They settle in and we miss them. Uni Starters 2023 - Thread 2

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I wanted to get a news thread ready for everyone as you wake up in the Uk.

We are settling into a routine of talking to DS on FaceTime on Sunday mornings after our breakfast, which is early pm his time. It is so nice to see his smile and catch up on how he is doing. I know at some point he will have a bad day, but so far he seems to be doing so well, I am ridiculously proud.

Hope you all have a good week!

Oh wow @MargaretThursday , hope everyone is OK there. That's a lifelong memory made!

DD has overcome her most dreaded hurdle - the German oral exam (German was optional second subject for this year). She has not been asked to retake - so that's a definite win.

@MargaretThursday Not Chichester by any chance - my daughter said it was the most violent thunder and lightning she'd ever seen and one of her Uni hall is Bognor had to be evacuated because it had been hit and the fire alarms were going off!

Yes, Chichester, but Bishop's Otter Campus.
Power is back on, but her extension lead has been taken by the fire brigade.
Luckily no other damage done to her things, but she says the roof is damaged.

Blame dd. It's obviously her that attracts them. The worst thunder storm I saw here was when her year was camping out at school. 🤣

Wow! @MargaretThursday That's quite an experience. A good story to share later.

Ds was home for 5 weeks at Easter and is doing exams now. I think he has quite a few, but he didn't seem too phased about them over Easter and just opened the books in the last week. He's in London and still hasn't sorted accommodation for next year, hopefully that will happen after exams. He has a couple of group options with friends, but would also be happy with a room in halls (if he could find any that weren't ludicrously expensive). I'm crossing my fingers that they a) find something and b) don't get ripped off.

@MargaretThursday DD apparently slept through it at her Bognor campus but lots in her flat were disturbed. She 'said she has a student from the BO campus living in her flat now as they had a spare room. Has your DD had to move too? Pretty traumatic thing to happen so I'm very impressed with your DD's resilience regarding it and glad her room isn't too damaged.

@AnneOfCleavage
She hasn't had to move, I suspect being ground floor has that as an advantage. She told me she was traumatised, but I think was quite enjoying the drama by the time I spoke to her.

She's (hopefully) now in Lithuania with the university band for a competition. I was glad it wasn't Thursday night because firstly I doubt she'd have remembered to get her passport etc out of her room when she was evacuated and secondly they were leaving at 6am this morning, so getting some sleep would have been a good idea!

OMG @MargaretThursday that is madness. Yes what a relief it was when it was as she had that trip to get to. Hope it all goes well. Didn't know she was in a band - is this a society? Is it musical theatre that she's doing or triple threat?

I'm not surprised she was a bit tramatised. I had an illegal firework smash through the window I was fast asleep in when I was newly pregnant with DD and that was a traumatic experience too. Made the papers too. The room burned down along with all my stuff.

She's doing MT (music) which is a smaller course but suits her well. She could have applied to change to MT (performance) or Triple Threat if she'd wanted to, which were the two she applied for, but she thinks this one suits her better.

It's the Chichester Uni Band as far as I know. I think the story is that last year they came second in the UK university band competition but the #1 said they didn't want to go to Lithuania for the International competition, so they were asked to go instead. She says it's very hot there, although I looked it up on the BBC and I think it's about 20 deg.

That firework must have been scary. Luckily for dd there was no fire in her room. There was a rumour that one of the kitchens caught fire, I think, but she didn't know if that's true. Good test of their middle of the night fire evacuation anyway🤣

@MargaretThursday My DD says that she has some new inmates in her hall as one of the kitchens in halls at Bishop Otter caught on fire. They haven't been allowed back in to collect their stuff. Your DD was very lucky - I'm amazed the storm was so bad

@HappySonHappyMum So the fire was true then, I wasn't sure if it was one of those stories while they were sheltering in the chapel that builds up from a tiny spark!
DD said it was mostly Hammond buildings that were effected, and she thought her block (no 1 I think) was worse effected, but she didn't think there had been a fire in it. Mind you, she'd probably say a fire in her kitchen would do it good. She's very scathing about the abilities of her flatmates to keep it tidy. I will say nothing about her room tidying abilities obviously matching 🤣 It only stays okay for the room inspections I think as she has a friend who loves tidying, and dd provides a challenge 🤣

I was looking at the weather in Lithuania, and apparently they might get some thunder...

So interesting to catch up and hear about all the experiences.

The lightning experience sounds scary!!

My girl will be back mid-June. Her course has been so full on with 9-5 days and Sat mornings as well. She is doing lots of extra curricular stuff too. Combined with her health issues she is exhausted but someone who lives life to the full. Sometimes at the expense of her MH. She doesn’t yet know where she is living next year but will be guaranteed somewhere and has a good group of friends. Just got the exams and balls to get through.

Summer is looking full with gigs, a family holiday, a trip with her school friends and maybe one with uni friends. I can’t wait to have her back.

I was so so worried about her at the start so am relieved it’s ended ok.

I have now seen two kids off to uni and am glad I won’t have to do it again. Those early weeks were way too stressful for me!

Just off the phone with DD - she claims that there is an epidemic of SCABIES at the university! What the hell? We are truly going back to the previous century, it seems - a friend's dc are currently recovering from whooping cough (despite being vaccinated).

@ZittiEBuoni dd said the same, after asking me to look at a rash (it wasn't scabies, but we did get the pharmacy to check)
She said though it was just a rumour round social media, so maybe the rumours going round various places.

Zittibueno do you mind me asking what uni? I fear there is N epidemic in the UK more generally of scabies :(

I bet I know which Uni it is. DS very kindly gave us all an extra present when he came home for Easter. All sorted now but I've never had it before and was sort of hoping I never would!

DH suffers with health anxiety so is still scratching and probably will be for some time. It's driving me nuts.

This is Bristol @Thethingswedoforlove and definitely a real thing, as one of her friends had to warn dd that she had been in contact with a scabies sufferer, in case she wanted to get checked out. Ugh. Sorry to hear that you were struck @CadyEastman , suspect I'm going to be plagued with phantom itches from the minute she comes home for the summer.

Different Uni here but I had heard that it is prevalent at a few Unis.

From nhs.uk, it is more prevalent in uni halls of residence and nursing homes, I'm itching in sympathy. Cases have also been on the rise in recent years.

My niece said her uni (Sussex) had it there and her flatmate had it so she took precautions once home for Easter but seems she got away with it.

I don't know much about it if I'm honest so wouldn't know the first signs of having it.
Sorry to hear it's affected a few on here and hope it was short lived ☹️

@MargaretThursday is your DD back from Lithuania now? What instrument does she play or is she voice?

I didn't know much about it either Anne and was rather hoping I never would. First sign I'd say is it's bloody itchy!

I caught scabies when I was at uni (a long time ago now)
First sign was itching in the webbed bits between my fingers, you could also see the little white tracks there. It was intensely itchy, I remember also my thighs being especially itchy. Managed to get rid of it quickly with treatment luckily!

@AnneOfCleavage Yes, she got back yesterday. They came 2nd, so they were really pleased

She plays the cornet in the band, although she only took that up because they needed a cornet rather than a trumpet. (Same fingering so you can swap between them)
She plays the trumpet because she's missing her left hand and a trumpet/cornet you only need your right hand

@MargaretThursday wow 2nd that's amazing 👋👋
I did not know that about the cornet/trumpet and how fantastic your DD hasn't let being one handed hamper her in learning to play an instrument @inspirationalDD ❤️

It did mean that dd went from being "I'm not sure I'm taking my trumpet to uni" to arriving back at Christmas saying "I have to have a cornet because that's what I need for band." She's not one for going for the cheap needs, although a reasonable cornet isn't ridiculous price, it's not cheap.

You can get one handed instruments; she had a one handed recorder which she played, but they tend to be more expensive as they're fairly custom made, so the trumpet was an obvious one, especially as dh had played so we had a beginners' one.

DD coming home today! Moving out if halls etc. That’s the first year pretty much over. Has a few essays to do and going back for a week of ‘end of year’ parties. Hasn’t that just flown by?