SIX.

I need to go to the British Library this year. I have to go! It is the home to every single book ever published in the UK, I think I could probably die there and I wouldn't even notice I was dying because I would be so blissfully happy. I am aware of how much my inner-geek is shining through here but seriously, aah, I'm going to go, even if I have to go alone. And then after I've been I'm going to get a Vanilla Latte from Starbucks in Covent Garden and people-watch for the rest of the day. Perfect.

FIVE.

For the last three years running at around this time I have been packing up my tent, dry shampoo and numerous amounts of hoodies to take to a festival with me. 2006 and 2007 I experienced the joys of Leeds festival and last year I went down south to Staffordshire to V Festival. I don't know what it is about festivals, I just love them and I really am so jealous of anybody and everybody who is going/has been to one this year!

I really don't know what it is that's so appealing about being stuck in a (usually) muddy field, surrounded by people who're high on God know's what, going to the toilet in a trough and not daring to think about what's underneath you. And to think us idiots £200+ to experience these delights!

But not this year, neither Halifax nor my mum would allow me to go. The latter deeming that it wouldn't sensible to shell out for a ticket when my finances were as messed up as they were when the time came that they went on sale. Damn!

However, the fact that I haven't been able to go this year has made me realise how important they are to me, and why I insisted so much on going to festivals in previous years; they're like a highlight of my summer. No, they ARE the highlight of my summer. They're something to look forward to, something that I will undoubtedly enjoy every single second of while I'm there and something that will be spoken about for months afterwards. So this year, regardless of anyone or anything that attempts to get in my way will be unsuccessful. I don't care if I have to brave it alone, I will be guaranteed to be sporting greasy hair and not showering for days for at least one weekend in Summer 2010.

FOUR.

It was my day off today and it has been fun, nothing particularly special has happened but it was spent with friends and the sun was shining. I went out for dinner with my friend Daniel and then we went to the gay bar that he spends most of his time in these days and it's really nice in there, the atmosphere is so friendly and it's pretty cheap as well which is always a plus! We sat outside and I like sitting outside when it's really hot, watching all the different sorts of people walk past and wondering what they're doing with their day, wondering what they've bought and wondering who they're going to meet. I really could spend endless hours just people watching. One man who was sat on the table next to ours got stung by a wasp under his armpit and all his friends found it hillarious while he was sat there in agony asking passers by what he should do about it! I wonder how other people would have reacted if it had happened to them? If it had of been me I'd have probably burst into tears, I'm such a wimp.

It was nice to spend the most part of the day with Daniel too, it's not often I get to see him these days because it's a rare occurance that he sees his friends from work, he mostly spends all his time with his gay friends which is totally understandable. I'm always fascinated by the stories he tells me about the people he hangs around with - there's always so much drama! The gay world is a world apart from the straight world, it really is. I love how friendly and welcoming his friends are though, most of them I'd never even met before today yet they were talking to me as if we'd been friends for a lifetime. Why can't it be like that with every new person that I meet? I wish there was no such thing as rudeness.

I'm really tired now despite not really doing much, I think it's the sun. It can be quite draining! Bridget Jones' Diary and bed seems the most appealing option right now.

THREE.

McDonald’s; probably the most famous and the most popular fast food outlet in the entire world yet the stigma attached to the job, or McJob as it’s more commonly known, is somewhat different to the popularity of the food. It seems these days, especially in times of recession in the UK, people would rather “sign on” than work for the multi-million pound company. I’m not entirely sure why though. Admittedly, 3 years ago when I was about 3 weeks away from turning 16 I was reluctant to work there, I applied out of sheer desperation and nothing else was available. I think deep down I was worried about what people might think, “oh, you work for McDonald’s!” along with other insults were all I heard for the first couple of months but as with everything else in life, those people were probably more jealous of me than anything. Jealous that I had a regular, half decent income at such a young age and jealous that I would have something to do every weekend instead of being sat at home bored and wasting my life away. Maybe that's blowing my own trumpet a bit too much but whatever! I remember hopefully applying for a popular high street clothes store that was opening along with various other jobs but to no avail, it seemed nowhere would hire me. It was only because my sister, my cousin and a close family friend were already working at McDonald’s that it seemed ever so slightly appealing and, if it hadn’t been for them already being employees there would have been a 0% chance of me even asking for an application form. However, 3 years on and I’m still there, still flitting between hot and cold and still deciding whether or not I actually enjoy it.

I can totally understand and relate to, although I certainly do not sympathise with, people not wanting to apply for a job (and chances are they will be offered one as a result of an application) but surely something is better than nothing? I for one have told so many friends to apply for a job but the outcome is always the same, there are always pathetic excuses. “I wouldn’t be able to handle the pressure”/”it’s too fast, I prefer a more relaxed atmosphere”/”I can’t deal with rude people looking down on me all the time” but surely that comes with any job? There isn’t a single job out there that doesn’t have people who treat you like an actual human being with real feelings all day, every day. Okay perhaps with McDonald’s it’s slightly more obvious and people are more open about their feelings towards us as employees, but honestly, 3 out of 5 times the staff are a lot more qualified than the customers. I’ve dealt with far more rude people than I care to remember, it can be upsetting at the time (admittedly most of the time it’s actually quite funny!) but you just deal with it, get on with your job and forget about it. I really don’t get why people make such a massive issue out of it, it really does annoy me so much and I know it’s a pathetic thing to get annoyed about!

However, the thing I do know is that for the time being, while I’m at university and I’m thankful for any amount of money that comes my way I’ll stay there. Ironic as it may sound, I am glad it’s not going to be my job forever but working there has taught me a lot, it really has.

TWO.

Last night I went to the cinema with a friend and afterwards we went out for a drink, I went along with the plans because I was thinking we'd probably end up going to the pub, just something quiet and sociable. Instead, we ended up on Cleethorpes sea front in one the busiest bars that there is, Bar Racuda, and since it was a Thursday night it was jam packed. Full of drunken (and probably underage) fools thinking that they still looked as good as when they left the house and evidently believing they were the world's best dancers - how wrong they were. Looking around the place while I was drinking my adventurous 78p lime and soda water, I couldn't help but think back to the week before when it was me and a group of my friends stood in the middle of exactly same place doing exactly what everyone else, except me, seemed to be doing: making a fool of themselves.

Don't get me wrong, I do love a good night out on the tiles (ha, I'm not actually a pensioner!) but when you're on the outside looking in it's a completely different story. It's funny how in this day and age adolescents are so reliant upon the effects of alcohol. I didn't move from the spot I was stood until we left to go home, simply because I didn't have the confidence to unless I have vodka running through my bloodstream and this is the same story for people all over the country. I've never really thought about this before, I guess because I've never really had the chance, in fact it might well have been the first time I've been out without having a single drink and that's quite a strange thought. Watching everyone act how they were was embarrassing, is that what sober people feel when they watch me? Are they embarrassed for me? Do they want to come up to me and shake me sober like I wanted to do to some individuals last night?

I'm really not sure where I'm going with this but it's interesting to think about, and I know it's not the same for everybody, but it is the majority. Like myself, I bet most people my age don't know what it's like to go out and be sober while everybody else is intoxicated to the max, and I guess that's a poor reflection of today's youth culture. Don't get me wrong, I do know people who can go out and drink water and still have as much fun as those who've spent more money than they care to think about on God know's what but it's only a small number.

People who know me will probably think it's quite ironic that I'm writing about something like this, perhaps even call me a hypocrite because yes, it is usually me who's ran out of money and can't stand up but since last night, I've got a new outlook on the subject and maybe, just maybe I'll not drink as much, even if it is only to save people from feeling embarrassed for me, but it'll help the hangovers too!

ONE.

Okay so, Hello! I don't know what I'm doing here but here goes nothing. Basically, I'm Lucy, I'm an undergraduate at De Montfort University in Leicester studying Journalism. I love writing, not about anything in particular, anything goes as far as I'm concerned. I've been thinking about starting a public blog for a while now (I already have a private one that I've been using for the past 5 years or so) and I decided today would be the day to actually start one after I showed something I'd written to a friend and she was impressed. I have no idea how long it'll last, probably not very long with my track record but you never do know do you!

As I said, I'm Lucy, I've just turned 19 and I'm going to be some sort of Journalist one day. Aside from that, I enjoy socialising - going out for tea and having a bottle of wine with the girls is more my sort of scene these days although I do enjoy the odd night out, don't get me wrong! I'm a sucker for trashy chick-lit and autobiographies. I nearly always have some sort of book on the go and I'm forever raiding the bookshelves in charity shops in search of bargains. My 3 weaknesses in life are books, expensive perfume and expensive make up - seriously! I could quite happily spend thousands of pounds on those 3 things alone. I used to be a massive music fan, and I do still listen on a regular basis but I tend to listen to a lot more genrés and stuff these days than before, I'm a lot more open to different artists. To be honest, if it sounds good then I'll listen.

Anyway, enough about that. Let's get this thing on the road. New followers (readers? whatever you're called these days!) are definately allowed, the more the better. Maybe one day I'll even be famous. Wishful thinking, hey!?