Missing The Scene of Direction

So it finally happen… I got on to the wrong train. It took me nearly three months to do and while a 16 pound turkey was on my back. Well in my backpack but STILL. Haha. :P

I had to travel more than an hour to Kensington to the closet Whole Foods for the thanksgiving bird and on the way back I went in the wrong direction. It only took me two stops to figure it out but the epiphany was humorous all on its own. As I was on the near empty train I began to notice more trees and less buildings. Immediately I looked out the window to see I was heading into the country side of London. Ok, well maybe not country as some of my southern friends would picture in their minds but it was definitely out of the city. 

I jumped off the train only to find out in order to get onto the other side of the tracks I had to swipe my payment card to exit then swipe my card again to gain entrance for the same tracks going in the opposite direction. Oops.

The trip back home took me nearly two hours thanks to the weekend track maintenance. For those who decide to come to London I say familiar yourself with the transportation system as soon as you can (the map of the Over/Under Ground and National Rail below) and if you still get lost, make a day of it. Have some fun, just without the turkey on your back. ^_~

For those who want to come here and drive on the wrong side of the road I say fly into one of the smaller airports outside of the city and then go crazy. Otherwise you will never want to drive in the U.K. ever again (they’re crazy!!). Better yet, you too should get familiar with the transportation map(s). You never know when you’ll be traumatized by their “driving” style. 

See. I told you it was funny. 

An English Thanksgiving

Thursday was Thanksgiving and as many know, it’s only celebrated in the U.S. but just because it’s an American holiday doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate it no matter where you are in the world. This year because I was away from home (obviously) I decided to celebrate it with new friends, my course mate family, and flatmates. Those of us in the TVJ program had filming on the actual holiday therefore Wednesday was the night! I left classes early, started on the bird and american goodies of side dishes.

I was extremely nervous because it was my first time ever being in charge of the special day. Not to mention explaining the holiday to friends who have never heard of it. “Well… see there were these indians…. no wait…. it’s about being thankful…. yeah, yeah, that’s it. It’s about being thankful.” It was rather difficult but I was able to make stuffing from scratch (I still think Stove Top stuffing is WAY better), sweet potatoes with marshmallows, garlic roasted mashed potatoes, and bourbon gravy. Yes that’s right, I just type bourbon gravy. Each of the recipes I found were thanks to Martha Stewart but I will admit, she’s not the best cook out there. At least recipe wise.

We had around 20 people packed into a kitchen designed for 10, many from other countries including Canada, Germany, France, Greece, Italy, Pakistan, Egypt, China, Nigeria, India, even Argentina. Everyone brought something whether it was a dish from their own country, a bottle of wine or dessert. Many laughs were had, Christmas music played and there were no leftovers to speak of. 

Thank you to everyone who came. It really brought a little bit of home to London. 

I think for my first solo Thanksgiving with friends we rocked it. I don’t know how I’m going to top this next year. :)

Pub Food . . . Yes or No?

I feel like I am in a constant episode of HIMYM sometimes as there are a number of great pubs within steps of my flat but I continue to go to my favorite, the Old Haberdasher. Recently, I found myself enjoying a pint with friends when the realization of hunger came over us. Upon my viewing of the usual “bar food” I found they have nachos. Looking at what was included (guacamole, salsa, sour cream and jalapeños) I thought to myself ‘how bad could this be? I mean they’re nachos.’ Ordering of the bar goodies was made and food was delivered to our table. Do you see where this is going yet? And no, it’s not in a good direction.

Everyone knows I am from San Diego and I will admit, I have been spoiled with GREAT Mexican cuisines including carne asada burritos, tamales, enchiladas, homemade salsas and most of all yummy guacamole and in the end all I can say is...

Dear Britain,

I understand you like to think some of your foods are edible but in the end putting ketchup in what you think is salsa is a cardinal sin. Please stop torturing ketchup in such a manner. There are no words to describe just how disgusting this truly is. Oh and your peanut butter is horrible as well.

Sincerely,

Breanne

Other foods that I highly recommend any visitor to Britain stay away from:

Onion rings -They don’t use real onions. (Do wha!?!?!?!? I know my mind was blown as well)

Peanut butter -Its more like oil butter with a hint of peanuts added in.

Coffee from Costa -Coffee is not meant to be burned. Where ever you got this idea, FORGET IT!

Any type of Mexican food dishes -You’re Britain, not Latin America. While we thank you for trying, please just give up and stick to your fish and chips, thanks.

Cheese -Just trust me… it’s not what you think.

Now I’m sure one day this will change, but for now I felt so bad for my friends that I decided to make homemade salsa and guacamole for them to enjoy. I mean no one should have to endure such horrors as ketchup in ’salsa’. Yuck.

Print vs TV -Round 1

There is this underlying animosity amongst the journalism students and TV journalism students. Today, I think I figured out what it is... they're douches. When I started at Goldsmiths the gossip around the various journalism courses was TV and (print) Journalism did not get along. I being the open minded individual that I am ;) allowed this to go in one ear and out the other. Well it’s six weeks in and I have to admit, those rumors aren’t too off.

Could it be that radio and television just get to have more fun? I mean think about it... we’re the ones running around, going out getting the stories, watching the action happen live good and bad. We are as they say ’in the trenches’ but Journalism. . . well so far I’ve noticed they sit in a room all day long and talk about us while writing stories for a “news” website dedicated to what is going on in the boroughs surrounding our university.

Now don’t get me wrong... journalistic writing is NOT easy by any means. I continue to work to perfect my writing everyday but there are those times when as a TV journalist you can’t help but want to take one of those journalist out of their comfy little cubicle and away from their little computer with all the knowledge they hold dear, throw bags upon bags of gear at them then send them out into the freezing cold or the blistering heat while saying “now go get the story and don’t come back until you have every piece of it!” I don’t really think they would make it. If they didn’t drop dead from carrying the weight of the equipment to and from the tube, when they returned to find out they are the only one to edit their work, I think they would understand TV journalist are not lazy nor do they have it easy by any means. 

So, to my future journalist of all mediums I say this: in the end the littlest things matter. Like not pissing off your cameraman or getting the date of an announcement correct. Because one day you might have to do my job, which lets be honest, is f’ing hard.

You, Me and The N.H.S. Makes Three!

Well it's happen… about two weeks ago I ran out of the vitamins I take daily to keep me from getting ill and I woke up yesterday feeling like crud. I told myself no big deal, thinking I was just run down but this morning I woke up feeling like death. I ditched my morning class (bad girl I know) and made my lost way to the closest walk-in GP Centre which is only a few blocks away. For those who don't know what a GP is, it's a general practitioner. He or she is the doctor you go see when you are worried you have the flu.

The whole thing took nearly three hours. Yes, I said 3! But you have to figure you're walking into one of the busiest clinics in all of New Cross that aids in seeing those from Lewisham as well. Even though I felt like hell there was a cute little asian baby keeping me entertained for I didn't think about bringing any kind of reading material with me. Oops! My doctor was fantastic. She took into account my health history which is pretty important for a person with nearly no immune system. I was happy to hear I didn't require antibiotics for my symptoms. For I had caught my illness in it's infant stages.  However I was still given some medications. Three prescriptions for a total of £14.00 and no cost to see the doctor I was set on my way to school.

I have to say thank goodness I'm here in the U.K. studying for this would not have been an option in the states. I'm already feeling a tiny bit better but tonight I'm following doctor's orders with eating ice cream, drinking warm tea and watching Nurse Jackie. Studying can wait til tomorrow. Tonight, it's all about me and my monkey beanie.

The Pressure is On... Welcome to Your Masters Degree

Well the first official week of classes has come and gone and I have to say for studying Television Journalism, this is NOT what I signed up for. And I'm beyond excited! Many know I grew up singing competitively and according to my parents, I've always had an eye for the creative side of life. Never did I think being a journalist and a musician would coincide with each other. As a student in the MA TV journalism program my primary studies consist of learning to use various cameras, numerous editing programs and most of all, thinking outside the box.

Americans watch between a one minute and a two minute, 30 second video on whatever is going on in the news. This is known as a news package. Of course this is apart of my studies but so is the following…. writing, directing and producing music videos, making 30 minute documentaries, creating several short form films AND being commissioned to work with several well known organizations throughout the world on upcoming conferences and celebrations. This includes the world food crisis seminar in the Netherlands and the 50th anniversary of the N.T. here in London. It's all quite interesting when there is more than one news organization interested in purchasing the finished product from a few students just working on their little ol' masters degree.

As for those who are curious about class size and courses taken well here's the truth, I have no say in my classes chosen or their times. I'm in one of the most rigorous majors within the university. That means I am taking 10 courses this term (or semester as some know it to be called), 9 courses in the spring and 1 in the summer. I have a portfolio of works due the end of the spring term, a short film and long documentary due at the end of the summer and my dissertation is due by the end of August. Ugh. Soooo much work but I think if we keep getting commissioned for shoots than it will be pretty easy to stock up on our best work.

Speaking of best of's…. this video has to be one of my favorites for the basics when it comes to video production. Keep in mind it's over 20 years old. But the song is a classic by one of my favorite artist. ENJOY! :)

Colds, Clothes and Cigarettes

To all my reading friends (and friends in real life) my apologizes now but this is more of a rant piece or an overview if you will. While Britain has many qualities there are a few that are disheartening. First, the streets are dirty. That's right, I said DIRTY! During a conversation last week at one of the local pubs one friend ask another why people find it is ok to throw their trash literally in the street. His response, which makes quite a lot of sense was, rubbish (that's trash in British) is highly regulated and people know there are jobs in Britain that include street sweepers and rubbish collectors that they know someone will always clean up after them. Now I'm not talking about trash collectors as in the ones we have in the U.S., I mean people who actually walk up and down the streets of London picking up trash for a living. You are required to recycle here and could be fined if you fail to do so. There are bins to separate plastics, paper, cans, etc. Now I know those in California know exactly what I'm talking about but those in places like Georgia have NO idea. It's rather sad really.

Colds…. When I say colds, I don't mean the weather or people being sick (well sorta), I mean the spreading of germs. People DO NOT cover their mouths when they cough! Ok, I could just be a germ freak, that part is true but when I am less than five feet from you I don't want you coughing your lung up and into the back of bloody head! Didn't your parents ever teach you to cover your mouth!?!?!?!?
Which leads me to the next thing…. Are you from the states and weigh more than 110 pounds wet? Well you're fat and get out of my way! It could just be me but I think the hallways are a little small and people here can't decide if they want to walk on the left or right side so they just bump into you or they get in front of you and slow down to a snail pace. Actually I think snails move faster.

And while I have no problems with smokers, I realized I do now. Maybe I was naive about it in the states but I notice it quite a bit here. I'm cool if you're a smoker but I'm not a fan of it being blown in my face or smelling it every two feet within a five block radius. The one thing I find hilarious is the warning label on British cigarettes. Simply put, "Cigarettes kill." Well geez! Since you put it that way….

The last thing is fashion. Now I know I'm in one of the fashion capitals of the world but the 1980's called and girls, they want their high belly button jeans back. I'm really hoping this isn't the next fashion craze or that is completely misses the U.S. because I WILL laugh at my friends. Thank goodness the hair styles aren't coming back but wearing your jeans up to your chest with leggings underneath followed with low cut boots on your feet sure is. In fact I think the snap bracelets are back in style as well!