Rambling Onwards

Even though Law Revue has ended, my life has been just as crazy and I'm not sure where all my time went - I found myself exhausted, skipping class and since I stuffed up rostering for work (I said "next week" when I meant the week after, even though I said the dates for the following week) I went back to my job at Luna Park and worked on days that I was meant to be at uni - a bit of a mistake on my behalf. Not to mention all the assignments that are now due, and the stress of trying to find a dress for BSOC ball. But now that it's midsem break and after partying it up at ball and working 28 hours this week on top of my internship (not to mention handing in two assignments in a week), I think it's time to relax.

My life in a nutshell. From my studyblr.

But before I do, here's my top ways of staying on top of things (from experience) when it gets tough.

This time last year, I was graduating from high school and saying good bye to the place and the people that helped and watched me grow over the last six years of my life. This time last year, I was spamming Instagram with daily countdown posts, feeling a bit stressed out about Final Assembly but also having a blast and creating memories that would last a lifetime with Rusefourteen, the greatest grade in the world. And this time last year, I had no idea what was waiting for me once I left high school.

I suffer from a case of FOMO (Fear of Missing Out, for anyone who doesn't know). It tends to happen when I give up a part of my life that seems much more fun for something else that's incredibly bland and boring in comparison - and it doesn't help that social media only tends to show the highlights.

It's been a week since I moved into campus and it's been really great being able to finish rehearsals at 11pm, shower and sleep at a decent hour (actually I take that back, I stay up and do work or write things like this) and get up in the morning feeling refreshed - except last Wednesday. That day I woke up feeling ill and poorly, and Panadol has been my best friend since.

Where do you sit when you get on a bus? Is your go to place the front or the back of the bus, or do you not care?

I tend to head for the seats just above the stairs before the wheel, and if the back of the bus looks full then I'll sit close to the back doors - but for some reason last night I wanted to sit down the front, and when I couldn't I just kept walking to the back and sat above the wheel. I'm glad I didn't go any further back, because I would've regretted it so much.
Picture this. It's past 6pm and it's dark, and you get on the M10 to take you from UNSW to a train station. It's quite full but you manage to find a seat down near the back. After you sit down, three other UNSW students walk on and do the same, except two of them sit in the second last row and the third girl stands.

Now there's a lady.

Not any ordinary lady, but one who was being very loud and kept insisting that the third girl sits next to her at the back of the bus. It was pretty clear to everyone else that the uni student was quite reluctant because the lady's language was so crude and frankly I would be extremely cautious and if this happened to me I'd be desperately trying to find a way out. After telling the girl that she's harmless and 'if anyone harms ya I'll be the one to hurt them', the girl sits down with the expectation that the lady's comment that she'll even 'shut up if [the girl] sits down' will be true.

It wasn't. The lady pulled up her sleeve and put her arm forward, and kept talking about how a relative had just passed away and she'd inherited a really expensive bracelet. Casually she'd throw in a few passing comments like 'You're a good looking boy' and 'You have sexy legs bitch', until the three uni students, discomfort clearly written on their faces, moved down to the front of the bus.

At the same time, I'm stubbornly looking ahead and resisting the urge to turn around to watch what's going on.

Phones are a great way to avoid social interaction, non?

Now we're almost out of Kingsford when a guy and a girl come on and walk straight to the back. The guy seemed a bit out of it, but responds to the lady when she talks to them.

Cue trouble.

She just wouldn't. stop. talking. I did not need to find out so much about you from your loud, obnoxious, almost one-way conversations with strangers - it's great that you've got a tattoo that says "swipe your card and pay as you enter" and that you're not ashamed of being a prostitute, but you don't really need to shout it to the world and disturb everyone else's commute home after a long day at work/uni/out etc. It's fine to be proud that you can do the splits, but it doesn't mean you need to demonstrate in the aisle of the bus. It's great that you think that the girl has a pretty face, but to encourage her to be a prostitute? I don't have much to say on that. But I don't need you shouting 'smd' in its full glory several times during the bus trip either.
And clearly these two weren't having any of it either - they said bye and went to stand at the back doors of the bus. The guy and the lady almost had a confrontation on the bus - she kept pushing him verbally and he kept telling her to just sit down, except she wasn't having any of that. Luckily, the girl kept putting herself between them and telling the guy to let it go so it was mostly just her walking up and down the aisle.

A confrontation between the lady and the guy almost happened on the bus - she kept saying 'C'mon show me one. Just one throw' but the girl put herself between them and kept telling him to let it go, and eventually they all got off the bus on Oxford Street.

Moral of the story? This kind of stuff can happen anywhere, any time.

With love, a-sleep-deprived Sarah x

*All images in this post belong to their respective owners.

Hey friends!

Okay so before I get into everything I'm doing the City2Surf this year and raising money for ROAR Charity - please sponsor me! I will love you forever and give you lots of hugs, plus you're helping disadvantaged kids at Linganwe School in Rwanda. Here's the link: https://city2surf2015.everydayhero.com/au/sarah-52.

Anyway, I have about three drafts sitting in my posts at the moment. I was a bit stuck on what to write about this week because I'm not doing much besides uni, law revue (which has been brilliant so far, although quite tiring with the late nights and lack of adequate hours of sleep) and the usual study, sleep, eat repeat etc and I didn't feel my very late review of Inside Out or my next Unintentional Rant written almost a month ago would be worth posting. (If you want to see them, let me know in the comments).

How cute is this cat?

So instead here's my little letter to my future self.

Dear future me (this is such a cheesy beginning I just can't),

I hope that when you come back to read this at the end of the semester you can say that you've achieved all, if not most of the following things. Here goes.

Be a bit more daring, more adventurous. There's no need to be so scared of getting it wrong and doing stupid things as teenagers do. You're still a teenager, you're young. You can make mistakes - they'll be stories in the future and you'll only grow as a person. Take a risk and don't be scared of the new. (Although you did let loose and have a really good time at Law Revue's party on Saturday night - and even got do some dancing). 
Have more fun! You don't have to take everything so seriously. Especially certain aspects of Law Revue. And go clubbing at some point when you're not so exhausted because you really do enjoy dancing and going a little bit crazy to music - or have an impromptu dance party in your room that works too. 

Have a healthy mind + soul. Practice mindfulness, do some more yoga! It helped you relax and focus today so make sure you do it more. Breathing does wonders.
Exercise, and reduce the comfort eating. I am really bad with food right now - I eat emotionally and I swear most of the weight I've gained in the last year is because of this. Have better control over it - self control. Remember to exercise and do more of things you really enjoy, but make sure you mix it up or do classes because you get bored easily if you're doing it on your own. 

Work hard, play hard, but don't forget to have time to for yourself. It's good to love your friends and work hard, but remember you need to relax and have days off. Remember to dance, sing, write, sleep, binge watch YouTube videos and movies, stalk your favourite YouTubers and be open to new ideas - don't let the past hold you back. 
I hope you've had an absolute blast this semester, that Law Revue was amazing and that you've made and become closer to a lot of your friends. I hope that you feel better about yourself and you remember to relax and have time for yourself. Most importantly, remember that happiness is a choice, but you can never have the good without the bad.

With love, Sarah x

PS: Let me know what you hope you achieve in the next few months in the comments below or on Twitter. Also don't forget to sponsor me. ;)

*All images in this post belong to their respective owners.