Which is more wrong, the amount of Evan Lysacek clips I've been downloading, or the fact that some of them came from Turkish sites, which when I read initially I thought were in Czech?

Definitely time for sleep!

* posted by nat 12:21 AM

Sunday, February 26, 2006

I am having an enormous essay crisis, compounded by the fact that my legs completely failed up on the balcony of the Novello theatre following watching Midsummer Night's Dream (to be fair, they weren't great right before that) and luckily I was with Ian else I would not have made it home. Ever since then I have been dizzy and blah and have been downstairs precisely three times, because it is a Long Way Down. I am considering moving the kettle up here, but this just seems like a lot of hard work.

Today I have spent being dizzy and downloading vast amounts of literature on self-determination and Why The Kurds Are Fab. I had an amusing moment in Turkish Politics on Friday when we were talking about coalitions/fractures of the left, and the subject of veiling came up (the exact phrase being "suppose we say that X supports veiling") and given me not really being tuned in, I spent several seconds thinking, "but there isn't any whaling done in the mediterranean, why are we talking about communists going whaling?" This is the state I am in.

In this vein, I give you English teacher humour.

* posted by nat 9:24 PM

Saturday, February 18, 2006

View my l337 drawing skillz!

That is to say, it's a pig.

I am watching ice hockey and generally vegetating. My brain needs the down time, even if I don't have the down time.

* posted by nat 7:37 PM

I am back from a week at the UN in Geneva, which is a terribly cool thing if you are me. We were so busy running around the Palace des Nations that I hardly had a moment to do anything else, so I was quite thankful for the fact that the WHO were running around like headless swans chickens on Thursday morning and so cancelled talking to us, giving Yousra and me time to head into town and buy up half of a chocolatier. I also found half an hour near the end to buy up half the UN bookshop, and I finally have dissertation ideas! I am not getting overexcited though, as they are slightly out of left field so I have to go and speak to some people at SOAS next week.

I also had fun listening in to an ECOSOC meeting (I told you it's only cool if you're me), attempting to crash an ILO meeting (ditto) and running around gawping at rooms such as where the NPT treaty was negotiated, and catching the UN acronym disease. I also ate too much fondue (cheese variety that is, as it is not really possible to eat too much chocolate fondue); cleared the local co-op out of a certain make of chai; stole little pots of acacia honey and fig jam from the hotel breakfast bar, as well as hand cream from the hotel store cupboard (well what do 4 star hotels expect if they get a bunch of students in - I wasn't the only one!); and stayed up late at night to discuss Sufisim with all the other Muslims on the course who were not joining in with everyone else who went out drinking and dancing.

On the way back through Stansted the customs officials pulled one of our (Muslim, non British-passport-holding) number aside for half an hour and asked them whether they would be interested in spying on the Muslim community in the UK. Customs were politely told what they could do with that suggestion! It sounds like the authorities are getting rather desperate if they're down to attempts like that!

I then spent the rest of the afternoon catching up with El in a comfy-sofa Starbucks, and then Ian phoned to say he had passed his latest test, woo, so he came over in the evening bearing curry.

There are three green parrots in the garden today. With that and a bit of sunshine it feels quite tropical!

Now you have read all that you may judge my bad points - also via clickybox! I have a law essay to read for.

* posted by nat 12:38 PM

Friday, February 10, 2006

Personality awareness - judge me via clickybox!.

Haven't got out of bed today. Ugh. Click on the above and amuse me.

* posted by nat 4:00 PM

Thursday, February 09, 2006

I have written many essays, and had little sleep. I remain fortified by chocolate.

I have finally, courtesy of my mother, got rid of the red curtains in my bedroom and have yellowy-gold ones now. This goes better with the greens and oranges. For this I forgive her leaving nasty meat-encrusted dishes in the sink which I had to wash up. Ugh. Men are coming soon to wallpaper the hall; hopefully next week while I am in Geneva.

Today I mostly watched TV, RPed, and tried desperately to fend off the urge to join another Mush. I haven't the time!

My brother then came home, stated that there was nothing on TV, and then said, "So, we can watch a DVD, we have the choice of..."

I said, "We? This is getting almost housematey."

He said, "Don't push it."

He then shared his chocolate-covered-cornflake-thingys with me. I nearly died of shock!

* posted by nat 11:58 PM

Sunday, February 05, 2006

Up to the travel show yesterday, so my brain is now full of the wish to run off to Bhutan, or Costa Rica, or Iceland, or Kenya, or Turkmenistan, etc etc etc, and I have bought a new pair of walking boots (for hills), sandals (for summer, to make sure I leave England), a rucksack (to counteract backache, or somesuch idea), and I was bought a giraffe, since there were a lack of frogs (apart from on Costa Rica travel brochures). But the giraffe is very cute and wobbly.

Essay stands at 2,316 words, which means after I have tidied it up and made it coherent it should be all right for words. Now I just have to research and write another one by Wednesday, although as that's got to be less than 2000 words, it's really a doddle.

At least that's what I keep telling myself!

ETA 20:25 2,552 words. Rah. I can wordcount that as 2,700 and no-one will notice!

* posted by nat 6:21 PM

Friday, February 03, 2006

It's essay time again! Up to 706 words; I am pathetic.

Going to churn out as much crap as I can manage by 2am, since I have to get up tomorrow and go to Turkish lectures that I really don't have time to go to, but they will be FUN.

ETA: 1:52am, 990 words. Bedtime.

* posted by nat 1:25 AM

Wednesday, February 01, 2006

Occupation at 21 Russell Square! UCL should love that! Ha!

* posted by nat 11:18 PM