The day really didn’t start out well. I was still sick and my illness had prevented me from getting more than two or three hours sleep. Actually, a phone call to the house early in the morning had woken me up and my cough ensured that I wouldn’t get back to sleep again. My terrible mattress would make sure that, even if I could sleep, I’d be uncomfortable.
My car insurance renewal came in. My insurance company were, yet again, despite the fact that I’ve never made a claim, demanding more money from me. More money that I really didn’t have.
With my HP Touchpad away for repair I’ve been unable to read any comics. I thought I’d use the opportunity to catch up on reading a few books. I picked up my Kindle and slid the switch across to activate the screen. Nothing. The same, static imaged remained. Whatever I did, it wouldn’t go away. I checked the internet. A lot of people seemed to be having the same problem. It looked like the Kindle 3 (as it was once called, Kindle Keyboard as it’s now known) has an inherent fault. The only solution was to send it back to Amazon. The only problem was that my warranty expired five months ago.
All in all, not the best way to start the day. Waking up on a lumpy bed, coughing madly with a sore throat and out of pocket by one Kindle and a car insurance price hike. Great.
Maybe everything that happened next is a measure of how much I’ve changed. It’s possibly a testament to how unprepared I am to give up these days. It perfectly illustrates a fundamental shift in my attitude to life. Well, all that and a bit of luck too.
Okay, so my major moans of late are the university situation and my lack of job. The latter problem was just about to be addressed. Just before the morning was out, I received an email from the School I worked for on the summer. They wanted to know if anyone wanted to work for them that summer. Not only that, they have an Easter school running for three weeks from the beginning of April at a different location to where I’d worked the previous summer. Now I’d had problems with Summer school last year, but they were mostly to do with the location, accommodation, facilities and food. At a different site, maybe none of this would be an issue? Still, I pondered whether I should throw my hat in. I’d had so much rejection of late that the idea of being turned down again just wasn’t appealing. I mulled it over for a while.
In the meantime, I figured that I should sort out my car insurance. I got some quotes together and, with cheaper prices in my arsenal, I called up my car insurance company to cancel. In the end, I stuck with them but, long story short, I’m now paying £3 a month less than before. Sure, it’s mall victory, but I’ll take a win wherever I can get it.
For the next couple of hours I fiddled with my Kindle, desperate to get it to work. In the end it became clear that my only option was to call up the Kindle Support Line and see what they could do about getting me a new one. At first they wanted to charge me £50 for a replacement. That wasn;t too bad; certainly better than the £150 it would cost me through their website, but I knew where I stood as far as the law went. A device that works for less than 18 months fell well below what the average consumer might have expected. After a little prodding, I got the new Kindle for nothing. Another win for me.
Okay, so now the mattress. I’d called Ikea about it last week right after I’d discovered that my 5 year old mattress was covered by their 25 year guarantee. They’d promised to get back to me, but their phone call was long overdue, so I gave them a ring. Someone’s coming out to inspect my mattress and it’s pretty obvious dip where a spring or two have completely failed. That was the most visible fault, but it was also pretty uncomfortable all over and I’d often be woken up in the middle of the night with a pain in my side, all caused by its dodgy springs. The mattress, which has actually been discontinued, was called the Hassleback and, to my mind (and back) it was certainly aptly named. Anyway, with luck, by this time next week, a new, better mattress will be on its way and I’ll finally get a good night’s sleep.
Given how the day started, I’m doing pretty well. All that was left to sort out was the job. Just after 5pm I emailed back and said that I’d be happy to work for them again during both the Easter and the summer. Just half an hour later I got a reply back saying that they’d be happy to have me for both sessions. So, in just a few weeks time, I’ll have a job again, albeit a temporary one. Who knows, maybe I’ll pick up some temporary work to fill in the gaps. The most important thing is that my year is no longer formless and barren; it now has structure, something with which I can work.
All things told I can go to bed tonight much happier than I woke up. I guess that’s the thing with life; it doesn’t take much to spin things around. Of course, had I a different attitude, I could have just taken all the knocks and given up. But I didn’t. Instead I made the best of each situation. I tried to make things better for myself. Like I’ve already said, theses ate just minor victories, but my change in attitude does bode well for the future. I didn’t let myself be defeated and, these days, that counts for a lot.
I do still have a pretty bad cough though. I guess there are still some things that can’t be fixed with determination alone.
Notes for a Confused Life 