Ain’t Nothin’ Goin’ On But The Rent

[f4f3]

Well that’s not quite entirely true.
Some elements might be slightly inaccurate.
Oh, ok, it’s a lie…

Things are very busy indeed.

Work has settled down from the weekly visits to Inverness. I might still have to do the odd single day visit, but no extended stays (that might change, in the summer, but for now I’m mostly in Edinburgh). That makes life a lot simpler for me, or at least it would if I weren’t…

Currently house-sitting for a friend. She’s off in Chicago, leaving a dog, two and a bit cats, and a lot of birds and squirrels to be looked after. She lives out in the country (well, by my standards) but within 10 miles of my office. So the commute is cut down, though the pre-work routine is quite a bit more extensive (feed two and a bit cats, give dog three types of medicine and food, fill bird and squirrel feeders). At night things get quiet. Maybe too quiet – I’m used to a bit more going on at night. Still, after the first week of two I’m starting to like it and settle into a routine, or at least I would be except…

My mum is in hospital. She was on holiday, and started getting really bad headaches half way through. The local doctor was giving her injections (which she later found out were Tramadol!) but no diagnosis. My brother picked her up from the airport on Saturday, and took her straight to the Royal Infirmary in Glasgow. After a couple of days of tests, during which possibilities like meningitis and aneurism were thrown about, they’ve settled on shingles in her head. Which sounds better by comparison, but is actually pretty horrific in terms of pain. So she’s going to spend two weeks in bed having anti-virals and pain killers pumped into her at Gartnavel hospital, which is only five minutes from my Glasgow flat. It’s a place of ill-omen for me, since it contains the Beatson cancer centre, and it’s where my friend Bill’s sister got her diagnosis. It’s also harder for her husband to get to, since he doesn’t drive. So she’s very upset, and in a lot of pain, and that puts a lot of things in perspective for me, especially since…

The General Election is coming up on Thursday (in case you haven’t noticed).  I haven’t said a lot about this, here, but it’s been on my mind a lot. For one thing, I won’t be voting Labour, breaking the voting pattern of every GE since I was able to vote, back in 1983. I’ve decided to vote SNP, along with a lot of other Labour voters. There’s a lot of reasons for this – I voted SNP in the last Holyrood election, based on their record in government, and they’ve done well in this term too. I voted Yes in the referendum, which maintaining my Labour Party membership, with the intention of being part of the Scottish Labour Party after independence. That vote was lost, and (to coin a phrase) in the past it must remain. But I was shocked by Labour’s behaviour in the referendum campaign. Not just the relentless negativity which had failed them so badly in the 2011 Holyrood elections, but an actual hostility to policies like nuclear disarmament and land reform, things that brought me into the party in the first place.

Hmm. This post is growing, and will grow further… I’ll cut it short here, for those who aren’t interested in North British politics, and post a new one this afternoon…
 

Comments

[khalinche.livejournal.com]

Your poor mum. I hope she feels better soon. Also -two and a bit cats? How does that work? Preferably illustrate your answer with photos.

[f4f3.livejournal.com]

Yes, I'm more than a bit worried about her.

Ginger is a peripatetic Tom - in theory, he's not part of the household, but he does get to sleep in the conservatory and eat his (considerable) weight in food.

[andrewducker]

I've had half a cat on several occasions in much the same way.

I hope your Mum recovers sharpish.

[f4f3.livejournal.com]

Thanks - she is settled in another hospital now, and getting the best treatment there.

[slobberpuppy.livejournal.com]

Oh, your poor mum! I'm sending her get well vibes and hope that the pain subsides or is at least manageable.

I don't know much about North British politics, they strike me as a deep and complex history.

[f4f3.livejournal.com]

Thank you - it's looking like two or three weeks in hospital for her, which she isn't taking well to.

[morgaine-x.livejournal.com]

Best wishes for your mum. My pop had shingles when he was in his 70s and it sure isn't fun. :(

2 and a bit cats? Do tell.

Oops - just read the comments. Sounds more like 3 and a bit cats... :)

[f4f3.livejournal.com]

Not just shingles, apparently...

[danieldwilliam.livejournal.com]

Sorry to hear about your mum.

[f4f3.livejournal.com]

Thanks Dan.

[danieldwilliam.livejournal.com]

On the General Election - it's a head scratcher.

I also won't be voting Labour. As you can probably tell from FB conversations this is a bit of break with family tradition. I've been contemplating voting for either the SNP or the Greens in Edinburgh South. I'd prefer to vote for the Greens but I don't want Labour to hold the seat, so I've been waiting for an Ashcroft poll to tell me whether the seat was a safe hold for Labour (Vote Green), a safe gain for the SNP (Vote Green) or a marginal (Vote SNP). Looks like a marginal, so I think I've made up my mind but will sleep and reflect.

[f4f3.livejournal.com]

In the last few elections my pattern has been Labour for Westminster, SNP for Holyrood, and Greens for district elections. It’s a distinct possibility that my future pattern will be SNP Westminster, Green Holyrood and Green district. We’ll see

[nicnac.livejournal.com]

Chalk up another person fascinated by the bit of cat. Was rather hoping it was a kitten, which would naturally equal photos. Peripatetic Toms generally aren't nearly so photogenic :)

Sorry to hear about your mum's further diagnosis.