Sunday Snippets - 12th February 2017

This week has been super tough. If you read my post last week, you’ll have seen that I was doing work experience at a local newspaper and was really nervous about how I would cope. Well, somehow I got through it! Unfortunately I’m not very well now, but I’m proud of myself for doing it. Everyone was really lovely there and I got to write so many articles. The hours were really difficult though and I don’t think I’ve ever felt so exhausted! Luckily I’ve got a Reading Week now, so I can hopefully get some proper rest and start feeling a little better.

I had a nice lie-in last Sunday morning and then sorted out my medication for the week ahead. I spent the rest of the morning watching The Simpsons and writing my Sunday Snippets post. After having my Fortisip, I decided to get another post written and scheduled to go up sometime in the next week, as I wasn’t going to have any time to do any blogging while I was on work experience. I tidied away a few cloths I had left hanging out and then spent ages photocopying medical letters to go with a form I was filling in. My Mum, Bekkah and I had some lovely cuddles with Xena, which always helps to make me smile. Ice Age came on the TV, so I watched that while I wrote a few notecards and got some things ready to be posted. Richard and Lisa came round for dinner, so it was nice to catch up with them. I was feeling really anxious about doing my work experience.

I was up super early on Monday morning. I can’t actually remember the last time I saw 6am (apart from when I’ve woken up ill in the night!) I made myself some porridge and ate it while my Dad drove me over to Guildford for my work experience with the News and Mail. I met with the editor, who seemed really lovely, and she showed me to my desk. I spent a bit of time reading through some of their papers and then had to phone IT to help me sort out logging into their computer system. I was kept busy throughout the day doing lots of research and writing stories. I wrote four articles in total – one about an online dating website scam, one explaining what sinkholes are, one talking about the history of the Surrey flag and a weather report. The dating scam and weather report both went up on their website, which was pretty cool. I was absolutely shattered by the time my Dad picked me up and brought me home. It was so nice to get in a warm bubble bath though and take my make-up off.

It was another early morning on Tuesday, but the sunrise was really pretty, so it wasn’t too bad eating my porridge and watching that while my Dad drove me to work experience. It was deadline day for the team I was working with, so everyone was pretty busy. I started by writing an article about online safety for young people, as it was World Internet Safety Day. I then wrote an article about a choir who raised lots of money for a local charity, followed by one about an annual Swimathon. In the afternoon I had to research and then pitch a story to the editor, which was a little scary, but my ideas actually went down well! I spent the rest of the afternoon doing research for one of my story ideas and making a few contacts to get interviews with. My temperature control was all over the place – one minute I was boiling hot and feeling like I was going to faint and the next I was shivering. I was so tired by the time I got home, so curled up with Freddie and opened my Birchbox.

I really like this quote that came with my Birchbox this month. It seemed pretty fitting for a journalist and blogger!

I overslept a bit on Wednesday morning, which wasn’t good. The long days were really killing me. I managed to get to work experience on time though, and started doing some research for the two articles I pitched on Tuesday. I was sent a press release by one of the team and wrote a quick piece about a police officer being assaulted, which was pretty horrible. Once that was finished, I did more research and sent out some emails. In the afternoon I chatted to a lady who runs a hedgehog rescue centre. It was lovely hearing about all the hedgehogs she helps, but so sad that their numbers are declining so quickly. I then wrote the article about how hedgehog numbers are going down and how we can all help them by making a few changes in our gardens. I’m definitely going to buy a little hedgehog house and see if we can get some spiky friends back in our garden again. When I got home I crashed out for quite a while. I’ve decided to try out a different subscription box, the Pink Parcel, which I’m excited about.

Thursday was another early morning, but I felt good as I was over half way through my placement and the weekend was drawing near. I started my day by writing an article about contactless payment devices being installed on local buses, and then finished writing a piece about a local mental health service moving into a new community hub. The editor sent me a press release, so I wrote an article about the police issuing spit guards to all frontline officers. In the afternoon I was given a few pieces to work on that would go up over the weekend. The first article I wrote was for the series ‘Things you didn’t know happened in Surrey’ and was about an annual river blessing ceremony for people and animals! I felt really poorly when I got home. My mouth and throat were full of ulcers and my whole body hurt. My Dad had been bust doing jobs round the house, which included putting this cool picture up above his coffee machine.

Friday was my last day at my work experience placement, which felt a bit sad really. Everyone was so nice and although I found it really hard with my health, it felt nice to be part of a team and do something ‘normal.’ I finished the mental health article I was working on first. I then spent ages researching for and writing a piece about Wetherspoon’s pubs in Surrey and the history behind each of their names. I certainly learnt a lot! I was then sent a video a passenger on a train had sent in. The guard was making hilarious announcements, so I wrote a quick story about that. I spent the afternoon doing lots more research, and writing about a blogger who is trying to catalogue photos of every single Wetherspoon’s pub carpet in the UK. He even had a book out about it! I didn’t realise they are all different and handmade. There was another piece on my to do list, but I ran out of time so just did the initial contact to get information and pictures. The editor gave me really lovely feedback on the week and told me I should apply for a job there! When I got home I treated myself to a nice cup of tea and some trashy TV. I also opened a parcel from Amazon, which included this new Happy book from Fearne Cotton, which I’m so excited to read. How pretty is the cover!

Saturday was a day of doing pretty much nothing. And I tried not to give myself a hard time about it because I know I’ve pushed myself beyond my limits this week. I slept until really late, which was just what I needed. The rest of my morning was really slow – I mainly just watched Come Dine With Me in my pyjamas! I did manage to do a little bit of tidying in my bedroom towards lunchtime though. In the afternoon I curled up on the sofa with Freddie and watched Shrek 2. I then put an episode of Death in Paradise on and wrote a few letters to my penpals. I had a really sore throat and felt very achy and tired. But a parcel from Lush arrived – I decided to order myself a few things from their Valentine’s collection as a reward for getting through my work experience. There are a few other bits in there too, but these ones were at the top. I can’t wait to have a relaxing bath!

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What have you been up to this week? I always enjoy hearing about your news and adventures!

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