Coffee, Cakes and Catch ups @ Filter & Fox

Food


These past few weeks for me have been all about reconnecting. After these past few months, I took a step a back and realised how disconnected and Isolated I had become or was becoming, I missed friends birthdays, nights out dates, I just stopped. When I spoke to people or went out, it was few and far between Not in a malicious way, I just didn't try or feel up to it, maybe I needed it, I needed to be selfish for my own sanity.

In all honesty, I didn't even notice how I was acting until one of my friends literally slapped me in the face with this biting truth, 'you hardly talk anymore and you missed their birthday, it was last weekend.' What a friend I was.

image from buritogram.tumblr.com

2016

Life

So way back in my teens I adored poetry and literature, taking A level's in English, Theatre and Art, I kind of had to be slightly obsessed, really. From Shakespeare to Salinger, from Gonzo to Beat Generation, I was hooked. 


 Unfortunately, it's something that I lost or grew disinterested in the past few years and it's only recently, the past 2 weeks or so, that it's stirred my interest again. I've not written anything in over 4/5 years, until today and this fired out.  

The blog post I never thought I'd write.

Care

Christmas and New Year have been and gone, the January blues have sailed away and suddenly it's March, but it feels like the middle of winter and the teaser trailer for Game of Thrones season 6 has come out, Bowie's passed away and we've lost Alan Rickman, Lemmy, Glen Frey and George Martin to name but a few. 2016 has so far been extremely bleak. 


Meet 'n' Greet : Alexa Chung For Nails Inc @ Harvey Nichol's Beauty Bazaar

Beauty

TV presenter. Check.

 Interviewer. Check.

 Model. Check.

 Fashion Muse. Check

Fashion Ambassador. Check.

Auto-Biography released. Check


An IT girl, may cross about two of those off,  Alexa Chung has managed to cross all and more off. 
From the frank, giggly tv personality that hit our screens on Popworld, Chung has evolved into a 
successful social media & fashion power house. 



With a miriad of accomplishments under her belt, such as winning the British Style Award at the British Fashion awards 3 years in a row, a collaboration with AG Jeans, AC for AG Jeans, (she even venture into the world of music for this) being the face of Longchamp  and most recently launching her own Fashion App, Villoid, Chung has garnered friends in all walks of life, from Karl Lagerfeld to Harry Styles. 

For someone who has spawned many styles over the past 8 years and with all the above behind her, how could you not jump at the chance to meet her? 

*DISCLAIMER: At the time of meeting her I was NOT blogging, but inspiration comes from the strangest places*

I believe in miracles. Since Toblerone came along.

Food

 It's a sexy thing it is. Toblerone, I mean. 




The nights are dark, Christmas shopping has started (or finished for some eager beavers) there's been storms raging and there's been tragedy around the world. I personally believe, all that accounts for a little break and a treat to yourself. What better treat than Hot Chocolate? A hug in a mug. I have found three words that better it. 

How do you like them apples?

apple pie


Welcome back, we’ve had a revamp. 

  After what has been a truly devastating year for myself, I decided it was time to get back down to basics.  The panic of being stuck in a rut set in, not being able to get on with life had me up at night, what was I going to do?  


 I will do another post explaining a little more on why this all happened but firstly, I want you all to learn one extremely important word that I will repeat time again:

Self – Care.


Cuthbert's & Celebrations

Cuthberts Bakehouse


It was a week before Christmas and all through the town, were mad shoppers and students having breakdowns.  Well not to worry, I've found a safe haven,  away from the hustle and bustle of the city centre and a stones throw away from  the universities and libraries.  It's the perfect place to pop in from  blusterous winds and a sweet haven in the summer time, Cuthbert's Bakehouse on Mount Pleasant.



Liam Fray Acoustic Gig @ Sound Control Manchester 22.12.14

Acoustic
   Just before Christmas I ventured to Manchester as a christmas present from the Mr. I took  my aunty, who'd come down for the festive season, to her first gig, a Liam Fray acoustic gig. What a treat. For those of you who don't know, Liam Fray fronts The Courteeners, a Manchester indie band with a huge following and massive tunes, the kind you wanna be swigging cider to at a festival in the beaming sunshine.





Post by The Courteeners.


Rogue Gallery Presents: Jimmy & The Revolvers with Sophie Anderson, The Sky, Brass Haus & The Sneaky Nixons @ The Pilgrim 04.09.14

gigs
    Way back at the beginning of October, I attended possibly one of my favourite gigs of the year. Tucked round the corner from Bumper, myself and a few friends hobbled down the cobbles to The Pilgrim, which was bursting with punters and friendly faces eagerly awaiting the nights gig put on by Rogue Gallery Promotions.  After grabbing our pints we headed up the iron staircase to the even smaller room and settled ourselves in what space we could find. The Pilgrim is a cosy little pub, with wooden booths, long benches, cheap drinks, complete with its own sheltered beer garden. Upstairs is even smaller, so for you claustrophobics and people who suffer from anxiety bare that in mind,  but do not let it put you off, it creates the perfect gig atmosphere, one you do not want to miss out on, ever.



Give a little bit of HOPE

Charity



Festival season is coming to an end, Uni's starting up again, kids are back at school, the days are getting shorter and the nights are getting colder, but before it's back to the grindstone,  Liverpool's got one more festival lined up for you that's sure to end the season on a high. HOPE fest. 

Top Tips to Survive SoundCity - It's a jungle out there!

bold st

  Soundcity is a concrete Jungle of absolute madness and sheer disarray for a first timer  and there are certain things you're gonna wanna know before you venture into it,  with these trusty top tips, (i've had experience for 3 years now) you're gonna be able to walk around town with your head held high and your feet racing in a mad rush.

Say hello to the Green Monster...

bold st


   Deadlines are approaching, there's 3 weeks left to get your whole year to a 2:1 or preferably a (1st),  more realistically, ANY THING THAT'S A PASS!!  SoundCity's almost upon us and half of Liverpool is wallowing in misery of Gerrard's slip (Mourinio planted something, I swear). It's the time of year where students sob into their books, staring longingly at the sunshine and sudden heatwave that usually occurs around now. Girls (and guys alike) are stopping at nothing to get into that Bikini they've had their eye on in New Look to flaunt on their sunnies, IF IT WEREN'T FOR THE CRAZY NIGHTS  OUT AND  NOW KFC DELIVERIES from Hungover Liverpool. Well I tell you now, I've found a solution to get that oh so needed health kick start. Welcome to the Green Monster Smoothie.


SoundCity Is a Go!

2014

   Right these past few weeks have been absolutely hectic, with many triumphs and commiserations, all for good reasons though, which is all for another chinwag! I am happy to announce This Girl and Her Kicks has bagged herself a press pass (delegate pass, as it were) for Liverpool's Sound City, meaning I'll be reviewing the whole weekend especially for you! 

I give myself very good advice, but very seldom follow it.

alcohol.
Hello Lovelies,

   As you can see, I've been on a very,very long hiatus, I hold my hands up,  I started this with good intentions and had huge plans and I went and left everyone in the lurch, left this blog alone, neglected to wither in the dust of  blogs that have been, gone and made no mark or matter in the realm of social media.  To be frank, I started this whilst everything in my life was all over the place, they way I treated this page literally be an example of how I felt throughout the whole of last year and the year before.  

 So I took advice from my first post, I took things in moderation and decided to focus more on my work and studies, everything extra curricular had to go. If it didn't help towards my studies, or a distraction it went. (This is not moderation, this is overloading and shutting yourself from a basic human need of social interaction and the best form of therapy, company and laughter.) The guitar went, writing went, drawing went, it was just me,  uni, my best friend and alcohol. Sooner or later, the alcohol took over, now I'm not bragging about this, it's nothing to brag about, if you have problems, alcohol is not the answer. ( this however is a completely different blog post, which I will be talking about.)






Christmas Time, Mistletoe and Whine

cheer

 T'was the season to be jolly, fa la la la la...you get the point. However, Christmas came and I was fast asleep in bed, unwilling to wake, not even to see if Father Christmas had been or if his elves had wrapped the presents for me, I'm beginning to understand why the grinch stole christmas. I mean, I didn't even wish for snow. (For anybody who knows me, that's THE thing I will always wish for, not  bar a dog, no matter my age). With exams and essays due in around the corner, now was not the time to be celebrating or partying for stressed out students, it's fair to say I was more 'bah humbug' than Scrooge, I even have the jumper to prove it.


New Year, New Me.

be happy

Hey Ho, Let's Go,



As this is my first post, I'm going to try and keep it short and sweet, however, I have a years worth of stories to tell you, that if I let myself, would all come spewing out in one long rambling prose that would make Thomas Moore proud (i'm surprised I even got him in, if you don't know him, he wrote Utopia, I studied it in GCSE English, never again) and no doubt the rest of you shudder away and it's only 8th January. 

For starters, I'm assuming you've read my 'About Me' section. It's as simple as 'New Year, New Me'.
 I always make resolutions each year and break them or forget about them every time. 'I'll be better', 'I'll go the gym', 'I'll keep a diary',  'I'll work harder,' 'I'll figure out what I want with my life' and as the year goes on, I give up one step at a time. 'I tried' I say to myself, 'I'm just not cut out for jumpin' jacks and weight training, I love coffee and cheese on toast too much.' 
But this year I put my foot down and thought, no, not this time, this time I WILL keep to things, so I started a blog to keep me motivated. How original. Do I want a medal? Yes, I want a medal that says, 

'YOU DID IT! YOU MADE THE 8% OF PEOPLE WHO KEEP UP THEIR RESOLUTIONS!' 




Yep, you read that right 8%. (you can read it on Forbes website) Only 8% of the world's population keep their New Year resolutions, how daunting is that? With my track record of motivational problems i'm clearly doomed to failure. I try each year to keep a diary and forget about it after 3 days, but give me Facebook and tumblr and I can write you a day in my life within minutes. That was when I realised, I don't need no diary, I need a blog and a good day to write about. So here I am starting my own blog, hopefully bringing you reviews, opinions and just general laugh out loud moments of a normal liverpool girl.  

Now, as is tradition, I think if I state my aims for 2013, online, for the world to see, I'll be more inclined to keep to them.  

Dear Me, please try to: 

  • Be Optimistic
  • Say YES to more things
  • Don't be a doormat
  • Go to more gigs
  • Do more art
  • Put on more gigs
  • Write more
  • Take more photos
  • Work hard. 
  • Look after yourself better. 
Now the past year has taught me many things, but the main things, are these, which I think can apply to everyone in general:

1) It's Your Life, Live it  -  We only live once, if you're not happy with what you're doing, it is NEVER too late to change that. Don't keep to something because it's 'expected of you', or 'you've been doing it so long, you can't possibly stop now'. If you want to be a bin man you go be a bin man, you want to be a lawyer, you go be a lawyer, or even if it's as simple as you want a jam doughnut, you eat that damn doughnut. 

2) Forgive,  Not Forget    -  Do NOT under any circumstance, allow someone's ill actions toward you, affect your judgement to others and build into hate. Hate is counter-productive, the amount of times you say you hate that person? You could be using it to show how much you love another.  The grimace you have when you seen them? Could be used to form a smile to a stranger. Forgive them for what they've done, they clearly don't know any better, the fact you've forgiven  yet not forgotten will show them a) they need to haul ass out of there or b) Know not to hurt you again, a fate, which I believe is worse than never being forgiven. It's like the whole 'I'm not angry, just disappointed' speech you get from the parents. Imagine getting that from someone you know? Or better, giving that to someone you know.
  
3) Be Heard -  You have an idea, you say that idea, you didn't understand the question in the lecture? Trust me 20 other people will have that idea and won't understand the question. You're not happy the way you're being treated by your friends? Or the way they act? Not happy with treatment in the workplace?  Always keeping your tongue held? Spit it out, let them know you're not happy with them because the more you keep quiet, the more they'll think you don't mind, they'll think you're a doormat and that their behaviour is acceptable. If you're being bullied in school, tell a teacher, it's ok to do so.
 A friend of mine told me 'we're all the same, you can't hurt me anymore than I can hurt you, we're all human.' It's true. You might be a 5ft girl and they might be a 6ft hench of a man, but kick him in the right place and he'll be on the floor in a sucker punch. 

4) Moderation This past year, I won't lie, I did NOT do things in moderation, I drank too much, slept to little, ate too much junk, my work was horrific and I paid for it. NOT THE WAY TO GO. Moderation in life is key. I think the 8 hour approach is good to start. 8 hour sleep, 8 hour work, 8 hour play. 8am - 12am. You want in on that party? DO SOME WORK. You'll feel better at the party knowing you have 4 readings and 2,000 words behind you, so you can really have fun. It will also bring peaceful nights sleep. 

5) Don't Give Up, Don't Give In - 'Life is a bitch', It's there to kick us when we're down and knock us off our course, like a ship out to sea we get dragged down. Devastating things can happen, but the sad truth is, life goes on, it doesn't stop for anyone but help IS there. Family, friends will surprise you at how willing they are to help and call services are there if you need them. Yes, by all means take a break or have a breakdown, but whatever you do, do not give up and do not give in. Look at Susan Boyle, she had a hard life, but she DIDN'T give up and she lived her dream and sang with Ellen Page, you may laugh but it's true, she got her dream, so who's laughing now?  There's one way out, once you take it you can't come back and see the days where you could have made it through and smiled once again. 

 
(images are not mine. I need to back and credit them.) 

Happy New Year and here's to a new year of blogging. Liverpool I'm coming for you. 

XxX