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Carrying a furled umbrella against the possibility of rain, I walked into town and used one of those automatic photo booths to get a couple of photos for my Passport Renewal application. As I exited the booth, the young lad waiting gave me an embarrassed grin full of fellow-feeling. The photos come as a set of four so I took them to the nearby church that has a coffee shop in the foyer, borrowed a pair of scissors and sat with a cup of herbal tea [1] whilst I finished preparing the Passport Renewal application for posting. Walking back through town, I stopped by the Post Office and sent it on its way by Recorded Delivery [2] and carried on to the appointment with the psychiatrist, Dr Y, who will be responsible for my care whilst I’m in the community. Before I got there, I spotted an ad for the film ‘Juno’, showing this afternoon in the local theatre, and resolved to go and see it after lunch.
I didn’t take to Dr Y last time I met him, because his line of questioning appeared to be intended to manage/manipulate me with guilt. Vic didn’t take to him because he felt the guy came across as unsympathetic, possibly with a cultural attitude problem (‘I know better because I’m a man and I’m a doctor’). I arrived punctually for the appointment, and after waiting 20 minutes, I approached the receptionist to enquire into the delay. She came out of her little room and peered vaguely up the stairs before admitting she didn’t know, but he might already have someone with him. I was ready to be snippy with Dr Y when I got to see him but he disarmed me with a humble apology, explaining his previous appointment had over-run.
We’re all very keen to get to the root of the problem – to work out what triggers the relapses – and he had been working on a theory on why internal conflict is arising, which he laid out for my inspection. It was a neat theory and if it were true, would suggest an easy solution. I warmed to him – taking it as evidence of his intention to have a ‘hands on’ approach, and of his belief that it makes sense to attempt to determine the cause rather than simply treating the symptoms.
It turns out he has been holding the forms for the renewal of my driving licence, but will now complete them and send them back.
My mood when I came away from the appointment was much lighter. I picked up some lunch in a café and went on to the Theatre. Whilst I was waiting in the bar for the auditorium to open, one of the residents from the place I used to work came in and bought herself a drink then sat and talked to me. When I was working there, she’d asked to have me as her key worker, and now she told me she wished I was still there, and asked if I would go back. All very flattering.
I doubt that the Theatre achieved the ‘break-even’ point with an audience of 5 (including me) for Juno at this matinee showing. All of us were female. I thought it was a tender, enjoyable girlie film and I particularly liked the soundtrack. Much as with the TV programme, ‘West Wing’, subtitles would have been useful to help me keep up to speed with the dialogue. The triple whammy of fast delivery, unfamiliar accents and unfamiliar vocabulary meant that I was still decoding what one character had said when the next began, but overall I got the gist of it. I suspect there isn’t a lot in it for men - definitely a ‘chick flick’ - the male figures not being drawn particularly sympathetically.
When I walked home there were a few spits and spots of rain and the umbrella, which had been a nuisance to carry round all day, now proved useful.
Despite my best intention to draw up a get-me-fit-and-healthy plan, we’re still on the rich diet. Today’s menu: Courgette & Brie soup; Vegetable Masala and Pilau rice; Gluten-free Lemon Cheesecake. Yummy. Don’t hesitate to ask for the recipes.
I didn’t take to Dr Y last time I met him, because his line of questioning appeared to be intended to manage/manipulate me with guilt. Vic didn’t take to him because he felt the guy came across as unsympathetic, possibly with a cultural attitude problem (‘I know better because I’m a man and I’m a doctor’). I arrived punctually for the appointment, and after waiting 20 minutes, I approached the receptionist to enquire into the delay. She came out of her little room and peered vaguely up the stairs before admitting she didn’t know, but he might already have someone with him. I was ready to be snippy with Dr Y when I got to see him but he disarmed me with a humble apology, explaining his previous appointment had over-run.
We’re all very keen to get to the root of the problem – to work out what triggers the relapses – and he had been working on a theory on why internal conflict is arising, which he laid out for my inspection. It was a neat theory and if it were true, would suggest an easy solution. I warmed to him – taking it as evidence of his intention to have a ‘hands on’ approach, and of his belief that it makes sense to attempt to determine the cause rather than simply treating the symptoms.
It turns out he has been holding the forms for the renewal of my driving licence, but will now complete them and send them back.
My mood when I came away from the appointment was much lighter. I picked up some lunch in a café and went on to the Theatre. Whilst I was waiting in the bar for the auditorium to open, one of the residents from the place I used to work came in and bought herself a drink then sat and talked to me. When I was working there, she’d asked to have me as her key worker, and now she told me she wished I was still there, and asked if I would go back. All very flattering.
I doubt that the Theatre achieved the ‘break-even’ point with an audience of 5 (including me) for Juno at this matinee showing. All of us were female. I thought it was a tender, enjoyable girlie film and I particularly liked the soundtrack. Much as with the TV programme, ‘West Wing’, subtitles would have been useful to help me keep up to speed with the dialogue. The triple whammy of fast delivery, unfamiliar accents and unfamiliar vocabulary meant that I was still decoding what one character had said when the next began, but overall I got the gist of it. I suspect there isn’t a lot in it for men - definitely a ‘chick flick’ - the male figures not being drawn particularly sympathetically.
When I walked home there were a few spits and spots of rain and the umbrella, which had been a nuisance to carry round all day, now proved useful.
Despite my best intention to draw up a get-me-fit-and-healthy plan, we’re still on the rich diet. Today’s menu: Courgette & Brie soup; Vegetable Masala and Pilau rice; Gluten-free Lemon Cheesecake. Yummy. Don’t hesitate to ask for the recipes.
Talking of food, this week I read research has shown that how you describe a dish on the menu affects how tasty people will rate it. Give information about the ingredients, eg 'juicy fresh British strawberries with rich golden Jersey cream', and people will rate it more highly than a dish of 'strawberries and cream'. I wonder if something similar applies to Blog post titles - did you bother to read all the way to the end, given the 'Pretty Boring Trivia' title?
[1] from the Twinings Tranquility range with African honeybush, mandarin and orange. Unusual but not unpleasant.
[2] Declining the £7 ‘Check and Send’ and the £4-odd ‘Special Delivery’ service.
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