Another year older and a lovely day, spending time together, and with family and friends. A birthday not spent at work, and somehow more enjoyable than usual – perhaps because of how it was spent, perhaps because of the turning tide of life.

We had brunch with our biker buddies, fellow veterans of two Harley Davidson-riding tours in the USA; and an evening meal with our children, their other halves and our grandson; good food, great company, and lots of laughter.

I received many gifts, and they followed two common themes: alcohol and woodworking. The tools included a Joseph Marples bevel gauge, Thomas Flinn saws and a chisel hammer.

Most new tools require a little finishing or, I think the term is, fettling, and I have already fettled the hammer, shaping the handle for comfort and changing the finish from a shiny thin varnish to BLO (boiled linseed oil) with wax to follow. This process, is not a chore – there is real satisfaction in honing a factory finished edge, reshaping a handle … of making a tool “mine.” I hope it reflects my aspiring craftsmanship.

Alcohol came in the form of a gin-making kit (no, HMRC, I am not setting up an illicit distillery), whisky and a box of Badger beers. The latter include a bottle of well-named Tanglefoot ale. Seeing it, I was reminded of a training event I attended in 1989. This was a three day course in paediatrics, giving training to undertake six-week baby checks. It was based in Dorchester, and we were living in Southampton, so I stayed in a B&B in a nearby village. The village pub sold the local Badger brewery ales, and a couple of pints of this said brew did indeed tangle my feet on my walk back, and have the room spinning when I fell into bed!

It is a moot point whether Practice nurses and Nurse Practitioners can, with a two day course and some mentoring, take over the six-week baby checks. I have my doubts: hip examination is one thing, but listening for heart murmurs, checking femoral pulses, and examining eyes for a “red reflex” can be difficult for even experienced doctors. We need to be careful, lest the GP shortage leads to inappropriate delegation of work that requires a GP’s experience and clinical judgment. Delegation should only be made to those who have been fully trained and thoroughly assessed and who have the necessary background experience – for safety, diagnostic and medico-legal reasons. Maybe I am a grumpy old Luddite …

… indeed, I received a jar of ‘Grumpy Old Man’s Mustard’ from James and Steph. I hope that this gift will prove to be less well-named, or at least less appropriately-named. I have not been the most relaxed of husbands and Dads, nor the happiest doctor of late at work. However, I dare to hope that I will be a lot less grumpy than hitherto, as I step off the treadmill that General Practice has become in recent years, and turn to learning to work wood with my hands. I am really looking forward to putting to use my expanding collection of tools, both newly gifted and those that I have inherited or have been passed on to me from friends and patients.

The wittiest card award goes to my brother Darryl …

…. and the funniest present award, to Siobhan – “No,” I assured Sylvia, “I would not trade you for all the woodworking tools in the world!”