has been seen today. We have been to Singleton Hospital, Swansea again to see Mr Davies. Sort of good news and bad. The repair is healing as well as it can but there was a tiny tear at the bottom that needed lasering.
We went and had a coffee whilst we waited for the Argon laser to be free. John went in on his own, I wasn’t allowed so I had a chat with another couple. John said it was quite painful and coming home it has been painful, so I supposed it’s all been stirred up again. The eye will not settle down for more than a month and we go back again in three weeks time.
There was no talk of how much vision might be left, he will not be able to tell until all the gas that was put in has leaked out. But at least the retina is healing. Also Mr D reckoned he could go up the field on the quad bike (carefully).
I had a good chat with this couple we sat by. She was 76, had had a cataract op that had gone wrong. The irony was that she didn’t really need it but her optician advised it so that she could read better. The surgeon has since gone back to Australia so she was hoping Mr Davies could give her some answers.
Anyway I went in to writer/research mode and asked them about their Christmasses, in the Neath area. She was brought up by her grandparents and he was in the tinplate works so was quite well paid and they lived comfortably. She told me how evey year on 31st May all the beds were stripped and they went into summer sheets and blankets regardless of the weather. Her grandmother then washed everything by hand, she didn’t even have anything to wring out the clothes with. This was in the 1930’s.
They also went into their summer dresses and left off their liberty bodices and flannel vests. I had a liberty bodice when I was a child in the 1950’s. This was a thick cotton vest with extra seams. My mother had a mangle but it must have taken ages to dry.
It passed the time and we had a laugh so they hope they’ll see me again!
At least the weather improved for coming home and it is now sunny, cloudy and windy and not so cold. The lawns are looking rather a mess but perhaps in a week or so when the weather improves John will be able to cut the back one.
