WITH a house full of boys, play fighting breaks out sporadically.

I try not to get too involved, either ignoring the contest or watching with half an eye from the sidelines.

But sometimes you have to step up and step in. The nature of boys is that there’s always an element of jockeying for position in a family hierarchy and in my role as the alpha male – I know, I know it makes me laugh too – people will want to challenge for that top position.

It’s never been a problem before but times change – little boys become bigger boys and eventually young men.

No longer can they all be pinned to the floor at the same time and given a joint typewriter. At the moment I can still take them down one by one but, like Obi-Wan Kenobi, I will become weak and it’s unlikely that if I’m struck down, my powers will become more powerful than you can imagine. Instead I’ll probably just groan a bit and clutch my dodgy knee.

All this means is that I’m hoping I can stay on top long enough for the boys to grow up and no longer deem it acceptable to challenge their parent to a UFC-style battle in the front room when I’ve just got back from work and want my tea.

In other news, we had reason to call NHS 111 at the weekend as the girl wasn’t feeling well.

We answered the operator’s questions and were told a clinician would call within a couple of hours. Two hours came and went, as did three hours. After three-and-a-half hours we got a call from a nurse who asked more questions and said a GP would call shortly.

We queried the delay and they said everyone was busy dealing with emergencies, which seems a bit strange when it’s supposed to be a non-emergency service.

The doctor called soon after we spoke to the nurse but we still waited just short of four hours to get medical help, which is poor.

Next time we will by-pass 111 and probably just head along to A&E at the Friarage which is okay for us, but for anyone without a car this is not an option.

I’ve since called and asked YAS if this wait is typical but as yet I’ve not had a reply, which suggests that it just might be.