Ireland day 1164. Thursday 05 December 2024- St Joseph’s 2

Today’s summary	Took the DART first thing this morning to Raheny and then walked to St Joseph’s hospital to have a lesion removed from my back. All done and stitched up by 10am. Reversed the journey back to Malahide then went out for lunch with Val at the Grand Hotel. Spent most of the rest of the day in the flat relaxing while it poured down outside
Today’s weather	Damp and grey first thing, heavy rain in the afternoon. Moderate westerly wind. Appx 10c

Today’s overview location (The blue mark shows the location of my route)		Close-up location (The blue mark shows where I walked) (No GPX today)

Commentary

It was a case of role reversal today. After Val’s dental shock on Tuesday, it was my turn to feel the spotlight of the medical profession.

I had a lesion on my back that was supposed to have been removed at the same time as the one on my chin, back in September. But my shingles was quite bad at the time so the surgeon decided that as there was no great urgency, the operation could safely be delayed to a later date when the shingles was better. Well, today was that later date.

St Joseph’s is a small day-case hospital in Raheny, so it’s quite easy to get to. Just five stops on the DART from Malahide and then a ten minute walk. The only unfortunate aspect of the whole episode was, as far I was concerned, that the appointment was at 8am. That meant a 6am reveille so I could be ready to catch a 7:14 train.

The admissions process and the operation itself were straightforward and efficient, and I was stitched up and ready to catch the train back to Malahide before 10am.

By the way, this time I asked the surgeon to put in dissolving stitches so I wouldn’t have the hassle of going back to Beaumont to get them taken out. Also there would be less risk of any accidentally being left behind(!). He happily obliged but advised that I had to keep them dry lest they should dissolve prematurely. He also told me to be careful when hiking in Wicklow because they would be bound to get wet unless I invested in some very good waterproofs! OK. Point taken.

Once back at the flat, we had a cup of tea then Val and I staggered off down to the Grand Hotel to get some soup for lunch. After all we both felt the need to celebrate getting these particular medical traumas out of the way. And neither of us had any great desire to start cooking.

Because of the early start, we were back from lunch by 2pm, leaving us with a whole afternoon to put our collective feet up and relax. I must admit that a few moments after settling down on the sofa I thought I heard someone snoring and it took me a while to work out that it was actually me.

I think that’s more than enough excitement for one day so I’m going to sign off for now. It’s pouring down outside so I think we both feel justified in staying indoors. Though the rain is forecast to stop later so if we’re not feeling too dopey, we might stir ourselves and potter down to SuperValu to get some treats to accompany an evening most likely to be spent watching TV and possibly even enjoying a beer (or two).

Today’s photos (click to enlarge)


I spotted this roundel by the exit from Raheny station. It’s the only one of its kind I’ve ever seen and I must admit I don’t actually know what the “Dublin Coastal Trail” is	Colourful mural decorating the alley leading back to the station after my operation

Southbound DART trundling into Raheny station	Lobby of the Grand Hotel. Rapidly becoming our second home!



Imposing tree by the front entrance to St Joseph’s hospital