Get set, Go.

 We planned to get up early, but I was wide awake by 5:00 and reading the news in the kitchen by 5:15.  Never mind, it got the day underway. We had breakfast, finished the last-minute tidying and packing, loaded the car and hit the road at 8:40. Being half-term the route to Chichester was quiet, as was the the Chichester bypass.

We settled down for 4 or 5 hours of quality time on the King's highways. As usual, it was very slow between Portsmouth and Southampton, but then it freed up until we had passed Bournemouth. From there it became a slow-moving procession most of the way across to Honiton. This appears to have been the aftermath of a collision outside Bridport. that had closed the road and caused a vast tailback that was taking time to clear. (I would like to put out a request to all motorists - if you intend to get into a collision, cause road closures,  and get taken to hospital, please choose days when Diane and I are not travelling. Thank you).

At Honiton, the roads cleared and we whizzed across to Exeter where we stopped at the services for a coffee and a snack. We were soon back on the road and the last 78 miles of the 220 were a pleasure. 

We checked in to the hotel and were able to go straight to our room to unpack. Our room is on the western corner of the 2nd floor and has a spectacular view across the bay.

Once unpacked, I struggled with the WiFi for a while before giving up. We went down for a drink and I asked at reception about the WiFi. It turns out that it was down and had been reported. (Sure enough, a couple of hours later it all seemed to be working again).

Jan and John were at reception when we got there. We left them to get their luggage and unpack while we went to sit in the sunshine and enjoy a cool and refreshing drink while watching the other guests playing on the putting green, swimming, or playing tennis. It was a perfect afternoon.

Jan and John came to join us for a while, and then we all went for a walk along the clifftop before retiring to our room to dress for dinner.

We met up in the bar before dinner and made our way through to the dining room. Dinner, as you would expect from this hotel, was excellent. I started with gurnard with dahl and tempura broccoli and followed this with salmon. Di had a prawn starter (without the octopus that was on the menu) then she too had the salmon. 

After dinner, Jan and John retired for the night, but Diane and I went for another short walk. It was a delightfully warm evening and we seemed to have the place to ourselves with the exception of the birds who were chattering away in the trees.

On Your Marks...

There had been rain overnight but it was almost dry by the time I came down for my first coffee. The day was such that the rain was never far away and we had showers throughout the day. 

I worked my way through some ironing during the morning but was warned off Di's stuff, which she wanted to do. As I was finishing, Kim turned up. She was helping Zoe out by caring for Beau (the cat) while Zoe and Ellie were away. She was making the most of the peace and quiet to get some studying done in preparation for an exam she had scheduled for Friday. It was lovely to see her, and we had a couple of hours of chat before she left to go to Zoe's.

We heard from Zoe. She and Ellie were at the roller rink and Ellie was clearly a natural, being one of the only kids to be skating unaided, As we chatted, E`llie circled the rink and looked well-balanced and totally at ease.

Having completed most of our packing for tomorrow, Di and I settled down for some Kindle time. It was a bit too chilly for the Orangery so we sat in the lounge and read. Zoe phoned, again, she was trying to book an adventure but the WiFi signal wasn't strong enough to authorise her payment... Dad had to help out. So it looks as if they have some sort of treetop/zipline adventure scheduled for later in the week.

All but the last-minute packing is done.

Spa

It's Bank Holiday Monday and I don't have to get up for work (like every one of the last 3,979 days). I congratulated myself and wandered downstairs for a coffee and jumpstart the day.  

Jasper was the first significant item on today's agenda. We had to get him into his carrier and take him to the cat spa where he will be pampered for the next week. We got part of the way there when we realised that his medication was still sitting in the kitchen. We did a U-turn and headed back home. Meds were collected, and we set off again. Mark (the Cat Whisperer) was waiting and greeted Jasper like an old friend; Jasper, in turn, settled immediately and went to find some fluffy slippers and a bathrobe.

Back home, we had various chores to clear. Di vacuumed the car, I checked the washer bottle, then I spot-cleaned various marks Jasper had left on the carpets. Finally, I updated the accounts.

Meanwhile, Zoe and Ellie were driving across the country. They are going away for a week's holiday at Center Parcs at Longleat. They seemed to have a good trip across the M27 and up through Salisbury towards Warminster. They were checking in soon after midday. I hope they have a wonderful week, but suspect we will get a call from them with all of the gossip from the first day.

After lunch, we had some Kindle time, and then while I started preparing dinner, Di went to Zoe's to feed Beau, the cat. Tomorrow we will start our own packing for a short break.

Id

I saw a lazy start to the day despite Jasper's attempts to drag us from bed. I read the news for an hour before Di came down for her morning tea. As I started to read the social media, I saw an announcement that the Government was planning to allow digital driving licenses later in the year. In preparation for this, you can now open a DVLA account. I thought this sounded like a good move so I went through the process. It did use what will become a single government account which was verified with the biometric information from my passport. It took a little while to get it all set up, but it now nestles on my various devices.

The next task for the morning was to fix the door handle for the utility cupboard. The relevant bolts had been delivered yesterday and I was eager to give it a go. As usual, it was a bit fiddly. The bolts had to be snipped off to the right length. This proved almost impossible so I resorted to a hacksaw. It was then a matter of feeding the male bolts through the door handle, the door and the opposing door handle into the female nut. It took me ages. Eventually, it was done and the handle is now functioning properly again.

I explained in yesterday's post that I had been having a few anomalies with Google Maps on CarPlay in the Skoda. I fixed it. I quit G-Maps, reset the CarPlay to forget about the Skoda, and restarted the phone. I then went to the car and connected it all up. I clearly got the newer version of CarPlay and everything seemed to work properly. I even have some new apps available. I had a bit of a cleanup, removing those apps I'm unlikely to use. That was it... done!

(During the afternoon, I helped Zoe sort out her SatNav. It was still connected to an old WiFi account and an old phone. That didn't take too long to clear up).

We had some Kindle time before I started on dinner. That was a bit of an issue. I had planned roast chicken, but when I opened the bag it was clear that the chicken was past its best. It was dumped in the bin and we grabbed some pork loin steaks instead.

A Bit of a Do

I was up at my usual time and was soon joined by Di. There had been a bit of rain overnight but it was dry by the time we were drinking our morning beverage. More rain was forecast during the morning, but nothing came of it.

The big event today was Auntie Jean's 95th Birthday get-together. At midday, we climbed into the car, set up Google Maps, and headed out onto the King's highways and byways. It soon became clear that the directions feature of Google Maps was misbehaving. The coloured line that is meant. to show the route was not showing and our advanced notice of turns was informing us of junctions we had already passed or were 6 miles ahead. We switched to Apple Maps which behaved impeccably.

We had a quick cup of tea at Trevor and Sue's. Denise and Becky were also there (staying the weekend). We finished the tea and then we all walked to Maycroft, where Jean is now living. The Care home had prepared an afternoon tea and birthday cake for Jean. We had the library to ourselves and soon the other guests started to arrive, these included Jean's friends from the home, Caroline and the girls, Pat and Lous (Sue's sister and brother-in-law), Kevin and Bryony(?sp)  (all the way from Cardiff), and Trevor's friend Roland. It was a good turn out and we spent several hours chatting over alcohol-free Prosecco and sandwiches. Eventually, the cake was cut, Happy Birthday was sung, and slowly people started to drift away.

We made our way back to Trevor and Sue's where she laid on a feast of salad and lasagne for all of us. We sat chatting over the meal and then drifted into the lounge. Before we knew it it was 21:00 and we decided it was time to leave.

We had a good run home and were feeding Jasper by 22:00, and in bed a few minutes later.

Screwed

We had a leisurely start since we didn't have to get up for Ellie. Having said that, I was up by 6:45 and Di was up just after 7:00. At the allotted time, I wandered to Zoe's to join the walk to school. We had a quick word with her teacher as there has been some confusion over TT Rockstars. Her teacher, whose birthday it was today, said that there was nothing to worry about. "Ellie isn't even on my radar; she is an angel and always completes all her homework." That was a good start to the day.

I headed off for my pre-breakfast walk, doing several loops of the estate (but avoiding the lake in case I disturbed the swans).

One of the doors to our utility cupboard has a loose handle. I was determined to tighten it so grabbed a stool and some tools and sat down to take the handle off and refit it. This proved to be a fruitless exercise as the through bolts were missing (I removed all but one last time I tried this). The only solution was to raid Amazon and get some replacement bolts sent. They should arrive tomorrow.

I went out for another walk so that I could collect some of Di's meds as I looped back through the village. I was out for an hour or so, but it was a lovely bright warm day and it was a pleasure to be out.

After lunch we had the usual Kindle time, I'm now well into my 60th book of the year and have several more stacked up on the Kindle to follow. Zoe and Ellie dropped in after school. Ellie is off to Pete for the weekend and then she and Zoe are off to Center Parcs for the week. We won't see Ellie until Monday week, so she wanted to come and give us a cuddle and say goodbye. Ahh!

Just Pottering

We had the last early start of the week. Ellie bounded into the house and was eager to show me the pages she had done from a Maths test book. She had done well, but we needed to clarify a couple of things about fractions that she hadn't appreciated. We took her off to school at the usual time and Di headed home while I went for my walk.

My pre-breakfast walk did not follow the usual route. I arrived at the path that circles the lake and found my path blocked by two swans and their cygnets. I tried to ease slowly and quietly past but they were not happy. They started to hiss and stamp their feet. I decided that discretion was needed, did an about-turn and developed a new route!

We were later than usual heading off to Sainsbury's. It was the usual raid but seemed to cost much more than usual today. That wasn't helped by the requirement for a tank of petrol on the way out. We managed to find homes for all the shopping and then stopped for some lunch. I then wrote up yesterday's blog before we settled in the Orangery with our Kindles. I finished another book just before we went to collect Ellie and her friend Bonnie from school. Zoe had finished work early so the girls weren't with us for long.

Di had a nice long chat with Denise while I prepared dinner. A quiet evening is planned.

BoB Lunch

 I was up early for Ellie's drop-off. When she did arrive it was clear she had the wrong shoes with her which meant I would have to go and find the right shoes before she went to school. We dropped her at school at the usual time and then headed home.

Diane gave me a lift to the station so that I could get the 9:26 train to Victoria. I settled into 1st Class and contemplated the news that the train was terminating at Gatwick due to a misplaced crew. A quick shuffle to another platform should allow me to continue the journey without losing too much time. I arrived in Victoria about 15 minutes later than planned and the forecast rain hadn't amounted to anything significant. I set off walking to the restaurant but the route around the front of Buckingham Palace was bedlam. Police were controlling the crowds and preventing people from crossing the roads. A troop of Lifeguards trotted by (I hadn't realised there was a swimming pool nearby). Eventually, I found a route around the back and continued my walk.

The rest of the Band of Brothers (Charlie, Peter, Michael, and Brian) were already settled in the corner of the pub near the restaurant. I grabbed a pint and joined them until it was time to head for "Vasco and Piero's". We had the glass booth set aside for us and settled down for a few hours of reminiscing, eating good food, and working our way through their beer stock. It really was a lovely few hours and we have already agreed to do it again in October. I started my meal with "Venetian Sardines in arpione marinated in juniper berries, red onions, and vinegar"; sardines can be a bit strong, but these were delicious and it was a dish I would certainly order again. For the main course, I selected "Linguine with Prawns", it was simple, creamy and an absolute winner. The service, as usual, was excellent and it seemed a shame to leave - bat as the time was edging towards 4 o'clock, we had to consider our journeys home.

I walked back to Victoria Station noticing some features of the route that hadn't been evident on the walk in the opposite direction, this morning.

I arrived in plenty of time for my train and settled in my seat. The trip home went without incident and we arrived at Bognor Regis spot on time. Di was waiting for me outside the station and I was soon home.

It had been an excellent day.

Puttering about

 It was an early start today. Ellie was dropped off on Zoe's way to work for 7 o'clock. She was already fed, washed, dressed and had her hair done. There was nothing for her to do when she arrived. She sat down with the iPad and got on with her times tables practice. We dropped her off at school, promising to collect her at lunchtime (but more about that in a minute).

I wandered off for my pre-breakfast walk while Di went straight home. Just after I got home, Zoe rang. The school had called and didn't have Ellie down for school lunch today (or the rest of the week), could we sort her out with a packed lunch? Well, no; we hadn't really got anything. We went to Zoe's raided the fridge and the larder and returned to make up a packed lunch, which I took to the school.

At lunchtime (after she had eaten the packed lunch) we collected her. She had been selected to represent the school at a Golf Day with some 16 schools participating. We drove her to the Chichester Golf Centre and left her with her team. They had several hours of golf challenges ahead.

We headed on down to Selsey and after a quick look around stopped at a restaurant (The Boulevard) and found a table out on the verandah. It was good simple fare, but a fairly extensive menu. We both chose a crispy chicken wrap but I ordered some Sticky Korean Chicken Wings as an accompaniment. It really was quite delightful, sitting in the sunshine and enjoying a tasty lunch. (It was also excellent value for money).

We headed home but soon had to return to the Golf Centre to collect Ellie. We were there in time to see the awards at the end of the day - though Ellie's school didn't win anything. She, however, had had a wonderful time and I confidently expect to see her lift the Solheim Cup in years to come.

We dropped Ellie at home and once Zoe was back, we settled down in the Orangery for some Kindle time. There's no need for any dinner tonight, we are still full from lunchtime.

Trimmed

 Jasper was not scheduled for choir practice this morning. I was awake, anyway, but was not subjected to feline arias from various operas. I got up anyway. Coffee was ingested along with the overnight news. Jasper slunk down the stairs and stared at me until I opened the doors and let him out (I would remind the reader that he has a cat flap that he refuses to use).

At the appropriate time, I walked to Zoe's for the long march to school (well 200m). We left Ellie at the classroom and I headed off for a short walk. 

Back home, earlier than usual, I had breakfast and got on with some admin before heading out for another walk. This one had to stop in the village so that I could get a haircut. (Looking at it now, several hours after the fact, I think it is a little severe!)

Once home, I updated the accounts and then made lunch. After lunch, it won't surprise you to hear that we had Kindle time until we had to collect Ellie. On Mondays, she has athletics after school and we were there in time to see her in her last race. She was running against a friend but over the 60m course, she had managed a 10m lead as she crossed the line. Grandpa (and Nana) were very proud.

We had a quiet hour with her, followed by dinner which she had just finished when Zoe arrived to collect her.

Compost

 I was drifting in and out of sleep, there was no particular imperative that would encourage me to get out of bed. I was resting. I was content. Then Jasper came into the bedroom, yowling at the top of his voice. That was it. I had to get up and my first lie-in opportunity was shattered. It was 7:00 and I was downstairs letting him out into the garden. That put me in a foul mood to start the day.

Over the next hour, coffee was imbibed and the news was consumed. When Di emerged I prepared myself for the day. Di wanted me to help her raid the local nursery, so I sat and reviewed some YouTube videos about AI, while she got ready. We headed off to Shopwycke and picked up a 75-litre bag of compost then headed home.

It was time for a walk. I looped around the lake and then up Berry Lane to North Bersted Street which I followed all the way to Shripney before turning and retracing my steps. I was out for just over an hour and was surprised by how many dog walkers I saw (compared with yesterday) - they were out in force, clutching the poop bags and their doggies' leads.

When I got home, Di was missing. She had been summoned by Zoe for some garden consultation. I made some lunch and was just sitting down as she walked in. She spent the afternoon pottering in the garden. I had settled down for some Kindle time but was interrupted by a call from Zoe who needed help digging up a plant that she wanted to move. I wandered round and dug it up for her (having had to return home to get a fork and spade, as she doesn't have any).

The rest of the afternoon was spent preparing dinner while watching some more YouTube videos on AI. One statistic that stuck in my mind was that ChatGPT 4 has 1 trillion links in its language model, compared to the human brain which has 100 trillion. I will certainly explore the various AI engines in more detail.

Hijack

There is very little to report today. It has been another glorious day, weather-wise. I was up at 7:00 and read the overnight news while ingesting an invigorating coffee. 

I had the usual call with the cousins at 9:00. This included a story from last week's luncheon - or rather, the aftermath. Several of the cousins retired to The Mitre, a pub near Ely Place in Holborn (this area has great sentimental value for this branch of our family). As they left the pub, they got into a taxi and a stranger jumped in after them and tried to hijack the taxi. The cousins were having none of it and stood (sat) their ground, As the stand-off continued the taxi driver joined in and demanded the stranger get out. At this point, he became racially abusive. The taxi driver and the cousins phoned the police, who turned up and hauled him out. He was arrested and the cousins have been asked for a formal statement and need to be available to give evidence in court.

That could be the most interesting part of the day. I finished some reading and then got on with some ironing. di went to the garden to plant the flowers she had bought yesterday, while out with Zoe.

Once all of the coffee had percolated through, I headed out for a walk in the sunshine. I was out for an hour or so and then came back for some lunch and to settle down with my Kindle (Di was still pottering).  Zoe and Ellie dropped in briefly but were soon headed back to their garden to do some planting and mow the lawn.

Dispatch

There was no rush to get up but I was still downstairs making coffee soon after seven. I read the overnight news and then got ready for my school escort duty. It was a glorious morning, not a cloud dared sully the cerulean blue of the sky. It was beginning to warm up and promised a lovely day. Zoe and I walked Ellie to school and then I set off for my morning walk. I stuck to my usual route and arrived home about an hour later.

After I finished my breakfast, Diane left to go shopping at Haskins with Zoe. I finished some reading and then headed out for another walk. This tie, I was clutching an Amazon return for Diane, and my old, trusty Swiss Army knife for refurbishment. The knife has great sentimental value, so I trust it will be treated with care and returned as good as new. I called into the Post Office where the clerk treated me with the usual disdain, once she had condescended to come to the Post Office Counter. The parcels were dealt with and dispatched and I left wishing there was an alternative PO nearby.

I had walked for another hour or so and was ready for my lunch when I got home. After lunch, I settled down for some Kindle time until Diane returned. She was only home for about 30 minutes before going back out with Zoe to collect Ellie. Then she could settle down for the evening with her "medicine".

A.I.

Today was Zoe's last early start of the week and I was up at 6:30 to greet Ellie, who hadn't quite woken up yet. After a cuddle, she made her way up to Nana while I finished my coffee and made Nana's tea. The rest of the pre-school period whizzed by as usual and we walked Ellie to the classroom. It was as we left the school that I realised I had forgotten my phone (and hence my audiobook). The morning walk would have to wait!

Back home, we had breakfast and then I started to think about something Zoe had asked yesterday. As part of Zoe’s development plan, she wants to gain an understanding of how people see her. To that end, she is trying to get responses from about 40 colleagues, friends, and acquaintances. She has asked me if I can contact members of the family and ask them to provide THREE words that come to mind when they think of her. I sent out requests during the evening yesterday and already have a number of responses. I started to wonder, however, how she would analyse these random words and what she would do with them. I wondered whether A.I. could help.

I fired up ChatGPT and asked it: 

"I have asked some family and friends to tell me the first 3 words that come to mind when they think of me. These are the responses:" (I then typed in the list of responses I had received), and finished off the question with "What can you deduce from this about my personality?"

I was amazed at the response. It analysed the data and clustered words together to identify traits. It then justified its analysis. It was brilliant. Taking the bull by the horns, I then asked:

"Can you suggest a personal development plan, based on this analysis?"  

A few moments later I had a structured personal development plan, including reference materials,  timescales and so forth. As the day wore on, Zoe provided more of the responses from work and I re-ran the model. I have sent her the drafts but will wait for the last inputs from family and colleagues before finalising it.

I managed to go out for my walk late in the morning. It was a lot cooler today but was not uncomfortable. I was out for an hour or so and then came home for lunch.

The afternoon saw the usual Kindle time though I stayed at home while Di went to collect Ellie. We were expecting a delivery that would require a signature. It was due between 10:00 and 12:00. From 11:00 onwards DHL was telling me that the driver was only 3 stops away. I tracked him on the map as he drove all over this part of Sussex making deliveries and never reducing the count from 3. Eventually, he turned upper at about 16:00 with my new (backup) Swiss Army knife. My "old faithful" which must be over 40 years old is looking a bit battered and bruised so I want to send it away to be refurbished - but that can take 6-8 weeks and I can't exist without my trusty knife for that long. A backup was required.