Wimpy

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My boss says she still wants to keep me on...I still want to take December off though.  They don't have any work to offer me really, not until the summer anyway; we'll see.  I'm keeping my options open, but I am still uncomfortable with the direct contact with patients, so I doubt if I will renew my contract regardless.  I'm a wimp, what can I say!

Hubby is coming home today after a four-day bender with the boys in Dublin...I'm sure it'll be a mixed blessing haha - I can't wait to dump the kids on him, but then I'm sure he'll be too tired-out to do anything useful with them ;-)  At least I'll be spared the harrowing experience of trying to get them to sleep.  Our kids don't like it any more than their parents do I'm afraid.

And of course while hubby was away and we were understaffed already at work, A got sick - a bad throat infection, and the fact that it hurt too much to eat or drink finally prompted me to take him to the doc's, resulting in ten days of antibiotics three times a day - which is a HUGE fight to get him to take every time.  Bribery with candy is my solution.  It's the only thing that works so far.

Otherwise the weekend alone with the kids went a lot better than I thought it would, sickness and sleep deprivation and all!  Not saying I want to do it again anytime soon, mind you ;-)

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Semi-certain future

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Blogging is a slow process these days!

I was saved any drama at work by having the woman I'm filling in for announce her return, not on Nov 1st but on Dec 1st.  I'm really glad about that, although my boss was sad to lose me!  Which is a good thing, of course, but though I am glad of the experience of working there, I am also looking forward to the next chapter, whatever that may be.

Looking forward to having December off, hopefully will be able to organize a wonderful Christmas for my family - my mother was always so good at making Christmas a magical time for us, I hope to be able to do that for my kids as well!

My mood is lifting in time with the de-cluttering around here.  We have managed to get rid of quite a lot of stuff, and more is on its way.  We have a whole carload just waiting to go to the cottage, so once THAT's out of the way we'll be pretty much set I think!  Can't wait to be able to use the third bedroom for something besides storage...!

The nights are getting longer here now, seems only yesterday that it didn't get properly dark at all - now it's nighttime already at quarter past seven!  I realize at these junctions that I love the light summer nights - but that in summer I miss the dark evenings, too.  Seems I'm fully acclimated to Bergen finally!

Gotta go, my mom is stopping by to mind the kids while Thomas and I have a couple hours of "us"-time.  We need it ;-)

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Speaking of patriotism...

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Many people have been questioning the use of the Norwegian flag on facebook profile pictures, stating that it feels inappropriate since a a man calling himself a nationalist is the cause of the weekend's tragic events. My personal opinion is that it is important to take the flag back, and use it the way it was meant to be used, to symbolise unity. We can't allow a person like him to take our flag away from us.

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Patriotism done right

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I have to admit I'm proud of my countrymen these days.

The way the people are quietly calling for love and unity instead of screaming for revenge is truly an amazing and wonderful thing to witness, as is the will to not let this change our democratic society and open way of life. I am near speechless with admiration for the way our country's leaders have handled this most horrible situation, and although I know we will never forget what happened this weekend, I am hopeful that we will not allow it to influence our future.

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High and low

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I can't believe it's been so long!

There's been good times and bad times meanwhile...among other things, I got the job at the hospital after all! The woman they'd offered the job to was after more than part-time, so she said no, after which they called me. Hooray! I was (and am) so happy!

That being said, I'm not sure that I will continue working there after my temporary gig is up. I am working there until Halloween, after that I'm uncertain...but although the direct contact with patients is going much better than I thought, I am still not totally comfortable with it. I have a tendency to absorb too much, take it home with me, and be sad for them...

I really wish I could start working at the pathology lab again, but after the 'fight' I had with them last fall I'm sure the head of the lab is wary of hiring me back...

On a more housewife-y note we are still struggling with our far-too-cluttered apartment - but that is a story for another day.

The last few days have naturally been flooded with grief, anger, and confusion at the events unfolding in and around Oslo - Bergen is geographically far away, but the shockwaves of Anders Behring Breivik's horrific actions have of course rocked all of Norway to its foundations.

That being said, while making the events themselves no less tragic, I am very glad it was the work of one terrible man and not a group with any political or religious motives. While the events are of course fathomlessly tragic nonetheless, the aftermath will be quite another - the last thing Norway and the world in general needs is more fear, hatred, and separation. The fact that this was a single man acting alone allows Norwegians of every heritage to stand together in their grief and support each other, with noone pointing fingers...

My heart bleeds for everyone affected by Breivik's actions.

We will never forget.

RIP

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Overqualified...?

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Btw I went to my interview at the hospital, but understood fairly quickly that I wasn't going to get the position.

DARNIT!

She said that I was overqualified for the job, but that they had a research project going that I might be of use to, so she would hand over my papers to the doctor in charge. So my fingers will cramp up from all the crossing...but hopefully I'll get a new job before I get arthritis??

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Handyman holdup

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UPDATE: he has arrived! They called at about 12:30 PM, and he got here about 1. I am SO PSYCHED to hide the chaos in the hall!!!

...of course just now all the chaos is in my bed, to give him room to work...

I better remember to re-hang everything before bed, or tonight will be a sofasleeping night, lol...

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Having a housewife-y day today. Laundry, kitchen duty, mild de-cluttering...

Also waiting for a handyman who might never show. Not a plumber, or electrician, or even a cable guy...nope - I don't even know what to call him, haha, but I've ordered two sliding doors so we can hide the avalanche of clothes hanging on the hooks in the hall, and I'm waiting to hear whether he can come today and put the doors up.

I'm really hoping he can, it would be awesome to get it done!

But that means I'm stuck here all day just waiting.

Too much time online. Not enough time doing sensible stuff. Someone kick me in the seat please.

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