Back to the Stone Age

Had a bit of a hectic morning this morning, not the worst by any stretch but quite a few extra things slipped in:

X up, fed, dressed, lunch packed, hand writing done (And with a good pencil grip, which was very well done!). Dog fed, me fed, squeezed 20 minutes of work in to avoid falling too far behind in Flexi hours, dropped X at school… Then off to the “Walk in and wait” to see doctor.

Spent 40 minutes sat in GP surgery waiting to see someone, which is fairly good to be honest. Our local surgery has a “Walk in and wait” session, so you don’t need an appointment but you’re at the mercy of being squeezed into the time they allow. This means you really don’t know how long you’ll be waiting… other than trusting the sign saying “The average wait is __ minutes” which hasn’t actually been filled in anyway. Using a combination of the main waiting room techniques for avoiding a complete boredom meltdown!

1. Reading signs about illnesses I hope I don’t have or develop any time soon. Luckily it’s flu season so it’s all about flu this month and I’ve already been invited for my job. ( If you’re a registered carer you get a free flu jab! You don’t have to be a 24 hours live in carer who can’t have an other job, just be someone’s main carer )

2. Looking-not-looking at and listening-not-listening to the other people who are in the same boat as you, but have a friend/relative/innocent bystander who they can talk to.

3. The modern classic of browsing the web on your phone! With a mix of worry and bravado about the sign saying “Please switch off your mobile phone” sitting inches above your head. Convincing yourself that “We’ll it’s not a ‘phone’ if I’m browsing the web, it’s a tablet”… but then kind of admitting that if they asked me to stop I’d just very politely say “Oh, yes, sorry” in a very British way.

I eventually get called in with a standard mispronunciation of my surname, which after 30 years I ignore… unless I don’t like the person, or they’re trying to sell me something on the phone, then they get corrected. Had a nice chat with the Nurse Practitioner about the Aspire Swim Challenge I’m taking part in then got prescribed a stronger jollop. Drove the car round to Tesco’s, left it there and walked round the corner and dropped prescription into the chemist. Walked back round to the the car to try and find a bag… like a bag for life! I swear I’ve got more of them than I used to have normal carrier bags. I love the fact plastic is being reduced, I’m fairly “Eco” if you must know, I just seem to habitually forget to take a bag to the shop. I blame the fact I never know I’m going to the shop in the first place, so can hardly be expected to plan for it! So, considering I get a new one every week or so I still never had one in the car. So, I grab my swimming bag and cleverly thing I’ll use that, I unzip to take out my towel and the smell of week old damp towel hits me in the face… ah, yes, that was supposed to be taken out and washed. I chuck it on the parcel shelf, waft the bag around a bit and zip it back up.  

I venture into Tesco’s with my slightly niffy bag, and head straight for the cake section (Best bit of the shop to be honest!). I start loading up then realise I need a basket, turn round, and head back to the door/till end. As every, the staff are far too efficient and all the baskets have been diligently put back outside… where I can’t go with arms full of unpaid for items. I shop a member of staff carrying a basket out, catch her eye, and manage to snag it before it is out of bounds! I finish loading up the basket with donuts, biscuits, cakes etc. and get it all paid for, without the classic “Is is you’re birthday” question from the lady on the till.

I chuck them all in the car and think to myself “If I wan’t to swim tomorrow, I’m going to need that kit washed”, so I figure I’ll drive past the front door, run in, throw them in the washing machine and message B and she can put a wash on during the day, sorted. 

I pull out of Tesco’s and move the car round back to chemist, find a space (miracle) run in and grab the prescription, drive round to the house, part, run in with washing, tell dog off for barking, quick chat with B who is up early, tell her about new jollop and stinking kit, then quickly leave and set off on the drive to work. Uneventful 20 minute drive to work followed by daft 5 minutes driving round the car park at work trying to find somewhere to park. Finally find a space which is only not parked in because there is an old metal ramp on one side that people think you can’t obstruct… in reality the door from which is leads now has desks against it so isn’t going to be used as a “door” any time soon.

Jump out of the car and look for my laptop bag…. then look some more… then start swearing at myself. I phone B for confirmation and good news, it’s sat safely in the living room where she can see it really well! Crap on a stick! By now it’s about 10:30, technically I start at 8:30, and although work are understanding of my obscure start times given all the things I’m juggling, driving home again at this point just to get my laptop might be taking the piss! I figure I’ll try and stick it out until lunchtime without it then go and grab it if necessary. Then I realise my door pass is in my bag too, more crap on a stick, so I’ve got to find someone to let me into the building!

I finally get in the building, then I realise that the place is deserted, it’s not Saturday, wouldn’t live that one down! Ah there’s been a big meeting, or more accurately there is a big meeting… that I have no knowledge about due to no laptop and no badge so getting around the building is somewhat problematic even if I could figure out where it is. So, do I need technology to get anything done at work… err… yes sorry, anything other than a fully working WIFI’ed large screen laptop and a security card and I might as well have a stick and a rock! On the plus side, I did have a bag full of cakes and biscuits!

I did manage to dig an old laptop out of a desk drawer during the rest of the morning that was reserved for something else, MacGyver my way into getting a few bits of work done on it and then helpfully had quite a lot of meetings which didn’t need a laptop. So, I did survive… remember to not forget laptop again this month me thinks!

Update

It’s midnight, I’ve just finished cleaning up several loads of sick whilst B has given X a quick dip in the bath, we’re on to the last set of X’s bedding, I’ve got the shits and we’re all sat watching Kit and Pup! Oh, and it’s parents evening tomorrow….