SomersTownLisa

London Life
2023-05-07 16:04:03 (UTC)

ParkRun and Grandad's new home

06/05/2023
I planned to get up as late as possible (7:30), but actually woke at 7:38. But I was all ready, I ran both to the Tube and to the ParkRun at the other end.

On arrival I was immediately chatting to Ana and Michelle, starting to talk about the Guardian cutting I'd found when I was going through my filing cabinet yesterday, which mentions Ana. Michelle asked if I'd run all the way from home. I was down as a funnel manager but Jono wanted me to marshall "at the puddle". Michelle showed me where to go and I checked with a young girl the other side if I was in the right place. There was no puddle, but I was able to shelter under a tree from the drizzle. I got a lot of extra thanks from the runners walking back to the Tube, as I was waiting for the stragglers.

Sadly I couldn't talk to the girl as we were walking back, because a boring self-obsessed woman was talking to her. I got in the group picture and this time joined everyone at the cafe. I was hungry so got smashed avocado on sourdough even though it was priced at £10.45 and wasn't huge. I was sitting next to Big Dave but I also spoke to Michelle who was across the table from me. She's a Leicester City fan and asked us to go easy on them. There was a runner in a City shirt earlier, down for a long weekend perhaps. The cafe is still doing loyalty stamps on bits of plain cardboard (so it wasn't just me), but after carrying one around for ages, I couldn't find it now

Michelle went off to Stamford Brook, so I went over to talk to Beth's uni friends, three girls sitting round her. I was telling them about my barcode, then how it had enabled someone to return my purse to me when I dropped it in Highgate Woods. I showed how I now have Jack's phone number displayed, and we discussed other methods of recording next-of-kin on phones. I also talked to another of Beth's friends. who came to London to go to Imperial College. I could tell she had a slight foreign accent, and she admitted she was Russian. I told her about my experience in Moscow. As I was going over to the girls I thought I would have liked some alcohol, but the moment soon passed as soon as I got talking.

I'd been thinking of running to King's Cross but any route I could think of, might have got bogged down in crowds of tourists, over for the coronation. So I got the Tube and got there an hour before my train was due. I got a curry from Wasabi, but when I got to Lincolnshire, Jack had got me a vegan "chicken" pie and more chips, which I ate, otherwise he'd have ate them, to further expand his stomach.
When I came out of the Ladies, I saw him hugging two people, I was puzzled until I realised it was Madz and Becks.

I was quite chatty until he did that thing where, if I get as far as a third sentence, he'll cut across me and talk about something completely different. It's so annoying. So I then had little to say and we went on a boring walk up the main road, through the drizzle, to see his Dad. He went in a nursing home because he'd stopped eating altogether and no longer wanted to go out. They thought he'd "shut down" soon, so he got a place in this nursing home, and that means we've saved money not having to pay carers and on his house rent, now he's getting NHS treatment.

However, today, he seemed to have returned to the way he's been for the past year, bored and desperate to go out, though he's saying "It's nice here, lovely view". They're telling him he's recovering in hospital. Marie took him to the castle, the name of which he remembered, and as usual he kept saying "lovely here" about the scenery. She was talking as if she'd caused all this by taking him out, not acknowledging that he's always like that, when us or the carers take him out. I had more bad food at the castle, a vegan sausage roll.

We went back to his room, which he soon accepted as where he's staying, then we all went back to the house. Becky was decorating the toilet in a bra-top and they were getting ready to prepare the house for the end of our tenancy. I think I was there for about the right amount of time (really I went because I'm neglecting Jack next weekend, and on Monday) but when I got home I had to make sure I was completely ready for Sunday, and had a bath to help me sleep.

I realised yesterday that I'd have to go to Durrington-on-Sea tomorrow then cycle the last bit, getting there at 8:30 (the race starts at 9:00), but I think I cycle more slowly than CityMapper assumes, so I need to get the route right. I was writing down the route, so I don't have to keep looking at my phone while cycling, but after spending fifteen minutes doing that, I realised that Goring-by-Sea station was closer to the race, but I wasn't sure whether it was on the same line.

I was also trying to decide whether to go round a roundabout or divert to a smaller path, which might be harder to find. I also had to confirm the best cycle route to London Bridge in the morning.





Ad: