Category: Home & Family TO BE FIXED

I’ve spent today on and off in tears … I kept getting teary-eyed at work today, and finally almost broke down in the office with my ‘old’ supervisor Sally.  What happened to send me over the top today?  Partly my own fault … and I’m kicking myself for my own stupidity … I had 1 1/2 hours overtime approved before my shift started today, but I thought I’d written it down for after my shift, meaning I essentially ‘no-showed’ for my overtime … so I arrive to the news that I can now not request overtime for the next month!  Seeing as that was to be my ‘saviour’ for my latest financial situation, that was the last straw for me … I’ve been in an emotional meltdown ever since 😦

I don’t think it was helped whatsoever by the fact I haven’t been sleeping properly compliments of my trapped nerve/neck pain – but I can’t get in for an appointment until Tuesday afternoon to get that manipulated back into place.  Anyway, I decided my state of mind at work wasn’t helping anyone, so I made an appointment to see my local GP, who was excellent – he’s sending me for extra blood tests for other things, as I’ve also been having problems with swollen feet and ankles this week, and my blood pressure was quite high tonight.  He wants to take it again in a couple of weeks once my back/neck pain has subsided, and I’m less stressed … he then looked at me and asked if I was depressed … I promptly started getting teary-eyed and upset again, then explained that I had been under a lot of stress before Christmas financially not being able to buy food basically for 2 months, and that I’m stressing that I’m getting back in that same position again, not to mention my housing situation.  I thought I’d been doing really well holding it all in, but it’s been lurking away in the background obviously, and today the floodgates opened in earnest!

Anyway, he’s given me a certificate to keep me out of work until after next Tuesday … should give me time to get back on an even keel again – and he’s also given me some Voltaren tablets to help ease the pain a bit, and which will hopefully give me a better night’s sleep than I’ve been getting now.

On the other side, Sally says she’s going away for almost 2 months, and was considering getting a housesitter in to look after her place (in East Bentleigh, not too far from where I am now, and where I used to live when I first moved to Aussie) – so a new possibility would be that I give my notice in here, pack up everything into storage, and look after her place while she’s away (starting from next month, I guess).  That means I’d also have my bond money back from here, which is pretty much $1,000, before I moved into the new place, which takes the financial pressure off a bit.  It also means I’d be living basically rent-free for that time, giving me chance to get back on my feet again.  Anyway, it’s an option to consider, I guess – my head is almost splitting tonight with a headache (from the stress, I think), so I’ll have to think it over again when I’m thinking more rationally.

 Sorry for blurting this all out tonight – I was going to write an “I’ll be back soon” post, but then I thought it would be good to just get it all off my chest … and if there’s nothing else about me, it’s that I’m 100% honest and up-front on here – dirty laundry and all.

Anyway, I’ll be taking it easy over the next day or three, so don’t worry if I’m not posting or commenting much – I have much to mull over …  Mum, expect a phone call from me over the next day or so – if it wasn’t for the time difference you would have had one tonight!! 😉

Just a really quick post to say how much I’ve appreciated the cyberhugs and comments that have been left for me. I still don’t particularly feel like posting or blogging, so I’ll still be offline for a while longer. I’m not sleeping too well at the moment, and I’m on 6am shifts this week so that doesn’t help my mood at all.  I can’t even say that I’m stitching up a storm either, as I’m too exhausted most of the time to put a needle into fabric.

A couple of answers to questions about my car – unfortunately no I couldn’t pay in instalments, and they refused to give me a ballpark figure whatsoever before I flew to Perth … guess who won’t be going back to them?  It’s also not an option to sell at the moment, because I’d still need additional funds to ‘upgrade’ it, which I just don’t have.

One extra thing that is worrying me (probably unnecessarily) is that the real estate Manager (yep, the head honcho himself) came round to visit on Tuesday just before I picked my car up, and was very concerned about the building.  He started to say something about the works and stopped, and let’s just say I got the impression that I may not be permitted to stay in the building.  Anyway, I’ve since been online to the Tenants Union website, and been reading about Notices to Vacate … if the building is deemed inhabitable etc, then I could be served with an Immediate Notice to Vacate”, meaning I have to move out immediately … the alternative is a 60-day Notice to Vacate, and as far as I understand it the works will be taking place within 60 days.  I spoke to the Tenants Union on the phone yesterday and if I get served with an “immediate” notice then I can fight for an extension of say 14 days to make arrangements to move out, but basically there is no compensation made at all, even though you pay rent a month in advance and they are not longer providing you with a roof over your head that you’re essentially paying for.  The Union did say, though, that they would refund any rent already paid in advance … geez, that’s really comforting!  Anyway, let’s just say that’s preying on my mind a bit at the moment … I just hope like hell it doesn’t come to that … ‘cos at this stage I still don’t have another home to go to 😦

So, once again, please forgive me if I’m not online for a while longer – I may just mark all unread feeds as read soon too, as at the moment they’re about to hit the 1000 mark, and that’s depressing me all the more seeing that counter go up every day, and I just don’t have the mental energy to catch up at the moment.  In fact I don’t really feel like sitting here at the PC at all, so I know I really am not feeling fantastic 😉

I’m sure I’ll bounce back very soon … I just don’t see the point of sitting here whining online every day – it’s best for me to come back when I feel more positive and more like ‘my old self’ or I’ll start putting you all off reading my blog 😉

Thanks again for your continued support … I hope to see you again soon with a huge smile on my face 😀  {{hugs}}

Just a really quick post to say how much I’ve appreciated the cyberhugs and comments that have been left for me. I still don’t particularly feel like posting or blogging, so I’ll still be offline for a while longer. I’m not sleeping too well at the moment, and I’m on 6am shifts this week so that doesn’t help my mood at all.  I can’t even say that I’m stitching up a storm either, as I’m too exhausted most of the time to put a needle into fabric.

A couple of answers to questions about my car – unfortunately no I couldn’t pay in instalments, and they refused to give me a ballpark figure whatsoever before I flew to Perth … guess who won’t be going back to them?  It’s also not an option to sell at the moment, because I’d still need additional funds to ‘upgrade’ it, which I just don’t have.

One extra thing that is worrying me (probably unnecessarily) is that the real estate Manager (yep, the head honcho himself) came round to visit on Tuesday just before I picked my car up, and was very concerned about the building.  He started to say something about the works and stopped, and let’s just say I got the impression that I may not be permitted to stay in the building.  Anyway, I’ve since been online to the Tenants Union website, and been reading about Notices to Vacate … if the building is deemed inhabitable etc, then I could be served with an Immediate Notice to Vacate”, meaning I have to move out immediately … the alternative is a 60-day Notice to Vacate, and as far as I understand it the works will be taking place within 60 days.  I spoke to the Tenants Union on the phone yesterday and if I get served with an “immediate” notice then I can fight for an extension of say 14 days to make arrangements to move out, but basically there is no compensation made at all, even though you pay rent a month in advance and they are not longer providing you with a roof over your head that you’re essentially paying for.  The Union did say, though, that they would refund any rent already paid in advance … geez, that’s really comforting!  Anyway, let’s just say that’s preying on my mind a bit at the moment … I just hope like hell it doesn’t come to that … ‘cos at this stage I still don’t have another home to go to 😦

So, once again, please forgive me if I’m not online for a while longer – I may just mark all unread feeds as read soon too, as at the moment they’re about to hit the 1000 mark, and that’s depressing me all the more seeing that counter go up every day, and I just don’t have the mental energy to catch up at the moment.  In fact I don’t really feel like sitting here at the PC at all, so I know I really am not feeling fantastic 😉

I’m sure I’ll bounce back very soon … I just don’t see the point of sitting here whining online every day – it’s best for me to come back when I feel more positive and more like ‘my old self’ or I’ll start putting you all off reading my blog 😉

Thanks again for your continued support … I hope to see you again soon with a huge smile on my face 😀  {{hugs}}

I just had the phone call I’ve been waiting for, to say my car was finally fixed this morning … then he’s called me back to give me the awesome news about the actual bill. 

The repairs have come in at a tidy sum of just over $1,000 … quite frankly I’m in shock!!  To say I feel ‘less than perky’ would be the understatement of the year …  I burst into tears as soon as I hung up, and now I just feel physically sick. 

If stitching is good for relieving stress, then I should be stitching up a storm soon! Please accept my apologies if you don’t hear from me for a few days … I think I’m just going to go sit in a corner with my head in the sand for a while 😦

I suppose I should go put the final knife in and open the electricity bill that just arrived last Thursday too … might as well get it all over with in one hit.

I’ll be back again when I feel a bit perkier …

Going by the title, you can guess the weekend didn’t quite go ‘as planned’ … but thankfully there is a exceptionally happy ending 😉  Mind you, after the news about my car problems, perhaps you could say the whole week didn’t go as planned, not just the weekend …

On Thursday night I managed to get 4 hours sleep before I had to be up to catch my taxi to St Kilda – the taxi arrived promptly at 5.45am, and we had a very short hop up the street to drop me off to the bus pick-up point.  At that time of the morning it was pitch black, and a bit discomfiting to be standing in the middle of the street, but I survived the ordeal.  After the time got to 6.25am (the pick-up time was supposed to be 6.10am), the bus finally sailed past the end of the street, but then didn’t come back again – I figured perhaps he had other pick-ups in St Kilda and will return to my stop.  By the time it was 6.50am I decided he definitely isn’t coming back, so I had no choice but to wave down a taxi and had to pay $55 for a cab fare to the airport – luckily I did it, though, as I arrived with just 10 minutes to spare before my flight!  When I called later and spoke to the bus company they said they’d look into it and call me back – 3 hours later I still hadn’t heard from them, so I turned into Miss Cranky Pants and called them back again … to find that apparently they hadn’t received the booking info until that afternoon (which I don’t believe, as she’d read back all my details when I first called in the morning hmmm).  Anyway, in essence I just told them their customer service is severely lacking, and asked for a full refund and I would just find my own way home – thankfully I’m getting the refund processed.

So, not an auspicious start to the weekend.  The flight itself was wonderful and uneventful, and on arrival in Perth I found a shuttle bus to take me to a bus station that would then take me to Victoria Park East  where I could kill some time browsing around Stitchers Corner LNS.  It turns out they took me to the wrong bus station, so I ended up having a bit of a tiki tour of Perth central, finishing at the Esplanade busport (as an aside I have now learnt that Perth drivers get very vacant looks and get upset when you call the busport a bus depot, and don’t ask for a “zone 1” ticket, because all you get are blank looks … one must ask correctly for a “1 zone ticket for the Esplanade busport” LOL).  Anyway, an hour later and I was finally on my way, lugging my suitcase behind me for good measure (geez I miss left luggage facilities), and I eventually I found Stitchers Corner where I managed to keep myself awake for a wee while longer while browsing the wonderful goodies.

The return back to Perth city was interesting again – asking the driver if he went to either Williams Street busport or Esplanade busport I was told “yes” … I then assumed that meant he goes to both (I wanted Williams Street) – but of course not!  We end up at Esplanade where he stops and stays … on enquiry I am curtly told Williams Street is NOT a busport it is a station … and no he doesn’t go there.  I got off the bus before I turned the air blue … Are you getting the drift of how my day was going?

I spent a short while walking around the central area of Perth, but I was too exhausted to go far while lugging my suitcase.  I ended up parking myself in a couple of different food outlets where I had a green curry lunch followed by banana split and cappuccino.  A bit of an odd combination, but it was yummy and helped to fill in some time.  I eventually caught up with my friend Hayley in the city after she finished work, and we wandered back to the Wentworth Hotel where I’d been told the shuttle bus returns from (I’d bought a return ticket that morning).  We arrived just as the shuttle was starting to pull away from the curb, and regardless of us waving he certainly wasn’t stopping … so we stood and waited for another hour before the next one finally arrived … and even though we put our arms out and waved to him to stop, he just waved back and sailed straight past … aaaarghhhhhhhhh!!!!!!  Another phone call to the bus company (this seemed to be the running theme for Friday) and I’m told you have to pre-book your return pick-ups … a fact that they neglected to mention.  As I said to the poor operator, do you think I would have stood here for over an hour waving at two separate buses if I’d known that … and no I can’t wait for another hour for the next bus to turn up, as I have to pick up a rental car in 1/2 hours time.  Let’s just say, I’m supposed to be getting another partial refund now … ho-hum.

So, it was back in another taxi again, and our driver was wonderful – he had a GPS system in his cab, and I’d never seen one in use before, so he showed us how it worked and gave us a demo so we could see it taking us to the airport – it was great!  Oh boy, how I want one of those things!!  And in hindsight I could really have used one over the weekend … which I’ll chat about next in a separate post, as it pertains to CA’s class.  After my eventful day, we opted to just get pizza in for tea and we sat and had a bottle of wine before hitting the hay for the night, ready for me to get up early to drive over the other side of town in the morning … and oh, what a drive and a half … 😉

I have made my decision today after a good night’s sleep … whether or not I will live to regret that decision will only be known later, but otherwise I’ve wasted all that time and effort over the last two months, not to mention wasting my birthday/Christmas money that was used to pay for the kits, by not going.  I’ve actually got $1500 set aside in the bank account ready for when we find somewhere to move into (ie a month’s rent/bond in advance), so if necessary it just means holding off for a month for moving … but I’m just hoping it doesn’t come to that.  I’ll also put my name down for overtime every single day for the next month or so and hope at least a few days come through confirmed.

I’ve since found out there is an airport shuttle bus that leaves from St Kilda, that only costs $30 return, which is awesome – it’s hardly worth taking the car anyway for that price (even if I had it), especially as I’m only taking a small wheelie case for luggage.  It now means that today I need to take a couple of trains for a trip out to Surrey Hills so I can buy some 4mm ribbon ready for the class (I hadn’t been able to get there before now thanks to my shift times, then being in Sydney, and then of course having no car).  Unfortunately they don’t have any glass-topped pins or machine sewing threads, or I could get all my chores done at once … I think I’ll have to wait until my car comes back before I get them.

Well, no time to stay sitting around here … time to jump in the shower and head out for a walk to the train station, then come home and get my packing done.  I have to admit, I feel a bit better for finally making a decision … regardless of whether it’s the right one or not.  Now it’s time to set the whole lot in motion …