The Weekly Round-Up

SO YES, I'm going to start doing it like this, one big beasty post on a Friday. It's quicker and easier than doing them individually, but should you decide you want in-week updates, I'm directing you to my tumblr which is updated fairly regularly, mostly with useless muck.

My week
Sunday, what a fabulous day indeed. It was glorious weather (I'm talking 27 degrees, which is alot for British springtime and not bad for British summer time.) Instead of revising, my sister and I went for lunch and japes in the park which was fabulous epic fun.


Since then, I've had a nasty combination of exams and revision.

French on monday, History on Wednesday morning. History is a bastard of an exam, it really is, and it's worth 50% of the A Level. All my other options are 40%, 30%, but no. They make the hard exam worth the most.

The only real highlight of the first half of the week: making chicken dipper sandwiches, four slices of. I don't care if it's unculinary, unsophisticated, unhealthy - you cannot beat a good chicken dipper sandwich, and I only ever make good chicken dipper sandwiches.

This week I've had a bunch of weird dreams, too. It's because my sleep patterns are all over the place - I'm doing wake up at 8, get up at 10, bed at 11, but then I pull all nighters sometimes and go to bed obscenely early when I get bored. Which means I've had a total of three post-apocalyptic dreams, one of which was set on a spaceship, two dreams featuring Drew Barrymore in various forms and one in which I got up, went to school, did the exam, realised I was actually there for a dance exam and thus dressed completely wrong, and after all that I had to wake up and start the day again.

I've also realised that there is only TWO months until my summer holidays! Time to start dieting, methinks. My belly's gone to jelly. I was looking at old photos today and I was SO. SKINNY. It's really bizarre. I'm not fat now, but still, there are things to be done before I can go out in a bikini.
I'm the emaciated one on the left :D

On Thursday,I went all Stepford Wife and baked a cake, using cream cheese icing which turned out... okay. Not really photo-worthy, or anything. Then I walked the dog.Twice. God, all I need is a husband who works in the city and 4 bratty children and I. Am. There.

Friday, we went bowling. Why? Why not. And we like to go all out, so the dress code was "50s-esque" and we be'd all retro. Then we went to the park, again, had a picnic, funtimes, but I didn't take a camera so there are no pics.

And that, as they say, was that x

Quite Decidedly

NOT revising.

Why? I need to. I just don't care.

ANYHOO, as you all know by now, it's Fill In The Blank Friday

And sadly, I have posted nada since last Friday. Gutting, I know. Anyway.

1. One fashion trend I really regret is: The ponchoes were pretty disastrous, weren't they? It didn't help that they came along about the same time as my fat chubster stage, so I sort of looked like a knitted marshmellow with legs. Imagine that if you will.

2. The one thing that always completes any outfit is the right handbag, or a necklace, or even both. I am addicted to purchasing both. That and ebay junk is the reason I am SKINT.

3. I would describe my personal style as rolled out of bed, picked whatever was easiest and managed to look effortlessly awesome? That's the aim, anyway. The other day, my friend said I have "an air of cool about me whatever I wear." Honestly? Best compliment I've ever recieved. Seriously, though, I have a two style rules that I've stuck to since I was picking my own clothes:

The Tight Baggy Rule
Tight on top, baggy on the bottom. Baggy on the top, tight on the bottom. Stick to that and you cannot go wrong. Except school dress code, in which you are allowed to wear tight-tight because you go to an all-girls grammar school, don't wear makeup and haven't brushed your hair. Ergo, you couldn't look slutty if you tried.

The Try-Hard Rule
Wear something exceptional everyday. By which I mean, a skirt instead of jeans, an accessory, just something that shows you've spent more than thirty seconds on an outfit. Even if you haven't.

4. My fashion muse is the Drama Kids at college. They're pretentious, "boho" idiots but they dress well, if they took themselves less seriously. So I try to dress like them with a pinch of salt added :)

5. If I could own one designer piece of clothing it would be? I honestly have no idea. I don't know anything designer-y. Maybe some really epic shoes. Louboutin? Yeah, some plain black Louboutins with a red sole.

6. I would love to raid the wardrobe of my sister. Her clothes are fabulous, but she's a size 6 or something so nothing fits. But if she'd just grow out a bit, we'd have a combined wardrobe to be proud of.

7. Today I am wearing a green dress donated by one of my mom's friends that is actually surprisingly nice, some grey tights I borrowed off my sister (at least our legs are the same length) and a black cardigan that I actually own. I'm a style scavenger, by the way. Next to nothing I own is actually first-hand, not-bought-in-the-sale bona fide clothing. But I'm fussy about what I scavenge.


Well that's that. Till next Friday I suppose!

Thank you Freya.

Fun fact: in Iran, Friday is the weekend and the week starts on Saturday.
In case you were wondering.

(Also, the title spring from my first ever mythological obsession, the Norse goddess Freya, which is where the name Friday comes from, in a roundabout way.)

*ahem* 'scuse boobs.

So yeah, vague attempt to make the day itself sound interesting aside, HAPPY WEEKEND! You have no idea how much I need this weekend for revision. Exams start next week, I can quite clearly say to you this: I. Am. Wetting. Myself.

(And just a little secret, I'm going to predict here my grades. That way no-one will know if I get them way, way wrong.)

Computing - High B/Low A
French - AEnglish - A
History - Low A.
Critical Thinking - Anybody's guess :)

But we all know what I'm really here for...FILL. IN. THE. BLANK. FREITAG!


The very best thing about the summer is: realising you've spent the whole day in sheer unadulterated lazy bliss, not concentrating because the sun makes you dopey, laughing lots, big sunnies.
My first crush ever was: MD in reception (I was 4), we were going to get married. I can see why I was attracted to him then, but he got ugly as he grew up so I made the right decision :)

(me and my little sister at approx. that time)


This may sound really silly but: I'm still scared of swings in kids' playgrounds. I just never got over the fear when I was little.




I squeeze my toothpaste from: the top. I feel like a social outlaw for it, if that helps?
My absolute favorite "comfort food" is: chocolate, then toast, alternating. Repeat until the wounds have healed.
A random fact about me is that: I can recite all the reigning monarchs since Edward the Confessor...which is about 1040 AD? It's really boring to listen to though. Just a bunch of names.
The one piece of technology that truly makes my life better and I couldn't live without is: Laptop. No question. How did I ever do anything before it?

As usual, thanks to Lauren for her general awesomeness :)

And there we have it. Bis morgen, my lovelies.

Emma x

Ladies and gents,

^ this image from one of my favourite webcomics ever :D

Actually, that wasn't what I was gonna post about it, but shall I just do a bunch of links so you guys know what I like? Why the hell not. Let's roll.
First off, I'll reccommend Google Reader , because when you have a bunch of things to keep up to date with this is perfect. I'm sure its old news, but it's just faultless.

Webcomics

I used to love the big, fantasy epic ones - these days I read more of the snappy one-liners, but whatever. Anything goes. Ones that I read regularly:

Been Better: Basically the life of the author, with added funny bits. (http://beenbettercomic.com)
FreakAngels: I love dystopian, post-armageddon scenarios and this is really unique. I'd recommend it if you like long + epic storylines, also some kickass characters. (http://www.freakangels.com/)

Geminni: Follows the adventures of a woman called Kaley, swaps between underworld/greek god type storylines and your average unlucky in love/ex husband a twat type storylines. I mostly like this one for the very pretty art. I really like this artist's style. (http://www.drunkduck.com/Geminni/)

Least I Could Do: Makes me snort out loud at least once a week. Art is really nice and updates so regularly half the time I miss one out. (http://leasticoulddo.com/)

Multiplex: Basically follows a bunch of employees at a cinema. Easier to follow if you're a bit of a film nerd, but I'm not and it works for me :) (http://multiplexcomic.com/)

Paranormal Activity: And before you ask, she had the name before the film did! Sort of like a paranormal detective agency...there was one story arc that got me really interested but since then it's been a bit meh. Still, worth a read for the adorable Eredicus ^^ (http://www.parativity.com/)

Questionable Content: The kind supplier of the image at the top. Bunch of self-proclaimed hipsters with a taste for indie music do life, relationships, music and the slightly surreal addition of what are basically pet robots. I feel love for these characters. (http://questionablecontent.net/)

The Dreamer: Main character lives in the 21st century, but when she falls asleep she lives in the Civil War times. The second comic I ever started reading, mostly because the art is SO beautiful, but also for the intricate (and I think it's set to go on for a long time yet!) storyline. I just really enjoy reading this comic, plus I can see a tricky situation with the cross-time love triangle. (http://thedreamercomic.com/)

And that's it for webcomics. In the rest of my internet time, I LOVE Futility Closet (http://www.futilitycloset.com/)...let me find an example post to try and explain it...

"An episode from the German trenches, August 1915, from artilleryman Herbert Sulzbach’s 1935 memoir With the German Guns:

One of the next starlit summer nights, a decent Landwehr chap came up suddenly and said to 2/Lt Reinhardt, ‘Sir, it’s that Frenchie over there singing again so wonderful.’ We stepped out of the dug-out into the trench, and quite incredibly, there was a marvellous tenor voice ringing out through the night with an aria from Rigoletto. The whole company were standing in the trench listening to the ‘enemy,’ and when he had finished, applauding so loud that the good Frenchman must certainly have heard it and is sure to have been moved by it in some way or other as much as we were by his wonderful singing.

“Musical compositions, it should be remembered, do not inhabit certain countries, certain museums, like paintings and statues,” wrote Henri Rabaud. “The Mozart Quintet is not shut up in Salzburg: I have it in my pocket.”"

Now that's not the kind of thing you find on Facebook, or something. Somehow they always manage to find these little gems of info that are just fabulous.

The chess moves can be boring though :)

Seriously?

Last post was #100 :D now I am truly a woman.

She looks like a child,
but she's always
a woman, to me.

Anyway, today I had the best day ever. Because it was Friday, which means pub lunches, updates to The Dreamer and Fill in the Blank Friday!



1. My favorite book growing up was Little Women - Louisa May Alcott. All the incessant moralizing and the quaintness appealed quite a bit to my bossy, righteous little self :)
2. The funniest book I've ever read was honestly, I don't really know...I can really vividly remember not being able to stop laughing at about 3 o clock in the morning, but damned if I know what it was.
3. The one book that has truly changed my life is I spent so long thinking about this. Honestly, probably 1984. It's made me second guess everything.
4. If you're looking for a real "tear jerker" you should probably read honestly? The only book I've ever cried at was the last Harry Potter. That's because I am a) a nerd and b) very emotional at 3 o' clock in the morning.
(In case you hadn't guessed, I read alot of books at that time of night. Because I am a busy woman and actually it's a good time to read, depending on how much you value speech.)
5. If I could meet any author living or dead I would want to meet Hitler, that's because he wrote Mein Kampf and because his brain is probably pretty intense.
6. The next book on my "to read" list is my to read list is 64 books long. You don't want me to name them all, trust. Catch-22 is probably number one though. Also, some vampire books for my teen fiction group (yeah, I'm relishing the thought.)
7. If I was snowed into remote cabin in the woods and could only choose three books to bring with me I'd bring I'm taking boxsets. Just try and stop me. So the Harry Potter boxset, Clarissa by Samuel Richardson because it's effin' long, and a few trashy paperbacks.

More than three. So sue me.

So that's that done!

And finally,

Anyone who dropped by my house about 5 o' clock this evening would have seen a fabulous sight. I decided it was Shania Time, i.e. the time where Emma puts on the Shania Twain album (c. 1997) and dances along to it.
This is the first time I've done it whilst having a dog though, so ME and DUST had a wonderful, frabjous time dancing along in a sort of tug-of-war/line-dancing combo.



(This isn't my dog, but she's mental like that one :D)

Sometimes it's fun to be weird.

xo.

Crit Cakes

[NOTE: pics will be uploaded here just as soon as I find my camera. Until then, you will have to wait.]

So, a little bit of background! Basically, Critical Thinking is easily the boring-est subject in the entire universe, honest to God. So we brighten it up a little by having a baking rota.

Which is a little bit weird, but girls college + exam stress + general lack of self conciousness makes for a fun combination.

ANYway, what I originally planned to make was these, s'more cookie bars from Crepes of Wrath.

But then I started looking at the ingredients, and there were a few issues.

First off, the recipe needed Graham Crackers. Whilst I'm sure any americans reading this will go "duh", to me it was a case of eh? because we really don't have them here.

Second, marshmellow creme/fluff. Which you can get here, if you want to a) pay extortionate amounts to get it shipped in from America or b) schlep into Selfridges and pay £7 a jar for it. Which I was not prepared to do. So I looked up a homemade recipe. But that had corn syrup in it, which is another thing that just doesn't exist here.

SO, I improvised. Below is the rough recipe I used, based on the original and adapted to English and marshmellow hating peoples.

Chocolate Cookie Bars - from Crepes of Wrath

Ingredients

• 112g butter
• 50g brown sugar
• 112g caster sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 133g plain flour
• approx. 6 digestive biscuits, crushed to a powder
  
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• Chocolate - I bought four 100g bars of cheap milk chocolate from Tesco, but use whatever takes your fancy.

1. Take dry ingredients (flour, biscuits, salt, baking powder) and mix together.
2. Seperately, mix the egg, both types of sugar and vanilla extract*
3. Mix the two together on a slow heat.
4. Take half the dough and spread it on a greased baking tray.
5. Lay the chocolate over the top.
6. (If you have marshmellow creme, lucky sod. Spread it over the top right now.)
7. Spread the rest of the dough on top.

THEN NUKE IT, 160 degrees for about half an hour or until the smoke alarm goes off.

Things You Might Like To Know
- This makes about 12 squares. I doubled up and got 27. But they do expand in the oven so don't panic if there isn't enough.
- Your dog will love these. Keep her clear.
- DO NOT USE REAL MARSHMELLOWS. I've been told they go really hard in the oven.

Well, that's all. Stay tuned, fellaz!


* Don't do what I did and forget the egg. "Why is this so dry?" I ask myself, baffled, before spotting the egg squatting solitary on the breakfast bar.

I do these tooo often :)

Curious Tuesday 002 by Gala

I promise I'll do at least 5 more posts before posting any more of these, okay? There, you have it in cyber-writing.

1. What are you most excited for RIGHT NOW?

END OF EXAMS, partay partay, no more stress.
God I cannot wait.

2. Who is your style icon? What inspires your look?

Style icon, at the moment, Pixie Lott or Taylor Momsen. Because they have what I go for, that slightly-vintage, just rolled out of bed, love me or leave me type look.

(In fact, today someone told me I have an aura of "cool" even when I wear a load of crap. I told them they were talking crap, but a compliment's a compliment)

3. If you could have dinner with anyone, alive or dead, who would you invite?

If I can twist the rules a little bit, God. Because it would be pretty fascinating. Otherwise I'd have to be cliche and say Hitler. Because that would also be a very interesting conversation.

Me: WHY'DYA HATE JEWS, ADOLF?
AH: Ich weisse nicht, entschuldigung!

Year 8 drama serves me well.

4. What did you dress up as for your first Halloween?

Honestly? No idea. Hallowe'en isn't really a big deal for me. Probably a witch tho.

5. What are you improving?

Attitude to work, ability to make small talk, general aura of "I'm not a freak."

Because Why The Hell Not

gigantosaurus!

(SERIOUSLY, I think my copy/paste keys are broken. Nothing has copy and pasted since gigantosaurus, 3 hours ago. Gah.)

Anyway, this is Pieces of Me, a regular thing apparently, once a month. Here we go, enjoy, et cetera.

This month....
I like: the way that its finally getting warm enough to go out barefoot, bare-armed, bare legged :D

I don't like: the looming prospect of exams. 3 weeks guys.
I want you to know: that I totally have it all under control. Ha.
I've planned: Nothing but revision, exams, and then celebratory end of exams parties of course ;)

I want to say to someone special: Guys, I love you. Seriously. Thanks for wanting me.