Discovering the Discovery Centre

Much of today was spent recovering from getting quite drunk last night. I got up about half eleven and gradually felt worse as the next few hours went by. When my housemate started cutting up bacon for lunch I had to go upstairs because it made me feel sick. Alcohol does this to you. I also had the worry that I would get in trouble for last night’s drunken activities but no-one’s come over to tell me off so hopefully I’ll be OK.

For some reason I had no seminars or lectures today so it was pretty empty. I decided to go with my friend Louis into Winchester. We went and discovered the Discovery Centre, which is basically a library. It’s really cool-looking in there and has a good selection of books. I chose a random one I thought I might like and I took out the DVD of Shaun of the Dead. I’ve never seen it but I want to and I’ll let you know what I think of it.

Next stop was to the supermarket for some food. Mainly snack-type food, cos I haven't had any snacks for ages. I bought some chocolate, some cheese (Danish Blue) and, unusually enough for me, some fruit: both apples and bananas. I also took Louise into the amazing shop that is Shakeaway and she was surprised how well they could cope with her lactose-intolerance. I had a Wispa shake of course, as always. I’m so predictable.

This evening our glorious House 24 was once again the host of a game of charades and pictionary. It wasn’t quite as good as last time but still quite enjoyable. We’ve all got too serious about it now! Meanwhile one of our housemates was student union losing at poker. We have a gambling addict in the family.

Our house kind of is a family. Coming in drunk last night made me realise I am the naughty child and who the parents are. We’ve also got a weird uncle. It’s weird to think that this arrangement isn’t temporary. We will be living here for an entire year. Blimey.

Writing and Drinking

Our only thing today was a short lecture about our school placements. It basically told us that it will cost us £10 a week for travel, and that we will be going to the same school for three different blocks throughout the year. The first placement is the last two weeks of term before Christmas, which is quite exciting!

I then returned to House 24 to finish my essay. An hour later and the job was done, much to my pleasure. I know hardly anyone else who finished so early. I have now read bits of four different essays answering the same question, which is quite boring but I have helped a few people.

I decided to start my reflective journal and wrote general stuff about starting the course. I’m rather pleased with how awesome it looks already.

It was the first meeting of this year’s book club this evening and being the sad chap I am I went along. It was basically an introduction to the club and we all said who we were and talked a little about our fave books. The first book we will read will be for Halloween so will be spooky or a horror story.

Tonight was an excellent night at the Student Union. It was Bop, which is cheesy and pop music. I got very drunk on hardly anything (because I’m a lightweight). Unfortunately I had to go earlier than I wanted because my friend has to be up in the morning. On the way home I did something very stupid that may well get me in trouble if I got caught on CCTV. I won’t go into it because I need to hide it. It wasn’t too bad a thing and is something a lot of fresher’s do but I know the Uni will get angry if they discovered it. I may reveal it sometime in the future. See you soon!

Rights and Charades

Another lecture began another day. This one was one RRR which stands for Rights, Responsibilities and Respect. Basically it’s a scheme designed to improve schools. The kids come up with rights they have and then responsibilities to go with these rights. A teacher who was really passionate about it spoke to us and it’s a wonderful idea which improves behaviour and makes a difference to the people the children become.

We had a seminar about reflective journals next. The idea is to keep an occasional journal reflecting on recent experience etc. It’s a personal thing that is supposed to be useful to us as we develop into teachers. I quite like the idea and now have a book ready to start my journal in.

The last session of the day was again on RRR. We pretended we were leaders of a country and had to decide what fundamental rights we invested in during a recession. It sounds easy, obviously clean water is essential but if you can only choose three things which do you include out of nutritious food, proper shelter, education, medical care and protection from abuse. There is no right answer and it’s a tricky decision that government’s actually have to make. It was a brilliant way to learn about the right’s of children and make us more aware of some important issues.

As the day was far from over and I had no more course work I decided to go into town with my housemates. I bought my reflective journal and then spent ages looking for a cash machine that would display my balance. It turned out I was using my credit card rather than my debit card because I’m stupid. It seems student finance have given me my loan so I can eat for the next term!

The evening consisted of a lot of playing Pictionary and charades with my housemates in the kitchen. Mimes for some things were hilarious (dead horse representing the Godfather was a particular favourite). Also evil titles such as “The Full Monty” and our made up one “The Strip Joint” were particularly funny. Coming soon to a cinema near you: “Dead Horse”, “Ratbird” and “The Strip Joint”!

Winchester Cathedral

My second week in Uni began with an introduction to all the staff that we need to know for our course. Each paraded onto stage and held up an object to remember them all by. Some of the objects really will stay in my mind.

After a short break it was a maths lesson. This proved my lack of mathematical skills. The lecturer said we had to investigate certain things about prime numbers and after half an hour of thinking about it we found nothing and were told there was nothing special. That’s half an hour of my life I won’t get back.

Following on from that was a seminar which was pretty much about the essay we have to write. Having done half of it I found this session a bit unnecessary. But I guess it was useful to some people.

We ended the day with a trip to Winchester Cathedral. I’m not sure I will ever understand why we went, as much as the university attempt to explain it. We did one of the activities kids do when they visit: We looked at a picture called “Jesus on the Tube” and then had to draw a picture of Jesus in a modern setting. I can understand why they do this as it gets you thinking without being overtly religious. The Cathedral itself is very impressive and the thought of graduating in there in four years is really exciting!

I avoided Evensong (my views on religion are I’m happy for you to do it but don’t include me). A service in a cathedral would make me feel uncomfortable and disrespectful.

My friend Tiffany (of off Essex) has not had a good day. She tripped over her own foot, was too late to buy tickets for the student union tonight, bought stale Jaffa Cakes and her boiler broke, meaning no hot water or heating in her house. I did mock her for being from Essex but a look on Google Street View showed me where she lives is actually really nice.

It’s weird to think I’ve been here a week. It just feels normal now. I am now with friends for about 18 hours a day which is brilliant but also rather tiring. What a wonderful first week I’ve had!

School Disco and Roadrunner

Sorry that I managed to get behind again, this Uni life means finding time and energy to write a blog is hard. Once I have a routine it will all be fine.

Friday began with an offsite visit. We went to a park where we did a load of kids activities including a blindfold one. It was like being in primary school for most of the session but we did have some series talk about how this sort of thing would be useful when we start teaching. After a visit to Starbucks we had a lesson about communication skills which involved a lot of talking. We did various activities to see how is best to communicate with each other and I met someone who lives quite close to me.

Friday night was the Flirt: School Disco. It was like the sluttiest school ever! It seemed like an excuse for a load of girls to dress like slags and get drunk. I had a reasonable time but the music wasn’t was good as it is at Bop on Wednesday. It was difficult to know whether to hang with my housemates or my other friend but I think I balance it out quite well. 

After Flirt we returned to our house where Dean, the gay Irish guy from next door, fell through the window. He was extremely drunk which was greatly entertaining for us.

I had a lovely lie-in on Saturday and then wandered down to the Fresher’s Fayre. There I signed up for various things including the book club, badminton society and rambling round Hampshire society. I picked up freebies wherever I could, including a slice of pizza thanks to Domino’s. The guy said I had to dance to get it and I realised I will do anything for food and didn't even hesitate. I also bought a Kermit the Frog poster for my pinboard which looks like this:

Saturday evening was weird as I ended up spending a lot of it cuddling a roadrunner made out of balloons. Quite how this ended up I don’t know but a running joke about me being in love with the roadrunner began.

A Surreal Lecture and Some Make-Up

Today was an proper timetabled day which began with a session of IT. We were shown how to use the online resources and access our uni e-mail.

This meant I now had access to the internet for the first time since Sunday morning. I missed my internet. All the blogs from the first few days of being at Uni have been added so go and check them out if you haven't already. I sat in the learning cafe which is a lovely little cafe with a load of computers in and looked at what I’ve missed.

Next on the schedule was a tour round the library which was hardly the mostly thrilling of forty-five minutes of my life but I guess it was useful to be given the information. I’ve been given so much information the past four days I think my head’s going to explode.

After a spot of cheap lunch from the food hall we had another introductory lecture which was quite enjoyable. Then I had the opportunity to join the three main teaching union’s, all of whom gave a whole stack freebies.

Fortunately a mistake on the timetable meant I didn’t have a clash so I was able to go and see my tutor after all. She is a nice lady and we had a nice little chat.

I peered into the learning cafe and spotted Jenny there so we headed to the “unismart” lecture together. It began with an American professor talking about how moderate levels of drinking were good for you. Next thing we knew he’d pulled of his hair and his moustache and then his jacket and trousers, revealing a funny New Zealander in normal clothes. The session then went on to include a whip, a strait jacket and loads of hilarious stuff but it still made me think. It was a really enjoyable “lecture” though quite surreal.

This evening was another bizarre evening in house 26. We chatted for ages and somehow the girls decided to vandalise my face with highlighters and make-up making me look really silly.

Tomorrow I am going on a school trip and it’s the school disco which should be really good. Expect a rather amusing alcohol-infused entry. I’ll put some photos of the week so far up on Saturday for you to have a laugh at.

I Gain Some Housemates

Apologies that the blog entries have run so far behind, I’ve written them all on time but I STILL don’t have internet access. I should by now and believe me I shall be complaining tomorrow.

Today the course started, with a introductory lecture. It wasn’t the most thrilling time of my life but it gave out lots of useful information. I then had to go and collect some booklets, which took ages ‘cos there was a large queue. All this was done with the presence of the small group of friends that I’ve made already.

I was pleased to find that some more people have finally moved into by house. There is now six of us, though there should be eight. I can say that four of the others are really nice and I think I will get on well with them. One of them cooked us all some dinner, which was really nice of them. We sat and talked for quite a while and it was a nice way to get to know everyone. The other person that is here has been fairly mysterious but from the odd appearance she has made she seems nice enough.

This evening I went to the student union for a night called Bop where they play loads of pop and cheesy music. I went with my friend Jenny but spent hardly any time with her, instead spending it mostly with her housemates. I still had a good time though and it did mean I got to know some more people.

If I’m honest I’m not feeling particularly happy right now. I’m quite homesick and I’m stressed about tomorrow- I have a clash and with no internet access I can’t send an e-mail to sort this out. I could do with a chat with someone but everyone in the house is in bed and my parents seem to be too. Hopefully tomorrow will turn out OK.

I Make an Omelette

Waking in my new home actually seemed fairly normal this morning. I ate some cereal and then popped down to enrol. It was an efficient operation though the large amounts of information have destroyed my memory banks. I now know where I am supposed to be for the next two weeks, now all I have to do is get there. And I am also registered with a Doctor and have a sample pot for a chlamydia test, which I don’t need. I do not have chlamydia.

I was soon sat with the residents of the house I was in yesterday, as well as a few others, on the grass outside our houses. We had a good laugh and I’m really pleased I’ve made friends so quickly.

We all went to a talk and then into town to buy various items. I bought tonight’s dinner and after discovering crisps were on offer I bought a whole load. I made my own dinner and tested my non-existent cooking skills by making an omelette, followed by some Angel Delight. And it worked, as you can see here:

Someone else has finally moved into my house and she is nice which is pleasing. I’m a bit worried about what the other people are going to be like though. I still have six people who I’m sharing a house with who I have never met.

After ending up meeting with a friend of a friend I went to the special house and ended up getting a little tipsy again. I must apologise to my liver for this but I promise I will be better in the future. A small group of us sat outside again and we had a good laugh there too.

So, day two at Uni is over. I am pretty sure I’ve made some good friends. Tomorrow I am looking forward to the start of my teaching course but I’m a little anxious about meeting the remaining housemates. Fingers crossed we will get on well…

I Arrive At Uni

This will most probably be a day or two late due to the fact I have no internet access yet. But if you’re reading this then I’ve managed to get online.

So today was the big day. The day I move out of my house and into halls of residence at Winchester University. I have now achieved another of my list of things to do before I die.

The morning dragged by really slowly but eventually I arrived at the uni and joined a long queue to collect my key. Never before has standing in a line been so scary. A bunch of freshers all lined up, none of them seemingly keen to talk to me. I eventually got my key and Mum and Dad helped me move it all in. The room is actually bigger than I expected and is hardly amazing but it is decent enough student accommodation for me to live in for a year.

Yes, nobody there. I was sat in my house alone for hours waiting for one of my seven housemates to arrive, but no-one came. They must be all moving in tomorrow or Wednesday. After several hours of being alone, with no internet access and no TV to watch, I was pretty fed up. After cooking myself a pizza I texted Katie, the girl I’ve been in contact with for a few weeks now. She almost immediately arrived at my house and I soon found myself in a kitchen of another house with a load of girls who live in various houses across the campus.

I chatted with these people and got to know a few of them. We decided to go to the student union as it was our first night and I have to say I had a cracking time there. The loneliness of earlier vanished completely.

After all the dancing and singing (oh, and a bit of drinking) I found myself lying on a pavement beside Katie and a girl called Jenny. We had a good old chuckle about various things and we saw a shooting star (which is probably and omen of something, though goodness knows what). All three of us when back to Jenny’s house for a bit and then I went to Katie’s for a bit and then returned to my new home.

Despite the low points, today has been a good opening day at Uni. The next big thing is meeting my housemates and starting the course itself. Tomorrow I enrol and I shall spend the rest of the day getting to know people, whoever I come across really. I must go to bed because it’s late now and I have to be up reasonably early tomorrow. See you then!

Ringwood Carnival 2010

Most of my day was spent packing clothes ready to take with me to Uni. I had the rare treat of going up into the attic, to fetch a suitcase. I have now packed nearly everything I need.

This evening was the annual Ringwood Carnival. Basically it’s a procession of floats and marching bands going round the town. There’s also a fair in the town too. I wandered down with my friend Chris and we met up with a few people by the church. Unfortunately we were cut off from the main group and other than the occasional appearance from Paul we were stood watching the procession by ourselves. I personally thought the procession wasn’t that good this year. Normally there are some really funny jokes and themes of floats but it was almost all little kids waving this year. Which is great for them but not so fun to watch. Myself and Chris entertained myself with various snide comments and things we’re glad nobody overheard (though Chris did slag off religion right in front of the church float!).

The evening was ruined by one thing: the fact that we are all either going off to Uni by ourselves or left in Ringwood by ourselves. This was the last time we will see each other for a considerable amount of time, possibly ever. Fortunately I did get the opportunity to say goodbye to those who matter most.

So that’s it. After a day of packing the final bits and generally feeling quite stressed, I move out of my house and go to Uni. Terrifying. There isn’t really much point posting a blog tomorrow because it would be just me stressing about going. So the next post will be from Winchester and I shall tell you how the first day of my new life went. Wish me luck.

3 Days to Go…

Hello people. It seems I’ve been making people laugh recently with this blog. That can only be a good thing. Let’s get on with today then.

I was woken this morning by my Mum asking “Do you want to come with us to Bournemouth or stay in bed?” This was perhaps the easy question I’ve ever been asked and several hours later I woke up again and actually got up.

I was treated to lunch out at our local pub, The Elm Tree. I had my usual, a curry with a side order of cheesy chips. Cheesy chips are perhaps the best thing ever. Chips, and cheese. Together. The person who invented that deserves a knighthood.

This evening was my last badminton lesson possibly ever and my last badminton club night in Ringwood. I’ve got to know some of these people quite well and it’s weird to think I won’t see most of them ever again. I guess that’s what going to Uni involves.

I’ve begun packing clothes today but obviously I have to wait ‘til everything is washed before I can pack it. I move out in three days. This is a reality now. My new life so nearly begins. To end today’s blog I have my last video from Ringwood which is nearly emotional!

A Hoodie and The Pope

Another trip out this morning, due to the fact my Mum has the last few days before I go to Uni off work. We went to Salisbury which is a lovely town and is the birthplace of one of the greatest people to ever live, me. (That’s a lie, I doubt I would place in the top 100 billion).

During this trip out I bought a number of things: a biscuit tin, a hairdryer, the 2011 diary pages for my Filofax and a hoodie. Purchasing this hoodie was no easy feat. I bought it but as I wandered through the exit the alarm went off that meant the security tag was still on. I went back to the cashier and she checked it and said there was no tag on it. I left again and the alarm went off again so I decided to just walk off. I’d paid for it after all. When I got home I discovered there was a tag still on it and so I had to use a screwdriver to prise it off. Thank you to the useless staff at TK Maxx for causing such a nuisance.

The Pope arrived in Britain today. He’s been given a state visit which basically means taxpayers money is used to organise the visit. It shouldn’t be. Don’t get me wrong, I’m an atheist but I think people can believe whatever they want. No-one really deserves a visit paid by taxpayers money in this time where the government is trying to make cuts.

And the man himself is hardly someone I can find reason to like. He was in the Hitler Youth and has been at best useless at sorting out the whole child abuse thing. Plus on of his aides called Britain a “third-world country” because of the number of “extremist” atheists here. Firstly third world countries tend to have a much higher number of religious people in them and secondly how can you have an extremist atheist? If you believe in the big bang what exactly can you do to be extreme. That aide is a twat.

And why should this visit get so much media attention? He’s the leader of Catholicism and we’re a mainly atheist country. Most people don’t give a shit about him visiting. I don’t other than the stupid things I’ve mentioned here. Anyway, rant over. Apologies if I’ve offended anyone but the points I’ve made aren’t religious they are political. Get over it.

In One End, Out the Other

Wow, seems everyone liked yesterday’s post and thanks very much to the lovely comments I received back saying how wonderful this blog is (if enough people say it can I officially call it wonderful?)

An early start today as it was time to see my granddad again. It will be the last time before Uni which is quite sad really. I’ve seen him every week since June which is much longer than normal and I’ve got to know him better. I shall miss this old man who insists on buying me cheese and thinks putting some WD40 in a tape player will fix it when I’m at Uni. Still, I’ll see him in the holidays.

There was no cheese today but instead we had lunch out. This was at a pub which does a carvery, and a rather lovely carvery it was too: gammon, Yorkshire pudding, stuffing, carrots, roast potatoes and gravy. That’s such an English meal and I wolfed it down because I was starving. I was then treated to the fabulously named desert of a “Chocolate brownie ice cream sensation”. Basically it was a load of ice cream with some brownies in it. In summary I had a rather good morning.

This afternoon the epic battle against my room was won as I rearranged the bookcase. It’s so clean and tidy it doesn’t feel like my room anymore. And I guess in a way it’s not, I only have five more nights sleeping in it before I move to Uni. My thoughts on going to Uni are pretty neutral now. I've lost the excitement and I’m not really scared anymore because I’ve made friends online. I’m just looking forward to doing the course and becoming a teacher more than anything else right now.

Have you ever been in the situation where you are desperate for a poo but are nowhere near a toilet? That was the situation I found myself in this evening when out of nowhere I desperately needed one and I was ten minutes from home. I had little choice but to keep holding it in for that whole ten minutes. My only other options were going behind a tree but that just ain’t nice when it come to number twos or popping into a friends house. There were a couple nearby but I couldn’t exactly just knock on the door and go “I’m desperate for a shit, can I do it here?” could I? So I had the most uncomfortable walk home ever.

That story was probably TMI but it was quite funny. Less disturbing stuff tomorrow (though I’m going to rant about the pope so you never know what I might end up saying!)

September Blogs of Note

Due to the fact that I have done little worth blogging about and that this entry is way overdue, today I will be sharing with you the latest batch of awesome blogs which I have recently discovered. I really do read all these and they are all amazing.

Cay’s Little Scrapbook by Cay: Cay is a German girl whose blog really is like a scrapbook, full of random little things but all of them good. It’s written in both German and English which is very handy.

Girl,15, Blogging from Wales by Ffion: Ffion has commented here a few times and that led me to this wonderful little blog. The title sums it up excellently. Plus she loves the Hoosiers too!

Lady Gabby: This one is probably more suited for the girls as it has loads of fashion type-things on it but it still has lots of bits about Lady Gabby’s life and I like blogs like that.

Nataliee: I could virtually copy the description I put above! Probs more suited to girls but still loads of lovely life snippets. Very enjoyable.

troubled:Honesty by Emily: I’m surprised I haven't shared this one before as I’ve been enjoying it for a little while now. It’s a fabulous and often funny blog by, as the author puts it, “a weird 19 year old”.

In summary, if you like this blog then I reckon you will like those ones too. As always I shall inform all these lovely people that I’ve mentioned their lovely blogs here.I’ll be back with the normal stuff tomorrow!

Life in Plastic, It’s Fantastic!

My day began with my big room sort out part 2. The next part of my epic battle against the mess of my room was clearing the floor and this wasn’t too difficult a job. I found some things that had been missing and some things that may prove useful in the future.

I met up with my mate Chris this afternoon and we wandered into town for some chips and an ice drink from Café Nero. I was given a Café Nero stamp card now. I’m so addicted to cards like that and end up going into the relevant shop just to get another stamp.

We then wandered back to my house where we had an awesome Wii session. First up was Mario Kart Wii where we went on line and both got very annoyed by an Italian player called Ricardo. Next up we did some singing on We Sing which was the biggest laugh I’ve had in a while. Chris being Barbie and me being Ken in Aqua’s classic Barbie Girl was so funny. We also sang a few other songs which was also rather funny.

Next we looked at some internet videos. They were either funny or awesome so here’s a quick list of each:

Funny

• Cassette Boy Vs. Dragon’s Den
• Prejudice- Tim Minchin
• Chat Roulette Piano Improv

Awesome

• Cee Lo Green- FU
• Arcade Fire- The Wilderness Downtown (Interactive)

We finished of out afternoon together by playing on Wii Sports Resort and I found it interesting to see how the game adapts for weird left-handed people like Chris. It was an excellent afternoon  

In other news it’s the 25th Anniversary of Super Mario today. I’ve only really been into Mario since early 2007 but since that times we’ve had some great times together. Beaten Bower on countless occasions, travelled across the Mushroom Kingdom and the entire universe, rescued Princess Peach numerous times and played a whole host of sports.

Also it appear I will have both a bedding pack and a kitchen pack awaiting me when I arrive at Uni. And our toilet roll is scented, which I find rather weird…

Oh and Chris’ track is now on iTunes, download it here (it’s track 24!)

My Life in a Drawer

Two posts in one day, it’s been months since I did this. But I’ve been quite conservative with my posts recently so here is today’s second post!

When left at home alone whilst my Mother won a golf trophy and my brother got thrashed at football, I decided to start getting some stuff ready for Uni. To do this I need to go through my whole room and decided what I am taking with me, whether I will leave it here or whether I need to chuck it out. I spent a couple of hours clearing out the drawer under my bed. I have had said drawer for some years and it’s gradually accumulated things that needed storing and things I was trying to hide from my parents.

Most of my life was represented somewhere in that drawer. So here’s a small timeline of my life by things I found in there.

• Summer 2003: A booklet about the French Exchange I went on. That was an amazing trip.
• Year 7 (2003/2004): My French book with all my notes in. French was my fave subject back then.
• Year 8-10 (2004-2007): Various bits of school work such as a piece of work which was a story about going into the centre of the Earth.
• Nov 2007: A few things put in there when I broke up with my first serious girlfriend.
• Early 2008: Prospectuses and guidance for when I was choosing where to do my A-levels. I made an awesome choice in the end.
• Nov 2008: Various items from my visit to Auschwitz and the assemblies I did and articles I wrote about it.
• 2009: Uni prospectuses and guidance on choosing which Uni I wanted to go to. I hope I’ve made a good choice there. There was also a photo album I made of everything I did in 2009, the best year of my life so far.
• 2010: A few things from when I broke up with Gemma. Quite what to do with such things I’m not sure.

It’s interesting to see the change through that as I have had to make important decisions and embarked on several significant relationships that have changed the person I am. It’s amazing the secrets a drawer can contain…

So, in-tents…

Last night was a friendship group get together at my friend Torr’s house. It was one of the last opportunities for us to get together before we all go off to Uni. I arrived fairly early along with another couple of my friends. We sat in the garden for a while and chatted whilst more people arrived and Torr messed around a lot on Spotify.

The men of the group, which unusually included myself, eventually had the task of putting the tent together. It was a massive tent though apparently only a six man. We fitted ten people in it fairly easily though. It was thanks to the presence of Jake, our resident scout and future member of the army, that we managed to do this fairly quickly. Manoeuvring a large tent around an area surrounded by candles is quite hard work though.

As more alcohol was consumed we sat in the tent and played spin the bottle (actually I consumed far more alcohol than I originally intended. My liver is going to hate me by the time I finish Uni). This game of spin the bottle led me to hearing some truths I would never have thought likely but the dares were something else. I witnessed various states of undress down to the underwear, various kisses that should never have occurred (Torr and Jake!) and even some opening of other peoples flies with teeth. Fortunately I was not chosen for other dares and I was wise enough to choose truth when the bottle did point towards me. I did actually end up revealing some things I haven't ever talked about before though!

Eventually the inevitable time came to which we got in our sleeping bags and jumped around in them, as always happens on such occasions. During this time I had a long conversation with Paul about going to Uni and the time we’d spent together in school. Paul is one of the friends I will miss most. Most people began to drift of leaving a few of us attempting to do sign language and having random giggling fits.

In the end I got about four hours sleep which is a little less than most though Tidby only got about an hour. I awoke to the morning sun and a load of birds making a racket outside. As always on similar experiences I was freezing cold when I woke up. A few people had to go off early to work and it wasn’t long before just myself, Paul and Torr were sat having a random conversation about various things including nuclear fusion and Google.

So all in all I had a pretty good time though it’s sad that I won’t see most of these people very much in the future. I guess the people that matter most will keep in touch and there are some people that I don’t ever want to lose contact with.

Talking about teaching and Paul’s confidence in me as a person really boosted my self-confidence and I realise how successful a life I can potentially live if all goes to plan. I shall discuss my feeling about going to Uni tomorrow as then it will only be a week away. Until then, bye-bye.

So Many Monsters In You

Hello there. Now this is one of the rare occasions I have written an entry early in the afternoon and I shall explain the reasons to this as I go along.

Yesterday was one of those days that was so dull it wasn’t even worth writing a blog entry about. Literally nothing happened. So far today has been mildly more interesting, mainly thanks to the fact I was busy sorting stuff out.

First job was to activate my new credit card which arrived this morning. Quite why I need a credit card as well as a debit card is beyond me but still it arrived so I had to phone the number on it. I assumed it would just be automated and I would just have to enter the right details. This happened at first but suddenly I was directed to an actual person. Well I say suddenly but there was a lot of rubbish classical music and “Thank you for your patience” before I was put through to someone called Moira. Being the shy person I am I hate talking to people on the phone, especially complete strangers like this but it couldn’t be avoided. Fortunately Moira quickly dealt with me and I knew the answers to all the questions she asked me.

Next was to deal with the letter from my Uni which informed me my student fees loan doesn’t quite cover the student fees. I investigated and discovered that the loan is the maximum I can apply for and so I shall have to pay the Uni £65 to cover the last little bit. I have no idea why the loan can’t cover a further £65. The world is rather odd.

The reason I’m writing this entry so early in the day is because I’m going out tonight (yes, I know, that hardly ever happens.) I’m going to my friend Torr’s house for our last friendship group get together before we all disappear off the Uni. We’re all staying there too, sleeping in a tent in his garden. I shall report on the random shenanigans and activities of the night tomorrow so see you then!

I Can Make You Feel Better

So many things to talk about today so this might be a long entry. Let’s start talking about them then.

The other day I went shopping and I reported that as far as I knew it was a successful shopping trip. Well it turns out I wasn’t entirely right. The hoodie I bought doesn’t have a hood. So it’s not really a hoodie is it? It’s a perfectly nice jumper but it feels weird not having a hood. So I failed at shopping again. The shoes and jeans I bought though are awesome though the blue dye from the jeans turned my legs a little blue. I looked like a smurf from the waist-down!

Google Instant- how awesome is it? Now when you use Google it automatically put the search results on the page as you type it in. Why has it taken so long to come up with this? Internet searching has changed forever. And it’s innovation like this, as well as better results, that make Google the best search engine.

My day today was fairly dull though I did get rather excited when watching clips from the classic Disney film The Jungle Book on Youtube. As a kid I virtually wore out the video of it (yes kids, that was a VHS, not a DVD. You had to watch the whole thing backwards to get back to the beginning. Happy days.) Songs such as “I wanna be like you” and “Bare Necessities” took me back so when I was an innocent little kid. I actually still enjoy the songs even now. The tiny mind I had back then wouldn’t have been able to comprehend the idea that I am going to university to become a teacher. I would love to have a chat with myself as a little kid.

This evening things livened up a fair bit and I had one of the weirdest evenings of my life. I was helping my Dad run a quiz for the charity my Mum works for. Nothing too unusual about this of course. But I was doing this in a tattoo parlour. Yes, a place where people get tattoo’s done. I’m not a tattoo person and the whole thing seemed pretty weird. It’s also a cafe too and is actually really nice but the fact I was marking sheets sat on a seat where people normally get tattoos done was rather odd.

There was a raffle and I sat excitedly hoping I would win the murder mystery game or perhaps the meal voucher. I did win a prize but it’s not one I particularly want: it’s a £20 voucher for a beauty treatment shop. That would entitle me to various things including a luxury manicure. As camp as I can be sometimes, that would be one step too far…

The Devil’s in the Detail

This morning myself, my father and my incredibly generous grandfather went to the town of Dorchester. Before going on this small trip I realised my knowledge of Dorchester consists entirely of the fact that it is the setting of The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy (it’s called Casterbridge in the book). On arrival in Dorchester I discovered it’s only claim to fame is said fact with many of the businesses and shops there using either Casterbridge or Hardy in the name.

The pedestrianized area of the town is quite nice and there is a wide range of shops. There is also a shop called Wellworths which is the only surviving member of the Woolworths chain (well it’s a different name and owner but is essentially the same) and it’s nice to see it still going. However the rest of Dorchester was chocker-block with traffic and the car park there is incredibly badly laid out. The only reason I would suggest going is to visit the Dorset County Museum which is apparently quite good.

My generous grandfather bought me another bit of cheese today. I choose a rather unusual one today, in fact so unusual there isn’t even a Wikipedia entry for it! It’s called Ribblesdale Blue Goat’s Cheese. This is actually the first time I’ve come across a blue goat’s cheese. The idea of a blue goat’s cheese works well here and this is a lovely cheese. Be warned though it is very strong so if you don’t like strong cheese this ain’t for you.

Best pic I could find I’m afraid!

This evening I had a conversation on Facebook to my new Uni friend. I am getting on really well with her to I hope when we meet in person we will actually become good friends. I also had an awesome late night conversation with Chris which was really funny. Favourite part (it was a joke of course):

Chris: The internet is a cunt.

Me: Yes, the internet is a cunt.

Chris: My internet history is a lot of cunts.

I just wondered whether I should censor that or not. Most people don’t care about the language but apologies if you are offended. (I always like to keep everyone happy )

Watch the Stars Glow

I narrowly escaped sleeping right the way into the afternoon today. I had an excellent nights sleep. In fact after a full twelve hours of sleep I felt I could probably manage a couple more but then that would be extremely lazy.

This afternoon I decided to walk into town and buy a few items of clothing. Last time I did this I managed accidently buy a T-shirt with a crude slogan on and a pair of shorts that were too small. So the prospects weren’t good. First of all I needed to replace my shoes, seeing as though there is a massive hole in both of them:

So I popped into the shoe shop and deliberated over which pair of shoes I actually wanted. I decided on a pair with a thick heel, reducing the chances of them getting worn through. I then went into a clothes shop and discovered it’s quite hard to browse through rails of clothes when one arm is taken up with holding a pair of shoes you just bought. I persevered though and managed to purchase two pairs of jeans (2 for £22, normally £14 each, bargain) and a hoodie. I like hoodies but most of mine have got a bit small, hence the buying a new one. My shopping trip seemed to go pretty swimmingly but we will have to wait and find out if what I bought is any good!

I am so obsessed with The Hoosier’s new album it’s ridiculous. I listen to it through at least three times a day at the moment. My entry titles since Sunday have been lyrics from it, including today. I’m going for a week of Hoosier-based titles. Yes, I’m sad.

I have a few questions to answer courtesy of the lovely Emily. Thanks for all your comments by the way, Emily. First, what is a crumble? There is a picture below, but basically it’s a desert made from fruits and normally oats on top. Apparently in America similar dishes are called a crisp or a cobbler. Second question then. Have I heard of the band “Anberlin”? Well, no I haven't but I will make the effort to have a listen to some of their stuff in the near future.

I will of course respond to any such questions like these so keep ‘em coming. Tomorrow I am going to Dorchester with my granddad which will be an experience. I’ll let you know how it goes.

It’s Gonna Be a Bumpy Ride

As the boat arrived at port we looked out over Miami and it’s glorious sunshine. Out of everywhere we had been on this world tour this could perhaps be the best place. Mike walked off the gangplank first, followed by me and then Chris.

And then I woke up. That was a short glimpse into the world tour myself, Chris and Mike had in my dream last night. I would love to go on a world tour with those guys and from their comments on my Facebook status about it they would too. Maybe one day.

So, anyway, reality. And how good reality is! I got up unusually early and was soon greeted with a paycheck meaning I have a load more money and a message from someone I’ve wanted to hear from for quite a while.

I then spent a lovely few hours reading another book. This is actually a “young adult’s” one called The Spook’s Mistake. I’ve been reading these for years since the first one came out and plus I’m a trainee teacher so I have an excuse. This is book seven of the series and is particularly dark. Well the series is about defending from creatures of the dark to you should expect that, but for a young adult book this one is pretty scary. I enjoyed it quite a lot actually and I sense a build up to a dramatic climax as the series progresses.

I then went online and very excitedly discovered the accessories for the upcoming Doctor Who video games, especially this one:

Yes, it’s a sonic screwdriver Wii remote. How awesome is that?

Much of the rest of the day was spent writing messages to various people going to the same University as me. I move there two weeks today.  I started talking to one girl today who is on the same course and is living in the building next to me who seems really nice so maybe we will become good friends.However I do seem to be getting loads of random Facebook friend requests tonight. I will only accept you I know you or you write a message saying who you are. Not that you can read this if I don’t accept you.

So, two weeks. This time in two weeks I will be sat in my new room at Winchester University with my family thirty miles from me and most of my friends even further. That is scary but all the online chatting to various people has made me realised that I will be able to make friends. So I’m cautiously excited now. In two weeks the greatest adventure of my life so far begins!

Make me feel glorious…

I cannot begin without saying that I am very pleased with the new header I created for this blog today. It pretty much sums up this blog. Facebook peeps, visit here to see what I’m going on about.

Today was once again a fairly empty day for me. With the weather steadily deteriorating and work finished for the Summer I have very little to do, which suits me fine actually. I was occupied for various times during the day by visits by various small children (and their respective relatives of course- they didn’t crawl here). A child within the vicinity now automatically sparks teacher mode in my head and I can’t help but start looking after/entertaining it. Well in a fortnight I will be a student-teacher after all!

My trip outside into the world today was with my father to pick some blackberries (which are little berries and are pictured below for anyone that doesn’t know). This is something that we have done a fair few times before. Going on a walk most evenings means I know where there are lots of blackberries and soon we had two Tupperware boxes full of them. My dad is going to make a blackberry and apple crumble out of them!

Now that I’ve been able to put the Hoosier’s second album on my iPod I’ve become a little obsessed. Songs such as Unlikely Hero, Bumpy Ride and Giddy Up have been circulating my head continuously for the past day. There really isn’t a bad track on the album, which is awesome.

Well done to Ffion who unexpectedly noticed that I used a Hoosier’s lyric as a title. Nobody has ever done that before! Also she informed me of where the two Deathly Hallows will be split (just after Voldemort gets the Elder Wand). I really ought to read it again actually as I’ve only read it once and I was racing through it in an attempt to finish it before my girlfriend of the time. I lost anyway and probably missed loads of details.

Let me know what you think of the new header or anything else you want to say and I shall be back here with another blog very soon! Ta-rah!

Baby, Won’t You Giddy Up?

This blog entry is going to be split into two very different parts. The first is a bit of a question and answer and the second is a particularly geeky bit about various things.

Now I asked for your comments so I could respond to them and I got a lousy total of one. Not to be deterred I headed onto Formspring, to gather some more questions for this feature.

baDruleDunschooleD: Funny, I've never been outside of the US, but every so often I think: "If I could've been born anywhere else besides here, my first choice would definitely be England". Why? I have no clue. I think it’s the accent actually. But anyway, what's your favourite aspect of living in and being from England? Well firstly I love that foreign people like the accent. But also I love how quirky England is thanks to it’s culture and history that isn’t quite the same anywhere else.

UNI SOON! How excited/nervous are you now? You're going to have so much fun, I promise :) Miss Anon xx I know! Quite excited and very nervous. Actually I can register online from Monday. It’s all happening so quick!

Best thing about being you? The fact I get to be really lazy. And that I make people laugh.

If you could see someone you loved and lost, who would it be? My ex. I don’t have feelings for her anymore but it would be nice to speak to her, it’s been months. Actually she was in a car that drove past earlier. But I would like to talk to her.

What’s something that not many people know about yourself? OK, blog readers, you really are in for a big secret with this one. The something is just how bad a time I was having a few months back. After being made single and struggling with my exams I really was sad. Maybe you could call it depression. I e-mailed the Samaritans and every day was a struggle. It was only thanks to my friends and family I got through it and now I’m OK. My mental state really was bad for a while.

See, you never know what you might unearth with a question like that. From now on I am shall respond to any good comments I get at the end of the next entry.

Onto part two. A few things which are mostly quite geeky that have come up over the last few days.

1) New CD Drive. I bought it today from a shop called Maplin. It was like geek heaven. So many gadgets and stuff I love. I also went next door just to look at a 3D TV but it didn’t seem to work, even with the glasses. Not a great advertisement. This shiny CD drive allowed to out my newer CD’s onto iTunes. Which leads me very nicely to…

2) iTunes 10. I downloaded the latest version of Apple’s music application the yesterday. As usual with a new version the design has been mildly tweaked. I quite like it, especially the bigger volume bar. It also contains Apple’s new social network, “Ping”. I can’t really see the point of it really. It seem just like Twitter but in iTunes and for following music artists. I do like the look of the new iPod’s though but it does mean my nano is two generation’s old. If I had the money I would fork out for the new one. But sadly I don’t.

3) Harry Potter.T’other day I watched the Half-Blood Prince and this got me excited about Deathly Hallows Part 1 coming out in November. The big question in my head is where are they going to split the two parts? I look forward to seeing it. But before then I really want to see Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World. It looks my sort of film.

4) Eleven by Mark Watson. This is the book I finished reading today. It sees one action go on to affect eleven people. It’s actually a very emotional and thought-provoking book which you wouldn’t expect from a comedian (though there are some hilarious lines). It’s hard to describe this book other than by saying “It’s awesome. Read it”.

Local Cheese

Evening. Let’s try and be cheerful today shall we?

This morning was once again a three generation walk through a Dorset town as myself and my dad took my granddad into Wimborne. I was quite amazed to find that after well over a year the footpath is open again! I was beginning to think it would be permanently closed. My granddad, being the lovely chap he is, insisted on buying me £5 worth of cheese. The cheese I wanted turned out to be really cheap so I have ended up with the biggest lump of cheese ever!

As you may have guessed if you are a regular reader this is the perfect opportunity to review another cheese. Today’s cheese was Dorset Blue Vinney (pictured below). It’s about as local a cheese as I can get. It’s reasonably strong, above stilton but below the likes of the Danish Blue. Normally a slightly less strong cheese would put me off but this one has a wonderful taste. It was also author Thomas Hardy’s fave cheese.

 

The rest of day was mostly spent being lazy if I’m honest. I have continued to search online for someone living in the same building as me at Uni, so far to no avail. As each day goes by another thing is crossed of the “going to Uni” list and two more are added. I might get it all done before I go.

I’ve noticed that I haven't had many comments lately so now I am asking for some. I want you, dear read, whoever you are to write a comment on any of my posts. If I have enough I shall write a post responding to them all either tomorrow or Saturday. I don’t mind what your comment is, about yourself, your thoughts on something, a question to me AND I will even put in a link to your blog if you want along with your comment. So comment away! See you soon

Outside I’m Smiling

Hey guys, I should warn you that this is going to be one of my more miserable entries. These things happen but the premise of this blog is to share my experiences in life and my feelings, whether they are bad or good. I’ve noticed a slight increase in the number of readers so thank you very much if you are a regular! (And hello follower No. 50 )

I have two days to talk about in this entry. Tuesday was somewhat empty, mostly due to recovering from the tiring day before. In fact I didn’t even leave the house at all. I did see the finale to the underwater drama series The Deep which I have talked about here. My main thought it was that it was pointless. It wasn’t really thought-provoking and the fairly far-fetched story would have been OK if there appeared to be some purpose to the show. But it ended, some people survived, some died. That was that. Disappointing.

Today, Wednesday, was a better in terms of activity. I had work which was really enjoyable though I was sent home early as I wasn’t really needed. This evening was a staff meal which was in a nice Italian restaurant. It was pretty enjoyable and I had a good time. I decided to go clubbing with some of them afterwards but for reasons I won’t go into that didn’t happen. It wasn’t anything dramatic, it’s just I don’t want to rant about something stupid.

It was one of those frequent experiences, though not my fault, that made me feel secluded from society. Not just that but the day in general. As much as I try to fit in I just don’t. This makes no odds when I’m with my friends who know me and accept me but I will see less and less of them and have to try and fit it somewhere. My general mood has gone back down to the lows it hasn’t been in for a little while. At the moment I just feel empty and I feel like I need something to fill that up. Or someone, be it a new friend or someone even closer. I will probably be fine but I could do with something awesome happening to cheer me up.

See, told you it would be pretty miserable. No doubt I will feel lame for writing this when I come across it tomorrow but I don’t care anymore. I mostly am lame. Get over it.