Move a muscle and you're nicked...

Can't believe it. Just got 3 points and £60 fine, for using my phone in the car, whilst parked.

The world has gone mad.

The engine was on, I left it running as it was cold this morning, but I had the handbrake on and was going nowhere.

Most frustratingly, the police man was the most aggressive man I've met in a long time - you'd have thought I'd just shot someone in front of him. I could sense his delight at nailing me, for doing, quite frankly, nothing. Of course he was all sweetness and light as soon as he had my signature on the charge slip.

So, apparently, the law has gone to even greater lengths to keep our minds on the driving and our hands on the wheel. I thought my Busy Girl friends should benefit from my lesson - here's the full list of what will get you the same fate...

Apparently it's now illegal to:

• Hold a mobile phone while driving, this includes cradling the phone on your shoulder, or holding it by any other means.
• Hold a mobile phone any time the car's engine is switched on, even if the car is stationary, whether to make or take calls, send text messages, use Google Maps etc, or any other function.
• Hold a mobile phone while supervising a learner driver. Cause or permit anyone else to use a handheld mobile phone while driving.
• Or doing anything that suggests you wouldn't be in total control of your car - which can mean eating, smoking or finding mints in your pocket...

... humph ...

Eva x

should the clocks go back?

Personally I was delighted this morning to wake to daylight - in my book, there's nothing worse than waking up in the dark, aka dead of the night.

But apparently there's big debate on whether we should turn the clocks back or simply keep the time as it, all year. I guess there's the question of safety for people walking home from school and work in the dark to consider, so maybe if I didn't have the comfort of my car, I'd have a different opinion on the dark afternoons.

Am totally delighted that it's finally cold though - I simply love this time of year, when we can wrap up warm in boots and tights and cuddly jumpers.

I bought a fabulous cape from (can you believe it) Tesco last week - it was only £15.00 and is lovely! It's not been off my back since. The button fell straight off so I've fastened it with a vintage brooch - fabulous, love it.

Not sure Himself gets it... he says I look like Bat Man. Bless him.

Have a great day Busy Girl - get your boots and tights on and wrap up warm and keep safe in the dark tonight!

Eva (http://www.busygirlsguide.co.uk/) The Busy Girls Guide to Life xxx

Imagine a world without animals

Late home the other night, I passed a beautiful, huge fox loitering on the A34. Then I was stopped dead in my tracks when a stunning foot high owl flew past me and landed on the traffic lights. It was amazing, but just didn't seem quite right - two wild creatures living on a dual carriageway lit with orange-sulphur street lights.

Charity, recycling and the environment are constantly forced upon us, every day, pushing us to substitute our already paid taxes with additional funds to support where the government doesn't. Most of have our heart strings tweaked and support because we know there are people and places less fortunate than ourselves.

But what about the animals? The other beings that share our planet with us?

As a real animal lover, I'm delighted the media have finally started to focus on the welfare of animals instead of overdoing stories on rubbish and recycling. Don't get me wrong, we need to recycle and stop the excessive waste, but we all know that the proposed environmental taxes are doing the government's pocket a great deal of good.

So, finally, it seems we're focussing on the animals. Today, GMTV highlighted the need for the rehabilitation of ex-racing greyhounds, how we should be saving the countryside and helping to make kids more aware of nature around them. Not to mention the possibility of complete extinction for the wild and wonderful Tigers, Orangutans and Panthers.

Imagine a world without animals....

I don't know about you, but I don't want my grandchildren or great grandchildren to suffer that fate. I'm off to find out how to help.

Have a good day Busy Girls... love Eva xx

The price of living in paradise

While we were shouting at the TV all weekend, willing our boys to win the World Cup Rugby and later, the Grand Prix (don't say it was just me?), residents of one of the most luxurious and coveted areas in the whole world were fleeing their burning homes.

If you haven't heard yet, Malibu has been on fire all weekend as a result of naturally occuring fires. And there we are, always moaning about the British weather, and I'm sure I'm not the only one who has discussed running off to sunnier climes. But it seems even one of the most fabulous places in the world has its problems.

Speaking of LA, how amazingly fantastical was the camera work on the new MTV programme Living on the Edge?! I watched the apparently 'real-life' docu-soap the other day and it was quite incredible.

It seems I don't have to think about moving; according to their programme I already live in LA! The camera panned around Alderley, showing a beautiful harbour with expensive yachts - Alderley Edge doesn't even have a river let alone a sea front! I'd love to get my hands on some of the MTV rose-tinted glasses...

Hope you have a good day in paradise Busy Girl

Speak soon, love Eva xx

stop putting yourself down!

"Oh, I'm just a mum", "I just work in an office, nothing special", "I have a rubbish job, I hate it"

I was at a ladies networking event (social not business) last night and I couldn't believe how people were describing themselves.

Us girls have got issues. The more women I meet, the more I see the general lack of self confidence.

Americans are known for being brash, bold and confident to the point of arrogance, but us British girls, we just don't seem to be able to blow our own trumpets - we're always apologising for ourselves and putting ourselves down.

We just hate to sound 'full of ourselves' so we attempt to put ourselves down before we start.

I mentioned what I felt to Lucy at The Busy Girls Guide last night and she promised to put something on the Guide about it tomorrow - as a lifestyle coach, she works with people on their confidence all the time, so I knew she'd have a solution! I'll post the link here later today...

So, Busy Girl, if this sounds like something you'd do, today I want you to join me in a little confidence practice - if you meet someone new today, try telling them what you do without making it sound dull, boring or unimportant - you are important and much more worthy than you make out!

Have a great day, and a lovely weekend and I'll catch you next week...

Eva xxx

Always an exception to the rule...

I was on way home from the Midlands last night, rushing to get back to Manchester for an evening meeting. I stopped at a garage on the dual carriageway to get some petrol. Normally, I throw my cash card into my bag, so when I couldn't find it at first I knew I'd eventually see it tucked into a dark corner of my 'abyss' bag...

So, I put a bit of petrol in and ran into the garage.

Scrabble, scrabble... no card. Right, erm 'just a sec!', frantic scrabble... no card, no cheque book, no pin number for my credit card. No way to pay.

Called the bank, told them that I had lost my card, the pin number for my other card hadn't arrived (thanks, Royal Mail), I had petrol in my car and no way to pay, "we can order you a new pin number, it will take 4 working days"... it was all I could do to not swear at the man when I calmly told him that waiting in the garage for 4 days was NOT an option.

"There's nothing we can do", he said. "Thanks for being utterly useless" I spluttered.

Now, when I get annoyed, I go very calm. It's an odd thing, I kind of slow down, lower my voice and silently smoulder. Where was my card? Why now? What about the meeting? What do I do?!?

"I'll pay, just send me a cheque", the man behind the counter said.

God bless that man. He paid cash out of his pocket, refused my contact details, said to send him a cheque and "drive safely, and don't rush, you want to get to your meeting in one piece".

A couple of weeks ago I blogged about Britain's rudeness - I've just had a very worthwhile lesson - there's Always an exception to the rule...

Eva xx

The Busy Girls Guide http://www.busygirlsguide.co.uk/ - Manchester & Cheshire

Living on The Edge - MTV goes Cheshire set

OMIGOODNESS...

Hoovering the kitchen (as Busy Girls do on their only days off) I was passively listening to some tunes on MTV when I heard the words 'Alderley Edge' in an advert.

I rushed through to the lounge, nearly killing myself by catching my enormous slippers (don't) on the lead and there it was, shots of little Alderley Edge, with golden camera-added glitzy glaze... apparently they're doing an OC style reality show on Alderley Edge, starting tomorrow on MTV.

Everyone has probably heard about this new programme apart from me (I'm a Busy Girl, too Busy to watch TV) but, my goodness... whatever will they think of next?

You see, we live between Wilmslow and Alderley Edge, in the MTV-nicknamed 'LA of the UK'. I'd love to know where they got that phrase from - there is money in Cheshire - the number of Range Rover Sports, DB9s, Ferraris and Lambo's are proof of that, but LA Alderley Edge ain't!

I am SO watching this programme tomorrow - sad or not - because I want to see how much 'creative camera-work' has gone into making Alderley look and feel like a UK LA...

I'm off to dance round the hoover to some more tunes... do let me know what you think of MTV's Living on the Edge

Eva xx

The Busy Girls Guide http://www.busygirlsguide.co.uk/ - the ultimate lifestyle guide for Busy Girls - Manchester, Cheshire & Liverpool

Busy Girl Goes Training - shock!

Argh.

Went training with my new PT yesterday (Mike Bach from Body Planner - he's on www.busygirlsguide.co.uk). You see, he's joined The Busy Girls Guide as their new Personal Trainer & fitness advisor, which means he's had to pass their service and quality tests, so that must mean he's good.

And I thought that training with him would be fun. So I booked a session with him.

Fun? I conveniently forgot that I'd have to put some effort in - I had this idealistic image of myself trotting around the park in Alderley Edge, with a big smile on my face as I took in the beautiful surroundings, chatting to Mike whilst stretching out on the bench and generally looking quite glamorous in my matching Nike sportswear.

Reality check needed, Busy Girl.

I don't have matching Nike sportswear - I have old trackie bottoms and odd tshirts and I haven't had new trainers for 11 years.

Sweating, puffing, panting, groaning and moaning, wet feet, wet trainers, wet legs.

Don't get me wrong, Alderley is beautiful at 9am on a crisp, dewey morning - but I'm not.

I'm out of shape. I need help. Looking back, it was probably a good idea to find this embarassing fact out now.

So, I invite you to follow my progress Busy Girl - I'll be blogging about my Personal Training sessions every week, giving you the highs and lows. I invite you to come training with me from your computer screen, let me do the work and you can feel my pain!

Am aching now! Have a wonderful weekend Busy Girls and catch you next week...

Eva xx

www.busygirlsguide.co.uk - expert lifestyle guide for Busy Girls - Manchester & Cheshire

Get a perfect foundation base - quickly!

I was trotting around town in my lunch hour yesterday, when I bumped into a friend I haven't seen for a good couple of months,"Wow! You look great, your skin looks really good..." she said.

"What? I don't think so, I've got loads of spots" I replied, in my usual 'put myself down when someone tries to complement me' style.

But I knew why she said it.

You see, my skin isn't great - it's fine from my forehead to my cheeks, but I still get spots on my chin (and I'm nearly 30 - how unfair is that!?). So I spend ages willing them away and wondering whether it's a) my concealer making them worse b) the fact I slept in my makeup again c) my face wash or d) the Pill. Still haven't found a solution, so it's probably e) bad luck.

But, I have found a temporary answer and it's simple. Camouflage.

Not slap-it-on pollyfilla-style caked-on concealer, but, light foundation applied with a professional make-up brush. Not only does this brush cover my skin in this incredible 'no spots to be seen' sheen, but it is SO quick to apply.

Note for this morning - if you have an issue with uneven application, bite the bullet and shell out £25 (ouch) for a MAC Duo Fibre Brush.

It works!

Have a great day Busy Girls, I'm off to apply my makeup - oh, don't forget to clean the brush every week with makeup wipes.

Love Eva xx

Facebook, Google & the Nation's nosiness...

We're a nosey bunch aren't we?

Every time someone new comes onto my friends page on Facebook, I just can't help myself but have a quick nose over their pics - to see what they look like now, what their partners are like and if I've not seen them for a while, whether they are married or not.

What on earth is wrong with me? I couldn't for a minute believe that it's just me that does this. So, I did a bit of a test - I delved into how Himself uses Facebook and then did a quick skirt of the male friends I have on there, to see what action was happening.

Well, funny discoveries, indeed. The boys all seem to have far more pictures of themselves - in fact one of them has a mighty 100 images of his own face, on his own profile. And as for Himself, well he came back with tales of who was living where, doing what and looked out of shape or otherwise.

So, it's not just me it seems - the boys are equally addicted to showing off, comparing and contrasting.

My main concern is that when I see someone doing well, looking happily married or engaged, or travelling the world, that I automatically, instantly and instinctively feel happy for them. I can't bear the thought of being in 'virtual' competition with someone I hadn't even thought about in years.

Just a thought...

Have a great day Busy Girls and I'll see you tomorrow

Eva xx
The Busy Girls Guide - www.busygirlsguide.co.uk
What's on around Manchester & Cheshire www.busygirlsguide.co.uk/calendar.asp

Techno phobe - do girls get gadgets?

Morning Busy Girls - I'm back. I hate to say it, but a cold got the better of me. I know that sounds feeble, but it was one hell of a cold, it really took me out - I have a pleasant cough left now - winter is definitely here!

So, while I stocked up on echniacea and cough medicine this weekend, Himself was out purchasing another new piece of technology - a 50" Plasma TV.

I am now sat in front of Lorraine Kelly's 2ft wide head, in our relatively small lounge. I practically have to turn my head left and right to read anything that comes on screen and when he plays Play Station, it's like we're actually in the battle scene, being shot at!

The surround sound is so realistic, I thought I had a cricket on my shoulder last night when watching The Blue Planet.

Don't get me wrong; it's a beauty, it's shiny, stylish and very sexy (for a TV) but I'm not THAT exctied about it, not as excited as Himself anyway. I also have my gadgets; my lovely camera, my Blackberry and my laptop, but they're all still pretty functional - they do the job.

Himself, however, is in love with the Play Station, workships the 50" Plasma and lovingly puts his laptop to bed in a special cover every night.

Maybe if I could play computer games, or show DVDs with surround sound, I'd get worshipped too...

Now, that's a thought....

Eva xx
The Busy Girls Guide to Manchester & Cheshire www.busygirlsguide.co.uk

What's on in Manchester & Cheshire? See The Busy Girls Calender www.busygirlsguide.co.uk/calendar.asp

fashion weekend manchester - our diary, review & backstage gossip

Dear Busy Girls

You've got me today, Lucy, as poor Eva is feeling a little under-the-weather - there's something going round, isn't there? She'll be back by next week, bless her...

As it's the 'talk of the town' I thought I'd report back on Fashion Weekend Manchester, which kicked off last night with their VIP launch and fashion shows.

6pm












Arrived at Urbis, the home of Fashion Weekend Manchester with Nikki, I felt slightly over dressed as going to The MEN Property Awards afterwards but I didn't need to worry - talk about make an effort! Everyone was dressed to impress - like really dressed up -I've never seen Manchester so turned out!

After a welcome glass of pink champagne, we were escorted into the main shopping area - rows and rows of clothes at half price to 70% off! We were in our element for about 20 minutes, picking up some fab buys at really great prices.

The best bits we found were - Blush B-Lush Bags, Funky Ben De Lisi pieces starting from £40.00, D&G signature coats at £120.00, a bit of Vivienne Westwood (including some fab biker boots), loads of Van Der Lande, Gharani Strok (yes, we nearly died), fun Manchester brand Me & Yu and loads more.

Spotted Sara Cox picking up a few bargains - mostly a-line t-shirt dresses - lovely lady that she is...

7pm











Dashed upstairs in the funky Urbis lift, with Sarah Dunne from Hollyoaks and the cute little thing who plays 'Nancy', and a couple of the Emmerdale girls to find our place at the catwalk show.

There was a split rumour about who styled the show - some said it was the lovely Karen Jones Russell, some Rose (ex. Vivienne Westwood). Either way, it was a lovely show, with Boss Models strutting their stuff... it was actually VERY wearable, and not at all 'couture crazy' which surprised us.

There also seems to be a lean towards quite androgenous models - no 'girly gorgeousness' to be seen...

So, all in all - the show was packed full of wearable AW07/08 gorgeousness, floors 2 and 3 are packed full of clothes, bags, shoes and accessories that, quite frankly, you need your credit card ready for (there's no way you'll be able to resist buying something!)... it's worth a look definitely.

We went on the first night, and within half an hour, it was packed - we were saying that Saturday will be manic, so get your flat boots on, and prepare for a bit of mayhem - rails may be flying by lunchtime, so try to get there ontime...

email us experts@busygirlsguide.co.uk for the timetable for the rest of the weekend... have fun Busy Girls and let us know if you have any questions - we're always here to help!

Love Lucy x www.busygirlsguide.co.uk - The expert lifestyle guide for Busy Girls - Manchester & Cheshire

Stressed huh? Well, perhaps a little bit...

Apparently half of Britain are stressed - having time off work to 'recover'. I'm not surprised to be honest, it's a pretty stressful place to be at the moment - there's such a drive for materialistic gain.

This is so evident in the media where everyone seems to think you've only made it if you have the latest Chloe Bag or read the right magazines and been to the right parties.

I guess it's all about money, really.

As a bona-fide Busy Girl, my life often seems too full to be consumed by consumerism - I just don't have time to flick through magazines to find out which tote I should have my eye on, or which shoes I should be coveting. But, I do believe that it's that level of 'need' for 'things' that has us working like crazy, desperate to make another buck.

So, stress. We all have it to some degree, in our 'want it all, need it all' generation - we want the promotion, we want the family, the happy relationship, the nice meals-out, the lovely clothes, the 'happy life'... we want it all - so we strive to get it all.

No wonder we're stressed...

I'm off to make the most of my day, to forget which bag Grazia Magazine tells me I should have and to enjoy meeting some new faces, hear new stories and absorb real life - the people themselves.

Have a good one Busy Girl and if you do feel stressed, I'm a good listener!

Eva xx

PS: There's an article on The Busy Girls Guide about how to relieve stress - do have a peek http://www.busygirlsguide.co.uk/article.asp?id=42

how rude? Is Britain becoming worse?

That's it.

I've had enough of people beeping me because I'm a second too slow taking off at the lights.

I've had enough of the girl at the local shop who can't even be bothered to look at me when she serves me, let alone smile or say thank you.

I've had enough of the waiters who throw evils at me because I've not added a tip to the credit card slip - especially when I was intending on giving them some change instead.

I've had enough of pressing 75 different buttons to get through to the right person at the phone company, only to be cut off after 10 minutes of continual dialling tone - and they say they're in communications?!

I've had enough of watching chavs on tv getting away with murder, literally, meanwhile we're all worshipping chav-celebrities, who 'forget' to wear knickers to get in the press.

I've had enough of moaning about it all... do you think it will get worse or will it ever stop?

Rant over. Got it off my chest. I'm too busy for all this.

Love Eva xx

breakfast battle...

Unless I plan it, or have something I fancy ready to eat, I just can't help but let breakfast slip through my fingers.

I know it's the most important meal of the day. I know my metabolism will slow down if I don't eat breakfast and I know my body will move into starvation mode and stop breaking down the fat.

But when you're busy you really can forget to have breakfast, can't you?

But, it's another week, and being a fan of 'resolutions' I decided to put another 'plan' into action (if you've read this blog before, you'll know self-improvement is my religion). So this morning I decided to make an effort to eat something pretty much as soon as I got up. I actually went out last night and bought some Dorset Cereals porridge (talk about commitment to a plan) - the sad thing is, I looked forward to tasting it this morning!

It was actually very nice (I got the nutty version) and I know I'll be full up 'til lunch - the only thing is I was muttering disapproval through the whole process - it's hardly a quick option, it takes a lot of milk and a look of cooking.

My goody-two-shoes side of my brain tells me to shut up, and that in reality, it's only 10 minutes, so I should make an effort to queeze the time out of my schedule to fit it in.

So, a new week a new resolution, let's see if I can keep it up - hope you've had your Shreddies or your Weetabix this morning! Have a great day Busy Girl...

Love Eva x

http://www.busygirlsguide.co.uk/ The Lifestyle Guide to Manchester & Cheshire for Busy Girls