Such great news today, 120,000 people have signed up to the organ donor list since the start of the campaign on Monday, what a fabulous success it has been. I send a great big thank you to all who have signed up so far and also to those whose work made it happen. Well done everyone.
It was Warfarin clinic today and although I arrived at more or less the same time as last visit, hoping for a small queue again, the place was packed out. I grabbed one of the magazines that I've read a hundred times before and settled down for a long wait.
About half an hour in and the doors to the clinic crashed open and who should arrive scowling, loud and unpleasant but the American woman I mentioned a few weeks ago. At the time I last wrote about her I'd commented that I'd hoped she was on a flying visit, sadly it seems it wasn't to be. For those that don't remember that particular blog a quick re-cap. This woman arrived at the clinic in her double width wheelchair and caused chaos and was extremely unpleasant to all and sundry. Her wheelchair was plonked in the corridor preventing everyone from getting to or from the curtained area where they do the tests and she took offense when asked to move. With this in mind I lowered my paper in anticipation of round two of hostilities between her and the staff. To my utter surprise her carer parked her carefully out of the way and when she was called she GOT OUT OF THE CHAIR AND WALKED TO THE BOOTH. I had to do a double take as last time, although the staff insisted she could walk the short distance, she was adamant that she could not. Clearly something had been said between the last time I saw her and today's visit. Or maybe she just decided that her New Year's resolution was to stop being such an awkward cow.
I also witnessed a second equally surprising incident but this one made my blood boil. There was a new nurse in clinic today and I didn't really take notice until she called the name of a particularly frail old lady sitting two rows in front of me. Although this nurse was less than two feet away from this old lady she just stood and watched as the old girl gamely tried to get up from her seat. After a few moments of struggle it became clear that she wasn't going to make it without help but this nurse did not move an inch. Instead several other patients went to this old lady's rescue, one actually had to barge the nurse out of the way to get to her and still the nurse did nothing. A dark murmur went around the room as the nurse disappeared behind the curtain leaving the old lady trailing in her wake. No one was impressed. For me the thought that maybe her attitude was the reason she had been booted off the ward to work in clinic but maybe I'm just being a tad unkind.
The weather, for a change, is beautiful today but the wind was still biting and I took great pleasure in sauntering along the road between car and clinic and back again without having to dress up like I'm treking across the arctic. We did briefly toy with the idea of going out and having a quick whizz around the charity shops for books this afternoon but the icy breeze put us off. I'm on a weeks leave at the end of the month so we'll do it then, when hopefully things will have warmed up a bit more.
Flush with my baking success last week I went and bought some new equipment today. I bought two deep sandwich tins and a large bread tin. I am planning to try and make bread again during my week off and have a delicious walnut and brandy chocolate cake lined up to make tomorrow.
In the news the horse meat scandal rumbles on and more and more products are being removed from shops while processing plants and abattoirs are being raided throughout the UK and Europe. I can't say I'm surprised but it isn't the horse meat that worries me, it is all the other stuff they've been chucking in hoping nobody will ever notice.
The big, big news of course is the arrested of blade runner Oscar Pistorius after he killed his girlfriend by shooting her four times at close range. Although the murder would be shocking in any circumstances the horror of the situation seems to be amplified by the fact that he is disabled. I don't know why the disabled seem to instantly gain the status of sainthood but they do and so when a disabled person does something like this it always seems so much worse. There seems to be some debate as to what exactly happened at the moment and no doubt things will become clearer as the case progresses. For me I'm just sorry that a person who was such an inspiration to so many disabled people around the world has destroyed everything he stands for in one blind flash of anger.
Well it looks like our decision to stay at home was justified as a big black cloud has just rolled in and there are a few spots of rain on the window. I just have time for a nice cuppa and a chocolate doughnut before I go and collect Andrew from uni, he was parted from his bike once again by last weekend's snow. I seem to be doing more taxi duties since he moved out than I ever did when he lived here, such is life.
It was Warfarin clinic today and although I arrived at more or less the same time as last visit, hoping for a small queue again, the place was packed out. I grabbed one of the magazines that I've read a hundred times before and settled down for a long wait.
About half an hour in and the doors to the clinic crashed open and who should arrive scowling, loud and unpleasant but the American woman I mentioned a few weeks ago. At the time I last wrote about her I'd commented that I'd hoped she was on a flying visit, sadly it seems it wasn't to be. For those that don't remember that particular blog a quick re-cap. This woman arrived at the clinic in her double width wheelchair and caused chaos and was extremely unpleasant to all and sundry. Her wheelchair was plonked in the corridor preventing everyone from getting to or from the curtained area where they do the tests and she took offense when asked to move. With this in mind I lowered my paper in anticipation of round two of hostilities between her and the staff. To my utter surprise her carer parked her carefully out of the way and when she was called she GOT OUT OF THE CHAIR AND WALKED TO THE BOOTH. I had to do a double take as last time, although the staff insisted she could walk the short distance, she was adamant that she could not. Clearly something had been said between the last time I saw her and today's visit. Or maybe she just decided that her New Year's resolution was to stop being such an awkward cow.
I also witnessed a second equally surprising incident but this one made my blood boil. There was a new nurse in clinic today and I didn't really take notice until she called the name of a particularly frail old lady sitting two rows in front of me. Although this nurse was less than two feet away from this old lady she just stood and watched as the old girl gamely tried to get up from her seat. After a few moments of struggle it became clear that she wasn't going to make it without help but this nurse did not move an inch. Instead several other patients went to this old lady's rescue, one actually had to barge the nurse out of the way to get to her and still the nurse did nothing. A dark murmur went around the room as the nurse disappeared behind the curtain leaving the old lady trailing in her wake. No one was impressed. For me the thought that maybe her attitude was the reason she had been booted off the ward to work in clinic but maybe I'm just being a tad unkind.
The weather, for a change, is beautiful today but the wind was still biting and I took great pleasure in sauntering along the road between car and clinic and back again without having to dress up like I'm treking across the arctic. We did briefly toy with the idea of going out and having a quick whizz around the charity shops for books this afternoon but the icy breeze put us off. I'm on a weeks leave at the end of the month so we'll do it then, when hopefully things will have warmed up a bit more.
Flush with my baking success last week I went and bought some new equipment today. I bought two deep sandwich tins and a large bread tin. I am planning to try and make bread again during my week off and have a delicious walnut and brandy chocolate cake lined up to make tomorrow.
In the news the horse meat scandal rumbles on and more and more products are being removed from shops while processing plants and abattoirs are being raided throughout the UK and Europe. I can't say I'm surprised but it isn't the horse meat that worries me, it is all the other stuff they've been chucking in hoping nobody will ever notice.
The big, big news of course is the arrested of blade runner Oscar Pistorius after he killed his girlfriend by shooting her four times at close range. Although the murder would be shocking in any circumstances the horror of the situation seems to be amplified by the fact that he is disabled. I don't know why the disabled seem to instantly gain the status of sainthood but they do and so when a disabled person does something like this it always seems so much worse. There seems to be some debate as to what exactly happened at the moment and no doubt things will become clearer as the case progresses. For me I'm just sorry that a person who was such an inspiration to so many disabled people around the world has destroyed everything he stands for in one blind flash of anger.
Well it looks like our decision to stay at home was justified as a big black cloud has just rolled in and there are a few spots of rain on the window. I just have time for a nice cuppa and a chocolate doughnut before I go and collect Andrew from uni, he was parted from his bike once again by last weekend's snow. I seem to be doing more taxi duties since he moved out than I ever did when he lived here, such is life.
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