Reality Check

Back in the cold, grey climate that is England where everything is so green I’m faced with unpacking. But no, that’ll have to wait. There are more pressing matters. The small issue of 16,000 words of dissertation to write. One was finished, I just needed to create the 3 appendices. A quick job I thought… hmm, how wrong was I?! The other dissertation however needed some work. I had a week. I finished it, created the appendices and printed it. The printing and putting together was what took the time. In fact, I think it took longer to print the thing and assemble it than it did to write it! Ok, that’s a slight exaggeration but it took a long time to assemble after I’d finally managed to get the thing printed. The relief to have two copies of each dissertation in my hand complete with appendices was incredible. I’d done it. Complete. Finished. 8000 on social problems in Marseille. 8000 of pedagogic report focusing on English in the French education system and the role of the language assistant. Now all I need to do was get the thing handed in by Monday at 17h. That involved a day trip to Brighton. Something I really wouldn’t recommend. Oh Network Rail, how you’re becoming my second home. I left Ludlow station at 8h20 with hopes of changing at Newport and then Reading to get a direct train to Brighton. But no, it didn’t quite work out like that. I changed at Newport and was supposed to get off at Reading but as we were only just pulling into Reading station at 11h09 and my direct train to Brighton left at 11h11 I decided I’d never make it and so stayed on the train to London Paddington. I then took the circle line of the underground to London Victoria where I got on a train to Brighton. I then changed go to Falmer. When I got to the uni, 5 trains and 5 hours later, I found where I had to hand in my dissertation – the office was well hidden to say the least! I was greeted with the news that my candidate number needed to be at the top of each page. Did I groan? I most certainly did as I picked up a pen and began writing out my candidate number on the top of over 100 sheets of paper! When I’d done that, found the course codes, had a chat with a girl, also copying out her candidate number a hundred times over, about how she experienced an earthquake in Martinique on her year abroad, filled in the cover sheets and bumped into Alex and Sukina, I realised I really ought to be making a move back to the station. No time for a trip to the beach, not if I wanted to be home before midnight! I got a train from Falmer back to Brighton and then changed to go back up to London Victoria where I took the circle line of the underground to London Paddington and then a train heading to Swansea. There was a direct train from Paddington to Hereford but it didn’t get in until 21h29 and I thought I could do it quicker than that going via Newport so I did. I still didn’t get to Ludlow until 21h35! Oh well, at least the dissertations got handed in. My feet just had to sacrifice their paddle in the English Channel so that my hand could copy out my candidate number a hundred times over! All I can say is that I hope I get a decent mark!!