Gill

I just heard that Gill Gill died on Friday night.
Gill was so full of energy - where has that gone now?
She was Director of B Arts from the start in 1985 when they were a co-operative, and what a wonderful organisation they are now.
She was a Loud Mouth Woman and that is how I will remember her - the last time I saw her we were singing the bass line together.
Thanks for your voice, your laughter and your energy Gill.

3 days a week....

I'm going to be doing a job share - it's been agreed!
I am still waiting for my written job offer, but the 2nd choice candidate has agreed to take the job share..... I should be able to start in February. I never got a new contract from the NHS when I started this new job despite chasing them for it twice, so I'm still on one month's notice!

I'm not sure about research yet, but I do know the holiday entitlement is more than I get now and the pay is slightly more pro rata.

All in all it's a fantastic deal and opportunity - I intend to make the most of it.
Amongst my plans for what to do with my other 2 days a week are:

• get away a lot in the campervan that we have recently acquired...
• volunteer at the local self-advocacy project that I have been working with a lot
• act as broker for a young person and their family to take control of Self Directed Services
• take a lot of photos - hopefully getting paid for some of it - with Cultural Sisters and other local community arts organisations
• take up drawing again
• make lots of music and sing
• walk and swim
• re-launch froom
• support Pan the local group that I am a member of to develop and seek funding
• blog....

Think I might struggle to fit it all in but I'll give it a try!

working hours.....

how many is too many?

I have been offered a new job as a lecturer at the local Uni and I am taking part but I am in the process of negotiating hours.

I work 4 days at the moment. I do not want to go back to full-time -

• I got so worn out last year I have got used to needing a 3 day weekend to keep my batteries fully charged.
• T has a condition that means I am his carer some of the time and I like being around at home - it stops him getting too isolated.
• I want to do other things with my time than be employed in one job.
  I do some voluntary work and some paid self-employed work e.g. photography. I'd like to do more of both if poss. I'm keen to get froom going properly too.

So I have asked to do 4 days or a job share of 3 days. The Uni are looking into both. They have asked the 2nd choice candidate if she wants to do 2 days a week so that I can do 3. That would be ideal. If she can't sort that out with her current employer and doesn't feel confident she will get other work to make up her hours, then the Uni will have to think again. They don't think they can offer me 4 days as the funding for the job is for a full time post and they don't usually recruit to jobs that are only 1 day a week which I can understand. So it might mean I have to seriously consider working full -time at least in the short term until they can recruit another person to job share with me.

So I have been worrying about this. Can I cope with a full time job? I believe that I would be able to work from home sometimes and the hours would be flexible.....

I will not get too anxious about it until I know if the other candidate can job share........ should know by mid week.

Subtext

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