its me!!

[Helen]

took me ages to find out how to get on here but those of you who know me wont find that hard to understand !!
had a pretty hard few weeks. being ill with kidney stones and a bad water infection then culminating with a stay in hospital to have thyroid glands removed.its left me virtually voiceless and its affected my right eye, which now looks like its half closed. got a hacking cough but im not sure if thats because of a chest infection or the results of the anesthetic,
bit like a clockwork toy at the moment, can go like hell till me spring runs down then i sleep for england.
theres no work for me to do even if i could and im getting worried about that right now.
have made a few attempts to post but have been virtually ignored but hey i can live with that !! also had a few probs with the isp so another reason i've not been on here much.
cant believe a whole year hass passed since i was at my daughters, awaiting the birth of my 13th grandchild !!
she is now such a happy smiley pretty little girl. loves her music and keeps everyone laughing at her antics.
did tell my daughters that 13 was an unlucky number and one of them had to even it out.............. wont tell you what their replys were........... lol
anyway washing to do now so i best get on.

[Helen]

things have improved a bit since the other day, feeling better in myself now, just wish my voice would get back to normal. having to shout ( in a whisper ) if theres such a thing, to make myself heard in a normal conversation is putting a bit of a strain on it now and not helping matters, dont have my followup appointment til 31st july so will have to wait til then to see if its ever going to get better.
i think i sound like marlene dietrich, my boss reckons its more like marge from the simpsons
been invaded by grandchildren today,
you know you're getting old when they can DRIVE you to the local super market to get your shopping !!

[Helen]

what is wrong with our weather these days................ 9th july ??........ more like the middle of december !!
my hunting shooting fishing rough tough springer spaniel has been dryed with a hair dryer and is now laying beside me wrapped in a big towel cos hes cold

my youngest grandaughter is a year old today....... omg what a nite that was !! daughter had a home birth and being her 4th, it was very quick. in fact, so quick the midwife got there with seconds to spare very much to my relief.
she's a bit special cos she will be my last grandchild......... not that i love the others any the less but they grow up so damn quick, five of them having already left school and living their own lives already, albeit they are still teenagers.
i cant recall having that much freedom at their age and their mums certainly didnt i can tell you !!

[Helen]

been a good day today, suns been shining. i got a few things done.
i go back to work next week but in the shop not peeling endless bags of spuds.
havin a couple of days away befor i do so wont be here til monday now xx

[Helen]

well, its sunday afternoon, im back at home again after a couple of days away.
the weather was good, the hotel was spotless, the food really good and the voddy and cokes went down a treat !! lol
i had most of my hair cut off before i went.so now at least it dosnt look like a herd of cows has wandered through it.
i met some really nice people, some of whom i know will be friends for life, despite the fact i wont see them very often.
i went to my friends ( the ones i went down there to visit )" local pub " and it was like id been going in there for years, i've never been made to feel so welcome anywhere.
there was no eardrum breaking loud music, no big screen tv's with the latest footy on. they actually sat and talked to each other !!!
im a bit down at the moment cos i've, at long last, realized theres a life outside this place !!
the dog has forgiven me for abandoning him for 48hrs, now i've taken him for a walk !! ( didnt really abandon him, my boss's grandson looked after him !! )

think i've outgrown where i live now, been here ten years and its about time i moved on.
tomorrow is the first day of the rest of my life !!

[Helen]

be warned !!
never look up an illness on the net or in a medical book cos a couple of hours later you will be suffering from every complaint known to mankind ( and a few that arnt )
i did do the NHS DIRECT web site to but the other one gave frightening symptoms and dire predictions then offered to sell you books and herbal remedies to cure it all
i wonder how any people fall for that one !!

went back to work yesterday, it was a bit of a shock to the system and i didnt last the whole shift but got enough done to keep them happy.

things are so quiet here this summer, i suppose people havnt got the money to spend on fuel these days and need to keep what they do have to be able to get to work.
two years ago we were open 11hrs a day and had about eight staff, now we dont even open at dinner times but as the children break up this week that will change till august bank holiday.
in a way, im not sorry, dont think i could cope with it now.

[Helen]

well, i went to see the doctor this afternoon and got my legs severely smacked !
what i was reading on the net was for a different type of thyroid problem from the one i had,
he said as it had only been four weeks since my op, what was i expecting ?? so i said, thats just it, no one told me what to expect.
he said you've had a major operation, had a big pipe pushed down your throat, someones been in there pulling you about and i think you've done remarkably well.
its going to take another two months before i start to recover
so now i dont feel too bad.
as i said on the FOC'ERS thread earlier, after reading all that stuff about breathing problems and also problems with my eye sight, i was ready to buy a guide dog and get an oxygen tank installed in my handbag
now i can cancel all that

[Helen]

well, i've made a start to moving on this morning and applied for a couple of flats. i wont know if i've been sucessful for another two weeks at least. they are cheaper !! than where i am living now.
i will still be able to work here but it will make so much difference as i wont be on the spot and called down at the drop of a hat to work if someone dosnt turn up.
im trying not to get too excited about it as there are loads of families on the housing list, some of whom have waited longer than i have but fingers crossed !!
my daughter has made enquiries about a nice mobile home park not far from her, i do know some people who live there but its a bit isolated.
im not going to live anywhere i cant take my dog, he's an old man now and has been my devoted companion all this time so he deserves to see out his old age with someone he knows.
when he does go, i shall not replace him, a springer spaniel is not the ideal pet for someone my age, i cant keep up with him like i used to

[Helen]

had another fabulous weekend.
went "up the line " as they say here in cornwall. went to bideford, westward ho ! and barnstable. got home at 5-30am this morning and after a couple of hours sleep, i went to work.
thats an odd thing about some people here, specially the older generation. many of them rarely venture away from the town of their birth and going abroad is virtually unheard of.
it wasnt til i lost my mum, 7yrs ago,her funeral being in bournemouth, that one of my son in laws had been further than plymouth !!
the weather here has taken a turn for the better and looks like its going to stay that way for the rest of the week, about time too.
anyway, i think a shower and an early night sound good at the moment.

[Helen]

had a bit of an odd night, last night. didnt sleep too well and when i did manage to nod off, the dog decided to snore as if his life depended on it. this was sort of incorporated in the dream i was having and i woke up suddenly, feeling quite disturbed for some reason

a very good friend of mine has decided to quit his job down here and head back home later today. im bitterly disappointed cos i've come to rely on him quite a lot just lately but thats no ones fault but mine and he has to do whats best for him.
he's going to see his boss later and try and work out the problems he's having so who knows what might happen..........
its turned into an overcast dull day but at 6am the sun was shining.now i've got nothing to do til i go to work at 11am !!!
the baby seagulls on the roof next door have just found out why they've got wings the noise they make when they suddenly find themselves a few inches of the ground is ear splitting and also that of the parents, who dive bomb anything or anyone they feel is going to be a threat to them !!
it dosnt do much for trying to catch up on lost sleep, believe me