Well, I've been 22 for half a year now and things are only becoming less and less like a Taylor Swift song. You may remember a response I wrote to Taylor Swift's 22, which you can read here, but I thought I'd go a little further now I'm older and wiser and reflect upon some of the things that she failed to mention about being 22.

Here's a snap of my 22nd birthday cake made by my lovely sister!

People having and talking about babies

Let's kick this off with the big one. Since I've turned 22 there's been no end of people having babies. You'll begin to see your old party acquaintances announcing their pregnancies on Facebook and others popping them out without a grand announcement that leaves you gawking at your screen. Then let's not forget to mention that the majority of those babies also have a bigger modelling portfolio than Kate Moss herself, exclusive to Facebook and Instagram of course. If it's not other people's babies, I'm sure by now at least one family member or co-worker has dropped your fertility in conversation, and if they haven't, I'm sure it's on the horizon. 

The reality of renting

Call it naive, but renting at university, in most cases, gave a real sense of security. Bills included? Tick. Small deposit? Tick. No Council Tax? Tick. I know these aren't necessarily the experience of student housing that everyone will have, but now almost all of the above are much more likely to be a thing of the past. Recent places I've viewed have requested £300 just to draw up a contract. Surely it's just a copy and paste job with a few name changes?! 

The expense of furniture

This also comes under the reality of renting, but of course buying too. Even Ikea isn't as cheap as I imagined. Yes, it's still a place for bargains, but how are you supposed to ever afford to fill a house? It's all well and good saving for a deposit, but again naivety really held on in there and I kind of neglected to think about furniture expenses. Furnished flats are the way forward for me for the time being, but even that comes with difficulties when the furniture is hideous. Just know, if it's ugly, I didn't pick it. 

The empty void of a month named September

In my opinion, September is the hardest month for graduates. In the past, come September, you'd be raring to move back in with all your friends, you'd be drinking more than you thought possible and have a generally swell time. Now, every month rolls into the next and it's hard to remember what freedom really feels like. Fresh faced 18 year olds now descend upon the halls you once resided, drinking at your favourite spots in the city or town, writing the essays you once wanted to bawl over, but now you would almost take pleasure in doing just to be back at university for one more night.

How many years have to pass before it officially becomes weird for you to go back to uni each September just for freshers? I'm going with a limit of 10 years maybe. Or at least until people actually start to question my age. With this baby face, I've probably got until I'm 35. 

The lack of nights out

At university there was an abundance of opportunities to drink. Passed exams? Let's celebrate. Failed exams? Commiseration drinks! Birthday? Party! No birthday? Drink! It was, for the most part, fun and games, except during the dreaded exam period of course. You'll start to find that a lot of people in this adult word tend to drink as a sweet release from the grips of the working world.

I make it sound so bad. It's really not...that bad anyway. 

The week long hangover

Remember those hangovers at university? They were dire and hard to conquer without a day of Netflix, sleep and carbs. But by the time dinner came around it was normally far behind you and you'd be raring to go for another night out. Look at us now, aye? One night out and you're having to pull yourself through with triple the amount of caffeine you usually consume and as minimal social interaction as you can get away with for the entire week. Then there's your sleeping pattern, well that won't recover for a good few weeks.

You also may have heard the sentence, 'I don't want to waste my weekend with a night out' slip through your lips, or the thought may have at least popped into your brain. If you haven't said it, it's likely that one of your friends has reached this end of the road frame of mind. 

The one thing to remember is that you're still in the better half of your 20s! And, life is also still good if, like me, you're still getting mistaken for an 18 year. I'll fit right in at freshers'.

Another positive: You're probably much more well off than you were when you drank thrice-weekly and survived on a diet of baked beans and noodles.

MissIsGoode