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About Me Premium Member Old Fart tammyinsFemale/United Kingdom Recent Activity Deviant for 2 Years
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PA34 AA on the Isle of Man

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Cats :D

In the Air Tonight

Mon Nov 16, 2009, 4:06 PM
  • Mood: Anger
  • Listening to: NightWish
  • Reading: 'Black Box - Airline Safety is no Accident'
  • Watching: Stargate SG-1 - to be followed by Babylon 5
  • Playing: Nothing at the moment
  • Eating: Nothing
  • Drinking: Diet Coke
well... tomorrow actually but if I'd put that, it wouldn't have fitted with the song title :D

Well, what an absolutely crappy day it was today. I was due to go for an interview with Islington PCT. They wanted me to work three days a week, doing swine flu vaccinations. They loved my CV, but just wanted to see me personally and, if they like me, I could start work tomorrow. What's there not to like? LOL Of course, they'd love me.

NO CHANCE - I never made it there.

For the uninitiated, First Capital Direct (FCD) is a rail company, the one I'd use to get to London for work. It's a very expensive way to get to work (rail fares are ridiculously high here) but it'd be easier and less stressful than driving to London.

This will probably sound crazy to some of you out there but, amazingly enough, this is how the rail companies (especially FCD) operate. In a nutshell, they don't employ enough drivers. Train drivers are expensive the train so they just don't employ enough; they rely on the drivers that they do have to work overtime in order to fill the gaps. It apparently works out much cheaper than training and retaining drivers. This year, FCD told it's drivers that they wouldn't be getting a pay rise but they WOULD get a paltry 3% rise next year. Any idiot could see what the result of that would be. Yep! You probably guessed it: The drivers decided to withdraw their goodwill and they refused to work overtime and on their rest days. RESULT: An acute shortage of trains from my area into London. Some people managed to transfer to other rail companies but a lot gave up on the railway and took to their cars instead. Having checked with the staff at Bedford Station before I left, and being told that an extremely limited service was being done and that there were long delays. I decided to drive half-way to London, to Stanmore, and then get the underground into town. Good idea huh? NOT!!

To add to the misery of virtually no trains, there's major roadworks in my area while they build a new by-pass. It took me over an hour to travel just under three miles. Having managed to get to an exit from that particular road, I decided to nip through the local villages and try to get a Virgin Rail train from Milton Keynes. No luck there, either. A lot of other people had had the same idea and the roads en route were also grid-locked.

Eventually I just gave up and went home, in hopes of getting my blood pressure back down to normal at some point.

So, I never made it to the interview. I was so ticked off :( The job was really money for old rope: £22/hour for sticking needles in people, and it would have lasted at least a month. I really need the money as well. Funding 2 kids through university is crippling us financially and the money I would have earned from that job would have gone a long way towards alleviating our problems.

So THANK YOU FIRST CAPITAL DIRECT!! YOU REALLY SCREWED ME TODAY!!

I don't blame the drivers. They seem to have been treated really shoddily by management and I quite understand why they've taken the action they have. I'll bet even money that the fat-cat bosses of FCD will be getting a hefty bonus at some point, while they've managed to wreck the lives of so many 'little people'. :(

There's no point trying to re-schedule the appointment because the situation won't improve until the dispute is sorted and the trains are running again. It'd be a nightmare, if not impossible, to get to work.

On another note, my old man's busy decorating my son's bedroom and, at the same time, he's gutted our downstairs cloakroom because we found that the water pipe (not the waste pipe thankfully :D ) had been leaking and the floor was ruined. He's re-floored the room itself but still has the toilet and sink to fit and the walls to paint. He's bought everything he needs to do the job, he just needs a bit of time to do it. Until then, how many of you can boast a toilet in the living room??? I must try to get some photos because it looks so weird, LOL. Still, it saves nipping to the bathroom during the commercial breaks, LOL

I finally got a call from Air Med today. I was beginning to think that they'd either forgotten me or that I'd ticked someone off big-time and was getting no work, but they've just been very quiet on the medical side lately. Plus they're constantly 2 pilots short while the guys (and gal) go over to America for the Lear 35 type ratings. I'm off to get a patient from Scotland tomorrow and taking him to Bologna. Let's hope the string winds have died down a bit. I don't mind turbulence, but it's not good for my patient. All that vibration and bouncing up and down is no good for fractures.

Hope you're all fit and well,

Take care, stay safe, shiny side down :D

:icondeviantartairforce:

Member of :iconzoo-photographers: :icongeneral-photographer: :iconpilots: :iconplanes-club:


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deviantID

I'm old, and getting older by the minute but I hope that age brings wisdom.

I do several jobs: During the week, when work is available, I'm a flight nurse. These days I stick mainly to intercontinental, short haul flights. I did mostly long-haul back in the 80s, but these days I'm more than happy to get home in the evenings, although the occasional overnight job is welcome.

Two nights a week, usually Monday and Tuesday, I work the night shift in the medical centre at Perkins Engines in Peterborough. They're part of the Caterpillar group and the factory staff are a great bunch to work with.

At weekends I provide medical cover, mostly for Motox riders, at an off-road activity part: WildTracks Ltd: [link] That's usually good for a laugh and fortunately, because the track's kept in quite a good condition, serious accidents have become less common.

Last year (2008) my husband and I celebrated our Silver Wedding Anniversary and I'd like to flip a big bird to the people, especially my mother-in-law, who said we'd never last a year :D

I have 2 children: Caitlin (20) and Ryan (19) who both make me very proud.

I have a sense of humour that's been described as 'quirky' and there's nothing I love more than a good laugh.

Devious Info

  • Current Residence: Bedford, UK
  • deviantWEAR sizing preference: Zeppelin sized
  • Interests: Photography, Music, Animals, Aviation, Weather
  • Favourite movie: Airplane, Stargate
  • Favourite band or musician: Meat Loaf/NightWish
  • Favourite genre of music: Anything but R&B, Rap, Blues
  • Favourite photographer: Me
  • Operating System: This one
  • MP3 player of choice: Tesco's value brand
  • Favourite game: Mario
  • Personal Quote: Flying is easy - just aim for the ground and miss.
  • Tools of the Trade: Syringes and enemas

Comments


:icondeb-e-ann:
Thank you Tammy for :+fav:ing [link] Hope your trip goes well and really bad news about the job :hug:

--
Take Care :)

My work is copyrighted ©2009 *Deb-e-ann. Therefore do not use for any purpose without my prior permission.
:icondeb-e-ann:
Hiya Tammy thanks for the :+fav:s :D

--
Take Care :)

My work is copyrighted ©2009 *Deb-e-ann. Therefore do not use for any purpose without my prior permission.
:iconbabynuke:
Hey Tammy! Thanks for the :+fav: ^^

--
The more massive an object is, the more gravity it contains, which explains why it is harder to get ketchup out of the bigger glass ketchup bottles. More importantly it is also why a big screen tv collects more dust than a hoover.
:icondisasterdesigner:
Thankies for a nice set of faves!:)
:iconslowdog294:
:cowboy::music:

Thanks for the :+fav: on "Sleeping Strings", dear Tammy.

:hug:

Sorry for the late reply but I have been VERY busy of late.

:iconorgelplz:

--
The Bone Doctor

Walnut Hill Productions
Keavy, Kentucky
[link]

"It's all about the King of Instruments!"
:icontammyins:
Don't worry about it - I went AWOL for a while myself :D We're both catching up :hug:

--
+Live Long & Prosper (But Die Laughing)+

98% of Deviants don't know the difference between "your" and "you're."If you're one of the 2% that wants to punch 'em, put this in your sig

=General-Photographer =Zoo-photographers =petloversclub
:iconbobszy:
What the heck is going on over there Tammy?

[link]

--
"Belief is a wise wager. Granted that faith cannot be proved, what harm will come to you if you gamble on its truth and it proves false? If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation, that He exists." -B. Pascal
:icontammyins:
Depressing isn't it? :( I was brought up to respect people older than myself and especially to respect the police. No-one has any respect for anyone else any more and I blame the European Human Rights Act. People are very aware of their own rights but seem to forget that others have rights too. Our whole society seems to be breaking down into anarchy. Last one off the planet, turn off the lights :(

--
+Live Long & Prosper (But Die Laughing)+

98% of Deviants don't know the difference between "your" and "you're."If you're one of the 2% that wants to punch 'em, put this in your sig

=General-Photographer =Zoo-photographers =petloversclub
:iconbobszy:
Don't feel alone, my country is in a similar downfall. :(

--
"Belief is a wise wager. Granted that faith cannot be proved, what harm will come to you if you gamble on its truth and it proves false? If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation, that He exists." -B. Pascal

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