Prelude to anaesthesia

Dog carcass in alley this morning, tire tread on burst stomach. This city is afraid of me. I have seen its true face.

I join the "holding" queue at the US embassy. They've instigated a new system, which makes more efficient use of Grosvenor Square and by 9:03 I'm in the third queue. My passport gets checked again and I'm allowed through the security checkpoint. Forty minutes later, I'm back on the pavement, visa approved, passport retained. Job done.

Conversation with Matt, coffee with Tim, lunch with Mum, afternoon of virtual meetings. Then I walk mum round the corner to the hospital where she's having a small surgical procedure - biopsy/scrape of the bladder.

I arrange work travel for my next couple of outings and head to a local veggie curry house for tea. It's a South Indian place and I'm tempted by the dosa's, but I go for a mushroom curry instead.

Back at the hospital, mum is recovering. She's in good form, all vitals normal, so the nurses agree she can be discharged. We walk, slowly, back to her flat - less than 6 hours since she left.