Hand on heart, I'd say it's probably the most difficult industry I know of to make a living in. Something like only 10% of students who study it at Uni actually manage to find work in it, and as you know, not all of those can then go on to survive in it.
Of the people I know from uni, one is producing commercials and hating it ("I want to do a poo at Paul's house"), another is back from rehab in South Africa and is a production manager, the other is a focus puller who's just discovered that nobody is hiring his DOP anymore (which means none of his crew get hired either). Another friend was a grip, but had to give that up when his wife became pregnant, and they realised that in the previous year, he'd made -£7000.

So, when people tell me that photographers need to move into the moving picture, I have to bite my tongue.

The biggest success I know was a pretty busy second AD he's now a landscape gardener. My sister's been in casualty, a boyzone video, Eastenders and god knows what else - and is now running a pub, my mate's gone from casting director to working on the reception of a travel agents. And, and as you say, they all have degrees in film.

In no particular order and completely random in importance...

- Got a couple of GNVQs
- Realised that drink was just a waste of time and money for me personally...
- Spent way too much time online (still do, obviously ), including saving and spending a fortune on stuff I didn't really need... Learned a lot of stuff too though
- Got addicted to Spotify, still loving it, listening to it right now.
- Both grandmothers died, first time I ever attended a funeral. Realised I don't want any of that God sh1t at mine
- My hatred for my father only grew, will only attend that funeral with pure malicious intent or not at all.
- Gained a nephew. He's a bad sh1te, but that's only because he's so much like his uncle already
- Got and have kept my first real job. It's boring as fcuk, but they essentially pay me for very little and it has flexi time, pension etc.
- Stopped voting. I care about the issues, it's just a shame the local politicians don't unless there's a benefit to them. And I'm not about to start my own party...
- Seen enough sh1t films at the cinema to seriously question going ever again. Probably won't until Batman 3
- Got fat from drinking way too much Coke and the fact that work's so dull I spend a lot of time and money at the vending machines.
- Utterly despaired at the people who get caught up in given media circuses - £X-Factor, Jordan etc
- Absolutely loved Top Gear. Until recently
- Rediscovered my love of video games
- Discovered the joys of comics graphic novels.
- Seen my best mate get addicted to cannabis (he still is).
- Have amassed a small personal fortune that will eventually become a whopper of a house deposit with any luck.
- Loved the fact that that cnut Cowell didn't get his media circus act or song to the Xmas No. 1

More as it comes to me

Ok... let's think...

Felt really good about having re-written the call logging/stock control system at the company I was working at... Y2K? Ha!
Took two or three weeks off, as I was unwell, but was told that I wouldn't get paid as I hadn't handed the sick notes in on time.
Handed in my notice... well, told them that I was leaving and left 30 minutes later... their lawyers still haven't contacted me about the breach of contract that they threatened me with
Moved to Manchester, to live with my girlfriend and her two kids.
Got engaged.
Became a dad.
Lost 3 good friends to cancer in the space of as many months.
Carried my brother in laws coffin.
Got made redundant from my job at a major newspaper company.
Got married.
Helped my wife through losing both of her grandparents, within 3 weeks or so of each other.
Passed my driving test, and bought my first, (and second) cars - both Citroen C3s.
Got a job with IBM.
Carried my dads coffin.

I also became an uncle many times and I'm sure I've forgotten a few things but they're the important ones, (that I can remember)

Reading everyone elses stuff, I'm really humbled. I've done a few things this decade but I wasn't sure how worthy any of it was.

I wanna just take a second to acknowledge all the coffin carrying and deaths in peoples lists. I'm sorry. I attended one funeral this decade and it was my mates Dad. Nobody I really know died and the closest I came to that whole thing was watching every single ep of Six Feet Under. It seems as though I got off lightly.

Your time will come. I think it's a function of age - the longer you live, the more funerals you get to attend, until you ultimately attend your own.

Sorry. That was a bid morbid, albeit true.

The funerals I'm not looking forward to are those of my parents and Best Beloved. Hopefully they won't be for a couple of decades yet.

Mother and both In-Laws already gone. Can't say I recommend the experience.

Not looking forward to being an orphan...............

And on a positive note, so how the hell I forgot it I don't know We paid off our Mortgage

Would this be an appropriate place to ask what we are calling next year? Is it "twenty ten" or "two thousand and ten"?

Personally I favour the latter, but I suspect that, (as usual) I shall be in the minority.

The people mostly seem to say twenty-twelve when talking about the Olympics, so I think your suspicion is right. What are we going the call the decade though? The Teenies?

Strangely I also prefer the latter, and yet I would say "nineteen ninety nine" not "one thousand nine hundred and ninety nine".



Surely it will be the "10s", just like the 1910s are?

People didn't say "nineteen hundred and..." unless in the context of some huge historical year of our lord type situation. So twenty ten is simply the same nomenclature is nineteen ninety etc. Sorry John.

Heather, I know my time will come and it already has for people my age that I know. I guess all mine will come at once

In the last decade few things were noteworthy, but I guess this is my list:

- Entered the world of full-time (often boring and poorly paid) work in 2000 and haven't stopped since.
- Visited the States 3 times and went to France once.
- Had an affair with a married woman (didn't see that one coming)
- Fell in love once and wad repeatedly and savagely heartbroken
- Had 2 major (one life threatening) car accidents
- Fractured my sternum
- Fractured my fibula and had it plated
- Finally sorted the free flat at my work and am currently in the process of moving out of my parents house properly for the first time.

Pretty lame really. Feels like not a lot has happened. That's probably largely down to where I live. Need to go see more of the world. Oh and a woman that sticks around and likes me would definitely be on the list for the next 10 years!

In no particular order:

Finished Uni
Met my wife
Moved to my own flat
Got married
Had a baby
Bought a house
Passed my driving test
Passed Advanced Driving Test
Got alcohol license
Passed loads of MCP's
Worked with loads of professional singers, comedians & actors
Changed career to IT

+ loads more I can't quite remember

Moved in with my girlfriend
Managed to beat some French people in their degrees even though the exams weren't in my native language
Finished my degree (Molecular Biology)
Got my first real job (biochemist), realised pipetting liquid got a bit dull then..
Blagged my way into a software testing job, decided testing wasn't my cup of tea so...
Moved into Big Bad Pharma and discovered a love for playing with HPC and other Big Iron
Bought my first car
Paid my landlady >£50k over the years for a shoe box to live in

Work

Worked for 2 national newspapers (Associated & Graudain) and IPC Media
Worked for a design house, publishing house (Pearsons / Penguin books), the mac company Trams
Started working for a TV company and have been there ever since (Discoveryyyyyyyyyyy)

Personal

Moved in to a house and ended a marriage - been doing up the house ever since.
10th anniversaries for living in my house and using the internet for chatting etc etc (my AOL account is now over 10 years old and made lots of friends through it)
Met a lovely man, settled down and had a huge 'non wedding'
Went to USA serveral times - have now been to NY, Memphis, New Orleans and Florida (and Atlanta airport many times)
Was dumped by lovely man and have since met someone else and been with him nearly 3 years
Lost 2 cats and gained 2 cats
Mum had breast cancer and made full recovery
Dad had prostate cancer and now has bone cancer - he's been very ill but seems to be perking up now