Thread 17 - Corona Cohort Summer Vacation to Yr 13, Finding Freedom?

[Orangecinnamon21]

PLACEHOLDER FOR NEW THREAD ...PREVIOUSLY TO BE FOUND IN SECONDARY EDUCATION

I’m so sorry to hear about the how about the arbitrary nature of how/to whom vaccines are delivered in different health authorities. It’s all a little too typhoon chasing.

To those on holidays right now; enjoy. With DC or without.

I can’t even seem to leave mine alone for a few hours with friends without coming home to find something broken. Like the glass shelf from our very high end fridge yesterday. Only in place due to an kitchen fitting mishap but nevertheless...

And she wants us to leave her end of Aug for 3 days because she couldn’t go to Reading this year. But is going to Crete with friends in 2 weeks...on top of Barcelona?

I’m not sure what happened to me along the way, might have been senior moments of giving in due to all that they had endured, but right now the it’sallaboutmeshow is hard work.

I know all about that Ealing.
Ds1 self-centeredness seems to know now bounds recently.

Announced he didn't want to go to Reading anymore and could I sell his ticket. Which I busted a gut in queues to get, not just the ticket but later separately requested early bird, then shower, then locker.

I assumed I'd have little trouble selling. But so far not. When I told all this to ds his cumulative blasé and lack of respect, finally boiled my piss, and I exploded into a tirade of how much I do for him re this, getting acne treatment, facilitating passing driving test ......etc etc.

I’m not sure they realise that’s we all have also gone through a shit 18 months. And just because we are the adult, doesn’t quite cut it.

There, rant over. Now I shall look forward to planning a few days in my home town, stay with my mother (because I’m sick of hotels/B&Bs trying to fleece me) and DH and I will dine out in all the swanky places Brum can offer.

And god help her if she dares moan “but I’d have liked to have gone there, you going without me??”

I was nearly there Ob when I got a mouthful last year for requesting a refund and held off purchasing again. Fingers crossed you manage to offload them; they are not cheap!

Sympathy to you both on the self-centredness front! Mine aren’t too bad, except Dd always wants me to pick her up at the latest possible time and she’ll happily say long huggy goodbyes to her friends while I’m sat in the car waiting for her! Ds never asks for lifts - but he only seems to contact me to ask what’s for tea!

Dd would have loved that ticket @Oblomov21! She’s quite put out that she has to go on holiday with us on the Saturday so can only go to Reading for the day on the Friday. I’m a little miffed that I’ll be expected to pick her up from the city centre off the coach at 2am and then go on holiday later the same day, but my sleep - or lack of - isn’t important!

@Oblomov21
I just sold a Boardmasters for my DD. I was having trouble selling it through Boardmasters’ approved vendor. Switched to Tixel and it sold in 2 hours. Good luck!

Cheers Momsin I will look at that.

@Oblomov21 we are heading to Dorset on our holiday tomorrow (I hope!) near Cerne Abbas. Ds's friend has had second vaccine already at 17 apparently because his dad has diabetes. Not sure if that is correct, but that is what he is telling friends at school.

Sympathy to you both on the self-centredness front! Mine aren’t too bad, except Dd always wants me to pick her up at the latest possible time and she’ll happily say long huggy goodbyes to her friends while I’m sat in the car waiting for her!

DS does this, not the huggy goodbyes but wanting a lift at the latest possible time and then being late coming out. It’s so frustrating. Sometimes he is grateful and says thank you, sometimes not at all.

You’re all right, they forget that we have all been through a crap 18mths, not just them. DS actually causes us a whole lot leas worry than his older brother did, but I console myself that they are all inherently self centred and it is normal at this age.

Along with pps, I have always found that taking a friend guarantees good behaviour!

DD’s friend’s parents are taking their daughter + FOUR friends away the week after next - they will all be model teenagers!

I know many of you are on the FB uni support page, but in case you’re not, a worthwhile 48 mins spent over a brew listening to Claire Marchant, UCAS CEO ahead of this year’s results day.

m.youtube.com/watch?v=qvMsCSllcjY&fbclid=IwAR30pcoOvteG1Ja9kOPtct4jVHUU7zL1HVF2ldtf0KcweBkipZkqZFwm3jU

@KingscoteStaff

Along with pps, I have always found that taking a friend guarantees good behaviour!

DD’s friend’s parents are taking their daughter + FOUR friends away the week after next - they will all be model teenagers!

We know a family like this, always have lots of kids over, 4 of their own, friends invited on hols etc. The mum works away a lot so it was usually the dad at home, he was known as Brave Dave in the early days of sleepovers etc. I think he just cottoned on before everyone else that the more kids you have in your house, the easier it is!

Popped in to York on the way home to look round the campus. Free parking there til September 1st. My it has changed since I was there! Very big site now, and new stuff very smart. Older part looks a bit in need of TLC. My old room had a smashed window! DS liked lake and the campus idea. Shame it was tipping it down with rain...

Did you go to the East Campus? It looks great

Yes, we were so lazy we drove!

I don’t suppose you looked in the tv/theatre/media centre? I was interested how that looked inside?

We walked up to it but didn't go in or look in. It looked fancy!

I took DS to have a look at Exeter this week - think he was a bit sceptical beforehand as he's never seen a campus university, but he did say "this is actually a really nice place", so I'm counting that as a win. He also said thank you and that he'd had a nice day, which I'm counting as a bloody miracle. Hopefully he's beginning to think of university as a possibility, and as something positive.
DH is taking him on a lads' trip to Manchester and Stoke (Keele) next 😂

The lads trip sounds a genius idea @singingstones

I'm back from hols and very sad...totally fallen in love with Wales and can't wait to book another trip.

Dd has gone straight out for dinner with her boyfriend. Was very rude and self-centred in the car, when I suggested she may want to arrange a later meet so she could wash her hair

I 'don't understand anything' at least thrice over apparently....

Where in Wales were you, Orange?
DD tells us we don’t understand anything all the time, and is also ridiculous about hair washing etc at times - I asked her if she was going to have a shower before going for her Covid vacc this morning, and she replied, “ What for??”

We are off to stay with my mum near York this weekend, so may squeeze in a visit to the uni.

We went to York 3 years ago with Dd1 and spent so long looking at the west campus, we left it too late to have a good nose of the East. The accommodation was much better in the East but eyewateringly expensive. There was a lovely feel to the bars with jazz nights etc.

Some of the west campus (Alcuin??) flats just had shared kitchens not kitchen/lounges. So no sofa to sit and make friends.

It was looking a little sparse over on the east side (just getting a supermarket) but they’ve built more and more and it’s looking good on the video clips.

Heslington East is a lot better now, although it is still growing

@Alsoplayspiccolo

Where in Wales were you, Orange? DD tells us we don’t understand anything all the time, and is also ridiculous about hair washing etc at times - I asked her if she was going to have a shower before going for her Covid vacc this morning, and she replied, “ What for??”

We are off to stay with my mum near York this weekend, so may squeeze in a visit to the uni.

We were western part of the Brecon Beacons..so lovely! Cennencottages.co.uk

I'm not sure it is eyewateringly expensive compared to others : it depends on if you want en suite and, since they have cleaners, maybe not necessary?

My (possibly inaccurate) research tells me Birmingham, Bath, Exeter, Oxford Brookes are all more expensive.

Piggy it was all eye-watering to me! The equivalent to York but in Newcastle was 30 a week cheaper (though I think that was because there was building work going on on the other side). Dd had a brand new small double en-suite room, big kitchen/diner/living room with amazing views (they could see leazes park and the cows, the football stadium and city). For around £140 (I think) a week and it was a short contract. In fact very much shorter as they left when covid struck and got their money back.
I paid £19 a week back in the good old days!
She’s now paying £93 a week for an en-suite private room in Newcastle 3rd year now plus bills.

I have said this before (for first timers) but second time round, I would still always try and get university owned accommodation so if things go wrong they have lots of different swaps you can do, or if things go really wrong you are more likely to get some money back if they drop out. Also the length of contract - some are very much longer when your child may have already moved out in the summer.

Lincoln was quite good value, too. York just seems to have big variations in price.

It all seems a lot more swish these days which pushes prices up.

Hull is brand new and cheap as chips!