Well three weeks at Uni has officially switched my body clock to that of a nocturnal being…going to bed before the very early hours is a complete waste of time! Apparently the best part of the day is the very beginning! I find it so hard to believe I have actually only been here for three weeks – already it seems like I’ve known everyone forever and moving-in day and Freshers’ Week are but a distant blur (as they should be, right?!). In true student style I and the majority of my NBFs (New Best Friends) spent every night of week one (and most nights since!) out meeting fellow first years. I have learnt many valuable lessons recently including: 1) Sambuca shots are very bad for you. 2) At a Playboy Mansion Party you will (inevitably) have your little white bunny tail stolen by some predatory second or third year male. 3) It pays to befriend second and third year students – invitations to off campus house parties can never be a bad thing. 4) Only a student can experience true happiness in the form of 13p noodles and 15p baked beans (thank you Aldi!). 5) It pays to chat enthusiastically to the taxi driver who ensures you get back to campus – they are more than happy to offer extra discount to amiable passengers. 6) Goodricke College accommodation block “C” is more commonly known as “Cell Block C” for a good reason (seventeen people between one kitchen, four toilets and three showers combined with breeze block walls and the occasional leaking roof when heavy rain sets in…). 7) The novelty value of the multitudes of geese and ducks on campus does, eventually, wear off. Starting back at the old studying again has been tough to say the least. My last A Level was over three months ago and since then I’ve put pen to paper only to scrawl the occasional postcard or shopping list. Having my first essay assignment generously handed to me in week two and being told I had just under a week to complete it came as a slight surprise. That, combined with the list of reading to complete before each seminar has been enough to shock me into settling down to work fairly early on in my degree course. At least that’s what I told my parents in the last email update I sent them. I’ll let them live under the illusion that their money and my student loan is being spent in the most beneficial way possible for a little while longer…you never know, it could happen. Rachel Thompson | 
