'A little something different'

I briefly mentioned the book 'A little something different' by Sandy Hall in a post a month or so back, and promised that I would write about it. So the time has finally come, with me getting on top of things (at last). It was an incredibly adorable book and uniquely written, with multiple viewpoints from the best friends, the brother, the creative writing professor, the bus driver, classmates, Starbucks workers, Chinese delivery guy, even a squirrel and a park bench, all of whom observing the relationship between two people, Gabe and Lea. University students Gabe and Lea, are both are extremely reserved and despite their obvious (I underline 'obvious' because it is plainly obvious for everyone who interacts with them) mutual attraction towards each other, they never do anything about it.

So while you are reading, you too can develop your own opinion about these two shy characters, and I for one got extremely frustrated with the two and wanted to jump into the story and cry out "WHY AREN'T YOU TOGETHER YET!? COME ON GUYS. MAKE A MOVE!" Which one of the characters voices my urge very nicely:

Gabe and Lea are meant to be together, and it is refreshing to be reading a book through the eyes of the people in their lives rather than through the eyes of the two protagonists. It really goes to show how people impact the lives of others.

As I said in the other post when I first mentioned this novel, I highly recommend this book to anyone who loved Rainbow Rowell's work, as it is an adorable narrative. I would rate it 9/10 and I once again want to give credit to Sandy Hall because it is written beautifully and is very distinctive. Not many people would be able to write in this particular style and get away with it, but she has created quite a special book.

Cabaret

As part of my assessments for one of my subjects, is to put on a class performance of an abridged version of the musical 'Cabaret'. I'm really excited about it, because it is such an incredible musical and the first ever concept musical too, which makes the storyline even more interesting to analyse and study. If you aren't aware of the story, it is set during the early 30's in Germany, where the rise in Nazism was occurring and this is constantly in the foreground of the musical. However, on top of the underlying politics of the time, there are coincidental character plots that take place, the main ones featuring the character of Sally Bowles and Clifford Bradshow.

Because our class presentation has to be kept short, we selected only a few scenes and a few songs from the musical, one of them being 'Cabaret' which happens to be the song that I, along with two of my other friends, will be singing. It's a great song, so I'm really happy to have the excuse to sing it again, because I remember when I was little loving the song so much, that I would perform it to my grandma. Imagine a seven year old singing 'Cabaret' to her grandmother? It was only years later that I realised I what I was actually singing about... I guess that can be added to my list of awkward moments.

Famously known by the 1972 movie with Liza Minnelli, this is her singing 'Cabaret':

Hung over, fallen angels and hair

I completely crashed last night. I've been so overwhelmed with everything, so last night when it was 8pm, I thought I'll just lie down for half an hour. I turned on my music low and closed my eyes. Next thing I know, it's 10am the next morning. And I have absolutely no energy and everything seems too loud and too bright. This is what I imagine a hangover must feel like. With a dull headache and feeling completely groggy, I was in bed for most of the day. I stopped reading the book I started yesterday because the character is too loud... yep, that doesn't make sense at all. What I mean is, I have a very vivid imagination which makes me an active and immersive reader, so I can visualise the entire world of the novel I'm reading, including the emotions and sounds. And the protagonist was just too much to handle for the weird state I'm currently in.

However, the day before, I finished reading the third book in 'The Rephaim' series by Paula Weston, which is a fantastic series. The first book is called 'Shadows' which is about a girl, Gaby, who is grieving the death of her brother, who she believes died in a car crash. She is now living in a small beach town and living a seemingly ordinary life until this guy, Rafa comes. He claims to know her and her brother, but she has no memory of this or of him. It turns out that she has been given false memories, and that she is actually a rephaim, like Rafa, which means that she is the offspring of a fallen angel and a human. And the story goes from there with her re-emersing into her past life, as well as trying to uncover the mystery of what really happened to her and what it has to do with the rephaims mission... it is incredible and the third book finishes on a really big cliff hanger and I really can't wait to find out what happens. But unfortunately, the fourth book hasn't been released yet. 'Burn,' which is also the final book in the series, is due to be coming out in June this year. But I definitely recommend reading this series if you are a fan of urban fantasy.
Rating: 9/10

What has this got to do with my exhaustion-induced crash? Last night, I dreamt that I was Gaby and in my dream, it turns out that she is actually not a rephaim, but a fallen angel. But then it turns out that all of the fellow rephaim friends are fallen angels too and this means that we discover that we have these awesome golden wings that shimmer (which coincidentally is the name of the third book) and can fly! It was a pretty amazing dream to be honest. Who doesn't love dreams that involve flying? Plus, the Rafa I dreamt up was really good looking. But moving on...

So today, I have decided to reread one of my favourite series, 'The Mortal Instruments' which I have written about before, because I absolutely love it. This features shadowhunters, which are also descended from angels. I'm really in a fallen angel, hungover mood, so it just makes sense to turn towards my comfort-reading series. I love immersing myself into that world which Cassandra Clare has created, and I really need a break from the homework and paperwork stuff that is currently in mine. Also today is the perfect day for lying in bed, reading and drinking tea, as it is pouring with rain and freezing. Plus it's a long weekend, so at least I know I can make up my lack of homework-doing on Monday. And the other positive, that despite my groggy state, my hair looks epic today for some reason. It looks as if a stylist has worked magic on it, when in reality it's my bed hair. I don't take selfies, but this is what my hair looks like (but brown/black). I'm not even exaggerating, this miracle has actually happened:

Good intentions

Like many other people who have uni projects, essays and assignments, we all have good intentions in starting the work weeks in advance before the due date. But realistically, our good intentions come to nothing, well for me certainly. Last week I had three essays due, and because I'm me, I started the massive essay for one of my subjects (which was worth 40% of my mark) the night before it was due. 

I've written a lot about procrastination with other assignments on this blog, and this essay was no exception (obviously). But I always live in the illusion that I have plenty of time: "I have 24 hours before it's due? Ha! Heaps of time". And do I ever learn? No. It's like in the morning before going to uni, I put my alarm on two hours before I will actually get out of bed. And once I get out of bed, I'm listening to music and dancing around my room, because I have time, but then I look at the clock again, I realise I have to sprint to the bus. 

But back to this essay, when I came home from work last Friday, I was determined! (it was due on the Saturday) I had to get it started, so I had my dinner at 4:30pm so I could get that out of the way, because lets face it, food is the biggest procrastinating excuse ever! Which meant at 5pm, I was ready to go... and I finished at 3am the next morning. Ten hours of non-stop essay research and writing. I had completely lost track of time, because even though it takes me forever to actually start an assignment, once I get started, there is no stopping me. My parents were out for dinner that night too, so they got back at 10:30pm-ish and I hadn't even noticed time passing, until they came home and they found my busily typing, highlighting and writing furiously on the floor. And because my dad is amazing, he gave me a cup of tea and that cup of tea got me through the rest of the evening/ early morning. 

Also, I am incredibly messy, which I've also mentioned in previous posts. And this time, I thought I will become so tidy with my notes and took a proud photo of them at the beginning of the night: 

isn't it neat and pretty!

Um... I discovered that no matter my good intentions, I cannot change who I am. And I am not a neat person. This is what that beautiful organisation looked like only a couple of hours in:

yep. It's a bit messy

And you can only imagine what it looked like when I finished the essay. I would've taken a photo, but my notes were scattered not only all over the floor, but also all over my walls, making it impossible for the camera to capture it. Yeah, good intentions were there, but... at least a did hand it in on time. 

Sorry about not writing about anything more interesting, it's just that I feel a bit swamped this year with everything, but I promise that I will try to write less about homework in the future. It's just taken over my life at the moment.

4:48 Psychosis

One of the reasons why I've been quite slack about posting this year, is because of study (had three essays due last week) and extra curricular things. It was just over a month ago when the production '4:48 Psychosis' was put on at my university, where I played the lead.

WARNING NOTE: THIS PLAY CONTAINS UPSETTING THEMES, I APOLOGISE

'4:48 Psychosis' was written by Sarah Kane, about a lady who has clinical depression and it is about the  thoughts of hers in the lead up to her suicide. It is an extremely dark and intense script, which is written in an abstract way, without any stage directions and without any scenes; it is just a stream of consciousness, which allows a director to adapt and recontextualise as much as they want. The version were performed was heavily edited, transforming this poetic piece into more of a realism piece, with abstract elements. I'm not very good at describing it, but the set was black and white and minimalist. The walls and floor were black, the bed was centre stage and white, with white bedside table and white shelf on the side. Black chair and in the corner, a modest mirror. And that was all. Each scene was a flashback of the lady's, to memories with her mother, with her lover and with her doctor. And the transitions from each of these scenes were set in her present, which was in the middle of the night, while she is unable to sleep and before she is about to commit suicide at 4:48am, which is how the play ends.
It is an extremely raw play, and Sarah Kane herself suffered clinical depression and a few months after writing was complete, she committed suicide. As I said, it was a really intense and dark play, but there were four of us in the cast and the two directors, so we all grew really close and had each other for support, which was great. Despite the darkness of the content, it was an amazing experience and I loved every moment throughout the process of reading the script for the first time, all the way to the final bow. And I'm so glad to have been a part of it.

How does this link to 'Music Monday' you may ask. Well, while we were rehearsing, I did a bit of research about the play, reading the original script, as well as watching a few versions of it, but I also found a song called '4:48 Psychosis' by Tindersticks, that use a selection of lines from the play. And considering I've been wanting to write about the play for ages, as it was a large part of my life for three months (rehearsing almost every day), I thought I may as well combine two blog posts together.
I'm actually not going to put '4:48 Psychosis' on todays post, because it is a very sensitive and serious topic and it can be upsetting for people. So, please, don't listen to the song if you don't want to, because I don't know if it is too confronting or too personal for a lot of people. I don't know what everyones comfort zone is, so this is my WARNING message, because I really don't want to upset anyone. But if you are interested in listening to the song, feel free to, because Sarah Kane's work is beautifully written and Tindersticks piece is haunting and a great interpretation of the play.

Final Masquerade (acoustic)

One of my favourite songs on Linkin Parks most recent album 'The Hunting Party,' is the song 'Final Masquerade'. And it was a month or so ago that they released an acoustic version of this song, which I absolutely love. I still like the original the best, but this stripped back version is so beautiful, with incredible harmonies that you mightn't have noticed in their other songs. They are a truly incredible band, because, let's be honest, if a metal band can produce tear-triggering acoustic pieces, they have talent.

With the acoustic guitar and the piano to accompany the voices of Chester Bennington and Dave Farrell... it's just a perfect song. It is such a sad song, lyrics bringing up such vivid imagery, it's as if they are painting a picture with their music. For example:

"The light on the horizon was brighter yesterday,

With shadows floating over, the scars begin to fade."

It's just so poetic and I am really nerd-ing out now, because I love words so much! Anyway, this is a perfect song to listen to if you can't get to sleep (I just realised that I tend to put up a lot of songs that are good late-night listening. Well, insomnia does allow you to come up with decent music playlists, I guess). So, it's one of those songs that if you are unable to sleep, you can sit in the darkness and look out of your window. That should be a music genre I think: 'looking-out-the-window-music.'

Hope you like this version of 'Final Masquerade'  

Eating chocolate this week

This has nothing to do with todays post, but I just want to confirm that my mum and I did successfully watch all of series two of 'Gilmore Girls' in the three days. Greatest life achievement ever! Well, my mum and I think so at any rate.

But back to business... chocolate! This week, as it is the aftermath of Easter, means it is only appropriate to eat as much chocolate as you can. I that is what I did:

On Easter morning, I woke up to the smell of chocolate hot cross buns frying on the stove (we were away and the place we stayed at didn't have an oven). So I started my day with steaming hot, melted chocolate buns! And, even though I am nineteen, I still insist on having an Easter egg hunt (just because we are older doesn't mean we should miss out on chocolate). By lunch time, I had eaten all of my Easter eggs.

But I was also given a packet of Tim Tams, which are one of my weaknesses in life, because Tim Tams are the best biscuit EVER! If you were to leave me in a house with Tim Tams in it, I can guarantee that I would have eaten them all by the time you returned... and that is what actually happened. Tim Tams have always been a massive treat for me, because when I was little and got picked up from aftercare at school, every Friday, my mum would bring me a Tim Tam from her work. And I would look forward to it so much and would be the highlight of the school week.
Just look how beautiful they are:

I'm in love

I continued eating hot cross buns, but also had a few hot chocolates over the past few days, which is lovely when the weather is cold and you've been out in the bitter wind. And where we were, it was very windy.

My next mission is to eat the big packet of Toblerone, which is my next favourite chocolate. 

Race against time

On Tuesdays, my local video library allows you to borrow television series for a week at half price, so yesterday, my mum and I borrowed the second series of 'Gilmore Girls'. Even though it is a relatively old tv show, it is the first time we've ever seen it and it's thanks to my very good friend who recommended it to me. It is such a good show, as you really feel a part of the characters lives in the small town of Stars Hollow. For anyone who doesn't know what it's about, 'Gilmore Girls' is a comedy-drama show about the everyday lives of Lorelai, mother to sixteen year old Rory. As it is about a mother and daughter and their relationship, it makes it really nice sharing this tv experience with my mum. I am thoroughly enjoying it and would recommend the show to people who really like sarcastic sense of humour- I've been laughing so much with this show and have come to the conclusion that I would definitely be friends with Lorelai.

However, it's not my intention to talk about the show, other than saying that it is really entertaining. Instead, I'm going to talk about how my mum and I have spent the last two days:
So we borrowed the second series yesterday and then realised that we were away next Tuesday which is when it is due. This then lead to the realisation that we had until this Thursday to finish the entire series two because that will be our last opportunity to return it. That means 22 episodes- that is six discs- that we have to watch in only three days. So what we have been doing watching as much as possible whenever we have free time. Forget about homework; last night when I came back from uni, mum and I spent the evening watching the first two discs. WE ARE ON A MISSION! Today when I got back from uni, turn on the tv. We took turns preparing dinner, so we would always have someone in front of the tv to tell what the other person has missed while stirring the meal on the stove. Dinner was on the couch, and do I have any homework? Yes, I have three essays due soon which I haven't started yet (or even looked at), but I'm sorry, I have priorities, which is getting through these episodes. Tonight we watched all of disc three and started disc four. Tomorrow I have work, but as soon as I get home, mum and I are going to try and power through discs four, five and six.

It is a race against time! Who knows if we can make it! But one thing is for certain: my mum and I (even though we both realise that we are absolutely crazy and should really seek therapy of some kind) are going to do the very best we can and watch as much of Gilmore Girls series two as possible! We have to know what happens and if that means losing our sanity, so be it!