Wedgie ...

I still don't know the details but I was told by my case officer that Wedgie was taken by 3 youths who were known car theives. He was currently with forensics and I should have him back very soon. However, he had no detail on whether he was a wreck, although he could tell me that he had been in a police chase which resulted in a crash, so not very hopeful; however, someone would let me know soon when he would be released. The next morning I received a letter to say that the forensics had finished with it and that it was at Charlton Pound awaiting collection. The charge to have my car released was to be £105 and if I didn't collect it by midday 2 days following the date of the letter (Sunday), the cost of storage that I would incur would be £12 per day ... It was all a bit stark, unfeeling and upsetting - like it was my own fault that he'd been stolen ...

The insurance company undertook to arrange collection of the car - "is it driveable?" they asked. "I don't know - I keep asking and no-one can tell me". "Well that particular Pound don't take burnt out cars, so at least you know that much ..."

A week later, I finally got details of the garage who have the car and managed to speak to someone who had seen him. I still haven't had an official insurance engineer's assessment, but the lady I spoke to could tell me that he had been towed in and was therefore undrivable and that there was lots of damage to the front and the side plus they'd drilled bits out to get in and get it started. So, taking into account the age of the vehicle it was likley that the insurers would decide that it wasn't worth spending the money to put it right.

Whilst I was expecting this, I was really very sad. I've had Wedgie since 1993 (Wedgie because he's wedgewood blue), I've taxed, insured, serviced him and loved him. We've done lots of miles together (94,000 ...) and have been to lovely places - Jersey, France, Scotland, Durham, the Lake District (where he accomplished the Hard Knot pass with aplomb), Land's End, Lincolnshire, the Peaks - I could go on ... We hadn't been to Wales though - that was my next plan.

He is 17 years old and I was just planning on keeping him until he died a natural death, it seems terrible that his end should be being written off because he's too old to be worth investing the money in to put right. All because 3 lads wanted a bit of fun at mine and Wedgie's expense ...

So, now to work out what to do about another car ...

A list ...

• I'm paying a mortgage and rent on a flat. However I'm resourceful, I don't go anywhere unless its free (which unfortunately means I'm a bit of a hermit at the moment), I drive to work which is vastly cheaper than the train, I drive out to nice country spots and walk for my entertainment, I live frugally, I can ride it out until the house is sold ...
  
• The house has been on the market for 4 months and we've had only one viewing. Hmmmm. I've gotta keep pushing the agents and get some ideas myself of how to sell it - reduce the price get some plans drawn up to demonstrate the 2 bedrooms and a bathroom which could be developed in the loft. I'm still being positive and active.
  
• I'm going to Peru at the end of November and the money to pay for it is wrapped up in the deposit on the leaky, creaky flat I'm renting while the house is being sold. What the hell, I've broken my credit card rule and I'll do a credit card transfer thing to tide me over until the house is sold and I have some money.
  
• Its gone into meltdown at work and I'm being asked to "go the extra mile" for the sake of the company in the present difficult climate - I think you'll find that I already do was my response ... I guess I'll just cram trying to find a job into the schedule once I've had 5 minutes to consider my CV. What the hell, I can go back to IT helpdesk or do some typing or be runner on someone's event (if I can find anyone willing to take me on of course) - I'm not proud. It just has to be enough o pay a mortgage and rent on a flat and keep me in the manner to which I am accustomed ...
  
• I'm still trying to get over this flippin' vertigo thing. Whilst I'm still shattered at least I don't fall over anymore.

That should be it of stuff to cope with for the time being.

Oh no, sorry I forgot to mention that my car was stolen yesterday, used in a crime, involved in an accident and impounded.

Now I'm starting to lose the will ...

Blast from the past - no really!

I was 'strolling' along the aisles of Tesco a couple of weeks ago (well as much as you can in a hideously busy supermarket on a Saturday morning) when I came across an "offer" at the end of an row. There was a display with 2 shelves with something called Golden Weetabix on it and at the bottom a single shelf of some stuff called Oatibix.

I looked at the picture and yes, they looked like Weetabix, I checked the ingredients and yes, they were devoid of wheat ... Could it really be possible that after all these years I could re-create my previous addictive breakfast of weetabix, smidge of muscavado sugar and ice cold milk? (NB. I use a my special creamy mix rather than milk with starch foods - don't ask ...) I've dreamed of having something similar over the years, but consoled myself with the fact that while it would never happen and just think how well I feel now I don't eat wheat. (Well apart from the odd touch of vertigo and which certainly isn't a side effect of eating wheat!)

I really didn't think it could be possible, but what the hell, I gave them a go.

Heaven ...

Now I know its been ages since I had real Weetabix so I couldn't say that they're just the same, but I don't care! They're actually just the job and 2 weeks later (24 biscuits later to be precise) I can't wait to buy another box. They're crispy, tasty, quick (which is a rare occurence with the way I eat nowadays, having to make pretty much everything from scratch) and what' more I feel full afterwards.

Breakfast heaven re-created indeed. Just have to hope I can find them on the shelves in Tesco again! :)

New toys normally raise a smile ...

But nope ... I'm really rubbish at being ill. I've lost pretty much a whole week with this labyrinthine thing - now happily shortened to 'vertigo' by a different doctor who sent me home with a flea in my ear for having tried to work from my bed rather than simply taking it easy as I was told to in the first place ... Thoroughly chastised I finally turned off the laptop on Thursday!

I'm feeling much better now, but boy have I been fed up. I haven't even been up to enjoying new toys - until today that is! I got 2 new toys this week (phone and camera) and am only just getting stuck into the first one now.

My new phone is lovely, and I'm typing this post on it using its lovely qwerty keyboard whilst sitting in a pub, sipping a rather nice NZ sauvignon blanc, waiting for my date. Its lovely - the phone I mean (pub's ok too). I'm all synced up on both the home laptop and the work one, I've got Magical Trevor installed as my ring tone and I'm about to install the lovely Pocket Breeze for WM5. Hopefully my mini SD card will arrive on Monday; 1 gig, complete with usb card reader for #30 - can you believe that price? Memory has really come down since I last bought normal SD storage! Anyway, once I get that I can get my MP3s on it and I'll be ready to rumble!

BTW, I think I'm sat in people's usual seats ... Getting daggers looks at the moment. Tough, I was here first and I'm entitled to space as much as the next person - just because I'm on my own just at the moment.

Anyway, I digress ... The phone is lovely, and I'm sure the camera will be too. I have no idea what I'm talking about with cameras, but I hope I've got a reasonable buy... It’s a 6MP camera with zoom of some description - 3 x optical and 2 x digital though at the moment I'm not entirely sure what that means... I got is because it promised to be a good "point and shoot" option, but there still seem to be a lot of settings to work through and understand even for someone supposedly non-technophobe like me.

Ah well, once I've set up the phone exactly the way I want it I'll turn my attention to the camera beyond setting the clock which I did manage to achieve fairly simply! Stuff like flash levels, saturation, contrast, focussing, exposure etc will have to wait until they have my full attention ... Took a couple of pictures of my feet whilst lying in bed (been in bed all week and its sooooo boring ...) which looked sharp, colourful and generally OK without doing anything complicated, so hopefully it won't be too difficult to pick up and it will really be my Peru point and shoot!

Ugh ...

I’m really not very good at being ill … But ill I am … But, that’s the thing, I don’t feel ill. As long as I stay lying down. I feel great (if not VERY tired) lying down, it’s the sitting up, moving around thing that makes me not well. It started on Sunday morning and the most irritating thing is that I didn’t get to go walking, I had great plans this weekend – lets hope I’m back on form next weekend instead … I woke up with a headache (which had been there the day before too), so made to get up and grab some painkillers again (all I had was some Feminax but in spite of their ineffectiveness I still figured I’d give them a go). Well, I sat up and everything went “whoosh”. So I lay down again. Much better down there … I kept trying, but nope – “whoosh” and falling over was the result everytime. BBW brought me loads of food and water, helped me shuffle to the loo and set up the TV in my bedroom so I didn’t have to move anywhere. I watched so much rubbish on the TV its unreal – I was almost enjoying it by the end of the day which was when I knew I had to turn it off …

Today was a bit better, I’ve shuffled about pathetically and worked from home lying on the bed with the laptop propped up on my tummy and knees. I finally had a visit from a Doctor (the surgery had suggested I walk to an appointment, but I explained that it was all I could manage to make it to the flippin’ loo), he confirmed my self diagnosis of a Labyrintine Viral infection which explained my desperate tiredness and the falling over thing.

The prescription was Stemetil which, having looked it up,blocks a variety of receptors in the brain, particularly dopamine receptors to stop them becoming over-stimulated, thereby helping to control psychotic illness. (!!!) They are also used to control symptoms such as nausea and dizziness which are caused by inner ear disorders. (Phew!)

So, I’m going to take it easy (in between doing some work from bed – I’m too damn busy to be ill!), drink lots of fluids and wait it out. Apparently it could be gone tomorrow, or it may still be here in a week or two weeks … If its still here in a week, I have to get the doctor back. Fingers crossed not eh …?

Bite the bullet

OK, so I said I wasn't intimidated by the Prince 2 mob, and I'm not; but I've realised that its time I at least studied the methodology so a) I can really recognise a client that is using it, and in some instances I suspect simply implementing it badly; b) maybe I can use some elements of it by way kicking arse at work - I know what the problems are in my parlance, but maybe if I use a few bits of Prince 2 terminology on them they might actually sit up and listen and c) it'll stand me in better stead to get another bloomin' job ...

So, I've been doing a bit of research on line and have found some free stuff I can use and some books which I'm hoping to pursuade work to buy - whilst they are "investors in people", I know it doesn't stretch to letting me do a course and get the qualification ... I guess the book will have to do for the time being.

I did it in time, I just never posted it!

I have been blogging the past few weeks, but just didn’t get round to posting them ... A bit like the birthday cards I always remember to buy, write, address and stamp and then carry around in my handbag for weeks after they should have been posted. I apologise now to all of you who have, over the years, received dogeared looking birthday cards several days after the event … Anyway, the posts below are decidely un-dogeared, but carried around in my handbag for too long nonetheless!

Spend, spend, spend …

I’ve now got most of my walking clothes. I've got 1 final pair of trousers on order (there was only one pair of extra small trousers in the shop, and whilst I’m doing very well at planning my “packing light” I really can’t go away with only one pair of trousers! I’ve also got my “base layer” on order – again, they needed to order in some small ones.

It’s all lovely feeling stuff – a far cry from the tweed plus fours my Mum made me for my Duke of Edinburgh’s award 25 years ago and a long way from my old Damart thermals …

But, thank goodness for The North Face sale! Its an expensive old business and I haven’t bought any new shoes this summer, so I’m tring to get my kick from the trekking stuff! Vapour wick, UPV 40 protection, quick drying etc. Its all so much more exciting than 3 ½ “ heeled black supple leather ankle boots … If I keep saying it, it’ll be true!