29/11/2011

I'm all for comfort dressing. There's nothing better after a long day (/hour) at uni than chucking the outfit that took all morning to prepare in the washing basket and slipping into some PJs. It's practically a tradition in our house, you step through the door and into your trackies. Our lounge is littered with an assortment of blankets and pillows, duvet day is everyday
But I don't think I'm quite ready to embrace winter's latest weird and wonderful trend, Pyjamas.

Sure, we've already seen slouchy silk tops and harem trousers dominate the catwalk last season, but this is taking things a step further. This is a combination of barely-there slip dresses and matching printed tops and trousers. Loose-fit, of course. Underwear as outerwear is a thing of the past, fashionistas should be showing us what they wear in the bedroom, literallyCorsets are a lost relic, as is anything remotely figure-flattering. Androgyny has reached a whole new level.

(l-r BCBG Max Azria, Proenza Schouler, Karen Walker, D&G)
(Celine, Louis Vuitton)

Well designers, I'm sorry to disappoint but my house-mates and I have been rocking this style for years now. We pop down to Sainsburys on a weekly basis in our garishly-patterned, ill-fitting apparel, getting many a look of admiration (not disgust) from passers by. So all those months of head-scratching and frustrated sketching have gone to waste, your hot new trend has already been done to death. 

Seriously though, I can't see this style dominating the high-street any time soon, except in the nightwear departments. While I'm not adverse to a cheeky flannel button-down pajama-esque shirt, I certainly won't be donning a pair of trousers to match. Unless it's in the comfort of my own home. 
Note to Santa: Bring me some pretty, cosy pjs please. Preferably the Celine pair, but Marks & Spencer will do. 

17/11/2011

Fluorescent Adolescent

It's really beginning to sink in that in a few short months university will be over, and a lifestyle of lazy days and takeaways will be replaced by the dreaded condition which all 'adults' eventually suffer from, a JOB. As the workload increases to terrifying levels, and the piles of books on my desk threaten to bury me in a small avalanche, there's a constant niggling thought bouncing around in the back of my mind. Although I try to drown it out with loud music, or make it forget what it's on about with alcohol, I'm reminded of it when that most dreaded of questions is asked, by lecturers or family members who think they're being kind by taking an interest but really you just want to vomit on their head in fear every time they ask it.
"So what are you going to do when you finish university?"


Reading this article on the Guardian website really doesn't do anything to encourage a positive attitude at the notion of entering the workplace. 

  • Youth unemployment rate = 21.9%
  • 1.02 million unemployed people age 16-24 between July and September of this year
  • 1 in 5 young people out of work
That's more terrifying than any horror film I've ever watched. 

Certain members of the government are trying to lay the blame for this on the Eurozone crisis, but it's an issue which I've always been aware of, and acknowledged when I made the decision to go to into further education. I could have stayed at my job at Matalan, earned a full time wage and by now I could have saved enough dollar to consider moving out of my parent's house, or even learnt to drive (Yep, never had a lesson in my life. My rail card is my best friend). But I know from experiencing a summer of a full time retail career that while I may have been in a better position financially, I would almost certainly be suffering from crippling depression and on the verge of being institutionalised. Fair play to anyone who works in that field, but I always knew that it wasn't the profession for me. I kind of hate people, so working in a job serving them definitely doesn't suit me. Smiling literally pains me, it hurts my cheek muscles. Sure, journalism involves contact with people, but I wouldn't be paid to be nice to them. So I went to university, to get a degree in something I had always had a keen interest in and wanted as a vocation. 

I don't regret my decision, especially now that the fees are rising, I feel lucky to have received my education at the 'cheap' yearly rate of £3,225.  But all the negative press surrounding youth unemployment and university graduates who have top degrees yet can't even get a job stocking shelves in the supermarket, is thoroughly disheartening. Where are the success stories, where are the articles detailing the lives of graduates who have landed their dream jobs and are living the perfect lives? There must be some...surely?

The government complains about the number of young people on the dole, but then constantly barrage them with the news that there are no jobs and degrees have lost their value. That's not going to make anyone want to get out of bed and look for work, let alone someone my age. Getting out of bed is difficult enough before 3pm, let alone with the knowledge that today is just going to be one big waste of time, there's no point going to your lecture because everything you learn will be useless because you'll never get a bloody job. They may have work programmes and work experience 'schemes' (I always think this has such a sinister undertone, like an evil secret plot or something) which are apparently "significantly reducing the number of young people on benefits and out of work", but I know that myself or none of my friends want to spend another year without earning money - we actually want to work! The stereotypical view of students as being lazy and unwilling to get  a job is so untrue, everyone I know can't wait to actually have some money in their pocket to spend on something other than Asda Smartprice food or textbooks. We've done the education thing for a good 16 years now, we're ready to start injecting some money into our banks and diminishing those dreaded overdrafts. 

Who knows what will happen to us when May comes hurtling along and we hand in our FMP's, and visit uni for the very last time. I think that while many of us try to remain positive, it's a bleak picture that's being painted out there. While journalists are always going to be required, with the apparent death of print being on the horizon, and a growth in blogging and 'citizen journalism', what is the need for a degree, when anyone can boot up their laptop and publish their views for the whole world to see? Sure, you can argue that 'quality' journalists will always be required, those with writing experience, knowledge and credence, and while I do think that blogging is an excellent platform for developing writing skills and getting your content out there, it's a double-edged sword. 

It remains to be seen, watch this space. It will either be filled with tales of my employment success or a sad story of my weekly trips to the job centre. At least the walk up the hill to the high-street will keep me fit. Every cloud eh.

15/11/2011


I apologise.

I've been a bad blogger. 
I could give you 101 quite valid excuses, but really my main problem has been a severe case of writer's block, mixed with a large heap of laziness and too much goddam uni work. Oh, and a dire lack of internet for many, many months, thanks very much to the idiots at Virgin for managing to Tweet me several times but being unable to perform the fairly simple task of booking an appointment to fix our bloody connection.Thankfully, saviour came in the form of a humble piece of post from Orange offering me cheap internet and free M&S vouchers. What's not to love. 

Anyway let me take a moment to ramble on about some of the more memorable events that have occurred in life since we last spoke. For your enjoyment, here they are in picture form:


1) I turned 21 on 17/09/11, and decided that the only way to celebrate this was to have Halloween early with a horror themed party. Any excuse to douse myself in fake blood. Also, I can pull off my natural 'deathly pale' look without being mistaken for an albino. Twas a marvellous evening, of which I remember everything. Until the Absynth came out. I only know what happened after this due to excruciatingly cringey video evidence.

2) I did the whole angel stint again, for the last time (sobs). Although this year's bunch of Freshers were surprisingly tame/lame I still managed to have a pretty good night, and I blagged about ten slices of Dominos and multiple free cocktails from the Fresher's fair ;)

3) 69 Morris Road has a new resident! :) Adding to the menagerie we have a kitty cat named Simba (homage to the re-release of The Lion King obvs). When this photo was taken he was such a cutie... all a distant memory now. While the face remains the same he has turned into a devious little bastard, who enjoys eating toes and dipping his whiskers into your beverage. While my fellow house-mates retain a fairly positive attitude about his relationship with the hamsters, I will not be surprised if one day we find a furry little corpse with a very smug looking Simba standing over it...

4) The legend that is Eveey P also turned the big 2-1, and her awesome theme was 'What did you want to be when you grew up?' She looked stunning as Audrey Hepburn, I of course could go as no one else but my all time favourite literary/film character Harry Potter. I had it all, Hedwig, wand, Firebolt and even the sword of Godric Gryffindor. Unfortunately, the Firebolt snapped in half, my wand went walkabouts, the sword was stolen and Hedwig, staying true to character, perished. However, this was due to my careless placement of her on a candle rather than catching a killing curse in the face. To add to the downright disaster of the evening, I managed to set fire to the cape I was wearing, which happened to be Eveey's brother's graduation robes...definitely not going to be invited back to the Petrusic house any time soon. Oh and I puked in their bush. Again, apologies Eve. And, perhaps worst of all, I dropped my most precious of possessions, my Blackberry, into a dustbin full of freezing cold water. GOOD times. Thankfully, the healing powers of rice (?! thank you google...) restored it to its former glory <3 Asides from all the mishaps, it was an awesome party. When there's a pool-house involved, how can it not be?

5) It was HALLOWEEN! To a creep-freak like me, the best holiday of the year. Bob and I decided to go all out and, being slightly obsessed with horror and everything that encompasses it, spent a night at Tulley's Farm Shocktober Fest. The number one Halloween attraction in the UK, it features a variety of different 'haunts' (mazes) designed to scare the...spirit out of you. Which it well and truly did, Bob was crying and shaking the whole time bless his little cottons. After staying in a fancy hotel for the night we went home and carved some pumpkins (Bob's on the left, mine on the right) and watched tons of scary films. Perfecto. On the actual night itself, although we technically didn't go out, me and Eve decided to paint our faces and run up and down the street 'scaring' people driving past. (l-r: Laura, skeleton face, Eve, dead...leopard lady, Me, dead child).

Annnnd I think that's about it. It may seem like I've been busy having the time of my life, but I can assure you, I have not. Life is horrible. These glimpses of fun were spread over the space of 2 1/2 months. The rest of the time I am a dead-eyed, grey-skinned shell of myself, suffering from a hideous condition which has ruined my social life and stripped my soul of any hint of fun or happiness. Uni has killed me. Freshers and Second Years, make the most of being alive while you can, it's all downhill from there. Nights out will be replaced with nights in clawing your hair out in front of your laptop, trips to town will be substituted by trips to the library. Life becomes a never-ending stream of hand-ins and late nights, free from alcohol of course. The government should be paying me for this.

Which leads me on to my awful lack of blogging. Understandable now I hope. 
And now for my ulterior motive. Shameless self-promotion.

The powers that be at uni have decided that it would be a brilliant idea for us to start a blog! Err...cool. Most of us already have one...well done. But due to ridiculous rules and regulations it has to be a totally new blog, and on Tumblr. Gag. I've just about managed to deal with making things work on here, why make me use a whole new website you swines?! It also has to have a particular theme, "something original, that is relevant and interesting". So, in a selfish bid to get myself some new hobbies, mine is focussed on the 'vintage lifestyle' i.e. a return to 'traditional' hobbies such as baking and sewing. It's going to have a whole mixture of things: how-to's, interviews, pictures, maybe even some cheeky videos if I can get over my technophobia and work out how to operate a video camera. It's something I am actually interested in (oh god, I sound so old and boring. To digress, I recently went deaf in one ear so I actually am fully living up to the granny stereotype these days) and also a bit of a dedication to the legend that is Debs, whose baking masterpieces have kept me and my friends abundant in sweet treats throughout my time at uni. 

So here's a little linky, there's no actual content on there yet but keep your eyes peeled. If you want to know how (not) to bake cakes then check it outttt.


To close, a nice bit of aural pleasure for you all. I quite liked the original song, but after being directed to the Live Lounge version by Eveey P, I can't stop listening to it. Well, watching it. The old chap on the end of the choir looks like he's having the time of his life, getting his rapper moves on.

I predict you will enjoy...