24 Read, 977 Left

© Vladimir Shipulin

Did you manage to guess from the title what I'm talking about? I believe you did. Over a hundred literary critics worldwide chose the best books ever and put them in a list, known as 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die. While I don't choose a book to read only because it's in this list, it's really helpful if I don't know what to read. I also have my own short list of the books I've read from it. Here it goes, in aplhabetical order:

1. Agnes Grey by Anne Brontë
2. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
3. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
4. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
5. Choke by Chuck Palahniuk
6. Dracula by Bram Stoker
7. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
8. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
9. Lord of the Flies by William Golding
10. Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie
11. Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell
12. Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
13. Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro
14. Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe
15. Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse
16. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
17. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
18. The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
19. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
20. The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells
21. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
22. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
23. Veronika Decides to Die by Paulo Coelho
24. Zeno's Conscience by Italo Svevo

The ones I liked the most are written in bold.

I know I don't have lots of readers, but there's a few of you, and I'd really like you to tell me which books from the 1001 list you enjoyed the most and why. You can find the full list over here!

Sayonara,

Not a British Girl

Obscurity

What do I want to study? What do I want to do with my life? What do I want to accomplish? A couple of years ago I thought that the future me will sort it out. Now I think the same.
Why? Because I'm overwhelmed. A while ago I convinced myself I wanted to do a degree in English. It was simplier than facing the fact that there are many other subjects I'm interested in – psychology, sociology, politics, history, film, media, graphic design, history of art, philosophy... A lot. And that haven't changed.

© Abdulmajeed Aljuhani

What I've come to understand is that I'm not the only one feeling this way. My friends are all lost, more or less. Most of my peers actually are. And when I look at these older people who should set a good example for us... they don't. My mom wanted to study architecture, she ended up studying building engineering, and now she works as the head of cuisine. My aunt says she still wouldn't know what she'd like to study if she was back in time. My previous maths teacher wanted to study fashion design and my current maths teacher could be a poet. My Russian teacher only went to study Russian because there was little competition and my previous geography teacher dreamed of becoming a dental technician.
We're all in the same boat. Just a small amount of youngsters know what they want to do, and that's mostly because they suck everywhere else. No worries. Sooner or later, we're all gonna find it out. And even if we don't... There's a hell of the world out there. People live their lives and enjoy it. Why wouldn't we?

Cheerio,
Not a British Girl

Specialness

First times are special. Whatever it is. I'll never forget my first kiss... or my first cigarette. It was something new waiting to be dicovered. After those first times I even tried to count, but soon lost the number. Yet they... They'll be kept in my memory safe. Forever.

© Masti Tiar

I wonder what it's gonna be like when I fly on a plane for the very first time. Land in the UK. See it and explore. Enter the university. Start living in the halls. Meet others. Have my first lecture, seminar, tutorial. Find my first job. Feel homesick for the first time. I know that all these experiences (well, except the latter) will be wonderful and at first I'll be amazed. But how about later? Is it going to change? Will I get used to that? I'm not sure if I want to. These first times, special moments... I want my whole life to be like that. Something new. Fresh. Special.

Be special,
Not a British Girl

Is Chivalry Confusing Nowadays?

© Peter Kemp

One day after lessons this guy at school, let's call him Lucas, who I don't really know (we're only in the same class of history and last year we had psychology and ethics together) asked me if I wanted him to take my coat from the cloakroom. I said it would be nice of him so he did. A gentleman! But when at home, I started wondering what his intentions were. To start a conversation? To walk me home? Does he like me or something? Only later did I understand how silly I was being. It was pure chivalry. So uncommon these days that it's even confusing!
I remember when I was at the first grade of primary school and a classmate from my neighbourhood would carry my school bag home. Lovely, isn't it? His elder sister would carry his, though. Maybe that's the reason she disliked me so much. :D Back in these days (oh, I know I sound like an old woman) there was no hidden meanings. And now such gestures make a girl wonder...
While I'm all for women's rights (well, more for human rights...), I consider chivalry a positive thing if it's in the right place at the right time. It's sad you can hardly see it in our society. Or maybe it's different in the UK?

Au revoir,
Not a British Girl

Choosing a University & The Ones I've Chosen

What university to choose for your studies? It's not an easy decision to make, but we all have to. I was struggling until I set my priorities, and then it got quite easy. When choosing where to apply I considered these factors:

• Rankings. If I was to study at an average university, I wouldn't be coming to the UK at all. So I checked the overall and subject rankings and made sure I don't apply to universities with poor academic performance.
• Location. I can't imagine myself living in a small town. That's just so not me. Therefore I automatically eliminated all the universities that are located in towns or cities smaller than the one I live in now.
• Course structure. The same course's contents can vary greatly at different universities. I analysed them all and picked what I liked most.
• Living costs. As I've earlier mentioned in this blog, I'll have to maintain myself while studying, so I didn't want to choose a place where I couldn't get by.
• Overall impression. It's not easy to tell which university is the nicest judging only by pictures and videos, but they did help. Comments on such sites as The Student Room were also useful.

Based on these, my final quintet is:

The University of York

The University of Glasgow

The University of Leicester

The University of Edinburgh

The University of Aberdeen

My favourites must be York and Glasgow, it's going to be hard to choose between these two if I get reasonable offers from them both. So I kinda hope one of them will reject me. :D

What did you consider when applying and what universities have you chosen?

Take care,
Not a British Girl

How do I overcome illnesses?

Bad news on my front - I caught a cold. As I have a weak immune system, it's not uncommon for that to happen to me during the winter period (actually, during the other seasons as well). Having lots of experience, I developed my own ways to fight against being sick and feeling bad. They're not medical, but combined with prescribed medications, work wonderfully.

Drinking green tea

© Ellen van Deelen

I've heard much about advantages of drinking green tea and while I'm not a scientist to prove them, I do feel better when I drink lots of it. It's good I like it though - if I didn't, I guess I wouldn't be enjoyng this treatment so much.



Reading

© Grzegorz Pawelak

Finally I can admit I'm a bookworm and proud! So whenever I stay in bed due to my poor health, I read what I always wanted but couldn't because of the amount of the compulsory literature. I quickly forget about myself so that's helpful!





Watching the favourite sitcom

I believe laughter is the best medicine, and hardly nothing can make me laugh more than my fave sitcom - "Friends"! That's why it's already a tradition to watch these tv series when I'm sick. It never gets boring.



Sleeping

© Anka Zhuravleva

This one should go without saying. When I sleep I don't feel bad (I dream about quite nice things usually), and, as a rule, I wake up in a better condition than I was before!







What do you do when you're sick? Or maybe you know some secrets of not getting ill in the first place? Feel free to comment!


If you're sick, get better!
Not a British Girl

Should I worry?

© Arief Siswandhono

Today I've been reading about jobs and employment in the UK as I'll need to get a part-time job when I come if I want to survive. Now I'm worried a bit because all the Brits seem to have some work experience at the age of 18, and I'll have none. Will I be able to find a decent job? I don't mind working hard if only I can live from that and it doesn't interfere with my studies.

Maybe I should stop worrying about the future and stick to my homework for today. I have a pretty bad hangover after all.


Good luck,
Not a British Girl

An apartment or a house? I say - a loft!

You'd often hear people discussing where it's better to live - in an apartment or in a house. Both sides have some strong arguements. But for me, fascinated by large open spaces, the best decision seems to be a converted loft (also known as a loft apartment or simply a loft). Just take a look at these photos!

See you soon,

Not a British Girl

I Say Yes to Home Education!

Remembering my past, I sometimes actually wish I was educated at home. For many years I'd been suffering from bullying, and that wasn't a nice experience indeed. Only when I switched schools for the second time, I finally found the friendly environment I'd been in search of. But let's not go into detail as it's not what I want to write about today. My topic is home education, which is almost never practiced in my country, but as I heard, gaining more and more popularity elsewhere.

© Sylvain Masson

When I think of my future and the kids I may have (or may not - you never know), I like the idea of teaching them at home. Maybe not until high school or university, but at least during the primary school period. That way not only could I get to know them better and make strong bonds, but also provide a better way of learning, based on their strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes. The school system is inevitably shaped for mediocrities and while some teachers can be really nice and all, their main concern is not to actually educate children, but to make them get the best results during the exams. I don't approve. When teaching at home, parents can pay more time to the subjects their child won't understand, and also to the ones he really enjoys and is interested in. They can incorporate several subjects, visit museums and art galleries, and are free to travel anytime. Isn't that just great?

Some argue that a homeschooled child will lack the ability to integrate into the society and interact with others. Why would you think so? There are many places to meet other children and socialise, and being home educated doesn't mean children have to spend their all time at home. Even many researches show that homeshooled people become an active part of the community. People also maintain that parents aren't always the best teachers - they might not understand certain subjects themselves or be not able to explain them clearly. To my mind, if they want their children to get the best education possible, they will do their best. And there is always an option to cooperate with other parents!

To boil it down, we're all personalities and we're all different, that's why home based learning can be the best choice for many. That's my opinion, yet I'd love to discuss!

Hope your day went well (or at least better than mine),
Not a British Girl

I'm a Disbeliever

So yesterday Gabby told me she can determine my compatibility with any guy given his date of birth (obviously, she knows mine already). Astrology... In contrast to my friend, I completely disbelieve in it, yet that seemed to end up as a funny thing. And it did. She tried about ten birthdays of various guys - the ones I really liked at some point of my life, and even some I never did. After an hour of discussions and jokes, it turned out that the ones I should have ended up with were Jaden, a classmate I had a crush on for maybe two years, or Paul, my first love (and the only one so far), who also used to be my best friend until we fucked everything up (forgive my choice of words).

© Carola Onkamo

What have I understood, you might ask? That my disbelief is completely reasonable. As all the things Gabby said were interesting to hear, only a little was true. Personalities and interpersonal relationships are much more complicated than astrology tries to portray. Of course, many of you may argue to the contrary, but in my view, it isn't very smart of anyone to believe that the position of a certain planet when they were born can affect their relationship with other people. I choose to believe in science - in psychology, sociology, etc., I choose to believe even in accidents. I choose to be responsible for the life I live.

Take care,
Not a British Girl

Hi there!

So I'm starting a blog. Actually, I'm not so sure what it's going to be about. But don't let it fall into the category of 'personal' and 'uninteresting'. I'll do my best to make it as appealing as I can.

© Norbert Maier

As the title itself says, I'm not a British. However, this autumn I'm leaving my home country and going to study to the United Kingdom: either England or Scotland (I'm not sure about it yet). I have no doubt I'll have something intriguing to say about British culture when I come, because I'll see it differently than Brits do. Until then, there are many other topics I'd like to write about, and that's what I'm gonna use this blog for. Of course, I won't avoid the topic of being a prospective student as it is my main concern right now.

I hope to gain some readers as the time passes, and I surely hope you'll find something interesting for you to read here. I'm sorry in advance for any grammatical errors you'll find in my entries. As you can understand, English is not my first language.

That's it for now...

Have a nice evening and see you soon,
Not a British Girl