LANG JACK

This morning I spent an hour or so with my friend's mother-in-law D who has dementia. Not too bad today. We just talked and talked about all sorts. She won't be able to remember any of it but I think she enjoyed our chat. She seems to look forward to my weekly visit. Then it was off to Asda for the big shop.

In the afternoon I had a doctors appointment. When my leg ulcer was really painful the doctor prescribed tablets for nerve pain. As the ulcer is healing and I'm not getting pain now I asked the doctor if I could stop taking the tablets. She agreed. As I had to gradually build up the dosage when I started taking them I now have to decrease the dose gradually.

My blip shows a statue which we have in the village. It commemorates John English - The Tyneside Samson. He was known locally as " Lang Jack " He was born in 1800 and was a man of enormous strength, standing six feet four inches tall. He came to live in the village in the 1830's. He was a stonemason who worked on various projects in the area including Newcastle Gaol and the old Scotswood Bridge,

Unfortunately Jack attempted to do things for which even his marvellous strength was unequal and he destroyed his once splendid constitution. He died in 1860 of consumption.

In acknowledgement of his fame, an eighteen feet high monument was sculpted in 1854 and placed near his cottage. In 1976 the monument was restored and moved it to it's present position in the village near "The Crown Inn". In 1999 the Crown Inn closed for renovation and expansion work. It reopened with the new name, "Ye Olde Lang Jack".

Weather today was really lovely - bright sunshine and quite warm.