Well that's the end of term 2. It's so frightening! Time just flys in. I was reading an article by Tony Parsons and he was saying how when your 10 a year is a massive amount of time because you've only lived for ten years but as you get older you've lived for so many years that comparitivley it seems like a smaller amount of time and continues to do so the older you get. How depressing. I think I might be suffering from a mid 20's crisis! Anyway I guess I better make effort to give a decent comment on the past term seeing as this is my last blog of Term 2.
We had the class meeting on Thursday and I was quite aprehensive about it as I felt if we all were in the room together that things were A: going to become quite heated and B: descend into everyone having a go at one person. However some people didn't bother to turn up and a situation like that was avoided. I don't think that was a good thing particulary because it meant that the problems that do exist weren't able to be properly adressed. Six of us did attend and I think we did manage to sort out a lot of things and hopefully there will be noticeable difference in the class in the third term. A lot of the problems discussed regarding attendance and attitude in the class where things that I felt weren't having a massive how I got on with the course. If people don't come in I don't feel like that it makes it more difficult for me to work than if they do but I do like the atmosphere when we're all in working togther. In the week leading up to the presentations i felt like there was a good, focused buzz about the place which isn't there always. Sadly there were problems that we weren't able to resolve and so although we can try and make a fresh start, in reality, if things aren't addressed and dealt with it will is going to have a negative effect on doing so and on the whole class. Maybe I'm being a big woman and making too much of a deal out things but I feel there are times in class when I have been lied to and I then feel angry, uncomfortable and have had to walk out of the room. Since the meeting the situation with the lies has continued exactly as it has done, it appears, since day 1 back in October so I don't see any sign that this will change, making a fresh start difficult. One suggestion that has come up is that the class might be rearranged. Obviously I don't want to move as I have personalised it and am comfortable working there however Jamie was right when he said it's not fair that some people have big desks and others don't. Moving desks is fair enough if it brings an improvment to the class but if it an effort isn't made to actually improve and if the space isn't used properly then it will have been for nothing. However if I have to switch desks then I can try and make the most of wherever I end up and bring in stuff from outside that will help me utilize the space I have been given to work in. This is such a negative post to end the term on and it shouldn't be because I've really enjoyed working on the design project and feel like I got something out of Term 2. Everything I've been moaning about are issues that, naturally, have arisen but I don't feel like anything is having a major impact on how I feel about the work we're doing. I'm enjoying it and feel positive about the work coming up in Term 3. Over the holidays financial problems will probably limit what I get up to but I can't complain because I'm having a lap top bought for me which is so good. If I get one during the holidays I''ll be able to spend time working on it and using photoshop etc. I'm also going up to Skye for a week which is going to be good. We go up every year but it's good the way it's come about just as we've completed our projects. Being up there will give me a lot of time to work on stuff because the nearest pub or shop is miles away, hence the detox! I think I'm going to do some work on costumes as I am starting to enjoy the costume design side of things and I realise you don't have to be a fashion guru to design costumes, as any visit to the costume department makes clear! Ha ha sorry couldn't resist a wee bit of end of term bitchiness. I need to do some research into Opera as well because I'm totally ignorant of this area. Right well I been typing this for ages and think I've said everything I wanted to say so that's me. Sianorra!

Well tomorrow is the beginning of the final week for this project. I think I'm managing to keep on top of things and it's really weird because never in my long, long, varied educationl journey from one college to another have I ever not left everything to the last minute. I think getting the work done has made the experience more enjoyable because you've got the time to do it and you don't feel as stressed.

I popped into college for a while this afternoon and started to assemble my model. I just need to touch it up and make miniature figures. Last week I made the tables and chairs and after I got into it I found it quite theraputic. Before model making used to make me freak out and if I'm honest sometimes I still explode or launch the occasional stanley knife at Grant or whatever but on the whole I'm finding it more enjoyable and rewarding than when I first attempted it during term 1.

On Friday afternoon we had technical drawing. Hopeless is the best way to describe me in regard to this craft. It took me two hours to draw an elipse (I think that's the word I'm searching for, like a squinty circle I guess) I knew what I was meant to be doing but making dots on lines and using numbers just fries my brain and I feel totally unable to make any sense or reason out of what I'm doing. I can picture in my head what I'm meant to draw fine but when it comes to using numbers and angles it suddenly becomes baffling. The mistakes I'm making look silly and careless but it's not the case because even although I'll think I'm doing what I should be doing correctly I'll then make a mistake that'll fuck up the whole thing and I don't realise or understand where I've went wrong. In the end I managed to do it which is a start but I am going to struggle with this I think.

Talking of challenges I think I'm starting to gain a reputation as a bit of a technophobe. There's rumours of me referring to emails as letters which I'm sure (kind of) I never did. I'm going to try and get on top of this thing and become more confident using computers. My gran is buying me a laptop which is just brilliant. I think having my own computer with programmes I can work on will be a big help for me. The computer we have at home is almost as slow as Langstrand on crutches and every bit as annoying so a new one will be really useful. I have been using the power point and am going to use it during my presentation. I think it'll help me structure my talk a lot better. Sometimes when I stand up to talk I forget what I'm going to say and I think planning out my presentation and giving it a structure will help me improve.

So anyway got a good bit done today which is quite pathetic considering it's Sunday but my hangover was less severe than normal so I decided to take the opportunity to do some work. Getting late now so I'm going to head to bed.

This is the first time I've posted on here in almost a month. I dunno why. I've logged and thought about writing but I haven't had much to say. I guess I've been busy with projects and my minds been on other things recently but I'm still feeling positive about the course which is good. There's been some problems recently not least big Sandra's kamikaze dive down the stairs of a close and breaking of his hip. Fanny! However I've seen a change in the class and I think people are starting to feel a bit better about things. I hope they are anyhow.

Project wise I think I'm getting there. Lighting is a bit of a concern but after talking to George who was a massive help I feel like I've got an idea how to go about creating a design and what things I should be taking into consideration when doing so. I'm not very confident with colour. I can think of the way a colour should be say if it's in regard to something which I can picture in my head but colours in an abstract sense are quite challenging. I'm a bit colour blind for a start but I don't think that's the problem. I think it's someting that with work I'll be able to improve on and progress. The same as with lighting. With lighting I'm going to try and spend an evening when everyones away home just messing about with gels and lighting angles to so I can get more hands on experience because I think that's the best way for me to gain confidence and experience for now. I can't say I'm not enjoying the lighting though because it's something totally new to me and very much a challenge.

For now I'm just continuing with my project and I've sorted out a time plan to make sure I prioritise what needs to be done and also give myself time to do it all well. This afternoon went well and this evening I managed to finish off what I had planned to do tomorrow morning. It's worked out well becuase now I can try and get some more lighting work done before the costume class tomorrow. Right I'm off.