Edjukayshun, Edgerkaisyan, Edyookeishon...
Friend Mordred emailed me this just recently. Normally it's one of
those generic mail-to-all your friends emails that everyone gets by the
bucketload, but something about it struck a chord with me. I really do
miss Exeter. Perhaps not the lack of amenities, or the workload. I miss
the social life and all my mates. I miss the quaint little
market-town-masquerading-as-a-city. I miss the fact it never snows all
winter there, and then snows everyday in February, forcing you to skips
classes and have snowball fights. I also miss the sex, but that's
because I'm a crazy nympho.
So, to the email (and my insidious comments throughout!)...
YOU KNOW YOU'VE BEEN IN UNIVERSITY TOO LONG WHEN...
You actually like doing laundry at home where the washing machines work. [So true for Kilmorie and Lafrowda residents!]
Two miles is not too far to walk for a party. [Not when that's how wide the city is...]
You'd rather clean than study especially if an essay is due.
"Oh shit! How did it get so late!?" comes out of your mouth at least once a night. [Expletive necessary]
Parents' cooking becomes something you desire, not avoid. [Apart from Parent's coffee cake]
You schedule your classes around sleep habits and soap operas, especially Neighbours and Hollyoaks. [I never liked soaps, so I made up for it in sleeping]
You know the pizza boy by name and don't even need to read the menu. [And he was dead cute, too]
You go to sleep when it's light and get up when it's dark. [Still try to now]
You live for getting mail.
Looking out the window is a form of entertainment.
Prank phone calls become funny again. [Especially at three in the morning]
You start thinking and sounding like your friends and your accent becomes a hybrid of West Country, Surrey and general Northern. [So, frustratingly true]
Highlighters are the coolest things on earth. [And mini post-it notes!]
Rearranging your room is your favourite pastime. [Aside from sleeping]
Rubbish cheap £1 shops are so cool. [As are all charity shops]
The weekend lasts from Thursday to Monday. [Still does, as far as I'm concerned. Stupid job making me work the weekend...]
BEFORE I CAME TO UNIVERSITY, I WISH I HAD KNOWN...
That it didn't matter how late my first lecture was, I'd still sleep through it.
That I could change so much and barely realise it.
That you can love a lot of people in a lot of different ways.
No matter how 'cool' you were in school, no one here cares.
That if you wear polyester everyone will ask why you are so dressed up.
That every clock on campus shows a different time.
That if you got good A-levels... so what? It doesn't matter here.
That I would go to a party the night before an exam or essay deadline.
That you can know everything and fail a test.
And conversely, that you can know nothing and ace a test.
That I could get used to almost anything found out about my friends.
That most of my education would be obtained outside of lectures.
That friendship is more than getting drunk together... but that's still funny!
That Sunday is a figment of the world's imagination.
That Psychology is really Biology, that Biology is really Chemistry, that Chemistry is really Physics and that Physics is really Maths.
That my parents would become so much smarter in the last few years.
That it's possible to be alone even when you are surrounded by friends. [I felt that this epitomises the saddest moments of my time in Exeter...]
Don't be dismayed at good-byes, a farewell is necessary before we can meet again, and meeting again, after moments or after a lifetime, is certain for those who are friends.
TOP 10 REASONS THAT UNIVERSITY IS LIKE PRIMARY SCHOOL
10. You cry for your mother.
9. You cross the street without looking for cars.
8. Snack time is a necessity.
7. You bundle up for the outdoors without caring what you look like (because everyone else looks as stupid as you do).
6. You stay at home and play games with your friends.
5. You wear your backpack on both shoulders.
4. You wear big mittens.
3. Playing in the snow is a legitimate activity.
2. You take naps.
1. You look forward to cheese toasties.
Yes, yes... I did edit the grammar and punctuation a little. Well, if I'm acting as Casual Proofreader for Rob and others in work, why break the habit? But the themes and emotions brought up by that email may seem dozy, faux or contrived, but they affect me. Especially about the one about being alone when surrounded by friends. I love all my mates (in that sappy kinda way at which I am so good); but sometimes I feel so apart from them, so other.
Is this why I yearn for some relationship? Why I feel so gutted about Gossy's silence? I think I want to find someone else that experiences (or is willing to experience) the world as deeply as I think I do. Perhaps I want a soulmate, perhaps I just want a good time. Nevertheless, I'm dead lonely. Even now.
I know 'blogs are about egotism and self-absorbed ranting, but I still am reluctant to do that. Is this due to a case of severe self-moderation? I know I have to write these feelings down. I'm admitting they are real in doing so, as I would be were I to say them aloud. Perhaps that's the extrovert part of me - I like stuff within me to come out, to be expressed in the physical world. Even the virtual physical world. This isn't too much of a cop-out?
I know what I should be doing. Getting out and looking for someone else. Everyone else can pick themselves up after a fall, and I'm no less than they! ;-)
So, to the email (and my insidious comments throughout!)...
YOU KNOW YOU'VE BEEN IN UNIVERSITY TOO LONG WHEN...
You actually like doing laundry at home where the washing machines work. [So true for Kilmorie and Lafrowda residents!]
Two miles is not too far to walk for a party. [Not when that's how wide the city is...]
You'd rather clean than study especially if an essay is due.
"Oh shit! How did it get so late!?" comes out of your mouth at least once a night. [Expletive necessary]
Parents' cooking becomes something you desire, not avoid. [Apart from Parent's coffee cake]
You schedule your classes around sleep habits and soap operas, especially Neighbours and Hollyoaks. [I never liked soaps, so I made up for it in sleeping]
You know the pizza boy by name and don't even need to read the menu. [And he was dead cute, too]
You go to sleep when it's light and get up when it's dark. [Still try to now]
You live for getting mail.
Looking out the window is a form of entertainment.
Prank phone calls become funny again. [Especially at three in the morning]
You start thinking and sounding like your friends and your accent becomes a hybrid of West Country, Surrey and general Northern. [So, frustratingly true]
Highlighters are the coolest things on earth. [And mini post-it notes!]
Rearranging your room is your favourite pastime. [Aside from sleeping]
Rubbish cheap £1 shops are so cool. [As are all charity shops]
The weekend lasts from Thursday to Monday. [Still does, as far as I'm concerned. Stupid job making me work the weekend...]
BEFORE I CAME TO UNIVERSITY, I WISH I HAD KNOWN...
That it didn't matter how late my first lecture was, I'd still sleep through it.
That I could change so much and barely realise it.
That you can love a lot of people in a lot of different ways.
No matter how 'cool' you were in school, no one here cares.
That if you wear polyester everyone will ask why you are so dressed up.
That every clock on campus shows a different time.
That if you got good A-levels... so what? It doesn't matter here.
That I would go to a party the night before an exam or essay deadline.
That you can know everything and fail a test.
And conversely, that you can know nothing and ace a test.
That I could get used to almost anything found out about my friends.
That most of my education would be obtained outside of lectures.
That friendship is more than getting drunk together... but that's still funny!
That Sunday is a figment of the world's imagination.
That Psychology is really Biology, that Biology is really Chemistry, that Chemistry is really Physics and that Physics is really Maths.
That my parents would become so much smarter in the last few years.
That it's possible to be alone even when you are surrounded by friends. [I felt that this epitomises the saddest moments of my time in Exeter...]
Don't be dismayed at good-byes, a farewell is necessary before we can meet again, and meeting again, after moments or after a lifetime, is certain for those who are friends.
TOP 10 REASONS THAT UNIVERSITY IS LIKE PRIMARY SCHOOL
10. You cry for your mother.
9. You cross the street without looking for cars.
8. Snack time is a necessity.
7. You bundle up for the outdoors without caring what you look like (because everyone else looks as stupid as you do).
6. You stay at home and play games with your friends.
5. You wear your backpack on both shoulders.
4. You wear big mittens.
3. Playing in the snow is a legitimate activity.
2. You take naps.
1. You look forward to cheese toasties.
Yes, yes... I did edit the grammar and punctuation a little. Well, if I'm acting as Casual Proofreader for Rob and others in work, why break the habit? But the themes and emotions brought up by that email may seem dozy, faux or contrived, but they affect me. Especially about the one about being alone when surrounded by friends. I love all my mates (in that sappy kinda way at which I am so good); but sometimes I feel so apart from them, so other.
Is this why I yearn for some relationship? Why I feel so gutted about Gossy's silence? I think I want to find someone else that experiences (or is willing to experience) the world as deeply as I think I do. Perhaps I want a soulmate, perhaps I just want a good time. Nevertheless, I'm dead lonely. Even now.
I know 'blogs are about egotism and self-absorbed ranting, but I still am reluctant to do that. Is this due to a case of severe self-moderation? I know I have to write these feelings down. I'm admitting they are real in doing so, as I would be were I to say them aloud. Perhaps that's the extrovert part of me - I like stuff within me to come out, to be expressed in the physical world. Even the virtual physical world. This isn't too much of a cop-out?
I know what I should be doing. Getting out and looking for someone else. Everyone else can pick themselves up after a fall, and I'm no less than they! ;-)