End of July Update
Saturday, August 1st, 2009
86.1kg
Another month down and not much to show for it. My lack of consistent exercise and diet for the last month and a half is now catching up with me as my weight goes sideways rather than down - obviously some renewed dedication is required.
On a positive note, I am writing this on the train home on my new MacBook Air - yes I finally got those fraudulent credit card charges reversed and Apple eventually shipped the thing to me (after a week!) I am also trialling the Internet tethering with O2 via my iPhone. So far so good - I definately appreciate not having to carry round yet another device (ie USB modem) - and the pricing appeared to be no worse than any other carrier. I expect I’ll be iChatting and Skyping my family and friends this weekend, this time with video. Now all I have to do is work out how to a) keep Lou off of it and b) resist her pressure to buy her one of her own. In a sacrilegious move I have already installed Windows XP on it via VirtualBox. (RedDot will only work through Internet Explorer)
Lou has got the itch for Scotland again, so we have been investigating “commuting” from Edinburgh to London as my job prospects there appear limited and inconsistent. So far it doesn’t seem too bad - though it would be better if I could manage a four rather than five day week. Flights from Edinburgh to London seem to be about £50 each way (less if organised in advance, though I haven’t taken into account seasonal variations yet) which works out to about the same price as my monthly season ticket for the train from Reading to London. The flight is an hour fifteen, so assuming the entire journey takes me three and a half hours it will be no worse than my present commute - only two days a week instead of five. It looks like we will save another £650 per month on parking and rent, which should more than cover three or four nights accommodation per week if I’m not fussy (and willing to share). We might even come out ahead (financially speaking) - assuming all those small costs I haven’t considered yet don’t chew through the surplus. The major downside at the moment appears to be whether Lou can live without me for three or four nights a week.
Meanwhile, I have managed to start basing the miniatures Paul gave me for my birthday and have some more of my own with there base coats complete. I needed some bike bases - so a Games Workshop order later I have some more tools and bitz to continue building Da Ork Angelz - including the painting station to allow me to work on them down stairs while keeping Lou company. I have also bought a natural light lamp so that my painting is not restricted by the English weather (its supposed to be summer right?)
Lou is continuing her creative energies, having taken up drawing and started her own blog - Easily Amused. Go check it out and leaver her a comment!
Last but not least, I have been making great strides with my French learning. Now that I am on top of my “professional” podcasts, my drives to and from Reading station are dedicated to listening to Coffee Break French. I am up to the fourth series (which actually only puts me coming up to the end of season one!) I tried several French learning programs before settling on Coffee Break French - but I found this one to be the easiest and most helpful - even if it did feel a little weird learning French from Scots in the beginning. The first series was easy as my five years of French at high school were obviously not completely wasted, though I am now finding it a lot more challenging. I think I am going to need to do a repeat of season one before moving on to season two and I am seriously considering purchasing the bonus materials. Moving to Scotland will probably put our trip to France back to early next year - so I have a little more time to improve my confidence.
Anyway - that’s it for now. Catchya!
Adrian