I think my mother has OCD.

Everyone loves a bargain, right? I know I do. I find that buying lots of cheap things is an instant remedy for a multitude of bad feelings. And again, I know well that my mother's own penchance to buy lots of cheap things has always been a little extensive compared to that of other people. Consider my bathroom cupboard for example; 8 bottles of Johnson's Baby Shampoo, 11 of conditioner and 14 of shower gel is probably a bit more than any regular person. But still, I put it down to eccentricity and competitiveness mixed with a little common sense- after all, if you really need those things then why not stock up while they're on special offer?

However, I was a wee bit more alarmed today when I opened a compartment of the freezer in an attempt to find something interesting for lunch (an endeavour that failed I'm sorry to say), only to find no less than SEVENTEEN packets of Waitrose mini lemon and raisin pancakes. Six per packet, that's ONE-HUNDRED AND TWO of the sodding things. That is not a normal figure.

I'm not sure what I can do for the moment. I guess I shall just have to carefully monitor quantities inside all cupboard-like structures. If I can build up the courage.

Dear _______,

Please could you stop showing off your love bites to your friends at every available opportunity. As I share a form room with you, I cannot help but see them too and I really, really do not wish to do so. I know that my personal associates (and quite more people besides) agree. While I'm all for everyone finding love and happiness with another living soul, I do not want to see the evidence of it. Especially as my stupid over-active imagination likes to take an idea and run away with it, no matter how much I try to supress it.

Oh! the mental scarring!

I hope you know that this is not a personal attack; I speak in your best interests, as I would hate to see someone finally lose patience and scream at you 'GODAMMIT, FOR THE SAKE OF US ALL, PUT IT AWAY!!' Please, I beg of you, seriously consider taking this request on board. Or else, get your boyfriend to have a decent meal before he sees you.

Best wishes,
Alice

I feel the need to post a journal entry as my usual time-wasting spot, Last.fm, has just been revamped and is consequently being very, very slow. I hate it when sites redesign. Largely not because I dislike the changes (though it's quite possible I do), but because I hate people's negative reactions to the new look. They may have good points to make, but the least they could do is be polite about it. When your friend goes and gets a haircut, and it looks a bit odd/crap, you don't say so to their face, do you? You say something constructive. (Except if that friend is Jenny, in which case the lesbian jokes are expected by now, poor girl.)

Over the last month I've been on a University visiting binge, which I have somehow returned from without going insane. As well as the stress of the visits in themselves, which left me with a very strong feeling of 'oh my God I'm actually going to leave all my friends to study with a bunch of complete strangers somewhere weird ARRGH', I also had to cope with having both of my parents with me on half of the trips. Although the cloud of dissaproval resulting from my not even considering Oxbridge had dissolved by the times of the visits, my parents (and let's be honest, by that I mean my mother) are still somehow able to inspire in me a unique feeling of complete, utter despair. Music and Tom go a long way in averting the otherwise inevitable parenticide, however :)

Anyway, here are some brief notes on each university because it might actually prove useful to me, and who knows, of interest to you:

The University of Sheffield- Hills. Not a campus, but the SU is directly opposite the Biomedical Sciences building so it would still mostly be all together in a convenient clump. 3 mins walk from the SU up a hill to the big, leafy park and 5 mins walk down the hill to the town. Catered halls nice enough, 20 mins walk up the hill. Good public transport, including trams. Apparently the cheapest and safest city in the UK.

The University of Birmingham- Took an immediate dislike to, but that may be because I went to visit it with the school, and it's worryingly close to home. And they don't have the course I want. They do get points for giving me a free Univeristy of Birmingham frisbee though.

The University of Leeds- GORGEOUS campus, I'd never leave, and fantastic SU (which was playing Radiohead- Idioteque when I walked through the cafe, which further proves their good taste). But the course didn't look immediately as good as the others-only Biology OR Chemistry A level was a requirement, not both, so the 1st year is apparently mainly focused on bringing everyone up to the same level, which could be yawnsome to people who did do both eg me. And the labs looked old-fashioned compared to all the others I saw.

The University of Nottingham- Campus not as pretty as Leeds imo, but bigger and with big rolling fields in the middle of it which is nice. Bit cut off from the town for my liking, though there is a frequent bus service. Brilliant Biochemistry and Genetics course, with superfantastic labs. Shiny SU, but it seemed a little... sterile.

The University of Bristol- again not a campus, but the chemistry dept. where I'd be based seemed pretty self-sufficient so not a problem. Lovely little park (uni owned I think) right in the middle of it. 5-10 min walk into town. No biomedical science degree, but physiology there looks good and the labs were impressive. Unfortunately, the accomodation is 45 mins walk away, UP A HILL, and the buses are reportedly rubbish. And the SU reminded me of Haddenham youth centre- it tries, yet fails, to look welcoming and has a funny smell.

The University of Southampton- where my brother went, so I already knew this one a bit. VERY nice accomodation that I saw (with a circular, soundproof music-room on stilts!) only 3 mins walk away from Biosciences. Good course, didn't get to see any labs though. SU seemed good, with helpful (and attractive) student at info point to tell me things about it. And FREE BUS PASS when living in Halls!

Current thoughts are Sheffield 1st choice, Soton as insurance, though this depends on things such as grades and where my gentleman friend thinks he may go.

And, on a completely unrelated note, less than a year 'til I get to be a bridesmaid wearing a very pretty dress at my brother's wedding! :)

It is sad when a brilliant TV show is cancelled; however, there is a time when all good things must come to an end. You might shed a few tears, get some friends together to have a marathon of the show, and watch the final episode with a mixture of delight and grief as years' worth of quality entertainment goes out on a high.

What you shouldn't do is ship it off to Japan so it can be resurrected as a very scary anime.


'Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z (出ましたっ！パワパフガールズZ, roughly "And They're Off! Powerpuff Girls Z") is the name for a Japanese anime loosely inspired by the American animated television series The Powerpuff Girls. It is of the magical girl genre of anime.

The show being made by Cartoon Network, Toei Animation, and Aniplex; with Sam Register, Hiromi Seki, and Hideo Katsumata producing; Hiroyuki Kakudou directing; and character design by Miho Shimogasa of Sailor Moon fame. Craig McCracken, the original creator of The Powerpuff Girls, is not involved in this project.

Toei Animation's anime reimagining of Cartoon Network's Powerpuff Girls, entitled Powerpuff Girls Z, debuted in Japan on July 1, 2006 on TV Tokyo, replacing Sugar Sugar Rune in its time slot. The initial order is for about 50 to 52 episodes at 30 minutes each, with more possible depending on how successful the show turns out to be. As of this writing, it is unknown when, or if there will be a U.S. release, and even if so, whether or not it would feature the original actors who voiced the American show.

Since the cartoon was first revealed around April 1 at the Tokyo International Anime Fair 2005, it was believed by many to be an April Fool's joke which started at the animation news web site Toon Zone.' (Wikipedia)

If only.

You can watch the first episode here on YouTube (the provider won't allow embedding). I won't even begin to descibe it myself.

The Powerpuff Girls Z make the REAL Bubbles cross.