Illness, drama exam, Guides

I was very ill for about 4 weeks with chest infection/bronchitis/something - went to GP twice, two different weeks' worth of antibiotics, had to sleep on sofa all that time sitting up propped forward. Never felt so bad for so long. Even now am not quite there, still have cough lurking and when I do too much physically it comes back. So I won't. It was such a bore being so ill, I couldn't read for longer than a few minutes, couldn't knit, couldn't talk or walk without coughing most of the time or getting breathless. I watched tons of iPlayer and similar, endlessly.
So there was quite a lot of not doing anything much really. Will now try to remember some of what has happened, in manner of confused rambling convalescent asking "was it Wednesday we had that fish, mother, and the vicar popped round?" etc.

Freya definitely had her drama exam, plus lots of preparation for it. She had to perform two pieces, one of which was the Cheshire Cat talking to Alice and the other was the First Fairy speaking to Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream. Quite a lot of lines and quite hard. She worked really hard on it, I was so impressed. As I got better we were sometimes able to practice in the park and I think that really helps to allow you to allow yourself to be louder or something.
The last LAMDA exam that her small group did (3 girls who have fortnightly sessions together), which was their first one ever, was near Clapham Junction, but this time round it was in Lewes, which really helped.
Results in 6 weeks...

Freya went to Guides for the first and second times. She seems to like it so far, she was very keen and had spent a lot of time on the girlguiding website whilst on the waiting list. Her best friend L goes and Freya is now in the same patrol as her. The second session she attended was in Ringmer, a village very close to Lewes and she was 'encouraged' to have a 'crazy hairstyle' and wear blue.

I took her over slightly early on the bus, we had chips from Ringmer chippy before her session, then I had an hour and a bit to kill. Started by wandering around the green, then it got very chilly so went to a pub and got a glass of red wine. Unfortunately the sofa I chose to sit on was slightly lower than I'd predicted and I hadn't put the glass down first, so managed to spill the top of it over my clothes and then had slight worry about smelling of alcohol when picking Freya up from respectable church-and-queen-related guiding ladies. Found small fragrance spray in my rucksack and some mints so did remedial action that probably marked me out even more as classic alcohol-abusing middle-aged mum.


Freya went to Friday Club sessions: singing workshop, environmental workshop, swimming. I couldn't run Book Club so K organized the last-minute swimming for that one. She also went to rollerdisco twice, managed to get her there whilst ill. A lot of taxi fares involved as really couldn't do the amount of walking I normally do.

What else? Creative writing, oh Freya went to Livewires, but I didn't, twice, think I already blogged part of that. Forest School. Some playdates with L and N variously. Freya has done some sewing and I bought her a few bits in town to be going on with. Her bed must be full of needles I think.
J's mum visited and brought delicious chocolate for all and also paid for Freya to have new trainers. She, J and Freya went for a walk and Freya paddled in the (somewhat confused by weather) winter stream.

Shakespeare workshop on Twelfth Night. When Freya came home from that she watched a DVD of the play that I bought last year, with Alec Guinness in and Joan Plowright, and surreally Tommy Steele. It was quite good, what I saw of it.

Since I got over the worst of being ill I have managed to get back to my knitting (tabard/poncho) and finished it. Will definitely be doing more knitting and sewing.

I've also been working more. March was terrible for work, so May is awful for money, made less than I need for mortgage and loan payments, let alone food. So arranged a mortgage payment holiday, which sounds jollier than it is, especially when chances of a proper holiday are sub-zero! Still, April was better for work and I was better by the last week or so of it. May is off to a good start.

Lost it now, was it Wednesday we had that fish?

Will be back