Still busy!

A week since my last blogpost. Was hoping to blog before this but have been too busy. So what have I been up to...?

Wednesday 23rd Sept
Went to prayer meeting in the evening. We prayed with Gordon / Wei Yao's cell group before they started. Two more people showed interest in taking driving lessons :) Then I went to the gym. Late session this was. Arrived at 8:30pm.

Thursday 24th Sept
Last day of work before being off for five days. Settled all paperwork and all tasks up to date. Went to the gym and worked on chest and back.

Friday 25th Sept
Annual leave: Went to Lloyds TSB to set up a business account. Midway through filling in my details the manager asked me if I had some sort of business plan, giving an estimate of annual turnover etc. I said no. I didn't know I needed one to be honest. Main reason being I thought taking a franchise with AA would be more "secure" than starting my own business from scratch etc. However, I left the bank with the manager's card and some brochures. Took Elaam out for a driving lesson in dual control car from Arnold Clark, then went to town. Was SOO hungry near the end of shopping I could have eaten a horse!! =P Had Starbucks coffee break: crepe and a latte, then later takeaway dinner from Asia Style and watched "Pan's Labyrinth". Interesting film and I'm glad I've finally watched it =)

Saturday 26th Sept
Stayed in in the morning reading about business accounts and the Driving Instructor Association. Then got myself a planner/ scheduler thing from WH Smith. Whilst at it I took a look at some bodybuilding magazines for inspiration for my October workout plan. In the afternoon I went out to meet Robert to give him some driving instructor practice. He told me booked his final examination on 29th October. Evening, went out for dinner with family and close buddies. A thanksgiving dinner for passing of my exam. Matt was there too :)

Sunday 27th Sept
Nicholas Tan expressed interest in taking driving lessons with me :) After church I came home to reformat my laptop and set up my new Sat Nav: Tomtom One IQ Routes. Updated maps, new features on it and not to forget the all important speed/ traffic camera alerts ;-)

Monday 28th Sept
Annual leave: Downloaded a few game demos for PS3 including Fifa 10, PES 2010, NBA 2010 etc. Hooked up with oldest schoolfriend, Bobby. Went for lunch at Costco then back up to my place to hang for a few hours. Was good to catch up, updating each other with latest news as well as talk about old times :) In the evening I went to watch "Dorian Gray" at the cinema. Film was horrible. Not like scary as such, but just a very odd plot and I didn't think it ended well. Just not what I expected. Nothing to do with vampires or half-lives or making a deal with the devil etc. And so much sexual content in it. Sigh...!

Tuesday 29th Sept
Annual leave: last day of leave. Had to make use of my time. Morning I spent at home reading up on HMRC self-assessment information, knowing more about what to expect to fill in at the important dates of 31st Jan and 31st Oct of each year etc. (Oh yes, I applied for a business account with Alliance and Leicester yesterday morning. Should hear back within five working days :)) Got my PIN for self-assessment through Government Gateway too. Oh I checked out my previous buddy, Ann's revamped website as well. Remember the woman I trained with back in June/July time? Here's her site, in case you're interested: http://www.annhughesdrivingschool.co.uk/index.html

Got some inspiration from her site about special offers I could give once I'm officially teaching. But then again, I might be bound by some AA rules. We'll see. Obviously, Chinese people will be treated with special care la! ;-) Then I went out for a drive to visit some DSA driving test centres with my new Sat Nav. Went to the one furthest away - Dumbarton. What a drive! I doubt I'd be teaching at or around that area anyway, but have it in my Tomtom anyway. The four main Glasgow DSA test centres are: Baillieston (east), Springburn (east), Anniesland (west) and Shieldhall (south). I think these test centres should keep me busy enough :) I went to the gym afterwards. Gym was really busy today for some strange reason. The cardio suite was roasting as well. Air con must have been off or something. I had never been so relieved to step into the strength suite! Seeing it being so busy made me consider joining another gym. Maybe paying £5 more each month to get improved quality and quantity of facilities. Hmm...

Things yet to be done:

Keep all receipts for purchases (on-going)
Sort out bank accounts (halfway)
Open business accounts (halfway)
Join D.I.A. (awaiting application)
Read up on Pass Plus
Read up on licensing laws (foreign / provisional / UK)
Learn test routes (on-going)
Inform HMRC of self employment

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