The Week That Was… (Candy)

So. O-Week came, and went. My thoughts? Well, it proved to be extremely daunting, and (but I’m sure you never would have guessed) pretty overwhelming. But I survived! And with minimal UAS (Unforced Awkward Silences), too!

I guess I’ll write on each day, its events, and my (highly esteemed) evaluation of each…enjoy. 🙂

Monday:

Not really part of O-Week at all, but this was my Preparation Day. Day of nervous tension/excitement (I alternated between the two all day…yes, it was exhausting). I looked over the transition booklets again, as well as the map (which basically gave me a false sense of hope that I, Miss Geographically Challenged, could ever navigate my way around a campus as huge as Melbourne)…before turning in early to keep my energy levels up for whatever was to come.

Tuesday:

On the tram – Well, I did say in my last post that I would keep you up-to-date on my UAS count, so here we go…I was sitting there, window-seat, and at one point the girl next to me noticed a friend getting onto the tram. Smiley hello’s all round, and then (HIM): “So, what are you doing today?”, to which she replied: “I’ve got O-Week at Melbourne.” I realised at this point that perhaps the clever thing to do would be to pipe up and go “Oh, me too!”…but I didn’t, and so I experienced my first (however private) UAS for the week…ta-dah. 

10am – Host Group time. After reading some negative views past bloggers held on this, I thought I was going to hate it, but I actually ended up really liking the set-up. My host was friendly and open, as was the overall feeling of the group. Even the little introductory game we played (Two Truths and One Lie) wasn’t too bad, considering my inability to spontaneously come up with things to say about myself. I conversed…and am pleased to announce that there were NO UAS caused during this event! Phew.  

When it came time to going our own way I made my way over to the Moot Court Room to finally collect my student ID and diary – it was a bit of a wait, but I’m definitely glad I went when I did… the line later on in the day was shockingly huge!

With my amazingly attractive ID in hand (…sarcasm) I met up with some friends and we went absolutely crazy over all the free stash!!!  I mean, getting this week’s issue of NW for FUR-EE?! Knowing I wasn’t going to have to part with my cash for magazines this week (yes, I’ll admit, trashy celeb mags are a guilty pleasure)? I was pretty stoked!

Aimless wandering ensued, and at some point I wandered onto a tram and made my way home. It was quite a good day. 🙂

Wednesday: 

A bit of a nothing day. It definitely wasn’t as jam-packed as yesterday, but we did have Course Orientation, which involved initial awkwardness, forced interaction and a couple of awesome videos put together by M-ASS.

I mean, it wasn’t terrible, but I wasn’t too into the whole ‘filling out a worksheet whilst making small talk’ thing. What DO you do, anyhow, after discussing one’s knowledge of the Public Lecture Theatre’s location?

The line for the BBQ afterward was gargantuan, and having nothing else to do I popped into the city for some Starbucks (aaaah, Green Tea Frappucino…) and then attended the 3pm lecture ‘Getting Ready for Arts’.

The lecture was pretty good – it covered a variety of topics, from time management to essay writing. Got me back into a ‘studious’ mood. 😉 Onto tomorrow!

Thursday:

Clubs and Societies day. Honestly? It was a bit disappointing. Only because of how chaotic it was – I made my way through Wilson Hall about three times, and even with the map it took me a while to find the clubs I was looking for. I think perhaps taking more clubs outside and having a set-up like that of Tuesday’s stalls could minimise the confusion.

In the end I joined M-ASS, FilmSoc and the Book Club – I figured this would be enough for now; I think a gentle transition is best, as opposed to bombarding myself with places to go and people to see. So today ended with another trip into the city and then an early tram ride home.

All in all – O-Week was good, but I think I didn’t throw myself out there as much as I could have. I kinda-sorta figured I’d muster up some courage to be a tad more extroverted than I was, but I’m sure my time to shine socially will come at some point. Like I said before, I’m not good at small talk – so perhaps the tutes and club meetings will provide a more ideal setting for interaction. Fingers crossed.

And now – it really is beginning. Classes Monday. I gotta say, I’m pretty excited about my subjects. Onward! 😀