On the 17th of January 2013, i woke up to discover two unexpected gifts.
I didn't see this coming.
I didn't even think Armin Mersmann would have any knowledge of my blog - it's so little - let alone take the time to write me such a thoughtful, honest and above all, supportive message.
I think i forget sometimes that i'm not the only artist in the world.
That sounds incredibly narcissistic but it's the simple fact that i live with myself every day, i'm only capable of knowing how i feel at all times and i'm not one to share.
I'll put it all over the internet, however.
More making of the sense that is not, my speciality.
I regret not talking to my university friends about the feelings of inadequacy that were debilitating me while i was still in education.
They were probably feeling just the same and would not have been able to fix my problems but perhaps then i wouldn't have felt so small and so alone in my situation.
To be a Fine artist in a contemporary art school is not easy, thus why i fled so spectacularly.
This year i'll be receiving my Ordinary Degree, after 4 years of the university kindly holding my space open so i could complete with my Honours.
Which i can do whenever i wish.
Hopefully they'd reaccept me but i'm not entirely sure DOJ is the place for me.
I'm not even sure if art is the right choice for me and until i know that i won't be returning to any institution of art.
It's really rather hard for someone like myself, who's ultimate goal within university was to receive a 1st and couldn't even bring themselves to start their final year.
It's all i wanted but i was a mess and it shouldn't have been what being an artist at art school was about.
I should have just wanted to create, instead i wanted to win.
Unhealthy but understandable.
I still want that 1st, i think i always will but if i go back to complete my degree, i just want to produce something that touches people.
Something i'm proud of.
But not too proud!
So, thank you Mr Mersmann.
I can't tell you how much receiving your message meant to me and how much it's given me to think about.
Happy Birthday for tomorrow and please keep producing your sublime works of art.
They may leave me timid but they are truly wonderful things to behold.
Also, to anyone who is currently at art school or even doing it solo and finds themselves in the same situation as i, message me if you'd like.
I can't fix it but i can empathise.
With bells on.
My other gift of the day was from my Mum.
It's always nice to wake up to a present, especially when you are utterly undeserving because of the ungodly hour you've finally dragged yourself out of bed to attempt functioning like a normal human being.
I won't tell you the hour but it was pretty bad.
The sun was going back down.
Shame, shame on me.
Thanks Mum.
You may be the only one i have but i still kinda think you're the best one.
Feel free to make barfing noises behind your computer screens at my unabashed soppiness!
I care not!
Listening to: Seamonster 'Bed of Roses'
Was the Phantasm sphere really three years ago? I've still got so many presents to get through too :)
We had bacon puffs and cupcakes at work today :)
What in the world is a bacon puff? Is it a delicious bacon-flavoured pokémon?
I think it's pretty much just bacon and puff pastry. Not quite as magical as bacon-flavoured pokémon. But almost :)
That still sounds pretty magical. Anything involving bacon is magical. I fucking love bacon.
Me too. I especially like it with pancakes and maple syrup :)
It's like something from a glorious Goosebumps horror story in your bedroom. Soon, you'll be taken over by books :)
Cool kicks too!
Ps. Look who's doing the cover art:
http://www.arrowfilms.co.uk/shop/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=876
Do you ever miss having friends you could call up to watch a film or go for walk or a hot chocolate?
So, Lilliputty, do you want to know how many people so far have bought tickets to see The Thing? One. Me. So embarrassing. I just keep telling myself that I'm better than everyone else :)
I drove about 30 miles to buy homebakes from Lynn' a Roadside's Cupboard. It's a fridge outside someone's house in East Burrafirth. You take food out and put money in an honesty tin. It's pretty great :)
I always like reading the titles of the books when you post pictures of your room :)
I bought banoffee pie today :)
I'm sorry you're feeling blue, Lilliputty. I hope things are okay.
If you ever get around to watching The Guild season 5, you'll get to see cameos by both Nathan Fillion & Neil Gaiman :D
You're devouring books at an incredible rate! :)
That's all the flying saucers gone :)
I had quite an exciting day, if you'd like to hear about it :) We all got thrown out of our office today because the building is structurally unsound. We found out at 12 that we had to have all our stuff packed up by 5. We're not sure where we're going yet but we'll get a phone call or something to let us know. It's a bit like the end of season 2 / beginning of season 3 of Parks & Recreation :)
Well, they found somewhere for us. At least temporarily. It's some place next to the college, a bit out of town. So there will be lots of unpacking and arranging tomorrow, something I suck at immensely :)
So that's us settled into our new place of work. I timed myself how long it takes to walk from there to home. 35 minutes at my walking pace. I have a ridiculously fast walking pace? :)
So the nomads found themselves a home. You're not going to pee everywhere to mark your territory are you?
Five things:
1. 'Pologies for the silent treatment, things are intermittently fraught at the homestead right now and it's making me more protective of myself than usual. Hopefully things will right themselves in the not too distant future.
2. Damn you. Donnie Darko, pre-ordered!
3. There's a fridge of baked goods just sitting out there for the trustworthy to devour from? What sorcery is this and why doesn't it happen in my general vicinity?! But more importantly, what did you choose from this magical fridge?
4: Cookie Dough Bites are revolting 0_0 but Refresher Bon Bons are fucking majestic and i just ate my last three :(
5. All the flying saucers are gone? GONE?! You're an animal.
That's okay, Lilliputty :) I hope things settle down soon.
From the magical fridge, I took some caramel cupcakes and malteser traybake :)
Caramel cupcakes? Malteser Traybake? Goddammit, you live on a majestic island, if you had trees i'd move there in a heartbeat.
Do you think it's weird that Em and I are considering baking our delivery man biscuits because i've abused his services so mercilessly over the years?
I don't think it's weird. Although it will make me very jealous. I deserve all the biscuits!
What kind of biscuits were you thinking of baking?
Don't think i haven't considered sending you baked goods, i just always thought they wouldn't travel well. If only portals existed, i could stick a hand through and hurl muffins at you :D
This is purely selfish but i'm going to try and strong-arm Em into baking her Maple Biscuits because... i want some =/ They're shaped like teapots and stars and taste like fucking maple valhalla!
I wish there were magic portals. I would use them to steal all the Maple Biscuits :)
Do your sisters ever bake Halloween themed goodies?
Much to my dismay, they do not. When it comes to Halloween i'm the only one in the family who's interested. Kind of makes sense because i love all things creepster and the rest of the brood do not. Except for Em but even then, it's only really zombies she's into.
I think the closest we got to halloween baking actually happened at Christmas when Em made Gingerbread Yetis:
http://stickyelbows.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/yetis.html
I did manage to get a vampire in there though:
http://snowinateapot.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/leftovers-gingerbread-men-vs-yetis.html
Before i ate them all that is =/
That gingerbread vampire :D
I used to go trick or treating when I was a kid. Just around Westerloch with my school friends. People actually made an effort to make their houses look creepy. It was nice. And the evenings get really dark by Halloween. Very important when going out :)
I only remember trick or treating once and i genuinely think it's only time i did it. I was a witch. Because of course.
Something didn't sit right with my mum about the whole thing though. Is it really okay to go begging at random people's doors for candy? It's a bit dodgy, right? Now we just hide from the little devils and devour the multitude of sweets ourselves. By ourselves, i mean me, i'm a beast but variety packs are the fucking best.
Have you decided what Halloween movies you're indulging in this year?
I totally get that. I hate it when random kids turn up on our doorstep at Halloween. Who the fuck are they?! When I was trick or treating, I just went around with rest of the Westerloch kids to each other's houses.
I thought I would be totally unoriginal this Halloween and watch some 1970s classics - Halloween, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Suspiria. How about you? And more importantly, what sweets do you think you'll be getting? :)
You really do wear the best clothes :)
I will accept and concur with that statement.
My sweatshirt collection is bordering on immense and terrifying.
My halloween consumption will mostly be made up of lollipops, i seem to be obsessed with them right now. Specifically Chupa Chups and Swizzels Fruity Pops. If i could get my hands on some of the Vimto variety then i'm sure they'd be consumed with frightening rapidity also. Lollipops are the fucking shit.
What's you candy of choice this year's hallowed eve? And in what way are TTCM and Suspiria considered unoriginal? That's called doing Halloween with style, my friend.
Pretty much anything made by Swizzels is fucking magical!
I'm glad you approve of my film choices, Lilliputty. I do wish I was a bit more adventurous with my choices though. I don't know how you can consume so many things without your head exploding. You're fucking magical too :)
If you were here, I'd let you pick my clothes. I look like hell most of the time.
Why thank you, Dexterous. Not so sure about "magical" though, perhaps just ravenous?
You think too much, my friend, the new things aren't going to bite you, i swear. Sure, they'll let you down sometimes but you get pretty good at weeding out the good shit. At least in tv. Books and music are harder. I haven't read past a 3/5 book for ages =/ It's kind of bumming me out but i guess not every author can be like my beloved Miss Carter.
You reading/watching anything at moment? Do i have to bully you into stuff?
I don't know what's wrong with me at the moment. I'm so unmotivated to do anything except sleep. It feels like ages since I've recommended anything to you. Sorry for being so boring. How do you find the energy to read 17 books in 3 months? Magical Maggot :)
...because i do nothing else =/ Never envy my total lack of ambition aside from devouring books, Dexterous, not a good life choice.
Everyone has lulls though, you'll get interested in stuff again, just maybe not the stuff you used to be interested in.
I didn't read this much until i was in my early twenties, so you never know.
But it's a good way to pass the time :)
Thanks Lilliputty. I'm sure it's just a phase. I blame the lack of hot chocolate :) Our temporary office is on the edge of town so there's not many places to go if you don't have a car. I could go to the college for lunch (it's right next door) but it would feel too much like being back at high school :)
What did you used to do for lunches when you weren't home? Were you a packed lunch kind of girl?
Did I tell you my parents are going away for a month in October? I'd invite you along for sleepover if there wasn't a sea between us :)
Suspiria remake. They're not even trying anymore. Those films are all about Argento's unique style. How the fuck do you re-create that?
I had a freshly baked Smartie cookie from the Shetland College this morning. I thought you should know :)
I was thinking of finally watching The Lost Boys tonight.
I was heartbroken when I scrolled down to the bottom of those Happy Meals and discovered that they were not real.
I knew going in and it was still heartbreaking 0_0 I need a tiny Darkness in my life.
Did you end up watching The Lost Boys? Can't believe you've been alive so long and never witnessed Kiefer Sutherland as a vampire! Not to mention tiny Bill S. Preston, Esq. lurking in the background all fanged up. Your poor soul has remained incomplete.
"I had a freshly baked Smartie cookie from the Shetland College this morning. I thought you should know :)"
I hate you sometimes. However, i see your Smartie Cookie and raise you homemade pizza made by me and Em. Do i win?
Ps. Let's make a pact: The Suspiria remake doesn't exist. End of. Deal?
I did. Strike that one from the list :) You wouldn't believe the films I still haven't seen - Gremlins, Poltergeist, The Fly, The Goonies... ugh, I suck.
Do you win? Well, I suppose it depends on what was on the pizza :)
Hmm, we weren't exactly adventurous with toppings because it was my first time making pizza dough and i was gently freaking out about fucking up dinner so we went simple: 1 ham and 1 pepperoni with one half covered in olives (old people like olives, sick bastards) BUT Em made her own pizza sauce and it was pretty epic.
All round, it was a rousing success and i'll undoubtedly now be making pizza dough for the rest of eternity but hey, i might develop some muscles in my arms instead of the sticks and candyfloss i was born with =/
I did spend the whole time i was kneading the dough thinking about that scene in Big where they're throwing the dough into the chef's mouth? Always freaked me out and fascinated me when i was kid. I can tell you now, never eat raw dough.
...
Yuck.
YOU'VE NEVER SEEN THE GOONIES?!
...
My heart hurts for you 0_0
Yes, you definitely win :) So, was it a thin or deep pizza base? I must know these things.
I've never seen Big. Will you have to re-evaluate our friendship?
Genuinely doing my best not to disown you right now. It's a classic, Dex, you must remedy this.
Ps. Thin. We don't do deep dish pizzas in this household!
Be kind to me. I prefer thin pizza too :)
I've had a slightly eventful evening. My parents are on the boat tonight and they said they'd be leaving the house at 5.45pm. So I got the bus back into town after work and hurried home because I was worried I'd miss them. But it turns out they'd misread their tickets and it was an earlier sailing so they'd left in a hurry about 10 minutes before I arrived (leaving 2 untouched cups of tea in the living room) and they managed to get the boat to wait for them. I got a phone call from them about 20 minutes later to say they were safely on the boat, although I think they were still recovering from their ordeal.
It's the things happening to people I know that make my life seem stressful. No wonder I like being alone :)
Absofrigginlutely. At times it's like manoeuvring through a minefield of emotions and happenings =/ And then there's all your own garbage to contend with!
But what's the lesson here?
Always thoroughly read your boarding ticket! Twice! Thrice!
A month alone though, huh? Or is your brother still knocking about? He's a very ephemeral being to me, as in, i know he exists but he doesn't seem real? Does that make sense? I don't even know his name =/
My heart hurts, Dex. I shouldn't be allowed to watch tv :( I get too attached.
He's still around. His name's Richard. His bedroom's a tip. And he likes to play computer games :) Apart from enjoying the same films and tv shows that we both grew up watching, we don't really have that much in common. But we get on all the same even though we can go for weeks without talking to each other :)
What did tv do to you, Maggot? Was it Sleepy Hollow?
Hah! That description was unexpectedly deadpan. Bravo, dear boy, bravo.
What you gonna do with your parent-free month? As little as possible? Does it make much difference when your parents aren't there? Mine are very present in my day to day so when they leave my routine gets scuppered.
T'was indeed Sleepy Hollow and it broke my damn heart. I hate when writers lull your heart into submission and then smash it to pieces with some horribly bad story decisions :( It's cruel and i don't like it.
Thanks. I thought it summed him up pretty nicely :)
Well, I have to buy food for myself when my parents aren't around. That's what I'll be doing tonight :) They make my tea for me (and I usually wash up) and I make us all a pot of tea at half 8. The rest of the time I spend alone in my bedroom. That is pretty much my evenings. So it's not very different now, except that I'm making my own tea :)
Is it bad as in very sad (like killing Wash) or doing something completely wrong for the characters that you've come to know or both?
So you exist in each other's space but you're not living in each other's pockets? Damn, as much as i love my family i wouldn't mind them being out of my face every now and then =/
No one makes me tea (except Em sometimes) because i'm horribly fussy about the process 0_0 And i currently drink five different kinds of tea in a day so... they can't really be blamed.
It's sad and i won't say on the off chance that you might watch it one day but yeah, it sucks and it hurt my heart and it felt entirely unnecessary. Also it fucks with the whole central dynamic of the show.
Mothers.
Fuckers.
I wish writers would fuck with my stories. And yes, they are my stories.
Feck. Typo central.
"Mother" not "Mothers"
and
"I wish writers wouldn't fuck with my stories."
Damn my upset affecting my typing skills.
And yet I still think they invade my personal space too much. I'm such a grump :) Are you on your own through the day or is there usually someone around? Also, tell me about the different kinds of tea. I'm fascinated :)
Ps. I like that you care so much about your shows.
Tea and Rich Tea biscuits. Because that's all I have and I'm too lazy to go to the shops :)
One of my desk buddies brought in cinnamon blondies today :)
Blondies confuse me. I've only ever had one, my sister made it and it was white chocolate and peanut butter flavoured. So sickly and not in the good way like my peanut butter and cranberry granola bars. Now they were the shit and i can't ever make them again because goddamn, they'll give you heart disease.
Do you make anything? Aside from pancakes, i already know you're the master of the pancake :)
I've occasionally made vanilla cupcakes. The easiest, most boring cupcakes ever made by anyone in the history of the world but I made them dammit :)
Peanut butter and cranberry granola bars. I think you're right. They would probably kill me. Not that I would even give a second thought to eating them if you made some :)
That's a dangerous stance to take on a girl's baking, my friend. Especially a girl who's not exactly good at it! For example: the raspberry slice i made during the crazy period in my life where i thought i was allergic to refined sugar. For the raspberry section i didn't use jam, oh no, it's all sugar! Instead, i just mashed up a bunch of raspberries - very bitter ones may i add - and smooshed that inside the floury, oaty mess i'd made.
I am not to be trusted in the kitchen. It's a small miracle i can make bread.
Holy fuck, i want a vanilla cupcake. Could we survive on pancakes, bread and cupcakes? I can grill bacon too, if that helps?
You went without sugar?! Did that mean no sweets?!
Please could we put the bacon on the bread? Also on the pancakes too. Bacon goes so well with everything :)
I know, it was a terrible few months, i was miserable and much meaner, if you can imagine and i missed out on Chocolate Guinness Cake and multiple birthday cakes! The. Horror.
I was probably much healthier though but fuck it, sugar's wondrous.
But so's bacon. Luckily i've never given up bacon. That would be even crazier.
In Sleepy Hollow, Ichabod Crane eats a Maple Bacon Bourbon doughnut. To me, that sounds foul. Your thoughts?
Well, I don't like bourbon. But I like doughnuts. And I love bacon and maple syrup in pancakes. I don't know. Maybe if you took out the bourbon.
When did you have Chocolate Guinness Cake? Is that even a thing?
We could always imagine that they actually mean the biscuit and not the drink? That could work? Bourbons are awesome. Speaking of which, if you happen to come across one of these in Tesco:
http://www.tesco.com/groceries/product/details/?id=288136554
Buy six. And possibly some ice cream to crumble it over. And syrup. You may choose the flavour.
Chocolate Guinness Cake is indeed a thing:
https://www.nigella.com/recipes/chocolate-guinness-cake
And it's fucking wondrous. My sister made it and i just kinda stared at it longingly until the last crumb was gone. She's never made another 0_0
Maggot! Have you really done that with giant bourbon biscuits? :D
I think you must have made some kind of unspeakable deal to be fed Chocolate Guinness Cake. Even once.
No deal, just my unfailing adorableness.
...
Yeah, i'm full of bullshit. She just decided to make it and i'm lucky enough to be her sister and posses the ability to make hungry cartoon sounds to get what i want. A bit like this:
https://youtu.be/IoyvZuZXDDw
Sans regurgitation, of course.
I didn't actually expect to like it because it's kind of like boozy devil's food cake but even darker. Bleh. I do not believe in chocolate sponge or ganache. Waaaaay to rich for my bloody. And yet, if i was a real beast i would have face-planted in that wondrous creation.
Well, Stitch is fairly adorable. If that's how you behave, I would definitely give you cake :)
How are your Halloween preparations going?
If by "preparations" you mean waiting for the 31st to rock up and hope someone's bought me candy? Then it's going splendidly!
I bought one of those Swizzel Halloween buckets :)
Hah! I love that it's a bucket. Not a bag, oh no, that's enough. Dexterous needs a bucket!
It was on offer :)
'Hopeless' by Psychic Twin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSFkkA71n3s
Oh yeah, that's totally the reason you bought a bucket of sugar.
...
Beast.
I'd share the contents with you. Except the fizzers. And the double lollies. And the refreshers :)
I'm on holiday for the rest of the week. Tell me, how do you not waste time? Because that's all I do.
So, all the good stuff. Way harsh, Dex.
"Tell me, how do you not waste time? Because that's all I do."
You think i do things? Wherever did you get this idea from? I'm as lazy and feckless as they come, my friend. I'm constantly making To Do lists and almost always fail to finish them =/
Yeah, I think you do things :)
I spent the whole day watching the second series of Penny Dreadful.
In my book, that's a day extremely well spent. The final season's out and i'm having to apply superhuman will to not buy it. I've got to make it last as long as possible :(
A run down of my today, to prove you wrong:
1:20pm shower
2:20pm marvel at how fucking long i took performing afternoon ablutions, turn on Arrow, commence second stage of becoming a human being
4:30pm lunch (don't ask why it takes me so long to get ready, i don't even know)
4:45pm tidy up after my extremely messy parents
6pm check emails and stuff, usually tumblr
6:30pm pre-dinner drink with family, i don't drink, i play cards
7pm dinner
7:30pm dishes
8pm watch the last ever Great British Bake Off
9pm switch to random puppy program to cheer Em and I up after the finale
11pm tea
11:30pm onwards devour tv (currently Gilmore Girls, Hemlock Grove, The Walking Dead, Girls) and surf the net
2am/2:30am wash face
3am eat dessert and watch my stories (this time is reserved for tv i'll give my full attention and dessert just tastes better at this time)
4am read
4:30am sleep
1pm repeat
=/
My life is sad.
I really liked reading that. Kind of the same way I like reading lists :)
I hope you don't mind me saying that it doesn't read like a waste of time. But I know that it's only how you feel about it that matters. In my head, I sometimes like to rate my days. Because I'm a crazy person :)
Your days seem very well ordered, Lilliputty. I like that a lot. Although I guess the both of us could do with something more in our lives :S
If it makes you feel any better, it takes me about an hour to get ready in the morning. And I still leave the house looking like crap.
What card games do you play? And what does your family drink?
I do enjoy the order of it all, it plays nicely into my obsessive need for control but i get so fecking anxious when that routine is disturbed, it knocks me for the entire day. It'd be nice to just go with what comes along for a change, y'know? Are you like that?
Em usually drinks cloudy lemonade (Tesco's own brand, it's nice), on occasion with a decent level of gin, my mum will opt for tonic water/hot scotch/red wine and my dad's a whole range of things: ginger beer, foreign beer, tonic water, red wine, pink lemonade, diet coke.
I don't like to drink before dinner, my stomach must be small because i can't really put a lot in there without feeling uncomfortable and if i drink i don't enjoy dinner as much. And it's my favourite meal of the day. Em's a damn fine cook.
This is why i play cards and my game of choice is Patience. Mostly because i don't know any other single player games =/ I use real cards though, none of this digital bullshit. My dad's always asking why i don't play on my iPad and i can't quite get him to understand that it's just not the same on a screen. It's same as why i'm not pro-ebook. I'm not against them, each to their own and all but i feel like i'm not really participating when i'm not physically holding the story/game. I dread the day there's no choice between physical and digital.
How's the week off going?
So Emily is a good cook as well as being supremely crafty :) And isn't your eldest sister an amazing baker (I'm guess she makes dessert)? Not to mention you and your breadmaking abilities. Damn all of you and your skills :)
I don't deal well with anything unexpected. Phone calls, visitors, things not working properly, lateness. Anything.
Do you have a special pack of cards that you use all the time? Or does it not really matter? Ugh, I haven't played cards in so long. I used to play all the time in primary and high school (although I don't think I ever knew the proper names for any of the games). Chess too. Actually, I was slightly obsessed with chess in my late teens, reading about the history and things like that. I used to do something unforgiveably geeky in that I'd recreate famous games on my board. Never got any better at it though :S
My dad is obsessed with playing Freecell (on the computer). I wouldn't like to think how many games of it he's played. I don't even know the rules. I'm guessing it's just a variation on Patience.
When I was growing up, we had (and still have) these 2 books of board games which my family used to play all the time. I think they were all just dice and counter type games. Oh, they're on Amazon :)
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Brian-Love/e/B001KIXYEU/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1
Sorry, I got so into talking about games I forgot to tell you about my days off. Well, hopefully my Halloween films will arrive today (I decided on The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Dawn of the Dead - the originals, of course - and Suspiria, so I'll probably watch those today or tomorrow. Other than that, I haven't been out, except to the shops for food. I am going out just now though. To Mareel. For a drink. An early drink. So I can get home early and watch films :)
Archer is so addictive :)
I'd forgotten just how creepy the original Texas Chain Saw Massacre is. And the blu-ray transfer is pretty amazing too :)
2 weeks until my parents come home. I'm living on bread and honey at the moment.
I forgot to say happy Halloween yesterday, Lilliputty :)
Charlie looks even more terrifying on Halloween!
I bought belgian chocolate shortbread from the supermarket today. That was my dinner :)
10.30 on a Friday night and I'm in bed with my laptop. I'm so uncool :)
Happy bonfire night, Maggot. Hope you light some sparklers :)
I was re-reading 'All My Friends Are Superheroes' this weekend. It's such a lovely book.
Mareel are putting on a Ghibli season this month. They're showing Totoro, Howl and Spirited Away :)
Westerloch had its bonfire last night (the weather was too bad on the 5th) And people have been letting of fireworks for the last few days. There used to be a big firework display at Clickimin but they don't do that anymore. Aren't you glad that I keep you up to date with these things? :)
Haha, Charles :)
Someone brought me a slice of malteser tray bake from the College canteen today. It was damn good :)
Why is food bought for you by other people so much better than self-bought food? And does your office just constantly try and give you a sugar high?
I think they're trying to kill me.
Malteser tray bake's not a bad way to go though?
It might not read too well in the obituary :)
So I watched the first 2 episodes of Stranger Things yesterday :)
I think I may go and watch Spirited Away at Mareel tomorrow. I've pretty much been ordered to take some annual leave this week.
So I actually did go and see Spirited Away this evening. It was in screen 2 which is smaller and more comfortable, and there were only 6 people including myself, so it was good (but fuck do they show a lot of adverts and trailers these days). When I went to buy my ticket and the girl asked me which seat I wanted, I asked her to see where other people were sitting and to put me as far away from them as possible. And she did. I had the entire row to myself and no one in front of me :)
Hmm, I'm debating now whether or not to go and see Howl's Moving Castle next Tuesday.
I do not wish to live in a world where there's deliberation over whether to see any of Miyazaki's movies on the big screen. No no no. I so envy your access to a movie theatre -_- I'm desperate to see Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them but it's too damn inconvenient to go. Harumph. I'll just have to cannonball the Potter movies until FBaWtFT comes out on BluRay.
I wish you could come with me.
I demand popcorn. Sweet and salty!
You shall have all the popcorn.
I had a freshly baked biscuit today. It had chocolate chips.
Is this what happens when you go outside? Do you get all the yummy food? What i would give for a Chocolate Frappucino and a chocolate panettone 0_0
Yes, but I'm not sure that it's worth it. Maybe some days :)
Are you okay, Maggot? I'm sorry I don't ask more often but I doubt you'd want me to anyway :) Trying not to sound creepy(!) but I always think about you (mainly because I like using your knowledge of all things cultural to impress people) and, try not to vomit, I still love and care about you very much - well, as much love and care as a sycophantic sociopath like myself is capable of :)
Hmm, I'm trying to think of news... Well, 2 of my desk buddies at work have been promoted. They'll still be in the same office but doing different jobs. Also, our post got re-evaluated and came out at exactly the same pay grade so my remaining desk buddies are feeling undervalued and talking of looking for new jobs. I'm not too thrilled about it but only because we've become quite a close-knit team over the last year. But I'm sure things will work themselves out :)
I haven't seen any more of Stranger Things. I don't have Netflix so I watched the first couple of episodes at someone's house so I'm not sure when I'll get to see the rest.
And it's almost Christmas :) We're going to the Steakhouse for our office Christmas party on 16 December. I hope it's not a drink-fuelled disaster like last time. I'll just imagine your disapproving look if I feel like I'm on the verge of making a fool of myself again :)
I forgot to mention that we had our first snow last week :)
Also, I didn't even know there was such a thing as a Chocolate Frappucino!
What do you think about Christmas cake, Lilliputty? I have to tell you that it is one of my least favourite things.
I love Christmas cake. Especially Emily's Christmas cake which is currently sitting in a booze-soaked state in the kitchen :D No one should ever drive after having eaten some. Crashing cars is inevitable.
You're a dried fruit hater though aren't you? So it kinda makes sense...
Yes, but I hate almost everything :)
How long does Emily keep it soaked in alcohol? Is it for weeks? Sorry, I know almost nothing about anything :)
You feed it brandy once a week for a month and it's already bathed in a fuck ton of it already. I get an alcohol high ever time the tin's opened =/
Christmas-wise, what's the thing you look forward to the most?
Being off work :)
Can you really get drunk from Christmas cake?
You most certainly can. The ratio of alcohol to cake is scary.
...
I'm full of shit, i don't actually know, i just imagine it's unwise to take a breathalyser test after you've consumed any is all =/
How much time you getting off work this year? And how much of that time will be spent catching up on all the awesome tv I've sent you over the years? :)
Speaking of which, what did you think of Stranger Things? (negative reviews are expressly forboden)
I think it's about 10 days. And hopefully it will include plenty of tv watching. I don't have any other plans :)
It's difficult to judge a series on 2 episode but what I've seen, I've liked. I especially love the theme tune :)
How about you, Lilliputty? What are you looking forward to this Christmas?
Someone brought Christmas into work last week. I like to think the ones who had some were getting drunk without realising it :)
I'm a total brat when it comes to Christmas, i want all the presents and all the food, especially the stuffing and roast potatoes. Good god, does my mum and sister make an epic Christmas dinner, it's my favourite meal of the year and it's officially only a month away.
...
Fuck =/
The person opposite me at work has already started singing Christmas songs. It's very distressing.
Stuffing is magical :)
You must stop the singing person. You must, it's the humane thing to do.
Bathroom Culture by AVAVA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2vV4cwE7gk
Washington Moon by Globelamp
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjPNJo_wdkA
We had a roast tonight. I fucking love yorkshire pudding :)
I had a couple of genuinely nice alcoholic drinks last Friday. I had a raspberry mojito and a hazelnut russian (which I think was a white russian with hazelnut syrup - it tasted like dessert). They were quite expensive though. I think I was paying for them to hide the taste of the alcohol :)
Ps. I can never quite believe the number of books you manage to devour :)
It's never too early for Wes Anderson :)
Do you know what I really like? When someone releases a very high quality blu-ray edition of a film I love :)
So, decorations up yet, Maggot? :)
Hmm, I might to some Christmas shopping this weekend. Y'know, I always look too closely into things before I buy them for myself. I hate buying something and then not liking it. I'll do almost anything to avoid that feeling. It's probably why I miss out on so much.
Do you know what I sometimes do? Buy travel guides to places so I can plan what to do if I ever go there. I'm ridiculous :)
Did I tell you I get next week off too? The week of the film quiz, the Mareel party and the HR party. So I'm going to be very sociable too :(
Just 3 more days. For work, it's the worst time of the month at the worst time of the year, but if I can just get through it...
Ugh, i hate when i go incommunicado, it makes me feel like the shittiest of friends. Damn birthday prep/birthdays/birthday hangovers taking me away from my beloved interweb.
Three days? How many days off in total are you getting?
Okay, few things:
1) I told the sisterlings about the Hazelnut Russian and the looks they gave me were off pure alcoholic lust. I do believe a new drink has been added to the Boyd family's roster. Much obliged, Dexterous :)
2) What movie on Blu-ray?
3) The decorations go up sometime this week, which is early for us but my dad made a specific request. I think he's in need of some fairy light-based cheer. Do you decorate in the Eva homestead?
4) I cannot stop thinking about Christmas food. And it's all tiny. I'd murder a bitch for a pig in a blanket or even a humble sausage roll! 0_0 I think i'm always hungry...
How're things in the land of Dexterous? You seem awfully social these days. And i mean awful :)
Don't worry about it, Lilliputty. I'm not the kind to disappear. I'm just sorry to leave you so many uninteresting messages. I wish I had better things to tell you.
Well, I'm off the whole of next week, back at work for a week, then off again for Christmas and New Year :) So I'll be being awfully(!) social next week but that's like one week of the year. And it hasn't even happened yet. Maybe I won't even go. Or I'll go and be my usual, awkward self. So don't you judge me :) I could get used to going out occasionally for cocktails though. They were very, very good. You have to tell me if you or your sisters get around to making a hazelnut russian.
I was just thinking of movies in general. I wish more of my favourite films got better releases on blu-ray.
I can't stop thinking of Christmas food either. It's probably the one thing I'm not dreading about the staff night out. We're quite unChristmassy here but we'll probably put up some decorations and we'll definitely have Christmas dinner. Christmas trimmings are the best :)
I am slightly (very) jealous of your birthdays and Christmas preparations. You seem to do things so well even if it is stressful.
I forgot to say that I've finally got a proper phone rather than the antiquated piece of junk that functions mainly as my alarm clock :)
Made it. Week off :)
I hope Emily does another 12 days of Christmas this year :)
As far as i know she's doing the 12 Days this year but we're both so busy right now that there's a chance she might not get it done in time. She probably will though, she's incredibly stubborn. I hope so because even though i'm around when she's choosing stuff for the lists and occasionally get to veto things i still look forward to the whole thing going up.
Okay, so i suck this year for some reason, time has completely gotten away from me and i haven't even started on gift-getting for you yet so your yearly box may not be as awesome as previous years but it will get to you. Pinky swear. Please don't hate me if it's rubbish 0_0
Also, i'm about to send you an email with my home address because the rentals started working less year - they are so underfoot at home it's driving me nuts! - so they won't be at the practice to receive my box.
...
If you send me glitter bombs in the post i will end you <_<
Thanks Lilliputty. I feel special :) Actually, it worked out really well because I'd just ordered some stuff from Amazon to be sent to you directly so I was in time to change the address :)
You don't need to worry about getting me anything. I've probably got several Christmas' worth of tv still to get through anyway :) I've been really sucky at buying presents this year too. I'm very sorry if I've sent you anything that you've already got.
Is it really odd that I google mapped your address because I wanted to see what it looked like? Very Halloween suburban horror story. I love it :)
I ate something terrible today and it made me ill. When will I learn to only stick to sweets and desserts? My body rejects almost everything else :)
Triple chocolate shortbread. Nom :)
I need to psych myself up for tomorrow and Friday. I wish I could just stay home.
Trying to make myself look presentable for going out. Ugh, I'm so untidy.
Embrace the scruff, dearest. Hobo chic never goes out of style... i hope.
Okay, dearest, i've had to be extremely lazy because i'm so fecking busy right now and send you presents through Amazon. You should get them on Monday. And i'll try my best to get your yearly mix to you but goddammit, Christmas is running me ragged this year 0_0
Aw, you really didn't need to, Maggot. Anyway, sending stuff to you through Amazon is exactly what I did :) Did you get them yet?
I survived the night and did so much better than last year. I didn't drink too much, didn't feel like I embarrassed myself with anyone, and arrived home at a sensible hour :)
Is it weird to say i'm proud of you? You're so much better at this socialising malarky than i'll ever be 0_0
Thanks Maggot. I did feel slightly like I was just going through the motions :)
That's just a symptom of our social awkwardness i'm afraid. Maybe for us it's about accepting that we don't really enjoy gatherings and whatnot but that's okay as long as we participate to a point we're comfortable with? Although if that's true i'll never make it past the front door =/
Drink anything fancy?
Ps. Just ate my second one of these:
http://www.waitrose.com/shop/DisplayProductFlyout?productId=136158
...god damn.
Well, Lilliputty, as far as I'm concerned, it's the outside world that's missing out on you.
Nothing fancy to drink, I'm afraid. Although someone did make some jelly shots which were fairly disgusting :)
Are you just taunting me because you know I can't get those waffles up here? :)
Hi Maggot. I think that's the stuff from Amazon arrived today :)
Awesome. Yours arrived last week i think? I forgot to say but would you expect anything less from the unorganised disaster you've befriended? Speaking of which, your mix is gonna be a new year thing =/ Sorry about that, m'dear, normally i can get everything done just under the wire but the wire was too fucking low this year! Harumph.
How's your time off going? More relaxed than mine i'm guessing? T. S. Eliot said that "April is the cruellest month"... he lied, it's December 0_0
You don't need to be sorry, Lilliputty. You're a good friend. Or, at least, a reasonable approximation of one :)
You sound like you've been awfully busy. I hope that means that you've gotten all the business out of way so you can enjoy a relaxing Christmas :)
I'm actually back at work for this week and then off from 24/12/16 - 03/01/17. Can't wait :)
Don't worry, Lilliputty. I'd wait a lifetime for another one of your mixes. They're awesome :D
I do on occasion worry that i'm just foisting music you won't necessarily like on you instead of figuring out what you will like? But that lasts for about a minute and i'm back to being okay with musically educating you :)
I sure could use the education :)
I'm so hungry! Have you got any Christmas food on the go yet? :)
My mum "force fed" me sausage stuffing this afternoon. One of the greatest food stuffs ever created. I fully expect to be happily nauseous tomorrow 0_0
Merry Christmas, Lilliputty. Try not to throw up :)
Hi Lilliputty. Thank you so much for my presents. You always know what to buy me even when you don't have time to think :) The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man is staring at me right now!
In fact, I think it's so unfair. Y'know, in the last 4 years, I've completely exhausted the depths of my knowledge of interesting things just to try and keep up. I now have absolutely nothing left to offer. I'm just a shell of a sub-human creature :)
But you. You're still paddling about in the shallow end :)
Ps. I'm so excited that Emily is doing her 12 days :)
It's because i'm a willing slave to the arts, m'dear, rolling around in stories is my happy place! Saying that however, i don't know what you're talking about because i opened my parcel and proceeded to do a little happy dance...
Merry Christmas by the way :) Sorry i'm late, extreme exhaustion, stuffing my face and being a functioning member of my family took completely over!
Did you have a good Christmas? Mine was nice. Tiring and emotionally draining but nice. And yes, i felt very nauseas by the end of it 0_0
We bought each other manga :D
Y'know, if I hadn't met you, I wouldn't have known about most of the things I've sent over these last few years :)
I'm so glad you had a nice Christmas, Maggot. I know things have been bit stressful recently and you really deserved a nice day. Feel free to tell me about the food :)
Hi Lilliputty. Did you have any alcohol over Christmas? Not including Christmas Cake :)
I love those book covers for films that Emily blogged today :)
You know what I've been wearing over Christmas? The Die Hard 'Ho Ho Ho' jumper you bought me one year :)
Happy New Year, Lilliputty!
I hope today wasn't as tiring as Christmas.
Ugh, tomorrow is my last day before I have to go back to work. I'm going to the shop to buy comforting junk food :)
I was just wondering Lilliputty, do you listen to any podcasts?
I think I'm going to have to start making a list of films I need to watch. It's starting to get embarrassing.
I like when Emily does tv shows for one of her 12 days :)
Hope you have a good weekend, Lilliputty. I'm re-watching Big Trouble in Little China for the zillionth time.
'Son of a bitch must pay' :)
I can't remember if I've posted this before but it's one of my favourite winter songs:
Wurlitzer Jukebox by Hydroplane
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2dUhNmXiUY
So, I was re-watching Curb Your Enthusiasm this week and I never realised before that Anton Yelchin was in an episode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DySPDmCHgw
Deadbeat bestie, reporting for duty! =/
It should be written on my tombstone "An eternal apologiser for exemplary suckage concerning human interaction."
How was going back to the daily grind? Did your heart desiccate a tad? I can't imagine having a real job and i don't want to but it'll get me someday. Ugh.
I've never been a Curb Your Enthusiasm fan, i'm an Arrested Development groupie but goddamn, tiny Anton Yelchin is adorable. It genuinely hurts my heart what happened to him and it was incredibly strange watching him in Star Trek on Boxing Day. How can he be there and then not? Not to mention all the other casualties of 2016. What the fuck was going on last year? Practically every day for a while i was asking Em if anybody had kicked it (she reads the news whereas i've sworn off the miseryfest). And how dare they take Princess Leia and her most excellent mother from us? I'm with Em, fuck 2016.
I forgot to say how much i love the Donnie Darko special edition :) It's so pretty it hurts.
Ps. I don't listen to Podcasts because i'm exceptionally lazy and easily distracted 0_0 I was watching HawkTalk for a while but i dunno, i lack stamina for listening to people like that. It's why i'm not a radio person =/
You know you have nothing to apologise for, Lilliputty. Message me whenever :)
Can't say I was too happy about going back to work. But I was pretty grumpy over Christmas too. I'm very hard to please :)
I love my presents too :) You want to know something shocking? I've never even watched Donnie Darko!
Ps. I hope 2017 is better
Hmm, I kinda miss snow.
Do you think that you and I have quite different tastes in the kinds of comedy we watch? Actually, I like to think we both enjoy very different things with frequent, happy crossovers :)
If you want my advice, get a job where you don't have to deal with people. Because people suck :)
Arrested Development is one of those shows I keep meaning to watch. Along with It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia.
It finally snowed. Not much, but it's here at least.
It's been practically biblical here. I looked outside at about 4am a couple of days ago and everything was glowing orange while the wind beat the falling snow across the town. Not quite as pretty when the wind is calm but nonetheless, quite a sight to see.
I wish it snowed more here.
Red Sea by Asobi Seksu
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ShtyCt8yjmU
Lions & Tigers by Asobi Seksu
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kB2m58WWAqU
Blue Thunder by Galaxie 500
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFkG6vD2nxk
Hey. I've thought of a really pointless question. What kind of supermarket do you have in Blair? :)
Space Song by Beach House
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBtlPT23PTM
'Lie in the Sound' by Trespassers William
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fr4UkqK3Jy8
Sorry, I know you've heard all these songs. I'm just going over all my old music at the moment :)
I loved Emily's 12 days this year :)
I'm glad to see Charles is keeping well :)
Good Omens. They should definitely go to you for casting ideas :)
Passionate Introverts (Live) by A Sunny Day in Glasgow (for some reason, I just really like this live performance)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rW_9N6NtfOs
I'm not sure i'd be great at the actual casting but i'd be a Class A dismisser. Someone suggested Idris Elba as Crowley to Gaiman on tumblr and as much as i love The Elba, he's so not right. In my head i always see Crowley as Aiden Turner-esque but snakier... if you know what i mean? Turner's a bit too pretty but Crowley should be obscenely good-looking with an air of, well, devilishness. This is why he's so damn hard to cast. Same goes for Aziraphale. My mum suggested Michael Fassbender but i've got the opposite problem with him because he's too feral-looking whereas Aziraphale should be an innocent and look it too. Ughhhhhhhhhh! I'll never be happy. You got any ideas?
Me? No. Maybe if it were made in the 80s or 90s I may have had some suggestions.
Shoot.
I'll have a think about it. What about nationalities? Would you cope with an American Crowley?
In theory? Yes. In actuality? No, i'd pitch a fit. Unless it's an unknown actor who i don't know the nationality of and who can nail a classic British accent.
But you never know, which American are you thinking of? For some reason my brain thinks you're thinking of Christian Slater...
Actually, no. He never even crossed my mind. I think I'll stick to British. What kind of age range are you thinking for both?
Speaking of Mr Slater, Heathers is a film I really need to see.
You haven't seen Heathers yet? Christ, Dex, you've had 30 years already! (she says knowing full well there are thousands upon thousands of classic movies she's yet to see).
Age-wise i reckon i've always pictured them in their early 30s but Aziraphale's should come across as older because he's a bit of a fuddy-duddy?
If the film was made in the 90s, just after the book came out, what would you think about Branagh as Aziraphale?
We have the same brain. If only Branagh was still young. Any thoughts for Crowley?
Ugh, that's really difficult. Maybe a young Jason Isaacs?
Anchor by Trespassers William
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLSjYkeKggE
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