Monday 22 March 2010

Mish Mash

I am about to commit a murder. I am a step away from pulling on my rubber gloves and getting out the murder kit; my body is aching to slice a torso open, to create a cavity in some one's neck - I am hungry to extinguish human life.

Builders. I don't think I have to utter another angry sentence, builders are shit and piss everyone off. My life has been on hold for two weeks waiting for a load of cowboys to come to my house and turn a two day job into a three week one, all whilst they finish the last of my milk making weak cups of tea and bang out 'tunes' on a tinny radio. Lest we forget how a builders favourite activity is to take a slash in your bathroom whilst they systematically aim their caffeine laden urine for the furthest point away from your toilet bowl (i.e. the floor). I have never been one to generalise or stereotype builders, it is often unfair and they are in a faltering trade (the first industry to be hit in the recession, building all but stops when there is an economic slump). HOWEVER, if you know you are constantly the victims of an unfair press why not prove you aren't one of the many parade of tossers who occupy the trade? If a job is booked for the 1st March 2010, here's a thought - why not show up on that date and do your job? Instead of whenever you bloody feel like.

Yeah, so you are right in assuming that I have been in my flat all day surfing the net and doing a good impression of a miserable git. I never do anything productive on the net but decided to have a long overdue look at my blog and try to update it. It has been six months since I finished Catch 22 and I must confess, so far I haven't been very 'journalismy', concentrating my efforts into my PGCE course and promising myself that as soon as I am done I will write an article and pen a novel that will be lauded and loved by all (not just my mother).

Nevertheless, my innate laziness has again kicked in. My blog has NO direction and I am not in any sort of mood to ponder on what my blog should be. I could tell you what it isn't; it isn't a music blog, I could not get that pretentious and start mouthing off about a subtle piano solo (in A minor) featured in a tune when most of my music playlists either consists of mid-1980s funk and a host of auto tune enthusiasts. I also think that the Internet is over saturated with music blogs, and a great many leave a lot to be desired. It isn't a fashion blog, I love fashion but my dress sense isn't stylish and not very well put together. As long as it comes in 'day-glo bright' and fits then I will throw it on. I doubt Vogue will be beating down my door, begging to sign me up as my fashion blog has inspired millions. My blog is nothing, it is a bit like my brain a mish mash of thoughts that have an intention and then just lead into a rambling mess or an unnecessary rant.

So for now, I am just going to treat the three of you who read this blog to my 'mish mash' and some of the blogs I did over three years ago at university.

I will consult you soon-ish about the blog and it's direction, but for now sit back and enjoy your steaming pile of horse crap!

Wednesday 16 September 2009

'Catch 22'...a Catch Twenty Two.


When I first heard about Catch 22 and began to get excited I sighed outwardly. Another one of India's 'crazy ideas' which she gets enthusiastic about for all of five minutes and then abandons, convincing herself that there is something 'out there' that is far better for her that she just hasn't found just yet. I may sound like I am being a bit impatient with myself but I am the personification of indecisive. One minute I want to be a teacher who dabbles in journalism, the next minute I want to be an astronaut that moonlights occasionally as a trapeze artist. Friends become impatient with me and my parents are forever despairing over my ever changing career paths, I however believe that being optimistic and flexible with what you forsee for your future is the way forward and doesn't give you false expectations. Or maybe I am just making excuses.


However, this time my mind didn't take a wander up the astronaut path again and I decided against handing my C.V. in at the NASA space station. The Catch 22 course seemed brilliant, it's mission seemed to be tackling the main issue a lot of people have when wanting to break into journalism - the lack of experience that holds you back from being taken seriously. I have had a very real insight into this frankly stupid dilemna. I had been turned down from what seemed like every media outlet on the planet due to my 'lack of experience'. How am I meant to get any bloody experience if the 'powers that be' won't give me any? More than frustrating it was disheartening, I got so sick of trying that I just stopped. Quitting might seem like the weaker option but I was so fed up with people treating me like I was a grandma eating baby killer when all I wanted was a chance to make their tea and eventually prove myself at their establishments. By the time I was introduced to the Catch 22 I was pursuing a teaching career, gearing myself up for my teacher training interview in August. However, me being me I filled out an application form for the Catch 22 course and hoped for the best. I figured I could be a teacher with some journalism on the side.

At my interview with Tokes and Sharon I was nervous. Nothing surprising as I get nervous looking at my own reflection but this time I was desperate to impress the co-ordinators and get on the course as I knew Catch was dedicated to helping young people get into the journalism field. For some unknown reason I managed to cadge myself a place on the course. This was despite me blabbering like an idiot and saying that my ideal interviewees would be Hitler, Stalin and Jesus Christ.

The course has been an eye opener; challenging and difficult but also beneficial and creative. The team have pulled all the stops to give us a real taste of the journalism world. Our 'teachers' are journalists who are able to regale us with their tales of the industry. We also have guests speakers who answer our never ending queries and have even attended an event at the BBC and after seeing the amount of champagne some of us were gulping down our throats I now know where are licensing money is going.

With Catch it is non-stop and you are thrown into the thick of it from the start; we are regularly giving assignments where we write articles, box-outs, vox pops or even court reports and they are giving back to us marked and with feedback. This is useful because you are able to chart where you are achieving and where you could do better. Until Catch I never realised how much I veered off topic (well I did, I just chose to ignore it which the team won't allow). We are also encouraged to drop our inhibitions and to think and act like real journalists. At the moment the students at Catch are currently working on a feature which has meant developing and building our ideas, seek out interviewees and do a heck of a lot of research. As I am quite self conscious and very aware that my voice sounds like Oscar the Grouch chewing glass to the average person I have been hesitant when approaching my feature but thanks to the support of all at Catch I am now improving.

What really makes Catch great and dynamic are the people who are also on the course. That may sound more cheesy than pelting the High School Musical cast with slabs of cheddar but it's the truth. I have learnt a lot from some of the great writing skills of my fellow students and they have helped encourage the minor skills I do have. They are also all hilarious which eases the work load. We all work as a unit and help each other where possible, there is no bitchiness or back stabbing. Which is a bit disappointing as I love a ruckus.

There is also the staff and though I find them all EXTREMELY SCARY I know that the only reason they are busting my balls is to make me the best journalist I can be.

Our edition of Catch 22 mag is out on January 2009.

Find out more:

http://www.catch22mag.com