Saturday, December 17th, 2011
Hello there people and folkses! I'm going to update you in bullet points 'cause I want to do bullet points, so nah.
- Babysitting is suspended for the moment due to the next two points.
- Been fucking sick this week. It started with a little innocent-looking cold, then I started having a big throat ache and I threw up a lot. I hadn't thrown up in years, and I was fucking glad I hadn't because it's unpleasant, and it hits pretty damn straight into the almost-O of OCD for me (I don't have actual OCD, but I have "Anxiety Disorder Not Otherwise Specified", which includes tendencies towards OCD-like thingies). Vomit is huge trigger for me and, and let's just say I'm avoiding certain spots of the floor even after cleaning them. Yeah...I must admit something though: having it happen to me might actually have reduced the trigger-ness of it, as while it was in no way pleasant, it wasn't the End of the World.
- My sister and all the family were also sick recently. Last week it was a cold/flu thing, and this week both my niece and my brother-in-law got an indigestion (is that a word in English?) because of a cantaloup. I knew those fruits were evil. That and the fact that my sister was finishing school this week has quite changed their needs.
- I was doing phone calls for volunteering earlier this week, but then with my sickness I couldn't keep it up. It will have to wait next week, which pretty much guarantees that I won't be able to start actual work before next year.
- Next Sunday is totally Mario and I's second anniversary together!!!11!!1! 'Tis awesome and he's awesome and we're awesome and I'm actually super excited!
- My sister gets her cat shaven around twice per year. He has long hair and, because he's overweight, he has a particularly hard time cleaning himself properly, so he gets horrible knots and tangledthingies. I don't mind him getting shaven, but I pity him because those who do it perfume the poor thing. It's like replacing his ID card with a different one! My cat keeps sniffing him, wondering who the fuck is that cat who keeps acting and being treated like Tao, but can't possibly be Tao, because he smells so weird.
Tags: anniversaries, babysitting, beatrice, cats, family, love, mario, mental health, pets, sickness, tao, trigger
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Monday, October 31st, 2011
I've been continuing my babysitting lately, although my schedule has changed because my sister stopped working. I now take care of her from around 4pm to around 6pm, when supper is ready. This leaves her parents some time to prepare the supper, and me some time to sleep very late and take naps. Ain't that fun?
Also, I have an appointment tomorrow, with the Volunteer Bureau of Montreal, or however they order those words in English. As you can tell, they help volunteers find places to, well, volunteer at. Lots of things interest me, but I think I'll settle for something with at-risk youth.
Tags: babysitting, volunteering
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Friday, September 30th, 2011
I'm sure the title of this post is something that caught you totally off-guard. Stressful? It's not like you're all alone with a tiny human!
Anyway...if you've been following my, erm, activites for the past couple of years, then you should know that I am currently unemployed and that 'free time' is pretty much equal to 'all time' for me. While it certainly has helped me, it's, in the long run, not a very gratifying life.
I won't get into details of my lifestyle since I moved into this flat with my sister, her partner and their daughter. Recently, though, they offered to have me babysit (baby! She's 3.) her, in exchange for getting free suppers with them (homemade, naturally). A very agreeable arrangement!
As I'm already at home with them, I don't need to do any commuting beyond crawling out of bed. Her father works from home (although he seems to work much less now that he has so little time to himself) and my sister works 5 days per week at a different place, plus she has a class on Wednesdays.
My schedule is really not busy, just enough to give them some relief. Taking care of a 3-year-old kid all on your own five days per week drives you crazy.
- Monday: from around 5 to the beginning of supper. My brother-in-law prepares the supper around that time, then leaves for his tai chi before my sister comes back from work.
- Tuesday: 10am to noon
- Wednesday: from around 4 or 5 until supper is ready. This is usually the day where they invite friends over or go visit them, so my help isn't needed during the day
- Thursday: same as Monday
- Friday: 10am to noon
- Weekends: off, though on any day I'm available at their request
My niece is in a wonderful mood in the mornings, which makes it a very pleasant time for me to be with her, all while allowing her father to do errands and whatnot without an attention-seeking child.
Naturally, while it is fun, it also brings a lot of stress. We were playing in the sandbox in the backyard the other day, and WOAAAAH! There were two centipedes. My niece actually loves them, but I had to struggle to stay calm. I can't run off and leave her alone because of a stupid bug.
Anyway, I know this has stressed me. Since then, every time I see a speck, some lint or whatever on the floor, I immediately think it's a bug, and even convince myself that it's moving. Neither are true.
Tags: babysitting, bugs, lifestyle, my life, niece, phobias, stress
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