Tuesday 24 May 2011

An Update - a bit long

Months ago (back in February, actually), I planted two tiny pots of forgetmenots. They were mentioned again in this post (which also contains the link to the original post); scroll down to the bottom of the post to find the picture of the forgetmenots.
And finally, last Saturday, I replanted them into a terracotta pot my sister gave me. They looked a bit lost in the long narrow pot, so I gave them some basil as their neighbour, and now they sit together on one of my kitchen windowsills, facing the morning sun:

All they need to do now is grow :-)

At the beginning of this month, I started a new job. My work consists of talking to my customers on the phone and reply to their emails; I advise them on what point-of-sale hardware to use best for what application and in what kind of environment, issue quotations for them and take their orders. A lot of the talking is just to keep in touch; personal contact is very important in this small industry, where everybody knows everybody else and people buy from other people often based on how well they get along with someone rather than pricing or technical features (which are comparable anyway).
Of course, to make these phone calls, all I need is a phone and a computer - both I have at home. So, when I had the chance to change from one company to the other and improve my working conditions, I did not have to think very long and very hard!
Since the 2nd of May, this has been my office:

The big computer was my husband's and is actually sold to someone in my wider circle of acquaintances; they have not paid the full amount yet and therefore I am not handing the computer over to them until that's done.
The laptop is the company's, everything else you see is mine. Once or twice a month, I travel to the office which is a two-hour train ride away (that will undoubtedly be the source for some more blog posts).
My mother-in-law sent me this card:

In Germany, people rarely send each other cards to congratulate on a new job; mostly, cards are only sent for Christmas and birthdays. All the more I appreciate getting cards from the family in England, and I usually put them where I can look at them for a while before taking them away (as I dislike cluttered spaces).

The whole working-from-home thing suits me just fine. More about this should go into a different post, I guess; there is an interesting post about it here in one of the blogs I follow.

Another update concerns my cat; she has been mentioned and pictured in my blog many times before.
She has not been very well for a while, having both a heart condition and an over-working thyroid on top of being a rather old lady now, with the ailments typical to old age for humans and animals alike. The thyroid problem caused her fur to get all matted and knotty, and for a while, I managed to keep it under control by combing out the smaller knots and cutting off the worst bits. But she did not like me handling her with comb and scissors, and eventually wouldn't let me do it anymore; she would wiggle and move about in a way that made it dangerous to use scissors on her. At the same time, she suffered from having her coat in that condition, and unsuccessfully tried to get rid of the knots herself.
So I took her to the vet's and had her shorn...
She looked so painfully thin after that - I'd known she had lost a lot of weight in spite of eating six or more meals a day (that's all down to the thyroid problem, too), but seeing her bones sticking out like that made it even more evident that she needed different medication.

She already looks a lot better, three and a half weeks into the treatment; her fur is growing back nicely, and I make sure to brush it every day. Instead of 6 or 7 meals, she is now content with four or five, not constantly being ravenously hungry, and she has put on a little bit of weight. She rests and sleeps most of the day, which is partly due to the medication, designed to calm down her overworking heart.
This is her last week:


Last but not least, have a look again at the cherry tree branch pictured in the post I have linked to above, for the forgetmenots. The blossoms have long gone, and last week, the same branch looked like this:


That's enough updates for today, I think!

8 comments:

  1. Free forget-me-nots, lucky you! My in-laws live in England and that is one of my favorite flowers there (we don't have them in Georgia!)
    Love the little birds on the bus-stop sign on your card! Greeting cards are a weakness of mine, I used to pore over them in stores as a child... I enjoy your writing. Thank you!
    Kay Guest

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  2. Hello Kay, thank you for stopping by! Forget-me-nots (is that the correct spelling then?) are my favourite small flowers, for their blue petals and old-fashioned charm. My mother-in-law's front garden in England is covered in them, it looks very pretty.
    There are more greeting cards for you to pore over in my blog :-) I have pictures of them from my birthday, Christmas and get-well-ones after I was in hospital last year in September.

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  3. I think your flowers and herbs will do well in that location. I also hope you are enjoying that new job. This is my first visit to your site and I've spent some time browsing through your earlier posts. I'm so glad I did that. You have created a lovely spot for your readers to visit and I really enjoyed the time I spent here. I'll definitely be back. I hope you have a wonderful day. Blessings...Mary

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  4. Hello Mary, that is a very kind comment, thank you! It means a lot to me to know that people actually do like to read what I come up with.
    You too have a great day!
    - Meike.

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  5. I think you've selected a nice sunny spot for the herbs and forget-me-knots! Did I see some basil?

    Congrats on the new job! Isn't it nice that your mom-in-law sends you cards. I have to say, your work area looks very tidy ... especially compared to mine ~ but in my defense I share my space with hubby!

    So happy to hear and see that kitty is getting better and putting on some weight. Pets are a wonderful source of company, I talk to Duke all the time! LOL!!!

    Oh, thanks for the info on my web link, I've fixed it! Have a wonderful weekend!

    Mary

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  6. Mary, that's indeed basil in the middle of the two forget-me-nots.
    I can't work in untidy surroundings - my mind is distracted too easily.
    My cat is doing better every week; I am glad she is taking the medication so well.
    You too have a wonderful weekend!

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  7. I love it when you post about your home, both the inside and the views out the window. Our late cat, Soot had thyroid medicine his last couple years and it made a huge difference. Before he started taking it, he never stopped moving. He would seem to be hungry but it seemed to be more the ritual he was interested in and he didn't eat. He became very skinny.
    Do you find it easier or harder to work at your home? Do you find yourself getting up to put in a laundry or bake a cake? :<) Hope those people pay you for the computer.

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  8. Nan, I find it easier to work at home, because I am more efficient without my colleagues and the constant flow of "little jobs" coming my way which have not really much to do with my actual work, as tends to happen in an office. I get the laundry in before I start working, but I get it out and on the clothes rack to dry during work time, in between two phone calls.
    Bigger jobs, like cleaning the flat or doing my groceries shopping, have to wait until after work or Saturday, just like when I worked at the office.

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