So I have go quite a bit to say actually. I have just got back from a 10 day stint up in Yorkshire visiting my family pre-Christmas, as this year it's Andy's family's turn for Xmas proper.
Andy and I went up together on Friday 8th, the drive was alright. Saturday was particularly exciting as we met up with a dear old friend of mine who moved to the States six years ago who I haven't seen since but stayed in touch with via email. It was amazing to catch up and meet her baby girl!
Then on Sunday we had our annual Christmas walk at Howstein Gorge. We've been going there for like forty years or something, it's a multi-generational family get-together started by my grandparents at which we all gather to walk up a very steep hill and down again for a Christmas meal. When it first started they used to do a twenty mile trek across the moors, when I started going we did a couple of miles up the hill across fields and over stiles and all that, now it has degenerated into a half mile walk up the road! But the spirit remains and it's something I've always looked forward to all my life.
Except that over the last few years it has become something I do out of obligation I suppose, I don't really enjoy it as I am much more aware now of the stupid family politics and there is one particular family member who I have disliked for a good few years who I am happy to avoid. It irks that Andy gets on better with this side of my family than I do too.
Andy drove home on Monday and I stayed to catch up with friends, do some shopping and spend some time with my parents, who I don't see often these days. It was all good, especially spending the day shopping in Leeds with my girl Sarah! I got an all too short visit with my other best mate, Simon, hopefully we'll get a longer visit soon.
Then on Thursday I checked stuff online (email and the like) and found I had got my OU result for this year.... I'm pretty pleased, make that ecstatic! I was just waiting for the result of my 5000 word assignment, worth 50% of the total mark, with 82% for my coursework in the bag. Well I got 77% on the 5000 word-er! So I passed with flying colours! Yay me :D
Then the last weekend was dedicated to a trip up to Scotland to visit my eight year old niece, Maisie. I hadn't seen her since May and before that it had been a year and a half. She's such an amazing little girl, she blows my mind with how generous, intelligent and caring she is. And I discovered - much to Andy's joy - that I'm a pretty good cricket player when playing my mum, brother and Maisie! Seriously, I got a bigger reaction to this news than my OU result!
Monday I came home on the train. By a freak of good timing I was travelling first class for dirt cheap, which was nice. Free orange juice and biscuits, more room etc. But no luggage space so my extra room was taken up by my bags of Xmas presents!
It's good to be home and chilling out for a bit before heading over to Essex on Sunday for Xmas with the in-laws :-/
All my OU course materials for next year have arrived, some of which arrived before I went away and I got a start on that course already. Reading through some of the notes for the assessment of my European Politics course has got me pretty nervous. It certainly looks demanding with a 5000 word assignment in August followed by a project in September. That's alongside the 4000 word assignment and exam for the other course! I am going to be a busy bee.
I also have a full time job lined up from Jan 2nd so I am refusing to start OU work until after Xmas now, getting a serious pit stop in before I have to crack on. Besides, I need my set books before I can go any further and I'm expecting to unwrap them on Xmas day ;-p
The 5000 word essay for European Politics requires lots of independent study, outside the course materials that they send you, so I plan to be hitting the library after work every day for most of June-August.
I made a pact with Sarah about next year. We shook on it, so I have to go through with it now... 2007 will be the year I change my life. I don't make New Year's Resolutions, I never stick to them. This is different, this is an inner revolution.
First and foremost I am going to keep up the hard work with the OU. Two firsts in a row, on a roll.
Second, and very importantly, I am going to keep my job. Seriously, I have walked out of so many awful jobs before, I know this one is going to be awful in advance, but it is decent money, decent hours and easy. So I am going to stick at it while I concentrate on getting good marks so that we don't have to worry about money, I do not need that distraction.
Thirdly, I am going to sort our house out! We have so much crap around this place, I am going to flog and bin our junk, sort out a decent filing system for paperwork (bills etc.), get some more storage so we can finish unpacking - oh yes, for those who haven't seen our office, we still have crates and boxes that haven't been touched after living here for well over four years! We have actually acquired more stuff to unpack as we have gradually brought old crap from our parents' houses over the years despite having nowhere to put any of it. I am going to finish decorating the house, make sure we get the kitchen we ordered and sort the living room out with a new suite and hopefully a shiny LCD HD-readyTV if all goes well financially - which it will, see number 2.
Fourthly, I am going to shift the weight I have been lugging around for years. I did actually manage to lose it once, last year as some of you will remember, I looked fantastic for a couple of months in the summer of 2005 after losing a stone and a half between January and June. Then in September I started working at RSA (eeeeeeeeeevil) and put two thirds of it back on in the space of two months. Argh! Well, it's going again, and a little more as I didn't quite meet my target last time. My new job has a subsidised gym, so no excuses!
Finally, Andy and I are going to start dancing lessons. Somehow I will fit this in! We've both been quite inspired by Strictly Come Dancing (hey, at least I don't watch X Factor!) and I can see it being great for us to do something like this together. We get to learn a new skill, spend time together and get exercise all in one go :-)
Now then, I know it seems like I'm taking a lot on. But the thing about me is that I do tend to do better under pressure and as a teenager I was exceptionally busy, I had something on every weeknight and Saturdays, Sundays too during panto season! If I set myself these goals and make a commitment to myself (not to mention the all important hand shake) I will achieve everything I set out to do. As long as I timetable things properly it will all be doable.
So, if you don't see much of me next year, you know in advance why!
Andy and I went up together on Friday 8th, the drive was alright. Saturday was particularly exciting as we met up with a dear old friend of mine who moved to the States six years ago who I haven't seen since but stayed in touch with via email. It was amazing to catch up and meet her baby girl!
Then on Sunday we had our annual Christmas walk at Howstein Gorge. We've been going there for like forty years or something, it's a multi-generational family get-together started by my grandparents at which we all gather to walk up a very steep hill and down again for a Christmas meal. When it first started they used to do a twenty mile trek across the moors, when I started going we did a couple of miles up the hill across fields and over stiles and all that, now it has degenerated into a half mile walk up the road! But the spirit remains and it's something I've always looked forward to all my life.
Except that over the last few years it has become something I do out of obligation I suppose, I don't really enjoy it as I am much more aware now of the stupid family politics and there is one particular family member who I have disliked for a good few years who I am happy to avoid. It irks that Andy gets on better with this side of my family than I do too.
Andy drove home on Monday and I stayed to catch up with friends, do some shopping and spend some time with my parents, who I don't see often these days. It was all good, especially spending the day shopping in Leeds with my girl Sarah! I got an all too short visit with my other best mate, Simon, hopefully we'll get a longer visit soon.
Then on Thursday I checked stuff online (email and the like) and found I had got my OU result for this year.... I'm pretty pleased, make that ecstatic! I was just waiting for the result of my 5000 word assignment, worth 50% of the total mark, with 82% for my coursework in the bag. Well I got 77% on the 5000 word-er! So I passed with flying colours! Yay me :D
Then the last weekend was dedicated to a trip up to Scotland to visit my eight year old niece, Maisie. I hadn't seen her since May and before that it had been a year and a half. She's such an amazing little girl, she blows my mind with how generous, intelligent and caring she is. And I discovered - much to Andy's joy - that I'm a pretty good cricket player when playing my mum, brother and Maisie! Seriously, I got a bigger reaction to this news than my OU result!
Monday I came home on the train. By a freak of good timing I was travelling first class for dirt cheap, which was nice. Free orange juice and biscuits, more room etc. But no luggage space so my extra room was taken up by my bags of Xmas presents!
It's good to be home and chilling out for a bit before heading over to Essex on Sunday for Xmas with the in-laws :-/
All my OU course materials for next year have arrived, some of which arrived before I went away and I got a start on that course already. Reading through some of the notes for the assessment of my European Politics course has got me pretty nervous. It certainly looks demanding with a 5000 word assignment in August followed by a project in September. That's alongside the 4000 word assignment and exam for the other course! I am going to be a busy bee.
I also have a full time job lined up from Jan 2nd so I am refusing to start OU work until after Xmas now, getting a serious pit stop in before I have to crack on. Besides, I need my set books before I can go any further and I'm expecting to unwrap them on Xmas day ;-p
The 5000 word essay for European Politics requires lots of independent study, outside the course materials that they send you, so I plan to be hitting the library after work every day for most of June-August.
I made a pact with Sarah about next year. We shook on it, so I have to go through with it now... 2007 will be the year I change my life. I don't make New Year's Resolutions, I never stick to them. This is different, this is an inner revolution.
First and foremost I am going to keep up the hard work with the OU. Two firsts in a row, on a roll.
Second, and very importantly, I am going to keep my job. Seriously, I have walked out of so many awful jobs before, I know this one is going to be awful in advance, but it is decent money, decent hours and easy. So I am going to stick at it while I concentrate on getting good marks so that we don't have to worry about money, I do not need that distraction.
Thirdly, I am going to sort our house out! We have so much crap around this place, I am going to flog and bin our junk, sort out a decent filing system for paperwork (bills etc.), get some more storage so we can finish unpacking - oh yes, for those who haven't seen our office, we still have crates and boxes that haven't been touched after living here for well over four years! We have actually acquired more stuff to unpack as we have gradually brought old crap from our parents' houses over the years despite having nowhere to put any of it. I am going to finish decorating the house, make sure we get the kitchen we ordered and sort the living room out with a new suite and hopefully a shiny LCD HD-readyTV if all goes well financially - which it will, see number 2.
Fourthly, I am going to shift the weight I have been lugging around for years. I did actually manage to lose it once, last year as some of you will remember, I looked fantastic for a couple of months in the summer of 2005 after losing a stone and a half between January and June. Then in September I started working at RSA (eeeeeeeeeevil) and put two thirds of it back on in the space of two months. Argh! Well, it's going again, and a little more as I didn't quite meet my target last time. My new job has a subsidised gym, so no excuses!
Finally, Andy and I are going to start dancing lessons. Somehow I will fit this in! We've both been quite inspired by Strictly Come Dancing (hey, at least I don't watch X Factor!) and I can see it being great for us to do something like this together. We get to learn a new skill, spend time together and get exercise all in one go :-)
Now then, I know it seems like I'm taking a lot on. But the thing about me is that I do tend to do better under pressure and as a teenager I was exceptionally busy, I had something on every weeknight and Saturdays, Sundays too during panto season! If I set myself these goals and make a commitment to myself (not to mention the all important hand shake) I will achieve everything I set out to do. As long as I timetable things properly it will all be doable.
So, if you don't see much of me next year, you know in advance why!
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment