Sunday 27 December 2015

Sugababes, Santa and 'Is it a school day?'

Hiya!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! I had a fab day with my family and I'm now super excited for New Year (and my 19th birthday woohoo).

I'm currently sat in my family's new holiday cottage in Wales and listening to The Sugababes (and reminiscing when I saw them live in Derby when I was at Primary School..what a time to be alive). I'm also attempting to get an essay done, but as you can probably tell I am getting a little distracted. Just a bit. 

I've been home for over a week now! After I transported my stuff back from Uni in a mere 20 bags (my step-dad counted), I finally made it back. I haven't actually spent much time at home yet though...I went to London with my friend for a few days, where we had a lovely Christmassy time. Then I was home for three days over Christmas, and on Boxing Day we traveled to Wales (through a lot of rain). My family only bought the cottage a few months ago so there is a lot of work to be done...I've spent today painting (very badly...at one point I accidentally sat in the pot of paint) and learning how to lay carpets. All fun.




I was warned about this, but it is really strange settling back in to life at home. But...at the same time, it feels normal and it's strange to think that I'm actually at Uni. If that makes any sense. For example when my little sister woke me up on Christmas morning (at 7....Grrr), I randomly had it in my head that it was a 'school day' and it wasn't until I heard "ANNA SANTA HAS BEEN" that I realised that I'm not even at school any more. How strange. I feel like I can settle back in to being at home really easily, but it might be a tad harder when I'm going back to Uni. I am missing Corp Wednesday's though. A lot. (If you are unsure about this phenomenon, please google, and then get to Sheffield for a top notch night out. You won't regret it).

I've got four exams in January which I'm trying not to think about at the moment. I know a a month off seems like AGES but I haven't yet managed to schedule any revision in to my time off. *Thinks about something else*

I think that's about all the updates I have! I hope you are all having a relaxing, well-deserved break.

Anna x

P.s December's Blogger of the Month comp is coming to an end, but you can still vote for me here until the end of the month :)

P.p.s I thought I would share with you my little sister's reaction when she realised that Santa had also visited the cottage in Wales....She really is emotionally invested in the whole Christmas thing.




Tuesday 15 December 2015

Six ways to survive your First Semester

Hey!

I'M FREEEEE...By that I mean my deadlines are in the distant past and consequently I woke up at 12 today. Bliss. I'm not home yet though as I've still got a week left of shorthand (yay). 

I spent Sunday recovering from a stressful week of deadlines and serving endless Christmas dinners...by going to see the Coca Cola truck in true Christmas spirit. We also had our Flat Christmas meal on Sunday which was lavely.


Happy days in F2

Anyway...

I thought I would write a little post on what I have learnt since I have been at University, about general life...and myself too. I am a big believer that making mistakes isn't ALWAYS a bad thing- the lessons that you can learn from that mistake will shape you as a person, and make you a better human being. So here goes.

1) IT IS AMAZING
I've had the BEST time since coming to Uni. I've done things I never thought I would do, made friends with people who I never saw myself with, seen so many new places and become a more independent and rounded person (as odd as that sounds).

2) Don't worry about being worried
I haven't met anyone who wasn't worried about going to Uni. One of my flatmates almost didn't come because she was so nervous about it. BUT you've got to remember that it's natural to worry...but at the end of the day you'll be fine and I can pretty much guarantee that you'll love it. Also I've met people who said that they were so worried because they were more of an introverted person and found it hard to fit in. But out of all the people going to Uni, you will be sure to find someone who's just like you.

3) Homesickness is (pretty much) inevitable
Maybe. It was for me anyway. But you'll get used to it eventually...and at the end of the day 'home' will always be home. If that makes any sense. And now I'm SUPER excited to go back for a whole month and spend time with my friends and family for the MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAAAAR (I hope you sang that too.) At the same time though it's going to be very odd going home....I'm going to miss my Uni friends so much, and it will be strange fitting back in to my life at home (where I can't get in at 5am and eat cereal from the box whilst discussing politics with my flatmates. Not that we do that...)

4) Try everything you can 
What I mean by this is throw yourself in to whatever you can. In my first week I got kind of delirious and started talking to EVERYONE and making EVERY FRIEND POSSIBLE. Maybe this was a bit too extreme...but basically don't be scared to try new things. You wont regret it!

5) The Midlands is South to Northerners and North to Southerners.
The question "Are you from the North or the South" is up there with "What's your name, what course do you do?" and all those other small talk questions which everybody asks when you get to Uni. And if you're from the Midlands, expect to receive a confused look followed by "But if you HAD to choose North or South....." Extremely annoying.

6) You think you'll join a million societies, exercise everyday and be super productive. But in reality you'll sleep in and miss lectures, stay out too late and think "First Year doesn't count, so it's okay right???".
I feel like this sums up what Uni has been like for most First Year students thus far. (Sorry to generalise all the students who have not felt this way. Well done you.) To be fair I've only missed one lecture....and a few shorthand sessions....they're at 9am, who can blame me.

Overall I've had a BRILL first semester. What a whirlwind it has been...Next time I post I'll be back in Derby!

I hope this post has been helpful/relatable:)

Anna x

P.s, if you want to vote for me for Blogger of the Month, you can do so here :)

P.p.s I will leave you with this...



Thursday 10 December 2015

The End of the Very Christmas-y Tunnel

Hello!

Hope everyone is all good and looking forward to CHRISTMAAAAS! I certainly am. My Christmas spotify playlist is in FULL SWING. Mariah can't get enough of my singing. Or the other way round.

I was super stressed at the start of the week because I have a presentation to do tomorrow in front of my seminar group, a Spanish project thing (WHICH COUNTS FOR NOTHING. Don't get me started.) and a Spanish speaking exam- which we have to record ourselves, making sure our face can be seen so we can't cheat and read it :( But I've got most of it done now Y A Y.

I can now see the light at the end of the very Christmas-y tunnel.

I spent last weekend at home putting the Christmas tree up with the fam which was FAB but I didn't get much work done. Obvs. 



Also saw one of my besties from home at the weekend and introduced her to the night-life in Sheff...and went to work the next day. Not a good idea.




Yesterday I saw my Auntie who's home from South Africa, and my cousin Josh! I was a very bad tour guide but we had a BRILL day.


I hope you're all having a good last few weeks of Uni! How fast a semester has gone eh. I will most likely do another very nostalgic post about how fast everything is going next week. I am so predictable....

P.s You can vote for me to be Blogger of the Month here! Muchas Gracias :)

Anna x

Monday 23 November 2015

A very talk-y blog post

Hola amigos!

Sorry for the lack of blog posts! I promise myself from now on that I will make a conscious attempt to post once a week from now on. Honest.

Uni life is buuuusy! I've got a weekend job so I've been working on Saturday nights and Sunday days as a waitress at a restaurant in the city centre. At first it was super stressful as I wasn't used to working in such a busy environment, but I've settled in to it now and I'm really enjoying earning my own money again! If you have the time, I would definitely recommend getting a job at uni. 

Also, I passed my shorthand test that I talked about in my last post. Woohoo! So I now start at 9am instead of 8, which is MUCH more manageable and I now find that I can actually open my eyes during the lessons, and actually speak instead of just grumble. I also feel like I'm progressing so much more when I get more sleep. Overall shorthand is way more bearable!

I've also found time to go home a few times since my last post, which has been wonderful. Two weeks ago I went home for a long weekend and had such a good time catching up with my friends, boyfriend and family. Admittedly, on the train back to Sheffield I cried the whole way, until I eventually stopped by reminding myself of how tragic I must look to other train-goers who were staring by that point. (Embarrassing, I know.) It's not because I don't enjoy Uni, it's just that leaving home is something that you can't prepare yourself for without actually DOING it. I'm not going to lie to you, it is heart-breaking leaving your cosy family home to return to a big city where you've only lived for 2 months, where it will inevitably be cold and dark (Grrr winter). But what I can say is that it DOES get easier, and although I still get upset every time, I know that I'm coming back to Sheffield to friendly flat/course mates, and a life which I am really, really enjoying.

Glad I got that off my chest.

I'm happy to tell you that my cooking skills are improving, yay! Tonight I made a quorn chicken pie (I'm cutting down on meat after having a deep conversation with myself in Morrisons about becoming a vegetarian- but I'm not quite brave -or willing enough to give up bacon- to go the whole way). I've also discovered pesto (which I buy in a jar....so I can't really claim that it's cooking but it sure is yummy with pasta). I've also been making chilli, curry, spaghetti bolognese and fish with veg (SWEET POTATO IS THE FOOD OF ANGELS).

At the weekend I saw my friends and my cousin for a night out, which was amaaaazing. I love how Uni gives you so many new experiences and opportunities that you wouldn't have had if you were still at home. I'm loving that now I'm at Uni I can see my cousin Josh more, who lives super far away from home in Derby. But now he's in Leeds and I'm in Sheff, I'm seeing him more than ever which is indescribably fabulous:)

I've talked a LOT in this blog post. If you made it this far, wow. Thank you for reading!

If you would like to vote for me as your Blogger of the Month, you can do so here :)

Some pics in an attempt to balance out the excessive writing.... 


The Leadmill in Sheff for my flatmate Lauren's birthday!
My first article in the student newspaper! I was very excited about this:)
Record-shop shopping
You know what I said about it being cold? Yup. Beautiful, but freezing.
Anna x

Sunday 1 November 2015

Scary Mexicans

Hi!

I most definitely should not be blogging right now but for some reason I always want to write a post when there are other things (like work) that I should be doing...Oh well. The fact that this is the first thing I have actually done today makes me feel slightly better. Sunday's were made for doing nothing weren't they??

I've been at Uni for 6 weeks today! It's so weird how fast everything has gone already. I think everyone has pretty much settled in to routine now...I love having my Wednesday's and Thursday's off (except from shorthand), as I can literally come back to the flat and sleep....(or work...maybe). However because I've got two days off Tuesday's are craaaaazy, as I'm in Uni from 8-7!

I've also started Spanish classes which are really good. Not going to lie, I can't understand a word of what my teacher is saying most of the time as she speaks so fast! It's so weird how at A-Level the teacher would always explain things in English, but here the whole lesson is in Spanish! I've not really spoken Spanish for a year so in my first lesson at Uni I was VERY confused. But it's slowly coming back which is good....

We had a meeting about Erasmus recently which is a scheme where you can choose to spend your 2nd Semester of your 2nd year studying in a different country. You can study at various different Uni's around Europe, one of which is a Uni in Barcelona which looks SO GOOD. It's kinda scary because you go for 5 months, but also SO EXCITING especially as I'd get a chance to practice my Spanish. Not sure how I'd cope with being so far away from home as just being in Sheffield seems so far away, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it...

Apart from that not much is going on! On Thursday I went to a Spanish social where we were told to dress as 'scary Mexicans'...this is what my friends and I came up with....



For actual Halloween we tried (a bit) harder....here's my flatmates before we all went out...




Some more random pics...




Next week I've got a shorthand test which I am definitely not looking forward to. If we pass it, we can move to the 9am class so as you can imagine I am trying not to get my hopes up too much (but the thought of an extra hour in bed AGH).

SO maybe I should go and get on with it. Sigh. 

Have a good week!

Anna x

Monday 5 October 2015

Freshers, Flatmates and Friends Box Sets

Hiya!!

I am officially here! Despite most people's predictions, I actually made it through Freshers Week unscathed -apart from a slight case of Freshers Flu....

Where to start...well my flatmates are super cute!! There are 10 of us altogether, so cooking is slightly hectic (but we mainly cook pasta/pizza/jacket potato so it's not too bad...) and otherwise it's brilllllliant! In Freshers we went 'out out' some nights, and other nights we had flat parties (some successful...some not..that's another story).








Mostly we were getting to sleep at around 5am and waking up at 1pm the next day. SO, last week, when I found out that my shorthand classes are at EIGHT AM which means getting up at SIX FOURTY FIVE...Well you can imagine my reaction. It wasn't pretty. It was grumbly (if that's not a word, it should be). I was (and still am) extremely saddened at the thought of my flatmates enjoying their lie-ins, whilst I eat my cereal zombie-style and watch the News in the hope that I'll pass the 'news quiz' for the week. (Which I inevitably will not. I got 1.5/10 in my first Lecture, OOPS).

Overall it has been a fab two weeks! I was told to prepare for homesickness (good advice...but how do you prepare for moving in to a new place in a new city with 9 new people?)...Obviously it'll hit everybody at different times, but as long as you have good people around you (and a Friends box set) it's fiiiiine. Everybody's going through the same thing after all. (Plus it helps if you're close to home...I've already been back once!)

I hope you're all enjoying Uni so far!! And if you're in Year 12...power through the pain, it's all worth it once you get here! I feel weirdly old and responsible, doing my own washing, shopping and cooking (if making jacket potatoes and beans counts as cooking), but I'm also loving the independence of it, and finally being able to study such an interesting subject!

Anna x

Sunday 13 September 2015

Blogger of the Year(!)

HELLO FRIENDLINGS!

I won the Blogger of the Year competition!!! EEEEEK! Okay, maybe I'm being a bit hasty. Make a cuppa and I'll tell you the story. So, after nervously waiting for what felt like a LIFETIME, I finally found out on September 1st, when my brother and I were sat in a bar in Majorca enjoying a spot of free Wi-Fi. Naturally at the moment I decided to open the email from UCAS, my phone decided that it was a brilliant time to have a momentary meltdown. Not good.

Anyway, after a few painful seconds, I read the email and danced around the bar happily knowing that my often meaningless ramblings WON ME AN IPAD! How crazy is that?! I'm not blogging off my iPad right now (but that is a definite must-do...), instead, I am blogging off my new laptop for Uni! Very exciting.

I also got to my Dad's house today to this surprise...


From Red Bull to One Direction plasters (don't ask), this lil box is filled to the brim with absolute essentials - Yes, oreos are essential. 

One week today I'll be in Sheffield! I've found all 9 - yes, nine! - of my flatmates and I'm suuuuper excited to meet them all. If you're going to Uni next week like me, or if you're already there....HAVE FUUUUUUN.

See you in Sheffield,

Anna x

Thursday 13 August 2015

AUGUST 13TH

HELLO! Here is the start of a blog post I wrote on the night before Results Day...


Results Day. Those two, simple words are enough to frighten teenagers (and parents) all over the country. *See example. Safe to say, I'm terrified. Suddenly, this year Results Day means SO MUCH more. It doesn't just mean "Will I get an A in History?" or "I hope I get in to Sixth Form". Just the fear about grades is enough. But add in the fact that Universities are involved, and that's enough to tip me over the edge (or run away to a far away place). 
*Example: Earlier, I was out with my friends and one of us said "Results day is soon", and one of my other friends literally, DROPPED TO THE FLOOR. This is not a joke. She curled up in to a cocoon shape and muttered "Results day, results day...", like a crazed person.

I stopped there as I promptly fell asleep. It was about 1am, soooo. ANYWAY. Upon reflection, I didn't reaaaaally need to worry. I'm absolutely OVER THE MOON...I got A*AB. When I woke up this morning, I felt SO sick, as I'm sure thousands of other teens across the country did. But, I checked on UCAS before I went to school, and spent a good few painful minutes deliberating over whether "Congratulations, you have a place at the University of Sheffield!" meant that I was in or not. TURNS OUT IT DID, so lots of screaming/crying ensued.

At school, Harika and I nervously opened our results only to find that we got the exact same grades. YAHOOOO! All my friends did so well...I am crazily proud of all of them. Thank you to all of my besties and my amazeballs family for being the best support system ever during two years which have often been incredibly stressful.



I also told my Dad my results live on the radio this morning on his show...you can listen
here! After that aired, East Midlands Today heard it so rang me to ask for a TV interview! It was totally surreal having a film crew in my living room asking me about my results...If you want to watch it, I'll be on BBC 1 at 6:30 tonight, or Sky channel 960. I also went out for dinner earlier only to get a phone call from the Sheffield Star, asking if they could do an interview with me too...what a mental day!
Congrats to everyone who got their results today. Whatever your 'next step' may be, I hope it is an amazing, crazy, exciting one. Enjoy it. I'm off on my hols now, so have a superb summer!

Anna xxx

(As always....click here to vote for me as Blogger of the Year if you haven't already this month. THANKS.)

Friday 7 August 2015

Where on earth do I start?

Bonjour!

I’m in a French mood…I have just got back from a few days in Paris with my boyfriend, and I’m so converted that I barely speak English anymore. Maybs. We had a FABULOUS time, and I must admit that I have truly fallen in love with this beautiful city. (That may explain why I took almost 1000 photos in just three days…)

ANYWAYS, I am here to blog about another, WAY MORE exciting adventure that I went on to...IKEA! Believe it or not, I am actually very prepared for University for saying there is still over a month to go. Some of you may be thinking "Where on earth do I start?", and I may just have some of the answers. 

Start by accepting the fact that you are going to University in just over a month. If you've already overcome that (very) large hurdle, next write a list of all the things you need to take. I mean everything. (Down to things like...a teddy, for example. This may or may not be on my list. Who am I kidding, OF COURSE IT IS.) If you're like me, and a sucker for cute stationary, a nice notebook is ESSENTIAL. Anyway...look at what you already have, and what you still need to buy. Then, bribe (or force) your parents to take you to get the things you still need. Nailed it. 

In the meantime...I will talk through what I bought in IKEA, and hopefully for those of you who aren’t as prepared as me (tut tut), this post will give you some ideas!

Here goes. I don’t know if anybody else feels the same way, but I have been kinda obsessed about getting a nice duvet cover for Uni. So when I saw this really cute flowery one, it was an instant thumbs up. (I also got the red spotty one too as it was £5 in the sale…who doesn’t love a good bargain??)


I also got the essential (but less exciting) cutlery…there was an expensive version and a cheap version of this…I went for the cheaper one just because I’ve heard that your stuff gets destroyed by the end of the first year anyways. Yay.


Next…plates/bowls and snazzy chopping boards, woohoo! There was a choice of colour for crockery, like grey/orange/purple/black, but I went for the classic white just because I didn’t fancy eating from a coloured plate. Also, I got two sizes of chopping boards, BECAUSE EVERYBODY LOVES CHOPPING BOARDS! Don't they?


Here’s an aerial view of everything together…So I also got a big red rug (which also acts as a nice backdrop to photos), a REALLY CUTE lamp, a glass with FLAMINGOS on it (I died), other glasses, kitchen-y utensils, and a negatives-photo-hanger-thing (on the left). Basically you hang it from the ceiling and put pictures in it. Oh…and the plastic white thing is a toothbrush holder. Exciting.


Since my trip to IKEA, I have also been to B&M with my Dad, where we bought stuff like tupperware, a jug, sharp knives, a bath mat, a colander, lalala. I’d definitely recommend this as somewhere to go for other bargain University essentials.

Overall, I reckon I’m surprisingly prepared for University! (I’m not sure if this would be the case if I wasn’t on holiday for the rest of summer). It’s good this way because I don’t feel stressed at all, whereas if I was organising things the week before I would most certainly be in meltdown-mode.

Hope everybody's having a WONDERFUL summer! The Blogger of the Year competition is still going....And as it's a new month, even if you have already voted, you can vote AGAIN here! Thank you:)

Anna x

Friday 24 July 2015

Nostalgia

Hiya.

***Disclaimer: I am feeling VERY NOSTALGIC.***

So. I just went to pick my little sister up from school. Not just any school...my old Primary school. Now, on a normal day, this would be perfectly fine. Being the last day of term, the Year 6's came out of the doors with massive grins on their faces, no doubt excited to move on to Secondary School. Also, fine. Happens every year, right? Right. But, as I will be leaving home in *cries* approximately 8 weeks, this teeny-tiny event hit me HARD.

I must be honest, after a few minutes of watching kids- who were barely fetuses when I left Primary school - walk out of those doors whilst their smiling parents (and, erm, me) watched them, my hayfever certainly started to kick in. To make the situation worse, my not-so-little sister Maisie who is now 8 :( was running around crazily, flour-bombing the older kids excitedly.

Maisie then ran up to me screaming "ANNA! I'VE JUST SEEN JACOB WHO YOU USED TO LOVE!!!". Brilliant. So, as well as the turmoil of knowing that I left Primary School SEVEN YEARS ago, my sister then decided to publicly reference my boyfriend of 7 years old, which undoubtedly was met with stares from confused parents. 

I then saw my old teacher, and although I disliked her for making me do extra 'multiplication' after school, I was totally DONE. I had to leave. But, I accidentally ran in to my FAVOURITE DINNER LADY -who I remember holding hands with most lunchtimes, as I was too shy to talk to kids my own age. HAHA.)

Overall, a weird 30 minutes. I certainly did not expect to react to a few kids leaving school so very dramatically, but Primary School days were THE BEST DAYS. Sure, I'm SUPER excited to go to Uni, to study something which I know I will love, and finally gain that independence which I've rattled on about for the past three years of my life. But it's odd...it's all happened so fast. I'm trying my best to embrace the change, as I am more than absolutely sure that I would rather be going to a new, exciting city than staying in Sixth Form for another 2 years. But reflecting on Primary School, when your biggest concern was whether you'd be invited to Jessica's party...(Or in my case, how to speak to Jacob without blushing like a lil tomato)....Wowza.

So. I've got 8 weeks to sort myself out and get Uni-ready (By that, I mean learn to control my emotions and EMBRACE CHANGE). LETS DO THIS.

Anna x

P.s (If I haven't mentioned it enough yet)...If you haven't already, it'd be fabulous if you could vote for me to win the Blogger of the Year competition. It's super easy and won't take any time at all. Just click here and wait for the magic to happen :)

Saturday 18 July 2015

Wimbledon in Wales

Hiya!

I’m currently writing this in my pyjamas whilst watching Wimbledon with Harika (she’s the one who wants to go to Leeds Uni. My only friend. JOKIN). We’ve got French baguette with cream cheese and salami, living the high life. We’re also in Wales! Having a chiiiiiiill holiday and celebrating the end of exams (and seven years of Secondary School) in style. If style consists of glamping it up in a caravan and bearing daily cold showers, that is. All in all, this is the life (and also why summer is most definitely my favourite season).




If you’re wondering, the sunglasses are an attempt to pretend that the overcast Welsh sky is ACTUALLY beautiful sun. I’m not just being a diva at the fact that I’m being practically forced to watch 3 hours of Wimbledon over being on the beach. Honest.

My main incentive for this totally Uni-related blog post (as always) is the fact that I went to the Sheffield Uni open day a year ago today! Weeeeeird, those 365 days sure did fly by. As Results Day gets closer, my blood pressure gets higher and the nightmares become more frequent. Only joking. Or am I? It’s definitely a waiting game, BUT in all honesty the days of Sixth Form and exams are long gone, and boring books about the French Revolution (Sorry Sally Waller) have been replaced with ACTUAL ENJOYABLE READING. Love it. I’m currently enjoying Insurgent –the second book in the Divergent series- but it has occurred to me that maybe I should be learning some Shorthand instead. Maybe. Another day? Most of all, I certainly need to treasure my sleep at the moment, as at Sheffield shorthand classes begin at 6am (HAHA).

In other news, I’ve started looking at jobs for Uni –Well. My Mum has a friend whose son knows someone who owns a restaurant in Sheffield…So that’s about the extent of my ‘looking’. But anyway, I have been advised by many people to start looking for jobs BEFORE Uni, and not just when you get there (when thousands of other people will be searching also.)

Hope everybody’s gooooood. I'd also love it if you could vote for me in the Blogger of the Month competition –all the votes go towards the Blogger of the Year comp next month. Oooooh. Click here to vote! Thank you!

Anna x

Wednesday 1 July 2015

When Annie met Sally

Hola!

Firstly: I'M REALLY SUPER EXCITED TO BE BLOGGER OF THE MONTH AGAIN! Thank you so much to everybody who voted...Keep going because Blogger of the Year competition is coming up in August (this is basically a total of all the votes since we started blogging); VERY exciting. Ta daaaaa: www.ucas.com/connect/blogs/voting

Last weekend my friend from Wales, Sally, came to stay so I finally have something Uni-related to blog about. YAHOO! I met Sally in France when I was 15 and she was 14..so, being a year younger she's currently looking at different uni's and writing the dreaded personal statement. She wants to study Chemical Engineering (I attempted to understand what this is but my brain just couldn't hack it. Chemistry was never my subject. Or biology (or physics)). ANYWAYS, she came to see me in the wonderful land of Derby (no sarcasm intended) after an open day at Loughborough University, which she really liked. We spent the weekend attempting (and failing) to ride a tandem, having a massive picnic, and eating lots of ice cream.



Overall, Sally's visit made me realise a few things...

Firstly, although at the time of writing them, personal statements seem like THE. BIGGEST. DEAL. EVER, they're really not. Don't get me wrong, you can't spend two minutes writing it and produce 42 lines on how your passion for eating pizza can help you get to University. HOWEVER, predominantly I learnt that as long as you CRAM it with experience, along with a mega-enthusiastic passion to study your particular course, you're personal statement will be WONDERFUL. I spent hours changing teeny words and stressing about things like "DO I USE A COLON OR A SEMI-COLON??? THIS WILL DETERMINE WHETHER I GET IN OR NOT". It won't. Give yourself a slap in the face (or alternatively take a stroll) and remember that this is just another small step towards getting to the University you want to go to.

Secondly, enjoy it! Amongst all the stress, deciding what you want to do with your life is kinda a little bit exciting. Make your decision wisely and do what's best for YOU, not your parents, your friends or your great-auntie Hilda. Definitely not your great-auntie Hilda.

Speech over.

In other news, I started ACTUAL-UNIVERSITY-PREPARATION yesterday! My brother and I made home-made spaghetti and meatballs for tea, along with orange flapjack for pudding. I'm getting there right?

P.s After somebody pointed it out, I am starting to realise that I have a slightly extreme obsession with brackets and capital letters. I LOVE THEM. There I go again.

P.p.s Like the ingenious film reference?? Anybody?

Anna x

Monday 22 June 2015

THIRTEEN WEEKS (!)

Hiya!

I have FINALLY found time in my busy schedule -of watching films, making smoothies and sleeping- to write a much-needed blog post. Yay! Sooooo...the exciting part- EXAMS ARE OVER! Can you sense my happiness through the computer? I'm sending happy vibes right now.

Exams were okay. I think. We can always hope. Only the 13th August will tell *screams in fear*

It's odd to think that school is OFFICIALLY over...Not sure what to think about that one. I reckon it's going to take a good few months (or years) to actually miss it, but it still feels weird. Anyways, I'm not complaining, as it's a Monday morning and I'm still in my pjs watching Take Me Out on repeat. Winning. 

The other result of leaving school? University seems so much closer. I'm definitely excited now, and I think the element of being absolutely petrified is wearing off. I think. Somebody mentioned to me at work at the weekend that it's less than 100 days before we go! (I also just worked it out and it's now 13 weeks...THIRTEEN WEEKS. Maybe I was wrong about the whole not being scared thing??). One of my friends is already clearing out her bedroom ready to go, plus my Nan rings me on a regular basis asking questions like "What size tins of beans do you want for Uni?", or the latest "I've bought you a lovely fruit bowl"...my family are well prepared for September (or just crazy?). I'm also finding the University groups on Facebook highly entertaining- especially when full-scale arguments break out and people say things like "I hate you all already". Nice.

Anyways, I better get back to doing absolutely nothing:) Saying that, we've just got a new puppy so my current job is a puppy-sitter, which is actually a very demanding occupation. He's so cute though, I don't actually mind...


B&W for emotional effect

Little Ted...CAN YOU HEAR MY SOBS

I hope that everybody's exams went well! Year 12's, this is just the beginning for you...get
booking open days asap, as well as ordering prospectuses in bulk (that's the best part).

P.S, the Blogger of the Year competition is coming up soon, and it would be totally fab if you could vote for me:) The link is here....www.ucas.com/connect/blogs/voting
it takes approx 3.6 seconds and you could win some shopping vouchers! Woooohooo.

Anna x

Thursday 28 May 2015

Smoothies with a side of revision

Hiya!

Apologies for my shameful lack of posts at the moment *hangs head in shame*. My excuses are; revision, procrastination...and more revision. Well, kinda. Really, I've been wrapped up in the (emotional) turmoil of leaving school. On the 15th we officially "left"...which basically means taking excessive amounts of photos (only to return to school the following Monday for revision sessions). That evening my besties and I all went out for a celebratory meal, which resulted in lots of tears...in the middle of the restaurant. Only slightly embarrassing.

ALSO, we "officially officially" left our seven years of school last Friday on Prom night. 


Aaaaw
Anyways, enough about my social life...exams are approaching (too) fast! My first one is on the 8th June, but they're over by the 15th. I hope you all do as well as you hope...hard work in the next few weeks will be sure to get you there! (Ironic coming from me...After ordering a smoothie maker I've spent the past few days making very adventurous concoctions in a feeble attempt to avoid revision). But in all seriousness, this one last push to get to Uni is extremely daunting but very exciting...power through guys and gals.

And on the subject of Uni...it feels even closer now after leaving school! So far I've made a list of things I'll need to take, as well as eyeing up cute crockery wherever I go...pretty knives and forks are essential, right?

P.s If you're getting a bit fed up of never-ending note-writing (like me), you might want to try a FutureLearn course...I've been doing one for my Drama exam prep, and they're brilliant for offering a different way to revise. They've got a range of different courses which are all free...plus the website is pretty cool. If you fancy it, go to www.futurelearn.com. 

P.p.s I am super excited to be 'Blogger of the Month' for the second time:) Thank you!

Good luck with all your exams! And if you've already finished, give yourself a well-deserved rest:)

Anna x

Wednesday 29 April 2015

41 Minutes

Who knew train stations could be so pretty...
Why hello there!

You'll be excited to know that I actually have something to blog about! Hurrah! So, fingers crossed - but I can't promise anything - this post will be insightful with no general life ramblings involved. Here goes.

Last weekend my friend Harika and I embarked on a journey to Sheffield on the search for prom dresses. Indeed, this was an exciting prospect- our first trip together to my future home of three years! Although we spent the majority of the day relentlessly searching for dresses in (CONFUSING) Meadowhall, we eventually made it to the city centre for some Sheffield-style adventures. Naturally, before we had even left the station I starting taking tourist-like snaps:



After lots of Google-mapping and back streets, we made it to the Uni. We headed for the Journalism building and I gave a mini tour...until we realised that the rooms were all locked. Oops. We swiftly exited after realising that students were staring at us. We then explored the Students Union, where I, um, cried. Ideally I would whisk over this part, however I do feel that it was an important part of the day. IN A NUTSHELL, we were outside, taking in the view, when I saw a group of students sat around a table all laughing and drinking together. And it suddenly hit me that soon I would be one of those people, but with new faces, new friends - See my last blog post for more on this emotional turmoil business - Can I just add that these were not a few small tears. These were full on can't-control-my-breathing tears. Not a pretty sight. Meanwhile Harika was crying tears...of laughter at how much of a loser I am. So am I just an emotional wreck or a caring friend? You decide....

After much fun in the oscillating lift, we asked a friendly student how to get back to the centre of Sheffield and got the train home to the home land of Derby.

Bright and early the next day we got the train to Leeds - Harika's top Uni choice - for an accommodation day. We were very excited by the HUGE map in the city centre, so took the opportunity to take some photos which put our future separation in to perspective.


Leeds University is beautiful, I must say I was very impressed. My mission of the day was to fully persuade Harika that Leeds should be number one, as she was debating between there and Newcastle (TOO FAR AWAY). So we took many tourist-like pics and received many stares from confused students.




Making peace with the tower block

We decided to visit the Uni halls of Sentinal, The Tannery, Devonshire Hall, James Baillie and Leodis. For any prospective Leeds students...we personally preferred James Baillie and The Tannery...until we experienced the social haven of Leodis. Despite the initial dodgy-vibe of the area due to the large tower block which it faces, all our apprehension disappeared when we walked in to the flats. We were met by bubbly and excitable students who seemed to be genuinely loving the Uni life. After Harika's auntie rather (un)tactfully asked the students, the accommodation manager, a passer-by and a taxi driver about the 'residential area', we eventually decided that when considering all the factors, Leodis was the best place - and indeed the place - to be. (I mean, who would say no to a double-bed?).

"Please stop taking photos, you are so embarrassing"


Overall, a very insightful two days! Sheffield accommodation was certainly a lot simpler to apply for with only two choices for flats. However, with somewhere like Leeds, where there are 16 different sites, it is definitely advisable to visit them beforehand just to ensure that the place will be right for you...For example, we had heard that Central Village was the perfect place to live at Leeds Uni. However, our minds were quickly changed once we went in to the flats themselves, which seemed deprived of all fun and life. We swiftly departed.







  • Remember that all Uni decisions - firm and insurance choices - must be made by May 6th. If you're still deliberating, book some trains and get to your top two choices! Alternatively do some more research in to your choices and ask your friends/family for advice.
  • Otherwise, keep working for those grades with help from a cup of tea and lots of biscuits:)
I must say I am BEYOND HAPPY that we have officially confirmed Sheffield and Leeds as our firm choices. A 41 minute train journey away from each other. We'll be fine and dandy.

Anna x