Summer

A lot of people dislike Summer a bit, which I can understand. Walking in blistering heat in the middle of the afternoon and feeling disgusting is not pleasant, and particularly when you have dark hair which gets so ridiculously hot that if I sat on a roof I could be used as a solar panel.

However, all that aside, I love Summer. I also don't know if in English we capitalise seasons. Ah, according to Yahoo! Answers, we DO NOT.

So I love summer, because I love not having to wear layers and layers of clothing and still being cold, and I love the freedom of the summer holidays and I like the way that even when I'm in school (never again) the fact that it's warm outside seems to make lessons more relaxed.

And I love having ice lollies and ice-cream, and drinking Ribena out of a pint glass, and being barefoot in the garden, and the shade under the tree and how Clarence Park is suddenly full of really happy people. Like one time a few summers ago when there was one couple that were just asleep in the middle of a field for about an hour, although it's occuring to me that they may have been dead.

I love deciding which books are summery and which books aren't, which is why two summers ago I ended up reading 'Notes from a Small Island' and 'Small Island,' because they have the word 'Island' in the title, even though neither of them are particularly summery. And I like summer evenings when it's cooled down but you don't feel like sleeping because you've been lazy all day. Most of all I love not being entirely sure what day it is (it's Thursday 24th June 2010, I just checked) and it not really mattering what day it is because it's not like I have homework or anything to hand in next week.

So thank you Mr. Sun. I am glad the hay fever tablets are working.

(The person in the picture is definitely me. Nothing from Google. Just me, on a typical Thursday morning.)

Rhubarb

My exams are all done, which means that my life is far less stressful now, as whenever I am doing anything which could normally be seen as procrastinating or wasting time, there is genuinally nothing more productive I could be doing.

However, my family are involved in a conspiracy to make home as stressful as possible now exams are over. Today at lunch I poured half a pint of double cream all over the floor by mistake, which I thought would be the most dramatic part of the day, but I was wrong.

At dinner, my Granny and my Mum got into an argument about whether or not my Mum liked rhubarb (she doesn't, but my Granny said that she did, and it escalated.) It culminated with my Mum storming out into the garden and slamming the door, and my Grandad getting mildly angry with my Granny for the first time in at least 25 years.

Importantly, it was not about the rhubarb really but about Emily/Lorelai Gilmore-type tensions, many of which tend to involve food. There were so many vast helpings of tension cake that I jokingly asked if maybe I could go upstairs to start revising for first-year Uni exams, because it's never too early to start.

I have actually come upstairs to watch Doctor Who, which I missed due to the awkward mealtime. Not particularly looking forward to Sunday Lunch, unless I find some way of not being there.

Short Post

All I am saying about English is that I took a bit of a gamble which may have been a bad idea or a good one, and am hereafter changing my name to Risky McPardoner'sTale.

As for History, bring it on. I am equipped with the knowledge that Khrushchev had a burly physique.

Things I Have Learnt...

...From Drama

1. Never under any circumstances should anyone be named 'Abigail.' If your name is Abigail and for some reason you are reading my blog, I am sorry, this is an in-joke.

2. It's not the week before the performance unless at least half of the group has cried.

3. Tension cake is to be served at room temperature, and should be cut with great care and very sharp knives.

4. It's not tension cake if it has Twelfth Night quotes written on it, then it's just cake.

5. The Drama teachers' personalities should correspond as closely as possible with Lysistrata, Calonice and Lampito.

6. The most important parts of rehearsals are when people of very different heights are tied up and made to fight one another, and singing 'My Heart Will Go On' at inappropriate moments.

7. Flocking is the most important part of Drama ever. There is going to be a feature film, starring Jude Law as the Leader of the Flock.

8. The bell signalling the start of Drama is called a 'knell.' This is an official term.

9. You must always listen to each other physically.

10. 'Probably Nicola and the Occasional Room-mate' is an ideal name for a band.

11. There is no such thing as an ordinary assembly. There is only a Frantic Assembly.

12. The main character of Pool (No Water) is not called 'Paul O'Water.'

13. It is physically impossible to eat 45 Wispas in 24 hours, so don't even try.

14. "She's here!"

15. And lastly, but most importantly, Shakespeare had an earring. This is really the only fact that will be necessary.

Weddings and Stuff

My brother should attend every wedding ever. I think it's very important for someone other than the Bride and Groom to make their voice heard during the "I do"s. Because otherwise, frankly, it's a little dull to hear "Do you, Namie McNameName, take this woman, Namella Name-ingson, to be your lawful wedded wife?" without any occasional shout in the background.

However if they had actually been called that I suppose it would have been quite entertaining anyway.

My parents therefore spent the entire service going 'shhh Jack' while I tried very hard not to giggle. I was mentally urging him to shout during the "Does anyone know of any lawful impediment why this marriage cannot take place?" bit, but, alas, he didn't. However it is completely inevitable that at some wedding in the future he will interrupt at that point, and if I get married it could quite possibly be mine.

A good day was had by all I think. Except people kept coming up to me and asking me about revision, and my Mum was like "She's revising really well" and my Dad was like "No she's not, she's at a wedding." Oh well.

Upcoming

I know Russian History better than I thought I did, and I'm feeling OK about English and the Twelfth Night part of the Drama exam, however I have stared blankly at the Lysistrata practice questions and flicked through my script and drawn up a complete Lysistrata mental blank.

Today I got to the revision stage where I thought it might be productive to re-read The Pardoner's Tale, as it's quite short and I wouldn't have the time to necessarily re-read the others. Unfortunately it has to be read aloud, and sounds pretty ridiculous. That was a fun and highly unecessary half hour.

I'm going to a wedding on Friday. Not much can be said about that other than it will be interesting. This is the third wedding I'll have been to in my life and they have all been a little bit bizarre and unusual. The lesbian wedding my family was invited to but couldn't attend as it was in Canada and we had work/ school was actually the most normal.

It is amazing the number of TV shows I am suddenly really interested in now that I'm on Study Leave. I didn't go to bed until really late last night because I was watching Child of our Time on iplayer.

Also, it is the FIRST day of Summer and it was so cold in the house today I wore a jumper and a hoodie.