The only way is... guilty tv?

Tonight sees the return of 'The Only Way is Essex', a 'reality' television programme about the lives of a group of 20-something friends from Essex, and like most lovers of 'Laguna Beach', 'The Hills' and 'Jersey Shore', I will be tuning in to ITV2 at 10pm to see the first episode of the second series.

I was a BIG fan of 'The Hills' when that was first shown on MTV right through to its final episodes (even though it had sort of lost its way after Lauren Conrad left); it was a brand new style of programme that was completely addictive, so it was only a matter of time before us here across the pond made an English alternative. But what is it about these programmes that gets us hooked?

For me personally, it is the ability to somehow relate to the people on the show. Ok, I have never had a vajazzle, been brainwashed by a Pratt or necessarily been in the exact romantic situations as some of these 'characters', but there are aspects I can relate to and I think being able to watch their problems unfold and see how they act in that situation can somehow make you feel better; it is comforting knowing there is somebody, somewhere in the world, experiencing something like you are experiencing - even if aspects are added for entertainment value!

During the final episode of 'The Hills' I made a comment on Twitter about being able to relate to a couple of the situations and somebody tweeted me, who I do not follow and do not follow me, made a completely ignorant comment in a reply and said how I needed to 'get off the coke and get some self-esteem' - I think it is fair to say I was not impressed. I didn't retaliate because honestly, anyone who knows me personally knows how utterly stupid and defamatory this was but it really did shock me, and thinking about it today, months later, it still does! So what if this new style of programme isn't necessarily the most intelligent, thought-provoking or or ground-breaking? For many people it is a bit of an escape and a guilty pleasure, so I am going to be enjoying 'The Only Way is Essex' tonight before I head back to land of 9-5 writing about the food and drink supple chain, environmental efficiency in business, all things Lincolnshire and whatever else is thrown at me!

If you're watching it tonight too, I hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think!

Going Global!

Now, for most people, this may not be *that* interesting, but for me, it is fantastic because in February and March, two of my features have been published on a multi-national organisation's website!

One of the magazines I write for is Food and Drink Network UK (click here to go to the website!) and in both the February and March issues I wrote about Denny Bros Ltd. and their ground-breaking product Fix-A-Form; an expanding label used on many brand products around the world. Today, their labels are manufactured in over 50 countries and they posted my features on their website for all of their clients to see! Like I said, this may not be everybody's cup of tea but for me, and my career, it is fantastic news - this New Year's Resolution is still rolling on!

March's Feature on the Denny Bros Ltd. website

The same feature in March's issue of
Food and Drink Network UK.

February's feature on the Denny Bros Ltd. website

Click here for:
Denny Bros Ltd. website
February's feature - Maximising Space, Minimising Waste
March's feature - Thinking Outside the Box

Dance Diary: Month 2 and a half...

Well, after the hectic mess that has been my life recently, I completely forgot to post my monthly blog about my dancing New Years Resolution!

Luckily, there isn't much to report on - is that a good thing?! As you may have noticed (from my excessive tweets and mentions in blog posts) I have started zumba classes - my new favourite hobby! (Click here to see the post!) It is a mix of raggaeton/samba/fitness which is great to work out to if you like dancing (like me!). I have just had my fourth session and we are still learning new routines, and I think this is great because it means I don't get bored - every week is different, we learn new moves and dance to new songs. I think that is the problem with most resolutions; after a few weeks the novelty wears off and you go back to your normal routines, which completely defeats the object. It is something to think about...

Unfortunately I haven't done my 'Strictly Fit Dance Fit' DVD in a couple of weeks now. It is a shame but I think this proves my point about repetitive workouts and New Years Resolutions - yes, it is a good little workout but there is no way you can keep up a resolution based purely on this DVD. That is why it is such a relief that I have found zumba - it really has exceeded my expectations. I have also recently purchased 'Just Dance 2' for the wii; I know it is not *really* a workout as such, but it is dancing and it is fun, therefore I think it is a suitable addition to my resolution... *Clutching at straws*

So that is it for this month - I will continue with zumba and I will try and start up the Strictly DVD again, but if anybody else has any suggestions that will help me to keep up this resolution, please let me know! Your thoughts and advice are always greatly appreciated.

Laters! x

So... what have I missed?!

Hi there everyone!

Me, ready for my
22nd birthday celebrations!

Well, it feels like I haven't tweeted or blogged properly in absolutely aaaages! Just under two weeks actually, but I'm back - I hope I haven't missed too much?

I have been very busy these past couple of weeks which is why I have been absent from the social media scene and, as much as I love tweeting and blogging, I really have enjoyed some quiet time away from the computer (when not working!) - but I am so glad to be back!

Work has been pretty hectic lately - my editor was away on her jolly holidays last week so I was on my own in the editorial department. I have been in that position before but this time was different - DEADLINE! Not only did I have a number of features to write, images to source and clients to chase up - I'm sure some of you know exactly how that feels - but I also had to read over mock-ups of the business magazine and adverts and check over press releases so I think it is fair to say I was exhausted! Team that with an unbelievably bad head cold and I'm sure you can begin to imagine how I was feeling! My desk was piling up with more and more work and I felt as if I was never going to meet this deadline, which was very frustrating for me as I really wanted to do well for my editor (and I am a bit of a perfectionist with my work) but luckily I followed my instinct, asked for help when I needed it and eventually, I did meet the deadline! Woohoo! Even though this was a challenging time for me, I did learn a lot about prioritising and what my limits are when it comes to workloads which can only be a good thing. You may have read in one of my previous posts that one of my big resolutions this year is to progress in my career and I think this week will help me in this, but that's all I can say for now...

Speaking of work, my fortnight kicked off with something I did not expect - another magazine had plagiarised my work! I won't go into too many details but a feature I wrote, and was published in November last year, partly appeared in a new local magazine and I was literally shaking with anger when I saw it! I have yet to see how this situation ends...

Despite being quiet recently, I also found that this week I had been named a featured blogger on bloggers.com - very exciting! Because of this I have now acquired new followers so a big hello to you all! Hopefully now my life is a little less hectic I will be able to get back to regular updates - so keep an eye out!

The girls before sliding
down the bannisters...

Last weekend marked another milestone in my life - I turned 22! Unfortunately I was still very poorly but that didn't stop me form having a great time with friends (and a few cheeky cocktails too!) On the Saturday myself and a group of friends went out for a pub lunch which turned out to be interesting - there were no burgers, no pies, no beef, gammon or chicken ... the only thing thing they did have was turkey, tuna sandwiches, chips and steak which turned out to be the size of golfball! Luckily we all had a laugh about it and we know that the pub does usually have good food in stock, we just must have picked the wrong day! So after a quick natter we went home and started to get ready for the big night out, and what a night it was. It started with pre-drinks and homemade cocktails at mine which eventually led to sliding down bannisters (loudly!) but luckily the neighbours didn't complain - phew! So then we headed out to good old Cleethorpes, met a few randomers and had a dance before heading home. I completely lost my voice and I thought my cold was going to kill me but we had a great night and I didn't spend a penny! Excellent!

My new favourite hobby!

Me and my friend's have taken up a new activity too - bingo, yes, really! Every Thursday, a free bingo night is held so we thought why not? We have a laugh, there are some unique characters and so far, out of the two weeks we have been, one of us has won a full house - not bad when you don't pay a thing to begin with! Unfortunately I haven't won yet but I'm sure my time will come... And I have also been keeping up with Zumba; I have attended three classes now and we are still learning new routines to new songs which is great as I don't feel like I am going to get bored of it - and it has only made me even more enthusiastic for my dancing New Year's Resolution - bonus! It really is great fun and I have volunteered to help with a Zumba charity event which will help the Help for Heroes and Wish Upon A Star charities in the summer so I am looking forward to getting stuck into that!

So that is what I have been doing over the past two weeks and even though I was ill and ridiculously busy for the first part, it has been great doing things with friends, furthering my career and finding a hobby which I am most definitely loving! But now I am back I am looking forward to tweeting and blogging with you all again.