I've always been fascinated by this concept.

Well, I say "always"...  But certainly a long time.

I stumbled across the actual name of it a while ago, and then promptly lost/forgot the link.  Spent a long, long time Googling various phrases, before finally getting back to it.

I regularly find myself watching strangers, and wondering about their lives.  What do they love?  Fear?  Hate?  Do?

We're all just bit-players in someone else's epic.

What A Week!

I am soooo glad to be home this weekend, doing nothing much of anything. 

Leading up to this weekend, it's just been so busy.  Here's what I did  -

1:  It all started with the vomiting post-Warwick Castle.  I took the day off afterwards, but I was mostly back up to speed by the Friday.  Some post-heave muscle pain, but otherwise I was fine.  Which correlates with the theory that it was a bacterial poisoning rather than a stomach bug.  As I explained the suspect sandwich to my dad (food tech graduate), he straightaway went "The mayo did it."  I'm inclined to agree.

2:  Saturday morning I drove over to Shropshire and were later joined by sister and her other half.  We all piled in the parentals car and drove up the Long Mynd.  It was very, very pretty and I wandered how come I'd never been taken up there before.  I didn't even know it was there.







3:  Sunday was the Christening of Nancy.  It was sweet in the way only terribly informal Protestantism can be. 

Little people... oh, they get big so quickly.





(That's Rowland in the background - right hand side - My uncle.  Earlier in the year he was airlifted off the family farm after practically severing some fingers in a machine accident.  He was flown to Birmingham and they've healed AMAZINGLY.  With the exception of one still-mangled fingernail, he's only got practically invisible scars on his fingertips.  The doctors did a phenomenal job.  NHS FTW.  I hadn't seen him since the accident, so gave him my best teachery telling off.)

4:  Monday night was Josh Groban night!  I've not seen him in a while, and he was as ridiculously cute as always.  I had a really good seat, front row of the dress circle, courtesy of a nice lady on the UK Grobanites FB page.  I no longer have a JG fanclub membership (haven't done since about 2008) so didn't have access to the fanclub pre-sales, which is the sole reason I'd ever want a membership these days.
Anyway, I enjoyed it very much.  Got a little teary at "To Where You Are", rocked out to "Machine" and joined the group-sing of "You Raise Me Up".  The seat next to mine was empty, so I enjoyed having that extra room to sprawl out. :)







Stayed overnight in Birmingham in the end.  Got a cheapo room at the Comfort Inn right next to the station, which was very handy for the 5am walk for my train...  Not the quietest though, because they're rebuilding the station and seemed to be at it all night...  Alarms, beeping and banging all night long.

5:  Tuesday... after getting up at 4:55am... I was at work until 9pm.  That wasn't fun.  Although I did that assembly to the whole school I was moaning about before.  And it went very well.  Lots of praise on it afterwards, and the whole event I was launching... so far... has been a success.  I am pleased.  I finish it off on Tuesday coming.

6:  After school Tuesday, and the reason I was there until 9pm, was a meeting for the new parents of the reception children.  Where I'll be teaching next year.  I'm looking forward to it, as I love reception, but I didn't love sitting through a good 30 minutes of listening to a speech about hot school dinners.  Grrr.

7:  Not a huge deal more coming up in the world of me.  I'm taking Adele out next Sunday for belated birthday (hers) fun.  She doesn't know where we're going yet though.  It should be a giggle.  ;)

Oh.  I just wanted to post this.  I remember watching this on telly when it first aired.  I think I laughed 'til I cried.

Brain Dump

Brain dump...  Proceed.

1:  Those of you who are friends with me on FB will know of the utterly embarrassing situation I had in front of 40 children and 8 grown ups on Wednesday.  If you don't know, consider yourself blessed.

2:  I currently don't want to go to Shropshire tomorrow.  There is a reason I don't go over there for visits in the middle of school terms...  Because I'm too busy!  And next week is shaping up to be a doozy in terms of busy-ness.  Monday is Josh night in Birmingham, which means either an overnight stay in Birmingham, and a very-early Tuesday morning.  Or it means a hellishly late Monday night.  Both are equally dismal when I remember that I've got to do a whole-school assembly on Tuesday morning.
I really can not decide which scenario is the worse.  I'm currently leaning towards staying over in Birmingham and getting the first train out in the morning...  But I might change my mind again.  Because staying over costs money...  I DON'T KNOW!

3:  This assembly I mentioned...  Normally they don't really phase me.  This one?  I don't wanna do it.  It's probably largely due to the fact that I don't have the brain time this weekend to devote to being ready for it, because of family commitments.

4:  I left my memory stick at school.  I'm 90% sure I just left it in the computer.  But that evil JerkBrain is going "You lost it!  What if it's not there?!  You great big fuck-up you!"  So now, of course, I'm going to be thinking about it all weekend, then I'll dash down to my classroom, Monday morning, heart in mouth, to look for the sodding thing.  I hate when I leave stuff behind.

5:  Following on from this assembly, I have to then "manage" an event that follows on from it, for the whole bloody week.  I don't want to!

6:  Oh, and on Tuesday, when I just want to go home and sleep, I have to attend a meeting at school, which doesn't even START until 7pm.  Jesus...


I really should be excited to see Josh Groban on Monday.  But currently don't give an actual f**k.  Honestly.  I could stay at home quite happily.  If not for the fact that I've already paid £50 for the ticket.

Can I just skip this coming week entirely?

I'm still posting!

BOOM.  Hi.

I'm really tired today, for no real reason as far as I'm concerned.  Plus I have hayfever eyes, which struck about 5pm today.  They make me grumpy beyond all reason, and wanting to go to bed.  But there's a new series starting at 9 on channel 4 tonight... "The Returned" or something, that is supposedly really good, which I want to try, because I feel like there's a lack of anything decent to get stuck into at the moment.  And I'm pissed that I have to wait forever and a day to watch season 3 of Game of Thrones.  I'm currently reading book 2, and I've been spoiled about loads of the characters dying.  Which bums me the hell out.  I've literally NEVER been spoiled for anything before.

Anyway, it feels like it's been a busy week.  But I wonder if that is psychological, because my teaching assistant has spent the whole week looking frazzled and declaring "I'm so busy!" all the time.  I've pretty much failed to see at what she's been busy with.  All I know is that she's only spent part of one lesson, all week, supporting in class.  I manage totally fine without her, but that's not the point.  She's a "learning support assistant", so doesn't that mean... "supporting learning".  Not sitting in the "middle room" between the two Year One classrooms, bitching about how busy she is?

That being said, for about the first week since taking the class over in March, I really enjoyed them.  Don't get me wrong, I've enjoyed them before this week, but it was this week where I totally felt like I had them firmly under the thumb and didn't need to be right on top of them constantly.  That being said, it doesn't stop one of the boys being an obnoxious little toe-rag.  ;)  J/K.  Only I'm not.

So, continuing from last weeks post... shit.  No, a week ago this past Wednesday's post:

1:  I have indeed starting tutoring a local 9 year old.  She's a sweet kid, I got good email feedback from her mum the day after, and it's easy money.  My current plan is to save it for a rainy day.  Some of it pays for my weekly pub lunch on a Friday, but the rest is getting saved.  I feel pretty good about that.  I'm wondering if, next academic year, I should rent myself out a little more actively for tutoring.  A friend of my who lives down south does it and makes good "pocket money".  She gets most of her clients from either word of mouth, or a website that I've already checked out.  I dunno... it's something to consider.

2:  I met up with my friend Louise, her husband Mike and their daughter Emily, last Friday.  It was a fleeting visit, but we've semi-arranged to get together in the summer holidays.  Emily starts school in September, which I can't believe!  She was 2 when I first met her.  How time flies.

3:  Met up with Adele for tea after work on Monday.  That was nice, and she's okay - all things considered.

Upcoming Attractions:

I take my class to Warwick Castle on Wednesday.  I hope the weather is decent, because it's mostly all an outside kind of day. 

Next weekend I'm heading over to Shropshire to the parentals house.  It's my cousin's daughters christening, and as I went to the previous family christening in the same location, I'm sort of obliged to go to this one as well.  Hazel and Brian are attending this one though, so it'll be nice to have the full compliment of family present.
Then on the Monday after... boom boom boom!  It's my semi-annual trip to Birmingham to see Josh Groban!  Last saw him... gosh.  October 2011?  It doesn't seem that long ago. 
No hanging around for autographs this time though.  I have to bomb it back for the last train to Northampton I suspect.  Partly to save money, and partly because if I stayed overnight, I'd have a somewhat frantic gallop to work the next morning.  It worked last time when I worked 8 minutes drive from my house, but now I leave for work a good 45 minutes earlier than I ever did there.

Anyway, I might update again before all that.  Might not.

Toodles for now, my little cherubs.  xx

Hey...?

Still here. :)

So... not sure that the weekly updating thing is going to stick, but I thought I'd just sit it out and wait for inspiration to hit.

So... BOOM.

But actually, there isn't a whole lot to report.  So I may just bullet point some things.

1:  Browsing on Mumsnet over the weekend (don't judge me, the forum is quite good for a chuckle sometimes), on the Education section, where a request for a maths tutor in my town catches my eye.  Anyway, to cut a long story short, it's becoming increasingly likely that I might be tutoring a local 9 year old girl at some point in the not-so-distant future.  I'm charging £15 for an hour session for a little *coughcough* cash in hand pocket money.

2:  It's half term week here.  Glorious weather for the first 2-3 days, then rain and wind ever since.  Typically.

3:  I just had a really tasty dinner.  I make some fantastic potato wedges with pepper, chilli and garlic and phew, they taste good!  With a chicken kiev and some mixed steamed veg, I got the skills.  It was only when I moved out of the parents home, when I realised that things like potatoes could have a flavour beyond blah.  BURN.

4:  Got my hair cut today, which it badly needed.  My hair doesn't grow terribly evenly it would seem, because I always end up with it being really thick and bush-like on top, and fine and dainty everywhere else.  I'd meant to go last month, but the ol' financials were not in the best of health.  And it's stuff like hair cuts that can be taken off the to-do list without too much bother.  Anyway, I'm back to super-short and picked up a home dye kit to get back to "the colour I am in my imagination" later on tonight.

5:  Tomorrow or Friday I'm meant to be meeting up with my friend Louise (an old work colleague who it would be beneficial to keep in touch with for various long-winded reasons - namely, I'll need someone who will write me a reference or 6 at some point in the future, I'm sure) for lunch or something.  Only problem is, that passed the initial "hey! we should meet up! - "Sure!  I'm free Thursday or Friday!" - "Great!  Thursday?"  I haven't heard back from her.  I should text her.

(I just read point 5 back...  That makes me sound like a bitch who only keeps on contact with people who can do her favours...  I actually like Louise a lot.  We're good mates.  I'm not a bitch.)



So... that's pretty much it in my world for now.

Because it's a Wednesday night, I'm waiting for Mum to phone.  Ever since my first year at university days, Wednesday evenings, between 6 and 7pm have always been our time to chat.  Regular as anything.  Bless.

Epic Walk Season Begins Again

It seems like loads of my Grobie contemporaries from the LJ world are setting up new blogs at the moment.
First Kirstie set one up, then me, and then Kristen set up a new one as well *waves in case she happens to drive by*.  I've been wanting to for a while -  and you can see my first post here for more on that - because I've wanted to keep blogging, despite the increasing concern that LJ is turning into a rapidly sinking ship.  I still read LJ every day, comment and participate in the odd community, but the friendship group I had around me in my 2005-2008 heyday are rapidly departing for pastures new.  So it's a bit like... *crickets*   *silence*

I tried repeatedly to get back into the habit of blogging on LJ, but it just wasn't happening for me there.  Which puzzled me, because I like blogging, and I like LJ.  Unfortunately I just wasn't feeling it over there any more.

Shall I ever go back to regular posts there...?  I doubt it if I'm being honest, but I still want to read it and keep up with people.  It's just not a platform that particularly suits me any more.  If I was really sensible, I should try and export my journal from there...  It's almost 10 years of my life on and off, and I'd be devastated to lose it.  Perhaps I should make it my summer project when the 6 week break rolls around in July.

Sooo...  What's gone down this week?

Not a whole lot really.  Just the usual working stooge things.  Get up, drive to work, do work, drive home again, sit on the sofa until bedtime.

But this weekend is a 3-dayer!  Woot!

Today I restarted my (ir)regular summer tradition of the "Epic Walk".  About 4 years ago now I walked 20 miles from my home in Newbury, to Reading.  In my converses (which aren't know for their long-distance-walk-design) and with no particular intentions.  I completed the walk with a suspected stress fracture, and the walking bug.

Now, I'm actually the unfittest person in the world, but for some reason, have the capacity to just walk and walk and walk almost indefinitely.

A year later I completed the walk again, but in the other direction, and thus "walking home".  After 20 miles I had some massive blisters, but huge self-accomplishment.

This summer I would like do a couple of Epic Walks.  At the moment I'm thinking my house to Daventry (about 17 miles).  It's quite pretty/scenic and would be suitably epic. 
On my bucket list is a desire to walk from my house to my parents home in Shropshire (100 miles or thereabouts).  Now THAT would be Epic.

Anyway, back to restarting the summer tradition.  Because I'm a bit poor at the moment, free/cheap entertainment is the way forward, so I set out at 9:30 this morning with an intention to walk to a forest a few miles down the road.  However, it seemed the road I wanted had no footpath next to it, and cars doing 60mph 2 feet away from me - no thanks.
So, changed plans and just decided to follow a country lane that looked interesting.  Passed through a pretty village, through an industrial park, past a river and through another village before getting home.  Almost a circle.  The exact mileage, I'm uncertain of, but looking at the route I took on Google Maps, I reckon it was probably about 9 miles.  Definately not a record Epic Walk, but a good warm-up starter and apart from some oddly tingly feet, my legs feel fine.

Anyway, nothing much else planned for the rest of the long weekend.  I've just got back from the supermarket, and am currently snacking on some poshly packaged sugardrop tomatoes.  I also have Ben & Jerrys in the freezer...  Shhhh!

Deena's Hen Weekend

My initial intentions for this blog have fallen miserably by the wayside already.  You see, I'd planned to update every weekend but... I've missed at least one weekend, if not two.

My excuse for last weekend however was that I was just busy.  I spent Friday, Saturday, Sunday at Deena's* hen weekend.  And boy, did I feel like a fish out of water...

You see, Deena isn't even a friend.  She's a work friend of my actual BBF Adele, and I've hung out with Deena exactly 4 times prior to last weekend. 

Time 1:  A random night out with Adele, some uni friends of hers, and Deena.  We probably said 3 sentences to each other.
Time 2:  Adele's hen weekend, perhaps another 3 sentences exchanged.
Time 3:  I was randomly invited to Deena's 30th birthday party.  Bare in mind, that up until this point, I'd only met her twice, in a crowd.  Soooo... not exactly besties.  I did wonder why I was invited, but just saw it as an opportunity to hang out with my BFF and have some free food.
Time 4:  Deena's hen weekend.  I dunno why I was invited.  Is Deena seriously short of mates or just the friendliest person in history?  Again, I went along in my spirit of "saying yes more" and taking the opportunity to gather more experiences.

So... 4 times and I'm already part of the so-called inner circle of mates.  So I pretty much attended every event for the weekend, despite not actually being invited to the wedding (which believe me, I'd have been seriously weirded out if I had been).  At the end of each event, there was much "see you at the wedding!" with accompanying air-kisses, to which I smiled sweetly and silently thought, "nope."

Event 1 - Friday night:  "Pamper Night" at Deena's house.  Drinks and nibbles provided.  "Pampering" consisted of the buy-one-get-one-free style of facemasks-in-a-packet.  Chocolate coloured/scented no less.  Deena's mother was a hippy-dressed, foul mouthed chav.  Who did little more than tell stories that began with the phrase "I was 'avin' a fag when..." and punctuated with curse words.  A real charmer.

Event 2 - An afternoon at the recording studio.  Pretty good fun, because I love a sing-song.  Got myself on the song 'Man, I feel Like A Woman' after Deena's 17 year old cousin cried when she couldn't get her entry right.  I stepped in to fill the breach while she sat in the mixing room and sniffled in a corner.

Oh no.  Wait.  She wasn't 17.  I asked Adele later.  She's 28.  20 friggin' 8.  She was baby-faced, sure, but who the hell cries when they can't get a daft song on a hen weekend right?  Who the hell cares?  Sorry, but what a div.  I have no respect for that, especially when the rest of us are sent out the room so she can have a sympathy-sing with Deena "without an audience".  Don't think you've got a future as a recording artist Lisa* love.

Event 3:  Afternoon tea at Fawsley Hall.  Pleasant enough, but not as nice as the tea I had at Rushton Hall earlier in the year.
This was on the Sunday afternoon.  I'd turned down the opportunity for a meal out/drinks/partying on the Saturday, because I'd spent enough money and didn't actually give a shit. 

Don't get me wrong, Deena is sweet enough.  But we've really got nothing in common, apart from Adele.  We're not friends.  Mostly it just felt a bit strange.  And I didn't give a whatsit whether she was marrying or not.  Like I said, I barely know the girl.  It felt a bit like I was gate-crashing, but I was invited specially and greeted warmly at each event... *shrug*






*Deena and Lisa's names have been changed to protect their identities.