2. Generally known as Kate.

3. Catherine is my mother.

4. Brigid is my godmother.

5. Patricia is my grandmother.

6. I'd quite like to have my own identity, so I'm Kate.

7. I'm sixteen.

8. Which means I can smoke, and get married, and have sex.

9. But I can't drink, or drive, or vote.

10. To be honest, I think the government have their advertising a little wrong. I mean, kids are dying to drink and drive and smoke and have sex, and millions of them do it underage (including myself. Although, in my defence, I'm not a regular smoker, I only drive on private land and I didn't have sex until I was sixteen. The drinking I have no excuse for) but no one counts the days until they're old enough to vote.

11. I have a real problem with people who don't vote. People who say "They're all as bad as each other, why should I vote for any of them?" are bad, but at least they take a vague interest. Worse are the people that don't vote because they wouldn't know the difference between the parties. I was brought up delivering pamphlets for Labour, but some people couldn't even tell you which way their parents voted at the last election. I think you have a responsibility to educate your children about politics. Because if you don't, who else is going to?

12. I tend to rant like that quite a lot.

13. Another thing I rant about is prejudice.

14. "I'm not racist but..."

15. I could just slap people that say that.

16. A supply teacher once told me to shut up during my economics lesson. "Why do women do economics? All they know about is how to spend money...I don't think that's the point!"

17. I almost pointed out that actually, spending is an injection to the circular flow of the economy, and falls in spending can initiate a recession, so spending is quite a lot of the point.

18. But I didn't. Some people aren't worth wasting your breath on.

19. I fall in love quite a lot.

20. Generally with totally unobtainable people.

21. Like James. Who is cute and well dressed and hilarious. My perfect boy really. Except...he's gay. Oh well.

22. I call it falling in love.

23. But really, I don't think I've ever fallen in love.

24. My best friend thinks she's in love.

25. She won't be very impressed with that statement. I shouldn't have said "thinks". You could presume I was saying that she's not in love. But then you would be making presumptions, and you'd be in for another rant. There's nothing technically wrong with the statement.

26. And anyway, I gave up trying to impress people.

27. My best friend is Ruth Lucy.

28. She's taller than me.

29. That's all I have to say about her. Does this look like 101 things about Ruth Lucy??

30. Although I could probably write 101 things about Ruth Lucy, if I tried.

31. Ruth Lucy's quite cute, don't you think? I may start calling her that.

32. Anyway, I digress.

33. Music is my radar.

34. Is a song by Blur.

35. It's also true. Music guides me through life. It pinpoints my emotions, it records moments, it sits and cries with me, then picks me up and walks with me as I carry on.

36. If I could pick one talent, it'd be the ability to make music.

37. I'd love to play guitar. Or piano, really well.

38. And I'd give anything to be able to sing.

39. Sometimes, on long journeys, I end up sandwiched between two of the loveliest voices.

40. You'd think that might make me a bit shy about joining in.

41. Shy? Me? I think not.

42. They don't seem to mind.

43. I mean, they probably do mind, what with me wrecking their carefully constructed harmonies, but they don't show it.

44. "What would you do if I sang out of tune, would you stand up and walk out on me?" It just shows, you don't need talent if you have friends.

45. And anyway, we can't pick talents.

46. So I settle for listening to the music of others.

47. I seem to be drawn to those who make music.

48. I guess I should mention amigo and my red bullet, local bands who very kindly allowed me to become their official groupie.

49. Not a sleep-with-the-band type groupie.

50. An attend-gigs/practices-drink-lager-and-cheer-for-them groupie.

51. The drinking lager isn't essential.

52. But I do it anyway.

53. I do stupid things when I'm drunk.

54. I know everyone does, but really.

55. I do stupid things.

56. Like collapsing into garden ponds.

57. Or lecturing people about the brilliance of Jeff Buckley.

58. But really, there are some things people should know.

59. If I were Minister for Education, I'd change the National Curriculum.

60. I'd make schools teach life essentials.

61. No one would leave school without knowing at least basics about politics, having read The Great Gatsby, 1984 and A Brave New World and listened to Grace by Jeff, OK Computer by Radiohead and Blood on the Tracks by Bob Dylan, and being able to cook pasta.

62. I'm not saying it'd change the country.

63. But really, why have I never been taught how to cook pasta?

64. I can't cook.

65. I know, I know, how hard can it be? You just follow the recipe. But really. I. Can't. Cook.

66. I don't like exercise.

67. But I like shopping.

68. If you think shopping isn't exercise then you've obviously never shopped with me.

69. I even like shopping when I have no money. Shops are full of possibility. Especially clothes shops. All those options - who do you want to be today? It's so easy to change, so easy to be somebody different. I find just wandering through them very satisfying. I suppose that's a sign of the capitalist society I've been brought up in.

70. I love shopping on my own.

71. I hate couples that shop together.

72. I really hate couples. Even when I'm part of a couple I hate couples.

73. I hate really coupley couples.

74. Especially the ones that shop together.

75. I hate shopping with my boyfriend.

76. I mean, I hated shopping with my ex-boyfriend.

77. I keep talking about him in the present tense.

78. But we broke up. So he's past tense now.

79. I guess it just takes a while to get used to tense changes.

80. Although it wasn't a tense change, it was very amicable.

81. I intend to have lots of children. Which will be easier if I stop breaking up with boys.

82. Sophia, Adele (Ella), Ciaran, Tobias (Toby).

83. I'd like to call them things like Tarquin and Maximilian and Ophelia.

84. But it's a bit mean.

85. Kids have enough things to worry about.

86. This summer, I sat 19 exams.

87. Which was fun.

88. I get my results on August 22nd.

89. I'’m more nervous that I've let on.

90. People keep telling me to forget it enjoy my summer. Or that they don't matter anyway.

91. Well, they matter to me, okay?

92. It's a matter of pride I suppose. And I'm a perfectionist. And I'm just a little bit competitive.

93. I'm not competing with anyone real.

94. Just myself. The myself in my father's head. I've spent my whole life trying to beat the idea of me that my father has. Trying to outreach his expectations. Trying to make him proud. You know I said I'd given up trying to impress people? Well I lied.

95. I still try to impress my dad.

96. I think I'll always try to impress my dad.

97. I don't like necks.

98. Yes, necks. I can't touch my neck. I can't watch people touch theirs. Above all though, I can't stand for people to touch mine. It makes me physically sick.

99. I don't know why.

100. I don't have any definate ambitions, really, except to be Liz from Sweet Valley High and have a wardrobe that says "I go to Harvard." Not literally. Although that would be cool.

101. I was going to put a picture of myself as thing number 101. But then i changed my mind. Have this instead.

< - >

* the marks of memories forgotten
* wasting emotions, over again
* intentions, and such
* nothing unusual, nothing's changed - just a little older, that's all (damien rice : amie)
* now I understand! It doesn't make sense because it isn't supposed to