Highlighter Stars.

I just checked Sussex Direct, and saw that my results from last term for my American History course are up.
I got 70% in my essay, which I’m rather proud of. However, the comments about me seem … less than favourable.

Emma is a very bright student who demonstrated over the course of the term a real aptitude in and affinity for American history. Her class participation mark is not as high as it might have been however. Emma’s contributions were always salient, and she always had something intelligent to say. But, although her attitude had changed by December, the apathetic air she cultivated at the beginning of the term detracted from her otherwise sensible contributions for the first month or so.

Apathetic air? What the hell Tristan, what the hell? I was easily one of the best contributors in the class (though, to be fair, that wasn’t exactly difficult because hardly anyone actually spoke), and I THOUGHT I was always fairly enthusiastic. Apparently not.

So I ended up with a Grade 2. Damn my apathetic air, I could have got a 1.

Toastie makers may make good food, but don’t be fooled, they’re vicious attacking machines. If, say, someone forgot that the plates were hot and brushed their hand against one in an attempt to put some bread in the toaster next to the toastie maker, they might end up with an injury something like this:

And if someone were stupid enough to let that happen, it would hurt. Quite a lot.

On the Orlando Sentinel website, there’s a list of all the accidents, injuries and deaths that have occured at Walt Disney World theme parks. Some of them are highly amusing and/or stupid, I must say.

RIDE: Liberty Riverboat
DATE: 06/16/2005
TIME: 4:24 PM
AGE: 45
GENDER: F
INCIDENT: Fainted and fell while on riverboat and hurt ankle and knee

The Liberty Riverboat is a paddle steamer that goes at 5mph around a tiny bit of water, and is attached to a rail underneath. I can see how the excitement must have got to this woman.

Continue reading ‘Attraction accidents.rgb’

My last post was apparently too deep and depressing, so here’s a more ‘normal’ post (if there is such a thing).

According to my mother and an internet search, Dick Wolf has decided that he wants to do a British Law & Order. Um, what the hell Dick Wolf? I have no idea how that could possibly work. The British legal system is entirely different to the American one, and I’m not sure how well the L&O format would transfer to it at all. I don’t even want it to. Won’t it just end up like The Bill, but with lawyers after half an hour? Also, it’s on ITV. ITV, at least in my opinion, is shit. If they’re going to make a British version of L&O, they could at least air it on one of the channels that show the original, couldn’t they? So Hallmark or Five. But no, they’re letting ITV have it. Which means that any chance it had of being good has gone completely.

The fun of L&O is the American judicial system. It’s just not L&O if it’s not set in America. Maybe other countries have versions of Special Victims Unit and Criminal Intent, and maybe they work (though I find that unlikely), but Law & Order over here is just going to be another shitty detective drama. That’s not what L&O is, and that’s why I like it. Why ruin a good thing?

Dick Wolf is just being a money grabbing ass. Can’t he be satisfied with his three-strong Law & Order franchise, and accept that his last two shows (Trial By Jury and Conviction) flopped completely. Surely that’s a sign he should stop coming up with new ideas?

(source here, if anyone’s remotely interested)

Last night I was talking to Emmy-Lou/Emma (pick whichever name you feel more comfortable with) on MSN (Windows Live Messenger just don’t have the same ring) and we were discussing these old online diaries the two of us used to keep (and are, incidentally, how we met, way back when), and we both remarked how pathetic our old selves seem.

It’s kind of sad, isn’t it, how you look back at yourself when you were younger and all you can think is how stupid you were, and how if you were in the same situation again you’d never do that again. Well, that’s what I do anyway. There’s so many things that I look back on and wonder ‘what was all the fuss about?’ I made such a big deal about things that would probably have gone away far more quickly and easily had I just let them be, without getting all het up about them.  There’s other things that I can’t figure out why I didn’t DO something about the situation, why I sat back and let it happen, yet got upset about it.
Although there’s something quite endearing about the way I wrote everything back then. Even when I was being all emo about something, I still seemed somewhat … hyper. I kind of miss that me.

An encouraging thing about remembering the past is that you realise how emotions fade. The saying that ‘time heals all wounds’ (or whatever it may be, it’s something along those lines, right?) is true. Crushes that seemed so important at the time now make me laugh at how ridiculously silly and girly I was. That’s kind of nice, for some reason.
There are still some things that I completely understand my upset over them, but they - thankfully - don’t hurt any more (except maybe in occasional moments of bitterness). I’d say I’d like to be able to go back and tell my younger self, “it’ll all turn out okay, whatever you do. And in a few weeks, or months, it won’t hurt any more.” But no, I wouldn’t want to know. The fear that you experience when you feel that you have to make the right decision to make the situation okay again, or at least bearable, is a very strong emotion. Everyone needs to experience it. It makes everyone stronger, that they had to make a decision and they came out of it okay. Maybe a little sadder, maybe a little more lonely, but they came out of it okay, and now it’s behind them.
(ssh, I know I’m being cheesy, ‘kay?)

My mother always tells me, when I’m agonising over what I should do in a situation (which is fairly frequently, because my mind and my heart have this issue about having conflicting ideals), that whatever decision I make, it’ll be the right one. I’d like to think that’s true. And - unless I suddenly find myself in a Sliding Doors-esque lifestyle -  I’m never going to know otherwise.

Everything will be all right in the end. If it’s not all right, it’s not the end - Anonymous

I went to the dental hospital today. After waiting a mere 10 minutes for my name to be called, I went in, sat on the reclining chair, had Mr Durning peer into my mouth for a couple of seconds before announcing that my teeth were, “Fine. More than fine, in fact.”

And that was that. He handed me a piece of paper, which I took to Cynthia (oh! Cynthia, how I will miss her receptionist ‘charm’) and I was discharged.

So why is this the end of an era? After all, you may be thinking, I was being discharged as an outpatient. It’s surely not that big of a deal.
Oh, how wrong you would be.

I was referred to the dental hospital when I was 10 years old. I am now 19. In that time, I have had two operations, three teeth removed, four fixed braces, one metal retainer, two plastic retainers, one false tooth, and more moulds and x-rays than you can shake a stick at. I know the staff and the staff know me. Dental nurses wave to me when they see me. Some even come over for a chat. Even Cynthia, the battleaxe of a receptionist, has warmed to me enough to ask how university is going. I almost feel she’s sad to see me go. I’ve been a fairly consistent visitor for the past 8 years.
I’ve been to four departments within the dental hospital. I started out with students working on my teeth. I ended up with the head of orthodontics and administration. Yes, apparently my teeth were complicated.

And now, unless something happens that I need to go back for, I’m done there.

Dental Drive, I shall miss you.

Happy New Year!

Yes, this is the obligatory ‘New Year Resolutions’ post.

Emma’s New Year Resolutions for 2008

1. Complain/moan/criticise less (see: AComplaintFreeWorld.org)
2. Epilate regularly
3. Join the Walking Society at university
4. Do at least 20 sit ups a day

I’m never sure how broad NYRs are supposed to be. Or whether they’re supposed to be long-lasting ones, or one-offs. I guess they’re anything I want them to be.

I looked in my diaries at the past NYRs I’ve made and, even where I’ve made lists of 6 or 7 resolutions, I haven’t kept a single one. Which is impressive, really. I blame that on the fact that I only write them in my diary, so I forget I’ve even made any. Maybe if I write them out on a piece of paper and pin them up on my noticeboard, I’ll be reminded of them daily and make more of an effort to try to keep them.
Maybe.