Finding My Rhythm

I am a creature of habit. I need structure, scheduling, and lists to be able to get through my day. My first week at University was therefore the hardest for me because I didn't have a schedule to guide me. Now that I've been here for over a month, I feel like I'm finally settling into a rhythm- and what a lovely rhythm it is!

It took me quite a while to get used to the academics here at Uni. The other day, I counted how many hours I'm in the classroom and was shocked to find out that it added up to only nine hours per week! That's not much longer than a full day in high school, which was eight hours per day. Not only are there fewer hours, but there are fewer assignments. I have multiple readings every week, but no homework assignments otherwise. At first, I found it difficult to motivate myself to do the assigned readings because I wasn't being quizzed on them. Throughout high school, most everyone had the mindset that if something wasn't going to be checked by a teacher, we wouldn't do it. Now, my motivation for doing the readings lies completely on the fact that I want to do them and that I'll do poorly on my essay and exam at the end of the semester if I don't do them.

Try to spot the academic books!

Running, in particular, has helped me to have something to do at least three days a week. Being on the Hares and Hounds has filled the void that Newton South Cross Country once took up (still miss it, though!). I'm out at the Meadows on Mondays and Tuesdays for training, and then at the gym for circuits on Wednesdays. And while races are more sporadic than they were in high school, having that goal to look forward to is a great way to motivate myself to keep going to practice. The best part, though? The socials. Nothing really beats a Harie social- drinking, eating, and having a bit of banter is the perfect way to round out a week of tough runs.

One of my favorite parts of my weekly routine? Going out to lunch on Wednesdays with my friends. Our dining hall doesn't serve us lunch, and my friends and I all have fairly light schedules on Wednesdays (no classes for me!), so meeting up for lunch out once a week seemed like the perfect little getaway from lectures and tutorials. We've attempted to rotate who gets to pick the spot every week, but sometimes it just ends up being a general consensus. So far we've been to the tiniest cafe, a Lebanese restaurant, and a comfy bar-restaurant for burgers. I don't want to give away too much though, because I plan on compiling a list of my favorite places to eat in Edinburgh soon!

Best burger I've had since coming here- at The Holyrood 9A. 

That's all for now!