Annoyances: Cancer and Burrs

Oncologist appointment at Addenbrookes, followed by planning scan for radiotherapy.

Traveling as usual the pretty A10, with its patchwork of fields stretching out from each side, with occasional villages and small towns to pass through.

It is a mainly straight road, with just one stretch of dual carriageway, stretching almost all the way between the Harlow roundabout and the Braughing turning. Almost the entire journey is made so pleasant by the wild flowers which cover the verges, great armies of stately rose bay willow herb, climbing out of ditches, marching along straights and ascending banks verging the verges, they march together with armies of thistles, once stunningly purple, now fluffy-headed. The tall grasses have now turned golden in the warmth of the sun and with the lack of rain. The umbellifers now stand head and shoulders above the other flowers and are but seed heads now, but how magnificent they look, standing sentinel above the others. I love to squat down and photograph these monstrously large plants, against a clear blue sky.

A walk by the river yesterday evening, showed the burdocks with their enormous leaves and round prickly offerings, drying on the plants, not only in readiness to procreate but also patiently waiting for dogs with their furry coats to pass by, each prickle on the burr has a little hook on the end and it is very effective, many country walks have ended with twenty minutes of burrs being picked off socks, trousers, sweaters and jackets; gardening gloves are best to be worn when doing this as the hooks also like to engage with skin.

Better even than skin is dog fur, for many years we had shelties (Shetland sheepdogs) their beautiful long fur was exactly right for the burrs and our four-legged friends were sometimes so entangled by these prickly seeds that it became impossible for them to walk, and we would stop and have to spend ages trying to free them. At last I wised up, after many years, and took a small pair of scissors on walks for the worst ones were always caught up in the soft fur where the leg meets the body; it must have been so unpleasant for our little friends – who were so frolicksome and happy when released.