The day of my Arthroscopy has arrived and instead of having the nerves that I should have I am filled with excitement that my ‘lump’ will be removed!
This lump has plagued me for over 6 months and has stopped me bike riding, playing badminton and swimming, not to mention walking!
I arrive at the QEQM in Margate, Kent at 12pm lunch time and get shown to my bed. I am now in for a 4 hour wait until I finally get taken down at 4pm! I guess it’s better I wait for the surgeon rather than the other way round right! The anaesthetist takes ages to get the needle in my hand and resorts to using one designed for infants. I did panic a little as she is the one keeping me asleep! I am fascinated by the operating room and all the equipment, since starting work for a medical device company I can’t help but look of for the things we manufacture. I did see lots of Portex equipment which we have manufactured for years!
The next thing I remember is waking up in recovery. There is a clock directly opposite my bed and my anaesthesia fuddle brain works out it has been 2 hours. I expected 10 minutes in theatre just to remove the floating body and then back to the ward. A nurse comes over and I ask her for my lump. Did they find it? I would be so upset to think it had been hiding under my knee cap and the surgeon couldn’t locate it.
Well lets just say a blindfolded person would have found it! It is the size and shape of a white chocolate button and is a piece of bone!
My blood pressure was taken a few more times and then I was wheeled back to the ward. The ward itself is just for day surgery and is in the old wing of the hospital. You have your own curtained bay but the beds are designed for day use only and they are very narrow, but luckily have sides to stop you falling out!
I am pleased to see my other half, who texts my mum so she knows I am still alive!
The surgeon pops round on his way home to tell me all was well, they had got the lump out and had shaved off 3 more bone growths that shouldn’t have been there. I don’t tell him that I have my lump in a pot under the covers. I am taking this home as proof that I didn’t invent the limp! I often find myself staring at it in disbelief over the size of it! The surgeon has taken photos of the inside of my knee and the offending lump, no blood in sight strangely! I have been given co-codamol pain killers which are very strong. I have only taken 2 or 3 because the list of side effects is long and scary!
Once I have eaten a biscuit and sausage roll I am allowed to go home. I feel surprisingly steady and there isn’t too much pain. I make it to the car and survive the journey home without sleeping, must have been the hour I spent dozing in recovery!
The physiotherapist has given me a set of exercises to do when I feel ready and I will return to see the surgeon in 4-6 weeks. I already have the desired result with my lump now being outside my body but I just need to take things slow and recover properly.
I took the dressing off yesterday which was very tight. My knee then proceeded to swell up instantly which looked awful. I only have 1 stitch which will be taken out next week. Work have been fine about it all, probably because I am working from home and ive officially only had 2 days off! Amazing how much you can do from your sofa!
My boyfriend has been great, cooking, cleaning and waiting on me, who knew he would make such a lovely housewife!
Monday 29 March 2010
Tuesday 23 March 2010
My knee Operation...
I am finally having surgery on my knee next week and I can’t wait. Strange you might think but I have had to wait over a year for this day.
I have always had problems with my knees since I was 12. Both kneecaps would randomly and unexplainably fly out of their sockets leaving me a sprawling mess on the floor. I have even spent drunken evenings with the police after falling into the road after dislocating it!
At the age of 21 I finally underwent a patella realignment which stopped the dislocations for 12 years, but then 2 years ago I was enjoying a quiet lunch with my boyfriend at Bluewater. We were ready to go home and were right by the car park entrance and I had an urge for a Crispy Cream. We all have those right? On the way through the packed food court I slipped on a shiny wooden floor and dislocated my right knee. I fell to the floor in front of over 100 people, crying in pain.
This was the start of a long battle to get back to the active person I once was! A trip to A&E revealed that I had chipped a bit or bone off and it was floating around - nice! I saw the surgeon and was booked in for an arthroscopy in October 2008. They removed all the ‘bits’ and also drilled a couple of holes in my cartilage for good measure. It was a bit thin apparently!
I had a follow up appointment in December where I informed the doctor that everything was fine. The very next day a familiar ‘click’ was back. Also a huge lump had appeared just under the skin! I called the doctors secretary who booked me in to see the surgeon but of course the lump disapeared and the click was supposedly normal after surgery!
6 months later I am back to see the surgeon and I am told to do more physio. I was still worried so I saw my GP who agreed to order an MRI scan. This took place in spring 2009 and the results showed nothing. It doesn’t seem to matter how much I tell them there is something wrong they don’t seem to listen. The scan says it’s fine so it must be!
Its summer 2009 and the loose bit has finally broken off. It now moves freely around my kneecap. It isn’t painful only uncomfortable. Every so often the lump goes under my kneecap and I can’t straighten my leg. This can last up to a week and becomes uncomfortable after a while believe me!
I had my next surgeon’s appointment in January 2010 and after telling him repeatedly there was a free floating lump he just wouldn’t believe me. I didn’t know what to do and was getting more and more upset. The doctor was putting all his faith in the old scan and wouldn’t listen to what I was saying. I remained on the bed after he had walked away and managed to manipulate the lump out to a place where he could feel it. Painful!! His face fell when he felt it and he couldnt apologised enough for missing it! I am now booked in for surgery next week. Watch this blog................................
Wednesday 17 March 2010
To cruise or not to cruise..............
Last year I went on a cruise. No ordinary cruise. We are not talking about Thomson or 'scare tours' Airtours. No, RCI, more commonly known as Royal Caribbean International.
It was my parents 60th birthdays last year and we wanted a special treat, they are paying of course. My boyfriend and I decide on a promenade cabin (a view over the inside shopping mall) on the Royal Caribbean's 'Voyager of the Seas' and the rest of my family go for an outside cabin with a balcony. They later regret this as there is nothing to see and it is very windy. My aunty liked it as she could smoke out there!
I must go back a few weeks. I am, or was then a travel agent and got the cruise at a reasonable rate (OK it was cheap). My boyfriend and I flew out to Barcelona for a few days before the cruise and stayed in the Cathedral hotel. It was very swanky and in a good location. Although I must say we thought the church next to the hotel was the 'Sagrada Familia' when it was in fact some unknown landmark 50 times smaller!
The weather was shocking and I laid on a sun bed in a coat, but Barcelona is a vibrant city and I would highly recommend it.
Once unpacked on the cruse it was time for dinner. Wow. So many places to eat and the food is 5*. Royal Caribbean really know what they are doing, From the entertainment to the food, rooms, nightclub and casino it was out of this world.
I got teased immensely at work about cruises being for old people and having a blue rinse and also playing shuffle board, but i can honerstly say, it had something for everyone. Even the kids club was great. If you don’t have any kids its great as they are kept out of the way all day on a top deck and if you do have them then the kids club means you get your own time as couple.
Did I mention the hot tubs seat 20 people?
We met some great people who we spent time with and we hope to go back cruising soon. From my experience, RCI run family and couple friendly, fun ships along with other companies like Carnival Cruises, whereas companies like Fred Olsen and P&O are a little more traditional.
We called at many ports on our journey which enabled us to see 7 countries in 1 week. Monte Carlo, Naples, Rome to name but a few. This is the beauty of cruising.
The ship caters for the fitness freaks among us. The gym is amazing and has every piece of equipment imaginable.
It also caters for us foodies. The breakfast and lunch time buffets were out of this world, offering cusine from many cultures for us to try. Check out the Royal Caribbean website for more! They offer special discounts if you book early and sometimes offer onboard credit as part of the deal!
It was my parents 60th birthdays last year and we wanted a special treat, they are paying of course. My boyfriend and I decide on a promenade cabin (a view over the inside shopping mall) on the Royal Caribbean's 'Voyager of the Seas' and the rest of my family go for an outside cabin with a balcony. They later regret this as there is nothing to see and it is very windy. My aunty liked it as she could smoke out there!
I must go back a few weeks. I am, or was then a travel agent and got the cruise at a reasonable rate (OK it was cheap). My boyfriend and I flew out to Barcelona for a few days before the cruise and stayed in the Cathedral hotel. It was very swanky and in a good location. Although I must say we thought the church next to the hotel was the 'Sagrada Familia' when it was in fact some unknown landmark 50 times smaller!
The weather was shocking and I laid on a sun bed in a coat, but Barcelona is a vibrant city and I would highly recommend it.
Once unpacked on the cruse it was time for dinner. Wow. So many places to eat and the food is 5*. Royal Caribbean really know what they are doing, From the entertainment to the food, rooms, nightclub and casino it was out of this world.
I got teased immensely at work about cruises being for old people and having a blue rinse and also playing shuffle board, but i can honerstly say, it had something for everyone. Even the kids club was great. If you don’t have any kids its great as they are kept out of the way all day on a top deck and if you do have them then the kids club means you get your own time as couple.
Did I mention the hot tubs seat 20 people?
We met some great people who we spent time with and we hope to go back cruising soon. From my experience, RCI run family and couple friendly, fun ships along with other companies like Carnival Cruises, whereas companies like Fred Olsen and P&O are a little more traditional.
We called at many ports on our journey which enabled us to see 7 countries in 1 week. Monte Carlo, Naples, Rome to name but a few. This is the beauty of cruising.
The ship caters for the fitness freaks among us. The gym is amazing and has every piece of equipment imaginable.
It also caters for us foodies. The breakfast and lunch time buffets were out of this world, offering cusine from many cultures for us to try. Check out the Royal Caribbean website for more! They offer special discounts if you book early and sometimes offer onboard credit as part of the deal!
Sunday 14 March 2010
It’s my party and iIl cry if I want to!
Oh wow I’m going to be 33 soon. I feel old. My Mum must feel even older.
I hear the all important question, 'what do you want for your present' they all cry?? It’s so close to Christmas and I have everything I need, that’s what having a job does. I can buy what I like!
Think, think............. Vouchers. It has to be vouchers.
Everyone hates buying vouchers. They are impersonal and project the image that you don’t care. Who am I kidding I love buying them. You can order them online and there is no fuss. There is no deliberating over the flowery egg cup set or the perfume that you’re not sure she will like!
I have settled on Bluewater vouchers. My favourite shops are Oasis, Warehouse, GAP, Dune, NineWest, House of Fraser and M&S Autograph to name a few. I have dropped hints at work to get me the vouchers. I know that the girls in my office love to buy all things smelly and I can’t stand that stuff. I am very stuck in my ways. I like Palmolive Shower Gel, Olay Face Cream and Sure Deodorant, and trust me I do not deviate from these.
My birthday arrives and I get £140 worth of Bluewater vouchers, result! They were listening! I promptly buy myself the coat in Next I have been hankering after. I must admit I normally hate Next. They make their clothes for people with short bodies either that or they are trying to create a new trend for crop tops, plus if you don’t see someone out with the same top as you, you are lucky! This Next coat was the result of much searching where even French Connection could not help. I did visit Warehouse and Oasis too as they are always reliable. Warehouse seem to be stuck in the winter. Where all the other shops have spring lines Warehouse is decidedly grey and dowdy. Oasis just seems to be a bit New Look at the moment and River Island???? Well I don’t know what has happened to them. You could always rely on them to provide that top for Saturday night, but they seem to have gone luminous and cheap and trashy. Maybe im getting too old for fashion!
I wasn’t convinced on stripes this year although my younger sister assures me they are in fashion. On a recent trip to Brighton I spotted a stripy blue knitted dress in Oasis, and I love it. I am now wearing skinny jeans and leggings much to the delight of my baby sister (26).
Anyway, Bluewater, such a pleasant place to shop! Indoor, no cheap shops, plenty of eating places. Thank heavens for half price Zizzi and Pizza Express vouchers! Loch Fynn is also a favourite of mine! Oysters mmmmmmmmmmmmmm........
I love looking round the jewellery shops and I adore small elegant items. My sisters, oh yes I have 2, kindly bought me a necklace from Dogeared, which is popular with the stars apparently! It’s small and cute and Beaverbrooks didn’t really have anything that compared. One of my sisters works in Beaverbrooks which is a great shop by the way. Its upper class yet affordable (end of advert!). H.Samuel and the others just don’t compare. Don’t let the fact that they sit you down and offer you a drink put you off. You can afford it!
Anyway, after the coat I still have £95 still to spend on a rainy day!
I hear the all important question, 'what do you want for your present' they all cry?? It’s so close to Christmas and I have everything I need, that’s what having a job does. I can buy what I like!
Think, think............. Vouchers. It has to be vouchers.
Everyone hates buying vouchers. They are impersonal and project the image that you don’t care. Who am I kidding I love buying them. You can order them online and there is no fuss. There is no deliberating over the flowery egg cup set or the perfume that you’re not sure she will like!
I have settled on Bluewater vouchers. My favourite shops are Oasis, Warehouse, GAP, Dune, NineWest, House of Fraser and M&S Autograph to name a few. I have dropped hints at work to get me the vouchers. I know that the girls in my office love to buy all things smelly and I can’t stand that stuff. I am very stuck in my ways. I like Palmolive Shower Gel, Olay Face Cream and Sure Deodorant, and trust me I do not deviate from these.
My birthday arrives and I get £140 worth of Bluewater vouchers, result! They were listening! I promptly buy myself the coat in Next I have been hankering after. I must admit I normally hate Next. They make their clothes for people with short bodies either that or they are trying to create a new trend for crop tops, plus if you don’t see someone out with the same top as you, you are lucky! This Next coat was the result of much searching where even French Connection could not help. I did visit Warehouse and Oasis too as they are always reliable. Warehouse seem to be stuck in the winter. Where all the other shops have spring lines Warehouse is decidedly grey and dowdy. Oasis just seems to be a bit New Look at the moment and River Island???? Well I don’t know what has happened to them. You could always rely on them to provide that top for Saturday night, but they seem to have gone luminous and cheap and trashy. Maybe im getting too old for fashion!
I wasn’t convinced on stripes this year although my younger sister assures me they are in fashion. On a recent trip to Brighton I spotted a stripy blue knitted dress in Oasis, and I love it. I am now wearing skinny jeans and leggings much to the delight of my baby sister (26).
Anyway, Bluewater, such a pleasant place to shop! Indoor, no cheap shops, plenty of eating places. Thank heavens for half price Zizzi and Pizza Express vouchers! Loch Fynn is also a favourite of mine! Oysters mmmmmmmmmmmmmm........
I love looking round the jewellery shops and I adore small elegant items. My sisters, oh yes I have 2, kindly bought me a necklace from Dogeared, which is popular with the stars apparently! It’s small and cute and Beaverbrooks didn’t really have anything that compared. One of my sisters works in Beaverbrooks which is a great shop by the way. Its upper class yet affordable (end of advert!). H.Samuel and the others just don’t compare. Don’t let the fact that they sit you down and offer you a drink put you off. You can afford it!
Anyway, after the coat I still have £95 still to spend on a rainy day!
Monday 8 March 2010
Mobile phone confusion...
The contract on my Nokia 6500 slide is coming to an end. I have decided that I am going to buy a SIM card and go on to pay as you go. I probably use 100 minutes and 50 texts per month and cannot warrant paying £26 per month to Three. Three have been great and despite the complete slating they get have served me well. The reception is not bad, the phone was free, the contract was a good price and it makes me happy to know that the weather is good at the call centre in India.
I, like the next person, love getting a new mobile. The shiny buttons, the new menu. You can’t help feeling better than your friends when you leave it lying on the pub table.
Unrelated to this my work colleagues are all getting Blackberrys for work purposes and of course my ears pricked up. Would I like this Blackberry thing? Is it cool? And more importantly can I press the buttons with my long nails?
I vowed I would not tie myself into a new contract but here I am today with a shiny new Blackberry Bold 9700 and a £35 per month contract for 2 years. Will I use 900 minutes? No. Will I make good use of unlimited texts? No. Will I use 512MB of internet a month? I doubt it! The pull of a cool, state of the art multifunctional handset was too much. I strolled in to Carphone Warehouse in Brighton and they gladly answered all my questions about Blackberry services and voicemail costs.
Phones4u eventually sold me the contract. I might add Three were extremely reluctant to let me go, to the point where I shouted at them on the phone to get my PAC number! The Blackberry Bold 9700 is fantastic and blows Nokia out of the water. No more software problems for me!
I must say it has made me closer to my friends as Facebook is now linked to my email and I reply to all my bites and pokes. Maybe I’ll consider Twitter and Myspace next. Blackberry application world is good and I feel extra special in the Blackberry lounge. Who knows I could win the Xbox next week! The internet connection is great with 3g and super quick. The camera is ok, 3.2 megapixel and the sonar ringtone is my favourite. The handset just looks so cool! My colleague pays £25 per month for a Curve with unlimited access on the internet. I played around with it and thought yes, great, this is the handset for me!
My obsession with research took over and I upgraded several models to the 9700. It had 3G, a better camera, trackpad technology. In fact it’s way better than the Curve and Im a sucker for the latest thing!
I don’t like to have 2nd best. My friends husband has the Iphone3G so of course I looked up the 3GS being the better model. Not only was it going to cost me £180 on the £40 per month contract I would need an extra handbag to carry it round in. Trust me it’s not good for putting in your clutch bag on a night out!
I must add when I bought my phone I got 2 free Nokia pay as you go phones, 3 months free insurance and a car charger for free (the store manager was very accommodating).
I would like to finish up by saying GET A BLACKBERRY 9700, you won’t regret it!
I, like the next person, love getting a new mobile. The shiny buttons, the new menu. You can’t help feeling better than your friends when you leave it lying on the pub table.
Unrelated to this my work colleagues are all getting Blackberrys for work purposes and of course my ears pricked up. Would I like this Blackberry thing? Is it cool? And more importantly can I press the buttons with my long nails?
I vowed I would not tie myself into a new contract but here I am today with a shiny new Blackberry Bold 9700 and a £35 per month contract for 2 years. Will I use 900 minutes? No. Will I make good use of unlimited texts? No. Will I use 512MB of internet a month? I doubt it! The pull of a cool, state of the art multifunctional handset was too much. I strolled in to Carphone Warehouse in Brighton and they gladly answered all my questions about Blackberry services and voicemail costs.
Phones4u eventually sold me the contract. I might add Three were extremely reluctant to let me go, to the point where I shouted at them on the phone to get my PAC number! The Blackberry Bold 9700 is fantastic and blows Nokia out of the water. No more software problems for me!
I must say it has made me closer to my friends as Facebook is now linked to my email and I reply to all my bites and pokes. Maybe I’ll consider Twitter and Myspace next. Blackberry application world is good and I feel extra special in the Blackberry lounge. Who knows I could win the Xbox next week! The internet connection is great with 3g and super quick. The camera is ok, 3.2 megapixel and the sonar ringtone is my favourite. The handset just looks so cool! My colleague pays £25 per month for a Curve with unlimited access on the internet. I played around with it and thought yes, great, this is the handset for me!
My obsession with research took over and I upgraded several models to the 9700. It had 3G, a better camera, trackpad technology. In fact it’s way better than the Curve and Im a sucker for the latest thing!
I don’t like to have 2nd best. My friends husband has the Iphone3G so of course I looked up the 3GS being the better model. Not only was it going to cost me £180 on the £40 per month contract I would need an extra handbag to carry it round in. Trust me it’s not good for putting in your clutch bag on a night out!
I must add when I bought my phone I got 2 free Nokia pay as you go phones, 3 months free insurance and a car charger for free (the store manager was very accommodating).
I would like to finish up by saying GET A BLACKBERRY 9700, you won’t regret it!
Thursday 4 March 2010
Oh and i got free floormats too....
My Ford KA is great.
She is 1.3 and nippy as hell. Sleek black, air conditioning, 2 doors and a CD player. I have now reached the 3 year dilemma. She is paid off, do I keep her and run her in to the ground or do I change her in for something shiny and new? It is so hard to resist the pull of a new car or a new mobile phone (maybe the next blog?). I think I may have been a magpie in a previous life, oh the new shiny things!
Where do you start when picking your new vehicle. The very vehicle which will help you look cool and attract males at traffic lights. I only have a £3k deposit, not a lot but enough for what I need. I start off with Ford and consider upgrading to a new Focus. They have many 'extras' that could be useful, but they soon add up to way beyond my budget. I have since discovered my granddad bought one, the new style has a lot to answer for - yuk!
How about Renault? I could see myself nipping round town in a Clio. Speedy, sporty and reasonably priced. My boyfriend decides parts are very expensive if and when things go wrong, so I keep searching.
My friend Miriam has got a new company car, a Skoda Fabia 1.4 Diesel, 4 door in black. It looks pretty cool and I think I might want one, but am not sure I can overlook the fact it is a Skoda. The staff at the showroom are friendly, but strangely all wearing cardigans and I decide that although the word 'sport' is emblazoned on the side, I am just not ready!
I would love to have a VW Golf but they are so pricey. I pop in to look at the VW Polo anyway. It is quite pricey even with absolutely no 'extras'. When I ask for floor mats to be throw in, the sales rep nearly chokes.
A little birdie tells me the VW chassis are the same as Seats, the Ibiza being equivalent to the VW Polo. I have never really heard about Seat much, although I think everyone can relate to 'Auto Emocion' these days. I locate my nearest Seat Garage on the Kent Business Directory and take a trip to Maidstone.
The sales guy is completely useless but it doesn’t matter as I am hooked. The Ibiza is gorgeous. I can have climate control, power steering, central locking, metallic paint, CD player and ABS for 9K, bargain!
I have picked the colour and have all but handed them the keys to my Ford KA but I decide to get my friend Miriam to see what she thinks of the colour. Thank goodness she did as I would have made a very expensive mistake.
I always wanted a dark grey, gunmetal coloured car and Seat had one called grey. This should really be renamed brown or tan! Miriam and I discovered Pearl Blue, otherwise known as gunmetal grey! Perfect!
The deal was done and my new Seat Ibiza was delivered with 4 miles on the clock and I was full of 'Auto Emocion'.
Oh and I got free floor mats too!
She is 1.3 and nippy as hell. Sleek black, air conditioning, 2 doors and a CD player. I have now reached the 3 year dilemma. She is paid off, do I keep her and run her in to the ground or do I change her in for something shiny and new? It is so hard to resist the pull of a new car or a new mobile phone (maybe the next blog?). I think I may have been a magpie in a previous life, oh the new shiny things!
Where do you start when picking your new vehicle. The very vehicle which will help you look cool and attract males at traffic lights. I only have a £3k deposit, not a lot but enough for what I need. I start off with Ford and consider upgrading to a new Focus. They have many 'extras' that could be useful, but they soon add up to way beyond my budget. I have since discovered my granddad bought one, the new style has a lot to answer for - yuk!
How about Renault? I could see myself nipping round town in a Clio. Speedy, sporty and reasonably priced. My boyfriend decides parts are very expensive if and when things go wrong, so I keep searching.
My friend Miriam has got a new company car, a Skoda Fabia 1.4 Diesel, 4 door in black. It looks pretty cool and I think I might want one, but am not sure I can overlook the fact it is a Skoda. The staff at the showroom are friendly, but strangely all wearing cardigans and I decide that although the word 'sport' is emblazoned on the side, I am just not ready!
I would love to have a VW Golf but they are so pricey. I pop in to look at the VW Polo anyway. It is quite pricey even with absolutely no 'extras'. When I ask for floor mats to be throw in, the sales rep nearly chokes.
A little birdie tells me the VW chassis are the same as Seats, the Ibiza being equivalent to the VW Polo. I have never really heard about Seat much, although I think everyone can relate to 'Auto Emocion' these days. I locate my nearest Seat Garage on the Kent Business Directory and take a trip to Maidstone.
The sales guy is completely useless but it doesn’t matter as I am hooked. The Ibiza is gorgeous. I can have climate control, power steering, central locking, metallic paint, CD player and ABS for 9K, bargain!
I have picked the colour and have all but handed them the keys to my Ford KA but I decide to get my friend Miriam to see what she thinks of the colour. Thank goodness she did as I would have made a very expensive mistake.
I always wanted a dark grey, gunmetal coloured car and Seat had one called grey. This should really be renamed brown or tan! Miriam and I discovered Pearl Blue, otherwise known as gunmetal grey! Perfect!
The deal was done and my new Seat Ibiza was delivered with 4 miles on the clock and I was full of 'Auto Emocion'.
Oh and I got free floor mats too!
Tuesday 2 March 2010
A Tidy Control Freak!
My clothes are split in to work and play. They split again in to tops, jeans, jumpers, coats.... the list goes on.
It makes me feel inner calm when I know I am organised and my drawers are neat. This is not the case with one of my best friends, who shall remain nameless. We will call her ‘Stig’....'of the dump' that is, not the Topgear mystery man. Stig has recently been to my flat and has admired my tidy shelves so last weekend she enlisted my help to sort her ‘stuff’ out.
We are meant to start at 10am. After meeting at 1pm at the Harvester for lunch we eventually got started at 4pm.
I have never seen such a large collection of clothes. I think she has kept every item of clothing she has ever bought.
We started in the first brimming Ikea wardrobe and worked our way along. I take the items and hold them up. She deliberates over each one like it is a relative she has to kill before deciding that, despite not having worn the out of date, lemon, sparkly 'vest top' from Select since she brought it home, that she is going to keep it in the wardrobe!! She is going to try and wear it as she feels guilty that it still has the label on it. It is irrelevant to her that it was £2, doesn’t fit over her ample bossom, and it is completely out of date.
I’m telling you her idea of a ‘classic’ vastly differs from mine. I must say it is a shame that she has spent her hard earned cash on 'discounted' items from Oasis, Warehouse, Debenhams, Select, New Look and Primark. Put her infront of a sign saying '10 tops for a £1' and she just can’t resist. Oasis could have been entirely restocked from her wardrobe alone.
We have decided to split the unwanted items 3 ways. There are the pieces with labels still on that will be sold at a boot fare when the weather improves. No one buys vest tops in the snow! There are the bags to go to Oxfam and other charity shops, someone will buy it, right? And then there is the stuff so hideous and bobbly that not even birds would nest in it. These are thrown out with the 1000 hangers she has acquired.
On to shoes, I know some people have an addiction, but £10 pairs from Primarny (Primark) should not be deemed collectable and 'too good to wear'.
I have 10 pairs of shoes to suit any occasion. Dune and Nine West have done well out of me. They are classic, elegant and worth preserving. They were not expensive as in Manolo Blahnik terms but they have a certain quality.
Anyway, I divulge...back to Stig. We have 9 bin bags full of clothes that are ‘out’. I am worried that after I leave her house some will be transferred back to the wardrobes. Stig claims she likes to buy ‘different’ outfits. She may like to buy them but has never worn them. She has many dresses that have been worn to christenings and weddings that she claims she will wear again. For example, a dress that she paid Debenhams £70 for and has never ever worn must remain, 'just in case'. It would have been perfect for that 1980s summer wedding and maybe for fancy dress after that - but that would have been it. I have told her that if she turns up for a night on the town in any of these outfits she will be on her own. I have some dignity you know.
To my great delight Stig has met a new man. He has some pennies and is used to all things good in life. Im not sure the New Look wrap around luminous number is going to fit the bill. I have told her not to shop alone again and I plan to keep tight control of her wardrobe. She will never be allowed to sit in first class next to her new beau in that outfit!
I love the Stig, in a platonic way, and hope that she can curb her incredible appetite for a bargain!
It makes me feel inner calm when I know I am organised and my drawers are neat. This is not the case with one of my best friends, who shall remain nameless. We will call her ‘Stig’....'of the dump' that is, not the Topgear mystery man. Stig has recently been to my flat and has admired my tidy shelves so last weekend she enlisted my help to sort her ‘stuff’ out.
We are meant to start at 10am. After meeting at 1pm at the Harvester for lunch we eventually got started at 4pm.
I have never seen such a large collection of clothes. I think she has kept every item of clothing she has ever bought.
We started in the first brimming Ikea wardrobe and worked our way along. I take the items and hold them up. She deliberates over each one like it is a relative she has to kill before deciding that, despite not having worn the out of date, lemon, sparkly 'vest top' from Select since she brought it home, that she is going to keep it in the wardrobe!! She is going to try and wear it as she feels guilty that it still has the label on it. It is irrelevant to her that it was £2, doesn’t fit over her ample bossom, and it is completely out of date.
I’m telling you her idea of a ‘classic’ vastly differs from mine. I must say it is a shame that she has spent her hard earned cash on 'discounted' items from Oasis, Warehouse, Debenhams, Select, New Look and Primark. Put her infront of a sign saying '10 tops for a £1' and she just can’t resist. Oasis could have been entirely restocked from her wardrobe alone.
We have decided to split the unwanted items 3 ways. There are the pieces with labels still on that will be sold at a boot fare when the weather improves. No one buys vest tops in the snow! There are the bags to go to Oxfam and other charity shops, someone will buy it, right? And then there is the stuff so hideous and bobbly that not even birds would nest in it. These are thrown out with the 1000 hangers she has acquired.
On to shoes, I know some people have an addiction, but £10 pairs from Primarny (Primark) should not be deemed collectable and 'too good to wear'.
I have 10 pairs of shoes to suit any occasion. Dune and Nine West have done well out of me. They are classic, elegant and worth preserving. They were not expensive as in Manolo Blahnik terms but they have a certain quality.
Anyway, I divulge...back to Stig. We have 9 bin bags full of clothes that are ‘out’. I am worried that after I leave her house some will be transferred back to the wardrobes. Stig claims she likes to buy ‘different’ outfits. She may like to buy them but has never worn them. She has many dresses that have been worn to christenings and weddings that she claims she will wear again. For example, a dress that she paid Debenhams £70 for and has never ever worn must remain, 'just in case'. It would have been perfect for that 1980s summer wedding and maybe for fancy dress after that - but that would have been it. I have told her that if she turns up for a night on the town in any of these outfits she will be on her own. I have some dignity you know.
To my great delight Stig has met a new man. He has some pennies and is used to all things good in life. Im not sure the New Look wrap around luminous number is going to fit the bill. I have told her not to shop alone again and I plan to keep tight control of her wardrobe. She will never be allowed to sit in first class next to her new beau in that outfit!
I love the Stig, in a platonic way, and hope that she can curb her incredible appetite for a bargain!
Sunday 28 February 2010
My Eyes...
I wake up in the morning and the whole world is a blur. I can’t see my feet let alone anything further than that! I fumble around for my glasses on the bedside table and all becomes clear.
I have worn glasses and contact lenses since I was 10 and at the age of 32 I am now considering laser eye surgery.
Over the last 6 months I have paid attention to the Ultralase, Optical Express and Optimax adverts on the TV and in the national press. I am tempted as Optimax advertise from £395 per eye. I can afford that I think! As with anything there is a cheap, lower end and the more you research the more you end up paying. Lasek, Lasik, Intralase the options go on! Do I want a recover time of weeks or hours? Do I want to pay £800 or £4000? Of course it’s the lesser but I figured when it comes to your eyes, of which you will only ever have one pair, you only want the best!
Now comes the dilemma, how to raise the funds. I consider a loan from Lloyds TSB, bank of mum and dad, or to pay in instalments to Ultralase, Optimax or Optical Express.
The next step is picking the right company. Having been bombarded with literature in the post from Optimax and also frequent phone calls I opted for Ultralase, after all Jonathan Edwards can’t be wrong - right? It seemed more pricey with Ultralase which was somehow reassuring to me and they were not willing to negotiate on price, well not for long anyway!
I booked my 2 hour consultation which was extremely thorough and I felt at ease. I was in good hands with Ultralase in Maidstone, Kent.
The next choice was the surgeon, Yes they actually let you chose! The beauty of private I guess. This is a whole different topic. How many procedures have they done? Is 18000 tries enough? Are they accredited by the Royal College of Opthalmologists? Do they have certificates in refractive surgery? Mr Ammar Almasri seemed the best match and he specialises in patients with astigmatism. For those of you who wonder..... it means rugby ball shaped eyes.
......So I have a surgeon and I’m booked in. The wait is only 3 weeks.
They don’t explain the procedure to you at the consultations and there is a good reason for this. It was not pleasant! You put shoe and head covers on then see the nurse who puts drops in your eyes and takes you to lie down on the operating table. They numb your eyes with drops, theres no needles, and then make the laser cut which is the LASIK treatment. They then laser the eye. Prepare to smell burning. Yes, your own eye. The do both eyes virtually together so you can’t get one done then think you might leave! I must stress this does not hurt one bit and once they have put your cornea back, you are done. 20 minutes for both eyes. You then go to the recovery room to relax. It’s hard to relax when you don’t know if you can still see or not. Within another 20 mins you get taken into another room for an eye test with the surgeon,
It has worked!
I can see my feet, the door and the big letter at the top of the chart. Who knew it was an 'A! That evening I can see everything and after one day the mild pain has passed and my eyesight is 2020. For a month or two I had to wear my sunglasses on bright sunny days, and yes I even wore my Prada sunglasses at my desk, Zar Zar Gabor is my new nickname at work!
It’s been 6 months now, my night vision is excellent, I can tolerate sunlight like I used to and I can see my feet when I wake up. The staff at Ultralase were amazing and the aftercare was second to none. I can definitely recommend Ultralase. Sorry Optimax I know you still send me mail every week but you are too late!
I have worn glasses and contact lenses since I was 10 and at the age of 32 I am now considering laser eye surgery.
Over the last 6 months I have paid attention to the Ultralase, Optical Express and Optimax adverts on the TV and in the national press. I am tempted as Optimax advertise from £395 per eye. I can afford that I think! As with anything there is a cheap, lower end and the more you research the more you end up paying. Lasek, Lasik, Intralase the options go on! Do I want a recover time of weeks or hours? Do I want to pay £800 or £4000? Of course it’s the lesser but I figured when it comes to your eyes, of which you will only ever have one pair, you only want the best!
Now comes the dilemma, how to raise the funds. I consider a loan from Lloyds TSB, bank of mum and dad, or to pay in instalments to Ultralase, Optimax or Optical Express.
The next step is picking the right company. Having been bombarded with literature in the post from Optimax and also frequent phone calls I opted for Ultralase, after all Jonathan Edwards can’t be wrong - right? It seemed more pricey with Ultralase which was somehow reassuring to me and they were not willing to negotiate on price, well not for long anyway!
I booked my 2 hour consultation which was extremely thorough and I felt at ease. I was in good hands with Ultralase in Maidstone, Kent.
The next choice was the surgeon, Yes they actually let you chose! The beauty of private I guess. This is a whole different topic. How many procedures have they done? Is 18000 tries enough? Are they accredited by the Royal College of Opthalmologists? Do they have certificates in refractive surgery? Mr Ammar Almasri seemed the best match and he specialises in patients with astigmatism. For those of you who wonder..... it means rugby ball shaped eyes.
......So I have a surgeon and I’m booked in. The wait is only 3 weeks.
They don’t explain the procedure to you at the consultations and there is a good reason for this. It was not pleasant! You put shoe and head covers on then see the nurse who puts drops in your eyes and takes you to lie down on the operating table. They numb your eyes with drops, theres no needles, and then make the laser cut which is the LASIK treatment. They then laser the eye. Prepare to smell burning. Yes, your own eye. The do both eyes virtually together so you can’t get one done then think you might leave! I must stress this does not hurt one bit and once they have put your cornea back, you are done. 20 minutes for both eyes. You then go to the recovery room to relax. It’s hard to relax when you don’t know if you can still see or not. Within another 20 mins you get taken into another room for an eye test with the surgeon,
It has worked!
I can see my feet, the door and the big letter at the top of the chart. Who knew it was an 'A! That evening I can see everything and after one day the mild pain has passed and my eyesight is 2020. For a month or two I had to wear my sunglasses on bright sunny days, and yes I even wore my Prada sunglasses at my desk, Zar Zar Gabor is my new nickname at work!
It’s been 6 months now, my night vision is excellent, I can tolerate sunlight like I used to and I can see my feet when I wake up. The staff at Ultralase were amazing and the aftercare was second to none. I can definitely recommend Ultralase. Sorry Optimax I know you still send me mail every week but you are too late!
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