Wednesday

We’ve had a good few days of late. Well, The Dog and I have at least. My piece for the Vets’ newsletter has been submitted and approved and my progress through the latest boxes of papers retrieved from Lesley’s dad’s house is going well. The Dog’s split claw is settling down nicely. She’s cleaned up most of the loose bits herself and she’s not limping any more. We took her back to The Copse where the injury happened and she didn’t seem any less keen to explore so there’s no lasting mental trauma.

Lesley is having a less easy time of it. The forms for the Tax Man are getting her down. It’s not that they’re impossible to understand. They’re not easy but they’re not impossible. The problem is more that the forms don’t work. They’re editable PDFs and there are fields she needs to fill in which won’t let her type in and there are fields which she is able to type in which won’t allow her to change or save the entries. The whole experience is depressing and her confidence is shot.

“I don’t even know if I’m doing this right now. I may have to go and speak to a lawyer or someone…”

Bloody hell.

Author’s Note

My Mum was in a nursing home in the Thames Valley for a year and a half until she passed away in December 2024. My Father-in-law went into the same home the following January. But Lesley’s sister didn’t approve and made the situation so awkward that he had to be moved. He passed away in March 2025. Names and locations have been changed or hidden to protect the identities of those involved.

Image Credit

Original Image by Nick Gilmore. June 2025.