Summer Term - this one will be last one for my very good friend who also happens to be the Head. She’s retiring from education early. Lots of good things planned for the next part of her less stress life. Being brutally honest, I am jealous as hell. I’d also been plotting and planning to reduce my hours and to possibly resign from my sideline post, which I do love and enjoy mostly. I just don’t feel like I can give it my best when the job is to advise schools on strategies to try before permanently excluding pupils- when my cup is full from dealing with different issues entirely at my own school. Anyway, being staff governor I was part of the team, in the process of securing a new Head. Which, I think, she will be an excellent fit and although quite different to the current one, I think she will be brilliant to work with. The big BUT is, I felt it unwise to forge ahead with income reducing for the foreseeable until we see after the settling in period, how she wants the school staff to operate etc.
Also on the horizon is the possible devolution of Lancashire County Council which could mean change re pensions and working conditions so for now, against my will, I’m staying put as is, 35 hours and really will change my mindset to thinking I am lucky to have a job in this day and age and maybe all will be well. All the children will return to school having had no major upsets and happenings.
Although there were two local separate awful fatal road accidents on Easter Sunday where two families lost an 18 year old and a 14year old and I did actually have a little cry for them when I’d read about it.
Gosh this is a bit gloomy.
In other news, yesterday I did a little bit of gardening and tittivated the very end of my garden border. It was where I used to have a giant compost tardis and when we gave that away because I’d got rid of the veg bed and we started the garden waste scheme with the council. Anyway, there was a huge mound of soil at that end and it was used as a bit of a rubbish storage area. So, I dug it out and levelled it. I put some wood in as a bit of an edge to try and prevent the soil spilling onto the path. I used the soil and compost to repot and refill some of my pots and I planted some of the new plants I had got. I also bought some organic wool slug pellets. You put them on the soil, water it and they are supposed to swell and form a mat they they don’t like, apparently. We will see. It stank to high heaven! Maybe it’s the stench that will repel them!
Next, I will try and move up a bit but as the perennials are starting to come through, I may have to wait now.
It was our son’s birthday yesterday, can you believe he is now 28! The same age as me haha. I made him a plain Madeira cake with a layer of jam and buttercream and some water icing on top. We had the HG’s Mum round for lunch. Roast pork, roast potatoes and parsnips, steamed carrots and cabbage and broccoli/cauliflower cheese, stuffing, yorkshires, gravy and really good crackling! We had the cake for afters. I put candles in his cake and we sang but I’d done it for her benefit really. She didn’t know the song, she said but she enjoyed the cake and told the carers when we’d taken her home ( she didn’t know it was her home ) that she’d had a good day out. Saddest part of it all for me was when we were taking her back, she said to Mr 28, nice to meet you today love. Dementia is a cruel thief. He used to spend so much time with his Nanna when small. He’d go for the weekend, she’d take him to the slots on the prom, make his favourite meals, take him to her friends. We still have those memories even if she doesn’t. Nobody really needed or wanted any tea so we relaxed watching the last episode of Vera we’d been saving . Before that, we had a lovely long video call with baby Oliver who we mostly sat watching him play. He’s at that empty all the toys out of the toy box phase, then put them back in and take them out again! He’s very bright and funny to watch. He waved bye bye to us.
Well, after school, I may settle down to rewatch that last episode of Vera hahaha - I got comfy, snuggled under a blanket as it went cold and promptly fell asleep!
Right, I best get a wriggle on. Start the day and see what it brings. Hope it’s something good for your tea tonight. We’ve leftovers to have so easy but delicious here!
Rachel.
