Don’t worry about reading this drivel! It’s merely a venting blog post… I’m breathing out the old and breathing in the new!

2011 was a memorable year for me. It started off topsy turvey and if anything, pretty miserable. I had a lot of personal dramas that were eating away at me and if anything the start to the year felt very stagnant. However, I battled my way through it and overcame many niggles, (some of which I wont go in to), only to reveal a second half of the year that was rewarded by hard work and determination. I chose to tackle the main things bothering me in my life in order to turn them around for the better!

The turning point started when I completed my photography course in May 2011. I put in every ounce of effort that I could into my coursework which resulted in me getting my City and Guilds in Digital Photography; all three modules passed with distinction! It was a major boost.

Because of this, I was determined to tackle the Level 2 in Photography  and was very lucky that my local regional college were running the level 2 course for the first time in my town.  The competition was rife for getting on the course but I was determined in getting on it, which resulted in success.

I am currently learning new things about photography and next week we are getting stuck in to the new challenge of studio work and I am researching some very excting projects to do. I will talk about these at a later date in my blog.

Another thing bothering me in 2011 was my living circumstances. After several years of being out on my own and back with my mum, being out on my own and back home, to’ing and fro’ing back home again, I was determined to finally get out on my own altogether. It was a big hinderance in my life, and even though I love my mum to pieces, the independant person in me was going crazy and the lack of space was inhibiting me creatively and personally!!! As I am single I thought my only option was to throw away the money and become a renter. Me? I’d never get on the property ladder. After a chance glance at the rentals section it was pretty grim! I thought I’d have a nosey at the property for sale and pine at them, only to notice… to my pleasant shock, there were properties that had been on the market the previous couple of years with prices that had been practically slashed in half! I also had a chance conversation with a work colleague who was battling for the same dream and she urged and inspired me to have a go at it myself. What had I to lose!

The cogs started turning. I thought to myself

Could my impossible  dream of owning my own place be a little more closer to a reality!

So… to cut a long long depressing story short, after months of negotiating and going from one adviser/bank to another, from one mortgage product to another in the desperate atempt at securing a mortgage, my optimistic faith of owning my own place was starting to waver a little, but I was determined and ploughed on.

Then,at the end of November 2011, after exploring every avenue I could for many months a miracle happened! I got a phonecall which I thought was another knock back or delay….

…but it wasn’t!

I finally got an acceptance! It’s probably some of the best news I’ve ever had and I got the best deal I could have wanted! The feeling was amazing! A dream come true indeed! Even though I don’t have the keys in my hand yet, I’m only a month away. Then the fun will begin. I know it will be tough and money will be tight, but I don’t care! I will manage! I’ll have my own space to finally work on my neglected projects and I will have that financial security (all going well) for the future that has wrecked my brains since I can remember.

After that positive lift, what happened next was a very strange and welcoming thing. My whole month of December was strangely magical!? I hear you snort, but I swear, it’s true. I’m not sure if it was coincidence or the huge weight off my shoulders but I had a really great spell of good news. I won the Christmas Hamper in Work, which I was SURE I was going to win? I also came first in the local Diversity, City of Culture, Spice of life Calendar Competition, which I had merely entered just because! I won a £75 voucher and I had three of my photographs entered into the Calendar which was circulated throughout the city.That’s me and the local mayor in the photo above. More pics on this later.

The lovely Foyle Hospice Hamper I won

Christmas was delightful (albeit quiet as I’ve been concentrating on saving my every pittance for housy things), and for that brief moment I had that feeling like you have when you’re very little. That not a care in the world feeling! It was lovely. Something that is very rare for a grown ladee (i hate the word woman) of my age!

On to 2012. I can’t say, I’m a fan of January, but it’s been good enough so far. Work is going well. Plenty of SEO and design work to keep me going. My photography course has kept me very busy and I need to get stuck into my projects bigtime. It’s bugging me somewhat.

I have also started my photography derry website – (which is a Work in progress). I’m getting sorted for the big scary exciting move! I’ve started rennovating some furniture, transforming old dark mahogany and pine to lovely airy antique white pieces. But this is another big job in itself, so I will post pics when I’m complete.

I’ve also had a wonderful opportunity of teaching a community group photography, which I grabbed by the horns! More about this later.

So, my goal buzzwords for 2012 are – personal projects / resolution / new space / improvement / health (i do love my grub and alcohol) / Photography / Design / Work / Positive.

And I just want to finish off by saying DREAMS DO COME TRUE (cheesy I know)

But I do have cynical tendancies, so it’s a lesson for me too. If things are getting you down, action them, note them down and get tackling them little by little! Write down all your ideas and thoughts, things you want to do, how you want to be and any niggles, no matter what they are and I tell you this… You’ll be smiling more than you are frowning this year!