The Dreaded Practicals

2004-10-07 at 11:12 p.m.

Oh dear, I'm hot. I was freezing last night so I put the heating on, only for it to get too hot again this evening. I think I've turned it off now - I've either turned it off or turned it up as far as it can go, not quite sure which. Still if I melt into a small puddle I'll know I got it wrong.

Mum and dad are away in Paris, dad went off on Tuesday and mum went yesterday. They're back on Saturday though, and mum says she's now not speaking to my dad, as he made her walk the length of Paris today, and she's knackered.

We had our first practicals this week in the class. In the biology class we had to prepare slides of onion cells and our cheek cells, and then draw them. I had to do the cheek one five times as I just couldn't manage to get any cells out of my mouth with our high-tech scraper (a plastic spoon). Eventually I half ripped my mouth off, and ended up with weirdly scattered cells. So I just pretended they were all together and drew them like that. I got a compliment on my drawing from the very serious assistant in the lab, too. I also discovered that I seem to have imbibed some rather old ideas - I always thought humans were called homo sapiens sapiens, rather than just plain homo sapiens. Turns out that that was an idea from the time of the empire, and meant just Europeans...whoops.

In the physics, we just had to run a weight through a ticker tape machine, plot a graph and try to work out the value of gravity from it. A bit fiddly, as ticker tape is, but an easy experiment and much easier than I thought it was going to be. In fact, Kerry and I got the most accurate values for gravity in the class! I got 9.5 and the true value is 9.81, so pretty accurate. We had to hand it in to be marked at the end of class, that was the first piece of work that counts towards our final mark. The second part of the physics class did not go so well, though.

You see, I had got up very early that morning because I had asked mum to reschedule my doctors' appointment as it is a bit too near the time when I leave for my classes. She came back with the news that I had an appointment at half nine in the morning. So I got up and went along...only to discover that there had been some sort of mixup and the nurse insisted on giving me a 'flu vaccine. Not that I need one or, indeed, am entitled to one. There's supposed to be a shortage, too, and only old folk, and ill people are supposed to get the vaccine - and they go and give it to me even though I am perfectly healthy! Typical.

Anyway, this meant that I was quite tired when I went to the physics class. I managed fine during the first half - the practical, probably because I had to work hard to get the work done on time. However the rot set in during the second half, and I nearly fell asleep when I was supposed to be trying to figure out the height of a golf ball, or something like that. Must make sure to sleep properly next week - the biology is easy, but the physics I actually need to pay attention to.

So I've been enjoying myself today. Not doing much, just watching TV. Probably not going to do much tomorrow either. This is the last time I get the house to myself until mid-November, when the parents are going away again. I like being by myself. I could run naked through the house - if I really wanted to, that is. But the idea that I could if I was so inclined is quite appealing.

<< - >>
Notes | G-book