Highlights of the week.

Well, another Sunday evening is upon us and with nothing better to do than wait around for MOTD 2 to come on later, I thought I’d scribble down a few things that have happened since the last time I uploaded a post.

It’s been a week now since I moved back home and there have been a few ups and downs so far. I’ve been out job hunting in Bath this week, armed with freshly photocopied CV’s to hand out to the cities many fine retail establishments. Sadly it seems I may have left it a bit late to apply for Christmas temp work, lots of stores seem to be already staffed up. On the plus side there is a full time position at FCUK going on the menswear section which would be pretty cool. I’ve always liked the look of working in a clothes shop, and whilst I harbour no ambition to be the next Gok Wan, I reckon I could pass on some tips to guys who could do with a bit of style advice.....but that remains to be seen!

I’ve also been researching graduate training schemes in the retail sector, an industry I’m becoming more and more interested in developing a career in. If I want to learn the trade with Asda, a company I spent a lot of time working for whilst a student, then I’ll need to start working for them again, something I’ve been told won’t be possible to do until after Christmas.

There have been two big highlights of the week, one of which being the ABSOLUTELY AWESOME 100th Hospital Records Podcast which I’m listening to as I type. For those unaware of what that is exactly, Hospital Records are a record label routed in the drum and bass genre of music, and for the last two or three years have been producing podcasts hosted by label owner London Elektricity. They feature the labels new upcoming releases, interviews with artists and news on the day to day happenings in and around the label. I’ve been an avid subscriber since Podcast No.54 and No 100 Part 2 is in my opinion the best yet. It features some of the best tracks to come out on the label over the last ten years or so, and having the time to sit down and properly listen to it this week has been truly uplifting. I would seriously recommend that absolutely anybody who has even a slight interest in electronic music to subscribe and give it a go (take note Robin Blamires!)

The other highlight of the week came on Saturday morning when I managed to complete a 6 mile run with the running club I’ve joined. I surprised myself with how well I did, and only really began to seriously struggle on the last hill, where my legs started to feel like lead. During the final ascent I really thought I’d need to stop and spend a few minutes gasping for air, but perseverance paid off and I reached the finishing post in just over an hour.

Some of the things I’m hoping to achieve next week are mainly work related, the main one being to actually get a job!!! It’s been pretty frustrating not having a lot to do during the days this week. Don’t get me wrong, I really appreciate not being woken by my alarm at 4.30am, struggling out of bed and traipsing to Kilburn tube station to catch the train to work like I did in London, but there is only so much Jeremy Kyle and BBC News 24 that a guy can take in one week! So hopefully my CV blitz on Thursday of last week will bear some fruit and I’ll get invited to an interview soon, as always I’ll keep you posted.

Have a good week and we’ll speak soon.

Well, it’s been two days since I moved back to Frome. I’ve found myself with quite a bit of time on my hands the last couple of days and so have decided it’s time to start up a new hobby. I spent quite a bit of time (and money) on a gym membership whilst living in London, and with that now cancelled I’d like to get into doing some more exercise. So today I googled “Frome Running Club” and was happy to find that there is a running club based not too far from myself at the local rugby club.

I’ve wasted no time in getting in touch and it now looks like I’ll be setting out on an 8 mile cross country run this Saturday morning! Now truth be told, I really should be a much better runner than I actually am. I would have thought that being young, long legged and pretty skinny would be an ideal build to give Paula Radcliff a run for her money. But after attempting a fairly short running route used by lots of locals on Monday afternoon this week, it’s safe to say I’ve got a long way to go before attempting a 4 minute mile!

After looking at the clubs gallery on their website, it also looks like I’ll need to invest in some quality outdoor running wear. Judging by the skin tight leggings and sweat tops worn by the regulars, my baggy Nike t-shirt and shorts just won’t cut it. But then this is cross country running, where surely endurance is the name of the game?

Anyway, I’ve now committed myself to an 8 mile challenge this weekend so I think a serious work out is called for tomorrow to prepare myself. I guess one of the perks of being temporarily out of work is that you have time to focus on other goals that aren’t work related, so I’ll report from the finish line on Saturday!

Back Again.....

Its Sunday night, its 9pm, and with nothing better to do than listen to a live performance from JLS on Radio 1, I have decided that after a two month hiatus from this blog it was time to start contributing to it again.

Quite a lot has happened since my last entry.... Wayne Rooney has become a father, Nick Griffin has hopefully dug his political grave once and for all with a more than dodgy performance on Question Time, the world of F1 has a new British champion in the form of Jenson Button and two Irish twins called John and Edward have split the nations musical opinion down the middle.

There’s also been quite a lot happening with me. Two months ago I started a new job in sales, and on Tuesday of this week I handed in my notice. In the few short weeks I spent in the corporate world there were laughs, tears and lots and lots of cold calls, but ultimately I decided it wasn’t for me and so decided to call it a day. I can safely say it was probably the hardest job I’ve ever done and I have maximum respect for anyone who can carve out a career for themselves in such a tough industry, particularly in the current economic climate.

So with no job and finances dwindling I decided it was time to head back to my West Country roots and have just spent the last couple of hours unpacking my belongings from cardboard boxes into my bedroom where I spent most of my teenage years before heading off to Uni five years ago. For a long time I was very against the idea of moving back home to my home town of Frome in Somerset, which incidentally is where the aforementioned Jenson Button went to school, learnt to drive, and swiftly left to live in Monte Carlo once he had earned enough from his first season in F1.
Having seen the “bright lights” of London I was convinced I’d never move back home, it just seemed like a step backwards. But thinking logically I think I’m now in a position where I can save up some money for myself. I can also take this opportunity to hopefully get in touch with some old school and college friends which I haven’t seen in a long time. I’m also hoping to make some new friends through whatever job I end up getting, which in the immediate future is likely to be some Christmas temp work in the retail sector ( yes I know its only November, but you know you’ll only regret it if you leave it till the last weekend before the 25th!)


From a purely lazy point of view I’m also quite looking forward to having a few home cooked meals, getting some fresh country air inside my lungs as well as getting back in to watching the mighty Bath City FC on a regular basis.
So we’ll see how it all pans out, I’ll keep you posted on how it all goes and hopefully the big move will throw up some new stories for this blog which I’ve shamefully ignored over the last few weeks. Must dash, my dinners on the table........