household

Sleepiness and Suits

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I’ve taken some more time off work this week as a couple of celebrations bookend it and frankly I could do with a rest. So yesterday I herded both Lady M and boy s into the car to wander into Kingston – as you do. This was partly just to get out of the house and distract them as they were having low days – but also to do some clothes shopping.

Lady M doesn’t often spend money on herself, so putting her in the vicinity of clothing shops can sometimes take a bit of a run up. At the same time, we have an event at the end of March to go to, and it occurred to me that one of the rites of passage that boy s has never had until now was that of getting measured for his first suit.

I had threatened to take him to the tailors that I got my wedding suit made at, but a more low-key approach felt kinder. Both Lady M and boy s can get overwhelmed with lots of people around, so I was mindful to suggest going to Marks and Spencer, knowing their men’s section tends to be a bit quieter. We ambled around and looked at some styles and colours of things for him to take to the changing rooms – and then while he was trying a few things on, I had a chat with the attendant.

I explained that he had never had a fitting or indeed a suit, and so I thought actually knowing his measurements would help immensely. Indeed, it would not only inform getting formal clothing but would also be something to bear in mind when buying clothing from here on out. It would take the guesswork out of things as he got used to creating his own wardrobe.

Like me, boy s is not exactly the smallest person in the room, so there was a fair chance there wouldn’t be anything in store that would quite fit – but that’s only because they keep a limited size range in the actual store. The full ranges are available online – and so this was very much in mind.

So, having done that, and with Lady M’s eye firmly on items for herself too we retired to our new favourite coffee shop where I introduced boy s to what he has described as the best hot chocolate he has ever had.

And with that, collective spoons were depleted, so we went to retrieve the cub from school – and we all seem to have spent most of today cat napping…

Its obviously needed

Home Again

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selfie of tired tim rubbing his right eye. He wears a yellow tshirt with an abstract pattern of lines on it, his head is shaved, and his beard has grey running through it

You can tell it was the end of the half term because like everyone else we were on the road today – and a projected four hour journey ended up being six, just as it was heading up mid-week. Still, we rarely ground to an actual halt until we were just outside London.

This morning started with the usual groggy checklist of “do I have all my body parts?” and “where is the coffee jar?” before progressing to “have I packed my medications?” and “whose towel is this?” The usual quiet confusion and desperation set in as plans for leaving at a particular time ambled straight past the target and on towards lunchtime. This is, in and of itself, nothing particularly unusual, even if it does make me twitch a little.

Everyone had a good time, even if the cub protested loudly about there being no computers to play his games on. Suddenly being expected to wash things up for himself was a bit of a revelation, but he rallied well and made a good stab at it. We even had him asking for and drinking cups of tea by the end of it all.

And so now we’re all home in our respective homes and unwinding. I have a painting that I need to pick a place for – a watercolour of the old family home created by a parishioner. I always liked it, and it brings back happy memories of summers of absolute mayhem with my brothers and friends alike. I think I’ll put it near the entrance to the kitchen so I can glance over at it every now and then. It does mean I’ll need to move one of my prints to make way for it, but then I do like excuses to switch things around every now and then so its hardly a chore – more a means of expression.

This week looks to be fairly busy, but hopefully will go with relative swiftness so I can then go into another week off. I might even plan something, who knows?

On Holiday

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I’ve been looking forward to a break, and as of this evening I’m at the very least not going to work for a few days. I have the opportunity to spend time with loved ones, and not be expected to be reachable for work.

The work phone is switched off, plates metaphorically set spinning, and weight well and truly off the shoulders.

Shenanigans are planned

Morning After the Munch

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I managed a great and rare thing last night – which was to drag the boy s off his couch and with me to a local munch – a social gathering for people in the kink/poly community (there’s a fair overlap) not that far from us. He’s been saying he wanted to go for some time, as he hasn’t been to any in four years. Between moving, covid, and ill health he’s not felt up to it – while I’ve been making connections with the locals over the last year or so so I could introduce him properly. Its as much an element of peer support and presence for a community who are not particularly visible as anything else – and he was very very nervous.

Part of that was that he would also be meeting Lady T in person for the first time – they’ve chatting along with everyone else in our group chat, but just like introducing new cats to an existing household you hope that in person people get on.

Well, we got there and headed to the freezing beer garden that normally hosts this particular event and as you might expect he sat and shivered while people chatted a while and then the ice broke with the mishearing of a comment turning into a running gag that turned the air several shades of blue. We did then all retreat into the warmth of the bar as it was relatively empty. And I have to say that I was proud of him coming out of his shell and talking to people with more and more confidence. He came close to being overwhelmed by the auditory input for a while, but Lady T had some stress putty that distracted him – and so an autistic alliance was formed, and rollup cigarettes shared, and an evening passed well. All in all, the boy did well. Here’s to getting him out the house some more.

Unexpected Child In The Bagging Area

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I knew it was going to be a strange day that would wander off-script when I got a call from boy s saying that the cub’s bus had broken down and could I give him a lift in exchange for a cuppa.

Because I am, contrary to scattered myth, a reasonable fellow, I duly did battle with local traffic to relay the cub. We noted his stomach was a bit uncomfortable, but as he was a good colour and otherwise moving with an approximation of purpose, he was deposited just down the road from the school. This was, of course, to spare him the embarrassment of being seen with a parental figure by his schoolmates.

I then popped the car on charge at the supermarket and walked home to start a morning of meetings. Just as I was due to retrieve the car about lunchtime, I, of course, then got a call from the school to come and retrieve the cub.

He was much more subdued and pale, so after checking his temperature I lined him up with warm cereal and a hot chocolate in front of YouTube, made him a hot water bottle, and started my next meeting next door. By the end of that, he was fast asleep and remained so until just after 9 when I went to get some fresh milk.

He seemed somewhat perturbed by the notion that Lady M and I were winding down for bed, and that he couldn’t start playing on the xbox. We settled him with more warm cereal and water and said he could watch his phone for a bit if he was back in bed.

So far, so good. We’ll see what he’s like in the morning

And Back To Work

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We had a good catchup on Monday with the Charleesi and boyfriend – who have both been working over the Christmas period like us. It was an excuse to get presents to them and spend some time – and to give our newly donated slow cooker a first go. Fair to say that the melt-in-your-mouth meat alone was a treat, especially when mixed with spices and coconut milk for a slow-cooked beef curry experience. It was a good start to the week.

Then it’s been back to the grind – and a strange combination of a slow start that also brought some tough managerial decisions. As is always the way with these things, compromise and conversation in person rather than the sole medium of emails got results and kept storms in teacups where they belonged. It also brought some improvements for some of the people being supported so I’ll take the wins.

I dropped by an unofficial munch (if there’s such a thing) over in Farnborough last night following all that to catch up with people and met some interesting new faces, including a couple of fellow D&D people so a lot of geekiness and sharing of silliness from our respective tables happened. Got some good ideas, and think I introduced one person to at least three new authors they hadn’t encountered before. End of the evening I gave Lady T a lift home and then promptly got stuck after that driving behind someone who barely drove over twenty miles an hour for most of the distance between Staines and home. So, that was fun. At least the new car is a pleasure to drive so as the route didn’t really give me any great overtaking opportunities I settled into my heated seats and pootled along behind until they turned off and cleared the way.

My added bonus today is that, by and large, I haven’t had much discomfort from my ribs. There’s still some tenderness near the sternum, but I’ve been able to take deep breaths, cough, even laugh, and not had stabbing pains for my trouble. I think my body has gone into healing overdrive today though as I’m absolutely shattered and drowsy as I reach the end of the afternoon. I logged off from work, and made the mistake of closing my eyes for a few moments and promptly lost a few hours – so I’m going to take the hint and just be kind to myself for the evening

Welcome 2023

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Well, so long 2022. Let’s see what comes along next. My own little corner of the world is doing well on the work front, though there’s a lot of sickness in the polycule that we can hopefully all support each through.

Lady M and I had a quiet evening last night with a double-bill on Netflix of Knives Out and Glass Onion and a bottle of wine. Neither of us were in the mood for shenanigans so it was good to just switch off. I’ve also quietly carried on making tokens and portraits in Heroforge as that’s a great distraction.

Last night’s cuppa and book

Today has also been gentle. Some of us are unwell, some of us are hung over – and I am just very tired. I suspect that’s related to my ribs still healing. They’re definitely improving: I was able to actually sleep lying down in my bed for the first time in a couple of weeks. Lifting and shifting too energetically is still painful, but there’s less of it which is encouraging – as long as I dont slouch or lean too often.

I did at least get the group together on discord and roll20 to get characters set up for the one-shot. I still haven’t come up with a title for it – I’ll announce it here when I do.

Christmas Eve

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And suddenly we’re nearly there – ready to feast and spend time with people. Bonus points are awarded if they’re people we love and cherish too. Today has been spent in the traditional activities of visiting people to drop off presents and have a natter – in this case Lady B – and gathering up people for transport so they’re in the right place for celebrations in the morning.

As is also traditional, there’s a few gifts that also need properly wrapping up ready for handover to the Claus, and so that’s why I am currently “banished” to the living room to play on the XBox and blog while Lady M is busy in the other room with Christmas movies and wrapping paper.

I’m looking forward to not running around too much tomorrow as my ribs are hurting quite a bit after all the bustle. I currently have a hot water bottle against my back to ease that side, and am sitting carefully upright and shallow breathing to manage the front. I will no doubt get jumped on by a child tomorrow, so I must remember to take extra painkillers with me when we go round to the boy s – which is where we’re cooking and spending most of tomorrow.

So, I hope you all have a wonderful day that goes to plan, fills you with joy, and brings you some peace amid the bustle and celebration.

Hello Weekend

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It feels like it’s been a very long week, but at the same time has had some good things in it. I had a diagnosis on the tiredness and a hopefully simple and effective remedy that I’ve started now. I had my payday so that’s always helpful – and I took delivery of my new lease car.

That alone will make work immeasurably less stressful as we won’t be competing for use of Lady M’s work car. Like her my vehicle is provided as part of a fleet under a salary sacrifice scheme which covers tax and services and tire wear and tear and things like that. We’re both now driving hybrids, and mine can also be driven as a purely electric car once the VIM registration goes through and I can register with the BMW tariff for charging.

Sadly we haven’t any charging points on the estate, but various places around the area do so I’ll be learning the gentle art of planning journeys with an eye to charging points. Who says it’s too late to learn new skills?

So my plan for tomorrow is to properly read the manual, work out how to customise things and connect my phone, and then take Lady M for a drive somewhere. Its been a good ten years since I’ve had a vehicle to call my own.

How Strange

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I was just thinking that haven’t been nagged by my phone to post anything and found that the WordPress app had disappeared. Cue a few moments of redownloading and then authenticating my login and we’re back in the room. Most perterbatory as the saying goes.

Still, we’ve had a quiet day today, following a lightning trip up north and back for family reasons. A round of upset stomachs suggest a bad batch of pizza last night, but at least the diabetic nurse is reasonably pleased with me.

A more substantial update tomorrow: writing is being perpetrated…