without red ...

... I feel naked.  Red is my favourite colour to the point that students at school comment if I'm NOT wearing something red. I never thought of it becoming a 'thing' for me.  I just seemed to develop, over the past year and a half, a large selection of red clothes, shoes and accessories.

However it now seems that there is something in my life lacking in something essential that's red; blood cells.  I found out last week that I'm anaemic (stop reading now if you don't want to know any more about my health situation!).  For about 5 months I've been having a period every other week, and rather heavy ones.  Because I've been so busy; first with my dad, then the move, then the threat of Ofsted, I kind of just got on with it all.  Thinking that it would stop or I'd go to the doctors when I had time.  But I never did.  All the time I was finding myself sleeping for most of the weekend.  Falling asleep as soon as I got in from work.  Feeling low, 'peaky' and having NO energy.  Again, I put this down to everything that's been going on.

I'm naturally very pale; but I realised something was up when people were commenting on how pale I was!  Apparently I was so pale I was looking almost green.  My eyes were sunken and I couldn't feel any sort of energy for anything.

Thankfully last week I decided enough was enough.  I hightailed it to the doctor who commented on how pale I looked (!) and prescribed me high doses of iron tablets.  She's also put me in for an ultrasound and blood tests to find out why I'm having so many periods.

I am starting to feel a bit better.  Within two days I had people saying that I was looking much brighter and perkier (none of them knew about my 'problems') and apparently I don't look like Casper the Friendly Ghost any more.  I'm still really tired and spent most of the weekend asleep or slobbing on the sofa, however, I'm allowing myself to do this.  I'm not pushing myself.  Now that I know I'm anaemic and it's going to take some time to build myself up again, I'm not going to punish myself for constantly being tired.  I'm just going to give into it and hope that I eventually get some red blood cells in my system and get back to the Polly of old.  And before anyone says it ... I'm not going to have a good large steak!  I'm just going to have to nibble on spinach leaves and broccoli!

I am the only person in the world I should like to know thoroughly.

However I do like being nosy - and I'm sure Mr Wilde did too (for the title is a quote from the ever quotable Mr Wilde)

This is me me me me me ... I saw this on Lakota's awesome blog and thought at this ridiculous early hour of the morning I would indulge my obsession with myself! 

Age:

Ahhh start with a good one eh?  38 unfortunately.  Somedays I look beyond 40, others I get ID'd in Wales to buy tobacco - TWICE! No joke.  B, who is 5 years younger than me, could buy it ... I couldn't :( So ridiculous. I guess I should have been flattered but I KNOW I don't look 17!

my family had strange living habits

This photo really looks like I bloody love myself!

B-Bed size:

eh?  Weird one. It's a double - hand made by B out of scaffolding poles and as hench as a hench thing. 

C-Chore that you hate:

Hoovering - I hate hoovering.  It makes me wheezy and we haven't got a very good hoover and a high pile rug which makes hoovering a nightmare.  Can't wait to get a Henry.

D-Dogs:

I was brought up with a beautiful Boxer dog called Amber.  She died of throat cancer (she should have given up that 20 Woodbines a day habit) and broke my heart.  We then had a crazy Jack Russell called Clyde (the cat was called Bonnie! - I wanted to name then Morten and Mags - no prizes for guessing which Scandinavian popular rock combo I loved in the 90s).  If I could have a dog it would most definitely be a mutt, discarded and unloved by another.  Although Huskys ARE adorable (but mad - B has a great story about a friend's husky jumping over his owner's back fence and killing the nearest poodle).

E-Essential start to your day:

Used to be a couple of rollies (licorice papers) and a coffee.  Now I am no longer a smoker and am trying to cut down on caffeine it's a Berocca multi-vit effervescent drinkie.

F-Favourite Colour:

Black and red.  Our palette is very 'white stripes' stylee - I'm well know by students in the school who are not taught by me that I'm the teacher who always wears red and black.  It was never planned however it just developed that way before I even noticed.

G-Gold or silver:

Silver silver silver - can't do gold - I'm too pale it looks weird on me.

H-Height:

5'5"

I-Instruments you play:

The pink oboe - sorry - couldn't resist.  As a child I played the keyboard (self-taught), guitar and flute.  I can still play a mean version of The Entertainer on the recorder!  However I have no musical bones and leave that to the boy!

J-Job title:

Teacher.

K-Kids:

None.  I've never wanted children - despite absolutely adoring them; my nephew is the most important person in my life.  I have my friends' children around and my second-cousins to wear me out when I need it! However the thought of my own doesn't appeal.  Sometimes I get broody and the thought that someone will never call me 'mum' does make tears leap to my eyes - however - that's not a reason to have a child. And I don't need to hear 'oh you might change your mind, you've still got time' - yes I know I might, and yes I do, but I'm old enough and ugly enough to know when I've made a decision.

L-Live:

Sarf-East Landan

M-Mother's name:

Shirley - crazy woman, cake baker extraordinaire, hoarder and my mum.  (photo of my mum, me (not wearing red for once), my big sis and my nephew)

 

N- Nickname

Polstar, Pogs, Pol

O-Overnight hospital stays:

Loads - loads and loads.  The worst was when I had to be resuscitated after an asthma attack.  Dying was interesting!

P-Pet peeves:

Oh god - I'm such a grumpy old woman I have too many.  Like Lakota I hate people who use apostrophes incorrectly; I'm a total grammar Nazi.  Incorrect spellings of homophones like their/ they're and there, or you're / your - grrrrr.  However I do expect the apostrophe and these common homophones to eventually disappear from our vernacular!  I absolutely DESPISE poor customer service - I unleash my middle-class rage on anyone who dares to give me bad customer service!  I worked in shops all through University and for a few years afterwards and I was never rude to a customer.  Along the same line, I hate shop assistants who have those stupidly long nails.  I always end up putting as much change as flat on the counter as possible just to see them try and pick them up.  They remind me of cats bemoaning the fact that they don't have posable thumbs.

Also - I hate evangelical Christians who harrass me along the streets - who try to convert me by telling me incorrect information from the Bible.  I'm convinced that most atheists know the Bible better than most Christians.  I have the upmost respect for peoples' religious beliefs, seriously, I think faith is an amazing thing, however I can't stand organised religion and people who are ill-informed about the religion they're trying to enforce upon me (and yes - they have tried to enforce it upon me by following me down the road and shouting irrelevant Bible verses at me and shouting, in public, that they will pray for my soul). 

One more - you may have gathered from above - I also hate people who think that I will change my mind about having children.  I might - but that's not for you to say - but at the age of 38 I think I'm pretty much set in my ways.

Q-Quote from a film:

I'm consistently quoting from films, so much so that the phrases have sneaked into my everyday speech.

As teens we were obsessed with John Hughes films:

"You're nothing but a neomaxizoomdweebie."

The Breakfast Club

 

"I'm off like a dirty shirt."

Pretty In Pink

 

" I feel like a pig shat in my head. "

Withnail & I 

 

I think the worst thing is that I have integrated a lot of film quotes so much into my everyday life that I can't remember which are quotes and which aren't.

 

R-Right or left handed:

Right

S-Siblings:

Older sister, T, she's a mum of one and a step-mum of 3.  We've had our ups and downs but have grown closer in the past couple of years.

T-Time you wake up:

At the moment 2:30am.  Usually 5:30 for work.

U-Underwear:

Erm, yes.  I wear it.

V-Vegetable you hate:

Depends on how it's prepared but I generally love all veg.

W-What makes you run late:

Loss of travel card, keys, sunglasses/ umbrella, generally being unorganised.  However, I have only ever been late a couple of times in my life, I really don't like tardiness! ha ha

X-X rays you've had:

YAWN - chest, broken rib, broken wrist, broken ankle, teeth.

Y-Yummy food that you make:
Not the greatest cook in the world - I do make a lovely vegetarian chilli.

Z-Zoo animal:

Depends on the zoo!  Any sort of ape or primate usually does it for me.

Wow - don't you feel like you know me SO much better?

On another note expect an update later today.  My Bind-It-All should be arriving at some point today so there will be lots of shouting and hollaring as I try and bind random shizzle together in a binding frenzy.