Hey all… it’s been a while, huh?
Yes, I’m here. I know! I’m really sorry about my absence. School has been CRAZY, and I’m right in the middle of prelims right now, so it’s not about to get any easier for a while. But I don’t want to disappear entirely, so I’m trying my best to get some posts up for y’all ❤
Today’s post is a little random. It’s basically going to be a comprehensive list of what’s been going on in my life for the past few weeks – things I’ve done, shows I’m watching, music I’m enjoying… you get the point!
I would include books on here, but (wait for it…) I’ve kind of been in a reading slump recently. What with all the revision I’ve squeezed into my schedule, I’ve reglected reading for a while now, and have been reaching for the TV remote more often as a way to relax after a hard week.
I know, I know, it’s a shocking habit to be getting in to. I’m hoping that once exams are finished in a couple of weeks, I’ll be able to get back on track and back into reading. Fingers crossed.
Anyways, enough of me making excuses, aha! Here is everything I’ve been up to. I hope you enjoy!
WHAT I’VE BEEN DOING
It has been a WILD month or so for me. I’ve had dance practice left right and center, ready for my jazz and ballet exams in a week or two. I have been revising non-stop for the last month or so, in preparation for some of my prelims. I now know more than I ever thought I would about the German hyperinflation crisis in 1923, as well as covalent bonding, the meaning of a caesura, and everything in between.
Exciting news – I listened to Hamilton for the first time!!! And the second… and the third… and the – okay, I am now officially obsessed. Don’t know what I was doing with my life before now, but it definitely wasn’t very worthwhile. I actually am in love with the soundtrack and everything else about the musical! Any Hamilfans here?
Your girl also managed to make a couple of social plans despite all of this. Yes, that’s right, I’ve left the house on several occasions. I KNOW. I watched Joker with two of my new friends, painted pumpkins with my absolute bestie and had a movie marathon, complete with apple pie, with one of my good friends that I hadn’t seen in ages. Time well spent.
I also got sick for a week. Well, more than that, but I had to take the entire week off school, which definitely set me back a bit in terms of work and revision, as I had five full days of content to catch up on. I think I’m pretty much up to speed though, so all is back to normal. Phew!
My music prelim happened… that was stressful. Still haven’t heard back about the result, but praying I did okay. I also had a few other tests, and this coming week I have some more prelims. Update: heard back today. Let’s just say I didn’t fail… 😂
Oh! There is one thing I have completely forgotten to mention. I’ve been doing NaNoWriMo! (I know, hard to forget, haha!)
For those who don’t know, NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month. It takes place every November, and basically the aim is to write 50,000 words in the space of 30 days.
I’ve been writing my novel this month, and it was going well up to a certain point. Then, I got sick, and fell five or six days behind, so I had thousands of words to catch up on. And now, with all of the revision I’ve been doing, I’m massively behind again, and I’m not sure I have time to catch up by the end of the month. (I have 5 days to write 20,000 words. Somehow, I don’t see it happening…)
My story kind of hit a dead end, and I don’t quite know how to revive it. But now there’s less than a week left in November, and I know I have thousands more words to write just to get to where I should be.
I still have a lot to do this month, and next, so we’ll see how it goes. But anyway – that’s what I’ve been up to! Fun times.
SHOWS I’M ENJOYING
So obviously, there are some shows that I never get tired of. The Apprentice is on at the moment, and it’s always a laugh. The candidates this year are as conceited, cocky, and callous as ever, but I love them all the same. Spoiler alert: I’m devastated to see Ryan-Mark go home! He was an absolute gem.
Strictly Come Dancing has also been on, and whilst I’m usually Strictly‘s biggest fan, this year in particular has felt like more of a fix than ever before. There are some contestants who really shouldn’t have gone home (more spoilers: Dev, Michelle, Catherine…) and some who shouldn’t still be in the competition (Emma B, Alex…).
His Dark Materials has just started, and OHMYGOSHIMLOVINGIT! Lee Scoresby has quickly become my favourite character… it’s Lin-Manuel Miranda, okay? Give me a break. But besides that, the cinematography is unreal and the setting and storyline both are amazing. Things are getting better each week and I’m so excited.
Netflix-wise, I’ve been devouring Brooklyn 99 lately. Still only on season 2 but it’s hilarious as always and very excited to progress through the seasons. I’ve also been watching Sherlock again, as well as The Politician. Both top-notch shows 👍
SOME GOOD TUNES
Uh… the Hamilton soundtrack. Duh.
But seriously, it’s amazing. I find it hard to rate the songs, as they’re all incredible, but some of my favourites would have to be Guns and Ships, My Shot, What’d I Miss, and The Schuyler Sisters. I’ll definitely do a post on my top 10 (or 20… or 46…) songs from Hamilton sometime soon.
Other than that, I also started listening to Daveed Diggs’ rap group clipping. and found their new album. Favourite song is definitely Nothing is Safe. Absolute tune!
Other favourite artists include Billie Eilish, Sam Smith, Arctic Monkeys, The 1975, Panic! at the Disco – just to name a few.
Some extra songs I’m enjoying at the moment include Sometimes by Gerry Cinnamon, Somewhere Only We Know by Keane, Lover by Taylor Swift and Whistle for the Choir by the Fratellis.
UPCOMING POSTS
Expect some Hamilton… yeah. No reasoning behind that, other than that I’m obsessed. (I’ll try to keep my fangirling to a minimum for all of you who haven’t had the pleasure of listening to it yet. But go listen now. Go, come on.)
Is Blogmas too ambitious? I started off thinking that 25 posts wouldn’t be too bad, but now I am quickly re-evaluating that decision. I’ll give it my best shot, though.
Obviously, I’m Christmas-obsessed, so get ready for some of that, too. Wishlists, playlists, book recs, recipes, you name it! Alright, maybe not all of that, but there will be some festive posts sprinkled here and there. And everywhere.
Thank you so much for reading this post! I appreciate it was quite a long one, but I’m trying to make up for my absence, so if you’ve read all the way down here I can’t thank you enough! I really hope you enjoyed reading this post.
You know, this was actually a lot of fun to write! Should I do this more often? Let me know in the comments if you like this style of post (or alternatively, let me know if you think it’s incredibly self-indulgent and I should refrain from doing it again. I accept constructive criticism very well 👍).
Have an amazing week, and I’ll see you all again soon! Hopefully… 😂
Tara x
A Teen Called Tara 