Dougal brings cheer

Bad news today - Uncle A is in hospital. I was with him - just as well - as there was a three hour wait for the ambulance to arrive and now he’s had a four hour wait in A&E and still hasn’t been seen. But he’s in an actual bed (not just on a trolley, in a corridor, without a pillow as I was once) and is as comfortable as possible.

I haven’t done much else today - Archie went out with Becky and Daniel, who had exciting news of their hosue hunting in Newcastle. I took Archie out in the afternoon while JR popped into town. She had two gym sessions this morning, and also managed to do some gardening.

Look who I spotted walking by (though not, unfortunately, popping in because of grumpy Archie at home) - wee Dougal (and his mum)! If he doesn’t cheer one up, nothing will.

Enjoyed (he didn’t swear much) Gordon Ramsay’s ‘Uncharted’ last night - he was in New Zealand, so he tried paua and smoked eels and shot a goat. Paua looks decidedly unappetising, but it’s very tasty if cooked correctly. We used to go eeling at night with our Maori friends. We had a creek near us when we lived in the country. I still remember the gruesome sight of the bath FULL of eels, with the big ones eating the smaller ones. Not a pretty sight, but they were very tasty when smoked. Those were the days!