More Dreams Of Dead Folk...

Okay, that's 2 nights in a row now... what's going on?

This time I don't really remember that much, just that there was a bunch of dead people hanging around (not zombies, not ghosts... they looked normal, just dead) including one person I recognised - a friend who passed away 2 or 3 years ago.

I want to go back to not dreaming!

I Don't Dream...

... or, if I do, I never remember them the next day. But last night I had a really disturbing dream (or dreams, because I think I woke up in the middle of it / them)...

I don't really remember how it started, just that all of a sudden I was back in what had been Mum & Dad's bedroom at our last house, and I was lying in their bed. I don't know what age I was, but I knew that Mum & Dad were both dead.

And then Mum was there, lying in the bed beside me, and suddenly it felt like this was the real world, and I was in the new house, and Mum wasn't dead... coz she felt so real, like I could reach out and touch her. And then we were back at the other house, and Dad appeared, and he was trying to tell me that Mum couldn't really be there, because she was dead... but he couldn't see that he was the same. He just kept on telling me, "That's not really your Mum... she's not here".

Next I was aware, I was in like an old theatre or something, and the ballerina Darcey Bussell was on stage, behind a closed curtain, dancing a very melancholic dance with a small child with her... Darcey was wearing a dark blue, or almost black, dress with a long net skirt, and was heavily pregnant (I remember being amazed that she could hold her balance so well with a bump), and was lit by a solitary white spotlight. A lone violin was playing sadly somewhere from backstage. The theatre was empty.

Then I was in a small room, like a poorly-furnished kitchen, and a woman was sitting at a table, her head bowed. The room was dark, and a small child (maybe the same one that was with Darcey) was stood beside her, head bowed as well. They seemed to be in old-fashioned clothes, and were obviously poor. I walked up to the woman to ask where I was, and was shocked when she lifted her head... Her eyes were closed, and her eyelashes were like long yellow feathers (for want of a better way to describe them) that reached down to her chin... the effect being like curtains. The child was the same, and neither spoke to me... just opened their eyes, looked at me, then closed their eyes and bowed their heads again.

I think this was the point I woke up.

Strange and disturbing...

Strange Things Occur To You...

...in the wee small hours when you waken up from a bad dream and can't get back to sleep again...

Like the fact that I've only just noticed that "Mediterranean" (as in the Sea) means "in the middle of earth". Obvious when you think about it - but I don't have a clue as to why I was thinking about it at 4o'clock in the morning... especially since the bad dream I had woken from had nothing to do with drowning, swimming, or the sea!

I've never even really thought - or cared - before about why the Mediterranean is called what it is...

Get Me Coffee... NOW!!!

Urgh... it's 20 past 8, and I'm here at work already... all on my own, all day...

Boss is away at the moment, swinging on a rope somewhere off an oil rig, and our store flunky has taken his kid away to see The Tweenies or some other such freaky kids' show (at least, he SAYS it's for the kid, but I'm sure it's more for him... it's certainly about his intellectual level).

So I've had to come in at 8o'clock, and I can't go out at lunch time or anything. I'm here 'til 5.

And, as an insult, the radio is playing MIKA's "Relax, Take It Easy"... Bastards!

It's a miracle that either Viki or me got to work this morning... especially Viki. Neither of us heard our alarms. I just remember suddenly thinking "Oh, shit" and checking my watch - which said 07:00 (well, actually it said "the big hand is on the 12 and the little hand is on the 7", because I don't have a digital watch). Instant panic! Viki's bus leaves at 20 past 7!!!!!

I still don't know how, but I got a text at 22 minutes past 7, saying "I'm on the bus!"

Don't think either of us is awake yet, though.

*Gulps coffee*

It's going to be a looooooooooooooooooooooong day!

You've Got To Hand It To Me...

Woke up this morning, and something felt strange about my hands... something to do with my rings...

Now, I normally wear 4 rings... like this... 2 on my right hand (one on the ring finger, one on the middle finger)...

and 2 on the left hand (one on my ring finger... I'm not married, but as that might never happen, I'm not going to waste it, and one on my middle finger)...

However... when I was aware enough to check... my hands looked like this...

Right... with both middle finger rings on the middle finger...

and left... with both ring finger rings on the ring finger...

Now... all I can think is that I've done it myself in my sleep! I'm not entirely sure how because, as you can see from the second lot of photos, they were pretty tight with 2 on... and when I tried to recreate the photo to show Viki, I couldn't get the second rings on as far as they were in the pictures.

What the hell was I dreaming about that I did that to myself!?

Time For Bed...

Long past time, in fact... I've twice almost bounced my head off the keyboard because I've nodded off. So I'm offski...

But guess what?

I'VE GOT A DAY OFF TOMORROW! I'm actually going to have a 2-day weekend!

The boss is back now, and he's finally seen that I need some more time off. So I was only supposed to be working from 12 noon til 4pm tomorrow, and off altogether next Saturday... but he needs me more next week, so I got a text saying I didn't need to come in tomorrow! Woo-hoo!

Long lie for me, I think... followed by a leisurely afternoon window shopping (trying to save some pennies), and a DVD and a beer or two at night... oh, and a Starbucks latte after the window shopping (not trying to save THAT many pennies).

Oh, a plea... My 93 year old auntie (she'd kill me if she knew I'd told her age) is in hospital. She's very poorly, and the doctors are saying it's just a matter of time. We've had this happen before, and last time she amazed everyone by rallying (that was about Christmas last year, I think) and has been fine since, until now. But the docs are very pessimistic this time.

So please ask your god(s) for healing for her if it's not her time to go yet, or for a peaceful, pain-free end if it is... Her name's Joanna, or Jo.

Thanks.

Goodnight...

Let Sleeping Staff Lie...

Oh, god... I hate 8am starts on Saturdays...

I'm so sleepy (despite being in bed before 11pm last night)... Sat here with my cup of coffee, waiting for a customer to come and break the monotony... but I may have a long wait.

We've started to close at 4pm on a Saturday now, but that's little consolation at the moment.

Back later... hopefully a little bit more awake...

To Viki...

It's 01:22 BST, and I'm going to bugger off to bed now... more than half an hour before ordered to!

I promise, no playing cards on the computer!



Edit: It's now 01:30, so that's half an hour ahead of schedule.

Goodnight, Bloggers!

Zzzzzzzzzz

Sleep! That's all I seem to have done the last few days...

Saturday, I worked up at the office all day, and then at night I watched a dvd - "Music & Lyrics" with Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore... It was okay, basically just "Four Weddings & A Funeral", "Notting Hill" or "Love Actually" with yet another female co-star for Hugh. Still, it went down okay with the bottle of coconut Bacardi Breezer (not terribly good, but it was all I had in) and the pizza. After watching it, I fell asleep under Harriet, my big, soppy (and heavy when she's lying on your chest) cat.

Sunday, basically I just slept... I managed to stay awake long enough to watch "National Treasure" with Nicholas Cage ("Lara Croft: Tomb Raider" with smaller boobs), but not much else. I am utterly ashamed at wasting the day half-asleep, but it's the only day off I get, and by the time it comes round, I'm half dead. However, the down side is that I went to bed proper at about 11:30pm, then woke up at about 2am, and didn't get to sleep again until nearly 6am!

Yesterday, was working again (Bank Holiday? What's one of them?), including covering the shop at lunch time. Then, when I got home at night, I had something to eat, started to watch something on TV... and that was me... zonk, asleep!

Today's been spent ferretting around for jobs to do again... which the boss is taking full advantage of - making me do the things he should have done something about months ago.

Oh, does anyone want a cat? Not Harriet... Minnie... who is driving me crazy poking in the bin any time my back's turned. Next time she tries it, I'm going to dump her in and tie up the bin bag, I swear!

Suck It & See...

Monday... was a bit of a change from the normal, but not necessarily a good change. I was at work in the morning, covered the shop over lunchtime, and then wandered up to the doctor in the beautiful sunshine because my ruddy cough's still here - and those tablets I got a month ago for "seasonal asthma" did no damned good at all. So, perhaps this asthma's not so seasonal after all? This time I've got an inhaler to puff on twice a day, but no mention of going back once it's done... Don't worry though - it's not serious, breathless, life-threatening asthma... It's just an annoying cough and slight wheeze that won't go away...

Anyway, I didn't go back to work after being at the doc and picking up my prescription, since it was coming on 4pm by that time. I wandered down the street to my brother's and he took me home. Had my tea, and sat down to watch half an hour of telly before I came upstairs to blog... and that was more or less me til this morning. I must have been asleep about 9pm, and don't really remember anything else!

Today... started about 7am, when I woke all nice and refreshed, to the dulcet tones of Minnie the cat wanting in! I tried to ignore her, but she's got a meow that's not designed to be ignored. Got up, let her in, and made myself a coffee - which I went and laid down with again for a while - desperately trying to ignore the dulcet tones of Minnie wanting back OUT again! (Grrr).

Got up about half past 8, because I had an appointment at the Citizens' Advice Bureau just before 9:30am. Got through there pretty quick, went and got another coffee (sorry, Viki) and walked up to the office in the sun.

Work was pretty boring... and I had to own up to a mistake I'd made - which unfortunately meant owning up to Flunky, coz it affected him, so I had to suffer him humming "The Muppet Show" theme to me for the rest of the day... Still, it made a change from "Spiderpig, Spiderpig, does whatever a Spiderpig does", I guess! Anyone want a Flunky? Going cheap? And he's house-trained... nearly...

Counsellor tonight. Was good.

Before I came up here, I watched Kerrang! for a while, and they had "Red Hot Chili Peppers: Top 20" - Bet you can't guess who's going to be in the "Shallow Al" feature tomorrow?

Another One Bites The Dust...

(Weekend, that is).

Saturday... was spent the same way as all my Saturdays - working. Stuck in the shop again, coz our replacement Saturday girl can't start til next week (least, she'd better be starting next week, coz the boss is away for a few days, and I'm supposed to be in the electrical bit... and I've not yet mastered the "how to be in 2 places at one time" thing).

Shop wasn't overly busy, but it was a lovely sunny day, and it's amazing how the sun brings out the freaks... is it the same for you blog readers? I was mentally checking them off as they came in the shop today, and I think I only needed 2 more of our more outlandish customers for a Full Freakhouse!

Shopping after work, then a pizza (garlic chicken... good job I was alone) and a DVD... well, half a DVD - started watching "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" (had it for ages, but never got round to watching it yet), but I could feel the old eyelids droop about halfway through, so I turned it off and went to sleep.

Sunday... and my one long lie of the week. Had a very lazy morning, sleeping til well after 10am... then dozing on and off most of the rest of the morning. Watched the end of he "Harry Potter" film... which I was actually pretty disappointed with, but never mind.

Just had a relaxing afternoon/early evening too - did anyone else see the 400th episode of "The Simpsons"? Was it just me, or was it really not that much to write home about?

Then pottered online the rest of the evening. And now I'm going to bugger off to bed, ready for work tomorrow... not a clue whether the shopgirl's back or not, but I guess I'll find out tomorrow morning.

'Night...

To Sleep, Perchance To Dream...

Well, I got to bed earlier last night (not quite before midnight, but just after it)... and I did manage to sleep a little better.

Woke up this morning BEFORE 9am, which is always good!

Was starting late today anyway, coz I had an appointment to go to at half past 9. After it was over, I went to the shop... which is where I spent the remainder of my working day.

Had to laugh when the boss told me his confession though - that he remembered yesterday that I had this meeting, and that he would have to open the shop... but that he was sitting in the office today at half past 9, when it suddenly dawned on him that there was somewhere else he was meant to be! (HeeHee).

Today's not been the best of days altogether though, for reasons explained above...

Wednesday & Thursday...

Wednesday was a busy day... college in the morning, for what is possibly our last class before the exam on the 18th - and I am bricking it. "Don't worry," the teacher says, "You only need to get about 3 quarters of the paper right to pass." Oh, that's okay then(!)

Then up to the office for a couple of hours, to try and make a hole in the nearly 2 weeks' worth of my work that's not been done while I've been down at the bloody shop.... and then down to the bloody shop, without a dinner break. Managed to dash into a shop before the boss' wife went away and got a packet of crisps and a bottle of some kind of yogurt drink.

Pottered about on the computer in the evening... until I fell asleep listening to music. Woke up with a shock at 3am when my chair tilted back and nearly deposited me on the floor. Went to bed, and was awake until about half past 4 - fucking fucked-up sleep pattern.

Thursday... started really badly, off the back of not getting to sleep last night... I woke up at half past 10 - but I was meant to open the shop at 9am!!!! Not good! Boss had sussed out something was up though (like the fact I WASN'T up) and he went down to the shop. Kicked my way out of bed, dressed in a hurry (least, I think I had all my clothes on), and left the poor cats outside with no breakfast! Left the house at quarter to 11.

Arrived down the shop, and thankfully the boss was nowhere as angry and/or sarcastic as he could (justifiably) have been. Was left there the rest of the day though. His wife did come in from the back of 1pm until just before 3pm (funny how when he left at 11am, he said she was going to be in "within the hour").

Meeting with a couple of Home Support/Social Work ones tonight. Hopefully we can get things moving on the sorting out all the stuff that Mum & Dad accumulated, and can get rid of some of the furniture and tat. But not until after my exam on the 18th.

Speaking of that (again), I was kind of hoping to get the morning off to do last minute revision and stuff, but not a chance - the boss and his wife are away, there will be only the (bandaged and on crutches) shopgirl in the shop, and Flunky will be in, but he's got a football match at the weekend, and he already knows he's going to be feeling a bit unhealthy after it (nothing to do with the football... more the apres football, if you get my drift)... so I'm needed at the office. How am I ever going to pass this exam? Positive thoughts, people.

Well, now I'm going to bugger off to bed, and try to get there before midnight to avoid a repeat of this morning if I can!