Merry Christmas Everyone!

The Countdown to Destruction (warmup)

There are only 148 days left until the day of destruction. To celebrate this event, please see photos of Low-rise being destroyed below:

Winter Flu :(

Usually, there are two flu epidemia in Aston before the winter break. The first one is the Fresher's week epidemia that I have discussed before, or Freshers Flu. The second one, I am suffering from right now - Winter Flu. When I went to the nurse in the main building yesterday she basically told me that everyone has it and there is nothing I can do. And it is so true, in the past month one could barely hear the lecturers from all the coughing going and sneezing, and nose blowing going around in a chain reaction around the lecture theatre. So, the nurse advised me to just wait it out and take better care of myself. The recently submitted Econometrics coursework has not really given me much time to be sick, though. In addition, I have been suffering from mild medicine shortage.

First, one of my flatmates (currently suspecting all) stole my paracetamol-based-Bulgarian-hot-drink. I had innocently left it on the kitchen counter to not forget to take it first thing in the morning. I woke up to see the packet used and ruthlessly left on its previous place! The medicine shortage continued due to the fact that I was more or less locked 12 hrs a day in the computer rooms, thus constantly hitting uni-shop when closed. As my illness continues I can't help but think how does it smell in this computer room ATM?

High Stakes and Coffee Breaks (pt. IV)

Today I am having the last coursework-related power study session. I hoped that by now I would be enjoying my winter break. Well, I should've thought of the extra work when I opted to write a dissertation this year. Now, I have an outline of the aforementioned dissertation to submit by the end of the week (i.e. by tomorrow). It did not help that I failed the Placement Report and Placement Journals and now have to re-write them again and submit them again by tomorrow. So, yes, one last day of "torture" :P

High Stakes and Coffee Breaks (pt. III)

I have just submitted the evilest of courseworks that is the aforementioned Applied Econometrics and Forecasting group project. My group has spent the last four weeks with this project at the highest priority; we have stayed in the computer rooms morning till evening trying to "crack the codes" to the assignment; we have been eating takeaway and drinking vending machine drinks; and all this with deadline 14th Dec 23:55. I have just successfully uploaded my group's work (a total more than 300 pages) and am off to finally continue with my life!

High Stakes and Coffee Breaks (pt. II)

Wow, I thought that at least until January I will not be doing a second study oriented post. Unfortunately, I have been hit by a new type of disease that has spread in the Aston Business School - econometrics'obia. My whole course and I have been stuck in the computer labs of the main building for weeks now. And what is worse, we've been spending crazy hours without food or drinks - 9hrs on Wednesday with one break for tea and pastry, 10 hrs yesterday with two breaks, one for a lecture and one for dinner. This is not how I immagined this year.

My dreams have been narrowed down to finishing this "bl***y" coursework and finally seeing my mates who have by now stopped texting me with going out offers as my replies has been "soz, econometrics" for way too long. To think that on the Aston Open Day on Wednesday one visitor asked us (the panel of current students) if the curriculum would be much different from the A-levels. Yeah it would, and the level of difficulty has been rising year on year in an overwhelming manner. As my boss, P.P. said, once you survive a final year in Aston, you can do anything. So, I am off to Excel and EViews fun.

The Countdown to Graduation

While we're on about countdowns, the date for my graduation has been announced as well - 14th July 2011. Here is The Countdown to Graduation.

MySpace-Countdowns

Paparazzi

Today I had the possibly most enjoyable studyexperience ever. Of course, the afternoon lecture was supposed to be no different than any other, but when has that stopped the ever so amuzing Aston students. So, as our lecturer, let's call him S.T., was rapping up the class and the whole theatre was sitting in complete silence, I saw a flash and heard a "click". The girl sitting next to me, let's call her I., had decided to unexpectedly take a photo of S.T.. The process was somewhat sabotaged by the fact that she left her phone's sound and flash on. Before anyone could react S.T. was asking: "Are you taking this for the paper?", as I. attempted to sink underground or, alretnatively, disappear. I don't even remember her answering the question. To be honest, I don't remember the end of the lecture, either. All I know is that I kept laughing until the end of it (and after). So, a Tip for I. (and future paparazzi wannabes): There are photos of the lectureres on the Aston website :P

High Stakes and Coffee Breaks

Unfortunately, I have spent most of the last two weeks in the library. My life has become a cup of Costa coffee with Pen&Paper on the rocks. With a mid-term class test and three assignments due, I have spent all of my time in isolation. Thus, there is little to blog about. Graphical examples above and below.

Beyond Knowledge: The Story of S, M & The Police

Aston uni has been my new "home" for more than three years now. Throughout this time I have been sharing with you the stories of my adventures, academia and social life but I have never talked about, arguably, the most important part of uni - the friendships. Some people say that the friends you make in uni are the ones that stick forever. I would like to agree with such a statement. The day-to-day challenges are the basis for the ever-flourishing and ever-evolving uni acquaintances. So, let's start with a graphic example, the story of "S, M and The Police".

I met S & M in the beginning of my second year in Aston. (Remember, my "Countdown to Year 4", M likes to think that she is one of the life-changing people I met on the 27 Sep 2008. I will, however, refrain from commenting on such a statement since it is not relevant to the current post. Please erase it from your short-term memory.) Back in 2008 S & M were just two students that were starting uni but they have by now merged in to one (in M's words) milawesome couple. Currently, S is doing his placement in Birmingham and M, hers, in London. This brings us to the events of the 11th November.

As the clock was about to strike 2200 and the icy wind was blowing down the London streets, M was on her way home. She was walking the irregular walk of a person who has enjoyed a colleague's birthday a bit too much, wine-wise. In the mean time, S was sitting in his Birmingham flat, reading the galablog, thinking how awesome Vlad is (I can just assume). M pressed dial.

M: Hey bebe, I am just on my way home.

S: Baby, I can barely hear you!

M: 2@18#%&^^...

S: What?

M: Baby... 29#$%9&*&575 ...it's too windy... 6745%$#%#... ...home in 10 minutes... ...call you from home!

S: OK, I wait.

An hour passed and S had no word from M. She seemed to have disappeared from the face of the earth. S sent Vlad a text; no reply. Was something wrong with S's phone?

Another hour passed and, as Vlad was waking up from his power nap, S called. He still hadn't managed to find the ever-so-missing M. Vlad tried calling M, nothing; S tried calling M, nothing; Vlad called R, R called M and, still, nothing. They kept calling and calling...nothing.

The clock struck 00:30 and they started considering the possibility that something bad had happened. By 00:40 S was on the phone with the police and Vlad was hurrying towards S's flat. They waited and waited but there was still not a word from M or the police.

At 02:00 S called the police again. They still had not been to M's flat.

At 03:00 Vlad called the police:

V: Hi, my name is Vladimir Galabov and I would like to report a missing person [...] she was on the way home [...] Yes, her boyfriend called you an hour ago [...] I am at his flat in Birmingham [...] No, he was the last person to speak to her [...] I understand [...] She's just not the type of person to disappear [...] I see [...]She's on her placement at the moment [...] I see [...] OK [...] OK, thank you.

As the time passed, they started seriously considering taking the 5 o'clock train to London. If the police were not willing to go to M's place, then S and Vlad would go on their own.

At 04:00 the phone rang:

M: Hey bebe...

I think what I am trying to say with this story is that trough my four years in Aston I have met, and keep meeting, people that I can count on to call the police if I go missing. This is why, uni is not just about the course, not just about the degree, it is about the relationships that you build and the way these relationships change you.

Old Blue Student Card - New Orange Student Card

I have had my uni card for more than three years now and, to be honest, have not been most careful with it. Don't get me wrong I haven't dropped it from the 7th floor of the main building or something but as I began this year I finally noticed that it is in not such a great shape. You could barely see my photo (my horrible, horrible photo) or my last name. To make it worse when swiping it last month I managed to break it in half. A little tape fixed the problem for the time being but I started wondering, could I get a new one? Today, I finally went to the ISA office to ask but a massive sign - £10 for lost or damaged card - hit me like a rock. I did not have £10 and even if I did have £10, I don't want to spend my £10 on a "plastic surgery" for my uni card (note that the cards are made from plastic, I know, hilarious :P). Being in front of the desk already I was asked if I need help (although I was actually thinking of the various uses of a £10 note). There was no turning back so I explained that my card is very old and the time (not me, definetely not me!) has damaged it in a very unpleasant way. Before I knew it I had a new (this time orange) card in my hands FOR FREE! So, if you ever have a uni card problem, it can be resolved surprisingly quickly and painlessly.

Photo shoot (God, no!)

We have all had these weeks when sadly nothing extraordinary happens. The routine seems to be directing our every move making any story on the topic "how was your day?" as boring as a game of chess.

I was having one of these weeks and was struggling with finding anything interesting to blog about. And as I lost all hope I was unexpectedly dragged into something mildly interesting that I am going to now elaborate on until it sound awesome (or at least long) :)

I doubt there is anyone in Aston that has not heard of the new fancy library ground floor; different opening events have been going on all through the past week, including official ribbon cut yesterday. Of course, having a new library meant new photos for the prospectus and various presentations. That is why I was not surprised to see people being photographed (in a relaxed, smart but cool fashion) when I went into the library yesterday.

I wanted in to fill in a missing book form and request a new one to be bought by the library. Finishing this surprisingly short task, as I was leaving I bumped into a girl from my course that had just done the photo shoot. We started the ever so popular discussion on how hard our course is. (for the record Applied Econometrics is the hardest subject anyone has ever created!) Then the photographer from the photo shoot came and asked K. to go back in for an extra round. I said bye and was just about to see myself out when...

The photographer asked me to join K. for the last shots. "No, no, I was just leaving.", "Come on, it's going to take a minute and we might not even use the photos.", "OK."

So there I am, in the middle of the library with K. having a fake chat, not loosing eye-contact for what seems like ages with a massive camera in my face. All I am thinking is "Stay straight!", "Did you even look at your hair today?", "Are your glasses even clean?", "Does this look fake?". Being a pro at this, the calm K. was trying to continue our previous chat. Of course, this is never easy when the person you are chatting to is a sweaty-distracted-constant-eye-contact-some guy.

As the photographer did the last shot, he asked if we would like to have one regular photo as a 'memory'. Before I could even answer, K. had said "Yes.", the photographer was behind the camera again and I felt K.'s hand on what seemed like the sweatiest back ever. Gross, no?

Half listening to the library assistant I put my jacket on. She was explaining about the potential usage of the photos (prospectus, website, TVs in library, presentation). I still have not actually seen the aforementioned photos but I guess I will. Hopefully, the rest of the uni will not.

Bureaucratism

What world do we live with? This is probably one of the most frequently discussed questions in society. Through the years the answers vary - capitalism, communism, nationalism, fascism, neo-anything-ism, anyone's-name-with-an-ism-in-the-end-ism, etc.(and this is a very long etcetera). Here I will define a new ISM, the ISM that has been ever present in our society - Bureaucratism. Can you think of any advantages of bureaucracy? (if you can please do share, especially today, I cannot think of any)

The first time I met bureaucracy is when I was ten years old and my parents had to get me a new international passport (that is how they were called in Bulgaria back in the day). They filled pages and pages of forms just to get a little piece of paper with my name and picture on it. Had I known this is just the beginning of my relationship with bureaucracy, I would have emigrated to a deserted island.

This relationship of mine has been like an unhappy marriage, every time bureaucracy shows her face I get a headache, the headache that men get when they are getting a divorce and have no prenup. When I was applying for high school, university, health insurance, work permit, bank account, travel pass, tesco clubcard, boots clubcard, H&M clubcard (I could continue with the shops for a while), credit card, (god forbid) a loan, accommodation, or any other card or piece of paper in my wallet, I would have an intimate meeting with bureaucracy that would test all my skills and senses.

To get to the point in this most important of post, I would like to give the non-UK students in Aston an advice that could probably spare them my bureaucracy-caused wrinkles. When it is time for you to get a work-permit (or whatever the certificate is called) do NOT open any of the government websites. They have no useful information, whatsoever; call HM Revenue & Customs and ask all your questions on the phone (just prepare for a waiting time of approximately 3-5 minutes).

If you do not have the phone numbers, and you probably don't, just go to the Careers Office in uni. They are supposed to be our point of contact for problems and questions connected with work and placement. Unfortunately, I decided to tackle the problem myself and only three hours later (after spending most of the time in various government websites) did I have the form I needed to fill in. The Careers Office must have answered a thousand questions like mine and most certainly would have effortlessly given me the phone numbers that I ultimately found.

So, to sum up, bureaucracy sucks, government websites are useLESS, careers office is useFUL, calling institutions on the phone is most effective (though pricey).

Final Year Project: First Crisis Averted

As I was going to bed yesterday there was one little, long-forgotten thought that burst into my head and stung me like a bee - sh** I forgot to submit my final year project proposal. As I woke up, I decided I would do all that is in my power to fix the situation.

First, I had to print out and fill in the proposal form. Now that was a slight problem as I lost my student card this week. I was at the ISA desk at precisely 8:30, much to the surprise of the staff on duty. Apparently, before one gets a new card out, they need to go through the lost cards record. Well, my card was there! This sorted my first problem as now I could actually go into a computer lab to print out the form.

After printing and filling out the form, though, I had to take it to my supervisor to sign. I was so sure I would not find him before noon and I would miss the deadline. As I was hastily staggering toward the Economics and Strategy department, I came up with a "brilliant" plan. Was I to end up in a situation where I have no supervisor to sign my form, I would knock on every university staff door (if I have to) and ask them to sign my form. It was insane but it could just work.

This is where the dramatic end of my story is lost, as I actually did find my coursework supervisor having coffee in the communal area of the floor. He signed my form and calmed me down so now I am sitting in front of the coursework submission hub. Why am I sitting here waiting until 11:00 you may ask? I don't want to forget about submitting the bl**** form again!

Final Year Project

This year, for the first time so far, I had the opportunity to chose modules. Typically, my Economics &Management course is very structured in a way that we have set subjects that we need to take. So, for my final 20 credits I had the choice to either take two modules or write a 10,000 word coursework. I chose the coursework on the basis of my writing abilities and lack of such in accounting base subjects.

Well, so far my choice has proved extremely challenging. My first topic was unrealistic, considering the available public data. My second topic was too simple and quite obvious and was, more or less, rejected. Nevertheless, after my second attempt I sat down and decided it was time to evaluate my realistic options and ability. As a result, I chose a great final topic.

What was more important through this choosing process, though, was the incredible help I received from the Economics department. I have had the shortest possible e-mail response times and the most motivational advices. This is essentially what one needs to overcome the initial challenges.

Now, as I am at the beginning of the writing process I cannot help but be glad of the choice I have made. I know that it would be tough but I can feel it developing my skills already. Most expectedly, there will be more posts on the subject coming up.

Fire Alarms

Fire alarms have been an issue on campus since the beginning of existence. After having one two weeks in a row I am starting to think that this is indeed a big problem.

But, where do fire alarms come from?

Well, I am far from the idea that the fire alarms are Uni's fault. Big bad uni is to blame because it puts them on! No, I am sorry, but it is not the Uni's fault. The
real cause for the un-ending fire alarms are the various and plentiful "cooks" on campus. I have hears all kinds of stories about their adventures - setting sausages on fire is my personal favorite.

Almost every time when I walk into my kitchen there is an unsupervised pan overflowing on the stove or a pizza burning in the oven. The appropriate question would be, is it so hard to actually put a tiny piece of effort into the whole cooking ordeal? It isn't and the reason people don't care is because they are simply not hungry. If I put rice to boil and I really do want to eat rice, I would't ditch it for an hour in the kitchen - all day, every day!

The solution to the problem (there are three actually). First, obviously you can just watch your meal, or in other words, care about the fact that you are cooking/eating. Second, just do not cook, there is a perfectly well functioning food court in the main building and three discount pubs on campus. Last, and my personal favorite, just starve! OK, so starving isn't a good idea but I think options one and two are plenty (let's also not forget the £1 baguette shop down the street).

The advantage for the "cooks" is that they will escape those horrible fines for setting a fire alarm on. If you think about your cash-flow statement, this one major expense is more than any money you could save by not eating in the food court throughout the year.

So, together we can stop the fire alarms forever and sleep peacefully, all we need is a little common sense.

Back to Company X

I was sitting in my overfilled with stuff room yesterday, reading one of the Bulgarian classics - Tiutiun (Tabacco) when my phone rang. Company X's staffing representative was calling from an unrecognized number to ask me the question that every final year student is waiting for. As a result shall be back in the smaller of towns - Swindon - in August. I have a feeling this would be a great experience!

As we used to say in Company X - Yes, going back!

E-books

After a rookie mistake (put a wrong entry in my outlook calendar) I am currently in the main building downloading my textbooks onto my computer.

The library has gotten so much better now that I don't even need to go there. Apparently, except one, all my textbooks have been uploaded as e-books onto the library catalogue. For me, this means the end of the textbook reservations and the end of chest pain in the beginning of each term. (I get chest pain when paying for some of these greatly overpriced textbooks of ours.)

There is a little catch with the e-books, though, you can only print or save ten pages at a time, so right now my computer is full of P_1-10, P_11-20, etc. files. Nevertheless, this will not stop me from using only (or mostly) the e-books as the year progresses.

Aston Exchange

Apparently the Aston Free Marketplace is not as popular as it was back in the day. I sold all my textbooks from my first and second year through the free website designed to help students exchange textbooks without the amazon and e-bay fees. Check it out at:

http://astonexchange.co.uk/

Placement Essay (Results are out!)

The Placement Essay has brought me so many troubles it is actually ridiculous. After spending so much time writing it, making a mistake submitting it, now I had problems receiving my mark.

Apparently, essays were marked in the beginning of the Summer and results were sent out in August. To make things more interesting my results got lost by the greatly "talented" Bulgarian Postal Services. So there I am in my kitchen, catching up with my flatmate when the question, "so, how much did you get on the essay?" puts me in a most bewildered state. See, I had no way of knowing that the postman was talking on the phone, planning his night out, when he was delivering my letter to the wrong address (hope he had a nice time, though).

I ran off to the Placement office and asked for my results to be re-printed. This time I would pick the letter up myself. On the next day, I am sitting and waiting for my letter... then opening the letter... then (i remember) seeing one sole thing on the whole page... 39.95%...

Yes, this is essentially the lowest you can get to pass but come on. I enjoyed my placement so much and this did not reflect any of my experience. However, under placement on my diploma it would say 39-point-bloody-95. I was not going to leave things there; e-mailed the tutor immediately and asked her to meet me as soon as she can.

On the next day I am sitting in a meeting room in front of the undergraduate office and hearing: "So, I liked your essay, I hope you like your mark. How did the placement go?". WHAT THE FLIP (guys I was not thinking flip). I only had strength to give my tutor the letter I received the previous day. She started laughing and said, "Wait here."; came back with a similar letter 3 minutes later, this time the letter read - 60%. "There must have been a mistake in the system. They could not explain it."

It took me about a minute so assimilate the new situation after spending two days cursing the unfairness of the world we live in. Then I had a nice chat with the tutor about how much I enjoyed the placement and how much I miss being there,.