Cherry takes the reins

Cherryfudge

Plans are made to be changed.

I was nearly finished with checking through my emails when the Union rep rang and we had a long and useful conversation. Plenty of notes taken, and tomorrow I need to get as much as possible in place to talk about reasonable adjustments with Occupational Health on Friday. He also pointed out that work isn't going to like it if I start a relief job elsewhere while still off sick with my job, so if I get offered the relief post, it will have to be with the proviso that I can't start until I'm fit to work.

While on the phone, I had a text from a work friend so she came round and we had a massive catch-up, resulting in a late lunch and feeling cold as we'd sat outside and the 21 degrees on my weather forecast bears no resemblance to what's in my garden. Still, it was very good to see her.

I decided against going to the market as it would be closing by the time I'd finished lunch and there was nothing I actually needed. Instead, I found the eye clinic details and rang them so I'm going to see them tomorrow.

Of the rest of the list: the guilty plum has gone to join the compost. The bank says I'm up to the limit I can transfer today, so apart from letting my sister know, there's nothing to be done there. Laundry and fridge remain not done. YBS, ironing and crochet ditto.

Cherryfudge

Another day: some to-do items carried forward and a few others to add.

I need to go through any information I can find to bring to the Occupational Health meeting tomorrow morning. I started on the laborious process of cutting and pasting from the resources recommendations on the Do IT Profiler I completed a few months ago, but realised those are largely the bits I know already and I have the other relevant sections printed out so I just need to go through them. There might be stuff from anxiety counselling but that's quite old now so I'd need to process it. Then there's the stuff the Union rep talked me through yesterday which is probably the most relevant.

I've noticed over the past few months just how very susceptible I am to suggestion, and yesterday was a good example. I started the day with my established position of 'I can never work in that field again, let alone in that post', and have progressed through the rep and my manager (via my friend) both suggesting I at least consider working in the day centre, and now I'm half way to thinking it might be feasible. Could I really just start there again? But on the other hand, my reaction to the interview was both completely unexpected and scary, so I don't know if something like that might happen again.

It's lovely and warm out, so there's a second load of laundry on the line and I have a number of items that need a careful hand wash so some of those might also get done. This afternoon I've an eye appointment, and there are also the remnants of yesterday's list:

• Clean the fridge
  
• do laundry
• work out why my crochet is going awry
• Transfer more to my sister (for some reason it wouldn't let me do the agreed amount last night)
• Contact YBS to sort out my login (First find paperwork)
• ironing
• Any more blackberries?

Cherryfudge

The fridge, crochet, YBS and ironing remain outstanding.

I got an eye health appointment in the afternoon but arrived at the wrong time and had to come back. Expensive mistake as I had no plans to buy anything yet spent over £30. I popped into a charity shop and discovered a book (£2) and an old Denby pie dish in the set I collect. I've never seen one before and at £4.95 I felt it was worth it. I'd just taken out some spending money in case it's needed this weekend while we're with friends, so perhaps I need a bit more now.

The next charity shop had what looked like vintage Denby too, but turned out it was from their 'Classics' range but no longer available. So that was another £4.

I had just time to go to Sue Ryder, where I spotted 6 teacups from the same set. They aren't stamped but I recognised them... £6.50 so I grabbed them. Then it occurred to me to check the other shelves as more might have been brought in, and I ended up with a cream jug, butter pat dish and two mugs (£3 each), all from the same set. The plates and saucers were nowhere to be seen, but they seem to be what got broken most as they're never to be found. I've decided the mugs are a present for my sister who collects the same set. I prefer the other style they made and if I don't keep those, I have a bit more space.

I can't find the receipt but I think the Denby total was £28.65.

The optician's appointment was fine, apart from an £11.50 bottle of drops. These are designed to last 6 months rather than the usual 1 month, but even so, it's a lot! I also need to use a warm flannel over my eyes a couple of times a day to try to reset the tear ducts - at least that bit is free!

Lots of washing got done and dried. There was just a cardigan and a bag left for separate washing.

Dinner was a variation on chicken chasseur so there's just a bit of chicken to go in the freezer and oddments of veg have been used up. The pastries I made yesterday were a glimmer of a good idea but aren't quite right. Pecan, apricot jam and raisins go quite well but the pastry is heavy and the filling needs to be more moist.

We're away from tomorrow afternoon till Monday so hopefully what's left in the fridge will keep. There's another jug of blackberries from the garden and back lane, but those are going to A and H.

DH has helped me think through things for Occupational Health tomorrow: I have a paper full of notes and I've booked an appointment with the doctor as requested by the union rep to see if she thinks it's PTSD. I had a look at the online records but they don't give anything away!

Expenditure:
Hobbies £28.65?
Book £2

MS stuff:
Still picking blackberries.
Handwashing instead of dry cleaning.

MS failures
See above, though stonewear is seriously durable so perhaps they are an investment.

Honeysucklelou2

Caught up ! Hope that the Occupational Health meeting went as well as possible and was helpful to you.

Floss

Hope you've had a relaxing weekend & all went well last week?

Cherryfudge

Thank you both! The Occupational Health meeting was indeed helpful and today I read through the report after much faffing about as it wasn't easily accessible and I'm tired. I think it's all fair though it misses some details despite being quite long. It will go to management on Wednesday.

We've had a lovely time away: the couple we visited had a good range of things planned for us and it was relaxing, through we both struggled with the heat which made it harder to get to sleep. They have cats so windows are kept shut (main road nearby). By the third night we had worked out to shut the cats out of our room and have the windows and blinds open, so we slept better. I'm still feeling the need of a couple of recovery days, though!

So what did we do? A very good car boot sale on Saturday morning (I bought some beautiful clothes, spending very little) and a good garden centre (DH bought me a plant) then a park in the afternoon, and on Sunday a trip out to a local attraction where we also found a lot of wasps and a super second hand bookshop. Again, I bought a lot of books, but they will last me a while.

We've had lunches out both days, plus afternoon café breaks, so money has been spent for some of those, though we took turns with our friends. We paid for entry on Sunday afternoon, and today we bought lunch at the services on the way home. And it's poured down today, though that didn't cost us anything.

It's funny how a good break can still leave you needing rest:, even when it's been fun and refreshing and you've had some down time. I'm quite on edge through having to get into and read the report and just needing some real time out. However, I've paid the penultimate chunk of money to my sister and tomorrow will complete the main amount. I've explained to her that there's a small reserve being held in the Exec Account which I'll divide up between a gift for the lady who used to help Mum (sister and I agreed this a while ago), my remaining expenses and the residue goes equally between my sister and myself. Interestingly, the friend we visited finalised her Mum's estate on Thursday. Her issues have been different, more complex, but she's got through it in a lot less time!

Expenditure:
Books £12
Clothing £3.50
Food/entertainment/holiday budget - not sure. I'll try to get back to that via bank statements.
Data £9

MS stuff:
Given marrows by our friends!
Great car boot finds and second hand books.
Taking a chilled coffee to have in the car on the way.
Lifts in their (very nice) car rather than driving ourselves.

Not-so MS
Not noticing my phone had lost connection with their wi-fi, thus incurring lots of data use.
Eating out a lot.

Floss

Good to read your OH appointment went OK - you can ask them to add the details they missed before it goes to your managers. Are you happy with their recommendations? 

Cherryfudge

I think the recommendations are as agreed, thanks, @Floss. I'm not countenancing going straight back into my old role, if ever. I certainly need to get more counselling and develop techniques to cope before I could go near it. At the moment I'm signed off till the GP is okay with me going back, but then I've said I'd then be okay to work towards a phased return in the sister service, with some provisos.

I'm going to give it another read in the morning then I intend to email to let them know that as far as I know I'm not in a queue for autism assessment, just for trauma therapy, and that I've not been told there's an expectation of full resolution post-counselling. That's just one paragraph of a few pages, though, so most of it is as I think it should be.

Cherryfudge

I didn't manage to get my head round posting yesterday but it was a granddaughter day. We had a nice time and not too exhausting! I didn't spend anything, though I think DH did. My MS thing was resisting going out for coffee. The Tuesday group was cancelled, as my friend had to work, so I had a quiet evening, crocheting and reading one of my new books.

I also made the last significant payment to my sister's share of the estate!

Today I have spent most of the morning busily avoiding getting down to any of the jobs I could be doing, but eventually logged in to banking and made one of two significant transactions of my own share of the estate. I can do the other any time from tomorrow onwards and that will be the bulk of it sorted.

The money has gone into a savings account designated for holidays, where at least it gets interest, though not a very good rate. Yes, I need a new account. The things is, having looked through what my bank has to offer, there's only one with a decent rate of interest, and it can't be done in joint names. Although this is my money, I want it to be available to DH if the need arises, so I suppose I need to do some investigation and talk it through with him. I have a history of being very bad at opening new accounts, too. I do the groundwork then get bogged down on some petty detail and it all grinds to a halt.

I also need to consider dividing the money between longer-term and accessible savings.

After that... well, it occurred to me that I'm at a point where a fresh diary might be about due. This one was mostly about getting to this point, believe it or not. Now, with most of the money sorted and about to go onto half pay, well... that sounds like a natural new start to me.

Anyway, I'm here to stick a marker in the sand regarding the money and make a list for today:

• food shopping to be done
• pot up yogurt
• make marmalade
• revise for interview tomorrow
• check emails in case there's been any correspondence
• pick blackberries
• have some quiet time
• do my French practice
• check what days I've volunteered to water the church garden.

Cherryfudge

The list got done! Not often that happens in its entirety. Admittedly there's a limit to the revision I can do and there are aspects I looked up originally and have now forgotten, but I'm not going to tackle them at this time of night.

There are three jars of yogurt and six jars of marmalade and I picked one side of the garden for blackberries (half a jug's worth), then I went to the shops. As well as the groceries, I found a bowl for DH in the same style as one he liked which got broken, an egg cup n what appears to be my favourite Denby, and a storage tub to go with the set I already have for flour and the like.

This evening was a meeting with my small group from church, then I washed my hair and gave myself a bit of a facial to convince tomorrow's interviewers that I am the perfect person to teach adults.  

MS stuff:
I talked myself out buying of a yogurt straining thingy in the charity shop.  
Hopefully saved a bit of money by making food at home.
Transferred funds to interest-bearing account.

Not-so-MS stuff:
I remembered that there might be more more Denby where last week's finds came from.

Expenditure:
Hobbies £5.50
Housekeeping £10.30