I know cats aren't people but the recent return to my life of my beloved Sydney, brief though it was makes me believe that we are all connected somehow to each other in the universe for better or worse. Though that particular experience turned out worse, in some ways it was better giving Sydney a few final moments of love that I know he had been craving & letting us say the goodbye we never had.
Sydney was the first gift of life that the Husband gave to me very early in our relationship, when we first started sharing a home. Really, he was the beginning of our family. He was such a tiny kitten and used to reverse up between our pillows at night when we all went to bed. He very quickly grew into a strong black sleek animal who loved stalking as much as cuddling.
He certainly affected our lives and we knew he would from the moment we saw him...much the way I felt about the Husband.
If ever there was a person I was meant to find, it was him. I have been able to be more myself with him than anyone I've ever known and much as he frustrates me at times I wouldn't trade him for the world. He has given me my life, such as it is.
Then there are the children who daily amaze, me, make me laugh hysterically and make me want to snap them in two! We have gone to a lot of effort to teach our children that we take care of each other. That despite the "I hate you"s screamed at each other in anger they are in fact each others best friends. That if anything ever happens to them we will help them first and get angry later so they should always come to us for help.
Well, this week I needed my children and they came in to bat for me with a stellar performance. I am choosing to believe that my children were meant to make a mark on all the people seeking medical assistance at Wyoming Medical and Dental Centre this Saturday.
I'll start at the beginning because I did say I was going to have rant ;)
I have been running out of the Pill and didn't have another prescription so I have been hunting around for a Dr that bulk bills. Now this a rare breed on the NSW Central Coast. We have a lot of pensioners up here and so apparently everyone else can go to buggery. Finally I found Wyoming M & D Centre, open 7am -10pm, bulk billing all who seek assistance. Wyoming is 40 mins away. On Friday morning I got up at some ridiculous hour and went down there before work. I arrived at 7.02am.
Now I knew I had fucked up and there would be other people there before me, 16 of them in fact. What made me lose my shit was 2 separate but significant issues.
1)At 7am, 1 doctor came onto duty and no others until 8am. What fucking good is this to a room full of people who need to get to work. I asked how long she thought it would be til I saw a doctor. At least 8am she says to me. At this point I starting giving her a gobful to effect of my points made to you then I added point 2...
2) What the fuck are all these pensioners doing here at 7am?! Are they rushing off to earn an income? Is there actually anything wrong with them or are they just lonely and need a chat? Give me my prescription and I'll sit and fucking chat with them til 8am when I have to go and earn a living that will be taxed to pay their fucking pensions so how about a sign that says " NO PENSIONERS UNTIL 9AM"? I'M CONFIDENT THE HOURS OF YOUR CENTRE ARE TO ASSIST PEOPLE LIKE ME, NOT THOSE THAT HAVE ALL DAY TO GARDEN!
Anyway, needless to say I didn't see a Dr Friday morning, I went to work and had to get my kids up and the crack of dawn Saturday morning to get down there 30 mins before opening. I treated the kids to brekky along the way and we got there 20 mins before opening to be the 13th patient in line!
This is when my kids swung into action. While waiting in line they rehearsed choir numbers from school while others tried to read the paper. First thing on Saturday, they have 2 doctors. 2 doctors started working their way through the list while my kids continued the good work.
They laughed and shouted and played wonderfully. They rolled around on the floor, they squeezed themselves between rows of chairs where other people sat. No bother to me, very annoying to others. Then one hurt another and they started to fight, loudly and then the icing on the cake. One of them spills their OJ on the floor and announces to a teen about vomit that "it looks like really slimy vomit on that carpet" - Is that my name? Get your stuff kids, good job! We're in!
My kids have been loud in public before but it never got me better or faster service -letting my kids run wild to jump the queue here worked a treat. Mind you the vomit bit was a place they'd never gone before and I bet each of those people went home and told someone about!
Well done, girls. I'm very glad that children as impressive as you in the myriad of ways that you are amazing call me Mum. I am very proud of the things you achieve on a daily basis and actually quite impressed with your tempered behaviour yesterday morning. You displayed some serious teamwork. It was just enough to tick people off a little but maintained a childish innocence rather than being just plain obnoxious. There was a definite skill there and while I was impressed, I'm reasonably sure those people were madly trying to cut that red string!
So Happy Mothers Day, ladies! May you have children as equally inspiring, talented and useful as I do and may your red string be mostly tied to wonderful people!
