Finished the manuscript, took my pills, checked my emails...

...dropped a pretty large chunk of a celebratory choccie biccie and I'm off to beddy byes now.

 

It's gonna be a busy day tomorrow - another call from the pharmacist at my GP surgery at some point in the morning, the enabler coming to check on my progress in the spare room and hopefully take the bags of rubbish I've cleared out so far, then our groceries are being delivered then hopefully that's it for the day.  I think I need an early night tonight in preparation for all the activity tomorrow, so I'm gonna say nite nite to you all now and I'll see you at some point tomorrow.

I've finished the manuscript now, so I haven't got a clue how I'm gonna fill my days now lol  Might start studying again or try to come up with a plan for my next novel, now that I no longer have a WIP!

No news on my writing site today, sooo...

...I'm gonna leave the other two, just for today, and start writing instead.  It'll mean I'll hopefully finish a couple of hours earlier than I did yesterday so that I can come out of my writing headspace and let my muse have the rest of the day off.  They've been working really hard so I'm gonna be kind to them today I reckon.

Already achieved a...

...pretty reasonable amount this morning:

1. taken all my daily pills
2. refilled my pill organiser 
3. set the daily virus scan going
   
4. taken the recycling out
5. taken the rubbish out
6. checked my email and the forum
7. made a drink for both of us

 

I'm about to get started on the three sets of news, then I'll spend the rest of the day writing and hopefully finish the manuscript before 7pm, so that I can have my reward before I head to bed.

 

We're having egg and chips for lunch, apparently, which'll take considerably less time to cook and eat than yesterday's lunch, so I can, in theory, finish off the chapter, send Steve into the kitchen to cook it, then by the time I've put me laptop on the floor and the laptop stand in the space, lunch will hopefully be sorted, we can eat, then I can finish off the writing and breathe a huge sigh of relief that I've finished it in only 9 days.

Today is gonna be a good day.  I've decided.  😁

Late start to the morning, but so far today...

Pills taken, breakfast eaten, virus scan completed, one set of news done, time for the rest of the news then hopefully get stuck into todays five chapters 🤞 written by the time I head to bed tonight.  Gonna go and do my exercises now before I forget again.

Feeling pretty proud of myself right now

After a slooooow start and wondering if I'd even get 3 chapters written today, I've managed another 5 today, on top of having about ¾ of an hour off for a particularly yummy lunch today.  I'm gonna take my evening pills now though and head to bed in hopeful preparation for an early-ish start tomorrow.

 

Nite nite orl.

 

Not too bad at all!

It's 11am and I've taken my pills, had my breakfast, started the virus scan, emailed my doctors surgery about when my new dose of the AP starts, advertised the wrapping paper on Freegle and someone is hopefully coming for something else today, so I'm already able to start writing today - just got 3 chapters to go and I'm at the half way point after only 6 days... hoping to write another 5 chapters today, so please keep your fingers crossed 🤞 for me that I achieve it again.

BBL.

Wowsers!

I completed all the news, caught up with my emails and Facebook and managed to kick out a huge 5 chapters today too, which means that I only need to write 3 more tomorrow and I'll be half way through it in under a week!  I can so do this!  I can't remember if I've signed up to do Camp NaNo this year or not, but if I have it'll have been with this novel and I didn't even start it until Camp had been running for 3 full days lol 

One down, two to go

Mornin' all.

 

I've already done one set of news, so just gotta do two more then the rest of the day is mine.  

 

My prescription arrived first thing and as a result of yesterday's medical appointment, I've gotta reduce the FA down to twice a week instead of three times now, so no more for the rest of this week then it'll be Tuesdays and Thursdays from then on.  I wanna try and wean myself off it 'cos I'm already taking it in two of my daily supplements, so it would save the NHS a small amount each month if I was able to come off it entirely.  As of yesterday I'm reducing the AP by a third a day too, I've just got the extra third there just in case it's too little for me, but when I'm confident about the lower dose for that too then that will save the NHS a bit more money each month.  I realise that it won't be millions a month, but if everyone saves the NHS a few quid a month then it soon adds up❗

 

I've taken all my daily pills and had my breakfast, as well as two hot drinks.  The daily virus scan was clear so I've gotta do my exercise before I forget, then it's time to get on with the next set of news.

BBS.

Achieved a decent amount today, so now...

...I'm off to bed for an early night.

 

I'll hopefully remember to write more tomorrow lol

 

News for 7th April 2021

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7th April 2021

Society Spotlight: Oxford Social Impact

Lockdown mental fatigue rapidly reversed by social contact, study finds

 

Not really achieved much since I had me lunch

Since having my lunch, literally all I've done is lig around on Facebook and put the FitBit weekly email report up on my site.  No studying and no writing (yet) 'cos I'm waiting for a couple of Freegle things to go - one was supposed to go 🕝 at 2.30pm and the other at 🕓 4pm.  The one that's late isn't too bad 'cos it's only small, but if the 4pm one doesn't turn up then I won't be happy❗  They've got 15 minutes before I start writing and they won't be getting brownie points from me.

Not as productive this morning, but...

...that's only because there wasn't any news to keep me busy.

 

I've had me breakfast (my daily two slices of toast), run my daily virus scan, taken my pills, had a mid-morning snack, paid two invoices, and caught up with my emails.  Time to do me exercises for the first time this week now, then it'll almost be lunchtime then one of the Freegle things is being picked up after lunch.

My hayfever is now in full flow, so that's it until about September, I'll get two weeks off then the cold season will start again 😞

Time to get on with my exercises for the first time this week, so that I don't forget again.  Wanna get on with my writing again this afternoon - I'm aiming to write at least two chapters a day... might sneak in a small amount of studying if there's time between finishing my exercises and having our lunch too.

TTFN.

Pretty good day so far today

The hayfever season officially started for me at 8pm 🕗 last night so my nose and eyes were streaming and I had no choice but to breathe through my mouth again.  I woke up gasping for air several times because I couldn't breathe and according to the FitBit app I was restless 20 times, but still somehow managed 9 hours and 11 minutes of sleep!

I had toast and a mug of PG Tips for breakfast, just after taking my morning pills and setting the virus scan going and while doing the news for each site (even though there was only news on my writing site in the end), then the groceries arrived, had lunch (5 doughnuts 🙄 🤣), took my Monday lunchtime pill, studied the first module of my next course and now I'm gonna spend the rest of the afternoon and evening writing another couple of chapters of my WIP.

Achieved more than I thought I would already this morning!

I've studied a course, caught up with my emails and taken the rubbish and recycling out since my last blog post, which means I can spend all afternoon (after I've had me lunch 🍴) writing now, which is awesome.... wanna totally drain my laptop battery 🔋 first though, so that it doesn't die on me half way through a paragraph that I've forgotten to save.

Busy morning today!

Got a lot going on this morning - I've had my second caffeinated drink of the week to wake me up, taken my pills, sorted ⅔ of the news already, finished the daily virus scan (still clear, thankfully), got someone coming to pick up our smoothie machine (that I brought down from the spare room yesterday) at 9am and I've unplugged my laptop for it's monthly discharge of the battery... scratch that, the smoothie machine has just gone so it's just the news and my exercises to do now.

If you're in the UK, maybe you've seen those adverts about spotting a stroke?  I've got a headache just where the fire starts on that head, but my face, arms and speech are fine, so it's not a stroke for me, just a weird headache that's moving over to my right hand side temple and right eye now, so might break out a paracetamol so that I can get it stopped in it's tracks.

I wanna write at least another two (or hopefully more) chapters of my novel that I started yesterday and if I manage to speed through the last third of the news, I'm hoping to make a start on my WIP again and then reward myself with lunch.  Gotta keep an eye on the battery level though and very regularly save it so that I don't lose too much work when the battery dies on me.  It says there's 5 hours and 17 minutes left, which works out at about 2.15pm so I'll leave it running while I'm eating my lunch, then plug it back in after I've taken our plates out to the kitchen.

News for 4th April 2021

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4th April 2021

Column: Turning the Corner – The Benefits of Friendship

Area Girl Scouts see ‘Friendship Rocks’ party as a way to attract new members

When Keanu Reeves refused to insult Winona Ryder on 'Dracula' set

Achieved a lot this afternoon and evening

Evening all

 

I've taken all my pills, eaten two meals, done three sets of news, written the first chapter of my WIP and done a bit more tidying of the spare room.  Got two heavy bags of junk, the door is almost free and I've advertised a couple of things on Freegle.  I've also remembered to do my exercise this evening.

 

I'm exhausted and in pain, so I'm gonna head to bed for the night now.

Nite nite orl.

News on 3rd April 2021

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3rd April 2021

How to avoid social burnout as restrictions start to lift

Are you and your friends still socially compatible?

How to survive and thrive: Labor and friendship among early humans

‘Divine Intervention’: From Stranger To Lifesaver, Two Women Share Story Of Friendship And Survival

Emma Barnett on the joy of cross-generational friendships

Childhood friendship blossoms into 50-year love story

Lifetime’s Friendship Never Dies: Everything We Know

Cow and cat friendship is an unbreakable bond

What We Owe To Our Friends

How to Make Friends Online and Not Feel Super Awkward About It

 

aaaaand relax!

Just finished studying the course and managed to pass the final assessment eventually... studied 5 modules and did 3 assessments in about 5 hours this afternoon/evening, so I can breathe a huge sigh of relief that it's one less "incomplete" course now and I can hopefully 🤞 spend all weekend writing now, before starting on my next incomplete course next week.

 

I'm off to bed now though, so I'll say nite nite orl and I'll sea ewe in the morning.

 

News on 2nd April 2021

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2nd April 2021

10 signs you’re in a toxic, one-sided friendship

The ‘First Days of the Pandemic’ Friendship Test

Friendship

The Truth About Vanessa Bryant’s Friendship With Ciara

Parrot and Puppy's Adorable Friendship Catches the Heart of Many

How these young people from East Yorkshire have made and maintained friendships in pandemic

Offices set to evolve into social spaces to entice workers back post-pandemic

 

News and an opinion for 1st April 2021

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1st April 2021

  Disabled Gremlins Unite: The Story of an SMA Friendship - Amanda's comment: I've got no idea what SMA is but I'm so glad they've found each other and I reckon we could all learn a thing or two about internet friendship from them!

  AN UNLIKELY FRIENDSHIP

  This is how many friends you need for success

  The Social Mobility Commission joins Cabinet Office

  How Social Commerce is Changing Retail

 

I've taken me pills, had me breakfast, done one set of news, so now...

...I'm gonna sort out the other 2 sets of news then start studying for a couple of hours, then start writing my newest book... wish me luck that I manage it before bedtime please!

!!! - that was a real shock

I've just done an online calculation for what is considered to be the minimum income and I get less in 4 weeks than it says I should be getting each week!  I get £460.40 every 4 weeks, but this calculation is saying that I should be getting £477.86 each WEEK.  If I was getting that then there would be no issues with our groceries or electric - it's saying that just the groceries alone should be £83 a week, but I'm struggling with paying £45 a week and I can't remember the last time I bought new clothes!

Book Review: "The Doctor Will See You Now: The highs and lows of my life as an NHS GP" By: Dr Amir Khan

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5

I wanna start off by saying two things before I forget:  First, every book I read starts off with the full five stars and this book is no different.  Second, I'm a nosey parker so the title of this book really piqued my interest so I bought it straight away... let's hope it doesn't disappoint me now lol

Just finished the first chapter and I'm already fighting back the tears.  I was a bit confused by the first few pages, talking about the authors trip to the garden centre and what on earth it had to do with a GP and his patients.  I was tempted to knock off a star but I'm so glad I didn't now... still a firm 5 stars, thankfully.

Nosey parker question one - the author (who's a newly qualified male GP) has just had to examine a lady "down below" who agreed to a chaperone - all fine and dandy so far yeah?  Here comes the nosey parker bit - does the chaperone have her back to the doctor, reassuring the patient, or does she face the doctor to make sure he's not doing things he shouldn't please?  I've never had a chaperone in any of my examinations (they've been offered, I just haven't felt the need is all) so haven't got a clue what actually happens with them is all and now seems like the ideal opportunity to find out lol

Up to chapter four now and those five stars are still firmly in place.  There was a 3 year old patient with a rare heart problem and the doc wanted to get to know more about her medical issues so that he could keep a better eye on her in the future... I'm wondering if it's like that with my GP too, 'cos I've got two rare illnesses (one neurological and the other with my mental health, fortunately not with my heart), so does my GP rub his hands in excitement each time I contact him, or am I just another patient?

Oh no!  Chapter 6 must have been so hard to write and emotional to re-live!

The end of chapter 9 made me sooo grateful... it must be things like that which make it so worthwhile for doctors and the people they manage to persuade their patients to contact.

Chapter eleven is quite gross, so don't eat or drink anything you want to keep down when you read it.  The doctor has an amazing way of making even the grossest things sound normal and even, dare I say it, fun and humorous!  If only more doctors were like him!

We're onto painkillers and the new advice being to reduce/stop them but that there's no other way to stop the pain atm.  I swear by TENS machines - it takes a bit of trial and error to find the right one for you and they are pretty expensive to buy, but they are an awesome painkiller and literally the only thing that stopped my Endometriosis pain!  If more doctors prescribed those instead of painkillers then surely it'd be cheaper and healthier in the long-run??

Just finished the last page and those five stars are so well deserved... there hasn't been a single reason to knock off a star and I am heartily recommending it to everyone.  Medical bods are under a huge amount of pressure every day at work and the corona virus has added even more pressure.  Next time you use the NHS, please don't hesitate to say "thank you" and maybe consider sending a thank you card too.  Thank you for opening my eyes, Dr Khan and thank you for caring so much about your patients during this awful time!

News on 28th March 2021

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28th March 2021

A Year Of Falling Stars, Evening Swims And Friendship: Animal Crossing Turns One

NON-FICTION: SONGS OF FRIENDSHIP AND FORTITUDE

Charlie Dimmock reveals truth about friendships with former Ground Force co-stars

Justin Theroux contemplates working with ex Jennifer Aniston again, reveals details about their friendship

Torrington Troop 3 members reap rewards of friendship, confidence

'Friendship loss can be an invisible grief... it needs to be validated'

Rescue greyhound Willow cures Sawbridgeworth girl's fear of dogs with help of Ace Hounds

 

I've decided to...

...start treating friends in the same way they've been treating me for far too long.  This morning I put my music on out loud before Steve had the opportunity to put his podcasts and You Tube video's and stuff on for the first time ever and it's not gonna change for the rest of the day 'cos I have to ask for permission to listen to something out loud usually.

I've called in very rare a favour from Steve, C and M/D and all three of them have agreed to do it, but only C has actually done it so far.

I'm also gonna treat them exactly how they've been treating me, so my supportive messages will only be very short (a couple of sentences, max) and last for a maximum of two before I turn it back to myself.  I'm gonna change the shopping to be mostly my stuff after next week (Steve's meat and spread and stuff just for him is currently over half of each shop and mine comes to less than a fiver each week).  I'm gonna take the grocery bags through to the kitchen then come back in here and relax so that Steve can put everything away for a change.  

 

I'm gonna promise to do things but delay them for weeks or assume that someone is gonna do what I demand then throw a hissy fit about it when they don't do it.  I'll borrow money off people then conveniently forget about it and deny that they've lent me anything at all, just like Steve and M/D have done too many times in the past.  I'm also gonna deny that they've asked me to do something and say that I did it before I actually did, even if they've got proof that I said I'd do it by a certain day or time or whatever.

I'm fed up of being taken for granted, so starting from Tuesday that's stopping and if they don't like how I'm treating them then they need to look at how they've been treating me.

Where on earth has the day gone?!

I haven't got a clue where the day's disappeared to, but I've achieved a fair bit today:  

*  We had our take away after all for lunch

*  I took my afternoon pill

*  Did my exercise

*  Semi-studied this afternoon, but still managed to pass the course first time, so coded and uploaded the certificate to my 'completed courses' page on my navigation site

*  Caught up with Facebook

*  Took my evening pills, so now I'm gonna shut down and head to bed for another early night.

 

Nite nite 🌛 orl and I'll sea ewe in the morning 💤.

Pills taken, breakfast eaten, virus scan finished, no news so far...

...just got the news for my navigation site to try and sort out now, then I can try and study again.

We were originally going to have curry for lunch today, but Steve's been paid so he's suggested getting either Greggs or Subway for lunch instead... I'm not gonna turn down that offer considering the teeny tiny amount of take-aways we have now!

 

Gonna try and remember to do my exercises before then though, just need to try and get the news sorted first though.

 

Lunch eaten, news sorted, exercise completed, which means...

...that I can spend the rest of the afternoon and evening catching up on Facebook, my emails and maybe even studying while Steve's asleep.  Again.  He blamed his sleepiness on the puppy dog wanting to go out several times a night, but he said this morning that he was watching videos/podcasts until the early hours, then dozed until 3am and he was awake from then onwards... the puppy went to Rainbow Bridge in November 2020 so it's impossible that she is keeping him awake now!

Pills taken, virus scan finished, breakfast eaten...

...so it's time to make a start on the news now.  Today is gonna be a good day, I've decided.  Need to remember to do my exersizes at some point before I forget today.  We're gonna be having some kind of fresh potato product for lunch, but Steve hasn't decided if that's gonna be wedges or slices yet... either way is fine by me, as long as it's cooked all the way through so that neither of us get food poisoning!

 

About bleedin' time!

Just finished the course with a score of 85% and an end of course assessment that was 60 questions long and took the best part of an hour.  It's especially impressive 'cos I didn't study a single module, I literally just clicked through each video as soon as the arrow thingamebobs loaded up and just guessed at what the answers were.  It's one less "incomplete" course on my Alison account now though, so I'm relieved about that.

 

News for 24th March 2021

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24th March 2021

  National Campaign Launched Today on Social Media Safety
Social costs of pandemic will be felt for a decade, report suggests
Fife police: Big increase in anti-social behaviour while other crimes fall
SUMMER START FOR SUPPORTED HOUSING FOR ADULTS WITH HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE NEEDS
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
One year on: Hero social care staff thanked for efforts in pandemic
7-year-old on a mission to spread kindness with friendship bracelets
Lockdown's unlikely friendship between French pensioner and British student
A LIFELONG FRIENDSHIP: FROM CLASSMATES IN CAMEROON TO ROOMMATES AT HBS
Dog 'thinks she's a cat' after forging feline friendship
What Happened Between Taylor Swift And Katy Perry? Their Feud Turned Friendship Explained

Studying finished for the day now...

...I was expecting to fail the assessment horribly (as in 60% with the passing score of 70%) but I somehow managed to scrape through with a score of 87% and I haven't got a clue how that happened.  Means I can reward myself with lunch 🍴 now though 😌

News sorted, remembered Steve's milk and apparently...

...Steve reckons "it's almost good enough for me mum" but I must have accidentally put 2 teabags in instead of one 'cos there's still one in his mug even though I know I took a bag out of both of our mugs❕  Woops❕

 

Lunch today is Hovis biscuits and spread which'll send my calories through the roof today 'cos I've already had spread on me bread for breakfast❕

 

Gonna spend all afternoon studying now I reckon.  BBL.

 

Nearly forgot that I need to do me exercises, but I really will spend the afternoon studying then though.

 

Third day without news!

There isn't any news again today, so it'll just be selfish posts today, sorry about that.

 

I've taken my daily pills sorted, put in a prescription request, the virus scan was clear, did the teeny tiny amount of news on my writing site and just got my navigation site's news to do now, then I can check my emails and Facebook and stuff.  Gotta remember to do my exercises and have a shower at some point today too.  I've charged up my Fitbit and the fitness tracker on my wrist, so I'm good to go for a few days now.  Wanna try and study this afternoon too.

 

Not feeling too positive right now 'cos I tried to help someone with their NaNo novel and was shot down in flames so I won't be reading the NaNo forums any more, just using the dashboard each November.  I'm fed up of trying to help and support people only for them to have a go at me about things.

That's the...

...news and studying done and dusted for the day, so I'm gonna catch up on Facebook and my emails this afternoon, after I've taken my afternoon pill.

 

TTFN & BBL

 

No news today either, but...

...Steve's books have just gone, I've taken my pills, still virus free and as predicted we didn't have porridge for breakfast after all (despite Steve promising yesterday), so that's it now until the shopping arrives this afternoon.  Gonna work on the news for my navigation site now, then try and do a bit more studying this afternoon.  Need to do my exercises before I forget first though 🙄 🤣

No news today, so I've had...

...a pretty gentle day off.

 

I've taken all my daily pills, put the rubbish and recycling out, the virus scan was clear, done my exercises and uploaded the weekly spreadsheet to my site, had a yummy lunch and now I'm just waiting to find out what time the books are being collected for the charity tomorrow.

 

Still haven't been able to...

...study again today, however I've managed to scan in my Neuro appointment letter and taken all my pills, so I'm gonna have an early night now I reckon.

 

Nite nite orl, sea ewe in the morning.

 

Friendship news and one opinion for 20th March 2021

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20th March 2021

10 Friendship Tips We Learned From Grey's Anatomy
Lessons From Maine: Friendship Blooms Across Religious, Political Divides
Overcoming American Masculinity to Build a Deep Male Friendship
These 4 Pairs Forged Friendships At Work — Despite Big Age Gaps
A 'Neighborly Friendship': Remembering Mad River Valley Resident Don Alter
10 Friendship Tips We Learned From Friends
What's Worth Watching: 'The Houseboat' sails with its heartwarming male friendship
‘I'd be very lonely without the club’: How Comic Relief-funded charity helps Londoners in need of a friend - Amanda's comment: What a fantastic idea! There used to be a club-house for people with mental health problems, but that wasn't great for people who were socially anxious or shy... being paired up with just one other person would be perfect in so many ways though!
Demisexuality: 8 signs you might be demisexual and what it really means