feeling flat

I'm feeling strangely flat tonight. I'm not sure why. I had a great day at work and came home to a perfect night of tv viewing and also had the added delight of finding my level 5 graduate diploma certificate in the post.

I'm quite proud of it! I've taken it out of its "please do not bend" envelope several times to stare at it. I'm even thinking of getting it framed. The institute has commissioned a frame company to produce frames with the institute name on them in gold lettering.

It may sound stupid but I'd like to get it framed. When I graduated from journalism college, I had that certificate framed (OK, probably my parents paid for it!) and I hung it on the wall in my office. These days that certificate is in a box in a filing cabinet at work but then a journalism certificate isn't really relevant to procurement!

This certificate won't be making it onto a wall at work because it's simply not the done thing in the team I work in. All going well, I'll have a certificate for the next level in September, which reminds me, I need to get studying!

The excitement of the certificate arriving was dulled somewhat by the arrival of an email from our landlord saying he needs to put the rent up. It's not a mega increase and wasn't unexpected given recent interest rate decisions, however it does mean that we are now at the very very very high end of the scale (OK, right at the top!) for a place like ours in this area.

Unfortunately, we are going to have to give moving some very serious consideration.

We've been here four years now and I like this place but it does have its faults - such as being like a sauna in summer and an ice box in winter! But a potential house move is something I could well do without right now seeing as how I seem to be back where I was in 2005; with an ill husband and the prospect of losing my job.

So, on that less than cheery note, I'm off to flick through my copy of Carole Blake's From Pitch to Publication, Donald Maass' Writing the Breakout Novel, and Janet Evanovich's How I Write.

I expect things will seem rosier tomorrow. I certainly hope so.