Just logged into my email and discovered I’ve passed my final assignment and therefore have been awarded the CIPR Postgraduate Diploma in Public Relations. Possibly the most time consuming qualification I’ve ever done in my life, I can’t tell you how happy I am or how relieved that it’s all over!
I did say I wouldn’t undertake anything like this again, but I’ve just discovered it’s only a small amount more effort to make it up to a masters…. interesting!
Perhaps Paramo will forgive me for being rubbish, now I’ve sold two jackets for them: http://forum.countrywalking.co.uk/forumlive/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=689 
Also bit the bullet and reproofed Andy’s Paramo smock and my older waterproof this weekend. First with Tech Wash to get them clean (Mine had a disagreement with a Tiger at Marwell – the sign did say don’t get too close!) and then TX Direct to reproof. The scary bit is that you then have to put them in the tumble dryer, and Andy’s took an age to dry because it’s so thick. A few nail biting moments as I tried to work out how long would be long enough to dry but not melt them! It all turned out fine and they are both now beading water off like new… and the towels that went in the wash after the waterproofs didn’t come out water repellent, so everyone’s a winner.
Having spent a week housesitting with Andy and working to his schedule of getting up at six and being at work early, instead of my schedule of getting up at 8 and taking advantage of flexi time, I’ve discovered you can cram a lot more into a day! I’ve also officially reserved my flat – went for the second floor one in the end and have a provisional completion date of May 1, so that’s a climb I’ll be doing at least once a day!
Sian and Richard are off on the next Trail trip next week and I am insanely jealous, but I just cant get the time off at short notice. I have got some days booked either side of the bank holiday though, which have been in the diary for months, so Andy and I are heading to Cornwall again, and I’m going to take the Paramo up on the cliffs for some proper testing. If it’s anything like as good as Andy’s jacket that he wore in the terrible weather at New Year, I’m not going to be disappointed.
If ever there was someone I wouldn’t want to upset in a million years, it would be lovely Michael from Paramo and his equally lovely boss. However, I think my runaway mouth might have done it yesterday. We went to the outdoor show (more about that later…yawn…) and found the Paramo stand where I was asked how my jacket was getting on. I replied, honestly but stupidly, that it’s currently in my backpack, and that I’d tested it in Wales and it was a bit hot. If looks could kill, there would have been a death at the NEC, and I’m sure they’re writing the letter demanding it back as we speak.
I speak only the truth, I am rubbish, I don’t have time to go trekking, and, for as long as Trail keeps organising their trips at short notice on a week day, I can’t see that situation changing. Harumph.
Moving swiftly on from my ability to make great first impressions on important people, the show itself was not as good as in previous years. In fact I’d go so far as to say it was pretty damn poor. Apparently it had been really busy, but I can’t imagine what all those people (a lot of whom were dressed in “look at me, I’m an outdoor person really”, full outdoor gear – what’s that all about?) found to look at as were around and out in about an hour. In previous years the big brands have been there with big, impressive stands that stand out across halls, and there’s things there that you wouldn’t get the chance to see and handle anywhere else. This year I would say it was about 80% shell scheme – boxes and boxes of tiny companies, some of whom with little or no connection to the outdoors. If this is their one big marketing push of the year, I don’t know how they survive. There were apparently zones, but I couldn’t have told you where one ended and another began. Didn’t get the chance to take in any of the talks, but I did see the legend Alan Hinkes doing his talk in a tiny area that could have been filled five times over judging by all the people outside craning their necks. Someone somewhere got their priorities all wrong.
Anyway, working from home today, so I’d better do some! Although it has just started snowing!
A few random things to say this weekend!
I have finally got my voice back! For someone who is hardly ever ill, that was officially the longest week of my life! Although I’m feeling better, I am totally shattered (unbelievable after spending the week in bed) but am going back to work on Monday.
The new Trail Magazine is out, and, for once, I don’t have a bad word to say about it, mainly because I don’t feature that much, apart from some quotes that I don’t remember saying! I’m not one of the elite few who did proper trekking and scrambling in Wales, and are doing a better job of conforming to what Trail want them to be…probably because they never were unfit in the first place!
Also found out this week that I’m going to miss the next trip as they wanted me to take a weekday off, drive to the Peak District by 10am and do a long walk on March 22. It just wasn’t enough notice, and the alternative date a week later is when I’m already booked up to do something else at work. Call me naive about how consumer magazine publishing works, but I’ve worked on magazines, and I could tell you now what the deadline of our newspaper at work will be in December 2007, yet Trail don’t seem to be terribly organised when it comes to these things. Surely if you were starting a project like this, you’d have an idea of how it’s all going to pan out and when there were going to be trips, so that people could organise their time, instead of expecting them to drop everything because someone at Emap decided to move a deadline (and I bet it doesn’t mean that Trail will be out ten days early either… ok, enough of the cynicism, sorry).
Anyway, I’ve found a couple of things mildly inspiring (you should know by now it takes a lot to actually get me off my backside) this week. The first is the Trail 100 – 100 peaks they think everyone should conquer. Surprisingly there’s a good 15 in there that are lower than Drum, so might just be doable, as long as they’re more like Drum and less like Loughrigg! Also someone on the Country Walking forum posted this website: www.hill-bagging.co.uk. I know that people who just love the outdoors and are fit enough to take on whatever they want to don’t care about ticking things off, and, if they’re honest, don’t actually want novices to know about all the great places, but I find it motivating to have some information and something to tick off when I’m trying to get started. And it turns out I’ve already ticked off two Wainwrights – result!
I was a bit freaked out but very pleased to see a comment from someone in Canada who’s been reading this blog. Bit scary to think I’m writing anything that is of interest to anyone, particularly that far away! Hey, there’s no accounting for taste! I hope I will do you all proud one day
Ooh it’s nearly time for the Bear Grylls program on Channel 4. I’ve been saying for ages I’m going to name my first child after this truly inspirational and, ok, quite beautiful man (you can’t help but grow up with a strong character if your mum calls you Bear) but now he’s gone all mainstream I may have to rethink – don’t want little Bear to be just one of many among all the Courtneys, Harleys and Jades!
I think it might be time for more paracetamol and a lie down….
P.S Most exciting news of all this week has nothing to do with hills, but is worthy of a mention. I got Take That tickets! That will be me, down the front on Dec 8 at the 02, reliving Milton Keynes 06 and a whole host of teenage memories 
I came home from work on Monday because I kept going hot and dizzy. By 9pm my temperature was 103.4, I didn’t really know where I was and my mum had to put me to bed with a fan, a bucket and a cold flannel. Tuesday I woke up to find I have no voice, which is probably quite amusing to everyone around me, but I feel rubbish. I couldn’t have picked a worse time to be off work either, and I can’t see me being back there for a couple of days, as every time I get out of bed my temperature goes up again and I fall over! On Wednesday I added earache and stomach upset, and today, as it’s taken me two days to actually write this post, my face is all swollen up. Off to the Dr in a bit, if I can peel my pyjamas off!
On the plus side, I have time to update this blog.
Andy and I went a little walk in the pouring rain on Sunday, when I was still feeling human with no idea of what was to come! It really was a little walk, around the Vyne near Basingstoke, and into the teashop! I spent the whole walk going “look how the rain beads off my jacket” and shaking the rain off. It was very pretty! My Paramo is a great jacket – I can even adjust the hood so it fits over my ridiculous amount of hair!
Andy’s been away at a show all week so it was good to see him and catch up. He’s signed up for Photoplod which is a 47 mile walk across the South Downs, so I think I may have agreed to some practice walks with him, but we’ll be doing the seven sisters one at a time, not all at once like he’s going to have to do!
