O-Week 2007: Day Two - Monday

Went on two double-decker party buses to Brighton Beach (and turns out there's a Brighton Jetty Rd and a Glenelg Jetty Rd - why do they do this to me???) where we played/watched/walked around trying not to get hit by...beach cricket, volleyball, soccer, frisbee. We were a lovely cloud of purple O-Week t-shirts, and had I seen us coming, I would have run for my life. I guess some people thought it wasn't actually our beach. Huh.

Then went to the Ye Olde Jetty Bar (Jetty Rd, Glenelg) where we drank and were merry. And I ate, a huge paper cone full of hot chips which made me very popular. Had many many conversations of "Hi! I'm Missy! Where are you from? What are you studying? Ok bye!" And drank some more.

Some people drank too much, as I found when I had to take some poor English girl home in a cab and put her to bed. Dude, water and hot chips are your friends.

Was then WOKEN at 6am by I have no idea who, blowing air-horns or something of the sort, all up and down the floors and corridors of the Hall. Could you have not done it just to the first-years? Please? Not so happy Jan.

To recap: a good night and a horrible wake-up call.

O-Week 2007: Day One - Sunday

I am now in Lime Green and Hot Pink O-Groups (cos I am so special). Which means I got to drink lime-green punch and not-hot-pink rubbish-bin punch. You're so jealous aren't you?

And then I got to dress up as a cowgirl and go to Bush Dance. Where they shut down the bar cos people wouldn't shut up. There's some poetic justice in that. In my day, people listened when the band guy was calling out the steps. In the snow. Barefoot. Anyway, eventually we did listen and did some progressive-type dances. Which was cool. But I really think they coulda just stuck to, like, the Nutbush or something. Drunk college kids really aren't that co-ordinated. Seriously, save yourself the trouble.

Actually barefoot would have been good cos as I think we may have already discovered, three-inch heels really hurt. But a cowgirl's gotta have boots. (They don't stick to the floor like thongs do.)

Let's go to gramma's house to play!

Do you remember that? It was a sound effect thing on a game? book? that we used to have. Really annoying.

Anyway, if perchance I am brave/crazy enough to decide to take the Scarlet Lady to "gramma's house" to play, this is the route (actually routes) that UBD Adelaide suggests I take:

Sturt Rd
R Main South Rd
R Cross Rd
L Portrush Rd
R Payneham Rd
L Lower Northeast Rd
R Gorge Rd

Sturt Rd
R Main South Rd
R Cross Rd
L Portrush Rd
R Payneham Rd
Montacute Rd
L Newton Rd
R Gorge Rd

Yes? No? Crazy?

Let me know.

It's here... and there it'll stay

My scooter's here!!!

Actually, it's now in the Hall carpark.

And likely to remain there as my swipe card (which I had re-activated --or whatever they do to it-- this morning) does not actually work. So I can't get into the "secure" carpark.

Cheers guys.

But also - Yay! My scooter's here!

O-Week

So here I am, at the start of my very first O-Week. Woohoo. No, seriously.
The theme is "Medieval" (or however you spell it).

Sunday: Aquaint yourself with the local peasanntry at BBQ and Bush Dance.

Monday: Ye Olde Brighton Beach Games and Glenelg Jetty Bar Crusade.

Tuesday: Outdrink Irish leprechauns at Shenannigans or see true Shakespearean theatre at the Marion Megaplex.

Wednesday: Excursions and International Night. Love your neighbours from distant lands.

Thursday: Courtyard Jests and a Midsummer Night's Tavern.

Friday: Swill a moat's worth at O-Week Offensive and Garden Party.

Saturday: Damsels and Dudes dressup.

Sunday: Courtyard feastings and movies or Grand Hotel.

I have a pretty O-Week t-shirt (fifty bucks later...) which proclaims me as a "Knight". (Thanks Kayleigh for interceding and not letting them sell me a "Peasant" one.) If anyone has any ideas of what to wear to a cross-dressing, middle ages, costume ball thingie, let me know.

Write Well

I just had to tell you about this awesome piece of writing that I read.

You know how when you're watching Veronica Mars (HINT!!!) or whatever, and it comes to the big reveal and you're all like, "Wow, didn't see that coming." Usually, I'm thinking, "but I should have, and I'm sure I would have if I was at all competitive or paying proper attention to the plot and not the hot guys."

Well, in books I rarely get a truely good "didn't see that coming," mostly because I can flip back a couple of pages and be all, "Yeah, that makes sense now."

However, in this book I read recently (and am purposely not naming for as long as possible so that you'll continue to go with me on the 'awesome piece of writing' thing) the reader is totally thinking one thing, by way of the previous scene being about the person you think the scene is about.

It never says it is (and right at the end, it says it isn't) but we're so conditioned to fall for these segues and ostensibly-talking-about-someone-else-when-it's-soooo-obvious-who-it's-really-about type tricks, that the reader (ok, I) totally falls for it, and when it actually is about who they're 'ostensibly' talking about, it is a total shock.

Well written, Ann Brashares.

Ok, so now I have you convinced, go read The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants: Forever In Blue: The Fourth Summer of the Sisterhood.

(Meanwhile) Back At The Hall

Ok, so I didn't forget my toothbrush but I did forget my toothpaste. I had to go to the chemist on campus to buy a new one. UP THE HILL. AND THE STAIRS. Oh my god, I nearly died. My thighs, anyway.

Went to Marion to get groceries and DVD covers for my Veronica Mars (HINT!!!) and Scrubs and Grey's DVDs. And CDs to burn photos on from my last day at work. I still have to get the enlargements of our Bear Hunt poster so I can put it up. I was thinking on my door. It's very 'me' even though I'm sure it was confuse a lot of people.*

Isn't is pretty?

Neither my camera or my scooter have arrived yet, so it better be Monday. I'm so excited. And not even that scared about driving down here. One good thing about lots of traffic is that they're forced to go slower, which is awesome for me.

*[I'll put a pic up on here once I get back on my computer. Remind me.]**

**[I did it without even leaving it for a couple of months, or being reminded.]

BLAST OFF!

So I'm leaving in like four hours.

I'm all packed. Except for my toothbrush. I bet I leave it behind.
My scooter has left for Adelaide. At about half the cost we'd originally thought.
I WON MY CAMERA on ebay! And it's being sent to me. Right now. For very very cheap.
I found a hundred-dollar cheque and two $30 gift vouchers when I was cleaning my room.
Dude, I'm so rich. Harbourtown, here I come!

I will be a Hallie and not a Darwinite this time tomorrow. I'll probably also be asleep, as my flight goes from 1:30am to 9:40am. Yes it's really a three-and-a-half hour flight. No, I'm not flying Virgin again if I can help it.

Joining the technolgy age

I have found THE bestest digital camera. Seriously, it's so awesome.

Problem is, no one wants to sell it to me. I want to spend money. I want to take pictures with a camera which you can sell to me. For lots of money. I won't have lots of money in about two weeks. Seize the opportunity. Sell me the damn camera.

***

Also, I have Skype. Call me!

It's cool. I have a new microphone thingie and I can talk and I sound like a three-year-old but still awesome.

5, 4, 3, 2, 1...

My scooter is leaving tomorrow. Hopefully I will be brave enough to ride it in Adelaide and not have it sit permanently in the Hall carpark.

***

Only three more days of work left. I will be very sad to leave all my kids.

***

When all the Hallies were up here I was incredibly looking forward to going back. Now I still am, but it's just odd. Inevitable.

My flights have been booked forever, I sorted my classes ages ago, there was a little drama when I sent back my Hall contract a month late, but really, it's just a lot of... nothing. Waiting.

But watch out... It's coming...

My Room

I'm home for the weekend to clean out my room in preparation for moving back in next weekend so I can prepare to pack and actually pack so I leave the Thursday after that.

Things I have thrown out so far:

* five fake silver bracelets

* car seat covers (yeah, I've never actually owned a car)

* lecture and tut notes for PSY218E

* red hairspray (no I wasn't in red house team, I was in blue)

* ten bajillion hairties with no elastic left

* twenty billion random bits of paper including reciepts, movie tickets, empty envelopes with writing on them, empty envelopes with no writing on them, begging the question, what the hell were they doing in my room it's not like I send that many letters and if I did it wouldn't be in a used envelope.

On the upside, I did find two scratchy tickets winning me a grand total of $6, as well as the bracelet that The Witch stole off me to prove a point about leaving my things lying around on the table as well as to get me to clean up my room, as maybe I'd find it if I tidied things up a tiny bit. It's found. Now my 13-year-old camper who was distraught that her counselor had "lost" their matching bracelets can start making progress in therapy.

Cos I can

Home for the day, meaning lots of internet (and lots of pointless posts like this one) and downloady goodness.

Here're the songs I've downloaded today:

Veronica Elvis Costello and Paul McCartney

Light Surrounding You Evermore

1812 Overture Tchaikovsky

Superman Lazlo Bane

Volvo Driving Soccer Mom Everclear

How to Save a Life The Fray

Keep Holding On Avril Levigne

Never Let You Go INXS

What are you all listening to at the moment? TAGGED!!!

I'll tell you what I want, what I really really want

Goals for this semester include:

the aforementioned good grades - I need two D's this year to be able to do Honours so even though I'm not even sure what I'll be doing next year, I'd rather have the option, and I'd rather have it taken care of early.

get to know people / have a social life - basically, this suffered last year as I was pretty committed to the whole study thing. I'm not really sorry about that but I need a balance now.

some kind of fitness - I'm thinking running everyday but it would nice if I could find some kind of bball team as I'm much better about showing up for training than forcing myself out for a run

work - still unsure about whether I'll get a job this semester/year. Doubtful that I can get a job in a publishing house in Adelaide so it might have to be something in retail (woohoo). Also need to find a job for next year which means career fairs, making helpful connections with people who know people, etc.

Hallie converge on Darwin

So a bunch of Hallies are here in Darwin. Some of us cos we live here and some boys who (for reasons I've yet to grasp) decided to come up here for the holidays.

Basically we agree:
Home is good, what with the free food and the cars and the petrol money and the money that comes from work (not the work so much) or just appears.
We're ready to go back.

Mostly I think it's because we're all looking forward to O-Week which I missed out on last year, coming as I did in the middle of the year. It's a big to-do revolving around alcohol, O-Group Leaders (not me) and freshers moving in. Also this semester: basketball, SAUCC Ball, the need to get two D's in English so I can slack off next semester.

Things to post about

I'm having limited internet time lately what with the housesitting and all. Although I'm not housesitting anymore, but I'll be staying there with the pool and the car and the short-distance-to-work-hence-a-sleep-in until I go back to uni.

I keep thinking of all these things to post about but then I go as blank as the New Post screen when I actually sit down to write something.

So I will just say:
Scrubs - awesome show. V for Vendetta - awesome movie. And will never be able to disagree with Carla ever again since I've had to admit she is awesome too.

What's up?

I am no good at this if I'm not out of state where I have the excuse of blabbing about minute details of 'a student living away from home'.

Anyway.

I am house-sitting. There is a dog and a pool and a car. The car and the pool are cool, the dog not so much. Not that I don't like dogs or anything, just that I'm slack enough about regular meals for myself, which basically makes me a terrible pet owner.

And on second thought, the pool is not so good either. It is enticing what with the water and the pool toys and the lazing around doing nothing, but then the sun grabs you up and roasts you over an open flame, until you stomach is approximately this colour. I am not even kidding. And you almost die of the pain of sitting down cos you stomach has rolls which don't like being rolled.

Third. I got my hair cut. And I dyed it. But not really. You probably can't really tell. It just has a bit of blonde/light brown highlights which I kinda have naturally but this just brings it out a bit more. But since my hair is incredibly long right now, I let her cut off a bit more than usual, which means it looks awesome and healthy and still soooo daaamn looong.

Annd Eri is coming to visit. Darwin, not me. Although I'll be here. Hopefully she won't go to Kakadu so we can all go to Litchfield instead.

2007: The Year That Will Be

February 15th Arrive in Adelaide

February 18th Contract at Uni Hall starts

February 26th - April 8th Semester One (part one)

April 9th - 20th Mid-Semester Break

April 21st - June 15th Semester One (part two)

June 16th - 30th Exams

July 2nd - 22nd Mid-Year Break (snow holiday anyone?)

July 23rd - September 16th Semester Two (part one)

September 17th - 28th Mid-Semester Break

September 29th - November 14th Semester Two (part two)

November 17th - 28th Exams

Novemeber 24th Uni Hall Contract Ends (I imagine that will be very conducive to study. Thanks Uni Hall.)

November 29th OFFICIALLY FINISH UNIVERSITY

Permission Granted

Classes every single day. Including Mondays and Fridays - who does that?

Nothing before midday two days, eleven on four days, and never anything before ten am. Too bad I'll still have to get up for breakfast/lunch bar.

Oh by the way,
CUTU2101 = Museums and Exhibitions

ENGL2111 = Adaptations: Reading Texts and Film

ENGL2600 = Publishing and Editing

HIST2052 = The British Diaspora Since 1600

And sometimes we just prove the stereotype

Celebrity Heads.

Established: female secondary character in a cartoon movie that we have the dvd of.

"Is it set in the Caribbean?" [Note: Pirates of the Caribbean is not animated, but anyway.]
"No."
"Is it set in Africa?"
"No."
"Is it set in America?"
"It's set in a 'merica."
"Is it set in South America?"
"Yes."

"Is it set in Hawaii?"

The Eternal Quest For Music

We're cruising around at Target (more because I got a end-of-year bonus from work, in the form of a Target gift voucher, than any need to actually drive 20 minutes to buy something I could have got from Cas) when we land in the electronics section. Now, as we were travelling with Skywalker, that's a given, so don't be suprised that we came out with purchases.


Isn't it pretty? Obviously, not an ipod, but I'm kinda glad I escaped the Apple Plan To Take Over The World Through Peoples Ears.

AND

it's a 6GB
it was on sale
it was reduced even more cos it was the last one

BUT

it didn't come with headphones or case

SO

they gave us an extra (extra extra?) discount

MEANING

instead of a $300 4GB ipod nano
I got a $120 6BG Zen Neeon.

And then when I got home and tried to load the software, my computer (which had shat itself but miraculously fixed its CD drive in time for House Season 2 and Grey's Season One) decided to NOT READ CDS. Stupid ass.

But it fixed itself again and I'm sync-ing all my songs to my new mp3 player as I type.