Hooray and Boo

Hooray: I finally feel like things fell into place for school this afternoon. I went to a meeting this morning for the freshers (freshmen) and met the various faculty in my department, and got a tour of the facilities. The faculty weren't very happy that I crashed the little party, but hey, it's their fault that they haven't communicated with me at all previous to that time. Then, I had a meeting where I discovered how to go about signing up for classes. One of the ones I have to do is a repeat of a class I had last year, but it should be okay. I have a documentary class that should be fun, and a couple of indie film classes that should be really insightful. I'm looking forward to classes starting next week.

Boo: The fact that Blogger is having all kinds of issues today. I'm not able to access the blogs at all today, and I'm not even sure that this will post. It's kind of frustrating to write something, with the possiblity that it might not even show up.

Editor's Note: This was actually posted yesterday, but due to problems with Blogger, never got posted. The BOO entry just went up ten-fold.

On beer and mad cow disease

Here's the bombed out church that I've been talking about. Aparently it really was bombed out, but not by the IRA as I had been imagining. This church was the victim of a bomb attack during WWII. Isn't it crazy to think that I'm seeing a church that was a victim of WWII? Well, it is for me. Unfortunately, this picture isn't the greatest. The church looks best at night when it's all lit up and has a mixture of beauty and horror to it. It's brilliant!

Here's a picture of my flatmate Sarah. She dragged me out of the flat on Monday to go to the Student Union and watch football for a while. It was interesting sitting on campus, drinking beer with 300+ other students while watching them cheer on the Arsenal football team. It's weird that there are like three pubs on campus, and that you can just drink anywhere. Students are often in the open area outside drinking a pint. After we left the SUB, we went to a club called the Walkabout. There was a band playing, who Saz told me was the Kaiser Chiefs. I was really excited, until I learned they were just covering the Kaiser Chiefs for a while. They were a good band, but the Kaiser Chiefs would have been better.

Craving a bit of home this afternoon, I went to McDonalds. We have one close to campus, as well as a Burger King. Sadly, no double-cheeseburger for $1. I was surprised how small my extra value meal was. I got a medium, but it was only small size. No wonder they're so skinny over here, and we're so fat in America. God bless America though, with our 32oz soft drinks. It was halfway through my burger though when the thought of mad cow disease popped into my head. I'm sure I'll be fine, but if I mysteriously die in a year...I blogged about it here.

Photolog

This entry will once again harken to the days when I had a short-lived photolog going. This first picture is from Paddington train station. This is the train I rode from Heathrow, and the same station I would catch the train to Plymouth in. According to my sister, this is where the brick post for the Harry Potter movies was shot, but I sure as hell didn't see any brick columns. This is also where Paddington Bear is from. I could have taken my picture with a statue, but I was tired and looked like crap at the moment. Sorry.

Here's the kinds of buildings that line the street where I live. I don't have an actual picture of my accommodation house, because people were giving me that "are you smoking crack" look. Almost all of the buildings have shops in the bottom, and housing above them. It's like old town Pocatello, where things where economical, if only in use of space.

Time change:

I forgot to say that Plymouth is 7 hours ahead of Idaho. So, add a seven to the time you see posted on my blog to figure out what time I really posted.

Unfortunately, 7 hours is killer when it comes to jet lag. I slept all night last night, but I'm still really tired. I slept until almost noon, and then realized it was only 5am my time. Now wonder I was still sleepy. I felt hungover all day, without ever drinking. Sarah really helped by offering me "a spot of tea" that worked wonders. Hopefully, this whole jet lag thing passes soon.

First post from the UK

Good golly Miss Molly! I can't believe I haven't posted anything on here for nearly a month! No wonder I can't keep any readers or relationships. I obviously have issues with committment.

Anyway, I'm writing from my dorm room in Plymouth, Devon, England. My dorm room resembles a slightly posh convent cell. A bed, nightstand, desk, sink, and closet is all it contains. The two suitcases on the floor are the best articles of decoration I've got going on right now. Oh. And because I have to complain about it...they gave me pink sheets. I bought a "welcome kit" that provided bedding and kitchen items, because it was easier than finding it myself. So, I open it last night to find they'd given me pinkish salmon (really ugly) sheets. The flat sheet is also this really weird sleeping bag type of thing that I dont understand. So, if anyone's in a magnanimous mood, please feel free to send me some nice, normal sheets. Twin size.

I'm going out with two of my flatmates tonight. Sarah and Sam. They're both British girls that are really nice. They took me on a quick tour of the shopping district today, including sights of the lovely grocery store (where I recognized hardly anything) to the pastys shop. That's pronounced "pass-tees" not "paste-ees". They're little meat pies, a la fancy Hot Pockets, not the tassled nipple covers that strippers use. I have two other flatmates, Tim and Ye. Tim's a quiet guy that apparently isn't around much. Ye's nice, but his english is really bad, so it's hard to talk to him.

Plymouth is a much bigger place than I had the impression it was. I was thinking it was comparable to Pocatello, but it's actually somewhere between Boise and SLC, ranging closer to SLC. It's also incredibly beautiful here. It's really green, with rolling hills, and reminds me a lot of Porland, Oregon. The architecture here is amazing too. There are some amazing churches, including a beautiful church ruin near my place that was rumored to have burned in a bombing. I'm still checking on that little rumor. Somehow though, the flamed ruins stoke the imagination and make a lovely impression on your mind. I'll get pics soon and post them.

Well, I should run. I'm supposed to go to the pub with Sarah and Sam in a bit and meet some people. I need to go find some dinner first.

If you'd like my mailing address, feel free to drop me a line by email and I'll send it to you. I'm not going to post it because you Americans are notorious for sending anthrax by post, and I don't need that while I'm here.

Jack the Ripper

Note: Ripping Christmas CDs in August can put you in a funky mood. A Jolly Christmas from Frank Sinatra has the best Jingle Bells ever.

Note: Finding CDs you haven't listened to in years is fun. That Luscious Jackson CD I'd gotten so bored with is now refreshing and fun. Whoo!

Note: PowerBook dvd drives get pretty warm when they're ripping cds all morning.

Running System Updates:

I can't believe it's been since Saturday that I last blogged. For some reason, I thought I'd posted something on Tuesday, but apparently didn't. I didn't even save anything as a draft. Hmmm....funny.

So, since it's been a while, and I don't have much time now, I'll post a quick update:

♥ I did end up going to my 10-year reunion on Saturday. It was actually much better than I thought it would be. It was interesting to see some of those people after so long, but was kind of odd to discover that I live in the same town as a number of them, and haven't seen them for 10 years. It was also good catching up with friends, especially Courtney and Chris.

♥ I have to move out of my apartment this weekend. I'm all stressed out with all that I have to do, but can't seem to find any motivation to take care of things. It's going to be a long weekend.

♥ I got an email today from UP saying that they never received my housing application (that I sent in twice now) and that I'll have to get an off-campus apartment when I arrive. Great. I arrive in the middle of a Sunday afternoon. What the hell am I going to do? (Currently having major second thoughts about the whole England thing, since there seems to be a new extreme problem every week.)

♥ The iPod and I are getting along marvelously. I will hopefully rip the last of my CDs onto my PowerBook this morning at work. I don't necessarily want to do it at work, but there's internet here so I don't have to type in all of the album info.

♥ I'm currently sipping on an incredible Mexican Mocha from The College Market coffee shop. MMMMMMmmmmmmmm....it's so darn tasty! It was on special today too.

Reunion

Today's my 10 year high school reunion. I'd put it out of my mind. Much like puberty, high school was not kind to me. I don't really want to go back and relive all of the joys of that time.

My old pal just called me to see if I was going. I don't want to. Part of me does. Yuck. I haven't accomplished much with my life since then. No significant other, no kids, no home, no real job, no degree, no money. Wow...my life's really lame when I put it into terms like that.

Goodbye Money...

hello new iPod Photo!

So, I broke down and got an iPod last night. I know, I know...it's about time. I've been whining about wanting one since I started this blog.

I had full intentions of ordering my iPod off of apple.com on Monday, but I visited Best Buy last night. They had a 30GB 1st Gen iPod Photo on clearance for $330, so I was interested in it. They found out that the only model they had was the display model, and were missing all of the cords, paperwork, software, etc. So, the manager offered me 10% off of a new 2nd Gen iPod. Since that's the same discount I would have gotten online, I went for it. I missed out on laser engraving, but that's okay. Like the old addage says, a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. At least, I hope that's the point of that old saying. It never really made sense to me.

Currently, I'm ripping all of my cds in a mad frenzy, so that I can get some serious tunage on my iPod this afternoon.

St. Teresa

It looks like I might be in St. Teresa hall this year at University of Plymouth. *keeping fingers crossed that I even get housing at UP*

Weird. How did they know St. Teresa is my favorite Joan Osbourne song?

St. Teresa hall is where most of the older students and international students live, and is closest to the activity center of the town. Sounds like a good fit for me.

Oh, and I thought I had a grasp on British English until I was applying for housing. There are all sorts of weird terms for housing contracts, so I got all confused. They also factor rent on a weekly basis, rather than a monthly one.

Husky Rescue

New Band of the Week: Husky Rescue

I just found these guys while I was goofing around with the RealPlayer. They're a "blissed out, swirling folk pop" act from Finland. They're kind of depressing, but uplifting at the same time. Kind of like the movie American Beauty, except that it's a purely aural experience.

I really like their song "Sweet Little Kitten," because it reminds me of MK.

Sunday Becomes Ecclectic

I'm in the process of ripping all of my CDs onto my laptop so that I have all of my music in England. It just isn't feasible to carry stacks of CDs around Europe with me, and I'm still in the consideration of an iPod.

While I've been ripping my CDs, I've realized I have fairly ecclectic taste. Here's a list of CDs I'm getting on the PowerBook today:

Beth Orton: Trailer Park
The Black Crowes: Greatest Hits 1990-1999
Radiohead: The Bends
Frank Sinatra: The Heart of the Matter (Love Songs Collection)
The Strokes: Is This It?
Frank Sinatra: His Great Performances
Starbucks Songs From the Open Road: Mile Marker 383
Lenny Kravitz: Circus
Avril Lavigne: Let Go (Gulp! I actually own this!)
Rage Against the Machine: The Battle of Los Angeles
Kenna: New Sacred Cow

Artist of the Day: Friday

In this last and final entry of "Artist of the Day", I'm giving public accolade to the creative mind of Sarina Brewer. Sarina is doing new work with taxidermy to create fantasy creatures.

Here is Brewer's beautiful Capricorn creation. I know that I've blogged about Brewer's work before, but it's just so good that I have to give it another plug. If any reader feels inclined, I'm still accepting gifts of either the capricorn or the griffin.

Wanted Poster

I went out with the boys last night, and while it was a lot of fun, there was definitely something missing. These three were missing. So, I've decided to put out a wanted poster. These three are wanted alive, and the reward for their capture is a life-long friendship.

Artist(s) O' the Day: Thursday

Today's featured artist is a collective of artists known as Digital Kitchen. Digital Kitchen has done some incredible work in television and film lately. I first discovered DK when I watched the intro to "Six Feet Under." DK created one of the most memorable intros to a television show I've ever seen. Then, as if to one up themselves, they created just as incredibly well thought out intros for "Kingdom Hospital" (yes, the show was horrible, but the intro is still amazing) and the intro for Fox's "House." DK has also done a number of creative commercials and other work. Recently, they created the incredible intro for the Tour de France coverage in the US.

I'm glad to see that DK as been nominated for two Emmys this year for their hard work. Congratulations!

To see the creative works of DK, please visit their website, and go to the section labeled "Work." It's all flash based, so I couldn't get pictures.

Artist of the Day: Wednesday

Today's featured artist is the talented Kristen Ulve. I first learned about Ulve last spring, when I saw one of her illustrations in Entertainment Weekly.

I'm assuming that Ulve uses Illustrator or another piece of graphic software to design her work. I love Ulve's hands that she gives her people, and the big eyes. It's been interesting, because I've seen copycats of her work springing up a lot lately.

So, congrats Kristen, for being artist of the day.

Artist O' the Day: Tuesday

Today's artist is someone I should have known about a few years ago, but just discovered recently, thanks to S. Matthew Barney, creator of the Cremaster Cycle movies, is a visionary genius/nutjob that's making some incredible movies.

Admittedly, I've only seen a 30 minute segment of Cremaster 3, but I'm amazed at his artistic filmwork. Also, I'm impressed that he shot Cremaster 3 on 24p DV three years ago, using the Sony CineAlta cameras *drool drool*. This was before Lucas and Rodriguez pushed the envelope by using 24p DV.

I must say that I'm incredibly disappointed with the Mass Communications department. How come none of the professors told me about Matthew Barney, especially since he was raised in Idaho? They didn't need to encourage me to create video as odd as Barney's, but a little nudge in that direction could have opened new worlds to me. Instead, I'm making comedies about men in kilts, while Barney is making escapist-fantasy works of art featuring guys in kilts.

"But wait!" you say. "Isn't this Blandella? Isn't it a celebration of mediocrity and banality in your life?" True, true. I just wish that the celebration wasn't quite so powerful at times.

Artist O' the Day

Banksy

British "art terrorist" known for his intricate graffiti-stencil work, and for hanging up false works of art in major museums.

Logan

I met this young man last night, when I was having frozen yogurt with his parents. Logan's daddy and I are good friends, and former roommates. It was nice meeting Logan, even though he could use some work on his conversational skills. Time should help with that though.

Why Do They Leave?

Oh, why do they leave?
Oh, why do they leave?
On the day that you needed them the most
Simple cards and things
Rose-colored sunsets, no flowers for me
Simple cards and things
Rose-colored sunsets, no flowers for me

Lover, why do you leave
Lover, why do you leave
On the day I want you for me?

Say, say it ain't so
That he will take you tomorrow
And I will sit here today (The worst)
Simple cards and things
Rose-colored sunsets, no flowers for me
Simple cards and things
Rose-colored sunsets, Curtains for me

Lover, why do you leave
Lover, why do you leave
On the day I want you to be
The one

"Why Do They Leave?" by Ryan Adams

T., M., and MK all left this morning to go back to California. It's incredible to me that I really only knew the three of them for a little over a month, but I feel like they occupy a huge place in my heart. They made me laugh, smile, dance, sing, and feel alive this summer. I can't thank them enough for all that they gave to me over the time I knew them...especially the love they showed me. They're all special people, and I care deeply for them.

It'll be weird this week, not having them around. No goodnight kisses from M and MK. No goodnight hug from T. Man, I miss them so much already. I'm sitting here in the coffee shop trying not to cry. It doesn't help that I'm listening to the "MK's Cry Time" disc of sad songs that I made for MK. It was supposed to help her cry, if she ever needed a good release of tears.

And suddenly, next June can't come fast enough.