My Everchanging Plot of Life

Vanished into the ether my last post did! Not a saved draft or anything.... Pah.

The only thing I can remember now about it it that I was going to break with the tradition of this being a words only blog, and share with you a video. But, I can't work how to do it! So, you'll just have to follow the link. I really liked the anarchy.

I think I murmured something about too much domesticity, too little sleep, and too much interference going on!

Today, I am calmer... I understand why various people are concerned and worried, but I need to ignore the unhelpful stuff, and concentrate on what I want and need. I didn't turn my life upside down for a different lot of people to start doing the unhelpful stuff.

The future is looking much more settled, and I can live with the unsettled nature of life until then!

• I have a pair of TPF sized steel toe capped boots on order. (TPF feet being at least three sizes smaller than most of the feet that go through this particular department.)
• I now get to wear jeans to work two days a week.
• I ache like mad after standing all afternoon on a very hard floor, but I learnt a lot.
• I wasn't let loose with a saw, but I've been promised a go next week!

I am also extremely grateful for some past experiences that are going to make this totally unexpected turn of events possible!

But, my laundry is done, my bath is calling and so is my bed... for the next three days are going to be extra busy!

I'm quite glad I had a lazy day yesterday now.

There's exciting! There is a pear tree in the garden. Actually, I'm sure I knew about it before, but had forgotten about it until I caught three respectable, responsible grown ups, (well, they are older than me) all picking pears after a meeting today from the other side of the fence. I so wish I'd had a camera to catch the guilty looks. I'd best do some pear picking before Sunday and take them to share, because there's no way I'll eat a tree full.

I felt like I'd been skiving all day today, but whilst I didn't get done that which I had intended today, I have taken on extra hours at work at very short notice, and it can all be done on Thursday.

And now, to sleep.

and thankful that, thus far in my life, I've avoided being a commuter! This is only temporary, so I should be able to sustain it for the next few months. But, these early mornings are definitely a shock to the system after some time of not having to deal with life before 9.00 a.m.

So, mild domesticity, gentle pottering, and even a bit of leaf raking have been today's activities. Oh, and finally sorting my room out. I concluded unpacking everything for a few months was silly, but unpacking enough to make the room feel like I live in it, and organising the bags and boxes into a more sensible arrangement for getting to the contents, but not feeling overwhelmed by them was the way to go. It looks much better now, and the addition of all my throws as covering boxes devices helped enormously.

I've removed all the unintentional orange stripes from my work clothes as well!

from the point of view of the travel, but I am quite looking forwards to getting back to a more regular routine.

I can see, however, that sticking to my resolve to travel the cheaper, but somewhat slower, way may well weaken as soon as I know how many extra hours work I will be getting and, more importantly, how much I will be paid!

I also want to be able to work out if I can also fit some self-employed music teaching in!!

I may not be going for this interview for the job I don't want next week, after all.

bus routes! And proving that the bus as far as the outer limit of my bus pass, then picking up the train for the 15 minute journey from there will work very nicely. It will only be twice a week.

I am getting used to being back on familiar, yet not at all familiar territory. I have to stop and think in the centre of town which bus I'm coming home on. And where home is for now! I had to remember this morning not to go to my former work place.

I've not unpacked much again, but for different reasons this time. Mostly, for now, I don't need to unpack much and it can stay put until a more permanent abode is found. When I first packed up, I packed in such a way that I can remember where things are!! I may have boxes with space in, but things that belong together, are together, and not all muddled up.

But, I am very, very tired all over again!!

Goodness me, that was a traumatic experience. Getting my photo taken for my bus pass, that is.

It's been a little while since I've visited a photo booth, as I've not needed a photo of myself since I got my photo card with my driving licence. They are seriously high-tech and bossy now, and tell you if the photo is not passport compliant! Twice it told me so, then threatened me I only had one more try to get it right, before extracting another £4.00 out of me. The problem appears to be the fact I wear glasses that create some reflection. But, if I take the glasses off, I can't see either the frame in which my face has to go, or which button to press!! Nor does it look like me without glasses.

Luckily, the non-passport-compliant version of the photo was acceptable for the bus pass! Should I need a passport, I'm going to need a well behaved volunteer to come with me to get it all correct, and acceptable to me as well as the passport people.

Also luckily, by the time I returned home, the washing machine had decided to co-operate, and all was well with my laundry. I had a couple of heart stopping moments where I was convinced I'd broken the machine, or it had died on me, but I'd just not coaxed it sufficiently.

It's been a busy day, one way or another... it's rather nice.

My delightful young assistant of yesterday had his education thoroughly expande! Which is no bad thing, he's never keen on new experiences at the best of times, and adding me into the mix somewhat unexpectedly over the last few weeks has been interesting.

So, he learnt I really can get an awful lot into a small car with the back seats down. That it is possible to drive using only wing mirrors for checking the rear view. That mishaps may happen, but it's possible to charm your way out of them.

He did, however, escape with all possible speed once the task was done!! And he did fill me in on far more of the family gossip of the last few weeks than I think he realised... most useful of him.

There's efficient. All done in an hour, apart from the last bits and pieces to put in tomorrow morning. No, I don't know how it happened either! Could be mostly because I didn't really unpack. Not entirely sure it's all going to fit in the car, though I'm sure most of it will, unlike my delightful young assistant who thinks the car won't hold much at all(his original excuse for trying to get out of a few hours of work, which crumpled at the offer of petrol money and food) - but then, he's never seen me pack a car before!

Back at work after two months away... Odd, but good. Change of lots of things, routine (a few more hours, for one thing!), main work place, lots of oddments to sort out. Lots of excellent conversations with a number of people, and some very surprising conversations also. Think it's going to be a good year there.

Why do I possess a yellow tortoise, with a green shell and a purple hat?