Today is the second annual Cabbage Nozzle day, a time to sit down and reflect on what Cabbage Nozzles mean to us. Speaking personally I was in a very dark place before Cabbage Nozzles entered my life and am eternally greatful their invention has enabled me to put my life back together. I will be raising a glass to Cabbage Nozzles this evening and invite you to do the same. To those who are still in that dark place I implore you to get involved in the Cabbage Nozzle movement and put your life back together.
Ladies and gentle readers, I'd like to mark your card about a TV series I discovered recently called In The Flesh. It is a gorgeous little drama hidden away at 10 PM on a Sunday night and its a crying shame barely anyone knows about it. Take a look at this trailer:
If I had to break it down into a sentence I'd describe it as Emmerdale with the cast divided between humans and zombies. Yes you read that correctly - Zombies! However this is a world away from the likes of The Walking Dead (which this blogger also recommends), this series deals with the aftereffects of a zombie cure and the effects reintegrating them has on the village of Roarton.
Set after "the rising" the undead have been cured with injections (which they need to take to prevent them going feral again) and given contact lenses and makeup and repatriated back into their homes. As opposed to zombies they are labelled PDS (Partially Deceased Syndrome) sufferers. This is very much a drama so don't go coming in expecting action but it does what the BBC does best creating original British Drama. 'also a thinly veiled Ukip allegory in a radical pro living party called Victis, with the MP Maxine Martin being the best TV villain of the moment.
Anyway, give it a view as its must see if rather unknown TV...
Good afternoon ladies and gentle readers, you'll notice things have been a tad quiet on the blog this month, this is down to me throwing myself into getting back into employment. If you'll indulge me for a moment you may remember a blog entry from last year where I went into detail on my ongoing adventures with HR and recruitment personnel, for this blog I'm going to go into depth on my ongoing relationship with a particular recruitment firm over the past few months. Due to the fact I don't want my potential employers reading this and suing me I'm going to refer to the company in question as Nile and the recruitment agency as Abacab.
In late January I was going about my daily routine working for Nile and I asked my area manager if I could speak to HR. I had some ongoing issues and I wanted to speak to someone officially about them (actually these issues weren't work related, they were personal and I felt it was only fair to inform them), the manager said he'd send a message to my gun later in the day when he could spare me. So towards the end of the shift I got a message on my gun to come down to the desk, stood there was a woman I'd never seen and she said she was taking me up to HR. So off we toddled up to the meeting room which was empty, I asked if it was her or someone else I was having this meeting with and she replied "oh I'm not apart of HR I'm a site rep for another agency, I just brought you up here to be released because your agencies site reps were on a break." Needless to say I was shocked, I'd been meaning to talk to HR about being made permanent after six months of target hitting brilliance from myself and here I was being let go.
After being released I hung around the canteen to have a word with the Abacab site rep, when he saw me he came over and said "don't worry, I was shocked when I saw you were on the release list too, your one of our top guys we're going to get you back in here asap and hopefully within six weeks so you can keep your bonus." Reluctantly I exited the FC after putting across how disappointed I was that no site reps from my agency told me, were not even at the meeting and didn't back me up when I stated my case to the Operations Manager over why I shouldn't be released. The following Monday I took the train to the Neath branch of Abacab to hand in my locker key, boots and hi viz. I had a chat with the recruitment consultants and made sure I was placed at the top of the rehire list then proceeded to sign on.
I then spent the next few months applying for various jobs always calling Abacab once a week. By 12/04/14 I was still looking for work and noticed an advert for Nile on line. I gave them a call again on the fourteenth, the girl I spoke to asked when I'd have my tests (drugs/aptitude/alcohol) done and I informed her I hadn't even been in for one. She then asked how I knew they were a recruiter for Nile and I informed her I had been registered with them for 18 months. We then scheduled my tests for two days time although for some reason which I wasn't told I'd have to go to the Swansea branch. So two days later I walked in to find I wasn't taking the tests and I was being registered as a brand new agent. I was then told that the Neath office had been closed down and for the past few months instead of sitting atop the rehire list I wasn't on the Swansea branch systems and my physical paper file was in a filing cabinet they'd had sent from the Neath office which hadn't even been opened yet. After proving I was an existing agent of there's they said they'd get my tests done asap which turned out to be fourteen days later on the 28th.
After these tests Abacab have one month to register and started with Nile, I gave them a ring to check for news twice the following week and eventually got a call on 09/05/14 saying I'd be starting the following Wednesday. To save money buying food on site I popped to the supermarket where my friend Tes goes and bought two weeks worth of work lunches. The following Monday I popped along to the job centre to sign off, mere yards from entering I got a phone call from Abacab. Apparently "Nile lowered the order they placed" and my spot on this weeks income had been cut. Rather than swear down the phone I laughed it off and then asked them to confirm I was now top of the rehire list and get the next spot in Nile that becomes available. Nile tell the agencies how many staff they'll be ordering, as I post this blog its just gone end of play Friday 16/05/14 and after a phone call I made to Abacab earlier this afternoon I have heard nothing. A week after being told I was employed I am unemployed and sadly nobody else is even responding to my applications.
I hope this goes some way to explaining my contempt and loathing for recruitment companies and recruitment consultants. I'm off to boot next doors dog up the bum, here's a video of Abacab by Genesis:
Hello ladies and gentle readers, as I mentioned last month I am on a mission to catch up with the Big Finish Doctor Who releases having dropped to over 100 releases behind the current output. So anyway here are the releases (plus a bonus) that I listened to in April:
Medicinal Purposes
Now this is a proper dark story, starring Colin Baker as the sixth Doctor and Maggie Stables as his companion Evelyn Smythe. For those of you who don't know Evelyn is a Big Finish created companion and a lovely middle aged history teacher whose become something of a personal favourite. However this team of regulars has been put through the ringer a bit in their last few stories, actually come to think of it bar one or two amusing romps this team has been put through hell for the majority of their stories: Gallifrey invasions, vampires, doom laden alternate realities and now a story set in the back drop of nineteenth century Edinburgh during the Burke and Hare grave robberies.
Its very much an atmosphere piece as the majority of the story takes place in a bar surrounded by murderers and prostitutes. There are a few twists and when the plot gets going it turns into a right little thriller, when the general mystery clears and things go in a certain direction it gets more engaging as the villain of the story emerges played by the wonderful Leslie Phillips. I liken this to a thriller akin to something Conan Doyle would have written, after the mystery is resolved things get down to a battle of wits between the Doctor and Knox in a style very similar to Holmes against Moriarty. Definitely a story I'd recommend as for long time viewers it feels like this TARDIS crews plot line is going in a certain direction and for people who dip in and out its a powerful atmospheric piece to hold your attention. Also as I tend to go into the story knowing nothing there is a surprise in the cast list and I for one am kicking myself that I didn't recognise that person.
Unregenerate!
Blimey another dark one with this one having the feel of a proper thriller and a rather good central mystery and plot to get the teeth into. Starring Sylvester McCoy as the seventh Doctor and Bonnie Langford as Mel this story sees the season 24 team in a story worlds away from their TV days. Whilst enjoyable I felt it was rather so/so and a bit wishy washy, theres a lot to enjoy here and a good bit of mystery however I thought the mystery aspect was a bit obvious. While there are other aspects of the plot away from the mystery that I found interesting I felt they took forever to get going and then rather stop. IMO what we have here is a lot of very good potential that never gets near the fruits of what it promised. Its very much Bonnie's story as the Doctor is part of the mystery the listener and Mel are trying to solve for the majority of the story. I recommend it but urge the listener not to get their hopes up or engage the brain as if you don't see the cliffhangers coming its very good stuff on offer otherwise you will be waiting for things to happen.
The Hexford Invasion / Survivors in Space
I also listened to the Hexford Invasion / Survivors in Space as I'm a fair way from reaching the Big Finish fourth Doctor output I felt the urge to hear some Tom. Its very much a laid back romp of a story bringing back memories of Stones of Blood and Android Invasion with the fourth Doctor getting into trouble in the English countryside with a Doctor Who twist thrown in. Its very much parts four and five of the Serpent Crest series but it feels distanced enough from the earlier parts to be listened to in isolation. It is a sedate pace with a few twists here and there, Tom is Tom so you know what your going to get and he's ably supported by an excellent cast. Paul Magrs is a wonderful writer and I never fail to howl with laughter at his books or audios. Highly recommended, also keep your ears peeled for a certain character who was a surprise on the initial release and I'll refrain from spoiling.
