The art of procrastination

... on second thoughts, I think I’ll write this post later!

Poor jokes aside, I’m writing in the thick of exam season for myself and members of many other degree cohorts (begrudging congratulations should you have already finished for the year yourself!), in the midst of lecture slides, references and notes galore (all of which I’m sure made sense at the time, if not now!), panicking about the stacks of revision notes still to be made and committed to memory – somehow it always feels like there’s too much to learn, with too little time to do it in!

And yet this is an all-too-familiar feeling for many a student, be they in high school or University, as, typically, a large amount of things to do have been left to the last minute. And, despite seemingly insurmountable odds at the time, all things being well we’ll somehow still make it through to the next deadline, test or exam period.

It’s a battle I find myself encountering on a daily basis and, judging by the evidence of my fellow computer scientists and housemates as well, it’s a mutual feeling across the student body! The urge to put things off, reasoning that just one more minute/hour/day can’t hurt in the long-term, can often be irrepressible, but at the moment, with exams just around the corner, the fear of failure makes it something of a non-option.

Since I landed in Southampton at the beginning of last academic year, I’ve found that one of the harder aspects of life to adapt to is the system of learning which accompanies the more independent style of study in Higher Education. I’ve written before about general tips for making the most of lectures and the frequent guest talks on offer, particularly emphasising how enjoyable and rewarding it can be to witness the wealth of expertise possessed by the University’s academics for yourself – I’ll never forget the surreal feeling of being taught a world-renowned programming language by somebody who helped to write it!

But another variation on the learning I experienced at school was the sharp increase in the level of self-motivation you have to apply to the act of studying itself. Whereas in smaller classes I’d often find myself pushed by my teachers to complete homework assignments and essays which were to be handed in at regular weekly intervals, it’s been a more common occurrence on my course to be set multiple assignments with deadlines five or six weeks in advance.

I was initially taken aback when the pressure I was used to was suddenly removed and, instead, I was handed long timespans over which to work. All of a sudden, the temptation to put assignments off, until nearer the time at least, becomes overwhelming!

It’s amazing just how many forms procrastination can take; anything from doing your washing-up, to tidying your room, to getting started on that great book or TV series you’ve heard so much about (Game of Thrones is certainly on my list – but only once I’ve reached the summer!) can suddenly seem, however distortedly, more appealing than actually getting underway with work in the first place. It’s only when deadlines begin to mount, and once-far-flung dates are rapidly approaching, that you realise what’s really happened!

But now, balancing revision timetables at the end of my second year, and with a Third Year Project (the Computer Science equivalent of a dissertation) on the horizon, planning effective use of time has never been more crucial. So how to battle every student’s arch nemesis: procrastination?

There are many different ways available – you’ll probably already know of plenty yourselves! – but I personally find that regimented, self-enforced schedules work best for me, breaking down workloads and tasks into manageable units, and then putting aside enough time to complete that unit before allowing myself a small break, for example setting aside an hour to complete note-taking from two particular lectures. I also always try and have a small buffer should I run over time – which is, of course, usually the case (sometimes, ironically, due to procrastination)!

Furthermore, I often try to reward myself for completion of these tasks, pencilling in spells of time off for watching a movie with flatmates or having a quick drink with friends. It feels great sitting down at the end of a long day knowing you’ve done enough to justify relaxing and enjoying yourself, so I always aim to replicate that feeling and make sure that, amongst all the work, there’s time to play as well. These are, after all, “the best days of our lives”!

As a break, some friends and I went to Southampton’s final match of the season 

against Stoke last weekend – not the most memorable game, but we enjoyed ourselves nonetheless!

Finally, if by the weekend you’ll have finished exams, or you’d maybe just like to have a break, auditions for next term’s two Theatre Group shows get underway from 6pm in the Murray Building on Highfield Campus on Saturday. I’m on the production team for one of them, Equus, and we’re excited to hopefully see some enthusiastic new faces – so if you’ve ever fancied giving acting a go at some stage but never got round to it, it’s a great chance to get involved!

Who knows? Rehearsals might just form the relaxing (and maybe even enjoyable!) part of your student experience next semester – as they will with mine! If I ever get around to scheduling them, that is...

Robin

Summer is coming

A couple of weeks ago, the sun finally made an appearance, and for the week students were wandering round campus in maxi dresses, sandals and shorts. Bubble tea was being drunk outside SUSU on the grass and the queues for Sprinkles Gelato (an ice cream café in Portswood) were longer than ever. Summer was making its first appearance in Southampton after months of wind, rain and unseasonal snow.

Unfortunately, as is the way with British Summertime, the rain came back and so did the wind with a vengeance. And in a way, this is quite fortunate, as nobody wants to be stuck in Hartley library or their poky student flat revising and writing essays when the sun is blazing outside and you could be grabbing a jug of Pimm’s at the Stags.

University of Southampton campus in the sunshine in 2012, looking beautiful as ever!

The summer is coming though; exams and deadlines are upon us, dissertations for third years have been handed in and plans are being made for post-graduation celebrations. I can’t quite get my head around where this year has gone – it seems only five minutes ago that I was looking forward to my MA, preparing for Grad Ball and taking day trips to the Isle of Wight with my friends before we said our goodbyes.

This year, I’m not really having a summer holiday – my course requires me to write my 20,000 word dissertation from June to mid-September, which means I will be staying in Southampton and, probably, Hartley Library, trying to finish my post-grad degree off in style. This fills me with a little dread, if I’m honest – I’m having visions of blocking friends on Facebook due to their holiday photos and begging friends and family to visit me. My fellow course mates and I have already decided we will have weekly trips to Sprinkles, the Common and Trago Lounge (a restaurant/bar nearby) to treat ourselves and to keep ourselves motivated… not good for my bank balance, but definitely good for the soul!

I will be saying goodbye to my Undergrad friends too – those I have met through my time at the Wessex Scene and SUSU Media, friends of friends, and people I’ve known since I started uni. This summer will definitely be the final few months of mine at Southampton and I am determined to enjoy them, despite my overly large deadline at the end of it. After all, I’m here to study – and I plan to enjoy my final ever essay too!

Summer in Southampton has always been one of my favourite things. The campus is beautiful; if you haven’t been on campus, I urge you to visit, as it is one of the things that really attracted me to study here three years ago. We have trees, grass and flowers everywhere, with a stream and even a few resident ducks! You only have to step outside the library to find a grassy space to relax on in the sunshine, and with our student pub on site you can relax with a Pimm’s without leaving campus! The green space continues onto the Common, just a short walk from Avenue Campus (the Humanities building), which sees an expanse of open space, perfect for long walks, sunbathing (when the sun actually appears) and picnics. I will be going for a few days there this summer, complete with food and sports equipment. Rounders, anyone?

Me and my friend Hannah basking in the sunshine on the Common last summer – 

I plan to do this again!

Although we don’t have a beach here (though many people think we do!) we’re not far from Portsmouth and Bournemouth which are lovely in the summer. We also have Mayflower Park, which is right near the quayside, and the docks and the waterfront. We recently had the Media Ball on a boat, and the docks were beautiful just before the evening – there are plenty of restaurants down there for a drink outside in the sunshine!

Summer in Southampton is going to be lovely… aside from the sheer amount of work I have to do! It’s not long before everyone will be heading off on holiday, visiting friends or starting graduate jobs… let’s just hope the sunshine makes an appearance once more!

Joanne

Southampton you’ve been dazzling – thank you!

This is quite honestly the strangest/hardest blog I have ever written. I am now writing from the perspective of a quasi-student; having finished my final-year exams a day ago it is officially the beginning of the end.

I never thought I’d actually be going to university, not actually actually, and yet somehow I’m graduating this summer… The last three years of my life seem to have just slipped through my fingers and now I have an overwhelming hankering to go back to Freshers and do it all over again.
I have been lucky enough to live with the same people who were in my halls, these people are the best people I’ve met whilst here and have completely shaped my Southampton journey. The thought of not living with them – no longer having breakfast to the sounds of Smooth FM, no more aggressive games of Articulate, Cake of the Year competitions and milk rotas – seems a little bit too tragic for my overworked mental state to handle.

And what a beautiful journey it was – from first year to third year. 

Whilst my exams were hard I think I underestimated how much harder leaving was going to be. And I am speaking about leaving so eminently because I leave tomorrow. And I’m not leaving to go home; I’m leaving to go to Amsterdam (from where I'll be writing my next post!).

Before some of my friends have finished their exams I will have moved countries and started a new job. ARG! If I thought the world was just going to stand still after uni I was sorely mistaken.

BUT ‘this is a new chapter’, or at least that’s what I keep telling myself – along with other idioms – such as ‘all good things come to an end’ and ‘keep calm and carry on’ in an attempt to channel a positive mentality. Because whilst so much of me does not want to leave, screaming to stay in this wonderful uni bubble, I know that I must. No, not that I must – I should and will leave because I want to. And I want to because of university; that epic chapter has undoubtedly influenced the future chapters in my life. This influence gave me the courage to apply to jobs abroad, and take them despite them creating absolutely manic situations in the process.

I could speak no end about the joys I have had at the University of Southampton, but I have tried to restrain myself in this blog – I have met great people and learnt great things which no amount of words will do justice to, meaning that all I really can say is thank you.

I want to thank everyone and everything that made these last three years the best ever. I felt at home within minutes at Monte (my halls in first year) and will no doubt always have an affinity with this University. So until my graduation, so long Southampton, it’s been a pleasure.

Florence

Under pressure

It’s that time of year again; exams are upon us and essay deadlines are looming. This is one of the most stressful times of year for students, when Hartley library is full at 8.30am and the queues for coffee are often miles long. Summer is so close, yet so far; we have to get past these deadlines first!

I tend to avoid the library at this time of year. I prefer to work in my room in my little flat. For me, it’s a comfort to know I can take a break without the fear of losing my seat, eat what I want when I want, and make as many cups of tea as I like without paying for it every time. It also means I can work in my pyjamas… which happens rarely, but normally at the very end!

I have plenty of library books to read through for these essays!

  

This is, admittedly, one of the less appealing things about being a student. I’ve written blog posts about places to visit, nights out, and everything I do aside from my degree; but really, we’re here to study first and foremost and it’s a fact of reality that, if you are coming to university in the future, you will get stressed and you will have to work hard.

The view from inside the library on Level 1 early in the morning

I find, however, that it’s exciting (as twisted as that sounds). Since the realisation that I will be leaving in four months has hit me, I am trying to enjoy the work I am doing. After all, when else in your life can you explore things, write about what you want at an academic level, and stretch your intelligence? When else can you decide to work until 3am because that’s when the inspiration hits you, without worrying about getting up for your 9-5 full time job the next day? The academic side of being at university can be just as exciting as everything else – or maybe that’s just my nerdy side talking.

Personally, I get really excited when I can discuss my essay questions with my peers. It’s an absolutely fantastic place to be here at Southampton; you are surrounded by like-minded people who want to further their education and who will be able to, and will want to, discuss the connection between Wollstonecraft’s novels, or temporal imagery in Whitman’s poetry. In the big wide world, it will be rare to come across someone who will talk as avidly about such things with you over the coffee machine in the office. University is a hub of knowledge, and as stressful as it is, it is also rather exciting and very inspiring. I know I shall miss it very much when I am gone, especially since I have always been an academic at heart.

Reading has always been a passion for me, 

and I’ve enjoyed taking it to the next level while at university!

Over my four years here I have seen my ability to write grow, both in academia and elsewhere, like articles and blog entries. I have been able to look at books in an entirely different way, and have progressively challenged myself with my essays as I became more and more comfortable with my academic writing. I have written (probably) nearly 50 essays in my time here and am currently preparing to start my postgraduate dissertation over the summer; a whopping 20,000 words!

It may be hard at times, but I have loved testing myself and increasing my knowledge here at Southampton in the fantastic Humanities faculty. It’s safe to say the brilliant lecturers and tutors I have had have inspired me and pushed me further, and have made me want to work harder.

There’s also the fact that not everyone in the world has access to education, and even just one hundred years ago women were not encouraged or even allowed into university. I have the ability to study here, and I will take the opportunity and relish it, because it really is a privilege and, as my Dad keeps reminding me, ‘knowledge is power’.

So if you’re studying for your exams at uni at the moment, writing your final essay, doing your A-Levels or even just starting sixth form, you may be wondering why I am writing such an enthusiastic post about something that causes so much stress and pressure in our lives. I am sure, however, that in a year’s time I will miss the deadlines and the seminars and the pressure; this is the only place where you can sit with like-minded people and discuss literature (or whatever you study) without feeling out of place. I have graduate friends who look back In fondness at being asked to think about things that you wouldn’t normally consider. The stress, I find, is worth it in the end – because I love studying, and university is the place for me!

As I write my final essays before my dissertation, I will relish the early starts, comfort food and panicked phone calls and Facebook messages to friends and family, no matter how much pressure I am under. I’m very lucky to be here, and I’ll be making the most of it!

Joanne

The end of an era

It’s safe to say that, approaching its halfway mark, 2013 has been nothing if not eventful!

I’ve been fortunate enough to achieve good semester one results (fingers crossed I’ll be able to say the same after the forthcoming exams!), make a stand-up comedy debut, sing and dance in the professional venue of the Nuffield Theatre, successfully audition and plan for the trip of a lifetime to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and direct a play for the first time, amongst many other things – and, given the promise of the rest of the year, there’s more where that came from!

The Edinburgh cast recently took to the radio with a fundraiser for our trip, 

and made a whopping £285! Thank you to everyone who donated! 

(Credit: @GoneRogueUK)

But, although sometimes you can feel yourself living inside a student bubble of assignments, revision and socialising (and, in my case, rehearsals for something or other!), I often find that it’s events which take place in the outside world that keep you grounded, and remind you time is ticking by as ever. Already this calendar year we’ve witnessed some truly historic occasions, with some terrible tragedies interspersed amongst triumphs and excitement; many sad losses but, ever balancing them, some incredible tales and achievements across the front pages of the media.

In the grand scheme of things, then, the breaking news last week of the impending retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson, Manchester United Football Club manager for the past twenty-six years, doesn’t bear that much significance. After all, all things considered, football’s only a game, and if there’s one thing that University has taught me so far, it’s that life at Southampton can often be too busy, fruitful and exciting to notice such matters anyhow!

Yet amidst a flurry of final pre-examination coursework deadlines, the story somehow struck a particular chord with me and led me into reflection. I’ve grown up loving all things to do with football, following United through their various highs and lows (although admittedly it’s been mostly highs in my lifetime!) and, as a result, Sir Alex Ferguson and the club are synonymous to me – I struggle to imagine one without the other!

He’s a man who has delivered, through his unparalleled knowledge, leadership and longevity, a great deal of happy memories to me and millions of other fans of the team, and after his final match on Sunday afternoon he’ll be sorely missed – although not so much in Southampton, where I’ll be enjoying an electric atmosphere with some friends at the final game of the season!

Come Sunday afternoon, St Mary’s Stadium will be awash with colour 

and buzzing with activity; I can’t wait to witness it!

But the main reason I think the news particularly resonated with me is because it marks the end of a chapter I never quite imagined would conclude. The changing of a post I’ve always associated with one man acted as a timely reminder to me that no matter how occupied I keep myself in Southampton, the wider world is still active and circumstances are ever changing.

Just as Flo was initially shocked when she discovered she’ll be moving home soon, Ferguson’s retirement demonstrated that, approaching the end of my second year in Southampton and thus the halfway point of my course, things rarely remain constant... well, except perhaps my love of beans on toast, that is! Despite the proximity of my twenty-first (eek!) birthday it remains my speciality in the kitchen, so I’m planning to add “learn to cook” to the to-do list for next year...!

But on a broader scale, I now find myself looking to the future by selecting modules for my third year of studies (the first time you’re able to do this on the Software Engineering course), researching them to try and figure out what I’d find most interesting and how their varying workloads are staggered.

Furthermore, in the next week or so I’ll be working towards finding a suitable supervisor for my Third Year Project (3YP), the Electronics and Computer Science equivalent of a dissertation, and then I’ll have to deduce a topic area to actually research and work on over twelve months. I reckon that part of me, perhaps out of sheer nerves, has always assumed the day of such a monumental academic demand would never arrive! But now it’s arrived, I’m excited to test what I can achieve across such an extended timescale.

With the focus of my studies now shifting away from the provision of a fundamental Computer Science skillset, it instead will consist of the elective modules and bespoke project I’ve selected, as my education takes on a new level of independence. So these final few weeks before summer holidays, packed with revision, exams, post-exam socialising (as always a greatly exciting prospect!) and “Fergie time”, may have the feel of the end of an era about them.

But as always when one door closes, another opens, and there’s always plenty to look forward to. Not only am I eagerly anticipating the multitude of academic challenges sure to follow, but I’m also excited by the prospect of my greatest theatrical project yet. In the last couple of weeks, I’ve managed to assemble an enthusiastic production team and secure the performance rights to direct a play which many view as a cornerstone of British theatre, Peter Shaffer’s controversial thriller Equus, for the University’s Theatre Group, to be performed at the Annex Theatre at the end of October (keep an eye out for audition information if you’d be interested in getting involved!).

It’s certainly an ambitious endeavour, but it has the potential to be a superb advertisement of the society’s talent and drive and is a fantastic test for all involved – to quote a member at our meeting, if all goes to plan, we’d love the show to “send ripples across the Students’ Union”!

So with the excitement of Edinburgh on the horizon, the huge creative and technical challenges of Equus to manage, and the demands of a Third-Year Project and elective modules to undertake, 2013 life in Southampton shows no signs of slowing down – I just wonder if the rest of the world can keep up!

And, should I find the time, I’ll have a new Manchester United manager to get behind!

Robin

The BIG run

The only thing I ever thought I’d run from was exercise.

I’m just not a fan. I enjoy, well… pretty much anything other than the prospect of running. Until a few months ago…

Whilst at university I have been lucky enough to coordinate something pretty awesome – it is called Schools Plus and it aims at helping educational inequality. Educational inequality and children not reaching their wonderful potential sucks; it’s unfair, archaic and to be honest it makes me pretty irate. However, Schools Plus provided a solution to my rage, offering me a tangible way to help by volunteering in schools. So, that’s what I did, alongside 65 other trained tutors. We all went into local schools and offered help from being a primary reading aid, to running a GCSE science club.

My year with Schools Plus has been incredible; I have greatly enjoyed doing something proactive outside my degree and have met some inspirational people. However, it was one of these said inspirational people who somehow (miraculously) roped me into running 10K for the Southampton Schools Plus scheme.

When it was suggested that we run 10K to fundraise for the programme to continue and improve next year I simply laughed. Anyone who knows me knows that exercise is not my forte, to say the very least… The prospect of me running over 6 miles is just hilarious.

Despite this I had a belligerent committee who were all far too excited by the prospect of sticking to their new year’s resolutions and doing something good for a great cause: consequently, from fear of becoming an unsupportive coordinator I somehow found myself joining in. Running 10K seemed impossible, but I could always potter on behind offering some motivational words…

Yet I was not able to get out of it that easily (as if!). A few days after it was confirmed that we would all RUN this 10K we met on the common for a day I will not forget.

That day I hated everything – especially the person who had made me do this stupid stupid run… (Lucy I am looking at you!) We tried simple interval training, but running for two minutes killed me, no joke. The prospect of running 1K was looking distant.

Just to paint the scene as to how utterly hopeless I was – having not done exercise since year 11, I turned up ready to run with a handbag. I didn’t bring water, but I somehow remembered lip gloss. Oops.

Credit (so so much credit) has to be given to my amazing committee who didn’t give up at the start, when it would have been so easy to give up. They persevered, arranged regular running times and pushed through. And somewhere along the way, somehow, I got myself running shoes and starting enjoying myself. It was still painful but it was the good painful – the painful which makes you feel like you’ve accomplished something.

Not only this, I discovered something even better along the way – my amazing committee!
They became great friends and having seen me at my worst - red faced, angry and out of breath - they still managed to encourage me to go further.

So, after a lazy Easter gorging on all the Italian food I could find I returned to Southampton having not run in 5 weeks. The return was horrible. I had lost all my marginal fitness and it felt like I was dying - all over again. However, we persevered and this week I have run 25K. WHO KNEW THAT WAS EVEN POSSIBLE!!

It came as a shock to me, and more so my mum who was utterly disbelieving when I told her. For someone who couldn’t run, I was actually running quite a lot.

Next stop, half marathon. Seriously, you can’t stop me now!

All this training is put to the test next Sunday when we enter our race. Personally, I am not too fussed about where I place; this running journey has been far lengthier than the 10K that day. I learnt that I enjoy running, that I can do exercise, that I have some good friends and that it is possible to persevere when your body is screaming out for a doughnut. AND I managed to go through that journey for Schools Plus, a programme which has already done so much for me.

10K might seem short to a lot of people, but to the people who hate Church Lane hill and the steps into the Maths building… the people like me, then 10K is not a short distance.

Florence

The beginning of the end

Tuesday 7 May marked one of the first milestones that I will meet as I prepare to leave student life over the next four months. Four months may seem like a fairly lengthy period to be preparing to leave, but most of these ‘lasts’ will occur before the end of the summer term in June, rather than towards the end of my time in Southampton in September.

Anyway, back to my point; Tuesday marked the beginning of the end of my time on the Wessex Scene editorial team. We held our AGM (Annual General Meeting) at 6pm, which was effectively the biggest event of the year for the committee. With over twenty positions up for grabs, it’s a chance for students to get involved and become an editor, or for current editors to re-run and stay on the team.

The Wessex Scene AGM 2013 this week!

This year, most of our current third-year editors would not be re-running, which meant that the new committee for 2013/14 was guaranteed to be made of more new members than ever before. As this was my first AGM in two years where I would not be running, I was excited to see this new group form and enjoy seeing the changes take place. It was a brilliant evening, with some editors elected who would be working from their year abroad, and some elected via video link! But it was a huge success, with a lot of bonding in the Stag’s with pizza and cake afterwards, and we even gave our Editor Ellie a little gift which I hope she will cherish. I myself was surprised with some flowers and chocolates from the team as a thank you which was so generous and I was so shocked.

My lovely thank you gifts from the team; such a surprise!

I have posted a few blog entries about the Wessex Scene before on here, but it’s very important to me that I emphasise this:

“The Wessex Scene has been the best experience, and it got me through my Master’s.”

My Master’s degree has been a challenge but has been brilliant at the same time, and I am sure I would have enjoyed it even if I had not been Deputy Editor for the University’s official student magazine. However, I am positive that having a team of twenty-five brilliant people around me made my year all the more incredible. Of course, don’t get me wrong – I have good friends outside of SUSU Media! My fantastic housemate Rachel and I get on very, very well and though we are both very busy, we ensure that we have regular ‘date nights’ where we sit and eat too much food with a trashy film and let ourselves relax. I also have old friends, old housemates and my fellow postgraduates!

However this year my friendship groups dwindled significantly compared to last year, since everyone I had grown to know and love over my three year undergraduate course graduated. Continuing to be on the Wessex Scene editorial team provided me with friendships I would never have expected, and more involvement in SUSU, and it has been an absolute pleasure to know so many talented, dedicated and enthusiastic people! I honestly think some of the people I’ve worked with this year could be the next big thing.

I had no involvement in extra-curricular activities for my first two years here at Southampton, apart from occasionally writing live music reviews for The Edge and supplying artwork for Theatre Group show scenery. Taking part in SUSU Media made my third and fourth year so much more fulfilling without taking away my attention from my degrees, and so I really do think that getting involved in things outside of your studies has a great advantage. In my opinion, the busier you are, the better you do your jobs. It also gives you a huge boost of confidence, not to mention a wider friendship group and experience you can’t get anywhere else. So my advice for this blog entry is this: get involved, don’t be scared. You can cope with the extra commitment In your life; it will be worth it!

Some of the editorial team and our writers on a trip to the Daily Echo offices last week

This blog post really has been a mish-mash of everything, but I’ll end on my main point. I will be very sad to leave the Wessex Scene team at the end of May, and I am sure the urge to help out will be strong while I do my dissertation here over the summer. But it’s time to let the new team take over, and I am more than certain they will be brilliant. Congratulations to everyone who has been elected – make sure you do us proud!

I will be saying goodbye to the team in just under one month, but not until I’ve been to the Media Ball next week; we’ll be celebrating our achievements with the Edge, SUSUtv and Surge on a boat (a boat! How exciting!) with live music, food and an awards ceremony. It will be one of my final celebrations at uni (since I won’t be going to Grad Ball this year) and I am determined that it will be a night to remember with many of the people I care about.

I suppose the end of my time on the Wessex Scene team shouldn’t be such a bad thing. I may be ending one of the best experiences of my life so far, but I will be leaving with (hopefully) lifelong friendships and an enthusiasm for the future. Who knows what the next few months will bring?

Joanne

A night to remember

Irrespective of your course, societies or accommodation, there are some dates in the student calendar that you’re always loathe to miss – and the annual end-of-year Summer Balls for the various unions, faculties and communities which comprise the student base, be they for the Athletic Union, the Media, or individual departments, are most certainly amongst them!

A couple of weeks ago, I was lucky enough to get a ticket for the summer Performing Arts ball, a chance to get suited up, arrive in ranks of taxis at a swanky venue to be greeted with free champagne and complimentary bottles of wine and enjoy a delicious three-course meal (a far cry from the usual beans on toast!), before being granted access to a private nightclub to show off our silky moves – well, if you belong to a dance society, that is! It had all the ingredients of what promised to be an unforgettable evening.

I’ve already written before about how much I enjoyed last year’s event, but this year, having set myself the challenge of branching out further amongst the different societies on offer, such as into musical theatre and comedy, the chance to celebrate a year’s personal, and a whole community’s, achievements with a large number of great friends was more exciting than ever.

I often forget just how much of a leveller the opportunities on offer at University can be, and how great they are for networking and just constantly meeting fresh people and forming new bonds. When you go through some of the experiences that societies and events can put you through, it’s difficult not to form multitudes of strong friendships!

This year’s edition of the photo booth picture!

...Of course, you do get to take more than one!

My day began with a quick rehearsal for Keeping Down with the Joneses; with it being the day before the production’s technical run, we as directors wanted to keep things ticking over, so at least one run of the play was in order. As it turned out, the end result of the whole rehearsal process was a largely successful, action-packed, hilarious (my personal highlight being when a chair collapsed on stage with someone sitting on it – they were fine, and as a result it added a hilariously unexpected comedic moment to the show!) and massively enjoyable show week, which taught me plenty about budgeting, management, planning, promotion and the like, as well as being a jolly good time throughout.

Finishing early in order to give people plenty of time to prepare for the night ahead, and following a timely visit to the Zepler Building’s well-equipped computer labs on campus to press ahead with some last-minute coursework, I headed home to get suited up before walking across to a friend’s for some more photographs of everyone looking sharp, before ordering an armada of taxis to share with nearby fellow actors, singers, dancers and more.

Everyone looking dapper – before the event, at least!

Upon arrival at the wonderful venue, the luxurious Grand Café located in the heart of Southampton and steeped in maritime history, we were all greeted with a free glass of champagne to kick off the evening in style, before taking our assigned seats for some scrumptious cuisine. The table I was placed on consisted of a great mix of older and newer members of Theatre Group, and it was lovely getting to chat and enjoy a meal with long-time friends, like bubbly fellow Great Expectations cast members Hayley and Alice, alongside more recent companions like the incredibly enthusiastic and friendly Joneses producers Caitlin and Sarah.

A surprise was to follow as, during the course of the dinner, a Frank Sinatra-esque singer took on the best of his swing hits, providing a warm and vivacious atmosphere to encompass the meal as crowds merrily sang along – although it was easy to tell which tables had the musicians and singers on them! Even more entertaining was when one member of Theatre Group, Joe, got the shock of his life after being asked to join the singer on stage, and did brilliantly – but photos and videos aplenty of the incident are, of course, floating around in cyberspace!

After the meal, it was downstairs to the Café’s private nightclub for the chance to party and celebrate a year’s worth of spectacular Performing Arts shows, development and achievement by all involved – a fantastic high on which to end a brilliant day, and year to boot!

Standards of attire slowly dipped over the course of the evening, naturally!

Such nights are, for me at least, the pinnacles of the University world – great experiences, great memories, great company, but most of all, one heck of a great time.

Thanks to Jade Thompson and all of the committee for their work towards the PA Summer Ball 2013 – the whole thing was truly a night to remember!

Robin

Moving out and moving on

This week I had an impulse to go home. My sister had arrived back from New Zealand (AFTER A YEAR AND A HALF) and as I hadn’t time to return over Easter I was looking forward to experiencing my provincial Dorset life.

However, despite being surrounded by fields of nothingness and normally being so relaxed I am positively comatose, this trip home has been MANIC. My calm Eden has disappeared.

For I have lived in the same house all my life. 21 long years, and my mother has been there for 26. It is the house my family grew up in and I guess it is the house which we all dispersed from when we left for University and our own lives. Well, this wonderful constant which I assumed would always be there, is being sold.

Sold.

I swear I went through the normal stages of grief – I primarily acted upon exaggeration, but there was hatred of my mother and her heartless ways, denial, sabotage and bitterness.

However, I have come to terms (sort of) with the fact that my childhood home will have a new family living in it in a few weeks.

Of course I am slightly heartbroken to say goodbye to the building which has literally housed a lifetime of memories, but, I understand that things move on.

However, that is not to say that this move hasn’t come at the most inconvenient time! As the youngest, one of the burdens I bear is an expectation to have my life sorted. My parents are selling their house and moving to France, which means this summer I can either live in a hamlet in France, a house which doesn’t even have internet, or, I can move out. Now, I am 21 and I do appreciate that moving out is the norm. What makes this harder however, is the fact that the same day my parents move home, I move to Amsterdam. This day is two days after my last exam.

My stress levels increase just thinking about it, because everyone in my family is inflicted with the same terrible condition – we are all hoarders! I have got a box of pretty tea-cups I couldn’t bear to take to university for fear they would be broken, and now they have to go to storage…

Honestly, the best thing about living in the same house all my life is the fact that I have never had to experience the trauma of moving house before!

All I can say is that I HATE IT.

Whilst our local charity shops get abundantly replenished, I have to go through boxes of pyjamas I had when I was seven and far too many toys from my youth. Why I still have these things is beyond me!

There are boxes everywhere, and I mean everywhere! For some reason they have already packed up every drinking glass we own and the mere insinuation that I have equal stresses to their moving ones results in an extremely irate woman forcing me to pack up more of the lounge. So much for my relaxing visit home…

All I can say is – TIP OF THE ICEBERG.

However, all of this does have a purpose – it got me considering all the change this year would bring. I never thought my home would be sold, equally, I never thought that I would be graduating from university so soon! And so whilst I think it is natural to cling to the remains of a past life – because I was lucky enough to have something so wonderful that I never wanted to give it up – it becomes crucial to look forward. I am sure I will find another house to make more memories in, as I am sure that post-university life won’t be an entire drag. So I am approaching May, crazy mental May, as I do my mother – without resentment and brimming over with optimism for the future.

Florence

Southampton Blackout 2013

The University of Southampton is pretty good at doing its bit for the environment. In fact, it is the only university to either win or place as Highly Commended every year at the annual Green Gown awards, which recognises sustainability in UK colleges and universities. Last year, the university was highly commended for an initiative entitled ‘Blackout’.

Blackout is an event run by both students and staff at the university to get all members involved in saving energy across campus. In one evening, volunteers spread across the buildings in teams, switching off all unused electrical equipment to save electricity over the weekend. At the same time, the teams make a note of what is left on, so that it is easy to see which buildings are wasting too much energy, and that results can be drawn up quickly. Teams receive a free hoodie for their efforts, and at the end of the evening are offered free pizza. It’s basically a win-win situation; saving energy, finding out what the university can do to save even more, resulting in happy, fully-fed students.

A number of people have asked whether it would be more efficient to run events like this every week, to save more electricity and therefore have more of an impact. The problem is, this would cost the University a lot of money, and the likelihood that as many volunteers would help out that regularly is slim. This huge one-off event raises awareness, urging everyone on campus to turn off equipment more throughout the year, and shows the University how much money and carbon they could be saving.

This year, Blackout was rolled out over two more campuses. Not only was Highfield covered, but Avenue Campus and Winchester School of Art also took part, meaning that Blackout was bigger and better than ever. Of course, this meant that more volunteers were needed, but the organisers had nothing to worry about; over 200 students and staff took part, with more on a waiting list. It was clear that word had spread since last year, and the event was becoming very, very popular.

Blackout 2013 begins!

On the evening of Friday 26 April, I went along (after having been trained, of course) to our ‘Blackout HQ’ – or Lecture Theatre A, as we normally know it. With me were hundreds of students all giving up their essay-filled Friday nights to help the university. And so the evening began.

We were put into teams by the organisers and handed a coloured hoodie – mine was maroon (my favourite colour, no less!) and I went on my way with my team to our hub, and our designated buildings. With me were Eithne, Zowey and George, and our staff member and team leader was Ged, who was part of the Faculty of Engineering and the Environment.

Eithne, Zowey, Myself and George enjoying pizza after our hard work –
in our Blackout hoodies!

For just under two hours, the five of us toured the Engineering buildings, securely entering offices (with Ged making sure we were observed at all times, for security and safety reasons – you can never be too careful!) and counting the number of monitors, PCs, printers, chargers and other electrical items. Then we had to count what had been left running and turn them off. If we found anything still running unnecessarily, we left them a little note, hopefully spurring them on to think twice before leaving the office next time!

One of the cards we left at workstations that were wasting electricity. 

These should get the message across!

There was a real range; some offices were very good and didn’t leave anything running, yet some had left computers, printers and microwaves on over the weekend. After we had practiced with the first few offices we got used to our task, and went through it easily as a team. We even got to see the University’s anechoic chamber – a completely soundproofed room which was rather surreal! It was an excellent opportunity to see parts of the campus that, as a Humanities student, I have never seen before in my four years here!

After having done our job, handed in our results and received a certificate for volunteering, we headed back to HQ for… free pizza! This was one of the highlights of the night for many and was probably one of the many reasons why people were getting involved. Over 100 pizzas were delivered over the evening and were quickly devoured by hungry and tired volunteers – and it’s safe to say there was none left at the end of it! A very much appreciated reward for getting through the evening.

The remains of the pizza – nothing like food to reward students for their efforts!

Here are just some of the empty boxes at the end of the night!

The night was closed by a thank you speech from the team who organised it, and a big group photo. Volunteers then went to the Bridge Bar for a post-Blackout party, complete with themed cocktails (I enjoyed my Sustainable Sangria!) giant Jenga, and music powered by bikes. It was a great end to a very successful evening, and everyone had a huge amount of fun. It didn’t even really feel like work!

Blackout continues to be a huge success, and really is a testament to the University of Southampton’s brilliant students and staff. The teamwork of those who organised the event was outstanding and a lot of hard work was put into it. Thank you and congratulations to all involved – it was a huge achievement and hopefully will win many more awards in the future.

Some of the volunteers relaxing in the Bridge Bar after a night of raising awareness and saving energy

It’s the aim of many to turn Blackout into a nationwide event, with universities across the country joining in to raise awareness and save energy. I really hope that this happens – it would be incredible to see – and it all started here in Southampton! I only wish I had been involved last year for the very first event.

Overall, I had a great evening learning new things, meeting new people, making a difference and having fun – not to mention the food and drink! I would definitely advise you to get involved next year. Spread the word – it’s definitely worth it!

Joanne