Who needs them?

Well, whatever it is, it moves in mysterious ways! I've been a bit more energetic today and got the bedding changed and other chores, then settled down to sew some blanket bits together and listen to a radio play on iplayer. I chose one and it wouldn't load so after few attempts so chose the next one down in the list which it said was about a medical ethics dilemma and for some reason (what that can be?) I thought it would be about life and death. And it was but not in the obvious way. It was about people not being listened to in hospital. In this case it was a patient with 'some' learning difficulties (Aspergers type I would say from his encyclopedic knowledge of his own areas of interest) being badgered into having a 'tube' he didn't want and being told if his condition deteriorated without it he might die. With an advocate's help he decided he'd rather try to get better without it. But of course the doctor wasn't taking 'no' for an answer as he had made a doctorly decision and tried to prove the patient didn't understand the implications of not accepting it and the advocate didn't understand he was boss! He asked the patient to explain where people went when they died to prove his mental competence! Brilliant!

It reminded of a time when I was in hospital and every few hours doctors kept coming and trying different ways to make me accept their decision that I must have a different kind of tube. They kept saying you could die at any time and I kept saying well you've been telling me that several times a day for several hours and I'm still here! Can I go home now and get some rest and have a think about it? But I don't think you understand the implications. Um...yes I do! And if I'm going to die at any time I'd rather not be be in hospital being pestered ever few mins I'd rather be at home doing nice things. Doctors eh? I was persuaded to contact 'friends and family' for further persuasion I guess, but they were too busy to discuss if they cared if I had any life prolonging 'tubes'. They had work commitments, holidays to complete, sick friends to visit(!), bathroom tiles to choose, you know the kind of thing. Friends eh?

I suppose on reflection I can see why my views on the ways of the world aren't welcome on the cancer chat room! Anyway, the play had a happy ending or it seemed to be heading that way by the end. I can't vouch for the rest of all the character's lives unlike H. C. Anderson et al. I nearly turned it off at one point when it was getting me too frustrated and cross but the advocate made sense of it all in time... And then I listened to the first play which was myseriously available again.

So my third gratitude of the day is for radio plays and iplayer to listen to them whenever you like (within the BBC's measly window of course) while you concentrate on making things. It reminds me of Friday afternoons in the infant class at school when Mrs Baker let us play with Plasticine while she read us a story. Bliss! I think thinking of that will have to be my fourth gratitude. I love being read to...I used to quite like reading out loud too actually but there's not much call for it when you're by yourself all the time. In fact, you have to be constantly vigilant of not making all kinds of sounds out loud in case you forget in public places that you might still be alone but you are not inaudible! And finally I'm grateful for feeling a little more vigorous and healthy today, getting a tad more done and with a tad less groaning (see above!)