Another really bad night. Awoke at 1:30 am. I had only eaten cous cous but that was enough to set off the acid reflux reaction. My legs were burning. I opened the sash windows and heard a man calling desperately for his friend or his dog. It made a surreal impression what with the wind and the rain which lashed down from time to time. I made it through the night and we went down for breakfast at 8.30 am

The staff really get to know their guests and go the extra mile to chat to them. In November, the hotel was taken over by a group specialising in buying Apartments and servicing them and they have around 87 in the Plymouth area so this is a big scale operation. The new owners wisely recognized the bright and cheerful staff as an asset and have kept them on. This morning I had a large plate of prunes, apricots, mixed fruit with two strawberry yogurts. I then had a large plate of porridge. Then had two poached eggs on toast with all the coffee I could drink.

The real pain in the backside is parking. Ringo which is a parking specialist have obviously worked together with the council to maximize income. If you want to park in the street it will cost you over 16 pounds a day with a minimum of £2.20 per hour. However it does not say when the paid parking hours are. If you look very carefully at the bottom on the small print you see that it ends at nine o’clock in the evening but it is not clear when the charging period starts. Is it 8 a.m., 9am? If I arrive at three a.m and depart at 4am do I have to pay £2.20. I think the complicated instructions are a subtle form of harassment to make people feel insecure.

There is no question that there is a huge parking problem in Plymouth and very few car parks. For using a parking space in the hotel the charge was £12.50 per 24 hour period. They could also sell us a day ticket for eight pounds but it runs till 10:00 a.m. each day. If you wish to stay in a city Hotel like this one it is really worth inquiring about the terms and conditions are parking.

Anyway we left in the rain about 10 am. Purchased some petrol and off we went to see an old friend in South Somerset. Three years ago my friend’s house was flooded by an exceptional cloud burst that happened up the lane from where she lives and repairs cost nearly 1 million pounds. Water damage is not just to the surface to be swept up with a mop and broom but it makes the whole brickwork damp and you have to wait months for it to dry out before you can rebuild.

The good news was that the whole place received a modernization and an uplift and it is like having a new home. My friend has two cats but three very large dogs . They are train to protect their owners . If someone comes along to the grounds that they do not know they do not attack them but hold then down until someone comes along. I guess from their size that they are extremely good at what they do but I will not attempt providence by misbehaving their presence.

The conversations must remain private but we did discuss the next generation of quantum healing electronics, the Genius app. which analyzes from your voice your mental and physical condition. It then puts the appropriate waves into operation in order to balance your body and mind. We discussed at although we are very good at our work it may be time to let it go and make a contribution to society in another way.

We had a great surprise when I mentioned in passing that a friend of mine needed some help in setting up his business in Lesotho. I had visited him only the day before. By the most amazing serendipity it appears that my friend knew someone in this very small landlocked country in South Africa who could be of the exact help that my friend Steve needed in order to move forward. I got Steve on the phone straight away and told him the news and then I got them both on the phone to exchange information. Steve is a great one for social transformation and renewal as was the person living in Lesotho who had been recommended by my friend.

I absolutely love this form of networking and I feel the only thing that is really worthwhile, never mind earning money or that a bit, is to bring people together for the greater good of mankind

To home.   We drove 287 miles and spent £60 on petrol.