Friday 22nd September 2017

Autumn equinox.

Quite an odd day all told. I mean, Mum is in hospital waiting for an operation that in itself could be fatal, but would improve her health. But, she is now stable, in the Norfolk and Norwich hospital, waiting for a decision on whether she stays there, is transferred back to James Paget in Yarmouth, or a bed comes free at Papworth. Leaving us all in a limbo. She said she would call us with news, so until there all we can do is wait.

And as it was Friday, and as Jools had picked me up from the station the evening before at ten, she had a lay in until six, me I laid asleep until ten to seven, but it was to be something of a normal working day, once I got my head straight. And that required coffee. Lots of coffee.

In the end, near to nine my head was straight enough to log into work, and try to finish the document I need to for the project. This meant having to understand how tracking changes worked, and the fact that since the last update, Word had been saving my documents to the cloud rather than sharepoint. So, after thinking that a week of work had disappeared, I found it, saved them in the right place and started to edit, move paragraphs round. And then after saving the draft, I could not see the changes in the finished document!

A strong cuppa and a long think made me realise I had to write click on each edit, and accept the change. That done the rest was done quickly.

And oddly, no one really wanted to speak to me when I called them. I guess we have our meetings and stuff to do. But I did chat with my manager, and I said I would make a decision by Monday whether to travel to Hamburg. Not much else I can do really.

With the document done, and some more notes written. My brain was friend, so I stopped work, just as jOols returned from work, and hour early? Had she been sacked or walked out? No, they told her to leave and have a long weekend, even if it was just 90 minutes extra, to her it was a big thing, and she was in a fine mood.

Shame then I was in such a black one, as I mulled over the different scenarios about Mother, and when she had the operation, she would need four to six weeks of looking after, and with no one else, that would be me. And being near the hospital in Cambridge wouldn't be cheap either. Sorry to sound so mercenary, but it is true. A week, or tow, or more in a hotel or B&B would add up. Thankfully, my boss has told me to take off as much time as possible, which is good. And yet, there is the cloud hanging over me in regards to Mother. With our history and the herd of elephants that occupy a room when we meet, our relationship is difficult at times. And then there is what she has done in the past, one day when the time is right I will write all of that down, well, were it not the fact that we look so similar, I would claim to be adopted. But clearly I was not.

Jools works in the garden, and I stay in waiting for the phone to ring.

It doesn't. So for a change I go to the chippy for dinner. Cod for me and a battered sausage for Jools. That done, we have another brew and sit inside as the sun sets on summer outside, with night and day now equal, and from tomorrow the longer and longer nights will outweigh daylight.

By eight we were restless, so I call the hospital and finally get through to the admissions department, who put me through to the ward. And the news is there is no news. She is perky, and less breathless. But is still waiting for the consultant to do his round that evening, and she had seen no other doctor all day. So, stable as can be. And that would be that other than the fact she has to have the operation. I say that I will be up when she goes to Papworth, and for her recovery, but the details have yet to be worked out, and she is happy about that.

There is Only Connect and Gardner's World to watch before we are tired once again, so ends another day in Chez Jelltex.