Update, at last!

Well, i'm disillusioned with the whole blog thing, mainly because I never seem to have time to update any more, but also because I don't know if anyone's even bothering to read it. I hope someone is... occasionally even would be good!

It's been that long since I updated that I can't remember half of what i'm supposed to tell you. I managed to get a lift part of the way home from London on Friday though, which was nice. I was still really really tired at that point, and everything was getting to me. I was fed up, tired of running around, sickk of being in the red with the bank, and really worried about my Granny, who's really not well at the minute. of course, because I was tired, everything was magnified right out of proportion. I came home, got dinner, did my job hunt on the computer, and then just forced myself to get into bed. It took ages, but eventually I did sleep, and got about 6 or 7 hours uninterrupted. Of course, that meant I slept fitfully for the rest of the night, but i didn't mind it so much.

I don't have a clue what I did on Saturday. I can't remember at all, but i suspect most of it was spent prepping for the job interview I had coming. on Sunday, I had to travel down there. Thankfully, that friend of mine had agreed to be my PA for the interview, which was great, because there was a practical element. So we travelled down together, and spent a night in the greatest of hotels, commonly known as the Travel Lodge. If you've ever stayed there, you'll know how special it is! A word to the wise though. The Little Chef, at 9 o'clock is not to be tampered with. It really doesn't go down well as a late night dinner, and it's so expensive too! Cost us £23 for scampy and chips and chicken and chips. What a rip off!

Monday was great though. I got up really early so that i'd be awake and ready for the day. Putting on my old tracksuit bottoms and chavvy white polo shirt was such a blast from the past though. I never thought i'd wear my uni clothes in propper practice, but here I was, on the way to an interview, dressed in clothes that are actually super comfortable.

As soon as I got there I knew i'd love the place. People are usually really snooty when I rock up with the dog and a suitcase or small rucksack. Thing is though, when you travel with a hound, you can't travel light. You've got to bring food, bowls for food and water, and even a bed for her, if we're staying out all night. But these folk were great. They didn't mention the case, other than to commiserate on how much I had to carry. They even took Molly, and spoiled her rotten all day while I was working with the kids.

So, dog-less, suitcase-less, and with one more assistant than i'd had a minute before, I went to begin my interview. There were four of us being interviewed that day, with more to come the day after. I'd been allocated the second youngest group of kids, who were all around the age of 5. This is my favourite age to work with them at, so I was more than pleased. Any younger, and they're moody and difficult to handle. Much older, and they start to wonder why I have to touch them so much, when the other therapists don't. This leads to lengthy explannations of, "My eyes are broke. It happened in my mummy's tummy." But of course, the 'why' questions never stop there, do they? I went in when they were doing a task series; a programme of activities designed to give them transferrable movement skills that they can use elsewhere. Yesterday, we were looking at going to the doctor, and they were practicing getting on and off the bed, pulling themselves into different positions, rolling and that sort of thing. We also got used to showing the doctor our tummies, and working out that it wasn't scary to get touched there. In fact, sometimes it was quite nice, as my little boy thought when i tickled him. He was super cute, actually. He had one of those very infectious baby laughs, and the most gorgeous fat little belly, just right for tickling. He also sang with gusto, which was great, as not many of the other kids could sing, due to the effects of the CP.

Once they were done, I had a quick tour of the school, and then it was back to the group to help with an English lesson. This involved teaching one of the girls how to use switches to access a computer. The computer systems available are so complex now. There's one that even tracks the direction your eyes are looking, so you don't need to toggle switches or anything. this set up was very simple; a switch for cycling through choices, and another for selecting the one you wanted. But the therapy centred around getting the movement coordinated and precise enough to use the system properly. She was a smart one, grasping the concept behind the switches very, very quickly. But, sad to say, I missed the end of the story about Daisy and her pet dinosaur, Thingy. How gutted was I when I had to grab a quick lunch before my interview! Lasagne, or Daisy? Oh, the difficulty of the choice!

We got free lunches. Apparently, it's a perk of being staff or a guest that you get free hot food. Good system, I say! After eating quickly, I ran down and got changed in the changing room set aside for us, namely the disabled toilet in reception. Thankfully though, there wasn't the usual wee puddle on the floor, so I changed into decent interview clothes without fear of contamination from nuclear spillages.

The interview went so well. I had them all laughing, and even agreeing with my philosophy behind work. Honestly, if I don't get the job, there's nothing I can specifically point out that caused the failure. The staff liked me, the kids liked me, and the therapists were comfortable enough to just leave me with a child to get on with their lesson. That, to me, speaks volumes.

I was a bit naughty though. I came out of the interview and got chatting to the next one to go in, who was very, very nervous. i said things like, "oh, don't worry about it. They're all really nice. You've got the principle and the vice principle, the head of the physio department, and the head of another department. They're all very influential people, but honestly, don't worry!" and, "Oh, rest easy. The questions are really easy. *pause for thought*. Ok, so most of them are easy, but you'll manage. Oh, what's that you say? your mind goes blank at a difficult question? Honestly, most of them are fine. There's only the odd stonking one." Oh, aren't I bad!

I felt a bit guilty for it as I left, but if I can sabotage one interview, that's one less candidate I have to worry about. They seemed to really like me though, so, as I said, i'm hopeful.

Took me 4 and a half hours to get home, and by the time i'd got in, all I wanted was sleep. I threw some chips in the oven, then discovered that Tesco thick cut chips are too horrible to be enjoyed. I ate a couple, then did a job hunt, and went to bed.

This morning was spent getting ready for the interview in Birmingham tomorrow. A friend who worked there a while back says it's a really really good hospital, so now I just have to hope that things go as well tomorrow as they went yesterday. Wish me luck!