Pleased to get tickets to see Rich Hall at The Point, Eastleigh in November - done this before and found really funny.  Also booked for a couple of other films, Inception and Made in Dagenham.

Another good day out with son Jeremy and family - met at the Horniman museum which has a very nice sea creatures exhibition including my favourite, jellyfish.  Then a walk around Dulwich Park (mile or so) and lunch at Pizza Express.  Shrieking children (other people's), but excellent lunch.  Then over to their place for the afternoon.  Excited to meet their two new kittens - each very like our own (17-year-old) Minnie, and adorably playful and cute.  Both curled up happily on John's lap so couldn't possibly be disturbed.

Another enjoyable and interesting Writing Buddies meeting; the necessary cheques have been paid out and the books balanced to show - we hope - enough funds to pay for set-up of the anthology itself.  Judgments have already been made, but no-one except the organiser and secretary know them.  Grrr.  John is coming to the next meeting where results will be announced - he doesn't know whether to bring champagne or Kleenex.

Food corner: have since dined at the South Garden Chinese Restaurant (Sunday buffet - delectable), and Coriander Lounge, both firm favourites.  Chinese place in Southampton has changed hands and reopened as the Royal Wok - enjoyable lunch though the only vegetarian dish on the special menu is mixed vegetables.  The odd cashew nut or piece of tofu would have been nice, but these are only on the main menu.  Next time, I think.  Lunch on the Isle of Wight was at our favourite, Olivo (Ryde, but also Newport), where they adapted their goats' cheese salad for me.

Spent a happy afternoon at Mottisfont Abbey and House; an amazing art collection and some trompe l'oeuil artwork by Whistler.

Have now met with a kinesiologist at the Ashtara Centre about my food problems; she agreed I was very reactive to wheat but also warns mildly against wine (ouch), strawberries (oh no), oats (bye bye home-made granola), mushrooms (I 'heart' them), and tomatoes (several kilos in the fridge).  Even eggs got a bit of a sideways look.  It's an amazing system - you can feel the different reactions in the muscles.  I'll continue absolutely wheat-free (not hard these days) - already feel benefits including less appetite, starting to lose weight, rings looser on fingers - and keep mainly off the other offenders.

Horse goes into a bar; barman asks, "Why the long face?".