![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
My Little Pony In A Cum Jartini
Jul. 19th, 2020 05:51 pmIt has been an incredibly busy week, making me wonder when my next time off will come. I know that sounds strange, what with being on furlough since late-March, but ultimately I have been spending nearly every weekday applying for jobs and being stuck at home for four months straight is starting to grate. Furthermore, the whole voluntary redundancy procedure took far longer than it needed to, including the need for me to go through the termination agreement with a solicitor on Wednesday, which was dutifully done. However, the good thing is that everything has now been done regarding this - my leaving date is confirmed, everything has been signed and aside from going back into the office to hand back my things, there is now nothing else that needs to be done. Later in the week, I also went public with news of the redundancy so I am hoping this will help a new job come my way, while I am also assessing a whole host of other options with a view to relocating to an EU member state by the end of the year. To this end, Wolfie had his third job interview in Berlin on Tuesday but as yet, he doesn't know where he stands with this.
There was also a huge industry conference mid-week, which saw me put in over twenty hours of work on that alone. It was very useful keeping up-to-speed with what is going on in the industry, plus I am hoping the connections that I made will prove to be very beneficial. However, all of this has just highlighted I haven't had a break in so long and I am incredibly tired. I was going to take last Monday off, but the weather was so bad, I concluded that there wasn't much else for me to do even if I did. Consequently, I ended up doing more job application things and hoping for the weather to get sunnier. Alas, that doesn't seem to be happening any time soon, meaning I am kicking any vacation further and further down the road.
I am also conscious this weekend of how much other people are achieving and I can't help but feel envious. Even small things, such as setting up a decent kink profile through photography, are making me self-reflect on what little I have done. I haven't had time to write any of my book this week, but having sent the first draft to a couple of people last Sunday and not hearing a word from them since is really knocking my confidence and making me wonder why I should bother. I am enjoying writing the book in what little time I have but this, along with my German language and guitar, represents perilously slow progress for very little gain. I suppose slow progress is still progress - and my guitar in particular has definitely improved - but there seems to be so much slog for very little reward. Even now, having played guitar for nearly three years, I would have thought I would have been more advanced than this. I am at least starting to compose the odd song here and there, which is an improvement, but as I say it's more frustrating than anything else.
Over the last week, we have done the usual social gatherings. I missed Pony Chat last Sunday but as Blacksnip is away for the rest of the month, it was the first one we had to cancel since we started them in early April. However, I was around for Tuesday's gathering as well as today's, and both were very pleasant - a nice transatlantic call with a pony theme. The same is true of Stray's weekend gatherings, now extended over two nights, Saturday and Sunday. The Saturday meeting was the usual Jackbox affair, which we ended up doing well past 4am. The good thing about these is that although the core crowd is largely the same, there are often guest appearances from other furs who dip in and out depending on what they are doing. Skavi turned up last week, Douveux and CD this week, so it keeps its freshness. Meanwhile, the Sunday evening event is dedicated to live streaming of music gigs, having been inspired by the live Electric Six show we watched on 1 July. Everything else we have seen has been pre-recorded, with Muse and Electric Six being the two main bands, but it has been a really relaxing way to wind down the weekend and I've really enjoyed it. We also saw the fantastic Jojo Rabbit in the early hours of Monday too after Stray had been pestering to see it for months. I am glad he kept at it, as it was a wonderful mix of dark political power and humour, acted wonderfully. I was truly gripped.
Yesterday was the Leeds Meet but I felt somewhat out of it really, with much of the discussion focusing on cars and vans or just shouting over the top of each other. Tonks' and Stray's quiz seemed to go quite well, while I did enjoy having a few smaller chats with Adia, Katsura and Shutterfox. As I did, I ended up watching more train videos as I am currently obsessed with drivers' eye view productions of the New York subway. These are two hours in length, often, as they follow the route from one end to another so you wouldn't watch them while doing nothing else, but they are the perfect thing to see when you are on a video call.
Friday evening saw the return of Gothicat's rock and metal set, something we have really missed as she has been away for the last four weeks. It was the one time of the week that Wolfie and I get to sit together, turn on our shared music speaker and just chill out. Wolfie's foot is still causing him trouble so we are sleeping in separate beds, as we have done for much of the last year. To be honest, it's starting to feel that we are not really a couple at all, and this is starting to have harrowing mental implications. I've also been so busy, we've barely had any time for intimacy either, while he is still working four-day weeks adding to the mix. Still, Gothi's event was a chance to bond again, and with the ability to make requests through Twitch's chat facility, we could direct the evening too. I was very delighted when I managed to highlight the metal with Right Said Fred tracks, including classics like 'I'm Too Sexy' and 'Deeply Dippy', while even my request of Lindemann's 'Golden Shower' was 'warmly' received. Later in the evening, I even got Stray involved too, and it was a nice little party with ten of Gothi's closest friends. I certainly think she felt delighted and overwhelmed by the warmth of reception we gave her, and I am hoping she'll be free to do another set next week.
As the week was so busy, I haven't had much opportunity to do exercise, although I have at least been hitting my target of 10,000 steps a day. My Fitbit has started to malfunction of late though and on Monday, the whole screen became saturated with pixels, proving it was on its last legs. I am not sure whether it's something I am doing, but I find the longevity of Fitbits to be incredibly poor. However, as I am obsessed with numbers, having one does boost my weekly exercise (see also Untapped and my weekly drinking) and as it was within the year warranty period, I was entitled to a new screen. This I sent away for last Sunday, opting for the direct replacement rather than a half price upgrade, with it arriving on Wednesday. The screen is perfect and I am glad it's working again. Meanwhile, my local leisure centre is talking about reopening but we don't yet have a timeframe. I have missed the gym, but I am not confident enough to go with social distancing measures in place, not to mention limits in terms of who can use the gym and when. Indeed, you are going to have to book a slot. This is less of a problem now I am unemployed, but ultimately I think I am going to cancel my membership. Fortunately, they are going to bring a pay as you go method during these unprecedented times and I may just switch to that. However, with the weather okay and there being plenty of scope to walk outside, then I have felt I don't really need to go to the gym. Of course, that may change when the weather becomes less clement and the nights draw in in a few months' time.
There is little else to report this week really. We are still not going out anywhere, largely on the account of the overwhelming majority who refuse to wear face masks, while I ordered a Lupestripe themed one of my own which should be arriving soon. It was an indulgence, but I haven't treated myself this month and at £68 including postage, it wasn't too expensive. Aside from that, I have been exceptionally frugal, really just spending money on food and drink. I suspect this will continue until I get a new job. As I say, there are potential things in the pipeline - things I can't action until August - but I am also acutely aware of the time limits imposed by the end of the Brexit transition period. There are still five and a half months and so plenty of time, but I am also conscious that time is starting to run out. I'm getting a little worried, which will only increase once we get into August and certainly September. I just hope we can get something sorted by then.
There was also a huge industry conference mid-week, which saw me put in over twenty hours of work on that alone. It was very useful keeping up-to-speed with what is going on in the industry, plus I am hoping the connections that I made will prove to be very beneficial. However, all of this has just highlighted I haven't had a break in so long and I am incredibly tired. I was going to take last Monday off, but the weather was so bad, I concluded that there wasn't much else for me to do even if I did. Consequently, I ended up doing more job application things and hoping for the weather to get sunnier. Alas, that doesn't seem to be happening any time soon, meaning I am kicking any vacation further and further down the road.
I am also conscious this weekend of how much other people are achieving and I can't help but feel envious. Even small things, such as setting up a decent kink profile through photography, are making me self-reflect on what little I have done. I haven't had time to write any of my book this week, but having sent the first draft to a couple of people last Sunday and not hearing a word from them since is really knocking my confidence and making me wonder why I should bother. I am enjoying writing the book in what little time I have but this, along with my German language and guitar, represents perilously slow progress for very little gain. I suppose slow progress is still progress - and my guitar in particular has definitely improved - but there seems to be so much slog for very little reward. Even now, having played guitar for nearly three years, I would have thought I would have been more advanced than this. I am at least starting to compose the odd song here and there, which is an improvement, but as I say it's more frustrating than anything else.
Over the last week, we have done the usual social gatherings. I missed Pony Chat last Sunday but as Blacksnip is away for the rest of the month, it was the first one we had to cancel since we started them in early April. However, I was around for Tuesday's gathering as well as today's, and both were very pleasant - a nice transatlantic call with a pony theme. The same is true of Stray's weekend gatherings, now extended over two nights, Saturday and Sunday. The Saturday meeting was the usual Jackbox affair, which we ended up doing well past 4am. The good thing about these is that although the core crowd is largely the same, there are often guest appearances from other furs who dip in and out depending on what they are doing. Skavi turned up last week, Douveux and CD this week, so it keeps its freshness. Meanwhile, the Sunday evening event is dedicated to live streaming of music gigs, having been inspired by the live Electric Six show we watched on 1 July. Everything else we have seen has been pre-recorded, with Muse and Electric Six being the two main bands, but it has been a really relaxing way to wind down the weekend and I've really enjoyed it. We also saw the fantastic Jojo Rabbit in the early hours of Monday too after Stray had been pestering to see it for months. I am glad he kept at it, as it was a wonderful mix of dark political power and humour, acted wonderfully. I was truly gripped.
Yesterday was the Leeds Meet but I felt somewhat out of it really, with much of the discussion focusing on cars and vans or just shouting over the top of each other. Tonks' and Stray's quiz seemed to go quite well, while I did enjoy having a few smaller chats with Adia, Katsura and Shutterfox. As I did, I ended up watching more train videos as I am currently obsessed with drivers' eye view productions of the New York subway. These are two hours in length, often, as they follow the route from one end to another so you wouldn't watch them while doing nothing else, but they are the perfect thing to see when you are on a video call.
Friday evening saw the return of Gothicat's rock and metal set, something we have really missed as she has been away for the last four weeks. It was the one time of the week that Wolfie and I get to sit together, turn on our shared music speaker and just chill out. Wolfie's foot is still causing him trouble so we are sleeping in separate beds, as we have done for much of the last year. To be honest, it's starting to feel that we are not really a couple at all, and this is starting to have harrowing mental implications. I've also been so busy, we've barely had any time for intimacy either, while he is still working four-day weeks adding to the mix. Still, Gothi's event was a chance to bond again, and with the ability to make requests through Twitch's chat facility, we could direct the evening too. I was very delighted when I managed to highlight the metal with Right Said Fred tracks, including classics like 'I'm Too Sexy' and 'Deeply Dippy', while even my request of Lindemann's 'Golden Shower' was 'warmly' received. Later in the evening, I even got Stray involved too, and it was a nice little party with ten of Gothi's closest friends. I certainly think she felt delighted and overwhelmed by the warmth of reception we gave her, and I am hoping she'll be free to do another set next week.
As the week was so busy, I haven't had much opportunity to do exercise, although I have at least been hitting my target of 10,000 steps a day. My Fitbit has started to malfunction of late though and on Monday, the whole screen became saturated with pixels, proving it was on its last legs. I am not sure whether it's something I am doing, but I find the longevity of Fitbits to be incredibly poor. However, as I am obsessed with numbers, having one does boost my weekly exercise (see also Untapped and my weekly drinking) and as it was within the year warranty period, I was entitled to a new screen. This I sent away for last Sunday, opting for the direct replacement rather than a half price upgrade, with it arriving on Wednesday. The screen is perfect and I am glad it's working again. Meanwhile, my local leisure centre is talking about reopening but we don't yet have a timeframe. I have missed the gym, but I am not confident enough to go with social distancing measures in place, not to mention limits in terms of who can use the gym and when. Indeed, you are going to have to book a slot. This is less of a problem now I am unemployed, but ultimately I think I am going to cancel my membership. Fortunately, they are going to bring a pay as you go method during these unprecedented times and I may just switch to that. However, with the weather okay and there being plenty of scope to walk outside, then I have felt I don't really need to go to the gym. Of course, that may change when the weather becomes less clement and the nights draw in in a few months' time.
There is little else to report this week really. We are still not going out anywhere, largely on the account of the overwhelming majority who refuse to wear face masks, while I ordered a Lupestripe themed one of my own which should be arriving soon. It was an indulgence, but I haven't treated myself this month and at £68 including postage, it wasn't too expensive. Aside from that, I have been exceptionally frugal, really just spending money on food and drink. I suspect this will continue until I get a new job. As I say, there are potential things in the pipeline - things I can't action until August - but I am also acutely aware of the time limits imposed by the end of the Brexit transition period. There are still five and a half months and so plenty of time, but I am also conscious that time is starting to run out. I'm getting a little worried, which will only increase once we get into August and certainly September. I just hope we can get something sorted by then.
