thelazystudent

[thelazystudent]

please, keep writing. keep drawing. keep painting. please keep making your art no matter how many may try to push you down. the world does not have nearly enough artists. 

[thelazystudent]

New Year New me?

Except I’m currently typing this out in bed with a white chocolate toblerone for brunch. 

01.01.2021

We’re the only creatures on the planet that celebrate New Year - how weird is that? I mean, we’re also the only creatures that worry about having a purpose. But that’s a little sad to think about right now, and after 2020 I think it’s more than okay for our purposes this year just to be to stay alive. We’ve all done such an amazing job this year of trying to make the most out of what little we have when our day-to-day is put on hold. So, now let’s continue with that energy and remind ourselves in this slow start to the new year that we don’t need to do anything more than exist. Be human. Love everything the world around us has to offer. Even if that offering is just to open the curtains and look at the way the clouds move today. 

I hope everyone had a wonderful - if not tame - New Years Eve. And maybe thought of some resolutions? I’ve got some in mind, I think? 

:)

[thelazystudent]

Niche Socks and Study Blocks

29.10.20

I have entered week two of my isolation period - so far no symptoms to record, yay! However, I must admit being stuck in my house may be starting to get to me - I’ve started exercising to deal with the lack of outdoor excursions? On a positive note, I ordered more novelty socks and they arrived, so please do take a moment to enjoy the egg socks. 

Productivity can be difficult to manage at the best of times, the more pressure we feel and the more limitations that are imposed on our lives, the harder it becomes to complete simple tasks. A simple essay that could take a couple of hours can stretch into a three day marathon when you’re given deadlines, slow wifi or cannot see your friends to vent about the teachers choice of question for the essay. It sucks, but that doesn’t mean the problem doesn’t go away. We have to persevere, and I know you can, you just need to remind yourself of who you are. I promise you, you’re more than capable of completing that essay; you’re going to smash revising for that exam; that recital you have been stressing over? You’re going to fly through it. You have to be your own cheerleader, pompoms and all. 

:)

[thelazystudent]

Main Character Energy

22.10.20

This past week has possibly been the worst week of my year. And that’s saying a lot given what we as a world are already going through. To spare you all the gory details, I’ll just tell you that I am currently dealing with a broken heart and a university mandate to self-isolate for two weeks, after one of my classmates tested positive for Coronavirus. 

I’ve therefore decided that this week I will be adopting a strategy I have seen my friends use when they are struggling with what life throws at them. I have decided to give myself main character energy. Typically an idea as narcissistic as this would make me gag, but seeing as I am stuck inside, I don’t see the harm in putting myself first for a while. I made banana bread at 9pm with my housemate because I could, and when everyone liked it I couldn’t help but feel proud of myself. Me - proud of myself? It feels odd, but I like it. I also understand that self-gratification isn’t really true gratification but after spending so long thinking for others, there was a weird relief in admitting that I could like something I’d done for once. Last night, I e-mailed a tattoo artist and am hopefully looking to have my first tattoo before Christmas! I know that must sound rash to many of you, but don’t worry, this is not some post-boyfriend trauma. I have had the design in mind since the beginning of the year, but never had the time or energy to find an artist. 

So if you’ve ever felt a little down and out about life, I cannot recommend trying this out enough. Be the main character, even if it’s just for a day. You deserve it.

p.s. the image of my friends in the coffee shop was taken last week, before I was told to isolate - no rule breakers over here!

:)

[thelazystudent]

City Cliques and Country Gals

26.09.20

I’m finally back! Not that you would have been aware of where I have been, or that I was even away in the first place. I have spent three weeks in my hometown helping with harvest, with only one of my coursebooks and my earphones to keep me company. The book in question? Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo. I’m happy to see my course adding a wider range of books to the reading lists this year, and hope to enjoy the rest of them as much as I have been enjoying Evaristo’s interesting use of form. 

I forget what it’s like to sleep in the city. Car lights flicker between plastic blinds and slurred songs from cheerful freshers bounce off the red brick terraces. I’ve yet to go out since returning, although I have only been back a day so I think I’m allowed to catch my breath first. 

A friend of mine is turning twenty next week - twenty! The first of us to lose the preliminary flight feathers and enter an age where the words, ‘finance’, ‘long-term’ and, ‘anti-aging’ carry much more weight than ever before. It amuses me sometimes, I have only known my housemates for a year, and yet I feel as though we have known each other far longer. Sometimes I imagine we are just juvenile sixteen year-olds, acting older in one of those last-ditch attempts at playing pretend that you don’t realise you’re playing; 

until you are suddenly nineteen and instead of pretend it’s reality and the bins need to be put out; 

but it’s one a.m. and bedtime has become a strictly eleven p.m. event, because you want to ensure that you’re getting the optimum amount of sleep to prevent your eye bags and crow's feet from growing. 

I guess what I am trying to say is, please keep playing pretend, for as long as you can. Unapologetically and with all of your heart. And when the day comes that your friends are booking an, ‘old haunt’ for your twentieth, don’t cry and order an expensive anti-aging cream (I promise you it’s more mouth than trousers, at the very least do the Gen Z thing and check what’s best with Skincare by Hyram first). This is a whole new chapter you get to explore, and you better promise yourself that you’re going to be as selfish as you can. Put yourself first, and only apologise when you mean it, because you know you can’t apologise when the mistake you make is being human. You’ve got this.

:)

[thelazystudent]

Bitches on a Bookshelf

14.09.2020

These photos were taken at the beginning of the month but I am currently at my family home for work, so they will have to do. Future prospects are a scary concept, regardless of where you are in life. However I think, given the current circumstances, we can all be forgiven for our daily meltdowns as we watch the unemployment rates slowly increase - again. 

It’s important to remain optimistic though, even if that silver lining is just being able to see the sunrise this morning. I am very fortunate to have a university careers advisor, who I am currently liaising with in the hopes of gaining some much needed advice on my next steps in my career (which is currently somewhere between non-existent and like a sad fish out of water desperately panicking to return to the safety of the ocean). Keep your heads high folks, we’re in this for the long haul but I believe in you.

My t.b.r list is forever growing, which is both a blessing and a curse. Alongside the summer reading that is pictured above, I have just bought my course books for this year too. Whilst I enjoy the thought of having a room filled with these books, I can’t help but feel nervous for the next year of studying. Second year is where the fun stops, every word I write will count according to my professors. It’s going to go by faster than I can imagine no doubt, and I won’t appreciate it until it’s over, but I suppose that’s why this space exists! I get to document the hardships and the (small) victories of my academic life. I hope at the most it entertains and informs you, and at the very least is fun for me to look back on. 

:)

[thelazystudent]

Self-worth and Cacti Melodrama

02.09.2020

A new month brings a new series of challenges, whims and climate related breakouts. Oh and, in this instance, a new academic year. Well, almost. My university has delayed my second year by a month, in the hopes that it will make on-campus classes a more available option. I hope they’re right, for as much as I adore my friends, I cannot imagine sitting at the breakfast table for my 8 a.m. seminar on publishing whilst simultaneously learning about medical laws and the introduction to nordic civilisation. 

I have just finished Everything I Know About Love. As someone who does not gravitate towards non-fiction, this was a surprisingly enjoyable read for me. Alderton was honest and witty in her experiences with love throughout her early teens and into her young adulthood. Reading this was empowering, like getting advice from the big sister I never had. I look forward to reading her upcoming work and shall be recommending this book to anyone who gives me the chance to bring it up. 

The books I need for second year are slowly piling up on my shelves, patiently waiting for me to pick them up. I say patiently I have - at best - three weeks to get through as many of them as I can. It’s very on brand for me. Expect photos of my multiple caffeine drinks and poorly lit bedroom in the next few weeks as I start using my sleeping hours for reading instead. 

My plant collection is starting to fill out a bit, which is perhaps the sole reason I am at all content at the moment. However, my yellow cacti (he is nameless but does have a relationship with Phillip, my £4 houseplant my sister begged me to buy in my first year of uni) was accidentally drowned this morning as I carelessly poured half a litre over him. I panicked, quickly pouring out the water I had put in, and am now praying to all the Gods I know of in the hopes that I have not killed him. Please, if you could spare a couple seconds, pray for my cactus, it would be greatly appreciated. 

:)

[thelazystudent]

Banana Bread

Well I finally did it, a day without any human interaction whatsoever and I folded into making banana bread. Not that I’m mad about it, I didn’t have anything better to do and the bananas were already a gross shade of over-ripe. Also, yes I could not wait to try the bread before taking a nice photo. I suppose everyone and their mother already has their own recipe for making banana bread, but if you’re curious as to where to find another good recipe, click here for the one I used.

My sister kindly bought me a Starbucks on her way home from her boyfriend’s house, and upon tasting it I realised I had forgotten how sugar-filled their coffee is. I’m probably going to experience some sugar-caffeine-induced rush that may or may not just do my heart in. 

I’m curating a list of books that I want to read, however I also need to bare in mind that A) I am broke so B) I need to save-up for my next year of university which C) should have a summer reading list coming out shortly. So I’m holding off for now - although I just bought a skipping rope for cardio so I don’t think it’ll be much longer before I buy the books. I’m currently reading Wonder by R J Palacio, it was given to me by a friend which was really sweet, and so far it has me hooked. So thank you to my wonderful friend for the gift, it’s a great read.  

:)

[thelazystudent]

It’s Raining;

Which bodes well for me, because I love the rain. I don’t quite know how to explain it but, there’s something about being inside whilst raining that makes me feel like I’m being more productive. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that when there’s good weather I force myself outside in the hopes of catching a tan (reality - my freckles flare up and I just get a bit sweaty).

I want to do something nice for my friends. I miss them so much and I really want them to know this. I was contemplating writing them all a letter, and then sending it with some nice photographs of us all with a few cute ~aesthetic~ images from Pinterest (you know, the ones where you type in, ‘your name + core + aesthetic). But here’s the issue - I don’t have any of their addresses. I know that sounds bad, because I suppose it is. However seeing as we all lived together at uni, I didn’t think that having their home addresses was vital. So it won’t be a surprise, which kind of sucks, but I still want to do it. I also wanted to buy those reversible octopuses for them but I can imagine that they’re quite difficult to wrap //: 

Looking over this account, I’ve realised that I haven’t really made anything that typically aligns with the ‘studyblr’ concept. So I was considering doing a few posts on books I’ve read, just because I really enjoy reading and I think I have a few goodies on the shelf that people may be interested in (reminder to never use the word ‘goodies’ in verbal context). I was also contemplating the one hundred days of productivity challenge-thing? Although, if you couldn’t already gather, I really am very lazy. Or maybe not lazy, because when I do work I think I work quite hard, so maybe just poorly selective about my use of time? That’s such a mouthful though, so I think I’ll stick to lazy - and if that doesn’t prove my point I don’t know what will. I know that when I return to uni creating this sort of content should come much easier, and I’ll do things like, ‘days in the life’ etc. because I am HOOKED on those blog posts (is that just me being an incredibly nosy person?). Anyway, maybe until then I’ll attempt that challenge, if not for my Tumblr’s sake then at least for the culture. 

Also a lil’ thank you to those that have followed this account, I cannot think for the life of me why you would choose to expose yourself to my abysmal content, but it really makes me smile when I see the same names pop-up like that. 

:)

[thelazystudent]

Productivity, it’s Been a While

It’s almost 11am. At least, that’s what it says on the clock. But, if I’m honest, it may as well be nine in the afternoon (if you were living your best emo life in the early 2010s, hopefully that reference will make you smile). I can imagine that this feeling of suspension on the timeline is not unfamiliar to anyone by now. Life as we all knew it came to an abrupt halt, and now we just exist between various sleeping hours, doing a lot of nothing much. 

Well, at least, that’s been life for my sister and I. 

However, as we enter June, I am hoping to change this. Whether it actually works or not is a matter for future me to stress over. I have been very lucky to have some books sent to me by one of my friends (a long story involving ex’s who steal books for fun and a LOT of glitter) which could not have come at a better moment, as I have recently finished Why Poetry by Matthew Zapruder. Before I continue I must make a quick note on how thoroughly enjoyable this piece was to read. Zapruder explores the world of poetry using an anecdotal style of writing that gives you a feeling of having a personal conversation, as opposed to learning about the misconceptions of poetry in a lecture hall. If you are interested in poetry, or want to hear a refreshing and contemporary take on the subject I urge you to try this book.  

Anyway, that was my quick note, back onto the main point of today’s discussion. Productivity. The chains in the machine that make us do stuff. Motivation. The oil that keeps the chains running. That is, if you can maintain your motivation. I have come to accept that my ability to maintain motivation - and by extension my ability to be productive - is a little lacklustre. Sometimes to my detriment - like that one time all the way back in my secondary school days where I actually gave up on my art GCSE for several weeks.

Trying to find motivation can be hard, for a myriad of not-so-fun reasons. Some may believe that to-do lists, setting goals and scheduling can kickstart productivity, however I have never found this to be the case. Alternatively, I find things that are supposed to enforce structure on my life to be quite damaging to my own mental health. There have been many occasions where writing a pretty bullet-point list of shit I needed to do has made me feel even worse by midday for not having completed enough. It’s taken me nineteen years of life - so roughly thirteen years of education - to value this lesson. 

Of course, every person has their preference for keeping productive, but please never think that you must stick to a regime in order to achieve the best results. If you can free-style your learning, i.e. spend three days solid learning and then a weekend of nothing, then go for it. The most important part of productivity is feeling comfortable that you’re progressing without feeling like you’re going to burn out. Again, take it from a girl that tried to study with a schedule for a week and then forgot her history essay because she had photography coursework written down for that night’s focus. 

I hope this, at the very least, helps to comfort someone out there who is struggling to find the will to do stuff. Here is your sign - you can do this, it will be worth it, STAY HYDRATED!!!

:) 

[thelazystudent]

All You Girls Pop Yo’ Pills Like This

I thought of this as I was taking my vitamin D pill this morning. Lockdown has really lowered the bar for my humour and I can only apologise for that. 

It’s roughly been ten weeks since lockdown officially began in my country. Ten weeks since my last lecture. Ten weeks since I said goodbye to my flatmates. Ten weeks since my last night out (I can’t actually remember it all too well, but I do remember the cheesy-chip wrap at the end of the night). I think if anyone had told me at the beginning of this year that we would be where we are now, I wouldn’t have believed them. I - like many - had a lot of high hopes for this year; places and people I wanted to see, internships I had planned to take and work to fill my summer.

Usually, I would be coming to the halfway mark of my time as a waitress at a wedding site in my hometown. I’d spend my Saturdays serving guests and my weekdays cleaning hundreds of glasses. It was good money, and unfortunately I had been hoping to put my summer wages into my savings for the next year of uni. If I’m going to take anything from this, I’m going to try and see it as the universe telling me I could not stay there forever. Almost five years in the job, maybe I was getting too comfortable.

So here I am, unemployed, on my third cup of tea of the day, trying to work out what the fuck is going on with my life. My grandma once told me that the art to growing up is to accept that you don’t need to know everything. I think there’s a lot to be said for that. I’m going to see her for the first time in ten weeks today, to celebrate her 70th birthday. So happy birthday to grandma, and happy birthday to anyone else celebrating in lockdown. I hope you all have an amazing day.

:)

[thelazystudent]

Things Feel Bad Because They Are

My voice on here is fairly new, fairly young in contrast to the majority that reside on here. However, this does not make it any less my duty to use this voice that I have been given to express the deep concerns I have for the current crisis we see - most prevalently in America but worldwide too. 

As a white female, I cannot pretend that I know first hand what it is like to suffer at the hands of the people that the majority claim to be our ‘safe guarders’. I will likely never endure the oppression from the system or the people, but that does not mean that I - or anyone else like me - should remain silent. It is our duty to offer our help to those who’s voices have been silenced, and to ensure that basic human rights are granted for all. If you have a voice, regardless of how big or how small it may be, now is your time to use it. Start asking the right questions, start seeing the truth behind the lies of mainstream media and politics. Donate, share links, share helplines. 

If you can get involved, clicking this link here will send you to a site filled with links to petitions, online charities and other useful articles on how to get involved and make a difference. I urge anyone who finds this post to use it. 

There comes a time when silence is betrayal - Martin Luther King Jr.

[thelazystudent]

Welcome..?

It’s currently twelve minutes past eleven. I am writing this because I just lost the first draft of my welcome post and I thought I was going to get to sleep before midnight. However, you will be happy to hear that this is not the first time I have worked up to midnight before. I am a pretty crappy student. 

Hi! Welcome, again, to this blog! I can imagine my overuse of the exclamation mark has already scared off a good proportion of my potential readers (they’re one of my lecturer’s biggest no-no’s - after adverbs) but I can’t help it. Look at this! Life has been born in this dying carcass of a platform and I could not be happier!!! 

As someone who has been desperate to write a blog for years, but has technical skills that could be exceeded by her seventy-year-old grandmother, I have been struggling to bring this dream into fruition. Since I was thirteen I had made multiple free accounts on random web building sites, hoping to set up my blogging career there. However, I am a crappy web designer. And I don’t mean that in the,”awh, my painting sucks ):” *continues to pull out a Picasso-level masterpiece*. I mean I would spend several hours on building the site only to realise that I have not actually changed a thing. Don’t ask me how I have survived for nineteen years of my life. I owe a lot of it to my parents. 

Alternatively, Tumblr is a space I am familiar with. Also since I was thirteen. Apparently I was just a very busy person then. How times have changed. Having an on / off relationship with this place makes writing this draft alone feel much more comfortable than any previous attempt on any other site. 

I really wish I could explain more about what on earth I am doing here and what I am hopefully going to bring to the table (I say to all zero of my diligent followers - you know who you are 😉) but I can feel my eyes on the precipice of exploding. Too much information? Maybe for our first encounter. But hey, this is going to be a place of documentation. You need the facts, and I’ve got ‘em. My eye? It hurts. FACTS. Okay I’m going to piss off now before I lose anymore of you. 

:)