Bizarreries de derniers jours! (tis a real french word, I kid you not!)

... the last few days has been full of these...

- Much noise and banter, particuarly when one eccentric uncle who hasn't ever really cooked before seriously exclaimed that he was going to write a book delving into the science of cooking; answering questions we all secretly have such as "Why does salt make things taste better?" and "Why do flour and water make dough"... apparently this will make cooking easier for those who struggle with it... hmmm...
- Appreciation of the Scouse accent in the form of a prospective cousin-in-law!
- Un peu trop de classic period dramas with my dear mother
- Un peu trop de sales shopping avec ma famille
- Un peu trop de lack of sleep
- Un peu trop de freezingness during a period of standing at the side of the M6 for an hour waiting for the RAC because my Dad was unable to loosen the screws connecting flat tyre to car.

Other than that... tis nice to be one of the "grown ups" in the British contingent of our family now. You see there's my sis, moi and then a 9 year age gap before the next youngest cousin! I was the baby that always had to go to bed early whilst all my teenage cousins got to stay up late! Not anymore!

Mwahahahaahahaha.... ha... ahem... clearly bizarrerie is contagious!

Joyeux Noël!!!

Christmas is a bizarre time of year... seems like one of the few times of year we value traditions so highly, fairy lights, turkey, those particular things that we do every christmas day in that particular order...
I loooove carols, and I've sung them over and over and over again often without giving second thought to what I'm actually singing... At one carol service (of many) this month, I sang the carols, and yet for some reason, this time, I actually realised that the words I was singing actually meant sooo much...

"Mild He lays His glory by.
Born that man no more may die.
Born to raise the sons of earth.
Born to give them second birth"

"The King of kings lay thus lowly manger;
In all our trials born to be our friend.
He knows our need, our weakness is no stranger."

Wow!!! Thankyou God :)

Merry Christmas!!!

Quel étourneau!!!

Yesterday I proved myself worthy of that title!
I feel like telling this story in bullet points! if that's possible?!

It all started when I went to catch the 43 bus that runs from the ferry to Edinburgh to meet a friend from school. I was already running late when I left the house since I was waiting for Christmas cards to dry...

- So I ran to the bp garage (just over 5 minutes away) to get money out but then discovered I had no money in my account!
- So I ran back home again to transfer money from savings to current account
- But then of course the account page decided to crash
- But after a lot of faffing about, I restarted the computer and it worked
- So ran back to the BP garage again and got money out
- But as I was coming out and walking towards the bus stop which is just across the road, the bus drove right past me so I had to wait an additional 15 minutes for the next bus.
- The result being that I was 40 minutes late to meet my friend

- Then the dizziness continued later on when I had to catch another bus which I had never caught before to a friends flat for my old bible study groups dinner as I went to the wrong side of the road to catch the bus and so missed the one I needed to get as it went past me whilst I was talking to the bus driver!

But on the whole twas a good day! Good quality chats and getting to see the uni flat o my school friend Laura, and as ever, coming back to me old bible study group and leaping straight back into endless slagging matches, trivial tangents, goooood food, and laughing fit inducing banter! Quality!

Managed to get into town ok today, so clearly have learnt my lesson!

Foooooooooooood!!!

yipeeeeee.... I know it was almost 2 months ago now but....

Our Milan PHOTOS!!!!


on other notes...

I am finally safely back home in South Queensferry despite getting to the house and being locked out because my family were still not back from their respective carol service!
After many a carol concert/service, a statistics exam (bleugh!), far too many essays at the one time, gatherings at our flat requiring almost no organisation (the cu grapevine when it comes to random gatherings is comparable to Neal's seeming ominiscence in the blogosphere!) though a lot of tidying, nocturnal nights (I blame it on a certain flatmate), busking on ashton lane (a very efficient money earner I must say!), far too many mince pies, far too many tomatoes, generally not enough variety in my diet, Christmas shopping, many a quality chat and an abundance of fairy lights in the last couple o weeks I definitely feel in need of a break!

Hoooooray for chicken curries so much better than anything I make, tumble driers and warm houses!!!

je veux le plus...

Feelings, I know I cannot
base my life upon them, cannot
base my faith upon them, cannot
ground my thinking on them.
Yet still I’m yearning for them.
For emotion… feel in motion
Feel a burning, feel a stirring
Feeling heavy, feel like bouncing
Feel alive!
But I’ve been drained…
Where did they leak?
Is there a puddle on the street?
Could I go back and fish them out?
Lie where they fell and soak them up?
No… must move on
Must hold on
Must trust you

le lion, la sorcière blanche et l'armoire magique

I have yet to use this blog to rave about a film I love, but woke up this morning smiling in the aftermath of this film so decided it was the bloggage!
Characterisation was spot on (which is something I like in a film), especially loved their portrayal of Aslan, soundtrack was fantastic, twas visually stunning, and there was just something about the film was positively magical!
This is high praise coming from someone who is an absolute purist when it comes to film versions of books, who grew up reading the books over and over and over. Ok there were some very cheesy moments, and bits of cheesy dialogue but those were the bits that made me cry the most...

But definitely one of my favourite aspects of the film, and also my favourite aspects of the books is what seems to me like blatantly obvious symbolism. Everything about the film seemed to be whispering "hope doesn't disappoint us!"
My favourite character has always been Edmund, even though I always want to give him a good kick in the shins at first, by the end he seems to me, the wisest. He is the one I most identify with, simply because he understands...

I'm just a little kid at heart. Think I always will be...

Juste au coin de la rue!

3 words... CHRISTMAS IS COMING!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't usually get this excited about Christmas this early. However several events of the weekend have precipiated anticipation in me...

- Playing the cello in the New Scottish at advent Christmas carol concert on Saturday night with veeeery good choir in beautiful candle-lit church
- eating mince pies and drinking mulled tea afterwards... mmmm....
- making gingerbread biscuits with Beth and singing carols at the top of our voices
- staring at fairy lights in my room (even thought they have been up since September!)
- singing Hanson medley accapella at Christmas carol practice for concert tonight at QM Halls
- eating gingerbread biscuits

Christmas this year is also my proverbial light at the end of a tunnel. Not that these past few weeks, and next few weeks are particuarly tunnel-like... just that I'm reeeeally needing a break!
Also starting to miss my family a wee bit!
And last year flying on Christmas day was not so fun, so I'm especially looking forward to being at home, and engaging in the usual nonsensical traditions! In fact, twill be the first time I've been home for Christmas since moving out.

The geese are getting fat.

C'est demander un peu trop!

Yeeees... ouais... the todo list is indeed far too long for the number of hours left in the next few days! As Sonja I think said, I have a negative amount of time to do an essay and project and play in 2 concerts, and do church, and bake and eat and sleep... hmmm...

On the + side... mes points forts des derniers jours...
- Toby's amaaazing food... mmmmmm (sampling his gourmet cooking on a Monday night after band practice has become a regular thing! Music+food=quality time spent) Twas also well needed after the mad day of polishing off essays and arranging things for Wednesday which leads me to my second bullet point
- lunch with Maddy on Wednesday
- haggis on Wednesday night (I'm beginning to see a trend here!)
- all 3 of us being in for dinner last night for a change!
- God being so faithful on Wednesday, just as he always is!
- not being stressed the last few days when I should really have been
- talking to the random Moroccan in French last night at house group
- Dancing round the kitchen to beautiful rendition of Happy Birthday stuck on repeat at 8am (grace à Mr Breakey)
- talking to my mother on the phone (tho it made me late for a lecture, but then what's new?!)
- getting an advent calender from her in the post! yipeeee!
- Ben Folds Five

So all in all, it has been a mixed few days, but good!
In fact... as a few people have said to me a few times in the last few days

God is good!