Friday, November 23, 2007

Inner Poise?! Me?!

I got an invitation for 'Picture Personality Test' on Facebook, so I decided to give it a go.

Normally they make the results of these things quite obscure, so that it would really apply to anyone. I think this is the first time I have ever violently disagreed with the results to a personality test.

For 'Temperament', I got the following result:

Flexible
Nothing seems to bother you - you sail through life crisis free. It's not that your life doesn't have its ups and downs, it's just that you handle everything without unnecessary drama and antics. You approach each day fresh, not worrying about yesterday or tomorrow. You are confident that you can handle anything that comes your way and experience has shown that you are absolutely right about this.

You have GOT to be kidding me. I am one of the most dramatic people I know. And I have crises on a weekly basis (Sometimes daily, if I'm having a really bad week!).
My close friends have lost count of the number of times I've sobbed 'But I cant DOOOO this!' into their shoulder.
I can normally cope with things fine in the end, but I definitely make mountains out of molehills. A total Drama Queen.


Though my results seem to contradict each other, because look what I got for 'Amusement':

Thoughtful
You are easily stressed out and overwhelmed - you need to take care of yourself first and foremost. Because you tend to be self reflective, you know your limits quite well and must remember to not exceed those limits. When you overwhelm your life with obligations and responsibilities, you tend to shut down and go into yourself even further. Take some time to find your serenity and kick back your feet.

Easily stressed out and overwhelmed? Yep, that sounds more like me!


However, 'Interests' and 'Passion' are a lot closer to the truth:

Interests
Simple
You are continually pursuing a simpler and less complicated life - you don't allow yourself to fall victim to all of the "should do's" that society continually bombards you with. You are thoughtful about your life choices and think in terms of yourself, others and the world in which we live. You have a great sense that we are part of something much bigger and we must be good to others, if we want others and the world to be good to us.

Passion
Physical
You are a cuddle bug - from a warm hug shared with your best friend to steamy sex with your partner, you enjoy every bit of human contact that you can get. You demonstrate your love for others most fluidly through physical one-on-one contact and you feel the most loved when you are being touched. You feel disconnected when you are physically isolated from others. You're a people person and a lover of all things human.


I once did a personality test called 'Which Dysfunctional Barbie are You?'.
My result was 'Lactating Barbie'.
That was years ago, and the result was so horrifying that it has stuck with me to this day. My friends also did the test, and they came up with different, but even more horrifying results. I guess it's the 'dysfunctional' part that does it. =/

You've gotta be careful with these tests!

In other news, I've had bird flu all week. It's been awful. And I've been very brave and gone in to school every day, because I really would not be able to catch up on all the work, and then I'd fail my A Levels and end up living on the streets and catching things that are even worse than bird flu. I thought I'd probably be dead by the weekend, but I perked up a lot today, so I think I may make a miraculous recovery.
If I never blog again, assume I didnt make the miraculous recovery.

(I just re-read that last paragraph. I guess it's confirmation that I really am a drama queen...)

Monday, November 19, 2007

Globe Trotting

Today we had an English Lit trip to the Globe Theatre. It was reeeeeeally good! =)
The only thing is, it didn't stop raining all day. They should really put a roof on that thing!

We didn't actually get to see a play, which was a shame, but it meant that we got to walk around on stage during our tour of the theatre. I guess something like standing at the centre of the Globe Theatre's stage and delivering the line, 'To be, or not to be - that is the question' will be something to tell the grandchildren. ; )

On the way to the The Globe, we saw the Queen! (Yes, the actual Queen!). One of our teachers nearly got run over by her first motorbike escort. We turned around to laugh, and then another motorbike came along, followed by 2 sleek dark green Rolls-Royce limos, and the Queen was sitting in the back of the first one! We weren't on a main road at all. We'd been walking through a load of alleys and back streets that the teacher claimed were a short cut from Waterloo Station to The Globe. (Incidentally, he also claimed that it was only a 25 minute walk. We were jogging to keep up, and it was more of a wade than a walk to be honest, but I guess we can't realistically blame the weather on him as well.)
Anyway. We got there, eventually, and had a tour of the theatre, and then did an interactive workshop on the differences between Shakespearean and modern acting, and then more specifically about Hamlet.


We learnt a lot of really interesting things, but unfortunately I've forgotten most of them. (They may come back to me later...?!) One of them was that most of Shakespeares plays were only written to be performed about 6 or 7 times. He had no idea that hundreds of years later, they'd become known as some of the best plays ever written.

Also, the actors wouldn't receive a copy of the whole script, because copyright laws didn't exist back then, and Shakespeare didn't want people ripping off his work. He gave them each copies of their lines, and a cue to bring them in each time. The cue was only 3 words long! JUST 3 WORDS!!!! So they didn't really know what the play was about until they all got together and rehearsed it.

And thats another thing - because they had a different play on nearly every day, and Shakespeare's plays were always performed at 2 in the afternoon, the only rehearsal they could have was on the morning of the performance! (Apparently they couldn't practice in the evening, because actors like to go out and drink all night...so their morning rehearsals couldn't start too early the next morning either!)

Our lecturer/Globe actor/tour guide (the guy looking really surprised in the first photo) said that he thinks the fact that the Shakespearean actors didn't have copies of the whole script beforehand made the acting seem a lot more spontaneous, because when you went on stage, you didn't know whether you were about to be slapped, or kissed, or whether you'd have to stand there for 10 mins before being expected to deliver your first line.

I don't know if I could deal with that. But hey, maybe I'm just high maintenance.

Me and Phelan were planning to go on a literary pilgrimage and visit the Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey, so we could pay hommage to the likes of Oscar Wilde and Jane Austen (The Jane Austen Book Club came out on Friday! Haven't been to see it yet though...) but when we'd finally managed to get there, we discovered that it is closed on Mondays.
Though we weren't too depressed, because we'd seen a few entertaining things on the way there.


Like a giant spider outside the Tate:

(Don't worry - Phelan didn't get eaten!)


And lots of anti-busking signs:




(I won't upload them all, but to be honest, they were kinda the highlight of the whole trip...!)

And some modern art next to the Thames:
It was meant to be about noticing people (and realising how special and significant they are, realising their potential etc.) but we thought it was a bit obscure, so I decided to make it easier to notice people through it.
(I would just like to emphasise the fact that the modern art was not meant to be at all sexual. I know that's a novel concept, especially considering some of the other modern art on that stretch of the river, but you'll just have to trust me on this. I would not have put my face there otherwise. =P )


And some Storm Troopers on the roof of County Hall:

...maybe they heard that the Queen was out?!
And a Scottish man with bagpipes on Westminster Bridge:

He was very friendly, but practically made us promise to go to Edinburgh University if we get accepted there, on the basis that it's 'the best in the world for medicine'. Well....it's not, and neither of want to do medicine, and we've only visited it - neither of us have actually applied there - so we could quite happily promise, as we are both confident that we won't get an offer from there.
He was still a nice man though. =)


And Big Ben:

And some nutters protesting opposite the Houses of Parliament (no offence if you were one of them...we loved your masks and coordinating outfits. Obviously very well planned):

They totally hogged all the limelight, so the poor people protesting about Iraq got no attention at all.

Then after that we got to Westminster Chapel and saw that it was closed, and decided to go shopping on Oxford Street instead. And we didn't really see anything else interesting. The lights were pretty though. =)

Saturday, November 17, 2007

Lacking, but by no means lesser.

Ben and Jerry went to the vet this week, and came back...well.....with bits missing.

But they did gain a chip each, so at least if someone tries to steal them, we can prove that they are ours because we now have copies of their barcodes.


I wish I had a barcode. =(


Though I got my fingerprint done for our school registration thing, which is the next best thing I suppose...

I really think they should link the fingerprint registration to the door, because the way it is at the moment, we have to scan our fingerprint to register whether we are going in or out, and then enter a code to unlock the door. It's SOOOO much more 'mission impossible' to link it to the door. And then I'd actually remember to do it.
The thing is, I haven't successfully scanned myself yet, because there are loads of buttons on the fingerprint machine, and I'm not sure which ones I'm meant to press...


And also, at lunch and break there's a mad scramble around the finger print machine because everyone's trying to get it to scan them properly, and to be honest, it's a bit unreliable. It doesn't recognise that many people.
I'm still not sure if it recognises me or not, because I still don't know if I'm pressing the right buttons.


And anyway, we still have to go to registration, 'in case they have to give us messages'.
I think the main point of it is so that they know which site we are at.
In case there's a fire, or a bomb threat, or some overdue coursework...


Anyway, back to Ben and Jerry, they seem to be OK after their trip to the vet, although when they first got back they walked in a really funny way. I'm not sure whether the anaesthetic still hadn't worn off, or whether they were having to adjust to living with certain parts of their anatomy missing.


They seem to be OK now though. I'm not convinced that actually know what they have lost. I think they just feel different, but are unaware that something is missing...

The rest of the family went out today, so I spent some quality time with them. =)

As you can see, Ben isn't very sociable. He preferred the warmth of the fire to the heat radiating from my hot body. ; ) Jerry had the right idea!

Jerry is a little cutie pie

Though, obviously, I'm very fair and don't have favourites....

Monday, November 12, 2007

UCAS is Ooooooover!

I submitted my UCAS form today! =)
I'm glad I've got all of that over with!

I changed the last sentence of my personal statement at the last minute. It now reads, 'I believe that the opportunity to gain a degree in English would be instrumental in my search for a rewarding and life enhancing career'.
I'm having second thoughts about it now... =/
Oh well, surely being a bit hyperbolic is a good characteristic in an English student.
Plus, all artists are drama queens. =)

I applied to Royal Holloway, Southampton, Lancaster, Surrey and Goldsmiths.

I'll be very surprised if Southampton accepts me, and very offended if Goldsmiths doesn't, as that's my insurance choice in case nobody else wants me.
I'd LOVE to get into Royal Holloway - that's my first choice, but it's actually harder to get into Lancaster and Southampton... so we'll see.
I decided not to apply to Edinburgh in the end. It's a beautiful city, but I don't know if I want a Scottish MA....or almost certain rejection, for that matter.

The thing about applying to do English is that the rest of the country also has that idea, and funnily enough, the rest of the country also wants to go to the most popular universities, making it very competitive...

I had a dream that I was in Royal Holloway (and living in a really nice flat), but if my dreams are anything to go by, the university I get into should be the least of my worries...

I'll keep you posted!

Thursday, November 08, 2007

Photographic Evidence

I was flicking through the camera (how wierd does that sound?!) and found a picture that shows the piercing! Unfortunately, I'm not holding a copy of The Times, or anything else that would help to date it as having been taken this week, so you'll just have to take my word for it I'm afraid.

I thought it would be particularly good example, as the light of the flash is glinting on it...

Despite what my mother may think, it's quite a subtle piercing, so you may have to look carefully. And as you can probably tell, it is completely hidden when my hair is down, unless I cock my head to the side (as shown) which is something I don't really do, or perhaps hang my head upside down, which I also don't do.

Try not to be too jealous of my Ikea duvet cover in the background. I know you all want it.

Gimme More

I just watched Britney's new music video...

In English Lit today, in between discussing existentialism, and fatalism, we touched on her new single, and a few people in the class seemed to be of the opinion that it is the best thing since Chris Brown's last song-rap thing. (Apparently Chris Brown is 'Safe...innit').

So I thought I'd at least give it a go before dismissing it as yet another money making publicity stunt that glorifies an unhealthy view of sexuality and the objectification of women.
Because I am, after all, a very tolerant person. ; )

It's thoroughly predictable. A very unimaginative melody, with even less imaginative lyrics. The words 'gimme' and 'more' make up about two thirds of the lyrics.

And I didn't really understand what was going on...
She was dancing, obviously. But I really didn't get why she was so close to a pole. I mean, surely, it would get in the way. And there is always the obvious risk of banging ones head in the middle of ones power grind...
I also didn't get why she spent at least the first two minutes (that's all I watched) of the song asking someone/something (the pole?) to give her 'more'. More of what?
Obviously, knowing Britney, there must be a really deep symbolism in that. I am just too uneducated and insensitive to grasp the metaphor.

The thing that concerned me though, is the fact that for the middle of November, she wasn't wrapped up very warmly. I mean, she hasn't been particularly well recently... she should look after herself properly, and get some layers on.
Though with her stressful family situation, and all the court cases, perhaps she's short of money and can't afford a lovely warm winter coat? Come to think of it, there were a lot of holes in her tights...

Poor girl.


I'd post a link to the video, but I really don't think you should watch it, to be honest.

Tuesday, November 06, 2007

Yoga 'Pants'

Today I decided that the time had come for me to get some new yoga 'pants'. (I use the inverted commas because I hate Americanisms, but 'yoga trousers' doesn't sound right). My old yoga 'pants' were very old and had never been particularly flattering, and to be honest, I can't actually remember where I got them, and I have had a sneaking suspicion that they may have originally been pyjama bottoms... These yoga 'pants' are far more comfortable than the old ones, and they even came with a free mantra: My life is a creation of my mind. I find that more terrifying than soothing. I don't know I lot about yoga, but I'm pretty sure it's more about calm than terror. I always knew I'd be bad at yoga.

The yoga pants I bought are soooo comfortable. It is so easy to move in them (this coming from someone who wears jeans day in day out). It's like being naked, but without getting cold. And they feel really nice against my skin. They are nice and baggy, but with just the right amount of pressure around the waist to feel comfortably secure. Like they aren't going to start sliding while you're trying to hold a plank and breathe without making noises that sound like you're giving birth.



The thing is, they are so comfortable that I could quite happily wear them for the rest of my life. However, I am the kind of person who is totally against dressing as though I am on the way to the gym when I'm actually just going about normal life... It's so pretentious! In the past, I'll admit, I have dashed out to buy a pint of milk and a newspaper wearing pyjama bottoms. But in my opinion, that was acceptable, because it wasn't pretentious; I was dressed as though I was the kind of person who is a slob at the weekend. So basically, someone with a pretty normal lifestyle.


Though having said all that stuff about being pretentious, I don't actually do yoga. Never have, and probably never will. My body was most definitely not designed with yoga in mind. I wear them for circuit training (Yep! I still go!).


....And it would be nice to wear these yoga 'pants' out of the house. We'll see what happens.


In the mean time, I'd like to encourage all of you to go out and get your own pair!
(And no, they AREN'T chavvy. Unless you're wearing them behind a bus station, while swigging a can of White Star that someone in your Krew stole from the Spar down the road).





Monday, November 05, 2007

Thrifty Celebs!

Keira Knightley and her boyfriend, Rupert Friend, share clothes! Well...more specifically, hats.... but who knows?! They may share countless other things.... (Hmm...let's not go there).

I have proof! And I think I may be the first person to realise this!

Look:


and then:


They switched hats! Probably thought they could get away with it, since it seems that they did it 2 seasons apart - summer, then winter, HOWEVER, nothing gets past me.

I could SO do this for a living. Write a celeb gossip column. Maybe.