Proof that time flies

Somehow, I seem to have lost some time somewhere. An awful lot of it as it happens as I seem to have completed another decade. How???!!! Still, you know what this means?

It's my Birthday!

Well, it is on Sunday. I like birthdays. I like the fact that one day a year I get cards and presents just for being here. After all I am getting older every minute of every hour of every day so why not celebrate rather than pretending it's not happening? When I think of my teens (quelle horreur!) I wouldn't go back for anything. The fact is that now I know who I am, I know what I want (mostly), and I feel more happy because of it.

I also feel like celebrating as getting to 40 has not been plain sailing. Anyone who visits here regularly knows that the past 2-3 years have not been the easiest. At times I wondered if I could make it to the next day but by heck I did and by heck I am still here! And you know, now I am getting help from the doctors to manage my thyroid condition, for the first time in ages I feel like myself and I feel like I can take on the world! (Well, at least I can stay awake mostly now which is a great improvement from catatonic zombie).

So, I'm off to have a weekend celebration. I'm going to Chester for the weekend. A lovely old Roman town with black and white timbered buildings where I intend to exercise my photographic muse. I intend to enjoy myself because when it comes down to it, life is too short to be miserable. I'm 40 and I'm fabulous!

Soooo tired

I am tired. Very tired. No, that doesn't sum it up enough. I am tired down to the very cells in my bones. I am so tired I have no energy to do anything. I am writing this in a good moment and to tell you the truth if I closed my eyes I would go to sleep right here, right now on the sofa, sat bolt upright with my laptop.

I constantly feel listless. Doing anything feels like wading through treacle with a huge weight on my back whilst going uphill in gale force winds. I am finding it hard to motivate myself to do anything, let alone actually do anything. Work is very stressful and busy at the moment also, which isn't helping at all and it feels like things at home are falling apart as housework remains undone because I'm too busy falling asleep. It's all very frustrating. I have made an appointment with the doctor as something is clearly not right and the only thing that is obvious, even to my confused and tired mind, is that this can't continue. I feel crappy and if I had the energy I'd probably cry.

So, I doubly appreciate those of my blog friends who pop by here to say hello. I am sorry I have been neglecting you and I owe you all a visit and just as soon as I can fit you in between naps.

Not a lot else going on in my life at the moment (no energy) but it is my birthday this Sunday coming when I celebrate a milestone birthday. Lord knows I don't feel that old but the calendar assures me it's true. I'm going away for the weekend to celebrate with M as if I waited for my family to throw a party or something I'd turn blue and fall over if I held my breath. It has ever been thus and quite frankly I'd rather have a quiet time away then a few drinks with a couple of friends another time. One plus point of getting older is you know who your real friends are, and it isn't always your family. Friends are indeed, the family you choose.

Of course, when I get back home after my weekend I get my kittens which are my birthday present to myself. The purrfect present! I know it's a bad joke but hey it's the best I could do on my batteries. If you see the Duracell bunny tell him I need a recharge. Thanks!

Double trouble or twice the fun?

Sam

Then there were two... I had been thinking of getting two cats for many years but held off as Bob was very set in his ways and I knew he would not take to sharing very well. He barely tolerated other humans in 'his' home. So, when I decided to adopt Max I always had the intention of having two cats...eventually...sometime in the future. I just didn't realise it would be so soon!

Max

Sam is the last of the litter to find a home and he found it with me and his brother. I decided that two litter mates that were best friends would be so much easier to adopt than trying to introduce another feline further down the line. Sam and Max would wear each other out and be company for each other while I am work and I avoid all potential future problems from introducing a new cat later. I am thrilled and can't wait until I can bring them home at the end of the month as a birthday present to myself. It's a milestone birthday too so the present had to be extra special!

On a different note I apologise for my lack of blog presence lately. Work has become busy beyond belief and I am barely coping with my thyroid condition. I work, I sleep and do very little else as I have no energy. Once I get the next week or so out of the way I hope normal service will be resumed. Just in time to prepare for the arrival of my kitties and my birthday, which I'm determined to enjoy. Thanks for popping by, I really appreciate it and I hope to repay your visit soon!

I don't normally use the word cute a lot but...

Max at 8 weeks

Those who are not cat lovers might like to skip this paragraph. I visited my Max this week and was amazed at how much he had grown. He had basically doubled in size from when I saw him at 5 weeks and this time he was very much awake as you can see from his beautiful big blue eyes. He looks like butter wouldn't melt in his mouth but approximately two minutes after this photo was taken, he was chewing on my fingers. Earlier that day he had been shut in a room he wasn't meant to be in and had apparently been getting up onto the dining table (and being shown the floor again). It sounds like I will very much have my work cut out for me when I bring him home at the end of the month but truthfully, I can't wait :)

On a different note, the chaos that is poorly thought out change continues to sap my will to live at work. This week has been particularly difficult as my thyroid condition seems to be playing up at the moment. It's been a really lovely sunny week and I've had no energy whatsoever. I have been feeling like the Duracell bunny who got the short straw of generic batteries and is the first one to stop drumming. Bleh! The next couple of weeks are going to be really busy so I hope it sorts itself out a bit.

Between work and bouts of nodding off on the sofa I have been watching some great TV series. I have rediscovered 'Ed', a series about a lawyer who also owns a bowling alley in a small American town and also 'American Gothic'; a series about a small town in America where everyone is not as they seem and a young boy, Caleb loses his sister who then visits him as a ghost to uncover the past and protect him from the Sheriff who isn't what he seems to be. I have also discovered 'Castle' which is a series about a murder/thriller writer who teams up with a NYC detective to solve crimes. It sounds trite but the characters are great, the script is well written and acted and it's humorous. Click on the series names to check them out as IMDB will tell you more than I have the energy to here right now.

Other than the above, I am looking forward to a quiet weekend before the busy week ahead and will be booking a weekend away for the end of the month to celebrate my birthday. It's gonna be a milestone one and I intend to do something special. If I haven't been round to visit you recently then I hope to soon. Right after 40 winks. Promise.

Hats off...to me

verb /gradyooayt/ 1 successfully complete a degree, course, or (N. Amer.) high school. 2. (graduate to) move up to (something more advanced). 3 arrange or mark out in gradations. 4 change gradually.

Friday 29th May 2009 was the date of my graduation ceremony for my Masters degree. It symbolically marked the end of a journey that took me 5 years to complete, but I did it, against what seemed like insurmountable odds at times. Sitting in the vast hall, shoulder to shoulder with fellow graduates of the Open University in my light blue robe and gold and blue hood I allowed myself to feel proud of my achievement. I had done it. I had gained my MBA and here I was having it bestowed on me.


I posted the definition of graduate at the top of this post and for me three of the definitions are pertinent. My MBA has precipitated great change in my working life with two promotions over the past five years so I have moved up to new challenges equipped with the skills of my course. I have also seen gradual change in myself. I am much less naive than I used to be, both professionally and personally and some of this is due to the opportunities that have opened up because of my studies and some of it is due to personal experiences over the same period that are intrinsically interwoven with my studies, such was the commitment to it over the years.

The ceremony took place at Cheltenham Town Hall, which has a wonderful marble pillared hall with balconies on three sides and a stage at one end. On arrival I collected my robe and had the obligatory photo session and then we set off into town, down the promenade to take my parents to lunch. On the way I spied many other robed students, most in dark blue robes denoting it was their first degree, while a few were also in the light blue which denoted a Masters degree. We found a nice little Italian restaurant and I enjoyed a nice pasta dish that fused Italian pasta with Chinese duck in plum sauce and it was very tasty. Afterwards we took a leisurely stroll back for the ceremony.

The ceremony itself consisted of the usual speeches and presentation of the graduates but the tone was set for an enjoyable afternoon with a band on the balcony that played hits from shows such as Oklahoma. It sounds cheesy, but the tunes were upbeat, the air in the hall was alive with the spirits of people who knew they had earned the right to be there, and with the pride of those that had come to support them. The combination of all these made for a very pleasant afternoon which was rounded off by a glass of sparkling wine. It was a fitting end to five years of blood, sweat and tears and I had a great time.