Feeling rather strange at the moment. On Friday morning I was quite Ok, but in the afternoon developed bad cold symptoms, with lots of sneezing and nasal irritation. Nevertheless managed to finish the minutes from a meeting I’d been to on Thursday, and three Parish Pump items on Queen Mary, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Wilfred Owen before walking with Dot up to the Côte Brasserie in Exchange Street to have a meal with the Greens which I probably should have cancelled.

Managed to struggle through it (it was very enjoyable off and on) and went home and to bed, well dosed up with various pills etc. Had a good night’s sleep and then slept till 2.15pm while Dot went to the supermarket. Felt quite a lot better; so got up and had a bath, then watched TV and had a meal which Dot cooked for me.

Last night I didn’t sleep so well, and this morning felt pretty mushy but without much in the way of my usual debilitating cold symptoms; so went to church with Dot and gave a sermon without too much trouble.  Did make the concession of not playing guitar. Nice service generally, but with a small congregation: Judy was ill at home with severe sickness. Missed a Martin Laurance exhibition at Mandell’s, but came home and watched some more TV. Now the cold doesn’t feel as if it’s gone completely, but it’s very quiet. Not sure if it’s a lull or it’s on the way out.

Dot completed her Welsh expedition successfully. The weather was pretty good and she felt well. The training was also much appreciated, and there’s a chance of a return visit. It was nice for her to stay with David the way there and have an afternoon with him on the way back. She arrived back in Norwich about 8.30pm on Tuesday. I had been doing a lot of catch-up on the computer and had written today’s sermon.

It was a pretty damp week, but we did venture out on Wednesday to watch All the Money in the World at the Odeon. A good film, with an excellent performance by Christopher Plummer as J Paul Getty – a last-minute replacement for Kevin Spacey, who blotted his copybook in the usual way by being outed as someone with unpleasant tendencies. Allegedly.

At 4pm on Thursday, when I was still feeling quite well, I went to a Footprints steering meeting at the Maid’s Head, where Lucy gave a presentation on her plans for the Hungate exhibition. Also present: Rebecca Pinner, who seems to have replaced the long-term sick Karen Smyth; Ron and Peter; Gary Tuson from the NRO; Sophie Cabot from Hungate; and Paul Dickson, a city guide and rock n roll singer representing the Maid’s Head, who want to get involved with Paston walks in Norwich and themed Paston weekends.

Paul greeted me warmly and knew a lot about my background, including a poetry performance at Welborne Arts Festival some years ago, and the fact that I trained journalists. As usual, I didn’t remember him, though we must have met before. Anyway, we shall probably be working together in the future if the Paston plan works out. After the meeting, I walked a short way with Rebecca before she headed off in the direction of Vauxhall Street.