It's been One Of Those Days...

....when lots went wrong but turned out okay in the end.

One of my current treats is to start the day drinking coffee in bed watching something I've saved on the tv. It's especially nice when it is dark and cold outside. But first I do some tidying up in the kitchen before heading back upstairs armed with 2 cups ready with milk and instant coffee (we keep a kettle in our bedroom). As time was a bit tight this morning I put the porridge pan with the milk in on the back of the rayburn to warm up while I was upstairs. By the time I came down Speedy had pulled the saucepan forwards and down onto the floor. Some of the milk had soaked into the rug, the rest was in the cats as were most of the oats, sunflower seeds and raisins. As well as my usual hoovering I had to wash part of the floor and then take the rug outside and wash that too. At least it was a bright windy day and I could leave the rug dripping over the back of one of the garden chairs.

I got to the hospital for my dental appointment in perfect time only to discover that I should have been there yesterday! I had written it down correctly in my diary and would have seen it if we had had a staff meeting and gone through  our diary dates but for some reason I had written it up wrongly on the  kitchen whiteboard. They said I couldn't make another appointment as I was down as a no-show but then after checking with that day's consultant if I didn't mind waiting I could see him. I had a book with me and in less than an hour I was seen. The consultant had a good look in my mouth and couldn't see infection or problem with the surgery that I had had. The aches in my jaw may well be another tooth on its way out but that will be something for my dentist to look at. What did concern the consultant was the split at the corner of my mouth. I do get splits and sore patches at the corners of my mouth which I put down to the cold weather. This guy was a bit more concerned and gave me a prescription for an anti-biotic/anti-fungal gel to apply. It won't hurt to try it and didn't cost anything as I have a pre-paid card for my prescriptions.

Then on to town I went; Lidl's, Post Office, check the sales and Tesco's.The only thing I got in the sales was a little silicone coin purse which I thought was quite quirky and fun. In Tesco's I got a half-wheel of blue Stilton reduced by 75%. I cut it up into smaller pieces before putting it in the freezer. I've frozen cheese before and although it goes crumbly that's fine for sprinkling over a salad or in hot soup.

Then I drove down to Braunton where I got stuck in a long cue of traffic due to a new roundabout being put in. It looks as if they are going to cover more fields with houses down there. In Braunton one shop I was hoping to go in was closed until February but the other was open and I bought one thing I was looking for. Then I planned to go to another shop a little way out only to find that you can't drive all the way down South St. At that point I gave up and headed for home going the Mullacot Cross route through the countryside rather than getting stuck in the traffic again.

On my way to town I was wondering if I needed to wear a coat, seeing this downpour in the distance made me think it might be a good idea. 

When I got home I found Speedy looking rather grubby with black marks on his legs, face and ear. I thought he might have been playing in the ashes of a bonfire or crawling around under some farm machinery. Nothing for it but to give him a bath. He wasn't too badly behaved except when I was first putting him in the bath when his claws caught me a couple of times. After that he stood fairly calmly in a couple of inches of warm water while I got the worst of the black off. Then he had a quick rub down with a towel before climbing into the warmer oven which I had left open for him. 

I filled the bird feeder yesterday and here a coal tit and a great tit are sharing the peanuts. 

It has been cold and bright for most of the day. I took this photo coming down the drive where I found lots of hail stones from an earlier shower still in the garden.