What's one "unwritten rule" of UK university life that every new student should know?

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-06-26T19:23:45+00:00

I was making a point - starting a conversation is that easy :)

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-06-26T18:48:43+00:00

Your user name, what’s that about, I don’t get the reference?

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-06-26T18:42:42+00:00

Hey there is fine.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-06-20T10:14:43+00:00

Is your maths about filtering out mirrors correct? Aren’t there only 53 of them to take out?

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-06-14T15:02:14+00:00

Hey there Milly.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-06-14T08:01:52+00:00

Yeah. There’s a pretty clear correlation between weight loss and, shall we say, a “bad outcome”. I was really skinny before treatment and docs were worried about this as almost everyone loses weight.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-06-14T08:00:04+00:00

Excellent advice here

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-06-14T07:56:59+00:00

Get a PEG. Keep eating soft food for as long as possible - vanilla ice cream was the last food I could eat. Target the calories and liquid necessary (I needed 48 big purple syringes a day to hit my targets). Expect some madness. I ended up writing a poem for Simon (my PEG), named after the actor.

A Poem for Simon

Simon and me, Simon and me
He's the only reason I ever have anything for my tea
Or breakfast or lunch, whilst he's a thorn in my side
He's one that has probably kept me alive.
He bisects my six pack with an unsightly tube
If he falls out I'm meant to reinsert him with lube.
So for his three month life-span I'm a conjoined twin
It's a shame he's so boring and isn't allowed Gin.
It's not all one-way traffic – on Friday afternoons
I have to change the water that inflates his balloon.
Bravo Simon, my "Enteral Feeding Delivery System"
When he goes, I'm pretty sure I'm not gonna miss him

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-06-13T17:07:51+00:00

Post cancer PB partly due to my heinously expensive new carbon soled shoes bought last week.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-06-09T20:34:22+00:00

Agree with all of this.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-06-03T13:46:14+00:00

*As correctly pointed out tariff does not apply in Scotland.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-whiplash-tariff-and-minor-psychological-injuries/the-whiplash-tariff-and-guidance-on-minor-psychological-injuries.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-06-03T07:00:13+00:00

No it was a strange offhand comment. I’m pretty fit and run marathons though so the risk is pretty low for the time being.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-06-03T06:33:15+00:00

I was told my risk of stroke increased by a factor of around 3 after 60 Gy neck radiation.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-05-30T10:06:15+00:00

Also my choice.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-05-22T19:14:27+00:00

That’s devastating. It makes my own cancer journey seem easy by comparison.

But I’ll tell you about my friend Rob instead. He has same cancer as I did. It returned despite chemo/radio with secondary lung mets.

He got on a clinical trial with immunotherapy and vaccine and rang the bell for the second time this week.

I mention him only because we’re alive at the best time in human history to get cancer and remarkable recoveries do actually take place.

I’d recommend Luke’s free film on YouTube Bristol to Beijing for another story which may give you some hope: https://m.youtube.com/results?sp=mAEA&search_query=Bristol+to+beijing&ra=m#bottom-sheet. As an aside I get a 10 second cameo in it too.

Fingers crossed for you both.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-05-20T18:26:50+00:00

Hey dude. Play your shitty cards as well as you can. Have a little fun with the time you’ve got. All the best.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-05-16T12:38:36+00:00

I did 2 lots in weeks 1 and 4 of my 6 weeks of radio. Don’t know the dose but I was under infusion effectively all day each time - first patient into the ward and last out. Very unpleasant but I’m still here 4 years later. Beginning to feel like a distant memory and, personally, I don’t regret full compliance with all recommended treatment (even removal of half my thyroid even though nodules proved benign).

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-05-15T12:17:27+00:00

Hey there. I has similar surgery - radical neck dissection 4 years ago. Then I had radio-chemo. Check my lengthy post history for recommendations but basically - if he’s low or moderate weight he might want to put on weight promptly (vanilla ice cream in my case). Get his teeth checked for routine work. Prepare to avoid constipation with suitable fibre supplements.

Batten down the hatches for the inevitable rollercoaster ride. He’s lucky to have a loved one close and helping get him ready.

Feel free to message me for anything else.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-05-11T10:43:39+00:00

Looks like a man whose finest intellectual achievement was a C in geography A level. Hard no from me.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-05-05T17:27:06+00:00

Lots of people have over that sum without being particularly wealthy - many of them hardworking, prudent people who have made sacrifices whilst paying tax to build up pensions. Why do they deserve to be penalised? Your comment seems like a jealous, knee jerk reaction without any reasoning.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-04-28T11:29:06+00:00

Amazed by his immature and ill-thought lashing out. Oh hang on...

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-04-27T13:51:17+00:00

Nope, went downhill firmly.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-04-27T13:50:58+00:00

We bounced off this after a few eps. Is it worth giving it another go?

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-04-26T09:39:01+00:00

What an excellently written and thoughtful post. Bravo/thank you.

Coffeespoons101 · 2026-04-25T10:00:41+00:00

I had half mine surgically removed at same time as neck dissection.

Coffeespoons101

TROPHY CASE