Three Decades

The Class of September 1983 with our beloved tutor Leslie Brint

Exactly 30 years ago, I was a gauche, slightly immature twenty one year old Welshman. Who had just left a ' secure' yet mind numbingly boring career at the Nat West Bank for pastures new.
 I was also one of just seven brand new student nurses who entered their Mental Health Nurse Training at The Countess of Chester Hospital in Chester. We were nervous  little souls all told, and were an eclectic bunch that found themselves entering a vocation just as the demise of the old asylum system had been implemented .
It was all a long time ago
My nursing career has meandered from my training in Chester to staffing on a "Mother & Baby" Unit  at Bootham Park Hospital in York ( mums with Post puerperal depression and psychosis). From there I leapfrogged into general nursing in Sheffield, where I ended up at the flagship Spinal Injury Unit for over fifteen happy years.
Since our move to Wales, I have worked part time on Intensive Care
30 years all told........It's a sobering thought

And what has a career in nursing taught me?
Well
It's taught me the ability to read people, I think.
It's taught me a certain degree of sympathy and warmth for people
And it has homed a slightly irreverent sense of humour
But, I know that after three decades, I can now appreciate the fact that  its not that long before I can retire
 ......it's almost time to go, me thinks.

Hey ho
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Changing the subject... I thought you may appreciate a Winifred update.
Well Chris survived a day alone with her yesterday when I was at work and this morning, he gave her a quick early walk before he went to work, which was sweet of him.
The old bear continues to settle in quite nicely.

Cottage Night

a Welsh love spoon hanging by the fire

Autumn is definitely here. The Atlantic storm, which was promised,has hit North Wales though the rain held off a little so when I got home after a full day on Intensive care , I had enough time to lock the hens up.

The cottage has started again, to look cozy in an evening.

Low lighting and the glow from the coal fire

That's how cottages look their best

With A Wave

Chris is away today on a short course. 

I have spent part of the morning mooching around Bosoms and have picked some late peas for tea as Meg sniffed around Winifred and William sat in front of the rabbit hutch..

I bumped into villager Stan this morning. the cheerful octogenarian was out for his daily two mile walk, and he stopped me briefly for a chat.

" You did well on your open day" he said and after I agreed, he added seriously "The Church thanks you for what you have done"

Stan is one of the worshippers at St Michael's, so it was a nice thing for him to say.

With a smile he carried on his way for twenty feet or so after we chatted, then turned and waved his hand

"God Bless You!" he called out strongly before walking away

Funny, I am not religeous in any way

but his good wishes moved me greatly

Pucker Up

Just been to one of my last Samaritan's training sessions

And was Late home

At 10.45 pm, as I finally sat down heavily in my old arm chair

Winifred dragged herself from her kitchen bed

Walked slowly into the living room and somewhat theatrically 

Offered her face to me for a kiss.
I gave her a big smacker and

seemingly satisfied she then ever so slowly ambled back to bed.........

.........I think we have bonded

Introductions

Winnie Watching Albert carefully  who was spying on her from behind the hostas

Introducing a new dog to an established pack can be fraught with difficulties. The secret , I have found, is to keep calm yourself, remove all leads and make sure that characters involved are in a large open area. Dogs when they are stressed must not feel cornered.
I need not have worried.
Meg, who is not a lover of other bitches, kept her head low for the meeting and seemed to sense that the huge bear of a bulldog, which is Winnie, was no threat to her.She was interested and cautious whereas Winnie was unconcerned and almost mildly amused with the whole proceeding as one after another the pack sniffed and circled her.
William walked off after a minute or so,  to spend his time staring at the empty half of the rabbit hutch in the vain attempt to catch a glimpse of Mary and George, knowing full well that I was busy supervising, sneaked over to the Ukrainian village to search for eggs.
This left the two bitches to get to know each other.
Meg followed Winnie and Winnie bulldozed her way through the field.
William smiled his goo goo smile at the rabbit hutch and George tucked into a late duck egg.
And Albert walked by, with his big yellow eyes slightly larger and more surprised than normal
It was all a bit of an anticlimax.

Given the fact that Winnie was the new girl, on a new field, with a new " owner" and an audience of poultry, 2 strange looking ewes and a moulting turkey looking on, she took the whole experience in her stride.
It's early days I know. But the first meeting was promising.

Winifred

She's a big lump of a bulldog

Is Winnie

Four years old

Not fazed by anything

She has just met three new dogs, a wide eyed black cat

And 50 hens

And is now, sleeping a slightly stressed bulldog sleep on the hearth rug 

Hey ho

swaps

A clue....?

It was quiet at work tonight

So I swapped my shift to cover staff shortages next week

It worked out well

I shall be busy tomorrow

Watch this space!

Bake Off Week 4

Howard...a nice guy even when  Deborah stole his custard

Its a bit of a non news day today.... am working night shift tonight....so apologies for those non Uk readers for a bit of a Uk TV based blog entry. The Great British Bake Off continued last night and I must admit the BBC has done it again , as a simple cookery programme is transformed into a soap in which you start to root for your favourite characters.
Top of my list must be Howard, a wry, sensitive Yorkshireman who cried when the cute and rather innovative Ali was voted off last night. He may not be as talented as the luminous Kimberly or student Ruby, but there is a niceness about him which is rather appealing.
" Nice" is perhaps a byword for Bake Off
Christine, the oldest member of the group is a sweetie, so is the rotund wisecracking teacher Glen who endeared himself to the audience by covering his eyes so dramatically when Mel and  Sue tried to help Howard save his filo pastry ring from its container. and it makes a nice change to be able to sit down with a cuppa to watch nice people, doing nice things in a nice programme.
Sometimes nice is just right.