Thursday, September 28, 2006

Grown Up

Term is starting again back here in this loverly university town, and for some reason it's getting me down.
Ok, you might argue that that's because I have to do work, but I really genuinely love my degree, I love being a designer, I love the pressure, and I love the work (give me 2 weeks and I'll change my tune...) but for some reason I feel totally disconnected to everyone here.

I've been working in the "Real World" for the last 18 months, on an industrial placement, and I have to say, coming back to being a student was really hard. I already miss my workplace, my boss, the fact that I could control my workload, and sort projects out - I have 3 products launched into the market. I enjoyed having a wage, living in a pretty decent house and paying my council tax.

So now I've come back to having to scrape by without an income, other that what I've taken in loans from the bank and government. People look down on me because of the perceived idea that students don't work. There may be many who really don't (don't get me started on Sociology students), but I do, I work 18 hour days and I can remember times where I didn't sleep for 48 hours on the run up to a deadline, sitting in my room totally spaced out on spray paint as I desperately try to get my models and prototypes finished.

And now I'm sat here, about to embark on another round of the design torture, and all I can think about is how I just don't belong here anymore. I look around me at the freshers, and the other students, and I'm not one of them anymore. I hate having to sponge off my parents, I hate having to take loans that I won't repay until I'm 65, or dead, just so I can eat.

Ok so I'm whinging but realistically I came to uni to learn and get on out there, yet I'm so close yet so far to finishing and all I want to do is be a good member of society and pay my own way.

I think that this last year "outside" has made me mature, I've grown up in so many ways, I used to balk at the idea of having to speak to people on the phone, and ok, I still have difficultly, but I've realised that it's not that scary, and now I look at all these young people thinking that binge drinking is cool, and sleeping around is cool, and I just don't want to be part of that anymore.

Quite simply, I think I'm an adult now.

Wednesday, September 27, 2006

About me 1

The profile box on this blog is not big enough for me so here is my first 50 facts as stolen from Tom Reynolds, but I think he stole it from someone else too…

1. Rachel Munday isn’t my real name
2. I got the idea from that rubbish TV show “At Home with The Brathwaites”
3. I’m a student at a university in the Midlands, UK
4. I can draw quite well, which is helpful as I’m training to be an Industrial Designer
5. I’m just about to start my final year, and will be sharing the ups and downs of it on this blog
6. I used to work for a major international confectionary giant
7. I can no longer stand milk, due to the working for the afore mentioned company
8. I used to have a nose ring
9. I dye my hair brown, because blondes are *stupid*
10. Every man I meet needs the Yellow Pages to stand on
11. I’ve been to Saudia Arabia…for a holiday…
12. …I have consequently been shot at
13. On last count I had moved house over 103 times in my life
14. I can fit all my worldly goods in the back of a tiny jeep
15. I fired my first firearm aged 14
16. I’m a certified Marksman
17. I’m 21 but sometimes feel about 40
18. I love Red Wine
19. I hate Sambuca
20. I left home aged 8…and have a great relationship with my parents
21. I can’t stand any music associated with the phrase “innit”
22. I use the phrase “innit” to really pee people off
23. According to friends, I’m going to have “Pimms and houmous babies”
24. Yes, I sound posh…
25. …in reality it’s because I’ve moved around so much and lost all accents as a way of fitting in
26. I don’t know how I’m going to make it to 100…
27. I should do more running
28. I used to run for the South of England, then I hit puberty
29. I still managed to come 20th in the a charity run, despite a distinct lack of training
30. I met Noel Edmunds – when he was famous first time round
31. I used to be a Brownie, and I had 10 badges
32. I can ride a bike
33. The funniest joke I ever heard when I was a waitress was “sorry, I’ve pea’d all over the table”
34. I hated being a waitress…
35. …Almost as much as I hated being in childcare…
36. …But less than I hated being a lifeguard
37. I’ve always wanted to learn how to fly…
38. …And I have a fear of heights
39. I used to want a tattoo, but I’m too scared of needles
40. I have hypersensitivity of the skin, meaning I can’t handle the pain of injections
41. Every year I have the flu jab
42. I type too fast and *always* spell “have”, a-h-v-e
43. Without spell check I’d look very stupid
44. I’m dyslexic, slightly
45. I have an IQ of 128, but I cheated on my exam
46. Some of these facts are slightly false, but I like to exaggerate
47. “It was *this* big…”
48. I’m a Capricorn, but I don’t believe in astronomy
49. I do believe that different types of people are attracted to each other, but that’s obvious!
50. I’m going to stop at 50, and carry on in another post…

Once upon a time...



So this blog thing is new for me, but I was inspired by the wonderful Tom Reynolds of Random Acts of Reality. Although not a Paramedic myself, I know I have many thoughts that whizz round my head, and there never seem to be enough people to share them with!

So, as this intended as the first post on my blog, I will leave it short and sweet.

(image uploaded for blog appearance 08/08/07)