After Prom Dramas

Now it is only a few months until our prom, some of my friends have been organising the after party. One of my friends has offered to have it at her house, and we have nearly the whole year going as well as some other friends from the year above or below. Alcohol is allowed and the parents will be upstairs, so it sounds like it is going to be a great night! My first house party here we come!

Some of the girls are having different dresses for the after prom party, but I would rather keep mine on. If I waste no time getting changed, I have more time to dance! Also, as my prom dress is short, it is perfect for the after party anyway. I'm not a fan of wearing long flappy dresses.

The only problem is that the prom and after party together is 7 and a half hours long! I am going to sleep for a week after that. I am really looking forward to it now though, even if it does seem a little excessive. It is something good to keep us going though the hard work needed for our GCSEs.

What are your thoughts on after prom?

Divide - His Best Yet?

I have Ed Sheeran's new album Divide and I am loving it! It is much more varied than his previous music, with the songs ranging from his standard guitar based folk tunes to Irish love songs and on the extended version, Mediterranean party tracks! I really like most of the songs on it, especially "Galway Girl" and my favourite, "What Do I Know?" As well as loving the simple, stripped back style, I particularly like the lyrics as I think they are very true and some up what I believe in. They are relevant to all of us, especially in the current political situation.

 



 

However, the big question is: Is it as good as his previous albums? That depends on the sort of music you like listening to really. If you like sweet love songs and upbeat storytelling tracks Divide is perfect. However, if you prefer Ed's stripped back folk songs, it is not your thing. Personally, I love all 3 of his albums, but Plus will always be the best for me. No matter how hard he tries, he just can't beat the A Team.

The Embroidery Trend

While I was out shopping yesterday, I noticed lots of clothes with flowers embroidered on them. Jeans, leather jackets, black dresses and khaki shirts, all with floral decoration. The contrast between these simple, slightly tomboyish styles and the ornate, pretty flowers creates an interesting look. As this is one of the new spring trends, I have collected all my favourites from around the web.

These classic blue skinnys have two patches of flowers.
New Look, £29.99

These black jeans have roses at the top. Their darker colour
and ornate detail makes them great for evening looks.
New Look, £29,99

The denim skirt dungarees are more unusual.
They have several patches of embroidery.
Jo Browns, £39.95

I love the way the flowers brighten up the dark,
 practical khaki of this dress.
Red Herring at Debenhams, Was £32, now £25

The simple line of flowers at the top of this
jumper is very pretty.
Peacocks, £12

While the style of this shirt is quite masculine and wintery,
the flowers give it a more girly spring twist.
New Look, £29.99

The red and pinks of the flowers pop out against the
white of the fabric.
Peacocks, £18

Dream Catchers

Today I went shopping with my best friend. We haven't been for ages, and we got some really cool stuff. I bought a new top, a choker necklace, 2 semi- precious stones, 2 bangles and a small dream catcher.

I really like dream catchers, as they often have very intricate and colourful designs. I also like the idea behind them, of letting the dreams pass through the feathers and trapping the nightmares in the web. This is the second dream catcher I have bought, so I now have a small bright blue one and a larger pink one. My friend collects them and has lots in all different colours. Here are some of my favourite designs from the internet.

Exploring The Unconventional

Most of the music we are introduced to via the radio, the TV and the charts is the stuff that is most popular. Usually these songs are pretty good, but just because it is famous doesn't mean it is the best. Sometimes we can find great music by exploring the more unknown artists and finding something a bit different.

One of my close friends is always introducing me to Indie music, as well as other folk and rock performers. We love comparing new finds. These are some of my favourites:

Banana Pancakes -                           Jack Johnsone
Oh My Love -                                  The Score
Lost Kid -                                         The Apache Relay
Youth -                                             Daughter
Up All Night -                                  Alex Claire
Kids Don't Wanna Come Home -    Declan McKenna

Feline Yoga

I have always wanted to try yoga. I liked the idea of doing something so calm and relaxing. The problem was, as I did not know any yoga myself, I would need to go to a beginners class. However, I have now realised all I needed to do was get a little help from my cat, Bumble. He can do all sorts of yoga poses.



Do the Pigeon..

And now the Savasana

 



  

 





And reach up!





         

Now time for twisting sage pose!



 

All Things Cheesy

This week, I asked you all for blog topic requests and I received a surprising suggestion. One of you wanted me to write about cheese. Now I do like cheese; I love cheddar and am always happy to eat a bit of Dairylea or Philadelphia. But I never realised it had such a big following that people would want me to write blog posts about it. It seems though, there are others who love cheese this much. Michael McIntyre's son, for instance.

 

 



But for some, this love of cheese goes even further. Tim Minchin loves cheese so much he has written a song about it. Click below for a hilarious cheese themed musical number.

 

I hope that has satisfied the cheese lovers among you. If any of you have any more blog topic requests, post them below!

Is Our Free Time Still Our Own?

As I am now getting nearer to the start of my GCSEs, I am becoming hampered with school work more and more. Homework, controlled assessments and revision mean I am going to have little free time over the next few weeks. Scariest of all though, is that is doesn't stop in the holidays. Next week is my half term (yay) and it does not look like I will be getting much of a break then either.

This has all got me thinking. It seems that our free time is not really our own anymore. If they want us to do well, surely we should be allowed plenty of time to do things that make us happy, to get lots of sleep, to socialise. Because if you are really stressed out, tired or unhappy you can't focus on revision anyway.

I am lucky, this does not affect me as badly as it will some others. My parents don't put lots of pressure on me and as I mostly get good grades, the school's expectations don't stress me out as much as they do some people. But not everyone is in this situation.

I could sit here and say that the solution to this is changing the school system, but that isn't going to happen any time soon. But we can change how we respond to the pressure. The thing is, the stress can only get to you if you let it. So yes, you might be forced into doing extra work, but the work won't make you stressed if you decide you won't let it. So ignore their nagging, spend a bit of time doing what you enjoy and hopefully, we can all stay sane until June when we can all have a nice long summer.

A New Record!

I have now reached 10 000 pageviews!

I have been writing this blog for just over 2 years now, and when I first started I never thought it would be this popular! I was surprised when I reached my first 500 views. I am so pleased that people are interested enough in what I post to keep checking it and telling their friends. `

These pageviews have come from all over the world. Although 6819 of them are from within the UK, the rest come from all sorts of places. I have had 1059 from the USA, as well as lots from continental Europe and some from more exotic locations.

I plan to keep blogging, but I am always in need of new ideas. If you have any suggestions for topics, write them in the comments below. Thank you to everyone who reads this and to everyone who has shared it online. Please keep doing so!

Challenging Conformity

One of the subjects I study at school is psychology, and something we have been studying in the past week has got me thinking. We have been learning about conformity. About how we all seek to be the same as those around us, part of the group, one of the accepted ones. And I have decided I must be a little unusual, as I am a bit of a non-conformist. I often do things that are completely different to what everyone else is doing. These are the sorts of things I mean:

• Wearing very colourful/unusual clothing that stands out amongst my friends black and grey hoodies. This is a frequent source of complaints from the friends who are seen out in public with me. They love it really!
• Not having any social media (unless you count the blog).
• Singing and dancing like crazy along to music even when others aren't.
• Choosing not to wear a traditional prom dress to Prom.

Why am I like this? Well, I guess I must worry a lot less about what other people think than most other people. But I think it is actually the main reason why I am happier than most people. Yes, I am a optimist, and I guess that must have something to do with it, but mostly I think it is because I dress, sing, and generally live exactly the way I want to. If being free to be yourself does not make you happy, what will?

So I encourage you to try it, to stop worrying about what everyone else is doing and just do what pleases you: what feels right, what you believe in ,what makes you happy. Try it over the next week, because I think it will change your life much more than you think.