The Music of 2017

I have had a great Christmas! Have you? I got a camera for my photography, as well as clothes, concert tickets for the Vamps and other bits and pieces.

This year has been a great year for music, from Ed's new album to summer hits like Despacito As it is the last day of 2017, I thought I would share what I think are the best 10 songs released this year, compared to the top 10 from the sales charts.

2017s best songs according to record sales:

1) Shape Of You - Ed Sheeran

2) Despacito - Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee, Bieber

3) Castle On The Hill - Ed Sheeran

4) Galway Girl - Ed Sheeran

5) Unforgettable - French Montana Ft Swae Lee

6) Symphoney - Clean Bandit Ft Zara Larsson

7) Human - Rag'n'bone Man

8) You Don't Know Me - Jax Jones Ft Raye

9) Something Just Like This - Chainsmokers and Coldplay

10) I'm The One - Dj Khaled/Bieber/Quavo/Chance

My top 10 from 2017:

1) Castle On The Hill - Ed Sheeran

2) Shape Of You - Ed Sheeran

3) Perfect Places - Lorde

4) Galway Girl - Ed Sheeran

5) Power - Little Mix
6) Skin - Rag'n'bone Man
7) Something Just Like This - Chainsmokers and Coldplay
8) What About Us - P!nk
9) Sign Of The Times - Harry Styles
10) Your Song - Rita Ora

Christmas Eve

For once, I am scarily organised this Christmas Eve, with cards written and most of my presents wrapped.  My Christmas nails are done and I even know what I am wearing tomorrow. The only slight disappointment is I have no party to go to on New Years Eve.

Still, the rest of my Christmas plans are pretty exciting. For the first time ever, we are having Christmas lunch with my Gran and Grandad, which means we will all be given more food than we can possibly eat. Then we have boxing day at my Grandma's house, bubble and squeak here we come! On the 27th, we have a family tradition called Pyjama day, were we stay home and play all the games we have received that year. A few days later, we will go up to Somerset to visit my cousins and aunty. How are you spending Christmas?

Disorganised this Christmas!

I am so disorganised this Christmas! At my old school, I would have finished for the term last week, so would have plenty of time to do present wrapping and other preparations, but at this college, I don't break up until Thursday! And to make it worse, I have mocks to revise for in January. Luckily, where I only do one academic subject, I have less than some people, but I still have to learn 5 case studies and research methods.

On top of that, I have plenty of Graphics and Photography to do. However, I am happy to do that kind of homework, as it is just sketching ideas and a photoshoot. But still, it is more things to do! So you can imagine how much I panicked when they told us that if we did not pass our mocks we would not be allowed to progress to the next year of study! However, passing just means scoring grade E or above! Although that does still mean getting 40%, but as I have got Bs and Cs in everything so far for psychology, I am ok with it.

I am still far less worried than when we had our year 11 mocks! Do you have mocks after this Christmas?

Plenty Of Perfume

This year, I have been celebrating December with an unusual advent calendar and it is lovely. So far I have had perfumes in a variety of fragrances, from fruity ones such as pink grapefruit, to flowery citrus blossom and even chocolate!!! And for when summer finally comes, I have a tropical coconut and peach so I can pretend I am on holiday in the Caribbean, even if I am quite clearly not.

However, I do have a festive disappointment. At my previous school, we had nice long Christmas holidays, but this year my last day is on the 21st! I only have 3 days off before Christmas! No longer can I leave all my Christmas shopping and think, "oh, I'll do that when school is over." I need to get organised!

Even worse, here in the south we are the only part of the county to not have any snow! Apart from a little sleet yesterday, we have had no sign of the white stuff. Such a shame, I could do with a few days off college! Have you had any snow?

My Christmas T-Shirt

Firstly, I would just like to say I am very shocked that Becky left the camp the other  night in the Jungle. I really liked her and thought everyone else did too. Why are they getting rid of all the girls!? I want Amir to go, the more I find out about him, the less I like him. As for the Winner, I would like to see Toff of Jennie get it. Who do you want to win?

And secondly, in the spirit of getting in the mood for Christmas, here is my new Christmas T-shirt I wore to college! It features Pusheen, the cat who has a collection of stickers on Facebook of him in various different moods and positions. Here is he saying that he wants a place to sleep, a proper Christmas dinner and a box as presents rather than a Christmas jumper, cat treats and a scratching post. It is a shame it is so cold my hoodie covered it for most of the day!

Have you worn anything Christmassy to college yet?

10 Things To Get You In The Christmas Spirit

It's December today! Woohoo! I have opened my new advent calendar! I had no idea what was in it because my mum covered the back over with Christmas wrapping paper. Today's treat was a mini bottle of perfume. I am not sure if they are all perfume or a mix of things. I will tell you when I open some more doors and find out.

By this time of year, many people will be getting really excited about Christmas. But not all of us will be feeling Christmassy. If you are struggling to get in the mood, try these 10 ways to get in the Christmas Spirit.

1. Put up your decorations - apparently this has been proven to make you happier!
2. Do some Christmas baking. Last year I got particularly ambitious and attempted a gingerbread house, but simple gingerbread biscuits could be an easier option.
3. Write your Christmas cards, or make them if you really want to feel festive.
4. Go Christmas jumper shopping. If you are now at college, you could wear one every day!
5. Listen to some Christmas music. Or, if you are musical, you can learn to play some Christmas music.
6. Light a Christmas Candle. I love the Yankee gingerbread fragrance. Perhaps to simulate the baking if that is not something you are good at!
7. Watch a Christmas film. My favourite is the Polar Express, but there is always Love Actually if you want to be grown up.
8. Watch some old Christmas specials. You'll find everything from Doctor Who to Call The Midwife.
9. Wrap your presents - it has to be done at some point.
10. And finally, as we have some chance of snow this week (YAAAAYYYYYYY), build a snowman!!!

Do you have any ideas? Post them below in the comments.

I'm A Celebrity is Back

I have been watching I'm A Celebrity for several years now, but this year I am loving it more than ever! Toff is definitely my favourite, any Chelsea Princess that can out tough a boxer and eats genitalia definitely gets respect from me. But I have also been impressed by Stanley, who seems really genuine, which is slightly shocking for a politician. I think he is a real gentlemen.

I also thought the walking the plank challenge looked terrifying! The height was bad enough, but the wobbly section was awful. I still think I would be better at that than anything with giant spiders though! And although it would not have been fun to do, it was brilliant to watch!

Tonight, the new camp mates Iain Lee (Radio Presenter) and Kezia Dugdale (Politician) are going to be introduced, and they will be completing a bush tucker trial. I can't wait to see how these new characters get on, especially as this means we will now have two politicians in the camp, although I can't see Stanley as the type to cause trouble.

Learning Guitar

Whether it is keyboard, singing solo or choir, I have always loved music. And I did not want that to stop with the end of school performances.

Since starting at college in September, I have started learning guitar. I have mostly been teaching myself, but have had some resources and help from the music department to help me get started. At first I could only play at college, but my uncle has learnt me a guitar so now I can play at home.

I have playing a mixture of songs with basic chords, from pop songs like Riptide, Budapest, and Royals to more unusual songs like Pumped Up Kicks and Little Talks. I love the freedom that comes with finding chords online, as it means I can play anything I want, whereas for keyboard arrangements I have to buy sheet music.

But what I love most is that I am able to sing along with my playing, as singing is what I like best really. I definitely recommend guitar to anyone who loves to sing, or wants an instrument that is easy to teach yourself.

My Kind Of News Show

Lots of adults like to watch the news in the morning to see what is going on in the world. But when I have a free period first thing and want to catch up on the issues of the day, I get The Last Leg up on All4. Their form of News is far more interesting!

The Last Leg is brilliant because it gets the balance right between fun/jokes/entertainment and actual news/politics. Although they can be quite biased when it comes to Brexit, they are generally fair and honest, far more so than many online sources. And I love Josh, Adam and Alex, they are just hilarious. The fact that two of them are living with disabilities also means the show gives this minority some representation.

The show also has special guests, a mix of other comedians and politicians, including Jeremy Corbin himself on one occasion, although I am not sure these politicians always know what they are getting themselves in for!

To give you a taste of the madness, here is a clip where they encourage people to vote in the last election:

Overall, I think the show is a great way for teens to get an introduction to politics that is enjoyable and not too complex. Do you watch The Last Leg?

I Have Joined Pottermore!

Pottermore is the official website for the world of Harry Potter, and although I only signed up a few hours ago I am already hooked. I know, most of you probably joined Pottermore ages ago, but  although I watched the films quite a long time ago, I only really started to love Harry Potter when I read the books more recently.

To those of you who haven't yet discovered Pottermore yet, it is brilliant. Without signing up, you can view information about the books, including profiles on all the other characters and locations in the stories. But when you create an account, it allows you to find out who you would be if you lived in the world of Wizards by discovering your House, Patronus and Wand.

Today I have discovered that I am a Gryffindor, that I would have a 11 inch flexible elm and unicorn hair wand, and that my Patronus would be an Elephant. My mum says this is because I get in a large amount of trouble and would therefore need a large Patronus to get me out of it!

Members can also explore the castle with animated virtual reality, and find extra information hidden around the school.

I think anyone who likes Harry Potter would like Pottermore.
To visit the website and sign up for free, click on the link below:
https://www.pottermore.com/