Back to work

Work is going fantastically well. I'm really enjoying each day, and although I end the day tired, I do arrive each morning looking forward to the day. DEfinitely a good thing, especially when you think about last year!

I'm also enjoying teaching myself new things. I bought a loom over the holidays, and am now busily teaching myself how to weave. HEre's my first scarf using the sample yarn that comes with the loom!

A break

I think I need one.
I've blogged now for 3 and a bit years without a break, life is just so busy right now it's become one of those things that I've just let slip.
Hopefully as the school year goes on I'll be able to work a little less hard and start writing again. I promise to tweet now and again, and of course I will still be over on Ravelry.

Today I am sprawled on a sofa moaning about my aching limbs. This is why I have aching limbs!

I spent yesterday helping to tile the floor at my aunties cottage. The tiles in question are 2 foot square, and the floor is no where near level. It was not an easy task!
Afterwards we sat out in what is going to be the front garden and enjoyed what will probably be the last barbeque of the year.


In knitting news, I'm actually finishing things, the latest victim of my get things done list is this lacy Baktus knitted using Yarn Yard Bonny.


I'm relaxing over the weekend, and then back to work on Thursday..... I am looking forward t it, honest!

This could be one of those posts....

You know, the ones where I have nothing really say, ramble on a bit, make lots of spelling mistakes, and talk about lots of things where I forget you guys don't know the back story behind it!

Anyway without further ado, I am feeling yucky, not really unwell, just a bit headachey, nauseous, and run down. I've spent most of today and yesterday listening to the cricket (england are playing South Africa), knitting, and sorting out some things for when I start teaching in September. I've also spent far too much time on the internet!

I leave on Sunday to go and do some climbing instruction at a Guide Camp in Northamptonshire, I get back Friday so will be a whole week away from my laptop. I'm hoping to get quite a bit of knitting done while I'm away, everything knitting right now I've been knitting for ages and I just fancy a change. It will also be nice to have nothing to do except a bit or=f work and then my time is my own but in a place where I don't have to worry about cooking or anything like that, like a paid holiday really!

I've still not managed to get out climbing personally this summer which has been a bit annoying, we (my housemates and I) had grand plans for Thursday and then it chucked it down all day. Still I'm sure that the week in Pembrokeshire with friends will make up for it!

Right I think that will do for now, before I write something odd, I'm off to get tea out of the oven and settle down looking forward to the return of The Tudors and hoping that this series features more of the delicious bum of Jonathan Rhys Meyers!

Sorry

It feels a bit like I've lost my blogging mojo at the moment. All I seem to be able to post about is knitting, I really don't want to turn this in to a knitting blog, I want this to be a full representation of my life, warts and all.

It's been hard to write about very much recently, after I came back from holiday I have worked like a maniac, I have had tone day off since I came back last Thursday. This week I've driven 300 miles getting to work (and diesel is £1.30 a litre, there goes 1 day's pay). There is only so many times I can talk about teaching climbing, while every day is different as the kids are always different in essence every day is the same, I do the same things in pretty much the same places. I do however love it. It's also been tricky because as Eliza over at Doolittle (link in the side bar) there is a great unblogablability going on with my family. No one is dead or dying, but it has meant that one big nasty event has been at the forefront of my mind since Wednesday to the exclusion of nearly everything else.

One thing that apparently my brain can focus on is my knitting however, so I am very sorry to yet again present more photos of my Nether Garments. We are now at knee height on leg 1.


I love how the varying widths is doing wonderful things to the variagated asphalt tour yarn. This is on the lower calf-



This on the upper calf-


These are perfect knitting fr a busy mind, it's just simple knit, knit, knit and just as I start to get sick of one colour the mini ball runs out and it's time to start a new colour.

Progress

Ok some time soon I promise to post about something about knitting, but I'm very proud of my progress so far.

I'm 8.5 inches in, and have started the calf shaping. It's going really well, I've even done a stripe of both of the special tour colours.
Here's a quick picture-


It's taken on my web cam so not the greatest quality but you get the idea! most of this progress was amde at my first ever knit night which I've just got back from.

All day today and tomorrow I've been or will be teaching climbing outside, I've been getting up at 7.00 each morning to get over to where we're climbing. Hopefully tonight I won't have the trouble I've been having of just not wanting to sleep! I'm looking forward to my day off on Thursday as I need to get my room organised, while everything is out of boxes some stuff is still in piles, which is making me very messy. If it's not tidy to start off with making myself tidy up what I've just arrived back with is very difficult!

More tour stuff, and a long day

All weekend I've been working. Today has been at a mobile climbing tower at a Outdoor sports festival in Sheffield called Cliffhanger. I've spent all day putting on and taking off climbing harnesses and my fingers hurt!
However despite the aching fingers I have managed to cast on for my Nether Garments tonight (finally!). I've not done as much as I wanted as I've also had to do some computer stuff, but now they're started I've stepped in the right direction!

Here's a quick photo, the colour is very wrong as it was taken in the dark and I can't get the camera flash to come on???




Here's also all the yarn I've been sent to do in between the special colourways I talked about yesterday. A big thank you to Natalie, Sussex Yorkie, Northernlights, and Jammam.

Still jobless

So the job interview today was unsuccessful, though really that makes it sound a bit more extreme than it really is. Yet again they were really impressed with me, to the point of not being able to give me any negative feedback. They've just given the job to someone who was ever so slightly more suitable. They have however said that it is likely another job will be coming up this year (Im guessing a current member of staff is going to job interviews, and if they get a job will be handing in their notice), they have offered me that possible job, and won't be advertising/interviewing anyone else if the job does come up. This is actually really awesome, though puts me in a really odd position, I can't stop looking for jobs in case this potential job doesn't happen, but at the same time I feel like I would fit in better at this school than any of the others I've had interviews at. Oh the confusion!
I have another interview next Thursday and am just going to play it by ear in terms of if I like the school, and wether I remain a candidate by the time I get asked if I would accept the job if offered it.

Anyway, I had planned to go climbing tonight, but all my climbing partners dropped out on me. Instead I have finished Lex's socks in time for him coming to sheffield this weekend, and have also started the 2nd front piece on my Mrs Darcy obsessive cardigan.

I have also not forgotten that yesterday I promised a fix-it-friday post. For this weeks post I'm going along the culinary route. Firstly a blog containing loads of gorgeous recipes, I've mostly cooked the cakes and biscuits, but many of her savory recipes also look great. Secondly in a sharing of the bloggy goodness is a link to a blog that I read daily where she posted a link to another one of her sites containing the recipe for some really yummy looking jam turnovers that also seem to require practically no work in terms of mixing!

Another job interview

Well yet another job interview, and yet another job where I'm told "we wish we had 2 jobs, you interviewed really well, your lesson was really good and we were really impressed. You'll get a job very soon."
Well that means I need to sort out the next lot of job applications, but that is a job for tomorrow evening. Tonight I am going to relax, and carry on enjoying being looked after by my Mum. It is so nice to be able to not think about what to cook for tea each evening.
Tomorrow I'm going to go an do some work for my Dad doing all the safety checks on the equipment, will be nice to completely forget about teaching for a while, well apart from getting some feedback on exactly why I didn't get the job!

fix-it-Friday

Hip hip hooray for fix it Friday!

This week I am in a celebratory mood as I have just finished for a weeks holiday! (Well in a loose term, my Mum muttered something about Dad wanting me to do some climbing instruction tomorrow, and I know I will be spending 2 days safety checking all the equipment, and I have 1 day which is a job interview, and I have an induction session to run at the Guide Activity centre where I work, I have lessons to plan for next week, more job applications to fill out....), ok so maybe not a restful holiday but a change is as good as a rest..... right???

Today fix-it-friday is in keeping with my light hearted mood, and is purely a bit of fun. I introduce the wonderful Jenny B and her site Allsorts. While it is the site where I got the idea for my fabulous advent calender from, it s also the home of some wonderful activities that she has designed herself. I particularly like the decorate a gingerbread house, so much safer than having all those sweets for me to eat!

Have a wonderful weekend, if I don't manage to post in a while it will be because I've got my feet up with a drink being looked after by my Mum, or more likely I'm working my fingers to the bone....

apprehension

I have my first job interview tomorrow. I'm starting to feel slightly nervous, I am however as prepared as I can be, and am reassured by the fact that I have just had another phone call offering me another interview. That makes 2 applications sent in, and 2 interviews! I am rather pleased by that. I have told the second school I will have to let them know after the interview tomorrow if I will be attending!
For those of you who aren't aware interviews for teaching posts are a bit wierd, every candidate for the job will be there tomorrow. You spend the whole day in the school, part of it is a tour of the school , you also teach a lesson, and then have a formal interview. After the interviews the panel basically has a bit of a discussion about the candidates and then someone comes and collects the successful candidate from the waiting room. So I will know if I have got the job by sometime tomorrow!
Wish me luck!


On a slightly different note Niobe again has a really great thoughtful post up. Apparently an online literary magazine is inviting it's readers to sum up their life in 6 words. I think I'd go for- Looking for something, not sure what?
What about you?

By the way, I have completed my first sock, I will be taking the other one to occupy me tomorrow. It's not perfect but it will keep my feet warm in bed!

Some food

As I'm currently just cooking for myself I'm finding more and more that I can't be bothered to cook. When it's just for you, and you've already filled your small freezer with leftovers it's often hard to get motivated when you're tired. However today I made a concerted effort and cooked my ever reliable (apart when I forget they're in the oven) chocolate chip cookies, and a recipe for pizza I'd seen on a cooking programme this morning.
The cookies were wonderful, the pizza a real disappointment, so much so I'm not even going to share the recipe. The dough itself was good, though I should have added more salt, but I should have trusted my instincts on the topping. the recipe just recommended that you drain a can of chopped tomatoes, however as I'd suspected this was really acidic and had none of the mellow tomato flavour I like on pizza. It was then topped by a ball of mozzarella, which I always find a little bland on it's own, but again I trusted the recipe, and guess what, there was nowhere near enough cheese and it just wasn't cheesy enough!
I've got half the dough in the freezer so next time I will trust my instincts and will make a cooked tomato sauce, and use cheddar as well as mozzarella.

Apart from that the leaf count is up to 32, so only 16 to go until I can look forward to ironing them all and sewing them together!

I've also got to work on applying for jobs, and crikey it's hard work talking yourself up for 3 pages in an application letter!

Another meme because I'm lame

Here's another meme, because I really have nothing to say, this comes coutesy of Carmen at Mom to the Screaming Masses.
My brain has turned in to a mush whose only message is sleep, let me sleep! I've had a really awesome couple of days. Wednesday was the climbing club Christmas dinner, which was an awesome night, though not getting to bed until 2pm was not so great. I still love my dress, though I wish my shoes hadn't hurt my feet so much! (Ps that's me on the right)


Last night i popped round to a friends house to help them eat all their leftovers, as we're all going our separate ways to go home for Christmas. It was a really nice evening so thanks guys.

Anyway, what you've been waiting for, a new meme.


1. What did you do in 2007 that you’d never done before?
Became district commissioner.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
Didn't make one, and won't this year, I'm so angelic that I have no bad habits to give up!

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
No, though I'm predicting babies in the next few years, as I keep telling all of them, get married, I want to buy a hat!

4. Did anyone close to you die?
No deaths, and hopefully the same for next year.

5. What countries did you visit?
Ireland.

6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007?
The ability to recognise I should get out when it's all going wrong

7. What dates from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
None really, probably graduation day, but I don't know the date.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Graduating with a 2:1, surviving my first teaching practise.

9. What was your biggest failure?
My relationship with Lex

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Surprisingly healthy this year, long may it continue!

11. What was the best thing you bought?
Comforter bath bubble bars from Lush, they always lift my spirits.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
My Mum, for being so brave and quitting her job after working in the same place for the last 20 years.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Mine probably.

14. Where did most of your money go?
Tuition fees, and rent, £3000 and £250 a month respectively!

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
The simple things, a pretty new dress, someone doing something nice but unexpectedly so.

16. What song will always remind you of 2007?
Rihanna, Umbrella, in memory of the flood, and sheer volume of rain we had!

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: a) happier or sadder? b) thinner or fatter? c) richer or poorer?
a) sadder, but that's ok b) about the same and that's a good thing c) richer

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Spent time with my friends.

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Work, as it turns out I got my 2:1 easily and a first was never on the cards.

20. How will you be spending Christmas?
In a cottage we've rented with my family.

21. Did you fall in love in 2007?
I was in love when it started and fell out of love.

22. How many one-night stands?
None

23. What was your favorite TV program?
Strictly Come Dancing

24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
No.

25. What was the best book you read?
Too many to mention, if you ever want a book recommendation I'm your girl!

26. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Scouting for Girls. I'm loving "Elvis ain't dead" at the moment.

27. What did you want and get?
At the moment I just want sleep, and I'm getting that this week!

28. What did you want and not get?
Lot's of things I wanted and not got...yet!

29. What was your favorite film of this year?
I can't remember going and watching anything, so mustn't have been anything amazing, because I know I went.

30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
Tried to cook Lasagne as the power kept going off, ate cake with friends.

31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Nothing really, I'm quite content at the moment.

32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007?
Can a child see my tits in this, or can I look like a slob in this for school days and non-school days!

33. What kept you sane?
Wine!

34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Daniel Craig, sometimes, though not in James Bond!

35. What political issue stirred you the most?
Hearing about George Bush doing horrible things to the abortion law, see this post for details

36. Who did you miss?
Nobody, everyone I care about is still in my life.

37. Who was the best new person you met?
Probably most of my PGCE course, Nigel and Tim, I'm going to miss sitting in the staff room dissing you guys!

38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007.
Breaking up doesn't get any less painful the longer you drag it out for!

39. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
You never were, you never will be mine.
Robyn, lyrics here


Have a lovely Christmas, if you want to do the meme feel free and leave me a comment so I can come visit. I'm going away for a week, so I'll catch you around New Year!

What a day

I've had one of those days, a day that has driven me to thinking I need to get a more anonymous blog, as I'm not comfortable about putting all of it out here. As a result I've created a new anonymous blog, if you're a regular reader and you want the new address please email me and I'll redirect you. The only reason I'm going anonymous is I don't want kids googling my name and finding what I might have written about them.

Anyway, Lex is not very well at the moment. He's at home for the foreseeable future, and is signed off work until January. As a result I'm home alone, and last night I really needed some company. Rather than sit and get miserable I took myself off shopping. I've found the most gorgeous dress, and shoes and jewelry. and while shopping is not always the solution just knowing I have the most drop dead gorgeous outfit is enough to put a smile on my face.

Today was not a good day, I don't want to wonder wether a kid is going to lose it and wonder what I need to do if he/she starts swinging clamp stands around. I don't want to be made to feel inadequate by the teacher who's meant to be helping me, I want my class to do their homework so I can actually praise them instead of shouting at them. My supervisor at school described me as looking like I'd done 8 rounds in a boxing match today, and that was after 1 lesson.

Anyway the Rainbows are getting their end of term treat decorating pottery tonight which will be fun, and I can get a sympathetic ear on today from my unit helpers.

In true modern multi-tasking style

This is being written while watching Tribe. I've just got out of the bath, which was aimed to ease the hundreds of midge bites ( I would take a photograph, it's a bit like a huge dot-to-dot puzzle, but Lex would laugh!), which I got today while out teaching climbing. I came back from what is my thoroughly modern job, 50 years ago climbing instructors didn't exist, to that age old task, the washing. Lex and I only went away for 3 days, but the amount of stuff required, and more crucially the amount of washing created in unbelievable!
We're on 2 loads today, with another 2 in the wash basket still, even worse I'm going home for a day to do some more instructing as a favor to a friend, and also to get my fillings sorted so I will be able to eat sweet things without wincing again!
There are photos from the holiday, and even another video, but I don't think I'll et chance to download them until next week, patience is a virtue and all that!

It's all about the kids and not the money, honest

I've been at work again for the last 3 days. Monday was spent teaching outside with a family of 5. The weather was ok, apart from at lunch, just as I'd gone to change where our rope was the heavens opened, and where was I? Stuck at the top. Where were my waterproofs? At the bottom, as a result I got a trifle soggy!
Tuesday was spent indoors, luckily as the weather was fowl, with a interesting group of kids. There were 14 from London here on holiday, they were inner city kids, and were so so loud, everything was done at a shout. It's unbelievable how that level of noise wears you out if you're trying to teach. There was also the weird kid who couldn't stop saying sorry, for everything even if it's not his fault. I walk in to him because I'm not looking where I'm going, kid says sorry. I ask kid if he's enjoying himself because he doesn't seem very happy, kid apologises for being miserable..... by the end of the day I was ready to wring his sorry little neck!

Today was meant to be spent catching up with all my neglected tasks, like going to the bank, and maybe actually getting prepared for my PGCE, however at 7pm last night I got a phone call asking me if I could do some climbing instruction. The group was meant to go out yesterday but the weather was so bad they couldn't. The instructor was booked up for today, so they needed a different person. Now as I have no money turning down £100 to go to the bank didn't seem very wise! Unfortunately the weather today wasn't very good either, so I spent all day indoors, which was a little wearing as effectively I did the same thing 4 times in 6 hours. However the girls had a great time so that's all that really matters.

Anyway, the main reason I thought I'd better write a post was to say I'm off on holiday for a week with no internet access. I'm off to Pembrokeshire with my family, so Lex will be left to fend for himself for a week.

cooking, cleaning and getting all domestic

I've been at work all week, which for me is something on an event, me thinks I will have a shock in September when i actually start my teacher training!
Anyway so far today I've been busy sorting out the house and making it look more like a home and less like a jumble sale, I'm ignoring the spare room, that's Lex's man room, and if he wants to have all his clothes piled on the floor that's his look out, he's learnt the hard way that if the dirty ones don't make it to the wash basket then they don't get clean!
Next on the schedule is using the still broken (reported to landlord over a month ago, still waiting for it to be fixed), hoover to remove the I'm not quite sure things off the floor, and then to make more mess by cooking.

On the menu tonight, tarte tatin, lamb with chorizo and butter beans, the recipe says halibut, but I watched the recipe on saturday kitchen this morning and apparently it's good with lamb to, and some unknown cake or biscuit, I've yet to make my mind up!
That should keep me amused nicely I think, now if only the radio in the kitchen had longwave radio so i could have the cricket on!
Edited nearly 2 days later after I noticed that my post title had no relevance to what I'd actually written, isn't amazing how your brain can go off track so easily!

Do kids nowadays have too great an expectation?

I was at work all day with 2 kids, yep just 2, christ I hate those days, I'd much rather be dealing with 8 hell raisers, than just 2 mild mannered ones. 9.30 till 3.30 is a long time to fill climbing with just 2 kids, particularly if 1 of them refuses to climb, I think by the end of it I was more exhausted than them, after all I climbed up to the top more times than them to move the rope!

Anyway I was talking with them about their holiday, they'd already mentioned wind-surfing, kayaking and horse riding, todays activity will have cost at least £120, with the others being similarly pricey. Apparently these kids were with their grandparents were because their parents were in the Dominican Republic, and you know what, instead of saying they'd had a great time, they were moaning about they'd much rather have been in the Dominican Republic because there was Sky TV, a spa, and you could swim in the sea!

Is it me or is that just weird, I'd have killed for a holiday like they're having when I was their age, in fact I still would! And the ungratefulness nearly took my breath away! when I spoke to their Grandmother about doing more climbing I mentioned some more sessions I'm doing this week which will be as part of a group, her response "I'm sure you'd much rather have 1:1 tuition wouldn't you dears?", is it just me or is that a really sucky attitude.


BTW, get me at the grand old age of 22 moaning about "the kids of today", I'm so loving the irony of that!

Feeling proud

Just a quick post as I'm meant to be working... still!
I'm feeling so proud at the moment, one of the girls I coached as part of my job at the climbing wall, has just won one of the rounds at the junior regional climbing competition, and is through to the national finals where if she goes I have a feeling she'll do very well! The reason I'm proud is that no one else had bothered coaching these kids, they were content just to let them mess about and have a laugh. I could see some of them had talent and wanted them to do more so I started trying to make them think about technique and how to climb better. The other staff didn't believe in sending children that young to competitions so had never bothered. How many children missed out because of this?
Anyway while it's her brilliant achievement I'm still happy for me because her Dad has said he'll miss not having me there teaching her daughter, and he's grateful for how much I did for her, and the others. Here's hoping she goes to the national finals and does herself justice.

Freedom

I'm all alone for this weekend.
Lex has gone to ride his mountain bike in Wales along with what feels like most of the High Peak Club. I would have liked to have gone, but didn't find out there were spare places in the hut untill it was too late to book the weekend off work. Bummer.
at least they have nice weather for the weekend, I'm just annoyed I can't enjoy it.
It does mean that I get to spend the rest of the time when I'm not working doing what I want to do! Mostly that means eating the food I love, but Lex hates. In particular my favourite creamy orange leeks, mmmm, tea tonight was that with garlic bread, and a large glass of red wine, heaven.
Fear not for Lexs food needs however. I sent him off with a large tin of cake, and instructions not to eat it all on the minibus trip there!