Friday, February 29, 2008

Friday thoughts

This week has been the week of small freebies. So far I have managed to procure two cinema tickets and a Starbucks coffee - and tonight I start two weeks worth of free membership at the gym of the posh hotel near to where I live. It's costing me nothing and it's close to home. I really don't have any excuse to sit around on my arse for the next fortnight do I? But I'm sure I'll find one. I thought for one giddy moment that I was about to become the proud new owner of a digital radio this morning too - I was on my way to a meeting when I saw it buried in a stash of obselete equipment. But the stupid thing was welded to its desk so I couldn't get it into my handbag on the way out. What a waste.

The *chat* went well - the guy did more talking than me (no mean feat, believe me) - which Confuddled says is always a good sign in an interview type scenario (Confuddled is interview guru. She survived eight in a row - eight! - for one job). I will find out in two weeks whether I'm through to round two. The fact that my potential new boss told me he's lost five members of a team of five in the last 18 months doesn't fill me with excitement though, so I'm going to take this one with an unhealthily sized pinch of salt for now. Still, it's one of those jobs that will open up a lot of new doors. So perhaps as a stepping stone it's worth it.

Also - I remembered last night that I did hear the UK earthquake! I was rather rudely awoken by this horribly loud rattling. I thought it was a car revving its engine outside. I poked my head out of the window and realised the street was empty. So my next obvious conclusion was that my vibrator had somehow turned itself on in my bedside drawer (you may laugh, but I speak from experience). No joy there either (quite literally). I finally realised that for some reason the sliding cupboard doors above my wardrobe were shaking in their frames. I put my hand on them to stop them and spent the rest of the night quaking under the duvet wondering whether the week of small freebies was beginning with the acquisition of a poltergeist. It only occurred to me last night, while chatting to mum, that it was in fact the earth moving. Whatever next?

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

gulp

Tomorrow morning I'm having a *chat* with another mag that likes my work and has emailed me to see whether I want to go and work for them. Enormously flattering but quite terrifying at the same time. They've already told me that they wouldn't be able to match my current salary. But if I do end up working for them it might just pull me out of the career cul de sac (thank you Wine Lover for that absolutely brilliant phrase) I seem to have ended up in. That said, I do of course think I'm worth every penny of my current wage so we'll see. Wish me luck!

Monday, February 25, 2008

Weird weekend

Saturday night was supposed to be a momentous occasion. My three closest friends in the world and I decided to have a night out with our partners all in tow - for the first time ever. But by the time it came round one of us was single, and with about a day to go, Gorgeous But Flaky Thespian Friend pulled out, claiming he had to work all weekend. Interesting to see that he still managed to be on Facebook at 4am on the night in question.

Still, it all started out really well, with much wine at the lovely Lady Handbag's house and then on to a tapas restaurant down in South London. As a rule I get a bit twitchy south of the river (not least because I can never bloody find anywhere down there - I once spent a memorable three hours trying to find one single street in Lewisham. That's what life was like pre-satnav).

And then we went on to a very nice bar... and here things get a bit hazy. But I do remember some beered up twat accusing me of spilling my drink over him (impossible because I didn't actually have one at the time, I was on my way to the bar). I heard him describe me to his friends as 'that fat woman' and I just crumpled inside. Desperate not to get myself into a drunken spiral of misery I decided not to tell anyone... but the seeds were sown and from that point onward I found myself getting increasingly upset about everything bad that's ever happened to me. Don't you just hate that?

Saturday, February 23, 2008

Is that the time?

I can't believe I've neglected my blog for so long. How are you all doing? It's getting harder to maintain - not only am I currently out of the dating game so have less dirt to dish but I've also moved offices and now sit with my monitor in view of my boss (I think he's onto me). I might actually have to bite the bullet and finally buy a Mac of my very own.

But I do actually have another good reason for the long silence: I'm just back from a little jaunt across the pond with MC. Sipping a very chilled sauvignon blanc in the poolside bar of a boutique hotel in central New York last weekend I realised that life should be all about moments like that. I must plot my escape forthwith (Dear The Secret, could you please fix me up with a funky editorial job in NYC? thanks awfully).

Even without the teaser of life USA-style I'm SO done with my current address. I've lived in relative tranquility in my little box in the sky (read hugely overpriced rented flat) for nearly two years now. I've had the same downstairs neighbours in all that time but suddenly they are turning into the neighbours from hell. At 4.30am this morning I found myself stamping on the floor when they decided to have an impromptu party. They've gone from never being around to being completely nocturnal. It's typical of London life that I have never actually met them, although somebody once told me the chap is a pilot. Methinks he needs a few more longhaul assignments (unless of course that's the very reason for the late nights). Listening to them braying away in the twilight hours is really getting rather tedious. Then there's MC's snoring... suffice it to say that I now have first hand understanding of why sleep deprivation is such an effective form of torture.

Thursday, February 7, 2008

the boob of trauma

I spent a good few days quietly convincing myself that persistent breast pain was the Worst Case Scenario before finally confiding in MC. He persuaded me to go to the doctor who, after a very thorough examination, informed me that said pain is a result of 'trauma'. Poor traumatised boob (don't panic, it's just a little bruised. But God is it painful). Having not been to the doctor for about 10 years I now find myself going, for the third time in as many months, with symptoms that scream I AM HAVING SEX! Either that or I HAVE A STRANGE SEXUAL FASCINATION WITH DOCTORS. Gulp.

Still this doctor was much better than the last one, who was if anything even more mortified than I was at the prospect of having to examine me. He could barely look me in the eye, let alone anywhere else. No, this one was much more pleasant. Although right at the end of the consultation he asked me what I did for a living. I told him I was a journalist and his eyes widened in panic. But knowing he'd seen what he'd seen, I was in no mood to launch any investigations of my own.

Monday, February 4, 2008

leftfield

There's someone here at work who sits about a metre away from me. Over the years we have exchanged little more than sarcastic comments and borderline insults.... until today when he approached me in the kitchen and, completely out of the blue, told me that he happens to be mates with the editor of my absolute dream publication. Five minutes later he's emailed her and now she wants to talk to me about freelancing. I just can't believe it. Where on earth did that come from? Maybe The Secret is more powerful than I thought...