Sooo tired...
Today, my baby boy turned 24. Where does the time go? I baked a rather yummy (if I do say so myself) chocolate orange cake.
On Monday morning, my work diary for this week was only about half full but by midday all the clear space had vanished. Next week was already rammed but people kept squeezing more in, so I'm already exhausted just thinking about it. I don't just put meetings in my diary, I put in time for the planning I need to do before the meeting and time for any outcomes or follow-up.
I also put in any random requests that land on my desk so that a) I don't forget to do them, b) I know I've given a proper amount of time to get them done, c) I don't interrupt what I'm doing at the moment and d) so that I can demonstrate what I've done. Not that anyone is ever demanding to see my workload - although I do have a fortnightly 1-1 with my line manager - but it means I could show anyone who did ask.
This week also saw my 1st annual review - Professional Development and Performance Review - with my new line manager. Hopefully he'll also do the one next year, which will be something of a novelty; I've had 5 line managers in the last 5 years! I do like him and he lets me just get on with my work without leaning over me all the time. I would like some more guidance on how to progress from project support to business analysis but he's given me some things to work on and did say that the Director's expectation is that I will get the promotion to BA. So, I think I'm on the right track.
I've made some progress with Ni No Kuni and have had one of my guesses about who Pea really is partly confirmed. Last night I had four boss battles in quick succession with no chance to replenish my provisions in between :( The first three were that old classic 1-boss-3-forms, so beloved by FF games. There was at least a chance to replenish HP and MP and save after them and before the fourth. I now have two more to face, I think, although I am hoping I'll be able to buy some food and coffee before them. Or maybe I'll be able to fight some random battles for ingredients and use the cauldron...
There's nothing terribly complex about the story but it has kept me engaged because there is depth to it. And complexity isn't necessarily a good thing *cough*FF8*cough*.
Oh, my talk on story telling was well received on Sunday. When it goes up on the blog, I'll post a link.
And I've done some thinking about Mannerley - I'm considering changing the 'curse' to a 'secret', which I personally would find more believable. I've run the scenario past a couple of my beta readers and am waiting to hear their thoughts. I've now gone through all of the chapters and made some notes on what could be improved, assuming I left it as it is. But at the very least, it needs some rearranging.
OK, well, I really am tired, so I'm going to sign off. Goodnight, LJ.
On Monday morning, my work diary for this week was only about half full but by midday all the clear space had vanished. Next week was already rammed but people kept squeezing more in, so I'm already exhausted just thinking about it. I don't just put meetings in my diary, I put in time for the planning I need to do before the meeting and time for any outcomes or follow-up.
I also put in any random requests that land on my desk so that a) I don't forget to do them, b) I know I've given a proper amount of time to get them done, c) I don't interrupt what I'm doing at the moment and d) so that I can demonstrate what I've done. Not that anyone is ever demanding to see my workload - although I do have a fortnightly 1-1 with my line manager - but it means I could show anyone who did ask.
This week also saw my 1st annual review - Professional Development and Performance Review - with my new line manager. Hopefully he'll also do the one next year, which will be something of a novelty; I've had 5 line managers in the last 5 years! I do like him and he lets me just get on with my work without leaning over me all the time. I would like some more guidance on how to progress from project support to business analysis but he's given me some things to work on and did say that the Director's expectation is that I will get the promotion to BA. So, I think I'm on the right track.
I've made some progress with Ni No Kuni and have had one of my guesses about who Pea really is partly confirmed. Last night I had four boss battles in quick succession with no chance to replenish my provisions in between :( The first three were that old classic 1-boss-3-forms, so beloved by FF games. There was at least a chance to replenish HP and MP and save after them and before the fourth. I now have two more to face, I think, although I am hoping I'll be able to buy some food and coffee before them. Or maybe I'll be able to fight some random battles for ingredients and use the cauldron...
There's nothing terribly complex about the story but it has kept me engaged because there is depth to it. And complexity isn't necessarily a good thing *cough*FF8*cough*.
Oh, my talk on story telling was well received on Sunday. When it goes up on the blog, I'll post a link.
And I've done some thinking about Mannerley - I'm considering changing the 'curse' to a 'secret', which I personally would find more believable. I've run the scenario past a couple of my beta readers and am waiting to hear their thoughts. I've now gone through all of the chapters and made some notes on what could be improved, assuming I left it as it is. But at the very least, it needs some rearranging.
OK, well, I really am tired, so I'm going to sign off. Goodnight, LJ.