Stumbling in Flats

My dream job doesn’t start til the Spring, so my friend is employing me as a builder’s mate in the meantime and I start today. Gulp. It will be odd as we’re best friends and now he will be my boss. He’s been joking all week I have to start addressing him as ‘Boss’ from now on too. Like that’s going to happen, mister.

I laid out all my builder gear last night – old jeans, several thermal layers, Caterpillar boots, woolly hat and gloves. Makes a change from dressing for the office and at least I don’t need to think about what to wear every day. I thought I would have the evening to myself to psych myself up, but thanks to over-running engineering work at Paddington, The Teenager has been delayed going to London, and he has hoovered up the rest of the Christmas shortbread and chocolates and I reluctantly shared my stash of Diet Coke.

Do builder’s mates wear make up? Should I still keep my nails tidy or are they going to be ruined anyway? I don’t want to look too butch, but there’s something quite nice and different about going to work in the open air, not caring if my clothes get dirty or my hair is wind-whipped. I’ve had a chat with my friend and my main job is clearing up, and I can definitely do that. Also, fetching tools from the van and making coffee and chucking a brush round the place. Easy.

He knows all about my MS, so he’ll understand if I trip or drop things and we’ll hopefully have a good laugh about it. I’ll enjoy reading The Sun and munching on greasy bacon rolls. I’m looking forward to the exercise and just blowing some cobwebs away. But I still have first day nerves. This is it for the next three months.

So wish me luck. My new building nick-name is ‘Half-Shift’, which is quite cute and  I feel like part of the building community already. Wonder if my friend will let me drive his van? Watch this space – I’ll tell you how it all went tomorrow.