A great weekend followed by a hectic week. Friday - my birthday - saw a trip to work for a meeting that couldn't wait, and then I spent the afteroon with Mum, Dad and M choosing a new sewing machine. Got a lovely Pfaff model which I tried out making a pair of trousers last night - it sews like a dream.
Friday night Ed and I headed out to Mari e Monti for dinner. It was delicious and we had a lovely surprise as friends had arranged a bottle of wine for us. We went to the new microbrewery after that and drank some very fruity lager. Bumped into a friend who is hoping to ski for the British Paralympic Team - go James go!
Saturday Mum and Dad set off for Sheffield and Ed, me, M and friend Sarah drove down to Brighton for Jen's hen do. We said farewell to Ed and M and joined the hen crew. Lunch at a Morrocan bar was followed by a recording session where Jen laid down the Shoop shoop song and Girls just wanna have fun with us all on backing vocals. What a top idea for a hen do! The evening was spent in the company of the Adonis Cabaret - need I say more. Check out the 23/6/07 pictures on www.adoniscabaret.co.uk
Sunday morning dawned relatively clearheaded for me - I think I had reached my beer limit after Wednesday's excesses. Sarah wasn't feeling so good though!
This week has been manic, with preparations for a seminar and the dreaded ring round to do. Unfortunately there seems to be a rash of holidays at the moment - or maybe I'm just not persuasive enough... the paranoia of the PR bunny... but I've got a couple attending, and a few pre-briefings etc.
Being in house, but not having an agency, does rather mean you have to do everything, from identifying the story, drafting all collateral, setting up briefings, arranging a venue, briefing the spokespeople and occasionally BEING the spokesperson - which I only tend to do over email actually, as I can't think on my feet fast enough! It has its benefits, as I reckon we can react faster than those working through agencies, but 3.5 days per week is not a lot of time each week to do this, plus all the internal comms stuff.
Oh well, holiday week after next. Marvellous.
Wednesday 27 June 2007
Thursday 21 June 2007
Hats, hangovers and turning 30
It's funny how free booze seems to turn even the most sensible of us into teenagers. I was invited to Ascot with the boss and a colleague by our esteemed partners at the football club. We were treated to full hospitality and as much champagne as we could put away. Not terribly sensible of me to drink quite so much of it though... The boss is fairly easygoing, and advised my slightly nervous new colleague that the only rules on a corporate social are not to shag anyone you shouldn't, and don't drink so much you throw up. Hmm, I'd say overall a 50% success rate for me then, although I didn't disgrace myself in public, but the joy of having a hangover the same day as the drinking is one I'll be trying not to repeat in a hurry.
Still, my hat was marvellous, and although I didn't win on the geegees, I still had a lovely day. The Queen and her party looked well, and we were sitting near Dennis Wise in our marquee, much to the scorn of our football colleague.
A visit to a friend with a new baby today offered me the opportunity to pass on some of the knowledge I've gleaned in the past 14 months as mother to M. It was amazing to think that just a short time ago I had so much to learn. I was glad to be able help C. out and have a good old cuddle with her little boy.
Mind you, for all my worldly wisdom about newborns, I'm still learning every day when it comes to little M. On Tuesday I learned not to give her the keys to play with and then shut the car door. She promptly hit the central lock button and we coudln' get her to hit the "open" button on the key fob. An hour later with our neighbours searching fruitlessly for the spare keys in our sideboard and E. banging on the door to the nearby fire station to no avail, and there was nothing for it but to call 999. The girls from the nursery (where I'd just picked her up from) did a sterling job trying to keep Millie distracted, but she was rather distressed and couldn't understand why we weren't getting into the car. We did try to call the AA, but they put us in a queue, so 999 it was. They turned up after just a few minutes and it was decided to break the front passenger window. Just as they were about to do it Millie picked up the keys and started playing with them again. Cue all the firemen, nursery girls and us cajoling her to hit the unlock button, but to no avail. Smashed window it was. The little sweetheart was wet through when I get hold of her, but no harm done and she was right as rain in no time. We were very lucky actually, as ten minutes after we got the cars home the biggest thunderstorm I've ever seen/heard struck, and M would have been terrified, and us soaking wet, if we'd been any later.
Birthday tomorrow, although spoiled slightly by having to go into work for a meeting. But apart from that I'm looking forward to a nice day with Mum and Dad and then a meal out with E. in the evening.
Still, my hat was marvellous, and although I didn't win on the geegees, I still had a lovely day. The Queen and her party looked well, and we were sitting near Dennis Wise in our marquee, much to the scorn of our football colleague.
A visit to a friend with a new baby today offered me the opportunity to pass on some of the knowledge I've gleaned in the past 14 months as mother to M. It was amazing to think that just a short time ago I had so much to learn. I was glad to be able help C. out and have a good old cuddle with her little boy.
Mind you, for all my worldly wisdom about newborns, I'm still learning every day when it comes to little M. On Tuesday I learned not to give her the keys to play with and then shut the car door. She promptly hit the central lock button and we coudln' get her to hit the "open" button on the key fob. An hour later with our neighbours searching fruitlessly for the spare keys in our sideboard and E. banging on the door to the nearby fire station to no avail, and there was nothing for it but to call 999. The girls from the nursery (where I'd just picked her up from) did a sterling job trying to keep Millie distracted, but she was rather distressed and couldn't understand why we weren't getting into the car. We did try to call the AA, but they put us in a queue, so 999 it was. They turned up after just a few minutes and it was decided to break the front passenger window. Just as they were about to do it Millie picked up the keys and started playing with them again. Cue all the firemen, nursery girls and us cajoling her to hit the unlock button, but to no avail. Smashed window it was. The little sweetheart was wet through when I get hold of her, but no harm done and she was right as rain in no time. We were very lucky actually, as ten minutes after we got the cars home the biggest thunderstorm I've ever seen/heard struck, and M would have been terrified, and us soaking wet, if we'd been any later.
Birthday tomorrow, although spoiled slightly by having to go into work for a meeting. But apart from that I'm looking forward to a nice day with Mum and Dad and then a meal out with E. in the evening.
Sunday 17 June 2007
Row the boat
A weekend of regattas for us then as we met friends to celebrate a 30th birthday in Marlow. The bad weather just about held off, and our canny friends had had the foresight to nab a picnic spot under a large tree in any case. The most amusing spectacle was observing the boys in blue gleefully confiscating booze from underage lads and pouring it away onto the grass in front of them... ah fond memories of misspent youth! Most people seemed to have had less trouble accessing the fruits of the vine, however, and it looked as though it was only going to get messier as the evening wore on.
We had the opportunity for a bit of vicarious excitement as Ed's cousin, who lives in Bisham, had been to England football captain John Terry's wedding on Friday. We heard all about it and saw the menu cards and order of service - it all sounded very romantic.
Church this morning was enlivened somewhat by the entrance, just before communion, of a rather interesting gentleman,who immediately started kissing a young chap who had come to our church for the first time. On being dissuaded from this, he then made a beeline for poor Marion, who had to endure his close (and I do mean close) attention for the rest of the service. Luckily Marion bore the situation very stoicly and managed to wrest the chalice from the chap's grasp as I was serving it. It's not the first time that we've been joined by some of Reading's less fortunate citizens - a couple of homeless chaps joined for the communion and th tea afterwards a few months ago - but it's always a tricky one. Christian duty means that of course we should welcome all through the doors of the church, and with a congregation as small as ours we need all the support we can get, but I don't think it really extends to allowing people to come in a nd snog us! Anyway, in the end the chap had his cup of tea and talk with the vicar, and then headed off, leaving a rather relieved Marion slightly higher on the ladder to sainthood!!
At lunchtime we took a trip down the Thames on the Caversham Princess to check out our future Thames-side mansion. There was a regatta on here too and we had a good view of the rowers coming down the course.
Got that Sunday feeling now, work again tomorrow. I'll be spending the next couple of weeks trying to garner interest in a major press conference that we are holding on the environment, with a little recreation in the form of a trip to Ascot with the lovely chaps at Reading FC on Wednesday.
We had the opportunity for a bit of vicarious excitement as Ed's cousin, who lives in Bisham, had been to England football captain John Terry's wedding on Friday. We heard all about it and saw the menu cards and order of service - it all sounded very romantic.
Church this morning was enlivened somewhat by the entrance, just before communion, of a rather interesting gentleman,who immediately started kissing a young chap who had come to our church for the first time. On being dissuaded from this, he then made a beeline for poor Marion, who had to endure his close (and I do mean close) attention for the rest of the service. Luckily Marion bore the situation very stoicly and managed to wrest the chalice from the chap's grasp as I was serving it. It's not the first time that we've been joined by some of Reading's less fortunate citizens - a couple of homeless chaps joined for the communion and th tea afterwards a few months ago - but it's always a tricky one. Christian duty means that of course we should welcome all through the doors of the church, and with a congregation as small as ours we need all the support we can get, but I don't think it really extends to allowing people to come in a nd snog us! Anyway, in the end the chap had his cup of tea and talk with the vicar, and then headed off, leaving a rather relieved Marion slightly higher on the ladder to sainthood!!
At lunchtime we took a trip down the Thames on the Caversham Princess to check out our future Thames-side mansion. There was a regatta on here too and we had a good view of the rowers coming down the course.
Got that Sunday feeling now, work again tomorrow. I'll be spending the next couple of weeks trying to garner interest in a major press conference that we are holding on the environment, with a little recreation in the form of a trip to Ascot with the lovely chaps at Reading FC on Wednesday.
Thursday 14 June 2007
Flexible
The joys of flexible working mean that I finish at lunchtime on a Thursday, signing off with a wing and a prayer that any journalists desperate for news of printers and copiers can hold on to their hats until Monday. Actually, that's not strictly true, I've got a shiny MDA that gives me access to emails, so if there is a global document imaging crisis I'm unlikely to miss it... It hasn't happened yet though. Mostly I get lots of Response Source enquiries, which, given that I effectively have only one client, are relevant about one time in 50. It's quite interesting reading what the writers are working on though, and occasionally sparks off the odd creative idea.
Response Source requests range from the terse, to the longwinded, to the downright fluffy, and it does vary depending on sector. I had to smile though the other day when one came through from a lady writing on a women's magazine who "can't wait to hear your stories" and signed off with a "x". Kisses at the bottom of Reponse Source requests... what a lot of love she must have to share! ... and I thought PRs were supposed to be the insincere ones!
Response Source requests range from the terse, to the longwinded, to the downright fluffy, and it does vary depending on sector. I had to smile though the other day when one came through from a lady writing on a women's magazine who "can't wait to hear your stories" and signed off with a "x". Kisses at the bottom of Reponse Source requests... what a lot of love she must have to share! ... and I thought PRs were supposed to be the insincere ones!
Wednesday 13 June 2007
First post
You know you're getting older when technology starts to pass you by. As someone working in the technology PR industry this is a bit of a worry. I was quite happy with the concept of blogs: online musings that can be incredibly compelling, or downright dull. As with everything in life, it just depends on your point of view.
Now, however, we're into the scary world of web 2.0, Flickr, Facebook, Youtube - and I'm showing my naivete by describing them as scary. I've probably been in-house for too long. In an agency, you're necessarily exposed to the bleeding edge of technology, as those with the newest ideas are generally the most in need of publicity for them. However, in the somewhat more cosy in-house world - in a printer/MFP company to boot - things move a little more slowly, and I've found myself slipping further behind.
So, a toe in the water... my own blog.
But what on earth to write about? Work? Home? Family? Cats?
And how to write it? Do I want others to read this, in which case I need to generate some compelling content, or should it be a personal journal, written simply for my own edification?
To the last question I think the answer is clear. You don't post your thoughts to an international community unless you're expecting at least some folk out there to read them, even if it's only those generous chaps offering enhancements that I'm not really in need of...
So, I'm going to write about whatever takes my fancy, which could be anything from PR, to kayaking, to pregnancy, to football, and see what happens. I'm most interested to see whether any real life acquaintances will happen across this blog without me telling them about it. If you do, leave a comment.
Now, however, we're into the scary world of web 2.0, Flickr, Facebook, Youtube - and I'm showing my naivete by describing them as scary. I've probably been in-house for too long. In an agency, you're necessarily exposed to the bleeding edge of technology, as those with the newest ideas are generally the most in need of publicity for them. However, in the somewhat more cosy in-house world - in a printer/MFP company to boot - things move a little more slowly, and I've found myself slipping further behind.
So, a toe in the water... my own blog.
But what on earth to write about? Work? Home? Family? Cats?
And how to write it? Do I want others to read this, in which case I need to generate some compelling content, or should it be a personal journal, written simply for my own edification?
To the last question I think the answer is clear. You don't post your thoughts to an international community unless you're expecting at least some folk out there to read them, even if it's only those generous chaps offering enhancements that I'm not really in need of...
So, I'm going to write about whatever takes my fancy, which could be anything from PR, to kayaking, to pregnancy, to football, and see what happens. I'm most interested to see whether any real life acquaintances will happen across this blog without me telling them about it. If you do, leave a comment.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)