July 7, 2004

Ok, I did promise… so here it is …

Life update!

I haven’t quite finished college for the year (Damn them for making us come back to start A2 straight after finishing As …. Don’t even get me started about that system) …. Sorry, for all you Americans this is like… ummm… I have my final year of high school next year … I think!

It’s that time of year when all the students breath a sigh of relief ‘cause their working year is over and most have at least 6 weeks to call their own. I for one am planning to do as little as possible! … I guess it’s kind of a fine art; managing to just chill, hang out with people and do basically nothing. My Social life has been quiet recently, exams have seen to that! I know all you people out there with high powered jobs say that being a student is a breeze compared with what you do but I find exams stressful, as do most of the other people in my situation (I guess the executives at Edexcel must be even more stressed though!).

Anyway, you don’t want to hear about my exams anymore than I want to talk about them… they are over now… so that’s that!

Most of the socialising has been typical exam-time stuff; Sunday afternoon revision boredom which turns into going to the cinema; going to town on a Friday after we finish just to shop or watch some guys fall on their ass trying to skateboard; or ‘study’ sessions at each other’s houses. This is usually with my closest few friends (We call ourselves ‘the usuals’ … I know, how lame can you get!) which includes Alicia (We’ve become really close since the whole Ryan incident… We have a lot in common… Sometimes it’s scary!) Caz, Bekki, BB (She is always BB… never her real name!) and of course myself. We get on really well and just recently have become very tight as a group. I have other friends but I’d prefer to have a few really close friends who are there for me always than loads of crappy friends who seem to disappear the minute anything starts to go badly!

Anyway, we did something the other day which I haven’t done since I was like 14. We had a slumber party! I’m not talking about us going out in the evening and crashing at someone’s house, that happens all the time. We actually sat around in our pyjamas (I had to buy some specially for the occasion, I usually just sleep in a big T-shirt) and did each other’s makeup. It was Caz’s idea. I was at her house and we were just thumbing through the TV channels when this American kids program comes on (I don’t know what it was, but it was one of those ones that are aimed at 12 year olds giving them the false idea that being a teenager is all perfect teeth, skin and hair). Anyway in this program they were having a slumber party and Caz said that we should do that, I think I just looked at her for a few seconds like she’d just lost her damn mind! … but it happened later that week at Alicia’s place and we watched movies, had popcorn fights, did makeup (It was very heavy and dark, but it was makeup!). In the end we all had one too many margaritas and fell asleep in front of dirty dancing. My skin didn’t forgive me for days, but trust me, you’re never too old/mature for a slumber party!

Ok, I’m tired now, so I’m gong to bed. I also ache all over because I’ve started jogging in the evenings (It just looks wrong! Me in a tracksuit… *sigh*), I’m just a little concerned that all this sitting around isn’t good for me. Don’t get me wrong I’m not a fitness fanatic or anything but I think I should do something! So if you see a teenage girl stumbling along looking fairly uncomfortable and like she might be trying to jog, it could very well be me!

I've been thinking. At 18 I'll have all the freedom I need. I won't have any legal obligations for school, my parents won't have any legal obligations for me. I'll be old enough to apply for my own credit card, and I'll probably have saved up some money by then. I haven't got my driver's license yet, so I can take the test at 18 and not have to bother with the whole "provisional license" deal. I think I'll take a road trip when I turn 18.

I'll go by myself, it'll be a "Daisy out against the world thing," as my friend once aptly put it when I mentioned the idea to him. I even know where I want to go.

I'll start by heading north. Bakersfield first so I can visit my grandmother and my older, more mature cousins. Yosemite next so because I've always loved it's silent beauty. Then San Francisco so I stop by and annoy and awe my young spoiled cousins with my freedom.

From there maybe I'll head to Oregon. Mom graduated from high school there and I've always loved family history. Then I'll absolutely have to stop in Boise, Idaho because my mom's best friend wouldn't hear of me driving by without a visit.

As much as I love the coast, I've always had a special spot in my heart for the more rugged landscape, so I'll have to stop in Montana, Wyoming, and Utah, of course. Then I'll be off to Colorado to visit more cousins and a few nearly forgotten friends.

I don't know where I'll go next, but eventually I'll have to end up in St. Louis. I know Tom would appriciate a visit. Especially since I haven't seen him in two years.

Then from there, who knows? Maybe Ohio, I've got family in Ohio even though I've never met them. I'll start heading for the east coast. I've got friends near Boston and in Virginia, and I wouldn't mind seeing New York or Providence again.

After that, I think I head home taking a southern route: Georgia, Florida, New Orleans, and then back through Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona until I finally come full loop back to California.

I can just see it now. Just me, my favorite CD's, a few postcards and some stamps, and the big, wide, open road. Stuff like that can happen when you turn 18.

Liam Paul Murray
18:55 EST July 7th, 2004 - present

Before you /msg me to congratulate the birth of my son, I would like to inform you that it is not, in fact, my son that was born today. He is my second half brother. My other brother was from a different father, as well. My mother had been pregnant for approximately eight and a half months. While I was not there to witness the childbirth, I feel so much different. Before today, I did not really appreciate my mother's boyfriend much. Now I see him in a whole new light. Instead of a grumpy recluse, I view him as a happy father. I am so glad for him and my mother. My mother and the baby will be coming home on Saturday. This is the first time I'm going to be living with a baby. We will see how that goes.

On the name Liam: I, personally, am against the name Liam. The name comes from Kevin's father, whose middle name was Liam. His father passed away sometime during the eighties. I never ventured to ask the manner of his death, as it is certainly a touchy subject for him. Anyway, I will probably call Liam by his middle name (and what I feel should be his first name), Paul. While some awesome people have the name Liam, (Liam Neeson) I think it is one of those easy-to-pick-on names.

On the specific details of the birth: I have only a small amount of specific information. I stayed home, preferring not to see my mother give birth. He was approximately five pounds. Height and other specifics will be updated as the information comes to me. At one point, due to some complication dealing with the umbilical cord, Liam's heartbeat stopped momentarily. Other than that, he is completely healthy. While the mother often is the first one to hold the baby just after childbirth, in this case, Kevin held him first. The poor little guy is going to get cut, too.

I have registered the name LiamPaul for the little guy. Hopefully, when he grows up, he can find as much joy and information as I have found in the nodegel.