Nice people thread part 5 - nicely does it

lemonjelly

Nikkster wrote: »

Yeah, I definitely felt that in my last job! Having a bit of a wobble tonight. It's my birthday in a couple of weeks (a 'big' one, and my mum was asking what I want to do to celebrate. I didn't plan on being back here, with no job, no friends, no partner etc etc. I told her I might just stay in bed all day and hide or go out on my own! We might have to come to a compromise and just celebrate the Bank Hol instead

I never make a big deal about my birthday. Never book it off work or anything. Never have. Its just a day...
A frined always booked their birthday off. In my experience, it wasn't their birthday they needed to book off. It was the day after.;)

In addition, I don't feel it should be the person who's birthday it is who makes a fuss. It should be everyone else fussing over you! A specific few friends have deliberately made a fuss/embarrassed me the last couple of years, which has made a bit of fun.

So NP's, do we give suggestions? How about:
http://www.svr.co.uk/

Day out on a steam train, shopping & lunching with mum &/or friends?

lemonjelly

PasturesNew wrote: »

For me, the half century and "thought I'd have got a bf by now" was the final nail .....

Well Hello!!!

Ding dong!

lemonjelly

lostinrates wrote: »

When the parents are sorted i am really keen to find some voluntary work again. But....i am struggling to find something i really believe in.

Are you looking for something to engage you mentally, or physically?

Initially I'd have suggested animals, but then that might be too much of a busmans holiday for you?

So that then makes me wonder about what type of group you'd like to help? The young? The elderly?

Is there not a voluntary services council in your area? They usually have details of all charitable organisations in the locale.

lostinrates

lemonjelly wrote: »

Are you looking for something to engage you mentally, or physically?

Initially I'd have suggested animals, but then that might be too much of a busmans holiday for you?

So that then makes me wonder about what type of group you'd like to help? The young? The elderly?

Is there not a voluntary services council in your area? They usually have details of all charitable organisations in the locale.

Mentally i guess, depends on what you mean by physically.

Animal charities increasingly make me cross. So as well as a busman's holiday it is a recipe for a heart attack.....i eat meat, believe human and animal lives can be enhanced by pet care and feel most stufff sold to pet owners is a croc and believe than humane destruction can be better than living out years in a rescue centre. I am hardly the ideal animal charity volunteer, because as well as experience of life with animals i believe some of the very non fluffy bunny scientific research.


Plus, animal people often get opn my wick.

I don't know who i want to benifit from my wonderful envelop franking skills, or whatever i end up doing, thats the problem atm. I am entering an 'anti social personality disorder' phase of life. I want to help people, i just don't like many of them that much.:D

PasturesNew

lemonjelly wrote: »

Fairly sure I've mentioned it before....:)

I don't take stalker notes
I've missed whatever it was.

PasturesNew

lostinrates wrote: »

i am really keen to find some voluntary work again. But....i am struggling to find something i really believe in.

Volunteering isn't as easy as it seems is it - in London, where there is a headquarters for everything .... there's a lot of choice. In most areas though there's bugg4h all actually going on - so you're left with 1-2 really cr4ppy choices, or do nothing.

PasturesNew

lemonjelly wrote: »

Is there not a voluntary services council in your area? ....

This is one of the things that's wrong with the country .... too many organisations, too many charities,.... too many .... and nobody knows they exist.

Even trying to find volunteering isn't easy is it as everywhere's so different.

Right now, I've never heard of the voluntary services council - and am about to Google it. ... oh god, I wish I hadn't... there are hundreds of them. So then I googled:

voluntary services council mycountyname

Loads again.

Why oh why oh why can't charities etc just work together - all the effort and money seems to me to be wasted in duplication, triplication ... 1000ication.

PasturesNew

If I had to volunteer today I'd volunteer in transcribing official records, like parish records, etc... for family history/genealogical purposes. That's interesting stuff.... and educational and there are new skills to be learnt....

e.g. you might transcribe one parish and come across a lot of burials, then look at the date and realise it was history-related to some big disease/disaster.... then further down the page something else might catch your eye and you're off on an interesting local story of missing people, highwaymen or murders.

That'd be brilliant.

PasturesNew

lemonjelly wrote: »

Well Hello!!!

Ding dong!

It's offers like that that have kept me single

I've never been short of (bad) offers you know.

lemonjelly

lostinrates wrote: »

Mentally i guess, depends on what you mean by physically.

Animal charities increasingly make me cross. So as well as a busman's holiday it is a recipe for a heart attack.....i eat meat, believe human and animal lives can be enhanced by pet care and feel most stufff sold to pet owners is a croc and believe than humane destruction can be better than living out years in a rescue centre. I am hardly the ideal animal charity volunteer, because as well as experience of life with animals i believe some of the very non fluffy bunny scientific research.


Plus, animal people often get opn my wick.

I don't know who i want to benifit from my wonderful envelop franking skills, or whatever i end up doing, thats the problem atm. I am entering an 'anti social personality disorder' phase of life. I want to help people, i just don't like many of them that much.:D

I can see this.
Is there a particular disability charity you'd support?
Is there a particular green issue you feel needs highlighting?
A local hospice?

I think with this kinda thing, when you have a vague idea & start exploring, & start actually volunteering, you start seeing the issues more & more, which can increase resolve/commitment.

For me, volunteering is essential for something you believe in. When in that situation, I think you find you get more of the internal benefits of doing the tasks/role, as you're not doing it for monetary recompense.

If there isn't a voluntary services council, can I suggest enquiring at the library?

How about reading to patients at hospital? (Provided you promise to look after the books...:p)