Bank Holiday Monday

A typical, coastal,  washed out bank holiday. Leaden skies, sheets of rain rattling the window pains and the squawking of desolate seagulls blown in from the sea. Definitely the kind of bank holiday that should be spent in front of the fire, in a cosy cottage next to the beach, rubbing a soft warm dog tummy!

Rome

Way, way back, on a drizzly November day me and my pal were contemplating the Italian Society trip to Rome. Blighted by low funds and the thought of missing the first week of the revision filled Easter break, we'd debated whether it was sensible and whether it'd be worth it. Fast forward 5 months to us blinking in the balmy warm sunshine, standing outside the Colosseum, having left a chilly England just hours before and neither of us were doubting that this was an excellent decision! It was only 3 days but my word did we see a lot of the city, eat a lot of pizza and soak up a lot of well needed sunshine. Although a bit knackered afterwards, the change had refreshed us ready to settled down and revise!

It Would Appear

It would appear that indoor sparklers and bed linen do not mix well. 

 It would also appear that purple ink fountain pens have similar negative feelings towards said bed linen as the indoor sparklers. 

But most importantly, it would appear that a certain someone and other house mates' bed linen have the longest history of poor mixing and this should be avoided at all costs during future endeavours.  

Toothpaste Kisses

In this student world that is devoid of parental ''goodnight''s or evening routines, it's lovely having a buddy around to end the day with. We finish our chats, we pad upstairs, we squish a toothpaste blob out, have a very quiet little chat whilst we brush and then the last thing you see before turning in for the night is a smiley face, grateful for your presence and wishing you a pleasant nice. It's one of my favourite luxuries in this life. 

Better Late Than Never

There's just 5 more months of Uni left, 4 if you omit the Easter break spent at home. There has been a palpable change in tone this year. Everything's become more loaded, so much more serious. We have fewer adventures and study more put simply. Also, though I never thought I'd think it, it some ways we've grown up too. We've lived together for three years now and after so long the bond has changed. We still laugh and talk but we've also reaching that wonderful stage where we can just be. Just sit there in each others company doing our own thing, not interacting but just being in each others silence. It's nice. I'm very grateful for my little Uni family but it has also made us become complacent. In 5 months time we'll separate and move on with out lives and at the moment I think we're all just a bit too tiered and a bit too focused on just getting this next deadline out of the way to notice that. It's not that we'll never see each other again, just that we'll never live together in quite the same close situation. Last term we didn't get time to have a Christmas dinner but we couldn't let that go and not share this meal together. Have all of us sit down for one evening and talk and share food. We did and it was lovely. Admittedly we feasted on a roast that wasn't one of my best and watched bad T.V., not talking but being, but I think we were all so knackered it's just what we needed and it doesn't matter that people splintered off to work afterwards, it mattered that we'd done it. I guess it's a homage to how blaze these things have become that I only bothered to take 2 pictures.

Not a good picture but everyone's there and that's that matters.

The X Factor

Things have been pretty crazy for us this year. Ever since we won the competition back in July, doors have been opened for us that we never would have imagine possible. Friday evening, whilst preparing for the first of our 2 charity Christmas concerts a phone call came through asking if we could sing backing for the X Factor on the semi-final on Sunday and the final results in a weeks time in Wembley Arena. Being the president of the choir meant that it was a bit of a nightmare in terms of logistics. To randomly select that many people, get them security cleared and ready for wardrobe whilst still organising the other charity concert meant some very late nights but what an opportunity!

So for those of you who saw the X Factor on Sunday, that was us, bobbing along in the background dressed in black. If not, have a butchers:

It was an amazing day but I was just so surprised at how well we were treated. I expected it to be the kind of show where we were very much bottom of the food chain but instead we were treated like artists, and received the utmost respect and every conceivable amenity throughout the day.  I think it's a memory that so many of our members will treasure forever:

Monopoly

Has there ever been a game of Monopoly that hasn't ended in arguements? The dice ended up being thrown across the table at the alleged cheater. I now remember why we haven't played this for so long . . .

On Your Skates!

I absolutely adore roller blading. The krrrr of the wheels on tarmac, the thrill of whizzing down a hill and thinking you're going to fall and die, even the raw ankle bones. I love it all. Alas, until recently, I've had to be a closet blader. There seems to be an unfortunately large amount of stigmatism for carrying on such joys in ones twenties and I'm not brave enough to go on my own, when if I fall over and can't get up? However, now I have an ally and the thrill is back! We spent our nippy November Saturday avoiding the essays by whizzing round Virginia Water. Was great fun, especially with the added sport of avoiding friendly dogs on leads, children on scooters and patches of wet leaves.

Shoe Boxes

Do you remember doing this at school? Filling shoe boxes with toys, woollies and cleaning products is much more satisfying than I remembered. 

Splish Splash

. . he's was taking a bath.

I have a major case of pet envy!

Ice Cream

When it's hot what better way to spend a day than cycling? Especially through green fields, past the aerodrome and along a race track. It means that the route never gets boring. Then, when it really does start to get warm, find a farm shop and a shady barn, share a pot of ice cream and drink old fashioned lemonade whilst watching the cows that made it. Divine.

Gambolling

 Winding up the day with a bike ride and we discover this:

The day before one of them turns 16, it's a wonderful thought that we're still as free to gambol through the corn fields as we were when we were children.
Maybe growing up isn't so hard.

Life is Pretty Average Today

Woken by postman's knock, go back to sleep. Wake up at 10. 30. Slip down stairs, find 3 post items for me: a postcard from Hazel, 2 CDs from amazon and a letter with a packet of white chocolate buttons from Candace. Eat the buttons as part of a balanced breakfast. Go see Leah, chat on her bed. Look at the time, woof down porridge. Spend and hour madly attempting to dent enormous laundry pile before holiday begins in 4 days. Peg last bra up on the line when it begins to spit. Decide that spitting will not last and leave washing out. Realise I am late. Grab sailing stuff and old text book.Ring Nicole. Nicole already left and nearly there. Start running to campus. Stop to sell textbook to Indie on way to Uni. Leave £35 up. Big happy face. Arrive outside the SU, Nicole now running late. Talk to Ellie, amazed to find everything in order with the taster day. Marvel at the level of organisation and the 2 homemade victoria sponges. Pile everyone into minibus. Set off. Heavens open. Arrive. Run into sailing club. Curse that I was decivied by the morning's blue skies into shorts and a strap top. Kit everyone out. Choose and organise boats for everyone. Rig boats. Check everyone's boats. Briefly teach land drill. Weather is now blue skies and hot sun, we nip in to change. Back out to boats, start launching people off. Wind picks up. Screams of terror follow. Many stuck in the trees of the bank. Yell instructions from the shore. Safety boat in over drive. All now sailing handsomly. Finally get into boat of own. Launch. Nic's boom falls off. Try to yell instructions, she drifts to the pontoon. Leave her boat tied up, let her hop into mine. Wind really picks up now. Discover that I did not check my own boat's rigging, someone has rigged it wrong. Try to rectify it. SMACK. Get hit in the head by the boom. Try not to throw up. Try not to faint. Get grip of self. Manourver away from the bank. Assess the damage. Head seems ok, aches a bit but ok, nasea attributed to hunger. Have awsome sailing session. Teach Nic how fun it is. Love the exhilleration of the wind shrieking, the rain driving and the constant slap of waves on the boat. Nic finally takes the helm. She starts to like it. Head in early as it's very cold for a newbie. Decide the water is warmer than the air, go for a half dip with Nic, neither of us brave enough to fully submerge. Ignore increasing feelings of head pain. Put the boats away. Change. Start cooking the after sailing meal for everyone. Feel grateful for the warmth of the club house and the gentle chatter. Feel head, find massive lump - better out than out. Help in the mass cooking of burgers and sausages (of course the BBQ has been rained off). Eat a burger. Sample delicious victoria sponge. Feel even sicker. Wash up and clear away. Chat to lifeguard friend about head. She notes that it is indeed a big lump, says to go see doctor when get back, write off as unnecessary. Drive back to Uni. It's raining again. Walk back to house. Realise I'm starting to stumble like a drunk person. Readdress that head is actually very painful. Compromise on lateness of return home denying surgery visit and ring out of hours. Encounter completely useless doctor. Consult Mum and Dad. Told to go to A and E right away. Chat to Leah in her room. Really very painful now. Wait for Charlie to get home from the post office. She drives us to A and E. Get there, remember where A and E is from recent work experience placement, each have a sweepstake deciding how when we finally get back to the car. Looks deceptively quiet from outside. Discover that it is in fact heaving. Check in at reception. Wait with Leah and Charlie, laugh at the absurd FAQs being shown on the TV screen. Analyse other patients in the waiting room. See triage. Am grateful to have such a kind and understanding nurse. Begin to despise her after she prods the now egg sized lump on my head and takes my blood pressure twice. Forgive her when she smiles. Back to hte waiting room. Sneakly update Dad from my phone. Man behind me has the same message tone, I keep getting unecessarily excited. Start to feel less and less with it. Have cold water. Think am going to be sick. Clutch carboard cowboy hat/sick bowl. Sister finds I am in A and E. Contacts me discussing coming to visit. Try to establish who is in front of me. Man with the limp is a long way in front, I am after the woman in the green sari. Pain becoming excrutiating. Finally go to see doctor. Such a nice man. Tested thoroughly and with compassion. He asks if we are students and where and what we study. We discuss my ambitions of being a doctor, though no longer in lucid tones. He diagnoses and prescribes pain killers. Carefully adives my housemates on what to do. Provides contact details. Gives leaflet. Gives packet of painkillers to avoid me having to pay the prescription charge - 'I don't care if you're 19 now, you're in full time education'. Get back to the car at 11. 40. We arrived at A and E and 9. 10. Leah's won the bet. It felt like forever but was wonderfully short. I talk to family on the phone in the back of the car. Charlie drives down dark unknown winding lanes, uncaring that she is normally a nervous driver and she starts work at 9 tomorrow morning and has still had no dinner. Leah navigates from her iPhone. I feel the painkillers working. It feels fantastic. We get home. I roll into my lovely cool bed knowing that I don't have to worry and my friends have taken care of everything. I am infinitely grateful for the loyalty, compassion and unconditional kindness of my family but in particular these friends, people who were strangers to me 2 years ago and yet, life was pretty average today.

a smile in my sick bowl

Today

Amelia

It seems bizarre really. It feels like only last week that there we were, just after the year 7 welcome assembly, deciding that as we were in the same form and maths group it really would be silly if we weren't friends and now, here I am looking into her daughters face.

  I am really very proud of her, considering that the pregnancy was such a surprise, and that her now fiancee works abroad, she has fallen into Motherhood really very well.

 So here she is, little baby Amelia:

 Oof! It's a hard life being 4 weeks old!

 It's also bizarre how little's changed, we still meet up for coffee (still plenty of room for cake), I still talk about Uni, she still talks about where she's applying to (yes she managed to sit her A-levels pregnant and do well!) everything ebbs and flows just as before. It's just now, there's a little gurgler sitting on a knee!

I had to show you her gorgeous flowing locks, just like her Mummy.