Packed up XMAS and put it back in the attic and put the lounge and dining rooms back to normal, much to delight of our cat Holly who has her coffee table back where it should be!

So tomorrow 2008 starts in earnst. Back to work in my new department, which I’m looking forward to.  Nine working days of that and then we’re off to Centre Parcs Sherwood Forest, with Elaine Rachel’s mother. Really looking forward to this, a break from the mess of the house, computers and domestic distractions.

Other things I’m looking forward to this year;

Continuum 2008 (Aug 2nd-5th) Leicester Uni

Furnace 2008 (Oct 18th-19th) Sheffield Garrison Hotel

Finally getting SimpleQuest and Monkey out, and D101Games up and going as an ongoing concern.

Other than that I really don’t know.

2007 was quite a rough year in many respects, but I came out way ahead of the game at the end of day. I’ve grown considerably in confidence and capablity. In fact 2007 was the year I found my confidence, and it was given a good run for its money!!!  What I could get up to this year with this new found superpower leaves me quite overwhelmed.

So buck up buddy, light speed ahead!!

Egads it was an intense one. Eve’s first XMAS, so no way we’re going to do the usual XMAS trail round relatives houses.

So we hosted a big old family xmas at our house, with all the trimmings. Only problem was all the preparation was a bit errr well last miniute. Oh yes and I came down with the cold from hell, which I’ve only just surfaced from (hence the late LJ post).

It was a goodie though, best XMAS in years.

Favourite bits,

Eve ripping into her presents and the look of exicitement on her face (in fact with all the relatives and things going on Eve was the most excited I have ever seen her)

Getting a Dalek bubblebath.

Drinking all day XMAS.

Seeing my Dad, who lives up in Northumberland, and having him stay for a couple of days.

Escaping next door, and being used by them as an excuse to escape their guests.

XMAS pudding and cake made by Rachel, yum.

Boxing day drinks and lunch with George and my dad.

Everyone going home day after boxing day.

Champions of the Reaching Moon, a sourcebook about heroes and ‘herobands’ belonging to the a Lunar missionary movement, is now finally out at Leisure Games in dead tree version. I wrote two of the articles (The Goddess Index and Cae & Morlia) and its my first professionally published RPG writing.

I’m a tiny bit chuffed 😀

    So I sit here in the office awaiting the end, surrounded by packing crates. The rest of my colleagues have technically moved out of the office, but their stuff remains.  Like all moves its total chaos, with horror stories from the other end of the New Building that the rest of the school is moving into being not fit for purposed and actually damaged as heavy desks go crashing into glass doors/windows/partitions. Me and the rest of IT are moviing to another building which I’m sure will have its own challenges, but my colleagues feel a certain amount of smugness as the people they feel have betrayed them in reacent months move into a nightmare of a building.

Personally I’m in a more reflective mood, as  I sit here on my own I feel as if I’ve come full circle to when I started this job over three years ago when I had the office to my self. Ho hum, time to move on….

Time for a quick post, before I head off to the pub and our IT Section’s Christmas curry (at the wonderful East Z East which I’ve raved about before).

Life is settling down again, to a nice comfatable pace. Its a bit weird that I’m not leaving afterall, but a relief that I am leaving in a couple of weeks (see I told you it was weird). My confidence is increasing by the hour that this is the best ‘move’ for the long run. I’ve even spent the last couple days happily coding away.

Righty ho off for beerz!

“What the hell was I thinking?” is what I’m left thinking after the last five days or so.

Putting my CV up for the Agencies to find me work was like a cold bucket of water in the face!!! I won’t trawl over the details, but an interview on Monday made me realise what a good deal I’m getting in my new job at Faculty in the New Year, when my current job at the School of Nursing ends. So yesterday morning I took myself off the ‘job market’, as the Recruitment weasels call it, and I’m now looking forward with positivity to my new role at the University, rather than dwelling in negativity on the recent past. I’m still going to be pursing the idea of working freelance, but I’ll be doing it part-time with the comfort of my day job behind it.

One thing however I’ve realised from the interview I had on Monday, is how much I’ve let my programming skills slip over the last six months. Time to start reversing that.

Better get down the boozer before Reagan and George drink everything in sight!

More Agencies have been ringing me up this morning, the phone didn’t stop from 9am until Lunchtime.

Good news is I’ve got an interview on Monday!!

10:30 Today I uploaded my CV to jobsite.co.uk

11:00 First agency rang me to have a chat.

4:30 Spoken to five agency reps and applied for 10 jobs via Jobsite!

After no movement on the job front, its like the flood gates have broken!

Its dark, its cold, its permanently grey. I’m tired, grumpy and with a snotty nose/sore throat.

Therefore I am left with no choice but to open positivities against  this non-sense no fun weather time of year.

Seeing as the British winter is a mild and timid affair, compared with say the infamous Russian Winter, I expect it all to be over by Christmas.

HUZZAH!!!