Nott What You'd Expected...

Staying Classy, Nottingham

The weather in Notts continues to amaze- despite today's rainy episode and a bonfire-ending drizzle on Friday night, it's been damned near April-ish weather.

Even yesterday, while out on the town buying cheap things for the Black and White Affair, I was sweating in my spring jacket which had made its way out of retirement.

This weekend, despite its complete lack of productivity, has been a great success. After seeing the piles of trash- including two wooden chairs, a table, three vacuum cleaners and a big part of an old wooden organ- I resolved to have a bonfire on Friday night in our secluded courtyard between our flat and the church. Thanks to months of newspapers, the discovery of a mysterious purple liquid, and my Brawny-style ruggedness and hammering techniques, we had a good time sitting around the Weber grill-turned-firepit until the rain came.

At one point we realized how homeless we all looked, hunched over drinking out of bottles (delayed wine Wednesday), with a tarp nearby covering our bikes- and decided that a homeless party would probably be entertaining next year at Luther. Maybe the contributions for the keg could go to the homeless? Or maybe those paying 35,000 to go to school...

The Black and White Affair was spawned as part-Aaron party idea part-Birthday surprise, and turned into a monolithic explosion of party favors (10 lighters for 1 pound) and an orgy of food. The pictures hardly do it justice, just how much crap we made for the party, but something about a 150.00 bill at ASDA does well to describe just how much food and drink went into the experience.

Brandon and I went out early to run errands while the girls hit up Lincoln and Aaron and Ryan held down the fort. At around 4 we arrived, tired as all hell from lugging 14 bottles and other necessities from the tram stop (I equated it to the Farmer's Walk on Worlds Strongest Man, but Brandon didn't follow, despite being a farmer himself)...

The decorations set, candles placed, attention was set to the kitchen- where a clusterfuck of activity rendered flatmates psychotically frantic and sent Aaron on a mission to buy more crap- namely, lemons and bacon.

7pm- dinner time

7:01, the cameras come out.... damn we're hot.
7:35- dinner's not quite over, but apparently some wine has been consumed.8pm- those who do not cook are sent to clean. Cookers, relax and take more pics
8:15- no comment.
9? It starts to get hazy.... simple math: drunk girls + retainers = what is wrong with you?10 maybe? Aaron wins award for best dressed
Do we even have clocks in this house? As stated earlier, no comment.
10:30- Mark calls and tells Hilary how 'dramatic' the eclipse is... "I don't mean to call so late on a Saturday, but we just wanted to remind you of the lunar eclipse"10:45- so classy right now.
11- something is funny. maybe it's still the retainers
12- after a trip to SPAR down the street, some flatmates make the way to the courtyard, while Ryan climbs the roof and ominously looks down on us. Creepy. Did I mention he was throwing rocks?
1 or 2, maybe 3? I passed out seconds later.
11am, Sunday- The Aftermath... Aaron, Hil, and Mary awake to find a cheery newspaper left by Mark, clearly an indication that he was witness to our path of destruction.Cleanup took a little bit longer than anticipated, as did the shift in rooming which began early this morning (have you no sense of decency?). Aaron bequeathed (although forcibly) his room to Kate, while Anna annexed Ryan's room. The sound of doors slamming was either a sign that A) the thought of an only room was pleasing, and the door must be tested, or B) issues remain unsolved.

At any rate, I'm too busy to care- Mom and Darol come in less than 4 days, and my focus is clearly not on the journal entry, TV Cultures Essay, 220 pages of Barchester Towers to read, or any other non-travel non-family related issue. Today was a waste, and with the joy of my Mondays, it's going to be a long 24 hours.

This is the cost of a kickass weekend.

posted by Kevin @ 5:46 PM 0 comments

A Dichotemy of Global Climates, or, Sucks to be you

posted by Kevin @ 1:44 PM 1 comments

A House Divided, Justin Gatlin, and A Good Year

Yesterday, after a marathon blogging and zero productivity on the British Novel front, the flatmates still in Nottingham attempted to celebrate Aaron's birthday the best way we knew how- find random pub, sit at random pub, leave random pub.

Unbeknownst to us, we situated ourselves in a way that segregated us both by coupledom and by age- the cool 21 year olds on one couch, and the lame, relationally unsavvy (save for Anna, who has ties back home) on the other couch. Hence, a house divided.

Sitting in the club (FAT CAT- a pretty cool venue, but pricey) as it closed down for the night, a strange realization came over me- just a feeling of connectedness. Even after all of the metarelational talks and 'group bonding' type discussions, it never quite hit me how close the group of 9 has become. Compared to awkward bus rides and dinners earlier in the year to last night's Brandon's Birthday Revelations in front of Mark and Carol (unfortunately Brandon and Kate missed out), We've come a long way, and I don't think I'll ever grasp what kind of bond this group has had-

Talking with Anna while washing dishes, we also came to a weird conclusion about how many people have lived in the flat, grown up in the flat, and made it their home- over 25 years, roughly 8 to 12 people a year- that's a lot of people who have come to call this place home, and a lot of memories tied to the cracked walls and IKEA decorated rooms. Every candle burn mark, every stain on the ceiling from a dinner gone awry- It's crazy to think that in three months, we'll be passing the torch and maybe never see this place again.

sentimentality over.

Thanks to the social outburst, time away from the flat hardly experienced at night anymore, I am still roughly 200 pages from where I need to be tomorrow for M&C British Novel class. It's not the book that makes this class blow, it's the constant reading. I've bitched about it before, but if the idea of being over here is to experience the culture- both socially and academically, then WHY THE HELL ARE WE COOPED UP READING 350 PAGES A WEEK? It's like a library here on Monday and Thursday nights- everyone secluded, reading like spinsters in the corner. gross.

Fortunately, Today's TV Cultures class made up for any kind of academic funk i've been in. Our viewing today consisted of the 2000 Sydney 100 meter dash, the 2004 Athens 100 meter dash, and the 2007 Super Bowl. Are they serious? It was great to hear the snickers or boos from the British students as Maurice Green called himself THE GOAT (Greatest Of All Time), or when Justin Gatlin opened his mouth and the mindless ramblings of a 9 year old boy spilled out. Not to mention the Budweiser sponsorship of the Superbowl or watching Billy Joel sing the US national anthem on a rain-soaked piano. I sat next to a guy who actually lived in Oak Park, IL for a while, so that was an interesting perspective- not interesting enough to stay for the whole thing (for some reason, once you've seen the sloppiest Superbowl in memory while eating wings and drinking beer, watching it for class seems less glamorous)

In other news, I finally got my LCD screen for my camera from San Diego. I'm nervous about cutting cords and opening it up on my own, but a little McGuyver action never hurt anyone, so i'll give it a go. IF worse comes to worse, the camera shop people can handle it.

Friday night, we've decided to throw a black and white formal party here at the flat- classy as always- pictures will follow, i'm sure.

Back to reading.

posted by Kevin @ 1:33 PM 1 comments

My Lincoln Log

Because of its astounding beauty and my inate ability to take awesome pictures without the use of my LCD screen, here are some randomly assorted pictures from this past Saturday's trip to Lincoln Cathedral in the city of Lincoln, appropriately situated in Lincolnshire county, UK.

posted by Kevin @ 4:51 PM 0 comments

Land of Lincoln, BoreChester Towers, Hells Kitchen

I almost clubbed a small boy today on the bus. To be fair, he was a redheaded chav blaring techno remixes of the Looney Tunes song on a very expensive SonyEricson phone while his teenaged mother looked on.

Maybe it's the Stella getting to my brain.

It's been almost a week since my last post, which means several things: 1) I've been doing other things, 2) I've been doing lame things that don't require postage, and 3) I'm so eagerly awaiting the arrival of my dear mother and stepfather that I can hardly type.

Last Saturday, we took an abbreviated full-flat trip to Lincoln, home of THE Lincoln Cathedral, where we were able to take a full tour (that means roof included). Emily and Hilary were out with their parentals in London and Wales, respectively, and due to small car space, Mary was a trooper and stayed home. Did I mention Kate was in France? I'm not sure why.

Lincoln was a beautiful city. It was slightly rainy, but at times the sun peaked through the clouds and illuminated the great towers of the cathedral like a sign from God. Or sun reflecting off of towers. I suppose it's up for interpretation.

Brandon, being scared of heights, was hilarious on the tour, which put us in various precarious situations. That rhyming seemed forced.

After taking the Notter way out (that is to say, we saw the sights, headed straight for the shopping area, and then hit a pub), we came home and rested our calves. The town is built on a huge hill, so steep that the street is literally named STEEP HILL. Kicking our feet back, Aaron, Brandon and I cracked open some drinks that are known for their potency. Like the STEEP HILL, they were aptly named- SUPER LAGER- and after one, Arrested Development seemed both funnier and hazier.
Sunday was a day of lost productivity. Mark and Carol have introduced Barchester Towers,
a book known for its lack of brevity and its comical characters. It's hard to get into a 500 page book about the Church of England, but my goodness, isn't that Mr Slope hilarious? Not to mention the Singnora, what a harlot!
Needless to say, it's been a difficult read.....

Tuesday, I had my first UK Class Presentation. Come to think of it, I'm not sure if I've had my first Luther presentation, so maybe this is my first collegiate experience. Anyway, it was on Televisual Styles, and my group was full of slackers, myself included. The assignment is about 30% of our grade, if not more, and we decided to do it after the Monday lecture at 7pm the night before it was due. A half hour of work later, we were ready for judgement.

In what can only be described as a serendipitous clusterfuck of good luck and smooth talking, we pulled it off- made up group activities, b.s.'ed speeches, candy, and an easy topic- we ended up getting 100%. Admittedly, the topic was a little too easy for my own comfort. Part of the presentation included me talking about the technical production characteristics of The Office, and it's relation to the Mockumentary tradition of satire and entertainment.

Getting my money's worth.

Work, in a semi related topic, is not really getting any easier or more pleasent. My boss can only be described as the illegitimate love child of Hell's Kitchen's Gordon Ramsey and Droopey the cartoon dog.

So far I've yet to be given concrete directions- often he'll give me vague instructions like "yeah, ok, now peel those parsnips and potatoes, then make me a thing of Mongolian Couscous and a Cucumber Orange Salad with Honey Soy Dressing"..... and while he tromps off to order someone else around, I'm left asking "how many parsnips? do i chop the spuds? (yeah, i forgot, he calls them spuds), how much salad? how the hell to i make the salad? is there some kind of recipe you'd like to show me?

So, again, needless to say, I've left him disappointed. My favorites from this week include:
1) Monday
"Do you know how to peel an orange?"
(me thinking: are you serious? I'm from the US- have you ever heard of Florida?)
"yes, yes I know how to peel an orange"
(minutes later) "What the hell are you doing?!" (Gary then proceeds to show me how dumb I am by using his knife to peel the orange and then remove all of the pith)

*sidenote: he later threw two of my salads away, I had to overhear him trashing my assembly technique to the co-owner.... sad days

2) Tuesday
After making me clean grease off of vents, the grout out of floors, and using a shopvac to clean up his messes before cleaning the front window before i could leave:
"Well, I guess you'll never get a job as a window cleaner"

3)Wednesday
"How are you peeling those parsnips? You're so uneven...do you know how easy it is? You're over here attacking the veg - here, move out of the way....."

So, after a week of hard labor with nothing to show but a huge blister and a prayer that I won't get ripped off like last week, I'm not looking forward to more work.

In other news, Today is Aaron's birthday- another lackluster 21 in a land where kids have been chugging Carling since age 16 (well, 18 legally). Hopefully a trip to the Lakeside Art Center to see a trombone aficionado with Ems will do the trick- followed by some much needed Real Cask Ale at The Lion.


Last night I caught up with the Oscars, watching Children of Men and An Inconvenient Truth. Both were amazing. The cinematography of CofM blew me away- the acting of Michael Cane was, as always, great. The story wasn't exactly what I expected, but the way the situation was slowly uncovered leaving the audience in confusion for a good portion of the movie was challenging.
An Inconvenient Truth really rocked me. It's hard to get myself to admit it, but Al Gore is a phenom. Where was this animated, excited figure during the 2000 election? The guy has passion, the guy has connections, the guy has a huge political history. Why wasn't his 20+ year career in congress brought up at all? After watching it, I first of all fear for my life in 50 years, but now also support a Gore/Obama ticket in 2008. Democrat or Republican, you should watch this movie. Even if you think it's all a load of crap (which it's not , if you think it is, you're crap)- it's really well done.
Turning my attention to the future, I'm scared - in less than two weeks, My mom and stepdad will be here. The following week, we'll be in London, then after that? Straight to Nantes to visit Zach and Megs, followed by three weeks in Europe (Including some Eda and Katie time in Granada)- SO UNPREPARED RIGHT NOW.

eep.

Planned or Unplanned, I'm still excited. Showing family around Notts will be great, and Ireland with mom and darol will be amazing- St. Patty's day or no St Patty's day-
More planning tonight.

posted by Kevin @ 3:55 PM 0 comments