old and new

DSC_0222.JPG
Originally uploaded by lemonblondie21

as you can see the old bruise is the brown colour underneath the nice new purple/red monster. I seriously will stop doing this to myself at some point.

Don't give me a laser

cause I know how to use it!


Oh yes! I can't believe two things: one that I haven't written here in about a month! Shocking really since I've had quite a few things happen, and two that I kick ass at laser quest!

Right let's back up and work our way to tonight. Uni is going okay, I have a genetics midterm on Monday. Quite scary as I haven't written an exam in years, but I'm studying my little (or should that read big???) butt off for it. So I'm hoping I come away with an 80% at least. Actually I'm looking for a pass, but 80% is where I am aiming for.

I have managed to get a job finally. It's great, I work for a really nice supermarket and everyone is really really nice. I actually was trained unlike my last job, which is a vast improvement. So I work the weekends as well I don't have time during the week with uni.

Did I tell you I took up archery??? Well if not I did. I should really post some pics of the wonderful aray of bruises I have managed to accrue. Not because I don't have a clue what I'm doing (funnily enough I do), but these are from my arm anatomy being completely wrong for the sport. So I have to compensate, and when I concentrate too much on everything else I go back to the way (the proper way) I was taught and get myself. When I do that I realise I'm concentrating too much on m,n,o, and q but forgot the p. You stop doing that quickly let me tell you. Bruise on this post is the first bruise, the second bruise has a bit to itself. It was fun let me tell you!

So that covers, job, uni, archery. Oh yes laser quest!

So our archery club is quite social and we went out tonight to do some laser quest. Never done laser quest before in my life, and the first game I did I was totally rubbish. Mind I'm a fast learner so I ended up in the top 5 out of 20 people. So well done me! I kept shooting our coach as he was as bad as I was during my first game. I had triple score on him! It was really good, so I hope we do that again.

What else.....I can't think of anything, but I'm sure it will come to me again. So lesson for today: don't give me a laser gun unless you want to have your ass kicked by a girl!

First week at the big school

Okay so I've gone back to school which is pretty cool. I managed to get out of one class (stats/dissertation) since I have already done a stats course, and I already have an honours degree so by default I've already actually done a dissertation. So that is one class that I don't have to repeat. Yipee!

You think that is great, more time to skive around you say. Well not entirely. I'm using the time to study more for genetics and law. I'm trying to be good you see, you can help me out by reminding me every once in a while that I should stop watching CSI and actually do some studying to be come one. I'm trying to convince myself that it is educational, yeah yeah it's also fun to watch.

So I'm in two classes with a bunch of people that are about 21 yrs old. So that makes me exactly 10 yrs older than them. What do we have in common other than school? So far nothing, which is why I sit by myself in every class, and no one speaks to me. Why should they? They've known each other for the last 3 years and I'm the new person. It doesn't bother me as I'm there to learn not to socialise. I've done that the first time around, I'm there to study this time. Okay having friends would be nice, but I'm quite a loner anyways so it's no skin off my nose.

Thing is I don't think my PDT (personal development tutor) likes the situation. She has been in two of my classes where it's obvious that I am by myself. Every time she seems me she asks me if I'm settling in etc. I keep telling her I'm fine and that it's interesting which it is. I feel bad for her in a sense as I think she thinks I need friends or something. It's only the 3rd week, which is now the proper week for actual lectures. I have tons of time to make friends.

So that's school, I'm still looking for work and I have an interview in a few hours. Just a part time weekend work which will give me enough to live on and pay the bills each month. I'm trying not to use my student loan as much as possible. I'll keep you posted on how that went!

A nosy that lead to an interesting

conclusion........

Now I have no idea where my other post went about this subject, but hey I'll write it again as I have had some new information.

So after thinking of everything and doing searches for vet schools, funding, and talking to people about it, I've decided that I'm not going to be able to go. Full stop, nothing is going to happen. In one sense I was sad, but in another I was quite happy as I know I'm good enough to be a vet as I got into a prestigious school, but the only thing holding me back is funding. If money was no object then life would be sorted.

I was speaking to one of my friend's at choir about this, and she was really sad for me. I told her not to worry as I'm happy as like I said before "I'm good enough" just piss poor! Something will come along as I totally believe in hmm what would you call it? Karma? Fate? Randomness? Well whatever it is called it came knocking on my door like I knew it would. Why? because these things happen to me all the time for whatever reason.

So about a week later, Wednesday to be exact, not this past Wednesday, but a Wednesday none the less I decided to go nosy around the other unis for something to do. I have no idea why I do this, filling time? Interested? Lusting? whatever the reason it was on my side that day.

I happened to go to another local uni, we have about 5 in town I think (haven't counted, not really that interested in doing so) and I came across clearing. Now for those of you who don't know what clearing is it's basically the University telling everyone aka students what courses still have openings. So if the student didn't get into their desired course, uni or whatever they can pick up a clearing course if they choose. Now, this doesn't work in North America where my previous degree came from which is why I was a little curious.

So I clicked on the clearing section to see what was available as I had resolved myself to work for the next year while plotting what the hell I was going to do with my life, yet again! So up comes the courses and vet nursing is on there. I thought, "hell I could easily do that, but I don't want to torture myself with knowing I could easily have been a vet" so passed that course over. I then came across one on herbal medicine, which I find very interesting as being in China for the last two years I've used pretty much for every complaint I had. Passed that one over as even though I'm interested, I'm not that interested to study it. I'm like that!

So scrolling and looking and came across one that I though might be interesting. I called the clearning hotline and spoke to a nice man. He took my details (name, address, previous education etc) and told me that someone would call me back, by this time it's approaching lunch. Now I called for information only just to see what I would need to do or what have you.

I get a call about about an hour later from a very nice gentleman and he was very interested in my degree (BSc Biology, honours Psychology - good old double major). He said that they were very interested in having me on the course, and from simply talking to me they would put me into year 2. Hey hey, bonus! So I agreed.

I got off the phone in a very shocked state as I was only looking for information not to sign myself up for starting uni. As requested I sent along my transcript, and had a lovely talk to another gentleman (must be high up in the course somewhere) and he said from reviewing my transcript they can actually place me into year 3, but I would have to take one course from year 2 as it is a pre-requisite. So I'm going into the uni tomorrow to talk to this very nice man about the course, and my feelings/abilities about doing over a full course load, and to be shown around. By the way I'm going next thing they will tell me is to simply show up for graduation as I seem to be knocking down years as fast as they come.

I'm looking forward to tomorrow and the strange thing is this course was something I wanted to do ages ago when I was quite young (well in my early twenties!). So off I go to uni, which by the way is fully funded! I don't have to worry about paying anything unlike my previous course.
Plus the course is something that I am interested in for years on a very round about way.

So here I go to Uni starting in 3rd year come the end of the month. What am I doing? you might be asking yourself............forensic biology aka CSI!!!!

So get out of my way Sara Siddle, you're annoying at least I've always thought so, cause I want your spot!

Gutted, but determined

I have applied to Vet school and did get in to do my post graduate degree at Edinburgh University. Sad thing is the tuition is 98,000.00 GBP which obviously I don't have. So of course off I go to find the money from the UK and Canada. No luck..........

So there sort of goes my dream which I've been working towards for about half my life. I'm pretty gutted, but at the same time I think I can reapply all over again and hopefully get in as a funded student which means the government would pay for me to go, and I'd accrue a debt of about
10, 000.00 GBP as that would be my living allowance.

I'm really hoping the second time around I'll get in as it's not a guarantee, but I'm willing to take the chance as this is what I want, and I can't afford the crazy graduate fee.

There is hope, I'm still a little upset about it. Dream was right there and the possibility of it has now diminished. What a horrible week!

Lazyness and the monkey on my back

At the moment, I'm not feeling that positive about work to the point where I wonder should I stay. Pretty much started last Saturday night with a wedding and last night too, let's go back in time....

Saturday night I had a wedding to bartend, not a problem at all. I'm used to being very busy as I used to work in night clubs, so I was looking forward to it. The guy I was working with was said to be lazy, so I was prepared for it, or at least I thought I was.

I get in to work and start by running around doing the small things that are usually done before I come in, such as white wine on ice. So off I go to get ice, and what not to try to 'open' the bar before people start coming up.

The guy, let's call him Frank wasn't starting till a few hours later, and he came by to get himself a drink of something on the dash gun. "Hmm... look's like there is something wrong with the gas" so off he goes to check it while I continue to cut the fruit etc. He comes back up and says "the gas is empty" and off he goes. So I think to myself, "he's gone to get someone to change it, excellent." So 5 minutes pass, 10 minutes pass obviously he hasn't gone to get someone to change it. So I call up the duty manager who we'll call Fred, and told him the situation. So he comes to show me how it's done (the only thing I don't know how to do in the entire bar by the way) and we get to the cellar and he says "You need to turn it on, that's your problem there." Excellent, I look like a right stupid blonde git because I trusted Frank! So I make my appologies for being so dumb, and off Fred goes.

So finally it's time for Frank to start his shift with me, and we're pretty busy which is nice. Every so often Frank just decides to go for a walk and leaves me with the bar of people to serve. Or better yet, he goes to have x fags while I'm still trying to serve people. A few points during the evening the functions manager asks me where Frank is and all I can say is "I don't know" and off she goes in search of him.

He's also lazy, and I mean lazy just like everyone warned me about. He won't do the glasses (put them in the dishwasher, take them out, put them away), he leaves his empty bottles all around the bar simply making a mess, he doesn't wash out the measures so before I can serve my customer I have to wash it out, then pour the drink, then wash the measure again for him (I'm considerate, and above his childish behaviour). He had too much drink in one glass and he pours it over the fresh ice I just ran to get (which he wasn't doing either). We ran out of martini twice, and he refused to call Fred because Fred hates him (I can see why now!)

Now I was putting the 20 pound notes into piles of 100, to make it easier at the end of the night and to free up some space in the till as they were popping out like mad. Now I know one of the piles wasn't completed because a customer came by. I was going to fix it at the end of the night when I counted the till. Frank decides he's going to count the till, assumes they are in piles of 100, and messes up the count. We also had a number of room charges which needed to be written down on the bar sheet, he refused to do that because he's lazy!

At one point during the night I had rung up two drinks, the customer called me back to order two more. So when I turned around Frank was messing with the till and tells me he 'thinks' he put his order onto mine. By this time he had already subtotalled it which you can cancel!!! ARGGGGGGHHHHHHH. So I say "let's cash it off and we'll void it later" so off I cash it and then go to make sure it was recorded on the till roll, and low and behold no till roll!! So off he goes to get it, and again I'm left with customers. He comes back with it, and can't put it in. I have a go and I can't do it myself as there are customers waiting etc etc, and ahhh! He tell's me we'll just do it later, fair enough he's been here months he knows what he's doing. Or does he????

In the back of my mind I keep thinking I should put that till roll in, but a queue of customers puts a stop to that thought, and I don't think about it again.

So end of the night, he's counted the till, Fred comes to count it, it's wrong. He asks me did I get 800 in 20s I say "no Frank counted the till" so he talks to Frank and asks Frank "did you get 800 in 20s" and Frank says "she put them in piles of 100 so I counted them like that" Fred says "she who?" and Frank points at me and says " She---Shera." Little bugger was blaming me for his lazyness in not actually counting the till properly. Couldn't believe it!

I then proceed to tell Fred about the void that has to be done and the story behind it. He asks for the receipt, I tell him that is when we discovered we had no till roll, and we couldn't put it in. So he says he can't void it off, and that there might be an investigation into the fact that we had no till roll. Frank at this point is saying how busy it was etc etc etc. At this point, I just give up because I fell like I'm being marked as a right idiot.

Fred asks where the room charges are as they aren't written down, so off I got to put them all in one by one cause Frank was too lazy. Everything that could have pretty much gone wrong did. But it get's better!

Now I've had most of my customer service skills taught to me in Canada, so in all honesty my standard service is above most British people's standard because in North America "the customer is always right" and you take any blame even though the customer was wrong etc etc. So I'm working my customer service, remember rounds, banter, friendly, smiling etc etc. So I come away with 14 quid (they don't know how to tip in this country either!), 4 of which I gave to two people because they were bar backing because Frank was lazy with the glasses, and they deserved it. The rest I had to split between Frank and myself. Talk about angry! He made like 50p and ended up with a fiver even though he was lazy, bad customer service (did I forget to mention he had an argument with a customer which the functions manager saw???), he said some shocking things, pointed the finger at me a few times, and in the end he gets rewarded for doing this by getting half of my money.

Now I'm not the best pleased about this because I feel like I was taken advantage of and my good customer skills were exploited for someone else's gain. So I'll be talking to another duty manager that is on when I get in as he's totally sound and very approachable unlike Fred who thinks I'm an idiot, which comes from Saturday and last night.

Skip forward to last night. The shift started at 3pm which is an odd time usually it's 10am or 5/6pm depending on what's going on at night. So at 3pm I start and my favourite bar staff who is also new and really young is on. He's cashing up his till, and I'm dealing with a customer that he's put onto me while he's doing the till. So I have to put the drink through the till and he says to go ahead. So I do, and take it over to the restaurant as that is only half the bill. I record the bill onto my till sheet!

So nothing is going on over the course of the night other than a little rush of a tour bus group. So at the end of the night, I count my till and apparently I'm 6.60 over. Hmmm I know I haven't made any mistakes, so I can't figure it out.

Now be aware that Fred must think I'm stupid because of Saturday, and now because I knew he was on I was extra careful not to make mistakes. So where did this mistake come from?? So he's going on in a tone of voice and saying things that subtlely are telling me he thinks I'm stupid. So I've given up at this point yet again. Once I'm out of there I realise what I did: firstly the customer's charge on my sheet should have only been for the drink, not the sanwhich so there goes about 4 quid off my 6.60. Then I realise that when my favourite staff member was cashing up, the then duty manager took the till slip, so my record was on there and not on my till slip. So the morning till would have been down the rest of the 2.60 where as mine was up. AHA! I'm not that stupid!!!

Having a monkey on my back isn't helping, and lazy people do not help in anything but making me look stupid! So I'm going into work early to discuss this with the best duty manager and see what he suggests me to do about all of this crap!

Weird interview...

that lead to something even stranger

Yes the last 24 hrs have been somewhat strange, but I can't actually complain about the way it turned out.

Yesterday my mobile was ringing and I figured it would be someone contacting me for a job, as everyone else I know is at work, and would call me at home. So I answer it and it is a job I applied for. They wanted to know could I come in in 4hrs time for an interview. Not a problem says I, and off I go on the bus/walking to find exactly where it is, and how long it will take me to get there. I like to be prepared for these things.

So I return home with a little time to spare before I have to actually be there. So I get ready, iron my shirt (I loath irioning!), have a bowl of cereal, brush my teeth, and run out the door.

I get there and have to fill in a paper with all the regular details. Then the interviewer comes along, and we start.

Now the interview was really strange, with strange questions that I have never been asked before. We'll see what I'm talking about in a minute!

I tell the woman when I'm able to work (full time summer, part time during Uni term) as I'm doing my post graduate in veterinary medicine. So she starts to tell me about her dog who had chemotherapy, which was interesting, and good developing some connection between us.

Then I get asked the usual questions of "why do you want to work here" and I give my honest answer, which she didn't seem to be interested in. I was wondering what I was supposed to say, since whatever I just did, didn't seem to work. Then I get asked "Why do you live in Edinburgh" "ahhh it's home???" I went on to explain that I was born here, but grew up in Canada, but here is home. I don't plan on leaving any time soon.

So my accent is right dodgy. I sound to Canadian for the Brits, and too British for the Canadians. I can't win. My friend told me before that if there was ever a country in the middle of the Atlantic, everyone would sound like me. Too bad there wasn't cause at least I'd fit in better. I find sometimes that because of this I get treated like a foreigner which is really annoying. Hello! I'm Scottish with a foreing accent. This in all honesty puts me at a disadvantage sometimes as I have had dealings about it in the past.

So she asks me a few more questions, and I answer. Again, nothing I said seemed to be at all interesting or scoring me any points. At this point I was pretty much sure nothing was going to come of it. I was asked did I have any questions, and I asked 1 question with two parts. Now the interviewer herself, actually didn't answer either of my questions. To which point I was wondering did she understand what I asked, or did she not understand because of my accent. She asked if I had any more questions, and rather than repeat what I had just asked her which would have ended up making her look like a right plonker, I said she answered everything I had thought of.

So that was it. Total bad feeling about this at it took less than 10 minutes, and after I put my coat on, and put my hand out to say thank you for your time, she was already walking away from me. Since I did have my hand out, she had to turn around, and sort of come back. Like I said one strange interview.

I went to eat tea with one of my mates and his family last night. Conversation came around to this interview. I said to Johnstone and his wife that I was sure I wasn't going to get this job because my answers didn't seem to be the least bit interesting, I was asked some really strange questions that didn't really have anything to do with the job, again my answers didn't seem to be appropriate, and the interviewer pretty much walked away at the end. Totally resigned myself to the fact that this job was a practice run for other interviews. I was convinced it was either she was really busy with things behind the scene to be focussing on me (give her the benefit of the doubt), or I had done one lousy interview that was actually strange and painful at the same time.

So this morning up I get to go to a job fair that is in town, and to run some errands. I'm waiting at the bus stop, just about to get on when my phone rings. If I want that job I can have it starting tomorrow!

Will wonders never cease. Makes me wonder how badly the other interviewers did! So yey for me, I'll be starting to make money which will come in handy, you know paying rent, bills, food etc etc.

I guess yesterday taught me a lesson in weird sometimes is good.