Hot Hot Hot!! #11

Lately we've been in the middle of a heat wave - weird since just a few weeks ago everywhere was flooding and it was raining constantly. It's been way too hot for me; I can't sleep at all and I spend all night tossing and turning trying to find a cool spot on my bed.
It's kind of ironic - we the British constantly complain about the rain and cold bitter weather and as soon as the Sun comes out, everyone's screaming that it's too hot. I say everyone when I mean me. I hate hate hate this hot weather. There's only so many layers of clothing you can take off - I much rather the cold winter (minus the snow) because it's so nice to wrap up warm and cosy. Did I mention I have a minor obsession with jumpers? My collection is growing.

So anyway, the weather has been "nice" as most people say - warm, hot, sunny with a hint of mugginess. Now that the Olympics has started (well the opening ceremony is tonight), I'm hoping the weather is here to stay for a little while longer - it's out of British politeness that the weather should be nice for such a big event. Hopefully, I won't burn this time, last time it was this hot I burnt my arms and that's saying something, my skin is the type that never ever burns.

So my eyes will be glued to the TV tonight, I wonder if London 2012 opening ceremony can beat Beijing 2008 opening ceremony. Who am I kidding?

The Bookworm in Me #10

I'm almost embarrassed to admit this but at the grand old age of 18, I have never fully read the Harry Potter series, which is kind of strange since most of the people my age have already read all the books.
I remember my dad buying me the first book when I was younger, and after several futile attempts to read it, I gave up. I don't know why I didn't stick with it, but I remember reading the first few chapters and just forgetting about it.
What's even weirder is, I also have the fourth and fifth book, the latter being a present from my parents on my 9th birthday. My friends used to always talk about the series and make jokes about the books, which I would normally just laugh nervously at.

So, at the start of the year I finally picked up Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone for the umpteenth time and I'm proud to say, I made my way through the entire book without getting bored with it or forgetting about it.
I picked up the second and third book at my local charity shop and read through them with gusto and after taking a break from reading due to exams, I've just finished the Order of the Phoenix (it's only taken me 9 years!)
I'm waiting on the last two to be delivered to my house and it's a bit of a shame that I've ruined the plot somewhat by watching the films first. Nevertheless, I finally understand why the series was as popular as it was/is, something I failed to recognise when I was younger. I only wished that I had stuck with it to begin with.

The last blog post expressed my frustration and boredom now school is over, but now I've reignited the bookworm in me. Whilst waiting on those Harry Potter books to get to me, I guess I'll continue reading about Precious Ramotswe in Botswana.

Freedom and Boredom #9

Having finished school, I thought I would have bundles of time to do loads of things that I've been planning to do, like catch up on some much deserved sleep.
While that may be true - I do have a lot of time on my hands, I'm already getting bored of it all. It hasn't even been a month since my last exam and I found that I don't really know what to do with myself. I'm literally doing the same thing every day.

Of course, my plans with my friends are still intact. Just the other day a friend and I had lunch together and the others have organised another pub trip - I can't really complain.
Since not everyone is free at the same time, it means that I'm bored in the meantime. I've tried entertaining myself - reading books, hardcore gaming, helping out my parents at work, but nothing really seems to do the trick.

Solutions? Get a job I guess, I'd be killing two birds with one stone - avoiding boredom and earning money. The only problem is, if I'm going to uni in September, who is going to hire someone for just 2 months?

So, for the time being, I'll have to get used to doing not so much. I've noticed that I've suddenly become a film buff and have started rewatching some of our DVDs and I've been persuaded to start watching 30 rock, which I'm currently obsessed with.
I've also started running again, something that I've neglected to do for a while - except it's been raining non stop for the last week. Thankfully, my dad was crazy enough a couple of years back to put a treadmill in our kitchen so it's not so much of an issue other than the fact that running in your kitchen isn't really the same as running outside...

Anyway, meanwhile I guess I'll get back to this glorious sunny weather we've been having...

Ok, so it might not be this bad where I am, but it seriously hasn't stopped raining for like a week.

Parents - We Love To Hate Them #6

The last week has been pretty shit to say the least.

I was supposed to be going on holiday today and from my stupid lack of judgement, I am stuck at home writing this blog post instead of being by the beach in this lovely weather.
I had planned to get a lift there with one of my friends, who just so happens to drive a massive tank of a car - a Land Rover. Fairly safe if we got into an accident.
I never told my parents about this arrangement - they had assumed we were going to catch the public transport down to Cornwall, I just never corrected them and I didn't intend to because I knew that they would stop me going if I did.
That stupid, awful, guilty feeling hit me and I just had to tell them the truth and what I had predicted to happen did happen - they stopped me from going by giving me a lecture on young drivers.
Yes, statistically, accidents happen more in young drivers, but accidents happen to experienced ones too. I'm not the sort of girl to deliberately put myself in a dangerous position and my friends are not the type to drive dangerously, in fact if I'm honest, we're pretty square compared to the social ideas of what a teenager is.

I wish I had never told them. I am still so angry about their decision to stop me. Next time, I won't make the same mistake and I know they will not and cannot stop me.

My exam revision was pretty messed up afterwards and I just couldn't focus. The exam was for me, pretty awful - I couldn't even concentrate on answering the questions, let alone writing the essay at the end. What's even worse is that most of my classmates thought it was a nice paper... Medicine seems even further away from me now.

I'm still pretty bitter about the last few days. What's even worse is that my mother said something to me that made me so unbelievably mad - "you can't have both things, you have to choose one."
I didn't even have a choice of two things, I had one thing. The holiday, and I didn't even get to choose that.

They've been trying to make it up to me, in a weird round about way.
They let me go and see a film today (Rock of Ages which was pretty crap!) as if it will make up for it.

I've also managed to convince them to let me organise something for my 18th birthday (which is Friday) but I cannot think of anything to do for it - everyone will be so buzzed from the holiday.
I would trade all of it just to be on holiday because that's all I keep thinking about.

Why can't my parents understand that I'm not a kid anymore? They can't protect me from everything - when and if I go to uni, they won't be able to dictate what I do and by God, I will definitely be taking advantage of my new freedom.

Almost there... #3

My exams aren't even over yet and I'm already thinking of the Summer. I just can't wait to finally have a bit more time on my hands.
The holiday is just two days after my last exam and seeing as I have to work the day before, I have to be super efficient with my packing since I normally leave it until the last minute.
Then we get back in time for my 18th birthday - I'm not sure if I should have a get-together at home or just go down the pub with everyone. Most of my friends have had parties, bigging up being 18 and that but I don't really understand the hype of it all; sure, I'll be able to buy alcohol but I've still got the rest of my life to get as hammered as I want (I've heard that med students are particularly bad during freshers' week, the future looks bright!). I guess I'll finally be considered an "adult" even though I might not act or feel like one ;)

The Sixth Form Ball is pretty exciting too, though I cannot believe how expensive it all is. £32 is pretty pricey for a buffet if you ask me, but I guess it's a rite of passage before we all go off to do our own things. It'll be the last time I see a lot of my year group and teachers, which in some cases is a good thing.

I'm also planning to go and drop into the "active living centre for the senior citizens" where I volunteered with my friend for 9 months. It's essentially a day centre for the elderly where we just sat around a table and chatted to them. We ended up making a little journal for the members, documenting all the things we talked about. After we left, I was kind of relieved it was over - don't get me wrong, I loved every minute of it, but I needed to reclaim some of my own time.
Volunteering is such an amazing thing, no matter how big or how small. I feel kind of guilty because the reason I volunteered in the first place was to get some more experience before I applied to uni. I was lacking on the work experience front and considered it as a last resort, but when I joined the group, I realised how stupid I was for not realising the value of volunteering earlier. I'd do it all again in a heart beat.
I guess I should start an education/academics page for any nosey people who happen to read my blog and wonder what I have achieved schooling wise and what I am planning to do at university (grades permitting).

So my next exam is in 2 days and I'm feeling pretty relaxed about it - normally I get really hyped up and stressed but for some unknown reason, I feel kinda confident about this one. It's partly because I have some amazing teachers, but I'm never normally this calm - it's scaring me. I should be like this more often, people like chilled individuals...