I'm borrowing my neighbour's internet connection, while I'm pet-sitting his bassett hound. He's at his sister's having an early holiday dinner.

Well, things are pretty much the same here. I will have a short pay cheque next week, because I had to take tonight off from work--no choice. I'm rather ill with the old jaw abscess again..that wonderful golf-ball sized lump in my jaw, high fever, low appetite, and generally it hurts to talk or swallow-- and I have a headache for good measure, as well--and since I talk for a living...well, I don't think I could tonight. On top of that, my heart failure's playing up a bit, as well. I had a very brief bit chest pain, in the cab this afternoon. I just wasn't up to walking through the snow and rain to work tonight. It's only about a ten-minute walk, but even that seemed a bit daunting to me, tonight.

I'll be fine though, most likely, well...good enough, by tomorrow..well, I'd better be, ey?

Basically feeling like rubbish, I had gone down for a nap at five, and woke at about half-past eight pm. Then my neighbour knocked and asked if I'd watch his dog while he went and had a late dinner at his sister's house--late is right--it's 10 and he's still not back yet, so he must be having a good time, I reckon.

To make up some hours--as I don't get paid for the holiday off on Thursday, either, I shall have to work 10 to 10 straight through, Friday. Bummer. But it will still be a very low pay cheque, doubly so, with the 43 dollar weekly garnishment.

I'm sorry, but sometimes I really don't mind being ill, if it means I won't have to deal with being elderly and poor later on. My country isn't great about how it treats it's poor, and the elderly are especially treated like rubbish, when they've no savings or pension or anything.

When I was delivering Meals on Wheels to seniors--a weekday home-delivered hot lunch programme for the elderly, back in the late 90's, I'm quite sure that at least a couple of the people I delivered to, it was the only decent meal they'd be having that day, which I find, in the "richest nation in the world," utterly disgraceful.

So you'll pardon me, if I don't want to face that fate myself.It's tough enough when you're middle-aged, I can't imagine it, when you're elderly.

So...

seems I've lost a few friends, in this latest crisis of mine. Sorry to find that out, but that's how it goes, I guess. No hard feelings. Some people just don't want to, or cannot, deal with someone else's reality. And, that's okay.

I have to pay the electric bill this week--so I can't pay the rent until next week...I hope. I've mis-placed the cable bill--the one I cannot pay, but will have to, sooner or later, if I ever want service back. I almost always put my bills in the kitchen drawer, but it's not there--my mind does tend to get a bit muddled, these day, sadly.

I cost me nearly 30 dollars to do the laundry this week--between the cost of using the machines--which has just gone up, and the cab fare..which also has gone up, slightly. I had no choice, as I can no longer do my washing in the apartment, as there's really no place but the balcony railings to dry it--and it's snowing and sleeting and raining, here. I had only 2 clean dressy outfits left, and absolutely no clean jeans or casual wear. Hated spending my vastly reduced resources, but what else could I do?

Anyway, not had dinner yet, and probably won't. I did have a couple of wonderful biscuits, though. Someone had given me a few Italian cookies (biscuits)--"jelly logs." I don't really have that much of a sweet tooth, as a general rule, but these--oh my. Yes, they were wonderful. Basically, they're a soft shortbread "log" with strawberry jam slathered in the middle, and partly covered with chocolate on top. Oh yes, and I'm not sharing, ha-ha. They're all MINE!

My goodness, between the turkey and the shortbread, people will have me spoiled, this week.

In my free times--when I was feeling okay, I've been working to clean the apartment and in-between, reading, watching Dr Who and a couple of old movies I have on DVD, and writing a bit...got this really horrid play I've been writing, about a farmer in turn-of-the century Vermont and his family--it's total rubbish, but, it's something to do, isn't it?

Someone patted me on the back today, for my Accord Hospice stories. I'm just glad they're done..I don't think I'd be physically up to doing them, yet another month. I'm happy to have been able to help them, even though it wasn't much, really.

So, I won't be doing the temp job Friday, after all, as work says I can work both shifts--10am to 10pm. Ah. Something to look forward to then, the day after Thanksgiving. People aren't very nice to us telemarketers, at holiday time--good will to men doesn't extend to us, I guess. We're telemarketer's, we're not human beings--in fact, some homeless wino on the street, gets treated better than we do, this time of year--and, rightly so, perhaps, I dunno'.