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You never know, if I keep doing this it might become sort of tradition – yes, it’s the yearly review thingy! Again! So here’s what happened in 2007…

January
Once again, the year began at Joshua’s New Year Party (or SexFest 07, as I affectionately named it, for tongue in cheek reasons of course) with an exciting street pillow fight at midnight. A few days later, Cambridge offered me a place hurrah! January was also the month of my new(ish) phone, Uber Ninja badges, module exams and shouting ‘condoms!’ into the dark Kensal Rise night.

February
Possibly the most enduring memory for this month will be seeing my first (and quite possibly last) ventriloquist act on stage. Though that’s not all that I saw: Frost/Nixon, Hot Fuzz and Notes on a Scandal also featured. Joshua’s 18th birthday party featured the memorable case of Robert’s missing trousers, whilst at school Saoirse was baking Communist cakes, my calculator was dealing out death and we were all casting teachers as James Bond characters. Plus: mother came to Cofton!

March
Surrounded by socialists, I bravely defended fuzzy centrist politics at an SWP meeting. They were pussycats, however, compared to Joshua’s attack for closing Quote of the Day (sorry!) which I duly did anyway. Emily had a birthday picnic, and there were various stresses at school, both personal and work-related. I still came out smiling, but perhaps I spent too much time morphing Mr Kanj into Ross from Friends.

A scene from Xenophobia

April
History was made, as Andy Kings visited the Self dwelling to witness Holly and Hanan direct Egdar and Ms Hook in Xenophobia, a masterpiece of film set in my bedroom! (Surreal high point of my life?) Meanwhile, ‘Da Spittings ov DALEK RED’ briefly came into existence, and this blog turned three.

May
What a month: the last of the dreaded Physics Practical exams, going to Blackpool with Lucy on a holiday beautifully organised by Nic… and the Demon Headmaster I also went to see The News Quiz being recorded, as the frantic winds of exams were just about to start…

June
Friday 8th June. My last day at school. Celebrating the event with a flurry of photos and one very strange video, it wasn’t long before A2 exams started. In case that wasn’t enough, I turned 18 – with an exam on my birthday, and a beautiful shiny laptop of joy – and then it was all over. The English groups had Literary High Tea, and the country got a new Prime Minister after 10 years of Tony Blair. Everything was changing.

July
No school, and no exams! July was an odd month, but it’s not like I did nothing: I became Carolyn’s PA, worked for the UCL Summer School again and visited Chesham for the silliest of reasons. This was also the month of the final Harry Potter, The Simpsons Movie and The Complete Works Of William Shakespeare (Abridged).

Working hard on the Welsh beaches

August
Aw, our family holiday in Wales! I’m still not sure how I managed to get sunburnt, but I did. Once back, I distracted myself by revamping this very website (hello, orange!) before exam results came out on the 16th and I thankfully got what I needed for Cambridge. So, with that out of the way, I went to Brighton with Lucy where we fell in love with a ride, and later in the month was induced into the darkly competitive world of Trivial Pursuit. And exciting packages from university started to arrive! And we had picnics on the Heath! Life was good

September
To be honest, life was still very very good. I went with mum to Russia, visiting Moscow and St Petersburg in a week. Soon before, I’d seen Regina Spektor live in concert via Lucy’s birthday present, which was an amazing night. There was a Cambridge party for Freshers, and some even better goodbye parties: most of all in Camden, drinking mango beer with wonderful people. And then, at the very end of September, I left.

October
My first month at uni Filled with meeting new people, trying to get unpacked and – for the first time in months – work! I loved it, though, and was very busy but in a nicely directed way. I only left for one night, to attend Troy’s wedding, which was also lovely to be at!

Lucy and me in my room at Cambridge

November
And so term continued in a fast-paced blur: I went to see Lord Levy and Martin Bell speaking at the Cambridge Union, and also went along to debates on the Middle East and comprehensive education, the latter from which the image of Peter Hitchens has been permanently seared into my brain. Us Historians went out for birthday meals, threw juggling balls at each other and generally avoided the notorious 5th week blues until suddenly it was the end of term already!

December
Hurrah for short terms I returned home at the beginning of December, and threw myself into seeing people: Joshua was back from the jungle with exciting tales, and there was another night out in Camden; I stayed overnight at Rishal’s in Leicester, and also to the Wesley Waseley Sixth Form Christmas party… it was busy! There was also deep sadness at Kelly’s funeral, but with people that I’d also missed seeing, and I’d even missed seeing the school which I managed to sneak back into once or twice. Once again, I had a wonderful Christmas… and Joshua’s New Year’s party is only days away!

Wow, what a year bring it on, 2008!