So I’ve actually done it. I’ve submitted my teacher training application. If it’s successful then I’ll be back at university in August. Eeep! I don’t want to get my hopes up because I’m really not sure if I’ll get on the course or not. I think I’ve got plenty of relevant experience with stuff I’ve done before but it’s mostly been with adults. I’m not sure I have everything they’re looking for. It all depends on funding and places and crap like that too so I just have to hope I get an interview and if I do then prepare as well I can, be myself and hope for the best!

I went to school yesterday too. I don’t think I’ve actually been in a school when there were kids there since I left school at 16 (I did my A levels at a sixth form college so that doesn’t count). To be honest it hasn’t changed that much since 1994. Well apart from that then whiteboards were cutting edge and now they’ve got these fancy smartboards that are connected to the computer and have special ‘pens’ you can use to write on them and they’re touch screens so you can move stuff about and all sorts – they’re like magic!! So they were new but the naughty kids were still there throwing each other’s pens on the floor, and the geeky girl whose mum obviously wants her to get bullied by making her wear full regulation uniform and ‘school shoes’. Actually, something else that has changed – when I was at school our uniform policy was quite strict; shirts buttoned up, ties on, shoes not trainers – I wasn’t even allowed to wear trousers, it was regulation knee length skirt all the way. These days skinny jeans and converse seem to be acceptable school uniform. I guess I’m going to have to get over my ‘it wasn’t like that in my day’ mentality if I’m going to be any good at this!

On the plus side, in one class the naughty kids taught me to play a random Spanish card game (although I still don’t really understand it) and I kicked their asses! Then gained much respect by being able to shuffle cards all fancy like. It was a bit weird being called ‘Miss’, I quite liked it though.

The whole thing is a bit odd to be honest. I don’t know quite what to think about it yet, because this is a massive decision. Properly like, the rest of my life, decision. I know I’ve applied but I could still back out yet. I really do think this is what I want to do – there are so many benefits, both personally and professionally – BUT I also know how fickle I can be. And once I’ve committed to this I really can’t change my mind.

For now I’m going to carry on with the application, do some more research, make some more visits to school and if I get on the course I’ll make the final decision then. Maybe I might actually become a grown up at last!

I feel after my initial good intentions I have been somewhat neglectful of this blog. I am continually impressed by comedians like Richard Herring and Tiernan Douieb who write a daily blog. But then they have much more interesting lives than me, and hence things to write about. And lets face it, they have a lot more time on their hands than I do!

Anyway I’ve been busy for the last few weeks with final rehearsals for the amateur production of 42nd Street which I’ve been appearing in all week. I first went on stage when I was 4 years old singing and dancing to Zipadee-doo-dah in a church hall but by the age of 6 I had progressed to a production of Alice in Wonderland at The Grand Theatre in Blackpool. I think I was pretty spoilt by my theatre experiences as a child – my dancing school put on an annual show in either The Grand or The Opera House, both are big theatres and made me pretty complacent about being on stage in front of hundreds of people. I went to dance classes until I was 18 when I went away to university and discovered drinking beer and smoking fags were much more appealing ways of spending my time.

When I moved to Scotland I decided that getting involved with dancing and amateur dramatics might be a good way to meet people (which it was – although don’t ask me why I thought I might also meet a nice young, single, straight man. That was never going to happen). For the relative size of the towns and villages around here there are a surprising number of amateur musical companies so I had a fair few to choose from. Amateur dramatics is a strange phenomenon – mainly because there is no pre-requisite for talent. There tend to be a few playing principal parts who actual do have some semblance of talent, some dancers like me who aren’t too terrible and then the ‘chorus’ made up mostly of middle aged women and a couple of men who’ve been claiming their pension since I was at primary school. I think most people just do it because it gets them out of the house for rehearsals a couple of hours a week rather than for any real desire to entertain the public. I enjoy it though and I get to indulge my inner show off without anyone telling me to shut up which can never be a bad thing.

I do have to suffer for my art though – I didn’t want to wear a wig so I decided that I would go for an authentic 1930s curly look, which involved inflicting hair based torture on myself every night this week (and the slight embarassment of having to go to work looking like a less deranged Bjork on Friday). Here’s the before and after shots (with a few of my fellow perfomers) – I think you’ll agree the effort it was worth it!

Before

My Mum and Dad were visiting this week too – they came up after their Easter weekend away to see the show and so my Dad could do some of the DIY jobs I’d been saving for him. It also gave me an excuse to go to Anstruther for officially the best fish and chips in the UK. An hour’s drive for fish and chips is a bit excessive ordinarily but when I have visitors it’s an opportunity not to be missed! If you ever find yourself in the East Neuk of Fife I would highly recommend a visit.

And finally, I was really looking forward to the three Gilded Balloon comedy evenings we had coming up at The Alhambra – I was going to work and get to see three nights of comedy for free. Then all of a sudden the listings just disappeared from the website without a word as to why. Apparently it’s not just The Alhambra gigs that have been pulled but the whole tour. Personally, I think they aren’t coming because Rhona Cameron is a cunt.

Another photo from my recent London trip with the family. It amused me because we look like a much less menacing version of The Reservoir Dogs.

Williamson Family – Resevoir Dogs stylee