A few important notes.

I have had three major heartbreaks this year. Did you all know that? The latest being my Tiger. And for that I am surely due some good karma.

He had been a large part of my life for 16 years, he taught me many things, love, responsibility and compassion and the importance of having someone dependent on me for their existence.
He had a spoilt life, by me especially, he had everything he could have ever wanted. He'd beg me for chips or biscuits and I'd always give him some. He loved chips the most. I couldn't walk into my room with food, even if I new he wouldn't like it like when it was fruit, because he'd suddenly wake up, get up, walk over and scream at me until I'd given him all that was left. I'd have to come back from the kitchen with extra rations because I knew he'd want some. Oh! Mum's shortbread. He was a stickler for that stuff.
From loud punk rock music to soft acoustic melodies, he fully supported me through every phase of my life. He loved my small single bed and then my large double, but most importantly my electric blanket in those chilly months. He would walk into the shower just after you'd finished and stand near the drain for someone to come and pour water down so he could follow the drips, play with them and then track his wet prints through the house. We loved it. Mum came around to it.
Tiger used to have a 3 o'clock friend. A few years ago, Berni and I noticed that Tiger would sit at the front door every day from 3pm for about 20 minutes and cry out to someone, we never found out who or why but it became dependable. Oh Tiger's at it again, must be 3. He always did have a great set of lungs on him. He'd sing at the open front door (I say sing and use the term quite loosely because anyone walking past would think we were strangling him) every day, on the window sill in my room looking out, treating the pigeons to his latest number.

I'm leaving in a few days for my Camino. My bag is packed, I'm all set, I'm ready in every sense and I'm so excited!

Work's good, same same and loving it.

Love my friends here but miss everyone at home. I've taken leave in March so make sure you're all free. I'll do some extra shifts to make up for 3 day's worth so I can leave a week earlier.

Not a long post, just checking in and saying cheerio for now. I'll send something special when I get back from my trip. Send me messages, I love receiving them, they're little connections to the other side of the world and makes me feel all gooey inside.

xx

Can you believe August is almost over?!

Having my percolated coffee black because I’ve run out of milk and don’t want to run to the CORNER store to get more. I’m in pjs and I have to change for work soon so no, I will not go. I shall sit here and dream of milk until tomorrow when I get my lazy butt out of bed and down to Tescos.

I’ve moved my flight up to 11^th Sept. some time in the afternoon. I am ready for my camino. I’m ready to be open to change and what it’ll bring. I’ve dreamt I haven’t been ready and yes it’s going to be scary but the best kind of scary! And as long as I keep my pack light and look after my feet, I’ll be fine. I owe so much to Amanda. I did a trial pack for my Camino because I’m so excited; I almost have everything I need. My lounge room floor was covered in clothes and gear, everything scattered around in a chaotic order.

I found a nice little bar in Ealing. We went for drinks there two weeks ago and it’s really cute. Great music, little lights and lamps outside and sweet little tables and chairs. Outside is quite couple-y but the whole thing is cosy and I’ll definitely go there again.

Treated myself to some sparkly clothes last weekend. Nothing like what I’d normally get but I thought I needed a change. The glittery skirt is very Carrie from SATC and the dress is gold, sparkly and floor length, can’t wait to wear it. Lord knows when I’ll wear it but when I have an opportunity, I shall.

Natalie took me along to an Irish pub in the city a few days ago to watch the semi final Gaelic football, Kerry vs Dublin. I had a Guinness in my hand and my back smushed against the bar because the pub was that full. We were both going for Kerry and yelling along with the rest of the pub when they came from behind late in the second half to get 5pts up at half time. But then Dublin retaliated and Kerry couldn’t get past the strong Dublin defensive line and Dublin won by 2pts. I barely had any idea what was going on but I’m not completely invested in the game, conveniently at the end of the season. The final is on in 2 weeks so if I’m not working I’ll watch it. I’ll get an Irish buddy to teach me all the rules and by the start of the next season I’ll be ready, which is next April-ish.

I have finished watching season 2 of How to Get Away with Murder and have moved on to binge watching Sexy And The City from Season 1 in the small amount of free time I have.

You know when you have a bad night’s sleep and wake up thinking “ugh I cbf going into work today. I’ll just float under the radar, avoid most people, smile and be polite but just get through the day, come home and plonk on the couch with trashy tv/good book/insert other small pleasure here”. Well I can’t do that. I’m on late shifts at the moment, got to bed at 1am and woke every hour from 3.30am. Also had bad dreams of people chasing me, challenging tasks I had to do with little to no help from any one else and the clock was against me. I eventually got up at 10am and just plodded around the flat for a few hours. I will finished getting ready for work and I’ll go and smile and act like I really want to be there for every single patient because they’re at their lowest, they are at the point where they need help so badly that they have called for an ambulance and they expect to see supportive people who are invested in their health and wellbeing. Most patients are like this, we do get frequent callers who don’t want to go to their GP or lonely patients but mostly, we go to genuine people. And I love my job, I do, so I had a black coffee, made a great chicken and rice dinner to take with me with some fruit and veggies and nuts.

I’ve been given a semi-permanent line at a station close to home starting in October. The guy who is normally on this line is mentoring someone else for 6 months so I’m taking his spot. It’s a 12hr rota which means I get a cheeky 1 week off every month, it’ll make coming home to visit in March more economic as well. And I’m going to be working with a cool guy as well, I’ve worked with him before.

I'll post again before I leave on my trip. Is anyone actually reading this? Or enjoying it? Anything you'd like me to keep you posted about in particular?

TTFN xx

Checking In

Not much has changed really.  Mum and Pa were here again and then they left, that’s the most exciting thing that’s happened since I checked in last.  We went out for dinner for Mum’s birthday with Natalie (my flatmate) in the city and stumbled home late after incredible steak and wine.

Work is the same; I’ve done a few extra shifts to get more days off for my Camino. I need to do 3 shift swaps just so I have a buffer at the other end of the month off so I don’t have to rush back to work, in case the pilgrimage takes 35 days instead of 30 for whatever reason – injury or weather related. So tired of wearing only my uniform. I miss my jeans. They're blue and actually fit.

I’ve been catching up with friends from work and going out with Natalie, trying to have something of a social life but seeing as almost everyone I know is on shift work as well I barely see anyone or leave the flat other than for groceries.  Oh but I did see Suicide Squad last weekend which I enjoyed. I loved just getting out of the house to be honest and wearing clothes that aren’t uniform or pjs.

I’m currently in the middle of 4 night shifts, with a friendly late shift tagged onto the start of that as well. It’s physically and mentally exhausting. By the third shift you get into the rhythm but coming off your fourth and trying to get back into the land of normal is near impossible. I’m still struggling. But I’ve made plans to go out during the day with a friend this time around and to have some friends over for LASAGNA THAT MUM MADE that night so I’ll force myself back to normal.

For Mum and her friends that worry, yes I’m eating well. Apart from the one tube of Pringles I bought yesterday, I don’t eat junk food. I have mostly fruits, nuts, brown pasta and rice, and a good steak now and then. Breakfast is always porridge with honey and chia seeds and I drink lots of water.

I’ve bought Berni’s birthday present. It’s a goodin to make up for not being there on the day. You’ll love it, Poo, I swear.

Ah just FYI I won’t say no to a care package, just ask my parents for my address. I miss Mint Slices… *cough cough*

Next time I'll write something more interesting. I'll make sure to do something interesting so I can write about it. I'm sure I'll do something. It can't get any more boring...

Back Again!

Another post so soon?!! Well yeah I felt bad only writing a smidge last time.

Yesterday I bought more stuff for my Camino and realised how I can't actually AFFORD to go but I NEED to go, so... I'm just going to keep at it. I drove to Edgware yesterday to a Go Outdoors store and what should have been a 20 minute drive - what would have been a 20 minute drive in Melbourne anywhere but Punt Rd - took 45 minutes. Oh London Traffic - I hate you with a passion. I bought a sleeping bag. It was the smallest there, it was the lightest they had, I got it home and tried stuffing it in my backpack and unless it's just me, someone who doesn't hike overnight and has never tried this before but, it takes up so much room! It barely fits in there. It's a 30L pack. BUT! It's perfect for my Camino. The temperature range is good, weight, size of actual bag and it means that as it takes up more room, I'm less tempted to shove more stuff in there which will make my pack heavier. I spent half an hour in the store messaging my friend back home who walked it last year, MANDA PANDA, THAT'S YOU! Asking 'what do you think of this jacket' 'do I need this' 'what kind of hat...' bloody hell, I don't shop. I can't stand shopping. I wish someone would just buy me clothes (BERNI) and send them to me (NUDGE NUDGE, WINK WINK). I'll pay you back, cheers.
I got so excited last night that I did I trial pack. I do need toiletries in there and a water bottle, a torch, oh and my scallop shell on the front, but other than that I think I've got it all. I also bought a jacket yesterday. It's a fleecey jacket, warm, breathes, dries quickly but it's purple. They didn't have any other colour and I really can't afford to keep putting off buying this stuff. As I need more overtime shifts to book off the later days, I needed to just buy what I needed and not waste anymore time, utilise my days to the fullest. I bought a cap, because I don't own a hat here other than a massive wide brim sunhat, and lately a waterproof jacket the rolls into a little pouch that I've strapped to the outside. I look like I know what I'm doing. I'm going for a walk today wearing the pack with an Aussie mate from work. We're heading to Richmond Park. It's an hours' walk from my place, then it can take you over an hour to walk straight through the middle to the other end, let alone around the whole thing. Oh! I'm excited.

I caught up with a friend from home last night. THAT'S YOU LAUREN G!!! She lives over Clapham-way so I made the train trip over and I'm so glad I did. Made my day. There's so much happening over there that I almost feel jealous. I live in Isleworth, but on the outside of it. There's nothing actually near me in terms of restaurants and bars and clubs. I have a pub. It's nice. I don't think they have live music so it's not the best but! I have a pub. Lauren is surrounded by culture and busy-bees and cafes with really good coffee. I guess it means I save money just because I'm not tempted to spend it?

Ok, off for my walk. I'll let you know how it goes!

And I'm back, over 6hrs later. I had to shower because oh, pissed down with rain for most of the day but so worth it. It was probably better in the rain. It was muddy and cool then hot and dry; I had a lot of fun using and getting familiar with the jackets and pack. It's made me realise just how poor my posture really is :/ Not good.
We walked 23km today, which isn't too bad! And there was a lunch break in there.
Ok starving, need to refuel.
TTFN!

I am a Paramedic. Oh and the parentals are here!

How's this font? Any better? BERNI?!

I've been really busy (not slack) so haven't been able to post anything for a while.

After 3 hard years of studying, packing up my life and moving overseas and a mere 300hours of placement, I am finally out on the road as a fully qualified Paramedic. It's here, I'm here and it's scary! I'm on relief so I work crazy hours, all mostly 12hr shifts, but because I don't have a permanent line at one particular branch, I don't get the luxury of getting one week off every month. Plus I have a big trip planned, for which I need at least 6 extra shifts to make up the time to go. But I'll tell you all about that in a bit.
So I get about 6hrs sleep, wake and run out the door. I will work for 12hrs+, drive home, eat tea, prepare lunch for the next day, shower and go to bed. The two days off I have are mostly spent doing the grocery shop or washing, which I should be doing right now haha but I'll squeeze that in later this afternoon. Finding a time you're free that coincides with the same time that someone else from work is free to catch up is near impossible. I have slightly better luck in catching up with Nicole because she at least has most evenings and weekends. We see each other every 2ish weeks and I love it, really keeps me going. She's helping me find the attractive side of London. The colours and smells and foods, drinking wine on a hill in the lazy afternoon sun. It's not just a grey city of smog and grumpy people. 

My parents are traveling at the moment around Britain and we've caught up twice now. I waited a good hour and a half at the gate of Terminal 3 at Heathrow because there were hundreds of people going through Passport Control when they landed. Their faces lit up when they saw me there waiting, but whose wouldn't? I'm adorable.
What did we do? Geeze, oh well we had dinner at the pub around the corner from my place. It's a great little pub on the Thames with a really nice beer garden. I'm not sure I'll be sitting outside in the winter time as the heaters do a poor job of keeping anything warm but it's great in summer. I had to work a bit but we had dinners together. They did the grocery shop for me, and paid for it for me, oh I really did appreciate that. Me so poor! Adulting is really expensive. Especially when my extra shifts will be for TOIL (time off in lieu) for my trip. Mother Dearest then spent 3hrs in the kitchen cooking sugo, kidney beans and minestrone for me to freeze. My freezer is still fully stocked, oh it's so sexy! Pa and I watched the soccer. Yes, I'm going to keep calling it soccer because you can take the girl out of Australia...
Ah damn, my tee shirt is covered in chocolate now. That's what you get I suppose when you eat slouched on the couch. 
They stayed for 3 nights then went off around Britain. They passed through again the week after for a day, we went into town so I could vote in the Aus Fed Election. I voted twice in a space of 7 days and felt pretty important. Not that either of my votes actually made a difference in the end, but I felt better inside. We had Japanese for lunch and you just can't have asian food without pouring too much hot red sauce on your plate and smothering every bite in it. Crying. Using hard napkins on your face. Then going back for another bite. They're in Ireland now but coming back oo next week, I think. Haha possibly. I'll check our rosters later this week.

I'm trying to do one activity per day, on my days off. Yesterday's activity was the beer fest. Today's is recovering from the beer fest. It was hot, sunny, 7 pints with one glass of water. I'm not so smart for a smart person. Oh god, I feel so lousy and can barely focus my eyes on the screen but I shall carry on!! 

My trip that I have planned from mid September to mid October is the Camino de Santiago, walking the Camino Frances. A 30 day pilgrimage you walk in Spain, from St Jean to Santiago. Look it up. There's a movie about it with Martin Sheen and Emilio Esteves. 

Ok if I'm honest, it's taken me about an hour and a half to write just this much, I'm going to have to stop and keep going another time. I just can't think straight! Egh.

Cheerio!

Almost Fully Qualified...

This post shall be about the month of May and my thoughts and feelings throughout, and to say that I'm holding on for dear life is an understatement.

Let's not lie and say this career choice of mine is an easy one, because it really isn't. I am constantly stressed. Sometimes I wonder how I could have ever thought being a Paramedic was for me, my dream, the job I wanted to work until the end of time. 

Why would I choose to do shift work? It's unhealthy (google circadian rhythm) and can affect not only your sleep and eating patterns, but hormone levels (including impacting your fertility) and increase your risk of heart disease, amongst most other nasty things. Being a Paramedic means you need incredible manual handling skills and awareness because you will be squatting, bending, pushing, lifting heavy patients and bags, twisting into tight-ass corners, wriggling into impossible angles to shift some heavy bugger who decided to collapse at the bottom of the stairs in a corner of a busy club. This job means you don't have 'weekends', you get 'days-off' that no one else has off, because it's Tuesday-Thursday and not even your work mates have those days off, so eating on your own, going to the movies on your own and day trips are on your own. Being a Paramedic is depressing. You only see people who are sick or hurt. People are normally upset, despite being glad to see you walk through their door. We bring bad news as often as good.

However! 

I could not possibly imagine doing anything else other than being a Paramedic.

I get to see the city (at the moment, it's London) at all times of the day. I see the striking colours of the sun setting over the horizon nearly every day and I can watch the smooth, gentle pinks lighting up the dark sky in the mornings at the end of my shifts. Humans decided to live while the sun is up, but I think there's something calming, gentle and friendly about the dark. I can have steak for breakfast, I have an excuse to eat cereal for dinner and when you're tired, you sleep, while the sun shines you rest and recharge for your next big adventure: tonight's shift.

I am unconsciously using so many muscles that I'm getting stronger. You carry two to three heavy bags at a time, up and down stairs at patients' houses, in and out of the truck, around branch, to and from work. You squat all the time, with a straight back, and picture yourself at the gym. And no need for a stair master, all the houses here are built upwards, and they always get sick on the topmost floor. And there's never an elevator in apartment blocks. 

It takes a certain person to be a Paramedic, and because I am one, I know that the friends that I am making now at work, these colleagues of mine, are more than just colleagues. I have been able to trust them, confide in them and connect with them as they are so similar to me. I may be stressed and doubt myself and my abilities, but they are going through the same things and feel the exact same way. I am not alone in thinking that 300 hours of training is not enough to become a competent Paramedic. I am not alone in missing home, or the sun or the Aussie accent.

And as a Paramedic I am welcomed whole-heartedly into strangers' homes. The look of relief as I come in with my bags and open mind and ready skills will never get old. I like being liked, I guess I'm a glutton in that way, I want more of it. I will never get tired of hearing 'thank you'.

I am almost fully qualified and will soon be out on my own, and to that I say BRING IT ON!

Work Work Work Work Work Work

I had a suggestion from my sister, the writer, that the font I used last time wasn't readable, so I'm testing this one out.

It's time for another update! Let's begin with the most important subject. The weather. It's not as cold anymore, I don't need thermals when I go outside during the day and it only drops to about 4 degrees at 11pm-ish, but reaches a high of 17 if you're really really lucky (for a few minutes). It still rains most days and the air is chilly, but hey, the sun's out a lot. By 'a lot', I mean it shines for about an hour or so, then goes, and comes back, then goes. But still chilly. All the time. You need layers. All the time. It's like Melbourne winter, which I managed to escape last year so I guess I'm being punished. It snowed the other day! I was so excited, looked like an absolute foreigner sticking my arms out of the ambulance but I loved it. It lasted a few minutes - with the sun still out - then you guessed it, stopped and came back again a few hours later. Look, either come to the UK in the winter wearing everything you own, or the summer, wearing half of the things you own, but don't bother with Spring. London has no idea what Spring is and clearly shows it. The daffodils which were all over the place a month or two ago have now all stopped blooming so it's dull and dreary. 

Now to WORK!!! I'm working under a mentor for 300 hours of placement. For Aussies coming here to work, the placement period used to be 600 hours but they reduced it for the same reason as why we're all here to begin with - the London Ambulance Service needs more Paramedics out on road filling trucks and shifts that they can't spare the time. We're all registered practitioners here, even though we've come straight from uni with basically no experience, so technically we're only given these 300 hours to learn how London works. Back home, Graduate Paramedics have roughly 10ish months to work with someone, getting their hands dirty and doing as much as they can before they take exams and, if found competent, can go out on their own as a fully qualified Paramedic. It's not like that here at all and it's daunting. I know I learn best hands-on, but still, 2 months is crazy. We've been thrown in the deep end and it's sink or swim here, at the moment I feel like I'm treading water/slightly dog-paddling. My mentor said I have a steep learning curve and that I've been doing really well, but I'd still rather have the rest of the year instead of just until June. 

I've seen a lot on road already, some scary jobs and others not-so scary. Quite a few mental health cases that just need more welfare assistance and a lot of absolute rubbish. People calling an EMERGENCY AMBULANCE SERVICE for 'I feel dizzy' and 'She's been tired all day'... Everyone has a different idea regarding the word EMERGENCY but we do our best to smile and explain to them what we can do. Including pointing them in the direction of their GP. Around the corner!!! 

I love the work though. You just shut out all your personal thoughts and feelings and nothing seems to bother you at work. You immerse yourself completely in the lives and problems of others and think strategically: Danger, Airway, Breathing, Circulation, Disability etc. Nothing else matters. You hop back in the truck and crank up the radio, sing, honk the horn at drivers that don't get out of the way for an ambulance with it's lights and sirens going, laugh and tell jokes, especially after a nasty job. It's the only way to remain resilient and cope with what you've just seen.

We don't get breaks though. On a 12 hour job you're meant to get a 30 minute break, I'm fairly sure, with 15 minutes of it being uninterrupted. But I haven't had one yet. If you don't, then you get to finish 30 minutes early and get an extra 10pounds. As soon as you "Green-Up" (become available for the next job), you get a whole 30 seconds before you're buzzed and the next job comes up on the screen in the truck. Once, get this, we had 40 minutes!!! The Paramedic I was working with couldn't believe it, he said it was the longest he had ever gone without a call. Back home, haha yeah, that's standard. I successfully cannulated someone the other day, I was over the moon and so proud of myself. I've stuffed up a couple but I'm getting there. I'm getting used to the different cannulas they have here which are different to what I've used at uni. 

Oh and for all your med-people reading this, we do 12 leads on nearly all patients. We don't do 3 leads at all! So if you need to do an ECG it's 12L all the way. I've more-or-less got the lead placement down, hard to feel ribs on most people with chunky torsos but when it's little 87year old Ivy from a low SES, her ribs scream at you "Place it here!!!". Reading them however is a little difficult, as we didn't have a lot of time on it but I'm picking up the important parts and learning lots from my mentor and the doctors at the hospitals we go to. Oh!! I was in the cath-lab a few weeks back and saw a guy get a stent put in! 5 minutes. That's all it took, unbelievable. 

I have a week off now as part of the roster so I'm trying to get in all the essential activities - Netflix, grocery shopping, seeing friends and loved-ones and writing you y'all back home. 

I've come to realise that I'm cursed. Yes, that's right, every time I go overseas North Melbourne seem to win. It happened first in 2012 when I came over with Berni and Jade for our TopDeck trip and such, and North won most of the games. Then again last year when us three ladies went travelling and North did quite well. Now, that I've moved here and CAN'T WATCH A GAME we are winning EVERY SINGLE ONE! Boys, look, I'm not saying I'm upset that you're winning, but 6 games undefeated is just not fair. I'm not going to pay and subscribe to watch online (because I'm poor) and I can't find a pub here that shows games yet, but I can listen to 3AW commentary so that's something. I've loved you since the 90s, I was too young to appreciate it then but now that I'm older and would want nothing more to see us win a flag and you decide to try your hardest the year I move away. Fine. Be that way.

I'm wearing my uniform so often, and tracks when I come home, that it feels strange wearing regular clothes. It's fine being outside when I'm on the job because you know what you've got. To fleece or not to fleece. But if not then it's raincoat again or nice coat? Because it'll rain, you know it will. And how many layers do you want to wear for the few minutes you're outside before you take them off and carry them wherever you end up. It's petty, I know, but if London pulled it's socks up and started with some decent weather then everyone would be much happier. One of the reasons I think all Brits are grumpy - the weather. And the water. It really is disgusting and ruining my tea! There's funky residue on the side of my cups and floating on the top, which I get off with a spoon but come on, this is yuck. 

These days you will find me:

Listening to: Elliphant 

Watching: House

Eating: Chicken with a Nandos flavouring I found at Tescos 

Drinking: An unhealthy amount of instant coffee

Reading: Notes on Emergency Health procedures (I should swap for a novel)

Until next time, take care, miss me, send me love and I'll do the same. 

Cheerio!

Hello from the other side...

I had to call my first blog 'Hello from the other side', I just had to.

So, what a blast! The past few weeks have been crazy, insane, fast-paced and now I'm paying the price with a lovely, London COLD! Runny nose, dry and tickly cough and the constant feeling that I'm about to sneeze.

I'll start at the beginning to get you all caught up. On the plane, both legs of the flight, we had two empty seats next to us in our line of four, so William lay down for the 13hr leg and slept, and I got to stretch out for the second half; how lucky was that?!! Landed on a Tuesday arvo, cold, grey and threatening to rain. That's typical weather here though. Back home it would be called 'threatening to rain' type of sky, but here it's called 'day time'. As soon as we got to William's Aunt's (Debbie) place we all set off to get a contract phone plan, all thanks to Debbie. We then went to Marks and Spencer to buy warm clothes. And did I need them! I bought 3 warm tops and a great coat, lined with fuzzy wool. William had to buy some jumpers too, and some trousers because his had a MASSIVE hole in the crotch area. They say trousers here instead of pants. Here, pants means underwear. We're getting taught at training a few local phrases or words and what they mean so that we can somewhat understand out patients, and if we say to someone 'pull your pants down' to look at their leg... well we'll be in for a great surprise. I also bought thermals, which I put in the wash at the end of that week, which I still haven't got back because we didn't wash them early enough and had to leave. And they're going into 'summer' here so all the stores and stopped stocking them.
The next day, Debbie's friend dropped us off in Oxford where I had to pick up my visa. It was freezing that day! Oxford is nice; small cobblestone streets, old buildings everywhere, then again I just described most places in the country. I think it was the Thursday where William, Debbie and I went to Welwyn (pronounced Wellen) to set up a bank account. Thanks to Debbie providing a Proof of Address letter for me and William already having an account, I managed to stick my name onto his and so now, no bank issues. We also had a look around the part of London I'll be working in. We popped into a real estate agents office and had a chat to see if there was anything going, turns out there was one small flat for rent, and agent was still there showing someone else and that we could go have a look. It was essentially a converted garage. A long, thin flat, connected to a big house, low roof, and they wanted too much for it. We left. I was on SpareRoom.com and RightMove.com all day every day.
Oh my goodness gracious! The water here is terrible! It's so heavy with calcium. I went to make a cup of tea, opened the top of the kettle and saw white deposits inside all over and a metal scourer was sitting there. I thought Debbie was cleaning it out and left it there but no, it's to help somewhat clean the water and keep the calcium in the kettle and not in the water coming out. My skin is dry every day, my hair is oily quicker (if that was even possible) and a little thicker and my face is just the same.
The stress William and I were in was constant. We had a lot of fun too, don't get me wrong, but we were busy all day, every day sorting everything out for me. Where I was going to live was the worst of it, the most unsettling thing. We had some really nice dinners, went on nice little trips, like out to Grantchester and Cambridge, and bought a car. With my shifts ending at odd hours, even late into the night like 2am, driving home with a massive bag that screams London Ambulance Service, it was the safest option. After talking about what I needed and what we could afford, we decided on a smart car. It's fantastic, compact, great for parking in these streets, second hand, good condition, fuel efficient plus it's diesel.
We moved into the Croydon Park Hotel the night before training... there's no fridge and the lighting was shocking and the bed was two singles pushed together. But it is comfortable and they change the towels every day so that's nice. William studies his biology everyday in either the room or library down the road. It's so, well, not so much unsafe, but there are so many homeless people sleeping and washing and just living in the toilets there and the quiet areas that we couldn't study and actually caught a cold, which he lovingly gave to me.
Training is fantastic. It's daunting, knowing that their graduate period here is only 300 hours and then I'll be the one calling the shots on every shift as I'll be working with a technician and not another paramedic. They're so understaffed here that LAS is hiring hundreds of Australian paramedics until their uni's can pump out most qualified professionals. Three other people from my class at uni are now in my training group, which is nice, it's helping me transition from being surrounded by friendly faces, to knowing just a few and then shortly to none at all. We're learning all about how they work here, what their protocols are, where they send their patients, what equipment they have and how they work. What I am not looking forward to is the manual handling. The lifting of patients up stairs if needed. Back home, paramedics have an almost no lift policy, but here, it's yeah you have to lift. They're so short staffed here that there's never a crew to come help you out if it's 'just a lift'. Not even Fire-ies.
I get up at 6.15 or 6.30am every day (depending if I need to wash my hair), shower, read all the messages I get from you all, then I get dressed, go down to break at 7. I come back and pack my bag and go downstairs to walk to the training centre by 7.35. It takes just over half an hour to walk there, we can tram but sometimes it's just nice to walk. And as we don't have a fridge in the hotel room we can't keep fresh food, so if we want to buy fresh lunch then we tram. We finish at 4-4.30 and then mostly walk back. William and I are normally hungry by now and knackered that we eat dinner either at the pub or order in or eat in the buffet in the hotel. We study a bit or watch a little tv and then we're asleep by 8 or 9 or 10. So I'm really sorry for not replying to you all at length, but I hope that when I settle into my working routine I'll have days off to write home and Skype you all and send you my love.
Last week William and I went to two places to look at a room to rent. The first was a couple who was renting out a room and ensuite bathroom in their house, they were friendly but didn't really like the idea of William coming and staying a few nights every month or so when he visits. So we said no. The second place was a woman who lives in an apartment complex. She's mid thirties, Irish, an accountant, loves shopping and going to pubs with live music and drinking. Natalie. She had no problem with William staying over. She seems amazing so I said yes. I move in the day after I finish my training. It's a great little home. My bedroom is quite large and I can't wait to put all my things in it.
We spent last weekend doing odd jobs that needed to be done and going to Portobello Road Market on Saturday. Now, the last time I went was in 2012 with Berni and Jade and that was on a Friday. There were a few food stalls then and a few cheap jewellery ones but that was about it. Saturdays are chockers! In the film Notting Hill, Hugh Grant's character says that some of the items they sell are genuine (they really are) and some not quite so genuine (completely agree, absolute crap). We had a ball! I bought some Harris Tweed gloves that I'm in love with and an old stamping box thing to put all my jewellery and nicknacks. I know exactly where to go to shop for William, and I'm gathering lovely little ideas for Berni as well (she's smiling now, I know it). The place is buzzing. There's hundreds of stalls, and they retreat into the buildings there as well. The whole street is set up for those Saturdays and the antiques part is the best. We spent 2 hours there easily, and we didn't even see half the stalls.
Last night William and I trained it up to Scotland for Easter, but it seems everyone in London had the same idea. We had paid for a ticket, but they don't stop selling tickets once the seats are all full, they just keep selling them. And you can book seats too so even though we booked the tickets last week we had to stand in the hallway outside of the first class toilet for over 1.5 hours before enough people got off that there was enough room to sit down... on the floor in the hallway outside the first class toilet. Thank god there was this group of 8 friends, most of them British, and gay, they drank all the way but made the 5hr trip bearable. They had champagne, wine, bear, cider and southern comfort. They played Heads Up game (charades app on a tablet) and were so happy and cheerful that even though I was coughing the entire time with loads of snot dripping out my nose, William and I had a great trip. We came up to spend Easter with William's Mum and brother, his sister was meant to be in Ireland with a friend but decided to stay back and surprise us as well walked in the door. He was so happy and it's really nice to see him with his siblings.
And that brings me to where I am now. Sitting on the couch watching The Vicar of Dibley which is on TV (it's fate, it's meant to be, they knew I'd be needing to watch something I love which I type out this massive thesis). I've had to pause a few times to get more tissues and pee but I think I'm finally done.

I hope you're all feeling a little better reading about my adventures here in Britain. I'll try to write once a month to keep you all posted and please let me know how you all are. Send me photos, I love them. And videos.

Love you all. Especially Berni. I miss you the most. Don't cry for me, Argentina, because I assure you I've shed more tears (and with all the fluid coming out of my nose at the moment, there're nothing left to come out of my eyes).

TTFN (ta ta for now)