Well, it’s been an experience.   A hesitant first step on 1 April, then tiptoeing through the next few days, and then little by little moving from tiptoe …. to walk …. to stride.   For me, a journey of memories, a jigsaw of stories, a journal of health, some junk, random jottings … and I’ve run out of ‘j’s’.  And we’re all now 100 days older.

Thank you.  So many have emailed or phoned or messaged in various ways; and then there was the Comments feature from 14 June.  Perhaps I should have opened that earlier, but what’s done is done.  What you’ve said has been so helpful: I’m truly grateful.

In truth it’s been a pleasure.  And a challenge.  And a headache at times, though I never suffer from headaches.  And occasional minor despair as inspiration vanished.  On the other hand, in lockdown it filled the hours – which reminds me: I set myself an hour a day for the blog.  Hopeless.  Let me tell you, it has taken many more than that every day for at least the last 80 days; and it can be tiring.  Regrettably body and brain are getting a bit weary, but that’s expected.

So the intention was to bow out now.  Job done.

New Year Resolutions?  Never kept them.   Blog resolution?   Oh dear.   Not exactly sure.   To continue the daily striding through the journey, the jigsaw, the journal, the jottings and the junk will be too much for body and brain.  The other extreme – silence – might remove an easy way of contacting so many friends.  It might also – please forgive me for saying this – result in more and more personal emails arriving here, from chums wondering how it’s going and expecting personal answers.  Could be difficult: there’s already a big unanswered backlog; so sorry.

So here’s the deal.  I’ll do one tomorrow just to be different: 101 continual days.  Then occasionally.  It could be a reminiscence, a comment on a news item, more tedious moralising (no, I think not), an update on health, or whatever occurs.  If there’s nothing there for, say, a week, just presume I’m having a rest.  I do guarantee though that if anything significant happens on the MND/ALS front it will be posted in the blog.

I think that’s the best: we’ll stay in touch this way, and it should help everyone.

But hold on!  How will you make your scurrilous comments if I haven’t written anything?!!  Look at the top.  There’s a new tab: “Guestbook”.  It’s available 24/7.  Over to you.  And if there’s any topic or theme from earlier blogs that you’d like to read, do use the Search facility: it’s the magnifying glass icon to the right of the “Guestbook” tab.  Click it and type a word: it’s a good search engine.

Thank you again.  The blog has helped me in my troubles, and you’ve helped even more.

And now for something VERY risky.  In the 40th blog on May 10th I did an impromptu, unscripted ‘Hello” to the phone camera.  Didn’t think I could do it again now, but here’s me again, recorded yesterday.  Just about made it.  Thank you.