When it comes to a Friday evening and writing my blog post to review the week, I usually already have everything or at least something prepared in my head to write about. However tonight, I am in situation where I am reporting news hot off the press. I will save the good news to the end, and start very much as most working weeks do on Monday. I got to work dead on time at 9am (which is an hour late for me as I try and get into the office at 8am most days if I can). I did not drag myself out of bed until 7.10am (the time I’m usually leaving the house) so faced a bit of a battle to cut through the traffic on the M4 to Newbury. The sun had come out while on the motorway and I had a bright spark in my eyes. In my rush to get out of the house, I had left both my gym membership card and Nurofen meltlets, so had no choice but to stop at the services, just off junction thirteen. I knew I was about to get taken for a ride with the over inflated price for a bottle of water and tablets. There were only Nurofen standard tablets, so I bought them, wanting anything to stop the onset of a headache. I took a capsule while in the car before heading into town. I felt a little better by the time I got out of the car (parking up on level five!). I took a deep breath, my second week was about to begin. Nevertheless, I eventually made it through the day and to the gym in the evening. Following from my comment last week, I also found myself number eight in the top ten list of distant covered with a score of 368km. An official marathon is 42.195km, so I could have covered just over 8 of them! Although the distance is a great achievement, it does not feel that long because it combines my distance traveled from bike, cross trainer and treadmill. Personally I think the cross trainer should be excluded. Nevertheless it was some sense of achievement and surprise to find my name on the notice board, not once but twice. May as well get used to it, only five more sessions left in this gym before I switch.
The rest of the week was extremely busy but I actually manage to make it in by 8am and feel I should try and get into the routine. No matter how hard it is to get out of bed at 6am. I know there are a numerous benefits to leaving so early in the morning, less traffic, finding a parking space on the first floor, less hassle generally from other road users and of course, being able to leave at 5pm sharp. Most of my time is taking up with documentation and going through process and getting down and dirty with the detail. I know this is what I signed up for and am relishing the challenge, the only problem is there is so much to learn.
I am a big fan of Eastenders and watch the show religiously. On Friday I noted yet another fantastic line from Gary Hobbs, so taped the moment on BBC Three on the 10pm repeat. Gary (along with Minty) are my big draws to the show, sure the gripping storylines can be great and intriguing. However it is watching the everyday losers that makes me smile. Makes me realise that my life is not really all that bad and that if I’m having a bad day, Gary must be having one much worse over at the Arches.
As I drove out of the gym on Thursday evening, I gave Dave a call in Wrexham. I had a confession to make, I had to re-plan our weekend meeting in October from the 24th to the 31st. He gave the shock news that he had just bought a brand new 50″ Samsung HD television and was waiting for the delivery van to arrive. It had taken him so long to answer the phone because he thought the delivery man was at the door. I was shocked and he buzzed across a few photographs on MSN last night but they were very blurry (and had Dave’s ugly mug in them!) So, this evening I got him to try again and he got a great still shot of the MTV News logo. Roll on the first weekend in November. Looks like it is going to be a case of watching all my favourite music videos in 50″ high definition glory.
On Sunday evening while I was typing my blog post, I had Bhav on MSN talking to me. Sure, no issue there but she was sending me links to YouTube music videos, which can actually be quite distracting. No wonder it took me a few hours to finally upload the post via FTP. She sent me a number of links to songs, most which I had not heard before. I downloaded a few but the best by far was New Kids On The Block featuring Neyo – Single. The video was okay, you standard night club scene affair. They even rip off the rap from Fergie’s Glamorous (only the first line mind and do little to disguise the plagiarism). However, after listening to the song this week, I can confirm it is very catchy. The way I am justifying this to myself, is that the song is in fact by Neyo but has been “hijacked” by NKOTB in the sheer hope that some of the singer-song writers magic rubs off on the group. Unfortunately, as great as the bass line sounds, I think NKOTB, should never have bothered with a reunion. I walked past HMV on Tuesday and they were playing the song, a little while later (after having my lunch) when I walked back and went into the music store, they were still playing the song but just the master backing track, as if someone should have been singing along on some games console or something. I had actually gone in to find out if I could pre-order In A Perfect World by Keri Hilson but did not bother asking the staff, they would not have a clue. Plus there was no release schedule on the walls or behind the tills. I picked up a copy of Neyo’s – The Year Of The Gentleman and confirmed that he did indeed have the track Single on his record. Shame on you New Kids On The Block. When I checked Toya’s World (an excellent blog which I highly recommend by the way) I found another song from Miss Hilson’s album had leaked but also the released date had been pushed back once again (3rd or 4th time?) to 4th November. How does the saying go? Good things come to those that wait?
I must come onto the subject of flat hunting. As usual several viewings got cancelled (some flats had just gone) earlier in the week, but I saw a few flats and one house. One does have some potential, even if it is relatively small as an apartment, you cannot beat the location. However that is secondary news. The main headline news is that from next Sunday (28th) I shall be moving to Newbury to stay at my cousin, Praag’s house. Although it is only a temporary measure, I am hoping this will give me an opportunity to get a feel for the area as a resident (rather than in my current guise as a commuter) but also find a permanent abode before the middle of October. Wish me luck I suppose? I know it is going to be a big shock to the system to go from living at home with my parents to being out in the outside world all on my own. This weekend will be spent getting a short list of properties together, booking some viewings and getting in there. I am determined to sort a place out as a top priority, although the drive is not too bad, it is the fact that it is there that causes me so much concern. At the end of the day, it should be a pleasant walk home and then off to the gym, not a forty five minute drive on the motorway, then gym, then home. Let us hope I can somehow begin to realise that dream, sometime after this next week is out.
