Our family doctor practices out of a clinic not far from our house. It's the new model in the province that now dominates. The clinic itself is housed within a big box store, The Great Canadian Superstore no less. All manner of medical services are available there, along with a broad roster of general practitioners. It's convenient to the community, but bears little resemblance to the traditional doctor's office. Behind the reception desk sit a number of receptionists and you are instructed which one to approach, depending who your doctor is. We really do miss our family doctor who retired about fifteen years ago. He was a breed apart. Now a rarity.

 

 

The clinic broadcasts news of when it's open, when it's closed for public holidays and other such events. Appointments can be scheduled online and during COVID, telephone appointments were mostly arranged; seeing an MD person-to-person was unusual for two years. Good thing we had no need to be seen through the coronavirus pandemic years. Because of the severe shortage of doctors we're among the fortunate ones who have the services of a family physician.

 

 

A few days back a notice arrived in our email inbox alerting us to the fact that henceforth there would be a charge for prescription renewals. Patients were advised to consider single or family applications specific to their needs for enrolment in the prescription renewal plan. An annual fee would be applied to activate enrolment in their renewal scheme. An application form to be filled out on line and a diversion to a secure payment site for the first year's installment. Unfortunately the application was so poorly designed it just didn't work. Instead of conveying you to the site the link was supposed to take you to, to complete the transaction by authorizing a payment, it was completely circuitous, returning to the original site.

 

 

So Irving went over to the clinic today. And discovered that the huge emporium housing the clinic along with other smaller services all linked to the placeholder Loblaw, had closed all its entrance/exits but one. Evidently the increasingly troublesome problem of shop-lifting has become so acute it was found necessary to leave just one ingress/egress available. He also discovered when he finally arrived at the clinic reception area, a large number of people awaiting attention. All of whom had experienced the same loopy website failure for the clinic's new prescription renewal plan. Embarrassing for the front-line workers who kept apologizing for the inadequacy of the set-up.

 

 

In Irving's absence, I cleaned the house. He was gone quite a long time, with a number of errands to tend to. I had dusted the furniture (which takes forever since whatever sits on it needs dusting), then dry-mop-dusted the floors and finally did the vacuuming. In between the vacuuming and washing the floors I prepared a potato salad for dinner. Once that was done, the floors got washed and by that time Irving had returned home. Finally the house cleaning finished, it was time for a ravine walk through the forest trails with Jackie and Jillie.

 

A day not as hot as yesterday, with a fine breeze and full sun, and we came across quite a few other people out on the trails. Also returned to the forest after a break of several days were mosquitoes. I was looking for snakes warming themselves in the sun, but haven't seen any yet this year. The Mallard drake, on the other hand, was out sunning himself and steaming along the creek. The female nowhere in sight, nursing their young without a doubt.

 

Later, back home, we relaxed in the garden enjoying the sight of the beautiful, bright flowers just in their beginning stages of maturation and promises of months of pleasure; theirs to give, ours to receive. Our elderly tree peony is outdoing itself this year. And the Bridal Wreath spirea is now also in full bloom. Joining the two flowering weeping pea trees. At which we watched bumblebees hard at work and then were delighted to see a pair of hummingbirds claiming temporary ownership of the tiny yellow flowers.