Leaving...!

Yep, it time to go...
I'm gonna spare you all with the usual "oh my god, time just flew by and I can't believe it's been 3 months already..." But that's exactly what it feels like.

Even though I'm kinda excited about what's gonna happen in the UK I really don't wanna leave. I really enjoyed the time here, met awesome people, made great friends and actually felt very much at home here in Adelaide. But hey, I'm definitely coming back here so I should see them all very soon. In fact, Peter and Trudy are planning to move back to the UK in July and Jaan and Alice are gonna go travelling at the beginning of next year so we only have to organise where and when we catch up again...:)

Anyway, what's been happening....a hell of a lot again.

About two weeks ago Holly, a friend of Jaans who is a very successful musician as well as a wicked person, had a gig at her home town Warooka in the Yorke Peninsula as they had a concert to "lift the farmer spirits" again cos of the drought. Jaan, who accompanies Holly on the guitar and holly were playing on the footy oval, on the back of a semi-trailor...hehe, can't get much more rural, can it..?! Alice, Lisa, Ben (Holly's boyfriend who's a photographer)and I went along and stayed at Holly's parents' farm and it was great! So relaxed and chilled out and so in the middle of nowhere...it was great for a coupla days with a car and stuff but I dunno if I'd wanna be a teenager living there without a license...:)

Last tuesday I went to the Royad Adelaide Hospital to get a lung function before leaving and thanks to nurse Rosie ( I introduced myself to her went i first arrived) that was no problem at all and I didn't even have to pay anything. I had an FEV of 52% which is ok considering that I was at 46% when I left Germany in January, feeling quite shite after the sinus surgery and all. Also I have been working here and even though i do exercise I don't spend much time on my therapy exept for nebulising and a bit of AD. So physically I'm doing well and I'm hoping for it to stay that way in the Uk. But I'm optimistic since they're going into their summer and I heard the weather is pretty sunny in germany so in London it should be similar.

Wednesday was ANZAC day and since Peter's birthday is on may 3rd we planned to have a joined birthday party. I mean, we planned to have it sometime in may but because I'm leaving earlier (and I have to admit I was a bit disappointed to be in London all by myself on my 25th birthday...heheh)we decided to have a pre-birthday party at Corilole Winery which is Alice's mum's place.Now even for a PRE-birthday party you need a birthday cake and even though I'm absolutely useless in the kitchen I felt pretty confident about the challenge of making a cake. Then I made the mistake of calling Peter and asking what kinda cake he wanted....ok, any Aussie probably has at least heard of chocolate mud cake but for me the concept of eatinga cake that's completely raw on the inside is just...gutwrenching. heheh, nah, it was all good but I think I really did mess up that cake. Hell, everyone else thought it was ok...:)
It was an absolutely absolutely great day, we rented a family car which was huge and even had bottle holding thingies on the seats so Trudy and I killed a bottle of wine (the Villa Maria Estate from NZ...sooo god!!) on the way up there. As you all can see in the pics is an absolutely gorgeous place and even though it was supposed to rain that night we had an awesome day with good food, tasty wine and it was just more than I could ever expect for a birthday party. I even got some prezzies which came totally unexpected so by the time I got home I was in tears about having to leave all of these people.

oh man, Alic is picking me up for dinner and then we're meeting up with the rest of them at the Elephant walk for coffee and dessert...will write from the UK next time.
take care you all!

xxx

Untitled banter

This rather big girl walking by
sipping on her diet coke
munching on her MD fries
I wonder if she's heard the joke
they told
when walking up behind
her
in that unflattering black shirt
that's way too tight
and so's the skirt

I wonder what is on her mind
walking down the strteet like that
and does he cry because she hates
the fact that tey all call her fat?
But what if she is sick and weight
is just one of her least concerns
she wonders how long she's got left on earth
oblivious to the heads she turns

Does she like books or playing pool?
And does she have a favourite song?
Were boy bands cute or so uncool?
What tune would make her sing along?

Does she play cards or chess or ball?
Does she spend sundays at the mall?
We don't know anything at all
about the ones we pass each day
but would it change the way we think
and would it change the things we say?

Ideally yes, we'd all be good
in this imagined perfect world
the truth is, I don't think we would
be all that different if we knew
if we just had the slightest clue
what made them laugh, what made them blue

Chances are, we would be worse
do and say what we knew hurt
But don't you worry, be relieved
this "perfect world" 's not meant to be
and everything exept this girl
is just a random fantasy.

UPDATE!!!

Ok - this has been a bloody long time so I guess an update is needed...

NEWS NO.1: I got a job - or more precisely, I got two jobs. The idea was to only work part-time to pay for the rent and some food but I had the trials for both positions on the same day..and they both wanted me to work for them. Both waitressing jobs, one in a busy italian restaurant in North Adelaide (evenings) and one in a bar/bistro in the CBD (breakfast and lunch). Great financially, I thought. This way I don't even have to touch the money in my german bank account...it only took two weeks for me to realise that with more than 50hrs/week of working plus cycling back and forth (yeah..I bought a crappy bike for 40 bucks but splashed out on a helmet and lights!), I was left with no energy or any time to do exercise, see friends or look for any "proper" jobs.
So I quit the "italian job", much to the disappointment of Peter, who so wanted me to get the recipe for the "dolce vita-sauce" - SORRY, BRU..:)

So the place I work at now is called AIR and it's pretty relaxed work. The girls are cool, my boss is a bit of an arrogant prick who thinks the world revolves around him but it's easy work, I'll get between 20-30hrs/week which pays my rent and since I have adapted to the tighter budget I haven't taken too much money out of my bank account either. I exercise 3-4 times a week (swimming) and I don't feel like I'm wasting my time here, I get to hang out with friends, go to some music gigs, spend time at the library for free internet...

...but appaerantly not to write this blog of mine but - and that takes me to
NEWS NO.2 - to send off applications to Europe. Cos that's where I'm going next. soon.

I love Adelaide, I'd absolutely move here. Great place, great people - I feel fantastic here, my health is still pretty good so ther's not much more I could want. Just two little things are keeping me from staying here for good: Job and CF.

Waitressing to fund my travels is all good but I'm not only the oldest one among the girls but it's also boring as hell. I mean, it's not a challenging, interesting job and I really don't want to do this forever. So I feel like it's time to try something new, to move in a different direction. Also by staying here I'd jeopardise a lot of health insurance security, more so in Germany(or Europe)than here because here I have no coverage for any CF issues anyway. Maybe I could even get some meds through other CFers but if I get really sick and need an IV treatment (which I need once a year), I'm screwed cos it's totally unaffordable for me overseas. And I don't wanna push my luck like I did in South Africa with just the minimum or no supply of meds cos it took me all this time (almost one year) to get my health back up.
Geez, it really sounds like I've learned a losson there, huh...?! Hehe.

Anyway, so this is why I have applied for jobs with UK adventure companies, as Group Leader and Outdoor Activity Instructor.
Yeah, you all have a laugh. :)
And you probably think : "how the hell did she come up with that one...?!" Well, to tell you the truth, I had thought about doing this already in South Africa after i went canyoning but then I got so sick I had to cancel the training course. And I never really thought about it again until I sat here, wondering what career I could pursue.
I was thinking of Tour Leader before but I couldn't find any seasonal positions (cos I do wanna come back to Adelaide at the end of this year to escape the European winter again!) and they all required qualifications I don't have, like recent first aid course, NGB, etc.
But some of the Adventure Centers I applied for offer courses to get these qualifications while working there so the idea of becoming a tour leader isn't completely dumped...just post-poned.

Most of these jobs start in Feb-March but they really get busy towards the summer, so April onwards...so I hope I'm still on time for that. oh, did i mention it's kids and teenagers who are at the centers...?!
hehe...yaeh, it's heaps (I'm such an aussie..!!)easier to get the "foot in the door" at Youth Centers cos the requirements are higher when working with adults - which I think I'll eventually do when I have the qualifications needed.

So applying for these positions involved a wholelot of paperwork - 5 or 6 pages at least, about all the employment history and stuff - which is quite a lot in my case (not because i'm such a workaholic but because I've had lots of different short-term jobs).
AND, more importantly, they always asked about any physical illness or disability, probably because the job is quite physically demanding (yeah..I'm a bit worried that the CF is gonna restrain me from doing this job - that's why I'm exercising and eating healthy like an idiot...).
So I had to write about the Cystic Fibrosis and the daily meds, the first time ever I put that in an application. And to be honest, I was a bit apprehensive about doing it. I mean, CF is quite well-known in the UK but I imagine them all having a picture of a rather sick CFer in mind (due to fundraising and PR events), which would keep them from considering me for this position.
To my surprise, out of something like 10 applications I sent off I already got 4 positive responses, they are considering me for the job and need more papers, some references, a copy of my passport and a police check report since we're working with minors and they want to kow when I'll be in the UK, available for a personal interview and a selection day!
Not bad, I think I'm just gonna have to take a chance here, even if I don't pass the selection day (appearantly only 25-30% of the applicants pass). I just have a feeling I should try this. And if all else fails I can always get a hotel job in the UK to save up money for a ticket back to Australia..:)

So I'm flying out on the 29th of April - will get to London on the same day due to the travel through time zones which really sucks cos I so wanted to celebrate my 25th here in Adelaide. Or at least in New Zealand, where Arja and Jelmer are at the moment (the dutch friends I stayed with in Groningen in October 06)....but I guess one's gotta get his priorities right, eh..?!
Anything beyond that isn't sorted out yet - so we all can be surprised...:)

But lemme tell you what's been going on in Adelaide so far...

To my surprise and total excitement, two days after I had moved into my new house (that I share with an Aussie couple, Tim and Pippy), Biensche, a friend of mine from Germany (we met at the boarding school during our hotel business apprenticeship in 2001) and her sister Ulla who are doing their work & travel year in Australia now, came down on their way to Perth for a weekend. they had only been to Sydney, bought a van (so good to hear their van-breaking-down-is-fucking-frustrating-stories...now I know I'm not the only one!!!) and did fruit picking near Adelaide when I sent them an email about my arrival in SA.
Was great seing Biensche again and meeting her sister, they absolutely indulged in the artsy scene of Adelaide, we went and saw Jaan and Holly play a coupla times which was fantastic..I almost felt like a local, showing them around...hehe...cheers, girls!

Then there was WOMAD, a 3-day music festival which took place in the Botanic Park, only a 10 min walk from my house. I could only afford a one-night-pass but it was awesome, also got to spend some time with Alice and Jaan and their friends.
Soon after that the Fringe followed, a month of arts of any kind, every day, all around the city center of Adelaide. All sorts of events and performances, some free, some really cheap - I treated myself to some poetry and other lyrical sessions. some great, some I didn't quite get but all very interesting and I enjoyed it! Most poets are weirdos though...:)
Absolutely loved the Fringe and since it's now an annual event I definitely wanna be back next year for it!

Have spent my Tuesday afternoons at the Grace Emily (pub) where a group of Jaan's and Alice's friends catch up with a coupla pints - that has been great and it's what kept me sane during those weeks of working and sleeping only. Such a good bunch of people!

Last weekend alex, a friend of jaan's from the Uk came over to stay with him and Alice so we had a bbq with them and Peter and Trudy (I met them both along with Jaan in London) and on Easter we had a nice picnic at the Botanic Garden...so relaxed! I also visited Alice at her workshop (she makes really cool jewellery), I took some pics as promised ages ago.
Have been to dinner @ Becky's for coupla times, she is also a friend of Jaan's I met in London in dec. 2005 and then I stayed at her place before flying off to South Africa in jan 2006 (geez, all this sees ages ago...argh!!). She makes lovely thai food...or veggie burgers, for that matter...!

So, it's all pretty relaxed and I feel like I've settled in...now it's almost time to head off again...so annoying! But hey, I shouldn't really complain, cos it's all up to me, eh...?!

oh, I forgot to tell you - I had to go to the hospital about two weeks ago due to some killing pain in my left hip and thigh. I'd had a bit of a discomfort (I like that word..hahaha) for days before but i just blamed it on a sore muscle from exercising.
Turns out, part of my hip bone had broken off ( I honestly have NO idea how that happened!!) and because of the exercise and walking at AIR the muscle rubbed up against the fractured piece which caused an infection which then made my gland swell up and because of that I couldn't move my leg at all.
seriously, I took the bus to the hospital (too stingy to afford a cab...hehe) and on the way almost threw up because I was in such pain...this kinda shit always happens to me when I'm overseas!!
Anyway, after x-rays, ultra sound, blood tests and doctor's examination I was given some strong inflammatory pain killers and told to take it easy until the infection had gone away.
Great, a waitress that can't walk.

My boss wasn't happy at all when I called him from the hospital, fortunately I had the next day off anyway but the day after that i was back at the restaurant, pumped up with pain killers which was a bit tricky cos the side effects were nausea and dizzyness and I almost spilled the drinks over our customer a coupla times...

Anyway, exercise was down to twice a week but i feel better now so I'll do more from now on. went swimming today and my hip felt fine.

So, enough rambling...pics are up...!

xxx

Adelaide Cf hospital, Adelaineans and more of them

Tah-daa.... loads of good news here...!!

Ok, where to start...last week we went to some of Alice's jewellery exhibitions which were great fun since usually I'm not so much around arty-creative people( or at least they don't pursue that plan if they have it) and I'm yelling ya...there sure as hell were a nutter or two but all of them really nice..:) There was even a guy from The Messenger, a local paper I reckon, and a day or two later a picture of Jaan and me's in there...hehe, not even 48 hours after first touching ground in lovely Adelaide...
Seriously though, Alices stuff is really cool, she just makes stuff out of really normal things like puzzle pieces or dictionary explanations..I dunno, you have to see it. Gotta ask her and Jaan for some photos that i can post.

So i started looking for house shares and it was a bit frustrating cos there are a lot of nice and affordable places but most of them had a minimum stay of months or longer which I can't commit to 100% because if I don't get another visa I'll have to move out before then. then I almost had a place, right at the beach but then the girl rang and said she's gonna go with the kiwi guy who also had a look at the room cos he can stay longer...argh!!
But then I gave it another go at suburb called St. Peters, a REALLY nice area (one I could never afford if it wasn't a house share in Adelaide), and...I got the room! So cool, I'm living with a couple, Pippy and Tim. They're my age and they are hilarious! Blond, beachy-looking...typical australian for us europeans :) He's a carpet layer, just started his own business 5 days ago and she's studied photography (1 year in Spain so there are some stories to share - mostly of dirty flat mates, shit jobs and cockroaches), wants to be an actress (is currently in a TV commercial) and works part time at The Yoghurt Shop.

Last night we went to her parents' place (who are currently in Melbourne) to visit her sister and man...talking about some wealthy people!!! Huge house, garden...Her dad's South Australia's first glas blower. he makes glas art and sells it for thousands of dollars in the United states! So you see, you can't escape the creativeness here in Adelaide.
Anyway, we're haveing pizza and watching some show on the telly (the australian word for TV- haha) and Pippy and Tim are saying that their ears are still sore...so of course, nosy me wants to know the whole story...and guess what?! They actually got their ears pinned back just 3 weeks ago! And Pippy even got the job done for free since her daddy's friends with the surgeon!!! That's some shit for my blog I tought..heheh. Of course after that revelation I had to take the piss out of them...! But they're cool and funny even though a bit high maintanance sometimes.

So that's that and before I moved out of Jaan's yesterday afternoon he took me along to the Royal Adelaide Hospital (chest clinic) so I could introduce myself to Rosie, the (lovely!) nurse who deals with all the CF stuff. Great, so if anything goes wrong or I need information about getting meds on a new visa I know who to talk to and Rosie was also like "yeah, no worries..we'll look after you". I shouldn't be surprised really, since it was like that in Sydney when I was there last time but I still think it's great that there are these kind of people who always try to find a way to do things even if that causes some inconvinience.

So now since I've got a place to stay the job search is on. will have to see what's available but I think now since the dreads are gone (yes, hair is SHORT!) it shouldn't be too difficult.. Will have to decide whether I just look for some casual part time job to pay my bills or if I already start looking for a place that might sponsor me on an extended visa. I've heard that adventure tours here are doing training ships for tour guides and also sponsorships so I'll definitely check them out.

Anyway, that's it for now...my health is still good and this weekend I'll start exercising, since the botanic garden and the river are just a 5 min walk from new place there is no excuse, eh..?!

All is good, just waiting for something to trip over because when it all goes so well it's scary..:) Still, my mood is excellent, there is the euphoric state I was missing...

xxx Janka

Baked beans and fish & chips

another post already...can you believe that...?!

anyway, London was great even though it took me 5 (FIVE!!) hours to get from London Luton to Southfields where Mark lives. Because the flight was a bit delayed and we had to circle over Luton aiport for about half an hour because appearantly there was another airplane in the way(...) by the time I got to King"s cross the tubes had stopped running which meant taking the night buses. No biggy, really but hanging around King's cross at 1am isn't the most fun thing to do (especially with heavy luggage) and after various offers of weed, crack or money for sex i decided to talk to one of the guides about how I could best continue the journey. Nice guy but unfortunately he didn't have a clue so he sent me on the wrong bus...great. after 45 minutes i was back at the Cross and I was honestly considering spending the night right there with the drunks.
I finally caught the right bus on which I met this rogue eddy who told me I could have taken the train from Luton station straight to Wimbledon and then taken a taxi from there, would have saved me about 3 hours.....argh!

Was great to see Mark again, met his lovely girl friend Sharyn (probably spelled totally wrong!) and had a very relaxed weekend with them and a Gwyn, one of mark's friends, which was good to have before the trip to Australia.

Monday morning I left to Heathrow where they have absolutely strict security checks now but since I'm german (= well organized, absolutely on time, etc.) I had my liquid medicine packed up neatly in a transparent re-sealable bag, doctor's letter and all which meant no hassle even with dreads. :)

watched movies all through the flight, had to stop and reflues in Hong Kong and then continued on to Melbourne where I spent the night at the airport (couldn't sleep of course) and at 7.00am took the (very small and rocking!) plane to adelaide. there i got picked up by jaan (on time!) -you're a star- , had a shower and we headed to town.
So now I'm staying with him, his girl friend Alice and her sister Lucy for the first few days until I've found a flat share of my own. Hope that doesn't take too long even though it's great here with them. just don't wanna be a pain in the arse.

In town we met Holly, a friend of jaan and alice who's a singer and has the dirtiest mouth ever...talking about some swearing! I'm NOTHING compared to that. Love it!
Later we went for a coupla drinks with peter and Trudy whom (or is it who?!) I had met in London about a year ago and ben, who is only here until monday because he's studying in canada. Don't worry...loads of names but I'll post pictures soon. Just trying to introduce them to zou since you'll be hearing these names more during the next coupla months.

Today we went to the beach (and NO, I haven't turned lobster red yet due to my 30+ sun blocker!), swam in the sea and just chilled. Lunch at Glenelg (different beach, quite touritsy) and back to get ready for tonight. Alice makes jewelry (spelling?) and tonight she's got an exhibition and of course we all go.

This is really different from the last time I was i Australia. then I was always in hostels, around backpakers or other internationals when this time I know only locals. In Sydney or on the east coast it's so easy to meet other travellers, there are internet places on every corner as well as hostel, bars, clubs, etc. I enjoyed it but after a while I just got tired of it. this is totally different. If you don't know anyone here it's a lot harder to start your own network of people. but when you do you meet their friends in no time and everyone is just so helpful.
And they all look normal, they don't all carry surf boards under their arms or shoot kangaroos or say "crickey" all the time (for the ones who are picturing the aussie stereotype...)

So yeah, it's all good and my health is improving already. i was pleasantly suprised how well i felt on the plane, no tightness of chest at all. And since the weather here is great (mid 30s I reckon) i feel even better.

Feel sorry for you in the nothern hemisphere freezing your arses off...hehehe

anyway, take care you all.
xJ.

leaving in less than an hour!

OK.....I'm shite with writing this. but this time it wasn't slackness but worse....even though I vowed to myself to keep writing even when things healthwise aren't great I screwed up an stopped anyways. I suck.
ah...can you all hear the violins....?! hehe, enough of this.
For the few of you who have kept reading this - here's another post.

So I should start where I finshed off - the surgery. I know it was neccesary, the doctors said that due to the amount of polyps in my sinuses I should have constantly been suffereing from headaches...which I guess means :"don' wait another 16 years, stupid!" But the time after the surgery was a bitch, really. I mean, I was doing quite well, you all might remember me bragging about going for a daily run in holland....and I woke up in the hospital and couldn't even cough anymore. Nor walk. No strenght at all, just gone. Now that really sucked, I can tell ya. I mean, there I am, exercising like an idiot for 3 months, eating healthy and all and I go into the surgery, fall asleep from the anesthaetics (spelling?!), wake up and everything is just gone. Out the window.Talking about some frustration...

I have to admit, everyone actuallly told me that something like this would happen but...yeah, I reckon I just thought it would be different with me. Dunno why. Hey, they say ignorance is bliss, eh?!

Anyway, I had to stay in the hospital for a week and during that time I tried to get up and walk around as much as possible so my lunds wouldn't get worse. Also nebulising with the hypertonic saltine solution helped getting all this shit out of my lungs. But nebulising was so exhausting all of a sudden, and the coughing really didn't feel too great whith these cotton thingies up my nose....I think I might put up a picture or two so you'll see that I'm not exaggerating here...;)

OK, I got home quite thrilled that I hadn't picked up a nasty bugg in the hospital, what happens next - i get sick. Just normal winter thing, but with me being everything but tops after the surgery....not good.

Me being a frustrated, grumpy, in self-pity drowning biatch I thought it'd be best for everyone if i went to live with Arja and Jelmer in Holland again since mentally, emotionally and physically I felt great there but because I had ENT appointments every other day I had to cancel that. Now talk about some frustration...;)

Surprisingly my lung function a month after the op hadn't gone down, I still felt shite and somehow survived x mas and slept through new year's eve.
I changed antibiotics which didn't do anything but my lung function got worse to 45%. Great.
3 weeks ago I started another antibiotic IV which made me feel better, but the lung function is still the same.
So there ya go, I've had better news.Hope it'll get better.

Anyway, in about half an hour I'm going to the airport, flying out to London to stay there for a coupla days and see Mark (Tick bite fever mark I met in South Afrika) and on Monday I'm off to Adelaide, Australia where Jaan's gonna pick me up, more or less on time....hehe! (thanks to you both for letting me stay at your places!!!)

so I speak to you all when I'm in oz....via email or hopefully I'll post more regularly!

xxx J.

4 semanas en Hollanda

So here I am back in germany.
I think I told you in my last post that i was going to Groningen in the Netherlands to live with Arja and Jelmer, to lovely friends of mine, to get my health back in shape.
Did that - and it was awesome!Hehe, I think we make good flatmates, guys...maybe next time in NZ...?!
I actually brought up the discipline to go running every day for an hour. well, interval running. but it's a start. And it actually felt great being able to do these things again without getting out of breath after 5 mins. especially after getting so fucking sick in South Africa where any sort of sports was totally out of question.
Of course, I kept my healthy diet which was no problem thanks to Jelmer who's not only a very reliable weatherfrog but also a chef deluxe! And when I did fall for any unhealthy stuff at least I wasn't on my own but had Arja and Tjitske right by my side when it came to chocolate, chips and candy...cheers guys, had a great few weeks with you all!

But because I didn't wanna spend all day thinking about my next lung function results I updated my CV and went to all the temping agencies I could find...with, to be honest, no success.
Reason no.1: I didn't speak dutch. Reason no.2: I only stayed for a short time. Reason no.3: In the language department I'm no competition for all these multilingual dutch students who allw ant barwork. I didn't wait for reason no.4 and went home.
OK, I have to admit, I had imagined the jobsearch to be a wee bit easier and I was a tiny, tiny bit pissed of that day. So I binned my CV and went to the voluntary work office. I thought, I did 3 months of voluntary work in SA before, I can do another month here in holland. Fortunately I didn't have to pay any rent so I could just affort it.

So, the voluntary work office. Nice lady, I told her what I wanted to do and my dutch was pretty much non-existing. No worries, she said, thee'll all speak english and german.
next day I went to the senio's home I was assigned to ( after working with kids and teenegers in SA I wanted to try out a different age group) and of course - nobody spoke english or german exept one german therapist who's lived in Holland for nearly 10 years and has almost lost all of her mother tongue.
Anyway, because of the language barrier I was assigned to a lady who could hardly speak anymore - sad, but managable for me. So I talked to her in an english-dutch-german mix, fed her some coffee from the bottle, played bingo with the group and basically made a total fool of myself....so lots of toothless laughters right there.
Yeah, these oldies actually liked me so I went back every day for 3 or 4 hours.

Pretty cool, I was usually with the demented elderly which was great cos I could basically tell them the same story about who I am and what I do every day for the first few days. My dutch improved rapidly, also because I had to speak quite loudly since most of the seniors are half-deaf and everyone could hear my mistakes and correct me.
so what did I actually do there? Well, the usual things nurses don't have time for, really. Make and serve coffee or tea (make sure the diabetics don't steal the sugar cubes - seriously! they look like a hamster with both cheeks full of sugar and still try to deny it...!), have a chat (with a bit of dutch and a lot of hands-and-feet), read stories, look for their glasses or their fake teeth (they keep losing stuff all the time!), play games, go for walk or push them around in the wheelschair, listen to them chatting away, sometimes give out tissues and huggs when they get depperssed or frustrated with their situation or feel lonely, help with the daily activities such as gymnastics, creative afternoons, singing, ganes, etc..
Seriously, that was great fun but the old ladies cheat like hell...! :)

Before going straight back to Bremen I stopped over in Hannover for a weekend to attend a seminar about Cf and lung transplantations.
I was a bit worried to only see very sick CFers with oxygen and stuff but to my surprise there were quite a lot of younger ones in their early twenties who just wanted to gather some infos and get in touch with the topic. And, what also surprised me, almost all of them came with their partners. I keep reading Jaan's and Alice's blogs and I seriously admire them for how they accept his CF in their relationship but it seems like a lot of other people are able to do that too.Hmm...I guess I still have a long way to go to get to that point....
Anyway, back to the seminar. First we talked about exercising and physio before and after the Ltx (lung transplantation), the healthy diet and just keeping the whole body in relatively good shape.We learned about the criteria of getting "listed" and that ther is a thing aclled "life donations" which is practised in japan a lot since they rarely agree to organ donations after the death of a person. so a lot of ethic chat about that and the definitionof "dead" which varies even in european countries. There were doctors and surgeons to explain what exactly happens during a transplantation and we got to watch one on film...how cool!
We talked about clinics in germany, statistics, risks and survival rates.
What a life could be like after the operation, what the psychological aspekts are, the individual pro and con of a transplantation and we met 3 Cfers who are transplanted - even a 40-year old who had an Ltx 13 years ago!

It was my first CF seminar and so interesting, good to meet other CFers who aren't that sick but still thinking about the option of transplantation. but even though everyone was having a good time, I think after 3 days of CF talk we were all glad to go back to our "normal" lives.

So now I'm back, had a clinic appointment a coupla days ago and after almost 3 months of daily exercise I've gotta admit I expected an FEV1 at least in the mid 50s.....no such luck, a merely 1% improvement which is ridiculous. I meanb, I could feel my lungs getting so much better in holland but then beeing back here, getting a flu shot, i felt my energy boost started to fade....grrr....!
Yep, I can say I was absolutely devastated and the nose surgery is getting closer and I'm kinda nervous. Terrified, more like it. So my poor doc, who was working on crutches cos he had a bicycle accident, had to put up with frustrated and crying me...not the most pleasant sight, I can imagine....

Anyway, after 7 hours of registration and pre-check ups for the surgery yesterday they sent me home cos they couldn't fit me into the schedule anymore. Now I gotta go in tomorrow (or today, it's almost midnight while I'm writing this...) morning at 7.30h, will hopefully be on the op table between 10 and 12 and if everything goes well I'll be done with it all at around tea time.

so that's it for now...I should go to bed and at least TRY to sleep, have to get up in less than 5 hours....

since I'll have to stay in the hospital 5 to 7 days and I seriously doubt we'll have the luxury of internet there I'll send some emails (and hopefully write another post!!) when I get home.

xxxJ.