First Year of University - My 365

Day 041 - 29/10/2009

Everyone seems to be starting to go out later, so the nights aren't as boring when you don't go out because by the time everyone goes out, you're ready for bed. Get into bed and have 3 hours solid sleep before you get woken up again!

Good times!

I have tutorial and communications and research today. Tutorial isn't compulsory and you don't really learn much by going there so I'm contemplating not, but then I want to show that I'm willing and all that shnizz.

Tomorrow I'm going home which should be good. I miss home cooked food and double beds.

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recrudesce said:
if i dont hear a siren when i'm outside in southampton i worry i've slipped into some kind of alternate reality or have gone deaf.

also, can you let me know the numberplate of that audi and the beemer... need to add them to my list of undercover cars in the area.
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hahaha lush

I'm from marhamchurch we have the one copper and he don't have much to do and happens to be stationed several miles away :D
 
Just realised not a single home computer has photoshop installed, and so it looks like I won't be uploading any photographs until I get back on thursday. The daily updates will continue though.
 
Day 42 - 30/10/2009

Home today. Went in for my first lecture to find it was cancelled, then went in for photography. It was meant to be a 2 hour lecture but ended up only being one.

Once again the lecturer referred to me throughout the lecture *sigh*. She was giving a presentation on useful Digital Photography tips. For example, one was to "keep the camera as steady as possible. use a tripod if necessary. sean you probably have one of these".

She wasn't annoyed I missed the training however, and so that's cool.
The lecture finished an hour early and so I managed to catch the train an hour earlier. Result! £15, not bad for a 1 month return.

Tonight I'm staying in. Will probably play some Xbox with the brother and watch some TV but that's about it. My car is downstairs and I know I could drive it fine without insurance but obviously you just don't want to take the risk. Someone could crash into me and then I'd be screwed.

Anyway, tomorrow meeting up with some old friends, but doing work during the day.

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Sean,
Where was that picture of the docks taken from ?

Loving the comment from your lecturer - seems you are the most "qualified" person in the class :P
 
recrudesce said:
Sean,
Where was that picture of the docks taken from ?

Loving the comment from your lecturer - seems you are the most "qualified" person in the class :P
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Ocean Village, down by the harbour.

Yeah these sorts of comments were heard throughout the whole lecturer.
The digital photography tips presentation was all stuff I learned from here after browsing around for a few days. It was no doubt very useful for beginners.
 
Little tip with Month Returns, if you happen to get off the other end at a station without barriers.

When the dude stamps onto the ticket and hands it to you, simply wipe it off immediately with a bit of spit - ticket looks as normal and can be used for a month ;)
 
feeb said:
Little tip with Month Returns, if you happen to get off the other end at a station without barriers.

When the dude stamps onto the ticket and hands it to you, simply wipe it off immediately with a bit of spit - ticket looks as normal and can be used for a month ;)
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:O shocked and apaulled at your behaviour young lady


and loving every minute of it :naughty:
 
feeb said:
Little tip with Month Returns, if you happen to get off the other end at a station without barriers.

When the dude stamps onto the ticket and hands it to you, simply wipe it off immediately with a bit of spit - ticket looks as normal and can be used for a month ;)
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Unfortunately at both of my ends are ticket barriers that you feed your ticket into, much like the London Underground. Ticket is chomped!
 
Day 43 - 31/10/2009

Happy Halloween!

Was a wonderful sleep last night. Into bed a very early 11pm, woke up by my own accord at 9am. Got up, dossed around, organised stuff I was taking back to uni (DVD's, Books, P&S camera, chargers, Ice shot glass moulds, shoes, coat etc etc). Played some GTA: Ballad of Gay Tony and ate a bacon sarnie my dad cooked me. It's quite peculiar being at home and having people do stuff for you.

Tonight I'm off to a party with some mates, should be cool.
Got myself some Sailor Jerry's from Waitrose, I had to cycle there too. Was refreshing.

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Day 44 - 01/11/2009

Okay, officially 10 days until Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 is out.

Haha.

Seriously though, today I got up at 10am, dossed, played GTA4 a bit, had breakfast for the first time in over a month, helped Dad empty out the loft, and now I'm sat waiting for my roast dinner to be cooked. Seriously excited about this.

I've started research for my photography essay.
I need to think about:

1. Brief history of digital photography
2. The change in the workflow – with the right technology anyone can now take the image, process it, print it and publish it. How has this changed the amateur and professional roles?
3. How has the publishing of images been affected now that they can be published digitally, eg on the web, on digital photo frames, virtual portfolios etc?
4. Digital manipulation, the role of Photoshop
5. Photojournalism & media
6. Mobile technology's role in mainstream news reporting
7. Challenges for the big players in the industry
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and also my assessment criteria is:

25% Describe the functions and effects of a range of photographic imagery in a variety of contexts using appropriate concepts and terminology.

25% Depth of critical analysis regarding changes in photography brought about by digital technologies and new media using appropriate examples, and applying the analysis to both media and consumer viewpoints

25% Depth of research and appropriate use of academic sources to underpin discussions within the essay

25% General presentation, layout, use of Harvard referencing system, appropriate Bibliography & properly labelled images throughout essay
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It looks like quite a lot of work but I just really need to back up my notes with research and evidence and make sure I get my head around it before it's too late. It's not due until 12th January but getting an early start can't hurt.

"The best way to avoid sinking under all the work is to make sure you start swimming early."

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woooooooooooo caving, you should find the speleology society and join it man, the best thing i've done at uni so far :D (I got to climb through a waterfall underground hehehehehe)
 
Dude i have a bunch of really good photography books here for my course which should cover the stuff you need - if your interested i can drop them over to Soton next time i venture that way - or you can come and get them if you like - costs about a 5iver for a bus return to here.

Its worth mentioning if you have any books that you need for your course because we have had massive booklists this year...
 
feeb said:
Dude i have a bunch of really good photography books here for my course which should cover the stuff you need - if your interested i can drop them over to Soton next time i venture that way - or you can come and get them if you like - costs about a 5iver for a bus return to here.

Its worth mentioning if you have any books that you need for your course because we have had massive booklists this year...
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Thanks very much for the offer, it is genuinely very kind of you, however our uni library is absolutely enormous and so there should be tonnes of material there :)

Thank you once again though!
 
Have been to the Soton library and not had too much luck with decent photography books, be good if the Uni library is better - maybe you can help me out with some books ;)
 
Day 45 - 02/11/2009

Today has been a terrible day.

Earlier I was bitching that none of my mates could be bothered to come and see me and no one was even bothered that I was home. My dad seemed resentful of the fact that he asked me to wash his car and I didn't do it (yet, I intend to tomorrow).
Wallowing in self-pity and doing my uni work, blah blah blah, being a bit of a to**er.

I'm cooking steak for dinner for my brother and my dad, and I ask my mum when they'll be home so I know when to get the steak out of the fridge.

She goes "Did you not hear me on the phone?"

Bit of back story, not going into much detail because of privacy:
My brother has learning difficulties, and did very well at his GCSE's, predicted F's and achieving mostly D's, a C and a few E's. Fantastic stuff, we were all really proud of him (as opposed to me who got an A*, 3 A's, 4 B's and 2 C's with no revision - academically everything comes easy to me. I'm not proud of this, but I'm just putting perspective into it. My parents and myself were far prouder of my brother than anyone was of me, and rightfully so.)
Anyway, he couldn't get a place on the course he wanted at college because he needed at least a D in English and didn't get it.

My dad's friend Pete who owns his own construction company took him on as an apprentice. The way Pete see's it, he's not paying out of his own pocket so why wouldn't he take him on?
The government pays for my brother and so it's a win win situation for pete. He gets to train up a youngster to work for him and doesn't have to pay for it.

Now comes to the real reason as to why it's been a terrible day.
Today my brother and my dad spoke to the college which he attends and have said that they are thinking about asking him to leave the course. He's not coping with the work and due to his learning difficulties he's not picking up the techniques of using the tools as quickly as the other students.
What this basically means is he may lose his job with pete as pete would then have to pay a completely inexperienced kid out of his own pocket.

Without C's in english and maths there is little he can do.
It's upset everyone a lot, but thankfully it's not been finalised. There is no doubt something we can do to stop it happening.
Otherwise it's kind of like "crap... what the hell does he do?".

Any advice or successful life stories from people who have learning difficulties would be greatly appreciated. We're all feeling a bit 'left in the dark', especially my brother.

It's put everything into perspective for me. I'm a really, really selfish ungrateful person in comparison to him. It sickens me to think I'm like this, and I need to get my act together. He's the person I'd like to be in the future. Completely selfless, a total grafter, and one of the most friendly people around.

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Have you tried the local council to see if they have a disability resource person, they might be in a fairly good position to lobby the college and get some slack cut for your brother

Is there a way the family can help him with academic work as I know on some courses there are bits of work requiring utterly unrelated skills like stats on a travel and tourism course that I helped one of my friends out with

I mean some of the stuff you can just do for people and it won't affect the development of their course but does keep them on it so they can do the important bits

I know a few guys studying civil (engineering) and have a first year understanding of it so if its the number crunching I might be able to help?
 
david1701 said:
Have you tried the local council to see if they have a disability resource person, they might be in a fairly good position to lobby the college and get some slack cut for your brother

Is there a way the family can help him with academic work as I know on some courses there are bits of work requiring utterly unrelated skills like stats on a travel and tourism course that I helped one of my friends out with

I mean some of the stuff you can just do for people and it won't affect the development of their course but does keep them on it so they can do the important bits

I know a few guys studying civil (engineering) and have a first year understanding of it so if its the number crunching I might be able to help?
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My dad is going to speak to pete still, pete could say "so what?" continue employing my bro and then have another go at college next year.
In fact, college might not even get rid of him.
If worst comes to worst, my parents are going to set up a connexions interview for him to give him some hope/some ideas of what he wants to do next.
 
Day 46 - 03/11/2009

Once again, not much today. Have written a report on "How articles targetting different audiences ensure reader engagement".
Going to the pub with my mate tonight which should be nice, and tomorrow I'm off to spoons with a few mates before I go back to uni on thursday morning.

I'm gagging to get back to uni. Safe to say I miss it a lot.

Edit: Excuse the naff-ness of this. Taken on my compact and photoshop refused to help me stitch it together :p

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Since the government are so keen to keep people off incapacity benefits there should be some help available from the local job centre disability support to help someone with learning difficulties keep their job. They may know how to get help with the college course.Alternatively are there any learning support assistants in the college? If so then your brother may qualify for help from them.

I do hope your brother can get the help he needs. I worked with people with learning disabilities ( retired now) and the services avilable to support them vary according to where they live.One thing I can advise though is for your parents to make a fuss on his behalf- write to the head at the college and ask for a meeting with him/her, contact the Job centre, the county education service, anyone in authority. The people that get the help are often those who make a fuss.
 
ladysue said:
Since the government are so keen to keep people off incapacity benefits there should be some help available from the local job centre disability support to help someone with learning difficulties keep their job. They may know how to get help with the college course.Alternatively are there any learning support assistants in the college? If so then your brother may qualify for help from them.

I do hope your brother can get the help he needs. I worked with people with learning disabilities ( retired now) and the services avilable to support them vary according to where they live.One thing I can advise though is for your parents to make a fuss on his behalf- write to the head at the college and ask for a meeting with him/her, contact the Job centre, the county education service, anyone in authority. The people that get the help are often those who make a fuss.
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Thanks for that, it is appreciated.
My Dad is going to organise a meeting with his tutor and his course leader, and if worst comes to worst my mum will go mad and ask to see the principal.
Heck perhaps we can write to the newspaper too ;)

It just doesn't seem fair, at all.
 
Day 47 - 03/11/2009

Taken plenty of pictures on my compact camera, of the dog and his new haircut, of my brother, and of the lovely sunset tonight. You'll see all of them tomorrow in tomorrow's update.

Got a call from one of my hall mates who borrowed my clothes airer while I was away. He left it outside his room overnight and came out the next morning to find it smashed to pieces. He was very apologetic, but still, £15 down the drain. I wasn't angry at him, it was an accident and wasn't really his fault but still.
I'll probably have to fork out for another one and if I stop lending it out to people they'll be ****ed off with me. Asking for everyone to chip in is probably out the question. Sigh.

Didn't do any uni work today. Got up late, packed all my stuff up (I seem to have gained a bag...) and pretty much dossed all day. Lovely jubbly.
Off to the pub tonight with my mates, which should be nice. Plenty of cheap sailor jerry rum :D
Tomorrow going for lunch with my Dad and then back to uni for around 3pm. Really excited, and I might even have a copy of Modern Warfare 2 waiting for me :D

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foodpoison said:
Day 46 - 03/11/2009

Taken plenty of pictures on my compact camera, of the dog and his new haircut, of my brother, and of the lovely sunset tonight. You'll see all of them tomorrow in tomorrow's update.

Got a call from one of my hall mates who borrowed my clothes airer while I was away. He left it outside his room overnight and came out the next morning to find it smashed to pieces. He was very apologetic, but still, £15 down the drain. I wasn't angry at him, it was an accident and wasn't really his fault but still.
I'll probably have to fork out for another one and if I stop lending it out to people they'll be ****ed off with me. Asking for everyone to chip in is probably out the question. Sigh.

Didn't do any uni work today. Got up late, packed all my stuff up (I seem to have gained a bag...) and pretty much dossed all day. Lovely jubbly.
Off to the pub tonight with my mates, which should be nice. Plenty of cheap sailor jerry rum :D
Tomorrow going for lunch with my Dad and then back to uni for around 3pm. Really excited, and I might even have a copy of Modern Warfare 2 waiting for me :D
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Thats the only thing I do when I lend people stuff, you break it you replace it, job done
 
smoothedit said:
You managed to get one before the release date next tues??!?
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Well, on the game website it said, on the 2nd November, that the status of my order was "Despatched".
Now normally Game just sends the game out early and I tend to get my preorder 1 or even 2 days early, but that's when it's despatched around 3 days prior to release. this was despatched over a week before release!
 
Day 049 - 06/09/2009

Carnage was amazing. I like to think we weren't to disruptive of the neighbours and didn't cause too much public hassle. The stewards were very good, trying to ruin our fun! (telling us to get out the road, to be quiet, to move quickly to the next venue etc :p)

Was out until 2am, then walked home with some mates and woke up this morning with a very dry mouth.

Not much tonight. I'm hoping Modern Warfare 2 will be delivered today.
According to the noticeboard, due to the Royal Mail postage strikes they're not expecting their post to be delivered until 10th November.

Not
f-ing
cool.

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Day 051 - 08/11/2009

Once again argued with the missus last night.
I met her randomly in a club I went to, and she was clearly very drunk.
I laughed and said "haha you're quite drunk aren't you!" and she got in a stress.
I let her get on with it. She's got her mate staying for the weekend and last night asked me to stay in her room. I said no, because I didn't want to put her mate out, and that was it. She argued with me, p-ed my right off and I ended up leaving early and walking home on my own. Really not cool, has happened every time I've been out with her. And she wonders why I don't want to go out with her.

Started doing some proper work today. Took a photograph, then edited it in photoshop to look cartoony, and added in police and a news crew to make it look like a crime scene. I'm not sure if I'm happy with it or not, but I think as long as I back it up with a decent rationale then it will reinforce it.

Going to the girlfriend's for a chinese tonight but no doubt we'll end up arguing again. Just as things were on the up as well.
What a miserable day, weatherwise, too.
Here's one from the image bank of the church on a nice sunny day.

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Day 052 - 09/11/2009

So I went down to the skatepark today and forgot to put a memory card in my camera. Grr.

Here's a picture from the train station.

So today I got Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.
I completed the campaign on Regular in 4 hours and 47 minutes. Throughout that time I stopped once for a 10 minute food break. What a sad act.

Add me on Xbox Live: 'Food Poison' for some multiplayer when you get it :)
Tonight I'm off out, but if I wasn't, I'd be playing MW2 for 6 hours straight.

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Day 053 - 10/11/2009

My hall-mate Jon is very competitive and is a keen sailor. I found a very tongue-in-cheek article on MSN.com about 10 sports that shouldn't really be considered sports. Sailing was one of them. I printed it out and stuck it to his door.

The result was as anticipated. He went ballistic and got very angry. Brilliant.

My friend Ben came down from Cardiff today. He goes to Glamorgan university.

We went out, to a local club, and to get in for free you had to go in before 11pm. Was empty, but got busier at around half 12. There was an indie DJ on the top floor but I think he gave in to peer pressure at around half 12 and just played regular club music. Poor show.

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Day 054 - 11/11/2009

First of all I'd like to pay my respects to the brave men and women fighting currently and who have fought in the past for their country and for its citizens.
Unfortunately I wasn't awake for the 2 minutes silence.

Didn't do much today, literally played Modern Warfare 2 for the whole day with Ben and watched The Hangover and the new Terminator film (which was actually quite entertaining).

Went out to Oceana though, had a wicked night with the lads and lasses.

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Day 055 - 12/11/2009

Walked Ben to the train station this morning and for the rest of the day have been scooting on and off of MW2. I feel very unsettled this morning, no sympathy due. Had a bowl of heinz spaghetti bolognaise but I really feel terrible. Mixture of a cold and going out 3 nights in a row. Silly me.

Seeing the girlfriend tonight for a few hours before she goes to Paris tomorrow, hopefully to take some lovely shots of the eiffel tower.

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Day 056 - 13/11/2009

This is the view from my girlfriend's kitchen. My room is the 2nd one up on the far right hand side with the windows drawn.

Not done a lot this weekend. Everyone has gone home for the weekend and there isn't a lot to do. Some girls on my floor have stayed and so we've just watched films and not done a lot.

My girlfriend went to paris this weekend and so I thought it would be a nice break from having to constantly text her back to update her on what I am doing/thinking/feeling at that exact moment, thinking that she wouldn't be able to text in a foreign country. Alas, she can. *sigh*.

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Day 057 - 14/11/2009

Once again, did not a lot today. Horrible weather, completely pelting it down.

Was meant to be meeting up with a friend who came down for an open day but it was too horrible weather so she's coming down in a few weeks time which should be nice.

Watched more films today - The Strangers (crap, don't bother), Elephant (brilliant - highly recommend) and United 93 (entertaining and I don't think it's been to Hollywood-ised which is good).

Tomorrow we're having a sunday roast and I'm going out for dinner with a bunch of mates for one of their birthdays.

Local church - I'm going to have another go at this to see if I can reduce the amount of distortion.

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