Owls with Bowties, Lentil Stew and Jobbing Along

 

 

I went into my new place of work today for the first time. I successfully managed not to break anything, get lost, or tip anything down my dress. So whoop-dee-doo, wadda y’know?
The girl’s learning.

From this point forward on this blog my new place of work shall be affectionately known as “The Office”, as though it is the only one and there has never been another.
Capitalisation will be optional.
If I’m having a bad day at work then it will be less-affectionately known as “That Hell Hole”, but I am optimistic about probably not needing this alternative.
I won’t be talking about the specifics of my job or my co-workers much anyway because I now am responsible for handling some quite sensitive information at the University and it would be unethical and unprofessional, but don’t worry, I’ll find lots of other painfully interesting things to ramble about… I always do…

Speaking of which: When I got home I was starving hungry and was so glad that I had decided to pre-soak some lentils in the fridge.
Yep. I’m the kind of person who pre-soaks lentils now.
I don’t know how I feel about this, but I think I’ll come to terms with it eventually.
Needless to say, my lentil quorn stew was delicious and I am basically a culinary genius (and, by genius, I mean I put the lid on it and put it in the oven and remembered to take it out about an hour later… Genius).

I’m really glad to be back in a work place, especially as I finally have a job I’m actually excited about! I have had three whole days off.
That’s a lot of time off for me. I started losing it a bit…
I might have been knitting owls.

 

They have bowties.
Obviously.
Because this blog clearly needed an extra hipster element before it got too mainstream.
Sarcasm. I just love sarcasm.

I am going to do the dishes and watch Harry Potter.
Because that’s what adults do.

Alice.

Evil Eggs and The Countdown Begins!

I managed to drop half a plate of scrambled eggs and tofu in my lap today and burnt my thigh.
I did this because I am legally considered an adult, and therefore am allowed to make my own decisions regarding trying to eat food in front of my laptop on an unsteady surface. The problem is, I’m also an idiot, and probably shouldn’t be allowed to make these decisions.

So, really, the system is to blame.

The system, and the evil eggs…

*sigh* I suppose that’s just the price you pay for living the badass thug vegetarian life I’ve grown accustomed to.

I have five night shifts in a row left at work. It is Freshers week. They are not going to be fun shifts, I can feel it…
But it’ll all be okay and worth it because then I will be like Dobby:

THEN the fun really begins because I get a day off, then a couple of days shadowing the guy I’m replacing at the University of Exeter, then a whole weekend to myself, then I get to get stuck-in to this internship and spend a year learning as much as I can from as many people as possible.
I couldn’t be more excited.

I also managed to do a fair bit of writing when I woke up this morning. So that also feels very good.

I am a calm, happy person today (albeit, a calm happy person covered in egg-related burns).

Alice.

The Moon and Hummous and Cats

The Moon (a writing exercise)

A winking face,
Bulge fat and round.
Whispering reminders
Without making sound.

Witches and goblins and ghouls look on.
As do I.

A comforting face
to walk me home.
A friend with a torch app
on their smartphone.

Drunkards and lovers and fools look on.
As do I.

---

 

Today I ate hummous and made friends with a cat. It may or may not be a stray. I may or may not want to steal it and keep it forever…

How do you even spell hummous?

Alice.

I Would Rather Photosynthesise

This is the sad face I make when I burn the only food I had in the house:

It’s not that I’m too lazy to go to the shop and buy more food, it’s that I am broke and I therefore hate food shopping.

I hate looking at a bag of apples and wondering exactly many minutes I will have to be at work before I will earn back the money they cost.

I hate that the healthy food are usually more expensive.

I hate working ten hour shifts most days each week and not having enough time/energy to cook decent meals.

I hate that working night shifts has screwed up my eating patterns.

I hate that buying enough tins of spaghetti and bread for five meals costs less than a butternut squash salad.

I hate worrying about the long-term health implications of what I eat.

I hate the budget-based guilt that comes when I eat a packet of something that says ‘serves two’ even though I was hungry.

 

This post turned into a bit of a negative rant. Sorry.
Incidentally I feel I should point out that I don’t hate food – I love food, I love making delicious things and eating healthy vegetarian meals and ohmygod don’t get me started on coffee cake and good cheeses – what I hate is shopping for food because my bank account is in a bit of a state so spending any money, even on necessary items, induces quite a lot of panic.
This has been exacerbated by my recent trip to London where I spent a bit too much which is entirely my own fault but I really needed a holiday and really needed to see friends I had been without for too long.

At least now, without the distraction of lunch and fuelled by the need to gain an income that will reduce the panic of spending money on food I can turn my attention to the job application I need to work on…

To conclude: I would rather photosynthesise.

Alice.

“Get a Better Blog”

I tried to blog last night after several hours in the company of an old friend, drinking far too much tequila. I got as far as writing the title “Get a Better Blog” before falling asleep.

I am excellent.

I have been on a mission today to find somewhere that serves haloumi which took a lot longer than it should have done, but I’m otherwise having a lovely day wandering around London,  taking some photos and killing time before I meet a friend later in Camden.

Whilst there are some clouds in the sky it is warm and beautiful. I have been craving London recently, so it’s nice to be here on my own time – not needing to rush or do anything on anyone else’s schedule.

In other news, I got a phonecall this morning offering me an interview at the Theatre Royal in Plymouth. So that’s exciting and could lead to some rather wonderful things in the future!

Alice.

My McAdventure

It’s been a funny old day. I woke up, a little bit later than intended, but generally feeling fine. Quick coffee and out the door to work wearing appropriate clothes and sipping a bottle of water specifically to avoid getting sick due to the heat.

Got most of the way to work when my manager phoned me. First thought was that I was running late, but no, I was perfectly on time. She wanted me to pick her up a latte because the coffee we have at work is pretty gross and she couldn’t leave the office. No problem.

Made it to McDonalds through the heat (why she wanted a McDonalds coffee when Exeter is full of cute, brilliant coffee shops I don’t know).
Ordered a McLatte in the relative cool of the place with its air conditioning on full blast.
Turned around to leave.
Black.
Sitting on a chair, not wearing my glasses, propping myself upright on the plastic McTable.

I’m the vegetarian who fainted in McDonalds.
Fun times.

I had to speak to a woman on the phone and tell her my name and medical history and then the McManager phoned my manager to explain very kindly that she wasn’t going to get her latte.
A paramedic guy came and, inbetween attempts to blag a free McBreakfast, told me I had low blood pressure. Not scarily low, just low. Which is odd, because with my stress levels I always assumed my BP would be through the roof, but apparently not. He sat with me for about an hour and then asked if I wanted to go to the hospital. I did not want to go to the hospital so he drove me home.

I’ve been feeling a bit off all day. Hopefully a good night’s sleep will sort me out. I’m always wary of hot days; I drink lots of water, eat something salty, try to stay in the shade and wear sun cream like it’s a legal requirement.

My boyfriend was very sympathetic, but is very happy to be able to tell “my girlfriend is so left wing she fainted in McDonalds” jokes for the rest of eternity…

Goodnight!

Alice.