Yesterday I met fourthree Pavilion Parade candidates in the student union election. I feel excited/boosted by this. I don’t remember the last time I saw candidates from the humanities programme in Pavilion Parade standing for a sabbatical post (Parker from HOAD stood a few years ago).

My campaign training today was interesting, mostly about how to campaign on social media – which I’m not a fan of! I still think University of Brighton needs to utilise folio or some other platform so there is a space just for students/staff. I often say how much I miss the old community.brighton.ac.uk site (see snapshots at web.archive.org/web/*/community.brighton.ac.uk) so I have been trying to build something similar in PowerApps. I asked Rob to look at my draft app because I know nothing about how to make it user-friendly, and I’m applying to Brighton Ideas for funding (the funding is just to pay for someone to make it technically because at the moment I’ve made it look like a 2000 Geocities site!!!).

I also had an opportunity to feedback to the student union staff about support for candidates, and wider comments. I mentioned everything I mentioned in 2017. And it looks like some focus groups will be happening in April (on 20th / 21st / 22nd) so I’m optimistic.

I got my grades for my first module today (admittedly it took over a week to work up the nerve to open them). I got my first distinction in university! The last time I had a distinction was in GBMet in 2014 on my access course. My brain can’t quite process it right now.

I never expected anything other than a pass in university. I read the grading descriptors thrice because I thought that maybe they didn’t apply to my course.

To be honest, I’m struggling with my second module and I think I’ll probably scrape a pass. However, it feels great knowing that I am capable of more.

I’ve got some campaigning training and a pre-election briefing this week. I’ll probably make my blog private for a fortnight so nobody can find my old posts about poor turnout, frustration about vacant volunteer positions, and the ol’ Moulsecoomb bias. I might do a review of the stats later this month but I don’t think it’s appropriate at the moment because it sounds negative.

My campaign is wholly based on raising awareness that voter turnout is low.

After mentioning that I haven’t won a book voucher this year, I only went and got for one being a survey superhero.

So I bought my niece That’s Not My Fairy. I promised myself I wouldn’t go down the pink cutesy route when she was born, and I looked for a dozen more books including That’s Not My Owl and That’s Not My Penguin but I couldn’t find any at an affordable price. Plus I had been looking for a Chloe from Madeline doll which I have not been able to track down at all. I thought the fairy was a decent compromise.

Today was going to be spent writing up a document for a pledge my workplace are signing up to, but yesterday evening I got the final bit of data I have been requesting since 1 November from a partner university. So I have an unexpected data day ahead… therefore, my plans are out the window.

Ergo, full volume white noise and a morning of spreadsheets.

a screenshot of asoftmurmur.com with white noise at 100%

When it’s 100% white noise time you know I mean business.

* I would like to emphasise that I enjoy data days – they are my favourite sort of day. I know, I’m weird like that.