Keeping Myself Level

My flatmates continue to be arses, but I've decided that if they keep it up into the week I'm going to go complain about a violation of the tenancy agreement (because technically that's exactly what they're doing, violating their tenancy agreement.) However I had a fairly good day despite being quite depressed over my living situation.
Every weekend (when I don't have a social programme to go to) I plan little excursions for myself. Usually it involves shopping because I really like shopping. This weekend's excursion was to Covenant Garden because I was told my market guidebook that the Apple Market at Covenant Garden is quite good (I'm easily persuaded by guidebooks, especially ones that market themselves as experts on non-touristy things.) I went to a really busy but very nice restaurant called Cafe Mode where I had a spicy pepperoni pizza that lived up to it's name. Turned out the little green and red peppers I thought weren't going to be spicy were extremely spice and so I picked them all off after eating one of the green ones (jalapeño would be my guess.) The manager lady called me lovey which I thought was a nice touch if a bit odd. Then it was off to the market.
The Apple Market, much like the renewed Spitalfields, has a large number of permanent stores including David and Goliath and Savage London. I went into a large number of those stores, but unlike with Spitalfields I didn't actually buy anything in them, which made me happy on a certain level. I did a look around all the stalls before doing a quick check of the Jubilee Market where I got a nice pair of blue earrings with dried up flowers in them. I wasn't that impressed with the Jubilee Market, but the highlight of the entire trip was the ZHL String Ensemble who were busking in the lower court of the market. They performed really well known pieces (obviously) but performed them with a lot of energy and even add a bit of motion whenever the could manage. They were so good I decided to buy they're CD, which turned out to be a perfect purchase given my current situation. The album is called "Classical dreams" with the sub-title of "A relaxing collection of popular classics." My final purchase of the day was a sweatshirt from one of the Apple Market stalls. It has a cartoon bunny face on it. I'm happy about it.
Finally, here are a couple of things I've done based on the recommendation of other people (a list that will grow after Tuesday.)

• Eaten at Paul's. My grandmother recommended this cute little French sandwich/bread/wonderful pastries/baked goods cafe. I went there after my Art and Society class in the second week and while I'm sure the calories I ingested were numerous, it was a great sandwich and slice of chocolate cake, so well worth the calories.
• Going to Apple Market. While the market was endorsed by my market guide book, it was originally recommended by one of the Danish girls I met at the boat party. She also recommended Lush, which smells highly fragrant soaps and other things. I stood outside their shop and breathed deeply.

For those of you wondering, the pilot went okay, given the fact that one of the key pieces of equipment wasn't working. We got feed back from our instructor, Dave, and while I was highly aware of my own problems, one of the best lines was the following: "Where does Nore sound at her best? Why? Is it because she has a smile in her voice.... or sounds well informed?" I think we all know the answer: Because I sound well informed. There is no smile in my voice.

Please Be Quiet

Since I currently have brain dribbling out my ears, here are some bullet points:

• I had my first celebrity sighting today: Emma Bunton aka Baby Spice. Took a little while to recognize who it was I was starring at, but yeah I saw Baby Spice.
• The Brits were on Tuesday and weren't a complete wash. Lady Gaga won three and Lily Allen walked away with Best Female Solo Artist, so that's nice. However I couldn't watch the ceremonies, even though I'm in the right country, so my Twitter feed was completely confusing me since they all seemed to be watching it.
• After my Art and Society class I made it my mission to return the pair of jeans I had bought at Topshop. Due to this I completely hate that store and hope never to set foot there again. I did however return the jeans, so that's a plus.
• I've decided that the some of the people who live around me are absolute prats. I like to imagine that I'm a reasonable person, but there's only so much loudly played crap music I can take before I might just go crazy. Last night for instance: I go to bed around 11pm and a few of my flatmates and their friends where in the kitchen playing the Strokes really loudly. Loud enough for me to hear Mr. Casablancas vocals pretty clearly. I go and ask them to turn it down. Get ready for bed. Just as I'm settling into my warm "comfy" bed, really loud music seeps through my earplugs. From the kitchen. Same group of people. As I said, I like to consider myself a reasonable human being and even though I didn't start screaming at them for being rude prats, I really wanted to. Because that's what they are: Huge prats.
• Liberty's is where money goes to die a ridiculous death

That's it. I've got the pilot tomorrow afternoon and hopefully my flatmates won't be prats this evening, I'm really not in the mood to deal with them in a polite way. I can tell you what's on the play list for the pilot though. We'll be playing "All That Jazz," "Money," "Mamma Mia," "Good Morning Baltimore," "Summer Holiday," "Tonight," "Book Report," and many, many more. It should be good. Until then, don't panic (I know I'll be trying not to.)

I CAN Talk

When I started in radio I didn't talk. I've since learned how to talk and tonight I proved that not only can I talk, but I can talk while two really cool people are looking on. This is important because I have a two hour pilot programme on Friday where I'm going to be talking quite a bit in front of many really cool people. I really think I'm worrying over nothing, but since the show is 90% of my grade and this is the one class I really, really care about, I'd like to do well. I'd also like to impress my classmates since one of them doesn't think I'm capable of doing this and I don't really know what the rest of them think of me or my capabilities as a host. I also kind of see this as test of the "skills" I've been "cultivating" for the past two and half years. If I can do this than just maybe I can make it as a real DJ.
In other news I downloaded the Courteeners' single this morning and have since downloaded Mumford and Sons' single "The Cave" which has trumpets in it which is why I like it. I swear, if a track has trumpets in it, I'll almost automatically love it. I also booked a room for Leeds, so my spring break is entirely taken care of which is good. Turns out it takes like four or five hours to get to Glasgow by train, but I'm hoping for really pretty scenery, just as I'm expecting my visit to Cardiff to be geek-tacular (go Doctor Who museum!). Finally, I really should unfollow Ricky Wilson on Twitter, it's doing my head in. It's just as bad, if not possibly worse than, being "active" in the Kaiser Chiefs livejournal community. However I probably won't because it makes me smile.
For those of you wondering how Greenwich was, it was overcast. One of the tour guides we had looked like Aaron Eckhart though, so that was pretty sweet. Aaron Eckhart with darker hair and a British accent, just imagine. But yeah, the actual time spent in Greenwich wasn't that interesting to be honest. I think there are certain tourist attractions that can only be visited once before they become really boring and Greenwich is one of them. I'd like to go back for the market though. I've become something of a market maven, now that I have a guide book and all that.
Last piece of interesting: My Vince figurine has moved from the wall next to my desk to being what I call "Protector of the Music." Basically when my Zune is charging, Vince leans up against it. Since he has guitars on his trousers, I think it's appropriate. So that's it. If I don't update before Friday, I'll definitely update either Saturday or Sunday with news on the pilot. Until then, don't panic.

Top Tracks

Right, making up for my lack of updating by talking about how I have an uncanny ability to pick up on non-American music, even when I think they're American.
One of the perks of being in London is that I get to hear songs that I wouldn't have heard in the States, either because I don't listen to the radio or because they aren't available in the States. Take for instance my top four tracks at the moment. One of them hasn't officially been released and one of them was featured in (500) Days of Summmer, but the other two are fairly unique to the UK. And except for the track that was in the movie, they're all British artists :fake shock:
"Sweet Disposition" by The Temper Trap was featured in the film that I have a love/hate relationship (500) Days of Summer and when I first heard the song I thought it was a band doing a poor knock-off of vintage U2. Then I got to London and started listening to Radio 1 everyday and heard the song about once or twice a day and it started to grow on me. And continued to grow on me. Except I had no idea what the title of the song was until I looked up the soundtrack for (500) Days of Summer on Wikipedia. And it was at that point that I thought, "Aww hell. I really like this track quite a bit, why not download it?" It's not often that I download tracks that have grown on me, but the atmospheric quality of the song and the mushiness of the lyrics got to me and won me over. However I thought that I had found an American track. Not so much. Turns out the Temper Trap are Australian, which is basically knock-off British.
Another atmospheric track that didn't so much grow on me as seep into my brain and stay there is "Velvet" by the Big Pink. I got the title of the song and the band confused for a little bit, but can you blame me really? I don't think the album has gotten much exposure in the US, but if you're looking for a track that is both romantic and techno wrapped up in one, you need to listen to this song. As with the Temper Trap I thought the band was American, but they're actually a duo based in London. As Rob* would say it's a massive track.
So is Hot Chip's "One Life Stand." For awhile I couldn't figure out what it was they were singing, but I liked the track right off the bat and liked it even more when once I figured out what the chorus was. The track has a great beat and the lyrics are very clever. I don't have much else to say because I already knew the band was British (thanks NMTB!) and it's just a great song. Clever lyrics, great melody line, very danceable. For some reason I've really gotten into music that I can dance to, not that I ever dance, but I've really gotten to like that kind of music for some reason. Anywho, moving on.
The last track that I've discovered thanks to Radio 1 (seriously, sometimes they play good music and when they do it's really quite awesome) hasn't actually been released yet. That's the only problem with listening to the radio. They get tracks way ahead of the release date and so even though you'd like to have the song for your own, you can't because it hasn't actually been released yet. Such is the case with the Courteeners' "You Over Did It Doll." While I'm not wholly enthusiastic about the band, this track is really good in my opinion. The chorus is very catchy (even if I can't understand all of it) and as with the other tracks I've mentioned there's definitely a danceable beat in it, though as a hipster I can only bop my head to it. The video for it is good as well, though a bit odd at the end. It gets released on Monday and we all know I'm going to be downloading it first thing in the morning.
On a final note, I've discovered what sledge means. In the Kaiser Chiefs song "Everything is Average Nowadays" part of the lyrics for bridge talk about needing a "sledge and a hill in heavy weather." I've always been massively confused as to what a sledge is until Ricky Wilson tweeted about how he'd made a glass sledge table. And I looked at the really crappy picture he posted along with the tweet. And hence why I know what a sledge is: It's British for sled. Yay, I'm sad and pathetic, but the song makes more sense now, so it's worth it.

*Rob is a guy in my music radio class who is acting as assistant producer for the assessment. He can also pull off a pretty good American accent, which is impressive for a guy from Yorkshire. He was really pleased though that I thought he pulled it off well, what with me being American. It was cute in a way.

It's All A Bit Strange

Sad fact: Because of the Chris Moyles show I'm now following Ricky Wilson on Twitter. I'm also following Rick and Nick's new record label, which is less sad, but related. However the band has been acting really cute, or I should say Ricky has been acting really cute. First there's the NME story where he said "After a couple of months [off] we got bored,then I got really bored, then mind-numbingly bored and that's when you start thinking about the fact you want to get up and do something again." And then he said this on his Twitter feed: "I'm rediscovering blu-tack. Cheerful stuff." Granted I have to agree with him because blu-tack is what's holding up all of my wall decorations at the moment but still: Awww. Or at least that's how you react when you're a crazy person.
I also have something to confess. This whole London thing, while absolutely brilliant in many different ways, just seems kind of surreal in a way. When I'm in my room, or I'm doing something (eg class, day trips, etc.) I don't really think about how just kind of strange this whole experience is. I think it helps that I have familiar things around me (like my computer) but then again, I'm in London. I'm taking classes I would never get to take at home. I can go see a West End production for relatively really cheap and then go see a benefit concert at the Royal Albert Hall for really super cheap. It's just so strange to think about. Granted I spend most of my time not thinking about it, but every once in a while my mind drifts to the thought "I'm in London" and it all turns kind of strange. Though this is not to say that I'm complaining. I'm pretty much loving most of the minutes I'm here. I've got nearly nothing to complain about :cough:rail closures on the weekend:cough:. It's all just kind of...surreal to think about. Far less surreal when the wind is whipping about your face and making you all cold. But the thinking is weird.
The reason I'm bringing this up because at 10:20pm I can hear a track from Kate Nash's second album on XFM and I'll actually get to listen to it without any issue. And Ricky Wilson. Damn his eyes*.

*Newsbeat (my news source while I'm here) had a story on free music streaming sites and various hubbub and they started the story with Mika talking about how free streaming sites are the future. I freaked out a little bit and then realized his accent, in comparison to certain people, is kind of bland. Doesn't really change anything, but just an interesting observation.

Mmmm Cider

And my general lethargy and classes end my run at updating on a more regular basis. Huzzah.
Yesterday my Art and Society class went to St. Paul's Cathedral. The last time I was there (and yes, this another one of those places I've been too before, suck it up) I was a million times more in shape, wearing brown pumps and was accompanied by my sister and grandmother. Yesterday I proved to myself, yet again, how not in shape I am, was wearing a sensible pair of walking shoes, and was with my class. The biggest between difference though between yesterday and many years ago is that I didn't make it to the top of St. Paul's because I have a huge fear of heights and no one to peer pressure me to walk up 150 grated stairs in a narrow passage way to look over a barrier that is the only difference between me and me falling 85 metres to my untimely death. I also had a meeting for my music radio class to go to, so I could comfort my slightly bruised ego with that fact. Still I made it to the Stone Gallery (where you can see outside) and got a picture of the Pickle (Gherkin), so it wasn't all bad.
In other news my spring break is all but in the bag. First week of is break will be in Cardiff and Liverpool and my third week will be in Glasgow and Leeds. I still have to book the hotel for Leeds, but then my spring break will be action packed. Also I've kind of been accepted by the hipsters in my music radio class which meant I got to have a "pub lunch" today with them after a visit to this really cool production company. It's a bit odd to be honest, but most of them are nice enough and aren't so completely annoying that spending some time with them for the next couple of weeks won't be awful. And the show's going to be pretty awesome and a lot better prepared than any of my shows have ever been. I'm really hoping I'll be able to get a copy so I can post or at least let people listen to it in some way.
As for all my other classes, they're going well. I'm in love with my law class and I wish I was as enamoured with my marketing class, but I hate when stupid people bullshit, especially on a topic I'm only vaguely interested in. Art and Society is Art and Society. What can I say, my non-music radio classes just aren't as interesting as music radio at the moment. That and planning my spring break.
So that's it really. This weekend I'm going to Greenwich with the social programme. Next week is the pilot for music radio, which...I'm slightly ambivalent about my presenting skills when I have a teacher and a bunch of semi-pros watching me. I'm fine when no one's watching but I'm not so sure when many people are watching. But enough about that. Until next time, don't panic.

Soho and Oxford Street

When you visit a foreign country on your own there are a few absolutely necessary things that you need to have before embarking on your adventure: A really good street map and guide book. My parents, being very wise, made sure that I had both of those things well before I left for London and I'm very glad for it.
The day I had planned several weeks ago finally came to fruition today, though there were some slight revisions to the plan. Instead of going to Bar Italia for lunch I instead went to a cute little restaurant called Cafe Emm on Frith Street. I also added another store and ultimately excised dinner at the Square Pie Company at Selfridges. Anyway, onto the details.
After a leisurely morning (and another morning with the kitchen being clean) I finally headed out to Kenton Station because the TfL doesn't care about people who live outside of Zone 1. I made my way over to Tottenham Court Road and proceeded to wander around a bit trying to figure out which way was Soho Street. Once I found Soho Street (which I initially walked past because it was on the other side of the road) I easily made my way to Frith Street which was a welcome relief from my usual process of finding streets. I then had lunch at Cafe Emm which was delicious. Salmon fish cakes with a salad and then bread and butter pudding for desert. I even got two diet Cokes which was really nice. There were two servers and one kind of ignored me and the other one got me a second diet Coke, so you can guess which one I liked. I think the first one ignored because I'm rather young looking and therefore don't wield much power in people's opinions. Still I'd give the whole experience four stars out of five (which is exactly what I did at the Not For Tourists website.) Then it was off to Forbidden Planet.
There was a bit more wandering, which is par for the course, but not enough to frustrate. After the wandering I made it to Forbidden Planet and was immediately bowled over by how geeky it is. I mean the whole reason I wanted to go there was because of the geeky aspect, but the amount of memorabilia and the lower level with its massive amounts of graphic novels etc, it was just amazing. I got some Doctor Who pins, a set of Mighty Boosh figurines that included Vince and Naboo and two books. After some more wandering (which ended up being kind of unnecessary once I had done it) I made my way to Magma which, while very pretty to look at, was filled with things that I didn't need or even really want. Still both stores were very pretty to look at. I also went to Fopp where I got two books and a CD for the grand total of $26 (approximately) which I thought was very good, especially since one of the books was a hardback. And then there was more wandering.
My biggest complaint thus far is the like of proper signage in London. You can be walking along a street for a good five minutes before you actually know what the street is called. Considering what a huge tourist city London is, you'd think they'd do a better job of marking they're streets. Nonetheless, I finally made my way to Selfridges but by this point it was getting on 5pm and I'd been walking around London for the better part of four hours and was pretty much ready to call it quits. So after finding the Square Pie Company located in Selfridges' food hall, I caught a bus going towards Oxford Circus and, after the thought of maybe going to Spitalfields Market and eating in at the Square Pie there, decided to go home instead.
Finally, after a long but very successful day, I was back at Kenton station. However my throat has been bothering me to no end lately (please don't let me get sick) so I went to Sainsbury's and got tea (PG Tips in case you care), shortbread cookies, Digestives and sugar (which took me absolutely forever to find.) I then made my way back to the dorm and made myself a nice cuppa. It was a very nice day indeed.
Final note: Because the people in my radio group are crazy and because I'm crazy, I'm going to be presenting our show, which counts for 90% of our grade. The show is called "Matinee" and we will be playing show tunes. I initially volunteered to be music producer and somehow ended up with presenter and music producer. So yeah, this is going to be interesting.

An Adventure in Wondering

Oh my goodness I haven't updated in two days. Don't worry, I'm still alive.
So at the beginning of the week, for some reason only known to the people who schedule these things, I didn't have class. Due to the fact that I only have one class each day, that meant my entire Monday and Tuesday were open for anything. In light of this yesterday I went to Spitalfields Market. The last time I went there it was either a Saturday or a Sunday, I was wearing brown pumps and it was March/April (I'm so good at remembering the details aren't I.) Yesterday it was "raining"*, I was wearing sensible walking shoes and it was a Tuesday. I'm establishing these differences because going to a market in the middle of the week provides a very different experiment than going to a market on the weekend. So there's that. Then of course there's the fact that they've done a heck of a lot of renovations since I was last there.
After quite a lot of wondering (why don't the British like proper signage?) I walked past Spitalfields Market because I didn't recognize it. Once I realized my mistake, I entered Spitalfields and realized "My god, where did those large metal and concrete structures come from?" You see when I was there, about seven years ago, Spitalfields was a wide open space, no metal and concrete structures holding some shops and quite a lot of restaurants. There were a handful of people manning stalls, though nothing interesting enough to purchase. I actually ended up purchasing quite a lot from the permanent stores including my last mug of semester, a guide book to local markets, two posters, and a very expensive outfit. The highlight for me though was lunch. Spitalfields is where I had my first square pie, but since I'm planning on going to Selfridges and having a pie there, I had to find somewhere else to eat. One of the new permanent restaurants was a crepe shop and since I absolutely love crepes, I had a jerk chicken and cheese crepe. It was excellent. While I wish I had gone during the weekend when more people would have been there, it was nice to go back and be amazed at how much it's changed.
Today, after my Art and Society class, I ventured into Topshop for the first time. I bought I a pair of jeans that I'm going to be returning because they're far too small, but after about twenty minutes of wondering around the place I wanted to start tearing up all the clothing and telling the people around me not to give into the hipster culture, and yes it really is okay to spend your entire life not looking like an idiot wearing overly priced pieces of skimpy cloth. I knew the moment I walked into the place that I was not their target audience. But now I can say I've been to Topshop. Yay me.
I get to play expert tomorrow during my Music Radio class, though in all honesty I only made it through 20-ish minutes of the American breakfast show we had to listen to this week. After landing on the same commercial twice my impotent rage against American commercial radio reared its ugly head and I decided I'd listen to enough to be able to write a good review. Also, creepy guy in the class has added me as a friend on Facebook. I'm waiting until my nightly convo with Mum to get her opinion and then I'll decide what to do. Until next time, don't panic.

*It doesn't actually rain, rain in the UK. Sometimes you'll get a proper rain, but most of the time when it's "raining" it's just kind of misting or spitting. This can last for hours or for just 15 minutes. It's annoying, but when someone tells you, "Always have an umbrella with you" don't just nod your head and then forget about it. You never know when it's going to start to "rain."

My Weekend in the NORTH

This weekend I went to the NORTH. Not just the North. Or the north. I went to the NORTH. You see according to the signs that we (myself and all the other people in the Social Programme) passed on the M1, we weren't going anywhere specific. We were just going to the NORTH. The NORTH with its sheep and fields and more sheep. In actuality I spent the weekend in York and Haworth enjoying the sunshine, cold weather, and the massive number of really old buildings England has to offer. And the sheep. I definitely enjoyed the sheep.
The weekend started at 5:45 in the morning, panicking that our small group of travellers wouldn't make it from Harrow to Baker Street by 7:30am and then sleeping on a tour bus until 10am. We arrived in York, our first destination, in the early afternoon and proceeded to take a lovely tour of the city before heading off to lunch. The thing about this weekend is that I heard and kind of learned quiet a lot in a very short span of time, most of it whilst walking. Because of this, I don't actually remember that much. I remember where I went and what I saw, all of which was very, very beautiful and very, very old, but to really get this past weekend, you kind of have to see it. Which is why I took 105 photos and uploaded them to Flickr. What I'm trying to say is go look at the pictures (which aren't really in any particular order I might add) and then come back and read where I went. Looking at the pictures will be much more interesting, trust me.
Anywho, after lunch (and a little bit of shopping) my friend Amanda and I met with the rest of the group at York Minster, which is the second most important cathedral in all of England. We walked around the Minster looking at the usual things you look at in a church and then learned about the history of the cathedral by going down to the crypt. After that it was almost 5pm and the choir had started rehearsing. Listening to the choir for even a few minutes was absolutely amazing because it made me appreciate the structure of the cathedral and how absolutely impressive it is. Then we went to the gift shop and I got a mug with a time line of the Tudor reign on it. Oh yeah, big time dork.
After a harried night of trying to find somewhere to eat, the group went off to the NORTH (Fountains Abbey and Haworth) to look at the ruins of a massive abbey and the town where the Brontes were born and raised and, for the most part, died. Fountains Abbey was amazingly beautiful (and if you look at the pictures you'll see that), but the thing that sticks out in my mind, other than beauty of the entire place, was the amount of exercise I got. I walked up more hills and walked for a longer amount of time in that one day than I have in a very, very long time. It was definitely worth it because the views I got to see were amazing, but it was a lot of work.
After Fountains Abbey, we headed west to Haworth, where the Brontes lived, and got a 45 minute lunch break during which I had my second Yorkshire pudding. After lunch a small collection of went on a tour of the church and then headed up to the moors. Another steep climb later, we were at the top of the moors and...you could see forever. It was late-ish in the afternoon, but you could see the entire town and then some. Breathtakingly beautiful. Go look at the pictures. And it was at that point that my camera battery died and I wasn't allowed to take any more pictures.
Around 3:30pm we left for London and I finally got back to my room around 9pm.
In summary: We (the participants of the Social Programme) went NORTH, got really lucky with the weather, and saw some amazing sites and views. I don't have class tomorrow (as of 9:27pm) and so will be heading into central London to go to Spitalfields Market. If this changes, I won't tell you, but it will apparent by whatever I talk about in my next entry. This weekend I will be watching my first televised professional rugby game. Until next time, don't panic.

Yes, I'm From America

As an American studying in London, I've encountered three kind of odd things:

1. People always ask, "Are you American" as if my accent doesn't give it away instantly
2. Deciding how exact I can be when answering the question "So where in America are you from?" It's very hard to gauge how good a person's grasp of American geography is when you're meeting them for the first time. Hence why I'm from the East Coast, DC, and Virginia.
3. Immediately being considered an expert in all things American.

The last one is particularly difficult because I've spent the last five or so years learning as much as I can about British culture while spending very little to almost no time concerning myself with American culture. Sure I know about popular trends in a vague sense (thanks AV Club and EW!) but it's not as if I've made a study of these things. This is especially true of American radio, which I had been ignoring long before I became obsessed with British radio. Except now, at least in my music radio class, I'm expected to pretty close to an expert on American music radio. I actually admitted in class today that I don't listen to American radio any more because I think it's crap (which was very liberating let me tell you.) It will be interesting to see how that goes.
The geography bit is difficult as well, largely because deciding where I'm from can be difficult. For instance, I'll decide to say "I'm from DC" and the have to modify it to "the East Coast." Or I'll say "I'm from Virginia" and then cringe a little bit because no one from NoVa every says they're from Virginia and the person I'm talking to doesn't know what the heck I'm talking about anyway. Also, you'd think people would know where the largest and most powerful nation's capital is. I'm just saying, even radio people should know that. It's just sort of bizarre because American's are pinned as not knowing anything about geography, but it turns out lots of Europeans don't know anything about geography either. Or at least not simple American geography. Like knowing where its capital is.
Still, it's not that bad really. I'm sure that British exchange students get the same treatment when they're in American. Except for the accent thing because I'm fairly sure every American can identify a British accent. When you're a novelty, it's should be expected that you're going to be poked and prodded and generally considered the ultimate example of your nation or culture. It's just a bit difficult when you've been spending years trying to assimilate into the country and culture you're visiting.
Finally I'd just like to say this to the people in my music radio class who, before class insisted they aren't scenesters/hipsters, but then said they listen to NME radio: You may not consider yourself a hipster, but you are because you listen to NME radio and dress like you shop exclusively at second hand shops and Topshop. However what you really are, are closeted hypocrites. It's time to come out of the closet and just admit that you're a hypocrite. Trust me, it feels good.

Something Terribly Clever

So it turns out that I can only think in bullet points. So here are more bullet points.

• I knew where the radio 1 station is located in London. I've now forgotten, but if I walk past there again, I'll know what I'm walking past (and why there are photographers there.)
• British weather is even more temperamental than I remember. One minute it's blue skies and freezing cold the next it's grey and freezing cold. The freezing cold doesn't change.
• Thus far my favourite radio shows are Fearne Cotton and Nick Grimshaw, though it's not necessarily for the music. In fact it's mostly for the personalities.
• Pret a Manger forces me to eat vegetables that I wouldn't eat under normal circumstances. This is a good thing.
• Oxford Circus is way too tempting for someone who could easily turn into a shopaholic.
• I'm getting better and discerning mixed accents. For instance one of the module leaders for my Art and Society has a mix of Australian and London. Granted it took me a half hour to figure that out, but considering how most people can't even do it, I'd say I'm getting better.

I've got Music Radio all day tomorrow (10am to 5pm is all day) and Friday and then I leave really fecking early for York on Saturday. Bottom line: In likelihood there won't be any updates for awhile. I've got postcards to put up from the National Gallery (which I went to today for my Art and Society class, more on that next week) now. Don't panic.

RIAA for the Win

Today I had my first music law class and there was a great moment when the discussion had moved into illegal downloading (the original discussion was on copyrights, so it does make sense.) The professor, Kienda, began describing how back in ye olde days, wars could have started over one kingdom playing another kingdom's music (not strictly true, but amusing nonetheless) and how in modern times this would be like someone coming around your house and shooting you for illegally downloading some music. He then went on to say that the US isn't far from doing that. He proceeded to describe the enforcers of RIAA law and how much they look like SWAT guys. One of my other classmates asked if RIAA guys busting into your house isn't some sort of violation of civil liberties and when the professor said no, I was just sat there thinking "All of you have it so lucky. You have no defined methods of dealing with illegal downloaders." As I said to the young woman who was sat to behind me, they'll bust into your house, take your computer and then fine millions upon millions of dollars. If you're now wondering why this was such a great moment, it's because I could just sit there thinking "Yup, those are my guys. All hail America."
So yeah, classes are going well thus far. More info once I've been through all of them at least once.

Radio 1

I've been listening to Radio 1 (the main and biggest radio station the UK) pretty religiously since I got here. The reason for this is because a) I have to listen to the radio for one of my classes and figuring out what shows I like will be helpful and b) it's a British institution, like cheese and Monty Python. Thus far the music has been...not horrible? It's mainstream and despite some of my own musical tendencies, I'm far less pop and far more rock than Radio 1 is. However most of the DJs I've heard are really enjoyable to listen to, so the crap music (so much N-Dubz, far too much) is undermined by the pleasant DJs. Every once in a while they'll play a song that I actually like or at least don't find horribly offensive to my ears (like N-Dubz or Ke$ha.) I just (like 10 minutes ago) had a moment like that.
I've always assumed the minute I started listening to British radio I would just continually be hearing songs I love and artists that I love. Of course this isn't true, but for every time I hear N-Dubz (I really don't like them, can you tell) I'll hear Kasabian or a not crap song by an artist I don't really know that well. Such a moment happened toward the end of Scott Mills' show, when the guest DJ, Sarah Cox, played Mika. I almost never listen to American radio and when I do it's horrible, so it's nice to listen to British radio and find out that while a lot of it is not very good, some of it is. And sometimes they play my songs.

My Weekend in Not So Brief

I have finally been able to put up some posters on my wall. It turns out scotch tape doesn't work and the walls must be made of cement because I couldn't make push pins work either. Today though, in a fit of efficiency, I got Blu Tack and finally got my posters to stay up for longer than 2 minutes. I'm use to having an insane amount of colour in my room, so not having any for a week was absolutely miserable and I'm quite enjoying having the vibrant colours of my newly acquired poster. One says "Keep Calm and Carry On" which I got from the V&A Museum. I also got a poster of the cover for Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, which was acquired at the Beatles Coffee Shop near the St. John's Wood tube station. Of course I also put up my mini-poster from A Clockwork Orange. I've also put up some postcards on the pin board that the school provides, so I'm very slowly becoming more pleased with the appearance of my room. I also got a pillow case that's 100% cotton, which considering how everything else on my bed is a 50/50 blend of cotton and polyester, will be quite nice for my head. Now onto more interesting things.
Yesterday I spent the day in the city with a friend of my Mum's and got stay over at her house which was really nice. During the day though we went to Westminster Abbey which was really very beautiful. My only disappointment was that I couldn't take a picture of Handel's tomb marker inside the church, which would have been absolutely brilliant, but sadly no photography inside the church. The best part of the day though was that we took the bus everywhere and we sat on the top level so I got see parts of the city that I hadn't seen before. While the Underground is definitely faster than taking a bus, you don't get to see all the streets and houses and stores that you get to see when you're on a bus. It also helped that we were going along Regent and Oxford street which are the main shopping streets in London. So many big stores, so little time. After Westminster, we went back to her house where we preceded to watch the most recent episode of QI and episodes from the first series. It was actually really nice because I also got to call home and talk to everyone except the dogs (though I did tell Dad to say hi to them for me, hopefully he did that.)
This morning I had my glass of juice and nothing else (damn you stomach!). Marjie (my Mum's friend) finished knitting the hat she had started last night and then we headed out to Abbey Road which she lives really close to. She took some pictures of me crossing the street, which considering the weather came out okay. Then we walked back to St. John's Wood tube station where I got the poster I mentioned, a postcard to keep and a postcard I'm sending to my Mum, and a keychain of the submarine from the cover of Yellow Submarine (clever, I know.) Then began the long journey home.
As you may or may not know London is hosting the summer Olympics in 2012. Because of this various parts of what makes a city run are being renovated so that when even bigger groups of tourists come to London, they'll be impressed. This includes the Underground. So today the entire Metropolitan line (my line) and the northern bit of the Jubilee line (Marjie's main line) were closed for renovations. This will be an ongoing problem on the weekends, because for some reason London doesn't care about people who are outside of zone 1 (I'm in zone 4.) Today I got to see all the streets I manage to avoid by taking the Underground. I took about an hour and half to finally get back to Northwick Park which is where I am. Now I had music and found looking at the buildings very interesting but if I hadn't left around 1pm, or let's say I had left at like 2pm, I wouldn't have been back until 3:30 or 4pm and that's just ridiculous, especially considering how everything closes at 5pm on Sundays. Still, it was really lovely to see so much of the city that I will probably see again next weekend.
One last note: If you've ever seen the 5th Harry Potter movie, the night bus sequence, while fantastical, is not completely outside the realm of reality. Bus drivers are crazy. They drive incredibly fast, I don't know how they make the turns they do, I was constantly waiting for the bus to get into a horrible accident with the other cars on the road, and sides of the road are for other people. But then again, I think that's just how people drive here. Until next time, don't panic.

Equivalence Chart

Yesterday I went to the Victoria and Albert Museum. Along with tea, Digestives biscuits, pie, and cheese, the Victoria and Albert Museum is a tourist institution in London, which I somehow managed to miss the last time I was in London. I took a billion pictures at the museum, feeling a little guilty about taking said pictures but as there were no signs I guess it was alright. I also found out that Marks and Spencers closes at 7pm, which is a bit of a disappointment when you're expecting to get dinner from there, but I managed to get a sandwich, some milk and dark chocolate Digestives. All in all yesterday wasn't a complete bust and I got to talk to both my Mom and my sister.
Anyway, the point of this entry is that I've come up with an equivalence chart for some of the stores I've either been to or are planning on going to. What can I say, I've got a lot of free time on my hands and this is just the kind of thing I think about.

• Primark = Target
• Marks and Spencers = Macy's + a small grocery store
• Sainsbury = K-Mart
• Tesco = Any grocery store you've ever been to
• Asda = Walmart (they're owned by the same people, which is why they're the same)
• Pret a Manger = Starbucks (as in, they're every where)
• Starbucks = Starbucks (because Starbucks doesn't change from country to country)

Well that's it for me. I've got more orientation and a boat party to look forward to and I'll be doing something tomorrow. I don't know what, but something will happen. In a final note I finally got my Oyster card which is nice. Until next time, don't panic and carry on.

Ups and Downs

The bullet points are back people. The homesickness hasn't gone away, but I figure that you all deserve to know what's going on with me. So here are the highlights:

• As evidenced by my phone, I found St. Ann's. I went to St. George's, which is another shopping centre in the same area and while it doesn't have as many useful stores as St. Ann's, it's there and it's good to know how not useful it is.
• I added one more class to my roster, "Art and Society" which will give me the opportunity to see different locations and galleries in London. I figure that it will be edifying if nothing else.
• I have all of tomorrow free so I've come up with a small-ish list of places I want to go to that are in central London. One of the locations is a restaurant called Bar Italia which Pulp named a song after, hence the appeal. Pictures will be taken and posted on my Flickr photostream. Expect pictures of the Gherkin and various other things.
• I'd never admit this under normal circumstances, but I'm really glad I'm a member of PEO. I'm also really glad my Mom has a friend in London who she's still in touch with. These are all things for which I am currently very thankful for, though I think we all know that this too shall pass and eventually I'll be really glad I'm in London. Eventually.

Well that's it. I got a normal night's sleep last not which was good. I'm not sure when I'll update next, possibly after the weekend and once classes have started up. We shall see. Until then, don't panic.

They Warned Me About This, But I Didn't Listen

Way back, when I was still at UMW, the international office held a pre-departure orientation for everyone who was going to be studying abroad during the spring semester. It was pretty much required and also pretty much irrelevant to me. I spent the majority of the orientation either skimming through the handbook they gave us or working on a paper I had due the next day. The one thing that was new to me, but I disregarded at the time, was a chart that showed the up and downs of studying abroad. It was a graph that showed the emotional roller coaster you could expect to go through both going to the country of studying and coming back home. The reason I disregarded was because at that point I was super excited about travelling abroad and wasn't expecting any kind of culture shock or anything like that. For some reason I wasn't even expecting to be homesick.
One of the pros of getting here a week before classes start is that I get to work through my jet lag without having to worry about classes. The major con is that no one else seems to understand that concept. I had started feeling incredibly homesick before I went to bed, but was fairly determined to move past that and get some much needed sleep. I put in my ear plugs and fell asleep. Close to 2am some noise filtered through my earplugs and woke me up. After repeated attempts to get the party that was occurring across from my window to quiet down (which included being offered a can of beer which I did not accept) I did the only thing I could think of: call home. It was only 9:30pm at home so I assumed someone would be awake to answer the phone. Of course this was after crying so hard that I started hyperventilating and subsequently guilt-ing the people bellow me into quieting down. It cost me four pounds, but calling home was well worth the cost (and not nearly as expensive as I thought it would be.) By the time I got off the phone and listened to "Bolero" the party had quieted down enough that my earplugs were enough to keep out the rest of the noise. I went back to sleep around 3:30am, but at least I didn't have to be anywhere until noon.
Bottom line: Homesickness happens at the most inopportune times and crying really loudly can do wonders for making people feel guilty about the obscene amount of noise they are making.
In other less depressing news I got a phone, a duvet cover that fits and found the Marks and Spencers closest to me. I also met someone else from the States who's here on her own and who isn't much into parties so things are looking up. Also, I went to file a complaint about my shower working and it turns out that my entire block is being investigated. Yay. I just have to get through the rest of the week and the weekend and then hopefully things will quiet down at least during the week. I'll have more to say after Thursday in all likelihood, so until then.

Walking in the Wrong Direction is Fun!

When I got my first job I very insistently walked the wrong way because I was sure I knew what I was doing. I'm naturally a very stubborn person, so it should come as no surprise that today's adventure consisted mainly of me walking in the wrong way because I was so sure that I was going the right way and would eventual get to where I wanted to go. I've since looked at a map and discovered that, no, I really was going the wrong way. Much like with my first job I was walking in exactly the opposite direction. Go me.
Today's mission was to get a phone. I didn't really care about anything else, but I was going to get a phone. This meant going some place other than Sainsbury. I looked up St. Ann's Shopping Centre on google and proceeded to write down directions. I then decided that I knew what I was doing and ended up going in the opposite direction of St. Ann's. The entire time I was walking I was sure that eventually I would happen across the shopping centre, that I was going the right way. After a good 20 minutes of walking I gave up and headed back towards Sainsbury. This was around 2:40, having woken up at 1ish (yeah, don't get me started.) I had a lovely lunch of cottage pie and cooked carrot sticks after which I did some more shopping. I got a clock radio so I don't miss orientation tomorrow and some ibuprofen to take care of the shoulder pain one gets when one drags 40lbs of luggage around. I also got some Cheerios ("give those Os a go!") which I'm enjoying.
Finally, people need to stop questioning my signature. I know it doesn't look like a signature and definitely isn't the same as the one I've got on my licensce but a) it is a signature and b) the one on my driver's license is from five years ago. Signatures are allowed to evolve. So yeah, stop questioning the scribble...I mean signature.

Journey to a Foreign Land Pt. 2

After finally being let out of the plane I started getting really nervous. What if they didn't let me in? What if I was completely wrong about everything and I got thrown out of the country forever. I had a lovely long walk to think about all of this before I finally got to immigration where I confused the hell out of the guy in charge of me. See the course I'm taking doesn't officially end until June 18th. However that's about two weeks after the semester ends. My Mom, in her wisdom, decided that there was no point to me spending two weeks twiddling my thumbs in London (which is probably what I would've done.) This confused the man in immigration to no end. He did not understand at all. And because he didn't understand he gave me the stink eye, which wasn't helping anything because I was a nervous wreck. I was terrified that he wasn't going to let me through. Finally he said rather curtly "have you paid for everything" and I said yes and he stamped my passport and everything was fine. But for a few minutes there, I wasn't sure I would get through.
After immigration everything went swimmingly. However I was left with five hours with nothing to do in Paddington station. And Paddington station is not heated. And if there are lockers, I couldn't find them which meant I was carrying/dragging around all of my luggage every time I wanted to go somewhere. And I was cold. So I wandered around Paddington station for a good hour before mooching around various locations trying to warm up. I desperately wanted to call people but a) didn't (and still don't) have a phone and b) would have felt really weird calling my great uncle at 9am. However I did realize that pigeons are actually the dominate species, at least in London and the female announcer at Paddington station sounds eerily similar to Freema Agyeman aka Martha. I also learned how to be a hobo.
The Paddington station has a Hilton Hotel attached to it which is very convenient since Paddington has trains going to Heathrow airport. Unlike the most of the rest of Paddington station however, the Hilton is heated. So at 10am I decided I'd had enough of the cold and was going to go sit in the warmth of the Hilton. The amazing thing is, is that I got away with it for two hours even though I spent most of that time either reading about the commercialization of American radio or half asleep. The key to my success I believe was my luggage. I didn't look like the hobo I was, I looked like someone waiting for someone at the Hilton, with my luggage. Either that or the staff at the Hilton are use to people being hobos in their lobby. It was during this time that I re-realized that Employment is almost exactly 45 minutes long and that I hadn't taken my meds. So I headed to Starbucks, got my second hot chocolate of the day (though I didn't finish either) and some shortbread cookies and remedied the problem. I left around 12:50, learned that you have to pay to use the restrooms and discovered the waiting room. There's a heated waiting room near the ladies' in Paddington station. I could have spent five lovely hours in a warm room instead of sitting around acting like a cold hobo for most of that time. Around 1:15 I left the wonderful waiting room, got myself a pair of wool gloves (it's cold dammit) and left for Harrow. Everything went swimmingly until I realized my internet wasn't working. I did however go to the British equivalent of Wal-Mart (Sainsbury if you're wondering) and got lots of crap I couldn't have packed but are absolutely necessary. But now my internet is working and tomorrow I'm going to head back to Harrow-on-the-Hill and get myself a phone and other pretty things that I need like a sheet and a duvet cover. Right now, I'm going to relax and then go to sleep. In a bed. It will be bliss.

Journey to a Foreign Land Pt. 1

Right now my head's spinning (lack of proper food, lack of sleep, not taking my meds until very late in the day...who knows) but I'll persevere because there's so much to say. I'm in London people and it's real. An example: The guy who lives next to me (I know) said, after introducing himself "You're American?" Yeah people, this shits real.
I spent most of Friday either not feeling much of anything or feeling really nervous. By the time I got to the airport I was sort of just not accepting that any of what was happening was really happening. It was just something I was experiencing, but it wouldn't have any consequences. And then I got to the security line, which was ridiculously long and then...the metal detector. I haven't been on an airplane in years and so all these new rules and regulations plus my nerves completely tripped me up. I forgot to take off my watch and I didn't handle my computer correctly. But the best part was after taking of my watch the metal detector still went off. That's right ladies, if you're wearing an underwire there's a 50/50 chance it will be detected. So I got patted down after it was confirmed that the bra was the culprit, which wasn't that bad, just kind of bizarre. Still, not a great way to start a trip.
After a seemingly endless walk to get to my terminal I finally arrived with an hour to spare, so I decided to get some dinner. I arrived a half hour before boarding and then was herded in to my seat. I now understand what it feels like to be a chicken. Whilst being herded into my seat I got to hear a positively excellent cover of the Strokes "Last Night" and by excellent I mean horrifying. It was a smooth jazz version of the song. Once everyone was settled in and the pre-flight nonsense was done and we were up in the air one of the people who was sitting in my row disappeared which meant that me and the guy I was sitting next both had an extra seat to use (the guy on my other side didn't show up). This lead to an interesting game of "How many different equally uncomfortable positions can Nore arrange herself in, in an effort to sleep." I think I got about three hours of sleep total before my back just decided this wasn't happening. Around 5am GMT I was given the choice of juice, tea or coffee, and a granola bar or a muffin. I had orange juice and a muffin and tried my damnedest to go back to sleep after that. I didn't happen.
The plane landed at 6:40am GMT but we weren't let off the plane until about 7am.
In my next entry, the rest of today. Large parts of it were spent being cold.

No Bitchin' Just Op-eding

I'm deciding against bitching about the paper work that has suddenly appeared before me. I'm deciding against this because I think I've done enough complaining for now. I can complain to my sister. Instead I'm going to comment on a couple of news stories I have waiting to commented on. Up first the Kaiser Chiefs!
Nick from the Kaiser Chiefs has set up a record label. This is unsurprising if you know what Nick did between the demise of Parva (the first not as cool incarnation of the Kaiser Chiefs) and the Kaiser Chiefs. He just doesn't seem like the kind of guy who just sits and twiddles his thumbs (or actually enjoy some well deserved time off). My favourite part of the article is this though: "Kaiser Chiefs singer (and former art teacher) Ricky Wilson is also on board, and is designing a logo for the label." Mostly just the "former art teacher" bit. I'm unsurprised Ricky is involved.
I commented on a story related to the story I'm going to talk next on my radio show. Namely that Robert Zemeckis is looking to remake Yellow Submarine in 3-D. Now a cast assembled. It's a fairly interesting line up. You've got three Brits covering Paul, John, and Ringo and an American (Cary Elwes) playing George (who in my opinion probably has the hardest accent to fake). I've been against this project from the start (how do you remake such a trip fest?) but as much as I love Peter Serafinowicz as a comedian...it just doesn't feel right. I know the Beatles didn't play themselves in the original movie, but still. It doesn't feel right. Oh well, we'll see.
Finally, this list is the reason why I don't listen to American radio. Unless I absolutely have to (aka in the former-roomie's car).
I leave in two days. I doubt I'll be updating in that time, but you never know. Until then.
Edit: I found my hard drive. It was hiding under last year's calendar, not under my bed like I thought. Cheeky bugger.

Five Days to Go

I am decidedly less frazzled than the last time I updated. Admittedly a large number of my concerns have been taken care of (money) though I'm still waiting on that damn Oyster card. A new concern has arisen, unfortunately, but hopefully it will be taken care of soon enough. I've also been unable to locate my hard drive yet, but then again I haven't really been looking for it either. I'm sure once I start looking I'll find it.
One thing I have managed to do since I last updated is hyper-extend my left thumb. You don't realize until it's gone (or uncomfortable to use) how very, very useful and important a thumb is. I can't imagine not having a thumb. You can't hold things properly and typing, while not impossible, is a bit a annoying.
I should also mention that I'm completely obsessed with Chuck because I have nothing else to do and it has Jayne and Zachary Levi is kind of cute (even though it's quite clear that certain people are trying to straighten his hair, the idiots.) It's also a very fun show and much like the other show Josh Schwartz produces :cough:Gossip Girl:cough: highly addictive. Since I leave for London in five days (good god where did the time go) I plan on cramming in as many episodes as I can in between finding my hard drive and getting a planner. Hopefully it will keep my mind off the fact that I'm leaving for London in five days 0_0
One last thing: I have a new theory about why I keep seeing the same faces over and over again in British TV/film productions. Because the UK is only so big and only so many people go into TV/film, there are only so many people that can be hired for the number of shows and films that are produced in any given year. Taking into consideration that some actors make it in Hollywood, all that's left are the same two dozen or so actors in each area (and they very rarely over lap.) This is how you can get a cast that consist of actors who have been in Torchwood, Merlin, The Sarah Jane Smith Adventures and various mini-series. And why the same five people star in all of the country's comedies. Of course they come in waves (or generations if you wish) so a new wave will be coming along eventually. I just have this to say: Marc Warren can't be taken seriously as a good guy or a romantic interest by anyone who has seen Hogfather. It's impossible.
So that's all the typing I can do. Hopefully I'll get in at least one more entry before I embark on my six month adventure. But if I don't, I'll see you lot in London.

Can't Think, Too Worried

Since I currently have the attention span of small dog [squirrel!] and I really want to post something up in this here blog, I'm copying and pasting a review of "The Boy Who Knew Too Much" that was published in the Washington Post Tuesday that made me smile with happiness. I should point out that the Washington Post and I rarely agree on most things (movies, television, dvds, music, the meaning of life) so the fact that I agree with this review is quite something. Anyway, here it is for your enjoyment. I'm going to go freak out over the fact that I'm leaving for London in a week.

Without a hit single in the United States it's hard to make a big splash in pop music. But no pop album in 2009 sounded better, start to finish, without a true hit single, than Mika's "The Boy Who Knew Too Much," the follow-up to his 2007 debut, "Life in Cartoon Motion." With a sound that brings to mind some wild amalgamation of Rufus Wainwright, Elton John and Electric Six, Mika managed to be both out there and entirely accessible at once. The nonstop hooks and joyous beats pulled you in and the smart wordplay kept your attention throughout.

Mika is also a bit of a style hog. He channels his inner Kate Bush* on the dreamy "By the Time," visits campy torch territory with "Pick Up Off the Floor" and delivers his Broadway show tune best on "Toy Boy." Yes, it's all a bit over the top, but it's also magical. If Mika's music were simply pure pop pep, that would be enough. But each song tells a story, amuses, amazes and confidently makes its point.

"He's got looks that books take pages to tell/He's got a face to make you fall on your knees," the 26-year-old Londoner sings on "Blame It on the Girls," a bedazzling, boisterous track that somehow chastises ingrates and celebrates life all at once. The song is typical of Mika's fare: exuberant but also layered; candy-coated but also loaded with meaning. Few modern pop stars have achieved anything close.

-- Joe Heim

Recommended tracks

"We Are Golden," "Blue Eyes," "Blame It on the Girls"

Alright, I don't agree with "Blue Eyes," or the fact that there was no "one hit single" (there are many) but he got everything else right in my opinion

*Kate Bush via Imogean Heap, which is clear as glass if you've ever heard an Imogean Heap song and/or have looked at the Wikipedia article on this album.

I'm Freakin' Out Man

I am currently in the throes of "Oh dear god I'm leaving for a foreign country in a week"-style panicking. I spent Sunday making up lists of the things I need to pack and the things that I'll be buying once I'm in London. I've figured out how to get to my dorm from Heathrow and how to get to the orientation sight from my dorm. I'm currently worrying about money (surprise, surprise) and whether my parents (Mum) actually know what they're talking about when they say I can use by debit card like I normally do when I'm in London. I've got a knot in my stomach that comes and goes and for some reason people keep asking me if I'm packed and ready to go even though I'm not leaving for another week. I've applied for an Oyster card but haven't received any word as to whether my application has been approved and I'm starting to wonder whether there will be any cash points in Heathrow so I can pay for the train and bus or whether I should go to the bank and buy cash there. I also have the attention span of a small dog [squirrel!] and can't locate the external hard drive that holds all of my favourite things in the world.
However I will say this for myself: At least I have the lists and I'm doing a very good job of not exploding at people. I'm also pleased with myself for already figuring out how to get to and from places for the most part and the whole not exploding at people thing is also very good in my mind. I'm sure there will be more freaking out in the days to come, but for right now I've got everything I can have under control, under control. Let's just hope it stays that way.

And A Happy New Year

I was drunk last night, dear Mother;
I was drunk the night before.
But if you forgive me Mother,
I'll never get drunk anymore.

--- Tootie Smith (from Meet Me In St. Louis)

After watching other members of my family get drunk, I've hypothesized that when one is drunk one's greatest fear in life comes to the forefront (or at least it does with my family.) This is what I learned about myself:

• I'm quite jovial when drunk
• I'm more irrational than usual
• My greatest fear in life (based on my hypothesis) is death and not understanding the people around me (and that they are making fun of me)

Anyway, since I basically have sign post entries for every other major event in my life, I thought I'd continue that tradition by writing about getting proper drunk for the first time. I will say this however - I'm glad I did it at home and not college. At least at home you know for certain that people will make sure you haven't died in your sleep because for some unknown reason you've suddenly stopped breathing.

Best of...

Here are my list of favourite songs and albums from 2009. The one thing I realized from making this list is that I didn't listen to many whole albums and more individual songs (damn you Zune!) and that my taste in music has expanded considerably over the course of the year. Also, per usual, my list doesn't match up with any other list I've read this year save for the inclusion of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs in my top songs list. And Miike Snow and Franz Ferdinand. Everything else is just proof of how not indie I really am.

Top 15 Songs (In No Particular Order)

• Emasculate Me - The Cribs
• Don't Upset the Rhythm - The Noisettes
• Remedy - Little Boots
• Never Gonna Happen - Lily Allen
• Dr. John - Mika*
• Tigerlilly - La Roux
• French Navy - Camera Obscura
• Not the Only Person - The Rumble Strips
• Twilight Omens - Franz Ferdinand
• Animal - Miike Snow
• Dimestore Diamond - Gossip
• Zero - Yeah Yeah Yeahs
• The Golden Age - The Asteroids Galaxy Tour
• Seattle - BPA
• Morning Light - Ida Maria

Top 5 Albums (In a Kind of Order)**

1. Miike Snow - Miike Snow
2. The Boy Who Knew Too Much - Mika
3. It's Not Me, It's You - Lily Allen
4. Tonight - Franz Ferdinand
5. La Roux - La Roux

Honorable Mentions for Top Albums

• Fortress 'Round My Heart - Ida Maria
• Ignore the Ignorant - The Cribs
• Fruit - The Asteroids Galaxy Tour

Albums I Wish Had Been Better (Or That I Would Have Liked to Have Liked Better)

• Quicken the Heart - Maximo Park
• It's Frightening - White Rabbits
• Humbug - Arctic Monkeys
• Strict Joy - The Swell Season
• The Resistance - Muse

And finally an explanation for the album order: As with my choice for my favourite Mika song, I didn't want to be too obvious in picking my #1, so I went with the most consistently really good album. From there I ordered the albums according to a) how consistently good they were and b) how many tracks I consider to be above par. Hence why Franz Ferdinand comes after Lily Allen (the entire end of the album being crap as compared to the one or two tracks being not very good.) As mentioned in my foot note for this section, there are albums that I probably would have included if I had listened to them in their entirety :cough: Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Noisettes, Gossip:cough: and some I'm sure I would have included if they had been released in the US this year :cough:VV Brown, Little Boots:cough: So there's the logic for my top 5 albums. There is no logic for my top 15 songs because I basically just picked songs that I listened to a lot that were released in 2009.


*I picked this based on the fact that a) "We Are Golden" is too obvious and b) it's the second most listened to song according to Zune
**The problem with this category is that a lot of the albums I would like to included (I'm sure) haven't been released in the US. That and the fact that I didn't listen to many whole albums from 2009, just individual songs. I plan on emending that for some artists, but again I'm limited by what has and hasn't been released in the US.

Christmas Time is Here Again

I have acquired an irrational fear of the holidays. They always seemed to sneak up on me like a bad dream or crappy grades. One moment every thing's fine and then bam: awkward holiday meals where I'm left talking to relatives who have nothing to say to me and who I have nothing to say to, watching my parents get more and more obnoxious and feeling overly tired. This year, for whatever reason, the holidays haven't been that bad. My cousins are pleasant and talk to people other than themselves and while my parents remain obnoxious, the whole process doesn't seem nearly as taxing as it has in previous years. Of course the spectre of previous Christmas meals still looms, I feel optimistic about today's meal. I sincerely think it won't be as bad as Christmas' past. I also sincerely hope I'm not proven wrong, otherwise I may go back to strongly disliking all family gatherings, just on principle.
On a completely different note, I got some really excellent swag this year (even though I kind of knew about all of the DVDs and books that I received.) I got a lot of "practical" gifts (guide books, maps, UK-style chargers) but possibly the silliest gift was given to me by my sister. Every year she gets me something I didn't ask for and almost never need. I love her to death though because the gift is invariably linked to whatever I'm interested in (hence the bootleg Kaiser Chiefs DVD I still haven't watched). And since I have a really spiff camera, here's a picture of what Sophs got me:

I really do love her. Even if she gets me ridiculous articles of clothing. (And for those of you who are unsure, yes that is a shirt that says "We Are Golden" and is from the official Mika web site.)

2009: Favourite Moments in Chronological Order

This has been a fairly negative year for me. I wouldn't say it's been the worst year I've ever had (that one goes to 2004) but it wasn't exactly a happy-go-lucky/gosh isn't life wonderful year (that would be 2006). Despite the rather devestating event earlier this year, there have been a number of good moments which have made the year not really terrible. There have also been general trends that I'll mention through out this list. Yes, bullet points will be used. So here are the highlights from 2009:

• The acquirement of a pen-pal (even if it was fairly short lived) who finally got me to listen to Pulp
• Becoming closer friends with Heather and Ana after the break-up
• Discovering Ashes to Ashes and Life on Mars
• Becoming an unofficial member of the radio station elite, without even trying very hard
• Getting to see Franz Ferdinand for the first time and absolutely loving it
• Discovering music that lies just slightly outside of what I normally listen to and letting those discoveries lead me to even better discoveries
• Giving Mika a chance
• Getting into the University of Westminster for the spring semester
• Becoming more and more fabulous
• Watching "Bad Romance"
• This season of NMTB
• Getting into the practical module I wanted at the University of Westminster
• All the really great friends I made and solidified over the past year

So that's my favourite moments of 2009. Tomorrow I may or may not post my favourite songs/albums of the year. We shall see. In any event there will be something after the holidays and in the lead up to my leaving for London. Happy Christmas and a good New Year to you if I don't say something before then.

Lengthy Updates Are My Speciality

Well, Westminster let me back into their system, which was awfully nice of them. My ID card is going to be a bit scary, but I now know when my three classes meet, in what buildings, and that British syllabuses are called handbooks are equally boring to American syllabuses. So let's get with the descripting!
Music Radio
This class is the one that confuses me the most in terms of scheduling. We meet twice a week from 10am to 5pm but it's only listed for meeting for the first half of the semester. Which confuses me because I'm getting a full 15 credits for it (4 in the American system). But in terms of content I'm really glad I got into the class because it's going to teach me an invaluable skill: How to incorporate quizzes into my radio show. That and other technical stuff that will be really good to know once I graduate from free form radio to regular programmed radio. Also one of the books we're suppose to read for the course I've already read, so that's nice.
Law and the Music Market
Contracts! We meet once a week for two hours where in I will learn about intellectual property, copyrights and you, and contracts! I'm actually really quite excited about this class because...well because I am. The copyright and intellectual property stuff is actually very pertinent what with illegal downloading and mash-ups and all that good stuff. I don't care what anyone says, it's going to be interesting dammit. Even if I can't explain why.
Principles of Music Marketing
This is the class I'm least excited about largely because I have no plans for going into music marketing. Sure it will be interesting from an intellectual standpoint and in terms of transfer credits it will do quite nicely, but in terms of real life interest...not so much. So yeah.
Well those are my classes. Last night I slept with my older dog (Nikki) who, once she is in position, doesn't move. This was annoying because a) I wasn't expecting to sleep with her and so my door was open and b) meant it was very hard to adjust the number of covers I had over me when it got too hot. So I didn't sleep very well last night.
In other news Rage Against the Machine got the #1 Christmas single this year. The group won over a Simon Cowell creation, so that's nice. But on the other hand Rage Against the Machine aren't a very good band. Yes I'm all for taking down crappy pop acts that do a disservice to the entire genre, but people of the British Isles, think about who you've given this title to: An American metal band that very few people in America like anymore. If you're going to take down the system why not do it with a British band (Franz Ferdinand, the Cribs, etc) who are actually talented (Arctic Monkeys, La Roux, etc) not some crap American band (Rage Against the Machine.) Nonetheless, down with crap manufactured pop music, all hail crap American metal.
Umm...snow. Lot's of snow. 19 inches of snow. And I've been assigned to the morning orientation group which meets at 9:15am. However I get pastries so that's something. And snow. More snow than we've had in years and years and years. And I did really well this semester and brought my GPA up to almost a 3.0. I went to Williamsburg on Thursday and spent 2+hrs looking at wreaths and thinking "dear God I'm bored and cold and bored. Why did I say yes to do this again?" I think that covers everything. I've been having weird dreams, but that's not that bizarre in actuality. So yeah, that's everything. Until next time, don't panic.
Edit: Here's the AV Club's take on the whole British Christmas single. It's an excellent summary for anyone who's either never seen Love, Actually or just wants a more descriptive reason for why RATM's win is a big deal.

And You Won't Let Me In

Before I got locked out of everything at the University of Westminster site (for no reason as far as I can tell) I found out what classes I'm signed up for. I got into one of the practical modules I requested (Music Radio) which means that my portfolio must not have sucked as badly as I thought it did. I'm also taking a class in music marketing (eh) and music law (interesting). After finding this out I almost immediately got locked out which makes me unhappy because I'd really like to be able to login to things, but at least I know what classes I'm taking. And I can complain about not being able to login when I get there since I know the vital information (which classes I'm taking.)
There was something else I wanted to talk about, but now I can't remember what it was. In light of this fact, I'm going to take a nap. Ahh, it's good to be on winter break.

Slightly Related Items of Interest

To make up for a lack of posts, I'm doing double duty tonight. Here are two random, but somewhat related items from Youtube.
*



*I would just like to say that while I'm mostly a-political* and I do my best to keep this blog neutral** I wanted to post this video because it really brings home what it's like to be gay and not have the right to get married because of that fact. Again I seldom touch on this stuff because I don't feel it's my place to proselytize to my readers, but just think what it would be like if you had to ask over a 300 million people*** if you could get married to the person you love. :shrugs:
*I believe in a democratic system and all and I consider myself a liberal but...after eight years of a douche for president you're either going to be extremely active in politics or shun it all in my opinion
**Two of the closest friends I've had have been deeply conservative. They're good guys and I value my friends, so I had to learn pretty quick how to keep my mouth shut because losing friends over something you don't care about is stupid.
***According to Population Finder the estimated population in the US for 2008 was 304,059,724. The estimated of population of VA (where I am) is 7,769,089. So yeah.

Completely Off Topic

But still amusing to me. I found this tid bit of information at List Universe and was glad to know that what I'm hearing is real. So here's the tid bit:

Intrusive R and Linking R are pronunciations of the letter ‘r’ in English dialects that don’t generally pronounce a final ‘R’ (such as New Zealand English). For example, in these dialects, when saying “don’t go far” – the word “far” has a silent ‘r’ – but the ‘r’ is pronounced in the sentence “he is far away”. This linking ‘r’ smooths out the phrase. Intrusive ‘r’ is when an ‘r’ is added where one doesn’t exist at all – as in the case of “Africa or England” – this would be pronounced “Africar-or-England”.

This principle also applies to "saw" and "idea" but I find "saw" much more amusing because it sounds like they're saying "sawr" which isn't a word and therefore highly amusing. I think this is a strange hold over from the Norman conquests because they French are all about making everything sound really smooth. So yeah, that's my exam week interruption. I'm going to watch Mock the Week and Firefly, completely ignoring the fact that I have a music history exam I probably should be studying for. Until next time, don't panic, like me, and go "oooommmm."

Tired End of the Semester Rambling

I'm going to make something of an admission which, if you look at the entries over the past three months(ish) shouldn't come as much of a shock: This has been the most stressful semester of my college career. The odd thing is that it's been stressful not because of the classes I'm taking but because I've procrastinated on so much of the work I have to do for those classes. And I think the reason I procrastinated more this semester than in previous semesters is twofold but basically comes down to one thing: applying to study abroad. In the first half of the semester I procrastinated* because I was stressed about applying to Westminster. When I found out that I had gotten into Westminster I procrastinated because, as much as I knew I needed to do the work, I just didn't give a damn. Of course I'm a horrible procrastinator to begin with, but this semester has been truly appalling. As an example I finished my Mozart paper about an hour before it was due. For me, that's terrible. I don't like doing that because it causes me to lose sleep, but I just didn't care enough, so I put it off. But just thinking about this semester and looking at entries from the past few months the main theme seems to be stress and when I think about why I was stressed it largely had to do with putting off crap until the last possible second.
With the end of this semester less than a week away (four tests, one project presentation) it's been slowly dawning on me how strange next semester is going to be. And as I tried to explain to my sister it's not just because I'm going to be in a different country. Granted saying "I'm going to be in a different country" kind of covers all the bases, but it's little things that are going to be strange. Not doing my radio show, not having band or chorus at their normal hours. Not seeing a certain group of people every single day, not having breakfast as Seaco. Not playing the clarinet or having a private lesson every week. No more randomly running into friends on college walk or trying to not stare at every one who walks past me (Yes, I'm weird.) Just weird little things that, yes, do get covered by not being at Mary Wash, but whose I'm absences I will feel nonetheless. I've been banking on having some kind of breakdown as my departure date gets closer, but I keep thinking about all the things I'll miss but it's more of a mental exercise than me actually missing them. I guess that will come in time, but I wish I was acting a little more sad than I am right now. I suppose that will come with time as well.
I think either my sleep debt is finally catching up with me or I'm getting sick because I'm just so tired. Ridiculously tired. And if I am getting sick, I'm going to be well pissed because now is not the time to be getting sick. So let's hope it's just my sleep debt.

Big Ball of Stress

So this week has gone from mildly frustrating to "Oh my god, why does the world hate me so very, very much?" in the matter of about five hours. I haven't been updating on Twitter or Facebook because they only way I can describe my current state of mind is by making strangled noises of frustration and then curling up in the fetal position. I just want this week to go away and not come back ever, ever again. Of course all of this means that I've been listening to Mika non-stop since this morning because clearly listening to a strange amalgamation of techno/pop/glam is the best way to deal with the massive amounts of stress I'm under right now. Funny thing though is that my roommate said that I don't worry about anything. Oh how wrong she is about that. I worry, I just don't let people know (thanks Dad!) unless of course they read this blog. Then they get to hear about it all the freakin' time.
First major stresser this week is a paper I have due on Thursday in music history. One of the key resources we need for said paper has been checked out by a mysterious entity who is not in our class. There's a neat little summary on Google books and I can kind of glean some stuff from various reviews of the book, but seriously. I just want to glance over the real thing so I can accurately describe what all the hubbub is about. But no, no luck there. Thankfully it's a not a very long paper and there are other sources I can talk about in more depth, but...I just want the book to come back so I don't have to worry about it.
Second major stresser is that I've been waiting for weeks now to hear about boarding at Westminster. I get a neat little email this morning fro, the housing officer at Westminster saying that they haven't heard from me and that I missed the deadline. However if I can get my paperwork in by Friday all will be well. I didn't get an email. I don't have the paperwork. And the housing officer guy hasn't responded to the email I sent him this morning. Now I realize there's a four hour time difference, but seriously. I sent it at 10am EST which would be 2pm GMT. He had time to respond to my email, or at least in my mind he should have had time to respond to my email. And what if I don't hear from him soon? Will I not get a room because of some clerical error or whatever? Then what will I do? :makes gargled frustrated noise:
I also had a tiff with my mom last night over a power cord I ordered almost a month ago that got delayed. I try not to argue with my mom as much as possible because in her mind she is always right and I am always stupid. So in an effort to not have a fight about the layout of the Dell website (which is frustrating and stupid, like most tech websites) I just tried to move on. She wouldn't let it go, so I had to say, in a loud voice, "anyway" just to get her to let go. It's just...aaargh.
Then of course there was my jury last night. Thankfully I didn't almost cry this time, so in comparison to last year's jury, much better. However I'm very glad I won't be doing this again. Very, very, very, glad.
So that's it. I hate this week almost as much as it hates me and I have my last radio show on Wednesday. Thank god I already made up the play list otherwise the show wouldn't be happening. I'm now going to play solitaire and listen to Mika. Because that's how I roll.

Edit: Westminster rooming situation has righted itself, thank god. And my Mom decided to buy me a copy of the book I need for my paper. Which may or may not get to me in time to be useful. In which case, I have a book on Mozart's Requiem that I really don't need. So yeah, one less stressor is still a good thing.

The Day After Thankfullness

It's the day after Thanksgiving and since I spent most of yesterday wishing it would be today, I'm going to list what I'm thankful for this year. It's largely the same as last year, with a few minor changes.

• My music, without which I would have little reason to be sane
• British panel shows which keep me amused and teach me things I would not have known otherwise
• My sister, who's the only member of my family I can stand for longer than an hour
• Getting into Westminster, because it means so much to my future and my sanity
• My friends, who I will miss desperately when I'm over in London
• Facebook and Twitter, which will allow me to keep in touch with the friends I will be missing desperately while I'm over in London
• The radio station and all the people involved in the radio station, which will hopefully still be around and intact when I get back next fall

So those are the reasons I'm thankful for eating massive amounts of food. And now back to watching Bones.

Ridiculous Human Being Continued

Here's the transcript from the round I mentioned in my last entry. Enjoy. And keep in mind that Ryan mumbles a bit (and has a rather thick accent.)

Ricky: was it because a) there weren't enough tour buses to transport her hangers on, b) five of her dancers fell ill after sampling deep-fried Mars bars for the first time or c) her trademark ostrich feather cloak was impounded at Glasgow airport customs.

(Bill talks about the ridiculousness of having a trademark ostrich feather cloak)

Ryan: It's actually b, because although that sounds like the most ridiculous one, you know the deep-fried Mars bar, if it's a or c then she's just a ridiculous human being (goes on to explain why a and c are more ridiculous than b)

Ridiculous Human Being

Before I post what I'm going to post I need to explain the origin of one of my favourite phrases. "Ridiculous human being" comes from an episode of Never Mind the Buzzcocks, specifically the one Ricky Wilson hosted in series 18. For those of you who don't pay attention, NMTB is split up into four rounds, with three of the rounds being set in stone (one being the intros round, the second to last one being an ID parade of some sort and the last being next lines [I give you a line in a song, you give the line after it]). The first round of the show, however is up for grabs. In the episode that Mr. Wilson hosted the first round asked the panelists why a certain artist had to cancel a show or tour. Bill's team, which consisted of a DJ none of you have heard of (Colin Murray) and Ryan Jarman, where asked why Missy Elliot had to cancel a Glasgow show. The choices they were given are as follows: There weren't enough tour buses to hold her "massive entourage," one of her back-up dancers became sick after sampling a deep-fried Mars bar for the first time, or her ostrich feather cloak was impounded by customs*. While trying to figure out which answer was the correct one (it was the tour bus one) Ryan Jarman declared that if the answer had to do with the ostrich feather cloak, that would make Missy Elliot a ridiculous human being. So there, that's the origin of my favourite phrase to describe myself and most pop stars. Every time I say that phrase in my head I hear Ryan Jarman's voice. Anyway, onto the posting of things.
A friend of mine recently got into Mika's new album, much to my joy and happiness. And, like any sane person, the first song she really got into was "We Are Golden" (because that's what sane people do.) On her blog, when telling the world of her love of that song, she decided to embed a YouTube video of just the audio track because the actual video of the song was too fabulous for her. I wanted to point out that all of Mika's videos are fabulous, but decided against because I didn't want to explode her brain. However, I do feel the need to post the video for his new single before Thanksgiving break starts (aka before my last show) because I think it's the most ridiculous thing I've seen, save for the video for Bad Romance but really Lady Gaga is just her own category of ridiculous. So, in conclusion, Mika and Lady Gaga are both ridiculous human beings. As am I. Enjoy**.
Rain (with spiders!!!***)

*This entire section was done from memory which either means a) I've watched that episode way too many times or b) some of the information might be incorrect. I'm going to watch the epi. later and will tell you which it is.
**People need to tell him to stop dancing, or give him some proper choreography. My brain can't take much more, eventually it will explode. 0_0
***Oh "Vienna," you never fail to amuse me. Also, no spiders, just...watch the video.

I'm Becoming More Fabulous By the Day

Somewhere deep inside of me lives a three year old exhibitionist. Due to social norms and other things, that exhibitionist doesn't get out very much. However, when it grows up it wants to be Karen O. For now it will just have to revel in the glory of Lady Gaga's Bad Romance video. For it is spectacular. I'm not a huge fan of Lady Gaga's music, but I respect her outlandish fashion sensibilities and blatant referencing of the Mighty Boosh. That's it. I have another blog to update and will hopefully be getting to bed early so I can wake up early. We shall see. Until then, don't panic.

What? Okay I'll Update...

It started raining on Wednesday, which is my excuse for not updating for over a week. The rain and cold made me sad, and not much happened. Not a lot has happened in the past few days to really warrant an update. There was new Doctor Who, but mostly it just made me excited for the series two-part finale. Hurrah for crazy John Simm. I watched a lot of BBC/movie adaptations of Jane Austen novels (Emma, Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice.) Didn't nearly fall asleep during my radio show, but did have it on shuffle, which always makes me feel slightly guilty, but on the other hand I am essentially lazy so...yeah. Stephen Fry was on Bones which made me exceedingly happy, but then it was all dark and cold so the happiness didn't last for very long. Went out to dinner on Friday with some music major peoples which was fun and quite nummy. Bemoaned to Ana that I don't need a preview of British weather two months in advance, that I'll get use to it when I'm there. Saturday was Jane Austen day/complain to my sister about how frustrating my room mate can be at times. Sunday I worked on the analysis paper that was due today, mainly by transcribing into Finale the piano reduction from the adagio movement of Mozart's Concerto for Clarinet. I finally finished the entire transcription this morning, but somehow managed to finish the paper at a reasonable time last night. There was a pre-departure orientation for study abroad which was when I wrote a large chunk of my analysis paper because I know not to act like a dumb American and more about British culture than I really should. Thank you panel shows. Then there was DW which as I said before just made me excited for the Christmas/New Year's specials because I <3 crazy!John Simm. I also bought beer, some of which I plan on consuming tonight, something I've not done since I turned 21 (the buying part, not the consuming. I've consumed.) There's another analysis paper due next Monday but I'm far less concerned about that mainly because it's not due until Monday and I've already done the heavy lifting (Forte analysis). I also have a chorus concert this Sunday, but again less concerned with that because it's not until Sunday. Oh procrastination, what have you done to me? So that's it. I'll update when something happens.

Two More Things

Extra Credit Bullet Points:

• After watching "Love Today," and "Grace Kelly" two billion times (each) I've decided that Mika should give smeyes-ing* lessons to the next cycle of models on ANTM. It would ridiculous and therefore hilarious. And I'd die from squeeing so hard.
• I've made it my mission to have at least one video in my collection for each letter of the alphabet. Thus far I have videos for a, b, c, e, f, g h, i, k, l, m, n, p, s, t, u, v, w, and z (aka most of the them.) So if any of you, my loyal readers can come up with videos for the missing letters, that would much appreciated.

*smeyes - To smile with one's eyes, as coined by Tyra Banks on America's Next Top Model.

I Like Bullet Points

And men who dance around in their underwear.

• In effort to explain Mika to my music history teacher, here's what I came up with: David Bowie if he had only listened to ABBA. She said that was a disturbing thing to think about so I tried, in vain, to give a better description. Then Stephanie mentioned "Big Girls (You Are Beautiful)" and all hope was lost. Related Edit: My sister's description of Mika: Like Queen, but gayer. Oh how I love my sister.
• I will never eat Doritos again because of a weird phenomena of classical conditioning. Thanks 6th grade day trip to Philadelphia!
• My brain failed me on Wednesday. I'm still mad at it.
• Everything I know I learned from TV, music, or movies. And books. But mostly TV and movies.
• I've been so tired the past few days. I actually went to bed at 10pm last night. I'm still tired, but I just watched "We Are Golden" so that's given me enough energy to write.
• Off With Their Heads spontaneously reached Silver Listener badge-dom yesterday much to my surprise. I find this whole system amusing, but I'll try not to write about it too often in the future.
• When I grow up I want to be Karen O, or at least have her hair.
• Glitter is a wonderful thing.
• In music history yesterday we spent a large chunk of the class trying to pin point what makes something funny. We watched a Monty Python clip ("How Not To Be Seen") and Tristram Shandy was mentioned. Best music history class ever.

In a perfect world I would go to bed now. Sadly I have theory soon and then my second to last psych experiment, so no sleep anytime soon. Maybe later.

A Break in Analysis

The reason I like the Forte analysis system is the same reason I like pop music: It's succinct*. If a grouping of notes (a cell) aren't in the Forte chart, it doesn't exist as a cell. Unlike with late 18th/19th century music, there's no question as to what something is. If you can't find it in the chart, then you screwed up and need to re-do the math. With late 18th/19th century analysis there are about fifty different options for every chord. It could be an augmented 6th, it could be a seventh diminished, so on and so forth. I prefer to listening late 18th/19th century music, but if I had to choose between Forte analysis of a piece by Stravinsky and Roman numeral analysis of a piece by Chopin, I would pick Stravinsky in a heartbeat (in fact I'm sorely tempted to analyse this piece by Stravinsky that I played in high school, but that's way beside the point.) It's like if I had to choose between only listening to classical music or only listening to pop music. I would choose pop music because it's to the point, just like the Forte system. No hemming or hawing. It is what it is and that's why I like the Forte system of analysis.
And now, half an hour of solitaire and back to counting semi-tones.

*Obviously not all pop music is succinct. But really the longer songs in the pop catalogue are actually rock and therefore don't count. I'm looking at you Lyndard Skynard/Led Zepplin.