I am just a couple of weeks away from finishing my first year of university! Now that is a scary thought... I thought I would take some time to reflect on what this year has been like, and where archaeology now stands in this strange covid world. I am sure I was following in the footsteps of many prospective university students before me when I created a fantastical image of what university life would be like. I would get up early, take my cute flask of tea to lectures and pop between the library and department before going down to the Student Union bar in the evening. Alas, that was not to be. While I loved Manchester as a city, I did not get on well with it in the broody late autumn, especially with increasingly strict rules on what venues were allowed to open. With a looming November lockdown, I made the decision to temporarily go back home to my family (and my cat!). I had intended to return in December but was advised not to. And then the January lockdown happened and pretty much