November 2006

17/11/06 - Friday 17th November 2006
"The Royals..."

So yet another week gone and the decision as to where to go for my 1st German university semester (which runs from October - March), has still not been concluded. With so much importance being on the research and so little time to do it, it is becoming increasingly difficult to decide as the pressure mounts! Will it be Kiel, with its English-like weather, but near the water, for all those water-sport pleasures? Will it be Münich, with its history, sheer size and the fact that its the most known out of the list? Or will it be Bamberg, a smaller city/town with (apparently) a very nice uni. The list goes on. One thing I'm sure about though; I will have decided my top 3 by the deadline of 24th November!!

The last few weeks have gone, as it becoming the "norm" this year, like the speed of sound (770mph to be precise). This however, is not due to workload (as it was "half a reading week" again), but due to the fact that I was requested the pleasure of joining the Queen's husband for lunch and welcome the Irish President to Edinburgh, a place in which I'd never set foot before. In actual fact, I'd never set foot in Scotland before. Anyway, "what is this for?" I here you cry. If you've read quite a few of my blog entries then you will know that I completed my Gold Duke of Edinburgh back n July 2005 and last week was the moment when it all concluded, rather like a damp-squib as only 3 of the 8 of my group showed up. Nevertheless, I got the meet Phil himself, and a whole host of other important people, to name but a few; Paul Griffiths, who was our group leader during my entire Duke of Edinburgh history (and very emotionally gave us our certificates); and Kevin McKeown, who was Cowley's Year of 2003 Head of Year (or HoY for short). The final picture taken in the Queen's Official Residence in Scotland is shown above, it mirrors my "Duke of Edinburgh pose" that I would usually do on the hill-sides of the lake district back in 2003.

Christmas is just around the corner, but in true Andy Holland style, I'm instead ignoring it until it comes crashing into stark view, by going skiing with 399 other Warwick Uni fiends in the French resort of Val Thorens. This week we had an "itinerary" meeting, the most important point on that presentation was not the 12kg luggage allowance(!), nor the candle lit ski-run as 400 of us plough down a mountain side in the dark of the night, but the themes for fancy dress. I'm currently wondering whether Aladdin, Jafar or Beast would be best for the Disney theme, which of the seven deadly sins to choose, what you would wear for a "beach party" and whether to go as Spiderman, superman or batman for our heroes and villains theme. Any suggestions feel free to contact me!

And with that, I say farewell as I now head off to a Marketing Analysis seminar to discuss what my firm should do for "period 1"... then onto Kayleigh's party, which I'm sure photos will be posted soon...

Until Next Time...

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02/11/06 - Thursday 2nd November 2006
"Keeping up appearances..."

Yet another month has passed and 2006 is fast becoming one of the quickest ever years! So much has happened, yet so little time has seemed to have passed between events. Perhaps its due to the sheer number of activities and work I've been doing...

Firstly the university work has finally settled down into a suitably maintainable routine, which means that there are now no clashes, which existed until recently! Hence the reading, essay writing, "Referate" etc etc are coming along ok amid the mass of activities that one has to do in general everyday life (see the picture).

The house (as would be expected for a student house) is in a state, hence the washing up by me and the sheer bemusement as the red wine stain refuses to be removed from the glass! This "housework"; cooking, cleaning, washing etc etc simply distracts from the pursuit of academic fulfilment in my opinion, but that is what students simply have to put up with I suppose!

I've also just finished a weekend of 12 hours of work in 2 days. i.e. I started work on Saturday evening (at 8) and didn't finish till Sunday 6pm! (with a couple of hours sleep in between). So, even though it has got my quota of shifts out of the way for the week, it left me pretty tired this morning for my 9 am lecture. Luckily I had a long dinner break and had an average lunch, rather than the couple of ham butties I usually have! I guess as long as I'm actually eating in between activities that's the main thing(!) It was during this shift that I appeared on the BBC's Sunday edition of The Politics Show, which can actually be seen online (for this week only) here. As an extra in the background of an interview, I think I do a pretty good job!

Until Next Time...

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