Forever more.

It's been a while. How fast this first year at uni has gone by is almost inconceivable.

It seems strange to be writing this now, first year complete when the last post I wrote my journey had just began. A week ago, after finishing my exams, I would be telling you about the wonderful year I had experienced. This entry would be so different to the one I am now writing.

But everything seems so trivial now. This year will always be remembered by this week.

I could not imagine this would be it. I cannot begin to understand what has happened. How suddenly our lives have changed. And I don't think we will ever understand. I do not have words, I want to have words, but I cannot find them.

This can't be it. I don't know how to do this. I don't know how to accept it. Come back, please.

Living the uni life

Just starting the third week now, and the hard work begins. This afternoon I have 2-6pm of physical geog lectures which should be um fun.. That is if I even get there as I'm sat waiting for R to eat his luncheon. Boys. More to follow, time for geog... X

Tomorrow is the day..

... I go to Durham!

Feeling rather excited now although there is still clothes packing to be done. Lots of tears from the little sister last night which was heart breaking. Gonna miss not seeing her practically everyday. But sadly we all have to grow up and move on sometime. Will see her in a few weeks when she comes to visit though :-) Now, to hold off my own tears tomorrow when she waves goodbye!

However, I am excited to get my gown tomorrow and to meet everyone.

Let's begin this next chapter.... x

Final week at home

This time next week I'll just be polishing off my first formal dinner at Durham. Tres exciting!

Gonna be manic week getting everything together and saying my goodbyes but looking forward to it now! My horoscope also sounded promising, suggesting happiness found in new vistas and big change on the horizon.

So here's to the future and the start of a new chapter.. X

ethiopia book finally complete

Alas, my book is finished! Has only taken 2 and a half months... I'm glad I've put it together now as having the photographs is great, but sometimes you want more than that. And some of the memories really do make me smile.

This is one of my favourite pages. Remember that night after the bridge incident only too well! We were all pretty ready for bed, only to be treated to a late night dancing session around a campfire following an alcoholic drink I now know to be called Raki... Not that I need to remind myself but a word of warning to anyone- never ever drink this 45% alcohol drink. Oh the memories!

expect the unexpected x

Last party before pastures new

How can a person be so tired yet so awake? Sleeping pattern needs to get itself in check ASAP.
However, feeling rather excited for tonight- our last QM party before everyone heads off to pastures new. And none of us will ever be the same really. If we have parties in a few years or even next year, we will all have changed in some way as we have started the new chapter of our lives. It's sad when you realise that now we aren't in class together, there isn't really much to talk about aside from old memories. I can count on my one hand the people I know I will stay in touch with and it sucks, but that's just life. So tonight is all about celebrating our last 7 years together ready to go out and face the world. Because now is our time.

And I am really feeling a good party. They say alcohol is never the answer but it seems to be calling out for tonight. I'm letting go.

long time no speak

Okay, what can I say. It really has been a while! I often say to myself ooh, I know, I should write this on my blog.. but you know what it's like. Time is a funny old thing.

Hmm so what is new? Well, what isn't new since my last post?! Last time I wrote I was still doing those dreaded exams. Even that feels like a lifetime ago now looking back. I then subsequently spent the rest of the summer trying not to think about the lil buggers and everytime my brain started to over-analyse and freak out about looming results I would swiftly tell myself to shut up and do something else. It did work for the large majority of the summer break altho towards the last week prior to R-day (d-day as we called it) I was a little bit all over the place and planning where I would sleep that night if it was bad news... But in hindsight of course I can laugh at myself for worrying like an idiot when I didn't need to but at the time you just can't help it. Your brain is very good at making you doubt yourself! The amounts of time I would make people touch wood when they even slightly mentioned anything to do with uni... I wouldn't even allow myself to google Durham I was so scared of jinxing anything! Perhaps I should not confess to these things online...

But as always, it all worked out of course and I was so so happy. Logging onto track at 7.30am to check my status update I just broke down in tears when I saw I was actually going to Durham. So so happy. Because this is the start of the future, and however scary it may seem it's going to be fab I know.  Then the messages started flooding in as everyone else was checking their own good news which made the day even better as everyone all did so well. Go QM girlies. So so proud of Aa, Caz and Nim too.. gonna miss them immensely it has to be said. And now we have like 3 weeks to say all our goodbyes. And pack. Oh boy do I have a lot to get organised there!

Celebs in the local paper ha ha.

So that has been the pretty major thing really. Start of the rest of my life and all. But summer has been pretty hectic! And pretty perfect at the same time too (although again it seems to have just whizzed by!) July saw parties, prom and mattress sliding!..

 {Qm girlies }

Summarises our friendship pretty well.

...Not to mention our trip to Ethiopia 4th-18th July which was certainly an experience I'll never forget. It feels so weird looking back at all the pictures now- ask myself did we really do that? I need to hurry up and finish the scrapbook type thing I have been working on to document the whole trip ready to take to uni for when I am need of flashes of inspiration/motivation.

Ha ha this makes me laugh.

Home stretch smiles!

There were also trips to London, the west End and later the Olympics which was absolutely fab. Watching the rhythmic gymnastics you couldn't help but be in awe of these girls (especially when I cannot even touch my toes.)

She can fly!

Got to see my lil cousins too down in Kent which was cute, I miss the lil dudes and their crazy antics. Like our sand dune racing, card games of Président (which they totally cheat in just because I do not understand French properly!) I miss my little Flo. Wonder how she is getting on in 5th grade, big girl now.

Clement et Henri... Looking out to sea.

Then there was the brilliant cruise with Pops, Sarah and my sis. It was luxury. Did not have to lift a finger and had such a wonderful time just lying in the sun/swimming in the pool with not a care in the world apart from working out which direction I should position my body in allign with the sun to maximise my tan ha ha. It was a shame to come home really and would definitely do a cruise again- a new destination everyday what could be better? The day after we returned I hit the post-hol blues hard though and dont think I even managed to get dressed that day.. but however nice a little sunny escape is, there's no escaping reality forever!

The waters of Venice.. before our suitcases took a trip into it's murky depth. Yikes!

 Venice

 Croatia

Macedonia. Unreal backdrop.

Amalfi, Italy. Plenty of sketchbook inspiration to be found.

The jar of nutella I so desperately wanted from this Italian supermarket. Sadly it remained back on the shelf.

So August was really a time of catching up with everyone and really just doing as much as we can during our last summer together! September is also turning out to be quite manic as we all want to see each other before we start heading off so am out everyday at the moment which is nice. However Sunday is my reserved down time, planning my bubble bath already and a sit down with my new academic diary to get all my dates and butt into gear wahoo. All this stationery shopping has been just too exciting for a normal person ha ha.

Well, it's now time to shake a leg and exit my chamber. Looking forward to a day of chilling with old friends. Not long left now so really got to make the most and just enjoy every minute. 

I promise I will blog again...

but in the meantime, here's one last thing from Ethiopia...

always. X