Sunday...

should be a nice and relaxing day shouldn't? We'll most of it has been quite nice. I woke up quite early but stayed in bed for a while reading and listening to the radio. Then I got ready and went into town for a while to get some things for dinner. Then I discovered the super cleaning powers of baking soda ( I cooked some rice pudding yesterday and it was burned into the bottom of the pot, but baking soda got rid of everything!!!) and now I am just doing the laundry. On my way out of the laundry room I got yelled at by a guy who was trying to do his laundry after I had already started both... how was I suposed to know that he is showing up right when I got everything going??? I tried not to say anything because I was having a bad day Friday (with all the unorganised uni stuff for this week), but I am still a bit annoyed... oh well, I am going to finish the laundry and then have dinner and for dessert I will have some chocolate :)

Volver

went to the Picturehouse last night to watch Volver. A really good Spanish film... the Picturehouse newsletter describes it like this:

A brilliant synthesis of love story, melodrama, ghost story and thriller, VOLVER stands as a towering achievement even amongst Almodóvar’s superb canon of work. Calling VOLVER "the deepest return to my roots”, Almodóvar goes back to his birthplace, La Mancha, to tell the story of a group of women, all inspired by women from his own childhood. Three generations of women survive fire, insanity and even death by means of goodness, lies and boundless vitality. They are Raimunda (Cruz), married with a teenage daughter, Sole (Dueñas), her sister, and the mother of both (Maura), who died in a fire but who appears before Sole. Visually sumptuous, the performances are equally strong; Cruz delivers arguably her strongest showing yet.

I am not sure I can see the thriller part, but the rest I totally agree with. It was fantastic and not just because it was in Spanish. But I have to admit I was a little bit disappointed that she didn't cook the dead guy for that film crew...

went to see Transamerica at the Phoenix last night and it was a really good film. Very gentle and sometimes slow, but so good. Felicity Huffman (I think that's how you spell her name) was excellent as a man who is gender dysphoric and was just about to undergo gender assignment surgery when he finds out that there is a son he didn't know about who needs some rescuing. Anyway, I don't want to give anything away ... I enjoyed the film!

Neil and I

I think this is one of the few pictures that actually exists of Neil and I together... We took it on the "beach" in Seaton - I say "beach" because it was a rather pebbly beach


... my mom would have loved it with all those rocks. It was so nice and peaceful down there now that it is out of season...

Before we went back we tried our luck at one of the arcades and had some greasy food from a fish and chip shop which was quite nice!

Beginners Spanish...

yup I did sign up for that Spanish class today. My friend decided not to give up part of her weekends for it, but I thought now or never really... so I really hope that we will learn useful things, and not just grammar and stuff. I want to learn to speak Spanish! Anyway, after I signed up for the class I went to meet one of the tutors in the photography department to have a chat about the classes they offer there, and they sound quite interesting. The only thing is that I will need to have a 35mm SLR camera as they teach how to develop photos as well as all the rest which is quite cool. But I will have to wait until the beginning of next year for that (I'll be asking for a camera for christmas). But one extra class will be enough anyway at the moment.

not much been going on here... Friday night we went out with a few people from uni to the Old firehouse and it was quite fun. Saturday morning I went to the Open Morning at the College to sign up for a Spanish class in the evenings, but it was already booked. Now I think I will sign up for the Saturday one, it is only for 10 weeks, and then I can move on to the second level which is in the evenings again. I hope it all works out, I really want to get back into it. Today Neil came over to watch the F1 Grand Prix and then we had dinner together.

A Scanner Darkly

that's the title of the film we went to see yesterday. very interesting, and definitely looked cool, but I was slightly confused by it. This is what the Picturehouse programme said about it:

Based on legendary science-fiction author Philip K. Dick's own experiences, A SCANNER DARKLY tells the darkly comedic but deeply tragic tale of drug use in the modern world. America's futile war on drugs has become one and the same with its war on terror. Reluctant undercover cop Bob Arctor (Reeves) follows orders to start spying on his drug-addicted friends, Jim (Downey Jr), Ernie (Harrelson), Donna (Ryder) and Charles (Rory Cochrane). When he is directed to step up the surveillance on himself, he is launched on a paranoid journey into the absurd, where identities and loyalties are impossible to decode. A SCANNER DARKLY plays like a graphic novel come to life, with live-action photography overlaid with an advanced animation process. Faithful to his source material, Linklater has succeeded in creating a haunting version of America, seven years from now.

I did enjoy it, and it was sometimes quite scary, but there were a few things that Neil saw coming that I just didn't. But I don't want to give anything away...

I was just thinking that we have been members with the Picturehouse for about 6 months already. We have seen 17 films, each time saving £ 1.50, and I have used up my 2 free tickets, but I still think I have already got what I paid for the membership back. Being a member there has really paid off, but I also did say to Neil yesterday that I have never seen so many confusing films... oh well... I am rambling...

That's really all that's going on at the moment here... had my meeting with Brian and he said my literature review is too chatty and I have to make it sound more technical. I guess that's what rough drafts are there for. Now he wants me to send it off to Jonathan to see what kind of feedback he has to offer. I'll do it, but I don't really want to hear from anyone else that my writing is not good enough... I know that already!!!

Gartenzwerg

Not sure if I have put this little guy up on my blog before. At the flower and garden show I went to with my mom in Germany there was a little batch of garden full of them, but I thought this one was the funniest.

not much has been going on the last two days. Yesterday I was here most of the day and in the evening I visited with a friend who had just moved onto campus to see his new room. I have also been watching quite a lot of Gilmore Girls on DVD. I really love that show and this 4th season has been really good. I can't help it I love American TV shows.
Today I met Neil in the afternoon at Boston Tea Party for a coffee (me a Hazelnut steamer) and then we wandered around a bit. When we walked along the cathedral green we heard the strange noise and then a branch broke off one of the trees and crashed down. It just happened so quickly. Now I am doing the washing and watching more Gilmore Girls.

even more work getting done!

I did get more work done today, even though it was a Friday and I normally don't work too well on Fridays. Anyway I am quite happy with the work I have done, and I have emailed it off to my supervisor to have a look at before our next meeting on Tuesday. Also had lunch with a friend at uni whom I hadn't seen in a while and it was good to catch up. After that I did bits more work and had tea with another friend before going home to deal with insurance people for taking out money from my account for two wrong insurance quotes. Hopefully it is all solved now and I have been emailed my new policy for this coming academic year. It does feel a bit odd as a bunch of my friends have just today moved onto campus (to be resident tutors) and I am still where I am. I am not saying it isn't nice where I am and I like not having to deal with bills and addional costs, but it would be nice to be able to pop around in the evening for a chat or a cup of tea without having to worry about walking home by myself. Anyway... later Neil came over for dinner and then we went to a friend's house to play poker and finally after about 9-10 months of playing with them I actually won a nice amount :). I am sure it is just a stroke of luck and next time I will lose again, but it does feel good to come out a winner for a change!