In which Ashli talks about love

Dear people in love,

Love sucks sometimes, right. Maybe they don’t love you back, or they don’t love you as much as you love them, or they only love you as a friend, or apparently your love is wrong.

Ah, now that last one is a problem not everyone has to face, but it is still sadly a problem for some, I’m talking about gay couples, lesbian couples, mixed race couples and other couples that face disapproval for simply falling in love.

Today, I was told by someone I considered a very good friend that me being in love with Jake (my nerdy, weird but all around lovely boyfriend) is wrong. Why is it wrong? Because I’m choosing to marry outside my race.

He is white, I’m not, and according to some that is an awful thing, but I don’t understand why. Some have even gone as far as to say it is impossible for us to be together, or even to actually love each other, but I don’t understand why.

I fell in love with him in exact the same way that two white people would, in the same way two heterosexual people would, in the same way two people of any race would, in the same way two people of any sexuality would in fact, because that is something a lot of people sadly forget, everyone falls in love in the same way. We all notice someone, and begin to find things they do endearing, we begin to form an attachment to them, we begin to love everything about them, and then finally, we realise we are in love with them, and that is it. It’s a pretty simple process really, you meet someone and fall for them, regardless of your (or their) skin colour, appearance, sexuality or nationality, because the heart does not discriminate, it just loves whoever the hell it wants to.

I’m pretty sure I’m right in loving whoever I want to, regardless of anything about them, and so are you. It’s bloody hard to be in love, and people will shoot you down, things will get in the way, and it might be difficult, but love is worth it, so if someone tells you that your love is wrong, or that a person isn’t right for you because they’re too different to you or exactly the same as you, they’re wrong, and your love isn’t.

A man falls for a woman in the exact same way as another man falls for a man, and the same applies to women. Love truly is blind, it is blind to colours, to distance and to sexual orientation, and the sooner people understand that, the better.

Nobody has a choice in how they feel or who they love, I love a white boy, despite not being a white girl, and there is nothing I can (or would want) to do to change that. If you’re a guy who is in love with a guy, or a girl in love with a girl, or a girl in love with a guy who happens to have a different skin colour or passport to you there isn’t a way for you to change that to make others happy, so take my advice, and do what makes you happy. If your love makes you happy and is right for you, then run with it, because life is short, and love is a rare little pokemon, that can only be caught with the finest of masterballs, so head into the wild grass of life and find it!

Hugs and equal opportunity kisses,
Ashli x

Ashli talks about trains

Dear TFL,

The olympic timetable for the dlr is complete crap.

Most trains terminate at Greenwich rather than Lewisham, and there are massive gaps between trains arriving.

I get that they terminate at Greenwich because some of the events are there, but they were stopping at Greenwich on the way to Lewisham anyway, so why not continue on to Lewisham? Plus, some events are in Kent, so stopping at Lewisham gives access to national rail services to Kent. And what about people leaving the events who live/are staying in Deptford or Lewisham?

This morning, there was at least fifteen minutes between each train. On the dlr, the most you normally wait is five minutes.

The olympics can go fuck itself. I don’t care if it will bring extra tourism, it is costing (a country in debt) a ton of money, it is fucking up the public transport system and we probably won’t win anything anyway.

Ashli x

In which Ashli talks to fictional characters

Dear horror movie protagonists,

I know you’ve probably got a lot on your mind right now, you’re probably being chased down a dark hallway by an angry spirit, or are trapped in a forest by an axe wielding maniac, but I just have a few questions to ask.

Why did you go to that haunted house, with mediocre lighting and a dodgy safety record all by yourself?

Why do you never call a friend to tell them you were going to a haunted house, so they know where you are?

When investigating curses/murders/creepy stuff, why do you always investigate at night, by yourself?

Why did you run into that forest which isn’t exactly easy to hide in and probably has shit reception when you need to hide and phone the police?

Why do you never call in Dr. Strange when there is a curse? WHY?

Why did you watch the tape that kills you when watching it if you didn’t want to die?

Why did you decide to live in a house without doing research on gory murders from the past?

Why did you rescue the body of a creepy ghost girl from a well?

Why did you decide that the middle of a creepy murder spree was a great time to have sex?

Why did you think kissing your possible zombie wife was a good idea?

Why did you leave the house during a zombie outbreak?

Why did you not run when you saw your dad was now a zombie?

Why do you leave your family members alone when investigating when you know a creepy ghost is after you and will probably have no issue taking out your relatives?

Why do you wait for a few minutes before investigating strange noises?

Why do you never seem to turn on lights?

WHY ARE YOU ALL SO STUPID?

Love Ashli x

In which Ashli gets pissy at literature snobs

Dear readers,

I get told time and time again, if I want to write, I must read, and I do. I read absolutely anything I can get hold of, but not enjoying the so called greats shouldn’t make me lower in the ranks than those who do, right? Yet according to some literature fanatics, it does.

I can understand their frustration at writing students who refuse to read, but to be angry with those who do and just don’t enjoy a certain type of book is ridiculous, and frankly, a bit childish.

My favourite type of books are children’s books, yes, most find them to be silly, but they are often filled with important messages, and sometimes, incredible writing, so why are we laughing at people who enjoy these or any other book that isn’t by Dickens or Austen?

Of course, I’m being careful not to stereotype, because I know a lot of writing students and most of them are lovely, accepting people who appreciate all kinds of literature, but occasionally you’ll find a pretentious and pedantic person who refuses to believe anything but the classics is good enough.

However, by limiting themselves to the literature of old, they are limiting themselves as writers, and this makes little sense to me.

Another thing they hate that makes little sense are adaptations of classic works. Surely these are a good thing, right? By remaking something, and perhaps even modernising it, you are making it appeal to newer generations, who are likely to seek out the original work, giving us a whole new generation of young readers who have an interest in the old and the new alike.

I shall now go and read the graphic novel of wuthering heights and smile as past and present join hands.

Ashli x

In which Ashli gets emotional about the people she lives with

Dear Ceri, Chris and Dave,

This is awkward.

I’m just gonna go with it, if it gets too slushy, I’m sorry, feel free to hit me when we next see each other.

When Ceri and I first agreed to move in together, I’d only heard a little bit about Chris, and Dave was a wonder I’d yet to discover, and as time went by, and I met them both, I decided we should be friends.

I had a difficult summer, I’d missed my family yet had trouble adapting to living with them again, I had no money, my boyfriend fucked off to find himself and I became infatuated with someone who, while I’m sure without intention, made my life difficult. I also suffered serious loss and sadness, and I even considered staying in Kent for good. Now that probably sounds like nothing in comparison to some people’s summers, but for me, it fucking sucked.

Enter Chrave. The three of them were there for me more than anyone (besides my family who provided me with money, emotional support and random cinema trips, for which I’m eternally grateful) and they’d only really known me for a little while.

They dried my tears, helped me stand up, taught me to play dungeons and dragons and listened when all my other friends were too busy/sick of my dramatic monologues.

And now we live together, in our lovely little house, and knowing I’m coming home to three of the most caring people I’ve ever met gets me through, even difficult days like today.

I’m difficult to be around, and probably worse to live with. I’m moody, dramatic, pretentious, constantly angry, dangerously forgetful, a bit stupid, selfish, childish and lots of other horrible ish’s that people don’t take pride in being, but they can deal with that, and they always take care of me and make sure I don’t make a twat of myself.

Ceri, you are the reason I’m even still at university, I don’t know if you did it consciously, but you encouraged and inspired me to try harder and to push myself to be a better writer. You also helped me walk away from one of the most ridiculous situations I’ve ever been in, in fact, you dragged me from it, and I’m so grateful. You also make fucking awesome gravy.

Chris, you are quite honestly the wisest guy I know, and I wish I’d listened to you sooner about a lot of things. You’re one of the most selfless people I’ve ever met, and you always make me smile.

Dave, you have improved my life so much in the short time I’ve known you, and being your friend is one of the greatest things I’ve ever done.

I love all three of you, as lame as it sounds, and I’m so blessed to have you as friends and housemates, and I’m now crying on a bus, but it’s no big deal. Everyone is looking at me, and it’s awkward. Ahhhhhh.

Ashli x

In which Ashli becomes enraged at bike people.

Dear bus using, bike riding folk,

We need a quick word.

I’m not here to complain about how long buses take, the fact that most of them smell of fried food or the overcrowding (although, the next person that sits basically on my fucking lap will be thrown out of the window). No, I want to talk to you about people who bring bikes on buses.

Yes, if you have ever put a bike on a bus, I’m talking to you.

Yes, you’re helping the environment by cycling, and well done you, but man up and cycle all the fucking way would you?

You take ages getting on the bus with your bike, you then put it in the space for wheelchairs and buggies, and you’re just a bit of a pain in the arse, so if you’re going to try and impress us by cycling to work or whatever, just keep peddling and stay off the bus. Also, please obey things like traffic lights and so on, what makes you so fucking special?

Ashli x

In which Ashli thinks about protesting and things

Dear teachers,

I may be about to offend you, but I honestly don’t mean to, I’m just trying to let you know how some young people feel about today.

As a child, I was taught that people who went on strike were incredibly brave for standing up to power, and should be supported, yet having to miss out on a day of lessons made it difficult to sympathise.

I simply couldn’t understand why I had to miss out on something so that you could protest, especially vital things like the education that will apparently set me up for life.

We live in a country where some children leave secondary school unable to read at a basic level, I find that terrifying. I have worked in several schools and find the fact that some young people can’t read at a basic level heartbreaking.

One day of school means six hours of teaching, and while six hours doesn’t seem like much, it does make a difference, hence why schools are so hot on attendance. Now if some kids are leaving school with little to show for it, does it not make sense to try to be there every day to try and make sure they learn? Shouldn’t the young people (who will one day be our public sector) come first?

What I’m basically saying is, protest if you want to, go right ahead, write letters to your local mp, chain yourself to downing street for the weekend if it might help, go on protest marches, get your message across, fight for what you believe in, but it might be a good idea to be there when your students need you, because one day of school really counts.

I get that the point of having a strike is to send a message to the government, to show them how important your job actually is, but the thing is, teachers do indeed have one of the most vital roles in society, and if they even take one lesson off, young people are suffering. Yes, they may be overjoyed by a day off, but in reality, they are missing out on important education.

I appreciate your anger over the governments plans, frankly the coalition is fucking up every single thing it touches recently, but as a teacher, isn’t it your duty to ensure the children you teach are getting the best shot at life they possibly can? Isn’t that what you get into this career for?

I’m not blaming you for low reading scores, or for young people being out of work, I’m just saying that young people feel lost and out of place right now, they feel hopeless due to the fact that there are no jobs and the government forgetting that they ought to give a fuck about education.

As I said, protest if you want to, I have and I will, but make sure the young people you are responsible for don’t suffer for your actions, because believe me, a day of school matters.

Also, a quick note to student protesters while I have people’s attention (and before I get an army of keyboard warriors after me for having a different opinion). I’m a student, and it makes no sense to me that you skip lectures to protest, it just makes it seem like you don’t care about your degree, and yes, the media did portray you that way, and yes, a lot of the country now thinks students are workshy, complaining twats, not that it matters now, I’m just saying.

Now I’m off to hide somewhere, because I have a feeling I may be murdered for what I just said. Ashli x

In which Ashli attempts to get a serious blog.

Dear you,

whoever you may be, friends, lovers, enemies, housemates I’ve forced to read this, my mother, or just random people who need something to pass the time, hello, and welcome to my serious blog.

I have a blog. I do, honest. It’s not a serious blog and is normally filled with nonsense posts about glee, cats, pizza, or how pissed off I am with my mum’s dog, so why do I need another? Well, here is the reason why.

I’m a reasonably intelligent young woman, behind my whimsical and sometimes ridiculous reams of conversation, I do have quite a lot of intelligent things to say, I just never get round to it, so here is my attempt to try. Also, all three of my housemates have serious and grown up blogs and I felt left out.

My blog entries will be in a series of letters, with each letter being addressed to the person (or thing) it concerns, so keep reading, because someday, it could be you.

Love, lipstick filled kisses and awkward cuddles,
Ashli x