patchworkperson

.. with DH dying (he has a cold) on the sofa & me with a headache I've had since I woke up.
We were supposed to be going out with DS, DIL & her parents. DH says I should go without him. I don't do well in social situations so with a headache in a noisy club as the only one not part of a couple would be unbearable. I am very uncomfortable talking to people - always feel I don't have anything interesting to say. It takes me ages to get comfortable with people, I'm also terrified of doing anything in public that may draw attention to myself (like dancing). Consequently, I have very few friends. How sad is that at my age. My son's in-laws are very out-going & sociable. How can I learn to be a little more like that?
This headache business worries me. I read recently that it could be a symptom of high blood pressure. Also sleepiness - thats me now, fall asleep at the drop of a hat. I don't rush to a medical dictionary at every ache but I am concerned. My father died at age 47 from HBP/stroke. I had a HBP scare a couple of years ago when the blood transfusion people wouldn't take my blood. I started taking all sorts of vits recommended to reduce HBP, started the decaf coffee (yuck). My weight has slowly gone up, although not by much, as has my caffeine intake over the last year. I'm not one for resolutions but on Wednesday its back to Slumming World & Thursday to the Doc for BP check. The silliest thing is the smoking - I smoke 3 cigarettes a day & only at work. So I'm aiming for that to go too. I feel very unhealthy & yesterdays BMI calculation clinched it. If I want to live longer, I have to do something about it. Anyone know a good source of willpower? Tablets or liquid form, I don't mind.
I didn't mean to end 2007 in such a gloomy fashion. I have many internet friends around the world, some of whom I have met & who have invited DH & I to visit. I have discovered my dear Nanny's sister is alive & well in Australia. I met her when I was about 17 & thought she had probably passed away when I received an e-mail from her son who had been in contact with my cousin. My relationship with my DIL seems to be improving, my son is so happy & DH loves his job. I am quite happy toodling along as a temp & will be even happier when the promised £1 an hour payrise, backdated to 1 December materialises. I really have found it quite liberating (if that's the right word) knowing that I am not stuck in this job, that I can leave without working months of notice if the work situation changes as I fear it may at the end of January. Still I'll cross that bridge if I come to it.
Happy New Year one & all.

It's been too long since I posted a journal! I resolve to try harder in future.
DH & I went to Cologne to see the Christmas markets in early December & it was great. We lived in Germany many years ago & loved it. This was our first visit back & the sights & the smells bought back many memories - bratwurst, gluhwein, potato pancakes, gingerbread. Wonderful!! I spent way too much money on wooden ornaments that I couldn't live without;-) The hotel was nice & only served breakfast but turn right out of the front door & 100 yards was the river with many bars & restaurants. Turn left & there was the city centre with even more bars, restaurants & shops. Cologne cathedral is impressive. Apparently it holds the relics if the Magi. There are 6 Christmas markets, all connected by a little train thing that trundles along & we still managed to miss one of the markets. Went on a coach tour of the city which was very interesting, otherwise we just shopped, ate, read, ate & shopped a bit more.
Christmas was quiet. DS & DIL visited on Christmas morning for a couple of hours before going for lunch at her Mum's. They enjoyed their pressies. Her face was a picture when she opened one - just like a kid peering inside a box & finding something magical. I gave her an i-Pod Nano & managed to disguise the shape & size quite well. We also gave them a laptop as they have broad band but their PC is so old, it doesn't do internet. So they were chuffed.
My gifts were wonderful too. I had 9 books! Seems DH took notice after all when I was pointing at books & saying "I wouldn't mind that". I received -
Potty, Fartwell & Knob - Extraordinary But True Names of British People
A Friend Like Henry by Nuala Gardner
On The Edge: My Story by Richard Hammond
Crusade by Robyn Young
Book of the Dead by Patricia Cornwell
Ronnie by Ronnie Wood
The Chase by Clive Cussler
Stone Cold by David Baldacci
On The Street Where You Live by Mary Higgins Clark
So my crime/murder mystery/thriller needs are taken care of for a while.
I also got a laptop from DH!! Just waiting for the wireless broadband gizmo from my ISP then I'll be wifi & fancyfree!!
I hope all my LJ friends had a joyful Christmas & may 2008 be a year full of happiness & healthy for you & your loved ones.

Went to the hairdresser on Friday night for my usual round of highlights to diguise my ever greying hair & she says 'Let's try something different'. Now I have no grey hair at all - a sight I haven't seen for about 20 years!! My highlights were a warm brown & a goldy colour. Now I'm warm brown with a few goldy highlights & it looks pretty damn good even if I do say so myself. Even DH noticed. The drawback was the price - OMG!! And the fact that the grey will come back so I have to go for regular restoration work. I have my hair cut every 6 weeks anyway but now it will cost more. The hairdreser knew how to boost the salon profits ;-) But she did a good job. Wish I'd had it done for the wedding.

Taking of which, I now have the official photos. I've only skimmed through them quickly & thank goodness I'm not on many. There are some lovely piccies. I was supposed to have been given a CD containing the photos but it wasn't in the bag. When I get it, I'll bung some more on Flicker.

DH has been on week long courses since we came back for holiday. The last 3 weeks have been in Bristol but this week he's in Wakefield. He's bringing his sister back on Friday to spend the weekend with us. We get on so well, I'm really looking forward to seeing her. The drawback I feel I have to clean the whole house from top to bottom & I have to do it on my own.

People are talking about Facebook. I joined back in September as someone had put some wedding pics up but I couldn't see them. I've searched for people I know but can nvere find anyone. Is there a secret to searching or do I need to do what I'm always tell DH to do & read the instructions!

Eeek! Time to get ready for work.

I nearly set fire to the kitchen yesterday. Thought I'd have a slice of toast for lunch. Put bread in toaster & get carried away reading. Sniff, sniff - toast smells a bit well done. Look & U the house is full of smoke. Needless to say, the smoke alarm didn't go off. There was a layer of smoke from the ceiling down to about waist height. Turned the extractor on, opened all the doors & windows & smoke was pouring out. Grab the toast with tongs & fling it in the sink where it sizzled like hot metal in water so I really do think it was on the point of flames. But now the house pongs. Anyone know any remedies for getting rid of the smell. I open the doors & windows every chance I get, but some little 8$#!! round here are still letting fireworks of & the dog is just a wreck. Someone shutting a car door makes him jumpy so imagine what a firework does.

DH (who is away in Bristol this week) thinks its hilarious. I like what my sister calls baby toast but DH likes it carbonised & I'm always telling him to open the window when he does toast as I can't stand the smell. Well, I smell of it now!! Shame there isn't a smelly mood button.

Been at this temp job for a year now & still on the same wage. I can get more per hour working in Aldi so on Monday, I made up my mind to speak to the agency. On Tuesday, my boss at the office said he will try & get my money increased. Each time he has asked, them haven't said but haven't done anything about it. He said if it doesn't happen, I can start adding more hours to my time sheet. I wonder if he's noticed I'm working more hours. I'm contracted by the agency to work 37.5 where everyone else works 35 but I've been doing 40 hours recently to try & keep up. At least I'm hourly paid & I do get paid for all the hours I do. All other temps are on a daily wage & get nothing for extra hours. Good job money isn't a prime motivator for me but it would be nice to have a little reward for staying course.

It's beginning to feel like I may be the last one out. Virtually all the Spanish have gone, the girl I sat next to was made redundant last week & two others are going at the end of January.

Talking of which, it off to work I go.

My G-Mail account seems to have become spammers haven. In the 2 weeks I was away, 137 bits of c**p arrived.
Apparently I am such a very special person that I have been chosen to receieve several laptops, numerous £150 vouchers for ASDA & Sainsbury's but better yet, my social life will take off if I enlarge certain anatomical parts that I don't actual have. Overnight, another 20 messages have arrived! I only use this account for BCUK & to receive e-mails from my local patchwork shop so how have they got me? At least it all goes straight to the spam folder.

A bit, fat ttttthhhhhpppppttttt to all spammers!

Going back to work after a holiday is such a bummer. Luckily, not much came in so I'm not swamped with stuff to do.
Tenerife was very nice - unseasonably hot according to the locals - 27 degrees by about 11am. Stayed at 2 different resorts. First one was nice but we have been there before so we thought we'd have a change for the 2nd week. My legs will never be the same!! Tenerife is hilly & the 2nd resort was on a small hillside. Our room was on the 1st floor. To get to reception, we had to walk down 3 flights of steps & then up 4! Every time we went out, by the time I got to reception (where the car park was), I was like a beetroot on legs & dripping! Still we had a good time. Took a trip to one of the other islands - La Gomera - not succumbed to tourism yet & very pretty. Also took an evening trip up the volcano which isn't active at the moment, watched the sunset over the ocean while drinking chilled champagne & then on to a talk by an astronomer from the local observatory. He was an absolute scream & so knowledgeable - he just swept us all along with his enthusiasm. He was so adamant that we had to reach by a particular time so that he could show us the Space Station go overhead. He also pointed out various constellations & a number of shooting stars which I managed to miss each time as I was always looking in the wrong place.
I think I'm all Tenerife'd out now. Having been twice (10 year gap), I'm not sure I'd want to go back again. Forgot to mention our 1st week coincided with the Scottish schools half term & the 2nd week was the English lot!
Our next trip is to the Christmas market in Cologne. We lived in Germany for 4 years & loved Christmas time there. On coming back to UK, we always said we would do a Christmas market & never did anything about it. This year, I just booked it so 7th December, we have a long weekend in Cologne - woohoo! All because DH wants a fresh supply of curry ketchup & apfelkorn. I'm looking forward to that more than Tenerife even though I try to avoid cold places. I hope it doesn't snow!
Just been catching up with the virtual book boxes, exchanges & release challenges on BCUK. I can't believe how much of my life was put on hold & for how long with the wedding preparations. The newly weds are still blissfully happy but I haven't seen the wedding pics yet. They got them the day before we went on holiday so hopefully any day now.
I didn't get my extra hours sleep on Sunday. I woke up at about 3.30 & was wide awake. I started to wilt about 10'ish when I was going to a friends for a card making day. DH can sleep hanging by his toenails from a washing line while the proverbial wild horses thunder by but me, once I'm awake I rarely go back to sleep. He says it something you learn in the Army - get as much sleep when you can.

Talking of which - bedtime now - night night.

The mayhem of the wedding has finally calmed down & they are an old married couple of 1 month today. Some pics are here -
http://s176.photobucket.com/albums/w170/patchworkperson/?action=view¤t=948e1d70.pbw

I hope it works. It a short slide show of pics I took so there are none of me. I haven't seen any other pics yet!

Work has been really busy. I've changed job as someone left & they needed a cheap replacement but I still have to keep the other stuff going as well. That phrase about give me a broom etc... come to mind. Tasks are slowly migrating to Spain, so I don't think I'll be there much after Christmas. Now if I could win the lottery, i wouldn't HAVE to go back to work. Wonder how many peeps say that;-)

Off to Tenerife on Friday am & really looking forward to it except I am incubating a lovely cold at the moment. A blast of sunshine will do me good.

Hope everyone is ok. i will catch with journals etc when I can. Got back to reading after a couple of weeks of going to bed too exhasuted to pick up a book. Read all the Harry Potters back to back, all unregistered so unjournalled.

Went to London to see Blood Brothers last month. Not your usual happy ending musical but very good. Saw Colin Fry the medium guy in Birmingham at the weekend. Very interesting but no messages for us & I'm still not sure I believe it all. Probably won't until I actually get a message!

Right, bedtime. Night all. PwP

It almost like I've never been away. Life has got back to normal so quickly. Thailand was fab. 3 nights in Bangkok for various members of the party to pick & get fitted for items of clothing, a week on the coast then back to Bangkok for 5 nights for final fittings etc. I'm glad I went to Bangkok but it was very crowded, noisy & smelly but it was to be expedted with so many people there. the week on the coast was divine, 5 star resort where the pool was right on a beautiful white sandy beach. The resort had 2 spas, 6 restaurants & endless live entertainment not to mention the places just a short walk down the beach or road.

My user pic is 'the dress'. It's not a very good pic & it makes her look quite tubby which she isn't but it is a gorgeous dress. The men all had suits made (they picked their own styles) but they all have waistcoats made of the dress fabric apart from DS who has an ivory waistcoat but a red cravat. I didn't have anything made for the wedding but I came home with a couple ofpairs of trousers, 2 tops & 3 jackets for work!

Made the wedding cake for my nephews do on 17th may. I'm only majking the cake, someone else if decorating it thank goodness. I coldn't have coped with that. My next task is to get on with the invitations for DS's wedding. Toodled up to Nottingham to get the card blanks etc. Me - I'd like 200 cards with matching envelopes. Factory - We don't keep that many in stock!". Me - I'll take what you have & order the rest. Factory - How many would you like? Me - How many have you got because I'll take them all? Factory - 22. All that way for 22 piggin' cards & envelopes! Still the balance pretty quickly. NowI just have to get off my butt & make them. It's a gold thread & bead affair which is very simple & elegant but so fiddly to make!

DS & fianace move into their house permanently this weekend. They've just been going at weekends to decorate etc. I said I would stock them up on their first big shop - 400 & something quid later, they were both exhausted. I think they have enough toilet & kitchen rolls to mop up the Atlantic! they got themselves a rabbit yesterday - sweet little thing called Poppet. A house bunny. K has always had one. So that meant hutch from e-bay which is the size of a small mansion. This is going to be one pampered bunny. And she has an endless supply of dandelions in the back garden! They garden if a sea of yellow at the moment so DH is taking the industrial lawnmower round on Friday to cut it for them.

DH has been offered the VOSA job subject to references. He is over the moon to put it mildly. He so wanted this job. Can't wait to start.

Better feed the pooch.

...Thailand for the grand wedding dress, suits & rings getting trip! Just about packed & I'm under the miniscule weight limit. DH thinks this is a miracle. DS called to say his other half is now worried as her case is SO over weight & she can't live without any of it. This is the girl who told me to cut down on the weight by buying toiletries when we get there.

DS sat his HGV theory test this morning. Yesterday, he said he didn't think he would pass so I said to ring them & arrange another day or sit it thinking you'll fail then know what to expect next time. To be honest, I didn't think he would pass as he needed to read the books & he just doesn't read. When blow me down if he didn't go & pass! So watch out world when he starts to learn in a big truck!

I wanted a light weight jacket or cardigan type thing to take with me, mainly for when we come home. Do you think I could find anything at all. I wanted dark blue - no, nothing, nada, nix. I could have lime, orange, purple, red. In fact any colour except the one I wanted. Oh poo.

Better go & set all my Yahoo groups to no mail. Hugs & good thoughts to all who need them (or even if you don't).

DH had his first job interview of the week yesterday & was really pleased with himself. It is with VOSA - gov agency to do with vehicle & road safety issues. They are the ones who do roadside checks on foreign lorries etc. He had 4 hours of role plays & interviews! He thinks it went well & is feeling very positive. In his feedback he was told experience shows (he was a policeman for 16 years & on traffic for a chunk of that). In one of the role plays, they thought his interview technique was too informal but agreed with his reasons for playing the way he did.
Bles him, he asked me what I thought about him taking the job if offered. I think he was worried as there will be some night & weekend work. As long as its not every weekend. I just want him to be happy in whatever he does.
He has another interview this morning - road sweeper driver for loadsa money! He's quite taken with the idea of bimbling round the estates sweeping the gutters! Personally I think it is a lot more involved. For a start it's not council & they want HGV drivers. So I think it's working on construction sites & the like.
He REALLY wants the VOSA job I think.
It amuses me that he finds being out of work such a trauma. Me - all I want is for him to win enough on the lottery for me give up work & still be able to do all the things I want to do. Him - he needs to work. Maybe its a macho, providing for the family type thing;-)
Talking of work, better get ready.

My sister celebrated her 40th anniversary last week & her DIL & threw them a surprise party inviting rellies from all over the place who all turned up. Well the only one that didn't was our brother who lives round the corner from her. He has a small boat in Norfolk & they spend all the spare time there but you would think they could have delayed or come back from their week away a day ealry for this but no. Miserable old fart!
Then last weekend, one of my aunts & uncles celebrated their 60th anniversary. They had a party too (not a surprise) & it wonderful to see so many cousins of varying degrees that I haven't seen for years. Some now have children of their own - scary.

Why don't we make more of an effort to keep in touch with relatives? Maybe it is because I am so interested in family history now & wish I'd found out more about my relatives when I had the chance. As it is, a cousin has made contact with a chap in Australia who is either the son or grandson of our Nan's sister & she is still alive! I met her when I was about 17. Some of the family still talk of "when Auntie Bonnie can to visit". He has sent some wonderful photos - I saw my great grandfather for the first time. He died in India many years before I was even a twinkle. That set me wondering if he died alone, who was at his funeral, did anyone mark his passing?. I know my Nan was in England but I think there were family there. Maybe I will find out with more investigation. Just wish I'd started sooner - the cry of the part time genealogist!
Bed time

Another bout of the cold/flu thing hit me again. Didn't turn the PC on for 2 weeks. Thats how DH knew I really was poorly!
Been catching up with everyone's journals - hugs & good thoughts to those that need then. Caffcaff I hope you get some sleep.
This job is no longer the alright that it was. I am totally alone now doing the job that was done by 3 Spanish peeps as well as my own. I chair a weekly teleconference with Spain, have total responsibility for managing a spreadsheet that it the be all & end all of the work done. This is not the standard clerical work at £7.50 an hour I was taken on to do. I have had a couple of days when I've burst into tears & told them I can't do it. I know it is because I don't feel I know enough about the tasks they want me to do. They are all very nice & concerned but at last weeks meeting my new boss asked if we would be having the weekly telemeet while I was away for 3 weeks, an anonymous voice asked who else could do the job. Reply was "no-one". "We'll talk about it later". People may be talking but they ain't talking to me! Yet they are terrified that I am going to leave. The agency tell me say they can get me more money but all the money in the world is not going to put the missing knowledge in my head. So I ma getting more & more p****ed off with it. All I wanted was a little clerical job but I feel like I'm back on the treadmill to stress & depression again. My hours are getting longer & lunches shorter. I was off work for months some years ago with stress & I am feeling the symptoms all over again.
Things are coming to a head slowly but I go away for 3 weeks on Sunday!
Talking of which - I am now looking forward to the trip to Thailand with DH, DS, his intended & her parents. having the wedding dress, suits & rings made there. I've never been anywhere that required me to have jabs before - can't say I was impressed. Everyone says it is great but watch out for the red ants that bite. Oh great - if ir bites or stings, it always heads straight for me!
The other thing is the luggage allowance - 20kgs! I think my shoes weigh more than that alone! So I am having to be very careful & will be making full use of hotel laundry facilities.
DS & GF now have their own house & spend evry weekend ther doing it up. DS said today that the guy they bought it from still has a key as he is supposed to be replacing a door. Told him to get the locks changed before we go! Never heard of such a thing. DS is so proud of his house & has truned into quite the DIY'er. It just worries me that they are both so much further away from work as I worry about them driving. But they will eventually look for something closer to home.
DH has a couple of job interviews this week. H has been temping as an HGV driver since Nov but he really doesn't like being unemployed. One of the jobs is to drive a road sweeper for £26k!! Gis a job!

Upset is not right. Pissed off is much better. Discussing work today with my Spanish boss & said something she didn't understand so gets on the phone to another boss then just hands the phone to me to explain. So, completely unprepared, I explained as briefly as I could only to be told in not so many words that I shouldn't be wasting her time if I can't speak clearly & concisely. Now I can't stop thinking about & re-running the conversation in my head. Of course the more I do this, the worse I feel. What made me cross was if she'd answered the e-mail I sent her a month ago, this wouldn't have happened. I thought I was getting to grips with things & now feel such a plonker. I know I haven't done anything wrong so why to I feel so bad? It must be my sensitive & delicate nature ;-) But at least it helped me make up my mind - if they do offer me a permanent job, I won't accept it.

The house is starting to look like an electrical showroom now! DS had a washing machine delivered last week & decided it was damaged! Ok, it did bow out a teeny bit on the bottom left side. So we had to go through the trauma & staying in of having a new one delivered & the old one removed. The delivery slot was 7am to 1pm! Good job DH was in. Fridge freezer arrives on Friday - I can hardly wait! BTW - the new washer is acceptable.

The vendor of the house DS & the finance want to buy is pressuring them to complete by the end of January. Problem is they really can't afford to & are now worried they may loose the house. My first thought was a washer & a fridge freezer in my little kitchen for how much longer?

DH signed back on at the Job Centre again as he has only had one days work since Christmas & he is really worried. He hates to out of work. It must a male thing as I'd rather he went to work & I didn't. He applied for 5 jobs on Monday. Today he had an assessment to drive Waitrose trucks. Passed with flying colours. Now he just has to wait until they want him to temp for them. Apparently they don't take on any temps without assessing them first to make sure they know what they are doing. Shame more companies aren't so safety minded.

Spanish class comes to a close in two weeks time & Teach is mentioning going on to the next level. I don't know if I'm good enough. Because I now don't practise at all during the week between classes, I find I am forgetting the most basic things. I know & understand so much but my mind goes blank when I have to say something. I know what I want to say but the words stay firmly hidden. Maybe I need to have a word with her.

Time for bed said Zebedee.

The BT bod come & fiddled around, asked who had wired in the telephone extension upstairs & when told BT said that it was a complete botch job & he'd had to rewire it. By all accounts, he was a very nice man who wouldn't leave until the broadband was working. Obviously realised he was dealing with a couple of complete idiots when it comes to these things. Have still had a couple of disconnections but they only last a minute or so as opposed to hours, days or weeks & it doesn't happen every day (touch wood) so I suppose I can live with it.

DH is jittery about work again. He's been temping doing HGV driving since he told his previous employer to keep their job but hasn't had a job since Christmas. Apparently there are no driving jobs at the moment. So he's signed on at the Job centre again to get his stamp paid & has spoken to the bank about the mortgage insurance. He said this morning that he would go to my agency & tell them he'd do clerical work for £11 an hour. I nearly choked! Then mentioned that I was on £7.50 an hour & to get £11 doing clerical work, he would need to be able to do a litle more than turn a PC on!

There have been minor developments in my work situation. I work with three lovely Spanish people. Just before Christmas I was told one of them wasn't coming back after Christmas (Daniel, the one that makes me practise my Spanish) & the other two have been moved to a newly formed company within the group. They have also been told it is too expensive to keep them in UK so them must go back to Spain as soon as is practical. That leaves me on my own! My boss says she will try & set up a work MSN account & webcam so we can keep in touch. Can'r recall if I've said this before but I keep hearing her mention my name - one of the few words I recognise when she speaks in Spanish as she goes so quickly. She has been telling the powers that be in Spain they must keep me & offer me a permanent job. Today, she was telling someone here that as I was a temp I could simply tell her that I wasn't coming back & the Team would be in trouble. It's all very nice that she has so much confidence in me but I wonder if I should tell her that I don't know if I want a permanent job again, particulalrly with the group that made me redundant 15 months ago?. I quite like the idea of temping & being able to take a week off when I liked. The other thing is that I've been told if I accept a job within the group within 2 years of being made redundant, I have to hand some if not all of my redundancy money back. That could be difficult as I've spent it! DH says not to worry as the new company hasn't been set up yet & there is no actual job offer but I just wonder if I should mention that I'm not that desperate for a permanent job. Maybe she really is worried I will walk out on them & thinks this is what I want? Think I'll wait & see what happens.

Been doing more on my family history research. Ordered about 60 quids worth of certificates only to find that a couple don't quite match with details I was so very sure of. Years being a little out I can cope with. A completely different father's name to the one I was expecting is a different kettle of fish. Back to the drawing board with my great great grandfather I think!

DS & his finance seeing to be progressing well with the house move. Waiting on solicitors doing their thing now. Their house move is costing me a fortune! I made the rash offer of fitting out a room for them & they picked the kitchen. The washer dryer comes tomorrow & the fridge freezer next week! His bedroom here now looks like an Argos store room! Got hem new pillows & a duvet at the weekend as our local Co-op is closing down & they were almost giving stiff away. I've also been planning what I can do with the room when he does fully move out - craft room for my quilting & card making. Could put the PC up there too but then DH would never see me!

Off to catch up on friends journals now.

The broadband issue is resolved albeit temporarily I fear. The new router box the ISP promised didn't arrive by Saturday so I went a purchased a wireless kit. Couldn't get it to work at all, spent ages on the phone to the help line who said I had to get the ISP to test the line. Aaaaarghh! In desperation, I unistalled the router & re-installed it & hey presto! I have broadband again but it has started to disconnect again periodically. As I am typing this in fact.
Christmas resulted in lots of nice pressies. DH got me books - the new Clive Cussler, & Why Don't Penguins Feet Freeze? & a beautiful white gold & white topaz ring as well as loads of dvds - Little Mermaid, Ice Age 2, Lady & The Tramp - anyone see a theme developing here?
DS * his finance gave us a theatre & dinner trip to London which I think is great. I'm looking forward to that.
Tired now so off to bed.

I've had no broadband connection at home since Thursday! Now I discover that my ISP has an overseas call centre & I have abeen asked the same questions so many times, I can repeat then in my sleep! I hope it's sorted soon.
Now to see if I can get into BCUK at work.

Is it really about 12 weeks since I journalled! Since my PC decided it didn't want toplay for a while & then I was a bit poorly with an 'orrible cold/cough/flu thing, I have found it really hard to get back into all my internet bits. I completely lost the plot with book swaps & book boxes, had so much to catch up on BCUK that I ended up just deleting a whole load of stuff, my releases for the monthly challenge have been non existant. I haven't even been journalling books I've bought or read (although I am trying to fix that). Maybe it's this job but I just don't seem to have enough hours in the day at the moment.

As for Christmas - I'd like it delayed for about 2 weeks please. DS & his finance decided they wanted to send save the date cards with their Christmas cards so guess who got roped in to do them? Still got another 20 to do. Then I have my own Christmas cards to make. I think most folks will get shop bought this year.
The job is going ok. No way will it be complete by the end of the year but I've been told not to worry, they have enough money in the budget to keep me on. Also my Spanish boss says every so often that someone will need to do the task fulltime when they are gone & has been talking to big wigs in Spain about me. It very flattering that she trusts me to do it but I don't know that I want to work for them again (the company made me redundant 18 months ago & I'm temping). We've had another temp with us for a couple of weeks now. She's here until the end of the year. A really nice girl but she needs akick up the bum sometimes. It seems that she can't work out what to do for herself, I have to keep showing her. I am such a grump!
DH resigned from his job about 3 weeks ago. He's been unhappy for so long & it all came to a head one day & he basically told them to stick it where the sun don't shine! He was in such a state that night as he's never been out of work before. When I asked the following day how he felt his answer was "Great!". He took himself off to the job centre & signed on, signed up with an agency & has been doing HGV work ever since. He only has to do 3 days temping to earn the same amount of money as the other place. But the bets thing is he is so much happier & more relaxed.
DS & finance have put an offer in on a house which has been accepted so they are going through the mortgage mill now. He is so excited & what he isn't going to do to this house! I never thought he would enjoy planning decor, furnishings etc;-) My baby!
Ok I've bored everyone enough - goodnight.

I have a job interview at 11.45 tomorrow & I am starting to get nervous. This is the first interview I've had in almost 20 years! I don't count the internal one at my previous employer.

What will they ask me? Will I be able to think of anything to say? Will my last salary frighten them off or will I just make a complete fool of myself?

Been trying on outfits all afternoon & subjected DH to a fashion show of the 2 shortlisted candidates. DH says I always wear black so I thought I'd have a change. My fav was a black skirt with a lovely pale green top. SO DH goes for the other one of the same black skirt & black/white print top. So much for me trying to inject a little colour!

Been back from Malta for a week - we came home a week early. Horrendous (to me) accommodation problems that started with arriving at 1am on the Sunday to be told they had no reservation for us! We should have had a 2 bedroomed apartment. The resort managed to find us a room with 2 single beds just for the night as someone was checking in later. I find hard to believe that people actually pay good money for the room. Curtains hanging off the track, loose ceiling tiles, paint & plaster flaking. At least the beds were clean & we were exhausted. Fared a little better later in the morning as the put is in a 1 bed apartment obviously recently decorated but also obviously designed for a wheelchair used with wide doorways, sliding doors & all sorts of aids in the bathroom. It was lovely but I just felt so guilty using it. But I'm sure that we wouldn't have been put there if a wheelchair user needed it. We could only stay there for 1 week & then they had no rooms. Each receptionist kept saying they had no reservation despite our confirmation received in February & the rep wasn't in until Monday. So DH got on o company who couldn't understand what had gone wrong & found ud another place for the following week. Saturday comes & we go to check in at the next place to be told they didn't have a reservation for us. Deja vu or what! Could we come back a bit later when the manager was there? Had coffee & ambled round, rang the complany again who couldn't understand what had gone wrong. We were definitely confirmed & she would ring the resort. Go back, no manager, still no reservation but they'd found us a room. It was being cleaned so we couldn't move in. It was disgusting! Real holidays from hell stuff as far as I'm concerned. Carpets everywhere were badly stained & dirty with food bits, double bed was 2 singles of different heights pushed together, shower curtain rail attached to the light fitting with string, rusty fridge with no useable door shelves, rusty cooker that was probably used to bake the loaves that went with the fishes, all surfaces peeling & worn & the taps were just coated with limescale as was the kettle. It was not the standard I've come to expect when I go on holiday. I just burst into tears & DH told reception it wasn't acceptable. All they could was say they would try & find us a nicer room in the morning. I wasn't going to take my shoes off let alone sleep in the bed so we went to the airport & paid to get on the next flight home.
The week we spent there was very nice. I got to see where my Mum was born & we went up Mt Etna on a day trip to Sicily. The Maltese people are so nice too although they are absolutely mad drivers. There is a saying in England they drive on the left, in Europe they drive on the right, in Malta they drive in the shade! It's true.
So now in correspondence with company to see what they are going to do about it. They have refunded what we spent on the holiday but DH is trying to get something for the extra airfares.

The upside is I came back to a letter about a job interview. Been unemployed for a year now although haven't been at work since March 2005. Scary. My redundancy insurance is about to run out so I need to find something sharp'ish. I decided to take a lump sum & small pension early in the end so have a nice chunky bank balance at the mo & my pension (haha) will start next month. The job is for admin or recptionist at a new 'hotel style nursing home'. Have no idea what the pay is, they don't seem to put it on job ads anymore. But anything is better than nothing.

DS has no job now. He got himself a new job, handed in his notice & then the new place rang & said their insurance complany would insure him as he's under 25. He asked if he could his old job, they had already replaced him but the boss said he'd see what he could do. Poor DS has heard nothing & the boss is never there when he rings so he's given that up as a bad job. He has managed to get temp work a few days but his finacee is really nagging him as they are saving to get married & his loss of earnings is affecting her savings plan! I want to shake her & say give him a break! But I say nothing.

What a tale of misery & woe!! Apart from my new obsession - my family tree. I love history & am finding it fascinating to see who my ancestors were & what they did. I'm coming across a few surprises with children being born in India & my grandfather (who died before I was born) moving in with another woman & changing his name & was awarded the Military Medal in WWI. Something else that keeps me glued to the PC!