| Sunday, August 24th, 2008 |
| 12:00 pm |
Viva Las Vegas!
Fehim and I went to Las Vegas on 13th August and got back on 21st August (effectively losing a day travelling due to the time difference!) We had a great time and are still sleepy. We travelled with American Airways using and indirect flight as it was £150 cheaper. We went via Chicago there and Dallas on the way back. Shame all we got to see was the airport! I definitely prefer direct flights though! You can see the Strip as your plane lands, it's that close! We could even see the airport from our hotel room. When we got outside the heat hit us it was around 40 degress C everyday (105-110 Faranheit) and probably around 36 degrees C at night (100 Faranheit). It never cooled down the coolest time was about 5am and the sun was coming up then. We definitely apprecitaed the air con! We stayed at Planet Hollywood (formally the Aladdin). It's located right in the middle of the strip so an ideal location (next to Paris and opposite the Bellagio). We read a gtrate tip about a $20 room upgrade and it worked! You tip the check in clerk when you check in and ask if there are any complimentary upgrades available. We got a room that would have cost £40 more per weeknight and £60 per weekend night extra for only £10! The room was great. It had a nice view of the strip, a comfy kingsize bed, a his and hers marble sink, a deep soak bath tub and a nice shower. We of course took our set of toiletries. On the first night we explored the hotel and the Miracle Mile shops attached to it. On the first night we had dinner at Cheeseburger Las Vegas. It was good and I got a drink in a souvenir pineapple! We also found the ABC store which supplied us with sweets and drinks! On the first day (Thursday) we explored the south end of the strip after a buffet breakfast in our hotel. We checked out the different hotels (New York New York, Luxor, Excalibur and Mandalay bay) and various shops. Fehim was happy to find chocoltae covered pretzels in Walgreens. It was great to see all the differnt themed hotels but it does get tiring walking around them as they are so huge. So, we headed back to our hotel for a dip in the pool on the 6th floor of our hotel. We could see the Eiffel tower next to the pool and the New York skyline across from it! It was a great way to cool down in the desert heat. In the vening we went for dinner in a Mexican restaurant and I drank a yard of Margarita! We watched the fountain show at the Bellagio and the Sirens of Treasure Island show after dinner. It was sho hot watching the shows due to the body heat in addition to the existing heat. Friday was not so good. Fehim ate something that did not agree with him so we spent a lot of time in our hotel room. We went to Fremont Street in the evening (the old strip) to see all the lights. We got the bus there which was a great (cheap!) way to see the strip. It definitely changes when you get to the Northend of the strip and we drove past all the wedding chapels. We also went to the cinema at Fremont Street and watched The Clone Wars, it was so cheap (approx £3.50) and the seats reclined. Fremont Street was great it's home to prawn cocktails, steaks and neon lights which are all things you associate with old Las Vegas. On Saturday we got up early to queue up at the half price ticket booth (similar to the Leicester Square ones) to get tickets for Mamma Mia. We got top price tickets for just under £30. We xplored the hotels some more and went to the MGM grand. we saw the lions there some of which are related to the original MGM lions. We watched the show at 10pm at the Mandalay Bay theatre which had great views from anywhere and recling seats! The show finished at 12.30 and as we were wandering down the strip we decided to watch Tropic Thunder which started at 10 to one in the morning. The film was very funny. Sunday was a more relaxing day. We queued up to get tickets for the Steve Wyrick Magic show in the evening. We then got to monorail to the Las Vegas Hilton to go to the Star Trek Expereience. We had lunch in Quarks bar which unfortunately gave us indigestion. We ate onion rings star trek style ans then I had a class H pizza. We drank a Warp Core Breach which was a cocktail containing 10 shots and had dry ice in tin to make it bubble and steam. We went to the 2 rides there Borg Invasion 4D and Klingon Encouneter. I did not enjou the Borg Nano probes poking me in the back. The rides were good but not great whern you have indigestion! It's a shame the Star Trek experience is closing on 1st September so we were lucky to go when we did! We watched the magic show in the evening which was very good, it was a David Copperfield style show of impressive illusions. On Monday we spent the whole day on a coach to the Grand Canyon. It was 5hrs each way and included various stops. We stopped at and drove obver the Hoover Dam which was very impressive. We went to the South Rim of the Canyon and stopped at Mather point and Nright Angel lodge. The sight is truly breathtaking. It's so amazing to see all the different colours and to look over the edge to see how far down it went. We were warned not to feed the squirrels as they may have rabies or the plague! Nice! We also got to exeperience a thunderstorm in the afternoon which was great to see how the Canyon lit up. When we go to Vegas in the future we will definitely do the helicopter flight over the canyon to exeperience it from a different way. When we got back to the hotel at 11 we decided to get chinese takeaway from PF Changs in our hotel. It was great and they gave us chopsticks and fortune cooks and the noodles were great too. On Tuesday (our last full day in Vegas) we went to the Stratosphere tower to get a great view of the strip. It was amazing to see all around and see how small the actual strip is! We were to scared (and full) to go on the rides though. We also visited the Bonanza which claims to be the largest gift store in the world (but I don't think it was!). We then went back to the Statosphere for lunch in Roxy's Diner where the staff sing 50's songs while you eat. We then got the bus to Circus Circus to see the adventure dome. We were still to full to go on the rides but did play some arcade games. We then went to the Venetian. It's amazing to see a fake Venice. You could have a gondala ride and be sung to (just one cornetto...) but Fehim was to embarressed! They have recreated St Marks Square and had venetian glass. However they did seem to be pumkping perfume into the air in parts of it, it tasted disgusting! Wr then went for a final dip in the pool to cool down. We had a nice buffet dinner and went for one final stroll along the strip. We didn't gamle to much there. We played roulette once and lost $10 in about 10 seconds so gave up on that. We played the slots a little. I did win $13 but of course that went straight back in! We had a great time in Vegas and definitely want to go back again hopefully with a group. Check our our photos and videos on facebook! |
| Wednesday, July 30th, 2008 |
| 5:03 pm |
Graduation!
So I'm now Elizabeth Currie BA (Hons) PGCE! I went to my graduation last Friday which was at St George's Catherdral and our reception was at the Imperial War Museum. It was a great way to celrate passing such a tough course it was just a shame more of our group wasn't there to share. Photos of it are on facebook. In the evening I went for a meal with my family and watched The 39 Steps in the theatre. It was very funny and all the roles were played by 4 actors. I'm spending a lot of my summer holiday in the cinema or the gym. As no one else has free time I have to amuse myself. I really enjoyed Mamma Mia and WALL-E and while Batman was a good film I can't see why everything thinks it's the greatest film ever (silly fanboys on IMDB!). I'm looking forward to my holiday in Las Vegas in 2 weeks time. Fehim is looking forward to the Star Trek exeperience (not so much for my self). We're also hoping to book a tour of the Grand Canyon which should be amazing. We've got our currency sorted and got a very good exchnage rate! Over the weekend it's Jackies and Fehims birthday so we are planning to watch the X Files movie which I'm very excited about. I've been watching my DVDs to get back into the X Files spirit. |
| Saturday, June 21st, 2008 |
| 12:02 pm |
Finally got a job
I went for my 5th teaching interview yesterday and have finally got a job. They said I was a creative teacher and loved the drama and art work I had done in school and they also loved that I had a placement at the BFI andhope film is something I can itegrate into the curriculum. Thet said they wanted me as soon as I left the interview and I only had to wait 2hrs to find out that I got the post. It's a 1 form entry school in Mitcham and is about 35 minutes walk away. I'll be teaching Year 2. It's a contract for maternity cover but there is a strong possibilty that it may become permannent. The headteacher also said there are other staff changes in the pipeline so she is hopefully going to tell me sooner rather than later whether it will be a permannent post. I'm going in on 3oth June in the morning to discuss what the children are like in my new class and I'll be spending the day with my new class on 17th July. I'll get paid for those days but not until September. I'm very excited as it will be my first 'career' job and will earn decent money (25k starting salary). But maybe not that decent for the amount of hours I have to put in. I'm only 1 week away from finishing my final teaching practice and I'm knackered but there is still so much to do! Can't wait til my summer holiday in August. I'll be go to Vegas woo! |
| Friday, April 25th, 2008 |
| 3:41 pm |
The end is in sight!
I found out my final teaching practice school yesterday. It's a school in Epsom so I'm sure it's lovely but jusy was hoping for somewhere a bit more diverse as my first TP was in Dulwich. It's quite difficult to talk about supporting EAL children at interviews without having exeperience. I'm also job hunting (filling in my 3rd app for today). Not heard anything yet but a few closing dates are coming up soon for jobs I have applied for so fingers crossed. Had an interview for the Lambeth NQT pool. Waited 45 mins right next door to the interview room and could hear the previoous candidate speaking which was very offputting to say the least. Waiting to hear if I got in but if I don't it's no big deal as it's only a pool and I'm in 5 others! Well soon to be 6 as I have an interview for Croydon which guarantees to put everyone in the pool, the interview is for grading you! So glad it's nearly over now. Just 2 presentaions to do and 2 assignments to hand in (1 is complete the other is started). Passed all my assignments I have got back so far which is a relief that I don't have to them again. Just so much work to do whilst applying for jobs! Fehim and I have booked our summer holiday to Las Vegas! Woo! We are going mid August (peak I know but I'm a teacher!) and staying at Planet Hollywood which is right in the middle of the strip. Been enjoying the new series of Doctor Who. Why are the bees dissapearing? And have discovered Strawberrt beer, which is great! |
| Tuesday, March 25th, 2008 |
| 6:16 pm |
BFI
I've just finished my alternative educational setting placement at the BFI which mostly consisted of watching films! I was working with other LSBU students to go therough the archive and design some resources for use in the classroom. I also got to attend some workshops and got some good teaching resources too. It was nice to have a relaxing few weeks. Now it's back to the busyness! I'm applying for jobs as they pop up (3 so far) so fingers crossed that I'll start getting interviews. Next week is a research week for a group project so I'll be back at school make obsevations about group dynamics! Then I have a few assignments to do and get my folders ready to be reviewed before I go on my final teaching practice. Still a lot of work to do but there is finally light at the end of the tunnel! I recently went to the Play.com Live games expo at Wembley which was ok but not great. I was dissappointed that they were hardly any DS or Wii games. Did get some OK free stuff though. Oh and I now have a PS3 which is quite cool as I can now buy blu-ray films! |
| Saturday, February 2nd, 2008 |
| 1:12 pm |
Teaching Practice 1
It's been ages since my last post because that's how busy I've been! There's always something to so on the course! However I've survived my first teaching practice! I was with Year 2 in a school in Dulwich Village so a very posh area. It's been a long 4 weeks and I haven't really had much of a life. I've basically worked 7 days a week writing up lesson plans, going to meetings, writing evaluations and doing paperwork for the university. I've still got lots of paperwork to do ready to meet my tutor on Monday. I had a good time though but I don't think I really want to teach Year 2. Too many tears and arguments! I hope I have become a better teacher but I still need to work on my behaviour management. I have picked up lots of ideas that I could use when I have my own class but also things that I want to do that this school did not (such as merits). I think I will miss the children (especially the really camp little boy) but I don't think I would want to work in that school as it was a very stressful environment with the teachers being constanatly observed and having to hand in thier lesson plans to see if they are up to scartch. The work doesn't end now though! I've got to start applying for jobs now even though I don't really feel ready! Just watched Lost and it's very good. Also saw cloverfield yesterday which was very good too althoughy the shaky camera did give me a headache! |
| Tuesday, November 6th, 2007 |
| 1:18 pm |
Update
Well it's been a while since I last updated but I honestly haven't been up to anything exciting. Most of the time is taken up by uni work. Lots of reading and now the assignments are starting. I passed my QTS tests in Maths, English and ICT, so ti was good to get them out of the way. I arranged my alternative educational setting placement with the British Film institute, which I'm excited about but that's not til March. I finally found out my first teaching practice school where I will start next week. I'll be initially doing 2 weeks and then 4 weeks in January (the good news is that the school doesn't start til 7th Jan). The school is in Dulwich Village, so it's a fairly affluent area and I'll be working with Year 2. The good thing though about being a student is having a NUS card. 25% off at Dominoes, which we ate while watching the rugby final. Fehim and I went to see the fireworks in Battersea Park on Saturday which were very good. I had mulled wine, a hot dog an roast chesnuts. Yum! A few weeks ago we went to a Doctor Who DVD night at Jackie's. We watched an old Tom Baker episode which was quite funny, it involved mummies and Mars. |
| Friday, September 14th, 2007 |
| 10:08 am |
August update and PGCE start
It;s been a while since I last updated, so I'll have to try and remeber what I have been up to! In August I went to stay with my Grandparents for a few days in Bexhill and managed to get to the beach a couple of times. Fehim and I went in to hastings one evening and he finally won me a toy! I have been waiting 2 years for him to win a toy! A couple of weeks ago Fehim and I also went to Bournemouth. It was great and we went to the beach on one day. We played crazy golf and I was winning til about the 9th hole but suddenly Fehim kept getting holes in one! We went to the aquarium there and say the stingrays and turtles being fed. Even better was the fact that the train tickets only cosr £2.50 each return! Also arranged a group clubbing thing to try and relive our student days! (We prefer to stay in now and drink wine). We went to Heaven which is always a lot of fun. Jackie Dave and I stayed in the Pop room while apparently everyone else went missing! The next day Jackie and I went for roast and a pint of orange juice and lemonade which is always the best thing after a night out! We went to the London Film and Comic con 2 weeks ago which was a lot of fun. It was great running around being geeky! We met Tom Baker who was very funny and random. I also met Dominic Monaghan briefly to get his autograph. It was kinds just "Hello" and "Goodbye". We went back the next day so Zoe could meet the Petrellis from Heroes. The Sunday was carzily busy just because of the Heroes! The best thing though was finding a real policebox outside Earls Court Station! You can see the photos on facebook. I'm sure a lot more happened than that but I can't remember! I finally started my PGCE this week and the work is already piling up! I've got some audits to do in English and maths, which are going OK but I definitely need to brush up on my techincal knowledge of both! The best thing though is that I get to read children's literature! The stange thing though is meeting people in realife evn though we met online through TES and facebook. Tonight I'm going out for Zoes bon voyage party, which I'm sure will be fun! |
| Saturday, July 28th, 2007 |
| 9:09 am |
Joseph and the amazing technicolour Scissor Sisters
This has been my first week of summer holidays and I've been busy. On Monday I went to see Joseph in the West end. It was a lot of fun and we were all glad that Lee won the role. Had to eat dinner really quickly beforehand. Jackie at a burger in about 2 minutes! Last night I went to see the Scissor Sisters at the O2. The show was great and we were close to the front. The band a great entertainers and have a lot of energy on stage. The arena itself was nice and there are lots of restaurants in the O2. The only downside was that it took 50 mins to leave the arena and get on a tube! The station is opposite the O2 but we all had to funnel out of the arena down the restaurant street and then we all had to go througyh 1 door in the station. It was crazy, it never takes that long from Earls Court or Wembley! On Thursday we went to central London. We had a nice meal at Eds diner. I had a very yummy chilli dog. I also got a free haircut from the Tony and Guy training academy. It looks very nice but it took 3 hrs to do! I also saw The Simpsons movie which was very funny and went shopping in Kingston. Went to Tony Roma's in Kingston for yummy lunch for £4.95, I had sopme very yummy ribs. Last week I left my job at school so I'll have a nice rest before my PGCE. It got some nice presents and some nice cards including some from the children. It is a lovely school and I shall miss working there. I also read Harry Potter. I finished it in one day so my mum could read it. I can't believe so many characters die! One of my friends wants to wait until the film comes out in order to find ouyt what happens. Thats in 2010 so there's no way she can avoid it that long. I also saw the |Order of the Phoenix which was good but they left out a lot fromk the book. My sister has just got a kitten who is very cute. He looks like a Felix cat and he is still very tiny. |
| Saturday, July 7th, 2007 |
| 11:21 am |
The last month
The last month has been busy. I've been to Margate for 3 days with the Year 3 classes in my school. The weather was lovfely and we spent most of the time on the beach. I caught the sun a bit but at least I didn't burn! However there were a lot of jellyfish in the water which was suprising. The trip wasd fun and was a good experience but very tiring as you are on duty 24/7. I've been to uni to do my CRB check and I have my book list. It all seems to be approaching so quickly! I've been out for Zoe's birthday at Tony Roma's. Had yummy ribs and a warm prawn cocktail which was odd! Went out for Delia's birthday last night. First we went to Wagamama which is always good. Even better when you have vouchers for half price food and we had some sake too! We then went to suburban lounge in Wimbledon for some cocktails. It was packed as it was happy hour be we managed to get 4 drinks for the price of one hehe! Finally we went for Karaoke. We had a private room in the Bloomsbury lanes which also had a cinema entrance (there were seats and a screen as you went in) a bowling alley and a diner. It was a lot of fun I sang quite a few songs including Boheimian Rhapsody as it just has to be done! I'm a little croaky now though. Been very busy at work as it's report time so myself and my colleague have the lovely task of entering the attendance data for the whole of the schools reports and photocopying them. Just 2 weeks left of term now. |
| Sunday, June 10th, 2007 |
| 8:07 pm |
Wak for life
Today I completed Crusaids Walk for Life 10k walk around London. Thanks to everyone who sponsored me and those who haven't can still do so at www.walkforlife.co.uk/elizabeth07. I walked with Fehim, Martin and Alvyn I raised £99 and have £15 in pledges which I need to collect by the end of the month. I finished the walk in 2hrs 20 mins and Fehim and Alvyn finished about 10 mins after. Our time last year was 2hrs 45mins. I think this year Martin and I walked faster as we walked at our own pace rather than Alvyn and Fehims. We could have probably walked a bit faster but the route took us along the Southbank which was packed! At the end we recieved a Walk for life medal and water bottle, a random CD and a copy of Heat! We also got water and Lucozade and a banana to refuel. The walk seemed far shorter this year and I would reccomend to everyone that they sign up next year. |
| Sunday, May 27th, 2007 |
| 8:20 pm |
My birthday
Celebrated my birthday last night and had a fantastic time apart from the club but I'll tell you about that later. I go wear my new dress (designed by Lily Allen) and recieved many complimets but the skirt was so huge! Also glad I vrought some flat shoe for the club! First of all 17 of us went to Blue Hawaii for a yummy BBQ. It was very nice and fun choosing your own combinations of food. For those of you who haven't been there you go up to the counter and choose what meat, veggies, spices and sauce you want and then they cook it for you and you can go up as many times as you like! They also have yummy cocktails! Mmm! 17 people was rather a tight squeeze for a table aspecially as I was squashed against a wall! As it was my birthday we all got hawain leis and party poppers. We then went to Wetherspoons and a few people had to blag their way in without ID. Can't believe they play such lous music there now! But we did all enjoy singing to the Baywatch theme! Can't believe I know all the words! By this time Alvyn was rather tipsy which was very amusing! For thoose of you who know him, you know he says the first thing that comes in to his head! At least he wasn't as drunk as halloween though! We left at 10.30 to go to heaven in central London while a few people stayed drinking in wetherspoons. We got to the club abou 11.20 and we had discount vouchers to use. We queued up and the bouncer asked us how many were in our group however... she then asked when was the last time went went there which was odd. She then said that Saturday night for for regulars and members only and that we couldn't get in. We mentioned to her that we had spent an hour traveling and it DOES NOT STATE on the internet that it was for regulars only to which she replied "well it wouldn't would it". We didn't argue with her as it wasn't worth it, if they don't want our money then it's fine with me I'll spend it somewhere else. It was obvious she didn't like the look of us for some reason. I think it was that we were just to gorgeous to get in! Lol. I will be writing to Heaven about this as it seems a stupid policy to me, they should state on their website that it was for regulars only. Also I think a few of the group thought they were racially discriminated against. We then decided to go to Walkabout by Somerset House as Mo knew it was close by. Altogh it wasn't our ideal place we still had fun. They played a good mix of music some rock, some chees and some r and b. However the guys were SO SKANKY there! It's they worst club I have evr been to for skany men. The guys wouldn't leave Mo and I alone! Even when I was dancing with Fehim they still kept touching me! One guy even walked past me and stuck his finger in his mouth and pulled it out! SO NASTY! Anyway after that we headed to thy 24hr Maccy D's on the strand and then got the Nightbus home. I got lots of great presents for my birthday and lots pirates stuff! The pirates stationary will be especially useful when I go back to uni in September. I'm sure the children at school will be jealous! It was great to have sooo many people to celebrate with and it was great that Jason and Saffron came down from Cambridge. I know that the old FACT crew enjoyed catching up with him. Also Kudos to Martin for drawing me a very cool Doctor who Crad with a Dalek and Cyberman on it. All the photos are on Facebook (so Irfan get yourself a facebook account). |
| Friday, May 18th, 2007 |
| 10:53 am |
Realesed from jury service
I have now been relesed from jury service. I'm disappointed that I only got to do one case but some people didn't do any cases for the whole 2 weeks. We finished our deliberations on Monday after 5 49 mins (they were very precise about the time) and we found the defendant guilty. Everyone felt nervous before the foreman read out the verdict.Found out yesterday that they only got a £250 fine. Overall it wasn't too bad especially once you were on a trial and I met some nice people. It also felt like have 2 weeks off work as most of the time was spent sitting around chatting. It was nice to start at 10! We also felt that if you could do it as a job it wouldn't be too bad as you get paid to be there and your food and transport paid for! So it's back to work next week but luckily there is only 1 week til half term! Then it's my birthday! |
| Saturday, May 12th, 2007 |
| 12:36 pm |
Pretty dresses and deliberation
As many of you know I've been on Jury service this week. The first day was very boring just sitting around waiting to be called, I found it difficult to continuosly read so I had to go and buy a puzzle book to keep my brain active. However I got put on a case first thing on Wednesday morning. When began deliberating yesterday afternoon but did not reach a verdict. Unfortunately we don't get to stay in a hotel! We're back on Monday to continue our deliberations. I have also been buying many dresses this week. Here are the dresses http://lifestyle.uk.msn.com/fashion/celebritystyle/photogallery.aspx?cp-documentid=4883168. I just got back from Oxford Street as my local New look didn't have all the dresses. I'm very glad it's my birthday at the end of the month, so I'll be able to afford to pay for them! |
| Saturday, April 14th, 2007 |
| 11:31 am |
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| Friday, April 13th, 2007 |
| 9:22 am |
Primark Chais
Yesterday we went to the new {Primark on Oxford Street. If you thought Primark was busy you haven't seen anything until you've been to this store! It was crazy! We had to queue to get in (but it was a fast moving queue) and there were lots of security guards. There were so many people everywhere, the only quiet bit wa the home department. Then when it can to paying there was another huge queue. It was a massive store but I think I'll still to CRoydon and Kingston. I also managed to get the Buffy Season 8 comic in Forbidden Planet. I had ordered it online from America but I really wanted to read it. So when that copy arrives I'm going to sell it on ebay. As it was Fehim and I's anniversary yesterday I bought him a Cloud action figure (from Advent Children). We then went for dinner in the new Frankie and Benny's in Colliers wood. It was very good, I had a couple of cocktails but we were both very full by the end. On Tuesday I met up with Jackie for lunch and the cinema. We had a bottle of wine before the fim and then one after so we were both feeling a little tipsy. We felt we needed a drink after the film (Sunshine) as it was depressing. On Wednesday Lizzie and Delia came over to play Wii, which was a lot of fun. We also got huge pizza's from domino's. |
| Monday, March 26th, 2007 |
| 9:43 am |
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| Wednesday, March 14th, 2007 |
| 4:18 pm |
Jury Service
I got my Jury Summons Letter this morning. It will be from 8th May at Croydon. I'm so glad it didn't happen while I was doing my PGCE! |
| Sunday, March 11th, 2007 |
| 10:54 am |
MMM seaweed!
There's a new Chinese supermarket that has opened nex to Earlsfirld station. They sell pocky which is good news as we wont have to go to China town to get some. I got Hello Kitty Strawberry pocky, which was very nice. I also bought some dreid seaweed. It's actually really nice and is just like eating crisps. The best thing though is the transaltion on the back.Things it says include "make more black hair" which we presume means it will make your hair shiny. |
| Thursday, March 8th, 2007 |
| 8:29 pm |
Glowing reviews
Today I had to work in the reception class as the teacher had to go somewhere in the morning. She said she was really glad I could work there as she'd heard glowing reviews from the nursery. She also said I'm very good with the children. Even though I'm not planning on working in the early years its's great to have experience and receive positive feedback. Also check out the Shaun the Sheep website ( I am big Wallace and Gromit fan). It's soooo cute! Also just wonder who reads my journal apart from Jason (and sometimes Martin). Is anyone interested in finding out what I'm up to? If not I don't mind updating my journal just for yo Jason (looking forward to the wedding). Current Mood:  curious |
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