Monday, 3 June 2013

Baggy Trousers


Last week Joe finished school.  For any parent its always evokes a strong emotion as you reflect on how they started so small and innocent and now they have grown into a towering lump that grunts at you when you speak to it.  In addition you realize that they have reached another stage in their evolution and in fact it dawns on you that you too have reached another stage in your own life.  When I consider what Joe has gone through over the past 18 months he has been absolutely incredible and his mother would have been so proud of her little boy.  Caroline and Joe were kindred spirits.  He could do no wrong.  Not sure she would have been too proud of him dressing up as Ariel (The Little Mermaid) on his last day but that’s another story.
So all Joe has to do now is complete his A Levels. I say “all he has to do is…” but quite honestly I do not have a clue how well he is doing and what he needs to do to pass.  I do know that the entry level for Falmouth University to do a degree in Film  is BBC.  In my day BBC stood for, and still does, the British Broadcasting Corporation.  To Joe and his generation it stands for British Born Chinese.  I guess that sums up the difference between my generation and Joe’s generation.  Its just all seems to be different and the ‘A’ Level system is just another example.  Back in the day when I was studying I would be frantically cramming everything I have learned into my small and undeveloped brain.  The final pass or fail grades were based on the exams I took at the end of the course.  I would revise for about two months and move through cycles of panic, hysteria and elation – sometimes within minutes of each other.  Whereas, today the students are continually assessed throughout the two years by the production of coursework.  There doesn’t something to be the same panic – at all.  Well that’s what I’m led to believe.  I just can’t get my head around that lack of panic.  Joe just seems to be so laid back about it all it worries me senseless.  I find myself continually nagging him that he should be revising and have his head in his books.  What books?  Its all online now.  But in truth I just don’t know how significant these exams are to the overall mark.  I don’t know if that’s because of my own ignorance or that all parents are in the dark.  My new role now is cheerleader!
Anyway it got me thinking.  I set myself some objectives for the year.  So rather than wait to the end of the year to see if I have passed or failed I should assess my own progress half way through the year.  After all I need to allow time to do any re-sits.  If you beat them, then join them!
Family
1      Help Joe through his A levels
Well time will tell.  Joe has three exams on 4th June and a final one on the 14th.  Results will be made known in the middle of August.  As far as I am concerned it’s all down to Joe and the gods.  I am sure his mother will be pulling all the strings she can.   Fingers are well and truly crossed                                                                 5/10
2      Help Joe decide what he wants to do next whether it is University or something else
Joe has decided he wants to go to Falmouth University to do a degree in Film.  This course will be a perfect for Joe.  Joe loves making films and is very good at it.  Right through to devising the concept to editing and producing it.  I’m sure he will be a huge success especially as part of the course he has to watch three DVDs per week out of a library 22,000.  My money is on that he could watch the lot in the three years. We have been to Greenwich University and the University of Glamorgan but Falmouth was is chosen place. Couldn’t have done much more.  Just got to move him down there in September and ensure he settles in                                           7/10
3      Help Georgina through her first year of University
This didn’t go quite to plan.  Despite Georgina settling into University life at Cardiff way above anyone’s expectations at Christmas Georgina decided she didn’t want to continue with Chemistry and pulled out.  With the help of a few close friends Georgina has responded to this setback very well.  Georgina will be returning to Cardiff University in September to do a Psychology Degree.  Georgina has in the meantime been working at Primark to clear the overdraft she built up over the three months she was at Uni!                                                                                     5/10
Me
4      Watch British Lions in Australia.  Anyone else interested?
Now I might have mentioned this once or twice that I am off to Australia to watch the British Lions play.  Its all booked and my long time cricketing mate Tony Rice is coming with me.  Cant wait.  All there is left to do is enjoy it.                    8/10   
5      Three bike rides: 1) across the Outer Hebrides with my brother Andrew; 2) memorial ride from Cardiff to Bristol; 3) one other big ride e.g. London to Paris – maybe!
Completed the memorial bike ride from Cardiff to Bristol, which required incredible endeavor from the 10 who completed it.  The weather was just terrible.  Thanks to the sterling efforts we managed to £600 for St Peters Hospice.
Neil and I planned to ride from Cambridge to Bristol.  However, it started to turn into a logistical nightmare and we couldn’t fix the diaries.  So we abandoned that idea.  Instead we cycled a return trip from Bristol to Gloucester, 80 miles. 
There is just one major ride outstanding, the Outer Hebrides.  I will be cycling across these Scottish Isles with my brother Andrew ably supported by his partner Claire and my nephew Harry.  The ride is booked into the diary for August 5th         7/10
6      Maintain my weight at 13 stone

My objectives now start to fall apart.  Since the start of the year my weight has risen considerably.  In January my weight was 85kg with the clear aim of reducing to 83kg.  Half way through the year I have weighed in at 88kg (13stone 12 pounds, 194 pounds).  My only consolation is that Its still along way from where I started from in January 2012 ie 98.5kg (15st 7lb).  My aim now is to get back to 85kg.  I will need to find some time to do more running                                                                      3/10
7      Learn to cook properly
I am still at the basic stage of cooking.  Basically I can read instructions and use the oven.  I would like to get to the point where I did have some idea of why I was doing something and be able to pull together a three-course meal from scratch.  I will be getting onto this after the summer holidays                                                            4/10
Work
8      Work out what to do next regarding my career
At the moment I am enjoying the freelance life especially as I have landed a few clients.  The freedom and life balance it has given me has been very welcomed in the difficult circumstances that we faced as a family. Whether its long term or not depends on future success                                                                                    8/10

Overall 47/80 or 59% - Could do better.

Good luck to Joe love Mum and Dad xx



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