suzyscottdotcom (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
suzyscottdotcom) wrote2008-03-09 04:58 pm
suzyscottdotcom) wrote2008-03-09 04:58 pm
Entry tags:
Can a Leopard change its spots?
It’s been a busy week… but ‘busy’ in the sense that there has been plenty to think about. That makes a change from ‘plenty to do’. There have been changes throughout the week, and now at the weekend, it’s time to take stock, shake down, powder up, and get back out there again next week.
For some time now, we’ve known that the funds for the helpline on which I am a volunteer have expired at the end of 2007, but in practice they will be expiring at the end of March 2008 i.e. the end of this month. Now, I didn’t post this here before, to let all the other volunteers and staff know first in their own way (everyone has had a one-to-one with the boss, who appreciates we all have our own commitments like family and bills, and doesn’t seem to object to us looking around for other things). Paid staff got their second set of notices either this week or last week, and formal redundancy procedures for them have now started. The thing is, if further funding follows, they won’t be needed. It’s just a legal route to take. There was to be a big meeting midweek about this, and looking at other sources of funding that can be used (it’s a lot more complicated than it sounds, because of the setup of the helpline). No decision has been reached, so it will be into early next week. In any case, it looks like the helpline would continue to work from the Cambridge office into early April anyway. From the beginning of this month, the Monday evening opening has ceased, largely because of tiny numbers of callers – two or three per evening means the funds could not be justified in any case, not least by the current set of circumstances.
I am sure I’ve hinted here about my plans for now. I was planning to start moving the last of my things out of Dundee, starting in just over a week, over several midweeks. The idea was I would travel back to Royston each weekend, much the same as I was doing towards the end of working in Dundee, and then C’s op in late April/early May. After that, things were to be wide open, and I was potentially interested in expanding my work. When I spoke to the doc yesterday, we discussed things. Meds are continuing to help me, so we decided to give them another two months, and review things then.
C drove me into Cambridge on Tuesday (before abandoning plans for a repair quote on her Mac), and then I continued to work. In the evening, Caroline explained to me that she’s decided to put her surgery back a bit. This has followed problems with weight going up ever-so-slightly, and pressures at work as she starts to wind off the hormones mean that she does not want to rush. I am happy that she is being responsible about losing the last stone or so of weight, and not making herself sick over each day. So, op is postponed for now, and C seems happier with things. I support her no matter what anyway, I’m just happy with her heart.
So, as if that were not enough to start up a week, I had Wednesday in London. In a follow-up to her January appointment, Caroline was to go back to her speech therapist today, so I’d agreed the afternoon off work. C was working from home after Christella had to cancel, so it left me with the day to myself, and just by coincidence, it was the same day as an LGBT Jobfair in central London – although I guess I could go anytime, if I needed an excuse, here was the perfect one. Maybe look for something a little different, a little unusual, something else. It wasn’t just for the London area, as there were nationwide companies and various counties i.e. Herts, Kent etc. booked to appear. If the meds continue to work, and my stamina continues to build, someone might well be able to… you know… use my skills and abilities…
So, an early-ish start, and I arrived in Kings Cross shortly after 11. After a nose around Euston [I liked this advert inside the station], The turn from Euston into Eversholt Street was not being made easier by building works towards Camden, and road digging down Upper Woburn Place. The controller authorised our 91 driver to go around the block (via Churchill Place and the Euston Road), and several passengers thought they were on the 91 heading north instead of south! Anyway, after horrendous queues, I got to Russell Square, and had a look around the locality before going into the hotel via Bedford Way, spotting this interesting bit of finger painting. Saw Paige R, who was assisting on the door, and bumped into Grace in the main hall (while I was removing my coat; I’d dressed for ‘cold’ and it was rather warm for early March – unlike the previous day, where I’d dressed for ‘mild’ and it was ‘cold’). Anyway, pleasantries exchanged, then it was time to continue.
I’d read on the Transport for London website earlier in the year about their jump from 59th to 6th in the Stonewall Equality Index of the top 100 LGBT friendly employers in England, and qualifying for a ‘most improved’ award as a result. That kind of jump is a real surprise, so naturally, their stall was the first I stopped at. A kind-looking guy in tube uniform (his badge said he was a Station Supervisor) approached me politely while browsing.
I gave it ten seconds, before explaining that I’d worked on the tube ‘in a previous life’. I wanted to know what had changed, as I remember from my time that the local management I had the unfortunate to be placed under were very narrow-minded indeed. He explained that things were so much better now (he’s worked there 30 years). He didn’t deny that problems had occurred in he past, and in the booklet that I was holding, he had his story (including past discrimination on grounds of his sexuality). He explained the harassment policy as ‘if anyone has a go at you, we sack them, and keep you!’ He was genuine about it – and pointed out several notables from the booklet of LGBT staff experiences. (Some of the names stuck in my mind from press releases, I think). He also explained about local management issues, and he said that the managers who object to being sent on diversity courses do not like to be sent again when complaints occur! There is now also a specific LGBT Staff Network within TfL, and last month, they launched their Sexual Orientation Equality Scheme.
I then explained that I’d moved away from the area back north, but that I was looking into more options now. He explained the jobs on the website, and asked ‘if you see something that you can do, what have you got to lose?’… Certainly, during my time, it was almost the case of rolling recruitment. Now, it’s a case of there is a waiting list for Customer Service Assistants (the new name for Station Assistants), so they must be doing something right.
I did visit most of the other (non-graduate) stands, and was surprised to hear a familiar accent on the Herts CC stand. Yes, the guy had been working in Hertford for a few years, but was originally from Dunfermline. Small world. On the way out, saw a ‘dot2dot’ parked in the foyer, and then saw Paige R out for a quick smoke with a friend, taking a well-earned breather! She pointed out that it had been very busy up to that point, and the management were very pleased at the number of attendees turning up.
After saying goodbyes, I walked down to the first bus stop in Southampton Row (see above digging), and onto Holburn. Switched to the Central Line here for Liverpool Street, and came overground for a National Express East Anglia… (formerly One Railway, and previously Great Eastern) train to Ilford. Despite their environmental credentials campaign elsewhere in the group, National Express East Anglia have pulped all the ‘one’ branded timetable leaflets (valid until May 2008), and reprinted them in their new corporate format, for the sake of nine weeks! I had the option of making it a quick stop here, and returning to central London, or having a trek around the east (as I had a ticket that wasn’t valid any longer in the evening peak) – so, went for the latter. Weather was good, and I felt happy to continue. C knew what I was thinking before I left.
The train was still in One colours (the one beside still in GE livery!), but as the new name had been launched the previous week, this was to be expected. As I got to Ilford, had a look around the town centre, including the ELBG travel shop, where I got this rather unusual addition to my model collection (the bus stop depicted is outside one of the tube stations I used to work at!)
So, anyway, after spotting, shopping and a late lunch, bus 147 from Ilford to Canning Town Station, bus 474 to London City Airport, followed by a Docklands Light Rail train to Bank, the now-refurbished Waterloo & City Line train to Waterloo, bus 211 to Victoria Coach Station, then walk through Victoria Place to Victoria bus station forecourt, bus 73 back to Kings Cross, and then the second evening off-peak train, the more limited stop 1915 to Cambridge. This is one of the ‘very fast’ ones stopping only at Letchworth Garden City and Royston. In the train, it dawned on me that the journey to London is a few minutes shorter than my journey to Milton/Cambridge twice a week. OK, so that’s comparison of the fastest train versus an all stops bus, but you get the idea. Maybe Royston isn’t so remote after all… Got home, and ironically, two envelopes from TfL had arrived! (See all the pics from the day here).
Thursday was a slightly more down-to-earth visit to the doctors surgery, for the second time in the week. This time it was for silver nitrate over the granulation tissue at the base of the surgical site. There isn’t a lot of it left, and the last set of prods (done when I was in Brighton) seemed to deal with most of it. Once I got home, started working through the stuff I’d picked up the day before (and not just the maps and timetables either!) C also has another new shiny… in giving up trying to get the older PowerBook to work, a new one has been purchased (and naturally, the old one now starts to behave itself… but for how long? This came with Mac OS Leopard 10.5.x, which I am still getting used to from the previous Tiger 10.4.x).
Friday was a quiet one, largely spent continuing what I’d been doing on Thursday. Saturday we were both out in Cambridge again.
So, as you can see, food for thought. We are both at pivotal moments in our transitions, and maybe adjustment to the plans is going to be needed. However, if it ends up right for the both of us, then our plan going entirely out the window is no bad thing!
For some time now, we’ve known that the funds for the helpline on which I am a volunteer have expired at the end of 2007, but in practice they will be expiring at the end of March 2008 i.e. the end of this month. Now, I didn’t post this here before, to let all the other volunteers and staff know first in their own way (everyone has had a one-to-one with the boss, who appreciates we all have our own commitments like family and bills, and doesn’t seem to object to us looking around for other things). Paid staff got their second set of notices either this week or last week, and formal redundancy procedures for them have now started. The thing is, if further funding follows, they won’t be needed. It’s just a legal route to take. There was to be a big meeting midweek about this, and looking at other sources of funding that can be used (it’s a lot more complicated than it sounds, because of the setup of the helpline). No decision has been reached, so it will be into early next week. In any case, it looks like the helpline would continue to work from the Cambridge office into early April anyway. From the beginning of this month, the Monday evening opening has ceased, largely because of tiny numbers of callers – two or three per evening means the funds could not be justified in any case, not least by the current set of circumstances.
I am sure I’ve hinted here about my plans for now. I was planning to start moving the last of my things out of Dundee, starting in just over a week, over several midweeks. The idea was I would travel back to Royston each weekend, much the same as I was doing towards the end of working in Dundee, and then C’s op in late April/early May. After that, things were to be wide open, and I was potentially interested in expanding my work. When I spoke to the doc yesterday, we discussed things. Meds are continuing to help me, so we decided to give them another two months, and review things then.
C drove me into Cambridge on Tuesday (before abandoning plans for a repair quote on her Mac), and then I continued to work. In the evening, Caroline explained to me that she’s decided to put her surgery back a bit. This has followed problems with weight going up ever-so-slightly, and pressures at work as she starts to wind off the hormones mean that she does not want to rush. I am happy that she is being responsible about losing the last stone or so of weight, and not making herself sick over each day. So, op is postponed for now, and C seems happier with things. I support her no matter what anyway, I’m just happy with her heart.
So, as if that were not enough to start up a week, I had Wednesday in London. In a follow-up to her January appointment, Caroline was to go back to her speech therapist today, so I’d agreed the afternoon off work. C was working from home after Christella had to cancel, so it left me with the day to myself, and just by coincidence, it was the same day as an LGBT Jobfair in central London – although I guess I could go anytime, if I needed an excuse, here was the perfect one. Maybe look for something a little different, a little unusual, something else. It wasn’t just for the London area, as there were nationwide companies and various counties i.e. Herts, Kent etc. booked to appear. If the meds continue to work, and my stamina continues to build, someone might well be able to… you know… use my skills and abilities…
So, an early-ish start, and I arrived in Kings Cross shortly after 11. After a nose around Euston [I liked this advert inside the station], The turn from Euston into Eversholt Street was not being made easier by building works towards Camden, and road digging down Upper Woburn Place. The controller authorised our 91 driver to go around the block (via Churchill Place and the Euston Road), and several passengers thought they were on the 91 heading north instead of south! Anyway, after horrendous queues, I got to Russell Square, and had a look around the locality before going into the hotel via Bedford Way, spotting this interesting bit of finger painting. Saw Paige R, who was assisting on the door, and bumped into Grace in the main hall (while I was removing my coat; I’d dressed for ‘cold’ and it was rather warm for early March – unlike the previous day, where I’d dressed for ‘mild’ and it was ‘cold’). Anyway, pleasantries exchanged, then it was time to continue.
I’d read on the Transport for London website earlier in the year about their jump from 59th to 6th in the Stonewall Equality Index of the top 100 LGBT friendly employers in England, and qualifying for a ‘most improved’ award as a result. That kind of jump is a real surprise, so naturally, their stall was the first I stopped at. A kind-looking guy in tube uniform (his badge said he was a Station Supervisor) approached me politely while browsing.
I gave it ten seconds, before explaining that I’d worked on the tube ‘in a previous life’. I wanted to know what had changed, as I remember from my time that the local management I had the unfortunate to be placed under were very narrow-minded indeed. He explained that things were so much better now (he’s worked there 30 years). He didn’t deny that problems had occurred in he past, and in the booklet that I was holding, he had his story (including past discrimination on grounds of his sexuality). He explained the harassment policy as ‘if anyone has a go at you, we sack them, and keep you!’ He was genuine about it – and pointed out several notables from the booklet of LGBT staff experiences. (Some of the names stuck in my mind from press releases, I think). He also explained about local management issues, and he said that the managers who object to being sent on diversity courses do not like to be sent again when complaints occur! There is now also a specific LGBT Staff Network within TfL, and last month, they launched their Sexual Orientation Equality Scheme.
I then explained that I’d moved away from the area back north, but that I was looking into more options now. He explained the jobs on the website, and asked ‘if you see something that you can do, what have you got to lose?’… Certainly, during my time, it was almost the case of rolling recruitment. Now, it’s a case of there is a waiting list for Customer Service Assistants (the new name for Station Assistants), so they must be doing something right.
I did visit most of the other (non-graduate) stands, and was surprised to hear a familiar accent on the Herts CC stand. Yes, the guy had been working in Hertford for a few years, but was originally from Dunfermline. Small world. On the way out, saw a ‘dot2dot’ parked in the foyer, and then saw Paige R out for a quick smoke with a friend, taking a well-earned breather! She pointed out that it had been very busy up to that point, and the management were very pleased at the number of attendees turning up.
After saying goodbyes, I walked down to the first bus stop in Southampton Row (see above digging), and onto Holburn. Switched to the Central Line here for Liverpool Street, and came overground for a National Express East Anglia… (formerly One Railway, and previously Great Eastern) train to Ilford. Despite their environmental credentials campaign elsewhere in the group, National Express East Anglia have pulped all the ‘one’ branded timetable leaflets (valid until May 2008), and reprinted them in their new corporate format, for the sake of nine weeks! I had the option of making it a quick stop here, and returning to central London, or having a trek around the east (as I had a ticket that wasn’t valid any longer in the evening peak) – so, went for the latter. Weather was good, and I felt happy to continue. C knew what I was thinking before I left.
The train was still in One colours (the one beside still in GE livery!), but as the new name had been launched the previous week, this was to be expected. As I got to Ilford, had a look around the town centre, including the ELBG travel shop, where I got this rather unusual addition to my model collection (the bus stop depicted is outside one of the tube stations I used to work at!)
So, anyway, after spotting, shopping and a late lunch, bus 147 from Ilford to Canning Town Station, bus 474 to London City Airport, followed by a Docklands Light Rail train to Bank, the now-refurbished Waterloo & City Line train to Waterloo, bus 211 to Victoria Coach Station, then walk through Victoria Place to Victoria bus station forecourt, bus 73 back to Kings Cross, and then the second evening off-peak train, the more limited stop 1915 to Cambridge. This is one of the ‘very fast’ ones stopping only at Letchworth Garden City and Royston. In the train, it dawned on me that the journey to London is a few minutes shorter than my journey to Milton/Cambridge twice a week. OK, so that’s comparison of the fastest train versus an all stops bus, but you get the idea. Maybe Royston isn’t so remote after all… Got home, and ironically, two envelopes from TfL had arrived! (See all the pics from the day here).
Thursday was a slightly more down-to-earth visit to the doctors surgery, for the second time in the week. This time it was for silver nitrate over the granulation tissue at the base of the surgical site. There isn’t a lot of it left, and the last set of prods (done when I was in Brighton) seemed to deal with most of it. Once I got home, started working through the stuff I’d picked up the day before (and not just the maps and timetables either!) C also has another new shiny… in giving up trying to get the older PowerBook to work, a new one has been purchased (and naturally, the old one now starts to behave itself… but for how long? This came with Mac OS Leopard 10.5.x, which I am still getting used to from the previous Tiger 10.4.x).
Friday was a quiet one, largely spent continuing what I’d been doing on Thursday. Saturday we were both out in Cambridge again.
So, as you can see, food for thought. We are both at pivotal moments in our transitions, and maybe adjustment to the plans is going to be needed. However, if it ends up right for the both of us, then our plan going entirely out the window is no bad thing!
no subject
Fingers crossed they have a position, interesting to come "full circle" :-)
no subject
As Teal'c would say... 'Indeed'... :)
(Non Stargate-SG1 watchers, which included myself before this time last year, would have missed that!)
What are you implying Douglas? That I'd go back to somewhere I used to work... hmm I wondered why everyone was looking at me like that!
All I'll say is (for now, as I don't want to jinx it) that I have looked at lots of stuff. Some of it uses my other recent experience, i.e. voluntary sector, tech support. Then there is transport. I'd like to hope to get an interview for at least *one* of them.