Waiting for the Ride...

This process with Kingston has been so...simple? 

I can't really find the word to describe it...

 I was telling one of my friends that it seems a bit too easy. Am I missing something? I know it's very early in the game to do anything really but it just seems like I'm doing nothing whilst my new life is waiting to be prepared. 

I've likened this time to the moment when you've stepped into your seat on a roller coaster. You strap yourself into the harness and wait for it to move. There's that nervous excitement rumbling in your belly, your hands are shaking, you're smiling but you're also completely out-of-your-mind terrified. You've heard about this ride; it's fast. Very fast. Something you've never experienced before. 

That's where I am right now. Waiting for the ride. 

I know I can't ever fully prepare for my life in England but I know that it will be exciting and something I have never experienced before. 

As far as what I'm doing currently, I am preoccupying my time with preparing my soul for the return of my best friend from Ireland! She's coming back home on the 17th and I couldn't be more excited! Additionally, I am preparing for Christmas which I have done no shopping for...

AND I'm preparing for my first trip to Europe in January!! 

Yes, on the 7th of January I will be hopping on a plane to Dublin to spend time with the same best friend who is coming home in a week. I will be in Europe for 2 weeks during which I will fly to London and visit Kingston! Hopefully I catch a tour or I'll just do my own browsing? Then I fly to Paris simply because I need to. I can't be in Europe and not go to Paris. I mean, honestly...

So that's where I am as of yet. Let me know where you are in your application process! I'm interested to hear what's going on with you! We're all in this together after all. :)

OH! In case you didn't know, this blog is in partnership with UCAS! YAY! If you like my posts, or this blog in general, or my face ;), make sure you vote for me as your blogger of the month! The link is in the upper right hand side. I'll also annotate a link HERE. Thanks! 

Till Next Time...

Steven Sharpe

An Offer!

Oh my goodness I'm still in shock.

When I got the email from UCAS, I happened to be at work...with no access to my compter until later in the day. It was torturous! I kept going over in my head what it could be. I never expected anything to happen till at least March. I remember distinctly that as I was walking up to my house, I decided in my head that even if I didn't get an offer that it wasn't over. I was still going to work as hard as I could to move to England.

I walked into my house, ignored my poor dog, and went straight to my computer to pull up Track.

And there it was.

Kingston University --- Unconditional

So many emotions right in that moment.

I immediately ran to my mother's room to tell her the good news! She screamed and immediately called my dad. Then the tears came. Hahaha!

I sat there crying for a good 20 minutes as my mother shouted her congrats and encouraged me. It was a moment that I will never forget. It was such a relief and I will explain why.

A couple years ago, I applied to a school called Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. I wanted to be a musician and Berklee seemed like a very good choice. I also didn't feel like I had the grades to actually apply to a four-year university. So I flew up for the audition and about a month later I received a rejection email. I was crushed as it had been the first school I actually had the courage to apply to and I was rejected.

After a lengthy bout with anger and apathy, I mustered the courage to try again the next year. I flew up for the audition and was rejected again. It was perhaps the worst feeling I had ever felt. My stomach completely sank and a future that I had envisioned for myself vanished right before my eyes.

So this offer from Kingston was a lot more than a place at a uni. This was a sign that I have what it takes to do what I love which just so happens to not be music. Haha! (Although I still play for funsies :)) Oddly enough, when I decided to throw caution to the wind and pursue this, I found nothing but good things.

I hope this is an encouragement to those who are still waiting on an offer from universities. Something will happen and if you are pursuing your passion, it will resonate through everything you touch. You won't be able to help it and people won't have a choice but to see it.

For now, I shall rest and relax a little bit. It's actually too early to really do anything other than research the process as much as possible.

Also, I shall celebrate!!! PARTY TIME! :D

Till Next Time...

Steven S.

The Waiting Game...

To say that waiting is the hardest part is a gross understatement.

It's the worst part.

I am the type of person who likes things to be done fast or in a very prompt manner. If I do things early, I want everything else to follow suit in an early fashion so I feel a sense of security.

With applying to university, this is not the case. Whether or not you apply early or not, you're still going to be left waiting for a response. I'm not saying that you shouldn't apply early but just know that the waiting is wretched.

I'm really trying to not stalk the UCAS Track but it's not going as planned haha! I know I probably won't hear anything from Kingston until well into the new year but with seeing people posting on Twitter about getting offers, my hopes are starting to rise. I have to squash it or else I'm going to freak out.

It's bad enough that every email I get that says 'UCAS' or 'Kingston' I have a miniature heart attack. Honestly. There was one day that I got an email that said something about Kingston and my heart nearly pounced out of my chest! Turns out that it was just an email to invite me to one of the open days they had in the US. All of which are pretty far away from little old North Carolina. Maybe one day they'll have one in NC...but I digress.

In the meantime, whilst I'm passing the time till I get a response from Kingston, I'm working. Not just working for money but working on everything. Of course I have my Starbucks job which is keeping my fairly busy but I'm working on my writing. My fashion blog has been my saving grace as it's keeping my mind preoccupied. That, and it's giving me loads of material to keep on hand. I want to be a fashion journalist so the more I write and the more I write about fashion, the more I will have to show a publication for the chance of an internship.

So this waiting game is a blessing and a curse wrapped together.

Another thing this waiting game is providing me is a chance to actually mentally prepare for the crazy year I have ahead of me because whether or not I get into university, I'm still going to work towards moving to the UK. Whether it's through my job or through an internship or something else, I will live there. It's my dream and I refuse to let anything stop me. :)

So that's my waiting game, how's yours going?? I really want to know. Let me know in the comments. :)

Talk to you soon!

Steven S.