Forgetting earlier blogs

I came in this evening and my mum asked me how bungee jumping was, which rather confused and scared me, not to mention spooking me out. I had completely forgotten that I'd blogged earlier during my frees. It wasn't the fact that my mum reads my blog. I knew about that one. *waves to mum* Take heed: temporary memory blocks can be scary at times.

Frees *joy*

Oh the joy of frees with nothing to do in them. Lalilalilalilalilaa. Laura's just suggested going for (i) a run or (ii) a bungee jump from the school clock tower. I went for option (ii) but have told her that she has to jump first. ;) And she thinks I don't know how to get up there. Hahahahaha.

Was half an hour late for orchestra this morning (overslept and missed the second train, so went a longer way starting on a train that left sooner) but it didn't matter as we were locked out of Hillel. Again.

The shabbaton was good, if not slightly dizzying. (Why thank you for hitting me so many times on the head during our duel, Ben.) Inflatables last night were brilliant. :D There was a disco dome/bouncy castle thing (which I didn't get into), sumo suits (ditto), and that gladiator duelling thingy where you fall onto bouncy stuff (whereby I received much dizziness). Burgers and ice-pops were gooood. I haven't had ice-pops for aaaaages. :D

Grrrr

Even though I've passed my test, my parents won't let me out driving alone for the first time in the dark and the rain. Mrrgghhhrraagghh. Why are they so protective? I want to drive places already!

I hate Microsoft...

... for many things. The current thing that is annoying me is the restrictions they put on anyone using any other web browser when using hotmail in particular. Now, I don't use hotmail apart from to read the odd three emails I receive on that address now (the spam has magically stopped) and Hotmail sent me one telling me about inserting photos into emails, which you can't do on any browser apart from IE. Or so it would seem.

Oooooh and I have a new blue headboard on my bed. It was there when I arrived home this afternoon.

And I had a clarinet lesson today with a new clarinet teacher. She seems a bit mad... in that we're doing Mozart's clarinet quintet (which is normally a solo clarinet and a string quartet) as a five clarinet clarinet quintet, which is really weird. I'm playing the first violin part. I did offer my bass clarinet skills, and she did say that there was a bass part, but that I was the only one she knew who would probably be able to play the first violin part. But she seemed nice. :)

Underestimations

Haha. 30 people turned up. Good article (though a little long), and I was right in my fortnightly suspicions, it would appear. :) Strange that that many did turn up, but then, the Guardian does have a large enough readership. Plus online readers, and I swear he didn't take that into account when he did those strange calculations. Although I don't know if any of them were online readers. I doubt it.

Naomi's happy today. :D

Poetry competitions and Levi's ads

I was informed last night about a poetry competition for English (or perhaps British) sixth formers. Free entry and monetary prizes, so I don't see why I shouldn't enter if I can write a suitable poem. Still think gravity is rather a strange theme, but will write (and have written some already; am writing as much as comes through random midnight musings and inspiration and will see what I like best... or what others like best) anyway. It gives me something to do (as if I don't have enough already. ;)).

Haha, this was funny. The bit entitled 'Sell, sell, sell' then 'The prince of Primark'. Apparently Levi's models will be reciting Shakespeare in the latest series of adverts. I liked their re-writing of 'Hamlet'. It made me laugh lots when I read it. :)

Have the Tories not always been jingoists? (http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,3604,1397647,00.html)

Is it not worrying when that woman practically has an orgasm washing her hair with Herbal Essence rubbish? I mean, not only does the stuff stink terribly (sorry, I'm not the greatest fan) but I can't see how it can do that to her. I mean, come on.

Hair

I had my hair cut on Monday afternoon and it now feels all short. I mean, it isn't really short at all, still probably long in most people's eyes, but it feels short when I run my fingers through it and it seems short and oh! I don't know, it's just that strange shortness that hair always feels after it's been cut. I suppose because when it is cut, it's made shorter. (Yes, obvious I know, but it just still feels short three days later. It's not even like it looks short to me. Just feels it.)

The really strange thing is that I've just washed my hair (no, that isn't the strange bit, it'll come in a moment) and yet it still smells of the stuff they put in it on Monday at the hairdresser. I'm not complaining, it's a yummy delicious smell, but I just thought it weird that it had stayed despite the fact that I washed my hair really thoroughly. Hmm.

(This is also to point out to most people (please note most, this includes family members who have seen me since Monday, but this does not mean all) that I have actually had my hair cut. There is less of it. Yes, some was chopped off. No, I didn't have a fight with the scissors. Yes, well, just to point out that it is a bit shorter and different. And thank you to those who did notice. :))

I wonder...

... how many turned up for that pizza? I hope he writes about it in his next slot. :) It is bemusing.

Scrabble crosswords

I forgot to mention my new latest obsession. Well, it isn't exactly new, as it's to do with cryptic crosswords, but it kept me amused on Friday night.

The JC has a cryptic crossword that instead of filling in on paper you fill in on a scrabble board, using scrabble tiles, and when finished you should have used up all the tiles. It's great and kept me muchly amused on Friday night. :D

Except you can't find the said crossword on the site, I've just noticed. Ah well, that is the site to the newspaper and it did provide much amusement for me on Friday night.

I've just discovered personalised post-it notes, which have made me all happy and bouncy and excited. They are a bit expensive though. Butbutbut yellow! And personalised! So cooool and exciting.

Musing..

Anybody for pizza? I wonder how many will turn up. And if the predictions as to who goes will be true. Are plumbers like year 7s in that they move around in big groups?

Interview and other things

Interview wasn't too bad, I guess. Had a good chat about 'Paradise Lost', 'Frankenstein' and Prometheus and them all relating to each other: was asked if I thought Shelley sympathised with God or Satan in 'Paradise Lost'... I said both in the same way it had been said about Milton, as can be seen through sympathies created for different characters in her novel. Realised I really really need to revise Keats more for tomorrow, as I couldn't remember 'Ode to a Nightingale' which they asked me about. :S I said it was a long time since we'd studied it, but still.... :S Gah. Practical criticism wasn't too bad. 'The Road Not Taken' by Robert Frost (although they don't tell you who the poem is by when you do it). Rather an easy poem to understand I thought, I probably could have written more and better than I did, but then they only gave us 45 minutes and hmmm... :s

Other news: just read about Joe Gordon, who was sacked from Waterstone's for writing about it in his blog. (http://www.guardian.co.uk/online/weblogs/story/0,14024,1388466,00.html) In slight disbelief that they would actually do such a thing, what with their freedom of speech thingy. Almost bought a book on (both) my way to and from UCL (they have a huuuuuuge Waterstone's literally opposite Malet Place, which is where the English department is). Oh, Dylan Thomas's collected works, or similar. I don't remember the exact title. It costs £8.99 and I decided that I would wait 'til the student discount days in Books Etc. or at least wait a bit, as I couldn't easily survive on £1.01 for the rest of the week, and I only had a £10 note.

Rather enjoying the Guardian's student 20p Guardian thingy. :) Saves me quite a bit. :) (http://www.guardian.co.uk/studentvouchers)

One down...

Right, well, P4 is over and done with. (Unless I retake it in the summer, which is possible but hopefully I won't. *crosses fingers*) The exam wasn't too bad: some of the earlier questionstook quite a while, which is rather strange, as they are supposed to get harder as you go along. *shrugs* Oh well, I still finished with some time to spare, even if it wasn't that much. Had some strange answers too, but it would appear Aki and Khushbu did too, so I'm not as overly worried about that. (And the answers match, and we all thought them strange.) Found graphic calculator relatively handy, just for reassuring myself that my sketch was half decent... I don't like sketching graphs. :S

On to reading lots... up to scene 3 of 'Streetcar' (I know, I know, I should be further but pleeeease.. *shudders in dislike*), have read some Keats and I intend to look over some Milton before Wednesday, as well as possibly a literary essay or two. Does anyone know what to do when analysing prose? What's different to how you analyse poetry? *worries and hopes for poetry*

Exams. *joy*

I've realised that I have strangely few lessons this week at school, due to exams and interviews. Only Tuesday and Friday it would appear. Gah! Exam tomorrow! Still don't quite know what is in the formula booklet and what isn't as Mrs. Khan had run out of ones that she could give out (mrrrrrrh), although Aki has assured me that there are only two things to learn: integrating factors for first order differential equations and something else that I've forgotten. Oh yes, the summation formula for n. Easy that. Except I don't think they give us the t=tan½x substitutions and I don't know them properly. :S I can use them. Just don't know them off by heart. :S

Still wondering what on Earth you do for practical criticism of prose just in case for my UCL interview. Hmmm. Will try and work it out. It can't be that different to verse, I guess. *hopes gets verse*

*Still need to re-read 'Streetcar' and lots more Keats* :S

Gah 6 days notice!

Today's news: I received a letter from UCL inviting me to interview next Wednesday. :) Happy, but incredibly short notice! Especially considering the fact that I know people who have theirs (for example) around the 16th (after mine anyway) and they've known since the beginning of December. Humph. Ah well. *should start preparing*

Happy New Year!

Yes, well that's about it. Not the most exciting new year of my life, I can say that for sure.

Went round to the Jacobs' house this afternoon to meet cute 1-year-old Eli. Babysitting him tomorrow night. He is rather gorgeous, even if he was rather tired this afternoon. Ah well, he should be asleep tomorrow. :)