It's bright and sunny this morning (Thursday). Just hope it doesn't pour with rain after I've put washing out on the line. It's quite gusty so the washing should dry quickly. The garden still needs lots doing to it, cutting back the brambles at the bottom of the garden. They are incredibly tough to cut through and really cut into your hands with their thorns, so I use gloves.I've put the bits I've managed to cut into our one and only wheely bin. It's not really big enough for all the garden waste I'm putting into it We only get the wheely bins emptied once every two weeks which is making things more difficult, slow and steady. We don't have a side gate which we could use to take the bin round to the front of the house. I have to take the bin through the house and out through the front door. Not exactly convenient, but how else is it to be taken out for the bin men? What gate we have was sealed up when the fence was repaired. It's really up to our landlord to spend out and have a new gate installed, but he's not going to spend out on anything he doesn't want to. So the bin remains in the garden (Garden? What garden?)
We went to the Council offices yesterday as we're going to have to apply for benefits. There's really no choice as Carol has been off work for almost a year. I managed to park outside the offices, not too difficult, and payed the £2 required for an hour. Going in to the reception area, it's all changed since we last were here, must be at least 8-10 years ago. All bright paintwork and large photographs of places in Milton Keynes. A bit like the set for a breakfast television show. Low desks in sort of pastel shades. The lady on the reception desk (not a desk. More like a tiny IKEA coffee table. Nowhere for her to sit.) standing and welcoming people as they came in. Took our request for a form to start the application process. They don't have paper forms, it would seem. To get a reduction of Council Tax we need a reference number. We are given a ticket with a number on it and have to wait in the waiting area. Lots of people waiting and coming and going. Our number shows up on the digital screens, in the 'Triage' section. Other people seem to get called by the computerised voice, one in particular called several times, but no takers. We are eventually called by the female computer voice and we go to 'Desk Number 2.' Each desk has a red digital read-out. When we get there we have to prove our identity so I have to go back to the car to get my wallet and return to show my Driving Licence as well as Carol's. Which means the lady on the desk can get into the data-bank and she gives us the reference number we require on a small slip of paper which I store in my wallet for later use.
We return to the reception area where there is a row of three computers on desks and start the process of making our application. The application goes well enough, but by 2 o'clock I realise I'm going to have to put another £2 worth of parking ticket on the car, but, as I have no change, I go to the NatWest next door (fortunately our bank.) and take out £10 and then go inside to get change from one of the tellers. I then return to the car and pay the required sum into the machine and put the ticket inside the car's windscreen and the return to Carol who is continuing to fill in the on-line application.
It seems so obvious that the Council are attempting to run the benefits department with very few staff. The lady on the reception seemed to be doing the job of at least three people, attempting to help those with their on-line application as well as signing in new people as they entered reception. Usually they would have several people behind a reception desk. Also, no doubt they are trying to cut down on paper if you apply on line. Which a good idea because if you fill in a paper form that information has to be transferred onto a computer at some stage in which case another team of people would be required, so to have that information fed directly onto a computer system must surely save money in not having to employ more staff to do the job.
All the effort to do the application at the Council offices was a waste of time because there was so much information we needed which we didn't have with us. So we went home and did the application on our own laptop.
We went to the oncology department at around 10.45. The actual time we were supposed to be there was 11.20, but Carol wasn't seen until 11.35. She was having the pump removed and this was the last time, after the completion of the 12th chemotherapy cycle.
It seems so obvious that the Council are attempting to run the benefits department with very few staff. The lady on the reception seemed to be doing the job of at least three people, attempting to help those with their on-line application as well as signing in new people as they entered reception. Usually they would have several people behind a reception desk. Also, no doubt they are trying to cut down on paper if you apply on line. Which a good idea because if you fill in a paper form that information has to be transferred onto a computer at some stage in which case another team of people would be required, so to have that information fed directly onto a computer system must surely save money in not having to employ more staff to do the job.
All the effort to do the application at the Council offices was a waste of time because there was so much information we needed which we didn't have with us. So we went home and did the application on our own laptop.
We went to the oncology department at around 10.45. The actual time we were supposed to be there was 11.20, but Carol wasn't seen until 11.35. She was having the pump removed and this was the last time, after the completion of the 12th chemotherapy cycle.
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