6 Photos And The Stories Behind Them

Someone not that long ago reminded me that I haven’t being doing as much writing as I used to when I first started this blog. They also reminded me how much I love words and the way they flow over and down a page and how recently, due to a new job and other commitments, my love of writing has been pushed to the side. So I thought I’d start back up with something easy but also something I hope you guys will enjoy reading. Earlier on tonight I rummaged through my room to find my old laptops out and found some hilarious photos and some photos that I loved and instantly sent to everyone I know. Here is a couple of them for you to look at and the stories behind them.

My grandparents, Cornwall 2009

So, this first one is a picture of my Nan and Grandad on their wedding anniversary back in what must have been 2009. My Nan, my Grandad, my aunt and I went on a caravan holiday to Cornwall, we’d spent the day before out in the sun, eating Cornish pasties and my Grandad fell asleep in the sun (hence the bright red face). It’s the only holiday I’ve ever been on in the Uk and honestly it was the best, I can’t remember anything going wrong at all. That morning, me and my aunt got up early and made scrambled eggs on toast (I’d just learnt how), and my aunt had smuggled a bottle of champagne and we served it in the tiny dining room area in the caravan. My Nan would kill me for showing people this picture but it’s my favourite of them because they just both look so purely happy; this was them.

A lot of my time as a child was spent with my cousin Emily at my grandparent’s house. We’d normally go round for dinner on Tuesdays and I can remember that after snacks we’d end up playing; it was always something, either Polly Pockets, or Angelina Ballerina, or opticians, or something as apparently fascinating. We also spent quite a few summers exploring the back garden or going on trips to Sainsbury with our Nan’s crazy friend June. The photo of us in the pool is one of my favourites as we just look so happy, and that completely sums up all my memories with Emily and our childhood.

I got chillllsssss.. they’re multiplying!

Now, I honestly can’t remember much about when this was taken. I can remember it was my birthday party (must have been my 5th or 6th) and my mum had just come back from San Francisco and had bought me the outfit especially – petticoat and all.  My sassy blonde companion is an amazing woman called Stephanie and I’ve known her since, well as long as i can remember. She was the Harry to my Hermionie and we did so much together and  a vast majority of that was acting. We were both really into drama and even did a couple of shows together. Having grown up a bit since then, Steph has gone and starred in so many productions and I’m so proud of her. She was always a star and she’s grown up to be a leading lady.

Such a bad quality photo but i love it

Despite having all the stereotypical “prom photos”, this is one of my favourites of the whole night. We went back to Henry’s house (the gentleman in the grey hoodie) and drank and played games and drank a little bit more. This photo was taken pretty early on in the night, everyone had given up on the smart, formal wear and had put on pyjamas. These people were some of my favourites through school, Michael was always there for me and was my best friend, always up to do something stupid and most of my best school memories involved him. Jacob is one of the craziest people I know and I love him to bits for it; he’s showed me so many cool things over the years. Henry, Beau and Anna were also all awesome in their own ways; especially when it came to “squad days out” and making long days at school fly by. I can remember playing the stereotypical drinking games and staying up till stupid o’clock talking. While prom was fun, and it’s not often you get the chance to dress up like that, the aftermath, in my opinion, was more fun.

The blue drink was incredible…

This photo was taken last year on the night before new years. The gentleman stood next to me is my best friend Nyall. It was the night before his birthday to we all went out to the local vodka bar and had many of the blue drinks you can see in my hand. The night consisted of lots of drinking, singing out of tune, selfies, and lots of bad dancing. Our whole group (apart from a couple) turned up and drank like their lives depended on it. One thing for certain, Revolution do amazing cocktails!

Lou x

 

 

 

An Open Letter To Anyone Who Has Ever Helped Me

Dear You,

First of all thank you.

Thank you for being there when I needed you the most. Thank you for putting up with my inane babbling and rambles that you probably didn’t expect to hear. Thank you for getting me out of a dark place and towards the light again; my head can quite often be an unappealing place to live but you make it brighter. I know that sometimes I can worry about things that don’t make sense to other people but you’ve helped me get out of my own head and make sense of them. You’ve reminded me how to put a smile on my face when I needed it most and taught me how to laugh again, so thank you. 

Sometimes, everyone needs a friend like you. Someone who loves you unconditionally and will put up with all the nonsense. Whether we still speak or we don’t, you’ll never know how grateful I am to have had someone who cares like you. Thank you for all the long nights and the early mornings,for the random 11pm texts, for teaching me that I can do things by myself, for sitting with me when I needed it, just to know I had someone there. Too often we underestimate the power of a kind word or an honest compliment: something so easy yet not many people do it.  

I know I can be a pain, and not listen to your advice all the time, but I don’t mean it. I know it can be annoying at times to get a text at 3am asking for help but you’ve always been there for me and I don’t think I’ve ever acknowledged it. Thank you for giving me hope. Thank you for always being there for me even though I may have tried to push you away. Thank you if you’ve ever given me a random lift in the middle of the day to somewhere or come with me when I’ve been too scared to do something by myself. I’m a big wimp and you’ve never taken the mick, you’ve only ever been supportive.  

Also thank you to anyone who’s ever offered me help, even if I’ve never taken you up on it. I honestly cannot tell you how much it means that you would offer to help me, I know it can be hard listening to other people’s worries so thank you for putting yourself out there for me. 

I know I will probably never be able to make it up to you, I doubt you’ll ever let me but even if you did, words or actions aren’t enough to convey how grateful I am.  Friends like you don’t come around very often, so when I say thank you, I don’t just mean it in that throwaway sense that everyone has come to love, I mean it from the bottom of my heart and soul. Thank you. 

Yours faithfully

Lou

Show Me How You Burlesque..

As a kid I was very much into my extra-curricular activities: dance on a Thursday, drama on a Monday, stagecoach on a Monday, etc. But as I grew up I became disinterested in all the things that I used to love- I never had any time for it as exams loomed closer and closer and through GCSE’s and A-levels I somehow managed to forget how much I enjoyed doing most of these clubs.

We’ve all been there at some point or another, you know that you want to do something but you have absolutely no clue what or where or with whom. This was the dilemma I was stuck with all those months ago now, that was until my mum saw a leaflet for a local burlesque class that was literally across the road from my house. Now, I know what you’re probably thinking as you’re sat reading this… “isn’t burlesque just stripping?”, “that’s a weird thing to do with your mum?” or in my case “wasn’t there a film a couple of years ago with Cher in called Burlesque?” (what can I say we all have our weaknesses). Signing up I had those same thoughts, but mostly it was an overwhelming sense of “oh f**k, what have I signed myself up for?!”

week four of the first month

Roughly four months on and I’m sat here thinking about how my preconceived thoughts of a dance style I knew nothing about were so silly, because the women I have the pleasure of spending my Monday evenings with are amazing. Micaela (often known as Mimi), the instructor/seductress instantly fills you with confidence and decked out in her remarkable array of outfits and costumes, you can’t help but fall in love with her- she instantly brightens any room she’s in (and not just because of all the glitter). The girls all love her, totally unconditionally. No matter who you are, she’ll make you feel completely at ease and dare I say it, sexy.

Oh and the ladies, those lovely, sensual ladies are a whole new meaning of the word fabulous. They’re women from all sorts of backgrounds, who do all sorts of things with their days and come from all over Milton Keynes, but on a Monday night between 8-9, it honestly feels like a little family. You can’t help but become attached to every single one, new ladies and old pros alike. They’ll take you in with their charms and trust me, there’s no going back.

As someone who’s never totally been ‘in tune’ with the way my body moves, the idea of burlesque classes felt like jumping off a cliff into shark-infested waters. However, in reality this little burlesque family feels like getting home and in bed after a long day’s work because you just feel so safe and happy. Even on some of my worst days, this outstanding group of people have never failed to put a smile on my face; not once. So if you’re ever considering doing something that you’ll fall in love with, try and get a hold of Mimi. You never know, you might be the next one to join the little burlesque family…

Lou x

Keep Your Head Up

Growing up you learn that not every day is going to be a good day, you take what’s handed to you. Some days it feels like the world is on your side and everything goes great and others it feels like the whole world is against you. As someone who suffers from depression I know these days can sometimes get the best of us, and it feels like there’s nothing that can help us get through but you’ve always got to remind yourself to look on the bright side of life.

Everyone has at least one thing that makes them smile right? Whether it’s a song, or a person, or an object, there’s always at least one thing that without fail can make you smile. Just hold on to that on the grey days. For me personally it’s a song by Laura Izibor called “shine” and it just helps me get my head straight. With all of the responsibilities and anxieties life throws at us, we could all use some new habits to make us feel good instantly. Here are just a few short term things that seem to work for me:

• Give someone a genuine compliment-It’s easy to become self-interested and overly focused on your own problems until you realize something very important: EVERYONE feels like this at times. You aren’t alone, and I’ve found that one of the most beneficial things you can do is make someone’s day- even if you don’t know them.
• Write something- it might not be something that works for everyone but for me it’s one of the best things I can do if I’m having a “Lou Vs. The World” day, it always helps me get my thoughts and feelings out in front of me and then I can deal with them.
• Talk to people you love- talking and spending time with my best friends always gets me through the rough patches, they’re always there to cheer me up
• Take a negative comment or situation and look for something positive about it – when someone says something unpleasant or negative I try to pick it apart and look at it from another angle. Perspective is everything.
• Make a list of everything good going on in your life right now- whenever I don’t feel great I try to look through my life and pick out all the positives (often in a bight mind map like the one above) but it always seems to help me so it may just help you too.

I know it can be tough sometimes but trust me, it gets better. Keep your head up!

Lou x

Spring has sprung!

Spring is full of so many underrated joys…
The first pretty little spring flowers poking out of the dirt. Hot cross buns thick with salty butter. Tulips and daffodils all nicely arranged in vases. Taking a walk without shivering. Giving and receiving Easter eggs. Baking all sorts of goodies in the sunshine. So many things! Spring so far just feels extra sweet to me this year and I’m not even sure I could tell you why right now. It just feels so full of promise and adventure and I’m cramming as much as I possibly can in right now.

After spending the day out in the sun, getting car’s washed and doing odd jobs I felt like a little bit of Easter baking was needed! Whilst I was raised with an ability to cook and bake from scratch, I’m often a tad lazy when it comes to baking, often preferring the kits to baking from scratch as you know they’re going to go right -there’s not much room for a mess up. So I made some brownies from a really easy Betty Crocker kit!

All you had to do was add egg, water and oil, mix it up and pop it in the oven- simple, hassle-free and perfect results! I added extra chocolate chips to mine just to give it that extra something and so far everyone that’s had one seems to have liked them? Everyone should do some baking this time of year, there’s nothing like being in a kitchen with the smell of cookies or cakes in the oven with the sunlight streaming in through the windows.

Hope you all have a good Easter!
Lou x

It’s up to you, New York New York!

As someone who’s wanted to go to New York ever since I was shown Breakfast at Tiffany’s, I’m beyond excited to be going to New York in less than a week! New York has always been somewhere I’ve wanted to explore- I mean who wouldn’t want to see the same sights that greats like Frank Sinatra, Humphrey Bogart and Audrey Hepburn saw? My mum has treated me to four days out there for my birthday and I’m buzzing for it.

 

We’ve already got a couple things planned and booked, like doing a boat tour around the statue of liberty and seeing a show on Broadway but the rest will be spur of the moment things. I’m usually one of those people who will leave everything till last minute when it comes to trips like this, however this time round because I’m so excited I’ve been planning everything out since I found out we were officially going back in December. My phone’s been packed with music for the eight-hour flight, books have been selected (despite most likely buying more at the airport), and clothes have been picked out.  New York look out because here we come!

Lou x

 

What To Do When You Can’t Motivate Yourself

We all get in those moods where we can’t motivate ourselves to do work we need to do, whether it be an essay for school or a presentation for work, everyone has something they’ve been putting off. While some people are gifted with the magical ability to never procrastinate or drag their feet, most of us often need a boost to motivate ourselves. Being an a-level student myself, I often have a large pile of work to be doing and getting over that hill to actually get my work done isn’t always easy but there are ways to help!

• Get positive– it’s been proven that when you’re happy, your productivity increases.  Make an effort to celebrate your progress whenever you do something substantial.
• Go back to WHY you’re doing it– figuring out WHY you’re doing something will make it more appealing. Doing something purely for the sake of doing it is pointless when it comes to motivation as you’ll often find ways of putting it off.
• Chunk it up!–  having smaller chunks of work to do is so much more manageable than an amorphous blob of work. The smaller the portions of work, the better you’ll feel about yourself when do you them.
• Build on success– success creates success; small successes can spur on the bigger ones and create a spiral of motivation. When you’ve just won, it’s easy to feel motivated about almost anything, even work.
• Isolate the unknowns– hidden fears or anxieties can stop you from getting the real work done. Figure out what the worst outcome could be and make yourself confident that you could handle it.
• Make use of your creativity– what helps you? Are you a visual learner? If so get those colour pens out and make mind maps sticky notes full of knowledge. If you’re an auditory learner, record yourself saying something and listen to it. Use whatever suits you to your advantage and think outside the box.
• Remember to have fun- create fun in a boring task you’ll stay motivated to do and finish it.
• The two minute rule-  if something takes two minutes or less to complete, do it right away. It’s surprising how many little simple things we  put off when realistically we could get them done really quickly!

I hope this helps beat those urges to procrastinate! Lou x

 

To Begin With..

As someone who loves words and loves writing I thought it was about time that I started a blog where I could articulate my thoughts and feelings about everyday life. I feel like to begin with I should probably outline who I am and why I’ve decided to try and write more often.

I am currently studying at sixth form doing my A-Levels; the subjects I’m taking are English Literature, Sociology and Politics, all of which I really enjoy. Now,as I’m growing older, I’ve found that I want to go into the world of writing and in order to be as successful as possible I want to keep up with my writing in hopes that writing a blog will get my creative juices flowing and maintain my self-improvement with writing.

Ever since I was a child I’ve loved reading, I constantly had my head buried in a book and now that I’m reaching an age where I’m deciding what I want to do with my life, I’ve decided that writing is the path I want to take. To quote the great Maya Angelou, “there is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you” and this is mine. Enjoy the ride.