Saturday, July 22, 2006

Popular Music

As most people who know me are aware, I have what is generally considered to be a pretty poor taste in music. I like a range from really cheesy pop to hardcore rock and metal, which means that to anyone who takes a firmer stand somewhere on this scale, some of my choices are going to be odd. Case in point, my first two albums (which I got at the same time) were by Avril Lavigne and Rammstein. Go figure.

On the metal side of things some of my favourites are Rammstein, Placebo and InMe. On the pop side some of my favourites are Girls Aloud, Busted and Brian McFadden. For some inexplicable reason I get more embarrassed about this side. :-p

So I appreciate that I have a rather eclectic taste. Still, the current chart hits which I'm into are a little baffling:

Muse - Supermassive Black Hole
Infernal - From Paris to Berlin
Rihanna - Unfaithful
Nelly Furtado - Maneater

Okay, Muse is no shock as I loved their last album. Infernal more so but then dance tunes have occasionally really appealed to me. The real shock with Nelly Furtado is that it's her doing the song! I mean come on, she did "I'm like a bird"! Still, it's in the category of Latin sexed up R'n'B derivate which I tend to be completely turned off (think Britney songs like "Slave to You" and pretty much any Christina Aguilera). Perhaps most shocking is Rihanna, whose song is the kind of slush which normally makes me roll my eyes and switch off. Yet despite that and the fact that it is, as my brother puts it, a drama queen anthem (no love you're not a murderer - it's called adulterer), I still find myself sucked into it. What gives?

Still, I can say with some confidence that the only album of these I will buy is the Muse one. Maybe a single or two of the others, but it's very rare that I buy singles (I bought three Girls Aloud singles before realising that I had paid more than I would for the album...).

So, anyone else want to put down what embarrassing songs they enjoy, or what popular songs, or anything? I'm now on the look out for anyone who enjoys all four of the above songs, to prove myself not completely bizarre.

Edit:

I have just remembered that another current song I like is Smile by Lily Allen, although frankly she scares the hell out of me in the video. Just found out it's UK Number 1!

Tuesday, July 11, 2006

Start of the Summer

As a commentator pointed out, it has indeed been quite a while.

I did finally get my floor prizes from the Union: A haircut from Matthew Clulee, a meal at La Tasca and a pair of tickets for The Phoenix Picturehouse. I've only used up the first of these, which was an experience. I had my head massaged, then my hair cut, then my head massaged again, then my hair styled. It looked cool, but unfortunately it wasn't cut very short. I did pick up a new way to style my hair, however. It would have cost £43 (£38 with student discount) which, compared to the normal £10 I spend elsewhere, means that I won't be returning now that I have no more vouchers!

We Simpkins lads produced an edition of the magazine which seems to have gone down well, despite the ban on us putting any gossip in. I wrote 12 of the 20 pages, which I think certainly justifies my involvement. Alex did nothing, apparently in protest at the limitations they put on us. I was quite proud of it until my dad saw it and pointed out that when he'd been at Hertford, when Simpkins was started, its raison d'etre had been gossip. It's true, the PTB are killing it slowly. We're just trying to keep it alive as a beacon of humour in an overly sanitised world.

The Stuart Anderson Society dinner went fine, despite some hiccups. We overbooked, counting on more people saying yes after the booking date that in fact did. We just about salvaged it by allowing partners to come along, so my Abi was with me to enjoy the hilarious drunkeness which was to ensue... Rachel went across to some first year Medics who were revising for their exams, and proceeded to come up with comedy answers to their questions (like 'periods' for no apparent reason!), and demanded chocolate sauce on her syrup waffle, because she was in the mood for chocolate. Eloise took the prize though, as she flirted with one of the Slaughter & May (our sponsor) guys and told our poor tutor Alan a filthy story about Beast! I was just glad Alison wasn't there...

I've watched all the films I mentioned in my last post, the best probably being The Da Vinci Code despite it having, as Dav had warned me, a bit of a cop out ending. The DJ himself took me with him to see Mission Impossible 3, which was fun but nothing unexpected at all. All in all, plenty of film fun.

Having been involved with the Oxford Secular Society all term, having failed to get the position of Press & Publicity officer last term I was going to try again but was persuaded to go for Secretary, and got it! That makes me responsible for the newsletter, The Secular Student. For those who don't know yet, secularism in this sense means separation of Church and State, something I am quite passionate about. The website is www.oxsecsoc.com (although it needs updating).

I enjoyed this term, although was a shame to see Abi worrying over exams. :-( Still, holidays for everyone now. Holidays are when I suddenly become all creative and do interesting things which are not law-related. For instance, I have been writing articles for Simpkins, another edition of which will hopefully come out at the beginning of next term. I have also written an article for The Secular Student. I finally write up a short story I have had planned for a while, and when I get enough feedback will hopefully submit it to a few short story magazines. I have also polished the first draft of my second novel, which was pretty much completed near the start of this last term. Onto the third one now.

Meanwhile I have to find a job so that I can fund my way through the post-grad course I want to do (the BCL) and the training course for barristers (the BVC). If maybe I could get my novels published, that could be a lot easier! :-P I'll update again, possibly even recounting a night which has left a terrible scar - Dav, Smo and I at Park End (they know what I mean...)