The wonderful NHS

Yesterday I had a portion of blood sucked out of me for the second time in three months. This time, I had to go to the hospital to have it done. I didn't have to have an appointment-I could turn up anytime between 9 and 11am. In theory, this is a good thing, as you don't have to rush around to get there. The downside is, depending on when you get there, you can be waiting a very long time. For someone who is still relatively new to having blood tests and who hasn't set foot in the hospital as a patient since they were eight years old this isn't the most pleasant of experiences.

I decided to get there for 9.05, as I thought the sooner I got there, the sooner I could be seen and get out of there. Unfortunately for me, there were many others who had the same idea. When I got to reception I showed them my referral form. In return, I was given a number-the number 41, to be exact. I felt like the guy out of the Prisoner. I ended up sitting next to number 39 and 42, in a small, crowded waiting area, away from all the "proper" patients who had actual appointments.

One by one, the patients were herded in like cattle, coming out a minute later, or in some cases five, depending on (a) how they were feeling and (b) how long it took them to get their coat off and their sleeve rolled up. The longer I had to wait, the more nervous I became. I almost felt like seeing if I could persuade someone to swap numbers with me. Finally, my number was called, an hour after I arrived. The deed was done and I emerged from the room with a blob of cotton wool stuck down with about half a metre of Micropore tape on my left arm. I felt a sense of relief (1) that it was all over and (2)that I didn't have to wait two hours to have it done as it said I might have to on the notice on the hospital entrance door. Hopefully, I won't have to have another for a while, but if I do, I hope I get a number no higher than 15!

Click these please!

When you get a few minutes away from checking your e mails, reading this (and other people's) blogs and downloading stuff (legally, I hope!), take a look at the websites I've just added to the "Links" section of this site. Not only are they really good websites, they also give you ways in which you can do something for a good cause. Go on, give them a click, as the esure mouse might say!

Is this really me?

Your Personality Is

Idealist (NF) You are a passionate, caring, and unique person. You are good at expressing yourself and sharing your ideals. You are the most compassionate of all types and connect with others easily. Your heart tends to rule you. You can't make decisions without considering feelings. You seek out other empathetic people to befriend. Truth and authenticity matters in your friendships. In love, you give everything you have to relationships. You fall in love easily. At work, you crave personal expression and meaning in your career. With others, you communicate well. You can spend all night talking with someone. As far as your looks go, you've likely taken the time to develop your own personal style. On weekends, you like to be with others. Charity work is also a favorite pastime of yours.

The Three Question Personality Test

AOL: Discuss

If you've been watching TV recently, you can't have missed AOL's "Discuss" ad campaign. For those who haven't seen them yet, there are two adverts: one that puts forward the view that the internet is the best thing since sliced bread and the other that claims the internet is the root of all evil. The adverts end by giving the address of AOL's website and encouraging the viewer to log on.

While I think that AOL's attempt at generating debate about internet issues is a good idea, one can't help thinking that its nothing more than a ploy to get more customers. I'd be surprised if they said that they were only trying to get people's opinions and not their business. Still, its worth looking at it to see what people think of the internet. If you're interested in joining the debate, go to http://www.aol.co.uk/discuss

New Year, a new start

A very belated Happy New Year to all of you reading this. I hope you had a good Christmas. Mine was great- I ate, drank (not too much, mind) and spent some quality time with the family. I also got three 2006 diaries among the presents I got-from three different people-but I wasn't too disappointed about it. You can never have too many diaries!

The dawn of a new year means that we all start making promises to change things in our lives for the better and keep to it for about a day or two before giving up. In the past, my new year's resolution has always been not to make any at all (one of the few I've really managed to keep). I'll admit I didn't really see the point of them when I was younger. However the last year or so I have started to make one or two that I felt I could really keep to, for a few months at least. One of my resolutions from last year was to start a blog sometime in the year (which I finally did in September). Once again, I've decided to make New Year's resolutions that I feel I have a real chance of sticking to.

One new year's resolution I've made is to try and plan what I write before I put it on here. There've been times while writing entries where I've had no idea of what I'm going to write, so making a plan before I start would be a good idea. Other things I've thought of include being a bit more positive about things, to learn to drive, to get out of that job of mine and to get broadband. Time will tell whether I'll have succeeded in keeping to them. At this point in time I've a good feeling I will. I will, of course, be writing about it here.