I must admit, I am an organized creature in the way that I make a list before leaving for any trip. Things to do before leaving and things I have to remember to bring. My list this year is thus:

-          Christmas presents: Need to be small! I only have 25kg available to me, and let’s face it; I have a lot of clothes! This probably will mean that my brothers will get money in an envelope with a lovely card from their big sis saying: “Merry Christmas little brother, wish for something smaller next year otherwise I’ll keep giving you money you can only use when visiting me in England. Love, sis!”

-          Suitcases: Oh yes! You don’t think I could go home with just the one did you? Oh please! I need at least two. Firstly because I have to have space for presents. Secondly because let’s face it, I’m not leaving ANY valuables in my flat, you crazy?! Thirdly, I need my clothes and shoes! Not only for when I go home, but I am of course bringing clothes I left at home back with me when I come to England. I know some of you might think, does she really need more clothes, the answer to that is YES!

-          Passport, wallet! I don’t really need to explain why I need this….

Now, how do I get there? That’s somewhat of a hassle. I am luckier than some, in the sense that I don’t have too far to travel. I leave by plane from England. To get there, I will take the bus from Oxford to Stansted. Then after waiting around the airport for an hour or two I get on the plane which takes approximately 2 hours. On the plane, I will probably try and get some sleep since I had to get up at 04.00 in the morning, but fail horribly because the person next to me is pushing my hand off the armrest, or the baby behind me starts screaming, again! Or maybe it’s the smelly guy in front of me opening his fish sandwich just to stink up the place a bit more! The baby I could have handled, but people with bad hygiene, Yuk! Or people using too much cologne or perfume when going on an airplane for that matter! Really?!? Now that just pisses me off! Think about your surroundings twat! We’ll be in this box for 2 hours. You might think it smells nice, the rest of us on the other hand, are holding our nose so that we don’t vomit from the stench or get suffocated.

Anyhow, after 2 hours in a little box with hundreds of other people, I’m finally in Norway. Then, if I’m lucky, some nice person will pick me up, and drive me the 1 hour journey home. Saving me from having to wait for a bus, or take the train, or struggle any longer with my stubborn suitcases who never seem to communicate with each other which suitcase goes on which side as I drag them along behind me. Finally I’m home, getting myself fed regularly and maybe raid the fridge as I eventually head back to student life, with its budget food shopping and endless assignments, and late nights to finish that assignment or cram for an exam, while desperately clutching Red Bull number three in the struggle against my eyelids.

So enjoy your Christmas holiday, eat all you can muster and be happy that the washing machine will wash your clothes without asking for £1.80 in return!

Part of me wants to wrap this article up in a pretty package and make Christmas seem much more beautiful than it is, and part of me keeps on thinking that there might be something to this celebration after all. A perfect Christmas exists about as much as Santa Clause, but it’s the fact that you believe in it which is the magic.
The previous year’s celebrations were like a dress rehearsal for this year. And yet- you do pick the glass ball up to give it a little shake so the glitter becomes a blizzard around the little odd snowman. And you do actually feel rather certain that this year the Yorkshire puddings will be puffy. And, as a matter of fact, I’m rather looking forward to eating stuffing and wearing red stockings. So close your eyes, click your heels together and say ‘I do believe in Christmas, I do believe in Christmas, I do believe in Christmas…!’

It may seem like Halloween was only yesterday, but the bombardment of jingling bells, fake snow and choruses of children can mean only one thing; Christmas is coming. With the pressure of pre-holiday exams and dwindling funds, students are on the look-out for a simple, quick way to get everything ticked off the shopping list at minimal cost and minimal effort.

Oxford city centre has pretty much every type of shop imaginable; from mainstream department stores to quirky boutiques, you can find most things you need without having to travel too far. Poundland is a great place to find cheap joke gifts for Secret Santa, while the covered market is worth a visit if you’re looking for something unique. Without the expense of travelling into London, Oxford allows you to stock up on presents relatively quickly and easily.

However, shopping in city centre stores during the festive season means that you are unlikely to find a bargain. On a tight budget, it’s best to shop around and this isn’t always possible in a big city with tourists to attract. Online shopping is a great alternative with no bags to drag around, and no closing times to worry about. For a student with deadlines and a need for convenience, I find the prospect of hassle-free one-click shopping attractive. When living in halls, having packages delivered can be problematic- especially if you have a less than friendly relationship with your flatmates. So, to avoid any complicated exchanges over forgotten parcels or ignored doorbells, it is best to keep online purchases small and letterbox-friendly.

We are lucky enough to live very close to one of the biggest outlet shopping villages in the UK. Bicester Village is a half-hour train ride away from Oxford station, and costs less than £2 for a return with a railcard (a student necessity). With a plethora of designer boutiques, it makes for a great day out with friends and a brilliant shopping experience.

Bicester Village is always packed, especially during the festive season, so it is best to avoid Saturdays if possible. In my experience, the downsides to a day in Bicester come in the form of three things. Firstly, the queues for the bigger boutiques are a nightmare (especially UGG and Jack Wills) and the crowds inside are no better. Second, the prices may not be as low as you would expect. Thirdly, tourists like to stare and wander aimlessly around which may become a problem if, like me, you are a shopper on a mission.

Whether it is your first or your fifth holiday season at Brookes, shopping for gifts never gets any easier. It’s best just to bite the bullet and dedicate a day to getting it all done, so that you can get back to studying (or watching Come Dine With Me re-runs). Saving money is easy if you have the time for home-made gifts (a new Mix CD for mum, a favourite photo in a customised frame for a friend), but the magical experience of shopping at Christmas in Oxford is something not to be missed.

in my house, the presents are put out before we go to bed- obviously to heighten the temptation of opening the gifts and ensure that the children are going to have minimal sleep due to ridiculous amounts of excitement.

The tree is laden with tinsel, baubles and the lights all lay, twinkling away.

So, you go to bed, your heart filled with hope. You wake up; do stockings yada yada yada THEN it comes the moment of truth, main present time. No one cares about all the little shit things you get like the Nivea sets from your Great Great Aunt Mabel, you’ve got your eyes set on the big boys lets not sugar coat the truth.

In the Christmas of 2003, I was just 13-I’m a December baby. All I wanted was a mobile phone. I had bargained and bartered with my parents, showed them the different tariffs that I could be put on. Did all the research for it so they could easily pick one and then surprise me on the big day with a beautiful mobile phone, so I could interact with my 13 year old friends.

Did I receive a mobile phone shaped box? Yes. Was it from my parents? Yes. Would they have bought me my main present that could quite possibly be a mobile phone? Yes. Would a hopeful teen automatically assume it’s the present they have prayed, longed and wished for? Yes. Was it a mobile phone? No. No it was not. It was a fucking set of walky talkies. Did I give a shit that it had up to a 30ft range? Oh, no I surprisingly did not. Did I have to pretend that I had always wanted to pretend to be an Army soldier with my camouflage walky talkies? Yes, I did.

The reasoning behind this shit present was, “Ellie (the best friend) could have one too and it would be cheaper for you both to communicate” Did I care about the expense of a phone? I did not. It is safe to say that I did not use those walky talkies. They did however come in very useful at Leeds festival when I was thankful for the 30ft range, it was cheaper than a mobile phone and 19 year old Ellie and Anna did appreciate them then.

By Anna Vassilissin

For a newbie to letting agents, there are a few things you need to know before you start hunting for your perfect house:

1. Letting agencies’ priority is MONEY. Full Stop. They are not concerned with urging you to really think about your different options. Make sure you ask questions about the property and the process as they are unlikely to spend the time explaining it to you unless you ask. Do not nod your head aimlessly when the letting agent is blathering on about things you do not understand.
2. Agency fees vary between letting agencies. The agency fee is an upfront charge usually from £100-250 per person, to process the contracts and sort out all the paperwork. Yes, it is essentially one massive rip off but you have to pay it before you can sign any paperwork, so make sure you save up for it or have an extensive overdraft, lest it cause you to lose the house you really want.
3. Alongside first months’ rent, security deposits are also paid before moving into the property. The security deposit is what you must pay to compensate the landlord if you decide to set off fireworks in the centre of your living room or take a crowbar to the walls; but you will get this back when you’re lease has ended – KEY POINT: you must ask the landlord for the deposit back as he/she has no obligation to give it to you unless you ask for it.
4. Do not sign anything until you have looked around other properties or researched the areas. Take into account that if you live far away from your relevant campus, you will have to invest in a bus pass, if you can speak to the current people in the house you’re interested in renting – ask questions about the landlord and the average price of bills they pay each month.
5. READ THE TENANCY AGREEMENT. Yes, it is incredibly dull and yes you would prefer to watch a re-run of Come Dine With Me, but you need know what you are agreeing to and question any clauses that you do not feel are fair or necessary. If you are struggling to understand the legal gobble-de-gook, then venture down to the Citizens Advice Bureau on St Aldates, who are happy to offer any advice.

Choosing a house can be an enjoyable experience, just make sure you know the do’s and don’ts before you set about searching for the perfect property!

Oxford Light Night

I’m sure most of you went to watch the lights get switched on in town on December 2^nd, spent all your money on hot mulled Cider at the Christmas market and listened to the Christmas Choir at the Ashmolean.

No? Well, you can still visit the Christmas market, by Oxford Castle, until December 18^th.
http://www.oxfordchristmasmarket.co.uk/

The Xmas Shopping Trip

Did you leave your Christmas shopping to the last minute? No worries the Road Trip society is taking care of that. They are organising 2 trips on December 14^th and 17^th to one of the biggest shopping malls in UK – the Centre in Milton Keynes http://www.thecentremk.com/

Cost will be £5 for members £6 for non members. Save up your money and hop on the bus to experience the whole uproar of Christmas shopping.

More information about the events can be found on http://www.facebook.com/obsuroadtrip.

Information borrowed from the Road Trip Society.

What does LGBT stand for?

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Trans

So, who is your society for? Why does it exist?

We exist to facilitate a further sense of community for LGBT students at Oxford Brookes. We try to provide a safe space for them to interact and find friends with common interests, and we do our best to make sure they have a comfortable, fun time while studying at Oxford Brookes.

What is the structure of your society?

Our committee is quite small – it’s just me (the president), Jamie Mills our Vice President, Elisa Oppheim our Event Coordinator, and Shaun Northover our Treasurer. We’re also on the look out for an LGBT representative for the SU.

When was your society established?

Oh, a long time ago. Years. We actually started the Student Pride movement, and Oxford was host to the first Student Pride. When it didn’t go exactly as planned, the event was moved to Brighton, and there it has stayed ever since.

How many members do you have?

That depends, actually. We have about 130 people on our mailing list, but only maybe between 10 and 20 people that regularly come out to our events. We’re always looking for more members – after all, more members means we have a more diversified and interesting society.

What are your usual weekly events?

Well, every week we have a drinks night. We meet in a different pub each week throughout town and just hang out and drink really. Afterwards we may or may not stop by the local gay club night. Then we generally have at least one other event a week — like, this week we’re going ice skating, or we might have a movie night. And we’ve got even more plans for next semester.

Do you have any special events?

Yes. At least once a month we try to put on a combined event with Oxford University’s LGBT society. In addition to that, we’re working on a few nights out in London next semester, and obviously we’ll have even more special events in February for Gay History Month.

How involved are regular members in the organisation of events?

We may ask them how they feel about a particular place we meet at, or if they seem to really like doing something we’ll make sure to do it again. That’s how the monthly ice skating came about.

Do you take in new members throughout the year?

Yes, of course. Like I said before, the more the merrier. We always welcome new society members. It’s always great to meet new people and create an expanded and diversified network of friends.

How would you describe your community feeling?

Playful. We’re a fun-loving bunch, that’s for sure.

What is your typical member like?

See, this is one of my favorite things about being gay and being president of a society like this, because no two of our members are really alike. The only thing we all have in common is being gay, which means we’ve got gaymers, queens, political gays, alterna-gays, low-key gays and high-maintenance gays all hanging out together. One or two of our members are even, (gasp!) straight or heteroflexible.

Are you planning to change or improve your society in any way during the year?

Of course we are. We on the committee are constantly seeking to better our events and make our society the best it can possibly be. We’re mixing things up for next semester and having pizza nights, nights out to London, even a division of the sexes (a girl talk/guy talk) night. We’re looking at volunteering events, a charity ball, and an end-of-the-year sports day with Oxford Uni. We’re also planning to (hopefully) have a website up and running by the next semester, in addition to our awesome Facebook page.

What is the most common misconception people have about your society?

If you ask a straight person I’m sure you’d get a different answer, but I think most gay people think this is just a pulling society or get nervous because gays are stereotypically full of drama and judgmental queens. We’re not. We’ve got a great bunch of people in the society this year, full of helpful, friendly people.

Can a person participate in several of your events before deciding to join?

Absolutely. I don’t see why not. We have a Facebook page and a mailing list, which is the surest way to find out about events.

Is there are a membership fee?

Yes, if you want to buy a membership you absolutely can. It’s £5 to join, and you get a lovely membership card (designed by me and my awesome graphic designer). The card will get you discounted drinks on Friday nights at The Jolly Farmers, a gay pub in Oxford, and at the Plush Lounge, the gay club in Oxford. You also pay only £3 pounds for the door price at the Plush Lounge all night Friday & Saturday nights (which is half-off from 11pm).

What makes you stand out among other societies?

Haha! Where do I start? We’re gay. That’s a big one. No, but seriously. We’re a very active society with events at least twice a week. We’re involved in the Oxford gay scene. We’ve got one of the best Facebook pages I’ve seen (if I do say so myself), next to the SU’s at least. And we’ve got a rockin’ committee this year to bring the best we can to the society. Oh, and I think our sense of humour doesn’t hurt things either. We’re not afraid to poke fun at ourselves.

Any Christmas plans?

A few. We’re going to have a Christmas dinner hopefully, at the Bell & Compass in town. We’ll have a special Christmas movie night, and we’re hoping to either do a Christmas mini-pub crawl of the gays pubs, or an end of the semester Christmas party social with Oxford Uni’s LGBT society. Or both!

Anything else you want to tell about your society?

Um. Not really, I think everything has been covered in here. Please check us out on Facebook at www.facebook.com/brookeslgbtsoc or email us at obsu.lgbt.soc@brookes.ac.uk

Enormous thanks to Zack and all Brookes LGBT Society! Keep spreading the merry feeling all around you.

As Zack mentioned many times do check their Facebook page (checked. it really does look amazing) and bother him with many lovely emails.

First of all, they are extremely, well, creative. Putting their minds together to sort out the issues of the worlds where only words ‘Barack’ and ‘Obama’ exist, discussing the future career prospects of  ‘Goldfish Girl’ and putting themselves in the shoes of a brick wall or a coffee mug.

Secondly, they dutifully train their imagination. In November society held 4 workshops on different topics: Creating Worlds, Perspectives, Pictures and Superheroes. They are not stopping even in December. When the deadlines are strangling all ordinary students, Creative Writing Society’s members fight everyday horror with some easygoing poetry and monster writing sessions.

Furthermore, everyone is tirelessly active. Ideas for the workshops are inventions off all society members. Feedback from regular members is collected and discussed in the Idea Forging headquarters aka committee.  There, previous years successes, writing exercises discovered online and the feedback are analysed to find the revelation of new workshops. Moreover, they involve guest speakers ranging from Brookes Creative Writing MAs to real-life Oxford based writers to make their meetings even more exciting.

Lastly, they are published authors in print (no less!). Last spring the Creative Writing Society published their first anthology called ‘The Angle’.

This leads to the most exciting part. They are preparing for a new publication and invite ALL Brookes students to join.  This year’s theme ‘Time’ welcomes short stories, poetry and whole variety of genres you can possibly create. Entries should be with a maximum word count of 2,000 words (several pieces can be submitted as long as the overall word count is not exceeded). Hurry up and submit your work by 22^nd December.

Still undecided? Let me tell you this – in this Dark Age for print a chance to publish your work on paper comes by veeeery rarely (unless it’s your coursework and you are paying for it yourself). So don’t stand around and seize the opportunity!

All information can be discovered at http://www.facebook.com/groups/106011072762852/or obsu.creativewriting@brookes.ac.uk.

Huge thanks to Janina and Alex for all the help!

I’d better congratulate you all on getting into this fine university, and of course us returning students
on not failing life, despite the lack of work you probably did last year…

I’m Ro, a second year Publishing media student, and the new Editor of this project. I’m a proper
northerner, and a little opinionated to say the least, but hey, at least I’m honest. It’s not in my
nature to want to come across offensive, but I’ll rarely apologise for something I’ve said. In all
honesty, I still feel like an Oxford newbie, I still try and board the wrong bus and never have a clue
where I’m actually headed.

The entire team here at The Afternoon View are striving to make this an even more successful
student magazine than previous years, so fingers crossed you guys like what we’ve done here.
Oxford is a bloody brilliant place to be as a student, with a little something for everyone, and that is
exactly what we are aiming for.

Just a quick note, here at The Afternoon View we are always looking for new talent, no matter what
you’re studying, so if you fancy writing for us, consider yourself a master marketer, or simply just
want to lend a hand, feel free to drop us an email at

viewfromtheafternoonmagazine@googlemail.com

Lots of love

Ro xxxx

If you answered no to this, my reply would be: really?? You have never, not even once been stressed about something or started sweating a bit more than normal on some occasion after getting here?
If still no, I find that hard to believe, stop lying to yourself (and stop arguing with me! Dude, I can’t hear you! You’re having an argument with an article in your head, not good). Of course, you might truly not have gotten there yet, lucky you! But you will, so brace yourself and read on.

I have gone amongst my fellow students, and asked some of you to share your experience on what might be the highlights of your confusion starting University. Here are some of the answers I got from a couple of willing test subjects:

Lina(22), Sarah(20) and Sophie(19) on the topic of confusion at our University:

Sophie: I think what confused me the most getting here was PiP. How to change modules or delete them is still baffling. It all seems so unorganized!

Lina: Everyone kept referring to PiP, what is Pip?! How do I get in and once in, how do I change modules?

Sarah: I agree about PiP being confusing, but what confused me most is how much and what to read. There are so many handbooks, it’s hard to keep track! I struggled with knowing what we have to read and what we should read.

Marie (Japan), Silje (Norway) tell me how it is like for an international student to get here, and what cultural differences made life in Oxford confusing at the beginning:

Marie: What confused me most getting here were the buses. Where to get on, and which door to enter through. In Japan we enter the bus at the back and leave at the front, I wasn’t sure what to do at first when I got here.

Silje: When I got here I couldn’t understand all the English slang, being used to American I had no clue what some of the British words meant. I also had some difficulties with understanding lecturers because they speak so fast, it was hard to keep up with them at times.

These are just some stories, but you can be sure almost everyone has one. So no matter where you’re from on this planet, we all struggle with something at some point. Today it could be incomprehensible software, tomorrow you could be panicking about exams, or a hand-in which was due yesterday but you “forgot” or rather, you drank all night and slept all morning, and now you have no better reason to give than you forgot because “my dog ate it” just seems so cliché.

So breathe out and remember it will work out if you want it to.

“Confusion is a word we have invented for an order which is not yet understood.” – Henry Miller.

And with that I’ll leave you.
Until next time!