Excellent! Sorry you are not sleeping well. Well done on the running! I'm still walking and stretching. I'm hoping to start reducing some drugs. I've made a few mistakes at work - nothing serious, but annoying. Just trying to balance distraction due to pain against brain fog due to drugs.

Yes. Wash and moisturise. That's it.

An Elderly Lady is up to No Good. It's nominally crime fiction but it's about female agency. By Helene Tursten. Short and easy to read. My favourite book about love rediscovered is Austen's Persuasion.

The L is compulsory in the UK. The P is optional.

I went to eat at a mid-priced restaurant and ordered a dish that - when it arrived - was missing half the ingredients and tasted of not very much. I was tired and hungry, and ate it anyway. When I got back to my hotel room, I was peeved about my experience. The trip advisor reviews for that dish had interestingly gone downhill recently. Rather than posting a review, I called the restaurant and spoke to the manager. He talked to the chef and discovered that there had been a miscommunication about that recipe and the chef had been making it wrong. The owner made a charity donation for me in lieu of a refund, as I didn't have time to pop in and he wasn't set up for phone payments. If I had got no satisfaction on the phone, I might have posted a review. In Scarlett's case, I wouldn't have done anything.

A good exercise day - 17, 000 steps plus starting to clear the kitchen before it is renovated. This is a big improvement on yesterday, when I had a bad reaction to codeine and after spending 20 minutes on the floor too dizzy to stand, I felt nauseated for half the day.

I had to look up what a galah was when I was listening to one of Jane Harper's books.

I participated in the Great British Bird Count a few weeks ago. That day I saw bluetits, crows, a wood pigeon, European blackbirds and a migratory Fieldfare. I commonly see greattits, coaltits, long-tailed-tits, European robins jackdaws and mistle thrushes. Seagulls follow the plough in the field over the wall and I occasionally see a sparrowhawk. Once in a while, a woodpecker visits.

Husband, brought up in Texas and now living in Scotland - which is on a latitude with the Alaska Panhandle - uses a SAD light through the winter but also makes sure to walk for 45 minutes every day, whatever the weather. @Indigo Blue I do recommend bundling yourself into lots of layers and getting out if you can. You may find it more efficacious than your sun basking.

Wow. That's a lot of sugar. My favourite creamy dressing is half mayo half plain natural yoghurt, with salt, pepper and chopped scallions or pureed garlic.

US road traffic accidents dwarf other countries'. Multiple factors but designing for cars to move as fast as possible through built up areas at the expense of pedestrians is a major one. Gifted link https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/27/upshot/road-deaths-pedestrians-cyclists.html?unlocked_article_code=1.UU0.PTJ9.5PpzoT1JfNW0&smid=nytcore-android-share

I saw these in the woods around a week ago - windy day so a bit of blur.

I live in a temperate climate. We keep candles and torches as well as lots of dried goods. We have a small amount of fuel for the open fire and more for the outdoor grill. A battery radio might be a good idea. I could imagine flooding, but because of our location it would be minor.

Still walking and stretching. I think there is progress after my physio appointment on Monday. And I have stronger drugs for night time. Averaging three walks a day, around 14,000 steps. I'm not so tired - I'm more used to standing for the full work day. Sitting has been too painful.

We had a favourite muesli that we would buy, but it wasn't organic. When I learned about oats from Professor Tim Spector, I just looked on the back of the muesli to see the ingredients and proportions, and bought everything from an organic supplier to make up my own.

Yes. And their being born abroad may mean that the father has to prove - for example - that he has resided in his home country for a certain number of years. Some countries are wary these days of continuing to pass on citizenship to families with only tenuous links to the location.

We buy organic because of the Glyphosate.

I'm enjoying Fisk. It's an Australian comedy on UK Netflix.

Ferment it longer? My first home yoghurt from any culture takes a long time. Sometimes overnight. The time reduces as the culture is reused. Once you are happy with it, chilling makes it more set too, and you can strain it if you like.

I'm so happy for you!

On the flip side - I am taking undergraduate university classes for fun at present and it's a much more satisfying experience than forty years ago. In the same amount of time, using the library's online resources, I can dive so much deeper and investigate such thrilling corners. It's so exciting. Rather than begrudging today's students their easier study, I'm delighted that they can achieve so much with today's tools.

I don't have a brand for you, but I have found that the texture of edamame pasta is better than other bean/lentil pasta. So long as you don't overcook, it's less gummy.

@Ali in OR thanks for starting February. @Eos lovely picture. I'm walking and stretching but not getting anywhere. I'm going back to the physio on Monday, and talking to the doctor on Tuesday. Today - walk from home to a local National Trust property, then around the garden there. The weather is warm and dry but pretty windy. The Snowdrops and Winter Aconites are out in the grounds - a bit early for Snowdrops in Scotland.

Hi, Kareni. I've received the stamps and am putting three Shirley Bassey stamps into the post for you. I will also send a couple of Scotland stamps - one flag, one thistle. For my book mark, would this work? On one side a sprig of rosemary and a chocolate chip cookie with a Scottish and a US stamp; on the other side a laurel leaf/sprig and a jay with a Scottish and a US stamp. No text/quotations, thank you. The symbols represent our family and our national affiliations. Thanks!

It depends in your standards. I groomed our labradoodle - poodle fur - at home for a few years. I just used scissors all over to quickly get rid of the bulk, then clippers to finish. I used scissors around her feet, ears and head. She looked fine for a country dog, but not very fancy.