Howdy,
Heading into London today to introduce it to my brother. We're aiming for the Imperial War Museum as I would like to go back, and Daniel is doing a history GCSE (like me!) and hopefully it will help him remember it.
After last night in work I'm incredibly glad I have today off. When I arrived yesterday we were told we were having reduced sample numbers and would probably be done by 7-7.30pm. Also one person was off sick, and no one stayed to help out as we weren't expecting much. I made plans to meet the family for dinner last night for 8.30pm. As it was I left the lab at 23.15pm last night, thoroughly knackered and in pain (my hand doesn't appreciate me running the pourer stacker as it involves pipetting and making the same movement at least as however many times whatever 30x15 is. And running around trying to be faster than a machine.
Got a taxi home in the end then went to meet Dad as we drove up to Swindon the night before to make sure I could get to work okay as the weather forecast was dire. Got to Reading at 12pm yesterday and then had lunch with Heather and Jim, Dad's friends from university who live in Reading. Was a good day until 2pm!
xx
Wednesday, 30 December 2009
Sunday, 27 December 2009
Let it Snow!
Chaos.
That's what last monday was like. Absolute chaos. It started snowing around 11am, and was coming down pretty thick but wasn't sticking. Around 2pm it started to stick. By half past the floor was white. By 3.30pm we were getting a bit worried in the lab as to how bad the traffic was. We could see that the cars outside had been at a standstill for a while. I was offered a lift because it was likely that the buses would be cancelled, and hurried to get my work done quickly so that I could.
By 4.30pm there were massive tailbacks everywhere, and some of the cars of people who had left early at 3.30pm to try and avoid the inevitable queues had turned around and come back to work, then walked home. I rang Tom to see if he was having any luck and if he might be able to pick me up, and though he managed to de-ice the car, the cars at the top of the road where it joins the main road (one of the busiest in Reading) had been stood still the entire 20 minutes it took him to de-ice it.
On Saturday we'd gone to a pub for lunch and I'd been slipping all over the place, and fell at one point. I went from worn out Vans to Converse, and then had no shoes left with grip. Converse + ice = bad. We went into town on Sunday before work so that I could pick up a new pair, and I got some Sketchers that looked like they would have much better grip. I wore them out of the shop, and as soon as we started walking down the pavement it was clear that the £50 was pretty much wasted as grip was barely improved.
So on Monday evening, knowing that I was going to struggle if I tried to walk in the Sketchers I had gone to work in, bless him, Tom offered to walk to work to come and fetch me. He brought my backpack with my giraffe wellies (first time they've been used outside of Reading Festival) and a raincoat. I swapped over, and kitted up, and then we left work around 5.45pm.
It was good fun walking, it was very pretty, and because it was fresh snow I had no problems walking on it. I probably annoyed a fair few drivers as I walked past singing 'Walking in a winter wonderland'! We walked past cars that couldn't go up slight inclines as they had no grip, with people banding together to push them up the hills and then run back down to help the next car. There was even a lady outside a B&B handing out cops of hot ribena for the cold drivers. And lorries and vans parked everywhere that daren't go up or down hills.
It took us about 40 minutes to get into town, and it was really odd walking across normally busy roads and roundabouts with cars stranded and frequently abandoned everywhere. Kinda apocalyptic. We were a bit hungry by then, so we stopped in La Tasca and took advantage of the all-you-can-eat for £10 deal they have on Sundays and Mondays. Then we walked the final bit home.
Next day I was working 12-8 and the buses had started running again so I caught one of those to work. When I got there, I found out that quite a few people had had to stay overnight in the meeting rooms and tea room in work as they had been unable to go home. Some of the managers stayed in the B&B. All the meeting rooms have motion sensor lights so it made me laugh to hear that people had complained that each time they turned over the room lit up! Bet they didn't find it funny though.
It took Lauren 7 hours to get home to London, she left at 4pm, and by 8pm was still in exactly the same spot outside of work. It took someone else 7.5 hours to make a normally 10 minute drive. The security guard at work's relief had been 3 hours late and he had been unable to get home, so he had been on duty for 36 hours. John's brother is a bus driver and had been told he was forbidden to leave the bus, so would have to wait all night until the replacement night driver turned up to continue sitting in the bus seat.
And all because the council didn't grit. Twitter was really good, it came into it's own. The #rdg tag meant that we were able to swap information and find out which places to avoid, which bus routes were cancelled etc. Really good, and I'm a much bigger fan of it now that I was before!
Chaos,
xx
That's what last monday was like. Absolute chaos. It started snowing around 11am, and was coming down pretty thick but wasn't sticking. Around 2pm it started to stick. By half past the floor was white. By 3.30pm we were getting a bit worried in the lab as to how bad the traffic was. We could see that the cars outside had been at a standstill for a while. I was offered a lift because it was likely that the buses would be cancelled, and hurried to get my work done quickly so that I could.
By 4.30pm there were massive tailbacks everywhere, and some of the cars of people who had left early at 3.30pm to try and avoid the inevitable queues had turned around and come back to work, then walked home. I rang Tom to see if he was having any luck and if he might be able to pick me up, and though he managed to de-ice the car, the cars at the top of the road where it joins the main road (one of the busiest in Reading) had been stood still the entire 20 minutes it took him to de-ice it.
On Saturday we'd gone to a pub for lunch and I'd been slipping all over the place, and fell at one point. I went from worn out Vans to Converse, and then had no shoes left with grip. Converse + ice = bad. We went into town on Sunday before work so that I could pick up a new pair, and I got some Sketchers that looked like they would have much better grip. I wore them out of the shop, and as soon as we started walking down the pavement it was clear that the £50 was pretty much wasted as grip was barely improved.
So on Monday evening, knowing that I was going to struggle if I tried to walk in the Sketchers I had gone to work in, bless him, Tom offered to walk to work to come and fetch me. He brought my backpack with my giraffe wellies (first time they've been used outside of Reading Festival) and a raincoat. I swapped over, and kitted up, and then we left work around 5.45pm.
It was good fun walking, it was very pretty, and because it was fresh snow I had no problems walking on it. I probably annoyed a fair few drivers as I walked past singing 'Walking in a winter wonderland'! We walked past cars that couldn't go up slight inclines as they had no grip, with people banding together to push them up the hills and then run back down to help the next car. There was even a lady outside a B&B handing out cops of hot ribena for the cold drivers. And lorries and vans parked everywhere that daren't go up or down hills.
It took us about 40 minutes to get into town, and it was really odd walking across normally busy roads and roundabouts with cars stranded and frequently abandoned everywhere. Kinda apocalyptic. We were a bit hungry by then, so we stopped in La Tasca and took advantage of the all-you-can-eat for £10 deal they have on Sundays and Mondays. Then we walked the final bit home.
Next day I was working 12-8 and the buses had started running again so I caught one of those to work. When I got there, I found out that quite a few people had had to stay overnight in the meeting rooms and tea room in work as they had been unable to go home. Some of the managers stayed in the B&B. All the meeting rooms have motion sensor lights so it made me laugh to hear that people had complained that each time they turned over the room lit up! Bet they didn't find it funny though.
It took Lauren 7 hours to get home to London, she left at 4pm, and by 8pm was still in exactly the same spot outside of work. It took someone else 7.5 hours to make a normally 10 minute drive. The security guard at work's relief had been 3 hours late and he had been unable to get home, so he had been on duty for 36 hours. John's brother is a bus driver and had been told he was forbidden to leave the bus, so would have to wait all night until the replacement night driver turned up to continue sitting in the bus seat.
And all because the council didn't grit. Twitter was really good, it came into it's own. The #rdg tag meant that we were able to swap information and find out which places to avoid, which bus routes were cancelled etc. Really good, and I'm a much bigger fan of it now that I was before!
Chaos,
xx
Thursday, 24 December 2009
Nadolig Llawen!
Ho ho ho!
So all the presents are wrapped, we've finished our lovely turkey and mayo sandwiches for supper, and no doubt my brother will knock on my door in a little while so we can sort out our Christmas pillowcases (no stockings in our house!)
Hope you have a fab day, whatever you get.
xx
So all the presents are wrapped, we've finished our lovely turkey and mayo sandwiches for supper, and no doubt my brother will knock on my door in a little while so we can sort out our Christmas pillowcases (no stockings in our house!)
Hope you have a fab day, whatever you get.
xx
Sunday, 20 December 2009
Who's Number One?!
We are!!!!!
I bought two copies of RATM's Killing In The Name Of. It's one of my favourite songs, and I'm chuffed it got to number 1 finally. I do feel sorry for Joe though, but I'm glad it's stopped the usual '[enter winner's name here] - [enter covered song title here]' being number one for a change!
Just found a wasp/hornet in my bed, pretty concerned right now!
Have a look at the Frequently Bought Together on this page
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Texet-Cross-Cut-Shredder-Litre-Waste/dp/B002EVOTQO/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=officeproduct&qid=1261334170&sr=8-3
xx
I bought two copies of RATM's Killing In The Name Of. It's one of my favourite songs, and I'm chuffed it got to number 1 finally. I do feel sorry for Joe though, but I'm glad it's stopped the usual '[enter winner's name here] - [enter covered song title here]' being number one for a change!
Just found a wasp/hornet in my bed, pretty concerned right now!
Have a look at the Frequently Bought Together on this page
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Texet-Cross-Cut-Shredder-Litre-Waste/dp/B002EVOTQO/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=officeproduct&qid=1261334170&sr=8-3
xx
Avatar
Evening,
Not on call anymore! Woo! Just had to work this weekend instead. I've been working or on call every weekend this month. Roll on Christmas with some rest and relaxation!
On Friday we went to see Paramore in Wembley Arena. They were better than I was expecting, but I was expecting them to be awful live. To be fair, she does have a good voice, and unlike some other gigs I've been to where you can barely hear the singer over the music, let alone make out the words, but it was really clear and good.
Only bad bit was the point where a little kid younger than us (23 and 22) got up on stage with his girlfriend and proposed to me in front of the sold out arena. Well I say 'bad bit', it was cute, but I dunno, was a bit cringy I guess. I know, I'm a cynical bitch.
Had a long wait in Paddington to get back home, we've had lots of snow which has now frozen, and the trains were delayed. We waited 45 minutes for one to Reading, and we had to run as soon as it was announced - along with 300 others. It was only a tiny commuter train too, so we were glad, and lucky to get seats. It's a lot colder in Reading than in London.
Went to see Avatar last night. I thought it was brilliant. Tom wasn't so fussed but don't let that put you off. Go see! We saw it in 3D which was definitely worth it to get the sense of scale and depth. Would have been a lot flatter overall otherwise.
Was quite a late showing, it was supposed to start at 22.30 but didn't start until gone 23.30, so we left the cinema at 2am! Knackered today, but still glad we went. I was talking to the security guard in work today who is a pc gamer, and he's been playing the Avatar game and he says it's really good and that he's enjoyed playing it, so I may add it to my list.
It's still icy now, it had been snowing while we watched Avatar. Tom decided we were going to walk to a pub in Caversham for a cheap steak last night, and that it was 'only a mile'. Took about 45 minutes and I fell on the ice on the way. Turns out it was 1.6 miles, and we've agreed we are definitely driving there next time. My shoes have no grip whatsoever, so we went into town this afternoon before work to buy some new sketchers with better grip. The grip is marginally better, but I'm still slippy sliding everywhere. Christmas in 5 days!
These are slippery times,
xx
Not on call anymore! Woo! Just had to work this weekend instead. I've been working or on call every weekend this month. Roll on Christmas with some rest and relaxation!
On Friday we went to see Paramore in Wembley Arena. They were better than I was expecting, but I was expecting them to be awful live. To be fair, she does have a good voice, and unlike some other gigs I've been to where you can barely hear the singer over the music, let alone make out the words, but it was really clear and good.
Only bad bit was the point where a little kid younger than us (23 and 22) got up on stage with his girlfriend and proposed to me in front of the sold out arena. Well I say 'bad bit', it was cute, but I dunno, was a bit cringy I guess. I know, I'm a cynical bitch.
Had a long wait in Paddington to get back home, we've had lots of snow which has now frozen, and the trains were delayed. We waited 45 minutes for one to Reading, and we had to run as soon as it was announced - along with 300 others. It was only a tiny commuter train too, so we were glad, and lucky to get seats. It's a lot colder in Reading than in London.
Went to see Avatar last night. I thought it was brilliant. Tom wasn't so fussed but don't let that put you off. Go see! We saw it in 3D which was definitely worth it to get the sense of scale and depth. Would have been a lot flatter overall otherwise.
Was quite a late showing, it was supposed to start at 22.30 but didn't start until gone 23.30, so we left the cinema at 2am! Knackered today, but still glad we went. I was talking to the security guard in work today who is a pc gamer, and he's been playing the Avatar game and he says it's really good and that he's enjoyed playing it, so I may add it to my list.
It's still icy now, it had been snowing while we watched Avatar. Tom decided we were going to walk to a pub in Caversham for a cheap steak last night, and that it was 'only a mile'. Took about 45 minutes and I fell on the ice on the way. Turns out it was 1.6 miles, and we've agreed we are definitely driving there next time. My shoes have no grip whatsoever, so we went into town this afternoon before work to buy some new sketchers with better grip. The grip is marginally better, but I'm still slippy sliding everywhere. Christmas in 5 days!
These are slippery times,
xx
Thursday, 17 December 2009
Oooh!
On a happier note, it's been snowing!
Both today and yesterday, and it's supposed to come down quite thick tonight, yay!
xx
Both today and yesterday, and it's supposed to come down quite thick tonight, yay!
xx
A Little Better
Evening,
So Tuesday I was feeling pretty shit. On Monday evening I started having a sore throat. Then I had a call from the late shift telling me that they'd heard there was going to be a call out but nothing had arrived at their end. So I rang the courier contact and was told that there were 3 call outs and that he was going to collect them all and then bring them to the lab at the same time. Then the phone rang from the Lab Liason to tell me that there had been an event and that there were 8 emergency samples arriving at 11pm in addition to any call outs.
So in order to try and time both arrivals we waited until 12.30am, and then I did the 8 emergency samples. As I was in the lab I rang the courier again and was told he would be arriving at 1.30am. I was feeling pretty dodgy by then so Tom & I hopped in the car and went to Asda to stock up on strepsils and paracetamol. Then we went back, I did the call out samples and we went home to bed.
Next day I went in at 12.30pm as we'd left the lab 2.5 hours after midnight so I had 2.5 hours of extra stand down time and could start 2.5 hours later than I normally would. I woke up and felt like shit. I felt like I'd been beaten up during the night. I went in at 12.30, did all the things I had to do then grovelled to the manager and left at 14.45. It was pretty bad. I slept for 4 hours when I got home, then struggled to sleep the whole night. Typical.
Yesterday I was feeling a little better, and there was no call out thankfully. We watched 2 episodes of Gavin & Stacey and then went to bed at 11pm. Today I covered 12-8 for someone's sickness. We have 24 staff and 7 are off sick. I quite like it when it's like this though, there's a much better team/camaraderie going on. Pretty sure I'm going to get a call tonight though as there were 6 failures at 4pm so it will be interesting.
xx
So Tuesday I was feeling pretty shit. On Monday evening I started having a sore throat. Then I had a call from the late shift telling me that they'd heard there was going to be a call out but nothing had arrived at their end. So I rang the courier contact and was told that there were 3 call outs and that he was going to collect them all and then bring them to the lab at the same time. Then the phone rang from the Lab Liason to tell me that there had been an event and that there were 8 emergency samples arriving at 11pm in addition to any call outs.
So in order to try and time both arrivals we waited until 12.30am, and then I did the 8 emergency samples. As I was in the lab I rang the courier again and was told he would be arriving at 1.30am. I was feeling pretty dodgy by then so Tom & I hopped in the car and went to Asda to stock up on strepsils and paracetamol. Then we went back, I did the call out samples and we went home to bed.
Next day I went in at 12.30pm as we'd left the lab 2.5 hours after midnight so I had 2.5 hours of extra stand down time and could start 2.5 hours later than I normally would. I woke up and felt like shit. I felt like I'd been beaten up during the night. I went in at 12.30, did all the things I had to do then grovelled to the manager and left at 14.45. It was pretty bad. I slept for 4 hours when I got home, then struggled to sleep the whole night. Typical.
Yesterday I was feeling a little better, and there was no call out thankfully. We watched 2 episodes of Gavin & Stacey and then went to bed at 11pm. Today I covered 12-8 for someone's sickness. We have 24 staff and 7 are off sick. I quite like it when it's like this though, there's a much better team/camaraderie going on. Pretty sure I'm going to get a call tonight though as there were 6 failures at 4pm so it will be interesting.
xx
Tuesday, 15 December 2009
Uggghh.
Evening,
Not a happy bunny today. I feel lousy and I had to leave work early because I felt so bad.
Got called out last night, and it ended up with me not leaving until 2.30am. Not in the mood to divulge atm so another time.
I hate being ill.
xx
Not a happy bunny today. I feel lousy and I had to leave work early because I felt so bad.
Got called out last night, and it ended up with me not leaving until 2.30am. Not in the mood to divulge atm so another time.
I hate being ill.
xx
Sunday, 13 December 2009
Fun Times
Afternoon,
It's been a good week! Sunday and Monday were pretty stressful in work due to having to sort out other people's mistakes and a whole catalogue of errors, but that's over and done with now. Wednesday I made up some more time so went from -10 hours to -1 in a week.
Then on Thursday it was Tom and I's 3 year anniversary. I met him in the nearby car park where he pulled out a long stemmed single rose with a black ribboned bow and a note attached to it '3 fantastic years. I'll try to save box 5 for us x Opera Ghost' on it. And then two tickets to go see Phantom of the Opera that night!
We legged it to London and made it in perfect time for the show. Ordered two glasses of wine for us - then freaked when it came to £18!! The show was really good, all kinds of special effects and left me wondering how they'd done them/gotten away with doing things without me noticing sometimes. Thoroughly enjoyed it.
Earlier I'd said that I'd never seen the christmas lights in London, so we went for a walk down Regent Street to go and see them. Was good fun window shopping too. We went up a little side street as Tom thought that's where the Absolut Vodka Icebar was and we thought it would be cool to go and see if we could see it. When we got there Tom asked if I wanted to go in, I said 'Yes!' and then he strode up to the two men on the door and it turned out we had a booking for 11pm for two! Consider my night made :)
We waited for a little bit, I went to the loo and was shocked to discover that the male and female toilets are connected via the hand washing basin! As I was washing my hands a man put his hands under the stone the taps were attached to and reached out to see if he could grab anyone's hands and scare them!
We each got given, well thrown, a massive waterproof poncho with wool lining and mittens attached and then we were in! The bar is named Below Zero as it is -5 degrees in there. You're only allowed in for 45 minutes for H&S reasons and you have to book in advance. The entry price includes a cocktail, which are served in square glasses made of ice with a hole in the middle. You're ordered to ensure you wear your mittens when handling the drinks to avoid your hands freezing to them. The theme changes every 6 months or so, and at the moment it's 'aquatic'. It's basically a submarine, with a control desk in the middle with sonar, dials and buttons etched into the middle of massive blocks of ice, and a periscope, with fish carved into ice and port holes too. It was great fun, and I reckon would be a fantastic place to start off a night out for a birthday :) We headed home and both agreed that Reading felt colder than the icebar did!
I'm on call again now. So on Friday I rushed out of work and met Tom at the cinema to see New Moon. I wasn't as impressed, I preferred the original and the books are vastly superior to the film as it makes a lot more sense of things! I had to explain a few bits to Tom as it went on. We saw the 5.30pm viewing to ensure that I wouldn't miss a call, but I ended up not getting any so that was good.
Last night was the work christmas do. My second. Last year I'd got back from Cardiff a few hours before after travelling back up from staying overnight after getting back from Paris for our anniversary. Last year it was in TGI Fridays and wasn't that great. This year it was at Bell & The Dragon and we all really enjoyed. The food was lush. We headed into town during the day to buy a shrug for me as it's particularly cold at the moment and I was wearing a dress, and I dragged Tom to Yo! Sushi where he enjoyed some Duck Udon Soup and chicken teriaki and I fulfilled my craving for salmon sashimi!
For starters I had deep fried brie, which was a slab - shocked me a bit! - but very nice. I actually ate the rind for the first time ever too, I normally hate that bit and have to cut it off. It was with a cranberry chutney and pear salad which was yummy. For my main I'd gone for turkey. I ended up giving my pig in blanket to one of the team leaders sat next to me as I'm not much of a sausage fan, but the rest of it was eaten. The desert was a chocolate tart with chantilly cream and pistachios, which was gorgeous and went down a treat.
We then headed to Copa where I met up with Tom who'd been watching Villa beat Man U for the first time in 27 years, and then we went on to Purple Turtle. Took a while to get into the mood but we did and I enjoyed it. Felt a little hungover when I woke this morning, but I'm all recovered now and sitting here typing this up as Tom watches the ubiquitous MOTD before we go for a Toby carvery :)
Have a nice Sunday,
xx
It's been a good week! Sunday and Monday were pretty stressful in work due to having to sort out other people's mistakes and a whole catalogue of errors, but that's over and done with now. Wednesday I made up some more time so went from -10 hours to -1 in a week.
Then on Thursday it was Tom and I's 3 year anniversary. I met him in the nearby car park where he pulled out a long stemmed single rose with a black ribboned bow and a note attached to it '3 fantastic years. I'll try to save box 5 for us x Opera Ghost' on it. And then two tickets to go see Phantom of the Opera that night!
We legged it to London and made it in perfect time for the show. Ordered two glasses of wine for us - then freaked when it came to £18!! The show was really good, all kinds of special effects and left me wondering how they'd done them/gotten away with doing things without me noticing sometimes. Thoroughly enjoyed it.
Earlier I'd said that I'd never seen the christmas lights in London, so we went for a walk down Regent Street to go and see them. Was good fun window shopping too. We went up a little side street as Tom thought that's where the Absolut Vodka Icebar was and we thought it would be cool to go and see if we could see it. When we got there Tom asked if I wanted to go in, I said 'Yes!' and then he strode up to the two men on the door and it turned out we had a booking for 11pm for two! Consider my night made :)
We waited for a little bit, I went to the loo and was shocked to discover that the male and female toilets are connected via the hand washing basin! As I was washing my hands a man put his hands under the stone the taps were attached to and reached out to see if he could grab anyone's hands and scare them!
We each got given, well thrown, a massive waterproof poncho with wool lining and mittens attached and then we were in! The bar is named Below Zero as it is -5 degrees in there. You're only allowed in for 45 minutes for H&S reasons and you have to book in advance. The entry price includes a cocktail, which are served in square glasses made of ice with a hole in the middle. You're ordered to ensure you wear your mittens when handling the drinks to avoid your hands freezing to them. The theme changes every 6 months or so, and at the moment it's 'aquatic'. It's basically a submarine, with a control desk in the middle with sonar, dials and buttons etched into the middle of massive blocks of ice, and a periscope, with fish carved into ice and port holes too. It was great fun, and I reckon would be a fantastic place to start off a night out for a birthday :) We headed home and both agreed that Reading felt colder than the icebar did!
I'm on call again now. So on Friday I rushed out of work and met Tom at the cinema to see New Moon. I wasn't as impressed, I preferred the original and the books are vastly superior to the film as it makes a lot more sense of things! I had to explain a few bits to Tom as it went on. We saw the 5.30pm viewing to ensure that I wouldn't miss a call, but I ended up not getting any so that was good.
Last night was the work christmas do. My second. Last year I'd got back from Cardiff a few hours before after travelling back up from staying overnight after getting back from Paris for our anniversary. Last year it was in TGI Fridays and wasn't that great. This year it was at Bell & The Dragon and we all really enjoyed. The food was lush. We headed into town during the day to buy a shrug for me as it's particularly cold at the moment and I was wearing a dress, and I dragged Tom to Yo! Sushi where he enjoyed some Duck Udon Soup and chicken teriaki and I fulfilled my craving for salmon sashimi!
For starters I had deep fried brie, which was a slab - shocked me a bit! - but very nice. I actually ate the rind for the first time ever too, I normally hate that bit and have to cut it off. It was with a cranberry chutney and pear salad which was yummy. For my main I'd gone for turkey. I ended up giving my pig in blanket to one of the team leaders sat next to me as I'm not much of a sausage fan, but the rest of it was eaten. The desert was a chocolate tart with chantilly cream and pistachios, which was gorgeous and went down a treat.
We then headed to Copa where I met up with Tom who'd been watching Villa beat Man U for the first time in 27 years, and then we went on to Purple Turtle. Took a while to get into the mood but we did and I enjoyed it. Felt a little hungover when I woke this morning, but I'm all recovered now and sitting here typing this up as Tom watches the ubiquitous MOTD before we go for a Toby carvery :)
Have a nice Sunday,
xx
Sunday, 6 December 2009
Good Game
Evening,
Last night I met up with Alex and Marc and we went to see Me & Orson Wells after work. We were supposed to go and see 2012 but the only seats left were at the right at the front of the screen and we didn't fancy the neck ache.
I thought it was alright, Zac Efron wasn't as annoying as I thought he might have been, and I have no idea who was playing Orson Wells but they were good. The lovely Claire Danes was in it too, which was good because I really like her after seeing her in Starlight a few years ago. Must watch that film again sometime.
Working this weekend, and as I was busy reading plates earlier I had a text from Alex recommending I get hold of a game called Dragon Age: Origins. As we left work quite late due to delayed couriers I didn't end up with enough time to go home, eat and change so I went to BK for a while instead to pass the time, and then headed over to Game to pick up a copy of DA:O. It was cheaper than I was expecting at £20 so that was good. There's a special edition with some more free content for £30 but decided not to go for it.
Made some space for it (20GB!) when I got home and got it all set up and running. I've linked it to my Steam account so that I can talk to Alex through it while playing, as he bought and downloaded his copy through Steam instead of getting a disc version. He's had it for a week or so and already sunk over 30 hours into it.
First impressions - awesome. Rushed home from work today to carry on playing, and I didn't want to leave for work in the first place. It's the first time I've woken up early by accident and got up to play a game instead of going back to sleep for a while instead. Which is a good sign, as I rarely ever do that.
So if you've seen it and you're wondering, get it :)
xx
Last night I met up with Alex and Marc and we went to see Me & Orson Wells after work. We were supposed to go and see 2012 but the only seats left were at the right at the front of the screen and we didn't fancy the neck ache.
I thought it was alright, Zac Efron wasn't as annoying as I thought he might have been, and I have no idea who was playing Orson Wells but they were good. The lovely Claire Danes was in it too, which was good because I really like her after seeing her in Starlight a few years ago. Must watch that film again sometime.
Working this weekend, and as I was busy reading plates earlier I had a text from Alex recommending I get hold of a game called Dragon Age: Origins. As we left work quite late due to delayed couriers I didn't end up with enough time to go home, eat and change so I went to BK for a while instead to pass the time, and then headed over to Game to pick up a copy of DA:O. It was cheaper than I was expecting at £20 so that was good. There's a special edition with some more free content for £30 but decided not to go for it.
Made some space for it (20GB!) when I got home and got it all set up and running. I've linked it to my Steam account so that I can talk to Alex through it while playing, as he bought and downloaded his copy through Steam instead of getting a disc version. He's had it for a week or so and already sunk over 30 hours into it.
First impressions - awesome. Rushed home from work today to carry on playing, and I didn't want to leave for work in the first place. It's the first time I've woken up early by accident and got up to play a game instead of going back to sleep for a while instead. Which is a good sign, as I rarely ever do that.
So if you've seen it and you're wondering, get it :)
xx
Saturday, 5 December 2009
Tuesday, 1 December 2009
Sobering
Morning,
Went to bed early because of only having an hour or so's sleep last night and now I'm wide awake.
So I just completed my first ever year long revenue tracker. I started it on another sleepless night back in May or so when I was moaning about how little money I had saved up, and how everyone else (read: one ex-housemate) could afford to lose a £500 deposit on a flat when things didn't work out with his girlfriend quite the way they'd planned, or how he could afford to buy a scooter, and then a car. Jealous, moi?! Naturally :)
So I used a Works spreadsheet as I was too lazy to do my own. Lo and behold I have actually kept it updated - thank the lord for online statements that's all I can say.
So the depressing news. My total income for last year was £18,944. That includes salary, people repaying me money, basically anything that comes in through my bank - except the movements I make transferring money from one account to another. I discounted that as I make at least two transfers a month. My total expenditure for last year was £18,152. The £793 I saved is currently in an ISA where it is being added too.
According to this little genius calculator in order to save £12,000 in the next year and 9 months before the theoretical university start, I would have to save £467.52 a month.
I logged on to check my ISA transfer process to see that I've received a message stating: We confirm that we have received a letter from Halifax stating they are unable to proceed with the transfer as the address details in their records differs from the transfer document. Another thing to add to my 'to do list'.
Better get my skates on. Oh, and Christmas is cancelled.
xx
Went to bed early because of only having an hour or so's sleep last night and now I'm wide awake.
So I just completed my first ever year long revenue tracker. I started it on another sleepless night back in May or so when I was moaning about how little money I had saved up, and how everyone else (read: one ex-housemate) could afford to lose a £500 deposit on a flat when things didn't work out with his girlfriend quite the way they'd planned, or how he could afford to buy a scooter, and then a car. Jealous, moi?! Naturally :)
So I used a Works spreadsheet as I was too lazy to do my own. Lo and behold I have actually kept it updated - thank the lord for online statements that's all I can say.
So the depressing news. My total income for last year was £18,944. That includes salary, people repaying me money, basically anything that comes in through my bank - except the movements I make transferring money from one account to another. I discounted that as I make at least two transfers a month. My total expenditure for last year was £18,152. The £793 I saved is currently in an ISA where it is being added too.
According to this little genius calculator in order to save £12,000 in the next year and 9 months before the theoretical university start, I would have to save £467.52 a month.
I logged on to check my ISA transfer process to see that I've received a message stating: We confirm that we have received a letter from Halifax stating they are unable to proceed with the transfer as the address details in their records differs from the transfer document. Another thing to add to my 'to do list'.
Better get my skates on. Oh, and Christmas is cancelled.
xx
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