You know my little local difficulty the other week, when I was unable to see my coat because it had fallen on the floor?  I’m no better looking up than down.  Last Sunday, when the family came over, Ro left his scarf behind.  He realised once he got home and texted me to ask me to look for it, but I was unable to find it.  I finally spotted it yesterday, about three yards from where he thought he’d left it, on top of the fridge.  I was unable to see it until I put something else on top of the fridge, because it was above me.  I can’t see up and I can’t see down.  I need everything to be right at the level of my eyes or else it becomes invisible.  Clearly, I need several levels of shoe heels, a wheelchair, stilts and a mobile kneeler, to extend my range of visibility.

Right now, I have twenty minutes to fill in.  I’ve just taken out a new phone contract and, having inserted the new SIM, I’ve had to switch off my phone and wait a bit.  Of course, I want the phone now.  I don’t need it, I just wish to have it.  I’ve made coffee, applied nail polish and make-up and am now waiting.  And doing a few breathing exercises.

Actually, that all took fifteen minutes and writing has been the next five, so I have switched it on again and am typing cross-fingered now.

I don’t get the contempt aimed at people using their phones.  They’re so damn useful and engaging, of course we use them.  The other evening, Roses came in to spend the evening with me and, at various points in the several hours we were together, we both used Facebook.  But it wasn’t a matter of ignoring each other, it was rather engaging with others too.  It was funny and friendly (which happen to be the names of Zerlina’s and Gus’s gerbils, by the way) and our Facebook friends joined in the banter.  Indeed, one should not exclude those we are with, but if you’ve ever had a conversation at a party with someone whose eyes are darting about to see whom they’re going to move on to next, then you’ll know that’s quite possible without recourse to a phone.

My phone works.  That’s all right, then.  I don’t need it now, just wanted to check it.

My day started at 8.17.  I’d been awake a bit in the night, so slept on – and checked my phone of course, to see the time and the news headlines (David Bowie! Oh dear) and the landline rang three minutes later.  Glad I was awake already.  It was the gas delivery man saying he was two minutes away.  We ask them to ring, in case it’s a new driver (as this was) to explain about coming down the drive (i.e., there’s room to turn so they don’t have to back in) – so I had two minutes to be dressed and outside to meet him.  And since I was, I fed the animals before breakfast and filled the log baskets and coal scuttles and emptied the ashpan and the cat litter tray (Rummy used it yesterday and Eloise overnight, so it required attention) and so I’d done all the major chores by 9 o’clock.  How virtuous I felt, darlings.

Not got much done since, of course.