Oh dear, I haven't posted for a while. Apologies. Been incredibly busy and haven't had much of a moment to myself for aages!
Where shall I start?
First off, I'm nineteen now, had my birthday on the 26th of June, during a two-week trip to Botswana!
I've also graduated from school, got a new job (had to leave my old one due to bad health and continual sick lines issued from my local GP) and I'm currently in college, studying Visual Communications.
College so far has been quite trying.
I was originally rejected from the course as they,for some odd reason, gave me a Conditional Offer that required me to get a "C" grade or higher in both Photography and online Psychology (I failed psychology, but I always knew that that was going to happen as it was quite poorly run and not many people knew what they were doing during it). However, the course I was applying for only required 2 Scottish Highers, whereas I had 4. After asking about this, I was then offered an unconditional. Now,unfortunately, I before I had my unconditional, I had been sent an email before even given my rejection about the time and date of the course Induction. Upon having my rejection, I had deleted the email. Then after I had my conditional, I had phoned the Guidance department in the college to inquire when the course started. I was given the date and I had also assumed that this was also the induction date. Alas it was not and I had soon learned that I had missed the induction and made another panicky call to the Guidance department again. I was assured that this was fine and was to just turn up to the course on the staring date.
On the day,however, I was not 100% sure as to where I was supposed to go and went to reception to ask. I was then told that the Visual Communications course did not start that day. When I insisted that I had been told that it was that day, they checked their computer again and then sent me to one of the rooms in the college. I did not have a timetable,due to missing the Induction and little known to me, the next two hours were "Self directed study" with no lecturer. I sat in a classroom for 2 hours with 5 other people, sending my parents annoyed and confused texts. I found out in the class after what the two hours were supposed to have been and this frustrated me a lot as this was my first day and what the hell could I have used that two hours to study for as I had nothing to study?! I was able to get a photograph of a timetable from another classmate and noticed that I had a two hour break before my next class.I had already been incredibly nervous at the start of the day, what with being in a new place with a /lot/ of new people (this didn't bode well with my anxiety very well) and unfortunately due to the bad start and the new realisation that I had two hours to kill with big crowds, I began to feel extremely stressed out and anxious. I then found out that,even though I started at 9am and this was supposed to be my first day, I was meant to stay until 7pm. This was a bit much to handle for me and I ended up feeling like I was going to break down in a panic attack and cry so I ended up going to the office, getting an "Absence Contact Sheet", and letting my tutor know that I had left early due to social anxiety. I felt like I wanted to drop the course but one of my friends and parents urged to into giving it another try. So I did.
The next day, I went to the first class on my timetable and the lecturer looked at me oddly. She then informed me that the Guidance had sent me to the wrong class and that the timetable on my phone and the students around me were second years! I was a bit annoyed at this but relieved too as all the work I could see them doing looked much more advanced in skill than mine! So I was shown where I was /supposed/ to go and was happier to see that the students there seemed to also be on the same level of drawing skill as me.
Since then, college has still been stressful as a lot of the digital work is very much "learn it yourself and apply it to the briefs", which has also been frustrating as I can use photoshop but unlike my classmates, have little-to-no experience with other software such as Illustrator and Indesign. I had joined the course to be taught this yet I am expected to learn it myself and use that to (already!) design for well known companies!
Ah well
