SPEW Babble #44

[Alex]

Yaaay another tea drinker!

I'm sixteen years old and I'm currently dying under exam angst doing my GCSEs. I also enjoy drinking tea (duh!), watching the Mentalist *points at siggy* and reading mystery novels -- my favourites being the Scarpetta series by Patricia Cornwell and the Kenzie-Gennaro novels by Dennis Lehane. I am a proud East Londoner and I have a weird Cockneyish accent. I speak fluent Bengali and English, attempt/schoolgirl French and broken Arabic. (I can also sing in French and Spanish but I sound awful, lol.)

Tea or hot chocolate, or hot ribena if I'm ill! :P

Oh, GCSEs... I wish I could say I remember them well, but the truth is that when you move on to the next tier of education, you're told almost straight away that it's all nonsense anyway! And the work gets more intense through College... and then you get to University and you realise you've basically signed away your soul... I joke, of course Well, sort of... when I matriculated I had to sign something - pretty sure the University actually owns me now... I must say I'm very jealous of people who can speak languages. English is fine, and I can read and write fairly well in Spanish, but even though I was learning it for 7 years, I still can't speak it; I cannot roll my R's. I can't even do other accents in English (although I apparantly managed to do a passable American the other day - I was so delighted when someone told me that I promptly forgot how I'd done it). So, yeah, very jealous of you, Sorya!

I must apologise for my prolific use of ellipses and exclamation marks - they're rather bad habits of mine! In these kinds of conversational contexts, I tend to type like I would speak, and I'm quite an animated speaker Must learn to control myself...!

[babewithbrains]

The r's are difficult, aren't they? My friend can speak fluent Arabic, English, French and Spanish without even trying -- she's from Morocco and they speak all four languages there so it's no effort for her really. The only reason I can speak Bengali is because it's my mother tongue, lol.

Anyway, I need to go and introduce myself in t'other thread so I'll leave with a TQ: How did everyone cope with the forums and archives being down? Did you miss SPEW?

I was really annoyed because I had some free time in the last few days when I could've got my SPEW requirements done. >.> Ah well, I'll start when I get home from school.

And Alex -- what uni do you go to, if you don't mind my asking?

[Alex]

The r's are difficult, aren't they? My friend can speak fluent Arabic, English, French and Spanish without even trying -- she's from Morocco and they speak all four languages there so it's no effort for her really. The only reason I can speak Bengali is because it's my mother tongue, lol.

And Alex -- what uni do you go to, if you don't mind my asking?

Eurgh, they are! (haha, see what I did there? ) I'd really love to be good at languages, I would. The grammar is never a problem; I can read and write just fine. It's the speaking, and sometimes understanding the spoken, as Spanish is quite a rapidly spoken language - well, it sounds that way to me!

I'm reading Archaeology and Anthropology at Cambridge Do you have plans for A-levels, etc, next year, Soroya?

How did everyone cope with the forums and archives being down? Did you miss SPEW?

It was rather frustrating, I must admit! I've been quite busy the last few days though, so it wasn't the end of the world

[babewithbrains]

Yeah, Cheltenham Ladies' College in Gloucestershire (I've so butchered the spelling of that) are offering two scholarships to my school, worth 60 grand. I recently did the entrance exams but I doubt I'm going to get in. The maths exam in particular just killed me >.>

I'm planning on doing English Literature, History, Maths and Government and Politics at A-level And that's so cool! Cambridge... I really want to go there!

[welshdevondragon]

Alex- Soraya might bombard you with questions. Just a warning And you probably know you're doing Hugh Laurie and Ted Hughes' degree, don't you? Very cool.

I think we should make frequent cups of tea mandatory as part of SPEW discussions. I'll be mother and put the kettle on now

I'm half-way through an essay on Blake's Visions of the Daughters of Albion. Its the first essay I'm writing for ages and so is proving difficult- also its due in tomorrow but at the last minute I decided to go home for the weekend and therefore am manically trying to get it done today (not helped by my alarm not wkaing me up). Last time I wrote an essay NOT in an exam I finished it at five in the morning, woke up at eight, edited it on the bus into college, ran around manically trying to find a printer, and then found more typos while queueing to hand it in. Oh well. This time, I have to pay fifty quid for a train ticket if I don't get it done today- that's an incentive.

And it is interesting. Although I've transferred unis and every uni, although they say they all have MLA style (this may not make any sense to anyone who hasn't been to uni yet- you've got this to look forward to) really all have thier own little ways of doing it. Still at least we don't need secondary crit for this.

I coped with the downtime via AIM, checking twitter more times than I ever have before, as well as randomly checking the website to see if it was back.

Although on Monday I was in Edinburgh with my sister We went to see the Wild Beasts. Seriously, if I meet someone whose heard of them, I think I might give them a big hug, and I usually have to have known someone at least a few months before I'm comfortable hugging them.

So that's my day. Essay, essay, essay. It'll be fun (I do mean that sincerely, I enjoy writing essays and this is a weird poem- I just wish I'd got up at seven as I'd meant to because then it would be finished-)

Deathlex

ALSO while they were down Julia made me the stunning banner you can see below- isn't it beautiful?

[Alex]

Yeah, Cheltenham Ladies' College in Gloucestershire (I've so butchered the spelling of that) are offering two scholarships to my school, worth 60 grand. I recently did the entrance exams but I doubt I'm going to get in. The maths exam in particular just killed me >.>

I'm planning on doing English Literature, History, Maths and Government and Politics at A-level And that's so cool! Cambridge... I really want to go there!

Oh, wow, that's a massive scholarship! Is that all your fees paid then? Seriously, good luck!

Ooh, that's a nice set of subjects Cambridge is... a very strange place, lol. I mean, the course is great, but it feels very disconnected with the rest of the world, and people seem to be in their own little bubble... Still, the course is great, so I can't complain too much!

And you probably know you're doing Hugh Laurie and Ted Hughes' degree, don't you?

I knew it was Hugh Laurie's, but Ted Hughes? Really? Didn't know that!

So that's my day. Essay, essay, essay.

Mmm, sounds familiar! I have a lecture and a supervision, but when I get back I have an essay to do on the Neolithic... Can't say it's the most exciting essay topic ever, but I'll be glad to see the back of it, so that's an incentive to get it done! :P

And that banner is gorgeous!

[babewithbrains]

Yeah, all of my fees are paid for -- bursaries and grants cover living costs and uniform and so on.

Alex- Soraya might bombard you with questions. Just a warning

I may indeed.

[Evora]

Hola Lily and Alex! Welcome to SPEW!!!! I'm Dinny!!?!!??!

LOL. I can't believe I just laughed my head off for that. /lame

I'm reading Archaeology and Anthropology at Cambridge

Can I just say wow? Cambridge. Wow. Cambridge = wow.

I have been MIA lately, but I've finally figured out how to manage my time so here I am. All I do nowadays is studystudystudy then go out and then it's back to studystudystudy. I actually like studying so the work doesn't bother me, but good Godric, I'm about to pull my hair out with statistics. Engineering needs about 5 semesters of statistics so that's why I took it. . . it will be the death of me. I have never been so lost until I met you, statistics. Never.

The first school cycle (they call it cycle in my high school rather than semester ugh) just ended and I'm anxious to get my GPA which I'll be receiving at the end of the month. My expectations are pretty high and if I don't manage to achieve that. . . I will lock myself up and study. Swimming season started last Wednesday and I always ask how the practices are. Even though I didn't join this year, I still feel like part of the team. Strange, that.

Thanksgiving is coming, and so is Black Friday sales. Can't wait till I get to cruise around and see the funniest things that happen on Black Fridays.

How did everyone cope with the forums and archives being down? Did you miss SPEW?

It pushed my plans behind since I've been meaning to submit my requirements. And yes, I missed SPEW very dearly. Jess: ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

[welshdevondragon]

Dinny-You want to be an engineer? That's so cool-sorry if that sounds weird, but I just think engineers are generally really hard-working, nice, fun people. One of my closest friends is studying engineering at Cambridge...I feel kind of weird that Alex might bump into her, but since mixing RL and VL is a tad weird, I think I'll stop thinking about that.

Also Dinny- your review was absolutely gorgeous and lovely and various other superlatives, and the reason I'm taking so long to respond is that is I know I'll enjoy doing it, so want to take time over it. Although since my most recent story still has no reviews I might go and respond now....if I wasn't in my bedroom and the internet apt to cut out randomly/ laptop running out of battery.

I'm at home this weekend- it was a last minute decision (Wednesday night) resulting in the essay panic of my last post. However last night I finally got a proper outline for my next-gen femmeslash one-shot that's been milling around my head for several weeks now.

So-what's the nicest thing about 'home?' I realise that home may be where you live permanently for some of us/ not somewhere away from uni- but for me, its my bedroom. It's a mess at the moment, (and, for once, not my mess, since in my abscense which is a word I can't spell my room is being used as storage and my other sister at unis room is currently an art studio for another sister- I have three sisters). Secondly my family, who I do love to bits. Even if one has just come to wake me up and is insulted that I'm on my laptop rather than up having breakfast. Which I'll go and have now

Also- and this is a weird one- a fridge where I know I can eat anything. As in, I know that I am allowed to eat everything in thata fridge, whereas at uni, of course, I need to remember which food I bought (which we all find difficult- I still haven't worked out who took my bacon last week/ am hoping I just didn't see it in the fridge or, at least, if I did, someone has the sense to throw it out).

I'll go t o breakfast now

[Alex]

Yeah, all of my fees are paid for -- bursaries and grants cover living costs and uniform and so on.

Oh, wow, that's amazing. Really hope you get it!

Hello, Dinny

Can I just say wow? Cambridge. Wow. Cambridge = wow.

Aww, shucks...

I'm actually quite impressed at the Engineering; so much Maths and Physics and things I was never any good at! :P My other half did Engineering at College, and I remember looking though his notes and being so confused!

Haha, don't worry Deathlex (can I call you that? it feels weird!), I probably wouldn't realise she was your friend even if I did meet her :P (though, just in case, what College is she at?)

What the nicest thing about home? Well, I'll make a list (because I'm currently obsessed with lists): my beds (divorced parents, so I have 2 homes, which means 2 beds), snuggling up under blankets in the living rooms with the family(ies), curry night at my dad's, cups of tea and Jeremy Kyle with mum, being used as pillow by the dog/cat... not to mention my amazing other half, and all my friends... even though they're not at home at the moment, either

I'm actually quite a home-body when I think about it, which is odd because I have the strongest wanderlust of anyone I know!