D Day

In case you missed it, today is the 70th anniversary of the D Day landings on the beaches of northern France. Now I don't mean to be disrespectful but I am acutely aware that for every victory we celebrate there is another country having to cope with the wounds of defeat. Yes it was a turning point in the war, and yes, we should be very proud of what our grandfathers and fathers achieved that day and all the other days during the two world wars. Of course there should be celebrations but I also think there should be remembrance, not just for the British dead but for all those who died, no matter which side they were on. Quite often the men were not men at all but boys who thought joining up would turn them into men. Then there were those given no choice and those who thought going to war would be better than the situation they were trying to escape. Whatever the reason for them joining up they couldn't have even imagined the horrors they would endure or how much it would effect them and their families for many years to come.

I think in this country we tend to idolise war and view it as Hollywood saw it with lots of glamour and perfectly fitting uniforms. You only have to look at our war memorials to see that. Personally I've never got the phrase 'glorious dead', I used to wonder what was so glorious about being dead and still do. Even with more recent wars we still do it. It is more difficult to hide what is really going on these days because of the improvement in global communications but we don't get to see half of what is happening and so can never really understand what war is really like.

However today is not a day for being picky, so tonight, along with millions of others, I will raise a glass and say a silent thanks to those who allow me to live as I do without fear.

Today is a good day. I don't know if it's because my meds have finally settled down again after my last scare or whether its the weather but I feel wonderful. I managed to walk all around Tesco's this morning without feeling at all wobbly. And my breathing has got to the point where it is almost effortless, just like breathing should be. I asked my nurse specialist Carl why there was such a big improvement and he reckons it's because the new med remains consistently effective for the whole 24 hours instead of tailing off over 12 hours and then me getting a sudden boost when I change the cassette, which is what happened with Flolan.

While at Tesco I came across the most extraordinary character. He was around 50 and was dressed in an Irish flag with an orange, green and white stripped wig on his head. He was also very, very drunk and as happy as Larry. He stopped everyone he came across to tell them how much he loved Ireland and then moved on. He suddenly disappeared half way around and I suspect he'd been removed but he certainly provided a bit of light relief on an otherwise mundane chore.

The week on the whole has been good. I did feel unusually tired on Tuesday but after a good night's sleep picked up again and coped with Wednesday and Thursday better than I expected.

I've done everything I wanted to do this morning and am well stocked up for next week. I've decided to get some stuff in to make some feta cheese salads to take to work as I'm fed up of eating the greasy stuff the canteen provides. I've managed to get myself over eight stone and I've stayed over eight stone for a good few weeks so I'm hoping one week of ultra healthy eating will give my arteries a rest and won't affect my weight too much. In two weeks I'm heading down to Wales for a few days where I'll be eating all the chips with curry sauce I can handle so a little detox beforehand can't do that much damage.

With no hospital appointments, no battles with H@H (or anyone else for that matter) and no taxi duties I am looking forward to a very restful few days without any stress. We are supposed to be having massive storms tomorrow so I've got stuff lined up ready. If the electricity goes out, and here it always does when we have a big storm, I've got a good book lined up. And if we keep the electricity I've got a couple of good films on hand to keep me going. Many years ago I'd be out in it getting water logged trying to get shots of the lightening but that will have to wait until I get better.

Well I'd better get on, I want to get the beds stripped and changed so I really can kick back and relax tomorrow knowing every things been done. Next blog tomorrow.