Nicola
Welcome to my Fuzzable blog about my life and all the fun filled things which make up my me and my day. Let me firstly introduce myself, I’m Nicola, a 20-year-old history student studying at Kingston University. You might also know me as Nicolalalalar or even Rapunzel thanks to my long hair which seems to be the talking point for a whole lot of people. Coming from Bournemouth, I have to admit being so close to London is all well and good except the lack of beaches making me very excited to head to my local one when I visit home even in rain or shine.
Music and writing are both huge parts of my life. Writing my first live review at the age of 14, it’s seen me writing for various online and printed publications alongside moving into new genres including lifestyle and film. Music especially live sees me attending at least a gig a month, making regular trips abroad to see my favourite band (The Vamps) and even getting a job in a venue (Wembley Arena) to be able to help fund these adventures.
As an only child, independence has been something I’ve been taught from a young age and has helped to make my love of travelling even stronger. From trips with friends to solo adventures where I meet new friends, I try and experience as many different cultures as I can afford in a year. There’s something really enjoyable about planning everything from the flights to a day plan of what to visit during our trip and putting it all down on paper. I’d love to say I’m that organised with everything else but sadly that doesn’t seem to be the case. Entwined with my love of travelling is my love for live shows, going to more than most people would call normal (2016 saw me attending 68 live shows) but there’s nothing more magical than watching live music surrounded by those there for that exact same reason.
You might have already guessed but The Vamps are my favourite band and to date, I’ve had the chance to travel for shows in Germany, Scotland, France, Poland, Italy, Spain and of course England. Safe to say I’ve been very lucky and lucky enough to make a substantial amount of new friends at these shows. So if I can only give you one bit of advice – experience new cultures and make sure to talk to the fans as you never know but like me you could make some lifelong friends.
But what happens on a normal day for me during university term time? Read on and see a day in the life of Nicola.
Waking up groggy to my 9am alarm, I realise that I have four hours until my first and only seminar of the day. Damn you timetabling for spreading my teaching time over five days instead of just three! Here come the choices, do some reading for my Beatles to Blair seminar – the module is as great as it sounds, mind map ideas for my next piece of writing or just sit and watch Black Mirror on Netflix. Three equally great ideas but the sensible side of me decides time splitting between reading and mind mapping is the way forward.
Now I’m in my third-year university I’m lucky to have more freedom over my module choices and the big important matter of a dissertation. The role of music on the fall of the Berlin Wall is my dissertation topic so you can see I wasn’t kidding when I said music is a big part of my life. After an intense pre-seminar reading session it’s time to mind map some upcoming article ideas I’ve found the best way for me to do this is by thinking about what I’d love to read and hope others would feel similar. Upon realising I have ten minutes until my seminar, the speed walking takes place as I make the short walk to Uni walking past our three local cats on the way one of which is imaginatively nicknamed Black Magic (I like Little Mix alright). My mind always drifts during Beatles to Blair seminars, thinking how cool it would have been to live through their early career and see the rise of disco and punk!
On a non-working day, my evenings will be spent having a laugh with my flatmates who are definitely just as crazy as me. By now I’m a bit too tired to put my brain to any good use so a lovely session of catching up and sharing my stresses or fears with my flatmates. One of the most important things I’ve learnt which I can share is that a problem shared is a problem halved in a lot of situations somebody around you will be able to guide or aid you if needed. Never struggle alone, being stubborn doesn’t always work. We’re notoriously known for talking for far too long which means many of our evenings in end up with a little bit of Netflix and chatting til the early hours. Pro tip: move in with your best friends and you’ll never regret it. Sleep follows about 1am before the cycle starts again the next day.
If you’ve read my first ever blog post for Fuzzable then I commend you and would love to have a chat about any advice you’d like about anything from doing a history degree to travelling solo to all things music (especially The Vamps). Tweet me @nicolalalalar and I’ll be sure to get back to you quickly for a little chat!
