Yesterday went on a bus trip around ten or so different opshops, 2nd hand shops, redcross, lifeline etc. A friend had seen it advertised by the town council, a sustainability initiative. The bus was free and it was really cute, an old bus all fixed up and painted. Like the buses we rode on when we were kids, the seats were really small and close together, and we've got bigger but we still fitted in. My friend thought it would cheer me up. Her Dad died at the beginning of the year, he had a couple of stokes and he'd been in rehab when they realised it was cancer with secondaries that were shooting off clots. She looked after him a lot and is still very upset with the treatment. She is a nurse and used to work with me and her Dad was in our hospital. Mostly she is really upset he wasn't diagnosed earlier and given enough pain relief but also about the care he received.
Thank goodness my mother only stayed a couple of days in A and E, sometimes I wish we had done more medical stuff but mostly I'm glad we didn't so much of hospital shit is just investigations without outcomes. I haven't had a lot of experience with the general side of the hospital but you don't hear a lot of good. They have these complaint management stuff but you wonder if that's just to shut people up. Its hard because on the other side the bitterness of people when their loved one dies is sometimes very irrational and many staff (me included) have at times felt unsupported by the administration when complaints are made.
Back on the bus, the day was a lot of fun and considering the stock market today might be a necessary education in living cheaper. I wanted to buy a crockpot for a while and they had one for 19 dollars. It is a slow cooker so can put a dinner on in the morning and let it cook all day and it doesnt burn. People can eat as they come home and the slow cooking makes food taste good. I made chicken curry today and it was really good. I'm going to look up a crockpot site I bet it has devotees.
We found some other nice things and spent about 35 dollars including lunch.
The day trippers were filmed for the local news as well but I dodged that. I won a ten dollar voucher to spend as well.
I got sad on the way home because all the christmas things are in the shops and it will be a christmas without mum ucky.
Going google crockpot its 70's orange v cool.