North of the Stupid Line

I was persuaded by Yen to go to badminton at Croydon Sports Club today.

I’d be the first to admit that I’m not a sporty person, but I was intrigued by Yen’s request to attend the first badminton club for the Croydon area for deaf individuals.

I enjoyed it. I’m not the best badminton player ever, but I did enjoy the exericse and the meeting of new people. However, I’ve decided not go to to this particular badminton club again, as it’s too far from Orpington.

Laura and Ole go to a badminton club in Deptford, and I’ve been invited to join them, but I’ll see how it goes.

What do you guys think of the latest series of Doctor Who?

While I like David Tennant as Doctor Who and Billie Piper as Rose, I have to say some of the storylines in the current series have been a bit naff. Take last Saturday’s episode for instance.  Fear Her was set in London during the Olympics in 2012, and featured the invasion of a flower into Chloe Webber who trapped everyone into her drawings, making them all disappear from the ‘real’ world.  Erm …. !!!!

The double episodes of The Impossible Planet and The Satan Pit were great to watch, but since then, the episodes have been a bit of a damp squib.  We’ve got two more episodes left of the current series, a two-parter, so it should liven up a bit.

I honestly think that the best episodes are those that take place in outer space, rather than on Earth.  They’re just a bit more different and interesting.  Seeing humans every week is a bit boring; after all, don’t we see each other every day?

It’s a well known fact that Billie Piper has quit the series, and won’t be returning for the next series.  I’m disappointed about this, but I guess nothing lasts forever.

I’ve been cooking!

Laura and Ole have cooked for me plenty of times in the past year, but I’d never cooked for them.  Since I’ve moved into their home, I’ve cooked two meals (albeit one without Laura here); fajitas and spaghetti bolognese.  There’s a few more culinary delights to look forward to from me:

• Lasagne;
• Cottage pie;
• Roast dinner;
• Chicken korma; and
• Chicken tikka misala.

I might ask my mum to teach me how to cook stew, and I need to try and cook semolina one day!  I love my mum’s semolina.

I’ve moved again within London! I’m now living with Laura and Oliver at their newly-purchased three bedroom home in Orpington, Kent. Here are some pics of my new bedroom:

I have taken pics of the rest of the house, but haven’t transferred them to the laptop yet.

Why did I decide to move from Steve’s flat? Basically, for fiscal reasons. Living at Laura and Ole’s is £70 a month cheaper. It doesn’t sound a lot, but it works out about £840 saved a year, which I can spend on the house in Oakdale. To be honest, why fork out my hard-earned dosh to pay someone else’s mortgage when I have my own house to think about?

Anyway, this is my third week in the house, and I’m very happy to be living here. It’s very luxurious and I have settled in very quickly. It’s a bit strange though, as Laura has buggered off on a month’s travels around Eastern Europe, so it’s just me and Ole at the moment, but that is good, cos gives us a chance to get to know each other a bit better.

I’ve promised myself that this is the last time I will move in London -
the next time I move will be when I move back to Wales permanently next year.

Some of you will know that I have started my Professional Skills Course (PSC), completion of which is a prerequisite to becoming a qualified solicitor. Nick Turner, my principal solicitor, wanted me to do it sooner rather than later, hence why I’m doing it at the moment.

I have already completed two modules:

• Client Care and Professional Standards; and
• Financial and Business Skills.

Financial and Business Skills required that I sat a one and a half hour exam consisting of multiple choice questions and two case studies, which I did on 19 June 2006. I received a letter today informing me that I passed it, so I’m pleased.

I’m starting the Advocacy & Communication Skills module next Tuesday, and I’ve got a one-day elective in Litigation Drafting Skills next Monday, in Cardiff. My final elective, How to Conduct Unfair Dismissal Proceedings, will take place on 13 November 2006, in Birmingham.

The course in London has been taking place at Regent’s College. It’s dead posh there, unlike Crosskeys College and the other colleges in South Wales I could have gone to to do my A Levels. Surrounded by Regent’s Park, it is a really pleasant place to walk to from Baker Street station, with lakes, fresh air and stillness, as opposed to the busy pace of city life.