I really hate the feeling of having so much to do that, even if you are working through the list, it never feels like anything is actually getting done. Does anyone else ever feel like that? Please tell me I am not alone! The mountain that is my schoolwork appears never-ending to me today and it’s definitely got me in a bit of a glum mood. I need to snap out of it, and I will, but the wave of anxiety over it hasn’t quite passed yet.

With the aim of helping me to practice written French, I’ve created a blog over at Blogspot just for that purpose. I haven’t begun posting in it yet because I only decided to do it yesterday, but I’m planning a few posts that should be up within the next couple of days. I think it’ll be a fun way for me to learn, and hopefully others will get something out of it too, because I’ll be explaining grammar rules, sharing vocabulary and maybe even interesting facts about French and France, as I learn them. I’ll be sure to post a link to the blog when there is actually stuff there to read.

On a completely different subject, something that makes me giggle is that a movie as awful as Twilight: New Moon (I still think Bella looks permanently constipated) can have at least two incredibly awesome songs on its soundtrack. ‘Rosilyn’ by Bon Iver & St. Vincent and ‘Meet Me on the Equinox’ by Death Cab For Cutie. A part of me is slightly repulsed those songs were asked to feature because I love the artists on their own and kind of wish they weren’t associated with such stupidity. But, don’t get me wrong, this is not something I think about often. In fact it was only just before that I realised both songs are on that soundtrack, and then the wave of nausea struck (ok, exaggerating here, ).

I’m going to be doing a little giveaway soon, so stay tuned!

I hope you all had a fantastic Easter weekend, hopefully with some time off from work/school! I definitely had a very enjoyable one and feel incredibly refreshed from it, apart from finally catching the cold that’s been going around. I spent the weekend, from Thursday evening until Monday afternoon, house-sitting for my brother and his partner. My boyfriend joined me on the Friday afternoon, but on Thursday night I had a sleepover with my four-year-old nephew, Romeo. He is awesome and we had loads of run watching cartoons in bed and eating popcorn. He thought it was brilliant that he got to watch Handy Manny right on bedtime, then Whinnie the Pooh. Handy Manny is actually a pretty cute kids show, and of course I can’t pass up Pooh Bear!

Friday morning Romeo and I awoke to discover one of the goldfish at my brother’s house had gotten its tail caught in the filter. I managed to free him but he was too injured and/or shocked and didn’t survive. I felt awful about it (duh – I was there less than 24 hours and already killed a fish!), but my brother said that it’s happened a couple of time before, so I didn’t feel it was quite so much my fault. Later in the morning Romeo went home and I chilled out watching a bit of TV before showering, and then Josh showed up.

We spent the rest of the day hanging out, watching TV, and then I made my first ever roast dinner, on my own. Roast beef with potatoes, Yorkshire puddings and gravy (made from scratch, I might add). It turned out pretty good, for a first attempt. I always hear about roasts being a super-easy meal to make, once you get the hang of it. I have so many fond memories of delicious roast dinners, including from when I was vegan (yeah, vegans can have yummy roasts too!), so perfecting them is something I really want to do. Possibly also because I have a huge soft spot (directly on my hips, I might add) for Yorkshire puddings and gravy. Nevermind anything else, just give me the puds and gravy! Hehe.

On Saturday Josh and I celebrated his birthday, which was actually not until Monday, but seeing as how he had to go home on Monday we decided it’d be easier to do it on the Saturday. Plus, we weren’t sure what would and wouldn’t be open on Eastern Sunday (not much, as it turns out). I took him to the movies, where we saw How To Train Your Dragon. It’s loosely based on some books Josh had read so he really wanted to go, and I gotta say, it was freakin’ awesome. I loved the storyline! It’s very different from the book, apparently, but Josh still reckons it was great. Plus, there are dragons, and they are cool. On a technical note, not that I know much about graphics, but I thought the animation was high quality. You know how back in the day you’d see animated movies and the characters’ hair looked totally…fake? Yeah well, the hair in this movie was fantastic. Obviously computer generated, but still worlds better than, say, Toy Story.

After the movie we went out for Indian food to Raviz. We ordered the banquet for two and got a yummy entree with samosas, chicken tikka, deep fried onion rings and seekh kebabs, plus dipping sauces (tamarind sauce is my fave). The main was a selection of meats: butter chicken, beef korma, rogan josh and vegetable of the day, with rice, two types of naan and sauces. It was a total feast and super yummy. I’m definitely planning on going back, but I’ll be leaving room for dessert.

Sunday was pretty chilled. I woke up sneezing though. Initially I thought it was just allergies, but by the late evening I was feeling pretty crappy. For lunch that day we went to my house for a family lunch. I stuffed myself full of just about everything and lived to regret it later on. I should have seen it as a warning sign because generally I want to eat loads when I have a cold. Josh and I were both pretty tired by early afternoon so we went back to my brother’s and I napped for a bit.

I didn’t have a great sleep that night and my throat was killing me throughout, so I woke up on Monday not the best. It was Josh’s birthday though, and we had to pack our things up for when my brother and his family got home later that day, so I banished feeling sick until later. Between chores we watched TV and cuddled and I sneezed and blew my nose a lot. I really hope I don’t give Josh this cold because he’s just got over one himself, really.

My goodness, this is a much longer post than I had planned! But I did want to document this weekend because I had such a lovely time. It was the beginning of my mid-semester break and I gave myself that weekend off completely from all university stuff. It was about recharging and spending quality time with my guy, celebrating his birthday and having fun, all of which I/we accomplished!

I shall leave you with a few photos of various things from the weekend. ♥

My niece Persia’s nickname is Rabbit (she used to bounce on her knees from a young age), so my mum got her this bunny puppet for Easter.

I picked up this dress from The Warehouse today. Love, love, love!

Close-up of the neckline. I love the pleats.

This isn’t really a proper post, but I just wanted to post and say I’m still alive! I really haven’t had much blogging inspiration lately, probably because I’m so busy during the day, don’t get home until 7 most nights, and have homework. C’est la vie!

Anyway, today my boyfriend and I went to see Alice in Wonderland for our fifth month anniversary. We both enjoyed it a lot! I’d heard so many mixed reviews that I wasn’t entirely sure whether I would like it or not, despite being a general fan of Tim Burton’s work. I tried to go in there with an open mind though, and I was definitely very pleased with the film. The imagery was wonderful, as to be expected. The whole thing was brilliantly whimsical (with a dark, Burton twist, of course) which is so very appropriate for a Lewis Carroll story.

Have a great weekend!

After months of letting it do its thing, I finally got my hair cut today. Over summer I don’t like to have a fringe because I find that I get too hot and it sticks to my forehead or just bugs me, but now that it’s starting to kind of cool down I decided to get the fringe back.

Last Sunday my guy and I went to see Lady Gaga. It was quite enjoyable despite our horrible seats. She really put on a great show and I was most pleased with having gone. I didn’t really get her when she first appeared on the international music scene, and it’s really only been over the last six months that I’ve been coming to the conclusion she’s not actually a useless over-commercialised, untallented idiot. She actually writes her songs, plays instruments and, as I was witness to it, can sing (very well, actually). While dancing almost continuously, I might add, which is incredibly difficult (trust me, I’ve tried doing it while home alone and it’s pretty freakin’ exhausting). So, basically, I love her now. And I can’t stop listening to her albums, either. She’s the first woman I’ve seen live, too, which is kind of cool, I think.

Anyway, this week has been pretty busy at university, but it’s going to get much busier over the coming weeks. I have mid-terms coming up and assignments to start/finish, etc. To keep my sanity I’ve been reading for leisure daily, but I don’t get to do much in terms of hobbies (i.e. finish crocheting fingerless gloves) and that makes me feel a bit off. Luckily I don’t have much time to think about it.

I shall leave you with a little What I Wore Today thing. I don’t do this nearly as much as I should, but now that I have a decent camera on my phone I think I’ll be more inclined to, haha.

Top from Glassons.
Skirt made by me from a New Look pattern.
Black pantyhose.
Not pictured are the black ballet flats and the black cardigan with pink ribbon detail.

I love the pockets on the skirt because they are so super-handy!

I don’t think my weekend could get any lazier, even if I tried really hard for it to. It started Friday morning (I have that day off uni) and has continued ever since, despite my to-do list lurking in the back of my mind and making me feel periodically guilty. Sort of. Mostly I don’t really care though because I bought a new cell phone this morning and have been playing with it pretty much ever since. It’s a black Nokia 5800 XpressMusic and pretty much the greatest thing ever. I feel technologically up-to-date now, especially since my old phone was bought it 2006 and definitely looks (and operates like) it!

So aside from sitting on my butt overdosing on Internet and cell phone, I’ve been out to the supermarket with the boy twice (once yesterday and once today), to the beach and drove around with him also. Yeah, we have exciting lives! It’s been nice though.

Tomorrow night we’re going to see Lady Gaga! I’m really looking forward to it; I think she’ll put on a very entertaining and artistic show. Our seats are, unfortunately, awful but as long as I can still dance myself silly, I don’t care.

I hope you’re all having a nice weekend so far! ♥

Blue is one of my favourite colours and I particularly like it when used for interiors, be it paint, wallpaper, furniture or accessories. Just gimme blue!

Credit unknown

Design Sponge Online

Rachel Whiting

Tim’s Sally

Littlebeane Boutique

Claudine Hellmuth

John W. Golden

What colours do you love?

♥

Wow, my entire post was just lost. Er, I shall now try and re-write it as best I can.

Bonjour! Yes, I am aware that I haven’t posted in something like 7 million years. This week has been super-busy with the semester starting this passed Monday so I’ve have my head in psychology, sociology, accounting and French! I’m done for the week now (yep, Fridays off, so 3-day weekend, here I come ) and I’ve got a bit of time for some blogging.

To be honest, the week didn’t start out all that well. Last weekend and until about Tuesday I had been experiencing a lot of confidence and anxiety issues which did not make for the most enjoyable time. I was actually more anxious about beginning this semester than I was about beginning my first ever semester at university! I think that is probably because I know what to expect now and I’m not going in with the naiveté I was last year. I know there is a lot of hard work involved — you don’t just how much until you experience it — and that (for me) I end up working my butt off and having bugger-all time for anything else (like hobbies). Anyway, I digress. Fortunately I managed to pull myself out the funk with the help of some lovely people, namely my boyfriend and my mum. They are the best. So, the last two days have been really quite fun.

My accounting course is about developing financial literacy, so we’re learning how to wisely manage our money, including: saving, investing, retirement saving (in NZ we have something called KiwiSaver) and that sort of thing. There isn’t heaps of reading and the textbook, Get Rich Slow by Mary Holm (who is also the lecturer), was originally written for general population consumption, so it’s non-academic and thus very straightforward to read and understand. The assignments are also looking to be very straightforward and not too time consuming.

Sociology (cultural studies and theory) may turn out to be the one with the biggest amount of reading involved. Two big textbooks, some other required readings, and lists of recommended readings which our lecturer really recommends, lol. The reality is that no one is likely to read all of it, unless this is the only course they’re doing. Fortunately sociology is not terribly difficult for me to grasp and my previous sociology course has given me some decent background knowledge. I don’t think I’d want to be taking this one if I’d never taken a sociology paper before.

Psychology (mind, brain and behaviour) is probably going to be the one I find most challenging, but that’s a good thing in the grand scheme. Maybe not so much when it’s 3am and I don’t get something, no matter how much background research I do… But oh well, that’s what tutors and lecturers are for — to bug when you don’t get stuff. Bug, bug, and bug some more if necessary. We’ve just finished the research methods lectures and next week we start the statistics ones. Oh joy… Statistics is not something I am particularly fond of but I better get used to it because it’s a huge part of psychology (and I have to take a Stage 1 paper in it if I want to major in psych, which I do).

And lastly there is French! Learning a new language is so much fun and the tutors are marvellous. I have four classes a week and two tutors (two days each) who are both lovely ladies from France, Audrey and Marion*. This week has been fairly easy but I know things will become more challenging as we progress and I look forward to it! It may be early days yet, but I think I would like to continue on with French with the goal of eventually reaching fluency. Hopefully this will be aided by actually living in France for awhile, at some point.

Ok, phew, that was a lot of get through! I think I remembered all the main points of that poor lost post.

Tomorrow I’m off to stay at my boyfriend’s place for a week or so. We get to play house for a bit, though sadly I don’t think either of us will have time to do any baking. For some reason I always think ‘playing house’ should include baking. Probably because I have a sweet tooth. Speaking of which, I had my first ever macaron yesterday (yeah, I know, nearly 22 years without ever having one before, where the hell have I been??) and HOLY SWEET THINGS it was good. It was probably the most delightful, decadent treat I’ve had in a long time. I think you should go and find a macaron and try one if you never have before!

Loves!

*Same names as two of my favourite French actresses, Audrey Tautou and Marion Cotillard!

I wish I has some exciting things to blog about but I really don’t. So far this week I have sorted out (well, I hope I have sorted out) government assistance while I’m studying*, started sewing two skirts, finished one and began two new crochet projects, and did all that while in quite serious pain (lower back). I am finally relenting and heading off to a physiotherapist today in the hopes that he might do a better job that the chiropractor I had been using.

Anyway, because I don’t have anything decent to write about here is a link to an amusing blog post about the confusing nature of fruit and vegetables. And berries. Do read!

*I swear that dealing with StudyLink is actually harder than doing my degree.

Haven’t had much blogging motivation this week and have been feeling a bit ‘off’ but I think I’m on the mend now! Despite not being the best I’ve actually managed to get quite a bit done on my to-do list, like choosing a new bag for uni. Gee, shopping is difficult…

Pretty laptop bag that makes me feel more business-like than student.

Today my mama and I went to get my textbooks and a locker for the year. I have to take my French textbook to every class, which is a pain in terms of lugging it to the class I have straight after, but nevermind. Nothing a chiropractor can’t fix, right?

Before I go, I want to share a little something with you. The other night I was going from my room to the house when I saw this little guy or girl! Cute! It stayed while I snapped a few photos and then decided the flash was evil, enough was enough, and waddled off.

Remember how I said I was getting bored of the summer break? Yeah, well now that the start of semester is just under two weeks away, I’m thinking I could do with a bit longer! Always the way, isn’t it? Nevermind, I shall live. I have two weeks to cram in stuff I’m less able to do during semester. And two weeks to prepare myself for being the World’s Greatest Time Manager and the World’s Most Organised Student (ha!).

One thing I learned from my first semester and going through exams is that it is imperative my study notes are all organised throughout semester and that I methodically work through all the material so that there is as little cramming as possible at the end of it. The worst is feeling bogged down by loads of information that’s barely making sense.

The other thing I learned was not to set myself too many tasks to do in a short space of time. I am notorious for having giant to-do lists and a ridiculous amount of time to complete it all in; it’s often just not possible to accomplish it all. Unless I suddenly turned into Super Woman or something. Doing this only ends in irritation because I become cross with myself for not completing everything. Though I would probably accomplish more if I also got a hold on the procrastination and managed my time to every minute detail. I guess, with a lot of things, I just like to take my time. I’m not one of these hyper people who rush about doing whatever it is they’re doing. I’m methodical and I find myself feeling stressed if I rush myself too much. Hrm. :/

So, 2010 will see me not procrastinating and not over-stretching my time! I vow to you, to the universe, to any potential god(s) and/or goddess(es), to my ancestors, to my future children, to…to…Twisties chips and ginger ale, to my mother and father, and most importantly, to myself. I do. I vow it whole-heartedly.

I think I should make a deal with someone that if I don’t honour this vow I should have to get all my hair cut off or something.

Anyway, time for me to get going and do a couple more things online before I ice my dad’s birthday cake (carrot). Happy birthday, Dad! Love you! ♥