Archive for 2010

It's Chriiiiistmas!...well it was yesterday!

I have absolutely nothing to write! 


Christmas was fun! I enjoy being home but can only be here for a certain amount of time. I'm looking forward to going to Dads....we usually end up doing Christmas in March because it's when I happen upon his doorstep! It'll be nice to actually go down during the festive season!

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good 2011

I actually don't like the phrase "Merry" Christmas....Christmas isn't about getting merry it's about remembering the birth of Christ!

[Yes I am in my mid 50's and will be featuring on the new season of grumpy old Women!]

...this is nothing new lets not forget THIS Christmas based rant last year!

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Toy Story 3

So what if I was nearly crying at the end...

it's an emotional film!

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Winter Warmer

I'm ridiculosly grateful for earmuffs right now! I have been for the past week but right now even more than before!!!

If I hadn't purchased the best earmuffs in earmuff history I'd probably consider growing an afro!...I'm actually being serious! There's two things I dislike severly about winter...cold ears and cold feet! This Winter I only have to worry about one of those...and it's not my ears.

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Thankful

yeah yeah yeah I'm greatful! ...sorry thankful! [stupid thanksgiving]

but in all seriousness...my life couldn't be better than it is riiight now!

and for that I am truley ..... thankful!

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Mariah knows!

Christianity is founded on the greatest of all miracles, the resurrection of our Lord. If that be admitted, other miracles cease to be improbable. They were intended to be a proof to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ. Many of them were also parabolic and instructive, teaching by means of symbols such divine truths as the result of sin and the cure of sin; the value of faith; the curse of impurity; and the law of love. Miracles were and are a response to faith, and its best encouragement. They were never wrought without prayer, felt need, and faith.


It is important to notice the different names by which miracles are described. They are called signs, as being visible tokens of an invisible power; they are powers or mighty works, because they are the acts of One who is almighty; they are simply works, or the natural results of the Messiah’s presence among men; they are wonders, marvels, because of the effect produced on those who saw them.

Miracles happen daily. Through humble means are great works brought to pass!

I am humbled!

*before more people ask...no this is not a quote from Mariah Carey!!!! it's from the bible dictionary!...Mariah wishes*

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Home

I love Birmingham! I really do!

what I do not love nor understand....

"tarra a bit"

bye

see you soon

later!

shove off!

...any of these will do...

what does "tarra a bit" even mean!?!?!

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New Beginings

On Thursday I'm heading down to High Wycombe, the land where I was born ....where nothing really happens...EVER!

This weekend my Dad, Mr A is getting married for the third time to a lady he's been with for twenty years!
I'm really excited, and not just for the excuse of a Hadley knees up (can't actually wait!) but to see then actually declare their love for each other as usually they're so dead pan when it come to emotions! She's been apart of my life as much as either of my parents and I know at times Dad's felt thatI liked her more than him! I'm so excited for them to make it official ....she still wont let me call her mom HA! People always get confused when I try and explain that one of my grandparents have died leaving me with five but I honestly love our family with all of its quirks!

Third time lucky...ABOUT TIME !

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Cobwebs

I hereby promise to blow off the electronic cobwebs that are/ have formed on this here blog!

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If walls could speak...

I find this project fascinating! I'd always wondered how people could let their houses get into such a state of disrepair. In England it's most commonly old Council properties that no one want to live in. It's hard to place who's responsibility it is to maintain the upkeep of these houses. Why would you want the house next to yours to be a rundown mess.....surely it affects the value of your property also!? I'm not assuming that everyone is that self centred, but how can a society justify homelessness in a community when there are houses unattended.  Maybe local councils could take on the responsibility? ... but with their budgets spread thinly enough taking on yet another seemingly unnecessary frivolous project makes no sense. These are the things that I think about when I'm sat in the car but then I found THIS project from Kevin Bauman 100 abandoned houses.

Some of the houses included in this project are absolutely beautiful. It's easy to imagine back to their hay day when the neighbourhood was affluent and...well...populated! along with loving most of the buildings with all of their quirky architectural elements, the images themself are so striking and there are a limited number of prints available of each building...my favourite has already sold out!



The project documents abandonment in Detroit over the past ten years and more. With Brush Park, being close to Wayne State University and the entertainment district you'd think that the houses would be well maintained and desirable even if the purpose of the properties was to rent to students. How has his area gone from being the idilic American dream to a modern day ghost town. 


Detroit announced it would be redeveloping Brush Park...but as when I tidy my room I focus on one area and forget about the rest of the house; areas of Bush Park were 're-worked' while the rest of Detroit was ignored...certain areas of Brush GPark also saw no development. Some of the old houses were torn down, some butchered into apartments; residents that had stayed true to the area found developers forcing them out of their homes so that their buildings could be modernised. That's what you get for loyalty!



Detroit covers 143 square miles or 370 km squared, by comparison Birmingham is roughly 103 square miles and has a population of easily over 1 million people. The population of Detroit has fallen from near 2 million to less than 800,000. The number of abandoned houses is close to 12,000. 

with figures like this the situation is not likely to change any time soon!




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History is always repeating itself!

It's Summer again...well it's now nearing the end of said season, and as always I've been carried away with everything.  So much has happened there's no point trying to have a catch up because I'd forget most of the things that have happened.

Notable things that come to mind
- degree finished
- EFY - success
- Back in Birmingham
- Best friend married off
- Eagerly awaiting Talisa's bump to be born

and today .... I move into a hilariously cute cottage with two lovely ladies!

The cottage has no internet right now so I could say that I intend to update this blog regularly but I can't promise anything.

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DATE!...

Tonight i went to see inception with my mom!

before which we went to Nando's

It was the best night I've had in ages

we're definitely going on a second date!

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I may be 22 but

I cannot deny how happy a Mr Whippy made me today!

It was SO good!

even if they are no longer 99p!

Red sauce and sprinkles....yes please!

TOO GOOD!

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Dawning of a New Era

Yes I've been listening to the specials but also I'm not looking on this period or transitional phase as the end of an era as that's just too depressing! In the past fortnight I have graduated from university, lived through and been MoH at my best friends wedding, moved back to Birmingham and left everything that I have known for the past three years behind me! In all fairness i can't lie I felt like moving back to Birmingham was just me regressing and going backwards, I'd lived away from home and now I was going back; reverting to the 19 year old that left! Each situation is only as you perceive it! If I look on this time in a negative light then it will be a negative experience.

This was nearly the boat that I found myself in ... but if there's one thing I'm not it's a pessimist...debate that as you will!

However sometimes we need to move backwards so we can move forwards. A slight diversion may seem nothing at the start but as time progresses you end up far away from your end goal. I know that right now I am meant to be in Birmingham even if there is a part of me that wants to be in Manchester, it's not where I am supposed to be it's just where I am comfortable and that is not the same thing.

As I apply for any job I can find and actually think on what I would like to do I realise that I probably should have done a degree in Social Work. In reality I just want  job where I'm working with people and I'm serving in some capacity; volunteer development? yes please! Youth work? thank you kindly! Social worker? Why! however did you know!... Alas!...jobs in these fields right now seem few and few between so I'll take what I can get!

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Now there's a thought

Number 462 on the list of 1000 awesome things was pain

"pain’s just there to do a job for us. It motivates us to flee hurtin’ scenes, protects our body while it heals, and teaches us to avoid painful places in the future.

Pain’s our invisible Life Coach, sewn in to our bones, twisted in our DNA, and helping us all keep strong as we keep motoring on."

So true!

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READY?!...1...2....3....

JUMP!





The images below are from a series called JUMP by the Photographer Philippe Halsman. Halsman was commissioned to take pictures for high end magazines  and after the formal shoot would ask his subjects to jump giving them no other direction than that!along with the movement in the pictures I really like the expressions on peoples faces; the childlike glee in Hepburn and Monroe a contrast to the demure and sultry image that was often portrayed of them by the media! Nixon however looks calm as ever and appears to be levitating more than jumping; but still such a different side to him rather than the scowling statesman that most people saw. Philippe Halsman when asked about his Jumpology series said: “When you ask a person to jump, his attention is mostly directed toward the act of jumping, and the mask falls, so that the real person appears. How hilarious do the Windsors look! Who said the royal family don't have a sense of humour!



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Diego Goldberg



I LOVE this project by Diego Goldberg.  [Think Noah take s a picture of himself but with a family theme and once a year instead of daily!] On the 17th June each year they take family portraits showing how they've aged and progressed. Now the first two sons are married and have continued the tradition in their own families.

all three family timelines can be seen here

if you click on Nicolas or Matias you can see the start of theirs too. 

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Here's to the Past

My blog is turning into bogs that I dislike....just a collection of things that I've found on the internet!
RECTIFIED!...well it'll still include random things I've found on the intraweb butI'm back to writing!

lack of attention being paid to the blog....and I can't even think of a reason. I have all of the time in the world! I've been dedicating more time to my written journal! I love that book taking a couple of minutes out here and there is such a small ask but when read back all together it is so powerful! I should write in it more than I do!

I have been thinking about the passing of time recently and the joys of pasts present and possible futures! I guess it's a normal thing to think about after you graduate! This isn't just a summer for me.....this is life! Lectures don't start in September, this is my life! job hunting, cake baking, letter writing! As the sun sets n yet another chapter of my life all I can do as I look back is be greatful! Outcomes may not be what we expect when we first start a journey but we must enjoy the journey all the same! The outcome although maybe not what we desire is most likely what we need or deserve; appreciate it because unlike your wants this result is yours! claim it!

Thing get you down, we are tried at all times and in all things even when things are going well complacency to me is one of the scariest things! I hope I don't get complacent  in any area of my life; I will always try to renew, refresh and improve. Past conquests are just there to show you what you could achieve at that moment in time, learn from it and move forward, achieve more! We all have an infinite potential only limited by ourselves I refuse to limit myself!

I am grateful for all of my trials and hardships in my past, I don't regret my choices, I don't hold grudges, I learn from my experiences and move on strengthened from the episode. All is well! in the grand scheme of things this is but a short time! The past is the past, it has been and has been dealt with it does not bare reference for my future; nothing there is big enough that it holds weight on my future decisions. Every day is a new start, everyday I choose to improve!

So...



image from here

today is a new day!

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Lets twist again

I pretty much love this



from here

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With time you can come to appreciate anything...

Except the Lord build the house, 
their labour is but lost, their labour is but lost that build it;
Except the Lord keep the city, 

The watchman... waketh but in vain.

It is but lost labour that ye haste to rise up early,
And so late take rest, so late take rest,
And eat the bread of carefulness.
For so he giveth his beloved sleep.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
A good understanding have all they that do thereafter
The praise of it endureth forever.

Repeat last section with gusto as enforced by Mr Parry!


There were many occasions at school where I felt the whole thing pointless and the teachers insane but as the ordeal continued i grew to love it and after being there for a year longer than most I was truly saddened to leave. I was all for change but that school was and is a part of me! It has made me into the person that I am today, From the age of 11-19 every one has a lot of experiences and changes in different ways; it sets the precedent for years to come. I will always look back on those days fondly same as any other period in my life but KEHS has a special place in my heart and always will! From lessons learnt to the people that I met KEHS played a huge role in laying the foundation of who I am today; take that as you will!

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Lets paint the town red!



I really want to get involved with this project called Lets colour. I just love the whole concept [Even if it is just a huge marketing campaing]! Needless to say I smiled at that video from start to finish!

...and HERE is the flikr to go with the project

so far they've painted  Rio, London, Jodhpur, Marseille and soon Istanbul I think I'd paint Stonehenge!!! Take that national heritage!



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This time last year...


Today I read through some of my journal from last year!

I had such an amazing Summer because al I did throughout the whole thing was serve in different ways! I have memories from last Summer that I will carry with me through the rest of my life and I  learnt lessons that I won't ever forget! I'm glad that I was so dedicated to keeping a journal and that I still am as it means i can look back with fondness and remember the little details that made it what it was!

Me and my class of monks 

The other volunteers and I at Boudha stoupa one evening for dinner

                 Lisa and Sydney         Me with Sydneys passport

I met Some amazing people last Summer not only in Nepal but also through different things like dare I say it EFY! I'm still in touch with most of them and looking back on the past year I don't know what I would have done this year had it not been for them! What a year it has been!

Counsellors at last years EFY


Here's to this Summer being better than the last!


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Uncle Fred

All families have at least one member that's a little bit out there! The one thats the centre for most family discussion even tho they're never there! Most of my family would probably say that I'm the odd one that has some odd life style whom they never hear from apart from when I just appear! I OBJECT!....It's definitely uncle Fred! Frederick Hibbert is also known as Toots; the lead singer of Tots and the Maytals! He's a legend and he's my uncle!


Some of my friends are going to Glastonbury so I thought I'd check out the line up and there on the stage formerly known as the Jazz world stage are Toots and the Maytals on the Sunday bill in between Quantic and his Cosmic barbaro and Rodrigo et Gabriela! What's even funnier is that it's part of his European tour ...at 64!!! This is at least the second time they've played glastonbury that I can remember and they've won a grammy too which makes me wander why one of their UK dates is Holmfirth where last of the summer Wine was filmed!!

I know that I'm probably a bit to quick to say that my family is a joke...but really...


I rest my case!

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Letter *8

To Whom it may concern,

Today society has dedicated to you!

Thank you for all that you do.
Thank you for being there for me
Thank you for the past few weeks!

Happy Fathers Day!

I love more than you could ever comprehend!

x

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I'm so dizzy....but it wasn't me!!!

"I didn't know people still rowed"
          "Of course I knew rowing existed just not as a competitive sport"

"WoW Burma that's amazing...how's she going to commute?"
         "No not Burma ...Birmingham"

"Don't eat the frog!"

"Did you grow up in the country?"
         "Yeah! Once I missed my stop when I was on the train ..."

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Sundays are the best...

Leisurely picnic in Silchester lounging around the Roman amphitheatre with friends old and new!

WHAT A DAY!

x

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Oh yeah I recently turned 22...fun!


It was actually the best birthday ever!
They always are!

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Tired doesn't even come close

I'm in Reading! The reason I'm here is for BC training but as I have no real purpose right now I get to stay for a couple of days with Nicola at Ruths house! [It's been the best!]

Today was BC training which was fun! Most of the counsellors knew each other pretty much apart from two and they seem ace any how! I'm really looking forward to it al ready! WE'll se how it goes! I will eventually catch up with life at some point but until then....


thought of the day!

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Letter *7

To Whom it may concern,

Thank you!

Thank you for being you;
Thank you for never being visibly afraid in situations where I clam up;
Thank you for having the most integrity out of any one I know;
Thank you for standing up for what you believe in;
Thank you for feeling comfortable enough to speak to me about your hopes and fears;
Thank you for trusting me enough to open up to me;
Thank you for letting me talk to you about the most pointless of things;
Thank you for making me feel important;
Thank you for being as obsessed by food as I am;
Thank you for believing in me;
Thank you for having faith in me and pushing me to be a better person;
Thank you for being passionate about the simple things;
Thank you for finding childlike pleasure in the small things... without becoming a child;
Thank you for not creating drama...too often;
Thank you for being a middle aged mess way before your time;
and thank you for being my friend!

no really, from the bottom of my heart, Thank you!

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Letter *6

To Whom it may concern

your constant chain smoking leaves you with a stench that makes me want to be sick to the pit of my very stomach! It's filthy, unattractive, expensive and one minor thing...it's killing you and those around you!

yeah now i see why you like it so much!

(that last sentence was a lie)

think about it!

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Letter *5

To Whom it may concern

I am not now, nor have I ever been a fan of how you use flattery and fakery of every sort to get around how you use people and go about your bidding! I hope your current victim is aware of this!

just thought you should know

thanks

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...Not so metaphorical



Nobody told me that on your 22nd birthday you grow a moustache!?

good thing it suits me....ish

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Allow Me to re-introduce myself....

his name is HOV!!

what a night!....


yes they are all access artist passes for Jay Z courtesey of Mr Hudson!

thank you squire!

x

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When I was 14...

I wanted to be a wallpaper designer! (at least it's not something weird like a slug *cough*)

Someone out there must have that job and I wanted it to be me. I longed to walk into someones house and be able to say they've got my work on their walls!

In the last week I have found two websites with the most AMAZING...and equally overpriced wallpaper EVER! and so seven years on, as my degree comes to a close I think that maybe I'll see if I can crack out an art foundation and become a wallpaper designer! First step is to find all of my old art work and also to start drawing again!

I think from this you can tell how my revision is going!

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Letter *4

To Whom it may concern

Incase you missed the sign, this is the quiet carriage on the train!

just a thought...!?

Sincerely, me

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Letter *3

To whom it may concern,

I have loved our time together, you have changed me in ways you will never know. I am who I am because of our time together. I have soaked up every part of you that I have come into contact with and I will carry you around with me where ever I go. You have given me the confidence to pursue many thing I would have never thought possible and for that I say thank you. 

This may be a goodbye but it won't be forever as I could never stay away.  I will go, and I will change, but so will you, it's a fact of life! However, I know that when the time comes for us to be together again we'll pick up exactly where we left off. So here's to you my good friend! May time treat you well.

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Mr Postman

I have a whole book of letters written To whom they may concern!

Some are to actual people some to groups, some to people I don't even know but have just seen either on the street, in the library or in a shop, some to people still around, some to people passed on. I read through some of them the other day and it just made me smile hence why I started to share them...I will post a few more...or maybe many more; depending on how my mood takes me.

My parents are my best friends even when we don't get on or they start on their overly repetitive stories all I can do is laugh at them and with them, recently more so with them especially as I'm noticing all of the similar characteristic that we share. Dads aspirations for me that I just dismiss because it's Dad...now as we spend more time together are more in line with what I would actually like to do, rather than what he would like to tell people I do!

I am ready for university to be finished but that is definitely not where my education will finish. I have books to read, languages to learn, places to visit, people to meet, food to taste and a whole host of other opportunities that will be placed in my path! With new experiences come new acquaintances, moving away from what I have known for the past three years will also mean inevitably loosing touch with people who are present in my life right now. That process has already started to happen as my revision causes me to become a recluse my associations with people are not as strong as they once were and I know that this is my fault but I guess eventually it will make it easier for me to slip away come July; maybe then I'll be bothered about keeping in touch!

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Rock the boat, don't rock the boat baby!

sometimes you have to rock the boat!


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Unelected, Unwanted, Untenable...THIS is England!

England held a General Election yesterday which has resulted in a hung parliament.

Gordon Brown is in the position as former ...sorry current prime minister to have the first chance at forming a coalition to run government. Many have said that Labour should just join up with the liberal democrats yes second and third together can beat first into submission and pretend that they never existed....they are fools...this still would not provide Labour with a majority so Ol' Gord would also have to include all other marginals which I doubt would go down well at all... Who wants a country run by every one that didn't win rather than the party that has the most seats. Ok most of the country did not vote conservative but more people are in favour of them than any other party...see where the difficulty arises?! most of the country do not want david Cameron as PM! So what do we do?....

We currently have an unelected prime minister which isn't rare....we've had two unelected Conservative Prime Ministers in the past...oh hello John Major! ...but this one is Gordon Brown and I just don't like him! Neither do most of the country! What about all those who voted Labour ...as in pro Gordon Brown and may now end up with Milliband as Prime Minister if Gordon is forced to step down! It's just one big circus! Conservatives forming a coalition with the Liberal Democrats would provide a majority... but how they would ever manage to form a comprehensive manifesto that they can both agree on...the Liberals and the righty's come together to form a very English middle of the road ruling power!

The Liberal Democrats have never had this much power....more votes, but less seats....got to love the system. Nick Clegg now can decide whom he forms a coalition with; the countries eyes are on Nick!

Oh England!

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This Week

Ok things I have realised of late...

1) I am not competitive apart from when it comes to one-on-one sports like air hockey.... my competitive spirit died with the end of house hockey, netball , rounders and so in in Y11. I really do just enjoy the taking part.

2)  I despise people who lie, are lazy, unwilling to serve, are selfish, single-minded, childish and overdramatic amongst many other things, Im working at this and I don't hold it against them, but everytime that aspect of them is manifested I imagine hitting them with a fish! no really then I laugh and all is good!

3) Prude? ...erm yes a little.

4) I love sausages...like really!...favourite meal - sausages and mash, second, toad in the hole, third sausage casserole...no lie!

5) I love it when I'm proven wrong! I'm usually proven right.

6) Board games are the best.

7) It really does sadden me that people don't actually "write" anymore.

8) I don't judge things on appearances because appearances fade and are also quite often fake, but I like it when things look pretty.

9) I enjoy cooking more than I enjoy eating and that's saying a lot.

10) I love developing new skills, since deciding I was going to teach myself how to crochet no ball of yarn has been safe! I'm taking my sign language back up when I go back to Birmingham and I want to learn Spanish! Any thoughts as to what else I should try my hand at are more than welcome. I enjoy a challenge.

This week I've had a few intense conversations that i have totally loved! All adding in some way to give my life some sort of direction! Last night I had one while chewing on a polystyrene cup for about half an hour. I've got a lot to think about and I know that I've already spoken to two of the probable three people that read this blog about my up coming decisions, thank you for listening and for your advice!

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Carmen Sandiego

When I graduate I will be changing my name to Carmen Sandiego!

Ok I'm not...

...but my life feels like it'll be turning into the 90's computer game and I can't wait!

Even if the first stop is Birmingham



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Letter *2


To Whom it may concern,
            I’m sorry, I know it hasn’t always been easy but I’m trying. I do love you and that can never be contested, we’re too similar to actually get on; you know it’s true. You’re stubborn it makes me laugh but I’m the same and that doesn’t bode well for us.  It’s not just our stifneckedness that we have in common, our sense of humor, like of good food and satire, comedy…to an extent. However I’m very grateful that our taste in music is VERY different. You’ve taught me so much through your example and yes as much as I deny it I always listen when you give me counsel and as silly as it may have sounded at the time, given time I understood what you were getting at in your round about way. Your stories I have heard time after time, you’re going a little crazy but I love it.
I love that you care, I love that you know I care, I hate that I hardly see you but I think it’s probably for the best; I don’t think anyone would be able to deal with the combined force that is us when we’re together.
I’ll speak to you soon

love always
me

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Letter *1

Dear Mr United Nations,

I am very interested in working for your organisation, I think the work that you do is of value and I would like to be a part of it however I have a few issues;

1) Why do I have to be 25?

2) Why do I need to have more qualifications to volunteer for your organisation than I do to work for you?

I'm a lovely person and I want to volunteer, surely you've heard the phrase every little helps!? Just for you and your requirements I will spent the next three years trying to learn either French or Spanish and working for other groups that aren't ageist, and would love to have me as part of their team. How about a Masters in Cultural Development? not enough...ok I'll think on it!

Yours faithfully

Rochelle Hadley

the girl that will one day run your little organisation...I jest!

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Late night Entertainment

As soon as I break any assumed routine that I may develop everything goes to pot....usually starting with my sleeping patterns. So as soon as I decided to go home for a while I knew not to expect to become too familiar with my bed!

last week while in Birmingham I found myself watching women, weddings, wars and me around 2am. The program was about a girl called Nel who's family had left Afghanistan when she was five. She was now in her late teens/early twenties and was going back to see what the situation was like for women there now that the reign of oppression under the Taliban was 'over'.

As time went on I was intent on staying awake for another hour or two to see another program that was starting half an hour after the other finished called The Worlds most dangerous place for women where Judith from south London wen't back to DRC.  A war has run rife in the heart of Africa for over a decade and both sides have used women as a weapon.  Upon arrival in the Congo Jude had the opportunity to spend some time with her parents whom she hadn't seen since she was three, after a couple of days in the West of DRC she moved over to the East for a further five weeks. I have studied the shocking perversions of justice throughout the history of the Congo but all from behind the veil of education. I watched as an anthropologist assessing the opinions of directors, the aims of pieces and looking for cultural significances, the horrors of the situation although VERY apparent had no hold on me. Instead I focused on how it was all documented, dark fractured limbs shot against clean white sheets for high contrast, you have to detach yourself from it all as I already come out of my Friday lectures moved, if I became emotionally vested I'd be a mess week on week. I had no choice this time.  Village after village story after story; from the outset you knew it wasn't going to be the most pleasant of programs to watch but what I took from it was the immense strength of the women who accepted all they had been through and we're fighting for change against opposition from all around.

It got me to thinking about all that my grandparents had done in choosing to come to England all those years ago so that their children and the rest of their posterity could have better opportunities than they would have had back in the Caribbean even if it meant leaving family and high status' within their community to start again in a foreign land...all for me to decide that I want to move away and experience new things, but they understand why and support me in it fully. I've been to Jamaica once but I was too young to really remember it for what it was, I'd like to go back and see where my family is actually from. I'm also saving up for a trip to Curacao and St Vincent where my dad was born as I've never been and I still have family out there that I've never met. Crazy!

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I LOVE...

...the smell of my bed sheets at my dads house

...Springtime BBQ's at dads

...the way Jasper (cat) reads my work over my shoulder

...the way Salem (cat) pushes me out of bed

...my nans copious amounts of hidden crocheted goods hidden in the spare room

...my nieces and nephews constant question asking and staring

...maple pecan plaits...oooh yes!

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What The Even

My Dad  drops the most INSANE pieces of information into conversations!

his whole life is a JOKE!

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Count To Ten and Start Again!

I have been here half an hour and already I have taken to exile in my room!

my dad is hard on the best of days.

he's been stuck in the house for the past month or so like a bear with a sore head because he's had a haemorrhage in one of his eyes 

(his good eye to increase the dynamics in this tale of woe) 

I have come to spend some time with him before he goes insane.

instead he takes it out on me as if I popped his little blood vessel.

et voila 

me and the cats all on my bed hiding from the beast down stairs!

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Tradition

Tonight as is so often planned we had a BBQ after theSaturday evening session of general conference! It was fun we ate too much we caught up like we always do; it's things like this that I know I'm going to miss! We had the BBQ on Alex's balcony because that was where most of the stuff for the BBQ was and she also lives closest to ASDA...the central point to the life of any student that lives in the Hulme area! After gorging ourselves on meat and cheese...classic BBQ staples we decided to watch fiddler on the roof as we knew we'd be hungry soon enough and I although I now know the words to most of the songs in the first half...had never seen it!

I enjoyed the part that I watched....we talked over most of the second half ....the whole thing is close enough to three hours I'm not sure anything can hold my attention for that long! Things I noted...

Fiddler on the Roof is probably the most irrelevant title ever! it opens with a shot of the fiddler on the roof, he comes down and plays a tune to Tevye (the father in this tale...whose family the story is actually about) maybe half an hour in and then the closing scene he walks after Tevye playing his "little fiddlers tune" the actual story line has nothing to do with the fiddler! I was expecting more a pied piper of Hamlin kind of story...I don't know why, but I was disappointed none the less!

As much as I have just expressed that I feel the fiddler doesn't deserve to be the subject of the title of the 
production I did enjoy the prologue that Tevye starts with based on a metaphor about the fiddler. The fiddler (we) is trying to scratch out a simple little tune while up there on the roof setting himself apart from the others while trying nt to break his neck in the process. It isn't easy! any why does he choose to stay up their....TRadition, no one knows where these traditions have started from but they keep them on the straight and narrow as it were. As a result of their traditions everyone know who they are and what God expects of them. 

We can choose how high the roof we choose to play our tune from is, we choose if we wish to play a tune at all. Many of us play because of tradition, and we can play the same tune as those that have gone before, others choose a different tune to play entirely. Without the traditions their lives would be as shaky as a fiddler on the roof who is struggling to balance on his precarious foundations as he plays his tune.

As we continued to chat after fiddler had finished I noticed a flickering orange coming from the balcony...yes the BBQ had set the balcony on fire....I think we were letting our light shine forth a little too literally!


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I believe in every breath you breath

never let a woman go even when you know 
she can always be replaced, she can always be replaced
tho our lust only grows like anger and revenge,
or beauty comes and goes but love stays until the end

i wrote you a song mississippi is a bell
i even sent you flower's when you fell ill
you've the strength of the greeks,you are gods master piece
you're ever triumph every victory I believe in every breath you breath

and I always imagined you be by my side 
whether I'm hiding in the city or I'm tearing through the wild 
you're only a yoke a noose on my throat 
if your beauty is a fortress then my love would be the boat

I'll fall in love with you I'll fall in love with you I must
I'd consume every part of you to indulge my love lust


never let a woman go even when you know 
she can always be replaced, she can always be replaced
tho our lust only grows like anger and revenge,
or beauty comes and goes but love stays until the end

...never let a woman go even when you know...

with a guitar in my hand or a gun in my hand 
I'd give it all up for her hand in my hand
for her sun on my skin as the morning begins 
I'd die in the dark just to feel your skin on my skin

never let a woman go even when you know

your soul
young love
young lust

treasure every beating heart that sets your soul on fire


...love will set your soul on fire

thank you King Charles

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A friend may well be reckoned the masterpiece of nature...Emerson

Because yesterday was exactly what I needed!

I ate pastry and muffins, drank tea, watched half a film, walked to town, laughed till my cheeks hurt...and my stomach too, was lost in conversation, gave someone a token of my affection, found stuff so i could post another, came home on a high, did more work, was taken against my will and then had a hilarious night only to come home and read that no matter how far apart we may be in distance somethings never change! Time has the ability to change many a thing, colours fade, things become worn, we become tired but friendships have this unique quality of being strengthened by distance and maturing beautifully with time!

As Emily Dickinson said "my friends are my estate"... making me one wealthy woman! 

On a different note...
 my nephew Barrington died after having an unsuccessful liver transplant at the age of 12.

We may not know what tomorrow holds, and we cannot change whatever may lie in store, but we can make the most of today because we know that today is the day we make our mark on the hearts of others.

for all that you do, all I can say is

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Stage fright



 Friday is over and done with!

No more having to sing Matchmaker or Popular! 

Hurrah!

I'm quite glad...

...now back to the essays...oh joy!


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Philosophers at 5


Life lessons from Disney ...
"What I love most about rivers is, 
You can't step in the same river twice,
The water's always changing, always flowing.
But people, I guess, can't live like that
To be safe, we loose our chance of ever knowing
What's around the river bend
Waiting just around the river bend..."



image from lonely planet

My river looks more like this; but here's to wherever, as long as it's forward!

this is what's playing right now



LOVING LIFE RIGHT NOW

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I LOVE SPRING!!

Even the weird half spring you get in England!

I love the smells, the sights, the weather (even the rain...I actually love rain!), The food, the chirpy disposition that creeps up over everyone in preparation for Summer, I love the new starts, buds blooming meaning that flowers are on their way! There isn't a season I don't like but this morning I fell in love with Spring! I'm probably least fond of Summer...weird right!

Cherry blossom reminds me of being in primary school (Cherry Orchard J & I) because there was a  row of cherry trees and the best time of year was when they were in full blossom! We'd spend every lunch time playing under them or sometimes just sitting! I wish I had time to sit now!

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Nice to Meet You!

I'm an observer;....I observe! I think it's why I quite like Social Anthropology! I get to sit and watch or read and then continue to sit and think. In class we study different cultures, lost tribes, "new" civilisations and the things that set them apart from us; cultural differences, different thought processes whatever else the lecturer decides. I love it. 


There is nothing to say that our way is right, it is merely what we are used to. Many in the West see ourselves as the civilised, and feel like they must take it upon them selves to "teach" other cultures how to be civil and therefor more human(I watched a film where someone described an amazonian tribe as half human just because they didn't wear suits and carry briefcases). There have been very significant progresses in technology that we have the benefit of but with the benefits came the losses. Email makes it easier to communicate with people, text messages mean you can get in touch with someone when they are in a different country if it so takes your fancy but whatever happened to the phone-call, the letter... may I even suggest the face to face conversation! shock horror! Yes we as humans are capable of communicating face to face! (now there's a thought). 
Anyhow mini rant over.

I've found myself observing society, paying more attention to things that happen everyday in the situations that I find myself in. The way people interact with each other, the way in which people don't interact with each other, says the same amount maybe more. I've always enjoyed people watching, I think everyone does but it wasn't until recently I started analysing and I can't stop. In al fairnessI don't think i can call what I do analysing in the strictest....or loosest of terms in that case, but my eyes have been opened.

From the insecure, the over confident, the shy, the overbearing, the blunt, the quick witted, the intelligent, the silent, the academic, the not so academic, people that crave attention, people that crave affection, the crowd pleaser, the unstable, the charmer, the know all, the pessimist, the optimist, the "realist", to the down right schizophrenic.

I've never noticed how many people were just playing games, holding up a mask and entering into act two scene three of the big production that is their life. I'm bored of am-mature dramatics and child's play. While noticing people who are hiding behind a translucent facade (because most people can see straight through it) I've noticed that there are many people....in some settings the majority who are themselves no matter what the situation, the don't hide it, they don't seek your acceptance and It is these people who I am so glad to be able to count as my friends. The rest I shall continue to observe....I wander what people observing me think?! I don't think I want to know! I don't really care!

A case of the fake people



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It's Not The Years In Your Life That Count, But The Life In Your Years!

The past few weekends have come with many a realisation for me. I've learnt a bit, I've realised a lot, and I've come to accept a fair few things that I guess I always knew. This weekend really topped it off, I had my patriarchal blessing which was more than I could ever have imagined! Dumb-struck doesn't even come close to how I was feeling afterwards. I'd been scared about what might be said in it for the past three years; now I have it, I realise it's full of things I'd already known, knew were important and had been striving to do. It contained some things other people had said to me and I'd been unwilling to accept, but they were right all along; now I look back it seems quite apparent! The same evening I attended a CES broadcast which felt like I was sat in a room with Elder Rasband on my own...needless to say this weekend has been rather intense but I wouldn't change it for the world!

 I have a work to do, I always thought I did, now I know I do.

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Been there, Done that, Got the T-shirt!

A week of posting everyday followed by an intense silence here...and why....essay deadlines looming yet again!

Sometimes I get stressed with work and what not and everything get's out of perspective causing me to beat myself up about how I have no life ....mainly because I just focus on the task in hand and my 12 hour library shifts...ooh yeah! 12 hours in the library reading and writing about the residual evidence of colonisation evident in the birth practices in former Zaire now known as DRC...only to come home and continue writing my essay...(fun... no?)

So to relax I went on to the old faithful that is YouTube and watched some videos...one of which was this...




I DID THAT!!!!.. 


The start of the video that I was on was corrupted so i couldn't buy the video of my swing but I did get the t-shirt! Lisa videoed the first three seconds or so of my jump which I find hilarious....I'll upload it soon, but for now I will watch Heleen do her's knowing that I've jumped off that same bridge!...crazy huh?!

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Pins & Needles

I have taken knitting back up as I think it's about time that I stopped starting something and never finishing it! I also am going to buy myself a crochet needle and teach myself how to crochet. 1) Because I have fallen in love with doilies...yes I am a grandma 2) because my nan can crochet and I've always been a little jealous and 3) because I like to think that one day I'll be able to knit this...yes knit...


...and crochet this...

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Around the World ...

So I was thinking about how big the world is and how there's lots of it that I want to see...then I thought about how big it was again.....


Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Angola, Antigua, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Costa Rica, Ivory Coast, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, North Korea, South Korea, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, East Timor, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad , Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Vatican City, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Abkhazia, Taiwan, Nagorno-Karabakh, Northern Cyprus, Pridnestrovie, Somaliland, South Ossetia, Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island, New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Mayotte, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Martin, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Wallis and Futuna, French Southern and Antarctic Lands, Clipperton Island, Bouvet Island, Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Jersey, Anguilla, Bermuda, Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Montserrat, Pitcairn Islands, Saint Helena, South Georgia, Turks and Caicos Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Baker Island, Guam, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Palmyra Atoll, U.S. Virgin Islands, Wake Island, Hong Kong, Macau, Faroe Islands, Greenland, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Reunion, Aland, Aruba, Netherlands Antilles, Svalbard, Ascension, Tristan da Cunha, Antarctica, Kosovo, Palestine, Western Sahara, Australian Antarctic Territory, Ross Dependency, Peter I Island, Queen Maud Land, British Antarctic Territory,...






270 Countries! I don't want to go to most of them but the thought of going to any of them excites me immensely! 

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"To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing it's best night and day to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle any human being can fight and never stop fighting"

- e. e. Cummings
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