So my first essay is submitted and my brain happily did not explode, although it was touch and go at times. In this electronic age, we had to submit it in two ways. First, online to a program which checks for plagiarism. This was a dramatic process with various dire warnings appearing at stages but I finally was issued with an e-receipt. The second submission was to drop a paper copy into an oversized post-box, which left me with a real sense of anti-climax. However, a few days later a Hogworts owl had delivered a paper receipt into my owl-hole, sorry – pigeon hole.

Finally, I have entered real student life and went out drinking with the gang after a late lecture which finished at 6pm. Actually, we went to Wetherspoons for curry night and several of us left at 9.30.

Neil and Father Josh, however, upheld good student tradition and finally collapsed, tired and emotional, into bed at 4.30. Again, 21st century technology helps us and the photographs that appeared the next day on Facebook told an interesting if somewhat disturbing story.

Over the weekend I was congratulating myself and feeling I was in control of my life again. By Monday I was cruelly disabused of that illusion when I realised I had to submit a fully referenced bibliography the following day for an essay for which I had not even chosen a title.

I’m now back to rapid cycling between happiness, panic, optimism, despair, bewilderment, confidence, exhaustion, denial and deep satisfaction. It’s sort of bipolar disease on speed. Apparently that’s normal student life for those who aren’t normally stoned/drunk/hung-over and can’t feel pain anyway!

Oh, and ‘hollol wallgo’? It’s my Welsh phrase of the week. It means ‘completely bonkers’. It’s the phrase that most readily comes to mind when I think of Gary Gareth, Father Josh and Neil. Fortunately, the other three members of the gang of seven (Jo, Jen and Rhonwen) maintain nature’s balance of sanity. I make no statement where I am.