When I started on a design for this site, I tried to go for something mad and abstract. Think scratchy drawings, lots of line-art and distressed typeface.

It failed.

I realised why today, when thinking about why I liked Biffy Clyro’s latest album so much, but didn’t like the older ones much at all.
Then I got it.
Puzzle is quite a polished piece of work, certainly compared to the older albums. And I like it for that. I think an enjoyment of high production values applies to other favourite albums/songs, even though I never singled that out as one particular aspect until now. For example, BT’s Emotional Technology is widely recognised as a highly-honed and polished piece of work, and some people criticise it for that.

It makes perfect sense of course. I like shiny things. I’m big into technology. I always try and go for the things that have been worked on and polished to perfection … or as near as it can get. It’s why I find myself buying the next version of software and hardware even if the old one is doing just fine, and why in certain aspects of life I can be a bit of a perfectionist.

I said to Rob the other day how I wanted to change the blog again, but couldn’t even write my ‘About Me’ section, so how can I design something that reflects me when I can’t even figure out what to [i]write[/i] about me?
So I guess that’s answered then. Whatever it becomes, you can put a decent bet on that it’ll be shiny and polished

Not that it’ll change for a while I imagine, seeing as I have this week off before I start back at HP-CDS for another 6 months!

I got a bit of a surprise today, whilst waiting in line for my Italian B.M.T. Subway roll. No, it wasn’t that the food looked really appetizing (after I decided that Subway was crap a few years back), rather it was the phonecall that interrupted my culinary musings.

The voice at the other end of the line was familiar to me, and so it should have been, as it was the recruitment agent that had offered me my previous role at HP-CDS. He had information that said I was out of work at present (long story, but I know how he got that impression); information which I quickly corrected. What followed did surprise me somewhat.

It turns out that he received a personal request from management to ‘get [me] to come back’. Actually I think the actual words used were “What rate will get you to come back?”
I ummed and errred for a few seconds before sensibly going for the “I’ll think about it and let you know” response. I’ll be speaking to him on Monday.

This is pretty big for me. I’ve only been contracting for a year, and working full-time for just over three, and yet here is an arm of a massive multinational IT company specifically asking for me, and what’s more asking me to name my price!!

I will be giving it some thought this weekend. The main reason I left was that I couldn’t really afford to live in the area, and they wouldn’t pay expenses. So the goal is to secure a high enough rate to make it worth my while, and also living expenses.

Whilst those of you reading this who are following the more conventional routes into jobs and still can’t wrap your heads around the concept of contracting may feel the urge to kick my teeth in for being such a jammy bastard, I can say this:

There is no magic ingredient, no secret handshake, no hidden network.

All I have ever done for any of my employers is work as hard as required, try and push my learning and understanding, get involved where necessary and be myself – which usually means getting on with – or trying to at the very least – as many people as I can.
I’m also good at my job. (I enjoy saying that, because I’m not the most confident of people.)

We’ll see where all this goes. If my price is too high, then fine. I can live with that – I want to be in Cardiff anyway. But if they’re fine with it, then fantastic. I can go back to a place I know well, where I can continue to improve my knowledge and experience, and make some damn good money at the same time.