Holy fuck, a popup advert just appeared on the "Post an Entry" page. Livejournal, you filthy whore!

Anywho... I've just handed in another critical commentary essay. The feedback from my last one said that I should focus more on analysing the passage rather than the text as a whole, and that I should expand my points, so instead of grasping at straws and writing everything about Paradise Lost that I could think of, I chose two points that were relevant to the passage I was writing about and developed them into proper explorations of the text, with references to a poem by Marvell and an article by some chick and lots of exciting academical things. This is the first time since the beginning of last year that I feel like I've actually put thought and effort into an essay.

Now I have to start a 3,000 word essay on Shakespeare and Renaissance Tragedy to be handed in next Friday. But after that, I'm free. Free to eat cake and complain about Christmas songs in November and wonder where I'm going to get money for presents.

A humorous thing:

My seminar tutor: (To the class) Thanks for all the feedback you gave me last week. Especially the piece of paper that just had a drawing on it...

Me: It was a balloon!

Tutor: Oh good. I was worried that it might have been someone other than you.

Me: I didn't have any criticism of your seminars, so I thought you'd appreciate a picture of a balloon instead...

Tutor: Yes, very good.

What amuses me most is that if anyone else had drawn it, he would have been worried. Perhaps he wouldn't have been sure how to react? Sometimes I get the feeling that everyone assumes I'm insane...

I'm not really in the mood for blogging, but I wanted to post something a little less emo to reassure people that I'm OK.

Having written about 1,400 words of my NaNoWriMo novel at the start of the month, the thing was pretty much abandoned for ten days or so. This was mostly because I was distracted by the amount of time I was spending with Matt, but also because I had an essay and a couple of peoples birthdays, and the novel slid away from me and didn't seem worth picking up since I was so far behind. However, in an attempt to lessen the sick feeling in my stomach that I was pretty sure was caused by anxiety, I started writing it again from the beginning a few days ago. The plot and the main character have been tweaked a little, but I'm finding it a lot easier to write this time around and I now have about 9,700 words. It's also made me feel more like myself again, probably because I've put so much of myself into the story.

The second good thing is that I got my critical commentary essay from my Epic in English module back today. I was pretty sure I hadn't done very well, but not only is my mark pretty decent, the feedback is really useful. I'm now feeling a lot more positive about the other critical commentary that I have to write by this Friday.

I feel like I've been run over by a train.
( Read more... )

Once again I have become rubbish at updating, so here's some stuff that's been happening:

( Stuuuuufffff )

National Novel Writing Month is November, and I've decided to have a go at it this year. For those who don't know what it is, the idea is to write a novel (50,000 words) in a month, starting on the 1st of November, and finishing on the 30th. You just start out writing and don't stop until you're finished, sacrificing quality in the interests of quantity.

I'm hoping this will kick start me into writing more often. I'm interested in how this will turn out, and whether I'll get anywhere near the 50,000 word mark.

This is the website, where you can create an account, sign up and add me as a buddy (if you so desire). It would be nice if someone else was going through this insanity alongside me.

What the hell have I just signed myself up for? o_O

I keep meaning to update with things, and then I don't, and it's got to the point where a proper update would either be too long or miss stuff out. So here's the abridged version: I have started uni, I've been doing social type stuff and I have a cold.

The rest of the update will be about Mystery Can.

I have been playing Mystery Can with Rob. Here is where the concept came from. A brief version of the rules for you: you buy seven cans, rip the labels off, swap cans with another person and open one can per day for seven days. You have to eat at least half of the contents of each can.

( Image heavy post under the cut )

• We miss him.
• Graham needs a boyfriend.
• Rhosyn hasn't met him yet.
• Saskia is coming back to England and Ken should, like, totally live with her.
• Isaac is back; clearly all the cool kids are doing it.
• Proper pubs.
• English accents.
• Wagamamas
• Watching the Discovery Channel with Fi at midnight.
• He hasn't met the Queen yet.
• ADVENTURE!
• He never got an Exeter hoodie, the pleb.
• ???
• PROFIT!!!

Right, so I moved back to Exeter two days ago and we've only just got internet - it's sooner than we expected to get it, but our router seems to be made of fail and the only way I've managed to get a connection is by Mega Long Ethernet Cable of Doom. I'm one level down from the router, you see. Anyone who actually wants to enter the house is gonna trip and die. *thumbs up*

So I'm moved in, I've filled my food cupboard, ordered some of the books for my course, just started getting used to all the walking that being a student in Exeter entails and I've seen a few people for the first time in months. I think this officially means that I'm back.

Also, if you like sex, drugs and creepy pictures in attics*, you should go watch Dorian Gray. Like, right now. Why are you still here?





*And Oscar Wilde.

I had a dream last night in which there was a zombie apocalypse and we only had two board games in the house so I had to go to Tesco for a massive shop. And this got me thinking about how unprepared I am for any kind of apocalypse. So, the plan is, when I eventually get a house of my own - a proper house with a mortgage and a basement - I'm going to make sure I'm prepared.

I have such an urge to draw this. ( Here's what I have planned. )

Right, so...
( Furmeet stuff )

Also: Well done to Kitt and Shirik for getting married and not accidentally summoning an elder God or something. You never know. Big official religious ceremony... lots of people around... you say the wrong words and BAM! Cthulhu.

Also also: Nicky, I have a Star Trek fan novel that I think you'd appreciate because it's about people from lots of species overcoming their differences and living in peace and harmony and having kids with each other. There's, like, a Klingon with two half-human sons (one of which seems to want to be Vulcan) and an Orion wife who talks to him via communicator when she wants to ask him a favour, just so that she can be sure he's agreeing because he loves and trusts her and not because of her pheromones. How adorable is that?

So it's like this. I know everyone gets pissed off when they see "I'm leaving (insert site name here)" journal posts, but I want to draw attention to my reason for leaving DeviantART because it's a moral issue rather than a whiny emo rant.

Someone I was watching on DeviantART posted this as their reason for leaving. I pretty much decided that I agreed with them and that there wasn't enough keeping me on the site.

I still have my FurAffinity and I set up a new LJ account for my art: smudge_art. If you want to keep up with everything I draw, I suggest following the LJ account. I'll also link to it here sometimes, when I've posted a lot of stuff or if I post something I'm really pleased with.

Now let's never mention this again.

The future is here! This is equal parts creepy and amazing and exciting. Watch this video.

God, I love science.

My cat likes Oreos. I twisted it and offered the half with the least filling stuck to it, and she helped me lick it. We bypassed the dunking stage in favour of cuddles.

Yksi and I went to see the Pyrates, who were performing as part of the Sidmouth Folk Festival. They were outside and there was a beer tent and a bunch of kids standing around, and it was a lot more fun than their inside gigs that we've been to. Oh, and we dressed as pirates:


( Yarr, the paintin' be belowdecks )

No I cannot grin without looking like a spazz.

Oh, and I've been watching series four of Stargate Atlantis. Highlights: Lorne sleepwalking (barefoot), every time Keller looks like she's about to say "shiny!", John taking Ronon to his Dad's funeral as if he was his boyfriend, Radek being a small tunnelling creature, Ronon and Teal'c being just like Kirk and Spock in the latest Star Trek movie (as in, there were moments when I thought they were going to fuck it out.)
IT'S LIKE A BIG GAY PARTY IN THE PEGASUS GALAXY goddamn, no wonder there's so much slashy fanfiction for this show. And on top of all the UST between the male characters, Keller and Teyla kept having adorable moments together, as did Keller and Sam. Outbreaks of lesbianism all over the place. In my mind.

OK, so firstly: I love my brother. He tried to pull my head off and I tickled him and he squealed like a girl. If the apocalypse comes and one of us is forced to kill the other in order to survive, the battle is going to be epic.

( Secondly, here are a couple of things I've watched recently. )

Laptop's fixed. There was a problem with one of the wires that inputs into the screen, which meant the laptop was working fine but the screen was dead, as I suspected. Had to pay £50; hopefully it won't happen again.

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS READ NO FURTHER IF THOU HASTN'T SEEN THE SIXTH HARRY POTTER FILM

( So, yeah. Spoilers. )

Not much going on at the moment. I spent my last few days in Exeter either staying up far too late with Yksi and Rhosyn or tidying and cleaning the house to the tune of Matt making lists and commenting on my mould cleaning technique. He seems to think that doing everything at the last minute is not a viable option. I've been employing the last-minute method for twenty years and it's worked out for me so far. How do you tell an obsessive-compulsive social retard that you know what you're fucking doing and his comments on how late you sleep in are not helpful?


Now that I'm home, my time has mostly been spent playing Rock Band and reading Harry Potter. I started again from The Philosophers Stone and loudly feigned surprise at the plot twists.

"He's a what?"

"She wants him to be on the Quidditch team? Oh, that's a relief!"

"Oh gosh, I never expected it to be Quirrel!"


And my laptop doesn't appear to be working, so I won't be on MSN. Phone me if you want to get in touch. I am a sad and lonely rat. And there's one song on Rock Band that I can't play on Hard. Woe is me.

Oh, and I've been watching that 5-part Torchwood series, but I'll comment on that when it's finished.

Where is my brother with those jelly babies?