Jonathan's Blog:

I’m writing this on one of those seemingly interminable angsty nights, (sort of ironic) so it may not make a lot of sense.

Time flies when you’re having fun — it certainly seems true to me. I’m not sure about the converse, but see the above comment about interminable angsty nights. I’d say I’ve been generally pretty happy (barring the odd bout of angst (I’m writing “angst” a lot tonight)) since I got my act together with coursework early in Year 11 (not sure that was the cause, but it feels like a turning point), and I’m now going “was that really two years ago”? Looking back, I realise I’ve done a lot and changed a lot since then, but it’s still a shock that I’ve just applied for university, my friends a year above me are there already and relaying tales, my friends in my year are driving to school, turning 18…. Time’s flown. I’ve tried to make the most of it, and I think generally I haven’t done a bad job, except for this summer, where apart from a week’s camping in the Lakes I did almost exactly nothing, from a long list of things I wanted to do but never actually turned into a list (wherin lies my problem, I think), but there’s so much more I wish I’d done and was doing. I’ve got into the probably unhealthy habit of staying up late into the night at my computer, I suppose so I’m living a little more life. I spend quite a lot of time doing various not-particularly-productive bits and pieces, and sometimes I feel I’d like to cut down on that, but I generally feel like I need that downtime.

As I mentioned before, I’ve just applied to university. I’ve been back at school over a month, and it feels like I’ve hardly had chance to breathe. I really don’t have all that much time left at school, then the long summer holiday, then I’ll be at university. What scares me is this rush towards adulthood and middle age. Given the rate the last two years have gone, a four-year degree won’t feel that long, and then I’m looking for a job or a PhD studentship. Heck, the last 17 and a bit years haven’t felt like all that long. That long again (and it’ll feel shorter) and I’m practically middle-aged. OK, I’m just scaring myself now. But I really do feel like there’s so much to do and so little time. I’m starting to rethink my long-held belief that eighty or ninety years will be more than long enough for me. Heck, what I could really do with is a clone with a shared mind (also xkcd 105).

In the meantime though, I think the practical solution is to keep up with work and try to have a bit of fun productive stuff — reading list and stuff, maybe NaNoWriMo — during term, and have busy holidays. I need to plan next summer far more than this one was, because it’ll be longer, I ought to do far more, and even my trip to the Lakes was a bit last-minutey and probably not quite what I’d have gone for if I’d have planned in time. I’m thinking of cycling in France, Belgium, the Netherlands and/or Germany (Paris to Berlin is probably waaaaaay overambitious but would be awesome), maybe working for a month or so, having an epic crunch of my reading list, I’ll need to prepare for university… see what I mean about needing two of me?

This was mostly written last night (relative to posting time). I wasn’t angsty by the end, but I wasn’t tired either :(

tl;dr: I’m getting old.

AS module results from May/June exams:

• Philosophy Unit 2: 80/100 – A;
• Maths: Core 2: 100/100 – A;
• Maths: Core 3: 100/100 – A*;
• Maths: Mechanics 2: 93/100 – A (Includes ~5% special consideration for getting a migraine — I think);
• Maths: Decision 2: 90/100 – A, despite giving up half-way through with the afore-mentioned migraine (back-to-back exams FTL) — I think they must have more-or-less doubled my raw mark because of that.
• Physics Unit 2: 120/120 – A;
• Physics ISA: 54/60 – A;
• Chemistry Unit 2: 140/140 – A;
• Chemistry ISA: 56/60 – A;

Overall AS results including January modules and D1:

• Philosophy: 180/200 – A;
• Physics: 294/300 – A;
• Chemistry: 293/300 – A;
• Maths: Slightly complicated as which modules go into Maths and which into Further Maths all depends, but:
  • Total of all modules taken: 760/800;
  • I will get an A in maths even if I get 0/100 in C4;
  • If I get ? 80/100 in C4 I will get A* in maths.

I’ll do a proper post soon, I promise…

Anyway, AS module results from January exams (subjects listed in descending order of purity/awesome):

• Philosophy Unit 1: 100/100 – A (duh): Woo-hoo!
• Maths: Core 1: 97/100 – A;
• Maths: Mechanics 1: 86/100 – A: slightly fail, but probably only one question messed up, not worth resitting unless I desperately need marks next year. I think I was a bit slapdash (read: cocky) in preparing for Maths, to be honest.
• Maths: Statistics 1: 94/100 – A;
• Physics Unit 1: 120/120 – A: Woo-hoo again;
• Chemistry Unit 1: 97/100 – A.

I’ve also got 100/100 in Decision Maths 1 from last January. Pretty happy with those results, but I need to revise harder (read: at all outside lessons) for Maths in June.

Worryingly.

I entered a poetry competition advertised at school with something I cooked up in half an hour, and amazingly they’re mad enough to want to publish it. (OK, so they don’t seem to be too selective and I have a feeling most of their business model is selling to proud parents).

Here it is, in all its dreadful glory:

I thunder as I debate: bankers,
And their bonuses; and bay for blood.
I sing The Red Flag,
Cry out for socialism
But in my heart
I

And in true sinewave42.com style, they’re late.

1. Keep a diary
I tried to do this last year, and I kept it for four or five months in total. I’d like to try again, and I’d like to try to keep it up for the whole year.

2. Blog more
Yeah. I tried to do this last year as well. Hopefully I’ll do a little better this year. I’m going to aim for a minimum one/month, but I’d like to try and do more.

3. Read some books
OK, so I already do quite a lot of this. But there are quite a few books I’d like to read, but need a bit of motivation to get started on, and I’d quite like to read some books I otherwise wouldn’t. I’ll post a partial list here, and I’ll keep an updated list as well, because I’m bound to think of others later.

• On Liberty, JS Mill;
• Leviathan, Thomas Hobbes;
• Paradise Lost, John Milton (at least try it);
• Catcher in the Rye, JD Salinger;
• Twilight, Stephenie Meyer (for teh lulz);

I’d also appreciate suggestions. If you comment below or otherwise contact me with a suggestion, and I can reasonably get hold of the book, I’ll make it a resolution to at least give every one a go.

There are fewer than last year, but hopefully I stand a better chance of keeping them. Hopefully.

Addendum, later that evening: As a corrolary to 2 and 3, I will try to review at least some of the more interesting books I am reading.