On the move at last...?

Well, things seem to be working out for now. We got the go ahead on the new house, and aim to move on the 16th Feb, little more than two weeks away. Yippee!

I did a morning at the Prison this morning in preparation for my new job there. At the moment its not permanent, but I am hoping and praying that it will turn out to be. I'm also working on some dormant anxiety which decided to rear it's ugly head last night... any suggestions?! To quote my favourite singer and my new friend, 'I'm sinking down... with the traffic of madmen and maniacs.' I'm sure things will get better soon.

Which leads nicely on the the link for my myspace at madmenandmaniacs.

Ryan ;)

The Move?

Well, we've put in the application which has been provisionally accepted - just waiting for a few more references to come in and we could well be moving in two weeks! How about that then!!

More news next week.

Change of Address?

It could be an exciting time again for us again, potentially.

Yesterday afternoon, we went to view a house in the city centre, right next to the railway station - a period Victorian end terrace. Well, we were delighted with it, and the location is brilliant - a 2 minute walk to the railway station. Yet, in a very quiet cul-de-sac location on a private street with no traffic on the quarry-stone road. Perfect.

So, we will visit the agent this afternoon and get the ball rolling!

More later....

The Weekend Report

What report? The did-sod-all report more like! Kirstyn (Michael's lovely sister) came to stay on Friday night - we ate pizza, watched the taped Christmas specials of the Vicar of Dibley (LMAO!) and lounged.

On Saturday we went into the city and I bought some new specs - one ordinary day-to-day pair, and a pair of sunnies for the summer. Shame is, my ultra-trendy glasses HURT like hell, so I needed to take them back today to get them changed. So now I have a lightweight pair of Hugo Boss (no, not actually his) specs which make me look like a teacher, but at least they're comfy!

Had a roast pork dinner yesterday, and left-overs today, after IKEA and Leicester shops.

There - as I said, NO NEWS! Molly is fat still. If anyone reading this has a weight loss plan for cats, I'd really appreciate it...

I might have some exciting news for you next time.

Ryan x

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My Grandparents

This is a picture of my Grandmother Betty and George, my grandfather. It was taken in Brynmawr, South Wales around 1950. It was a bit battered, so I restored it! My grandfather at the time had probably not long returned from Africa with the Royal Engineers where he served as a desert rat. My grandmother had probably just returned from London, where she worked for the Home Office.

Michael's Slideshow

Visit Michael's myspace page for the full story!

Random Thoughts

What a funny time new year can be.

We had great time on new years eve. Michael's family (all except Bevan & co.) came for a little party. The thing is, apart from having a great time, Flo provided the entertainment. The poor thing managed to get a red carrier bag tangled around her neck. She went berserk! Running around faster than anything I've seen - like wonder woman! I think she was scared. I cornered her in a bedroom, and pulled it off, and she was fine again! It had everybody in stitches!

I say Bevan & Co. couldn't come because they were spending time with their new born baby - who entered the world a little late on the 28th December! He's is the sweetest baby! If you go back to my myspace profile, there's a picture of Paul (Bevans brother) holding little Leo Frederick! aw.....

Can't think of much else to say for now, so I'll sign off and wish you ATB! Here's a random picture of Michael and some handsome guy in Finland (on a big boat!). :)

Ryan x

Ryan's myspace Profile

Just to let you know that I now have a myspace profile. It's at

www.myspace.com/madmenandmaniacs

Also, make sure you check out the Kathryn Williams Official Forums. I'm an administrator there, so I would really welcome you, as would the rest of our growing, friendly community. My website has also been updated (www.uselessdesires.co.uk).

Ryan x

Happy New Year 2007!

Happy new year folks. I'm sorry for the lack of updates lately. It's been a busy time around Christmas, and I've spend the last two weeks in Wales with my family.

Since my last entry, I have lost my job as a Nurse at Timken Steel. This was due to the planned closure, but I lost my position sooner than anticipated. Not a great thing to happen before Christmas, and we're now in a new year and I'm unemployed. I have a lot to be thankful for, so I'm not too sad! The better news is that I start work at a large HM YOI (a young offenders prison) any time soon. I'm just waiting for security clearance. I'm looking forward to it!

A cliché I know, but it’s been a funny old year. I ended up embroiled in an ugly battle with my former employer. If I’ve not told the story before, I was bullied by business manager. I’ll not bore you with the details now, but I found out the other week that she has been disposed of! It’s only a shame that I couldn’t see it for myself, but she was asked to leave through a rather elaborate arrangement of consultation - in other words, everybody needed to apply for their jobs again, and the only person who didn’t get it was her! Ah well, all history now, but this year has been dominated by that woman.

The upshot of this was a blessing. I still have friends (I’m pleased to say) in high places. When I told a former colleague about my departure from that company, she told me about how she learned about an occupational health nurse vacancy that had come up at one of the local factories recently – The Timken Steel Corp. Within the week, I’d met the manager there, and started work the following week!

Unfortunately, as my luck with jobs seems to prove, last week I lost this job! The factory was to close, and 400 redundancies needed to be made, so again, I found myself in hot water. The same friend and colleague who found me the job came through again and told me about a position at the local prison. So, that’s my plan.

With any luck, I’m hoping the new year will bring me a new house, with a garden, some job security and some new friends. Whatever you wish for and dream of for the new year, I really hope it come true for you…