all made up with nowhere to go

# I bought a thick A6 notebook in Morrisons last week because I wanted it (story of my life). I went in again this week, there's two left, and they've been reduced even further. I thought about getting another one, but I have NO IDEA what I will use the first one for, so I didn't. But if I'd just waited a week!

# I'm going to make a concerted effort to learn some Afrikaans this year, since it is my sister in law's first language. I know a very small amount I've picked up off her, but I'd like to know more (because languages!)

# I'm also going to make more effort to improve my German and French skills, as I have more free time now, and it'd be nice if I could actually use my language skills instead of, well, not doing. And also because last night I tried playing New Leaf in German and I understood next to none of it. It reminded me a bit of when I wasn't so good with German and tried to play Tactics Advance (which I understand more of now because I've already beaten it in English, and it has a story, unlike New Leaf).

# Now wondering if The Zodiac Age will let me play in German if I change the PS4 language settings...As I know from watching videos that none of the voice acting is different, it's only the text that was translated.

# I've just found an article that opens with: "journal hoarding is real"

hashtag preaching to the choir, my friend

# talking of which, my sketchblog autoposts of stationery related stuff start today! If you're interested in that sort of thing!

I've got some more posts planned (and will be working on them this week! but they won't post for ages yet, as there's nearly two weeks' worth of posts in the queue. I'd kind of forgotten what it was like to have a buffer on the blog).

So in my quest to revise French, I've ordered another French book (like I need it; I own a fair few already. But to be fair, it was one I was already coveting).

The reason I ended up ordering it is this: sometimes when mum's making internet orders on her tablet, she has trouble, I assume, because the screen is small. Or the internet decides to hang, which is a regular occurrence in our house. Then she gets in a snit about it. Anyway, this time she made a book order because she wanted the free gift. She wasn't feeling so good, and the website was getting on her nerves, so I completed the form for payment details. Except I made a boo-boo when I clicked "pay with paypal", because I forgot to put in the code for the free gift.

Mum was a little displeased by that.

I say a little, I mean a lot.

So I said, since the website sold cheap books, which are like catnip to me, that I would make an order, and I would add the code for the free gift, and then we would have a copy anyway. So I did. I ordered a book of German verbs*, and a more up-to-date/in depth French dictionary than any of the ones I currently own**. I also ordered a book about angels (because I'm obsessed with them), and a book about folk music which I'm essentially buying for mum (because she's into it), but also because it has sheet music for ninety traditional folk songs and I'm interested in that side of it. Plus the free gift, of course, which is a book about the villages of Britain.

If they are still available in a little bit, I'm going to go back and get the French grammar and verbs books that go with the dictionary. BECAUSE LANGUAGES GIVE THEM TO MEEEEEEEEEEE.

~

I had a dumb idea for a story on Friday and thought I'd spend the weekend figuring out how it works. Except that here we are, on Sunday, and I've spent most of that time playing Skyrim.

Er, whoops.

And when I'm not playing Skyrim, I've spent the rest of the time making name lists (though as I said on twitter, not the way Arya Stark makes name lists ;) ). Which I've just finished doing. I have more male names than female, as is usual, but this time it wasn't because I was being picky (I wasn't), it was because my resources were skewed towards male names.

But it's a dumb idea and I love it a lot and it amuses me, so I'm running with it while I've got the impetus to do so.

~

*I probably don't need any more German grammar books, but it's been literal years since I bought one and I needs them, precious.

**I do have a fairly modern one, but it's meant for high school students, so has less words than I'd like.

YAY SHITTY MOOD WITH TEARS.

(this is especially irritating after a great afternoon where I looked up stuff about languages and listened to a German radio station online (it's called Radio Alpenmelodie for anyone who's interested, though it may not be to everyone's tastes. I liked it) ).

PFFT. FUCK YOU, MOODS. WHAT EVEN ARE YOU.

(I'll be better after sleep, no doubt. Sleep cures all ills).

I feel better now. Think I just needed something to eat. GODDAMNIT BLOOD SUGAR STOP DOING THIS TO ME.

~*~

I am currently playing Fable II again. Because I can. I'm supposed to be being horribly evil, and I can't do it (entirely). I am also killing everything with fire, because why the hell not? (The game keeps saying, "Oh, but you can afford this spell now!" and I'm all, "I DON'T WANT THAT SPELL IT'S NOT FIRE") (in fact the only other thing I am using my EXP for is HP because fuck that shit I'm not using weapons if I can help it) (even if they do help out a bit when you're completely surrounded).

My dude did have horns, but has since lost them because he keeps eating celery (making the switch to potions soon, but I've got to get rid of all that food I keep stealing finding in other people's houses). Already I am up to having to go to the Spire to find Garth (I don't wanna!) so I'm avoiding it by doing sidequests instead. Which I believe is what I did last time, but I didn't document it, so who knows?

~*~

I've also spent three days being utterly distracted by languages on tumblr. I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW PEOPLE RAN LANGUAGE BLOGS ON THERE. I didn't know why they would! But they do! And it's glorious!

~*~

(Finally: I have sort of given up on Gurren Langan for the time being. I've just not been bothered to watch it, and I've been doing other things. I might take it up again when I am back at work (off till the 6th of Jan, wheeeeeee!)

First of all, my new phone sounds like it will be awesome. I'm going to try to call T-Mobile tomorrow evening to sort it (contract doesn't run out till a week tomorrow, but the sooner I get it done the better). Hopefully I will be able to speak to an actual person this time rather than wading through a million automated menus to get where I want to be.

(I'm not the only one who hates those, right? I mean, first off they're confusing, and secondly, I never hear every single option on first listen. UGH. I mean, I'm no good at speaking to people on the phone at the best of times, so you would think this would be a dream come true? Wrong. They're worse than people).

~*~

I started smoking again today. Which is not good news (and hence the stupid tag, but I'm going to go back and retag all previous attempts to give up with it because it makes me lol). But I nearly flaked out at work this morning, and that was not fun. So. For the time being I am still a smoker (although I managed two and a half weeks this time which, while not my personal best, was better than the last time I tried to give up - which was for a whole week).

~*~

I started writing what I hope might be a interesting post about languages this morning - spurred by a) never finding a language I didn't like the sound of and b) being able to tell you the derivation of the word "bint". So maybe it will turn out to be something interesting, and maybe it won't. Who knows?

~*~

Dear people of the world (particularly in HX3 and OL14),

Please to be cleaning up your dog shit after said animal has taken a dump. Particularly if it's on a fucking FOOTPATH or where children play. I know it's yucky and disgusting, and I hate doing it as much as you do, but you'd be the first one to complain if you stood in it, or your ten year old came home covered in it.

I don't want to play dodge the dog shit on an already slippy footpath of a morning on my way to work, nor on my way home either. It takes less than a bloody minute to get rid of it. So please, for the love of god (or something). PLEASE.

No love whatsoever,
Me