Tuesday, March 11, 2025

Lifestyle

Reflections on the perils of overthinking

here is a lot to be said for blind positivity. On a good day, I’m a manifester, a big believer in my ability to speak things into existence. During my English A-Level, I had complete confidence that the crystals hidden in my bra would provide enough luck to snag me an A*. Today, I put great faith in words, relying on the same ‘I can do it’ that gets Olympic athletes across the finish line, to help me through difficult situations.

The fourth year: Oxford after your year abroad

I’m now in my fourth year, and as such, must grapple with the reality of my Oxford days drawing to a close. Granted, this is something that every student must contend with, and I watched on as most of my friends bade a fond farewell to this city where our friendships began when they graduated last summer. Yet there is something about the fourth year that I’m certain makes the final year even more strange: a sense of something already lost, of living in a moment that has already passed.

An evening at Pierre Victoire: French bistro dining at its best

Pierre Victoire has been here on Little Clarendon Street for decades – one of...

Being Cupid isn’t easy: What I learned from a term of running Cherpse

Now, having exhausted myself with these relentless pursuits, the job has been passed on to a new bright-eyed Cupid, and in my retirement I’ve become fondly reflective, and decided to curate my insights into this list: 

Prêt for Prêt

"Aside from being a place to caffeinate, Prêt has become a camouflaged Cupid, an uncharted Tinder."

Flavours of Europe

"There are a series of faux pas which I have witnessed (and on occasion committed) at student dinner parties, and in this short piece I hope to provide inspiration."

An overflowing pot: how to avoid boiling over at uni

"There are only 24 hours in the day and unfortunately, I need to sleep for eight of them."

Twelve going on Twenty

"I’m excited to be twenty –it feels whole, a bit round, and like maybe I’m a bit of a grown up. Only a bit though."

The academia video game: the gap year

"I don’t think I would be where I am without my accidental gap year.

Flavours of Europe: making time for good food

"The question is, how can we as talented but time-poor students produce quick meals which satisfy not only our stomachs, but also our souls?"

A folly in vain

"The day proceeded as a series of endless lines parading back and forth, adorned in seemingly endless variations of every possible garment, in front of the same blank faces."

New term, new you— whatcha packing?

"Think of the people in your life and I bet you think of them in that one certain, purely them outfit."

‘Personal imprint’: an interview with the founder of Tree Artisan Café

"There is more love, more passion. With chains, whoever you are, you are a number. It is completely different to when you have a focus on the people".

Oxford in the summer

"Oxford in the summer is truly a unique experience because there are the same dreaming spires without the dreamers."

Conundrums of an ungenerous oversharer

"It’s telling that we call them ‘stories’. The word ‘story’ says it all. Because it’s true, it is a story. No one really knows why you’re telling it, and neither do you, but you tell it anyway."

Tips for being sustainable when travelling

"Travelling can leave huge footprints on the environment, so if we visit a destination abroad, we should do our bit to reduce this impact"

I finished my degree! Now what?

"Honestly, I think I just need a break from making decisions for a while."

Downpours, ‘dank beats’ and Dionysus: reviewing the Christ Church Ball

"Sadly due to the weather, the belle époque extravagance morphed into a muddy wallow in the meadow"

I Am What I Eat

One aspect of Chinese culture that I will always love and be proud of is our food

Behind the scenes of Cherpse

Cupid here, your one and only source into the scandalous lives of Oxford’s sleep-deprived and somewhat crazed students… And who am I? That’s one...

“I have a boyfriend”: A lie as old as time

I have a boyfriend. Why do we say it? Because of the time-honoured strange conviction that the female 'no' actually, to all intents and purposes,...

Vessel: In conversation with Grace Olusola

TW: fatphobia, eating disorders, self-harm. Vessel, the new theatrical anthology from Dawn Productions, examines our relationship with the body and food through episodic fragments....

New restaurant cooks up Keralan cuisine in Cowley

What the team at Tribe have managed to create in the space of three months is unique in absolutely every sense.  Amongst the countless...

On breakups: Dumping exes and expectations

In a perverse way, I think I was excited for my first break up. I grew up on a cultural diet of Elle Woods...

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