Lexin

Still no news on the jobs front. I put in a couple of applications where I was hoping for an interview (even if only on the ‘pity the poor disabled’ front) but have heard nothing yet on either of them. Sigh. So I put in a three more today. I must say, some interfaces are much harder than they need be. London Borough of Waltham Forest, I’m looking at you.

I had a long wait in the doctors yesterday waiting to give a blood sample. I arrived at 10:10, and was number 65 – it’s a take a numbered ticket and wait system. The current number on the screen was 79 – of the previous 100. Nightmare.

It took over two hours for the phlebotomists to work through the numbers to get to me, and I was last but one of the people in the room. Phlebotomy in that doctors (it’s not my normal one, my normal practice does not offer that service) is only on weekday mornings, so they stop people taking numbers when they reckon they’ve got enough to finish at 1pm. Anyone who comes late has to come back the following day. They used to have three staff on, but yesterday they only had two. I don’t know if that’s down to staff holidays or whether we’ve had staff cuts in that doctors.

In other news, I’ve knitted myself a pullover. It even fits, which is a surprise. Plan for next project is a beanie with beads, though I could not find the right kind of tooth floss for the system that aunty_marion showed me. So I’ve ordered some crochet hooks as there’s another system using them that could work. I’m also warned that cats (hello Smokey!) are a hazard to bead work.

I’ve been spending the last few days catching up with my sleep, and getting to grips with a new mobile phone.

An old friend from my university days did come over yesterday and he and I went out for lunch to the local Wetherspoons, where much good food was consumed. He’s not on LJ, but he is on Facebook, so I won’t mention his name here. I did there, which gives him some minor fame.

I’ve almost finished the current pair of socks I’m knitting, but I don’t think I did a very good job. Something went horribly wrong with my counting of stitches with the first one and the second one I cocked up the heel. So they won’t be given to anyone as they’re not up to any kind of standard.

I’ve got the ‘Chicks with Sticks’ guide to knitting, which is very interesting in some ways, there are some techniques there I’d like to use, but I’ve got limited interest in the projects. I particularly struggle with felting – I don’t like how it looks. I don’t care if it’s interesting to do.

News about the phone…I’ve changed to an Android phone having decided to finally sign up for a deal. The phone itself is a Samsung Galaxy Europa, which isn’t quite as bad as the reviews on Amazon would lead one to assume. It’s just not as good as a Galaxy Ace or (obviously) one of the S series. However, it came free with the deal I’ve signed up for, which is in other ways as cheap as what I was paying for PAYG phone fees.

The irritating thing is that I had to move my number from Orange to Three. So I got a PAC. That part was no problem. Sent Three my PAC and all the rest of the details. Three took their own sweet time accepting they’d been instructed to change, and then more of their own sweet time to change the numbers over. Even now, my phone is accepting calls on the ‘proper’ (previous) number, but seems to think it has the original Three number according to its ‘phone details’ screen. Which is weird, and I mean to phone Three and ask them “wtf” tomorrow.

I’ve even tried taking the phone apart and putting it back together again, which, as I’ve found in the past, solves a lot of problems with phones. It’s a bit like a hard reboot.

As I said, in other news, I’ve been asleep a lot. I’m rather dreading the time when I have to go back to work and must stop getting up at midday.