Big Black Rose Blog

2003-04-09T19:00:00.000Z

BLACK ROSE BLOG HAS MOVED!

Pls change your links, noting that the '0' is numerical, and feel free to comment on the new image :) See you over there!! :D
x

2003-04-05T12:47:00.000Z

This is not the reconstructed blog :) The reconstructed blog is on its way, please be patient, it wont be long now :) /me bounces

2003-04-01T00:41:00.000Z

***PAGE UNDER CONSTRUCTION***

(Dont say a *word*) :)

2003-04-01T00:17:00.000Z

one

2003-03-31T10:23:00.000Z

Weekend!

Well, it took me until Saturday morning to realise how much I wanted to be at the munch, and so with the wonders of public transport and text messaging, I found myself in Oxford at about 2.30pm with my favourite bunch of debauched and twisted pals, and a few more to add to the collection! Seated outside in absolutely beautiful warm weather in pretty Oxford was a good start, but with every minute, it just got better and better.

Okay, so it took me about 2 bottles of blue WKD to be able to move to the other end of the table, but I got there eventually :) Lots of mingling, some people went back to the hotel and I presume they farted around for a couple of hours before returning, a very short shopping spree on the hunt for Fneep's food and some books for my mum, and back to the pub we went. More drinks, more chats, more giggles and plenty of innuendo about the furry beaver. Rach's bloke turned up along with Bart and eventually the rest of the gaggle dribbled in.

Then it was *food* time!!! Hoorah to smeggy for choosing the mongolian wok, it was absolutely delicious - somehow i managed to get my grub to taste chinese which was absolutely great, and the wine (Thanks Helen and Flash!) went down a treat. Lots more giggling, no idea what happened at the other end of the table, they seemed to spend most of their time up by the food bar, little piggies, but our end was fun! Chats with Helen, Mike, Flash, PodzIE, Fneep and that was about as far as my voice could travel.

Next, it was taxis ahoy and back to the hotel, for more drinkies, more chats, jewellery swapping, a really sweet little ceremony in which smeggy was given a goodbye and goodluck card - we will miss you lots, babe!! The evening was fun, and when time was called, we moseyed on up to podz/mrme/aj's room for snackies and beer! hoorah! Whoever gave me a Stella, shame on you :) Fneep and I went for a walk (Thanks babe!) and a coffee, and it was soon bed time, so PodzIE walked me over to the other block, barefoot, and i actually managed to find the room somehow, which I was quite impressed with! Talks with helen about various interesting things ensued, then sleeeeeeeeeeeeep.

What felt like about 2 minutes later, I woke up, saw sunlight and thought I should get up. I had a really nice shower which involved washing my hair in soap and then wearing the same icky smokey clothes as yesterday. My phone (i.e. my only clock) was in PodzIE's room still, I had *no* idea what room that was and gentle scratching at [what turned out to be] his door was obviously not sufficient to wake the dead who were inside, so I did the only the thing I could think of. Wake up Fneep! I remembered something about ground floor and last room, so off I went to pester her. A few phone calls to PodzIE later and Fnook decided to get dressed and come for brekkie with me. We tried to wake up Nick with "nick, do you want to come for breakfast?" and he just about opened his eyes, grunted, then fell straight back into unconsciousness. We took it as a no.

Breakfast was lovely while it was happening, and a lot less lovely about 3 hours later. But the tea was definitely required, as was the orange juice. Thank god for liquid. Mrme and I had to leave because I had a day in Southampton to look forward to, which meant not getting to say goodbye to many people as I had to be home by 10am. So off we went, made good time, and the rest of my day was devoted to being hungover, being nice to my mum, eating lots of food to get rid of the hangover, walking through the new forest with my family, looking round my brother's gorgeous little house (with which i am extremely impressed) and then coming home and being very tired indeed!!

Thats about it really :) I had a really *Really* fun time, and im so glad I went, no idea what I was worrying about :D Thanks again to everybody who went for making it such a laugh - just what I needed, and i'm chuffed to have shared it with ya all :) x

2003-03-28T11:16:00.000Z

oh and - to anyone who has exchanged texts/emails with me in the last couple of days, *thank you* for reminding me that there is actually a real world out there, outside the confines of the house!! The cat reminded me a bit yesterday when i found a headless mouse on the carpet, but its lovely to be contacted by people :) So thanks! And Mrme - big fat huggles, ur definitely my favourite person today :) xx

2003-03-28T11:12:00.000Z

Moral of yesterday.... Don't use an epilator on your underarms and expect a free ride to hairlessness. It HURTS.

Words of the moment are currently:

pomp and oik

If you would like to add to my mental list of favourite words, please feel free! :)

2003-03-27T00:01:00.000Z

As my t shirt says, 'every day i'm forced to add another person to the list of people who piss me off' - today was no exception. People complain about me complaining, when *they* are the reason i'm complaining in the first place! How about, get out of my life, and i'll stop complaining, okay?

Jeez, weener, deal with it.

So anyway. I had some good news today, i might be involved in some pre-production stuff on a local amateur animation which is extremely good for my clean-slate reserved for the film industry, and even better news for my CV. It also means i had an excuse to blag mum's car off her tomorrow, which in turn pays its price cos i have to be out at 8.30 to drop her off at work. But, to be fair, apart from the dickweeds in this world, that's the least of my worries! :) I'm almost chirpy :)

Did another 12 or so lengths at the swimming pool today, so i could almost justify the wine, chocolate, Greek yogurt with honey, and ginger biscuit which went into my greedy gob today. Almost. I may have to visit the gym tomorrow with my parents to be totally exonerated... and maybe again at the weekend. oops :) oh well... you're only 22 once.

Oh there's lots I would *like* to say here, but as Jayne found, its not always possible to say what you want to, even on your own blog. I *did* advise her to just say whatever she thought and to hell with anyone else, but that simply isnt an easy thing to do. i guess that's why diaries often come with locks attached to them. Not much point having an online diary if you're gonna lock it I suppose. Shame though, I'd love to use this as a ranting board....

2003-03-24T20:58:00.000Z

Oscars tonight! Hoorah! :)

2003-03-20T08:06:00.000Z

Well, we're at war.

I will forever find it astonishing that the human race, for as long as it has existed, turns to violence and destruction in order to 'solve' its problems. There's no learning from history, and I dont feel like this is another gulf war, it feels like world war three... I hope it doesn't come to that.

I only hope my friends and family stay safe throughout all of this... I dont have the same positive view of personal security that everyone else seems to have. Maybe its paranoia, but I think its justified. My horrible nightmare of last week (which was too frightening to describe on here) is coming true. Maybe not here, but certainly in the Middle East.

2003-03-19T21:26:00.000Z

Well, I've added a link to the lovely Ms Eirwen's live journal, but god only knows if the flipping thing will ever actually show up!!

2003-03-19T02:01:00.000Z

If I had a wish....
... it would simply be that the people I love could spend a day inside my head, looking out at the world the way I do, seeing it the way I see it. I think, i *think*, if that could happen, all of the things which cause me worry and stress in my life, all the things which contribute to the depression, the insomnia, the weirdness, would settle down. If people knew the way I looked at things, they wouldn't say the things they do. They wouldn't ask the things they ask, and they would feel so different.

2003-03-18T10:57:00.000Z

That was definitely one of my better nights :) I struggled to get up this morning, and dont remember waking up much during the night. Hopefully, its directly related to the fact that i've not had any kind of daytime naps for the last two days - if I can keep that going, things might improve!! hooray! (Thank you to those of you who have been listening to my whinging about the sleep stuff - I appreciate it :) )

And as long as its not raining after my seminar at 2, I'm gonna go swimming :)

2003-03-17T23:59:00.000Z

Today....

... has been pretty hard going. First off, I had to get up at about 9 (yes i know, but i'm not normal, remember?) to edit and finish off my essay. I also had to work on my presentation, both things happily falling on the same day (yeugh!). So off I toddled to campus, handed the dreaded essay in, then spent the next 3 hours having a massive panic attack over my presentation, namely cos the asshole I was meant to be doing it with didn't bother to turn up to our meeting on Friday OR email me OR phone me to let me know what had happened, so i had to do it by myself, which is not fun when you dont have much confidence in your own ideas...

Anyway, the seminar came and my presentation seemed to go down okay - luckily my group is quite laid back, so a 3 minute presentation with me not saying very much at all didn't go down badly. They even had stuff to say on the things I'd brought up, which was really nice, and the tutor seemed pleased with it as well. So that was alright.

Then came the afternoon, and I walked down to the uni sports centre and joined up so as to encourage myself to get some exercise now and again... tomorrow will hopefully be the first day of making use of my new membership card!

I have eaten too much Fruit and Nut today... I dont feel so happy with myself! *But* I am absolutely knackered, which means i *might*.... *might* get a good nights sleep... we shall see!

Anyway, enough whinging for now... i'm tired, i'm a little bit fed up, so i'm going to bed!

2003-03-16T01:12:00.000Z

The insomnia seems to be getting worse as time goes on, but then I know its a vicious circle i have to break out of at some point... and I will... soon.

Today has been surreal, as are most of my days. I woke up about 12.30pm, worked until about 4.30 on my essay, then i slept until around 6.30, and i've had a really nice evening since then. Bottle of wine, a chat with an old friend which I was neither expecting, nor expecting to be so amicable :) and I had a really lovely hot bath with my glass of wine and my walkman. It's been very chilled, and as a result, I'm hoping I'll sleep better tonight... you never know.

Tomorrow means finishing off an essay and writing a presentation for monday afternoon. The rest of monday will belong in my head, I think. How is everyone?

2003-03-11T20:18:00.000Z

I am FED UP with blogger. It hardly ever works, I never know if or when my posts will eventually appear, I pasted a whole new template in about 3 days ago and where the f*** is it? Nowhere to be seen! Am pissed off, and I'm going to make it my mission to learn some kind of website design program over the summer so that I can have my own blog on my own domain and can change it whenever I like, and know that it will work.Rah.

Oh and I've decided that I'm officially fat. Having been comfort drinking and feeling sorry for myself for the last couple of months, combined with lack of exercise, I am most definitely on the chubby side. I can't wear most of my favourite tops any more cos I sag out the sides, I feel self conscious in anything sleeveless and anything that doesn't go a good inch or two below my hips. I have *got* to do something, but all I can think of is to get more exercise, and i just *dont* have the time or the energy to do that... I know I'm going to have to start going to the gym when I finally finish uni and go home, and maybe once I get into the habit (IF i can get into the habit) it will seem less of an effort... oh god, i wish I had an advisor - I have never had to lose weight before, and I dont really know how to do it!

2003-03-10T01:28:00.000Z

Have updated the link to Anna's art website 'Over the Sofa'...

2003-03-10T01:24:00.000Z

So the last 24 hours have involved the watching of two extremely odd films. Sarah and I rented Memento yesterday, which was extremely clever, but my brain hurt by the end of it... Tonight, Psychy and I watched Being John Malkovich and to be honest, its my forehead that aches now from two hours of frowning in confusion. Extremely surreal, and I dont think it was especially clever either - I got the feel of it being a teeny weeny bit self indulgent, and generally without much substance. But hey ho!

2003-03-08T16:19:00.000Z

Been a sociable week for us... Wednesday, Sarah and I were the proud hostesses of a 'dinner party' (like proper grown-ups!) for some good pals... Dinner was: black olive ciabatta, baked and buttered, followed by (non-veggie) beef casserole and mashed potato - the casserole was *gorgeous*, even if i do say so myself :) I left it in the oven all afternoon, and once the obligatory 1.75 hours had passed, i turned the oven down and left it in there warming for a few more hours, and the beef was lovely and tender. Veggie option was pasta in a broccoli and cheese sauce, which was also very nice. Sarah made a lovely salad, and dessert was apple strudel with vanilla ice cream. All this was washed down with about 6 bottles of wine, and we had a lovely time :)

Thursday, the Four Horsewomen of the Apocalypse (Sarah, Alice, Kathryn and myself) trotted into town where we muched at Nando's (restaurant pertaining to the sauce makers of the same name) for peri-peri-chicken and bottomless frozen yogurt (mmm!). Waistband significantly tighter, we bumbled off to 'The Living Room' which is a lovely bar/restaurant which has two guys playing guitar and piano live, singing requested songs of a general soft rocky type nature, such as Coldplay etc. Just stayed for one drink, then off we went home.

Yesterday was the biggie really, Anna's birthday (happy birthday, Spanner!) so after an afternoon of feeling guilty cos i'd said to Sarah that I didn't think she'd need a brolly (oops), I cooked pasta, we munched it, had a glass of white wine (quite unusual for me these days) and went off to Waterfront in town, had some wine. One slightly insulting comment from the barman later, and we went to 'Bar None' where I've not been before, and where we stayed for the rest of the evening. A bit tipsy by the time we got home, and had a totally out-of-proportion headache today which kept me in bed until about 3!! Oops... so much for a day of working! Twas a fun night though :) I think it's probably a quiet night in with the telly and some scraps of food for us this evening! How was everyone else's Friday night?

2003-03-03T12:58:00.000Z

Which Peanuts Character Are You Quiz

2003-03-02T14:47:00.000Z

/me oils her blog...

This thing still working?

2003-02-11T00:08:00.000Z

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MEL! :)

2003-01-18T14:57:00.000Z

Hi people

Well its all over for another semester. One more to go, then ill be a real grown up. An unemployed one, but still a grown up.

Anyway, its 'over and out' from me for a little while. I'll still be lurking around reading blogs, but may not update my own for a while. Take care all, and good luck to Krys for the big move :) I'll be thinking of ya babe! x

2003-01-14T11:03:00.000Z

I've added a link on the right hand side in case anybody wants to read my essay on prejudice against people with bodyart and all its implications...

2003-01-10T09:43:00.000Z

Mel - i keep thinking of you - there's an advert on tv at the moment for new zealand, and the woman who does the voiceover is obviously a kiwi (or a good impressionist) and she sounds just like you! She probably doesn't actually at all, but she does to me, and it makes me think fondly of you whenever I see it :) Although it does have aerial photography of a plane, which shouldn't be allowed, cos it looks like its gonna crash into the trees, but never mind!! Nice to watch an advert for NZ that doesn't have the word 'lamb' in it! :)

2003-01-09T23:45:00.000Z

Oh my god oh my god oh my god... i have 3 days to write a 3000 word essay and revise almost an entire text book on linguistics before monday. jesus, i feel like i'm sitting on the edge of the top of a cliff and i'm about to be kicked off!! Eek!

On a slightly better note, i got 72% for an essay I wrote on Lucian's True Story and Gulliver's Travels before christmas (remember?), so i was feeling a bit smug about that until i realised I didn't have any time for smugness and had to get home to carry on working...

Which is why I shouldn't be blogging!

Nice to say hi to krys on irc tonight tho! :)

Back to le grindstone.... x

2003-01-07T13:15:00.000Z

Today, I need to offer an enormous THANK YOU to Podz, who appears to have spent the entire of yesterday helping me research for my essay on bodyart prejudice (i.e. doing my research for me!). So thank you so much, you will never know how helpful all the stuff you've sent me has been! :) If anyone is interested in reading the essay, let me know and i'll have it put online.

2003-01-06T11:38:00.000Z

So far, my diet of grilled meat and steamed vegetables has consisted of tinned soup, a biscuit, stir-fried chicken in satay (eek!) sauce, some cashew nuts (About as fatty as food gets) and a few cups of tea, both caffeinated and not.

I'm not doing very well am I.

Perhaps I'm being a bit ambitious, trying to eat healthily when I've got so much work on :(

But, I didn't have anything alcoholic yesterday which is quite an achievement for me :) yay!

2002-12-29T23:59:00.000Z

I feel a bit better....

Another day of struggling to find combinations of words to put in my essay. I dont know if its writers block, or if its my body and brain telling me i'm an adult when my circumstances are telling me i'm still in full time education, but i know i'm sick of being a sodding student! Roll on january the 16th when I get a break, and roll on june the woteveritis when I get to declare my non-student status once and for all! I can't believe that this time last year, I was so full of get up and go that I wanted to apply for an MA or a PhD!!!! What was i THINKING!!????

A difficult but still enlightening conversation occurred today, leaving me feeling concerned for the future, but more than content for the present.

Big thanks to Rachy for phoning me today - I really needed it. I know I'm terrible at making the effort to ring other people, and that makes me all the more grateful when somebody calls me (when I'm not having a phone-phobic attack!! :) ). I actually feel a little bit wanted today, which is really nice, cos I often get very down when I'm at home due to .... well, lots of different things, most of which are obvious if you know anything about me, and if not, then... well... not that obvious! :)

Anyway, yesterday, my mum bought me my first ever dvd, to go with my new dvd player, and she got me Geri Halliwell's yoga dvd, on recommendation of my mate Abi, who is a professional dancer and therefore knows more about these things than I! I'm sure i'll be able to get past the annoyingness of the Gerimonster as long as I focus on the potential weight loss of 1.5 stones or more... (combined with my new diet of steamed vegetables and grilled meat!)

Does anyone have any electric kitchen scales or any electic/non-electric bathroom scales that they dont mind selling? they dont have to be great, or unused or anything, but... be nice to track my progress and be able to measure food to within something less than 50g!!! :)

2002-12-28T16:52:00.000Z

Hm. Does anyone know why my comments link has now changed to read 'poseurs' and now counts the number of comments? Do I have a poltergeist?

2002-12-27T22:34:00.000Z

Every now and again, I get a little glimmer of a feeling that really, in actual fact, my life and everything about me, means nothing to anybody at all except me. I have come to realise that a lot of the time when I say something, or do something, I might as well be doing it in a locked and darkened room. It's as if I'm living on a desert island. Have you ever felt like... you try *so* hard to be nice to people, even people who technically, you have every right to dislike and never want to speak to.... and you end up feeling like a total mug. But I *refuse* to believe that being nice to people is a mistake.... but does it make me unlikable or something?

I've noticed over the last year or so, that whenever I post anything on UPB, even if it's 110% relevant to the group, I dont get a response at all. I must be a very uninteresting person if people will respond to a query about ear lobe piercing, but wont help me out with a tattoo design enquiry. And for months, i've been commenting on people's blogs, and I feel like i've got my own fucking comments box that nobody ever reads or cares about. I'm not blaming anyone or anything, just feeling low. I'm getting fed up. Fed up with politics, trying to maintain friendships from the past when i'm obviously being a stupid cow and wasting everybody's time.... I come home for Christmas, desperate for the break, and I feel even *more* like I'm living in my own soundproof box than i did when I was at uni! What the hell do I have to do to make the world realise that there is this little insignificant girl called George with good intentions and a lot of love and friendship to offer? And does the world give a flying f***?

So I'm feeling pretty low today. I'm stressed, I have too much work to do and no time in which to do it. All my friends except a scant few have graduated uni, leaving me to live with 3 people who I dont know, on a course which I'm absolutely fed up with, cos i can't stand being a fucking student any more.... I honestly feel like I'm more likely to set fire to myself than I am to graduate in 6 months. It seems like a million years away... and I'm fed up... FED UP.

.

2002-12-25T23:43:00.000Z

Hi again everyone, just wanted to slip in a quicky post cos I forgot to say something really important the other day....

I have just finished one of the best books I've read for years - it's called Fortune's Rocks, it's by Anita Shreve and it's absolutely amazing.... If anybody needs a good read, post a comment here and you can have it as a new years pressie - most convincing reasoning wins the book! yay!

/me realises that everybody she knows is probably drunk by now.... urrgh. tomorrow will be a chore.

But today was quite nice really :) I have been *very* spoiled, as usual, by boyf and by family and friends, so i am considering myself a very lucky girl (albeit a rather plump one...)

If anyone has any dieting/exercising/health techniques, I would be so grateful... I need all the help I can get, and the prospect of losing a stone or a stone and a half seems to be almost impossible at the moment!! :( Anyway, more tomorrow... x

2002-12-24T23:29:00.000Z

~MERRY CHRIMBLE EVERYBODY!!~

Even if you dont celebrate christmas, I hope everyone has a really lovely day, whatever you're doing, and a very happy and successful new year that's full of calorie-free chocolate.... :) **huggles all round**

/me lifts a piece of mistletoe over her head and snogs JP x miss you sweetheart x

2002-12-24T23:27:00.000Z

hello!

It's christmas eve!

Saturday was initiated by a 9.30 wake-up call from a certain drunken Kiwimonster... and I understand that wasn't the only call you made to a member of my immediate family over the weekend young lady! :) Beeeeehave! :) coolto chat to you babe x

I had a nice weekend with paul, although the trains were hell... (nobody told me that first northwestern were on strike on saturday, so I was a bit stranded at Stockport! eek! But the nice people at Chiltern Railways paid for a taxi for me to say sorry, so it's all okay). I got to meet the new baby ratty, Bambu, who is gorgeous, and I renewed my relationship with Magnum, who I think is liking me more as time goes on (less nibbles...).

Paul cooked me a very very yummy christmas dinner which was a treat, even if we did forget the xmas pud! I was also the very lucky receiver of lots of lovely pressies such as some CDs, (NickelBack, Lifehouse's new album, and Badly Drawn Boy's new album - yay for all three!), and he also gave me a fab Pier bread dipping kit with olive oil and herbs (yum), a wine glass which holds an entire bottle of wine (ahem, well, ya know.... *somebody's* got to take on the job of local village alcoholic...), a bagpuss calendar :), lots of sweeties, and a fabulous red top with lipsticks down it, looking like an ammunition belt! It's great! Oh and I'd better not forget the book of 'George Bushisms' which is very funny and even managed to make my dad laugh :)

We spent most of Sunday in the Trafford Centre where, for the first time ever, we actually *bought* some stuff!!! it's a miracle! I picked up some new Kangaroo trainers which are all bouncy and nice, and pressies for bro and dad... I was also treated to a yummy lunch in Ziggi's, where I can safely recommend the monkfish... Upon departing Trafford Centre, went to see Paul's parents to exchange xmas cards and I was blessed with a bonus pressie!! (looking forward to opening it tomorrow!) We were then descended upon by Paul's brother Mark, Mark's wife Vicky and their daughter Samantha, and having tried several times to shut Samantha in the cupboard, we decided to give up and go home :)

Tried to watch 40 days and 40 nights, and didn't really succeed. Dont bother. Not that most people would, but we were desperate.

Had an amusing conversation last night with smeggy, sorry to hear you are not looking forward too much to chrimbo babe... maybe father xmas will bring you a super dooper electric wheelchair made by ferrari? With wings?

Started a fight over on Fnook's blog :) (Sorry!)

wrote 500 words of an essay. urrgh.

discovered that there was nothing worth watching on telly, so decided to update blog...

got one more thing to say, but i'm gonna say it in a separate post so as to lend it a bit more importance...... ^^^^^^

2002-12-19T21:38:00.000Z

hello!

i'm going to a party tomorrow night :)

I'll be driving, so no alcohol for me, but who cares?? I get to laugh at everybody else making wallies of themselves :)

Oh and I'm reading a fantastically addictive book at the moment - it's 'Fortunes Rocks' by Anita Shreve and I can't put it down. And I really should, cos i've got so much work to do!! But it's amazing. Whenever I pick it up it utterly transports me.... it's gonna be heartbreaking when I finish it, which is only gonna be in a couple of days, the rate I'm going!

Oh and did I mention how much I love my baby? No? Well i do! Ha! big snuggly huggles to Paul, can't wait to see you at the weekend babe, even though you're too busy making music to read this message! But I dont mind :) xxx

2002-12-16T10:20:00.000Z

The essay got done eventually, about 150 words below the 3000 word limit, so that was much more successful than anticipated! As for the quality of the content, well... probably not great! But we'll see.... So that's 2 down, and 3 to go. Then 2 exams. Whoopee, it's gonna be a fun christmas!

Have now done 2 shifts back at Starbucks, and it's all coming flooding back to me! I've fallen head over heals in love with the eggnog latte, which happens to have been my first ever starbucks drink a couple of years ago... i'd forgotten how nice they are, especially with an extra espresso shot.... yum!

It's quite nice to be home.... although I can see the rows with my mum approaching, as always!! Find it astonishingly hard to believe that we're related sometimes.... Nick is coming home for xmas on Friday, which is great, then I'm going to see Paul, and meet his new baby rat Bambu and see the house etc. on Saturday, and I'll come back probably monday...

In addition to all these plans, mum and dad went out and bought our Christmas tree yesterday while i was at work, so I could come home and feel all festive! Not that it's decorated yet of course, that's Dad's and my job tonight when he gets in from work. And for the first time ever, i'm going to put the artificial tree up in the other living room, the one we actually use, so that we can enjoy a bit of christmas spirit while we're just chilling and watching corrie in the evenings! hoorah!

Big message of the day has to go to my mum, who is currently in a job interview.... best of luck ma! She went off looking all swish this morning, as though nothing would phase her (and nothing ever does, except talking about my tattoo :) ) so I would imagine they will be suitably impressed....

Anybody got any ideas about what to buy brothers for christmas? He's not giving anything away!! :)

2002-12-10T22:54:00.000Z

So I'm halfway through an essay.... it's taken me, on and off, about 10 hours to get that far. and I really could do with a bit of sleep now! I keep going downstairs to get food/tea and coming back up and expecting my word count to have miraculously increased.... it's very disappointing when it doesn't. Why wont Microsoft invent a program that will actually research and write essays for you?

2002-12-08T14:53:00.000Z

Okay, so I stole this from Kiwi, who stole it from Mrme, and god only knows where he got it from. I'm procrastinating, cos I dont want to read about Lucian or Jonathan Swift any more...

1. LIVING ARRANGEMENT: Up until recently I had 3 homes - parents house, uni house and Paul's flat.... but since Paul doesn't live in the flat anymore, I have to consider myself homeless until I've made friends with his housemate! Uni house is a nice girly pad in not-so-nice Lenton.... Housemates are all stars though.

2. BOOKS YOU ARE READING NOW: I only wish i was reading something out of choice. I'm 3/4 of the way through Gulliver's Travels, which is alright, but I'd probably enjoy it a lot more if I was reading it cos I actually wanted to. Last book I read for recreation was in summer, and it was Blackberry Wine by Joanne Harris. Twas good... thanks to Tom for the recommendation!

3. FAVORITE MAGAZINE: Hm. Bizarre, cos it's actually *interesting* and cos it's not full of lots of advertising and shite.

4. FAVORITE SMELL: Paul :) My parents' house, frying bacon, hot mince pies!

5. LEAST FAVORITE SMELL: Clothes after I've been in a pub/club - urrrgh! my mouldy wall, Paul's socks, sick, the smell inside 'Ocean' on a Tuesday night (terrible cheesy club in town)

6. FAVORITE SOUND: The absence of my alarm going off, cos I dont need to be anywhere or do anything :)

7. WORST FEELING IN THE WORLD: Filling in forms for my blog knowing I'm meaning to be working. Saying goodbye to my baby when I dont know when im going to see him again :(

8. THE FIRST THING YOU THINK OF WHEN YOU WAKE UP: going back to sleep.

9. HOW MANY RINGS BEFORE YOU ANSWER THE PHONE: however many it takes to get to the phone. more than 2 though, just cos... i dunno!!

10. FUTURE CHILD'S NAME: yikes!! Juanita ;)

11. WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT IN LIFE: Honesty, fairness and not being stingy with love.

12. CHOCOLATE OR VANILLA: vanilla... unless we're talking actual chocolate.

13. DO YOU DRIVE FAST: no... not unless the motorway is clear and i'm playing loud music in my car... but then *I* think 90 is really fast!!

1 4. DO YOU SLEEP WITH A STUFFED ANIMAL: of course I do :) Dont know what I'd do without Mudbone the monkey! :)

15. STORMS - COOL OR SCARY: Scary.... big banging noises and too much rain... urrrgh.

16. YOUR FIRST CAR: I'm only 22, I've never owned a car! Although my mum sort of gave me her old peugeot 405 (think it was a 405) which was a tank... heaviest dang steering in the universe!

17. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN IN LOVE: Yes, a few times, but never more than right now :)

18. YOUR ZODIAC SIGN: Libra

19. DO YOU EAT THE STEMS OF BROCCOLI: yes, with caution - my brother once cut open a stick of cooked broccoli and found it filled with maggots ;p

20. IF YOU COULD DYE YOUR HAIR ANY COLOR, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU CHOOSE: well I *could* dye my hair any colour... I dyed it blue-black once and I really liked that... but now that it's really short, I'm just gonna keep it blonde or dark blonde until I can grow it out again.

21. GLASS - HALF EMPTY OR HALF FULL: It's usually full to the brim!

22. DO YOU TYPE WITH YOUR FINGERS ON THE RIGHT KEYS: yes, and so would a lot of other people, if only they knew what the right keys *were*

23. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE NUMBER: That's a fucking stupid question.

24. FAVORITE SPORT TO WATCH: urrgh. I find most sports boring to watch to be honest, but i do like Wimbledon, and gymnastics is always good, a) cos it's amazing what people are able/willing to do to themselves and b) cos it's fun waiting for someone to bodge it up :)

25. SAY ONE NICE THING ABOUT THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU: Nobody sent it to me, I stole it from Mel... and she phoned me this morning, and i was mean and told her to ring back tomorrow cos i'm tired and stressed! poor girl.

26. WHAT IS UNDER YOUR BED: Carpet and fluff. Oh and some mould along the skirting board. I have a futon - otherwise half my worldly posessions would be under there.

27. TOILET PAPER/PAPER TOWELS - OVER OR UNDER: over - it pisses me off when people put loo rolls on the wrong way round!

28. OF ALL THE PEOPLE YOU E-MAILED THIS TO, WHO IS THE MOST LIKELY TO
RESPOND: i can't think of anybody who would respond if i emailed this to them!

29. LEAST LIKELY: erm

30. MILK - 2%, 1%, WHOLE, NONFAT, OR SKIM: What's with the percentages? is this american?? semi-skimmed. I thought skim and non fat were the same thing. that's what I tell all the customers in starbucks anyway :)

31. RED OR WHITE SAUCE ON PASTA: They are both great, but it depends on the mood. I love tomato based sauces though...

32. COKE OR PEPSI: diet of either is fine. Jesus, honestly, who on earth is going to give a shit if I like coke or pepsi?? Why am i filling in this damn thing!?

33. DO YOU WEAR YOUR SEATBELT EVERY TIME YOU ARE IN YOUR CAR: Absolutely. Why wouldn't you? You're basically choosing whether you live or die in a car accident!!

34. ARE YOU A PILLAR OF COMMUNICATION: no, i'm crap at keeping in touch with people!

35. WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR TONIGHT: Worrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrk! and then corrie. and I might go and listen to Alice's orchestra concert if I get lots of work done before hand.

36. EVER BEEN TO A CONCERT? IF YES, WHAT'S THE MOST RECENT: Yes, I went to see Take That when I was a wee lass (3 times!) and then in the last few years, I went to see Counting Crows, Placebo (V2001), Metallica at the Big Day Out, various people at Leeds festival, Oasis in Finsbury Park (which i *did* enjoy, even though Paul thinks I didn't!) and the most recent was Queens of the Stone Age in Manchester which was great....

37. HOW MUCH JEWELRY DO YOU WEAR: virtually none unless I'm going out. My gothness has dropped off but I'm thinking about taking it up again - it was fun. And that involved lots of rings and bracelets.

38. WAS THIS FUN TO READ AND FILL OUT: Not really, no! Was it fun to read?

39. WHAT DO YOU WEAR TO BED: my outdoor sleeping bag. It's freezing in my room at uni, so I tend to snuggle under my duvet inside my sleeping bag.

40. DO YOU LIVE IN A HOUSE, CONDO, APARTMENT OR TRAILER: House. I wouldn't live in a trailer unless I was travelling the world. And even then, I'm not sure....

41. WHAT TO YOU PREFER TO DRINK: tea! red wine, blue WKD is definitely one my favourite drinks, and I miss mexican Banana Monkeys!

42. WHAT IS YOUR SPECIALTY TO COOK: hehehe. I can't really cook anything very well, but I do make this gorgeously fatty and gloopy pasta sauce with cream, milk, mushrooms, bacon and cheese.... there's no rules, just fry the bacon, add the mushrooms, add some single cream, let it all go smoodgy for a while, salt and pepper, some milk to thin it out if you need to, grate loads of cheddar into it and stir in some pasta. Be careful though... you can almost feel it sticking to your artery walls....

43. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PLACE ON LINE: um. I dont have one. I've gone off IRC, ever since the rest of the world stopped using it. I also hate being on MSN messenger sometimes, cos people always completely ignore your status. If it says i'm BUSY, it means i'm BUSY! :) My favourite places are probably mel's, krys', smeg's, mrme's, and fnook's blogs, cos I read them every day...

I think 43 is a really weird number to stop on.... but there it is. Guess it's time to hit the books now then! Bye everyone...

2002-12-02T12:33:00.000Z

Can I just say.... I can't *wait* to go home for Christmas.... My mum just rang me from town (her first day of not working for years and years) and she sounds like a little kid who just got released early from school... it was so lovely to hear her sounding so chirpy... she didn't even shout at me when she realised I had only just got out of bed! I'm hoping that it's going to be really nice to have her at home over Christmas! Apparently she was "surfing the net" this morning, according to Nick, which is like picturing cavemen using mobile phones ;) bless her! x

2002-12-02T01:05:00.000Z

Oh and..... thanks to mel for phoning me totally out of the blue yesterday!! Actually hung up on the poor girl, cos after all the giggling and the lack of information about who I was talking to, I concluded it must have been some weirdo... I was right!! How lovely to finally speak to you at last babe, after however many (3??) years of chatting to you online!! Hope the hangover isn't too bad ;) x

2002-12-02T01:03:00.000Z

Today was a momentous day for my baby.... he moved house!! Unfortunately I couldn't be there to share the burden of carrying stuff around, but by the sounds of it, he managed okay with the help of some good friends, and the house sounds really nice.... I can't wait to see it! So babe, I know you wont read this for ages, cos you wont have it all set up, but I hope you are very very happy in your new pad, and I look forward to making my mark on it ;) (only kidding)... Love you loads xxxx

2002-11-28T23:52:00.000Z

Well as anticipated, I've positively *crashed* back down to earth after the holiday... oh well! Christmas always seems worse for uni work, I'm not sure if it's because the term is shorter so you have to squash more in, or if it's because I know how much work I will have to get done over the "holidays", not to mention returning to Starbucks and attempting to earn a *tiny* bit of cash to dig me out of my rather bottomless financial hole... hey ho, I'm actually not feeling too depressed about it though, cos i can't help but love christmas :) all those mince pies!! (and boy have we made a head start on those in our house!!). I'm also not feeling too bad cos Paul came to see me last night, and we had a really lovely evening. It felt quite romantic actually, despite the fact that he made me do the YMCA dance in the kitchen, with the light on (and no curtains, and plenty of neighbours!). *grin*

We went to see Die Another Day as well, which I thought was *fantastic*!!! Absolutely everything you expect from 007 and more - action packed death defying stunts, diamonds and riches, gadgets and gizmos, the end of the world, women in bikinis, women no longer in bikinis, double entendres, cheesy one liners and lots of explosions! I thought it was GREAT! Although Paul said "that was undoubtedly the stupidest film I've ever seen" but I think secretly he liked it... and Bond films are supposed to be stupid!! So it was a really nice night, especially due to the fact that having paul beside me meant that I was *finally* relaxed enough to actually sleep right through until the morning, barely waking up except to give him a cuddle... It was just a shame that we had to get up today! I could have stayed in bed for a week... First good nights sleep I've had since we got back. Hoorah!! No sleeping tablets required :)))

Now I dont know if Lofty reads my blog anymore, but just in case, HI BABE! *big wave* and hope you've cheered up a bit since you texted me earlier....

Bumped into Caz on the way to campus this afternoon, which was nice, had a tiny bit of a catch up and promised to get together over the weekend when Rachy is here... which will be rather nice, especially as Ms Lucas has promised me a drink due to my lack of fundage :)

Only other thing to report is that the horrible scabby yukky weeping sore in the corner of my mouth (Which personally i blame on the rapid climate change from Caribbean to English) looks like it might *Actually* be starting to heal... it's more reluctant to bleed now, and doesn't feel (or quite look) like I've been punched on the side of the face any more. Lets hope it's gone by the time I go home for chrimbo!

Anyway, I gotta read a bit more of gullivers travels before bed... anybody got any pearls of knowledge? And please dont just say "Lilliput"....

2002-11-24T14:26:00.000Z

Hi Rach!! :)

2002-11-23T22:45:00.000Z

For mel... x

2002-11-22T00:54:00.000Z

It's safe to say that the last 2 weeks were absolute paradise. Mexico (The Riviera Maya and Yucatan Peninsula to be precise) was absolutely beautiful. We stepped off the plane into something like 26 degrees C, and the thing which struck me hardest as we sat on the coach south from the airport was the *colour* of everything - a theme which ran right the way through our holiday. The sky was a deep blue, the trees (I should say the jungle!) were bright green, and dotted with fiery red flowers all over the place. The journey was quite long, or seemed it after a 10 hour flight, and not very picturesque, and ours was the final hotel to be visited. And as Janice would say.... Oh..... .My..... God.

The Xpu-Ha Palace was heaven. It's a spread out hotel which doesn't feel like a hotel at all - little huts clustered randomly around the resort, linked up by little pathways along which little electric golf carts run, to give you a lift from point to point if you are feeling lazy. (Which I often was :) ) Paul and I were absolutely amazed at the beauty of the place, and it seemed as though something surprised us about it every day. In the resort itself, we saw snakes, iguanas, spider monkeys (my true family!!), hermit crabs, huge mother crabs, dragonflies, lizards, tropical fish, macaws, parrots, a hawk (or something!), turtles, crocodiles (both baby and adult - and I even got to hold a baby croc! yay!). The place was truly amazing, and I really couldn't possibly put it into words, but in summary, it was beautiful, peaceful, warm, friendly and fascinating.

The various trips we took included a day trip to Cancun, a day at Chichen Itza which was one of the most interesting and mystical places I've ever seen... we also had a morning in Playa del Carmen, and a trip to Cozumel which allowed us to experience not only the most torrential rain I've ever seen :) but also to swim with dolphins, which was absolutely incredible... they were so gorgeous and friendly, and very very strong! Expensive trip, but I'm glad we got to do it...

We also met an American couple called Karen and Neil, who it must be said, led us astray and who we both missed on the last two days of our holiday! Guys, if you get to read this, we had a great time with you - hope you made it home safely to NJ!! Karen - we have a seriously funny picture of you ;)

There is so much more I could say about the holiday but it simply wouldn't do it justice. But one thing I do have to say (apologies in advance) is the biggest Thank you ever to Paul, not just for helping me pay for the trip but for sharing it with me - it was perfect, but it wouldn't have been half as good if I'd been there with anybody else... I found you to be the perfect holiday companion, and I hope you had as much fun as me babe :) ***big huggles***

*sigh*

so now I guess it's back to real life! Another 3 weeks of uni to go until we break up for xmas, and there's 3 essays to write in that time, so I'm gonna be pretty busy... but hey ho, I'm considering myself a lucky girl at the moment, and looking forward to Chrimbo....

Congratulations must also go to my big brother for successfully purchasing his first house! Go you! Hope it all works out for you chicken (or N.A.C.{tm})...

Well I guess I'll sign off for now, but I'll blog again in a day or two, probably just to kill time seeing as I'm not seeing my baby this w/end! (sniff) Bye for now!

2002-11-20T17:29:00.000Z

We're back!

Mexico was absolutely perfect - weather was gorgeous most of the time (around 28 C I think), and we had the best time ever... but that's all I'm saying for now, cos I need to have a cup of tea beside me before I start on about it all! Will post proper report at a later date!

2002-11-02T10:40:00.000Z

Hey folks...

This could be the last blog for a while! Tomorrow, Paul and I will be bumbling up to Bolton, staying over, then off we go at 6am to Manchester Airport from whence we (if all goes according to plan and I can avoid the panic attacks and get my hands on a gin and tonic) will be flying for 11 hours and landing in Cancun at 2.30 in the afternoon!! I am almost sick with excitement, and yesterday finally managed to let go of the stresses of uni and coursework. From here on until our return, I am officially lazy! Just waiting for Paul to get today over with, then we can *really* get excited! Woohoooo!

Well I'll miss reading all yer blogs... special love to Kiwi and Mrme, hope you guys have fun!! x

2002-10-23T00:01:00.000Z

Thanks Mrme, I nicked this from you!! :)

1. Your name spelled backwards.
Treblig Anigroeg

2. Where were your parents born?
My mum was born in Jersey and grew up there and in Canada, Belgium and France, and my Dad was born and brought up in Rotherham, Yorkshire.

3. What is the last thing you downloaded onto your computer?
Stuff for The Sims :)

4. What's your favorite restaurant?
Most chinese restaurants I suppose, probably the Emperor's Court in Northwich. It must be a favourite, cos we keep going back!!

5. Last time you swam in a pool?
In Tuscany in July just gone... beautiful views, probably the most beautiful place i've ever seen... so far :)

6. Have you ever been in a school play?
Schyeah, of course - most recently, when I was 17, I played Ferdinand in our school's production of 'the Tempest' - terribly embarrassing. Prior to that, I played a munchkin for our Fifth Form Review, a chorus girl in 'The Boyfriend', two dancers in 'Bugsy Malone', the rat which didn't drown in an amateur theatre 'travelling float' performance of 'The Pied Piper of Hamelin', and that's all I care to admit!

7. How many kids do you want?
Two would probably be good, three at the most, unless there's twins, and then four. :) Bit difficult when the significant other half isn't here to help me answer the question, of course! Although I think I've persuaded him to let me have at least one...

8. Type of music you dislike most?
Bleugh... I absolutely *despise* RnB - everything about it. I want to destroy Craig David with a blunt cheese grater, put all the bits in a pot, boil it all up into a soup, and feed it through a straw to hungry pigs.

9. Are you registered to vote?
Yeah... twice I think ;)

10. Do you have cable?
Lots of cables. I especially like the one linking up my 56k modem to the phone line socket...

11. Have you ever ridden on a moped?
No, but I've ridden on moderately powerful motorbikes before. (as a passenger, obviously)

12. Ever prank call anybody?
Heheheh, yeah... when we were in hall, in the first week, we used to dial random extension numbers to see if anybody wanted to come to a party in Tanya's room.... Well I guess it's not a prank call as such, but it was a good way to meet people...

13. Ever get a parking ticket?
Nope!

14. Would you go bungee jumping or sky diving?
Sky diving, but not bungee jumping... can't really explain why, except i guess it's the whole upside down thing.... scares me. and yes, i know you go upside down when you skydive, but... it's just different, okay?

15. Furthest place you ever traveled.
West Coast of America - LA, San Francisco etc.

16. Do you have a garden?
yes, but i haven't been in it yet!!

17. What's your favorite comic strip?
I like the little 'Matt' cartoons in the paper (can't remember which paper) but i think the 'stuck in mid-air man' has got to take the cake (from Bizarre magazine)...

18. Do you really know all the words to your national anthem?
*my* national anthem??? no, it sucks.... i can't pretend to be interested in monarchy.

19. Bath or Shower, morning or night?
Hm... baths are always for night time, unless i'm at Paul's cos he hasn't got a shower... but showers are nice in the day cos they're quicker.

20. Best movie you've seen in the past month?
hm, in the past month.... i'm not sure. Saw Red Dragon, but it was pretty crap to be honest. I suppose it would have to be My Little Eye... i'm sure i've seen other stuff but i can't remember just now.

21. Favorite pizza topping?
Not a huge pizza fan to be honest, but pineapple is definitely one of my favourites at the moment. But if it's an Italian base pizza, then anything with a bit of identifiable meat and some jalapeno peppers.

22. Chips or popcorn?
Popcorn... it's healthier!

23. What color lipstick do you usually wear?
Daytime, beigy colours... nightime, deep reds, maybe with some gold in the centre.

24. Have you ever smoked peanut shells?
Nah, but my friend Sarah and I smoked an orbit wrapper once. Or we started to... I wouldn't recommend it, it's not pretty.

25. Have you ever been in a beauty pageant?
hehehehehehehehheheheheheheheh. no.

26. Orange Juice or apple?
mmmmm if it's really really good orange juice, then orange. if it's average stuff, and i'm really thirsty then apple. in fact yeah, apple....

27. Who was the last person you went out to dinner with and where did you dine?
Paul, Claire, Paul's parents, Paul's sister Karen, his brother Mark, Mark's wife Vicky and their daughter Samantha, and that was at a gorgeous chinese restaurant in Bolton on Saturday night.

28. Favorite type chocolate bar?
ooooh, tricky, tricky.... i think that depends on the degree of desperation for chocolate - i'd probably rather have a hot chocolate than a chocolate bar, but I like kitkats if i'm really hungry, bountys if i haven't had one for ages, and sometimes one of the flat milky bars goes down nicely... but not the chunky ones... eurgh! oh and i like rolos too :)

29. When was the last time you voted at the polls?
the general election last may. but I felt obliged - i was working for one of the political parties so I got all swept away with it!

30. Last time you ate a homegrown tomato?
Donkey's years ago when my brother was a teenager probably... he used to grow all sorts of stuff in the greenhouse...

31. Have you ever won a trophy?
Yeah, my friend Abi and i won a couple of choreography competitions, and I got quite a few gymnastics awards when I was little. Some snobby and unimportant awards at school which i didn't take seriously...

32. Are you a good cook?
I think I can be, but nobody recognises my talents :) Paul seems to avoid eating my culinary efforts at all costs, but then he eats weird shit.... I like really flavoursome food and he likes his dinner nice and simple. People i've cooked for have enjoyed the food, but most of my cooking is done just for myself and maybe one or two housemates, so I dont get that much flamboyant practice in!!

33. Do you know how to pump your own gas.
Duh... course I do.

34. Ever order an article from an infomercial?
I'm not actually sure what one is, so, erm, i shall say no...

35. Sprite or 7-Up?
Urrrrgh, sugary fizzy drinks! Gross! Diet coke/diet tango/diet lilt please....

36. Have you ever had to wear a uniform to work?
God yeah... *cringe*. I worked for forbuoys for a few months as my first proper job, and I had to wear this awful navy skirt which came to my shins, with a cream blouse (tucked in! Jeeesus!) with a little blue floppy bowtie. it was hideous. When I worked for Laura Ashley, we had to wear LA clothes, but we had pretty much free reign so I went for the least frumpy stuff. Starbux uniform is cool, it's just black and white - you can wear what you want as long as it's the right colour, and you've got a collar of some sort on.

37. Last thing you bought at a pharmacy?
A prescription, some sushi, a waterproof disposable camera, and a bottle of acetone. (well, that's the last few trips)

38. Ever throw up in public?
not really - in a cubicle in a ladies toilet of a pub, and on my parents' drive way, but I can't think of another occasion....

39. Would you prefer being a millionaire or find true love?
If it's true love, and it lasts the rest of my life, then there's no question at all.... money is nice, but it's only nice if you have somebody to share it with.

40. Do you believe in love at first sight?
No. I believe that you can immediately sense a very strong attraction towards somebody, not just physically but spiritually but love is something that takes time. How can you love somebody properly when you dont know anything about them? That's not love of a person, it's love of an idea or fantasy.

41. Ever call a 1-900 number?
If that's a rudey type 0898 number then i can safely say no!

42. Can ex's be friends?
Yes, definitely, although none of mine are! Not boyfriends, anyway... there's one person who's a very good friend of mine still who I had a crush on years ago and a bit of a snog with, but he's not an 'ex'.... (hey Rob! :) )

43. Who was the last person you visited in a Hospital?
My great Auntie Peggy - she seems to scoot to the edge of the never never and scoot right back again! (not that i'm complaining she came back :) ). Before her, my grandmother a year ago. She was diagnosed with cancer and died a month later.

44. Did you have a lot of hair when you were a baby?
um... i dont really remember!

45. What message is on your answering machine?
I dont have an answer phone. my voicemail message is the standard orange one.

46. What's your all time favorite Saturday Night Live Character?
Um, am I too young for that?

47. What was the name of your first pet?
Whisky - he was a guinea pig who lived under the sofa. Or at least that's what *he* thought.

48. What is in your purse?
Switch card, NUS card, Boots advantage card, sainsbury's reward card, national insurance card, video card, out of date Starbucks ID card, Paul's 'Indigo Tattoo' business card, my Eurodisney ticket, a fortune from a fortune cookie which says "If we dont make mistakes, we will never make anything", some receipts, a couple of old bus tickets, a pitiful amount of change, and my young person's railcard. Oh and a hairclip and a barbell.

49. Favorite thing to do before bedtime?
exchange text messages with my favourite babe, cuddly my gorgeous cuddly monkey 'Mudbone', answer 50 random questions on my blog, drink wine with housemate Sarah and talk about weird stuff...

50. What is one thing you are grateful for today?
the fact that it's over. And I made a trip today which potentially was a good idea, although it's one of those things where you seem to go down before you go up... One more thing - I'm grateful because now that it's technically wednesday, it's one less day until Paul and I wave goodbye to this wet, grey miserable country and jet off to paradise! Woooooohoooo!! :)))) Might have to start packing my suitcase soon, just to ease the excitement a bit!

2002-10-22T08:49:00.000Z

Hello everybody,

just a quickie wave to the world. Tuesdays are not great - only got 3 hours of lectures, but 2 of those are very very boring indeed... more sleep required!! Ho hum...

got a busy week ahead, but will blog again later, otherwise i'll be late for school! x

2002-10-14T23:35:00.000Z

well, happy birthday me....

yup, i hit 22 on friday... and i've had a fun birthday actually... thursday, went out with my lovely uni friends - Kathryn, Alice, Sarah, Anna, Lucy, Rob, Caz and Jimbo, and we went to a gorgeous place called 'the Living Room' - food was yummy and not vomit-inducingly expensive, which was nice... oh and the cocktails they do are *scrumptious*... This was preceded by sausages on sticks and nibbles and stuff at my house, which seemed to work out quite well, so i was pleased about that...

On Friday, lectures dragged a bit, so i escaped one half way through in order to get ready to meet paul, who was picking me up to take me *somewhere*, but i didn't know where... traffic meant i had to get a cab out of nottingham and meet him by the m1, but this saved us loads of time, so we reached the Contact theatre in manchester in plenty of time, and therein watched 'Peepshow' which was absolutely brilliant.... very very impressed indeed, lots of cleverly choreographed scenes and it was both funny and poignant... definitely gets 5 stars from me!

Saturday, lounged in bed for a while, and paul was at work... ventured into town then up to matalan to buy paul some more mugs and glasses so he could put the washing up off for another month or so... :) As i was coming out, i got a phone call from paul asking if i'd like to have my nails done, cos becky who rents the top floor of the studio had a gap... so of course i said yes, and spent over an hour having my nails clipped, filed, glued and painted (and fake ones attached, obviously) and believe me, *nothing* but a long acetone soak is gonna get these babies off! Paul finished work and we went to sainsbury's to get some stuff in for dinner, and he started it all off while i was ordered to sit down and watch tv, so that was fine! Then lo and behold, our mates jenny and chris walk in, total surprise to me, which was lovely! wine and champagne and a really rather tasty dinner ensued and that was really nice...

Sunday, off we went to see paul's mum and dad, who provided me with a bday card, pressie from their travels, and some wine...

Then off we went once again to see Pat and Richard and Chloe, where we were spoilt once again with a very experimental but highly successful roast chicken dinner!! woohoo!
Anyway, a rundown of our gastronomical adventures is prolly not all that exciting, so i'll shut up now! But ya know, it has to be done!

Oh and one more thing........ 3 weeks to go!!!

2002-10-10T16:27:00.000Z

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TOM!!! :)

Thanks for the book!

2002-10-09T07:21:00.000Z

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ABS!!

Yes, today, Abi is 22! Hoorah! Hope you have a wonderful day my lovely, will give you a ring tonight xxx

2002-10-08T22:07:00.000Z

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LENA!!!

Okay, so it's only an hour until it's not your birthday anymore, but at least i posted it, and i *did* speak to you earlier on :) Lots of huggles for the birthday girl...

And tomorrow, there's another birthday girl, but i dont think she reads my blog! well hopefully she will after tomorrow! yay! Watch this space!

2002-10-07T23:39:00.000Z

The last few days:

Paul came down saturday, streaming sinuses and all (poor love), and we went to see My Little Eye, which was good - not as terrifying as I'd expected, but still entertaining, and quite a surprising ending....

Sunday, we struggled to entertain ourselves, had lunch at a fairly average GrillBar, then Paul couldn't hold the snot in any longer and decided to go home (i sniffed too at this point). The whole day was a bit bleugh, to be honest, specially when my baby left me :( but the poor sod wasn't well.... Sunday night, nothing really happened, watched a couple of Friends episodes with Sarah, and i can't really remember if anything else happened. Probably not!

Today I basically stayed in, tried to make Sims work on my pc (MG - those expansion packs dont work on my pooter!!!) then i did some work (yes folks, you heard it here first...) then i slept (quelle surprise) for a couple of hours, and we cooked Rogan Josh, which didn't really taste of anything. Then off I went with some good old pals, Rob, Caz, Lucy and Paul (sorry, i meant Winston) to see 'One Hour Photo' - definitely worth the trip, Robin Williams is fab as a weirdo psycho, unpredictable and with questionable morals. The film was really watchable, there was no "when is this going to pick up?" or "ehhhh?????" or anything like that. It just carries you along its little journey and plops you down at the end. Good stuff...

And tomorrow, we have a very special BIRTHDAY GIRL who will get a wee message from me when i wake up :)

2002-10-05T00:26:00.000Z

Hoorah! Finally I'm back online! "what a feeeeeelin, deh deh dennnn deh dennnn" etc... yay! :)

Received mel's gift of playboy undies and i'm so chuffed! Thanks babe! They are being put to one side along with all my recent holiday purchases, to be used only once my feet are firmly on hot mexican soil! (4 weeks and 2 days to go people!)

Paul and I went to get our jabs on monday which was fun... the nurse told us to wait in the waiting room for 10 mins afterwards, cos if we were going to suffer any side effects, they would take place immediately! Well we didnt die, which i guess is good.... its just a case of keeping the mosquitoes away now....

Amazing how work for uni builds up. Already have stacks of reading to do. I guess its good in a way, cos it reminds me why arts degrees aren't necessarily as easy as everybody thinks they are.... not that i can forget that, after last june's exam stress! ne'mind.

Seeing paul tomorrow.... might see if we can go see My Little Eye... it looks pretty creepy.

Oh and in case anybody was wondering, my birthday is next friday :) All monies and sacrifices to be sent to ng7... :) Ripe old age of 22... gosh, i'll be a grandma before I know it.... :)

bye for now!

2002-10-01T12:49:00.000Z

Okay, I'm here, I'm kind of settled in and uni is all go again! Not too many hours of lectures and most of my modules are pretty interesting. Housemates are sweet, am prolly gonna be quite happy in my new house, despite the 3ft square bedroom! Wish I could be online a bit more, be assured that I am working on it, but my housemates aren't quite as enthusiastic as i am!!

Hope you guys are all okay, will post again soon! x

2002-09-19T21:42:00.000Z

Okay, guys, I'm disappearing for a while... tomorrow I move into the new house, with the new and random people, and we dont have the net yet, so I'm not sure when i'll get chances to blog etc. I'll try to get on campus to check mail and stuff, but dont hold yer breath! Those of you I like have my mobile number, those of you I dont, probably aren't even reading this cos you prolly dont like me back :) So I will update you all on the new life as soon as I can.... Lots of love xxx (wish me luck! eek!)

2002-09-17T21:11:00.000Z

Well, today wasn't so bad. Ivan {the terrible} hardly came near me, which was good, I dobbed him in to the manager for stealing food (hoorah! payback!), and i got 69 out of 70 on my Core 2 test, which means I'm now officially fully trained! The next step on my training programme would be as supervisor, which obviously can't happen cos i'm going back to uni, but still, it's good to know :)

Oh and Ivan wont be in tomorrow *or* thursday! Hoorah! Mary will be in tomorrow, but then she seems tame now, in comparison....

2002-09-16T23:11:00.000Z

/me sets out buckets at regular intervals.

Disclaimer - the following post has been composed with the intention of boosting my partner's ego and virtually nothing else, except expressing myself a bit....

I am utterly and passionately in love with Paul... he is my universe, he's at the centre of everything I do, and I miss him like I've never missed anything in my life... I wouldn't even miss my leg as much as him, if it got chopped off! (well, er, i reserve the right to change my mind about that, circumstances permitting)

Anyway, the point is, there is only one person in my life who has my heart, and it's Paul. And I want him, and everybody else in the universe, to know that.

So ner.

:)

2002-09-16T20:57:00.000Z

I wish i was clever enough to design my own blog page.... I dont know why it's suddenly doing that thing next to the date, cos i haven't done anything to the template :(

Today was crap, cos my "supervisor" (who thinks he's the most fantastic thing alive, ever, and doesn't think women are capable of making proper coffee...) said some really horrible things to me, and by 10 am he'd made me cry twice... doesn't exactly bode well for a great week :( Luckily, my manager is on my side and had a bit of a go at him for quite a while this morning... Just not relishing working with him again this week, and i have another 3 days to go :( It feels like a lifetime!

2002-09-12T09:06:00.000Z

On a brighter note, in case anyone is familiar with Manchester, this is currently one of my favourite places...

2002-09-12T01:43:00.000Z

"I'd forgotten how tall they were. I'm cold. It's real. REAL and Black. They're actually planning it right now. The lights are still on and it's all being planned.

Still some laughter - they have no idea.

"It's gonna be a beautiful day!"

Oh shit, I'm so cold.... Numb... Everything is shattered, the whole way through. To the foundations.

Sick. Fear. Unity.

'Don't litter'

2002-09-11T21:47:00.000Z

Today was hard for a few reasons. For one of those reasons, I owe a thank you to Martin DB and Metal Gear.... one for listening, and one for just knowing. You are good people and I appreciate finding willingness to try to understand. Thank you... x

2002-09-10T00:07:00.000Z

Just ranted on Smeggy's blog about september the 11th... sorry if i went off on one, but i for one have been very deeply affected by it, and i intend to stay that way, otherwise who else is going to object to terrorism?

By the way, if anybody argues with me about this on my blog, i'll have you slimed! :)

2002-09-09T23:45:00.000Z

My mother is a bitch very very often. I'm sick of it. I want to crawl out of the house and sit in the middle of the road until something very very big and heavy runs me over. Why is it that I seem to spend most of my life giving advice to my friends and trying to work out their issues with them, and when I need advice, the two people that normally everybody can turn to, just turn their backs on me and say they can't help? Can't they put aside their fucking snobby prejudices just for five minutes to help me out and give me some parental assistance? They keep throwing at me how much money they give me and how much they support me, but I couldn't give a fuck about that, the money is so not the issue... what ever happened to having a bond with your parents? What ever happened to your parents being the people who, under any circumstances, you could turn to at all times?

Feel like I'm not coping with life too well at the moment. Might not blog for a few days... think I might start getting my stuff together for uni. I think i'm relishing the idea of living in a strange house, with 3 strangers, away from everybody I know, more than living with my own family (brother excluded)...

Disclaimer - dont get me wrong, I love my parents very very much (no matter how hard I try not to!) - they are my world and my only constant. They are always "there", but that's why it's so heartbreaking that I can't rely on them for advice and help when I really need it. Tonight, all I needed was for somebody to tell me that I was overreacting about something and being a knob. Eventually, this did emerge from my mum, but it took so much effort to get her to try to be unbiased, it was virtually valueless advice... anyway... i guess i've slagged them off enough now...

2002-09-01T21:06:00.000Z

Recently, my mind has been occupied with the following.....

How much I miss Lena, Paul, Tom and Damo and number 35 in general, how nervous I am about moving in (again) with people I dont know... can only hope i'm as lucky this time as i was last time, i have also been wondering what the hell has happened to lena, who seems to have disappeared. Also - starbucks, how much fat i'm consuming by eating a panini and a caramel cream frappucino with whipped cream and caramel sauce *every day* and how crap i'm going to look in a bikini on the beach in mexico in november...., mexico.... mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm........... paul, a lot, like... all the time, and how much I miss him, and how i can't wait to see him again on wednesday, how i might see if i can change my wednesday shift to an open rather than a close, so that i can get to paul sooner...., how quickly i'd better send off my loan application form, seeing as i need to pick the money up in about 3 weeks, how sick i am of living with my goddamn narrowminded snobby bastard parents (who i love very much, but who i've had enough of for just the time being), how much I dislike working at the windsor branch, how bad i am at getting a decent night's sleep, how impressed i am by sominex, (half a tablet is enough to sleep soundly with almost NO DREAMING!!! - it feels like a miracle!), how crap the Mothman Prophesies was (i couldn't even finish it), how twisted my dreams are (not going to talk about them to anyone, in case I get sectioned), how much i like jam, how small and lonely my bed is without Paul in it (okay, so having him in it doesn't make it bigger, but it usually means i'm in a different bed)... i've also been thinking about mexico and how totally wonderful it's going to be... my mother wanted to know "why this holiday is so important" this morning, and because I know she will never ever understand, I refused to talk to her about it at all. Of course, it's important because it's two solid weeks with Paul, who I am utterly in love with, and who I never get to spend proper time with because of work, or his work, or other people, or stuff, or whatever... and it's basically a fortnight of sheer paradise with him, where we can totally relax and forget about *everything* except each other. It's also my dream come true to visit the caribbean, but my mother wouldn't understand that about dreams....

I dont think I've got much else to say tonight. I hope everybody that I know is well is well and happy... and I wish mel would blog again - hey mel, i had a dream about you last night, I arrived in new zealand after about a 5 minute journey, and we went shopping! (okay, so it was one of my less freakish dreams :) ) Hope your bruise is looking ugly babe :) xx

2002-08-26T22:06:00.000Z

Irony...

Today, two snooty sixty-something customers approached my workmate and me demanding a refund because their cappucinos didn't taste like coffee they'd had in Italy. (Like, what the fuck did you expect?) So, being nice, we asked the manager to give the refund, which he did, and he then sat the customers down at a table and chatted to them for quite a while, about starbucks i guess, and what the company is about, and about what the customers expected etc. Basically, they were two pains in the arse who didn't really deserve the time of day. They duly filled out their feedback forms (to complain about the coffee). Meanwhile, a lady approached me clutching her own customer feedback form, and asked me for my manager's name. Now suspicious, I asked her why she wanted it, and she said it was to praise him for the wonderful way in which he'd handled the two incredibly difficult customers - customers who, if she had been the manager, she'd have told to sod off back to Italy and buy their coffee from somebody else.... :) Perhaps just sometimes, there is some justice in the world! Made me smile, anyway!

2002-08-23T22:34:00.000Z

Lord of the Rings:

Watched for the first time 3 days ago. Yes, I thought it was fantastic, no I wasn't bored, nor did I think it was too long, in fact I was disappointed when it finished and can't wait for the next installment!!

Inkeeping with this new experience, I have stolen this from Fnook's page.... Ta lovey!

Which Middle Earth race are you? go to:the quiz!

You're a hobbit. You're the shortest little thing, and you have hairy feet. Mostly you just hang out with lecherous wizards with gnarled staffs and smoke pipeweed. If you could find something more boring to do, you'd likely do it instead.

2002-08-22T20:35:00.000Z

whinge:

On Saturday, I worked at the Windsor store. I was making a mug of tea for a bitch of a customer, picked up the mug, which was really hot as it just came out of the dishwasher. I put it under the hot (read: freshly boiled) water, realised I couldn't hold it, cos it was too hot, kind of half dropped it, automatically went to catch it and dragged my left middle finger under the stream of the water. I then turned into Drama Queen Extraordinaire and rather poncily threw the cup (totally instinctively), full of hot tea, onto the floor. It hurt a lot. I ran my finger under cold water for about 40 minutes, but for ages, when I took it out of the water so I could get back to work, it started burning again, and I had to go back. Eventually, I realised that I really did need to get back onto the shop floor, as that was the whole point of me being in Windsor, filling in, so I got back to it, dipping my finger in cold water as often as poss. Next day it was a bit red, bit swollen and a bit sore. Day after, it was less swollen, redder, and blistering. Following day it was getting a little better, didn't hurt anymore unless i banged it, but I noticed the skin surface was numb.... It's still red, but today, my finger has decided to completely rid itself of damaged skin... so I'm now peeling... Funny, if I cut myself, i have to wear a lovely big blue plaster, for health and safety reasons. But when my finger is peeling off, they dont actually seem to want me to take any precautions at work. Whassat about?

2002-08-22T20:21:00.000Z

Starbucks. It's a really nice job, I love it, I've never enjoyed working anywhere quite so much, except maybe the Labour Party last year. However, there is always something or someone you have to watch out for. At my store, it's a particular trainee supervisor, who is not even the same standard as me yet, she can't make drinks really, but that's okay cos it's something which just comes with time and practice. I've had more than she has, so I'm a bit more advanced than she is at the moment. Simple. Unfortunately, she complains that she doesn't ever get told how to do things, which is a valid complaint, except for the fact that when you try to explain things to her, she looks blankly at you, and ignores everything you said. Today I tried to explain to her that we dont keep fruit smoothies on top of the fridge, because the heat will make them explode. She looked at me and then pointed vaguely at them, and said "yes, but why dont they just put them up there, instead of filling the bottles with water?"...... like, I just TOLD you that, 3 seconds ago..... *grrrr*. Those of you who know me even vaguely well probably know I'm a fairly patient person and I dont often get cross.... but one of these days, that woman may make me raise my voice a notch :)

Anyway.

I'm having one of my insecure and paranoid evenings, just a little bit, so I'm maybe gonna tuck myself in bed with my spanish tapes, see if I can't learn a thing or two except for 'no tengo dinero' before bedtime... Take my mind off the little niggly things which seem to shape my mood so completely these days... Roll on september...

2002-08-19T09:22:00.000Z

Insane weekend...

Friend Abi's hen party finally all came together after lots of phone calls and long hours chatting to random friends... We went to a medieval banquet near Tower Bridge and it was wonderful!

Saturday saw me very hungover and dragging my ickly poorly body down to Windsor, to do a fill-in shift there... ended up leaving 45 minutes later than i was meant to, much to the consternation of poor parents...

Saturday night didn't really exist, cos I pretty much went straight to bed, then Sunday, off into London with french girl from Mum's office, Anne-Sophie... Covent Garden, Camden, and some nice jewellery later, I finally got back home to be greeted by cousin Charlie and his wife Katharine. Much food consumed, wedding video watched and even sobbed over... gorgeous people, have to visit them again soon!! (escaping of the parents is always good!) Brief phone call with Rachy-roo and Paul, and then my nice warm bed... mmmm, sleeeeeep....

So that's my weekend... Have recently discovered, much to my disappointment, that Lofty actually *has* abandoned his blog.... naughty!!!!

Anyway, i'm starving and have a few things to do before work...

2002-08-14T22:43:00.000Z

Okay, all you haircut hungry people, this is what I had done this morning.... I know it's only been a month since i had *the chop*, but i got a bit bored and wanted something a wee bit more drastic. It's not the nicest picture of me, so please find a bucket before taking this link :)

Hairdo Central!

Honest opinions only please.... x

2002-08-10T17:08:00.000Z

No, I haven't abandoned my blog Tom, I've just been very busy!

That's busy working and sleeping by the way :)

Saw Paul last weekend and it was too short, but totally cool... definitely left it too long, but it made all the more special to see him again, and that's all I'm saying on that subject!

Going back again tonight and I can't wait... wish I wasn't so tired, but might have a nap before I get in the bath... maybe... dunno.

Went to see Abi 2 nights ago, saw pictures of her in her wedding dress, in preparation for the big day (less than 3 weeks now, which is very scary!). Also got shown round their new house, and it's lovely... was expecting a tiny little poky thing, but it's really gorgeous... gotta try and sort things out for the hen night now! eek, too much responsibility!! :)

Right, i'm gonna maybe go and sleep for a bit... have a nice weekend all...

2002-08-03T20:19:00.000Z

Here we go then

Italy... the Itinerary... Nick and I flew out to Pisa on one hours sleep, to meet les parents and after a terrifying but breathtaking flight (nothing happened, just dont like taking off or banking!!!) over the Alps, we were greeted in Pisa by blazing sunshine and thick heat. Very impressed so far! Parents looked tanned and happy, which was a refreshing change, and we climbed into our giant rented Renault scenic and off we drove to the leaning tower. Well, it really is leaning. Quite a lot actually. We didn't go up it, although people were, cos the queue was huge, so we stopped for a coffee nearby, took some photies and got back in the car. For those who haven't been, the tower is the most attractive thing about Pisa - it struck us as a dirty industrial city with very little to recommend it. As my first impression of Italy, I was feeling a little bit wary, but Pisa couldn't have contrasted more with our destination for the next three days which was Chianti in Tuscany...

Chianti (we stayed in between Greve and Castellina, in the Villa Rosa di Boscorotondo) - absolutely beautiful countryside, totally unspoilt and just the way I imagined Italy to be. Rolling hills, blanketed with cliched patchwork patterns, only instead of fields, we found ourselves gazing at vineyards and olive groves which I found really exciting, I suppose because it was all very real and very agricultural... You could see the little grapes and olives ripening on the trees, and it's a far cry from the bottles of Chianti you see in Sainsbury's... amazing to be right in the middle of it...

The hotel was pink. Always a bonus. Inside, it was a bit like a mini castle, arched windows, stone floors and high ceilings. The swimming pool (the only one we were to see on our holiday) turned out to be a significant focal point, providing some relief from the dusty heat! (Okay, so it took my mother three quarters of an hour to actually get in it, but once in, it was suddenly much warmer!)

Our three days in Tuscany saw my dad and me agreeing that my first sip of Italian wine was easily the best either of us had ever tasted, and it proved to be the best of the whole holiday, although it was all so much fuller and generally more tasty than wine i've bought in this country. We saw Florence and climbed up the tower opposite the 'Duomo'/Cathedral, (414 steps thankyou!), I got a bit sunburnt, but nothing exciting. We searched Tuscany for wine tasting spots but didn't seem to have a lot of luck until our drive out of Tuscany, as we headed off to destination number 2, which was....

Rome - wow. that's all I can really say. I've studied Roman history for nearly 6 years, and Rome took my breath away and made me understand why I'm doing the 'useless' degree i am. Incredible statues and architecture, art, ruins, everywhere you look. Even walking from the main centre towards the Colosseum, you cross over the ancient Roman forum... To be able to stand and look, and point out certain structures to my family and be able to hazard a vaguely educated guess as to its identity was quite an amazing feeling. I was wrong a lot of course, but I know that I was also right about lots of things.. the rush I get from that isn't an 'im so clever' thing, it's a 'wow, i've heard so much about this and now i'm seeing it with my own eyes' thing. Difficult to describe, but something I will never forget.

Rome was truly fab. Tiring, but fab. The clothes shops on the main roads through the city were ace (although nothing compared to one single shop in Positano, see later!) Rome wasn't built in a day, and it would take weeks to explore it properly... Unfortunately we were limited to 2 days and 3 nights, so we ventured into the Colosseum which was superb. Our guide led us through the centre of the arena ('arena' meaning sand originally, and it was covered in sand to soak up the blood of the animals and gladiators who fought on it), and to stand in the centre and imagine yourself surrounded by 50,000 odd bloodthirsty Romans, including the emperor and the senate, was very scary... knowing that thousands of people had died on the spot where I was standing was weird. I was *very* much reminded of Gladiator, which I have always thought was an ace film due to it's accuracy, poignancy and sex appeal ;). I sent fellow classicist Annie a text message from the the Colosseum, which I hope she appreciated... (on her honeymoon at the time!) We had dinner that evening nearby the colosseum, and Nick ordered what turned out to be the most mouthwatering, melty gorgeous green peppercorn steak that ever existed... If anybody is ever in Rome, tell me and i'll give you directions to this place... it wasn't expensive, it wasn't an obviously classy restaurant, but the food was absolutely amazing...

We also visited the Trevi fountain, which was a surprise as it is a beautiful great piece of art, tucked away in a tiny side street... you sort of stumble across it by mistake, and it's quite weird... Highlight of my trip though, was of course, Vatican City, and most of all, the museum.... Ancient sculpture all over the place, much of which I recognised, such as the Laocoon, various 'heads', some depictions of Hercules/Herakles, Athena, Perseus, etc. and of course we saw the Sistine Chapel... alas, no pics were allowed, but it was amazing. Unfortunately, my day, (and to a certain extent, the trip as a whole!)_was ruined because the one part of the museum I wanted to see was closed for 1 year for refurbishment, which I hadn't realised. I asked the guards where the Prima Porta Augustus was kept, and when they named the closed gallery I could have cried. Still, the Vatican isn't going anywhere, so i will go back again sometime soon and I *will* get my picture of the PPA!!

Ok, I could go on about Rome for ever... but i shant. I will, however, be looking for volunteers to accompany me back there, so I can see the rest of it!

After three days of near death experiences on the Roman roads (you haven't seen bad driving until you've been to Italy, believe me... although i say 'bad', it's more... aggressive... the Italians are very skilled at driving badly, they do it incredibly well! :) ) we moseyed on down Past Pompeii to Positano on the Amalfi coast. Well... if we thought Roman roads were bad, they were nothing compared to modern Pompeii... thanks to the advice of one of my lecturers, I'd been prewarned of the dangers of the area. If we'd had to walk anywhere there, I would have feared for my life on every corner. As it was, I wound up my window and prayed my dad would lock the doors!! Not a very nice place... But weirdly enough, after we managed to find our way out of the area, we went through a long tunnel which cut through the mountains to the other side of the peninsula, and nothing could have prepared me for the stark contrast. Suddenly there were tiny little towns perched on the cliffsides beside the sea, gorgeous little shops and houses with miles of windy cliffside roads in between. Sheer rockfaces and mad drivers made it all a bit scary, but we eventually arrived in Positano unscathed and relieved it was nothing like Pompeii!

If you ever visit Positano, be aware that if you go past your hotel on the main road, you will be forced to continue driving for another 5 miles or so on the ring road, cos it's all one way! I think we did about 3 circuits before we finally found somewhere to park. Then it was 150 steps or so up to reception, and then we flopped. This hotel definitely deserves a mention, it was the Casa Albertina. The staff were friendly and helpful, and despite the initally intimidating vertical distance from the beach, it was actually easily walkable along the main road, and the little shops on the way were lovely (albeit a bit pricey!).

Well, there's more, but i'll have to blog it tomorrow, cos i'm too tired!!! Hope you've not all been too bored by my ickle anecdotes.... x

2002-08-02T22:54:00.000Z

I promised to blog about my holiday tonight but i've changed my mind, cos i'm tired! sorry!

Bought a blue stripey dress today... reserved entirely for me, paul and the enchiladas.... just like the PINK BIKINI.....

2002-08-01T20:46:00.000Z

Ok, I'm home... Who wants to know what happened? ;)

2002-07-18T05:39:00.000Z

Okay, last night mel told me off for not being vocal enough about the fact that I'm going to Italy tomorrow. Well there it is, now you know! :)

Shit... I'll be on an aeroplane in 24 hours. Have been so busy at work I've been forgetting to worry about it... crap. Oh well, anybody wanting a postcard had better send me an email with an address! x

2002-07-12T21:03:00.000Z

Hey up...

So, it's been an eventful week! Last weekend, Paul came down and we buggered off to London to see Oasis at Finsbury Park. Good gig, it was good fun, although P doesn't believe me :) Was nice to hear some old familiar tunes with some happy memories... Shame about the man who was squatting at the side of the pathway for a poo on the way in... He must surely have been on some strong drugs.. I hope that there's nobody in this world who could do that without an external influence... (urrrrgh!) Anyway, it was lovely to spend a fab 2 days with my sweetie.... (and yes you do have a sweet singing voice hun :) ) I actually spent a fair amount of time in london this week as I had my 'espresso bar' class on tuesday in parsons' green. No visit to Charlie and KathArine this week, alas, but the course was good albeit tiring! (turned up at 9 and got told to come back at 3 - went home, slept for an hour and went back into london again!) One thing I have noticed this week - why oh why oh why do people always look suprised when they start to fall over as the tube train moves out of the station? They get on, stand there in their suits looking all suave like they're confident and steady enough to manage without holding onto the bars, then when the train moves, oops, there they go, treading on the person next to them, and looking all surprised that they fell over.... tossers!!! honestly...

Starbux is going well, have done a ridiculous number of hours this week, mostly 8 hour shifts, had 2 hours sleep last night in between an 8 hour shift and a 7 hour shift which began at 7 this morning. I also had my barista test today, which was okay except for my tall almond cappuccino which wasn't almondy enough... (peh!) Anyway, if Paul ever calls me work-shy again, I'll belt him one :) (see honey, i told you i could work when i wanted to!!)

Immediately following shift, parents came to get me from uxbridge Starbux, and off we went to stansted airport. About 2 hours later, we finally actually *arrived* at the airport, where I said my bye byes to les parents (or il parente or whatever it is) and drove a further 1.5 hours all the way back again, bypassing tesco on the way and FORGETTING THE CHOCOLATE, DAMMIT! Still, I bought some brie and some wine, so i guess the choc can wait...

Oh crap, big brother's on... can i be bothered??? not really... PJ's out, good, i voted, I can't believe I voted but i did (Thomasina, are you proud of me?)... the guy is a waster... ("Davina was gutted, did you hear her? She was really gutted" - Only gutted cos she had to spend an hour with your dull ass before she could go and tuck her baby into bed and clean up its poo....)

Guess I should go now... Nobody's online and I'm on wine glass #3, so maybe I should go and veg for a bit... Feel I deserve it....

Ohhhh.... the BIG WEEKEND DEBATE - do i or do i not get my hair cut? Kinda floppy on top, shooting across my forehead, and flicky-outy at the back (short).... I'm wanting a change, and I'm a bit nervous.... input would be great :)

One more thing, a special message for Lena - (to be sung to the tune of 'aint no sunshine when she's gone' - "Ain't no hairdryer in that tent... Aint no mirrors anywhere... Aint no makeup, nothing's clean... so how will you primp and preen, on a campsite miles away?" HAHAHAHAHHAAHAHA, princess and the pea syndrome! :) Hope you have fun, despite the absence of creature comforts... I'm sure you'll love it :)

Signing out.. for now...

2002-07-09T22:45:00.000Z

Hi everyone,

Just to let ya know that I *will* be blogging again in the next 48 hours, for those of you who aren't sufficiently satiated by Big Brother, but at the moment, I'm knackered and can't be bothered, quite frankly :)

Anyway, that's it, hope you are all well, and be assured that I'm picking you all out individually as I think that.... x

2002-07-02T22:51:00.000Z

Lofty and Tom, are you both alive out there?

2002-07-02T22:44:00.000Z

Ahem... the most pointless statement I have ever uttered in my meagre 21.5 years of life emerged about 45 seconds ago:

"Mrme, dont be filthy"

2002-07-02T22:40:00.000Z

I DID IT! I actually went to the gym, all by myself, for the first time since I was about 17. (Okay, so that's not so long ago, but it feels like more than 4 years!) I did a full hour, mostly weights but some cardio stuff, just to build up a bit of a sweat. I'm there more for muscle toning than anything else... Wanna look nice standing next to Paul on the beach :) Even if I am virtually transparent at the moment.... I *hate* English sunbathing... well hate isn't the right word, but I get really bored... would rather be outside in the sunshine doing something...

But anyway, there it is :)

Parsons Green is off for another day, not til Thursday now, but tomorrow I get to visit my cousin and his gorgeous wife, who I'm excited about getting to know better cos she's one of those people who are just *really nice*... You know the ones? :) Sort of person who never stops smiling and I tend to gravitate towards people like that, as I find their good moods infectious. Will have to ask permission to post a few wedding pics, if anyone's interested? (Mel, i'm relying on ya here :) )

Right, busy chatting and gonna get going to bed soon, catch everyone tomorrow x

2002-07-02T09:53:00.000Z

An enormous cuddle and wishes of good luck go to my baby who is opening his new business today... Fingies crossed, I know you'll do well baby, and you know the rest :) Will put in a link to the website once it's finished and i've been given the green light!

Second thing is a big thank you to Mel for my gorgeous pressie which I received just now in the post... It's a beautiful shell pendant, brightly coloured and all shiny, from Southern Paua... some poor bugger went blue diving down to get that shell for me, and I'm really grateful... it's absolutely gorgeous :) (I think it will go rather nicely with my bikini whilst I'm wading in the Carribbean sea in November ;) )

Parsons green is being postponed until tomorrow as they were fully booked today, but it gives me a bit more time to look through my bumph and try to learn a bit of stuff about the company...

Logging off for now, but i'll be back :)

2002-07-01T12:44:00.000Z

Okay, for those of you who don't already know, which is probably none of you, I am now officially employed as a Starbucks 'Barista' in training... I've passed my health and safety/food hygiene module no probs, and tomorrow I'm off to Parsons Green for my 'Starbucks Experience' :) Whatever that means... hey ho, I've got a job! Finally Mexico is looking like it might be within reach, a bit... fingies crossed!

2002-06-29T10:53:00.001Z

BTW, anyone got any suggestions for a new template? Getting bored of this one already...

2002-06-29T10:53:00.000Z

I'm sure it never used to put all the entries from one day only under one date header thing... never mind it's not important :)

2002-06-29T10:52:00.000Z

Okay, i have *some* dates... but not all! AAARRRGH!

2002-06-29T10:51:00.000Z

Okay, all you pooter smarty pants people, why is it that everytime I try to amend my blog template, something goes pear shaped? Now i have no dates! Help me!! Please! :)

2002-06-24T20:33:00.000Z

Anyway, Kiwi still hasn't put in a link to my blog on her blog, so maybe I should cut hers out for a while ;)

/me awaits the furore!

2002-06-24T20:31:00.000Z

Anyone else feeling they ought to be linked, let me know :)

In meantime....

My heart melted just now due to an Ecard I received from Paul.... I love you so much hon... xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx You are the best... People can debate that on here if they like, but I will argue until there isn't any breath left in me :) xxxx

2002-06-24T20:29:00.000Z

Oops, sorry Dino, consider yourself added and my knuckles rapped!

2002-06-23T23:13:00.000Z

Okay, so I have also added Doesnotcompute and Jayne to my list of blogs, and have updated Fnookums' as well.

Definitely bedtime now!!

x

2002-06-23T23:01:00.000Z

Hoorah! My comments are working again!

Anyone know how I can get the little comments thingy to have a counter as well? If Kiwi can do it then so can i :)

Cheers to Lofty for attempting to sort it for me!

And thanks go to Kiwi for her good luck wishes.... For those of you who dont know, I've got an interview for a job at my local Starbucks on Tuesday... Whilst I'm not holding out much hope for actually getting it, I'm really hoping I do cos it will be a cool place to work and it will solve my money problems for Mexico! (Can't wait to spend 2 weeks in paradise with Paul... my absolute dream come true, both the destination and the company :) )

So that's that, really....

Gotta go to bed!!!

Oh and have added Krys to my links :) Welcome to my blog, chickadee, and thanks for linking me on yours! :)

I know i'm missing a few others' - i'll sort it out tomorrow!

2002-06-23T09:13:00.000Z

Berrrrrrrrrrrrlogging again...

What's happened?

Right, I went up to Nottingham in my Mum's car on Thursday... then Thursday night saw Lena, Paul, Damian and myself (alas, no Thomasina!) going out to Nottingham's Waterfront, Lena pushing me off a bench (re*venge*), some dirty wine glasses, too much alcohol, then us lot all going off to the Irish club and dancing like silly buggers (some of us doing it horizontally as gravity became too much of a challenge to the drunken me - thanks to Paul for catching me on the way down!), requests for Holly Valance, Damian drunk (tee hee!), me drunk (no comments please) in fact everybody drunk, and somehow we managed to get home. Then there was the nicest bacon sandwich in the universe and some cold egg fried rice, the sun started to come up, so decided to hit the sack. Friday saw a gorgeous hangover for me (none for Paul, who is the King of Dodging Hangovers, bastard), lots of sleep, not enough talking to my baby (sorry, honey xx), a trip to town with Paul, a Mocha Frappucino in Starbucks (yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!), and later on, a rather tasty pasta/sundried tomato meal, followed a few hours even later by some sushi! Hoorah!

Yesterday, having packed up the car with as much stuff as i could fit in without making the car require a 3 mile stopping distance, I found cuddly Eeyore peering at me over the steering wheel. Thank you Paul, it should have been me giving you an Eeyore for helping me shift so much stuff yesterday! He is being well looked after by my cuddly monkey! Did you buy a coach in the end??

Rented Amélie last night cos Mum hasn't seen it... Unfortunately we were both shattered and only made it through about half an hour before deciding to convert to Pride and Prejudice instead. (Will finish the film today, hopefully). P & P just never ever disappoints me... It's my life in a period drama! And I will not ever get bored of Mr. Darcy. (*schlurrrrrrrp*)

So now I'm home again... I can't move in my bedroom for stuff, and need to go and deal with it in a minute. But first things first. A few messages...

**My baby** - I love you completely, I miss you, and I can't wait for us to be together to do our Manc monkey walk for an evening (it will be an in-spir-ay-shiiiiian!) :) You are the best...xxx

Mel - you went to a dodgy underwear party and now you want to send me something in the post :) Should I be worried? :) Thanks for thinking of me, it's been too long since we last chatted... text me to arrange a natter online... I'm sure you must have some gossip! xx

Thomasina - get yer arse online!

Clanky - sooooo, how is Hove babe? Settled in yet?

Everyone else - *wave* and *cuddle*

Today is going to be a tricky one. Going to visit my Great Auntie in hospital today as she's very unwell. Might see if I can find some roses or something to take. In the meantime, my mother has assumed her alternative identity as Hitler, and I need to go and do a few things.

2002-06-15T23:24:00.000Z

Oh yeah -

Big fat gorgeous squidgy hugs and snogs go to my lovely boyfriend for being just generally the most incredible bloke alive and for making me really happy :) Love you!

xxxx

2002-06-15T23:23:00.000Z

Home again...

Yes, I'm back in Beaconsfield... And I guess I'm looking for work, so if you know of anyone in the area needing virtually anything doing, please let me know! (Within reason, of course!)

Lonnnnnnnnnnnng train journey down today, or it seemed it cos I had to change at Leicester and couldn't sleep on the train which is weird for me.

Biiig convos with my mum tonight, revealed lots about myself to her and I hope she knows me better tonight than before. Suspect so, but it might take a while for her to realise that's a good thing - i really hope she does!! Told her I love her today too, which I haven't said for ages and ages... and I really meant it. So much that I could barely get the words out of my mouth before the tears started squishing about in my eyes again...

And I miss my Dad who is in Spain.

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY DADDY!

Not that he'll probably read that, but there it is... :) Hope you're having fun out there :)

So, it's half past midnight and i'm tired and off to bed! G'night all! xx

2002-06-13T23:57:00.000Z

Oh yeah

Black Rose & Tobey Maguire 4 eva

:)

/me blows Paul and *Chloe* a kiss xxx

2002-06-13T23:55:00.000Z

Okay, so i haven't blogged for ages. Let's face it, hardly anybody reads it, so it doesn't exactly matter!

Recently: went to see About A Boy - can't remember if i wrote that already or not. It's funny. Go and see it. Hugh Grant doesn't really play himself for a change...

Also - *shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhwing*, *splat* *POW* *BANG!* etc. Spiderman! It absolutely rocks! You *must* see it! It is a highly entertaining and uplifting piece of filmwork. Loads of fun, totally unbelievable which makes it all the more comicbook-like, and I have now created, with the help of my trusty sidekick (whose name has yet to be discussed) my own pseudo-spiderman character... yes... it's...............

~~~~~~~~~SPIDERMONKEY-HO~~~~~~~~~~~~

*sigh* - I know.

Anyway.

Went to Alton Towers with housemate Paul on Tuesday and had a wicked day out - experienced the new ride 'Air' for the first time and it was quite something.... or something else, I should say... unlike any ride i've ever been on. You literally hang horizontally and get whizzed around on your tummy, then turned over onto your back and you go flying around (literally *flying*) this rollercoaster, and it's an amazing feeling... Wasn't sure about it the first time as I didn't feel I could trust the machinery to keep me locked in place!! But the second, when I managed to relax and let go, it was absolutely amazing.... DO IT! The one hour queue each time was well worth it. Even worth the sunburn I managed to get on one half of my neck that makes me look stupid.

Dassit for today.

Oh - new CD (which i managed to keep hold of for a whole week before Paul snatched it off me :) ) is Badly Drawn Boy, 'Day of the Bewilderbeast' or something.. Tis a goodun.

2002-06-07T11:33:00.000Z

Oh yeah, I got 58% for an essay I did which is the lowest and most dissappointing mark I've ever received (well, apart from the 0% I got for an archaeology essay once cos the guy had forgotten he'd given me an extension) so that sucks a lot... will bring my average down. But I can't say I'm too bothered any more... Now it looks like my fantasies of a 1st class degree have gone flying through the window at top speed, I am kind of settled with the prospect of a 2.1. Ne'mind...

2002-06-07T11:31:00.000Z

I'm in a bit of a bad mood today...

Very tired. Paul kindly came to pick me up last night, stayed over and drove us back this morning at some ungodly hour... I have been sleeping since we got here.

Everybody is off to the graduation ball tonight - for those reading, I hope you have a fantastic time :)

Hoping to see a couple of friends this weekend... watch out, it could be you :)

I'm off to sainsbury's...