Thursday 31 December 2009

Happy New Year from DG

Whoop! Today is 31 December 2009 - the last new year's eve of this decade and the last day of what has been a pretty eventful year.

Today's blog comes live from Portsmouth, my old university town, where I am preparing to celebrate with climbing club mates.

At the bottom of Penfold's garden is a shallow grave, and in it, a suckling pig is being roasted... or at least it should have been, except it went wrong so after a quick trip to Asda, we now have the suckling pig, take 2!!

I can't think of anywhere else I'd rather be to tell you the truth - these guys have been a part of my life for the last 10 years and I can't imagine life without them. From Onion Soup Mate and G, to Tigger and Mrs Tigger, and of course Mr and Mrs Penfold, just thinking about them all makes me smile.

And what of my resolutions for 2010? Well, last year, I made a prediction that by this time I would have my own flat, which I do. I also said there'd be a rugged man in my kitchen, which there isn't - unless you count the plumber... but he wasn't really my type.

So, this year...

Well, I think it's going to be about setting down roots in my new neighbourhood - I'm going to find a yoga class, which is apparently good for Crohn's, although hopefully it'll be deaf friendly, I'm going to learn Latin, because it's totally pointless on the surface but actually provides the building blocks to lots of other languages, and I'm going to find my rugged man for my kitchen...

and if he's lucky, I might show him some other rooms, too!

And that's it really...

All that's left is to wish you all a very Happy New Year and best wishes for 2010.

And now, well I'm just off to open the champagne!

Friday 25 December 2009

Merry Christmas from DG

Merry Christmas!

There should have been a post yesterday, but Ma decided to hoover the study and start tidying in here just as I began typing, and seeing as the Dyson is perfectly in my hearing frequency, I had to give up as my little brain was quite kerfuddled.

It's amazing to think how quickly it seems to be Christmas again. This time last year, I was blogging from the snowy mountains in France - and yet it seems like yesterday.

I've just enjoyed a rare video call with Big Bro and his family of Clogs in Clogland. It was so wonderful to see them all on screen - my only hope is that one day The Rents will get an internet connection that's fast enough to enable me to lipread, too. But it's great to at least be able to see facial expressions and all of Mini Clog's presents, which he excitedly showed to us.

Speaking of presents, I did rather well myself, with lots of red kitchen accessories for my new kitchen, and more than a few cupcake-themed bits and bobs for my new flat - I shall need a removal van to get it all down to London.

Big Bro also sent over two jars of Speculoos Paste! Yumski!

One of them is crunchy and I am going to add some of it to the butter icing for the cupcakes I'm making for New Year's Eve...

Maybe I should just make some for today, too!

Happy Christmas DG readers, hope you're having a great one.

x

Tuesday 22 December 2009

Hi honey, I'm back!

Phew, is this Deafinitely Girly's longest silence ever?

Seeing as I am not the silent type - in writing, or in person - this whole week off blogging has been a little out of character, I admit. But Deafinitely Girly has been a little bit preoccupied.

You see, when I was diagnosed with Crohn's the other week, I found myself with writer's block. It took me back 20 years to when I was told I was deaf. And then, 14 years when I was told I was going deafer. This kind of news always makes me go quiet.

Then, last week I had an unspeakable camera procedure - my insides made their TV debut - they insisted on starving themselves for 2 days so they looked their very best for the occasion, and so I spent the later half of the week eating delicious food to make up for the lack of eating forced upon me - and as a result there was very little time to blog.

And what of yesterday? I hear you ask...

Weeeee-eeeeell, there was snow yesterday, and London Cousins 1 and 2 asked me to get the sledges out of the garage - and really, it would be a shame to get them out and then not check they worked OK, so erm... yesterday was largely spent flying down a hill on a bright orange piece of plastic.

But today, there is no excuse. Over the last week, I've tried out all my favourite foods and drink on my Crohn's and it seems to be holding out OK - so I am feeling positive that I will still be able to munch my way through a Cadbury's Selection Box on Christmas Day, and so, seeing as food is the second most important thing in my life, I've got absolutely NOTHING to moan about, or cause writer's block - so Deafinitely Girly is back!

See you tomorrow!

Friday 11 December 2009

Thankful Friday

Today is my last day of work before Christmas – I should be thankful for this but I will actually miss work, I love my job.

But I am thankful for all the support I've had recently. It's made me count my blessings and realise that I am not alone. It's also made me realise stressing about the small stuff is not important, stressing about the past is not important and stressing unnecessarily about others is not important.

What's important is that I continue to be there for the people who continue to be there for me. It's a two-way, fabulous thing that I treasure very much.

That's it really!

Happy weekend everyone.
x

Thursday 10 December 2009

I'm in denial

I met with a specialist the other day who diagnosed me with Crohn's.

Turns out my appendicitis wasn't really appendicitis.

Bother!

After he told me, I went into complete denial.

I have a no-Google policy on medical stuff anyway, seeing as everything is always cancer or some other death-causing disease. So I just said, OK, and left his office.

The denial was such that I decided to go to Ikea, alone. I mean, who goes to Ikea alone? Moral support in that maze of a store has always been insanely important. But no, I had Crohn's, so I was going to Ikea alone.

It was only when I got to the warehouse, that I realised my mistake. Denial, it seems, makes you also deny your own weakness AND the size of your car boot. Neither of which could handle what I wanted to buy.

So I gave up, but not before I'd spent a fortune on bits and bobs I never knew I needed to help with the denial that I hadn't got the bookcases I came for!

I'm familiar with denial.

When I was losing my hearing I was in complete denial, heck, when I found out I was deaf at 10 years old, I began my longest reign of denial.

But denial's ok, because it doesn't last forever, and it enables you to get on with things while waiting for answers.

Right now I'm waiting for answers about my Crohn's. So right now, denial seems to be the best state to be in.

Wednesday 9 December 2009

Subtitled Les Miserables! Hurrah!

Phew, back to work after a very long weekend that was littered with culture... kinda!


Firstly, on Saturday, Fab Friend and I went to the theatre to see Les Miserables, to celebrate her birthday, which was in June.

The reason we had to wait until December to celebrate was because it was a subtitled performance!

Saturday saw us both bounding into town enthusiastically, so excited about seeing something subtitled.

Everywhere around us, people were signing, chatting and grinning with apprehension. And then it started...

and it was brilliant.

Although I've seen Les Mis at least seven times before, I've never seen it with subtitles, and I was amazed at what a difference it made to my understanding of the storyline.

I went from having a vague idea and loving the music, to having a much deeper level of knowledge about why things were happening.

It was amazing.

With Hairspray announcing that it's now offering hand-held captioning devices in London, hopefully it won't be too long before London, and indeed nationwide theatre is fully accessible for deaf people, I'd better start saving for that moment, because I'll be going every single day of the week!

Whoop!

Thursday 3 December 2009

An Early Thankful Friday

Today is Thankful Friday – for DG anyway, because I have tomorrow off.

Tomorrow, I am baking London Cousin 1s birthday cake – she's 10 and has requested a giant cupcake for the occasion.

I am also catching up with Gingerbread Man, who, now I have moved, is my neighbour!

Hurrah!

So anyway, what am I thankful for?

Well, firstly I am thankful for my new, lovely flat – albeit with its noisy heating and shonky tiling. It's amazing having my own space, being able to bash nails in to any old bit of wall – I have yet to do this – and care for something that really is mine... not merely on loan for exorbitant amounts of rent.

It's so refreshing that every day I wake up and grin.


And what could be better than that?

Wednesday 2 December 2009

DG's technological breakthrough

Yesterday, I got an early Christmas present from The Rents, it is a Digital Hard Drive Recorder thingymabob!

Whoop, whoop!

Now, this is most exciting for me as I've wanted one since my recordable subtitled video gave up the ghost!

And it really is the best thing since sliced bread, which actually isn't hard as I prefer to slice my own bread anyway.

If someone had told me 15 years ago that when I was 29, I would simply attach a computer to my TV to record my favourite shows, AND that those shows would be subtitled, I would have passed out in shock.

In those days, I had a Caption Reader for videos, which had leads and cables that were more complicated to work out than the rewiring of The National Grid.

Even when it was plugged in, hardly any videos had captions.

But now…

Whoop!

It's so much better!

OK, so it's not perfect, but comparable to 15 years ago, it's a dream.

So tonight, when I get home, I can scroll through the crap TV that I experimentally set to record today…

…with subtitles!

I can't wait!

Tuesday 1 December 2009

New beginnings

Last night I saw Snowboarding Boy and The Girl That Can't Help Knit, and it was fab.

They helped me move my bike to its new home, or rather Snowboarding Boy carried it because I've lost the key to the padlocks...

*blush

TGTCHK brought me cupcakes from a little cake shop in Bloomsbury – we had to sample them before going to the pub and they were DEEEELICIOUS!

I’m going to stake out the shop to see what their secret to the raspberry icing is – it was light as a feather but in a non-synthetic way… most impressive.

We also checked out my local, which at a mere 5 minutes walk away, really is local, and it's fab!

Ace food, good drinks, and a basket of games such as Boggle and Connect Four to play.

Golly, anyone would think it was Thankful Friday today, I am that bouncy!

I'm gradually getting to know my new area and I like it a lot.

On the day I moved in, one of my neighbours introduced herself and invited me to a coffee morning.

If I didn't have a day job and did have the obligatory kids, I'd be there in a flash as she seemed really lovely – and about the same age as me – but light years ahead on the husband and babies stake it would seem.

It's definitely a family-orientated road. Every house has a big dog that you see being walked up and down the road every morning, and every house seems to be having a facelift, too. It's like being in Wisteria Lane, although none of my neighbours looks like Mike, and hopefully none of them are as crazy as erm... well most of the people in Desperate Housewives.

London Aunt came to see me the other day and said the area reminded her of Notting Hill before the 7/11 store became Monsoon and the little original cafés became Starbucks. This made me very happy, because Notting Hill 10 years ago, is my favourite place and time in the world.

So really, my new home is not a bad place to be!

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