Come Home to Scotland

VisitScotland has just launched its new Homecoming 2009 advert. If you were ever going to come visit me, 2009 is the year. There are loads of special events going on next year from January to November.

Many Scottish celebrities are in the videos. Go here to see it. On the website there is a list of details about the celbrities featured because honestly most people outside Scotland wouldn' t know them. BUT the advert is targetted to Scots encouraging them to invite their family and friends over.

As a 'Scot' I extend an open invitation for 2009. Come visit!!!

I was stalked

Yes I was officially stalked online by my now current workmates. ha. Today a few people came for interviews for some position. None of us in my pod knew what they were interviewing for, but the interviews took place in the meeting room next to us.

Anyhoo, James who sits in my pod mentioned looking up the interviewees on Facebook. Then he and Chris (who works on our floor) said they had looked me up too. I thought they were joking. Then Chris asked if I had a prom photo as my profile picture. I said NO of course not. Then we they searched for "Tiffany Burch." I got to see the girl with the prom photo. haha. She was even from Hattiesburg, MS! What are the chances??? I'm pretty sure Chris was disappointed that I wasn't the prom photo girl because her photo is really terrible, and it would have made for good banter.

So I kind of felt creeped out, so I asked them why they looked me up. James said it was so they would know who I was when I showed up. But I don't exactly believe that because he was critiquing all the girls who came for interviews today. Sooo I'm pretty sure they were just trying to check me out before I got there.

Weird though that it was 2 guys who didn't have anything to do with my hiring (at least I don't think they did)haha. And I'm pretty sure Chris is married and James lives with his girlfriend. RIDICULOUS! So I'm guessing the whole floor was told of my arrival for Monday morning...who knows. My work said they would take me as their temp last Wednesday, so that did give them 3 days to mull over my arrival and possible looks.

My photo is one from months ago and I look about 12. Check it out on Facebook...it's still there!

Response to Katie's Comment

Girlfriend! My pay is like 1 pound over minimum wage. By no means is it good pay. It pays my rent and expenses which is all I have for now, BUT I have my student loans starting in March. Booooo!

So. I may move back if there are no promising prospects by then. There is also the option of doing a funded PhD in San Francisco. While it would put off me paying my debt, it would allow me more job prospects in my field. I really want to work in the international health field, and doing admin for the tourist board isn't exactly doing that.

I applied for 2 more research assistant positions here in Edinburgh. Pray pray pray that I get some interviews. Dear Lord I'm getting tired of applying. It takes at least 30 minutes to an hour for each. :(

Why does the US education system do this to us? Scottish people go to university for free (or at an extreme discount). AND you don't have to pay back your loan until you are earning a certain amount of money which is good if you need to do an internship to get experience. Getting experience is a luxury for me haha. Unfortunately it's the reason most people won't hire me or my classmates who are still unemployed.

Sigh.

Katie Likes Po-Boys

You absolutely must check out this photo of Katie! The girl was definitely celebrating the New Orleans Po-boy Preservation Festival.

This photo makes me want a shrimp po-boy like it's nobody's business. Dammit! The Scots only have 'prawns' which are ridiculously small shrimp. And they have no idea how to do a proper fried-shrimp. :( These unfortunately are things I have adjusted to in order to survivor this dark cold country.

I survived my first day as a temp. It seems like they want the job to go permanent, but I just can't do that to myself. I don't have a load of college loan debt just to be an Admin Asst. Ya know? I might actually enjoy the job if I didn't have the debt. Why did I even bother going to university if these are the only people that will hire me???

DVD Contest

Below is a link for a DVD pack contest from Comcast (Memphis telecom company). Anywho, I'm sure they'll send you junk email, but you can register to win a pack of DVDs. I love Weeds, so maybe I'll win that! woohoo

http://www.memphisflyer.com/comcast/

Feathers

I am really loving accessories right now. They are cheap. They make simple clothes look exceptional. Credit crunch = cheap clothes, but it doesn't mean a lack of style.

Here are some really cool head accessories I found.

Christmas List from JCrew

I have been thinking about stuff I would like for Christmas from JCrew. It is mostly cute clothes that I could wear at work and beyond. This may sound lame, but I currently have about 2 work clothing items. Soooooooooooo without further ado here is my Christmas wishlist...

1. Quinn Cami. I will need a size 4 in light pewter please. ($78)

















2. Cool necklace. Saw on the site for $89, but they are sold out. Pretty sure I can make this myself.3. Solid Silk Elizabeth Halter. On sale for $59.99. I like either Fresh Clover or Classic Navy in a small.
4. Solid Harlow Blouse. On Sale for $59.99. Ivory or Fresh Guava. Size 4.5. Merino Melanie button-cuff cardigan. $59.50. Size small. Color melon, bright tangerine, or heather grey.6. Dream Stephanie Cardigan. REALLLLYYYYYY love this one. $88 (mix of cashmere). Small. Color shown = light spearmint.
7. I really like the trousers as well. Favorite-fit stretch vintage bootcut cord. $69.50. Aubergine, sea salt, or pine bough.
8. The necklace is cute too, but I can make it. It is just ribbon and beads.

blah blah

Hello all! I am currently in Paisley to teenager-sit Graham's cousin. ha. He's 15 and his parents have gone away for the night, but don't want to leave him home alone. It's actually not the safest city, so I don't blame them. Graham and his brother Phil have also come over, so there is currently a massive video game festival happening downstairs.

I however am nursing a nasty cold/sinus infection/ear-ache/chest congestion situation. Ugh. I really really really hate being sick. Needless to say I'm kind of a party-pooper. Therefore I have taken it upon myself to stay out of the way and in bed. woohoo! Celebrating the end of my 3 month vacation with a weekend in bed sick. :(

Start work Monday at my temp job. It has several perks...

1. I will have money coming in instead of only flowing out.
2. I will feel like I have some sort of purpose other than lounging about.
3. It will push me even more to find a 'real' job (which I am looking for but finding difficult)
4. There will be humans for me to talk to each day.
5. I will shower more frequently.
6. Clothes other than PJ's, jeans, and t-shirts will be worn.

Other than that life is gravy! Miss ya love ya

Homeless Guy Hits Taxi

My life is by no means normal. Let's just be real about that.

Yesterday on my walk home from the university, I saw a homeless guy walk into a taxi. No the taxi did not hit the man. EEk. The dude took the taxi's wing mirror off and slammed into the ground. A guy near the scene called 999 (our 911), but I had to speak to them because his accent was too thick. Because the homeless guy was blatantly drunk, I had to ask him some questions which he took ages to answer.

Finally the police arrived only to find the homeless man trying to flee the scene. Ridiculous. After a few minutes with the homeless guy pushed against the wall, he was forced into the patrol car and taken away. Finally the ambulance arrived only to be told he was gone.

I had to give an official police statement which took forever to complete via the officer's tiny PDA on which he was writing. It was freezing cold and windy to boot. Boo :(

Currently I am suffering the wrath of a nice winter cold which is seriously starting to piss me off. I also thought I would be home from December 22 to January 6, but thanks to American Airlines not taking my debit card I didn't book it last night. This morning I thought I should contact the temp agency to double check about my assignment next week (this was the money paying for the flight). Anyhoo, come to find out they gave my job to someone else. Talk about being pissed and upset! Well this hooker definitely was that. I ended my phone call politely, but after a few minutes realised I had no reason to be polite. So I calmly called back to state my frustration at the situation. I was assured I was an alternate and told there may be a possible position for me.

So the short story is next week I start working for the tourism board as an Admin Assistant. I'm happy to have an income, but still demoralized by the job search process. I'd really love to do something in my field...is that too much too ask? Must be because I am having absolutely NO luck. Just mailed 2 applications and emailed a third. Have a bunch to do tomorrow as well.

For now, I will not be home for Christmas as I had hoped because I now have to work those 2 weeks I would have been home. But hopefully in the spring sometime I can venture on home. :(

Love and miss you all!!

The Weekend Review

Here is a quick summary of my weekend...

1. Friday night I was dead tired from working all day at The Hub. We didn't actually do much except serve wine at a drinks reception and decorate for a party that evening. So in the world of catering it was a very EASY day. On the other hand standing for 8 hours with only two 15 minute breaks really kills the legs and feet...especially have a long shift the night before.

Graham got here on Friday. Kind of felt bad for him because I was piled up in my bed when he arrived. AND I made him cook our dinner. hehe

2. Saturday...did another shift at the rugby match. Scotland played South Africa, and after leading for most of the game they lost by 3 points.

On a positive note I made £6 in tips. haha. That's huge! I would have made more but the cashier next to me and our runner all split our tips. The poor boy who ran around to help us get drinks deserved some money because I definitely got cross with him a few times.

Working as a cashier was much more fun than pouring pints because the people are hilarious. I had to card quite a few people, but one guy actually thanked me. haha. He said he was starting to feel old because no one had asked him for his ID in a while. You know I'm here for the people...just making people feel good about themselves.

3. Saturday night I had intended to just lounge on my couch which I did for a bit. BUT then my flatmate came home with his brother who is visiting. My flatmate completely does not understand the idea of if someone is watching the TV you let them continue watching their show and/or ASK them if the channel can be changed. Oh hell no! That's not what he does. He came in, changed the channel, ignored our request to watch a movie that we were about to watch when he arrived, and then became a know-it-all per usual. So G and I went to my room and hung out. Really is annoying to pay rent but mostly spend time in my room because I hate all the following...
- football (soccer)
- science fiction
- murder mysteries
- boy blow-em-up shoot-em-up style films
- superhero movies
- and the list goes on

4. Sunday I bought a cute new pair of flats. It was time. I have been wearing a brown silk pair I got at Old Navy last Christmas, and well they have just fallen apart. The sole is worn. The inside has NO support or cushion. And the silk on the toe is gone. So basically I look homeless when I wear them, but I have no other options except high heels and sneakers. I have worn all my flats out by walking everyday. haha. I guess I have to start investing in them since I don't have a car.
(I will take a picture of the new pair on my feet ASAP.)

5. I am developing a cold which completely sucks. My throat feels like sand paper and I keep coughing. :( This is made worse by the fact I'm supposed to give a presentation on Wednesday to the new MSc students about my dissertation. eek. I hope I don't cough the entire time. That will be terrible.

That's all for now. Much more to come!!!

Work Work Work

I did my catering shift last night and one today.

Last night was for Barclays Wealth to have a debate about how they should address the financial crisis. Nice...spend a ton of money to figure out how to save money. Right! They had MASSIVE flower arrangements with only roses. Filet Mignon with veggies arranged in a really fancy way. Fancy little desserts and starters. There were drinks and canapes with a bagpiper before the dinner. ha.

We got to eat the left over food which was amazing. And I got to leave early. So all in all a pretty good night.

Today I just worked a drinks reception and set tables for an event tonight. I love doing nothing. We just walked around and chatted while putting out some glasses.

Other than that life is bland. My supervisor, other research colleague, and I met on Wednesday. Everything is progressing well with my article. They are really impressed with my work, so they asked me about a PhD. Unfortunately I'm not from the EU or UK so I can't get funding here. :(

However, my research colleague worked at UC San Francisco for a long time and has connections there. In addition to that my supervisor is a big name in tobacco control. They recommended a fellowship at UCSF, but it is for post-docs. So my research colleague, Nathaniel, emailed some of his former workmates about any jobs, projects, PhDs, etc I might be able to do. Maybe something will come of that and I'll be on the West Coast. No closer to any of you though (except for Jena).

But that is just a random idea floating in the air. I applied to another post at Oxford (hopefully this time they will hire me instead of telling me I was great but the other person did better on their VERY subjective test) and I applied to a charity here. I have about 3 more due on Monday and loads next week. busy busy busy week

I Hate Doing Catering

So as an unemployed person I'm forced to do such jobs as casual catering. Boo.

These people call you literally the day before or day of the event and ask you to be a paid slave. Yesterday I received a call about working Friday. I thought "wow I got 2 days notice". After this brief respite I received my second call from Adam the recruiter to ask about working tonight. I said that would be ok as I am available and need the money.

I went down to the office at about 4:45 to talk to the lady, and she said the shift would be from 3:15 to midnight. In my head I thought no problem. But this morning I had the reality check that I signed up to work from 3:15 to midnight and 8 AM tomorrow to 5 PM. Plus a Saturday 10:45 -6 shift. What the hell was I thinking? There is no way I can do that much physical labour with only about 5 hours sleep tonight. So I called as early as I could this morning to ask if I could cancel one of the shifts.

The bitch got rude with me. But you know what? F them. I mean what do they expect if they call you less than 24 hours before the shift starts? And I'm desperate for money so of course I am going to agree until I really sort it out in my head.

So now I have to go to town to buy new black shoes because the ones I usually wear are actually black trainers and they said I can't wear them tonight because it is a 'high profile' event. Which means I now have to go pay like £50 to make £30 tonight. Ugggghhhhhhhhhh. See being employed actually makes your poorer. :(

On a more positive note, the place I have to work tonight is called Hopetoun House. Here is a photo!

Angry Black Bitch

Ya'll. This blog is soooooo great! I literally piss myself laughing sometimes when I read it. The Angry Black Bitch is a straight-talking girl from St. Louis who is not afraid to mess up her afro in order to get across her point.

Check it out here! It is also listed in my links, but I thought I would give this site a shout out!

Hot Chocolate - Winter Is Here

It's most definitely winter here in Scotland. Freezing cold temperatures. Torturous winds. And hot chocolate. yummy! I just made my first official winter cup of hot chocolate. Don't get my wrong I have not been abstaining from the drink, but just purchasing it sporadically while in the city. My mom and I used to make the easy type...you boil some water in the microwave and then add the powder. While I added the powder to mine, I had to heat milk on the stove. My first time to use milk, and now I know why...milk really stinks when you heat it up. It reminded me of people warming up baby formula. SICK!

Nonetheless, my hot chocolate is delicious!

Today I was an absolute bum, so now I'm paying for it a little bit. I'm editing the first draft of my article. I have already edited it and submitted it to my supervisor, but it definitely needs work. I had kind of hit a wall with writing and doing research, however yesterday I got some needed energy. I attended the presentation of a research fellow in my institute who does similar work which was super useful for me.

I also need to get quite a few job applications done tonight. Luckily many of them are just a CV and cover letter. I have a template for each that I manipulate and re-arrange depending on the type of job, qualities desired, etc.

Quantum of Hotness

Last Sunday (2 Nov) Big G and I saw the new James Bond flick Quantum of Solace. Holy bejesus, Daniel Craig is so f-ing HOTTTTTTTT! I don't care how old that son of a gun is, he's smoking. I would do unmentionable things to him, but considering my mom and boyfriend read this I'll stop there. ;)

If you didn't see the Bond film released a year or so ago, definitely see it before going. Quantum continues on the story line of the other one, but unfortunately is lacking a strong plot. DEFINITELY want the next Bond to come out ASAP. Hollywood's need to make you wait over a year for the next film is in full swing with this film. They haven't even started filming the next one :( boo for Hollywood/UK filmmakers. What the hell are they waiting for? There are loads of women eager to spend £7 for a cinema ticket and £6 on a bucket of coca-cola and some salty popcorn (cause the sweet kind is gross and butter-flavour isn't an option in this third world country). I may be unemployed, but I'm getting snacks at the movie.

The product placement in the film is however extremely disgusting. Yay Ford for placing 3 of your car brands in the film...Ford, Land Rover, and Aston Martin!! Marketing Department - Gold Stars for all for polluting my film with your crap vehicles.

Aston Martin's are of course the signature Bond car, and Range Rovers are very British. But damn. Pretty much the only kind of car Mr. Craig drove was a Range Rover. I am guessing the filmmakers aren't too concerned with the environment or CO2 emissions...or petrol prices for that matter.

Quantum is released in the good ol US of A this coming Friday according to Perez Hilton (I don't care what you people say...his disgusting use of Paint and crap gossip is currently my daily addiction). So check it out if you have some spare change. If not, wait til the next one comes out and rent this one. By then the economy may be out of the toilet and on the way up. Here's to hoping!

Girls Aloud Album is #1

So my new band Girls Aloud's album is now number one in the UK! I am claiming this victory as my own due to my dream. It was clearly my singing and dancing abilities at the concert I dreamed about. Their (our) single "The Promise" is number 3 here. Check it out here!!!

I am going to personally claim this as thanks to me because I have no other employment options at the moment. ha. I worked the rugby game last night pouring pints. Awesome! There were some amazingly hot Kiwis (New Zealanders) there because it was NZ versus Scotland. Of course Scotland got murdered because the All Blacks (NZ) are the best in the world. MASSIVE men, but some of their faces look about 12. Before the game a pipe band paraded into the stadium in front of the SCO team's coach. I hope they have extra large coaches for these guys because their legs are massive. However, one of my work-mates said they only come from their hotel...which is probably one of the fancy ones in the city centre which is about a mile away. ha.

I am working another rugby game next week, so that's some extra cash. We pour 12 pints at once with MDUs (multi-dispensing units). They are awesome. You fill a tray with 12 plastic pint glasses, lift a lever to put the cups near the taps, push a button to fill them half way, push it again to fill them completely, pull the lever to lower the glasses, and there you have 12 perfect pints! Amazing. The six hours I was there went fairly quickly because we were CONSTANTLY pouring pints. We were really busy before the game. By the time we caught up it was half-time. Eek. Despite it being cold and rainy, people stood in the queue to get a beer for ages. There is no way I would have done that...especially since the beer was £4.50.

So I guess that's all for me now. I just turned in my rough draft of my article. Well let's say it's really rough, but I'm not really enjoying this now. I kind of just want to be done with this topic and working on something else, but they have paid me so I have to get something out. I think I'm too stressed about this lame job search. Graham thinks as soon as I get my visa I should have an easier time, but I am also starting to look for jobs in the USA (much to my disappointment).

Girls Aloud

Last night I had a very strange dream. I dreamed that I was a member of the group Girls Aloud. Don't ask me why. I'm not a die-hard fan. I haven't listened to them in a while or read about them in a gossip mag. Who the hell knows.

But last night I was a member of the band. A bunch of my friends were there, but no one seemed to know how big Girls Aloud is. We sang a few songs, but I didn't know the lyrics. haha. So the other girls would focus on singing while I did some background bits and dancing. hahaha.

To make the dream even weirder, for some reason it was daylight outside during our concert. I left the building during a break to go find someone or something...I'm really not sure. While I was outside I came upon a swimming pool. Being Scotland it was super windy which led to these HUGE WAVES coming out of the pool. I had to grab a tree to keep my feet on the ground because of course I was wearing some senquined goodness. In addition to my costume, my hair was teased to within an inch of its life and had about 4 cans of hairspray. (getting ready for the concert was also part of the dream).

I then woke up very confused as to what the hell caused me to have that kooky dream. Could my true career calling be to infiltrate Girls Aloud? Should they let me join the group? If so, I have to get skank-tastic ASAP, get some extensions, loads of sequins, and a rich footballer boyfriend. (Sorry Graham, your time is up...unless you put on those football boots and get a contract with Man U).

But to enable you to better visualise my time as a member of Girls Aloud here are some photos of them before me and while they had the honour of Tiffany being a band member. :) Those hookers will be calling me tomorrow to arrange a time to meet! Can't wait.


















Some artwork a la Perez Hilton (he's the master of using Paint). This photo doesn't highlight how hot I looked last night, but the paps weren't really being generous and retouching the photos. :(

A little fall photo update

It opens in a new window and you have to push play. Sorry about that.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Loving the Hat Trend

People hats are IN for the winter. Go to your nearest Macy's or Belk's to buy yo-self the hottest one you can. They are the centrepiece of your outfit, so simple tops and bottoms are encouraged...AMAZING!
I was recently given one by the Big G as a 'late birthday gift.' (will post a photo soon). The boy was super late, but he's getting an executive pardon due to not really knowing me until he crashed my birthday party. :)

So back to the hats. For real folks, hats are amazing. Here are just a few reasons...

1. Your head stays warm.
2. You look mysterious.
3. You can mix and match to help creat new looks with your old clothes (good for the credit crunch).
4. They make them for all head sizes.
5. They don't make you look fat and even fit on 'fat' days!
6. Individuality is enouraged.
7. Hats are timeless and super stylish!

Here are some photos of my favs:
For the couple that likes to wear hats together.





LOVING this look!
















Now start the looks from ASOS. Love this website although it is a UK one. Sorry! But I bet there are similar items in the USA.
















For when you just need fur.

Work Work Work

Today I'm working on tons of job applications as usual. Job hunting SUCKS!

I am also working on my article for my research. Coming along OK, but I have a deadline tomorrow for my first draft. Honestly, it will probably be Saturday because I've had a ton of job apps due this week (even though they will all say 'sorry you aren't qualified' or not reply at all).

This said, I have one of my catering gigs this Saturday for a rugby match. You know some crazy drunk Scots are going to come to that. Woohoo! And I can't wait to see them and laugh my ass off. The last time I did a catering shift it was for a horse race and I worked in a corporate box where 50 people partied all day. Those people got so drunk. Honestly, I did not know that 50 people could dry a bar up. We ran out of gin (mind you they drank about 4 bottles of the stuff) in addition to a whole host of other things. Crazy. At the end of it all one man tipped me £10, but they made me split it. ughhhhhhh. Fortunately the boxes upstairs made alot so I still got a £5 tip. Oh well, at least everybody got something.

I'm going to buy The Food Doctor book today. I'm really unhealthy right now because I don't eat properly and don't exercise enough. My skin, hair and nails are all awful. I've gained weight (boo). I'm kind of moody with hot flashes. haha. And I get headaches and stomach aches regularly. That said, it's time to sort out my nutritional intake and get back to exercising. So today after I'm done with my job app for the day and some of my article I'm heading off to Waterstones to buy this book. Hopefully my skin will clear up soon, and I can shed some of these added pounds...especially since I have the family weekend with the Nichols at the end of month. A sister has to be looking her best! :)

PS I went as Sarah Palin for Halloween. The funny thing about it is at one point I only had on my glasses with my hair pulled up (no skirt suit or flag pins) when a guy at the party said "are you Sarah Palin?" hahaha. We looked up a pic online and I looked ALOT like her. I'm taking that as a compliment as she is very attractive...especially after having 5 kids. Hope my body is rocking like that! (Below is the photo we found online).

G's B-day Part 2

Looking time-worn and OLD in Ayr. bahahhahahahahha.

So we just got back from G's birthday celebration. It was really fun. A bunch of his friends were there to help celebrate one year closer to the BIG 30. Woohoo for 27! haha. (he's going to kill me)

Anywho, we had chilli, coca-cola, salad, loads of desserts, and chips and salsa for the American themed festivities. We watched some Fox News because Paul thinks the channel is hilarious due to its obvious bias for the Republicans while constantly saying it is not biased. (I do think it makes for hilarious journalism). Then we watched last night's The Daily Show because we get the re-runs due to being 6 hours ahead.

In addition to all this revelry we watched a little online video. While the video was made after September 11 about America and is touching, the visual effects and the seriousness of the singer are absolutely hilarious. Supposedly the guy is a stunt guy. bahahhahaha. Check it out here. According to the website, this song is "the new American Rock Anthem." Please do let me know what you think about this lyrical masterpiece.

Graham's Birthday

Today is Guy Fawkes day in the UK in addition to being Graham's birthday. woohoo. He is the big 2-7!! haha. Old man. I am about to head out for a combination Obama/Graham party.

Everyone in the UK is optimistic about the new US President Obama. No matter which candidate you voted for remember it is now time to unite. We will never all agree, but this is the positive about democracy - we are all allowed our opinions and voice without fear of persecution.

Yes we can!!! (no matter your party this is an awesome USA cheer, because YES WE CAN move forward and get our nation going...even though i don't live there) haha

Updates!!!

Work/Visa Update
Last Thursday I submitted my application for the new visa. Woohoo! It arrived on Friday thanks to UPS and their quick deliveries, but my app fee still hasn't been taken from my account. I am wondering if this means the application process is taking a while. boo!

Anywho, I also found a part-time job, but the people need my passport. UGH! If I had only called these people 5 days prior I would be working and getting a visa. :( Thankfully the guy said they will still be hiring in December when I get my visa and passport back. The 'real' job search is a nightmare, but luckily I'm not the only one having issues. (I was starting to have self-esteem issues.) 2 other girls I know are just as miserable about it all.

In the meantime, I have a catering shift this Saturday and next for some rugby matches. That should be fun. Serving drunken rugby fans...just hope they are hot to make the time go by faster!

Personal Updates
Today is election day, so get out there and VOTE!!!

We are having an election party/G's birthday party tomorrow due to the time difference here. By the time results start coming in we will all be sleeping snuggly in our beds. G turns 27 tomorrow. OLD MAN! haha. I'm still a fetus compared to him.

But back to the election party...Paul, one of G's friends, really wanted to have an election party even though he's English. In the UK people laugh at the Republicans' claims that Democrats are 'liberals' and 'socialists'. The USA honestly doesn't have a liberal mainstream party, but there are the Libertarians which are much more liberal than the Dems. (if you want to read about a more liberal stance go to Patrick Rhamey's site). And socialism is in no way about to make its way into the USA, so claims that Obama is a socialist are absurd. No matter your party and/or presidential choice, you at least need to keep yourself educated on political terminology and stances. But then again, those people calling Obama a socialist are ignorant and choosing to remain so.

At the end of the month I'm going down south to G's mom's for a family weekend. I've been to a few other family functions, so I feel pretty comfortable. There will be a few extras that I haven't met before, but Southern charm has its perks. Meeting new and strange people is one of those!! Hopefully the weather will be nice because we are only there for one night.

I am still living in my 'new' flat. It's going well. I do wish I could decorate more as the flat is VERY minimalist, but it's not mine and I don't know how long I'll be here. That said, my bedding is absolutely lovely. VERY high count cotton duvet cover that is super soft and cosy. Unfortunately it does wrinkle quite a bit. But you know, whatever.

We had a Halloween party on Friday. I went as the crazy radical Sarah Palin. What a freak. Why did McCain have to pick her? He was actually a decent choice for president until he had a stroke and picked a wacky, barely educated, freak. Enough said. But pictures are to come from that party. G went as the Hitcher from "The Mighty Boosh". Click here for a similar picture of his character. The show is absolutely hilarious, but very British. If you like Flight of the Conchords you just may like this show. :)

More to come! Promise I have crazy stories.