"Freeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeedom!"

...to quote Mel Gibson at the end of Braveheart. Except without the Scottish accent. And the whole knife-twisting-in-the-guts torture thing.

Yes, I had my last exam today and no, it did not go well but who cares? For the next twenty four hours (at least) I shall not even think about what I wrote on my exam paper. After that I will start to panic and so have to find things to distract me from thinking about how badly I did, how this will affect my career choices, yadda yadda yadda.

Speaking of which I have finsihed re-editing Shine On Me and am now back to where I started before re-re-re-re-editing Where Wild Things Grow. Me has other books in mind, but me no want to start on the next in the Green Ash series just yet. I am going to try and attempt to do what has previously often been impossibe: to write a sensible book for grown-ups; the kind of book people might study at an institution just like the University Of Winchester. I kid you not, I already have some ideas bubbling away in my brain. Now if I can just be bothered enough to start writing them down...

Laters.

That Time Of Year

Yes, it's coming up to that time of year when everything here winds up for the end of the academic year. Last night was our last Alpha course meeting, though there will be a new course next term and I've been asked to be a helper - yippee! On Monday we will have our last CU meeting in the evening, though in the morning I'll have had my last exam for the year. It was the last episode of Ugly Betty tonight - I saw it on Wednesday, wow! - and ER is winding down - don't kill Ray off, please!

Summer is truly here - we've had glorious sunshine in Winchester for about a week now, and it looks like it's just gonna keep on being glorious. Well, that's just lovely!

Laters.

We're All Going To Die

First off a retraction on a statement made in yesterday's blog about the new version of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. I have heard the tracks and most of them are actually quite good - I just don't think they're as good as the originals, but I guess I'm picky.

So on to today's blog, and the reason for the rather ominous title above. It seems that events internationally are spiralling towards a new Cold War between Russia and the US of A. All I say is someone get rid of Bush quick before things get any worse. Same with Putin. There, I've said it; nobody better try and assassinate me with some obscure nuclear liquid, or else there's going to be trouble. Grr.

Oh, and Yay! England are finally playing some football! Never mind winning the sport, they're playing it rather than pathetically mucking about with the ball. Let's keep this change going, boys!

Laters.

Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud

In this month's issue of Q Magazine comes free a CD (ooh, that rhymes) featuring live tracks from Glastonbury. Although there are no absolute stormers, there are still some great songs on it, like Keane's "Somewhere Only We Know" and Kaiser Chiefs' "Everyday I Love You Less And Less". But it brings to mind the fact that, yes, the festival season truly is upon us. And once again I have to rely on TV and radio coverage to actually be a part of it. Not that I'm complaining too much - after all, I don't want to take out another loan just to get a ticket to one day of a festival. But I suppose to truly live any festival, especially Glastonbury, you have to actually be there. Ah, well.

In other music news I see that music sacrilege has been committed by the re-recording of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by various artists. Again, I'm not too sure about why I'm complaining about this, as Kaiser Chiefs (again) are on this one, and the Razorlight version of "With A Little Help From My Friends" sounds all right. I'd like to know who's re-done "A Day In The Life" which is probably my favourite track off that most famous of albums, and if it's any good. All together now: time will tell. That's becoming my catchphrase that - not happy about that either.

Laters.

Fun For All The Family

In the news over the last week the one thing that has really caught my eye has been that of the planned theme park designed around the Harry Potter movies, due to be built in Florida. I'll be frank: this does sound rather excellent. What is it about theme parks that when we hear about them or actually go to them we turn back into little children?

But what a Harry Potter theme park is doing in America somewhat bugs me. Is not Harry a British institution, like James Bond or the Carry On films? Okay, the latter may have been a bad example, but I suppose it shows just how powerful the boy wizard really is internationally.

Not that we need reminding. There's no doubt that there will be riots when the last book in the series is published later this year, whether its about shops selling out or the actual ending. And then we'll know how it all ends - will this affect the film series? It seems to me that there is a somewhat lack of excitement surrounding the fifth film, Order Of The Phoenix, due out this summer. What will it be like once we know if Harry lives or dies, if Ron and Hermione ever get it on, if Hagrid ever actually says something which doesn't reveal a terrible, terrible secret concealed within the walls of Hogwarts? Time, as ever, will tell.

Personally, I think this opportunity is ripe for different directors to leave their marks on the series, maybe be more adventurous in how they're shot. My favourite one is Prisoner of Azkaban, directed by Alfonso Cuarón; it's just so beautifully filmed, it feels like a proper film and not just a kids movie, like the first two directed by Chris Columbus felt. Let's have more of those, Warner Bros, and leave the theme park to the Americans.

Laters.

The Early Bird Got Up To Catch The Early Worm...

...and then found that actually the Early Worm wasn't due to get up until two o' clock in the afternoon.

I have the first of my two exams today, and I made the mistake of thinking it was at 9am. So I got up nice and early, though was in a kind of a daze thanks to my old pal Morning Amnesia (TM). When I got to the University, however, I went to check which room the exam would be taking place in and saw to my utter delight - note sarcasm - that, actually, I needn't have got up when I did at all.

So I went food shopping instead. I ended up walking through Sainsburys pushing my trolley like a zombie shuffling around in Night Of The Living Dead. When I got back home it was only coming up for a quarter to ten. Nice.

Still, I guess I should make the most of it and use the time I have now to revise. My one nagging problem, however, is that this exam is taking place in the West Downs Centre, which is at the top of a very steep hill. It's at two in the afternoon, so I'll have to leave here at half one at the latest. This is, coincidentally, also the time when the sun will be at its highest. I will arrive at West Downs exhausted, hot, and sweating like a pig. And then I'll have to do a two hour exam. Oho, I know how to have fun, don't I?

Laters.

Two Down, Two To Go

On Friday we finally got our Postmodern Age presentation over and done with; it was a relief that I don't have any more presentations to stress about, and I think that the lecturers seemed to like ours, so here's hoping!

Now all I need to do is survive the two exams I have left intact. Piece of cake really, unlike Third Year, who has three exams to go and has perhaps more importance riding on hers than mine. Memo to self: do not make this face public knowledge when Third Year is in room!

Have I mentioned here that I finally finished re-re-re-re-editing Where Wild Things Grow last week? If not, I mention it now! Have already made a start on re-editing Shine On Me, the next in the series, but this is on hold at the moment, as revision comes first in almost everything.

Went bowling yesterday with the Alpha group; no strikes but I did pick up a few spares. Nice.

Laters.