Pop in for a chat! Showing 17,851-17,900 of 18,142

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, a productive day. Had to go to Manchester to the agencies office to get paperwork and ID sorted, decided to take advantage of being there to have a little mooch round the shops, was very proud of myself for going to a Yankee Candle discount shop that had mystery bags for sale and coming out empty handed! Not quite as many steps as yesterday, but still 8k, and it's rained most of the day, so it would have been a struggle otherwise. Bumped into Malachi and his mum on the way back from the train station, told her about my job and she said seeing me and hearing that had made her day. Got home, had something to drink, then decided to unplug the freezer to defrost it, rather than wait till Thu

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, my last proper day volunteering today, I did cry as I left! It was rather an odd day though, the woman was late, but her business partner let me in, I did some of the opening up stuff but didn't want to encourage people in, one of his friends was there as her kitchen is being replaced, so I sympathised with her - turns out she has a library degree and has worked in both college and council libraries, she said that I come across as the kind of person that libraries are looking for and I'd do well in an interview, so keep applying for jobs. It was a fairly quiet day, so we just chatted quite a bit, I did sneak in a £10 donation, as I was in charge of the sales ledger and petty cash tin, wasn't sure she'd have taken it off me. I told her that I'm hoping to work my flexi time so I can go and volunteer once a month, and will still call in the odd Sat for a brew and can't wait to go and see the Fairy Lights exhibition, based on the Cottingley Fairies, so she isn't getting rid of me that easily! Decided it was dry enough when I got back to hit my step count and got caught in heavy rain on the way back! Then G rang and asked if I wanted to go to retail park, which I did as Lucy is low on senior food, we ended up going there, B & Q, B & M and Tesco! So ended up doing over 10k steps

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, nice day, if overcast and windy at times, so decided cleaning the fridge could wait, as this is forecast to be the last nice day for a while, so got some washing done and dried on the line, and went up to the bird hide, the woman who was there when we were helping rescue baby wrens was back, she was annoyed at seeing the kingfisher 4 times but not managed to get a decent pic, she said she was going to stay till 1 to see if it came back, I said I'd stay till 1.30 in case it appeared when I was on my own - it appeared at 1.25, I didn't get a great pic as the post it likes isn't that close, but was glad to see it in the flesh. Was going to send it to friend to ask her to send it on to her dad, but bumped into him on the way home, so showed him myself! There was quite a young heron who was good at catching fish, but a bit too far for us to see properly, and despite the rain we've had this week, water levels are down, and again, some of the bits that are normally under water have been exposed long enough to start turning green.

[Jim]

Glad you've got the job, I think that now you've got your 'foot in the door' you might well be able to get something permanent if that's what you want

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, was supposed to rain from 10am, so decided to have a cup of tea and get out with the aim of getting back before then, so went about 8am, left the bird hide at 9.20 and did get caught in the rain, not sure it has stopped since! On the way to the hide, I saw a deer, but not the fawns. It was fairly quiet in the bird hide, did meet another new person who seemed nice, and then an oyster catcher turned up, apparently we don't get many of those. On the way back, I saw a toadling (only discovered that term the other week from one of the wildlife photographers), didn't get the best pic though as it jumped as I pressed the button! I was motivated enough to do quite a few chores, am enjoying seeing a nice clean, tidy fridge! Was contemplating whether to do some more chores when I realised I haven't watched a film this month, so watched a film, then finished my last book of the month - 7 this month.

Thanks Jim, the Council is probably a good place to get my foot in the door with, and she did say there were a few permanent jobs coming up.

[Jim]

I know a couple of people who have followed that route with councils, colleges, and universities. Once you're 'in' things get easier because you see the opportunities coming up

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, that day didn't go as planned! Was raining when I got up, so did a couple of things in the house, including a quick job search and the council have finally published the advert for the full time, permanent library assistant position that I've been waiting for, so need to apply for that! It seemed to be drying up at 11, so went up to the bird hide, it started raining on the way up, so nearly didn't go that far, but decided to, and glad I did, the kingfisher was about, I saw an orange blob on a barrel and pointed it out, so binoculars came out and confirmed it was the kingfisher, saw it swoop in the lake, but behind flowers, so couldn't see if it caught anything, but then just as I was about to go, it came quite close, so got a lovely view, but only for seconds, not long enough for anyone to take a pic. Then the heron came, so spent 5 mins seeing if it was going to catch anything. On the way home my sis rang and asked if I'd take her to market town tomorrow for something, and I said that the stall was only there on a Sat, so had to go home, get the car and take them, did end up getting a few things while I was out. Then was relaxing after tea when G rang and needed me to help with something, so had to put clothes back on and pop round, so am on track for 15k steps! Didn't get to come home, shower, wash my hair and do chores though

[Alicia]

Seeing the birds in real life must be such a charge. And 15k - wow!

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

It is Alicia, I just want to see a fox and badger in real life but lucky to have some amazing local wildlife photographers who share them, one got pics of the cygnet swimming on parent's back and two fawns feeding from mum last week!

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, bit of a mixed day, did get yesterday's washing pegged out at 7.30, it tried to rain 5 mins later, and gave up at 11 when it came down quite heavy! Got plenty of chores done though, then went for a walk with G late afternoon, we went to her favourite reservoir, then tried one that you can see from that reservoir that I've never been to (apparently you can walk from one to the other, but we thought best to drive as we didn't know where we were going!). The first reservoir is the one that was low enough to see the old bridge, it is low again, you can just see part of the bridge, and we were able to walk on stretches that are normally under water. Really enjoyed the second reservoir, we went over the dam and found a map and decided to do the woodland section rather than the reservoir section as it was shorter, came across a pond that had such friendly ducks they heard voices and flew over to see if we had anything! Unfortunately we didn't have any food on us, one of them did decide to show it's annoyance by nipping my boot! There were some unusual ones though, need to look up what they were. On the way back to the car we saw a heron, but a bit late so it flew off. Then decided to have a soft drink in a pub near there, that was through some lovely country roads, on the way there saw a field with either llamas or alpacas, including a baby one, then on the way back, we saw a stunning peacock, so glad I got a nice wildlife walk. Her eldest was supposed to be making me soup, but I left them over an hour ago and nothing has arrived yet, and she's not answering, so have had to put something in the air fryer, am starving, even though I've only done 10.5k steps today

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, it was my last day of freedom today and was forecast to be wet and windy all day! I had a telephone consult with rheumatology this morning, they were pleased I'm able to reduce my meds and next step is getting off one completely. She said my bloods were back and everything is fine, so that's good. Then decided I might as well go for my walk, I'm determined to get to 100 days of hitting my step count (today is day 84), even if it means walking in the rain, I did get partway and the rain came down really heavy and I contemplated turning round, but decided I was already wet - by the time I got back, I had to peel my clothes off! Nobody in the bird hide, but a surprising amount of non dog walkers around! Just saw the usual ducks, gulls and swans, on the way back I heard a splash, looked towards the water, then saw a heron come out with a fish in it's mouth and gulp it down, which made getting wet worth it! Also decided that as I was wet, I'd finally test my bath out, it was strange being narrower and sitting on the other side, but it was nice. Made a korma so I don't have to cook for the first 3 days and just about to finish my nails, think I'm all set for my first day tomorrow, will be my first new day for over 20 years!

[Alicia]

How exciting - very best wishes for your first day!

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Thanks Alicia, I'm trying to feel excited rather than nervous!

[Pam]

Good luck for your first day Desley.

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, that didn't go too badly, spent most of the day reading policies and procedures, seems a nice team, most of the people I spoke to either have pets or enjoy reading, so some common ground, I've been given a 'buddy', she likes reading and mentioned her son has cats and dogs, who are her 'grandchildren', so think we'll get on. Have been added to the group WhatsApp, and already had nice comments, my 'buddy' said that it was great to meet me and she can't wait to get to know me better - wasn't expecting such a welcome given it's only a temporary contract! Downside is they don't provide tea, coffee etc, luckily there is a cafe on the ground floor, so we got a latte mid morning, can't keep doing that though, it'll cost me way too much to go to work! The team leader came to briefly say hello this pm and that after her hol, we'll have a coffee and a proper chat, she asked how I liked the building, which made me comment that I don't like the library, she's a massive reader, so that pretty much just turned into a book conversation, she isn't sure about a kindle, I nearly got mine out of my bag for her to have a look at! There is a chance I'll be able to WFH on Fri, need to see how Thu goes and how comfortable I feel. Decided to get some bread to make sandwiches for tomorrow's lunch, saw a massive rat as I was in Aldi's car park, not the kind of wildlife I'm used to seeing! Only just hit my step count at 6320, nothing like the 10k plus I've got used to!

[Alicia]

Great start - except, possibly, for the wildlife (rat). They have their place in Nature, but you really don't want to see them in it!

Coffee/tea in your own thermos?

They sound very welcoming.

[Jud]

Sounds like a fab first day Desley, I'm glad it went well!

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Certainly not in a supermarket car park Alicia - although it is next to a river. Yes, I've just made a cup of tea in my travel mug, and put a sachet of coffee in my bag for later, might get used to drinking it without sugar!

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, second day was just reading policies and procedures, so they asked after lunch if I wanted to come home, test logging out and finishing the last few, which I said yes to - did disturb Lucy who was tucked up in bed, then realised why I don't like working from home in the afternoon, she's a nuisance, thinking I should be here to pander to her! Am glad I'm parked 10 min walk from the office, even with that, and popping round the shops at lunch, I've only just hit my step count again - and the walk there is nice, the hill back is rather steep! Tomorrow I'm going to be shown some proper work.

[Jim]

glad things are going well

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, training was interesting, got shown the procedure from start to finish once, second time she just did it at her usual speed and due to using 3 screens, I couldn't see some of it, then third time she let me do it! Lots of things to remember, the 'how to' is 6 pages long, but seems quite straight forward actually and will be easier from home, as I only had one screen in the office today. Had a chat with my manager after lunch, she said I was the quickest person ever to get through reading policies and procedures, I decided to go with the fact I've spent a lot of time over the years proof reading them rather than the fact I'll happily be paid to sit and read, regardless of subject matter! She also said she's confident I'll pick it up well, I did point out an incorrect hyperlink in a doc and she was 'I like you', and said as long as I'm happy, I can WFH tomorrow, which I said yes to, I might even feel up to ringing someone if there isn't the pressure of being in an open plan office! Decided to just stay in the building at lunch so I didn't get tempted to spend money, wasn't the best idea as I didn't hit my step count, but despite all the walking I've done recently, walking down the hill and up the stairs to the third floor (2 flights per floor) did aggravate my asthma, and walking down the stairs and up the hill after did make my legs ache! As I hadn't hit my step count, I did have to do a quick walk after work, just did a little bit of the canal, saw some tiny fish, and then checked out reductions in co-op, I was conscious that Lucy had been cooped up all day, she has been very clingy this week

Thanks Jim

[Alicia]

This is all a change for you and Lucy - you'll find a new pattern.

I can't do stairs at all right now - I'm envious - but they do affect your muscles differently. Will there be more stairs now in your daily workouts?

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

We will Alicia. Yes, I am hoping to use the stairs at least to get in and out of the building, and hopefully at lunch, so that's potentially 4 times of 6 flights of stairs - they aren't nice stairs though, for some reason, despite the stairwell being quite large, they've put a bend on the stairs that makes them a bit tricky when going up, don't seem as bad coming down.

[Alicia]

You don't have to do them all at once! Be kind to your knees and ankles, and start with odd flight here and there, and work up to more.

As soon as I get the next book organized, doing the little bit of exercise I CAN do gets priority. I know it will be slow getting started - and I will listen to the body parts. I have the rest of my life - if they ever fix us, I may even get back to walking. I hope for that. I just don't have what it takes for the necessary surgery and physical therapy unless I have more energy.

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, that was a long day! Had some IT issues this morning, but fortunately the first one was sorted before the trainer actually had any work for me to do, then IT came to fix something, computer had a hissy fit so I had to restart it, let them know when I was back and never heard back from them, so problem still not sorted, so rather than being able to pull a form off, I have to type it all in again, which isn't a bad thing while there isn't much I can do. So a lot of downtime, which I much prefer when I'm WFH, especially as I can't listen to music in the office anymore. Did 3 referrals, made the same mistake on all of them, but trainer said I was doing really well for how long I've done it, so manager said I can WFH on Mon if I want. Glorious day, only just got back in and is still showing as 21. Got a washload done and pegged out at lunch, Lucy has been such a pain, as she has got out of the habit of me working from home and can't understand why I'm not being her slave. Just did a quick 10 min walk at lunch so she could get it out of her system (not that it worked!). then G was supposed to come round at lunch but got held up, so said she was free at 6, so I said I could hold off going for a walk - we finally got out at 6.50! Wanted to see what wildlife would be up at the bird hide, we ended up bumping into one of her youngest's friends, got chatting, his parents know the person I'm named after, unfortunately his phone had died so couldn't show me a pic, then we got invited in for birthday cake, we said no as G is gluten free but she'd made gluten free cake! then got offered prosecco. Was all very bizarre sitting in a strangers garden. She then wanted to show me what she thought was a sandmartins den, turned out to be sandpipers, which I wasn't all that keen on, so we did end up doing the bird hide as well! Saw a heron on the way round, another toadling on the path, then the kingfisher made a brief show while we were there. Saw the young ducklings, seems there are 4 left. I also now know why there were random comments on the photography group about wood, they've added an extra bench, and made the existing ones higher, as they were too low to get a decent view/photo. Ready for bed now, but do feel better for not only doing over 11k steps, but being up at the lake and in the bird hide.

That is true Alicia, especially as I hadn't transferred my inhaler into my new work bag. Hope it isn't long till you can do a bit more exercise.

[Alicia]

What a fabulous day you had. Glad the new job is working out - it seems to fit into your walking life.

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, bit of a frustrating day, G had asked yesterday if I minded her coming for a walk to bird hide and maybe her youngest, so I said yes, then had to wait this morning for her to contact me. Did most of my chores, rang her about 11.30 but no reply, she finally rang me back at 12.15 and said we could go at 1, of course it started raining at 12.45, after being glorious blue skies all morning, so I was concerned we wouldn't see much wildlife. The rain had brought a load of toadlings out, at one stretch we counted 18! They are so tiny, and so easy to stand on, we were keeping a close eye on the path! Was dry by the time we got to the bird hide, the heron and the egret were about, although nowhere near each other. The swans came over for food, but again, the cygnet couldn't get out of the water, yet it got out when it was younger. At one point the heron was stood in the water watching for food and the swans came near, it was very quick to get away from them! Yet from one of the pics this week, a heron wasn't bothered by 4 geese! Not quite sure how, but have done over 13k steps today, did notice this morning that I didn't take my anti-inflams on Wed, will take them tonight even though I actually don't feel like I need them, but feel it's a bit too soon to stop them, would rather reduce my other tablets first. We've had heavy rain and thunder this afternoon.

Thanks Alicia, I am determined to fit my walking around my job, am on day 89 of consecutive steps and am determined to hit 100!

[Alicia]

I enjoy feeling as if I'm going along with your walks and seeing some of the wildlife myself. You have a nice streak going - and it's all good for the body AND the soul.

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, had a rubbish night sleep. Today was mine and A's first craft fair, she'd done a practice run of setting the table up yesterday, so didn't take that long today. We thought we were doing well when we had a first sale 15 mins in, but the venue was practically dead (in fact, the table next to us packed up after an hour!), so we just did 3 sales (I'm not allowed any till next month, but she has some I want to try!), which didn't quite cover the cost of the table, but she seemed pleased we'd had sales, especially as some people didn't, one person seemed interested and asked for details of the facebook page, and had registered on it before we'd got home. We utilised the downtime well, got a list of autumn scents sorted and sorted out a to do list as we have 5 consecutive weeks of fairs in August! I hadn't hit my step count when we got back, so I did a quick walk, saw some tiny fish in the canal, then the sky went really black, so I came home even though I still had 300 steps left, and glad I did, had barely been back 10 mins when we had thunder, lightning and heavy rain!

That's good Alicia, I will try and get better at posting pics! I do feel sometimes that I'm doing it more for my mind than my body!

[Alicia]

For your mind, for your body - and for the rest of us.

But don't worry if your photos don't happen - we get wonderful word-pictures.

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, fairly quiet day today, did one referral this morning, then got a boring task to do this pm, but paced myself, as my training starts at 9.10am so have got 40 mins to do before that, and referrals take an hour, so can't start one of those. Did some chores in my lunch break, then went the longest way ever to Lidl after work to hit my step count - ended up going on the stretch of canal that I'm avoiding, they've cleared even more trees, although I ended up chatting to someone, and some of them haven't been chopped down to ground level, so they must still have roots. I was happy to see the heron on the bank though, at least they haven't been put off with the construction work, and the bloke I was talking to said there were mink with pups last week. Saw a moorhen further on, it came partway over when I rustled my bag of food, then looked a bit disgusted at what I offered!

Thanks Alicia.

[Alicia]

A mink with pups! That would be a real treat.

Seeing them in the wild should mean something about the health of the ecosystem.

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Apparently it doesn't, as they decimate everything around them = apparently they can even kill a badger!

[Alicia]

Wow!

[Jim]

Desley (Cat fosterer) wrote: "Apparently it doesn't, as they decimate everything around them = apparently they can even kill a badger!"

yes mink are a nightmare in the UK, the idiots who released them. When the law came in in 2000 there were only thirteen farms. So many had been hit by 'animal rights protestors' and by 2002, just before the ban came into effect there were only three farms left, The final 13 did get compensation and the mink were destroyed.
There was a fair bit of bad blood between 'animal rights protestors' who were releasing mink into the wild, and environmental groups who were horrified at the damage the mink, a savage predator with no natural predators of its own, was doing

The official policy is to try and get rid of mink, at the moment, according to the government (note this isn't this government, it's all UK governments for some years)

Mink
Catch mink with traps
You can trap mink most effectively between:

February and March (mating season)
August and November (when their young leave the den)
You can use cage and spring traps, but you must:

only use approved spring traps
kill humanely all mink you catch
You should check traps at least once a day.

Shoot mink
You can shoot free mink using a suitable firearm and ammunition.

Use dogs to control mink
You cannot use dogs to hunt mink.

You can use dogs to stalk or flush out mink above ground, but only to stop serious damage to your property. You must:

use no more than 2 dogs
shoot the mink as soon as they break cover
carry proof that you own the land or have written permission from the landowner

[Alicia]

All this I did not know. Thanks, Jim.

I was thinking of a predator in a balanced system - and a mama mink protecting babies.

Sounds more like rabbits in Australia.

And I doubt that your random country shooter is good enough to do a 'humane' job. Every time.

Problem, as usual: humans who brought them in.

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening that was a long day, traffic both directions, coming home was worse, took over an hour, and the irony is the accident was about 5 miles the opposite direction to work, but people were trying to avoid it. Luckily I'd been out at lunch for a couple of bits, so was only 100 steps off my step count by the time I got home. Had a half day of training this morning, most of it irrelevant and covered preparing the report which is what we receive, someone will still have to show me what we do to pick up and close off the report! Got a choice this pm of doing more of what I was doing last week, or trying something new, which I went for, even though it was daunting making phone calls in the open plan office, and I knew someone was listening! We are doing something for Pride tomorrow, just doing rainbow nails!

Wow, thanks for the detail Jim, so it's even worse the mink have bred this year then! I did take your advice at lunch Alicia, I'd nipped out at lunch for a couple of bits, came back and went to use the stairs, but legs felt tired on second floor, so I went up to the third floor in the lift.

[Rosemary (grooving with the Picts)]

I think we all love your wildlife updates Desley :)
My favourite wildlife spotting has been the otter I saw at the harbour a couple of years back, haven't seen any again but there was a baby rabbit running around today. He vanished under one of the beach huts. Not sure where they are living - it's all tarmac, stonework or rocks down there!
Talking of wildlife, the town is full of golfers and golf enthusiasts just now. The Scottish Open is starting tomorrow. Hope they enjoy gusty wind and the occasional shower...

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, lots of things going well, A messaged last night to say she'd got the last oil for a box I wanted as a present - she must have forgot that bit as she said she didn't want money, but I said I couldn't have something for free that I was giving as a present! So she said I could pick some melts to have for free! Had to sit in a different part of the office today, that was weird. Fun atmosphere with dressing up and cake though, been on 4 of the 5 floors in the building today! I am learning that I can easily walk down all 6 flights of stairs, but feel it after walking up 4, so I walk to either first or second floor, then hop in the lift. Line manager said this pm that there will be some permanent jobs coming up before the end of the year, so I told her my library dream and she said I had to apply for the library job, and if I want her to look over my form she will, and if I get an interview, she'll help me with that too.

Thanks R - jealous of an otter spotting, we won't see any while there are mink around.

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, another positive day. Ratty neighbour rang just as I was about to start work asking if she could use my loo as her's was leaking, felt I had to say yes as she'd let me use hers, but told her I was working, she didn't know I had a job and kept trying to ask questions, had to practically throw her out, don't want my boss thinking I was happy to work from home to skive! I'd made two small errors on yesterdays referral, so said I was annoyed and she told me I was doing really well. I agreed to ring people today as I was in my house and she didn't need to listen in, got a 'perfect' for my first full one! Got another couple of compliments in the afternoon too, pretty much everything today had something slightly awkward, I decided rather than ring and say I don't know what to do, to think what seemed logical, and ring and say 'should I do this?' and I was right every time! Picked up my prescription at lunch, they've given me a different kind of blue inhaler, had to go back after work to ask them how I'm supposed to use it, never had one like that before! Did a quick canal walk and partway through the nature reserve in the hope of seeing something different, but just usual geese, fish and llamas, although the stretch I normally only see tiny fish had those plus a dozen medium size fish. Done nearly 7.5k steps, most I've done since Sat and do feel much better.

[Alicia]

You're probably better and more organized than many of the previous people who did your current job - it will all sort out soon.

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Yeah, it's just been a long time since I was the new person!

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Well, it's certainly happy Friday for me. Had to ring a social worker to deal with a referral this morning, it turned out to be a slightly different one than I've been doing, so said 'ooh, this is my first, it's only my second week' - turns out he used to do my job and said 'well, I can tell you, you are doing very well', which I appreciated. Done 3 referrals and every one had something slightly different that I had to check with my line manager, I said that I'm glad I've had so many quirky ones in the beginning, I've learnt so much and I think it's better than sailing along and then getting tricky ones in a few weeks. Wasn't sure when I was going to get paid, rang the agency to find out I had been paid today, a notification would have been nice, especially as I'd done this weeks timesheet and it didn't show I had a payslip! Turns out it was over double what I was expecting, so rang them back again, he said 'it's a tax rebate, happy Friday'! Am being sensible with it, it'll pay for things when I'm in Jersey. Did a quick walk up to the lake after work, quite wet and windy, so not much wildlife out, but hit 8k steps.

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, weather has been very mixed today, the first dog walker I walked past said it's 'bikini and umbrella' weather - I was taking my coat off, while she had heavy duty waterproofs on! Had a bit of a day for dog walkers, second had a 16 week old spaniel pup who wasn't sure about walking past me, so I stopped to let him think about then, then he realised he'd get a fuss and came running to me, so got a nice stroke and had a bit of a chat. Third dog, Woody, got fascinated with me watching river trout, but it's an overgrown grassy bank, so I got concerned he'd get too close, so I stopped and then ended up walking up as far as the cafe with them, mainly just chatting about wildlife, it was nice and she did leave saying it had been nice. Was shocked when I got to the lake though, we've had a lot of rain but the water levels are lower, hopefully that's due to people struggling to get through the canal locks as I think it still feeds the canal when needed. On the way to the bird hide, I saw the twin fawns, for the first time in the flesh. Got to the bird hide and there were quite a few regular's, as well as a couple of new people, really nice bunch today though, when I did my usual 'anything new today', immediately got shown pics of a Cattle Egret, there was a Little Egret still there. Heron and kingfisher just did fly by's, but the deer and fawns did come out briefly, their spots are just fading. Then someone came in and said he'd seen either a stoat or a weasel on the path outside. Forgot to say on Thu, one of the local wildlife photographers started the day off seeing a juvenile green woodpecker for the first time and ended the day seeing a juvenile long haired owl for the first time! Think the owl was my favourite. Then treated myself to a mocha from the coffee shop, first one for a while, it was really good! After that, I went to go and help out at rushbearing, so the volunteers could have a break, ended up staying a couple of hours, bad timing when I left though, started bouncing down! Not sure they had a good day, there were 5 tombola's, and the more there are, the less they all take. I enjoyed it though (and bought cake), and got to chat to one of the local councillors and gave her a suggestion that she said she'd see if she could get implemented.

[Alicia]

What a lovely lot of wildlife.

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, another day of mixed weather. Had a minor panic this morning, sat on the floor to do Lucy's tray and realised I was sat in a wet patch, after the heavy wind and rain last night I panicked, but turns out I'd knocked over the bottle of litter tray cleaner and it had leaked! Went up to the bird hide, did chuckle at a coach I saw, clearly a replacement for the train, as it said 'I'm a train. Choo Choo' on the digital display!! Just one person I'd met before in the hide, but two nice blokes came along, one has just started coming and sharing pics. Nothing fancy today, but saw what they think was a juvenile robin on my way in, and just as I was leaving, there was a juvenile blue tit, it was very fluffy! Couldn't stay long as Amazon decided to send me some parcels, bumped into G and the kids on the way home, she wanted to go for a walk, so said I couldn't confirm times, but would let her know after Amazon had been, we were just going to walk to Lidl, but she needed B & M, and I never turn down a B & M trip, I actually came home empty handed, which is a rarity - I'd be proud of myself except I wanted something! We did Lidl on the way home, so have made a sweet and sour so I have tea for the next couple of days

[Jim]

Our rain on Saturday was positively African!

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, interesting day at work, there are 5 in my team, and 3 are off! Said to my line manager that I might not be able to do much, but at least she wasn't on her own, and she said that I was more help than I realised. Got drenched on the way there, and it tried again when I went out for lunch, typical as I'd decided to treat myself to lunch. If the online calculator I used is right, I'll earn a bit more doing this job, but with the temptation of the shops, I probably won't see much of it!! Decided to have a nosey at M & S and Farmfoods on the way home (1 extreme to the other there!), at least it meant I hit my step count

I actually got caught in worse getting from the car to the office this morning Jim. Someone told me it wouldn't get better till mid August.

[Alicia]

Back in my salad days, the days I learned the most were when I had the manager's attention, easier with fewer people about. She knew everything.

[Desley (Cat fosterer)]

Evening, a fairly quiet day. Tried something new at lunch to increase steps, I walked down to the second floor to use their toilets (good job that the floors are practically identical), which made up for not being able to walk to 3rd floor in the morning. Did a mammoth shopping trip after work, looking forward to having cupboards and freezer restocked, so I can come straight home, and just need Aldi fortnightly or if they have an interesting new product. Was nice just being able to put things in my basket as they looked nice rather than looking for cheapest options. Did bump into vet receptionist in co-op and had a nice chat, she's been off work for a month with vertigo!

Yeah, not really worked like that this week Alicia, think she's been too distracted with getting an offer of an apprenticeship just after getting promoted, and deciding which route to take.