Here we are in the midst of the big freeze. As usual, everything in the UK comes to a grinding halt and it can be a nightmare for many people. It can be a really bad time for businesses and whilst employees are happy to take a couple more days off, the business owners have to work out the cost. My John told me that he was watching the news yesterday and they were interviewing the Big Cheese at Sainsbury’s. The reporter was horrified when he was told that if employees from Sainsbury’s cannot make it into work due to the weather, then they are not paid for that day. Why is that such a horrific prospect? As a business owner I feel that is only fair. He added that his employees had a month to make the time up so that their wage packets would not be affected. Good plan I’d say.

My daughter works for a major high street bank. She is based at Canterbury but lives in Dover. There were no buses to get her to work today so she put her Uggs on and walked the 3 miles into the Dover Town Centre branch and did her days shift there. It wasn’t ideal, but it was the best she could do in the circumstances.

I think at times like this we all have to be flexible. The booking I had on the Isle of Sheppey this evening has been postponed and so I lose my fee for today. Normally with last minute cancellations I would charge, but in this case, it really couldn’t be helped and it would be ridiculous to expect people to turn out to an evening event. You just have to take it  on the chin and be flexible.

I must admit I am finding it very difficult to focus on my work at the moment. It is kind of a surreal situation and nothing is normal. This morning I fussed around and couldn’t settle to anything. I felt fuzzy and disorientated (no – it wasn’t hangover!) and I couldn’t work out why I felt this way. John and I chatted about it and I realised that I had just about ‘burnt out’ as I had been working, selling Ben’s calendar all over Christmas and New Year and had had only Christmas and Boxing Day off.

So here I am presented with a forced ’stop’, and I have decided to use it. Time to recognise that if you keep going, going and going, eventually you burn out and then what are you fit for? Naff all!

So, the snow may be a pain, but it has just provided me with a safety net. There’s always a positive!