What song do you think everyone should listen to once in their life ?
Doing it Right- Middle Kids
What film is a must see ?
The Boat that Rocked
Everyone I meet realises very quickly that I don’t really watch films. I don’t know how many times someone has created a list of films I ‘have to see’ and attempted to work through it (why is Terminator on literally every list??). So it’s probably embarrassing that this has been my favourite film for the past 9 years, it’s definitely more of a nostalgic thing by now. Soundtrack is amazing, it’s genuinely funny, just such a nice feel good film about pirate radio in the 60s.
That or anything Hugh Grant has ever starred in- okay maybe I’m the worst candidate for this question
What book is a must read ?
22/11/63- Stephen King
I read this book back in 2016 and I’m still actively trying to forget it so I can read it again like it’s the first time. Man travels back in time to find out who killed JFK and try to stop it, chaos and complications ensue for 900 odd pages. Beautifully written and so engrossing, every time you put it aside it’s like waking up from a beautiful dream to harsh reality. I’ve honestly not read anything else by Stephen King but god this book was life changing.
What are you most grateful for ?
My people - having a network of diverse, hardworking, supportive and inspiring people in every corner of my world has saved me time and time again, and living with my mother again after 7 years apart was therapeutic and grounding in a way anyone who knows my mother will understand.
My stitching- never has a hobby pulled through like cross stitching has. Tell an embroidery artist they have a long stretch of time where they are not allowed to leave their house or see people and they will tear up with joy. My mum, bless her, opened a bottle of champagne every time I finished 1% in a piece (and was very disappointed when she realised how long that actually takes).
A year ago I was fresh out of quarantine, back home in Iceland, crying on a hill on the phone to my ex boyfriend because it felt like everything was falling apart. I wasn’t sure how I was going to be able to afford to come back to uni, I was back in Húsavík where I didn’t have many friends, I had no idea when or how I’d be able to go back home to Edinburgh. Somehow it all worked out in the most chaotic way- I worked two jobs, cooked mediocre dinner for my mum and her partner every so often, had an incredible and heartbreaking summer love, grew my hair out, went on my silly little jogs and worked on my embroidery. I fell in love with psychology and my degree, made a 10 year plan (god I hate that) and somehow have never been doing better. I also cried a lot and felt trapped and hurt my back (again) and was let down by people close to me, but it wouldn’t have been life otherwise.
Being ripped out of my routine for that amount of time really made me question everything that had built up that routine in the first place and helped me to think hard about why I held the beliefs and patterns that I did, which has been an interesting project to work through. When it’s literally illegal to be around other people you can’t really help but be true to yourself and live in your own routine. I realised that things like traditional relationships don’t really work for me, that nothing will fill me with peace the way cross-stitching does, that Strava is probably the most wholesome social media platform, and that the best way to become a better person is to look closely at what the people that make you feel good are doing, and learn from that. For a while all that self-discovery was so engrossing that I think I disappeared into myself for a bit, so I’m trying to move out of that a little and learn to be a social and supportive creature again, but we’re getting there. It’s been hectic and it’s obviously an immense privilege to even have the time to think about these things, but I’d say that’s one thing I’d recommend- question everything you do and why you’re doing it and why it’s important to you and how it makes you feel, hold people and institutions accountable and listen to the friend that you’re reluctant to ask advice from because you know they’ll give you the best advice you don’t want to hear (you know who you are and I’m terrified of you).
