Home At Last!

So after 3 months at Uni, I'm home for Christmas!!

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!

I'm even more excited this year, because I now have all the presents I need to get (I hope). Now to finish off the cards I need to send to people and then I'm all set apart from helping my parents with the final preps.

We ended up with a purple Christmas tree this year, thanks to my Mum and Dad - they showed me on skype whilst I was still at Uni, and I got the full blast of purple awesomeness when I got home last Friday. :3

By the way, sorry I haven't been posting in my blog recently - I've just been so busy with stuff! The book review will be finished by Christmas (hopefully), and I have a huge surprise in the works!

....Oh, you want me to tell you now? Are you sure?

......you sure you can't wait?


Oh alright.


I'm gonna be doing a vlog soon! AND I'm going to try and post it on YouTube!!

Scary or what? :P

I'll be filming it all on my iPhone and uploading them when I get access to a computer. I'll be posting the links on both my Pink, Purple and Dinky Facebook group and also my normal wall so that no-one misses it X3 I should be posting it on twitter too, so keep a lookout for it :P
The format of the videos will be blog-like, so you may find it's a sort of shortened version of the blog posts, or indeed with more added to them. Not forgetting the notes-to-self of course :)

Speaking of which...

Notes-to-self:

• Must bake more cake
• Finish icing the Christmas cakes
• Post photos of cake on next blog post
• Make first vlog (and try not to fail on it)
• Practise for Christingles and Christmas Day services at church
• Make sure I spelt "practise" correctly
• Get excited for Christmas!!!!!

Oh, and if I don't get to post anything blog/vlog-like beforehand, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all!

I'm so scared now. Letting myself loose on YouTube, possibly with a mixed reception.

Well, here goes :P

50th Post!!

Woo! 50th Post!

Not that I have a lot to say, of course. After days on placement and a lot of essays to write, it all gets to your mind :P

I discovered a few shops in York over the past few days. Not that they're new, I'm just not really that observant these days! XD I discovered a lovely cupcakery (yes, that's a word, and it's awesome) and a wonderful music shop called Red Cow Music (it's on Goodramgate for those in York, near Aldwalk [Spelling. Ugh]). One of the lovely guys from the music shop very kindly informed me that Ukuleles (sort of mini-guitars[ish]) are gradually replacing recorders in primary schools around York, and may be rolled out to the whole country soon, if not already! Sounds brilliant to me!

Plus, I found a purple one. *insert Christmas list plug here*

On another note, I plan to bake more cakes of sorts soon. Will post the pics as soon as possible :) I did bake some since my last post, but I can't really be bothered to load them up right now, so I'll do some sort of mini-baking-montage next post :3

Oh! Nearly forgot! I'm hoping to do some vlogs soon since I got good responses for the intro video from the lovely peeps in the facebook group! What do you think? If you haven't joined the facebook group yet, please do :)

Notes-to-self:

• Cake is awesome :3
• I now have a to-do list, so I can do all my work within the next few days if I really push it
• ....but will I?....
• I have a new purple hat
• Put "Purple Ukulele" on my Christmas list
• Eat Day 1 of advent calendar :3 (I bought my own, I couldn't resist :P)
• Get Christmas presents. I may be a student but that's no excuse.

A Tiring (But Incredibly Fun) Week...

Blimey! It seems like ages since I last wrote in this thing!

I've spent a week doing school placement for my course at uni. I won't mention the school in question, but what I can tell you is that the kids (well, most of them :P) are fantastic, and so are the teachers! I've been with the year 5/6 children, so some of them will be heading off to secondary school next September! Scary stuff - I remember when I started secondary school for the first time. It seems like yesterday, but I have to keep reminding myself that it was actually 8 years ago!!

Sorry that the book review hasn't been finished yet - as I've just pointed out, I have been VERY very busy and I'm absolutely exhausted. All you teachers out there, how do you do it??!!?? You are officially amazing! :D I've still got to write up some more of my notes and file them for easy access, but that can wait for a bit while I write this :P

By the way, the page for the blog was created today! Just look up Pink, Purple and Dinky - The Official Group in the facebook search bar, and you should see a little mug icon with a small heart next to it - it's an open group so you can join it and keep up-to-date with what's happening :) But I've said it before and I'll say it again...

NO FLAMES PLEASE!!!
Or, in the brilliant words of someone on YouTube, I'll use the flames to bake cookies - and you won't get any. :3

I'm really missing everyone back in Nottingham. On the plus side, my parents are coming up next Saturday (YEEEESSSS!!!!! :D), but it doesn't stop me from assessing how much money I have to see if I can haul everyone I know up to York on a coach or two. And everyone from the music group at St. Mark's - get those guitars, pianos and drums up here!! Let's go busking! :D

My notes-to-self this week....

• Always look both ways before crossing the road to prevent sudden sprinting
• Year 3/4 tend to work faster than Year 5/6
• "Dancing in the Moonlight" is a brilliant track for little spontaneous dances
• Jesus Culture, Jeremy Liddle and Bethel Church are brilliant musicians
• St. Mark's Church's band should make a CD
• And so should St. Mike's
• Brushing up on maths won't hurt me in the slightest, but door frames might...(ouch...)

Now for chocolate and sleep. Hey, I earned it! :3

I'll post again soon! :)

Live and Thinking (Take 2)...

So here's another post where I write about stuff that randomly floats into my head whilst I type. You lucky people! :)

So to start with, in case you were wondering, I think I set the pageviews target a little high! There was no way I would've been able to get 500 pageviews in a week - I could probably get 700 in a month though, that's a much more realistic target :) So far this month I have a whopping (for me anyway) 634 pageviews, which increases while you're reading this! :D

I've decided I'll set up the Facebook group once I hit 2000 pageviews, which is in 50(ish) views' time! Although it will probably be up and running more around the time of 2050 pageviews as I am very busy with Uni work! The group will be a place where you can discuss the posts and suggest any reviews you might want me to do (sensible please!) - although again, please remember that I am a very busy student so I may not be able to do everyone's requests!

Speaking of Facebook, I've noticed I've been getting some friend requests from people I don't know who I can only assume have found me thanks to my blog - I'm one of the picky people who only really 'friend's people I know in real life, so if you want to get in touch about my blog then the Facebook group is what you'll be wanting to join. I'll put more info about the group on my next blog post :3
Feel free to follow my twitter though - my twitter name is @Katylizzie1804 - but again, unless I suddenly get a surge of pageviews and become an Internet hit, I don't update it every hour, let's just put it that way :P

Wow. Looks like I've had that floating around for a while, I've written tons!

Oh! I nearly forgot to mention - the book review is unfortunately delayed AGAIN, but rest assured I am ensuring I've got all the right words for the post so that I can recommend it properly to people :3

Erm.... Oh yeah! My throat and general well-being is a lot better than when I last wrote. I still have one of the most annoying coughs in the world, but I have effective medicine, which means it should be gone within the next few days - much to the inevitable relief of my flatmates and coursemates whom I must have driven crazy with me being ill and all!

Notes-to-self and other exploits this week include...

• I went to a bonfire party on Saturday with people from York Vineyard - some of the best fireworks I've seen in a while!
• St. Michael-Le-Belfry is still awesome
• Cars can drive quite fast through York's narrow streets at night
• Staying up until 3am writing the final part of an essay is not a good idea
• Skyfall is quite possibly one of the best Bond films EVER

Hmm. I like these "notes-to-self", I think I might just keep them in my blogs! Whenever I think of one, I'll note it down and let you all know, because some of them tend to make people laugh - you might enjoy them, I don't know :P

Anyways, gotta go now. Hopefully I'll get enough views to make a little group.... :3

Recovery

As I put a couple of posts ago, I haven't been too well recently. There's a rather nasty bug going around, and not just in York - I heard from my parents it's affecting Nottingham too, so I can only assume that other areas of the UK are coughing and spluttering as well. If you're reading this and you have this, a similar illness or any ailment at all, then all the best for a speedy recovery :)

As for me, I couldn't get to sleep until 2am this morning because I kept coughing - eventually my eyes just dropped and my body went into re-charge (it does this after I've chundered too - again, sorry if you've just eaten). If it hadn't been for my 8 alarms this morning, I don't think I would've been able to get up in time for the one and only seminar I had today!!

Mind you, all this is nothing compared to what America's going through at the moment. As most of you will know, Hurricane(/Storm) Sandy hit the east coast of America on Monday after smashing its way through the Caribbean. The worst part of this is that at the time of me writing this, more than 80 people have died in total. I won't go into too much detail about the event itself, as again, most of you will have heard about this.

I send all my prayers and hugs over to those in America affected by the Hurricane, and of course, the victims' families and friends. I also hope that the Caribbean, the east coast and all its inhabitants experience a quick recovery from this horrible event. I wouldn't know how tough it is being there right now, but keep praying - you can get through this!

*more hugs*

Music Review: Prefontaine

Hi Peeps! Sorry I'm late posting this, had a rather busy day :)

So this is my first ever review on my blog! *woop woop* It's a music review (hence the title), but if you're looking for the chart stuff, then you're in the wrong place - although the band I'm about to introduce to you I reckon has a huge chance of getting in the charts! So guys, I'm gonna give it my best shot!

Prefontaine is a 4-piece (sometimes five if you count the practise sessions) band from Nottingham, first formed in 2006. The main band members are Gary Barwell, Craig Barwell, Jamie Varley and Nick Blagden.

Their songs are an exciting mix of indie, rock and pop music which are excellently displayed in their songs, all of which are hand-written, save for the covers (though even they sound like the originals). They've played 3 gigs of note, the last of which was in 2009 at The Running Horse (in Nottingham), supporting The Saboteurs. More recently, however, they've begun to perform some practise sessions together - and even better, they're available to listen to on soundcloud (all links will be at the bottom of the review)!

The originality of their hand-written songs is clearly evident in their music, writing about past experiences and basing some of their songs around their home turf. The catchy choruses are sneakily designed to stay in your head - fans of the increasingly popular chain game "Sound Grenade" will surely revel in these tunes!
I have to say, I do have a few favourites of the hand-written kind. I'll be providing loads of links at the bottom of the review to some of their stuff, but four particular songs you need to look out for are Panic Attack, Someone Else's Shoes, Chips and Batterbits & Runaround Girl. These particular songs really stand out for me - while the others are wonderfully original as well, these have a particular flair, not only that they are based on real events, but because they are so easy to listen to. Step aside, dubstep! There are things in this world which suit our ears better, thanks!

Now, as this band are really good (and very modest), you would imagine that their music would be available for download. Not yet, peeps - one of the members told me they may need to finesse their tunes a little more and professionally record the music. I personally don't think they need finessing to be honest, but studio recording may help - so we'll have to wait a little longer for the green light to download.

If you've just come fresh from the mad world of chart music, pop, r'n'b and the like, this style may take a little getting used to. But once you've listened to their takes on The Beatles (Lady Madonna), Coldplay (Yellow), Chris Isaac (Wicked Game) and Bryan Adams (When You're Gone), not forgetting the aforementioned countless songs they themselves have produced, you'll soon realise that you're addicted to their superbly Nottingham style!

A couple of well-known bands and musicians have come out of Nottingham, such as Dog Is Dead and Jake Bugg. I believe that Prefontaine has a fighting chance of getting up there with these artists, and I'm looking forward to hearing when I can get hold of any gig tickets!

So, here's the first stats:

Band: Prefontaine
Current Status: Active
Rating: 4/5 (5/5 once the studio recordings are finished!)

Don't forget to have a look at some of their stuff too!

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Prefontainetheband
Twitter: @PrefontaineUK
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/prefontainetheband
Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/PrefontaineMusic/featured
Soundcloud feed: http://soundcloud.com/prefontaine-uk

And don't forget to like/comment/share/retweet on facebook/twitter/blogger too - let me know what you think!

Hope I did ok, guys! Happy Listening!

So here's how my week went....

My week went pretty good actually :)

My sister and my brother-in-law came up to York on Wednesday and Thursday to have a little look around the place, and they even got to meet my flatmates! I had lunch with them on the Wednesday and a McFlurry ((c) McDonalds, please don't sue me!!) with them on Thursday. I've had some good lectures/seminars/sitting-in-and-taking-notes-sessions, and it's all been quite good. There's just been one small problem.

I'm ill.

AGAIN.

Cough, cold, sore throat, sniffles, the lot (apart from chundering - sorry to those who were just having their dinner). I couldn't talk properly this morning because my nose and throat were that painful, but thankfully I got my voice back ready for the afternoon seminar (which I very nearly nodded off in. If the lecturer is reading this, sorry)!

I've nearly finished the first review since I finally got around to doing it, and the first review will be....the music review! The book review will be up as soon as I've finished the book, which isn't far away at all (promise!!). So keep reading the stuff as the music review will probably be within the next post or two - I won't reveal the name of the band yet, but one of the members now knows exactly who they are!! *suspense....!* :D

By the way, like I said a couple of posts ago, if you really want to let others know my blog exists, you can. Either share on facebook, retweet on twitter or....well...whatever blogger does to share stuff...oh yeah! You can follow my blog if you have a blogspot/blogger(/hopefully wordpress too) account! Click that button people! Again, no flames please :3

Oh, and comment on facebook/tweet me on twitter/comment below the post if you want :) I like talking to people! And if my blog gets 500 views or more in a week, I'll make a facebook page especially so that more people can get in touch about the blog!

Pushing it here, but you gotta be ambitious sometimes! I'll certainly give it a go :3

To Home And Back!

I went back to Nottingham this weekend!

My Dad came and picked me up on Friday evening from York and we made the 2 hour journey to Nottingham to greet a very surprised Grandma, who was celebrating her 75th Birthday with a party on Saturday (her birthday's not til the end of October though)! I wish someone would've filmed her reaction, it was pretty spectacular!

On Sunday, I attended my "home" church, St. Mark's Woodthorpe. I was greeted by more surprised people, as well as a very happy cute baby! (see the Cornwall posts, it's the same little girl!) I even found out she can now say "purple", so that was fun! :D Plus, I got roped into helping do the actions for my favourite children's song! (Actually, I didn't get roped in. I asked!! XD)

There were some people I didn't get to see when I was in Nottingham though, which was a shame - but I have been informed previously that some of them read my blog! So.... Hello! Miss you! Come invade York!

....please? :3

By the way, I'm still planning what I'm gonna write in the reviews I'm doing, and I still have a bit of course stuff to do, so the reviews themselves won't be up for another few days, unfortunately - but they will be up soon! :)

I've also noticed I've started getting some more views from Russia, the US and, a newcomer country to my blog views, China! Not sure how that's getting to you all, but hello all the same! :D

Anyways, I'm gonna go and attempt the rare yet common student feat of sleep.

I'll write in a few days! 'Night-..........zzzzzzzzZZZZZzzzzzzz..........

Live and Thinking...

It's been a long day...

Couldn't really think of much to write today, but thought I'd better write something anyway to keep you all updated :) So basically, what you're reading is what I'm thinking of writing at the moment, so it's sort of live, but not. ANYWAY, let's think....

*pop* News item 1: Twitter! As some of you may know, I am on twitter. Because I am an Internet safety maniac, I will only let people know the domain on my facebook page. Sorry! Anyways, I became the 1000th follower of the David Tennant Forum on twitter a couple of days ago! And they mentioned me in a couple of their posts! Woop woop! :3

Again, for those of you who don't know, I am a HUGE fan of Doctor Who, especially the 10th Doctor's series (though 11 is growing on me!)! So this is big news for me. So :P

*pop* News item 2: Uni update - I'm doing ok with my work at present, though it's not any easier. Can't wait for placement though, it starts very soon! Making notes for the first couple of trips but hopefully I'll get to take a lesson in good time! The ideas for these are bursting out of my head!!

*pop* News item 3: Weather report for York - It. Is. Freezing.

*pop* News item 4: My blog!! I nearly forgot! I'm hoping to write some reviews on stuff soon! My first, a book review, will be up as soon as I've finished the book - I've just squeezed in the time in between work and stuffs, so I'm nearly there! The author of said book will be mentioned in the review, but they know who they are :)
I'm also hoping to write music reviews of recent bands and albums I come across too - though it may not be chart music as such, so you might not find the chart-toppers here (yet)! Again, the first band I already have in mind will be mentioned along with the review :)

Additionally, if you want me to review something, let me know and I'll do my best to write something about it! Either drop me a comment below the post, on facebook or even send me a tweet on twitter, and I'll do my best! :)

By the way, you facebookers and twitter peeps out there - feel free to share my blog/let people know it exists - just be sensible, okay? And no flames please!! Thanks :)

And those on blogger/blogspot - follow my blog (if you want)! I don't mind! :D

Wow. I wrote more than I thought I would. Anyway, that's all for now. I'll write in the next couple of days :) *waves*

.....CAKE!

That's right, people, I baked more cake!

Check out these beauties!!

 

I made 12 big cakes and a final total (after a couple of them being eaten) of 54 dinky cupcakes! That's right - 54!!

 

Oh, and one of my flatmates, Lizzie, helped me decorate them all :) Here's her very own:

 

We gave some of the dinky cakes to the flat next door - they were peeking in through the fire door, wondering what we were doing, so I thought I'd give some to them so they didn't feel as though they were missing out :3

 

Baking really helps me take my mind off my hurting back, so it comes as no surprise that it doesn't hurt as much today than it did before I started baking yesterday.

 

I just hope it stays that way...

Flatmate Perscription Service!

Here I am, with a back that's feeling absolutely terrible. I'm thankful I have tomorrow off, so I can go and get it checked out at the university medical centre - basically, I was feeling pretty sorry for myself. 

So my flatmates decided to cheer me up :) They did this with rather hilarious dance moves, hats (and their consequences) and very funny silly faces (Not to mention stating phrases I won't mention here)!

I love my flatmates :D

PUSH!

Uni's getting a little harder now. The amount of work seems to have increased a lot, when in fact most of it isn't due until a few weeks' time. My brain is gonna implode if I'm not careful! :P

Don't get me wrong, I'm ok though. My parents will be arriving in York to visit me tomorrow, so my hug battery is gonna power up again! Woop woop! :D *does a little dance*
I've got so much to show them - new places I added to my Cat-Nav (my shopping instinct navigation system :3), my evening church (still investigating morning churches) - and I have so much to tell them, too: how well I've settled in, how I've made some new friends out of my flatmates and course-mates, meeting all the lovely people at St. Mike's, and starting to build strong(ish, at the moment) foundations for my new life in York. :)

In truth it does feel slightly overwhelming at times. There's this thing when the shock of being somewhere new "hits" you, and your feelings/perspective/both/other tip upside-down and you're not sure where you are, needing someone just to wake you up and give you a bit of fire-ignition. I first got that feeling last week just before one of my lectures, but luckily I was able to fend it off til I got back to the flat.

I'm good at bottling things up, but if you're feeling like this too, take this advice - don't bottle it. It's not healthy - I should know.

I'm very blessed to have a good ground with a few new friends at St. Mike's, all & one in particular on fire for God who don't know that they've helped me, but they really have - the said "one" may know who they are - and they've been the ignition source for me. They're also an ignition source for others, which I hope to be one day :)

My flatmates have been amazing too so far - helping to boost my hug battery as of late when I was feeling particularly low this morning!

Just to clarify - I'm not depressed, just adjusting faster than I can process at the minute. But with God's help and the support I'm getting from my new friends and my family and friends at home, I'm sure to manage well :)

I think the thing to do is just keep praying - a good way to do it is PUSH.

Pray Until Something Happens.

Soap Shopping!

There's something I forgot to tell you guys!

On my third day in York, I found a lovely soap shop called The Yorkshire Soap Co. whilst trying to navigate through York.

 

(Yes. The shop is pink! :D)

I decided to have a look inside and found that they sell soap - but not just any soap. BEAUTIFUL soap. And when I say beautiful, I mean it!

You see, the thing is, they look like cakes! Check it out!

Now, the thing you should know about these ones, is that I got these for free. :3

Why?

Well, on the very same day that I wandered into the shop, a photographer was also in the shop taking photographs for a newspaper. He suddenly approached me and asked me if I wanted to pose with some soap to promote the store in the newspaper. Naturally, I said yes!

The soaps you see above were from the shop to say thank you for doing the shoot, which was lovely of them!

I was told that the photos would be in a newspaper soon, but we weren't sure whether it would be national or local.

Last Wednesday, it turns out it was the local one! Here's the pic...

(I nearly ate the soap cake :3)

Here's a link to the newspaper's website: http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/
(Type in Yorkshire Soap if you want to find the article)

And here's the link to The Yorkshire Soap Co.'s website: http://theyorkshiresoapcompany.co.uk/en/

Don't forget, you can find them both on facebook and twitter too :)

So here's a thank you to both The Yorkshire Soap Co. and The Press for letting me be part of something fantastic!

And if you haven't been yet, go and visit them!! The one I went to is in York (10 Blake Street) and it turns out that they have a shop in Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire, too (6 Market Street). Even if you have been, go again! They're bringing in new things all the time!

Now go and visit the wonderful bubbly goodness, people! :D

Sleeping, Shopping and a Whole Lotta Icing!!

Well, the past few days on my first week of uni have been fantastic! First, I went to uni for my first few lectures, then I explored York (and got lost), and then I went shopping for food and stuff. I have a little confession to make though....

If I don't set 3 alarms, I have a tendancy to fall asleep again.

But don't worry, I've not missed any of my lectures (although one came pretty close to me walking in late) - I tend to walk quite fast, so I can make a 15-minute walk last 10 minutes or slightly less :)
Looks like I'll be setting 3 alarms every time I need to get up in future (which will most likely be every day) :D

On a different and tastier note, I've been baking cakes!!!!
Check it out!

My flatmates helped with the decorations like the hand-made roses and the sparkly bits. They're also helping with eating them, which is a good sign that the oven's working just fine :D
We took some to a different flat downstairs as well - they're also helping with eating them, so that's a good sign too :)

I'm really enjoying my time here in York, not only due to baking, amazing flatmates and a great course, but also thanks to all the dinky shops dotted around the city! I'm particularly fond of a little walkway called The Shambles, partly due to a small knitting shop (with a HUGE ball of wool in the window) and partly due to my love of souvenirs. I don't need any, they just might be nice as a gift for someone :3 *bought*

I'll be off to find a church tomorrow morning - gonna start my search at St. Thomas', as it's not too far away (just behind the uni). I'm going to try St. Michael-Le-Belfry next Sunday evening, as I have already promised my flatmates that I would go to this big party called Battle of the Halls tomorrow night.

Though I have said to them that I can't stay out for the whole thing.
I have a session at 9am on Monday -

And it's the Primary Ed. Dance Workshop...

York!!!

I'm in York now!!

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!

I don't know what to talk about first! Erm....ooh! I'll start with my accommodation :)

My room is amazing! I was supposed to have a standard single room and ended up with a standard DOUBLE room! With extra space!! It's a little awkward when all your flatmates have standard singles, but they've told me they don't mind :) anyway, once I have my TV set up properly, they can happily all pile into my room for a spot of telly :D

Second off: The Uni.
Phenomenal. Full stop.

Next: The city! I explored a little bit of it the evening before my interview, but not much. Going to do a lot more exploring when me and my flatmates have been to the Fresher's Fair tomorrow morning/afternoon, so I'll keep you posted on that one :3

I do miss my family and friends back in Nottingham though. All my church family will be pleased to know that I will be church hunting on Sunday - first stop is St. Michael-Le-Belfry. So I'll update on that too :) at least my skype/email/facebook/twitter/phone is working so I can stay in touch with people! :D

Anyways, gotta go. I'm writing late and it's already past midnight. Mind you, I'm still waiting for everyone else to walk/wobble through the door....

University Preparation

Okay. I admit it.

I'm still on the ceiling. :D

I've been writing a list of things I could possibly take to university with me - bearing in mind I have NO IDEA what my accommodation is going to be, as I haven't been put anywhere yet. Not to worry though, I know I definitely have a place to stay...well...somewhere near the uni! :P What I do know, however, is that wherever I stay, it's gonna be quite expensive - but not as expensive as other unis are, which is good news for me (and my parents) at least.

I did a little "virtual tour" of some of the study bedrooms, and they look fantastic! But the ageless question to you university peeps out there still remains -

WHERE DO YOU MANAGE TO PUT ALL YOUR STUFF?

The only answers I can come up with are either 1. You've decided to use the floor/bed/desk/chair as a wardrobe or 2. Your room is secretly a TARDIS. Take your pick.

I will admit, my bedroom(s) at home have been both. My smaller one while my sister was still living here was a TARDIS, but now she's moved out and I'm in the bigger one, it looks like a bomb's hit it. My own fault, of course, I haven't really been able to figure out where to put all my stuff. Thankfully, I won't be taking everything in my room to uni, so it shouldn't be too problematic.

I do, however, have to buy a few new things for university - for example, towels, storage boxes, labels, folders, more storage boxes - you get the idea. All for organisation and tidiness so long as I'm able to find everything.

Let's just hope for all our sakes that I have a TARDIS-like room this time around....

Accepted!!

So here's the situation. Me and my Parents had this crazy idea of applying for university through clearing. So I said to God that night: "Go on then God, humour me. Get me in this year - go on! Nothing's impossible with you!"

Two amazing weeks later, after draining waiting, a tough interview and a problem with certificates, I have every document needed sent off to York St. John University in the middle of York.

So basically.....


I GOT INTO UNIVERSITY!!!! YAAAAAAAYYYY!!!!!!!!!! :D

I'll take this opportunity to thank everyone who's supported me in Nottingham and beyond over the past 19 (ish) years, it really means a lot to have so many people supporting me and praying for me, and I hope people can keep supporting me during this important stage of my life. Thank you all so much!

Thanks also to my family - Mum, Dad, Gem, and the rest - I love you all so much!!

And of course, thanks to God - without whom I wouldn't be anywhere!

I'll keep my blog updated during my time at university, so watch out for updates - I also have a book review in the pipeline too!

Thanks again to everyone who's supported me, and also to those who read this blog too - every little bit of support helps!

You peeps are so awesome! :D

New Wine 2012

So on the 4th of August this year, I came back from camping at the Newark and Nottingham Showground. Why? Well, I was at possibly the best camping event in the calendar - New Wine!

For those of you who don't know what New Wine is, let me clear it up for you (slightly). It's a summer conference for Christians and those who are interested in knowing more about God. Most tend to camp on-site either at Newark (where I went) or down in Shepton Mallet (vastly bigger site, so about 5,000 more people than Newark) either depending on where you live (most likely) or which church you're camping with (equally likely).
We worship God, attend seminars to help us out in our Christian lives and/or to find out more, and we meet lots of old friends and make tons of new ones! We also top-up on Christian resources, or catch-up over a coffee.

Phew! Relatively short plug over. Not much of an in-depth description, but you've really got to be there to know more about it. It's such a great event, and for it to celebrate it's 25th year next year - well, you gotta be there for that! :D

Sorry it's been so long since I last posted, I've been caught up in the freedom of the holidays and not actually knowing what to do with myself :P Luckily my Mum's mainly helped me with that....

Oh, I almost forgot to mention! My parents' birthdays were in the last few weeks during/since New Wine! I couldn't bake cakes in time for Dad's birthday (we bought him two - we couldn't decide which one to buy!), so here's a pic of the various cakes I did for Mum....

Don't worry, Dad made sure he had lots :3

My Gran's coming round to mine to stay twice over the next few weeks, so you may see a few more piccies of any cakes we may be baking! I'll keep you posted.... :)

Summer? Where are you?

You know, I thought with it being July and all, there would've been a massive heatwave by now. No such sign in sight thanks to this "jetstream" thingy and what it does to the British weather.
I want to use my summer clothes, but they'll have to stay in the drawers because it's too cold to wear the things! Mind you, the dreary weather hasn't stopped me from having an ice-cream (I've had 3 so far this week, and counting)! :)

Anyways, I had some bad news the other day - because of my A-level grades not being high enough, I can't get into Nottingham Trent University :( I thought they operated on UCAS points as well as the grade system so that others can get a chance, but it's not so. So I will have to head to a different university as of September 2013 - but you've still got me for another 14(ish) months, Nottingham :3 Plus, I've still got to apply for the other unis, and they have to accept me first, so don't worry just yet! :P

The trouble with deferring your place then cancelling the whole thing is that you have to go through the UCAS system AGAIN when you next apply for the course you actually want. Which is annoying, but when you're at home and you've done it before, the process is surprisingly quick compared to when the some of the teachers at your sixth form are attempting to try (and not doing a particularly amazing job of) doing it with you with others distracting said teachers. Bleh. Rant over. :P

Overall, it's all getting rather exciting now :)

And it would be even more exciting if the weather were to lighten up a little bit.... *hint hint*

A Big THANK YOU!!

Hi everyone! My posts are back to normal now after the completion of Destination: Cornwall yesterday!

I would like to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone who viewed my blog over the past week or so as I posted my drabble from my holiday! I went from 200(ish) pageviews to 758 pageviews at the last count!!!! WOW!!!! :D It's not millions, but I still never expected that many in 1 week!

And it's not just the Brits viewing my blog, either! I've had a number of views from the US, Germany, the Philippines, Pakistan and Russia! Thanks to you guys as well for viewing my blog! :D

Be assured that I will be posting much more in the next few months - I look forward to going to camp at New Wine North, and writing in during the upcoming summer holidays - no children's work, so I'll be filling my time doing other interesting things (oh, and working at the garden centre)! :3

Once again, thanks for all your support!!

Cathy x

Destination: Cornwall - Return (Part 3) - Final entry

17th June
4:20pm

Okay, so I didn't post when I said I would. But, to be fair, I was very tired - it took us an hour and a half to get through Nottingham because it was so clogged with traffic!!

Anyway, on a lighter note, me & my parents went to a steam show in Worksop for Father's Day (which is today - Happy Father's Day to all those Dads out there!). We had a brilliant time looking at trains (sort of), motorbikes & cars, and there were a couple of other "attractions" such as archery (beat my Dad by 1 point!) and a pop-gun stall (Mum had a go at that - she didn't get a prize, but she frightened the stall owner with her skill!).

We also went to a little cafe on our way home, where my Mum & Dad had a form of cream tea, and I had chocolate cake & a cappucino. Apart from stalling twice, I reckon I did pretty well! :3

Gotta go now - eyes are starting to droop, so I think I need a short nap....

Destination: Cornwall - Return (Part 2)

15th June
5:20pm

Finally off the motorway entirely! Awful traffic on the roads, partially due to bad weather - turns out wet roads & spray caused by fast cars is a recipe for disaster, so EVERYONE had to slow down (there were also a couple of accidents, hope they're all ok!), causing all the congestion.

We're now about 10 miles away from home. *Gets even more excited!*
I'll post again once we get back :)


(Note: I didn't get to post straight away when we got back, therefore I forgot until 2 days later! The next post is written then :D)

Destination: Cornwall - Return (Part 1)

15th June
2:15pm

That's it for our Cornwall holiday, we're now on the M5, on our way back to Nottingham.
We've all had such a great time there, but I'm quite looking forward to sleeping in my own bed tonight!

Here are my final 'Tourist Stats':

Pasties: 2
Fish & Chips: 3
Ice-creams: 3
'Martini & Coke's: 3
Peach Schnapps, OJ & CJ: 0
Pimm's & Lemonade: 2
Bags/Bars of sweets consumed: 8
'Dinky' items bought: 12
Shells collected: 22
Photos taken: 189
Rainy days: 3/9
Number of times shorts worn: 2

I hope 'Tourist Stats' catch on - I know it's a little boring & geeky putting my holiday into numbers, but sometimes people find these things hilarious to look at! ^.^

Oh *expletive*. That's a MASSIVE queue of cars. We're still on the M5 and there's an unusual amount of cars here!
I have no idea what causes these spontaneous back-ups on the motorway - I know roadworks can be partially responsible, but when they aren't responsible - well, it boggles the mind, really!

Anyway, I'll spare you the motorway boredom rant. I'll post again later on! :3

Destination: Cornwall - Day 9

14th June
2:45pm

Bleh. Raining and windyness today. At least we get to see our friends & their cute baby again! :3

We should just be chilling out this afternoon, especially as we're going home tomorrow - early night, too, Dad'll need sleep before he drives all that way!

I'm just hoping the weather's better back home...

*Spontaneous afternoon nap*


(Note: I actually did fall asleep whilst writing this, hence it's the shortest post in the series!! I added the spontaneity after I woke up! :P)

Destination: Cornwall - Day 8

(Sorry for the no-show yesterday. 2 posts today to make up for it :D)

13th June
10:05pm

Took a trip to Doc Martin country today (a.k.a. Port Isaac)! Made sure I took a few photos - it's a lot smaller than I originally thought!
The weather took a turn for the worst whilst we were there though - here we were, t-shirts and shorts, then in a matter of minutes it had clouded over & we were subjected to nothing short of a deluge. Don't get me wrong, we still had a good time - the cake/tea room we went to wasn't brilliant though, so that spoilt things a bit.
Dad then drove us to (near) St. Kew where I treated my parents to some lunch at the St. Kew Inn. FABULOUS food if you ever go down there! *Recommended!*

Have to say though, I've had a very slow afternoon thanks to the weather. Watched Tangled before I had dinner (sandwiches) & Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows whilst having/after dinner. Both of which could be two of my favourite films! (There's a very long list of them!)

Ooh, by the way, here are my (newly-named) "Tourist Stats"!

Pasties: 1 (Still! Need to fix that :3)
Ice-creams: 3
'Martini and Coke's: 3
Peach Schnapps, OJ & CJ: 0
Pimm's & Lemonade: 2
'Dinky' items bought: 12 (at last count!)
Bags/bars of sweets consumed: 8 (so far!!)

No doubt I will be adding to this. ^.^

Anyway, I'll be dropping off to sleep any minute now. I'll post again tomorrow! :)  

Destination: Cornwall - Day 7

12th June
4:50pm

That. Was. AWESOME!! Me & my Dad have just come back from bodyboarding at Treyarnon Bay! I out-surfed him to the beach 3 times! Woo!

I think I may have to get slightly better beach shoes though, or at least make them fasten better - one of my shoes fell off whilst I was riding a particularly strong wave! Luckily my Dad managed to retrieve it before it was lost at sea!

Oop, gotta go. Cute baby alert! I'll post again later :3

(This was probably the shortest post in the entirety of the Destination: Cornwall blog. I got very distracted gloating over my surfing victories and entertaining a rather cute human being. :P)

Destination: Cornwall - Day 6 (Part 2)

(As I was writing this extra post I didn't know I had 'till just now, I hit 600 pageviews for my blog! Thank you all so much for viewing these, and I'll be writing a lot more stuff for you all to enjoy! :D)

11th June
11:21pm

This night-time writing seems to be establishing itself as routine, regardless of how tired I feel. Oh well! :P

Our plan for tomorrow (in case I don't get a significant chance of writing in until very late) is that we're walking to a seaside village, called Polzeath, in the morning; then we're back to Treyarnon in the afternoon for bodyboarding and stuffs! Woot! Can't wait to don that wetsuit & get surfing (well, not actually surfing, I can't stand up on the board!)!

Anyway, I'm dozing off & my pen is gonna start to wander if I don't do something about it soon. Will write again tomorrow when I'm significantly more awake :)

Destination: Cornwall - Day 6 (Part 1)

11th June
4:35pm

In your face, weatherman! The weather forecast was terrible for today, and guess what? Glorious Sunshine!!

We took a trip to Padstow earlier this morning, not buying much but ended up with a fair few pieces of fudge (most of which was consumed within the space of 15 minutes)! We then met up with our friends again, & me, Dad & one of our friends went fishing! I even caught a couple of fish! (And our friend. That was unintentional!)

Dad and the same friend are going canoeing now - they have the canoe for 24 hours, so I'll be joining them tomorrow - but I'll be bodyboarding! X3 Let's hope the weather's just as good!

Also looking forward to cooked fish later on! We caught fish called "Pollock" - never tried it before, so this could be very interesting!

Now watching a very cute baby play with her toys. I might even join in since she's smiling so nicely. :) *melts into puddle*

(Note: Fish not actual size :P)

Destination: Cornwall - Day 5 (Part 2)

10th June
10:26pm

What a lovely day! Not only did the little girl in my last post wake up to her parents (just about), we spent most of the rest of the day with them! We went for a walk along a succession of 3 beaches (the little girl was rather cutely settled in a backpack-thingy); Treyarnon Bay, Constantine Bay and Booby Bay (I know, it's a funny name, but it's named after the avian variety!).

After me & my parents returned to the apartment, we decided it would be a good idea to explore the beach near us & take photos. Not only do we have some brilliant snapshots, I now have a growing collection of shells.

      
(By the way, the little one in the bottom right-hand corner isn't a peanut. It's actually a tiny shell! :P)

Ooh, I almost forgot! I'm gonna be doing a pasty & ice-cream count, just for the fun of it & to show how touristy I can be.
So far, these are the stats:

Pasties: 1
Ice-creams: 2
Martini & Cokes: 2
Peach Schnapps, Orange Juice & Cranberry Juice: 0

I've added alcoholic drinks too, because I'm an adult & I can. Plus I'm sensible with it & I can't legally drive yet, so I'm good. Hopefully the bottom one will increase, that drink's lovely.
I'll add the number of photos taken & amount of 'dinky' items purchased at the end, or I will seriously lose count when I buy more stuff! 'Coz I'm crazy like that! :)

Anyways, need sleep. Padstow and dinky shops await tomorrow morning! Woo!

*zonk*

Destination: Cornwall - Day 5 (Part 1)

(Sorry this is a day late, I'll be posting 3 entries today instead :D)

10th June
1:45pm

What a wonderful view! We're sitting in a static caravan in Treyarnon Bay. We came here to stay when we were last down in Cornwall.

Better still, whilst one of our friends is picking up his wife from the airport, me & my parents are babysitting an incredibly CUTE 101/2 month old little girl. :3 She's currently 'talking' & singing herself to sleep for her afternoon nap, so hopefully she'll wake up to her mummy & daddy leaning over her!

I've taken loads of videos &photos of said baby girl to show her mummy when she gets here. Guaranteed *squees* all around, I think. :)

Destination: Cornwall - Day 4

9th June
11:10pm

Blimey, I'm posting late. Probably because I was too tired to do it earlier (I know it doesn't make sense, I seem to be incredibly tired recently. Don't judge me. :P)

We went to the Royal Cornwall Show today. The site was surprisingly MAHOOSIVE. For those who know about the New Wine Christian camps, it was about the size of New Wine North, if not a little bigger (with part of it positioned on a steep hill).

We also ended up spending quite a bit of money on very useful & slightly indulgent items. Dad got beer, & Mum got collecting business cards from different people, as well as helping me buy some beads for jewellery-making when we get home.

I got a really neat purple hat.

Because hats are cool. :P

(Note: Hat is actually more awesome than what appears in the doodle :3)

Destination: Cornwall - Day 3

8th June
6:20pm

We've arrived in sunny(ish) Cornwall! Woohoo!

Me & my parents are staying in an apartment in Trebetherick, near Rock. Well, I say near Rock, when I actually mean that Rock is about 3 miles away. Plus, to top that off, we've just walked there. I think it's safe to say that I'm suitably puffed out & ready for something to eat!! It was fun though.

I'm looking forward to the possibility of bodyboarding later on this week, and the (requested) shopping trip(s) to Padstow! Plus we've yet to explore the surrounding dinky villages, & we'll be visiting some friends of ours in Treyarnon Bay on Sunday (they're having a holiday too)!

All that and more after a good night's sleep I suppose.
Well, that's after we've walked back to the apartment, of course....

I'm going to be so healthy after this!!

Destination: Cornwall - Day 2 (Part 3)

7th June
5:45pm

Just come out of the cinema after having seen Men In Black 3. It's now one of my favourite films!!

Unfortunately, I'm now feeling incredibly tired after eating a substantial amount of popcorn. Bleh. I feel like I've swallowed a small balloon!

So we're now sitting inside a small pub called The Prince of Wales, waiting for our dinner to arrive. Well, I need to eat something besides popcorn. Mind you, I'm not sure a cheeseburger is the healthiest thing on the menu, but there you go.

I'm just getting more & more excited for the trip down to Cornwall tomorrow.
As Toby Turner would say:

"WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEW!!"

(For those of you who don't know who Toby Turner is, look him up on YouTube. You'll find possibly one of the craziest beings alive today. :D)

Destination: Cornwall - Day 2 (Part 2)

7th June
2:05pm

In a cafe in Ilfracombe, we're happily eating lunch when the conversation takes a turn for the hilarious.

Assessing the phrases emitting from both of my parents, I suddenly realise the inevitable has happened.

My parents have entered the realm of insanity, and are now classed as 'mildly embarrassing'.

Now to take them to the cinema to calm them down before things get even more hilarious! XD 

Destination: Cornwall - Day 2 (Part 1)

7th June
10:33am

Had a lovely night's sleep last night. Partly thanks to the bed, and partly thanks to the alcohol I consumed last night (I had both a Pimm's & Lemonade AND a Martini & Coke)!

(I am SUCH a lightweight!!!)

We're staying at the Sea Breeze Guest House in Ilfracombe until Friday morning, then we head off the rest of the way down to Cornwall. Sadly, it's raining at the minute. But that never stops my family from doing interesting things - we're crazy like that! :3 So we may end up visiting nearby Woolacombe today! In the rain and the cold!

Mind you, I heard from a couple of my friends that it's not so much different back home. One of said friends is also doing something interesting today, though he'll be enjoying his day indoors. He's going to that Harry Potter Studio Tour thingy today - hope he takes lots of photos, I'd love to see what it's like! (I also hope he takes silly ones too, like him with the Sorting Hat on his head or something, that would be hilarious!)

*Looks out of window* Pah. Still raining. Oh well -

*Grabs waterproof coat*

As us Brits would say: "ONWARDS!!" :D