The rest of today

These last couple of weeks have been rather difficult, so I've had to brace myself rather. Tonight I'm going to let my hair down, as it were, and treat myself to a cider. Whether or not I have it tonight in another matter. Let's see how it goes. If I fancy it, then I'll have it. If I don't fancy it, then I won't. I'll have a routine curry for dinner, and then settle down to computerised card games. In other words it'll be an average sort of evening.

In the meanwhile

I've had a fairly busy couple of hours. After a very difficult session with my autism man, I took myself to the historic building for a bit of practice. My heart wasn't really in it, so I stopped after a short time and planted some things in the garden instead. I did water everything in well, but it probably wasn't necessary if the sky is anything to go by. Then it was back to the library.

The autistic cook

I try to vary my diet, inasmuch as I can, by rotating potatoes, rice and pasta. Well the truth is that that that very cycle has itself become monotonous. I'll have to see if I can come up with anything else.

Sleep

These new tablets really do knock me out. I've been sleeping around ten hours a night, and hardly waking up at all. I don't half feel drowsy though, when I get up.
I have felt a bit odd for the last couple of days. I forgot about Holiday Monday, and was late in ordering my prescription for both the blood pressure tablets. They ran out on Sunday, so I've been a couple of days without them. I did get them first thing this morning, so I hope it won't be too long before they kick in.

The weekend

I had a rather unremarkable weekend. What was remarkable, though, is that the people upstairs were comparatively quiet. I did feel tired after all my playing, and could do nothing more than play computerised card games. I'm still ploughing my way through the Bach Cantatas, and have heard 20 of the 61 cds. I say 'heard' because I haven't been really listening to them. I have listened to Vaughan-Williams' 6th symphony a few times. I've always loked it, but it has really started to grow on me now. I've also listened to lots of Indian classical music, of both the Carnatic and the Hindustani sorts.

My musical activities

Saturday was quite a decent day, and the weather was glorious. Sunday was pretty dire, although the weather continued fine. Yesterday the weather took a turn for the worse; a dark, leaden sky, strong gusty winds, and the ever-present threat of imminent rain. I had a decent sort of day though. And elderly gentleman came back for the fourth time to buy some more of my Haydn cds. The visitors were more generous too. I made enough over the weekend to get this week's bacca.
The Dandrieu is coming along nicely, and I'm now playing in public all of the pieces of his that I'm including in my recital. In the meanwhile I've started working on some pieces by Louis Couperin (La Pienontoise and La Pastourelle), Rameau (Courante and Sarabande from the A minor Suite (Nouvelles Suittes), D'Anglebert (minuet from the suite in G, and the Air Ancien 'Ou estes-vous alle'. I've already got two Scarlatti sonatas ready, and may well play one of Soler's. Then there will be a couple of Pavans and Galliards by Byrd, his Earl Of Oxford's March, and some short pieces from the Fitwilliam Virginal Book. Oh yes, and then there's a sixteenth-Century Spanish piece called La Romanesca. I think that will be variety enough.
This morning I took a booking for a wedding reception in August, where they just want some background music.

The autistic gardener

I have been helping out in the historic building's garden. Here are a few things that I planted.