I've moved. No more house of Cecil. I'm a lodger again for a while.
I've had a great holiday with Fabrice. My nephew is as cute as I expected and a strong little babe too and his big brother and sister are as high in energy and fun as ever and then some.
September's pay will see me pay off the final credit card and free of nasty debts. Until then I'm carrying on with overtime to make sure the process is as fast as possible.
In between shifts, the plan is to sort some of the things which are in some friends' garage and need selling. I didn't have the time or energy to put things up for sale properly so I've got a clutter of chests of drawers and beds and the like needing a home. If I were rich and famous I'd give them and be done. It's so tempting to just do that and not bother, but I need new reading glasses :)
I'm missing Fabrice both more and less than usual. The fact that I can soon move to France helps I think, yes it's good that I'm in the last lap of that race too. It's easier nowadays to be far away but it doesn't beat popping down the road together for a pint or a coffee. I'm looking forward to being able to do that without thinking I'll be back a world away within a few days. I'll be able to see my nephews and nieces grow and be part of their life regularly. :)
Iliana was 2 last Friday! I had to travel back the day before. No more of that.
There'll always be people I miss but it comes from being a whole lot of halves and can't be avoided.
I'm re-reading 'The Money Secret'. I don't often re-read books so soon but it was awesome and still is. It could do with being spread as wide as the Bible in this debt-ridden western society of ours. I wanted to refresh it's truths in my mind. Renewing our mind... Essential!! Absolutely essential. Thank you EA, Rob Parsons and Care for the Family.
I've paid off what was the biggest credit card.
It's all gone, all done, all finished, cleared!!
The silly card people won't close it or even put a note on there to close it until the money is cleared. But they can procrastinate all they want and do all the annoying things possible, I've won and I don't owe them anything any more!!!
Hehe!!
:)
I'm nearly all packed, tomorrow afternoon should see me fully moved into N&S's spare room, then Saturday morning should see the bulky things and last boxes moved into storage.
A massive massive thank you goes to those who've helped me stay sane, be it by helping or keeping me company in some way, or once or twice by getting me out of the house for a breather. All good. Fabrice gets an extra gold star for putting up with tears and frustations, fears and annoyance and staying on the other end of the phone regardless.
Guy's had his review which confirmed that he's staying in Bristol.
I've packed and weighed in my suitcase for Sunday's flight to France for my holidays and it's 20.2kg, leaving me hopeful that 200g is nothing to worry about. I'll just make sure my hand luggage is under and I can always pull out a couple of T-shirts if need be.
I'm getting way too good at packing cases.
Not as good at boxes. I've sorted out less than I needed. I suppose it means I'll have to sort more when I unpack. The rush of the past few weeks hasn't given me the time though.
Well, it's just about bedtime.
I've had to say goodnight to my lovely early today and I'm dragging my feet to get up the ladder to sleepy-land. My last night in my loft bed. No-one's bought it yet. I'm a bit sad about that. But then I suppose it's what I get for having a big-kid's bed isn't it :)
I've received the best offer of a place to lodge and have said yes. It's since then turned out even better and classes as Fabulous! It's just down the road, the room is big enough, the family is lovely, the rent is better than cheap, and they've offered me a place to store anything I don't sell.
Marvellous!!
I'll probably move in by end of June though this is to be confirmed.
Fabrice on the other hand has slipped & broken his leg. Now in hospital recovering from Sunday's operation, he's sleepy & sounding pretty positive. The consequence though is that there will be no moving things from here to there in July, unless we can make up a new plan for later this summer without involving him. Brain in gear! That's why I'm glad about being offered storage space.
So God comes up trumps after all methinks. The logic therein of course is His not mine. Once that's accepted, the fact He's unchanging & everpresent in mind, it's chocs away!!
Work's interesting & keeping me entertained. So far so good.
News from Bristol is an extra 6 weeks trial.
That was last week's news so it leaves me wit just under 5 weeks to know what I'm doing next, then when Guy decides I'll either give my notice on the house or tell my landlady who will be moving in.
Fabrice and I are getting on, missing one another, talking loads, being quiet, trying to not run over the free hour time too often, laughing lots, and pulling through our longest ever time without being able to meet up... I dread verbalising that we're halfway through, but it is a kind of victory anyhow. I assure you that ten weeks is a horridly long time to be deprived of hugs, kisses and being able to see the glint in his eyes :P
Work's ticking over. Part of my old team is joining my new house which is both mighty odd and interesting. On investigating a bit more, I've sadly confirmed my impression that our big bosses seem out to spite us. So far every single member of my old team has said they got a house which they hadn't put on their wish-list. Apparently, the reason is that they were skills-matched to the houses they've been sent to. So they sent us someone who can't lift and someone who won't go near poo or vomit... Logical for a place which requires us to change nappies on kids sometimes as big as teenagers and who have more or less mobility and weight. I dread to think what could have happened if they hadn't done the skills-matching.
I'm trying to sort through stuff in the house and begin to sell things. I need to decide what to take to France, since it could need storing until I move and also because I'm currently looking at the possibility of shifting furniture plus anything feasible (as in not the clothes I'll need) over to France during our holidays this summer. Fabrice and I have got hols at the same time and Maman nearly so I need to find out about vans and ferries etc. The logistics are a bit mad but my love is patient and helps keep me sane...
I should be mowing the lawn or at least edging it... I shall begone while it's still light!
Here's the latest developments in Guy's life and mine...
Guy's still not completely himself but has improved a fair bit since Christmas. He's just moved from DP to a place in Bristol called CO. It's a place geared towards supporting people coming out of mental hospital into getting back on their feet. I can't say how grateful we are as a family that he has the current month's trial there.
It's been ages since began looking at Camphill Village Trust for Guy to go and live. Since September though, with him being in hospital, we've had that many ups & downs regarding whether they'd consider him for a placement that I'd easily call it a roller-coaster. Anyhow, after a few set-backs and failed meetings the funding panel gave the go-ahead for Guy to spend 4 weeks at CO to see how he fares.
He moved on the 13th and Dad visited last Saturday and his feedback has been very positive about how Guy is in himself & hs progress. I've not heard Dad sound that positive or relieved in months.
I need everyone to pray that this works out so Guy can be in a good supportive place where he can get into an active routine & find himself again. He'd be there for 18 months if I remember right.
Now, the consequence of Guy being at CO is this: my housing situation goes down the pan.
While someone is temporarily in hospital or a similar place, housing benefit will continue paying their rent so they keep their permanent abode. Guy's past 8 months in DP come under that remit. I've only been paying my half of the rent for our house all that time. But as soon as Guy secures a placement at CO, that becomes his permanent residence and housing benefit will pay for that instead of here.
The problem is that I can't afford to pay the whole rent for the house (or therefore for any house or flat since our rent is actually one of the lowest I've seen). I barely break even on my part-time wage due to paying of a loan and I've been doing a lot of overtime all of which goes to pay of credit card debts, so renting the whole house isn't feasible. Overtime hours aren't guaranteed even though recently they've come fast & numerous, but with all the precarity that has come to light in work over the past month, I'm not sure I can count on even my job.
My need here is for prayers and ideas.
I have about 6 weeks in which I could ...
- look for a new housemate (will I get on with them?)
- consider a bedsit or place to lodge (as I assume they're the only way I can find somewhere slightly cheaper)
- look for a good enough job down at Dad's and move there (sounding better & better frankly)
- see if there're jobs going near any family or friends who can put me up (the world is my oyster but I need a job!)
- do what I feel like doing at times which is panic & give up (not an option)
- any other suggestions??
I'll say no more at present about what W seem to be up to with their kids homes & the staff who work there but do spare a thought for us all, a good 100 people in total I'd guess. And then there's the rest of life, and that also is for another chapter.
Chat about this if you like by the way. I value the prayer I think each of you and those you're close to will give.
Yikes!
Thanks for reading
Oh, and if you want me to get any comments, you'll have to hope I remember to check here or ring me. I say that because I've tried and tried to change my email in the wiblog preferences and sent the guys and email asking them to help but had neither success or reply. My usual address was spam-ridden and I've closed it so comments now have no destination.
A quoi je pense?? 
0
Permalink