18th December 2017
Hey, hi, hello! Back in October, I embarked on one of the biggest, most terrifying adventures of my life: university. Though it was something I'd always dreamed of doing, that didn't subside the crippling fear that I'd hate my course, or have no friends, or not enjoy it as much as everyone told me I would (or should). However, as I travel back home and type up this post, I can happily say that I could not have been more wrong to have these anxieties. So far, my experience at Durham University has been an overwhelmingly positive one, and I honestly don't think I've ever had so much fun! Luckily, I've been documenting all of my most exciting moments with my trusty camera, and uploading the occasional 'weekly vlog' to my YouTube channel. If you're even considering university, all I can is that I'd thoroughly recommend it, and I hope these videos speak for themselves and do it justice. Notice how that big ol' cheesy grin never leaves my face...
My first weekly vlog documents my experience of upping sticks and heading up north to Durham. I remember sitting on the train as I headed there, so nervous that I literally couldn't do anything other than stare out at the window, watching myself rush further and further away from the place I had always known. Looking back now from my current vantage point, I love seeing how tangible my relief is that, actually, everything was okay in the end. As soon as I arrived here in Durham, I absolutely fell in love with it and everyone here.
Cut forward a month, and here I am living my best life. My college, St Cuthbert's Society, had its annual Michaelmas Ball (Michaelmas being the name for the first term of the academic year, followed by Epiphany and Erasmus) and Lumiere, the festival of light, came to town. In fact, it came right outside my doorstep, which was super cool, albeit majorly inconvenient - we couldn't even leave our house without being ID'd and having to fight through a swarm of (very cold and, thus, impatient) tourists. This was a really fun week and one that I'm once again very grateful to have on record to remember forever.
My final vlog of the term, and this time (Slade voice)... IT'S CHRISTMAAAAAS! We had a lot of snow days, went ice-skating, held a house Christmas party and secret Santa, ate a delicious Christmas roast, and somehow managed to balance our degrees alongside it. Well, only just.
I wanted to end this post with a big thank you. So, here goes... THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for sticking by me as I immersed myself in this incredible new adventure. Thank you for giving me so much advice and love as I found my way. Thank you for being there every step of the way. I'll be making loads more of these weekly vlogs next term, but for now I'm going to take a little bit of time off for Christmas to chill out and hang out with my amazing family. Also, I GET TO SEE MY PUPPY SO SO VERY SOON - I'M BUZZING MY HAKUNA MATITAS OFF!!!! Yep, that's right folks, I'm really putting this English degree to good use. On that note, have a lovely Christmas and I'll see you in the New Year. Let's hope 2018 is as smashing as this year has been. All the love as always.
By Jack Edwards