Belated Wishes to all

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all.

A late post

Sorry for my recent absence, but I wanted this to be my next post and I wanted to write it at a time when I could concentrate on the words and my memories without bursting into tears.

You see two weeks ago we had to have my beloved dog put to sleep. His name was Toto and he was one of the most good-natured dogs you'd ever come across. He was a lovely sandy colour with a white stripe down his nose, I had originally chosen him as a puppy due to this white stripe as it made him resemble my Grandad's dog Benji.

We'd first got him when I had just turned seven years old, I had begged, whined and moaned for a dog, and for my birthday I was allowed to pick out a puppy from the RSPCA. Toto and his siblings had been abandoned while they were very young. I remember that we took Toto home in an empty ice cream tub, that's how small he was. From that day on he settled into our family. And he grew, and grew.

The RSPCA had told my parents he wouldn't grow much because he had small paws, they were wrong. We ended up with a medium sized dog with tons of energy. I remember his tail constantly wagging, him running up and down our back garden and him chasing his tail. I remember being taken for a walk by him rather than him taking me and I remember thinking he'd be around forever.

But he'd aged an awful lot in the past two years and his back legs were stiffening up. It was time to let him go before he started seriously suffering.

I miss him. He was a brilliant dog.

Just a little tid-bit to show I'm still alive!

Click here if you'd like to see what I got up to at the weekend.

On a related note please see the little bit of info at the top right hand side of my page, please give whatever you can, because a) it's a good cause and b) have you ever tried doing a fast pole dancing routine for 10 mins straight? It's tiring!

Google search hilarity

As much as I dislike being referred to as "it" this last search nearly made me wee, I was laughing so hard.

Apologies for the short crappy posts, the stress monster has currently taken over Lola.

Pole Dance

I still can't believe that's actually me, I'm so pleased with myself.

And now for the musicals

In my last post I promised the songs from musicals that make me cry. I apologise to the majority of the people who commented on my last post. Depressing songs actually make me happier as I can have a cry and get things out of my system, I know it's not the same for everyone.

I'll Cover You Reprise from Rent



Why does my favourite character always have to get killed off? The first time I saw Rent live, I sobbed though most of the second act. This song in particular set me off, perhaps it was the way Collins helplessly clutched the coat Angel bought him.

A Little Fall of Rain from Les Miserables



Is there anything sadder than dying in your unrequited lovers arms? It's the line "I'll sleep in your embrace at last" that gets me.

Goodbye Until Tomorrow from The Last Five Years



For those who don't know, The Last Five Years documents a five year long relationship. The female partner shows this from the end to the beginning, and the male partner shows this from the beginning to the end with them meeting at their wedding in the middle. This song is the finale where both of the partners are saying goodbye, the woman at the end of their very first date and the man at the end of their relationship.

My Brother Lived in San Francisco from Angels Punks and Raging Queens



This is a song about having a brother who died of AIDS.

They liked it so much more than anywhere they'd been and we thought they would be there, when we made it back again

And the Rain Keeps Falling Down from Angels Punks and Raging Queens



About losing someone.

In Whatever Time We Have from Children of Eden



Two lovers facing the prospect of being separated by The Great Flood as one is the son of Noah and the other is a daughter of the race of Cain.

Johnny Can't Decide from Tick Tick Boom



The video to this isn't particularly relevant but it's one of the only videos on youtube to include the part of the song that makes me cry. The song is beautiful anyway, but the reason why I cry is the man himself, the writer of this musicalJonathan Larson. He died from an aortic aneurism before his famous musical Rent's opening night. The part that makes me cry is the spoken part of the song when Johnny says "I want to write music, I want to sit down right now at my piano and write a song that people will listen to and remember and do the same thing each morning for the rest of my life."

Without You from Rent



I was never a fan of this song until I saw it live. It affects so many others than just those who are singing.

In His Eyes from Jekyll and Hyde



The best song in the show.

The songs we love to be sad to

I'm one of these people who loves to listen to sad songs, tearjerkers that they are. So as this morning I am in one of these moods I thought I'd share with you some of the songs I love, find beautiful and yes, sometimes cry to.

Winter - Tori Amos



This is a song I've only heard within the last few days and I love it. Some say it is about a girl losing her father, others say it is about the relationship between a girl and her father and how that relationship changes as the girl grows up. Either way I love listening to it. It is a very moving song.

I Will Love You - Fisher



This is one my sister had first heard, and ever since she played it, I have loved it too. It's such a heartfelt song that I think most people will be able to relate to at some level.

But I need to know will you stay for all time? Forever and a day. Then I'll give my heart 'til the end of all time, forever and a day

Nearer My God to Thee



I think most people can understand why I can cry at this one, just watch the video. A lot of people badmouth the film Titanic but this scene is utterly heartbreaking. People from all backgrounds and walks of life preparing to die, and fighting to live. This film shows the best and worst of human nature, so next time you feel like slagging the film off, watch it again but this time ignore the love story and watch whats going on in the background.

You Raise Me Up



For this song my ultimate version was in fact the one sung by the Conway Sisters in X-Factor a few years back. Purely because I think women in a group can make really goosebumpy harmonies that work so well with this song.

Forget Me Not - Lucie Silvas



Please excuse the video to this song, but it is the main reason why it is a tearjerker for me. It is an Angel music video that some talented soul has done by editing together various clip of the show. This one focuses on the episode Hole in the World, and the death of one of my favourite characters. If you're an Angel fan you'll definitely see why it makes me cry.

Goodbye My Lover - James Blunt



A similar one again except this video is a Dr Who one rather than an Angel one. Yes I'm a geek, you've only just noticed?

Everytime - Britney Spears



I can't help but feel I'm destroying any possible street cred I may have had... It's another Angel video in case you didn't notice.

Shine Your Light - Robbie Robertson



Last Angel video I promise. It's the end of the song that gets me in this one, very meaningful. It also made me cry when it was shown in the film Ladder 49.

Until the Last Moment - Yanni



A gorgeous instrumental piece. I'm still not quite certain why it has made me cry on occasion.

Full of Grace - Sarah McLauchlan



A beautiful song.

I could have had more but I've decided to leave it at ten. I'm always on the look out for more tearjerker songs so please feel free to add your own in the comments.

At some point within the next few months I'll be posting my favourite tearjerkers from the musicals. So stay tuned.

Sorry All

I know I haven't been a laugh a minute recently. So to avoid boring you and for a touch of light-heartedness I've decided to complete this meme, which the delightful Domestic Minx filled in earlier.

Five Things

What are five things you were doing ten years ago?

1) Going to High School
2) Started coaching gymnastics (young I know)
3) Dancing in pantomimes
4) Started to learn how to ski
5) Watched cartoons, nothing ever changes

What are five things you were doing this time last year?

1) In the middle of my contract in my first real job
2) Preparing a Halloween costume
3) Being annoyed that my student mates could go out until all hours while I had to be up at six every weekday to get to work
4) Blogging for about three months
5) Trying to make sense of my on and off relationship with my ex

What are five snacks that you enjoy?

1) Pizza
2) Ben and Jerry's cookie dough ice cream
3) Nachos
4) Pringles and dip
5) A moderately healthy one now, mozzarella, parma ham and melon salad

What are five songs you know the lyrics to?

1) Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen
2) Wannabe - Spice Girls
3) Everytime we touch - Cascada
4) Waterloo - ABBA
5) Mary's Prayer - Danny Wilson

What five things would you do if you were a millionaire?

1) Buy my own house.
2) Fork over money to my parents so they can buy a holiday home abroad for them to retire to, and some for my sister and good friends too.
3) Buy some things I've wanted for a while like an X-pole.
4) Donate some money to key charities.
5) Travel everywhere I want to go

What are your five bad habits?

1) Cracking my joints, in particular my fingers, back and toes
2) Biting the skin around my nails
3) Being like a dog with a bone at times/being incredibly stubborn
4) Procrastination
5) Being slightly neurotic and paranoid

What five things do you like to do?

1) Spend time with mates and family, there's nothing like a good old natter
2) Blog obviously
3) Travel
4) Listen and dance to music (with or without a pole)
5) Eat out when I can afford it

What are five things you will never wear again?

1) My hair one length and level with my jaw, it looked naff
2) My hair pillar box red, granted that was a misunderstanding between me and the hairdresser but still I look back on the photos and cringe
3) Matching outfits with my sister, the bane of my childhood, hehe
4) Whatever is fashionable if I don't like it, there's no point in following the trends if the trends look naff on you
5) A nail piercing... granted I was about 13

What are your five favorite toys?

1) My phone
2) My laptop.
3) My mp4 player.
4) My camera.
5) My molecular modelling kit (geek!)

What are five things you hate to do?

1) Physics, gawd I feel thick
2) Get my work done right away.
3) Certain aspects of housework, like ironing.
4) Lectures with the current bunch of rude people in our year.
5) Feel anything worse than ok.

I know some people don't like doing memes, so I'll just leave this one up for anyone who has a few minutes to waste and fancies doing it.

Where my beauty lies

Where Does Your Beauty Lie? ..::Original Pictures Are Back! Detailed Results::..

B:

Your Beauty lies in Plain Sight. Plain, simple and the girl next door. People tend overlook you as you are the "normal girl", but you're actually very beautiful. And you have plenty about you to set you apart, but more that lets you blend. People love the stability you have because as others may come and go, you will always be there and you may always be the same. You like simple things and that's what people like about you. You most likely enjoy things most consider normal, like movies, shopping, that sort of thing and are very friendly and probably have many friends. You are sweet and kind and that shows on you, but you're also strong and not very naive. You're a rather well-rounded individual. Even though some people pass you off as just another girl, shrug it off because they don't know what they're missing.

Some Things That Represent You:

Element:Earth, Light Animal: Cat Color: Pinks, Blues, Browns Song:Girl Next Door by Pilot Expression: Simple Smile

Gemstone:Alexandrite Mythological Creature: Fox Demon, Hobbit Planet: Jupiter Hair Color: Light Brown Eye Color:Brown

Quote:"To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world."

Take this quiz!








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Lecture Rant

First of all thank you to all who commented on my last post for your support. I'm feeling better, I'm just missing all that relationship stuff but I'll live. And now on to the real purpose of this post.

Since finishing my last degree I had forgotten how much this particular thing bothered me, but now I'm back it's rearing it's ugly head once more and causing my blood pressure to creep up. Anyone who has ever done a degree should be able to relate to this one.

How rude is it when the lecture is nearing it's end, the lecturer is still talking and people start to pack their things away? Would it seriously cripple them to hang on for all 30 seconds of the summary of the lecture and then pack away and go? For me it is the height of rudeness, if you were in a job interview would you start putting things away while the interviewer was still talking to you? I highly doubt it, and yet these students think it is ok to pretty much ignore the lecturer at the end of the lecture.

On a related topic there are an awful lot of people who think it's ok to talk in lectures as well, and I don't mean the brief "Oh, what did Dr. Whatdyacallhim say just then?" kind of whispered exchange that I can forgive. I mean full blown what I did last night and what I'm doing tonight kind of conversation that could certainly wait until the lecture is over. It's rude and it's very distracting to those students who are actually trying to listen to the lecturer. I would wonder why they actually came to the lecture in the first place, but our course actually monitors attendance via attendance sheet so they show up to get their mark. I just wish I could forcibly gag them sometimes.

I'd like to wish that this was an unrelated incident but our whole society in general is a selfish and rude one. Yesterday my mum, my sister and I went out and about for a food and drink festival. My sister is currently on crutches having torn the ligaments surrounding one of her toes while dancing (apparently it's more painful than it sounds). On the way back we boarded a very crowded train, with not a single free seat, my sister stood balancing on her crutches and leaning against the edge of a seat. Did the lads standing by us stand up to offer her a seat? Nope. Did the adults sitting by us? Nope. After one stop into the train journey a girl about my age noticed and stood up to let Hop-along have her seat. Am I the only one who finds it disgusting that people are too self-obsessed to think of giving up their seat for someone else? (And before anyone asks, yes I have previously given up my seat for people who are frail/injured/heavily pregnant etc).

On an unrelated note on that same train a girl who had been sitting down chatting on her phone since Oxford Road (I'm assuming she got on at Piccadilly, the stop before) told the conductor that she had got on at Central (several stops later). I was this close to dobbing her in it, and apparently so was my Mum. I sometimes wonder if I'm a bit of a mug for going by the rules?

Back to Studentsville

The one thing I noticed last night was the fact that I did not dread the fact that it was Monday Eve, which was such a welcome relief after dreading almost every single Monday for the past three months (talk to me in a months time and see if I've changed my tune already!).

The early starts aren't bothering me too much, although it was dark at the train station this morning, an unwelcome drawing in of the nights. I've found even more mature students, this time round some from other countries. It still seems that I am one of the less mature of the mature students (yay!). I don't know how the others decided to go for it, I was fretting about having to take a year out to earn money as I didn't want to postpone my life. I've met people who have done a degree and a masters, or a degree and then teacher training, or like myself, a degree and then worked. We all sound old chatting about the way Uni was "in our day" and how old all these 18 year olds are making us feel with all their partying.

It looks like I will definitely be needing help in physics. At first the lecture was fine while the lecturer explained the reasons behind studying physics on this course, and I was enthused by them. Then the real lecture started and I really couldn't understand a thing I was writing down, all these sodding greek symbols that stand for wavelength and frequency etc, and the basic equations that they expect us to know. I do not know any of this, I last did physics six years ago, so just stick me in the corner with a dunces cap and talk very slowly so I can write all this gobbledeegook down.

It's not much to ask is it?

Oh no I've been neglectful

I'm brushing off the thin layer of dust that has managed to accumulate in the cafe after my brief time away. I apologise for the length of my absence and promise to behave in future (who am I kidding?).

Paris was fabulous as a future post will tell you, but for now I wish to speak about tomorrow and what lies ahead of me. Friday was my last day in work you see, and this Monday I start afresh with a new degree course (hopefully the last one!).

I'm absolutely petrified, I don't know where I'm going, who I'm going with or anything. I'm sure that at some point through my day I will run across someone who will talk to me, after all everyone is in the same boat, but the paranoid part of me thinks that everyone will have met up in halls and at various freshers parties this weekend and I will be the only one who doesn't know anyone.

So for now I mentally prepare myself and put my chatty head on, because tomorrow I will need it, wish me luck everyone!

The cafe closes up shop...

For next week anyhow, I'm off to Paris in the next half an hour. I'll miss you all and promise to come back with plenty of tales and photos.

Au revoir!

Ten Eternal Truths About Creamfields

August bank holiday weekend brings with it several events, one of these being Creamfields. Those of you who read this blog last year may remember my Creamfields post that year as a member of SJA. While last years post was a bit long winded I'm hoping to keep this one short and sweet, so here it is the ten eternal truths about Creamfields (which would happen whenever and wherever the festival was held).

1) There will always be a small minority of girls who will show up in a bikini, a pair of shoes/boots and nothing else, not even a jumper for later on. This will invariably happen whatever the weather is like in the daytime.

2) The aforementioned girls will end up in the field hospital/first aid posts at around 3 am complaining that they're cold and asking can they take one of our blankets.

3) Our members will always lose the will to live at around 3 am and wonder why they signed up to do this event.

4) There will always be someone who for whatever reason decides to test their bodies by consuming between 10 and 20 ecstasy tablets. Do they think "Hmm, the first 8 haven't worked so I'll have a few more" seconds after swallowing the first lot?

5) At least one of our members will always get injured at some point in the night. A couple of years ago that member was me, I got clonked on the head by a big tripod light that fell on me and caused me to bleed a little. This year a member sustained soft tissue damage to her knee and ended up on crutches.

6) There will always be people complaining that they feel weird after taking one substance or another and will be taken to our med centre to sleep it off.

7) Those mentioned in point 7, having gotten a nice place to sleep with a pillow and a blanket will now be extremely unwilling to leave it. Not good when we get busy and need to find a bed to treat someone else.

8) There will always be people who come in and say "I haven't taken owt mate" while their pupils are the size of a dinner plate.

9) There will always be violence, the police do well to try and contain it but we do get to see the end result of fights very often.

and

10) Never leave brownies around our members if you would like to eat one later. I have been told by my mum that the brownies I'd made weren't particularly nice too :-( Thanks Mum.

So all in all, a good night. We weren't as busy as we have been in previous years which was good, although the first aid posts had their manic moments. Here's to next years Creamfields!

An open letter

To the two do-gooders who saw fit to make complaints to the RSPCA. No, I'm not an animal abuser, neither are my family. Yes, my dog is skinny and you can see his ribs, but no we are not starving him.

Did you happen to know that my dog is nearly seventeen years old? Did you also happen to know that he is currently undergoing diagnostic tests at the vets to determine the cause of his weight loss? No you didn't and that's because you didn't care to ask my mother who made eye contact with you as you beat a hasty retreat.

Your actions, however well intentioned nearly caused my dog to be put down. Luckily the RSPCA officer who came to our house saw that he was not mistreated and just an old dog. Today she came around again and I showed her videos of him running on the beach earlier in the week. From those she could see that he was well cared for and that he was still lively. Despite losing weight he still has a good quality of life.

I'm not an idiot, I know he wont live forever. Trust me when I say that if I could see him in pain and suffering I wouldn't hesitate to do the right thing and put him down. But right now, he's loving life and I'm loving life with him. I'm glad of every extra minute I get with him because I know how close I was to losing him for good.

I hate being judged like this, anyone who has any sort of experience with animals can see that my dog is not mistreated just getting on in years. So don't scowl at me as I take my beloved pet for a walk, after all if I was starving him and kicking the shit out of him do you really think I'd be taking him for a walk in the park?

Twats.

Final day

I nearly forgot to post. I could have let it slide but since my mate only gets back tomorrow I've decided I should post today. I just want to say thank you to all who have commented over this week, and to all you non-believers, courgette and chocolate go really well together in a cake (try it for yourselves at this site).

Coming up next time; what I have decided to do while in Paris, stay tuned ;-)

And on the seventh day

I tidied out the kitchen cupboards, let's hope they stay tidy for more than two minutes...

Now I know why I dont generally post every day. I run out of things to say and end up talking crap. My friend is back at the weekend anyhow, so the post madness shall end tomorrow and I can get back into my usual style of posting when I have something to say.

Sixth day

Thank god it's friday tomorrow, and I'm so glad I have a half day off work. Get in!

The wonder of google

Check me out, five days into this post per day challenge and I'm already running out of ideas. So I'm looking to my stats for inspiration, and I shall share with you some of the more amusing words and phrases that have brought people via google to my little cafe.

Chat up line physics
I'm sorry but unless she's a physicist too, there's no chance of a physics related chat up line going well

Slobby booty
This phrase would have directed them to this post on my blog, why they were searching for a "slobby booty" I just don't quite know.

Lola's other blog
No I just have the one, unless you count my on the side restaurant review blog

Funny job lola
Well the last funny job was my lab tech stint, the things that I did still amuse me. This post sums up one of my favourite moments from my time there.

How to chat up a scientist
Well it's nice to know that us science gals are sexy enough to chat up, don't expect us to be too easy to get though

Biscuit theory
Oh yes, it's is the one, the only biscuit theory

Show me what happens on monday with lola
Well on monday I went to work, felt crap, cancelled a meeting and went bed early, not very interesting

Magic boobs
Yes they are, dont believe me? Check this out

Bonkers boobs
No, they're magic, not bonkers

Pooing at work
Hmm I may regret doing that post at some point. Remember this isn't instructions on what you have to do, but it's more politeness and toilet manners.

Lola's boobs
It's nice that you want to google my boobs, but I'm not that kind of a girl

The great mouse detective boobs
Oddly enough I can't recall boobs featuring heavily in this film, perhaps it's best if I don't...

"your legs behind your head"
I'm not even going to go there...

Learn how to make cocktails in liverpool
Well give me a buzz I'll teach you how to make them so long as I get to drink some

handcuffed OR cuffed OR handcuffs OR cuffs OR handcuff
I don't think this chappy was intending to find a lovely pic of me in high vis while my first aid kit was arrested. Apologies for it not being sexy handcuffs.

That's all for now folks. Enjoy your evening.

A little late

I bet you thought I'd forgotten to post. Not quite, but I am busy tonight. Why do I always leave things til last minute, grrrr.

A short post tonight, but then again I need my sleep

ciao

Paris

Paris the city of lovers, of haute cuisine and haute coulture. The city of the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame and the Louvre. The city that I shall hopefully be going to for my holidays this year. Partially because I'm lazy and partially because I'm curious I'd like to know the answer to this question...

If you were in Paris what would be the sights that you'd have to see? Or place that you'd have to visit?

Please give me some hints as I have very little idea of what to do while I'm out there!

Poles Fun, Public Poles More Fun?

Second day, second post, not bad so far (please see previous post for an explanation of my post per day for a week thingy).

Today I cam across this video on youtube, and although it was for a dare I think this is fantastic and kudos to the girls for doing it. Although the funniest thing about it is some of the other peoples expressions. So to the girls congratulations for going against the norm and having the guts to go for it. Is anyone up for a go of this in London Underground?

Frosty Goodness

Due to a good friend of mine being away for the week I've decided to try to do a blog post each day to take my mind off being bored. Whether I manage it or not is another thing.

Today I was puzzling over what to write about until I went downstairs to the kitchen, and then I saw it, the frosty gorgeousness that is our brand spanking new fridge. Now call me sad if you like, but I love this fridge, for starters it's massive (and with my food shopping sprees it wont take long to fill it!), it's metallic and somewhat sexy for a fridge. I think I adore kitchen appliances far too much for my liking.

That's the fridge in all its' glory, see why I love it. It also has water and an ice machine. I'm in kitchen heaven!

Now all that's left to do is to go and eat the 4 tubs of Ben and Jerrys I popped into the freezer section last night, toodles!

A spot of selfishness on my part

We had stumbled on the shop purely by chance. In fact you could have said it was fate that we ended up there. We were desperately searching for hats for my cousins wedding in a weeks time and we had had no luck. Mum had looked up some hat hire shops and we set off for the first one, which was closed, on a Saturday. We grumbled and set off for the second on the list, a little further away.

I knew the road it was on, I had driven along it many a time, but this shop was hidden. It was not only a hat shop but also something called a dress agency. We went in for hats and came out with bags and bags of fabulously priced designer gear, most of which had never been worn before. Shoes, dresses, bags they had them all, and so did we as we strolled out of the shop clutching our purchases.

"Tell your friends!" they said as we headed out the door.

So I came onto the blog to tell you all about this little gem, and encourage you to go, but then I started thinking. What if telling people leads to me one day going in to this little treasure trove and one of you has just snatched up what would have been the perfect shoes/dress/bag for me? What if I lost out because I was good enough to pass this secret onto you all?

So I'm keeping quiet, there's just no coming between a girl and her fashion.

If it makes you feel better I wont be telling my friends either...

Green fingered

I'm sitting here eating a stir fry with my very own home grown courgettes, mangetout and spring onions.

Life is good.

Happy Birthday

Not to me, but to my blog. One year ago today I made the first post in the Cafe. It doesn't feel like a year. I've "met" so many funky people while writing this blog, and I'd like to thank everyone who's ever read or commented. Now down to business, party at the cafe guys!

Things that go bump in the night

There's nothing quite so irrational, yet also rational as our fears. To us it makes perfect sense that we are afraid. To others, we may seem a like bit of a weirdo.

I was listening to the radio last night when a female listener confessed that as a child she had been petrified of buttons and had to have everything fastened with velcro up until the age of nine. I found that odd, but then I had to admit that as a tot I always cried hysterically when the music video for Reet Petite by Jackie Wilson was played anywhere near me. This then extended to me being afraid for the song for most of my childhood.

Thankfully I've now come to my senses and I'm only scared of sensible things, like spiders, daddy long legs, enclosed small spaces, clowns, death, walking upstairs in the dark, pitch dark, ghost stories, etc, etc, etc.

He's fire and ice and rage. He's like the night, and the storm in the heart of the sun

Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I know exactly where I'll be at 7:10pm next Saturday. I have an appointment to find out what happens in the second episode of the final three part episode of the Doctor Who series. It's set to be the biggest challenge facing the Doctor and certainly one hell of a ride. What will happen with the devious Mister Saxon and will the Doctor, Jack and Martha escape from the "future-kind" at the end of the Universe without a Tardis? It's all hotting up and this is just the beginning. Those who dare, watch!





For those who missed the episode this Saturday, the episode Utopia can be seen at www.tv-links.co.uk

He's ancient and forever. He burns at the centre of time and he can see the turn of the Universe..

A good note to finish the night on...not

I've just drove home from a friends house, it's late, about 11:45pm and the streets are dark and rainy. I pull into my drive and just before I turn the engine off I see something out of the corner of my eye. I turn my head, a drunken chav is standing by my car window, looking in at me. My heart starts to race. He mouths something at me, but there is no way I'm opening my car window. My laptop is in the front seat with me along with my mobile and my cash cards in my bag, and my town is known for its' scally, inbred inhabitants who cause trouble for kicks. He speaks again and steps closer to the car. At a loss for what to do, I shrug. He straightens up, nods at me as if to say, "ok then" and staggers off down the street after some other drunken blokes. I wait until they are further down the street before I grab my stuff and cautiously head into the house, my heart still pounding and my hands shaking.

That brings me up to now, I'm safe and sitting in my warm bedroom. I'm eating Lindt chocolates to ward off my shakiness (it's just what the doctor ordered). And above all I feel a bit of a prat because after going into complete "flight or flight" mode the drunken chav seemed to only want directions. Still you can't be too careful I suppose...

Belly's gonna get ya!

The unthinkable has happened, I'm actually fat!

I have a tendency to retain water during certain times of the month, and then look all svelte afterwards. Well it's not longer that time of the month and my bras don't fit and I actually broke into a sweat getting into my tight jeans. In fairness, these jeans were actually tight when I bought them, but now they are cutting off my circulation.

My lazy lifestyle has come after me with avengence, the belly has finally got me...

Meh-ness

I feel trapped on this blog, I don't have the freedom of being completely anonymous to talk about certain subjects. I feel like that today, If I was anonymous I would blog about it, if only to get it out of my system. People who know me, god love them, would know what and who I mean though, and that would almost be like me betraying a confidence. So for now I feel grouchy, listless, and oddly for me, not hungry. I may have to resort to old fashioned pen and paper, and then the shredder for this one.

A grumble

I have one reason and one reason only to stay home on a Saturday night. That reason ladies and gentlemen, is the latest episode of Doctor Who. This Saturday, due to cooking dinner for my lot I missed Doctor Who. No matter I thought, since I can catch the repeat on BBC 3. This would be a great plan, except we don't have BBC 3 anymore. The world is conspiring against me, to stop me watching yummy David Tennant-ness.

On a side note, sometime today the cafe had it's 3000th visitor, I hope they enjoyed what they saw here, and that they stuck around for a bit.

I've been tagged

Actually I was tagged a while ago but I've been unobservant. Sorry Merys. I'm getting my act back together so here it is, The 8 Things Meme;

8 Things you never wished to know about Miss Cherry Cola

1) I am constantly burning myself, my current "war wound" is on my lower arm, and was caused by a disagreement with a hot grill.

2) I fluctuate between being really vain, and hating how I look. Some days I put on my clothes and think "wow, I'm a right fitty" and others I'm constantly changing clothes because I look too fat/ugly/scruffy etc.

3) I can shop for England. If I had the means to do so there are so many things I would buy. Money isn't the keys to Lola's happiness but it does help a tad.

4) I'm getting broody, but not for children. I am suffering from "house broodiness". I'm finding myself watching property tv shows, wishing I could afford a house, wanting to go shopping for kitchen utensils, bathroom suites, sofas etc. The downside to this is that I'll never be able to afford a house until I graduate, again...

5) I feel very green-fingered at the moment, my peas are really coming on as are the courgettes, and plus I have managed to grow some rosemary seedlings from seed (I've been told that it's fairly difficult for a complete beginner to do)

6)I am in no way photogenic, as judged by my old and new work ID card...

7) I often wish I could have a pole in my room for random pole dancing practice

8) I'm getting the traveling bug, there's so many places I want to go and see, the downside is that a) I'm meant to be saving for Uni and b) I have no one to go with :-(

Well that's me done for now. I'd like to tag; The Thinker, Sara, Mrhunnybun, Karen, Dory, Kindablue, The Domestic Minx (although I am aware you did a similar one recently, so feel free to ignore the meme) and JR's Thumbprints. Have fun guys.

Same place same time

Well here I am again exactly one week later, at the end of my first working week at the new place. I miss my old working colleagues and I'm noticing a nasty habit of mine to refer to them in the present, i.e. my colleagues, my team, etc. I suppose it's fair enough for the first week, but I'm going to have to keep that in check.

I've been training all week, so I can't comment on the work, although I've been told that once we're trained up we will be busy. Which I'm not looking forward to. We can't take mobile phones on site, and I'm really missing sending sneaky texts during a toilet break. The place smells due to the manufacturing of the drugs they make, it's sort of a cross between gone-off yoghurt, bread dough and manky cheese. Did I mention that I miss my old colleagues?

I think I have a downer on this place before I've even begun, but for more money in the bank, I'll get over it. It's only until September...

Back from the Depths

Apologies for not posting for a while, things have been hectic to say the least. I needed some time away from my beloved cafe.

For this weekend I am unemployed. I've left my first proper job since leaving Uni, and I start a new job on Tuesday. This job is closer to home, and pays a lot more than my now previous job. There's flexi-time too.

Still, I have a bad case of the new job jitters and I've been really sad to leave the other job. I haven't been there long, I only started last August and changed departments in December, but I will miss my colleagues a lot. I could be myself with them, take the piss, and have the piss taken out of me (I'm not a plastic Scouser!). The exchanging of joking insults made the time go so much quicker, and they were always ready to help when things (invariably) went wrong with a test.

At this new job I will have to be on my best behaviour, to be polite and never rude, even jokingly so. Work time is a long part of the day, and I don't like the idea of having to go back to suppressing my natural tendancies.

At least it won't be for long, I've just received my term date start through from Uni. On the 17th September I shall be a student again. Hurray for student life and boo to lack of money.

Enjoying the wonders of Spring

Well, just call me Lola Greenfingers. I've seduced by the lovely Spring weather, and have been bitten by the gardening bug. I've not been out redesigning the garden groundforce-style (or even tidying it up to be honest) but I've started to grow some veg.

I bought a mini plastic greenhouse, some seeds, compost and tools, and last Sunday morning I was up with the birds and out in the back garden planting rocket, lettuce, spinach, peas, spring onions and courgettes (bra-less too, I think my inner minx is emerging).

Today while giving the plants (or pots of dirt as my sister calls them) the once over after work, I was ecstatic to see some greenery. The mangetout has started to pop up, and the salad has made a move too. Unfortunately I forgot to mark out what was where in my container and so I don't know which is lettuce, rocket or spinach, but I'm sure it'll taste good whatever it is. I've also been growing basil on my windowsill for a few weeks now, and as I used the whole packet when sowing them I now have a startling amount of herbs. Anyone fancy some basil plants...?

More wine dear

I can't remember the first sip of wine I ever had, however I do remember being given a small glass of white wine at Christmas. The wine was to celebrate the season, and cleanse my palate between bites of Christmas turkey, gravy and stuffing. I may not have realised that at that young age, but this single glass of wine each Christmas day helped shape my ideas about alcohol.

I know that a glass of wine is best enjoyed with a good meal. I do not drink alcohol purely to get drunk, and in my teens I never hung around street corners swigging from a bottle of cheap cider, or stood outside the off-license begging the over-18's to buy some alco-pops. I have had my moments, mainly in University when I've gone over the top, but I can count those times on the fingers of one hand. On the whole I have a relaxed, well-adjusted, sensible attitude to drinking.

So when I heard about this story about banning parents from letting their children under 15 years old consume alcohol, even with a meal, I'll admit my hackles got a little raised. I understand that binge drinking among the younger population is becoming more and more common, but isn't that a sign that we need to change their way of thinking? Teen, and pre-teen pregnancies are rising at an alarming rate despite the legal age of consent being 16, so what makes people think that a blanket ban of alcohol for under 15's will work? How will it be policed? Why can't (sensible) parents make an informed decision about their own children?

In my opinion this idea will not work. To beat binge drinking, attitudes about alcohol must change. If parents want to they should be allowed to introduce the child to alcohol, as I was, at a young age. In this way we can teach how alcohol should be treated with respect. I often think that under 15's are so desperate to start drinking because they see it as a grown up thing to do. If they're used to having a glass of wine every now and again, is it such a grown-up thing to do anymore? Education about alcohol will be more successful than bans will ever hope to be, just look at 1920's prohibition in America and you'll see what I mean.

The best chat up line ever

I promised MB in my comments about my Grand National post that I would reveal the best chat up line I have ever heard.

Unfortunately this isn't a chat up line that was directed at me, a dear friend of mine (and old housemate) had the pleasure of this line. She was sitting down in the University courtyard waiting for a friend when this guy shows up and begins chatting to her. He starts of with the general uni chit chat, and their conversation goes something like this.

"What course are you doing?" he asks.
"Mathematical physics."
"What? With tits like that?"

For some reason this guy believed that intelligent women couldn't have a fantastic pair. How wrong he was.

As for chat up lines directed at me, I don't tend to get any unless I'm in uniform and drunk people are about.

999 Ambulance Lottery

No doubt those of you living in the UK will have heard about this story. A rather one-sided look at ambulances, paramedics and technicians. For those of you over the pond, basically the program is criticising the lack of paramedics on ambulances, and implying that the use of ambulance technicians is putting lives at risk, a very one-sided, sensationalist piece of journalism (Sir Trevor, I'm very disappointed with you!). Ambulance technicians are not unskilled, as you claim. They are not bumbling side-kicks waiting for "Super Paramedic" to come and save them from themselves. There are a few rare situations when a paramedic would be able to administer a drug to better treat the patient, but these situations are not the norm. I would rant on more about this, but Reynolds has already said it a lot better than I could, so here are his words on the topic.

Finally, I just like to say a few words of condolence to those caught up in the tragedy at Virginia Tech, and their families. My thoughts are with them all.

Grand National 2007

Well, the big day of the Grand National arrived, and I blew the dust off my high vis jacket and went along to do some first aid.

Over the course of the day I got hit on seven times, only one of these people was sober. I'm not sure whether that boosts my self esteem or not yet. The chat up lines weren't the most original this year, just the usual "oh I feel faint" or "I need some mouth to mouth". Lads, although Lola isn't really one for chat up lines, a good original one will have her chuckling for days.

I got rather worried when a fight broke out right next to us, we scarpered to a safer spot, although we couldn't actually get out of the enclosure the fight was in. Luckily security contained it quite quickly, leaving us to deal with the first aid related aftermath.

The most pointless job of the day was being called upstairs by control to a lady with a cut foot. As control had sent us, as a response team, we imagined there would be a fair bit of blood. We got there after a bit of directing by stewards, to find a lady who smiled at us and said, "My foot's fine, I just need a plaster." Why she couldn't have gone down to the first aid post and gotten one herself was a bit beyond me.

Despite being an aed and medical gases team, we didn't get called to anything that would require those skills, thank goodness. The weather was lovely, although I found it quite difficult to cope in the heat. Just imagine that the past three grand nationals I have spent freezing cold, in the rain in some years and this year is lovely and I still complain. There's no hope for me.

One of my horses came in second, the problem being that I bet on 4 of them. Ah well, Bewleys Berry was in the lead when it fell, again I'm not sure if that's more annoying than it is anything else. It just goes to show the evils of gambling, I'm sure it won't stop me doing the same thing next year.

Finally on the way home, a couple of gents gave up their seats for us on the train so we could sit down as we had been on our feet all day. Yes, the gents were steaming drunk and sang to us for most of the train journey, but they were nice drunks, and it brightened my day.

Oh Lola, your geekiness is showing

I'm finding myself getting more and more obsessed with Doctor Who. It's a little worrying as obsessions of mine have been known to take over a large part of my life. Previous obsessions have led to me almost constantly thinking about the subject of the obsession, getting fangirl-ish (I can range from crazy to sane fangirl), and the ultimate sign of being obsessed with something, writing fanfiction (yes my fanfiction is online, no I'm not posting the link).

So as you can imagine, I'm trying to keep my cool about Doctor Who (it helps that Mum tells me how sad I am for watching it...). Of course this new interest in the show has nothing to do with David Tennant, or his quirkiness, or his attractiveness, or how good his legs look when he's in drag ahem.

You're not buying any of this are you?

New Blog

I've set up a new blog for UK restaurant reviews, and I've been getting to grips with Wordpress for the set up of it. I like blogger, but if I'd used my blogger account to create it, then people I know in real life whom I wouldn't really want in my little cafe would have been able to find it easily. As I've said before, I'm only semi-anonymous. Anyone I know who finds this blog knows it's mine instantly (a few people I know have already found it through various internet searches). So call me paranoid, but I don't want to link my real name with this blog.

I'm actually quite impressed with Wordpress, but at the same time I really don't have a clue about it. I think I'm safer sticking with blogger for this one.

For anyone who's interested the link is http://goodrestaurantfood.wordpress.com

I'll be linking to it on my page here, but no mention of the cafe will appear on there if that makes sense.

Next post: Is Lola really becoming a Doctor Who geek?

Lonely, I'm so Lonely

Well, virtually lonely that is. Out here in the real world I'm not lonely, but on this little computer screen I am.

Back in the day, well maybe around 4/5 years ago, I had tons of internet friends. People whom I'd met through various internet sites I was on, or through friends. People from all over the world. Now, I don't have so many internet friends. There are a few who are still with me, but the vast majority I have lost touch with.

So, I'm feeling a little lonely right now.

Glorified Cleaner

My dog went for the hat trick yesterday. I came downstairs first thing monday morning only to find a nice pile of dog poo right by the kitchen door. I was late to work as you'd imagine.

When I returned from work, I wasn't long in the kitchen when I realised the dog had peed all over the floor, another lengthy clean up by yours truly.

This morning Dad went downstairs and he found that the dog had been sick. At least I didn't have to clean it up.

Let's hope this isn't a sign of things to come in the dog senility world.

Values are genetic

People generally get their basic views and values from their parents. What brought this home to me more than ever this week was two incidents.

The first was a colleague at work describing how he thought no one should buy things such as furniture unless they already had the cash. He is the sort of person who is deathly afraid to get into debt, and he mentioned his parents were the same. This got me thinking about myself and how I see things.

I have a difficult time accepting things from people. When I first atarted Uni I wouldn't let anyone buy me a drink even (although people who know me now, know that's not the case anymore), and I nearly had a fit when a dear friend of mine spent what I deemed to be far too much on my birthday present.

This brings me to the second incident, this same friend mentioned buying a bottle of champagne at some point and showed me a rather expensive bottle. I said it would have to be for a special occasion and he just laughed at me, asking me if I wasn't used to being spoilt. The truth is that I am rather spoilt, by my parents at least, but when it comes to other people it's a different matter. From a young age my parents encouraged me and my sister to be thankful for any gifts we may get but to never seek them out. Also to say things like, "you shouldn't have" and so on. This lead to utter confusion for my friend who thinks I should just let myself be spoilt.

Maybe I'll loosen up in the future, but for the mean time at least I'm a cheap date!

Lola's Guide to Pooing in Work

1) Pick a time when the loo is at it's most secluded.

2) Get your business *ahem* done in there as quickly as possible.

3) Flush straight after, but before wiping. This is commonly known as a courtesy flush, and is a lifesaver if your poo would horrify (not Dr) Gillian McKeith.

4) Wipe and flush again.

5) Remember the loo brush is your friend, no one wants to see your skid marks.

6) Hopefully by following these steps then there should be no one around, and the toilet shouldn't smell (much). So take your time washing your hands, and head back to work.


Yes, as neurotic as I am I managed to poo in work (well I was desperate). I don't think I'll be making a habit of it, but it is kind of funny to think that while you're on the toilet you're still getting paid. The only thing that could be better is an overtime toilet trip. I sure hope my employers aren't reading this...

Where does the weekend go?

Well here I am, the night before I have to go back to work for another week, wondering what black hole steals my weekend away from me? It all goes so quickly.

I haven't heard anything about an interview for that job I sent my CV to, so I feel a little unemployable (despite the fact that I'm currently employed). I'm going to go back to the drawing board on this CV of mine, initially it got me some nice results, but now it doesn't seem to be working at all. There is the fact that it's four pages long and the recommended length is 2 pages. I want to delete some of my past employment, seeing as it is irrelevant to the jobs I'm looking for.

On a lighter note after my last post I'm glad to say that people in work do seem to be using the toilet brush now. I've definitely won the battle on this one. Next up I plan to tackle women who just walk out of the toilet without washing their hands, yuck.

Let's talk about poo

Warning: this post contains a lot of talk about poo.

I'll admit that whenever I'm in work, I spend a fair bit of time in the loo (toilet). This is mainly because I seem to have a tiny bladder, and whenever I try to drink water I need to go almost constantly. On a somewhat sneakier note though, we're not allowed to use our mobiles in work, and the toilet trips do provide an opportunity to check my messages, and maybe send a particularly important text. I'm sure everyone does it.

Anyway, that's not really my point. This week it seems, I've been going into the toilets after someone has had a poo (purely coincidentally, I'm not some sort of poo fetishist). Now, I realise not everyone is as neurotic as me (I refuse to go for a number two in work) and fair play to them if they need to do this and can. I don't mind the smell too much, in fact a few people open the window too so that's quite nice of them. What I do mind is walking into a toilet cubicle and seeing poo smeared around the toilet bowl. Have these people never heard of a toilet brush? There is in fact one sitting right next to the toilet and it wouldn't take much to use it. All I'm asking for is a little consideration, it isn't nice cleaning up someone elses mess.

And I thought women were meant to be the clean and tidy ones...

New Job?

I had a phonecall today about a job. It's closer to home, so it could mean no more travelling an hour to get to work. It pays more money, which is money in the bank for fees for my next degree. It appears to be a similar type of work to what I'm doing now, and much more than that, it's permanent. I should be excited and looking forward to applying, but I'm not. I'm actually happy in my new department. I like the people I work with, and I feel part of a team, with goals to work towards. The work may be dull at times but the people definitely make up for it. I will apply for this job, don't get me wrong, but I'm not completely happy about it.

PS. It's pancake day! Go on, have a pancake, you know you want to. My personal recommendation is a bog standard pancake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and maple syrup. Mmmmmm.

The real pick of the fornight

As per my last post here is my blurb about a blog. I've decided on a fortnight because I think I'd be too lazy to do it once a week.

Very recently I discovered a rather unusual blog. I've put it in my links under "personal blogs" but this blog is different from the normal bog-standard personal blog.

L'undone is a blog detailing a specific time in the blog writers' (Lolas') life. It's a rather unusual episode which she has decided to focus on, and although it mustn't have been entertaining to live through, this blog certainly leaves you needing to know how the whole thing ends. I wont give anything away as to the details of this incident, because there's no way that I could write it anywhere near as good as Lola has already done. She's an excellent writer, which makes me a tad jealous. So go and check it out and see how it all began.

If you're not already convinced then I will leave you with some of Lola's own words about her story; "Here is a tale of high-weirdness, big love, cyber-crime and the mutual insane obsession of two people that never even met. This blog is the true story of how it happened."

Pick of the [insert time limit here]

Recently I'm finding myself browsing a lot more blogs than I ever have done before and occasionally I come across some really fantastic blogs. Now, while I do add these to my links at the side of this blog, I thought it may be fun to write a little blurb about some of them, as other than the categories I've put them in there is no real way to work out what they're about other than going and seeing for yourself.

So as a bit of inspiration for me (for when my life is so dull I couldn't possibly blog about it) I thought I'd take a pick of some good blogs and write about them in a post. I'll probably start with some of the blogs in my links, but if anyone wants to recommend a good blog to read, then I'm all ears.

I found me

I found me, or rather I found my blog on a review site. Here is the review if you fancy a read. I agree with the comments made and hopefully shall take some of them on board in the near future.

I'm quite pleased now.

The Biscuit Theory

While working in my new department at work I've developed a little theory. Take today for example, we had a workshop day over at our training building. Being at the training building invariably means tea (or coffee, for the weird ones among us) and biscuits are laid on in abundance for our breaks there.

So on to the theory. I feel that the optimum number of biscuits per cup of tea is three, making the cup of tea to biscuit ratio 1:3, plus or minus 2 biscuits, depending upon circumstances such as amount of biscuits on the tray in the first place. There were three opportunities during this day to have a cup of tea and biscuits, so taking the optimum number of biscuits this would equal nine biscuits consumed for the day (with a possible range of 3 biscuits to 15 biscuits).

My conclusion from this theory is that I'll never lose weight if I keep working here...

Just a quickie...

Please vote for Merys (I'm not a drain on society) in the love to lead competition for a brand spanking new laptop. As she is a poor student, she is currently in great need of one of these, so please get voting for her!

That friday feeling

Yesterday afternoon at about 15:45 (for those not in the know, that's when my working week finally comes to an end) I found myself wishing that my life could be a musical. Now, I'm not thinking that someone should make a musical of my life, because to be fair, that would be pretty dull, maybe apart from the poledancing bits...

No, what I mean when I say musical, is that I wish that songs would randomly play when I'm doing certain things. This friday I found myself walking down a corridor at work, on my way out of the building. The song I had stuck in my head was The Nolans, I'm in the Mood for Dancing. I couldn't help but think how cool it would be if people would start popping out of their offices to sing "do do do do do de de do do"

Well, share that friday feeling with me (despite it being Saturday) and have a listen to the song!



By the by, I'm hoping to get a new computer (not that there's anything wrong with my old one apart from it running Windows 98) but I'd like a new computer. Can anyone who knows a bit about computers recommend something? I've been looking at www.pcworld.co.uk, and I'm looking for something with 1gb of RAM, at least a 160 gb hard drive, costing around 500 quid give or take a few pounds. I've seen a few and can't make up my mind between them. Also I haven't a clue if I should get Vista or not, because I remember all the security flaws that were discovered when XP first went live. Help!

Zombie-fied

I am so knackered right now. It's been a long day. I've just finished putting together a powerpoint for a teaching session I'm doing tomorrow, which I agreed to do at last minute (i.e. today), so it probably makes very little sense right now. I'll have to check it again when I'm more alive.

Also I passed my AED requal, depsite forgetting to call for an ambulance, but suffice to say that if (god forbid) I ever had to use the defib in real life, I would be pooing myself so much that the first thing on my mind would be calling in the professionals.

I'm too tired to write more, so night night.

PS. I just had a thought, the entire country is braced for snow tomorrow, wouldn't it be funny if it didnt happen, hehehehe.

Bah

My hopes of winning the lottery have again been dashed, and this time I had actually bought a ticket...

Ah well maybe next year

Well it's been an up and down week. Best not to ask anyway.

As for the 2007 Bloggies, I wasn't on the shortlist, which didn't come as a surprise to me. But what did come as a surpise to me was that several of my favourite blogs didn't make it in either. Well, barr the amazing Girl with a One Track Mind.

Anyhow, I'm using this as a reason to find more funky blogs to read, so please do as I do and have a read of the nominated blogs and vote.

I'm off out now, yay I have a social life!

A typical night out

This is what happens when Lola gets tipsy and there are poles about. We should try to not let this happen in future as it leaves very painful bruises and aching muscles.

Hello all

This will be the last time I post as a 21 year old. In half an hours time it will be my 22nd birthday, now hands up who thinks I'm old *puts hand up*.

Anyway tomorrow I'm off to London with my family for a birthday weekend to remember. Shopping, theatre and drinking. You can't beat it with a bouncer.

Finally there's still a tiny bit of time left to vote for your favourite blogs in the 2007 Blog Awards vote for me, it's my birthday! I'm kidding, vote for your favourites while there's still a chance to.

Right all, enjoy your weekend, I shall be enjoying mine, even if I will be 22.

Bloggies

Just came across this: 2007 Weblog Awards. So vote for your favourite blogs as I know I will be.

As for how I'm doing right now, I had a bit of an upsetting night last night. Nothing I can't handle in the cold light of day, I just get on with it and put my brave face back on. But suffice to say I don't think discussing it further would help any. That includes the people who know me outside of the world wide web, I don't want to talk about it.

Anyhow, before the night turned bad I managed to learn a few new poledancing moves. I actually went upside down (with the help of a poledancing randomer), it didn't look good but it'll improve in time... Here's someone who's a lot better at me at poledancing, although I just learnt how to do the move she does at about 1 min 3 seconds, enjoy.

Happy New Year!

Well it's now 2007 and I'm still left wondering where the heck 2006 went. So I decided to find out where the year disappeared by thinking over what were the highlights for 2006 for me, the best times, the worst times and the plain odd times. Carmelo inspired me to write this after I saw his post on the topic sorry for robbing off with your idea, Carmelo!

This day one year ago started off with me at a friends house celebrating the beginning of 2006. By about 2am I had managed to fall asleep on the floor using my best friends leg as a pillow, I don't think he minded too much. I didn't sleep for long and soon headed back to my house.
Note: This is a strange parallel of this year, where I stayed at home, fell asleep on the sofa in the early hours and woke up and went to bed at 6am.

As I'm a january baby the next highlight for me was my birthday. I was 21 years old and for the first time ever I had an exam on my birthday! I survived evil exams but only just, and made a resolution to study harder for my next exams (which I did). The fun came roughly two weeks after my birthday, when exams were over and a group of my friends and I painted the town red. It was the first time I'd ever been into Reflex, and although I didn't swing round the pole on this occasion, I did pose on it, leading to a rather infamous picture... Later in the year I would play on the pole and it would lead to bruises and an incomprehensible urge to play some more.

In 2006 I was chairperson for Links (up until the summer anyway) and therefore had all the stress associated with running a division, plus that of being in my last year at University. My hair was slowly coming out in rather worrying clumps in the shower. However 2006 was the year I managed to get it together, and not only did the unit survive me running it, but I managed to cope with my last exams and dissertation reasonably well.

In Jan 2006 my Dad started the job of decorating the hallway and dining room, and I'm pleased to report it was finally finished in October/November 2006. Only several months behind schedule.

I attended the Grand National, one of the biggest horse racing events in the world. I went with St John, as there was no way I'd be able to afford a ticket. The first day of it I was paired with a friend of mine by the parade circle. Highlights include us standing still too long in the cold and then being unable to move our legs, getting a cuppa while a race was on and having to gulp it down as we had to get back to our post before they cordoned off the area for the horses to come back in, getting soaked in the torrential rain while talking to some police officers (they were wondering why they were doing this, but at least they were getting paid, damn them), and returning to the first aid post after aforementioned drenching, looking a bit frostbitten and getting a nice sit down and a cup of tea in there. Good stuff.

The second day I was on the other end of the grounds and was with the now current chair of Links (my vice chair at the time), we were given an AED and when we got called to a something where we would have to use it, I was nearly pooing myself. We couldn't find the casualty and we were running like hell while I tried to get a more definite location from control over our radio. We ran into my best friend (a paramedic) and then we found the casualty, the ambulance service were already working on him, and we got stood down, thank goodness for that. My mate was laughing at me later on saying he'd never seen me move so fast in his life. This was also the day when I "got arrested". We were walking a casualty back to the first aid post when all of a sudden I felt something stop me, I looked behind me to find that the strap of my first aid kit had somehow brushed against the handcuffs of a policeman and the handcuffs had snapped shut on the strap. The policeman seemed as embarrassed as I was, and handed the handcuffs to his female colleague while he searched for the key. Other St John members who passed by stopped to take pictures... (excuse the edited picture, I just thought it would not be a good idea to post a pic on the web of the police officer). The final day wasn't as eventful, which is surprising considering the actual race is on that day. Alas I had forgotten to put a bet on as usual. The winner was Numbersixvalverde, which to be honest I don't think I would have bet on anyhow.

The Links weekend away was a good time, we went to county Durham, and as usual, had a little walk, drank a fair bit, and did activities. This years activities were archery (I rocked) and a tree-top rope course which scared the hell out of me at first and then led to me and a friend of mine referring to ourselves as "tree whores" as we were straddling every tree going. I also amused myself by hanging upside down on a wire suspended high above the ground. No pictures of that unfortunately. Other higlights include having to put on a play for the rest of the group, using a bag of props we got handed. This led to some bad chinese food puns, Scooby Doo, partial nudity and a monkey called Bubbles, that's all I'm going to say.

I got ill, for one of the first times ever. I had flu just as my dissertation was due in. I got a doctors note and an extention, and as a result I've now got a dissertation that makes sense.

I got offers from all of the schools of pharmacy I applied to, and chose Manchester as my first choice. I deferred entry until 2007.

I again survived exams, but the difference this time was that I knew what I was talking about on them.

I started my brief job as a lab technician at a college. The job held such highlights of getting hopelessly lost on my first day (my sat nav took me to the right road but in the wrong area), getting to make fake blood, microwaving hearts and denting my car.

As you can see my now linking to blog posts, this is when I first started my blog. I've chatted to some fabulous people through it, and as you can see from my first post, I never imagined that anyone other than my friends would read it. So thanks to everyone who's either read or commented on any of my entries on this blog (and thanks to anyone who's reading this doozy of a post, it is a bit long). I'm looking forwards to reading more blogs in this new year.

I graduated with a 2.1. It was my first degree and I loved doing it, even though I played harder than I worked for the first two years. I think in the last year I made up for it. I'm slowly losing my ability to remember all the drugs I learnt about, but hopefully my books, notes and vague memory of this degree should stand me in good stead for the next degree. I sometimes think that it would have been easier if I'd have applied for pharmacy in the first place, but although it would have saved me time and money I wouldn't be where I am now in terms of my emotional development. I wouldn't have met some of my best friends ever. So although it has taken me longer to do what I want to do I wouldn't change it.

I went on holiday to Turkey for the fourth year running. I wont say much here except it was an enjoyable holiday.

I had an interview for the pharmaceutical company I now work at. I thought I'd blown it with my jet lag related nattering, but for some unknown reason I was taken to work in the QC department.

I attended Creamfields as a member of St John, and I can't really say more than what I already posted here.

I went on the course I did to become a first aid trainer. It was hard work but fun, with lots of staying up late and drinking wine while planning our teaching sessions.

I placed third in the "So you think you can blog competition" on the blog Theory of Thought. Many thanks to Thethinker.

I went to London to see Wicked, and The Last Five Years.

I had fun dressing up for Halloween.

I got really bad tonsilitis and moaned a lot about it.

A friend of my sisters passed away.

I discovered baileys irish cream brownies, and ate way too many.

I had a good Christmas. I laughed at my sisters expression when she opened what she thought was a 25 quid bottle of champagne and turned out to be a bottle of bucks fizz. I then later got to see her face when she opened the real bottle of 25 quid champagne. I got dvds a-plenty, ate a huge meal and partied in the evening.

I got taken to a casino for the first time, didnt spend a single thing all night, and made 35 quid from a tenner, not bad for a first timer. We also had a meal in china town afterwards at about 2am with salty rice, yuck.

Then we come to New Years Eve. We had a chinese so big that I had to open my top jeans button. Then we saw in the new year at home and watched most of "2006 most annoying celebrities".

2006 has been a fast year, but eventful. I've done plenty of firsts. I've been hurt, and hurt others. I lost my temper on occasion. This was the first year I became a redhead, and right now the red is here to stay. I've partied hard, worked hard, and also been incredibly lazy. I have grown into a more mature, slightly sassy girl, who can be sensible when she tries, but most of the time she doesn't want to try.

Happy new year everyone, I hope 2007 will be a good year for all.

(Thanks to all who have read this far, why not post a comment just to say hi!)