I have my first guitar lesson today. I'm really nervous. Me and John are having a lesson at the same time though, so that should make things a little bit easier. Not that John will help my particularly conversation wise. No, I'll have to do that all by myself.
I think that this lesson will probably be the only one that I have for a while. Things are getting very uncertain financially again. The other thing that happened while we were away was that John's college phoned up and said that he didn't get on to his level 3 course. This sort of throws us out a lot. The whole situation is ridiculous.
For the last 2 years, John has been on this pathways course. It is specifically for young people with special needs and the purpose of the course was the find every student a work placement and to provide them with some independant living skills. The course itself has been amazing, so I can't complain about that. He has changed a lot since he has been on it. Like, it used to be hard getting him to wash and stuff, but now he'll take a shower with no one saying anything to him.
It's just... now. John has also has this organisation called Pluss working with him in the last year finding him work placements. Because they were told that he would be continuing at college by John's tutor, they didn't find him anything payed and permanant.
So, as far as we knew, John would be starting a level 3 course in September (level 3 is equal to A levels) which meant that we were allowed to keep our tax credit and therefore stopped the whole Oh God What Is Going To Happen thing. When all this was being sorted out John's tutor never said anything. He never said that he thought the course would be too difficult, he said it would be fine and was incredibley supportive.
Then John has his interview. At the interview they pretty much told him he has a place and to go to this taster day. When he got home from the taster day he was told that day had in fact been an audition. We didn't know this. We hadn't been told anything about this.
So, on the last day of his course me and my mum went to see his tutor to ask whether or not we could find out if John had got on the course because whether or not he did obviously effected us a lot financially. At this point, John's tutor started saying that he didn't think the course was a good idea and didn't think John was capable. Right. Great. THEN he told us that the government have removed mature student funding (John's 19. He was held back a year in primary school) and that it was the colleges job to pay for courses and so we might have to pay for John. It's a lot of money. Then we went to see the drama course people (who didn't seem to know anything. The whole meeting was really weird) and they said they thought that he would get on.
He didn't. He's going to do a level 2 course instead. That is about equal to GCSEs and he has already done those so I don't see the point but he has his heart set on doing drama. At the moment, we're not completely sure what this means for tax credit. From the letter me and my mum read about a million times it seems as though he would qualify for tax credit still (god knows what we're going to do if he doesn't). So now we have to pay for him to do and course and because it's a level 3 he doesn't qualify for ALG or anything.
He'll have to use his disability stuff.
I just think that the communication in that place is so crap. Why didn't his tutor tell us that he thought a level 3 would be too much months ago? This whole thing has been in motion for such a long time. It's ridiculous. He has 7 students to look after. 7. Is that so hard? No. No it isn't.
And on a very shallow note. GOD MY NAILS. I totally decimated them on Saturday night. I stopped biting my nails like 2 years ago.
Right on a day when someone is actually going to be paying attention to my hands as well. This sucks. It took me such a long time to quit as well.
I'm so glad I'm not a smoker. Although, that's something a bit weird that happened to me a while ago as well. After prom when I was... not entirely sober (nevermixingdrinksagain) my friend was trying to force cigarettes on me. Now that was odd. I think she's looking for an excuse to because her cousin does. Smoking is gross. Sorry if you do. But it kind of is. It's like being volantarily smelly.
I'm really nervous about this lesson. I'm going to be crap. Although that is because I don't know how to play so I guess that would be a pretty good excuse. I hope he brings plecks, I lost mine.
I still haven't unpacked. My room looks awful. I need to put up the things I found when I was away though. I ripped out this Cosmopolitan article I want to stick up. Cosmopolitan is weird. I now know way more about erogenous zones than I need to.
Anyway. I should probably go and make sure the house is vaguely tidy before he arrives.
I hope he isn't hot. Actually I hope he is. Eh. I don't know.
Track: Dorks In A Box - Lauren Fairweather
