foolhandy

Today I am beyond this planet. I’m really not quite sure what I’m up to and where the day has gone. I have made a few ‘phone calls and I have been to Colchester and back but other than that - nothing.

I really don’t know where today has gone or what has happened.

I did do this for my ‘phone for about 5 minutes.

Badminton isn’t happening for me tonight. Too much time wasted today when I have supply tomorrow and work that must be done for Wednesday.

And I’m going to move my computer upstairs and partition a bit of my oversized bedroom to make a ‘work’ area. How much difference that makes is something we’ll see.

Off to the doctor now!

I’m late.

There’s been a break here, but that’s mainly because I’ve been thinking about how I want to record what I’m up to. I think this is it…

So, since #6 I’ve been bowling, taking Alfie & Helen to a Cambridge United match, driving an Audi A2, working a five-day week again, doing parents’ evenings, visiting Mark & Lou (taking in the Forbidden Corner, Whitby & York) with Helen & Alfie, and this weekend I’m off to Stratford to do a few things and play football.

A new work regime kicks in next week. He says. But really, I’m going to try to fit one whole day of not-at-work work in rather than spreading it over several days. It will still mean that I get three days off a week and should lead to less tail chasing. The first week I do this I have a day’s supply of course, but I’m thinking it’ll work. Positivity!

And I’m off to see the doctor on Monday.

Today started with me breaking my computer. Impatiently trying to view a routemap for the course I’ve been on all day I switched off during a scandisk. Cue repeated Blue Screens Of Death and not a lot else. It’s all back and working now, but only after a very long chkdsk and a very long second scandisk. Thank goodness I have a hooky copy of XP in my collection to get me to a dos prompt….

The course was pleasant enough. It was all to do with school sports partnerships, but along the way we grappled with a PLT, DH, Dff, PSA, NSF, CAMHS, DfES, DWP, SSCo, DCMS, LEA, LA, HEI, PCT, PDM, PSA, SSP, PESSCL, SLS, PDB, BAALPE, CPD, OSHL, AOTT, PESS, NCPE, OAA, PE/SS, PSHE, NOF, NC, SENCO, SLT, PESS, PESSS, QCA, OHT and even a PE. Lovely.

Proof that computers reduce everyday productivity can be found on my living room floor. Whilst the computer was checking and scanning I had nothing else to do but hoover. It won’t get done again now until I break this thing again…

Dear me. A plane crashes into a building in New York.  It’s a light aircraft owned by and being flown by a baseball star who sadly died in the crash. The reaction to this crash has been an announcement that it is “likely” to be an accident and not terrorism. Fighter planes are circling US cities as a “precaution”. Nothing like an overreaction to keep BBC News 24 busy for hours.

And as for how many people have died in Iraq since it was invaded by the US & UK, I know the number - too many. And I don’t believe for one moment that it grieves Mr. Bush one bit.

It’s 18:42 and I’ve just got home from work after a staff meeting.

Elsewhere, Orris is checking up on me!

I noticed earlier in the term how Tuesday had become the new Sunday in my life. The working ’til late, the nervousness, the poor night’s sleep. It’s worse than it ever has been though. Although I know exactly what I’m going to be doing today, and only have a list of resources I have to source in order to be ready, I just couldn’t settle last night. I woke up several times and had all sorts of things, not necessarily school related, whizzing throught my head. I’m not sure exactly why this is although I have my suspicions that’s it’s to do with levels of expectation. This is all well and good, but not if I sleep so badly that I’m tired for the whole of Wednesday. I’m going to have to sort out ways of dealing with it.

I received a call from Select Education yesterday offering me one day a week’s work in a school in Colchester. On Fridays. I called them and said I was interested but reminded them that I was already working on Fridays. They said they’d see if there was flexibility at the school concerned and get back to me one way or the other. I await news.

Last night I dreamt that I was the captain of a cruise ship which was being held to ransom by terrorists. I need to drink more water. We went to Bury St Edmunds today. The main reason was to give blood, Bury being the nearest place to Halstead doing blood donations today. But it was also an opportunity to look around and see somewhere new. The blood doning session was held at Bury Corn Exchange. An odd building, it seemed to have had the inside designed to look like the outside, but with a raised floor. The doning (word?) itself was very simple as ever, with the exception of Seychelles being reclassified due to an outbreak of the chikungunya virus across the Indian Ocean. It just meant a longer wait, but I coped. The man who took the blood was the old landlord of the Tramway pub in Stratford-Upon-Avon. It’s a small world etc. He also knew a bit about Cambridge United, which is always good. After the messiest egg mayonnaise sandwich in the world we spent time being very excited in card shops and Boots, before heading for the supermarket for some essential shopping. I felt both old and posh as we ambled around Waitrose and marvelled at all the expensive things. Oddly, Double-O flour is cheaper than in Sainsbury’s. So I’m told. More importantly, tonight I shall become intimate with posh recycled toilet tissue. The joys…

I have been feeling as if a backlash was likely and today I think it’s happened. I’ve reduced the links on my old links page to get rid of various forums and I’m going to try and use the internet less. When I thought of moving to Essex I looked at a time when I would paint again, learn to play an instrument, explore the local area and decide on my future career. So far too much of my time has been spent doing the same as I did in Alcester. Too much of my time has been working. It’s too late to start a course this term, but I will after Christmas. And I’m going to try and walk more - I have to be healthier than I am for my trip to Seychelles at Easter. We’re off to Bury St. Edmunds tomorrow to give blood and look around. I’ve never been before and so it will be good to see a new place. And then it’s back to work on Wednesday and the making of clay statues will begin…