Black Boxes

Last night I had a lovely evening out at the launch of Caroline Smailes' new novel, Black Boxes, at Borders in Oxford Street. Sadly I couldn't make it in time to hear Caroline read, but she looked gorgeous and had a constant stream of customers at her signing table, while her husband and three beautiful children helped out amongst the guests.

It was rather like a bloggers reunion...lots of lovely Novel Racers, of course, including Liz on a flying visit back from the Middle East, but I also met Helen - who has written some great reviews for bookersatz - Sue Guiney and DJ Kirkby for the first time, all of whom were so friendly and it was great to see Sarah Salway again ( for those of you who don't know, Sarah co-edited the book Your Messages in which I got my first pieces published in print earlier this year).

Despite my lateness I arrived before the wine ran out and I came away with a signed copy of Black Boxes, which I am very much looking forward to reading. Having just done the OU E301 course, I now have an even greater appreciation of Caroline's style and how she has brought her linguistics background to play in her novel writing. It is all very clever, but those of you who have read any of Caroline's books will already know that!

Three notable things:

1. My end of course assessment for E301 is finished. I proofread it on the tube into London last night, put a few minor adjustments in this morning, will print it over the weekend and it will go on Monday. Hooray!

2. The results of all the tests my mother has been given are starting to come in. Nothing too awful yet but no firm conclusions either.

3. If you like knitting take a look at this new online shop, Cafe Knit. I think the website design is just beautiful.

A new autism blog

Well, new to me anyway.

Yesterday I discovered Living not Drowning, quite by chance. I happen to know lovely Karen and her two beautiful children, but I had no idea she was also a blogger. Reading her blog took me back to how it was for us ten years ago, how stressful it was finding a school placement for son 2 and just dealing with life in general. It also made me appreciate how much easier son 2 is now, or perhaps it is just that my own ability to cope with him has improved.

If you have any interest in autism or living with a child with special needs do read Karen's blog, a beautifully written and honest account of the daily struggles. Oh and she is not just a wonderful mum but a great knitter too!

Three notable things:

1. The world of finance seems to be collapsing around us. Of course I should understand what is going on, but it is so long since I worked fulltime in auditing that it is a total mystery. I'm a little concerned for a friend whose husband works for HBOS though.

2. I'm about half way through my end of course assessment, with less than two weeks before it needs to be submitted. At least I have got some sort of structure to the essay at last and know roughly where I am heading. That's a start.

3. Everyone in the house is either coughing or sneezing...

Ebooks

I wandered into our local Waterstone's last Saturday and whilst I was browsing I came across the Sony Ebook reader which they have just launched there. Being curious, I had to have a little look.

I want to like ebooks. I quite like gadgets, so the idea of getting so many volumes on one little piece of equipment is appealing. It would certainly save space in our house which is looking more and more like a public library ( but less tidy). I do sometimes read ebooks on my laptop now, just to save a few trees.

But I don't think I could justify buying an ebook reader. For a start there is the cost...£200 before you've even put a book on it. Yes the Sony comes with a vast CD of out-of-copyright classics, but most classics are available to download as free ebooks anyway if you search the web. Another ebook reader available in the UK costs almost £400. Then there is the cost of the books themselves. Ebooks are only marginally cheaper than the list price of their print equivalent, depite the fact that once the ebook has been produced there is no ongoing manufacturing cost. Why, when I can walk up the road and pick up a paperback novel for as little as 39p in our local hospice charity shop, would I want to pay that much money (except perhaps for books that are hard to source)?

Then there is the digital rights problem. Ebooks come in a number of formats which are not compatible with each other. Not every book is published in every format and they can only be read by the purchaser on a small number of compatible and registered gadgets. So if you go with Sony now, you may well be tying yourself into Sony in the long term...fine if you get on with it, not so good if you don't.

I'll admit that I do have some ebooks on my computer and two different ebook readers...Microsoft Reader and Adobe Digital Editions. Many of the books are classics I have downloaded for free, others are slightly obscure writing textbooks or other nonfiction which I have purchased electronically to save space at home. I don't really enjoy reading books on a screen enough to read for pleasure that way, so for now I don't really see the point of an ebook reader. I don't commute, I don't go on long flights,I'm quite happy with just a paperback stuffed into my handbag when needed.

The only ebook benefit I can see is that because the print can be resized I can pop some OU manuals and other textbooks onto a memory stick and read them on the tiny screen of my Eee pc using Microsoft Reader or Adobe Reader, if I am away from home. For now I think that will have to do, though of course were I to be given a Sony Reader for Christmas I'm sure I could probably be converted...

Three notable things:

1. Got son 1 to the dentist yesterday. He did have to have one filling but it was only a tiny one and was done then and there.

2. The juggling the doctor's appointments on Monday didn't work out well. I just knew it wouldn't!

3. Better late than never, I forgot to mention earlier that the lovely Calistro has had not one but two bits of brilliant and well-deserved writing news recently, something to give hope to us all!

The hockey mom

I'm fascinated by Sarah Palin. It's always good to see a woman being given the opportunity to reach a high level in politics, the workplace, anything. She's attractive, feisty, talks the talk...

BUT.

Her beliefs are reactionary. She apparently doesn't believe in abortion, whatever the circumstances of conception, even rape. She thinks that teenagers should be taught abstinence as contraception. Now I am not for one minute suggesting that Sarah's 17 year old daughter Bristol should have had an abortion, she is above the age of consent and that choice is for her and her alone. I am not too sure that I would be happy about my 17 year old getting married, but again that is the young couple's personal choice. At least I hope it is. What worries me is that Sarah Palin's conservative policy views would not enable other teenagers to have choices in future, nor help educate them in safe sex. Even the experiences of her own family have not made her get real.

What concerns me even more is that Sarah is the mother of a five month old son with Down's Syndrome. Again I respect her decision to carry on with the pregnancy, if indeed she knew the diagnosis before birth. I do not in any way believe that all disabled babies should be aborted, to do so would devalue the life of my own son. After all, many disabilities cannot be detected in the womb or actually occur due to birth accidents. But I do defend the opportunity for parents to have information and choices where appropriate.

At five months old it is surely too early to establish what that child's prognosis is, beyond recognising or ruling out some perhaps medical issues such as the heart problems which are common with the syndrome. For every happy, smiley child with Down's, there is probably a much more severely learning disabled one. A dual diagnosis of Down's and autism is not uncommon, with all the behavioural problems that can bring. All children with the syndrome will require support throughout their lives.

I have personal experience of how much attention a child with special needs requires in the early years. The importance of early intervention. The number of therapy and assessment appointments which must be attended. The battles to get the right help, the right education (though I guess a Governor/possible Vice President might not have to fight the same battles?). It's hard enough to balance all that with one other child and a very part-time job. I can only assume that Sarah Palin does not intend to take on the role of main carer herself. But what about the emotional impact of just being his Mum?

I wish her luck with her family.

Three notable things:

1. The doctor's surgery had misbooked my appointment for next Thursday instead of today. I have had to rebook for Monday and will be rushing from one doctor for myself to another to discuss son 2's x-ray...

2. I have a written a little more of my assessment today but have found it hard to concentrate because of...

3. ....Caroline's Black Boxes Widget! If you are visiting my blog from the widget please do stop and say hello in the comments, so I can visit you too! ( PS who on earth would offer the choice of toothache or migraine?!)

Ooh...

Today a parcel arrived via DHL. The materials for the new OU Advanced Creative Writing Course, mailed out a good week earlier than we had expected.

I've taken a look. I think it will be challenging and a little scary, I can't wait for the course to start.

But until then I have packed the book away, because I've still got my end of course assessment for the current course to write. Mustn't let myself get too distracted...

Three notable things:

1. If, like me, you won't be reading the novels shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize, you can take a shortcut here.

2. This morning I had my teeth cleaned by the dental hygienist, at great expense. Son 1, who had announced that dentists were for wimps, or words to that effect, suddenly decided this evening that I should book a long overdue check up for him...

3. Lovely Caroline Smailes has a new novel, Black Boxes, coming out this month. She has a fantastic new widget on her blog ( and now on here too), which will take you on a decision based blog adventure. Go and play, it's addictive fun...

Taking stock

It's been a funny old year so far. If I tried to tell someone what has gone on, they probably wouldn't believe that so much could happen in one family in a period of six months.

Son 1 and the remaining grandparents all still have health challenges ahead. Yesterday my Mum had a brain scan, today she sees a psychologist ( or maybe psychiatrist, I'm not certain). Hopefully at the end of all her assessments a clearer picture and possible prognosis will emerge.

I'm in the finishing straight of my OU E301 course, with just the end of course assessment to complete in the next three weeks. It has been a real challenge to do the course alongside all the family crises but I'm glad I stuck with it. The course has been fascinating and challenging in equal measures, but I have certainly learned a lot.

A new creative writing course is on the horizon and I hope it will banish the writer's block which E301 induced. I am really looking forward to kick-starting my creative side again. Then I have to make some serious decisions about whether to apply for an MA course for next year or wait a little, bearing in mind that I am not getting any younger...

Three notable things:

1. Son 2 went back to school this term with a skip and a smile.

2. Andy Murray has just beaten Rafael Nadal for the first time. He can obviously play tennis but I do wish someone would send him to charm school...

3. Although I am usually pretty apolitical, I am fascinated by what currently happening in the USA. Whichever side wins, there will certainly be a big step forward in equal opportunities. But...( and I may come back to this another day!)

Gadget girl

I'm writing this from my parents house in Devon on my new toy, an Asus Eee pc 901, using a mobile broadband gadget. Just because I can.

Home tomorrow and I will catch up more then.

Well, that was easy...

On Tuesday we had to take Son 2 to the hospital for a knee x-ray. It wasn't urgent, we know the limp he displays is probably congenital, but having consulted our GP about it last week we needed to get it done.

After previous difficult experiences, I know that a non-emergency hospital visit has to be planned like a military campaign. One thing that autistic people don't do well is wait patiently, especially in crowded waiting rooms. The outpatient x-ray department in our hospital is right next door to the pharmacy, with one open-plan waiting area for both. During the day it is chaotic.

So the first part of the plan was to phone ahead and check the potentially quietest time, which turned out to be around 7pm. We then had to choose our day...both Hubby and I would need to be available to go and we decided that Son 2 would be more co-operative if he hadn't just had a long day at playscheme. We settled on Tuesday, a whole week after we'd actually seen the GP.

On the day I used our symbol software to write a social story for Son 2, explaining the timetable for the evening. Hubby bought a new DVD as a bribe/reward, which son 2 could carry into the hospital. When we arrived, we were lucky enough to find a free disabled parking space and Son 2 trotted happily into the building. The x-ray department was empty. Despite a short hold up at the desk because our GP had not put the surgery details on the form (luckily I know them by heart!), Son 2 was seen immediately. He co-operated to the best of his ability and the job was soon done with no stress involved for anyone.

Back to the car, breathing a sigh of relief, only to get caught in the heaviest downpour you could imagine. But as we finally turned into our road we we were greeted by the sight of a beautiful double rainbow...

Three notable things:

1. After a freezing cold start to the day it is warm and sunny, just as summer should be.

2. I am nervously awaiting the return of my last Open University assignment, whilst trying to concentrate on planning the next.

3. The GB team is doing quite well at the Olympics so far, despite a few disasters...

Credit crunch

So how is it affecting you?

I was interested to read this article yesterday, saying that the food bill for the average family has risen by £27 a week, as that is exactly what I had thought. We are an average size family (although two teenage boys do eat more than average...) and I was only thinking last week that I seemed to be spending around £25 a week more, even though I don't shop extravagantly.

Then of course there are the fuel price increases. We are a two car family but getting rid of one is not an option, as Hubby uses his for work and I need my tiny old car to taxi Son 2 around, even though I use public transport myself whenever possible. We use the washing machine and tumble dryer at least once a day because of the mess Son 2 creates, though we haven't replaced the broken dishwasher. The house needs to be heated all day in winter as I work mainly from home. Our council tax is already huge and will no doubt increase even further.

But in many ways we are lucky. Our mortgage is finally paid off, five years early. We had a deliberate policy to make the most of a more prosperous cycle (Hubby, being originally an economist, is quite tuned into the cycles of the economy) and were also lucky enough to inherit some money to pay off a chunk. So we are not going to get caught out by rising interest rates or the need to find a new mortgage at the end of a fixed rate deal. Although house prices are falling, our house is still currently worth about twice what we have spent on it. After all, what is most important is having a place to live and it is just about big enough for us all (though the conservatory plans are on hold temporarily).

We live for now. What we don't have is adequate pension provision, because living on one and a little bit salaries we can't afford to pay into pension plans. Our eggs are all in one basket as far as work is concerned, since I am also employed as a very part-time accountant by Hubby's company, so if it were to fail we'd lose both salaries at once. He works in an industry that is already seeing a huge downturn, though the nature of his work is perhaps more recession proof than some. We are about to lose child benefit for Son 1 as he is not going to college yet. The complications of the benefit system and the need for after school and holiday care restrict my own earnings capacity, otherwise we could end up worse off by losing my Carers Allowance.

We are OK for now. We are not in debt. We do have some back up savings from the days when we had two well-paid jobs. But I believe the credit crunch is real and it will hit us all hard next winter when our power bills increase. I just pity anyone trying to move house or get on the housing ladder.

Three notable things:

1. Working with the BBC webfeed of the Olympics on in the background and celebrating welcome early British successes.

2. The kindness of the staff who look after Son 2 on holiday playschemes.

3. Trying not to worry too much about the news that my mother is displaying some worrying symptoms of confusion. Best to wait until she has seen the consultants and we find out something more concrete.

Ageing

I'm suddenly feeling rather old.

It's not just the hot flushes, which have hit me in a big way in our humid summer weather.

It's not even the fact that son 1 has officially left school...not that he was actually there for the last two years, but you know what I mean.

Nor is it the fact that all our surviving parents have suddenly become more frail, both mentally and physically, and are likely to need a lot more input from us in future, even though they live so far away.

Most worrying of all is the fact that I'm starting to think I would like to move away from the city. For someone who grew up in the middle of nowhere and worked so hard to be able to move to 'civilisation', that is a shocker. But, even though we live in statistically the safest borough in London, as the mother of teenage boys I worry. London no longer seems civilised. I want out, though that isn't possible due to Hubby's job and son 2's specialist schooling.

Three notable things:

1. Son 2 behaved beautifully when we had to take him to the doctor on Monday.

2. Only one more assignment and a final assessment to go on my course, then I can look forward to studying writing again.

3. One week of son 2's summer holiday down, three to go...

Whoops!

On Saturday morning, at about 8am, there was a loud knock on the front door. I staggered towards it, dressed alluringly in my pyjamas, sporting curry stains from a previous night's dinner, my hair probably something of a birds nest. I was closely followed by a half-naked Son 2.

It was the home delivery parcel man with a box of cheap books from The Book People, which needed my signature. He was quite chirpy for such an early hour, though I did idly wonder why he was so chatty.

Fast forward to Monday lunchtime, another loud knock. Home delivery parcel man again, this time with a box of DVDs son 1 had ordered from Amazon.

'Oh, you're dressed today', he says, sounding a little disappointed.

'I'm sorry, you caught me at a bad moment on Saturday', I reply.

'It wasn't bad for me', he winks.

Oh dear. I think he must have seen more than I intended. I knew I should have done up some of the buttons on that deep neckline...

Three notable things:

1. A busy day yesterday sorting out doctor's appointments, making surreal calls to the Child Benefit office who couldn't answer my question, and working in between on the bookkeeping, until my eyes went funny.

2. A friend called by today with a tray of Italian patisserie, brought home from Lake Garda as a thank you for keeping an eye on their house in their absence last week.

3. After a conversation with a Jewish friend who recently visited Auschwitz, the capture of Radovan Karadzic comes as a relief. Watching the news this morning, I was surprised to learn that he was a actually originally a psychiatrist who had recently been working in a clinic practicing alternative medicine under a false identity. Hopefully this will finally help the families of his victims move on with the rest of their lives.

I'm back

Well it's been almost a month and what better way to mark my return to blogging than meeting up with a crowd of fellow writers and bloggers?

The Novel Racers held a meet in London on Saturday and it was wonderful to meet in real life so many people who I already felt I 'knew' from blogging. They were, without exception, just as lovely as I'd expected and the conversation flowed freely on the fifth floor of Waterstone's, Piccadilly. A great afternoon.

You will also be impressed that I considered the credit crunch and bought no books at all in Waterstone's, though I did treat myself to a pretty little notebook decorated with an antique style butterfly design. Although it was tempting to shop and party on into the evening with those Novel Racers who were staying in Central London, I decided to go home, probably just as well as son 1 arrived home shortly after me, feeling rather ill with a nasty virus.

I still have virtually no time to write for a few weeks, but the Novel Racer meet has invigorated and inspired me and I am looking forward to getting back to work seriously in the autumn.

Three notable things:

1. Son 2 has no school transport for the next two days due to a council strike so I am going to let him stay home, rather than battle dangerously through the rush hour traffic with a child who tries to exit the car each time it grinds to a halt in a traffic jam.

2. Train tickets have been booked for son 1 and I to visit the grandparents at the end of August, provided everyone concerned is well enough.

3. The knee-height grass in the back garden has been hacked back by Hubby, but our garden and our house are both beginning to look in need of some TLC, for which we currently have neither the time nor funds. One day...

Bad blogging

I dropped into Lane's blog this morning and she is apologising for her absence recently. Everything that she says applies to me too...life has just got in the way. I'm sorry.

Please don't give up on me. I am still here, I will be back and posting more regularly as soon as I can. But I'm feeling a little burnt out. Not just from blogging but writing as a whole. I'm saturated in my current OU course which, though fascinating, is very challenging. I have work to do over the next couple of months, of the boring but paid accountancy variety. I have family challenges. The details of my life right now would not make exciting reading for anyone.

I need to take a little time and get my writing mojo back in time for the OU Advanced Creative Writing course starting in the autumn. I need to spend a little more time on bookersatz, so that it doesn't fade away from neglect. I need to concentrate on life at home. I have to be careful what I write in that respect but things are going very well, it is just that the path forward is not likely to be entirely smooth. I need to look after myself.

I will try to pop in and post here at least once a week if possible. I'm sorry that I am not commenting on other peoples blogs as much right now, but I do read as often as I can.

And I will definitely be back properly soon.

When my head clears.

Three notable things

1. Son 2 has taken to getting up between 5 and 5.30am. Even on the occasional day that he sleeps in to say 6.30, I wake up at 5.15. Urgh.

2. The grass in our garden is as high as my knees. We are trying to bribe son 1 to cut it for us...

3. The right person won The Apprentice, given that Raef had already gone.

Flying without wings

It comes as a bit of a shock when your teenager suddenly gets a life. Especially when said teenager has previously been confined to home by anxiety and agoraphobia.

I'm trying really hard not to ring his mobile more than once or twice a day, not to be an overprotective parent even though I have only a rough idea of where he is half the time at weekends. Luckily he is sensible and we trust his judgement, but I guess we are getting into a whole new set of parental worries now.

I do love seeing my offspring take his first tentative flights away from the nest though...

Three notable things

1. The winners of The Orange Broadband Prize and the Award for New Writers have been announced. More details here.

2. I had a great day out on Wednesday helping to teach student health professionals at City University, followed by a lengthy browse around Borders bookshop.

3. Have just realised that I have got an assignment to write urgently at the start of next week, as soon as son 2 returns to school. Although I've done most of the reading I don't know where to start...

I'm back

Oh. My. God.

I've just realised that it has been over a week since I wrote anything here. Sorry. No real excuse, I was just taking a short breather from blogging, and all is well here.

My novel is also still on the backburner due to having to spend all my time on paid work and studying at the moment. I wish I was the sort of writer who could stay up burning the midnight oil, but I'm not. I get too tired, especially when son 2 is deciding to get up ridiculously early...5.30 am on Saturday!

Half term has also just begun. It only seems a minute since he was last on holiday but here we are again, another two week half term, a house full of noise and chaos and me trying to read my study books. The paid work will have to wait until he goes back to school, I'm afraid, though I did do a little yesterday. It is fortunate that my boss is also my husband...

Three notable things...

1. Son 1 had a great weekend at home, doing normal teenage things...

2. It has stopped raining at last.

3. Son 2 will have two days of playscheme this week. Hooray!

Depressing

I'm not usually greatly affected by the news. But these last few weeks have been particularly gloomy. The cyclone in Burma and the refusal of the regime to accept international aid. The earthquake in China and the devasting effects of substandard building. The senseless murder of Jimmy Mizen, contrasted with the quiet dignity of his family. Gordon Brown. The credit crunch and the accompanying feeling of guilt as I shop in Tesco and realise I should look even more closely at every price label...

Then of course there are all the things that have been happening here. Earlier this week a phone call from the hospital, saying that son 1 had done a runner, sent me into a panic. (He hadn't, he was chilling out in the grounds but hadn't told anyone and they didn't search properly). Hubby has been away on a short break since Thursday, so son 2 and I are home alone. So far so good, but I'm exhausted due to sleeping worse than usual.

I've upped my medication temporarily and am floating around in a cloud of relative detachment to get me through this grey, feeling sorry for myself and others phase...

Three notable things:

1. During this difficult period bookersatz is being updated slightly less regularly, but we still welcome contributions at any time and aim to post up at least one review every week.

2. I loved the idea of this poster to encourage kids to read.

3. I so wish I had seen this last month. I'll never be able to go to Liverpool Street station again without thinking of Rick Astley!

Catching up

I think I am currently brain dead.

I spent last week writing an essay. The word 'intertextuality' is now firmly lodged in my brain. Hubby looks despairing when I interrupt a conversation to say 'ooh,that's intertextual'. The essay was sent on Friday, but I have no idea whether I really answered the question. I was just relieved to get rid of it. Now for the second half of the course and a change of emphasis...

My writing has totally stalled, due to the intensity of this course and all the other stuff which is going on around me at home. I am behind in updating bookersatz. I've got books I need to read and review. Another half-term is fast approaching, I have paid work to complete by the summer holidays. I need to get a grip.

Son 1 is still up and down. He's just had a great weekend, but the previous one was difficult, he wasn't well at all. His peers will be starting their GCSEs this week, while he has now been out of education for two years. We live in a different world now.

Three notable things:

1. I have just spent a fortune on new clothes for son 2 who is growing rapidly in all directions...

2. I have finally found another mascara which doesn't irritate my eyes or make me look like a panda, after my old favourite was sadly discontinued. My girlie readers will understand the importance of this!

3. I lost the magnetic bracelet which helps my arthritis in town today.

Up, up and away...

Last Tuesday morning I looked out of the window to see if son 2's school bus had arrived and couldn't believe what I saw. A large bunch of red and silver metallic balloons was bouncing around in the gutter outside our driveway.

I wasn't sure whether to run outside and pick them up, but leaving son 2 unsupervised, even for a moment, can have dangerous consequences and I really didn't want him to become obsessed with balloons just before school. So I decided to leave them, thinking that the breeze would soon take them further on their journey, hopefully before the arrival of the school bus.

Five minutes later the bus was outside the house. The bus driver had parked further out than usual, carefully avoiding the balloons, which were still there. Thankfully son 2, who once had a serious balloon obsession, ignored them completely and was soon on his way. I picked up the balloons and brought them into our porch, thinking they would be an evening treat for him. Each balloon was emblazoned with 'Mercedes Benz Direct'. I still have no idea where they had come from.

After school son 2 completely ignored the balloons in the porch. The same happened on Wednesday. It wasn't until halfway through Thursday evening that he decided they might be fun to destroy. We spent the next two days retrieving helium balloons from our ceilings until he had finally burst them all.

There is no accounting for the autistic mind.

(Yes, I should have taken a photo and no, I couldn't find the camera... Sorry.)

Three notable things:

1. Boris is the new Mayor of London. Hmm. But I can't complain really, as I didn't bother to vote.

2. An Open University day school in London on Saturday gave me a welcome escape.

3. What is it with Austrians and cellars? Life can be stranger than fiction but this latest case is truly horrific beyond belief.

A double tragedy

For a week now I've been meaning to write something about the tragic deaths of Heather Wardle and her disabled son James Hughes. But to be honest I wasn't sure what to write. We can't be certain exactly what happened and in fact we may never know.

Reading about James, hearing of the tributes from his birth father and former headmaster, I was reminded of a less able version of son 2 (who is 14 but functions largely at the level of a 4-5 year old). The whole story seemed too close to home for someone who is already having to start thinking about what might happen to their extremely vulnerable child when he leaves school.

But others have written movingly on the case and their own personal experiences of parenting a disabled child. Between them they have said everything I wanted to and more. Please, please read Claire Bates, Nuala Gardner and Christopher Stevens.

Three notable things:

1. I enjoyed a trip into London for my tutorial on Saturday and even managed to avoid the temptations of Waterstones...

2. Son 2 has, for the last two days, decided that his day should begin at 5am. So mine does too.

3. Son 1 came home with a nasty cold this weekend. Just what we all need!

Meme part 2

The lovely and talented Sarah Salway has tagged me for a meme. I've actually already done this one here but hey, it is the sort that can have many answers, so here goes again:

Rules:
Link to the person that tagged you.
Post the rules on your blog.
Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.
Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.

1. I have a rare genetic condition that means that I need a lot of dental work and my toenails are weird.

2. I am an enthusiast, I throw myself wholeheartedly into new projects and hobbies.

3. I qualified as a Chartered Accountant even though I was by no means guaranteed a pass in my 'O' Level Maths exam at school.

4. On holiday I like to head for galleries, museums and shops...

5. Although I grew up in a rural area, I am a city girl at heart.

6. At university I studied German, French, Italian and Dutch to varying levels. Luckily the Russian Literature course was in translation.

I think most people have already done this one, so I'm not going to tag anyone, if you'd like a(nother) go, feel free.

Three notable things:

1. At the bus stop last Saturday, a man asked me if I spoke French. When I replied 'un peu', he handed me a Jehovah's Witness Watchtower magazine in French...

2. My mark for the OU assignment I did during the height of the crises was very acceptable, even if not quite as good as my first one. I just feel proud to have completed it.

3. Son 2's school was unaffected by the teacher's strike today, thank goodness.