A Snippet of Life

I love the festive season and everything that comes with it. Joyful faces, hilarious panics to get everything you need when in reality the only thing you cannot forget is the turkey, the parties, the food...even the music doesn't get on my nerves too much. Then, each year when it's all over, that one day, I think to myself - really? I was wandering around Waitrose the day after Boxing Day and laughed at how quiet and empty it was compared to Christmas Eve. The shelves full of reductions because they've obviously panic-ordered too. The calmness that filled the shop and how much time has passed - two days? I just wanted a pan au chocolat and some wine and was in and out in a flash, stress free. The total opposite scenario to Christmas Eve. It's laughable how much hype is involved for just one day. All the preparations and anxieties to be over in 24 hours. Not even 24 hours, more like 12 at a push because everyone is in a food coma by 7pm, let's be honest. We all p

A friend of mine and I have recently started writing down five positive things at the end of each day. They can be anything from "an extra half hour in bed" to "a really good chat with so and so" or "a beautiful walk" and the noticeable effects upon my personal mindset (already) have been amazing. I'm no depressive and I know I have a good life. I love and appreciate all of my friends and family so much and often look outside of my bedroom window thinking what a lovely view I have of the smallest part of this huge world (which has been a positive on more than one day so far). So I do feel that I am, and often I get told I am, a happy person. However, as much as you try to focus on the positives in life, there are always times when you fall into the trap of a stressful day when nothing seems to be going your way and instantly everything is, quite frankly, shit. Sometimes that smile I plaster over my face is an inward cry for help because in realit

More than once have I been asked the question 'would you rather be deaf or blind,' and I always, always answer - blind. Obviously I've never had to genuinely consider this as I'm lucky to have the gift of all of my senses and never would wish the loss of them on anybody, but my main reason for answering this question in such a way is down to music and the importance that it has in my life. Not a day goes by when I don't listen to music. When I'm driving, while getting ready, while writing, on my walk to work, and many more. It features in my day to day life quite significantly and this is for all kinds of reasons. Music gets me going. Upbeat tracks give me energy and put me in a happy mindset to begin each new day with. Whatever I might be driving to, whether it's a friends house or an important meeting, I will step out of that car having sang my heart out on the country roads and I will be feeling good about everything. It motivates me to write more, wr

The phrase "life is too short" gets thrown about continuously, even meaninglessly sometimes, but recently I've noticed how much truth it contains. It might be more appropriate to say that all of these phrases are so cliche, but so very real too. It takes some people a lot longer than others to grasp these valuable tokens of wisdom and we are all always learning more about how to live and cope with life's dramas, but we all get closer through everything we experience and learn a lot from the people we encounter. There comes a time when you become better at distinguishing what matters and what doesn't. Who matters and who doesn't. What's worth wasting time worrying about and what doesn't need to be given the time of day. And there is a time when you realise how good you're getting at it, this weird and wonderful thing we call life. I know I'm still so young but I feel I've gained a better understanding recently, though I'm fully aware t

Last week I attended my graduation ceremony at York Minster. I naturally tend to do this in everyday life because, after all, I am a writer but throughout the day I found myself thinking about how this could easily make for an entertaining blog post. I was writing the day in my head without actually writing it but I thought I'd share this with you. As backwards as it sounds, and very fitting to my character, I'd hit the booze far too hard the night before the event resulting in a very hungover me on the day. I awoke in my bed (thankfully) having no recollection as to how I got there, nor how I became so intoxicated, and after a shower to attempt to freshen up, we headed down to breakfast at the hotel. As always, the unlimited supply of continental and cooked choices made my eyes widen, but I forgot about how sick I was feeling when I was piling it onto my plate so when we returned to the room it didn't stay down for too long. Mum left at this point having had enough of

I've realised that it's not until you go back into civilisation for more than three nights that you notice quite how awful backpackers can be. We stayed at Base throughout New Zealand without any problems, but Sydney showed them all. The bathroom was gross, so much so that I didn't want to shower for fear that it'd make me dirtier. Trust me, it was that bad. The place was like a maze, making you feel trapped and it lacked any atmosphere too. This is before I mention the bar attached and my experience there.  We'd had a lovely afternoon walking around Sydney and the weather was great making this even more pleasant. Another of our Kiwi Experience friends was heading home so after a chill with him and the farewells, we continued more of a mooch before coming back to get ready for my friends birthday night out. While purchasing 'goon' at the local bottlo, the guy working told us a great shop to get cheap cups. We entered and were in our element as it was