ScubaSis

Thank you Aunty Cath & Aunty Ju

2008-12-06T16:54:00.003Z

I think they like it.................................

A pome wot I like

2007-05-20T14:54:00.000+01:00

Having completely got out of the habit of blogging, I couldn't resist Viv's challenge to dig up favourite childhood poems. I was part of a choral speaking group in my junior school and this poem by Hillaire Belloc was definitely our favourite to recite as a group. (Especially the long title)

George:
Who played with a Dangerous Toy, and suffered a Catastrophe of considerable Dimensions

WHEN George's Grandmamma was told
That George had been as good as gold,
She promised in the afternoon
To buy him an Immense BALLOON.
And so she did; but when it came,
It got into the candle flame,
And being of a dangerous sort
Exploded with a loud report!

The lights went out! The windows broke!
The room was filled with reeking smoke.
And in the darkness shrieks and yells
Were mingled with electric bells,
And falling masonry and groans,
And crunching, as of broken bones,
And dreadful shrieks, when, worst of all,
The house itself began to fall!

It tottered, shuddering to and fro,
Then crashed into the street below-
Which happened to be Savile Row.

When help arrived, among the dead
Were Cousin Mary, Little Fred,
The Footmen (both of them), the Groom,
The man that cleaned the Billiard-Room,
The Chaplain, and the Still-Room Maid.
And I am dreadfully afraid
That Monsieur Champignon, the Chef,
Will now be permanently deaf-
And both his aides are much the same;
While George, who was in part to blame,
Received, you will regret to hear,
A nasty lump behind the ear.

The moral is that little boys
Should not be given dangerous toys.

Another excellent birthday prezzie

2007-03-06T20:38:00.001Z

I have always been lucky. But now even more so since receiving a Barbie Lucky Bag for my birthday which contained, amongst many wonderful pink things, a desk tidy. And hey - my desk is often untidy so how lucky is that, to get something that magically mAkes my desk nice & neat, And as you will see from the pic below, it worked!! Now all I need is a Barbie house tidy.....................................

An excellent birthday present

2007-03-04T13:13:00.001Z

I was very lucky/blessed/fortunate (delete as applicable depending on how spiritual you are!) to receive some really lovely and thoughtful birthday gifts on Friday.
Given the option by my good friend Amy & Amiability to choose between a sensible and a silly present guess which one I chose.......... and I'm so glad I did.

It's difficult to describe but it's highly addictive and great fun.
If any of you fellow bloggers would like to come round this evening after church for birthday cake & coffee you can have a go - there's a setting to play in pairs or everyone can join in!

London Calling

2007-01-10T20:24:00.000Z

Apparently, according to Davie's blog, I will give a 'full account' of our time in London! So I'd better live up to this expectation (although I shall try not to bore you with the detail, and just stick to the more interesting bits). Our hotel was rather lovely, and being on the 12th floor, had fantastic views over the city. It was just on the edge of Mayfair/Piccadilly (hope we haven't unwittingly become radioactive!) and at the back of Fortnum & Mason's (mmmmm......) which had some beautiful window displays themed around Alison in Wonderland. This was my favourite:

I have been reprimanded (and rightly so) for omitting to mention my celebrity encounter and so this is 'The Blog re-edited' to rectify the situation. On the way to the theatre we stopped off at the Virgin Megastore at Piccadilly having been tipped off by a certain Green Wing fan & fellow blogger, Amy & Amiability, that the cast of the aforementioned Channel 4 Fly on the Wall Documentary (well it could be - things like that happen in my hospital everyday) were in attendance for a 'DVD signing' By the time we arrived the queue was snaking around the aisles in the basement and hundreds were awaiting the arrival of the cast. People were hanging off staircases and peeping over displays poised to take photos when they arrived. I found a spot right next to the glass elevator where no one at all was waiting with a good view of the spot where they would be sitting & couldn't understand why I wasn't being moved on as the security were shoving people out of the way if they weren't in the 'official' queue. Just before they were due to appear I noticed the glass elevator appear out of the corner of my eye and felt mildly cross that the people inside would step out in front & block my view. Too late I realised that it was indeed the cast inside the lift and that (the lovely) Steven Mangan was about 6 inches away on the other side of the glass. After that unexpected encounter it took me a while to get my brain into gear enough to take some photos and a bit of video.

On Monday night we went to see the Blue Man Group Show. Difficult to describe but highly entertaining. Davie had his photo taken with one of the three stars of the show. (Davie is the one with the less blue face)

When we visit places, we tend to wander around a lot, concentrating on finding good places to eat rather than going to the traditional tourist attractions, but I thought we ought to make an effort to do something constructive this time. Davie had suggested the Tower of London; he'd been on a school trip over 30 years ago (yes you read that right, that's thirty years ago). I'd never been, so off we went. It was absolutely fascinating - and the atmosphere was enhanced by the black clouds hovering overhead and the wind whistling through the courtyards. Our guide was an ex-army guy who brought the stories of murder, betrayal & beheading to life. Did you know that one guy was beheaded before his portrait was finished, so they took his body back a couple of days later & rearranged it in chair, & stitched his head back on so it could be finished?

On a lighter note, a certain Pixie chellnged the orbs to have their photo taken with a Beefeater. As you can seen, the first attempt made Davie little nervous - see the slightly anxious look on his face...........

However we managed to find a less scary looking beefeater who was more amenable to being photographed.............

By the evening our feet were throbbing and we decided not to walk too far... and then proceeded to walk from Mayfair down to Trafalgar Square, the Strand, along the riverside to embankment, down to Westminster,,,,, and then back again. By this time it was 10.30 & very difficult to find a bar that wasn't full of MPs with prices to match, but we managed to find a cosy little old fashioned pub just round the corner from the hotel and rounded off the day with a wee dram before walking back to our hotel in Duke Street which you may be interested to know was where the actual 'Duchess of Duke Street' was originally in charge on the site where our hotel had been built.

A visit to Covent Garden this morning rounded off our trip; there used to be a four-storey Dr Martens shop just opposite the main Covent Garden Piazza but sadly it has been replaced with some boring designer clothes shop. However we managed to find a teeny shop round the corner that specialises in docs and we both bought a pair; I think Davie could have a blog gallery of his docs as he has quite a collection now, plus a new pair from today to add to it! I could have done with my new comfy boots at the beginning of the trip as my feet are killing me!

It's been a while.............

2007-01-01T17:55:00.000Z

as the last month has been rather hectic; but I thought it was about time to get back with the 'in-crowd' and post again!
We bloggers love lists, and I wondered if anyone had a top 3 highlights of the festive season that they wanted to share?
I'll start the ball rolling:

1) Having a new camera as a Christmas present from Davie which was a complete surprise; it was particularly welcome as my old camera had started to go haywire in Brazil, which was very upsetting after having gone all that way & not able to us the camera properly, and then it completely packed up in Malta (perhaps I shouldn't have taken it 30m under the water??!)haven't had much chance to use it yet, except on the cats (see below)!
But we're going to London for a few days next week so I shall be like a real tourist, snapping everything in site.

2) Having a wonderful roast venison Christmas dinner - absolutely delicious & all
pink in the middle.

3) Hearing the wonderful story in the Christmas morning service which included my new hero, Chamberlin the camel. Thsi was the only picture I could find; I really wanted the one of him cupping his hooves behind his ear to listen.

A poem wot I wrote

2006-11-25T19:03:00.000Z

Davie was sorting through some stuff & found this - I'll let it speak for itself but I must explain I was only seven at the time!!

Mummy Foote Rules .....

2006-11-11T20:37:00.000Z

Davie & I went to Gloucester today to see Mummy Foote to take her out for lunch - it's her 78th Birthday on Tuesday. She is quite deaf but has recently had a second hearing aid which is helping a bit, so I didn't need to shout as much as usual. Except that Mum chose to go to Frankie & Benny's (she loves the food & the music, but often calls it by the wrong name, Benny & Joons, or Bill & Freds - you know the sort of thing) - there was a 40 min wait for a table, it was packed & NOISY!! However, she seemed to enjoy it. She made us some bonfire toffee today - none of this sugar thermometer nonsense, just years of experience.
I asked Mum if I could look through some of her old photos; I've been wanting to scan some into my PC for ages as I don't really have any family photos from before I was married. I sorted out a few to bring home & scan. It was so long since I've seen some of them; there were some excellent ones of my brothers in suits at my sister's wedding in 1974 - just the sort of thing to have enlarged for 50th birthday parties & the like.
There were some of my school photos; I've never been particularly photogenic but I came across one which isn't too hideous for public view (apart from the rabbit teeth)

However, if I'm being brave, the challenge to all your bloggers, is that I'd like to see one of your school photos too! (Wellzsie - I'm particularly keen to see if you had to wear a school uniform & therefore be without designer labels between the hours of 9 & 3.30pm).

As if by magic, the shopkeeper appeared.........

2006-11-01T22:50:00.000Z

I felt old when, on seeing a picture of the lovely Windy Miller on the desktop of my computer, one of my staff said she didn't realise he was a 'real' character - she thought he'd been created solely for the Quaker adverts!!! Everyone thinks their era of Children's programmes was the best, but I reckon you can't beat the late seventies. Share your favourite children's TV programme on the comments board, and don't forget to say whether you were a Swap Shop or Tiswas person. And were you Blue Peter or Magpie?

My favourite was Mary, Mungo & Midge with the soothing narration of Richard Baker , but Mr Benn was a close second.

Jesus in a white coat

2006-10-24T20:51:00.000+01:00

I had to deal with a particularly difficult set of parents today (Mr & Mrs X) who asked to meet with me as they were anxious & angry that their daughter had been prescribed glasses when 'there's nuffink wrong wiv her eyes'. Having already spoken to Mrs X on the phone yesterday I knew it was likely to be a very unpleasant encounter. The natural reaction is to be defensive & there is a temptation to concentrate on justifying what treatment has been given, rather than really answering the parents' concerns (however daft/unreasonable their concerns may appear).
Anyhoo, it occured to me that, if Jesus had been an Orthoptist, he would have been the best one ever and would know exactly how to handle these angry, difficult people. I have to admit I had never thought of Jesus in an NHS uniform before but it helped me to pray that I would say what He would have said and handle the situation as he would have done. In all my years of handling this sort of issue I'd never quite thought of it like that before. In the end it all went swimmingly.. although it started off with Mrs X nearly exploding with anger and walking out. By the end we were all best of friends and they were reassured and happy about their daughter's eye condition. It reminded me that, if I include God in what I'm doing, I can be part of the body of Jesus even when doing such seemingly unspiritual things as working for the NHS.

Happy Customer

2006-10-21T17:19:00.000+01:00

Am a little snowed under today - Aaron, you are correct, I've been on too many jollys. I've spent Monday, Thurday & Friday in London this week at various meetings & my brain is exhausted. However, rather than have the opportunity to slob about today, I have spent all day doing paperwork etc to catch up on reports, invoices, appointments etc for my private patients. I need a secretary!
Anyhoo, if your printer runs out of ink, I can recommend "Smart Cartridge" in Boldmere. In the middle of trying to catch up on all the tedious paperwork, the last thing I needed was my printer to stop working. Davie said this new place had opened where they refill your old cartridge, so I thought I'd give it a try. It turned out that the cartridge was nearly full but it was faulty. He suggested that I could take it back to Tesco, as it was one of their own brand, but then he offered to fix it for free, which he did. He was an incredibly helpful chap, & I shall certainly be going back there. So nice to have some genuine & good customer service for a change.
After a few hours of happy printing, the wireless network has now stopped working for no reason at all, so I'm stuck again. Davie.... can you fix it?..... pleeeeease.......

See you Sunday

2006-10-11T19:29:00.000+01:00

Won't be posting for a few days as am off to Newcastle tomorrow to a 2 day conference and then visiting my sister in Cumbria on the way back so won't be back til Sunday evening - hoping to back in time for the evening service though. I'm not really looking forward to doing such a lot of motorway driving so am planning to take it slowly and carefully.
Thought I'd leave you with a view from my sister's back garden in Garrigill- a world away from Boldmere.

Remember Remember the 4th of November

2006-10-05T21:51:00.000+01:00

We have had a distinct lack of BBQs in our garden this year & so I'd like to make up for it by inviting you (yes, I mean you) to a gathering in our back yard on Sat 4th November from 7.30pm. There will be yummy food, warming drinks (that includes hot chocolate and brandy, or even both together if you want) and sparklers. We're not going to have any fireworks as it severely traumatises our moggies, but there's usually a really good view from our garden of everyone else's fireworks in the surrounding area!
If you know me well enough to read this blog, then consider yourself invited. Do we want you to bring anything? - nope, just come as you are, but please do pray for no rain that evening!
If you can come, keep the date free & let me know at some point so I can make sure I have enough toffee apples.

You're a what? Is that teeth or feet?

2006-10-04T20:46:00.000+01:00

I now have bird flu - although it can't compete with Davie's bird flu. I have also changed the template for my blog, and I might change it a few more times before I settle on one.

In case you're wondering about the title of today's blog, that's the usual response I get when people ask me what I do for a living. There are only about 1000 Orthoptists in the country (compare that to 45000 physiotherapists) and seeing as I spend five sevenths of my life being one, it's quite important to me to know what I'm supposed to be doing, but I do appreciate that it's not really that important to anyone else - that is until they wake up one morning with double vision.

Anyhoo, should you be struck by an overwhelming desire to know what the NHS kindly pay me for doing, here is an extract from my professional body website:

What do orthoptists do?
Orthoptists are concerned with the diagnosis and treatment
of ocular motility and problems relating to vision. Some examples of these
problems are:
Amblyopia (lazy eye), which is a reduction in vision arising from a defect present in infancy or early childhood that prevents the eye from receiving adequate visual stimulation.
Defective binocular vision, which is the inability to use the two eyes together
in the correct way and which leads to impairment of depth perception.
Abnormal eye movements arising from injury or disease affecting the eye muscles or the nerve supplying the muscles, or a physical obstruction to eye movement.
Diplopia (double vision) resulting from abnormal eye movements or strabismus (squint).
So now you know. If you want to know more you can go to http://www.orthoptics.org.uk/patients/orthoptics.
There endeth today's lesson!

You're the worst pirate I've ever heard of............

2006-09-25T21:27:00.000+01:00

Me & my good friend Johnny (how can he love someone so much that sang 'Joe le Taxi?')
Well, it's taken me a a whole week to get around to adding anything to my blog, as I've been so busy reading everyone elses! Not sure about the phenomenon of it seeming easier to express what you want to say by typing words into a PC that are more or less on a public view, than saying them face to face.
Anyhoo, this has to have been the most emotionally draining week I've known, but also one of the most powerful. I have experienced a sadness I have not known before, in beginning to miss a friend, but also experienced the joy of celebrating lives that were full of good things and that must have made God a real proud Father. I've known very few people who've died, so this has really been a whole new issue for me. I've been amazed to feel a whole new sense of community & togetherness in our church & I feel so privileged and blessed to be a part of it. There seems to be a new openess with people voicing their appreciation for each other more freely, and along with many I'm sure, I want to make sure that folks know how much I appreciate them rather than them having to wonder or guess.
When I was at a real turning point in my life a few years back, Donald (our wonderful, wonderful minister) asked me what I wanted God to say to me at the end of my life. He asked me how much did I want Him to say 'Well done good & faithful servant'? That question & its subsequent answer turned my life around and rather than the desire to see that happen fading over time, the events of the last couple of weeks have inspired me again to keep going, & to try to let go of the things that hinder me. Don't know how well I'll do; I feel totally humbled by the examples of Matt & Chris, but I'll try.

Here goes ......

2006-09-18T21:15:00.000+01:00

I've never really seen the point of a blog before but after the recent sad events of the last week it seems a good opportunity to try something new to keep in touch with others. The technical side of it may defeat me but I'll have a go.