22^nd August 2025

It’s a big day today… I am launching my-long awaited much sweated over website!! Over the past couple of days there have been all sorts of accidents and emergencies in my house, leaving me what you might call ‘totally cream crackered’, and definitely feeling my age!! BUT, I just heard on Radio 4 that the oldest verified living person in the world is in the UK, and today she celebrates her 116^th birthday!!!! Ethel Caterham was born in the reign of Edward 7^th and is the last Edwardian alive, also the oldest British person ever. How amazing is that!  One of 8 children she remembers that they didn’t have much, not even electricity. She is spending her birthday with her family in Surrey, and at least for today, she sounds livelier than me!  I am now totally put in my place and will stop whingeing and get on with thinking about three things to be thankful for today. And they are … Fifi came out of her outdoor cage in time for her 8am tablets… which meant I didn’t have to try and crawl through a very small hole to extract her. Secondly… the huge thunderstorm last night has brought much cooler fresher weather, and my house is cooling down… in fact I am sat in a draught and have had to put on more clothing!! And third, well obviously I am launching the website… hoorah!! A final thought from Ethel… when asked the secret to her long life… ’I don’t have secret… I just live’. What a great thought for the day!!