A Perfect Day

Add comment August 3rd, 2008

Thanks Mel

I’ve just come back from the really, really nice hen weekend of Melanie, one of my best friends from University.

I met Mel in September 1997, when we signed up to do the same European Studies and Modern Languages degree at Manchester (see dodgy 1997 pic above of us in our full nineteen year old glory )

In the first year, we also lived in the same halls, on the 17th floor of an absolute monstrosity called the ‘OP Tower’. I will never forget the almost NIGHTLY fire alarms that required me descending seventeen flights of stairs in my nightie – almost always because some bloke (and it usually was a bloke) had burnt his toast in his less than hygenic kitchen!!!!

But setting aside the dodgy halls of residence, I have really fond memories of my time at Manchester and Mel and other good friends, Jess, Abi, Anna Marie (and others to numerous to mention here) are the main reason for that. Over the weekend I felt really blessed that eleven years on I still have such good mates in my life – especially over the past horrendous fourteen months when it was a great comfort to be around people who don’t give a stuff about politics or any of the legal crap I’ve had to deal with.

Mel’s getting married in August so over the weekend twenty-three extremely loud “hens” rampaged our way around Chester to celebrate the end of Mel’s “freedom” and the start of her wedded bliss.

Thank you so much again for inviting me, Mel.

xxx

Add comment June 22nd, 2008

Leaflets, Leaflets, Leaflets!

Have enjoyed a busy bank holiday weekend where – amongst other activities – I spent a few hours helping colleagues from the Leyton and Wanstead Labour party do some leafletting in Cann Hall ward and also helped stuff our ‘All Members‘ newsletter into envelopes to be sent out to our 600+ local party members.

I am always really keen to help Labour colleagues work in Cann Hall ward.

Like Leyton, before I was elected last year, Cann Hall has no Labour councillors, which is quite mad considering that the people there absolutely love Harry Cohen, Leyton and Wanstead’s popular local Labour MP.

Labour did really well in Cann Hall in the local elections last year and the local Labour party is hoping that with sustained work over the next couple of years we will take all three council seats in 2010.

Add comment August 28th, 2007

The Best MP’s office in the Whole Wide World (Ctd!)

Those who you who’ve been reading stories on this site for a while, will remember that around this time last year I posted this little story about the wonderful staff who work in the office of my wonderful Member of Parliament Harry Cohen.

Well, Harry is still my MP and and his staff are still absolutely wonderful.

There have been a few staff changes to Harry’s office since last year, so I thought I would let Leyton ward residents put some faces to the new names they are now talking to whenever they call or write to Harry.

Pictured above (from left to right) are ‘Tulip’ Siddiq, who books appointments for Harry’s surgeries and assists with his work with Leyton and Wanstead’s South Asian Community; next to Tulip is the gorgeous Elijah Mariam, Harry’s stalwart case worker and radical political thinker ; and to Elijah’s right, Jo Wilson, who replaced the superb Zoe Williams, as Harry’s researcher. As many of you will know, Zoe now works as Campaigns Officer for Democratic Left Pressure Group Compass (upon whose Management Committee I have sat on for the last two years).

Tulip, Elijah and Jo are all really, really lovely and work really hard for the residents of Leyton ward, as well as the whole of the Leyton and Wanstead parliamentary constituency, on Harry’s behalf.

This photo is from the lunch I took them out to last week, to thank them again for yet another year of fantastic support I’ve received from them and Harry, as I’ve tried to go about my work as a new Leyton ward councillor.

I am pleased to say that it has now been confirmed that Harry has been unanimously selected by the Leyton and Wanstead Constituency Labour Party to stand for us again as our parliamentary candidate at the next General Election.

I will be proud to continue working with and campaigning for Harry, alongside Tulip, Jo and Elijah.

Like last year, you are still the Best MP’s Office in the Whole Wide World

To make a surgery appointment with Harry Cohen MP call 020 7219 6376 or write to him at the House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA

1 comment June 10th, 2007

Sofia’s First Communion

I’ve just returned home from a lovely weekend in Germany, celebrating my beautiful God Daughter Sofia’s (pictured above, and with me in the ‘about me’ section of this website’s) first communion.

It was a really lovely ceremony and I felt quite emotional as I thought about the day I made my own first communion, now twenty years ago.

Anyway, I promised Sofia I would post this photo of us, taken after the church service, to the website.

Gut gemacht, meine Liebe! Ich bin total stolz auf dich!

xxx

4 comments April 15th, 2007