My first shop came to just over £50 and this was kindly paid for by the bank of Mum and Dad. This included basic food, household and toiletry stuff and was really just to make sure I could survive for the first week. I bought large bags of pasta, which only one is almost gone, spaghetti, rice, cheese, milk and so on. So by about the third day I really wanted some freezer food and meat which I hadn't bought when I was with my family at Morrison's. This caused a further £21 spend, which was so worth it.

I'm extremely lucky to have no food stealer's, rather sharers. We were repetitively warned to keep our food away from other people because it WILL get taken, so far, nothing's been eaten without permission, and it's lovely to be able to leave even things like chocolate spread, bread and pasta sitting in the kitchen and it have no chance of being eaten by someone other than myself.

Not even alcohol is taken, when we're all drinking it's more of a 'get on it' situation when we put drinks on the table and expect everyone to share, which they do. When we head down to the SU, we do rounds with certain people and it works out fine. All I can suggest is that if you buy a bottle of something, don't just keep it to yourself, because it's unlikely that someone will just steal the whole thing if you're drinking in a group together. As a student, drinking is a big thing for the majority, so there's nothing better than sitting in the kitchen - or common room if you're lucky enough to have one - and drink with the people that have become your friends in the space of one short week.

I'm turning on my sensible attitude now, and I shall begin my real budgeting. I already know I have a maximum £110 per week, and during freshers week I most definitely didn't abide by this rule. But fortunately for me, my work over the summer really paid off and I've so far only spent about £40 of my student loan plus the £160 that I had left from Sainsbury's. If you're going to uni next year, definitely get a job beforehand, it's worth knowing you're spending the money you worked for rather than spending your loan on booze and food.

I said in my previous post that it's hard to sum up my first week experience in just one word, because it isn't something some one can just tell you about. If you want to go, don't hesitate. I've started lectures now, and yes I was hungover on my second day, but I still took in some information and I've enjoyed it so far. The first American Literature seminar today was brilliant, and at the moment I'm more than happy with my course, early days I know, but I hope everyone else is enjoying uni life as much as I am!

MissIsGoode