h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I've now got all my marks for the second semester of this academic year, and I think that my second year at the University of Bradford can be judged a success.

I've scored a 67% and a 70% for Writing Short Stories. The higher mark was for a journal I kept about published short stories I'd read during the course (I became a big fan of Doris Lessing). The 67% was for my own short story 'Shrinking', a tale of student life, , and psychiatry which should be in next week's edition of - with a couple of adjustments suggested by my course tutor in the feedback she gave me.

I did better in Stress Management, scoring 74% for my essay on the subject - so I'm now officially qualified to chill out.

However, the result I can't quite believe is the one I got for my Film Studies essay, with the title 'How should we judge film and television productions that are representing historical events?'. EIGHTY-FOUR PER CENT! I thought you had to make some sort of major scientific breakthrough to get more than 80% in a University essay!

Still, if I was going to do exceptionally well in one module then I suppose it makes sense that it was this one, because I was on home ground. The screenings and discussions for the film studies module took place at my beloved National Museum of Photography, Film & Television, and the films we viewed as a class included a big favourite of mine: 'Bowling For Columbine', which I had already written about in A2535293 . ('Fahrenheit 9/11', another film discussed in that Guide Entry, also featured in my essay.)

All of this means that I have now successfully completed Level One of my B.A. degree, having clocked up 120 credits at that level. I also have 40 credits towards Level Two. In the 2005-6 academic year, I'd like to do another film studies module and try to do something on Neuro-Linguistic Programming, a subject I've recently become highly intrigued by.

But that is for the future. For now, I'll keep looking at that figure 84, pinching myself, and feeling happy about the fact that with a little deep thought, I managed to score 42x2.

Fantastic, Ormy! Well done!


Really makes me wish again that I could go back to school, for the euphoric satisfaction of a job well done in the end. I'll get back to it one of these days...

Is this the same Ormy who expressed certain worries about coping with academics...?

Very well done!

Definitely calls for Well done Ormy

I cant say I am surprised at your marks - I have always enjoyed reading your writings but its great to see that you are doing so well.

NLP is a subject that fascinates me too - I would love to learn more about it - I am trying to persuade my boss that it should feature on my development plan and that having a master practitioner on the team would bring benefits - I am sure it would help us develop better learning and coaching interventions - however it would however seem there is a way for me to go! I hope you get to study what you want

Well done, Orm .

Congrats Ormy! I always knew you were talented!

I'm hoping to go to uni in September so it's nice to hear of someone doing so well there.

, everyone, and Pearl! Which Uni are you planning to go to?

Yes indeed, Santra, it is to reflect that it's only a year and a bit since I was briefly convinced that I'd never get the hang of student life and couldn't possibly write an academic essay. I'm really pleased with my progress since then!

- I became so fascinated by NLP after a really interesting discussion on the subject with a friend that I decided I couldn't wait till September to find out more about it. One of the best fringe benefits of being a student at the University of Bradford is access to its excellent library, and I've taken out Joseph O'Connor & John Seymour's 'Introducing NLP' so that I can get to grips with the basic ideas now. It's a very readable and widely-available , and it does what the title says very effectively.

NLP really sorted me out when I was 17

Without necessarily going into detail, 6, how did it do that?

By removing certain memories that had been causing me trouble. Actually I'm not sure if it was NLP or hypnotherapy, I think the bloke I saw did a bit of both.

It seems that a lot of my basic insecurities had been caused by waking up one night in my cot when I was very small - and even though I knew my parents were nearby and they loved me and everything, I was suddenly overwhelmed by how suddenly big and scary and dark the universe was and I was too young to cope with that kind of thing.

So we did something to remove that memory and put something else positive there, and I've been a lot better ever since.

Hi all!

What's NLP? (Too lazy to use a search engine!)

University of Chichester hopefully, to do a Performing Arts degree.

Good luck at Chichester, Pearl! I wasn't too lazy to look up where that is, and I hope you enjoy the seaside at Bognor!

NLP is Neuro-Linguistic Programming, a branch of psychology dealing with habits of thought and how to change them. It's a complex and (to me) compelling subject, and you can find out more here: http://www.nlpinfo.com/topm.html .

I'll have a look at that.

My course will be based actually at Chichester...the Bognor Regis campus is separate.

Thanks for the reference Ormy - I have added it to my list of books to read

I am not getting as much time for reading as I would like at the moment so its quite a long list. I am reading about coaching at the moment and I am sure that I will end up exploring how NLP can support coaching for performance.

Just clicked the link, very intriguing.

I think I'll have a look for that book.

LighthouseGirl: Is that coaching for dramatic performance?

I originally became a coach at work - we define coaching as the art of facilitating the development, learning and performance of another.

We use it to improve business performance and I am one of the team who help other people learn to coach - so yes I coach coaches!

Our coaching phylosophy assumes that you do not nead to know anything about the subject you are coaching someone on and that they have the potential within them to achieve.

The play we have just done was my first experince of directing and yes I leaned heavily on my coaching skills and they really worked I would love to do more with it in the theatre but in the mean time will keep doing it as part of my job as thats what pays the bills! I am very lucky to have a job that allows me to spend a lot of my time coaching as I really enjoy it

'coach coaches'

I shall dispel the image of someone in a tracksuit blowing a whistle at a bus

Sounds interesting.

What play did you do? I'm hoping to work in theatre myself...principally as an actor but I am leaning towards directing as well.

Have you read "The Unconsoled" by Ishiguro? I think the spelling is correct. Now there is a novel I think you may enjoy. I can't say its in anyway exciting but I think its got to be the most unique (?) read since "The unbearable Lightness of Being".
As a fish sign I also think you may enjoy "The Voyage of the Narwhal" by Andrea Barrett.
But for real spooksville "In a glass darkly" by Sheridan Le Fanu.
I love reading. I cannot sleep at night until I have had a good read.

PP - the play I did was Alan Ayckbourn's Confusions - a collection of 5 mini plays that are linked partly through characters that appear in more than one play and partly through a common theme of relationships and how we react when they are breaking down. Each playlet is in a different style so its a lot of fun and a real challange for the cast (its written so the 24+ characters can be played by 5 people).

I really enjoyed it and am hoping to do more. OJ my partner loves to act but it scares the life out of me!

I have not read any of those books - I like to read too However recently I have been reading mostly either trash or books about work & coaching!

* resists the urge to get her whistle out ... *