G-DAY: Backstage (Part 1.)

So you've been inundated with photos (GUILTYYYYYYY! Sorry about that..) of your friends graduating this weekend. It's all smiles and sun and celebrations on your timeline but here's how it all really happens on the day...

6AM.

We're up. The early bird catches the worm; and I'm in the shower first.

6.30AM

Armed with a  bucket full of tea in one hand, curlers in the other, I am an unstoppable early morning getting ready FORCE. LET'S DO THIS!

7.00AM

Burn myself fairly seriously on my back with the curlers. Yep, that's blistering, brilliant. Holding ice wrapped in kitchen towel on my back with one hand, mascara on the other I again begin to channel the Unstoppable Force.

7.30AM

Sister has decided that after 5 outfit changes, the first thing she tried on will do. About to leave the house, Mum discovers a tiny dark mark on cream dress.. followed by sister pointing out huge tea stain on cream dress. Cue outfit change. 

We're off!

8.00AM 

Hit first traffic jam.

8.30AM

Cleared traffic jam.

8.35AM

Another traffic jam. Start to receive texts from much better organised friends saying they've arrived.

9.30AM

Arrive, be ushered into a car parking space by some very bored looking 'security' staff with incandescent yellow jackets but faces lacking quite the same levels of luminosity.

9.40AM

Registration. Wrongly thought this would be a solitary desk with a register but is a whole funfair of graduation stands - commemorative shot glass anyone? 

(FYI future grads, get here earlier than I did! This is where you get photos, gowns and everything so best not to rush!)

Collect gown. Too big for me and heavier than they look, ideal for the 30 degree weather. Asked by the guy fitting if I brought some safety pins with me to attach gown. Given I paid £50 rent this ill-fitting abominable personal sauna for a couple of hours, I state that I expect to be provided with safety pins, thank you very much.

10.00AM

SAY CHEESE! Photos that will follow me forever about to be taken, no pressure. Living on the edge a bit as ceremony starts in half an hour in a different building. Try my best to avoid Chandlering at the photographer, and holding head very still as hat is way too big for me and my tiny peahead (apparently they don't do kids sizes, I asked).

Photos with the whole clan before wandering back to the main hall, now deserted, and make our way to building where ceremony will be. We've got ten minutes, so ideally we'd be doing a bit of a powerwalk here but this difficult in 6inch heels whilst trying to remain outwardly as calm as possible before Mother has a stress breakdown.

Part 2 to Follow!

How You Know You're Actually Becoming A Grown Up.

I believe I may be in a quarter-life crisis. In the famous words of Brtiney Spears..

I feel ya Britney. I used to think I had the answers to everything too..

Unfortunately, there's no adult enrolment ceremony so I think we have to make up our own rules. Here's my take on life's secret rites of passage to becoming a grown up.

You greet people with a kiss/handshake.
Is it one cheek? Both cheeks? Handshake? Half hug hand shake? OH MY GOD THEY'RE CENTIMETRES AWAY FROM MY FACE AND I CAN'T DECIDE. What happened to a good old fashioned wave?! I think we should adopt the Japanese bow. No tough on the spot decisions to make - and bonus! less germs.

You go out for a drink.
Not even out out. Just a drink, then bed at a sensible hour.

When you do go out out at home, you see your little sister's ex-boyfriends younger cousins.

And you feel old and gross.

You finally understand your parents despair at lights left on.

It's like bloody Blackpool illuminations here!

You have come in from a long day and thought 'Oh God, I need a drink!"

Seein fings written lyk dis makes u die a lil bit inside.
URRRRGGGHHHH. I'll give you a minute to shake that one off.

You no longer have sugar in your tea.
I still have sugar in my tea (one please) and I cling to this to justify my existence as a non-adult.

And if all this isn't enough to catapult you into a quarter life crisis - remember this GROWN UP shows about GROWN UPS and their GROWN UP problems?


Well you're almost the same age as Rachel (24) when she stumbled into everyone's favourite coffee shop on that fateful day..



Sorry!

Positive Procrastination

After refreshing the feed for the fourth time in ten minutes, you still don't care what that girl who left school at 15 is doing with her boyfriend today. Thanks to an intricate and elaborate search of Daily Mail, you now know what every member of TOWIE wore yesterday. And you've now spent your weekly food budget on ASOS.

Maybe it's time for some more productive procrastination?

No one can work all day every day and it's natural to start flagging after a couple of hours. Here's my recommendations of guilt-free procrastination.

1. Guilt Free TV: Documentaries

Bonus points if it's related to your course. As a psychologist this basically stretches to anything involving humans if I'm feeling generous. Although, my exuse for watching Jeremy Kyle to 'understand human issues' has lost some credibility. Seriously though, documentaries make you feel clever and interesting without the actual effort of reading.


2. Phone Mum/Dad/Friend you haven't spoken to in a while.





3. Clean/Tidy

Clean house, clean mind! Super-satisfying and will generally make you feel better about life. You could even end up finding that thing you've been looking for since forever. Plus it might make it easier for your epic moving-out clean looming in a few weeks time.


4. Sell old textbooks/clothes.

Get some cash for the summer. There's the usual suspects, like ebay and amazon, but there's some really useful sites you might not have hear of. Fatbrain will buy your old textbooks for a fixed price, free postage. Vinted is a clothes swapping app where you can buy and sell unwanted clothes, but what make its interesting is that you can swap clothes with other Vinted members too.


5. Try a new fitness class.



You will always feel better about yourself. Worst case scenario if it's horrible, you might actually end up glad you have work to do.. SUCH a shame you can't make it next week, pesky exams.


6. Enter competitions

Bit of a random one, but there are so many free entry competitions, and someone's got to win!

7. Guilt Free Baking

Bringing baked goodies makes you everyones friend. FACT.

My housemate introduced me to a world of guilt-free baking, with recipes that sound odd (replacing butter with vegetables) but really work - especially the chocolate based ones. Practise your best nonchalant domestic goddess voice, for when you tell your revision frazzled hungry new best friends that these brownies are only 27 calories.. http://undressedskeleton.tumblr.com/post/72039348626

Final Year Bucket List

So, there's only a few weeks left of term. Whether you can't wait to get out and get going, or well up at the thought of entering the real world, you will regret not making the most of these final few weeks. And I don't JUST mean drinking the predrinks surplus and dragging yourself to every night out between now and your last exams.

A really easy way to make sure you make the most of the home stretch - write yourself a Final Year Bucket List.  Think of all the things you've said "I've always wanted to do that" while you've been here. What are you waiting for? Here's some ideas that got me started..

- That restaurant you've never eaten at
- The bar/pub you've never drunk at
- The exercise class you've been avoiding
- Any of the things you see in the weekly LSU newsletter, think "that's a nice idea" then never think about again
- Photos in significant places
- Any classic rites of passage
- Course night out

We will never have the freedom we have right now as students; it's a lot harder to spontaneously have a massive night out with your mates when you're expected to function properly at a computer screen for 8 hours in the office. Take every opportunity, because literally YOU ONLY LIVE ONCE (lol couldn't resist) so why the heck not?

Oh and, absolutely get the most of your student discount while you can! Make sure you've signed up to sites like www.myunidays.co.uk, before your summer haul and graduation dress shopping :)


Me and some of my housemates created a list at the start of this year.. here's a sneaky look at some of my progress


Cheerleading trails
French lessons
Kelso
Run 5 miles
Departmental Ball
Tarboush lunch
Spin class (DREADING THIS!)
Get Totty Spotted from behind the bar
DBE
Flix
Naked 400 (we'll see about this one)
Buy Big Issue from woman outside Iceland

So, not the complete list, but you get the idea. Looks like I've got a busy few weeks ahead..

However, there is no excuse to wear this. Ever.

D-Day. Or not..

It's here! Dissertation hand in day! Roll on the timeline full of shiny bound reports, and alcoholic beverages

Here's the main five things I've learnt from doing my dissertation..

5. Actually what my dissertation is about.

Probably deserves a mention. Yep, I did actually learn a little bit about how adult experiencers of parental divorce feel about love and marriage. Yay, Knowledge!

4. Academia is kind of a mammoth task.

Six months, ten interviews and 17372718482842 zillion journal articles later and I barely feel like I've scratched the surface! Every question has so many avenues to explore before you can even begin to deliver a justifiable answer. Urgh. Respect to all the profs out there. Definitely not for me though, thank you.

3. I love the person who invented the synonym button.

You know exactly what I mean, I don't think I even need to say anything to show demonstrate illustrate it.

2. 'Dissertation' means you now have a safe conversation topic with almost any other final year.

It's the "what hall are you in" of final year! Strange, but you would never see a drama student and an engineering student comparing coursework notes, but suddenly they're in the same boat. Dissertation; bringing final years together. How lovely.

Although it is always awkward when you get an over enthusiastic reply  to a polite "how's your diss going?", and find yourself head first into the difficulties designing the hydro-collic-techno-vehicle-engine (soz design/engineering students, I do psychology give me a break).

1. It's just a big piece of coursework.

Really, it is. I can't say I feel like an accomplished academic, and my wisdom  teeth haven't suddenly sprouted. But, I worked hard and I'm proud of my project, so I'm off for lunch and some cocktails.

Go on, post your obligatory diss photo, sit back, and watch the likes rack up and you enjoy your well deserved night off!

Here's mine :)