Blood Moon.

The bet.

We were sat with Lillian and Maureen at lunch.When it was over Maureen moaned,"Oh, this is torture! I just want to go back to my bed.""Do you want a bet?" Asked Lillian."What?" Said Maureen."I bet I can get you back in bed in five minutes," said Lillian."Oh no, they'll leave me here. They never come when you want them.""How much do you bet?" Asked Lillian."A dollar," said Maureen."Nurse!" Shouted Lillian.Paulita came over."Maureen wants to go back to the room to bed," said Lillian."I'm just sorting Celia out but I will be back in a minute," said Paulita."You owe me a dollar," said Lillian, triumphant."...but you won't be able to go to bed," continued Paulita, "because you have Physio in half an hour.""Shit!" said Lillian."You won a dollar, Maureen!" said Will.

'Alright Mr DeMille, I'm ready for my Physio!'

Midway through the Easter break and Will goes into work for the day to do some planning!I made courgette and brie soup.I went to the hospital alone at lunchtime and found Lillian, Celia and Dulcie all sat round the same table with Wendi, Will' s sister.When lunch arrived Dulcie only had a dessert and ice cream on her tray because she had not filled in the meal slip properly.Luckily I had brought some fennel and potato soup that I had  made last week and frozen, for my lunch, so went to heat it up in the microwave for Dulcie while she ate her dessert.While I was heating it up Wendi collared one of the orderlies and got them to go fetch Dulcie the meal she would have ordered.Dulcie ate some soup and then her ice cream before finally tucking into fish in a dill sauce.Lillian called to Maureen on the next table,"Eat your dinner, Maureen." It amused me because Lillian never eats hers.The doctors were doing their rounds, well, the main doctor and his student minions. He suddenly appeared at our table and asked Celia how she was. He asked what her dessert was..."It looks like cheesecake," he said....."and what are you eating?" He  was talking to me. I was a bit surprised and soup almost dribbled down the side of my mouth....like Celia.Did he think I was a patient?"It's fennel and potato soup," I said, then added " I made it myself......at home." Hmpff, that should put him right!Slowly everyone drifted off back to their rooms. Celia was due to go to speech therapy and Lillian was down for Group Physio but Dulcie had nothing on the board for the afternoon.Wendy, another one, who used to be her blue care assistant had visited that morning and brought her a lottery scratch card. She asked me to go and get it and we sat and scratched away to see if she won $100,000.....She didn't....but she did win another free scratch card. There was a slight problem in that the card had been bought in New South Wales and so would have to be taken back there to get a new card.We finally went back to the room ourselves. Lillian was sat by her bed and Celia by hers, in her wheel chair. Maureen was tucked up in bed on her side, with her hands clasped underneath her chin as if she was enraptured, with her eyes closed and a blissful smile on her face. Dulcie had just settled onto her bed when the piano playing started."Oh, God!" said Celia.Lillian rolled her eyes.I started conducting and Dulcie joined in and soon Lillian and Celia, with one arm, were conducting too. After a while, I grabbed a white tissue and started to wave it out of the doorway in surrender as the 'talker' played 'Do Re Mi'. Lillian and Maureen were laughing. The 'talker' couldn't see me because she had her back to us.One of the orderlies came in."Who was that waving the white flag?"I owned up to it....sheepishly. "We surrender," I said.She told Lillian she was off to Physio soon. Lillian asked if she could go by wheelchair today. The orderly went to ask.The' talker' played 'Somewhere over the rainbow.'The orderly came back. Lillian was to use her walker as she had had a good rest over the weekend. Lillian was aghast."I've never asked before. You would think just once that I would be allowed to, wouldn't you." She looked glum.'Blue Spanish Eyes,'............played the 'talker'."Come on!" said Celia."Be patient Celia! I'm coming in a minute!" The orderly said.A nurse came in."Sorry Maureen, you have to get up. You have to go to Physio." Poor Maureen was utterly bemused.The nurse whipped the curtain round her bed.'Don't cry for me Argentina' ....played the' talker'.Dulcie and I sat there taking it all in....it was like watching a silent movie....but with talking...crossed with a Benny Hill sketch.The curtain around Maureen's bed kept fluttering with movement behind it, while Maureen grunted and groaned and occasionally cried out and Lillian winced at every noise that she made.Then a Physiotherapist arrived to take Lillian and she asked again if she could go by wheelchair....happily she got her wish. Celia was wheeled out as Dulcie and I waved her goodbye, and finally Maureen's curtain flew back to reveal Maureen completely changed in a new outfit and hair brushed sitting in her wheelchair and then off she went too.Dulcie and I waved and Maureen waved back....her bingo wings wobbling heavily.Dulcie and I were alone and the music had stopped. It was very quiet."I wonder why you are not going to Physio today?" I said."I don't know, but I don't want to," said Dulcie.  "What have we got to eat?""There's two pieces of chocolate drizzle cake," I said.We sat and ate them.The Physiotherapist appeared."Is she going to Physio?" I asked.She was, for about half an hour. She should have gone earlier but the doctors rounds had delayed it.Dulcie was slowly eating her cake."I know," said the Physiotherapist to me, " perhaps you could wheel her down when she has finished eating and you could see what the gym is like." She left.Dulcie ate her cake slowly."How long am I going for?""She said about 30 minutes." I said."Oh, I suppose that's not too bad. Could you pass me some water please?"She has never drunk a cup of water so slowly. When she had finished she handed me the cup with a flourish as if to say:'Alright Mr DeMille, I'm ready for my Physio!'I wheeled her down to the other end of the building and into the room they call the gym.Lillian was there and Maureen and lots of other patients arranged around a long pair of parallel bars....like in a ballet class."Oh, Jo, wants you to do some sort of test," said one of the other physiotherapists and wheeled Dulcie back out into the corridor.We waited in the corridor for Jo.Work in the gym had started I went and had a peep. All the patients were stood up and holding the bars and had to march on the spot. I did not peep for too long.The next exercise seemed to be getting up out of a chair and sitting back down, and up again....."Once more Maureen" said the Physio."Oh, you're joking!" moaned Maureen."I'm not. I don't joke," said the Physio.Jo came for Dulcie and I headed off home.I only just got back and Will texted. He was ready to be picked up.Back at the house I made some more biscuits and then it was time to head back to the hospital again.I gave Nina another tin of biscuits. The recipe that she'd asked for was tucked in side."I'm not sharing these," she said conspiratorially, "I'm taking them home."Dulcie was on her way out for tea when we met her. She had filled her meal slip in correctly for tea and ate everything again.We went back to the room.Celia got excited when Coronation St came on her TV."Oh, which channel is it on?" asked Lillian, "Could you find it for me?" She asked handing me her remote.I gave them all a biscuit."Here's a home made biscuit Maureen," I said."Oh, thank you," she said."You don't have to eat it if you don't want to."She ate it all up....even Lillian....as we were leaving Lillian said,"Hey, that biscuit was lovely, really lovely.....I mean it."Dulcie was smiling...as if she was saying 'I taught him everything he knows!'

April Showers.

It has rained on and off for much of the day.I think that the cloud cover is related to ex-cyclone Ita which is moving slowly south down the coast from northern Queensland. They have had quite a bit of rain up there and the greatest danger now is flooding.Lillian joined us at the table in the dining hall at lunch time. Joe, the male nurse, who could have been an old time movie star wheeled Celia out. He was taking her to another table but she stuck out her good arm and grabbed our table."Oh, you know where you want to sit do you?" he said.It was all very subdued. There was just a flat feeling about the whole place today.We talked about the weather.Lillian hated hot and humid weather. She said it makes her perspire. She said when she is ironing in hot weather all she has to do is shake her head over the ironing board. Who needs steam to get out those creases when you can use 'perspiration'.We talked about dumplings.You can't get dumplings here or Yorkshire pudding. Celia and Lillian both bemoaned that, but neither had heard of Vimto."It's a Northern thing," I said.Lillian hates water. She said the nurse was shocked when they discovered she wasn't drinking any. They said they were getting her some orange cordial.We bought her some in the afternoon when we did a shop at Woolies and took it back in the evening. I made her a glass and she drank it straight away."Oh, thank you," she said " take some money," and pointed to a pile of coins on her bedside table."No, it's our pleasure," I said.

Visceral Vessels.

I was back at Terry's seedy joint by 8.50 am. I arrived the same time as the receptionist.She busied herself switching on computers, putting out flags by the roadside (she did!) and shuffling papers.I sat and waited. There was no sign of Terry.Eventually Jane came for me. I lay on the bed and she apologised for the coldness of the gel,"The warmer was off."I have never seen a gel warmer and wondered where you get them.She was looking for the arteries that go to my kidneys. She probed about under my ribs."These arteries are notoriously difficult to find," she said.I think she found them because she did some clicking and then asked me to lie on my side.More poking followed and then she asked me to lie on my other side. More cold gel and more poking."Could you just turn back on your other side again? I want to check your right kidney again."I did and then it was all over."You were quite easy," she said. Oh, I was pleased!"Just take a seat in reception and I'll be out with the films shortly."I sat back down.Terry came in. He needed a shave and a good shower would have been a good idea. I think he was wearing the same clothes as the other day and it was definitely the same brylcreem.He disappeared out of sight round the corner but I could hear him doing something and breathing heavily."Terry loves meeting new people" said the info sheet on the wall that was all about him. Hmmmm, but do the new people love meeting him? I bet most of them have no choice and it's all down to which keys he picks up out of the bowl at those special parties he no doubt attends.He walked out again and gave me a funny little wave..."hello"...it was on the verge of cheerful....it did nothing for me except perhaps make me want a bath.Finally Jane came with my 'films' in an envelope which said 'Confidential' only to be opened by Dr Wang!Charming! They are my flippin' kidneys!We had the lunch time hospital visit off. Wendi was visiting Dulcie today on her way home from or to an orchid show.I fell asleep on the sofa for awhile after not sleeping very well last night because of the heat.When I woke up one of the first things I noticed on the ipad was the headline:

Why taking an afternoon nap 'raises risk of an EARLY DEATH by a third'

Why me?We were back at the hospital this evening. Dulcie was fine. Wendi and Geoff had been and taken her out in the wheelchair for some sun this afternoon. She had had a game of cards with Danny and his boys Liam and Nolan.All was quiet in the room apart from Maureen moaning about her arm. Celia and Lillian were watching the TV. We had a game of cards after tea.I won.We stayed awhile then headed off.On the way out we were passing the room that has the little old lady in who is always lying there with her mouth open and always appears quite dead.She was alive and leaning up on her elbow..."Excuse me!" she squeaked as we walked past. I stopped and put my head in."I was wrong," she stuttered, "It wasn't the 6th, it was the 9th of April."I gave her the thumbs up..."That's great!"She lay back down and we left.