But, mindful of that old adage “pick your attitude”, I decided to compile a list of quick fix ways to make September – and the summer’s departure – a time you relish rather than resent.

Invest in practical but pretty pieces

Who wants to arrive at work wet, cold and bedraggled? Absolutely nobody, which is why investing in clothing that will keep you warm and dry is a must. But if you are going to have to don practical clothing then keep it pretty – and the brighter the better. I genuinely look forward to a downpour; it’s an excuse to put on my bright yellow waterproof mac which always attracts admirers. The same is true of my ankle wellington boots which are black (practical) but with a cute gold bow (pretty). My walk to the work is bearable and I arrive warm, dry and not resembling a drowned rat.

Indulge in guilt free duvet days

One of the greatest joys of a wet weekend is feeling a total lack of guilt about spending the day tucked up in bed, chocolate on lap, tea in hand and Come Dine With Me on loop.  Of course this can be done any time of year, but during the summer it comes with a sense of panic about wasting the last days of summer. In Autumn/Winter you can lounge in your pajamas all day long without an ounce of guilt. Bliss.

Which leads us neatly on to…

Bask in the glow of great TV

Those clever telly people know that dark, drizzly nights mean a captive audience of couch potatoes who cant face leaving the lounge for longer than it takes to grab a second glass of wine.  Which means the return of some of televisions best. We’re particularly looking forward to a dose of scandal amid the scullery maids when Downton Abbey returns on SEptember 18th, a fix of bitchiness and bling with Essex’s finest when TOWIE airs at the end of September and with X-factor back in its regular slot and keeping us company until Christmas the prospect of a night in with the remote doesn’t seem quite so gloomy.

Leave your desk every day

There is nothing more soul destroying than leaving home in the morning to be met by darkness and then departing the office at the end of the day to find the sun has departed. If you have followed tip 1 then you will be fully kitted out to leave the office whatever the weather, now all you need is somewhere to escape too and maybe some friends to join you!  Find yourself a little haven which will ensure you escape the office and get some daylight – it could be a local deli that serves a mean chilli con carne or a book shop with a café inside – we promise you will feel all the better for it

Celebrate the end of bikini tyranny

Farewell to a semi naked Kate Moss jumping into the Med. Ta-ra to the voluptuous Kelly Brook bouncing down a Barbadian beach. And so long to bikini clad Halle Berry driving us to the brink of tears with her perfect abs. You will absolutely not be missed. Hoorah we cheer, lifting our Haagen Daazs tubs to the sky, for September marks an end of the daily slideshow of celebrities and their heavenly figures and with it our desperate attempts to sculpt the perfect bikini body. And we have a good 8 months until the cycle starts again; 8 months in which to embark on a gentle fitness programme with no pressure and a realistic amount of time to achieve results.  Or 8 months we can spend in blissful awareness we will be covered up in chunky knits, full-length macs and slankets for the foreseeable future. Your choice!

Finally…

Embark on one final resolution

With just over 3 months until Christmas, now is the time to re-visit that crumpled and oft-ignored New Year resolution list and pick just one achievable goal to accomplish before Christmas. Whether it be growing your nails, learning French or putting more money aside – with 14 weeks to go you have enough time to make great strides towards a goal you may otherwise have ignored and will be able to give yourself a bit pat on the back come Christmas.

Making sausage sandwiches for a crowd of hungover friends (always on soft white bread with salted butter), the evening sunlight on the wall of a friend’s kitchen, my favourite dessert from Cafe Pacifico in Covent Garden – deep fried flour tortilla wedges covered in honey, cinnamon and vanilla ice cream, some solace from the Central London heat in the gardens at the British Museum, the view from the train to my spiritual home, Devon.

The object of my affections was not a greasy haired, pot smoking Philosophy student…rather a glamorous film star with whom I still hold an unhealthy infatuation. May I introduce to you, my first love, the exquisite Miss Elizabeth Taylor.

One of my all time favourite plays, A Streetcar Named Desire, was masterfully adapted to the screen in 1966 and starred Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton as the warring George and Martha in a heartbreaking tale of the ravaging effects of age, ego, alcohol and love on two human beings.

Of course Elizabeth and Richard acted out an even more tragic love story of their own off screen, and that fascinating story is being examined in all its gory detail in a book out this month: Furious Love by authors Sam Kashner and Nancy Schoenberger. I cannot wait to get my hands on a copy and pore over the details of the ultimate Hollywood coupling. Forget about Brangelina or TomKat, these two had more passion, glamour and intrigue in their sparring little fists!

Below, my favourite Liz picture (also featuring the legend that is David Bowie)

Dove 2 in 1 Daily Therapy left my hair soft, shiny, clean and smelling completely fragrant. It didn’t compromise by containing the properties of shampoo but not conditioner, or vice versa. I may not use this every day, although this is probably more habit than anything else, but it is great for the gym (taking up half the space and half the time in the shower) and I would have no qualms in using this as an everyday part of my grooming routine. Also it is ludicrously cheap at £2.50 – leaving plenty of money to splash out on a deep conditioning treatment for special occasions.

I eat out as much as I can, whether it be at a pub, restaurant, canape fuelled party or at the homes of my generous friends. It is one of my great pleasures – I’d far rather sit whiling away an evening over a 3 course meal than at a busy bar or club. But when I made the decision to enter journalism and leave my well paid third sector job I also knew I’d be waving goodbye to the regular habit of dining out.

So it is that I now often find myself heading home and deciding between two options that anyone eating alone must deal with – do I slob it out or step up?

My flatmates often eat late and regularly cook pre-packaged meals from M&S and Sainsburys and as I try not to eat past 8 and don’t especially like pre-prepared food I often opt out of eating together. But I am so drawn to the idea of a lazy supper taken straight from the freezer (last night I ate wedges, scampi and peas!) despite the fact I love to cook.

It just feels like cooking anything fancy, and the inevitable pile of washing up it creates, is so much effort when its just me eating. I know I should spoil myself, just as I would a friend or boyfriend, but sometimes I cannot be arsed!

As such I do have a series of recipes I have perfected which involve just one dish, one pan and one plate. The picture above is of a particular favourite, bulgur wheat topped with roasted tomatoes, olive oil, griled chicken and feta. I ate it a few nights ago, as the evening sun streamed through my kitchen window and I enjoyed a well earned glass of chilled white wine, and remembered that giving myself a bit of TLC is no bad thing!

I mainly learn through scouring blogs, Flickr, websites and FFFFOUND and bookmarking the images which appeal to me before studying them for hours to work out why I love them. For now I am happy to learn as I go, snapping pictures of almost every meal I consume. Here are a few of my favourites from my collection, more to come as I go.

Prada wallet – from back in the day when I earned proper money (but wasn’t happy – the self inflicted pay drop was worth it, but more on that later). Every girl needs a bit of Prada in her life and I snapped this up for a steal on eBay.

Clean perfume (in Shower Fresh) – I read that this was the perfume Jennifer Aniston wears, and have it from multiple sources that she smells divine. This perfume is as it is named, it smells exactly like you just stepped out of a shower at a five star hotel; clearn, fresh and light.

Burberry sunglasses – in design these are similar to the classic Raybarn shape, with rims in a dark brown tortoishell.

Atrixo handcream – I adore the scent of this cheap, effective moisturiser and keep it in my handbag at all times to enrich my dried out hands.

Scarf -  I always carry a scarf in my bag as I often end up staying late at work or going to parties which means I get caught walking home late at night. This one is from the Liberty sale, a soft cashmere number with white tips.

Red and pink polka dot mini carry case – from my beloved Superdrug (cheap and cheerful cosmetics for the cash strapped who want a shopping spree of sorts).

Book – currently J.D.Salinger’s awesome Franny and Zooey, which I highly recommend.

Liberty vouchers – gift from my old employer, I like to know I have £100 to spend at my favourite shop in London if the mood grabs me!

Finally the hilariously OTT bag I am currently sporting, bought at a work sale for £1.  As it has not tags I am not sure if it was shockingly cheap or really expensive, either way I love the heavy gold strap and the camp take on patriotism.

Misc: Umbrella, chewing gum, hairbrush, lip gloss and Nurofen – all vital parts of my everyday kit.

As someone who was once in the unenviable position of wanting to break into print media I do try my best to offer opportunities where I can. But I also feel that to offer people work experience with us if I know they are going to spend 90% of their time filing magazines, getting breakfast, transcribing and doing mailouts, is just not on.

Many of us started at the bottom of the ladder, making tea and sorting the post and acting as if we were over the moon to be doing so, yet I believe we do have a responsibility as an industry to make sure those on work experience get some real experience of life at a magazine.  That might be by spending time on shoots, shadowing a journalist or sitting with the pictures team as they create a new page – however we do it, I now have a policy of not taking people on work experience unless I know we can offer some element of involvement in the creation of the magazine, however minor that may be.

Work experience can be a great way in, I was lucky enough to get my job after doing two week’s w/exp where I work currently. I do make a note of people who stand out, I will share my contacts so they can secure their next place and I may ask them to cover for me when I go away, so there’s no denying its a good way in.

I thought it might be useful to share some of the things I have learned from the applications I see every day, to share the good, bad and ugly in the hope it might give someone out there a chance to get into the industry.

1) Do your research – look at the website of the magazine/newspaper you want to work at as there will probably be instructions for how to apply. If not then the best route is to email the Editorial Assistant whose details will be on the masthead of the publication (generally at the top). I would suggest you email rather than call, Editorial Assistants get a LOT of phone calls and if they are efficient they will read and get back to your email when they have time.

2) Do not email multiple publications at once – each one will feel that you are not particularly loyal to their magazine and will also be less inclined to respond to a group email. We all know that you will be applying to lots of places but we still want you to make us feel special!

3) Within your email there are some key details to include. In the first paragraph put your age, when you are available (dates and for how long), specify if you are keen to be in a certain department (although be aware this may not work in your favour) and put a little about yourself, focus on how helpful you are and your awareness that you may need to do any type of job but are more than happy to do so. It is also good to include why you like the publication you are applying to, just a sentence will do.

4) Keep it short and check your spelling and grammar. It is so obvious to say, but we receive so many badly spelt and poorly written applications and even if people won’t be writing immediately it doesn’t show a genuine commitment to being a writer if you can’t actually write.

5) Other relevant information – It is fine to send a CV or covering letter although we are pressed for time so the likelihood at looking at attached documents is slim. Put the information listed above, and anything you feel is really relevant, in the body of your email so there’s no chance it will be ignored.

6) Chasing?! This is a tricky one, ideally your application will be acknowledged in some way but if it isn’t should you chase the contact or not? I would suggest sending an email seven days later (if you haven’t heard back) acknowledging how busy the person may be and gently checking they received your original email.

7) Don’t be downhearted – if you don’t get offered a work experience placement it could be for so many reasons, timing and a lack of places on offer being primary examples. Do try a number of places, milk your contacts (we expect to be asked for help by friends of friends) and don’t give up!

Finally…if you are lucky enough to secure a placement you need to realise how fortunate you are (and talented, of course!) This is a placement that hundreds of people would love and could be your one and only chance. Arrive ten minutes early, thank the Editorial Assistant when you arrive, bring a map of the area as you will likely be sent out and about (or a GPS phone), offer to get lunch and make tea. Accept every job with enthusiasm and a smile and you will not be forgotten.

One of the dismissive accusations that is often thrown at social networking sites, and for the sake of simplicity let us group blogs within that category just for now, is that it’s a big ole pile of self indulgent dullards telling each other what they had for dinner. And who cares what some random stranger who lives half way round the world had for dinner?

This strikes me as an odd question. Primarily because if you spend more than anything more than a rudimentary amount of time following people with shared interests on twitter, or seeking out interesting and well written blogs, you will be aware of the journalistic value and varied and interesting content of both these forms of new media. Essentially this question exposes the person who has asked it as having a badly formed opinion based on no research whatsoever (ironically another claim often made about blog authors).

Social networking provides a truly exciting new way of interacting with people all over the world, from all walks of life, who have fascinating and well informed views on topics from religion and politics to fashion and cookery. At its best it creates sharp, insightful and lively conversation between people that otherwise would never have the chance to take a peep inside each others world. From stand up comics in Jerusalem to Mormons in Utah by way of supermodels in Canada and stylists in Paris.

That being said, naturally there is an element of self-involvement in most blogs; personal photos, diary like descriptions of daily routine, confessional accounts of the trauma of divorce or horrors of grief. And to this I say so what?

Did you never sneak a look at a sibling’s diary? Don’t you look over the shoulders of fellow passengers when they are writing a text message or letter? Do you not love the chance to listen in to conversations between strangers and their friends? And if you have managed to do the right thing (i.e. not be nosy) weren’t you the least bit tempted?

I make no apology for the fact that I am fascinated by other people’s daily routines, personal lives, their love stories, the contents of their handbags, account of their nights out and what they had for dinner. Whether they be scholars from Yale or waitresses from Glasgow, it matters not to me, I love glimpsing into the lives of others.

Blogs do not go through subs and sign off processes, and many do suffer for this. There are thousands of blogs that are sloppily written and give a voice to self-centred droners who really should zip it. But conversely blogs have democratised the world of writing. Every single person, with access to a computer and Internet connection, can have a voice. They can do with that what they will, and you can choose whether or not to listen or move on with just the click of a mouse.

Finally, dear readers, I give you my dinner of a mundane Monday evening – Jacket potato, Spinach and roasted tomatoes. Now tell me, what could be more delightful?!