Scooby celebrates his 10th birthday today. Regular readers may remember back in May (I think) that our vet suggested he might not make it this far and most likely wouldn't make Christmas. Well, he's intent on proving her wrong. Today is a sunny day so he's full of life, energy and bounce. On wet days it's an effort to do anything.
Also today saw the first frost of the coming winter. It's all gone now but at 7.30 this morning the roofs were white and the car windscreens were iced over.
Speaking of cars, I now have a Vauxhall Corsa 1.2 with a tiptronic gearbox sitting on my drive. It's my courtesy car till my Merc is returned all shiny and new. This Corsa is a 58 plate with a mere 400 miles on the clock!
K & D are off sailing with Explorers this week. Had the leader on the phone at 8.30 this morning saying K wanted to come home. I told him, and her, that I couldn't come and fetch her as I was waiting for the garage to fetch my car and bring me a courtesy car. The leader has transferred her to the smaller boat for today to see if her stomach will settle. Otherwise we face a long trip to Lymington or Poole to fetch her this evening. I did state that I would prefer her to finish the week out but we'll see.
Showing posts with label sailing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sailing. Show all posts
Tuesday, 28 October 2008
Saturday, 14 June 2008
This week's round-up
I thought I'd write one long post instead of several smaller ones.
D's last GCSE exam was on Thursday afternoon. Technically he is now finished with compulsory education, even though the official leaving date for Yr 11's is 30th June. He's planning to spend the next 3 months being lazy - apart from the two weeks work experience next month - but he can plan again. I've told him that he is going to be improving his domestic science skills.
Sea Scouts had invited D along last night to give it a go. I must stop calling it sea scouts though as it's really Explorers. During the day K decided she'd like to try to, so at 6.15 yesterday evening we were down at the quayside. I introduced the kids to one of the organisers and that was the last I had to do with it till they came back at 8.15 ish. K was ecstatic - she'd been allowed to helm the boat - and had a dreamy expression on her face. D came back with a broad grin. Malcolm (organiser) had taken them out in a Wayfarer and introduced them to the art of sails and rudder - many thanks Malcolm. K accidentally crashed into a wooden piling but blamed the boys for not telling her it was there. No damage was done. They both can't wait till next Friday evening.
The results of my patch-testing were a bit of an anti-climax. I reacted quite well to balsam of peru - no I'd never heard of it either - and fragrances. The suncream set were normal! So it seems I can slap it on with gay abandon, making sure it is fragrance-free - no more tacky coconut-smelling gunk. This morning I took the dog a walk and slapped some suncream on my face and arms. So far, so good. No redness, itching, runny eyes. Yet this same product (as in it's the same tube) made my face go all hot and red last year. Confused? Yeah, me too.
I have an appointment for January to see Mr Arden-Jones, my wonderful dermatologist, to schedule another session of 'medical microwaving'. A and I have discussed this and decided that, for now, the benefits outweigh the risks. I get a P(M)LE rash every year but I may never get malignant melanoma, even though my chances are somewhere around 1-30 to 1-40. Apart from a little outbreak in May my rash is behaving itself quite nicely this year. You watch, now I've jinxed msyelf and will look like a bad measles outbreak till October.
Almost forgot to tell you about the compliment I was paid by friends on Thursday. Bearing in mind my skin issues, particularly on my face, and the fact that only use water on it - no make-up, no cleanse/tone/moisturise - I was pleasantly surprised to be told my skin is looking really good. Apparently I am glowing with health and they can tell I've lost weight.
D's last GCSE exam was on Thursday afternoon. Technically he is now finished with compulsory education, even though the official leaving date for Yr 11's is 30th June. He's planning to spend the next 3 months being lazy - apart from the two weeks work experience next month - but he can plan again. I've told him that he is going to be improving his domestic science skills.
Sea Scouts had invited D along last night to give it a go. I must stop calling it sea scouts though as it's really Explorers. During the day K decided she'd like to try to, so at 6.15 yesterday evening we were down at the quayside. I introduced the kids to one of the organisers and that was the last I had to do with it till they came back at 8.15 ish. K was ecstatic - she'd been allowed to helm the boat - and had a dreamy expression on her face. D came back with a broad grin. Malcolm (organiser) had taken them out in a Wayfarer and introduced them to the art of sails and rudder - many thanks Malcolm. K accidentally crashed into a wooden piling but blamed the boys for not telling her it was there. No damage was done. They both can't wait till next Friday evening.
The results of my patch-testing were a bit of an anti-climax. I reacted quite well to balsam of peru - no I'd never heard of it either - and fragrances. The suncream set were normal! So it seems I can slap it on with gay abandon, making sure it is fragrance-free - no more tacky coconut-smelling gunk. This morning I took the dog a walk and slapped some suncream on my face and arms. So far, so good. No redness, itching, runny eyes. Yet this same product (as in it's the same tube) made my face go all hot and red last year. Confused? Yeah, me too.
I have an appointment for January to see Mr Arden-Jones, my wonderful dermatologist, to schedule another session of 'medical microwaving'. A and I have discussed this and decided that, for now, the benefits outweigh the risks. I get a P(M)LE rash every year but I may never get malignant melanoma, even though my chances are somewhere around 1-30 to 1-40. Apart from a little outbreak in May my rash is behaving itself quite nicely this year. You watch, now I've jinxed msyelf and will look like a bad measles outbreak till October.
Almost forgot to tell you about the compliment I was paid by friends on Thursday. Bearing in mind my skin issues, particularly on my face, and the fact that only use water on it - no make-up, no cleanse/tone/moisturise - I was pleasantly surprised to be told my skin is looking really good. Apparently I am glowing with health and they can tell I've lost weight.
Thursday, 12 June 2008
One down, one to go
My little boy, D, sat his last GCSE this afternoon. He's now technically finished compulsory education, though the official finishing date for Yr 11s is 30th June.
I've already warned him that although he has no studying to do, he needn't think he's lying in bed till lunchtime or playing on the computer all day. I'd like to be kept in chocolate brownies and muffins, he can help in the garden and do chores, oh and he can keep dipping into the relevant A-level books on the shelf in the dining room. And if he can find himself paid employment he's excused all of the above.
Evil? Moi?
If you asked D how he thought the Home Education had gone for the past 4 years and whether it was worth it, you'd get a resounding yes! He's a happy soul and ready to face whatever the world throws at him. Tomorrow he's going to Explorers (Sea Scouts for older kids) and is planning, subject to him earning the money, some sailing holidays in the next 12 months - without parents.
I've already warned him that although he has no studying to do, he needn't think he's lying in bed till lunchtime or playing on the computer all day. I'd like to be kept in chocolate brownies and muffins, he can help in the garden and do chores, oh and he can keep dipping into the relevant A-level books on the shelf in the dining room. And if he can find himself paid employment he's excused all of the above.
Evil? Moi?
If you asked D how he thought the Home Education had gone for the past 4 years and whether it was worth it, you'd get a resounding yes! He's a happy soul and ready to face whatever the world throws at him. Tomorrow he's going to Explorers (Sea Scouts for older kids) and is planning, subject to him earning the money, some sailing holidays in the next 12 months - without parents.
Monday, 9 June 2008
Make sure you have a clothes peg....
.......if you see me this week. Why? Well, today I have started my patch-testing sessions at the dermatology unit. My back is awash with micropore holding down swathes of allergen-coated metal discs. I am not allowed to have a shower till at least Friday night and with the weather being as seasonal as it is I'm going to stink to high heaven by then. Hence the need for a clothes peg for your nose if you have the dubious pleasure of being in the same postcode as me.
Also I'm not allowed to do anything which may cause me to sweat - which rules out pretty much everything whilst it's this warm! I can't do anything which would involve lifting or twisting the back so that I don't dislodge the micropore and introduce air/moisture to the patches. It's a good job my kids are domesticated. K made a delicious curry for tea tonight. All that was needed was for A to show her how to do rice when we got back from the hospital.
I caused great anarchy at the hospital. In my defence it was a case of left hand not talking to right hand. I had told the head derm that the sunlight causes a fair number of skin reactions with suncreams and perfumes, so I would have thought that someone would have picked up on the fact that photo patch-testing would also be required. This IS the NHS so, of course, no-one had. Fortunately the ladies who run the light treatment room remembered me and, after asking how I was doing after my sessions in February/March, bent over backwards to fit me in.
One stayed later this afternoon for my test session. It being a hot day I had gone in in t-shirt and capri pants with sandals. So this nice nurse fetched a pair of blue scrubs and a large roll of elastoplast and, along with a couple of towels and blankets, proceeded to mummify me - apart from my face (protected by UV goggles and a clear welders mask) and a small spot on my right buttock that got zapped by the UVA. I was a little put out to hear I was going to be zapped for 7 minutes! I'm not claustrophobic as such but do prefer not to be enclosed for that sort of length of time, especially in a mummy outfit - BTW, my arms were inside the scrubs top as there was no real way of covering them up. Somehow I made it through and became a bit sweaty, which isn't allowed is it?! Then tomorrow I get to go back (12 noon) and have some allergens applied to an arm, and then be zapped again (legngth and strength of zap to be determined by how today's test session reacts) for up to 7 minutes.
On Wednesday I go back at 3pm to have all the micropore bits taken off and my back decorated with indelible marker - to mark where the patches are so that reactions can be seen. I hope it doesn't take as long as today as I'd really like to be out before rush-hour kicks in. You see, on Wednesday Bon Jovi are playing at St Mary's football stadium which is less than a mile from the hospital (no, I'm not going, it's too expensive), AND Hampshire have their first 20-20 cricket match at the Rose Bowl that same evening. Some genius somewhere deserves a medal - NOT! The most popular junctions of the M27 for St Mary's are 5, 7 & 8, whilst the Rose Bowl is smack against junction 7 and it's Park & Ride scheme is at junction 8. Total gridlock will be the most likely outcome, so I am planning to return home via Fair Oak and Wickham.
I get a hospital day-off on Thursday (so far!) but D has his last GCSE paper in Portsmouth in the afternoon. I think we'll use the train.
On Friday it's back to the derm people at 3pm so they can assess what has caused a reaction. Hopefully they will tell me all about it at the same time. It'd be just my luck for them to say "We'll send for you in a couple of months when we've analysed all this". That'll be another summer down the pan, not knowing what suncreams I could try.
Then it's a nice long shower and hairwash, followed by taking D to sea scouts to see if he likes it. Seeing as the leader has told me to make sure he wears old clothes that can get wet and to take some spares I think D will be getting out on the water.
Anyone want to trade places this week?
Also I'm not allowed to do anything which may cause me to sweat - which rules out pretty much everything whilst it's this warm! I can't do anything which would involve lifting or twisting the back so that I don't dislodge the micropore and introduce air/moisture to the patches. It's a good job my kids are domesticated. K made a delicious curry for tea tonight. All that was needed was for A to show her how to do rice when we got back from the hospital.
I caused great anarchy at the hospital. In my defence it was a case of left hand not talking to right hand. I had told the head derm that the sunlight causes a fair number of skin reactions with suncreams and perfumes, so I would have thought that someone would have picked up on the fact that photo patch-testing would also be required. This IS the NHS so, of course, no-one had. Fortunately the ladies who run the light treatment room remembered me and, after asking how I was doing after my sessions in February/March, bent over backwards to fit me in.
One stayed later this afternoon for my test session. It being a hot day I had gone in in t-shirt and capri pants with sandals. So this nice nurse fetched a pair of blue scrubs and a large roll of elastoplast and, along with a couple of towels and blankets, proceeded to mummify me - apart from my face (protected by UV goggles and a clear welders mask) and a small spot on my right buttock that got zapped by the UVA. I was a little put out to hear I was going to be zapped for 7 minutes! I'm not claustrophobic as such but do prefer not to be enclosed for that sort of length of time, especially in a mummy outfit - BTW, my arms were inside the scrubs top as there was no real way of covering them up. Somehow I made it through and became a bit sweaty, which isn't allowed is it?! Then tomorrow I get to go back (12 noon) and have some allergens applied to an arm, and then be zapped again (legngth and strength of zap to be determined by how today's test session reacts) for up to 7 minutes.
On Wednesday I go back at 3pm to have all the micropore bits taken off and my back decorated with indelible marker - to mark where the patches are so that reactions can be seen. I hope it doesn't take as long as today as I'd really like to be out before rush-hour kicks in. You see, on Wednesday Bon Jovi are playing at St Mary's football stadium which is less than a mile from the hospital (no, I'm not going, it's too expensive), AND Hampshire have their first 20-20 cricket match at the Rose Bowl that same evening. Some genius somewhere deserves a medal - NOT! The most popular junctions of the M27 for St Mary's are 5, 7 & 8, whilst the Rose Bowl is smack against junction 7 and it's Park & Ride scheme is at junction 8. Total gridlock will be the most likely outcome, so I am planning to return home via Fair Oak and Wickham.
I get a hospital day-off on Thursday (so far!) but D has his last GCSE paper in Portsmouth in the afternoon. I think we'll use the train.
On Friday it's back to the derm people at 3pm so they can assess what has caused a reaction. Hopefully they will tell me all about it at the same time. It'd be just my luck for them to say "We'll send for you in a couple of months when we've analysed all this". That'll be another summer down the pan, not knowing what suncreams I could try.
Then it's a nice long shower and hairwash, followed by taking D to sea scouts to see if he likes it. Seeing as the leader has told me to make sure he wears old clothes that can get wet and to take some spares I think D will be getting out on the water.
Anyone want to trade places this week?
Thursday, 24 April 2008
He's back!
D is home and back on dry land again. Unfortunately he's left his balance and vertical hold back onboard. He'd stumbling round the house like a toddler learning to walk. Hopefully it'll be gone by tomorrow.
He had a GREAT time! By the time we got home (25 minutes, thanks to a small delay for traffic) my ears were crying out for silence. I learned that he and another teen had made vegetarian curry for 18 people on Monday evening. He enjoyed cleaning the head (toilet to us landlubbers). He knows quite a bit about sails - names, which mast they go on, what different bits of the sail are called - and can haul on the ropes to raise or lower them. He's steered the boat, navigated it, cleaned it, done all sorts. In fact, the only thing he didn't do was get time to be bored!
He passed his RYA Beginners Certificate and can't wait to go again to work on his Competent Crewman Certificate. Sounds like a really expensive hobby in the making. EEK!
I gave K a scare whilst we were fetching D. Some of the other teens wanted his e-mail address and, of course, I had to give it to them because he couldn't remember it exactly. I had my feet on the pontoon and leant across a couple of feet of water to lean my elbows on the side of the boat. K did NOT approve - at all! She was panicking about me slipping and falling in - no chance, I was hanging on far too well. When I stood back up again she grabbed me and told me off for being irresponsible and then wouldn't let go till I promised to behave.
He had a GREAT time! By the time we got home (25 minutes, thanks to a small delay for traffic) my ears were crying out for silence. I learned that he and another teen had made vegetarian curry for 18 people on Monday evening. He enjoyed cleaning the head (toilet to us landlubbers). He knows quite a bit about sails - names, which mast they go on, what different bits of the sail are called - and can haul on the ropes to raise or lower them. He's steered the boat, navigated it, cleaned it, done all sorts. In fact, the only thing he didn't do was get time to be bored!
He passed his RYA Beginners Certificate and can't wait to go again to work on his Competent Crewman Certificate. Sounds like a really expensive hobby in the making. EEK!
I gave K a scare whilst we were fetching D. Some of the other teens wanted his e-mail address and, of course, I had to give it to them because he couldn't remember it exactly. I had my feet on the pontoon and leant across a couple of feet of water to lean my elbows on the side of the boat. K did NOT approve - at all! She was panicking about me slipping and falling in - no chance, I was hanging on far too well. When I stood back up again she grabbed me and told me off for being irresponsible and then wouldn't let go till I promised to behave.
Sunday, 20 April 2008
Spreading his wings part 2
D is going away for a few days tomorrow - ON A BOAT. He's going to learn how to sail, along with 11 other young people, on a boat run by the Ocean Youth Trust http://www.oytsouth.org/
I will be handing him over at 2pm tomorrow and collecting him at 12pm on Thursday. The sailing forecast seems to be fairly gentle so seasickness shouldn't be a problem. They also have RYA handbooks with details of all the awards that are available and what you have to do to earn them. The OYT staff sign each bit as you achieve it and if you get all the relevant bits signed you get a certificate.
Hopefully his teamwork skills will improve and he will achieve some of the stuff in the beginners section. D is looking forward to it. All I have left to buy are some thick socks to pad out his wellies.
Yes, I know he will miss 4 days of 'school' but what he will learn onboard will serve him better in the long run.
I will be handing him over at 2pm tomorrow and collecting him at 12pm on Thursday. The sailing forecast seems to be fairly gentle so seasickness shouldn't be a problem. They also have RYA handbooks with details of all the awards that are available and what you have to do to earn them. The OYT staff sign each bit as you achieve it and if you get all the relevant bits signed you get a certificate.
Hopefully his teamwork skills will improve and he will achieve some of the stuff in the beginners section. D is looking forward to it. All I have left to buy are some thick socks to pad out his wellies.
Yes, I know he will miss 4 days of 'school' but what he will learn onboard will serve him better in the long run.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)