Soon after 9 p.m. yesterday evening, I received a phone call from NHS Out of Hours service to tell me I was in a queue to speak to a clinician. This call may or may not come that evening, otherwise it would be the next day.
As dawn was breaking this morning I stepped outside with my camera
and put a pair of carrion crows off their breakfast. One flew away.
Soon after 9 a.m. I received the promised call from a clinician who advised me to turn up at Lymington Hospital UCT where I would be triaged and referred to a doctor. This was all very smooth, although the wait was 2 hours because it was busy and they were short staffed – also, we suspect because of the number of families obviously on holiday. A very friendly Dr Katie Wiseman took a urine sample and made all the general function tests, including the perfect blood pressure. She thought the problem most likely to be a urinary tract infection, so prescribed antibiotics, yet instructed me to take the sample to my GP in the morning and ask him to send it to the lab.
After having delivered me, Jackie drove off for some shopping, and, when returning to collect me, photographed
some of the sparrow chorus occupying their lengthy gabion lining the wall facing the car park.
Late in the afternoon, when this hot afternoon was beginning to cool, Jackie took us on a brief forest drive,
having first photographed the front garden pink climber.
Two pairs of waterfowl lined up on the bank of Hatchet Pond turned out to be the footwear of a couple enjoying a paddle.
This evening we dined on meaty Ferndene sausages and gravy; creamy mashed potato; firm cauliflower, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts; and crunchy carrots.
I’m glad you got the call and were seen by a doctor. I hope the antibiotics have kicked in.
Those pink roses are absolutely perfect. Gorgeous!
Thank you very much from each of us, Merril
Glad to hear of your perfect blood pressure and that you are making slow, if steady progress, through the system, Derrick. Gorgeous pictures.
Thank you very much, Pat
Best wishes for a speedy quickly, Derrick. Glad to see the clinician found a possible diagnosis.
The pink climbing rose is gorgeous!
Thank you very much from each of us, Lavinia
Hope the pills work, Derrick.
Thanks very much, GP
I’m glad your blood pressure is so good, Derrick, I have chronic high BP and take too many pills each day to control it. I hope you get good news from your doctor! Bangers? (sausage) and mashed potatoes sound so delicious! ????❤️????
Thank you very much, John. Yes, sausages
I’d like to know the origin of the word Bangers regarding sausage. Curious American here! ????
“It dates back to World War I, when food shortages necessitated the use of fillers (mostly water) in meat. The high water content and tight casings often caused the sausages to explode during cooking. The term was widespread by World War II.” (Google)
Oh, wow! Thank you so much, Derrick! What a greasy mess.
I’m sorry to hear about your infection. My oldest son gets urinary tract infections and they are no fun. The pink roses are lovely ????
Thank you so much, Robbie
Congratulations on the blood pressure. Good luck with the UTI. My last one was easily cured but the one before laid me up for two weeks.
Thanks very much, Quercus
🙂
Congrats on the perfect blood pressure! Hope that the lab results confirm Dr. Wiseman’s preliminary diagnosis. The pink rose is perfect in every way 🙂
Thank you very much from each of us, Rosaliene
I was pleased to see that the system worked for you in the end. I hope that the treatment does too. UTIs are no fun but are at least treatable.
Thanks very much, Tootlepedal
UTI is nasty. I hope you feel better fast. Drinking cranberry juice each day for a while as well as taking the antibiotic could help. Jackie, I have never seen a wall like that let alone sparrows in a car-park. Thank you for sharing. I miss the warmer, dryer weather already but at least Mother’s Day here was a sunny.
Thank you very much from us both, Chrissy
Pesky UTIs, really hope the meds work really quickly. The last time I had one of those the GP told me to drink shed loads of cranberry juice each day to stop them coming back.
Thanks very much, Gary
I hope the antibiotics take care of the problem. The last sparrow picture looks like it should be on a book cover. I was instantly drawn to it.
Once again, Jackie will be delighted at your choice, Liz. Thanks very much
You’re welcome, Derrick.
She was 🙂
🙂
Haha … waterfowl footwear … are you sure your eyes are ok …
🙂 Cheers, Ivor
I hope the antibiotics help and bet the perfect blood pressure has something to do with all the walking you do. The sparrow on the gabion wall is interesting.
Thank you very much, JoAnna
Derrick, I’m glad you’ve found a suitable diagnosis and treatment that will make you feel better soon. The sparrows and roses are grand.
Thank you very much, Alys
Beautiful artistic photos!
I hope the antibiotics help and you are healed soon.
(((HUGS))) ❤️❤️
Thank you very much, Carolyn XX
The pink rose at home is beautiful.
Very observant of Jackie to notice the reinforced stone wall. I enlarged the last image, a sort of temporary crop, the sparrow is gorgeous close up.
I hope the antibiotics give you some relief and the tests prove to be nothing to worry about.
Thank you very much from us both, Sue
Again, best wishes on the outcome for your medical issues.
Thanks very much, Doug
I hope that’s the end of the trouble, and the antibiotics help. You seem very patient for what sounds like a long wait for a diagnosis. That patience will certainly assist you in good health 🙂 I’m a believer that stress is as harmful as anything else we do to ourselves. So funny that the water fowl turned out to be shoes!
Thank you so much, Crystal
Love the sparrow on the grill. Hope you get well soon.
Thanks very much, Sherry
I am glad you were able to see a doctor and hope you feel better soon, Derrick. The photos are fabulous, especially the photos of the crows.
Thank you so much, Eugi
You’re welcome, Derrick.
Hope that’s the issue resolved
Me, too. Thanks very much, Sheree
Ah, the first roses, so young, pink, and fresh!
By now I hope you have fully recovered, Derrick, as the lab tests will show.
Thank you so much, Dolly
My pleasure, Derrick.
I’ve been writing every spare moment I have so am not yet up to speed on your most recent post – hopefully good news. I have a theory that men suffer UTIs even more strongly than women because they do not have them as frequently – but getting the correct antibiotic is all important. I’ve also been introduced to a daily antibacterial (Hiprex), which together with cranberry tablets of a certain consistency seems to be keeping me in preventative maintenance mode. (I sound like a car that has an annual service).
Anyway! When I saw your header sparrow photo my mind immediately “flew” to the film on Alcatraz. Was it Burt Lancaster? Or was it Steve Macqueen in Papillon? Anyway, one of them was befriended by a sparrow who became a kind of saviour.
Burt Lancaster was The Birman of Alcatraz. Thanks very much, Gwen