...and then there were 4

I am thrilled to say that my great friend Pascale has agreed to be my 4th bridesmaid. When she emailed me a couple of weeks ago to say that she was going to come to our wedding but without Mark and the boys I was sad because I would love for the whole family to come. But on the upside, if she hasn't got her hands full looking after her boys then she can have her hands full looking after me instead :) ....We haven't figured out how we are going to sort out the bridesmaids dresses from across the ocean but those are mere details! The important thing is that she will be by my side on such an important day.

I am off on holiday AGAIN this weekend (I have the biggest carbon footprint of anyone I know and ironically I am about to start chairing the Environmental Champions Group at work...) to stay in my other bridesmaid's house in France. Tim and I are both really looking forward to some sunshine and a break. I am embarassed about the appalling state of my spoken French but it will be a good opportunity to start brushing up.

I got in the mood for a trip to France last night when I went to a wine tasting with my friend Lucy at her 'private members bar' in Soho. She tells me she takes clients there for 'business lunches' - she is so high powered! The man doing the tasting was really engaging and VERY French - I can never get over how some French people who speak fluent English still keep their incredibly strong French accent. It sounds like they are extras in 'Ello 'Ello or something. We tasted some delicious wine which confirmed my secret suspicion that I have a good 'nose' - perhaps because it is so big - and I arrived home relatively early but very merry. Bring on the holiday!

Marrakech

A few photos of my weekend in Marrakech.

Or maybe not...

...because I got the job!

Muppet

I am going to go home tonight and post pictures from my trip to Marrakech but while I am still at work I will just share with you what a complete and utter muppet I am. I have been applying for a couple of internal jobs in the last week. One of them is a training role, the other is working to create a generic financial advice (shorthand = GFA) service for the UK - like NHS direct but for finance. Because I applied for both jobs at around the same time I got all muddled up on the application dates and ended up missing the deadline for the GFA role. But I got an interview nonetheless (much to my surprise). And today I had the interview. I had to prepare a short 5-10 minute presentation on 'The Impact of Market Turbulence on Consumers' and I was so busy preparing and rehearsing it this afternoon that I completely missed the start of the interview. I was called at about ten past two asking where I was...and the thing that I really don't understand is that submitting things late/turning up late is SO out of character for me. But I guess my interviewers aren't to know that. I will have to just wait and see!

On Board the Marrakech Express

I am really excited because I am going to Marrakech this weekend with some of my friends from university. I have been before and loved it. I can't wait to get into the souks and do some bargain hunting. We are staying in the Riad Zolah which is owned by one of Sarah's friends and we are getting a really great deal for the weekend.

I am also hoping that the colour and vibrancy of the city will be inspiration for me to start using my new camera and take some excellent photos.

I feel like I haven't written for a while and I haven't posted since my birthday lunch at Chez Bruce. We had a really fun time and it was a fitting way to end my Birthday week. The food is always delicious and the company was exceptional. Here are some photos.

Tim and I - I think this is his first picture on the blog!

My little sister Al and I (Al broke her wrist when she slipped leaving her skiing chalet over Easter)

I spent this weekend in Bath on a hen weekend for my friend Angela who is getting married to Doug in Italy this May. Doug went to St Andrews (but I didn't know him when we were there) and I met both of them at Accenture. They live in Clapham Old Town which is near by and Ang is about the only person I know who has the same attitude to work as I do i.e. she works to live rather than the other way round.

The weekend was good fun and I even stayed up until after 3AM dancing one night, which is very out of character. One of the weekend's activities was a trip to Bath spa to 'take the waters' which, despite being very crowded, was really quite amazing. There is a thermal water pool on the roof of the building so you are bobbing around in the deliciously warm water with a view of the spires and hills around Bath. Quite amazing. I love to imagine what the town was like under the Romans and what they would make of us all now.