Humble beginnings...

It seems that the entire world, that is those of us who apparently have time on our hands between watching Heroes, drinking tea and googling sarah palin on youtube, are "chronicling". When I say chronicling, I of course mean that largely self-indulgent, semi-anihalistic and yet ever so satisfying sport of blogging. Livejournal(ing). General and specific comment upon ones life and the goings on and not goings on. Criticism of the world. Opinion on so many things including the state of the economy, the state of CT (yay!) and the state of Liz Hurley's private area when static energy acts oh so cruelly against her (is no one safe?). I myself, have come round to the conclusion that maybe discussion, all be it with one's own self, is not such a bad thing. There are lots of things to discuss. I spend a rather large amount of my time by myself. In my car. In the metaphorical library of my mind. In a large Victorian house in the country (surprisingly not metaphorical!). I think lots of thoughts. Let's just say the mind wanders when you are spreading chicken feed around a muddy field, crawling on your belly under dusty beds for old bits of food and burning soup on a thousand year old aga. I know what you're thinking, and no, in fact, I am not Tess of the D' Urbervilles. Just your average, garden variety nanny. However, I digress...I am, in case the more sleep deprived of you need further convincing, writing this and what will hopefully be a few more notes, to basically get all the gunk out of my brain and open it up to universal comment. I would do this on another blogging site and not take up your precious facebooking time, only I don't know how to. Plus it's my page and there is nothing you can do to stop me. Ha.

This week I have been mostly reading...Rolling Stone, Diva and books of criticism on the Western a'la Stagecoach. Before we stereotype me into an indie, American-loving, liberal, lesbian, student (which is, let's face it what I am) let me explain myself. First, Rolling Stone. ENGLAND IS OBSSESSED WITH AMERICA RIGHT NOW. Have you noticed this?? As someone with a medium to life-altering addiction with the land of the free, I am quite ecstatic. However, my goal of the semester, to figure out how to live life in ye olde England without ben and jerry's, project runway and mozerella sticks (as we all know are America's priciple attractions) is undoubtedly, failing. America is everywhere! There have been at least 3 documentaries in the past week in which some lucky SOB has been off galavanting around the states to show us the true America. (How people get these jobs I will never know!) The presidential debates have also been everywhere and those and obviously the economy are a key part of every news program. I am glad the nation is finally coming around to my way of thinking. The United States are amazing! And soooo important. It pisses me off so much when people say they don't know anything about it. Surely to know nothing about America is to know very little about the world. You don't care who gets elected in November?? You don't care that the knock on effect for the rest of the world will be literally devestating?? This is the 21st Century. No abortion?? No stem-cell research??? No gay marriage??? It is literally like we are in the middle ages. The US is the biggest representative of the Western World. Do we want to be tarnished with the same brush as a country that (might) think like that? If you have American friends. Make them vote. I love America. I love the people of America. I believe that maybe in another life (already been or yet to come) I was supposed to have been an American. One day I want to live there and maybe get married and have babies that have the right to choose what kind of a life they want to lead. (Bloody immigrants I hear you cry!) Don't get me wrong, I believe that the US will make the right choice. And I am so excited to live for the next however many years in this world of hope and change...and erm...Rolling Stone??? Rolling Stone is just cool. I love that you can buy it in our university shop (along with Entertainment Weekly). I love that 5 page articles on Obama appear along with Fall Out Boy reviews (who incidently support Obama and have penned a song called "Welcome to the New Administration"). Russel Brand's hair takes up a 2 page spread and there is House ad which made me wet my pants a little. This is how you get people interested in life. In current events. In politics. In English comedy heroes with American accents and hot co-workers. I did my dissertation on youth voting in America (it was ok) and one of the main problems I found was that "yoooof" cannot identify with politicians. They feel the issues aren't relevant. They believe they hold no political sway. I really hope, that with the media frenzy surrounding this election and the magazines and tv shows and songs and shameless celebrity pleas to vote, that things will be different this time round. This is my dream. And if you don't have a dream? Well you're just lying aren't you??? If you're not. Get one.

In second place, DIVA magazine. (I realise I have been rambling for a while, so i'll make this short). For any of you that do not know, DIVA is pretty much the only lesbian/bisexual magazine in England. Britains equivalent of CURVE. There was a time when I would barely pluck up the courage to glance at a copy of DIVA in the one of I think 3 bookstores that sell it in the city (God forbid its distribution becomes more prolific. Then we might have more man-hating, short-haired, political women with cats. Eesh!). Anyway...I buy DIVA every now and again. Mainly to remind myself that there are actually other gay women out there. It is not the best magazine in the world. It has very little discussion of topics that I am actually interested in and sweeping generalisations about lesbians (see above). However, it is fun and I like to read it instead of doing my homework. I'm not actually sure why I added DIVA in this note. Other than I bought it this week. And I guess I have a had quite a gay week. You know, as weeks go. Oh and October 11 was National Coming Out Day. I didn't do it on fb. But hey, if you didn't know, you do now!

Last but not least (for now), the Hollywood Western. John Wayne and his not-so concealed weapon. As much as I would like to wow you with my extensive analysis of the genre (Westerns not concealed weapons) I actually know very little. I am just very excited about it. I went to the library the other day and borrowed about 19 books on the western and women in the westen and gays in the western. I'm just hoping there will be enough hours in my day to read them all. Alas I may have to put the friends re-runs on hold for a while. What I DO know is that I was very pleasantly surprised by the one and only Western (gasp) I have ever seen: Stagecoach. So if you haven't seen it. Go. See. Watch the loveless prostitute fall in love with the rebel with a heart of gold whilst they are being chased by Native Americans. Yee hah!!!

Ok, so my brain is soothed a little. I have been writing for at least an hour. Not doing anything I should but probably furthering my intelligent and emotional self in ways in which I do not yet understand. What's the word for that?? Oh, procrastination. In the immortal words of The Beatles however, there's no where you can be that isn't where you're meant to be. Wise words. Wise words.L x