In one week I will be free from exams!!!

Before you ask the inevitable mental questions: is writing this a form of procrastination? Yes. Should I probably be revising right now? Yes. Did I stay up till 4am last night stressing about exams and ordering stationery from Amazon. Hard yes.

So the reason I went on an organisation/self-improvement rampage last night is because I’ve decided (almost aggressively) to ensure my life does not end simply because of a couple of bad exam results. In fact, I have almost Hitler-like confidence that I will be fine, regardless of what I end up doing. I’m regretting that reference now.

I love writing in my notebook. I use it as a to-do list, sketchbook, songwriting book, pen tester, planner, scrapbook, diary, wishlist, quote list(?) and a revision timetable. I hate one-use things and have always been an avid fan of expending an object’s functions until it gives up on me. Prime examples include my politics essay book with chemistry equations scrawled over the covers; my chemistry lab book that I tried to use as a storage compartment for every single piece of paper I acquired until it, unsurprisingly, tore in two; and using a brown eyeshadow as eyeshadow (quel surprise!), bronzer, mascara and once, in a particularly dark phase of my life, lip tint.

Maybe it’s because I’ve been brought up with the ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ mantra chanting in my brain at all times like an angel on my shoulder.* Or maybe it’s because I’m lazy and can’t be bothered to actually organise and separate the discrete areas of my life. Either way, it makes for a helluva lot of fun when it comes to trying to find stuff I’ve written down. Yes, I just said ‘helluva’ and no I will not be saying/writing it ever again.

*Reading over this makes me contemplate redefining the angel to become a devil.

To tackle this problem, like the good problem-solver I am (quick nod to my Medicine application), I decided to find a way of applying my principle of all-together-in-no-particular-pattern into a planner/journal method and what I found is…….

……the Bullet Journal!

The Bullet Journal method* is basically a method of journalling that maximises productivity and allows for easy, aesthetic organisation. I sound like a creepy advert, sorry. Though all the lovely tricks it teaches you sound great, the one thing that really appealed to me was that I would be able to buy a new notebook. Anyone that knows me is aware of how much I love my notebook (Muji represent) and how representative it is of me and my life/thoughts/feelings. Sadly, I’ve pretty much come to the end of it but happily, buying a new book and starting a new method will (fingers crossed) actually improve a couple areas of my life and signal a new phase of my journey (I didn’t want to say ‘life’ again and this seemed apt but now it just feels cheesy).

*I was going to abbreviate this to BJ method but I thought that might trigger some people coming to this blog on the advice of a Google search and I’m not prepared for that.

So basically, that’s that. Quick update of my life, sprinkled with inappropriate word choices and references to fascist dictators. Typical blog post? Hard yes.