Days 294 to 298

As I look out of the window, glory be the sun is out and the temperature is hitting a giddy 8 degrees. It makes you feel good to be alive.

What news can I pass on? On weight day I found I had lost another pound...now I weigh in at 13 stone 7 pounds. I could still lose another half stone or so without worrying too much.

I was about to write that the acid had left me at night time but last night I woke up with some reflux and a great deal of coughing. Otherwise though health continues on an upward curve. The results have come from my x ray and blood tests and they show up as normal. We are due to see the Oncologist Judith cave on 15 March. This will be the first medical appointment we shall have had without Joya Moris in attendance. She left her job at the end of January but a combination of bad weather and a norro virus outbreak put paid to that. However tomorrow I am going to a farewell do for her in Yarmouth. More on that on the next entry.

In a preview of what is to come over the next two or three years nationally, the Island Council will vote for some pretty unpleasant service cuts this week, which could have profound implications for the way the vulnerable are cared for. All Councils of course need to cut unecessary waste but people are kidding themselves if they think cuts can be achieved without touching the big ticket items. There was a big demonstration in Birmingham by local Government workers yesterday in protest about possible 2,000 job losses. This issue will not go away no matter who wins the next election. Coming back to the Island, my question is do we have faith in the Council to achieve more with less. On that point the jury is still out.

Isn't it marvellous? Less than a year on from surgery and here I am ruminating about the economic outlook.