Last week was better.

Last week was better.

Physically I felt more myself and mentally Sam’s visit had broken up the gloom clouds.  The flood situation has dropped out of the news but the fall out is likely to be with us for some time.  For instance it is well nigh impossible to get a builder to come and deal with storm damage – or similar - and my dear friend Margaret who was coming to stay round about my birthday found she couldn’t book her ticket because the railway lines twixt Bristol and Taunton are closed as a result of flood damage and no indication of when they will be functioning again.

 

Feeling germy I had missed three Bereavement Group meetings so it was good to get back and have a few rueful giggles about our Bristol theatre trip.  The damage caused to C’s car when the rear end dropped in a hole on the foggy moor caused £700 of damage so she is getting a new car.  I’m not sure how new but it will be new to her.

 

Joy and I met for lunch at the Bistro and when I discovered that – possibly for the first time - we both had our mobiles with us I suggested we made sure we had each other’s numbers for any emergency.  The trouble with older people - we tend to treat mobiles like electric light and keep them switched off so as not to waste electricity.

 

‘I know I’ve got yours because my daughter put it on for me,’ said Joy.

 

‘OK then ring me and we’ll check.  You’ll have to switch it on Joy.’

 

It didn’t work so I thought I would try something else.

 

‘I’ll put your number on my phone and then I’ll phone you.  You’ll have to tell me the number.’

 

We did this and again it didn’t work.  Half way through dessert it hit me.  We had put our home numbers on so of course our mobiles weren’t answering.

 

All the lunches were finished and everyone looked pleasantly soporific.  The waitress – a very pleasant middle aged lady said she had noticed we had been having trouble and would we like her to help.  It is definitely a younger person's sport so we eagerly accepted and asked if she would help us to put each other’s mobile numbers on each other’s phone.

 

It took sometime for us to discover our mobile numbers but eventually we had two mobiles switched on and two mobile numbers for both Pat and Joy respectively. I noticed our waitresses face was getting quite pink but eventually she said we should try ringing them.

 

Eureka?  Not!  It didn’t work again.

 

‘Oh not to worry – it was really kind of you to offer.  Joy I’m going to dash off before the next downpour.’

 

The waitress’s face turned scarlet.

‘I thought YOU were Joy and YOU were Pat.  I’ve put them on the wrong phones.  Excuse me I’ll have to go to the kitchen and cool down.’

 

We’d all been there.  We didn’t tell her of the joys still to come.