What a shame.

I'm probably a few days late in posting this, but I've been in two minds about whether I should or not. This is a relatively new blog & I don't want to alienate readers and potential readers with my opinion. 

The news of Robin Williams' death has hit the news this week & the academy was pretty quick in posting this. 

Later the academy was criticised for the post by the guardian who said using the quote "genie, you're free" in the situation encourages fans to also commit suicide in a pop-culture sort of way. 

Well, I'm sorry but I find that absolutely ridiculous. I do see the idea that it is putting a good spin on his suicide & some crazy-ass die-hard fans might think it's a good idea to copy but it's exactly that - they're crazy die hard fans. 

To me, using that quote in reference to his suicide is no different than saying "they're in a better place" or "at least they're not in pain anymore" after someone with a terminal illness dies and personally I think it's quite naive of the times to think otherwise. 

This quote wasn't aimed to say that suicide is a good option, nor does it tell other people who live with depression that it's a good solution. It merely points out that Robin Williams was clearly in a pretty bad place to even consider suicide let alone commit suicide. 

The quote points out that a man who dedicated his life to making other people happy & bring laughter to the world was suffering & that although it's a very hard time for people close to him and it's hard to believe for his fans but it would have been a difficult decision to make & that for Robin Williams' situation this was clearly what he felt was the only way he could be "freed" from suffering. 

So yes - genie, you're free.

Rest in peace Robin Williams.

My friend makes jewelry by hand & she's made a beautiful necklace in memory of Robin Williams & is also selling them, see her work here. 

disclaimer: I take no credit for any of the photos in this post-  they were all sourced elsewhere (google images!)

3 things I can honestly say to people preparing for results day

1) results aren't the be all and end all. 

If you didn't get the results you were expecting, it's ok. 

For GCSE students, all you really need are C's in Maths, English & ICT - everything else is a bonus (unless you need a particular grade for college) and even if you don't get those it's still ok. 

My partner doesn't have a C in maths, he's still been to college & got the job he always wanted. You can go to college & resit or you can see where you get without it. It's fine, there are other options! 

If you've just done your AS levels and didn't get the grades you wanted, you're not alone! 

99% of people I know who have done AS levels didn't get the grade they wanted after the first year of college. And 90% of those went on to 2nd year of college & improved those grades.  

I my first year, I got a D grade in C1 mathematics and when I resat in January of second year I got an A 99% without doing much work towards improving the grade. Obviously, I'm not trying to say you're guaranteed a better grade just for going onto 2nd year but I found that by going onto A2 of my subjects I got a better understanding of the subjects and the requirements of the exams making the exams easier than before. 

2) there's set no right or wrong decision.

Make the decision that's best for you, if you don't want to go to Uni just get - don't go, if you don't want to go continue with education - don't. 

Don't just make a decision because it fits what everyone else is doing or because it fits what others want you to do. 

Do what you want to do. 

I lost my sense of direction during my second year of college, and I just chose a Uni and course because I thought I should. It's what my parents wanted & it's what everyone else was doing, boy I was wrong. 

I hated every minute of that course at Uni and even when I suffered badly with depression I can't remember being as unhappy as I was last year. 

In hind sight I should've taken a year out to gather my thoughts and work out what I wanted to do, fortunately it all worked out anyway & I'm now doing a course I love. 

3) there's plenty of time. 

As much as everyone is probably saying it right now, everything you do now will not predict the rest of your life. 

If you choose something you enjoy and go on to pursue then great, you've got a head start. 

If you make a mistake and you don't enjoy it as much as you thought you would, never mind - have a think and change direction! 

Life unpredictable, do what makes you happy.

Good luck & don't panic!  

xxx

disclaimer: I take no credit for any of the photos in this post-  they were all sourced elsewhere (google images!)

M.I.A

It's been a whole month since I last posted, Sorry!

My excuse for not posting is that I have had a really busy month..  I've had quite a few deadlines at University and I've been there almost all day everyday (Monday to Friday).  Then as I mentioned in my last post, I started a new job so I've been trying to adapt to managing my time to fit in 2 jobs, university and everything else I need to do.  I also passed my driving test (finally!) and since then had my first bump in my car - fortunately it wasn't anything serious!

Anyway, I've finished Uni for Easter now (until May) and then in May I only have a couple of deadlines and 1 or 2 days in class so hopefully I will have more time to post now!

Hope to write again soon! 

xx

New Job

I started a new job last week and it's so strange being new at something again. 

This is my fourth year working at TK Maxx now and I've gotten so comfortable there. I know how to do everything I need to without even thinking about it and I've learnt to do things that I don't really need to know. 

The point is I always say to the new staff at TK Maxx "I started at Christmas too so I know how you feel, comes to me if you need any help" and I always thought I was being honest but I've realised it probably was honest three years ago but it hasn't been since! I had actually forgotten what it's like to be new in a job and not know what you should be doing, what the expectations are, how to do the things you should be doing, where things are and who the other staff are. I find it really daunting starting a new job (probably because it's only my second job) and I imagine a lot of people can relate to what I'm saying. 

Anyway, I'm actually finding it really exciting and I'm loving being a new member of staff at the minute and being trained! It's frustrating having to ask a lot of questions but I'm enjoying learning something new and it's really nice to feel like I'm achieving new things again. 

I never thought I'd be proud of answering a phone or serving a customer again bit apparently I am! (How sad!)

Have you started a new job recently? 

xx

Music

This weekend when I was browsing bloglovin' I came across this blog post. I've never read any of Vanessa's blog before but I'm definitely going to add hers to my list that I'm going to flick through. Her post is pretty simple in the fact that it's just her answer towards various questions about music but it did get me thinking about the role that musics played in my life. 

I know a lot of people talk about how music is their life and all those other stereotypical things and I'll probably sound stereotypical myself with some of the things I'll say in this post but I reading the post made me think about the memories that I hold in my millions of iTunes and Spotify playlists. Anyway, the point I'm trying to make is that I'm going to do a similar post to Vanessa but it'll probably be in a bit more detail and I might delete or edit some of the questions. 

1) The main music from your childhood?    
There isn't a specific song that I link to my child hood, there are quite a few that I associate with different part of my childhood. 

I remember the main time I used to listen to music as a really small child were the songs that my Grandad used to play in the car when he picked me up from school - they were songs like Jackson 5 - ABC and Van Morrison - Brown Eyed Girl. 

Once to got to an age where I chose my own music (sort of) and when I used to own my own CD player and things I remember getting the latest NOW! That's What I Call Music CD's and standing in my bedroom (both with and without my friends) listening to my favourite songs and making up a dance or using the TV remote as a microphone and I would sing my heart out. I remember that my favourite songs were: all of the Spice Girls songs, Atomic Kitten - The Tide is High, B*Witched - C'est La Vie, Sophie Ellis Bextor - Music gets the best of me and Murder on the Dance floor, Britney Spears - I love Rock 'n' Roll, Ms Dynamite - Dy-Na-Mi-Tee and Lou Bega - Mambo No. 5. There are probably more but those are the ones I still remember off the top of my head. (I will also admit that I had a party songs CD that I used to listen to specifically to listen to Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini)

I also remember one Christmas receiving a Karaoke machine from my parents and spending God knows how many hours singing on there with my sister (neither of us a born singers I must add so that you can sympathise with the suffering my parents must have experienced as a consequence of the purchase haha!) and I remember our favourite songs on there being: Rapture - iiO (I still completely love this song), Man I feel Like A Woman - Shania Twain, Take Me Home, Country Roads - John Denver (another one that I still listen to), Genie In a Bottle - Christina Aguilera, Livin' La Vida Loca - Ricky Martin and Smooth Criminal - Alien Ant Farm. Again, there are loads more songs that we used to listen to/sing but those are the ones that really make me think back to being a child. 

2) A song that you associate with your (first) big love?   
This is a weird one because the person I consider as my 'first love' isn't the person associated with my first heartbreak. I suppose you could argue that I'm probably lying about who my first love is, but I think it's more because the person associated with my first heartbreak 'broke my heart' so much that I no longer remember any of the 'love' part so I can't associate any song with loving that person. 

Anyway, the song is David Bowie - In the heat of the morning (and also the Last Shadow Puppets Cover of it - I actually prefer the cover version because it's a bit more up-beat).

There is also I song I remember was the song that reminded me of my 'first love' but it doesn't really make me think of them that much anymore - that song is This Providence - My Beautiful Rescue.

3) A song in which you still come to tears?
If I'd have written this post in my old, old blog about 6 years ago there would be a HUGE list of songs because I had a particularly emotionally difficult phase in my early teens (about age 11 - 13/14) and although thinking back to this time is still emotional, I have some to terms with the events and stuff from this time and how I felt and although the songs I listened to during that time which caused me to cry still tug at a heart string and give me lump in the back of my throat I no longer cry when I listen to them. I'm quite glad of this because it allows me to listen to the songs once in a while to allow me to remember the events that shaped my personality and the rest of my life. 

These songs are: PlayRadioPlay!  - Madi Don't Leave, 1st Lady - Missing You, Mariah Carey - Bye Bye, The Spill Canvas - The Tide and Postal Service - Against all Odds (Take a look at me now). 

4) A song that has plagued you accompanied by lovesickness?
I don't really know what the definition of 'lovesickness' is supposed to be, whether it's supposed to be like heartbreak or being unbelievably in love with someone. 

I've already mentioned the song that I associate with being in love (in question 2) so I'm going to tell you the song that I associate with heartbreak. I've already mentioned the song name in the previous question but it's PlayradioPlay! - Madi Don't Leave. I remember a boy that I particularly cared for (this is neither of the people mentioned in question 2, its somewhere between those two people) sending me lyrics to the song in an e-mail before something terrible happening which meant that I never got to speak to him again and hearing the lyrics never fail to choke me up and whenever I hear the song I always feel a little twinge of the heartbreak that I felt when it happened. 

5) A song you've probably heard in your life most frequently or have to listen again and again?
I don't really like this question, it's a bit vague and I think it's a bit rubbish. So, I'm not going to answer it. 

6) An instrumental song that you particularly like?
I was quite surprised that when I read Vanessa's post that she actually put a song that features in Twilight - I had to double check if it was the same song I planned to put but it isn't. The instrumental song that I particularly like is Bella's Lullaby that featured in Twilight written by Carter Burwell. If you want to listen to the instrumental, I've added a video from YouTube below. 

         
7) Bands/artists that had a strong influence in your teen years?  
I altered the question slightly to make it make a bit more sense (and probably changed the meaning of it completely) but I think this question would allow me to give a better answer. 

I can probably split the answer to this question into three parts. early teens, mid teens and late teens (my music influence through out this time changed quite a bit).

Early Teens - playradioplay!, Cute Is What We Aim For, Kids in Glass Houses, The Subways,Fall Out Boy, Panic! at the disco, My Chemical Romance, Postal Service, Orson, The Spill Canvas, The Used, Taking Back Sunday, Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly., This Providence, From First to Last, The Smiths The Rocket Summer and Finch.

Mid Teens - Ida Maria, Kate Nash, Mystery Jets, Madness, Say Anything, Arctic Monkeys, The Smiths, The Courteeners, Little Comets, The Dykeenies, Kids in Glass Houses, The Hoosiers, The Holloways, Doves, Jimmy Eat World, All Time Low, The Maine, Mr Big, Vampire Weekend, The Kooks,  The Wombats, MGMT, Jack Penate, Black Kids, Noah and the Whale, The Libertines, The Killers, Ne-yo, The Fratellis, Jet, Kasabian, The Maccabees, Jamie T, The Cure, Empire of the Sun, Pigeon Detectives, Oasis, The Fray, Maximo Park, Lilly Allen, OK Go, Paolo Nutini, Kings of Leon and Electric Light Orchestra.

Late Teens - Arctic Monkeys, The Vaccines, Lilly Allen, Alex Winston, The Smiths, Kate Nash, Mystery Jets, Doves, Jimmy Eat World, The Strokes, Kings of Leon, Vampire Weekend, The Kooks, MGMT, Jack Penate, Noah and The Wale, Kasabian, Jet, The Maccabees, The Cure, The Beatles, The Black Keys, Oasis, OK Go, Paolo Nutini, Electric Light Orchestra, Bastille, Foals, Imagine Dragons, of Monsters and Men, The Killers, Two Door Cinema Club, Bloc Party, Katy B, Daft Punk, Kimbra, Taylor Swift, The Noisettes, Marina & The Diamonds, Mr Big, Feist, Florence & The Machine.

There are millions more songs and artists/bands that I like but those are the ones which immediately come to mind and which I like almost every song they make/release.

8) A song of you to a special event / an experience reminiscent (and what that is)?  
Arctic Monkeys - Arabella, Friendly Fires - Jump in the Pool, Lily Allen - The Fear, Taylor Swift - Love Story, In the heat of the morning - Last shadow Puppets are all songs that really remind me of my current boyfriend. 

Arctic Monekys - Why'd you only call me when you're high? has a particularly good memory for me just because my boyfriend and I are Arctic Monkeys fans and we had just booked tickets to go and see them for the third time when the song was released and neither of us knew they were releasing a song so when I was in the shower listening to Radio 1 and it came on I remember running out of the bathroom with shampoo on my hair grabbing a towel screaming to get my boyfriends attention so that he could listen to the song too. It sounds boring, but thinking back to it always makes me laugh. 

Icona Pop - I love it particularly reminds me of this summer just gone which was particularly great. 

FrankMusik - Confusion Girl and Friendly Fires - Jump in the Pool remind me of Summer 2009.

This question is quite difficult to answer. There isn't any particular songs that remind me a particular event (especially a good event). 

9) A song in which you can relax the most?
Bella's Lullaby which I mentioned in question 6 and Arctic Monkeys songs from the album Suck it and See mainly. 

10) A song that perfectly matches your personality?
 I can't really answer this question because I don't think there really is a song that matches my personality. 

11) Your current favorite song?
I haven't really got a current favourite song. Recently I've been listening to a lot of the music from my old playlists but new-er music that I particularly like at the moment are Arctic Monkeys songs from the album AM and Kings of Leon songs from the album Mechanical Bull

Also, I currently love Yes Sir, I can Boogie - Baccara which is on the Cadbury Advert and just makes me laugh so much every time I see it and it gets stuck in my head for the rest of the day and because it makes me laugh to much I've added a YouTube video of it for anyone who hasn't seen it (or anyone who loves it as much as I do and just wants to watch it).

12) Do you play an instrument?
 I used to play the clarinet and then I made my mum and dad buy me a guitar for my birthday a few years ago which I never even tried to learn to play. 

13) A song would you dedicate to your mother?
I'd like to be able to say a song that reminds me of the relationship between my mum and I but there isn't one, so I suppose I'd dedicate any song by The Smiths to her because she's the reason I listen to them. 

14) A song from a movie scene that you would be able to play perfectly?
 I honestly don't know what movie scene I think I could play perfectly. 

15) A song that you listen to when you get up?
any up beat song really, my alarm song is The Black Keys - Gold on the Ceiling.

16) A song you love, but that you always skips, because it makes you stomach pain?
any of the songs that I mentioned in question 3, because although I mentioned in the question that I like to listen to them to remember how far I've come I do have to be in the right mood to be able to listen to them without them making me instantly feel sad so most of the time I do skip them. 

17) One song that stands for one evening in the last summer?
Icona Pop - I love it and Vampire Weekend - Diane Young 


18) A magnificent song about love that could have been written for you?
 I don't know. 

19) A kind of music you don't like?
Like Vanessa, I hate techno. 

            
 20) The last song that you have heard?
 Say Something - A Great Big World and Christina Aguilera.

What music do you like?

xo

disclaimer: I take no credit for any of the photos in this post-  they were all sourced elsewhere (google images!)

Quickie

It just took me approximately 5 minutes to write that title.
Is it 'Quickie' or 'Quicky'?! if anyone knows the answer then please inform me because Google and good ol' urban dictionary have results for both variations! (spell checker my have answered my question by putting a red squiggle under 'quicky'!)

Anyway, focus Sally, focus!
I thought I should probably write a quick post considering I haven't posted since new year and at the point I said I thought I might post more on this blog! WHOOPS.
My lame excuse for not posting is that I've been just so busy but I can't even remember anything in particular I've actually been busy with that has taken up 24 hours of every day since January 1st. (although recently I've had a lot of uni deadlines, exam and I was really ill so I'll probably have to resit - boo :(!)

I plan on doing a (reasonably) decent post in the new few days/weeks maybe something clothes or make-up related. As you can probably tell I haven't planned this I know I'll probably find something I can mumble on about to make a full post.

 How has everyone been?

xxx

highlights of 2013 in photos!

I didn't take many photos during 2013 (to take more photos would definitely be my new years resolution if I made them) but these are a photo of the best parts of 2013!

(L-R) 
My boyfriend, his brother and I on a caravan holiday in wales / My boyfriend, his brother (another one of them) and I at the aquarium / Myself and another person in the paper for modelling for Supercuts during summer / My boyfriend and his brother on his 20th birthday / Summer look / My boyfriend and his brother when we made a snowman / Halloween / Harlem Shake at TK Maxx for comic relief (click here to watch it)