Well hello there!
Umm remember me, the girl who used to write in this blog? You're all going to be looking at your blog feeds scratching your heads with no recollection of who the hell I am.
Just thought I'd update you on what's been happening around here.
Work is the same old stuff really. Just trying to get my way through each day while dealing with the rubbish that is involved with working in health care.
On a kind of positive note I've finally started my Masters after months of agonising over it. We've definitely been thrown into the deep end with no sign of a life raft. I'm really going to enjoy one half of this year, the other half...well when you're told there is no reading list because you have to read in relation to an area that you are interested in and you're expected to answer a whole 3 hour exam on this...it's ever increasingly likely that this module will = FAIL!
I've already made some friends (there are 3 of us doing it part time so we better had get along if we've got 2 years together!) and there are rumblings of going to a Champagne bar next Wednesday but we shall have to wait and see. I'm already loving the Central London location but don't think my bank balance will next week. Shopping is a big weakness for me, it never used to be but the girly girl in me is starting to take hold of the cool, laid back, one-of-the-guys-girl. We can't let this happen. I've also been appointed as the mysterious girl on the course purely because I wore a beanie and leather jacket this week with a dress....I did get some male attention during the fire drill we had from some undergrads. And that's another thing, I love being able to tell people I'm a postgrad, you actually get respect from people for it!
I know I'm rambling but that's purely because I'm procrastinating from reading about Social Constructionism theory. I never thought anyone would write a WHOLE book on the subject but oh well. One thing I should say to the Uni is that I really don't like the library. Well my campus library. They have this really stupid one way system thing so that you have to walk all the way round the perimeter before you are allowed to actually get anywhere near the books or workstations. I tried to take a short cut on Wednesday and was accosted by a security guard for trying to save myself 10 minutes.
Ok so the procrastination has to stop now, time to clean my room!
Saturday, 17 October 2009
Thursday, 9 July 2009
Greetings!
Hello.
I'm in Amsterdam.
That's right I'm sad enough to check my email etc when on holiday.
Well the hotel has free Internet that is just sitting there begging me to use it.
To be honest a week here is a bit too much. I only say this because of 2 reasons that I discovered on our first day:
1) As soon as I stepped off the plan I wanted to go back home. I was bloody petrified because everything was dark and disturbing and that seedy underbelly of society immediately presented itself to me. I was so serious I almost went up to the nearest airline desk to enquire about a ticket home. Not really a place to come if you have a nervous disposition.
2) Amsterdam is small. You can walk North to South in about 45 minutes. Therefore things have to be spread out over the week. So that day you were going to spend looking at all the museums, you had better look at one a day.
The hotel is pretty cool. It has to be the cheapest one I've ever stayed in yet the room is probably the biggest I've ever experienced. The beds are so comfy and you just kind of melt into them at the end of a long day.
I will do a proper update of the holiday when I get back and have some proper time, at the moment I am aware of people reading over my shoulder and that's not really something I like when updating this. Hope you are all well wherever you are in the world.
And if you live in Amsterdam and happen to see a girl with brown pigtails and a bag almost as big as her, then pop over and say Hi!
I'm in Amsterdam.
That's right I'm sad enough to check my email etc when on holiday.
Well the hotel has free Internet that is just sitting there begging me to use it.
To be honest a week here is a bit too much. I only say this because of 2 reasons that I discovered on our first day:
1) As soon as I stepped off the plan I wanted to go back home. I was bloody petrified because everything was dark and disturbing and that seedy underbelly of society immediately presented itself to me. I was so serious I almost went up to the nearest airline desk to enquire about a ticket home. Not really a place to come if you have a nervous disposition.
2) Amsterdam is small. You can walk North to South in about 45 minutes. Therefore things have to be spread out over the week. So that day you were going to spend looking at all the museums, you had better look at one a day.
The hotel is pretty cool. It has to be the cheapest one I've ever stayed in yet the room is probably the biggest I've ever experienced. The beds are so comfy and you just kind of melt into them at the end of a long day.
I will do a proper update of the holiday when I get back and have some proper time, at the moment I am aware of people reading over my shoulder and that's not really something I like when updating this. Hope you are all well wherever you are in the world.
And if you live in Amsterdam and happen to see a girl with brown pigtails and a bag almost as big as her, then pop over and say Hi!
Friday, 3 July 2009
Hello There!
I keep meaning to update this thing...
Oh well here it goes...
It's Friday night and I've just returned from a 14 hour day at work. In this heat it's a nightmare. The thought that i've spent more of the last 48 hours at work than I have at home depresses me. There isn't anything I can do to change that. However it has put me in a good mood. I am no free of work for the next 3 weeks!
Why you might ask?
Well I'm on annual leave and I'm going to Amsterdam for a week. I'm really rather excited about it. It gives me a chance to relax, not have to worry about things and just generally get away from it all. Of course I keep getting comments about the things that the Dam is famous for but I would like to make it perfectly clear that I never have nor will I ever indulge in illegal substances. I have been there before for the weekend but it was with a good friend and we spent the weekend escaping our problems with drink. I have already planned to go back to one club that we loved out there called the Sugar Factory. It's like a jazz club with a dj and very good cocktails. I will of course post pictures when I get back and there will be a lot!
Other than that, not much else is happening in my life...my parent's house might be bought out by the local council and demolished but that's not something I really worry about at the moment.
My head is all a bit over the place! I will update properly when I get back!
Happy 4th July to the American's out there, you're welcome!
Oh well here it goes...
It's Friday night and I've just returned from a 14 hour day at work. In this heat it's a nightmare. The thought that i've spent more of the last 48 hours at work than I have at home depresses me. There isn't anything I can do to change that. However it has put me in a good mood. I am no free of work for the next 3 weeks!
Why you might ask?
Well I'm on annual leave and I'm going to Amsterdam for a week. I'm really rather excited about it. It gives me a chance to relax, not have to worry about things and just generally get away from it all. Of course I keep getting comments about the things that the Dam is famous for but I would like to make it perfectly clear that I never have nor will I ever indulge in illegal substances. I have been there before for the weekend but it was with a good friend and we spent the weekend escaping our problems with drink. I have already planned to go back to one club that we loved out there called the Sugar Factory. It's like a jazz club with a dj and very good cocktails. I will of course post pictures when I get back and there will be a lot!
Other than that, not much else is happening in my life...my parent's house might be bought out by the local council and demolished but that's not something I really worry about at the moment.
My head is all a bit over the place! I will update properly when I get back!
Happy 4th July to the American's out there, you're welcome!
Sunday, 17 May 2009
"Show me the Money!"
I would if I had any.
This week has been a very stressful one with regards to money.
You may or may not know that I am trying to save £4000 for my Masters. Currently I have £1000 sitting in the bank earning me a meagre amount of interest every month (I think it was 1p last time I looked). That's not so bad, I'm on track to get it all by October which is when I only have to hand over half, but I like to be prepared with these things. That way it means I wont have to worry in a years time that I don't have the other half to pay for the last year with.
The main problem I have is with my overtime at work. When they sort out the rotas at work, you can never have enough people to cover all the shifts that we have. So that's where the Bank comes in. The Bank is full of staff that ring up when they want to work and they are told what wards are short and they get to pick where they want to go (most of the time). Permanent members of staff on those wards are also allowed to cover the shifts if they want to but they must first sign an agreement with the Bank to show that they have been given permission by their ward managers to work overtime. Last Saturday I decided to work a long day (7am till 9.30pm) on Bank. Bank pay you on a weekly basis so Friday rolls around and I check my online banking to see...Nothing.
That's right the stupid Bank hadn't paid me.
Turns out I have to ring payroll tomorrow when I am again doing some Bank shifts to see what the problem is because the Bank said they authorised the payment to payroll...Great.
The second money thing that happened Friday involves Tax. I paid almost £300 tax last financial year when I didn't earn enough money to justify paying tax. So I phone my local tax office who first inform me that although a large number of the people working for my employer have their files there, mine are in a place called Bootle (I looked it up, it's near Liverpool). So I phone Bootle and they tell me I need to phone the Job Centre to get a statement from them to prove I didn't work during the rest of the financial year...The job centre is open till Monday. Great. I just want my money back!
The third thing is that I have had to start paying my student loan back. This majorly sucks because eve though my basic salary is no where near the threshold for paying back my loan, because I work unsocial hours and live quite close to London, I get little bonuses which don't really mean much to me. But apparently over the course of a year they will elevate my salary above the threshold for paying back my loan. This sucks. If I did my job anywhere else in the country I would be just under the threshold and not have to worry about it. I pay so much in tax/national insurance/pension/union payments that I don't really get to see any of it. The way the university system is funded in this country is a bit of a joke really. Especially when you compare it to the MP's expenses scandal.
Let me stop here, otherwise things could turn out rather nasty.
This week has been a very stressful one with regards to money.
You may or may not know that I am trying to save £4000 for my Masters. Currently I have £1000 sitting in the bank earning me a meagre amount of interest every month (I think it was 1p last time I looked). That's not so bad, I'm on track to get it all by October which is when I only have to hand over half, but I like to be prepared with these things. That way it means I wont have to worry in a years time that I don't have the other half to pay for the last year with.
The main problem I have is with my overtime at work. When they sort out the rotas at work, you can never have enough people to cover all the shifts that we have. So that's where the Bank comes in. The Bank is full of staff that ring up when they want to work and they are told what wards are short and they get to pick where they want to go (most of the time). Permanent members of staff on those wards are also allowed to cover the shifts if they want to but they must first sign an agreement with the Bank to show that they have been given permission by their ward managers to work overtime. Last Saturday I decided to work a long day (7am till 9.30pm) on Bank. Bank pay you on a weekly basis so Friday rolls around and I check my online banking to see...Nothing.
That's right the stupid Bank hadn't paid me.
Turns out I have to ring payroll tomorrow when I am again doing some Bank shifts to see what the problem is because the Bank said they authorised the payment to payroll...Great.
The second money thing that happened Friday involves Tax. I paid almost £300 tax last financial year when I didn't earn enough money to justify paying tax. So I phone my local tax office who first inform me that although a large number of the people working for my employer have their files there, mine are in a place called Bootle (I looked it up, it's near Liverpool). So I phone Bootle and they tell me I need to phone the Job Centre to get a statement from them to prove I didn't work during the rest of the financial year...The job centre is open till Monday. Great. I just want my money back!
The third thing is that I have had to start paying my student loan back. This majorly sucks because eve though my basic salary is no where near the threshold for paying back my loan, because I work unsocial hours and live quite close to London, I get little bonuses which don't really mean much to me. But apparently over the course of a year they will elevate my salary above the threshold for paying back my loan. This sucks. If I did my job anywhere else in the country I would be just under the threshold and not have to worry about it. I pay so much in tax/national insurance/pension/union payments that I don't really get to see any of it. The way the university system is funded in this country is a bit of a joke really. Especially when you compare it to the MP's expenses scandal.
Let me stop here, otherwise things could turn out rather nasty.
Wednesday, 6 May 2009
Urgh, updating remorse gets me down a lot of the time. I keep meaning to write something but when I actually have time I can never think of anything interesting to say.
Like now.
The only things I can think of is that I'm not very happy at the moment and I don't know why. Do you ever have a niggling doubt that you've made a big mistake? Well not a big mistake but just that a decision you've made might not be the right one and you could be locked in for a while? On the other hand, the grass may not be greener on the other side as the saying goes and you should just put the thoughts to the back of your mind and get on with it?
I don't really want to go into too much detail, just trying to vent I guess.
Like now.
The only things I can think of is that I'm not very happy at the moment and I don't know why. Do you ever have a niggling doubt that you've made a big mistake? Well not a big mistake but just that a decision you've made might not be the right one and you could be locked in for a while? On the other hand, the grass may not be greener on the other side as the saying goes and you should just put the thoughts to the back of your mind and get on with it?
I don't really want to go into too much detail, just trying to vent I guess.
Sunday, 26 April 2009
Use it Up!
It seems that the beauty bloggers have come to the realisation that you can have too many products! I am one of them and have decided to start listing all the products that I use up on a weekly/monthly basis and review them as I go along just to help you all out. So this month's are:
Herbal Essences Dazzling Shine Shampoo 400ml
This has replaced the old Normal Shampoo from HE and I have to say I prefer the original! This made my hair so shiny that it look almost greasy after it had dried! Definitely will not be repurchasing this one. Why did they have to change the formaluations, they could have just changed the packaging and everything would be fine.
Lee Stafford Dry Shampoo 150 ml
This was my first foray into the Lee Stafford brand (I have been to his salon once, the original one is not that far from where I live) and I'm unsure whether I will go any further. It takes so much effort to get this dry shampoo out of your hair that it makes it more oily in the process, thus defeating the whole purpose of the product!
That's it for this month. If you want to know anything else about these then leave a comment below!
Herbal Essences Dazzling Shine Shampoo 400ml
This has replaced the old Normal Shampoo from HE and I have to say I prefer the original! This made my hair so shiny that it look almost greasy after it had dried! Definitely will not be repurchasing this one. Why did they have to change the formaluations, they could have just changed the packaging and everything would be fine.
Lee Stafford Dry Shampoo 150 ml
This was my first foray into the Lee Stafford brand (I have been to his salon once, the original one is not that far from where I live) and I'm unsure whether I will go any further. It takes so much effort to get this dry shampoo out of your hair that it makes it more oily in the process, thus defeating the whole purpose of the product!
That's it for this month. If you want to know anything else about these then leave a comment below!
Couch to 5K Running aka C25K
I have always been a chubby girl. No matter what I did I was always the biggest girl I knew. I used to dance 4 times a week, swim 3 times a week and even played football, rugby and badminton a hell of a lot a college and in my first year at uni. 3 years ago I was the thinnest I can remember being in my teenage life and I was happy even though I was still big. That was until I hit uni and started drinking more and eating all the wrong food a lot of the time. I was still on the go a lot and didn't notice my weight start to creep up on me. Before I started work I was at the same weight I was at the age of 13 (I remember this because we had to weigh ourselves in Physics that year and me and another girl in my class started crying at the numbers on the scale and refused to tell the teacher what it said). However just by working I have managed to lose half a stone fairly quickly but have now come to a stop. Therefore I am making a pledge to start the Couch to 5k running program that you can find all over the internet.
I have decided to start this because to be honest, as much as I would like to, I can't afford to join a gym at the moment. When I start uni again in September I can become a member of the gym there at a highly reduced rate and make use of the shower at my dad's office round the corner (it is the most amazing power shower you will ever see) before I hit the lectures. Until then I am going to start running because it's free and there are lots of fields and green spaces in the vicinity of my house.
The Couch to 5k running program takes the form of 9 podcasts, where you listen to one of them 3 times a week. The early ones are a mix of walking and jogging to get you used to moving again, slowly working your way up to a 45 minute run/jog which should equal approximately 5k. The podcasts are great because they are set to a dance music mix that changes tempo as you change from a run to a walk intermixed with verbal instructions in case you loose where you are. I am starting these in a week because I need pay day to roll around so I can get a new pair of running shoes and have time to break them in.
Of course in addition to the running I'm going to try and swim at least once a week (hopefully on a day off) and cut out the morning toast breaks and scavenging from the canteen that occurs a lot at work recently...I'll keep you all posted and here's to losing weight and staying healthy!
You can read more about the program here in addition to downloading the free podcasts.
I have decided to start this because to be honest, as much as I would like to, I can't afford to join a gym at the moment. When I start uni again in September I can become a member of the gym there at a highly reduced rate and make use of the shower at my dad's office round the corner (it is the most amazing power shower you will ever see) before I hit the lectures. Until then I am going to start running because it's free and there are lots of fields and green spaces in the vicinity of my house.
The Couch to 5k running program takes the form of 9 podcasts, where you listen to one of them 3 times a week. The early ones are a mix of walking and jogging to get you used to moving again, slowly working your way up to a 45 minute run/jog which should equal approximately 5k. The podcasts are great because they are set to a dance music mix that changes tempo as you change from a run to a walk intermixed with verbal instructions in case you loose where you are. I am starting these in a week because I need pay day to roll around so I can get a new pair of running shoes and have time to break them in.
Of course in addition to the running I'm going to try and swim at least once a week (hopefully on a day off) and cut out the morning toast breaks and scavenging from the canteen that occurs a lot at work recently...I'll keep you all posted and here's to losing weight and staying healthy!
You can read more about the program here in addition to downloading the free podcasts.
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