When not working I've been glued to the news. I was hoping for a Lab/Lib Dems coalition but it's turned out to be Tories/Lib Dems. I'm still learning about what each party holds near and dear and that is going to be more apparent as they start forming policies. I might have voted Lib Dem were I eligible as the party is into social justice and pro-environmental policies. Then again, I did feel that Gordon Brown was keeping the economy going with deficit spending. People were afraid the pound sterling would plunge with a Lib/Lab coalition but it's actually gone down some anyway. I find it hard to accept that people were and are so afraid of proportional representation when other European countries have been running that way for years. I would be really happy if we had Green Party MPs, not so much for UKIPs. The Green Party did win a seat so that's exciting. I do think in the future the Scottish National Party will be more represented and probably some of the smaller parties as well. IMO the more people are forced to compromise the better policy will come out of it. Too much power in the hands of too few people is a problem in my book.
Work has been busy but interesting. I asked again if I could get the A2K training and today the answer was YES!!!! Hurrah!!! Once I'm trained I can take a laptop home and do my paperwork there. I think I'll be more productive if I can work at home and will be able to avoid the parking hassles sometimes. It has gotten really bad lately. I've been very lucky in finding parking places in the permit lot when I need them but my colleagues have ended up having to park 20 minutes away sometimes. The pay bays near our entrance fill up; heck, ALL the paid parking in the whole Civic Centre fills up. Having to pay for parking is not reimbursable and one can only park for 2 hours at a time, so if you had to park 20 minutes away, you gotta leave work again an hour and 20 minutes later, walk back to your car, look for parking in the permit lot and if you can't find it, go through the whole process again. A lot of wasted time for busy social workers who are already working long hours.
It will be nice if I can spend more time with Toby too. He has been a bit lonely but he LOVES the new cat toys my colleague Mandy passed on from her cat Ravi. I can't get any good pix of him playing with them cuz when I get out the camera he wants me to pick him up, but every night when I turn out the lights he has a play session before he comes upstairs to sleep on my bed. He's a happy boy but he and I will both be happier if he gets a bit more mommy time!!!
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Saturday, April 10, 2010
I haz fast internet!!!
Getting the package was an adventure. It wouldn't fit through my letterbox so was left at the Royal Mail processing station. Great, I thought, since it is walking distance from work. Can you PARK there, however??? No, you cannot, and as I did not leave enough time on the first morning I tried to pick it up to both park at work and walk there and back, I had to go back the 2nd day. Which turned out fine, as that was April 8 and that's the day my broadband actually went live. I had to call Talk Talk to verify that before setting up. Once I had the go-live verified, I got the router set up and was online in about 10 minutes. Et voila!!! Now I can start catching up on internet activities, especially this blog!!!
It's been a very eventful couple of weeks since I last wrote. I saw the NHS doctor March 29 and he ordered a chest x-ray to see if I even have cardiomyopathy, as he doesn't think I have hypertension. On March 31 I caught the case of a 3MO baby girl who was at the hospital with suspected nonaccidental trauma. After spending half the day on the phone I got out to the hospital about 2:30. At that point I was just going to supervise baby's contact with parents. I sat with them and extended family members until about 4:50, then decided to leave as dad wasn't back from his police interview yet and I had said I would be back at the office about 5. As I was in the parking lot, my mobile rang and I was able to answer it as someone had pulled out in front of me and stopped, so I wasn't technically driving. It was Penny Jed, the child protection nurse specialist, informing me that the baby had MULTIPLE fractures and I needed to get back in there and establish with medical staff that baby wasn't to be alone with any family members. Neither my team leader nor I were able to get the police to commit to go back inside with me, but Penny was able to and the police showed up about half an hour later, Trevor and Michele, both of whom I've come to know well doing this work.
The specialist pediatric consultant showed us the x-rays on her computer and, since I've been in the medical field off and on since I was a teenager, I could clearly see that the baby had broken ribs. We estimated at that point plus or minus 9 fractures. The left arm, the fracture for which she was presented, was one of the worst breaks I've ever seen.
Trevor, Michele and I spoke with nursing staff, parents and extended family. I drafted an agreement for no unsupervised contact of any family with the baby and no attempts to remove her from the hospital either, which they signed. Left the hospital about 8:00.
The next day I finalized a foster placement for the baby (which I'd started on the day before) and did paperwork to establish her placement. The parents arrived downstairs in the Civic Centre, where I work, bringing car seat, comfort items and clothing as they knew she was going into foster care. Deborah, my team leader, and I talked to them about the agreeent and why it was best for both themselves and baby Scarlett.
Two police officers arrived, at which time I went back upstairs to get ready to go to the hospital and move the baby into her placement. Meanwhile, the parents were arrested and bail conditions were set - - basically what we'd agreed to in the prior night's written agreement plus no unsupervised contact with any children under 10.
I got up to the hospital about 5:30 and didn't get out of there with the baby until about 8. I fed her, changed her nappy, and waited for her discharge instructions. I brought the car seat up to her room to strap her into it, then carried her down and strapped her into my car. Which, I discovered at that point, did not have a dome light and I couldn't see what I was doing very well, but I strapped her in with the shoulder strap and wedged the front seat up against her car seat.
Off we went to the tiny village of Hawkinge, which is near Folkestone. It turned out to be a lovely home with a foster mum probably about my age, 2 Labradors (one golden and one black), and a 5YO girl with cerebral palsy who is one of the most beautiful children you could ever see - - besides baby Scarlett, that is. Scarlett managed the ride beautifully. She never does cry - - I fear it's because she's learned it doesn't help. She whinges a bit when she's hungry or needs a new nappy, but other than that she's perfectly happy and falls asleep as soon as you start her on a car ride.
Got home about 9ish, unloaded the car and realized I'd forgotten to have foster mum sign the required paperwork, so I went back the next morning and got that done. Needed to leave a copy of it with her anyway as it contains medical info.
Scarlett weighed 8 pounds 12 ounces at birth and was just over 11 pounds when she came into care. At that time we figured she'd had a fracture about once every 10 days - - alive for 90 days with 9 fractures. (I ran into another of the child abuse investigation unit police officers at the local home improvement store over the weekend and we talked about that figure.)
On Tuesday (we were off Monday) I learned that the baby had 12 fractures, not 9, and some were reinjuries - - i.e., they had callus formation, had either healed on their own or started to heal, and then been refractured. I learned that I had to supervise a parental visit, so I filled out paperwork to take to them (since we were going to court Friday) and we took separate cars to a neutral meeting point in Folkestone. I did NOT want them to have any opportunity to follow me into Hawkinge so I waited until they were well on their way before leaving - - the sat-nav took me a different route but it was still nervewracking. Especially since after I picked up Scarlett, I couldn't find the meeting place in Folkestone. I did get there eventually though and supervised the visit.
She was supposed to have visits Wednesday and Thursday but didn't - - foster mum had an appointment for her older child in London on Wednesday and took Scarlett with her, and Thursday the police were reinterviewing her parents when her visit was supposed to take place. OK for me as I actually got some other work done during this time - - had a strategy meeting for another case which is now going to conference in about 2 weeks. I also had a lot of paperwork to prepare for court.
Deborah and I were at court in Folkestone by 9:30 a.m. for a scheduled hearing at 10, which didn't happen until 1 - - which I'm well used to as far as delay in court hearings from Texas. I didn't end up having to testify as the parties came to an agreement long before our actual court time. The case is being transferred up to the county court, as the baby has such serious injuries, and will be heard next Wednesday. As of EOB Friday it was to be transferred to the long-term care team. I arranged supervised visits for next week and booked the room at the neutral meeting point in Folkestone for the next month.
I like going to court. Deborah is actually leaving our team and transferring to CAFCASS, which is a court advisory service, as she likes it too and wants to spend more time doing that. I can imagine following her there in due time. We had a chance to talk about why I was assigned to the duty team - - I told her I had not been consulted as to what type of team I wished to be placed in and she told me she'd never seen my CV. Talking to other Americans that came over when I did, it sounds like we were all slotted in on the basis of, well, we don't know. It's such a large county, whoever assigned us looks like they just put us where they thought the need was greatest and it was more or less of a fit. I haven't talked to any Americans who felt like "oh yeah, this is precisely what my experience suits me for." Even those who've had extensive CPS experience in the States, the procedures are very different over here. We've all had huge learning curves and are by no means at the bottom yet.
Next week I look forward to catching back up on other cases. First thing Monday I have a child protection conference. I have not even observed one of these yet, much less been the social services rep. My other team leader Andy is going with me. Fortunately it is an established process whereby there is a person whose job is to chair these conferences. I did have to go present the papers for the hearing on Thursday. My colleague Michael, to whom the case is going to be transferred on the long-term team, came with me, both as a learning exercise and so I wouldn't be going alone, as I warned him it wasn't going to be a pleasant experience, and indeed it wasn't. Suffice it to say that I emailed the conference chair after the home visit that if dad's mum showed up, I wanted her read the riot act and if she misbehaved at all she wasn't to be allowed to stay. The conference is for an unborn who is at serious risk from his dad, who is only 16 years old. We had a pre-birth planning meeting and when mum goes into labour, I'm to be called to be at the hospital. She's not to take the baby home to her partner, the unborn's dad. She's agreed to go live in Margate with her mum, but we will discuss all this at the conference and put the final plans in place. I did want to have the pre-birth planning meeting earlier in case she had preterm labour, which fortunately hasn't happened, but as she is only 18 that was a possibility.
Also I'll have a chance to catch up on the family that's going to conference soon. Will probably spend most of the day in Tunbridge Wells on Wednesday meeting up with family members, school, Health Visitor, etc.
There are some other cases that really need attention but the office is closed weekends. As time goes by I may do some weekend work, but then again, I already work late every night pretty much. The duty team are usually the last to leave the office.
This is what I came here for though and I'm not complaining at all. I feel blessed and privileged to be here. Catching a glimpse of the English Channel shimmering in the sunlight the other day as I crested a hill toward the M20 made up for all the ugliness to which I stand witness. Besides which, someone has to stand witness to it and I'm grateful to be someone who gets to do that.
Now I have my beloved cat, a car, my shipment, fast internet and a tight group of colleagues. Life is getting better every day!!!!!
It's been a very eventful couple of weeks since I last wrote. I saw the NHS doctor March 29 and he ordered a chest x-ray to see if I even have cardiomyopathy, as he doesn't think I have hypertension. On March 31 I caught the case of a 3MO baby girl who was at the hospital with suspected nonaccidental trauma. After spending half the day on the phone I got out to the hospital about 2:30. At that point I was just going to supervise baby's contact with parents. I sat with them and extended family members until about 4:50, then decided to leave as dad wasn't back from his police interview yet and I had said I would be back at the office about 5. As I was in the parking lot, my mobile rang and I was able to answer it as someone had pulled out in front of me and stopped, so I wasn't technically driving. It was Penny Jed, the child protection nurse specialist, informing me that the baby had MULTIPLE fractures and I needed to get back in there and establish with medical staff that baby wasn't to be alone with any family members. Neither my team leader nor I were able to get the police to commit to go back inside with me, but Penny was able to and the police showed up about half an hour later, Trevor and Michele, both of whom I've come to know well doing this work.
The specialist pediatric consultant showed us the x-rays on her computer and, since I've been in the medical field off and on since I was a teenager, I could clearly see that the baby had broken ribs. We estimated at that point plus or minus 9 fractures. The left arm, the fracture for which she was presented, was one of the worst breaks I've ever seen.
Trevor, Michele and I spoke with nursing staff, parents and extended family. I drafted an agreement for no unsupervised contact of any family with the baby and no attempts to remove her from the hospital either, which they signed. Left the hospital about 8:00.
The next day I finalized a foster placement for the baby (which I'd started on the day before) and did paperwork to establish her placement. The parents arrived downstairs in the Civic Centre, where I work, bringing car seat, comfort items and clothing as they knew she was going into foster care. Deborah, my team leader, and I talked to them about the agreeent and why it was best for both themselves and baby Scarlett.
Two police officers arrived, at which time I went back upstairs to get ready to go to the hospital and move the baby into her placement. Meanwhile, the parents were arrested and bail conditions were set - - basically what we'd agreed to in the prior night's written agreement plus no unsupervised contact with any children under 10.
I got up to the hospital about 5:30 and didn't get out of there with the baby until about 8. I fed her, changed her nappy, and waited for her discharge instructions. I brought the car seat up to her room to strap her into it, then carried her down and strapped her into my car. Which, I discovered at that point, did not have a dome light and I couldn't see what I was doing very well, but I strapped her in with the shoulder strap and wedged the front seat up against her car seat.
Off we went to the tiny village of Hawkinge, which is near Folkestone. It turned out to be a lovely home with a foster mum probably about my age, 2 Labradors (one golden and one black), and a 5YO girl with cerebral palsy who is one of the most beautiful children you could ever see - - besides baby Scarlett, that is. Scarlett managed the ride beautifully. She never does cry - - I fear it's because she's learned it doesn't help. She whinges a bit when she's hungry or needs a new nappy, but other than that she's perfectly happy and falls asleep as soon as you start her on a car ride.
Got home about 9ish, unloaded the car and realized I'd forgotten to have foster mum sign the required paperwork, so I went back the next morning and got that done. Needed to leave a copy of it with her anyway as it contains medical info.
Scarlett weighed 8 pounds 12 ounces at birth and was just over 11 pounds when she came into care. At that time we figured she'd had a fracture about once every 10 days - - alive for 90 days with 9 fractures. (I ran into another of the child abuse investigation unit police officers at the local home improvement store over the weekend and we talked about that figure.)
On Tuesday (we were off Monday) I learned that the baby had 12 fractures, not 9, and some were reinjuries - - i.e., they had callus formation, had either healed on their own or started to heal, and then been refractured. I learned that I had to supervise a parental visit, so I filled out paperwork to take to them (since we were going to court Friday) and we took separate cars to a neutral meeting point in Folkestone. I did NOT want them to have any opportunity to follow me into Hawkinge so I waited until they were well on their way before leaving - - the sat-nav took me a different route but it was still nervewracking. Especially since after I picked up Scarlett, I couldn't find the meeting place in Folkestone. I did get there eventually though and supervised the visit.
She was supposed to have visits Wednesday and Thursday but didn't - - foster mum had an appointment for her older child in London on Wednesday and took Scarlett with her, and Thursday the police were reinterviewing her parents when her visit was supposed to take place. OK for me as I actually got some other work done during this time - - had a strategy meeting for another case which is now going to conference in about 2 weeks. I also had a lot of paperwork to prepare for court.
Deborah and I were at court in Folkestone by 9:30 a.m. for a scheduled hearing at 10, which didn't happen until 1 - - which I'm well used to as far as delay in court hearings from Texas. I didn't end up having to testify as the parties came to an agreement long before our actual court time. The case is being transferred up to the county court, as the baby has such serious injuries, and will be heard next Wednesday. As of EOB Friday it was to be transferred to the long-term care team. I arranged supervised visits for next week and booked the room at the neutral meeting point in Folkestone for the next month.
I like going to court. Deborah is actually leaving our team and transferring to CAFCASS, which is a court advisory service, as she likes it too and wants to spend more time doing that. I can imagine following her there in due time. We had a chance to talk about why I was assigned to the duty team - - I told her I had not been consulted as to what type of team I wished to be placed in and she told me she'd never seen my CV. Talking to other Americans that came over when I did, it sounds like we were all slotted in on the basis of, well, we don't know. It's such a large county, whoever assigned us looks like they just put us where they thought the need was greatest and it was more or less of a fit. I haven't talked to any Americans who felt like "oh yeah, this is precisely what my experience suits me for." Even those who've had extensive CPS experience in the States, the procedures are very different over here. We've all had huge learning curves and are by no means at the bottom yet.
Next week I look forward to catching back up on other cases. First thing Monday I have a child protection conference. I have not even observed one of these yet, much less been the social services rep. My other team leader Andy is going with me. Fortunately it is an established process whereby there is a person whose job is to chair these conferences. I did have to go present the papers for the hearing on Thursday. My colleague Michael, to whom the case is going to be transferred on the long-term team, came with me, both as a learning exercise and so I wouldn't be going alone, as I warned him it wasn't going to be a pleasant experience, and indeed it wasn't. Suffice it to say that I emailed the conference chair after the home visit that if dad's mum showed up, I wanted her read the riot act and if she misbehaved at all she wasn't to be allowed to stay. The conference is for an unborn who is at serious risk from his dad, who is only 16 years old. We had a pre-birth planning meeting and when mum goes into labour, I'm to be called to be at the hospital. She's not to take the baby home to her partner, the unborn's dad. She's agreed to go live in Margate with her mum, but we will discuss all this at the conference and put the final plans in place. I did want to have the pre-birth planning meeting earlier in case she had preterm labour, which fortunately hasn't happened, but as she is only 18 that was a possibility.
Also I'll have a chance to catch up on the family that's going to conference soon. Will probably spend most of the day in Tunbridge Wells on Wednesday meeting up with family members, school, Health Visitor, etc.
There are some other cases that really need attention but the office is closed weekends. As time goes by I may do some weekend work, but then again, I already work late every night pretty much. The duty team are usually the last to leave the office.
This is what I came here for though and I'm not complaining at all. I feel blessed and privileged to be here. Catching a glimpse of the English Channel shimmering in the sunlight the other day as I crested a hill toward the M20 made up for all the ugliness to which I stand witness. Besides which, someone has to stand witness to it and I'm grateful to be someone who gets to do that.
Now I have my beloved cat, a car, my shipment, fast internet and a tight group of colleagues. Life is getting better every day!!!!!
Saturday, March 20, 2010
In other news . . .
Once I get my car I'm gonna hit it full force on the home visits. I have a family with 6 kids who've just moved to Tunbridge Wells at our insistence as their home in Ashford was unsafe. I found out Friday that the landlord is giving them the eviction notice they need to get housing assistance in T Wells, but I promised the family my help on Tuesday. I thought it was gonna be to get their stuff out of their house in Ashford, but since they have the eviction notice (I thought they weren't gonna get it without getting their stuff out) hopefully I'll be able to just see all the kids and maybe drop in to Children's Social Services in that town. I did a chronology of previous referrals on the family and I am not so sure we're not gonna end up in conference on them - - at the very least if CSS in T Wells takes them I want to make sure they have a good idea of the family history.
I have 23 open cases and am ready to close 3. Prepared the closure letter and safeguarding agreements for the families but then realized I can't MAIL the suckers, "oh yeah, sign it at your leisure and get back to us." I don't think so. Gonna hafta take the documentation to the families and get it signed. Then there are the other 20 kids to see, resee, whatever. I did a lot of paperwork last week but didn't manage to see many kids - - got a ride to see one family and walked to see another. Did do a lot of phone work, set up meetings, etc. - - but seeing kids is the heart of my job and I would have done 2-3 times as much of that as I did last week if I'd had my car.
Asked again about getting a home laptop - - I can't use this one. You have to use one of KCC's and get their software loaded, AND go to training on how to use it. It does not look promising for the near future. I would like to be able to do the paperwork faster; it didn't hurt me spending time working on ICS (our computer system) as I only got the training a week ago. I would like to get up to speed on my caseload though; I think our average last week was about 8 new referrals every day.
I asked if I could have gotten to Tunbridge Wells on the train and was told no. I think I could have gotten there on the bus, but it would have taken all day.
Good thing the English countryside is so pretty. I WILL take some pictures soon.
I have 23 open cases and am ready to close 3. Prepared the closure letter and safeguarding agreements for the families but then realized I can't MAIL the suckers, "oh yeah, sign it at your leisure and get back to us." I don't think so. Gonna hafta take the documentation to the families and get it signed. Then there are the other 20 kids to see, resee, whatever. I did a lot of paperwork last week but didn't manage to see many kids - - got a ride to see one family and walked to see another. Did do a lot of phone work, set up meetings, etc. - - but seeing kids is the heart of my job and I would have done 2-3 times as much of that as I did last week if I'd had my car.
Asked again about getting a home laptop - - I can't use this one. You have to use one of KCC's and get their software loaded, AND go to training on how to use it. It does not look promising for the near future. I would like to be able to do the paperwork faster; it didn't hurt me spending time working on ICS (our computer system) as I only got the training a week ago. I would like to get up to speed on my caseload though; I think our average last week was about 8 new referrals every day.
I asked if I could have gotten to Tunbridge Wells on the train and was told no. I think I could have gotten there on the bus, but it would have taken all day.
Good thing the English countryside is so pretty. I WILL take some pictures soon.
At last, the kitka!!!
Toby came home Thursday!!!
Not without drama - - Continental wouldn't accept his crate b/c it was top and side loading, so Animal Land cajoled them to let him fly San Antonio to Houston in it and then get him a new crate in Houston. Which they did and it is HUGE. By my measurements it's 15" x 18" but it looks even bigger than that.
Can't get back the crate I left him at Traveling Tails in - - it was abandoned at the airport, and haven't called Traveling Tails to see if they can send the bag of toys and mommy-clothes I left but Animal Land says they don't do that - - and postage is indeed very expensive - - but I may end up contacting them anyway. When my shipment gets here I was careful to pack his and my very favorite toys, blankie and grooming comb in a bag - - but my shipment arrival date keeps changing, so I will go to Tesco tomorrow and spend 3 pounds on grooming supplies for him. He is a bit grubby. They put newspaper in the crate but you can't put a litter box. Other expats who have had cats shipped say they usually smell of wee when they get here, and he did, but I gave him a lil bath with dishwashing liquid and he smells better. But I need a comb to groom him. He will give up a LOT of hair to get back to baseline. Combing used to be our morning ritual so hopefully we can get back to that.
He has settled in better than I thought he would. He got here about 2:30 on Thursday afternoon and I showed him around a bit, then fell asleep on the duvet on the floor. When I woke up and went to go find him he was tucked into a corner in the upstairs bathroom, apparently a little freaked, but since then he's back to following me around like a puppydog as he always has. He sleeps in the front windowsill a lot to keep an eye on the neighborhood. When it's warmer I'll let him be in the solarium, where he can see the back garden life, but it is still pretty cold out there even though I did manage to turn on the radiator.
He must have been sound asleep yesterday b/c when I got home and called for him I heard nothing at first, and then it took him a while to get his voice back. Do cats get jet lag???
IT IS JUST BEYOND WONDERFUL TO HAVE HIM BACK WITH ME!!!!!
Not without drama - - Continental wouldn't accept his crate b/c it was top and side loading, so Animal Land cajoled them to let him fly San Antonio to Houston in it and then get him a new crate in Houston. Which they did and it is HUGE. By my measurements it's 15" x 18" but it looks even bigger than that.
Can't get back the crate I left him at Traveling Tails in - - it was abandoned at the airport, and haven't called Traveling Tails to see if they can send the bag of toys and mommy-clothes I left but Animal Land says they don't do that - - and postage is indeed very expensive - - but I may end up contacting them anyway. When my shipment gets here I was careful to pack his and my very favorite toys, blankie and grooming comb in a bag - - but my shipment arrival date keeps changing, so I will go to Tesco tomorrow and spend 3 pounds on grooming supplies for him. He is a bit grubby. They put newspaper in the crate but you can't put a litter box. Other expats who have had cats shipped say they usually smell of wee when they get here, and he did, but I gave him a lil bath with dishwashing liquid and he smells better. But I need a comb to groom him. He will give up a LOT of hair to get back to baseline. Combing used to be our morning ritual so hopefully we can get back to that.
He has settled in better than I thought he would. He got here about 2:30 on Thursday afternoon and I showed him around a bit, then fell asleep on the duvet on the floor. When I woke up and went to go find him he was tucked into a corner in the upstairs bathroom, apparently a little freaked, but since then he's back to following me around like a puppydog as he always has. He sleeps in the front windowsill a lot to keep an eye on the neighborhood. When it's warmer I'll let him be in the solarium, where he can see the back garden life, but it is still pretty cold out there even though I did manage to turn on the radiator.
He must have been sound asleep yesterday b/c when I got home and called for him I heard nothing at first, and then it took him a while to get his voice back. Do cats get jet lag???
IT IS JUST BEYOND WONDERFUL TO HAVE HIM BACK WITH ME!!!!!
Monday, March 15, 2010
I passed my driving assessment!!!
And now I get a CAR!!!!!
It's coming a week from tomorrow, the 23rd, in the morning. I'll have an orientation in it as my assessment today was not in the model car I will have, which is a Toyota Aygo. This was a Chevy, model I couldn't say. One of those "only in Europe" models.
The assessment was from 1100-1300 and it was just GORGEOUS out. We drove through the countryside and down to the village of Lenham, through which I've been many times on the train. It's on the way to Maidstone, the county town of Kent, which is on the way to London.
I have some bad US habits to unlearn and will start driving lessons as soon as I can. The good news is I understand roundabouts. I may not always drive them perfectly, as I don't think I've seen any drivers here who do, but I'm not terrified of them any more.
Soon I will have the ability to make home visits on my own when needed, and a good measure of my freedom back!!! AND my kitka!!!!!
Yup, things are heading in the right direction. :)
It's coming a week from tomorrow, the 23rd, in the morning. I'll have an orientation in it as my assessment today was not in the model car I will have, which is a Toyota Aygo. This was a Chevy, model I couldn't say. One of those "only in Europe" models.
The assessment was from 1100-1300 and it was just GORGEOUS out. We drove through the countryside and down to the village of Lenham, through which I've been many times on the train. It's on the way to Maidstone, the county town of Kent, which is on the way to London.
I have some bad US habits to unlearn and will start driving lessons as soon as I can. The good news is I understand roundabouts. I may not always drive them perfectly, as I don't think I've seen any drivers here who do, but I'm not terrified of them any more.
Soon I will have the ability to make home visits on my own when needed, and a good measure of my freedom back!!! AND my kitka!!!!!
Yup, things are heading in the right direction. :)
Friday, March 5, 2010
Life in Ashford
Things have been so busy at work. Lots of phone calls, visits, writing reports and then yesterday a training turned out to be someplace we had to walk to, so I was glad I had my walking shoes with me. My duvet and pillows finally got delivered (they were sitting in the depot for 2 weeks and the day I called they said it was too late and they were going back to the mfr, but the next day they showed up at my office) and my line manager Andy was kind enough to give them and me a lift home. We made a home visit to one of my families on the way. I'm off to ASDA (England's Wal-Mart) in about an hour to get a phone and maybe a foot pump for my Aerobed - - the wall plug crumbled in my hand when I pulled it out last night. After my shipment comes I won't need it right away and can get it fixed, but I'd like to firm it up for however many more days I hafta sleep on it. It's comfy but gets very cold in the middle of the night b/c it's an air mattress and convection causes it to get cold, so I wake up every night.
I did start my spiffy gas fireplace last night. I had tried it once before but this time stood in front of it with directions in hand. It's not complicated but of course the steps hafta be done in order. Once it's going you can set it to either a "coal fire" or "coke fire" effect. I have it on "coal fire" as that seems similar to wood fireplaces I've used - - flickering flames, etc. It felt soooo good last night to sit here with my back to it. And when you're done using it, push a button and off it goes!!!
Haven't heard anything about my cat since Monday, when the cat mover lady was gonna try to reach her London connection to see about getting him delivered in Ashford. Hopefully I will hear from her early next week. The latest email on my shipment was that it was due March 10 and then had to go through customs. I'd like it to be delivered on Saturday but don't know if that's possible. I'm going to a concert next Saturday anyway.
Sending this through while the internet is at its most able - - the connection is very slow at night, which is why I haven't been writing here. My phone and broadband were turned on last week, but I haven't received the broadband installation kit in the mail yet.
I do think spring is coming - - my walk to work takes me past a little brook and I saw a man fishing there yesterday. The grass is green too, probably from so much rain. It didn't rain at all last week though, which was a nice change, and a couple times I got home while there was still light outside. I haven't seen a crocus or a robin, but I'm told they're out there. And I saw a new duckling family on the lake at the Priory in Aylesford!!! :)
I did start my spiffy gas fireplace last night. I had tried it once before but this time stood in front of it with directions in hand. It's not complicated but of course the steps hafta be done in order. Once it's going you can set it to either a "coal fire" or "coke fire" effect. I have it on "coal fire" as that seems similar to wood fireplaces I've used - - flickering flames, etc. It felt soooo good last night to sit here with my back to it. And when you're done using it, push a button and off it goes!!!
Haven't heard anything about my cat since Monday, when the cat mover lady was gonna try to reach her London connection to see about getting him delivered in Ashford. Hopefully I will hear from her early next week. The latest email on my shipment was that it was due March 10 and then had to go through customs. I'd like it to be delivered on Saturday but don't know if that's possible. I'm going to a concert next Saturday anyway.
Sending this through while the internet is at its most able - - the connection is very slow at night, which is why I haven't been writing here. My phone and broadband were turned on last week, but I haven't received the broadband installation kit in the mail yet.
I do think spring is coming - - my walk to work takes me past a little brook and I saw a man fishing there yesterday. The grass is green too, probably from so much rain. It didn't rain at all last week though, which was a nice change, and a couple times I got home while there was still light outside. I haven't seen a crocus or a robin, but I'm told they're out there. And I saw a new duckling family on the lake at the Priory in Aylesford!!! :)
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Update
My T-Mobile broadbabd USB stick has been blocking my access to this site since I bought it last Thursday, but I was able to get it to stop after calling the company. I bought it at Carphone Warehouse for 40 pounds and have 90 days free mobile broadband. Much cheaper than the 75 pounds a week for wireless broadband at the hotel.
Since I last updated I've been in to the office 3 times, found out my lease car isn't coming until April 1, had more trainings here at the hotel, and walked into the town centre of Ashford to register with my NHS doctor, Dr. Pinnock. His office is called North Street Surgery (surgery is what doctors' offices are called in the UK and it's on North Street.) He was recommended to me by one of the managers who interviewed me, Teresa, when we had a luncheon last week. I called his office and was told to come in to register in person, so when I was in the office yesterday, I did. It took me less than an hour to walk from my office to his, register, and walk back. I could have done it faster even probably. I have a nurse appointment Friday and have just finished filling out the paperwork for that. I only have enough carvedilol to get through Friday so hope they can hook me up with that PDQ. It's a beta blocker and the last time I ran out briefly my anxiety skyrocketed - - it definitely helps with anxiety.
Thought I could walk to work from home, but turns out it's too far, so I have been investigating buses. Emailed the bus company to enquire which bus line to take (I knew it would be B-line or C-line) and they recommended C-line boarding at Church Road. Since I didn't know where on Church Road the bus stop was, I called, and this time I was told there is a bus on Luckhurst Road (where my house is) that I can board to take to Town Centre, from which I can walk to the Civic Centre, where my office is. I guess, after I get the house keys on Friday, I can see where the bus stop is. Haven't heard yet when to be at work Monday morning but one of the trainers today told me 9:30 would be good, as my manager would probably want to deal with the rubbish on her desk before having to deal with a new worker first thing Monday, LOL.
I've ordered an Aerobed and before I could get hold of the delivery company (had to wait for Amazon.co.uk's seller to forward me the consignment number) it had been delivered and signed for by a D. Jones, who is apparently one of my neighbours. Hopefully I will be able to get it without difficulty, as well as make my nurse appointment at 4:40 p.m. Friday.
Many people here order groceries online and have them delivered, and since I'll be without a car for a while, I will probably do the same. Planning to camp out in the house until my shipment comes, ETA March 8, Also hoping to send for Toby once I get the keys to the house and see how much money I have left. Money will still be tight at least until my second paycheck. Pretty much everyone in our group of new social workers is worried about not having brought enough money and I even heard one of the most stable-seeming of us today musing about whether she had enough money for a plane ticket home. At lunch she said she had hit the wall in regards to making decisions about so many things every day and had decided not to make any more decisions for a while. We tend to talk each other down when one or the other of us gets wrapped around the axle, which happens to all of us at one time or another.
I'm going into Maidstone tomorrow to get 2 passport photographs, which I will need for my work ID, and hopefully get to the bank when it is open so I can deposit the check I've been carrying from selling my car in the US. I'd also like to transfer the money on my US debit card to my UK debit card and deposit the small amount of US currency I have. The banks are generally open about 10 to 4:30 and I haven't been able to get to a branch since receiving my debit card and other banking info a week ago Monday. It's not an emergency but it is something I would like to get done.
I'm working on trying to slow down in general - - it takes longer to get things done here and the pace of life is generally slower, which I wanted, but I didn't realize how much I was used to getting things done immediately if not sooner. For instance, I set up broadband and phone at the house on February 13 and the first available install date was March 1. It's fine, just different. Once I hit the groove I know I will enjoy slowing down very much. Not to mention 26 days off a year, plus holidays!!!
Driving in the UK is a sepaarate post and I'm not going there yet.
All in all I'm doing well and feeling quite happy. I do have occasional stabs of loneliness and try to avoid using my mobile as it costs 80p (what, about $1.50)a minute to call the US. I've topped it up with 10 pounds at least 4-5 times. Can't figure out what happened this last time. As far as I can tell I only used the mobile for local calls after my last top-up and it ran out of money in absolutely no time. Maybe it's the same rate to make calls within the UK as it is to call the US. I don't think it is but I haven't checked specifically. I'm on a PAYG (pay as you go) plan and changed my tariff (rate plan) to one that looked more affordable than the one I started with, but it would probably be cheaper to get a contract. However, not all the new social workers have been able to get phone contracts as they require credit, which we don't yet have in the UK. We've been told different things about how long one has to be here to get credit; 3-6 months is the average. I still have my US cell phone, which I like very much, but don't know about using it - - it's out of date already, of course, and I want to keep my UK mobile number, which I've finally only just memorized. I was given a mobile at work too but I don't seem able to charge it up with the charger I have for my other UK mobile, which is odd in that they're both Nokias. It seems to plug in with the charger I have but the indicator doesn't start flashing while it's charging as it does for my other phone. Oh well, filing that under ongoing mysteries of UK life.
I so can't tell what people are saying the first sentence they say to me, When they realize I'm American they slow down and it gets better. Still a lot of "what does that mean?" on my part though. Quite funny sometimes IMO. The woman sitting next to me in the office, on my asking why the radiator next to me was making odd noises, said she'd "had a moan" about it, meaning she'd called maintenance. I didn't understand her at first and when I did I busted out laughing. Fortunately she didn't take it personally - - it just hit me funny at that particular point. I really find that I'm taking on phraseology quite a bit; it's part of congruency in my social work practice and also there are lots of expressions and words I quite like, and I'd like people to forget I'm American to the extent I can by modifying my speech.
I hear seagulls every time I'm in Ashford, where I'm working. It's only about 10 miles from the coast so it's not surprising, but it just intrigues me. I haven't seen the ocean since I've been here and there has been a lot of snow in Ashford, and I associate seagulls with the warm, palmy beaches of my childhood. It kinda makes me feel as if I'm in a Pink Floyd video.
I'll write more when I have time and now that I can get onto my blog. :)
Since I last updated I've been in to the office 3 times, found out my lease car isn't coming until April 1, had more trainings here at the hotel, and walked into the town centre of Ashford to register with my NHS doctor, Dr. Pinnock. His office is called North Street Surgery (surgery is what doctors' offices are called in the UK and it's on North Street.) He was recommended to me by one of the managers who interviewed me, Teresa, when we had a luncheon last week. I called his office and was told to come in to register in person, so when I was in the office yesterday, I did. It took me less than an hour to walk from my office to his, register, and walk back. I could have done it faster even probably. I have a nurse appointment Friday and have just finished filling out the paperwork for that. I only have enough carvedilol to get through Friday so hope they can hook me up with that PDQ. It's a beta blocker and the last time I ran out briefly my anxiety skyrocketed - - it definitely helps with anxiety.
Thought I could walk to work from home, but turns out it's too far, so I have been investigating buses. Emailed the bus company to enquire which bus line to take (I knew it would be B-line or C-line) and they recommended C-line boarding at Church Road. Since I didn't know where on Church Road the bus stop was, I called, and this time I was told there is a bus on Luckhurst Road (where my house is) that I can board to take to Town Centre, from which I can walk to the Civic Centre, where my office is. I guess, after I get the house keys on Friday, I can see where the bus stop is. Haven't heard yet when to be at work Monday morning but one of the trainers today told me 9:30 would be good, as my manager would probably want to deal with the rubbish on her desk before having to deal with a new worker first thing Monday, LOL.
I've ordered an Aerobed and before I could get hold of the delivery company (had to wait for Amazon.co.uk's seller to forward me the consignment number) it had been delivered and signed for by a D. Jones, who is apparently one of my neighbours. Hopefully I will be able to get it without difficulty, as well as make my nurse appointment at 4:40 p.m. Friday.
Many people here order groceries online and have them delivered, and since I'll be without a car for a while, I will probably do the same. Planning to camp out in the house until my shipment comes, ETA March 8, Also hoping to send for Toby once I get the keys to the house and see how much money I have left. Money will still be tight at least until my second paycheck. Pretty much everyone in our group of new social workers is worried about not having brought enough money and I even heard one of the most stable-seeming of us today musing about whether she had enough money for a plane ticket home. At lunch she said she had hit the wall in regards to making decisions about so many things every day and had decided not to make any more decisions for a while. We tend to talk each other down when one or the other of us gets wrapped around the axle, which happens to all of us at one time or another.
I'm going into Maidstone tomorrow to get 2 passport photographs, which I will need for my work ID, and hopefully get to the bank when it is open so I can deposit the check I've been carrying from selling my car in the US. I'd also like to transfer the money on my US debit card to my UK debit card and deposit the small amount of US currency I have. The banks are generally open about 10 to 4:30 and I haven't been able to get to a branch since receiving my debit card and other banking info a week ago Monday. It's not an emergency but it is something I would like to get done.
I'm working on trying to slow down in general - - it takes longer to get things done here and the pace of life is generally slower, which I wanted, but I didn't realize how much I was used to getting things done immediately if not sooner. For instance, I set up broadband and phone at the house on February 13 and the first available install date was March 1. It's fine, just different. Once I hit the groove I know I will enjoy slowing down very much. Not to mention 26 days off a year, plus holidays!!!
Driving in the UK is a sepaarate post and I'm not going there yet.
All in all I'm doing well and feeling quite happy. I do have occasional stabs of loneliness and try to avoid using my mobile as it costs 80p (what, about $1.50)a minute to call the US. I've topped it up with 10 pounds at least 4-5 times. Can't figure out what happened this last time. As far as I can tell I only used the mobile for local calls after my last top-up and it ran out of money in absolutely no time. Maybe it's the same rate to make calls within the UK as it is to call the US. I don't think it is but I haven't checked specifically. I'm on a PAYG (pay as you go) plan and changed my tariff (rate plan) to one that looked more affordable than the one I started with, but it would probably be cheaper to get a contract. However, not all the new social workers have been able to get phone contracts as they require credit, which we don't yet have in the UK. We've been told different things about how long one has to be here to get credit; 3-6 months is the average. I still have my US cell phone, which I like very much, but don't know about using it - - it's out of date already, of course, and I want to keep my UK mobile number, which I've finally only just memorized. I was given a mobile at work too but I don't seem able to charge it up with the charger I have for my other UK mobile, which is odd in that they're both Nokias. It seems to plug in with the charger I have but the indicator doesn't start flashing while it's charging as it does for my other phone. Oh well, filing that under ongoing mysteries of UK life.
I so can't tell what people are saying the first sentence they say to me, When they realize I'm American they slow down and it gets better. Still a lot of "what does that mean?" on my part though. Quite funny sometimes IMO. The woman sitting next to me in the office, on my asking why the radiator next to me was making odd noises, said she'd "had a moan" about it, meaning she'd called maintenance. I didn't understand her at first and when I did I busted out laughing. Fortunately she didn't take it personally - - it just hit me funny at that particular point. I really find that I'm taking on phraseology quite a bit; it's part of congruency in my social work practice and also there are lots of expressions and words I quite like, and I'd like people to forget I'm American to the extent I can by modifying my speech.
I hear seagulls every time I'm in Ashford, where I'm working. It's only about 10 miles from the coast so it's not surprising, but it just intrigues me. I haven't seen the ocean since I've been here and there has been a lot of snow in Ashford, and I associate seagulls with the warm, palmy beaches of my childhood. It kinda makes me feel as if I'm in a Pink Floyd video.
I'll write more when I have time and now that I can get onto my blog. :)
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