Mid May Is Magical

A second successive delayed blog comes after a brilliant 10 days in across the midpoint of May where for a change the positives highly outweigh the negatives though the unemployment sadly continues.

This blog begins from Tuesday the 13th which saw the resuming of the Dead Rising 3 DLC followed later on by the catching up of DVD transfer for the end of the football season. The afternoon saw an email in regards to my NUJ application which contained an invitation to be elected at a meeting held on the 20th in Liverpool so progress career wise I guess.

The evening continued a day of catching up with the magnets and main storage board being sorted out with some replaced alongside the usual Tuesday night TV of the Call Centre, Happy Valley and Mr Drew's School For Boys.

Wednesday began with the weekly Xbox and weight update which sadly saw a the first overall gain this year so a change in routine is surely needed before the end of the month and got my next two Wigan away games sorted with the purchasing of tickets and travel for the trips to Salford and Huddersfield.

The early evening saw the viewing of Shamrock V Liverpool which was a good game to watch as the Liverpool youngsters excelled alongside some of the rotated players in a 4-0 win with a night ending session on Borderlands 2 on the 360.

Thursday started with the summary of the football season with the slide shows and magnets collated and uploaded with some bad news around midday with the news I had been unsuccessful after my interview at Pro-Mark in Chorley meaning I would certainly reach six months out of work which ticks over on the 19th.

As a result, the afternoon shaped around a lengthy job search but with nothing standing out so I put my energy into producing my Magic Weekend preview with the night ending with the collation and publishing of my final EPL blog of the season.

A fantastic start to Friday came as my batch of away tickets and travel arrived setting me up until at least mid-June and extending my run of consecutive games since the start of the season with the Magic Weekend uploaded after a final revision enabling me to add the squad lists and a typical Friday evening of TV with Gogglebox and Da Vinci's Demons followed by a new DLC on Dead Rising 3.

Saturday meant an early wake up to begin what would hopefully be a long but great day at day one of the Magic Weekend and my first going solo which was proven further when on the coach  was the only one with an empty seat next to me which dampened my mood a touch.

On arrival at the Etihad, I met up with some one from the A&L group but in wanting to see all four games, I decided to go into the stadium but thankfully had a message from a fellow member (Jay Nicholas) saying if i was alone to contact her and in writing this I am very glad I did.

I met up with her and her son Jake and enjoyed the first two games among a small crowd behind the stick which increased when the Hull derby took place with a strange incident that saw one of the Hull fans in front of us 'flash her bra' which ironically matched the club's Black and White colours and was a good laugh.

Just before the Wigan v Leeds game, the A&L crew, I had planned to meet up with found us and it was a great joy to finally meet those who I had conversed with at length online and could now enjoy a game alongside with being able to meet Karen and Scott and Louise a standout pleasure.

A great performance by the Wigan youngsters made for a superb ending to the day and also a way to turn my frustration from the week into raucous joy with a safe trip home completing the day.

After such a great Saturday, Sunday began with a sore voice and a very tired head resulting in a split day between watching Magic Weekend day two via Sky Go while on Borderlands 2 on the 360 with a friend in an exciting battle session with the evening focusing on compiling my notes from the Magic Weekend in preparation of the review.

A review that began early on Monday morning alongside the producing of my Wigan v Leeds report which evoked superb memories even at 4am meaning a later wake up in the day and the usual Monday blogging/diary catch up with Barely Legal Drivers and the next episode of Catfish.

Tuesday began with more Dead Rising 3 DLC playtime and some sorting out during the day before the trip to the NUJ meeting which started with a bus journey to Ormskirk before the train to Moorfields in Liverpool and on checking in via 4sq found out it was my first visit to the city since November 2013 shown time has flown by.

A nice meeting in a pub near to the train station ended well with me being elected into the union for the coming year and allowed me to get the train home safely though with it being three minutes late meant I missed my connecting bus by all of a single minute meaning I had to get a lift home off my Dad.


Wednesday began with a mysterious parcel arriving through the letterbox but what an amazing delivery it turned out to be as Wigan had sent me a letter saying as I hadn't missed a game this season, they were gifting me a free copy of the League Express yearbook which was included with the letter and really brightened my day as can be seen in the adjacent images.

The afternoon saw the catch up of the forgotten European magnet board and reports as well as setting up the Super League board for round 14 with the evening split between a session on Dead Rising 3 and the start of the weeks Super League preview.


The summary ends with Thursday which began with a continuance of the Dead Rising 3 DLC before the short trip out to vote and then finish off my Super League preview ahead of the trip to Wigan at 5 to catch the coach to Salford. Arriving in Salford at 7 at a stadium that seemed like it was in the middle of nowhere bu joy at meeting up with the A&L crew of Jay, Jake, Scott and Louise for a fabulous night for Wigan which was made better by a win and TV appearance with the trip back a joyous one with the night ending with the bus home at 11.30pm.

So an amazing ten days which saw a perfect streak for Wigan and some new friends that mean being alone at Rugby will hopefully be something of the past with the next post likely to be ahead of the monthly summary with hopes of a win on my European fantasy league followed by a trip up to Huddersfield with Wigan and the outside chance of some job progress.

May Begins With New Horizons

A delayed weekly blog has turned into a 12 day summary due to a packed schedule which for a change is a good thing rather than a negative.

The month began on Thursday with bad news as I received an e-mail from Trinity Mirror saying I had not been shortlisted for the reporting job I had applied for but an hour later, I got a phone call from a company I had applied to the previous day who offered me an interview in Chorley on Wednesday which turned my mood around quickly.

The afternoon focused on planning my travel plans for the interview and watching the St Helens v London match followed by a session on Dust-An Elysian Tail on the Xbox 360 which continued into Friday with some document catch-up.

Friday morning saw me carry out my weekly washing/drying routine with my ticket and travel for the trip to Hull arriving in the post with the afternoon beginning with the short bus journey to Wigan for the coach trip up to Leeds for my first visit to Headingley. Arriving in Leeds at 7.20, a long walk to the away stand boosted the excitement and on entering the stadium complex, it was strange to see that the rugby and cricket stadiums were built into each other which was a stunning view to see.

A mixed game for Wigan saw them lose but it was a good experience overall which ended with the trip back home and my traditional visit to my favourite takeaway before getting a taxi home at midnight due to the last bus to Skem being at 11.30.

Saturday began with the catch-up of my recorded Friday night TV schedule and went on to Soccer AM, Soccer Saturday and blogging catch-up alongside the West Ham v Spurs and Everton v Man City games on Sky. The evening saw a return to Dust - An Elysian Tail which was quickly becoming an enjoyable game to play.

Sunday saw a carry over of the Xbox playing session with a surprising early wake up at 7am which was bizarre having only went to bed at 3.30 am but I used the time to sort a few notes out from the Leeds v Wigan game while watching Goals on Sunday and then onto Arsenal v West Brom.

Later on I took in the World Championship Snooker coverage with a new Simpsons episode in the evening while sorting through my 10 year collection of statistics looking for inspiration on how to produce this years end of season summaries.

A new week began with Monday and the watching of the trio of South Park episodes that inspired the video game - South Park The Stick of Truth which were fun to watch as they gave more depth to the game and inspired me to have a quick go on the game itself. The afternoon saw more stats sorting as 10 years of books and sheets takes a while to go through with the evening ending with in a mixed mood as Liverpool blew a 3-0 lead to draw 3-3 with Crystal Palace to dent their title hopes.

Tuesday started with a new Windows 8 game in the shape of Wordament Snap Attack which in under an hour's play resulted in 12 unlocks making for a superb start to the day and in the afternoon, I reinstalled Dead Rising 3 due to an update error which took a long time due to the size of the game's content so while waiting I caught up on some sports blogging and in the evening watched Happy Valley on BBC1 and then ended the night on Plants V Zombies Garden Warfare with a friend.

Wednesday began with the arrival of my new iPhone external battery in preparation for the Magic weekend and then getting ready for my job interview in Chorley before getting the Bus to Wigan and a short train journey up to Euxton Balshaw Lane with it being closer to my destination than Chorley station. Due to the train only being every hour, I arrived an hour early so walked to where I had to be with a map I had devised and then went for some dinner and walk around Tesco which was opposite the Business Park I had to go to.

The interview took place at 2.50 and was pretty good as there was a good back and forth between me and the interviewers and I felt confident when the interview concluded which was something I didn't feel in my last interview which was at Euromedia in January. I walked back to the train station and waited to make the trip home which I did at 4.14 and got home for 5pm and did some writing while watching Man City v A Villa which sadly as a Liverpool fan saw City ease to a win.

Thursday started with the final episode of Invasion of the Job Snatchers that I had recorded while watching the football and was glad to see those that had put a lot of effort in were rewarded with the full time job that they had craved though one surprise was that one turned the chance to down to go back home an job search which seemed bizarre.

The afternoon saw some films on Sky Movies while I did some Xbox data sorting and began my writing my weekly Super League preview while watching Castleford v Leeds and then ending the night catching up on my recordings of Big Bang Theory and American Dad.

Friday morning saw some DVD transferring and some sorting out and cleaning before getting the bus to Wigan at 2.40 for the long trip up to Hull for Hull FC v Wigan with the coach trip taking in a stop off at the services near Huddersfield before the journey into Humberside which saw the coach pass three power stations all looking huge in stature and also included travelling under the famous Humber Bridge which was an amazing view to see.

Arriving in Hull at 7, the KC looked brilliant from the outside and as it is a football ground meant I would be sitting at an away game for first time since Huddersfield back in August 2013 but it was a good evening and a superb atmosphere with a youthful Wigan side triumphing 44-16. The trip home focused on messaging a lot on Facebook and Twitter with some self concerns over my blogging but some really nice comments turned my mood into a complete positive.

Saturday began with the arrival back in Wigan at 12.30 am and the visit for my traditional post-match takeaway before a taxi home and the catch up of my Friday night TV recording before bed at about 3 am with a surprise wake up time of 7.10 but as still tired I napped a little before watching Gamechangers and Soccer AM on Sky. The afternoon saw me take in Football Focus, The Simpsons and Despicable Me 2 with an evening on Borderlands 2 on the Xbox 360 playing co-op with a friend while watching Eurovision via my laptop.

The Borderlands 2 session continued into Sunday until 3am but saw good progress on the DLC stories before bed and then a morning of Goals on Sunday and Sunday Brunch before the afternoon focusing on the final day of the Premier League season with Liverpool coming from behind to beat Newcastle but missing out on a first title in 24 years due to Man City winning against West Ham.

Not winning the title was gutting but at the same time to even be competing after being 7th a year ago made me feel very proud of the team and the fact that there will be Champions League for Liverpool next season was the main positive but well done to Man City as overall they deserved the title and hopefully Liverpool can go one better next season.

The early evening saw me write up my Wigan match report and the full report of the Super League weekend with new Simpsons and the exciting drama In The Flesh forming the evening's TV viewing with some music via Xbox Music and iTunes accompanying my Super League writing which continued int Monday.

Monday began with some DVD catch up of the recent Wigan games and an extensive catch up of my Xbox blogging which had seen me not post for six days which is also proven with very few mentions in this summary. The evening saw more writing while watching the new series of Barely Legal Drivers and the long-awaited return of MTV's Catfish.

A very long summary to read and hopefully this much of a delay will not happen again with hopes for the next post to be around this time next week by which time I will have been to the Magic Weekend which is coming up on Saturday and hopefully I will have either good or bad news about my job interview.

Four Months Down Already!

After a busy March, April has certainly taken the title of busiest month of  2014 so far with five Wigan games being the main focus along with the end to Skem's season and an exciting month for Liverpool.

Away from sport, it has been a busy month personally with a special meeting with the publishers of News for a new project which seems to have fallen through at the time of writing with no recent contact and an exciting project with Crowd DNA which saw me complete a weekend of filming followed by an hour length interview at home which was fun and well worth the eventual reward of £80.


Fitness wise, Runkeeper saw a total of 19.2 miles which is less than March as number of events needed high battery power so the GPS had to suffer so the true walking amount is about 25-30 miles.

The Xbox achievement chase saw two main goals completed, the first being one of my originals from 2007 - 5000 achievements unlocked which came on the 11th while playing Kinect Sports Rivals. The second goal was reaching a total of 30 completed games which came on the 20th in the shape of Saints Row IV which itself was completed for the fourth time due to new DLC.

As for the month of April overall, it was a decrease on March but still saw 103 unlocks in keeping with the 100+ trend in the first three months of the year with the next main goal being 100,000G which is only 8,000 away from being completed.

For the first time in a while the gap between Xbox One and Xbox 360 unlocks has narrowed drastically with only a difference of five this month but the releases of Kinect Sports Rivals and Trials Fusion have been a major factor in that.


Sports wise, it has been a mixed month for my trio of teams, the main positive is that Liverpool end the month on top of the Premier League but with their title hopes out of their hands after the recent defeat to Chelsea ended a perfect month which included slim wins over Norwich and fellow title challengers Manchester City.

Skem ended their season with a 4-0 win over Stocksbridge to finish in a best ever sixth place and only three points away from the play-offs which is a huge achievement for a side that was only newly promotes this season.

Wigan have been the best of my three teams in April with a 100% record in the month with Cup wins over Dewsbury and Hunslet with the former a memorable night up in Yorkshire and a stunning Easter with a win at St Helens and a crushing 84-6 win at home to Bradford.

On the subject of my goals for 2014, progress is certainly being made with the only one not mentioned so far this month being my haul of 20,000 across my blogs which is a big accolade considering I don't publicise my articles other than simply posting on my social media accounts.

So overall a good month with more positives than negatives and there is hope for even more joy in May etc....

• Trips to Leeds, Hull and the Magic Weekend are all planned with hopes to completing the month with trips to Salford and Huddersfield.
• Today, I received a call inviting me to an interview in Chorley next week so maybe an end to my unemployment.
• Hopefully the celebration of a first ever Premier League title for Liverpool will be the highlight of the month.

April Comes To An End

This week has been quieter than the last two but still featured a number of good and bad days as the month came to an end.

Wednesday began with the writing and publishing of the Challenge Cup fifth round preview with the weekly weight and Xbox update, the afternoon saw the writing of last week's post after a busy Tuesday force it to be delayed. The evening saw the viewing of Real Madrid v Bayern Munich while doing an extensive job search online.

Thursday began with an Xbox session before bed with the morning starting with a quick walk and a trip for the paper and some lunch which I ate outside in the garden while giving our three cats an hour to run about in the sun. The afternoon saw some DVD transfer and a session on Trials Fusion which is an exciting game but also a tough one.

Friday began with another long job search and a test application for the NUJ with some DVD transfer in the morning. The afternoon saw the writing of the Wigan Challenge Cup preview due to the game being on Sunday with a flurry of online surveys following putting me closer to my next set of voucher discounts. The evening saw the usual run of Friday night TV into the weekend.

Saturday saw a full day of sport beginning with Soccer AM, Football Focus and Southampton v Everton with a Windows 8 session alongside the football until 2.30 when the focus turned to Rugby League and the tie between Leeds and St Helens, which built the excitement for my trip to Leeds this coming Friday with Wigan. The evening saw the viewing of American Pie Reunion on DVD and Match of the Day.

Sunday began early with the viewing of Sunderland v Cardiff before making the trip to Wigan for the Challenge Cup fifth round against Hunslet which saw me multitask as while watching and reporting on the game, I was also keeping in touch with Liverpool v Chelsea via Sky Go which sadly saw a 2-0 loss for Liverpool. Despite Wigan winning 52-8 the Liverpool result put a dampener on the afternoon made worse by City beating Palace in the final Super Sunday game. The evening saw the collation of my Wigan notes and a session on Trials Fusion and Rayman Fiesta Run as the weekend came to a close.

Monday began with the recording of the recent Wigan games and an afternoon of writing and designing and later on watching the Challenge Cup draw which drew up a home tie for Wigan against Castleford meaning the next two Wigan home games will be against Cas. The evening saw the viewing of Monday Night Football and a session on the Xbox with a friend.

Tuesday began with an Xbox session and some magnet and blogging catch-up with the Simpsons Movie in the afternoon, hard to believe it is nearly seven years old shows how quickly time flies I guess. The evening saw the weekly viewing of The Call Centre and two new series in the shape of Happy Valley on the BBC and Mr Drew's School of Boys on Channel 4 - a spin off of the popular Educating Essex.

The week and the month came to an end with Wednesday which saw a job application in the early hours for a company in Chorley seeing as there seems to be nothing suited any near which is really sad to be honest. The weekly weight and Xbox check took place in the morning with success and the evening saw the viewing of the Chelsea v Atletico game with the Spanish side setting up an all Madrid final followed by Invasion of the Job Snatchers and the writing of my weekly Super League preview.

As the year enters its fifth month, the trip to Leeds on Friday is the standout event of the week with Liverpool visiting Crystal Palace on Monday where the title race will hopefully have swayed towards the Reds and hopefully there will be progress on the job front for once.