Not forgetting my roots, I find it somewhat fulfilling leaving behind the quieter life for something more lively. One of my friends who currently lives in Falmouth prefers the steadier stream of life, whilst having constant familiarities of Island life. The sea and sounds are all reminiscent of the Isle of Wight. I guess that’s what draws her to this astounding place.

Of course, heading back to the Island for Christmas is an enjoyable and lively experience. Meeting friends and family for the first time in months and enjoying their company. This time of year allows me to focus on the most important parts of life. Being together and sharing experiences. 

To this point, I love home and this way of life. However, I remember my life on the mainland. The atmosphere is different and more lively, to the quieter pace, on the Island. I appreciate these differences, but have come to realise that my new home is on the mainland. In Winchester.

For the forseeable future I’ll be in a constant flux between these two places. Placing my roots between the place I grew up and the place I will grow, further.

I’d like to wish everyone who visits my page, A Very Merry Christmas and Great 2011.

In the mean time, I thought I would provide a new logo for the project. It’s slightly Victorian-esk. It fits the theme of the many historical pubs on the Isle of Wight.

More soon.

My first location was the lower high street, located just off the main road. Ventnor is made up of small Victorian shops, making most of the small spaces. Boutique shops and bars are all here. Here are a few pictures I took to give you a rough idea of the town.  

Taken outside of Wave clothing, the old threshers closed and The Inn.

Cloudy day for site seeing.

Running off the waterfall near by.

A new Bistro serving coffee and food in cool surroundings.

I thought I’d include a photos from the tinterweb that really shows off the town. I shall put up some photos from the recce next week. 

During the summer months, the Harbour is alive with activity.

It’s abit of a waiting game at the moment. My university choices should be heading in over the next few weeks and job hunting is atleast giving me interviews. For example, yesterday I went for a job at a new wine bar opening in sandown on the isle of Wight. I was only in there 5 minutes. The usual questions on ‘what have you done’ and ‘isn’t the weather cold’ were asked. After the interagation, she started discussing the wage. £5 an hour. Apparently this is minimum wage. She hadn’t taken into account my experience working for costa coffee. I’m currently paid £6 an hour. After considering this, she told me that I would get a phone call that evening. Nothing happened!

Reliability is one factor in this. It would be nice to recieve a phone call saying ‘we’ve discussed the issue but feel it wouldn’t work. Atleast then I have some consolidation.

Overall, I’m happy how everything is going. I’m just hoping the weather picks up

Upon leaving the town centre and trying to find campus with a dodgy map, I stumbled to a graveyard. randomly placed between the headstones was a path, that I gathered would connect me to the Uni. After a few minutes I came across the reception building. What a contrast of modern meets medieval. Quiet meets even quieter. Suddenly, the thoughts of regret came flooding back. This was the same experience I had before with my earlier Uni. In someway, I think this absent reminder was saying stick to your guns. Carry on the way you are. The Uni was nice, small, quiet but great facilities. It’s a shame there isn’t a mixture between great night life and Uni. I suppose I shouldn’t be so fussy.

Positive thinking has never been a strong point of mine. I’ve always taken the attitude that if its going to go wrong, it will go wrong. Maybe I should adopt the positivity and embrace it. Through it, I might find peace of mind. The regret is still lingering in the background, waiting to pop out and say ‘We were right and you were wrong.’

So what should it be this week?? Hmmm… wiping grannies back side… err no thanks. What else do we have here? OO OO media sales executive. Circle this in big red pen. Lets think alternatives here? Can I run alongside two jobs with my existing one? Part-time experienced waiting staff… circle. Hotel receptionist. Circle again.

This is what is happening at the moment. People are out there getting sick of dead-end jobs there in. Luckily I don’t see myself working in a coffee shop for much longer as Uni is just over the horizon. Like the other million people out there wanting a job or just a change. It would be nice to think I could just walk into another job, however the world has changed. No longer do you receive a letter from an application stating you have not got the vacancy. The age of humility is over. No personalised response. It’s mail-merge all the way. I suppose this wouldn’t be possible today, with the current unemployment being so high.

But would i personal touch hurt? Or at least getting a name right? A friend of mine had a letter of rejection with someone elses name on top. Imagine how that would feel. Another situation that I find incredible is people are charging for you to register on a vacancy. You don’t even get the guarantee of an interview. How shocking is that?

I dont think there is any joy to job hunting. Apparently the thrill is in the chase. How wrong they were? It might be the many people applying for the jobs, especially on an Island with high unemployment. It might be there aren’t many jobs to go for. January seems an ideal time to apply for something new, but everyone else seems to have the same idea as me. I think there’s joy to job hunting once you’ve found a job. Thats were you find it. Once your into a new one, i think my whole attitude to life would change. I’d be more upbeat and positive for a start.

About two years ago, I set about on a Foundation Degree in Media, they also chucked in Professional as their title to. That college (I wont mention a name as it would be considered defamatory) was the worst, ever. The classroom were small, their facilities were terrible and lecturers would not turn up on time. The lessons were all over the place. I can’t remember the last time Psychology was included in Media? PPD anyone. I understand the importance of writing a CV and getting your name out there, but to learn about philosophers is beyond me.

So this transition that I’m going through is fairly big. I’ve been on one before but not on such a massive scale. It might be my Island mentality, but the time for change is now. Moving away from home, starting a new life, were ever that maybe is going to be difficult. It’s necessary for me to do as I want to become a teacher.

4 years seems a long time, but its going to go by quick. I’m hoping for a smooth ride, but its going to be a bumpy one. For a start I’m going to have to choose my University. Falmouth, Hastings or Winchester. Thats if I even get a place on them. I feel that Hastings is out of the questions. It reminds me of my last place of education. It’s either Winchester or Falmouth. I’ve been excepted on the Film and Cinematography course, so I’ve got to wait to hear back from the others. Fingers cross!