Practically Alice

This post will be discussing the Temple Street Productions, BBC America, and Bell Media series Orphan Black , seasons 1-2. If you haven't watched them, and don't want to be spoiled, stop here and go watch them. You won't be disappointed.  Source: http://cdn.breathecast.com/data/images/full/24842/orphan-black-banner.jpg A couple of weeks ago my dear, dear friend Gemma  came to visit me for the day at University. We wandered the hallowed halls (i.e. drank coffee in my favourite haunt Coffee Aroma ), browsed the charity shops, and discussed all things geek: from DS to Orphan Black to comics. Genuinely, it was such a lovely day (please come back soon, Gem!) and one of the things I promised I would do, is upon departing, I would begin watching Orphan Black . Every now and then this show had popped up on my Netflix screen and I thought "ooh, maybe", but I never clicked the play button (admittedly, largely because I was usually distracted by the pile of 8+ books...

Picture this: you're a student, or professional faced with writing a large piece of writing. You open a blank document and sit. Your brain ticks. You ponder. Your eyes wander. To your left is a pile of unsorted notes. Your eyes flicker back to the screen. Back to the pile. This happens a number of times before your hands lift from the keyboard, betraying your deadline, and fall on the pile. Pile: now, essay: later. [I started writing this post 20 days ago; a prime example of the Evil Blank Page.] Some call it writer's block, others call it chronic procrastination, but what it comes down to is sitting down, with these thoughts in your head and figuring out how the heck you're going to translate them to paper. I helped at an applicant day today and what struck my the most was that three years ago, I was in the exact same position - scared, quiet, and quite honestly a little bit lost! When I wrote those first words of my final year dissertation back in October, it took m...

Every year I list ## number of books that have made an impression on me in 20##. This year I read a total of 114 books, the most I've ever read in a year since I started recording this. That's 35,909 pages that I have consumed, hour after hour, day after day. And, boy, there's been some good'uns. 1. When Bad Things Happen in Good Bikinis  by Helen Bailey 2. Who Fears Death? by Nnedi Okorafor 3. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion 4. Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozie Adichie 5. The Sleeper and the Spindle  by Neil Gaiman 6. The Storied Life of A J Fikry  by Gabrielle Zevin 7. North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell 8. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss 9. How to be a Heroine by Samantha Ellis 10. The Time Inbetween by Nancy Tucker 11. Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga 12. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen 13. The Rabbit Back Literature Society  by Pasi Ilmari Jaaskelainen 14. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte 15. The French Lieutenant's Wom...

Once again it's hit that time of year that myself and (apparently) every single other student at the University of Lincoln flock the the hallowed halls of the Library. I got to the point when I was writing my essay earlier that I resorted to tweeting: Now, don't get me wrong, I am so very much enjoying my course. It's wonderful. Every day poses a new challenge and third year so far has been brilliant . I've had so many great opportunities and experiences that previously were not even on my horizon -- I am so so grateful. But... I could really do with a nap for a week. Third years seem collectively to be wandering around aimlessly like zombies. Slowly raising their hands in a sloppy waves, whilst struggling to form coherent sentences because words are difficult when you're this tired.  Last night, I came back from my lovely friend's flat at half midnight, charged until 1:45, fretted about university work until I eventually drifted off and before I k...

These past couple of days have been very poignant for me. I heard of the passing of Mike Sutton, who worked at Harrogate Library and showed me the ropes as a bright eyed and bushy tailed fifteen year old on work experience. That week's work experience introduced me to the Young Volunteer scheme which I was part of for about five years; I met so many great people through it, had some laughs and grew as a person. Not to mention that over the years Harrogate Library has been a big staple in my life: providing me with books, friends and a place where I did most of my revision back in my A Level years. Mike and I spoke now and then, in person and every now and then online. No matter how he was feeling, he always greeted me with a smile when I came into the library and asked how I was. I also am so very aware how much he meant to his colleagues, who will miss him incredibly. The past couple of days I've also been reading a beautiful and sweet little book called The Penguin Lesson...

Imagine a stage where the performer is so intimately exposed to us. She lies on the stage (very Abramovic) surrounded by the costumes which will make up her show. The performer is Louise Orwin and she is about to take us on a journey. Teenage girls around the world post videos of themselves online, asking viewers if they think they are pretty or ugly. Orwin took this idea and decided to see what would happen if she played the roles of three teenage girls online for a year. Most of the comments were negative, a majority of them from men. However, this show is not just about exposing misogyny or, indeed, paedophilia (she was posing as underage girl, and most of the genuine posters online are under the age of consent). Pretty Ugly is also about girls – about being a girl. About how we question, doubt, and construct ourselves. Imagine Moran’s How To Build a Girl on stage, with some shocking scenes. Orwin introduces not only to the characters of Baby, Becky and Amanda, but also th...

My lovely friend Bee  posted a blog post this evening of her happy things. Many people know I like to read, it's a thing I shout about on a daily (cough-hourly-cough) basis. But, I thought I'd trawl through the dusty recesses of my mind and list some things that make me happy. Maybe it'll be something I can come back to and cheer me up on a rainy day? Or maybe you, too, decide to mind-vomit some happy things. I like senselessly, carelessly writing what comes into my head. Let's do this. the smell when everything is cold and damp outside and there are leaves on the ground my dog's ears bookshop smell cosy blankets hot tea hot coffee evenings with my mum and dad and sister my cousin Harry's laugh laughing washing my hands in hot water standing under the shower with my face up heavy rain feeling breathless recalling a memory and getting a funny feeling in your tummy choosing books for people and them actually liking them feeling full up from a r...