I have to be at work for 5, which means I need to be home by 4 since it takes me 15 minutes to walk there and I still need to shower and get dressed and find some semi amusing entertainment. I say semi amusing because I'm working at a Chinese takeaway (that isn't my parents, but they do own one) and they are not too busy but if I bring something too interesting then I'll neglect the few customers that do come in and feel really bad since I'm virtually being paid to sit around. This is actually a great job, but I don't like it too much purely because it lacks any type of challenge. I need something stimulating and challenges me, mentally. That's why even when I worked at my parents, which is significantly more busy, I was still bored brainless. I think I need to write this quickly since I really really really want to eat and it also means I'll need to be back a little earlier so I have time to cook and eat.
So, technology. I think I do this a lot to change the topic and relate it to the title, but I'm really just writing how I'd normally talk. You can see how people may not like talking to me now, don't you? This is probably why I also only seem to make friends with shy people, since I'm pretty much talking 90% of the time and since they're shy, they wouldn't even talk that much anyways so I've filled the gaps. Make that 95%. Ok, moving on.
By technology, I mean most gadgets that we take for granted and use day in day out and only realise how important they are when we break or lose them and are gadgetless for a while. So the working gadgets that I currently own are:
- an iPod nano (4th? generation, I got in 5 years ago and it's small and touchscreen less but I love it)
- an iPhone 3GS (I'm not sure this can really be classed as working since it will just randomly shut down for no particular reason and not turn back on until I charge it)
- a desktop computer
- an ASUS laptop (my cousin helped me choose it and you could build the insides like extra long battery life etc.) with a little dvd drive (since the laptop doesn't have one)
I know, you're bitterly disappointed, right? Most teens my age own quite a bit more and have iPads etc. but I'm working on it.
There's a reason I emphasised working technology since I have a tendancy to damage my things and not be too careful with them. Despite this, we (my mum, who pays) never get insurance. I wanted to talk about this since it seems that my headphones are dying now, which is really sad since I don't have any decent spares and I listen to music ALL the time, plus I'll be travelling to London for 3 days and I'm going to Southend tomorrow, which makes my iPod imperative. It's on par with carrying money and water and keys around. So, this is the fun bit, in the last 2 years, these are the things I've broken:
- 5 kindle keyboard wifi (the old ones without the paperwhite or backlight or touchscreen and they only sell the 3G version now and I think they might be stopping them soon) (don't worry, there was 1 year warranty so the subsequent 4 were free then the warranty expired and I haven't bought a new one yet)
- an iPhone 4 (technically, this isn't broken. I smashed the screen but the phone actually works, except for the glass kept falling out and it wasn't too safe)
- an iPhone 4S (this actually wasn't me, at ALL. I was holding my phone and carrying a tonne of stuff and my little brother was carrying nothing and asks my mum to grab more stuff and she couldn't carry it all so shoved some to me and made me drop my phone and smash the screen THEN I kept using it and one night after an 'incident' I was being deliberately irritating and provaocative towards dear father and he got angry and smashed my phone, so none of this was me)
- 2 blackberry cruve 2850 (I think thats the right model number, it's the oldest, cheapest, rubbishest one they still sell and made completely of plastic. The first time I think I got too much water into it so I got a new one on warranty and about 6 weeks ago, around the week of my first exam in the second week of May so yes, about 6 weeks ago, I got really angry after a phone conversation with my mum and threw my phone onto the kitchen tile - in my defence I'd done this before, slightly less agressively with my last phone and that didn't break, it just went a bit funny, but no, this one broke and I haven't really had a phone since until about 2 weeks ago I got the rubbish, broken iPhone 3Gs, to be honest, I really enjoyed not having a phone)
If you look at that, it's not that bad. I mean 5 kindles seems like a lot, but let me explain and start with the fact that kindles, or that model at least, are really fragile and easy to break. So the first one broke when I dropped it on my wooden floor and it landed on a corner, the screen went all dodgy and wasn't usuable (that's how all my kindles broke, as in the messed up screen). The second broke when I had a really heavy school bag. I kept my kindle in the front pocket and books behind but due to the shape of the bag it landed face first and the weight of the books proved too much for kindle number 2. The third, or fourth, I don't know which way round these two are, wasn't my fault. I was just using my kindle of the month when it suddenly started to restart or turn off for no reason. This happened a lot of times so I called up customer service, I honestly can't think of anything I did to break that one. The fourth, was partly my fault. Ok, I think this is the third and the previous was the fourth and the fourth actually last 2 months as opposed to the previous 3. So the third, I still hadn't found a nice kindle case so I was carrying it in my bag, sans case. I also carry water EVERYWHERE with me and I was in London that day. I assume that all the jolting and quick moving meant that items in my bad collided and when I pulled my kindle out you could see the place of impact with the water bottle that destroyed the screen. My last kindle lasted over a year which I was quite proud of. I have to explain, by the time I got to this kindle, I decided to get a case and eventually found a kindle sock. So when I was using it, it didn't have any protection from me. I left my kindle on the floor it seems that night, so I decided to pick it up so I wouldn't break that one. I put it on the end of my bed then reached down to grab something from under my bed. My duvet was draped over the edge so I pulled it up and it covered the kindle so when I kneeled on the bed to get the box I heard a crack. That was the end of my having a kindle. After this riveting explanation, you can see I'm just a bit uncareful and accident prone, more than anything, so it's not too bad.
Strangely enough, my mum agreed to get me a new one a few weeks before exams (when the last kindle broke) but I decided to wait until after so I'd have one less distraction. It's now the end of exams and I haven't worked up the nerve to ask for one yet. I know I want an iPad so I think the kindle can wait since you can just download a kindle app and I can also access my iBooks, so I think I'll wait until a new model comes out. If I get an iPad I don't particularly want an iPhone 5 and there are others that are cheaper with better technology (phone-wise) so that's not too bad. But I really want some new apple headphones, although I'm not sure of the design, maybe get some of the old ones from someone since I can't not be able to listen to music.
The air con is starting to make me really cold now so I think I'll go home and eat and write my remaining 4 after work tonight. Oh, and I meant to say that I have started about 3 or 4 posts but got distracted so they'll be up and I will find time at some point to make up the 39 or something. I might do some writing on the train or something.
Saturday, 29 June 2013
reverse pschology
I know, I meant to write a lot yesterday, instead I wrote nothing. It's reverse pschology at work there. This happens a lot in my life actually. When I'm trying to choose between some options I ask for people's opinions and inevitably choose the opposite. Personally, I don't think I do it intentionally but everyone else disagrees. Although, I have to say, in other situations I do do this. For example, when I cook a meal and put all the pots and pans in the sink whilst I'm eating, I fully intend to wash up everything when I've finished but when my mum comes and tells me I have to, I refuse. It's simple really, and I don't see why people haven't figured it out yet. I think, when I'm on the brink of making a stupid decision people should try since if they encourage me, nothing that bad can happen. Allow me to explain, if I take the encouragement as support then, well I would've done the stupid thing anyway so that doesn't affect it, but if I act oppositely then I've not done the stupid thing I probably shouldn't have done. It's just when people tell me not to do something or say that I can't I want to prove them wrong. Makes a lot of sense, doesn't it?
I actually haven't written a title for this post yet. I'm trying to deicde if there's anymore to write about the reverse pschology thing or if I should choose a different topic and leave it as an intro, as per usual. I think I've actually run out of things so I'll choose a topic soon. I'm actually using a computer in my gym 'lounge' bit, which is basically the cafe bit with a few computers and a couple of glass cubicles for office stuff. I didn't bring any money with me though because I hadn't planned to eat here and the yummy smells are making me really really really hungry now. Actually, I've changed my mind, I think this will just be a really really really short post.
I actually haven't written a title for this post yet. I'm trying to deicde if there's anymore to write about the reverse pschology thing or if I should choose a different topic and leave it as an intro, as per usual. I think I've actually run out of things so I'll choose a topic soon. I'm actually using a computer in my gym 'lounge' bit, which is basically the cafe bit with a few computers and a couple of glass cubicles for office stuff. I didn't bring any money with me though because I hadn't planned to eat here and the yummy smells are making me really really really hungry now. Actually, I've changed my mind, I think this will just be a really really really short post.
Thursday, 27 June 2013
swimming
I really cannot afford to fall behind with this again. Excluding this one, I still need to write 37 more posts, but I do have 33 topics in a list, at last count so as long as I don't lose the bit of paper I should be fine. I think this will be another short post since I'm not too sure how much I really have to say about this topic. Plus, it's not a moany complainy one since I don't really have much negative thoughts about it.
I went swimming with my friend today - that's what made the topic come to mind. We went to my gym since I managed to get a free day pass for her and spent a few hours messing about in the pool, disturbing other people and chatting in the hot tub. It was great!
I went swimming a lot last summer actually since I'd joined a membership with my sports centre but since I did so many weeks of work experience I couldn't get to the gym on time. That and a friend at the time was swimming all the time, which made me want to. I'm a really competitive person so when he talked about the number of lengths he did, I wanted to beat that, hence the swimming. I'm still quite proud that I managed 50 lengths of the 33.3m pool after a day of work.
But then after the summer, I didn't have much time to go swimming since the timetable switched back to term time and the public sessions were on badminton days or earlier on, when I get back from school. This means that now, I am once again, a rubbish swimmer. And it's not even like I was that great last summer. There is one main reason for this: I only swim backstroke. I don't know, I've always found backstroke the easiest since I mess up the breathing for front crawl and when I don't put my face in the water I can't do it and breaststroke just shouldn't exist. It takes up a lot of energy and you don't get very far and it's just stupid really.
Now, I'm really self conscious and I feel like if I go and try to swim lengths then I'll just embarrass myself and I should just give up. Great attitude, I know.
One thing that I dislike a bit about swimming though is the chlorine. It burns my nasal passages and throat when I accidentally drink some, not to mention the germs that I'll have ingested. It also ruined my nails which I'd only re done yesterday which was a bit annoying. And lastly, it lingers on my skin so I shower at the place then again at home. Oh, and it dries my skin and hair which is unpleasant since I naturally have dry skin and hair and yuck.
I'm getting a bit tired and have stopped knowing what I'm trying to talk about and what point I'm trying to make. I think that means that this is a good ending point.
I went swimming with my friend today - that's what made the topic come to mind. We went to my gym since I managed to get a free day pass for her and spent a few hours messing about in the pool, disturbing other people and chatting in the hot tub. It was great!
I went swimming a lot last summer actually since I'd joined a membership with my sports centre but since I did so many weeks of work experience I couldn't get to the gym on time. That and a friend at the time was swimming all the time, which made me want to. I'm a really competitive person so when he talked about the number of lengths he did, I wanted to beat that, hence the swimming. I'm still quite proud that I managed 50 lengths of the 33.3m pool after a day of work.
But then after the summer, I didn't have much time to go swimming since the timetable switched back to term time and the public sessions were on badminton days or earlier on, when I get back from school. This means that now, I am once again, a rubbish swimmer. And it's not even like I was that great last summer. There is one main reason for this: I only swim backstroke. I don't know, I've always found backstroke the easiest since I mess up the breathing for front crawl and when I don't put my face in the water I can't do it and breaststroke just shouldn't exist. It takes up a lot of energy and you don't get very far and it's just stupid really.
Now, I'm really self conscious and I feel like if I go and try to swim lengths then I'll just embarrass myself and I should just give up. Great attitude, I know.
One thing that I dislike a bit about swimming though is the chlorine. It burns my nasal passages and throat when I accidentally drink some, not to mention the germs that I'll have ingested. It also ruined my nails which I'd only re done yesterday which was a bit annoying. And lastly, it lingers on my skin so I shower at the place then again at home. Oh, and it dries my skin and hair which is unpleasant since I naturally have dry skin and hair and yuck.
I'm getting a bit tired and have stopped knowing what I'm trying to talk about and what point I'm trying to make. I think that means that this is a good ending point.
'beauty'
I have this long list of topics to write about so that I can make up all of my blog posts but I keep making up new topics that I think of. I think tomorrow will be when a lot more posts come up since I haven't planned anything for tomorrow, finally. I actually thought about this topic when I was in the shower (not in a strange way but it's actually relevant when I've explained).
So, 'beauty'. Personally, I think that it's really unfair that there are a lot more beauty standards for women. Men complain that women take too long to get ready but if they didn't do all those things, then men would be repulsed or something equally drastic.
The beauty standards that I am referring to are all these things that women have to do that men don't. One good example is shaving or waxing. In today's society, women should have hairless underarms and legs and groomed bikini lines. However, men can be hairy and some consider hairiness as a sign of masculinity or something equally strange. I don't think men understand how much effort and pain and money goes into maintaining hairlessness and smooth soft skin. Same with eyebrow grooming. Like in one of my posts yesterday, skin peeled off around my eyebrows and I looked scary for a few days just so I'd have nice eyebrows. After that waxing, I now need to maintain them with tweezers which hurts. Another thing is clothing and jewellery. As a general rule, men shouldn't really wear much jewellery except a watch (or wedding band). Women on the other hand, have tonnes of different options and earrings - which hurt when they're pierced or if you haven't worn any for a while and then re-pierce the hole. Then clothes, sometimes there are dress clothes to adhere to, like smart-casual or formal or evening wear. For men, this mainly means wear a suit. But for women this is so difficult. In evening wear there are way too many styles and varieties to choose from and it's difficult to know which is suitable. Plus, women judge each others clothes, men don't do that, I think.
There are a lot more unfair things that women have to go through but I think I might save that otherwise this could become an essay and I'm not feeling awake or well enough for that.
So, 'beauty'. Personally, I think that it's really unfair that there are a lot more beauty standards for women. Men complain that women take too long to get ready but if they didn't do all those things, then men would be repulsed or something equally drastic.
The beauty standards that I am referring to are all these things that women have to do that men don't. One good example is shaving or waxing. In today's society, women should have hairless underarms and legs and groomed bikini lines. However, men can be hairy and some consider hairiness as a sign of masculinity or something equally strange. I don't think men understand how much effort and pain and money goes into maintaining hairlessness and smooth soft skin. Same with eyebrow grooming. Like in one of my posts yesterday, skin peeled off around my eyebrows and I looked scary for a few days just so I'd have nice eyebrows. After that waxing, I now need to maintain them with tweezers which hurts. Another thing is clothing and jewellery. As a general rule, men shouldn't really wear much jewellery except a watch (or wedding band). Women on the other hand, have tonnes of different options and earrings - which hurt when they're pierced or if you haven't worn any for a while and then re-pierce the hole. Then clothes, sometimes there are dress clothes to adhere to, like smart-casual or formal or evening wear. For men, this mainly means wear a suit. But for women this is so difficult. In evening wear there are way too many styles and varieties to choose from and it's difficult to know which is suitable. Plus, women judge each others clothes, men don't do that, I think.
There are a lot more unfair things that women have to go through but I think I might save that otherwise this could become an essay and I'm not feeling awake or well enough for that.
lists
Despite the fact that it's my summer holidays I seem to be getting very stressed. I think it's mostly because I'm worried about wasting my time and being bored so I schedule a lot of things and don't give myself a chance to relax and enjoy my free time.
Generally, I'm a pretty unorganised person. I'm constantly rushing from place to place almost being late, or, well, mostly being late. I usually attempt to plan, decide that it's too hard and give up. Then I leave things to the last minute and end up rushing to get places on time. It's quite a good system really.
This scattered lifestyle, shall we say, could be caused because of my laziness actually. For example, take my room. Cleaning and tidying are so much effort and time-consuming that I just give up and live in a mess. I think that affects me on a subconscious level and makes me feel like my life is a big mess instead of organised and neat and tidy. Like, when I do exam revision or work, I have to clear my desk and the surrounding space, then I feel better and can work well.
Now for the good bit, the link to the title. I always plan to do things or realise that I have accumulated a lot of things to do so I like to write lists for myself of the things I need to do. Then when I cross out the items, I get this satisfaction and when the list is done I feel a lot better. This is actually one of my strange, er, quirks.
I like to write lists but I leave my room and stuff in chaos. On my phone, everything is organised in folders, then the folders are ordered properly. My wardrobe has to stay neat, so when I can't be bothered to put clothes away, they are just strewn about my room, but the wardrobe stays neat. For the subjects that I care about, my exercise books and notes all have to have a consistent layout and style and by that I mean the date and title go in the same place and are underlined, one line is left and then the work is started, all bullet points have to be the same and for maths, there always has to be a margin, with a width of 2 squares drawn.
It's strange that I have to have things like that, that border OCD or something and I can live in a mess or when I cook in the kitchen it looks like it's been ransacked but I work fine. Also, these aren't really organisation related but they are strange quirks: I can't play tennis but I can play badminton (kind of), I can't play forehand but I can play backhand, I'm relatively smart yet I don't seem to put two and two together - I get these light bulb moments when I finally realise how two concepts link or join or are related or something. Basically, I'm a bit strange and ditzy.
Generally, I'm a pretty unorganised person. I'm constantly rushing from place to place almost being late, or, well, mostly being late. I usually attempt to plan, decide that it's too hard and give up. Then I leave things to the last minute and end up rushing to get places on time. It's quite a good system really.
This scattered lifestyle, shall we say, could be caused because of my laziness actually. For example, take my room. Cleaning and tidying are so much effort and time-consuming that I just give up and live in a mess. I think that affects me on a subconscious level and makes me feel like my life is a big mess instead of organised and neat and tidy. Like, when I do exam revision or work, I have to clear my desk and the surrounding space, then I feel better and can work well.
Now for the good bit, the link to the title. I always plan to do things or realise that I have accumulated a lot of things to do so I like to write lists for myself of the things I need to do. Then when I cross out the items, I get this satisfaction and when the list is done I feel a lot better. This is actually one of my strange, er, quirks.
I like to write lists but I leave my room and stuff in chaos. On my phone, everything is organised in folders, then the folders are ordered properly. My wardrobe has to stay neat, so when I can't be bothered to put clothes away, they are just strewn about my room, but the wardrobe stays neat. For the subjects that I care about, my exercise books and notes all have to have a consistent layout and style and by that I mean the date and title go in the same place and are underlined, one line is left and then the work is started, all bullet points have to be the same and for maths, there always has to be a margin, with a width of 2 squares drawn.
It's strange that I have to have things like that, that border OCD or something and I can live in a mess or when I cook in the kitchen it looks like it's been ransacked but I work fine. Also, these aren't really organisation related but they are strange quirks: I can't play tennis but I can play badminton (kind of), I can't play forehand but I can play backhand, I'm relatively smart yet I don't seem to put two and two together - I get these light bulb moments when I finally realise how two concepts link or join or are related or something. Basically, I'm a bit strange and ditzy.
Wednesday, 26 June 2013
truculent
Turns out I'd started three posts at the beginning of the not-posting period. So hopefully, the 39 remaining posts (including this one) will be quickish to write. However, those will be appearing tomorrow since I really really want to get the hair product off my fingers, go to the toilet and fall into a coma on my bed. I want to write a shorter post since it's faster. I would apologise for this and probably shouldn't mention this but eh, I'm a blunt, straightforward person.
Truculent is defined as 'eager or quick to argue or fight; aggressively defiant.' This is me in one word. I came across it in one of my books and really liked it. For some reason, I never like to be proved wrong and even if I am wrong, I still argue until the other person gives up. It's not even a recent thing, when I was 8, I had to write a few sentences for homework and my older brother was helping me. He used a dictionary to prove me wrong and I kept arguing and arguing and justifying my opinion with my twisted logic. It's actually quite fun and I love love love arguing with people, that's why I want to become a barrister when I'm older. I'll be PAID to ARGUE.
Also, whenever I can undoubtedly prove myself right I like to yell HA! at the person. I don't think they appreciate and I really don't but I can't seem to stop. It brings me a sense of satisfaction like no other and I think some people have just realised I don't mean much by it now.
There was a reason I chose this topic actually... Oh yeah, my history teacher (the example from the last post). I've done a few one-on-one revision sessions with him because I find that they really help and it's better than in a group since I don't have to wait for my turn to ask a question and all the revision will be specific to my weaknesses. I do the arguing thing with him mostly it turns out. For example, I turned up to both my revision sessions with practise questions and he read through and marked them and gave me feedback. Any constructive criticism he gave I immediately defended myself and started talking about why they were in fact right. We've done this so many times that he knows I'm just joking so he doesn't really say much. It's great, he such a lovely teacher and I'll really miss him when I move schools next year. It's quite sad actually since he's the head of sixth form.
Truculent is defined as 'eager or quick to argue or fight; aggressively defiant.' This is me in one word. I came across it in one of my books and really liked it. For some reason, I never like to be proved wrong and even if I am wrong, I still argue until the other person gives up. It's not even a recent thing, when I was 8, I had to write a few sentences for homework and my older brother was helping me. He used a dictionary to prove me wrong and I kept arguing and arguing and justifying my opinion with my twisted logic. It's actually quite fun and I love love love arguing with people, that's why I want to become a barrister when I'm older. I'll be PAID to ARGUE.
Also, whenever I can undoubtedly prove myself right I like to yell HA! at the person. I don't think they appreciate and I really don't but I can't seem to stop. It brings me a sense of satisfaction like no other and I think some people have just realised I don't mean much by it now.
There was a reason I chose this topic actually... Oh yeah, my history teacher (the example from the last post). I've done a few one-on-one revision sessions with him because I find that they really help and it's better than in a group since I don't have to wait for my turn to ask a question and all the revision will be specific to my weaknesses. I do the arguing thing with him mostly it turns out. For example, I turned up to both my revision sessions with practise questions and he read through and marked them and gave me feedback. Any constructive criticism he gave I immediately defended myself and started talking about why they were in fact right. We've done this so many times that he knows I'm just joking so he doesn't really say much. It's great, he such a lovely teacher and I'll really miss him when I move schools next year. It's quite sad actually since he's the head of sixth form.
my handwriting
Yay, I'm down to 40 posts left to write. I have it all organised on a bit of paper. On the day of the room tidying my friend tore out all of the excess, unused pages from my exercise books so I can chuck the exercise books. So I took one of these little pad like things and decided it'll be to organise and keep track of my blog. I even have all the dates listed of all the posts I've missed and crossed off the ones I've done.
I thought that this topic would be quite good since I just thought of it and it relates to the previous two posts. I would post a picture but it's late and I want to sleep so I'll add it tomorrow or sometime. So I was typing up my handwritten posts and made an observation. Its not even a new one, since I've realised this before. But my handwriting is just so, erm, cursive and small that it's difficult to read the words.
It's really bad, since it's my own handwriting. For example, last year, when I did some one-on-one revision sessions for my first history exam with my teacher I did quite a few practise papers. We met up after school one day and he gave me my mark and it was pretty good but whilst I was looking through I thought I did quite well on the big essay question at the back but he gave me a lower mark. This prompted me to start arguing about it and I was trying to find bits in my essay that showed the highest level skills that I was missing but I couldn't read my essay to find bits.That was one of my best moments, obviously.
However, despite the large amounts of people constantly complaining about my handwriting and telling me to change it I refuse. This is for two reasons, first, I think it looks really pretty, and it does, but its just hard to read, but I think that it's a worthwhile sacrifice. Second, I don't think I can really change it that much and especially when I'm scribbling really quickly in an exam I won't be thinking of my handwriting. Plus, I'm into all that olden day, romantic chivalry rubbish and I think my writing looks similar to the cursive that gentlemen used to write longhand love letters in. (yes, my head is in the clouds, permanently)
I thought that this topic would be quite good since I just thought of it and it relates to the previous two posts. I would post a picture but it's late and I want to sleep so I'll add it tomorrow or sometime. So I was typing up my handwritten posts and made an observation. Its not even a new one, since I've realised this before. But my handwriting is just so, erm, cursive and small that it's difficult to read the words.
It's really bad, since it's my own handwriting. For example, last year, when I did some one-on-one revision sessions for my first history exam with my teacher I did quite a few practise papers. We met up after school one day and he gave me my mark and it was pretty good but whilst I was looking through I thought I did quite well on the big essay question at the back but he gave me a lower mark. This prompted me to start arguing about it and I was trying to find bits in my essay that showed the highest level skills that I was missing but I couldn't read my essay to find bits.That was one of my best moments, obviously.
However, despite the large amounts of people constantly complaining about my handwriting and telling me to change it I refuse. This is for two reasons, first, I think it looks really pretty, and it does, but its just hard to read, but I think that it's a worthwhile sacrifice. Second, I don't think I can really change it that much and especially when I'm scribbling really quickly in an exam I won't be thinking of my handwriting. Plus, I'm into all that olden day, romantic chivalry rubbish and I think my writing looks similar to the cursive that gentlemen used to write longhand love letters in. (yes, my head is in the clouds, permanently)
hibernation
This is the second post that I wrote out on paper and never typed up on the 14th June. This was written pretty much right after the first one, around 9pm. Some of the stuff might be a bit confusing slash wrong but I don't want to go through the effort of changing it.
One down, seven left. I had badminton this morning then I went to the gym for an introductory talk/consultation about personal training. It was BRUTAL. My badminton coach decided that this morning was the time to crank it up and make everything a lot harder. He made me sprint around the court playing hard, powerful shots. And right after, I had the personal training thing. I'd assumed we'd discuss what would happen in a session, my goals and aims and if I had concerns or questions, that type of thing. I did NOT realise that she'd make me do some exercises and I really did not anticipate having to do sprints and other high intensity exercises. And right after badminton, too.
Now, tying that informative introduction to the title. My gym and the sports centre where I played badminton are on either sides of the city centre and I had to walk home after. Obviously, I had to walk around a lot today and I seemed to attract a lot of attention. I assumed that this was because I was wearing bright pink short shorts (sweat shorts that I exercise in) when it was quite cloudy and windy outside. This happens a lot so I pretty much ignore it.
However, when I got home and looked in the mirror, I realised there may be another reason. I got my eyebrows waxed yesterday and they look like this.
This happened last time because my prescription acne medication, it encourages my skin to regenerate so the wax peeled off my skin. now I look creepy and I think apart from the gym (and exams but it should be fine by then) I probably shouldn't be seen in public. How sad. I absolutely hate being confined to my room, or just not be able to go outside. I loathe it. I get all restless and agitated. Plus, my window is at the front of the house, close to the plants that are making my hayfever bad so I can't even get fresh air.
One down, seven left. I had badminton this morning then I went to the gym for an introductory talk/consultation about personal training. It was BRUTAL. My badminton coach decided that this morning was the time to crank it up and make everything a lot harder. He made me sprint around the court playing hard, powerful shots. And right after, I had the personal training thing. I'd assumed we'd discuss what would happen in a session, my goals and aims and if I had concerns or questions, that type of thing. I did NOT realise that she'd make me do some exercises and I really did not anticipate having to do sprints and other high intensity exercises. And right after badminton, too.
Now, tying that informative introduction to the title. My gym and the sports centre where I played badminton are on either sides of the city centre and I had to walk home after. Obviously, I had to walk around a lot today and I seemed to attract a lot of attention. I assumed that this was because I was wearing bright pink short shorts (sweat shorts that I exercise in) when it was quite cloudy and windy outside. This happens a lot so I pretty much ignore it.
However, when I got home and looked in the mirror, I realised there may be another reason. I got my eyebrows waxed yesterday and they look like this.
This happened last time because my prescription acne medication, it encourages my skin to regenerate so the wax peeled off my skin. now I look creepy and I think apart from the gym (and exams but it should be fine by then) I probably shouldn't be seen in public. How sad. I absolutely hate being confined to my room, or just not be able to go outside. I loathe it. I get all restless and agitated. Plus, my window is at the front of the house, close to the plants that are making my hayfever bad so I can't even get fresh air.
head pains
I forgot, on the 13th or 14th or something, we had a hospital emergency with my older brother and I was all set to accompany him to the hospital so I wrote a couple of posts on paper. I never got round to typing them up and earlier, I forgot to talk about them and the other hospital emergency with my little brother a few days ago. Therefore, this post might be a bit late or strange sounding or something but I might as well type this and the next one up, since I have a lot to write and this will speed things up and I won't waste my brilliantness.
So, I was sat enjoying my Friday night lazing about as usual and planning to make up some of my blog posts when my older brother bursts in, in tears. Not goo. Turns out a few days ago, he hit his head on the ground and now the back of his head kills and he can barely move his head. So hes called for an ambulance and me, being the nice person that I am, volunteered to go in the ambulance with him.
At the moment, I'm dressed in jeans and a comfy jumper waiting for the ambulance with him. I've come to the conclusion that there is nothing good on TV at 9pm on a Friday night. I've also packed a bag with a book, water, my iPod, keys, my purse, two pens and this pad. Y'know, just in case I'm waiting for a long time at the hospital. I thought that bringing my laptop might be pushing it so I settled for a pad and pen.
Turns out my older brother hurt himself by jumping on a space hopper in the park. See? Boys are idiots. Plus, I'm being very nicer considering he hasn't ever apologised for saying a really horrible thing to me back in January then he's stopped speaking to me since. Oh, to top that, my little brother is totally dismissive and is now being a nuisance with the help of his equally annoying little friend.
I think I'll finish writing this before the ambulance gets here. Or even call back, apparently they'll call within the next hour and send someone ASAP. I'm not too sure, clearly. Oh, I just went and got my brother some crackers and water whilst he's laying on the sofa texting and watching TV I'm such a nice sister. Plus, I get top act as a babysitter for my little brother whilst he is being particularly irritating tonight.
Throughout the course of this post, I've worked out that I wrote this on the 14th June around 9pm, just in case you were curious.
So, I was sat enjoying my Friday night lazing about as usual and planning to make up some of my blog posts when my older brother bursts in, in tears. Not goo. Turns out a few days ago, he hit his head on the ground and now the back of his head kills and he can barely move his head. So hes called for an ambulance and me, being the nice person that I am, volunteered to go in the ambulance with him.
At the moment, I'm dressed in jeans and a comfy jumper waiting for the ambulance with him. I've come to the conclusion that there is nothing good on TV at 9pm on a Friday night. I've also packed a bag with a book, water, my iPod, keys, my purse, two pens and this pad. Y'know, just in case I'm waiting for a long time at the hospital. I thought that bringing my laptop might be pushing it so I settled for a pad and pen.
Turns out my older brother hurt himself by jumping on a space hopper in the park. See? Boys are idiots. Plus, I'm being very nicer considering he hasn't ever apologised for saying a really horrible thing to me back in January then he's stopped speaking to me since. Oh, to top that, my little brother is totally dismissive and is now being a nuisance with the help of his equally annoying little friend.
I think I'll finish writing this before the ambulance gets here. Or even call back, apparently they'll call within the next hour and send someone ASAP. I'm not too sure, clearly. Oh, I just went and got my brother some crackers and water whilst he's laying on the sofa texting and watching TV I'm such a nice sister. Plus, I get top act as a babysitter for my little brother whilst he is being particularly irritating tonight.
Throughout the course of this post, I've worked out that I wrote this on the 14th June around 9pm, just in case you were curious.
cooking
I'm not too sure where to start since I have a bunch of topics about school from way back when I stopped writing and some stuff about these last few days. Erm, I think I'll start with today, since it's all fresh in my mind.
Recently, I've started watching Sorted Food on youtube, and through them I found Nicko's Kitchen. On Nicko's Kitchen, he makes a bunch of fast food replicas and healthier version and some really yummy looking desserts. One particular one that stuck out in my mind was ice cream muffins. It's literally, melted ice cream and flour baked. Ok, it sounds a bit gross but it look SO cool!
I wanted to ask my friend to do something since she's going on holiday soonish and I've planned a massive splurge shopping trip (think 3-digits and months of accumulated allowances) with my other friend but I didn't want to spend much money since I wanted to buy the absolute most stuff I possibly could with my accumulated money, and neither did she, but for other reasons. Therefore, in the brain of Michelle, inviting my friend round for a cooking afternoon would be free and fun. Even though she's not that great at cooking and really only makes instant noodles and chocolate orange scones (which are delicious Lizzy :)). So I decided that we would make KFC with chips, ice cream muffins and an Oreo milkshake (she let me choose, I'm not THAT bossy).
It actually went quite well in the beginning, but then after we seemingly successfully cooked the chicken, the chips weren't done, since she put way too much oil on them. But then the chicken wasn't fully cooked so we had to microwave it. However, after that, things were a little bumpy but ok. She got the not so nice chips that we took out early and had to put back in the oven and mine stayed in long enough to crisp up and my meal was delicious. Then hers were done and we made the Oreo milkshake. We used a tonne of ice cream, a bit of milk and tonne of Oreo biscuits. It was yummy but sickly after a while. Then we attempted the muffins but we didn't fully melt the ice cream and it messed up so we added milk but it made it taste funny so I added chocolate chips which didn't help as much as I thought it would. By that point, we were both a little hyper from all the sugar, and feeling pretty sick, too. We kept joking about our bodies shutting down or getting diabetes. I felt so full and gross that after 3 to 4 hours I still felt stuffed and a bit disgusting.
Apart from that though, and the muffins tasting a bit bland, it was a yummy day. Then I got a text from the shopping friend and we talked on the phone whilst I got ready for and walked to work and we've arranged to do something tomorrow, not really knowing what the something was.
Recently, I've started watching Sorted Food on youtube, and through them I found Nicko's Kitchen. On Nicko's Kitchen, he makes a bunch of fast food replicas and healthier version and some really yummy looking desserts. One particular one that stuck out in my mind was ice cream muffins. It's literally, melted ice cream and flour baked. Ok, it sounds a bit gross but it look SO cool!
I wanted to ask my friend to do something since she's going on holiday soonish and I've planned a massive splurge shopping trip (think 3-digits and months of accumulated allowances) with my other friend but I didn't want to spend much money since I wanted to buy the absolute most stuff I possibly could with my accumulated money, and neither did she, but for other reasons. Therefore, in the brain of Michelle, inviting my friend round for a cooking afternoon would be free and fun. Even though she's not that great at cooking and really only makes instant noodles and chocolate orange scones (which are delicious Lizzy :)). So I decided that we would make KFC with chips, ice cream muffins and an Oreo milkshake (she let me choose, I'm not THAT bossy).
It actually went quite well in the beginning, but then after we seemingly successfully cooked the chicken, the chips weren't done, since she put way too much oil on them. But then the chicken wasn't fully cooked so we had to microwave it. However, after that, things were a little bumpy but ok. She got the not so nice chips that we took out early and had to put back in the oven and mine stayed in long enough to crisp up and my meal was delicious. Then hers were done and we made the Oreo milkshake. We used a tonne of ice cream, a bit of milk and tonne of Oreo biscuits. It was yummy but sickly after a while. Then we attempted the muffins but we didn't fully melt the ice cream and it messed up so we added milk but it made it taste funny so I added chocolate chips which didn't help as much as I thought it would. By that point, we were both a little hyper from all the sugar, and feeling pretty sick, too. We kept joking about our bodies shutting down or getting diabetes. I felt so full and gross that after 3 to 4 hours I still felt stuffed and a bit disgusting.
Apart from that though, and the muffins tasting a bit bland, it was a yummy day. Then I got a text from the shopping friend and we talked on the phone whilst I got ready for and walked to work and we've arranged to do something tomorrow, not really knowing what the something was.
apologies
I know I know I know. I have been woefully neglecting my blog, I only managed, what? 10 days? Sorry! Sorry! But I have reasons, well to a certain extent. So the last time I posted was on the 13th June having skipped the 12th. That means that including the three for today, I need to quickly write 44 posts so I don't fall more behind. Although, with this its only 43, no big deal, obviously.
Ok, so my reasons. My last exam was the 21st June so before that I was going into school to do some history and maths revision. The history exam on the 18th was the hardest of the three I've had to do for the course and I was quite nervous so I wanted to put more time into preparation. And then, I did a practise past paper and I only got 60% which was beyond disappointing since when I did separate questions I only lost one or two marks. Secondly, on the topic, I had two maths exams, another straight after the history on the 18th and then the calculator paper on the morning of the 21st. We'd finished our maths GCSE back in November, so since then we've been doing a further mathematics course with introductory AS stuff in so it was a bit harder. Also, for this qualification it's possible to get an A* with distinction or A** and I really really really wanted to get it because a) maths is quite easy for me, b) my older brother got really good GCSEs but he wasn't able to get an A** so if I did then I could be all cocky and arrogant even if I don't do so well in my other exams and c) our teacher promised a special surprise (which would probably be chocolate) to anyone who could get it.
So, after my exam in the morning on the 21st, I spent the day getting ready for a friends party. I still hadn't gotten some white eyeshadow and lash glue I needed and didn't really have suitable jewellery, oh and I wanted some gel feet cushions for my heels. The party started at 6 but I got there around 7 and I needed a few hours to paint my nails, shower, hair, makeup etc. so I didn't have any time to spare that day. Then I had an impromptu sleepover at my friends house and her mum dropped us off at my house after so we could attempt to tidy my dump of a room. This meant that I was a bit busy and really tired on the 22nd, so I procrastinated another day.
From the 23rd I was free to do anything since it was my summer holidays but I ended but booking myself really full with commitments. For the past 4 days, everything has been really full on since I thought 'hey, it's summer, I don't want to get bored and I have a lot of time so let's do a lot of stuff to keep busy'. Plus, I've started to sleep really late (past midnight) and yesterday I had 9am badminton coaching which meant I had to be up by 8, this morning I had 10am personal training and I agreed to work from 5pm to 9pm from Tuesday to Thursday, then again this Saturday. I also made plans with my friends on Tuesday straight after badminton and today, after personal training and Monday was going to be a work day but I got lazy after I went to the gym early in the day and I needed to order some smart clothes for work experience next week and school in September (but I have a coupon code that expires at the end of June).
Clearly, I had a lot of well justified excuses. Ok, I was lazy, but I've decided to start writing earnestly (probably the wrong word) and within the next few days, everything will be up to date again, I promise! I'll even start to pre-write some posts for when I have work experience and the 10 days I'll be away.
Ok, so my reasons. My last exam was the 21st June so before that I was going into school to do some history and maths revision. The history exam on the 18th was the hardest of the three I've had to do for the course and I was quite nervous so I wanted to put more time into preparation. And then, I did a practise past paper and I only got 60% which was beyond disappointing since when I did separate questions I only lost one or two marks. Secondly, on the topic, I had two maths exams, another straight after the history on the 18th and then the calculator paper on the morning of the 21st. We'd finished our maths GCSE back in November, so since then we've been doing a further mathematics course with introductory AS stuff in so it was a bit harder. Also, for this qualification it's possible to get an A* with distinction or A** and I really really really wanted to get it because a) maths is quite easy for me, b) my older brother got really good GCSEs but he wasn't able to get an A** so if I did then I could be all cocky and arrogant even if I don't do so well in my other exams and c) our teacher promised a special surprise (which would probably be chocolate) to anyone who could get it.
So, after my exam in the morning on the 21st, I spent the day getting ready for a friends party. I still hadn't gotten some white eyeshadow and lash glue I needed and didn't really have suitable jewellery, oh and I wanted some gel feet cushions for my heels. The party started at 6 but I got there around 7 and I needed a few hours to paint my nails, shower, hair, makeup etc. so I didn't have any time to spare that day. Then I had an impromptu sleepover at my friends house and her mum dropped us off at my house after so we could attempt to tidy my dump of a room. This meant that I was a bit busy and really tired on the 22nd, so I procrastinated another day.
From the 23rd I was free to do anything since it was my summer holidays but I ended but booking myself really full with commitments. For the past 4 days, everything has been really full on since I thought 'hey, it's summer, I don't want to get bored and I have a lot of time so let's do a lot of stuff to keep busy'. Plus, I've started to sleep really late (past midnight) and yesterday I had 9am badminton coaching which meant I had to be up by 8, this morning I had 10am personal training and I agreed to work from 5pm to 9pm from Tuesday to Thursday, then again this Saturday. I also made plans with my friends on Tuesday straight after badminton and today, after personal training and Monday was going to be a work day but I got lazy after I went to the gym early in the day and I needed to order some smart clothes for work experience next week and school in September (but I have a coupon code that expires at the end of June).
Clearly, I had a lot of well justified excuses. Ok, I was lazy, but I've decided to start writing earnestly (probably the wrong word) and within the next few days, everything will be up to date again, I promise! I'll even start to pre-write some posts for when I have work experience and the 10 days I'll be away.
Thursday, 13 June 2013
waxing
Sorry sorry sorry, I know I didn't write any posts yesterday and I might not even be able to write my three today but I will make them up soon. I've just been very tired since I messed up my sleeping patterns when I went on study leave but it was ok, until these last couple of days when I had 2 9am exams. So I just get home too sleepy to be productive. However, I have until Wednesday till my next exam and I've been out and my version of productive these last few days so I have plenty to ramble on about. I bet you're pleased huh? Oh, and I've started a few posts that I've saved as drafts so they should be up soon-ish. I use the term 'ish' very loosely though so beware.
Since I mentioned it, I might as well start with today. I did my Biology paper 2, went home, did some stuff (I'll save that gold for my next post), sat about my room reading and went out for my 5pm appointment this evening. Interestingly enough, I got my legs and eyebrows waxed. This is the third time I've had my legs done and second time I've had my eyebrows done (at this place, in total may 5 or 6) and I am definitely going to go back. This is for multiple reasons (as you can tell, I like my lists):
1) the prices are very reasonable - £17 for 3/4 leg and £8 for eyebrows (although the website says £9)
2) it's in town and I live about 15 minutes walk away
3) I'm way too lazy to constantly shave my legs and pluck my eyebrows
4) apparently, if kept up long term, the hairs take longer to grow back and eventually stop
5) my mum said no to laser hair removal, which is fair dos since we're having some money problems right now and laser treatment is £200+
6) I'm not paying for this
7) I like to wear shorts and skirts and dresses especially now it's finally summer and I've joined a gym (workout shorts over leggings any day)
I'm contemplating sharing the name of the place I go to but since there's only one then I'll be revealing where I live, I do that on facebook but that's different. Eh, I don't have very many readers, this won't be an issue, plus if any of you live in Chelmsford you might want to book an appointment. The place is actually on the third floor of an upscale hair salon called Silhouette du Barry which is across the bridge from the Odeon. It's called Beauty Boutique and this is their website: www.beauty-boutique-chelmsford.co.uk/ you're welcome!
I don't think there is that much to be said about the removal of unwanted body hair so I might just leave it here.
Since I mentioned it, I might as well start with today. I did my Biology paper 2, went home, did some stuff (I'll save that gold for my next post), sat about my room reading and went out for my 5pm appointment this evening. Interestingly enough, I got my legs and eyebrows waxed. This is the third time I've had my legs done and second time I've had my eyebrows done (at this place, in total may 5 or 6) and I am definitely going to go back. This is for multiple reasons (as you can tell, I like my lists):
1) the prices are very reasonable - £17 for 3/4 leg and £8 for eyebrows (although the website says £9)
2) it's in town and I live about 15 minutes walk away
3) I'm way too lazy to constantly shave my legs and pluck my eyebrows
4) apparently, if kept up long term, the hairs take longer to grow back and eventually stop
5) my mum said no to laser hair removal, which is fair dos since we're having some money problems right now and laser treatment is £200+
6) I'm not paying for this
7) I like to wear shorts and skirts and dresses especially now it's finally summer and I've joined a gym (workout shorts over leggings any day)
I'm contemplating sharing the name of the place I go to but since there's only one then I'll be revealing where I live, I do that on facebook but that's different. Eh, I don't have very many readers, this won't be an issue, plus if any of you live in Chelmsford you might want to book an appointment. The place is actually on the third floor of an upscale hair salon called Silhouette du Barry which is across the bridge from the Odeon. It's called Beauty Boutique and this is their website: www.beauty-boutique-chelmsford.co.uk/ you're welcome!
I don't think there is that much to be said about the removal of unwanted body hair so I might just leave it here.
Tuesday, 11 June 2013
desinger brands
I seem to have run out of steam and inspiration. I cannot think of a single topic to rant or complain about or even a question to ramble on about. This is dire, I never run out of stuff to say. Oh, ok, got it. This will probably come in parts since I have no time to write a lot and this topic has so many things to talk about, for me, anyways.
There's something about the prestige of owning a designer brand that makes paying that amount for what is essentially a small bit of cotton or viscose or whatever your clothes are made of, worth it. I admit it, I've wasted so much of my money buying expensive clothes just because of the brand. Some of it I haven't even worn, which is really bad. I'm going to blame this on the Western consumerist society. There are always new things coming out and if you've bought something you only semi-like then chances are, you'll forget about it pretty quickly and never wear it.
The brands that I would call designer for teens are Jack Wills, Abercrombie and Fitch, Gilly Hicks and Superdry. These are the ones that I've bought so there could be more but I don't know them. I wouldn't really say Hollister, which is an Abercrombie brand like Gilly Hicks, counts as designer because the prices are actually sometimes cheaper than Topshop and River Island which I guess are higher end high street shops. Also, just because of the amount of people who wear Hollister it seems somehow less exclusive and prestigious therefore, in my mind, lowering its brand value. I'm 16 right now so I probably shouldn't even bother buying expensive designer clothing but these brands are aimed at my age group and slightly older as luxury brands so I guess it's ok. Although, it was mainly the last 2 years that I bought a lot of all of these brands, by this year I stopped finding that many things I liked in Superdry and Jack Wills and completely lost interest in Hollister. I've actually preferred Topshop and Urban Outfitters, just because my style has changed and I prefer the vintage look over preppy. Also, this is more recently though, I read a few articles about the Abercrombie brand that have put me off. A while back a representative said that they didn't want larger women to wear their clothing as it would ruin the brand image. A few weeks ago, another representative, or even the CEO, said that they would rather burn their clothes than donate them to the homeless. This type of thing is really offensive to me. I mean, that's just unnecessarily harsh. And I have the determination to completely avoid something if I really want to.
For example, a few years ago I found a PETA video about how KFC treat their chickens. It was horrific, the chickens were thrown, live, into boiling pots of water. Sometimes they wouldn't have died by then and are still living when they are clamped, by the neck to a machine to be processed. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Since I saw that video I have completely stopped eating KFC, I kept protesting to my mum that she's bought it much less frequently now.
This is not to say that I'm going to throw away all of my Abercrombie clothing, because that would be wasteful, I think I'll just not shop there as frequently and not plan my trips to London specifically to be able to go to A+F. It's just, I'm always talking about helping people and I was talking to a friend once and she said that I should write down one of the phrases I'd said, 'I hate it when I can't help people', to keep me motivated through all the hard work it'll take for me to become a lawyer and be able to help people. So I don't really want to support a brand that goes against my core beliefs. Plus, a lot more people are wearing A+F and GH now, so like Hollister, it seems less special and worth the expensive prices for the branding. So it's good timing really. And I'll be able to buy more clothes with my money from high street shops now. It's a win-win situation if you ask me.
There's something about the prestige of owning a designer brand that makes paying that amount for what is essentially a small bit of cotton or viscose or whatever your clothes are made of, worth it. I admit it, I've wasted so much of my money buying expensive clothes just because of the brand. Some of it I haven't even worn, which is really bad. I'm going to blame this on the Western consumerist society. There are always new things coming out and if you've bought something you only semi-like then chances are, you'll forget about it pretty quickly and never wear it.
The brands that I would call designer for teens are Jack Wills, Abercrombie and Fitch, Gilly Hicks and Superdry. These are the ones that I've bought so there could be more but I don't know them. I wouldn't really say Hollister, which is an Abercrombie brand like Gilly Hicks, counts as designer because the prices are actually sometimes cheaper than Topshop and River Island which I guess are higher end high street shops. Also, just because of the amount of people who wear Hollister it seems somehow less exclusive and prestigious therefore, in my mind, lowering its brand value. I'm 16 right now so I probably shouldn't even bother buying expensive designer clothing but these brands are aimed at my age group and slightly older as luxury brands so I guess it's ok. Although, it was mainly the last 2 years that I bought a lot of all of these brands, by this year I stopped finding that many things I liked in Superdry and Jack Wills and completely lost interest in Hollister. I've actually preferred Topshop and Urban Outfitters, just because my style has changed and I prefer the vintage look over preppy. Also, this is more recently though, I read a few articles about the Abercrombie brand that have put me off. A while back a representative said that they didn't want larger women to wear their clothing as it would ruin the brand image. A few weeks ago, another representative, or even the CEO, said that they would rather burn their clothes than donate them to the homeless. This type of thing is really offensive to me. I mean, that's just unnecessarily harsh. And I have the determination to completely avoid something if I really want to.
For example, a few years ago I found a PETA video about how KFC treat their chickens. It was horrific, the chickens were thrown, live, into boiling pots of water. Sometimes they wouldn't have died by then and are still living when they are clamped, by the neck to a machine to be processed. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Since I saw that video I have completely stopped eating KFC, I kept protesting to my mum that she's bought it much less frequently now.
This is not to say that I'm going to throw away all of my Abercrombie clothing, because that would be wasteful, I think I'll just not shop there as frequently and not plan my trips to London specifically to be able to go to A+F. It's just, I'm always talking about helping people and I was talking to a friend once and she said that I should write down one of the phrases I'd said, 'I hate it when I can't help people', to keep me motivated through all the hard work it'll take for me to become a lawyer and be able to help people. So I don't really want to support a brand that goes against my core beliefs. Plus, a lot more people are wearing A+F and GH now, so like Hollister, it seems less special and worth the expensive prices for the branding. So it's good timing really. And I'll be able to buy more clothes with my money from high street shops now. It's a win-win situation if you ask me.
ensuite bathroom
I really want to be able to do my three posts a day but I think I may end up missing one today. I have an exam tomorrow morning and Thursday morning, too, which is annoying because then I can't do revision in the morning before. This means that I need a couple of short topics to write about. I think this one will be quick and easy since I have already talked about this before. Seems to be the trend for today...
Last night my shower was finally fixed. I was so so so so happy about it because, as I've said, I despise having to use the other bathrooms. The main reason is just because I don't particularly like having to carry around all my shower stuff, especially my dripping loofah. I know I'll have to when I live in dorms in university but I'm not at university yet, therefore I shouldn't have to live as if I were.
However, this excitement was short lived when I found out a few things. Be warned, these are more of my lovely first world problems issues. The first was that the control thing would have to be changed since they weren't able to get the original pump so just bought a different brand. This annoyed me a bit because my philosophy is that if something works well, you shouldn't change it. And my shower did work well until it broke and I was happy with it. My problem with the new control thing is that it's quite ugly in my opinion. My old one was circular and suited my bathroom. There was a button in the middle to turn on and off the shower and a ring of light around to show that the shower is on. Then around that is a dial to adjust the temperature. The new one is rectangular. The shape just doesn't look right. And there is a button at the top and a dial underneath. The dial is like an egg timer dial and is awkward to change. Plus, it doesn't look nice and the arrow is quite faint so I never really know the temperature.
However all these issues are insignificant once the shower is turned on. Literally no water came out. The water pressure is horrible. Even my sink tap works better. It looks a bit like tears and makes my showers really depressing. They tried changing the shower head which really didn't do much so now I have three choices: 3 strongish jets of water, a weaker ring of water but none from the middle or both sets releasing pathetically weak water. None of these options are acceptable to me and I really hate this new shower.
Last night my shower was finally fixed. I was so so so so happy about it because, as I've said, I despise having to use the other bathrooms. The main reason is just because I don't particularly like having to carry around all my shower stuff, especially my dripping loofah. I know I'll have to when I live in dorms in university but I'm not at university yet, therefore I shouldn't have to live as if I were.
However, this excitement was short lived when I found out a few things. Be warned, these are more of my lovely first world problems issues. The first was that the control thing would have to be changed since they weren't able to get the original pump so just bought a different brand. This annoyed me a bit because my philosophy is that if something works well, you shouldn't change it. And my shower did work well until it broke and I was happy with it. My problem with the new control thing is that it's quite ugly in my opinion. My old one was circular and suited my bathroom. There was a button in the middle to turn on and off the shower and a ring of light around to show that the shower is on. Then around that is a dial to adjust the temperature. The new one is rectangular. The shape just doesn't look right. And there is a button at the top and a dial underneath. The dial is like an egg timer dial and is awkward to change. Plus, it doesn't look nice and the arrow is quite faint so I never really know the temperature.
However all these issues are insignificant once the shower is turned on. Literally no water came out. The water pressure is horrible. Even my sink tap works better. It looks a bit like tears and makes my showers really depressing. They tried changing the shower head which really didn't do much so now I have three choices: 3 strongish jets of water, a weaker ring of water but none from the middle or both sets releasing pathetically weak water. None of these options are acceptable to me and I really hate this new shower.
gym part 2
I didn't actually plan a follow up to my previous gym post but I have a lot more to say now. This is partly because I went to an induction session this morning at the gym and bought some gym clothes online just now. Is just now actually grammatically correct? Scratch that, is using actually this often grammatically correct?
Lets start with the induction, it was at 10am, which meant I had to wake up early and ugh. Plus, I went to sleep at 3am. So I get to the gym and I'm told to go to the computer desk upstairs between the two studios and that someone will be with me soon. They were not, it took a while, then a lady started talking to me then she walked to talk to another uniformed guy, who went downstairs. After a while, another uniformed guy came over and started my induction. He asked me a bunch of questions on a form, which would just have been quicker if I was told to fill it in whilst I was waiting. He explained about their 'workout of the month' based around a sport and this month is tennis. He spent way too long of my induction trying, I say trying because I still don't know if I'm doing it right and will therefore never do those exercise especially since I think I look too stupid, to teach me the five or six workout exercises designed for a tennis player. Before that, he quickly showed me a few of the machines and explained how they worked and the type of exercise you can do on it. After, we went downstairs to the resistance machines and I got shown some core exercise, which was so much fun to do whilst being watched intently. And that was it! What? Why? I'm a bit annoyed that they didn't make a program for me, like most gyms do. How am I supposed to know if that machine will work the muscles I want? How do I know what weight/resistance to do? Even the really small, not that great, gym in the leisure centre made a program for me when I joined.
After lunch, I turned on my computer and started looking at all of the JD website tabs I'd opened last night. I spent a good 2 - 3 hours choosing everything I liked, then whittling down the shopping basket to fit my small budget. The only thing that was annoying was that all the sizing was done in extra small, small, medium, large, extra large but the sizing charts didn't show which clothing size number they corresponded to. This made it a little difficult and I'm sure my friend really enjoyed helping me decide. I didn't actually realise how much quality gym clothing cost so I didn't manage to get much stuff and the stuff I got was double my budget so my mum will be quite angry when she gets her statement. But my plan is that I'll try it all on and return a few bits to make up some of the overspending. This isn't really a complaint, but I'm not sure what it actually is. I was looking mostly at Nike stuff and trying to compare pairs of shorts and leggings. All of the product descriptions are too similar so I ended up choosing stuff I liked the look of. Some of the models were standing awkwardly or had disproportionate body parts so it made the clothing look weird which meant that I wasn't sure how it would fit on me and not buy that thing. So maybe they're really great shorts but I'll never know.
Lets start with the induction, it was at 10am, which meant I had to wake up early and ugh. Plus, I went to sleep at 3am. So I get to the gym and I'm told to go to the computer desk upstairs between the two studios and that someone will be with me soon. They were not, it took a while, then a lady started talking to me then she walked to talk to another uniformed guy, who went downstairs. After a while, another uniformed guy came over and started my induction. He asked me a bunch of questions on a form, which would just have been quicker if I was told to fill it in whilst I was waiting. He explained about their 'workout of the month' based around a sport and this month is tennis. He spent way too long of my induction trying, I say trying because I still don't know if I'm doing it right and will therefore never do those exercise especially since I think I look too stupid, to teach me the five or six workout exercises designed for a tennis player. Before that, he quickly showed me a few of the machines and explained how they worked and the type of exercise you can do on it. After, we went downstairs to the resistance machines and I got shown some core exercise, which was so much fun to do whilst being watched intently. And that was it! What? Why? I'm a bit annoyed that they didn't make a program for me, like most gyms do. How am I supposed to know if that machine will work the muscles I want? How do I know what weight/resistance to do? Even the really small, not that great, gym in the leisure centre made a program for me when I joined.
After lunch, I turned on my computer and started looking at all of the JD website tabs I'd opened last night. I spent a good 2 - 3 hours choosing everything I liked, then whittling down the shopping basket to fit my small budget. The only thing that was annoying was that all the sizing was done in extra small, small, medium, large, extra large but the sizing charts didn't show which clothing size number they corresponded to. This made it a little difficult and I'm sure my friend really enjoyed helping me decide. I didn't actually realise how much quality gym clothing cost so I didn't manage to get much stuff and the stuff I got was double my budget so my mum will be quite angry when she gets her statement. But my plan is that I'll try it all on and return a few bits to make up some of the overspending. This isn't really a complaint, but I'm not sure what it actually is. I was looking mostly at Nike stuff and trying to compare pairs of shorts and leggings. All of the product descriptions are too similar so I ended up choosing stuff I liked the look of. Some of the models were standing awkwardly or had disproportionate body parts so it made the clothing look weird which meant that I wasn't sure how it would fit on me and not buy that thing. So maybe they're really great shorts but I'll never know.
Monday, 10 June 2013
braces and retainers
For some reason, I have a very very small mouth. This means that, naturally, my teeth are really crooked. When I was smaller (before year 5 - you turn 10 in year 5) I didn't particularly care and some people thought I looked cute. I'm not talking your run-of-the-mill crooked teeth, and it seemed to worsen as I got older and lost my milk teeth. I had quite a big overbite, bucked front teeth, and both my top and bottom rows of teeth were like a repeating pattern - one forward, one back, one up and one down. It was not pretty and I was really embarrassed about my teeth so I had this strange lip smile that didn't actually look like a smile. Basically, I avoided photographs at all times and when I failed I didn't look very nice. On top of that I was quite a chubby child so I don't have that many photos of me when I was younger. It jumps from baby and toddler me to 14 year old me - which is when I had been wearing braces for about 2 years.
I got braces in February 2010. Contrary to what most people say, it didn't actually hurt very much at the beginning (which I later found out meant that my teeth weren't moving/moved very slowly) and I was quite happy. My mum had told me since I was young that I would need to get braces and in year 8 braces are relatively exciting. I adjusted quite well actually and didn't really mind my braces. When they were tightened every other month I just ate a lot of soggy Weetabix and yoghurt for a week while my teeth hurt. I also ended taking a lot of paracetamol because sometimes the pain was just a bit too much and I couldn't resist.
Most people get their braces off after about 2 years, give or take a few months. I had my braces for almost 3 years, so I was ecstatic when I got my braces off. It was good timing actually since around this point I started to dislike my 'metal mouth' just because, well, I'm a teenage girl. Since my teeth straightened back in year 10 I've started smiling showing teeth since that's my only good smile face and now with my teeth all straight from my braces I really don't mind taking pictures anymore.
One thing that I didn't realise when I first got braces was how long it would all take. After your braces are taken off, you get a retainer. I was fully aware since a few girls in my form and my friend had had their braces taken off before me. Thing is, I didn't know that I would have to keep wearing my retainer until I am 21, I think the orthodontist said. And the retainer is a lot of maintenance, at the beginning you wear it full time and develop a nice lisp. This wasn't too good since I talk, a lot. Really quickly. But then after a few weeks I was told to only wear it at night for a year then every other night. It's so much effort, having a retainer is like having two sets of teeth to brush and sometimes the toothpaste stays on my hand and I need to go back and wash my hand again. Plus, my teeth move during the day and the retainer moves it back at night so my teeth have just become really sensitive. Similar to what a lot of people have said, sometimes I would rather just have my braces back. They were a lot less effort since they were stuck to my teeth.
I got braces in February 2010. Contrary to what most people say, it didn't actually hurt very much at the beginning (which I later found out meant that my teeth weren't moving/moved very slowly) and I was quite happy. My mum had told me since I was young that I would need to get braces and in year 8 braces are relatively exciting. I adjusted quite well actually and didn't really mind my braces. When they were tightened every other month I just ate a lot of soggy Weetabix and yoghurt for a week while my teeth hurt. I also ended taking a lot of paracetamol because sometimes the pain was just a bit too much and I couldn't resist.
Most people get their braces off after about 2 years, give or take a few months. I had my braces for almost 3 years, so I was ecstatic when I got my braces off. It was good timing actually since around this point I started to dislike my 'metal mouth' just because, well, I'm a teenage girl. Since my teeth straightened back in year 10 I've started smiling showing teeth since that's my only good smile face and now with my teeth all straight from my braces I really don't mind taking pictures anymore.
One thing that I didn't realise when I first got braces was how long it would all take. After your braces are taken off, you get a retainer. I was fully aware since a few girls in my form and my friend had had their braces taken off before me. Thing is, I didn't know that I would have to keep wearing my retainer until I am 21, I think the orthodontist said. And the retainer is a lot of maintenance, at the beginning you wear it full time and develop a nice lisp. This wasn't too good since I talk, a lot. Really quickly. But then after a few weeks I was told to only wear it at night for a year then every other night. It's so much effort, having a retainer is like having two sets of teeth to brush and sometimes the toothpaste stays on my hand and I need to go back and wash my hand again. Plus, my teeth move during the day and the retainer moves it back at night so my teeth have just become really sensitive. Similar to what a lot of people have said, sometimes I would rather just have my braces back. They were a lot less effort since they were stuck to my teeth.
school libraian
I've spent way too much of my day at school today so this will be another school thing. I might try to make my third post about something else but no promises. So I had two one hour exams today which meant there was three hours in between. I spent the first two revising for my chemistry in the library.
I've always like libraries, all the massive shelves filled with books, the big tables, the still calmness and that atmosphere of people working really hard. (The last one doesn't apply to the school library a lot of the time, but occasionally.) I sound a bit weird don't I? Let me explain, as person, I can sometimes have sponge-like qualities, for example when people start eating, most of the time so will I, when people fall asleep at a sleepover, so will I. Not to say I'm one of those irritating people with no will of their own or opinion to speak of, but I'm just easily influenced sometimes, like catching a yawn or a bad cold. That just means that at the library I find it easier to work, this is for a number of reasons actually but the atmosphere is one of them. Of course, the lack of distractions, other people working intently and pressure of work to be done contribute too.
However, I have an issue with the school librarian. There are 3 now, there were 2 before. I got on really well with one of the old librarians and she loved me. Whenever my group of friends were talking loudly before school or one person didn't have a chair or something she'd just ignore it and tell other people off, it was great! Then she left and the one I didn't know that well stayed and we got a new librarian that dresses weirdly and the elderly part time one who doesn't like people much. All of these librarians have, for some unknown reason, decided that the best way to shut up teenage girls is to loudly make the 'sssshhhhhh' sound repeatedly. And let me tell you: that does NOT WORK. So don't bother trying. After a while it sounds like the noise you make to try and make someone need the toilet - not quite the effect they were going for I think. On top of that, it just adds to the noise pollution and after a short while it becomes incredibly annoying, more annoying than the talking.
I've always like libraries, all the massive shelves filled with books, the big tables, the still calmness and that atmosphere of people working really hard. (The last one doesn't apply to the school library a lot of the time, but occasionally.) I sound a bit weird don't I? Let me explain, as person, I can sometimes have sponge-like qualities, for example when people start eating, most of the time so will I, when people fall asleep at a sleepover, so will I. Not to say I'm one of those irritating people with no will of their own or opinion to speak of, but I'm just easily influenced sometimes, like catching a yawn or a bad cold. That just means that at the library I find it easier to work, this is for a number of reasons actually but the atmosphere is one of them. Of course, the lack of distractions, other people working intently and pressure of work to be done contribute too.
However, I have an issue with the school librarian. There are 3 now, there were 2 before. I got on really well with one of the old librarians and she loved me. Whenever my group of friends were talking loudly before school or one person didn't have a chair or something she'd just ignore it and tell other people off, it was great! Then she left and the one I didn't know that well stayed and we got a new librarian that dresses weirdly and the elderly part time one who doesn't like people much. All of these librarians have, for some unknown reason, decided that the best way to shut up teenage girls is to loudly make the 'sssshhhhhh' sound repeatedly. And let me tell you: that does NOT WORK. So don't bother trying. After a while it sounds like the noise you make to try and make someone need the toilet - not quite the effect they were going for I think. On top of that, it just adds to the noise pollution and after a short while it becomes incredibly annoying, more annoying than the talking.
revision guides
I always love this time when its the evening after an exam and I don't have an exam tomorrow. I can just lay about reading or doing nothing and not feel bad since I've done revision and exams already and there's time to work for the next one. I had a history exam this morning then chemistry paper 2 this afternoon so I've earned my break.
For my history exam I revise by reading and learning the textbook then doing lots of practise questions and getting feedback from my teacher. My history teacher is lovely and I pretty much talk to him like I do with my friends. At my revision session on Friday I spent the whole arguing against what he said I did wrong in my essay but I knew that he was right and he understands my need to argue pointelessly when I'm told I'm wrong. I don't think I've even looked into buying a revision guide for my history course just because the textbook is condensed a lot already, plus I can borrow the textbook for free.
For chemistry I've bought two revision guides and I read the specification, use them and a revision blog someone posted with the specification points on them for revision. I think I must've written about this before because I'm getting deja vu, although that happens a lot even when I've definitely never been there before. Isn't that a sign of early death or hallucinations or something? I also like to ask my teacher questions if I get confused since I find that teachers explain better, which makes sense since they're paid to do it and have a lot more experience etc. My chemistry teacher is lovely, and he was actually my mentor until study leave so I'm fine talking to him. Actually, when I went to see him today he said that I'm like the club scout boy from the movie Up. You know like how he keeps pestering the old man, persistently and repeatedly? This is how comfortable I am around my teacher that he doesn't mind insulting me.
So this is what promopted this post. I was working through my revision guides in the two hours I had before the exam today and a few things about them really started to annoy me. First of all the language in the CGP revision guides. I know a lot of people say that they are really good, love them blah blah and I actually found the Romeo and Juliet summary guide quite helpful in year 8 when I was struggling. But the language is quite informal, I guess to make it more relatable or something, and actually is quite sarcastic and sounds a bit like me. Let's just say I'm starting to understand why people find me annoying and lose interest after I keep talk incessantly for a while. All those little jokes and notes were really starting to grate because I had to waste time reading pointless rubbish when I didn't have any time to spare. Why? Why do that?
Next, this applies more to my other revision guide, it had the exam board logo on it so I think they endorse it or something like that. But generally, I've really liked this exam board's (Edexcel) revision guides but this one for the IGCSE was slightly different to the others I've used. Firstly, the index is severely lacking. A lot of what I would have thought were key words or phrases were not listed which makes finding specific information difficult. Secondly, a lot of calculation examples were not fully explain, like a lot of numbers were put in, seemingly for no reason. That's really not very helpful to me. Thirdly, it seemed like the information wasn't really condesed and they just copied, verbatim, key sentences from the textbook so some passages weren't in enough detail or fully explained. The last thing that annoyed me was that somewhere in one of my revision guides is a definition or more than one, where the definition uses the word that it is defining so you still have no idea what the word means. I've just spent 10 minutes reading through my physics and chemistry glossaries since I seem to have misplaced the biology one. This is bad for two reasons since 1) I have now finished both my chemistry and physics exams completely 2) I have a biology exam on Thursday. I'll give an example, condensation: the condensing of a liquid. Granted, I haven't actually come across something as stupid as that, luckily, but the principle and irritatingness is the same, nonetheless.
For my history exam I revise by reading and learning the textbook then doing lots of practise questions and getting feedback from my teacher. My history teacher is lovely and I pretty much talk to him like I do with my friends. At my revision session on Friday I spent the whole arguing against what he said I did wrong in my essay but I knew that he was right and he understands my need to argue pointelessly when I'm told I'm wrong. I don't think I've even looked into buying a revision guide for my history course just because the textbook is condensed a lot already, plus I can borrow the textbook for free.
For chemistry I've bought two revision guides and I read the specification, use them and a revision blog someone posted with the specification points on them for revision. I think I must've written about this before because I'm getting deja vu, although that happens a lot even when I've definitely never been there before. Isn't that a sign of early death or hallucinations or something? I also like to ask my teacher questions if I get confused since I find that teachers explain better, which makes sense since they're paid to do it and have a lot more experience etc. My chemistry teacher is lovely, and he was actually my mentor until study leave so I'm fine talking to him. Actually, when I went to see him today he said that I'm like the club scout boy from the movie Up. You know like how he keeps pestering the old man, persistently and repeatedly? This is how comfortable I am around my teacher that he doesn't mind insulting me.
So this is what promopted this post. I was working through my revision guides in the two hours I had before the exam today and a few things about them really started to annoy me. First of all the language in the CGP revision guides. I know a lot of people say that they are really good, love them blah blah and I actually found the Romeo and Juliet summary guide quite helpful in year 8 when I was struggling. But the language is quite informal, I guess to make it more relatable or something, and actually is quite sarcastic and sounds a bit like me. Let's just say I'm starting to understand why people find me annoying and lose interest after I keep talk incessantly for a while. All those little jokes and notes were really starting to grate because I had to waste time reading pointless rubbish when I didn't have any time to spare. Why? Why do that?
Next, this applies more to my other revision guide, it had the exam board logo on it so I think they endorse it or something like that. But generally, I've really liked this exam board's (Edexcel) revision guides but this one for the IGCSE was slightly different to the others I've used. Firstly, the index is severely lacking. A lot of what I would have thought were key words or phrases were not listed which makes finding specific information difficult. Secondly, a lot of calculation examples were not fully explain, like a lot of numbers were put in, seemingly for no reason. That's really not very helpful to me. Thirdly, it seemed like the information wasn't really condesed and they just copied, verbatim, key sentences from the textbook so some passages weren't in enough detail or fully explained. The last thing that annoyed me was that somewhere in one of my revision guides is a definition or more than one, where the definition uses the word that it is defining so you still have no idea what the word means. I've just spent 10 minutes reading through my physics and chemistry glossaries since I seem to have misplaced the biology one. This is bad for two reasons since 1) I have now finished both my chemistry and physics exams completely 2) I have a biology exam on Thursday. I'll give an example, condensation: the condensing of a liquid. Granted, I haven't actually come across something as stupid as that, luckily, but the principle and irritatingness is the same, nonetheless.
The last part of this rant is slightly unrelated but I have no better place to put it but I felt the need to share. I can not be the only one who gets annoyed when to make something, you need a bit of the something you are making. I have two examples: 1) yoghurt. When I made this in biology last year I was so disappointed to find out we needed to put yoghurt in the mixture. What's the point in that? Why not just buy some yoghurt and save yourself the time and effort? 2) the contact process. This makes sulfuric acid (oh, it's really annoyed me that they replaced the 'ph' for 'f', I like 'sulphur', 'sulfur' just reflects the laziness that is the Western World). So you start with sulfur, then burn it in air to make sulfur dioxide then using a catalyst you react it with more oxygen to form sulfur trioxide which is then absorbed into concentrated sulfuric acid, making oleum. This is then mixed with specific quantities of water to make sulfuric acid. This just means that a) oleum is really concentrated sulfuric acid and b) it's like when people drink water then backwash into the drink (ew.). Ok, that's not true since it changes from SO3 to H2S2O7
to H2SO4 but still, it irks me. Wow, blast from the past, my friend and I used to use that word all the time and even my uber genius of brother didn't know what it meant. I'm sure you all really appreciated that impromtu GCSE/A Level (my course apparently contains A Level material) Chemistry lesson there.
Sunday, 9 June 2013
water
I probably should already have started making dinner but I wanted to quickly write my third post first. It was a toss up between something silly like water (which I chose) or something slightly more meaningful like friendship. I didn't want to do the latter since I've just been talking to a friend and I'm not sure if he reads this but that post would talk a bit about him so he'd probably realise and it'd be a bit awkward.
I don't really drink any fruit juices, fizzy drinks or hot drinks except occasionally. This is because I've found that everything but water just makes me thirstier and I would also prefer to eat all my calories. Therefore I just drink a lot of water. I always seem to be thirsty and I drink a lot more water than my friends do. When I go out I like to carry a 750ml bottle of water with me because I don't like paying for overpriced bottles of water. Plus, my mum buys packs of bottled water from the wholesalers so we always have a lot at home. And because I'm antisocial and lazy I grab lots of water bottles and take them to my room so I don't have to leave a lot.
I've had this conversation with my friend a few times actually because she also brings in bottled water to school. My mum always buys Highland Spring water but one time the wholesales was out of stock so she bought Buxton water. There are four reasons why I was complaining about this to my friend the next day at school. Firstly, they were 500ml which is too little so I finished it quickly and had to fill it up at the water fountain and school tap water is disgusting. Secondly, Buxton and Nestle water have the same bottles, they're the super thin eco-bottles that use less plastic so it's better for the environment blah blah blah. Unfortunately it also means the bottles are really flimsy and that annoys me since I don't like dented bottles, plus Highland Spring bottles are thicker and more resilient which I am used to and prefer. Thirdly, I like and am used to the sports cap on Highland Spring bottles but Buxton is just a twist cap. Lastly, I don't like the taste of Buxton water. Just, the minerals in the water from that mountain doesn't taste particularly nice.
I was mainly complaining about the last point and my friend jokingly called me a water snob. I guess it's true though but I'm not too bothered really. We had a big discussion about the best tasting water and for me it was either Highland Spring or Evian. People say water doesn't have a taste but all the different concentrations of minerals from different bottled water brands do taste different and some are really gross. For example, when I went to Hong Kong I bought a Chinese brand which cute green packaging and is shown on Chinese television a lot but I think it was distilled water or steamed then condensed water (you can't drink tap water in Hong Kong) and either the non-taste or whatever it was, was revolting and I couldn't even finish the bottle.
This is another of those first world problems, frivolous and shallow posts which I know isn't a real problem but I like to complain and moan a lot.
I don't really drink any fruit juices, fizzy drinks or hot drinks except occasionally. This is because I've found that everything but water just makes me thirstier and I would also prefer to eat all my calories. Therefore I just drink a lot of water. I always seem to be thirsty and I drink a lot more water than my friends do. When I go out I like to carry a 750ml bottle of water with me because I don't like paying for overpriced bottles of water. Plus, my mum buys packs of bottled water from the wholesalers so we always have a lot at home. And because I'm antisocial and lazy I grab lots of water bottles and take them to my room so I don't have to leave a lot.
I've had this conversation with my friend a few times actually because she also brings in bottled water to school. My mum always buys Highland Spring water but one time the wholesales was out of stock so she bought Buxton water. There are four reasons why I was complaining about this to my friend the next day at school. Firstly, they were 500ml which is too little so I finished it quickly and had to fill it up at the water fountain and school tap water is disgusting. Secondly, Buxton and Nestle water have the same bottles, they're the super thin eco-bottles that use less plastic so it's better for the environment blah blah blah. Unfortunately it also means the bottles are really flimsy and that annoys me since I don't like dented bottles, plus Highland Spring bottles are thicker and more resilient which I am used to and prefer. Thirdly, I like and am used to the sports cap on Highland Spring bottles but Buxton is just a twist cap. Lastly, I don't like the taste of Buxton water. Just, the minerals in the water from that mountain doesn't taste particularly nice.
I was mainly complaining about the last point and my friend jokingly called me a water snob. I guess it's true though but I'm not too bothered really. We had a big discussion about the best tasting water and for me it was either Highland Spring or Evian. People say water doesn't have a taste but all the different concentrations of minerals from different bottled water brands do taste different and some are really gross. For example, when I went to Hong Kong I bought a Chinese brand which cute green packaging and is shown on Chinese television a lot but I think it was distilled water or steamed then condensed water (you can't drink tap water in Hong Kong) and either the non-taste or whatever it was, was revolting and I couldn't even finish the bottle.
This is another of those first world problems, frivolous and shallow posts which I know isn't a real problem but I like to complain and moan a lot.
revision
I seem to have lost my list of topics that I was going to write about at some point but fear not, I have come up with a few topics already that weren't on my list. Earlier, I'd considered dedicating this day to birthday posts, but I have nothing left to say really, except that I don't feel any different today and 16 really isn't that great a mile stone. You can buy a lottery ticket but you can't claim any prize money you win and you can legally have sex but if I really wanted I could've done it last year or the year before but I didn't because I didn't want to.
After that brilliant introduction, I bet you're expecting great things. I talked about this a bit in my procrastination post and this will be similar in parts but I think that it is a good topic because a) I'm supposed to be revising now b) I have stuff to say about this topic and c) I thought I had a third point but I didn't. So, revision, it's great, isn't it? I have two exams tomorrow, my first history paper and the easier of the two I have to sit and the chemistry paper 2 which is the harder one.
Surprisingly I have actually managed to do some revision today. This is surprising for 2 reasons: 1) I'm not usually able to work, even on the day before an exam and especially when I've already done quite a bit 2) It's my birthday so for most people they would be busy celebrating and spending time with well-wishing family members to work but nope, not me. I've written 3 short practice essay answers, reminded myself of what a horrible person Hitler was and am about to start chemistry. (I needed a third to round it off nicely.)
I have developed some good study break techniques through this time and I thought I'd share since I don't have any good revision tips. (I just read the textbook and specification and bits just seep into my brain, some subjects I write practice answers and ask teachers for feedback.) The best one by far is frequent toilet breaks. This is a good one because you can't feel bad about going to the toilet since it's a basic human necessity, you can take your time washing your hands to kill a bit more time and if you wanted to, bring a not-revision-related book to read and since it's toilet break time, again you cant feel bad about reading and not working. Also, I just naturally drink a lot of water and even more when I'm bored so I do this a lot.
Another good one is cooking and eating meals and washing up after. Oh, I've just realised that that could be the reason I've started washing up all my dishes and pots and pans lately. This may not work for most people but since I have to make my own meals I can spend time cutting up vegetables for my salad then making the main meal and then eating it and going back downstairs to get dessert then washing everything up. Again, this can all be done slowly to kill time and again you can't (well I don't) feel bad since food is another basic human necessity and I've always been asked to do the dishes but ignored it and now I finally am.
I can't think of another guilt-free procrastination method so I'll leave it there.
After that brilliant introduction, I bet you're expecting great things. I talked about this a bit in my procrastination post and this will be similar in parts but I think that it is a good topic because a) I'm supposed to be revising now b) I have stuff to say about this topic and c) I thought I had a third point but I didn't. So, revision, it's great, isn't it? I have two exams tomorrow, my first history paper and the easier of the two I have to sit and the chemistry paper 2 which is the harder one.
Surprisingly I have actually managed to do some revision today. This is surprising for 2 reasons: 1) I'm not usually able to work, even on the day before an exam and especially when I've already done quite a bit 2) It's my birthday so for most people they would be busy celebrating and spending time with well-wishing family members to work but nope, not me. I've written 3 short practice essay answers, reminded myself of what a horrible person Hitler was and am about to start chemistry. (I needed a third to round it off nicely.)
I have developed some good study break techniques through this time and I thought I'd share since I don't have any good revision tips. (I just read the textbook and specification and bits just seep into my brain, some subjects I write practice answers and ask teachers for feedback.) The best one by far is frequent toilet breaks. This is a good one because you can't feel bad about going to the toilet since it's a basic human necessity, you can take your time washing your hands to kill a bit more time and if you wanted to, bring a not-revision-related book to read and since it's toilet break time, again you cant feel bad about reading and not working. Also, I just naturally drink a lot of water and even more when I'm bored so I do this a lot.
Another good one is cooking and eating meals and washing up after. Oh, I've just realised that that could be the reason I've started washing up all my dishes and pots and pans lately. This may not work for most people but since I have to make my own meals I can spend time cutting up vegetables for my salad then making the main meal and then eating it and going back downstairs to get dessert then washing everything up. Again, this can all be done slowly to kill time and again you can't (well I don't) feel bad since food is another basic human necessity and I've always been asked to do the dishes but ignored it and now I finally am.
I can't think of another guilt-free procrastination method so I'll leave it there.
happy birthday to me
It's my birthday today which means that I have finally reached 16. Yay. I know, the enthusiasm is just uncontainable. On MTV you see all these spoiled and entitled irritating people making a big fuss over their 'super sweet sixteen' but I just can't get that excited. Additionally, I haven't had a such a great birthday, starting from midnight, so it's hard to be that happy.
Anyway, starting on (well, continuing and redirecting to) a happier note I ate the birthday cupcake my friend got for me when we were in town yesterday for breakfast and I got some lovely gifts from my friends when they came to my house yesterday. I got 3 things in total and they were all so thoughtful and just so me. I love them! So I got a Pandora ring that I saw in the shop a while back when I was out shopping with my friend and I really wanted it but I couldn't afford it on top of the other stuff I bought and my friend suggested I get a different ring (which I did). I don't know why but I just fell in love with it when I saw it, its a tiara with a heart in the middle and a crystal embedded. She even managed to guess the right size for me! Next I got two Topshop nail varnishes that are really pretty. The clear one with the unusual silver glitters just really fascinated me when I was looking but I didn't really want to spend any money that day so I didn't buy it. (Although I ended up buying a new outfit that day because of the heat and I sat in bird poo.) The second colour is also really pretty and I really like it. The third thing I got was a photo frame with a picture of the three of us in it. I hadn't seen this photo since it was on my friend's camera and she deleted her facebook. It's a really cute picture and the frame again is really pretty. I love floral print and whenever I see it in shops I lust over the item so clearly my friends know me very well and put a lot of thought into the gifts. They'd also written a nice message on the MDF back in sharpie so it's also going to be a nice memento. There's also a red envelope with Chinese writing on it in the photo. This is from my mum and those red envelopes are handed out, filled with money on 'special occasions' like Chinese New Year, Christmas, weddings etc. It's not that I don't like money or something but in stark contrast you can clearly see the amount of thought put into both gifts. Personally I would've preferred a thoughtful gift costing a fraction of the money I got. Especially after the year I've been through.
Moving on, I celebrated my birthday with my friends yesterday with lunch at Zizzi and talking and watching movies in my room for a few hours. I had a nice time and enjoyed seeing them. Today, I went to sleep around 1am this morning because I could hear my brother talking through the ceiling and couldn't sleep. My brain was so busy that I contemplated taking a walk outside to clear my head but realised that it wasn't really very safe. So I dried my tears and just sat in my bathroom (where the murmuring from my ceiling was muted a bit) for a while then started reading my book. I've always loved reading - escaping into another world and almost living another life where things always seem to work out and despite whatever is going on in the protagonist's life there are lots of people supporting her/him and they fall in love and live happily ever after (I mainly read romances). After a while I calmed down a bit and started to feel a bit tired so I went back to bed. I woke up this morning not feeling much better and was disappointed when I didn't see any birthday wishes. I just assumed that they forgot and so did my mum, like last year. (The messages trickled in later.) Then my mum came in and asked if I wanted to go to Tesco to go grocery shopping. I said yes because I was running out of food. When we were paying my mum seemed to realise it was my birthday after digging around in her bag and finding the red envelope. She asked if I'd remembered it was my birthday and I told her I was waiting to see if she'd remembered. She gave me the red envelope and said happy birthday then asked 'so what are you supposed to say then?' (you know live back when you're 5 years old and need to be reminded to say thank you) and I finished packing our food and went to buy a coffee. When we got home I started unpacking the food as usual and was sent outside to the fridge in the garage twice because my mum had forgotten to ask me to get breakfast food for my brother the first time. She proceeded to make my brother's and her breakfast and I made my lunch. Then they all went to eat in the living room and my little brother realised he'd forgotten about my birthday and my older brother made some snide comment about being nice was not guaranteed and something about me being irritating. I finished cooking and ate in my room watching a movie. Actually whilst I was making my food my mum criticised me for not folding the clothes I brought in from the washing line yesterday. I did this without being asked to and just to be helpful.
After that I've spent my time revising for exams tomorrow, watching movies and chatting to friends. So all in all, this has been a really special day.
 |
| close up of the ring |
 | ||
| swatches of the nail varnish (left&right) |
Anyway, starting on (well, continuing and redirecting to) a happier note I ate the birthday cupcake my friend got for me when we were in town yesterday for breakfast and I got some lovely gifts from my friends when they came to my house yesterday. I got 3 things in total and they were all so thoughtful and just so me. I love them! So I got a Pandora ring that I saw in the shop a while back when I was out shopping with my friend and I really wanted it but I couldn't afford it on top of the other stuff I bought and my friend suggested I get a different ring (which I did). I don't know why but I just fell in love with it when I saw it, its a tiara with a heart in the middle and a crystal embedded. She even managed to guess the right size for me! Next I got two Topshop nail varnishes that are really pretty. The clear one with the unusual silver glitters just really fascinated me when I was looking but I didn't really want to spend any money that day so I didn't buy it. (Although I ended up buying a new outfit that day because of the heat and I sat in bird poo.) The second colour is also really pretty and I really like it. The third thing I got was a photo frame with a picture of the three of us in it. I hadn't seen this photo since it was on my friend's camera and she deleted her facebook. It's a really cute picture and the frame again is really pretty. I love floral print and whenever I see it in shops I lust over the item so clearly my friends know me very well and put a lot of thought into the gifts. They'd also written a nice message on the MDF back in sharpie so it's also going to be a nice memento. There's also a red envelope with Chinese writing on it in the photo. This is from my mum and those red envelopes are handed out, filled with money on 'special occasions' like Chinese New Year, Christmas, weddings etc. It's not that I don't like money or something but in stark contrast you can clearly see the amount of thought put into both gifts. Personally I would've preferred a thoughtful gift costing a fraction of the money I got. Especially after the year I've been through.
Moving on, I celebrated my birthday with my friends yesterday with lunch at Zizzi and talking and watching movies in my room for a few hours. I had a nice time and enjoyed seeing them. Today, I went to sleep around 1am this morning because I could hear my brother talking through the ceiling and couldn't sleep. My brain was so busy that I contemplated taking a walk outside to clear my head but realised that it wasn't really very safe. So I dried my tears and just sat in my bathroom (where the murmuring from my ceiling was muted a bit) for a while then started reading my book. I've always loved reading - escaping into another world and almost living another life where things always seem to work out and despite whatever is going on in the protagonist's life there are lots of people supporting her/him and they fall in love and live happily ever after (I mainly read romances). After a while I calmed down a bit and started to feel a bit tired so I went back to bed. I woke up this morning not feeling much better and was disappointed when I didn't see any birthday wishes. I just assumed that they forgot and so did my mum, like last year. (The messages trickled in later.) Then my mum came in and asked if I wanted to go to Tesco to go grocery shopping. I said yes because I was running out of food. When we were paying my mum seemed to realise it was my birthday after digging around in her bag and finding the red envelope. She asked if I'd remembered it was my birthday and I told her I was waiting to see if she'd remembered. She gave me the red envelope and said happy birthday then asked 'so what are you supposed to say then?' (you know live back when you're 5 years old and need to be reminded to say thank you) and I finished packing our food and went to buy a coffee. When we got home I started unpacking the food as usual and was sent outside to the fridge in the garage twice because my mum had forgotten to ask me to get breakfast food for my brother the first time. She proceeded to make my brother's and her breakfast and I made my lunch. Then they all went to eat in the living room and my little brother realised he'd forgotten about my birthday and my older brother made some snide comment about being nice was not guaranteed and something about me being irritating. I finished cooking and ate in my room watching a movie. Actually whilst I was making my food my mum criticised me for not folding the clothes I brought in from the washing line yesterday. I did this without being asked to and just to be helpful.
After that I've spent my time revising for exams tomorrow, watching movies and chatting to friends. So all in all, this has been a really special day.
Saturday, 8 June 2013
sharing a bathroom
5 years ago when I got my place at a grammar school I got the second ensuite bedroom. That was the deal, which we assumed, at the time, meant that my uber smart, genius older brother would get the room and I would get first pick of the remaining two bedrooms on the third (or second depending if you count the ground floor as the first floor) floor. However, my older brother managed to fail his 11+ exam so the three of us happily shared a bedroom for another year. When I say happily I mean that a lot of moaning and whining and bickering happened since most of our friends had their own room by the time they were 10 or 11. When I got my 11+ results, again I hadn't gotten into any of the grammar schools but by that point we were set to get our own rooms anyway. But then a few months later we got a letter saying that I had been allocated a reserve place at the school I now attend which meant that I got the ensuite bedroom. Though I was told that if my little brother got into a grammar school straight away he could get my room if he wanted, but I wasn't too worried since he's two years below me at school and not really very smart. I was right since he also failed the 11+ like my other brother so I kept my room and have been very happy to have my own bathroom why the boys share one upstairs.
I try to avoid that bathroom since two lazy boys + personal hygiene = disaster. That bathroom is disgusting and that's being nice. There's a really bad smell that lingers and can never be gotten rid of, no bin or laundry basket so dirty clothes and rubbish litter the floor. Oh and toothpaste spatters over the whole sink unit. I was quite successful and never had to enter that bathroom for a good four years. Then this year my shower decides to break. Repeatedly. And it can't even be my fault since it's electronic and I just push the button to turn it on and off and turn the dial for heat. My shower must've broken five times before they (the builder/electronic technician/fixer person (also a family friend so that's why I don't know what he does since he seems to fix anything we have an issue with) decides that maybe there's more permanent damage than the fuse and that whatever broke needs replacing. Only, it's been a good few months and nothing. Which meant that I had to shower either in my parents ensuite which I happily did until it started leaking in the kitchen, or in the disgustingness that is the boys bathroom. So now I'm stuck showering in a bathtub that was never intended for upright showering since the shower head holdery thing is below waist level and we had to install the shower curtain and rail/rod (which is now covered in unknown orangey stuff). I actually hate that shower, it's so hard to get a good water temperature and I keep forgetting which direction the hot and cold taps need to be turned. And the hot tap goes really really really hot. I once accidentally completely turned off the cold tap and turned the hot tap to the hottest it would go and literally had to jump out of the bathtub so that I wouldn't burn myself it was that hot. And my last issue with this bathroom situation has recently arisen. There is a large clump of hair trapped in the drain filter and everyone refuses to clean it out, which means we all just shower with the large clump of hair trapped there. I don't think that needs elaborating.
I try to avoid that bathroom since two lazy boys + personal hygiene = disaster. That bathroom is disgusting and that's being nice. There's a really bad smell that lingers and can never be gotten rid of, no bin or laundry basket so dirty clothes and rubbish litter the floor. Oh and toothpaste spatters over the whole sink unit. I was quite successful and never had to enter that bathroom for a good four years. Then this year my shower decides to break. Repeatedly. And it can't even be my fault since it's electronic and I just push the button to turn it on and off and turn the dial for heat. My shower must've broken five times before they (the builder/electronic technician/fixer person (also a family friend so that's why I don't know what he does since he seems to fix anything we have an issue with) decides that maybe there's more permanent damage than the fuse and that whatever broke needs replacing. Only, it's been a good few months and nothing. Which meant that I had to shower either in my parents ensuite which I happily did until it started leaking in the kitchen, or in the disgustingness that is the boys bathroom. So now I'm stuck showering in a bathtub that was never intended for upright showering since the shower head holdery thing is below waist level and we had to install the shower curtain and rail/rod (which is now covered in unknown orangey stuff). I actually hate that shower, it's so hard to get a good water temperature and I keep forgetting which direction the hot and cold taps need to be turned. And the hot tap goes really really really hot. I once accidentally completely turned off the cold tap and turned the hot tap to the hottest it would go and literally had to jump out of the bathtub so that I wouldn't burn myself it was that hot. And my last issue with this bathroom situation has recently arisen. There is a large clump of hair trapped in the drain filter and everyone refuses to clean it out, which means we all just shower with the large clump of hair trapped there. I don't think that needs elaborating.
eating out
It's my birthday tomorrow but since it falls on a Sunday I'm celebrating my birthday with my friends today, on Saturday. Therefore, this post will be dedicated to eating out, which I have been doing a lot of lately.
The week before last, since it was the holidays I met up with both my friends separately then together and all three times we ate out. Whenever I eat out I either choose Italian or Nando's, I don't know, Italian is my favorite food and so is chicken and I don't like fast food so I only ever choose those restaurants. I've found that when I'm out with my vegetarian friend, I always end up ordering vegetarian food. And when I was out with my other friend I ordered chicken.
The reason that I thought about this as a good topic to write about was because I ordered lasagne today at my birthday lunch with my friends. It's been quite a while since I ordered something not chicken or vegetarian so in that way it is significant (it really isn't though, I know). It's just, I love lasagne but I really really didn't like the lasagne I had for lunch and thinking about it now I don't think I have ever eaten a really nice meal from a restaurant that wasn't chicken or vegetable based. I don't know, maybe because it's quite difficult to ruin chicken and vegetables but you can overcook or undercook beef and it will taste horrible. (I don't think I have ever eaten seafood out or lamb or pork just because the dishes didn't look very good).
Looking over this now, I seem to have forgotten what my original point was or it just wasn't a very good topic to write about. Probably a bit of both really.
The week before last, since it was the holidays I met up with both my friends separately then together and all three times we ate out. Whenever I eat out I either choose Italian or Nando's, I don't know, Italian is my favorite food and so is chicken and I don't like fast food so I only ever choose those restaurants. I've found that when I'm out with my vegetarian friend, I always end up ordering vegetarian food. And when I was out with my other friend I ordered chicken.
The reason that I thought about this as a good topic to write about was because I ordered lasagne today at my birthday lunch with my friends. It's been quite a while since I ordered something not chicken or vegetarian so in that way it is significant (it really isn't though, I know). It's just, I love lasagne but I really really didn't like the lasagne I had for lunch and thinking about it now I don't think I have ever eaten a really nice meal from a restaurant that wasn't chicken or vegetable based. I don't know, maybe because it's quite difficult to ruin chicken and vegetables but you can overcook or undercook beef and it will taste horrible. (I don't think I have ever eaten seafood out or lamb or pork just because the dishes didn't look very good).
Looking over this now, I seem to have forgotten what my original point was or it just wasn't a very good topic to write about. Probably a bit of both really.
procratination
I'm in year 11, it's summer and I have well had, to take 16 exams. I'm talking about GCSE exams, the most important exams I will have had to do so far. And as far as I'm concerned, what dictates my future - good GCSE's will get me into a good sixth form which will get me into a good university. Therefore, this is probably a good topic to write about.
I think since year 7 I have always left my homework to the last minute and also since year 7 I have always promised myself that I will do my homework on the night it was set and I have never been able to follow through on it. I don't know, I think it's the pressure thing I talked about - I need something, like say, only one night to do 3 pieces of homework - I need to be pushed to do work. This meant that I managed to fall behind on all of my coursework these last couple of years. I managed this because I am just so great at procrastination. At this point, I have it down to an art - there are just so many distractions and my mum never comes to check on me or if she does she doesn't really dig deep and make sure I'm not saying yes just so she'll leave.
Whenever I looked forward and thought of my GCSEs I just thought that I'd be able to buckle down and study. It's like now that I'm sitting my GCSEs and think of A levels I am very convinced I will have changed miraculously over the summer and be really hard working for the next 2 years and get the best grades I can. But it turns out being at home all day with no one to tell me what to do makes it really hard to resist lazing about and not working, especially because I thought that accepting a 1 month free trial on Netflix was a good idea during this time.
Even now, writing on my blog is another way to procrastinate and not do work.
I think since year 7 I have always left my homework to the last minute and also since year 7 I have always promised myself that I will do my homework on the night it was set and I have never been able to follow through on it. I don't know, I think it's the pressure thing I talked about - I need something, like say, only one night to do 3 pieces of homework - I need to be pushed to do work. This meant that I managed to fall behind on all of my coursework these last couple of years. I managed this because I am just so great at procrastination. At this point, I have it down to an art - there are just so many distractions and my mum never comes to check on me or if she does she doesn't really dig deep and make sure I'm not saying yes just so she'll leave.
Whenever I looked forward and thought of my GCSEs I just thought that I'd be able to buckle down and study. It's like now that I'm sitting my GCSEs and think of A levels I am very convinced I will have changed miraculously over the summer and be really hard working for the next 2 years and get the best grades I can. But it turns out being at home all day with no one to tell me what to do makes it really hard to resist lazing about and not working, especially because I thought that accepting a 1 month free trial on Netflix was a good idea during this time.
Even now, writing on my blog is another way to procrastinate and not do work.
Friday, 7 June 2013
sunshine
I wrote this on paper earlier today at around 3 and I've just found time to type it up.
I would say that today has been sucessful and productive. I did a lot of chemistry and history revision, ready for my exams on Monday. I'm just sitting on a bench on the train station platform waiting for the next train having just missed the train since I had to buy my ticket on the stupid machine that took forever. Now I have to wait 20 minutes and will probably miss my 4pm leg waxing appointment which is quite important. Just because I went to the wrong bus stop and missed my original bus so I had to change my route home but at first I couldn't decide if I would so I didn't get the first number 1 bus to the station. If I'd taken that bus, with the probably less insane and moody driver, then I would've gotten here earlier and not missed the train. To be honest I was quite tempted to just get on the train without buying a ticket since there aren't any barriers at this station. (Luckily I didn't though since there was an officer guy checking tickets at the next stop.)
After all that it would probably make sense for this post to be about buses but nope, as my history teacher pointed out, I don't seem to write in any logical order. So I will save that loveliness for another time. (I'm talking about my buses rant.)
Instead I'm going to write about the sunshine. Recently, the weather has been brilliant, if you live in the UK you'll understand the significance of this and that sunny weather is very rare and should not be taken lightly. It's been very sunny and very hot and a little humid, but that's forgivable after the bitterly cold winter and spring. The great weather means two good things.
Numero uno: shorts and dresses and skirts. Since a random compliment from a girl in my form in year 7, my legs have been my favourite feature about myself. At home, all year round, I will be wearing my sweat shorts. I LOVE shorts, they're the best invention ever and it sucks that you can't really wear then in the winter (unless you wear them with tights but they never look that great on me.) Which means that this weather has allowed me to finally wear all the pretty shorts and skirts and dresses I've been buying.
Numero dos: shirtless guys. By British standards it has been very very hot which means that males deem it acceptable to walk around topless, which is fine by me for another two reasons. Firstly, without sounding like a pervert, you can (well I do) ogle all the fit, buff guys, especially whilst wearing sunglasses. Excellent, nothing wrong with a bit of aesthetic appreciation (from my PE exam a few weeks ago.) Secondly, you can (again: well I do) judge all the overweight men that really should have kept their tshirts on. It's great, not wanting to sound like a horrible person but, whilst I people watch, I'm also judging people - their clothing choices, hair etc. I'm sure that everyone has done this at some point at least once, it's natural but I'm just one of the few who admit it. I don't actually do anything about it though, not even pull a face which some people have done to me, thanks by the way!
I was going to finish on that note since I am writing on paper and I just finished both sides but I thought of another point and wanted to share. This is actually related to my first point (sorry, I've been writing history essays and the need to link points seems to be deeply ingrained.) To fully explain the significance of this point I will have to give you some background information (I may have already mentioned this): I walk everywhere I go and for some reason I get hot very quickly after little exertion. This means that I never like to wear or bring coats/jackets/hoodies/cardigans with me. Which brings me to my point: I can now go out in just a t-shirt and not be told to put something on or grab something or worry that if I don't bring an outer layer, that it will get cold and I will be caught unprepared.
This seems sufficiently long so I'll finish here. I'll probably revisit this topic at some point since there is usually sun in the summer. Now that I've finished, I can go and tidy my room, which I am very very excited about.
I would say that today has been sucessful and productive. I did a lot of chemistry and history revision, ready for my exams on Monday. I'm just sitting on a bench on the train station platform waiting for the next train having just missed the train since I had to buy my ticket on the stupid machine that took forever. Now I have to wait 20 minutes and will probably miss my 4pm leg waxing appointment which is quite important. Just because I went to the wrong bus stop and missed my original bus so I had to change my route home but at first I couldn't decide if I would so I didn't get the first number 1 bus to the station. If I'd taken that bus, with the probably less insane and moody driver, then I would've gotten here earlier and not missed the train. To be honest I was quite tempted to just get on the train without buying a ticket since there aren't any barriers at this station. (Luckily I didn't though since there was an officer guy checking tickets at the next stop.)
After all that it would probably make sense for this post to be about buses but nope, as my history teacher pointed out, I don't seem to write in any logical order. So I will save that loveliness for another time. (I'm talking about my buses rant.)
Instead I'm going to write about the sunshine. Recently, the weather has been brilliant, if you live in the UK you'll understand the significance of this and that sunny weather is very rare and should not be taken lightly. It's been very sunny and very hot and a little humid, but that's forgivable after the bitterly cold winter and spring. The great weather means two good things.
Numero uno: shorts and dresses and skirts. Since a random compliment from a girl in my form in year 7, my legs have been my favourite feature about myself. At home, all year round, I will be wearing my sweat shorts. I LOVE shorts, they're the best invention ever and it sucks that you can't really wear then in the winter (unless you wear them with tights but they never look that great on me.) Which means that this weather has allowed me to finally wear all the pretty shorts and skirts and dresses I've been buying.
Numero dos: shirtless guys. By British standards it has been very very hot which means that males deem it acceptable to walk around topless, which is fine by me for another two reasons. Firstly, without sounding like a pervert, you can (well I do) ogle all the fit, buff guys, especially whilst wearing sunglasses. Excellent, nothing wrong with a bit of aesthetic appreciation (from my PE exam a few weeks ago.) Secondly, you can (again: well I do) judge all the overweight men that really should have kept their tshirts on. It's great, not wanting to sound like a horrible person but, whilst I people watch, I'm also judging people - their clothing choices, hair etc. I'm sure that everyone has done this at some point at least once, it's natural but I'm just one of the few who admit it. I don't actually do anything about it though, not even pull a face which some people have done to me, thanks by the way!
I was going to finish on that note since I am writing on paper and I just finished both sides but I thought of another point and wanted to share. This is actually related to my first point (sorry, I've been writing history essays and the need to link points seems to be deeply ingrained.) To fully explain the significance of this point I will have to give you some background information (I may have already mentioned this): I walk everywhere I go and for some reason I get hot very quickly after little exertion. This means that I never like to wear or bring coats/jackets/hoodies/cardigans with me. Which brings me to my point: I can now go out in just a t-shirt and not be told to put something on or grab something or worry that if I don't bring an outer layer, that it will get cold and I will be caught unprepared.
This seems sufficiently long so I'll finish here. I'll probably revisit this topic at some point since there is usually sun in the summer. Now that I've finished, I can go and tidy my room, which I am very very excited about.
eating alone
The only problem I have with being in school for the better part of the day is having to eat alone at lunchtime. Apart from that, being on my own in school has eliminated distractions and I've done quite a lot of revision.
Problem is though, at lunch, it wasn't even that nice out and it was quite windy which doesn't make for good alfresco eating condition but being on my own whilst everyone else was sat with friends just made me feel lonely and self conscious. So I ate as quickly as possible and am now back in the library.
Last summer when I did work experience for most of the holiday I had to eat lunch on my own all the time and I still haven't gotten used to it. I went to Costa and sat in a corner sofa with a book and my food for the most part as that way I didn't draw much attention to myself and there are always people sitting with laptops and books on their own in cafes. I even ate at a restaurant a couple of times but I felt too self conscious to fully enjoy my food. I mean, personally, I don't judge people eating in restaurants on their own but I'm certain that some people do. Plus, who wants to be watched whilst they eat? That's just uncomfortable.
Problem is though, at lunch, it wasn't even that nice out and it was quite windy which doesn't make for good alfresco eating condition but being on my own whilst everyone else was sat with friends just made me feel lonely and self conscious. So I ate as quickly as possible and am now back in the library.
Last summer when I did work experience for most of the holiday I had to eat lunch on my own all the time and I still haven't gotten used to it. I went to Costa and sat in a corner sofa with a book and my food for the most part as that way I didn't draw much attention to myself and there are always people sitting with laptops and books on their own in cafes. I even ate at a restaurant a couple of times but I felt too self conscious to fully enjoy my food. I mean, personally, I don't judge people eating in restaurants on their own but I'm certain that some people do. Plus, who wants to be watched whilst they eat? That's just uncomfortable.
revision
I know I should be working since that's the only reason I woke up at 6am and to get the bus for but it's way too early to be productive, in my opinion. I'm just sitting in the library with my revision scattered around me and I was staring blankly at the screen so I logged onto blogger. Smart move, I know.
In my defense, my revision is on the internet so it's pretty easy for me to get distracted. At the moment, I've found for my science exams that I learn my looking up the specification and making sure I know how to do every point. If I don't know then I'll look it up in my revision guide or on the internet. Which leads to my sub-point if you will. I've found a few blogs that other students studying my course have made for their revision where they go through every point in the specification and write out what is required for it. I considered making my own but a) it's beyond late to do it now, b) it would take so much more than the time I have left to revise and c) it just seems a bit pointless for my GCSE's, I may (but probably won't) do some for A levels next year though.
I've actually really enjoyed being on study leave, as most people probably have. But the problem is, no one has been looking over my shoulder and making sure I work which doesn't work out too well for me. I think it's in part due to the fact that I seem to be naturally quite smart. (Not trying to brag or anything) I mean, in lessons I find it easy to understand and learn most of the material, and I pick it up quite easily. In addition to this I can recall quite a lot of detail after just reading something once. So that has just made me a bit lazy.
Personally, I think the school should ban blogger on the internet, therefore I wouldn't have been able to sit here writing and been able to focus (pfft.) on my Chemistry revision. But then again, I wouldn't be able to use those revision blogs...it's a hard life.
In my defense, my revision is on the internet so it's pretty easy for me to get distracted. At the moment, I've found for my science exams that I learn my looking up the specification and making sure I know how to do every point. If I don't know then I'll look it up in my revision guide or on the internet. Which leads to my sub-point if you will. I've found a few blogs that other students studying my course have made for their revision where they go through every point in the specification and write out what is required for it. I considered making my own but a) it's beyond late to do it now, b) it would take so much more than the time I have left to revise and c) it just seems a bit pointless for my GCSE's, I may (but probably won't) do some for A levels next year though.
I've actually really enjoyed being on study leave, as most people probably have. But the problem is, no one has been looking over my shoulder and making sure I work which doesn't work out too well for me. I think it's in part due to the fact that I seem to be naturally quite smart. (Not trying to brag or anything) I mean, in lessons I find it easy to understand and learn most of the material, and I pick it up quite easily. In addition to this I can recall quite a lot of detail after just reading something once. So that has just made me a bit lazy.
Personally, I think the school should ban blogger on the internet, therefore I wouldn't have been able to sit here writing and been able to focus (pfft.) on my Chemistry revision. But then again, I wouldn't be able to use those revision blogs...it's a hard life.
Thursday, 6 June 2013
online shopping
I feel like I should make an effort to try and post three times a day. I'm not actually sure why since I'm pretty sure I'll run out of topics very quickly and just stop posting which defeats the purpose of this but still. I don't know why I like to add the 'but' to some of my sentences since I never have a reason for doing so or anything to write after it so I end up writing 'still' or 'yeah' after it or just leaving it at 'but'. I think it's one of those annoying habits like when people say 'like' all the time or 'um' after every sentence.
So, online shopping. I've actually ordered quite a few things recently so I chose this subject. Oh, and I was helping my friend with her ICT revision yesterday and we went over online shopping. Ok, my major problem with online shopping is that when I buy clothes they never seem to look like the picture in real life. This is really annoying since I either have to send it back or go to the store to return it. Plus, it's quite disappointing since the pictures are so pretty and the real thing doesn't measure up.
Secondly, shipping costs. Since I walk practically everywhere I have no travel costs therefore to go shopping in town it wont cost me anything and shipping is the equivalent so I don't like paying for the shipping. This means that I always overspend to meet the free shipping threshold which means I don't have enough money for something else I may want to buy. Linked to this, delivery can sometimes take so long and not arrive in time for when I bought the thing for. On the bright side, I recently got my shipping refunded because of how much longer it took my parcel to arrive so that was quite good.
I had something else to add but it literally vanished from my brain the moment I tried to remember what it was to write about it. I hate when that happens, especially during exams - whilst writing one point I think of a really good follow up then when I've finished my point and want to move on I forget that reason and have to come up with something rubbish that wouldn't get as many marks.
Again, this is a first world problem complaint and I understand that I sound quite shallow and frivolous blah blah blah.
So, online shopping. I've actually ordered quite a few things recently so I chose this subject. Oh, and I was helping my friend with her ICT revision yesterday and we went over online shopping. Ok, my major problem with online shopping is that when I buy clothes they never seem to look like the picture in real life. This is really annoying since I either have to send it back or go to the store to return it. Plus, it's quite disappointing since the pictures are so pretty and the real thing doesn't measure up.
Secondly, shipping costs. Since I walk practically everywhere I have no travel costs therefore to go shopping in town it wont cost me anything and shipping is the equivalent so I don't like paying for the shipping. This means that I always overspend to meet the free shipping threshold which means I don't have enough money for something else I may want to buy. Linked to this, delivery can sometimes take so long and not arrive in time for when I bought the thing for. On the bright side, I recently got my shipping refunded because of how much longer it took my parcel to arrive so that was quite good.
I had something else to add but it literally vanished from my brain the moment I tried to remember what it was to write about it. I hate when that happens, especially during exams - whilst writing one point I think of a really good follow up then when I've finished my point and want to move on I forget that reason and have to come up with something rubbish that wouldn't get as many marks.
Again, this is a first world problem complaint and I understand that I sound quite shallow and frivolous blah blah blah.
gym
This whole post is the epitome of first world problems and me being a little spoiled, I'm not sure if that's the right word but close enough.
I'll be turning 16 in a few days so I've started looking at the different gym membership available. It's really difficult because I live a short walk from town and there are at least 4 gyms in and around the town centre and one in a different direction a short walk from my house and quite a few elsewhere. I have no idea how to choose a gym besides cheapest membership. For instance, I went to look around virgin health club this evening and there are two floors of equipment, a tonne of classes, 20m swimming pool, jacuzzi, personal training and even a beauty spa bit. Do I need all of this? And how much is a reasonable price to pay for a monthly gym membership for a 16 year old?
Another problem I have is what kind of workout clothes I should wear and how many tops/shorts/leggings/sports bras I need to buy. Plus, where can I buy quality workout clothing? There are so many options and it's hard to decide. I am a very indecisive person - it takes me ages to decide between two options let alone the hundreds and thousands out there.
This final one is slightly more realistic and legitimate: how many times a week/month should I go for the money to be worth it? And if I go quite often will that take away too much time from my school work? Especially next year - A levels are quite important and I'll be taking 5 (unless I drop a subject after a few weeks) and I'll still be traveling an hour to get to school. Just to be clear, the second point was the legitimate one.
I think I'm all out of frivolous, shallow problems relating to this topic for now.
I'll be turning 16 in a few days so I've started looking at the different gym membership available. It's really difficult because I live a short walk from town and there are at least 4 gyms in and around the town centre and one in a different direction a short walk from my house and quite a few elsewhere. I have no idea how to choose a gym besides cheapest membership. For instance, I went to look around virgin health club this evening and there are two floors of equipment, a tonne of classes, 20m swimming pool, jacuzzi, personal training and even a beauty spa bit. Do I need all of this? And how much is a reasonable price to pay for a monthly gym membership for a 16 year old?
Another problem I have is what kind of workout clothes I should wear and how many tops/shorts/leggings/sports bras I need to buy. Plus, where can I buy quality workout clothing? There are so many options and it's hard to decide. I am a very indecisive person - it takes me ages to decide between two options let alone the hundreds and thousands out there.
This final one is slightly more realistic and legitimate: how many times a week/month should I go for the money to be worth it? And if I go quite often will that take away too much time from my school work? Especially next year - A levels are quite important and I'll be taking 5 (unless I drop a subject after a few weeks) and I'll still be traveling an hour to get to school. Just to be clear, the second point was the legitimate one.
I think I'm all out of frivolous, shallow problems relating to this topic for now.
hunger
I keep telling myself to go to sleep but I really don't want to. I've decided that tomorrow will be my revision day and I'll spend the whole day focused on chemistry and history nazi germany that way I can go to my one-on-one sessions with my teachers on Friday. But that also means tonight is my last chance to do other stuff not exam related like looking at clothes and watching movies. Therefore I want to maximise my time.
As the night has gone on, I've realised that I've started feeling hungrier and hungrier. This is a regular occurence, whenever I stay up late I start to get really hungry and nighttime is the only time I can sucessfully fight hunger and cravings. I don't know, but something about it being late in the day just means I automatically don't want to eat so no matter how hungry I am and even if I've skipped dinner I probably wont eat. This is all because of the philosophy that if I don't eat then my body will burn my fat as energy but in reality this is quite unhealthy - maybe not the skipping a midnight snack part but the skipping a meal part. Because, let's face it, that's just starvation and if it becomes a regular habit it could turn into anorexia which, you know, not good.
I've completely lost track of what my point is and it's 2am so I think now is a good time to stop and go to sleep.
As the night has gone on, I've realised that I've started feeling hungrier and hungrier. This is a regular occurence, whenever I stay up late I start to get really hungry and nighttime is the only time I can sucessfully fight hunger and cravings. I don't know, but something about it being late in the day just means I automatically don't want to eat so no matter how hungry I am and even if I've skipped dinner I probably wont eat. This is all because of the philosophy that if I don't eat then my body will burn my fat as energy but in reality this is quite unhealthy - maybe not the skipping a midnight snack part but the skipping a meal part. Because, let's face it, that's just starvation and if it becomes a regular habit it could turn into anorexia which, you know, not good.
I've completely lost track of what my point is and it's 2am so I think now is a good time to stop and go to sleep.
Wednesday, 5 June 2013
FRIENDS
I wasn't intending to write 3 posts today but I put on FRIENDS whilst writing my last post and thought that would be a good subject to talk about.
I have watched all 10 seasons about 7 billion times, literally. I love this show so much and even after watching it so many times I still laugh at everything. It's great, especially if I've had a bad day or feel a bit blue (never said that before...) this'll cheer me up pretty quickly. I think the £30 I paid was a good investment. Especially since Tesco sold it for £35 or £40 at the time and the Amazon price has gone up to £45 since I bought it. I love it when this happens, I mean buying something then finding it more expensive at other stores and later on.
How great would it be if there was a reunion episode or something? Or a series with all the children? I wish there was more, but maybe if they carried on or did another episode or something it wouldn't be so great... It finished at a good point and throughout the whole series all the main characters live in New York but at the end Monica and Chandler move to the suburbs (I can't remember the name). Plus, FRIENDS was one of the few series that was really good throughout all 10 seasons and one of the very few series that ran for that long. Like take Joey for example. That spin-off series only lasted 2 seasons and both weren't that great.
My friends and I tried to figure out which character we were most like but it was too difficult. We all have traits like all 3 of the female characters and even some of the male characters. I'm a bit like Rachel in that I can be a bit spoiled and I love shopping and fashion and I get really annoyed when people make noise whilst I try to sleep. And I can be a bit obsessive like Monica although my room is permanently messy, but I get yell-ey really easily and I want that dream ending with the picket fenced house, husband and children. I'm also quite random like Phoebe and sometimes come across not so bright even though that's not really true. Plus I'm clumsy like Joey, saracastic like Chandler and obssesive like Ross and I really like science which he does. I'd compare my two friends as well but this is getting a bit long and double the size I orignally planned, plus I'm not sure how much they'd appreciate it and I think they read this regularly-ish.
I have watched all 10 seasons about 7 billion times, literally. I love this show so much and even after watching it so many times I still laugh at everything. It's great, especially if I've had a bad day or feel a bit blue (never said that before...) this'll cheer me up pretty quickly. I think the £30 I paid was a good investment. Especially since Tesco sold it for £35 or £40 at the time and the Amazon price has gone up to £45 since I bought it. I love it when this happens, I mean buying something then finding it more expensive at other stores and later on.
How great would it be if there was a reunion episode or something? Or a series with all the children? I wish there was more, but maybe if they carried on or did another episode or something it wouldn't be so great... It finished at a good point and throughout the whole series all the main characters live in New York but at the end Monica and Chandler move to the suburbs (I can't remember the name). Plus, FRIENDS was one of the few series that was really good throughout all 10 seasons and one of the very few series that ran for that long. Like take Joey for example. That spin-off series only lasted 2 seasons and both weren't that great.
My friends and I tried to figure out which character we were most like but it was too difficult. We all have traits like all 3 of the female characters and even some of the male characters. I'm a bit like Rachel in that I can be a bit spoiled and I love shopping and fashion and I get really annoyed when people make noise whilst I try to sleep. And I can be a bit obsessive like Monica although my room is permanently messy, but I get yell-ey really easily and I want that dream ending with the picket fenced house, husband and children. I'm also quite random like Phoebe and sometimes come across not so bright even though that's not really true. Plus I'm clumsy like Joey, saracastic like Chandler and obssesive like Ross and I really like science which he does. I'd compare my two friends as well but this is getting a bit long and double the size I orignally planned, plus I'm not sure how much they'd appreciate it and I think they read this regularly-ish.
NCS
I was complaining about this on twitter but even after 3 tweets I wasn't finished so I thought I may as well continue here. Plus, I've only written one post today as opposed to my 3 a day for the last 2 days (since I began).
Let's start with the 3 tweets:
I can't believe I have to pack everything into a big rucksack for@NCS in the summer, my stuff will not all fit!
and I don't own waterproof tops or bottoms for D of E I brought a coat that I thought was waterproof but wasn't luckily it didn't rain
and I only have a few long sleeved shirts which are all new, everything else is short sleeved + I've recently thrown out all my old clothes
Lets go back to the beginning. I signed up for the NCS programme a while back and after a phone call, application forms, a check and another few phone calls I got a confirmation email this morning with a PDF welcome pack. I was reading it through and getting really excited until I saw the kit list page. That's where those tweets came from. It seems like a mix between the PGL activity camp from year 6 and D of E bronze from year 9.
The kit list:
Please ensure all items are placed ideally in one rucksack. You may bring a small bag to keep with you on the coach whilst travelling to and from the residential centre.
- Toiletries and towel (please note deodorants must be roll on and no aerosols)
- Old clothes for activity sessions (long-sleeved shirts, trousers and closed toe shoes are required for most sessions so bring plenty)
- Indoor shoes
- Cutlery, mug, plate and bowl (plastic if possible)
- Waterproof top and bottoms (imperative)
- Large plastic bag for dirty clothes
- Sunglasses, sun cream and a sun hat
- Water bottle
- Maximum of £20 that can be spent during the week
- A packed lunch for the first day of both the first and second residential.
- Torch
- Personal medication
- Sleep wear
- Insect repellent
- Swim wear (clothes suitable for watersports)
- Casual clothes for evenings
- Sleeping bag and a pillow
- Tent (for week 2 only) we have some that you can borrow if you don’t have your own
First, I honestly do not think, even if I keep everything to a minimum, that it will all fit into one big rucksack that I can carry and a small bag, unless small bag means large overnight bag. I mean, 5 old shirts, 3 pairs of trousers (which I do not possess) and 2 pairs of trainers just for the activities. Or does indoor shoes mean slippers? because I assume it is court trainers. This with 5 days of underwear, waterproofs, 2 sets of pajamas, swimwear, a few evening outfits, and everything else on the list will most definitely NOT FIT into the allotted luggage space. And a pillow, really? Unless it is an air pillow my pillow will have to be carried along with the sleeping bag and extra bag filled to capacity.
On the bright side, I get to go out and buy some stuff. A nice swimming tshirt type thing like they wear when surfing and some cute waterproof shorts for the watersports. A reusable waterbottle, waterproof trousers (although I'm not sure nice ones exist and I might skip that since I probably wouldn't bother wearing them), oh and some long sleeved shirts for the activities. I may even be able to get some nice gym clothes at the same time.
Please note this is just lighthearted teenage whining and moaning and I am actually very excited about doing this activity. I reckon I'll find some way to cram everything into my bag or just wear a lot of clothes on the drop-off day.
Let's start with the 3 tweets:
I can't believe I have to pack everything into a big rucksack for
and I don't own waterproof tops or bottoms for D of E I brought a coat that I thought was waterproof but wasn't luckily it didn't rain
and I only have a few long sleeved shirts which are all new, everything else is short sleeved + I've recently thrown out all my old clothes
Lets go back to the beginning. I signed up for the NCS programme a while back and after a phone call, application forms, a check and another few phone calls I got a confirmation email this morning with a PDF welcome pack. I was reading it through and getting really excited until I saw the kit list page. That's where those tweets came from. It seems like a mix between the PGL activity camp from year 6 and D of E bronze from year 9.
The kit list:
Please ensure all items are placed ideally in one rucksack. You may bring a small bag to keep with you on the coach whilst travelling to and from the residential centre.
- Toiletries and towel (please note deodorants must be roll on and no aerosols)
- Old clothes for activity sessions (long-sleeved shirts, trousers and closed toe shoes are required for most sessions so bring plenty)
- Indoor shoes
- Cutlery, mug, plate and bowl (plastic if possible)
- Waterproof top and bottoms (imperative)
- Large plastic bag for dirty clothes
- Sunglasses, sun cream and a sun hat
- Water bottle
- Maximum of £20 that can be spent during the week
- A packed lunch for the first day of both the first and second residential.
- Torch
- Personal medication
- Sleep wear
- Insect repellent
- Swim wear (clothes suitable for watersports)
- Casual clothes for evenings
- Sleeping bag and a pillow
- Tent (for week 2 only) we have some that you can borrow if you don’t have your own
First, I honestly do not think, even if I keep everything to a minimum, that it will all fit into one big rucksack that I can carry and a small bag, unless small bag means large overnight bag. I mean, 5 old shirts, 3 pairs of trousers (which I do not possess) and 2 pairs of trainers just for the activities. Or does indoor shoes mean slippers? because I assume it is court trainers. This with 5 days of underwear, waterproofs, 2 sets of pajamas, swimwear, a few evening outfits, and everything else on the list will most definitely NOT FIT into the allotted luggage space. And a pillow, really? Unless it is an air pillow my pillow will have to be carried along with the sleeping bag and extra bag filled to capacity.
On the bright side, I get to go out and buy some stuff. A nice swimming tshirt type thing like they wear when surfing and some cute waterproof shorts for the watersports. A reusable waterbottle, waterproof trousers (although I'm not sure nice ones exist and I might skip that since I probably wouldn't bother wearing them), oh and some long sleeved shirts for the activities. I may even be able to get some nice gym clothes at the same time.
Please note this is just lighthearted teenage whining and moaning and I am actually very excited about doing this activity. I reckon I'll find some way to cram everything into my bag or just wear a lot of clothes on the drop-off day.
badminton
I'm sitting on the school bus home after my physics exam.
No, I don’t want to talk about it, I didn’t do nearly enough preparation than I
should have so yes, it’s my fault but still. Well, I started this on the bus
but now I'm at home, following the usual Wednesday night routine of changing
into sports clothes as fast as possible then inhaling dinner and rushing out
the door.
I'm actually rushing to get the train so I can go to
badminton, which seems like a lot of unnecessary trouble to go through just to
play sport but I wanted to play twice a week and I couldn't find another club.
Plus at this one I can play against adults and the theory is, get to improve a
lot more. I say theory because whilst everyone at my 2 clubs are steadily improving I just seem to maintaining my mediocre-ness. I don't understand
because everyone I know only plays once a week and I'm trying really really
hard to no avail.
Luckily, my mum has let me do private coaching and I've
started improving, turns out I need someone, quite strictly watching me and
telling me what I'm doing wrong then making sure I don't slack and do practice
drills properly.
This seems the same with my school work as well, I've
noticed. I thrive under pressure and slack other times. The only times I seem
to work productively are when I have late deadlines pushing me to finish work
by a certain date. This could be seen as my lacking the discipline and self
motivation to work which is a bad thing or my being resilient to and under
pressure and stressful times, instead of cracking like some people, which is a
good thing. I choose the latter.
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