Working hard for the money, so hard for the money

So, working for a living - how is it going for me?! Well, things were off to a promising start when I turned up ten minutes early on the 8th, all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, like the the eager beaver I am. No-one answered the door, so a bit bemused I waited... At two minutes to, everyone else showed up and I was let in! Great stuff.

I didn't recognise anyone, but I knew the branch manager I'd met was due to move to another branch, so I introduced myself to the new manager and told her I was the new employee. She seemed a bit unsure of things, but hey! She's new, let's make allowances. Only... no-one knew who I was or why I was there. I began to feel a bit like some chancer who'd walked off the street claiming to have a new job! My new regional manager was on holiday and couldn't be contacted, the regional sales manager had gone on maternity leave, the old branch manager had left, and two other employees I'd met were in a car accident the Friday before and weren't at work, so there was no-one to corroborate the fact that I had been given the job. After half an hour of faff, I was sent home. Ash was most surprised to see me back in time for morning tea!!

After a series of phone calls that took almost two weeks to resolve, it turned out that the forms I'd been given to sign were the wrong ones, but instead of letting me know and asking me to come back into the branch, they decided to test my powers of telepathy. Turns out they're not so good. So, to cut a looooooong story short, after much faffing forms were sent and filled out and a contract duly appeared for me to sign. The bad news is, I still don't have a start date... The good news is, because it was an employer stuff-up they are paying me as of the 8th!! I am to officially regard myself as on garden leave... First time I've ever heard of that happening at the start of a contract!

In the meantime, I've been keeping myself (and Ash!) busy - we did a spot of hedge trimming on the weekend...

Before... The shed is about 7' tall...











During...

After... Well after the cutting, there was a fair bit of tidying up to do!

Introducing the fandamily

Although I've posted pictures of where I live, I haven't yet posted any about who I live with. This is in part due to Ash's reluctance to have photos taken - his excuse is that, as a photographer's son, he had his fair share and more taken in his childhood!! This means that if I try and take his photo, more often than not I get a photo similar to the one on the right - Ash ducking out of shot, grinning like a monkey! Grr.

However, Ash is not the only member of the household, and others have proved a bit more forthcoming about having their pictures taken. There is of course Ciara, Ash's daughter. After months of careful study it would appear that her natural habitat is in the playground - she is definitely her Daddy's daughter when it comes to a three-year-old's version of extreme sports! As is demonstrated by calls of 'Higher!' 'Faster!' and of course, the regularly-heard 'I want to go on the big swing!'

The menagerie also includes Casey, Ash's welsh sheep dog, who was a rescue puppy almost seven years ago now. She is lovely but also quite mental. She obviously misheard her job description all those years ago, and is completely uninterested in sheep, and instead saves her efforts for squirrels. She hasn't had much luck in herding them so far, but appears to be certain in her own mind that if she can just catch up with one of them, that will all change... In the meantime, she diligently practises her skills with a basketball.

Smallest but certainly the most important family member (at least in her own eyes) is the cat, Zoe. Originally belonging to Ash's grandmother but rehomed because she is such a ferocious hunter, Zoe is at least 15 years old and still leaving us presents of birds, mice, and rabbits on a regular basis - in fact rather too regular! Her favourite things include being carried round like the princess she is, and regular doses of catnip - in a pinch she will make do with her catnip bird.

Casey and Zoe normally tolerate each other, but with the onset of autumn and colder nights, they have delared a truce of sorts and are becoming far more willing to share space as long as that space is by some sort of heat source, preferably the coal fire but with Ash and I coming a very close second. This has led to some very cute moments on the nights where it's been chilly, but not quite chilly enough to light the fire... Thanks to Ash for agreeing to pose for this one, though he did grumble that he wasn't 'agreeing to pose' so much as 'unable to move'!!

Och aye... Paddletastic!

We went, we saw, we conquered... at least some of the time!! Ash put together a bit of footage, hope you enjoy watching!

Reasons I love living in Wales: #2

Heading to the local 'swimming pool'...

Mid swim - I am the dot at the back! Wetsuits are compulsory but the view from the changing room is unsurpassed...

It lives! It breathes! It updates!

You’d think, wouldn’t you, that being unemployed would enable me to write nice big long frequent updates about how life is going?? Turns out, not so much! I am more inspired to write when I’m wasting my employer’s time instead of my own!! Which is handy, seeing as I’m now back in the land of the gainfully employed – starting October 8th, I’ll be working for a local branch of a global bank. Should be interesting, and I’m slightly surprised to have found anything resembling a ‘career’ job in such a small town.

I’m making the most of the rest of my ‘summer’ off by spending a week with Ash up in Scotland, kayaking in the Fort William area… It’s the ‘Wild Wet Paddlefest’, and we are going to catch up with friends (Ash), boof some gnarl (Ash), and get knee-wobblingly freaked out by the forecasted ‘biblical’ conditions (me). It’s raining pretty much non-stop up there at the moment, and with rivers already high there’s a few forecasted periods of torrential rain just to really spice things up. Ah well, it’s the best thing about being a kayaker in Britain – when it’s raining, we’re pretty much the only happy ones.

Though other aspects of the forecast are equally scary – maximum temperature of three degrees on Sunday, but will feel like zero degrees according to Metcheck!! I plan to dress like the Michelin Man. I’ve started purchasing winter clothes as I’m already getting cold, while Ash and other locals are still wearing shorts. Bastards. My latest purchase is a jacket designed for extreme outdoors use – I’ve warned Ash I’ll have no issues about wearing it to bed as a slightly odd-looking but undeniably effective pyjama top should I deem it necessary!

After that, I’m heading back down to London for the first week of October, to catch up with all the girls, tidy up my crap from the house in London so Kerro can find a flatmate, and generally enjoy a bit of time in the big smoke! Just had the good news that Kristie is coming over for a few days in January, so no doubt I’ll pop down for a weekend then, but this’ll be the last long visit for a while I’d imagine!

And for the $64m question, what have I been doing all ‘summer’ to render me so unable to put fingers to keyboard long enough to type out an email? The answer, sadly but predictably, is nothing much. I was a bit poorly for a while there and not up to sitting in front of a computer, but for the last month it’s just been sheer laziness. I have been out and about, but the effort of *doing* is so overwhelming that the *documenting* is somewhat of a bridge too far ;-)

I’m really enjoying the ease of accessing the local countryside and have been inspired to run and walk far more often – partly, I have to admit, because Ash’s dog Casey needs exercising! But there are some gorgeous little tree lined lanes and trails within 100m of our front door, so it’s really easy to pootle out. I did the run leg of the Bala triathlon recently in 9 minute miles despite hilly terrain so while I’m still no Lorraine Moller I am at least getting to the stage where running is more of a pleasure than a chore.

I have also started mountain biking, with my second ever ride involving white knuckles (mine), wussy portages (mine), and lots of eye-rolling (Ash's). He is a pretty good rider but has so far been very patient about my complete lack of ability – I like to think that it accessorises nicely with my complete lack of confidence! Seriously though, it’s really good fun and even I can see the contrast between Mach 1, my first ride (too nervous to jump curbs, got scared when going fast downhill on loose gravel) and cli-machx, my second (riding single track fairly happily, capable of differentiating front and rear brake without having to test to tell which was which).

I have been taking other images, and plan to upload them after I come back from Scotland - given my current crap record of updating regularly, expect them sometime in November!

Reasons I love living in Wales: #1

The view from our lounge window...

Ciara's cake!

Well it wasn't quite as awe-inspiring to look at as the ones Mum used to make, but then Ciara's not quite as old so I've got a few years to practice! Funnily enough, I really wanted to use Mum's old recipe too, 'Cock-eyed Cake', which used to be my favourite chocolate cake ever growing up - unfortunately, I'd lost my recipe in the many London shifts. However, ever the optimist, I searched for it on google, and the very first page I found was a request from a Kiwi girl who'd lost her mother's recipe!