Unblogged Year - October to December

The final quarter of the year wasn't too thrilling, but it did give me lots to think about either way.

October

After much encouragement from friends, I played Minecraft and whilst I'm still unable to get past a few days without dying, it did at least provide me with some conversation starters whilst I played it with a free trial. 

Regarding South London photography, Streatham Common was pleasingly foggy and frosty, with the Sun just peeking out from behind the trees as the day truly arrived. I also saw the remnants of the Croydon Canal at Anerley, though only in passing; there used to be more of it when it opened in 1809, but no trade of lime, chalk or clay could save it from being closed and replaced by the railways only thirty years later. 

There was also the brief visit that I made to Brixton. I was going to see the windmill, but ultimately thought better of it - I found a curious mural, however, before I backed down and went over to Crystal Palace, which proved to be the far better choice.

I also managed to make an astable multivibrator circuit in electronics - in other words, I got two LEDs to light up in an alternating manner. It took a while, and almost poetically was done in my last session before I transitioned over to extra study sessions.

November

I found various university buildings, almost by accident at times:

• LSE is situated near Holborn, and they're all about the social sciences. They do not offer chemistry.
• I went to Central London with my mum, partly to find an upturned globe sculpture. Little did I know that it was created for LSE, which admittedly makes the globe less interesting than if it was placed there by an unknown artist. Similar art installments here included an ultimately incorrect prediction on the US election.
• King's College London are mainly situated along the Strand, but they have a building of their own by Guy Hospital, near London Bridge. They offer chemistry, and I regret not applying there in the end.
  
• Ravensbourne is situated near the O2 Arena in North Greenwich, and whilst I didn't see it in person, it was hard to not notice the harsh LED lighting from its main building. True, the O2 beats it in the "harsher lighting" contest. Ravensbourne has been around since 1962, though only reached university status in 2018, and can attest to having David Bowie as an alumnus. They do not offer chemistry.
• LSBU have their main campus along the South Bank, but they opened a new building in Electric House. It used to house the Croydon Electricity Department, and has been home to LSBU since 2022. They too don't offer chemistry. 

   

I also visited Borough Market for the first time and found it slightly overwhelming on the same trip - and I must admit that it's very exciting for someone who's into street food and international cuisine, which I'm not yet.

Exam-wise, I did very well in a chemistry exam, and even if I didn't get a certificate recognising the result, I'm happy to be going in the right direction. I got the result of the exam back on the same day when I was invited to the interview I've already blogged about before.

I saw an Overground train towards Battersea Park, which rarely ever happens, not least in the daytime.

And goodness, autumn is an incredible season - here's a photo I've not included here yet. 

December

My Spotify Wrapped came out and confirmed that I've spent 12% of this year listening to music. The plurality of this time was spent listening to The Chameleons, specifically Script of the Bridge; Second Skin ended up being my top song of the year, and it's well deserved in my opinion. If only Spotify could predict my endless obsession with The Cure this month.

I made my way to Keston to see the source of the River Ravensbourne, if only briefly as the muddy conditions made it less than optimal to wander far. I will gladly return in the future for a more thorough write up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Other university sightings include:

• UCL, though I couldn't see much as they were closed. I did see the creatively named Main Building from afar, though, and it is quite impressive - it reminds me of the British Museum, which isn't too distant. UCL do, in fact, offer chemistry, unlike Hull.
  
• Birkbeck have a series of front doors.
• The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, or RADA, have a wonderful sculpture above their entrance. Compared to the University of Arts London, or ual:, they're less minimalist and glass-front obsessed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I also wandered in Hyde Park for a while, managing to photograph a squirrel up close, whilst internally bemoaning how Winter Wonderland can effectively close off a massive chunk of a stunning park for a month.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I also did some more university interviews, but they'd rather I didn't speak about them so I won't.

Epilogue

That in effect brings me up to the present day. I hope that I didn't come off as too boring in these blogposts, because I am aware that even when I do discuss my life, the posts are out of sync with what I'm currently doing, and as such I don't come off as the most personal blogger. Either way, what I write here won't change much next year, except A Levels become uni exams, so you'd probably be disappointed no matter what.

If you're curious about the next five days after this post, well, I'm going on holiday, and I might write about it, eventually. 

Overall, I think that 2024 has been a good year for me, though I wouldn't be surprised if I forgot most of what happened this year soon enough. It's not been the riskiest year, rather more moderate, which is never a bad thing - yet the amplitudes aren't as large as they could be, which I slightly regret.