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End of the year post
01
Jan, 2010

Happy new year, internets! It’s sure been a busy one. I have watched an almost ridiculous amount of movies in the cinema and read quite a few books, a large portion of which appeared to be about Southern vampires. Go figure.

I also almost worked myself to death trying to manage a full time job and three university courses at the same time. That’s not a mistake I am likely to make again, after coming too close to exhaustion than what is healthy. My only resolution for 2010 is to not destroy myself by trying to manage too much in too little time. I also promise to have MORE FUN and play more video games.

Artists I listened to this year:

1
468
2
318
3
278
4
275
5
260
6
221
7
208
8
179
9
150
10
131

Songs I overplayed this year:

1 Loved track
48
2 Loved track
33
3 Loved track
26
3 Loved track
26
5 Loved track
24
5
24
7
23
8
21
8
21
8
21

To be honest I spent less time listening to music this year than I’ve ever done. I can’t manage to study and listen to music at the same time, so most of the time my speakers were off. But my new artist of the year is without a doubt Frankmusik, who I also managed to catch live at Koko last month.

TV shows I enjoyed:

  • True Blood
  • How I Met Your Mother
  • The Big Bang Theory
  • Gossip Girl
  • Flash Forward
  • Doctor Who
  • Battlestar Galactica
  • Buffy (although I’m a bit slow and have only reached season 2)

Good things this year:

  • Got a seriously good grade in my Java course, go me!
  • Completed two courses during the year
  • Got a new job in an industry that’s more right for me and is very supportive with regards to my somewhat special needs.
  • Got an implant in my arm to replace taking the pill every day
  • I moved my blog over to WordPress, which I’m liking a lot
  • Exchanged commitment rings with Mr Pharmacist
  • Saw a lot of films at the film festival!
  • Went to Disneyland Paris
  • Had the bathroom redone while we were in Disneyland
  • After two years of waiting, finally got placed in weekly therapy
  • Saw Faith and the Muse again! Their new album is gorgeous
  • I had a root canal. Not good for most people but for someone like me who has dental phobia it was a win!
  • Saw some awesome musicals and plays in West End, and am now a massive fan of David Shannon, previously of Les Miserables, currently of Phantom of the Opera. FAB singer!
  • Saw Rufus Wainwright with family and friends at Royal Albert Hall
  • Appeared as a guest on Made of Fail, which was awesome
  • Ran Race for Life again and beat my old fund-raising amount

Not so good things this year:

  • Had a ridiculous amount of migraines
  • Panic attacks returned with a vengeance
  • Gained even more weight – blah!!
  • Dropped a fair bit in salary so struggling more month to month
  • Only went on holiday for four days – very little time off in general
  • Most of my time off was spent studying
  • Light sensitivity at gigs reached all time low – lost almost all interest in live music that isn’t singer/songwriters as I am very unlikely to have any fun at large gigs as I’m too worried about the lights triggering migraines
  • Didn’t have much energy to socialize and lost touch with a fair few people as a result
  • Twitter took over my brain and I ended up blogging less
  • My good friend Mads passed away in a motorcycle accident in May. I met up with his mother and went to his grave during Christmas. I miss him terribly.
  • Another friend, Jan Kenneth Barkved, was found dead in his own home in October. His ex girlfriend is a very close friend of mine, they were still good friends. I urge you to check out his band Elusive, if you like goth rock. They were fantastic.

To the ones we lost, you can never be replaced. To the ones who were there when I really needed someone, thank you. To the new year and new decade – bring it on. It was a tough decade in many ways, I’m glad to see the back of it.

To Mr Pharmacist and my family, by blood or otherwise: I love you. Happy new year!

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Books read in 2008
01
Jan, 2008

1. John C. Beck – Got Game? How the Gamer Generation Is Reshaping Business Forever
2. Neil Stephenson – The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer
3. Mick O’Hare – Why Don’t Penguins’ Feet Freeze?
4. Madeleine D’Engle – A Wrinkle in Time
5. Madeleine D’Engle – A wind in the door
6. QI Team – The Book Of General Ignorance
7. Terry Pratchett – The Colour of Magic
8. Terry Pratchett – The Light Fantastic
9. Laurence Rees – Auschwitz
10. Richard K. Morgan – Altered Carbon: A Takeshi Kovacs Novel
11. Truman Capote – Breakfast at Tiffany’s
12. Stephen Colberg – I Am America (And So Can You!)
13. Robert Graysmith – Zodiac
14. Al Franken – Lies and the lying liars that tell them
15. JK Rowling – Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
16. JK Rowling – Harry Potter and the prisoner of Azkaban
17. Laruence Rees – Nazis (a warning from history)
18. JK Rowling – Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
19. Jon Krakauer – Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith
20. JK Rowling – Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
21. Allan Moore – Watchmen (graphic novel – still counts!)
22. JK Rowling – Harry Potter and the half-blood prince
23. JK Rowling – Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
24. Stephenie Meyer – Twilight
25. Stephenie Meyer – New Moon
26. Stephenie Meyer – Eclipse
27. Stephenie Meyer – Breaking Dawn (I’ve clearly lost my mind. Send help!)
28. Orson Scott Card – Enders Game
29. Kurt Vonnegut – God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater
30. Michael Moore – Mike’s Election Guide
31. Art Spiegelman – Maus (complete)
32. Art Spiegelman – In the shadow of no towers
33. H.G. Wells – The War of the Worlds
34. Emily Bronte – Wuthering Heights
35. Madeleine D’Engle – A swiftly tilting planet
36. Richard Dawkins – The God Delusion
37. Barack Obama – Dreams of my father
38. Neil Gaiman – The Graveyard Book
39. Akira (Complete Series)
40. Y – The last man (Complete Series)
41. Craig Shaw Gardner – The Cylons’ Secret: Battlestar Galactica
42. Kurt Vonnegut – Timequake
43. Philip K. Dick – Minority Report (A collection of short stories)
44. Andy Secombe – Endgame

End of list.

Category: Books, Yearly Lists  4 Comments
Films I’ve seen in 2008
01
Jan, 2008

Films I’ve seen in the cinema in 2008
1. I am Legend* (IMAX)
2. Juno
3. Cloverfield
4. Sweeney Todd – Demon Barber of Fleet Street
5. Fucking Åmål*
6. Definitely Maybe
7. There Will be Blood
8. Lars and the Real Girl
9. No country for old men
10. The Orphanage
11. Happy Go Lucky
12. I’m a Cyborg, and that’s okay
13. Son of Rambow
14. 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
15. In Bruges
16. Forgetting Sarah Marshall
17. Iron Man
18. Indiana Jones 4
19. Iron Man
20. Memories of Matsuko
21. Sex and the City
22. Kamikaze Girls
23. Memories of Matsuko
24. The Incredible Hulk (IMAX)
25. Blade Runner (Final Cut) (IMAX)
26. X-men (IMAX)*
27. X-men 2 (IMAX)*
28. Mamma Mia
29. Wall-E
30. Batman – The Dark Knight
31. X-Files – I want to believe
32. Wall-E*
33. Flammen & Citronen
34. City of Ember
35. Sunshine Barry and the Disco Worms
36. Religulous
37. Rachel getting married
38. The Posters came from the Walls
39. Hamlet 2
40. James Bond – Quantum of Solace
41. Burn after reading
42. Twilight
43. Twilight. Shut up.

Films I’ve seen elsewhere in 2008
1. Knocked Up
2. 13 going on 30*
3. Say Anything*
4. Stardust*
5. Battle Royale
6. Stargate
7. But I’m a cheerleader
8. Indiana Jones – Raiders of the Lost Ark
9. Zodiac
10. The Pianist
11. Hairspray
12. Fantastic Four – rise of the silver surfer
13. The Crying Game
14. Shrek the Third
15. The Break Up
16. Shaolin Soccer
17. Happy Feet*
18. Becoming Jane*
19. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix*
20. Shrek 2*
21. The Kite Runner (flight)
22. Enchanted* (flight)
23. Shallow Grave
24. Transformers*
25. Death Note
26. Death Note – the last name
27. Persepolis
28. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
29. Gone baby Gone
30. Enchanted* (yes, again. Shut up. It will appear again.)
31. Casanova (Heath Ledger version)
32. The Others
33. Juno*
34. Enchanted*
35. In the shadow of the moon
36. Miss Potter
37. Michael Clayton
38. Whisper of the heart
39. Enchanted*
40. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire*
41. Funny Face
42. Indiana Jones – Raiders of the Lost Ark*
43. Batman Begins*
44. This film is not yet rated
45. Indiana Jones and the temple of doom
46. Eastern Promises
47. Cars
48. Twin Peaks – Fire Walk With Me
49. Kissing Jessica Stein
50. Jerry Springer The Opera
51. Sicko
52. Jerry Springer The Opera*
53. The Notebook
54. Enchanted
55. Baby Mama
56. 27 Dresses
57. Evening
58. Alvin and the chipmunks
59. Itty Bitty Titty Committee
60. Evening
61. Jane Austen Book Club
62. Peter Pan – Return to Neverland
63. Marie Antoinette
64. Mr & Mrs Smith
65. Sweeney Tood*
66. Rain Man*
67. It’s a wonderful life
68. Derailed
69. Wall-E*
70. Indiana Jones – Kingdom of the crystal skull*
71. High School Musical*
72. My Fair Lady*
73. It’s a wonderful life
74. Constatine

Total films: 117

* – denotes repeat viewing

Category: Film, Yearly Lists  4 Comments