Custard

Yesterday afternoon I popped out on a mission to get some holographic paper and some black material for backgrounds. I have been using JR's shawl, but just stopped myself the other day from putting nails in it to hang it up.

When I was walking along the street, trying to get through a bus crowd, I accidentally caught a woman's handbag with my tripod, which was slung on my back.... we both turned round at the same time, and the look on her face! She thought that I was stealing it. Jings! If I hadn't been an old biddie she would have whacked me and asked questions afterwards. Profuse apologies were given as I hurried off. I will need to do something about the sticky-out tripod. But I have a plan, and I hope Santa delivers.

Poor JR is STILL not well. I may have had a hand in her relapse. In the afternoon she'd begun mentioning food again. Muesli? No. Porridge? No. (she never eats it when she's well anyway). Yoghurt and honey? Mmm, yes, maybe... I went and got some.

When she was up and showered and sitting by the fire, a little bit perkier, she declared that she wanted custard. She'd been thinking longingly of the custard that was in the fridge. But it was no longer in the fridge. I had eaten it as part of my fridge clearance. She was rather sad about this, having been thinking of it all afternoon. The yoghurt was second best. Today she is still not well. Terrible chesty cough.

I went swimming. Timed it wrong again. Toddlers were in taking up the whole shallow end, and there were no lanes. There were 11 of us trying to go up and down the pool and not knock into each other. I did do 20 lengths. Kicking fine, but breathing not. I'm not able to take deep enough breaths to keep going. I've tried swimming slower (if that's possible). Work in progress. I will not give up.

I came back laden with goodies and have been fiddling about in my dark room cupboard. Don't like to go out galavanting for the day - and it's a beautiful day - with an invalid. Even an undemanding, very sick, invalid.

I did lots of light painting around the poinsettia. I put the camera on BULB, so that I could take as long as I needed. I first shone the torch at it, then used my single light (with the others stuffed up a black glove). Note the nice new black background.

As I went out swimming and shopping this morning, a little croaky voice came from under the duvet,

'Custard....'

Oh, the guilt!