Work From Home Week 2015 – 19th to 25th January

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working from home, work, home workingAs someone who works from home I can vouch for its good points and its bad ones. Mostly it is great, offering flexibility and the chance to work to the best of your potential. No nasty commute needed so it is good for your bank account and the environment too. In fact, this is Work From Home Week and in June 2014, new rights to flexible working laws were introduced in the UK, declaring that all employees – who have worked for the same employer for at least 26 weeks – are eligible to request flexible working, including the option of working from home. In fact, most recent figures now show that around 14% of people in employment are working from home, highlighting the idea that it’s increasingly becoming a viable and attractive alternative for businesses.

Launched in 2003, Work From Home Week, running from the 19th to 25th of January, puts a spotlight on this rising figure, raising awareness of working from home for both employers and employees alike.

In a time of constantly evolving technology, it’s never been easier to access information away from the office, so we’re calling on employers to embrace the opportunity as a way to boost happiness and productivity among their employees.

Graham Long, Vice President of the Enterprise Business Team at Samsung UK supports working from home.

‘’At Samsung, we believe it’s vital for people to be given the option and the tools to work flexibly, which is why we view Work from Home Week as an important and worthwhile initiative.

“Our own research reveals over a quarter of workers would opt for flexible working over a pay rise, and more than four in 10 (42%) employees strongly agree with the idea of being able to access work emails and apps outside of official working hours. Despite this, many businesses still don’t trust their employees to do so, highlighting the need to educate enterprises on the benefits of working from home. The option to work more flexibly can have a huge impact on productivity and wellbeing and with advancements in mobile technology, it is now possible for employees to work beyond the confines of the office, making working from home a choice that should be open to all rather than a select few.’’

Of course, for many across the UK, working from home isn’t just for a week. For the hundreds of single parents, carers, injured veterans and those living with disabilities, working from home is a necessity.

To celebrate working from home, the team behind the campaign have compiled the top 5 reasons to consider it!

Money – Not only would you save money on travel costs – train tickets, petrol, parking, etc. – but not eating out for lunch on a regular basis is bound to save you some pennies too. For parents, it gives the opportunity to radically reduce the costs of childcare.

Commute – Forget about delayed trains or road traffic dampening your spirits.

Comfort – Rather than donning a power suit or being restricted to a desk all day, choose your own dress code and working environment.

Green Living – Working from home can help reduce your carbon footprint, conserve office space for your employer, and perhaps most importantly, allow you to be the master of your own environment!

Freedom/Flexibility – Having the freedom to choose your hours and coffee breaks, while not being dragged in and out of corporate meetings all day is something that could potentially boost your overall moral and work ethic. Not to mention it allows you to create that ideal work/life balance.

Work From Home Week runs from the 19th – 25th January 2015. Twitter @WorkFromHomeWK  #WFHW

 

One In Eight British Adults Are Now Vegetarian

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Leek And Lentil Hotpot Recipe Vegetarian FoodcookingSomething is afoot. A change in our eating habits which has become more than a trend. Sparked by people becoming more environmentally conscious and not wanting to contribute to the damage that cheap meat causes. More people are becoming vegan, pescetarian (eats fish but no meat), vegetarian and flexitarian (has a mostly plant based diet but occasionally eats meat. I would put myself at the end. I have tried vegetarianism before but it never worked out. The first time I got really ill and when I started eating meat again I always made sure it was organic, free-range meat and that the animal had had a good life). To be honest the thing that most put me off vegetarianism was, and is, aggressive vegetarians. There are few things worse in life than an aggressive vegetarian who is always getting on their high horse and telling everyone else what to eat and how to live their life. Debate is fine, not lecturing. My husband is now mostly pescetarian, we eat mostly vegetables at home. This has been a learning curve when cooking meals and has also been a trial whilst pregnant and constantly craving meat. My husband and I are not alone however.

According to Mintel, around 12 per cent of people now follow vegetarian or vegan diets – rising to 20 per cent of those aged between 16 and 24. Millions more are flexitarian. A staggering one in eight British adults are now vegetarian. The truth is, we are all eating less meat. The meat-free market is now worth £625million a year and growing all the time.

That is quite something. We will be doing more vegetarian recipes on Frost and will also be doing a lot of cooking videos on our YouTube channel. So watch out for both and let us know what you think.

Short Story Workshops Across Dorset by Margaret Graham

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writing

One of Frost’s favourites, author Kate Kelly, who wrote of her experiences at the Edinburgh Festival is featuring as a tutor at one of the free Workshops taking place across Dorset over the next two months.

Short Story Workshops Across Dorset by Margaret Graham

In an effort to reach aspiring writers living in rural communities a series of free-entry creative writing workshops for adults has been devised and take place at twelve venues across Dorset between 12 January to 14th February.

Amongst the tutors is another familiar name. Frances Colville who arranged the Bridport Slam, won by one of Frost’s most fun writers, Wendy Bracken, is teaching. Frances herself has featured in Frost in A Day in the Life. In addition, there is Tracy Baines who I taught, and who is a successful short story writer, so lots for the aspiring writer to enjoy.

Perhaps they would like to enter the Words for the Wounded writing prizes? www.wordsforthewounded.co.uk

writing, writing workshops, short, workshops, writing, Dorset, Margaret Graham

The short story workshops will kick-start DWN’s first e-book anthology. For anyone and everyone who enjoys writing or would like to learn to write short fiction check out the communities listed here: Winfrith Newburgh, Sturminster Marshall, Cerne Abbas, Askerswell, Durweston Horton & Chalbury, Martinstown, Stalbridge, Verwood, Crossways, Upwey, Bourton

To book a place, email sue@dorsetwritersnetwork.co.uk

Taking part gives you free entry to Dorset Writers Network e-book competition. Competition launch event is on Saturday 24th January – 2.30pm – at Dorchester Library.

Come along to hear Natasha Solomons reading from her work and celebrate the launch of Dorset Writers Network’s e-book competition.  Advance booking essential, telephone Dorchester Library on 01305 224440.

 

 

The Stages of Writing a Book

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writing, the stages of writing a book, writing, writer, author, self publishing, writer, despair, first draft.

Ladies and gentlemen, I am in the process of writing my third book. Three-quarter of the way to be more precise. Which puts me at number 7 on this list. Writing and publishing a book is amazing. The feeling when you have your published book in your hands is like no other. You did it. It is not easy however. It took me years to get my first book published. Mostly due to procrastination. My next one was finished and published within five months. Not bad for someone with acute morning sickness. My third has so far taken seven days to get three-quarters of the way through the first draft. Which is not bad. You can check out the first two here. I will get into how tedious and hard it is writing a book with my list of the stages below, but before we get to the list I will leave you with this amazing quote from Amy Poehler in her amazing book Yes, Please.

“Everyone lies about writing. They lie about how easy it is or how hard it was…No one tells the truth about writing a book…the truth is, writing a book is this: hard and boring and occasionally great but usually not. Even I have lied about writing. I have told people that writing this book has been like brushing away dirt from a fossil. What a load of shit. It has been like hacking away at a freezer with a screwdriver.”

The Stages of Writing a Book

 

  1. Hopefulness.
  2. Excitement.
  3. Despair.
  4. First quarter done. Glimmer of light.
  5. Despair.
  6. Epic melt down. Tell everyone you give up and would burn the book if it wasn’t on your computer.
  7. Resignation, decide that since you started you should finish.
  8. Wonder what breathing in fresh air is like.
  9. Get into the flow of it, it might be okay after all.
  10. Finish first draft. realise it is only the first draft. Cry.
  11. Read first draft. It’s awful. Cry some more.
  12. Despair.
  13. Start editing. Ignore the boredom and the fact there are so many more fun things to do than this.
  14. Realise that it’s not actually that bad.
  15. Finish editing first draft.
  16. Hope
  17. Happiness
  18. The possibility of it all being over soon
  19. Get draft back from proof reader.
  20. Despair
  21. Try to ignore the amount of grammar and spelling mistakes you made.
  22. Final edit, go through all suggestions and edit accordingly.
  23. Finish book: go on week-long champagne binge.
  24. Get cover back from designer. Has spelling error. Cry.
  25. Get cover fixed.
  26. Get book formatted for the different eBook and print versions.
  27. Despair.
  28. Finally see finished book: elation.
  29. Publish book and it starts selling: happiness like no other. Feel huge sense of achievement.
  30. Start writing next book.
  31. Despair.

 

What do you think? Are you a writer? What do you think are the stages of writing a book?

 

 

Charlize Theron Negotiates $10 Million Pay Rise After Sony Hack Revealed Male Co-Star Was Paid More

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Charlize Theron Negotiates $10 Million Pay Rise After Sony Hack Revealed Male Co-Star Was Paid More, equal pay, charlize theron, The Sony Hacks revealed a lot of unpleasant things, and one of them was the unequal pay between men and women, even in Hollywood. One, amazing, ballsy, actress was having none of this however. Charlize Theron negotiated a $10 million pay rise after reading that male co-star Chris Hemsworth was to be paid millions more for The Huntsman. She will now be paid the same as her male co-star. What an inspiration. We need more honesty about pay so more women can get paid what they are worth, and certainly as much as men. The pay gap between men and women is still significantly unequal. 

The hacked emails from Sony showed vast pay gaps between male and female stars. In American Hustle all of the male stars, and the male director, got 9 per cent of back-end profits. The two female stars, Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence only got 7 per cent. This is despite the fact that Jennifer Lawrence was an Oscar-winning actress and that Amy Adams had been nominated four times.

At Sony things were not any better. Out of 6,000 employees, only one of the seventeen who made over  $1 million or more was a woman. Even worse, while Michael De Luca and Hannah Minghella share a job as co-presidents of production at Columbia Pictures, De Luca makes almost  $1 million more than Minghella. 

In the UK the pay disparity between men and women is so great that women effectively work from November 4th until the end of the year for free. There are a number of social and feminist movements trying to make a difference. We must join them and do what we can. Find out how much men doing the same job are being paid and negotiate a better deal.

Boombox iMusic Pillow | Cool Things

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We think this Boombox iMusic Pillow is one of the coolest things ever and a must for music fans. It is a pillow AND a speaker.

Boombox iMusic Pillow

The standard sized pillow incorporates the most melodious secret: 2 hidden speakers and an amp through which you can blast music, radio and podcasts!

Simply connect your device to your pillow via the 3.5mm audio cable and turn up that tune! Available now from www.prezzybox.com for only £27.99 (Jan Sales) or £29.95 usually.

 

 

d.oh Hole in my Sock | Music News

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Band/Artist: d.oh
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Styles: Electronic, Indie
Similar to/RIYL: James Blake, The Weeknd, BANKS, Made In Heights, Chet Faker
CD: Hole In My Sock
Release date: January 15, 2015
Accolades: Performed on Canadian Pavilion at Shanghai World Expo 2010, Toured Cuba

Members/Instruments: Daniel Oh – everything
Production: Daniel Oh

d.oh "Hole in my Sock"

Tracklisting:
Run With Me (feat. Adam Noble-Marks)
Alien Rooster
A carver’s love song
Tear Fall
Mountains of Glory
Only to Kill


Bio:
d.oh is a musical project that was created in 2012 while Daniel Oh was experimenting with music in his bedroom. Between and during classes at the University of Toronto, Daniel has been fervently pursuing his true passion – music. Though his sound has evolved into something that is more electronic, he draws from his influences in rock, blues, jazz, and pop.

 

 

Rosie Fortescue On Trend In An Animal Print Dom Goor Coat

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Animal print will never go out of fashion. Which is why reality TV star Rosie Fortescue has been shielding from this winter’s chill in her Dom Goor leopard print coat. The stunning coat combines rough edge cut shearling in an on-trend leopard print. It’s a real statement piece and perfect to match with a simple pair of jeans in the day or match with a dress for a glamorous evening look. Available at Harvey Nichols.

sie Fortescue in a Dom Goor coat sie Fortescue Dom Goor coat