The edge of the green

The Triangle, our village green, is embracing wild flowers, with significant sections around the edges and under the trees left unmown. This is the narrow apex of the triangle, at the junction of the Old Road and the newer valley road through the village, and at this point the level of the green is higher than the main road, making it easier to achieve the low viewpoint I wanted despite my aging knees. The buttercups and daisies are perfect just now, and there's quite a lot of speedwell flowering too. 

I walked past on the way to the surgery to collect a prescription for J. I was pleasantly surprised that not only had someone read the note I added to the online repeat request and managed to print just one of the multiple items requested, while sending the rest to the pharmacy as normal; someone had also thought to print it at my increasingly part-time village surgery, rather than the main surgery a few miles away, and left a telephone message so that I knew it was there. I asked for it to be printed because I knew the item was unavailable at our normal pharmacy, where last month's supply is still owing, leaving us perilously hand-to-mouth; I planned to work through the whole list of local pharmacies, starting with the nearest, to try to find the item in stock somewhere. The second nice surprise was that I had to make only three phone calls before locating the full quantity just a few miles away - so P drove there immediately, and we can breathe for a few more weeks. Supply chain issues with prescription medication, some of which have been well publicised over the past few years, have become an increasing problem for us. Every month we seem to wait a long time for something, or to have to ask the surgery to adjust the prescription to provide what can be obtained - in J's case, this often means accepting tablets when liquid medication is unavailable. She can just about manage tablets, but it's more difficult for her and increases the choking risk, and therefore the associated stress levels. I know we're far from alone in this; it adds another set of frustrations to the constant worries of people living with long-term conditions, so it's always a relief when something goes well.

I added to the day's satisfactions by potting a lot of very good cucumber plants, which we hope will provide lots of gazpacho lunches, and a reasonable tray of aubergine plants, which need to grow and stay warm for just a little longer before braving the garden.