"An Around-the-World-Ticket for Two, Please."

Work and Volunteering

Posted by Sarah O'Neill , Tuesday, 7 December 2010 22:42

Ben started work on Monday morning, so we both got up early and had a relaxed time getting ready without rushing! I dropped him off at the medical centre and went off to the shopping centre to buy a mobile phone. Mine is not unlocked so we can’t just put an Australian SIM card in like Ben did. I got the cheapest thing I could find, $30 which is not bad at all, gone back to having a Nokia! Now Ben and I can keep in touch while he’s at work and I can drive Gunther without worrying that I have no phone for emergencies!

I headed to one of the local schools I had looked up on the map which was nearby Ben’s work and the shopping centre and met with the Principle there. She was lovely! However, I do not have a blue card (like a CRB here) and so I could not volunteer to go in and help out. It is their last week at school here before they break up for the long summer holidays and Christmas break, which would have been fun! I tried at one more school thinking maybe they’d be more lenient, but it was the same response. So, went home wondering what I was going to do for the next two weeks!

Once home I decided to set up my phone straight away, but annoyingly there was no SIM card in the pack, so I would have to go back later! Had a bit of a tidy up and organise, and some lunch and then went back to the shops to get the SIM card. I headed back to the cabin and spent some time researching volunteer work in Caboolture and Morayfield, and found a few places to visit on Tuesday. I spent the rest of the afternoon cooking a Masaman curry (Ben’s favourite from Thailand!), which if I do say so myself was sooo yummy, however, chicken thighs with bones in are a complete bugger!

I picked up Ben and we both said how pleased we were we had the cabin, as it had rained all day and looked set for the evening too! Not only does it give us more space, but also our evenings are much more pleasant as we have a TV and we have a lot more cooking facilities! We both enjoyed the curry, which was rather spicy! Had a nice chilled out evening.

On Tuesday I took Ben to work again and headed to the shops to get some washing powder. I then and set out to find somewhere to volunteer! It turned out to be quite a mission! It was also the first sunny day we’ve had in ages, so the car was boiling, and the whole time I was thinking I should get back to do the washing, it could be drying so nicely in this sunshine (how middle-aged is that!). I also remembered that we had no pegs to hang out the washing, so had to go to the shops again! I first went to the Caboolture Community Information Centre, where the lady gave me a list of places that look for volunteers which was helpful. I also picked up a few leaflets of things to do, including a Christmassy evening this Friday at the Centenary Lakes, there is a Nativity Scene with real animals and an outdoor film which sounds like fun as long as it doesn’t rain! One of the places on her list was also on my list from my internet research, the Community Volunteer Service, so I headed there next. I couldn’t actually find the building, so went into the Meals on Wheels place and asked. They directed me to the Adult Literacy Centre behind them, and I met some very friendly people, who said the place I was looking for hadn’t been there for 7 years! However, they were nice enough to look it up on the internet for me and give me directions! I went on my way again, and ended up in a very industrial looking area. I drove up and down looking for number 39 and couldn’t see it, so I parked and had a closer look. I had nearly given up but am glad I didn’t as I just came across it! The lady there was super friendly too, but she said it takes about four weeks to go through police checks etc to sign up with her, but gave me a direct link with an old people’s home, giving me the name of the lady there, and said if I went direct maybe she would take me for two weeks. It has been so difficult to volunteer my time! All the forms and checks are necessary for safety, however, all I want to do is read to an old person, or hand out cups of tea!

Anyway, I went straight there, and they were happy to have me! Yay! So, I am now doing mornings there, and it’s just down the road from Ben’s work, so I drop him off and then head down to the old folks! Eventually got home to put the washing on, and hang it out, and then it rained! So it had to go in the dryer anyway! Oh well! I picked up Ben and we had dinner and another chilled out evening inside as it was raining again! There was an Oprah Special on, the reunion of The Sound of Music Cast, which was great! Ben knew how excited I was, so sat through it, bless him! They showed behind the scenes clips and all the children were there grown up, as well as Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer! It was great!