The greatest show on earth

...Well not quite but almost. I looked through my kitchen window yesterday to catch the cat, which has been visiting us and is as yet nameless, playing with something fluttery on the grass. I rushed out to scold him and discovered he was pinning down a massive dragonfly (about 6 inches long like a very thin tadger). I shouted at him, something along the lines of 'Oi you little shit, let that go' and he was momentarily caught off guard and the dragonfly was released. He then remembered what he had been doing and batted it down again. It was whacked to the ground by his paw but then escaped again. What followed was an epic battle of feline vs insect which could only end one way.
After leaping about 4ft into the air, cat brought the dragonfly down a final time, lifted it in his paws and chomped on it's green and black tail. The poor thing buzzed its wings in cat's face and fought until the last breath, at which point the cat had given up and was now attempting to make friends with me again, which I was having none of. The victim is now laying on out compost heap and his soul has passed into insect heaven where everything is brown, green and sticky. Farewell brave prince.

First day of the rest of my life

I know what you're thinking; 'She's a student now and she's up before midday, how abhorrently wrong!', but I had to get up even though I don't actually have to do anything today because I'm too excited.

Yesterday as you may have gathered I was in a bit of a grumpy mood, I felt really anxious about what would happen this week and miserable at the fact that although I now have lots of time to luxuriate in my own company, poor old Ton has to work and that seems unfair as I've done everything in my life since age 16 with him. I'll miss him terribly but I hope he'll sort things out soon and at least be happier with what he is doing.

This morning a different Faye has awoken. I have already jumped around the bedroom to the Go! Team and I've put some washing on, I've cooked myself porridge and I'm on my second tea of the day. Despite the fact that Phill Jupitus didn't play my request for Belle & Sebastian, I'm in one of those fantasticly great moods which you wish would last forever and infect everyone you know.

I'll go in to uni today for a bit of a scope around as I need to go into town anyway today to look for a backpack which will define who I am to the world, as they need to. Not sure who I am though, so that doesn't help much, I'll see what the cool kids are carrying! The real stuff starts tomorrow with the politics meeting where you meet the people you'll be studying with for the next three years, I'll be happy if I meet anyone half as wonderful as those friends that Tom made this time five years ago but I know that due to my advanced age I might not meet anyone, and I'm ready for that.

The reason I'm so happy today is I feel like I've got my life back again and that's an incredibly important thing for me.

TTHAMTW (18 - 25 September 2005)

• This bloody useless computer with it's dial-up internet and inability to log itself on properly 4 out of 5 times
• The price of laptops
  
• The fact that I am fast running out of money and haven't yet got a clue when I'll receive my student loan and how much it will be
• I made smoked salmon and scrambled egg bagels this morning, my hands have smelled like fish ever since no matter how how many times I wash them
• The way I can't figure out whether I need to go into uni tomorrow or what the hell I'd do once I'm there
• Tom had some chips in a really nice pub yesterday which tasted 'foisty', I hate it when one stupid thing ruins an otherwise excellent meal
• Decided to go to Castle Drogo yesterday but due to bus times inconsistencies we could only stay for an hour. The drive (which we had to walk up from the bus stop) into the castle was 800m long as our yank friends might say - go figure.
• Can't be arsed to get up and change the channel due to the fact that I'm sitting on extremely sinkable-into sofa. Motor racing is on, this I hate.
• Bought some expensive Black Thistle seeds for finches which may like to visit our garden. Haven't seen a single finch and the sparrows seem to hog the feeder but not actully eat anything.
• My fingers still smell of salmon
• Still haven't approached landlord regarding flooding washing machine
• I need a laptop and a nice desk but I have no money
• Did I mention the fact that I have no money. I still seem to think I'm a rich working lady and can do things like shop at M&S for food rather than Tesco value (uggghhhh). Maybe I'm not cutout for this student life.

I'm going to change the channel.

A damned fine weekend

I'll need to gloss over the last three weeks or so because I have been so bloody busy that I'll never have time to write about it all and you'd probably fall asleep half way through. However I will say that it has been full of the good stuff including:

• Visit from Chris, Kate, Dan and Sarah which was all good stuff, Chris and Kate got engaged which was rather cool to be part of and we visited some nice places including Totnes, Dartington, an open top bus ride through Torbay, Buckfast Abbey (where we were told off on behalf of some anal monks for having a dog) and our little village.
• Visit from my sister Linda, her boyfriend Paul and their two boys Gabriel and Jonah. We had homemade Tapas which they really enjoyed as they'd been camping in Cornwall for two weeks and we went to Paignton Zoo which the boys loved. Gabriel liked the elephants and said he loved me and Tom for bringing him there (which made me cry) and Jonah was comforted by a Giraffe.
  
• Another visit to the excellent Bridge Inn in Topsham
• An Italian meal overlooking Exeter Catherdral and a trip to the Arts Centre to see The Edukators

This weekend has been fantastic, we went over to West Dartmoor yesterday to walk through Lyford gorge. It was a beautiful place owned by the National Trust (of which we have recently become members - perhaps I should continue buying the Telegraph and become resigned to my future as an old lady trapped in a young woman's body) and you walk through the wooded gorge for 1.5 miles until you reach White Lady falls which is a breathtaking 90ft Waterfall as shown. You then walk along the other side of the gorge for another 1.5 miles on precarious granite and slate steps, passing tumbling rapids and tunnels of swirling water dropping into deep pools carved by the water, until you reach The Devils Cauldren which is a thrilling Whirlpool deep in the rocks, viewed from a platform above the roaring cavern. It was just incredible.

To top this off we had delicious pies and smoothies halfway along and were greeted by my favourite dog, the Samoyed, which I got to stroke. We then went to the Castle Inn for lunch, where I had Crab and Avocado salad in a beautiful old pub with proper alcoves and slate floors.

For the rest of the afternoon we went back to Okehampton which is a pretty market town on the edge of Dartmoor. We stayed here for dinner and went to a friendly, unpretentious restuarant and I had a really tastly beetroot, feta and Romescu salad and Mussels with homemade chips. We got the bus back to Exeter at dusk and watched the fat, low moon over the silhouette of Dartmoor.

Today we listened to 6 Music in bed with the papers, had a cooked breakfast in bed, played with our new cat friend and went blackberrying in the village. As I write I am having dinner of Shepherd's Pie and Blackberry and Apple Crumbe cooked for me (on the downside Tom is being very grumpy doing this but he swears it is all chef style bravado). All in all a brilliant weeked and I'm feeling very lucky and looking forward to my dinner and watching the Prime Suspect DVD we got free with the Telegraph (oh dear!).

Things that have annoyed me this week (11th - 18th September)

Not much thankfully this week. Just...

• The Saturday Telegraph (no I haven't gone all right wing on you, they had a free DVD I wanted)
• Uni approaching angst
• My very boring job
  
• Rich girls working as temps with me in my crap job
  
• Still no impending family/friends visits
• Washing machine flooding kitchen on a regular basis and us being too chicken to trouble the landlord
  
• Not having enough things that have annoyed me - perhaps I'm losing my touch?
  

Things that have annoyed me this week (3 - 9 September 05)

In a new section which has been imaginatively titled, I shall be returning to my true vitriolic form...

This weeks openers in no particular order are:

• The 'surfer' in my office who keeps humming the latest Oasis single. He sucks, it sucks, it upsets me.
• Virgin records for allowing me to order a 7" single which they had no intention of actually obtaining.
• Alex James standing in for Steve Lamacq while he is ill. He is rather crap, and as my bus journey home was a highlight of the day for Lammo's good day/bad day this is no good thing.
  
• Post coming through the door which forces me to reply, i.e Student Finance people wanting to see my original passport. The photocopy would not be acceptable. They also lost Tom's P60.
• Not having broadband.
• Finding famous tea shop in Sidmouth only after it had closed. According to Tom's hairdresser they do pavlovas as big as your face.
• Weather turning bleaker towards weekend.
• Not having functioning washing machine or means of drying clothes.
• No visits from friends or family in pipeline to look forward to.
• Exeter's lack of decent watering holes.
• Restaurants which are chains but pretend otherwise. You only realise when you get in and look at the menu only to see it's a company based in St Albans. I otherwise try and avoid chain eateries like the plague.
• US governement's response to floods being shit all, until a few thousand poor black people had died possibly needlessly. I'm sure that it will come to light that Bush has cut budgets in areas which may have helped quell the disaster due to his incessant chanelling of monies into his war machine.
• Smell in house - possibly eminating from uneaten strawberry cake.
• Periodic stomach upsets which prevent me from working.
• Scary uni approaching angst.