I miss uni :(

So, Clearing is well underway, the new team members are in the office and all is well except…I miss uni :( It’s so weird, the majority of my best friends are getting ready to start their second or third year in September and are beginning to receive their timetables and finalise accommodation, and I’m…just…here :( I miss the stress of deadlines and sense of purpose and direction; I’ll still be around for cheerleading, but it’s not the same :( University is a wonderful experience, folks! Don’t take any of your time for granted! 

On a brighter note, I’m off to the Dominican Republic in less than a month; 40 degrees plus, here I commmme :D It’s been said many a time that I’m a tropical creature :) Give me sun, sand, a body of water, a book, some music and a mojito and I’m happy :D Okay so that’s actually quite a list but, still!

I hope everyone’s been enjoying their summer and for those of you who recently received you’re A Level results: CONGRATULATIONS!! If you didn't do as well as you’d hoped, never fear! It’s honestly not the end of the world, and there are more routes to your chosen degree and/or career than you might think!

So, I know how desperate you all are to see Eric’s progression, so without further ado, here he is:

He’s amaaaaazing! Full credit to my supervisor, Spencer, of course :) I’m thinking of growing some cress; not quite as ambitious as an avocado plant, perhaps, but still – I really like it in sandwiches with ham or egg!

As I've been working full time lately I don’t really have much to tell you all about :( Besides the fact I miss university, of course…Ooh – I’m going to Carnival on bank holiday Monday! Woohoooo! :D I’ll be sure to take some pictures for you for my next blog :)

Until next time, see ya later, alligators! :)

I graduated!

As the title suggests, this month’s blog is going to be about my graduation :D

I can proudly say I graduated on Wednesday 24^th July 2013 at 2:45pm with an Upper Second Class Honours (2:1) in Business Psychology :)

One thing I will say is that the day itself is pretty long. You are advised to turn up an hour and a half before your allotted ceremony time, and I’d recommend you turn up even sooner – I arrived at 12:45 and had plenty of time to collect my gown, get my professional photos taken, relax and have something to eat, and get to the Chapel where my ceremony was held.

Another thing to note with regards to organisation is the importance of ordering your gown and pre-paid photography package(s) in good time. Working in the Enquiry Unit, I had one lady phone on a Tuesday saying that her ceremony was on the Thursday and that she hadn’t ordered her gown and didn’t know what to do! The University of Greenwich don’t provide the graduation gowns or professional photography (it’s all done via Ede & Ravenscroft, London's oldest tailor and robe maker: http://www.edeandravenscroft.co.uk/) so there wasn’t much I could advise besides contacting Ede & Ravenscroft!

In order to avoid a similar situation, our students are advised to order their gowns at least three weeks prior to graduation. This gives Ede & Ravenscroft enough time to put your personalised order together and get it to the correct campus on graduation day.

So, what’s next for me? Well I have this job in the Enquiry Unit until September/October time, then after that I need to find another job! I’m thinking of doing some more clerical/administrative work until I work out what I’d really like to do; I’m toying with the idea of starting my own business, but it’s really hard work and I’m terrified of failing! I shall keep you posted on the job front! :)

To conclude this fortnight’s blog: Eric :)

Here’s how he looks now:

He’s certainly recovered well after his minor accident during transportation! :)

Until next time folks…

:)

Clearing

Helloooo, readers :)

Another fortnight, another blog! :) How have you all been?

As you may or may not know, we are now officially in the Clearing phase of the UCAS application cycle (and have been since July 1^st). We've already taken lots of applications, but I know this is nothing compared to the torrent of applications that’ll be made come A-Level Results day!

If you’d like to keep track of what’s going on with the University of Greenwich over Clearing, please feel free to check out our Clearing Diary, where a different member of the Enquiry Unit will be blogging every day until the end of Clearing: http://greenwich-clearing2013.blogspot.co.uk/

Another interesting link for any of you interested in joining us to study is this one: http://www.ucas.com/apply/key-dates It gives you all of the key dates in the UCAS cycle, so even if you miss out on joining us this academic year, you can be well prepared for the 2014 intake :)

So, what else is new? Oh, did I tell you what I’m graduating with? I don’t think I did…a 2:1!! I’m so pleased! I honestly thought I’d be getting a 2:2 as I took on far too much this year, but it seems I’m not so poor at managing my workload after all!!

I am very proud to say that alongside attaining a 2:1 in BA Hons Business Psychology, I have been an active member of the University of Greenwich Cheerleading Squad for three years, a very successful Social Secretary and member of the Cheer committee for one year (organising a tremendously successful fund raiser, initiations, socials and tour), an enthusiastic Senior Student Ambassador and Enquiry Unit Assistant (recently promoted to Senior Clearing Assistant) and a popular candidate in the Student Union Elections during the time I ran. I’m not telling you these things for the sake of promoting myself to you all – I’m telling you this so you can see that the possibilities at university are endless!! It is indeed possible to juggle your degree, a job, and your social life and excel in each and every category!

I've said this in previous posts and I’ll say it again, folks – university (and life!) is what you make it! University is so much more than a degree – it is an opportunity to gain skills and experience that, combined with your degree, make you far more employable than a multitude of other candidates going for the same jobs as you in the future. Not to mention all of the friends you make along the way! They are the people on your course, in your halls of residence, at work and in any sports club or society you may join – really putting yourself out there is a great way to network and make friends that you never would have known otherwise :)

How to end this fortnight’s blog? With Eric, of course! Here he is aged approximately 11 weeks:

He had more leaves, but they fell/were broken off during transit (from our usual Enquiry Unit office on Southwood Site to the big Clearing office on Mansion Site) :( Still – he remains alive and seems to be recovering nicely :)

Until next time, my lovelies :)

Dee xx

Clearing starting soon :)

Hello all!

Another fortnight, another blog! I have a couple of updates for you today :) So, on July 1^st, Clearing starts, and the Enquiry Unit office moves into a bigger building to accommodate all the extra staff :) Clearing is always very busy, but I’m looking forward to meeting my new colleagues :) All of the existing staff will be contributing to the 2013 Clearing Diary – I’ll post a link to that blog page once it’s fully up and running :)

What else is new? Well, I finally joined the gym! Hahaaaa! I’ve now got access until this time next year, and if any current students are reading this, if you act now, you can pay £100 for full use of the University of Greenwich gym (in the Dome, Avery Hill campus) from the day you pay until the same day next year :) It’s a bargain, really! Far cheaper than you could expect to pay at any non-university gym and the facilities aren’t bad! I've been a handful of times already and plan on continuing to go three times a week – I’ve got two holidays coming up and want to look my best! Here’s some more information on the gym if any of you are interested: http://www.gre.ac.uk/about/sports/ahdome

Oh! I promised to keep you posted on Eric’s progress, didn’t I? (For those of you who don’t already know, Eric is the avocado seed that one of my supervisor’s has planted – read last fortnight’s blog for more information! :D) Well Eric is coming along nicely :) He’s been in a pot with some soil for the past couple of weeks, and he’s due to be re-potted within the next few days; here are some progress photos:

As I promised before, I shall continue to keep you undated each fortnight :)

Back to meeee! I went to the cinema a couple of times this month with my best friend (and colleague) Kelty (http://gre-kelty.blogspot.com/); she’s a Sky customer so gets free tickets to film previews. We saw “Stuck in Love” and “The Internship”. “Stuck in Love” was alright…a nice storyline with some funny bits but fairly predictable to be honest; I wouldn't pay to watch it.

“The Internship” on the other hand is SO GOOD!! It’s hilarious!! It’s stars Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson, and I would pay to watch this multiple times! The film is basically about two middle-aged men who apply for an internship at Google. The storyline has a great balance of comedy, sorrow, romance and action, and you should definitely go and see it for yourselves :)

Unfortunately that’s it for this fortnight! It seems I've run out of interesting things to say! I’m sure I’ll have more by next time – I always do! ;)

Until next time, folks!

xxx

Summer Ball

Hello all :)

So what to tell you about this fortnight? Hmm..well last week I went to the University of Greenwich’s Summer Ball; this was held in Ministry of Sound and was really good! I’d never been there before and it’s pretty big!! Rudimental performed alongside our regular Student Union DJs and, naturally, they were all amazing :) As usual my friends and I were the ones dancing on the speakers :D hahaaaaa I don’t know what it is – anywhere we go, the minute we see speakers or any sort of raised platform, we’re all over it!! I have no idea if any photos were taken inside the club, but here’s one of some of us on the train there :)

What else have I been up to? Life is pretty quiet now that’s university’s over…I've just been working here in the enquiry unit and trying to decide what car to buy at the end of summer with the money I plan on saving! I currently drive a 2002 Ford Fiesta (named Betty) and I've had her for four years! I desperately NEED this car in my life:

Here is the link to it on Autotrader just in case any of you lovely readers want to buy it for me:

http://www2.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201203010230565/sort/default/usedcars/model/r8/make/audi/onesearchad/used/onesearchad/nearlynew/onesearchad/new/page/1/radius/1501/quicksearch/true/postcode/se207pq?logcode=p

*I WILL LOVE YOU FOREVER!!*

OOH – I know what to talk about!! Basically, one of my colleagues in the enquiry unit (Spencer) ate an avocado at the beginning of May and decided to “plant” the stone and try to make it grow. I was very sceptical initially, but guess what!?? IT’S GROWING!! He (the avocado) has officially been names Eric, and I shall take progress photos for each fortnight so you can see how he’s doing :) Here he is at approximately seven weeks old:

Speaking of growing things, I’d love to have a proper garden one day. I currently live dans le petit appartement avec mes parents, and one day I’d like to live in a lovely house with a lovely garden so I can grow lovely vegetables and flowers and have a lovely herb box on my windowsill and it will be just lovely ^^ Loooool I’ll plant things like pumpkin and tomatoes, bluebells and alstroemeria, mint and rosemary :) It will be lovely!!

My dad used to have an allotment, actually. I decided one day that I wanted my own little patch to work on, so dad gave me the fork and away I went, digging up one small corner of earth…until I unearthed a worm and some earwigs :( I quickly decided I didn’t want my own patch anymore :( Hahaaaa! To be fair, I was only about 7! Or maybe 9? I don’t remember exactly…my mom’s really good with plants :) She always remembers to feed and water and rotate them so they last years! I hope I’ll be as good with my garden someday :)

Oh how could I forget!? I went to Wales! Cardiff, to be precise :) It was SO NICE! I had to capitalise that just to indicate HOW nice it was!! With all due respect, I didn’t think it was going to be as pleasant as it was! Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t think it was going to be UNpleasant, but everyone was so friendly and the weather was amazing – we were very fortunate! I went there with Kelty (whose blog I always encourage you to read: http://gre-kelty.blogspot.co.uk/) to visit one of our best friends (Caitlin) from Secondary School. On the Saturday we went on a boat trip at Cardiff Bay, and we all caught the sun; it was so hot! :) Over the weekend we also enjoyed face masks, a wander around town, frolicking in the park (yes – frolicking!!) and bubble tea ^^ For those of you who don’t know about bubble tea, it’s about time you got to knowwww!!

I have had bubble tea in four different places so far, and here are my reviews:

1. SM Fairview (Manila, The Philippines) – I’ve been having bubble tea whenever I go there since I was 10(ish), and it’s amazing (as the majority of food in the Philippines is) :)
2. HK Diner, China Town (London, England) – Just like in the Philippines, amazing :) Sweet and slushy, and really taste like the stated flavours.
3. Bubbleology, Westfield (Stratford, England) – Rubbish. Instead of being thick like a smoothie, this tea is literally like cold, fruity tea and has a weird, herbal aftertaste.
4. Bubblebase, Queens Arcade [sic]  (Cardiff, Wales) – Nice :) Not as good as proper Asian bubble tea as it is still pure liquid, but the flavour is good and the tapioca “bubbles” are cooked well :)

I hope these reviews help, and I think that’s quite enough babbling for one fortnight!

I hope this blog has been entertaining – ¡Hasta luego!

The next step

Cheerleading is finally done and dusted for this year :( Sad times :( I’d say it’s the end of an era, but I’ll be back next year anyway so I’m not too devastated :) I just need to work on improving my fitness and flexibility over the summer!

Ooh, in addition to Cheer next year, I’m really keen to try American Football! I know I’m only 4’11.5”, but it seems like a lot of fun! I’m going to go and try out the first few sessions (if they don’t clash with Cheer) and see how I get on; if I get toooo battered and bruised then I’ll stick to Cheerleading ^^ As I won’t be working for the university by then I won’t have my university blog to keep you all updated, but I may well start up a personal blog, just to keep you posted :)

So, I suppose now it’s all finally over I need to start working out what to do with my life. I have decided to try and plan the next three years just to get me started, and what I’ve got in store is really exciting!! First thing’s first: I NEED to get a job at the end of September. I’m moving back into my parents’ house tomorrow so I won’t have any rent or big bills to pay, but I’m a lady of leisure who likes to eat out (see my previous blog!) and spend ridiculous amounts on shoes and clothes! Okay, so in addition to getting a job I’m going to need to learn to seriously curb my spending habits – I need to save save SAAAVE! In a couple of years I’m looking to go travelling, so I’ll need money for that…here’s where I’d love to go:

Australia (9 months – I’d love to work there)

• New Zealand (2 months)
• Fiji (1 month)
• Latin America (1 year – literally start at the bottom in Chile and work my way up through every single country until I end up in Mexico)
• America (3 months – ROADDD TRIPPPP)
• Canada (9 months – I’d love to work there as well!)

As you can see, this is going to take a lot of time to plan and money to execute, but I know it will all be worth it in the end (if I actually go ahead with it)! In order to prepare I’ve been looking into CELTA courses (CELTA is an internationally recognised “Teaching English as a Foreign Language” qualification) and would also like to learn some languages. I did French and Russian at school, and would love to get back into them! Additionally I’d like to learn Spanish and Portuguese. So now you see why I need a job, eh?

Life after university doesn’t seem SO scary now I have a rough plan, but it’s still a bit daunting! What if something comes up? What if I invest time and money in a course and then change my mind? What if, what if, what if? Owwhhh okay maybe I am still scared :( Damn!

Right, well I’m off to stew in my own panicked thoughts now lol, so I shall have to say au revoir until next time – hopefully next fortnight’s blog will be better, full of fun and happy thoughts ^^

Take care, possums! Baiiiiii ^^ 

The end is nigh!

He-LLOOOOOOO, blog readers :)

Long time no read, eh? Sorry about that – I've had yet another crazy month of deadlines and such, but now it’s finally all over! I had my last ever exam on Monday 13th May 2013, and I am officially done and dusted with my degree! It’s such a relief, but also a bit surreal at the same time; what do I do now? Fortunately I have my work here at the Enquiry Unit up until September, and cheerleading is on for the next two weeks, so I have something to bide my time with for now…

This month is indeed a sad month; at the end of it I have to move out of my house in Blackheath :( It literally feels like I’ve just moved in, and the past seven months have just flown by… I've grown fondly accustomed to seeing my housemates every day, and suddenly living without them is going to be something to get used to :( Still, it was one of their birthdays last fortnight, and two of them are celebrating their birthdays next week, so we’ll have had lots of time celebrating together by the time we all part ways! :)

So what else is new? Hmm…ooh I’m going to Wales at the end of this month! :D One of my best friends from secondary school graduated last year with a degree in food (okay that’s not the official name of the degree but never mind loool) and is now working in a cake production factory in Cardiff :) A CAKE FACTORY! She spends many of her shifts tasting cake and giving development feedback – what a cool job! I’d definitely get fat, though! I have noooo self-control when it comes to cake! Hahaaa :P

But yeah, my trip to Wales will be the first of a few trips this year; I’m going to Spain for my uncle’s birthday in August, and Dominican Republic with my family in September :) I’m soooo excited! I’m a tropical creature at heart and I love a bit of sun, sea, and sand! :D I’m hoping to find time to go on a party holiday as well, but we shall see! :)

As we are nearing the end of the academic year, our friend, Mariner and photographer, Patrick Hollins came in and took some squad photos for us:

We’re really hoping to recruit some great new members next year :) (Although I’m graduating, I’m still coming back for cheer)

As you may or may not know I LOVE food. So, just to show you all what a piglet I am, I’ve compiled a list for you of the places I've eaten out at JUST THIS MONTH – hahaaaaaa (I’ve included links and mini-reviews just in case any of you are interested):

-  McDonald’s (Multiple times)

-  KFC (A few times)

-  Tozi (This is an AMAZING – albeit pretentious – restaurant in Victoria!)

    http://www.tozirestaurant.co.uk/

-  Blue Elephant (This is an AMAAAAAZING Thai place in Imperial Wharf – I would eat here 100 times  over!)

   http://www.blueelephant.com/london/

-  Frankie and Benny’s

-  TGI Friday’s

-  Chip shop (More than once, I’m sure!)

-  Jimmy’s World Bar and Grill (Absolutely awful – certainly not worth £17.00. It’s like a disgusting version of Cosmo’s on Croydon which is sooooo good)

   http://www.jimmysworldgrill.co.uk/

   http://www.cosmo-restaurants.co.uk/find.php?rst_id=26

-  Wetherspoon’s

-  Papa John’s

-  Tea and Tattle (A teeny tiny tea and sandwich shop underneath a bookstore in London – overpriced, but yummy ^^)

    http://www.apandtea.co.uk/

-  Upper Crust

-  Trafalgar Tavern (This is in Greenwich, and where this year’s Sports Awards were held; the starter and dessert were disappointing, but the main course was alright)

    http://www.trafalgartavern.co.uk/

There are some I've missed off, I’m sure! But there is a snapshot of my life as a hungry hippo :) I just thought I’d share the list with you as I, personally, am astounded LOL

Now, with regards to Sports Awards, this is basically an end of year ceremony where students are awarded “colours” for their dedication to a sports team, and sports teams are recognised for their achievements throughout the year. CHEERLEADING WAS VOTED CLUB OF THE YEARRRR!! :D Words cannot express how happy I am! All of our hard work and dedication really has paid off :)

On another cheer-related note, I have officially given up my position as Social Secretary of the University of Greenwich Cheerleading :( Basically, non-students of the university aren't allowed a committee position, and as I graduate this year, two new girls were voted in (we decided to have two instead of one in order to lighten the workload). I’m very sad, but I know my successors will do a great job :) Plus, I’ll still be around for cheer next year so I plan on remaining very much involved! :P May I present to you the two Social Secretaries for the Greenwich Mermaids 2013/14:

Anyhoo, I think that’s quite enough for one blog, folks! Until next time…xx 

My birthday!

Hello again, sloths!

Right, so you’ve had the serious blog, now it’s time for the FUN BLOGGGGG :D I have SOOOOO much to fill you in on :) Where to begin?? Hmm..let’s talk about my birthday and TOUR TOUR TOUR!! :D

So, the time for tour fiiiiinally rolled around, and it was so much fun! We went to Rimini in Italy, and went by coach; the journey there was around 26 hours (I think), and by the end of it we were all very glad to get off! We drove to Folkestone and got the Eurotunnel to France, and from there we drove through Switzerland and then through Italy until we reached Rimini :) Switzerland was so pretty!! There were snow-topped mountains everywhere :)

ANYWAY, let me finally reveal to you the fancy dress themes I arranged for the cheerleaders :D

Night one was American Indians :)

Night two was army night (football did this theme as well :))

Night three was “ratchet”

Night four was toga night (we did this with American football :))

Whaddya think? :D All the stress paid off! Ooh our Varsity jackets came as well :) They look really good so I’ll try and get a decent picture for you in my next blog :)

Tour was seriously so much fun; we competed for one day, then spent the rest of the time on the beach, wandering around the shops, partying, and generally just having an amazing time :D I’m definitely going next year! All of the girls are buzzing for next year already as well :D

Ooh let’s talk about my birthday; I’m finally 22! It’s so weird, not being 21 anymore…I think I like it…I feel older and wiser! Well, okay maybe not much wiser looool :P My actual birthday was really nice; I celebrated it on tour, and my lovely cheer girls got me a shout out from behind the bar, and I don’t remember too much of the night, so that indicated to me that the night was a success! :P

I honestly feel like the most spoilt girl in the world, though; I’m having so many different celebrations:

Tour

Meal with my Momma

Meal with both of my parents

Meal with my friends from Secondary school

Party with my uni friends and housemates

Plus everyone keeps giving me cards and presents! They've all come as a shock as I wasn't expecting anything! I feel so loved! I’m in such a happy place right now it almost seems too good to be true!

I’m dreading graduating as much as I’m looking forward to it >< My whole university experience has been the best, and I can’t stress to you all enough the importance of making the most of it! Sports teams may not be your thing, but consider joining a society or even starting your own! University really is what you make of it, and I’ve met some of my best friends through cheerleading.

Whilst university is primarily about obtaining a degree, I really feel it’s about developing as a person as well. When I leave the University of Greenwich, I won’t only have a degree, but I’ll have valuable work experience under my belt (from working in the enquiry unit here), leadership and events’ experience (as a result of being Social Secretary of Cheerleading), three years’ sports team participation and an amazing group of friends who I know I’ll have for life.

The moral of today’s blog is that university is what you make of it. Don’t look back on your three/four years and think, “So I have a degree, but I wish I’d achieved more.”

*Boston accent* I love yaz!! I’ll aspeak ta yaz later! ;)

xxx

Dissertation Essentials

Okay, so I only wrote one blog in March, so let me make it up to you with some super-duper April blogs now :)

I have SO MUCH to tell you all!!

Right. First thing’s first: DISSERTATION. So as you know already, I was stressing out and panicking over my dissertation, as quite frankly I had left it until the last minute. I was working right up until the deadline, and although I've finally submitted, I’m well aware that the quality of my work is not as high as I am capable of :( Dissertations vary across schools, and as my friend Kelty (http://gre-kelty.blogspot.co.uk/) has written about her Psychology dissertation, I think it’s only fair that you get an insight into the dissertation process in the Business School.

At the end of your second year, you are advised to start thinking of topics and doing some preliminary research in preparation for third year; TAKE THIS ADVICE!! The more prepared you are early on, the smoother your dissertation will go and the less stressed you will end up.

When selecting your dissertation supervisor, the process in the Business School is completely different from the School of Health and Social Care (Psychology falls under that bracket); instead of writing down who you want, you have a tutorial sign-up. It is down to you to select the tutorial slot online, and whoever the tutor is for that slot will become your dissertation supervisor; the main disadvantage of this, of course, is that if you want a particular person, you have to select their tutorial slot, even if it is at 5:00PM on a Friday afternoon. One thing to note, however, is that after the first term there are no more dissertation tutorials, and you just meet with your supervisor as and when you schedule appointments.

Once back at university in the September of your third year, you begin to finalise your chosen topic and start formulating a research question. In the Business School there are two dissertation “models” you can choose from: Model A and Model B. A Model A dissertation requires the author (you) to actually go out and conduct primary research, process the data and analyse the results. Model B, on the other hand, requires the author to gather and analyse existing research on the chosen topic in order to answer the author’s research question. My dissertation was on corruption in the Philippine government and its effects on health care, education and human trafficking; I chose the Model B approach and this resulted in me reading through well over 40 articles related to my research question – THIS IS NOT UNUSUAL SO BE PREPARED FOR THIS!!

The longest part of the dissertation is the literature review, which (for the Business School) is due before the Christmas break. It is 4,000 words long (3,000 if you are doing Model A), and requires the author to outline a vast number of articles related to the research question and assess how helpful they will be in answering the research question. After the literature review is the methodology; this is where you must select six of the thirty/forty/fifty-something articles in your literature review for deeper analysis (there must be rhyme and reason to your selection – you cannot just choose six at random). You must not only analyse the six articles in their own right, but you must compare them with one another and comment on the differences and similarities in the research methods and findings. Once this is done you can move on to write up your findings. This is a 3,000 word section and is actually one of the easiest parts of the dissertation! By this point you should be very familiar with your research topic, so writing about it is relatively straightforward.

Naturally, you end with a conclusion, and then it’s usually at this point that most people write their introduction! This may seem strange, but by this stage you know what your dissertation covers, and you also have background knowledge on the topic, so writing the introduction is easy.

The best pieces of advice I can give when doing your dissertation are:

• Plan early
• Be organised
• Regularly meet with your supervisor and take their advice
• Choose a topic you are extremely interested in!

I hope all of this helps – please familiarise yourselves with this now so you are less stressed in the long-run!

Don’t say I never look out for you guys! ;)

Until the next blog, folks!

xxx

Work work work!

Hello all! Sorry for the delay in getting this fortnight’s blog to you; I've been trying to catch up with my dissertation work! It’s due March 21^st, but I've set myself a deadline on March 19^th – just to be on the safe side!

As much as I tend to thrive under pressure, I must say I wish I’d done more work sooner :( Most students will say this, and we never seem to learn! Priorities, eh? Well I've finally done my methodology (which should have been done about a month ago :\) and I've got a meeting with my supervisor today, so I’m quite nervous as to what he’ll have to say! I can’t wait to just get this all out of the way!

Hopefully I’ll get this work plus another essay (which I've done half of) done by the 19^th, then I can go out for the first of three of my birthday celebrations on the 20^th, relax and pack on the 21^st, pre-tour party on the 22^nd, then TOURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR on the 23^rd!! :D

I’d like to say I’m excited for tour, but I've just go so much work to do! Once the 19^th rolls around I can finally get on it!! :D I've finalised all the fancy dress outfits (all the sports teams from all the universities dress up each night on tour), so I just need to submit the order later on today :) I hope it all arrives in time!! ><

Ohhh I can’t wait for graduation! My mom’s already started dress-shopping for the occasion! She’s too cute looool :) I've mentioned to her that once I graduate I’d really like this charm for my Links bracelet:

It’s a graduation owl!! How cute!?

At some point I also plan on getting a Star of David for my charm bracelet; I’m convinced I’m part Jewish, y’see :) My dad thinks so too :) My great granddad was from Austria, so it’s certainly a possibility! Even if I’m not part Jew, I’m fascinated by the Holocaust and firmly believe we should never forget the horrors that happened :( I can’t stand prejudice and discrimination and it makes me so sad that it still exists in society today :( I guess this charm will just be a reminder to me to be lovely :)

What else to report? Hmm..ooh cheer has been really fun these past two weeks :) I've been basing for once with one of my best friends – at 4’11.5” I've been too short to base before as no-one else was anywhere near my height. But, Amy is 5’0” so we’re a perfect match!! Last night we based our other best friend, Laura; she’s 6’1”!!

Ta-daaaaaa :D

Unfortunately that’s all for now, folks – hopefully my next blog will be filled with me gushing about finishing my work and having a blasted good time relaxing!! :D

Until next time, au revoir! <3

Panic!

Hello folks!

So, as promised, here is an update on the University of Greenwich Mermaids’ recent cheer competition! We left Avery Hill on Friday 22^nd February at 5:00PM and arrived in Loughborough at around 7:00/8:00PM. We had dinner and got settled into our hotel rooms relatively early as we had to be up on Saturday at 5:00AM! It’s surprising how chirpy some of us were that morning considering the time!! On Saturday our dance group performed, and I can safely say they did us proud! Whilst they came last in their category, the dance was amazing and everybody in the crowd was screaming and cheering them on! :) Our day was done by around 3:00PM and, once back the hotel, I took a lovely nap before dinner :D Here are some photos of our amazing dancers:

Saturday evening was really fun, as we sat doing our nails (navy, white and gold, naturally) and practiced quiffing each other’s hair :D Yet again, it was bed before midnight again for the majority of us, as we had to be up at 4:30AM :( When we arrived at Loughborough University at 6:30AM, the nerves had really started to set in! We were the fourth in our category to perform, and we were very relieved once it was over! In the cheer competitions you get to perform twice, and it’s the higher of the two scores that the judges use to rank you; our second performance of the day was much neater, but some stunts still went a bit wrong :( Alas, WE DIDN’T COME LASSSSSSST!!! AHHAAAAAAA!! For the first time EVER, out of four competitions (dance and cheer) we DIDN’T COME LAST! We came 23^rd out of 24 squads in our category, and whilst that sounds rubbish, we couldn't be more pleased!! :D

Here are some photos from the day:

The coach home took FOREVER!! We were literally on it for over five hours :( I was so pleased when we finally got back to campus!

Now that’s all over, it’s time for me to focus on university work once again; I am so far behind, I am terrified! But, I always seem to pull it out of the bag at the last minute, so I’ll keep you updated on my progress!!

As you already know, I live in Blackheath at the moment in a house with four other girls; I have to move out at the end of May and I’m really quite sad about it :( I get on really well with my housemates, and have grown close to one in particular, and knowing that I’m not going to be seeing them on a daily basis makes me feel sad :( Of course, I’ll be moving back in with my parents so will be saving LOADS of money each month, but I’m certainly going to miss living with friends! :( Oh the qualms of being a third year student! :P

I believe that’s all for this fortnight, my dears! Next time I’ll fill you in on coursework progress, tour preparation (hopefully) and whatever other weird and wonderful things fill my time :)

Adios, amigos! :)

Very Happy Bunny :)

Hello all!! Time for your fortnightly update on my life as a University of Greenwich student :)

First off, let’s talk about the recent cheerleaders’ fund raiser! The night was an absolute success, and we managed to raise around £800! Prior to the fund raiser, the SU agreed that for every £100 we raise ourselves (up to the value of £500), they’ll match, so we now have £1,000 in our development fund!! The rest of the money will probably be spent on some new speakers (girls keep having to bring speakers to practice which is a bit of a pain), tour and Disneyland :)

I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned Disneyland to you before, have I? Well basically there are some girls who didn’t want to go on tour this year, so they’re going to Disneyland Paris instead :) Never let it be said that we (committee) don’t take care of our Mermaids! :D

Anyway, back to the fund raiser :) The night started off well, as the girls did an amazing job of helping me decorate Sparrow’s – I only wish I’d taken some more photos!! We had red velvet curtains at the entrance, black tablecloths scattered with diamonds (albeit fake ones!), top hat and bow tie confetti and pink balloons ^^ The more I type the more annoyed I am that I didn’t take pictures of all of these things! I was in such a panic that night that I didn’t even think!

Well, I certainly got pictures of all of us…here you go:

Besides selling tickets in advance and on the door, we raised money by face painting, pin the tail on the bunny and taking photos of people on a throne surrounded by bunnies :) The throne was a real masterpiece; I went to Secondary school with one of my Mermaids, so I knew she was very creative – I asked her to make me a throne, and boy did she deliver!?? It was AH. MAY. ZING. AMAZING!! No exaggeration!! Here are the before and after photos:

Seeeee!? Genius!

Moving on, our first Cheerleading competition of the year is less than two weeks away!! It’s February 23^rd – 24^th in Loughborough, and I’m terrified! We’re entering two cheer groups (Level One and Two) and one dance group (Hip Hop) and I feel sorry for the girls in all three groups! I’m in the level one and two cheer groups, and remembering all of the stunts, dance moves, tumbling and transitions for those is enough without having to learn another dance routine! I just hope we can all pull it off! As always, I shall keep y’all updated :) For now, here are some photos of our new uniforms; they arrived yesterday!! :D

Ooooooh how could I forget!?? PANCAKE DAY! I hope you all had a yummy day! :) I won’t lie to you, I ate five. FIVE!! Haaaaaa I desperately want that Summer body but food is my LIFE! Okay, well maybe not my liiiife…but I am very passionate about it! Pancakes with sugar and lemon – mm. mm. mmmmmm! Not that I need an excuse to eat pancakes – I had some in Bromley the other day at a restaurant called, “Joe’s Kitchen” :) LOL they came with banana, blueberries, strawberries and maple syrup ^^ What. A. Pig. :D

Here’s a picture of some Skittle-coloured pancakes for your visual pleasure :)

What else is new with me? Hmm…ooh I’m really getting back into reggaeton/Latin music again! Here are a couple of my favourites right now – go have a cheeky listen! :)

- Ai se eu tu pego [Michel Teló] <-- This is in Portugese

- Agua [Osmani Garcia] <-- The guy who sings this is Cuban

 
I hope all of the photos and song suggestions keep you entertained until next time! That’s all for now, folks! See ya later, alligators…x