hannahabbott: Season of doom.

Current mood:	stressed
Current music:	Flooing for Brew - Witch all the Bad Wizards want

Season of doom.
I'm taking a study break to update my journal for a bit to calm myself down and not throw up from nerves. Now that the Quidditch season is over, the stress of the upcoming exams is hitting everyone with full force. I'm getting rather worried about it myself. I mean, I've been pretty consistent with my assignments and haven't done badly in any, and I always make it point to revise my notes daily so it's just a matter of absorbing the information in my head and I should do fine. The teachers are also trying to give us pointers and we've all been booking appointments with them to make sure our revision is on the right track, and they've all been really nice and helpful about it. Still, I can't help fretting, especially since there are way more materials to memorise than last year and I barely managed to get past last year's without getting panic attacks hourly. What if my brain suddenly goes blank on the exam day? What if my head explodes and makes a mess on the paper and I'll ruin my summer by having to resit everything? What if the teachers are pulling our puppet strings with their tips and hints? What if I'm so exhausted with studying that I can't tell whether my puppet string are being pulled or not? Oh, my head, my head! I usually go to the library if I need a break just to read something light and fun but now I've been avoiding going there because Hermione takes up half the library with her notes and it makes me very nervous.

The tension in the Hufflepuff common room is not helping at all. Everyone is working so hard and looking like zombies that we've decided it best not to attempt a proper conversation until the exams are over. Justin has been walking around with his nose in a book and more books and parchment Spellotaped all over his body. When I asked him about it, he pulled me aside and whispered that he's trying the Osmosis method of revision and told me not to spread it around all else everyone will copy him. I'm tempted to try his method but it's quite inconvenient and I'm used to my own revision system and it's probably not a good idea to try something new when the exams are so near. Poor Susan hasn't been sleeping much at all and keeps falling asleep in the middle of a sentence. Justin's been really sweet and making tea and coffee for her all the time but it doesn't seem to help, so now she's resorted to walking around with a tea bag in her mouth, which is pretty funny but quite a good idea as well. Eloise, on the other hand, has been isolating herself from everyone for a long time. I'm not quite sure what she's up to, but the last time I spot her in the common room, she was balancing a tray full of poppets, cupcakes with bits of paper in them, and a very large jug of something that looks strangely like Pepperup Potion. I hope she's not trying to eat her textbooks but didn't ask. I don't think I really want to know either. I've been doing my revision mostly with Ernie and Mandy. Mandy and I have been following our study time-table pretty strictly, not that she needs to because she's really clever, but she's starting to scare me a bit by randomly reciting whole paragraphs from our textbooks when she's asleep and during meal times. Ernie has been recording down everything that the teachers have been saying and playing them back for "discourse analysis". He didn't explain what that is but he's got this huge chart with Positively suspicious, Likely truths, and What they are really saying written in capital letters across the top so I guess he's trying to decode and spot essay questions. That's my Ernest.

seamus_f @ 2003-06-17 05:44 pm UTC

I've been doing my revision mostly with Ernie and Mandy.

Oi! And I've been leaving MacMillan alone, just like you asked. Haven't I been good?

But you're right, I think Mandy is mostly revising for us; she really doesn't need it.

hannahabbott @ 2003-06-17 05:54 pm UTC
Re:

You've been good! How's your revision? Mandy's really smart, she's been great at teaching me difficult concepts as well.

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seamus_f @ 2003-06-17 06:05 pm UTC

I don't think that plants were meant to be tamed by wizards, Hannah, I really don't.

Hey, since I, um, won't have many other visitors, how about coming to Ireland this summer? I mean, you can't spend ALL of it with MacMillan. You have to keep him wanting more, or something.

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hannahabbott @ 2003-06-17 06:10 pm UTC

Aw you'll be fine, Seamus! Just need more patience, plants are rather shy sometimes. And Ireland sounds great! Will Dean be there? I heard he's moved back into the dorm... I'll owl my parents about visiting you in a bit. Oh Ernest can't stand between me and Ireland, I've always wanted to go there!

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seamus_f @ 2003-06-17 06:18 pm UTC

Brilliant! Do come, it will be great fun.

He's moved back in, yeah, and things are fine, such as they are. But I don't know if he'll be coming to Ireland or not. Not just because of us, but I'm sure I'm not the favourite of his parents at the moment. We'll see. I mean, he's still my friend, sort of, I guess.

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hannahabbott @ 2003-06-17 06:22 pm UTC
Re:

Don't be silly, I'm sure Dean misses you. For what it's worth, I think Terry is no match for you.

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legit_regit @ 2003-06-17 05:45 pm UTC

Oh dear, I thought I was only, well, falling asleep on my books sometimes. I mean, it's not that I mean to recite whole paragraphs, really, I just, well, remember things that way.

I'm sure you'll do just fine Hannah, truly.

hannahabbott @ 2003-06-17 05:52 pm UTC
Re:

Oh I don't know, I feel like I have alphabets leaking out of my ears, Mandy! Your reciting is rather funny actually, just a bit alarming. I wish I could do that.

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legit_regit @ 2003-06-17 06:14 pm UTC

You've worked really hard this term, Hannah. I know that counts for something. Besides, if I've really taken to talking in my sleep, you might not want to be able to that. You know, maybe that explains the sour looks Lisa's been giving me over breakfast the past few days.

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hannahabbott @ 2003-06-17 06:19 pm UTC
Re:

Oooo is she jealous? Lovely!

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legit_regit @ 2003-06-17 06:39 pm UTC

Ummm, no. I don't think so. Maybe I been, well, speaking loudly? Oh Hera, my dorm mates are going to hex me.

Anyway, fancy a trot around the castle with me and Seamus? We need a break.

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hannahabbott @ 2003-06-17 06:41 pm UTC
Re:

Sure! I need a break more than I need oxygen right now. Meet you both in a bit.

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