So have arrived in Durham and I’m in my college halls! I was completely and utterly excited yesterday, but now, having woken up from less than an hour of sleep, I feel miserable and homesick. Luckily my flatmates are lovely and have been really supportive, but every time I think of home I keep crying. I hope I get over it soon. 😦
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So getting a place at University and going to University are two very different things. I was crazy amounts of excited to be going to Durham a month ago, now I can’t think of anything worse than leaving my house, my family, my friends and my BED.
I feel like a five-year-old shoved into the body of an eighteen-year-old and being told to act grown up and make independent decisions!
Luckily, I’m going to Camden market tomorrow with two of my best friends to forget about the whole moving away catastrophe.
I’m afraid people will hate me and that people will think I’m weird! I’m scared of running out of money and failing my course. I’m just plain scared. 😦 The only thing that feels vaguely acceptable to do in preparation is to play all of my childhood games (the Sims and Tomb Raider being my current occupations) and play Disney songs on the ukulele. What is my life?<a
Thank goodness it’s Saturday! I am utterly exhausted from the week that has occurred. I have been doing so much work that I am barely able to sit for five minutes to write this post without feeling slightly guilty that I am not working.
Not very much has happened since I wrote my last post and I doubt much will until the exam season is over. Having said that, a couple of my friends and I are going to watch a gig on monday night which will definitely be rebellish considering we’re not really supposed to be going since its college the next morning.
I’m really sleepy still, so apologies if this post is pretty boring; I’m currently trying to learn all my AS biology again due to some of the AS stuff turning up on my last (A2) paper in a very displeasing fashion. As I type up all my notes for AS, I am also listening to a strange man reading The Pardoner’s Tale by Chaucer in the vain hope that some quotes will latch onto my brain cells. At the same time I am watching a production of Moliere’s Tartuffe on Youtube, in an uber efficient working way! Is exhausting,
On the plus side, spring has finally arrived! Wearing shorts everyday certainly did the job as the weather has taken the hint and turned up the sunshine – hurrah! Also, I found a very nice hedgehog in my garden yesterday which was very exciting.
Plus, tonight, I’m going to a sleepover to plan a really amazing camping trip/4 day birthday celebration/ first holiday on my own with friends except the other holidays I’ve had alone with friends that now don’t count! We are also intending to expand our busking repertoire with Under the sea, You-go and The Walk of Life!
Tomorrow I have climbing training and general bouldering practice and discussion of climbing trip to the peak district in the summer holidays!
I’m looking for a job having paid for student finance and realised it will not cover the cost of my accommodation let alone anything else!
So when I say nothing much is happening – I’m lying I’m mega busy!
Over and out!
Helloo!!
Well my perception of my looming exams has dramatically changed over the past 24 hours. I am currently in college – yes- I hear your gasps- in college in the holidays and have been for the past four hours doing hardcore revision and general carpe diem-ing.
As a result of this, I have become an official nerd. Around me are ten books concerning various biological subjects in my vain attempt to prevent myself from failing the Biology this year. I have been to the vending machine to frequently replenish my supplies of coke and reward chocolate despite the food ban in the library – my needs are greater than these rules now!
I have to keep Cornwall in the back of my mind if I want to do well. My friend and I have calculated that, if all goes to plan, we will be in University this time in 6 months! Mega-eek! I am so excited/terrified/confused, but I am definitely looking forward to learning to surf and that is apparently the main occupation of student life – as pictured above!
Yesterday, my climbing buddy and I joined a new climbing club (numero 3 in my case) at a new climbing wall! We were the youngest by a long way, but not the worst I don’t think (phew!), which I hope goes to show my improvements! This time last year I could barely scramble up a 6a and now I’m able to do 6c+/7a!! I know we aren’t talking world cup standard, but I am improving so much quicker than I could ever hope for! I’ve been training really hard, doing pull ups every day and going for runs once a week. Climbing is definitely going to be the key maintenance of my sanity in the future weeks.
Well, looks like my break is over, I better get back to some studying – only one more hour then I can go home – hurrah!
Oh.
I just remember that my bus pass expired…
Over and out…
Hello everybody!
I have just returned from Cornwall, staying in my Grandad’s house on the top of a cliff over-looking the shimmering ocean. Normally when we visit, I spend the mornings climbing the cliffs, sitting on the beach and eating fudge from the shops of the little fishing village next door.
Unfortunately, I did not have enough time to even think about having a relaxing weekend – oh no, it is now the second week of the Easter holidays and my revision has begun to start in all its glory! The above picture depicts all the books I took with me (and required) for three days of work. My backpack was heavy.
I am still severely disappointed weather-wise and have made the bold decision to wear shorts from now on. As a result of this I have taken to bringing a blanket with me to all places, but the point is that I am defying the British weather system’s idea of spring and psychologically instigating summer.
I am pretty sure that my summer exams are not going to exceed my expectations of: dire. I am also not at all looking forward to the results in August that cheerfully denote my lack of talent both literary and academic.
On the plus side, failure is an incredibly important life-skill and on that note I am going to increase my optimism levels to 100% because a) being a hippy living out of a van is a viable career path and b) you do not need to attend Oxbridge or indeed any university to become a literary genius (in fact I can dedicate more of my life to climbing and writing). Hurrah! 😀
Over and out!
Today I applied for University accomodation! Eek! So afraid by my sudden leavinghomeyness! Even worse, my mother and I were in Tescos this morning and she brought be a duvet cover for my double bed at uni and encouraged me to buy some matching mugs and an orange kettle. Although I am grateful for her contribution to my bedreeom furnishings, I feel that she has now accepted me as leaving home and that is suddenly very very scary and big.
In order to inhibit my growth, I went round my cousin’s for some serious trampolining and running around the garden chasing rabbits and playing with lego Star Wars in a generally childish way. However, this was cut short due to my need to complete some biology homework pronto and fill out several applications for summer jobs. Life refuses to leave me alone!
Everything is simply work work work! It is exhausting!
On the plus side, tomorrow I am meeting up with some friends from school that I haven’t seen in a while which should be fun! However, we’re meeting for ‘coffee’ which sounds awfully grown up doesn’t it? We used to go and eat ice creams and jump in rivers and now we’re going for ‘coffee’.
I better go and do work again, over and out!
Helloo everybodey!
One of the major perks of growing up is the ability of yourself or one of your more competant chums to drive! Today me, Polly and Laura exercised this perk and drove to the only beach we knew the way to!
Unfortunately, due to the cold weather we had to picnic wrapped in blankets and hundreds of warm layers with the wind buffeting us and the sea rising with alarming speed! We still managed to munch our way through crisps, jam sandwiches and loads of sugary goodness. I do feel slightly sick now due to excess chocolate consumption two days in a row.
Luckily, Polly’s car has a super big boot that we dashed to and spent the rest of the afternoon playing guitars and ukuleles will continuing to eat our snacks!
As if this wasn’t enough, we had a sudden urge to go swimming so a mad dash from the boot into the sea wrapped in blankets that were flung off for about ten seconds before we raced out of the sea again!
Verry happy times, I’m very, very full! Sorry for the poor picture quality, my camera decided to delete all the good’ns 😦
Over and out!
Hello peoples of the world!
I once again apologise for my terrible lack of posting! In my defence, I have, for the past two days, been away in Wales in the Brecons! Hurrah!
Unfortunately, the cloud was closed in in for most of the two days, but occasionally it lifted and the scenery was bathed in a glorious sunshine!
The first day started very much on a train (because that is where we were), we travelled up on thursday to Newport which took about 3 hours and a lot of climbing magazines and games of ‘eye spy’, then another 20 minutes to Abergavenny, a beautiful market town in the heart of the hills! In a very excited, nervous state, we caught the bus to Bwlch which we subsequently discovered did not stop at Bwlch. In the growing gloom we had to hike the four miles to our youth hostel.
Then disaster number one occurred: We left the map, compass and booking confirmation on the bus-that-did-not-stop-at-Bwlch. Tired, wet and cold we trudged our way up the hill to the hostel.
The hostel was definitely an experience in itself. We were bunking in a dorm, something I have never done before and the others staying in our (pretty damn small) room were a couple of spanish travelers who were very interesting have a chat with! We didn’t even have to pay for supper, just survived on leftover chips and digestives from our supplies.
We had a blind spot of very very massive luck when the bus driver of the-bus-that-did-not-stop-at-Bwlch turned up with our lost map, compass and booking confirmation! Still very grateful to that guy!
The next day was slightly less disasterous. Aside from being chased by a couple of cows and a flock of sheep our hike up into the foothills was incredible! The scenery was, with a little help from the stormy winds, breath-taking! After a picnic of cream-cheese bagels and tinned peaches crouched behind the dry-stone wall, we set off down into the valley, singing ‘ten green bottles’ at the tops of our voices!
Then disaster number 2: to get to our second night’s accommodation (a farm house B&B (able to afford it due to our compensation from the double-booking fiasco)), we had to cross a river high with flooding. We, as we are intreped folk found a thick trunk lying across the river. My friend and general partner in crime balanced procariously across first, before tumbling into the water – backpack n’ all. I dragged her out soaking wet and freezing cold.
Later, after numerous cups of hot-chocolate, we had to decide A: how to try these things in the pouring rain and B: which of my clothes she could wear tomorrow.
All in all, it was a success – over and out!
Hello peoples of the Internet!
I do apologise for my lack of posting over past weeks. I have beeen craaaaazy busy! Predominately work based activities have hindered my enjoyment of life recently, my Extended Project is due tomorrow and I since I did well in Biology I decided that I actually have a chance of doing well so have increased my effort to 112% (precisely).
Despite my increase work-load, I have been slightly interesting in that I went to Cornwall at the weekend to look at Exeter (yep not the Exeter based Exeter) University and slightly loved it! So, I’m thinking that I won’t be gapping next year. I’m sorry for changing the gist of my blog, but a ‘going to university’ blog is also mega exciting! They have surfing clubs, sea swimming clubs, rock climbing clubs (sea above for available rocks), everything I could possible want. While in Cornwall, we saw a DOLPHIN!! It was really close to the harbour and we could see it really clearly, I was extremely happy and am now considering replacing Pandas as my favourite animal.
I’ve always loved the sea and Cornwall in general and I’m super pumped for the idea of actually living there!!! I am a pretty terrible surfer though, I once got to the stage of standing up and my heart was filled with such joy that I verbally exclaimed my pleasure. My mum later pointed out that the fin of my bored was wedged in the sand. Buuut no one really needs to remember that aspect of my triumph.
In other news, I took a 7/8 metre fall at climbing! It was at an indoor wall though, so probably counts in a minimal danger and daredevil sort of zone, but I was proud… and slightly stunned. I am getting quite ninja (ish) at leading now! I made a clip with no feet on the wall for no apparent reason!
Very sleepy and happy and looking forward to the Brecons in a couple of weeks. Oh and have signed up to sleep outside for a night next week. Jolly good.
Over and out!
Dear England,
Please can you decide what you are doing weather wise. I woke up this morning and it was a beautiful sunny day, but now it has clouded over and the sun has been shielded from my vision. Not only is this occurring, England, but you are being cruel in terms of the spring weather that is apparently going to disappear next week. I have fully accepted that it is now the end of winter and have put my huge brown duffel-coat in its plastic bag of summer, but according to the BBC, it’ll be frosty next week.
Would you kindly stop messing about with the weather and make a decision on the season so I can stop being confused?
Lot’s of love
Me xxxx
P.S. can we have a good summer this year?
P.P.S If you do decide that winter is not over yet, can we have it with the works? I’m talking snow here. Oh, and another Christmas, thank you.
So I’ve just aged about 70 years. I am now complaining about the weather. Oh deary me.
In the Direction of Dreams 
