Was just looking at my armchair opposite and thinking there is something missing. It’s Ted. My bear. As it’s looking like there will be a lot of cosy solitary evenings ahead I had better go get him from the basket upstairs. He doesn’t do much conversation , but then he doesn’t drink my wine either. He listens , but frankly I am more likely to speak to James’s portrait. ( he doesn’t answer back….I think I might have a problem if that was the case.)

I suppose there are lots of little ways of having contact with actual real people too. Like this morning on my daily energetic jaunt up the red brick road ( ha ha!) I sat on the kerb and chatted to my daughter back in Scotland occasionally stepping back to avoid a car or waving to a passing scooter. It was just lovely sitting looking over the valley to towards the mountains with a pretty blue sky above. We spoke for about an hour and I am lucky enough to be old enough to appreciate how wonderful it is to be able to comfortably chat to her , thousands of miles away, as if she was just round the corner. ( for free!!!)

On my way back home after that a kindly neighbour told me that I can stop watering my flowers now that the weather has changed and it is more humid. She must have seen me out with the watering can. That was very nice of her to tell me. Maybe I wouldn’t have valued little exchanges like that years ago …..but I do now.

I carried on writing my ” sort of diary” this morning. As I forgot the last 2 days I thought maybe I should add it to a new routine. I considered writing 3 days worth……yeah like that was going to happen!. But I consider it an energy creating activity and want to carry on.

It was after lunch time before I started painting. I planned to do another version of a tablet painting. This was not as satisfactory . It’s okay . ( as James’s would say” it’s very commercial, my dear.”), but I prefer the tablet version. It took me all afternoon.

Just before I wrote this I had to rush outside and take photos of the fantastic yellow light outside. Photos as usual don’t do it justice. Am not sure if I could capture it in a painting as it is relatively fleeting. I might try though.

Anyways it’s dark now and warm inside with the stove lit. Very cosy. .