Old Stuff I've forgotten and New Stuff I'm learning

Another cool campfire photo.

Today was completely a mix of old uni stuff that I really should remember but don't, and oh-crap-scary new stuff. Okay, maybe not quite that scary.

I only had classes for a single subject today, just how it worked out on my timetable, but oh-my-god, I don't remember hardly any of the stuff I need to know and am supposed to know. We're revising in a week a subject that took and entire semester at the start of last year, and not only is it highly compressed but it was a long time ago. So ack. Lots of revision needed, pronto.

In the evening I had my second-ever driving lesson. At night! Actually, it wasn't too bad once I'd actually got in, figured out where all the additional night-buttons were and just started. I could see! And I didn't hit anything OR stall.

Aside from that, it's late. Really late, and I'm tired. I finished off my container of vegie-tomato soup that's really yummy, and I'll write up the recipe for it sometime, but not tonight, because it's slightly more complicated than the chicken soup and I can't be bothered remembering all the stuff.

From my goals list, I did organise a decent amount of my bedroom today. So I know where most things are now. And I did a few ankle exercises this morning, not enough though.

And bugger, I forgot some Wednesday-specific stuff. I didn't pick up my geoscience lab manual like I was supposed to. That's about it, but bugger.

Oh well. Email lady tomorrow, maybe? Ask to pick it up at the end of the lecture since I *can't go* because it *clashes*. Grr.

Ah well. Bedtime, because now is no time for stressing.

Goals for tomorrow include getting that lab manual, practising MATLAB, washing my dishes, sending off an email to the outdoor club and... whatever else turns up. Yeah.


Wolverine

Chicken and Vegie Soup

I realise that is not a picture of the post title. That is not chicken soup. Duh. But I didn't take a picture of it tonight, and I won't scar you with pictures of the remains.

However, I *did* make a fairly nice, simple chicken soup for dinner, so I'm putting the recipe up here.

Ingredients:
3/4 Litre of Chicken Stock (Would use 1/2 L next time)
Small handful of cooked, roughly shredded chicken (Would use even less chicken less time, maybe half a handful)
1 baby carrot, sliced (Would use 2+ baby carrots next time)
125g can of corn kernals, including liquid
Half a red capsicum, diced
Small handful of shell pasta (Probably use a different sort of pasta next time, maybe even noodles)

1. Bring some water to a boil in a some saucepan and start cooking the shells. This could probably be done in the stock along with everything else, but I was a bit unsure.
2. Put the stock on the stove and get it bubbling but not boiling.
3. Put corn, corn liquid, capsicum and carrots in. Stir occassionally.
4. When pasta is al dente (I think?), ie, just cooked, soft enough to eat but definitely still a bit firm, drain them from the water and tip them into the stock.
5. Add the shredded chicken and stir occassionally until the chicken is heated through.

This was quite nice, although it didn't turn out quite as well as I'd hoped. Next time, more vegies, less chicken and a bit less stock. It's pretty much a generic chicken soup recipe, but I like it.


Wolverine

Starting Again

Right, so, I haven't posted here for a long time. (Must remember to have keyboard in front of my hands, not far over out of the way.) I'm not expecting anyone to read this, but I need somewhere to be accountable to myself. I'm sick of not getting done what I want to do, and I know part of the problem is I don't set out clearly what I want to do before the day starts/ends.

So, this blog is now going become just my general blog/journal/goals page/thingy. All the different things I'm trying to include are too diverse for a topic-focused place, like FM or Steve Pavlina or the foody places I hang out. And really, the only person who *really* needs to see them is me. I don't care if other people do (it's not like any of them are embarrassing!), but this is for me.

Goals? Lots. First semester of my second year at uni has just started, and there's heaps of stuff to do. Food, exercise, organising things, things I already have booked in -- ack! And that's not even counting, y'know, the actual uni stuff. *rolleyes*

Daily Stuff:

* Ankle and back exercises (former because I sprained it a couple of months ago, latter because it's just weak), preferably in the mornings.

* As often as possible, cook my own healthy meals. If it turns out good, why not write it up and post it on here!

* Take either a light textbook or some other form of reading with me onto campus every day, so I can have something to if I have a break and no one to talk to.

* Get up with reasonable time in the mornings so I can have a shower to wake me up, and get to bed at a decent time, too.

Stuff to do SOON:

* Email Outdoors club to ask about rockclimbing next Monday night (3rd March).

* Organise my room; papers, wash my dishes, find places for everything.

* Read some of my textbooks, preferably the ones I haven't read much of yet.

* Uni organising; print out lecture notes, pick up lab manuals for geoscience and chem.

* Practise using MATLAB.

* Work out my diary and dates for the semester, or as much as possible anyway.

There's probably heaps more to do, but I can't think of them right now. It's the starting part that gets it all moving, anyway. So, it's quite late and I need to get some sleep.

Wolverine

Friday Snippet and the missed week between them

I realise that I missed a week. I've been super busy with exams, but they'll be over soon and I won't be so hectically studying!

But for now, here's the second scene of M+D. Disclaimer, unedited first draft etc, do not steal etc. All that. And a note that the first few scenes are a bit uncertain as I got into the characters viewpoints. Later on they get shorter and 'sharper'.


POV: Meira

I twisted around in my chair to watch the building fight in the back row. That new girl had chosen the worst seat in the whole room, right next to Julian. From the look of her, though, she and the jerk might be well suited.

With short, ragged blonde hair, a dark outfit with tiny splashes of bright, clashing colours, and a scowl to rival my brother’s, she looked like a punk gone wrong. Or maybe not quite punk enough; she’d definitely need black hair to really look the part. I watched, semi-curious, as Mr Hayes broke up their scuffle. We hadn’t had anyone new for over a year now, and everyone kept glancing at her even when the fuss had died down and Mr Hayes went back to assigning lockers.

I copied my own number down neatly and then watched quietly as the class proceeded. I always felt the first few days of the year were pointless, because we never got anything done except ramble on endlessly about due dates and plagiarism and homework and God knows what else. I tended to tune out most of the irrelevant stuff and talk to my friends. Thank goodness, we were the smartest in the class, so even when they did care about the introductory babble, it never took long for them to have completed anything we were asked to do. I did it when I felt like it, or when it was being marked.

“Hey,” I said to my best friend, Lauren, who sat beside me. “What do you think of her?”

She didn’t need to ask who I meant. “Bit… brash, isn’t she? A real tryhard, but not a snob. Sort of like the opposite. I don’t understand why anyone would bother actually trying to look bad.”

I shrugged. “Well, she did have to put up with Julian. Oh, sorry, Jules,” I added sarcastically.

Lauren laughed, and straightened her books up on her desk. “That is true. Maybe she’s not too bad. But…” She glanced behind us again; I mimicked her to see Devi still writing, head down. “Well, I wouldn’t bet on it.”

I giggled too, and shook my head. “Guess we’ll have to wait another year to find someone else interesting.”

“Yeah. What locker are you?” Lauren turned to ask our other friends too, and I waited until she faced me again before answering.

“103. Anywhere close?”

She sighed. “Nope. I’m way up the other end, in 523.”

It wasn’t quite as far away as it sounded; for some strange reason, our lockers worked in batches of thirty, beginning at the hundred and counting up to the hundred-and-thirty, and then moving onto the next hundred. We’d all long since given up asking why; none of the teachers knew either. When I enquired further, I found that no one was closer than about fifty lockers away from mine.

“Ah well. Maybe I’ll actually be able to get to class on time, without you lot bugging me in the morning,” I kidded, elbowing Lauren.
She grinned back at me, knowing full well that we were always at least a few minutes early to every class. I did it because there was really nothing else to do around here; I think they did it because they seriously worried about losing marks if they ever turned up late. Devi had shown us before that it didn’t do anything except get a reprimand, if that.

The bell rang. It wasn’t recess yet, but I picked up my bag anyway. We had two morning classes before that first break in the day, and it was never long enough. How could twenty minutes be anywhere near enough to relax and eat and catch up with friends? However, today, as on all first days of the year, we had lockers to find and pack. Our class was allocated this second period to get this done before recess, so that we weren’t stuck in the busy corridor trying to do it.

“C’mon,” I said, standing up. Lauren grabbed her bag too and followed me out.

I paused, watching the miniature crowd milling around the lockers and rolled my eyes. Didn’t anyone understand the concept of taking turns? Then again, it’s a small town. Probably not.

I waded through the sea of people to my locker. Alright, it wasn’t really that many; when I went to the city, the first and only time ever, I was shocked by how many people were crammed into such a small area. Out here, where we lived, it was so different. Wide, open, spacious. But I knew people who’d lived around here all their lives, and I wanted to scream at them. Why didn’t you get out and explore?

A bag caught my shoulder and someone shouted an apology; I didn’t know them, which meant they came from one of the other localities. Brought back to school, I went in search of my locker. I knew where to look, and dropped my bag right at the end of the locker row. I had one side open, a great spot to have.

Not so great were the jock guys gathered only a few lockers across, their joking painfully loud. I rolled my eyes and dug my old lock from my bag, ignoring them. My books were all neatly packed, so it was easy for me to transfer them from my bag to my locker. Textbooks on this side, folders and notebooks on the other. Space for lunch above, space to put my bag beneath. There, easy. I glanced down at a guy throwing his stuff into his locker haphazardly and shook my head.

The jock guys still stood by their lockers, and I noticed the new girl standing waiting for them to move. Strange; for such a ‘brash’ girl, I hadn’t seen her until now, but she looked like she’d been standing there a while. Shifting from foot to foot, her bag dropped on the floor beside her, glaring at the jocks, but not saying a word.

“Hey,” I said, taking a few steps towards them.

The looked at me, half curious. I shook my head sharply. “No ideas, guys. Get a move on, though. You’re holding up the queue.” I waved my hand at the new girl. Devi, that was her name.

“Oh, sorry,” one of the jocks sneered, but with a wide grin. He raised one eyebrow at me.

I gave a short laugh and turned my back on them. “Find someone else,” I threw over my shoulder, only to see a dark shape move up behind me.

“Who do you think you are?” Devi stood close to me – too close.

I stepped back, looking up at her just a bit. Her eyes were narrowed, and there was a muscle pulled tight in her neck.

“Just helping,” I said, shrugging with my hands. “You’d been there for ages -- ”

“I don’t need any help,” she snapped before I could finish. She brought her hands up, not quite in fists, but didn’t touch me.

I took another step away and waved my own hands, brushing hers away. “Geez, I won’t help next time, then. Give it a break. Are you afraid of them or something?” I added, glancing over her shoulder at the jocks, who were now hanging around in the middle of the corridor.

“I’m not afraid of anything,” she said, her voice low and furious. She looked around too, and scowled as the jocks burst into laughter at some stupid joke or other. “Especially not them. Jerks.”

“Jocks, actually.” I grinned, and held out my hand. Maybe if I let it go she’d calm down? Couldn’t hurt to try. I didn’t even have a clue why she was angry.

Devi slapped my hand away, and I snatched it back. “What was that for?” I snapped.

“Leave me alone,” she hissed, and turned to her locker. She grabbed her bag and hauled it up to her chest height. I stared at her for a few seconds, absently realizing that she was keeping her locker tidy as she put everything in. Then I huffed and turned away. I made sure my own lock was shut properly before leaving her to her mood.

Lauren was waiting for me a short distance away. “What was that about?” she asked. “I was about to come over when you left.”

“Something stupid,” I said with a shrug. “Cracked it when I told the guys to let her get to her locker.” I brushed my hair back and blew out a pfft of air. “Who knows.”

“Sounds like a bitch to me.”

“Well…” I glanced over to a gathering of girls in miniskirts and tight singlets. “Maybe not quite a bitch.”

Lauren followed my gaze and laughed. “No, maybe not quite.” She looked back at Devi, in her black clothes – in this heat! “I couldn’t see her in one of their skirts.”

I laughed too. “C’mon. Let’s get back in.”

“Right.”

We headed back over to the classroom. I glanced at Devi once more, and was surprised to meet her eye for a second. She held my gaze and then looked away dismissively. I shrugged. I didn’t need any petty fights. I had enough already.

First Friday-ish Snippet

Even though I still haven't managed to figure out the Mr. Linky stuff, I decided I might as well post a 'Friday' snippet anyway, even if it is Sunday already here. So, this is the first scene in my current, untitled WIP that I refer to as my M+D or Devi+Meira story. This is one of the longer scenes, but I love Devi's character, so I think it works well as an intro into her mind. But remember, this is first draft, full of typos and mistakes and will definitely be edited, rewritten or completely discarded later!

Enjoy!

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Scene 1: POV DEVI

I looked up at the dilapidated building and sighed. Another new town, another new school. Every one seemed to be worse than the last.

The school looked about to fall apart; some sections stood roped off from entry, crumbling to pieces even as I watched. A strange silence hung over the whole place, all the others in class already. I just had to be late on my very first day, didn’t I?

I slowly walked up the steep slope of the driveway to the main doors and paused. I could just find my own way to class. If the office ladies saw me late on the first day of school, my first day ever, they’d glare and sigh and huff and – yes. I could definitely find my own way around.

I spotted a door around the corner, leading into the warren of classrooms and corridors, and hurried over to it, swinging my backpack around on my shoulder so I could reach into it. I rummaged around until I found the school diary they had posted to my new house, then shoved the door open. Where was I first?

I flipped the pages until I found a map, buried in the middle of a bunch of useless information, and tried to locate my room on it. Thankfully, they’d allocated me to classes before I arrived. I could change them later, but for now at least I could find where I was supposed to be.

Or I should be able to find where I should be. I scanned the map carefully until I finally spotted the room, the room number so tiny that I’d missed it several times. However, a miniature maze of hallways lay between it and me. Great. Just great. I forced the dairy into my bag again, bending the cover backwards. I shrugged and yanked the zips closed.

I ventured into the school, and spent a good ten minutes wandering up and down various hallways. I got angrier the further I searched; surely it couldn’t be so hard to find a single room in a scabby old school? I kicked at the ground when I reached the end of yet another hallway without finding the room number I needed. Did they have to make it so bloody difficult?

Finally I spotted the room number I needed, and hurried towards it, then stopped a few steps from the door. I rested my face in my hands for a few seconds, closing my eyes and breathing in deeply. Once I was in, I’d just be another face, but God I hated the first minute. Everyone watching, waiting, staring. Everyone wondering who I was. Everyone judging me. Rejecting me.

I strode forward quickly before I could leave and pushed the door open.

The door swung swiftly on its hinges and crashed into its stop on the wall behind it. I cringed inside, but held my face still. I couldn’t see anyone yet, not even a teacher. I stepped inside.

A classroom of faces stared up at me, including the teacher, bent over someone’s desk where he was collecting a paper. An old man, scrutinizing me with sharp eyes and a suspicious frown. I tried not to fidget and stood straight, looking him back in the eyes.

“I’m Devi,” I said. “Sorry I’m late.”

He straightened and walked towards the front of the room. He glanced down at the roll and then back up at me again, picking up a pen.

“Devaki?” He spoke short and sharp, just like his eyes, but crisp. Efficient.

“Devi,” I corrected, but then nodded.

He hmm-ed at me, but marked off my name and waved the pen at me. “Don’t be late next time,” he said. “Take a seat.”

“Fine,” I said and turned around, only to find most of the eyes in the classroom glaring at me. I shivered in my belly, but simply clenched a fist and then let it loose again. No deep breaths in front of a crowd. Too obvious. Saying nothing, I walked through the rows of tables, right to the back of the room. As I went heads turned and watched my path, then dismissed me, just like that, and returned towards the front.

I sat at the end of the last row, a seat between me and the next person. Two guys sat together, lounging in their seats and smirking at me. I watched them from the corner of my eye for a moment, then twitched my nose and frowned down at my bag as I hauled some books out.

“You don’t need those for the first class.” The sarcastic voice came from my left, and I knew it was one of the two guys. I closed my eyes for a moment, pressing my lips together to contain myself and then looked up, straight into the eyes of the nearest guy.

He leaned back on two legs of his chair, arms folded, arrogant chin up as he eyed me. I snorted quietly and dropped the books on my desk anyway.

“Maybe you don’t,” I said, watching his eyes. “But then, you don’t ever need them.”

His eyebrows went up and he brought the other two legs of the chair down with a little thump as he turned further towards me. His gaze traveled noticeably down my body and I seethed, a tiny growl in my throat. He half-closed his eyes, considering, and then nodded once, a short controlled movement.

“Nice,” he said. “You shouldn’t waste your time on schoolwork.”

“You shouldn’t waste your time with your brain,” I snapped and turned my back on him, reaching down to my bag again. I froze when I felt a warm hand touch my shoulder and then begin to trail down.

“Feisty one, are we?” he muttered, close to my ear. He must have moved over, I realised, before swinging my arm around. It hit his with a thunk; I stopped quite suddenly and he jolted, unbalanced for a moment. His face hung close to mine for a moment, surprised, and I pushed him away, my palms sweating against his shoulders for the second I had to touch him.

“Don’t touch me,” I snarled. “Do not try and think anything about me; you might hurt your head. Fuck off.”

“Jules, leave her alone, mate.” This came from the guy sitting on his other side, who shook at the jerks shoulder nervously, glancing over at me so quickly that I couldn’t catch his eye. Wimp.

Jules brushed him away and continued to stare at me.

“Ooh, scary,” he jeered, holding his hands up in mock submission and leaning back in his chair again. “What’s wrong, little Devil? I can call you Devil, can’t I?”

The last question wasn’t really a question though, and I scowled deeply.

“You can call me whatever the fuck you want, Jules,” I spat, “as long as you don’t mind a broken nose.” I pushed my clenched fists hard against my thighs, trying to stay calm and in control. My muscles pulled tight in my chest so that I could hardly breath. In and out, slowly. I closed my eyes.

“I’ll take my chances,” Jules whispered, and I felt the whisper of air as he reached towards me once more, but before I could react, loud footsteps clomped up beside my chair.

I looked up and around, only to see the teacher standing against my desk, glaring down at us.

“Julian!” he said, snapping his fingers at the jerk beside me. “Leave Miss Devaki alone and get some work done.”

“Devi,” I whispered, barely audible, but he glanced down at me for a fraction of a second. I bit my lip and shrugged.

“But there’s no work yet, Mr Hayes” Jules replied, an infuriating purr in his voice. I felt like kicking him as easily as I could a kitten. “We were just talking.”

“Talking doesn’t involve harassing the poor girl,” Mr Hayes said, deep lines crinkled in his face. He ignored the work comment, which was more than I could have done in his place. “Either move or stop it immediately. Otherwise, I’ll have you in detention on the first day. Would your parents appreciate that?”

Jules sank down from his arrogant pose, almost deflated. I watched him from the corner of my eye while looking up at Mr Hayes with a small crooked smile touching my lips.

“Fine. Get back to your posturing,” Jules muttered, and turned around to the wimpy guy beside him.

“Excuse me.” Mr Hayes remained where he was, almost looming over me, and I started to feel uncomfortable. “I don’t believe that is how you address me, or Devi.” He waited, and the silence stretched on as Jules looked as us again.

“Okay, okay! Sorry.”

“And?”

“Sorry… Devi.”

“Right. Now, to get back to the topic—“ He strode away to the front of the room again, and began to speak about locker allocations.

Jules started to turn around again as soon as Mr Hayes had left, but I shook my fist just below desk level and looked him in the eyes. “Just tempt me,” I growled, and turned my back on him.

“I wish I could.” Just a murmur.

I breathed in deep and slow as I rummaged in my bag for a pen, but managed to ignore him. I stayed bent over for a few seconds more than I really needed, holding onto the pen tightly in one hand until my fist loosened and I let out a long breath, feeling it cold in my mouth. When I sat up again he was facing away from me, talking to the wimp again.

I leaned forward and began to make small jottings from the board where Mr Hayes was writing, and hoped that Jules was the worst I could meet.

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Learn more about Friday Snippets here!
Please excuse my technological bumble for the moment. I'm sure I'll figure out the linky thing sometime soon.


Wolverine

Kiwifruit

Wow. It really has been a long time since I've been here. I've been enjoying my life and I guess I just haven't felt the need to post. However, there are topics I want to explore further that I don't feel are appropriate for or right to post on the goals board, so I think here would be perfect.

Today I ate a kiwifruit for the first time in quite a few years. I had abandoned them, scorning them as too sharp, too biting, perhaps even sour. Bitter. Strange, for I'd liked them up until that point.

Have you ever seen a double-ended kiwifruit knife-spoon? Safe to carry around, safe to take to primary school, and generally a fun, bright colour, they were part of my childhood. I'd cut the top of my kiwi off with the blunt little knife-end, and then sit happily scooping out the flesh. Bright green flesh with a pale centre and little black seeds. It has the most amazing look to it.

So today, for the first time in years, I ate one again. Even the centre, even the seeds. Today I was lacking a knife-spoon, those little plastic things which never even had a nickname. Or maybe they did, and I just can't remember. But today I didn't have one. I sliced the skin off in a spiral, like my mum does, although nowhere near as efficiently as she can. Sadly, I lost quite a lot of the flesh in misplaced cuts, leaving it still stuck to the skin. Supposedly you can eat the skin, but it's all furry, and I couldn't imagine putting it in my mouth.

I cut it up into fork-sized chunks, and ate the whole thing (although it *was* little) in about thirty seconds flat. It was sweet and just the tiniest bit sharp, and it was beautiful.

And I'd only brought one with me: 'to try'. I could have eaten half a dozen more.

Wolverine.

Greetings Again

I am back from the abyss. Well... not really. I just hardly went on the internet when I was at home, that's all.

I love being at home. It's quiet and family-ish and non-uni-ish and... well, yeah. That's why, really. So much so that I feel no need to go on the computer. Honestly, none. I've got two -- my desktop, which lives at home, and the laptop I'm using now, which lives at uni, yet I probably turned them on maybe three or four times (not counting updates for the firewall/virus protector programy thing or virus scans).

Now I'm back at uni. It's very late, I didn't eat dinner tonight and I have class tomorrow morning. Soooo.. I think I'll go to bed without saying anything else.

But I'm back.


Wolverine.