...to ask you to make up a future for me?

[Punkatheart]

I am not looking for sympathy. My life is awful beyond belief - OH left me last year and it was a complete shock. 20 years and he has treated me so badly. Daughter hysterical, threatened suicide, struggling at school. I have lymphoma and the stress has affected me so badly that my white cell is down. Now I am exhausted and depressed (side effects of Interferon). Now OH, who has got himself in financial mess but spending and going off the rails, is trying to force me to sell the house.

My daughter is not coping, will not see him (huge part of the problem and hence his fury) and is in her crucial GCSE year. I simply do not have the energy to move and I wake up every morning feeling sick and terrified about the future. I have tried to work but been told that I should not...so I am trying to do some writing from home (proofreading, copyediting etc.) but I am struggling with energy levels.

Sorry - I did say I was not looking for sympathy. What I need from you is to make up my future for me - to make some fantasy life that will make me laugh, feel lucky and happy for a while.

Are you up to the challenge?

Just when you thought you'd hit rock bottom, your ex popped round for a cup of tea. You looked at him and - pow - realised what a fuckwit he is. Your brain cleared as if by magic. Your dd got through her exams as best she could and went on to do very well at university. While she was on her course, your finances stablised and your blog about your successful diet based cure of your health went viral. Your subsequent book made you aprox £475k. You bought a charming cottage in Cornwall and got stuck into village life. Whilst on an RNLI training course, you got stranded on St Michael's Mount while the tide was out. Your RNLI mentor/trainer had to hold you to share body warmth. As you were both cinched up to the rescue helicopyer, piloted by Prince William, you gazed into each others' eyes and realised this was IT. Your daughter was bridesmaid at your wedding to RNLI hunk and this topped offer her marvellous summer of graduating with a first. Your health recovered in the wake of this onslaught of joy. Strength and peace to you xxx

sending hugs.

I love the idea of a good haircut!

I also love the idea of a lifeguard. Yummy.

I managed to fall over outside my house yesterday and knock myself out. I was brought round (only after a few seconds) by our fostered dog, who was licking my face. Just overtired, I guess.

Blimey, I think I may need that lifeguard!

I read a lot of literary fiction but decades ago, when I had a bad breakup, someone gave me a Jilly Cooper to read. As a feminist, I cringed - but actually what she does is create compassionate sweet characters (and bastards). I wrote to her and said thank you for the distraction and she wrote back a lovely letter, telling me everything would be OK.

So I am still rewriting my future and that of my daughter's in my head.

You all have literary ambitions, clearly!

How are you getting on, punkatheart?

Hugs to u, have to run but agree with poster on getting financial advice on mumsnet, it's great, and hope your dh comes to regret his treatment of you and dd sooner than later the bastard...

Next year you are walking down the street and a man bumps into you knocking all your food shopping all over the floor. You look up ready to let rip at him for being so clumsy and breaking your eggs and bottle of wine and see a beautiful familiar apologetic face looking back at you - OMG it's George Cloony. He apologises profusely and offers to drive you home (well it's the least he can do). On the way you tell him a bit about your life and he tells you about his. He says he really wants to stop playing the field and just settle down with a kind woman with a beautiful heart. When he drops you to the door he asks for your number as he'd like to replace the shopping he broke (and as it's gorgeous George you say yes of course).

Two hours later you get a call - it's him!! He said he can't stop thinking about you. He's got to leave for LA tomorrow but he wants to take you and your daughter with him. You both know it's crazy, but hey, life's short.

Fast forward six months - you and your daughter, george and a pot bellied pig are living in a mansion in the Hollywood Hills. Your daughter's going to one of the top schools in LA and has developed a passion for screen writing and is about to get one of her scripts made into a TV series on on the top channels in the States. You are feeling and looking fab and getting the best treatment from the top doctors (and a lot of loving from George ). You were shopping the other day and you saw him coming out of Cartier with a small box, he texted you to say he'd made dinner reservations at the Ivy as he's got something important to ask you......