Friday 11th October 2024 - The Final Edition of Play Magazine

Hello all.

Today started off on a much smoother note as I arrived at work right on time. Juli is still feeling a bit under the weather but seems to be back to her usual self, functioning as normal, which I'm truly grateful for. It’s always a relief when a loved one begins to feel better.

When I got to work, there was a stack of tasks from yesterday waiting for me. Since I'd spent most of the previous afternoon building the nursery's storage container, some of my usual duties were left undone. I was ready to dive in.

We began with our Friday school assembly, which always brings a sense of community and reflection. Afterward, I helped set up the room for a music lesson, organizing 10 tables for the music teacher. That little bit of physical work was a welcome break before diving into administrative tasks.

First up was scanning Year 3’s writing exam for submission to an online platform where it gets analysed. I enjoy tasks like this—seeing the hard work of the kids ready for review. I also checked over the attendance register from the Appropriate Body’s final briefing meeting last night, meticulously going through the names and confirming everyone who attended. Attention to detail is always satisfying, especially when it leads to everything running smoothly.

Next, I turned to our school’s social media, gathering some wonderful photos of the children’s work to share with their parents. It’s always a pleasure to craft little posts that highlight what the kids have accomplished—it makes their parents proud and keeps the community engaged.

One small hiccup came when I checked the status of a large computer order I’d placed for the Hub. It hadn’t been processed yet because of a mix-up with the address. Thankfully, a quick chat with the Finance Team cleared that up, and the order is now on its way. I’m looking forward to having new equipment in the office soon!

I spent the afternoon tackling a range of technical tasks. I reached out to a few schools to ensure all their Early Career Teachers were properly registered with us. Later, I had an online video call with another school in our Trust where a governor was having trouble installing Office on their Mac. Through some screen-sharing and guiding the onsite technician, we got everything sorted. Both the governor and the technician were incredibly thankful, and it felt good to help solve the issue.

The iPad screen I’d glued on yesterday was ready to go, and it worked perfectly, which was a relief. I started fixing the fourth iPad—removing the smashed digitizer—but ran into a minor issue where the new screen was jumping around. I couldn’t solve it before the end of the day, so I tidied up and decided to tackle it on Monday.

Arriving home, I was greeted with bittersweet news—my PlayStation magazine, Play, had arrived, but it came with the sad announcement that this was their final issue. After 26 years of subscribing, I’m gutted. There’s something special about reading a magazine—the physical pages, the in-depth game reviews, and the excitement of discovering new releases every month. I will truly miss it. It’s a sign of the times, I suppose—everything moving online, cluttered with ads and algorithms.

I spent an hour enjoying my final issue, reminiscing on the joy it has brought me all these years. Then, I got back to my cleaning routine. Although I’d fallen a bit behind, I made sure to check the guttering to ensure it was clear. Thankfully, everything was fine, and I could tick that off my list for the day.

The evening wound down with some much-needed laughter while watching the latest episode of Taskmaster—the “smell the jar” bit had me in stitches. Afterward, Juli, Fearne, and I sat down to watch Transformers: Dark of the Moon. It was a slow build, and both Juli and Fearne fell asleep, but I stuck it out and enjoyed the action-packed sequences toward the end.

I’m grateful for these quiet moments with family and even for the tiredness that comes from a productive day. Tomorrow’s a free morning, which will give me a chance to catch up on more cleaning tasks and take it slow.