Leanne Hunnings
Life musingsThings I’m loving about the UK right now
I’ve finally returned after an incredible year abroad teaching English in Spain; I learned loads, I had a wicked time and I will never forget my experiences or the friends I made there – I miss you guys loads! I wouldn’t have missed it for the world, and it’s one of the best things I’ve ever done in my life, something I can thoroughly recommend.
But my god it’s good to be home!!
Yes the recession is crap. British politicians are scandalous. The weather is fairly abominable. The youth of today are abhorrent (actually I don’t think they are…but anyway). However, at the moment, I’m loving the UK (state verb in continuous especially for all you EFL nerds!!!)…here are some of the reasons why.
1) QUORN!!!* It’s available here!!! so I can actually enjoy being veggy again and not get jealous of chicken and mushroom pies. Not only that, but Quorn have really extended their range since I was last in the UK, it’s bloomin marvellous now: http://www.quorn.co.uk/ourrange.html I heart them!
2) Being able to banter with shopkeepers. Properly banter. Not in the vague sorry-my-spanish-is-crap-so-i’m-mispronouncing-horribly way.
3) Naff Christmas adverts. Yes I’m sure I’ll want to kill the lollipop guys soon, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKdDGTbfwMU and M&S I don’t really associate Christmas with that girl running around in her lingerie, but whatever makes y’all happy. And I can sing the jingles!
4) Rubbish reality TV. Funny how so many of us slag it off, yet how high the ratings are. Must be like one or two geeky nerds who watch stuff on 300 TVs at once. I haven’t yet managed to make the transition to I’m A Celebrity, but frankly it’s probably only a matter of time…and I totally rediscovered Beauty and the Geek this morning… the stereotype casting reality show with a heart. heheh. Also cartoons have their proper voices back, yey!! Though no Javier Bardem…http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbJluvNsfec
5) The cold. I’m actually a big fan of the cold weather. I love big fat furry fluffy coats, and thick warm boots, and am now just eagerly seeking out every opportunity to wear my new fab hot pink hat: http://www.matalan.co.uk/fcp/product/fashion-to-buy-online/Hats-&-Gloves/multi-yarn-beanie/8058&resultsPerPage=100&attrList=Dept,brand And what other time of the year can you wear sequinny sparkly stuff legitimately? (Though it has to be said I do try all year round). Perfect for wandering aimlessly around the “German” Christmas market in town. Also: snow. Snow snow snow. It’s wonderful beautiful magical stuff (in small quantities and before the icky slushy stage). Hope we get a sprinkling this year.
6) The sense of community spirit. People whinge about the loss of community spirit in the UK, but it’s not what I see — the positive side of the awful events at Cockermouth with the devastation caused by the flooding and the tragic death of PC Bill Barker is the clear resilience, support and coming together of a community. Also, people are actually really friendly here. Complete strangers will smile at you in shops (and not in a freaky way). I’d forgotten and missed that.
7) Being near family and old friends again. There’s nothing like it.
Stuff is so easy!!! It’s like – if I want to go to the Dr’s I can ring up and ask for an appointment. If stuff needs sorting with my bank I can do it online, or go in and talk to them. Wow. So learning a new language is incredible, amazing and totally worthwhile. But my god things are simpler and a hell of a lot less stressful now I can do it in English! I’ve already shaken off the sense of fear when walking into a shop…(what if they ask me something I don’t understand?!) and I understand the stuff in contracts before I sign. Yey!
9) British comedy and that sharp sense of humour: Peter Kay, I’ve missed you! Welcome back Jo Brand! Hello hello Have I got News For You!
10) Having an oven. Seriously, I missed this a LOT. Have been frantically throwing together Nigella’s most calorific treats to make up for lost time. 
Also kettles are de rigeur here rather than regarded suspiciously. That’s nice too.
So that’s it: 10 little reasons why I’m glad to be home, and looking forward to a UK Christmas of brussel sprouts, the Queen’s speech, and dodgy northern panto. Ho ho ho!
*I limited myself to one point about food, but I could go on. Shreddies. Crunchie bars. Frijj milkshake. Covent Garden fresh soups. Innocent Smoothies (actually wearing little bobblehats at the moment – genius). Sharwood noodles. And Halloumi oh my god halloumi.
Brand Cheryl
If there’s one “brand” going strong in the middle of the economic crisis, it’s Cheryl Cole: she has somehow managed to overcome her dodgy past (found guilty of ABH against a nightclub attendant in her early Girls Aloud years in 2003) to grow into North-East lass done good, with labels such as “the nation’s sweetheart” and even being painted as the “Angel of the North” by artist Lee Jones http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7776059.stm Girls Aloud have done their fair share of non-musical work, including promoting product such as KitKat Senses, to Sunsilk to mobile phones, yet in this “year out” from the band it is Cheryl who has gone from strength to strength. Her appearance in the Passions of Girls Aloud saw her ignite a new passion for streetdance, subsequently appearing in Will.I.am’s Heartbreaker video and forging a crucial career alliance with him; this is her second spate as a judge on X-factor; she appeared on the cover of Vogue; she had a number one hit with “Fight for this Love”, and her album “3 words”, and has recently kicked back at claims that her marriage is on the rocks again by using Twitter to send out a clear message (“3 words: Diamonds are Forever”). Her appearance as the face of L’Oreal’s Elvive shampoo http://www.loreal-paris.co.uk/_en/_gb/spokes/home.aspx?code=Cheryl&page=Home_Cheryl&cm_mmc=sem-_-google-_-Haircare%20Search-_-Spokesperson%20-%20Cheryl%20Cole seems to be yet another triumph for the Heaton-born Geordie, despite it recently coming under scrutiny by the Advertising Standards Agency following a dozen or so consumer complaints regarding her use of hair extensions http://www.brandrepublic.com/News/968793/Cheryl-Coles-misleading-LOreal-shampoo-ad-cleared-ASA/ (the advert has been cleared and approved). The question that I’m most interested in, however, is: how long can Brand Cheryl last, and can it weather more problems? What is Cheryl Cole’s appeal to the British public and can it survive? Can her success be emulated by other “rising stars” or is it unique to her? What do you think?!
I wrote a novel this month!
I have just succeeded at the NaNoWriMo challenge: to write 50,000 words of a novel in the month of November. I have so far written 50946 words and have had a great time exploring my creativity! The novel still has a little life left in it, I suspect it will be around 52000 or 53000 words by the time it has finished. However, I have fulfilled the requirements of the challenge and am feeling pretty psyched, and suspect that I’ll finish it up completely tomorrow. Yey! I’m so proud of having made this achievement; I’ve always thought “oh wouldn’t it be nice to write a novel some day”, and now I’ve done it! I have officially ticked one of the things I want to achieve before I’m 30! Now, to turn my attention to trying to find a career I love… 
Synopsis: Crimestoppers: the pets show how it’s done
No one would ever expect a dribbling, smoking-jacket-wearing, cherry brandy-drinking dog, a ex pregnant teen overweight cat with attitude and a psychotic mouse-torturing moggy of being the best detective team in Duston. But they are. This story follows their first adventures on the trail of a missing puppy from next door. On the way, the trio fall in love, kill stuff for fun, conquer a fear of trees and generally bitch and make snide comments to each other. Will they ever manage to find Biggles and win the girl, or will one killer Look ruin all their hopes and dreams?
Apologies!
My apologies for complete lack of bloggingitude — I’m really busy at the moment with the NaNoWriMo challenge (read about it in my earlier post). I’m currently at just over 20,000 words on day 8 of 30, so it’s going well. The story is highly unlikely to ever break into the real world, as it’s very family-cliquey and to be frank quite poor quality, but I’m having the best time writing it, and I’m aiming to complete it for various family members by Christmas. For me, however, it’s taught me a lot about my writing, and is incredibly useful for forcing your inner perfectionist to just shut up and let you get a first draft together. I’ve never produced anything of this length that wasn’t academic, and it’s really exciting for me! I’m generally a pretty relaxed writer, often not knowing where my stories are going to go and just letting the characters take over, but this has been pushed to extremes with the NaNoWriMo novel; I literally have no idea what’s going to happen in a scene until I sit down and write it. It’s an incredibly liberating experience, and also very uplifting and cheering to read about everyone’s successes and triumphs on the forums. If you’re ever at a loose end in a November, or even if you’re feeling like you could play catch up this November (a goal would be 15000 by the end of the weekend) then I can strongly recommend NaNoWriMo as a way of learning a lot about the way your own creativity works in a very relaxed, chilled and non-perfectionist way. Wish me luck for the next 30,000!
Here’s my first paragraph…completely unedited as per NaNoWriMo rules, to give you a flavour of my novel
To look at him, you’d have no idea. His goofy smile, long ears which were constantly coated in some dubious liquid, possibly water, possibly dribble, and possibly gloop, and small stub tail wagging eagerly for no apparent reason, might not inspire the greatest confidence. Your fears might be compounded when he sneezed from the dust when his mum dusted the window sill, or when he legged it behind the sofa when the vacumn-cleaner appeared. Yet when you first spoke to him, he was courteous, and could shake paws with a flourish, and if you expressed any misgivings about his qualifications, about his ability for the job, he’d fix you with that look. Well, it was that look, but intensely watered down – Benni knew he had to be careful. When he performed that look for real it literally could kill. So he would just use a diluted version. But it was enough. A pluck twanged at your heartstrings and, before you knew what you were doing, you’d taken his elephantine soft paw in your hand and you’d shaken on the deal, and passed over the remuneration.
Happy Hallowe’en!
Hallowe’en is one of my favourite holidays so I’m pretty up for this weekend – I’ve always loved horror films, and it’s like having a whole day dedicated to the genre. It wasn’t a big deal when I was a kid, but USA influence has made it a stronger holiday in the UK, and the past few years see it as a widespread celebration. It’s horrifically commercial, of course, but that’s half the fun. The holiday originates in the Celtic celebration Samhain (pron. sow-in), which commemorated the death of the summer sun god Lugh and the beginning of the darker half of the year. On Hallowe’en night, traditionally the barriers between this world and the world of the dead become thinner, and spirits (both good and evil) could get through easily. This accounts for costume-wearing, as people disguised themselves as evil spirits so that the evil spirits didn’t notice them. Evil spirits sounding a bit stupid there, but I guess it worked since people continued the tradition. The omnipresent pumpkin, or Jack-O’-Lantern, is due (according to some) to a dodgy Irish bloke called Jack, who was so bang out of order that neither God nor the Devil wanted anything to do with him; consequently he spent his life wandering around trapped, with only a candle in a turnip for warmth. Read here for more versions of the legend:
http://www.pumpkinnook.com/facts/jack.htm
Hallowe’en traditions hit the US along with the mass migration of Irish to the States during the Great Potato Famines, and the Irish discovered a gourd called a pumpkin was a hell of a lot easier to carve.
I’m a big fan of Hallowe’en parties, (if you’re planning one check out Nigella’s awesome recipes for witches’ hair, slime soup, blood and guts potatoes and ghoul-graveyard cake in Feast) but this year due to the being ill thing I’ll be celebrating in a more sedate manner. Will try to drag myself from my deathbed to the veggyshop opposite to see if they have any pumpkins to carve, then I’m going to curl up with some pumpkin soup, warm bread, and a horror film. Bliss! Happy Hallowe’en everyone!
Claritromicina to the Rescue!!
I’m currently at home ill ill ill, and my writing output is pretty crappy and no doubt a little feverish. But forgive me. I’ve got bronchitis and it kinda sucks. The problem with being ill is that they tell you to get lots of sleep to get better. They seem to have forgotten that with bronchitis your body would prefer to cough up its internal regions roughly once every five seconds. Sleep has been a little elusive for me these past three weeks.
However, finally, after a disheartening and best-forgotten battle with a nasty mean receptionist, I saw a Real Life Spanish Doctor, and he has gifted me the gift of new health in the form of antibiotics. (Antibiotic resistance is a whole world of controversy I know, but these are literally only the second lot I’ve had in six years, so please just let me have them). Anyway, since I’m also currently trying to read Umberto Eco’s Baudolino (interruptions due to Mum lending me trashy Ian Rankin murder novel) my mind is clearly geared into the middle ages. This may be why I’m picturing my new superdoopah antibiotics as a shiny white cavalry come to do battle with evil bacteria. Well, let’s just say I hope the gee-gees win this one.
OpenLearn
About a year ago I came across a fantastic learning resource on the net, and was recently reminded of it again. Run by the Open University, “OpenLearn” is a free site which allows you to sign up for various modules from undergraduate to masters level, on a wide range of subjects, from art, history, business, languages, to science, social science, economics, education and IT, and to follow the course like distance learning. But FREE. For those of us who kinda wished that General Studies had been a valid degree course choice it’s an excellent way to learn about subjects which you would not have the opportunity to do otherwise without wondering about the hodge-podge mess it would make of your university credits. Last year whilst training for a 10k I completed modules in sports science, including “Funding elite sport”, “Improving aerobic fitness” and “Exploring sport online: Athletes and efficient hearts”. Over the past couple of years I’ve become increasingly interested in topics such as human rights, international relations and development studies. Having spent 7 years at university I wasn’t so keen to do any more paid study, but OpenLearn has provided me with the perfect chance to learn more about these subjects by experts in the field. I’m currently studying an MA module entitled “Introducing international development management” and another advanced module called “Who counts as a refugee?”. I hope in the future to take these studies further and to take a full-cost Open University course, but for now, whilst I’m poor and overworked (!), I’m very happy to have found OpenLearn.
Nanowrimo Time!!!
11 days left until the start of National Novel Writing Month 2009! The aim of the site is for participants to write a whole 50,000 word novel in a month, from 1st November until the end. The site explains its purpose much better than I could, so check it out http://www.nanowrimo.org/ It has had some important successes and lists published novels, and functions with active forums. It also makes use of “Municipal Liaisons” whose job is to be a bit like your mum constantly bugging you to do your homework before you go outside and play on your bike, and encouraging you to apply bum to chair and to write.
“Let’s write laughably awful yet lengthy prose together.” (NaNoWriMo 2009)
Homesickness – the plague of the EFL teacher
Now and then, although we normally love being in Spain, me and my mates get struck down by homesickness. Realistically, it’s not as bad as it could be: we’re pretty nearby, and sometimes a trip home (into the torrential rain and the hell of Stansted Airport) can be sufficient to cure us. But sometimes it gets a bit more severe and you start questioning whether it’s time to return to the UK. This isn’t an immediate option for me, so here are some of the things I try to do to stave off the pain, and to try and reconsider the question of going home when I’m feeling less blue:
1. Stick Radio One online. The calming tones of Jo Whiley reminds me that I don’t have to miss out on the things that I used to enjoy doing. Whilst Chris Moyles reminds me why I might have left the UK in the first place…;)
2. Buy some English food. Life can’t always be tortilla and sangria. Sometimes a toasted cheese sandwich is in order. Most big supermarkets have a “foreign” section (although bizarrely Hipercor seems to think that V8 is the very essence of Britishness). Though unfortunately at the moment I’m craving Shreddies like there’s no tomorrow – anyone know where I can get them?!
3. Sometimes if you check their webpages, UK companies deliver abroad. Yes it might cost you a bit more, but this is an option. Sadly not for Boots or for Argos, the two shops I feel Spain lacks true equivalents of!
4. Contact friends – Skype is a brilliant way of seeing someone’s face and can really lift my spirits. If you know about each other’s lives you feel closer, and the distance isn’t so important.
5. Read newspapers or magazines online from your country. I regularly log into guardian online. It makes me feel like I’m still part of my country. Most mags etc have articles online.
6. Watching UK TV abroad legally is very difficult. If anyone knows a cheap and legal way to do it let me know! IPlayer and 4oD don’t work here so I’ve had to console myself with boxsets, which can be expensive, but you can share them around your fellow expats.
7. Hang out with your mates here too – they know exactly how you’re feeling, but can also remind you why you left!
8. This one is maybe the most difficult to do when you’re feeling low and maybe just a bit sick of Spain, but it’s important to try to throw yourself into your life here. Give yourself a month’s deadline to see if you feel better. Remember that “home” is never a utopia, and that chances are a lot of the problems you’re having in Spain you’d also have at home. If you’re bad with money in Spain you’ll be bad with money in the UK. If you’re unfit and not doing enough exercise a move back to the UK won’t change that.
9. Photos can help a lot: when I get my next paycheck I’m intending to buy a digital photoframe so I can see my family and friends all the time and to bring back all those memories
10. Plan your next trip home. The next weekend you have free and can afford it, head home and see everyone. It should give you the lift to get through until the next visit.
Any other ideas?!
Off on travels!
I’m off on my trip to Malaysia this afternoon, (yey! words cannot express how overexcited I am!) so this blog will be pretty silent for a couple of weeks. Just want to say thanks for reading so far – I’m pretty psyched that it’s being read by quite a lot of people and will resume my random stream of consciousness just as soon as I get back in about 3 weeks. Thanks everyone!
