I've been doing odd, annoying jobs today, such as filling in the CRB form - Criminal Records Bureau, that is. I've been checked before, but that was in Norfolk, so now I'm having it done in Suffolk too as it doesn't transfer (though that is changing now, and in future it will do, apparently, as long as the whole system doesn't get overloaded and collapse). It asks a whole lot of details, not just the obvious ones such as address, but things one has to look up like one's National Insurance number and you have to take in various documents - the information is so boring to look up that I've been putting it off for a couple of weeks. Then there was a potentially awkward phone call, some papers to photocopy and do a covering letter for and post - you know the sort of thing, nothing actually difficult but all too easy to say that you haven't got time to do Right Now. Anyway, now they're done - getting started is all it takes and then it spurs you on to complete the rest.
This evening, I went to a small get-together at the village pub, which was most jolly. I headed off at 6.30, assuring the Sage that the very latest I'd be home would be 9 o'clock ... well, I got chatting to various people, and then we had something to eat and I sat with some others, and then I went to chat with some more, and I was just thinking it was time to go home when the remaining people all came over and chatted with me. So we weaved our way out around 10. As always on these occasions, we all agreed that we must do it more often.
Before that, I'd been to spend the afternoon with Weeza. On the way home, driving from her house to the main road, I came upon a queue of cars just going out of a village. I couldn't see the reason for the hold-up because of the bend, but cars started to turn round and it was apparent that there was a long delay, so I turned round too and headed off the other way, meaning to get onto the A47 further along. Sadly, I don't know the area on that side of Norwich very well and when I got to a T-junction, neither option on the road sign helped much. I turned on the sat-nav and that wasn't any use either, as it just wanted me to turn round and go by the route that was blocked. I spent some time messing about going in roughly the right direction, but the going-home traffic was bad by then. It took me an hour to do the normally 40 minute journey, which was a bit annoying. However, if the original delay was caused by an accident, at least that didn't involve me.
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7 comments:
Did the pub make up for the car-journey?
I could do with following your example on the getting on with put-off things front...Respect!
It made me forget about it. I had a headache when I got home, and if I hadn't accepted an invitation I probably wouldn't have bothered to turn out, but as soon as I met friends I felt all cheery again.
I'm fond of evenings in the pub. Good friends, good cider...yep works for me.
I'm still procrastinating that huge pile of papers by my front door. I hate form filing and admin. Urgh.
Satnavs can find you a way around blocked roads: usually hit /calculate alternative route/, then /avoid roadblock/ and put in where the roadblock is, and, presto...
Just wait until ISA joins CRB later in the year. Then there will be *real* fun. *sighs*
At least half of the party were not drinking alcohol, Dave, you wouldn't have felt out of place.
We've got a nice village pub, Roses, I used to go there every Sunday for a while before lunch until I didn't have time any more. I hope I'll be able to soon again though. It's owned by a local man and the tenants have been there for quite some years and done a lot of improvements.
I hate form filling and stuff too. Not as much as I hate questionnaires though.
I was in traffic and didn't have time to do more than grab the satnav and put it on - it wasn't really possible to pull off the road. I should have done it before I turned the car round at the blockage, but I thought it would be easier than it was to get back to the main road. I need to look at the roadmap, I'm old enough to prefer maps to satnavs!
CRBs can be used by different organisations, but that's at their own risk as they're only "valid" at the moment of processing. Therefore most choose to seek new ones.
Even the rules for voluntary workers are being tightened up. For a professional job where one is required, it's valid for 3 months after it's done and is then ongoing. The idea is in future that they will be automatically kept up to date. In addition, in future, ones used purely for voluntary work will be free (you or an employer then have to pay if you want to use it for paid work). Until now they've all had to be paid for.
All CRB checks are going to have to be redone as part of this changeover in the next 3 years. Every member of staff at every school - that's a hell of a lot of money out of their budgets doing nothing for educating children.
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