Update

Forgive me, readers, for I have sinned...it's been more than a year since my last blog post. This is largely because I couldn't admit online just how tough I found the job market here in Scotland. As it turns out, everyone applying for the jobs I want have more degrees and more experience than me, having been sacked when the recession hit the science research budget in '08. The journey has been entertaining - I shall, no doubt, fill you in on some of the more colourful moments in the fullness of time - but only being able to find minimum wage work dented my pride. 

Allow me to share some lessons I've learned in the past year:

- saving money for a rainy day is a good idea when you live in a country that rains a lot

- a yellow rain warning in the UK means it's going to rain a lot, not that yellow rain is going to fall

- it's physically demanding to do seventy-four hours of work in a seven-day period

- Spaniards and Poles are fun to party with

- Spaniards and Poles swear a lot; if you learn words in their language, look them up in a dictionary before repeating them in polite company

- it is possible to live on minimum wage, provided one is a creative cook

- waitressing can cause a wicked set of Madonna arms

However, I have decided that £6.08 (£4.73 after tax...yes, the UK taxes minimum wage workers) is below me; I have now taken up writing professionally. I suppose the truest sign of this is that I'm blogging again, and have a window open with a proper (read: for money and my CV) writing assignment that begs my attention. I'm on the second day of my first official work week; the shine hasn't worn off...yet.