Inspirational People #2 - My Boss

Hey guys!

Today, I'd like to talk to you about my boss, Fairy, who's second on my inspirational people list to talk to you about.

The reason I find her so inspirational is because she's incredibly motivated. For you guys who don't know, I work in a dry cleaners in my town and she's the one who opened the shop and got it started from scratch. Despite the fact that she's not had much business experience herself, she's motivated and believes in what she's selling because she knows it's top notch quality (believe me, it really is) and she's not afraid to let people know that her service is better than many others.

She's also one of the most kind hearted and warm people and she's just that way with her customers which means that they feel like they're being treated personally and fairly and that she genuinely cares (which she does) about her customers and the quality of the service that they receive. She's the kind of person who goes out of her way to make sure that she can help her customer like being able to do cleaning and alterations at short notice and going to collect them herself as well as not being afraid to give people discounts if she can really see that they're going to struggle to pay for the service.

She's also very, very fair and a rational thinker. She's not the kind of person to explode for no reason and she really cares about how she's affecting you with what she does. If you make a mistake, she makes sure to let you know that you're not to worry and if you've made a big mistake, then she'll do everything in her power to make sure that it doesn't happen again.

On top of all of this, she's not a very well person and still motivates herself to keep going and to keep smiling and to keep doing everything she can, including giving sweets to her customers to make sure that she can keep them happy and make their day happier when they come into her shop. It's brilliant and I don't think I've personally seen anyone who spends that much time being warm and friendly and asking about the health of people ever in my life. It's truly inspirational and admirable.

I hope that you guys enjoyed this post! As always, please feel free to empty your thoughts into the comments below and I hope to speak to you soon! :)

Second Stop on Holiday - The Botanical Gardens - Edinburgh

After we stayed for a day in Newcastle, we went to Glasgow for a day but as we spent a lot of the day shopping, there wasn't really much to see. Anyway, the day after we spent the day in Edinburgh and the first place we went to was the Botanical Gardens and the flowers and plants were beautiful.

Here are a few snaps and I hope that you enjoy them!

I hope that you guys enjoyed this post! Please leave your thoughts below and I'll catch you guys soon! :)

Results Day - Realities and What Happened To Me

Hey guys! I hope that you're all fine and dandy and that if you collected your results in the past two weeks that you got the results that you wanted!

So, for me, it was my GCSE year this year and I went to collect my results last Thursday which is the day that this is being written. I feel like I may have told you guys this before but I want to do Medicine at university and it goes without saying that you need top marks for that. So when I say I didn't get the grades I wanted, I got some A's and not A*'s, it's not me being ungrateful, no, not at all! It's me saying that my dream may be crumbling and that some of those A's really could've been A*'s!

I was writing this post to tell you guys all about my problems but honestly, I feel like I've inflicted my own personal misery on too many people! So instead, I'm going to list all the things I'm proud of myself for, for my results! Please join in in the comments so we can share the joy and not dwell on the despair!

Okay, here goes!

1. For the four subjects I'm taking next year I got 2 A's and 2 A*'s - isn't that great groundwork? :D It's making me especially ready and rearing to go so I can smash A Levels :D
2. For History which was one of my A*'s I got 100% on two of the papers. I was a wreck before those papers because unlike many of the subjects, you have to know exact facts because almost nothing is given to you and you can't just rely on what they've given you so I'm so happy that I actually managed to do well in those exams!
3. In my English Lit where I also got an A, the only thing that stopped me from getting an A* was my hatred for poetry and my really bad teacher. 3/4 texts I actually got an A* but I got a C in my poetry so if you discount the poetry, I actually did pretty well! I have no idea how I'm writing this, please don't judge me!
4. I got an A* in Physics which is my worst science! Get in there!
5. Despite the fact I got an A in my RE which was one of my best subjects (I did get an A* in the mock) I actually got full marks on the module I usually drop the most in? I don't know how that works but hell, maybe that's an achievement in itself!
6. I also got an A* in French which I'm taking next year and I'm so excited for it and yayayayay!

I really hope that you guys can understand where I'm coming from and that you can please listen to me objectively. It's very easy on the internet to get hate for 'not being appreciative' but it's like anything that you dream about, no matter what you want to become. If you don't do well enough in any sort of test, you're bound to feel low but often, whatever happened, happened for good reason.

I hope to speak to you guys soon, Take Care and be proud of how far you've come and right now, don't worry about how far there is left to go, just stand and appreciate the moment, on top of that mountain :D

Sixth on the List: 1984 By George Orwell

Hey guys! I hope that you're well!

So recently I finished reading 1984 by George Orwell and I thought it was an awesome book, especially seeing as though it was written in 1949. It's a really interesting read because it's one of the earlier dystopian fantasies and is a lot more poignant than today's dystopias because the phenomenon he writes about in his book is worldwide rather than just based in England (like the Slated series which I wrote about here) or in America like the Hunger Games for example. It's worldwide and that means that all of the destruction and the hypocrisy and hatred is widespread.

Just a few details about the book before I continue:

• The main character, Winston Smith, works for the Ministry of Truth, constantly changing the past so that it fits the reality of the present. This in itself means that history is constantly being changed.
• In most rooms, especially in the rooms of those who work for The Party, there is a telescreen. These are present in homes as well as at work places and they are constantly producing noise, whether that be bulletins of news or music or things that make no sense what so ever. They are also like cameras in the way that they can 'see' you and can hear everything you say that is above a whisper.
• This means that you have to completely control your face and your expression because anything that gives you away as someone who is secretly against The Party can lead you to disappear. Because of the fact they can remove facts from everywhere, they literally erase you from history and this means that anyone who knew you won't ever have known what happened to you. This happens to Winston's parents and he always blamed himself because he was a selfish child.
• The head of The Party is known as Big Brother and this is where the expression 'Big Brother is Watching You' was coined.

All of this makes the book really interesting to read because it really makes you explore the inner facets of who you are and why you believe what you believe and it makes the book really intriguing because it means that Winston is constantly analysing his rebelliousness inside him and is always analysing the society around himself and what it means to be part of it and how it works. The book in its entirety is really interesting for us in modern day because we can still see similar trends in the world today and it really sets out ideologies in black and white without any sugar coating.

So, all in all, if you're a fan of dystopias I would definitely recommend the book because it's really interesting and gripping and really challenges the motives of people around you and how the people who make the world run do what they do! Also, they have a different ideology on torture which I found really interesting and an awesome twist to the story but I won't spoil it for you! You'll have to find it our yourself :)

I hope that you guys enjoyed this post! If you did or didn't please leave your thoughts in the comments below so I can hear from you and I hope to speak to you soon!

First Stop on Holiday - Newcastle

Hey guys!

The week before last, I went on holiday to numerous places, one of which being Newcastle. I didn't get to take that many pictures in the city itself which was sad but the buildings are beautiful. Nevertheless, after we finished in the city centre, we went to a nearby beach. It made me incredibly happy because I haven't been to the beach in ages so here are a few snaps! :)

I hope that you guys enjoyed this post, I was on holiday for 5 days so I'll be doing posts every once a week or so as a break from my normal posts :) Speak to you guys soon! :)

A Little Pot of Happiness

Hey guys!

At some point last week, my mum and I had gone shopping and we were walking around our local market when I saw a flower stall. Then, I saw a little pot of roses and I basically fell in love because they were so cute! As you can see in a previous post, I love the rose bush in the front of my garden so having a little plant which we could keep inside was just amazing.

I honestly hope that I can have a little rose plant when I grow up because I feel like having a little flowery plant just makes me so happy. Oh dear aha, when I sat down to write this post I thought I could write how I felt about the plant a bit more specifically but all I can tell you is that it makes me so happy :D

Anyway, as I can't say anymore, here are some pictures of the little flowers :D

Thank you so much for watching! I hope that you guys enjoyed this post! Have a wonderful week and I'm so sorry for having missed last Saturday, I had an incredibly hectic week! I'll speak to you soon :)

Anxiety, The Feeling of Loneliness, YouTube

Hey guys!

I recently saw a video by Kian Lawley which you can check out here and it really reminded me that despite the fact that YouTubers may have a ton of subscribers doesn't mean that they're as comfortable with people as they may appear to be on camera or around their friends.

I don't personally suffer from anxiety but I can relate to the feeling where you feel like other people are only putting up with you and that you're actually quite alone when you're with your friends. This used to happen quite often over the summer break when I'd see my friends a lot less often and I'd go back to school completely afraid and half convinced that I'd imagined that they'd liked me and that I'd actually end up with no friends and completely alone. Thank God it always feels like we're better friends at the beginning of the year than at the end. For me, somehow, on a side note, losing a friend has actually made me a ton closer to my other friends so losing a best friend out of two was actually a blessing in disguise.

Back to the point, I think a lot of the time it can really help us help each other if we listen to each other without phones or other distractions in front of us and spend quality time with one another. The fact that the presence of mobile devices at social gatherings has become a norm is worrying and I feel like it's one way in which we can give the impression to our closest friends that they aren't worth our full attention when in reality, we don't feel that way at all.

In Kian's video, he talks about how telling his mum about his anxiety and the fact it was a problem was probably the best thing he did and it really made him feel so much better about it because he felt listened to and cared of. In that way we can see that if we really care about those around us, they deserve to feel it and to feel like we're always given them our undivided attention because sometimes, despite the fact having lots of followers on a social media account can feel like we're popular and we have friends, the reality can be the opposite.

What I loved about Kian's video was the fact that he disproved this statement and I think it's a testament to the nature of YouTube and the fact that he hasn't accumulated an awesome 1.8 million subscribers from nothing. For him, knowing that there are people who can understand and connect with his videos makes him feel like they're less alone as well as the same for him and it made me happy knowing that social media is great for people who feel alone sometimes though my personal opinion is when you're face to face with someone, social media shouldn't play a part in the face to face time that you have, if you see what I'm saying.

I hope that you guys enjoyed this post! I feel like it was a bit more of a roundabout post in comparison to other posts because I made a ton of more varied points but as always, leave your thoughts in the comments and I hope to speak to you soon!

Dates and their apparent insignificance and yet intrinsic significance

Hey guys!

This subject was something that passed my mind during this past week.

It started with this simple fact; if memory prevails, all of us share our birthdays with a massive 150,000,000 people worldwide. That fact alone is just mind blowing but for me it simply gives me a reason to be happy everyday because every day is someone's birthday and it's a wondrous phenomenon.

It also occured to me that there are dates all the way through history. Every day something or other happened and that in itself is inspirational because of the fact it proves to us that everyday is a day that we can make a change in the world.

I personally feel like we often go through life treating one day the same as the next and this is so easy when we've settled into a routine. We shouldn't feel like weeks go by with no change because everyday is a day to cherish and everyday is stupendously different.

Once we appreciate that, life can become so much more interesting :D

Happy Birthday to you if it's your birthday today! I hope that you guys enjoyed this post! Please do leave your thoughts in the comments below and all the best for the week ahead! I hope to speak to you soon!

P.s. if you guys have any topics that you'd like me to offer my opinion on like a thought provoking post or video, I'm open to suggestions!

A New Mug That's Pretty Damned Awesome

Hey guys!

So randomly enough, one day I was getting something for my dad from the back of his car and I realised that he had this wonderful red mug with words on it just sitting there in bubble wrap. Just being me and my dad out of our family who don't have our own mugs, rather just the conventional ones that are more generic than the others, I was intrigued and having unwrapped it in all its goodness, I've found it a source of daily inspiration!

In spite of the fact it's actually an advert for what accountants from a certain company are like, I find the adjectives used to describe them rather inspiring and they motivate me to become better and to feel better because of the way that they are phrased and just the kind of words that they are.

All of the phrases on the mug are:

Business Leaders - Professional - Employable - Ambitious - Brilliant - Dynamic - Amazing - Respected - Dedicated - Strategic - Qualified - Thought-Provoking - Motivating - Courageous - Credible - Ethical - Pro-Active - Empowering - Fearless - Bold - Influential - Decisive - Engaged - Priceless - Passionate - Game Changers - Global - Skilled - Smart - Inspiring - Innovative - Dedicated - Forward-Thinking - Tireless - Profitable

As you can see, these sorts of things are the qualities that all of us, wherever we want to go in life, want to be. We all want to be dedicated and professional in what we do, we want to become the best that we can. We want to have the courage to go forward, be as fearless as we can and being bold and through that, even if we don't succeed, we can motivate and inspire others to try something new. You can see how this works and how having something as simple as a mug can really help anyone really on a day-to-day basis to feel better about themselves and to give them goals to work towards, qualities that they want to have within themselves as they develop.

I hope that you guys enjoyed this little burst of inspiration today! If you did like it or dislike it, as always, feel free to empty your thoughts into the comments below and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and I'll speak to you soon!

p.s. I went away this week and if you're lucky, some pictures'll be on your way some time soon! I'm so excited! Also, please do let me know what you think of my photography, I'm an amateur! :)

Fifth on the List - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Hey guys!

This is one of the older illustrations and I do love the
expressions that the characters have as well as their
up turned noses!

I thought, as I hadn't really updated you on what I've been reading recently, it was time for it to have a comeback, mwahahahaha, okay, not so evil but here's what I thought of Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

I absolutely loved the book, simply because of the fact that it could both simultaneously make no sense whatsoever and still make any sense at all! What I really loved about the book was the fluidity of everything and the literal and nonliteral sense of everything that you read. For example, there's a character called the Mock Turtle and the reason why he doesn't stop crying is because he isn't a real turtle anymore. Once you see it that way, his name makes perfect sense but he still acts like a normal turtle and that's why it's so startling!

I also love the way the Cheshire Cat is almost Alice's friend throughout the novel when he pops in and out and eventually almost gets captured by the King and the Queen of Cards whilst the Queen can't decide whether she can actually get his head chopped off or not because he infamously disappears before she can work out whether he actually has a neck or not.

This is a very short book review, I must say, but that's mainly because I don't want to spoil the fun! Please, if you're a fan of classics and want a laugh or a bit of a queer read shall I say, then please do go ahead and give it a read! It's wonderfully brilliant and silly and I have to say that's why I love old classic children's books, especially like those by Enid Blyton because they have magic and it's wonderful!

I do hope that you guys liked this post! If you did or didn't please leave your thoughts in the comments below and I look forward to reading them! Have a wonderful rest of the week and I'll speak to you soon!

'Stand Up Straight' - Thoughts Provoked by Charlie

Hey guys!

Some time in the past week, Charlie McDonnell (aka charlieissocoollike on YouTube) released a video called 'Stand Up Straight' which I loved because of the way he talked about his thoughts. He talked about how being told to straighten up his back and not slouch by his Mum, which he did, admittedly ten years later, actually was helping him feel more confident as well as buying more shoes that didn't get holes in them in the same place in every pair that he'd bought ever since he realised how quickly he could take them on and off. In essence, it was a video about change.

His amazing point in this video was that if his 16 year old self could see him actually falling towards fashion and doing what his mum said rather than letting his inner grungy personality show through his slouch, he would've flipped and probably have turned to wearing a bin bag. The point is, we all change and despite the fact it feels like what we think now is what we'll always think, that's definitely not necessarily true.

He challenges you and I in turn, challenge you, to write down something that you don't ever think you'll change thinking and put it in a safe place. Then look back at it in five years or ten years and see if you've changed. Chances are you, will have done and it's a part of life that we can't stop or anything, but it's often change that causes us the most discomfort because we always want things to stay the same because we're not prepared to lose the happiness that we've gained from the routine of how things have been for us.

I personally do feel this way sometimes but I think it's very important for all of us to be able to embrace change so that we can find a new way to be happy again rather than clinging to the old way because chances are it's probably not going to happen again and may not even have been as good as you remember it now.

I hope that you guys enjoyed this post! As always, leave your thoughts in the comments below and I will speak to you soon!

A New Series: Inspirational People #1

Hey guys, I do hope that you're all well and ready for an awesome weekend ahead!

I wanted to start this series in my blog because I feel like I have a lot of people who directly and indirectly inspire me in my life and I wanted to share that inspiration with you. Yes, many of those people are YouTubers but the beauty about YouTubers is that they're just average human beings and I generally only watch vloggers so I am inspired by their everyday lives, some of which run much like my life, or yours.

So, let's get started! Today I'd like to talk to you about Jackson and Finn Harries.

Jack has been a ginormous inspiration in my life ever since I started watching his videos with his brother Finn last summer. Their channel was originally meant to document Jack on his gap year but when he didn't get the right grades and had to spend another year in school retaking, it meant that his videos became a bit more personal.

Jack inspires me because he got up and kept going and managed to share all of the fun stuff along the way. Him and his brother have done a few amazing projects and have travelled to many awesome places such as Ibiza, New York, South Africa, Thailand, Orlando, California, Rome just to name a few! The fact that they both have such similar and yet different personalities makes their videos really cool to watch.

Another type of video that they do is just crazy wacky more England based stuff. To name a few, they made
a ball pit out of their bedroom, Jack and Sam Pepper went unicycling in shopping centres, Jack went street surfing where you basically almost water surf but imagine the boat is a car and the surfboard is in fact, a skate board. They're just hilarious to watch!

Another reason I am inspired by Jack is the way he puts his videos together. One of my favourites has to be his video 'Alone in an Office' which I just love, it's so much fun and just the amount of their friends they get involved really makes everything so much bigger and so much more enjoyable. They recently organised a trip to Ibiza with many of their friends to celebrate their 21st Birthday and it just makes you so happy knowing that someone out there can make other people happy too.

That leads me onto a final point about the Rickshaw Run which Jack and Finn did with a few other people, some who've featured on this blog before, others not. If they have somewhere they can be checked out, their links will be included! So it was, Louis Cole (aka FunForLouis), Will Darbyshire, Ben Brown, Harry Crowder and Max Cantellow. They trekked right across the width of India in three Rickshaws and raised over $170,000 for the Teenage Cancer Trust. That is just amazing and it shows that you should always try and do things for good reasons and plus, the experience! The link to watch their Rickshaw Adventure is here and the link to watch Louis' daily vlogging of their adventure is here. It was amazing how it was both an adventure and something that was really contributing to a worthy cause and that was amazing.

On top of all of this stuff, they run an awesome blog here which you might love to read now and then, the articles are pretty phenomenal and on a variety of awesome and arty subjects!

I hope that you guys like this style of post! If you do or don't, leave your thoughts as always in the comments below and I hope to speak to you soon!