It's my party...

... and all the drinks will be non-alcoholic.

I've often wondered what it would be like to be told 'One more drink could kill you.'

Now I know.

According to the consultant, a liqueur chocolate could be enough to land me in the hospital; a small sherry could land me in the mortuary. So I won't be hitting the Gordons this Christmas.

Apparently the pain I was in in July/August was pancreatitis, and I was lucky it went away so quietly. Next time I might not be so lucky.

So now I am psyching myself up for an imminent MRI scan, to see if they can risk leaving my operation for another two months. Otherwise I shall be in the hospital sooner rather than later.

Not quite how I planned on seeing out the year, but then things never do turn out how I plan them.

There's a lesson to be learned in there somewhere, I'm sure.