Sister YouTube Channel.

Some very exciting news coming at you right now!
Me and my wonderful older sister decided to make a YouTube channel and have posted our first video. As it is just the beginning we thought we would try the sister tag so you can get to know us a bit and watch us show our lack of knowledge of each other!!

Video below and hopefully many more to come.

We also have a twitter for you to keep up to date with what we do https://twitter.com/Jsquared_2_

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Warped Tour UK | A Guide.

Most will know Warped Tour as the summer long pop punk/rock festival that travels around America every year. Less known however is that it came back to the UK in 2012 for just one day - granted the UK version tends to be slightly less anticipated and for sure has lesser known bands but none the less is guaranteed to be something you won't forget in a hurry.

I have been lucky enough to go to the past 3 Warped Tours that have graced London's Alexandra Palace and although the first experience is yet to be topped they have in themselves been unbelievable events.

If you are at all into punk or rock music this is something you can't miss, it's one of the most immersive gigs you'll ever experience. It might have something to do with the full day of being inside one building with music constantly playing and being plunged into twilight darkness from about 2pm but whatever the reason, at 11pm you want to relive it all over again.

Unlike the previous tours I've been to I had barely listened to any of the bands on the line up, but in a way I preferred it as there was no pressure to be at the right stage and decide which bands you'd rather see if two conflicted on timings. We just walked around enjoying whoever was playing at the time, plus it was a great chance to find some new music to add to my spotify playlists.

My Top Perfomers -

Young Guns
Moose Blood
Memphis May Fire
Frank Carter and The Rattlesnakes
Black Veil Brides - the headliners who sadly had some technical issues at the end. Unfortunately I did feel a little deflated at this being the conclusion of the day, they just weren't quite my cup of rock band, especially compared to some of the others we'd seen that day. Don't get me wrong though they still put on a great show and fans of them were what can only be delicately described as bat shit crazy, which lends itself to an electric atmosphere.

I think my favourite of the entire day though has to be the prodigious Reel Big Fish, they are what I consider to be proper, old school pop punk. Lot's of swearing and angsty lyrics based on a feel good beat .... and who doesn't love the use of trumpets!?

A Quick Guide:
If you are considering going to next years Warped here are a few things to be aware of.

- You can't plan much. The Schedule is not released until the day so you won't know who is on and when until you arrive. Take a few minutes when you first arrive to decide who you want to see and organise your time then.

- You don't need to get there super early. Unless there is a particular band you can't miss seeing or some merch you just absolutely have to buy there's no need to queue (possibly in the rain) for any amount of time. Bands don't normally come on for a while after doors open, plus you're going to be on your feet a lot of the day anyway so why spend even more time standing in line?

- You will spend a lot of money. Tickets themselves aren't too expensive considering you have so many bands and it carries on until the late hours, however food and drink is extortionately priced and you aren't allowed to take anything in with you. Oh also they take any lids off of bottles that you buy so unless you can chug an entire 500ml of coke in one go (if you can that's a great talent good job!) I recommend buying one bottle at a time and sharing with someone because being in a crowd with a full bottle of drink and no cap is no fun at all.

- You will get sweaty. Even though it takes place in November the venue gets hot, and when I say hot I mean holiday to the sun kind of warm. Luckily there is a cloakroom so take a backpack with layers in that way you can strip down when inside but not feel like you've walked out onto the planet Hoth when you leave. For reference I wore an over size T-shirt and tights but put a hoodie and coat in my bag.

- Shoes. While we're on the topic of what to wear - COMFY SHOES. I can't stress this enough. If you don't think this through you will end up spending the whole day sitting on a gum covered, beer smeared floor because your feet are bleeding and probably debating carrying out a mutiny against you. If you've been to gigs before you'll already get where I'm coming from with this but for Warped multiply the amount of time standing by 5.

- Backpack etiquette. I've already mentioned that I always take a backpack and suggest you do the same, it's especially useful if you plan on buying lots of merch. However this decision comes with it's own set of concert rules. If you take one please for the love of god leave it in the cloakroom once you no longer need it. It only costs £2 and will mean you won't end up throwing out black eyes right left and centre no one will appreciate a mouth full of dirty canvas. Trust me.

Most importantly freaking enjoy it! It's a chance to listen to and possible meet your favourite bands (they do a lot of meet and greets throughout the day) or discover new ones that become your next obsession.

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Fall Out Boy | 11th Nov 2015

Sunday, early afternoon, coffee and on a train to London. It was time to get excited as we were on our way (eventually) to Wembley arena to see Fall Out Boy!

I will admit that on their first run back in the noughties I actually didn't really get into them - obviously I knew Dance, Dance and Thnks fr th mmrs because who didn't? But my group of friends weren't actually big music fans in any form and when they did listen to music it was really only the chart stuff. So it was only on the release of Save Rock and Roll that I truly fell.... and fell hard for this band - you want an album that is simply perfection? That one.

We didn't get to the venue too early as we are old now and don't worry about queuing or being at the barrier any more! We ate our Pret A Manager risotto soup in the line and after a short wait headed in to get cider and our spot on the floor.

Three supports came on first and to be honest it wasn't anything special but they set up the night well for Fall Out Boy themselves. After a few hours .... yes hours, the lights finally dimmed, the screams began and four guys graced the stage.

The mix of new and classic songs they played were perfectly thought out, there was something for fans of every generation. I knew they'd put on an incredible show but I was still taken aback with just how good it was. The atmosphere was insane and you could feel the energy from every single person in the room.

This was intensified even more so when Patrick, Pete and Joe disappeared off the main stage only tp reappear in the middle of the crowd to play a few acoustics. I always feel a little sorry for the drummer at this point as they never get the chance to do the emotional, acoustic songs but this night was a very different situation. While those three made their way back to the main stage it was Andys turn to shine as he full on smashed it with an unbelievable drum solo! It was probably one of my favourite bits of the whole night.

As for the set list I honestly couldn't choose the best part, the whole thing was on point and I absolutely no one could fail to be impressed.
If you're a fan of Fall Out Boy or simply enjoy live music I can't encourage you enough to go and see these boys.

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My First Blogger Meet Up.

I was very lucky to be able to attend a book blogger event at Walker publishers in London last weekend and here's what happened.

Actually before I tell you all about it I should probably explain how I, someone who has not blogged in months and even when she does it isn't often about books, managed to hustle an invite to this kind of event. Well it's all down to my beautiful love Sophie over at So Many Books, So Little Time - she is an incredible book blogger who has been going strong for many years now and just so happens to be my best friend.
The plan was already in place for me to go and stay with her when she was told about the meet up and rather than me changing the dates of my visit she asked if I could be her plus one, thankfully the wonderful people at Walker said I could crash the party.

We were up at the god awful time of 7am ... on a Saturday people. A Saturday! After a slightly misguided journey (thanks to engineering works and the stations for having no information on the platforms) we turned up in Vauxhall and met up with Sarah who is a blogger friend of Sophies and headed to the office.

The whole morning had a regency tea party theme because of Alison Goodman being one of the guests speaking to us about her book The Dark Days Club - set in regency London and following Lady Helen on her journey where she has to decide between taking her place in society or joining the sinister and dangerous world of demon hunting!
The first thing that happened? We ate croissants, which were later followed by scones with cream and jam and sandwiches galore. Once we'd successfully chowed down on the first lot of food we were hustled into the conference room where we had the chance to listen to a number of authors discuss their books -

Richard Kurti - Maladapted
Alison Goodman - The Dark Days Club
Nat Luurtsema - Goldfish

We were given the books of 2 of the above authors in a goodie bag along with 2 others, I did feel a tad guilty about taking the bag considering I was only there as an extra.... not guilty enough to not take it though. Obviously. I haven't quite decided which one to start with but I will definitely tell you all about them once they are released to the public.

Another speaker Nat Luutsema who is a comedian, actress, author, producer and all around super woman took some time to tell us about her new book, Goldfish, sadly it was not ready for us to take but I still want to tell you about it because the extract she read left me VERY excited for when it is published and I think you should be too. It is set to be hilarious, dry and one of those books you just won't want to end.

It was a fascinating morning and I loved learning more about publishing and what goes on behind the scenes - plus nothing gets you more wired to read than hanging with professionals and people who are insanely passionate about everything book!

Let me know if you've read any good books lately!

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October and Me.

The mystical entity has returned. Yes I have finally sat my ass down with a cup of tea, Pointless on the tele and the fire burning which can only mean it's time to let my fingers do a little work out on the keys again.

It's been some time and if you have read any of my past posts you may guess why I've been absent in the world of blogging and pretty much all social media. I have become severely anaemic again which if you didn't know is a low level of iron and red blood cells (if you did know I'm sorry but carry on reading as I'm sure it'll eventually you'll come across something less repetitive!). This means there is much less oxygen getting around my body than it would like - that's the rather important role that red blood cells play. Oxygen is vital for normal respiration and general bodily functioning so being anaemic leaves the sufferer feeling like they've just run a marathon, up a mountain, with a small child on their back when in reality you've only just woken up .... oh and there's the super fun side effect of the constant headache and feeling all kinds of dizzy.

This isn't supposed to be a woe is me kind of ramble though and I know you might be sick to the back teeth of hearing about it because I know I am! I did feel like I owed an explanation though so there it is. Now that's done shall we move on?
I have been wanting to do this for a very, very long time but only now have I truly felt able to. Plus I have the motivation which is so nice to have back that I honestly can't wait to get back into the swing of this.

A hell of a lot of things have happened since we last spoke - I was on TV (yes I'm as surprised as you are), passed my driving test, been to Norway and a host of other incredible things which I will be updating you on over the next few days. The true inspiration for opening up my website again though was because October has already been and is set to continue to be a busy, tiring but amazing month. I can't wait to share what I'll be getting up to and hope you find it at least a little interesting to read about. Plus I always seem to be way more excited and energised about everything in the Autumn. Yes I know it's a complete internet cliche to love autumn but I unashamedly admit here and now I ADORE AUTUMN.
My body as a rule struggles with any sort of extreme weather, in summer I get heatbumps and in winter my hands get so dry they start to split .... delightful isn't it? Autumn is the only season I get some reprieve, plus Halloween and the lead up to Christmas are my favourite things to got overly enthusiastic about (yes I know Christmas is in winter but you can't be too early in preparation).

Let me know if you're an autumn person or prefer another time of year!
Let's chat soon.

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TFT | Slow Me Down by Sara Evans.

I went through a bit of country phase a little while back and for some reason I am right back there.

I am SO feeling the upbeat melodies and occasionally ridiculous lyrics that this genre brings plus my country playlist will always make me smile.

The song I have chosen is actually a slightly slower option and the lyrics more serious but that's why I love it. It also has nothing to do with the singers rather amazing name.....

Let me know what you think.

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AOTW | Equality Video.

This week is another video and I decided I wanted to share it because as you will already know I am a huge supporter of equality. For everyone.

I think as humans it's one of the basic ideas that people need to appreciate but a lot fail to understand. I don't know where it has come from but prejudice is rife among our species and it needs to change. The only way to do that is spreading messages of love and acceptance of all life.

For our generation the most current and obvious equality issues we face are based around sexuality. This video by FCKH8 (who I have mentioned before here) really brings home the fact that the inequality issues in the past now seem ludicrous. The more people learn about this the quicker they will see that all inequality is just as insane. Whether it be due to gender, disabilities, race or sexuality they are all just as harmful and unnecessary.

People should be considered for their personality and abilities not factors that they have no control over. Humans can be pretty awesome so why make a minority feel less awesome than they are? 

We are all equal.

 

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A Lovely Weekend.

I have struggled to make myself write a post this week because of a few what I call BMHDs (bad mental health days - we all have these days when we don't feel quite ourselves, maybe a bit tired or low, and I think they are a perfectly good excuse for not being able to do things!)

But as I am trying to keep this blog a place of positivity I want to talk about my weekend because it was pretty awesome and nothing brings you out of a slump than thinking about the good times you've had. I actually thought it was going to be a really chilled few days as for the past couple of months I seem to have always had things to do at the weekends and this time I had zero plans
On Friday evening me, my mum and my sister watched Disneys Hercules together because that's how we roll.
Saturday I had my make up test done for my friends wedding because I'm going to be bridesmaid! It'll be my first ever experience of being a bridesmaid so expect another post about that!!

I never really wear much make up at all, a little bit of eyeliner and mascara and that's it so it was very strange to have a full face on! I actually found the process kind of relaxing, I did look a bit like a doll at the end though!
The bride to be and one of the other bridesmaids came with me which was lovely as we all got to discuss what we thought of the look and all the plans for the big day.

My family then had a BBQ that evening as my parents ended up not being able to go away in their caravan as the car gave up the ghost, leaving them with a load of left over bbq food! Of course we couldn't let it go to waste!

We then as a family watched The Incredibles which once again is because we are all very grown up.

Sunday was unplanned but we decided to take the dog for a walk somewhere a bit different and get a pub lunch. Whilst choosing where to venture we thought it would be nice to bring along my Grandma as well.
We went and picked her up and drove to an adorable little town where we had an INCREDIBLE meal!

It was called The Waterwitch and I had a vegetarian fish and chips... what in the hell is one of those I hear you ask?
Well it's chips (duh) and instead of fish it's battered and fried haloumi cheese and honestly I can't describe how tasty it was. Extremely unhealthy granted but I like to think that what's not good for the weight is good for the soul. I don't have a photo of the food as I may have got a little carried away and ate the whole thing before thinking!

Everyone enjoyed their food and after eating we headed down to the canal and strolled along there for a bit - making friends with some cows on the way .... my dog did not enjoy this part so much as he is utterly terrified of them.

We got home at about 5pm and chilled for the rest of the evening and it was just over all a really amazing weekend full of sunshine, pimms, good food and family.

Hope your weekend is just as good as mine was!

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#TFT - I Touch Myself by Blondie.

A woo hoo new layout for #TFT!!! And just FYI that is my dog - his name is Jack and he's kind of awesome.

This might seem like a strange choice but I recently watched all three Austin Powers films and been listening to the soundtracks and I CAN'T GET THIS DAMN SONG OUT MY HEAD.

It's so catchy and highly inappropriate to be singing to oneself whilst at work and yet here I am....

I hope I'm not the only one that absolutely loves this super weird song?

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AOTW | Bunny slugs.

These little creatures are adorable and that isn't a word often used to describe slugs. I noticed them when Green Peace mentioned them on their Facebook page and I saw the pictures of what seemed to be a little fluffy bunny with black ears!

They have come back to the forefront of social media since Japan has being going ca-razy over the sea slugs (or Jorunna Parva) and their little fluffy bodies. Their "ears" are actually what are known as rhinophores which are sensory organs allowing them to detect distance, scents and currents when in the water. They live in the waters around Asia and can be found all over from India to the Philippines to Japan.

They are only about 2cm in size so if they weren't cute enough their tinyness just makes it all a little over whelming!

Watch the video below to see the little peanuts in action!




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I have opinions on fox hunting.

So I wasn't sure whether to make a post about this but I realised that it's something that I feel pretty darned strongly about so why shouldn't I discuss it on my blog?

If you haven't heard or are not from the UK our prime minister Mr Cameron is potentially bringing back the hunting of foxes using large packs of dogs.... without actually having to go through the effort of fully re-legalising it.

I won't go into loads of detail or preach mode about why I don't agree with this because it's not my place to tell you what to think or feel about this situation. The only thing I want to do is let people know if they were unaware or perhaps make others that weren't all that bothered about it think a little more.

Fox hunting is extremely barbaric, archaic and ineffective. The main excuse used for taking part in this activity (I refuse to call it a sport, sports are for equals to compete with fair advantages.) is to control the fox population - more foxes die on the roads than through this form of hunting. It's an inhumane way to remove these animals and often completely deranged in how they go about it. Foxes will be moved from one area to another so they are confused and lost, they will be chased to exhaustion even when they are far enough to not be a concern and vixens are ripped apart even though they rarely come in contact with humans or civilisation - they are also killed whilst carrying pups.

If you want to know more I suggest this article where a former hunter gives his some what altered thoughts and clearly knows more than I do.

If you have any opinions on this please feel free to share them in the comments.

I believe MPs will be voting and making a decision tomorrow, so if you feel the same way as me and wish to do something about it please write to your local MP - you can find yours here.

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Awesome Of The Week | Videos of acts of kindness.

I can't believe that it's been a whole week and this is my first post! I have been utterly useless as my week has been quite stressful, I've actually been busy by socialising a bit and I'll be honest I've felt crappy and struggled to motivate myself to write anything.

I have had an amazing weekend though so have eventually sat myself down with my laptop after forcing myself to the gym to get some words down.

My AOTW came to me via the wonders of Facebook, I just happened to be scrolling along as you do and for some reason I decided to click play on this little video and my gosh is it lovely. Sometimes all you need is a little reminder to keep your faith in humanity because people have such potential for goodness and to be genuinely kind. Simply giving aid to someone more in need than yourself really can turn the world around.

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Awesome Of The Week | Sprilizer.

I first used one of these at my friends house and have been meaning to purchase myself one for an absolute age!!

The idea is that you "spirilize" vegetables (generally courgette) into noodles as a healthier substitute to pasta or regular noodles. I am wanting to really amend my unhealthy ways and thought this was a good place to start as it allows for super quick meals like pasta but that are way less stodgy and carby.

My choice of meal on this particular night was courgette noodles with garden peas, spring onions and mushrooms in a small amount of pesto.

To be honest any sauces you would have with pasta would work amazingly with this or a sweet and sour would be delish!
I personally love it as you can feel less guilty about simple dishes that take next to no time to prep and unlike pasta/noodles courgette brings extra flavour to the whole meal (without over powering at all).

My machine actually came with a couple of different blades - I can spirilize in two thicknesses, grate, slice and juice all manner of tasty things. It was from amazon and you can find it here.

Reckon you'd give this a go?

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June Favourites.

I didn't do one of these for May but I enjoyed Aprils a lot so decided to get back into the swing of it!

June was a bit of a strange month with some crazy stress at work and it really has flown by! I think because it wasn't the greatest of months I want to make an effort to pick out the good parts because there definitely were a few!

1. NYX cosmetics -

For anyone that doesn't know I have recently been struggling to find cruelty free make up that is affordable and actually works. I can't remember how I found this one but I am so pleased that I did because it's AMAZING.

I have tried a few of the products and loved them all, although to be fair if you know me at all you will appreciate that I am no make up expert and so my opinion isn't that of someone in the know! My daily routine consists of eyeliner and mascara and that's about it.
Now that I've found this site though I 100% plan on getting more skilled with different cosmetic pieces. I might do a more in depth post about the individual bits and bobs I bought but as a general favourite NYX is right up there for June.

2. Going to the gym or trying to -

For the longest time (literally years man!) I have been wanting to regularly go to the gym, end up loving it, being a gym bunny and having abs of steel and thighs that could crush a mans skull.
Now let's be honest for a moment - gym memberships are mad expensive but this became less of a problem when I remembered (after sort of forgetting) that my local gym actually has a free outside section!!

Now that I no longer have the cost as an excuse I have been once and also been to a yoga class. I did know but it was oh so apparent just how unfit I am as it took me about 3 days to be able to put my arms above my head without wincing. I shall persevere though and my aim is to try and go 3 times a week.
Wish me luck.

3. FIRES -

The first campfire I had was actually with my Brownie pack as we spent the evening teaching them how to safely build, light and maintain a fire. We also ate sausages and super sized marshmallows in digestive biscuits.....
The second was a simple one in my back garden with my sister and parents. It has been real summer weather recently and as it was warm enough to sit out we thought we'd make the most of it by having a bbq and then lighting a log, sat with my family and animals while listening to music and drinking pimms. Perfection.

4. Making life decisions -

This is a biggy but as I mentioned it's been an odd few weeks and I've come out the other side having made a few decisions about where I want to head next. I thought I was okay with the plan I had made but turns out it's not what I want, regardless of whether it seems like the sensible choice!
For me enjoyment and being happy with what I'm doing on a day to day basis is so much more important than money or job titles.

So although I don't have a specific idea of where my path will take me I do know that I'm going to make it change and am excited to see where it eventually leads!

So there you go 4 things that were pretty cool about June, I hope your month was fabulous!

What were some of your best bits in June?

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Tunes For Tuesday | Shine by Laura Izibor.

This weeks TFT (or TFW as it's a day late!) really connected with me because I'm in a bit of a strange place in my life right now.

I am unsure of my job, what I'm doing with my time and generally wanting to do more and not being able to - it's infuriating.
I'm hoping to change things up in my life soon and it will be that much easier to do when I can drive, which in case you didn't already know I don't yet. Basically I'm extremely unsettled and this song helped me so much when it came on the other day.

If you are possibly feeling the same way or just like feel good songs that make you want to get up and do something you might enjoy listening to this one. You may also recognise it from a Special K advert a little while back!

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