Only one other person was given a place in the PD and so the rest of my beloved work friends are saddled with transcription from home, although there is a Private Diary waiting list, one or two opportunities to go to Singapore or to retrain as an editor. I don't think anyone's going to be living in a cardboard box but I do realise quite how lucky I am (may rethink this comment if I only end up working three days in April...term doesn't start 'til the 17th. Eek) as I'm in, I have a job and have been promised to be allocated a fair share of the available work, however much or little there may be of it.

This week so far has been utterly grim. We are required to be at the Old Bailey but not in court, although I went into Court 16 yesterday to see the verdicts for this case as it was a trial my friend Charlotte's judge conducted and I spent some time on it too.

I also went into court just before the end of lunch today to see my usher but it is just so heartbreaking that instead of a stenographer at the desk there is this fucking giant red clock which never seems to stop recording anything.

Anyway, I managed myself to get a mention in the media on Saturday and, completely separately but equally excitingly, we have had a film director contact us looking for stenographer extras to appear in an actual film that will be at *gasp* actual cinemas! So a little Google research has revealed that his films include In Bruges, the Iron Lady and Mr Bean's Holiday! Amaaaaazing. If they use me I might explode with excitement. And especially so if Johnny Depp happens to be in the production and I manage to trick him into marrying me!

Oh yeah, but back to reality. We have been clearing out the Old Bailey office and taking home our belongings, adopting/giving to charity shop/throwing away (dependent on level of decrepitness) boxes and boxes of shoes. Yesterday I satisfyingly threw away a jar of coffee I found which expired in 2007. Lizzy has been spending the days so far this week sitting on the sofa and drinking brandy, but she has worked at the Bailey for 11 years and loves it possibly more than I do. There is very real grief and bereavement going on but my (alumni) work friend Annie put it pretty well today: there is life after the Old Bailey. It's just I always wanted my departure from it to be on my own terms.

So tomorrow we have a party that my company puts on yearly for all its clients and judges and this time it's at the National Portrait Gallery. Lucian Freud plus champagne, yay! On Friday it's booting out day and we're having an Old Bailey party in a room in a bar we've hired out and EVERYONE is invited. And I'm going to try not to get trashed off my face. Then on Sunday I'm going to Rome with Katie and Reeta. We're going for four nights and I want to clear my head, enjoy my first time in Italy and just savour every second of it.

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