Hello again.

So now it's June. June! And how are you?

So the last five months have existed, and I am still here. The last five months have been pretty good, actually. I wonder if that's why I haven't outletted (?) on here during them... Anyway, I'm going to catch you up on thoughts and things wot have happened.

• Exam Leave

My FAVOURITE time of year is here again. This beautiful pair of words denotes luxurious expanses of Time and Quiet in which work and "work" can take place without the unhelpful disruption of Year Eleven and Sixth Form. It is why I am currently surrounded by microphones, saxophones and dictophones rather than workaphobes and faketanophiles. Bliss!

• Engagements

EVERYONE I know is engaged. Wait, that's not true. MANY PEOPLE I know are engaged. It seems the beginning of 2013 was the time for it. Which means now I am engrossed in Remote Wedding Preparation, which is lush. It also means that I will have to invest in some more dresses suitable for weddings. OH NO WHAT A SHAME. I'm musicking at some, sort-of-bridesmaiding at others and simply attending the rest. Wicked!

• U.L.I.P.

"U.L.I.P." - collective noun: abrv. 'Unfit Ladies In Pink'. Denotes women (usually of a certain age and build) participating in the annual sweat fest that is The Race for Life.

I'm doing the Race for Life. The last time I ran was in 2008.

• The British Summer

When I was little, I always used to get a bit of a kick from packing for a British holiday. I'd pack my shoes on top of my bag, and slip my suncream into one of them and my umbrella into the other. "How idiosyncratic!" I'd think. "What larks, England!" (or Wales) "You're so quirky, with your heatwave one day and your hailstones the next. How hilarious you are!"

Now I find myself thinking "Rain?! But I hung my washing out this morning/last night" or "Is it frowned upon to remove one's leggings in public, if one dressed inappropriately for 30 degree sunshine?"

Old.





Right, time for me to go. I am at work, after all, and this cup of tea won't drink itself...

The Good, The Bad and The Other

Good Things That Happened Today:

• Two members of my form (two of the ones who wrote the song for me in this post) gave me a birthday present in the form of a Teddy Bear. (Southfield tradition is to bring one in for Children in Need Day, and they were aghast that I didn't own one...)
• I found a packet of Magic Stars in my drawer at work (I suspect they were a gift from my housemate - thanks, housie)
• The 'Word of the Week' is effervescent. It's a goodun.
• I wasn't late for work

Bad Things That Happened Today:

• I discovered my new car has been driven into, hugely denting the driver's door. No, they didn't leave a note. Yes, I was on the road, but I was up on the curb as out of the way as I could be.
• I have been told we are not allowed to run A level music next year, as the (school? county? government?) are requesting a minimum of 9 students per course, and that NEVER happens for music. Well, except once.
• I am probably going to have some sort of reduced timetable next year, or reduced job, or increased hours of teaching Not Music, due to the above.
• I rang the doctor to sort out a reduced hours return to work - she isn't in til Thurs, and the receptionist was in a really loud environment, both of which stressed me out. Disproportionately so, admittedly.
• It is massively icy

Other Things That Happened Today:

• I'm currently watching Batman: The Wail of the Siren. It's a bit ridiculous. I haven't decided if it's in a good way or a bad way yet...
• This, however, is definitely excellent:

Thank you, Alfred.

Life on Loan

It's a bit odd, this Post-Concussion Syndrome.

It's sent me a bit mad.


For a while, my life didn't really feel like my life. I mean, shortly after the C had occurred (brain hitting against skull during accident, apparently) I was constantly aching, sleeping and not really aware of anything that was going on around me, but I thought that was the after-effects of the accident itself and that it would pass. It pretty much has, but with a few lingering personality changes.

What I wasn't prepared for was the feeling of imminent tears at any minute, and the unaccountable short fuse. Normally, I am quite patient. With the kids at school, at least. Then last week, I found myself either being profoundly irritated by them (and not only them), or on the brink of breaking down in tears in front of them all.

Since not being in work this week, the irritability appears to have lessened, and life is a bit more manageable. Especially with all the wonderful people in it, doing wonderful things like providing me with food and hairstrokes and things. Every now and then, though, I am overwhelmed with weary weepiness for no apparent reason.


Tuesday, for example, had been a fairly strong day. Tues eve came, and I was happily ensconced in a little bubble of joy, and then without warning and for no reason at all, someone poured a huge bucket of sadness over my head. Hugely unfair.


Weds was a heavy day, and I didn't deal with it very well.


And today I've mostly had a headache.


But tomorrow is my birthday.

And on Sat we have a gig, at which some of my most favouritest people will be.


And perhaps it will feel a bit more like my life, even if I am still driving someone else's car...
(which is actually my own. It'll feel like it soon, I'm sure...)




Viva la Birthday!

PTSD

"A person with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder will often relive the traumatic event through nightmares and flashbacks, and have feelings of isolation, irritability and guilt.

They may also have problems sleeping, such as insomnia, and may find concentrating difficult. The symptoms are often severe and persistent enough to have a significant impact on the person's day-to-day life.


Some people with PTSD deal with their feelings by trying not to feel anything at all. This is known as emotional numbing. They may feel detached or isolated from others, or guilty.

Someone with PTSD can often seem deep in thought and withdrawn. They may also give up pursuing the activities that they used to enjoy."



Don't let me give up things I enjoy.

Lists

I enjoy making lists. You may have noticed. Here are a few that have been floating round my mind for a while:


Things I Am Currently Enjoying:

1. Slipper season
2. Hardy's Crest "Cabernet-Shiraz-Merlot" (even if it does sound like it was named by someone who had no idea what they were talking about, so named it in a 'delete-as-appropriate' fashion)
3. Saxophoning
4. Plum coloured nail varnish
5. Abbreviating words (aka "word abbrieve.")

Things I Currently Find Inexplicably Irritating:

1. Cupboard doors unnecessarily being left open
2. The way my rug drifts across my bedroom floor
3. The boy next door who has recently passed his driving test's inability to park. (I know, who am I to talk, right? But at least I don't park DIAGONALLY across other people's drives. Sheesh.)
4. Year 9 children.
5. Children in my form who keep misbehaving. Well, one child. A lovely child. But a lovely child who is, apparently, constantly misbehaving. Oh, child...

Strange Things That Have Recently Happened:

1. A middle-aged man in Tesco's car park gave me his number. Checked to see if I was married, then told me to give him a text. Weird.
2. A year ten child at school stalks our house. Weird(o).
3. A Twitterer who I don't (think I) know, who follows everyone I follow, has retweeted me a couple of times and who also follows GLT tweeted me directly the other day. WHO ARE YOU?! I DON'T KNOW WHO YOU ARE! Weird.
4. My form wrote and performed me a song. Two of them sort of rapping sentences about me and/or things I like, while the third sang a sort of 'Jean Genie'-esque bass riff over and over again. Nice, sure, but definitely a strange one.
5. Some children at school were singing Number's Up at me before their lesson the other day. Again, nice-ish, but a bit odd. Worlds colliding and all that... (incidentally, our music video has over 1,200 hits on YouTube. How exciting!)

Things I Am Considering Doing But Probably Won't:

1. Dyeing my hair (again)
2. Getting my nose pierced
3. Going to Germany (wish I could)
4. Applying for a new job
5. Moving to London

Things I Wish I Were Better At:

1. Saxophoning
2. Time efficiency
3. Cooking actual meals
4. Reacting to my nephews' and nieces' birthdays. It's not that I forget them, it's just I don't organise myself sufficiently to get anything to them in time. Soz, kids.
5. P.D.A.

Things I Don't Do Very Well Without But Wish I Could (Do Well Without Them):

1. My phone (I hate that I put this at the top of the list)
2. Eyeliner (what am I? Year 9?)
3. My inhaler (though I do actually genuinely need that one every now and then)
4. Words of affirmation
5. The occasional dose of medicinal Dairy Milk

Anyway.

There's a selection of probably not very interesting, possibly a little insightful, definitely unnecessary factoids in numerical bullet form prose. That is not a thing. "in numerical bullet form" would have probably sufficed.


Anyway, anyway. I'm going to (maybe) do some work (possibly).



In other news:
IT'S FLIPPING DECEMBER ON SATURDAY.

How/when did that happen...?!




Oh well.

html the third

I've had this song in my head for about a week. Don't read too much into it, it's just quite catchy...

html 2

It worked!!!



Hurray!


Now I am unstoppable...