albascot.net

Newsflash!

Posted on September 9th, 2008 by bryan.
Categories: General.

After two years of part-time study, three years of work experience and numerous exams, I’ve finally been ‘elected’ Associate of The Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA).

As well as presenting financial and professional opportunitues, this means I’ve achieved two of the goals I set when I moved to London in 2005: firstly, to gain top-level experience in the charity sector; and, secondly, to qualify as a Chartered (Company) Secretary.  I’ve even had the odd bit of fun!

Most importantly, I get a few more letters after my name ;o)

AlbaScot LL.B.(Hons) ACIS

1 comment.

A quick half-year update

Posted on July 20th, 2008 by bryan.
Categories: General, Holidays, Theatre.

We’re now well into the second half of 2008, so I thought I’d write a quick update about some of the things we’ve been doing over the past six months:-

• Graeme and I moved into a new flat. It’s just along the corridor from our last flat, but it’s much bigger - there is actually room to swing a cat (maybe even a tiger)! On the whole, it was a good move, although we could do without the noisy kids playing outside and the floor that has a bad habit of flooding and lifting. The joys of London living.
• We spent three weeks in South Africa, visiting Graeme’s parents in Jo’burg, Cape Town, Kruger Park and Pretoria. The holiday was amazing, as the 2,500 pics prove. I’ve only managed to upload a hand-full (click here), but the rest will follow - over the next few months. I’ve been wanting to go to SA for years, and it really was the holiday of a life time - but we will definitely go back.

Enjoying the sun, sea and sand of South Africa

• We’ve had a few visits from our respective sisters (Gillian and Lesley). I miss my sister a lot, so it’s always fun to catch up - even though we struggle to find new things to do. It’s not through lack of choice, it’s just that we have different tastes and neither of us can make a decision! We also had a visit from my dad, who was in town for the London Marathon.
• Graeme joined the London Gay Men’s Chorus (LGMC), which is keeping him out of mischief. He’s really loving the opportunity to meet new people and to perform, so far in two of London’s top venues - Leicester Square and Cadogan Hall. Both shows were excellent and I am hugely proud of him.
• I finished and passed my company secretary exams, which means that I’m finally a Graduate (and eligible to become an Associate) of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA). My previous blogs testify that the exams were not the easiest in the world, so I’m glad to have that all behind me.
• I started a new job just after we got back from South Africa: it’s a similar role, but working for a bigger not-for-profit organisation. It means a slightly longer commute, but it really was time to move on from my former employer: I’d been there for three years and I needed a new challenge. I miss my old work colleagues, though.
• Graeme and I enjoyed a weekend in Cardiff, the hen and stag party capital of the UK - which is not a sentence I thought I would ever write. The pics will follow, eventually.
• We had a great night out at The Old Vic, where we saw Pygmalion. I am a huge fan of My Fair Lady (and Audrey Hepburn), so it was great to see the ‘original’, particularly in such a unique venue. We’ve not been to the theatre much this year (only two productions: The Lion King and The Mikado), but this definitely made up for it.
• Finally, Graeme and I joined London Zoo, which means this site will soon feature even more pics of penguins. I apologise in advance.

I don’t think there is anything else - well, nothing worth writing. We’ve bought our tickets for the Edinburgh Fringe, so we’ll be travelling north for 1-10 August - an opportunity to see family and friends and to enjoy some top quality entertainment (The Caesar Twins, Joan Rivers, Russell Kane, etc.). Then it will be back to London and all the good and bad that brings.

1 comment.

A night of two halves

Posted on February 16th, 2008 by bryan.
Categories: General, Restaurants.

I’ve had an interesting evening.

I spent the first half celebrating with friends the completion of the ICSA International Qualifying Scheme - I am now a GradICSA and in a couple of months will be eligible to apply for Associate membership of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ACIS). Thankfully I only had to pass four exams (some of my friends had to sit about 15), but it’s been a lot of work. However, we still got round to discussing the possibility of studying for a Masters in Governance and Ethics!

We had a lovely - but not overly cheap - dinner in La Cave, near London Bridge. I had a duck breast, which was well cooked, but could have done with a side portion of veg. For pudding I had a ‘chocolate sachet with raspberry’ - or a mousse! We finished our celebrations with a drink al fresco at the George Inn, apparently London’s oldest pub - built in 1677.

The rest of the evening was spent in a police car. Not through any fault of my own, I hasten to add. Basically, a bigotted racist idiot was being a prick on the Tube and I was the star witness. Unfortunately, we could not find the guy - he was white, 5′10″, mid-40s, dark leather jacket, blue jeans and green scarf (and presumably lives in the Holloway Rd area) - but at least he got a fright when he heard the police sirens. Thankfully, he is not representative of the vast majority of the British population, but his acts do reflect on all of us.

Anyway, I have now had a few too many glasses of wine, so I think it’s time to head to bed. Good night!

0 comments.

Not more studying …

Posted on November 12th, 2007 by bryan.
Categories: General.

It’s November, so once again it’s time for studying. It’s not too bad this year - I’m only doing one course: Corporate Administration. Not the most interesting stuff I’ll ever read - pensions, insurance, risk, HR, data protection, facilities management - but it’s the final step towards my Chartered Secretary qualification. Fingers crossed for the exam!

0 comments.

Exam result - shock horror!

Posted on August 27th, 2007 by bryan.
Categories: General.

As a quick update, I somehow managed to pass the Corporate Financial Management exam that I sat in early June. You might recall from earlier blogs that I was dreading this paper, which definitely turned out to be the hardest exam that I’ve sat - I’d absolutely convinced myself that I failed. It’s nice to be proved wrong sometimes!

Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators

0 comments.

A long rant - any excuse to get away from the calculator!

Posted on June 4th, 2007 by bryan.
Categories: General.

My brain is now completely dead - which is a good thing, because I’ve also lost the will to live.

I really don’t know how people work with finances all day, every day. I’ve just been doing it for a few weeks and I struggle to keep my eyes open for more than 30 minutes at a time! I don’t know whether I now have respect or increased pity for the Finance Team at my work - on second thoughts, it’s definitely the latter. But then they are the type that get excited by a balanced Excel spreadsheet. I suppose that someone has to be into that sort of thing.

Life over the past 10 days has pretty much been taken up with revision. I did manage to pop out (with my notes) to Hyde Park yesterday to enjoy the sun, but otherwise I’ve been stuck indoors most of the time. The only thing saving my sanity is Classic FM and the odd visit to the BBC News website, but even that pis**s me off - if it’s not the Catholic Church in Scotland getting upset about a woman’s right to have an abortion it’s reports that Manchester United will spend £50m this summer on transfer fees.

The abortion story really annoys me. First, it’s the fact that a religion still thinks it has the right to dictate to a woman how she should lead her life - I thought that was the role of the courts and Parliament which, for the record, legalised abortion in Scotland in 1967. Second, it’s that same Church’s call that Scottish Catholic MPs who support abortion should not put themselves forward for communion. Well, if Cardinal Keith O’Brien has such an issue with our elected representatives, maybe he should decline any further funding from the Scottish Executive in support of Catholic schools. Of course, that would mean the Church would have to find another source of income to continue to preach its doctrines of hate and lies - to children as young as 5. Third, it’s the fact that the BBC (and other media) continue to give air time to the likes of Cardinal O’Brien. He has no mandate to speak on behalf of ‘Scotland’s Catholics’ - he is un-elected - but yet his often inflammatory statements get more coverage than the many other real stories affecting the nation. Scotland might have a strong Catholic community (many of whom are non-practicing), but it’s out-numbered at least four-to-one by non-Catholics. We elect people - of all sexes, colours and creeds - to represent us, and it’s time for them to stand up against the Catholic (and any other) faith when it starts preaching at the majority of the dis-interested (and happily excommunicated) population.

As for the Manchester United story, I can’t help but think that the £50m that it plans to spend this summer ‘buying’ already wealthy players could be put to much better use. But take heart, apparently we will have our first £200K per WEEK footballer within three years. Is it too late for me take up the game??!

2 comments.

June only ever means one thing … it’s exam time!!

Posted on May 29th, 2007 by bryan.
Categories: General.

I’m slowly, but surely, going mad.

Today is 29 May and a week on Friday is 8 June. Nothing particularly remarkable about that, except … 8 June is the day of my Corporate Financial Management (CFM) exam. I won’t even try to explain what CFM is all about - I’m still working that out for myself - but I will confess to being a tad terrified about the big day! Well, maybe not terrified, but I don’t have very high expectations.

The trouble is, I know nothing about figures, and I’m guessing that is a slight draw-back when it comes ‘to managing corporate finances’. However, as that’s SO far from what I do in my working life, I’m not overly concerned. But it would be good to pass the exam on first sitting, if only to ensure that I don’t have to read about Capital Asset Pricing Models ever again.

So, if you have some words of wisdom, can refer me to a suitable Dummies’ Guide or are into praying, then please bear me in mind!

0 comments.

Finally, some new pics …

Posted on January 28th, 2007 by bryan.
Categories: General.

I’ve neglected this site over the past three months - sorry!

As a quick summary of what I’ve been up to since my last post - I sat my company secretarial exams (results to come 9 Feb), I had a pretty tough end of year at work and Graeme and I had a visit from his sister and brother-in-law, Lesley and Euan.

We spent the Xmas and New Year festivities in Edinburgh, giving us a fortnight to catch up with family and friends (and the penguins at the Zoo!). Xmas Day was spent at my sister’s new home - which is the house her and I grew up in - with Dad and Uncle John, who got to escape the hospital and nurses from hell. The evening was spent first with my dad’s partner and her family (including 4 kids under 6!) and then at Lesley’s. Hogmanay was supposed to be spent at the Concert in the Gardens - instead, the wild weather meant we had to stay warm and drunk (and celebrate our third anniversary) at our friend’s (Laura) flat!

Not much to report on since our return to London - except, after 20 months, we’ve finally joined a gym! I even have an appointment with my own personal trainer tomorrow.
That’s it for just now - but do have a look at the new pics in the Photo Gallery.

1 comment.

Guy Fawkes’ (bonfire) night

Posted on November 5th, 2006 by bryan.
Categories: General.

October was the first month in ages that I did not have any pics to add to the website. Work, studies and family have all been keeping me busy, and it looks set to continue.

I had two annual weekend conferences, a Board meeting and an AGM to co-ordinate in October and the follow-up (and side effects!) are still plaguing me - and there is yet another Board meeting this Wednesday! The courses I’m studying are actually quite interesting - corporate governance and corporate secretaryship. OK, so I know these won’t appeal to everyone, but they’re related to my line of work and the people on the courses are good fun. However, exams are only a matter of weeks away! As for family - I had to make an unexpected and sudden visit to Edinburgh on Wednesday, fearing that I would arrive to hear the worst about a close family member. Thankfully, he is now on the mend, and I very much hope that it continues that way!

Well, that’s a quick update of what I have been up to. Now, I’m going to read about the death sentence imposed this morning on Saddam Hussein - the ‘guilty’ verdict was clearly right, but I’m less sure about the sentence - and hopefully beat Graeme at a game of squash later.

Bryan.

0 comments.

Browns on the Green - The Green, Islington ****

Posted on November 5th, 2006 by bryan.
Categories: Restaurants.

The day started badly - it was a Saturday morning, and I was on my way to university for a seven hour class on the history of corporate governance and how to wind-up a company! I won’t bore you with the details - needless to say, it wasn’t the highlight of my week. Things got better though, rapidly - I met Graeme in the early evening for a bottle of wine at The Green, a gay bar with lovely staff on Upper Street! Clearly, studying had frazzled my brain, because it didn’t take long for me to feel tipsy - although it rarely does.

However, after an hour or so of drinking and ogling, I managed to stagger across to Browns on the Green where yet another cute waiter was on hand to open yet another bottle of rose! Graeme started with the very seasonal pumpkin soup; i had a mushroomy starter - both disappeared quickly. For mains, G had the confit of duck - his current ‘favourite’ - and I had a burger with half a tonne of everything on it. Again, very good. It was the pudding, however, that won it for Graeme - ‘the best sticky toffee pudding ever’ I think he sputtered, with a broad smile and licking his lips. I took the healthy option and had a cappuccino - in fact, the only disappointment of the evening. Total price - £53.65.
I always enjoyed going to Browns in Edinburgh - there’s something about its informal-formal atmosphere, the quality food, the eclectic clientele and, not to put too fine a point on it, the cute waiters in their whites! Browns on the Green was, thankfully, no different.

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