A couple of weeks back I read an article that split each year of student life in to certain categories.
Year 1 - Freshers - You are youthful, uncaring and generally more focused on getting drunk than doing any sort of actual work.
Year 2 - Mid - life - You realise there is work to be done and you attempt to maintain a balance between going out and staying in to do work.
Year 3 - Retirement - You have hit the point where freshers annoy the hell out of you, you can't afford to spend any time outside of the library and you're quite happy to have a night in watching telly with your mates and a hot water bottle.
I read it and founds it very humorous but didn't really think of it until last night. Last night, me and my friends went to the Students Union bar on my university campus for a quiz night. The quiz night was being run by a load of performing arts students, drumming up funds for an on coming production. We came joint 7th out of 9 teams which isn't too bad and considering one of the rounds was about Theatre History I think we did well. As the night came to a close, there wasn't enough room in the car for all of us so me and my friend Becky said we would get the bus as we own bus passes.
Wandering to the bus stop by the SU the line was short(ish) and full of performing arts students who had clearly had a drink or twelve. I thought,
meh, they are performing arts students, they are gonna want to go paint the town a shade of rouge. Hopping on the bus we sat down and set off.
We reached the final stop on campus, and literally the flood gates of freshers opened. I had forgotten how many had to cram on the bus to get to town for a night out. I remembered fresherness fondly getting on the bus half drunk and ready to hit the town, trying to hide a bottle of whatever wine I could grab cheaply enough. However, I have now realised that I have hit the final stage of student life. I am SUCH a grumpy third year. It's scary. One of the freshers kept hitting the bell for the bus to stop and I was so close to punching said fresher it was actually ridiculous.
With this article, it made me think, was I really this annoying to previous third years? How much do I actually remember of first year? Why am I such a grumpy bastard? And my conclusions were, 1. most definitely, 2. not that much if I am honest and 3. because I have done the getting drunk and falling over and I have hit that stage where I feel the slight glimmer of university maturity. Scary times. Don't get me wrong, on graduation I have every intention that all third years will show the puny freshers how the hell it is done. Plus an aspect of the article which was very true was the part that stated that all third years wish they could be that care free. I do agree with this, but I like the believe I would be wiser now in my drink choice and less annoying.
But I think I am just going to have to put on my grumpy face and realise that I am a student pensioner now. And you know what? I am proud of this fact. Yeah third years are grumpy, but bitch please, trying dealing with our work load and then tell me it's not hard.
I am now going to make a hot water bottle and crack on with my dissertation.....or make food.......I haven't quite decided.
Have a good weekend all.
Abbly xxxx
