What is being a university student really like? It is more than anyone will ever tell you it is. They tell you it is hard work, when in reality it is more difficult than you can imagine and at times so stressful giving up is more tempting than pressing a big red button that… Continue reading Studying at degree level is more
Category: Chapter One – University
And so the sun set on my teenage years
When one of my friends suggested we head to the beach the day before my birthday, I was excited, but I could not have imagined how beautiful it would be. I'd had an exam in the morning, so I spent the majority of the afternoon recovering in bed with a pizza. She picked me up… Continue reading And so the sun set on my teenage years
Trying and almost failing to overcome another anxious meltdown
During the last week of the Easter break, home became just wonderful enough to ensure that leaving it again would be as difficult as ever. I'm back in Cardiff now and until recently, I was feeling very sorry for myself. For the first time this year, I'd had a anxious meltdown and it felt like… Continue reading Trying and almost failing to overcome another anxious meltdown
Realising I’m growing up
My room at home has been pink and fluffy for as long as I've lived in it. When we moved in I was seven and I was allowed to choose just how I wanted it decorated. As a result, the top halves of my walls are covered in pink wallpaper with stars on it, the… Continue reading Realising I’m growing up
Mixed emotions about heading home for Easter break
Sat on my bed in my half empty room, in my very empty flat, listening to the radio and waiting for my dad to arrive and take me home. This semester has flown by. One minute I was taking on January exams and celebrating being back in Cardiff after spending a wonderful Christmas at home… Continue reading Mixed emotions about heading home for Easter break
Life has been a little crazy, that’s all
Trying to work out how to justify the fact I haven't blogged in over a month and considering giving up trying. Life has been a little crazy, that's all. In just over a month I've written five essays, finally found the courage to go along to music socials, met some amazing new people and become… Continue reading Life has been a little crazy, that’s all
Overcoming Winter Blues at Uni: Sunshine, Cocktails and Flappy Birds
I am no expert, but I think I've been suffering from a serious case of the infamous winter blues. January and February, through no real fault of their own, have very bad reputations. January signifies the end of the holiday season and our return to every day life. It is as we struggle through January's… Continue reading Overcoming Winter Blues at Uni: Sunshine, Cocktails and Flappy Birds
The day before I leave home for university again
Having just spent five whole minutes sat in the middle of my bedroom floor wondering where on Earth I am supposed to begin, I am beginning to wonder whether I will ever get used to this whole 'packing my bedroom into boxes' thing. If I'm honest, when I sit in my room deciding what to… Continue reading The day before I leave home for university again
Expert Procrastinator
Sat at my desk doing nothing other than daydreaming out of my window and singing along to my shuffling iTunes library. There is so much I should be doing. My room looks like a small bomb hit it. I'm sat next to a pile of books so high I'm surprised I managed to transport it… Continue reading Expert Procrastinator
Smiling like a student home for Christmas
I'm finally home. My last two days in Cardiff before Christmas were so much better than I expected. I was expecting to simply spend them at the flat, by myself, working my last couple of shifts and watching the clock tick by. BUT my amazing flatmate stuck around an extra day after her last shift… Continue reading Smiling like a student home for Christmas
Balancing work and study: Part time sales assistant, full time student
I feel like my heart never stops beating too fast and the butterflies are back with a vengeance and that maybe this job wasn't such a good idea after all. The first week that I had to juggle lectures and work shifts I spent so focused on getting to where I needed to be that, once I'd got there, I forgot to enjoy myself. Then, when I got back home I felt like I'd done everything I needed to do: I found food, cooked it, ate it, collapsed in bed and normally very quickly, fell asleep. Perhaps I did need sleep and perhaps I had done all I needed to do, but it meant I never took a moment to actually decompress or relax.
There’s no place like home
It felt like the entirety of my weekend at home had been nothing more than a dream when I woke up this morning; the horribly stressful journey back to Cardiff being the disastrous ending that finally woke me up. It feels like I went to sleep after the Halloween party last Thursday and I've been asleep ever since. A big part of me wants to curl up and go back to dreaming of home so I don't have to face today. Today is my first day at work and the day of my first rehearsal for my first concert of the semester. Today is terrifying.
Conquering a Busy Student Life – The early bird catches the worm
When I woke up Tuesday morning it was still dark. I felt like I should be jumping on an aeroplane and heading somewhere exciting, jumping behind the steering wheel of my car and driving across the country or just retreating under the duvet until the sun decided to put his hat on. In reality I'd… Continue reading Conquering a Busy Student Life – The early bird catches the worm
Deciding what’s next after university
One minute I'm ridiculously excited over a quote from a book on an interesting historical topic or I'm so engrossed in writing the opinionated conclusion to my essay that I forget it isn't cool to be caught enjoying coursework. The next minute I'm stood in my room singing Mozart's Agnus Dei, loving it and deciding that singing is what I want to do for the rest of my life.
From Surviving to Thriving – Student life is taking a turn for the better
I should be the size of a hippo after eating everything I've eaten this week. I blame Papa Johns for tempting me with their 99p offer Tuesday night and Just Eat for making it so easy to order Chinese take away when you get home late on a Wednesday evening. My comfort food has become the occasional piece of healthy food I eat. The orange I ate after my Chinese takeaway for example, was so beautiful I think the vitamin C loving bits of me jumped for joy...
Powering through Fresher’s flu
Yesterday, I woke up with a horrendous cold and went on to have a horrendous day: I broke a glass when I was washing up, I found loads of important unread emails from my university, the internet kept crashing while I was trying to send replies, I nearly blew up the kitchen because I didn’t realise there was oil in the bottom of the oven when I turned it on and let it heat up to 200 degrees celsius...
Singing goodbye to butterflies in the shower
aught myself singing in the shower, wondered 'round with a towel turban on my head, left my stuff all over the sofa while I went out last night, sung opera in my bedroom, let my iTunes music shuffle freely without cringing when The Circle of Life started playing: One week here and it feels like home already...
Thank goodness for dongles, wellies and hairdryers
Sat on the sofa jumping every time I catch a glimpse of a van as it turns down our street in the hope it's either the delivery man with our TV or the man from virgin here to set up our WiFi. So far every van has turned in the opposite direction. Luckily, I've discovered the dongle: A magical device that connects your laptop to the internet through the mobile network...
Time to step in at the deep end
The car is all packed up and it is time to go. First year I jumped in at the deep end (heading all the way to Cardiff to study before I even felt ready) and then spent the year doggy paddling and treading water. This year I'm going to step in to the deep end, keep my head above the water and swim...
Two days till Take Two
Part of me wants to ring Cardiff University and tell them I won’t be studying there this year after all because I’m sissying out and I’d like to stay home. I want to cry every time I consider saying another temporary goodbye to my friends and family. I feel like I'm sixteen again and all I should be doing is spending time with friends at the park, going to Smirnoff Ice house parties and worrying about GCSE results . When I imagine waking up in my new room in Cardiff Sunday morning I want to run up to bed, hide under the duvet and never come out...
The start of a new journey
I went and bought a beautiful new mirror for my university room today. I also bought a lovely new diary; it's cream and pink with flowers on the front, but not in a way that's too little girly (I don't think). I took another look at my enrolment email and made a note of key… Continue reading The start of a new journey
Blogging Goodbye to Butterflies 