I have always been drawn to jigsaws….not the small 100 or 200 piece ones…but monsters….1000 / 2000 or even 5000 pieces. I never look at the picture (that’s cheating)…..I clear a space (make that I used to – pre children when such a thing as space existed!)…find the edge pieces and engross myself for a few hours.
It’s like my “processing time”…the point when I work through things that are bothering me.
As I teenager I would sit on my bed & do a puzzle whilst writing the wrongs of the day in my mind….and by the time the puzzle is finished a few hours later…the issue or problem seems somehow less insurmountable.
Time is my enemy now…so I don’t get that outlet to work through the daily irritations.
May is Melanoma Awareness month & I had all these masterful plans to make a big deal of it…especially considering that the weather in the last week has swung away from the hail & sleet of last week towards brilliant sunshine & warmth this week…
It seems inevitable…..the sun comes out & we welcome it (as Melanoma patients sadly we also fear it in equal measures)…so all of a sudden everywhere I turn I see people who have overdone the sun & I have to remind myself that I have 2 little people to take care of & I sure as hell don’t need to be a mother to everyone else out there that forgot to put sun tan lotion on.
My little peoples school sent out a letter reminding people to send their children in to school with Sun lotion & a hat….and that very day one child came running out of school telling their mother that they needed to take sun lotion into school & their parent said “no darling we don’t bother with sun lotion with you”…and I realise that whilst we might be making great in roads with Melanoma awareness, there are some enormous challenges still to tackle.
Minor soap box rant : Not all sun lotions contain bad chemicals & just 1 bad sunburn as a child doubles your risk of Melanoma.
Anyway….back to my masterful plans….I haven’t had the time in the last few months to stick to my running routine at all – and as a result all sorts of bits wobble & they are the ones that aren’t too busy ballooning out of my skinny jeans.
I spend too much time stationary – and sedentary – which is totally ridiculous considering my life is this mad juggling act & I don’t feel like I have taken my foot off the gas since Christmas!
Work involves sitting at a desk or in a car & then as soon as the little people are settled I resume my seated position with a laptop on my lap with conference planning.
So I decided that I would do something physical to shake myself back into a proper exercise routine. I decided that outside of the exercise bike stuff & a bit of running I have been trying to squeeze in early morning I would make sure that every single day in May I walk 10,000 steps.
Day 9…..and I am averaging at 8,600 per day…so far it’s an epic fail!
But I might just torture The Mr & my little people with a few mammoth walks over the weekends & get my averages back up.
Adapt the plan….allow for the unexpected & before you know if I will have achieved 31,000 steps in the month of May & as long as I do I think I will donate £31 to a Melanoma charity. There are some great charities out there & most of them are either sponsoring the Melanoma conference or at the least will be sending a representative to it which is great.
The conference plans are going very well…there are the inevitable issues…like the fact that because I didn’t actually start applying for grants until January, it was March before I started telling patients about the event & now I have switched my worry of “will I get enough money” to “will I get enough patients there”. Maybe I am just a worry wart….I am at the point with just 6 weeks to go where I am a mix of utterly excited & utterly terrified all at once!
I have been totally blown away by the level of support and enthusiasm from the Medical profession & am really pleased as well that as the date creeps closer there are several people in the Media that are expressing an interest in being there to cover the event nationally.
I am finding organising a conference quite a challenge, but it is also really rewarding. Knowing that this will help – knowing that this is needed. It’s like the best job satisfaction in the world.
My highlight this week has been reading an article about the conference & me in The Pharma Times magazine. (link below)
The Pharma Times magazine is the top publication in its field & connects the dots between “industry” and medical…so for example, between an international drug company, such as those that are sponsoring the conference & the medical oncologists that are attending & speaking. So for me & this conference even a small article in there about the conference would be pretty exciting!
I knew that there was an article on the horizon….but I wasn’t quite sure what to expect.
I have to say…I am chuffed to pieces… It’s like…just at that point when I was feeling low or despondent….worried about elements of the conference that are out of my control & then I receive a link to this article that just makes me feel like I am doing the right thing after all.
Like the jigsaw is falling into place…

PHARMA TIMES MAY EDITION