(no subject)
My new job is, er, rather tiring. By which I mean I have spent more than a few walks home mumbling 'oh god I've made a terrible mistake' and getting a bit tear-y about how much I miss my old job.
In what will be a surprise to no one, I'm starting to settle down a bit. The people remain Very Nice, although I keep saying this sort of hesitantly as one or two personality clashes are starting to come in. They're all salespeople, they are very, er, French in temperament. I keep having to say things like 'no, that's illegal' and also gently point out that you will be paid when you are paid, dude, seriously, it's the 24th, calm the fuck down. (That said: I've never done payroll before and I made two really minor-but-terrifying errors this week that led to me going on lunch, walking around the corner, crouching down and desperately trying to calm my breathing. Oh god.) And it's not all bad! It's very exciting when I get to control stuff that is my own stuff to control; I have made a hire for a role that no one thought I could fill without agencies; I have to work out a budget which is scary but also exciting. It's just, well, the office is cold and in a crappy part of Zone 1 and in my first week the flat above had a massive flood and now we don't have a lot of lighting in my spot and oh yes, I am also the office manager, which, hrm.
I am currently sticking with a mantra that I only need to stick with this for a year, and that is no time at all. Honest. Plus I get an assistant soon, and that will really help. Wahey.
I think I just miss my old job. Fortunately on Thursday I'm crashing the Secret Party that the old crew are having, so that will be fun.
It doesn't help that I also managed to fall into a fairly bad loop of winter blues; I didn't get out of bed to run, so my mood dropped lower, so I had less motivation to get of bed, oh dear look at the loop go. I worked out what was going on quick enough to start taking vitamin D and start forcing myself out of the door at lunchtime for a walk. (Also: I have to eat al desko until the summer comes and I can sit by one of the green spaces I've started to ferret out so getting some space from people is also deeply helpful.) But yes, a new job which involves having to be perky and helpful combined with the sun just disappearing has not been super amazing.
Things are not as awful as I'm making them sound! I'm getting out running again and my mood is genuinely better on the days I manage to do a jog before work. (Disclaimer: works for me, will not work for everyone.) But payroll today really kicked my ass, to be honest. Some stuff is good! On my first week on work, Richie took me out on Friday night for a meal in Walthamstow village. We haven't been out with just the two of us for a while and it was a real delight to just share a bottle of wine, far too much French food in a properly delightful local restaurant.
A couple of weekends ago, Matt came to London for the day and we had A Day Out; we visited the Hunterian museum and then braved Islington to go to the Bill Murray, because we're just that cool. A big storm meant Matt ended up staying over, which ended up being far too late a night...
This weekend, Katie came to stay! It was a close-run thing if she could even come, as she'd been really ill recently, involving a whole fortnight in hospital. Eeek! But she hauled herself down to London and we had a lovely low-key weekend; on Saturday I finally got to give her the 30th birthday present and we went to the Harry Potter Studios in Watford. People have been telling me to go for years and I feel very stupid for having put it off for so long - it was bloody brilliant. I read Cursed Child (er, hm) and I have yet to see Fantastic Beasts but goodness me, I forgot how much I love Harry Potter. Katie and I were the only ones cheering for Hufflepuff and I must have taken hundreds of pictures, but it was just... well, magical is a cliche, but it really is. Thoroughly recommended to anyone that can make it.
And now, another week. We're hurtling into December now and I'm hoping my usual flurry of Seeing People For Festive Purposes will see me easily through the next month. And then... 2017. Which has to be a better year, right? I mean... well, if worse comes to to worst at least no one can vote for Trump again in 2017. (I have a feeling that the horror that is this year, politically, is not helping my overall winter blues. I know, I know, me and everyone else.)
In what will be a surprise to no one, I'm starting to settle down a bit. The people remain Very Nice, although I keep saying this sort of hesitantly as one or two personality clashes are starting to come in. They're all salespeople, they are very, er, French in temperament. I keep having to say things like 'no, that's illegal' and also gently point out that you will be paid when you are paid, dude, seriously, it's the 24th, calm the fuck down. (That said: I've never done payroll before and I made two really minor-but-terrifying errors this week that led to me going on lunch, walking around the corner, crouching down and desperately trying to calm my breathing. Oh god.) And it's not all bad! It's very exciting when I get to control stuff that is my own stuff to control; I have made a hire for a role that no one thought I could fill without agencies; I have to work out a budget which is scary but also exciting. It's just, well, the office is cold and in a crappy part of Zone 1 and in my first week the flat above had a massive flood and now we don't have a lot of lighting in my spot and oh yes, I am also the office manager, which, hrm.
I am currently sticking with a mantra that I only need to stick with this for a year, and that is no time at all. Honest. Plus I get an assistant soon, and that will really help. Wahey.
I think I just miss my old job. Fortunately on Thursday I'm crashing the Secret Party that the old crew are having, so that will be fun.
It doesn't help that I also managed to fall into a fairly bad loop of winter blues; I didn't get out of bed to run, so my mood dropped lower, so I had less motivation to get of bed, oh dear look at the loop go. I worked out what was going on quick enough to start taking vitamin D and start forcing myself out of the door at lunchtime for a walk. (Also: I have to eat al desko until the summer comes and I can sit by one of the green spaces I've started to ferret out so getting some space from people is also deeply helpful.) But yes, a new job which involves having to be perky and helpful combined with the sun just disappearing has not been super amazing.
Things are not as awful as I'm making them sound! I'm getting out running again and my mood is genuinely better on the days I manage to do a jog before work. (Disclaimer: works for me, will not work for everyone.) But payroll today really kicked my ass, to be honest. Some stuff is good! On my first week on work, Richie took me out on Friday night for a meal in Walthamstow village. We haven't been out with just the two of us for a while and it was a real delight to just share a bottle of wine, far too much French food in a properly delightful local restaurant.
A couple of weekends ago, Matt came to London for the day and we had A Day Out; we visited the Hunterian museum and then braved Islington to go to the Bill Murray, because we're just that cool. A big storm meant Matt ended up staying over, which ended up being far too late a night...
This weekend, Katie came to stay! It was a close-run thing if she could even come, as she'd been really ill recently, involving a whole fortnight in hospital. Eeek! But she hauled herself down to London and we had a lovely low-key weekend; on Saturday I finally got to give her the 30th birthday present and we went to the Harry Potter Studios in Watford. People have been telling me to go for years and I feel very stupid for having put it off for so long - it was bloody brilliant. I read Cursed Child (er, hm) and I have yet to see Fantastic Beasts but goodness me, I forgot how much I love Harry Potter. Katie and I were the only ones cheering for Hufflepuff and I must have taken hundreds of pictures, but it was just... well, magical is a cliche, but it really is. Thoroughly recommended to anyone that can make it.
And now, another week. We're hurtling into December now and I'm hoping my usual flurry of Seeing People For Festive Purposes will see me easily through the next month. And then... 2017. Which has to be a better year, right? I mean... well, if worse comes to to worst at least no one can vote for Trump again in 2017. (I have a feeling that the horror that is this year, politically, is not helping my overall winter blues. I know, I know, me and everyone else.)