traumatised

Have been doing some last minute cramming, went to sleep at 7am and was woken by the postman at midday. Just two and a half chapters to go, and am almost looking forward to the challenge of the Progress Test. If only I could get myself to start revising sooner, I'm sure I wouldn't do too badly in these things.

Anyway that's not why I'm traumatised. Found out when I'm having my tonsillectomy (10th Feb at Stepping Hill). Another medic who had it done at 16 said it was horrible and painful (he lost a stone in two weeks, or was it two stones in one week?), so being curious I decided to do some investigation...just read this:

My whole throat swelled up, I could taste blood, I was just sitting there balling my eyes out as the pain was just immense. I had shooting pains in my ears. I had to prepare myself for every time I swallowed because each time I swallowed it was like I was swallowing fire.

and if that wasn't bad enough, how about this:

my doctor warned me that days 3-5 would probably be the worst. since i felt so good on day three i thought maybe i was going to be lucky.....boy was i wrong.... day 4 came like a ton of bricks falling on me!! i felt terrible!!!! my throat was so sore i couldnt swollen without wanting to DIE! i expected day 5 to be easier. instead, it was even worse than day 4. and this time no one was there with me. everyone thought i would be ok by than. i was in so much pain!!!! the pain made me cry, and crying really really really hurt which made me cry even harder!!! it was not good! but i was able to calm down and felt a bit better. i hated being nauseas so i didnt want to eat anything. so i suffered most of the day.

All this suffering for a kiddy illness! And the worst thing is that it falls on the day of the mad-Cambridge-bicycle woman's piece-de-resistance, which I was supposed to go down for :(

So if you sympathise please come and visit me, and if you're feeling especially sorry for me, bring along a tub of Ben & Jerry's. Chocolate flavour. There's a Sainsbury's down the road.

where's the exam stress?

Dear all,

Eid has come and pretty much gone, and as my good friend Superfudge noted, it wasn't a cracker. In fact yesterday I was thinking of suggesting some fun activities for the kids, such as taking them to a theme park, or skiing, or having a marathon Monopoly game, or going camping. But by that time, I bet I'll have as little energy and inclination as all the other Muslim parents in the Western world, and it will all come to nothing. Although I'm impressed with Fudge's sister's idea (hello Mrs H! comment if u read this!) of exploiting younger sisters for babysitting purposes. Free holiday for them, less hassle for you. Win-win situation.

Mr C called briefly yesterday to wish me Eid mubarak, I forgot to ask him about his bald pate, but I am sure it is suitably glossy, and winking in the bright Saudi sunshine. Other than that, we spent most of the day with family, and I fell asleep during The Last Samurai. The food was good though.

Being newly nikah'ed, and getting married 'officially' in July, I am now looking forward to the fun reception decorating side of the wedding, such as flowers, cake (which has to be chocolate), favours, etc. However, I need to settle on a nice colour for my clothes (this being yet another 'bimbo dilemma' to which I am subjecting my sisters) in order to theme things. I've decided to do the whole attention-seeking reality-tv star thing and leave it to YOU, the public, my readership, to decide. But because I don't know how to set up polls, you will just have to leave a comment. I don't seem to be very good at persuading people to comment, for some reason.

Exams are looming frighteningly close, I'm hoping that two and a half days will be adequate to cover 80% of medicine. Half a day is going on Lemony Snicket and Pizza Hut btw (priorities). I suppose the best advice I can offer myself is to pretend the internet doesn't exist, and just get on with it. I hope to be inundated with comments upon my return.

Packages

salaams again to my wide readership. Today my homecoming was like the 'Christmas Boxes' chapter in What Katy Did at School, my long awaited Amazon, Liz Earle & Splat Cooking parcels all arrived!

In case anyone's interested, I bought the following from Amazon:

• The Blind Beekeeper by Daniel Moore. Poetry by the only Muslim poet who seems to stand out from the crowd. Check out www.danielmoorepoetry.com for more information. I first came across his poetry on the website www.theamericanmuslim.org which I found when randomly surfing one day, its basically a magazine which has archived articles dating back to 2001 written by many distinguished Muslim authors and scholars. Its definitely worth a look anyway.
• Blythe postcards. Not a current obsession, I'd describe it more as latent. I'm thinking who I can scare with these...
• 3 PG Wodehouses, Everyman edition. These are gorgeous vintage-y editions which will hopefully eventually replace my tattered old copies (on my shelf if not in my heart). I got Psmith in the City, Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit (with a cunning picture of Bertie with his misguided 'tache) and Heavy Weather.
• Stay healthy. Be lazy. An easy detox by Innocent
• The Good Women of China: Hidden Voices by Xin Ran. A harrowing read, but essential. I will happily lend you this book (if I know you) as I think everyone should read it, even if you have no connection with China whatsoever. She apparently lectures at SOAS, maybe I'll go and seek her out one day.
• Unforgettable Places to See Before You Die. Perhaps the only slightly pointless purchase but nice book for dreaming when the weather's foul outside.

That's all (oh is that all?). I am still waiting for my thehut.com parcel which was supposed to come aeons ago which has some delicious housewife books in it, but I won't bore you any more.

if you're going to get wet...

you may as well go swimming. As Fudgebumpkin is fond of reminding us. The origin (as we know it) of this ingenious phrase is Nigella Lawson's 'Feast'. Which reminds me, I'm waiting for my splatcooking.com parcel! Gosh I don't know how I'm getting any revision done amongst all this excitement. Just bought three revision textbooks and am feeling very worthy, although the actual act of opening the textbooks and studying would be a far superior accomplishment.

eh up! (Mancunian pride)

My sisters have gone quite mad. They have both assumed a thick, deep, Yorkshire-cum-Lancashire accent which they fondly believe makes them sound like true Mancs. I don't think I've ever heard a Mancunian say 'eh up' for one thing. This is practice for when Mr C returns from his travels, as he seems to think I have a strong accent (especially when I'm tired) - they want to show him the real deal.

They have also been watching too many environmental documentaries, predicting the disappearance of Bangladesh in its entirety by 2025 (disturbing) as sea levels rise, as well as an end to commercial flights and travel as we know it. The house is freezing and cloaked in darkness as we strive to do our bit for the environment. I have also been told I'm not allowed to learn to drive, but Mr C has overruled :)

Speaking of driving, I've just resumed driving for the...4th time, I think . My first lot of lessons were taken as a fresh-faced, keen 17 year old. My instructor was ok but a bump in the road would provoke a terrifying outburst like, 'Will you WATCH what you're doing to my car!'...she left suddenly, and soon after I saw her in the local newspaper, as her husband had tried to kill her after she started an affair with another instructor. A-levels intervened, the second instructor couldn't do weekends, the third was just rubbish and now I'm on the fourth, who seems nice and more importantly, competent.

I am going to have a current obsessions section which I'll bring up to date every few days. At the moment they are as follows:
Current favourite websites: www.ebay.co.uk (of course) www.amazon.co.uk (have done with it for a while, having bought all my 'save for later' books with my newfound wealth) www.hqhair.com www.sephora.com for the gorgeous products especially Pout, Fresh Petit soaps, Lip Venom, Dessert Beauty..and in New York there is a THREE storey Sephora shop! www.makeupalley.com
Currently reading: Love in a Cold Climate by Nancy Mitford. Especially love the use of 'stchoopid' to describe Boy Dougdale.
Home Comforts - the Art and Science of Keeping House. Preparation
Current favourite buys: Botanics Love your Lips Lipgloss - as if i need telling.
Burt's Bees Almond Milk Hand Cream - smells exactly like delicious pink and yellow Battenburg cake! My new shiny white cake stand which is crying out for a good Nigella cake to sit on it.
Currently mourning: Loss of Lip Venom, very tragic as cannot justify buying another one. Hideous herpes virus scab on my face which I am hoping will disappear ASAP without scarring. Absence of Mr C (had to say that of course).

it had to happen one day...

Dear folks,
I am starting this blog in a desperate attempt to avoid revision and outblog my old friend who goes by the name of Fudgebumpkin in these parts. Also, no-one wants to know about my shopping dilemmas and I need to vent. Also if someone could kindly comment and tell me that I waste too much time and money, and need to get on with my degree that would be useful.

Just realised today that I have to pass my exams (ok, a given) and organise getting a job in London more importantly, a complicated and delicate procedure for an ignorant Mancunian medic who got by for 3 and a half years without picking up a book outside of the exams-coming-up! red zone. ER is quite a useful revision tool, I tell myself. For example, in the last episode I learned about what to do when a marine biologist is bitten by a shark. I'll see if i can work that in during an interview.

Hajj begins tomorrow, so Mr C is off to Mina tonight. Apparently although everyone wears two white sheets and women wear simple clothes as well, everyone has colour coded wristbands to identify which country they're from, and some tour groups have hijabs with the name of the group printed on to identify them! Pilgrim chic. Hope it goes well and that Allah blesses the pilgrims this year and accepts their pilgrimage.