Exeat: Day 134/84: Stay-or-Go-cations? I need 'foreign' personally ....and water melons!

Reflections on an overseas holiday … They-re in quarantine at the Big House for 14 days now but an early telecon reported that they had great accommodation and weather all week but the towns were deserted and most restaurants closed. Their one meal out saw them as the only customers. Some from Tenerife had to come home early as flights back were cancelled since there were no passengers going out, but their luck held so they got the full length of stay. So what's the verdict? You certainly have to honour their determination to do something, spend € notes and coins, after home schooling the grandsons for 3 months … but probably not best to do it again for the time being. Which at a macro level is a disastrous conclusion for the tourism industry of the Canaries. Stay-cations can never ever be the same as a trip to a 'foreign' land with its cultural variations not to mention better options for sun worshippers. I say 'foreign' with deliberation because that provides reinforcement of the notion of a holiday itself and brings the opportunity to try to use the local language or at least to comprehend some of it; to drive on the wrong side of the road; Avril to navigate from a map! And of course to sample local produce and imbibe cheap foreign beverages ….. To hear the BBC signal and extol the virtues of Lake District campsites or the Scottish Highlands with selective interviewees can never match that foreign dimension. My exit from the Channel Tunnel is always followed by search for steak frites and 125ml of red wine and if habit wins a short journey to Wimereux then a stroll along their Esplanade. Not as grand as Weymouth mind you, but foreign. Can you get the picture?

Scotland stayed with a 'proper' August Bank Holiday don't you know …. … and it's a full moon again tonight. When for the UK at large Labour Day and Whit Bank Holidays were shuffled years ago, and August Bank Holiday on the first Monday moved along to the last of that month, Scotland declined. Truth to tell Scottish schools normally reconvene before end August and the intention this year is designed to do catch-up from Covid 19 absences by restarting August 11th. The Scots are not alone in taking the first Monday in August seriously however. Here's an insight into more than few others nt least the Republic of Ireland! It's Children's Day in Tuvalu; British Columbia Day, Natal Day for Nova Scotia, New Brunswick Day, Saskatchewan Day, Terry Fox Day in Manitoba; Commerce Day for Iceland, Emancipation Day for Anguilla, Antigua, The Bahamas, British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts and Nevis; Farmer's Day for Zambia; Kadooment Day in Barbados; Labor Day in Samoa; National Day for Jamaica; Picnic Day in Northern Territory, Australia; Somers' Day in Bermuda; and finally Youth Day in Kiribati.
Terry Fox Day in Manitoba Of all the above celebrations Terry Fox must stand out. Born in Manitoba his Province has accorded him this fine remembrance of his quite extraordinary charity fund raising efforts as he died of cancer. His 'Marathon of Hope' across Canada has since been emulated in 60 countries raising approaching Cdn$1 billion across the world. He was a Canadian athlete who in 1980 with one leg amputated due to cancer embarked on an east to west cross-Canada run to raise money and awareness for cancer research. The spread of his cancer eventually forced him to end his quest after 143 days and 5,373 kilometres (3,339 miles) his legacy Annual Terry Fox Run since 1981 has grown to involve millions of participants and is now the world's largest one-day fundraiser for cancer research. He began the Marathon of Hope to raise one dollar from each of Canada's 24 million people with little fanfare from St John's, Newfoundland and Labrador running the equivalent of a full marathon every day. He had become a national star by the time he reached Ontario but was forced to end his run outside Thunder Bay when the cancer spread to his lungs. His hopes of overcoming the disease and completing his marathon ended when he died nine months later.
Grandpa Reg Turner's birthday today! Avril's father holds this distinction just as she holds April 1st for her's. But it's Water Melon Day today as well. It's not a fruit we regularly enjoy although much more when over in the US or Canada. There are myriad benefits associated with eating watermelon not least that it keeps the body hydrated. Watermelon is 92 percent water but in contains beneficial plant compounds and nutrients and vitamins B6, B5, and B1, magnesium, potassium, vitamin A & C. Benefits don't end there. Watermelon is beneficial when it comes to your hair and your skin because of its Vitamin C and A. Watermelon has also proven to be beneficial in terms of your digestion; and for dogs, of course!

Telephone consultations work well! I phoned Dr Taylor, at my GP's surgery, at 9.30 am and agreed 3.30 pm for a discussion with Dr Paddock, his partner there. When should I resume my Candesartan 16mg blood pressure tablets after the HipOp? Answer is she advised when blood pressure rises higher again … since the Op it's stayed well below where we started in July … and I've been busy taking Rivaroxaban 10mg thinners against DVT …. a 5 week programme …..