Stormy weather

I am tired of the weather! it has been raining off and on for weeks now and the back yard, paths and garden are totally sodden, dirty and slick. Four dogs and a senile cat who spends the day in and out and out and in, means that the kitchen feels clammy for much of the time, and ( with the risk of sounding like a loon) I have already cleaned the kitchen floor five times today!
I want us to experience crisp dry frosty days with weak sunshine as we are supposed to be experiencing this time of year, and I want to get stuck in with the field, which resembles the quagmire out of All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) !

Worked last night and had an hours sleep this morning before toileting duties. Now I cannot complain as I chose to have a new puppy, but it does feel like hard work after 60 minutes sleep.! The beach walk woke me a little and got thinking of a polish doctor who has just left ITU to go back home. A warm, gentle and ever so self depreciating woman in her early thirties, this doctor had taken the chance to move her young family over to Wales to start a new life. She seemed to struggle with the UK culture and language, but coped , with humour and dignaty. Universally the nursing staff ( historically very tough cookies to win over) liked working with her, and we all were shocked to find out that she is suffereing from terminal cancer, which was diagnosed quite suddenly after a short period of back pain. It is strange , but working amid sudden death and disability, as we do on intensive care, the nursing staff are well used to seeing lives that have been torn apart; yet, the speed of her diagnosis and subsequent departure has created a huge wave of shock and despondency amongst us all which is dreadfull. I was reminded of another close collegue of mine from Sheffield who had been diagnosed with cancer in very similar circumstances. Her funeral was perhaps the saddest I have ever experienced, as it was devoid of any humour or irony. I know this seems like a stupid thing to say, but I always feel that funerals should be bitter sweet, with loss mixed with normal, happier memories. I always remember the rather dry clergyman stating that my collegue had a full and happy life and qualified this by stating she had always enjoyed "Time Team" on tv. ! I almost cried at the emptiness of his remark.!

Message to self.................get more sleep