The rant from the other day.

I am preparing for finals just as my friends are back home. It doesn't seem like I have been going to school long enough to take finals.

I have had to turn in one essay on the significance of religion in Global Politics, and one project on the feminist critique of the medicalisation of childbirth--riveting, I know.

In three weeks I have two final exams, which would normally be a piece of cake...
BUT
I'm actually panicked about them.

Both are essay exams, which I have never had before. My exams in America are pretty much multiple choice.

On top of that, it seems incredibly impossible to get an "A" at this school. Don't get me wrong, the school itself isn't tough, nor is it tough to get into. It would probably be the equivalent of a community college in America. They just do not expect students to make A's. They have explicitly stated in class that we should all strive to simply pass the exams. "To pass this exam, you need to do this..." "To pass this exam, you need to do that..."

Nothing regarding actually excelling in the classes.

If you couldn't tell, I am extremely frustrated by this.

It really creates a "just pass" attitude in the students.

Which is why I don't think UWS is an appropriate exchange university for Mercer. At Mercer, or any other college in America, GPA's really, really matter--especially for students trying to go to grad school. Over here, graduate schools look at whether or not you passed or failed your classes. GPA's don't exist. Most kids are just trying to pass, which is totally what I would do if I were a student here.


But I'm not.
So when it comes time to convert my grades this semester, I will likely end up with a 3.0 because A's just aren't given. Every assignment I turn in ends up so close to an A.

Both professors have told us over and over that grades usually go down for the exams.

Fantastic. Thanks for the encouragement! 

I guess I could get creative with my answers. 

Is it Summer or is it Spring?

Haha

Glasgow weather has been nuts for about a month now.

We had one solid week of perfect weather. I'm talkin' warm sunshine, blue skies...the works! Because that kind of weather is so rare here, the country shuts down when it gets over 50 degrees. People flock to the park and lounge about, ice cream shops are packed and the sunscreen aisles are jammed--I absolutely love it! As soon as I saw those blue skies on Saturday morning, I jumped out of bed, threw on my brightest clothing, and ran to Sainsbury's to buy tacos and Kopparberg!

STOP IT!

Kopparberg is a pear cider from Sweden...aka sweet nectar of the GODS.

But, don't worry, we didn't get too much amazing weather. As you can see from my handy little weather app, it was back to cold and rain on Sunday. 

According to Wikipedia, Scotland gets 180.2 inches of rain, 265 days of the year. That's a whole lot compared to Georgia, which only gets 45 inches per year. 

I take (fab) classes at a gym called Glasgow Club Scotstoun. It takes me about thirty minutes to walk there (because I have stumpy little legs). Anyways, I don't mind the walk because half of it is a nature trail with lots of sweet dogs and pretty flowers. 

Most of the time, the walk is a bit wet, haha.

Turn that peace sign around and you've got yourself a rude hand gesture in Scotland. 

Cherry Blossoms, reminds me of Macon,

I know they say "April showers bring May flowers..." but I'm pretty sure a little bit of sunshine is needed, too. 

Currently prying my foot out of my mouth...

First of all, I think it is important to know that I am extremely respectful of cultures that are different from mine.

For example, when I was younger, my family stopped by an Amish farm to buy yummy produce and baked goods. As we were shopping around, I noticed signs on the walls that asked customers to respect the Amish views on dress and to cover up. Now, I wasn't dressed like hoochie or anything, but my tank top and shorts might have made them feel uncomfortable. So, I jumped back in the car and waited on the fam. 

I recently did something that made me look like the ignorant, close-minded American that unfortunately exists...

After our lecture, we broke out into our discussion groups. As usual, my group wasn't really doing what we were supposed to be doing and the topic of TV came up. I think the Brits almost love TV more than I do! Shows like Idiot Abroad, Geordie Shore and Teen Mom 2 were brought up. Actually feeling "in the loop" for once, I decided to pitch in to the conversation. 

So I brought up My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding. 

I went on about the clothes that the girls wear and "that one wedding where her dress was literally cutting into her hips..."

Nobody was really responding...they actually looked uncomfortable.

Finally, a boy speaks up and says "I'm a Gypsy."

Kill me right now.

I was mortified. I managed to give some sort of an apology. The rest of the class consisted of condescending looks on the stupid, closed-minded American. 

I think I'll just go jump in a loch...

American Idiot.

Last night Ian and I met up with Ben and Chloe.

Ben is a riot. He is sarcastic and he keeps me laughing all the time! Chloe is a little ball of energy and really makes me feel at home because she reminds me of my dear friend Kivi.

We went to a new place (for me) called Kushion. It was packed!

If you've read my past posts, you know that I poke fun at people...a lot. Well, last night I did something really, really stupid, so I thought it was the perfect moment to poke fun at myself and tell you about it.

First of all, at the time of the embarrassing event, I had only consumed a few beverages. Alcohol did not play as big a role as you might think...

So, as girls always do, Chloe and I went to the ladies room.

Let me describe the scene.

Lots of people.

The toilet stalls had doors and they were the floor to ceiling kind, not the kind that you could crawl under (this is an important detail to remember).


I walked into the stall.

It was literally pitch black dark, no light whatsoever. 


I locked the door.

Did my bidnus.

Then I reached to the right to unlock the door and could not find the latch.

I felt around on the right hand side, still no latch.

Then I start to panic.

I thought the handle latch thingy fell off and I was trapped in the stall.


I try to push on the door, no luck.


It's a floor to ceiling stall, so I can't climb under the door, which I totally would have.


Ian is going to have no clue that I am trapped in here, Chloe is going to think that I left the bathroom. I could die in here-- in a bathroom stall, in a club, in Scotland.


Then I started to beat on the door.

People started beating back, asking me if I was okay.

"No I'm not okay, I'm stuck. I can't get the door open."


After trying to literally break down the door, I feel the handle latch thingy on the left hand side of the door.

Then I unlock the door, and walk out of the stall.

In America the handle is always on the right.  My bad.

XOXO-EmbarrassedAmerican

Hey, remember that time I tried out for X Factor?

A few weeks ago, Ian's sister notified me that UK X Factor auditions were happening in Glasgow. Literally ten minutes away. 


I agreed to do it as long as Ian also auditioned.

Unfortunately, Ian came down with a "sinus infection" that left his Johnny Cash song a little rocky, so he decided not to audition.

We woke up super early and got to the SECC by 7 AM. We lined up in the freezing cold, expecting to audition soon.

Boy were we wrong.

Instead of having everyone line up inside the convention center, they have everyone line up outside, in the  cold so they can get camera shots of the crowds.

They wanted us to scream, cheer and go crazy. All I did was shiver, roll my eyes, and avoid the second hand smoke from the people around me.

What was the best thing about this part of the experience?

 People watching.
             Glasgow always surprises me with its outlandish fashion. However, the people really outdid themselves for the X Factor! There were girls waiting outside for hours in tiny shorts and tank tops. There was a guy in a leather kilt and a man dressed like a monk. My favorite was a guy with multicolored sequins on his face (paired with gold, glitter platforms of course).

Lots of people.

Dermot O'Leary (UK's version of Ryan Seacrest!)

Big Scottish flag that was passed over the crowd.

The cheering that went on for hours.

The guy with the fantastic hair wore the leather kilt. He mooned the audience many times.

So, after six hours of cheering for the cameras, they finally let everyone inside to audition.

Basically they have probably twelve booths set up with one or two X Factor producers inside each booth. 

There was a kid in front of me that was auditioning for his fourth time. He said that I may not feel nervous now, but once I get in the booth it will seem very cold and my throat would close up. 

I think he was just trying to psych me out.

Anyways, I got into the booth to find two X Factor producers. They asked me where I was from, why I was in Glasgow, and what I was going to sing.

I sang It Will Rain by Bruno Mars. 

One of the producers said she "Loved to hear me sing," and asked me to sing another.

And they put me through to the next round.

I'm going to Hollywood...oh wait...that's American Idol.

So, that sounds great, right? Not so fast!

I showed up the next day for my audition and they asked if I had a work visa...oopsies. No visa, no singing for me.


 So, being an illegal alien for me and a "sinus infection" for Ian quickly put a halt on our X Factor experience.

It was a really, really neat experience, though. It definitely opens your eyes to what really occurs with programs like X Factor and American Idol. The people you see auditioning for the judges have actually probably been through five rounds of auditions...nuts!


XOXO-Kels