Typecast

It was April 2005.  A few months earlier my mum had died and, as part of this defining time in my life, I made the move to return to work after spending 14 years as a ' Stay At Home Mum '.  I spent six weeks temping and then attended an interview for a 9-month project administration contract. I was offered the job but had no idea how the decision to take up that position was going to change my life. Eight months passed and I grew to respect the woman who was my boss. I was working for a small not-for-profit educational charity and there was so much scope with the services we offered.  My boss, Jackie, was an innovator and a forward-thinker and I wanted to stay a part of the vision she had planned for the organisation.  I managed to negotiate a further year's contract and the company continued to grow.  I started managing monthly finances, made the administrative role my own and grew with confidence.  I  was also offered a permanent contract. ...

Whilst dabbling in a bit of (very) amateur photography I occasionally have a favourite photo printed onto canvas.  It's usually a scenery picture and used to brighten up the walls in the lounge or at a focal point on the stairs.  Most recently I have had two images put through the process by PrinterPix . I sent off an image of my son after his Territorial Army passing out parade in April (proud parent moment) and one of our dog on the beach from a few months ago.  They were returned within a few days and looked even better than I had imagined. Soldier Boy is on a canvas that is 16" x 20" on a standard thickness (2cm) frame.  Michi is on a 12" x 16" canvas which is stretched onto a thickeer (4cm) frame.  Both have been printed using a gloss finish.   All canvases from PrinterPix are hand-stretched, use fade-resistant ink and tension wedges are fitted into the corners of each frame to aid stability. What do you think?  I'm in l...

*  slight exaggeration I'm getting my lardy arse off the settee and doing something about moving further than the settee to the car and back again.  I can't run very well and have failed miserably at 'going to the gym' in the past.  But now I have a purpose and this time it's not for me - it's for something far more important. Back in 1992 our world was turned upside down.  Our daughter, Rachel, was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma .  Cancer... that dirty word that no-one ever wants to say.  And when cancer affects children, people want to talk about it even less.  But thanks to the amazing health service that we have here in the UK and the phenomenal work that researchers conduct on medication we still have our daughter with us. Aqua Pura ( official sponsors of the Race For Life) approached me last week and asked me if I wanted to be a part of this year's event.  I jumped at the chance, obviously.  Then I looked at the ...

We're ploughing on to another Soundtrack To My Life and this week we have Jean sharing her musical choices.  I've met Jean on a couple of occasions when we have been involved in blogging projects (we are both Northern bloggers - YAY!).  She is a fantastic single parent to two girls and (in her own words) is a soppy dog owner.  All Jean's links are at the end of the post but, for now, here are her tunes. ¨¨°º©©º°¨¨ David Bowie - Let's Dance   I had to include one song by my favourite singer, and although it's not my favourite Bowie track (which is probably Drive-In Saturday) this one reminds me of my first serious boyfriend. It was a song we both loved and we'd have it on loud in the car driving to North Wales for the weekend. Great song, great first love. Kate Bush - Wuthering Heights   The first time I heard this song on the radio I was mesmerised - I'd never heard anything like it before, and then when she performed it on Top of t...

Time for another post at  The High Tea Cast .  Today, I'm talking about my favourite films and film moments in Girl, On Film .  I'd love to hear what you think. Find all my articles on The High Tea Cast here 

It is that time of year again.  We submit our most mediocre song of the year to the biggest song contest on our continent and attempt to win a hugely political vote.   I don't normally write about the Eurovision Song Contest.  I just sit with my laptop on my knee and tweet my observations, fuelled by a bottle of wine or two.  I follow the  @BBCEurovision account and have all the #Eurovision tweets live streaming. It is actually one of THE BEST night of the year on Twitter.  I'm convinced this type of social interaction is what Twitter was made for.  And with the semi-finals that have been introduced, you can build up to the Saturday night excitement on BBC3.  It's a party that lasts all week - genius!  You can find your Eurovision Bingo Card at the bottom of this post, courtesy of  Bob Bardsley  of  Phronsis Freelance . This year, my friend Paula  has excelled herself with a challenge we discussed earlier...

Occasionally I lend my blog to my friends.  Friends that need a space to shout, friends that need a space to be anonymous from their world, friends that need a bit of support, friends that are doing good in the world.  This is one of those occasions.  I'd love for you to read Tracy's post and help out at the end if you can.  Thanks.   ¨¨°º©©º°¨¨ Hello! It’s Tracy here, friend and massive fan of Nickie and her world, just adore her blog and everything that she does. Anyway! I've asked to come on here and share a wee bit about my most recent awesome experience - Nickie very kindly obliged, so here goes. It’s Monday the 13 th of May, late in the evening, and yesterday I completed the Glasgow Women’s 10k with my amazing friend Lynn - we did it in one hour twelve minutes, and we are very proud of this given it was our first 10k race. A great wee achievement, and a real honour and privilege to see so many other women complete it too. If y...

Debbie has patiently been waiting since October for me to publish her Soundtrack To My Life .  She is mum to three children and lives in South Wales with a small menagerie.  Debbie blogs just because she can and her details are at the end of this post.  But let's start with her tunes ( there's even one of my guilty pleasures in this list and I have a story for Seasons in the Sun too - but more of that another time )... ¨¨°º©©º°¨¨ Terry Jacks - Seasons in the Sun   My mum and dad really introduced me to music. Thursday nights at 7pm were sacred. A bit like being allowed to sort through button boxes and jewellery boxes, every now and again on a Sunday night, after we had all been bathed, I was allowed back downstairs to listen to LPs with my mum. Now, with my own daughter, I am not sure who was fooling who, but I remember the more records I lined up to listen to the later I got to stay up, until my mum would realise the time and I'd go straight to bed. ...

Ladders are a necessity in this house as we have very high ceilings.  Also, being an end terrace means that we get the brunt of the weather so outside touch-ups are an annual activity.  We have a huge set of metal ladders that reside outside, chained to the fence for security.  This review will compare the use and build of a telescopic ladder in comparison to our existing metal ladder. The ladder can be found in the Home & DIY section of the Maplin website. The Review The ladder is extremely light and portable.  The specifications say that it weighs only 8kg (the equivalent of eight bags of sugar).  When closed down it easily fitted under my arm and could be carried all over the house and the garden. What stands out immediately is that the ladder does not need to be extended to its full reach; it can be opened to any convenient height for the job that you are doing and it is still really sturdy.  For this, I'd advise extending the ladd...

I always knew that I had a face for radio and I can talk the hind leg off a donkey when it's a subject I'm comfortable with.  So from ringing up for random quiz shows and late night chat shows to appearing as a guest on BBC Lancashire , I found myself in a Preston FM studio being interviewed in a work capacity by Will Buckley for the Chat City programme. The second I pushed the set of guest headphones over my ears I knew I'd found a comfort zone.  The show recording passed all too quickly however Will talked me into returning to Chat City on a couple more occasions.  It has been a great place to promote work in a local setting and also to learn that I definitely do love the medium of radio presenting. Preston FM is a community radio station.  Presenters are volunteers and are from the local area.  They have free-rein over topics and music that is featured on-air.  So when the station offered the opportunity to train as a presenter I jumpe...

Today is my birthday.   It is not a special birthday with a zero on the end ( that was last year ) but it is twenty five years since I left school (and the first time that anyone took GCSE's). So, in the year that Alexandra Burke, Jessie J, Rihanna, Tinie Tempah and Tulisa Contostavlos were born  and in the year that Kenneth Williams, Percy Thrower  Roy Kinnear, Roy Orbison and Russell Harty died all of this was happening.  ¨¨°º©©º°¨¨ 1988  Films I watched were... The Accused, Big, Moonwalker, Rainman, Young Guns Music I was listening to was... Blue Monday by New Order, Faith by George Michael, Need You Tonight by INXS, Sign Your Name by Terence Trent d'Arby, The Only Way Is Up by Yazz and the Plastic Population The TV programmes I was watching were... Neighbours (because it moved to the 5.25pm tea time slot), Red Dwarf, Roseanne, This Morning (with Richa...

There have been many a great TV theme tune ; it's a talent that cannot be surpassed. You have approximately 30 seconds to set the tone of the show and create something catchy and instantly recognisable.  So, after a conversation on Twitter and Facebook I decided to compile my Top Ten TV Theme Tunes (bit of fantastic alliteration for you there).  There are many that didn't quite make the grade and they are listed at the bottom. What would make the top spot on your list? Let me know in the comments. ¨¨°º©©º°¨¨   Six Feet Under The South Bank Show The Muppet Show   Grange Hill   Jonny Briggs   The Fresh Prince of Bel Air Blossom   Dallas   Hawaii 5-0   Scrubs   The ones that didn't quite make it... The Golden Girls, Cheers, Taxi, Hill Street Blues, Mysterious Cities of Gold, Brush Strokes, Lovejoy, Murder She Wrote, True Blood, ...