Take Me Down...Spin Me Round...

So, what have I been upto recently?  Well, I've been under threat of redundancy for 5 months so that was a rather unfortunate time where I didn't do much as had to save money in case I was without a job, and then that disappeared so I went to Las Vegas again!!

Guns N' Roses had announced they were going to do a residency, Appetite For Democracy, at The Joint in the Hard Rock Hotel in Vegas.  Since I went there for NYE, there was NO WAY I wasn't going to go back there.  Las Vegas is an incredible place and I had the money so, why not?

One thing that had changed since I last went, I had gotten myself a lovely boyfriend so he came along too.  

We spent 5 days basking in the extreme November sunshine (Vegas doesn't 'do' November Rain like England does), visiting the themed hotels, gambling, drinking (an 8.45am cocktail is just the way you want to start the day in Vegas!) and shopping (1am shopping on Black Friday was his idea, strangely).

This place really is 24/7, if something is shut, then so what? There will be so much other stuff open to do in the meantime.  

Highlights included; seeing Captain Jack Sparrow running down the street, the New York New York rollercoaster ride, winning (small scale) at roulette and the amazing food that is on offer in the States.

Now, the Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Democracy experience, that is another story..!

What this means to me is more than I know you believe

I'm really pissed at myself for not being smarter.  I went all the way to Las Vegas to see Guns N Roses in December because a) c'mon, it's Vegas, but also b) I didn't know when I was going to have the chance to see them again.  So, when I heard they were playing in the UK in May/June, I bought a ticket to 4 shows...despite only being able to make it to 2 shows because of prior commitments - why I didn't check my dates before booking them, I don't know - I guess it was all the 'excitement' (Note: I don't ever get excited)  How did it not twig with me that UK shows were part of a larger European tour and I could have easily gone to more dates!?


So, why on earth did I not plan better and get tickets for Holland, France and/or Germany??  Holland would have been amazing and it's quite a bit closer than the US, closer and cheaper.  There is a slim chance that I can go to one of the Spanish dates...is anyone else going to a Spanish date?  


I'm a doughnut.

Oh Won't You Please Take Me Home

I'm so glad to be here...I'm really glad to be here...!


I rocked up at the O2 and made my way through the crowds at 9pm on Friday June 1st 2012...there was no point being early and actually I was a little later than I hoped but got a relatively good spot and watched Thin Lizzy from afar.  


The wait for GNR was I think just over an hour, I didn't expect anything less.  This was my 8th Guns N Roses show so I knew that I was in for a good time as soon as I heard that ChiDem opener from DJ.  There were a few boos but I kept myself entertained by talking to people on twitter from my @Axls_Rose account (what a brilliant play on words eh?) since I was on my own...something I'd later regret as my phone battery ran out.  Next time, if I haven't finished Duff's book by then, I shall take it with me.


The audience were getting really excited when the rigging men climbed the rigging as we knew it wasn't long to go before the band took to the stage.  Then what seemed out of nowhere, the house lights went down and the GNR video sequence began.  Guitarist DJ Ashba took to the stage and climbed up on to speakers in front of drummer Frank's drum kit and bashed out the opening riff of Chinese Democracy, it really is a fantastic song to start a concert with.  The audience went wild jumping around when hearing those distinctive opening bars.  Axl calmly walked out on to stage and dove straight in with.. "It don't really matter".

The setlist was a complete mix up of old and new songs.  I noticed that I was the only person around me yelling (I can't sing in tune, in fact I can barely talk in tune) the lyrics to songs off Chinese Democracy - which included the title track, Sorry, Street Of Dreams, Better, Shackler's Revenge, This I Love and Madagascar.  This tour has given me a new found love of Madagascar, it's such a wicked song to hear live, despite the backing track.


Audience members must have thrown objects on stage as Tommy told us off and then Axl backed him up "Stinson has laid down the law" he joked.  But then it must have happened again as Axl mentioned it a few songs later.  Luckily that's when it stopped and the band carried on with their set, I expect some drunken buffoons were just throwing stuff around, like you do when drunk, I know a girl next to me got hit in the head with an empty plastic cup.


A highlight of the evening was when Izzy Stradlin joined the band on stage.  That's right...IZZY STRADLIN!  I was at the London show in 2010 when Duff came on stage and then I got to see Izzy play with Axl as well on Friday.  I was stoked.  And then remembered that I had seen Izzy play with GNR before back in 2006...still though, I was really pleased to see him.  

There were some really irate mothers in the audience with their children as they had queued for hours to get to the front and then some people were pushing in to get to the front as the band were on.  I couldn't help but laugh, it's a rock concert, what do you expect??  Well behaved angels??

I can't stress enough how fantastic the show was, Axl was just incredible, he has a wicked sense of humour and was in good spirits, DJ was doing lots of his chest patting at people...does he know these people??, Bumblefoot was constantly on the move, I have no good photos of him, they're just a blur as he didn't stand still.  I was really pleased when it came to his solo and he played Glad To Be Here, I really love that song and it's incredibly catchy.  I once again missed Richard Fortus' James Bond Theme solo - he just performs it so well, I love it when he jumps around in circles.  Tommy, Frank and Chris were as usual more in the background but I couldn't fault their performance.

As the night came to a close, I was really disappointed that it would be my last time seeing this show again for a while.  I really hope that they come back to the UK soon, they have so many fans over here who love to see them perform, but for now it's time to hang up my Guns N Roses 'Bad Obsession' until next time.

Nothing lasts forever, even cold November Rain.  

Bad Obsession

It was 4.30pm on Saturday and I knew I should get a move on.  I had a ticket to see Guns N Roses in Nottingham...I was currently at the south coast of England.  Nottingham was 200 miles away - I only thought it was about 120 miles away so imagine my surprise when I did a route planner on Google Maps!  I got to Nottingham 4 hours after I set off at 8.40pm and then went to watch Thin Lizzy.  They were good and entertaining, I liked that one of their guitarist's looked like Richard Branson.  I was on my own (which appears to be a recurring theme when I see GNR) and stood patiently to the right of the audience.  


I gradually made my way to the front of the crowd who were surprisingly well behaved and passed the time by tweeting from my @Axls_Rose twitter account.  I did consider taking Duff's book with me to read as I know how late GNR can be sometimes (it was my 7th GNR show, I'm a GNR gig veteran now!) but unfortunately it was too big for the bag I took with me.

They took to the stage at about 22.47 and the crowd went absolutely wild.  There were a few boos before the band came on stage as the crowd was getting impatient and some middle aged guys behind me were getting rather agitated and saying that "Axl was taking the f***ing p*ss" etc.  When GNR came on stage though, that was all forgotten.  The crowd loved them, the same middle aged guys behind me were yelling to each other about how amazing Axl was and that the wait was worth it.  They were also shouting at Richard Fortus "Izzy, you're amazing!"...yes, they genuinely mistook Richard Fortus for Izzy Stradlin, that made me chuckle for a while!

GNR started their set, as they have for all 7 shows I have been to before, with Chinese Democracy.  I love that song and it's such a good show opener.  Most of the song was just an instrumental as Axl's mic stopped working - I did at this point panic a bit as thought he might have stopped the show completely and thrown a tantrum, but he was in good spirits and the mic sorted itself out (or he got a new one) by the 2nd song - Welcome To The Jungle.  


They played for a solid 2.5 hours and I loved every second of it.  They didn't play Shackler's Revenge, Patience or Whole Lotta Rosie though I was expecting them to.  Bumblefoot ditched his Pink Panther solo to perform a song of his - Glad To Be Here, which was actually fantastic, I will search YouTube to see that again.  I'm unsure if his back is any better (injury from a car accident) but he was moving around effortlessly - he was possibly doped up on painkillers.


I was a little disappointed that Richard Fortus changed his solo from a James Bond theme to whatever it was he played.  It sounded good, I just really like when he gets into the JB theme and jumps around in circles whilst playing it, though to be honest I soon forgave him when he took his shirt off - he has a FANTASTIC body.

I positioned myself to the right of the stage for a reason - DJ seems to frequent that side more than the other side, and true to form he did the same that night in Nottingham.  He was brilliant as usual and is really good at engaging with the audience and waving etc.  He's a real crowd pleaser, and is SO pretty!

Axl Rose was on top form, his voice sounded amazing and he was dancing around like he normally does, despite his majorly bruised leg (that was 50 shades of purple..!) from a hamstring injury after a fall in Russia.  He falls over a lot (see a clip on YouTube of him slipping over onto his bum after a gig in Liverpool on Sunday). 

I made it out of the arena at around 1.30am and left Nottingham for the 4 hour drive back home at 2am.  I was a bit unsure of going all that way on my own for their show, but it was fantastic and well worth it.  Bring on the 8th GNR show!!! (which will be their show in London on 1st June, I have a ticket for the 31st May in London but can't go :( )


I don't think anyone can say that I'm not a dedicated fan.

Estranged

It's been just over a year since my last blog post.  I would say that time flies as I remember writing it as if it was yesterday, though I have actually done a lot in that time.  I have thought SO many times "must write this in my blog" but alas kept forgetting.  


I aim to put this right...let's see how I manage blogging over the next year.

Snap Back To Reality, Oh There Goes Gravity

Yesterday was Friday 13th.  It was also the day that I finished my first whole week of work since the end of February.  Since I work full time I thought that was pretty good going, over 2 months of not working a full week due to holidays, bank holidays and those days where I just thought mid afternoon; "you know what, I'm gonna go home now".


So now it's back to reality, I've had my hiatus (I'm just gonna look that up to make sure it's the right word...yes, yes it is), I've been to New York (that's another story...or blog posting I suppose) and I've also moved house and changed various circumstances.  


It's time to start afresh.
(I wonder how long that way of thinking lasts.)

She's A Dancing Machine

I think it was over 6 months ago now that my Michael Jackson mad friend called me up and mentioned a Michael Jackson dance workshop going on in London in December.  Being someone who cannot do any freestyle dancing but enjoys a structured dance, and of course not to forget that I too am a huge MJ fan, I agreed to go.  We were supposed to go in December when the dancing day would have been 4 2 hour workshops and a 30min showcase set over a 12.5 hour day.  Pretty hardcore!  However we had to defer because of the December snow.  

So it got to the next workshop which was last Saturday.  The format of the day changed and was now just 3 2 hour dance classes, that was tiring enough!  Costumes were encouraged so for the Thriller workshop, I dressed in the below attire.

 I think that would have been a brilliant Thriller costumer had it not been for the brilliant white colour of the shirt and the perfect crease lines from when I took it out of the packet.  So we learned Thriller, the dance from the video.  It was brilliant and definitely my favourite workshop of the day.

Next up was History In the Mix.  Or something like that.  This is where we learned a Jackson 5 inspired dance to a medley of songs,  That was hard.  We then learned a few bits from Billie Jean, that was even harder.  We finished off that workshop with Beat It.  Having already 'performed' this before on a top of a hill during what I hope was a drunken night out, I already knew bits of it.  It was really easy to pick up and it was great to finish the workshop with something that I could actually do.  My costume for this workshop was black sparkly shoes, white socks, black leggings, a white tshirt and a gold sparkly jacket.  Unfortunately it was way too hot for the jacket (and the subsequent suit for the Smooth Criminal class) so I just pranced about in this..

The last class was Smooth Criminal, it was brilliant fun but again very difficult.  The SC music we were dancing to was a live recording so it had extra musical parts to it and because of this we created a whole piece of musical theatre.  There was a storyline and everything.  

This was a ridiculously difficult day but it was great fun and highly recommend to anyone who is a MJ fan and likes to dance.  

To finish off we spent the evening in Ping Pong which was a lovely Dim Sum restaurant.  I've never had that before, it was a day of firsts for me.

So Annie are you ok?  Are you ok Annie? 

Where do we go now?

I'm really struggling at the moment.  I'm looking for a hotel in New York City, that shouldn't be hard to find right?  Trouble is, I'm not made of money and have already made the decision to fly Virgin - because, well to me it was a no brainer, I've flown with them before and it was an enjoyable experience.  Though saying that, I was in Economy and I'm not entirely sure any Economy flight experience is particularly 'enjoyable'.  Especially as I am 5ft 11.  I like aisle seats as I can then cause chaos to airhostesses by blocking the aisle with my extremely long legs - otherwise they just don't fit in the space!!  And as I've already said, I'm not made of money so even Premium Economy is out of the question.

With me previously writing that I've already decided to fly Virgin, that is a slight issue as I've never booked a holiday separately like that.  I've always booked the flights and hotel together.  In reflection on that comment, I have actually booked them separately once before: Amsterdam, 2007 (or 08), I went with 6 blokes...but that's another story.  This may be a truer statement: I have never booked a long haul holiday separately before.

So, back to hotels.  I put out an 'ad' on Twitter, well it was more of a request I suppose, to find out if anyone knew of any good deals for hotels in NYC.  I got 2 responses from 2 hotels which looked incredible.  At around £150-£200 a night per person though and with the flight on it's own costing nearly 500 big ones (Hurrah for the Virgin sale - flight under 400 quid), it's not really something I can afford.  Shame though, The St Giles Hotels and also Room Mate Grace really do look fantastic.  I'm still working on that one though.

Does anyone have any cheaper suggestions?  All suggestions will be greatly received.

Holiday! Celebrate!

We're 13 days into the New Year and this is my first blog post.  I'm pretty slow.

So, New Years Resolutions (which I currently haven't broken!) have been made and I am sticking to them, won't bore you with them but they are there on the back burner just quietly reminding me to stay on track. 

Exciting (depending on who you are) news has come up though, I might be going to New York City at Easter.  I didn't fancy going on my own and a friend is going then so thought I'd tag along and do 'research'.  Also on that note of wanting to move to NYC, my social networking put me in contact with someone who also wishes to move there, she is quite a few steps ahead of me though being of triple nationality and one of those nations is the USA.  Lucky sod.

Speaking of social networking, due to me spending a lot of time doing it, I have been asked to lead a social networking presentation.  Complement or punishment for spending too much time on Twitter? Ha!

Anyway holiday, yes, I haven't been on holiday for nearly 2 years so I think this will be a well deserved break and I thought also about heading to Montreal to 'see an old friend' - that phrase totally reminds me of X-Men where Professor X and Magneto refer to each other as that.

On a completely unrelated note but just something that has been bugging me, does anyone know why I can't get The Office season 5 on DVD from Lovefilm?

Blood On The Dance Floor

Blood on the dance floor?? There was no dance floor!

Today I am supposed to be in London at the Angel Islington (is that a real place or just the Monopoly name? I only ever see 'Angel' on a map) completing a day long Michael Jackson themed dance class.  Unfortunately due to the adverse weather conditions I am doing no such thing.  In fact I am sat at home with cold toes listening to Let It Rain by East 17.  Poor choice of song perhaps.

The dance class was going to be epic.  4 workshops positioned throughout the day and then featuring a showcase at the end to pull together what we had learned.  I had even sorted out some pretty damn wonderful costumes for today including sequinned jackets, a Smooth Criminal-esque suit and appropriate 'zombie' attire.

Also I have been in 'practice(se)' mode for the past few weeks - I bought Dance Central for Kinect and have been using it regularly.  Note; I have gotten rather good at Jungle Boogie (5 gold stars on Hard! Boo yaa!).  Also I have been watching This Is It quite a lot to familiarise myself with his and his dancer's dancing styles.  I have worked this hard as I am was such a terrible dancer.

But never fear, we have rescheduled for March so I have a few months now to perfect my costumes and also my dance moves.  I am also looking forward to the Michael Jackson dance game to come out on the Kinect which I think will be in February so I can do some cramming before the day.  I don't want to look like an unprepared arse y'know.

Hybrid Theory

So, I have this new theory. 

I live on the 2nd floor in a block of flats and people regularly pee in my doorway and it seeps through the bottom of the door and onto the doormat on the other side of the door.  It's vile, it's disgusting and above all; it's unhygenic and possible a health and safety hazard.  Unfortunately our letting agents don't give two hoots and no matter how much the residents complain, apparently there is 'nothing they can do'.  I've come up with several solutions so I am unaware how they can come to this conclusion.  It's almost as if as soon as us residents mention it, the letting agents stick their fingers in their eyes and sing "lalala, can't hear you!"

Also, on my way home from work, there is a tramp that lives in a doorway several doors down from me.  He is always begging for money and occasionally has a lass sat next to him.  I never give them money (if I do it once they'll pester me forever right?) and he sees me every day and every day I walk past him and tell him I have no spare change (which to be fair I genuinely don't - I'm trying to save up for a house here people!) and then he sees me saunter off into my building.  He sometimes sees me deliberately not crossing the road before him but after him just so I don't have to say that I can't spare any change.

So back to my theory.  Is it rude to think that he is peeing in my doorway because I don't give me any money and he sees me walk into my flat everyday?  Any thoughts?

Yesterday's Got Nothing For Me

It's been a while...

This isn't really an excuse but I've been mega busy at work recently and also my computer has been all over the place.  It now has a new home though in my new office at home, hurrah!  That last bit really isn't an excuse as I can post blogs from my phone...

So, what have I been doing for the past month?  Quite a bit.  In a nutshell, I have been settling into my new job and coming up with different strategies of how to get what I want.  The most common theme seems to be running alongside the idea of 'fake it til you make it'. 

I have also been trying to save money.  I failed miserably though so will be doing it from next month.  The idea behind me saving money is that Guns N Roses have announced that they are touring the US around March time.  I wanted to go back there anyway so thought I could kill 2 birds with 1 stone (or as Ali G might say - rather crudely - knobbing 2 birds with 1 jonny aiight), and do both at the same time.  I'm incredibly busy in March though so fingers crossed it will be spread out over a few months.

That's enough of this boring post.  More interesting posts will come soon.

In the meantime, this is me

You Could Be Mine

Guns N Roses - LG Arena Birmingham - 17th October 2010

This blog is a bit late as the show was 2 days ago but I wanted to drag out the Guns N Roses experience I had a bit longer before being dragged back to the reality of no Guns N Roses shows.  (What actually happened is that after the gig - I got home at 3am - Had a full day at work the next day - Got home and went to bed - and now it's after work on Tuesday).

I haven't even got inside the building yet and already I am unimpressed.  I was expecting to go in, eat somewhere and then get to the ticketed part of the arena.  But no, I had to queue up til doors open time (6pm) and then get food.  Had I have known that I would have eaten something beforehand and then queued up quietly and got to the front of the gig.  As it turns out I was close to the stage anyway.

Guns N Roses came on over an hour later than Sebastian Bach (who has a wicked voice btw!) and the crowd was starting to get irate and there were some 'boos'.  Not from me, I didn't care, I was about to witness an incredible show.  I knew they'd be on 'around 10' so that was fine for me.  The 'boos' didn't last long, the house lights went down, the crowd erupted in screams and whistles and so the show began.

From the start I noticed that Axl's voice wasn't on top form.  He sounded great but a little strained.  At the end of the show he did apologise and said he woke up with a sore throat.  Again, I noticed that the crowd were really noisy but a bit static.  Maybe it was just where I was stood?

I was absolutely gutted that they didn't play Don't Cry, at around the age of 17, I was completely obssessed with that song.  I love the making of it and can listen to it for hours.  They also didn't play Better (love that one too) and several other songs, making the set about 45-60 mins shorter than the show I went to on Thursday.  But really, how could one top that show - that historical show? 

This is my favourite photo of Dj Ashba that night.  He always had his head down and no amoun of screaming, waving, jumping around etc. got his attention.  (I had even had a ridiclously low cut top on - I planned ahead - but that didn't work either *insulted*)  He was on fine form and I fell in love with him all over again (after Thursday, I got over him by Sunday morning).

Also, he came to the barrier!  Had my boyfriend not be right next time, I expect I would have knocked the girls in front of me out the way and copped a feel ;)

Best Bumblefoot pic.  I stand by my previous statement, he looks so down to earth and friendly.  And, I got in his photo at the end!  Ok, it's only half my face but you can tell it's me!

My best pic of Axl.  He never stayed in 1 place for more than a second so got loads of blurry pictures of him.  I'm actually surprised that he let people take photos because I know he's been really hot on not liking photo's being taken in the past.  I can see why as it does distract you from the show.  I was so excited though that I had to take photos as I forgot most of the show instantly as the house lights came up so having some evidence that I went was great.

The guys at the end of the night.  My dream is gone.

It's now all over so you know what?  I'm now saving up for their US leg of their tour - I'd love to go back to America and what would make it better would be seeing them again on their home turf.  There must be a US leg of the tour right? And surely it would be next year?  Which gives me enough time to save up for a trip across the pond!

Get In The Ring Muthaf****r And I'll Kick Your Bitchy Little Ass, Punk!

Thursday October 14th 2010 - O2 Arena London. 


Without a doubt the best concert I have ever been to.  Visually stunning, excellent pyro effects and lighting.  The whole band was on form, Axl's voice was spot on at all times.  He was still bombing around the stage like he did 20 years ago.  The rest of the band looked and sounded great.  The only downside to the whole night was that it had to end (and also I may have gained an extreme slight crush on DJ Ashba).


We (myself and my friend Sarah) got to the O2 at 4.30pm.  Slightly early.  Apparently we got there too early as Sarah suggested going later and I didn't respond so we went early - I don't remember that bit though.  The guy in Starbucks laughed at me as we were 5 hours early.


Somehow though time flew and suddenly we were in the arena and Sebastian Bach came on stage.  I saw him a few years back in Nottingham when he was supporting Guns N Roses there.  He had the same energy there and was a good performer, he got the crowd going and there were quite a few Skid Row fans in the crowd.  I've got no idea what he was talking about though, I heard his voice but didn't understand.  He performed an hour long set and then we waited for GNR.  After about an hour or so the lights went down, the crowd went wild and then opening riff of Chinese Democracy sounded.


I love that song, I first heard some Chinese Democracy songs around 8 years ago when I went to see them at London Docklands Arena, I only remember Madagascar though from that time. 

Anyway, Sarah and I decided that Bumblefoot would be a great guy to go to the pub with.  He seemed really down to earth and a lot of fun. 

Duff appeared on stage - the first time Axl and Duff have been on stage together for 17 years.  I've seen Axl twice and Duff twice, it was great to see them together.  It was actually pretty impressive.  Since the event there has been loads of speculation that there is going to be a reunion and if so what would happen to the new band and also that Axl was 'cold' towards Duff on stage.  I enjoyed it for that 1 night special, kinda like when Tom Cruise joined the Black Eyed Peas on stage a few months back - obviously Duff was more epic though. 

I found out that Richard Fortus has amazing pecs.

DJ Ashba, I'll be honest, I hadn't heard of him before he joined Guns N Roses.  He's a lot older than he looks.  So he's the 'replacement' Slash.  He's come under a lot of scrutiny because he also uses a Gibson Les Paul (along with thousands of other guitarists may I add), he wears a hat (that looks tailored to suit him, I also know a lot of people who wear hats) and he moves like Slash (again, when playing the guitar, there are only so many ways you can 'jam').  I liked DJ Ashba a lot.  I liked his energy, he had a pretty smile and he spent a lot of time on the side of the stage where I was - I'm going to position myself on that side again in Birmingham and Sods Law will dictate that he decides to take a liking to the other side of the stage that night.  Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of his pretty smile, I didn't quite catch it.

Axl Rose.  Still my ultimate favourite bloke/showman/performer.  He really proved that he still 'has it'.  He sang and whistled all songs with apparent ease.  What really impressed me was when he sang Nice Boys perfectly.  Yes he still had many costume changes, but from what I saw he needed to - he was running around the stage and his clothes were soaking wet within seconds of a change. 


Guns N Roses played a large range of old and new songs.  I enjoyed every second of it.  I did notice though that for a rock concert, the crowd was rather tame.  The crowd was loud but generally quite static.  Perhaps it was something to do with at the beginning a guy got escorted out by security for starting a mosh pit.  Unfortunately I didn't get any good pictures of the rest of the band. 


I took loads of photos, most of them were rubbish.  I learned that the iPhone4 camera is not great in a concert situation.  And the zoom lessens the sharpness of the photo.

Guns N Roses gave a big FU to their haters.


BRING ON BIRMINGHAM!!!!

This I Love

Today's post is brought to you by the song This I Love.  I was thinking about it earlier, it's so light and peaceful yet to contrast so powerful.

So I was reflecting on little things that I love about music stars:

• During the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert when Queen are playing Tie Your Mother Down and Joe from Def Leppard announces 'Slash' and he comes bounding on stage.  Love that bit.
• The way Dave Grohl plays his guitar - not musically, but physically.
• During Don't Cry on the Tokyo Use Your Illusions Tour DVD, Axl Rose sings "I know how you feel inside I've, I've been there before" and he looks really cheeky/mischievious as he sings it.  Dirty boy ;)
• When Chester Bennington is singing and bends over as if putting all his energy in that note.
• Mark Hoppus and Tom Delonge's on stage chemistry.
• Fred Durst's sexy 'movements' towards the end of the Eat Your Alive video.  "Once you seep in..." *I may have misheard those lyrics.

I could go on for ages.  But I won't.

Does anyone else have favourite music moments?

The Pace Is Too Fast/You Just Won't Last

Wow what a week.  Exercise wise I did pretty well, I did Zumba on Monday night with my good friend Jessica Rabbit and then got up at 6am (!! Yeah I know, I was surprised too) on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday for a 30 minute exercise DVD shred, sweat, whatever.

My new job seems to be going well, I'm building new relationships and slowly figuring out what my job actually involves and also finding my way around campus.  On Thursday I trundled all the way up to London for a business meeting.  I had some spare time before getting the train back so thought I'd find another university to visit, I went to London Met.  I just stood outside as security was so tight.  I learned a lot from that. 

I keep having amazing ideas for my blog and then forgetting them. 

The top 5 things I have learned this week:
1. Be like a Scout and Always Be Prepared
2. Don't just 'drop in' somewhere big, it won't be appreciated so make an appointment
3. Going up to London, even for only a few hours, will make the inside of your nose black
4. The 'General Public' are extremely selfish and unaware of their surroundings - when saying 'Excuse Me' 4 times, each time increasing the volume only for the lady blocking the aisle to still not move, does justify me opening the freezer door a few minutes later and therefore blocking up the aisle for when she tried to walk past me.
5. I am still a long way off from being able to 'shake it!' at Zumba class

Blog title today - Linkin Park - Points Of Authority.  I have rediscovered Linkin Park today.  I haven't heard any of their material post-Meteora so not sure what they are upto nowadays but I love 'old skool' Linkin Park.

Back row, Honour roll, Ahead of the class...

It's not quite like that for me now as I am not back at Uni as a student, but now as support staff.  It's been my first week and I've had meetings, phone calls, office cake and literally bumped into millions of students.  I've really enjoyed it though and I found out that since it's Freshers week (or Freshers Fortnight as it is now, in my day it was just the week), most things were free.  The only benefit of this for me was the free bus fare on the Uni bus.  However I finished earlier today and I got on a 'public' bus so had to pay.  First of all, it was extortionate - £1.90!!  That was only for one-way as well!  Also I forgot that bus drivers get rather annoyed if you give them anything but the fare.  I got told off for giving the bus driver a £2 coin.  And also, being on a bus unfortunately forces you to be in close proximity to certain members of 'riffraff' society.

So not a great experience.

Buses aside, I had a great first week and I'm looking forward to bringing this job role forward.  Assuming I pass my probation.  Apparently most people 'breeze' through it - no pressure!

In other news, I went to a BodyCombat class last night at a nearby leisure centre.  Wow.  It was hard.  I was supposed to be going with a friend but she got stuck in traffic (in her defense, it was gridlock).  I decided to opt for a Spinning session but it was fully booked so did the BodyCombat on my own.  Massive hall, 4 instructors, loads of people there and I deicded to go at the back so I could copy everyone else.  Which would have been great if I had my glasses on.  So struggled a bit there but it was good nonetheless, lots of jumping too!  I don't ache today but expect that it will come on overnight.

I had an excellent blog idea yesterday and now I can't remember - typical.  It's going to be bugging me all weekend!

Anyway must dash - I'm really hungry!!#

P.S For any of you wondering - the Title is the opening lyrics from New Kid In School by The Donnas.  One of my favourite songs to play drums to on Rock Band.

New Kid In School

Yes today, I was in the new kid in school.  Or should I say University?  Well I should because I was at my new job at a University.  I spent most of the day reading through documents, meeting with colleagues, not answering the phone and wondering whether I could afford a car.  I borrowed a car today and drove to work, not looking forward to getting the bus.  I saw the bus after work at it was rammed. 

My first day seemed to go quite well, that was until I had my first-day-faux-pas at 12.15 - I looked down and noticed my fly was undone *great*.

I think I'm going to enjoy this role, I appear to be going to spend most of my time organising events and meeting with businesses.  I was incredibly nervous but that was unnecessary as everyone was really nice.

I thing has become apparent though, I have A LOT of learning to do.

Schools Out For Summer!

...well that's not completely true, a) I'm not at school anymore and b) we're just entering Autumn (or Fall to my American audience).  But I remember this being played on my last day of school and today was the last day that I would be working at the recruitment agency that I have been working at for the past year.  It hasn't quite hit me yet that I won't be going back there to work.  I had cake though so all in all, it has been a good day.

I spoke to my new boss today and he has confirmed my start date for Monday.  I'm quite looking forward to it, meeting new people etc. 

I went out for lunch with Steph today, she worksed in the office below me.  We got some lovely cakeythings that were quite small.  So I had two.  Unfortunately this meant that I had to have a low fat dinner so had a low fat lentil and vegetable tinned soup and to say that it was vile isn't quite at the level of grossness which this soup was at.  I felt like I was eating potatoes in water.  But a thick water.  I didn't like it.  I'm going to have to wash it down with a glass of wine which completely ruins the whole idea of having the soup in the first place.

As it's Friday, I'm heading out in a bit.  But in true 'me' style it's not off for a night on the tiles, I'm going to Blockbuster to rent Prince Of Persia.  Finally.  I've wanted to see it for ages.  Plus it's a free rental from Mars sweets promotion, good deal!

Er, guess I should be off...

Dance and Shout - Shake your body down to the ground.

I am the best person at mishearing lyrics, I hope I got those right.

Zumba was excellent.  I really enjoyed myself and had 'a right laugh'.  It was so difficult though, I was unable to 'shake my thang' excessively which was a requirement for most of the class - hence the laughing.  I have read that laughing is good for your stomach muscles - so all is not lost.  Has anyone else tried Zumba?  I hear it's the new craze!

I've just finished a Jillian Michaels 20 mins work out, I really enjoy it and although it's only 20 minutes, my heart rate monitor tells me that I burn around 400 calories each session which I'm happy about.  Need to get that NYC body!  I'm 14lbs away - I am the junk food is holding me back.

I found out yesterday that my current boss is letting me go on Friday - in a good way!  I'm currently working my notice as have another job lined up, so hopefully I'll be in my new job from Monday onwards - IT pending apparently!! 

Everything is ticking over nicely at the moment, so I'm looking forward to this dramatic change.

Lets see how it goes!!