FINALLY!

... I manage to sit down and write another post 2 months after my last one. To say that the routine of having to get up early five mornings in a row out of seven comes as a shock to my system would be understating it somewhat, and to say that I am finding it hard to keep up with certain extra-curricular activites would be understating it even more.

The graduation has been and gone, and a laugh was had. My name appeared in local paper The Argus that day. Never one to be outdone, of course, Brooksy got his own section, complete with photograph.

We've all moved on now, and it makes me sad that we will most likely never again get together as a group again like we used to. The night of the graduation we all got together in the pub for one last time, though I had to leave, as I wasn't able to get the following day off from work, which I had already started at that stage.

I am now firmly esconced in East London, in Bethnal Green, in a hospital residence, paying £400 a month, which for that area is a great deal. I've already sussed out the area, and I smiled to myself when I found out that I happen to be on a direct tube line to Soho, a mere 15 minutes away. I haven't yet located a Kung Fu class up here yet (there are loads, which makes choosing one a bit difficult) but I have joined British Military Fitness and am going three times a week in Victoria Park, which is just up the road from me. I'll have that six-pack yet, even if I have to resort to anorexia nervosa!

I'm almost two months into the job, and slowly starting to find my feet. The interaction is not 100% ideal. There has been at least one rottweiler encountered already, and some of the people I work with... well... let's just say we didn't initially click. Still, when I have moments of despondency, I remind myself of how lucky I am that things have worked out the way that they have. I'm getting paid again in two weeks, but still have £500 in my account. It's a long time since I've had that level of comfort. Long may it continue.

Having said that, I start my rotation in General Medicine tomorrow, and the manager of the dispensary I'll be in in the afternoons is supposed to be blunt, to say the least of it. Fingers crossed things will work out.

The London Underground, which always seemed so metropolitan in films, fast loses its sheen when you have to take it during rush hour. Thankfully, where I live makes using it unnecessary for most of the journeys I have to make to work during the coming year.

I've already discovered the nuances of London nightlife (the Royal Vauxhall Tavern - yeah baby!) and met some very nice people up here, including Rick, who I met in XXL last night and brought back to mine. Apparently, it says somewhere in my accommodation contract that I'm not supposed to use my room for 'improper, immoral or illegal purposes'. Oh well, I don't think anyone saw us...

Wednesday night will see me fly out to Holland to meet the dutch side of the family, as my cousin is getting married there. Unfortunately the easiest option once again was to fly with DireAir (Ryanair). Hopefully it'll be the last time I fly with them, and hopefully not because the plane plunges out of the sky, which is what almost happened on a recent flight with them that I read about in the news.

Anyway, off I go. I had a stinking hangover earlier today, and while it's more or less gone now, I'm still a bit tired. A night in front of the couch for me, I think...