Thursday 5th February 2026

Woke around 0800. Read in bed before rising for porridge. Sent Kath a Happy Birthday text...65 today!!! We ventured into town, taking the Victoria Line to Oxford Circus, and making our way to John Lewis's. Bought a new Bosch induction hob...comes with half-price installation...hopefully will be delivered and installed next Thursday. Took the Central Line to Lancaster Gate and walked though Hyde Park in the drizzle, to see the Peter Doig exhibition at the Serpentine Gallery. I wasn't very taken with the works, but quite enjoyed the sound system, which was pounding out some Caribbean reggae vibes. Walked south to South Kensington tube station, and headed for Pimlico. Stopped on the way for lunch at the V&A. 

Saw the impressive Lee Miller exhibition at the Tate...remarkable career that went from fashion to the avant-garde, and finally to her documenting WWII in the Blitz in London, the D-Day Landings, and the liberation of Buchenwald. What a life! Headed for home, pausing on the stairwell to get a photo with Chris Ofili's wall painting paying tribute to the victims of the Grenfell Fire. Walked home from Finsbury Park in pouring rain. Aki cooked hake and beans for dinner, followed by cheese and biscuits. Nowt on telly. Researched restaurants for Sunday dinner. Early bath and bed...

Wednesday 4th February 2026

Woke around 0800 after a relatively decent night's sleep. Aki had cycled off to Rowing Club by the time I rose. Porridged. Read some Tomalin on Dickens, and did some exercises before Aki got back. Made some lunch. We walked down to Angel. Nearly got run over on the pavement by two youths doing 30mph on electric bikes as they fled from police! Did a shop in Sainsburys, and hung about in Hotel Chocolat for a bit before jumping on a No.43 bus back to Holloway. I made a ham, leek and potato pie for dinner. Nowt on telly. Read some, before bath and bed…

Tuesday 3rd February 2026

Woke around 0700 and failed to get back to sleep…sat up and read in bed before rising to porridge. Quite noisy outside…tree surgeons were pollarding the massive tree opposite. Aki sloped off to t’ai chi, and I headed for the gym. Managed 15 minutes on the bike, and some leg curls. Got home and made some ham and pea soup for lunch. We ventured into town and met up with Katrina outside Holborn station. 

Walked her round to the Garden cinema to watch Richard Linklater’s “Nouvelle Vague”, an entertaining, flawless movie which follows Jean Luc Godard’s making of A Bout de Soufflé…movie of the year! Had me grinning from ear to ear. Caught a No.91 bus back home. Aki made a pork stir fry for dinner. As I was cleaning down the surfaces afterward, I noticed a crack in the induction hob...it's front-to-back across two cooking zones...the whole thing will need replacing and installing by an electrician! Watched Arsenal v Chelsea in the League Cup semi-final...a tense game which ended 1-0 in the Gooners' favour. Bath and bed...

Monday 2nd February 2026

Woke at 0145, and again at 0545. Took ages to get back to sleep. I'm going to have to get myself some sleeping pills or something! Got up around 1000 and porridged. Did a couple of hours work at the laptop before putting some lunch together. Did my expenses, and put my timesheet in for processing. Read some. Borrowed next door's garden hose, and stuck it down the shower trap, thinking to check that the leak hadn't been a bit further down the pipework, so ran some water down there for around two hours. See if anything bubbles up over the next 24 hours! Warmed up the lasagne from Da Mario's for dinner with some vegetables, followed by chocolate brownie and ice cream. Watched Black Ops. 

Sunday 1st February 2026

Woke around 0545…took an hour or so before nodding back off. Got up around 1015…Aki cooked a tasty omelette brunch. We listened to the Australian Open tennis final…Alcaraz beat poor old Novak once again...though Novak was very gracious in defeat. Roz phoned with bad news of Cath, Phil’s partner…she had undergone tests for heart problems which have revealed a thymic carcinoma…apparently stage IV and incurable. Roz said Phil was in shock, and wanting space to come to terms with it all…very sad. Headed for Clapton in the drizzle, taking a No.254 bus to Clapton Pond. Walked down to Lesley's at No.56 Fletching Road...she was hosting Katrina's 70th birthday bash. Good turnout. Simone was there...hadn't seen her for years; Tony turned up, as well as Carl and David. Enjoyed a bit of catching up, a great finger buffet, and some tasty birthday cake. Chatted to a chap named Ron, who's wife is an old chum of Katrina's...he'd worked as an archaeologist on numerous digs in the City of London, and made replicas for showing in the Museum of London. We slunk away with a little doggy bag around 1830, by which time it was pouring down with rain. Aki made ramen soup when we got in. Watched a bit of telly...a Italian serial adaptation of The Leopard, and MOTD before bath and bed...

Saturday 31st January 2026

Yet another fitful night’s sleep. Got up at 0945 and read in bed for a while, but was interrupted by the postman ringing the doorbell...Aki's hygrometer had arrived. Made brunch. We walked over to Waitrose to do a bit of a shop. Cooked a gammon shank for dinner, with sweet potatoes and lots of vegetables, followed by chocolate melt-in-the-middle puddings with ice cream. 

Friday 30th January 2026

Aki up early and had headed off to Rowing Club by the time I rose. Porridged. Cut my hair, or rather, shaved my scalp. Caught two buses to Newington Green for an 1115 appointment with the cranial osteopath, Chris Harris. I had seen him some ten years or so ago in relation to discomfort surrounding the bad inguinal hernia repair...he failed to have any effect, it must be said, but I figured that he was battling a foreign object in the form of the mesh the surgeon had inserted, whereas my current neck problems may well be a much better match for his skills...worth a go, I thought. It was an initial consultation today, which went reasonably well, and we had a bit of a catch up into the bargain. £85 for the 3/4 hour session! I ventured next door to Jolene's for what I considered a well-deserved coffee, and a cardamom bun...delicious! Caught a bus back up to Clissold Park, and walked home from there via Da Mario's Italian deli, where I picked up some filled tortelloni, and a beef lasagne. Aki already back when I got in. I made lunch. Did some work at the computer for a couple of hours. Aki cooked a stir-fry with pork and ho-fun noodles. Headed in to town to see a French mime company at the Peacock Theatre, as part of this year's MimeLondon Festival. Met up with Kevin from No.93, and his son Theo, in the theatre bar. The show, Fish Bowl, was very entertaining…silly, inventive, often hilarious…had the tears rolling down my cheeks by the end. Great stuff!