YWAM, Jon Mark, Dorothy, Kieran, Tents and Radical Servants (The miraculous thirtieth post)

I went to visit Jon Mark and Dorothy at the weekend. They are both working on the YWAM base in Harpenden. I took Kieran with me. Kieran incidentally isn't a name you get in America. Many the American on the base was struggling with it. 

Anyway, more on to the weekend. We arrived in Harpenden in the afternoon by train and were greeted by Jon Mark (he needs a haircut). We were then taken to the base and we put our stuff down and went and ate some fantastic bangers and mash. After food we helped Jon Mark tidy up some of the base that he is responsible for (he's staff now). After that, was the session (bare in mind that I may have mixed up the order of these events but, meh to that). The session contained some amazing worship and some fantastic speaking (seriously, this guy was as funny as Brian Raegan). The speaker spoke on Humility and radical servant-hood; it was rather fantastic. At the end of the meeting I saw Dorothy and an epic "OH MY GOSH I'VE NOT SEEN YOU IN AN AGE" moment ensued. Eventually after hanging out in one of the buildings Kieran and I headed to the Jon Mark's tent and fell asleep. The weekend involved a lot of catchup time and fellowship. Also, some time was spent drinking the Oval special mocha on base, which has both Irish cream and white chocolate in. I kind of wish Costa did the Oval special mocha. Kieran and I left on Sunday about midday. It was so good to spend time with Jon Mark and Dorothy for even just a weekend. I thoroughly enjoyed my time spent with them.

I'm now in Beeston, doing work experience in Nottingham University's department of Physics and Astronomy. I'm staying with my grandmother's friend's niece and nephew. They are a lovely family and it's actually really nice staying with them. The bike ride too and from the university is slightly less pleasant, but at least I'm getting exercise. I'm far too busy these days. At least I have a week off next week to just hang out with people. 

Nottingham University (The miraculous twenty ninth post)

I spend a lot of time at Nottingham University for some reason. I'm going there for work experience, for a week, soon. Today I went to one of their open days. Might I note that they have a beautiful campus. I have noted that Nottingham is the benchmark for campus based Universities; what a campus it is. They have a lake, massive swathes of green area, beautiful trees everywhere. I cannot express how pretty the campus is very easily without cliché and hyperbole. Instead I will not attempt to describe the campus further than I already have.
I attended several lectures today. The first was a nano science lecture delivered by Professor Moriarty (yes there were Arthur Conan Doyle references made), who is a very charismatic speaker. This is the second time I have heard him lecture, and I may be considering Nottingham purely based on the fact that he might be delivering my physics lectures. Another good lecture I attended was on gravitational lensing, and the mapping of dark matter. The speaker, Dr Grey, was also very good. While not quite as good as Professor Moriarty, she was still engaging, as was her subject (though I think Grandma fell asleep durning the lecture). The physics practical demonstrations mostly involved fourth year students messing around with liquid nitrogen. It was a good opportunity to interact with Nottingham students first hand, and to gain insight into university life right from the source.

A good day was had by all.

Tropical Storms (The miraculous twenty eighth post)

Well, I've been in England for over a year. While I wouldn't say that I've completely settled in, as one does not ever "completely settle in" after growing up over seas. However, I believe I'm used to many aspects of life over here, that I wasn't accustomed to when I first arrived. For example, I now am used to the weird changes of weather. Or at least I thought I was, until today. Today was unnatural warm and humid for the UK. Then, about midday the tropical storm started. It wasn't exactly a full blown tropical storm, but it was near enough that the locals panicked and several schools sent their student's home. My school bit the bullet and carried on with lessons. I am fairly sure our school will carry on with lessons during the Nuclear Holocaust. The weather has carried on being tropical all day. Allegedly there was a small twister that we were on the edge of as well. This weather has caught me out a little. In the same way, while I am used to living here, some days I am still caught out by bits of culture I don't understand.

Unruly Youths Outdoors (The miraculous twenty seventh post)

Hello readers, I appreciate that this space has been rather quiet of late. That is because I have been sitting exams. Now that I have finished bleeding from my academic pores, I feel that it is high time I began to blog again.
Yesterday, I spent all day in Ashby with some rather entertaining folk. We met up outside of Costa, after I was half an hour late. After many complaints about my inability to show up anywhere on time we headed to the Bathgrounds with promise of cake and merriment. After laying the picnic blankets out, the cake was sliced and, as Tom Wilkinson and I had brought guitars, there was much jamming. As it began to rain a decision was made to move to a more sheltered area. So, we relocated to a more sheltered area and the merriment once again commenced. It must be mentioned that Tom Wilkinson and Harry Turner commenced several matches of Yugioh. Beth Adams ended up having too much Dr. Pepper and Coke which was entertaining for the rest of us. Nothing is more entertaining than a hyperactive ginger. However, while this little shin dig was rather enjoyable, there was an element of sadness as this was really Richard's last official day with us (sadface). We will very much miss you Richard. As a side-note I shall probably do my next Friends series post about Richard. At about 3pm the vast majority of people had to catch a bus. Charlie and I went to Harry's house to play some Dragonball. I lost very badly to both Charlie and Harry. We met Harry's brother. I shall say nothing on the subject of Harry's brother other than that he is completely different to Harry. I had a fantastic day with some very good friends, and I believe there shall be more days spent with friends to come as I have another week of study leave left to fill.

Parties, Champaign and Bouncy Castles (The miraculous twenty sixth post)

Fun times and stuffs has been a touch quiet as of late. For this I apologize. I am heading into a rather hectic exam period, so I would appreciate patience as I will not be blogging much.

However, as a little light relief I shall tell you about my weekend, which, incidentally, was filled with a little light relief. Friday evening involved the usual trip to my friends house to lose at various board and card games. This was a lot of fun and a rather amusing way to end a long week at school. I inevitably lost all my mobsters in a good game of Family Business (goodness I can't say that without putting on a bad Brooklyn accent). Friday was a success, but Saturday was even more of a success.

Saturday began with a rather late wakeup. After a rather leisurely morning spent making coffee then drinking said coffee, my friend Charlie arrived at my house. After a bowl of noodles from Indonesia (funtimes) it was time to go to my friend Beth's birthday party. Might I add at this point that Charlie is now hooked on the afore mentioned noodles and is probably buying several packets as we speak. Beth's party was rather fun. Nothing beats a good barbecue. The bouncy castle was a constant source of entertainment. I lost count of the times that I was tackled into it and then pinned under a pile of sweaty adolescent bodies. The party ended as it should, with the blowing out of candle, the cutting of the cake, and a glass of champaign (or bubbly as it was referred to by Beth's mother). 

Charlie and I returned to my house to get some revision done. It came as a shock when we actually did some revision. However, after a point (that point being at about 10pm) we opted for eating pizza and watching funny internet videos. Sunday was typical, so I will not bore you with the details. However, in one respect it did differ from my usual Sunday in that I spoke to my friend Alex via Facebook chat for a good seven hours.

Monday was fantastic as it was a bank holiday. Monday was lovely as Alex came round  to do some revision. After a lovely lunch and some Kool-Aid we got stuck into a physics past paper. Upon breathing the sweet sigh of relief that is associated with the completion of physics papers we decided it was time to watch something entertaining, to eat cookies, and to drink yet more Kool-Aid. After experience the joys of a relaxing afternoon drinking Kool-Aid, eating cookies, and spending time with a friend it was time to say goodbye to Alex; in a metaphorical sense it was also time to say goodbye to a rather delicious weekend.

Friends 3: Josh Carr (The miraculous twenty fifth post)

Well he did ask, so it really is his turn. Josh is, without a doubt, my number one go to source of information on video games and the internet. I can ask him most things and he will either know, or find out rather quickly for me. Providing snippets of important information, Josh saves me the time I would have to spend trawling the internet to find the same information. Josh likes some funny music though. The kind of music I wouldn't really call music. So, we have some disagreements when it comes to music. We also disagree on the pronunciation of Deadmau5 (let's be honest it's obviously pronounced dead mau five). Josh is quieter than many of my friends, but quiet people are pretty cool and, as I have frequently been informed it's the quiet ones you have to watch out for. Despite not really enjoying the type of music Josh listens to, I must admit that I admire his knowledge of it. He also, I believe, is a musician himself, and a good one if I am correct. I am determined not to end this blog post having said the main reason I like Josh is because he's my friend, as I realize that could get repetitive. So, the reason I like Josh is that if you fiddle with the little hair he has, or even look at it funny, his immediate reaction is to go to fix it as if life on earth depended on the neutral state of his hair.

Extreme Durham (The miraculous twenty fourth post)

Well, I have returned and the holiday is nearly over. I went to Durham this holiday. I used to live near Durham and this week made me wonder why I never visited it. It is a gem in the relatively deprived North East. It was full of beautiful old buildings and a fantastic Cathedral. I am definitely going to have to apply to Durham University. I was in Durham because I was working on a physics residential for GCSE students, and being payed apparently. My food and board was also payed for, as were my travel expenses. It was fantastic to see the students engage with physics.
I am not exaggerating when I say that it was an exhausting experience, however it was very rewarding. There was some good cool down time in the evening. Also, George and I must have done alright as we were asked to return.
All in all it was good to make new friend, and to see Durham. I am already planning another trip to relax in Durham, rather than to work.