Listen up!

We’re going to be live on the radio tomorrow!

Listen out at 8.10am (GMT) on Radio 4…Josh is playing the drums!

BBC Radio 4 92-95FM or listen online here

(and be glad that you don’t have to be in your seat by 7.30am after doing NightLight!)

Introducing Thomas

My last guest blogger of this week is Thomas from The Week that Was. I met Thomas at University. Unfourtunatley he has left Aberystwyth now, so blogging has made it easier for us to keep up with each others goings-on. Thomas is lovely and his blog is great, especially as he keeps me on my toes challenging me with his campaigning efforts for various charities. Go and check it out!

If you’re anything like me, you would have checked your blog feeds/roll/subscriptions (however you actually check your blogs) and became excited when you saw that Rachel has updated her blog. Sorry to disappoint, but she hasn’t. Instead, Thomas of The Week that Was has, so you’ll have to make do with him I’m afraid.

When I was asked to be the guest blogger I instantly said yes, and then the realisation dawned. I’d have to write something. And it’d have to be good. Suddenly the art of blogging, because let’s face it, it is an art, was suddenly foreign. I’m quite happy drawing my childlike pictures (to run with the art metaphor) and admiring the Vincent Van Goghs of the blogging world, but then to be commissioned to actually create something good is a tad bit scary.

But what to write about? Lasagne recipes? No, I cheat with sauces in a jar. Churches? No, stuffchristianslike.blogspot.com does it too well already. Blogs? A bit too meta, and Rachel’s done it before. Jobs? Ah, I have a few funny anecdotes about them.

Recently I’ve been job hunting. I already have a job, as a youth worker, but that’s only for 12 hours a week. So I need to something else with my time, and I don’t fancy taking up knitting. One place was the Daily Echo jobsite. The Daily Echo, for international readers (i.e. Northerners/ Welsh and Americans), is a Pulitzer Prize winning local newspaper. I entered my details. Part-time, please. Within 10 miles of Southampton, please. And the first five were full time posts in Canada. Now, there is a small village in the New Forest called Canada, but I don’t think they have much need for a refrigeration/air-conditioning mechanic. The requirement that the applicants must be passport holders makes me dubious as well. Another job listed was a receptionist, and it quite clearly stated that the salary was £7.50. Okay pay? Not really. £7.50 per annum. Refreshments are provided though, the advert cheerfully insisted.

I’ve found some possible jobs to apply for but the all leave me with multiple dilemmas. You’ll have to read my blog for that though…

This week and beyond

 

Normal blogging will resume this week after a slightly crazy seven days.

Things are really tough at the moment. As I mentioned in a previous post there was/is a family crisis on Josh’s side last week which I won’t go into here. Needless to say we are left feeling drained, exhausted and ratty with each other. All of this came at a very difficult time.

 

Guided Tour

I suddenly thought the other day that I’m always posting pictures of places we visit, but I’ve never really posted pictures of where we live and where I work. I like to be able to imagine people’s surroundings when I hear them describe their lives (because I’m a bit of a stalker like that), so here we are…have a quick visual tour of my life…

Proposal

Our office is probably the best example of a non-ecofriendly work space around. Although it’s a small space we leave both our copiers, all three computers, two printers and a scanner on all the time, even when they aren’t in use.

We are paper eaters too– I don’t even want to think how many trees we consume each year. If the church congregation need to know something, why just tell them once? Instead we could print it out on several different leaflets and drum it in that way. Lights and heaters are left on everywhere too.

 

Catch up in pictures

NightLight

Thanks to all those that have spoken to us about NightLight and also sent us encouraging messages via Facebook.

 

It was our first time out on Saturday and from our point of view it went really well. A few of the door staff seemed a bit wary, but on the whole everyone was very friendly and we were able to help out CCTV and doorstaff a few times.

We were also able to give out some flip flops and make sure a few people got their taxis home safely. Everyone seemed very interested in what we were doing!

Well worth it and I can’t wait to do it again!

This is why I hardly post anymore…

It’s finally going ahead so it’s about time I explained why I hardly post on here anymore and why if you see me around Aberystwyth I’m likely to be looking slightly crazed, and maybe shaking a flip-flop…

Church offers support to revellers

 

“A voluntary Saturday night street pastoral scheme is being launched in Aberystwyth, to help people who are in distress.

 

St Michael’s Church members Josh and Rachel Maynard are the driving force behind the NightLight project, and the scheme’s volunteers will take to the streets of Aberystwyth for the first time at 11pm on Saturday 15^th November.

NightLight is one of the first operational objectives of the newly-launched Aberystwyth Night-time Economy Action Plan.

Volunteers will offer practical help ranging from handing out water, advice on how to get home, and hope to be a calming influence by using their ‘conflict resolution’ skills in potentially-violent situations.

 

Mr Maynard, a zoology student at Aberystwyth University, said: “We have 45 volunteers from the congregation of St Michael’s Church, who are very positive about NightLight. We have the support of other churches, and hopefully they will come on board with volunteers. Rachel and I live in town and are aware of the problems that people get into on a night out. The aim is to help people however we can. It may be that they can’t get home – perhaps because of consuming too much alcohol – or they may even be lost. We will also be looking at conflict resolution in the hope that by gentle intervention we can defuse a situation, and be a calming influence. And I am hoping for a bulk purchase of flip flops, which will be handy for women who have trouble walking in their high-heels after a night out!”

 

Mr Maynard had the NightLight idea some months ago. He said: “I saw a similar scheme working well in Devon. I did not know about the NTE plan when I decided to set up NightLight in Aberystwyth, but hopefully it will play a useful part. And Aberystwyth police and Ceredigion County Council are being very supportive.”

 

Mrs Maynard, who works in the office at St Michael’s Church, sees NightLight as taking the church into the community. She said: “People should rest assured that our volunteers will not be judgemental in any way. They just want to help those who are vulnerable at that particular time.”

Volunteers will be out from 11pm on Saturdays until 3am Sundays, probably in pairs and clearly visible.

Mr Maynard said: “The volunteers are having training at Aberystwyth police station on things like conflict resolution, self-defence, and civilian law. And obviously they need to know when to step back from a situation.”

NTE coordinator Barbara Pritchard welcomes the scheme. She said: “This is a very positive scheme aimed at helping people. It is certainly not ‘information gathering’ as suggested by a few licensees. The aim of NightLight is to offer help, and it should prove valuable to the NTE of Aberystwyth.

Inspector Kevin Davies at Aberystwyth Police station said: “We are supportive of the initiative. They may be able to help defuse certain situations before they escalate and provide support to people who need it on a Saturday night.”

(By Norman Williams – The Cambrian News)

 

I am E.X.C.I.T.E.D!