Sausage rolls, chips, sweetcorn / baked beans

I love my mum, you know I do, but today has been one of those days where it’s a minor miracle that both of us have made it to the evening.

It’s been a day of mum asking if there’s anything I can do to help with her headache, me suggesting various options, and mum refusing them all. Then, five minutes later, asking if I’m sure there’s nothing that might help.

It’s been a day of mum asking why she has various symptoms then, when I respond, snapping “no it’s not that”. If I say something vague and placatory, she asks if she’s done something to upset me, because why won’t I give her a proper answer? If I don’t respond at all, it’s a pointed “didn’t you hear me?”

It’s been a day of mum reciting her various medical complaints in a 30 second loop, eventually stopping herself with “sorry, I shouldn’t go on”. Then starting up again 30 seconds later.

It’s been a day of me responding, after hours of intense provocation, with a strained “yes, I know”, and being told “no you don’t”.

It’s been a day of mum picking a tv show, waiting until I’ve just started getting interested, then changing the channel.

It’s been a day of ‘cooking’ (heating up) one of mum’s favourite meals, sausage rolls with chips and sweetcorn, and gaining in response a disappointed face and “I probably won’t eat much – I don’t like sausage rolls”.

It hasn’t been a day of visiting a second-hand cat shop (cat rescue shelter) and admiring adorable felines, as mum was feeling too ill to get out of bed until it was too late in the day to go.

The universe, however, decided to be kind and provide a cat:

There was clearly something up in the climbing rose that mog was interested in, as they kept climbing up the trellis. Mum and I would go out and make “get down!” noises, to which mog responded with that blank feline expression of “what are you going to do if I refuse? Nothing. So I’m refusing.”

Then I decided to go out and plant my saffron crocus bulbs (grow your own saffron!) only for it to promptly start pouring with rain.

I gave up, as I have now given up on the whole day: mum’s watching Strictly, so I’m going to go and get a tub of chocolate brownie ice cream and hide with it in a book. It’s safer, and far less frustrating, in there.