Freshers Week: Day Two

This day will probably start a few hours later than most, especially if you’re nursing a hangover from the night before! It’s probably a good time to switch Facebook on, because no doubt you’ve met a couple of people the night before who were still sober enough to send you a friend request when they got home. It also might be worth posting on Facebook/sending a text, just to let your family know that you’re still alive – they’ll probably appreciate that. 

For me, day two was a Tuesday. Once I’d woken up and cleared away the hangover – it wasn’t too bad, in all honesty – I finished unpacking and sorting my room out, making sure everything was nice and tidy, and taking some pictures to show my family at home. 

In the afternoon, the uni and the students guild had arranged a treasure hunt to help us get to know the campus and other people. It was quite fun really, we all got into groups and had to go around the campus finding all these places (which really helped later in the term, I’d have gotten lost without it!), and finishing with dinner in the student bar. 

In the evening, my fiance came up to visit and stay the night (it’s allowed in our halls, check with your halls residence agreement and policies to find out if it’s the same for you), and we spent the evening together. However, the student bar had a DJ on from 8pm until late, so for people who did want to go out, there was the option of doing so. 

At Uni, “I’ll Just Have A Few”, Never Works

I believe that I am living proof of the above statement. Most Mondays (you see, Monday night is karaoke night, and as a performance student I’m drawn to karaoke like a fly to… well, you get the picture), I sit in my lecture and say “I’ll just have a few” or, “I’m not going to drink much”. It never works. If I go out – and it doesn’t happen often, but it does happen – I end up getting drunk. Often, I get very drunk. 

Tonight I’ve had a smidge more self-control, although posting this is making me go all blurry-eyed. What started off as a glass of cider escalated into a game of Ring Of Fire (more on that to follow), then it became a shot of Apple Sourz, then it became a vodka shot, a jagermeister shot and an apple VK. Doesn’t sound like a lot, but when you combine it all with the dirty pints involved in Ring Of Fire, it escalates quite quickly. And results in me belting out karaoke at the top of my voice. 

I pride myself on my voice, usually. I can sing – I’ve sang at events and in shows; I’ve done solos and I’ve been the principal boy/girl in pantomimes, meaning I’ve had to sing on my own. If I do say so myself, I have a pretty good voice. It’s just that my judgement is so shot when I’m drunk that I pick the worst songs possible, and sing them terribly. 

For example, tonight I picked “Gives You Hell”, “Everything Changes” and “Call Me Maybe”. When sober, I can sing all of those songs fairly well. When drunk, I can’t sing them at all. In fact, I don’t just murder them – I dismember those songs and dump their remains somewhere that has no sense of tune. That’s how bad it is. 

So, kids and kidettes, when you’re planning on going to uni and thinking “I won’t get too drunk – just a few here and there”, think again. If you’re anything like me, you either won’t drink, or you’ll get absolutely hammered – there is no middle ground. 

*This post comes to you from a slightly more sober mind thanks to copious amounts of squash and toast with butter. Cures what ails ya. 

Mythbusting Uni Fears

I’ve just been reading through the University Discussion forums on the student room and a few common worries have arisen, and they’re ones I experienced last year and ones that people have been experiencing for years and years, so I guess it’s time to maybe bust a few myths and quell a few fears about starting university!

 

Myth: Everyone drinks alcohol all the time – I don’t drink at all/very much, I’m going to be left out!

Wrong! I was worried about this at first – I like a drink now and then, and there have been a couple of times where I’ve gone a little crazy, done shots and Jaegerbombs and had a really good night (although a not-so-great morning after!), but I don’t drink very much – especially not in comparison to my flatmates, who go out to Chester drinking. There haven’t been any huge issues, I haven’t felt particularly pressured into getting wasted and I’ve made friends who don’t enjoy drinking as much. If you do drink lots/hardly drink/don’t drink at all/drink on occasion/ whatever, you won’t be alone! 

 

Myth: I’m being left in control of money for the first time, I’m going to spend everything and then starve AAAARGH!

Wrong – if you budget right! Stick to your budget, and don’t count on your parents/hardship grants to bail you out unless you absolutely need to. This is probably your first taste of independence; you may as well use it wisely rather than wasting it by just proving you can’t handle money. Shop at budget shops – if the thought of buying stuff from B&M Bargains or Discount UK (they’re brilliant but some people just can’t bring themselves to shop there for some reason), go for ALDI – or at least ASDA Smartprice/Tesco Value ranges. There’s no point trying to buy branded stuff when you’re on a student budget; it’ll just waste money. If there is a particular brand or two that you can’t live without and can’t abide the smartprice substitutes, then by all means go for it – mine are Super Noodles, I’m yet to find a worthy substitute – but make sure you buy everything else wisely. Tins in bulk, fresh food sparingly. 

Another money tip – if you can get a part-time job, go for it. The hours on my course make it quite difficult to get a part-time job, because I really want to do well on this course, but I’m planning on working in the summer instead. When you’re going out drinking, be wise – don’t flash the cash and offer to buy everyone’s drinks. Pre-drinking is a godsend, it’ll save you so much money! Limit how often you go out – once or twice a week is probably best, because you’ve still got a chance to let your hair down, but you’re not wasting all your money on alcohol. If you smoke, now might be a good time to start cutting down – one thing I’ve noticed from my friends who smoke is that it seriously eats into their budget. 

 

Myth: I’m not going to make friends, everyone will hate me!

Wrong – as long as you don’t cut yourself off. I was so worried I wasn’t going to make friends, but I got really involved in my course, I’ve attempted to join societies (the one main society I wanted to join hasn’t properly started yet though!), I’ve been out a fair few times, and I’ve made friends quite quickly. My closest friends are my coursemates, and that seems to be the case for most of the people I know here at uni. You won’t be without friends unless you never say hello to people!

 

Myth: I can’t cook, I’m going to starve/poison myself/set fire to the building!

Wrong (again, if you do things right!). I don’t know how to cook – or at least, I didn’t when I started uni. I couldn’t even turn the cooker on at home (it’s a gas cooker and I’m scared of ‘splodey things, ok? Give me a break!). I now cook for myself every night, and I’m not just surviving off instant noodles and microwave meals. Since starting uni, I think I’ve had no more than two ready meals in the microwave – the rest of the time, I have been cooking for myself. 

Obviously pasta is a staple, but you’ll get bored of it if you just eat pasta every night. Mixing it up – bolognese, cheese, different sauces etc – helps, but you’re still going to get bored of pasta very quick. Avoid most student cookbooks – they’re ridiculous, you’re not going to be cooking cordon bleu on a student budget, and I have never gotten home from a full day of lectures to think “Hmm, I really fancy spending an hour whipping up some Moroccan spiced lamb mince with couscous, or maybe some sausage ragu & spinach pasta bake” (however, if you DO get home from your lectures and fancy that, the recipes are here – http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/content/recipes/favourites/student/ ). You’re going to get home and want something quick and easy. 

I’m going to do a full-on post about student cooking soon, but for now, here’s my basic tips – cook portions in advance and freeze. Oven chips and fish fingers/chicken nuggets is not a crime. Home-made mash potato is easy and a tasty alternative to chips. Tinned food will be your friend. 

 

Myth: I won’t be able to see or speak to my parents/siblings/old friends/dog/cat/hamster/ cornsnake/teddy bear/pet rock until the holidays, I’ll miss them so much! 

This one is neither right nor wrong. The amount people miss their families really does vary – some feel really homesick, others love being away and never even think of their families when they’re away. I’m in the middle but I lean more towards homesick, I miss my family and my dog and my fiance (in no particular order, before people start making comments!) so much, but I don’t let it take over my life – I visit home fairly often. 

Skype/Facebook video calling/whatever video calling service you use is a godsend. I talk to my fiance over Facebook video chat a lot, and I had a lovely Skype call with my family (and my dog, who didn’t seem to realize that I was on the laptop and not in the house when I was calling her, so she was staring at the door waiting for me to walk in, bless her little woolly socks) the other day. Chances are, you will miss your family, especially at first, but it gets easier. Uni is a great experience because it is those first baby steps towards independence. Some people hate it, others thrive on it, most seem to fall into a middle ground, but don’t worry about it wherever you fit on that spectrum – there’s nothing to be ashamed of! 

 

I think that’s it for now – those were the main ones that came up, and obviously I can only speak from my own experience – don’t go all keyboard warrior on me in the comments with “Actually for me it was different”; I’m just going on what I’ve experienced. If you have any other questions – any worries you’d like me to iron out etc – just pop your question in the comments box and I’ll either reply straight away or make another post if there are enough questions to warrant it 🙂 

Well… I’m here!

I am now officially a student at Glyndwr University! Today is the start of Freshers Week (last week was pre-freshers, and while it was awesome, I really am looking forwards to this week!) and we had a matriculation ceremony today which was a bit extravagant but I guess it’s a big thing. I’m here now for two weeks and then I’ll go home for the weekend maybe, but I really am enjoying it. All the independence is a little overwhelming at first – having to do things like cook and wash up and empty bins for yourself every day is actually more difficult to get used to than I was expecting, but the biggest thing is shopping! I’m not used to doing grocery shopping and I keep forgetting things, but I think I’m doing alright.

I love my room; it’s big and airy and not a horrible colour, and it’s en-suite too. I’ve got all my little home comforts set up – my playstation, my teddies, all my pictures – and I really do like it. When my camera is properly charged, I’ll get some pictures up on here. My course sounds really good, even though the hours are so long! Thankfully the classes are right opposite my accommodation, so it’s not like I have a huge walk in a morning to get there, but it still seems really long – and that’s without the elective I have to take too! That doesn’t start until January, thankfully.

I do miss my family and especially Daf, but I think it’ll get easier as the time goes on, and I am going to see them regularly. I think uni has to be an individual experience – if someone wants to stay until Christmas with no visits home, good for them, but if I want to go home every so often, that’s my choice. Thankfully no-one’s been funny about it, which is good. My best friend from college is up here doing the same course, and I saw her today and we’re going to the school uniform party tonight, which should be fun! I’ve managed to get drunk a couple of times quite badly, and I’m not sure I want to repeat it quite that bad – I’ll still drink, just not as much!

So that’s it for now really. Sorry it’s been a while since I updated, everything really is mad! It’s hard to believe how far I’ve come in the past few years, from not thinking I’d even manage to complete my GCSEs to having done pretty well in my A Levels and now being at university, doing a course that sounds amazing, making new friends and having a great time!