Unsolicited Gap Year advice

Schools are breaking up for the summer already...it feels like the season has fully begun now. Summer always makes me nostalgic, so I've been thinking about summers past...which led me to think about by far the WORST summer of my life: Gap Year Summer. Aka the year I did absolutely nothing. So, I thought I could reflect on that with you guys, and offer some advice on what NOT to do on a gap year for anyone that's taking one !!!

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My first mistake was getting a full time job instead of a part time one. It meant that i spent so much time WORKING, and not going on all the cool gap year adventures that I wanted to do, which absolutely SUCKED. Also, the job was the worst. I hardly had time to see people, whenever I wasn't in work I would be so tired that I would just want to sleep...don't get me wrong, it was a great oppurtunity to build like, savings and stuff. But you can do that with a part time job too. So, my first piece of unsolicited advice: get a PART TIME job !!! NEVER GET A FULL TIME JOB !!! 

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The second thing I did on my gap year was volunteering locally, which was so much fun !! Usually, gap years typically look like posh twats going to thailand and bali, but I couldn't travel for various reasons...so I had to make do with my boring local community. Turns out, it isn't that boring after all. With all my friends away for uni, it got me out the house and talking to people outside work. It also looks really good on a cv !! Which is something that people want to build on a gap year apparently...I didn't really care about that, I just volunteered because I was bored. So go volunteer ANYWHERE !! Food kitchens, youth clubs, libraries....they're a dying art, they're ALWAYS looking for volunteers. Also, if you make some kinda mistake, what are they gonna do ?? Fire you, dock your pay ?? Also you'll make some friends maybe.

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One thing I didn't take advantage of was the amount of free time I had. I know I just said that having a full time job took up so much time, but once I got back from work, it was done. No homework or essays to stress about, it was all just done and dusted. Use that time wisely !! Try new hobbies, go on walks, just do SOMETHING. It doesn't have to be anything grand. Draw something, read a chapter of a book, do a workout or something....just don't act like a lazy bum like I did !! Deadass, I'd get home from work, shower, eat, and then sit in bed watching youtube...like a total loser. The only "productive" thing I did was read a few books. My favourite book I read in that time is definitely Babel by R.F Kuang, probably my favourite book EVER it's sooo good. Go read it. Do it on your gap year. I also watched a lot of films !! On almost every day off work, I was at the cinema. I even had a cinema card. Honestly, I might as well've just slept there. My favourite movie I watched at the cinema was probably The Boy and the Heron, which is also my favourite film lol. I'm a big ghibli fan. I also enjoyed A Real Pain, but I haven't watched it in a while so I don't remember much about it. I just remember really liking it...I watched a bunch of reruns, like pulp fiction and paprika. So, go support your local cinema. You might find your new favourite film.

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After working full time for a few months, I couldn't take it anymore and I QUIT MY JOB. With absolutely no back up plan. So I ended up spending the summer job hunting, sleeping, doomscrolling, watching anime....I even had to cancel my beloved cinema card, because i had no job to pay for it with. So, uh, don't do that. All my friends were away for Uni, I had no money to do anything, it was just me in my room, going for the occasional walk. I wasted so much time just doing nothing, in what should have been one of the best years of my life....so put your phone down, you only have a year. Honestly, I can't even say much about this era of my life....there's nothing TO say. Like, it's actually embarrassing. Lets move on.

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TRAVEL. Travel as much and as far as you can afford to. You're never gonna have this much free time again. Be spontanious. I only went on two city breaks during my gap year, which isn't as much as I planned...things happen, people bail, and I was NOT about to fly solo (but if that's your thing, go for it). I went to Amsterdam for two days with my friend which was SO MUCH FUN. Amsterdam is a great city, it's small and walkable and pretty cheap so it's great for broke, first time travellers. Then, I went to Copenhagen with my Aunt for two days. Copenhagen is a really beautiful city, but VERY expensive. My only regrets is that I wish I'd gone on actual trips rather than small city breaks, where we were rushing to fit everything into two days. But other than that, I didn't travel. Mainly because I had no one to go with and I didn't wanna go by myself...but honestly, if you can solo travel, do it. Find somewhere close to you to stay overnight first if you're nervous. And make sure to stay safe !! There are heaps of travel tips online, but I'm not a travel blogger, so I won't bore you with that.

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Final thoughts: gap years are daunting as hell, so if you're taking one, I'm proud of you !! It was the first time in my LIFE that was completely up to me. I was an adult, my parents couldn't tell me what to do, no teachers to hold my hand, friends had gone off to University...and I CLEARLY fumbled a lot. But, if you're thinking about doing one, DO IT !! Don't let my bad experience put you off, because even though it wasn't the best, it was valuable life experience, I made a few good memories, a few bad, learnt who my real friends were....which is something that shocked me. The one piece of gap year advice I saw online is that you will find out who you're real friends are, and I always thought, "nah, that'll never happen to me". But trust me, IT WILL.  Everyone you were friends with is away at University, making new friends and new memories, living whole new lives in whole new CITIES. It's fun to watch them flourish, but they might become distant...pay attention to those who don't forget about you, those are your real ones. You might find yourself feeling jealous, sidelined, wondering if you made the right choice....trust me, you did. And even if you didn't, who cares ? What's gonna happen ? Everyone's journey is different, because everyone is going to different destinations, so why would the roads there look the same ? You'll get where you need to be.

See you whenever, 

Cyberin