Iechyd Da

So me and Timmy are sat in Club Iechyd Da and Freya came to join us, it is going well with enjoyable entertainers. Then I looked up and thought "Why is that bloke carrying a lid?". Because it's Stuart who has come here to meet me, he is going to be a close neighbour of mine soon, as he is moving too

We were there for 3 hours, afterwards we took Freya home and it wasn't until I got back in my own place that I had a piss, which was still colourless

Gym

Then after my salady lunch we went to the gym (Hoo-flippin'-ray!!!) were as usual I enjoyed it so much but today she watched my walk and said "No, on your right leg try to bring your knee up rather than moving your foot around sideways" which I tried, it is much harder to concentrate on that too but what a difference it makes to my posture and my walk. It is a small change but what big differences it makes.

Hooray, summat else to concentrate on in this getting better process

Ding

Then Ed came in s'morning, did my cream on feet, then later we need to go to Morrison's (noisy) and today as I am practising getting better I will walk into the shop while Ed pushes my 'chair behind me so I can sit down while I choose what salad to eat, then I will stand up and walk out of the shop.

And I did it, hoo-flipping-ray

Lan-ethli

So now I am sat in "Lan-ethli" Folk Club and the chap who is playing ATM, Ray, is so like I used to play but better!!

Crisis

Then I went into the kitchen, tried summat and had to shout "HELP". Obviously last night I hadn't quite closed the freezer and it wouldn't close today because the ice was in the way. So Tim came and scraped off the ice, we tried again, it still wouldn't close. So we had to take the drawers out, scrape underneath and on top and behind them, then at last my freezer works again

Retired

So I went to Carmel today and didn't have to take a single picture of litter as the whole place was clean.

Then I emailed them and said "Too busy, too hectic to do this ATM. Perhaps I will do it again in a few months but for now I am retiting"

Sarah OT

Then after lunch Sarah OT came to see me, talked about how I am moving into the next stage of my life etc, so walking everywhere potentially etc.

When she left she agreed to not come next week etc until I, or Denyse, contact her and say "Come back"

Dentist

And I had to go to the Dental Hygenist s'morning which was fine except she accidentally knocked out a shallow filling I had

I waited for about 40 mins to see if I could see a dentist but was still waiting, so I made an appointment for next Wednesday

And I parked my wheelchair in the foyer and walked from there into my treatment room

Whoops

i took a load of washing out the machine last night and there was a tissue amongst it. So I need someone to sweep the floor and shake all the clothes to take bits off them. Then sweep again!!

And Timmy said "Put it in tumble dryer s'morning, then we can shake it properly" s'morning which worked, so clothes are now back in't airing cupboard and floor swept, big style

Proper Shower

And it seems to have become normal at last to have a proper shower

A few weeks before I have a bath again

Dicky

Then we went over to town to meet Denyse and Paul who had just interviewed the 3 chaps for my job. One was a no go so I had 2 to interview. A long and a short, Paul phoned one on his way home and asked him to come back and meet me, we were due to see the other chap on Monday. After chatting for a bit Denyse asked him to go out of the room, said the 2nd chap had txted her to say "Not enuf hours" so if I wanted to offer Richard a job I could, so I did. Now he needs to go thru all sorts of checks but his name has already been decided, Dicky

After Lunch

Then finally Timmy came here after lunch then took me to my new house where we discussed loads of furniture etc, what we need where and he drew out some plans of what will go where etc, and we were there for hours sorting it out.

Quiet Morning

So s'morning I had no staff as they were all at a Team Meeting to discuss me etc

Two Folk Clubs

So we set out tonight and drove miles to the first folk club, the one that was on last week, and when we got there there was nowt on so we then drove miles further and came acros a decentiss FC which nice beer on tap which I actually rather liked

Napping

And when napping today I realised that my right hand was flat on the bed, wrist flat and arm flat with only a small amount of play in my fingers. It didn't used to sit that flat/well on it

Double Aargh

Then after such an exciting/scary/busy day it went a bit quieter later. For an hour or so we did nowt but talk/read etc then I napped

Aargh

I am going off in a couple of hours to hopefully get the key to my new bungalow....... AARGH....

And we did it, went down, met the landlord&lady, took the keys off them and sorted out bills etc. It's mine now!!!!

Then we were able to do the rest of usual busy Mondayness and went to the supermarket although we needed to go to Tesco's too to get blueberries, but it's all done now

OK, the rest of it as we went shopping on Saturday as my list was SO long it would have taken me half of tomorrow too

Cleaning Myself

And then I had another proper shower.

So I finally get it together to properly shower about 6 weeks before I move into a house with a bath

Tobyless

Then Toby said he had to go off for a date and couldn't come for tea but he is coming later to dry an armfull of clothes

And he did so hopefully he can go off with the Princes Trust tomorrow for a few days

Oh What Fun We Had

So s'morning me and Ed went into Carmarthen, met Toby and Julia and her two little ones, and waited at the side of the road for ages until the Olympic Torch came into town. There was a bit of a preceding parade then it went past then it was done. Hoo flippin' ray, a once in a lifetime not very treatish treat

Home

Then today we went to my new house for a bit. It was strange, we made it walking around the side to the garden and it occurred to me, it's no. 53, so it's new name is "Herbie The House"

Fruity Water

And today as a gift Paul gave me a bottle (1.5l) of Volvic volcanic water with a touch of strawberry which I have finished already as it it so hot today but we nipped to the shop and bought more (and more blueberries!) as it was so nice

Towning

Then we went to town and had a look for steps up to Paul's van but couldn't find any, we went to a mobile shop where he replaced the dongle that I probably won't need but JIC...

J&T

And we met up with Julia and Toby earlier and he does seem much more controlled around her, so PHEW

Extra Shop

So SmallPaul came in s'morning, did my feet and then took me on an extra shopping trip to Morrison's because I had such a big list for Monday with all the extra cheese and Crème Fraiche and other ingredients for our cooking on Tuesday, and I thought I may as well get some of the other extra's that were on Mondays list, eg once a fortnight mouthwash and once a month cream for my feet etc

AND as Smally said "You smell" today we had to get some deodorant too

So it was the biggest shop I have got in some years

More Busyness

First thing today Sara The Physio came to do loads more stuff on my arm. It is helping, I am getting better but she accepted that I am way too busy for a few months

So over lunchtime me and Paul and an extra learning Ed went to swimming pool. I can see that it is helping me but I still would rather not go

And in the pool Ed tried standing next to me with foam dumbbells which I now can move up and down properly, it is helping my movement. But Ed is such a weak beginner that he struggled moving them up and down

Then we came back here 'cos I had more salad to eat for a late lunch.

Then I nipped to bed for a nap

Then later when Freya was here I was gonna help her to cook pizzas for us too, I grated the cheese and took out the naan bread that I bought on Monday, it had gone mouldy in the heat. It still had time on the best before and it had been sitting in the bread bin since Monday but it had gone all mouldy already as it has been so hot. So I had to have summat else from the freezer for tea.

Then we got on that Skype thing to David and Nora on the new whole family laptop, but it does seem a bit pointless to me.

Quiet

And I felt a bit strange getting so tired then napping late so didn't do much later. I am currently 91% of the way thru Harry Potter 5. Dumbledor has just died

Exhausted

Gosh, so after a bit of reading we set off for the gym. Today there was me and 2 stroke sufferers, gosh, I am better off than them.

Then we had to go to the doctors to pick up my 'script for asthma medicine.

As we were coming out of there Toby txted me and said "Lift to Kidwelly, please?" as he has made friends with them again.

Then I went to the Chemist and got my 'script made up

Then we drove to Toby's, picked him up and took him to Kidwelly

Then we went to Morrison's for more salad for my lunch for a few days

Then we came back here and I had a very late nap

Ding

So Ed came in s'morning and did my feet first thing. I feel a bit unsettled as the cash hasn't been paid into my bank yet and everything is......

It has now!!

Folking

So tonight me and Timmy went out to Llanelli folk club but as we were here too early it looks a bit busier now

Feed Me More

So tonight we were sitting around when Toby txted me and said "Can I do sum drying and have a shower?" but when he came up I thought "It's dinner time, I can't eat alone" so I had to make Toby another dinner which saved him a few quid out of his giro.

What A Morning

So Paul came first thing s'morning and did my feet etc, then Denyse came and tried to reassure me somewhat, then Anthony Fairweather came to discuss my finances. Just aargh and wow etc. He took details of all the direct debits which come out of my bank and is going, when he gets court permission, to pay them out of a new, Neil's claim, bank account which he will set up and fill with cash.

So just AARGH but I think he is gonna take a lot of the stress out of my life

Then Paul nipped off to be replaced with Timmy

Cooked

Then later Toby came round and cooked me pasta with vegetables and cream cheese and cheese. It was delicious, and not too big this week as we didn't double it like last week.

OK, slightly too big, we both left some, but not as massive as last weeks

Hotness

Yesterday it was a beautiful sunny day but still cold. Today, on the other hand, it is sunny and as warm as a very warm thing

So today for the first time I am just wearing a shirt, no jumper or vest.

Gymming

And we (me and Ed) drove over to the gym and did loadsa exercises. During and afterwards Bex was videoing me doing various stuff to use with students so they can understand BI better. At the end I had to sign off my rights etc

Didn't He Do Well

And Toby who was with us tonight was rather exhausted as he had to get up at 8.00AM s'morning to go on the Princes Trust but he managed

All Of Us

Double good lord. So s'morning we went and showed my bungalow to my brothers. Just WOW etc. Then we went shopping in Morrisons then came back here for lunch. Then afterwards we went out to show "them" the gym and swimming pool leisure centre. Now I have come home for a nap and David and Gareth are off somewhere else for an hour

OK, they came back, we Skyped Denyse so they could say hello, then we went off for food. On the way we called down to Toby's, he came out of his house saying hello and we loaded hi, in the car and took him off for dinner. So tonight we went to the Toby Carvery where again I sat down properly and they pushed my wheelchair out of site. It was nice food and not too expensive as I was paying tonight. Then we took them to a Folk Club, dunno what they thought. We had to leave early tho

So David and Gareth left early tonight as they need to be in car for about 7.30 in't morning

Slept and FTP

So last night my back wasn't hurting, I was comfortable and slept.

And Classic FTP is working again s'morning

Bruvs

And this evening my 2 brothers came to visit me. Gosh I haven't seen them since I was much worse so that was a bit nice.

But since I got back the FTP server that is s'posed to up their photos to my website won't work, which has taken all my energy so not even saying much about seeing them

Hanging About

So me and Ed are hanging out together now. A bit bored but I am gonna see my 2 brothers in a couple of hours when they get here. My father just txted me and said "Dropped 'em at the airport"

It was David who found this place so I could move out of rehabilitation, now I am at the next stage being well enuf to move out altogether into my home

Puzzlement

And my back didn't hurt at all last night. So really dunno what's going on....

And it didn't hurt when I got into bed for my nap either, lying on my back and over on my LHS - not hurt

Practice

And t'other night I had to practice opening web pages part of the way down. I think it worked. "I Want One" and "Way Too Modern"

Ed-ding

And Ed is here doing stuff of his own because "What do you wanna do today Neil?" "Erm..... nowt"

Well today we plugged in the new video camera to charge it, I downloaded a video editing program and got stuck. Timmy said "I have only used Windows Movie Maker and it is easy" in an email, so I deleted the editor I had and downloaded a version of WMM. It seems usable but I need to practice more

Pain In Kidney

And I have just gotten up after a couple of wide awake hours to take some parrots-eat-'em-all as I have a wild pain in my kidney/lower back. I only had one small alcohol last night so I don't think it was that but OWWWWW

Lets hear it for parrots-eat-'em-all, 20 mins after taking it I was able to lie still again and another 10 minutes I was asleep. It doesn't hurt now so.....

Well it said not to take more parrots before 10 o'clock, it would wear off by then, it is not 11.30 and my back still doesn't hurt. Another glass of water now then....

And it didn't hurt during my nap today so god nose

Waverley

Then later we headed off to Waverley Stores for our weekly shop but while we were there Freya txted me to say "The bus has broken down, can I meet you at yours later" then after we finished the shop we passed her walking up the road to my house and gave her a lift. Then she ate Toby's dish from Tuesday, microwaved, and it actually went down well. She said "No, not spuds" but actually got stuck in and enjoyed it

Sleep

Then after my swim we actually had food there as Paul wanted to converse with Timmy without distractions so he actually paid for my lunch, then we came back here and I had a nap

Wimming

And then we (what fun) went to the swimming pool, me and Paul and extra Timmy to check it out

Physio

This morning first thing the Physio lady came and did more work on my arm. She thinks that mostly my right arm has just gone to sleep while I was iller. Today I can nearly lift it as high as my left arm which is such an improvement

A shopping day

So s'morning we went out and bought more Blueberries then on't way back we drove down to Llangain to show Ed my new house. Then we came back here for lunch and went to Gym which was as wonderful as ever. Then we went shopping again as I recalled that I had run out of salad which I eat at lunchtime. Then the phone rang, it was that Toby asking if we could take him to shop so we went out again to the shop

Clubby

And we went to a folky club tonight which was OK but as we spent most of the night trying to download a version of Google Chrome to go on my mobile....

Ikea

So s'morning me and Timmy went miles to Cardiff, where we went to Ikea for some shopping. Good lord, it was full of good stuff but my head was exploding as I am planning the first move out of a f##king institution in (shout)9 years(/s)

Shepherdless

And then this afternoon that Toby came round and as a lesson he had to cook for ages, using loadsa saucepans making summat way to elaborate for someone living alone but he did learn loadsa stuff making a Shepherdless Pie

NPT and Becky

And if the chap from (no, not Neil's Penis Training on his T-shirt) Neath Port Talbot and Becky are being new converts to Neil's Blog well hiya

Panic

"Someone" contacted me s'morning "Your order from Amazon is out for delivery today and is estimated to be delivered between 11:32-12:32. Can you please ensure that someone will be available to sign for the parcel at" and I had to go to the Gym s'lunchtime and when I was coming back I remembered that I had forgotten to stick up my "Deliver it to the office" sticker but when I opened my door afterwards what was sitting on't floor? My delivery....

At new residence

And we went past my new residence on't way home and found out that my mobile phone does work outside

Smallifying

So Small Paul came, had a huge crisis with the laptop and then took me to gym. Which was as exciting as usual. Then he worked out the laptop crisis

Boat Club

So tonight we went to Loughor Boat Club which we used to go to once a month but haven't been to for ages. It was good except when it got busy later there were too many folk sitting between me and the loo to wheelchair it, I had to stand up and walk past 3 tables and out the door

Deposit Paid

This afternoon Denyse txted me to say that "they" have paid the deposit on my new house today. So I am f***ing moving, it's official. In a month or 6 weeks I will live in 53 Dol-Y-Dderwen, Llangain, SA33 5BE

VVVVVVVVBG

Food (glorius food)

Then we went shopping where I needed a fair amount. Instead of buying a bag of salad Timmy suggested that we go to the counter where you can fill your own. Which looks nice but how long will it last?

And it occurs to me, one day last week "someone" criticised me saying I had just had salad for lunch and I needed some protein too. But today in the selection of salad I had some cous cous stuff and some mixed seeds and nuts

(More) Timmy-ing

So s'morning when Tim came we were about to go out the door when a member of staff from here came and saw me. Basically we both said "Missing you already" because she was pleased that I am so much better but....

Light

It is so late and it is still light, roll on summer time

Toast

And I had toast for lunch again today, I tried buttering it again today and succeeded so well enuf that I just had toast and butter for lunch

Cutting

And Timmy is cutting the grass now. We had to charge the strimmer to finish the front and it is now recharging to finish the back. He has done most of it with a lawnmower but needs to strim the edges

Stress

Gosh, a stressful few minutes, trying to update my webpage but it wouldn't modernise, in the end I tried loading a page called "1N.T~H..." and that worked whereas the original "N.T~H..." still wouldn't update

A couple of hours later it just did it, gosh nose, perhaps the Internet is less busy now...

Toast

And I had toast today for lunch. Last time I had toast I had had such trouble with butter last time that I just put jam on it but this time, today, I managed to spread butter like properly and then added jam. So obviously my "doin' stuff with my hands" is improving

1st Timmying

And hooray today Timmy is here being bored doing f. all, for the first of his 3 day adventure

He's gone now. "See you tomorrow" we both said as he was leaving

Double Lordy

Gosh, my new house was built less than 10 years ago so it was after the law changed so that eg the doors are wide enuf for my arse wheelchair etc

Lord

What a day, photos etc to go here will have to wait for tomorrow. Basically I signed up for a flat which Anthony is gonne pay for on Monday so it looks like I can move into the real world in a couple of months

To The Real World

And my head is on strike today. As tomorrow, if all goes well, we may take the first step of me moving out of an establishment to me actually living in the real world.

The real world!!!!

Gym-ming

And so we went back to't gym s'afternoon. But I wasn't in the mood for it today as my head is full of tomorrow, looking for somewhere in the real world to live, but I did as well as I could

Ed-ding

Then Ed came in s'morning. He has done my feet, said "Plan 4 today?" and accepted my answer and it sitting typing on the laptop now

Newbie

And I was just about to go to bed last night when a thought struck me. So after a few minuted on Google I got a new, free, plugin for Winamp which doesn't affect it normally but then I can, at bed time, set it to play as much music as usual then click on "File/Shutdown PC when playlist finishes". So last night I put on some tunes, clicked "Shutdown after..." and went to bed. While I was falling asleep I could hear tunes then when I woke up s'morning I had to switch my PC on once more

Folking

And then tonight we went out to the miles away folk club, which was as good as a very good thing

And after drinking loadsa water every day for ages my bladder is still getting better enough that I could still have a piss here b4 we left then not need another one until we were leaving Folky Club

OT

So Sarah the OT came to see me today. We talked loads about me moving out and she said "Ikea" have loads of sample rooms so we will go to Cardiff and look at that next week

Timmying

So Tim was here s'morning. With a newspaper. And in that newspaper he saw today a very close to "here" rented house to let. So while he was here he phoned them and then phoned someone else to confirm us going on Friday to look. So now, on Friday, we well go look at three separate houses to rent

And Denyse has said "Don't panic, I will tell them you are leaving if you are" etc

Tob

Then later that Toby came back and "we" together nagged him into making a vegetable bake for our dinner which was reasonably nice when he finished. Dunno how worth while it was teaching him as it is too much preparation for me living alone but he did learn how to make a white sauce (or cheese sauce) so it wasn't too bad.

And we have a plan for cooking next week too, now

DoubleAnd he took a brief juggling lesson from Paul, I didn't know either of them could juggle

Napping

And as apparently I fell asleep in't car on the way home last night I will accept that I need a 30 minute nap every day.

For now.....

Pauling

So with Paul first of all we went to the gym where a number of people told me how much I have improved in the few months I have been going.

And my foot in splint felt a bit odd, to me it felt like it was turning over wrongly but on inspection it seemed to be sitting properly, the right way round.

Then we had a sandwich in the cafe there and Becky from the gym came up and asked permission to video me next week to be an example in a text book.

Then we went and drove around looking at houses I will be looking inside on Friday

Then we picked up that Toby and brought him here for a shower then we will take him back when he is finished then he will go and sign on then come back and cook dinner for me

... In Spain...

And we are going out to the Folky Club in half an hour and you should hear the rain

And we came home from the FC and it wasn't raining...

Napping

And before I went for my nap s'afternoon I decided to try it with my alarm set to go off in 20 minutes not half an hour as usual because it seems...... dunno, I think I am ready to get up sooner

AND Tesco's

So s'morning we nipped out to (More Reasons To Shop At) Morrison's to get our biggish list of food, including mouthwash and toothpaste, but all their blueberries were best b4 tomorrow, so we had to nip to Tesco's afterwards and get 2 packs of much longer dated ones

Third Day

And Ed is coming in in a bit for his third day of work.

But we are off to a Folk Club tonight so I shouldn't be too grumpy...

Patience

And tonight I was sitting in my room no email so I was bored, so I actually watched the snooker for 3 frames. Hours it was and it was actually quite interesting

Mobile Security

And I had a pop up on my phone saying Pay for Mobile Apps now as it is running out of time. As I didn't install F-Security, it installed itself a couple of weeks ago, I thought nah, uninstall it. For a number of hours both me and Ed have been trying in the end he gave up and then I managed on my last try for today

Less Than Half My Life

And it seems so important now, but it was invented less than half my life ago

Ed-Ding

And hoo-flipping-ray Ed has come in for the second of his 3 days to work. He has washed my feet and commented on how Germolene seems to be making my leg look better so.....

Audio Book

And yesterday I got half way through the first step of buying an MP3 Audiobook to listen to on my Walkman but I thought "I have got so many books already in my Kindle that I wouldn't have time to listen to it"

Reset

And just then my PC wouldn't connect to the Interweb. All 4 lights on my hub were still lit but I pressed the reset button on it and as if by magic the web came back

Ding

And Ed came in s'morning for the first of his 3 days in a row working here/with me

Wiv Freya

So tonight I was feeling a bit grumpy so I said "Freya, wanna come out to eat?" and she agreed. After we had been out for food and then a drink in a pub then we dropped her off.

And came home and in my Inbox was an email from Denyse saying "Don't go out so much!"

Hectic

And today I am going to fetch Toby from Llanelli at 3 o'clock and dropping him home but Freya txted me s'morning and said "Can I come to your house early today" so we have had to agree not to lock the door which is a bit unsettling but as I am currently here there is no issue. Next month I will have to leave a key under't mat or summat. Hopefully

And then Toby txted me to say "No, not today"

TimMY

So s'morning Tim was able to fix my original diary so I was able to go back to it and happy chappy is the mood now

Extra

And WOW. Tonight we went to an extra at Caffi Iechyd Da and it was excellent, a variety of singer songwriters taking turn to sing

Democracy

Then we went to sumwhere else and voted. Dunno what I thought but I did it

Sigh

Then after lunch we had to go to the Gym where mainly they were testing me. And good lord, compared with when I started I can stand up, walk etc nearly twice as well as I could last year

Oh What A Flippin' Morning

So Ed came in today as I was nearly crying as Google Calendar was f**ked again. I restarted my PC and did the steps that I had to take yesterday and it was still f**ked. After much fiddling etc I loaded another version, an alternative and it has worked so far

Racism

When I was at school my best friend was black and another good friend was Asian. Now it feels a bit odd to see a black singer tonight at the Folk Club. He is good but...

Folking

And in a few minutes we are nipping out to Llanelli Folk Club

Cleaning Him

Then that Toby phoned and said "Can I come up for a shower?" and as I had nowt on obviously I said "Yes"

Sarahless

So Sarah the OT txted me and said "Can't cwm today, got a migraine"

Timmy

So Timmy came in s'morning and together we looked at loadsa rental properties on the www. In the end we decided 2 to follow up and he is on the phone now...

And he had a strange conversation with them. He had to say that my solicitor is paying it so there will be no issue with not paying etc

Sitting Properly

Then we took Toby out for dinner (yes I know, we owe him a cooking lesson) and when we got to the restaurant we said "One of the back seats" but they said "No, sorry full, 20 minutes?" but we said that we would try sitting at a proper seat. Which worked, it felt strange, it looked strange but I did it, it was the first time I have managed to get in a proper seat in 9 years

Deliverer

And when I was just about to go for my nap s'afternoon I thought I'd better not stick my Do Not Disturb sign on the door as someone was coming here today to deliver summat, they came yesterday but I was out.... So I went thru to the living room to tell Paul that he needed to answer the door while I was in bed. I was half way thru explaining when he said "Look" as the deliverer had pulled up outside and was delivering to me

Lookin' After Gym

Then we went to Gym which I enjoyed as much as ever. We stopped and had lunch there then drove round a bit looking for houses to rent. To no avail

Wiv Paul

So when Paul arrived s'morning I was nearly crying, Google Calendar wasn't working, hadn't been for 3 days now but s'morning I set out to fix it and failed. Paul looked a bit, couldn't mend it, we started the laptop and that worked so it was obviously my PC. So we phoned Clever Timmy and asked him, he said "Clear your cache" and as if by magic that worked. So he is now known as Clever Timmy