matte/ like the paint

likethepaint @ 2009-12-26T23:58:00

2009-12-26T23:58:30Z

So Christmas is finally over, except it'll be another week before my mother stops finding presents she forgot to give us, no doubt. Yesterday was just a clusterfuck of "why the fuck did you buy me hello kitty earings? One) I can't wear earings since I tore my ears, two) hello kitty? Really" and then my sister opening a book on America and being all ??? and us looking at each other and swapping behind mums back, even though the presents were obviously reversed.

I've got my entire reading list now for uni, minus two books that I ordered myself tonight. My printer is fantastic, I have no idea where it'll fit in my room because it's gigantic but the ink for it is really inexpensive so I don't care! And I have so many books to take back to uni if I pile them on my desk they come up above my head. Mum said it's about £250 worth of books in total between everyone who gave me books!

Aside from getting really upset on Christmas Eve I've been okay this year. Christmas Eve I sat and cried for about 3 hours and begged my mum to drive me back to Swansea but I'm feeling slightly better now. I's just the stress off all these painkillers, none of which are strictly vegan which makes me very angry myself because I feel weak taking medication at the expense of animals, but at the same time when I'm not taking them all I can do is lie flat on my back on the floor and sob because it's just too much pain. But the painkillers aren't pleasent, they make me sick and dizzy and give me headaches, and the back pain never fully goes away anymore so even though I'm taking 10 pills a day I still spend a large portion of it flat on my back on the floor, thankfully though it's better enough that the pain largely doesn't make me cry anymore. Roddy wrenched it funny tonight though and I felt like I was actually going to die, as stupid as that sounds.

Meh. That's about all the coherent post you can have. Loved Doctor Who. Actually strangely enjoyed Christmas and seeing all my family. Kinda want to go back to Swansea, but I'm looking forward to earning £140 in the next two weeks for doing almost nothing to be honest.

ETA: Hope you all had a fantastic Christmas! Thank you for all the cards and texts etc, sorry to those who I didn't get back to with cards. I was on it and then suddenly it was Christmas and I guess I wasn't as on it as I thought... Sorry! Love you all though!

likethepaint @ 2009-12-18T22:01:00

2009-12-18T22:00:38Z

Who is the Santa in the Christas adverts based off? I recognise him in an affectionate 'whatever he was in was a favourite of mine as a child' sort of way but I can't place it.

Also P-Stump looks very bizare right now. His chest is too broad for him to look right thin, that or I'm just not used to it. He looks healthier though, I think.

likethepaint @ 2009-12-17T19:02:00

2009-12-17T19:01:55Z

Y'know what, maybe this whole health scare/whatever is a really good thing because it dawned on me today, mid breakdown over worrying about what might happen on the tiny, tiny chance this is cancer, I don't want to die. I don't want to die.

It's been years since I actively wanted to, but I've not actively wanted to live in a long time either. It feels amazing. I feel like I could take on the entire world.

likethepaint @ 2009-12-17T13:41:00

2009-12-17T13:41:17Z

So I had to go back to the doctors today because the pain has gotten intolerable and waited an hour and a half to see the doctor. Which was annoying enough before I got any sort of treatment. Now I think I'd wait three hours happily if it meant someone would say I'm absolutely fine. Apparently because it's gone on so long and because it's got worse a tumor is now a very real posibility. Though there's stil a good chance it's just bad sciatica.

I have to go for a scan once I get back to Swansea after new year and then they'll work out exactly what it is. And in the meantime I have a prescription of two weeks worth of super strength prescription and then I can get some more at home to cover me an extra week if need be. I'm a bit gutted to be honest, because here it's free, but if I need more when I'm home I'm gonna be paying £14.40 for it but whatever. I should just be grateful I get it free when I'm here at all. At least I got my loan so I'll actually be able to pay the prescription fees if need be.

Now I'm gonna sit and cry and hope to god it is just really bad sciatica because fuck, does the idea of a tumor petrify me. Then I might contemplate whether or not I can walk to the nearest pharmacy. Right now I'm struggling with down the hall to the kitchen. :(

likethepaint @ 2009-12-16T20:20:00

2009-12-16T20:19:42Z

Y'know what, people are always asking me if I regret being vegan, or if I miss meat, and my answer is always the same: if I hated it I wouldn't do it. No one's backed me into a corner and forced me to do this, I genuingly believe in what I'm doing and love the lifestyle. I wish it was easier at times, but if everything in life was easy it wouldn't be half as fun.

But I must admit, watching Jamie Oliver (which, despite the fact that he's not remotely geered towards even vegetarians, let alone vegans, I do rather love) makes me want to cook everything he makes. It's pretty much the only time I ever feel disapointed about having made this lifestyle choice (not that I want to take it back, just look! everything he makes looks so tasty if I don't think of it as a dead animal).

Today's is very exciting though because it's roast potatos and veg and I'm so cooking this stuff at Christmas. I'm gonna pack a bento box of it for boxing day at my grans because she gets so sad that my dinner always looks kinda pathetic in comparison to hers. YES! Awesome dinner!

likethepaint @ 2009-12-14T01:22:00

2009-12-14T01:21:41Z

It's been far too lonely here this weekend, and I have to admit, there was a moment where I was tempted to say yes to my mums offer of coming home today (or well, yesterday now, since it's gone 1am) but I'd just hate it. It's so quiet, which is kinda spookey, but also wonderful.

The only downside is I hate having windows open when I'm alone, it's stupid, because I'm 3 floors up and the window only opens like a couple of inches so no one could get in, but I still hate it. You'd think that wouldn't matter seeing as it's the middle of December except I'm sat in a tshirt and pj shorts and boiling.

So far I've spent my holiday watching TV (including a lot of Christmas countdowns, sadly) and reading and not a lot else. No revision yet, though I know I'm gonna have to get on it pretty quickly if I stand any hope of passing the exams. Plus they haven't sorted out the fucking exam arangements so basically I'm fucked.

Still, the guy from Preselli came over to fetch our kitchen table from nextdoors flat (so helpful of them to borrow it and then leave without returning it!) and he promised to come check in on me if he doesn't see me collecting the post for more than two days which is a nice relief.

For now I'm gonna finish watching Life On Mars and then get some sleep and then go shopping so I can do all the washing up everyone so helpfully left for me and maybe get some butter so I can make a crumble to cheer myself up.

Wow this post is a mess.

likethepaint @ 2009-12-10T18:33:00

2009-12-10T18:32:52Z

My bikes been stolen :(

likethepaint @ 2009-12-09T14:54:00

2009-12-09T14:54:44Z

If I want a book on how the presidency of the United States changed through to George W. Bush I can get one for £2.99. If I want a book on how the presidency of the United States changed through to Obama (which is what I need, sadly) it's gonna cost me £12.99.

£10 just to learn about a year of Obama's presidency seems like a bit of a waste, really. But there's no point buying the Bush edition, because this is a book I'll use in my course next year so if I'm gonna buy one it needs to be as recent as possible so I won't just have to buy another one next year. I already might have to if Obama does something huge in the next year or so anyway.

:( No fun books for me.

Fairy Ball WHUT?!

2009-12-09T03:16:44Z

IDEK what that was, but it was awesome.

Wore the most killer heels you will ever see, and managed not to fall on my ass once! At one point I slipped but I managed to catch myself so no harm done. Spent the evening with Mikeyway (AKA Kathryn [she looks like Mikeyway and I didn't know her name for ages so Mikeyway stuck. - She doesn't know this]) and some friends of hers who are now friends of mine! One was from Somerset! There are more gay people in Somerset than just me! The total is now 2!

First part was kinda interesting, we talked about Jedward (they were in Swansea Monday night for our ball), twincest, Jedward and twincest, uh, and whether 12 year olds dating 20 year olds in manga is creepy. Then back to incest for some reason. Mikeyway is awesomely weird! After that we went to the club not the bar, and danced and shit, then party games!

First game was to pass oranges, didn't participate and it was kinda meh. Second game was for two girls to compete to collect the most of one type of clothing. Was fun to watch and because I was wearing a dress I didn't have to participate which was even better.

Then we danced some more, Ian got dressed up in stunning drag (he was strangey attractive which is creepy) and sang, I got dragged up onto the platform to dance and somehow enjoyed it. THEN third game. This is where it went very wtf. Mikeyway and Josh were pushing me toward the stage to participate and then Aiden appeared, grabbed my arm and pulled, and because my shoes have no grip I ended up on the stage.

The game? One person strips, one person licks whipped cream off their body. Two teams, winner is the person who licks the cream off first. Thankfully Dom got the licking part, except I was wearing a strappless bra which was really far too low cut to be seen in public, so I had to pretty much get my tits out on stage. And there are pictures... It's amazing how much more confidence you have for dancing like an idiot though once you've stood in front of everyone wtith your dress folded down round your waist having whipped cream licked off you.

Then I broke my shoe doing a do si do and had to take them off and walk back to the taxi rank bare foot on the freezing wet floor. They carried me most of the way though, bless them!

It's now like almost 3.30 and I'm so not ready for bed yet. I might need a shower...

RICH!

2009-12-08T15:40:42Z

OMG LOAN!

About fucking time!

likethepaint @ 2009-12-07T14:54:00

2009-12-07T14:54:42Z

I got a letter from my aunt today with a cheque for £20 which was very, very nice of her.

I'm a little worried though, to be honest. Apparently my oldest cousin (Mini-Stephen Fry) is being bullied for being smart and not so good at sports and he's having a hard time with becoming a teenager and I want to go hug him and say "10 years ago I was you, and no matter how shit it feels it does get better." She wants me to go speak to him at Christmas because he won't tell her anything about the bullying and all he's talked about since he came to visit me in October is if he can come back and see me, and if he works hard can he come to university himself when he's my age. Bullying is hard, I took 5 years of it, but hopefully I can talk to him, let him know things get easier and one day being smart won't make him lame, it'll make him the next Stephen Fry and he'll be the national treasure while they bully earns minimum wage in McDonalds.

My other cousin, the one who's usually quite easy because you just buy her something pretty and she's satisfied has decided she's going to start smoking. Apparently it smells nice. At first my aunt wasn't worried because Charis has a good head on her and our granddad nearly died from smoking a few years ago, so they sat her down with him and he explained that it was smoking that made him ill, but she still wants to do it. So as I am also her idol now, for some reason, it's up to me to convince her that it's a bad idea. At least she's decided she can't smoke until she goes to "big school" in a few years, so there's time. I'm hoping it's just a phase.

I can't wait to go home now. Except I know if I did I'd just kill my parents within like 3 hours, so I'm gonna wait right up to Christmas and then maybe we can have a nice week or so before I leave rather than a hellish month. Even if I went home now I wouldn't be able to see my cousins until Boxing Day so I'd just be sat around in Taunton worrying about them, rather than Swansea.

likethepaint @ 2009-12-07T11:41:00

2009-12-07T11:41:17Z

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS!

OMG IT ARRIVED AND ANDY AND I ARE NOW GOING TO WATCH IT 50 BAZILLION TIMES! This day could not get any better!

likethepaint @ 2009-12-06T01:45:00

2009-12-06T01:45:15Z

Just finished the second book in the challenge! This time it was Chicago by Alaa Al Aswany, an excellent book. I'm also pleased because I'm ahead of Andy still! Not that it's a competition, but we're both quite competitive so...

I want to go to the Snow Ball, but I don't think I'll have time to watch Inglourious Basterds and go and Andy's face just dropped when I said I was thinking of going, and now I'm like :( because I don't know what to do. We've been planning this for forever, and it's really important to me (and to him, I would imagine) and yet I would really like to go to the Snow Ball if I can find someone else who's going to go with.

I think I'm gonna go to sleep now and in the morning I'm gonna ride my new bike and see how far I can actually get before I die from having not been on a bike in a very long time. The good thing is, if I suck, I can always blame the sciatica. I think I'm gonna ride out of the front of the uni, and then back into the uni through the park in like a big circle and ease myself in gently.

likethepaint @ 2009-12-05T21:08:00

2009-12-05T21:07:49Z

I'm beyond tired. Spent a few hours in town; mum brought me two new dresses for the balls next week. I'm in two minds about how I feel about that, on the one hand, yay, I got two new dresses, on the other hand I always feel like she spends too much on me, and they were expensive dresses but omg I love them.

After that we went to Halfords and got me my new bike, and dad put it together in the lobby much to everyone's disgust. I know technically bikes aren't allowed outside, but Wales was doing it's usual Welsh thing and pissing it down (even though it's been really dry lately, actually) and it's a brand new bike, so it's not like it's trecking mud into the building.

Now I have a bike so yay! And two dresses that fit me nicely AND I found out that within Miss Selfridges, the size I am ranges from a 4 (that's embarrassingly a size 0, American friends) to a 10 (American 6) which yeah. That's kinda a big difference, really, for the one store. And I wasn't even trying on dramatically different dresses. Bizare.

I'm not sure about my outfit for the fairy ball though, I don't think my shoes work. :( And I have no mirror so I need someone to come look at me and approve my outfit before I leave the house. Also, I'm not sure killer heals are a good idea with sciatica. Not really anyway. I might go in a dress, tights and converse. Hahaha. Oh and wings, because y'know, gotta be a fairy.

likethepaint @ 2009-12-03T23:49:00

2009-12-03T23:49:33Z

American Studies essay finished! And actually 5 words off the word count they requested. Hopefully done well too, but only time will tell with that one. Gonna sleep all day tomorrow and then hopefully my hip will stop hurting so I can go out with my family on Saturday. I may attend my lectures, to be honest though I may not.

likethepaint @ 2009-12-03T22:21:00

2009-12-03T22:21:30Z

Just finished a fantastic evening with coldgreentea laughing about awful design choices and donkeys and had wonderful soup and pies and now, as if my evening is determined to just get better I have an email saying Inglourious Basterds has shipped! Though, I'm not very impressed with the whole "estimated delivery: 9/12/09" but I suspect it'll arrive monday anyway.

YAY!

Also, I have a tiger that goes rawr!

RAWR!

likethepaint @ 2009-12-02T21:20:00

2009-12-02T21:19:52Z

Today has been intersting to say the least.

When I woke up the cleaners were doing a "deep clean" that lasted two hours, so instead of eating and taking some ibuprofen like I wanted to I had to suck it up and shower and walk to Tesco Express in agony.

Andy and I got so lost. It took us 45 minutes to find Tesco Express and 10 minutes to walk back to the university... And in the end we only found it because some lady saw us flapping the map around trying to work out where we were and asked if we wanted directions. Bless her. ♥ (We were about to walk in the wrong dirrection as well!)

They didn't have any vegetable oxo cubes, so I had to get stockpots and I don't know how they're going work in the soup tomorrow, but we'll see. Hopefully it'll turn out alright or I'll have to seriously sad face.

After that got back and had no time to eat before photography, so I still couldn't eat or take my pills :( And it messed up my back really badly leaning back to photograph at the right angle. BUT I did really enjoy doing a proper shoot with an actual model that the society got in so yay for that!

Then I finally got to eat! And took loads of pills and then went to the library with Andy. I've pinched an idea from fadefromblack and decided to read 100 books in a year, and Andy and I have decided to do it together and see how many we can get to so woo! We're starting tomorrow and I can't wait because I'm always saying I need to read more.

Um. Yeah. I'm in so much pain again, but I feel too sick to eat :( Mostly watching Have I Got News For You and attempting to do my essay but not getting very far.

likethepaint @ 2009-12-01T21:11:00

2009-12-01T21:11:27Z

We got our presentation marks back today. It wasn't brilliant, but we got 65, which is a good solid 2:1 so y'know. At least coupled with my online test (80) it still averages out at a 1st.

I have too much to do and not enough time in the world. This essay is going badly, and I have no idea how to pull it back, but y'know, I have tomorrow morning between cooking for the meal and going to my photography meeting.

Other than that I really just want to sleep, but it's barely 9pm!

likethepaint @ 2009-12-01T09:48:00

2009-12-01T09:48:10Z

Doctors verdict:

Option one: (Most likely) it's sciatica and I need to take some ibuprofen and grit my teeth until it goes away in a couple of weeks.
Option two: (Only likely if I get some red-flag symptoms she told me, or it gets worse / lasts more than a month) it's a tumor on my lower back. S

Um, I'll go with option one, thanks, even if the treatment for it fucking sucks. I've been taking ibuprofen up to the max dose all weekend and I'm in so much pain I could curl up in a ball and cry (if I could curl at all). It hurts so badly to walk, but there's no other way to get to lectures or get food or anything. :( Still two/three weeks of extreme pain > tumor.

likethepaint @ 2009-11-30T22:04:00

2009-11-30T22:04:40Z

Don't ever look up symptoms online. My foots been dead since I woke up yesterday, and I've had numbness and pins and needles on and off for weeks now, but it was only when it went completely dead yesterday that I panicked, couldn't see the doctor today because they have no appointments until next week, but I'm gonna do drop in tomorrow. Still, I thought I'd google it, see if there was anything I could do to stop the pins and needles in my ankle while I'm stuck here with noothing else to do. Google thinks it's a tumor. Not cool, google, not cool.

The problem is, logically I know it's highly unlikely to be a tumor, and it's probably a trapped nerve or something, but I must admit, I'm still really kind of freaked out.

likethepaint @ 2009-11-30T19:51:00

2009-11-30T19:51:27Z

My plans for Thursday have been ruined! :(

Pip came home and decided tht next wednesday was a bad day to do Christas dinner so changed it to this week instead, which totally gets in the way of making soup and cupcakes for Thursday. Oh and writing my essay so y'know, I don't have to be writing it on Thursday, that too.

Instead, because Photography has now moved to Wednesday, and Andy wants us to go check out the lecture on house hunting wednesday, I now have to finish my essay tomorrow. I'm about 1/3 of the way there...

But I tidied my room today! It's not finished, but it's getting towards presentable, and then I'm gonna get it nice so that it can be seen, seeing as lots of people are going to be in my room this week, including my parents. Eeek!

Andy and I need housemates for next year. It seems ridiculous to be thinking about it now, but I know we need to. I can think of like 2 people out of those who don't have known arrangements who I'd be happy living with, and neither of the have even met Andy. Of course coldgreentea is one of them ♥♥. (Don't feel like you have to or anything, though!)

Bleh. In better news I'm making rissotto, and it looks and smells very yummy! And my sister is coming to stay in February AND we might go see Fightstar then too! Yay Welsh tour dates!

likethepaint @ 2009-11-29T17:19:00

2009-11-29T17:19:50Z

I finally finished the book! It was such a relief to see the chapter 'November 2008' and know that I only had to survive 4 days of the month.

It was a very good book, however, I did remember most of the stuff that was in it. Except, I must have missed the events covered in the subchapter 'Racists For Obama'. I don't even know, I laughed so hard I cried a little at:

"A canvasser knocks on the door in Washington, Pennsylvania and a woman answers. The caller asks her who she is planning to vote for. She is unsure and asks her husband, who is in anoher roo watching television. He yells back: 'We're voting for the nigger!' The woman turns back to the canvasser. 'We're voting for the nigger' she says brightly.

There is something so brilliant about that. I know some people would take it as offensive, because that word is pretty much considered one of the worst you can say by most people (at least one of the worst a white person can say - I certainly never use it.) but it's not actually meant as offensive, it's just different generations / social groups / upbringings / whatever leading to different ideas of where the 'line' is as to what's an okay word and what's a no-go area.

Also, I love the idea that while everyone I know was sort of going 'okay, the economy's crashing, we'll cut down to one bottle of wine a week instead of two,' or going from branded name food to supermarket brand food, there were some people for whom "racism [became] a luxury they [couldn't] afford." Like it was a new dress or fancy food or something. Brilliant.

(Sorry if you're offended by this in any way. I'm far too excited about finally finishing the book.)

likethepaint @ 2009-11-29T01:02:00

2009-11-29T01:01:58Z

Today (or technically yesterday since it's now 1am), I came into the kitchen to find Rachael and James selotaping advent calenders to the wall. Not only did they buy an advent calender for everyone, tape them up on the wall and name tag them, they hunted down a box of candy canes that are vegan for me! And I have a santas sack (clear plastic food bag) selotaped to the wall with 25 candy canes instead of a dairy milk calender. You guys, my flatmates!

We might get a tree for the kitchen as well! If we do I might actually die a little.

Also I wrapped all my presents yesterday, and I brought myself a little gold metal tree thing for my desk, and there are presents under it for coldgreentea (everyone elses presents are stacked up ridicuously in my bedside table - 17 tubes of chocolate) and Andy's present is Inglorious Basterds, which is fitting because a) we love that film and b)he is a basterd at times but I fucking love him anyway.

It's almost, almost a week until it comes out on DVD. The only downside is, if it's a week until it comes out on DVD it's a week until I have to hand in my essay...

likethepaint @ 2009-11-27T00:00:00

2009-11-27T00:00:11Z

In the past two hours I have gotten myself from the end of June 2008, to the beginning of August 2008. Fucking hell, I can see why people complain the campaigns are too long! It's all very, very interesting, but unfortunately, it's now close enough that I remember all these events very well, and am therefore just reading for quotes and footnote references to points I already know and it isn't half getting tedious.

And in just under eight hours I have to get up and go learn about medieval Europe... Probably from John Law who just makes me want to stab my pen into my own ears just to end the torture. Fun times!

[This icon is not one of my pretty! icons. But it does apply rather accurately to both my feelings about the presidential election right now, and John Law in general.]

likethepaint @ 2009-11-26T21:58:00

2009-11-26T21:58:03Z

I'm feeling bizarely tearful yet very excited today. Or tonight, really.

I've spent the entire day doing American Studies and in a second, despite the fact that it's nearly 10pm, I need to start doing some more. Bleh. I started a book on the 2008 elections, spanning Nov 2007 - Nov 2008 at 10pm yesterday, read it for two hours before going to bed, started reading again at 10am this morning, took maybe an hours break in total for lunch and things, stopped at 3pm to go to Spa for food and then my lectue, and started again at 5pm when I got back. I am now, at 10pm just beyond the point where it becomes Obama vs McCain rather than Obama vs Clinton. I just need to get this and then I have 8 more books to read tomorrow so I can start my essay on Saturday when I get back from my photography induction (which despite occuring every week since I got here, I have yet to attend. Oops.)

God my life is bleh. But in the plus side of things, we have Christmas decorations in our kitchen! And we're planning Christmas dinner for the wednesday before we leave. Proper three course meal, soup for starters, made by moi, and then full roast, followed by crumble and Christmas pudding. I love my flat (except Amy, who hates us all and is never here except when she wants to yell at us, and no doubt won't participate in Christas dinner). The best part is, because of the size of the table, it's a flat only event so bitchface won't be here and I won't have to be in a room with while we both pretend to be nice so Rachael won't cry.

And then my mummy and daddy are coming soon! All my family is! Keith and Melissa haven't even seen my room yet! They're bringing my guitar, and I'm gonna buy a bike and the chest of drawers thing I liked weeks ago but can't be fucked with carrying back to the uni because they'll be an actual car. And mostly I'm just gonna love having my brothers here and going shopping with my sister. God it's been too long, I was only home at the weekend, but it's been too long. I can't wait for two whole weeks at home at Christmas.

Uh, this wasn't supposed to be a whole essay. Sorry, have a pretty!Joe icon to make up for it.