From the sublime…
Poor James, from the sublime of Rachmaninov ….
After a weekend of wonderful Rachmaninov concerts he is currently conducting over 1400 kids in the Albert Hall. He tried to get out of it but they always get you morally with these education projects –very hard to say no and feel good about yourself. Apparently the kids are fine, it’s the teachers that are the problem, they all want to play and perform in the concert despite James gently (and then more forcefully) pointing out that it’s supposed to be for the kids…
I gave him my favourite joke of the moment to use on them in times of stress:
Why did Piglet put his head down the toilet?
He was looking for Pooh
I thought they’d love it but apparently they all just looked blank. Am I really supposed to believe that kids these days don’t know Winnie the Pooh? Excuse me while I weep into an Eeyore-type depression. I will resist the urge to quote all my favourite Eeyore lines at this point but rest assured they are at the tip of my fingers as I type.
Must just add that we had our first appointment at GOSH (Great Ormond Street) and we have a brilliant new consultant and a wonderful nurse who has already phoned me twice and emailed me once. It is such a relief to feel like someone else is taking charge of my boys care. Mind you, it still took over half an hour to get blood out of Seth so he clearly just has difficult veins.
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freya
1:43 pm, May 18, 2010
Ah poor James! OMG i can’t believe they didn’t get that! I love Pooh!! It’s one of the most marvelous things on the planet
whenever i feel ill or sad i read it and it makes me feel so much better! My mum was reading it to me while i had my bad knee up for a couple of weeks, but she laughed so much i couldn’t make out what she was saying so i had to read it to myself! 
Glad to hear you have a good new consultant and nurse
i hope everything is going ok for the boys.
Off to Glyndebourne in an hour to see the dress rehearsal of Billy Budd!
Freya xx
david
9:06 pm, May 18, 2010
Nice joke…the old ones are the best
I am sure James can handle a tiny little job like that !
Great Ormond Street is one of the most fantastic places….long may it continue. So reassuring and lovely to have backup like that with poorly children,
all the best D
Al
10:03 pm, May 18, 2010
we have a huge hardback version of Winnie The Pooh and another one of Thomas The Tank Engine – sad to think some parents don’t read these books to their children
Glad to hear you have found someone to support you with the boys…poor wee Seth – can’t imagine how you felt watching them try to get blood for half an hour. I was in bits when a doctor tried to put a canula in my daughter’s hand and she was 16 at the time…I told him politely to go away and leave her alone
Hopefully things are on the up with your new consultant.
Al xx
Danny
9:57 am, May 19, 2010
Hope James is now over the trauma of working with children and their mentors! Perhaps Winnie the Pooh and friends are not considered ‘cool’ these days, more’s the pity!
I sympathise with poor Seth, my veins are terrible to take blood from too, when in the Naval hospital many years ago, my arms were like pin cushions from the many botched attempts. I hope the new consultant and nurse help you and yours tremendously.
The other D xx