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January 30, 2005
The joy of text #2
See, I told you so!
Posted by lilliebet at 06:52 AM | Comments (4)
January 28, 2005
Oh Dear!
So my PR&D was cancelled and my boss spent the day rushing around, looking very fraught. It's always worrying when he does this, he doesn't mask things very well.
Sure enough, mid-afternoon he called us all together for a briefing. The upshot is the City have a budgetary shortfall of £20m to find and are asking for volunteers to express an interest in voluntary severance.
Ironically, for me this actually means more work. We in payroll will have to pick up the extra work providing estimates and processing severance claims. Still, very worrying times.
Posted by lilliebet at 10:16 PM | Comments (0)
Ocean Pie
Flakes of fresh coley, a handful of petit pois in a creamy parsley sauce. Topped with freshly mashed potatoes and grated cheese, baked in the oven. Absolutely beautiful!
.... and what do my kids say when I ask them how they liked it?
"Well, it's fish isn't it?" Grrr!
Posted by lilliebet at 08:11 AM | Comments (1)
Personal Review & Development
I have my first PR&D since my promotion today. Trembly, trembly! My previous manager did nothing but sing my praises in my last ones, I suppose that has a lot to do with why I'm here now.
Today though, things might be very different. Watch this space!
Posted by lilliebet at 06:50 AM | Comments (0)
The joy of text
Isn't modern technology amazing? We can put a man on the moon, rebuild shattered bodies, bounce satellite pictures around the world in seconds.
But the greatest advancement of them all has to be text messaging via mobile phone. It's not just instant communication between two people anywhere in the world, at any time, making the world smaller and bringing us closer together.
Mobile text messaging has achieved the one thing science has failed to do since the dawn of time ....
.... keeping teenagers entertained!
Posted by lilliebet at 06:42 AM | Comments (2)
January 25, 2005
Dad, he's doing it again Dad!
Bill said something to me the other night that really made me think - he said, "What's the capital of Burkina Faso?" No he didn't, that's just me being stupid, what he said was "we grew up together here (CCSP)."
I know what he means: we made our home in the Tavern at about the same time; we joined the staff together; we've risen up the ranks at a similar pace. But have we really grown up? Naaaaah!
We just have a similar (some say childlike) sense of fun and can't help kidding around. You may have noticed!
I, for one, cannot bear to leave a line unpunned or a dirty joke untold. Paul's testing threads seem to be too much of a temptation for our daft sense of humour and all credit to Paul, he ignores us with great aplomb.
I know Bill will say he was fully aware but a while back Paul asked me to help test the reports links in the Range. Bill stumbled upon my posts and started playing silly buggers. So I blue carded all his and wrote reports such as "Dad, Bill's making fun of me." and "Dad, he's doing it again Dad". Paul ignored us as he always does but Bill's reaction when he saw the reports forum full of posts about him was a joy to behold.
So when you next see us acting the goat, don't worry we haven't lost the plot. We're just letting off steam. It's great therapy too so join in why don't you?
Posted by lilliebet at 08:24 AM | Comments (2)
January 23, 2005
Harddwch Dysg Doethineb
The Beauty of Learning is Knowledge
I see Bill is blowing his own trumpet here and why not? In fact, I may join in with the clarinet at least.
As if blogging wasn't enough, now I have another toy to play with ...
It's not much over a year since I got my first home computer and it was less than a month after that I had the need to call upon the services of CastleCops. The rest, as they say, is history and I've been a forums admin there for some time now. I'm also an admin at DivorceandBack with many more permissions and I've really enjoyed learning how it all works. I have a real thirst for knowledge, the need to know and understand really burns me. I'm one of those people who has to pull a thing apart to see how it works (trouble is I can't always put it back together again.)
So I've finally admitted my addiction and my therapist (Bill) suggested the best way to learn is to get a site of my own and dive in the deep end. I was well aware then that I knew nothing, in the last couple of days I've come to realise I know less than nothing but I'm picking bits up as I go along. I have, at least, managed to give the site a name. (BTW if anyone has any arty leanings and a spare half hour....hehe)
Unfortunately, I was thinking about the internal workings of phpnuke and ignoring the need for content so that's going to take some work but Lilliebet dotcom has now been born and will soon be taking her first steps.
Suggestions please!
So thanks Bill, for the opportunity and the tons of help (don't for one minute think you can sit back and relax now).
Posted by lilliebet at 01:14 PM | Comments (3)
January 21, 2005
A problem shared ...
So many times in the last few weeks I've been asked whether I had a good Christmas and, like an automaton, I've replied "Yes, great thanks" everytime. When, in fact, quite the reverse is true.
In the last few months, my son has been having problems that have become more and more obvious although my many attempts to pry information from him got me nowhere. That is until the day before Christmas Eve when things came to a head, the story started to spill out and, as Christmas Eve dawned, he fell asleep in my arms crying "I need help mum, I need help".
In the few weeks since, he's revealed more and more of what's been troubling him and the final details were revealed last night. Now I am in full possession of the facts and I can begin to deal with the situation. Happily, things are not half as bad as the horrors I'd been imagining, mums do that don't they (yes, dads do too)?
Two questions burned me more than any in all this: Why didn't he come to me in the first place? and why, once he'd finally started to talk, has it taken four weeks of worry and anguish to get the whole truth out in the open?
Um, hold on a minute, what exactly have I been doing for the last four weeks? When did I share my burden with anyone, when did I ask for help? We don't though do we. Whatever the reasons, be it pride, shame or embarassment, we just keep trying to soldier on and carry the load on our own. I suppose, as a single parent, I do it more so. I have a daughter as well and I need to maintain the balance for her sake but am I succeeding in doing that?
In the last few days, it's become obvious to me that I'm struggling with this and the cracks are showing. It won't be too long before others start to notice (in fact the question has already been asked). And so the situation doesn't just perpetuate, it escalates.
I don't want to share my son's troubles with the world, that wouldn't be fair on him. After all, if he was too proud to tell his mum, would he really want her friends to know? But a wise woman would have held up her hands and said "Hey guys, I have a problem. I'm dealing with it but it's not easy, so please bear with me." I know how much my friends care for me and that they would support me through this, to say I've been foolish is something of an understatement.
So here it is: Guys, I have a problem. I'm dealing with it but it's not easy, so please bear with me.
Posted by lilliebet at 09:00 AM | Comments (0)
But mine isn't colour
I've had a play about with the colour schemes and, sadly, I still prefer dull grey. I find that strange because normally I'm a purple person :-)
Edit to add: Not sure, it's such a pain playing around with colours, I'll give this a day or two and see how I feel.
Posted by lilliebet at 08:01 AM | Comments (2)
January 18, 2005
We all have our talents
Mine is payroll, purely and simply, payroll! I don't make any bones about it, I know my stuff and I'm bloody good at what I do. I have others, I'm still discovering some of them but that's my major one, right there.
So when I was up for the job of managing my own team, I knew I had the talent needed to perform in the job but what I didn't have was the talent (or bottle) to to perform in the interview. My last one was only a few weeks before and it was a total disaster.
I keep making mention of this fact but it is a fact all the same. Without Bill's guidance and advice, I wouldn't have got through the interview and I wouldn't be where I am now. You see, that's his talent - he has the ability to make you see your potential and find within you what it takes to make that step.
He keeps telling me off for this. He tells me I sat through the interview, I did all the work, I sold myself. Yes I did and I was never in any doubt that I was the right person for the job but, until he had faith in me, I had none in myself. I knew where I needed to go, I just didn't know how to get there.
So if his talent is to help me see my talent, I think he should take a leaf out of his own book -
Take pleasure from what you do for people like me Bill, accept the thanks and the applause you get - you've earned it.
Posted by lilliebet at 07:16 PM | Comments (2)
.... and speaking of courses .....
Since September, I've been doing night classes at Liverpool Community College
IT Essentials 1: PC Hardware and Software
also known, for some reason, as IPRO2. The majority of the study is done at home online, through the Cisco Networking Academy Programme but I attend classes to do labs and sit the assessments (generally one every week/fortnight). There's a huge amount to take in, ranging from the very basic to the downright difficult but I'm enjoying it - not so much the hardware it has to be said, as can be seen by my assessment results.
Module 1: Information Technology Basics 95.8%
Module 2: How Computers Work 70.4%
Module 3: Assembling a Computer 88.9%
Module 4: Operating System Fundamentals 100% <-- found my niche here
Module 5: Windows 9x Operating Systems 95.7%
Module 6: Windows NT/200 Operating Systems 81.0%
Module 7: Windows XP Operating Systems 84.6% <-- ooh not good!
The next one, I don't fancy at all
Module 8: Multimedia Capabilities
And there are another 6 modules to fit in before July, what d'ya reckon???
Posted by lilliebet at 07:31 AM | Comments (1)
January 17, 2005
Look at me Ma, top of the world!
Right now with this latest news, like Jimmy Cagney, I'm on top of the world. So much so, I just have to write it down. I've tried to steer clear of the mushy stuff but, I'm sorry, I can't help myself. Just sidle quietly past this one, this is just for me ;-)
It's been 14 months since I first knocked on the door of CastleCops and so much great stuff has happened to me in that time. When I first stumbled on this amazing team, working tirelessly in the fight against spyware I was so impressed by their dedication and tenacity I decided to stick around and hoped I would one day get the opportunity to give a bit back. I thought they'd done everything they could for me but I had no idea what was to come.
It was only a couple of months before I was drafted in the first wave of First Responders (the job was very different then to what it is now) and just a few weeks later, I was bumped up to host, then mod, then later to admin. The rise up the ranks has been a roller-coaster ride. I've learned an amazing amount and met the most fabulous people.
The love and support I've had through some tough times have meant everything to me. And boy we've had some fun too. It's a rare honour to have been there at the start of Ten Green Bottles.
Bill's help and guidance turned me from a quivering wreck in July to a team manager in August, I thank him for that every day. Back in June when we set up the Special Response Team, Paul and Robin put their faith in me and gave me the job of Team Lead and what a fantastic team they are.
After reading my journal, Bill convinced me to try my hand at writing an article - something I would never have had the bottle to try before. Now I'm working on number 6 and, best-seller or not, the sense of achievement is a real high.
Along the way, I fell in love; started studying for the IPRO2 exam; got into Rugby League; won an award in work; and now have this amazing opportunity. There have been some downs as well but they don't seem half as important when so many great things have happened. In the words of the immortal songstress, Yazz, The only way is up!
Posted by lilliebet at 06:30 PM | Comments (2)
This day gets better and better!
Oh WOW, I really can't believe this but I've been accepted on the DMS Programme. I go to Chester Business School for induction (I'm going to be induced??) on Feb 3rd. I honestly thought I'd fluffed the interview, maybe I did and they just felt sorry for me, I don't care - I'm on the programme and that's all that matters.
What a brilliant day! :-)
Posted by lilliebet at 04:22 PM | Comments (1)
January 16, 2005
To blog or not to blog
I've just been talking to a fellow CCSP blogger who's having some doubts about the whole thing. He said:
"I'm not an interesting person or a good writer"
Well who of us is? OK we do have one creative writer amongst us but interest, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder (or should I say, reader). Did I get the idea wrong, isn't blogging really just about doing it for yourself?
Surely the thing is that, yes, anyone who wants to can read it but they didn't pay money to get in - we're not selling tickets and we're not here to entertain anyone but ourselves.
When Paul first told us of his plan to give us these blogs, I went out and had a look at a few, just to get the idea. Some of them, like Paul's, are technical, a way of recording a project through each process. Some, like Robin's, are more personal and what a wonderful way to record the stages in her pregnancy and the birth of their first child. And, yes, I admit some of those I looked at before this all started were unbelievably dull. Most though, are just ordinary people living ordinary lives.
Mine is a hotch-potch, hence the categories: Work, Rest and Play! Anyone who knows me, knows I talk incessantly and where better to do it. But it's for me: it's my thoughts; my projects; my rants; my banter. I'm no writer and I'm certainly not an interesting person but I'm getting a lot of fun out of this and I hope anyone who's hesitating will do exactly what I did. Put the doubts behind you, jump in feet first and enjoy!
Posted by lilliebet at 03:30 PM | Comments (1)
And about time too!
I've been threatening all kinds of resolutions for the New Year but, procrastinator that I am, they have yet to manifest themselves. So maybe first and foremost I should resolve to stop procrastinating. There we are, we have one already.
One thing I was determined to do was stop opening my mouth and putting my big foot in it but I've already managed to boob on that one. Not that I do it on purpose but I have the unerring ability to make utterances that are misread or misheard and - boom! - it all goes off around me. As ever, I'm left in the middle of the debris wondering what on earth I said this time. So, rather than resolving to stop putting my foot in it, it would make more sense to try to find the root of the problem first and fix it from there.
I've taken a lot of stick over my age in the last few weeks, from the bright young things of course (the guilty parties know who they are - Mark and Norbie!). So I'm now counting down to my fortieth birthday but am I going to let this milestone affect me in any way? Damn right I am!
This year, I am going to do lots of things for me -
I'm going to have the holiday I've been promising myself; I'm going to visit Susannah, who I miss so much, my life is so much more fun when she's in it;
I'm going to buy Bill the pint I promised him 6 months ago (while we watch the Lions get trounced by the All Blacks) as a thank you for all the help and support he's given me;
I'm going to learn how to chill, not let things get to me so much (this one will be the most difficult);
I'm going to put extra effort into completing my IPRO by the end of the college year and I'm going to fly through the final exam. Even if I mucked up my chances on the DMS, I will succeed in this one!
And for my kids -
I'm going to go as far as I can to support Lou in her effort to maintain her vegetarianism (even if it means eating sprouts);
I'm going to support Day in his efforts to reach his goal to join the army. Now that the spark has been rekindled, it's clear this is what he wants to do and I have to help him do it;
I'm going to devote less time to work and more to the two of them, they're not as independent as they've been making out and they still need me to be there.
And for my friends -
I'm going to smile every day :-)
Posted by lilliebet at 01:36 PM | Comments (5)
January 15, 2005
Not quite so stirling after all ...
I somehow managed to do the trackback ping thingy to Larry's blog instead of Paul's - what a burk - I need help on this trackback business. Ah well, I'll sort it tomorrow.
Edit to add: I'm trying this one more time on my own, Paul's pretty chocker with all this. If it doesn't work this time I'm giving up hehe
Edit again: It worked, I learned something new :-)
Posted by lilliebet at 12:52 AM | Comments (8)
Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob
I don't know which is the more addictive, blogging or researching family histories (and it's not even my family!).
Every time a thought enters my head, I have an urge to put it down here - not always a good idea...
...and I now feel that I personally know every Boden who's been born, married or died in this country since 1837.
This is a pretty handy place to jot this lot down. I have scribbled notes all over the place and I'm starting to go round in circles.
The good news is I seem to have traced the family back to 1881. The bad news is, I lost them again until 1898 by which time they'd hyphenated their surname and were in Warrington, you'd think that would make it easier but, no.
By 1881, they'd left Liverpool and were living in Darlington Street East in Pemberton, Wigan. One of the brothers was missing by that time and I can't find him anywhere. Their father, who originally came from Staffordshire (I can't keep up!), was an iron finisher.
There were several iron works in Wigan at that time, one possibility is Worsley Mesnes. As luck would have it, Liverpool Records Office apparently has some detailed archives on it. That added to the fact that I need to look at the 1861 census, means I'm just going to have to front the ex or give up (and that would never do would it?)
Posted by lilliebet at 12:05 AM | Comments (0)
January 14, 2005
Search Engine, Schmearch Engine!
Hmmm! Seems to me any kind of family history, census or bmd search site searches the same database - Ancestry.com
All well and good but just about every search result can't be viewed unless it's paid for and it's an annual or quarterly fee. This is fine if you're researching your family history and you're going to take a long time doing it but if you're like me, doing a favour for a friend, $99.00 is a bit much.
I've finally located a potential family member but need to be able to track back from him. A view of his birth certificate is essential but I'm impatient (and skint!) and Ancestry.com isn't coming across with anything more than name, year of birth and registration district.
This may call for a train trip to Warrington, we'll see. In the meantime though, I have to find the time to visit the library to go through the 1861 census. Sunday would be a good day but guess whose "ex" works in the Records Office at the weekend? Just my luck!
Posted by lilliebet at 03:28 PM | Comments (2)
Happy Birthday Day!
My baby is 17 today (my baby is also 6 feet tall). Old enough to drive a car and get married but not old enough to get drunk at the wedding. Strange!
Happy Birthday Day! Have a great one :-)
Love Mum x
Posted by lilliebet at 07:59 AM | Comments (2)
January 13, 2005
Something new to put my energies into....
I'm not sure whether this shouldn't reside in the "Work" category but we'll see. A friend of mine asked me to do some investigation on behalf of a friend of his. It seems he had relations way back in the 19th Century who came from (or lived in) Liverpool.
I nipped up to the Records Office at lunch time to see what sort of resources they have there. Tons, is the answer! They have censuses, electoral rolls and all that jazz, dating back to the early 1800s but it's all on microfilm. It's going to take a lot of digging but it'll be interesting to say the least.
I was also provided with several online resources, unfortunately some of them require payment and I'm inherently mean. Takes a lot of the sense of achievement out of it too but here are a few of them.
1837online
1901 Census for England & Wales
Family Records Centre
Family Search
Liverpool & SW Lancashire Family History Society
General Records Office
Free BMD
Posted by lilliebet at 06:51 PM | Comments (2)
Bleh!!
Well that didn't go well :(
I had so much work stuff rattling round my head, I was a total mess. All I could think of was how much work was waiting for me back at the office. Must be a sign, I'm too busy to commit. One of the downsides to this job - nothing ever gets finished.
Posted by lilliebet at 06:33 PM | Comments (0)
January 12, 2005
Biting off more than I can chew?
Before Christmas my manager asked all of his team leads who would be interested in doing a Diploma in Management Studies, only two of us said yes and on Monday I got the thumbs up. I'm the lucky so-and-so who gets to dedicate all their free time to self-development (couldn't I just eat pies???)
So Monday I fills in the form and, just before close of play today, I'm told I have to fill in an application and take it with me to an interview tomorrow. Wow, this just gets better and better. I shouldn't moan, it's a fantastic opportunity all bought and paid for by work (£2000 on little old me, amazing!)
So why am I so trepidacious? (Excellent word, one for Paul) Because I think I may be over loading myself I suppose. It's an awful lot of work on top of a full-time job and a family. Oh but I so want to get out of here (Liverpool that is). If I could get my son away from the no-marks he hangs around with and move the whole family in the general direction of better, I'd be a much happier little bunny.
Ever since my cousin got his clearance to emigrate to Australia, my feet have been itching. Oz might be stretching it a bit but there has to be something better out there.
The course starts the end of this month and will take two years to complete but it's a goal, a light at the end of the Mersey Tunnel. I'm tied into my flat until September 2006 anyway, so maybe the two things will come together at the same time. Wish me luck tomorrow, this could be the start of great things. I really do hope so.
Download file
Posted by lilliebet at 09:32 PM | Comments (0)
I seem to have done a stirling job
Well I actually managed to put my categories in the right order after a little trial and error. I also managed to add entries, and I can finally see them.... all this after a visit to the pub too.
WhoopDeDoo!
Now I'm going to go to bed and think up something interesting to say. Now then.... um.... ZZZzzzzz
Posted by lilliebet at 01:21 AM | Comments (0)
Light blue touch-paper, stand well back....
First go, everyone has to have a trial run don't they? Jeez I'm gonna hate this - will everyone who has any clue how to do this please come round to my house and show me :(
I've created categories but I cannot find my site (boo hoo). I can see Mark's, oh yes, but not mine. Who told me this was easy? Oh, yes MARK! (Bloody Dell technicians grr)
Posted by lilliebet at 12:26 AM | Comments (2)