December 2012

I am sure I have mentioned many a time that I have a group of eight girlfriends who mean the world to me. I love how close we are even though we have all wondered of to different universities (or countries on the planet - cough, cough) and are still so tight.

Now, one of my friends recently was in great need of girl company. So the moment she stated to us she was upset and a bit heart broken we rushed over to help. And, at one point, I caught myself and realised that my friend Laura was totally right. Even though I have never seen it, we are totally like the girls in 'Sex and the City' or 'Friends' (which of course I have seen, I have not been living the life of a hermit). I came home from Leceister and practically hurtled myself into my car, waved a friendly goodbye to my parents, sped up to Tesco, grabbed a bottle of Sparkling wine, chocolate and ice cream and sped over to her house. Other friends turned up later and we all just hugged, wept, laughed and ate. Looking back on it, it was so cliché, sooooo cliché, but we are best friends and that is what best friends do.

I know quite a few of my close friends are feeling a bit down at the moment about one thing or another (generally boys - god, you awful species :P) so I just want to say in a really soppy way, SMILE. You have your girlfriends right there you love you lots. We will always be here. :D FOOORRRREVVVEEEERRR (cue evil laugh) and that is why, my friends and I plan on getting very merry on News Year Eve :D

x
To all my girlies out there :- (including those not in my eight - like my st mags/st hildas/ family/ american girlies etc) x

 

Well hello there and a Merry Christmas to you! (Can you tell I have been re-watching Miranda?)

My Christmas was brilliant.

We drove down to Leicester, the doggies in the car - Saxon shaking like a leaf the entire way and Bonnie making peculiar noises as she had managed to grab some of the brownie Cathi had brought round the day before.

When we arrived we were greeted by two beautiful little girls in lovely dresses. It is so weird how kids and grow so much in such a short period of time. We were welcomed with Champagne and lots of Christmas decorations. It was great. Everyone asked me about my year abroad and I don't think my Dad will ever get sick of saying "Yeah her hair is totally natural...totally....NOT" Thanks, Dad. I don't what I am going to have to do to persuade him I didn't put dye in my hair...seriously, I am so lazy surely he knows that when it comes to girly things and me, I am hopeless and really can't be bothered.

Christmas day was lovely. It didn't snow, alas, like last time when we had Christmas in Leicester, but it was good fun. I got some really lovely presents - Including a Doctor Who and a Sherlock calendar (I think my family know me well). I am debating which one I should take to UCSD and which one I should leave here...maybe I will take both. Hopefully then I won't be so forgetful. Christmas dinner was yummmyyy so hats off to the chef and then I enjoyed playing with the twins for quite a long period of time. I love them to bits. They are very very cute but growing up way too fast! Can they stay little forever, pleaseeee!!!.

And then IT happened.

DOCTOR WHO.

The main even of Christmas Day. WOW.

WOW. It was phenomenal. Brilliant. Fantastic. Just amazing. Clara Oswin Oswald - the new companion played by the ever brilliant Jenna Louise Coleman is just brilliant. She is sparky, cheeky and really really kind and managed to make the Doctor believe in humanity and kindness again. Ohhhhh so much love. Oh and sneaky Steven Moffat (head writer) also dressed the Doctor up in Sherlock attire - just for the fans. Cheeky man.

Well that was my Christmas day. Lots has happened since then - hence the lack of updates - but I will update you on all of the those adventures later on.

For now, I hope your Christmases were Merry, full of food and alcohol and you all had everything you could have possibly wished for!

Staff DO.

It was excellent.

The Staff Do always is, don't see why I should ever doubt. Got to see everyone which was brilliant. My sister got very drunk on a glass of wine. It was rather hilarious. She hadn't eaten a packet of haribo, and that's it for the entire day and consequently was all over the place. She wouldn't eat her main meal and my friend Will kept telling me to watch her. I was laughing my head off as she kept saying she wanted to lie on the floor because it was cold. My friends George and Alex were being soooo helpful telling her to go and be sick in the toilet. Yep thanks for that one guys. She wasn't - just to put that out there. Meanwhile Stefan was warning me that my friend Sam, who is very much a sexual predator, was watching Becky like a hawk down the other end of the table. It was all harmless fun though and hilarious for all of us. I got to catch up with lots of people I hadn't seen and it was a fun meal. When we hit the town it was even funner. We all started pulling faces at the camera (mine got stolen for quite a bit) and drinking far more than responsible. We got ushered into Oceana on the special waitlist and before we knew it, it was 3am and time to head home. It was fun being back in clubs and being of age to drink. More to the point though, I have missed my work crew. I think eleven of us went out clubbing after the meal. It was nice to be part of such a nice group.


Today was also brilliant. My friend Bobby from UCSD came to visit and I had a kinda Xmas movie day at mine. However, I should know whenever I say movie day and my friends...yeah it never works. We end up chatting for hours and hours. It was so much fun though. My Mum fully plugged us with food and champagne (Oh yes, she cracked open the champagne for my mates and me). We all chatted and gossiped and even though only a few of my crew could come it was still so enjoyable. We introduced Bobby and Stefan into our girly happenings and much of it included embarrassing me about a certain someone and playing the ukulele. It was a brilliant day however I am very stuffed now.

It's been a brilliant run up to the big day. You know. December 25th. New episode of Doctor Who.


Oh sorry, and it's Christmas of course. That big day too. Big run up to that big day. I just hope the next few days go as smoothly and happily :D x

Having not been able to drink in quite a while (21 age limit, remember?) I knew that I might be somewhat of a light weight when I returned to England. Plus if I were to consume such alcohol without having had any substantial food...I might be in slight trouble.

The staff do was lovely. I turned up to the red lion and lots of people were already there and we sat down for drinks. Mary's Mum very nicely bought Mary and I a bottle of wine and we set about drinking, laughing and catching up. Everyone asked me about America and how it was going and then we started exchanging stories about how we found how Santa Clause wasn't...well um, I'll pause there incase I have any younger readers (who are you Alaskan reader??? Please tell me!)

I got to see Cyndy, if only very briefly, but I got to see her. I have missed her so much. She is a gem. My second Mum. I wish I could have seen her more so I am going to write to her and ask if she wants to meet up for coffee/TEA.

Chris, my other boss, kept filling up our wine glasses even when we said no! Which was rather funny. Then Sam turned up and was his usual Sam self. Before I knew it I had to go home to dinner and Grandma had brought champagne to celebrate me coming home. Mum says she knew I had had a bit to drink because I didn't really touch the champagne (sorry Grandma).

We sat down to eat and apparently Becky got in a strop about something I was doing and Mum told me later I was literally doing nothing but Becky thought I was mad at her for something, so she stormed of. We finished dinner and I went to the loo. Thirty minutes later Mum came and knocked on the loo to realise I had fallen fast asleep. I got up, came out and Mum burst out laughing saying "I think you should go to bed now Liss,"
I promptly replied,
"I will once I have dinner."
Mum and Grandma then cracked up laughing telling me I had dinner and then I promptly whisked myself of to bed thinking I'd definitely had enough.
Oh dear. Oh dear.
I still don't remember a single thing about that dinner, let alone Becky thinking I was mad with her because how would I know? Mum said I wasn't even showing I was that drunk, I was pleasantly chatting!
Oh dear.
Oh dear.
Thought I'd share that amusing story with you before Mum and Dad do as they have now told me they have proceeded to tell the entire of their work colleges.
Dearrriieeeemeeee.

Oh my girls. I have missed them. I have missed them so much.

Having got off the plane the first thing I noticed was everything was a lot more Christmasy. All the lights were up, songs were blasting from everywhere and I felt the cold blast of English weather and I knew that yes, Christmas was here. It's weird being home. On the plane I missed International House so much. I felt so much nostalgia for it that I couldn't really sleep or concentrate on what I was watching or reading. Everything little thing reminded me of personal inside jokes, which I realised I have to go three weeks before anyone understands why I was laughing at a particular thing.

Things on the Plane that reminded me of UCSD:-

1. The film I was watching - the main theme tune at the end of the movie was 'I believe in a thing called love'. Now it is an ongoing joke that this is the only song Peter knows how to play on the guitar and he always starts playing it when Betty is about to settle down to work. The fact he plays it over and over again also frustrates Betty a little bit. I think I scared the person next to me because when it came on I burst out laughing.

2. The lady gave me pretzels when I first asked for a drink on the plane. I've just admitted to my friends the other day that when I was little I used to lick the pretzels and put them back in the packet because I hated pretzels but loved salt. We had literally been joking about it the other day.

3. Whipped cream. At the Starbucks in San Diego Airport the pair before me asked for Frappucinos with whipped cream. Andy can do the best whipped cream noise impersonations I ever heard in my life and Andy and I were joking about it in IHOP on Saturday. I just had to smile inwardly to myself.

 That was only on the plane/airport journey. But I've slowly started to realise what people will not understand while I am here.

1. 'F**k demmm' - I try my hardest not to swear but I do join in the 'demmmm' bit. It is because Edu (who is Spanish) says this line a lot and pronounce it this way so hence forth, we have all started adopting the way he says things.

2. 'High Five: WOOO!' Betty and I made up a high-five which has slowly spread its way around our friendship group so now everybody does it. I went to high five my sister today....it felt weird not having the extra bit on the end. Like an incomplete, unmeaningful high-five.

3. 'Cheeky.' Putting cheeky in a sentence when there is nothing cheeky to be talked about. Andy and I had to try explain what Cheeky meant to people at the beginning of the semester. I think most of our friends now understand what it means but some still pretend they don't and it is an ongoing joke to say anything is 'Cheeky' even when it is far from cheeky. They simply pretend to not understand.

4. Being Invisible - Betty and Catalina will understand what I mean.

5. I make tea differently now. I pour water into cups and then pour the cups into the kettle - it's a way of saving water.

There are lots more but I am having difficulty thinking at 3 in the morning.

But basically......I miss you UCSD x

AIRPORTS.

I usually love airports. They are full of rushing people, excited children and tons of shops. I usually don't like how little time I get to spend in them.

Mikey and I decided to go to the airport quite early so as to guarantee we would get through the manic American security and get to our flight on time. We didn't want to be rushed and we wanted to have enough time to have a look around the shops. As I write this I am shaking my head. We should have stayed in UCSD for a couple more hours.

Security. What security? They clearly don't care about people leaving their country but entering is  whole other deal. Also NO ONE IS HERE! It's the holidays!! Doesn't that mean people should be rushing home or trying to dash back to loved ones or even travel a bit for work. No? No! There is no one here "Very bizarre." as Mikey said. And as for shops?  Um there's a Starbucks and a Pizza Hut. Oh and somewhere with magazines and those cushions that are meant to help you sleep sitting up but actually look like you've attached a boomerang to your neck and it doesn't work at all.

There was no queues and the security guards joked with you (they are desperate for any human interaction - Mikey was wearing a t-shirt that said 'All my friends are dead.' in an Airpot and they found it hilarious.) Instead I began to panic that they'd mistake my sweetners for drugs and then...we had to stand in the dreaded naked machine. I began to sweat just standing in there. I was not ready for it at all and I hated it! So embarrassing and so not worth it.

"You're clean," someone said after five minutes,

"Well you think? I could have told you that if you'd just asked me or told me to walk through a metal detector."

So the airport is dead. The internet is slow and Betty is making pasta for the boys. To say I am jealous is a bit of an understatement. To say leaving today was one of the hardest things I have had to do is not an understatement. I love these people. A lump formed in my stomach and my throat as I realised i was to leave. The weather sympathised with me and poured down al day - miserable, grey and cold; preparing me for England.

I explained how i felt last time through a clip of Doctor Who. The Doctor was saying "I don't want to go."

Well, this is how I am feeling right now as I am sitting in the airport thinking about UCSD International House.

What a wonderful, lovely day.

Imagine perfect and then treble it. It has been the most incredible last day of the winter quarter and it makes me tear up to think I now have to leave. However, I am so glad I am leaving on a high.

The day started off with me telling my friends about why I didn't go to the party last night. It was followed with them telling me how stupid I was and how they thought I was coming a bit later. Yeah. I knew I had been foolish but still...I am British! I am sorry!

We went to Andy's to set off on a day of I-Hop and Xmas Dinner. We said goodbye to Jesus and then headed over to Tapioca Express. After Snow Bubbles and waiting for the bus, we were on our way.

I-Hop was brilliant. It was so weird! Completely unlike how I predicted. It was so old fashioned and styled in a kind of 50s way. It was a proper American diner! The only problem was it listed the calories by all its menu items! I wrote a rant about that for my student newspaper last year (http://theboar.org/lifestyle/2011/dec/6/not-fan-christmas-calorie-counts/). However, I think we all chose to ignore them (and Andy told me he always goes for the highest calorie items anyway because he sees it as a challenge - hehe). I went for chocolate chip pancakes. I couldn't finish them all though so I got to keep some to go.

We proceeded to spend three hours just sitting and chatting in the I-Hop booth. It wasn't busy so it was fine and at one point, we were the only ones left in the restaurant. We were chatting away when Andy got a phone call from Edu. The Spanish boys had taken the 40 minute trip on the bus to come and meet us! It was fantastic. They ordered more drinks and Betty ordered some more pancakes for the table - I was still stuffed but the boys made a fair job of them - and we all began to chat once more. I challenged Andy and César to the Salt and Ice challenge which they seemed to find so easy (it BURNS your hand and despite what they said, Andy still has a bad mark on his hand - I feel so bad!).

It was so nice. We were all seated around the table, laughing, giggling and telling tales of each other. I felt I really got to know everyone even more and it was just lovely. I have met this incredible group of amazing people and it makes me so happy.

That evening, our apartment cooked a christmas dinner. Catalina cooked, I tidied and washed and Bety chopped and gave out sweets. It was lovely. As well as the usual boys we invited Agústin, Ricardo, Jess and Jay and we had a brilliant night. We played a game where we each had to act out movies and the others guess what it was! It was so much fun. It turned into a game of different people requesting Victor and César to act out different movies. They started doing it together and it was so funny. I filmed parts of it on my camera so I'll post those below. It was so much fun.

I just want to say thank you. If I had to leave now, I'd be heart broken. I couldn't do it. These people I have met. Wow. I never want to lose them. They are...they are great. The bestest friends I could wish for. Rolling around the floor in fits of laughter (completely sober I'll just point out) was one of the best things I have ever had happen to me! I love you all!!!!!!
x

I don't think I have changed that much. Hence why on a Friday night I was sitting in my living room watching Merlin on my laptop.

My two best friends had gone out before me, to parties where I knew no one and to run after a boy, so I didn't really fancy going. I asked them to text me when they went to my friends apartment so I could go over, but alas no text came and I continued to watch Merlin.

It was a bit of a bummer on a Friday night. I felt slightly let down but the thing is I could have just got up and gone myself. I could have just said "Screw it." Stood up and gone. But I didn't. Why? I think a big part of it is that I am British. I only go to things when I am invited. My Spanish friends have no qualms swanning into places uninvited day after day. However, I am afraid I am being too pushy or needy or annoying and I never want to be viewed as the annoying one. I also don't want people to be so used to my company they get fed up with it. I have spoken to a few people here and I know that sometimes that is the case in International House. People go and see them 24/7 and they never get a break or a chance to miss them. During finals week especially, some of my friends had lots to do whilst others had less to do, and the ones with lots to do would get frustrated when disturbed by those with less to do and I never want to be the disturber. I never want to remembered in that light or associated anywhere near it.

Anyway, less of the sad stuff. More fun things.

The girls and I have planned to meet up when I get home. Literally the day after. And I can't wait. The difference between cultures is so big and I have only really started to notice it. I miss my English girlies.

Two days
x

In Warwick, during the end of year exams, you can expect a crammed library full of students you have never seen there before, many a can of diet 7up to be littered about my floor as I miss the bin in my attempt to throw it away, many stressed professors who suddenly forget how to reply to e-mails, any library book you may require to have been checked out by somebody you don't talk to on your course, and first-years displaying that their first years don't count by getting drunk at Top B or Smack every week.

America is different. We have the equivalent of end of year exams at the end of each quarter instead. Yes, it may sound horrible, I don't get to put off the dreadful revision period until June, instead, I have it forced upon me at the end of each quarter, but it really isn't that bad. The exams aren't as nearly as intense as June exams (and too right to, June exams are meant to be examining us on a year's worth of knowledge and is an exam we have had a months study leave to revise for). The marking is more leniant and easier because of such things I think - the teachers know we have lots of finals thrust upon us in our last week and we have no substantial revision time. Meanwhile, many of my finals are actually very long papers which is even better (however, I have been very stupid concerning papers but I will explain that later on, maybe in a different post).

However, here, even though they have finals every quarter, and they aren't examining our entire year's worth of work, and they aren't worth a very high percentage of our grade, and if we do fail, we simply cannot count that class as credit....we are being treated like Gods. No joke. Like Gods.

Free massages at the zone and in Cafe V (well on Sunday in Cafe V) if we would so wish for one. A doggies petting day where nearly two dozen dogs came to visit on campus and play with the students and calm them down. The Sunday before Finals Week all of the dining halls hosted day long breakfast platters and huge free chocolate fountains one could dip fruit and marshmallows in (My friends and I got told of because we had the genius plan of using the plastic cups to scoop chocolate from the chocolate fountain and put fruit in the cups when we were meant to be using pathetically teeny plastic bowls. We just played the foreign student card.

We get emails about free food almost every night. Free muffins, free doughnuts, free hot chocolate. UCSD is doing it's best to make sure it's students are fully fed and ok during finals week. The cafe's open earlier and longer. There are more food options. More spaces made available for people to study and the library is available 24/7.

Meanwhile people are also hired to come around and cheer you up. There is a cookie delivery service whereby you can secretly send good luck cookies to people around campus (kind of reminds me of the secret valentine candy canes my school used to allow us to buy in February and send to the boys school and vice versa - need I say, I got the grand total of NONE). There are men in funny joker outfits covered in tinsel running around and dancing in front of random windows. There are people giving out flowers at 1 in the morning as you walk back from grabbing a quick tea from Goodys. And then, there was the Undie Run.

The Undie Run. A tradition in UCSD which I will firmly never take part in. Last night, at eleven o'clock, UCSD provided a run for its students. The students were to run around in only their underwear and at the end they jump into the water fountain. Yep. It was interesting watching the people run past us on their way to the start line. Some people were dressed very scantily whilst others were dressed in large t-shirts. I couldn't believe how brave some people were - and I totally admired them for it. I will probably never have the guts. My friend, Jesus, tried to convince me to go by saying "hey but you love swimming....you jump in a fountain at the end." Yeah, swimming and a fountain? NOT THE SAME THING. Unless I get very drunk next quarter....no not even then...definitely will not be happening.....

Well Sunday was interesting.

We had the screening of our projects. In general they went down pretty well. I could have once again killed Betty (yes I seem to be turning into her personal murder) when after the showing of her piece, the first thing she said was "Well they weren't acting." No word of a lie. THAT WAS HER OPENING LINE! I couldn't have curled up into that sofa more. But on the whole, the projects were really good and Betty, Catalina and I felt quite smug that we seemed to be the last girls standing (aka the only ones who had made it to the end of the Intern project). I'll put some of my favourite ones down below as they are really funny and filmed on campus so you should definitely check them out if you're interested in coming to this campus.

Since then? Finals week has struck. I have already done three and now have a paper and project left. I can't wait to finish my paper so I can get on with my project because it is to do with editing AND means I can incorporate Doctor Who into my video.

I have picked my classes for next quarter. I am hopefully taking five. Art History, Spanish, Hinduism, Eating Disorders and Documentary Editing. I am kind of cheating with the first two as I have already had the best teachers in the world when concerning those two topics so hopefully it'll be a breeze.

Well that is just a quick update from me :) Hope life is going well! Enjoy the videos below!
Oh and I CAN SEE WHAT IS ARE THE MOST POPULAR POSTS! Really smooth guys, don't be too obvious or anything :P -------->




Bear Grills - Max Fong F'12 from Triton Television on Vimeo.


A really hilarious video above featuring the 'laundry guy' (from Essex) doing a brilliant impression of Bear Grylls.

Catalina's spontaneous video featuring me in Toy Story pjamas...

Love hurts!! from catalina caraffo on Vimeo.

Ok, so before I left to come to America, I posted a video describing how I felt - Putting the link here -

http://gillsandgoggles.blogspot.com/2012/09/slightly-how-i-am-feeling-right-now.html


My friend recently accused me of not liking America. Totally untrue. I love it here. Yo quiero San Diego.

I love it here so much. The people I have met. The places I have got to see. The weather. The beach. The food (yes, I do love Cafe V). Everything. And although I am looking forward to seeing my family, my girlies, the st mags lot and my two favourite doggies in the world, a lump is beginning to build in my throat. A feeling of sadness. I don't want to leave here. For the first time, I don't want to rush home at the end of the quarter. Usually in Warwick I can't wait to escape and have done so many a weekend during the term. But now. I wouldn't mind if I was staying. For the first time I am in a University I love so much that I wouldn't mind staying here for even longer, I don't need a break, I don't need a rest.

It has suddenly hit me. This song kind of explains how I am feeling (Obviously slightly differently but if you hear the chorus you'll get what I mean :) )

x

American shopping, every girls dream right? Big glamourous shops with lots and lots of clothes, endless rows of shoes and countless numbers of handbags. Sound enough like the movies for you? Well just keep picturing that dream for a little longer....

"Hello Mam, Can I help you with anything?"

"Oh um, no I am fine thanks."

"Are you looking for anything in particular?"

"No, I am just looking."

"Ok."

(A few minutes later.)

"I have set up a dressing room for you over here, when your ready feel free to come right over, would you like me to take your bags."

Queue me trying my best not to swear or run away from the shop screaming.

What is with this American shop assistant thing? It is like having a mosquito hover around you, as much as you calmly swipe it away, it keeps coming back till you are left with no choice but to smack it against the wall. They can't take no for an answer. I mean setting up a dressing room for me before I have picked something off the rack and when I have calmly said that I am just looking to at least three different assistants!

I also feel like I am being watched by every assistant when I walk into the shop. If I look interested in an item they will immediately come over and ask me about it so I have to do this weird dance around the shop, pretending to look at the ceiling whilst secretly trying to flick my eyes downwards to glance at certain pieces. The moment I hover too long near a certain item I quickly dodge to a different one. I feel like I am literally walking on hot cobbles. It is almost like how I felt when I would enter a shop in London wearing a hoody and a large backpack. Except then they were watching me with the expectation that I would steal stuff.

It is so different to England. In England you may be asked once if you need any help. ONCE. And they kindly leave you alone to shop in peace. Not linger by your shoulder like some odd shopping shadow.

Furthermore, my english accent seems to be a charity que. I open my mouth and immediately MUG is imprinted on my forehead.

"Hello Madam, ooo this is a nice dress your buying. How are you today?"

"I am fine thanks,"

ENGLISH ALERT ENGLISH ALERT

"Ah.....would you like to buy any of our special price nail varnishes only for sale today?"

"Oh. Um I am ok thanks."

"Really? This colour would go so well with your dress."

"Er. Well I am really bad at painting my nails so maybe not, but thanks. Sorry."

"Well....would you like to buy one of these bracelets for charity, to help all the poor children in Africa. Only five dollars."

"Oh, ok then yes please."

"The nail varnish is only two."

"Oh. Well I'll get both then."

Really? Really! Seriously every shop I go into I am asked to donate to charity. Maybe I have one of those type of faces. I mean on campus, the guy who always tries to sell Hare Krishnas and Yoga books always makes a beeline for me. I could have sopping wet hair from the pool, be listening to my ipod, head firmly facing the floor and he'll run through crowds of chatty, happy, maybe even interested people, to tap me on the shoulder and ask me YET AGAIN if I have thought of the benefits of meditations, whilst trying to force books into my hands.

I really don't mind giving to charity in the shops either. I like doing it. It just annoys me when following me my friend Laura can so easily go up to the counter and buy her item.

"Hello madam, will that be all today?"

"Yes thanks,"

"There you go then."

WHAT! WHAT! No blackmailing? No questions? Nothing??

Maybe next time I'll just try and fake an accent.


(Just a sidenote - I did really enjoy my day out with Laura. We had such a laugh and it was nice to escape just us two. I love Xmas shopping and it was nice to see America decorated! Also going out for lunch and ice cream was good fun too) x

The past two days have been two of the funnest I have yet to experience. I have had a camera in one hand, a ukulele in the other, an imaginary script in my head and surrounding my some of the most wonderful people in the world.

Yes. I have been trying to finish my triton tv project. The consequences of such a project have been
a) A broken door
b) A tired bunch of people.
c) A trip to a freezing cold nude beach in the middle of December.
d) A big bunch of laughs.

We have had to film a lot of scenes recently for our individual film projects. Mine is concerning what not to do during scary movies. I am very very grateful to my amazing friends for helping me complete my project by Friday! Thursday evening was hilarious. Running around, screaming and breaking doors was a highlight of the week - especially in my Toy Story pjamas - spontaneous shooting, what can I say?!

Anyway, my friends Betty and Catalina had planned to do very different types of videos. Betty was going to do a psychological thriller concerning many different paths and Catalina was going to organise a colour run and use Go Pros to film all the students participating. These ideas didn't quite fall into place with the growing pressures of work and finals.

Catalina decided to use some fun footage we filmed after shooting my scary piece to make a piece about dating a Latino (I will post that on here once she has finished uploading it). Betty. Well.

Do you perhaps remember a small video Betty made of Andy and I at La Jolla Coves? Yeah, the really embarrassing one? Hm. Well. She decided to use that same footage but put a different twist to it - death. Mine, to be precise. It started of as a joke...and turned into reality. She had our very good friend (and clearly aspiring actor Jesus) pose as a bus driver who proceeds to crash the shuttle and kill me. Betty then proceeded to ask to film Andy in bed with Catalina saying "You have to act like the love of your life is dead! Come on!" I was hiding in utter embarrassment in his wadrobe. I don't think he knows quite what he was filming. Or that it is going to be broadcast on big screen on Sunday for the whole of Triton TV to see.

Well. For your enjoyment (to one of my favourite songs in the world)


And below is my video for Triton TV. Hope you enjoy :D

ttv1 from Lissy M on Vimeo.

I really don't think my accent is that hard to understand. However, this week, so many people have got what I am saying absolutely WRONG.

First was in Cafe V when I went to grab a cup of tea.
"Hi, cup of tea please,"
"Nice to meet you too,"
(I was a bit confused by this reply and thought she might be implying I had been rude by not introducing myself)
"Nice to meet you too,"(I replied, before noticing she had typed into the till 'Onc Coffee' - I thought it was possible revenge for my previous rudeness so I let it 60 cents slide. Proceeded to pass over my Student Card)
"Oh, you're name's Melissa. Why do you call yourself Tea then?"
"Err, I am not sure." (awkward laughter, shuffle away).
Yes, she thought I'd said "Hi, I am Tea" when arriving at the counter. Surely she should know English people would never just randomly introduce ourselves. We are too scared we would be shot down or thought of as weird by the other person.

Second Experience: -
Now I can't remember exactly what was said but it went along the lines of this. I was explaining a story and Catalina did not understand part of what I was saying. So Laura decided to repeat what I had said - getting it completely wrong.
"When did I say that! What!"

Third Experience: -
"Can you just speak a little slower, I don't quite understand with  your accent." - x12 this week.

Fourth Experience: -
"Are you a native English speaker then because sometimes I don't understand what you are saying."

Fifth Experience: -
"Then I am going to go swimming,"
"Oh, why?"
"I go everyday,"
"Really, what made you start to collect coins?"
?????!!!!!!
I don't know quite exactly she originally thought I said but it wasn't coin picking.

Oh dear, maybe it is because everyone is more tired but my accent seems to be confusing people a lot more than it ever did.

Sorry for the odd title but this was what my friend named it in his calendar (apparently every activity he does has to be given an odd name which explains it all very well).

UCSD appeared to be giving a free viewing of 'The Hunger Games' (no Josie, this film is not about food fighting children) to the students. My friend, Andy, had never seen The Hunger Games so we decided to go.

It was great fun and lots of laughs having our first Snowbubbles from Tapioca Express and dining experience in Rubios, however, I think the funniest part was when we went into the cinema.

We both sat down only to realise that nothing is ever Free. I should really know this by now. Seeing as I was the one who had told Andy about the film, when a bunch of students jumped on stage to tell us they were just going to give us a few details about the Student Mental, Physical and Sexual Health department here at UCSD he threw me a look which caused me to be in stitches for the rest for almost all of their individuals speeches along with Andy's continued comments about each of the students.

But it wasn't over. The Students then proceeded to ask for volunteers to come up on stage and answer questions to do with the health services meanwhile completing a fitness test. Oh dear. Now the funniest thing about this was that Andy has his arm in a cast and the most comfortable position is for him to raise it in the air. My best friend Betty keeps asking, as a joke, "Who is stupid? Oh Andy." So when they asked for volunteers, he was extremely glad to be at the back of the auditorium and also, hastened as quickly as he could to put his arm down.

Two girls and two boys were pulled up onto the stage where the girls were forced to compete against the boys ("Glad to see the Student Services aren't promoting sexism of any sort," - Andy) and were one of the team was forced to run and answer a question, whilst the other had to run and do some physical task like jumping jacks. Both teams were rather amusing, ("I'm so glad I am not up there, I'd trip and fall or do something stupid" - Me). At the end the boys teams won and the boys then had to go head to head to compete for a massage free from the zone at the end (you can get these free every week anyway but you know, all part of the game). They had to write down the five services provided by the Student Health Services on a piece of paper and whoever got the most won. Really group game for the whole audience to get involved in - not.

One of the boys won with four out of five services and it seemed like finally, finally, the movie might start. Well it was about to. Not before one girl said "Well enjoy the Hunger Games, remember there can only be one winner...or can there?" she proceeded to giggle before walking of the stage.

Now, maybe a bit of background is needed here. Andy hates spoilers. We are going to watch Annie sometime soon and I said "Oh I love the dog in Annie" and apparantly that is too big of a spoiler. I have apparently ruined the whole movie. It's all fun and games but it is true, he hates spoilers. We can't say anything. So when the girl said this, he looked at me and we both cracked up into fits of laughter "Oh thanks for that, just give away the film, come on Lissy we are going," I was crying with laughter. I just couldn't stop as Andy continued to complain about the girl who had just given away the ending of the movie.

The movie was great (and Andy was actually impressed and pleasantly surprised, which is a big honour for anyone who knows how judgemental he is with films). We then went to get frozen yoghurt (a concert where a crippled person sometimes finds it hard to put yoghurt in his cup and refuses to let you help him) and then I went back to Andy's apartment and talked to his housemates before being force fed tea and Krispy Kremes.

It was a great night and I really loved it. Even though the Student health services were there, it actually added to the night and we now have many private jokes from it (although I have just shared them with you). And I seriously think I have never cried with laughter so much before. Great night. :D

"And let the odds be forever in your favour".
x

Having gone to a girls school my whole life, I have many girl friends. I also think it is a major part of English culture for girls to have lots of girl friends and boys vice versa. Of course, people mix, we are not separate alliances or anything, but for the majority of the time if you ask a girl in England to name her closest few friends, they will be female.

That is definitely one of the differences I have noted since being here, not only in UCSD but in International House in particular. It seems Americans have the same mentality as English people, but are also far more likely to have guy best friend thrown in the mix (take my friend Laura's best friend, Bobby, for example) but most the time, their closest friends are female. But there is a huge difference between girl friends in England and girl friends in America. Girl friends in England HUG EACH OTHER. Yes we nudge each other, put our legs up on one another, hug each other continually, play with one another's hair etc etc. However, in America, everyone has a personal bubble. It is rather big personal bubble too and for some reason, I feel it makes people less close. (However, I think I have been converting my best friend Laura :D and to be honest, she is so open and honest that I feel at sometimes I am closer to her than people I hug every few minutes)

Spanish people tend to be a bit different. I feel Spanish boys are as thick as thieves. They have each other's back continually and are constantly tied at the hip. However, Spanish girls seem to also have a lot more boy friends than girl friends. They hang around with these large groups and become part of the gang even though the bond between the boys is definitely too thick to even think about challenging. I love having guys as friends, don't get me wrong, back at home the boys from the Sports Centre are some of my closest friends and here, the Geneva lot are seriously some of the funniest nicest guys I have met. But, I just couldn't cope without my close female friends. I can tell them everything. Anything. And they'll be there for me, they'll understand. I feel sorry that this does not seem the case for Spanish people (although I could be stereotyping from what I've just observed so don't take my word). Apparently English and Portuguese customs are the same. My Portuguese friend Betty tells me that she has a huge group of girl friends back home and this is obvious because any photo she is tagged in has a billion likes from those same girls.

Australians also seem to be a lot closer to boys, however, their group is more balanced. The boys are close to the girls and guys - it is not so one sided. This plays right into the stereotype of 'relaxed' Australians as they all hang out and chill together.

However, these are just some small observations I have made. I might be wrong or maybe I am being nostalgic for those girls back home. I am always going to need girl friends. And right now, I know I couldn't have asked for a better bunch (both at home, at work and here).
Thanks my lovelies x