Costa del Gloucester

King's Square has had a makeover, with mini-jets of water that kids like to play in, and new curved concrete features. It still manages to look somewhat Soviet-era. The building that's being gutted is the old Debenhams store, which Is going to be made into student accommodation, I think. 

The temperature was scorchio!  I'd gone to attend an event about mental health and the VCS (voluntary and community sector) at the Guildhall, now an arts centre. We were gathered in the main hall, which was somehow kept cool, and sat at  round tables, cabaret style, while speakers did their presentations. Lunch was good, so were the speakers, and there was much food for thought at the discussion sessions afterwards.

I left about 2pm and was blasted by heat as I exited the building. Had to go round the back of Shire Hall (county council offices) and collect s box from an official. While I waited, near the entrance to the Crown Court, I watched a gull struttings traight-legged, with ridiculous yellow webbed feet that it could hardly peel off the pavement, and a matching sharp yellow bill. Gulls look more elegant while flying, I decided.

The lady came out with a large box for me. I took it back to the bus station, and waited until I was safely on the upper deck of the bus before opening it. Inside were three teddy bears in Ukrainian colours (blue or yellow) and a candle, a little bag of stones, and several other objects and resources, and instructions for using them, in English and Ukrainian. This is a Bear Us in Mind kit, described as a psychological toolkit for children. A colleague of mine is going to take it to a village playgroup, and the staff are going to be trained (by Zoom) in how to use it with a child who is a refugee from Kyiv. This has taken a LOT of organising to get just this far, but I am impressed by the contents of the kit. The kits were distributed last year across Gloucestershire and West Sussex, to schools, but not to nurseries or playgroups.  I wonder why not?

I took the box to my colleague at the Other Surgery, and chatted with her, then slogged back to my own office just in case I'd left my laptop out, or anything. There was an old coffee mug on my desk, but that was it. I changed my shoes and forced myself to walk home. Thought CleanSteve  might he setting up in the Shambles market, but the blood donor service was there instead. They would not let me have a walk-in appointment. (I preferred the service before it was essentially privatised. Now I only manage to donate about once a year, because appointments have to be made so far in advance, and then I get a cold, or a headache, or find I've travelled abroad, so I have to cancel and start all over again...)

Got home, had supper and made some phone calls. I'm organising a boat trip for next Wednesday. It's annoyingly complicated because not everyone has email, a mobile or WhatsApp. No one answers their landline phone, either! 

Buddhist meditation later, it was good but the room was as hot as a sauna. People from another group were chatting in the car park, so we closed the door, but then a dog started barking, and before we could block it out, about five others joined in! The Great British Bark-Off had begun. 

The hounds were silenced in the end, and we had an interesting discussion. Got a lift home from the teacher, after we'd tidied up, and went straight to the shower.