My new role...

I've just started working as a Trainee Biomedical Scientist within the Cellular Pathology department of a local hospital.  I've just completed my first week in the lab and I LOVE IT!

At last I have found a job whereby I actually look forward to going to work each day.

Yes, I'm finding it quite tiring (who wouldn't after 4 months off) but that doesn't matter because I really am loving what I'm doing.

So far I have spent my time in the dissection room watching Pathologists at work and learning how to book in samples to the lab.  I get to see some pretty gruesome stuff I can tell you but it's all amazing!  I cannot quite believe just how unaffected I am by all the things I've seen this week.  Just a few years ago I couldn't stand the sight of even the smallest drop of blood and now, well without painting too horrid a picture, I see a lot of it and it's pretty much all day every day now.  Before you think I'm incredibly disturbed or macabre, I'm not I just find it all so fascinating on a purely educational level.

I'll try to post more as my year long placement continues.

The all new Goggleboxes Store

You may have noticed the new "Store" tab appear on the blog*.

Please make full use of this new feature.  I add items to the store so please feel free to make recommendations, however items are usually only added once they have been featured on Goggleboxes.

Happy shopping!

*Prices are as advertised on amazon.co.uk and supplied by amazon and it's affiliates so I am not responsible for orders.

Some TV to watch out for/catch up on

Well I didn't exactly keep my promise of posting on here over the summer. Sorry about that! I'll start my run down of events with a post bringing you some of the great TV shows I have managed to sample this summer....

First up, and a very good place to start (for a mixed up soul like myself) as it is about to enter into its 5th and final season, is Fringe.  I am not a fan of the sci-fi genre generally but this program had me hooked from the first episode I saw. Admittedly the first episode I saw was 209, an episode called "Snakehead" and by far one of the best of the series, however returning to where it all began to watch from start to finish did not disappoint.

Fringe has many twists and turns in the plot and each season carries a story arc with each episode blended really well. Its very easy viewing and the extremely well written.

Here is the Fox TV (US) Trailer from Season 1:



Suits - USA Network & Dave in the UK

Suits is a legal drama/comedy created by Aaron Korsh (writer on Everybody Loves Raymond, Just Shoot Me!).  Although you do find yourself amused by some of the storylines and anecdotes it isn't a comedy in the belly laughing sense so don't expect a sitcom.  That doesn't by any means take anything away from the series.  It is incredibly well written, stars some amazing actors and generally leaves you wanting more and more and more.

The story centres around a guy named Mike who is considered a bit of a loser type.  Despite having a eidetic  memory he is wasting his life smoking and doing menial jobs for small bucks.  That is until he happens upon Harvey Spector (who I want to marry by the way...), a big time NYC lawyer.

I think the trailer doesn't quite sell the show as much as it should/could but then maybe they didn't want to give too much away...



White Collar - USA Network & Alibi in the UK

Neal Caffrey... swoon!  Matt Bomer aside, White Collar is a great program.  Based around the central characters of aforementioned Neal Caffrey, a art thief, forger and super sleek con man, and Peter Burke, FBI agent.  The first season starts with Neal in jail as a result of being caught by Agent Burke only for him to escape and so begins the tale...

The series isn't offensive (i.e. not much sex, drugs and rock and roll or violence) but the story lines (as written by Jeff Eastin) are fast paced and well thought out.

I could only find a promo for the second season so be aware of any spoilers before watching:



Franklin & Bash - TNT and Channel 4 in the UK

A legal drama comedy but definitely more comedy than drama, so the anti suits if you will.  F&B is well worth watching however so not completely out of the realm of suits.

TNT released a catch up promo after the first season of F&B which I'm posting here, it may give away a few spoilers but you won't really be watching F&B for the arc's throughout the season so it shouldn't be too much of an issue...



Enjoy!

Last Resort

One word. AWESOME!

It is safe to say that if season 1 continues with the precedent for gripping television set by the series premiere then this will be yet another program to add to my ever growing list of must see shows.

Here is the trailer to whet your appetites...

I LOVE THIS TIME OF YEAR!

There are sooo many premieres whizzing through the TV world at the moment it's making me dizzy (with excitement!).

Private Practice Season 6, Greys Anatomy Season 9, Scandal Season 2, Fringe Final Season 5, Revenge Season 2, Once Upon a Time Season 2, Criminal Minds Season 8, Dexter Season 6, New Girl Season 2, Broadwalk Empire Season 3 and not forgetting some all new shows such as...

... 666 Park Avenue, Last Resort. Phew!

That's not to mention that it was announced today that Franklin & Bash will be back for a 3rd season (premiere date to be announced of course)!

So far I can only comment on the prem of Private Practice.

Firstly, I thought Amy Brenneman looked FANTASTIC! That aside, the format of the show was a refreshing change of pace for the PP team. I really enjoyed it. I don't want to say too much as, obviously a vast proportion of the World are yet to get a chance to see the episode, but I thought it was a good start to the season and hopefully set the viewers up to experience a good few twists and turns in the lives of all at Oceanside Wellness.

I'm off to go and watch GA 901 and Scandal 201. I'll be back soon to give you a heads up on what to expect in both episodes.

White Collar update...

Good news! White Collar has been renewed for a 5th season! I'll let you know premiere dates once I find out.

Just a quickie re some must see TV...

I've been so busy this summer I haven't had time to blog!

Here's just a quick list of programmes you HAVE to look out for and watch as if your life depends on it:

1 - Suits (USA network): currently on a mid season break in the US to commence Jan 2013. Season 2 starting in the UK Jan 2013 and play through with no break. According to online sources it airs on Dave but this may just be re runs.

2 - White Collar (USA network): season 4 finale airing this week in the US. Season 2 will premiere in the UK on Alibi from 16th October 2012 @ 10pm.

3 - Franklin &; Bash (TNT): season 2 aired in the US this summer finishing in August.  The show runs on E4 in the UK.  I have no information with regards to the show being renewed for a third season but as soon as I find out I'll let you know!

4 - Fringe (FOX):  season 5 is due to premiere on 28th Sept in the US and a date tbc in 2013 in the UK (airing on Sky1).

5 - The Newsroom (HBO):  the season 1 finale aired on 26th Sept in the US and I believe it closed 2 weeks later in the UK airing on Sky Atlantic.  Season 2 will premiere in the US in June 2013 so a while to wait for a return, allowing plenty of time to catch up despite each episode's running time being 60 minutes (75 minutes for the pilot!).

I promise to give full reviews of each of these shows in the coming days so stay tuned!

Some great TV for the UK to anticipate

I have been waiting months for my exams to be out of the way so that I could sit down and enjoy Scandal, the new creation from Shonda Rhimes.   So, did I enjoy it?  Hell yes!

I find myself fast becoming what I can only describe as a fanatic when it comes to the creations of Shonda Rhimes and her company Shondaland.  Yes I realise that the characters are intertwined in each and every one of her series.  Be it by sharing names, their spoken expression or even a face.  Actors appear time and time again crossing over from Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice and now Scandal.  As is the case with Jeff Perry (Meredith's father, Thatcher in GA and now Cyrus Beene in Scandal), Kate Burton (Meredith's mother, Ellis in GA and now Sally Langston in Scandal) and the less obvious Sarah Drew (April Kepner in GA and Judy in Private Practice).  Still I find myself hopelessly addicted to each and every one of these shows, waiting impatiently for the next instalment to appear on a television/computer screen near me.  Scandal is by no means different.

Scandal is not a medical drama so it is unlike GA and PP in that respect.  It is a political thriller packed full of twists and turns and characters who you can grow to love and hate.  Everything a good television show needs.  I encourage all to watch it knowing you will have to find time in your life to become thoroughly enthralled on a weekly basis.

Summer is finally here!

Although the weather may have different ideas, summer is finally here. Exams are over and after one more meeting and an injection or two, uni will be out for 4 months (or technically 16 months as I start my placement come October).

Hopefully I'll get more of a chance to blog over the summer now uni work is out of the way.

Let's start by talking about our plans. I am hoping to travel a bit this summer. Just holidays here and there but I'll try to keep you updated with some pics of the things I get up to! In the meantime let me know what you have planned for this summer!

Shouting One Out - Celebrity Juice - Corrie Vs Eastenders Special

I laughed so hard at this game on Celebrity Juice a couple of weeks ago I just knew I had to share it!

Also, apologies for not being around much lately but a) I have a new boy toy (lol yes Dan I just referred to you as boy toy) and b) it's that time of year again, exam time!  I'll try to post at least something every now and then and not be so rubbish!  Until next time, enjoy this video...

What defines me...

"Some say that our lives are defined by the sum of our choices, but it isn't really our choices that distinguish who we are.  It's our commitment to them." - Emily Thorne

I'm not sure if it's a sign of getting older when you start evaluating the decisions you have made in life, and their sometimes inevitable outcomes, nevertheless, this is something I have thought about just recently..

I considered five decisions I've made that have altered the path of my life and resulted in something incredibly positive happening to me.  I'm not sure if five is a particularly low or high number for life altering decisions, it was just a number that came to mind when I started the thought process.

I felt it would probably make more sense to adjust them in my mind into chronological order, after all that is the way your life path is affected.  Nothing one does today can change what happened yesterday.  I cannot say with total conviction that had I not done any one of these things the rest would not have followed, but that isn't something I can put to the test (unless I ever get to meet the infinite number of me's living in an infinite number of parallel universes! See my August 2011 post Existence:  Is there more than one me? http://tinypiney.blogspot.com/2011/08/existence-is-there-more-than-one-me.html).  Here goes. The List:

1. Moving to Spain
2. Getting a dog named Indiana
3. Not getting married
4. Buying my property
5. Going to university

So breaking the list down:

Moving to Spain:

Had I not moved to Spain back in 2001 at the age of 20 I would not have the following in my life:

• Friends for life
• A selection of great friends and acquaintances from around the world, many of whom I can still count on today even if it is just to put a smile on my face and make me feel humanity isn't all bad!
• Experience of living in another country
• Although Spain's culture nowadays isn't all that far removed from the UK (especially in the South), the experience of living in another country with another language and way of life taught me more about the world than I could ever learn from books.  I don't believe that going on holiday for a few weeks a year will ever teach you enough.  I don't even believe that travelling from place to place around the world for a couple of years will make you appreciate fully how different people are and how varied or even vivacious life can be.
• Independence from my parents
• Until I moved to Spain I had never lived by myself away from my family home.  Many people nowadays don't get to find out what this is like until they are well into their mid to late 20's.  However, I'm glad I made this leap so early.  Your parents give you a lot of things in life no matter how unspoilt you are, and the wake up call that comes with the realisation of "Oh crap, I've drunk all my money away and now can't eat for a week", is something you never forget.  Needless to say, by the time I moved back to the UK I had a firm grasp on the concept of living to my means.
• Indiana
• Had I never moved to Spain, I would never have gotten the totally wonderful and adorable dog that is Indiana.  For that reason alone, I am committed to the choice I made when I said good-bye to the UK for 3 years.

Getting a dog named Indiana
I'm not sure how much explaining this decision needs.  I got a dog one day.  We named him Indiana.  He is the single best thing in my life and has been ever since that day.  Getting Indie has not lead me to make any further un-regrettable decisions (to my knowledge).  My commitment to Indie is unfaltering, not only did I not give him up when times got hard in Spain, but I moved him back to the UK with me.  Neither are decisions I regret!  Indie is simply adorable and by far my best friend in the world, no matter how sad a person that makes me sound! Lol.


Not getting married
I'm not going to say too much on this one because it's an incredibly personal decision that didn't/doesn't just involve me.  All I will say is it gave me a chance to re-evaluate every aspect of my life and lead me to the eventual conclusion that, other than my family, there really were not too many aspects that I was happy with.  This most definitely caused me to realise that I wanted to do something different/more with my life which in turn lead to decision number 5, but we're not there yet!


Buying my own property
As much as I love my parents, moving back home was one of the most difficult things I had ever done.  Living under the same roof as my parents really puts a great deal of strain on our relationship.  I firmly believe that we ALL like each other a whole lot more when I am living away from home!  Here's some other reasons why buying my own property was a good decision:

• Getting on the property ladder
• It was mentioned to me when I was thinking about buying my flat that I may be better off renting.  My reply was "but why?" and I think I was right to ask.  There are no positives to renting when you have money in the bank to put towards a deposit.
• My own space
• There is just something about having a place to call your own.  Yes the bank still owns a huge chunk of my flat but I'm paying them money to one day be able to call it my own, in it's entirety. I would say you can't put a price on that, but clearly you can!  
• I spent my time in Spain living with countless flatmates.  It's stressful beyond belief.  When you're young, you're selfish.  No one can argue that.  Even the most level headed young person still goes out, gets drunk occasionally and doesn't feel like doing the washing up right away.  Hell, even now sometimes I don't feel like putting my plate in the dishwasher right away, and I don't have to all because I have a place that I live in by myself (and Indie doesn't care!).
• Independence
• I don't have to tell anyone where I am, who I'm with or when I'll be home.  It's liberating (well it would be if I hadn't already been liberated at the age of 20, now I'm just used to it.  That was actually one of the main sources of friction when moving back home after living away for so long!  Some habits are hard to break!).
• University
• Had I not bought this flat, going back to university would have meant moving back home or not going to university at all.  So yes this decision affected the choice I made about going back to university in a positive way (even if it does mean I have a mortgage to pay as a poor student.  I make it work thanks to all the lessons I learnt about budgeting whilst living in Spain!).

Going to university

I, for as long as I can remember, HATED my job.  When I started working in London as an assistant at the young age of 18, working in an office was the last thing I wanted to do.  However, it paid the bills (well it gave me money to spend on drinking and going out which was all I cared about at that age).  In all honesty I sold out.  I should have gone to university then, but I had discovered going out drinking and I had found out what young love felt like.  I made the decision to go and get employed, and that's what I did.  

After moving back to the UK from Spain I ended up finding full time employment back in London as a Personal Assistant.  Yet again falling back into a job I disliked.  However, from 2004 until 2009 I stuck with it.  I may have changed companies and industries but the job remained, in essence, very similar.  Working for people who treated me as though I were dumb.  Assuming all too frequently that the highlight of my day would be to go and get them a sandwich.  However, I have that crappy career to thank for the fact that I own a property and a car.  I guess it wasn't all bad.  

In September 2009 I walked out of the groupm offices at 101 St Martin's Lane, and not once have I looked back. There have been a few bumps in the road up until now (I am currently in my third year on campus, and I am a second year biomedical science undergraduate) however I think I can safely say not one of those bumps has been related to my decision to go to university.  I'm beyond happy and achieving what I should have believed all along I could achieve (with a couple of exceptions that were bump related!).  In my first 2 years on campus I have achieved First Class marks (over 70%) and a placement at Basildon and Thurrock University Hospital's Cellular Pathology Department commencing October 2012.  I hope to continue to gain a First Class Hons BSc in 2014.

My interim marks statement up to the end of my first year as an undergrad

Who knows what choices the decision to go to university will affect in the future.  I'll be sure to keep you updated!

Some more movies I've seen recently but no confession

A run down of some movies I've seen recently.  Definitely not all good!

In Time - 109 mins - 2.5 out of 5 stars

One word to describe this movie.. disappointing.

I love Justin Timberlake but this was a let down from beginning to end.  I had high hopes and In Time did NOT live up to them.  The storyline has promise but I didn't really feel it was played out as well as it could have been.  The acting was average.

(500) days of Summer - 95 mins - 4.5 stars out of 5

This film is brilliant.  I loved it from beginning to end (an end that I didn't really want to come).  The acting is pretty good.  Zooey Deschanel is now one of my favourites, based first on this movie and then followed up by her role as Jess in the TV show 'New Girl'.

I thought the storyline was excellent.  Made a difference to see a movie about guy meets girl and it actually have some very true elements to it.  I don't want to say too much about what happens because I firmly believe everyone should watch it and find out for themselves.

As soon as the movie finished I went and ordered the DVD.  I will be watching it again and again and I'm sure I will enjoy each time as much as I did the first.

Little Miss Sunshine - 101 mins - 3 out of 5 stars

I watched this movie almost immediately after (500) days of Summer, so I guess it had a lot to live up to.  It came highly recommended on forums and with a promising cast I thought I would give it a shot, despite the storyline not really being my cup of tea.

It was average.  The acting was okay.  There were a few lol moments.  The ending was pretty rubbish.

New Year's Eve - 118 mins - 4 out of 5 stars

I wasn't expecting great things from this movie.  So many of the 'all star cast'ers fail to deliver (Valentines Day for example), but this wasn't entirely all that bad.

The acting is good, especially from Michelle Pfeiffer as Ingrid.  Zac Efron and Ashton Kutcher are both hot, so that's the eye candy taken care of.  Then there is Robert De Niro for the tear jerker moments.  Definitely a good all round chick flick.  Not a whole lot here for the boys, beyond Sofia Vergara's boobs.  Sorry!