I'm on holiday!!! Finished work on Monday and met S at Bewleys so we could get the aircoach for our flight to England. We're here until Sunday, then it's off to Cuba!! We're spending the evenings visiting relatives and the days just being in England. Went shopping in Southampton today, which was great to go to places like John Lewis again (Dublin really could do with one, it would have been far more useful to have one of those in Dundrum than a House of Fraiser!). S bought half the books in Southampton so she'll have enough to read for the rest of the holiday. I've managed not to buy loads of technology. Off to PC World tomorrow (although they do have these in Ireland so that wont be too exciting, but need some bits to sort out Grannys PC).

Hmph! Seems like the party on Monday will be my only seasonal work party as I was off sick on Wednesday, so thought it a little unreasonable to turn up to the department do that night and last night we gave up, partly cause I had to be in the office at 5am this morning for work... Just as well I enjoyed Monday! Although I would much rather be fit and well for the next two weeks than have been out several times this week.

So yes, I've been at work since 5am checking the last upgrade of the year didn't break anything (which it seems not to have done). Didn't sleep at all well for the 6 hours I was in bed and am meant to be going with more teenagers than usual on a Friday to the cinema this evening. Maybe I'll have a sleep this afternoon when I get home!

I'm just waiting for colleagues to turn up to go and have breakfast with them (oh, and the canteen to open). First person of the day has just arrived. No prizes for guessing they're a contractor!

First of the seasonal work parties last night. Most of the large vendors hold parties for us which typically consists of hiring a place in town and having some nibbles and a free bar and DJ until the early hours. Things can get a bit carried away with a free bar but I'm not feeling too bad today. Although of late my hangovers tend to get worse as the day goes on which is a bummer.

OK, this is a rant that's long over due and had to happen sooner or late. Harry Redknap. What a total c word! (and no, this one does not end in rap!) He has a fight with his chairman at Pompey so decides to leave. Joins Southampton, talks about how he's not been happy at Pompey cause the chairman wont keep out of it etc. Then the moment they sack their manager, at the first chance he gets he states how Pompey is his spiritual home (eh? What was West Ham then?) and that his year at St Marys was the worst of his life. So he walks out on the morning of a match leaving Saints royally shafted. Funnily enough it's not in Saints interest to make it easy for him to walk out so fair play to Rupert on that one. However now he's gone you have to wonder if Rupert has learned from the Sturrock fiasco or if we'll have to go through the pain of all that again before finding a decent manager. Sad thing is now we are far less appealing for a top manager to take over than before relegation. On the positive side it looks like Harry will be responsible for relegation both major south coast clubs within 2 years.

I've just concluded that advent calendars with chocolates in them are a bad thing. As a young kid I used to be quite excited to find out what picture was behind each door (the days before chocolate ones, or at least with tight parents that would never get us one) where as now I scoff the chocolate and couldn't even tell you if there was a picture let alone what it was... Seems to be missing the point some how!

S and I have just wussed out of a late night in town (although I'll get enough of those next week as it's work vendor party week!). We met up with some people from the UK who are over doing contract work with my employers for a few drinks and a meal. One of my colleagues characteristically turned up at near to 11pm just as S and I were beginning to have had enough. By the time we found the pub he was in we delivered one of the contractors in side and then caught the Luas home. Sad, but that's the way we are!

I'm nackered enough having just spent half the day playing carols in Bray with the band and that was after the bands Christmas Concert last night. Both events went well. The carols seemed to raise a lot of money and the concert was very good despite sounding pretty crap in the rehearsal just before. Problem is that the room we regularly rehearse in was nothing like the theatre we played in. The theatre everything sounded very exposed so people panicked and you could hear mistakes (certainly from where I was sitting - my own mainly) but the actual gig was brilliant. The band are doing a fund raising gig for our Uganda trip in April. Will have to try and record that.

Very nackering weekend as I was on call for work and one of our systems picked that weekend to go horribly wrong. In months of on call I've had next to no calls but on Saturday I clocked up 13 hours and Sunday 11. Does mean my gadget account has been nicely topped up!

Then on Monday I had to be at work at 5am for a fake intervention (I say fake cause the intervention happened, but coming in at 5 they expected me to do a normal 7.5 hours before going home and as it stands they've not worked out what compensation they will give me for getting up at 4:30). Tonight I am doing a real intervention so that's tomorrow spent in bed (or attempting to spend the gadget fund!). S is in London for work for the day which is a shame.

Tonight there's an extra band practice as we've got a concert on Friday and I'm not convinced I've played anything like all the pieces. Hope I can stay awake with all this dumb hours of work I've been doing... Might be a first to snore throughout the concert.