Heading towards year 2 exams (uni 2017)

[brizzlemint]

Starting uni 2017 continued.
Tales of radiators, errant boilers, tomatoes and potato mashers...oh and university students.

Semester one 26 September - 17 December 2018 & 7 January 2019 - 25 January 2019
Semester one assessment and examination period: 28 January - 8 February 2019

Semester two 18 February 2019 - 22 April & 6 May 2019 - 31 May 2019
Semester two assessment and examination period: 3-14 June 2019

My sons say that although there are the official term dates (and I always make sure we book nothing as a family during that official term) that what a module requires has an impact too. Eg I am trying to book a Jan 2020 holiday at the moment but despite our knowing the official term date start for 2020 and the Jan exam period until my son knows his modules and their requirements we can't book.

The official dates (Bristol) are
aster vacation (students) 8 - 26 April 2019
Summer revision week 13 - 17 May 2019
Summer assessment period 20 May - 7 June 2019
Summer vacation (students) 17 June - 20 September 2019

Welcome Week 23 - 27 September 2019
Teaching Block 1 30 September - 20 December 2019
Christmas vacation (students) 23 December 2019 - 10 January 2020
January assessment period 13 - 24 January 2020
Teaching Block 2 27 January - 8 May 2020

I wonder how doing/handing in a dissertation works in with those dates. Not that it makes a lot of difference to us - we are tied to school holidays anyway

My dissertation was due at the end of April if that's any help.

Thanks floral. When do you get your results?

I said DDs flat was grim. The boiler lost pressure so they had no hot water. She emailed the agency who said to re pressurise it.The manual suggested you needed a special key which she did not have. Finally the agency emailed her a You Tube video which suggested she needed to take off the base of the boiler (not the flap to the control panel) where she might find the key and the place to insert it.

First time round she ended up with water spraying across the kitchen, but with a re-watch of the video managed to get some water into the boiler. I guess if she loses her interest in medicine she can become a plumber. Still poor practice from the agent.

It has effectively taken her mind off tomorrows exam.

That sounds like our boiler, we are all now experts at repressurising it and hae no need of the YouTube video. We have probably got a very small leak somewhere unknown and it gradually goes down once or twice a year.
I get my results any day now as the exam board meets "in late May"

Yes, but I am not sure I would encourage students, indeed any tenants, to start taking the base off boilers. At minimum the email should have had "turn the electricity off first" in bold, but better if someone from the letting agency had gone round and done it.

They have kept the flat so nice that the agency were able to increase the rent from £90pw each to £130pw next year. The new tenants will get a shock when they realise that the rug, the new light proof curtains, and the decent desk chair all belong to DD. And that the plywood under the sofa seat has now crumbled so if you sit down you are on the floor (the agency response was that they should buy a new piece of ply - they don't intend to.) Sad thought. Regeneration means that this is one of only two student houses on the street, when a decade ago it would have been student central. .

I realise that the thread has come full circle and we have not had an update on Xenia's radiators.

I agree, it's different being an, ahem, mature home owner compared to a wet behind the ears student who is understandably more nervous about doing it and also has access to a landlord to pay for a plumber.

DD's flat is in a non-student area as well - the top floor flat is owner-occupied and so are many of the houses. I think it gives extra security as somebody is resident in the house all summer when DD won't be there. Nevertheless she is bringing home everything apart from pots and pans etc.

DD had her first exam yesterday. She said it wasn't like any of the practice or previous ones, which threw some people, but she's quite pragmatic. She said she checked that she had answered the correct number of questions and had time to check things at the end.

We used to have a boiler that needed re-pressurising regularly. It was a pain, but there was a tap in the airing cupboard so no need to take the cover off the boiler. DH is really really practical and can do almost every household repair. However, when our current (seriously ancient) oil-fired boiler broke down a couple of years ago, he diagnosed the issue but didn't have the parts to fix it himself. The chap who came had a spare printed circuit-board which fixed it. The duff one is somewhere in DH's workshop/lab/mancave waiting for him to diagnose and repair the issue, then we'll have a spare...

Fingers crossed floral!

Eeeek NMS that's awful, on all counts. The landlord/agency should surely have sent a plumber? I hope she has a better place for next year.

DDs house is on a mainly student street and the landlady has been good (although the agency pretty crap) - hope the one they are moving to next year works out as well.

I'm down a radiator but up a towel rail since we last visited that subject. we had the shower room totally redone.

I haven't checked the radiator situation in DD's new house. How remiss of me !

The Powderflush sorted out all the radiators for the first time in ages so that man is my hero. He has a patent on the technology. It is different from a powerflush. It seems to be the only thing that could fully unblock all the pipes, despite pumps, new radiators, new boilers, big magnacleanses, chemicals and all sorts 18 months ago.SO that is all done although I am due to go back into the loft (quite a big job as it is a very high celing with the longest loft ladder a man had ever installed invlinvg other ladders just to pull it down as that is where the pressure guage is. I just need to check and reset the pressure. It is getting the ladder back up which is hard as it is just very very heavey when it folds back up.

In fact on boilers my older son just had to pay £2500 to repalce his - he was telling me today.It's all working well and he's probably selling his house later this year and had found another one but it had to be done.

News from Bristol is that one twin got two essays back (I presume the last ones) and got good marks. (d espite the months) and is now seeking out a dentist as something that was over his baby tooth his own dentist put in has come off on a sticky sweet. He's called quit a bit this week as all exams are over and he has had the house to himself a fair bit as some others are still doing exams or other things... Ah pause - £170 for teh dental work - that is okay. We looked up this morning what our own NHS dentist charged privately about 2 years ago for the same work and thatw as £140.

He's taking the jointly owned TV (owned between the housemates) back here for the summer as hopefully the twins will have space in the car and one twin is storing his stuff with a friend until his new lease starts (which should relieve space in the car a bit) and then that can go back to Bristol in the Autumn.
Anyway he sounded really happy so that's all good. He had a long career chat with someone. May be he is inching towards a choice but needs to get on with it.

I am glad everyone else is doing okay too.

Fingers crossed floral!

Thanks. Fingers can be uncrossed now.

How did you get on Floral?

Passed with grades I'm happy with

Congratulations floral!

That's great Floral, well done! 🍾

Well done Floral.

DD described her exam as 'brutal' but that did not stop her joining the others in Wetherspoons after.

And thank you for the radiator update. Mine are all working but the powerflush guy was gloomy. The system loses water apparently because they are rusting from the inside out so should be replaced. But they are interesting designer ones that we inherited so would be absurdly expensive to buy new even if you could.

Interesting to read your updates on exams and boilers.
DS is just over halfway through exams, 5/9 completed and some have been 'brutal' too, but they were the ones he was expecting to be so. One exam reduced someone to tears too!
We're about to embark on the new boiler and accompanying flushes etc here at home. Seems like I'm in good company.

That's fab, Floral, congratulations! 🥂

Thanks. If you'd told me last year years ago I'd have done it I'd have laughed at you.

Congratulations Floral.

Congratulations Floral.

DS has his 1st exam today, called him last night to say good luck and as usual he thinks he hasn’t done enough, he’s going to fail etc etc.

He really is most pessimistic child ever!