Chickafinty ~ A Life in the Laundry

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Probably not

It would seem that the spectre of CFS has not raised its ugly head again as Mister Bear is improving by the day rather than getting worse.  One day we might be able to relax completely and say that it is gone for good, but that day is not today.  I was very worried on Thursday when he tried to go to work but rang me from the shops to come get him...that's not like my Mister Bear at all.  last night he had trouble sleeping with various aches everywhere and that was just too familiar for comfort.  Thankfully today he seems to be better and looks like he's on the mend.

I've been busy making contingency plans in my head - as a result nothing much has been done in the house over the past couple of days.  At first I felt sick at the thought of a repeat of 1998, but I realised that 1998 is not going to happen again.  I'm older, a little wiser and certainly a lot more grown up than I was back then.  He's got a job which if push came to shove he could do from home, so his earning capacity wouldn't change and *that* alone would help to combat the depression that accompanies the illness.  There is nothing stopping me from working again if he couldn't work - Ladybaby is easy to look after during the day and Chickabid is at school.  I wouldn't like to have to go back to work, but it could be done if necessary.  No repetition of 1998 would be required.  But I will admit that just the thought of it gave me the chills.

We have trod this path before.

We're seriously hoping it isn't, but Mister Bear's flu looks suspiciously like this.

Dear Me, 1988

Dear Me (1988)

You are almost 18 and so grown up, but not nearly as grown up as you think.  You know lots about "stuff" but very little about the world and how it works.  You have been sheltered - rightly so - but sheltered.  The people you hang out with don't know just how sheltered you are and they will read things into your actions that you have never dreamed of.  There are so many things that I wish you had known; it might have saved you years of heartbreak and regret.

Depsite what you think right now, you *don't* want to go out with He-Who-Shall-Remain-Nameless.   There will be very few days when you won't look back and regret it.  Even 18 years on there are spots so tender to the touch that when poked by your conscience, you'll cry out to the Lord in anguish.  No, nothing really bad happened, just stuff that you will wish were not memories.  He isn't the real deal and he isn't worthy of you.  He's not a Godly man despite appearances to the contrary and he is using you. 

That orange and black dress is a disaster on so many levels.  Don't even think about buying it.  It is the eighties and it is fashionable, but it will only be so for about 5 minutes.  Likewise the spotty number with the peplum.  Now that's a six letter word that should be expunged from the dictionary.

You have a gorgeous figure.  So, your legs aren't long and you are short waisted, but you are well endowed where it counts.  No, your legs are not big and fat.  One day they will be, but now you look lovely.  The perm was probably not the smartest idea you've ever had, but again, it was the eighties and everybody had one.  Those girls at school?  They might be lots of things, but your friends they are not.  You will never see nor speak to any of them again once this year is over.  Spend your time on the things that really matter.

You could be working harder at school right now.  It doesn't seem like much fun, but it will pay off in the end.  You'll be grateful for the background especially in English.  Really think about your career choices though.  Your ideas may not seem so fantastic when it comes to down to it.  Listen to that part of you that has doubts about teaching.  There are good reasons for thse doubts.

Go with your gut instinct, girl, and stay right away from that group of people you hang out with at church.  Of all your "friends", there are only two who will prove themselves worthy of that name.  They really care about you, and indeed still do.  The others...well, there's a very good reason why you don't feel comfortable around them.  They are using you, but you are so anxious to fit in that you ignore that still small voice.  Listen to that voice - he's your best friend and will stop you from making so many mistakes.  If it sounds, looks and smells wrong, sweetheart, it is wrong, no matter what gloss paint is on the surface.  They aren't being truthful with you and you really need to know that.  Going on the houseparties will prove to be a mistake - you'd be better off home alone.  The things they are telloing you about dad are lies.  Deep down you know that they can't be true.  You need to talk to Mum and Dad about what is happening in the group and what is really going on.  They will understand.  I know that you don't think they will, but all parents have been there, done that.  They will do everything they can to help you through this time.

I couldn't write to the you of 1988 without mentioning H.  In 1988 the candle still burns bright for H, but again, darling friend, you don't want to go down that path.  He is not what he seems to be.  In about 9 years from now you will meet someone who will sweep you off your feet.  You will meet a man who truly loves you.  Not the outside of you (although he's pretty keen on that, too) but the person that you are inside.  The person you are in the dark watches of the night.  He'll be worth waiting for.  Every other male person that you know will be shown up for what they really are in the light of this man.  Don't waste your life dreaming.  Hurry up and wait for the one who deserves your love and trust.

You know that inner sadness that you feel?  It's got a name and in a couple of years a doctor will tell you the name and start you on treatment.  It's not your fault that you feel like this; it is an illness.  You will begin to recover.

Stay true to your ideals.  People whose opinion you value right now scoff at your ideals.  That should tell you all you need to know.  Be true to yourself; in later years looking back you will be glad that you did.

Me, 2007

A child of the noughties

Chickabid loves to play with Paint - the computer kind.

Here are his latest offerings, complete with his own spelling.

Life is a death sentence

We had Mister Bear's sister and brother-in-law + kids over for a bbq yesterday.

Just as an aside, for people who have had exactly zero social lives for the past 8 or 9 years, we are doing a pretty good impression of people with a hectic social life.  Last weekend was the first weekend for ages when we didn't have something on..at our house!!

First weekend in March - Mister Bear and Ladybaby's birthday party with all the family; both sides at once.

Second weekend in March - BBQ lunch for Mister Bear's colleagues followed by BBQ dinner with Mister Bear's parents and two nephews

Third weekend in March - nothing

Fourth weekend in March - BBQ with Mister Bear's sister etc

Fifth weekend in March - BBQ with Mr and Mrs Chris, JL, Nat, Will and Kit + The Shand

First weekend in April - ??what can I do to help you, Birdie??  Birdie's bought a HOUSE and moves in on April 2...WOO HOO!!

Second weekend in April - Royal Easter Show

Third weekend in April - Free at last.

I gets tired just thinking about all of this.

Anyway, yesterday at lunch we got to talking about matters spiritual, with particular reference to the crock of the moment: global warming.  FWIW, no, I don't believe that we are doomed through global warming.  Yes, the earth has a use-by date and no, it isn't going to last forever.  One day, possibly sooner rather than later, this earth will come to an end.  God promised that this would be so.  He destroyed the world completely but for 8 human beings and enough animals of every kind to repopulate the earth, in a global flood.

...TBC

"It means the cat came back"

Many moons ago when I worked at PPS, I took RFF for a year and taught it full time.  On a Thursday morning I had the pleasure of teaching a Year 5 class.  We did a little music, a little language and occasionally some drama work.  One particular day we learnt a song called "The Cat Came Back" and the kids really enjoyed it.

I made a comment to the kids about how that was a really tenacious cat.  One of the kids asked what tenacious meant and me, hapless, helpless me, seeing the opportunity of grasping a teachable moment, grabbed it with both hands.

We discussed what it meant, we had a go at spelling it, we put it in a sentence (framed around the cat of course) we added interesting verbs and adjectives to the sentence and it was wonderful!  I could look back at this moment as being one of those moments when I *made a difference*.

I told the class teacher about what had happened in her class at recess and she was quite thrilled at the way the kids had participated.  After recess when she went back to class, she talked to the kids about the lesson and asked them to explain to her what "tenacious" meant.

Very proudly, a child answered "It means the cat came back!"

This is the sound of me repeatedly bashing my head on the chalkboard.  Never, ever, under any circumstances work with children or animals.  It only leads to heartbreak and despair.  Trust me on this one.

Which brings me to the point of this post - the cat came back!  Boris, the wanderer, returned to his home at about 7am on Thursday morning, sporting three injuries to his person, and rather more inclined to sleep and rest than usual.  His all night jaunt appears to have left him a little shell-shocked and I don't think he'll be out carousing too much in the future.

Wretched animal.

At our house

There are many things happening in our house right now - and a few things that aren't happening.

Today the ccarpet layers came and replaced the carpet in the hallway where it got flooded.  It looks totally different to the surrounding carpet, but that's probably because the rest of the carpet is filthy.

Our new range/cooker/oven/stove thingy is being delivered tomorrow and the sparkies should be coming wither Friday or Monday to install it.

The groceries for this week are bing delivered on Friday in the morning.  I did an internet shop and it ended up costing $50 less than it would have at the shops because there was no impulse buying and I shopped from the WW list.  Tip for the future:  WW only works if you stick to the programme.

The building inspector is coming tomorrow to, strangely enough, inspect the building.  I am sick of late night worryings about the sloping roof, the nail things that are poking through the gyprock in the ceiling and the really, really scary cracks in the walls.  Commonsense says that most of these things are related to our house being constructed on clay and being in the midst of a prolonged drought.  The simplest thing seemed to be to get the building inspected and have a written report of all the building faults with estimates on how much it is going to cost to fix it.  Then we can make an informed decision about how, when and where to proceed.  Informed decisions are good.

The carpet cleaner man is coming on Tuesday.  This time we're going to get him to Teflon the carpet in the hopes that it will stay clean long term.  This may be a futile hope, but I have a degree in futile hopes.

Speaking of futile hopes I am still hoping that Thursday will bring good news to Tertia.  It's only a 1% chance, but 1% is better than 0%.

I bought a new household manual on Monday.  I find it very worrying that the author has been to my house and knows about the box of about 23 candles I have in the kitchen cupboards just in case of a power failure.  Further to that end I've joined Remember the Milk and it has helped me stay on track with my goals for each day.  These goals have become so much more important now that I have dedicated myself to being the best homemaker I can be.

The notes and materials for my Bible College course have arrived and I have been busily reading up on the materials and the suggested readings.  Am about 45 pages into The Goldsworthy Trilogy...it's been a long time since I have had to read for a purpose in this manner and I haver to keep going back and re-reading paragraphs.  It's going to be quite difficult it would seem, but good difficult, not bad difficult.

Finally, the cat is AWOL.  He took off out the front door when the carpet layers were here and hasn't been seen since about 2.30 today.  It's not the first time he's had a dalliance outside, but it is the longest he's been gone at any one time and I am starting to worry.  I didn't stress out too much when he walked out the door - he's always come back before - but this time he hasn't and I feel like it's my fault.

A momentous day

As of this afternoon we are the proud owners of a new cooker!  A cooker with 4 operational burners and one that doesn't have a dodgy bit of something hanging down into the oven on the inside.

Oh, the relief!!  It will be delivered on Thursday and with any luck, installed on Friday.  It is a thing of beauty and I cannot wait to get baking in, on and with it. (and, no, we didn't pay that much for it).  Not quite.

I present.....the old and soon to be superseded cooker.

The front right hand burner and the back left hand burner don't work.  We have replaced all four burners over the five years we have lived in this house, but they keep blowing.  The burners are hardwired to the hob so we have to get an electrician in every time the burners need replacing = v v expensive.  Also the burners don't disattach from the hob so the underneath cannot be cleaned.  15 years of accumulated grease and grot is disgusting.

The inside of the oven with the dangly bit that hangs down on the inside.  I know it's really grotty but you'll haveto believe me when I tell you that I cleaned it about 6 weeks ago.  This cooker is possessed and I will be glad to get it out of the kitchen.

How normal am I?

Well, it would seem that I am slightly more normal than some (lol), but significantly less normal than most.

You Are 45% Normal

While some of your behavior is quite normal... Other things you do are downright strange You've got a little of your freak going on But you mostly keep your weirdness to yourself

How Normal Are You?