This is the third blog entry in which I will continue to write about what I have been doing over the years, this time I will write about what I have been up to since school (1997->1999).

I finished Cavendish School in 1997 (GCSE Grades 4 C’s, 2 B’s, 1 A and an F), and went onto study A-Level Maths and Advanced GNVQ IT at ECAT (Eastbourne College of Arts and Technology), at the time taking 2 subjects seemed a good idea, but it soon became apparent that I could not keep up the two courses, combined with the fact that I was rubbish at maths I dropped the A-Level Maths.

I really loved my 2 college years, it was such a change from the regimented school system, relaxed classes, intermittent games of Pool, no uniform, no exams and what seemed like constant sunshine! I guess that some of these fond memories have been exaggerated slightly, and as I have gotten older and taken on more responsibility those days seemed so easy.

I had two part time jobs during college, the first working in a computer shop fixing PC’s selling software etc. The second job was working at Homebase DIY store, a job which I continued in for many more years! Although these jobs did not pay much money I did somehow keep managing to build new mountain bikes and then get then stolen, I guess this was because at college I did not have a car, house, wife, food etc. to pay for, and at that time was still living at home with my parents.

As I have already mentioned games of pool featured heavily in my college life, sneaky in-between class trips to the local David Lloyds centre, trips to the Pool Hall in town and evening games in the pub, I did get quite good, I have no doubt lost it now!

Time at ECAT did fly by, and before I knew it I was applying to universities and planning career paths. I applied to three universities, Brighton, Bournemouth and Portsmouth, and got accepted into Portsmouth. I have written about my time after college in the previous blog entry in which I write about how I got my chin chopped off!

“Nice to see you, to see you Nice” –Bruce Forsyth

This is the second blog entry in which I will continue to write about what I have been doing over the years, this time I will write about what I have been up to since college (1999->2003).

I left ECAT (Eastboutne College of Arts and Technology) in 1999 with a Advanced GNVQ in IT and moved off to Portsmouth University to study a degree in Computer Science. Of course my first year at University was a bit of a culture shock, innocent, unable to cook and still not sure what to do with my hair! My first memory of attending University lectures was getting soaked in the October rain. A enthusiastic fresher, I took full advantage of the ‘freshers fair’ grabbing every free object being handed out and signing up to various clubs and societies many of which I never again attended. However one club I did regularly attend throughout my University life was the Mountain Biking Club, going out twice a week getting muddy and occasionally entering competitions.

During my first couple of years of University I did still kept up with Venture Scout activities, going on hikes, camps, etc., although I never made an attempt to join a unit in Portsmouth. I did travel to Kenya with a group of Venture Scouts from Sussex to help the children living on the streets build a school - a very rewarding experience. In my later years at University I did end up loosing contact with the Scout movement, which I today sometimes regret as I reminisce.

Being a student I needed as many pennies as I could get hold of and so I kept up my part time job working at Homebase DIY store, transferring between Eastbourne and Portsmouth stores between university years. I strangely enjoyed working there, and am still 100% Homebase loyal, much to my friends amusement.

I did have to re-take my second year at university because I failed a couple of exams and wanted to make sure I had reasonable grades in order to get a good work placement. In this ’second-second’ year I had ‘the chop’!… Yes! I had 2 operations to get my larger then average lower jaw reduced, the feature which caused me to be nick-named “Chinny”, “Jimmy Hill” and “Brucey” at school is gone! The main reason for having this done was not for cosmetic reasons but to help my teeth meet correctly and enable me to bite properly. When I returned back to University after the first operation some of my friends did not recognise me at first glance as my chin is now ‘normal’.

For my third year at University I went on a year long industry work placement. I moved to Swindon to work for Intel, and, for the first time getting a proper salary (but have no real idea where I squandered most of it by the end!) returning back to university for my final year, which I have written about in the previous blog entry.

“A MAN, A PLAN, A CANAL: PANAMA” –Palindrome

For the next few blog entries I am going to try and write three updates describing what I have been doing with my life over the years, the plan is to send these blog entries to as many of my old contacts and friends as I can, to let them know what I have been up to. The hope is that that I may hear back from some of them and also find out what they are doing. This first update will focus on the years spanning from the beginning of my final year at University (2003->Now).

After my industrial work placement at Intel in Swindon I returned back to Portsmouth to complete my degree in Computer Science, it was a very hard year during which I had my head permanently planted in my laptop typing my dissertation on the subject of wireless computer networking. In the middle of my final year I started seeing, my now wife, Claire, who was a great girlfriend who really encouraged me through my final months of studying and exams.

I graduated in 2004 with a 2:1 degree BSC(Hons), I was ready to take on the world! In actual fact I was not ready at all, I really found the transition from student life to grown-up life extremely difficult, I did not know what to do with myself, I could not find a job and I had no money - I had ‘post university blues’, a condition which I feel is not documented or recognised as much as it ought to be!

Still living in Portsmouth I did have two part time jobs, the first doing some web design work for a couple of companies, the second looking after disabled children, neither of which paid extremely well, but the rewards of looking after the kids far outweighed the money.

In September 2005 Claire and I got engaged and I also finally got my feet on the real IT jobs ladder, initially working for a company driving around the south of England supporting Cisco networks, a job which almost killed me driving long distances and stupid hours. This was swiftly followed by a new job working for NTL (now Virgin Media) as a ‘Capacity Planning Engineer’.

In May 2006 Claire and I got married and we are happily renting a tiny little flat in the center of Portsmouth. My beautiful wife graduated from Southampton University the year before I did, she now works at the local hospital as a ‘Medical Laboratory Assistant’ testing blood. I am still working for Virgin Media based in Hook and am looking forward to the spring so I can once again enjoy the hour long drive to and from work in daylight.

I really would love to hear back from any of my old colleagues and friends, how you are doing and what you are up to. Please do leave me a comment below even if it is just a quick hello!

“I made a noise like this: hua-hua-hua-huaaaaaaa - and then I dumped it over the side, all over the people in the audience. And then, this was horrible, all the people started getting sick and throwing up all over each other. I never felt so bad in my entire life.” –Chunk, The Goonies Film