Sorry, been a while since I was on here! Well, second year of university is over, with exam results coming out in the next two weeks or so…eek! However I’m not wasting time panicking, instead I’m busy working towards the Tang Soo Do Nationals and the Worlds as well as squeezing in some Dissertation work. It’s pretty scary that dissertation time has come around so quickly. It feels like only yesterday that I was starting university and spending all my available time and effort partying and consuming as much alcohol as physically possible. Fortunately for my liver and brain the desire to binge drink every day has lowered somewhat. I’d like to think this is because I’m on the road to becoming a Responsible Adult (for anyone who hasn’t already done so, visit Hyperbole and a Half and read the post ‘This is Why I’ll never be an Adult http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2010/06/this-is-why-ill-never-be-adult.html), it really does describe my thought process to a T.
Anyway, dissertation has taken the form of a study of British Polar Exploration during the 19th and 20th centuries. I’ve never looked at this period of exploration before, having done Spanish and Portuguese exploration in 15th and 16th centuries (Cortes and Vasco da Gama and the like) at A-level and then touched on the scramble for Africa and imperialism these last couple of years at university, so examining polar exploration is something completely new to me. After a very heavy afternoon of research into exploration 1400-1900 I settled on the polar expeditions and turned up to my first meeting with my dissertation supervisor with not a clue in my head as to what angle to approach the topic from. As it stands now I’m looking at the portrayal of polar exploration in contemporary periodicals and newspapers although this may change further down the line. This may all sound a bit boring, but to spice it up I get to look at people like THIS!:
Now isn’t that a pretty face? That’s what happens when you get lost out on the ice and have to fight off hungry rabid polar bears and freezing cold temperatures and eventually succumb to cannibalism. Not particularly pleasant I have to say. But seriously, you’d love one of these in your living room if you could hey?
nawwwwww 
So apart from looking at pictures of very cute fluffy killing machines, I’m still working my way towards an early hip replacement. The British Nationals are barely two weeks away and I am in serious need of forms practice if I hope to do the team justice. We’ve been going hell for leather, travelling up just about every month to Bedford for training with the rest of the EMTF as well as our own squad training down in Cornwall. A couple of weeks ago Master Kumar came down to Cornwall for a weekend of EMTF squad training which was brilliant. It’s very rare for such a senior ranking martial artist to actually teach and demonstrate high level forms so it was a great privilege.
I’m grading for my Red belt this Sunday which is more scary than my second year exams. I’ve been training three to four times a week for the last few months so I’m up to speed on all the syllabus stuff I need but there really is no way to prepare for the ten/fifteen minutes of jack knives, press-ups, sit ups and whatever else the board decide to give us. And as long as they don’t give us spinning inside to outside kicks (which is pretty likely) then I should just about cope with the basics. So all in all…I should survive!
And of course the big thing is FLORIDA in just less than 9 weeks!!! Jeez and I’ll be 20…will have to gulp down lots of martinis to cope with not being a teenager any more! Doesn’t sound like too bad a prospect 
Final thing: Music. Try Feel Good Inc, On Melancholy Hill and Fire Coming out of the Monkey’s Head by the Gorillaz, The Real Slim Shady, Not Afraid and Superman by Eminem and the Glee Cast version of Teenage Dream and Hey Soul Sister. Oh and if you’re in need of some good films to watch I’ve recently seen Repo Man and Shutter Island - both are fantastic psychological dramas and good action as well, plus everyone loves a bit of Leo de Caprio and Jude Law!
