One small step

I woke up early on hearing the sound of creaking floor boards as Clare started getting up early to get ready to make sure Rachel got up and was ready for her six thirty walk to Sophia Gardens for the coach to Heathrow. She was well prepared and we waved her off on time with no rush or last minute worries about forgotten things. So sad to see her go. We went back to bed and consoled each other with cuddles until we both dozed off for a couple of hours. After breakfast domestic chores resumed - washing bed linen, turning mattresses and so on.

Rachel's coach broke down at Newport, but a travel crisis was averted by the dispatch of a replacement bus from Llantrisant. She arrived late, but had plenty of slack in her travel schedule. I cooked prawns with rice, spinach and red pepper for lunch. Rachel messaged us while we were eating to say her flight was now boarding. Coincidentally Kath's flight home from Alicante following Anto's birthday weekend was also boarding at lunchtime.

We both needed a snooze, but I couldn't settle to sleep, so I took the redundant router to the Post Office for mailing back to TalkTalk, and bought some groceries on my way home. After tea we went out for a sunset walk. The sky was overcast, dusk seemed to arrive early. 

Clare decided to revive an old iPad she hasn't used much since I gave her a Samsung Tab. It charged OK, but booted into setup mode, probably because its battery had completely drained. She needed to be sure that if she got rid of it, the data it contains could be wiped from it. After signing the device into its iCloud account it was possible to use some of its apps, but it wouldn't accept the Google account password. My attempt to wipe data and settings failed as it asked for a pass code that wasn't written in Clare's meticulous secret password booklet. I rebooted the device and was asked for a pass code to unlock it. Fortunately Clare remembered this, and it turned out to be the same as the one needed to expedite the system reset. 

As I'd never used an Apple device before its security protocol and keyboard was unfamiliar, different from Microsoft, Android or Chrome devices I've used, I had to learn by trial and error how to operate it. Since the traumatic painful experience of two ENT medics trying to stop my nose bleed in A&E after the stroke, I react with panic in any situation where I feel I'm out of control. Despite the mistakes made in getting the iPad restarted and wiping it. I didn't panic. One small step in the right direction hopefully. Before going to bed I went for a twenty minute walk in fresh air, relishing the fact tonight my head is clear for a change.