September - Books, Films and Places

SEPTEMBER – BOOKS, FILMS AND PLACES

I feel that the older I get, the more sentimental I become. I now keep a memory jar filled with old concert and train tickets. I save ALL my Instagram stories month by month so I can watch back over them. I love keeping memories (especially as my own memory is so shit) and I love writing, so I thought it would be nice to look over my past month. I know this year is going to go extremely quickly and so I don’t want to forget any of it! Without further ado, here is my September books, films and places…

BOOKS:

ANNA KARENINA – LEO TOLSTOY

I’m actually being a bit of a liar by saying I read this in September, as I actually started it waayyy back in July, but I FINALLY finished it in September! This 800 page whopper was not an easy one to get through, but I am so glad I did! If you know me, you’ll know that I love nothing more in a novel than a strong female protagonist, and Anna was everything I could have wanted and more. She could command a room, get away with so much shit and make everyone fall in love with her – basically how I’m trying to be. This is definitely a book I’d like to read again at some point in my life, so it can grow with me. Maybe I’ll read it in 5 years and absolutely hate Anna, but for the meantime, this book is deeply ingrained in my heart.

HUNGER – ROXANE GAY

After taking around 2 months to read Anna Karenina, I feel I redeemed myself by reading this book in a day! I smashed through it on my way to and from Birmingham earlier this month, so if you don’t get car sick, car journeys are a really good time to read! This book detailed sexual assault and weight issues in a way I didn’t think was possible. Having suffered an eating disorder, this book was extremely real to me. Despite dealing with such challenging topics, it was so easy to read. It felt like a conversation with a friend, and opened my eyes to weight issues other than my own that people are forced to deal with on a daily basis. If you’ve had to deal with sexual assault or weight issues in your life, or you’re just open minded and looking to understand other people’s struggles, I’d strongly recommend this book.

THE FEMALE EUNUCH – GERMAINE GREER

This was one of the only books I’ve read in my life that has genuinely shocked me, and so I can only imagine how it must have gone off when it was first published in 1970. Parts are very explicit, and even pornographic, so I was always very conscious of anyone looking over my shoulder while I was reading it on public transport. Whilst I definitely do not agree with a lot of what Greer argues, it helped me to understand my own feminist beliefs a little bit more, and appreciate how far feminism has come. Unfortunately, I didn’t love this book.

CARRIE - STEPHEN KING
I’ve actually read this book before and studied it in quite deep detail as I’m writing about it for my English coursework. The first time I read it I thought it was fucking fabulous, and it really excited me, although I did expect it to be a little more gory and have a slightly more complex plot – I think I liked it so much because it was a very easy read though. This time, it excited me far less, and I think that’s because the shock factor wasn’t there, and I’d researched all of it in such detail that I didn’t feel there were many stones left unturned. It is a very easy read, and you can get through it in a couple hours, so it definitely wasn’t a waste of time going over it once more.

FILMS:

LOVE SIMON

I’d seen this film before, but it has got to be one of my favourites. I love the music, I love Simon (pun not intended) and I love the humour. Sure, its not a cinematic masterpiece, but its cute as hell and just makes you feel good. Definitely a film I could watch 100 times over.

                                      

MAMMA MIA 2

This is a film I have watched 100 times over. That may be an exaggeration, but I did watch it 5 times at the cinema (Cineworld unlimited is the ONE). I’m still not sick of it though, and I’d go so far as to say I like it more than the first film. The songs are EVERYTHING, Lily James is EVERYTHING and Cher really had us all shook. Although I’m pretty sure I know the entire script now, I will never tire of it.

                                                     

THE MISEDUCATION OF CAMERON POST

If I said I didn’t just want to watch this film because Chloe Moretz was in it, I’d be lying. Whilst this wasn’t the best film I’ve ever seen, it definitely wasn’t the worst. I liked some of the characters and I liked the message of the film. The ending was the biggest let down of the 21^st century, but I’d still probably watch this film again.

                                       

THE NUN

Was it scary? No. Was it good? Kinda. Was it interesting and watchable? I’d say so! I definitely feel like more could have been done with it, but considering how shit horror films can be, it wasn’t too bad. Wouldn’t be in a rush to watch it again.

                                      

A SIMPLE FAVOUR

Blake Lively could stab me and I’d say thank you. Remember what I said earlier about loving a strong female protagonist? Blake Lively gave this. Whilst the plot was a little ??? at times, I did enjoy this film. It was kind of similar to Gone Girl, which made me wish I was just watching Gone Girl instead, but it was still good. Blake Lively and Henry Golding have got to be two of the most attractive people on planet earth.

                                                         

THE MEG

Well I’m scared of the ocean now. Whilst this film wasn’t necessarily my cup of tea, I still enjoyed it. I was particularly excited to see Ruby Rose in this as I have a MASSIVE crush on her but she was kinda meh. Li Bingbing and Jessica McNamee were fabulous however. I probably wouldn’t watch this film again. Maybe I’ll go swimming with sharks one day though.

                                   

PLACES

LONDON – THE GLOBE THEATRE

My lovely friend Oonagh and I went to the Globe one Friday evening to watch the Taming of the Shrew. I’ve been to the Globe before and I love it, but I didn’t know what to expect from The Taming of the Shrew. Turns out it was brilliant and HILARIOUS – which I definitely didn’t expect. The acting was fabulous and it’s just a great play, and I had a wonderful evening.

MANCHESTER

I embarked on this lovely trip at the beginning of the month with my parents for the day, Tino and Eva (thanks guys). I actually went up to do a speaking competition, which was some scary shit. Despite the fact that I didn’t win, it was a really wonderful experience, and Hannah 3 years ago wouldn’t have believed you if you told her she’d be out doing shit like that. The only bits of Manchester I got to see were the train station and conference centre, but the people were really lovely and I think that says a lot about a city.

                            

BIRMINGHAM

The general life plan is that a year from now I’m going to end up at university, and so off me and my Dad popped to the University of Birmingham. It has an amazing campus and English course, and they have a Starbucks on campus which is just across from the library, so I can definitely see myself feeling at home there.

BRIGHTON

Again, I dragged my Dad along to look at the University of Sussex. I’ve always loved Brighton and so was very excited at the prospect of going to university just outside of that wonderful city. The campus was very small and cosy compared to Birmingham, and so it felt really different, but still felt like it could be a home to me one day. After looking round the campus and eating cake with my wonderful friend Amber (hello if you find your way to this post), Dad and I went into Brighton. We wandered round the lanes and ate vegan ice cream by the beach. The highlight however was DEFINTELY the fucking ridiculously amazing pizza at Purezza. This is seriously the best vegan food I’ve EVER had and I’m VERY happy that they also have a location in London, which I hope to visit ASAP. I had a great time in Brighton, and I’m currently salivating thinking about that goddamn beautiful pizza.

So that’s pretty much my September! I am hoping to write one of these little summaries every month, as it’s always nice to get nostalgic, even if it is about stuff that only happened a few weeks ago. I hope every one else had a lovely September, and like me you’re getting reading for AUTUMN!!!! Lots of love x

My (Traumatic) Experience Learning To Drive

My (Traumatic) Experience Learning To Drive

Learning to drive is definitely the most expensive and time consuming thing I have done in my life, and it is for that exact reason that I’m so happy that after 8 months, 3 instructors and thousands of pounds (may or may not be an exaggeration), I have now passed my driving test!

3 instructors

I was super keen to learn to drive, so I organised my first driving lesson at 9am on my 17^th birthday. I initially went with my sister’s driving instructor because she passed first time (with 14 minors lol) and he gave my discount because he’d taught her. As much as he was a lovely man, he was also a very busy man and could only offer me lessons really late at night or really early in the morning, and he had to cancel a few lessons. He offered a couple times to recommend other driving instructors to me, and the second time I had to accept his offer as it just wasn’t working for me. So onto instructor two! Instructor one had recommended some to me and naturally I went with the cheapest one hahahah (I'm so broke someone help). This guy was kinda okay, at first. As time went on, he started cancelling more and more lessons and decided that he couldn’t pick me up from school or my mum’s house, and I spend a hell of a lot of time at school and my mum’s house. He messed me around A LOT so I spent about a month waiting for him to give me another lesson before I finally decided to send him a strongly worded message telling him he’s shit. I didn’t really say that but he was so flaky and messed me a round a lot, and I don’t take shit from nobody. After spending a couple weeks deliberating, I moved on to my THIRD driving instructor, as recommended to me by a friend from work (Hi Chaz). Although slightly more expensive, this guy was nice, more flexible (with times, not stretches), far less flaky than the others and was the one that I stuck with until the day of my test.

Cancelled test

As if having to go through 3 instructors just to get to my test date wasn’t enough, the night before my test, having revised the show me tell me questions until I knew them like the back of my hand, and having watched every single “how to pass your driving test” video on youtube, I was blessed with an email from the DVSA. Upon opening that email, I discovered that they’d had to cancel my test as they didn’t have an examiner available for me. At first I didn’t panic too much as they’d offered me another date. Until I realised the date they’d offered me was 6 weeks after my original date! I was supposed to take my test on my last day of school before summer and ended up taking it at the very end of August. I was angry and heartbroken. I'd say mean things about the DVSA but they havent't sent me my real licence yet so I should probably try n stay in their good books. The next day I rang the DVSA, and politely explained to the woman on the phone that I understood it wasn’t her fault but I was PISSED. She was no help. I spent the next 2 weeks constantly looking for driving test cancellations in the hope that I could get a date at least slightly sooner. Having been unsuccessful, I contacted my driving instructor so I could have some lessons before my test date. Shit got worse though. He told me that he already had a test booked for my delayed date. There weren’t any more tests available till October at this point and I was devastated. Regardless, I booked a lesson with him (didn’t want to forget how to drive or anything). Luckily, on my lesson with him he told me that he’d prioritise my test as I’d booked mine first. Finally things were looking up – a test at the end of August is better than a test in October!

The test

The day before my test, I had a 2 hour lesson booked, but after 1 hour my instructor told me he didn’t think I needed any longer, and I agreed (and also wanted to save money and time lol IM BROKE). This time, I did everything opposite to what I had done last time. I briefly read over the show me tell me questions, didn’t watch any youtube videos or try to overthink it. I just went about my evening as usual and went to bed at a reasonable time. Waking up on test day (at 6:30am fml), I had immediate butterflies. I tried to eat breakfast and failed. I put on my dress and my dangly earrings (gotta look nice so the examiner has a good first impression, and earrings remind you to check your mirrors). I just sort of faffed around until my instructor got to my house at 7:20am, for my test at 8:20am. From here on I don’t actually remember much, up until my examiner said the words “well Hannah, I’m pleased to tell you that you’ve passed”. My tell me question was the one about fog lights and my show me question was washing the rear windscreen. My manoeuvre was a forwards bay park. I really don’t think it could have gone much better – I didn’t have to parallel park, I knew my show me and tell me question, and I didn’t stall. I got 8 minors but whatever, I passed. The actual test wasn’t as nerve-wracking as I thought. My examiner was a nice guy. He didn’t chat to me much, but I was glad about that because I get easily distracted hahah. Once I’d gotten the tell me question out the way, I knew everything else was muscle memory so I got to relax a bit. It did go well and I am happy, but also relieved I never have to go through that again.

MY ADVICE FOR LEARNING TO DRIVE

MONEY

I paid for all my driving lessons myself, which I’m very proud of myself for. But seriously if your parents pay for your lessons you have no idea how lucky you are. I have quite a lot of money saved up that I’d intended to use for lessons, but I didn’t actually end up having to use any of it. I just used money I’d earned from my part time job. A good way to save for driving lessons I found was whenever I happened to have cash, I'd use that for driving lessons and not other things. When I was on my 3^rd driving instructor I did start to struggle as he charged more and did 2 hour lessons, so I was using up my hours more quickly. I had to borrow some money from my dad but I’m pleased to say I’ve now paid it all back.

TIME

Learning to drive takes up a hell of a lot of time. Originally I had my lessons early on a Sunday morning, which worked pretty well for me as this was the only day I wouldn’t be at school or work. With my 2^nd instructor I usually had my lessons about 5pm on a weekday, which was fine but kind of annoying because it would mean I’d usually have to drop homework I was in the middle of to go and have my lessons. With my 3^rd instructor, most of the time he’d pick me up from school, which was good because I could drive myself wherever I needed to be that evening, but it was also kind of shit because I’d always be so tired after school and then I’d have to concentrate for another 2 hours, and I’d always dread driving lessons while I was at school. I’d say I recommend having lessons early in the morning on a day you’re not at school or work as it means you’re not tired from your day, and after the lesson you’re already up and ready for the day. The roads are also pretty quiet early in the morning, but remember to have lessons at busier times and in the dark as you'll have to drive in these conditions IRL.

THE TEST

I’m obviously a pro at tests considering I passed first time (lol my 8 minors would disagree), but my honest advice would be to stay as calm as you can (lol easier said than done). The test goes really quickly and driving examiners literally aren’t allowed to be cunts. The worst case scenario is that you fail, and if you do, you’ve just gotta take the test again. If you’re feeling nervous leading up to the test, I’d say just try and forget about it and distract yourself with other things. If your driving instructor has let you go ahead with your test, it means you’re perfectly able to drive. I’d also say to take your time with manoeuvres and pulling off, because that means you’re less likely to stall and the less time you have to spend actually driving, where there’s more opportunity to fuck up. I also advise LOOKING IN YOUR FUCKING MIRRORS ALL THE DAMN TIME – I felt like I was constantly checking mine and I still got 2 minors for not using my mirrors. My final and most important bit of advice is to NOT look at the examiner’s piece of paper, no matter how tempting it may be. At the beginning of my test, I saw my examiner write on his piece of paper and draw a cross at the top of the page and I was convinced that I’d failed, despite the fact that I hadn’t thought I’d done anything wrong. This got me into a total unnecessary panic. Your examiner has to mark down when you do your manoeuvre and emergency stop and show me question so just because they mark something down doesn’t mean they’re giving you a minor or failing you.

So that’s it! If you haven’t started learning to drive, are currently learning to drive or can drive, I hope you enjoyed being nosy about my trauma. Drive safe x