Friday Five!

Can I just say how happy I am to see JFKimberley posting again? 

Otherwise, I just made a giant order with the American Sweets website.  I started off needing some candy corn for Halloween and then just went crazy.  I need some serious bribery material for my boy who is quickly figuring out how much it sucks to go to French school.  Plenty of sour cherry balls, real cheetos and birch beer.
Also, the whole family was really sick and coughing a few weeks ago and I am finally over it.  My daughter has taken a job as a carer for old people and had to take a covid test which was negative. 

  My daughter has taken a job as a carer for old people and had to take a covid test which was negative.

Good for her, I'm impressed! 

Good for her, I'm impressed! 

Thanks, I'm proud of her as well.  I'm not so happy because care of old people should not be turned over to barely trained 16 year olds, and the pay system is diabolically designed so she is totally ripped off on pay.  But she's showing a real caring side that I am proud of. 

  But she's showing a real caring side that I am proud of.

It's such a beautiful quality. 

Can I just say how happy I am to see JFKimberley posting again? 

Otherwise, I just made a giant order with the American Sweets website.  I started off needing some candy corn for Halloween and then just went crazy.  I need some serious bribery material for my boy who is quickly figuring out how much it sucks to go to French school.  Plenty of sour cherry balls, real cheetos and birch beer.
Also, the whole family was really sick and coughing a few weeks ago and I am finally over it.  My daughter has taken a job as a carer for old people and had to take a covid test which was negative.

Aww, thanks, Jimbo.  I'm not going to be here 100% for a while, I think.  But I will pop in when I can.  I'm fine... I'm just reducing my exposure to social media for a bit.  Even here.

I'm glad you're all feeling fine again!  And your daughter is incredible... good for her!  I do hope she stays safe, and that she has nothing but positive experiences in her work. 

Happy Friday!!!

1.) Been a long friggin week, been auditing remotely in China. Early starts. 

2.) Looking forward to a few beers tonight!

3.) Bought my banjoele last week and now my husband is trying to learn. He's really doing well! He's trying to learn to read sheet music and he's doing awesome! He's way more musical than he gives himself credit for and he's really doing well!  We keep fighting over it, so might need to buy another one!

4.) Brought my chillies and peppers in to overwinter. Tomatoes all seemed to get blight/fungus so I've let them die off. Hopefully the chillies and pepers will be happy. 

5.) On a scale of 0-10 for arsing, where 0 is no arsin and 10 is super duper motivated for working today, I am on a -3....  I need a holiday!! 

Hi everyone Long time no see, hope everyone has been staying well!

1) I’ve been on holiday all week and it was SO needed as I was definitely feeling burnt out. I know I’m lucky to be able to work full-time from home but I realllllly needed this week to just completely unplug. Back on Monday though.

2) My husband found out yesterday that he got a new job so our long wait to move down to Glasgow is over!!! They want him to start at the end of next month so it’s stress central for me trying to figure out logistics for us to move down. We’ve waited 2+ years for this so I’m so glad it’s finally happening but I am very overwhelmed by it all.

3) Best part: we can finally buy a house!! We’ve been in this not great flat since before I came to the UK with plans to only stay in Moray for a few months...cannot wait to finally have our own place.

4) Been missing my US family quite a bit this week (which is unusual for me, even though we’re close). I think it’s the uncertainty of when I’ll actually be able to see them again, since I already had to miss weddings/funerals this year and don’t see myself feeling comfortable getting on a plane anytime soon. Boo.

5) Suns out now but I’ve really noticed the dark mornings & evening over the past week or two. Always the worst time of year for me since I always struggle with SAD. Got my vitamin D tablets and sunrise mimicking alarm clock ready but I think this might be the year I finally invest in a sun lamp...

Nice to hear from you elee! I hope the move goes well!

1. Feeling a bit more at ease about the IDV App and the ongoing wait now that people who applied in March are finally getting approvals. It hasn't been an easy few months for a lot of reasons, but the added visa stress is something I wouldn't wish on anyone. And the home office needs an overhaul, but that won't happen under the current government.

2. I've been making a lot of crochet items, but I'm going to have to take a break soon because my hands and shoulders are starting to rebel. I've been cutting the hours I work on things, but that hasn't been enough. I need something for income though so trying to push through to finish a few more things.

3. I had to do a freedom of information request to find out what was actually wrong with the foot I injured in February/March. I don't know why the doctor wouldn't tell me, it makes no sense at all. I have bursitis in a bunch of the metatarsal spaces, which with EDS isn't surprising but how much it hurts is awful. The only treatments are meds I can't take, rest, heat, and insoles so I was right to push for a referral to orthotics to have mine checked. I don't understand why everything is such a struggle here. That was basic information in plain English on the report. I still don't trust they looked at the entire MRI because its missing findings that should be there, but that doctor tried to make it seem like I shouldn't have pain and it was in my head.

4. With that added knowledge, I'm definitely going to finally apply for a blue badge. I hate official forms like that, but I really cannot walk far enough anymore. My husband will have his license soon (I hope) and it would be nice to get out more!

5. There is a medical cannabis awareness week coming up, all free and online. Check it out if you've ever wanted more information on how it works it here, the challenges and the lives it's improved. So far a low dose oil has improved my gastroparesis so much I can eat almost normally (instead of low residue/very low fiber). https://www.pleacommunity.org.uk/mcaw

5. There is a medical cannabis awareness week coming up, all free and online. Check it out if you've ever wanted more information on how it works it here, the challenges and the lives it's improved. So far a low dose oil has improved my gastroparesis so much I can eat almost normally (instead of low residue/very low fiber). https://www.pleacommunity.org.uk/mcaw

I am SOOOOOOOOOOO glad that it's helping your gastroparesis!  Great news margo!

Friboo!

1.  Super crap day at work.  I pulled my big girl pants on and set up a bunch of meetings next week to sort.  Not my job or problem but I’m going to find a solution.

2.  We are decorating for Halloween this weekend.  We are part of the local Halloween Hunt Trail for decorated houses since truck or treating is a no go.

3.  My son fell asleep on the sofa this evening.  He only managed to croak out “monster truck” as I carried him upstairs.  I love the priorities of a 3 year old! 

4.  I am grumpy.  I’m not happy when not working, yet not happy when I am.  Someone needs to slap some sense into me!

5.  Nothing my purring pussycat can’t fix!  Meow!

Hi everyone Long time no see, hope everyone has been staying well!

1) I’ve been on holiday all week and it was SO needed as I was definitely feeling burnt out. I know I’m lucky to be able to work full-time from home but I realllllly needed this week to just completely unplug. Back on Monday though.

2) My husband found out yesterday that he got a new job so our long wait to move down to Glasgow is over!!! They want him to start at the end of next month so it’s stress central for me trying to figure out logistics for us to move down. We’ve waited 2+ years for this so I’m so glad it’s finally happening but I am very overwhelmed by it all.

3) Best part: we can finally buy a house!! We’ve been in this not great flat since before I came to the UK with plans to only stay in Moray for a few months...cannot wait to finally have our own place.

4) Been missing my US family quite a bit this week (which is unusual for me, even though we’re close). I think it’s the uncertainty of when I’ll actually be able to see them again, since I already had to miss weddings/funerals this year and don’t see myself feeling comfortable getting on a plane anytime soon. Boo.

5) Suns out now but I’ve really noticed the dark mornings & evening over the past week or two. Always the worst time of year for me since I always struggle with SAD. Got my vitamin D tablets and sunrise mimicking alarm clock ready but I think this might be the year I finally invest in a sun lamp...

I bought this light a few weeks ago.  It makes a MASSIVE difference as I have a tough time waking up in the mornings.  But....  it was £27 when I bought it....  maybe they’ll reduce the price for Black Friday?

I bought this light a few weeks ago.  It makes a MASSIVE difference as I have a tough time waking up in the mornings.  But....  it was £27 when I bought it....  maybe they’ll reduce the price for Black Friday?

Thank you for this! I will definitely be keeping an eye on the price...£40 is slightly more that I'd planned on paying but would probably be worth it in the end even if the price doesn't go down.

1. I've just been sent home from work! The reason given is that my bank of desks in the open-plan office needs to be sanitised. There's only 3 of us sitting at this bank of 8 desks... 2 of us told to go home and the 3rd person didn't turn up today, so looks to me like person 3 has COVID, or has been exposed.

2. So, having a nice morning at home, enjoying the sunshine streaming in,  cooking ham ribs and cuddling my hound!

3. 30th of October?? This year has pure flown in!!

4. Found those Doriano crackers at Sainsbury's  -- these are the ones that various folk have said are just like saltines. So I bought them to see, and they are pretty much identical to saltines, except a bit smaller.

5. I think my mead is ready to bottle!  But my stupid recipe doesn't say how long it needs to sit in bottles before it's ready to drink?!?!

Sent from my SM-T819 using Tapatalk

Definitely sounds suspicious Albatross...fingers crossed you weren't exposed but it really sounds like that's the case for your colleague. Keep us posted.

• First week back to work after my week off and I am pooped! Can't wait for 4:30 and to relax this weekend.
• Moray will be in Tier 1 from Monday, woohoo! Not that it matters since the only store I go in is Aldi every other week but at least I know it's not as prevalent up here.
• First appointment with our mortgage broker in a couple of weeks. Still waiting to hear about when my husband will start his new job but I'm more than ready to get the ball rolling on buying our first house! I'm lucky to have married a super saver so we have a decent deposit and should be able to keep me off the mortgage...I really don't want to be involved purely because of the US tax side of things.
• My first-ever sun lamp was delivered this morning and I'm optimistic about how helpful it will be. Thanks @KFdancer - the one you recommended dropped in price so I got it for only £28! 
• Halloween is tomorrow and I keep forgetting (it's never been my favourite holiday). Need to start thinking about how I'll mock up a Thanksgiving dinner this year, which is always my fav American food holiday!

FRIYAY!

Albatross - definitely sounds suspicious!  I hope all is well and that you get to stay home and your work pulls their fingers out of their tails!!!

Elee, I really love the lamp.  I have terrible insomnia and really struggle to get up in the morning as I tend to either go to bed really late or have a reverse nap in the middle of the night.  It absolutely helps wake me up and be bright eyed and bushy tailed LONG before I naturally would.     I do get sad when it switches off and I feel my pupils shrink back down.  tee hee.  Just don't turn it on while looking at it.  You'll only make that mistake once! 

1.  Tomorrow is Sobe's 20th birthday!  The kids have insisted we make a cake (for us not him), sing, and I've ordered a cat party hat for 99p off of ebay.  I'll post a photo of the poor kitty in his party hat.

2.  My daughter has been on school all week for half term.  I actually think I've done a halfway decent job keeping her entertained.  She had gymnastics for an hour on Monday and Tuesday.  I tethered my laptop to my phone so I could work while she was tumbling.  And yesterday I took a long lunch to do Halloween Afternoon Tea.  And lots of crafts and Halloween things for her to do.  My husband was going to take her on a bike ride today but didn't.  He has 5 "use it or lose it" days of holiday left.... seems obvious he should have taken the week off.  GRRRRRR. 

3. Halloween Tea yesterday was fabulous!  Really well done.  Dry ice on the tray, great names for everything, a lot of great little details.  It was great!  They also had a Halloween Hunt trail in the grounds and the kids got chocolate for completing it (went with a friend and her son).

4.  Tomorrow my son gets to have HIS first gymnastics class.  His age group only has lessons on during the week and we work.  Tomorrow they have a holiday class for his age group on a Saturday!  Yippee!  I don't get to go as only one parent can go.     I'll be freezing my tail off with my daughter on the football field instead.

5.  It's hard to not get frustrated when people tell you about their travels abroad for halfterm and for the holidays.  Not my circus, not my monkeys.  Yet everyone's monkeys are affecting MY monkeys!  <sigh>