Taking control of my life

dancingfairy

Wow Venice - sounds good. What's the Vitruvian Man thing then? is it famous?
Hope your dad and sister get over things and will still talk to you - although if they don't they can't be asking you for favours/demanding things and upsetting you I 'spose.
The OU work sounds busy. I would like to maybe do an OU course - some of the short courses/openings look quite interesting - might see if you can still use Tesco vouchers to pay for them as always seem to have loads of Tesco vouchers and never know what to spend them on. I am doing Book keeping level 1 at the moment and hope to do level 2 after Christmas and then hopefully Sage at Easter and need to find a job so not sure the OU thing will be soon but we'll see.
df

Ames

The Vitruvian Man is the Leonardo Da Vinci picture of a bloke with four arms and four legs inside circles, it was really important for early science and things. Hang on...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitruvian_Man

You're right, if they're not talking to me they can't be using me!

You can still use Tesco vouchers, they're 4x their worth in OU vouchers. The module I'm doing now is really interesting, about where the boundary between humans and non humans is with regards to politics. It's not about animal rights, or getting great apes into parliament (which the original course description made it sound like!), but things like how climate change has become a political issue. Yesterday we were talking about how it's only a hundred or so years ago that it became accepted that women can be political beings, rather than being seen as closer to animals, and how things could change in the future. Sorry, I'm rambling and no-one will find this stuff interesting!

Ames

I'm gobsmacked, dad's stood up to sister as well. She's got a bottle of JD for xmas off him, he says she's had enough this year (he had to pay over a grand in tuition fees to let her graduate, plus giving her hundreds a month to live of for about 6 months, in the last couple of years she's bled him dry and his savings are all gone). I was worried he was going to have a go at me about the argument the other day but it all seems forgotten. I feel bad though that for xmas and my birthday he's asked me to put £100 towards a tv and he'll put the rest there, he thinks there'll be a £600 one half price, if not he'll get me one of the £300 ones. So I'm getting about 20 times what my sister is. He's also said I can go over there for xmas if I want, but I've got it planned for here and already started buying food in, so I'm going to have a quiet one here.

dancingfairy

Wow - I didn't know what it was called- that would be a great thing to see- especially if they have an exhibition on some of his other stuff as well. Not sure if it's a collection of just that one piece of his?
I bet you've done most of the starter OU courses? if I get around to doing one I'll have to canvass your opinions. The science ones look interesting ie microbes or weather or maybe a personal finance one or maybe psychology - such a difficult decision.
Am glad things seem to be O.K with your dad.
Have you spoken to your sister or is it a case of her ringing when she wants to?
P.S Book keeping is hardly a cool subject is it? if I started telling people about that then they would probably fall asleep but I like it. maybe it's like my course - maybe your course is more interesting in real life than trying to explain it to other people? I've never been cool or fashionable - I don't think I'm going to start now either. :rotfl:Maybe we should have an anti-cool/ 'normal' club? Where normal equals things like going out getting drunk and not remembering anything the next day, thinking books are weird, not having any money for food but some for drinking still , that kind of thing?
df

dancingfairy

Hope your dad understands that you've planned a quiet day over Christmas - maybe you can visit on a different day or he can visit you on a different day?
df

dancingfairy

Hi Ames :hello: What's with the OU thing - you mentioned it on another thread that you couldn't do some of your courses as they were limiting you to a certain amount a year?
df

Ames

Hi df!

I haven't actually finished any starter OU courses! I started one a few years ago but dropped out to go to 'real' uni, and then because I had some credits from there I went straight onto the higher level courses. I might have to do the intro to social sciences as part of the degree, which is a bit stupid because I'm doing a 3rd year course, and I'm about to do a 2nd year course, so doing an intro course just for the sake of it seems a waste of time. Plus it wont really be fair on other students who are new to study, since I'll have a better chance of getting high marks. Apparantly at my next tutorial there'll be someone I can talk to about it.

As for limiting the courses, it's just the Arts and Humanities department (at the moment), all 60 point courses will start in October, they're stopping the Feb start courses. Which meansn that it'll be impossible to go full time and get a degree in 3 years, because to do that you need to do 120 credits a year. They've cut down the amount of 30 credit courses over the last few years too. They say it's because people do better on the October start courses. So it means that I'm going to have to do my history courses starting in October, and Social sciences ones in Feb, so I'll be limited as to which ss courses I can do. Not sure that makes sense to anyone other than me!

Dad's ok about me having xmas here, it was more of a 'you don't have to spend it on your own thing'. TBH, he's not really into xmas - he sees it as being for the kids. He doesn't even put decorations up (even when it's been planned for us all to go round his). NYE means more to him than xmas, especially since he started working at Currys, and has to work xmas eve and boxing day.

I saw the psychiatrist on Monday, I was really nervous because I thought she'd think I'd told the ME clinic I had bipolar, which is what they based their opinion on. I didn't, I told them that I had a previous diagnosis of bipolar, but that my current one is anxiety and affective disorders. She says I need to write to the ME clinic saying what I disagree with in the letter, and to copy her and all my doctors in to it. So I'll do that sometime in the next couple of weeks, there's no point rushing because of xmas and the post and stuff. I told her I'd been having more panic attacks and she told me that it's important not to avoid situations. I said I'd had one when I went into town last Saturday (stupid thing to do anyway!) and that I'm dealing with it by going at quieter times, she said that it's important to do that. Which is good - I've always tried to make a point of going into town for a coffee now and then so I don't get to panicky and scared of town and crowds, but I've felt bad counting it as 'care needs', thinking that most people would see it just as an excuse. But it's good to know that I'm doing the right thing.

She's also re referring me back to the psychologist, and she's going to push for me to go to the top of the list, since he only discharged me a few weeks ago on the understanding that I'd be getting help from the ME clinic she says it's not fair for me to wait another 9 months. She's also suggested I self refer to the women's councelling service, as their waiting list is only about 4 months, and they don't limit you to how many sessions you can go to like NHS services do. If it's the place I'm thinking on I've heard good things about them, and I've been invited to be on the board of directors of the umberella charity. So I'll get in touch with them too.

This was supposed to be my discharge appointment, but I've asked for one more to be sure that all the referrals and everything are going through. So all in all, really positive!

Ellidee

Coo-ee Ames ! Think we need an update ! When are you off to Venice ? XX

Ames

Yeah, haven't updated for ages, I'll do a proper one tomorrow. I'm going on Monday, only till Friday though.

Ellidee

OOh fab !! I haven't been to Venice - or Italy for that matter.