Viva la blog!

I apologise for neglecting my blog of late - I have been pretty distracted the last couple of weeks....

A wise man once said:-
He who would travel happily must travel light.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery

He's obviously flown with Ryanair then. Did get to go on mini-break last week. After some last minute web-searching managed to wangle us a cheapo apart-hotel in Portugal. Started booking what looked like reasonably cheap Ryanair flights (including taxes) before discovering that we had to pay extra:

- to check in at the desk (it's free to do online but you can't do that if you have an infant)
- to check in luggage (yeah, like we're going to manage just with hand luggage anymore - DT has more stuff than us by far!!!!)
- to board earlier (ooh, none of that disabled people and people with small kids on this airline)

so overall a fair bit more in extra fees for 2 adults and 1 infant to check in, take 1 hold bag each, 1 travel cot and board early. Cripes. When did life get so complicated?

Flight was busy, busy, busy but on time. After the whole bloomin' rigmarole of opening and tasting the baby jars to prove that the Hipp Organix Spaghetti Carbonara wasn't actually plastic explosive, we were finally allowed to board the plane. DT was already annoyed having been carried up and down stairs for 20 minutes and not allowed to run around and play with all the things on the conveyor belts at the airport. To add insult to injury mummy and daddy were not going to let him climb all over the seats and run up and down the aisle. DT informed the plane of his irritation by screaming at the top of his voice for about 25 mins. Fabulous. So now I am the parent of the badly behaved toddler you always try to avoid being stuck next to on a bus/plane/train - how embarrassing!

Another wise person once told me that you don't really have holidays once you have kids, you just do the same things as at home but in a different environment. So true. I really miss having time just sitting in the sun relaxing with a book, that doesn't really happen nowadays! Maybe in about 16 years it will again? Saying that - just being in the sun was pretty therapeutic given the terrible summer we've had 'oop north' this year. Also took my mind off all the chaos happening with my Dad who is still very poorly.

Back to work and one of my inpatients is not happy with me for having had time off. She was in a particularly bad mood the day I got back having had a disagreement with one of my colleagues.
I usually get on quite well with her but this day got "you doctors are always having time off, us taxpayers pay your wages you know!". She was obviously feeling aggrieved that I hadn't asked her permission before going! I didn't really know what to say to that.

Do you think that if I tried to negotiate my leave with my patients (after first asking my consultant and arranging cover with my colleagues) I would ever have a holiday again??