Rosie's Ramblings

Somehow, over the last two months, I’ve managed to read quite a few books, eleven, to be exact! This post is a little deep dive into a few of my favourites. As always, if you have any recommendations or reflections, please feel free to comment or message me I’d love to hear them. Len Pennie – Poyums Annaw One of my firm favourites, not just from this season but possibly this entire year is a short collection of poems by Len Pennie. I was given this book for my birthday and ended up reading it in one sitting, taking care to pause between poems to really take in their meaning. The poems switch between Scots and English, and I absolutely loved that. It’s not often you see the Scots language used in contemporary poetry, and I was pleasantly surprised by how easily I could follow along despite it being a “new” language for me. What I appreciated most was how casual and accessible the writing felt. The book tackles heavy topics such as sexual violence and feminism, but does so in a way that’...

Hello, so took me a while but we are back with another entry of politics round up, specifically this one with stories that caught my eye and made me pause for a second. I hope you enjoy it and let me know if you think I should cover some other stories in the future. Hoping that through doing this regularly I will get used to pitching potential articles ideas for my future journalist career ahh.   Charlie Kirk shooting  So we all saw it…. Charlie Kirk getting shot. There are already hundreds of journalists writing about this particular event but I would like to put my opinion on things. It was a horrific thing to watch unfold regardless of your political views. For someone to get shot in a public place especially a political one is unsettling and shocking.  I made a conscious point of not watching the graphic videos that circulated online of the event. I don't think that anyone should be watching someone’s father, husband, friend being killed. I can’t really quite bel...

As I sit in a rainy coffee shop in Glasgow’s West End, I’ve been struggling to write something with any kind of structure. So here we are — me using this blog as a sort of journal entry for what’s been going on in my head. Let’s start with the positives, shall we? The job is going well. I’ve got the hang of what’s expected of me and I’m feeling confident with all my duties. I’m also starting to make friends with my colleagues, which at the start felt like an impossible task. And — the cherry on top — I got paid yesterday, and it was more than expected. So on the job front, things are looking pretty good. Alongside that, I’ve fingers crossed managed to get accommodation sorted for my time in London. It was, in one word, a scramble. With seven girls all trying to get a room, there were always going to be a few who fell to the wayside. Unfortunately, that ended up being me and two of the others. But it just means I might be moving to London a month earlier than expected. It gives me so...

(Written May 2025) The campaign for Glasgow University to divest from arms companies has become one of the most prominent student-led movements in recent years.  As a student, it's difficult to ignore the widespread protests, demonstrations, and hunger strikes that have taken place across campus. The University currently holds investments of nearly £7 million in arms companies - an amount that many students argue contradicts the institution’s commitment to social justice. Despite significant student activism, the University has yet to act, raising the question: are student voices being genuinely listened to, or merely tolerated? Background and Context In recent months, students have mobilised to demand that Glasgow University divest from arms companies as they claim these businesses profit from global conflict and perpetuate violence . Activists argue that such investments undermine the University’s stated values, particularly its public commitment to social responsibility and glo...

This summer I managed to read 20 books - a number I’m really proud of given how busy the past few months have been. I thought I’d share a little reading round-up here: what I loved, what I struggled with, and what surprised me. Hopefully, some of you will agree (or disagree!) with my takes. I’d love to make these reading reflections a more regular thing, so we’ll see how that goes. Favourite Read(s) Starting with the hardest question: what was my favourite read? I couldn’t narrow it down to just one, so I’m cheating and choosing two - both books I devoured towards the end of the summer. Evenings and Weekends - Oisín McKenna This novel completely transported me into the kind of life I imagine myself living in London. It moves through the inner monologues of different characters navigating dreams, disappointments, and everyday struggles. What I loved most was its honesty, you often see the glamorous side of city living, but McKenna shows the reality: people just trying to get by. The...

Hi again,  Whether you count the end of summer as the last day of August or 22nd September it has to be said: autumn is around the corner. As someone who loves big wooly jumpers, cozy reading and quiet evenings in the house, I can’t lie, I am excited. In saying all that, it has been a really great summer and not only am I sad to see it end, I am also definitely feeling the shift between the seasons.  In light of that I wanted to do a little blog reflecting on my summer and how I am feeling going into the new season (spoiler: not all positive feelings). I hope this might resonate with some of you who may be feeling the same way.  Summer highlights  So this summer has been a good one. Not only have I been able to travel loads, I have also managed to spend a lot of time with the people I love including some who I haven’t seen in ages. One massive highlight was my not so aptly named ‘graduation trip’ as it took place before actual graduation… This aside it was one of, if...

Welcome to my first “politics roundup”. As well as the more personal entries I thought I would use this blog to engage my political brain and pull together some stories in the news that caught my attention. This may be due to the politics itself, how it was reported or how it made me think differently on an issue. I have always wanted to do something like this but have never really tried so please bear with me and I will try my best. The other more personal blogs will continue so if you don't care for this, feel free to skip and only read the others. The 2am Trump wake up call I’d like to start with one story that caught my eye as an aspiring journalist. This story provided a sneak peak into the demanding nature of the career. During the summer veteran BBC journalist Gary O'Donoghue was woken up at 2am by Donald Trump calling. Now I don’t think many people would be expecting this but for O'Donoghue this was what he had been waiting for. In a panic he grabbed his recorder b...