The anticlockwise M25 was solid today, and the knock-on effects resulted in chaos on a lot of local roads. Coming along the A2 I avoided the Dartford Heath turnoff as it had a tailback onto the A2 but as a result got stuck for over half an hour on the half mile of link road from the A2:M25 interchange to Princes Road. This runs alongside the M25 just a barrier width away and it was infuriating to see the jammed M25 traffic moving faster than the link road - the result of traffic trying to get onto the M25 standing in the yellow box at the Princes Road roundabout. I did not get to the Centre until twenty past five and expected to be too late to help Isobel with her tea; but it was sitting on her table, sheathed in cling film waiting for the helper to finish feeding another patient. When the helper appeared a couple of minutes later she was surprised and pleased to find me finishing feeding Isobel ham salad and going onto desert of mandarin oranges and cream. As usual, Isobel ate all the food up, very quickly.

Isobel was again in a cheerful and relaxed mood. She said that she had done nothing but lie on the bed watching television all day but had not been at all bored. Her speech was not as good as the previous two days but did not become seriously jumbled until after half past six. I told her that her sister Rhoda was coming down a week tomorrow with Robert. They were leaving Yorkshire after Robert got back from work, so would not reach us until late at night. They would come in to see Isobel on the Saturday morning. She was very pleased with this news. I wondered if she would like all of us to have dinner in the Chequers (the pub just outside the Centre), but she said she did not want to go there herself, however she liked the idea that we should go there then come back to see her again in the afternoon.

Isobel demolished the rest of the chocolates brought by Louisa. Zoë's birthday card, which must have been in transit for the best part of two weeks, finally arrived this morning, so we moved on to investigate more contents of the box Zoë sent earlier. There were some milk chocolate pearls which Isobel fed herself, although I ended up retrieving three that had escaped into the bedclothes on the far side of the bed. We agreed the unusual box was worth re-using to store items in. The pink Kalanchoe that Terri and Louisa had brought in when Isobel first came to the Centre has finished flowering and I took it home for repotting, the Guzmannia that came at the same time is still going strong, the zygocactus is still hanging on - fading but still attractive. Towards the end of my visit Isobel's speech became difficult to follow. I think there are at least two elements involved, straightforward physical tiredness and also a sort of oral tiredness which happens when she has done a lot of talking. On this occasion there was no sign of physical tiredness. I finally left just before half seven.