Here’s a summary of this last month:

Went to Washington DC and it snowed. A lot of things were closed, was a bit crazy. Loved the weather though and spent some time with amazinggg people, bought Juicy Couture and (lots of) Abercrombie & Fitch, and realised I am still far too poor for any more Betsey Johnson

Went to Sheffield University, pretty epiccc. Pretty much set on going there. It’s so indie it’s perfect. Too many bars, too many cheap drinks, epic accommodation, a PolSoc that goes to Amsterdam (messyyyy!) and a damn good department. They changed my offer too, so I really wanna firm it (but can’t…yet).

Also went up to York University. It was interesting, met a guy who lives literally like twenty minute drive away and was on my train and we had lunch. Met a posh boy who I got the vibe he felt I was unworthy talking to him, because I didn’t own half of Oxford. The university had a nice feel to it but on the whole, too dull. It’s not somewhere I could spent a fulfilling three years and the department isn’t particularly strong either.

Um, last few weeks I’ve kissed someone old and kissed someone new. I’m also not single anymore. Rejoice! Lets hope he works out and that he gets an offer from King’s College London to do Law, which he doesn’t even want to do anymore, but he still spends far too much time checking Ucas to the point I have to drag him away from WiFi areas :’)

Playlist is a-coming. And January exam results come on the 11th March, expect me to pretty much break down due to my Economics score (and probably all the others too, eep)

You know the track. I’ll be surprised if that doesn’t surpass my play count for “Falling Down” by Space Cowboy this time next year.

Still slacking. But I’ve now got three A’s in a row for Economics mock exams. I probably should stop insulting my Politics teacher, I feel guilty calling him both a bastard and a fascist to his face. I forget words offend people.

As for lifeeeeee, I’ve been thrown off course by somebody “unexpected” - playing my cards “intentionally careless” if that makes sense. I’m not expecting much, but I do really hope it works out. I’m not risking my emotions as I usually do, if this year has taught me anything it’s I should not regret the choices I make but keep my guard up too. I give far too many second chances to people who wrong me (I’m like a doormat, seriously) and I always say “it’s the final straw” but I believe that people change for the better and when someone makes an effort to earn my trust/respect again it’s impossible to say no. I’ll happily hold grudges for those who don’t try and repair/amend when they wrong me; deny it and I’ll punch you in the face.

So I’ve explained before, since the summer I’ve been so miserable, dull and out of myself I’m surprised so many people stuck by me for so long. I’ve found a solid form of happiness in my life but I’m also much more dramatic. I’ve been told people live vicariously through me, and my emotions are always so powerful that it affects everyone around me. So I literally dance in the middle of the street when I’m happy, beam with positive energy. Oh and act gangsta. But when I get angry, everyone around me feels it. When it comes down to it, I just want to be a positive energy on everybody, and that’s what I will be. I have changed, but it’s a good change.

I seem to be the centre of attention for some reason. I’m also dating three people right now, if you believe the rumours, it’s quite flattering. I tried using the “my life is in such a rut” excuse but I got laughed at.

Finally, I seem to have a new university action plan every blog post, so no point stopping here. As long as I get AAB/ABB this year, I go to whichever university will take me. But if I get rejected from LSE and end up with AAA, I take a year out to work/travel the world and reapply to LSE, SOAS and King’s.

…and bought a new lens. I missed zoom so much. It was a significant chunk of money, in fact, nearly as much as the body and the kit lens together. It’s an investment. But that’s the last time I’m spending any money on my SLR for a year at least. I stopped Flickring a while ago and I don’t plan to publish any of my photos any time soon, not that I prolifically take them, but I don’t wish to share any recent pieces of “creativity” with the world.

I’ve also finally added a “content” page of old essays (currently consisting of two; I need to source my handwritten ones that got me full marks…) and the about page; which actually got updated a while ago, and I’ll probably update it yet again soon.

Life is finally getting a bit more interesting; spending more of my free time in the centre with good friends instead of buried in a pile of books. That being said, I plan to do a post consisting of the books I’ve been reading/studying, for knowledge is good. I like knowledge. I’m more positive, optimistic and confident than I have been for the last few months. Finally got two As in Economics essays, I’ve been getting B’s since the start and it’s the only subject I need an A in this year to get me into university. So it gets the majority of my time. Oh and LSE still aren’t talking to me, but I’ve pretty much settled I will be just as happy going to York, or any other of my choices. Except Exeter, they don’t deserve me.

I’m on Day 4 of my 5 day weekend. Its been dramatic, but life always is.

I visited University of Birmingham on Wednesday. As it stands, Birmingham or Sheffield will be insurance and my firm will be York or LSE, if I get that lucky. The city of Birmingham doesn’t have that great a reputation, but I know the centre of it well and it’s probably my favourite shopping destination in England. So that really wasn’t a problem. But living there is a different kettle of fish, but then again, you’re talking to someone who wants to live in London.

First impressions of the university weren’t great. One thing I learned is I’m really not a fan of “red-brick” architecture. I suppose seeing the Bristol University buildings from a young age and visiting Oxford, Exeter, LSE and UCL prior to Birmingham, aesthetically it couldn’t win. It didn’t help that it was a dull rainy day either. The accommodation they showed was lovely, but cynically, they were going to show the best one. It was in their student village The Vale, where they have a social space The Hub, which again, was modern and lovely. Although I’m sure the price wasn’t.

And from the edge of campus, you can see the village of Selly Oak where most of the second/third years live, which again looked really nice. It’s always nice to know you’re not going to be forced to live in the rough side of town with a long commute.

Anyway, after being a bit uneasy about it all, I visited the Politics department which was just stunning. It’s in Muirhead Tower, which was recently refurbished and has…A STARBUCKS ON THE GROUND FLOOR. Well, walking out of a lecture and straight into the arms of a White Chocolate Mocha would do it for me. The course was bothering me a bit, because of the restriction of modules in the first year. Turns out, if you don’t like the course choices in your first year just do the first year of a different course, and then change next year. It’s a bit of a silly system, but I would probably switch to International Politics with Economics so I could do some more macroeconomics in the first year. It also seemed a much more personal environment - as in the lecturers/teachers were there to actually help you, and there’s always support when you need it. I feel the higher up the tables you go, the less the teachers care about you, and more about their research. My Dad recalled his lecturing days and said “it’s impossible to balance the two equally. The majority of researchers aren’t good teachers and vice versa.” And my main fear about LSE is just that; it would be too impersonal. But then again, LSE is in an entirely different league to all the other universities I’ve applied to.

The people I met were lovely too, although we were all “considering it as our insurance choice” setting our sights on either Oxbridge, Durham or LSE. And I’m 99% sure I was the only state-school person there.

So learning points from the day were:

1. I really don’t like “red-brick” architecture.
2. The majority of my time is going to be spent between my accommodation and my department. Everything else is of little or no concern.
3. The importance of a coffee shop on hand.
4. The balance of teaching quality vs. prestige is far more important than I first envisioned.

On the whole, Birmingham wasn’t perfect but it was a lot better than I’d imagined to be. The course is far better than Sheffield’s and I’m sure their department wouldn’t be so swish, and that looks enough to swing it for me. Still, I’m going up there in February so I guess I can’t say anything til then. But I would be pretty happy there if it came down to it. Which means…getting BBC this year to meet the ABB offer. Hmm. Somehow I think that’s within my reach.