Bruh.

//Hectic Bruh//

South African surfer slang depicting the condition of a wave to a fellow surfer 'bruh' also known as brother. 

In 7 days I'll be bringing Bruh bunny home (he's the first rabbit on the left). Like much of 2014 Bruh is a bit of a twist in the tale which has turned out to be for the best. This year I wasn't supposed to meet someone and fall in love but I did, I was going to live by the ocean and get a dog. Instead I'll be living in Middlesbrough (twenty minutes away from my favorite surf spot)bwith a house bunny named Bruh and functioning within a long distance relationship. 

Sometimes life turns you on your head but the results of this can be a massively positive thing. My life is very much up in the air at the moment, I'm still waiting to confirm whether I am in receipt of the scholarship (which is my yay or nay for even being able to attend university) and as of yet I have nowhere to live when I do move up North. Its reminded me of the disarray I felt graduating university for the first time and has inspired me to knock together a little article for all you grads.  

...But first, to make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside here are some pictures of bunnies <3 

         





































































Sophia's Average Guide to Graduating. 
(if it was graded it would probably be a solid 2:2...with prospects). 

Graduated: 
1. in stages divided into regular steps 
2. marked with lines to enable measurement 
3. finance describes a system of taxation under which those with the greatest income or assets pay the highest percentage of tax

When I graduated university I literally wanted to kill myself, which I think you'll agree is a pretty extreme reaction to a life transition. There was other, rather serious and personal stuff going on alongside the momentous occasion of graduating but the impending future, one devoid of concessions, cut price rent and lectures was a future infinitely terrifying to me. 

In the space of a week I lost my boyfriend (we broke up , I didn't misplace him), my uni friends, my independence and my identity. Crying myself to sleep in the single bed of my childhood room the question of 'what now,' kept me awake for many nights there after. Remember the financial crisis? 
Yeah. So I graduated that year. 

My life began to resemble a spaghetti western where living at home felt like time in the sheriffs office, tumble weed down a deserted street represented my social life and show downs were between me and employers, my CV being my (useless) weapon of choice. 

4 years on I'm in a minimum wage job in a completely different sector, still living at home with my parents and about to go to University for the second time....Life if Mucking Afazing!! I'm not what society would call conventionally successful but I have achieved happiness so without further ado here's my 2 cents about surviving graduation. 

YOU ARE A PERSON NOT A STATISTIC. 
Repeat that mantra until you value yourself above the grade achieved. You go to university to get an education but you don't become knowledgeable until you've lived a bit. University is a bit like being in a greenhouse where all variables are controlled and you exist in an idyllic controlled environment. Life outside of the greenhouse is harsh cold and infinitely more difficult but you are closer to the sky and you'll actually feel the rain instead of just getting wet. Whatever grade you got remember it represents such a tiny proportion of who you are, the same as a job doesn't define you its just something you do. 

DO SOMETHING. 
It doesn't matter whether what you chose to do is backpacking round Thailand or bag packing in your local supermarket just do something which is non university related for a while to either earn money or see some things. Not everyone in this world is university educated and its important to meet these people. Its difficult to know your purpose straight after graduating but doing something with your time, whether its a little part time job or travelling will help you learn somethings about yourself which may just help you decide. 

ACCEPT THAT INTERNSHIPS ARE MODERN SLAVE LABOR AND THAT THEY WONT GUARANTEE YOU A JOB. 
Despite this, internships are wonderful opportunities to understand the industry you want to get into and offers you the chance to network. You'll make tea, get bored and question whether humanitarian work/journalism/accountancy/law etc etc is what you really want to do. Whatever your role make it your mission to EXCEL, go the extra mile, work hard because regardless of the outcome you'll get into the habit of putting your all into what you do which is infinitely good karma my dears. 

GO SURFING. 
It was as a listless graduate that I decided to try surfing which not only stopped me from topping myself but also opened up a whole new world....a blog for a start, life long friends, health and above all happiness. Surfing was something out of the academic arena, one free from judgement and pressure, which gave me the opportunity to 'come back to myself' in the words of Doc Pascowitz it 'recreated me.' You need a break from endless job applications, the stress of not knowing what direction to go in life and surfing is the perfect antidote to that. 


APPLY. 
See the perfect job? Then apply. Sounds simple doesn't it. I found myself often put off by job specifications thinking I couldn't possibly fit all the criteria....but here's the thing...no one does. Think of job adverts like lonely heart ads, your never going to see, 

SEEKING...
A mediocre person, average looking, who will contribute the absolute bare minimum to the relationship and provide no opportunities for personal growth or happiness. XOXO

Employers use the job spec as a wish list and hope that applicants might hit a few, so apply to everything that tickles your fancy, makes you giddy with excitement or offers you some kind of opportunity. Whilst your busy waiting for your dream job, apply to everything else inbetween. I'm talking shop work, bar tending roles, waitressing, anything that keeps you busy and gives you the opportunity to earn some money. (Just avoid prostitution, THOSE gumtree ads and becoming an assassin). 

F*@% FACEBOOK 
Checking your fb account twenty times a day is going to remind you that people are out there LIVING THEIR LIVES and once more they'll be living infinitely happier, more fulfilling lives which are better than yours...Nah not really, everybody projects the best version of themselves on facebook, its natural as who wants to show the boring mundane aspects of their lives?! Not me! Don't worry about the hype, or get caught up in show boating, just go placidly amidst the noise and the haste. Your life has meaning and its exciting purely because its all yours. 

THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED. 
After university I worked in a health shop selling 'horny goat weed' to frustrated husbands, I was a youth leader with refugee kids, lived in Senegal at Ngor Surf camp teaching Yoga, did humanitarian work in Ethiopia, was a waitress for about a week, got rejected from hundreds of jobs, set up the land locked surfers club becoming a blogger in the process and fell in and out of love more times than I care to admit. But hey, that's my story and you'll have your own winding version which will seem chaotic and confusing but will be a massive learning curve. As the saying goes....enjoy the ride. 

Until next time
Stay strong and surf well 
Love