This week, Mel talks about the early arrival of Reading Week (it was way too soon for that), and some things she and her housemates have done to fill the time!
So, two weeks in and it is already Reading Week. I don’t know about anyone else, but I know for sure that it is too early in the term for me to be having a week off! With hardly a dent having been made in the heap of content this semester, I am not sure what it is I am meant to be catching up on, but this week has become an opportunity to do a few (very much needed) things.
Firstly, one of my housemates has decided she needs a bedroom makeover, so we have committed three days to paint her room.
An unnecessary task? Yes. A procrastination technique? Absolutely.
But, hopefully, a revamp will give her some inspiration and the project will offer a chance to channel some energy into something semi-productive. As I write this, we’re on day two, covered in sticky paint and intoxicated by the intense fumes that have infiltrated the entire house. Despite the intensity of the task, however, I have found it to be an enjoyable experience, an opportunity to spend some time with my best friends whilst we sing along to music and chat for hours!
Secondly, and most fittingly, I’m going to be taking the time to read. Whilst there is little to do work-wise, this week is a good opportunity to get ahead on some reading for the coming weeks (tackling the larger texts) and taking the opportunity to read for myself too. I am reading On Beauty for my Modern and Contemporary Literature module, a brilliant novel made all the more enjoyable by the fact I can read it on my own time.
Finally, with no seminars or lectures to block out in the week, it is a perfect chance to meet some friends for a walk outside and to explore some new walking routes. Remarkably, after having lived in Nottingham for over a year, I have only been to Wollaton Park twice! So, this week, I would like to walk to and around the park and take some time to just enjoy the fresh air. I have also taken the time to get in contact with a few more people from my course and arrange walks with them to extend my social circle, it takes so little but it really lifts my mood!
I hope that this reading week, although it has come uncharacteristically early on in the term, you are able to take some time for yourself to relax and recharge, I feel as though I get exhausted from small tasks these days as I am no longer used to being busy and out and about all day. I look forward to those days again, but also know that it is going to be a strange transition back into ‘normal life’, and so I think it is important that we start preparing slowly from now! I do know, though, that that day is still a while away, so we are holding on until then! In the meantime, I will keep reading and walking, so Send Coffee, Please!