West London chat winter & beyond

[tillyfernackerpants]

Hadn't realised we were so close to filling up the last thread, hope you all find it!!

vbus, thanks but think we'll give it a miss tomorrow. Have loads to do anyway, so will probably have a quiet day at home instead. Next week? Depending on dh not needing to go to Warrington again anyway!

vbus - It's this one. Don't know how long it would last. I think it's brilliant. It's quite small, probably about 20cm long. And it's up-to-date: no pluto! It's probably a bit pricey - I was in a spending mood... Don't know what the kids will think about it yet! DS1 is also very into the planets at the moment.

Shouted at kids. Too stressed out by small visitor and by doing too much... Not doing anything tomorrow, apart from returning late library book unrenewable due to being reserved by someone else. And just about a million other things.

Snow here. A little. Bet school will bloody close. How to do everything and have to feed children too? Will fish-and-chip shops open?

School's on. An outbreak of unprecedented hardiness.

hello all

vbus he is fine thanks, all hardy and stuff
well done on the marathon birthday celebrations

lordcopper take it easy if you can, but the occasional shouting at kids seems pretty normal to me

and I only have one yet somehow was getting impatient this morning, dd kept walking along with the tongue out to catch snowflakes and when not doing that was belting out Jingle bells

dh's first day at work was slightly farcical the IT man with no computer that is local government for you,but at least getting paid to twiddle thumbs, boredom not withstanding

must crack on with writing essay due by midnight
I was 2 weeks ahead of schedule and somehow I am writing it at the last minute, how did that happen?

sfx - I'll ask DH how long he was without a computer (or maybe even a desk) when he started his job at the super-efficient-private-sector-company.

Copper glad school is open, sounds as though you could do with a few hours peace and quiet

Shirking Working from home today and have called in to say the roads are too bad. Thankfully Scareyboss woman lives 2.5 hrs drive from here so cannot inspect road conditions

SFX she has mental health problems and tries to suck us all into her strange little paranoid control freak world . We keep having to remind ourselves that she is not normal and just manage her behaviour, but she often flips and has mini hysterics, frantically calling people and accusing them of not doing things/doing things/blaming them for stuff which is actually due to her forgetting stuff/being disorganised.

She did improve for a while but has got very bad again, think its due to forthcoming funding cuts, as Board apparently want to restructure her post (Praise the Lord!!!, but may never happen)

Mortgage application being submitted this week by broker but banks very wobbly here atm.

If I can't get mortgage then we will never live in dream house by the sea, but could afford a more modest one. Viewed an amazing half finished house last night - built of local stone, three storeys, centre part is all open right up to third floor with internal balconies, was amazing - might be able to get it cheap and get it completed by local builders (it has no stairs or internal doors or sanitoary wear/kitchen yet), so there are some other options...

you see this is the place that he showed up for an interview and they had not assembled a panel then went ahead and hired him without one partly on the recommendation from a mate of the guy leading the department

don't think they have their own desks ever these days do they? it is all hot desking or something, I have never worked in an office environment but the idea of not having my space for my stuff unsettles me somewhat

dusty that house sounds lovely, good luck with mortgage
that boss woman is not from New Zealand is she? sounds a lot like my last one

was listening to budget thing yesterday and they are not cutting as many public sector jobs as originally thought, presumably because it is not sustainable but who knows

will join job search in the new year, just as unemployment rises hurrah

Ooooh I hate hotdesking - totally agree about needing own space for all my crap important personal things. Plus, how can one make my desk one's shrine to one's DCs if one has to share it?

Hope things settle down for him

Have you finished your essay yet? What is it about?

not finished no still about 600 words to go plus referencing I do like cutting it fine

it is about mental health and different perspectives on it particularly with reference to exclusion and general discrimination at all levels particularly within mental health services, a light and cheery subject

You get a desk if you work for the capitalist oppressors.

I even get an office. Shared with 6 other people. Luckily not everyone turns up at the same time, though there was one day two people who share the same desk did turn up, but missed each other by minutes. Like I say, we are very lucky people.

I've always had a desk, but that was at a quango, they get everything

SFx, good luck with job search, I'm hunting now, just for something local. Apparently, people are getting up to 100 applications for one post, this is for small local companies

Loving this snow!

I did have a job where I had to hotdesk. I had my own desk so could personalise my space, but if I wasn't there then someone else could use it and vice versa if I was working in another dept/office. Worked out quite well and meant office could have fewer desks than headcount.

Hope MrSfx job gets better!

Tilly - playgroup was fab as only about 1/4 people there so was really relaxed. Defo on for next week, Cheeky monkeys?

Dusty - good luck with application, at least you have other options to consider

Westwing - How is DS getting on now? Hope you're enjoying meeting the neighbours

Copper - like the look of solar system but DS1 won't be happy if Pluto missing!

Bbbbbrrrrr.

Can some of you come and tell this poster all about local schools? I have exhausted the depths of my knowledge.

vbus - but Pluto has been demoted. It is now 134340.

Copper - yes I know, but the books he has been reading from library don't mention that

I miss my child, something about the weather makes me want to bake and nest will pick up disco girl in an hr

essay pretty much done, needs reviewing but will not make much effort, new tutor will wait for marking to give me an idea of what she wants, she sounded contradictory in tutorial

I like the solar system too, saw in in show when I was last there, dd has glow in the dark starts for her bedroom

speaking of presents dh bought

not for himself

Snowball fights on the way home through the park.

No homework. (Hopefully. Am going to take kids' words for it. )

Nice fairy. Am thinking a box of English beer for DH. Good? Bad?

Copper, you had enough snow for snowballs?? It's all disappeared over here

Like the fairy!

Not sure what to get dh yet for xmas, best get a move on!

tilly - mini snowballs. Small but enthusiastic.

Sfx - fairy is cool. So what are you going to get DH in return?

Copper - Does you Dh like beer? If so great gift

We have the stars in Ds1 room, he loves them. In middle of building model planetarium, all very geeky but fun!

School night out tonight, parents drinks, they would have to pick coldest night so far

BTw does anyone have black (short or long sleeve) top I can borrow for Ds1? He is a king in Xmas play and this is required for his costume

vbus, we have a dark grey but not black, not unless you want a Dennis the Menace motif on it anyway! Enjoy your drinks

Btw, how are you building the planetarium? Ds1 would love something like that, he's also into planets & space atm

Does anyone want to go see The Nutcracker ballet with me? Dh has apparently won 4 tickets, he thinks its this Friday at 7pm, at the Coliseum. I don't think its an actual performance, more of a dress rehearsal that they let people in to watch! But dh is going to email me the details so if you're interested let me know!