Signs of Progress
Posted: Sun 14 December, 2014 | Author: Lyle | Filed under: Business, Creativity, D4D™, Depression, Domestic, Geeky, Introspective, People, Sociable | Leave a comment »Last week, I had a couple of indicators that things are definitely in a recovery pattern for me again. (And not just that contract offer a month before the current one expires) This year’s been pretty up-and-down, albeit with more ‘down’ than was feasible or expected, so it’s good that it appears to be closing off on a period of much-needed ‘up’.
The first real thing has been the ability/desire to get out a bit over the last month or so. As already blogged, I’ve been off to Felixstowe and Brighton, as well as two London concerts. That’s a massive improvement over a lot of the year already.
Next was the MK Geek Night last Thursday. I’ve been going to this now for a couple of years, but this year had a couple of wobbles – one where I didn’t want to go because of Too Many People, and one where I was simply too busy/overworked to go (although that one also had the potential for Too Many People as well as A Couple Of People I Really Didn’t Want To See) Me being me, I usually get myself a bit stressed about it due to the whole lots-of-people thing anyway, but those couple of times this year it felt pretty insurmountable.
However, this time it didn’t worry me at all – just turned up with some other friends, and all was good. That, I think, was the real ‘lightbulb moment’, that showed me I was doing better now than I have been in a while. Indeed, I even commented on it to one of the friends while we were there. Definitely A Good Thing.
And finally, I’ve started writing again. There’s a couple of ideas on the burners, and as yet I’m not sure if they’ll actually go through to completion – but they’re being written, which is another major sign of things being better.
So yes, it’s all a bit positive. Of course, the pessimist side of me is now just waiting for the other shoe to drop, for something to mess up a bit, but that’s par for the course – and I’m not hiding away or sheltering and trying to avoid the shoe when/if it does drop, I’m getting on with things in the meantime.
Signs of Life
Posted: Mon 10 November, 2014 | Author: Lyle | Filed under: Bankruptcy, Cynicism, Domestic, Driving, Finances, Getting Organised, Sociable, Stupidity, Thoughts | Leave a comment »Now that work-based sanity appears to have made a return, things are coming back to a more even keel – both life-wise and fiscally.
For me, the first major sign of this came this weekend, which went thusly…
On the Saturday, I went to meet up with friends in Nottingham. When I left home, it was a decent day, so I didn’t bother checking if I had a jacket/coat with me. (You can see where this is going already, can’t you?)
By the time I was halfway up the M1, it was absolutely slashing down, waterlogged roads the lot. “Bugger”, thought I, “but at least I’ve a jacket or coat in the boot”.
Once I got to Nottingham, it was still pissing down, but I parked up, and opened the boot. Jacket, there was none. Coat, there was none. Fuck it, thought I.
Due to being (as always) pathologically early, I still had the chance to go and buy a new jacket, so I did.
And that was the sign of being OK again. It wasn’t a worry, I knew I had the available money. I could afford this extra unexpected expense, and it didn’t mean I was concerned about what’d happen at the end of the month, what would be needed to counteract this item.
It’s still annoying, because if there’s something I really didn’t need, it’s another bloody jacket. I don’t even wear them most of the time. But needs must when the devil drives, or when the clouds open. It’s one of those things, a bit annoying, but better to have a day of not being soaking wet and enjoying things far less as a result.
But it was positive for showing the process of recovery after the shitty job…
Feastless
Posted: Mon 4 August, 2014 | Author: Lyle | Filed under: Domestic, Food, Getting Organised, London, Sleep - or lack thereof, Sociable, Travel | 1 Comment »This weekend just gone, I was planning to go to Feast in London, but events conspired against me.
I was going to go on Friday, but didn’t even get out of work ’til gone 8pm. It would’ve been at least 9 by the time I got there (by which time I could also have been home), another hour to get back to wherever I’d left the car, and then an hour to get home. And frankly, I was knackered anyway. So no.
Saturday was never going to happen – I was seeing parents during the day, and getting domestic sluttery out of the way in the afternoon/evening.
Sunday was a maybe. And turned into a no. Work stuff rose up to bite me, along with a general disinclination to travel back into London on a day when I didn’t need to make the journey.
And so I missed it. I think if I’d been really enthused I’d have made the time/effort to go (as I will with Meatopia at the same place in a month’s time) but everything else just made me think “Blah”.
Of course if I’d booked it in to go with anyone else, things would’ve been different. But I hadn’t, so they weren’t.
And that’s that. I’ll try to go to the next one instead.
Leisure Mileage
Posted: Sat 31 May, 2014 | Author: Lyle | Filed under: Domestic, Driving, Gigs, M25, Sociable, Thoughts, Travel | 1 Comment »Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve covered over a thousand miles just for social stuff.
Last weekend (the Bank Holiday) was notably mental, even by my standards. It involved :
- Friday. Go to work, come back at lunchtime, drive down to the O2 to see Nine Inch Nails in concert, and drive home. Home at 1am.
- Saturday. Drive down to Tunbridge Wells for a friend’s birthday do. Enjoy that, not drink much, then think “sod it” and drive home at the end of the night rather than sleeping in a tent. Home at 1.30ish.
- Sunday. See the parents for a fleeting visit, just so we all know that each other is alive.
- Monday. Drive over to Brentwood to meet up with friends. Drive home.
All told, that little lot amassed some 750 miles – and meant I travelled the same section of M25 (from M1 round to Dartford Crossing, or thereabouts) no less than three times in four days.. And then a meeting on the Tuesday down in Hampshire.
This weekend is a little bit calmer, but still consists of
- Friday. Normal work travel, cinema in the evening, then home.
- Saturday. Into Milton Keynes, collect new glasses and do some other domestic tat. Then drive down to Somerset for a house-warming thing, stopping off at Bristol to collect a couple of train-travellers and get them there too
- Sunday. Come back. (Unsure yet whether that’ll also be via Bristol or not)
- Monday. New job, new office, similar commute to the last month.
And next weekend involves a trip into London to meet up with friends and visit a couple of galleries with exhibitions I want to see.
I must be bloody barmy…
Hectic
Posted: Fri 21 March, 2014 | Author: Lyle | Filed under: Domestic, Insomnia, London, Own Business, Sleep - or lack thereof, Sociable, Work-related | 1 Comment »Another busy week, what with one thing and another. Lots of prospective work, lots of paperwork, and being sociable as well. It’s a tough life.
As it is, it looks like I’ve now got work in from two ex-clients, as well as the ‘proper’ job, and some prospective bits along the way – and there’s still the other prospective bits I want to do for my own company/business.
Other than that, the week has also involved trips to see friends, cinema visits, and tonight I’m in London to see Bill Bailey do a test-run of his new show.
Hopefully the weekend will involve down-time – although I’m not convinced – and I’m currently debating taking a day off next week just to catch up on some sleep and other stuff.
So yeah, back to business as usual next week, I think. Or maybe some updates over the weekend too – depends how things go.
Surprised
Posted: Mon 17 March, 2014 | Author: Lyle | Filed under: Domestic, Sociable, Sweary | Leave a comment »Over the weekend, I saw one of the funniest things in ages.
Grabbing lunch in a restaurant, a family were sat near me. Parents and two daughters, about seven and ten (at a wild guess). The children had obviously been bickering, and it had carried on into the restaurant. Not loud enough to be annoying, just children noise, with the older one snarking at the younger pretty much constantly.
Obviously it all got too much, and the younger one yelled at full volume “Oh, just FUCK OFF!” Impossible to miss.
It was hilarious. Obviously the parents didn’t think the girl knew language like this, and the elder one was pretty shocked too – enough that she shut up, obviously knowing that things had Gone Too Far.
And I’m sure I’m not the only person in that place who was just about crying with laughter.
Peak Mileage
Posted: Mon 10 March, 2014 | Author: Lyle | Filed under: Domestic, Driving, Sleep - or lack thereof, Sociable, Travel | Leave a comment »A good weekend has been had, allbeit with a fair number of miles involved. Nowhere near any of my super-heavy-mileage weekends of previous years, but still not bad.
A very good friend was having her wedding (technically her second wedding, but we’ll gloss over that) up in the Peak District – just outside Darley Dale and Matlock – so Saturday morning was a quick drive up the M1 and up to the venue in plenty of time, so I had a wander through Matlock as well. Sadly, it turned out that Matlock was having Dipshits Day Out, leading to whole hordes of fuckwits in the shops and pub where I went for a drink while wasting time. Ye Gods.
A great wedding (and venue) made the rest of the day really good, along with meeting up with old friends and so on.
Sunday was glorious, and a trip over to see another old friend in New Mills ensued, including sitting out in the sun and putting the world to rights. Then a drive down to near-Oxford to see the parents before they bugger off to the US for a couple of weeks, and then finally home. All told, just over 400 miles in two days…
- Home -> Peak District (130 miles)
- Peak -> New Mills (40 miles)
- New Mills -> Parents (200 miles)
- Parents -> Home (40 miles)
And then just the usual 40 mile commute this morning as usual!