Hooray, I’ve actually managed to make it to the second post in a series! Usually, I’m like “yep, I’m gonna start a series on my blog,” I do one post and then give up. I feel like this series, though, is really beneficial to my mental health and it has definitely been needed for February. I started the month off being very, very poorly (I think it may have been norovirus) and I’ve had a bit of a rollercoaster in terms of my working life and my happiness. Even though some parts were tough and I felt like tearing my hair out, there have been some pretty amazing things that happened during the month, so take a look at my gratitude list for February!
1. New opportunities – throughout February, I found myself stuck in a bit of a rut. Yes, I had only been on my placement for just over a month, but I found that I wasn’t enjoying it, despite being offered an extension. Then up pops a job for a cook/baker in a local tea room. I thought to myself “I don’t have enough experience and they won’t be interested in an office girl.” Plus, baking was just a hobby of mine and I didn’t think it would be possible for anything to come of it. Two pep talks from my mum and boyfriend, a CV, an on-the-spot interview and a trial shift later, I am now the second cook and baker at Linthorpe tea rooms! All it took was a little courage and self-belief, now I’m back to working in a kitchen where the work is varied and fast-paced, which is exactly what I wanted.
February 2017 Gratitude List
2. My crazy supportive boyfriend – as briefly mentioned in the first point, I had a pep talk from my boyfriend about applying for the job. All month, he was an absolute godsend and has been encouraging me to pick myself up. In fact, he’s like this all the time. He has never told me that I can’t do something or that I don’t have the skills/experience. He also took really great care of me when I was on death’s door at the start of the month, so I just can’t give him enough credit. He’s just great, but he’s been particularly great this month.
3. The lighter nights – I can finally feel Spring in the air and it’s fab! Right at the start of the month, I was walking home from my placement and it was fairly dark, but I could hear birds tweeting. I was so excited about it! Now that the nights are getting lighter, I’m even more excited. Don’t get me wrong, I love dark winter nights where I can snuggle up under a blanket with a bunch of candles lit, but we are long overdue some sunlight, I think. As well as lighter nights, all the daffodils are starting to peek their heads out in my local park, so Spring is definitely coming!
4. Having my blog noticed – this would probably be so insignificant to everyone else, but I received my first blogging opportunity in February and I am so excited about it. I’ve been really pushing myself to create content, take photos and schedule tweets that I’m happy with, so it was really amazing to see that it was paying off! Of course, it’s a baking opportunity, so I absolutely jumped at the chance to get involved. Watch this space!
5. The weekends – this will sound so ridiculous, but I used to feel like I never had a weekend. What I mean by that is when I worked three jobs, a lot of my Saturday and Sunday were dedicated to them, so my weekends were just non-existent. I used to take whatever time I could find and fill it with my hobbies, but now, thanks to my placement, I’ve been able to enjoy doing sweet nothing on the weekends. Of course, I still have to update the WI’s social media and their site, but I don’t even class that as work anymore. I’ve been able to have lie-ins, watch The Undateables and Secret Life of 5 Year Olds, and stay up “late.” It has been bliss! Obviously, this will all change when I start my tea room job this Saturday, but filling my time with baking and cooking is fine by me!
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