Why I Could Never be a Vet

The first career I can remember aspiring towards was a vet. I always loved animals (probably unsurprising seeing as I grew up with at least 2 dogs and 2 cats at a time), so it seemed as if the obvious job for me was a vet.

Most little girls love barbies and dolls, I personally hated both… in fact I distinctively remember my older sister allowing me to play with her precious barbies and me continuing to pull their heads off (this seemed like totally normal thing to do…). I was more interesting in animals of all kinds, cuddly ones, toy ones, at one point I did ask for a Barbie – veterinary Barbie. I then threw away the actual Barbie and just played with the animals.

I was so set on being a vet, when we had to take one of our cats in to the vet to have some shots my sister had to leave the room due to feeling faint, but I stayed in, interested to watch and discover what was going on. I had no fear, what harm was a little blood?

I can’t put a day, month, or even year on when I changed, but I did. I turned into one of those people who DOES have the fear, I hate blood and all things gruesome. I am probably one of the most squeamish people you will ever meet! So I never made a decision not to be a vet, I just realized although I loved animals, I did NOT love seeing their insides. I mean realistically WHO wants to shove their arm up an animal’s backside? What kind of job would that be? Luckily there are some people who find that appealing… But not me!

So there it is, the reason I stopped wanting to become a vet. Unfortunately not liking blood or anything like that kind of makes you unable to go into any form of medicine… surprisingly it’s impossible to go through med school without getting your hands messy at one point or another. I don’t really think I need to explain why I wouldn’t suit being a doctor – but if you need me to spell it out I will – I used to pull heads off barbies. Does that sound like someone you’d like to treat you? No. I didn’t think so.

However, even if I had loved all things gruesome I still would not have been able to become a doctor, vet or dentist due to my lack of ability to understand any form of science. At school it was just something i wasn't able to get my head around... All the different enzymes in biology... and then something about Moles in chemistry?! The only Moles that I have the capacity to understand are the ones underground. Sure, the simpler stuff was ok, but as soon as it got to the remotely complicated stuff it all just went over my head. I guess I just don’t have the mind for it… this was the same with all kinds of science, biology, chemistry, physics… I did not understand any of them, and coincidently they did not interest me either. So that was that, I managed to get through GCSEs but swiftly dropped them after and have not studied them since. 

So needless to say any chance of a career in medicine went out the window a long time ago. It just was not to be… This is kind of annoying, because if you do a degree in medicine you know what you are going in to, which means you no longer have to think about what to do with your life – the work part of your life is mapped out for you! Sure, there’s a lot of very, very hard work, but other than that you don’t have to think about anything! Whereas here I am doing my degree in politics, wondering what on earth I should do with it… law? Journalism? Maybe marketing? Even a politician? (not my first choice but we’ll get to that another time…) the possibilities are endless, the hard part is finding something that I actually want to go in to.

So there you have it, I am pretty sure that my dream job is not anything to do with medicine... This does mean that unfortunately unlike medicine students I do have to keep trying to discover where my life is going, but hopefully it will be worth it when I finally find my perfect career. 

What Do I Want To Be When I 'Grow Up'?

Growing up always seemed as if it was so far away. It never really occurred to me that the time when I had to actually figure out what I wanted to do with my life would actually come. But here it is - my second year of university, the time that I really should start to figure out what I want to do. The problem is i'm no closer to knowing what I wanted to do than when I was little, indeed if anything I actually am further away! There were the early days of wanting to be a vet, then the dream of becoming a lawyer - which was quickly taken out of the picture when I saw my brother and sister go through the process and come out of the end looking tired and realising it wasn't all that great. 

I have never managed to find that one thing that I love doing; some people are naturally good at art, some at science, some sport. I unfortunately wasn't one of those lucky few. However, seeing as it is now necessary to decide upon something I figured I would write through my process of decided what I want to be when I am grown up.

I think I am going to do this through a process of elimination, going through the options and decided why this is definitely not for me. So, here it goes, why is it that I could never be a musician of any kind.

From an early age my parents were sure that I was a musical genius, and that this skill just had to be forced out of me through hours and hours of piano practice. My brother had been a chorister and a grade 8 flute player - so they figured what made me so different? So I went through three years of piano playing, practicing every day, trying my best... And at the end of those three years I had gone through three different music teachers and achieved a grand total of zero grades... I was still not even at the standard to do my grade 1 piano exam! After a long time of convincing my parents realised that PERHAPS the piano just wasn't for me... However, this didn't mean that there wasn't still a musical genius hidden in me, it just meant that I had chosen the wrong instrument! 

And so the process started again, only this time with the saxophone. The saxophone was not quite as much of a fail as the piano was, I was able to play and remember which notes were where (which was a large improvement...) and even sound quite nice at some points. However then we reached a new problem - I wasn't exactly gifted when it came to reading music... And by this I mean I could see which notes were which on the piece of paper, but when it came to extra funny symbols which were meant to all mean different things... it all just got too much for me! However this problem was slowly overcome and I became just about used to all the different symbols. THEN yet another problem arose... part of the exam I would be taking had some improvisation... this included knowing which notes sounded good together and having a beat - I could do neither of these and so, to cut to the end, I stopped playing the saxophone after roughly three years and again no grades... My worst memory of the saxophone had to be when I offered to play in my house music performance at school... During the rehearsals I just about held it together, not sounding great but that didn't really matter - it's not as if they could exactly ask me not to play seeing as I had volunteered). However, on the actual day of the performance for some reason my saxophone refused to play a single note! I had to stand on stage PRETENDING to play. I'm pretty sure that it was obvious that I wasn't actually playing seeing as the saxophone was a pretty crucial and loud part of the performance. So that was the first and last time I went on stage with an instrument...

So maybe an instrument wasn't for me...Maybe I had to use my natural musical talents - my voice? Well, there's really no story there... I have a vague memory in junior school of being turned away from the choir - either that or kicked out... Some people have a theory that everyone is able to sing, just some people have to be taught how and others are naturally good at it. I think that these people are wrong - and if they want me to prove it they can try and get me to sing! 

Other than that there was one last try with guitar; this lasted less time (partially due to being taught by a very pervy teacher who later tried to talk to me on Facebook through a strange alias...). I (and more importantly my parents) realised that music was not for me.

So there it is - the story of why I must cross of musician from my list of what I could be when I grow up. Hopefully I am one step closer to finding out what I could be. 

The North vs South

Here it is, the age-old debate: which is better out of the North and the South of England? Doesn't it seem bizarre that there is such a large difference between two halves of such a small country? Can you believe that around 7 million Britons have never ventured across the north south divide? Three quarters of the British public actually admit that they discriminate against those from the other side of the 'divide', with northerners thinking southerners are arrogant and up themselves, and southerners thinking that northerners are backwards and bleak. So which half of the country wins?

So here it goes, the top 5 best things about the North and South:

The North:

1) The People: In general, although I hate to say it, I have found that the people in the North are so much more kind and welcoming than those in the South. Always being more willing to take the time out of their day to give you directions or just say good morning.

2) The Cost:  Everything is cheaper in the North! From houses to alcohol, it's just easier to live in the North... The average house price in the South is around £280,000, whereas in the North it is £140,000 - making it literally half as expensive to live in the North as the South.

3) The Beauty: Obviously this is a plus side for both the North and South, but there is definitely something to be said for the beauty of places such as North, on the whole it seems less ruined than the majority of the South.

4) York: The South has London, the North has York. Although these places are incomparable there is definitely something to be said for York, this is proved by the fact that it is the second biggest tourist destination after London. Considering York is tiny in comparison this is pretty impressive...

5) Community: Generally people in the North feel more of a sense of belonging to a community, this may well be due to my earlier point about the people being kinder, but I think it is also because in the lifestyle in the north doesn't seem to be so rushed and busy as it can be in the South.

The South

1) London: With hundreds of attractions including the London Eye, Madame Tussaud's, and the tower of London, the West end... the list goes on! You can be in London your whole life and still be surprised by what you find, it never gets boring.

2) The Weather: Whatever the weather is like in the North, it's always better in the South... Maybe it's because it's less windy, maybe it's warmer, and all I know is that it always seems to be nicer...

3) The Accents: (controversial, I know....) This isn't really a sound argument for why the North is better, but in general I just prefer Southern accents to Northern, the exception being Newcastle which has a great accent.

4) Cornwall: With the beaches and surfing you can sometimes forget you are still in dreary England. Although there are of course plenty of beaches in the North, I’m not sure that Blackpool measures up to Cornwall when it comes to a summer holiday.

5) The Businesses: Although it isn't easy to find a job anywhere at the moment, there are more job opportunities in the South compared to in the North. This is to be expected seeing as London is the hub of trade in England.

The worst things about the North and South have already been explained through the opposites top 5. For example the main worst things about the South are the high prices and the often rude people, whereas the worst things about the North is the weather and the fact that overall it isn't as wealthy as the south. However seeing as this is probably what makes the people kinder this is not necessarily a bad thing...

So there isn't really a better out of the two - it's purely a personal preference... In such a small country it seems silly to have such a big split and to have formed such harsh prejudices against the other side of the 'divide'. Everyone should just put their pride to their side and admit one is not better than the other - they are simply different.

Parody of the Party

The other week I went to a parody of the party 'social' at uni; this meant that everyone had to dress as their political affiliation (it was a politics social...). I didn't have a clue what to go as, i mean.. i am conservative,  but what does that mean i go as? In the end i just dressed in blue and, as a joke, printed out a Maggie Thatcher mask. This seemed like the best thing to do because it would be obvious what i was - meaning i wouldn't have to give the awkward explanation of what i was meant to be and then just get given awkward looks, whereas if i just wore blue people could partially think i was just depressed...

So, i set off to the bar, dressed from head to toe in blue with my mask on - although it was the best mask for looking out of so i had to put it on the back of my head. I had told a few friends what i was going as and they had just laughed and said 'that's brave'. I had shaken this off as a joke, thinking nothing of it, however when i got to the social i realised that this was no joke... Quite the contrary as soon as i walked in i was already getting bizarre looks and evil stares.

Now, i know that i grew up in a sort of bubble, where i live there wasn't even an local election last year because no one stood against the conservatives. So i am just used to no one being that against Thatcher... Even people who are Labour and Liberal still seem to respect her. It probably isn't just because of where i live, but also because non of the people i know at home are as politically inclined. So really doing a politics degree at uni i should have seen the whole thatcher hatred coming...

One of the funniest things that happened in the course of the night was a conversation between me and two bartenders. I was talking to a group of people and suddenly heard laughter behind me, so turned around to see two of the bartenders looking at me and saying "you literally are a two-faced bitch! No offense.." (They soon reassured me that it was nothing to do with me being a bitch personally, purely because Thatcher was, to them, a bitch). So there it was, two complete strangers felt that because i was wearing a mask with Thatcher on it they were suddenly able to call me a two faced bitch! Of course i saw the funny side of it, but that didn't make it any more shocking at the time.

If i thought that the bartenders were bad i had no clue about what was coming for the rest of the night. At one point i found myself surrounded by a group of people who turned out to be Marxists - obviously not fans of Thatcher... They were so shocked that i was a supporter of Thatcher and actually seemed insulted that i was wearing her face on the back of my head. I quickly reassured them that i didn't particularly support Thatcher, that it was just an idea i had that i thought would be apt for the social. I quickly made my way out of that particular group i managed to stay away from them for the rest of then night.

What i was most shocked about was the fact that multiple people were dressed as Sarkozy and Palin, yet that was fine because they were obviously joking, whereas me with a Thatcher mask meant that i was obviously a keen Thatcherite and supported all of her policies and therefore hated the North (which seeing as i was surrounded by Northerners wasn't a good thing).

Now i know i'm making this evening sound worse than it was, the majority of people (after me explaining that it was a joke) did see the funny side, even if a few people obviously didn't find it funny... But it was just such a different reaction than i had imagined. What was amusing was that the next day when photos appeared from the event i found that there were more of the back of my head (with my mask) than with me. Random people that i hadn't even talked to had secretly posed with the back of my head!

So although I definitely don't regret wearing the mask, I was still shocked at the response and probably won't do it again in the future. It was a great starting point for conversations, but for certain people it meant it was a definite ending point. It surprisingly took me a year to work out that people doing a politics degree actually take offense when people support something that they hate.

What Makes a Good Band Name?

There are some really weird band names out there at the moment... From 'Ou Est Le Swimming Pool' to 'Maroon 5', there's no denying that when it comes to the names of bands there isn't really a norm... There is even one band - which to be fair does have some really good music - which is called 'Starf*****r'... The question is what makes these names good or, possibly in 'Starf*****r's' case, bad?

Bizarre band names are not a recent thing. Take 'The Beatles', you would think that there would be some meaningful reason behind the name, however this is not the case. John Lennon first liked the name 'The Crickets' due to the double meaning of the insect and the sport, then someone suggested 'The Beetles' and then after a few months of changing it around they settled on 'The Beatles'. So there you have it, they just liked the sound of it, and lucky for them it worked out.

However, although strange names are not just a recent thing, I believe that the importance of band names is. I am not trying to say that band names were never important, it's just that the importance has increased significantly. The beatles got famous simply because of their music, now with the increased competition in the music business you need more than that, and one thing you need is definitely a good name.

Obviously in different genres of music different names are popular, so in death metal generally some kind of gruesome name like 'Killswitch Engage' or "Eternal Tears of Sorrow' is perfect, whereas in indie music you need something alternative such as 'Two Door Cinema Club' or, as i mentioned earlier 'Ou Est Le Swimming Pool'. When i am looking for new music i can't listen to every song, so to make the process quicker i just look at the names, and if the name doesn't sound good then i won't listen to it. I realise that this means i am missing out on a lot of good music, but the reality of it is you can't listen to everything out there, you need to have some means of cutting it down, and that is my means. I can't help if when i quickly skim read a list of bands i decide i will give 'Computer Magic' more of a chance than 'The Janks'. Why is this? I don't know, there is something that makes the former name seem more catchy to me than the latter.

There is no denying that although bizarre names aren't a recent thing they certainly are getting stranger. What is more shocking is that some of these very strange names don't even have any reason behind them. When the lead singer of 'Ou Est Le Swimming Pool' was asked where the name came from he replied: "Jo (another member of the band) and I used to live in this flat together and we had a lot of random french instruments. Combine them with alcohol and you get a lot of people jumping around shouting things in French, and we ended up coming up with Ou Est Le Swimming Pool, and it kind of just stuck." And there you have it, no meaning, just randomness...What's even funnier is that he admitted to usually coming up with some elaborate story about the name because he was embarrassed to say the true reason. I remember talking about the band in a school lesson once, and our middle aged teacher being so confused as to why a band would call themselves that. It's not short so isn't easy to chant (always useful during live performances), it hasn't got a reason behind it, it doesn't relate to any of their songs, so why call it that? I guess the reason is simply to be edgy. You know that no one else will have a name quite like that...

I think that the biggest blunder of a band name has to be one of my first examples - 'Star*****r'. Did they really not think when they came up with the name that it could possibly hold them back in the long run? I suppose they thought it would be different? Maybe they decided that they were too alternative for a normal name? Either way, in 2009 they realised it was possibly a bad choice and decided to change it, asking fans to come up with ideas. Unfortunately in 2011 they had still not come up with a new name, and soon after that they broke up... 

Generally i don't think you can put a label on what makes a good band name. It has to be catchy - but how do you define catchy? Different people find different things catchy. One thing which is a fact is that it must match your genre and the audience you are trying to reach. 

Lastly here is a strange fact about the name 'Maroon 5': Other than the 5 band members only Billy Joel knows the true meaning of it - or so the band claims, this may well be a cover up for yet another band who don't actually have a good reason for their name...

The New Year's Eve Dilemma

It's coming up again, that time of the year which everyone looks forward to, only for it to happen and no one feel any different... Every year millions of people get ready to see the new year in with friends and loved ones, planning far in advance what parties to go to... Only to realise that once the second hand reaches twelve it really isn't that big a deal...

It's sad that the majority of New Year's Eves are huge anti-climaxes... Everyone gets so excited and then can't help but feel a little bit down when their big night wasn't so big at all... After all, it is just like any other day, the only main impact it makes on everyones lives is that for a few weeks you keep getting the year wrong when writing the date... So does this mean that we shouldn't celebrate New Year's Eve anymore? Should we just give in and accept that although it feels like it should be celebrated, really it is just like any other night? My answer is definitely not. There must be some reason why people still feel that it is acceptable to sometimes spend around £50 just for a ticket to a New Year's Eve party...

1) The Tradition
For years people have celebrated the New Year! Did you know that on New Year's Eve in 2010 an estimated 250,000 people gathered in London to watch the 8 minute long fire works display? Traditions vary from "Irish Wind" - a tradition of predicting the political future of a country by checking which way the wind blows at midnight on New Year's Eve, to celebrating the first baby being born. If we stopped celebrating it we would be losing a huge part of our culture.

2) The excuse for a huge night
It's an excuse to either dress up nicely or in some weird costume and make a fool of yourself, but it's ok because everyone does it! It's not like on people's birthdays when YOU may be dressed up and ready for a big one, but people walking past in the street look completely normal. On New Year's everyone is up for having a good time, and if we stopped celebrating it we would be missing out on a chance to have a great night.

3) Seeing people you wouldn't usually see
New Year's Eve is a great chance to have a catch up with people you don't always have a chance to see. It's the time of year when people have big parties with friends and family, where everyone is in a good mood and you don't think about anything else. With jobs and university it's hard to make sure you see everyone, so it's great having one night of the year when you know everyone is out - it's as if it is mandatory. Whether it is out in London or at someones house, you often see people that you definitely would not have otherwise.

4) Being part of something big
Now, this is generally the reason that New Year's Eve is an anti-climax... Nonetheless i still think it is a reason for us to keep celebrating it. When people celebrate New Year's Eve you really feel part of something. You can imagine everyone in England counting down the seconds, and then all at once shouting "Happy New Year!!". There isn't much that England does as a whole, so it's nice that we have something that the majority of people celebrate. So even though after New Year's Eve some people feel like their has been an anti-climax, it is still important to feel like you are part of something that everyone thinks is special.

5) It only happens once a year
This isn't something that happens every month, it happens once a year. Well, being pedantic each new year only happens once. Surely that is something to celebrate?

Obviously these are not the only reasons why i think that we should still celebrate New Year's Eve, there are hundreds, but they are some of the important ones. My point is that although New Year's Eve can be a let down, generally it is a fun night. You just have to make sure you don't put too much pressure on it. Realistically your life will not change between 11.59 and 12.00, even if technically it is the next year. People should put less of a burden on the night and just enjoy it for what it is - a night with your friends which also happens to be seeing one year into the next. We have to stop expecting a night to be magical on its own, and instead focus on making it special ourselves.

So, I hope that everyone has a great New Year's Eve. Sure, it may well be another anti-climax when it happens, but during the hours before and the hours after hopefully it will be a great night.

Let It Snow..

There are songs about it, films about it and even artwork about it - no one can deny the fact that everyone wants it to snow for Christmas. Why is this? Tradition I suppose... Even as someone from the era when it has only snowed once on Christmas, I still look out of my window hopeful for some snowflakes to fall, just to make the day that little bit more magical.

But what is it about snow that makes it magical? Snow itself is beautiful - there is no denying that. And although in England it often causes havoc when it actually comes, especially in the last few years when the whole of London has come to a standstill due to the shock of large amounts of snow, there is still undeniably something calming about it.

Around Christmas dozens of websites pop up just to let you know the odds of whether or not it will snow on Christmas where you live. For example, at this moment in time there is a 10% chance of snow in London, whereas in Northumberland there is a 30% chance! Either way it doesn't seem likely... But is this the end of the world? No. Last year there was snow on Christmas, and yes, everything looked beautiful. However, we got a phone call from my very elderly grandma who was upset because due to the ice she was unable to walk to her church for the Christmas service. This year we have managed to convince her to come down for Christmas in order to make sure she is able to celebrate Christmas the way she wants. My point is that people want different things for Christmas. For her all she wants to do on Christmas is celebrate the religious side, and the snow caused her to be unable to do this. 

Therefore, although obviously I love snow, I don't think I mind whether or not it snows on Christmas. Imagine all the people trying to get back to their families and being unable to due to the problems snow causes... I would prefer to have a Christmas with no possible problems, rather than a white one. So this year I am not dreaming of a white Christmas, I am dreaming of a perfect family Christmas, and I’m sure that will be magical enough.

But even after saying that, I still would love for it to snow at some point. I have a few things that I love doing when it snows, and which I’m guessing most people do also. However, first and foremost I love taking pictures while everything still looks perfect... It is definitely one of the most beautiful things in nature. After this it is always a surprising amount of fun to run around making a mess of it, making snow angels, having snowball fights, and making snowmen. When the adrenaline of the snow runs out and I realise I am actually freezing it is then time to curl up in front of the fire with a hot chocolate. I'll end this blog with some of my favourite pictures from snowy days...