PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS

Hiiiiiiii everyone!

Welcome to Hogwarts.... I mean, The University of Sydney

I just thought I'd try and fit in a quick blog post between madly trying to get through all of my readings for lectures tomorrow! Speaking of, that's mainly the reason my blog has been virtually non-existant for the past week or so - university!

O-Week (Orientation) was last week, and my goodness was it fun! I made a fair few new friends that have made sitting in massive, jam-packed lecture halls with intimidatingly intelligent lecturers spray words at you for hours just that little bit easier. Myself and two of my best friends stayed in a very cheap hotel close to uni for 2 nights, so we could attend as much as possible without having to worry when the last bus home left. Lets just say... my new adult privileges were utilised!

I started actual classes yesterday, and despite being scared out of my mind, I throughly enjoyed the new type of learning I will be doing over the next 4, 5 or 6 years. Although the work load is starting to pile up (2 days in... gah!), I'm having a lot of fun with English, Sociology, Socio-Legal Studies and Cultural Studies. 

For the first time in a long time, I feel very happy and content with the direction my life is heading. I don't have any significant worries nibbling in the back of my mind, and I feel free to just live in the moment and truly enjoy myself. 

Let's see where the next year will take me.

Until next time, 

Jess

P.S. My only day off from Uni is Fridays, so you can try to expect (I promise I will legitimately attempt to do this!) posts from me on this day!

ROAD TRIP

Finally finishing one of the most hectic years of my life, which also happened to be my final year of high school, I thought I would have 5 or 6 months of endless free time and boredom before I started Uni. Oh how I was wrong! Since graduating, I have worked quite a bit, caught up with friends and tried to minimise my ever-growing pile of books I want to read. Having not been as relaxed as I would have liked, 5 of my friends and I set out on a road trip/weekend getaway last weekend.

On Friday morning, the 6 of us piled ourselves and our bags in to 2 cars. We set out on our 2nd road trip after Schoolies in November. Having passed my driving test in December, I volunteered my (lack of) driving skills. This road trip happened to be my 2nd time driving on freeways, with the 1st trip ending terribly (but that's a whole other story I'd rather not have to un-repress the memories of). I'm proud to say that I did alright, and managed to get up and back safely!

Despite it being Summer, and having travelled over 200km to the usually sunny, warm and lovely Forster, the weekend was spent mostly inside due to Australia's currently horribly cold, wet weather. However, we still managed to have a great time inside the apartment, passing the time with plenty of eating (mainly peanut M&M's), card games and a Game of Thrones marathon.

There may have also been a fair amount of pleading on my part for a couple of games of Cluedo. In my family, I ALWAYS win Cluedo, so to say it was disappointing that I lost the first two games of five is an understatement. Having not played in a fair while, my detective skills were rusty, and it took a few games to fine tune them once again. But I was victorious eventually! It was also pointed out that I may need to work on becoming a more gracious winner.... Loser's get upset when you thrust your excellent sleuthing victories in their face. Weird, I know!

This weekend was just another frustrating reminder that my current and seemingly responsibility-free teenage life will all too soon be coming to an end. After being offered a place in a Bachelor of Arts at the University of Sydney, I enrolled in the middle of January and will be starting classes in exactly a month. I still have the next month to spend with friends and my family and cherish every moment - including my 18th birthday (FINALLY!!!!!!!). Everything is so exciting, but mildly terrifying, as I attempt to dip my big toe in to the pool of adulthood - although I can't help feeling that there is someone lurking in the shadows, just waiting to shove me in when I am least expecting it.

I'm hesitant to belly-flop straight in, but who knows what great things could be waiting for me once the massive splash subsides?

Until next time,

Jess

THE END.

Finally achieving something that you've been working towards for a very long time is the weirdest feeling. On one hand, you're ecstatic that you've finally come to the end of the metaphorical 10 km marathon. However, there's still that niggling feeling that there were paths left unexplored, stones unturned and missed opportunities to do something differently and completely alter your final outcome.

Graduating high school after 13 years is a similar feeling. After working so hard, especially over the last two years and during my final exams, I didn't feel the sense of sheer relief i had anticipated. Instead of being able to spend the next four months (until I start university) relaxing, my mind constantly questions the future and what it will bring for me. Don't get me wrong - Graduation and Formal was an amazing evening, and I was so lucky to be given three special awards (Academic Achievement, Outstanding English Achivement, and Most Merit Points over six years) - but i'm just a little bit apprehensive about what happens after graduation.

Those who know me, know that i require constant structure and routine in order to function normally. At the moment, my life is particularly uncertain and lacks a great deal of routine. Most mornings I wake up and don't have to do anything at all during the day, forcing me to use my imagination or just finish an entire book in 12 hours *cough* The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Sometimes I might have to go to work, or a party at night. Other than that, I have so much free time on my hands that I have no idea how to spend or use in a relatively productive manner. I guess this blog will be able to help me with a lot of this 'Post High School Boredom Disorder' or PHSBD for short.

The next couple of weeks look a lot more promising, with Schoolies week next week and my family starting their holidays in the next month or so. Also, let's hope i pass my second driving test (after failing the first for THE most stupid reason) and can drive myself to more interesting places. And let's not forget the dreaded results day - December 19th. There will either be tears or joy... no happy medium.

Until next time,

Jess x