Today is a new day!

beanielou

Great news on the PPI & on your sales :j :j

InaPickle

Ooh PaF, I'm delighted! It literally couldn't happen to a more deserving person!

I'm not particularly religious, but it's true what they say about God helping those who help themselves!

I'm delighted that your interest rates will be greatly reduced as well: that must be such a load off your mind!

Well done on all the sales and keep on taming those parrots!

Come back and let us know what your snowball says. xxx

chevalier

Well done on sticking with it and getting that refund. I am sure many other people just give up!

And wow to the orders as well. That is most excellent news. I am in awe!

Verbatim

PAF, you ROCK!

I hope your daughter enjoyed the disco. Well done on the sales and for your persistence on the PPI reclaim.

POSITIVE_AND_FOCUSED

Well, thanks everyone for all your congrats!
Sales for the week ended up being £1030, £100 of which was business from new customers. I was delivering a book to a customer when a lady walked by asking if I would drop one into her too as she hadn't seen a catalogue for a year or so. So, next day I put some books out in her road and did rather well.. Lesson learned - always be as proactive as you can be and the results you seek will eventually come.. Be persistent, persistent, persistent!So, I need in the region of £1500 in sales over the next couple of weeks and I will have qualified for the latest national incentive.. Just so exciting and hopefully a platform from which I can do mylittle bit to raise the profile of disabled people in business! And self employment is fantastic simply because you are your own boss so inmy case if I feel worn out, I plan my day accordingly, I may decided to work later in the day, or have more rests etc. Having that flexibility makes everything so much more achievable..

Yes, the TV. Well, rather pathetically in hindsight the situation with it reduced me to tears - literally -, however at the time I was feeling so exasperated feeling like a useless alien on the end of the phone, trying to explain to a man phoning from the complaints dept of Asda that no I couldn't get to the back of the TV under the table to check some wires while he waited on the phone, and me subsequently asking what service do they provide for customers like myself with disabilities? Is there anyone else who can check the wires while I wait he asked? No, I replied. So, I had to insist that I was not made to pay for an engineer to come out as the same man told me they usually charge. Engineer came out and left leaving me without any BBC1 as I later found out! Told me it was a signal problem and to call out the digital man who came out recently to get me ready for when we go digital in the area. Digital man came out, restored BBC1 and has assured me any tuning issues will resolve themselves after going digital, so I am waiting till after 13th June, if any more problems I will be sending tv back. And I'll rent again, the beauty of renting is that the worry of sorting any problems out is taken care of and this situation reminded me why that is worth its weight in gold!

Saw my counselling lady yesterday. She feels I've turned a corner in the 3 weeks since I've seen her. Told her she might have thought otherwise if she'd seen me weeping about the TV on the phone. Seriously though, things are calm on the family front, I'm just getting on with life, my aunt has communicated withmy mum. Mum seems to think when I am ready we will be able to resume our mother/dd relationship as before. I have said to my aunt all the while it has been considered acceptable to be the way they have with me, apologies thin on the ground etc, that day will simply not come. I do love my parents but I can not afford to place myself in such a negative environment as at the end of the day the bucks stops with me as to whether dd and I keep going and one thing I've learnt is that I need people who are positive, not negative around me. My aunt has told me herself she thinks I work too hard.. but then rationalising it I surely can not be the only one and if my parents thinks the same surely that is more reason to be more supportive, not less... True, I am absolutely ready to sleep by 8/9pm, yes the length of time I am out working during the day is longer because of the rest breaks I feel I need to have to keep myself able to keep going and to avoid falling over but asmy dear friend says just look at the positives of all that, what you are doing is working, she says don't say all will be well, she says all IS well, you are doing it, you are keeping going. I still have many concerns generally. I do wonder if I'm doing the right thing by dd. Am I selfish working?In theory if what others have told me I could be better off not working, but then I don't want to losemy home, I love my business and I love my customers and I want to give dd a platform from which to be what she wants to be in life. Is that wrong, no surely not. I told my counsellinglady I am worried about the impending review of the Disability Living Allowance. I recd a Mobility magazing recently and for once read it and there was an article in there how it is being reviewed, everyone, even those awarded it for life like myself it seems will be reviewed and given the lady from the Disabled Parent Network charity said I am making things harder for myself by continuing to keep working, I am worried they will take it away from me because I am working. I can't go there actually, the thought of having to fight to have the right to work and be considered "worthy" of the DLA is terrifying. Self doubt is the one thing I need to overcome. Anyway, it may not come to that... Lets pray it doesn't!

I think thats me for now. I am planning to do my tax return shortly. Dd who is lovely as always is going to a friends after school so I literally have the rest of the day to get on with that and some ebay if it doesn't get too hot in here. I also want to establish a new weekly plan. I am aware on Saturdays much of the day until say 2/3pm is taken up with chores in the house and what I would love to do is beable to transfer some of those chores to the week so I have more quality time with dd at the weekend. That said dd's help is invaluable and of course she is around at weekends. Alternatively, I may consider paying someone for a couple of hours a week help, what my friend can do in a couple of hours , I am looking at it taking me 3, maybe 4 depending on the tasks. I will be able to give proper consideration to the options once I receive the latest money coming my way, and assess the options after calculating where I am financially and my debt free dates etc..

POSITIVE_AND_FOCUSED

So, yes, tax return completed, such a great feeling to think its out of the way! Just waiting to hear back from my accountant as to when I can get it to him, and I've heard from the Ombudsman re my bank charges complaint. They have refered the matter to Halifax who also phoned me yesterday to say they were looking into the matter. Will wait and see..

beanielou

All sounding very positive

taxi73

yes definitely sounding positive

POSITIVE_AND_FOCUSED

So, just a quick post before I go off out to work again. Worked this am, then met a friend for lunch as itsmy birthday on Wednesday and we could fit lunch in today! Have just returned, sorted out a delivery and wil be off to do that in a tick before dd returns later..

Lovely weather here. Heard from mum last Thursday, she wants us to move on. Yes, I have appreciated her apology for sayingmy life is dreadful albeit she shouted it at me. However, I have already explained to her that for me a whole lot more needs to be acknowledged as upsetting to me at the very least, apologised for ideally in order for me to feel accepted as me in this family and to be able to be free to talk as me at family gatherings etc. I have made numerous apologies myself mainly for feeling low and telling my mum and sister that, but still none of them will apologise for the rest of everything outside of the "dreadful" comments. For example if I am apparently making an industry from dh murder because I mention his name sometimes and my family thinks thats acceptable to say to me then how on earth do I or dd talk about develpments in that area, or if dd just wants to talk about daddy, how can she? It's all v upsetting. So, I have explained to mum that I love her but need full apologies to know that I am accepted for me before any bridges can be built. Without those apologies it means that it could all kick off again, that I will always feel like the black sheep for being disabled and keepingmy business going, and I can't bring myself to do that. My sister told me Im breaking up the family because I won't do as mum wants which is to give up work, and I just can't go back to happy families knowing that they think thats ok to say. So, mum in fact has come back almost denying everything else, saying she has only tried to make helpful suggestions and Im twisting everything which I absolutely haven't. How can you twist a statement such as You should be on benefits, or yo give dd a dreadful life or you should sell your home. You can't. They are said as they are said, so I'm staying away from them all, surroundingmyself with positive people as much as possible. I love them but its just so bizarre I am the one who has apologised for having depressing moments..

Anyway, thatsme, off to work Igo... Lovely weather, its so nice to be out in the fresh air on days like today..

taxi73

keep on plodding x