Well, the first bit or so of this month was a bit mad...I'm not gonna go into what it was, but me and my brother were quite worried about something, and not surprisingly, it was money related - we got it cleared up though.
Jobsearch-wise, same old, different month. Nothing on the horizon, and I don't hold much hope of that ever changing, to be honest.
Still thinking about going back over to America - it is always there, always on my mind, and I'm not gonna stop thinking about it until I get back there. Whether it's next year or 2014 is another matter.
Had an unexpected heatwave this past week, a rarity over here, so I took the opportunity to go exploring, taking walks up a walking trail near where I live called the Deerness Valley Way - I'd been up there many times before, but only so far along it - and I decided to explore further along it, which turned out to be very worthwhile indeed, as I came across a side trail that led down to a very secluded forest. In there I also came across some sort of hand-made bench, it was like I came across some secret hideout or something. I have to admit, I felt like a kid again doing that.
I also walked further along the main trail to the village of Waterhouses - really quiet place surrounded by a beautiful view, and a nice getaway from all the bustle of the town. I'll definitely be going back there again sometime, and there's still more of the trail to explore too.
Here's some pics I took out on my travels:
Now for the obligatory artwork bit - and it seems I've gotten a little spaced out:
Touch wood, April will be a month without any major hiccups - and it's also another month closer to May, which is going to be canny good.
It's funny how things just have a way of reminding you of past memories.
Today, I came across a video of Muse playing "Plug In Baby" on Top of the Pops, exactly 11 years ago today. Not only was that the first song I ever bought, but that was also when I started taping episodes of TOTP to watch again, I built up quite a collection of them too - that's besides the point though.
It got me thinking back to what I was doing back then, back in March 2001 - at the time I was in my fourth year of secondary school, and on work experience at two banks in Bishop Auckland. Round about that time was also when I'd started to get into rock music, and was starting to slowly get away from all the pop/dance stuff I'd been listening to up until then.
It really is weird, looking back - I don't think I ever gave a thought to what I'd be doing 11 years from that point. I certainly never thought I'd get my own place, get to know the people that I've gotten to know, get pretty good at artwork or visit America 3 times before the age of 30, that's for sure. I also never thought that I'd start to realise that a lot of stuff in life isn't as clear-cut as it seems, though pretty much the whole of secondary school was the whole "coming of age" deal that everyone goes through.
That's life though. Stuff has a way of happening that's never the same for any one person.
Well, I'm glad to say that February on the whole was a lot better than January - those rent issues myself and Chris were having, they're more or less sorted now, it's just a matter of continuing to pay our way each week till those arrears are cleared (they're definitely not over £1000 now).
Also good is that the weather seems to be getting milder. It started off very bitter cold at the start of the month, and aye, we did get snow, but thankfully it didn't last as long as what the papers reckoned, in their usual sensationalised way.
Look at the previous blog entry for my thoughts of Valentine's/Slush Day - 'nuff said about that.
Only trip out anywhere I had this month was a look through to Darlington, Chris tagged along too, and he promptly went on a retro game spree, including picking up a copy of a classic Master System game "Action Fighter" for not very much. Meantime I discovered a nifty little art shop.
I've also started to transfer some of my vast collection of VHS tapes into DVD, using my grandma's DVD/VHS combo player. Those tapes are piled up in my bedroom cupboard, they have mostly episodes of Top of the Pops/TOTP 2 on them, as well as a few cartoons, and they really need to go. However, I also want to upload some of these to Youtube if I can, but Windows Movie Maker isn't playing ball, it refuses to save the files after I've edited them. TECHNOLOGY!!!
Last but not least, a little bit of artwork:
Came up with this little monster character last year, and I recently drew him again for a contest on deviantART. He's got no name, but I'd like to draw him more.
Anyway, peace out, and all the best for March.
