New Years!

Hey guys,


It's that time of year again, and as I've consecutively mentioned every New Years Day -Resolutions are pointless. I believe that having a goal (or a list of goals) you desire to accomplish is amazing. It shows that you are driven, but why set a resolution for new years? Surely we should strive to better ourselves every single day we have the opportunity to live on this earth. Yes -it is "harder than it sounds" and "easier said than done" I one-hundred and ten percent agree with you. I'm living proof that resolutions do not work. If you are new to my blog (or do not remember what my 2015 new years eve post was) I set myself a short resolutions list of tasks I thought would be achievable -most of which I failed within the first week or so.

My old list consisted of the following:

1. Keep all of my Resolutions
2. No more sweets
3. No more fizzy drinks
4. Be nicer to people
5. Sleep before 9:30pm 
6. get an A in French and maths
7. Join 5 new clubs
8. Write a book

Today I want to look back over 2015 and really get to appreciate how life changing the year was for me. I have both gained and lost friends, enrolled in a new school, participated in a summer program called NCS, partook in a weeks work experience, Prom, Dubai, reunited with most of my family members (we all live in separate parts of London), flirtationship?, began to establish my own sense of style, passed all of my GCSEs and many other amazing events that would take me the whole of 2016 if I was to jot them down.

This year of 2016, I plan on starting afresh. I would say that I am a completely different person today than I was this time last year and I owe a lot of that to my friends -both old and new- as well as NCS and the new school I am attending (all of which I will fill you in on)

Whilst on the topic of New Beginings...

I have decided to post once a week, although I haven't quite figured out my timetable and where I can fit this in, blogging is definitely something that I miss doing and you will definately be seeing a lot more of me and my content this year!

Hmm...HMM..  

Happy new year!

Love you all x

July/August playlist

Hey guys,

It's currently Sunday evening (in London) and knowing me, I'm going on a week-long trip tomorrow and I've only just started doing the little last minute preps I need to be fully prepared. One of these crucial things is my Music. I've had my new phone for approximately a month now and yet I've been skating by using up my data for Soundcloud instead of actually uploading any songs to my phone. That wasn't smart on my part. Now I've used up all of my data and I'm going to have to go through the mini-holiday without being able to skype, instagram, whatsapp or snap anyone (I know, such important problems). Not only that, but I've also got no music to listen to on the 4+ hour drive up to whales.

I'm not quite sure why, but my music taste has shifted slightly. 

I'm the kind of person who likes a song/ genre of music and will listen to the same songs until I am sick of hearing them, then I'll move on to the next songs. 

My music playlists are usually crammed with Ed Sheeran and Eminem songs, but lately I feel like I've moved onto listening to a lot of Hoodie Allen and likewise artists. 

If you asked, I couldn't possible be able to tell you when or why the change happened. It just did. 

The following songs are just a few that I've recently added to my iTunes playlist (as I had a total of "0" songs) and I will most likely tire them out by the end of the week.

Pierce The Veil - The Divine Zero 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzOF3R7lnok

Oh Wonder - Landslide

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1stxUqNJINE

will.i.am - Feelin' Myself ft. Miley Cyrus, Wiz Khalifa, French Montana

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRuoR--LdqQ

MAX - Gibberish (feat. Hoodie Allen) [Official Music Video - YTMAs]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2_YDtKmsVA

Hoodie Allen - "Fame Is For A*****es" feat. Chiddy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hTD6uEgTVw&index=2&list=PLnXydJAg_mX500Y-HpuWlBqcHvIA8460y

Hoodie Allen - "All About It" ft. Ed Sheeran

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvoA7fCOmf8&index=5&list=PLnXydJAg_mX500Y-HpuWlBqcHvIA8460y

Hoodie Allen - "No Interruption"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_t431MAUQlQ&index=4&list=PLnXydJAg_mX500Y-HpuWlBqcHvIA8460y

Of Monsters And Men - Little Talks

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghb6eDopW8I&list=PLnXydJAg_mX500Y-HpuWlBqcHvIA8460y&index=20

Middle Class Rut - New Low

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5GYOsKLp6o&index=15&list=PLnXydJAg_mX500Y-HpuWlBqcHvIA8460y

Nothing But Thieves - Graveyard Whistling

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCCAEcuOk_g&index=16&list=PLnXydJAg_mX500Y-HpuWlBqcHvIA8460y

Currently, I feel like perhaps my recent music taste reflects my thoughts and how I feel right now. A mixture of many things, un-organised and  messy -to put it bluntly. These are just a few songs from my playlist, but you can view the rest by searching "Trustinjess" on souncloud

P.s. Does anyone else listen to the same songs over and over again until they can't stand them? It's kind of like when you set a song as your ring tone or alarm and before you know it, your favourite song has become your least favourite.

Anyway, I've got another quote and picture for you all,

Hmm...HMM..

Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.
Victor Hugo

Summer Movie List

Hey guys,

I often find myself eagerly counting down the last few precious days left of school before summer begins, but a couple of days into the holiday, I become fed-up and bored. 

That's just what summer is. 

Expectations vs. Reality -unfortunately for us, reality always seams to win that battle.

Now, I am aware that many students (everyone who wasn't doing their GCSEs) broke up from school yesterday. So for those of you who are already experiencing this, I have compiled a little list of some of my all-time favourite movies (that you really should already have watched).

Granted, most of these movies were released before the year of be 2006. And I know what you're probably thinking. "but Jess... These were all filmed before we had good graphics and is probably going to be boring". 
One thing I've learnt along my movie journey is to never judge a movie by when it was made. Just because it's an old movie doesn't automatically mean the movie is of bad quality.

Another thing I have also learnt during this painfully dull week is that despite the fact that we may know if movies, we might not necessarily have watched them. I'm not even sure if I'm making any sense any more, but what I mean is -for example- everyone knows about the movie King Kong. Am I correct in saying so? But it was only a couple of weeks ago that I actually realised that I had never watched the original movie (which was very entertaining and dramatic by the way).

Grease (1978)

This should come to no surprise to you. Grease is an absolute classic.

 Musicals aren't usually my cup of tea. By this I mean if I was given the choice of watching a musical or eating Marmite, it would definitely take me a minute or two to come to a final conclusion.

But although I will always fail to understand the need for random, completely unprovoked singing and dancing in the middle of a scene, I love the movie Grease and it's not hard to see why. 
I mean... Who doesn't like themselves a young John Travolta?

The prestige (2006)

This is a movie that I've only watched recently.  I was at my friends house (Maya) earlier this week for a "movie marathon" -which didn't quite work out as I arrived late and one of our friends had to leave early.

I remember being very reluctant to watch this, but if you were there you wouldn't blame me for that. I only wish you had heard the way in which she described the movie to me!
You would have had the exact same reaction. Her summary of the movie was somewhere along the lines of "It's about two magicians who are at war with one another and one does something to the other. Okay, that was a bad explanation, but it is a really good movie".
Sounds amazing right?
No.

Despite the horrible (although quite accurate) explanation, as soon as she informed me that Hugh Jackman was starring in it, I was sold. 

In my brief opinion, the movie was surprisingly really good -at least "good" in comparison to my unbelievably low expectations for it.

The Truman show (1998)

Most of these movies were introduced to me by a friend or family member when I was little. I remember somewhere around 2009-10 my older sister first showed me this movie.
To be completely honest, I might be a bit bias when it comes to recommending this film because I happen to be one of the many people who think Jim Carrey is one of the funniest movie comedians there are and overall is just very amusing to watch. I'd definitely recommend his movies if you're in a sad mood and need a little pick me-up or just in the mood to laugh.
The Truman show is -in a nutshell- about a salesman who lives every day almost identical to how he lived his last. Every part of his life, from brushing his teeth to when he sleeps, is scheduled and planned, but one day he seems to notice this and (as cliché as this may sound) his life as he knows it begins to change.
Sorry if that was a bad description (I'm almost as bad as Maya) but I am just trying not to give anything away.

Ferris bueller's day off

I absolutely adore this movie. If you are sitting at home bored out of your mind (as I currently am) this is a light-hearted movie that, to be honest, is actually kind of a bad influence on me. It made me consider taking an unauthorised day off school (although I didn't) just like the main character Ferris Bueller. 

It's not my fault.

I just happen to love teen movies of any sort whether it's a: romantic comedy, a drama, a science fiction etc etc.

If you watch this movie and enjoy it, there is also a more modern remake of it starring a few known viners such as  Cameron Dallas and YouTubers such as Andrea Russet (if you are interested). 

Batman: The Dark Knight Rises

I'm not a huge fan of batman. There. I said it.
I find that a rich man in a bat costume and fancy car doesn't really scream HERO. You know? I just feel like there isn't much talent going on and anyone could be Batman. Forgive me if I start to rant but this just gets on my nerves. DC superheroes are nowhere as good as Marvel. *cue the hate from DC fans*
All personal feelings aside...

Heath ledger was an amazing Joker. Perhaps even the best Joker I've seen in any batman movie (which really means nothing coming from me as he is the only Joker I have ever seen in a Batman movie). 
For those of you who don't know, which I would find shocking, but the main summary of this movie is: A villain -who goes by the name The Joker- is wreaking havoc within Gotham (the town in which Batman is set) in attempts to finally take out Batman.

-----------------

p.s there are a lot of other movies that I absolutely love -such as War Of The Worlds- but to spare you the reading time (and increase the movie watching time...you're welcome) I had to narrow the list down.

Anyway, I've got another quote and picture for you all,

Hmm...HMM..

Ferris- Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it

Prom 2015

Hey guys,

This is quite a long post so I'll try and be as brief as possible.

The season of Prom is amongst us! And although my teachers insist on calling the event  a "leavers do" -which it no doubt is- the youth of our year are determined not to undermine the special event and  have persisted in calling the event our Prom.

Now, there are three main events every person will have experienced in their lifetime (well, I hope): A birthday, a wedding and a Prom. Three causes to splurge out on expensive items of clothing that we will undoubtabley only wear once, if we're luck twice, in our lifetime. So why do we do this? Surely it doesn't make any sense.

As you may or may not know, teens all over London have, or are yet to experience the phenomenon that is their Year 11 Prom.

On Friday 19th of June 2015, St Saviours and St Olaves (my now-previous secondary school) hosted a "Leaving party" -otherwise known as Prom- for the girls of Year 11.
To be completely honest, Prom is nowhere near what I had imagined. After years of watching those stereotypical teen movies of girls obsessing over the "perfect Prom night" and viewing other Prom pictures on the internet I was expecting extraordinary lights and fireworks. The whole package.
In my mind, Prom had to be the epitome of entertainment and social activity.

I seemed to be soo focused on the night of Prom itself I had hardly thought about the role I had to play in achieving my expectations. One of those being that I actually had to put effort into looking for the perfect dress, shoes and accessories.

The process of getting ready for Prom was 99% harder than I thought it was going to be.
I spent two weeks prior to the event rummaging through the interweb (my new favourite word) for a dress. This search led me to an Elie Saab trail dress. The image was stunning and thus my obsession with Chiffon was born.

I was determined to have a chiffon prom dress.

What I find hardest to believe about my whole prom dress search was the fact that I absolutely hate ordering clothes online -especially if I need the item quickly. One of the most evident reasons for this is the item may not come on time, leaving you with nothing or even worse, the items arrive on time but you have to send them back because you realise that it's too busty or isn't in the correct size.
There are just too many things that can go wrong when ordering online. This meant that if I found a dress online, I would have to only search for stores that had local shops. An example of this would be ordering a dress from River Island instead of Asos.

Mayas communal Garden

As I was obsessed with that Elie Saab dress, and it was clearly out of my price range, I became fixated with the idea that I had to have a replica dress custom made for me.

That fixation was short lived as I had left it too late for any seamstress to be able to make a decent looking replica dress (a week before prom). At this stage I began to panic internally.
What if I couldn't find a decent dress in time?

Do I decide not go to Prom?
That's when my mum stepped in and saved the day. Said we would go dress shopping that Thursday (a week before prom). One thing we should all know about my mum is that she is a huge fan of old fashioned shops that have been there for a while such as BHS and Debenhams -so unsurprisingly she took me there first. Soon after arriving at Debenhams, we got onto the escalators headed straight for the 4th floor. Having arrived at the 4th floor, we got off the escalators and began our search for my dress. The crazy thing is that fell in love with the first dress I saw but I said nothing to my mum because I felt that she might have thought it was over the top and expensive.
Roughly ten minutes into rejecting any suggestions she had for my dress, she became restless and told me to "go and pick anything up to try on".  This was the most ideal time to at least try on the dress I had seen, even if I couldn't get it, at least I could get it out of my mind.
To be brief, I tried on the dress and both my mother and I loved how it looked on me and purchased it.

A link to my Dress is below:

http://www.debenhams.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/prod_10701_10001_008010340034_-1

That same day, we entered a shop called Dune. Here I found a sales assistant who was my age (16). I have forgotten her name but she was a super sweet person and easy to converse with. We began bonding over how difficult our Physics GCSE exams were going to be and how ill-prepared we were for Prom. Whilst I was being social, my mum was browsing the shoes, browsing for something that had the potential to match my newly-purchased dress. A few seconds into my conversation with the nameless sales assistant, my mum came back with a pair of platforms.

http://www.dunelondon.com/daviner-metallic-detail-platform-court-shoe-0094508750001616/

The Crew

At first I was a little sceptical. I'm not one to wear shiny pieces of any item of clothing or accessories, but the sales assistant did her job unsurprisingly well and before we knew it, we were purchasing a matching clutch.

http://www.dunelondon.com/bex-lurex-hard-case-clutch-bag-0007500670008642/

It was sorted. We bought all of my prom equipment complete with accessories in one day. I'd say that was pretty impressive.

Now that my dress had been sorted out, it was time to sort out one of my closest friends Maya. She usually doesn't wear dresses nor does she go shopping that often. This meant that it was up to me and a select few others (including Mayas Grandpa) to find her something to wear on prom night.

Considering the fact that I had recently found my dress at Debenhams, it was a no-brainer to demand that we visit there first.

Entering the department, I knew roughly what I was looking for (although it is harder to locate items that you found online in store). The night before we went shopping, I  spent roughly half an hour figuring out what style of dress would suit Maya the most.

Judging by my own feelings backed up by the help of my "unofficial fashion consultant" Kayleigh, we decided that Maya should stay away from any lightly/brightly coloured dresses as she is quite pale and therefore her skin would pop with a dress of a darker tone.

We, the select few who accompanied her dress shopping, decided that we would each individually select one dress for Maya to try on, then go from there. In the end, we decided on a dress.

http://www.debenhams.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/prod_10701_10001_61252+267788_-1

With Lilly :)

My sisters played a huge part in getting me presentable for Prom. If it wasn't for them I can't even begin to imagine how un-presentable and outrageous  I would have looked had I arrived without their help.

A few strangers who photo-bombed us then took a photo with us

Prom was programmed to last from 5.30pm to 8.30pm. This meant that we would only have three hours to party and socialise -outrageous! I know! Most people were upset with this so they planned an after-party which probably went on to midnight.
Not my kind of party.
 I didn't want my Prom dress getting messed up or destroyed amongst wild groups of party-goers.

Selfie at the London eye

Moving on, being the fun-addicts that we are, my friends and I had booked a Limo to pick us up from  the school entrance at approximately 8.45pm to ensure that we had enough time to say what could be our last goodbyes to some people as we are all going to separate sixth forms and take last minute photos with teaches and our favourite members of staff (but secretly we also wanted everyone to see our grand exit into the limo... but that's just our little secret).

With fellow Teen blogger and close friend +Neri SeesRed at prom.

The limo driver dropped us off at the back corner of the London eye to allow us to take some photos with the scenery, which was a nice surprise considering that when we were attempting to book the Limo, the woman on the phone told us that we could either go for a Limo cruise or have the Limo drop us off at a particular location. We were told that we could not have both, which was quite disappointing, so you can imagine how pleasantly surprised we were when the driver informed us that we were taking a pit stop to take photos.

With my close friend Hannah

Knowing my luck, it wouldn't have been a night out with my mates if something didn't go wrong.

Unfortunately, I was the lucky one who was forced by nature to take one for the team. At the end of the night, when the hour was up and the Limo driver had returned us back to school -It happened.

After being escorted -rather elegantly if I do say so myself- out of the Limo, my friends and I were walking away when I every-so-smartly decided to look back and wave goodbye to the driver.

In the millisecond I took to turn around to wave farewell (as I was wearing a rather tall pair of heals) I lost my balance and plummeted to the ground faster than you could say "ouch".

With my close friends Maya and Kayleigh

When I had gotten back up I discovered that I had snagged the front of my dress, along with a heel-sized hole in the bottom back of the dress and to top it all off, there was a small cut on my knee which I hadn't discovered until I saw the blood seeping through the chiffon of my dress. Yaay. The dress is now completely ruined and remains untouched in my closet. It  a rather unfortunate ending to such a great night.

With my friend Janice

To conclude, Prom wasn't exactly the typical "Best night of my life" but I honestly think that it was one of the best days of June 2015 and if I had to redo the whole night again, the one thing I would change in falling over and ruining my dress.

Have you had a Prom? If so did you enjoy it and or injure yourself?
P.s. For anyone who is yet to have a prom or find a dress, I would strongly suggest they check out Debenhams. The dresses there are decently priced and stunning.

Anyway, I've got another quote and picture for you all,

Hmm...HMM..

I think prom is just about enjoying yourself.

-Victoria Justice

Update: Pet Peeves list June

Hey guys,

Burping, Sneezing, Farting, Hiccups

Yes. Out of context the above listed things do sound utterly gross or possibly just odd, but it leads me to this...

One of my utmost favourite reoccurring posts to blog about is without a doubt my Pet Peeves list.

Every now and again when something or someone in my life tires me to the point in which I remember that a pet peeve list update is necessary I post an updated copy of my Pet Peeves list. I'm not sure why, but recreating this list makes me feel as if I get a chance to discover a little tiny piece more of myself as I unravel the growing number things that makes me tick.

The definition Google provides of the phrase 'Pet Peeve' is:

Something that a particular person finds especially annoying.

In my case, this just happens to be an exceptionally lengthy list of things.

The thing is, in most of the below circumstances, I don't really seem to notice that the action is getting on my nerves. I just happen to find myself in a dimmer mood than I was in before the action started, so when I'm updating my list, I'm really just looking back on certain situations and realising why I got into a sour mood. Although half the time I don't even let the person know how I'm feeling, I just kind of drown in my irritation until I escape (as weird and psychotic as that sounds).

Anywhoo..

I present my 2015 updated Pet Peeves list:

When people ignore homeless people. It's rude

Seeing people litter

When you offer someone some if they want something you're about to cook and they decline, waiting until you've made it before they ask for some

When I smudge my nail polish before it gets a chance to dry

When people are loud for no reason

When people go into my room and move my stuff around without my permission

When people are disrespectful to bus drivers

Pigeons.

When people Speak with their mouth full

Chewing gum with your mouth open

Excess chewing noises

Buzzing (made by Bees and Flys)

Drivers who don't use a turn signal. (when you're trying to cross the road, so they almost run you over)

Lagging (TV/Videos)

When the people sitting behind me kick my chair

Feeling Gum Under the Desk

People who read out loud what they're typing in an email or reading a book.

People who chew with their mouth open

People who ride their bikes in the road and cause traffic when I'm in a rush

When you open the DVD case and it is empty or a different movie is in it 

People who don't cover their mouth while sneezing or coughing (I just find it inconsiderate for those around them who have to inhale their germs)

Waking up to dirty dishes in the sink that I have to wash, when I didn't cause them

People who clear their throats in a disgusting way (when you can hear the phloem and whatnot brewing in there)

People who spit on the street

When people leave the cap off the toothpaste (I get paranoid that something crawled into it)

Relying on someone else to take a picture because I want to be in it, and it ends up coming out off-centred and out-of-focus

When I wake up and my phone is on 1% because I forgot to plug it in

When someone comes into my room and doesn't leave the door and the light how they found it

When I have a unique idea and the teacher shared it with the class

Sleeping through my alarm or someone snoozes my alarm before I get the chance to wake up

Surprisingly this list is shorter than it usually is. And full of more important things than usual, this either means that I'm growing up or I've just become a more tolerable person. Either way, I guess this is a win for me and a win for humanity as they now do less to agitate me.

Is there anything in particular that makes you tick? If so, what?

It could even be people who blog about their pet peeves

...Wouldn't that be awkward...

Anyway, I've got another quote and picture for you all,

Hmm...HMM..

“I don't have pet peeves like some people. I have whole kennels of irritation.”

― Whoopi Goldberg

Sunshine in the darkness

Hey guys,

I -like most other sixteen year old students in the world- have been hit with the overwhelming fact that we are currently taking our GCSEs. The exams in which we have been made to believe our futures depend on. "If you get bad GCSEs you won't be able to go to a good sixth form . If you can't go to a good sixth form, you can't go to a good collage. And if you can't go to a good collage, you cannot get a good job". etc etc. In this time of immense stress and procrastination, as cheesy as this may sound, nothing makes me feel better than being able to share how I feel with all of you. And for those of you who are going through exams, whether you are an A level student, GCSE student or if you are currently experiencing any form of stress and anxiety in your life, I just want to give you some inspirational quotes that hopefully act like a little ray of sunshine in this dark, straining time.

Here a few tips and tricks to help you revise more efficiently:

1. Leave home. This is probably the best advice I can give you. By this, I don't mean pack your bags and leave (lets not do anything too crazy) but going to the library, the park or even to your friends houses to revise. This can sometimes boost productivity because you are not at home, so you feel less lazy and there are less distractions therefore you should find yourself getting more work done.
2. Listen to classical music or instrumentals. I would personally recommend classical music as you will be letting the information sink instead of being tempted to sing along to the track 
3. Find out the way you work best, and stick to it!
4. If timetables do not work for you (you can't stick to them) do not worry. Just look at your exam timetable and see which exam comes up first and revise the subjects in that order. Don't worry about a time limit, or switching between subjects. This way, you are getting work done, even if you are not sticking to an allocated time for the subject.
5. Have fun with it! There are thousands of creative ways in which you can revise. So why limit yourself to the same-old typical open-book technique? You could plaster cute revision notes all around your house (I'm sure your parents and siblings won't mind, after all, you are taking exams!), make giant revision cards and cover your wall with them, cover your ceiling with reminders and photos related to the topic you are studying, revise with a friend and have a consequence for getting an answer wrong etc etc. 

Another way to help yourself is by doing things that help you to relax, and not to become too caught up in the stress and anxiety. A few suggestions of things you can do to help reduce stress are:

1. As mentioned in my previous post, listen to music! Cheerful, uplifting music or just music that tends to explain exactly how you are feeling is a great source of happiness and stress relief
2. Try some yoga. It won't hurt to try
3. Do some exercise! Teachers go on and on about this, so it MUST be true. Exercising helps reduce an individuals' stress levels as it produces endorphins in  an individual (I'm not sure how that relates, but I just thought you should know :)).
4. Watch your favourite tv shows and movies. Although this may be interpreted as a form of procrastination, who feels like revising when they are too stressed out to think? No-one!
5. Go for a walk. This is not the same as exercising! Going for a walk will just act as a way in which you can reflect on life and perhaps you will be able to absorb the peace and tranquillity emitted by mother nature.

So for anyone stressing about their exams, or staging all nighters to cram all of the information in. Don't! Follow some of these tips:

1. Do not cram. The information you "learn" will only stay within your short term memory and by the time you actually sit down for the exam, more than half of the crammed information will have left your brain.
2. You need to get as much sleep as possible, so you don't feel exhausted throughout the day and fail to learn anything as a result
3. There is more to life than exams, regardless of what you get, you can always turn your life around. It's never the end
4. Eat! One thing that is proven (I have no clue whether it's proven or not) to reduce stress levels before and after an exam is FOOD. Just pull up a seat next to me and we can eat our troubles out, one spoonful of ice-cream at a time
5. Hang out with your friends. This could be a revision group or just a quick casual hang-out with a couple of close friends. You shouldn't kill yourself trying to revise, so why not have a little fun doing it?
6. Google says (and of course "everything Google says is right") that you should take breaks in between revising. I agree 100%. During this time, you can do whatever you want! provided it's within your allocated 'break' time.

I'm going to let you in on a little secret of mine:

If you just try your best, you'll have no regrets

Anyway, I've got another quote and picture for you all,

Hmm...HMM..

If you want to be happy, be.

-Leo Tolstoy

April music playlist 2015

Hey guys,

Yes, I am still alive, but I did say I'd be popping in every once in a while to say hello and of course to give you a short update on my life. There is only one bad thing occurring in my life right now. As i'm sure every other sixteen year old is experiencing, exam induced stressed. I actually had to miss my first two lessons of school last Wednesday because I was stressing out soo much I actually began to feel soo sick. Anywhoo moving on from that, one key component in both keeping me sane and helping me to revise is my revision playlist. Most of the time I listen to classical music because it helps me get to a point of focus faster, but because I am also an art student and about 100% of it coursework, I also need some uplifting songs to get me pumped up whilst I'm working. There are soo many songs in my playlist, the other day I listened to 8 hours worth of music from my playlist, but to save you the hassle of endless scrolling, I decided to pick out my favourite songs from the playlist to share with you. Listed below:

Propellers

• Midnight kiss 

Bastille

• Flaws

Fall out boy

• Uma Therma
• The kids aren't alright
• Centuries

Arctic monkeys

• Do i wanna know

Foster the people

• Pumped up kicks

The Kooks

• Bad habit

Ed Sheeran

• Bloodstream

Sir Sly

• Inferno

Zella day

• Hypnotic

Twenty one Pilots

• Car radio

Sia 

• Fire Meet Gasoline

The Black Keys

• Tighten Up

The Wombats

• Let's dance to joy division

P.s.if you cant to listen to a calm playlist (in my opinion) you can check out this playlist I listen to on 8 tracks http://8tracks.com/itsbrina/cool-kids there is also a link to my YouTube playlist https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLnXydJAg_mX500Y-HpuWlBqcHvIA8460y if you like some of these songs and want to check it out

Anyway, I've got another quote and picture for you all,

Hmm...HMM..

One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain.
-Bob Marley

10 things I love

Hey guys,

On a much MUCH happier not to my last post, one thing that never fails to cheer me up is reading other peoples blogs (so if you are reading this and just happen to be a proud owner of a blog, feel free to drop your link in the comment box below). One blog I happened to browse upon was +Another Teen . She too -made evident in her blog title- is a teen blogger and what I love the most about her posts are how relatable she is. I find myself sitting there going "yeah, I know what you mean".

Moving on, so I was browsing her blog and was inspired to make a '10 things I love' post, so without further ado (I think that's the phrase, correct me if I used it wrong), here is my list:

Holidays and weekends- yessssssssssss! my ultimate. My life. My love. There is nothing better than enjoying a well deserved break after months or days of school

Music- Some songs just speak to your soul

Youtube- There is no better way to waste time than on Youtube. I really do find it crazy how all these things -twitter, YouTube, vine, instagram- were not around a couple of years ago and now you can have a career out of it and nearly everyone is so involved in it

Blogging- I know, I know. How can you love something you keep forgetting to do? Well, I didn't say I was good at it, but blogging is another form of escapism -not that my life sucks or anything ahah- but sometimes it's good to just get lost in your words and thoughts. As corny or cheesy as this may sound (I hope if any of my friends are reading this they don't hold it against me later on) whilst I am typing a new post, I actually feel like I am talking to someone. When I first started blogging I thought the idea of it was mental, because you can't see the person reading your post and they don't even comment back, but now it's a little different. I know that people at least get to see what I think and know how I feel. Even if they don't care, it's still a relief.

Family- Now as crazy and perhaps even annoying as my family is, I love them to bits and wouldn't trade them for anything ahaha. I'm pretty sure an outsider looking in would find us all to be complete nutjobs

Vacations- As similar as this is to a 'holiday' to me, a vacation is more than just time off work or school, it's when you get the chance to travel during those breaks and explore new areas in the world

SPORTS- now, you may or may not notice that this is the only point I have written in bold. SPORTS. whether it's table tennis or Netball I love pretty much every sport (apart from long distance running *cringe* I have bad memories about that) I this is because I happen to be a very competitive person, so any chance I get to win or beat someone in something, I'll be there.

Like anotherteenontheweb mentioned No homework- There is nothing better than going home after a stressful day of school knowing that you have nothing due the next day

MUJI-  the stationary this shop provides is UNREAL. I mean, yes. The products are very minimalistic, but that's what I love the most about it -although I think after having my friend buy me The Art Of War and considering the fact that I own a chinese designed mirror- my friends are starting to think that I want to be asaian (did anyone else watch the Bring It On movie where they were using the book 'The Art Of War' to defeat the rival squad?? no? was it just me? Was I the only human inspired by that?)

Skateboarding- Despite the fact that I only do this approximately once every three months (not by choice, I'm still an amateur so I don't feel comfortable going out and practising by myself and the only friends of mine that own a skateboard are currently too into revising to take a break and skate with me, so hopefully I'll get more board action in summer)

P.s. Releasing two posts in the same day? Who kidnapped me and forced me to write this? ahaha I'm not making any promises, but I am trying to make up for my recent silence

P.p.s. Yes! the Someecards are back! I'm not sure whether you missed them or not, but it just cheers me up sifting through them on google and sharing the ones that make me laugh

Anyway, I've got another quote and picture for you all,

Hmm...HMM..

Its not stress that kills us, it is our reaction to it.
-Hans Selye

Strained. Stressed. Sad

Hey guys,

As most of you should know, that is if you live in London, I have been on Easter break for just over a week now. 

According to our teachers and parents, this is the time for us to "really make a difference with our education and revise as hard as we can" -but "it is also very important that we rest". 

This is  a lie. 

I don't mean to rant on and on about how annoyed and stressed out I am because the truth is -I'm not the only one feeling like this. Half of you currently reading this are most likely sharing my frustration. 

I've been at home a week. 

A whole week. 

In this 'week' I have achieved nothing in my life. 

Nothing.

Now this isn't just me being "lazy" or "procrastinating" I think I have a problem. 

At first I thought I was just being the same old me -forgetting to do things or feeling too tired to leave my house and do something productive, even too lazy to pick up my laptop and post for you guys- but it's dawned on me that what I have is something more. 

I'm not sure if there is even some sort of scientific explanation for it, but my  brain is going into full out panic explosion mode and I don't know how to handle it. I have major school related stress; I can't sleep at night (literally. Almost every night this week I have been laying awake in bed, feeling sleepy but not able to fall asleep. Does that mean I have insomnia??); I don't eat as much as I used to -all i ate yesterday were two slices of toast and a bowl of oats; I also can't focus long enough to get any revision work done.

I was actually considering abandoning my blog until the end of exams -when hopefully I'll feel free and happy again- but today I was speaking to my mum and it dawned on me that the best way to deal with what I am feeling is just to share and get over it with you guys.

Sorry for going off like that, but if you are anyone experiencing the same things, one thing that is helping me is just talking to my mum -or if you don't want to do that (talk to your mum ahah not mine) then you could just look at inspirational quotes. As sad as it sounds, they always gets me fired up.

Now that I think about it...

This post went from 1 to 100 in like two sentences -sorry about that.

Does anyone else get that feeling that they have like a million things to do, but end up thinking too much they end up doing nothing?

Anyway, I've got another quote and picture for you all,

Hmm...HMM..

There's a lot of stress out there, and to handle it, you just need to believe in yourself; always go back to the person that you know you are, and don't let anybody tell you any different, because everyone's special and everyone's awesome.

-McKayla Maroney

postponed

Hey guys,

I know today is usually one of my posting days but I thought -since tomorrow marks the second year of my very first ever blog post on this blog- I might as well post tomorrow (or "today" in some countries)

xx

You can't have Success without stress. Can you?

Hey guys,

Sending out invites; picking a venue; shopping 'til you literally drop- planning your 16th birthday isn't as glamorous as they make it out to be on TV. I'm sure most of you  have 'Been there, done that' and now- I'm glad to say- so have I.
       Yesterday- Saturday to me and those within this time zone- I, like most of my friends spent most of the day out and about London. Well, I wouldn't exactly say 'out and about' considering we stuck to the SouthBank-London Eye area.
       After weeks and weeks of planning, it seamed like all of my joint Birthday dinner plans -with one of my best friends Kayleigh- were deteriorating before my very eyes. First, the plans I had for my hair fell through, not to mention what a struggle it was to find a venue in the city with a beautiful view of the London skyline.
We originally wanted to surprise our guests by hosting our dinner at the Shard, but the building was fully booked -my guess is, some sort of private event- therefore we were unable to make a reservation. Our next hope was to find a place at the Gherkin. The photographs of the restaurant view (in one of the images below) was amazing, but that- just like the Shard- threw another obstacle at us. Like most other menus, there is a set and an open menu so it all depends on your party size.
Sushisamba, but we were informed that we had to have a chaperone accompanying us throughout the night as there was a bar near the table. I'm sure I'm not alone when I say No teenage girl wants a chaperone tagging along at her birthday when she is out with her friends. It's not an ideal situation. Besides, it's not like anything crazy was going to happen.
       Moving on, the actual night was amazing. I wouldn't have changed a single thing about it. Everyone showed up on time -which is a first for our group- and appeared to have a great night out.
    We started off at Skylon. The food there was unsurprisingly good, although I do admit that I was a little hesitant on trying the Hake, I ended up loving it. To summarise (I don't want to start boring you here) my favourite part of being at Skylon would definitely have to be the pranks we played on my friend Maya. Despite up being sixteen -and supposedly 'maturing young adults'- we have a tendency of acting like five year olds sometimes. In the shortest way to tell this possible, every time Maya looked away from her glass we dropped a carrot into it. This meant that in order to enjoy a clean glass of water, she had to request for a new one. If only you were there to see the look of judgement on the waiters' face every time she asked for a new glass. His face was priceless.

      Whilst planning the evening, we (Kayleigh and I) told our friends to bring an extra three pounds with them, but we refused to tell them what for. Later on into the evening -after dinner, around eight thirty give or take ten minutes or so- we finally put their curious minds to rest by informing them that we were all about I can only imagine how out of place we looked;all dressed up, some of us even wearing healed boots and being 5ft8, I struggled to fit into the car with my shoes on.

After three adrenaline-filled rounds of bumper cars; a failed attempt at Dance Dance Revolution and a throwback to the early 2000s with a game of Tekken, I think it's safe to say we spent more time than planned in the arcade. Upon leaving -me being me- I bought myself a Cheeseburger from McDonalds because nothing screams 'Party!' louder than McDonalds. All jokes aside, I'd say the night was almost perfect. We spent the next five to ten minutes outside the London eye laughing and chatting before I thought it was time to kick things up a notch by whipping out the Party Poppers. I had enough for us to have just about three Poppers each, which although I still feel guilt for the mess we made, was unbelievably fun.

         I arrived at my house at approximately ten thirty if I recollect correctly. My mum had offered to pick me up from the bus stop as it was late, but I thought then was a better time than ever to 'grow a pair' metaphorically speaking of course.

P.s. I've been avidly watching Gossip Girl, I'm at the point where I had to stop myself from signing this post off with "xoxo GG".

Anyway, I've got another quote and picture for you all,

Hmm...HMM..

Sweet 16 is the moment of truth when girls mature from there childish youths

-N/A

Casual Chic?

Hey guys,

Since it is still birthday season (my birthday) I thought I'd give you some insight into my brainstorm for outfit ideas. I'm not necessarily saying that I'll be buying the items listed below (come on, there's no way I'd spend more that £50 on a bag yet alone more than £800)

Ohh, and I almost forgot, my friend Fiona and I were walking and saw this homeless guy outside of Wasabi in Oxford street, so we went in and bought hum some hot noodles, when we came out, there was a black car with its windows being rolled up. (I'm not even a fan) but guess who was in the car- Kylie Jenner

Casual by trustinjess featuring short sleeve shirts

MARC BY MARC JACOBS short sleeve shirt, £135 / Duster coat / Acne Studios shorts / Jeffrey Campbell leather loafer, £93 / Burberry leather tote bag, £875 / Mango jewelry / Forever 21 ring, £4.67 / Tech accessory, £11

I feel like online shopping is amazing and helps you discover what kind of clothes you're into as well as helping you to discover your sense of style all from the comfort and safety of your home, but then it also really sucks because- I don't know about you- but I love almost everything I see when online shopping, but fail to remember that I'm the one who will be wearing the clothes, and not the model on the screen. For example, I was piecing together (what I think was) a really cute outfit to wear for my Birthday dinner next week and one of the items I was adamant on getting were these really minimalistic one-strapped heeled sandals. Yesterday when I went shopping, I finally had the chance to try on one of these sandals and to my horror, (a little side note- I don't like showing large sections of my feet) 3/4 of my foot was on display. Now I know, I know, what else was I expecting to happen? All the photos show the same results- but I'd thought it'd be less exposed in real life.

Anyway, I've got another quote and picture for you all,

Hmm...HMM..

Whoever said money can't buy happiness simply didn't know where to go shopping.

Bo Derek

1 Hour to go!

Hey guys,

I am going to keep this as short and sweet as possible.

Tomorrow -well today in some places- I am finally joining the 16 band wagon!
I am literally at the stage in which I cannot contain my excitement.
To think that little-ol' me has been here on earth for almost sixteen years. Wow.
To be completely honest, I'm not quite sure what to do with myself. To many people, sixteen isn't even that big of a number, but considering that I am the youngest in my family... I don't know. I guess every age I turn is special because I will be the last child in our immediate family turning that age.

Considering that I will be one year older, I think it's only fitting that I share another Bucket list; things I want to do and achieve this year (mostly for summer- this list doesn't necessarily consist of things I haven't done):

• Go on a road trip
• Go camping
• Go on a scavenger hunt
• Gain work experience
• Go rock climbing
• Start working
• Go skateboarding at a skate park
• Meet at least three new people
• Feed/donate to the homeless
• Talk to a stranger
• Roast a marshmallow
• Sing camp-fire songs
• Have a picnic in the park
• Have a water balloon fight
• Take on more responsibilities
• Volunteer at a charity
• Attempt some Pinterest DIYs
• Attend a blogger meet-up
• Go on a slip and slide
• Visit a theme park
• Visit London Zoo
• Learn and master a new skill
• Start a scrapbook
• Pass my GCSEs (this is last on my list because we get our results at the end of summer, not because it is the least important)

Anyway, I've got another quote and picture for you all,

Hmm...HMM..

Farewell to braces, pigtails and toys. Welcome to driving, parties and boys!- Anonymous