Yes Sir I Can Boogie

 OK - maybe I can't boogie but the title is appropriate as I am writing this partly to fill in time before the Scotland game starts. I am also aware that it has been around three weeks since I wrote anything. This is because nothing much happened for a wee while.

I really wish that there was no real reason for writing this now but unfortunately there is. I have had a really annoying flare up. We were away in the caravan with friends - not very far in fact Forfar. This was also a bit of a trial of the van before the festival season starts. The first couple of days were fairly uneventful, at least arthritis wise, but on the third I woke up with a massive pain at the back of my head - not a pleasant experience. Fortunately the headache disappeared quickly but the soreness that developed in my neck and shoulders stayed for a while.

The next couple of days were reasonably pain free but the next week was no fun. It started off with pains in both hands which were so bad that I couldn't write properly for a while (some people might say that my handwriting is so bad that nobody would notice the difference anyway - I couldn't possibly comment). The pain in my neck and shoulders were still there though.

Wednesday was a real struggle and, although I went in, I probably shouldn't have. Driving was a problem as it was difficult to turn my neck but I coped. I also had pain in my shoulders, upper arm, elbows and knees. the pain did wear off a bit with the help of some strong painkillers but spending the afternoon standing at sports day wasn't really a barrel of laughs and my legs were killing me by the end of the day. Thursday was much the same but I took the painkillers much earlier and things had eased off by lunchtime.

Today was much better. The pains have lessened and I had a much better day - although I now have a slight pain at the back of my head again. Hopefully paracetamol will fix that.

Apologies if this sounds a bit "poor me-ish" but it really hasn't been the best of weeks. I am aware that it is unlikely that I will ever be totally pain free but I can usually cope fairly well. Hopefully this is the last flare up for a wee while.

On the music front we had a great evening down in Glasgow watching the legend that is Richard Thompson a week or so back. He was, as usual, magnificent and had a full band, including his grandson Zac on guitar and mandolin and the superb Dave Mattacks on drums. We also caught up with a few friends at the gig and were able to have lunch with our son Paul the next day. 

We are off again in just over a week to another Fairport Cruise, this time on the Danube. I am frantically learning "John Condon" as I am singing it with the band on the 4th of July. Also a few of us are hoping to get a TV up and running in the lounge so we can watch the election results live.

Once again thanks to our NHS without which a lot of us would be a lot sicker. 

Please share this to whoever and I really would appreciate a few comments.

Now - what else can I do until kick off?

All the best.

Rob

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