Well, that did not go as planned. We spent a pleasant, if low-key, birthday, as posted last time, and went to bed anticipating plenty of fun for the following day. But in the night, durham_rambler began to feel unwell. In retrospect, he has had a lingering overnight cough for several weeks, and has begun complaining of shortness of breath, in terms of being less young and less fit than he was: but by the small hours of Wednesday morning, he was coughing constantly, gasping for air, sweating - bad enough, in short, that we called an emergency ambulance, and by five a.m. we were in A&E.

As soon as they had him hooked up to an oxygen supply, he started to feel better. He has been extensively scanned and measured, and enjoyed, everytime he was asked his date of birth, being able to give it, with the comment that "Yesterday was my birthday!" which earned him plenty of extra birthday wishes - in which context, I should thank everyone who left greetings for him in my previous post: I have pointed him in that direction! He was transferred within the day to the ward adjacent to A&E, and is still there, still on oxygen, though he now has a portable cylinder, which means he is able to visit the bathroom, which has cheered him up considerably. He was also allowed to shower, though unplugging him from the oxygen left him a little breathless.

D. has persisted with his planned visit, and been immensely helpful about driving me to and from the hospital. I sent him out to shop for his own breakfast requirements, since shopping was part of the post-birthday outing plan which we had to abandon. Another abandoned plan was for the three of us to join D.'s sister and brother-in-law for lunch at the High Force Hotel and possibly a walk after. I have sent D. off to do this on his own, and I will visit durham_rambler this afternoon, when visiting is permitted: one of his colleagues from the City of Durham Trust has just phoned to offer me a lift, and I have accepted, with much gratitude (there are buses, but this is so much easier).

I asked durham_rambler if there was anything I could bring him this afternoon, and he asked for his shoes. I refused: they are heavy, and he doesn't have much storage space. He clearly anticipates being sent home at any minute, and I take this as a good sign: not because I think it likely, but because it means he is feeling much better. I'm sure when he is discharged, it will be without warning (and he will need door-to-door transport, so he'll be fine wearing his slippers); and I know that they can send him home with a portable oxygen cylinder. But I suspect they'll want more of a diagnosis than You seem to have a chest infection, let's see if it responds to antibiotics...

We live from hour to hour, visiting time to visiting time. He has his phone, and a whole tangle of chargers, only two of which he actually needs. He can call me with updates, and he does. He has ordered fish and chips for lunch, and solved three clues of yesterday's crossword. So it goes.