Wednesday, May 23, 2012

well... didn't get that one either

didn't make the cut for the interview :(

but I was grateful that they were kind enough to send a personal email letting me know the outcome.

back to the drawing board

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

frayed around the edges

Hi
I've had a dreadful week and needed to vent, so here I am.

Lots of little things are niggling at me but yesterday I received a real blow to my confidence that I really didn't need.

You see I applied for (yet) another job... I think it's one that I'd do really well in. After a busy day where I was interrupted a few times whilst trying to complete the application and write my letter etc, I finally finished at 9:30 at night.

I was totally blown away when I got a call the next afternoon from the company. I guess it was kind of a preliminary interview to clarify whether all aspects of the job would suit me and whether they should invest any further time in me.

From my perspective I think it went well. They wanted to be sure that although it was a part time position, they could count on me to be able to attend 4 weeks of full time training in June. Not a problem I told them, I already have childcare arrangements and a very supportive family. We ended the call on a positive note  and I was told the next step would be further contact by phone or email and my excitement was massive.

The next day I asked my MIL if she was free to fill in the childcare gaps if I was selected for the job. Sure no problem she said.

So that was a week and a half ago. The position is still being advertised and my application online is listed as "pending" That to me says I'm still in with a chance.

Well yesterday MIL tells me in June she's heading interstate for a week. I panicked a little and asked what about the commitment she made me.

To be honest I think she'd forgotten but her response hurt like hell.

Instead of acknowledging she'd forgotten, she went on the attack and said "Well its been so long and you hadn't said anything so I thought you wouldn't get it", then she backtracked and said " Well you asked me but I didn't know it was in June" ( and I know I was very specific about the date when I first mentioned it to her)

I was crushed, I can't tell her what to do obviously but I had asked for a commitment from her and she assured me she was available to help. If I am successful I know there are other avenues I can pursue to get the kids sorted out but she is the one always telling me, "don't spend more money on childcare, I'm here"

But what she said about "not getting the job anyway" has stuck with me. I would dearly love to get it (or a formal interview at least) to prove her wrong but for now I must wait. I followed a friends suggestion and emailed the company (I was too scared to phone) asking for a progress update of my application.

It's all I can do for now.

Cross your fingers for me

Friday, May 11, 2012

what I'm learning while I'm writing

It's been quite a while since I sat down properly to work on my writing. The more I think about the storyline the more complex it becomes and I haven't felt like I could do it justice if I did little bits at a time but I'm not getting the opportunity to spend the amount of time I'd like to in any one innings so the first thing I've "learned" is that I'm just going to have to do what I can, when I can.

Secondly, the phrase "write what you know" ... I don't think I understood the meaning of that because I thought I didn't know anything but in fact I can see now I know an awful lot. And writing about that sort of thing or incorporating it into a story is what (hopefully) makes it believable.  I'm definitely not writing an autobiography but places I've been and people I know or at least elements of them are popping up.

It's kinda exciting :)

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

April 2012

Hi!

Phew! Hectic April has ended! My mum flew home this morning, school has been back since last Thursday and my house looks like a bomb hit it. Time to re-group and set things straight again. It is nice to return to our routine despite the early morning starts.

So school hols kept me busy... for Easter we did the family thing with egg hunts and egg & spoon races and lots of yummy food. A family we're very good friends with (and now consider "family") joined in the fun. It was just lovely and I didn't overdose on chocolate (what's wrong with me???) We still have lots of chocolate left, I have been rationing it out to the kids and they're enjoying getting a treat most days so it's all good.

Miss 7 had dance competitions in the middle of the holidays; she does troupes for modern and tap. It's our (I say "our" instead of "her" because I put in just as much effort behind the scenes as she does on stage) first time in competition and her troupe came first in both their categories. They danced beautifully and I must admit to having tears in my eyes when I watched.

I also took Miss 7 to see Mary Poppins on stage. At the time of buying the tickets I thought Miss 3 would be too young but the closer the time came, the more interest she showed in seeing it. I felt terrible so I think next time a big show comes to town (I think Annie will be next!) I will get cheaper tickets and take them both.
Mary Poppins was wonderful, everything about it was "practically perfect in every way" and the real treat for me was to see the wonder in Miss 7's eyes. She truly believed the magic on stage... when Bert walks up the wall and on the ceiling and when Mary fixes the broken cupboards and table in the kitchen. At the end of the show when Mary flew out over the audience, she realised she was suspended on wires but I think still thought it was pretty cool (I don't think she drew the same conclusion for Bert's ceiling antics though)

I also celebrated my 14th Wedding anniversary this month, Hubby and I had both planned to cook the other a nice breakfast (me thinking he was off to work that day) so we had lots of goodies to eat and he surprised me and took the day off work so we could hang out together. My mum-inlaw took the kids for the night and though we didn't go anywhere especially exciting, it was just nice to spend the time in each other's company. We were together 8 years before we started our family and as much as we love our beautiful girls, we both miss not having as much time together as we used to.

Now onto my "me time"

Films

Fright Night (2011)
what a crap movie! but this is why I watched...
for the smile alone and then...
Oh My! he took his shirt off ;)

TV

Game of Thrones Season 2
Oh I am so happy this is back on. I haven't read the second book in the series yet but the show is captivating so far. The more I watch, the more I like Tyrion Lannister. Peter Dingle who plays Tyrion is amazing!

Being Human Series 4 (UK)
I had my reservations about this series as they killed off my favourite, Mitchell at the end of the last series and I'd read that they'd killed off George and Nina early in this series. Still I have given it a chance and the story has taken an interesting turn and the vampire and werewolf "replacements" Hal & Tom are very likable.

The Vampire Diaries Season 3
Not sure why I continue to watch this... maybe it's the eye candy factor. It's an easy watch and as close as I'll come to watching the soaps I guess. I've only watched the first 6 episodes but you know? I quite like seeing Stefan as a bad guy. Elena gives me the sh!ts though, she always has.


Reading

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

OMG! The Hunger Games series is amazing. I loved each book and the story was so compelling that half way through the last book, Mockingjay, I had to just sit and read until I was finished and let the household run itself (well not quite, Hubby was home hehe)
Like most series that I've read and loved, I was left feeling a bit lost and sad when I finally finished. But at the same time I was very happy and satisfied with the ending and kept thinking what awesome movies are to come.


Fallen In Love by Lauren Kate
this is described as Book 3.5 of the Fallen series and is kind of a side story (or stories) to the main story in the series. I read it because I have enjoyed the previous 3 books and hoped that this might give insight into other characters  which it did to a certain extent but I was a little disappointed. It came across as a bit cheesy and the character's story I was most interested in (Cam) was only very briefly touched upon. I can only hope that he is featured more in the final book of the series.

Her Dark Fairy by Ella Vines
This is a very short story. It started off quite interesting and had the promise of quite a complex storyline but then suddenly the girl met her fairy stalker, slept with him and the end! If it was meant to be an erotic short story, it failed. Using the word "stalk" in anatomical descriptions (as in "his stalk") makes me want to laugh out loud rather than titillate me.


Ooh I've run out of time! Thanks for stopping by. Talk again soon x