I got the self-employment blues

M is working a lot at the moment, which is good financially but, as she has to knuckle down whenever she isn't kid-wrangling, means that we barely get to spend any time together. I get home from the library, we feed/bathe/settle the Bs and then she's straight onto the computer, which is frustrating for both of us.

Another issue that arises from self-employment is something that I recognise from postgraduate student days, the difficulty of switching off and just relaxing:

SCENE: A couple in their bedroom, enjoying a quiet chat before a well-earned sleep

WOMAN: If I can manage to finish this report tomorrow morning before I interview the guy for the next one, then my supervisor can get back the revisions to me in time for the court appointment and I can concentrate on getting the preliminary report on that other case sorted out...

MAN: Mmm...I find it hard to get interested in the details

WOMAN: Why? OK, tell me about your day.

MAN: Well, first I had a meeting about which applicants should receive some scholarship money, then I sorted out a problem with a returned book that was mouldy, before heading over to Fisher Library for a briefing about the organisational restructure...

WOMAN: Mmm.

The plus side of M's monastic retreat to the study is that I get a lot of time with the kids, as was the case this weekend. As you can see from the photo, B2 is now perambulating about the place most merrily, and B1 has curbed her recent behavioural excesses (for now) and is an absolute delight.

Oh, and I also watched 6 movies and 3 football matches in 3 days.