Our resident agony aunt, Aunty Annabel (Bella Stock), advises a reader on the benefits of installing a filter between the brain and mouth, as well as how to be less judgemental about friends’ relationships. Illustration by Iris Bowdler.
Author: Bella Stock
Bella is in her second year reading English at Teddy Hall.
Ask Aunty Annabel: Young, wild, and free – will I miss out on the true university experience by being in a long-distance relationship?
In this week’s agony aunt column, Aunty Annabel (Bella Stock) advises a student on whether to pursue a long-distance relationship while at university. Illustration by Iris Bowdler.
Ask Aunty Annabel: Bros before hoes? My friend is prioritising dating over our friendship – what do I do?
The Oxford Blue’s resident agony aunt, Aunty Annabel (Bella Stock), responds to a reader whose friend is caught in the thrall of online dating, to the point where her priorities interfere with the friendship. Illustration by Iris Bowdler
Ask Aunty Annabel: Burnt out and blue? How to manage expectations of productivity
Aunty Annabel (Bella Stock) responds to a reader on how to prevent burnout.
Artwork by Iris Bowdler
“I’m a connoisseur of spending the entire week procrastinating, beginning an essay at midnight and finishing bang on the deadline at 8am before hitting the hay. It’s a technique which has served me reasonably well, though it has probably taken its toll on my sleep and the life expectancy of my long-suffering mother, who is forever fretting about my notorious all-nighters. So when I say, ‘do as I say and not as I do’, I really mean it.”
Ask Aunty Annabel: the Dilemma Dater
Aunty Annabel gives advice on seeing multiple men, developing feelings in non-exclusive relationships, and talking to yourself drunkenly in Spoons.
Written by Bella Stock; illustration by Iris Bowdler
“From a purely practical perspective, it’s not easy to schedule a full-on dating life with life as an Oxford student, but it’s also emotionally (never mind physically…) draining to be *cough* ‘amorous’ with multiple people.”
Ask Aunty Annabel: Negotiating the friendzone
In the first instalment of her column, our resident agony aunt, Aunty Annabel (known in her free time as Bella Stock), advises a Master’s student on how to see if his friend wants to take things to the next level.
Illustration by Iris Bowdler
“While the idea of it might make you cringe, the fact is that if two people enjoy spending time together and have lots in common, it really is a totally natural progression. Embittered old third-wheel that I am, I grumble incessantly about pals starting to fancy one another, but even I have to admit that friendship really is the best basis for a relationship (don’t mind me on the shelf up here).”
Love Letters: A Dying Art?
I’m drawn towards the sincerity of the handwritten sentiment, be that loving or loathing, and the fragility of the material article, its capacity to be lost and found in life’s flotsam and jetsam, rather than the text which loiters in cyberspace.
Household Relations: I Give It A Month
Harmonious cohabitation during lockdown depends entirely on a delicate balance of zipped lips, compromise, and carefully-selected battles
Mis/Adventures: Train-ing to be a Traveller
Bella Stock writes about how getting on the wrong train in Spain ultimately ended in a new friendship…
Local Guides: Bella’s Stratford-upon-Avon
Bella Stock talks you through a perfect day in Stratford-upon-Avon centred around the wonderful outdoor and theatrical spaces of the city.