Photo diary: Project 365, week 11

 Frustrated is my word of the week. 

I think I jinxed it the previous day when I said, "I'll keep working in the garden". It's  been a wet day, since we got up, and definitely not suitable for an ongoing garden project, oh well.

The supply of apples from the garden is dwindling away, there are just two trays left, from the last autumn. I keep the trays in the summerhouse, where it's cool. The apples are still fine to eat, I cooked some crumble on Sunday, with a handful of (shop-bought) blueberries. 

I was supposed to meet a friend on Monday, once Sasha was going out with his PAs after 3pm. They knocked at the door at 1pm, when we were not expecting them. I called the boss, she said it was the glitch in the system. 

Since the PAs don't live in town, I couldn't just turn them away. Sasha wasn't ready to go out at all, and by the time I helped him to get changed and gave him the meds before his outing, it was already twenty minutes past. I cancelled meeting my friend, as Sasha would have been back by 3pm. And they arrived back even earlier, arrrgh... 

We only get 3 x 2 hour sessions a week for Sasha to be out, and even then, they are often shorter than 2 hours.

Sasha wasn't happy to go out at the "wrong" time, and he surely did display his displeasure all the evening. And everything is always "my" fault.

I don't want to criticise the PAs, as they are nice young chaps, friendly and polite, but it is frustrating nevertheless that professionals who work with people on the spectrum, don't know much about the importance of routines and familiarity. Anything out of ordinary can knock people like Sasha out of equilibrium.

I have cut down on book blog tours a lot this year, as I don't want many commitments. Family life is too unpredictable. 

The Secretary by Deborah Lawrenson, however, caught my attention, and I agreed to join in the blog tour (my review is coming on the 20th). 

It is a spy novel, set in Moscow, 1958. The plot is based on the deep-cover MI6 operation to find a traitor in the British Embassy. The story is told from the point of view of a young woman recruited by MI6. Really enjoying the story (nearly finished the book). Top marks.

Our garden is a big mess right now. A family friend found out that I was struggling with the creepers from the neighbour's garden, and came to help with the chainsaw. The creeper has completely overtaken some trunks of the lilac tree on our side, and I was worried that it might collapse and break the stone wall. He worked for several hours, chopping the tree trunks and removing the creeper.

Now I'm left with a huge pile of cut trunks and greenery. It's satisfying that the wall is saved, but oh boy, that pile makes an ugly sight.

Sasha has been having an ear problem since last May. We've taken him to the GP several times, last summer he had several courses of anitibotics (both orally and as ear drops). He's still suffering, and holding onto his ear. Since he's non verbal, he cannot explain what kind of pain he has.

We waited for the appointment at the ENT clinic for over half a year, hoping to possibly solve the problem and help our boy, and finally got to see the consultant on Thursday. It didn't go well, as unfortunately the lady who saw Sasha didn't really listen to what we tried to explain, kept interrupting me. 

Her manner was brusque, patronising and aggressive. It was a very unpleasant experience, and the sad thing is that there wasn't much help for Sasha. 

In comparison, when we visited the Dental clinic in Oxford last year regarding the same problem (we had to rule out that the earache could be connected to any dental issue; as it happened, there was no connection as the scan showed). The doctor and nurses team were very attentive to Sasha, put him at ease, talked to him in a soothing manner, and showed outstanding care and kindness.

Sometimes you wonder why some people choose to work in professions like that. Both my husband and I were shocked by her manner. 

I took a few snaps of Oxford, as we were travelling by bus through the city centre. 

There was a Degustabox delivery earlier this week, and it's one of their better selections. Why? Because there's lot of Ritter Sport chocolate, which we all love.

Walking home from Waitrose, I spotted this magpie. One for sorrow?

And finally, the e-book I finished last week is Cold as Hell by Lilja Sigurdardottir.

It is a gripping thriller set in Iceland. The main protagonist, Áróra, comes to Iceland to look for her estranged sister ĺsafold, who seems to have disappeared without a trace. 

This Nordic Noir/thriller deals with themes of domestic abuse; and is the first in the series. 

The story is absorbing, but I couldn't relate to any of the characters. Áróra is smart, but very materialistic. Apparently she enjoys rolling in money on the bed, once she completes her business (she is a private investigator type, searching for hidden finances). 

How was your week?