In the early days, when I got my first and only exposure to daytime TV, and I thought that I would be running around by April or May, I tried to carry on working. I offered my services to my boss who just told me to spend some time getting better. I gave up daytime TV, and I gave up offering to work.
I had years and years of backlog to clear. And the company rewarded me for busting my guts and putting in months of overtime with... Nothing. So I decided to do some catch-up. By July I was still working on those things that had always been put off, put on the backburner, given low priority, because of work.
As life became easier I began the process of returning to the grindstone. I offered to work normally from home. The company decided to send me for an ndependant assessment, in case there was a risk of the company being sued for a cripple falling over in the lift.
The doctor faced me across a massive Harley Street desk. Fully 10 feet away, she eyed the frame and leg as I sat unmoving in the chair. She asked a few questions. Did it hurt? Did it bend? Can I walk? Would I fall over in a lift? "No, but I might slip on my crutches if the marble floor was wet, like I did in Sainsburys". She dictated a letter to a recording device as I sat watching the £ signs roll up. The company was paying, but she was going to make a point that I was a few minutes late... Some of which were spent in reception, and some on the doorstep waiting to be let in.
Luckliy she didn't really need to get close to the leg, or watch me walk, sit, stand, or bend over. Luckily I could tell her everything she needed for her letter.
She asked if I wanted to see a copy before it went to the company. Well, why not?
The company got the letter a few weeks later. By now it was about 6 weeks after I had suggested coming back to work. But then I learned that I also have to produce a doctor's note to explain why I have not been coming to the office for 7 months. It took about 4 days to get an appointment. The doctor then had to explain the concept of a sick note to me. I've never had one before, not in 35 years of working.
So it is that on 12 August 2011, I return to work.
Unfortunately, the infection was on the rise, and my leg bleeds pus and blood in the office.
I try to hide it, and blythly say "oh dear, yes, that does happen sometimes".
