Hello friends,

Once again, I've proven to be an awful regular blogger. In my defence, I've had a heck of a lot of work to do over the last two months or so, but I currently have nothing to do, so I'll write an update. All in all, it's not been the best two months, with thanks to a few unfortunate events mixed in with my own stupidity.

Beginning at my own stupidity, in the last few months, it's come to my attention just how awful I am with money. I have been absolutely, completely, totally and utterly broke for just about two months now (yes - I even used all of my overdraft). This came as a result of careless spending (not even on anything of substance - just the odd £10 and the odd £20), trying to keep up with friends who have a fair amount more money than I do, and not even attempting to keep track of it all. Budgeting is so easy, and I never once thought to do it, leading to a very broke and often very bored Ashleigh. I've been seriously bailed out by the Royal Bank of Mam and Dad when it comes to food and bills, and all the necessary stuff, but I'm lucky I have them. If I didn't I would be well and truly on my arse. So a great lesson has been learned, and will be put into practise next term - BUDGET BUDGET BUDGET.

On to horrible misfortune - my aunty was diagnosed with breast cancer back in September. It was all treatable, and an operation removed the tumor, but she still had to undergo chemotherapy, which she started a few weeks ago. Obviously, it's great news that it's treatable, but it's still shaken us as a family. It's not something you imagine to be a part of your life until it actually happens. The chemo is making her really sick too, and she'll be receiving treatment right up until the day before Christmas eve, which means she'll be feeling rough over Christmas. But we'll make the best of it, and make sure she has the best time she can. These kind of situations are all about positive mentality, which she has thankfully pulled right out of the bag. I know she'll be back on her feet and fighting fit again soon, and I can't wait for her to get there.

Misery struck again last week, as my dog Jess died at the age of 13. Again, this was something I didn't expect to affect me quite as much as it did, and I still haven't been home since happened, so heading home from university for Christmas is going to be weird this week. She was such a sweet little dog - an absolute idiot, but lovely. She's been part of the family since I was 6, and she's going to be missed.

Onto a more positive note - last week, I had the news that I'll be spending a year at the University of New Mexico next academic year! It wasn't my first choice (or any of my choices, to be honest) so I was initially quite disappointed, but then I took a moment to think about it. I would never have chosen to even visit New Mexico, let alone study there, so I'd never know what I was missing out on. Being placed somewhere out of my comfort zone is actually a great thing. My first choices for the universities were places I'm going to want to visit in two years, five years, and further into the future, and they're still going to be there when I'm done with university! But for now, I'm excited for my placement, and I'm happy. I'll be making another blog for my time over there, as it's something I'd really like to document and look back on. But I'll worry about that come next August when I'm jetting off. 

As of right now, it's the last week of the semester. I've but one presentation remaining, and then I'm free to leave. I actually can't wait go home this year. In the first year, nobody seemed to want to leave for Christmas, but it seems to be a completely different ball game - everyone's exhausted and ready for their home comforts! I'm headed to London for the weekend on Friday to stay with Emily, my cousin-turned-Mary-Poppins who now lives in Clapham. I may make a post about it... but I'm not promising anything.

Until next time, buddies.

xoxo

McBusted: Truth Time

Hello friends.

So this has been something that's been brewing in my mind for quite some time now. I have a lot of opinions on this, and I've seen that many many others do too. So... McBusted.

I love McFly. I love Busted. As a girl who grew up in the Noughties, it was inevitable that I'd fall in love with these bands. Their catchy songs, their (in hindsight, god-awful image but) dashing good looks, everything about them was, and still is brilliant. I was devastated when Busted split up, but at least we still had McFly to carry us through the years.

I never forgot about Busted, don't get me wrong. I still have their albums on my iTunes, and I still listen to them from time to time. But I listen to them nostalgically. I listen to Crashed The Wedding and I think about school discos and boys sliding on their knees whilst the girls argued over which member of Busted they were going to marry. I listen to Year 3000 and remember my absolute horror when discovering The Jonas Brothers (our music fan base enemy) had covered it. Busted and their music remind me of so much of my childhood.

And then we have McFly. The band who stayed with us right up until we were adults. We watched them grow up whilst they provided the soundtrack to us growing up. We saw them progress as artists, changing their sound as they grew. Alright, we can all agree that Above The Noise was a bit of a hiccup, but then they brought out this book that admitted it wasn't their best, and filled us with hope of the valiant return of McFly, and promised us a ton of new music. Us as fans were damn excited! We had our boys - now men - dressed in smart suits with a more mature, yet still fun-loving sound and the Galaxy Defenders loved it.

And then it happened.

Now, I was there for one of the dates James Bourne supported McFly on their tour. It was great, because everybody in that arena was absolutely bursting with nostalgia. Arguably, this should have been the end of the Busted revival. But obviously, this is where the McBusted idea was born, and were then included in McFly's 10 year anniversary shows. This could also be argued as the place McBusted should have stopped. It was nostalgic, it was fun... it was enough.

Okay, okay. Give them a tour. They were obviously enjoying themselves. I went to the Cardiff date of the McBusted tour (I was very ill, but I went anyway) and I'll admit - it was a damn good show and I had a really good time. Again, it was extremely nostaglic and everybody was there to remember, and relive.

There's no argument to it. This is where McBusted should have ended.

Here's my argument. Busted were a very successful band in their day. But today isn't their day. They ended all those years ago for a reason. Busted was a threesome, and should always remain one. I know they're friends, and I know they were invited, but it just doesn't seem fair for two members to latch on to a band who are still doing incredibly well for themselves, who have god knows how many fans waiting on their new material. Not McBusted, but McFly.

It was revealed at some point that McFly have two whole recorded albums, just sitting on a shelf doing nothing. The fans are dying to hear this music, and now we don't even know if we ever will. And it's frustrating. It's like dangling something you've wanted for ages in front of your face then pulling it away and replacing it with something old you used to have 10 years ago.

I know I sound harsh and bitter, but the truth of it is, it's what a large majority of fans are thinking. However, there is another side to the story, and something we have to consider.

All our lives, we've had mentors and people we look up to tell us, "Chase your own dreams. Never be pressured into doing something you don't want to do. Do what makes you happy." That's what McBusted are doing. They are a group of friends taking charge of their own careers and altering them slightly to do something they're evidently having the time of their lives doing. Yes, they have an audience to entertain... but do we as an audience hold the right to tell them not to do what they're loving doing?  Do we really hold the right to spam their instagrams and twitters with "wee hate McBusted" and so on?

We all have the right to our opinions. But they also have the right to work on whatever projects they like. If we don't like it, we don't have to consume it. If you're sick of it, just stop buying the music. Don't go to the concerts. But don't just sit behind a screen and throw abuse at them. They know that what they're doing won't please everyone, and that's a decision they've obviously made. It's a disappointment to a lot of people, but that's life. They're having a whale of a time, and it's been long enough for me to become indifferent to it.

In short, I suppose this post is here to say if you don't like it, you're not alone because neither do I. But we don't have the right to dictate their careers. Just find another band to listen to if it bothers you that much.

Do let me know if you agree, or maybe if you think I've been too harsh. I've stated my opinions, but I wouldn't say they were hateful. It's all interpretation, I suppose.

That's it, I think. Yeah.

Until next time, muchachos

xoxo

Two Months Later: I AM SO BAD AT THIS!

Hello friends.

Well, the inevitable has happened. I feel behind on my blog. AND I WAS DOING SO WELL!

I'm not entirely sure what happened. I just lost my motivation over summer, ironically being the period of time in which I had the most free time. It's not as if I had nothing to write about, either. I just lost the muse to do so. So I suppose this will be a whirlwind catch up.

In the middle of July, I went to France for two weeks with the father and brother. I'll be honest; my expectations were not sky high. I knew we were staying in a caravan (meaning personal space was limited, shall we say) and I definitely knew just how annoying these two individuals can be. But all in all, it was actually a very nice holiday. Unavoidably, my brother was a stroppy, grumpy teenager for a considerable amount of time, but I only nearly killed him once, which is a positive. The weather was beautiful for the majority of our stay, so there were plenty of pool days (we only went to the beach once, which I regret because the sea was absolutely gorgeous) and even - would you believe - a light tan. I also ate a truck load of lovely food, but I'm also happy about the fact that I managed to stay relatively healthy. I do love a good salad, and I indulged in plenty over the two weeks. All in all, a very happy fourteen days.

My dad, myself and my brother on the way to France! Possibly the only nice picture of the three of us since the brother was in nappies.

A bonus highlight of the holiday was the revelation of my dad's apparent love for 5 Seconds of Summer. Since falling in love with them and their music a few months ago, I've slowly wormed their songs into car playlists and such. Seeing as we drove to France, I brought the album, hoping for a few cheeky plays. I'm not kidding when I tell you that it was on repeat for the entire trip. All of it. And I'm also not kidding when I tell you that it's still in his car. He hasn't switched CDs. My dad listens to 5 Seconds of Summer every day, and he drives around for a living. You can't make this up. Well done, 5SOS!

Then came August, bringing the absolute best weekend of my life. Ever. I went to Reading Festival. There are simply no words to explain how much I enjoyed myself. Unfortunately, some of the people I went were, to put it politely, dicks. But honestly, it doesn't matter. I stayed with the people I liked and had an absolute blast. In total, I saw Jimmy Eat World, Foster the People, The Kooks, The Horrors, Jake Bugg, Clean Bandit, Imagine Dragons, A Day To Remember, The 1975, Paramore, Disclosure and Arctic Monkeys.

Some absolute highlights included a moment where Paramore's sound system cut out, and they were left with one working microphone and an acoustic guitar, and the crowd sang The Only Exception (it was so overwhelming, I actually cried), the Arctic Monkeys set in its entirety (even though I had lost all my friends by this point), and The 1975, who absolutely blew me away. Matty Healy is a true star. And then there's the Disclosure set, which blew my head off. I'm not necessarily a fan of that kind of music, but that set was like some kind of religious experience. I was absolutely entirely consumed by the whole affair (okay - I wasn't exactly sober but THAT'S NOT THE POINT) and I think being around five rows from the front in a tent overflowing with tens of thousands of people may have contributed to that. When it was over, I felt like I had been dragged through a bush backwards, and I couldn't help but think that's how you're supposed to feel after something like that. It was surreal and incredible and I cannot wait to go back next year. (I would insert a photo here, but between a combination of no phone battery and enjoying myself far too much to document ever move, I ended up taking about two photos all weekend. Oops.)

So here we are in September! It's been a slow starter - nothing all too exciting has happened, but I moved into my new house for uni today! I absolutely love my room, even if the house could do with a few improvements on the whole. I may do a house/bedroom theme post in the future when it's all completely decorated and looking lovely. Who knows?

And that's pretty much it for now. I hope I've patched up the two-month hole in my blog somewhat, and now that I'm back at uni, I'll probably find motivation to continue blogging more frequently. (Let's be honest, what motivates me to write these things is knowing that it's more fun than doing something important like working. Procrastination Level 100!)

Until next time, chums!

xoxo

Birthday Lush Haul!

Hello Friends!

So last Friday was my 19th birthday and I must say, I was slightly spoilt, particularly in the Lush department. Finally, my hinting Instagram pictures, tweets and Snapchats have paid off and the people around me have at last realised that I'm now partial to the odd Lush product.

Quite a few of them a new to me, but I'm excited to give them all a go. But nevertheless, I thought I'd make a little post including all of my little treats. Enjoy and be jealous!

Here's the Creamy Candy bubble bar - I had The Comforter too, but managed to use that one before I even had chance to take a picture of the whole thing, I only used just over half, but it was still the bubbliest bath I have ever seen!

The old trusty Big Blue. I've bought this quite a few times myself and I am obsessed with the smell of this. It's not sweet and it's not anything else either. It's just bloody lovely.

The Sex Bomb. Y'know, just in case. (As if.)

Space Girl. I've bought this myself before too. I was apprehensive about the glitter at first because I didn't really fancy emerging from the bath looking like a disco ball, but it's actually just a really subtle shimmer that doesn't even stick to you. It just looks nice in the water!

Dragon's Egg. I've never had this before but it just looks and smells mightily refreshing.  And it's massive, so there's extra time to marvel at the fizzing of it. It really does fascinate me.

Sakura. Now according to the Lush website, this fellow will 'evoke the first sign of optimism the first sign of spring brings'.  I'm told I'm quite a pessimistic person. Let's see if this balances out, shall we?

Last but not least, Think Pink. It's another ol' faithful, this one. When I think of Lush, I think of this bath bomb. I don't know why. I just do!

So there we have it. I have officially found an incentive to bathe. I've always been a shower person, entirely against the idea of lying in a pool of my own filth, but Lush just changes things, doesn't it? Lovely jubbly. 

Until next time, amigos!

xoxo

(ps. After taking all the pictures for this, I now can't stop smelling my hands. SO GOOD, MAN.)

Mid-Year Check In

Hello friends,

Blogging has been a bit slow over the last few weeks as I've been enjoying the remainder of my time as a Fresher. So this post will be a fill-in of what has happened recently, but is mostly a check-in point for the year. A progress log, if you will, of how my year has been going.

So Friday was the day I said goodbye to the Swansea Student Village, where I've been living for my first year of uni. The process of leaving was a surreal feeling, watching everything gradually being packed up over the last week or so. I may have been back and forth from home a lot throughout the year, but I still became immensely attached to the village. It was like a tacky little holiday camp, but has left me with some incredible memories. What was nice about the last few weeks was that my housemates and I seemed to come together and become closer than ever before. Admittedly, I've had my ups and downs with the people I've lived with, and I've felt let out on numerous occasions, just because I feel like I'm very different to some of them, but none of that seemed to matter over the last few weeks. Obviously, the idea of being separated for three months dawned on us (and in my case, a lot longer, as I won't be living with them next year) and we've all kind of clung onto each other. We've made the absolute most of the Swansea night life and spent way more nights in watching films and TV shows together as our little family. It's been really nice, and I'm really going to miss my little crumbums next year (inside joke - anybody seen We're The Millers?).

Ready for the summer ball. I'm going to miss these freaks!

So now I'm back home for the summer, desperately seeking a job or something to do with my time that'll cost me no money, especially now I have reason to save. I bought a weekend ticket for Reading festival this August. At first, only a small group of us were going but now more and more of my friends seem to be buying tickets. It's going to be quite the weekend, and I'm extremely excited for the whole affair! I also have a fortnight in France with the family to look forward too, which should be nice. There's also my birthday at the end of this month, where I get to see some lovely people I haven't seen in a long while (cough +Rachel Bott) and have some self-indulgent fun. I have faith in this summer. I think I'm going to have a lot of fun!

Now onto the evaluative side of this blog. At the beginning of the year, I set myself a few goals for the year. They weren't strict resolutions, just a few things I thought would improve my 2014. So how am I doing so far?

Blogging: So far so good, right? In January, I set myself a target of at least one blog post a month. As it turns out, I have a lot more to talk about than I expected to, and I've posted twelve posts since that target. A few of my posts on what I would consider to be more important topics have done pretty well too, which I'm happy about. Apparently, I can speak a lot more sense than I thought sometimes! I'm just enjoying documenting and writing about some of the things in my life and I definitely want to keep this up.

Living: In January, I didn't think I was using my time wisely enough. This probably came from the fact that deep down, I was disappointed with my first term at university. It wasn't anything like I expected it to be, and I felt like I wasn't doing enough to enjoy it. But I do think I've done a lot more in the second half of the academic year. I've gone out a lot more, I've expanded my friendship group and I've generally made more of an effort to be open to new possibilities. As a result, I do thing I'm living a lot more. Obviously, I still spend a massive chunk of my time in front of my beloved laptop... but baby steps, guys. Baby steps!

Image: The goal was to either change myself until I could find an image I was happy with, or to ease myself into being comfortable in my own skin. I expected fulfilling this goal to be a lot harder than it was. This year, I'm beginning to realise that, holy shit, I'm not ugly. Am I overweight? Yes. Does that define me? Not really. Obviously I have my down days where I look in the mirror and see precisely nothing that I like, but those days are becoming less frequent. I've found a balance between dressing and finding an image that I'm comfortable with, and not giving a damn what other people think of me. If I feel good, why should I care about what other people think? The other night, I got called a 'fat bitch' by an absolute idiot in a drunken state. Had that happened some time last year, it would have sent me into a spiral of self hate. But you know what? I really do not care. 

Positivity: I have a friend who says I'm the most pessimistic person he has ever met. The more he says that, the more I play up to it, because our friendship thrives from that kind of banter. But whilst I have a strong ability to be a pessimistic hypochondriac-diva, I'm actually more positive now than I've been for a while. And I think my response to the previous three goals has proven that. So yes - so far, so good!

There's one more thing that can't go without a mention. After my Gran died in April after suffering with dementia, I promised myself I'd become more involved with related charity communities. So this weekend, I signed up to a Memory Walk in aid of the Alzheimer's Society, with all of my family. It's such a wonderful charity who do a lot to help people who suffer from dementia and their families. The walk is sponsored, so if you're in a position to donate, here is a link to my JustGiving page, where you can also find some details about the work the charity does and the event itself. 

So that concludes my June check-in. Here's to another six months of positivity!

Until next time, muchachos!

xoxo

May Catch Up!

Hello friends!

I haven't written anything for a few weeks now, so I thought we'd play catch up. May has been quite a busy month for me so far and I can't quite believe that it's just over a week from being over already! But now that I'm done with university work for the year and I have some more free time, here are a few stand outs of the month.

May didn't get off to a great start for me. As I may have mentioned once or twice, my immune system isn't great, and right from week 1 of May, I had managed to land myself a kidney infection. It started off with me either being boiling to the touch whilst shivering uncontrollably, or a human ice cube whilst sweating like a pig. Then came the agonising pain that felt like somebody kicking me very very hard in my sides constantly for the best part of a week, resulting in a stable diet of cocodamol and antibiotics and virtually nothing else (you know I'm really ill when I lose my appetite - this was serious business here!).

But, to brighten up my week of illness, I carted myself off to Cardiff to see McBusted at the Motorpoint Arena, with my two best friends, my aunty and two other chaps. I might have been in pain, but I have to say - the show was AWESOME. I felt like I was 8 years old again, finally getting the chance to see Busted live after being deprived of such a treat the first time round! I had more than enough fun to forget about the state of my health, and it's always lovely to see the McFly boys perform. We were stood right at the back of the arena as we arrived quite late (cocktails took priority - sorry boys!) but it made no difference, as far as I'm concerned. I still enjoyed every song they played and managed to get one or two great photos with the added bonus of extra room to dance!

Doug's wonderful rendition of My Heart Will Go On - hilarious.

The next thing was to move back to Swansea for the last term of my first year in uni. I didn't have a great deal to do but seeing as I was paying full rent, I figured I would make the most of the Student Village. I had one essay to write which, for a change, I feel fairly confident about. Then I had some time to just chill out with friends. The weather has been pretty amazing recently (she says confidently whilst a thunderstorm cracks into action outside) so everybody has been outside in the sun having barbecues and playing ball games, like a good old fashioned 'summer'. It's been pretty awesome! But unfortunately, it couldn't last forever. I still had one exam to go so inevitably, I had to do some revision.  I may have gone slightly overboard with the visual learning, but what can I say? It works for me. 

My wall of knowledge. Actually covers the length of my bed.

Another treat May brought me was a trip to London to see We Will Rock You. The show closes in the West End at the end of this month, so I absolutely had to see it before it left. Not only am I still in love with the show from when my school performed it back in 2011 (I could still quote most of the script and sing every note of every song, and had to try very hard to keep my mouth shut during the performance!), but my absolute favourite West End star, Oliver Tompsett was playing the lead role of Galileo Figaro. I fell in love with him as Fiyero in Wicked, and my adoration has only multiplied by seeing him in this role. He is so talented, it physically hurts me. I recommend anyone who likes musical theatre to just find something he's in and go see it. I'm not sure what his next show is, but when I do I'll be sure to share. You should also check out this song to give yourself an idea of the ridiculous smoothness of his voice. So obviously, I very much enjoyed the show. I'm sure it's touring again some time in the near future, so be sure to see it if it plays near you! 

I also had a whiz around the London Eye whilst I was in the city, which I had never done before. It was a cool experience - I found it a little surreal seeing so much flat, built-up land coming from a tiny valley with a mountain in every direction you look. 

So after these treats, I returned to Costa del Swan for some last minute revision and to sit that dreaded Politics exam (which was held in an Indian restaurant - quite bizarre). It could have gone better, but then again, it could have gone worse. All I know is I'm glad to have it over with and I can safely declare my first year of university over!

So that's been my May so far. It's definitely been better than April, I'll tell you that for nothing. Next month should be fun with the end of year shenanigans, the summer ball and of course, my birthday! 

Until next time, muchachos!

xoxo

A Wicked Evening!

Hello friends!

Yesterday was a pretty awesome day for me, mostly because I got to see my favourite musical ever Wicked for the third time! I knew it was the closing night last night, so literally the first thing I thought of when I woke up in the morning was Wicked. Then to add insult to injury, I saw about ten pictures of the opening scenery from various other Wicked lovers on Facebook, and I was absolutely gutted I hadn't had chance to see it while it was at the Millennium Centre in Cardiff. But then, a change in the weather was to come! I got a phone call from my lovely chummy +Ffion Thomas, asking me if I wanted to go with her and her family, as her brother's girlfriend couldn't go any more (for very good reason, too!). She didn't need to ask twice - I WAS GOING!

The opening scenery - I'm always mesmerised by that map!

 

I had been to London twice before to see Wicked, both times with the same cast. There's always apprehension about touring productions and different casts, especially when what you had seen the first time was absolute perfection. But I have to say, this production did not even slightly disappoint. Obviously it was a little different, and I have my favourites from both casts, but it was truly incredible. I don't know if it's because I'm a few years older than last time I saw it, or maybe because I've been in more productions myself since then, but I noticed so many more details this time around, like the absolutely obscene standard of dancing throughout, or how tight and powerful the harmonies of the chorus were. In particular, the Dancing Through Life and One Short Day sequences showed off the amazing chorus, and still remain as my favourite scenes.Not to mention our lovely Fiyero and Elphaba nailing one of my favourite duets ever, As Long As You're Mine. I'm just in awe. Everything was amazing. I recommend absolutely anyone to buy tickets to see Wicked, either on the remainder of its tour, or on the West End. It is powerful, moving, funny and witty (seriously, some of the Wizard of Oz references are brilliant!). There's a reason this is my favourite show. Okay, I think I'm done gushing now. 

And of course, there was an excellent reason I got my hands on that ticket! Ffion's brother's girlfriend, Sophie, had gone into labour earlier in the day. Then in the opening bars of One Short Day, we got a phone call from the hospital and a little wave of commotion made its way across our row as we learned that Ffion's second nephew, Daniel Ray Jones had made his way into the world safely. Congratulations, Aunty Ffi! 

So I said this post was going to be happy, and I think this pretty much stepped up to the cause! An all round excellent evening to write about.

Until next time, amigos!

xoxo

Why Dementia Sucks.

Hello friends, I'm afraid another serious post is upon us. Hopefully the posts following this will be far lighter reading, but this is an important topic, and is something that's shaken me to the core for the last few weeks.

On Wednesday 9th April, my family sadly lost my grandmother to Alzheimer's disease. She had been in hospital for a few weeks and her health had been deteriorating severely and quickly. By the end of it, we were just glad to see the end of her suffering, regardless of how difficult it was for the rest of us. I wasn't exceptionally close to my gran in the later years of her life, but she was always there, and before her dementia got the better of her, always brightened the room and brought a smile. I was shaken by her death more than I ever expected to be (not that I really knew what to expect, having never lost a close family member until now).

But this post isn't necessarily about my loss or my mourning. It's about the disease that brought it about. Over the past few months, I've done quite a bit of research into Alzheimer's and other causes of dementia. Dementia is a difficult term to explain articulately, but it's basically progressive damage to nerves in the brain, causing loss of memory, confusion and other symptoms which are all hard to watch someone experience. Here is a basic summary of the disease and its symptoms, or this video explains it all equally as well.

 But what I've come to realise is that regardless of how destructive it is and how big a scale it affects people on, there still seems to be a stigma of some sort around the disease. Whilst research and support organisations exist, they are nowhere near as well-known as organisations for the likes of cancer and other diseases. I just find this hard to believe and frankly, ridiculous, when dementia accountable for so many deaths. In less than ten years, over 1 million people in the UK alone will have some kind of dementia. And yet nobody in the media, in politics or anywhere else that would raise awareness seems to talk about it.

Fortunately, I have found an organisation that sparks some hope to the cause. What I want to do more than anything is to help break the stigma surrounding dementia and Alzheimer's, and to see a more public approach to tackling the disease as a whole. The comedy genius and all-round legend, Seth Rogen has taken a strong step towards making this happen. He and his wife have set up an organisation called Hilarity For Charity, in aid of Alzheimer's. He has also made a great effort to expose the disease to the American public and government. Here is a video of his speech to Congress on the matter. I urge you to watch it, because he truly hits the nail on the head.

So that's pretty much it. All I want to do is spread awareness in the hope that Alzheimer's and other causes of dementia become better recognised so that more people can be successfully diagnosed, sufferers and carers can have the level of support they deserve and to make the campaign against dementia as big as campaigns for other illnesses. Please do give these videos a watch, and if you're affected by any of this personally, I urge you to get involved in some way, whether that's by sharing your experience, joining in a charity event or even creating your own, which is something I hope and aim to do in the near future. 

Until next time, amigos

xoxox

(ps. I promise my next post will be something a little more smiley. Here's to hoping the rough times have come to an end for now!)

Panic Attacks

Hello friends!

Two blog posts in two days - now this is a record. But today's post is a little more serious and a little more personal than the last. Yesterday, I read Zoella's blog post about panic attacks. I have no idea how I hadn't read it before now, considering it's been on the internet for around three years, but there you go. So having heard her story, I thought I would explain mine too.

My experience with panic attacks hasn't necessarily been the longest of struggles, in fact they began fairly recently. As I may have mentioned, 2012 was by far the worst year of my life so far. As far as I'm concerned, it's one big black hole I choose to forget about wherever possible. But around September time of 2012 was when I had my first panic attack.

I had been out with friends in the evening and when I got home, I discovered that my mother was staying over her boyfriends for the night, so I was home alone. That had never been a problem for me, in fact I usually enjoy being alone for a while. However, I was in a pretty dark place at the time, and while it was easy to be okay around friends as I was always distracted, things tended to turn ugly when I didn't have something to think about. I don't actually remember much about the night so I can't say for certain what triggered, but I would assume the feeling of anxiety came along with the feeling of loneliness and depression. I found myself getting upset and locked myself in the bathroom to calm down, except it didn't quite go to plan. I broke down completely and began to feel really short of breath. My chest was tightening, I felt dizzy, and I was hysterically crying, which I'm sure did not help. I don't know how long I was like that for - it felt like forever, but was probably around fifteen minutes. It was one of the scariest thing I've ever experienced.

After the first attack, I didn't have another for what seemed like ages. I thought it may have been a one off, but when it happened again, I recognised it immediately. I was in a night club, in the busiest room. I had been drinking, so my senses were already heightened, and I found myself being pushed back towards the speakers. Again, I felt dizzy and my chest was tightening. But this time, a huge group of my friends were there watching me, asking me what was wrong. I felt like I was being suffocated and I just wanted to get out. The feeling is honestly inexplicable - like everything you feel, hear and see blur into one huge, overwhelming mess.

After that occasion, the panic attacks have since become more of a regular thing. I don't suffer terribly, I can still live my life normally, but I'm always wary that something will go wrong and I'll start panicking. One of my biggest fears at the moment is panicking in a lecture at uni, or somewhere out in public during the day. Most of my attacks have been in night clubs, crowded spaces or at least at night time. It's embarrassing being in university and going out with new people, only to end the night prematurely with panicking and crying that I honestly can't control, especially when the new people I'm out with think I'm just being stupid and drunk-crying.

When I panic, I've learned that there are a few things I need to happen in order for me to calm down. I don't know if these apply to anybody else, but just in case you're ever out with me and it happens (who knows?!), here are my please dos and please don'ts.

1. Please just get me outside as quickly as you can.
2. Please don't ask me what's wrong. The likelihood is, I'll struggle to reply with "I can't breathe."
3. Please try to find some water for me. I promise I'd ask for it myself if I could.
4. Please don't try to make me do stupid exercises to calm me down. Like Zoella pointed out, saying the alphabet, counting your fingers or anything of the sort only frustrate me more, and that unfortunately doesn't help.
5. Please find a wall for me to sit upright against. I'm not really sure why this helps me, but it does.
6. Please don't try to hug me or rub my back, or anything like that. It just makes me feel like I'm being suffocated. Crowding around me feels terrifying too, since that was what probably caused me to panic in the first place. What might help, however, is a cheeky squeeze of the hand. Sorry in advance if I squish it. 

So that's all I can think of, really. I thought I would make this post because I've heard a few comments about panic attacks lately that haven't particularly thrilled me. They're really not cool, so please try to be understanding, and all I can do is apologise for ruining your night or stressing you out. I hope this helps at least somebody!

Until next time, darlings!

xoxo

Ideal Roadtrip Playlist TAG!

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Hello, friends!

A few weeks ago, the lovely +Rachel Bott tagged me in a post, and I'm only just getting around to responding because of a few crazy weeks of uni work. So this will be an IRP post, which stands for Ideal Roadtrip Playlist. It's not going to be quite as long as Rachel's extensive post, but I thought I'd make a list of some oldie-but-goodies, and some songs that are really getting me in the mood for summer!

1. Rather Be - Clean Bandit ft. Jess Glynne 

2. Best Song Ever - One Direction

3. Best Day Of My Life - American Authors

4. Paradise City - Guns N' Roses

5. (I Can't) Forget About You - R5

6. Starships - Nicki Minaj

7. Chasing The Sun - The Wanted

8. American Idiot - Green Day

9. Dress and Tie - Charlene Kaye ft. Darren Criss

10. Red Lights - Tiesto

11. September - Earth Wind and Fire

12. Bubbles - Biffy Clyro

13. We Built This City - Starship

14. She Moves in Her Own Way - The Kooks

15. Brave Heart - Neon Jungle

16. In Too Deep - Sum 41

17. I Bet You Look Good On The Dance Floor - Arctic Monkeys

18. Somebody Told Me - The Killers

19. In This City - Iglu and Hartly

20. Town Called Malice - The Jam

21. Love Drunk - Boys Like Girls

22. Lies - McFly

23. Kiss N' Tell - Ke$ha 

24. Counting Stars - OneRepublic

25. I Predict a Riot - Kaiser Chiefs

26. I'll Be There For You - The Rembrandts 

27. Pompeii - Bastille 

28. No Tomorrow - Orson

29. How Ya Doin'? - Little Mix

30. Jump - Van Halen 

So there you have it! Thirty songs that would significantly improve any journey I was to travel. Some are better known than others, but they all just make me want to go drive somewhere (if I could drive, that is). Do feel free to make your own post involving Rachel's invented tag. 

Until next time, chums!

xo

Why Eating Is Important: Concert Edition

Hello friends!

So I have a tale to tell, and hopefully, a lesson will come from it. But in honesty, it's mostly about some more wild misfortune on my behalf.

Yesterday, I went to the O2 in London to see R5. I was extremely excited, seeing as I had such a good time the last time I saw them. I was up bright and early at 5:30am without even having trouble getting out of bed - I was SO ready. So after a four hour journey to London, we reach the point where they day begins to go swiftly down hill. As we were on the tube to North Greenwich, I began to feel really sick. Not just the horrible feeling in your stomach, but the next stage, where every part of your body is silently screaming "oh god, I'm actually about to throw up." A truly horrible start.

So as we arrive at the O2, my gut instinct was proven correct and (TMI alert) I pretty much threw my guts up. Gone were the minimal nutrients of my McDonalds snack wrap breakfast. And I'm certain that I'm not alone when I say that the last thing you want to do after being sick is eat, so popping somewhere for lunch was well and truly off the cards for me. I just joined the queue and felt sorry for myself for a solid four hours. On top of the sicky feeling, I was also shivering uncontrollably. No matter how much I tried to warm myself up, or how many jackets I had draped over my body, I just couldn't stop. I was hoping that moving into the venue itself would warm me up, but that wasn't to be either. And this is where things take yet another turn for the worse.

Let's weigh things up here. I had been up and about since 5:30am after just over four hours sleep. I was running on empty because of my little stomach mis-hap. I was shivering as if Elsa had just struck my damn heart with the coldest of ice blasts. Things really were not looking good, and it really didn't come as a surprise when I started to feel faint. I was struggling to stay on my feet, and after classily blacking out in the bathroom, a member of staff took it upon themselves to escort me to the medics room, which meant I missed the support acts, which is a shame. After being poked and prodded, they declared my blood pressure and sugar to be low and summoned me to buy some food. And reluctant as I was to eat, I honestly felt so much better once I had. I still wasn't right, but I was better, and felt well enough to be able to actually enjoy the concert.

So with my new found energy, I sang, clapped and cheered my way through R5's set, which was absolutely fantastic, may I say. We were treated with a surprise appearance from The Vamps, too, which was awesome. I may have had an awful build-up, but they certainly didn't disappoint. Here you go, have a picture.

So what's the lesson here? Well, what I learned from the whole day was that it's really important to look after yourself on the day of an event like this. And here is how I recommend you do so:

1. Stay hydrated. Drinking plenty of water is a good thing, but also try to drink something with some sugar in it, like full-fat Coke or fruit juice. My blood sugar is what let me down!
2. Sleep when you can. I didn't sleep on the bus to London and I really should have. I also should have gotten more than 4 hours the night before. A school-girl error on my behalf!
3. Eat! Even if you're feeling sick, or you're not particularly hungry, you need to eat something. Because it's going to get hot in there, and who wants to be that lame person who faints and has to be dragged over the barrier lacking consciousness in front of people they idolise?
4. Bring emergency drugs. I was genuinely ill yesterday, aside from my stupidity. I would have killed someone for two paracetamol every four hours just to stop the cold sweats and headaches.

So that was my day yesterday! Not the best concert experience I've ever had, but we live and learn. I hope that none of you ever have the misfortune of going through something like that (because meeting some of your favourite people and being so out of it that you can barely remember the encounter truly sucks) and that all your concerts are filled with fun and good health!

Until next time, amigos!

xoxo

The TMI Tag!

Hello friend! 

So, seeing as I read the blog of the lovely +Jessica Morgan, I thought I'd abide by the rules and complete the TMI tag. Here we go, then.

The TMI Tag!

1.What are you wearing?
An oversized t-shirt and pyjama shorts.

2. Ever been in love?
Probably, in some shape or form.

3. Ever had a terrible break up?
No. Nor do I want one any time soon.

4. How tall are you?
5"9!

5. How much do you weigh?
I honestly couldn't tell you, because I don't know. Too much, though.

6. Any tattoos?
Not right now. I'd definitely like one by the end of the year, though.

7. Any piercings?
Just my ears. I'm not very adventurous with piercings, and always chicken out whenever I fancy having something done.

8. OTP?
Ezria! (PLL)

9. Favourite Show?
Right now it's a toss up between Pretty Little Liars and Teen Wolf. PLL probably gets the top spot, though.

10. Favourite bands?
McFly, Dan and Shay, R5, Bastille, and more recently, The Vaccines and The Arctic Monkeys.

11. Something you miss?
I miss school. There, I said it!

12. Favourite song?
It's probably Please Don't Leave Quite Yet by Adam Agin, but it'll change within the week.

13. How old are you?
I am 18.

14. Zodiac sign?
Cancer

15.Quality you look for in a partner?
A good sense of humour. And preferably, a little beard.

16. Favourite quote?
"I aim for the moon and I'm happy to land on the roof."

17. Favourite Actor?
Jennifer Lawrence. I just can't fault her.

18. Favourite Colour?
This is really boring, but it's grey. You can do an awful lot with grey!

19. Loud music or soft?
Loud! The louder the better.

20. Where do you go when you're sad?
I don't do well with sadness around others, so I'm likely to retreat to my room.

21. How long does it take you to shower?
If I have to be quick, I can be, and be done in around 7-10 minutes. But if I'm not in a rush, I'll take up to half an hour.

22. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?
Again, if I'm rushed, I can be ready in 10 minutes, but I never really take longer than 20 minutes unless I make breakfast.

23. Ever been in a physical fight?
Several, an all but around two were with my brother.

24. Turn on?
If you can sing, you're already ten points up.

25. Turn off?
People who are completely different with you around their friends than when you're alone. That, and bad body odour. 

26. The reason you joined Blogger?
I joined a long while ago to use my blog as a space to vent, seeing as nobody really used it and it was a private space to write up my thoughts. But in the new year, I realised there was a lot more to write about than my own woes, so I challenged myself to blog more often about different things. A lot of my old posts have been deleted, I'm afraid. Although to be honest, you really wouldn't want to read them!

27. Fears?
Spiders, collar bones (please don't make me explain because I'm afraid I cannot) and the idea of being crushed by a large crowd, or indeed any crowd.

28. Last thing that made you cry?
A series of pretty nasty panic attacks I had on a night out last Wednesday. Bit of a downer, really.

29. Last time you said you loved someone?
On Friday, to my grandmother. We went out for dinner, and I never really get to spend time with her like that, so I just thought I'd remind her!

30. Meaning behind your Blogger name?
Well, its my name.

31. Last book you read?
Out of my own free will, Paper Towns by John Green. For work purposes, the eighth edition of American Politics and Society by David McKay. Fun times!

32. The book your currently reading?
Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. It's for a literature essay I'm about to start working for, but I'm actually enjoying it, which makes things a lot easier.

33. Last show you watched?
Teen Wolf.

34. Last person you talked to?
My house mate, Katie.

35. The relationship between you and the person you last texted?
Mother and Daughter.

36. Favourite food?
Chicken of any variety.

37. Places you want to visit?
Washington DC (again), Sweden, Italy, Amsterdam, Fiji, Estonia, New Zealand, Japan, San Francisco...

38. Last place you were?
Outside of my house? Rehearsals.

39. Do you have a crush?
Yes. I probably have more crushes than friends.

40. Last time you kissed someone?
Saturday night.

41. Last time you were insulted?
About half an hour ago by my house mate. All in good spirit, though. Banter is vital!

42. Favourite flavour of sweet?
Blackcurrant or cherry.

43. What instruments do you play?
Much my to dismay, I can't play any. I'd love to be naturally gifted with piano and guitar skills, though!

44. Favourite piece of jewellery?
My Pandora bracelet - it's filling up nicely!

45. Last sport you played?
Well I danced for three hours tonight, if that counts. If not, I don't even remember.

46. Last song you sang?
A Thousand Years by Christina Perri. My house were singing it earlier on for some reason.

47. Favourite cat up line?
Are you are parking ticket? Because you've got fine written all over you...

48. Have you ever used it?
I can safely say I haven't. Although I'm sure it'd work.

49. Last time you hung out with anyone?
My housemates tonight!

50. Who should do this tag?
Well, anybody who wants to! But more specifically, +Rachel Bott and +Ffion Thomas :)

Until next time, muchachos!

xo

Valentines Day: Forever Alone?

Hello friends!

So another Valentines Day is upon us. Another single Valentines Day in my case. But guess what? I really do not care. I can't be the only one who has noticed this, but this year more than ever has seen an all time low number of people complaining about being single on this dreadful 'holiday'. Finally, people are starting to realise that it's the least important thing ever. The fact that this is a day some people see as a reason to hate themselves for being alone is a horrible thought. So you didn't get a £1 rose and a card - ho hum! It's really not the end of the world. I'm rubbish at receiving gifts, and even worse at buying them so the whole concept is a horrible thought for me anyway. 

This is just a short post to express my gratitude for the shrinking importance of Valentines Day to the single community. It's also an opportunity to voice my slight disgust at every other post on all social media sites being a sickly picture of a bunch of flowers and a poorly constructed declaration of love, followed by a few emojis. But I'll leave them to it - I suppose it's slightly heart-warming.... deep down. Ish.

Also, if you don't have plans for tonight, much like myself, here are a few suggestions as to what you could do instead!

1. Pamper yourself.

Why not? Have a nice long bath, or a shower if you'd prefer. Slap on a face mask, paint your nails. Moisturise! Do girly things. 

2. Eat. 

Think about it. Go to the shops and buy a box of chocolates on Valentines Day. Nobody will suspect that you're about to take them home and indulge in an entire Milk Tray in one go, will they? 

3. Drink.

One bottle of wine, minus one Valentine = more for you. Have a giggle! Or if you don't drink, make yourself a monster hot chocolate. You do you.

4. Filmathon.
Two options here, either stay in with a pile of your favourite DVDs (or your laptop... not that I condone piracy, children....) and view in the comfort of your own home, or go to the cinema. It's always amusing and/or uncomfortable to watch the endless PDA Valentines Day promotes!

5. Laugh at Valentines memes. 
Really. They are brilliant, and if you haven't seen any yet, I'm pretty sure you're living in a cave. Here are a few favourites!

Happy Valentines Day, loners and lovers! xo

Update On My (Not So) Well-being!

Greetings all!

One of my New Years Resolutions for this year was to post at least one blog post a month. It's only January, but I've posted several in the past few weeks, so I'm rather proud of myself. Although I don't have a lot to say today, I thought a general update on life wouldn't go a miss. 

So I'm officially back in university for my second semester. I came back briefly at the start of January just to sit some exams, but lectures began this Monday so we're officially in full swing. I've gotten two of my exam results back already, and I'm pretty happy with them! I got a 60 in American History and a 78 in American Politics, which is awesome (by my personal standards, at least!).  

But, of course, going back to university means being exposed to thousands of people with thousands of new germs all over again. As a result, I have inevitably been struck down with what I unimaginatively call Refreshers Flu. I currently have case of the sniffles like no other, an astonishing inability to breathe normally and a cough that could be mistaken for a barking dog. But alas; I will survive. (I would make a survival guide or a list of ways to avoid university-related illness as so many bloggers have done before me, but you and I know as well as each other that said list would be full of nonsense that really won't make any difference. Young adults are disgusting and germful. Power through, friends.)

Also, I'm going to try to go home on the weekends a bit less frequently this year, so I can feel more involved in student life. If I'm totally honest, I wasn't completely engaged last semester. Something wasn't clicking and I didn't really feel like a student, but I'm going to try to find my ground a bit more in the next few months. 

On a non-university related note, it brings me joy to say that that time of the year is upon us once more. Tis the season for my life to be consumed with sport for several short weeks. The Six Nations are here. Five long weekends of shouting at the television and insulting the referee, and indeed, anybody in a white rugby shirt with a red rose. For five weeks, English friends, you are scum. (For anybody outside the UK reading this, The Six Nations is a rugby tournament between Wales, England, Ireland, Scotland, France and Italy. National rivalry peaks like nothing you have ever seen before in this period. Outside the sporting world, we tend to get along pretty well. But: This. Is. War.)

So I don't have much else to say, but I'm sure I'll think of something soon enough. Until then, live good lives!

The Internet Sucks!

Okay, so maybe the title of this post is a little far-fetched. The internet is, in fact, an absolutely incredible thing. I would not function in the way I do today without the internet. But recently, I'm becoming more and more aware of how bad this space can be when in the wrong hands. And here's what has brought this on...

Did anybody else see the whole Liam Payne/Tyler Oakley saga on twitter last week? If you have no interest in pop culture or social media, I doubt you did. But put basically, Liam of One Direction tweeted a guy from Duck Dynasty who is infamously homophobic and other such adjectives. In this tweet, he praised the guy's 'family values' which, in any functioning brain, would give an implication of agreeing with his beliefs on homosexuality. Tyler Oakley picked up on this and despite being a fan of One Direction, called him out in a way that was neither rude nor disrespectful. And yet the backlash of him doing this was disastrous. Not only was he scrutinised by One Direction fans to the point of receiving death threats, but he was also called out by Liam himself indirectly, who claimed he was not a 'real/true' fan. And this, my friend, is a shining example of why the internet sucks.

In no circumstance should anybody EVER send death threats or messages that encourage suicide, or any form of self harm for that matter. But unfortunately, the internet has made doing this so very easy by giving everybody a sense of anonymity. You could say anything you want to whoever you want, no matter how cruel or immoral that comment may be. And unless you're in an extraordinary social position, 9.999 times out of 10, there will be no real repercussions for your actions. That's what I hate. I hate how easy it is to become a monster online.

Another example is Justin Bieber's fans. I'm not talking 'people who like his music'. I'm talking the die-hard Beliebers. The way they have been brainwashed to defend Justin regardless of how outrageous his actions are is honestly quite frightening. And all that has happened and is communicated over the internet. But thoughts on Mr Bieber and his whole surrounding area is  a whole other blog post for a different day.

But on a far more positive note, and back to the matter in hand, Tyler Oakley's repsonse to the whole affair has been nothing less than admirable. He took a break from the internet for a few days to allow all the hate to fly over his head, and turned the situation around to make a very positive video for his channel, stating loud and clear that he encouraged nobody to send hate on his behalf or their own. That positivity easily overbears hate. For this, I'm actually thankful for. This video restored my faith in the internet just a little bit.

So, long story short? The internet is awesome when people are nice. When people are hateful and misuse the anonymity, it's a ball of suck.

And that's how I see it. How about you?

(PS. I just hit 300 blog views which, by most standards, is absolutely not a big deal. But I'm grateful, and actually quite surprised, that anyone would take the time to read my thoughts. So thanks, 300 visitors, you made me smile.)

These are a few of my favourite things...

Almost every blog of any kind that I follow has made one of these posts and one point or another. Yes, it's that time in our online relationship at which I share with you my favourites of (more than) several categories. Obviously, some blogs would be more specific about these things but I'm really just a rambler, so the list will be general. The majority of what I talk about is going to be highly recommended by me, so if you haven't checked them out already, I urge you to. They may not be your cup of tea, but hey - they just might be!

Bands/Artists

Without a doubt, my favourite band has to be McFly.

 I share this fact with a great sense of loyalty. They came onto the music scene in 2003 and, with a slight blip (it really wasn't cool to like them in my group of friends, and I can't believe that actually stopped me from listening to them but it did), I've been a fan from the start. 10 years of awesome music, cute faces, hilarious Youtube videos and a lot of ups and downs. I sincerely recommend them if you've lived under a rock for the last decade and have never heard of them. If you like anything from pop to synth to beach to rock, you're going to find at least one album you like.

Lately, I've also gotten quite into the Arctic Monkeys after hearing their AM album which is fantastic in every way possible. I was never a fan before, but that one record has converted me. There's just something about it, man. 

I'm also unashamedly in love with a band called R5. Maybe I should feel a little shame because 18-year-old front man, Ross Lynch is the star of a corny-as-anything Disney Channel show called Austin and Ally. But alas, no shame is to be felt.  Made up of four siblings and a friend, they are the definition of feel-good. I know they don't float everybody's boat (I've tried playing their music to friends who have greeted me with blank, unimpressed expressions) but they simply never fail to make me smile. The fact that they're all gorgeous helps a bit, too.

Youtubers/Vloggers

The list of Youtube channels I am subscribed to is probably longer than my arm. A while ago, I went through a Youtube-crazy phase and... well, I haven't gotten out of it just yet. I could talk about so, so many channels and tell you what's wonderful about them all, but I'm going to condense this as much as I possibly can. 

Zoella. This girl is wonderful. I really don't take much of an interest in beauty blogs (read: I couldn't give one fuck), but I really enjoy Zoe's videos simply because she is so likeable. She always looks fantastic, and she does it on a budget which is something a broke-ass student such as myself can appreciate. I'll name-drop her brother, Joe Sugg (ThatcherJoe) here too. He's hilarious.

Tyler Oakley. King/Queen/Almighty Ruler of Youtube. As far as I am concerned, he can do no wrong. He is flawless, funny, and more importantly, honest as anything. 

ItsKingsleyBitch. Kingsley. This was one of the first channels I subscribed to whilst watching his first Christmas Overexposed Countdown. It's not often I can pinpoint a favourite video on a whole channel, but on this occasion, I can. Overexposed 2010 #7: Love The Way You Lie. I have never ever laughed that much at a Youtube video. Just. Watch it.

Jim Chapman. A more recent discovery. I clicked with his videos right away. We have the same sense of humour, we think the same things, we share a lot of opinions. I want to high-five him just for understanding my brain without ever actually interacting with me in any way.

ItsGrace. Grace Helbig. Another very recent discovery. Unpopular reality: I was not subscribed to DailyGrace. I had no interest. But as the controversy over her leaving MyDamnChannel at the start of 2014 got the Youtube community talking, I decided to subscribe to show some support and absolutely did not regret it. I'm honestly looking forward to seeing her every day in a new video. She is honestly hilarious and I hope her new channel has every bit of the success as DailyGrace did! 

MeanMugen. Here's the wild card. The story is, I follow this guy on tumblr and saw that he was starting a Youtube channel, so I chose to subscribe. Thus far, he has only made three videos on this channel, but I think he's got this down already, and I'm excited to see where this channel goes. Give him a chance guys - make sure to subscribe!

TV Shows

Glee. I'm not even going to try to make you like this show. Either you do or you don't. As an avid fan from 2009, even I appreciate that the plot has fallen apart over the years, as has the continuity and overall standard. Also the songs just sound like covers now, and it's lost its originality. But do you know what? I love it. It's not even a case of liking it any more. I'm in it until the end now, it's like a blood bond or something. 

Pretty Little Liars. Oh. My. God. This show is absolutely incredible. I pretty much marathon-ed the entire three and a half series of it in the space of around two weeks when I discovered it in the summer. I was entirely hooked. If you've never seen it before, the establishing plot is a group of five girls. One of the girls, Alison, goes missing, and the show really begins on the one-year anniversary of her disappearance. I'll say nothing more of the plot because even in the pilot, there's a shock plot twist. Any idea of an upcoming plot you have when watching the show is guaranteed to be wrong. It's so unpredictable, and yet every twist seems to be PERFECT for the plot. Amazing. I urge anyone of any demographic to watch it, and to stick with it. And when you get to the mid-season finale of season 4, you might as well watch the spin-off show, Ravenswood, starring one of the much loved characters of PLL, Caleb, played by Tyler Blackburn.

Teen Wolf. Another new discovery of mine. I had two reasons for starting to watch Teen wolf. Number 1, I discovered the beauty of Colton Haynes and number 2, everybody and their dog on tumblr were talking about it and I felt a bit left out. So I started at the beginning and became obsessed after about three episodes. The second half of season 3 has just started and it is absolutely incredible so far. There's a jump in the acting, the plot, the darkness and it really is amazing. An excellent watch if you're into all that supernatural stuff, or like me, really enjoy looking at beautiful, shirtless men (I'm looking at you, Hoechlin).

Beauty products

As I've said before, I'm really not into the beauty side of anything. I care very little for fashion and what not. As long as I look presentable, I'm not particularly fussed. But I will tip-toe slightly into the pool of beauty vlogging just because I need to share my love for this one product.

Maybelline Master Precise liquid eye liner. This thing is an actual god send. Up until my purchase of this very product, I was never blessed with the ability of being able to use liquid eye liner. I just could not master it. But this product has just made it far easier for me for some reason. It's more of a pen and that seems to help my shaky hand draw on some flicks that actually tend to match each side! It stays on, too, which is very good if you're one of those people like me whose eye make up tends to smudge whatever you do. Highly recommended.

So I think I'll leave it there for now. Maybe I'll save some other specifics for a rainy blogging day with no inspiration. Do check out the things you've never heard of in this blog, because everybody likes to learn. I've been me, you've been you. Bye for now!

Blog Tag: 48 Questions

Okay, so I said I would blog more, so I thought I would motivate myself to begin with a question tag. I basically just searched the internet and clicked the first question tag I saw. If you're feeling bored, or in need of motivation to do some blogging, much like myself, feel free to tag yourself! Here goes nothing.

1. What time did you get up this morning? 

I set an alarm for 10am this morning, which was hugely ambitious, since I didn't get to sleep until around 5:30am due to a culmination of a messed up sleeping pattern, illness and general tossing and turning. So I ended up falling asleep until 12, when my Dad dragged me out of bed. 

2. How do you like your steak?

I like my steak medium-rare. But I'll take it medium. Or rare. Or well-done. Or indeed any form of steak presented to me. 

3. What was the last film you saw in the cinema?

My last trip to the cinema was in November (which is far too long ago for my liking, but hell, I'm a student and I'm poor) to see Catching Fire. I went twice - it was that good. I was looking forward to the second instalment of the trilogy and I absolutely loved it. They really did a fantastic job and, as always, Queen Jennifer Lawrence was fantastic. 

4. What is your favourite TV show?

I won't really watch a TV show unless I like it enough or it to be my favourite, so I have it down to four. The number one spot probably belongs to Glee, seeing as I've watched it religiously through thick and thin since 2009. But last year, I fell head first into the world of Pretty Little Liars and became entirely obsessed. What a clever show! Just when you think you've got it figured out, another plot punches you in the face and you're back to square one on your own little map to -A. So then in turn, I got into the spin-off Ravenswood, which is different to what I expected and to what I would usually watch, but it's equally as gripping and who could ever say no to Tyler Blackburn? And the final contender is Teen Wolf. I only got into that show very recently, but it's really great. It's a little ridiculous now and again, but I love it. 

5. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

I would probably give a different answer to this question every time somebody asks me, but at the moment, it's Washington DC, or as close as I can get. It's just a beautiful city. It's full of culture, and it's one of the only places state-side to have a chain of Nandos. And to be honest, that's a deal breaker. 

6. What did you have for breakfast?

I had scrambled egg, then beans, then cheese on toast (the order is key). Apparently, it sounds weird to those who haven't tried it, but I solemnly swear that it's one of the best breakfast combinations ever. 

7. What is your favourite food?

My favourite food is chicken, hands down. You can do so much with chicken and it's just so good. I could probably eat chicken of some variety for every single meal and live in content for the rest of my days.

8. Foods you dislike?

Mushrooms. Peas. Fish. Humus. Blue cheese. That's... pretty much it.

9. Favourite place to eat?

I'm feeling the Nandos love right now. Double chicken breast wrap, lemon and herb, chips and coleslaw. Standard. 

10. Favourite dressing?

Farm Foods sell this amazing mint and yoghurt sauce and it's the best ever. I'm also partial to a bit of Ranch, but only on salad.

11. What vehicle do you drive?

I don't drive at all, I haven't even started learning. But my dad drives a Vaxhaul Insignia. It's not too shabby.

12. What are your favourite clothes?

I like nothing more than wearing a vest and some pyjama shorts. But when I'm forced to go out into the world, I mostly just wear jeans. Everybody has a favourite pair of jeans. I like baggy clothes, too. They're just more comfortable.

13. Where would you visit if you had the chance?

The list really is endless. Given the chance, I would visit people over places, and the locations would just be a bonus. I'd love to visit people in Estonia, Sweden, Canada and all over the U.S. But if I were to put the thought of visiting people aside for a moment and just focussed on the places, I would probably want to visit Paris, Amsterdam, Berlin, etc. I always feel urges to go to cities that aren't my own. There's something about a city that appeals to me. I don't think I could stay in a city for good, but they always make for excellent trips.

14. Cup half empty or half full?

I can't really answer this as a general question. My perception always depends on the situation and where I stand in it. For example, if I have an exam coming up, the glass will always be half empty, because I don't want to set a bar for myself that I honestly don't think I can achieve realistically. But if a plan changes or falls through, for example, the glass is usually half full. I'll just make the best of it and work on something new.

15. Where would you want to retire?

If I leave Wales to pursue my life as I've always wanted to, I think I'd like to come back to Wales to retire. It would just feel right. Maybe somewhere on the coast like Aberystwyth.

16. Favourite time of the day?

Night time, definitely. I'm definitely a night bird. 

17. Where were you born?

I was born in Church Village in South Wales. There is no cool story; my mother popped, drove to the hospital and I was born. The end.

18. What is your favourite sport to watch?

The answer is rugby. It is the only sport I like to watch. I've been told that I turn into a rowdy 50-year-old Welshman when I'm watching rugby. I get very emotionally involved and tend to shout at the television. It's even better at the stadium. I love the atmosphere and the shouting and singing. It's amazing.

19. What is your favourite fragrance? 

I wore Kenzo Flower for quite a while, and I really liked that. It was sweet, but not too sweet. It reminds me of palmer violet sweets. But I've recently gone for a change and I'm now wearing Flash by Jimmy Choo. 

20. What is your favourite face cream? 

Honestly, I don't use any kind of face creams or moisturisers or whatever. I know that as a girl, I probably should, but it never really occurs to me to go out and buy some cream for my face. But if that did occur to me, I would probably by something from The Body Shop that smelt nice and hope that my skin wouldn't reject it as it does with so many other products.

21. Favourite baby/kid product?

Loreal Kids No Tears Shampoo. The cherry one smells amazing, even if the whole campaign is a lie and it does, in fact, sting like a bitch if it gets in your eyes.

22. People Watcher?

I am such a people watcher. I think it's a really bad habit of mine, because I don't sit there and watch people pass me by as some kind of inspirational outsiders' perspective. Oh no. I sit there and I watch people and I just find myself judging them. I'm so judgemental and while I wouldn't change it because it makes me who I am, it's so mean sometimes. My hidden morals tell me it's awful to take humour out of other people's day-to-day misfortune, but they'll never know I'm doing it, so where is the harm?

23. Morning person or Night person?

100% night person. Team Nocturnal.

24. Do you have any pets?

I do. I have a dog named Jess. She's the perfect blend of cute, lazy and idiotic. She's getting old now, though, bless her.

25. Any exciting news you'd like to share?

I received some very exciting news that I would love to share with everyone I know, but I'm unfortunately not allowed to. It's a secret until January 30th, by which time I will probably have forgotten that I have mentioned it on this blog entry. 

26. What did you want to be when you were little?

I remember nagging for a doctor/nurse dress-up costume when I was about three, so that probably meant that I wanted to be a doctor. But as I grew older and more and more terrified of blood and needles, I would have accepted that nursing was not the career for me. I also went through phases of wanting to be a superstar, a teacher and a pilot. 

27. What is your favourite memory?

I don't think there are many people who could define one single memory as their favourite of all. I like to categorise my memories, but I couldn't define one single favourite. But one of the stand-out moments for me was when I was in New York, on the very first night when I turned the street corner into Times Square for the first time. I don't think I have ever felt such a feeling of amazement in my life. When you see pictures of somewhere like that, somewhere you long to visit, you fall in love with the image. And then you get there and it exceeds every single expectation you set in your mind. It was just incredible.

28. Are you a cat person or a dog person?

I'm probably a cat person, as long as the cat is a person cat. .

29. Are you married?

I'm 18. Imagine being married at 18. It would be horrid. I am absolutely not married.

30. Always wear your seatbelt?

Nine times out of ten, yes. If I'm in the front seat, always. But sometimes I forget if I'm in the back.

31. Been in a car accident?

Yes I have. It was 3 cars ago, so that means it was probably about seven years ago. The car we had at the time was known as the Devil Car. It was constantly in and out of the garage with one fault or another. On this particular day, the exhaust had near enough exploded, resulted in thick, grey smoke shooting out the back. I remember my Dad saying, "Shit kids, get out." So I unbuckled my seatbelt and just as we were opening the doors, some guy ploughed straight into the back of us. Luckily, nobody was seriously hurt, but my brother and I were young, and obviously and understandably shaken by the whole tragic state of affairs. 

32. Any pet peeves?

So many pet peeves! I hate ignorance, arrogance, a lack of ability to take a joke, I hate people who don't indicate (and I don't even drive!), I hate people blowing their nose without warning, I hate unnecessary tapping, I hate it when people skip songs half way through for no good reason, I hate being interrupted, I hate people slapping their food as they chew, I hate it when people undermine someone for liking something. There are so many more, but I can't think of them right now. I really very grumpy.

33. Favourite pizza topping?

Chicken, always chicken. Barbecue sauce, too.

34. Favourite flower?

It's a cheesy answer, but I love roses. It's probably because my middle name is Rose and my grandmother's name was Rose. I like seeing roses that are colours you don't expect them to be.

35. Favourite ice cream?

This changes with my mood. At the moment, my go-to is Ben and Jerry's Phish Food, but I really like citrus flavours. A local ice cream parlour does a lime cheesecake flavour and it's one of the best things ever put on this earth for man/me to consume.

36. Favourite fast food restaurant?

It's got to be the standard McDonalds. Old Maccies never lets me down.

37. How many times did you fail your driving test?

I have failed 0 out of 0 attempts.

38. From whom did you get your last email?

For whatever reason, I have about five email accounts. My last email was a confirmation of an Amazon order, but my last email from an actual person was from my dear friend Calvin. 

39. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?

I don't have a credit card, which is a very wise move on my behalf. But if I did, it would probably be in New Look just because I would wear about 95% of their entire stock.

40. Do anything spontaneous lately?

New Years Eve was fairly spontaneous. Nobody really had any definitive plans after 12, but I ended up having a party at my house, which didn't officially end until around 1l:30am, so I guess that could be considered spontaneous. 

41. Do you like your job?

I don't have a job. But I definitely need to get one. 

42. Broccoli? 

Always.

43. What was your favourite vacation?

Out of my family holidays, I think Menorca the second time was my favourite. There were ten of us and everything was normal. I couldn't fault it. I love the island, the weather was amazing. I can't even say something particularly special happened to make it stand out, but I think that's the only holiday we all went on together where there were no arguments whatsoever. Just 100% quality time with the family. 

But last year's trip to Malia with my friends just blew the roof off everything. I just loved it. Amazing company, so much alcohol, and I don't think I've laughed so much in a pool before.

44. Last person you went out to dinner with?

My three best friends and I went to a lovely Italian for our annual Christmas gathering. 

45. What are you listening to right now?

I am listening to Talk Dirty by Jason Derulo. Unashamedly so.

46. What is your favourite colour?

If I'm being totally honest, it's grey. I'm really not one for colour, but if I have to add some vibrancy into my choice, it would be the kind of blue that's just enough blue to not be grey. 

47. How many tattoos do you have?

At the moment, I don't have any. But I absolutely want to change that. I have a few ideas floating around my mind, but I'm yet to pick a design of some kind. 

48. Coffee drinker?

Unfortunately not. I'm well aware that I'm missing out on a whole world, but I just can't bring myself to like it just yet.