Pain and Pleasure

I have had a toothache for a while now. I first noticed it just after our week away in the Quercy - a cold drink went straight through a tooth and let me know about it. Since then a dull pain has started to develop and then intensify, kept under control by the lovely codeine/paracetemol effervescent painkillers that you can buy over the counter in French pharmacists.

Back in London for this week, I finally managed to get into the dentist to find out what's what with my teeth and the bad news is that I have an abcess which needs root canal work. The pain begins at 3.30pm this afternoon. Then hopefully the pain stops too.

My 50th birthday now seems a long way past. It was last Saturday actually but I had no time to write about it because I was busy with friends and guests and Debrah all weekend and because when I got back to London there was no internet connection for two days here at home.

When you haven't got it you realise how dependent you have become on it. I couldn't check bank accounts, I couldn't check business enquiries, I couldn't blog, twitter, facebook or skype - it was very very frustrating.

After one day doing other things, against all my principles I resorted to visiting a Starbucks. I have never liked the place and have always thought it was expensive and the coffee rubbish but I always remember that they had free internet access. Well nothing has changed - the coffee is still like dishwater and the service appalling (wrong orders/dropped drinks/wrong change - just in the 45 minutes I was there) - except that the internet connection is no longer free. It seems they have pulled the plug on the one good thing they offered.

I had a fabulous birthday and a wonderful weekend from beginning to end. The highlights included being told by a neighbour to keep the noise down (the nerve) on Friday night, a delicious lunch on the terrace of restaurant Le Parc on Saturday, Tim acting as the most charming wine waiter on Saturday evening, dancing to a French disco in the early hours, Aib's Sunday hangover, pizza and grilled meat at Les Paillottes in Pradelles-en-Val followed by river swimming at Rebaute on Sunday afternoon and Sam throwing up into a wheelie bin on Monday on the way to the airport - classic.

This week, indeed month, of celebrations continues apace. It is my Mum's 80th on Sunday and Debrah's birthday today - so we should be raising a glass to her later on this evening - root canal surgery and local anaesthetic permitting!