Peace Festival and Work Stuff

Pump Room Gardens, May 2019

It's been a little more eventful of late, which at least gives me more to write about.

The Peace Festival

This is the annual event held in Leamington featuring all manner of stalls and food and musicians, this year including Warwick Triratna Buddhists. This was my idea - now that I am completely suppressing all my Great Ideas at work, they are popping out everywhere else. After suggesting that the group take a stall at the Festival and the committee thinking this wasn't a bad idea I randomly invited some friends to stay over at my house at the same time. Luckily we did manage to rustle up enough helpers on the stall to allow me time off, and I could still help out on the stall and chill with the friends and it all worked out all right.

My particular task in the lead up to the event was to create some leaflets that we could hand out with some information about the group and the dates of the next introductory courses. I managed it with days to spare, unlike the person whose particular task was to create some sort of signage for our stall. For the whole of Saturday we were anonymous, which combined with the occasional downpours led to a largely unsuccessful sign-up rate. Thankfully the same person who didn't manage the sign did manage to borrow a large awning, without which we would have been drenched and would probably have given up and gone home.

We persevered, and on Sunday a small blackboard was procured for a sign to identify ourselves, the weather was much better, and people actually started showing an interest. We'll see how that converts to attendees at the intro courses. We'll be reviewing the whole affair at our next meeting when we'll decide whether it was worth it and what we would do differently if there is a next time.

Work Stuff 1

I made an epic mistake when I bought tickets to attend a festival in July - the same one that I went to last year - because somehow I put the wrong dates in my diary. Looking back, the dates were clear on the website and in the email to confirm the booking and everywhere else, so I can't quite understand how I got it wrong. But I did, and that meant that I had constructed my work schedule around the wrong dates, including a meeting, a course and clinics, not to mention the summer concert on the Saturday.

The realisation hit me with that sinking feeling in my stomach followed by disbelief and panic: I had full clinics on days I would not be at work and I'd cleared my diary on days when I would now be available. And there was no way the course could be moved, although the meeting could. My options were to come clean, in which case hospital policy is that clinics cannot be cancelled with less than six weeks' notice. The alternative was to try and make the necessary arrangements clandestinely and hope not to get caught out. I did the right thing, and a week later we have moved the clinics and officially switched my annual leave, although I'll have to head to the campsite after the course rather than have that day free to prepare. And no summer concert for me.

Work Stuff 2

I have made an application for 'flexible working', meaning that I have asked to reduce my 27-hour nearly-four-day working week to a nearly-two-day working week. The application went in back in January, at which point the Team Leader whose job it is to take my application forward had to have an emergency operation which took her away from work for a while. No problem, with six months to go there ought to have been plenty of time to work things out. But she never did - she was always saying "I don't have all the answers" and refusing to sit down with me and my team to work out how to take things forward. Then, about a month ago, she announced that the work in the nearly-two days I was giving up would be picked up by two different people, one of them being herself.

This was not an acceptable proposal and my team rightly protested, but again with the dragging her feet and not agreeing to a meeting. Eventually, when she happened to drop in to the department, I pretty much marched her round to one of my team so that they could highlight the problem.

There followed more procrastination, and then a suggestion of a meeting with her manager, and then with just six weeks to go the Team Leader announces to me that she's leaving altogether. All the delay and obfuscation was down to the fact that a) she wanted the extra hours for herself, while simultaneously b) she was applying for this other job. So we've got our aim of the whole job being done by just two people, but are left with much less time to prepare, and the manager above has now declined the meeting.

I could go on. It's really frustrating. There's lots more I could say, but it's not very interesting and leaves me feeling very negative. All I will say is that this is one of the reasons that I have determined to stop having ideas at work.

Quick LTRP update

Ilf has popped up a month earlier than he first suggested and has made a start on all the preparation for painting now that the plastering is done. There are holes and rough surfaces and plaster splatter all over the place - I got rid of a lot of it but not all. And more than a month after I told him about the blown LED light unit, Ulf has come and had a look, whistled through his teeth and gone away again. I discovered that the main cause for the delay was that his electrician has gone AWOL and nobody knows where he is. He has a new electrician, but I received a message this morning that it is slightly more complicated by the fact that the particular unit I have is no longer available, but we need something that will match the other lights. One thing I have learned through the whole span of the LTRP is that it always takes longer than you think, even when you are actually in no hurry.

What I've been reading

The Hand of Fu-Manchu
by Sax Rohmer

narrated by B. J. Harrison

"Sir Denis Nayland Smith and his associates learn of a deadly organization that stalks the shadows. Their goal is to undermine the balance of global power, and they allow no one to stand in their way. They are the terrorist assassins known as the Si-Fan."

My Audible talking book subscription renews in June and I'd run out of credits, so was looking forward to filling the gap with this free podcast book, but it was awful. I didn't care about any of the characters and it is 'of its time' i.e. appallingly racist. So I stopped reading it, and Audible happened to be having a sale of all the works of P. G. Wodehouse. Perfect.

Blandings Castle
by P. G. Wodehouse

narrated by James Saxon

"Lord Emsworth is striving to remove a pumpkin-shaped blot on the family escutcheon, the Hon. Freddie Threepwood is making a last-ditch attempt to convert Lady Alcester to the beneficial quality of Donaldson's Dog-Joy, and in the bar-parlor of the Anglers' Rest, Mr. Mulliner fascinates everyone with the secret history of old Hollywood."

Only about half of the book is about Blandings Castle, but that doesn't really matter, it's the usual joyful fare from Mr Wodehouse.

Summer Lightning
by P. G. Wodehouse

narrated by John Wells

"Engaged to delightful chorus girl Sue Brown, Ronnie must persuade his uncle (and trustee) Lord Emsworth to hand over a large chunk of capital before they can marry. Meanwhile waspish Lady Constance Keeble is marshalling her forces to stop her brother Galahad causing panic among the aristocracy by publishing the tale of his misspent youth."

I think Wodehouse had got into his stride by this book, because the classic parallel story threads of romance, misunderstandings and pig theft are all knitted together beautifully at the end. One of the best stories, spoiled only slightly by the narrator's voices for various characters being so thick as to be almost incomprehensible.

Plague, Pox and Pestilence
by Kenneth F. Kiple

"Since people first settled, disease has proliferated and altered the course of history. As the horizons of the known world have been extended, germs and viruses have travelled with the explorers and destroyed the very lands and peoples that seemed to hold out such promise."

A big shiny hardback book from dad's collection of books about disease through history, with glossy pages and colour pictures. I don't know why it took so long to get through because it's really very interesting, giving a snapshot of many different communicable diseases through history. I particularly enjoyed the last section, as it described diseases that we no longer experience and we don't really know what they were - the Sweating Sickness for example, which tended to kill its victims in a matter of hours.

Nothing to see here

Rio de Janeiro, April 2019

It's a week since my last blog post but there's nothing even remotely interesting to tell. Not that I haven't been busy, of course I have, with the usual badminton, Buddhists and work. But you've heard plenty about all of those and there's nothing new, not even anything in the realm of the LTRP to report. There's not a 'What I've been reading' post ready either because I've been doing surprisingly little reading - I've got through a couple of audio books but I've been stuck on the same print books since before I went to Brazil.

I have guests coming at the weekend so beds to make and catering to consider (and more cleaning) and a few less attractive jobs that I've been putting off. So I'm off to do that, and then it's the Peace Festival at the weekend where I know there will be stories to tell. Until next week, then.

Spot the moth!

Recent events

Amazonia, April 2019

Lola II and Mr M have visited Lola Towers for the purpose of setting up the Gulloebl Film Festival (Leamington). This is very exciting and I have now chosen the films and started writing down all the things I need to organise, from Friday's canapes to compiling parking information. Mr M is still working on the spreadsheets and our new online booking site is nearly ready to go live.

In badminton news, both my badminton clubs have held their AGMs. My Monday club's AGM was in the pub for an hour after the end of the Monday badminton session, and my Thursday club's was in a Rugby club and also involved a competitive skittles tournament and fish and chips.

I am 'Social Secretary' for my lovely Monday club, which just means that I organise activities and social events whenever I feel like it. My 'report' at the AGM consisted of a Post-It note with the dates of all the events I could remember from the last 12 months. We have a very efficient Secretary who added the rest of the detail. They have asked me for the same social programme again this year which leaves me with a dilemma - everyone enjoyed the Disc Golf but me, so should I organise it but not attend myself, or just pick something else?

The badminton side of things is not going very well for this club - we only have seven permanent paying members, some more who 'pay and play', and our funds are seriously depleted to the point that the viability of the club is at risk. Having said that, the men's team won their Division in the League and will be promoted. We don't have enough players for any other teams and barely enough for the men's.

My Thursday badminton club is doing much better than my Monday club, with a healthy membership and about six teams in various leagues. Last year we had an informal agreement that if one of the other ladies captained the 1st Mixed team last year, I would take it over this year. It really is about time I put something back into this club and it isn't a very difficult or time-consuming job, especially as we have six fairly committed players and quite a few who will stand in if needed.

Buddhism news: apart from the regular Tuesday Buddhist group locally, I've been going to quite a lot of Thursday sessions in Birmingham. This is partly because I enjoy it but it's also strategic - my local group is going to have a stall at next month's Peace Festival in Leamington and I want to try and make sure we are supported, which I am hoping will be easier if I am a known face.

Then there's work. Work is challenging, mostly in a good way, but sometimes not. I have been trying to get my Team Leader to have a conversation with the DSNs I work with since January and she has steadfastly avoided this until very recently. There was a full and frank exchange of views and maybe her future plans may reflect this. I can say no more at the moment.

I have also been up to visit H+B and brought back some more of H's writings. I have offered to create a basic blog for him but he has to decide whether this would count as 'publishing' because if he should decide to try and get some material published, they often require it not to have been published elsewhere. I will await his decision.

Lastly, the LTRP continues, as it will probably continue until the end of time. One of the electric lights in my 'new' kitchen has failed, and as these lights consist of expensive sealed units that have to be replaced as a whole and which I was assured 'never fail' I contacted Ulf to ask for a replacement under guarantee. This led to a confusing series of messages because my communication that 'one of the kitchen lights has blown' was interpreted as meaning one of the glazed roof light sealed units. I am still waiting for a date when the light will be replaced. Apart from that, I have now cleaned up most of the plaster dust and re-polished the living room floor, making the room habitable again but potentially lethal to walk about in socks.