A Study in Blue (Juliet)

I’m writing this from the ambient surrounds of the Brownless Biomedical library, which is a place I’m sure you’ll be frequenting if you study the health sciences. My first official week of Uni is coming to an end and I almost don’t want to leave. Almost.

I think i’ve come to two main conclusions about Uni life that i’m going to list here in true jaffy fashion: a) Uni is like this awesome, chaotic, brilliant, mint (?) thing that exists for our edification and benefit – it has the resources, the people, the food, the everything. It’s basically a double-edged sausage of meeting new friends and learning cool things about subjects you kinda care about. It’s even better if you end up with lecturers of the groovy biol video variety. b) the distractions are plenty, the temptations are more tempting, and the procrastination is imminent. But that’s all part of the package.

Indeed – you may find yourself browsing Facebook more than usual, as you surreptitiously join all the online communities for UMSU clubs, societies and events. You might be expanding your friends list or sharing updates as you meet more people and seek to keep in contact via instantaneous means.

I’m not saying that everything is completely glorious at Uni because that would be untrue and jumping to conclusions. There have been many times I’ve found myself teetering outside my comfort zone or wishing I had more sleep, or more eloquence, or more something. I’m also at this stage in friendship-making where the relationships are (dare I say) sort of tenuous. This is not to say that the friendships are unsatisfactory or poor, rather that the shift from acquaintance to friendship to long-term friendship is kind of fluid territory. You don’t know what’s going to happen, and you’re not sure which ports your friends are docked at. You have different classes and busy lunch breaks and a lot going on from all directions. From here on out, it’s navigation into uncharted waters. But I guess this is a normal part of university and of life in general.

It’s definitely true what they say about Uni giving you the real world experience. In a lecture theatre of five hundred other heads all bobbing to the same intellectual beat, you suddenly realise that the Scope of Everything is much larger than your oyster. Every student and member of staff is on a mission, you could say – carrying with them a casket of individual and collective purposes. It’s an admirable, wonderful, humbling thing. And I’m glad I’m a part of it. The atmosphere has me here to stay. For a while at least.

I just have to survive the 8am lectures, with friends and some coffee.

(Juliet)