The Meerkat Muse: 6th of May, 2026
Here we are again. It’s Meerkat Muse time! Hold onto your hats ‘kats, this one is gonna get busy.
Tired Legs
I mean this literally. Regular exercise does not come naturally to this meerkat. Running/jogging/power-walking has made me ache, but then again, no pain, no gain, as they say. It’s not always fun, in fact it’s rarely fun, but to be fitter and healthier? Sore legs are a price worth paying.
I’m not just physically tired. The end of April was a trying, draining time, starting with work. My manager is continuing a determined effort to move on, and as I have alluded to, this creates uncertainty for me. My own efforts to leave continue, but I need it to start yielding results. Getting away from my current employer is a must.
This all stems from unrealistic expectations and unreasonable demands. Would we like to be doing more as a showroom? Of course. Is it right to compare us with a showroom that’s three times bigger and a lot more accessible? Of course not. Unfortunately for us, this is what the company thinks is just. Unfortunately for the company, their claims about generic emails and a helpful tone are rather blown out of the water by what they’ve actually put in writing, and when they put it in writing. In effect, they’ve issued a threatening, personal email to my manager, and they’ve done so when they were still officially off sick. It’s not a good look.
As to what comes next, I have no idea. All I can do is my best whilst at work, and carry on looking for better pastures when at home. Mind you, there’s stuff at home which lends itself to be feeling shattered too, what with my daughter’s recovery from her thyroid surgery.
Techno Fail
Our Dell laptop has decided to die. This is awkward, because it will greatly hinder a number of activities, including job hunting and writing. It’s covered by an extended warranty, so here’s hoping repairs are possible. Until then, my writing efforts might be muted. It’s that classic ‘it never rains, but it pours’ situation, what with the chaos at work and the worry over my daughter.
Regardless of whether this laptop can be fixed, I am already looking at a plan B where that’s concerned. It shouldn’t prove necessary (otherwise, what’s the point in extended warranties?!), but it might prove useful.
The Car Finance Scam
I have never driven, so consequently I have never owned a car. I have never bought a car for someone else (I’m not even sure that I could, what with not holding a licence). How is it that I am therefore the recipient of a great many emails, phone calls, and even letters, offering me the opportunity to see a refund on mis-sold car finance? I have no recollection of entering my details into sites that relate to this subject, yet I am being bombarded about it.
It’s all very peculiar, and I don’t seem to be able to stop it.
Staging Trouble
It’s another day, and another poor performance from the Tangerine Tyrant has led to yet another alleged assassination attempt. I say alleged, because the timing is mightily suspect. He’s damaging the US economy, hurting the global economy, he’s waging a war to distract from his poor domestic showings and from the Epstein files, so what does he do? He turns himself into the victim, again.
It honestly would not surprise me if he is staging these attempts. It certainly fits with the character of the man.
A Blast from the Past
Google recently warned me that I have to make some space with my storage. As I was filtering through it, looking for stuff to delete, I found this gem from 10 years ago…
Those are scotch eggs. As such, they will never hatch! I never did find out who put them in a bush, or why.
The Longest Wait
On the 27th the family unit travelled to London for my daughter’s surgery, which was scheduled for the 28th. After a night in a hotel that was unfeasibly warm, it was an early start, with the hospital expecting us at 7am. Fortunately, once we were booked in, things proceeded quickly, and my daughter was whisked into surgery around 8.30. Once again, she handled it all like a star, despite what must have been immense nerves on her part.
From there, I experienced the other side of all this. I’ve had surgeries, and when you’re under, well, you’re under. Time is sort of meaningless. As a parent, waiting for it to be over is agonising, even when it’s a relatively short surgery. My wife and I grabbed breakfast to pass a bit of time, but there’s only so many ways you can do that.
After what seemed like an eternity, she was out of surgery and before long, back on the ward. She was eating and drinking, albeit tentatively, and on the mend. It was a relief, to put it mildly, and it didn’t take long before she was also laughing, in-between feeling very tired (as is to be expected!).
I suspect I may incense the anti-immigration brigade here, but it’s worth noting that virtually all the hard-working nurses, doctors and surgeons that helped us are either immigrants, or descended from immigrants. They have brought invaluable skills to British shores, and work tirelessly to help people. My family and I owe them a great deal.
The hope was to return home on the 29th, subject to how my daughter felt and whether the doctors would release her. She was still very tired, a situation not helped by a difficult night of noise and also pain. Another night in London wouldn’t have been ideal, but then again we would be bound by doctor’s orders.
A frustrating aspect of the hospital was the lifts. With two of the six lifts not working and with a lot of patients, visitors and staff heading to all floors of the 19-floor building, there was a lot of waiting, followed by a lot of squeezing. With my wife staying at my daughter’s side, the duty of riding up and down fell to me, and this was certainly exhausting! It didn’t help that the lift would regularly stop at nearly every floor! It is a small thing to endure for the sake of my daughter, and I would endure far worse if I had to.
Fortune smiled on us enough to be able to head for home, and though we had to navigate delays with the trains, we got in around 7.30pm. Being back in our own space was an immense joy.
Early Starts
Whilst we could settle and unwind in our own beds, for me there was still a requirement to be up early. There was a window to pick up the faulty laptop, and that window? Between 8am and 5pm. I consequently set my alarm for 7.45, which made for a slightly longer lay-in than the previous few days. What would be the odds that the laptop wouldn’t get collected until the evening?!
Friday would offer a similar scenario, with a boiler servicing. There’s no rest for the wicked…
Moving On?
Another reason to be up early on Thursday was a prospective telephone interview! They had called me on Tuesday, which was the day of my daughter’s surgery, so I wasn’t in the best of places – literally or figuratively – to talk job opportunities. Instead, we rescheduled for Thursday.
The advert that prompted me to apply for this particular role was something to do with a big box retailer. As is common for ads via agencies, it did not specify exactly which retailer it referred to. This is always a bit of a shot in the dark, though I figured getting out there and having interview practice couldn’t hurt. Having an interview is no guarantee of getting the job, and it’s an opportunity for me to decide if the prospective employer is somewhere I want to work. It’s all about options at this stage.
The agency talked of other opportunities. We shall see how they pan out.
Castiel gets Cute
Our cat was extraordinarily pleased when we returned home on Wednesday. He was very vocal in his delight in having us home, and from there, very happy to enjoy the sunny days that we’ve had lately. It hasn’t been warm, but it’s not been quite so cold either, and it seems like the temperature is rising (about bloody time!). The cat has taken full advantage of this. Castiel is a sun-chaser, and relishes the opportunity to sun bathe. To be fair, I think a lot of cats prefer being warm, and seek out warmth wherever possible. I can relate; meerkats much prefer warmth too!
Back to Writing, and Working
After a long, busy, tiring and emotional week, I took the opportunity on Friday to do a bit more writing. I am now at over 23K words with one project, and 39K with another. Writing provides distraction, and I think that’s what I need right now. Of course, returning to work would grant the ultimate distraction, even if it wasn’t exactly the most pleasurable kind of distraction.
At least the weather has been on a steady upward curve. We’ve had bright sunshine for several days, and the temperatures have been rising. We’re into more or less pleasant territory, and hopefully that is here to stay. It’s a much-needed lift, in the wake of various sources of stress. In truth, being back at work and sinking my teeth into a few quotes is also a relief, for despite my desire to move on, this represents a degree of normalcy.
Of course, it’s a degree of normalcy. Work remains unsatisfying. It remains fiddly and annoying. Here’s hoping that the interviews provide opportunities.
Busy Bank Holidays
Monday saw a lot of people in and out of the showroom, and whilst in the morning this was bearable, even acceptable, it soon became a drag. I was tired, and simply not in the mood for dealing with a near-constant stream of people. I could not focus on customers.
It’s always the occasions when you least want to deal with people that they show up, and on a bank holiday no less. Haven’t people got better things to do on a day off?! Why must they plague me?
A Grim Task
I was further reminded of why people are aggravating first thing on Tuesday morning. Tuesday saw me working alone, which can be a pleasant, peaceful experience, if the retail gods are prepared to grant such mercies. Would the very first incident be proof that they were not on my side? I had to clean up excrement from the front path leading up to the showroom. Was it animal, or was it human?! I genuinely don’t know, but I do know that I thoroughly washed my hands afterward. It was grim, and if it was human, then it’s also disgusting. I can forgive animals like foxes doing what they do, they’re animals, but humans should know better.
Then again, humans should know better for a whole host of reasons. Getting calls from customers who’ve had products on site for over a month, without checking those products, only to then speak of damage, creates a headache. Fitters bringing back items without clearing it with us first, then expecting money back, also creates a headache. These headaches fall to me. I don’t need the extra drama, and all of this is reinforcing my desire to escape.
There’s a lot of scenarios where customers will ask questions after the fact. ‘Oh, I just remembered, I wanted that ex-display item’. Why didn’t you confirm that before we did a finance application that we might now need to redo?! Argh!
So we reach the end of this Muse cycle. The warmer weather seems to have departed these shores, work is an endless source of frustration, and I am not yet a world-famous best-selling author. On the other hand, my daughter is on the mend, and that trumps everything else. It is with that thought that I bid you adieu!
‘Kat Comments