The day started badly. The problems I'd had on Friday with BT hadn't been resolved, one of our customers had been without phones all weekend. So the usual routine started of me phoning BT, bosses phoning me, me writing emails to everyone under the sun began. At 11am we got their lines back up, but by that point another customers lines had gone down (2nd time in 2 weeks for that customer) and I'd started the routine over again. I'd also had some ominous news about someone I worked with which had put my head in a spin, and I didn't know whether I was coming or going.
Sitting under the table and crying seemed like a good idea.

By dinnertime things couldn't have got much worse.

So I told my boss I was leaving.

Seriously...

The exciting news I've not been able to say anything about is that I have a new job. I'm going back to work for the NHS as a Residential Support Worker, exactly the same job as I had before moving to Stalybridge, just working for a different NHS trust. I was offered the job in June, and it's taken all this time, 5 months, for me to get all the paperwork sorted and to get a start date. My last day at this place will be 11th November, and I start my new job on Monday 14th.

I have many reasons to be pleased about.

1. I'll be doing shift work again, I hated 9-5.
   
2. I'll be working in a home drinking tea and cleaning up, instead of in an office, answering the phone and sitting at a desk all day (I'm looking forward to losing the weight I've put on.)
   
3. I'll be contracted to work 25 hours a week, instead of 37.5, but there are always extra hours giving me lots of flexibility, bring on the 4 day weekends.
   
4. I'll be closer to home, probably Stockport which is about 25 minutes away. They have a home close to here, so if I'm really lucky I might have a 10 minute walk to work. Either way it has to be better than the 1 hour+ commute each way I have now.
   
5. I'll be working with people with Learning Disabilities again, and while they can sometimes be as frustrating as sales people, they're generally far more entertaining, and much happier.
   
6. Plus a billion other reasons.

I do feel bad about the way I've left work, but I didn't have much choice. This company only requires 1 weeks notice, that works both ways. I knew getting the paperwork ready would take a while, last time I worked for the NHS it took 3 months for me to get a start date. That time I told my employer straight away that I had been offered a new job, I had a Temp working with me at the time so they extended her contract, but it dragged on for that long that it got to the stage where they couldn't afford to pay us both so I quit. Luckily within days of handing in my notice the NHS gave me a start date so I was okay. I didn't have a mortgage then, I do now, I couldn't risk it this time. Hopefully over the next couple of weeks I'll be able to convince my boss of that, I tried explaining that at the time, but he was in too much of a daze to take it in.

So I'm feeling a mixture of bemused, excited, worried, and ... I'm not sure. The butterflies in my belly are doing somersaults.

I think I've just got time to write my resignation letter before bed.

Oh one last note though, the new edition of Magknits is out. I know it's Halloween but I didn't expect to be scared by finding a Doppleganger.

Oh one other last note. We've have about 12 trick or treaters, in about 6 groups. But the lad who came round twice earlier on in the week with his "Halloween is coming, the witches are coming" song hasn't been round at all.

Thank Crunchie it's Friday (Hmm not had one of them in years.)
Also thank Crunchie (or someone) that my partner in crime is back in work on Monday. So someone else can share the task of shouting at BT, and being put on hold by them for hours on end.
I've missed him, not just because I've had to do twice as much work at a job that I'm still learning how to do, but also because everyone else who sits near me in the office is so quiet, I also sit with my back to them, so it's been quite lonely.
No doubt by about 11am Monday I'll be back to telling him to shut up as normal though. He has one of those voices that carries.

Last night Shell came round. We did some knitting, talked a lot, looked at books, did a very good impression of Threadbared whilst looking at my Mum's old Knitting Machine patterns, and lost an hour.
I have to either work out how to fix the time on the video recorder (which is supposed to set itself as soon as you plug it in... but doesn't) or make a point of telling people when they come round that the clock on the video recorder is exactly 45 minutes slow.

So this weekend I plan on sleeping.
Lots.
Maybe some other things too, but sleeping is definately in the top 5.

Congratulations if you made it this far. I should have probably given some warning about this move, but I do like to keep people on their toes. Please remember to reset your bookmarks, change links etc, I don't want anyone getting repetitive strain injury by having to click a link twice. This address is much easier to remember, but the redirect page will be there for as long as my kind hosts allow me to keep it, unless it gets deleted by accident, or someone else decides to write something better.

Anyway, please bear with me for the next couple of days, I didn't realize quite how many files there were to be moved, so I apologise now if you find any broken links or dead pictures. They will be back online at some point soon.

I'm in the mood for posting... and I've got to do something to stop me from playing Caesar again...

LibraryThing has added a recommendations feature. It's a bit hit and miss at the moment, suggesting books which I already own, but other suggestions are spot on... There seem to be a lot of Classics in the list that I've just not got around to reading.

1. The Leopard (Everyman's Library Classics) by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa Never heard of it, so I'll keep an eye out for it
2. Bleak House by Charles Dickens I was actually looking for a copy of this in the charity shop the other day. I've never read it and I want to before the new BBC series is shown on telly
3. Lady Audley's Secret (Penguin Classics) by Mary Elizabeth Braddon Never heard of it, so I'll keep an eye out for it
4. Belinda (Oxford World's Classics) by Maria Edgeworth Never heard of it, so I'll keep an eye out for it
5. Possession : A Romance (Vintage International) by A.S. Byatt Classic I've not got around to.
6. The Great Gatsby by F.Scott Fitzgerald Classic I've not got around to.
7. Jane Eyre (Signet Classics (Paperback)) by Charlotte Bronte I own 2 versions of this already, I love it, but don't need a 3rd copy
8. The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton I keep trying to read The Buccaneers by Wharton but can't get into it.
9. To kill a mockingbird by Harper Lee Classic I've not got around to.
10. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J. K. Rowling Already got
11. A Journal of the Plague Year : Being Observations or Memorials of the Most Remarkable Occurrences, As Well (Penguin Clas by Daniel Defoe Sounds interesting, I'll keep an eye out
12. Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens Classic I've not got around to.
13. Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf Never read any Woolf, should do
14. Aspects of the Novel (Pelican S.) by E.M. Forster I'll keep an eye out for it
15. Sense and sensibility by Jane Austen Already got, and love, studied it for A-Level so know it inside out
16. Literary theory : an introduction by Terry Eagleton No No No! I like reading, I hate Literary Theory
17. Alias Grace by Margaret Eleanor Atwood I'm sure I've already read this
18. Babel Tower by A. S. Byatt I'll keep an eye out for it
19. Daniel Deronda by George Eliot Classic I've not got around to.
20. A room with a view by E. M. Forster Classic I've not got around to.
21. The handmaid's tale by Margaret Eleanor Atwood Read it, loved it, studied it at uni. Where is my copy?
22. The Railway Children by Edith Nesbit Already got
23. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J. K. Rowling Already got
24. Adam Bede by George Eliot Classic I've not got around to.
25. The plague by Albert Camus Classic I've not got around to.
26. Shirley (Wordsworth Collection) by Charlotte Bronte I'm sure I bought this a couple of weeks ago, not read it yet though.
27. Ulysses (Oxford World's Classics) by James Joyce I'm sure we had a copy of this being used as a doorstop... the size has always put me off
28. Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys Heard of this, never read it
29. The Woman in White (Penguin Popular Classics) by Wilkie Collins Whenever I see Wilkie Collins I think of Jackie Collins so I've never read any.
30. Romola by George Eliot Classic I've not got around to.
31. Nice work by David Lodge Never heard of it, I'll keep an eye out
32. The remains of the day by Kazuo Ishiguro Never read this, but the other A-Level class studied it
33. Orlando: A Biography (Penguin Popular Classics) by Virginia Woolf I'll keep an eye out for it
34. Maurice (Penguin Modern Classics) by E.M. Forster Classic I've not got around to.
35. Sons and Lovers (Signet Classics (Paperback)) by D.H. Lawrence Classic I've not got around to.
36. The bell jar by Sylvia Plath Never! I've read bit of Plath and hated it all
37. Cranford by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell I'll keep an eye out for it
38. The vicar of Wakefield by Oliver Goldsmith Who? I'll keep an eye out for it
39. Moll Flanders (Oxford World's Classics) by Daniel Defoe Classic I've not got around to.
40. An Instance of the Fingerpost by Iain Pears hmmm heard of the author, I'll keep an eye out
41. Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh Classic I've not got around to.
42. The god of small things by Arundhati Roy I used to pick this book up in Smith's every week when I was commuting, but I always ended up buying something else
43. Beloved (Plume Contemporary Fiction) by Toni Morrison I'll keep an eye out for it
44. The Age of Innocence (Modern Library Classics) by Edith Wharton More Wharton... I'll try
45. Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy I'm sure I've read this already, where is my copy?
46. The English patient : a novel by Michael Ondaatje I'm afraid to say the film put me off
47. A portrait of the artist as a young man by James Joyce Classic I've not got around to.
48. The Jungle Book (Penguin Popular Classics) by Rudyard Kipling It might ruin the film reading this :)
49. The Moonstone (Penguin Classics) by Wilkie Collins More Jackie Collins... I'll try
50. Washington Square (Penguin Popular Classics) by Henry James I'll keep an eye out for it
51. A Song Of Stone by Iain Banks I thought I'd got this book
52. Vineland by Thomas Pynchon I'll keep an eye out for it
53. The name of the rose by Umberto Eco Classic I've not got around to.
54. Villette (Wordsworth Collection) (Wordsworth Collection) by Charlotte Bronte Already got
55. Ethan frome by Edith Wharton Classic I've not got around to.
56. The waste land and other poems by T. S. Eliot Not really a poetry fan
57. White noise by Don DeLillo I'll keep an eye out for it
58. Lake Wobegon days by Garrison Keillor I've tried to read this so many times, can't get into it
59. Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe Classic I've not got around to.
60. Barchester Towers (Oxford World's Classics) by Anthony Trollope Classic I've not got around to... but the surname has always put me off, I think of Joanna
61. Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson Classic I've not got around to.
62. Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams Not interested
63. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Book 1) by J.K. Rowling Already got
64. Behind the Scenes at the Museum : A Novel by Kate Atkinson I've read some Kate Atkinson, not overly bothered.
65. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier I love this book, studied it at uni, where is my copy?
66. Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper I'll keep an eye out for it
67. Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell Read this loads, studied it at uni, my copy is at my parents
68. Madame Bovary (Bantam Classics) by Gustave Flaubert Classic I've not got around to.
69. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley I love this book, studied it at uni, where is my copy?
70. Oliver Twist (Penguin Popular Classics) by Charles Dickens I love this book, studied it at uni, where is my copy?
71. The crimson petal and the white by Michel Faber I'll keep an eye out for it

One good thing, if I get through this little lot then I'll be a lot further on my way to completing The Booklovers Quest.

What a difference a few days off work can do.

Wednesday was Matt's birthday, & Thursday was Porl's, so after work I drove straight up to Ormskirk for celebrations. I had to pick Porl up at Burscough Train station first, I arrived there early and exhausted, so I fell asleep in the car while I was waiting, I slept for about half an hour, but it went dark in that time so I woke up utterly confused, and feeling like I'd slept for hours. Once in Ormskirk we went out to order Chinese and then a night of many pints began.
It was a great night, the gang back together, and everyone was in good spirits. Maybe one day I'll learn not to drink though. I haven't drank much this past year, and my tolerance for it has plummeted, so by the end of the night I was feeling a bit poorly sick. Luckily I woke up stupidly early the next morning, took some painkillers and went to bed until a more reasonable hour, at which point I felt mostly okay, and a walk round Ormskirk made me feel even more human. I'm jealous of Ormskirk's new Oxfam Book Shop though. I leave Ormskirk and they get a decent craft shop and then a 2nd bookshop. It's not fair!

The unfortunate thing about Porl's birthday being the day after Matts is that Porl always has a hangover on his birthday. So it was celebrated by going to his mums and doing very little. At tea time we went out for a meal, which perked us both up, then we headed back home to 2 angry cats who don't like being left alone overnight.

Friday I had a lazy day pottering around the house, giving it a good clean, I was supposed to be going shopping with Shell, but my lack of organisation and laziness let me down again. Shell is too much of an early bird for me, but after Wednesday night I really did need the extra sleep.

Today Mum & Dad came up and inbetween the rain showers we weatherproofed the decking. We're getting a shed delivered in about a weeks time, so the painting had to be done today, rain or shine. Tomorrow I might actually remember to take some pictures of it, I've been meaning to all week. Then Porl and I drove off to Ashton to pick up a Freecycle table for his room, and on the way back we stopped at Ashton market to get picnic goodies to eat. Mum had given us some money for a Birthday take-away, but we were craving healthy food.

I can't believe I've only been off for 3 days. I feel like I've had a holiday, and I've still got 1 more day of the weekend left.

Oh the baking went down well. The response from my boss (who rarely speaks to me) as he passed me back the empty box at the end of the day was "Yes, very good, same tomorrow if you please". From Matt I had an email titled "MMmrrffphh prrrfll" which was the sound of him eating cake.

I'm pretending to be a Domestic Goddess. Scarily this is the 2nd batch of cookies I've made this week. The last batch were half the size, I was supposed to be making them for work, there were only 2 trays worth, and by the time the second tray had finished cooking we'd eaten the first tray. So I made my apologies at work and this time I've doubled the quantities. I don't mind taking this lot into work, they're not as nice as the first ones. Cookies are supposed to be made with soft brown sugar. I didn't have enough last time so I used half soft brown sugar and half muscavado. They were sooo rich and delicious. When I went to the shops to buy more sugar for this lot they only had demerara which doesn't melt properly, so there's lots of crunchy sugar crystals in these. Oh well they still taste good... just not as good.

Last week at work was the week from Hell. I got none of my normal work done, instead I spent 4 days on the phone to BT trying to sort out the fact that they had cut off someone's lines a week early. But not just anyone's lines... no, they cut off the lines to a £400 a night Hotel. I stayed late every night trying to get it resolved. Eventually I found out at 5:30 on Friday that it was fixed. I got very drunk Friday night and forgot about it all.
When I went back into work Monday I was told that BT had done the same thing to one of the customers other sites on Sunday! Thankfully BT contacted the customer and got the problem resolved themselves that time.
Today we had our "High Points" email listing the good things which had happened last week. I was given a special mention for my battles with BT.
I'm worried... if my week from hell is a high point what is a low point?

I'm almost fed up with Christmas already. I love Christmas, but I hate the fact that it starts earlier each year. The shops are full of decorations, the main topic of conversation at work is the Christmas Do, and on the news they were telling us yesterday "it's only 10 weeks till Christmas".
I had a little rant:

It may be just 10 weeks till Christmas, but there are only 52 weeks in a year which means Christmas is still a fifth of a year away!

I try not to think of Christmas until December, or at the very earliest my Dads birthday which is 6 weeks before Christmas, I'm certainly not thinking of it now...

However in complete contradition I am thinking about New Year's Resolutions. I don't normally make them as I never stick to them, but there are a couple of changes I really want to make next years.
First, cataloguing my books has made me realize I don't read enough. So I want to try to read 50 books next year (Matt how are you doing with that this year?)
Second, I seem to talk about crafts more than doing them, so I'm going to aim for 50 completed objects next year, hopefully it will be far more.

As a boost towards starting this I'm going to take up the ArtByTheInch challenge again this year. There doesn't seem to be any movement on the website, but the LJ Forum is still alive so I won't be alone in my challenge. Also Matt is doing NaNoWriMo again this year with his own added challenge (email him if you want to keep him in check and read each chapter as he writes it) hopefully we can encourage each other.

Also, way back in July I had some news which I couldn't share. I still can't... yet, but hopefully it shouldn't be much longer now!

OW OW OW OW OW!
I've just broken my thumb nail while re-arranging the bookshelves. Lots of people are envious of my nails, they're very strong, so I can grow them long very easily without any problems. They rarely break, but when they do it really hurts.
I was trying to get a book off the shelf, the books are squeeeezed in tightly, and I managed to bend the thumb nail right back. It snapped about 2mm below where the the nail parts from the skin. I couldn't find any superglue, so the only option was to grit my teeth and rip it totally off.
I now have a very short nail and a throbbing, bleeding thumb.
The bookshelves look good though.

I finally succumbed to ebay last week and made my first bid. I didn't win, but I tried again, and I now have this boat shuttle and bobbins for my sewing machine. It was the bobbins I needed as the machine only came with one, but the shuttle may be useful. Now I have to resist buying anything else. I'm "window shopping" instead, adding things to my watch list to see how much they sell for.
I'm watching lots of boxes at the moment.
Must... not.... buy......

I've just finished cataloguing all my Mr Men books on LibraryThing, and I've hit exactly 500. I still have 2 shelves of books to do downstairs, they're mostly craft books and old hardback books so they might not be easy to search for, then there are the books upstairs. I think the final count will be about 700.
Not nearly enough.
Feel free to have a browse, or there's a link on the side menu.

Today has been spent rearranging bookshelves, obviously, and pottering around the garden while Mum and Dad built some steps. The deck is looking great, next week they should finish building the steps and put the top on, then we have to go shed shopping. Once that has been done we have to build a (strong) railing to stop people falling off and breaking their necks. It's very high up.
I can then start digging up the grass and putting plants in instead.
We've decided it'll be much easier to look after, the plants will hide the front of the deck, and there's so little grass there that it's hardly worth having. I hate gardening most of the time, but I am enjoying browsing through books looking for plants I can put in.