A blog of epic proportions
Oct 10th, 2007 by Soph
Hello all!
It’s been a reasonably eventful week for me. This week all of our seminars and tutorials started so I’ve been a bit busier than last week when I only had three lectures. I’ve been getting involved in various musical things; as you know if you read my last blog I got into the choir last week and our first rehearsal was last Thursday. We’re singing some really great things, including a few jazzy classics: Moon River, Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head and The Pink Panther. In the rehearsal we only sang the first of those so I have yet to find out what the other two arrangements are like. My first chamber choir concert is the 4th November in a place near Stratford-upon-Avon – sadly it’s on the same day as me and John’s 3rd anniversary so I won’t be able to see him that weekend 
.
I’ve also joined the Wind Orchestra (woodwind and brass only) and on Monday I went to a ‘free’ rehearsal with the Symphony Orchestra (strings and wind). On Tuesday I played in my first concert with both of these ensembles, after just one rehearsal for each! It was a free concert where anyone could turn up and play, as a sort of taster for the Symphony Orchestra, which had its auditions today for people who want to go on and become members. I thought mine went really badly because I was so nervous that I mucked up pretty much every aspect of the audition, but they gave me a place anyway. They must be desperate for French Horns… But going back to the concert, it was really sweet – five of my flatmates came along to watch me play. :happy: I feel so loved.
Anyways, enough about my musical escapades. Today I had my first shift working as a Library Assistant as part of Warwick’s work scheme for income-assessed folk. I only do five hours a week and it’s split into two shifts, so today I had my three-hour shift and tomorrow morning I’m working 9.30 – 11.30am. It was ok. It’s more stimulating than envelope-stuffing (which I did for a few days at Ellen’s mum’s work the week before I came to Warwick), but I was working in this section where I was handling lots of old magazines and newspapers (all about ethnicity and racial equality, if you’re interested) and they were very dusty. Also, three hours of sorting magazines = very inky hands. Tomorrow I’m going to be working on the ‘shelving team’…do you think it’s like the A-Team?
After I got back from work four of us from the flat went into Coventry. I’ve identified where the station is, which is handy, and we also bought a few things for our flat: a toaster, a draining rack for the washing up, and…a massive set of poker chips! There’s a really cool games shop there – they had this section for giant outdoor games; playing cards about 2′x1′ in size, giant snakes and ladders, giant naughts and crosses…it was awesome.
I haven’t even started talking about my course! Sorry for the massive post, but I’m not done yet… I’m so loving my Medieval and Renaissance English Literature module; it’s the best! We’re having Middle English Language classes on Tuesday mornings, which are so much fun. We get set a few passages from ‘Sir Gawain and the Green Knight’ to translate each week and then we go through it as a class. The lectures are also great, and the seminars and everything. French is good too – I had my first oral class yesterday which wasn’t as scary as I thought it might be. It’s taken by a university student from France (who is doing much the same as I’ll probably be doing in my third year), and it’s really relaxed. The only scary aspect of French so far has been the Written Language seminar, which is taken by a very intimidating French woman. She was reading out our register in the first lesson on Monday and she’ll stop on a random person’s name and stare at them until they say something to her in French… I don’t mind speaking in French if I’m asked a question, but how do you think of something random to say when you’re just answering your name on the register?
I think that’s about all the interesting news I have. I’m glad everything seems to be going well for those of you who’ve blogged recently – as for everyone else, keep in touch! I want to know everything that’s going on in your lives!
Take care all :happy:
Oh Soph what a life!! I could practically stand unrecognisable next to the car Richard Hammond drove on yesterday’s episode of Top Gear I’m so green with envy! (If anyone didn’t see it, he drove a beautiful lime green Porsche 911 Rs something something…but it was gorgeous!) Wow!
I’m so happy for you. In fact, I would not be exaggerating if I said that you’ve totally made my day. I woke up feeling seriously pants (I think it’s the beginnings of a cold…yuk!) but now I can at least find the energy to smile.
That French woman does sound a bit scary. But then, it took me back to year 7 with Mme Chamberlain. Do you remember how she used to pick on somebody at the beginning of every lesson and make them recite things we’d learnt from the previous lesson. I used to sit next to Rosa (who was then in our class…remember?) and be terrified! And she was the most lovely teacher I had in sixth form! So you never know. You might just hit it off with this lady given a few more weeks or months :happy:
Your flat mates sound like really good fun and it’s great you’re getting along swimmingly :V A draining thingy for next to the sink is definately a must! It cuts down on so much drying up. Just plonk it in there and it’s dry by the time you come home! Fantastic!
The course sounds totally amazing and your musical achievements will surely come on in leaps and bounds now!
As for the library job, I hope you won’t be disappearing behind the shelves and reappearing naked! Yes that’s right peeps! I have FINALLY got round to reading ‘The Time Traveller’s Wife’! I have a big question to ask you all which must be written in the form of an accusation :bigo: Why didn’t you pester me to read it sooner?! Thank you so much to Jemima for buying it for me. I really enjoyed reading it. I didn’t realise quite how sad it would be though. (This comment is getting almost as epic as the original blog D: ). I’ve also just finished reading ‘Memoirs of a Geisha’ which I thoroughly enjoyed.
Anyway…I guess there is a little matter called work which I should attend to now. But it’s ok because my boss knows I’m doing this…I have nothing else to do!
Toodle pip!
Yay for you reading Time Traveler’s Wife! (If anyone else hasn’t read it, there might be a little spoiler coming up so look away now…)
You need to read it again sometime because the second time I read it, it was even better! There are so many places where she drops these little hints about what’s going to happen…the first time I read it I never realised the importance of this one thing he says when he’s talking about how much he needs his feet to be in good working order, he says something like, “If I can’t use my feet then you might as well shoot me” … :bigo: :bigo: :bigo:
Ooh the Pink Panther did you have to do the clicking and humming for it? Never mind about the audition at least you got in and that’s what counts! The Shelving Team must be cooler than the A Team. Do they have their own theme song? If not you should certainly make one. I think the scary French woman will lighten up a bit once people run out of things to say and start saying really random things to her. Think of funny quotes and translate them into French :happy: Glad you’re enjoying your course and the musicalness as well :music: