I Have A Brother Of 70 - How Did That Happen?? in Scottish Meanderings

I’m getting all behind with everything, this included, and now I’ve managed to pick a cold up from somewhere and am all choked up :( I’m staying in bed as long as possible today because we’re giving my oldest brother, Ian, a surprise 70th birthday meal at Bella Italia at 5 p.m. and I want to be able to go.

Yesterday I thought I was much better and went out to Nikki’s in the afternoon then realised I should have stayed in bed - I could hardly keep my eyes open and felt really grotty. The half hour’s drive home in the evening was a bit of a white knuckle one!

It would have been Mum’s 95th birthday today. Ian’s birthday was in March so he doesn’t share a birthday or anything - it was just that this worked out as being the best day to have the meal as he was through here anyway - Cat, his daughter, was running a race this morning down at the beach so he was coming through to cheer her on then they’re both going to a football match in the afternoon. So he shouldn’t get suspicious.

I’m glad so many of us are able to get together today. Mum would have liked that. I just hope she can see us wherever she is - especially as she missed out on seeing her namesake, Jessie, who was born in January. That would have been her tenth great-grandchild.

And as Nikki said if she was here she would have had to get through a huge family gathering where she wouldn’t be able to hear anyone and be exhausted just getting to then been so knackered afterwards that she would have been fit for nothing for the rest of the week. That’s so true.

I didn’t get the Peterhead job. I did have an interview which went really well giving me high hopes but although I apparently came a close second, someone pipped me to the post. However I got some great feedback from Christine, the manager of the agency who was one of the interviewers. I’ve known her for years and she’s also one of the trainers on the counselling skills course I’m doing so I knew she’d be straight with me. It was comforting to know there was nothing whatsoever wrong with the interview I gave - it was just that someone else was more suited to that particular post.

So it’s back to the drawing board.

I’ve applied for one with the NHS (National Health Service) as Administrator to the Tier 3 Weight Management Service at the local hospital. I haven’t be able to find out much about this service but as far as I can gather, it’s for people who are at the stage of needing surgery for weight loss - gastric bands and the like? It’s 18.5 hours a week so should be doable over 3 days. I have an interview for it on Thursday morning so we’ll see how that goes.

I’m really glad I haven’t had to cope with starting anywhere new while still doing the course as the last couple of training weekends have been pretty brutal and very intense. We were simulating proper counselling sessions so were working in a group of 3 taking turns to be in the role of counsellor, client and observer with sessions of 50 minutes each. For two days straight each time. As well as that, external staff counsellors and trainers were drafted in to observe us which means they take a hour each time to go through everything you said and basically tear it to pieces! In a good way though :)

It was really helpful but really exhausting.

Even being the client was quite tiring as you had to bring a real life situation to talk about, something which had a bit of ‘meat’ on it for a ‘counsellor’ to work on and the idea was we were trying to simulate a beginning session, middle session and ending session with everything that entails. We were all just about on the floor by the time Sunday teatime came last weekend - I really pitied those who had to get up for work on Monday morning!

There are only 2 full weekends of training left now though so hopefully no job offers will come up in that time - don’t fancy trying to juggle both ......

I found this piece in a book I was reading recently called A Place In The Country by Laura Shane Cunningham. It’s a memoir to follow her first one called Sleeping Arrangements both of which I can highly recommend as good reads.

In this particular book, her and her husband have just adopted their second baby from Rumania and the little one isn’t very well.

’Within twenty-four hours the antibiotics had taken effect. She turned ivory pink, her eyes cleared. She exceeded all expectations - exquisite, a luminous old soul with contemporary wit. I gazed at her and saw the fatefulness of every mother’s choice. It is not the beautiful baby who is chosen but the chosen baby who becomes beautiful.’

I just loved that last line! And it’s so true!

I’m glad the cold is affecting my appetite a bit ‘cause I’ve started to put on weight. I haven’t changed what I’m eating or how much exercise I take (or don’t!) but gradually I’m gaining around a pound a week. It started around the same time I began to reduce the Propanalol (beta blocker) so my money’s on that as the culprit.

My vanity’s having a hard time with this though. The ageing process is difficult enough without extra pounds going on through no fault of your own and anything I try to do to rectify it seems to make no difference. I walked 5 miles along a beach with 2 friends last Wednesday - proper power walking - not just rambling - and walking on fairly soft sand is difficult - you use more muscles trying to keep your grip. I’d also had a long 2 hour walk the week before and spent most of the next day in the garden digging and weeding. Made not a sausage of a difference.

My ‘fat’ clothes are starting to become tight. Help!!

(This obviously doesn’t apply to tonight’s meal. Pudding will be had. And birthday cake.

Don’t judge me.)