It's a sunny day in L-Town, despite the anarchy!

I just had a great lunch. The food wasn’t the part that was great. It was the news! I ran into the canteen, like most days here at News Int, and I grabbed a cup of soup (26p) and a portion of chips (57p) – I normally stay away from the chips but I had a craving and couldn’t help myself – and scanned the room to see where I could sit. Andy (my line manager) was seated at a small table on his own so I pulled up a seat.

Most would think sitting with their manager during lunch isn’t the best way to go, however Andy is really easy going and great to chat to. Plus, I’ve been so busy with other work with the team this week we haven’t had a proper catch-up, so it was a good opportunity to hear how I was doing. (Being ‘in limbo’ – his words – is stressful at times, so it’s good to know!) Thankfully, he gave me good news! It doesn’t seem likely that come the end of my ‘temporary’ period (30 Jun) I’ll be gone from News Int. Even if I am not hired on full time (due to the budget, not my performance) he’s going to come up with a way to keep me around.

Well thank God for that!

Other work related news – I’m at News Int for the whole of April. No Blackbridge at all, which gives me the opportunity to fully invest myself with work here. Never a bad thing, especially when things are so busy.

It’s the G20 Summit here in London (it started yesterday) and things were meant to really kick off yesterday. We were told to dress down yesterday and today so as not to ‘stand out’ and avoid briefcases (not that I own one) in case they might make us any more of a target. I’m not sure if it’s the fact I’m too far south east from the City (it’s probably two miles away at the most) but I didn’t see any disruption other than the helicopters hovering overhead. Although, it was cool knowing Obama was within miles of me. He may be my president, but he’s also a superstar! Although the chances of me passing by his cavalcade are slim! I can still hope…

Oh and other news, Mark, Kerry and I are going to the Reading Festival on 28 Aug! Ages away, I know, but the line up is getting me excited, mainly for the fact I’m going to see Kings of Leon finally!

Update

This may not be the most exciting post ever, but I thought I'd give some updates to help those who I can't speak to on a regular basis.

1. I got my new Visa a few days ago, which is quite exciting because I paid the £400 for it out of pocket.

2. I'm going to Paris with Mark for our one year anniversary on 8-11 May. We're staying at the Hilton across the street from the Arche de Triumphe - I could not be more excited!

3. I was laid off (or made redundant as it's said in England) at the end of Jan, and as of March I'm now freelancing two days a week at Blackbridge and 3 days a week as the Trade Marketing Assistant at News International. It's been a rollercoaster of emotions, but I'm hoping this is a new experience that can broaden my horizons!

4. I'm planning on flying with Mark to Boston on the 2nd July until the 20th of July. It's going to be our summer holiday, so we won't necessarily be around the entire time (we have tentative plans to travel to NYC, the Cape and Martha's Vineyard, and possibly Bar Harbor). And of course I'm going to be in my best friend Stefanie's wedding on the 18th July! But if you want to see me or want to even join us for anything, let me know! I want to obviously see everyone, so hopefully we can start planning away to get me even more excited.

5. The biggest life changing news I have is Mark and I are planning on moving in together in August. Huge, I know. Or maybe it just seems huge to me? Irregardless, I've never lived with a boyfriend before and he's never lived with a girlfriend, so we are virgins in this arena!! Obviously I'm a bit nervous but I'm really excited about the situation. Where will we end up is the biggest question? North or south of the river?! Dun dun dunnnnn.

That's it for now, back to the daily grind at News Int.