[Sundae]

Hello.
Brief update, some of which is to address questions Bruce asked in his letter to me.

The course involves "lessons" which fill up a timetable five days a week. These include things like Music Therapy, Anger Management, Dealing with Anxiety, Relaxation, Future Planning, Relapse Prevention etc. Homework is set, which reflects the session - so in Postive Communication it might be writing real-life examples of when you have used passive or aggressive responses and how to reframe them to make them Assertive.

Chores are from 09.00-09.30 every day and are set weekly. We work in pairs.
Everyone takes turns in Kitchen Duty in the evenings/ at weekends. Weekends are most onerous as you actually cook (although even that's not really from scratch) as well as preparing a cold meal for the evening. If you get a Saturday it means no access to places like the Post Office, banks, some shops. Given we are occupied from 09.00-17.00 Monday-Friday this can be frustrating when paying bills in cash/ getting a haircut/ going to the market etc.

All in all it's a great place. Can't say the same about the residents. But I like the staff and believe I have their respect.

Not in the kitchen today as you can tell (it's about 11.30GMT Saturday) - am in Otley library instead.
Just manhandled one of my duvets to the launderette for a service wash and am taking some bedclothes back to the Unit for washing. I start weekend Home Leave at eight weeks (a fortnight from now) so the flat has to be ready for me to sleep in.

Thanks for the kind words. I used some of the compliments I received here in the last Personal Boost homework. I won't be getting any compliments from this shower.
(actually, I'm being mean because of something that happened last night; some of them are tolerable)

Expect to see a little more of me over the next month.
Then I'll be back telling you all my tales and hopefully reporting about my wildly successful time as a volunteer.

Miss you all lots & spots.