12/31/2009: "... and that was 2009"

an up and down year for me, with some tremendous luck...

HEALTH:
the year started with much to look forward to, after mother nature decided that it was not our time to have another little sprog in the family, i was just relieved that hoovergerl had come out of 2008 fit and well.
2009 started with a big surprise, which would worry the crap out of us all for the next 9 months... within days, it was confirmed that hoover was again with child
after the recent ups and downs, this would be a worrying time... mother nature was kind to us, so much so, that by easter, as parents go we were considered "low risk" of any complications.

as easter came and went, fate would deal us a tough card and for my dad, an even tougher one.
a very active and healthy parent as dad was, his trip to bath was the start of a roller coaster that would affect us all at hoover towers.
suffering mild chest pains which went as quick as they came, but started reoccuring, ended up with angina being diagnosed, on to the waiting list he went for treadmill tests, etc.
whilst out in town one afternoon, unable to walk and suffering from pains and not being able to catch his breath, dad found the strength to get himself into a pharmacists and ask for help.
an ambulance ride later he was in hospital as an urgent case, and transferred to blackpool hospital, who specialise in heart problems.
after getting a text message then phoning through to find out where he was, we ventured out to blackpool to see him.

he was not in a good way at all... lying down all day with just a sip of water whist tubes and balloons were put inside him as they tried to stabilise him and make him comfortable.
after yet more tests and results, he was told he would have to have open heart surgery.
he was placed on a short waiting list behind another patient, and we were informed that his operation would be the next day, in the afternoon.
what started as a single heart bypass, was changed to a double, then a triple bypass, in the end he was to have a quadruple bypass.
we rang the next morning to see how he was, and in the night he had gotten worse, so been rushed in for his operation earlier than expected as he couldnt be stabilised.

i remember leaving work that day, in a blind panic, wondering what if, etc. god knows what state myra (my step mum) was in. within about two weeks of a holiday, he was diagnosed with angina and now he was in blackpool having open heart surgery!

all we could do was drive over to see them everyday, try to lighten the mood and make sure myra got to her hotel safely each night.
after hours in theatre, out came pops, all done and dusted, the surgeon was pleased with how it all went.
i cannot imagine going through any of that, a non smoking, only occasional drinker who had always been very active was now rushed in with major heart problems... i dont think i want to!
within a week or so dad was allowed to go home and recouperate. what a relief!
... a new member of the family arrives!!!
by august, tammy was doing well we were told and she was due to arrive late august/early september
what seemed like an eternity - the calm before the storm - we had three weeks where we just waited for labour to start.
i drove the car over blubberhouses dips and hills, we drove over bumpy lanes, in the end we walked around the res in the pouring rain - so sick of waiting were we, i just had to do something!
that evening the pains started coming, and hoovergerl hung on at home for a good 4 hours or so (whilst in touch with the hospital by phone every hour) before the pain got so bad she had to be taken into hospital.
theo and i packed up the stuff, and off we went.
we arrived at 4.30am and at 8.46am we welcomed a beautiful baby girl!
theo cut the cord and we had a new family member, weighing in at 6lb 10 ounces, within 24 hours they were allowed to come home!

the sheer volume of messages of goodwill and cards we got was mindblowing, all the gang over at chatgames.com sent parcels of baby presents from all over the world, each one arrived on different days, lighting up hoovergerl's mush, the generousity shown, from all corners of the world was truly staggering!
little Annie pants continues to dictate life at hoover towers with her routine and her actions, just as it should be.

WORK:
around june, unusually (for a school) where i worked, was to close down.
the gang i had annoyed for over a year were to be split up and would be no more after the summer.
with an informal interview at the end of term, i was told that the school unit was moving to another school nearby, and unfortunately there was no place available for me. nobody's fault, just the way it was.
within three days i received a phone call, the gang that was moving to the new unit, had stuck their necks out for me, and the top boss offered me a place there with increased hours!
at the beginning of september, after two days training at the new unit, i was to become a fully fledged member of the gang.... not bad for a dinner lady/man!

the last day of the school year was very strange, as i hadnt been there as long as the qualified gang, but i had grown very attached to each and every one of them, from helen, the boss, right down to chris who cleaned up the mess i left hehe. they never lost their rag with my constant questions and asking for help, which was quite rare for anyone who knows me.
when it came to the end of the last day, i tried to hide away and keep busy, i dont like major change and i dont like saying goodbyes etc.
most of the gang would be going to the new unit, but a couple of them would be moving on to other things.
one of the gang in particular, would leave a big hole (if thats the correct term for it hehe) - on a daily basis im sure i had annoyed her more than the kids did!
i wont mention names as they know who they are... but i soon recognised that she is a teacher of the highest quality!
i love people watching, i can normally suss out a person within a few hours, after just a couple of hours working in the classroom with her, it was clear to me (as it still is) that this person will go far in life and has a heart as big as a house!
i had filled out an application for a dinner time position, but had heard nothing back, so i took it that the position had gone.

in september i started my two days training at the new school, for working in the new unit.
the staff were very friendly and instantly made me very welcome. although things were not set up immediately, all the signs were good.
within the space of a couple of days, everything was about to turn upside down!

the first problem was finance - after enquiring into child tax etc, as hoovergerl was on reduced maternity pay after just six weeks from when the baby was born, after doing my sums it worked out that we would be worse off as a family by Ł37 per week if i was to work my new hours.
i rang them to check this and went through it step by step with the people there.... i had not made a mistake, my figures were correct to the penny!
so my first dilemma was - do i work and gain experience for less money in the pot? or do i stand aside and let the position goto someone with more experience than me and find something else?

as those who know me well can state, i do not like punching above my weight. i was told that i would need luck in my new role, being in a classroom for 30 odd hours a week is very different from standing in for a few hours each week and being responsible for dinnertime play... how right they were!
i decided to sleep on it before making my mind up.
within 24 hours a brand new opportunity opened up, thanks to a good friend!

i decided that being in a classroom for my entire working day was not for me, not in the capacity i would be employed as anyways, i needed fresh air, i needed space and some flexibility, i needed some control. it was also unfair to remove money from my family's pocket at the same time. i decided to stand down.
i went in to explain as best i could, sad that i was not going to be working with a great team who had stood up for me and recommended me for the job, helped me so much at the old school, but in a way also relieved.

within 48 hours i was setting off for an interview for another job, in much the same role as my previous job, a dinner lady!
luckily for me and thanks to my good friend (who will only start bragging if i give her credit) giving me a good reference, i got the job!
fresh air, variation, a little bit of control, and an opportunity, i consider myself extremely lucky.
already, in a short time up to now, it has proved to be a godsend.
great fun and everyone has looked after me. i am on trial for 3 months i think, so hopefully i have worked hard enough to be kept on, we shall see.

... in other work
driving jobs continue to come along, my first week off at half term, i had two driving jobs before the first day was out. the van is out of action but should be back on the road in the new year, no doubt more lifting of heavy things awaits... there are rewiring and plumbing jobs to do around hoover towers, with plastering and ceilings to be done after that, but its a work in progress.
as for the websites, i am still struggling with inputting data into a database and then setting up website templates to call the info, but im reading lots of geeky books and trying things out, with hoovergerl returning to work in the coming months, i need to get them up and running as soon as possible.

PENNY PINCHERS:
not convinced it is doing well at the moment. had the database hacked into and all my shopping centre links wiped off, and it is being bombarded with spammers and members who just want a back link and want to sell stuff through it from their own websites.
its not really in the spirit of why it was set up.
Frugal ways has been set up and is being updated with quite a lot of information, but there is much more to be done there, at the moment it is done on an as and when basis.
we managed to save friends of the site over Ł2000 this year - lets hope we can save even more money in 2010!

GARDENING:
after getting the recycled greenhouse from a contact who was out on the road, then getting it back here and building it, laying flags and gritsand etc, last year was a late effort, the tomatoes came up in october!
going into december we still had tadpoles in the pond, but in early december, the habitat was thriving with some wild animal visiting it in the snow and squirrels burying food around the edges of it!
i have 6 bays and a greenhouse to run with in 2010, so it will be a bit more organised if nothing else.
i also have a few days set aside to help dad with his double allottment over in barrow, that way he wont over do it and i can get some free comfry... bonus!
as for the front garden, well much earlier seed planting plus the added bonus of plants started in the greenhouse should help. 3000 seeds last year planted in july didnt come through very well.

an eventful year all in all, which had some major worries but luckily everything turned out well in the end... lots of work to do in 2010, but its work that i can do on my time as and when i want to.

good health and happiness to all my friends for 2010 - see you all on the otherside for 2011!