Social life

Despite having a lot of work to do, some how I have managed to keep my social life alive. Kendrick were unusually kind to us last week. We only had three days of school, because Thursday was an inset day and Friday was the entrance exam for the little year 6s who don't yet have any idea what they have let themselves in for. In addition, Wednesday was our 6th from conference, so we got a lovely lie in, no lessons, own clothes and our school day finished early as well. Because of this, a group of us decided to go shopping and then have a civilised meal in town before returning to Kendrick for the open evening. We dined at Zizzi's, the Italian restaurant. Nobody else wanted to go and book a table, so I had to be the responsible one and book it. I had an amazing Quattro Formagi Pizza. I loved it.

The Head Girl team also planned a trip to see Harry Potter at the cinema on the Friday. One of the team hired an entire screen of Vue Cinema. They sold every ticket, and so every seat was taken. The whole of Reading was filled with Kendrick girls and Reading boys on their day off. We queued for ages, to ensure that we got decent seats, and despite that, we were still very near the front. But at least we were all together.

The film was amazing. I won't go into too much detail - just in case you haven't seen the film yet. The effects were amazing. The acting was amazing (even that of Daniel Radcliff). The storyline was amazing (and I know that is JK Rowling's work rather than David Yates', I was merely stating that the film is was very faithful to the book).

Truly amazing. Watch it! Now!

6th form

I am almost certain I will stay at Kendrick for 6th form. I also have a good idea what I want to do for A-level, which I will elaborate on later. I was considering taking music A-level, but it isn't very well taught at Kendrick. Therefore, I had a little look round Henley College, because it had been recommended to me by various people, including my piano teacher. I was very impressed with their music department, and the science and maths departments were good too, but I was a little concerned with their German department. The German teacher, who was also the RS teacher, did not give a particularly good impression. Subsequently, I have been advised by various sources not to take Music A-level, because it is too theory based, and isn't well respected, and therefore essentially useless, unless you intend to study music at university, and even music university courses do not require music A-level.

Having evaluated all the useful information I have received of late, I have concluded that I should not take  music A-level and that I should therefore remain at Kendrick. My attitude is: it's better the devil you know.  Not taking music has helped reduce the number of A-level options I have, leaving me with a choice between Maths, Further Maths, German, Geography, Economics, Chemistry and Physics; there is no way I could possibly cope with Latin A-level - I am only just coping with GCSE - and I am not particularly interested in Biology - no offence Mr Hodge. Unfortunately, I can only take 4 A-levels, so I still need to narrow down these options quite considerably. Having said this, I think I will go with my instincts and take Maths, Further Maths, German and Chemistry because these are the subjects I am most interested in and find most easy. Also, it still leaves me with a wide spread of different subjects that are all well-respected. I am thinking of either studying maths, or a maths and economics combined course, both of which require maths and further maths (regardless of the university) and neither of which require economics, which is equally useless as Music, unless you intend to study it further. I know I have not yet overcome the first hurdle, and I am already considering the third, but my choice of course will give me some idea of what A-levels I will be best off doing. Equally, I don't want to narrow my further education options down too much, by choosing similar A-levels.

Sorry for boring you with my thought processes concerning A-level choices. However, you may find some useful information embedded in my pointless rambling.

The difference between try and triumph is just a little umph!

I will try to keep this post brief. I thought it would be appropriate to talk about my recent experiences concerning schoolwork. You can stop reading at this point, but I was hoping it may inspire and encourage some of my few readers.

The reason I haven't been posting lately, and all my recent posts are talking about events that happened weeks ago, is because I had spent the first 2 weeks back at school catching up on homework and coursework I should have done in half term. Because we had family over, I didn't get much of a chance to do homework for a long length of time, and so couldn't get a lot done at once (which is the way I work most efficiently). I went to my food tech lesson on the Monday only to realise that my coursework was due in for the following Tuesday and I had done virtually nothing. Fortunately, she was only taking it in to check we were on the right tracks and that we were actually doing the coursework (which is just as well, otherwise I would have had a mad rush in the weeks leading up to the final deadline). Because of all the extra curricular activities that I do, I find very little time to do coursework during the week, so I had to do as much as possible of my homework during the week, so that I could do a big blitz on my food coursework that weekend. Because of events that occurred on the Saturday, I didn't get to start my coursework until the Sunday. Miraculously, by 11.30pm on the Monday, my coursework was up to date - and I didn't even pull an all-nighter.

Having said that, I am not usually too bad with time management. Being the geek that I am, I don't think I have ever not handed a piece of homework in, which is probably why I felt it was so important for me to get my food tech done on time - I didn't want to break the trend. I have been predicted all A*s apart from Latin, which is a work in progress. It seems that I spend most of my time working on Latin. However, it seems all this extra hard work is paying off; I am getting better test results, and even a succession of full marks for homeworks. I am starting to feel confident that I will get an A (or possibly even an A*) in my summer exams - unfortunately there is no coursework in Latin to help boost my overall grade. But with a bit more work, I could get that A*. That would truly make my day.

Halloween!

We don't really celebrate Halloween anymore, but I was a good sport and handed out sweets to the trick-or-treaters that dared to trespass onto our property.

I just wanted to post a few photos to show you all how talented and artistic my sister, Vikki is. I know these look too good to be true, but these photos are genuine pumpkin carvings, crafted by my sister and her family.

Happy Halloween!

Wooooooo

THE GREMLIN WILL GET YOU!

7 year-old Spencer's artwork

A bat, carved by my 11 year-old niece, Sophie

Becca's Dinner Party

On the Sunday before school started again, Becca hosted a spectacular dinner party. I would like to compliment her on her amazing cooking skills. She served us stuffed tomatoes and peppers, ratatouille and a beautiful mushroom risotto. We all loved it. We then all helped her make little hot chocolate puds. Well, in truth, we just sat there watching her doing all the work, making polite conversation and stirring the mixture every now and then. After dessert, we sat down and watched Hitch, which is a truly amazing film starring one of the best actors in the world - Will Smith.

I'd like to say thank you to Becca for putting up with me for the evening, and also feeding me (two of the hardest things a friend of mine can ever be asked to do - and to do both simultaneously is quite an achievement).

Half term

I am sorry I haven't written in so long. I haven't had much of a chance to write on here, recently. I will quickly outline the hi-lights of my uneventful half term holiday.

I had planned several trips to London, all of which had to be cancelled due to the phenomenal amount of food tech coursework I had to get done. Unfortunately, it still isn't finished now, and it is due in on Tuesday, so it is swallowing up all of my time. That is the reason why I haven't been blogging. I'm sorry, it's the best excuse I have.

My Nan stayed with us for the week. This meant that I did a lot of things with the family. My sister Gemma came down to ours on the Sunday. She brought her older son, Joey, who will soon be 6. Her other little boy, Ashley, was ill, so he had to stay at home with Darren. Gemma gloated to my other sisters that she got Dad's Sunday roast for lunch, followed by the family favourite - roulade. And, before you ask, there is a reason to gloat about eating my dad's roast. His roast potatoes are to die for. That is why our house is always heaving at Christmas.On Wednesday, Michelle, who is the youngest of my three sisters, visited, bringing her adorable daughter Jessica. I have to admit that Jessica is a bit of a monkey, but she's cute, so it's excusable.

Overall, it was not a very eventful week. However, I still enjoyed it, despite the length of time I spent doing food tech - and yet I still got nowhere.

Lucy and Martha's Birthday Bash

I won't say too much about it because Alicia has already written a lengthy account of our adventures in a 15 man tent. I had a lot of fun, despite the bitter cold. Martha cleverly installed a projector, running from the laptop in the tent. We watched Bridget Jones (a traditional sleepover film, - a genius film, I hasten to add), Morris (a very bizarre but enjoyable film, which Chloe, who is just as weird and wonderful, brought, and a German horror movie, all projected onto a hanging sheet in the tent.

Throughout the night, and into the early hours of the morning, we ate. Pizza. Doritos. Haribo (even though I hate haribo). Cadbury roses. Quality Streets. Chocolate Orange. Chocolate buttons. Chocolate...well...you get the message.

It was great fun.  Unfortunately, I am stilling burning off the extra 1000s of calories.

A trip down memory lane

I realise that I haven't posted anything since the beginning of term - my apologies.

I had work experience a couple of weeks ago. I heard that it was best to organise your own placement because the placements arranged for you aren't particularly good. I don't really have any idea what I want to do when I am older, but I was interested in teaching - particularly maths and music. Therefore, I decided to sort out a placement at a primary school. Where is better than my old primary school?

I loved going back to Caversham Primary School. For once, I felt tall. Understandably, I was asked to spend quite a lot of my time with the year 1s - 5 year olds are a handful at the best of times, but two classes of 30 is another matter entirely. I helped with reading, writing and number work. I took children out of class in groups to help them sew puppets. They loved it. By the end of the week, I was stalked around the playground by the years 1s (particularly the girls) and a handful of older children we picked up along the way. It was adorable, but incredibly annoying. It was meant to be MY break as well.

I spent Wednesday with Miss Wallis in the Music department. We worked out that it was 7 years since she taught me - she was my year 4 teacher. Now she teaches year 5 and is the school music teacher on the Wednesday. I helped out in choir, orchestra and recorders as well as the class music lessons. I sat in awe through the year 4 music lesson. Caversham Primary has entered into a scheme which helps each child in year 4 learn a musical instrument. Bravely, Miss Wallis had, with the funding from the scheme, invited in several music teachers from Berkshire Maestros, to teach every child in that year a brass instrument. I was overwhelmed by the 65 trombones, baritones, trumpets and cornets all stacked up in the conservatory. The children had been playing a few weeks, and so they were now getting a sound out of their mouth pieces, but unfortunately, they hadn't quite perfected the sound, and they had no volume control.

I spent Friday with the upper school, observing year 5's art, design and technology and english lessons. I then went to a year 4 class to observe their maths lesson. I really enjoyed the week. It certainly hasn't put me off teacher, but I think I should seriously reconsider the age group - young children can be quite trying!

Hello school. Goodbye freedom.

Have been back at school for three weeks now. It has been hell.

Ok, maybe I am being a bit harsh. School hasn't been that bad. Now that my time isn't all taken up with facebook, I can get my homework done really quickly, giving me more time to do more important things like playing the piano or watching friends. Now that I am back at school, all my evenings are taken up by one thing or another. I have started piano lessons with my new piano teacher, flute lessons have started again - not that they ever finished, they just became more and more non-existent as the holidays continued. I was meant to have lessons each week, but I didn't.

DofE is back on. 3 weeks of mucking about, because we have already finished our presentation. By "we", I mean Rhianna and I - not a dig at the rest of you, I just wanted to state that I am proud of the fact that I did something constructive over the holidays. I have also taken up aerobics. I went to one session last year, but I have now decided that I am going to continue to go this year. I am not a health freak. I like my food. I don't like exercise. I accepted that I was never going to be slight long ago. However, I have continued to walk to school, to help raise money for my new flute. It's an Azumi 2000E, open holed. I love it. It is such an amazing flute. But because it doesn't have a well-known name, it isn't as widely used. I think it is such a shame. But you get that with everything. Kawai pianos. Designed my Yamaha, made by another company. But because it doesn't have "Yamaha" printed in gold, it isn't good enough. Admittedly, it is a bit hypocritical of me to say that. When I  went round trying out different pianos, I played several decent Kawais. There was really nothing wrong with them. But I wanted something a little more special. So I settled for a Yamaha U3, which is widely known to be the best upright piano around. Anyway, moving back to the flute - my apologies for diverging slightly - the fact that Azumi flutes aren't that widely used is a good thing for me. It means, they are much better value for money. Which means I can afford a better flute. Admittedly, the 2000E still costs £895. But if I were to get a Yamaha of a similar price, it wouldn't be much better than the flute I have now. And if I were to get one that is as good as the Azumi, I could easily spend over £1000. So, I am definitely getting the Azumi. It's just a case of finding the money. I am going to have to do a lot of babysitting.

Sorry, I got a bit sidetracked there. I love music, I can't help talking about it. Anyway, moving swiftly on. I haven't found the start of term too disastrous. There are a lot of things to keep me busy. And I have finally been trusted behind the till in Age UK. I worked in Age Concern, which has now combined with Help the Aged and is called Age UK, last year for my DofE service. I have decided to go back there for my silver service. With new management, and me being older and more trustworthy, I have been given more interesting jobs.

Unfortunately, there is still a lot of homework, more so than last year in fact. I will probably spend the whole of this weekend on my food technology project. I suppose it could be worse. I could be doing History or something equally boring. At least with food tech, you have an excuse to eat as many puddings as you want.

And a quick message to all my readers before I leave. Thank you! You probably haven't noticed, but I have a pageload counter on my blog. This week, my blog was opened for the 1000th time. So whoever that lucky reader is, you just won yourself a chocolate bar. Unfortunately there is no way of working out who it was, so you don't get it. Sorry! However, I will eat it on your behalf.

Centre Parcs

Ok, I realise I haven't posted in a while, which is unusual when it is taken into account how much I have been been posting, concerning the cruise.

I have been quite busy with social gatherings, and a trip to Centre Parcs. I had been to a relatively new Centre Parcs for a few days up in the Lake District, before following on to a hotel a bit farther. The whole family really enjoyed it. And we swore that we would come to a Centre Parcs again.

And we did.

We went from Monday to Friday, one day longer than last time. 10 times better. We went to Longleat this time. It was a lot closer, and a lot more easy to get to - which was a bonus. I realised, that this was the closest I had been to home, when on holiday away. I don't know whether that is something to be proud of, or just that I am incredibly sad to have figured that out - it is probably both. Two of my sisters came and visited us on the Tuesday, because they live relatively nearby. Michelle, my youngest sister - but still considerably older than me - came, bringing her husband, Danny, and her adorable 18 month old daughter, Jessica. Gemma, the "middle" sister - Vicky being the oldest, and three years her senior - came with her two boys, Joe and Ashley, who are 5 and 3 respectively. The children loved it, and by that, I include myself, Gemma, Michelle and Danny. We're just big kids really. We went to the swimming pool, the boys loved the flumes and Jess loved the slide in the baby pool. The big kids loved particularly loved the water rapids outside.

After being fed in the Strada, the Italian restaurant in the Plaza, we cycled back to our villa, which was (unfortunately) the furthest away from everything. We were in Fir. What can I say? Punishment for booking late. Although the cycle ride was long, it was very scenic and wasn't actually too strenuous, although it was quite tiring for Joe, but I was very impressed that he got there without stopping on his tiny red bike which had no gears - the route was very up and down. We then went for a cycle ride round the lake before returning to the Plaza, where we bought ready made sandwiches and had a picnic. We had a few games on the arcades and then they left.

The rest of the week, we did a lot of cycling, and also participated in a few activities. The entire family entered into a "Geo Cache" competition. We failed. We also played golf. We failed at that too. And my brother and I did the high ropes - my parents were too scared - they failed, we didn't.

After another trip to the pool - with me losing my bikini top in the rapids - and a lot to eat, we grudgingly returned home. A good trip all round. But we are dreading the bill.

The Photoshoot XD

Ok, as a birthday treat I went to London to have a photoshoot. It was absolutely amazing. Even though it's not really me - I'm not at all photogenic and so I tend to cower away from cameras - I really enjoyed it. Here are some of the photos below:

Home sweet home

Although I thoroughly enjoyed the cruise, I am glad to be home on solid ground in the comfort of my own house, my own room, my own bed. I spent the first few days recovering and reminiscing. But soon got down to coursework. My sister Gemma came round one evening with her boys on Monday. Chris was at a friend's house, and so it was me that had to play football with Joey. He won. But only because I let him.

I went round to Sizz's on Wednesday. We watched a genius film - you probably haven't heard of it - but trust me, it's genius. It's called "Stand by me". Watch it! We then went on DeviantArt and admired everyone's photography and artwork and listened to Sizz's masses of music on iTunes. I wish I had as much music as her. And she has such good taste.

Day 13

CRUISE COMPASS

Today we are in: Barcelona, Spain

Sunrise: 6.32 am

Sunset:  8.28 pm

Today's forecast

Sunny

80°F (23°C)

Humidity: 76%

Wind: Calm

UV index: 6 medium

Au revoir 

Now you may think that "au revoir" is just goodbye in French. In fact, its literal meaning is "until we meet again". And we will see the ship again. Maybe not the Brilliance of the Seas, but certainly another of Royal Caribbean's cruise ships. We have enjoyed the holiday so much, it was definitely worth the money, and - although it would take a couple of years saving up - we will go again. I will miss the ship, its friendly, welcoming staff and the spectacular sites. It definitely is a holiday to remember. And I will cherish the memories.

Day 12

CRUISE COMPASS

Today we are: at sea

Sunrise: 6.30 am

Sunset:  8.34 pm

Today's forecast

Sunny

81°F (23°C)

Humidity: 83%

Wind: Calm

UV index: 5 medium

Tonight's Dinner Dress Suggestion: Casual

The penultimate day means packing 

Unfortunately, today was the penultimate day. It was our last chance to make the most of the ship. Table tennis. Pool. Swimming. Golf. Rock climbing. We did everything.

We thanked all the staff one last time. The waiters. The Chef. The Cabin Attendant, Sean. We particularly complimented Sean with his amazing towel folding. Every night we would return to our cabins to find a clever towel animal on our beds. There were dogs. Bats. Elephants. Rabbits. Monkeys. I tried making them myself. But I failed. 

There was a farewell show that night. Neal Austin. He did a lot of zany magic. It was very entertaining. A true comic.

Day 11

CRUISE COMPASS

Today we are in: Naples,  Italy

Sunrise: 6.14 am

Sunset:  7.58 pm

Ship's arrival: 7.00 am

Today's forecast

Sunny

83°F (28°C)

Humidity: 83%

Wind: 10 - 15 mph

UV index: 8 medium

Tonight's Dinner Dress Suggestion: Casual / 70s

After a storm come calm

We have already been to Naples, and thoroughly exhausted all there is to see there, including Pompeii, Herculaneum, Mount Vesuvius, Sorrento, so we all took advantage of the rather quiet ship. My mother and I had spa treatments. I had a massage - it was sooooo good. I think I am going to be having a lot of them over the next year, to try and ease the stress of GCSEs - argh the pressure! My mum had a treatment called Ionithermi...which basically involves sending electric pulses through your body to help you lose weight. The idea is that the pulses provoke reflexes in the muscles, thus strengthening and toning the muscles and burning the surrounding fat. She insists it works.

After our spa treatment, we had some retail therapy. I bought a lovely white dress. One shop we went into, one of the shop assistants came straight up to me throwing outfits in my direction. He insisted that I try each of them on. As I came out of the changing room each time, he would circle me once, twice shouting Bellissimo  and then rushing to get accessories that would match the outfit. If it wasn't for the fact that he was very gay, I would have been very nervous.

The entertainment kept exceeding expectation. String Fever, a London based family string band (3 brothers and a cousin) performed on an electric cello, viola and two violins. They were extraordinary. I wouldn't do them justice by describing them, so all I can say is, youtube them. They're on there. I checked. And they have their own website as well.

It was Casual / 70s disco, so I felt obliged to wear my slutty dress. And I am glad I did. I saw Scott again. I shouldn't go into too much detail, for risk of a few disapproving readers being a little shocked. Lets just say we kissed and exchanged numbers.

Day 10

CRUISE COMPASS

Today we are: at sea

Sunrise: 6.56 am

Sunset:  8.46 pm

Today's forecast

Sunny

84°F (29°C)

Humidity: 84%

Wind: 15 - 25 mph

UV index: 8 medium

Tonight's Dinner Dress Suggestion: Formal

Cooking up a Storm

We were at sea. I will get straight into describing the title. There were several cooking demonstrations on Deck 4. Chefs would come and talk you through making their dishes. But this one was different. The chef demonstrated how to make sushi. And not only that, he had Gordon, the Cruise Director, and one volunteer from the audience, standing either side of him, copying him. It was not only educational, but entertaining. I am definitely making sushi some time. 

It was very stormy that day. There were strong winds, even stronger than that suggested above, in the cruise compass. We went out on deck in our formal attire, after dinner, and we were rocking about all over the place. We could see the waves bashing up against the side of the ship, yet as soon as you step inside, you don't notice it. 

The Brilliance of the Seas' Singers and Dancers performed their new show "Centre Stage". I feel very privileged to be one of the first people to see the show. It was truly amazing. And to think they only prepared it in a matter of weeks. Every note, word, step and lift was perfect. 

Day 9

CRUISE COMPASS

Today we are in: Piraeus (Athens), Greece

Sunrise: 6.29 am

Sunset:  8.18 pm

Ship's arrival: 7.00 am

Today's forecast

Sunny

98°F (36°C)

Humidity: 65%

Wind: 15 - 25 mph

UV index: 9 medium

Tonight's Dinner Dress Suggestion: Casual / White

Athens, the eye of Greece, mother of arts and eloquence. 

I love Athens. I had never been before. In fact, before the cruise, I had never been to Greece. We went to the top of the Acropolis - many people make the mistake of thinking that the Acropolis is the main temple at the top of the hill, but in fact the Acropolis is the hill itself and the main temple is the Parthenon, which is dedicated to the Goddess Athena. Again, I have photos of the site at the top of the Acropolis, and the views of the beautiful city from the hill. Not only did we look at all the ancient ruins, but we also had a look at many of the Olympic Stadiums, both from 2004 and 1896, when the Olympic Games first started again.

And tonight was toga night! All the guys wore sheets. And often, JUST sheets. It certainly was a sight. The entertainment that night was fantastic. John Taylor. An Australian magician. Usually when I see magic shows, it isn't long before I work out how the trick was performed, and how it worked. But this show, I couldn't figure out how any of the tricks worked. It was so frustrating. And even now, having googled all the tricks, I have no idea how they worked. And amazingly, he designed all of them. I really suggest looking him up. He is an amazing magician. I certainly would go and see him again. 

Day 8

CRUISE COMPASS

Today we are in: Kusadasi, Turkey

Sunrise: 6.25 am

Sunset:  8.06 pm

Ship's arrival: 7.00 am

Today's forecast

Sunny

101°F (38°C)

Humidity: 51%

Wind: 10 - 20 mph

UV index: 10 high

Tonight's Dinner Dress Suggestion: Formal

Ephesus and Flying Carpets

As you may have guessed from the title, we went on a tour round Ephesus. Again, I will upload photos. I won't bore you with the details, I could spend hours describing Turkey. It is a wonderful place. But I wouldn't do it justice. All I can say is, you should really go, if you haven't already. It was incredibly hot that day, and so our tour guide kept us out of the sun as much as possible, but it was difficult at times, particularly at the ruins of Ephesus. After our tour round Ephasus, we went to the House of the Virgin Mary. We each had a clay pot which we filled with the Holy Water from the Spring. But mine leaked in my bag. 

When we returned to the harbour, we went to a traditional Turkish rug store. They talked us through the different types of rugs, rolling them out on the floor, and letting us walk in them in our bare feet - they were so soft. But what was particularly amazing was how long each rug took to make - there were rugs there that had taken 12 years of solid work, if not more - and also how well they wore - he showed us rugs that were 200 years old and they looked as good as new. Not surprisingly, the rugs cost a fortune. The cost was dependent on the materials, the pattern, the size and how long it took to make. One small rug, about the size of a door mat, was round and intricately decorated. It was worth £250,000. That was because it was made of silk, and had taken 11 years to make. Anyway, enough about rugs, but before I leave this topic, I think I should explain the second part of the title - the flying carpet. It's true. The rugs fly. I saw it. 

It was another formal night. I wore my brand new Boohoo dress. It didn't cost much, and is absolutely amazing. I love it to pieces. My family wasn't particularly impressed by the entertainment. Elvy Rose. The other guests seemed to find her amusing and entertaining. To me, she just appeared to be a woman with no dignity prancing about on stage singing out of tune. And no, that wasn't the intention. She is meant to be a professional singer. Maybe I am being a bit cruel. Perhaps she only seemed like that in comparison with the amazing act the previous night.