manage this management

I've spent today on a time management course. It was suggested at a supervision session in work because I often feel harrassed and swamped by all the things I have to get done.

It had lots of useful little tips and tricks, and has made me think a lot about why I do things and what my attitude is. Overall though my conclusion is that I'm not too bad at managing my time really, so long as I stay motivated and proactive. What it has made me realise is that the main reason I get stressed at work is simply that there is far too much to do. And however well you manage a huge workload it will still be huge (it's something to do with physics). I'm not sure how realising this will help me day to day in work, since the workload can't realistically get any smaller, but at least I'm confident it's not me slacking.

I'd love to try out some of the strategies and plans from the course. Hopefully I will be able to soon, but for now I just don't have the time (!).

Acheivement list

simply to make me feel good about all the stuff I have been doing since 6pm last night.

• bought new car insurance
• planned budget for the house
• planned budget for myself
• organised the finances, money moved to the right places
  
• paid the phone bill
• updated the meter readings
• finally sorted out the living room, no more boxes!
• cleaned the bathroom
• tidied the hall, no more boxes!
• hoovered the hall, bathroom and living room
• washed the dishes
• finalised the invite address list - watch the letter box people, they're on their way
• sorted out the towels - sounds daft but they're all muddled up (hand, bath, dish etc) and it's been driving me nuts
• watched, and thoroughly enjoyed 'The Wedding Singer'
  
• slept for 7 hours
• remembered to move the clocks forward (except the timer switch, which won't let me do it, and it made my head hurt trying to work out how/if I needed to change the settings to make it fake-right)
• taken A for a lovely walk round Dunham Massey to see the spring flowers (so many, so pretty. We also saw several birds and other bits of nature).
• made a picnic lunch for the walk (in case you were wondering, yes it is still a bit early&cold to sit still outside)

Plan for the evening, cos I'm on a getting things done roll...

• make biscuits
• sort out the bedding - there are full sets that match in there somewhere I'm sure
• watch Glee
• iron something to wear for work tomorrow
• have dinner
• drink wine
• bath
• sleep

The house is gradually getting more sorted, only two rooms are full of boxes now. The back bedroom (eventually to be known as the library, but it needs more input before it's worthy of the title) has a path pushed through to the computer and the radiator (to dry clothes). The small bedroom is pretty much a wall of boxes still. All the books seem to be in there, and an empty bookcase in the back bedroom...typical moving logic.

We also need a filing system. My giant gift bag full of 'important things' is no longer up to the task. Unfortunately there isn't enough space to spread the papers out to sort them out, so the chaos continues for now.

But first, biscuits (and tea, of course)

Thanks lovely lady!

One of my bestest friends has given me an award!
I have a sneaking suspicion it's an attempt to kick me into updating more often (which seems to have worked, since there've been two since last night)

There are rules with this award, about linking to x-many other blogs you think are also beautiful and such. Unfortunately my baby steps in blog-land mean I don't regularly read enough yet, so the 'rule' will have to become more of a guideline for now.

So I will adapt the guidelines and tell you why go placidly is a super cool chick and beautiful lady, who I am glad to have as my friend and even gladder she keeps on agreeing to be mine too.

1. She is true to herself, even though she probably doesn't realise it. Sticking to what you believe, sometimes whilst you're still figuring out exactly what that is, takes a very impressive kind of personal strength.
2. She inspires me. By her well balanced and motivated outlook and by the way she'll notice just the right thing to make the day seem brighter or to make you think.
3. She has excellent taste; in all areas to be honest. I would trust her recommendation or advice about a show, a book, a new musician, and of course whether or not my bum really did look amazing in a particular outfit.

I could very easily go on, but 15 things might be enough to make her blush!

Thank you for my award lovely lady, I will do my best to write more often and let the world know what's going on.

P.S. wedding themed update/ponderance/essay/rant coming soon. (The statement "It's your day" is a tricksy lie designed to create stress and make you realise who your real friends are. Do you agree or disagree?)

The Yorkshire Dales

I'm back! we've had a lovely few days chilling out, eating good food, drinking tea, resisting the urge to buy up entire second hand bookshops and actually doing quite a lot of exercise. I didn't mean to, it just kind of happened. And most of it was fun.

Monday was book day
We spent the day exploring Sedburgh ("England's book town"), although a lot of it was still closed. I was convinced spring had sprung because the weather had seemed so lovely and bright and hopeful at home. It seems spring has yet to creep up to Yorkshire. There was some evidence in the valleys but apparently the force of new life is not strong enough yet to climb the mountainsides. Give it a little more time.
I got a couple of 'geeky' books about popular science (to add to the pile of half read 'thinking' type books I already have) and one claiming to introduce philosophy in an accessible way. From the things my friend who studied philosophy at Uni used to say I'm not sure such a thing is possible, but I would like to know more so thought it was worth a try.
I also got a few knickknacks to start off my spring swap package. Not books though, too heavy for the postage!

Tuesday was crazy vertical biking day
or it felt like at least. I used to ride a bike quite a lot as a teenager. It was a useful way to get places, and helped me get there quicker than walking and with less potential for ickyness than getting the bus.
Last year I had decided that it would be a good thing to do more exercise and that getting a bike would be a good way of making this happen. I got a bike, but it didnt happen. So at Christmas when A got a new bike he talked me into restarting the whole bike thing. My new new bike is red and white and black, and I got a helmet to match.
The plan to keep it interesting was to try some 'forest trails', so I looked up some places near our holiday spot and we set off to try out Gisburn forest. Yes, some forest trails, and also some crazy mad twisty paths made of logs over a swamp. They were obviously designed for actual moutainbikers rather than me, but it's quite tricky to get back off a trail of wood the width of a human being that is floating over a swamp. I wibbled and wobbled and walked my way through it, and didn't fall in. First achievement of the day.
Once I escaped the floating wood swamp a lot of the other paths were pretty good fun, especially the one were I got to be a human marble on wheels, weaving my way down a zig zag path between the trees. The whole forest seemed to be a really good mix of paths for walking, riding, and being crazy on if you were that way inclined.
Since I got through the trip without getting covered head to toe in mud or breaking anything I have decided I enjoy mountain biking.

I'll tell you about Wednesday (a hill, inside and out) and Thursday (more bikes) later. For now it is time for tea.

So true

Dear Future

Update

Life could be described as hectic. It would be a fair desciption of the last few months. (We've bought a house and the wedding is just over three months away.) The hat from the last post remains incomplete (and the person who's birthday it was made for is nearly three months older...oops).

I'm thankful that:

• it's starting to feel like spring...I didn't need my coat this afternoon
• we're going on holiday next week...a whole week of not working, country pubs, good food, walking, riding, afternoon tea and sleeping!
• I've had a whole evening to hang out with my parents, and mum and I get a whole day together tomorrow.
• my car is shiny...she got a full clean on tuesday and is all gleaming and shiny red, and also clean inside. it makes the world feel a better place when I walk out and see her.
• my friend has had her mortgage approved...it's exciting!

Do any of you start to feel more alive and upbeat when the sun starts to feel warm on your face each day? there's something about it that makes the world a more positive place (maybe its a subconsicous reaction to the feeling of vitamin D being formed in my body). Winter has felt too long and too cold this year, layers may be fashionable but I am fed up of them.

Once the internet is on at the new house I will try and get back into the habit of updating. Can anyone offer me some advice about how to upload photos...I'm going to have to find the cable in the mass of muddled cables I think. That way things will get a bit mroe interesting to look at here.

Hopefully speak again soon