Everybody (Uni's Back)

Well, it has been the first day back at college for the latest term. It's been a day of minor-heart attacks, mini bouts of optimism and some annoyance.

The minor heart-attack was in the shape of a presentation for Response to Empire module. I hate presentations! What's more, I can't join a group on the webpage where we are to join. Frustrating. I want a specific topic, so I want to join fast to ensure I get it. But once again, technology is not being my friend.

Luckily, I got my reading list for Modernism and it looks good!

Yeats. Pound. James. I'm in heaven!

As for my Post-colonialism Literature and Theory list. Not so much happiness with that. Although I have been meaning to read Midnight's Children by Rushdie for a while now. So, it's not all bad.

The annoyance came at the end of the day as I queued for the bus. Typically a crowd came swarming around me and I ended up being one of the last to actually board the bus. That resulted in me standing for a few stops. But then the 5ive's Megamix came on shuffle. That's guaranteed to get you in a good mood as much as this gem. (Anyone who has seen This Is The End should agree.)
http://youtu.be/6M6samPEMpM

*exasperated sigh*

It is currently essay season in college. Fun times? Not so much. Particularly when you're just home from college after spending the day (since 9 o'clock this morning!!!) in the library.

One down, a million billion zillion to go.

Oh, okay, I exaggerated a little with that million billion marlarky. That's just how it feels. I've an English one due on Friday. 3,000 words. *insert panicked face here* I should probably go start that...Anyone like to remind me why I thought a return to academia was a good idea?

Uni

Everyone always says to me, 'Oh, Trinity. I bet it's just like Hogwarts!' Unfortunately I have to tell them no, 'it is more like Stasi headquarters.'
I'm both English and Ancient Near East departments which places me the majority of the time in the Arts building. It's a dreary aul place. Narrow corridors, grey walls and small classrooms that are equally grey.
This year has seen a change in my classrooms though. I get to have one of my Jews in the Medieval Period in the Museum Building.

The Entrance Hall of the Museum Building

Four others are in Regent House. I've no pictures of Regent House, but allow the name to say it all.

As lecture theatres go, Regent House is the worse possible place for class. Bad acoustics means it's nigh on impossible to hear the lecturer if you're not sitting in the front three rows. It has also got the worse possible chairs for a bad back. But what they do have is two, count them, two bolted panels in the walls. The smallest one is within the heart of the large fireplace. The other stands just to its right.
I've no idea where either go. I can only conclude that one is a short-cut to Hogwarts (it is in the fireplace, after all. Floo network, anyone?!) the other, a doorway to Narnia. It's a reasonable enough theory and not flawed at all, right?

Round-up

Well, it's been a busy few weeks. It involved the holiday to Portugal. A return to college. Catching flu. My TV breaking. And the little teeny-tiny thing that was completion of the first draft of my book. (does a little victory dance)

The holiday was great, even if the food wasn't. It was nice to relax and spend at least a week not worrying about anything.

College has begun, with vengeance. I don't know why people say once first year is over, the hardest part is done. That's very misleading. It's only the second week and I'm having heart-palpations with the amount of work I've to do. Give me one more week and the sleepless nights will begin.
Essays will soon begin to mount up. I don't dare start them just yet though because I simply haven't a clue how to even begin. How can I do an essay on stuff we've yet to cover?

My flu is now beginning to abate. Thank Jebus. But sadly, I think it's too late for the television. That's dreadful news because 1. I'm now missing The Story of The Jews on BBC2 and 2. BBC4 had some great documentaries that I wanted to watch. I'm now unable too.

But that flu/no TV combination wasn't all bad. It meant that I had nothing else to do at the weekend but my whole college weekly readings, and finish my novel. I was a climax and epilogue short prior to Portugal. With college beginning the week I returned, I doubted I'd get the story finished this side of Christmas.
Thankfully I did, and Christmas may be instead spent working on the edits. I feel like rushing straight into edits, but I know it'll be better if I leave it alone for a while, let it mature, so to speak, and come back to it with fresh eyes.

Exam Worry

I get my exam results today. Yikes! As the Americans would say.
I know it's been less than a month since my final exam, but it feels much longer. Perhaps that's because I've been trying to block out the memories? I don't do well in exams. Stress. Time restraint. Hand formed into some misshapen type of claw. No, sir, exams and I do not mix.
Blocking it out is bogey for two reasons: a) you become complacent. When you block stuff out you forget the nightmare that it was, so you're lulled into the 'actually, come to think of it, I over reacted at the time. It wasn't that bad,' mind-frame. In reality it was that bad. Tears where stinging your eyes as you frantically turned the pages, checking front and back while your mind screams at you, 'there are only eight questions. And nothing about what you studied. There must be more. THERE MUST BE MORE!!! (Your mind sounding more and more like the girl in the Exorcist as you go.)
Then afterwards you ease yourself into the 'pfft! It was grand' area of thinking because you couldn't possibly continue to remember how bad it exactly was, because you'd never sleep again.
and b) admitting it to everyone. Oh, the embarrassment. The sheer embarrassment when you have to admit to everyone 'yeah, didn't do as good as I hoped.' You get the 'ha! Delighted! Little miss know-it-fecking-all doesn't know it all at all' smug look.

This is now my predicament. I don't want these results back! I did these past few days because I had myself convinced I did fine. The 'I did alright. Didn't do great, but definitely scraped a pass,' denial. My problem is I didn't do fine. At least, not on two of the six. I failed them. Like proper *chokes back tears* 'don't cry, don't cry, don't cry,' chanting to myself on the bus ride home.
I guess I'll just have to prep myself for the results. Some chocolate and a cold can of coke.