It is alas time to reopen this blog. The date is 8 NOvember 2021. The first thing to say is that along with Ev we have had Covid. It hit me shortly after we had been given our booster jabs. I had what felt like a heavy cold(AKA Man Flu). Foolishly I didn't get tested. Ev caught it off me and did take a test which was positive. I went the following day and was also positively tested. We both had to isolate for 10 days. I got off fairly lightly compared with Ev who suffered with a dreadful cough. On the upside it stopped us getting pestered by trick or treat. This young Lad knocked on the door. Ev said you can't come in here. He asked did we have Covid? Yes was the reply. The Kid legged it and we weren't bothered after that. In the meantime though I had ben complaining for some time about being occasionally breathless. I managed to get a face to face appointment with a GP who sent me for an ECG, Chest X ray and Blood Test. ECG revealed some irregular breathing, the chest X ray reckons I have had a large hernia which the medics think is a legacy of the operation I had in 2009. The BloodTests have given rise to first of all Anaemia. This is probably caused by lack of Iron. The GP thought it urgent enough to send a request to the Gastro Unit at Royal Derby Hospital and sure enough I have got an appointment for this coming Wednesday. They are keeping their options open including testing for cancer. One thing I have done over the years is keep a check on my weight which has been constant around the 12 stone(148 pounds). This could involve Gastrocopy, Endoscopy and CT Scan. I am hopeful that before all this starts I can have a conversation with somebody at the Unit to see what their plans are. I am also required to take a poo test. If that were all I wouldn't get too uptight but the blood test also revealed possible prostate problems. I need to take a test on 23 November. Again there is a possibilty of cancer. The GP's view is that the Prostate thing may be serious maybe not but she thinks it's a good thing to test for the ooh nasties first and I am sure she is right. The other possibilty is Diabetes. As Men get older(I am 80) there is a tendency to need to get up in the night for a wee. In my case it's 2 times which means clearly that I am not fully emptying my bladder. This can lead to urine infection. So there you are. It's 12 years since the operation that saved my life so I have done better than many. On the positive side the GP told me I looked in better shape than many of the 80 plus year oldds she sees in surgery. I am trying to be positive and even though I am not looking forward to the next couple of months I remanin optimistic that we can go on holiday next year. My next report will be after I have seen the medics at Royal Derby later this week.