A long awaited holiday in France this week. We had planned it a year ago. Not realising, of course that the key workers in our family would need 10 days of sun and pool and fun, even more than we had ever imagined. We have had croissants for breakfast. We have spent the week wearing strings of onions over our Breton striped shirts. Lashings of garlic have been masked by lovely wine. We have swum the lake, been to a late night ( school night!!) film We have assembled barbeques, vegan paella ( I really don’t think the French do vegan!) and that old French favourite ,pizza- oven in the garden. We have dosed the chlorine in the pool and fished out many leaves and acorns.
Swallowing antibiotics whilst awaiting yet another msu result, soaked up the stuff with gin.
What a week. And yes you guessed it. As I had been warned by Dr Micro, who happens to spend the weekends with Mr Quarantine himself, ‘ you will not be going to France she declared when I saw her on Monday the 10th’Sure enough by Saturday the 16th UK nationals were scrambling to get back before facing the two week house arrest known as quarantine.
We were all set to fly on the 21st and stay as we have before in the South of France at the home of our very awesome friends known as Bunny and Pocket Rocket. Their year has been more dreadful than anyone can imagine. Even actually worse than but including Covid stuff. Lots of texts and attempts to cheer ourselves up either side of the channel. I just cannot wait to get there just as soon as Boris and now Macron decide to lift the bilateral 4 week, 2 there 2 here quarantine. We did in fact have a family get together in Northumberland. It was good. Sea was amazing. Beach was deserted. One evening whilst swimming in my thermal wet-suit I spotted a family group in their summer bikinis and shorts. I actually wondered if the father figure was in fact Jerome in pink flowery swim shorts. Not, I hasten to add, that I have ever seen him in anything but ‘Mr Consultant’ smart suits or operating scrubs! By weird coincidence he had messaged me whilst I swam . No, he replied to my enquiry. It was not him! Lloyds horse ad was filmed on the beach. Very amazing not least the enormous bucket of horse snacks at the end of the run to entice the horse in!

Meanwhile, waiting lists are getting ever longer. A young man I taught some 15 years ago, has a torn ACL LCL and broken tibia. He has a year, yes a YEAR to wait for treatment and surgery. He has a brace and a phone-physio not even zoom. Many tales of cancer delays, hernia waits, need a new knee and hip? may as well not bother.
Some random physio rang me out of the blue about my trigger finger still triggered after the gp referral of 4 months ago! . She has me on a waiting list for a steroid injection . The list is only ‘ about’ a year long. Steroids are not advised for those with underlying conditions, on account of the immune response. So that is that then. Bet horses don’t have to wait for a sore hoof.

The bladder SNS wait is at least 2 years and I have no idea what any other plan or appointment is. In fact as I type Dr Micro who is on holiday has suggested another 2 weeks of pewkbiotics. Also removal of any sources of possible infection eg the SNS. As if that will happen anytime soon. FFS?

Tonight is Jacques Tati . What better description of the art of chaos .

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