my-paintings-in-their-community-space-i-chose-to-have-my-exhibition-in-october-this-year-this-evening-i-set-out-for-waterside-art-group-when-i-got-to-the-bus-stop-i-realised-i-d-forgotten-my-white-spirit-which-made-continuing-to-work-on-my-painting-impossible-it-was-too-late-to-go-back-and-get-it-the-bus-was-late-and-i-gave-up-waiting-and-made-my-way-home-as-i-walked-back-the-bus-passed-me-when-i-got-home-i-ran-to-the-coop-more-exercise-and-time-saving-and-bought-some-milk-dark-chocolate-and-a-tin-of-tomatoes-and-made-some-chilli-con-carne-with-them-for-freezing-and-eating-later2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivory-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-april-26-2023-woke-up-early-and-had-a-piping-hot-shower-after-which-i-felt-exhausted-so-went-back-to-bed-for-a-while-unfortunately-it-turned-out-to-be-longer-than-i-bargained-for-and-it-was-two-in-the-afternoon-when-i-finally-got-up-and-too-late-to-go-and-play-scrabble-with-the-scallywag-at-245-so-i-messaged-him-explaining-what-happened-the-scallywag-said-wow-you-re-human-after-all-i-replied-we-re-all-of-us-human-scallywag-roar-ate-a-portion-of-the-chilli-con-carne-i-d-prepared-the-previous-evening-there-was-an-email-from-clare-from-october-books-replying-to-my-last-email-and-saying-she-ll-be-away-for-a-week-with-an-appointment-form-i-sent-the-afternoon-sorting-out-the-application-form-for-my-exhibition-and-as-is-my-usual-custom-made-my-way-to-the-coop-and-back-with-frivolous-haste-buying-a-cornish-pasty-and-a-packet-of-fruit-and-fibre-after-eating-the-pasty-i-sent-the-evening-planning-the-2023-diary-adventures-trips2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-april-27-2023-today-i-went-and-bought-a-steak-for-myself-for-my-birthday-on-saturday-in-sargents-the-butchers-in-dibden-purlieu-they-also-had-some-venison-sausages-in-which-i-m-also-partial-to-so-i-bought-some-of-them-too-after-buying-my-meat-it-was-about-lunchtime-and-i-decided-to-see-what-was-on-offer-in-the-nova-forest-restaurant-which-is-near-sargents-i-bought-a-homemade-pasty-and-a-cup-of-coffee-it-was-all-very-nice-but-pricey-when-i-d-finished-i-caught-the-bus-to-hythe-and-bought-some-potatoes-onions-chestnut-mushrooms-apples-and-tins-of-soup-in-lidl-i-wanted-to-do-some-sketching-and-had-my-sketch-pad-and-a-pen-with-me-but-didn-t-actually-do-any-although-i-bought-myself-some-vanilla-ice-cream-in-harvey-s-and-sat-outside-with-it-when-i-finished-i-caught-the-bus-home-and-it-was-cold-so-i-got-under-my-throw-blanket-and-had-a-nap-i-got-up-and-decided-it-was-time-for-tea-and-my-customary-four-squares-of-dark-chocolate-recently-i-read-an-article-about-micro-biotic-diets-which-recommended-thoroughly-chewing-food-before-swallowing-it-advice-that-i-followed-today-i-cooked-myself-an-evening-meal-of-a-lamb-steak-tomato-jacket-potato-mixed-vegetables-with-mint-sauce-and-gravy-which-was-followed-by-an-apple-and-washed-down-with-a-cup-of-tea-it-was-a-cold-rainy-day-for-the-most-part2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-april-28-2023-i-woke-up-early-and-stayed-in-bed-until-it-was-time-to-get-up-at-seven-reflecting-that-whatever-you-do-in-life-there-s-always-frustration-in-one-form-or-another-feeling-a-bit-depressed-after-getting-up-for-a-while-i-went-back-to-bed-it-was-a-day-that-i-spent-just-treading-water-like-many-of-my-days-yesterday-there-i-missed-a-call-from-my-gp-surgery-which-i-returned-today-i-have-been-accepted-for-a-weight-management-program-following-my-recent-meeting-with-the-diabetes-specialist-tomorrow-will-be-my-68th-birthday-and-i-will-be-going-to-marcella-to-celebrate-and-having-a-ginormous-piece-of-steak-as-my-evening-meal-this-afternoon-i-ran-to-boots-to-check-if-they-had-my-electric-toothbrush-head-s-and-found-out-they-hadn-t-yet-i-continued-to-the-coop-where-i-bought-a-banana-some-gravy-granules-and-a-canister-of-milk2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-april-29-2023-my-birthday-featuring-tim-the-unmentioned-and-the-scallywag-at-about-830-i-woke-from-what-must-have-been-a-sound-sleep-and-realised-it-was-my-birthday-i-unpacked-the-folding-stool-i-d-bought-myself-and-after-reading-the-instructions-sat-on-it-to-right-way-round-now-i-m-officially-68-i-thought-i-opened-the-card-i-received-from-jim-and-treated-myself-to-some-fruit-and-fibre-an-apple-and-my-customary-four-squares-of-dark-chocolate-along-with-my-cod-liver-oil-capsule-with-all-the-vitamin-d-supplements-and-dark-chocolate-i-feed-myself-and-hurtling-off-to-bus-stops-at-the-drop-of-a-hat-my-brain-should-stay-in-good-shape-for-years-yet-who-knows-perhaps-one-day-i-ll-find-some-use-for-it-i-made-myself-a-venison-sandwich-and-then-it-was-off-to-marcella-when-i-got-there-i-explained-how-well-behaved-i-was-by-resisting-the-impulse-to-buy-an-abolish-the-monarchy-tee-shirt-we-went-for-a-walk-margret-aquid-josh-david-the-new-lad-and-lass-and-i-to-the-marina-then-it-was-time-to-go-home-on-the-way-home-julie-and-tim-got-on-the-bus-at-knighton-fields-and-tim-said-he-d-looked-at-my-previous-blog-posts-and-there-was-no-mention-of-him-which-seemed-odd-as-i-was-sure-i-d-included-him-after-discussing-terry-pratchett-it-we-decided-to-call-him-tim-the-unmentioned-in-this-blog-post-in-an-attempt-to-have-a-terry-pratchett-like-reference-i-got-home-and-started-cooking-my-birthday-steak-dinner-and-the-scallywag-aka-andy-arrived-with-a-birthday-card-we-had-a-cup-of-tea-and-a-chatted-about-the-2023-diary-adventures-and-my-exhibition-at-october-books-which-he-s-agreed-to-help-with-by-transporting-my-paintings-in-his-car-my-meal-was-delicious-and-afterwards-i-settled-down-to-an-evening-nap-it-s-tough-at-the-top2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-april-30-2023-in-the-belief-that-i-would-be-one-of-a-group-of-people-handing-out-leaflets-supporting-the-nurses-i-went-to-southampton-general-hospital-and-found-nobody-else-was-there-mystified-i-phoned-helen-and-who-told-me-leafleting-was-scheduled-for-two-o-clock-in-the-afternoon-i-had-misread-the-email-about-the-event-something-which-for-me-isn-t-that-unusual-helen-asked-if-i-d-got-the-birthday-card-she-sent-and-said-there-s-loads-of-birthday-wishes-on-my-timeline-i-had-a-coffee-and-ham-and-coleslaw-sandwich-in-costa-and-as-i-was-leaving-heard-someone-call-my-name-it-was-kathy-and-andy-who-were-visiting-megan-we-had-a-chat-and-they-asked-about-how-my-birthday-had-gone-it-was-something-which-i-later-reflected-wouldn-t-happen-to-a-more-efficient-man-perhaps-there-are-advantages-and-disadvantages-with-everything-that-happens-in-life-or-whatever-happens-can-be-seen-that-way-my-initial-plan-was-to-go-to-marcella-but-i-had-a-shower-that-morning-and-left-my-boiler-on-so-it-was-important-to-get-back-home-as-quickly-as-possible-and-turn-it-off-when-i-looked-at-facebook-there-was-a-birthday-message-from-julie-and-she-offered-of-a-lift-for-the-may-day-celebration-my-evening-meal-was-a-chickpea-curry-which-i-took-out-of-the-freezer-earlier-it-was-nutritious-cheap-and-flavoursome2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-may-1-2023-may-day-the-day-started-with-a-small-portion-of-fruit-and-fibre-which-i-ate-so-i-would-be-able-to-have-a-cod-liver-oil-capsule-followed-by-my-daily-apple-and-four-squares-of-dark-chocolate-in-readiness-for-my-evening-meal-i-took-a-foil-tray-with-chilli-con-carne-which-i-d-cooked-earlier-out-of-the-freezer-and-put-it-out-to-thaw-ever-keen-for-an-endorphin-rush-i-ran-to-the-bus-stop-and-when-i-arrived-felt-great-the-weather-was-sunshine-with-showers-today-with-the-first-shower-starting-while-i-was-on-the-bus-into-southampton-the-plan-was-to-meet-up-with-julie-and-helen-and-join-the-may-day-parade-which-started-at-the-bargate-and-finished-in-palmerston-park-it-was-midday-when-i-got-to-the-bargate-lunch-time-at-first-i-thought-it-would-be-nice-to-get-myself-a-burger-in-macdonalds-but-it-was-crowded-so-i-left-and-bought-a-pulled-beef-sandwich-in-the-nearby-tesco-express-which-i-hadn-t-tried-before-and-wasn-t-impressed-with-there-was-the-red-star-choir-who-sang-a-few-songs-a-couple-of-speeches-and-then-the-drum-band-started-up-accompanied-by-whistles-which-were-handed-to-anyone-in-the-crowd-who-wanted-to-join-in-by-helen-the-procession-made-off-through-the-park-and-ended-near-the-bandstand-where-there-were-more-speeches-my-new-folding-chair-was-a-godsend-although-at-present-i-haven-t-got-the-hang-of-opening-it-up-it-enabled-me-to-take-the-weight-off-my-right-foot-which-i-injured-running-to-get-out-of-the-rain-when-i-was-on-holiday-in-scotland-when-i-was-nineteen-julie-gave-helen-and-i-a-lift-home-and-they-discussed-their-plans-for-growing-vegetables-in-their-gardens-it-had-been-my-intention-to-do-some-hoovering-when-i-got-in-but-i-ended-up-having-a-nap-instead-i-cooked-the-chilli-con-carne-in-the-microwave-with-a-couple-of-small-potatoes-sadly-it-was-a-disappointment-too-much-fat-and-not-enough-chilli-flavour-anyway-another-day-gone-which-i-won-t-have-again2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-may-2-2023-got-up-before-my-alarm-went-off-at-seven-and-had-my-usual-breakfast-of-a-small-portion-of-fruit-and-fibre-four-squares-of-dark-chocolate-and-an-apple-last-night-i-peeled-and-sliced-the-carrots-i-d-been-given-on-my-last-visit-to-october-books-and-added-onion-mushrooms-cauliflower-a-fresh-tomato-garlic-tomato-pur%C3%A9e-a-vegetable-stock-cube-soy-sauce-worcester-sauce-lemon-juice-and-pasta-i-left-this-concoction-overnight-and-added-water-grated-cheese-and-breadcrumbs-this-morning-i-spooned-the-mixture-into-foil-trays-and-left-it-out-to-cool-there-s-enough-for-three-days-and-it-s-going-to-be-an-inexpensive-nutritious-and-full-of-flavour-meal-next-i-set-the-kitchen-timer-for-half-an-hour-and-did-some-hoovering-and-tidying-up-i-will-have-to-wait-in-to-get-quotes-from-the-electricians-to-fix-the-strip-light-in-the-kitchen-most-of-the-day-the-electrician-for-the-morning-came-and-his-price-is-between-50-to-100-cheaper-than-the-first-quote-i-got-as-is-normal-for-me-i-ran-to-the-coop-and-bought-myself-a-canister-of-milk-and-made-a-cup-of-tea-feeling-tired-because-i-d-woken-up-before-six-i-thought-a-nap-was-in-order-and-was-soon-having-an-agreeable-sleep-the-phone-rang-it-was-someone-who-said-they-were-from-bt-checking-broadband-speeds-in-my-area-i-said-can-you-excuse-me-and-went-for-a-pee-when-i-got-back-to-the-phone-the-conversation-continued-for-a-while-he-said-something-that-i-imagine-was-intended-to-sound-technical-and-serious-i-replied-hum-he-said-what-do-you-mean-hum-i-replied-ponderous-he-said-if-you-re-not-going-to-take-us-seriously-don-t-waste-our-time-i-replied-hum-he-said-stupid-and-hung-up-it-was-mid-afternoon-so-i-happily-made-myself-a-cup-of-tea-having-successfully-antagonised-a-bogus-telephone-caller-with-marginal-effort-dave-the-electrician-arrived-we-agreed-a-price-and-he-fetched-an-led-light-from-his-wholesaler-and-fitted-it-immediately-i-ate-the-last-two-of-my-venison-sausages-with-mustard-and-a-couple-of-slices-of-buttered-seeded-whole-meal-bread-did-most-of-the-hoovering-and-had-a-nap2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-may-3-2023-i-looked-at-the-previous-posts-for-this-blog-and-they-tend-to-start-similarly-and-have-a-predictable-pattern-in-order-to-make-it-more-entertaining-from-today-onwards-i-m-going-to-write-about-different-topics-and-choose-more-newsworthy-stories-to-live-a-full-life-involves-having-a-wide-range-of-experiences-and-interests-one-of-the-reasons-for-this-blog-is-for-me-to-learn-something-new-every-day-what-have-i-done-today-which-stands-out-as-interesting-and-newsworthy-there-were-two-text-messages-on-mobile-one-was-a-reminder-of-my-appointment-with-the-eye-hospital-on-the-ninth-and-the-second-was-an-invitation-to-become-a-health-champion-volunteer-i-made-a-frustrated-attempt-to-google-the-websites-referenced-in-the-text-message-and-for-a-while-couldn-t-think-what-to-do-today-was-the-day-for-my-weekly-games-of-scrabble-with-andy-as-usual-he-won-both-games-i-received-two-more-birthday-cards-one-from-helen-field-and-the-other-from-richard-sears-rather-than-giving-up-with-the-health-champion-volunteer-idea-i-did-a-google-search-and-found-an-application-form-on-the-diabetes-uk-website-which-i-completed-and-sent-off2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-may-4-2023-learnt-from-an-email-it-s-mental-health-awareness-month-the-piece-continued-to-give-lists-of-ways-of-looking-after-your-mental-health-on-a-daily-weekly-monthly-and-yearly-basis-the-topic-of-meditation-and-journaling-was-mentioned-it-said-that-with-journaling-you-re-only-writing-for-yourself-so-there-s-no-need-to-produce-a-masterpiece-personally-when-do-anything-i-do-it-was-well-as-i-can-i-take-a-pride-in-everything-i-do-and-want-my-writing-to-be-read-julie-messaged-me-she-also-got-a-message-from-her-gp-surgery-recruiting-health-champions-and-suspects-it-s-a-way-for-private-health-companies-to-get-personal-data-i-hadn-t-thought-of-it-like-that-and-thought-i-d-been-approached-because-of-my-success-with-getting-my-type-2-diabetes-under-control-there-was-a-schedule-of-events-at-the-art-house-in-my-email-which-said-saturday-may-6-2023-will-be-the-same-as-usual-there-with-no-screening-of-the-shiny-hat-party-so-i-will-be-spending-my-day-there-i-went-to-hythe-to-do-some-shopping-in-lidl-and-got-into-conversation-with-an-old-boy-with-a-straw-hat-and-a-white-chin-beard-with-a-moustache-about-buying-groceries-at-bargain-prices-i-told-him-about-the-mysupermarket-price-comparison-site-before-going-into-lidl-i-treated-myself-to-a-coffee-in-blackwax-coffee-and-records-and-did-a-sketch-of-a-couple-of-obsolete-radios-which-were-displayed-on-the-wall-he-said-when-they-was-living-in-ludlow-audi-was-a-third-of-the-price-of-tesco-i-wasn-t-sure-where-ludlow-is-and-have-just-googled-a-youtube-video-of-it-and-it-looks-amazing-with-historic-buildings-a-thriving-market-and-a-medieval-castle-peter-thorp-got-on-the-bus-at-the-stop-before-hythe-pier-he-was-going-home-after-attending-waterside-writers-that-morning-i-didn-t-know-it-was-on-their-next-meeting-is-on-thursday-may-18th-and-i-plan-to-go-today-was-local-government-elections-day-unfortunately-i-didn-t-vote-because-i-had-a-postal-vote-and-hadn-t-read-what-to-do-before-today-voting-required-going-to-the-polling-station-and-posting-my-ballot-details-through-their-letter-box-it-s-2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-may-5-2023-yesterday-afternoon-i-was-exhausted-and-slept-in-the-early-evening-so-i-wasn-t-tired-the-rest-of-the-night-and-couldn-t-sleep-i-woke-my-blog-post-for-thursday-in-the-early-hours-this-morning-and-published-it-directly-my-friend-dan-a-fellow-insomniac-read-it-immediately-and-complimented-me-in-conversation-on-messenger-on-my-drawing-of-the-radios-he-must-have-been-the-first-to-read-that-post-my-idea-of-getting-a-youtube-video-to-see-what-ludlow-was-like-could-be-used-to-research-all-the-coastlines-featured-in-my-2023-diary-adventures-and-doing-that-research-was-today-s-project-i-decided-by-700-am-i-d-watched-two-youtube-videos-one-of-bournemouth-and-the-other-dartmouth-the-dartmouth-video-lasted-half-an-hour-and-showcased-what-is-on-offer-there-beautifully-this-morning-i-had-my-weekly-weight-check-and-my-weight-has-gone-up-since-last-week-i-m-taking-action-to-control-my-weight-recently-i-started-treating-myself-to-four-squares-of-dark-chocolate-every-day-and-i-m-wondering-if-cutting-this-down-to-two-would-have-an-impact-from-today-onwards-i-m-keeping-a-food-diary-i-had-two-runs-to-the-coop-where-i-bought-some-groceries-and-one-to-boots-where-i-picked-up-my-prescription-by-the-end-of-the-day-i-d-seen-youtube-videos-of-all-the-planned-destinations-i-started-a-food-diary-read-up-to-page-57-of-the-slimming-world-food-optimisation-booklet-relaxed-with-a-cup-of-tea-and-went-to-bed-late-and-published-this-post2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-may-6-2023-shiny-hat-party-day-there-was-heavy-rain-thumping-down-on-the-conservatory-roof-this-morning-and-i-laid-in-bed-until-about-ten-my-right-knee-ached-which-is-rheumatism-my-plan-for-the-day-was-to-go-to-the-art-house-for-lunch-but-with-this-horrible-weather-i-stayed-at-home-which-will-save-money-my-breakfasted-on-reduced-price-strawberries-fruit-and-fibre-and-greek-yogurt-i-always-find-anything-with-a-reduced-price-especially-tasty-i-m-avoiding-turning-on-the-telly-or-radio-because-of-the-shiny-hat-party-telling-me-ad-infinitum-how-lucky-we-are-with-our-marvellous-royal-family-i-wrote-a-piece-of-satirical-verse-about-today-it-s-shiny-hat-party-day-hip-hip-hooray-but-sadly-deleted-it-while-attempting-to-post-it-and-have-continued-reading-the-slimming-world-booklet-which-is-difficult-with-my-glaucoma-sometime-in-the-afternoon-i-considered-wondering-off-to-bed-and-having-a-nap-but-decided-not-to-because-it-would-make-sleeping-tonight-a-problem-later-the-impulse-was-too-strong-and-i-napped-when-i-woke-it-was-time-to-eat-and-i-had-an-especially-tasty-reduced-price-plant-based-kiev-which-i-d-bought-on-offer-and-various-other-stuff-to-go-with-it2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-may-7-2023-despite-the-weather-looking-brighter-today-i-stayed-in-bed-until-after-midday-and-when-i-surfaced-didn-t-do-much-my-intention-was-to-go-to-marcella-but-that-came-to-nothing-i-showered-and-put-on-fresh-clothes-i-ran-to-the-big-coop-and-back-and-bought-some-foil-trays-vinaigrette-dressing-and-kidney-beans-kim-phoned-and-we-chatted-for-a-while-and-i-phoned-marcella-and-spoke-briefly-to-hayley-i-did-the-usual-stuff-like-eating-and-sitting-around-then-a-another-day-which-i-couldn-t-have-again-was-gone-i-checked-my-weight-sometime-during-the-day-and-it-was-up-a-few-pounds-concerned-i-might-be-putting-on-weight-despite-trying-to-regulate-what-i-ate-i-googled-average-daily-weight-fluctuations-and-a-man-s-weight-can-vary-between-5-6-pounds-during-the-course-of-a-day-so-the-discrepancy-was-within-normal-expectations2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-may-8-2023-my-self-discipline-is-nonexistent-today-i-ate-twelve-squares-of-dark-chocolate-this-morning-i-can-t-be-trusted-to-restrain-myself-it-will-be-the-last-large-bar-of-chocolate-i-buy-myself-i-vowed-i-ve-been-feeling-bored-and-fed-up-all-morning-and-was-frustrated-trying-to-set-up-reminders-on-my-ipad-i-had-a-sleep-from-midday-until-1513-thinking-if-i-were-to-write-a-report-on-myself-for-today-it-would-say-could-do-better-after-sleeping-i-took-a-blood-sugar-reading-and-it-was-77-which-is-within-the-target-range-ofw-between-5-to-15-had-a-cup-of-tea-and-went-for-a-run-after-which-felt-nice-and-perky-googled-does-eating-dark-chocolate-increase-blood-pressure-it-doesn-t-and-does-it-make-you-sleepy-it-does-as-it-contains-serotonin-properly-used-it-could-be-used-as-a-form-of-self-medication-i-thought-i-got-an-email-from-richard-about-bootleg-art-club-which-was-between-530-600-during-which-i-did-some-more-to-my-latest-painting-then-i-had-a-chickpea-curry-which-was-hot-and-spicy-i-prepared-the-garlic-i-bought-a-few-days-ago-for-the-freezer-and-cut-my-large-slab-of-cheddar-into-three-pieces-which-i-stored-in-the-freezer-and-took-a-portion-of-vegetable-crumble-out-for-tomorrow-s-main-meal2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-may-9-2023-appointment-at-the-eye-unit-at-southampton-general-it-was-scheduled-for-745-and-i-had-to-catch-the-654-bus-from-holbury-to-be-on-time-last-night-i-d-gone-to-bed-at-900-to-ensure-i-had-enough-sleep-my-alarm-was-set-for-500-which-would-have-given-me-enough-time-to-get-everything-organised-the-alarm-didn-t-go-off-but-fortunately-i-checked-the-time-and-was-able-to-rush-for-the-bus-in-the-nick-of-time-there-was-a-lady-waiting-at-the-bus-before-i-got-there-which-reassured-me-i-hadn-t-missed-the-bus-when-i-found-the-eye-unit-it-was-empty-eventually-my-eyes-were-tested-and-examined-and-i-was-given-a-blood-test-it-was-a-frustrating-process-and-my-frustration-was-added-to-by-the-fact-that-i-hadn-t-had-breakfast-where-i-left-home-early-and-rushed-to-get-there-the-final-result-of-today-s-appointment-was-another-appointment-was-to-be-arranged-in-three-months-time-when-the-blood-test-results-were-known-having-got-up-early-i-slept-for-a-couple-of-hours-when-i-got-home-added-a-few-more-entries-to-my-food-diary-phoned-my-gp-surgery-about-the-weight-management-session-on-thursday-and-ran-to-the-co-op-and-bought-some-milk-so-i-could-have-some-tea-some-dark-chocolate-because-of-the-serotonin-content-to-aid-me-getting-to-sleep-and-a-nutrageous-bar-which-i-reasoned-was-a-good-buy-as-it-added-nuts-to-my-diet-when-i-ate-it-it-contained-a-lot-of-sugar-which-counteracted-the-sum-of-good-work-of-my-run-i-ran-past-someone-who-appeared-to-be-practicing-the-footwork-for-boxing-it-takes-all-sorts2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-may-10-2023-not-much-done-or-achieved-today-i-phoned-my-gp-surgery-to-make-arrangements-for-the-weight-management-session-with-the-health-coach-felt-tired-and-had-a-nap-the-phone-rang-three-times-but-i-wasn-t-in-time-to-answer-it-i-phoned-the-surgery-again-and-there-was-a-record-of-the-health-coach-trying-unsuccessfully-to-call-me-i-heard-no-more-and-had-another-sleep-i-ran-to-the-co-op-and-back-where-i-bought-some-cut-priced-raspberries-peanuts-and-greek-yogurt-and-onions2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-may-11-2023-the-most-important-thing-today-for-me-was-my-online-appointment-with-cher-the-healthy-living-coach-to-discuss-my-weight-management-program-in-preparation-i-read-most-of-the-slimming-world-food-optimisation-booklet-and-had-kept-a-food-diary-since-may-5th-in-the-diary-i-d-recorded-a-couple-of-instances-where-i-d-gone-off-the-rails-once-when-i-eaten-12-squares-of-dark-chocolate-and-the-other-where-i-d-eaten-most-of-a-packet-of-peanuts-my-weight-is-roughly-the-same-now-as-it-had-been-at-the-beginning-of-my-experiment-i-learnt-that-the-recommended-dark-chocolate-dose-is-two-squares-cher-suggested-rather-than-having-a-snack-i-should-have-something-to-drink-possibly-water-or-snack-on-low-calorie-foods-she-also-suggested-increasing-my-weekly-exercise-by-three-half-hour-walks-and-instead-of-snacking-do-a-task-or-activity-in-the-house-or-garden-i-went-onto-clean-the-top-of-the-cooler-the-door-to-the-freezer-and-the-waste-bin-and-have-been-drinking-water-with-a-dash-of-lemon-juice-she-sent-an-email-with-advice-about-the-proportions-of-food-which-are-appropriate-for-good-health-and-another-online-meeting-for-next-week-has-been-scheduled2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-may-12-2023-a-usual-sort-of-day-when-i-was-late-getting-up-my-weekly-scrabble-game-with-andy-was-scheduled-for-today-and-i-was-expecting-him-to-come-here-but-he-thought-i-was-going-to-his-place-and-finally-we-didn-t-meet-which-was-a-shame-as-we-both-enjoy-our-games-i-made-a-fish-pie-and-had-one-portion-at-midday-and-put-two-portions-in-the-freezer-for-later-the-milk-was-getting-short-so-i-ran-to-the-co-op-to-buy-some-more-and-bought-a-canister-together-with-some-cut-price-small-ham-and-cheese-pizzas-and-a-co-op-house-salad-wondering-how-long-it-takes-to-digest-dark-chocolate-i-googled-it-and-discovered-it-takes-twelve-hours-which-may-mean-eating-it-for-its-serotonin-content-to-help-with-sleep-isn-t-very-shrewd-after-all-i-wrote-an-outline-for-a-food-diary-that-covers-the-period-between-11-5-23-to-18-5-23-and-added-my-weights-for-the-start-date-and-the-finish-date2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-may-13-2023-i-had-a-shower-and-phoned-liv-about-the-garden-she-s-still-recovering-from-her-operation-and-it-s-agreed-i-will-phone-again-in-two-weeks-timelunched-on-a-corned-beef-sandwich-the-weather-is-as-forecast-nice-and-sunny-but-despite-of-all-that-i-was-reluctant-to-leave-the-house-i-went-to-marcella-but-the-curtains-were-drawn-so-i-had-a-meal-in-be-be-s-and-did-some-shopping-in-lidl-then-i-went-home-the-weather-was-ideal-to-go-for-a-walk-but-i-didn-t-i-decided-to-put-that-off-until-tomorrow-and-spent-my-time-doing-nothing-in-particular-i-m-in-a-don-t-care-sort-of-mood-content-letting-the-afternoon-turn-slowly-into-the-evening-looking-back-at-my-lack-of-achievement-for-the-moment-at-least-i-m-not-bothered-it-s-eurovision-this-evening-and-i-m-making-a-point-of-ignoring-it-it-might-be-said-i-could-have-made-more-of-today-and-i-could-have-made-more-of-my-life-but-i-wonder-if-that-s-really-true2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivory-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-may-14-2023-i-had-great-plans-for-the-day-which-didn-t-happen-could-be-one-way-or-another-my-whole-life-has-been-like-that-got-up-late-despite-setting-my-alarm-for-seven-last-night-i-hadn-t-gone-to-sleep-until-the-early-hours-and-when-i-finally-dropped-off-i-needed-sleep-later-in-the-day-i-felt-like-a-nap-but-i-ran-to-the-co-op-and-back-to-buy-a-jar-of-apple-sauce-and-some-mixed-chilli-s-instead-and-felt-perkier-afterwards-my-healthy-living-coach-has-advised-me-that-i-go-for-a-half-hour-walk-for-three-days-per-week-today-i-did-some-work-in-the-garden-as-a-substitute-for-half-an-hour-by-starting-to-cleare-the-way-to-the-outside-water-tap-which-made-me-breathless-i-m-out-of-condition-at-this-rate-i-m-going-the-garden-is-going-to-take-longer-than-i-imagined-had-my-evening-meal-and-made-notes-in-my-food-and-exercise-diary-for-today-ready-for-my-weight-management-meeting-on-thursday2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-may-15-2023-i-ve-made-a-plan-for-the-week-today-to-thursday-fine-weather-is-forecast-so-i-m-going-to-get-some-work-done-in-the-garden-thursday-at-230-is-my-weight-management-internet-session-on-friday-it-s-the-scrabble-tournament-with-andy-and-during-the-weekend-i-will-probably-go-to-marcella-it-looks-like-i-m-going-to-have-some-money-left-over-from-my-pension-this-month-and-i-would-like-to-open-a-savings-account-or-cash-isa-with-it-not-wishing-to-waste-good-gardening-weather-i-ll-leave-dealing-with-the-bank-until-the-weather-changes-also-i-ve-got-some-non-urgent-medical-issues-to-follow-up-that-can-be-saved-for-bad-weather-days-at-330-this-morning-unable-to-sleep-i-got-up-and-had-a-cup-of-tea-and-a-snack-making-a-note-of-it-all-in-my-food-and-exercise-diary-for-may-11-to-18-i-eventually-did-get-to-sleep-but-was-late-getting-up-but-managed-to-do-today-s-half-hour-in-the-garden-so-far-this-is-the-second-day-in-a-row-when-i-ve-worked-in-the-garden-i-m-on-my-way-to-establishing-it-as-a-habit2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-may-16-2023-was-out-of-bed-by-630-and-treating-myself-to-breakfast-it-was-a-sunny-morning-and-the-birds-were-chirping-happily-apart-from-war-famine-drunkenness-greed-despair-hatred-sewage-filled-rivers-and-reservoirs-the-cost-of-living-crisis-and-numerous-other-problems-life-was-good-a-new-morning-in-the-same-old-cruel-and-corrupt-world-somewhere-in-the-depths-of-my-deep-and-dreamy-sleep-there-may-have-been-some-faint-glimmer-of-hope-which-is-now-gone-without-so-much-as-a-trace-of-a-memory-when-i-was-a-child-i-spoke-as-a-child-i-understood-as-a-child-i-thought-as-a-child-but-when-i-became-a-man-i-put-away-childish-things-or-did-i-here-i-am-lovingly-keeping-my-food-and-exercise-diary-and-writing-my-ivor-s-daily-gallivant-blog-posts-ever-watchful-of-each-and-every-morsel-of-food-i-consume-and-unit-of-energy-i-expel-it-s-an-out-of-hand-school-self-maintenance-project-taken-to-an-outrageous-extreme-but-at-sixty-eight-why-not-get-struck-in-with-my-second-childhood-one-way-or-another-life-is-about-being-playful-work-rest-and-play-are-all-essential-for-wellbeing-and-as-an-advertising-slogan-for-mars-bars-i-was-longer-in-the-garden-than-i-planned-because-the-pile-of-brambles-which-i-d-cut-blocked-me-in-and-had-to-be-cleared-when-i-d-finished-i-felt-pleasantly-energised-and-had-caught-the-sun-my-internet-connection-went-down-at-about-four-and-i-don-t-know-if-it-s-because-of-something-i-did-or-there-s-another-reason-tomorrow-i-ll-go-to-the-apple-store-to-get-it-fixed2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-may-17-2023-using-an-ipad-to-help-with-my-visual-impairment-unable-to-sleep-at-about-three-i-got-up-and-made-myself-a-tea-and-ate-some-gherkins-i-d-thought-whilst-in-bed-i-would-go-to-the-apple-store-later-today-and-take-a-photo-with-my-ipad-of-the-passcode-on-my-router-so-they-would-be-able-to-sort-it-out-with-nothing-else-to-do-i-got-on-and-took-the-photo-and-checked-it-against-what-i-thought-the-passcode-was-and-realised-i-d-misread-the-passcode-by-one-letter-i-was-only-able-to-publish-yesterday-s-blog-post-which-showed-that-i-depend-on-my-ipad-so-i-inputted-the-correct-passcode-and-my-ipad-was-once-again-fully-functional-which-shows-that-with-a-little-ingenuity-my-visual-impairment-problem-can-be-overcome-well-so-far-so-good-what-a-clever-little-chap-i-am-i-thought-people-have-done-a-lot-to-try-to-cure-me-of-my-delusions-of-grandeur-but-the-trouble-is-they-re-given-me-so-much-pleasure-over-the-years-and-i-was-saved-a-two-hour-bus-ride-to-southampton-and-back-by-217-i-d-done-two-sessions-of-garden-clearance-an-hour-s-work-and-was-having-afternoon-tea-with-everything-planned-for-my-evening-meal-i-felt-tired-but-resisted-the-temptation-to-have-a-nap-as-it-would-make-getting-to-sleep-and-sleeping-through-the-night-difficult-at-about-six-i-had-my-evening-meal-and-wondered-what-to-do-with-the-rest-of-the-evening2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-may-18-2023-today-i-my-weight-management-session-was-scheduled-for-230-in-the-afternoon-so-got-up-at-530-and-weighed-myself-and-found-i-d-lost-i6-lbs-which-pleased-me-it-had-just-been-a-matter-of-taking-care-not-to-overeat-be-careful-with-certain-foods-and-exercise-more-i-had-been-lazy-with-my-exercising-today-and-hadn-t-done-anything-in-the-garden-the-only-exercise-i-did-was-running-to-the-co-op-and-back-the-garden-was-left-for-the-moment-diabetes-uk-emailed-me-and-said-i-d-missed-an-online-appointment-with-them-on-may-4-about-their-volunteering-job-as-a-health-coach-i-don-t-remember-receiving-the-invitation-but-replied-i-was-available-within-office-hours-monday-to-friday-next-week-if-they-accept-me-it-will-be-an-opportunity-to-give-something-back-i-had-an-enjoyable-meal-of-a-homemade-bacon-and-mushroom-risotto-which-was-was-washed-down-with-a-cup-of-tea-after-which-i-had-a-nap-and-another-cup-of-tea-then-i-watched-question-time-finished-off-my-blog-post-and-went-to-bed2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-may-19-2023-i-had-two-attempts-to-write-this-blog-post-which-i-lost-just-after-completion-what-happened-was-i-was-just-about-to-publish-and-pressed-with-the-whole-document-highlighted-ready-to-be-transferred-to-my-site-page-when-i-pressed-the-space-bar-instead-of-the-home-bar-one-is-above-the-other-on-my-ipad-which-deleted-the-whole-lot-it-s-now-130-am-which-is-well-past-my-bedtime-so-i-m-going-to-publish-tomorrow2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-may-19-2023-a-near-miss-learnt-something-new-i-had-two-attempts-to-write-the-blog-post-which-i-lost-just-after-completion-what-happened-was-i-was-just-about-to-publish-and-pressed-with-the-whole-document-highlighted-ready-to-be-transferred-to-my-site-page-when-i-pressed-the-space-bar-instead-of-the-home-bar-one-is-above-the-other-on-my-ipad-which-deleted-the-whole-lot-it-was-130-am-on-19-05-2023-way-past-my-bedtime-so-i-m-going-decided-to-rewrite-and-publish-it-tomorrow-for-me-a-good-day-is-a-day-when-i-ve-learnt-something-and-on-19-5-23-i-learnt-how-to-never-accidentally-delete-a-complete-document-on-my-ipad-again-the-secret-is-to-press-the-lower-keyboard-icon-before-pressing-the-home-key-easy-when-you-know-how-i-traveled-halfway-to-totton-and-turned-back-it-was-starting-to-rain-when-i-caught-the-bus-from-holbury-to-southampton-and-as-it-continued-on-its-way-the-rain-started-coming-down-like-an-old-testament-deluge-luckily-when-i-reached-the-macdonalds-stop-and-crossed-the-road-to-catch-the-west-totton-bus-where-andy-aka-the-scallywag-lives-it-had-eased-off-my-journey-was-to-meet-up-with-my-friend-andy-aka-the-scallywag-to-play-scrabble-who-had-a-blood-test-with-his-gp-surgery-we-had-scheduled-our-meeting-for-later-than-usual-and-i-had-taken-things-at-a-leisurely-pace-to-avoid-being-too-early-but-now-i-would-be-late-i-phoned-to-apologise-and-andy-said-he-had-a-doctor-s-appointment-early-that-evening-because-of-an-ingrown-toenail-like-me-he-s-a-diabetic-if-he-has-any-cuts-on-his-toes-or-damages-his-fee-it-s-possible-that-an-amputation-would-be-necessary-when-i-got-home-i-had-a-cup-of-tea-and-a-ham-sandwich-and-later-found-he-d-messaged-me-asking-if-he-could-come-round-i-replied-scallywags-are-always-welcome-here-in-due-course-he-came-round-and-told-me-about-what-happened-at-the-blood-test-and-doctor-s-appointment-and-showed-me-the-antibiotics-he-d-been-given-thanks-to-the-diligence-of-the-practice-nurse-it-looks-like-his-big-toe-has-been-saved-but-boy-it-was-a-near-miss2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-may-23-2023-a-day-of-mixed-fortunes-on-the-plus-side-i-got-a-phone-call-from-the-eye-hospital-to-arrange-an-appointment-about-my-glaucoma-and-on-the-minus-i-may-have-messed-up-my-online-interview-with-diabetes-uk-for-a-diabetic-health-champion-i-wasn-t-at-the-top-of-my-game-because-my-sleep-recent-been-sleeping-issues-the-interviewer-was-very-sympathetic-and-the-job-sounded-very-interesting-if-i-m-accepted-i-will-find-the-job-very-rewarding-and-if-i-m-turned-down-i-did-my-best-and-wouldn-t-have-done-a-good-job-and-i-wouldn-t-want-that-so-i-m-happy-whatever-the-outcome-the-problem-was-a-result-of-my-old-problem-a-long-running-mental-health-issue-which-was-exacerbated-by-recent-stress-ignorant-people-think-sorry-that-should-be-imagine-not-think-mental-health-issues-are-a-walk-in-the-park-and-us-funny-people-should-be-treated-to-the-frustrations-and-humiliations-of-the-job-centre-but-happily-there-are-those-who-disagree-there-s-still-hope-common-sense-will-prevail-my-weekend-was-spent-attending-marcella-house-a-place-for-us-funny-people-with-three-gorgeous-ladies-and-a-top-notch-young-man-where-i-was-treated-with-great-kindness-when-it-closed-we-went-for-a-walk-to-hythe-marina-and-looked-across-southampton-water-it-was-a-sunny-late-afternoon-life-was-good-monday-i-don-t-remember-which-i-think-closes-the-gap-in-the-daily-gallivant-as-well-as-needs-be2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-may-24-2023-today-was-when-i-tried-to-get-organised-by-writing-daily-schedule-which-includes-times-for-getting-up-working-writing-meals-tv-radio-facebook-the-scrabble-tournament-was-postponed-until-friday-the-details-of-how-this-happened-are-torturously-long-and-extremely-boring-so-out-of-comparison-for-you-gentle-reading-i-will-leave-them-out-slept-and-had-a-chinese-takeaway-meant-to-buy-myself-some-socks-but-but-what-with-one-thing-and-another-i-didn-t-get-round-to-it-i-ll-have-to-put-it-on-tomorrows-to-do-list-planned-to-phone-my-gp-and-southampton-general-about-medical-issues-but-it-slipped-my-mind-more-things-for-tomorrow2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-may-24-2023-after-little-sleep-i-got-out-of-bed-and-had-a-shower-it-was-a-fine-sunny-morning-and-i-saw-there-were-things-to-do-from-yesterday-so-i-got-on-with-them-i-phoned-my-gp-surgery-and-arranged-a-blood-test-a-diabetic-screening-appointment-and-a-mental-health-assessment-i-sorted-out-my-paintings-for-photographing-for-my-exhibition-at-october-books-and-was-surprised-how-good-they-were-some-people-i-appreciate-will-when-reading-this-exclaim-you-arrogant-toe-rag-or-words-to-that-effect-my-response-is-they-haven-t-seen-the-paintings-or-if-they-have-and-they-say-they-don-t-think-much-of-them-they-re-either-unappreciative-nincompoops-complete-and-utter-dickheads-insanely-jealous-or-whatever-paraphrases-of-the-aforementioned-occur-to-you-oh-gentle-reader-curing-me-of-my-delusions-of-grandeur-over-the-years-one-way-or-another-people-have-put-in-a-lot-of-work-trying-to-cure-me-of-my-delusions-of-grandeur-but-i-stick-to-them-with-firm-resolution-they-re-given-me-so-much-pleasure-over-the-years-readers-competition-readers-competition-come-up-with-your-own-original-paraphrases-of-the-above-list-of-derogatory-terms-and-phrases-and-receive-a-signed-postcard-of-one-of-my-paintings-for-just-150-i-went-to-totton-asda-and-bought-some-socks-as-planned-sausages-onions-and-raspberries-and-caught-the-bus-home-the-plan-for-this-evening-was-to-go-to-october-books-for-a-lecture-but-i-felt-exhausted-and-didn-t-go-i-wrote-today-s-blog-post-and-then-everything-was-hunky-dory-roar2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-may-26-2023-and-saturday-27-2023-i-am-combining-todays-and-yesterday-s-entries-because-it-will-save-time-and-one-of-my-priorities-when-writing-is-to-be-interesting-and-a-blow-to-blow-account-of-my-deeds-and-misdeeds-would-fail-to-tick-that-box-yesterday-was-the-day-of-my-scrabble-tournament-and-much-to-my-surprise-and-delight-i-won-one-of-the-games-christmas-2023-looks-like-being-early-sometime-early-friday-morning-i-think-it-was-i-made-an-amendment-to-the-derogatory-comment-competition-and-it-has-become-the-derogatory-comment-draw-with-every-entrant-getting-a-signed-postcard-of-one-of-my-paintings-and-the-lucky-winner-will-receive-one-of-my-oil-paintings-entrance-to-the-derogatory-comments-competition-costs-the-princely-sum-of-150-at-present-shall-we-say-i-won-t-be-on-financial-parity-with-jeff-bezos-or-richard-branson-in-fact-i-d-be-lucky-to-break-even-at-this-point-there-was-nothing-for-it-but-churn-out-one-of-my-comic-verses-no-silly-rocket-trip-to-mars-for-me-i-m-safely-struck-on-the-ever-more-polluted-planet-earth-with-europe-s-largest-oil-refinery-in-the-background-making-its-contribution-to-our-wonderful-economy-while-helping-bring-about-an-end-to-humanity-but-today-i-m-sitting-happily-in-the-sun-whilst-writing-my-blog-and-listening-to-birdsong-without-much-of-a-worry-about-things-to-come-or-all-that-s-wrong-thou-the-end-may-be-nigh-for-the-moment-i-ll-get-by-and-now-for-something-completely-different-i-decided-to-spruce-myself-up-and-book-a-haircut-there-s-a-ladies-and-gentlemen-s-hairstylist-with-easy-walking-distance-that-i-didn-t-know-the-name-of-so-i-got-on-my-hind-legs-and-as-dickens-might-have-put-it-made-peregrinations-in-that-general-direction-on-the-way-there-i-found-a-couple-of-discarded-english-language-practice-papers-which-i-picked-up-to-read-this-evening-i-m-interested-in-education-and-what-happening-in-schools-these-days-so-i-ll-read-them-and-see-what-i-make-of-them-and-write-an-article-about-what-i-think-in-tomorrow-s-post2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-may-28-2023-last-night-i-made-myself-an-improvised-meal-my-plan-was-to-have-an-omelette-but-when-got-down-to-cooking-it-i-realised-my-frying-pan-was-in-the-dishwater-so-there-was-nothing-for-it-but-improvisei-started-by-boiling-an-egg-then-i-realised-there-was-some-spinach-celery-cheese-and-mayonnaise-in-the-fridge-i-also-bought-some-cashew-nuts-recently-and-had-gherkins-and-beetroot-for-carbohydrates-there-was-some-crisp-bread-which-i-had-with-butter-i-had-quickly-put-together-a-balanced-cost-effective-meal-that-would-help-my-weight-loss-program-and-in-the-time-it-took-to-boil-an-egg-i-was-dead-chuffed-sunday-may-28-2023-got-up-very-early-and-added-hashtags-to-my-blog-posts-in-the-hope-of-attracting-more-readers-next-i-set-alarms-on-my-ipad-to-tell-me-when-to-take-my-medication-in-the-morning-and-evening-recently-i-ve-almost-missed-taking-them-and-if-i-don-t-take-my-medication-i-could-have-a-seizure-resulting-in-a-stay-in-hospital-at-a-cost-of-300-day-of-taxpayers-money-and-viewed-from-a-purely-selfish-standpoint-it-s-undignified-had-breakfast-followed-by-a-run-round-the-block-it-s-now-1244am-and-i-feeling-lonely-and-absolutely-knackered-i-ve-been-an-insomniac-since-childhood-it-s-same-old-same-old-another-of-my-ailments-is-epilepty-but-i-m-amongst-40-who-are-responsive-to-medication-but-i-have-to-take-care-to-do-four-things-1-take-my-medication-regularly-2-eat-regularly-3-get-enough-sleep-4-avoid-street-drugs-and-alcohol-i-tried-to-remain-awake-by-having-a-second-run-round-the-block-but-it-was-no-good-i-had-to-sleep-at-600-pm-i-finally-woke-up-feeling-guilty-that-i-d-wasted-another-day-most-of-my-working-life-was-spent-job-searching-resulting-in-me-having-more-than-my-fair-share-of-sleep-there-was-an-episode-of-doctor-who-once-called-the-quest-in-the-story-an-advanced-civilisation-had-to-leave-its-mother-planet-so-they-built-a-spacecraft-to-go-to-the-next-habitable-planet-a-few-light-years-away-all-would-have-been-hunky-dorky-and-they-were-all-set-to-arrive-on-planet-b-in-a-couple-of-generations-unfortunately-the-sh2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-may-29-2023-started-spring-cleaning-obvious-advice-spring-cleaning-it-says-in-the-which-book-of-household-cleaning-that-if-you-want-to-do-the-minimum-amount-of-housework-to-keep-healthy-keep-your-food-preparation-surfaces-and-toilet-clean-obvious-and-excellent-advice-but-i-for-one-wouldn-t-have-thought-of-it-my-alarm-went-off-telling-me-it-s-time-for-my-medication-and-breakfast-at-700-i-had-a-boiled-egg-for-breakfast-and-by-the-time-i-d-eaten-it-it-was-730-started-work-on-the-food-preparation-surfaces-setting-the-timer-on-my-ipad-for-30-minutes-after-which-i-sat-down-and-ate-an-apple-in-the-meantime-i-asked-a-friend-to-write-a-review-for-the-buffoon-designs-book-of-mostly-comic-verse-and-she-did-a-marvellous-job-next-i-asked-site-123-about-setting-up-a-paypal-account-for-my-blog-to-collect-donations-for-the-derogatory-comment-draw-and-i-still-didn-t-know-how-to-do-it-i-ate-my-apple-and-had-a-few-messenger-chats-and-a-cup-of-tea-then-i-got-back-to-work-on-the-kitchen-at-1040-at-about-1115-the-alarm-sounded-again-so-i-stopped-work-and-did-some-more-chatting-on-messenger-often-when-talking-to-friends-i-come-up-with-interesting-ideas-this-also-happens-when-i-m-running-or-doing-menial-work-like-cleaning-the-kitchen-today-the-trouble-is-that-if-i-don-t-make-a-note-of-them-they-re-just-get-forgotten-i-got-most-of-the-food-preparation-surfaces-in-the-kitchen-done-at-one-point-in-the-afternoon-i-lost-my-wallet-which-has-my-bank-card-and-bus-pass-in-it-i-hunted-high-and-low-for-it-then-as-a-last-resort-i-checked-the-pockets-of-the-jeans-i-d-changed-out-of-when-i-had-my-shower-and-there-it-was2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivory-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-may-30-2023-the-ongoing-urine-sample-saga-started-the-day-bright-and-early-by-taking-a-urine-sample-in-readiness-for-a-nurse-s-appointment-later-on-in-the-morning-i-have-shaky-hands-and-taking-the-sample-wasn-t-easy-but-i-managed-and-without-any-spillage-a-formidable-accomplishment-under-the-circumstances-but-there-was-now-a-lovely-sunny-day-to-put-good-use-of-i-thought-cleaning-the-loo-would-be-a-good-plan-which-would-be-conducive-to-my-conducive-to-good-health-but-being-the-adventurous-thrill-seeking-hedonistic-ne-er-do-well-i-am-decided-against-it-my-mobile-rang-with-a-text-message-saying-my-appointment-had-been-cancelled-when-you-re-got-an-underfunded-health-service-these-things-happen-this-is-entirely-in-keeping-with-the-pile-of-manure-of-a-corrupt-and-incompetent-government-that-currently-rules-this-sceptre-d-isle-a-government-i-would-never-under-any-circumstances-take-exception-to-or-find-offensive-of-course-wonderful-and-marvellous-government-if-you-ask-me-may-they-rule-for-the-rest-of-eternity-sorry-that-was-a-bit-of-an-outburst-in-seriousness-the-matter-in-hand-was-to-get-a-urine-sample-tube-i-toyed-with-the-thought-of-taking-it-to-the-surgery-and-handing-it-in-to-be-analysed-ahead-of-the-rest-of-my-examination-but-decided-i-would-be-making-a-nuisance-of-myself-they-wouldn-t-have-cancelled-today-s-appointment-without-a-very-good-reason-i-imagine-they-were-very-busy-i-also-imagine-that-urine-samples-have-a-limited-shelf-life-in-hythe-i-met-a-nice-young-lady-janet-who-i-briefly-got-into-conversation-with-and-when-called-her-young-lady-seemed-amused-i-must-admit-to-a-possible-bit-of-shenanigans-with-people-s-ages-much-like-many-of-the-other-residents-of-holbury-we-re-a-wicked-bunch-on-the-quiet-us-holiday-folk-and-i-know-from-experience-when-i-m-called-young-man-i-m-68-i-like-it-the-best-thing-to-do-would-be-get-another-sample-tube-and-i-thought-the-easiest-way-to-do-that-was-ask-for-one-at-my-local-pharmacy-which-i-did-but-they-were-out-of-stock-there-s-a-branch-of-boots-in-hythe-and-i-thought-it-best-to-pho2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-may-31-2023-it-was-very-early-in-the-morning-when-i-got-up-unable-to-sleep-300-having-a-combination-of-insomnia-and-epilepsy-is-far-from-ideal-because-lack-of-sleep-will-trigger-a-seizure-i-m-not-sure-when-i-last-slept-after-writing-that-i-went-to-bed-but-didn-t-sleep-it-s-now-721-and-i-ve-decided-to-have-a-piping-hot-shower-which-may-make-me-sleep-it-s-worked-in-the-past-so-boiler-on-and-fingers-crossed-i-set-my-timer-for-10-minutes-which-is-the-time-it-takes-to-warm-up-after-my-shower-l-went-to-bed-sher-the-weight-management-lady-phoned-while-i-was-still-in-bed-i-took-my-weight-it-had-gone-down-from-obese-to-overweight-which-is-an-improvement-which-is-pleasing-still-tired-i-slept-for-a-long-time-and-awoke-sometime-in-the-night-my-body-clock-continues-to-be-out-of-sync2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-june-1-2023-today-was-when-i-had-an-appointment-to-review-the-state-of-my-mental-health-with-my-gp-it-was-a-nice-sunny-day-and-i-thought-it-would-be-nice-to-explore-the-new-portuguese-supermarket-in-southampton-so-i-took-the-bus-into-southampton-and-got-off-at-the-bargate-and-looked-at-a-map-of-the-town-centre-for-commercial-road-a-jehovah-s-witness-saw-i-was-struggling-and-came-to-my-assistance-it-turned-out-that-commercial-road-was-too-far-away-for-me-to-get-to-and-get-to-my-gp-appointment-on-time-so-i-took-the-bus-back-to-blackfield-and-bought-a-face-mask-in-the-pharmacy-there-next-i-ran-to-the-gp-arriving-just-in-time-for-my-appointment-i-free-endorphin-rush-i-felt-amazing-there-were-several-other-people-ahead-of-me-so-i-needn-t-have-rushed-but-what-the-heck-i-felt-so-good-the-appointment-went-splendidly-and-afterwards-i-ran-home-sent-a-few-messages-off-and-all-was-well2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-june-2-2023-up-bright-and-early-after-sleeping-well-had-an-egg-for-breakfast-made-a-to-do-list-and-the-first-thing-i-did-was-phone-boots-about-my-repeat-prescriptions-the-pharmacist-had-to-check-my-nomad-pack-so-i-could-pick-them-up-in-twenty-minutes-checked-my-eye-hospital-appointment-ran-to-the-pharmacy-where-i-collected-my-repeat-prescription-and-the-co-op-where-i-bought-a-canister-of-milk-and-some-cut-priced-apples-which-saved-time-and-helps-keep-me-fit-made-a-chickpea-curry-and-put-two-portions-in-the-freezer2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-june-3-2023-got-up-nice-and-early-i-wasn-t-sure-want-i-wanted-to-do-today-it-would-have-been-easy-to-spend-the-day-cleaning-and-tidying-my-bungalow-but-being-the-way-i-am-out-of-the-question-i-was-feeling-lonely-and-didn-t-know-what-to-do-so-i-googled-things-to-do-in-southampton-and-found-a-two-hour-historical-guided-walk-in-wincher-and-tried-to-book-a-place-on-it-but-the-site-wouldn-t-accept-my-card-number-despite-me-trying-to-input-three-times-which-was-annoying-i-went-to-marcella-and-it-was-closed-for-a-staff-meeting-so-as-i-now-knew-where-it-was-i-caught-the-first-bus-going-into-southampton-intending-to-stop-off-at-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-which-and-meet-a-few-friends-the-bus-i-caught-was-an-8-not-a-9-which-meant-it-didn-t-stop-off-at-diben-purlieu-and-i-couldn-t-go-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-glaucoma-has-a-lot-to-answer-for-when-i-got-to-southampton-this-time-it-was-easy-to-find-the-portuguese-supermarket-which-turned-out-to-be-smaller-than-i-expected-i-asked-the-shop-keeper-to-recommend-something-and-he-suggested-char-grilled-chicken-after-that-i-went-on-to-the-art-house-where-i-bought-a-bowl-of-potato-and-celiac-soup-got-the-9-back-to-hythe-and-on-the-way-to-marcella-met-janet-the-lady-i-met-last-tuesday-in-the-car-park-i-only-realised-who-she-was-when-i-was-laying-down-in-the-evening-later-coming-home2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-june-4-2023-woke-up-before-my-alarm-sounded-but-stayed-in-bed-until-it-to-ensure-i-took-my-morning-medication-i-took-the-char-grilled-chicken-which-i-bought-in-galego-the-portuguese-supermarket-in-southampton-yesterday-out-of-the-freezer-for-my-evening-meal-i-went-to-marcella-and-for-a-change-we-went-for-a-walk-down-shore-road-as-we-were-walking-back-along-store-road-we-spotted-a-lady-in-an-evening-dress-walking-pass-the-sea-scouts-hut-she-left-the-road-and-made-her-way-to-the-shingle-bank-one-of-the-service-users-suspicious-of-what-she-be-doing-went-and-followed-her-the-lady-staff-member-called-the-police-and-the-lady-in-the-ball-dress-got-into-the-sea-the-service-user-lady-and-the-staff-member-lady-managed-to-persuade-the-lady-in-the-ball-dress-to-come-out-of-the-sea-which-was-followed-by-the-staff-member-lady-having-a-long-conversation-with-the-ball-dress-lady-all-appeared-to-be-good-and-we-went-back-to-marcella-it-looked-like-a-suicide-had-been-averted-when-i-got-home-i-cooked-the-portuguese-lemon-chicken-and-had-a-showerall-the-walking-had-been-quite-an-exertion-and-i-had-a-hot-shower-to-soothe-my-aching-bones2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-june-5-2023-a-day-worth-sing-about-my-day-started-in-a-usual-sort-of-way-i-wasn-t-awakened-by-my-alarm-because-i-d-left-my-ipad-in-the-living-room-and-couldn-t-hear-it-from-my-bedroom-one-of-the-things-i-wanted-to-do-was-collect-the-new-brush-heads-for-my-electric-toothbrush-so-in-my-customary-fashion-i-ran-to-the-local-pharmacy-where-i-d-ordered-them-i-asked-but-no-joy-i-waited-at-the-bus-stop-and-saw-a-bloke-using-a-trimmer-on-same-weeds-without-ear-protectors-so-i-went-over-and-suggested-it-might-be-a-good-idea-he-replied-do-you-know-how-old-i-am-i-said-no-i-m-92-he-replied-the-conversation-continued-and-we-introduced-ourselves-to-each-other-and-i-told-him-my-age-68-he-said-at-one-you-wouldn-t-remember-the-festival-of-britain-in-1051-as-i-was-born-in-1955-so-i-didn-t-remember-but-a-lady-who-i-got-into-conversation-with-at-one-of-bus-stops-near-my-home-mavis-some-years-ago-told-me-her-impression-of-the-ussr-stand-which-had-a-mock-up-of-a-worker-flat-and-how-she-wasn-t-impressed-pete-harries-had-cycled-from-wales-to-see-it-it-had-been-his-first-venture-away-from-home-and-he-has-cherished-memories-of-his-adventure-i-gave-him-one-of-the-promotional-cards-for-my-blog-and-he-noted-my-name-was-ivor-i-caught-the-bus-and-on-the-way-my-friends-ron-and-christ-tucker-got-on-they-were-on-there-way-to-winchester-somehow-our-conversation-turned-to-politics-which-prompted-me-to-give-a-rendition-of-one-of-my-songs-i-stole-the-tune-from-wonderful-wonderful-copenhagen-and-it-goes-wonderful-wonderful-richie-sunak-he-so-wonderful-and-so-marvellous-richie-sunack-yeah-i-don-t-think-he-should-go-to-prison-i-don-t-think-they-should-throw-away-the-key-cause-he-s-wonderful-and-he-s-marvellous-richie-sunack-yeah-when-i-d-finished-several-of-the-other-passengers-applauded-and-one-the-way-to-the-door-a-bloke-remarked-you-sing-well-but-you-don-t-look-like-elvis-presley-i-ran-from-the-sea-city-museum-stop-round-to-the-portswood-stop-and-looked-at-when-the-next-bus-to-portswood-to-see-if-the-bus-on-the-digital-display-was-going-was-right-for-me-un2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-june-6-2023-cure-for-insomnia-and-use-for-disposable-bottles-unable-to-sleep-at-almost-300am-i-got-up-and-followed-up-on-a-simple-way-to-use-empty-plastic-disposable-water-bottles-they-can-be-refilled-with-squash-mixing-the-squash-with-water-in-a-mixing-jug-deposable-can-be-made-to-equal-reusable-after-having-that-idea-i-remembered-a-way-of-effectively-dealing-with-insomnia-have-a-hot-shower-insomnia-cure-have-a-piping-hot-shower-i-set-the-timer-for-10-minutes-to-give-the-boiler-time-to-heat-up-and-settle-down-to-and-began-todays-post-after-my-shower-i-went-to-bed-and-woke-up-not-feeling-great-at-about-800am-but-my-it-had-worked-i-got-some-sleep-whilst-sat-outside-hythe-library-having-my-lunch-pete-harries-who-i-d-met-yesterday-doing-some-stimming-at-the-bus-near-boots-holbury-we-recognised-each-other-and-with-a-little-effort-i-remembered-his-name-i-bought-three-somosas-and-an-onion-bhaji-from-the-gerka-food-stall-and-went-on-to-hythe-library-and-found-out-that-it-will-be-okay-to-conduct-a-teams-meeting-from-there-i-needed-more-milk-and-yogurt-and-went-to-lidl-to-get-them-on-my-way-some-radishes-caught-my-eye-and-to-make-up-the-minimum-amount-for-a-card-transaction-i-bought-a-punnet-of-cherries-unfortunately-when-i-was-on-the-bus-home-i-realised-i-d-lost-my-neck-cushion-callum-from-diabetes-uk-phoned-saying-because-of-the-travelling-involved-with-being-a-diabetic-champion-and-as-i-had-to-use-public-transport-i-wouldn-t-be-an-ideal-candidate-for-the-health-champion-role-but-because-valuable-experience-getting-my-blood-sugar-down-to-pre-diabetic-levels-i-could-make-a-contribution-in-an-online-role-i-said-was-interested-they-ll-let-me-know-about-my-application-in-the-fullness-of-time-ate-the-onion-bhaji-i-bought-at-hythe-market-today-and-had-chicken-salad-as-my-evening-meal-slept-through-the-evening-and-realised-i-d-missed-the-waterside-art-group-meeting2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-june-7-2023-i-had-two-things-planned-for-today-a-teams-meeting-about-controlling-my-weight-which-was-scheduled-for-12-and-a-cost-of-living-event-that-was-scheduled-from-10-to-12-on-my-way-from-the-jones-lane-bus-stop-i-met-the-young-lady-who-i-usually-see-outside-her-house-in-watton-road-weeding-or-painting-her-fence-we-had-a-few-words-and-i-continued-my-run-to-the-library-upon-arrival-i-asked-about-the-cost-of-living-event-and-was-directed-to-a-set-of-empty-tables-and-chairs-i-introduced-myself-to-a-young-lady-bea-who-asked-me-about-how-i-heated-my-home-if-my-loft-was-insulated-and-did-i-have-cavity-wall-insulation-lucie-mann-was-there-and-she-later-told-me-she-d-found-a-volunteer-for-my-garden-and-would-soon-organise-a-large-group-of-people-to-come-and-do-the-clearing-i-was-given-a-free-bag-with-a-throw-blanket-a-fleece-a-pear-of-thermal-gloves-a-neck-warmer-a-thermal-hat-and-a-thermal-mug-i-thought-i-d-lost-my-neck-cushion-and-bought-another-in-j-k-mobility-but-later-found-i-d-left-it-on-the-park-bench-outside-the-library-i-met-ron-and-chis-tucker-and-showed-them-the-sketch-i-d-tried-to-do-of-the-jehovah-s-witnesses-i-d-done-earlier-when-it-was-lunchtime-i-decided-to-try-number-15-for-a-change-and-ordered-welsh-rabbit-with-coffee-the-waitress-said-she-d-seen-me-on-the-bus-earlier-as-i-waited-i-did-a-sketch-of-the-amalfi-italian-restaurant-on-the-other-side-of-the-precinct-on-my-way-to-hythe-pier-bus-stop-i-met-lucy-from-marcella-and-we-had-a-few-words2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-june-8-2023-unable-to-sleep-at-300-am-this-morning-i-got-up-had-some-orange-and-pineapple-squash-looked-at-my-emails-from-yesterday-and-made-plans-for-later-in-the-day-i-took-a-portion-of-chickpea-curry-out-of-the-freezer-so-it-would-be-thawed-for-this-evening-one-of-the-last-emails-i-received-yesterday-was-from-clare-from-october-books-it-was-a-reply-to-my-email-about-my-exhibition-and-she-promised-to-look-in-her-pigeonhole-for-my-camera-chip-and-let-me-know-later-today-that-everything-was-okay-there-were-two-emails-about-the-cost-of-living-event-in-hythe-library-i-attended-yesterday-which-although-i-d-red-and-heard-about-yesterday-the-information-hadn-t-sunk-in-i-went-back-to-bed-and-slept-until-a-little-before-my-alarm-went-off-i-m-now-on-the-priority-list-electricity-supply-because-i-use-my-fridge-to-store-insulin-and-may-be-entitled-to-a-discount-on-my-water-bill-i-emailed-southern-water-this-morning-to-find-out-i-realised-i-ve-got-a-dental-appointment-this-morning-so-hastily-filled-out-the-paperwork-online-and-ran-to-the-bus-stop-dave-and-christ-were-there-christ-looked-at-me-but-didn-t-know-who-i-was-sadly-it-s-part-of-her-ongoing-decline-the-bus-stopped-at-rushingdon-roundabout-and-i-ran-to-the-dentist-in-popes-lane-the-dentist-suggested-i-have-an-appointment-with-a-hygienist-which-i-agreed-to-one-of-my-correspondences-on-messenger-has-repeated-ignored-my-messages-so-i-unsent-them-and-won-t-send-any-more-the-scallywag-came-round-and-arranged-accommodation-for-me-for-our-trip-to-dartmouth-and-exmouth2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-june-9-2023-i-still-felt-a-little-tired-when-i-woke-this-morning-so-treated-myself-to-a-few-more-moments-in-bed-oh-the-joys-of-retirement-with-a-hunger-which-only-a-bacon-sandwich-would-satisfy-i-left-the-womb-like-comfort-of-my-bed-and-put-two-slices-of-bacon-in-the-air-fryer-and-got-myself-a-piece-of-whole-meal-bread-to-go-with-them-unfortunately-i-d-run-out-of-butter-and-didn-t-feel-like-the-exertion-of-going-to-the-shop-so-managed-without-got-in-touch-with-my-energy-supplier-but-i-m-already-in-receipt-of-the-full-discount-i-m-entitled-to-but-they-were-able-to-put-me-on-the-priority-list-because-of-my-epilepsy-and-diabetes-i-received-an-email-telling-me-the-postcards-to-promote-my-art-lottery-will-be-delivered-tomorrow-i-did-some-of-the-tidying-in-my-conservatory-and-felt-a-little-faint-so-checked-my-blood-pressure-and-it-s-within-target-range-lunch-was-a-granny-smith-apple-and-a-few-green-leaves-there-had-been-an-article-on-the-news-this-morning-about-dangerously-high-temperatures-this-weekend-which-accounted-for-my-faintness-it-was-another-lovely-day-and-before-i-knew-it-the-morning-was-over-not-much-achieved-but-i-was-content-i-walked-rather-than-running-to-the-co-op-because-of-the-heat-and-bought-some-groceries-and-a-small-tub-of-plain-kfc-ice-cream-which-was-freezing-cold-by-the-time-i-d-got-it-home-it-was-mostly-liquid-supper-was-a-portion-of-homemade-vegetable-crumble-washed-down-with-tea-followed-by-two-squares-of-dark-chocolate2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-june-10-2023-glorious-weather-again-woke-up-early-after-getting-to-bed-at-about-1115-last-night-and-decided-to-get-up-before-the-alarm-sounded-because-i-didn-t-want-to-waste-time-when-i-could-be-doing-something-interesting-or-useful-time-is-too-precious-a-gift-to-be-wasted-lying-in-bed-wide-awake-today-is-the-day-of-the-dragon-boat-races-in-hythe-marina-i-made-a-sandwich-with-grated-cheese-tomato-and-coleslaw-and-put-it-in-my-rucksack-ready-for-the-off-and-refilled-the-disposable-plastic-water-bottle-i-bought-with-some-orange-and-pineapple-squash-had-a-shower-and-felt-amazing-my-first-port-of-call-was-marcella-one-of-the-fellow-inmates-said-there-wasn-t-much-happening-with-the-dragon-race-later-on-we-went-to-the-marina-and-sat-watching-the-cruise-liners-and-container-ships-making-their-way-along-southampton-water-i-wished-i-brought-my-sketch-book-with-me-but-like-many-of-my-wishes-it-never-came-to-be-does-anyone-fulfil-their-every-desire-if-there-s-anyone-who-does-it-isn-t-me-as-i-sat-i-watched-the-waves-with-their-constant-movement-it-was-almost-mesmerising-a-good-place-to-reflect-on-life-nearby-a-couple-of-men-were-fishing-and-suddenly-the-tip-of-one-of-their-rods-began-to-move-he-d-caught-something-i-learnt-later-in-was-a-smooth-hound-which-is-a-variety-of-small-shark-he-unhooked-it-and-threw-it-back-the-cotton-wool-clouds-on-the-far-shore-looked-magical-with-their-shades-of-subtle-pink-i-m-glad-i-got-to-see-them-it-was-time-well-spent2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-june-11-2023-an-inventive-and-productive-day-it-was-pleasantly-cool-this-morning-and-there-was-a-light-gentle-rain-which-had-covered-the-roof-of-my-conservatory-with-tiny-water-droplets-the-never-at-odds-with-life-birds-sang-joyously-yesterday-afternoon-the-postcards-based-on-one-of-my-pictures-arrived-and-i-was-pleased-with-how-they-turned-out-all-that-remained-to-do-now-was-find-a-way-to-sell-them-and-make-a-profit-after-a-little-more-thought-i-don-t-think-my-idea-for-a-lottery-for-one-of-my-paintings-was-very-good-so-i-ve-scrapped-it-i-am-going-to-try-and-sell-the-postcards-and-last-night-looked-up-card-shops-in-southampton-in-need-of-some-friendly-company-i-went-to-hythe-s-most-exclusive-club-and-showed-everyone-the-post-card-of-one-of-my-paintings-one-of-the-members-of-staff-who-had-worked-with-dementia-and-alzheimer-s-sufferers-said-when-they-received-a-postcard-they-would-really-treasure-it-looking-at-it-time-and-time-again-whereas-if-a-relative-phoned-they-d-forget-about-it-shortly-afterwards-i-decided-to-share-this-observation-with-age-concern-and-the-alzheimer-s-society-in-an-email-if-i-could-make-a-little-money-and-the-world-a-better-place-wow-yes-please-i-also-invented-a-solution-to-another-problem-which-had-come-up-in-a-conversation-at-the-club-and-draw-a-thumb-nail-sketch-of-my-idea-it-was-something-which-would-be-easy-to-produce-and-easy-to-make-which-would-also-make-money-and-improve-lives-what-a-clever-little-chap-i-am-to-thought-despite-all-the-trials-and-tribulations-life-has-put-before-me-my-delusions-of-grandeur-are-ever-present-and-continue-to-give-me-great-pleasure2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-june-12-2023-i-checked-to-see-if-the-invention-a-filling-stand-for-hot-water-bottles-i-made-yesterday-in-the-evening-of-june-11-after-writing-the-post-had-already-been-invented-of-and-it-had-not-very-surprising-looking-at-it-from-today-s-perspective-it-is-an-obvious-idea-when-i-went-to-the-club-yesterday-i-didn-t-have-my-ipad-with-me-and-couldn-t-do-a-google-search-i-had-great-plans-for-today-but-because-i-was-very-tired-just-slept-one-of-the-triggers-with-epilepsy-is-having-too-little-sleep-and-sleeping-through-the-day-wasn-t-a-waste-of-time-but-a-total-necessity-i-woke-at-1550-got-up-and-dressed-and-felt-great-doing-anything-else-would-risk-causing-a-lot-of-trouble-and-distress-to-onlookers-seeing-someone-having-a-fit-isn-t-a-pleasant-and-would-cost-the-nhs-at-least-300-the-cost-of-a-hospital-bed-for-one-night-from-a-purely-selfish-perspective-it-would-be-undignified-and-dangerous2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-june-13-2023-it-s-another-sunny-day-i-m-in-a-lack-lustre-mood-things-are-just-too-much-bother-at-present-i-ve-had-something-to-eat-and-am-drinking-a-cup-of-tea-after-my-tea-i-go-and-lay-down-and-daydream-time-passes-and-i-came-to-understand-something-about-myself-i-like-daydreaming-prefer-it-to-the-more-productive-ways-of-spending-my-time-like-cleaning-and-tidying-my-bungalow-or-reading-catching-up-on-the-news-or-at-least-for-the-moment-perhaps-it-s-one-of-the-nice-things-about-retirement-i-bought-some-brushes-recently-and-would-do-some-do-some-more-to-my-latest-painting-i-almost-said-work-but-i-don-t-really-see-it-as-work-it-s-play-i-looked-around-for-the-brushes-and-when-i-thought-they-were-completely-lost-found-them-in-need-of-some-sandpaper-for-the-painting-i-ran-to-the-nearby-hardware-store-and-back-and-bought-a-sheet-when-i-got-home-i-felt-better-for-having-exerted-myself-the-idea-of-selling-my-post-cards-to-dementia-and-alzheimer-s-patients-has-been-abandoned-i-don-t-think-it-s-a-very-good-idea-after-all2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-june-14-2023-unable-to-sleep-i-got-up-and-had-a-cup-of-tea-and-stayed-up-most-of-the-night-i-had-a-shower-and-had-a-laid-down-for-a-while-and-then-remembered-i-had-a-couple-of-appointments-at-my-gp-surgery-one-for-blood-and-urine-tests-and-the-other-for-my-annual-diabetes-check-i-left-getting-there-with-too-little-time-for-the-journey-so-ran-for-it-but-despite-my-best-efforts-was-late-fortunately-they-were-running-late-too-so-i-was-okay-after-dealing-with-my-medical-issues-and-full-of-energy-through-running-i-didn-t-feel-tired-and-decided-to-go-to-southampton-general-and-join-the-picket-line-for-the-doctor-s-strike-when-i-got-there-i-couldn-t-find-it-despite-looking-all-around-the-hospital-i-came-home-and-exhausted-slept-soundly-through-the-night2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-june-15-2023-after-my-exertions-of-yesterday-i-was-enjoying-a-pleasant-sleep-when-the-phone-rang-i-went-into-the-living-room-to-answer-it-at-first-i-thought-it-was-another-bogus-call-about-my-internet-speed-and-almost-issued-fourth-a-stream-of-expletives-fortunately-i-didn-t-it-was-the-eye-hospital-at-southampton-general-who-told-me-i-was-due-in-for-an-all-day-examination-for-my-glaucoma-i-was-in-dire-need-of-a-shower-so-had-one-before-buying-a-chicken-and-mushroom-slice-and-a-banana-milkshake-in-one-stop-and-making-for-the-bus-stop-the-bus-was-late-and-when-it-did-arrive-painfully-slow-because-of-the-roadworks-coming-into-southampton-eventually-i-got-to-the-eye-hospital-but-there-was-some-confusion-with-the-receptionistas-i-was-booked-in-for-a-surgery-and-not-an-appointment-the-surgery-consisted-of-pressure-readings-of-my-eyes-every-two-hours-i-had-four-in-total-and-sketched-as-i-waited-came-home-absolutely-drained-and-made-myself-some-beans-on-toast-followed-by-a-long-sound-sleep2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-june-16-2023-all-set-for-the-next-episode-of-the-2023-diary-adventures-exmouth-and-dartmouth-woke-up-extremely-early-and-started-working-on-making-reservations-for-the-exeter-paignton-train-which-i-messed-up-cancelling-two-lots-of-bookings-i-requested-refunds-which-will-be-credited-to-my-account-within-five-working-days-but-i-ll-still-have-to-pay-cancellation-fees-i-wrote-up-and-published-on-the-blog-hosting-site-and-facebook-my-blog-posts-for-june-14-and-15-then-i-found-there-was-still-a-problem-with-the-reservation-and-almost-gave-up-the-whole-scheme-andy-came-round-for-our-weekly-scrabble-tournament-and-sorted-everything-out-seemingly-without-effort-we-agreed-he-could-be-responsible-for-making-the-reservations-in-future-he-also-won-both-games-of-scrabble2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-june-17-2023-got-up-latish-feeling-hungry-and-cooked-myself-a-couple-of-rashers-of-bacon-which-i-ate-with-my-last-two-slices-of-seeded-whole-meal-bread-and-washed-down-with-tea-feeling-deflated-at-my-poor-performance-booking-the-train-tickets-yesterday-i-comforted-myself-with-the-thought-that-my-idea-that-diabetics-could-share-food-diaries-was-good-it-would-be-nice-to-feel-i-could-help-make-the-world-a-better-place-and-perhaps-i-have-got-off-the-bus-at-hythe-pier-where-ron-was-waiting-for-the-bus-into-southampton-we-exchanged-a-few-pleasant-words-and-i-made-my-way-to-hythe-s-most-exclusive-club-and-met-chis-coming-in-the-opposite-direction-when-i-got-to-the-club-i-wrote-some-notes-on-what-to-include-in-today-s-blog-post-and-made-myself-a-tea-some-of-which-i-split-because-of-my-essential-tremor-at-lunchtime-i-bought-a-beef-and-vegetable-pasty-in-tilly-s-bakery-which-i-heated-up-in-the-microwave-at-the-club-and-ate-with-some-hp-sauce-as-i-queued-for-the-bakery-a-lady-who-was-over-from-the-isle-of-wight-to-do-some-cycling-asked-if-it-was-a-good-shop-i-replied-yes-i-got-into-conversation-with-david-at-the-club-he-s-an-electrical-engineer-who-had-studied-electrical-engineering-at-liverpool-university-and-now-works-designing-microchips-clever-man-we-went-for-a-walk-to-the-marina-and-i-did-a-couple-of-sketches-i-bought-a-few-things-in-lidl-and-while-i-waited-for-my-bus-eduardo-walked-by-and-we-had-a-brief-chat2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-june-18-2023-woke-up-early-and-made-plans-for-the-trip-to-devon-tomorrow-i-have-decided-to-take-the-absolute-minimum-of-things-with-me-as-we-ll-only-be-away-for-four-days-the-trip-is-part-of-an-ongoing-project-to-raise-money-for-diabetes-uk-and-have-fun-i-ve-set-up-a-just-giving-page-and-any-contributions-would-be-greatly-appreciated-https-wwwjustgivingcom-page-ivor-minard-1677067588148-my-mission-is-to-visit-each-of-the-british-coastal-locations-illustrated-in-becky-bettesworth-s-2023-diary-of-the-british-isles-and-write-about-my-experiences-on-a-blog-one-of-my-friends-andy-burch-is-coming-along-for-company-after-i-d-finished-planning-i-remembered-i-m-going-on-a-boat-trip-this-afternoon-on-the-alison-mac-gregor-around-southampton-water-with-hythe-s-most-exclusive-club-at-one-stage-one-of-the-lady-inmates-pointed-to-what-looked-like-a-mansion-on-the-shoreline-and-said-my-summer-residence-do-you-mean-you-re-only-got-one-summer-residence-i-asked-she-stuck-out-her-lower-lip-as-if-saying-yes-it-was-very-pleasant-getting-out-on-the-open-water-in-the-fresh-air-did-me-a-power-of-good-i-did-a-sketch-of-the-emergency-fuel-cut-off-and-they-gave-us-all-to-a-cup-of-tea-or-coffee-with-biscuits-a-detail-which-would-be-missed-by-the-majority-of-people-but-a-challenge-to-draw-it-started-to-rain-when-the-alison-mac-gregor-was-in-the-hythe-marina-lock-which-made-things-cooler-i-ran-to-the-bus-stop-and-caught-the-bus-home2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-june-19-to-thursday-june-22-2023-i-set-out-for-my-four-day-trip-to-devon-thinking-i-d-got-everything-but-on-the-bus-into-southampton-realised-i-d-left-my-weekly-diabetic-injection-the-fridge-which-i-was-due-on-wednesday-it-was-too-late-to-go-back-and-i-would-have-to-make-arrangements-when-i-was-in-paignton-the-day-was-spent-travelling-which-was-made-complicated-by-getting-separated-from-andy-at-exeter-where-i-had-an-urgent-need-for-the-gents-using-our-mobiles-we-agreed-that-he-would-wait-for-me-in-paignton-we-met-at-paignton-station-and-had-a-harvester-meal-an-underwhelming-and-exorbitantly-expensive-experience-and-went-to-our-separate-hotels-my-hotel-was-the-hotel-bonair-and-the-first-thing-i-did-was-try-and-get-the-wifi-set-up-for-my-ipad-which-i-asked-for-help-with-three-times-whilst-there-and-then-gave-up-i-m-writing-this-on-this-friday-after-my-return-the-first-morning-at-breakfast-i-met-a-lady-named-hilary-who-turned-out-to-be-a-couple-of-months-older-than-me-she-had-lived-in-france-and-spain-and-learnt-french-and-spanish-to-be-properly-integrated-into-the-countries-she-believes-covid-is-just-severe-flu-and-hasn-t-been-vaccinated-the-hotel-was-run-by-young-men-whose-nationality-i-never-established-but-i-suspect-they-were-of-middle-eastern-extraction-the-next-morning-there-was-a-tall-boney-old-bod-the-lexicographer-sat-where-hilary-had-been-i-sat-a-few-tables-away-from-him-thinking-he-would-prefer-his-own-space-we-had-a-few-words-and-he-told-me-he-was-from-westbound-bournemouth-he-had-a-pile-of-crosswords-which-i-used-to-start-our-conversation-my-first-priority-was-sorting-out-my-injection-so-i-googled-and-found-my-way-to-the-closest-pharmacist-and-phoned-my-gp-s-secretary-who-sorted-it-out-on-wednesday-morning-i-had-a-telephone-appointment-with-the-diabetes-nurse-who-told-me-my-blood-sugar-was-now-low-and-i-should-stop-taking-metformin-my-hands-have-been-shaking-recently-which-is-a-symptom-of-low-blood-sugar-one-less-tablet-and-firm-hands-life-is-good-andy-and-i-caught-the-train-to-exmouth-we-had-lunch-at-the-su2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-june-23-2023-the-first-thing-i-did-in-the-morning-was-write-my-blog-post-for-june-19-to-22-the-days-i-was-visiting-devon-i-needed-a-power-cable-and-connection-lead-for-my-ipad-and-was-going-to-buy-one-in-the-apple-store-in-west-quay-but-realised-i-was-expecting-a-fire-safety-assessment-at-1100-the-conclusion-of-the-assessment-was-i-needed-to-clear-some-of-my-clutter-and-i-was-given-a-carbon-monoxide-detector-which-was-put-on-top-of-my-dishwasher-after-he-s-gone-i-did-a-little-de-cluttering-in-the-kitchen-made-myself-some-boiled-rice-mixed-vegetables-and-chicken-for-supper-later-i-remembered-the-diabetes-nurse-told-me-to-take-my-blood-sugar-morning-and-evening-so-i-set-up-reminders-on-my-organiser2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-june-24-2023-got-up-at-about-five-and-had-the-last-of-the-carton-of-milk-i-bought-while-away-in-devon-it-seemed-to-be-creamier-than-our-local-milk-but-that-may-just-be-imaginary-i-remembered-during-my-phone-call-with-the-diabetes-nurse-in-devon-she-had-told-me-to-take-blood-sugar-readings-in-the-morning-and-evening-after-stopping-the-metformin-this-morning-i-took-a-reading-i-put-off-having-breakfast-until-the-shops-opens-because-i-thought-there-was-no-milk-at-around-seven-i-put-on-my-trainers-in-readiness-for-a-run-to-the-co-op-there-was-a-facebook-post-this-morning-with-a-photo-of-dibden-inclosure-from-someone-who-d-had-a-two-and-a-half-hour-morning-run-there-as-i-was-about-to-leave-and-remembered-running-to-the-co-op-yesterday-to-buy-a-carton-of-milk-and-leaving-it-on-its-side-in-the-fridge-i-hope-i-m-not-going-senile-i-went-to-marcella-and-for-a-while-was-the-only-service-user-with-two-members-of-staff-looking-after-me-i-chatted-with-margret-about-taking-care-of-diabetes-covid-and-combating-mental-decline-josh-came-out-with-a-sandwich-which-prompted-me-to-run-to-lidl-and-buy-a-ready-meal-and-a-pizza-slice-and-i-ate-them-as-soon-as-i-got-back-to-marcella-ben-and-david-arrived-and-we-all-four-of-us-went-for-a-walk-and-were-fortunate-enough-not-to-stumble-across-any-suicidal-transvestites-on-our-travels-after-marcella-i-had-a-much-needed-haircut-in-the-new-hythe-barber-shop-next-to-waitrose-then-i-got-home-finished-the-last-of-the-beef-in-red-wine-stew-with-a-potato-and-took-my-blood-sugar-again-which-was-still-in-target-range2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-june-25-2023-unable-to-sleep-i-got-out-of-bed-and-wrote-up-my-food-and-exercise-diary-for-yesterday-and-worked-out-i-spending-s-on-monthly-standing-orders-and-how-much-i-have-over-until-my-pension-comes-in-just-under-three-weeks-i-went-back-to-bed-and-slept-until-late-morning-and-got-up-took-my-blood-sugar-which-was-easily-within-target-range-had-a-bowl-of-fruit-and-fibre-followed-by-two-squares-of-dark-chocolate-and-washed-down-with-tea-i-didn-t-go-to-marcella-and-made-myself-some-cottage-pie-using-red-wine-with-the-mince-for-more-flavour-and-a-sweet-potato-with-ordinary-potatoes-for-the-topping-it-was-another-of-those-days-and-there-re-been-many-of-them-when-i-didn-t-do-anything-very-constructive-but-who-knows-next-week-may-be-more-eventful2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-june-26-2023-woke-up-ridiculously-early-and-wrote-up-and-published-my-blog-post-for-sunday-which-was-an-uneventful-day-drank-several-cups-of-tea-and-ate-two-slices-of-toast-with-hummus-sometime-after-seven-i-still-hadn-t-gone-to-sleep-after-snacking-in-the-night-my-blood-sugar-was-high-because-i-d-taken-it-directly-after-eating-but-took-it-again-at-around-1100-and-it-was-nice-and-low-i-phoned-my-gp-surgery-to-check-about-my-diabetes-appointment-it-s-a-300-on-wednesday-and-it-s-on-the-phone-i-dosed-in-my-armchair-and-it-was-too-late-to-go-to-october-books-for-lunch-so-i-had-a-tuna-sandwich-washed-down-with-tea-worked-on-my-latest-painting-ran-to-holbury-hardware-and-back-where-i-bought-a-large-bottle-of-white-spirit-which-was-needed-to-continue-my-painting-worked-on-my-latest-painting-which-will-be-included-in-my-exhibition-in-october-at-october-books-at-530-to-600-i-had-a-zoom-meeting-with-my-friend-richard-and-showed-him-the-progress-on-my-painting-had-my-evening-meal-corned-beef-small-jacket-potato-cheese-mixed-vegetables-after-i-d-eaten-i-remembered-i-hadn-t-taken-my-blood-sugar-so-decided-to-take-it-at-bedtime2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-27-2023-to-wednesday-28-feeling-down-in-the-dumps-recently-i-decided-living-alone-isn-t-ideal-and-joined-a-free-online-dating-site-with-unfortunate-results-i-posted-my-picture-with-a-description-of-myself-and-got-two-responses-who-looked-attractive-but-were-stupid-it-looks-like-if-that-s-any-example-i-m-always-going-to-live-alone-i-have-always-consoled-myself-with-the-belief-it-s-better-to-be-alone-than-part-of-an-unhappy-relationship-there-was-a-telephone-consultation-with-the-diabetes-nurse-was-okay-but-my-injections-may-become-in-short-supply-soon-my-friend-andy-came-round-and-we-played-scrabble-the-games-were-close-but-as-usual-he-won-both-of-them2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-june-29-2023-another-sunny-day-i-was-late-getting-up-and-just-after-midday-julie-came-and-picked-me-up-followed-by-helen-to-take-us-to-the-ucsa-meeting-at-the-unite-building-in-southampton-the-meeting-was-okay-but-julie-remarked-there-were-fewer-attendees-than-there-used-to-be-she-told-me-about-a-website-global-research-which-if-what-she-said-is-true-reveals-was-very-disturbing-information-about-covid-and-what-s-going-on-in-the-world-it-is-said-people-believe-either-what-they-want-to-believe-or-expect-to-believe-i-m-not-in-the-mood-to-learn-about-the-world-s-troubles-there-s-nothing-i-can-do-about-them-and-i-would-rather-they-passed-me-by-feeling-depressed-and-need-a-break-from-my-usual-routine-i-booked-a-ticket-on-moving-voices-at-the-art-house-tomorrow-and-have-taken-out-a-subscription-to-the-our-times-dating-app-and-looked-through-a-few-profiles-it-was-way-past-my-bedtime-when-i-gave-up-and-crawled-off-to-bed2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-june-30-2023-unable-to-sleep-once-again-i-got-up-early-in-the-morning-and-treated-myself-to-some-tea-previously-i-had-decided-to-do-something-different-this-weekend-and-did-a-google-search-for-ideas-the-problem-was-finding-something-that-would-be-amusing-that-didn-t-cost-too-much-money-after-a-little-searching-i-bought-a-ticket-for-the-open-mic-session-at-the-art-house-where-i-planned-to-do-a-public-performance-of-my-wonderful-wonderful-boris-johnson-song-the-prospect-of-bellowing-at-the-top-of-my-voice-like-a-demented-rhino-in-front-of-a-crowd-of-onlookers-and-making-them-laugh-appealed-immensely-during-the-day-i-intended-check-i-d-got-the-best-deal-on-my-house-insurance-and-emailed-savage-and-bullock-i-also-meant-to-go-to-hythe-library-and-see-if-anything-can-be-done-to-fix-my-double-glazing-but-didn-t-i-spent-a-lot-of-time-modifying-my-our-time-profile-and-looking-at-the-responses-from-it-by-the-time-it-came-to-catch-the-bus-into-southampton-the-lack-of-sleep-had-caught-up-with-me-and-there-was-nothing-for-it-but-have-a-nap-the-weather-had-gone-dull-and-there-was-some-rain-and-by-nine-at-night-it-was-raining-hard-so-i-skipped-having-a-run-which-would-have-made-me-feel-good2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/saturday-june-1-2023-had-an-early-start-and-made-some-modifications-to-my-ourtime-profile-following-watching-an-advice-video-that-said-include-nothing-on-your-profile-that-you-wouldn-t-mention-on-your-first-date-so-it-now-includes-nothing-about-my-epilepsy-or-diabetes-a-few-nice-ladies-who-don-t-live-too-far-away-viewed-my-profile-and-i-started-to-try-and-strike-up-conversations-with-them-then-i-felt-exhausted-and-used-google-to-find-a-way-to-deal-with-it-it-suggested-exercise-and-drinking-water-so-i-had-some-water-and-ran-to-the-bus-stop-which-sorted-me-out-for-a-while-ran-to-boots-holbury-and-picked-up-my-medication-had-a-cheese-and-beetroot-sandwich-and-caught-the-bus-into-hythe-and-went-to-marcella-where-i-met-may-the-new-manager-when-i-got-home-i-looked-at-some-ladies-who-had-visited-my-ourtime-profile-and-wrote-responses-after-a-supper-of-pork-steak-jacket-potatoes-and-cauliflower-and-broccoli-i-slept-through-the-evening-and-woke-thinking-it-was-four-in-the-morning-it-was-about-ten-at-night-i-dosed-a-while-longer-and-it-was-midnight-so-got-up-and-had-a-tea-there-were-no-more-viewings-of-my-ourtime-profile-and-i-tried-to-get-into-conversation-with-a-lady-i-know-on-facebook-but-there-was-no-answer2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-july-2-2023-unable-to-sleep-again-after-sleeping-through-the-evening-i-got-up-and-had-some-tea-my-used-my-time-watching-instructions-a-video-for-writing-messages-for-ourtime-and-watching-a-ted-talk-entitled-being-happy-isn-t-the-only-thing-which-gave-four-pillars-for-a-purposeful-life-belong-people-need-a-scene-of-belonging-to-a-group-or-society-and-need-to-be-accepted-for-what-they-are-rather-than-how-they-fit-in-purpose-the-sense-of-being-of-value-transcendence-this-is-when-you-re-in-the-zone-and-performing-beyond-maximum-capacity-story-telling-the-one-that-was-most-interesting-to-me-was-story-telling-which-is-about-how-people-edit-and-interpret-their-life-experiences-which-enables-them-to-adjust-to-their-pasts-a-good-story-will-offer-redemption-growth-and-love-it-was-also-remarked-that-chasing-happiness-can-cause-unhappiness-i-spent-the-day-contacting-ladies-on-ourtime-and-by-afternoon-was-exhausted-so-went-to-bed-and-slept-until-early-evening-i-made-myself-a-meal-of-fish-fingers-jacket-potato-and-cauliflower-with-broccoli-and-later-ate-a-large-tin-of-pineapple-chunks2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-july-3-2023got-up-at-about-six-thinking-of-giving-up-on-the-online-dating-after-spending-hours-on-sunday-approaching-every-lady-online-who-might-possibly-be-interested-in-me-and-getting-a-lot-of-views-to-my-profile-with-no-follow-ups-i-m-wondering-if-anyone-will-ever-be-interestedone-trouble-is-probably-my-photos-aren-t-very-good-and-the-written-content-isn-t-enticing-i-don-t-have-much-money-and-i-haven-t-led-an-interesting-life-i-ve-been-reading-profiles-and-don-t-really-think-i-have-much-to-offer-one-lady-blocked-me-after-visiting-my-profile-and-in-the-words-immortalised-by-clark-gable-in-gone-with-the-wind-frankly-my-dear-i-don-t-give-a-damn-what-the-hell-i-needed-a-few-things-in-lidl-bread-butter-mixed-vegetables-garlic-pizza-slice-and-spring-water-and-take-my-auto-books-back-while-in-the-library-i-enquired-about-getting-my-double-glazing-fixed-and-left-my-contact-detailsi-think-the-problem-with-the-ourtime-website-for-me-is-it-s-designed-for-rich-people-and-i-m-not-one-of-them2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-july-4-2023-pessimism-avoid-disappointment-i-woke-at-around-five-and-looked-at-today-s-selection-of-ladies-on-offer-from-ourtime-it-amazed-me-how-little-a-couple-of-them-said-about-themselves-they-provided-a-picture-age-and-a-short-sentence-that-stated-the-obvious-and-for-hobbies-put-fitness-training-i-remember-explaining-to-my-art-teacher-he-was-a-good-listener-that-with-a-drawing-what-is-left-out-is-as-important-as-what-is-included-the-all-the-ladies-profiles-contained-predictable-ingredients-boy-it-would-have-been-a-breath-of-fresh-air-if-someone-had-said-i-don-t-have-a-sense-of-humour-hate-walks-in-the-country-beaches-swimming-music-sightseeing-concerts-art-galleries-reading-and-watching-tv-my-grandchildren-are-pernicious-vermin-they-re-all-sociable-and-enjoy-cooking-for-their-families-and-friends-and-on-and-on-ad-infinitum-why-not-just-to-stand-out-from-the-crowd-put-i-m-looking-for-an-unkind-uncaring-idiot-who-has-no-interests-and-is-a-rude-pig-anyway-i-cancelled-my-subscription-one-of-my-slogans-when-i-was-designing-tee-shirts-was-pessimism-avoid-disappointment2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-july-5-2023-making-money-from-waste-ground-yesterday-i-came-up-with-an-alternative-idea-for-what-to-do-with-my-garden-after-reading-a-money-magpie-article-which-suggested-unused-land-could-be-turned-into-allotments-which-would-generate-income-for-the-landowners-through-the-article-i-found-out-about-the-national-allotments-society-and-emailed-their-legal-and-organisational-representative-and-got-a-reply-soon-after-which-prompted-me-to-become-an-allotment-landlord-and-set-the-necessary-forms-for-membership-unfortunately-because-of-the-cost-66-will-have-to-wait-until-i-get-my-pension-on-14-7-23-before-i-join-today-5-7-23-wednesday-i-got-up-after-10-not-knowing-what-to-do-and-not-in-the-mood-to-do-much-sat-in-my-armchair-dosing-after-deleting-today-s-selection-of-recommended-women-from-the-ourtime-website-my-sister-in-law-emailed-to-discuss-my-funeral-arrangements-and-i-said-i-would-research-it-and-get-back-to-her-by-the-end-of-the-month-i-found-out-the-cheapest-funeral-is-a-direct-cremation-which-at-today-s-prices-costs-895-also-setting-up-a-family-trust-which-would-avoid-probate-so-that-my-trustees-could-access-the-money-before-the-will-was-settled2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-june-6-2023-yesterday-s-post-concerning-raising-a-money-from-my-garden-caused-some-controversy-and-resulted-in-replies-from-julie-hope-my-niece-amanda-lowe-and-lucie-mann-the-final-reply-from-lucie-which-said-i-would-make-less-than-i-imagined-which-was-endorsed-by-julie-made-me-think-again-the-website-my-niece-suggested-was-alottme-which-was-free-to-advertise-allotment-space-on-instead-of-the-national-allotment-society-which-charges-the-information-provided-by-the-bbc-isn-t-the-best-in-this-instancethe-site-showed-a-lot-of-people-offering-their-gardens-for-free-which-further-reinforced-i-wouldn-t-make-very-much-money-i-have-made-further-progress-with-planning-my-funeral-and-will-be-speaking-to-someone-tomorrow-about-writing-my-will-and-discussing-the-arrangements-with-my-sister-in-law-the-plan-is-i-will-save-up-for-a-direct-cremation-rather-than-following-a-prepaid-plan-the-advantages-with-doing-it-like-this-are-i-won-t-have-to-follow-a-set-payment-schedule-and-until-i-ve-made-the-purchase-i-ll-have-the-money-to-hand-if-i-need-it-for-some-other-purpose-a-lady-is-coming-round-tomorrow-to-sell-me-a-will-andy-came-round-and-beat-me-at-scrabble-twice-once-again-this-time-he-got-his-best-ever-score-in-the-second-game2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-july-7-2023-after-making-yesterday-s-post-i-received-a-comment-from-a-friend-saying-she-had-written-her-own-will-and-it-s-less-difficult-than-might-be-imagined-all-that-it-needed-was-filling-in-an-online-template-and-getting-it-signed-by-two-witnesses-so-i-started-a-template-and-began-filling-it-out-and-phoned-the-will-writing-company-i-d-booked-an-appointment-with-today-and-cancelled-my-appointment-later-i-did-some-shopping-in-lidl-in-hythe-and-had-tofu-with-rice-as-my-evening-meal2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-july-8-2023-slept-most-of-the-day-and-did-a-little-more-work-on-my-will-i-m-not-making-the-best-use-of-my-time-and-want-to-do-something-about-it-went-for-a-run-round-the-block-to-perk-myself-up-ate-the-last-portion-of-cottage-pie-i-need-something-to-motivate-and-energise-myself-new-interests2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-july-9-2023-got-up-before-seven-and-messaged-a-few-friends-in-need-of-a-shower-i-had-one-and-when-i-d-finished-had-a-nap-as-i-invariably-do-after-a-shower-unfortunately-by-the-time-i-d-finished-it-was-too-late-to-go-to-marcella-but-i-felt-better-for-it-the-last-time-i-went-shopping-i-bought-a-packet-of-chicken-thighs-and-a-bottle-of-white-wine-to-cook-them-in-i-cooked-the-chicken-in-white-wine-stew-in-the-slow-cooker-as-planned-as-it-cooked-it-smelt-amazing-and-when-i-ate-some-it-lived-up-to-expectations2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-july-10-2023-it-s-a-lovely-sunny-day-but-as-usual-i-spent-the-morning-sat-in-my-warn-out-armchair-messaging-friends-about-how-much-housework-and-the-gardening-i-ve-got-rather-than-doing-it-and-i-ve-got-to-do-some-painting-for-my-exhibition-in-october-like-everything-else-that-isn-t-getting-done-either-short-of-milk-and-i-ran-to-the-co-op-and-back-to-buy-some-and-bought-a-chocolate-coated-ice-cream-and-some-onions-whilst-there-i-had-a-lay-down-wondering-what-to-do-to-lift-my-mood-and-eventually-decided-i-needed-to-have-fun-having-fun-is-the-opposite-to-being-depressed-it-s-something-i-ve-forgotten-to-do-the-bootleg-art-club-went-okay-i-did-some-more-to-my-painting-and-had-some-company-which-improved-my-mood2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-july-11-2023-unable-to-sleep-i-got-up-early-this-morning-and-googled-to-find-new-things-to-do-with-my-time-one-of-the-first-suggestions-was-watching-the-sunrise-numerous-health-benefits-were-listed-with-too-many-people-spending-their-time-indoors-in-front-of-screens-and-missing-the-benefit-of-being-in-tune-with-nature-i-checked-when-the-sunrise-will-be-today-and-it-will-be-at-456-the-weather-was-stormy-today-first-thing-with-scattered-showers-forecast-during-my-google-search-most-of-the-suggestions-i-came-up-with-costed-money-here-was-the-promise-of-something-awesome-which-was-free-i-sat-in-the-conservatory-listening-to-the-sounds-of-the-leaves-in-the-trees-being-blown-by-the-cool-breeze-as-time-passed-some-the-birdsong-began-with-cooing-of-pigeons-and-a-distant-rooster-there-was-complete-cloud-cover-so-the-sunrise-wasn-t-visible-with-my-only-awareness-of-it-being-the-gradual-lighting-of-the-sky-when-i-first-came-to-holbury-whilst-walking-he-dog-i-got-into-conversation-with-an-old-farm-hand-with-a-deeply-wrinkled-weathered-face-who-told-me-before-the-refinery-there-had-been-a-far-greater-variety-of-wildlife-in-the-area-after-my-early-start-today-i-was-exhausted-and-a-slept-until-early-evening-not-feeling-gregarious-i-cancelled-my-outing-tomorrow-and-had-a-messenger-conversation-with-andy-telling-him-my-wishes2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-july-12-2023-i-went-to-bed-last-night-with-the-thought-what-can-i-change-a-very-good-question-with-an-answer-that-would-define-the-extent-of-my-freedom-i-pondered-it-some-more-and-came-up-with-a-better-question-what-can-i-improve-what-do-i-want-to-improve-and-the-million-dollar-question-what-can-i-improve-and-want-to-improve-right-now-ran-round-the-block-and-felt-good-i-sat-as-usual-in-my-warn-out-armchair-and-decided-i-needed-a-change-of-air-and-caught-the-bus-into-hythe-where-i-had-a-chicken-curry-in-be-be-s-and-bought-a-few-things-in-lidl-i-ran-instead-of-walking-because-i-like-the-way-it-feels-and-it-s-good-for-me-the-bus-back-home-took-ages-to-come-and-i-saw-eduardo-twice-while-i-waited-he-noticed-i-d-lost-weight-on-my-way-back-from-the-bus-stop-in-holbury-to-my-bungalow-i-had-to-hold-my-jeans-up-a-disadvantage-with-losing-weight-is-the-need-to-buy-smaller-clothes-and-that-is-costly-i-decided-to-distract-myself-from-the-boredom-of-being-alone-by-starting-work-on-cleaning-and-tidying-the-bathroom-it-s-a-commonly-known-you-can-only-really-pay-attention-to-one-thing-at-a-time-so-cleaning-my-bungalow-would-help-me-with-my-mood-and-make-the-place-look-like-it-s-inhabited-by-a-civilised-human-being-it-would-be-a-question-of-doing-a-little-and-of-doing-it-often-i-d-done-a-little-yesterday-when-i-half-cleaned-the-top-of-my-cooker-and-did-some-more-today-cleaning-my-bathroom-sink-housework-is-best-rationed-slow-and-steady-wins-the-race2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-july-13-2023-early-this-morning-unable-to-sleep-i-decided-to-see-if-it-might-be-possible-to-get-a-better-deal-for-my-home-insurance-and-googled-anprice-comparison-site-for-home-insurance-on-and-found-when-i-later-i-could-get-it-over-6-month-cheaper-by-changing-suppliers-over-72-saving-per-year-i-couldn-t-log-onto-my-bank-app-so-went-into-southampton-to-sort-it-out-when-i-was-walking-to-my-bus-the-precinct-a-beautiful-coloured-lady-with-long-curly-hair-smiled-at-me-and-began-a-conversation-her-name-was-olivia-and-she-was-raising-money-for-a-charity-for-deaf-children-i-explained-i-was-a-pensioner-and-couldn-t-afford-to-take-out-a-monthly-subscription-but-when-my-pension-came-through-would-make-a-one-off-minimum-payment-on-the-bus-home-i-got-into-conversation-with-dough-who-was-coming-home-from-a-hospital-appointment-he-s-another-epileptic-and-one-of-the-side-effects-of-his-medication-is-producing-too-many-red-blood-cells-so-his-appointment-today-was-in-his-words-for-bloodletting-he-was-planning-to-live-on-the-isle-of-mann-and-had-lived-in-norway-and-canada-dough-had-done-a-lot-with-his-life-when-i-got-home-i-opened-the-letters-from-southern-water-with-trepidation-only-to-find-it-told-me-my-application-for-a-concession-was-successful-emma-gloud-s-book-my-beautiful-psychosis-was-on-my-doormat-when-i-got-in-my-friend-dan-had-returned-it-i-d-heard-her-talk-at-october-books-about-writing-a-memoir-and-my-copy-of-her-book-had-a-dedication-in-the-front-to-ivor-with-love-emma-keep-writing-i-treated-myself-to-a-tea-followed-by-a-half-hour-stint-cleaning-the-bathroom-floor-which-looks-a-lot-better-then-had-some-bolognaise-sauce-with-pasta-for-my-evening-meal2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-july-14-2023-unable-to-sleep-it-s-early-morning-late-night-i-checked-my-bank-balance-and-my-pension-had-been-paid-as-i-said-yesterday-to-the-charity-fund-raisers-in-the-precinct-the-first-thing-i-spent-my-money-on-was-make-a-minimum-donation-to-the-deaf-children-s-society-last-night-i-found-the-phone-number-for-warm-spot-and-this-morning-i-phoned-them-to-see-if-i-am-entitled-to-a-grant-to-fix-my-double-glazing-the-phone-rang-it-was-kelly-from-the-warm-spot-she-d-seen-my-artwork-online-and-said-it-was-lovely-i-ll-never-tire-of-receiving-compliments-i-thought-about-it-later-what-a-nice-thing-to-do-to-phone-and-say-that-i-went-to-totton-for-a-dental-hygienist-appointment-and-then-had-a-pepperoni-pizza-slice-and-a-coffee-in-asda-kitchen-bought-some-groceries-in-asda-and-came-home-lucie-mann-messaged-and-said-work-will-soon-begin-clearing-my-garden-kerry-from-the-environmental-health-agency-phoned-and-an-appointment-about-my-double-glazing-is-now-scheduled-for-tuesday-next-week2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-july-15-2023-early-this-morning-i-was-thinking-about-widening-my-circle-of-friends-and-went-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-in-the-hope-of-doing-so-i-got-into-conversation-with-an-old-friend-stewart-and-we-met-up-with-a-couple-of-other-friends-phil-and-roary-when-i-first-went-in-i-asked-peter-his-name-we-d-introduced-ourselves-to-each-other-on-my-previous-visit-but-i-d-forgotten-his-name-p-so-i-asked-him-it-again-he-remembered-mine-i-had-coffee-and-did-a-few-thumbnail-sketches-of-my-surroundings-stewart-and-i-talked-about-art-and-the-book-he-had-with-him-on-second-world-war-battleships-there-s-an-art-club-on-thursday-night-at-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-which-i-m-thinking-of-joining-stewart-offered-to-buy-me-something-to-eat-in-st-andrews-coffee-shop-so-i-had-a-cheddar-cheese-jacket-potato-and-a-cup-of-tea-which-as-i-hadn-t-paid-for-them-were-especially-tasty-the-others-chatted-about-sport-and-i-did-some-thumbnail-sketches-i-introduced-myself-to-chris-who-was-sat-alone-on-the-sofa-opposite-kathy-who-some-time-ago-now-i-christened-kathy-the-wicked-woman-and-is-mentioned-in-the-introduction-to-thirty-mostly-quirky-tales-was-there-she-had-read-them-and-liked-them-it-s-her-sixtieth-birthday-in-august-and-i-made-a-note-of-the-date-and-am-planning-to-send-a-card-i-did-some-more-thumbnail-sketches-in-st-andrews-coffee-shop-and-went-on-to-marcella-where-i-played-a-game-of-scrattergies-with-ben-david-margret-and-haley-it-was-fun-and-there-were-hefty-doses-of-humour-thrown-in-for-good-measure-after-marcella-i-went-on-to-do-some-shopping-in-lidl-and-some-toulouse-sausages-caught-my-eye-i-read-their-list-of-ingredients-which-included-red-wine-garlic-and-pork-so-i-followed-oscar-wild-s-advice-and-didn-t-resist-temptation-i-caught-the-bus-home-and-sat-in-the-seat-opposite-me-was-a-lady-who-was-dressed-in-an-eccentric-outfit-when-the-moment-was-right-she-was-in-conversation-with-friends-i-said-excuse-me-asking-but-what-s-the-theme-of-your-outfit-it-s-steampunk-she-replied-and-suggested-i-google-it-so-when-i-got-home-i-did-it-s-victorian-style-costum2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-july-16-2023-woke-before-six-and-had-a-breakfast-of-coco-pops-with-tea-then-i-sat-daydreaming-rather-than-getting-on-with-cleaning-and-tidying-my-bungalow-i-m-spending-too-much-time-daydreaming-these-days-i-set-my-oven-timer-for-half-an-hour-and-started-work-after-just-over-12-minutes-i-stopped-and-did-some-writing-until-ten-o-clock-which-i-discarded-this-afternoon-i-thought-it-was-good-when-i-wrote-it-but-changed-my-mind-this-afternoon-i-microwaved-a-tin-of-scotch-broth-which-i-ate-before-going-to-marcella-where-hayley-showed-me-how-to-play-online-scrabble-later-i-had-a-game-of-scrabble-with-clare-and-josh-where-josh-i-came-first-and-came-last-when-i-got-home-i-sharpened-my-carving-knife-and-diced-some-onions-and-mushrooms-and-put-them-in-the-freezer-ready-for-when-i-need-them-and-had-a-couple-of-teas-did-some-more-daydreaming-and-boiled-some-rice-to-go-with-the-chickpea-curry-i-d-put-out-to-thaw-in-the-morning2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-july-17-2023-it-was-one-of-those-days-when-if-it-were-on-a-school-report-would-have-red-could-have-done-better-there-was-a-piece-on-tv-about-loneliness-in-young-people-between-19-24-i-was-lonely-then-and-am-lonely-now-it-was-ten-pm-when-i-wrote-this-my-plan-to-have-lunch-at-october-books-fell-through-because-i-d-got-up-late-i-bought-some-milk-at-the-co-op-and-in-obedience-to-a-perverse-impulse-had-some-chicken-pieces-fries-and-garlic-mayonnaise-from-kfc-with-pepsi-waited-ages-for-and-when-it-eventually-was-ready-boy-it-was-crap-and-expensive-too-i-remembered-i-d-left-my-folding-chair-at-marcella-and-went-to-collect-it-and-had-a-coffee-in-black-wax-records-i-d-taken-my-sketch-pad-but-didn-t-do-any-sketches-when-i-got-home-i-was-tired-and-bored-and-slept-until-early-evening-put-off-doing-the-housework-for-another-day-that-in-essence-was-my-monday2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-july-18-2023-unable-to-get-to-sleep-last-night-i-stayed-awake-through-the-night-and-did-some-writing-it-was-an-interesting-piece-but-i-ve-decided-not-to-share-it-it-taught-me-something-about-myself-and-my-past-i-have-been-reconsidering-my-will-and-asked-my-beneficiaries-if-they-re-short-of-money-to-ensure-no-money-is-wasted-i-will-stick-to-my-original-plan-i-said-in-a-messenger-chat-with-one-of-my-nephews-my-mood-changes-from-day-to-day-with-saturday-a-good-day-sunday-an-okay-day-and-monday-a-little-low-today-was-reasonably-good-i-ve-made-a-decision-about-will-had-a-phone-call-to-making-further-progress-with-my-double-glazing-and-found-out-about-a-free-cook-up-on-thursday-afternoon-i-slept-for-a-while-tired-after-my-sleepless-night-there-was-a-program-on-afternoon-tv-about-the-history-of-chocolate-during-which-it-said-chocolate-contains-serotonin-which-lifts-the-mood-so-i-galloped-off-and-back-to-the-co-op-bought-a-canister-of-milk-and-a-bar-of-dark-chocolate-my-evening-meal-was-bolognaise-with-pasta-and-afterwards-i-had-a-shower-and-put-on-a-set-of-clean-clothes-and-then-it-was-almost-bedtime2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-july-19-2023-got-up-at-six-and-had-sausages-bread-and-butter-with-barbecue-sauce-washed-down-with-tea-for-breakfast-felt-really-tired-and-had-a-nap-through-the-morning-i-woke-up-and-felt-amazing-and-had-gammon-jacket-potato-and-mixed-vegetables-my-buoyant-mood-passed-after-a-while-andy-came-round-and-as-usual-won-both-games-of-scrabble-i-ate-the-rest-of-my-chocolate-bar-after-he-d-gone-and-ran-round-the-block-i-find-running-a-good-way-to-mull-over-my-thoughts-and-it-gives-me-an-energy-boost2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-july-20-2023-woke-up-this-morning-with-an-inspired-idea-my-friend-andy-who-almost-inevitably-thrashes-me-at-scrabble-every-week-mother-has-recently-developed-mobility-issues-when-my-mother-needed-a-walking-frame-i-discovered-they-can-be-borrowed-from-the-red-cross-at-hythe-hospital-it-was-over-20-years-ago-so-it-wasn-t-at-the-forefront-of-my-mind-anyway-early-this-morning-i-remembered-and-sent-a-message-with-the-contact-details-to-andy-my-plan-for-this-afternoon-was-to-go-to-the-community-cook-up-at-blackfield-baptist-church-and-discussing-this-with-some-of-my-friends-lead-to-some-interesting-ideas-why-not-have-a-donation-tin-with-the-food-in-the-library-could-i-help-with-the-food-preparation-or-in-some-other-way-unfortunately-i-drank-a-bottle-of-lucozade-and-ate-a-chocolate-ice-cream-which-spiked-my-blood-sugar-so-couldn-t-go-to-the-cook-up-as-planned-i-took-another-reading-and-it-was-at-the-low-end-of-the-target-range-so-i-made-myself-some-bacon-and-mushroom-risotto-which-was-followed-by-an-apple-and-took-another-reading-which-was-okay-for-an-evening-reading2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-july-21-2023-got-up-late-because-i-went-to-bed-late-last-night-had-some-yogurt-raspberries-and-cereal-for-breakfast-and-lunch-was-a-cheese-and-pickle-sandwich-went-for-a-run-round-the-block-and-did-some-messaging-on-our-time-i-got-a-video-call-from-one-lady-which-didn-t-go-well-and-when-i-tried-to-get-back-to-her-found-she-d-blocked-me-at-800-i-had-an-audio-chat-with-another-lady-which-didn-t-go-well-i-must-have-come-across-as-dull-and-tongue-tied-she-told-me-she-was-looking-for-someone-to-travel-with-when-i-told-her-i-don-t-have-a-passport-the-conversation-soon-came-to-a-close-as-the-famous-showbiz-adage-has-it-you-can-t-win-em-all2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-july-22-2023-where-there-s-hope-there-s-happiness-i-had-a-sausage-roll-and-a-coffee-in-the-new-forest-kitchen-i-sat-outside-on-a-comfortable-armchair-there-was-an-old-bloke-sat-along-from-me-who-had-an-old-dog-which-when-the-time-came-to-go-had-trouble-getting-to-its-feet-one-of-his-back-legs-had-a-huge-growth-and-he-had-ulcers-on-the-other-went-on-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-where-i-sketched-some-of-the-people-kathy-aka-kathy-the-wicked-woman-came-over-and-chatted-and-i-saw-kim-and-said-a-few-brief-words-on-my-way-in-i-had-two-bacon-butties-and-some-coffee-next-i-went-to-marcella-for-a-while-and-came-home-it-was-raining-hard-and-i-was-feeling-bored-my-mission-to-make-new-friends-today-was-unsuccessful-i-guess-having-just-a-few-friends-at-present-is-just-the-way-things-are-for-me-i-d-be-wise-to-remember-and-be-grateful-for-what-i-ve-got-near-perfect-health-a-home-food-freedom-no-responsibilities-confidence-many-people-would-envy-me-and-nobody-gets-what-they-want-all-the-time-my-evening-meal-was-chicken-stew-with-white-wine-sauce-at-times-like-this-life-isn-t-all-bad-where-there-s-hope-there-s-happiness-i-turned-on-the-television-and-never-say-never-was-on-then-i-realised-i-d-forgotten-to-phone-the-oxfam-furniture-shop-about-buying-the-armchairs-which-were-delivered-today-unfortunately-it-was-too-late-i-ll-call-first-thing-monday-you-win-some-and-you-lose-some2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-july-23-2023-woke-up-at-a-reasonable-hour-considering-i-d-gone-to-bed-late-last-night-feeling-mildly-depressed-i-stayed-in-bed-but-remembered-that-one-of-the-blessings-i-d-listed-yesterday-was-excellent-health-so-i-got-up-last-night-i-tried-to-set-up-a-home-insurance-policy-twice-but-i-got-payment-declined-each-time-today-in-need-of-shower-gel-and-an-air-freshener-i-went-to-the-co-op-but-when-i-tried-to-pay-for-them-i-got-payment-declined-again-when-i-got-home-the-phone-rang-checking-if-there-had-been-unauthorised-activity-on-my-bank-account-i-agreed-all-the-transactions-itemised-were-mine-and-was-then-free-to-use-my-card-so-i-went-back-to-the-co-op-and-bought-the-shower-gel-and-air-freshener-i-lit-the-air-freshener-and-had-some-tea2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-july-24-2023-unable-to-sleep-i-got-up-and-had-some-tea-early-this-morning-and-stayed-awake-through-the-night-my-plans-for-the-day-were-to-sort-out-the-problem-i-m-having-with-having-online-payments-declined-make-further-progress-on-getting-a-grant-to-fix-my-double-glazing-and-follow-up-the-armchairs-at-the-oxfam-furniture-shop-i-went-into-my-bank-in-southampton-and-thought-the-online-purchasing-problem-was-fixed-but-when-i-got-home-i-still-got-a-payment-declined-message-when-i-tried-to-order-my-life-insurance-it-was-lunchtime-so-i-bought-a-pizza-slice-and-various-other-groceries-in-southampton-lidl-and-a-cup-of-coffee-in-costa-which-i-spilt-because-of-my-shaky-hands-fed-up-and-not-knowing-what-to-do-i-sat-quietly-and-then-had-a-bowl-of-spicy-parsnip-and-carrot-soup-the-phone-rang-it-was-the-environment-agency-there-s-a-very-strong-possibility-of-a-grant-to-fix-my-double-glazing-being-supplied-an-email-of-potential-supplies-was-sent-it-was-as-usual-bootleg-art-club-today-i-did-a-little-more-to-my-painting-of-holbury-manner-fish-lake-my-evening-meal-was-a-pasta-mixed-vegetables-and-a-large-fish-cake-with-with-tar-tar-sauce-and-lemon-juice-i-put-some-clothes-into-the-washer-and-sat-down-and-had-a-tea-whilst-drinking-my-tea-i-tried-to-find-one-of-my-friends-who-could-transport-the-armchairs-from-shirley-to-holbury-and-mentioned-the-possibility-of-getting-my-double-glazing-fixed-as-my-yearly-income-is-less-than-30k-the-same-is-true-of-one-of-my-friends-who-i-contacted-and-i-gave-her-the-contact-details-for-the-environment-agency2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-july-25-2023-i-woke-up-late-feeling-tired-yesterday-was-a-long-day-as-i-hadn-t-slept-the-previous-night-at-first-i-felt-lethargic-but-once-i-was-up-and-had-breakfast-i-improved-the-most-important-outstanding-thing-to-do-was-sort-out-paying-for-my-home-insurance-using-an-online-card-payment-my-will-and-an-expensive-home-insurance-policy-from-direct-line-arrived-in-the-post-this-morning-i-caught-the-bus-into-southampton-which-have-noisy-children-on-board-when-i-got-to-the-coop-bank-in-southampton-the-manager-spent-about-two-hours-trying-to-sort-out-my-online-card-payment-and-modified-my-payment-details-but-still-i-couldn-t-make-the-payment-he-said-he-it-was-possible-that-it-might-take-a-couple-of-hours-before-the-payment-modifications-went-through-and-he-would-call-me-at-four-o-clock-to-check-i-caught-the-bus-home-with-more-noisy-children-on-board-i-got-home-by-1601-and-must-have-missed-his-call-with-the-buses-the-way-they-are-it-was-the-best-i-could-manage-all-very-frustrating-but-the-sun-was-shining-and-i-m-in-excellent-health-with-my-mood-buoyed-up-by-the-exertion-of-running-back-from-the-bus-stop-made-sausage-jacket-potato-mixed-vegetables-and-onion-tomato-and-mushrooms-with-gravy-for-my-evening-meal-so-not-everything-was-bad-about-today-recently-i-discovered-that-alarms-on-my-organiser-can-be-labelled-and-i-labelled-several-today-then-i-realised-i-d-forgotten-to-go-to-the-waterside-art-group-meeting-this-evening-with-my-next-meal-always-in-my-thoughts-i-prepared-some-beef-stew-ready-for-the-slow-cooking-tomorrow2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-july-26-2023-saving-money-on-insurance-another-sleepless-night-like-tuesday-got-up-at-five-took-my-medication-and-had-breakfast-i-heard-that-george-bernard-shaw-slept-a-solid-eight-hours-every-other-night-so-perhaps-my-sleep-patterns-although-abnormal-shouldn-t-be-of-concern-after-breakfast-i-started-work-on-my-to-do-list-first-i-paid-for-my-home-insurance-policy-with-policy-expert-which-was-10748-cheaper-than-direct-line-the-time-i-spent-on-the-noisy-buses-yesterday-and-the-day-before-that-was-worth-the-effort-it-would-have-been-a-handsome-hourly-rate-policy-expert-offer-a-50-bonus-to-anyone-who-is-referred-to-them-by-an-existing-customer-and-the-existing-customer-gets-the-bonus-too-so-if-you-re-tempted-to-change-your-policy-provider-let-me-know-and-you-ll-get-what-you-save-on-your-insurance-plus-50-please-double-check-with-money-supermarket-price-comparison-site-that-things-are-as-good-as-they-seem-before-making-a-decision-i-set-my-timer-for-800am-so-i-could-call-direct-lines-customer-hotline-to-cancel-my-policy-with-them-the-timer-went-off-and-i-cancelled-the-policy-i-ve-read-my-will-and-it-now-needs-a-witnessed-signing-and-storing-in-a-safe-place-a-letter-arrived-from-an-old-friend-who-doesn-t-use-the-internet-i-wrote-a-quick-reply-and-had-my-midday-meal-a-slow-cooked-beef-stew-followed-by-a-cup-of-tea-i-did-some-hoovering-and-cleaned-part-of-the-skirting-boards-in-the-living-room-andy-came-and-we-had-some-tea-before-playing-scrabble-much-to-my-surprise-i-won-the-first-game-and-we-had-a-cup-of-tea-the-second-game-was-more-predictable-and-he-won-we-had-fish-fingers-with-tomato-a-slice-of-bread-and-butter-with-tar-tar-sauce-midway-through-the-first-game2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-july-27-2023-been-sleeping-mostly-today-i-felt-tired-yesterday-was-a-long-day-ran-to-the-large-coop-in-holbury-and-did-some-shopping-but-when-i-got-home-i-realised-i-hadn-t-got-everything-i-wanted-i-meant-to-go-to-the-community-cook-up-at-blackfield-baptist-church-this-afternoon-but-fell-asleep-and-when-i-woke-it-was-too-late-but-things-improved-got-emails-from-clare-at-october-books-she-can-t-use-the-pictures-from-my-camera-chip-to-promote-my-exhibition-in-october-and-i-have-agreed-to-photograph-my-paintings-with-my-ipad-and-attach-the-images-to-an-email-and-sarah-louise-from-diabetes-uk-we-re-arranged-an-online-meeting-for-tomorrow-at-1130am-there-was-a-knock-on-the-door-it-was-lucie-mann-who-arranges-that-just-within-date-food-from-local-supermarkets-is-given-to-the-less-fortunate-people-in-the-local-community-she-d-come-to-photograph-my-garden-which-is-planned-to-be-used-to-grow-food-with-her-two-sons-robbie-and-james-and-give-me-some-foil-trays-with-food-from-this-afternoon-s-cook-up-in-blackfield-baptist-church-a-group-of-soldiers-who-work-for-the-community-from-marchwood-army-camp-are-scheduled-to-come-and-clear-my-garden-soon-my-freezer-is-now-full-of-cooked-chicken-thighs-roast-potatoes-white-cabbage-ffc-chicken-wings-and-vegetable-pasta-enough-to-keep-me-going-for-a-week-it-will-be-nice-to-have-something-i-haven-t-cooked-myself-there-s-an-element-of-surprise-and-free-food-is-always-especially-tasty2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-july-28-2023-got-up-a-little-after-the-alarm-went-off-at-700-chopped-the-mushrooms-and-onions-which-i-bought-yesterday-and-took-two-foil-trays-out-of-the-freezer-with-kfc-chicken-fillets-and-broccoli-to-thaw-for-my-evening-meal-i-haven-t-had-broccoli-for-ages-so-it-s-unusual-for-me-later-i-took-some-mixed-vegetables-and-roast-potatoes-out-my-plans-for-today-are-to-photograph-my-paintings-ready-to-promote-the-exhibition-at-october-books-in-october-have-a-telephone-conversation-with-sarah-louise-of-diabetes-uk-at-1130-and-do-some-shopping-in-hythe-i-read-through-the-emails-from-diabetes-uk-and-learnt-about-the-fours-t-s-symptoms-of-diabetes-thirst-tiredness-toilet-thinness-the-last-time-i-had-my-yearly-weight-check-my-weight-was-down-by-nine-pounds-i-thought-this-was-because-of-eating-less-and-exercising-more-but-now-it-looks-like-a-symptom-and-entered-diabetes-uk-s-monthly-prize-draw-before-the-call-i-went-for-a-run-round-the-block-the-call-went-well-and-i-am-now-the-201st-member-of-the-diabetes-uk-community-after-my-call-i-caught-the-bus-into-hythe-and-in-the-precinct-saw-julie-and-my-news-about-diabetes-uk-and-learnt-that-christine-has-also-recently-developed-diabetes-did-my-shopping-in-lidl-and-came-home-when-i-got-home-i-made-a-meal-with-some-of-the-kfc-chicken-fillets-mixed-vegetables-and-roast-potatoes-i-d-been-given-by-lucie-mann-yesterday-by-warming-them-in-the-microwave-and-adding-chicken-gravy-and-a-dollop-of-dijon-mustard2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-july-29-2023-unable-to-sleep-through-the-night-i-got-up-in-the-early-hours-and-spent-until-about-10am-looking-through-the-education-section-on-the-diabetes-uk-website-then-i-had-a-piping-hot-shower-and-exhausted-crawled-off-to-bed-rather-than-as-planned-to-go-the-repair-caf%C3%A9-at-blackfield-church-organised-by-lucie-mann-in-retrospect-i-should-have-realised-that-showering-causes-me-to-sleep-and-had-my-shower-in-the-middle-of-the-night-and-slept-through-but-i-didn-t-it-was-probably-just-as-well-i-didn-t-go-out-i-m-epileptic-and-one-of-the-triggers-for-seizures-is-lack-of-sleep-and-if-i-d-had-a-fit-while-i-was-out-i-would-have-been-taken-to-hospital-and-spent-possibly-three-days-there-at-a-cost-to-the-tax-payer-of-900-and-from-a-purely-selfish-prospective-it-would-have-been-undignified-i-decided-to-spend-my-day-alone-in-splendid-isolation-and-do-some-housework-cooking-and-photograph-my-paintings-cooking-a-vegetable-curry-made-with-onion-garlic-ginger-gamma-masala-cumin-broccoli-from-the-cook-up-mixed-vegetables-from-the-cook-up-white-cabbage-from-the-cook-up-sweet-potato-tinned-tomatoes-red-chilli-mushroom-lemon-juice-tomato-pur%C3%A9e-and-frozen-mixed-vegetables-with-a-pinch-of-salt-i-gave-my-concoction-a-taste-and-it-was-spot-on-despite-my-good-intentions-i-didn-t-do-any-housework-or-photograph-my-paintings-then-i-sat-around-doing-nothing-there-was-an-article-i-read-last-night-that-recommended-doing-nothing-as-an-antidote-to-stress-apart-from-mild-frustration-with-myself-it-worked2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-july-30-2023-the-best-things-in-life-are-free-i-m-thinking-of-making-daily-gallivant-into-an-account-of-my-adventures-with-food-with-a-target-audience-of-thrifty-people-living-with-diabetes-got-up-before-700pm-when-the-alarm-goes-off-and-made-a-chicken-mayonnaise-sandwich-using-one-of-the-chicken-thighs-i-got-from-lucie-mann-s-free-community-cook-up-and-value-brand-mayonnaise-mixed-with-dijon-mustard-for-extra-kick-there-was-a-message-from-julie-hope-inviting-me-to-join-nextdoor-a-local-community-group-which-i-did-where-i-found-out-that-jo-who-lives-in-blackfield-was-giving-away-a-couple-of-armchairs-my-own-armchairs-have-worn-out-springs-and-replacing-them-has-long-been-a-priority-i-contacted-jo-and-julie-gave-me-a-lift-to-his-house-to-check-they-were-okay-and-now-they-are-mine-after-i-made-the-sandwich-i-had-another-cup-of-tea-and-ran-to-the-coop-and-bought-some-eggs-paprika-and-lemon-juice-i-intended-to-use-the-paprika-in-my-planned-spanish-omelette-but-in-the-event-forgot-to-include-it-i-went-to-marcella-and-during-the-course-of-the-conversation-aquid-explained-how-metformin-works-and-i-took-a-free-tin-of-meat-balls-that-had-been-donated-at-marcella-i-noticed-my-hands-were-shaky-and-checked-my-blood-sugar-when-i-got-home-and-found-it-was-just-within-target-range-so-ate-five-jelly-babies-to-be-on-the-safe-side-i-made-an-unauthentic-but-tasty-and-thrifty-spanish-omelette-for-my-evening-meal-i-had-onion-mushroom-and-mixed-pepper-s-some-roast-potatoes-from-the-cook-up-a-green-chilli-i-d-bought-in-the-clearance-section-of-the-coop-garlic-and-frozen-mixed-vegetables-chicken-and-some-ham-trim-roast-potatoes-from-the-free-cook-up-when-i-came-to-fold-my-omelette-there-were-too-many-ingredients-for-recipe-ideas-i-looked-up-online-spanish-omelette-recipes-bbc-good-food-gordon-ramsey-and-jamie-oliver-and-did-my-own-thrifty-take-on-the-spanish-omelette2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-july-31-2023-got-up-early-and-put-the-finishing-touches-on-yesterday-s-issue-as-i-was-working-the-alarm-on-my-computer-rang-telling-it-was-time-to-have-breakfast-and-take-my-medication-what-marvellous-machines-they-are-or-can-be-an-aid-to-health-and-wellbeing-i-also-had-a-cod-liver-oil-capsule-which-is-good-for-my-rheumatic-joints-and-brain-health-i-have-been-thinking-lately-how-can-i-justify-taking-food-from-the-free-cook-up-then-i-got-an-email-asking-for-a-donation-to-help-promote-air-conditioning-for-london-buses-it-described-how-the-drivers-were-passing-out-from-the-heat-in-their-cabs-and-pointed-out-this-was-a-danger-to-them-and-their-passengers-i-made-a-donation-some-of-my-money-goes-towards-promoting-good-causes-which-is-sufficient-reason-to-be-careful-with-it-also-there-a-lot-of-work-that-needs-to-be-done-to-my-bungalow-i-went-to-lunch-at-october-books-the-food-is-proved-by-local-shops-in-portswood-and-is-just-within-its-sell-by-date-it-s-prepared-by-volunteers-and-you-choose-to-pay-a-donation-if-you-re-able-believing-i-needed-cash-to-donate-i-bought-some-apples-in-the-nearby-sainsbury-s-but-couldn-t-get-cash-back-because-i-didn-t-know-my-pin-i-decided-to-see-if-they-would-accept-a-card-payment-for-my-donation-it-was-okay-so-problem-solved-on-the-diabetes-uk-website-i-had-discovered-lime-pickle-or-garlic-pickle-are-better-alternatives-to-mango-chutney-for-people-living-with-diabetes-so-after-lunch-i-went-along-to-that-nice-greengrocer-nearby-and-bought-some-ferns-lime-pickles-when-i-got-it-home-boy-it-was-good-the-bus-home-was-crowded-and-had-an-inexperienced-muslin-lady-driver-with-a-supervisor-unfortunately-she-knocked-off-one-of-the-wing-mirrors-and-we-had-to-change-buses-it-must-have-been-unnerving-for-her-we-had-to-transfer-to-another-bus-the-replacement-bus-was-there-waiting-and-we-just-had-a-short-walk-to-it-i-got-home-had-some-pleasant-messenger-chats-a-sandwich-made-from-whole-meal-seeded-bread-ham-trim-and-lim-pickle-very-pleasant-and-thrifty-too-unfortunately-i-couldn-t-sleep-and-stayed-awake-drinki2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-31-7-23-to-friday-4-8-23-abject-apologies-to-all-readers-for-the-delay-in-publishing-this-week-i-sincerely-hope-you-re-not-imaginary-friends-the-title-daily-gallivant-seems-in-the-realm-of-fantasy-this-week-and-i-ll-have-to-just-give-fragments-monday-was-good-i-went-to-october-books-had-lunch-bought-some-banana-chips-apples-and-some-really-yummy-ferns-lime-pickle-the-reason-i-bought-it-was-in-the-indian-food-section-of-the-diabetes-uk-website-it-was-suggested-as-a-possible-alternative-to-mango-chutney-and-sweet-pickles-to-my-palate-it-s-nicer-than-mango-chutney-i-also-got-into-a-messenger-conversation-with-neil-he-s-a-friend-i-don-t-know-very-well-who-i-d-seen-at-october-books-veg-out-today-but-not-gone-over-to-as-he-was-talking-to-one-of-his-friends-and-eating-and-i-thought-i-might-be-intruding-neil-said-it-would-have-been-okay-tuesday-i-m-sure-it-was-a-good-day-my-days-mostly-are-but-i-can-t-at-present-remember-what-happened-and-as-it-s-the-early-hours-of-the-morning-now-it-s-best-whatever-happened-is-just-forgotten-thursday-remembered-a-lot-more-clearly-i-had-a-coffee-in-wendy-s-caf%C3%A9-because-i-needed-to-use-the-toilet-as-i-was-constipated-if-anyone-tells-you-constipation-is-fun-i-assure-you-from-personal-experience-they-don-t-know-what-they-re-talking-although-it-can-have-its-humorous-side-if-you-see-it-like-that-i-sat-there-for-an-inordinate-length-of-time-and-several-times-there-was-a-rattling-on-the-door-and-all-i-could-do-is-say-i-m-being-as-fast-as-i-can-once-you-re-actually-managed-it-the-relief-is-fantastic-and-i-enjoyed-the-pleasant-amused-smile-of-wendy-when-i-said-excuse-me-constipation-some-time-ago-a-young-lady-asked-me-what-s-it-like-being-old-i-m-now-68-for-me-aging-is-a-process-of-gradually-falling-apart-physically-but-with-a-growth-of-knowledge-and-understanding-i-got-a-lifetime-of-experience-of-a-sort-now-is-the-time-to-reflect-i-want-to-write-and-as-i-practice-it-improves-the-more-i-do-it-the-more-i-like-doing-it-in-my-twenties-my-eyesight-started-going-next-i-had-a-breakdown-which-was-brough2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-6-2023-i-looked-at-my-messenger-feed-there-was-one-from-my-sister-in-law-telling-me-my-uncle-jim-had-died-as-i-wrote-the-reply-i-burst-into-tears-the-usual-sorts-of-things-are-in-the-process-of-being-done-i-caught-the-bus-into-hythe-and-had-lunch-in-be-be-s-bought-a-birthday-card-and-a-sympathy-card-and-went-to-marcella-i-wasn-t-in-my-best-humour-and-came-home-i-asked-a-neighbour-to-witness-the-signing-of-my-will-and-she-is-coming-round-sometime-tomorrow-not-sure-what-happened-next-and-don-t-particularly-care2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-august-6-2023-stayed-home-today-somehow-i-don-t-think-spending-my-weekends-at-marcella-the-best-use-of-my-time-so-i-ll-be-moving-on-there-s-some-regret-with-making-this-decision-i-ve-been-going-there-since-about-the-turn-of-the-century-and-have-many-happy-memories-of-the-pace-but-you-can-t-live-in-the-past-and-i-look-at-it-as-an-opportunity-to-learn-new-things-and-meet-new-people-i-stayed-in-all-day-waiting-for-the-neighbour-who-said-she-d-sign-my-will-she-explained-when-i-asked-she-had-a-lot-to-do-today-times-were-discussed-but-she-never-arrived-i-had-time-on-my-hands-and-as-the-saying-goes-the-devil-makes-work-for-idle-hands-so-i-got-to-work-on-a-scammer-the-poor-thing-works-in-a-hotel-and-is-paid-50-a-month-which-i-thought-sounded-like-a-fib-for-amusement-and-curiosity-i-googled-the-minimum-wage-for-california-and-it-s-1550-an-hour-next-i-found-the-phone-number-to-report-scammers-and-have-it-ready-for-when-they-re-open-somehow-in-the-interests-of-remaining-relatively-sane-i-didn-t-enquire-how-she-s-managed-to-get-to-england-she-wants-to-meet-me-but-hasn-t-got-money-for-gas-to-drive-to-me-i-suggested-if-i-used-by-my-free-bus-pass-i-could-go-to-her-and-treat-her-to-a-coffee-as-expected-she-didn-t-like-that-idea2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-august-7-2023-things-went-different-to-plan-that-sweet-scammer-who-her-she-says-is-abella-smith-messaged-me-again-and-i-told-her-i-had-a-surprise-for-her-tomorrow-i-don-t-think-she-is-going-to-like-my-surprise-very-much-poor-creature-i-m-going-to-report-her-for-scamming-there-was-a-knock-on-the-door-it-was-a-jehovah-s-witness-i-recognised-him-from-outside-poundland-in-southampton-a-few-days-previously-he-s-a-stocky-chap-with-ginger-hair-freckles-a-chin-beard-and-moustache-and-wears-a-bow-tie-we-had-a-friendly-chat-during-which-i-told-him-about-my-failed-religious-studies-o-level-he-was-sympathetic-i-explained-the-only-reason-i-failed-was-my-spelling-it-s-the-reason-that-underlies-all-my-failures-dyslexia-has-a-lot-to-answer-for-he-said-he-d-seen-me-in-black-wax-records-and-once-he-said-that-i-recognised-him-in-that-context-we-said-our-cordial-goodbyes-and-he-went-his-way-i-continued-with-my-new-sport-scammer-baiting-by-telling-abella-smith-that-i-had-a-surprise-for-her-tomorrow-she-was-keen-to-know-what-it-was-and-i-continued-buffering-sufficient-unto-the-day-young-lady-she-sent-heart-emojis-i-replied-ahh-she-replied-you-deserve-it-babe-i-replied-and-you-ll-deserve-your-surprise-young-lady2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-august-8-2023-after-a-good-night-s-sleep-and-seeing-how-eagerly-the-almost-certainly-a-scanner-was-awaiting-her-surprise-i-relented-and-decided-to-help-her-in-any-way-i-possibly-could-so-i-invited-her-to-meet-me-at-the-art-gallery-showed-her-how-to-find-and-use-price-comparison-sites-for-petrol-and-will-show-her-how-to-work-out-work-out-the-distance-from-her-grandma-house-to-the-art-gallery-bought-a-nice-pair-of-shoes-for-uncle-jim-s-funeral-and-a-white-shirt-in-primark-they-were-the-closest-discount-clothes-shop-to-card-factory-where-i-bought-a-bereavement-card-for-my-auntie2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-august-9-2023-somehow-my-scanner-still-thought-she-could-pull-a-fast-one-on-me-so-i-reported-her-to-facebook-and-blocked-her-then-we-chanced-upon-another-equally-stupid-scammer-from-nigeria-this-time-i-have-reported-and-deleted-both-of-them-she-had-suggested-i-give-her-350-to-meet-her-at-southampton-art-gallery-when-i-said-no-she-suggested-150-i-said-no-once-again-how-much-will-you-give-me-she-enquired-zero-dollars-i-replied-later-i-messaged-her-and-asked-if-she-would-like-to-pay-me-to-visit-southampton-art-gallery-with-her-she-replied-how-much-would-it-cost-i-replied-270-roughly-equivalent-of-350-she-said-she-didn-t-have-the-money-in-her-bank-account-at-the-moment-i-replied-why-don-t-you-save-up-the-money-i-learnt-later-that-scamming-a-scammer-is-equally-a-no-no-legally-can-only-hope-when-if-my-case-comes-to-court-i-will-be-treated-with-leniency-then-i-tried-a-lady-texas-and-first-i-thought-here-we-go-again-as-the-conversation-followed-its-course-my-recently-acquired-cynical-cold-heart-began-slowly-to-melt-this-just-might-be-something-good-there-was-some-pictures-of-her-which-she-asked-me-to-have-a-look-at-i-looked-carefully-and-noticed-you-had-brown-eyes-and-long-black-hair-she-didn-t-look-like-a-fashion-queen-but-she-didn-t-look-too-bad-they-say-these-things-happen-when-you-least-expect-them-maybe-last-night-early-next-morning-something-happened-i-didn-t-sleep-but-when-it-was-daylight-searched-for-a-picture-of-salisbury-cathedral-but-couldn-t-find-one-the-search-involved-looking-through-my-sketchbooks-i-didn-t-find-a-picture-of-spanking-of-but-was-impressed-by-the-sketchbooks-that-i-did-find-and-found-some-more-of-my-paintings-which-i-ve-put-aside-for-the-exhibition-and-mislead-lady-luck-is-shining-on-me-again-finally-i-m-going-to-try-hard-although-not-too-hard-to-blow-it2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-august-10-2023-after-my-good-fortune-last-night-i-have-never-the-desire-or-ability-to-sleep-i-sorted-through-my-sketchbooks-in-search-of-my-sketch-of-the-cloisters-in-salisbury-cathedral-but-without-success-whilst-searching-i-found-i-had-a-few-more-paintings-for-my-exhibition-in-october-i-m-earlier-on-in-the-morning-i-had-a-messenger-exchange-with-rick-which-i-as-usual-very-pleasant-especially-with-the-news-my-previous-night-s-antics-and-adventures-i-noticed-it-was-a-lot-easier-to-come-up-with-nicely-honed-phrases-later-that-day-whilst-urinating-phone-rang-i-had-to-continue-with-the-matter-in-hand-as-can-be-imagined-i-finished-and-the-phone-was-still-ringing-at-this-point-i-thought-i-would-have-to-apologise-for-being-so-slow-and-explain-the-situation-the-recorded-message-end-of-the-line-purported-to-be-from-hmrc-informing-me-of-my-imminent-arrest-for-tax-discrepancies-i-did-not-for-a-single-moment-take-this-at-all-seriously-having-been-born-in-excess-of-68-years-ago-and-not-yesterday-nor-am-i-at-the-time-of-life-when-my-faculties-have-failed-me-i-put-the-phone-down-gleefully-amused-by-the-silliness-of-the-scam-and-anticipated-making-an-announcement-on-facebook-about-what-had-happened-for-the-amusement-on-my-friends-and-to-warn-anybody-who-might-be-fooled-by-such-malarkey2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-august-11-2023-i-felt-like-death-warmed-up-when-i-woke-up-this-morning-i-crawled-out-of-bed-had-a-shower-and-put-on-some-f-fresh-clothes-and-was-revived-i-went-to-my-bank-in-southampton-and-checked-my-pension-was-in-my-account-it-had-so-i-had-100-transferred-to-my-savings-account-and-i-asked-if-my-mobile-is-there-it-wasn-t-i-bought-peppered-steak-slice-with-some-coffee-in-the-one-stop-in-the-l-shaped-parade-there-was-a-blues-guitarist-with-a-drum-machine-which-was-a-puppet-that-looked-like-a-skeleton-i-intended-to-photograph-it-with-the-caption-for-drummer-needs-a-good-meal-but-had-left-my-ipad-at-home-southampton-market-was-on-and-i-bought-some-chickpea-curry-from-a-bangladeshi-food-store-it-was-something-i-had-tried-before-there-were-a-couple-running-the-store-and-the-man-had-a-beard-without-a-moustache-you-saw-my-chair-and-asked-me-about-it-i-handed-it-to-him-so-he-could-see-how-heavy-it-was-i-decided-to-buy-another-mobile-from-tesco-applemore-branch-so-i-caught-the-bus-and-did-some-shopping-in-tesco-and-went-on-to-go-into-hythe-where-i-had-a-shave-from-the-turkish-barber-when-i-came-to-party-he-wanted-cash-and-i-only-had-my-card-but-after-some-fuss-let-me-go-the-save-cost-152025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-august-12-2023-got-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night-and-spent-until-the-early-hours-messaging-people-i-went-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-and-explained-to-kathy-who-used-to-work-at-marcella-why-i-had-decided-to-move-on-phil-said-rory-witnessed-the-signing-of-my-will-and-now-a-legally-binding-document-after-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-i-went-to-st-andrews-coffee-house-and-bought-a-bowl-of-homemade-mushroom-soup-and-a-cup-of-tea-when-i-have-paid-i-found-i-didn-t-have-my-check-card-and-paid-with-cash-my-card-was-probably-at-home-otherwise-i-was-in-a-mess-i-noticed-on-the-way-to-the-toilet-there-was-a-display-of-d-day-memorabilia-in-a-small-room-on-the-other-side-of-the-corridor-and-i-went-to-have-a-look-a-lady-from-the-local-history-society-i-imagine-showed-me-round-there-was-a-period-map-displaying-where-the-bomb-craters-were-from-bombs-which-had-been-dropped-on-the-waterside-to-lighten-the-payload-of-the-aircraft-back-from-bombing-southampton-it-also-showed-the-location-of-unexploded-bombs-which-are-there-to-this-day-there-were-models-of-american-and-british-tanks-and-armoured-vehicles-aircraft-identification-posters-i-caught-the-bus-back-to-holbury-and-found-my-card-exactly-where-i-d-left-it-on-the-table-ran-to-the-bus-stop-back-and-caught-the-bus-into-southampton-it-was-late-afternoon-by-the-time-i-got-to-southampton-and-worried-that-the-words-a-budget-artist-material-shop-i-use-might-have-be-about-to-close-ran-from-the-bus-stop-it-was-still-open-and-i-bought-one-of-the-largest-canvases-in-stock-whilst-waiting-my-weak-bladder-got-the-best-of-me-somebody-recently-remarked-age-is-just-a-number-in-my-experience-that-increasing-it-s-true-i-had-a-sausage-role-and-a-coffin-in-caf%C3%A9-nero-at-the-bus-stop-i-saw-patrick-and-caught-the-bus-home-it-was-very-crowded-but-fortunately-a-couple-of-lads-gave-up-their-seats-for-us2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-august-13-2023-it-was-raining-heavily-when-i-woke-up-this-morning-my-social-media-exchanges-with-an-american-lady-who-out-of-pity-i-gave-money-to-become-ridiculous-she-asked-for-more-money-twice-and-i-threatened-to-report-her-for-spamming-and-unfriend-her-if-she-continued-she-apologised-i-relented-i-ran-to-the-coop-and-bought-a-box-of-dishwasher-tablets-and-some-washing-liquid-i-found-i-d-left-a-carton-of-greek-yogurt-on-the-kitchen-counter-and-picked-some-blackberries-to-go-with-it-from-the-garden-vegetable-curry-for-my-evening-meal-with-geek-yogurt-and-blackberries-for-afters-washed-some-clothes-which-are-now-out-to-dry-in-the-conservatory-my-plan-for-the-day-was-to-do-a-painting-using-the-canvas-i-bought-on-saturday2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-august-14-2023-plan-for-the-day-1-buy-incontinence-pads-from-boots-done-2-prime-canvas-done-3-go-to-october-books-didn-t-go-4-buy-garlic-pickle-from-portswood-greengrocer-not-done-5-set-up-new-mobileemail-gp-surgery-dentist-new-forest-district-council-not-done-incontinent-pads-i-went-into-boots-first-thing-this-morning-and-they-didn-t-have-any-in-my-size-in-stock-but-there-was-a-delivery-from-their-supplier-at-about-12-o-clock-when-it-was-nearer-the-time-i-phoned-them-the-delivery-has-arrived-and-they-had-some-in-stock-so-i-ran-to-the-shop-and-made-my-purchase-every-day-is-a-new-day-of-new-discoveries-as-you-age-the-body-slowly-becomes-unable-to-do-it-used-to-be-able-to-it-happens-to-everyone-buying-my-first-packet-of-incontinence-pads-was-a-rite-of-passage-marking-the-age-i-am-at-now-i-am-ready-for-a-new-chapter-in-my-life-priming-my-canvas-i-hunted-round-for-a-large-brush-to-put-the-ground-cover-on-the-canvas-which-i-bought-on-saturday-and-eventually-found-the-brush-next-i-sent-screenshots-of-one-of-my-photos-from-dartmouth-to-the-herald-and-adviser-office-in-hythe-to-be-printed-as-it-was-after-midday-i-decided-to-give-october-books-a-miss-the-weather-wasn-t-very-nice-took-part-in-the-bootleg-art-club-which-is-a-zoom-meeting-with-my-friends-richard-and-paul-my-evening-meal-was-a-venison-burger-mixed-vegetables-and-a-jacket-potato-followed-by-blackberries-with-greek-yogurt2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-august-a-15-2023-what-i-had-planned-1-tell-gp-surgery-about-my-change-of-mobile-number-not-done-2-sort-out-double-glazing-contractors-not-done-3-set-up-new-mobile-with-numbers-for-gp-dentist-eye-hospital-general-hospital-done-4-visit-hythe-market-didn-t-go-5-waterside-art-group-didn-t-go-what-actually-happened-i-was-up-since-the-early-hours-unable-to-sleep-but-eventually-i-went-to-bed-and-slept-till-about-12-when-i-did-get-up-not-much-happened-same-old-same-old-scrabble-turned-out-much-as-ever-with-andy-winning-both-games-wednesday-16-i-can-t-at-the-time-of-writing-it-s-thursday-think-what-happened-and-i-dare-say-if-anything-important-and-relevant-happened-i-would-remember-thursday-17-got-up-early-after-having-given-some-thought-time-and-effort-trying-to-help-a-friend-the-previous-night-and-believe-my-efforts-will-have-a-good-result-we-all-only-have-so-many-hours-in-our-lives-and-the-hours-i-spent-last-night-and-today-trying-to-help-i-will-not-be-regretted-got-my-new-white-shirt-pressed-in-the-dry-cleaner-in-hythe-ready-for-the-funeral-tomorrow-and-took-some-money-out-to-pay-for-my-recent-towel-shave-i-offered-the-barber-some-extra-money-for-the-trouble-i-d-put-him-to-he-said-it-s-against-my-religion-to-accept-extra-i-hope-he-wasn-t-offended-went-to-the-free-cook-up-in-blackfield-baptist-church-and-sat-at-a-table-with-christine-who-i-d-met-the-previous-day-and-another-lady-i-had-a-chicken-thigh-with-various-vegetables-and-roast-potato-followed-by-a-tart-friday-18-uncle-jim-s-funeral-i-woke-at-900-and-left-home-as-fast-as-possible-almost-forgetting-to-take-my-medication-with-me-i-wasn-t-sure-if-i-was-cutting-things-too-finely-it-was-raining-hard-and-the-trousers-of-my-suit-got-wet-and-i-worried-i-would-look-a-mess-at-the-funeral-when-i-got-to-southampton-central-i-felt-hurry-and-got-a-small-tuna-baguette-in-subway-with-a-coffee-when-i-got-to-dorchester-south-station-i-didn-t-know-how-st-peter-s-church-so-asked-a-bloke-with-a-long-beard-who-was-with-a-lad-for-directions-and-got-a-bus-to-the-high-street-and-had-a-pasty-2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-august-tuesday-15-to-friday-18-what-i-had-planned-1-tell-gp-surgery-about-my-change-of-mobile-number-not-done-2-sort-out-double-glazing-contractors-not-done-3-set-up-new-mobile-with-numbers-for-gp-dentist-eye-hospital-general-hospital-done-4-visit-hythe-market-didn-t-go-5-waterside-art-group-didn-t-go-what-actually-happened-i-was-up-since-the-early-hours-unable-to-sleep-but-eventually-i-went-to-bed-and-slept-till-about-12-when-i-did-get-up-not-much-happened-same-old-same-old-scrabble-turned-out-much-as-ever-with-andy-winning-both-games-wednesday-16-i-can-t-at-the-time-of-writing-it-s-thursday-think-what-happened-and-i-dare-say-if-anything-important-and-relevant-happened-i-would-remember-thursday-17-got-up-early-after-having-given-some-thought-time-and-effort-trying-to-help-a-friend-the-previous-night-and-believe-my-efforts-will-have-a-good-result-we-all-only-have-so-many-hours-in-our-lives-and-the-hours-i-spent-last-night-and-today-trying-to-help-i-will-not-be-regretted-got-my-new-white-shirt-pressed-in-the-dry-cleaner-in-hythe-ready-for-the-funeral-tomorrow-and-took-some-money-out-to-pay-for-my-recent-towel-shave-i-offered-the-barber-some-extra-money-for-the-trouble-i-d-put-him-to-he-said-it-s-against-my-religion-to-accept-extra-i-hope-he-wasn-t-offended-went-to-the-free-cook-up-in-blackfield-baptist-church-and-sat-at-a-table-with-christine-who-i-d-met-the-previous-day-and-another-lady-i-had-a-chicken-thigh-with-various-vegetables-and-roast-potato-followed-by-a-tart-friday-18-uncle-jim-s-funeral-i-woke-at-900-and-left-home-as-fast-as-possible-almost-forgetting-to-take-my-medication-with-me-i-wasn-t-sure-if-i-was-cutting-things-too-finely-it-was-raining-hard-and-the-trousers-of-my-suit-got-wet-and-i-worried-i-would-look-a-mess-at-the-funeral-when-i-got-to-southampton-central-i-felt-hurry-and-got-a-small-tuna-baguette-in-subway-with-a-coffee-when-i-got-to-dorchester-south-station-i-didn-t-know-how-st-peter-s-church-so-asked-a-bloke-with-a-long-beard-who-was-with-a-lad-for-directions-and-got-a-bus-to-the-high-street-an2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-august-19-2023-i-turned-down-1-000-000-today-the-day-started-off-cloudy-and-i-needed-some-milk-so-ran-along-to-the-coop-as-is-my-usual-habit-the-first-place-i-looked-was-in-the-clearance-section-where-i-found-a-canister-of-milk-and-some-maris-pippa-potatoes-which-i-immediately-snapped-up-they-shall-be-especially-tasty-i-made-my-way-to-the-bus-stop-and-caught-the-bus-to-dibben-purlieu-during-the-journey-i-had-a-few-words-with-peter-who-i-met-previously-in-holbury-and-told-me-about-how-he-d-seen-the-festival-of-britain-in-1951-got-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-and-gave-kathy-the-60th-birthday-card-i-bought-for-her-i-sat-with-sarah-rory-and-phil-and-did-some-thumbnail-sketches-of-some-of-the-people-there-were-loads-rambunctious-of-people-there-it-was-marvellous-rory-has-an-exhibition-of-paintings-on-7th-september-in-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-which-i-noted-down-in-my-organiser-phil-invited-me-to-join-him-and-rory-for-lunch-at-st-andrews-coffee-house-and-we-had-homemade-tomato-and-basil-soup-it-was-delicious-caught-the-bus-home-with-phil-and-rory-and-treated-myself-to-a-cup-of-tea-when-i-got-in-then-i-set-to-work-on-improving-one-of-my-paintings-by-adding-a-mixture-of-sand-and-pva-to-much-of-its-surface-it-s-starting-to-look-more-interesting-yesterday-i-had-suggested-to-my-friend-miranda-who-lives-in-florida-to-try-visiting-a-library-and-find-something-to-read-she-liked-the-idea-and-today-she-told-she-d-chosen-a-novel-by-anthony-burgess-nothing-like-the-sun-which-read-about-30-years-ago-i-got-a-message-from-someone-who-purported-to-from-an-american-company-publishers-clearance-house-telling-me-i-d-won-a-million-dollars-and-a-pickup-truck-which-i-simply-didn-t-believe-and-have-reported-for-spamming-also-i-emailed-the-radio-4-consumer-protection-programme-call-you-and-yours2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-august-21-2023-got-up-at-eight-after-sleeping-through-alarm-which-went-off-at-seven-i-didn-t-feel-great-achy-with-a-slight-sore-throat-it-must-be-the-beginning-of-a-cold-as-i-might-be-infectious-i-skipped-veg-out-at-october-books-to-do-list-for-today-1-check-to-see-if-i-can-save-money-on-my-most-prominent-expense-energy-started-working-on-it-but-it-looks-more-complicated-than-it-at-first-seemed-2-housework-not-done-3-cooking-cooked-a-fish-pie-and-dried-out-mince-for-chilli-con-carne-4-continue-working-on-improving-my-painting-took-a-photo-of-it-as-it-is-now-5-book-blood-test-done-6-check-double-glazing-supplies-about-their-quotes-not-done-dealing-with-my-cold-in-accordance-with-of-old-wives-tale-mythology-in-this-the-twenty-first-century-it-might-be-argued-that-we-re-come-a-long-way-since-the-days-of-the-old-wives-which-is-doubtless-true-but-nonetheless-it-remains-that-some-of-what-they-said-was-right-with-the-adage-feed-a-cold-and-starve-a-fever-in-mind-midway-through-the-morning-i-had-to-a-bacon-sandwich-it-is-said-with-a-cold-three-days-coming-three-days-with-you-and-three-days-leaving-you-i-probably-caught-this-cold-on-saturday-when-i-went-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-and-this-is-monday-if-things-go-according-to-the-predicted-pattern-the-worst-part-of-this-cold-will-soon-be-with-me-assuming-that-is-true-i-cooked-a-fish-pie-and-started-cooking-some-chilli-con-carne-for-when-i-m-rundown-i-got-a-blood-test-appointment-letter-this-morning-and-to-ensure-i-m-not-infectious-when-i-booked-it-for-30-8-2023-which-is-nine-days-after-i-caught-my-cold-during-the-morning-until-midday-i-cooked-some-cheese-onion-mixed-vegetable-and-fish-sauce-to-be-used-as-the-filling-for-my-fish-pie-and-put-them-in-the-oven-this-afternoon-after-making-mashed-potato-for-the-topping-at-midday-i-stopped-cooking-and-had-a-cheese-and-pickle-sandwich-with-a-cup-of-tea-i-made-some-mash-and-put-it-on-top-of-the-pie-filling-in-an-uneven-rough-manner-so-it-would-be-crunchy-when-the-pie-came-out-of-the-oven-and-put-some-mince-in-the-oven-to-dry-out-which-gives-it2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-august-22-2023-saved-91692-on-my-energy-bill-late-last-night-i-had-a-hot-shower-in-the-hope-it-would-put-me-to-sleep-but-it-didn-t-i-did-some-work-on-my-to-do-list-to-do-list-1-contact-double-glazing-contractors-phoned-the-first-one-on-the-list-2-continue-with-painting-not-done-3-housework-4-visit-hythe-market-skipped-it-today-because-i-needed-sleep-5-pick-up-printing-from-herald-and-advertiser-office-not-done-6-check-through-october-books-newsletter-7-write-guide-for-setting-up-a-small-business-started-it-8-get-best-deal-on-energy-done-9-cook-chilli-con-carne-done-10-sort-out-picture-into-category-files-made-a-file-of-the-paintings-for-the-exhibition-11-set-up-a-facebook-marketing-page-for-paintings-12-read-chess-for-dummies-30-minutes-not-done-unable-to-sleep-i-got-up-at-300-am-and-got-to-work-on-my-to-do-list-the-first-thing-i-did-was-check-my-energy-bill-my-highest-expense-found-a-price-comparison-site-switch-it-by-ittria-and-have-switched-from-e-on-energy-at-19649-month-to-rebel-energy-at-f12008-month-a-saving-of-91692-year-it-was-incredibly-easy-to-do-i-put-my-postcode-into-a-search-box-choose-between-low-middle-and-high-usage-and-choose-the-type-of-occupancy-of-my-property-owner-occupier-rented-council-tenant-and-so-on-and-a-few-moments-later-my-recommended-supplier-was-found-switching-to-the-new-supplier-was-simplicity-itself-on-a-winning-streak-i-made-a-large-frying-pan-full-of-chilli-con-carne-which-was-finished-by-500am-had-a-shower-and-put-on-fresh-clothes-at-915-i-was-finally-feeling-tired-and-decided-to-skip-going-into-hythe-this-morning-and-have-a-sleep-i-didn-t-want-to-risk-being-out-and-having-an-epileptic-seizure-through-lack-of-sleep-i-had-a-lay-down-on-my-bed-but-didn-t-sleep-at-1100-am-the-alarm-sounded-telling-me-to-catch-the-bus-back-home-from-hythe-but-as-i-hadn-t-gone-to-hythe-in-the-first-place-so-it-was-a-false-alarm-i-m-not-unduly-concerned-about-my-sleepless-state-in-fact-i-ve-never-felt-more-joyous-i-had-been-up-since-300pm-after-all-it-was-too-early-to-think-about-lunch-about-1130-but-i2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-august-23-2023-to-do-list-1-andy-scrabble-didn-t-happen-he-felt-down-2-contact-double-glazing-contractors-phoned-the-first-one-on-the-list-3-continue-with-painting-not-done-4-housework-no-way-jose-5-pick-up-printing-from-herald-and-advertiser-office-do-it-another-time-6-check-through-october-books-newsletter-i-think-we-better-wait-till-tomorrow-7-write-guide-for-setting-up-a-small-business-tomorrow-s-another-day-8-set-up-a-facebook-marketing-page-for-paintings-i-shall-wait-until-the-mood-grabs-me-9-read-chess-for-dummies-30-minutes-not-today-thank-you-very-much-it-must-be-a-symptom-of-the-aging-process-waking-up-after-your-allotted-hours-of-sleep-and-feeling-like-death-warmed-up-i-got-and-took-the-washing-out-of-the-machine-and-put-it-out-to-dry-replied-to-a-few-messenger-conversations-but-didn-t-bother-with-my-to-do-list-i-went-for-a-run-and-felt-energised-for-a-while-but-it-soon-pasted-some-useful-ideas-came-to-me-as-i-ran-but-i-don-t-know-what-they-were-had-a-bowl-of-soup-at-lunchtime-and-scurried-off-to-my-room-for-a-nap-before-the-scrabble-this-afternoon-at-430-i-emerged-from-my-pit-and-treated-myself-to-the-ubiquitous-cup-of-tea-and-ate-four-squares-of-dark-chocolate-with-it-now-well-rested-and-rehydrated-life-was-good-the-scallywag-messaged-and-called-today-off-it-struck-me-that-as-i-m-retired-and-live-alone-i-can-do-exactly-what-i-want-get-up-when-i-choose-go-to-bed-when-i-choose-eat-when-i-choose-and-what-i-choose-time-spent-napping-isn-t-wasted-and-even-if-it-was-it-s-my-time-and-i-ll-spend-it-as-i-choose-i-looked-at-my-latest-painting-it-looks-promising-as-i-looked-i-remembered-a-conversation-i-overheard-in-one-of-the-galleries-in-oxford-there-was-an-unfinished-painting-and-someone-remarked-how-could-the-artist-not-finish-a-great-picture-like-that-there-could-be-many-different-reasons-for-not-finishing-a-painting-which-might-include-just-losing-interest-no-great-crime-in-my-book-we-all-of-us-are-entitled-to-lose-interest-in-what-we-re-doing-whatever-it-is-leave-a-job-abandon-a-relationship-whatever-somet2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-august-24-2023-to-do-list-1-free-cook-up-blackfield-baptist-church-didn-t-go-the-weather-was-cold-wet-and-horrible-2-contact-double-glazing-contractors-phoned-and-emailed-1z-energy-and-trust-mark-the-second-and-third-contractors-on-the-list-from-the-environmental-health-agency-3-continue-with-painting-4-housework-about-half-an-hour-hoovering-5-pick-up-printing-from-herald-and-advertiser-office-didn-t-go-6-check-through-october-books-newsletter-7-continue-writing-guide-for-setting-up-a-business-8-set-up-facebook-business-page-done-9-read-chess-for-dummies-10-email-clair-from-october-books-about-exhibition-done-and-neil-about-artist-union-today-started-with-an-unaccountable-outburst-of-activity-where-i-took-action-to-achieve-one-of-the-tasks-listed-on-my-to-do-list-i-took-steps-setting-up-a-facebook-business-page-promoting-my-artwork-called-ivor-the-unique-artist-i-was-messaging-a-lady-friend-who-asked-if-i-wanted-to-set-up-a-small-business-in-a-messenger-conversation-last-night-i-started-my-reply-by-saying-if-was-thrifty-i-could-manage-reasonably-well-with-my-pension-and-setting-up-a-small-business-would-require-a-lot-of-effort-and-be-stressful-i-went-on-to-consider-the-extra-money-i-would-get-and-the-sense-of-achievement-it-would-give-me-soon-i-talked-myself-into-setting-up-a-facebook-business-page-called-ivor-the-unique-artist-and-now-it-s-online-with-the-launch-event-for-my-exhibition-at-october-books-set-for-october-2ed-at-1900-by-1700-i-felt-really-tired-and-didn-t-get-much-done-today-despite-having-a-to-do-list-it-was-no-good-trying-to-push-myself-too-much-tomorrow-i-ll-pick-a-few-easy-tasks-from-the-list-and-do-them-better-appreciate-my-limitations-and-just-do-a-few-tasks-than-being-overwhelmed-i-watch-the-tv-at-1900-and-it-featured-runners-who-were-breathless-after-their-races-and-i-thought-i-bet-they-feel-good-for-having-exerting-themselves-which-caused-me-to-go-for-a-run-round-the-block-which-made-me-feel-good-too-flooded-with-endorphins-i-finished-off-the-this-blog-and-did-some-work-on-my-painting2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-august-25-2023-got-up-when-my-alarm-sounded-at-7-o-clock-it-was-a-bright-cool-morning-and-did-an-appraisal-of-my-efforts-yesterday-and-make-a-realistic-timetable-for-today-but-the-most-immediate-thing-on-my-agenda-was-breakfast-and-a-morning-run-i-had-my-run-and-felt-amazing-this-evening-there-s-a-creative-writing-class-at-october-books-which-i-have-to-prepare-for-well-meant-to-prepare-for-yesterday-looking-back-today-was-productive-after-all-i-d-set-up-my-facebook-business-page-for-ivor-the-unique-artist-did-some-hoovering-and-had-a-couple-of-runs-to-tire-myself-out-and-slept-well-to-an-extent-i-followed-the-alarms-i-d-set-on-my-organiser-and-did-some-writing-after-breakfast-and-worked-on-my-painting-unfortunately-one-of-the-legs-on-my-easel-kept-collapsing-which-was-frustrating-and-after-a-while-i-gave-up-i-sat-down-sometime-before-900-in-my-armchair-with-a-cup-of-tea-i-felt-totally-exhausted-and-almost-went-back-to-bed-i-ran-to-boots-and-collected-my-repeat-prescription-and-bought-some-cloth-tape-in-the-hardware-store-next-door-to-fix-my-easel-and-ran-home-at-1200-i-microwaved-a-portion-of-chilli-and-boiled-some-rice-to-go-with-it-another-morning-i-would-never-have-again-was-gone-and-it-was-lunchtime-then-i-hunted-for-the-cloth-tape-i-d-just-bought-and-found-it-next-to-the-door-where-i-d-left-it-on-my-way-in-and-fixed-the-leg-on-my-easel-some-time-later-i-attended-the-creative-writing-class-in-october-books-but-didn-t-get-much-out-of-it-the-work-the-others-had-done-was-sent-via-email-but-i-d-read-very-little-of-it-and-not-sent-any-of-my-work-to-be-discussed-after-the-meeting-the-others-went-to-one-of-the-local-pubs-but-as-i-can-t-drink-because-of-my-epilepsy-and-blood-pressure-and-don-t-like-pubs-because-drinking-brings-the-worst-out-in-people-i-came-on-i-sat-at-the-back-of-the-bus-and-my-alarm-sounded-telling-me-to-take-my-blood-sugar-reading-and-i-explained-this-to-a-couple-of-ladies-who-noticed-it2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-august-26-2023-it-was-my-friend-miranda-who-lives-in-florida-birthday-today-i-went-to-a-lot-of-trouble-to-try-and-get-a-gift-card-for-her-but-despite-of-my-efforts-wasn-t-able-to-i-tried-buying-an-amazon-gift-card-but-there-s-something-wrong-with-their-system-so-i-couldn-t-manage-that-next-i-tried-a-google-play-card-which-i-bought-but-was-completely-useless-i-struggled-to-get-my-money-back-and-hadn-t-managed-it-by-the-time-i-wrote-this-blog-post-my-plan-is-to-go-to-the-bank-and-see-about-getting-the-payment-stopped-my-electric-razor-hurts-when-i-shave-so-i-took-it-to-the-repair-caf%C3%A9-in-blackfield-baptism-church-this-morning-for-them-to-have-a-look-the-cause-of-the-problem-is-probably-that-there-are-two-holes-the-foils-i-will-need-to-contact-remington-to-get-them-replaced-on-my-way-out-of-the-repair-caf%C3%A9-robbie-lucie-mann-s-oldest-son-came-and-had-a-word-i-told-him-about-my-exhibition-at-october-books-in-october-with-its-reception-on-2-10-23-there-at-1900-and-he-said-he-d-read-and-enjoyed-some-of-the-previous-editions-of-the-gallivant-at-midday-i-had-lasagna-jacket-potato-and-salad-at-wendy-s-caf%C3%A9-i-then-caught-the-bus-home-and-very-tired-so-had-a-sleep-until-about-three-in-the-afternoon-i-went-to-the-coop-to-see-if-there-s-anything-that-can-be-done-about-the-google-play-card-and-it-looks-like-it-can-t-as-i-waited-i-bought-some-spinach-leafs-raspberries-and-sweet-peppers-in-the-clearance-section-and-a-bar-of-dark-chocolate2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-august-27-2023-after-being-late-getting-to-sleep-last-night-i-was-late-getting-up-this-morning-and-finally-emerged-from-my-pit-at-around-1000-i-wanted-to-try-something-different-today-and-decided-a-meal-at-adams-caf%C3%A9-in-hythe-would-be-a-possibility-as-i-ve-only-been-there-once-before-at-the-bus-stop-in-holbury-i-had-a-chat-with-my-disabled-friend-lee-who-was-on-his-way-to-stay-with-his-family-in-southampton-later-at-the-hythe-pier-stop-peter-thorp-from-waterside-writers-got-on-and-we-had-a-few-brief-word-s-until-i-got-off-at-the-adams-caf%C3%A9-stop-i-went-into-the-caf%C3%A9-and-ordered-the-liver-and-bacon-and-a-coffee-i-tried-getting-an-amazon-card-in-lidl-waitrose-and-superdrug-but-without-success-after-eating-i-did-some-shopping-in-lidl-and-went-for-a-coffee-in-back-wax-coffee-and-records-with-its-customary-background-soundscape-of-70-s-heavy-metal-music-it-s-a-place-that-brings-to-mind-a-verse-from-a-song-parodying-the-beatles-the-children-of-rock-and-roll-never-grow-old-they-just-fade-away-see-how-the-good-times-roll-see-how-the-good-times-roll-away-in-holland-they-have-period-villages-for-their-older-citizens-so-they-don-t-have-to-much-interaction-with-the-modern-world-so-that-people-can-live-like-they-did-when-they-were-young-black-wax-coffee-and-records-does-something-similar-for-people-of-my-age-group-it-is-wrong-to-try-and-always-be-up-to-date-and-it-maybe-nobody-is-on-top-of-everything-finally-i-managed-with-help-to-get-a-gift-for-miranda-a-day-late-but-better-late-than-never-i-didn-t-do-much-for-the-rest-of-the-day-just-rested-on-my-bed-got-up-and-drank-tea-and-had-a-tin-of-broccoli-and-stilton-soup2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-august-28-2023-bank-holiday-monday-things-to-do-1-sort-out-razor-with-remington-ordered-spares-first-thing-2-buy-tea-bags-not-done-3-plan-a-trip-out-if-the-weather-is-good-it-was-so-i-went-to-lymington-4-do-some-more-to-my-painting-not-done-5-housework-didn-t-touch-it-6-email-diabetes-uk-about-password-not-done-the-first-thing-i-did-this-morning-was-to-make-my-to-do-list-i-got-into-a-messenger-conversation-first-thing-and-my-alarm-sounded-to-tell-me-to-start-painting-and-realised-i-hadn-t-done-any-creative-writing-it-was-a-nice-day-and-i-wanted-to-make-the-most-of-it-and-went-to-lymington-and-did-some-sketching-i-made-a-cheese-and-tomato-sandwich-and-took-out-some-chickpea-curry-to-thaw-the-bus-stopped-at-rushingdon-roundabout-for-me-to-change-buses-for-lymington-but-there-was-an-hours-wait-so-i-ran-to-coffee-oasis-to-kill-use-up-the-time-in-coffee-oasis-there-were-landscape-photographs-by-the-southampton-based-photographer-ian-holloway-and-some-quirky-miniatures-called-litter-bug-s-which-were-models-of-butterflies-made-out-of-ammonium-cans-unfortunately-i-didn-t-note-the-artist-s-name-they-were-in-sealed-frames-and-very-reasonably-priced-after-i-did-a-sketch-and-made-my-way-back-to-the-bus-stop-where-i-did-another-sketch-in-the-mood-for-sketching-i-did-some-more-on-the-bus-and-more-still-on-lymington-quay-and-bought-fish-and-chips-at-deep-blue-there-was-an-exhibition-of-paintings-by-the-local-art-group-which-i-had-a-look-at-and-was-struck-by-the-use-of-mixed-media-in-some-of-the-paintings-which-sampled-of-text-included-in-the-pictures-design-extremely-tired-i-caught-the-bus-home-and-slept-soundly-until-early-next-morning2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-august-29-2023as-usual-my-i-didn-t-stick-to-my-to-do-list-although-having-one-is-still-useful-i-went-into-hythe-early-afternoon-to-pick-up-some-printing-from-the-herald-and-advertiser-and-max-their-chocolate-brown-labrador-waggled-his-tale-at-me-when-i-said-hallo-the-market-was-in-the-process-of-being-taken-down-and-i-was-drawn-to-the-selection-of-specialty-cheeses-in-harvies-and-bought-a-small-block-of-lyburn-to-try-and-treated-myself-to-a-vanilla-ice-creamon-my-way-to-the-bus-stop-i-stopped-off-at-be-be-s-for-a-cup-of-tea-it-would-have-been-nice-to-do-a-few-suspicious-sketches-but-when-i-looked-in-my-rucksack-i-d-left-my-sketchbook-at-homewhen-i-got-home-i-had-fish-pie-with-baked-beans-wrote-up-todays-and-yesterday-s-gallivant-posts-and-cooked-enough-chicken-curry-for-four-daysplease2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-august-30-2023-in-a-couple-of-recent-exchanges-with-friends-i-have-described-the-value-of-making-to-do-lists-and-think-a-rough-indication-of-what-was-said-might-be-of-interest-to-my-readers-during-a-seminar-for-setting-up-a-small-business-someone-once-said-that-they-are-the-most-important-time-management-tool-there-is-everyone-is-short-of-time-everyone-has-too-much-to-do-and-too-little-time-to-do-it-in-you-can-t-ever-do-everything-so-do-the-most-important-things-a-to-do-list-establishes-everything-you-need-to-do-so-that-prioritised-plans-can-be-made-here-s-my-to-do-list-for-today-1-write-blog-2-housework-not-done-3-work-on-painting-not-done-4-scrabble-i-lost-both-games-5-post-letter-i-collected-from-the-herald-and-advertiser-office-to-jim-hanger-done-6-continue-phoning-double-glazing-contractors-not-done-it-7-organise-september-diary-adventure-can-t-find-the-diary-by-1005am-having-begun-my-day-at-700am-with-a-chat-to-an-insomniac-friend-from-florida-i-had-begun-writing-today-s-post-had-breakfast-taken-my-medication-and-blood-sugar-which-was-nice-and-normal-wrote-and-posted-a-letter-to-a-friend-in-poole-running-to-the-post-box-and-round-the-block-for-exercise-it-has-been-remarked-by-an-overseas-that-she-would-like-to-taste-my-chicken-curry-and-i-thought-i-d-include-the-recipe-in-today-s-blog-it-s-a-low-budget-flavoursome-meal-that-s-a-great-favourite-of-mine-ingredients-i-m-not-overly-fussed-about-measuring-the-quantities-of-the-ingredients-and-find-it-comes-out-okay-regardless-chicken-thighs-4-onion-diced-garlic-fresh-ginger-olive-oil-mixed-vegetables-tin-of-tomatoes-garam-masala-cumin-chilli-power-or-fresh-chillis-if-possible-heat-the-olive-oil-in-a-frying-pan-and-add-the-diced-onion-garlic-and-ginger-one-of-my-time-saving-tips-is-to-dice-a-batch-of-onion-and-put-them-in-the-freezer-ready-for-when-i-m-cooking-when-the-onions-are-translucent-add-the-chilli-powder-and-other-herbs-and-then-the-chicken-finally-add-the-tomato-rinsing-out-the-tin-to-ensure-nothing-is-wasted-and-there-s-enough-liquid-to-cook-everything-a2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-august-31-2023-to-do-list-1-phone-double-glazing-contractors-it-was-too-late-when-i-got-back-2-housework-did-half-an-hour-3-work-on-painting-4-go-for-blood-test-done-5-free-community-lunch-went-i-woke-up-late-about-1000-and-realised-i-would-need-a-taxi-to-get-to-my-blood-test-appointment-it-was-raining-heavily-and-my-knees-ached-with-rheumatism-fortunately-i-was-able-to-arrange-the-taxi-to-get-me-to-my-appointment-on-time-when-i-was-outside-the-surgery-and-had-paid-with-my-card-i-dropped-it-in-the-gap-between-my-seat-and-the-centre-of-the-car-the-driver-told-me-to-get-out-as-he-moved-my-seat-forward-and-got-my-card-the-test-went-okay-although-i-am-not-sure-if-i-had-drunk-enough-water-before-it-i-ll-get-the-results-in-a-couple-of-days-i-ran-to-the-bus-stop-and-waited-outside-of-the-shelter-there-were-two-prams-and-a-group-of-preschool-children-with-their-mothers-waiting-insideit-seemed-a-long-wait-and-when-the-bus-came-i-got-on-but-found-what-s-the-wrong-bus-i-got-off-at-the-next-stop-ran-back-to-the-previous-stop-as-i-was-running-another-bus-approached-i-held-my-arm-out-it-stopped-just-after-the-stop-and-i-got-on-when-i-got-off-the-bus-i-bought-some-chicken-tikka-pasta-in-one-stop-came-home-had-a-few-messenger-chats-and-made-today-s-to-do-list-by-1430-i-had-done-a-little-housework-it-says-in-the-which-guide-to-housework-that-if-you-want-to-do-the-absolute-minimum-housework-ensure-your-food-preparation-surfaces-and-loo-is-clean-so-i-set-to-work-in-the-kitchen-cleaning-the-top-of-the-cooker-and-cleaning-the-microwave-i-worked-for-just-under-half-an-hour-but-what-i-did-made-a-difference-i-went-for-the-free-cook-up-at-blackfield-baptist-church-where-i-had-a-vegetable-curry-and-apple-crumble-washed-down-with-two-cups-of-tea-and-took-a-packet-of-coriander-leaves-with-yesterday-as-their-sell-by-date-and-put-them-in-the-freezer-use-later-use-when-i-get-back-home-i-had-a-cheese-and-tomato-sandwich-with-black-pepper-and-mayonnaise-with-another-tea-i-tried-to-set-up-an-instagram-page-promoting-ivor-the-unique-artist-at-the-sug2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-september-1-2023-to-do-list-1-pick-up-print-from-the-herald-office-done-2-housework-not-done-3-phone-double-glazing-contractors-not-done-4-work-on-painting-not-done-a-25-success-rate-for-the-day-today-was-a-day-with-modest-objectives-which-weren-t-met-i-set-out-fairly-late-to-go-and-collect-my-printing-from-the-herald-office-in-hythe-which-was-followed-up-with-breakfast-at-be-be-s-at-the-bus-stop-in-holbury-a-young-lady-remarked-that-my-portable-seat-was-a-good-idea-and-asked-me-where-i-got-it-after-breakfast-i-decided-it-was-high-time-i-got-out-my-banking-app-to-work-and-went-into-southampton-to-fix-it-when-i-got-to-the-bank-i-worked-out-how-to-make-it-work-before-being-seen-southampton-market-was-on-and-i-tried-the-bangladeshi-street-food-stall-again-where-this-time-i-bought-a-kabab-and-a-bottle-of-water-for-lunch-then-it-was-a-tiring-and-tedious-trip-home-when-i-got-on-the-bus-i-asked-the-driver-how-are-you-he-replied-you-don-t-want-to-know-when-we-got-to-the-station-a-couple-of-stops-on-the-door-of-the-bus-went-wrong-and-we-had-to-wait-for-the-next-bus-when-it-arrived-it-was-full-to-the-gunnels-and-i-managed-to-get-what-must-have-been-one-of-the-last-seats-after-a-tiring-ride-home-i-could-do-nothing-but-sleep-until-the-early-evening-when-i-made-myself-a-meal-of-a-pork-steak-jacket-potato-mixed-vegetables-gravy-dijon-mustard-and-apple-sauce-cooked-using-the-microwave-and-air-fryer-which-was-just-a-matter-of-setting-the-timers-and-waiting2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-september-2-2023-second-thoughts-about-yesterday-last-night-after-writing-my-blog-in-a-messenger-conversation-i-realised-my-appraised-for-yesterday-was-too-harsh-i-hadn-t-achieved-what-was-on-my-to-do-list-but-i-did-achieve-something-and-it-was-useful-and-had-taken-a-lot-of-time-and-energy-early-in-the-morning-i-got-into-a-messenger-conversation-with-a-young-chap-in-ghana-and-found-him-some-information-about-starting-a-business-there-first-i-found-a-video-and-then-details-of-a-scheme-to-encourage-business-start-ups-in-ghana-i-could-now-access-my-bank-details-to-do-list-for-today-1-housework-did-hour-an-hour-hoovering-and-two-loads-of-laundry-2-go-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-i-went-this-morning-3-work-on-painting-not-done-i-couldn-t-get-to-sleep-last-night-and-was-full-of-energy-this-morning-on-the-bus-i-noticed-rory-and-expected-him-to-join-me-at-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-but-he-got-off-at-hythe-pier-after-arriving-at-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-i-sat-alone-and-sketched-the-people-drinking-coffee-and-eating-a-slice-of-homemade-chocolate-cake-getting-to-the-last-page-of-my-sketchbook-i-started-to-fill-in-the-other-pages-working-backwards-with-drawings-i-drank-three-cups-of-coffee-which-was-too-many-kathy-came-and-had-a-chat-about-if-work-had-begun-on-my-garden-and-the-exhibition-of-paintings-which-will-be-on-display-at-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-when-left-i-went-on-for-lunch-at-st-andrews-coffee-house-the-soup-of-the-day-was-leek-and-potato-with-crusty-bread-and-croutons-which-i-washed-down-with-a-pot-of-tea-the-bus-home-was-late-and-i-asked-the-driver-how-he-was-he-replied-great-and-i-apologised-when-i-got-home-i-was-totally-exhausted-and-had-a-nap-i-heated-a-portion-of-chilli-con-carne-in-the-microwave-and-boiled-some-pasta-to-go-with-it-when-i-d-finished-my-meal-i-set-for-half-an-hour-and-loaded-and-unloaded-the-washing-machine-and-hoovered-the-lounge-then-i-wrote-this-blog-post-exhausted-i-went-to-bed-at-9002025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-september-3-2023-to-do-list-1-painting-not-done-2-housework-not-done-incredibly-tired-and-feeling-downbeat-after-a-long-period-of-sleep-deprivation-which-ended-sometime-around-friday-i-think-i-am-now-drinking-tea-listening-to-a-radio-3-broadcast-of-choral-evensong-which-didn-t-help-it-was-as-uplifting-as-a-trip-to-the-dentist-a-shower-and-change-of-clothes-and-a-run-would-perk-me-up-but-i-took-a-portion-of-chicken-curry-out-to-be-thawed-ready-for-my-evening-meal-spent-about-three-hours-trying-to-explain-to-someone-how-to-get-a-grant-to-set-up-a-small-business-which-was-extremely-unproductive-and-frustrating-when-i-was-at-school-i-thought-of-becoming-a-teacher-but-after-experiences-like-today-i-m-glad-i-didn-t-it-was-time-i-could-have-spent-doing-the-housework-or-working-on-my-painting-in-a-primer-on-economics-i-dipped-into-it-discussed-scarcity-almost-everyone-could-do-with-more-money-and-everyone-is-short-of-time-there-s-only-twenty-four-hours-in-a-day-and-seven-days-a-week-and-however-careful-you-are-with-your-health-you-will-only-live-so-long-after-a-run-round-the-block-and-to-the-coop-where-i-bought-a-canister-of-milk-and-some-root-ginger-from-the-clearance-section-i-felt-more-perky-and-blocked-the-person-who-had-asked-me-for-help-setting-up-a-business-so-that-i-would-put-my-time-in-the-future-to-better-use-i-had-my-evening-meal-but-as-money-would-be-scarce-until-i-got-my-pension-on-friday-and-i-only-had-a-little-rice-left-i-had-rice-and-boiled-potatoes-with-my-curry2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-september-4-2023-i-woke-up-late-had-a-cheese-and-pickle-sandwich-for-lunch-having-decided-to-skip-veg-out-at-october-books-because-until-i-get-my-pension-on-friday-i-will-be-short-of-cash-the-most-urgent-thing-to-do-today-is-try-and-sort-out-my-glaucoma-treatment-on-saturday-i-noticed-looking-through-a-newly-completed-sketchbook-that-i-d-had-an-all-day-examination-for-treatment-for-my-glaucoma-on-15-6-23-i-have-heard-nothing-about-it-since-then-and-decided-today-i-would-follow-it-up-i-phoned-my-gp-surgery-who-gave-me-the-number-of-their-contact-at-the-eye-hospital-which-i-phoned-and-left-a-message-with-after-the-call-i-wrote-to-julian-lewis-which-took-most-of-the-afternoon-and-emailed-a-copy-of-the-letter-to-rnib-finally-i-went-for-a-run-had-my-evening-meal-and-a-shower2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-september-5-2023-having-spent-yesterday-afternoon-trying-to-sort-out-getting-treatment-for-my-glaucoma-i-was-late-getting-up-yesterday-and-today-to-do-list-1-phone-double-glazing-contractors-not-done-2-buy-bread-and-oil-oil-bought-olive-oil-bread-brown-rice-eggs-and-for-my-midday-meal-pizza-slice-and-coffee-3-get-letter-to-julian-lewis-printed-done-4-housework-5-painting-6-phone-eye-hospital-an-appointment-is-arranged-for-13-2-24-840-i-wonder-if-i-would-have-got-an-appointment-at-all-if-i-hadn-t-asked-7-post-letter-to-julian-lewis-done-i-was-late-rising-from-my-pit-and-felt-like-a-change-of-air-and-there-was-a-letter-to-julian-lewis-about-the-ongoing-situation-with-my-glaucoma-which-had-been-printed-by-the-herald-and-advertiser-office-in-hythe-the-first-thing-i-did-once-was-got-off-the-bus-was-take-10-out-of-the-hole-in-the-wall-at-hsbc-in-hythe-i-wanted-cash-so-there-wouldn-t-be-any-difficulty-paying-for-my-printing-at-the-herald-office-next-i-made-my-way-to-lidl-where-i-bought-a-bottle-of-olive-oil-some-bread-six-eggs-easy-cook-brown-rice-and-for-lunch-a-pizza-slice-and-a-coffee-after-shopping-at-lidl-using-some-of-the-money-i-had-just-taken-out-of-hsbc-i-went-to-the-herald-office-and-got-my-letter-printed-i-caught-the-bus-home-and-phoned-the-eye-hospital-and-have-an-appointment-booked-for-13-2-24-or-possibly-sooner-if-there-s-a-cancellation-i-posted-my-letter-and-found-there-was-an-email-from-rnib-acknowledging-receipt-of-my-email-and-saying-it-would-be-forwarded-to-their-campaigns-section2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-september-6-2023-i-listened-to-a-song-yesterday-about-always-having-done-something-that-you-re-proud-of-every-day-i-lived-up-to-that-ideal-yesterday-by-getting-closer-to-getting-treatment-for-my-glaucoma-organised-and-writing-to-julian-lewis-about-my-experience-and-sharing-the-letter-with-the-rnib-campaigns-section-there-was-a-piece-on-the-television-yesterday-evening-which-mentioned-a-citizen-scientist-a-retired-businessman-being-involved-with-monitoring-the-ongoing-situation-with-thames-water-dumping-sewage-into-rivers-during-fine-weather-which-is-illegal-unable-to-sleep-in-the-early-hours-i-googled-citizen-scientist-and-found-out-about-an-organisation-called-zooniverse-who-organise-a-variety-of-citizen-scientist-projects-my-to-do-list-for-today-began-with-the-plan-to-phone-the-double-glazing-contractors-to-get-something-done-about-my-windows-instead-of-which-i-wrote-a-letter-to-my-younger-self-as-an-entry-to-a-writing-competition-out-of-milk-i-ran-to-the-coop-and-bought-some-together-with-six-apples-from-the-clearance-section-at-12-00-hardly-able-to-stay-awake-i-went-to-bed-and-slept-through-until-1800-after-my-evening-meal-i-slept-again-and-woke-at-around-200-pm-the-next-day2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-september-7-2023-it-may-have-been-late-on-thursday-or-early-friday-when-i-blocked-a-scammer-i-had-been-having-messenger-conversations-with-her-and-she-read-and-and-often-commented-on-the-latest-instalments-of-the-gallivant-as-i-published-them-for-a-while-i-thought-i-d-found-a-friend-fool-that-i-must-surely-have-been-i-gave-her-money-and-was-deaf-to-the-sound-of-alarm-bells-my-suspicions-came-to-a-head-due-to-some-remarks-on-messenger-by-a-friend-who-she-was-also-asking-money-from-anyway-i-blocked-her-after-i-d-blocked-her-wanting-confirmation-my-decision-was-sound-i-checked-a-photo-she-sent-me-of-an-empty-fridge-by-looking-up-empty-fridge-on-google-images-and-found-the-same-image-come-to-think-of-it-i-posted-a-picture-of-a-frying-pan-of-chilli-con-carne-on-one-of-my-blog-posts-and-she-reposted-it-as-on-her-timeline-as-hers-i-have-to-admit-i-m-going-to-miss-hearing-from-her-but-she-never-was-a-true-friend2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-september-8-2023-up-early-after-another-night-without-sleep-one-of-the-troubles-with-insomnia-is-not-being-able-distinguishing-one-day-with-another-yesterday-i-went-for-the-free-cook-up-organised-by-lucie-mann-it-s-always-nice-having-something-which-i-hadn-t-cooked-myself-unfortunately-i-learnt-there-s-likely-to-be-a-delay-getting-work-started-on-my-garden-i-suppose-everyone-s-sleep-patterns-are-out-of-sync-with-this-weather-i-went-back-to-bed-and-surfaced-sometime-after-2-in-the-afternoon-but-it-was-a-pleasant-sleep-and-i-felt-really-good-one-of-the-joys-of-retirement-is-most-of-the-time-you-can-sleep-whenever-you-want-to-i-had-a-late-lunch-of-chorizo-sausages-with-whole-meal-bread-and-butter-washed-down-with-the-inevitable-mug-of-tea-then-i-had-another-sleep-and-woke-by-late-afternoon-early-evening-nothing-much-else-happened-i-went-to-bed-early2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-september-9-2023-as-expected-with-my-out-of-sync-circadian-rhythms-after-sleeping-from-early-evening-i-woke-in-the-early-hours-and-got-up-i-checked-through-the-article-i-d-downloaded-from-glaucoma-research-about-diet-and-glaucoma-and-when-the-co-op-opened-bought-some-dark-chocolate-and-bananas-as-recommended-i-m-dubious-about-if-this-will-help-but-it-can-t-do-too-much-harm-unless-my-blood-sugar-is-heightened-too-much-and-the-bonus-is-i-m-partial-to-chocolate-and-bananas-later-in-the-morning-i-caught-the-bus-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-at-the-bus-stop-i-met-isabel-whose-husband-had-just-died-i-didn-t-really-know-what-to-say-but-think-it-went-okay-at-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-the-paintings-were-on-display-around-the-room-and-i-went-and-looked-carefully-at-each-of-them-phil-and-rory-were-going-to-a-football-match-and-i-went-on-to-have-a-tuna-jacket-potato-at-st-andrews-coffee-house-i-bought-a-venison-scotch-egg-from-sergeants-and-had-to-run-to-catch-the-bus-when-i-got-to-hythe-i-did-some-shopping-in-lidl-then-came-home-and-had-a-cup-of-tea-and-ran-to-the-co-op-where-i-brought-some-vegetable-mix-in-the-clearance-section-and-a-canister-of-milk2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-september-10-2023-got-up-at-around-five-and-had-a-banana-and-an-apple-some-dark-chocolate-started-doing-some-cooking-and-made-a-budget-curry-i-googled-some-youtube-videos-on-making-ratatouille-but-realised-i-didn-t-have-an-aubergine-so-opted-for-making-a-vegetable-curry-using-onion-garlic-ginger-garam-masala-cumin-onion-frozen-baby-corn-from-the-clearance-section-broccoli-carrot-from-the-clearance-section-coriander-free-from-the-cook-up-on-thursday-sweet-potato-courgette-tinned-tomatoes-chestnut-mushrooms-balsamic-vinegar-a-liberal-helping-of-tobacco-and-lemon-juice-i-didn-t-have-fresh-chilli-or-chilli-flakes-or-power-i-d-forgotten-what-a-superb-smell-coriander-has-adding-balsamic-vinegar-was-a-new-idea-for-me-which-i-got-by-watching-a-youtube-video-this-morning-about-making-ratatouille-proving-that-you-can-teach-an-old-dog-a-few-new-ticks-as-it-cooked-it-filled-the-bungalow-with-amazing-smells-i-look-out-of-my-window-and-there-s-rain-on-the-conservatory-roof-and-my-knees-are-aching-to-go-with-my-curry-l-bought-some-brown-rice-which-had-a-couple-of-surprises-first-it-takes-about-30-minutes-to-cook-and-when-it-s-cooking-it-smells-amazing-eventually-i-had-my-meal-about-midday-and-the-day-passed-without-any-problems2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-september-12-2023-once-again-i-got-up-late-and-ran-to-boots-to-buy-some-shower-gel-and-cod-liver-oil-capsules-i-had-several-things-to-buy-in-lidl-in-hythe-and-on-the-way-from-the-hythe-pier-bus-stop-met-stuart-at-a-table-outside-number-15-and-stopped-to-have-an-omelette-and-a-cup-of-coffee-stuart-mentioned-andy-which-reminded-me-i-didn-t-have-a-birthday-card-for-his-mother-next-friday-so-after-i-d-finished-eating-i-ran-along-to-the-card-shop-and-found-a-card-which-was-ideal-it-was-a-three-d-image-of-a-tiger-with-three-cubes-when-i-got-back-home-with-my-shopping-i-was-exhausted-and-slept-until-early-evening-one-of-the-surprises-for-me-with-getting-a-little-older-is-that-i-don-t-have-the-same-amount-of-energy-as-i-used-to-i-treated-myself-to-a-bowl-of-broccoli-and-stilton-soup-followed-by-a-cup-of-tea-which-i-used-to-accompany-my-cod-liver-oil-capsule-despite-not-getting-much-done-today-i-was-content2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-september-13-2023-it-was-another-of-my-sleepless-nights-so-i-got-up-and-made-some-ratatouille-to-put-my-time-to-good-use-following-the-recipe-in-bbc-good-foods-guide-but-with-a-couple-of-variations-first-the-guide-said-use-basil-i-didn-t-have-any-so-used-tyne-i-think-i-d-seen-another-recipe-which-recommended-it-so-it-was-probably-okay-also-i-added-paprika-and-worcestershire-sauce-and-a-little-chilli-powder-the-end-result-wasn-t-authentic-but-to-my-palette-was-good-unfortunately-i-later-realised-after-finishing-the-cooking-it-should-have-included-garlic-i-started-by-dicing-an-aubergine-and-frying-it-in-olive-oil-next-i-diced-two-courgettes-and-fried-them-after-that-deseeded-four-peeled-tomatoes-and-fried-them-and-some-peppers-which-were-prepared-earlier-then-i-remembered-fried-onion-should-be-included-so-i-fried-some-and-mixed-them-with-the-other-ingredients-the-bbc-recipe-says-use-red-wine-vinegar-and-add-sugar-in-my-version-i-used-balsamic-vinegar-thinking-it-was-the-same-and-didn-t-include-sugar-it-was-only-later-that-i-discovered-red-wine-vinegar-is-sour-and-balsamic-vinegar-is-sweet-this-made-me-wonder-how-many-different-types-of-vinegar-there-are-and-what-their-different-uses-are-so-i-found-an-article-about-it-by-the-time-i-d-finished-cooking-and-written-up-what-i-d-done-it-was-352-am-i-helped-myself-to-a-small-sample-of-my-concoction-with-a-slice-of-well-buttered-whole-meal-bread-and-it-was-good-with-the-courgettes-having-a-pleasant-crunchy-texture-as-i-was-finishing-the-cooking-i-remembered-how-i-had-been-made-to-feel-useless-in-the-first-job-clu-i-attended-which-was-followed-by-a-factory-job-which-lasted-for-a-week-or-so-before-i-became-surplus-to-requirements-my-experience-was-like-many-other-people-s-whose-talents-were-and-are-wasted-due-to-some-silly-economic-expediency-it-has-been-the-story-of-my-life-and-many-other-lives-later-that-morning-i-decided-to-write-a-to-do-list-for-the-day-1-housework-i-defrosted-my-freezer-2-painting-3-buy-milk-done-4-phone-double-glazing-contractors-at-1049-after-running-to2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-thursday-september-14-2023-unfortunately-after-cleaning-my-freezer-i-was-wide-awake-and-got-into-messenger-conversations-that-lasted-through-the-night-i-considered-if-the-best-way-to-get-to-spain-would-be-by-ferry-flight-or-coach-and-learned-that-niagara-falls-are-in-canada-that-they-drive-on-the-right-in-canada-i-saw-a-youtube-video-about-uruguay-and-drink-loads-of-tea-to-do-list-14-september-2023-1-dental-appointment-filling-replacement-1240-totton-done-2-phone-rnib-about-glaucoma-advice-not-done-3-free-cook-up-blackfield-baptist-church-1530-done-4-phone-bank-about-getting-account-unblocked-not-done-interesting-piece-on-morning-tv-about-the-children-s-author-and-illustrator-liz-pickon-who-has-designed-the-t-shirt-for-this-year-s-children-in-need-promotion-after-the-program-i-had-a-look-at-her-website-next-i-emailed-the-herald-an-advertiser-office-in-hythe-and-soon-i-received-a-reply-saying-my-printing-had-been-done-with-the-hsbc-the-last-bank-in-hythe-closed-i-had-to-get-some-cash-using-the-post-office-a-trick-i-d-come-up-with-through-a-google-search-when-i-got-into-hythe-i-decided-to-buy-some-breadcrumbs-and-pumpkin-seeds-in-waitrose-and-bought-some-mango-and-ginger-pickle-too-unable-to-find-the-breadcrumbs-i-asked-an-assistant-where-they-were-she-gave-me-directions-but-despite-trying-for-several-minutes-still-couldn-t-find-them-i-went-back-and-asked-again-and-a-distinguished-elderly-gentleman-who-i-hadn-t-seen-because-of-a-row-of-shelves-or-maybe-my-glaucoma-or-perhaps-because-of-momentary-in-attention-cleared-his-throat-as-if-to-say-i-was-here-first-i-apologised-and-took-my-place-behind-him-in-the-belief-my-there-must-be-worst-of-crimes-than-inadvertent-queue-jumping-when-it-was-his-turn-to-be-served-i-overheard-him-saying-to-the-shop-assistant-that-s-the-second-time-that-s-happened-to-me-or-was-it-the-shop-assistant-who-said-it-to-him-i-m-deaf-in-my-right-ear-and-once-again-wasn-t-paying-proper-attention-but-my-hearing-was-good-enough-to-hear-what-was-said-about-me-on-reflection-i-don-t-know-if-i-was-in-the-wrong-or-no2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-friday-september-15-2023-to-do-list-1-housework-2-painting-3-washing-4-phone-rnib-after-900am-5-phone-coop-bank-to-unblock-account-after-900am-6-phone-double-glazing-contractors-after-900am-nothing-on-today-s-list-got-done-another-night-when-my-body-clock-was-out-of-sync-it-was-mildly-cold-the-first-sign-of-winter-and-my-knees-ached-i-got-up-and-made-myself-a-cup-of-tea-midway-through-the-night-so-exhausted-slept-through-the-day-so-everything-i-had-planned-didn-t-happen-i-went-to-bed-at-about-midnight-and-slept-through-until-early-saturday-morning-22025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-saturday-september-16-2023-a-lot-more-active-and-interesting-day-than-yesterday-after-sleeping-well-i-woke-up-and-initially-was-reluctant-to-get-up-but-it-was-saturday-my-day-for-going-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-so-got-up-and-noticed-some-mail-on-the-doormat-which-included-a-handwritten-letter-from-my-old-friend-jim-he-doesn-t-use-the-phone-or-internet-so-writing-is-his-only-means-of-communication-he-had-an-operation-recently-and-is-just-out-of-hospital-i-made-my-way-to-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-and-did-some-sketches-several-people-who-i-hadn-t-spoken-to-before-said-a-few-words-to-me-and-i-had-some-forbidden-fruit-in-the-form-of-a-piece-of-carrot-cake-i-m-diabetic-but-they-say-a-little-of-what-you-fancy-does-you-good-as-my-grandmother-used-to-say-how-the-poor-live-i-stayed-at-the-soul-caf%C3%A9-until-closing-time-and-ever-keen-to-maintain-my-health-i-ran-to-st-andrews-coffee-house-outside-as-i-was-running-past-the-tables-outside-i-heard-someone-call-my-name-it-was-my-friend-andy-with-his-daughters-megan-and-eva-and-his-mother-he-bought-me-a-bowl-of-homemade-soup-and-a-pot-of-tea-megan-was-doing-a-voluntary-waitress-job-there-i-caught-the-bus-into-hythe-as-i-wanted-to-buy-jim-a-card-and-had-a-coffee-at-black-wax-where-i-did-another-sketch-at-the-bus-stop-at-hythe-pier-someone-else-called-me-it-was-rob-freemantle-i-didn-t-recognise-him-at-first-because-his-beard-has-grown-so-long-he-said-he-was-thinking-of-having-it-tethered-to-which-i-replied-you-should-in-the-interest-of-public-safety-on-the-bus-at-knighton-grange-tim-and-julie-got-on-and-tim-came-and-sat-next-to-me-for-a-chat-he-asked-what-i-had-planned-for-the-evening-i-said-write-my-blog-for-today-and-yesterday-do-a-little-homework-and-some-work-on-my-painting-it-s-now-2144-i-shall-do-half-an-hour-housework-and-then-work-until-2300-my-bedtime-on-my-painting2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-sunday-september-17-2023-oh-silly-insomnia-why-can-t-i-sleep-boy-it-gets-tiresome-counting-those-sheep-once-again-it-s-most-probably-the-rule-rather-than-the-exception-i-couldn-t-get-to-sleep-so-i-got-up-and-dressed-and-decided-to-put-my-time-and-energy-to-good-use-and-do-the-housework-starting-with-the-bathroom-the-first-thing-i-did-was-set-the-timer-for-half-an-hour-then-i-got-to-work-i-noticed-there-were-clothes-in-the-machine-and-took-them-out-to-dry-then-i-wondered-round-like-a-headless-chicken-and-eventually-returned-to-work-on-the-bathroom-the-timer-sounded-and-i-stopped-for-a-peppermint-tea-i-would-have-had-ordinary-tea-but-i-ran-out-of-milk-i-went-to-get-the-milk-out-of-the-fridge-before-i-remembered-i-d-finished-it-i-resumed-work-on-the-bathroom-and-cleaned-the-bath-and-sink-but-when-i-was-about-to-clean-the-taps-the-alarm-sounded-once-again-i-went-to-the-fridge-for-milk-and-realised-the-error-of-my-ways-having-a-poor-short-term-memory-is-normal-for-many-dyslexics-and-my-experiences-with-mine-this-evening-were-completely-normal-before-i-got-back-to-work-on-today-s-blog-post-i-remembered-more-of-my-conversation-with-rob-freemantle-he-said-he-s-self-releasing-a-single-on-october-13-called-missing-you-and-it-s-already-been-played-on-italian-radio-i-went-to-his-website-and-discovered-he-s-learning-japanese-and-is-interested-in-board-games-when-i-have-time-i-ll-try-challenge-him-to-a-game-of-chess-it-would-be-an-opportunity-for-me-to-read-the-rest-of-chess-for-dummies-i-eventually-got-to-sleep-and-woke-up-at-about-midday-and-it-was-tipping-it-down-but-i-was-fed-up-drinking-peppermint-tea-so-ran-to-the-coop-and-bought-a-canister-of-milk-a-chicken-slice-in-the-hot-food-section-for-lunch-and-some-naan-bread-and-mozzarella-cheese-from-clearance-on-my-way-out-i-did-my-customarily-when-the-weathers-like-this-fred-astaire-impersonation-with-a-few-words-off-singing-in-the-rain-when-i-got-home-i-had-a-normal-cup-of-tea-and-intended-to-do-the-hoovering-before-andy-came-but-he-arrived-before-i-did-any-we-had-a-good-chinwag-and-set2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-monday-september-18-2023-before-going-out-today-i-left-a-message-with-sanctuary-housing-association-for-jim-my-friend-who-lives-at-one-of-their-homes-who-recently-had-an-operation-after-that-i-tried-to-set-up-an-appointment-for-my-covid-booster-but-had-to-change-the-mobile-number-on-their-records-which-takes-24-hours-there-was-an-email-from-clare-from-october-books-responding-to-my-offer-to-change-the-viewing-day-for-my-exhibition-it-s-now-going-to-be-on-thursday-october-12-i-got-a-message-from-my-niece-asking-if-they-could-come-and-visit-me-tomorrow-at-lunchtime-monday-is-veg-out-day-at-october-books-which-i-went-to-the-meal-was-a-vegetarian-cottage-pie-with-salad-followed-by-fruit-crumble-and-fruit-cocktail-i-sketched-on-the-bus-into-southampton-and-at-and-at-october-books-gyn-oliver-invited-me-to-sit-with-him-and-his-wife-and-i-of-course-said-yes-and-i-said-hallo-neil-kelly-who-said-he-liked-the-drawings-i-d-recently-posted-i-bought-some-dijon-mustard-and-cider-vinegar-in-october-books-and-some-prickly-pears-and-brinjal-pickle-from-the-greengrocer-up-the-road-next-i-went-on-to-edmund-kell-unitarian-church-in-believue-road-where-i-watched-the-big-lie-i-film-about-right-wing-corruption-in-the-labour-party-i-saw-helen-and-she-sat-next-to-me-on-the-bus2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-tuesday-september-19-2023-to-do-list-1-housework-2-phone-rnib-3-arrange-appointment-for-covid-jab-done-4-phone-double-glazing-contractors-5-my-niece-is-visiting-she-did-6-phone-bank-about-resetting-password-after-writing-my-blog-yesterday-i-realised-i-d-missed-out-some-interesting-details-in-my-conversation-with-glyn-at-october-books-he-mentioned-a-psychological-experiment-where-a-group-of-subjects-were-asked-to-do-an-engaging-task-and-were-so-engrossed-they-didn-t-notice-a-man-dressed-in-a-gorilla-suit-wondering-amongst-them-and-were-amazed-when-a-video-was-shown-of-what-had-happened-he-described-how-amazon-advertise-their-services-saying-you-only-need-to-spend-a-few-seconds-to-get-things-i-bought-some-brinjal-pickle-yesterday-and-didn-t-know-what-it-was-so-googled-it-brinjal-is-the-indian-vegetable-that-was-transported-by-the-arabs-from-india-to-spain-and-then-further-afraid-where-it-was-renamed-aubergine-or-eggplants-and-ate-the-rest-of-the-prickly-pears-from-yesterday-i-think-i-could-acquire-a-taste-for-them-i-didn-t-sleep-at-all-again-last-night-i-sat-daydreaming-and-eventually-after-a-struggle-booked-a-covid-jab-at-netley-pharmacy-for-26-9-2023-i-ate-a-raw-carrot-and-some-pumpkin-seeds-due-to-reading-an-article-about-diet-and-glaucoma-the-weather-has-taken-a-turn-for-the-worse-and-it-s-not-very-warm-and-my-throw-blanket-has-given-up-the-ghost-my-niece-and-her-husband-came-and-treated-me-to-fish-and-chips-shane-my-niece-s-husband-noticed-a-large-pile-of-books-which-l-d-bought-from-world-of-books-and-asked-me-if-i-d-read-them-they-included-a-moveable-feast-by-ernest-hemingway-and-reading-like-a-writer-by-francine-prose-shane-clearly-know-both-books-extremely-well-on-the-way-out-mandy-my-niece-described-a-recipe-for-bobotie-and-when-i-messaged-her-sent-a-link-through-to-bbc-good-food2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8https://www.ivorsdailygallvant.com/blog/ivor-s-daily-gallivant-wednesday-september-20-2023-to-do-list-1-housework-2-phone-bank-not-done-3-shopping-done-4-continue-with-painting-it-s-another-stormy-day-complete-with-wind-and-rain-feeling-impish-i-wrote-a-post-about-my-battle-frenzy-i-wanted-to-get-my-banking-app-sorted-out-work-on-my-painting-and-do-some-housework-but-i-also-needed-a-change-of-air-so-went-and-di-some-shopping-in-lidl-hythe-following-the-path-of-least-resistance-i-opted-for-the-change-of-air-and-potatoes-and-catch-the-bus-into-hythe-when-i-got-there-it-s-lunchtime-and-i-bought-a-coronation-chicken-sandwich-in-be-be-s-with-cup-of-tea-in-hythe-i-went-to-post-office-hole-in-the-wall-check-my-bank-balance-and-take-some-money-out-i-bought-some-potatoes-and-a-few-other-things-in-lidl-and-caught-the-bus-home-on-the-bus-i-looked-for-my-sketch-pad-but-find-i-don-t-have-it-with-me-it-would-have-been-nice-to-do-a-few-sketches-there-was-an-announcement-from-my-friend-rob-freemantle-asking-his-friends-to-help-in-any-way-to-promote-his-self-released-single-i-m-missing-you-i-m-yet-to-hear-it-but-know-some-of-his-other-songs-and-he-knows-what-he-s-doing-by-2130-i-was-feeling-tired-and-didn-t-want-to-do-any-more-work-so-settled-down-to-listening-to-a-ted-talk-called-sleep-your-superpower2025-09-26T05:45:46+00:000.8