Sunday, March 9, 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: 

To all the pubs we’ve loved before: pitch(er) perfect

The fifth week blues are hitting so we are combatting them with blue lagoons! Spoonspitchers are a student staple for a reason, and week...

To all the pubs we’ve loved before: The House

For the classier among us, sometimes pubs and pints aren’t always what you’re looking for. This week, we decided to escape witness protection (it’s...

When wine goes bad

I could pretend I thought this through, or at least googled in advance

Uncorny traditionalism at Il Corno

Il Corno stands out from the average sit-in Covered Market restaurant. Its crimson walls contrast from the beiges and blues of the surrounding stalls...

Kitchen Sink Drama

The first hurdle is whether used utensils even reach the kitchen, let alone the sink, and the appropriate time for them to do so.

In praise of breakfast grandeur

Breakfast is a neglected meal. Your average cookbook doesn’t even go there, and most food influencers will only occasionally create complex cooked numbers ‘to...

A ‘Nectarine’-ly sweet end to the term!

"To be frank, this Hilary, whilst sweet at certain corners, has left me feeling a little emotionally bruised and in some aspects, a bit rotten."

From the High Table: formal dinners at Oxford

I vividly remember spending my first ever evening in Oxford at the Freshers’ Formal Dinner. Surrounded by strangers and the portraits of those who...

Oxfess #999: Help! My Best Friend is Addicted to Oxfess 

Oxfess: the social media platform that broadcasts the woes and troubles of the University’s most prolific oversharers. Reuben meadows discusses the all-consuming world of Oxfess.

A guide for the impromptu undergraduate tour guide

How do you even begin to show a relative or friend around Oxford? In Michaelmas, a friend studying in London came to visit. She...

The patience of ordinary things

By the time this column reaches print, the term will be coming to a close. And what better time to consider the term retrospectively, than at the approach of its ending?

A New Yorker Reviews Oxford Shake Shack

Shake Shack is more than a fast food restaurant to me. I’d go there on half days with friends or eat and talk for...

Sunny Side Up!

This week saw me, along with all the other hordes of students in second year, cross the halfway mark of my degree. Maybe it’s...

The Patience of Ordinary Things: in defence of doing nothing

It has been a week. Read that last word in italics, if you will - I am unsure if the Cherwell’s print formatting will...

Dating Apps: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

They say you leave Oxford with one of three things: a first, a Blue, or a spouse. I can’t do sports, and I’m more...

Beating the Blues – is it possible to overcome the 5th week blues?

The 5th week blues are an infamous and universal part of the Oxford experience. They are as renowned as crewdates, formals, and bops -...

Get your flatmate to cook on Valentine’s Day

For Valentine’s Day last year, I lay on the floor of my room and ate self-bought, discount chocolate. I intend to do the same...

The Rooms Before Me

"How can we make a space our own, for the brief interim where it is indeed our own, when we know that it carries so much history of so many people before us, within it?"

Theo’s Café

The Cafés warm space differs greatly from the takeaway-focused cafés and food trucks of Broad Street, though I’m sure Theo’s will make itself at home soon enough.

Halfway Hall, *sighs with relief*

I didn’t always dream of studying at Oxford. My decision to apply was made in a split second, panicked, mere days before the Oxbridge...

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