A 'Good' Shake

I can't remember where I read this. It may have been in one of my favourite books, Little Women. I don't believe in corporal punishment (per se) but reading about someone administering a 'good shake' to a defiant child (and please don't think I'm condoning this especially with the controversies surrounding 'shaken baby syndrome') made me think about this. I'm using it as a substitute for the proverbial 'kick up the backside' and not to mean abuse.

I believe that sometimes everyone needs a 'kick up the backside' or a good firm shake by the shoulders. A wake up and smell the coffee kick. A 'get a grip' kick. A 'chin up' Scottie kick. A reality-check kick.

Recently, I've gotten these hypothetical 'kicks' when I check my bank balance or look at the BIG picture in relation to my life. One way or another though, we all get them. It keeps us grounded and makes us stronger.

Think that's enough philosophy for one day. I'm planning on macaroni and cheese and peri-peri wings for dinner so I'm going to roll my sleeves up and get cooking!

Om nom nom

CBC

xx

p.s. Bend over!

I don't BELIEVE it...

...'Victor Meldrew' style. A MILLIONAIRE MP, Alan Duncan has the cheek to complain that he feels that MPs are "treated like shit" and are "forced to live on rations". At a time of financial hardship for a lot of people, this is hardly an appropriate comment to be making. Is it?

If he feels that his wealth isn't up to par (or his job not fulfilling its expectations), he is more than welcome to send some of it my way to pay off some of my tens of thousands of pounds of student debt. Not all of us have rich mummies and daddies or parents who care enough about their education to provide for us.

Cheeky so and so.

I don't believe it!

CBC

xx

p.s. AND exhale...

(Read the story here)

A tragic story set in Trinidad

Currently, I am reading The White Woman on the Green Bicycle a fabulously written story, set in Trinidad and with the dialogues (of the Trinidadians) written phonetically to represent the dialects of the island. When a British couple move to Trinidad in the 1950's, the husband, George Harwood immediately takes to the island life, whereas his wife Sabine initially struggles with the racial segregation and isolation. It is not until she accidentally stumbles upon a political gathering in which the future Prime Minister of Trinidad, Eric Williams, is delivering a speech, that she finds island life is becoming bearable. Over the decades, she writes him hundreds of letters in which she tells him about her hopes, fears and dissatisfaction with her marriage and life. She never sends the letters. They are her outlet. However, when her husband discovers her secret stash of letters, their lives take a turn which ends in tragedy.

One of the main things I liked about the book was the way in which the action over the decades, which started in 1956 and continued to present day, was split up and its order not chronological. This meant that you found out the tragic end nearer the beginning but were left wondering about the back story of the couple and their time in Trinidad, which made the book compelling reading.

I am currently on page 379 of 437 and although I don't want the story to end, I can't wait to continue reading!!

Homesick

I'm missing the Caribbean sunshine and my family.

*sigh*

One day CBC shall return!!

xx


**EDIT**

I haven't posted as much as I'd have liked recently because I'm feeling increasingly homesick. Missing St. Lucia and the way and pace of life over there. In short, I need a SODDING holiday!!

I hate wallowing and feeling sorry for myself. (I do annoyingly have the occasional lapse) Maybe this is my problem...not wanting to talk about my problems. My REAL problems and feelings. This is MY coping mechanism. It's not shutting anyone out. It's just that in my opinion, my problems are just that; my own and no one else's. There are times where I'll moan to my nearest and dearest, (or even on this blog) seeking reassurance and comfort. The majority of the time, I put on a 'brave face' and get on with it.

Am I unique? No. Everyone has their problems and different means of dealing with them which I respect.

I am not afraid or too proud to ask for help or to admit when I'm feeling a little down but I'll make no apologies for occasionally keeping 'schtum'.

It's no secret that I've been trying for some time to secure a legal job for some time with little success. It's no secret that I'm not particularly thrilled at this fact and that it gets me down from time to time. But it's something I have worked very hard for thus far and am not about to give it up. Obviously, I AM being realistic. I knew it was never going to be easy and that I was never going to jump straight into a £100k a year trainee role out of uni. BUT, I know MY capabilities and strengths and am tailoring my applications to suit.

I am just slightly frustrated (understatement of the year) at the whole process which I know a lot of graduates and prospective lawyers are also feeling...

The big question is whether it really WILL be worth the hassle in the end...

Leniency of judges

I don't think it will come as a surprise that there are those rulings which you look back on and ask yourself what the judge was thinking. However having 10 sentences increased on appeal for leniency is a little negligent don't you think? I thought there were sentencing guidelines in place to deal with this very thing. Understandably, the guidelines are just that; guidelines. But despite the fact that the differences in circumstances between each matter must be taken into consideration, they are there for a reason.

One judge, Crowther, "... handed a community rehabilitation order to a defendant convicted of gross indecency with a child. This was increased to 18 months in prison."

Rehabilitation order for gross indecency? Where is the deterrent? Or the punishment?

Though reading further, it seems that the JCO are trying to protect the decisions of the judges by saying,

"... sentences could be increased for several reasons and overturning the original decision did not necessarily reflect badly on a judge’s performance."

Fair enough. There IS truth in the statement...

Hmm

CBC

xx

Read the story here

On an aside...is it sod's law that the title of "most lenient judge" goes to a woman?

Double murder in Ipswich

A 15 year old girl and her 41 year old boyfriend (...yes 41) were arrested on suspicion of murder where two dead bodies were found in Ipswich. Very interesting to see what comes of this story and how it develops (if it does) and eventually goes to some form of trial. Early days I suppose.

Read the story here

CBC

xx

Catching the 'Golden Snitch' that is pupillage...

After reading Minx's post on her pupillage application woes, I have been left with a bitter taste in my mouth. How does a woman as qualified in many ways as this not have pupillage? It gives me the beginnings of an inferiority complex about my own application situation. I know only too well how competitive the profession is, even more so in the case of BVC students seeking pupillage. Though, I too went to the wrong university, didn't get the best A-Level grades and don't have a fraction of the experience or qualifications as Minx...

I think the recruiters need to pull their socks up Minx!

CBC

xx

p.s. It seems only wizardry to Potter standard can capture that Snitch!