I am DONE with Usage!

I've finished all of the exercises and mini-tests in the Usage chapter in the English section of my GED book! All I need to do is go over noun cases again, because I only got six out of ten right on the practice tests, and read through the glossary at the end of the chapter. Then it's on to 'Mechanics'!

Also, I can kinda play this song on my keyboard...






I know it's not as elaborate as 'Bohemian Rhapsody', but I'm still pretty proud of myself :) It took me a little while to figure out which chords I needed to play, because the first time I tried playing it, I was playing the wrong chords! I still need to play it along with the CD to make sure I've got it right.

I watched a bit of It Might Get Loud while I was doing my GED work. I love that movie.

Oh yeah, I also picked up season one of Mad Men, a Hayao Miyazaki film called Whisper of the Heart, and an Elvis Costello compilation from the library. And on our way back from the library, Dad cranked up the radio 'cause they were playing AC/DC, and then he cranked it even louder - so loud that the back of my seat was vibrating! It was really funny.

edited to fix grammar

Aha!

So it was actually the keyboard's fault, not the USBs!!!

I'm back at my own computer again, using the keyboard from the old HP. The first keyboard we had for the HP is probably gone - this one was the second for the HP. I think Dad got this one for the HP because the one that we first used was losing the paint off it's keys from being used so much. The only downsides to this keyboard are:

1. The keys are kinda clunky. I think it might be because it hasn't been used it a couple of months. Either that or it's because it's old.

2. It's so dirty that it looks like it's been thrown up on.

3. It smells like metal, which is kinda gross.

Hopefully Dad'll let me get a new keyboard, but I'm happy with this one for now. Sure, the keys are loud and clunky, but it's an ergonomic keyboard, which I'm used to. I'm not used to Dad's keyboard, because it's a standard rectangle. I'm also a bit used to having 'forward' and 'back' buttons, like the keyboard I was using before. Still, at least it works. That's what matters.

I got my Valentine's swap package yesterday afternoon!!! I don't have pictures yet, unfortunately. I got some Lindt peanut butter chocolates, two Peeps hearts, a picture of a giraffe and a lovely card. It makes my card look kindergarten-like :p I hope my swap partner loves her card and candy (and another small surprise!) when she recieves it.

So Mom and Dad got chocolates from Shoppers Drug Mart today - some for us, some for Grandma. They went to visit her last night (and didn't tell me where they were going - I thought they had gone out for dinner. Mom apologised, though), and by the sound of it, she ate a lot for dinner. I'm still recovering from my sore throat, so I didn't go yesterday. Mom and Dad left to go visit her and, once again, I'm staying home. My throat's better now, but it's still a bit sore - more of a dry throat now, though. Plus, I didn't have much clean clothes. I might be okay to visit tomorrow, though.

I started a Calorimetry yesterday afternoon, before my swap package came. It's easier than I thought. I'm using some Patons Decor in the 'Woodbine Ombre' colourway - cream, brown and grey. It's looking quite pretty.

I started watching The Sarah Jane Adventures last night (I'm borrowing it from the library), which is pretty cool. It's a spin-off of Doctor Who, but it's not as gritty as Torchwood. Sarah Jane is aimed at kids, and it's shown on CBBC in Britain and BBC Kids here.

I still have to watch Labyrinth, actually. I'm borrowing that from the library, too.

And Hair is in transit. Or it was, when I checked last night. It might be in now for me to pick up.

Computers do vex me.

Hi.

So my computer doesn't recognise my keyboard. I think the USBs have loose connections or something. My mouse still works though, and my right speaker, but for now I'm using my dad's computer.

His computer is friggin' amazing. It makes mine look prehistoric. Although I'm not keen on his keyboard - I don't think he is, either, because he was used to his old ergonomic one that he got when we were still using the HP. The HP originally came with a standard rectangular keyboard like this one, but Dad replaced it with an ergonomic one. I'm not entirely sure why. I think it was because some of the keys were losing their letters from being used so much.

I'm also pissed off at my mother.

You see, I was standing by the coffee table at 9:00 last night, mucking about with my pouch of knitting supplies (yarn needles, stitch markers, etc.), when I heard a loud bang coming from the front door. I opened it to find that flyers had been thrown against the door, and yelled "@$$HOLE!!!" out the door. It turns out that it was the next-door-neighbor's daughter, Hannah, who threw the flyers - she and her mom were delivering flyers. So Mom gives me grief over it. She told me that it could've been a guy out on parole who could've come up the stairs and punched me!

1. I'm a black belt. I know self-defense.

2. There are two tall, staff-like weapons used in martial arts that I could've used to defend myself.

3. Who the hell delivers flyers at 9:00 at night?!

So yeah... pretty pissed.

I've also had a sore throat, which has made me grumpier than usual, and when I'm sick, I don't appreciate having ANYTHING thrown against the screen door, making me jump outta my skin.

But seriously. 9:00 PM?!

More loot!!!

Yup. I got more stuff for Christmas. It came from Katie and Dan. I recieved...

It Girl Knits by Phoenix Bess (!!!)
Stitch N' Bitch Nation (!!!)
It's a Wonderful Life and White Christmas (now I don't have to watch them on CBC!)
A pretty journal

Katie and Dan came over on the 27th, and then they picked up Justin and Breanne the same day. Justin liked his scarf (yay!), and because I hadn't bought anything for Breanne, I gave her some nice soap that Mom bought at Winners, and because we had these pen-and-pencil sets in the house, I gave her one one of them - they're rather nice, too. She liked the soap, and I think she liked the pen-and-pencil set, too.

Nathan came by today to get his pressies. He seemed to like the lamp I gave him.

Unfortunately, though, my keyboard is acting up again. Actually, it's the USB port, so my dad may have to take my CPU to Summit to have the USBs replaced. Whee.

Just a quick post...

I'm bored, and I haven't eaten anything yet. Although I might eat a cupcake soon.

My keyboard keeps cutting out. I'll have to ask Mom how to fix that problem.

I got my right speaker to work yesterday, so I'm not sure if I wrecked the left one, or if it's just being silly. I need new speakers anyway.

And I have Paradise by the Dashboard Light stuck in my head.

I don't know if I'm going to church today, because Dad had a tiring night at work last night. So I have the sound off on my computer. Although, I'm probably making more noise than the computer, because I keep yelling at my keyboard.

I feel like writing yet another post.

Yes, I'm that bored.

I worked on Justin's scarf a bit today while watching The Matrix. Then I started working on my Kerchief Scarf, which I've decided to turn into a wrap. After all, I have enough cotton for it!

My hands are ridiculously dry. I haven't really been eating or drinking much dairy - I have dairy aggravated excema, so I get dry skin when I eat or drink dairy on a regular basis. But the weird thing is, normally it's the backs of my hands that get dry, and lately it's just been between the fingers that gets dry. Maybe it's from knitting too much.

Now that I think about it, fall is coming... meaning that pretty soon my feet will dry up and new splits will pop up on my toes. Yay me.

I indulged again - I pulled my duvet over me and listened to some of the songs off Darkness on the Edge of Town while going through my issues of Knit.1. Then I turned on the radio, and they played a song from said album, a song called 'Promised Land'. Or is it 'The Promised Land'? Anyway, it's a cool song. Mom called me up for dinner, but I didn't come up. When Dad called me up for dinner a little bit later, I came up and ate.

I'm getting back into the habit of playing my keyboard. I've been trying to play 'Bennie and the Jets' by ear, which is going okay. 'Badlands' is much harder, because the tempo is quicker.

My cat, my mom, and a spider.

It's a strange title, but don't worry - it'll all make sense in a moment.

First, the spider. I hate spiders. Last night I was shining a flashlight around my room to make sure the cat wasn't there, and I saw this spider in between my bookcases. So I went upstairs, into the kitchen to get some paper towel (the cat was sitting in the middle of the floor), went back downstairs and tried to squash it - but it decided to hide behind one of the bookcases. Damn.

Then, earlier, the cat clawed my foot. And when the internet connection dropped (it does that sometimes, 'cause we have a wireless router, and I think the modem acts up), I unplugged the modem and the router, then went to get a glass of water. I usually have to wait a bit before plugging stuff back in so that the connection comes back properly. So I went back into the computer/dining room with my glass of water, and that cat jumped in the chair!

Finally, my mom. She was saying that in September, when I start my homeschooling for the term (I hate the word 'semester'. I'm part English and part Welsh, so I'm gonna say 'term'), I have to do my work at the same times every weekday. Okay, I'm supposed to be homeschooling, not doing the school-at-home stuff. I don't have anything against school-at-home, I just don't work that way. So she tells me that if I'm going to college, I should learn to work by a schedule, because college timetables are different from university timetables. So here's my question...

Who said I was going to college instead of university?!

I've made it quite clear that I'd like to study brodcast journalism and someday get a job in radio, and I know that I can study that at a university, because some of the DJs at Q107 went to university. I also would like to study music. I have no desire to become a bricklayer or a butler - I say 'butler' because my darling mother cut out a newspaper article on butlers, and suggested that I become one.

What I'm going to do is be smart about my career. Like Sting - he used to be a teacher who performed in clubs. I might do something like that. Work as a DJ during the day, and by night I'll sing in clubs, or be a session keyboardist.