Friday, March 09, 2007

Catching up

Like pretty much all single mums, I seem to spend my entire life just trying to catch up with myself at the best of times, but the last two days have been more so than usual and I so need to get more organised. I am exhausted!

Here's an idea of how life can be in the OG household...

Thursday - The Plan
Finish work.
Collect X at 5pm.
Nip to Sainsburys, get home, get dinner.
Take X to Rainbows at 6pm.
Back home for an hour to tidy up quick, do some washing, put feet up for half hour.
Governors meeting at 7pm.
Outreach at 8pm.
Home at 11.30pm

Now that may sound bad enough, but here's the real version...

Thursday - The Reality
Finished work at 4.30pm.
Drove homewards in bastard traffic.
Collected X from afterschool club.
Arrived home 5.30pm.
Was informed by X that tomorrow was "dress as a book character" day.
Spent 15 minutes scrabbling around to find suitable costume (Angelina Ballerina at short notice)!
Fed X Pot Noodle as cupboards bare and no time to cook.
Left house to take X to Rainbows, which starts at 6pm.
Arrived at Rainbows at 6.05pm.
Was informed by Rainbows leaders that was meant to be helping at Rainbows that evening.
Informed leaders was due at governors meeting at 7pm (Rainbows finishes 7.15pm).
Was informed "that's ok, you can go a few minutes early".
Informed leaders had left bag at home and would need to tell babysitter what was going on.
Was informed "you can nip back and get it".
Drove home and grabbed bag.
Rang sitter and changed plans.
Arrived back at Rainbows at 6.20pm.
Sat and helped group of 7yr old girls to make Mothers Day bookmarks and cards.
Was told by group of 7yr old girls must erase incident from memory in order to be surprised on Mothers Day.
Left Rainbows at 7pm feeling guilty.
Arrived at Governors meeting at 7.10pm.
Faffed around for an hour dealing with something that could have been finished in 30mins.
Left Governors meeting at 8pm.
Arrived at work colleagues house at 8.30pm.
Arrived at work premises at 8.40pm.
Spent 20minutes consoling colleague who is being shafted by partner organisation employer.
Started outreach at 9pm.
Spent 2 hours driving around providing condoms, coffee and support to women selling themselves for £40 a pop.
Had to call in a 16yr old girl on the beat to be picked up under child protection.
Left outreach at 10.45pm.
Arrived at work premises at 11pm.
Dropped work colleague at pub at 11.10pm.
Drove home.
Arrived at home at 11.35pm.
Collapsed into bed at 11.45pm.

Now, I was going to list today in the same fashion, but having just typed all that, frankly I'm even more knackered. So, in summary... today's little treasures involved:
- Y getting up at 7.30am and informing me he had no clean pants to pack for his weekend at his dad's (due to not informing me he was running low).
- The discovery that there is no bread or milk in the house (due to debacle Thursday evening) and therefore no breakfast or packed lunch materials, resulting in having to do a quick Sainsbury's detour before school.
- An entire day at work spent trying to sort a million people's problems (due to aforementioned company and a variety of pimps and drug dealers) before finishing late at 5.15pm.
- Arrival at after school club at 5.45pm to collect X only to discover school disco due to start 15minutes later (due to mother's ineptitude with diaring said social event), and X is becomingly increasingly distraught.
- Above incident resulting in flying back home to change and return to school to prevent said daughter becoming scarred for life from trauma of missing important social event, only to then have only half hour to finally get to Sainsburys and return before social services are called for abandonment.
- Submitting to going to Macdonalds because too tired to protest/resist blatant child blackmail in form of starvation comments.
- Finally, finally arriving home at 8.15pm and then attempting to organise over-excited child to bed!
(Oh, and also finding that stupid bloody cat had neglected to use litter tray provided and instead decided to poo on my bathroom carpet!!)

Is it any wonder I'm shattered!!?

(Still got a blog in though, eh!)

8 comments:

Vi said...

Phew, you exhausted me just reading this! So glad I work to my own time schedule, and book week here isn't until next week!

Alfie said...

What you need is a break. How does Vegas sound?

Angela-la-la said...

I'm relating like hell here, babe.

Will you find out what happens to the 16yo or is your part in it over now you've referred her on? I think it would drive me mad not knowing how things turned out if I were in your job!

Anonymous said...

Sometimes our days are really busy...somedays we even have to work, make dinner and take the dog for a walk. Clearly its just diary management we think. :)

Lady in red said...

oh good I'm not the only one then!!!

that was like reading my life only the details are slightly different change x & Y for sons # 1,2,3 & 4
change sainsbury's for asda, and rainbows to football or cricket.

My cat got through 3 bath mats in 2 days. I know she thinks shes part of the family but strewth if she gonna use the bathroom she should use the toilet not the mat. Boy was she in the dog house that week.

Anonymous said...

It's good to find another blogger who is a school governor, owns a cat with no sense of responsibility, and sometimes has time for fun!

Anonymous said...

yes, been there, didn't do the blood pressure anygood, as for committee's and the like, what a bore, people who chat the same shit 24/7, I have been on them, nothing ever got dune, chatting around the houses, had to resign it made me crazy.
Well done for helping the 16yr old, hope she can understand in the future what you have done.

Ordinary Girl said...

Tell me about it Vi!

Oooh, what a good idea Alfie :-)

Well hope the relating ends soon FB! We should be able to link up with her through our youth worker. Thats assuming they picked her up of course! She wasn't there when they went round later but no doubt she'll be about again. You have to be a cold hearted bitch in many ways. Its too much to take home with you at night.

ATM - I feel your pain honey, I feel your pain!! (bloody lazy bastards)

Bloody hell Lady! 1,2,3 and 4?!?!! Jeez, I couldnt even contemplate it! And the bloody cat isnt even being considerate enough to make it just on the bathmat!!! Grrr!

Thank you horny! Although, a single one in this instance!

Thank you Wayne. All in a days work!