It’s still proving to be a new and novel experience to be a full-time University student at the age of 61. However, it’s been quite different from my expectations. It’s been much harder work than I expected – well I have been coasting lazily for almost two years other than working on the house and my hobbies. The amount of reading we have to do is quite terrifying. Then there are essays to plan for, seminars to prepare for and deadlines to cut one’s wrists for.

The best part is the friends I have made already. Somehow, eight of us have teamed up as an unusual group of good friends. All but one of us live outside Bangor in the area between Holyhead, Penygroes and Mold and one in Halls in the Catholic chaplaincy. At the risk of ruining everything we’ve built so far, here’s a little about each of them. Josh – the one in the chaplaincy – explains that he’s there primarily because the priest gives out free beer and sandwiches at the social evenings. His biggest concern is if he can recall the words of a ‘Hail Mary’ if called upon. He is one of the four ‘economy-size’ blokes in our group (yes, I’m another one). We’re all the right weight, just several inches shorter than we should be. Neil, who has the amazing middle name Messerschmitt on Facebook, is a computer whizz who keeps us all in stitches. Then there’s Gareth. What can I say about Gareth that won’t involve me in a libel suit? Well, he cheats at Scrabble – you wouldn’t believe the words he uses. If you ever feel you need an opinion on anything, well Gareth will have one! ‘Larger than life’ is somehow a pale and inadequate description. Completing the male contingent, the fourth man is not Anthony Blunt but Joe. The quietest of all of us, he has passionate political views and often just smiles as the rest of us put the world to rights with passion.

Three women complete our group. Lesley, who is a near neighbour of mine, shares my problems of holding two lives in tension. Hers is a busy farm life and she’s questioning whether she can do both farm and university. We’re all trying to encourage her as none of us want to see her leave. I’m trying not to let the fact I get the odd lift home from Lesley affect my judgement! Rhonwen is a first-language Welsh speaker and helps me with my Welsh module – actually, not that much yet, but I’ll be calling on her more. She and Jen, the final member of the group have been a real surprise to me. They both look like whatever the female equivalent to ‘mild-mannered Clark Kent’ but the reality is very different. A hundred years ago they would have been up there with Emily Pankhurst and the Suffragettes fighting. Jen was the first to draft a stinging letter of complaint to the Estates Department, followed by Rhonwen, concerning the completely useless so called ‘parking arrangements’ for students. I was only sorry that we don’t have the facility to do Harry Potter type ‘howlers’, which is really what was called for. They are two feisty ladies!

I’ve been so impressed by the kindness shown to one another in the group (sometimes heavily disguised in the case of some of the lads) as each of us has had the pressures of ordinary life and university life together. In fact, I hit the wall on Wednesday and went down with a bug half way through the day and went to bed with a 38.4deg temperature after throwing up. One the third day I rose again (not the most famous resurrection in history, I know) but all the gang showed concern and sent supportive emails, Rhonwen offering to take notes for me.

That was in marked contrast to my university lecturers who chose to ignore my emails of apology that I would be unable to attend their lecture. We were told to do this with dire consequences if we failed to show for a lecture without having sent apologies. I sent four emails (four lectures and seminars that day) and not one had an acknowledgement. Would it have hurt them to hit the ‘reply’ button and typed ‘Thanks for letting me know’? Just forget, ‘I hope you are better soon’. All I got was a threat from one lecturer who said I failed to show up at her seminar and would get a yellow card next time. So much for Bangor University’s supporting culture.

So, Rebecca Riots? Well, that’s my essay due two weeks today. I can hear ‘Rebecca, Scotch Cattle and the Chartist Movement’ calling me, ‘Amser gweithio prifysgol’. Blogging is far more fun.