I’ve got my Masters Arts Council funding!!! Tuition fees paid, and a generous maintenance grant for the 12 months from October. Now I’ve got this I can be fairly confident that my Doctoral studies will be funded. It’s so amazing, it looks like I’m going to have my dream career – it’s all in my hands now. It also means that we’re lifted off the poverty line – I was seriously getting concerned that we wouldn’t be able to afford heating in winter. I now have to decide what I’m doing job wise, you’re not supposed to have any part time work while in receipt of the award. Part time work keeps me sane, though, so I’ll have to do some thinking…it’s not a bad position to be in, though – deciding whether I can do a job for fun.
We met up with my old friend: Mark, on Saturday. Raine and he have never met - I haven’t seen him for about 4 years, because he goes travelling for years at a time (he lives off money from two flats he rents out in Blackpool, and part time jobs around the world), but he’s back in Blackpool for a while. Raine and I met up with him and his boyfriend, and it went really well…so well, in fact, that he and Tim are coming to the wedding! I’m really pleased, Mark’s one of the good guys, and his travel stories are wonderful.
Unbelievably the weather has actually gotten worse since my last entry. It’s been so dark all day – it looks like late evening, and there’s constant rain. Getting out of bed was as hard as winter mornings – it seemed like it wasn’t light yet. I’m trying to convince myself it’s getting all the horribleness out of the way before next week…I think I might be kidding myself, though. We have got a honeymoon plan B, though – we’ve bought several cases of beer and cider;-) There’s not a great deal to do in Newquay when the weather’s crap. Thankfully this year we’ll have a TV in the room, but it’s not really an ideal holiday activity.
Tuesday, 26 August 2008
Friday, 22 August 2008
Exs and Weddings
We’re really hoping the weather cheers up for next month, it’s been so relentlessly awful. If it rains on the wedding day it’s not as bad as it raining the entire week we’re on holiday. It’s typical really, everyone’s staying at home this year, because the economy is so screwed, and it’s the wettest summer since 1912. UK tourism’s going to take even more of a hammering when the economy turns around…though I guess that’s not going to happen any time soon, so it’ll have next summer to redeem itself!
The wedding’s all ready to roll – less than two weeks to go. We finalised everything at The Plough, it’s looking good. Should be exactly what we want – a chilled out BBQ. I’m so happy my family aren’t coming – it’s going to be so much more relaxed.
We went to see Hellboy 2. Visually it was first class, but clearly they forgot to write a story. I couldn’t believe it when it ended, I felt short changed. I want to write to the production company and ask for my money back. We don’t have much cash, and we chose to go there, instead of to a one off film at The Dukes – bah!
Raine’s ex-boyfriend called this morning. They split up almost four years ago. They used to go to Leeds Festival each year. He just called saying his fiancé can now not go to Leeds Festival, would Raine like to go, “just like old times.” Poor bloke…poor fiancé… I bet she has no idea she can’t go. It’s a valiant effort, one last shot, two weeks before the wedding. Bless him, he’s never really given up on her. When Raine and I went to Leeds together, two years ago, he searched us out, amongst the near 100 000 people – we were actively making sure he didn’t find us, and he still did…he then nearly set me alight. Thankfully Chris called out, “Riley!” before my shorts went up in flames…the marshalls then came running over, to put the fire out. We didn’t pay him a great deal of attention, and he left that night (girlfriend (the now fiancé) in tow), it was later confirmed they’d left because of “the one thing they always argue about”: Raine. We see him occasionally, at the night club he and Raine met in – he still goes there every week. We can’t really mock him, because it’s so tragic now. I mean obviously I think Raine’s wonderful, but if she split up with me, I’d like to think I’d get myself over it in 4 years, and have a little self respect/respect for my future partners.
We’re going to Blackpool this weekend – finally Raine and I have two days off together. An old friend, who I used to work with, is back from his travels. Raine’s never met him. He owns a house in Blackpool, which he rents out, and off the rent money he travels all over the world. Every few years he comes home, and works at HMV, to top up his funds. He’s going to make us very jealous, talking about all the places he’s been, and the places he’s going – he’s off again in January.
The wedding’s all ready to roll – less than two weeks to go. We finalised everything at The Plough, it’s looking good. Should be exactly what we want – a chilled out BBQ. I’m so happy my family aren’t coming – it’s going to be so much more relaxed.
We went to see Hellboy 2. Visually it was first class, but clearly they forgot to write a story. I couldn’t believe it when it ended, I felt short changed. I want to write to the production company and ask for my money back. We don’t have much cash, and we chose to go there, instead of to a one off film at The Dukes – bah!
Raine’s ex-boyfriend called this morning. They split up almost four years ago. They used to go to Leeds Festival each year. He just called saying his fiancé can now not go to Leeds Festival, would Raine like to go, “just like old times.” Poor bloke…poor fiancé… I bet she has no idea she can’t go. It’s a valiant effort, one last shot, two weeks before the wedding. Bless him, he’s never really given up on her. When Raine and I went to Leeds together, two years ago, he searched us out, amongst the near 100 000 people – we were actively making sure he didn’t find us, and he still did…he then nearly set me alight. Thankfully Chris called out, “Riley!” before my shorts went up in flames…the marshalls then came running over, to put the fire out. We didn’t pay him a great deal of attention, and he left that night (girlfriend (the now fiancé) in tow), it was later confirmed they’d left because of “the one thing they always argue about”: Raine. We see him occasionally, at the night club he and Raine met in – he still goes there every week. We can’t really mock him, because it’s so tragic now. I mean obviously I think Raine’s wonderful, but if she split up with me, I’d like to think I’d get myself over it in 4 years, and have a little self respect/respect for my future partners.
We’re going to Blackpool this weekend – finally Raine and I have two days off together. An old friend, who I used to work with, is back from his travels. Raine’s never met him. He owns a house in Blackpool, which he rents out, and off the rent money he travels all over the world. Every few years he comes home, and works at HMV, to top up his funds. He’s going to make us very jealous, talking about all the places he’s been, and the places he’s going – he’s off again in January.
Friday, 8 August 2008
Wedding blues
Turns out non of my family (except my parents, of course) are coming to the wedding. Mostly they’ve supplied flimsy excuses, but some haven’t replied at all. I think it’s time to draw a line under my relationship with them. I thought we’d gotten past some issues (even if they were still a little unsure of how to treat us), but we’ve only had one congratulations. I’m not going to spend time with people who are clearly homophobic, to the point of not recognising Raine and me as a couple. This makes our wedding party tiny, since we decided to invite only close friends and family – we have 12 people, including ourselves! We have to speak to our reception hosts, to check that they’re going to be ok going ahead with so few people.
We’re all booked for our honeymoon in Newquay. We’re going for a week, and we can’t wait! We’ve got a great hotel booked. We’ll be having some surfing lessons. Got quite a few things planned, including some surprises for Raine – because it’s her birthday on the day we get married, and I don’t want her to feel like she hasn’t had a birthday (although what could possibly be a better present than me?;-)).
I’m back working full time at LUSU (the Students’ Union). Julie, my boss, has six weeks off in the summer, so I have her job. It’s ok, can be a little dull at times – there’s not that much going on in the summer, but when it comes down to it I do really enjoy it, and I’m lucky to have it. I’ll be leaving in September, though. I’ve been offered a job in the library, it’s a lot better paid, and the conditions compared to LUSU are incomparable – I mean, I get holidays, and sick pay! Plus, you know, I get to work in a library – I love libraries. When I saw ‘Sex and The City’ the movie, and Carrie was going to get married in the library I was sold…unfortunately I don’t think any libraries round here are grand, or have a marriage license...
I’ve been trying to pick my MA courses. There’s not so much I want to take in the RS department, but I’ve found a few courses elsewhere to take. There’s a politics course, a sociology one, and a linguistics one. I’ll have to pick two out of the three, I’ll probably drop the linguistics one…although it sounds ideal (it’s about how different genders, ethnicities and classes interpret and understand language) the Linguistics Department seem to be uncertain about my eligibility.
A couple of weeks ago we went to Milton Keynes with my dad. We met up with Paul, and went to see Nanci Griffith. Great show. Hopefully we’ll all be going to Belfast in February, for the Belfast/Nashville festival. Always good fun, and the shows are great.
We’re all booked for our honeymoon in Newquay. We’re going for a week, and we can’t wait! We’ve got a great hotel booked. We’ll be having some surfing lessons. Got quite a few things planned, including some surprises for Raine – because it’s her birthday on the day we get married, and I don’t want her to feel like she hasn’t had a birthday (although what could possibly be a better present than me?;-)).
I’m back working full time at LUSU (the Students’ Union). Julie, my boss, has six weeks off in the summer, so I have her job. It’s ok, can be a little dull at times – there’s not that much going on in the summer, but when it comes down to it I do really enjoy it, and I’m lucky to have it. I’ll be leaving in September, though. I’ve been offered a job in the library, it’s a lot better paid, and the conditions compared to LUSU are incomparable – I mean, I get holidays, and sick pay! Plus, you know, I get to work in a library – I love libraries. When I saw ‘Sex and The City’ the movie, and Carrie was going to get married in the library I was sold…unfortunately I don’t think any libraries round here are grand, or have a marriage license...
I’ve been trying to pick my MA courses. There’s not so much I want to take in the RS department, but I’ve found a few courses elsewhere to take. There’s a politics course, a sociology one, and a linguistics one. I’ll have to pick two out of the three, I’ll probably drop the linguistics one…although it sounds ideal (it’s about how different genders, ethnicities and classes interpret and understand language) the Linguistics Department seem to be uncertain about my eligibility.
A couple of weeks ago we went to Milton Keynes with my dad. We met up with Paul, and went to see Nanci Griffith. Great show. Hopefully we’ll all be going to Belfast in February, for the Belfast/Nashville festival. Always good fun, and the shows are great.
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