Monday 7th June - I am sorry to say that there will be no more random rant updates for the next few months (sorry Mike!), basically because I'm far too busy and I can't find the time to write about all the stuff I've been getting up to, and when I can find any time there's always too much to write and my hands start to hurt!!
My 21st was amazing. Thanks to everyone!
Friday 21st May - Went round to Tara, Alex, Andi and Evan's house last Sunday for a very nice BBQ and some garden volleyball! Me and Mario were knocking back the beers I'd bought earlier that day and virtually finished the crate between us. I didn't feel too pissed on Sunday night - but felt like death when I woke up on Monday morning! Solution: pint at lunch of course! One of the guys in my team at work is off for the next month so I moved into his desk on Tuesday (it's a thrilling life I lead...).
At lunch on Tuesday, Phil reminded me that I'd signed up to an event he'd organised and it was that night! I'd completely forgotten but I still made it, we went along to the Fleetwood Nautical colledge to one of their special training facilities to do a crash course in offshore survival! 20 of us had to wear orange boiler suit things and life jackets - everyone else got the orange ones first so I was stuck with a lovely pink number :-S It was basically a fairly big (4m deep) heated indoor pool with all sorts of equipment in and around it. We learnt all about how to:
put on a life jacket
jump off a ship (we jumped off the equivalent of the top diving board)
swim with a life jacket on
survive in cold water, on your own and in a group, even if people are injured
rescue injured people
get winched into a helicopter (they winched us up from the water to a platform)
inflate a life raft
right a toppled life raft
get in a life raft
survive in the raft
Once we'd done all this, they turned the place into a stormy sea at night by turning on the rain and thunder noises, with only strobe lighting, and a wave machine going. We had to jump off a "ship", get in a group in the water and wait for a life raft to be dropped, and get in it! It was very good - a great laugh and educational at the same time!
Wednesday night me and Andy played Alex and Salks in a good ol fashioned game of tennis, and we started off quite well (they didn't break my service!) but then very spectacularly lost it. 6-3 6-1. D'oh! I was pissed off - with every sport and game, I always start off quite well, but then lose whatever skill I have and just turn into a useless loser! Grrrr.
Not really done much else this week, but this weekend will be awesome! I was very angry to find out yesterday that the Hoobastank gig I and 4 others was supposed to go to in Manchester tonight has been postponed until September, for no reason. We won't be here in September! I have to go to Manchester to get my money back too... I was really looking forward to this gig :-( Oh well - the rest of the weekend is still good! Lunch out in town tomorrow with Gem maybe, then straight off to Southport with a few people to watch the FA cup final, get some dinner, then head to Liverpool to see Bill Bailey's stand up comedy show (he's the troll looking fella from 'Never mind the Buzzcocks' and 'Black Books'). Sunday we're going to the beach if it's nice weather to play volleyball and not get grass stains! Sunday evening, me Andi and Salks are going to see Gomez in Manchester!
Next weekend is a 4 day (bank) holiday, the weekend after that is my birthday do in Loughborough/Nottingham, and I can't be bothered to think about anything after that! Too much going on!
Saturday 15th May - It's been about 3 weeks since I last updated this - so I'll try to keep it short cos I've got lots to be getting on with! I'll start with the weekends cos that's where most of the action has been!
Sat 24th/Sun 25th April - Very nice weekend spent largely outside in the parks of Preston, enjoying the sun! Played (and lost) tennis with Tara, all the ability I once had (which wasn't a huge amount) has gone! Need to get practicing! Went and chilled all afternoon at the recreation ground with Tara, G, Emma (G's sister up for the weekend), Andy, and JJ. Me, JJ and Andy were challenged to a game of footy by 3 13 year olds so of course we agreed, only problem was we'd each had a few beers and found it rather difficult to run around (especially when still holding and drinking the beers!). Also, the opposition weren't bad, and we lost 19-20, me having scored many of our goals! Oh well!
As you may remember from my skiing photos I took Emma's class teddy bear, Barnaby, with me and took photos of it on the slopes, so she was able to present me with a massive "thank you" card from her whole class!
Sunday I chilled in Moor Park with Gem, then went into town and bought a tent, and had food and drinks with Andy, JJ and Dave.
Sat 1st - Mon 3rd May - Went down to Loughborough with Dave and Andy, stayed at Hud's and had a nice relaxing weekend, going out for lunch with Hud and Kim in the newshouse on Saturday, lunch with Scotty at Lloyds on Sunday, and as it was a bank holiday monday, lunch in Lloyds with Becky, Jennie, Matt, Steve and Emma! I didn't actually go out in the evenings anywhere further than the Elvyn bar because Hud was ill. I also saw Egg in Nottingham and met her cool friend Laura (hi Laura!), saw Craig, Rus, Bhav, James, Helen, Suz, Sarah and Ledge amongst others! Was very cool to see everyone as usual! I popped along to FreeFest just before we left to come home on the Monday, and saw James playing in one of his bands! Not bad... especially liked their cover of "Hitchin' a ride" by Green Day. I spent a lot of time showing off my new digital camera, but Hud being the nonce he is managed to delete all my pictures from it!
Fri 7th-Sun 9th May - Undergraduate Development Weekend Away in the Lake District! Last year the company paid for all the undergrads to have an outbound week in the Lake District, but this year the budget was not available, so we took it upon ourselves to organise and fund our own trip! Tara and Phil were the brains behind the operation, and 17 of us (I think) from my course who are up here in Preston working for BAE took Friday off and drove up to Ullswater in the Lake District (near Helvellyn). We set up camp and went off to Grizedale Forest to have a go at "Go Ape!", a huge aerial assault course through the tree tops! It was amazing, see the photos! I did some sections twice to get my money's worth, it was a really good activity though. Friday night we had a BBQ on the campsite and drank beer till we got rained into our tents.
Saturday morning we did some team building activities, and spent the afternoon down on the lake doing a raft building activity, which was good fun! Paddling 7 people on 4 barrels supported by bits of tree, tied together with rope isn't the fastest water craft in existence but it was good fun! We also tied 2 canoes together for the other raft, that worked a bit better and sat 9 people. In the evening we went to a local pub for some delicious proper food, and then got dumped in the middle of nowhere and had to find our way home on the "night navigation" exercise. It was a 10km walk in the dark around the foothills of Helvellyn, and we didn't get back to the campsite till after midnight! Good fun though.
Sunday was the best day, the group split up and went rock climbing, canoeing or mountain biking, and we swapped after lunch. I went rock climbing in the morning, I haven't done proper rock climbing for several years so I was pleased to see I could still do it. My old fear of heights seems to be just about gone! It's still a bit weird coming down though - it's not natural! On the way up you're holding onto whatever you can find, but coming down you do the exact opposite and just lean back and walk down the cliff backwards, being supported by a rope. It was the first thing that challenged me all weekend so I really enjoyed both climbs. In the afternoon we swapped over, and I went back on the lake in a 3 man canoe with Dave and JJ. We paddled up a river hitting every tree on the way! We had steering issues not just cos there were 3 of us but Dave had cut his hand open throwing rocks the day before and had to have stitches, so he could only paddle on one side! Poor fella. On the way back we went via a big rock face which me, Dwayne and JJ jumped off into the bitterly cold lake! This was the best thing I did all weekend, it must've been approx 8 metres down and even with a buoyancy aid on I seemed to go fairly deep underwater! Gem Tara Phil Evan and Andi all did the same the day before cos they were on the canoe raft. The best of several people's photos will be online here soon!
At work, I finished in my Nimrod placement at the end of April and I'm now working on the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) F-35 project, which looks set to be a great placement - very challenging though! I'm also learning Spanish at work - doing a beginners course paid for by the company! How can I refuse an offer like that?
Coming up for me in the next few weeks - not much on this weekend, just a few little things to do. Next weekend is looking good though - Friday 21st I'm going to Manchester with Andi, Alex and one of her friends to see Hoobastank!! Saturday night a few of us are going to Liverpool to see Bill Bailey (the troll looking chap from Black Books and Never Mind the Buzzcocks), and on Sunday night I'm going back to Manchester to see Gomez! The weekend after that is a 4 day weekend due to the bank holiday and another BAE holiday! Originally Philip and his girlfriend were going to come up to Preston to see me for my birthday but the transport cost was looking like £80 each so no way am I letting them waste that kind of money! I might be hiring a company rental car and driving a couple of people from Preston to Ben Nevis in Scotland, then to Scafell Pike in the Lake District, then to Snowdon in Wales, and back, in 24 hours, for the 3 peaks challenge! This will either be this weekend or a couple of weeks later. I want to do the 3 peaks but I've already done the 5 peaks and I can't raise the sponsor money in time, but driving a 1.8 litre car is all the incentive I need! I'll do something in Preston for my birthday (3rd June by the way!) and then go down to Lboro the weekend after for the big night out in Nottingham on Sat 5th June. I'm back down in Loughborough on 10th June for a project bidding day for my course, and the weekend after that I'm possibly doing that 3 peaks driving, but either way I have to be in Northampton on Sunday 13th for two family things, including my brother's 19th! Glastonbury is a couple of weeks after that - yay!
Best of luck to everyone with their exams!