The curse of being an 'all rounder'

For those of you hopeless at all but one subject at school, prepare to feel smug. For those of you who gave up on academic life to pursue a vocational career, join in. However, I rely on you 'all rounders' to acknowledge this bitter twist and empathise with me. High school was my prime: I got the grades, 14 GCSE's nothing lower than a B. Ok I'll stop before you think I'm bragging. The fact is, this premature success turned me into an indecisive dreamer. I now acknowledge how being an abysmal artist but brilliant biologist helps you to decide what to focus on. Knowing what you're bad at helps you to recognise what you're great at, but making the grade at all of them only makes you spread your time too thinly. I realised this when deciding what to do at University.. English? Psychology? Italian? It wasn't a sure fire decision, it was a pick a name from the hat.

The thing is, I made my decision to study languages based on what I thought may be useful when trying to get a job, what seemed impressive, and what I thought I was rather good at. Upon arriving at University I encountered some of the most sensational linguists who talked Italian in their sleep, and I fell way short of the top of the class. Sure they were horrendous singers and lacking creativity, but whilst I was on stage pretending to be the next Idina Menzel (ultimate girl crush), they spent that extra time becoming one better than me . My once highly desired 'all rounder' status had worked to my detriment. Now that I know what I want it's taking time and pure determination to gain the experience to catch up with my peers. For my younger readers.. embrace what you're good at and more importantly what you enjoy, oh and don't be afraid to spend more time revising for Drama (preferred subject) than Chemistry (just an example), your Chemistry teacher will get over it. I'm fairly confident that my future career doesn't rely on that extra Statistics GCSE my maths teacher signed me up for. This is the curse of the all rounder. 

Studying languages has its perks- Erasmus in Venice

Living for the moment

Sat in the garden with my morning tea I'm feeling fresh and ready to embrace the day. I'm ignoring the intermittent drilling of the workmen behind me kindly commencing their cacophony of noise way before 9am, and accepting this wake up call as a hint to use the cool morning air to write.  Recently I've been feeling torn between whether to dedicate some time to job hunting (painful but compulsory) or writing (clearly the favourable option). After a few hours job hunting (interspersed with too many coffee breaks, Facebook updates and similar devilish procrastination) I became aware that I had bookmarked a wealth of 'acceptable' jobs which I had absolutely no interest in. It seems the recession was starting to convince me that the economic situation meant I wasn't allowed to dream anymore.

Fully aware of the unemployment which lurks back in reality and constantly reminded by the endless questions of "so what are you going to do now you're back from travelling?" I've decided to stop worrying about what might happen and live for the moment. See the thing is, I know I may not make it as a writer; my blogs may become ensconced in the ocean of autoblographies out there, and my novel, when I do finally finish it, may end up just a coaster for this morning tea..but at least I'll know.  Not one of us knows entirely what will happen from one day to the next; no matter how much we plan and organise, ultimately our future is in the hands of many.  So get excited about not knowing your future, 'anything could happen' isn't a foreboding warning of misgivings, rather it's an opening into a world where dreams can come true (or so I continue telling myself). Philosophy aside, living for the moment means not worrying about consequence, so excuse me while I head to the freezer to grab an ice cream for lunch...

When in Spain do as the Spaniards do...

Following my 15 month worldwide adventure, feeling utterly shell shocked to be back home in bleak England I decided all of the travelling and socialising had taken it out of me and it was time for a get away(don't hate me).

Lucky for me I have a mum living in Spain, on the southeast coast where the sun never seems to stop shining and a golden tan is never too far away. Anticipating the dramatic, earthy mountain range, the glimmering jade ocean and the vats of delicious wine, one thing that never fails to impress me is the way the Spanish lead their everyday lives. Without fear of being sent home from work for being intoxicated they drink wine mid afternoon, siesta any morning grievances away and later dine among family and friends, only plating up at gone 9pm. There is no such thing as late; late is on time; this is something I indulged in being a 'fashionably late' kind of girl. Upon my arrival from chaotic London my mum kept telling me to slow down, no rush, no worry, and after a while it started to sink in. Without realising it, in just two weeks back, England had already tied me up in its corset of deadlines, to do lists and clock watching. Yet once fully immersed in the slow but steady Spanish pace I was sleeping deeply, my skin was glowing, my days appeared longer and the English to do list etched across my mind was finally getting ticked off. So take a step back from your jam packed calendar. Take a breath. Try to stop worrying and scrutinising how you are going to fit everything in and just start at number one.. with a glass of wine of course!