Six Week Challenge - Week Two

Week two done.  It's hard this recovery lark - mainly the boredom. 

The highlight of the week was a trip out with my folks to Oswaldtwistle Mill and a garden centre in Radcliffe.  To be truthful it was a killer to do on crutches, although in Oswaldtwistle Mill I wasn't alone.  It seemed to be the walking wounded day with lots of people with sticks, crutches and wheelchairs.  I really didn't find much but it was nice to go out with my parents and we had lunch in one of the three cafes at Oswaldtwistle Mill.  The quiche special was nice and seemed to be a popular choice with fellow diners.  At the garden centre I bought my herb garden, although I was distracted by the animal section.  There was an aviary with finches, canaries and cockatilles.  The rabbits were very cute.  My Mum made a hasty retreat when she saw the gerbils and hamsters - she's not good with anything that resembles a mouse.  Then I spotted an anaemic looking corn snake. My phobia kicked in and I hobbled off in the opposite direction.

I also took Lil'Sox for her follow up injection at My Pets Vets in Leigh.  She was really good apart from some wriggling.  No hissing, biting, scratching, meowing or any dirty protests.  All we got was a little squeak as we put her into her carry cage.  The vet's was lovely and they had a special waiting area for the cats.  Although Lil'Sox was far more well behaved than the dogs in the waiting room.  One greying old chap was whinning as he was waiting for the vet.  Another black highland terrier was literally dragged into the vets legs splayed.  We did see the most lovely ginger 3 legged dog behind the reception desk.  According to the receptionist it had come in abandoned and emaciated with a badly damaged leg.  Now it had been adopted by one of the staff and the dog looked gloriously content. 

So what are the 10 things I learnt this week.

1. Playing paper ball fetch with Lil'Sox the cat is entertaining.
2.Apparently Lil'Sox's vets reception area is cleaner than my Dad's GP's surgery.
3. It's good to check the terms and conditions of your insurance policies as you might get a pleasant surprise. 
4. Google alerts are good as you may find out your blog has hit the headlines.
5. It's good to let people know your intentions as new opportunities you never considered may come your way.
6.  I discovered I really can't stand the Steve Wright show on Radio 2 - I will hobble to the radio to turn it off and I don't hobble unless there is a desperate need.
7.  Do something each day that connects you to the outside world as it can be lonely and you can lose your confidence a little.  I found that after my thyroid op I got a little panicky on my first venture into the big, wide world and to be honest I had a similar experience at Oswaldtwistle Mill.
8.  Instagram is my favourite social media tool.
9.  Aircasts suck especially if you don't wear a sock inside them.
10.  I must look like a crazy lady when people look through the window and see me throwing paper balls around the place.

Week 2 done and I'm not even half way through.  It's tough and I need to break out.  I'm such an independent soul and this is killing me - hopefully week three will provide me an opportunity to escape. 

Six week challenge - Week One

What I'm about to begin is a 6 week challenge, this time not by choice but by accident.

About 4am on Friday 21st March I slipped down stairs with our new cat Sox.  She had a little accident in the bedroom and I didn't want her to have a bigger accident.  However in my mad panic I slipped on the last two steps of the stairs and went flying.  Sox was fine.  I, on the other hand, sprained my ankle and broke my 5th metatarsal (little toe).

At the time I knew I had done more damage than usual.  I'm a dab hand at spraining my ankle, but the pain on the right outside edge of my foot was a new thing.  I went straight to bed knowing I would be calling my Dad first thing to take me to casualty.  Funnily enough this isn't the first time I've had that sort of conversation.  In 1991 I had to ask my housemate to take me to casualty after going over my ankle in a nightclub.  At least I got away with a badly sprained ankle and no broken bones.  This time was my 6th time in casualty and the second time I've broken a bone.

Salford Royal Hospital was excellent.  I only had to wait under an hour to get seen to and was told off for not taking painkillers.  To be honest I was in more pain with a bad sprain in 1991 than a broken foot in 2014.  I knew things weren't good when the Doctor chased us down the corridor after the x-ray and ushered us into a cubicle.  I overheard the word metatarsal being mentioned from the nurses station and knew the news would be bad.  Before I knew it I was up in the plaster room getting plastered, but not in a good way.  So I left hospital with a broken 5th metatarsal, crutches and an appointment for the fracture clinic on Monday.

It has been a shock to the system to be completely immobilised. The initial cast was a non-weight bearing cast and it was a b*tch to get about.  I have to admit I cried at one point through frustration.  My car is stuck in the drive as I can't use my foot to break or accelerate.  Since I started driving the longest I've been unable to drive is two weeks because of staples I had in my neck after a removal of a thyroid tumour.

Thankfully at the fracture clinic they gave me an aircast instead of a full leg plaster.  It was an easy decision to make as the other option of a full leg plaster involved warfarin injections for DVT.

So what have I learnt over this past week being incapacitated?  Here are my ten takeaways:

1. Despite Lil'Sox getting me into this situation, she's a loving, good natured little cat.  She even won over my Mum, who had been traumatised by my first cat Sooty.  Sooty was an unneutered tom cat who had trouble written over his face - the fights, the fleas and the regular impregnation of the local lady cats.  I loved him, but he loved my Dad the best.

2.  I have learnt to type with a cat lying on my arm.

3.  I find it easier to go down stairs than upstairs on crutches and as a result have excellent bladder control.

4.  Tesco's home delivery service is the new home help service.  They were really accommodating by helping me put stuff away, whilst making sure Sox didn't escape out the front door.

5.  My parents and Neil are super stars and have really helped me out.

6.  Daytime telly is not an option.  It's a slippery slope I'm not willing to fall down.  Maybe an episode from a series I'm following, but no more.

7. I now have a daysofa (2 seater) and an evening sofa (3 seater) to help me differentiate the day.

8.  There is little you can do to fight a broken foot.  You just need to go a little Zen and accept the situation and make the best of the time you've now got.

9.  Being able disassociate from the fact my foot feels like it's burning in a stormtrooper like cast.  Sleeping in it is not much better.

10.  Watching a cat skid long on laminate flooring during her mad half hour is hilarious.  Almost as good as waiting her panic when she thinks she is stuck on top of a cupboard.

Honestly I don't recommend you break a foot, however cat ownership is fab and endlesslessly entertaining especially when convalescing. 

Monthly Challenges: One Year On

One year on from starting my monthly challenges, what did I discover?

First and foremost do something you want to do, rather than something you think you should do.  Otherwise you find motivation can be somewhat lacking half way through the month and it feels like you're pulling teeth.  I found that happened on the health month when I fell off the rails trying to get fit.

Secondly, by focusing for a month you find you can make breakthroughs on your chosen subject.  The reading month really helped me get back into reading and it helped establish the habit again, which has continued throughout the year.  I managed to triple my blog traffic after a month by learning more about SEO and tweeking my blog.  Most importantly this traffic has not just sustained, but also increased after being short listed for the Blog North Awards. My long overdue craft project of my knitted blanket was completed, however it did cause some RSI in my hand and I had to have an MR scan (absolutely true).

Monthly challenges are great to start developing good habits.  My money challenge made me become more aware about taking advantage of different online discounts available and cash back services.  I also realised that writing is a really good for maintaining positive mental health.

Finally it confirmed I am a learning junkie.  Finding out about the free courses on Coursera was a godsend.  I've completed about four courses now and I found that as long as I chose a subject where I have a genuine interest in the course was a joy.  If not, the course was a chore.  The main point to note is not to take on too many courses at one time (guilty as charged), otherwise you lose track of where you are up to and end up chasing your tail to keep up with lectures which spoils the experience.

Since December I have been on a hiatus - somehow moving house is not helpful for monthly challenges.  Although once things have calmed down I will restart the monthly challenges as I really enjoyed doing them.

Key things to remember when setting a monthly challenge:

• Do things you actually want to do as it helps with motivation.
• A great way to establish good habits.
• Helps you to focus so you can complete outstanding projects.
• A really good way to learn new things.
• Most importantly have fun doing them!  But don't end up needing to seek medical help.

Monthly Challenges: November 2013

Back to Coursera this month for my monthly challenge and this time I did an Introduction to Marketing with Wharton, University of Pennsylvania.

I've always been interested in Marketing, but when I've tried to read textbooks on the subject somehow my eyes glazed over and I fall asleep.  So when I saw this course I knew I had to try it and what a joy it was.

I honestly though Marketing was about all the design, print and copy writing stuff, but in actual fact it's much deeper and more interesting than that.  This course is themed on the three aspects of marketing - branding, customer centricity and go to market strategies.  This course really takes you on a tour of what marketing is, does some jargon busting, shows the lengths businesses can go to in order to understand their customers.

The course was more detailed for me than some other courses I had done before.  The lecturers were excellent, the content insightful and I can honestly say it really gave me a fresh perspective on my work and my employer.  I can't tell you how invaluable this course has been to me.

This is a brill course and great for people who want to know some basics about marketing.  Whether a prospective university student trying to decide what course to do; someone about to start their own business and wants to understand what marketing is for; or for someone who wants to know what marketing is about.  If I was going back to University this course would convince me to take some marketing modules.  FAB!

CV Update

I've finally updated my CV online.  To see what I've been up to over the years check out this link http://www.annemariemarshall.com/p/cv_29.html

Monthly Challenges: October 2013

As you may suspect from my monthly challenges I'm a learning obsessive.  Recently I've over indulged in Coursera courses and I have to admit I did drop out of the Design: Creation of Artifacts in Society (University of Pennsylvania) as I double booked myself with the Introduction to Marketing (Wharton University).  I've always wanted to get to grips with Marketing for work purposes and I really liked how Wharton University delivered it.

However this month's challenge wasn't Coursera, but I free little iPhone app called Duolingo that teaches you different languages.  I am notoriously bad at foreign languages and I swear my brain is made of Teflon where they are concerned.  So I wasn't sure this would work for me.  However I was pleasantly surprised as the developers had turned language learning into a game.  This seems to work for a games obsessive such as myself. 

I chose to learn Italian in part as I had already failed to learn French and Spanish.  I needed to learn a language I didn't have any real experience of and had no negative associations with.  Also, when I was little I lived next door to a lovely Italian lady called Angelina who looked like the Queen and had a corgi called Sheba.  She used to make the most fabulous Italian food and I've never tasted anything as good in a restaurant ever.  So I thought it would be good to learn the language as a tribute to her, especially as I  learnt my first Italian word from her -  'Ciao'. 

So how have I got on?  Not bad really.  The early levels I sprinted through, however as it gets harder I hit some brick walls like possessions and questions.  Thankfully as it's designed as a game I get very tenacious and I have to break through.  If you have seen me power through Candy Crush (now at level 421) you would understand how learning a language this way is a really good method for me. 

I like the way Duolingo breaks down each lesson thematically and asks 20 questions per lesson in a variety of ways - translate either into English or Italian by reading or listening; also repeating Italian phrases spoken to you; and using pictures.  This app covers most learning styles.

You also have the opportunity to go back and practice weak skills, which actually helps to consolidate your language skills.  Often by going back you see how far you have moved on.  Weirdly I think it has also helped my English skills, as I'm more aware about how I use language.

I have to confess I do a little cheat.  Sometimes when I'm not sure of something I go on Google Translate to double check.  Although this isn't always a great help as it sometimes gives completely different words than what the app is looking for.

It's now January (Happy New Year by the way) and I'm still using the app.  I do go through phases of not using it, but then again I remind myself it's far more practical than playing Candy Crush any day of the week.  Duolingo uses the games concept for learning and for someone who really struggles to learn languages I have never this spent lenght of time (over 3 months) trying to do so.  Thanks Duolingo for making my October challenge worthwhile - I may learn a language after all!

Photo of the Week: Cartmel

In September we went on holiday to Cartmel in the Lake District.  It's one of those picture perfect places with bags of history and character.  For an Instagram addict like myself this place is ace and I took lots of photos.

A couple of months later the Cumbrian Instagram community called IgersCumbria ran a competition for the best examples of Cumbrian buildings.  Needless to say I tagged all my photos and hoped for the best.

The photo below of the National Trust Tower in Cartmel.  This was chosen as a runner up in the competition.  They said of my entry:

"If there is one IgersCumbria member with a passion for buildings it's @angelickittycat.  Anne-Marie's technicolour gallery takes ordinary daily life and makes it extraordinary."

I was so pleased to be a runner up and being recognised for making "ordinary daily life and make it extraordinary."  Not only is it a brilliant compliment, but also wonderfully articulates what I aim to do on Instagram.  Thank you IgersCumbria for recognising my work!

If you want to see more examples of my work on Instagram my username is @angelickittycat.

©Anne-Marie Marshall 2013

All images are the work of Anne-Marie Marshall.