Words that mean so much.

The birthday is now over for another year but somehow the celebrations are still been strung out. Two late pressies arrived yesterday, one in the post and one delivered by hand and we are now eagerly awaiting the pack about Monica our sponsored dog.

The party was on Saturday and so high was the excitement level that Ellie was downstairs at 3.30a.m. unable to sleep and thinking that it had to be morning. She returned to bed with little trouble but I was left tossing and turning unable to get back into the groove.

The party went off smoothly with wonderful plates and plaques being painted at the local pottery cafe and then back to ours for pizza and cake - must go and pick up the plates etc today and deliver safely into eager hands.

On Saturday evening her best friend stayed over and on Sunday morning over a special birthday breakfast of muffins and mango she opened her other presents. The most surprising one was the possibility that Grandma could have sent a duvet - luckily that was only what the box said as it was a lovely purple suede bean cube.

On Sunday evening the three of us went to Pizza Express, Ellie's favourite restaurant for tea and as we walked home this vivacious 9 year old turned to her mum and dad and said 'I'd just like to thank you for all you have done to give me such a great birthday and for all my lovely pressies and I would like to tell you that I love you both so much’. Well what more can you say?

The pleasure of giving

It is such a joy to give presents and to see the recipient's face when they discover what the gift is. It is my daughter's 9th birthday at the weekend and she has been counting down the days since Christmas.

I had planned on a certain gift that was going to form part of her birthday and it was something she had wanted for ages. As it involved the internet, I was going to go through the process on her actual birthday and when she had mentioned this particular 'thing' over the past number of weeks I had managed to distract her. Not so this evening when she asked once again about sponsoring a dog through the Dog's Trust - www.dogstrust.org She even suggested that we could do it as part of her birthday. Somehow the timing just seemed right so for the past 40 minutes we have been on the internet researching and then choosing her dog. Some of the dogs can be visited so that became something we wanted if possible and it was. As a result I have a very excited little girl, a very grateful little girl and one who now sponsores the lovely Monica who lives in Shoreham-on-sea. Happily not too far away so we can plan a trip to the seaside and visit Monica as well.

Ellie is so happy, her little face aglow and eagerly awaiting the welcome pack full of photos, information and lots of other goodies.

How well do you know your local area?

In a large city it is not always easy to get to know the entire place intimately. You probably know the areas you go to regularly quite well whether in your own back yard or centrally but what about the sections of the main thoroughfare or off your own habitual routes.

When people are evaluating their lives, a tip they are often given is to do something different even if it's changing your route to the bus stop or train station.

As an avid walker I feel that I know my own back yard quite well but in conversation with a friend yesterday, it became clear that an area only a few miles away was not known by me in any detail at all. I shall add that to my list of places to walk as I have discovered that walking is the best and most enjoyable way to familiarise yourself with places. I should not be at all surprised by this as when I travel my preferred way of exploring is on foot. Doing that, you get so much more of a feel for a place and see more of the culture and people. The same is true in your own town, village or city.

Yesterday on a walk that had no specified destination, I discovered newly developed areas, shops, landmarks as well as pubs, coffee shops and restaurants. It was a true walk of discovery and was so much fun too.

We also saw the barge taking the whale that had swum up the Thames back out to the sea. It was a rather poignant moment. Why not take a walk yourself and have some fun?

Mature staff

Why oh why can more employers see the benefits of employing older staff?

Even if they do not wish to address the issue at present, they are going to have to as the working population dictates the need to employ those who may well form the majority in years to come.

I had a conversation with a lovely lady yesterday evening who due to the termination of a short term contract needs to find a new job. She is in her late fifties (not at all 'old') and has such a wealth of experience. We talked at length about her skills and experience, the things she enjoyed, the kind of work she wishes to do and what she feels she brings to a job. I know she would be an asset to any employer.

She is a real people person, interested, enthusiastic, reliable, has great values and has initiative. She is looking for a long term permanent job, she does not want to flit or build a career and she wants to give.

Thank goodness for organisations like Forties People whose strap line is 'provider of mature office personnel'. I know where I will be suggesting my client goes after I have worked with her on her CV. Come on agencies and employers, look to the benefits a more mature person will bring to you and your organisation.

Helpless at the end of a phone

When using our office number you can get through to mediacoach (the media training and crisis management side of our business) or waringwell which deals with career development. Due to my business partner's expertise he gives of his time freely regarding dealing with the media to a charity helping the victims of stalking.

Yesterday I took a call from a lady who has been stalked for many years and she needed some immediate help as she had just discovered that her cover had just been blown yet again as the result of someone not being diligent about what information was posted where. She and her children have had to move and assume new identies on numerous occasions and at last they thought they were safe.

Unfortunately, our number is not an appropriate one to give out to anyone other than the press in this situation but somehow she had got it and expected some sort of help. She was amazingly calm and we talked for 10 minutes or so. I explained the situation and apologised for not being able to do anything but I did what I could. I listened and was supportive but I felt so helpless. The services for the victims of stalking are scarce and those that do exist do not have the recourses they need to provide 24 hour cover. This lovely woman who was in this situation through no fault of her own got her emotional support from the lady on the helpline and was now wonders where the money was going to come from to help her and her children move abroad and start again.

The whole episode left me with such a range of emotions among them great sadness and anger. I am wondering what I can do to help which is realistic. I know I will find something but if any of you readers have any suggestions, please let me know.

2006

Today is my first official day back at work for 2006 and it is so exciting. There are loads of projects set up in late 2005 that need work to bring them to fruition and my head is buzzing with ideas and thoughts. Today is therefore an organising day and my intention is to list down all the projects as well as a separate list of other thinbgs to do and then to timetable them all into the diary. Said like that it all sounds relatively simple so what can possible go wrong? Does this sound familiar to you?

The intention is there, the willpower is there, the motivation is there but I know that procrastination and gremlins are never far away. Forearmed is forewarned though so i figure I am in a good position to move on. I know my obstacles - after all I have plenty of experience of falling at some of these fences before - but this year i am even stronger and I will get there. Some of my projects involve others which is always good as there is someone else to be accountable to and someone to push and keep the momentum going.

Keep reading and you will find out more.

That New Year feeling

As New Year approaches, I start to get restless and find myself wanting to plan and put into practice lots of things. There's the list of places to travel to, things to do, places to visit, restaurants to sample and new activities etc. Just before the New Year dawned, we as a family, were discussing what we all wanted to do. One of the areas for discussion was trying out new things and as it had been suggested that we go ten pin bowling on the 2nd Jan, Ellie and I were destined to get that opportunity very soon. Neither of us had tried before and both of us were a tad nervous - fear of the unknown, I suppose and in my case the fear of making a fool of myself.

Ellie's opportunity moved ever closer when our friends and neighbours asked to take her bowling on New Year's Eve. I knew that she would hesitate in her decision so I immediately said yes and off she went to get her shoes and coat. Her little face looked rather concerned as she set off but I need not have worried as 4 hours later she returned triumphant. She had scored two strikes, had a ball and couldn’t wait till today.

Now it was my turn to be nervous - Alan had bowled years ago and all our friends had done so before so would I make a real fool of myself. The whole place was not as intimidating as I had thought, after all who was going to be thinking about or watching me when they were there with friends and family. My first go saw me get a strike but then of course in the next go I thought about it all too much and stepped on the line scoring nothing. Beginner's luck? No, you make your own luck so I thought about the basics of Timothy Galway's great book 'The Inner Game of Tennis' and the simplicity he uses and applied it. I did not get any more strikes but I played a good game, thoroughly enjoyed it and will be back in the not too distant future for some more. Ellie, in the meantime, has decided this is one of her favourite sports now and wants to go again tomorrow. For both of us there's a new activity tried and tested in the book already. Wonder what will be next?