Woke early this morning to take Emi to the station to catch the train to Manchester airport. She's flying from Manchester to Dusseldorf in Germany, then a couple of hours after arriving there she boards another aeroplane to Japan, (just over 11 hours I think from Germany.)
Once she's landed at Narita airport in Japan she then has a two hour bus ride into Tokyo. All in all, a very long, tiring journey.
I lifted her suitcase and hand luggage onto the train from a cold and windy platform at York station at 11:23 this morning and kissed her goodbye then I returned home feeling sad. Only Django and myself here until the 17th when she returns.
Just had a brief 'phone conversation with her from Germany and the first part of the trip seems to have gone ok, although the plane was about to land in Dusseldorf but suddenly went back up and circled the airport before landing successfully at the second attempt. Apparently something to do with the wind. She's just about to board the plane to Tokyo so I won't hear from her until she gets to Narita airport, sometime around 6:30 am our time.
Django is looking for her. Of course, he doesn't understand that she's gone away for eleven days. He just knows she's not here and wonders where she is. He's sitting in the doorway, waiting for her. Poor Django, he'll be fretting for a while.
I'm due for some visits to help cheer me up. Martin Bostock is coming over next week to take some photos of me for publicity purposes and Paul Gilby has promised a visit, as has Jon Wallinger. And on the 12th my eldest daughter Julia and Grandson Luke are coming up from London to spend three days with me. I'll try to organise a get together of the whole offspring clan, Julia, Elle, Elliot and Luke. Perhaps this will help the days go quicker but it's the nights that I'll be aware of Emi's absence the most.
Still, I've got my studio switched on now and a track close to finishing. It will be the title track of the 'These Stars Are Fire' album, planned for release at my 70th birthday event.
Right now, it's 7pm and time for my blood-sugar test and the second insulin injection of the day...and also to pop a ready-meal into the oven.
Today's journal image is of me 20 some years ago standing beside the Toyota MR2 sports car I owned back then. The picture was taken by Emi at Withernsea on the East Coast of Yorkshire. (That is Withernsea lighthouse in the background.)
