Life | Back to Uni Instagram Diary

Hey folks! So at the minute I'm meant to be doing coursework but of course I've decided to write a new post instead! Since I've been so crap with posting recently I thought I might as well have a catch up on what I've been up to since I've been back at uni. This term has been crazy hectic so far, which hasn't really afforded me much of a social life and as a result I haven't really been anywhere particularly exciting to share with you here. Though, any time I really go anywhere or do anything it usually ends up on my instagram, so I thought sharing some of my most recent pics would do the job of explaining quite nicely; a picture is worth a thousand words, after all!

>> You were wild once, don't let them tame you. I found this card by designer, Sarah Majury in St. George's Market on my trip back home and I thought it was really cute. I think the message speaks volumes as well.

>> Obligatory Christmas cardigan selfie, because I can only wear it one season of the year and I've been waiting so very long to do so. 

>> Socks the pony. This is one of the ponies at the stables where my uni equestrian club ride and I just love his little cheeky face so much. You can just tell he's absolutely loving the attention here!

>> Bonfire Night. I was quite keen to partake in the bonfire night festivities this year because, being from Northern Ireland, it's not a holiday we have back home. On the night there were fireworks all over Lancaster so two of my friends and I headed up to Williamson Park to try and catch a glimpse before heading to the pub.

>> Cowboys and Indians Social. This is just me and my friend Alysia dressed up for a Cowboys and Indians themed social with equestrian club a few weeks ago; a night where many a tipsy deep conversation was had!

>> Pretty Sky. A little picture I took of the sun setting on my walk home (despite the fact it was only 4pm at the time! The short days/long nights situation is one thing about wintertime that makes me really sad)

>> Wednesday night out. This is a cheeky pic of me and my friend Ian out one night which is actually an absolutely horrendous photo in real life- thank goodness for filters, eh?

>> Lancaster by night. A photo taken whilst my housemate Carlo and I were roaming the streets of Lancaster one October eve.

>> Cup of tea with Ian after I attempted to make him some spag bol, which actually turned out rather well in the end. We then watched this dating show called "Sexy Beasts" where people go on dates in really gross make-up and it was literally the most ridiculous and most amazing thing I've ever seen. 

So yeah, I guess that's me all up to date! Hope you've all had a lovely day!

Much Love

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Back to Uni Wishlist | 2014

The trip back to uni is now only two weeks away for me so of course I've started to fantasise about all the lovely things I'd love to bring back over with me... Some of these things I think I will treat myself to after payday.

Black lace-up boots: Pull & Bear I just thought these would be really good for the winter time, especially because it rains A LOT in the North West and I hope these will keep my toes warm! I've actually already bought these but just want to say, if you're going to buy these online, the soles on my pair are a lot lighter than they appear in the photo.

Tartan scarf: ASOS  I just thought this looked so cosy and would probably go with everything. I do need a new scarf for the autumn/winter time.

Jack Wills Hoodie This is one of those things I'll probably not be getting any time soon, and I know they're a bit cliche these days, but I really want one, just because they look so cosy!

Coral Hunter Wellies Another thing I probably won't be getting any time soon, but I love Hunters more than anything in life and I just thought these were so cute for autumn time!

Moroccan-style fairy lights: Lights4fun.co.uk I think I might get these for my uni room this year, just because they're so pretty.

Instax mini 8 camera I've wanted one of these for absolutely ages but unfortunately they've always been a bit out of my student budget. One of my good friends, Giselle who's from Hong Kong though messaged me the other day asking if I'd like her to bring one home for me because they're a lot cheaper over there which was really really kind of her.

Clocky Alarm Clock I am notoriously bad at getting up in the morning. In fact, last term I had an exam at 9.30am and woke up that morning at 9.40, absolute nightmare! My mum has joked for a long time about having to get an alarm clock that I have to chase after and now I've actually found one!! Whenever this alarm goes off its wheels start moving and you have to run after it to turn it off, such a good idea!

Photo Chain: Urban Outfitters I posted something like this on my uni room inspo and originally I was going to just make it myself but apparently you can purchase them at urban outfitters- win!

Sports fleece: H&M I really want something like this so I'm able to go running once the cold weather comes since I find normal hoodies a little too heavy!

Navy Converse: Office always a good shout. I'm hoping the navy will go with most things!

Purple sports shorts I've wanted these since I saw them in H&M a few weeks ago, though of course I was skint at the time (still am!). I sort of want to get them for motivation to try for really toned legs this year.

Adidas sports leggings: Next Basically I just need a pair of full-length sports leggings, again for the cold weather because the majority of mine are cropped!

Update: I just got twitter again. If you would like to follow me (and I'd love it if you did!), you can @alphabethblog

What's on your back to school/uni wishlist?

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Life Update | Instagram Diary

Instagram: beth_farrelly

MY LAPTOP IS BACK! And I'm so very happy that I can blog once again. I've really been missing it these past few weeks, especially since there's been a lot going on that I've been dying to share with you!

I know my last post was quite similar to this but I thought since I'd been away for a little while I'd just give you an overall update of what I've been up to when I was meant to have been revising! 

Recently, I'm very pleased to report, Lancashire has been blessed with some beautiful weather! A couple of days last week it was hitting 20-odd degrees, which literally never happens, so despite the fact exams are looming I've been spending a lot of time outdoors, chilling out and enjoying the sunshine. A couple of weeks ago one of my friends from home came to stay with me for a few days which gave me an excuse to get off campus and do a bit of exploring! One of the days he was here we took a trip to the Lakes which was really fun, especially because it was such a beautiful, sunny day. Unfortunately, I managed to forget my camera but I did end up getting some half-decent pictures on my iPhone though so at least all was not lost. Even though I only live about an hour away from the Lakes at uni I don't get to go anywhere near as much as I would like so it's always a pleasure being able to take friends there when they come and visit me.

On the Sunday my friend was here we also visited some mutual friends of ours who live in the area and had a lovely Sunday brunch outside in their garden with sausages, bacon, eggs, strawberries, yoghurt and croissants which was a lovely treat.

Also, in the last few weeks a couple of my friends from uni and I have started going horse-riding once a week which I've really been enjoying. I used to ride a lot when I was younger but as I got older and schoolwork started taking up more and more of my time I had to give it up, but I'm so happy to have the opportunity to take it back up now. The yard we've been riding at is tiny and buried in countryside not far from the city centre. It's also just a short bus ride from campus which is incredibly handy for us and the family that own it are really lovely and friendly as well which makes all the difference! It's always a lovely break from uni life getting to go out there and spend some time in the fresh air doing something I love.

Yesterday when we were up at the yard one of the mares had just given birth to a tiny foal called May and I'm not kidding, she was one of the cutest things I've ever seen! She was only 5 days old, wobbling around still a bit unsteady on her feet but so was friendly, nuzzling up to us and letting us pet her.

Unfortunately now, since I've taken a bit of a long break this term so far I need to get back into some proper revision which is what I've been doing these past few days before my exams start at the end of this week. I'm quite nervous as there's a lot to cover but hopefully things will all go OK!

Instagram: beth_farrelly

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Quick Update

Just a quick little post I'm writing via my iPhone to apologise for the unexpected hiatus. My laptop conveniently stopped working last week- during exam season no less! So not only have I been unable to blog but it's been really difficult getting access to notes and resources online since it's incredibly difficult trying to find a free computer on campus this time of year! 

Also, when my laptop broke I took it to my local PC World KnowHow booth for a repair, they told me they'd run a health check for £50 and that it'd be all ready that evening, if not for the day after. This in fact wasn't the case as it turned out my hard drive needed replacing which was going to cost another £50 on top of the £50 I'd already paid, but the most gutting thing has been that there's a good chance I'm going to lose ALL the data on my old hard drive if I can't recover it via "caddy" after it's been replaced (I don't actually know what that means so I'm just going to assume I'm going to struggle to try and do it...) I'm devastated that I may potentially lose the many many photos and documents that only exist on that hard drive- one good lesson to ALWAYS back up important data onto an external hard drive and also apparently not to abuse your laptop by using it on your lap or moving it around so much that the internal hard drive just completely gives up. Learn from my mistakes, friends.

Yours faithfully,

One sad and frustrated blogger...

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Weekly Update | Things that I'm thankful for

This has been my first week back to uni after Easter and as much as it wasn't so great to be back to porridge as such, it's altogether been a fairly eventful week! So here is a very long and rambling update on what's been going on and the things that have been making me a very happy gal...

1. Packages from friends from far away

One of the most exciting things that happened to me this week was that I received a lovely package from one of my very good friends, Evelyn from California, which was made even more lovely by the fact it was SO unexpected! Although we don't speak that often (we have the odd skype session maybe twice a year) I'd still consider her one of my best friends so it was amazing to hear from her and such a lovely surprise to see a package from her on top of my pile of what I expecting to be just some textbooks I'd ordered from Amazon.

Inside the package she had written me a beautiful letter for my birthday and stuck some photos of us- very old photos I might add, but I love them! She also sent me a Cal Poly shot glass from her college which now sits proudly on the shelf in my room. One thing I love about my friendship with Evelyn is the fact that although we live on opposite sides of the world we're basically in exactly the same phase of our lives, both starting college/uni and experiencing all these new things together.

2. University Bant & Baking Days

Another exciting thing that has been happening this weekend has been a tournament called "Roses" which is a sports competition that takes place every year between my university and our rival university and myself and my housemates went to watch the opening ceremony and a football match on Friday night which was really fun, even though it started getting really chilly in the evening. We ended up running back to our flat to change into jeans and hoodies at half-time, but it was all worth it! 

Me and my flatmate, Sam also embarked on a late-night baking session the other night which ended up being pretty successful! Much more successful than any of my attempts at making cookies have been in my life thus far.

3. Shopping Days & Morning Runs

Yesterday morning a couple of my flatmates and I set out for a shopping trip to Liverpool which was fab! It was amazing to get into the city again since our uni is quite far out, basically in the middle of the countryside where not much goes on. We spent the whole day shopping and a good couple of hours were spent in Forever 21, where I felt completely overwhelmed by the massive accessories section- bags and statement necklaces EVERYWHERE.

I ended up actually getting a really nice turquoise statement necklace and also this great brown faux leather bag which is absolutely huge but feels so comfy on my shoulder. I can't actually articulate how much I love it, since I normally just use a tiny little shoulder bag that I can hardly fit anything in.

Also, after many months of deliberation I finally got my hands on a pair of Nike Frees and oh my, they are beautiful. Definitely a good decision, despite having to part with a few too many £££'s...

I'm hoping they'll motivate me to exercise because I am the least fit person I know and I just always wish I had a better command over my body instead of not being able to run 20 feet. Me and my flatmate actually went for a run this morning, bright and early. We're using the '5k Runner' app which will apparently get us running 5k in 8 weeks which would be great if we actually end up sticking to it!

Hope you're all well!

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