Week one

Well the first week at my new job was interesting. Not all in a good way but it certainly wasn’t all bad either.

My first day wasn’t so great but it did improve over the course of the week. I have been put, for the time being, in one of the area based teams dealing with small scale stuff that I can do with my eyes closed. Were it not for the antiquated computer systems (Windows 2000 etc.) that I am having a little trouble getting to grips with I could probably polish off my entire case load in an afternoon however I am spinning my work out for the time being so I actually have something to do. I doubt this will be my permanent position as, to be completely blunt, they are paying me too much to do the kind of stuff I am doing at the moment, and that really wouldn’t be a very sensible use of resources.

The people I am working with seem pleasant enough for the most part. The majority of them do seem a little distant from me and the other new principal I started with. I get the impression there is a slight ‘them and us’ thing going on what with me being one of the very few contracted staff, which I wasn’t expecting. Speaking English without a foreign accent, and actually in some cases speaking English at all, does seem to set me apart a little from the majority of my colleagues. Regardless, I didn’t take this job as a social event so whilst it would certainly be nice to make friends with people there I don’t think I am going to loose too much sleep if it turns out they all hate me.

Actually working in Ealing is good. The place is pretty buzzing with activity and has a great London vibe to it without being too in your face overcrowded like I find parts of central London can be. Lunch times are excellent as I have gone from having like a choice of three eateries in Amersham to an as of yet uncounted number in Ealing ranging from Subway and M&S to cute little corner places which I have not yet tried.

The commute from Amersham sucks royally, especially the hideous uncertainty of trying to find a free on street parking space in the morning which can be anything up to twenty minutes walk from the office. Still, this is better than paying £12 a day for the NCP car park opposite the office. This should improve greatly when I move to Maidenhead and can jump on the train as it should be both faster and less stressful than fighting for road space in London rush hour. However, that some parking space is available near(ish) the office is good too as this will allow me to drive in occasionally so I don’t have to do too many site visits using something called a bus.

The highlight of the week was getting my first pay cheque on Thursday for the month. I was feeling a bit low about the place at the time but opening up my pay packet I remembered why I had done this move (aside from career advancement) and a self congratulatory steak (from the aforementioned M&S) and chips dinner that evening left me feeling a whole lot better. It’s not all about the money by a longshot but it can certainly negate some objections I may have.

Now you may notice that I have stuck this post up on Sunday evening as opposed to my regular morning posting time. I am sticking with evening posting for the time being because of the necessity to get out early in the morning to beat the traffic before it gets majorly heavy. Like I said, posting may become a little inconsistent for the next few weeks.

I hope everyone had a good weekend. You can send me email at my new work (and I promise nice fluffy responses for the time being) at [withdrawn].