tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60957923667539610832024-03-08T11:58:30.867+00:00Emily's Blog...journalism student.
this is a random selection of my views & opinions, sometimes a bit ranty...Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-89146083264014305412012-07-18T02:17:00.001+01:002012-07-18T02:18:31.889+01:00Why shouldn't different members of society be encouraged to mix?<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After reading an article on the Guardian website recently, this got me thinking, why is there such a divide between generations in the UK?</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At present, different generations are separated into different sectors of society based on their interests, most of which are rather stereotypical. For example, most teenagers & young people are only interested in alcohol, fashion, the internet & gaming. Whilst the elderly are associated with classical music, quiz shows, period dramas & theatre productions. But is this really the case? Or are these stereotypes outdated?</span></i></div>
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It seems that for anyone under the age of 21 to like or listen to music from before their time is frowned upon, as is people of slightly older generations liking chart music, but who decided this wasn't allowed? This diversity in likes & dislikes must be good for relations & stereotypes yet it is always seen as being an odd thing.</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Even with social places like pubs, it would seem people are divided, with some places being 'student pubs', some being for working class males, some catering to families & those seen to be for older people. Each generation looking down on the other with their own stereotypical views which are often based on media perception & past experiences. Although if all generations were encouraged to mix, I believe it would have a positive affect on society. </span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I think that everyone has something to offer in terms of knowledge & opinions, different age groups could teach others so much about their interests & life experiences. Many older people will have good stories to tell of a time before technology as we know it today, whilst young people can share their knowledge of this technology. </span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By encouraging this kind of togetherness, stereotypical views of certain groups could be changed or removed within society. Making the place a lot nicer, changing peoples perceptions should be something we're promoting, especially at times of recession, as many people will remember previous times of economic difficulty & be able to share tips on how they coped in the past. And after all, with all this doom & gloom, some new friendships & trust between communities can only be a good thing!</span></i></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-12735625067193535932012-07-18T01:19:00.000+01:002012-07-18T02:18:39.901+01:00Why should people with boobs have such limited choice in bras?<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Whilst shopping in 'The Trafford Centre' earlier today, it came to my attention that popular underwear retailer 'La Senza' no longer stock bras over the cup size DD.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>After going into administration in January this year, the chain was taken over by the Canadian La Senza. A move which has seen the stock in the UK match that offered across the water. </i></span><br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The decision to stop bras at a DD is one many women, myself included, will be gutted to hear. With a lack of shops on our high streets offering plus size bra ranges at affordable prices, La Senza offered a modern range of underwear appealing to women of all ages, shapes & most importantly, sizes. </i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>As someone who requires a bigger cup size than that now sold by what used to be my favourite underwear retailer, I was faced with the struggle that came with trying to find bras available in my size, that fitted my price range & weren't old fashioned or nunty. It was also one of the small number of shops selling strapless & multi-way bras, the lack of them available you'd think we weren't supposed to wear strapless, crossover backed or halterneck clothes! The search was difficult with very few stores stocking plus size ranges, especially in the smaller back sizes!</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>I think the decision to cut the ranges available to women is a poor one, forcing customers to shop elsewhere will only cause the business to lose more money & dent their previously good reputation.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>In an age where people are getting bigger & women are paying thousands of pounds to increase their breast size, it seems bizarre that shops aren't taking advantage of these trends. It would also seem that women who are naturally above a DD are almost being punished for having the body they were born with, yet reductions are rarely available on the NHS. Bras up to a D cup are available just about everywhere, with so many shops selling beautiful bras at amazing prices, that many women cannot buy because they, not necessarily by choice, are blessed (or it feels more like cursed) with having bigger boobs than retailers account for.</i></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>This problem is echoed when it comes to buy tops & dresses too, needing a bigger size to fit around the top, then finding the item too big & baggy everywhere else, with bigger arm holes, making all shopping difficult.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>To still have this lack of choice in 2012 is ridiculous, more shops should cater for bigger sizes & at more reasonable prices than those charged everywhere at present, having big boobs doesn't mean a plain white bra is all people want, we still want the coloured, patterned & lacy bras worn by everyone else. Hopefully things will change soon!</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-6837970664168556982012-07-18T00:54:00.001+01:002012-07-18T01:19:19.051+01:00Undercover Boss.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Flicking through the freeview channels at midnight on
Friday morning whilst tucked up in my
cosy hotel bed, I found one of the most interesting programmes I've watched in
a while.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On Channel 4, I saw my first episode of new documentary
undercover boss. A documentary where the executives of some of Britains companies go undercover to work in their own shops, clubs, etc. However, the people they
work with during their time there, are completely unaware that their latest recruit is
actually their boss from head office.</span></span></i></div>
</div>
<a name='more'></a><i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This weeks episode followed the CEO of Luminar Leisure,
Peter Marks. Luminar Leisure own many nightclubs across the UK, the biggest of
these being the 'Oceana' chain, with clubs in places such as Leeds & Swansea.
The company, who found themselves facing financial difficulties last October
also own establishments including The
Sugarmill in Hull & Lincolns Ritzy/Pulse.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Peter was disguised as accountant Mark Skinner, who was
partaking in a documentary which sees
people try their hand at jobs outside of their field. <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On his journey Peter worked alongside a medic, maintenance
man, promotions man & cleaner. Gathering their views on what would help to
make their place of work more successful as he went. <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was shocking to see the states in which some people
were leaving these clubs,resulting in head office keeping the medically trained
people who patrol some clubs. This decision was reached after a shift with
medic Mel, whose aim was to try & save the NHS time & money by not only
treating those with minor injuries, but preventing others from occurring. </span><span style="font-size: 9pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the end, all was unveiled, with those he'd worked alongside visiting the head office in Milton Keynes. Only two of the three employees recognised the CEO as being the man who'd spent shifts with them just weeks beforehand. In this final section, Peter paid for the cleaner who'd never taken a day off work in 8 years to go on holiday with her husband as a reward for her hard work & commitment to the club. He also paid for the plumbing course being taken by the maintenance man in another establishment, as he'd earlier stated that he was using his own wages to fund the course. </span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">The programme was very interesting to watch & gave the CEO a good insight into what some employees further down the company have to deal with on a daily basis. It'd probably do many large companies some good to see how their businesses are run at the bottom & just how hard some members of staff work to keep things running smoothly.</span></span></span></i></div>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-20898590874498362302012-06-23T18:07:00.002+01:002012-06-24T21:49:36.322+01:00Should we be more original?<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Walking the streets of Hull since being home from university, I've noticed the lack of originality when it comes to peoples clothing/sense of style.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Why do people no longer strive to be different or stand out from the crowd? The aim seems to be to just blend in with the surroundings & look like clones of each other, the same clothes, phones, hair styles & interests...</i></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i></i></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>
</i></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Almost every teenager in town wears the same outfit, all the girls with their hair extensions in, piled high on their heads resembling what can only be described as a pineapple. Teamed with the usual denim shorts/leggings/tube skirt, which leave very little to the imagination & an oversized t-shirt for a band from before their time... This is all nicely finished off with a pair of 'vans' or 'toms', an oversized knitted cardigan & a large cloth bag. More often than not clutching their latest blackberry or iphone. </i></span><i style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The boys are obsessed with their chinos & denim shirts, not forgetting the 'vans' & 'toms' as mentioned above!</i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The few people you see around who don't conform to these conventions are often frowned upon, like most cities we have some chavs & goths who follow the traditional dress code for their style. Which poses the question why are people treat differently because they don't follow the crowd? I for one don't like to wear the same clothes as everyone else, to the point where I try to wear things that probably wouldn't be chosen by many.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I think your style says a lot about your personality as an individual, yet whilst many follow the latest fashions they adapt them to suit their personality, something that is lost among this mass of chinos & espadrilles.</i></div>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-92001478852652750092012-06-18T22:11:00.003+01:002012-06-23T18:07:41.250+01:00NHS thefts: Costing money & lives?<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>I was today disgusted to read an article on the Hull Daily Mail website regarding the theft of equipment taken from ambulances whilst paramedics were treating patients.</i></span></div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The article states that from May 2011 to May 2012, equipment was stolen costing the Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust £13,000 to replace. Stolen items include sat navs & mobile phones. </i></span></div>
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>When a sat nav is stolen from an ambulance, that vehicle is then taken off the road until a new one has been fitted. Something that costs not only the NHS, but peoples lives. What kind of person sees an ambulance parked on the street attending a call out & sees it as the perfect opportunity to steal equipment? Although sat navs may seem like pointless items, they are often key to ensuring ambulances meet response times & reach their patients.</i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Those few minutes spent by ambulance crews not knowing their way to a patients home could be so crucial in many circumstances. It is also a problem when ambulance radio systems are stolen, causing paramedics to lose communication with their hospital. Patient care is put at risk when items are taken which delay & prevent paramedics from doing there jobs. </i></span><i style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's even worse to see that some of the equipment has been stolen from the vehicles when they're parked outside of their hospitals Accident & Emergency department.</i></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></i></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With NHS cutbacks and more strain being placed on the service than ever before, it's the small things like the crimes listed above that could save thousands of pounds which could be spent on saving lives and patient care. </i></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>What morals must these people have to steal from a service so necessary to ensuring people get the medical attention they need? So many countries fail to have free services such as these yet people in England will steal from them purely to gain a radio, sat nav or mobile phone.</i></span></div>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-73231023244765181572012-06-13T21:19:00.000+01:002012-06-23T18:07:51.078+01:00My eBay bargain<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I've recently rediscovered the wonder that is eBay, the
popular online auction site used by many to sell the goods they no longer like,
need or want.</i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>This all began after purchasing some pale green shoes
(chartreuse to be precise) for a wedding I'm attending at the end of the month.
Finding green shoes was the easy part, next came the hunt for a matching bag,
after trawling the websites of every fashion and accessories retailer I could
think of, it suddenly dawned on me that someone somewhere must be selling a bag
that would suit my needs?</i></span></span></div>
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>After searching for green and yellow clutch/evening bags
i was delighted to see hundreds of
results matching the search criteria! A couple of pages in i noticed the
perfect bag, green with a diamante circle in the centre... For a measly £2.99
starting price and free delivery! I decided to read on, a Jasper Conran clutch
in chartreuse? Perfect!<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>After 9 days of closely watching this item, it remained
bidless, until two hours before the end time when two other eBay users decided
to place their bids, me and my mum spent ages planning our maximum bid price
and ensuring the bid was perfectly timed. Following an intense half an hour of
refreshing the page constantly to see if we were still winning, we were pleased
to see the notice saying we were now the owner of the perfect accessory! <o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>4 days later I received a gorgeous bag that goes perfect with my shoes! </i></span></span><i style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I would definitely recommend eBay to anyone who can't find
that perfect item they've been wanting for so long, afterall, one mans trash is
another mans treasure!</i></div>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-37384283707897905142012-06-13T15:35:00.001+01:002012-06-23T18:08:07.287+01:00What has childhood become?<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Whatever happened to childhood? It's something we all had,
yet of late it seems to be dying out. <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So many children have mobile phones by the age of eight or
nine, at this age the only phone i was
going near was a plastic one the size of a brick that made noises and was in
the same category as my pretend vacuum cleaner and kettle! At this age so many children are more
interested in make up, fashion and jewellery than in dolls and toys, which
baffles me. Why are parents forcing their children to grow up so fast? After all, they're the best years you'll ever
have (until of course you attend university or have your own children) but why
are children not allowed to enjoy life before responsibilities & marriage?</span></span></i></div>
</div>
<a name='more'></a><i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Children seem to be swapping dolls for real babies and
can't imagine a life without their hair products and make up! All for the sake
of attracting boys, children of around 9
speaking about their boyfriends, at this age i was probably still running away
from boys and wanted nothing to do with them! <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By 13 teenagers are obsessed with their looks and
celebrities, instead of 'playing out' on their bikes, they're sat indoors with the latest top of
the range laptop or games console chatting to their friends virtually, whatever
happened to good old fashioned conversation? <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You see so many young teens on social networking complaining about how their
boyfriend of three days and complete love of their life dumped them for
colouring their hair or talking to another boy, acting like it's the end of the
world and like they'll never find anyone else. I don't see why at these ages girls want to be tied to
one person and have the hassle that comes with being attached to one person, as
an adult it's not easy, let alone with the struggles faced by teenagers
nowadays.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By the age of fourteen or fifteen many of these youths are attending house parties full of underdressed teens
looking to 'pull' a popular member of the opposite gender in an environment filled with booze and
sometimes drugs and cigarettes. This is all probably in preparation for leaving
school when they can borrow their friends and relatives id to go out for a
night on the town before stumbling home at 3am not remembering a thing!<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now call me old fashioned, but i think children are
growing up too fast, let children be children at least till they're around ten,
save the pressure and responsibilities for adulthood!</span><span style="font-size: 9pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-11596688437074558442012-06-13T15:33:00.003+01:002012-06-23T18:08:22.652+01:00End of an era<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>This weekend saw the final episode of Desperate Housewives
being aired in the UK. (If you don't want any plots to be spoiled, I'd advise
that you stop reading now!)</i></span></span></div>
</div>
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><o:p></o:p></i></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>After eight successful seasons, creater Marc Cherry
brought life on Wisteria Lane to an end. Tying up the loose ends of the
storylines from this series and explaining what happened to our four favourite
ladies (Gabrielle, Bree, Susan and Lynette) and their families after life on
the lane! <o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>I began watching this exciting American drama during
series two or three, ever since, myself and my mum have sat down with a baileys
coffee (all stemming from when Baileys was the sponsor!) to watch life in
Fairview unfold.<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Over the years I've shed many a tear whilst watching the
housewives through their break-Ups, make-Ups, births, marriages, deaths and
illnesses. My favourite episode in each series without a doubt is the one that
follows the death of an important or well loved character. The week after, in
what is usually the funeral episode, each lady reflects on life with the
deceased, it always proves to be a sad episode, filled with memories that avid
watchers will remember. Memorable deaths being those of Edie Britt and Mike
Delfino, one of the best flashback episodes following everyones connection to a
workman who died on the roof!<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Every fan of the series had a favourite character, mine
being Gabrielle Solis, I always loved her wardrobe and fashion sense, her style
was always amazing and she said some of the funniest things! Although I did
love each character for a different reason. <o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>On Sunday night, at 10pm, me and my mum sat down for the
final time, with our special coffee and box of tissues which over the years had
become tradition and standard procedure, to tune into E4 for one last, very
emotional hour of our favourite show. An extremely sad episode in which one of
the lanes most loved residents, Karen McCluskey died of cancer, newby Renee
married Australian hunk Ben and where Susans daughter Julie who viewers have
seen grow up throughout the years have a baby girl of her own. As well as the return of Katherine Mayfair who left in a previous series! I felt the need to watch the episode again,
purely because I refused to accept that after so many years it had all come to
an end. Goodbye ladies, you will be missed!</i></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-23693030500645046852012-06-03T00:37:00.002+01:002012-06-23T18:08:34.222+01:00Rediscovered my inner child...<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>To celebrate the end of exams & our first year of uni, me & some friends visited Play Zone - a childrens soft play centre which is around 20 minutes walk from our university halls. </i></span></div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>This turned out to be a highlight of the year! After arriving half an hour before opening time & being overly excited by the thought of 2 hours playing on slides & climbing frames, the doors were finally opened for the students of Lincoln & we couldn't get our belongings into lockers quick enough!</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i></i></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The atmosphere inside was exactly as I remember from when I was a child, people running around playing hide & seek, screaming & shouting of their friends whilst hearing the voices of those who'd opted to sit at the side with a drink... The only difference being everyone in the place was over the age of 16. Everyone was getting so fussy whilst discovering the different equipment & its uses, whilst at the same time making sure they didn't miss a thing out! </i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>After an hour or so of playing hide & seek & generally acting like a 7 year old again, we headed down to the cafe area to buy a slush puppie - something no visit to Play Zone would be right without! Whilst sat around trying to drink it quickly so we could go back on the slides, we wondered how we'd ever managed to spend so many hours running around without a break! </i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>When it came to 9.30, I didn't want to leave, despite how tired I was from all the running around. The visit was definitely well worth my £5 & must be so much more effective & fun than any gym work out, especially when I consider the aching that stayed with me for 3 days afterwards!</i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Whoever decided to open this place up to adults is definitely a genius!</i></span></div>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-12548424974697504912012-06-01T20:30:00.000+01:002012-06-23T18:08:49.216+01:00Not so sunny Skegness!<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Yesterday saw myself and seven friends take a day out to
Skegness, a popular Lincolnshire seaside resort.<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>After months of planning we arose bright and early in time
to catch our 10am bus, the typical British summer made an appearance making the day a very very
wet one at that! But we were determined to not let the weather dampen our
moods!</i></span></span></div>
</div>
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><o:p></o:p></i></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Two hours later we arrived in a cold and wet Skegness,
which made us drop plans of fish and chips on the sea front in favour of a trip
to Little Frankies, a variation of larger restaurant chain Frankie &
Bennys. After a lovely meal and the struggle to split the bill eight ways, we
headed back out into the rain to brave the walk across the beach.<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Passing all the delicious looking food stalls on the front
selling seaside favourites such as ice creams, slush puppies and doughnuts! Our
beach plans were also spoiled due to the horrible weather which saw me wear a
bright red pac-a-mac (from River Island, before I sound like a nerd). <o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>After a short walk along the front we decided it was
probably for the best that we spent some time indoors, this being in the form
of amusement arcades! Where we spent a lot of time (and money) trying to win
cuddly meerkats, me to you bears and various other things we didn't really
need!<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>My favourite thing has to be the 2p machine, nothing
screams seaside amusements more than 2 shelves of the copper I spend all year
trying to get rid of/avoid. One of which slowly moves backwards and forwards
meaning precise timing is required when it comes to adding your shrapnel to the
collection! This of course is to win a pointless and often rather tacky
toy/object or a selection of 2 pence
pieces to refill the purse you've been desperately trying to rid of copper for
so long!<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>After spending the contents of our coin purses in the
amusements, we headed back towards the centre of Skegness to visit the small
shopping centre and a local pet shop, a trip to Home Bargains was in order to
gather cheap food and drink for the journey home!<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Typically as we boarded the bus, the clouds disappeared
making way for the sun we'd spent all day longing for! Eventually we arrived
back in Lincoln after a very fun outing and the perfect way to celebrate what
was the last day in Lincoln for many of us!</i></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-12399145233024868622012-05-20T19:44:00.003+01:002012-06-23T18:09:00.574+01:00Revision time!<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>As exam season is well underway, like many other students, I'm spending my days (and nights) revising.</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>I've learnt whilst trying to revise that there are so many different revision techniques! Since I spent my two years at college studying towards a BTEC, I've not taken an exam since my GCSE's when I was 15. This lack of exam practice has left me wondering where to begin when it comes to revising politics and law, it would appear I've forgotten how to revise effectively! </i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i></i></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>After spending about 45 minutes planning my revision methods, the distractions began to set in... Revising at the dining table probably wasn't the best idea in the world, my ability to see the fridge & hear the television on in the next room made me unable to concentrate. When revising, food is probably my biggest weakness! I'll have little breaks to make toast & coffee... Rapidly followed by a kit kat and glass of fruit juice, then crisps, ice cream, chocolate, scones - basically anything I can get my hands on to make the experience more exciting and interesting!</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>With exams in just over a weeks time, hopefully the snacky foods will have ran out so I can focus on revision & do well! Now back to the law text books...</i></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-84885401578781919712012-05-18T20:00:00.000+01:002012-06-23T18:09:12.343+01:00My blogging assignment!<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>This week I received my grades for the Twitter & Blogging assignment, the reason this blog exists in the first place!</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i></i></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>I've been an active Twitter user since starting university last September, despite having an account for a year (@shmem93 if you fancy giving me a follow!) So for it to finally be put to good use as part of my final grade for this year was a positive! </i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>After two months, I finally got my mark back - 65%! Another 2:1 to add to my ever increasing collection! I received good feedback & overall was proud of it!</i></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-9981275753724100462012-04-22T19:30:00.000+01:002012-06-23T18:09:26.362+01:00Does money really bring happiness?<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, tomorrow brings the final installment of my first
years student finance. This got me thinking, does money really make happiness?</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I mean I welcome this money with open arms, it'll give me
back the freedom to shop, go out for tea, go to the cinema, the pub or on that
night out we've been planning for weeks. But does any of this really matter?
Are people too materialistic in the modern day?</span></span></div>
</div>
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last month, in a bid to increase tourism in Lincolnshire,
Lincolns famous castle and cathedral were opened up to the public free of
charge, this was accompanied by a lovely continental market at the top of Steep
Hill, recently named as Britains best street. So being students running low on
money, we decided to pay these attractions a visit instead of staying cooped up
indoors nursing Friday nights hangover.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was a beautiful day, and barely
awake, a few of us staggered up steep hill, wondering at what point this had
seemed a good idea. Once there it all became worth it, we spent hours roaming
the castle grounds, walking around the castle walls taking photographs of the
views & each other as we had a girly afternoon out. This was followed by a
walk around the cathedral, which can only be described as a stunningly
beautiful building, the level of detail in its architecture is amazing when you
consider the lack of equipment available at the time it was built. Overall it
was a good day out & laugh, that cost nothing except the two or three
pounds spent on a drink & food at the uni pub afterwards. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On a nice day, I love nothing more than going for a nice
long walk in the sunshine, taking only a drink and a packet of crisps along
with me, these are the days when most memories are created. Sat around on a
piece of grass giggling and taking photos. Even when the weathers horrible
we'll all take some food to one persons flat, then cook and eat it together
almost like a family, still getting the social element of a meal out or visit
to the pub. We've even been known to spend a pound or two on baking ingredients
and spent the day making buns and scones. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As much as money is needed to pay for food, bills and all
the rest, I'm probably at my happiest when I have very little money, it
requires so much more creativity to make the money last. Yes that new handbag
or pair of shoes will put a smile on my face, but so will the memories created
during a day spent doing things I love with friends and family.</span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-32806344164740136642012-03-24T22:26:00.002+00:002012-06-23T18:09:36.253+01:00University.<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This week marked me being at university for a whole six months, potentially the most life changing months ever and they've passed so quickly. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since September, I've proved to myself that I can live alone & manage my money, realised I now know the meaning of missing people, met some really amazing people & learnt a lot about myself. I've definitely grown up a lot.</span></div>
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's hard to believe that 7/8 years ago I wouldn't do anything on my own & was scared of my own shadow, now I've spent a year in a different city, in my own studio flat, miles away from everything I'm used to. I'm quite glad I picked a studio, the decision was purely to prove a point to myself that I could live entirely on my own - cook, clean & look after myself. Obviously with a few 'how do i do this?' & 'can this bowl go in the dishwasher?' calls to the mother. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My first year of uni just wouldn't have been the same without the people I've met, not even sure how I met some of them, but they've probably made this year a lot more interesting! I already knew a few people, so it's lovely to still spend time with people I've known for years, alongside those I've known for a matter of months.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All in all the last six months, although probably not the easiest, have been amazing, this time last year I wasn't over keen on the thought of going to uni, but I'm definitely glad I changed my mind, just wish it wasn't passing so fast!</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-24067969330750408892012-03-13T23:44:00.001+00:002012-03-13T23:44:06.868+00:00School days, are they all they're hyped up to be?<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So, earlier today someone posted a Facebook status about how much they miss school, which got me thinking, are they really the best days of your life?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Do I really miss getting up at 7.20am, making myself presentable followed by a 15 minute walk to school, which once I got there consisted of 20 minutes in a glorified portacabin then 6 hours of lessons & a grand total of 1 hour in breaks, before another 15 minute walk (often in the cold/rain)? Answer is, probably not. </span><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We were made to learn all sorts of stuff I had no interest in, I was only truly interested in media studies, English, IT & history. Then there was maths, where we learnt a lot of stuff I can't actually remember, the majority of it hasn't been used in the 3 years since I left in all fairness. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">By far my least favourite two subjects were P.E & R.E. As someone who has no interest in religion whatsoever, this was an hour I saw to be a waste of time, I eventually lost count of the number of times we watched 'Schindlers List' & 'The Pianist'. Not that I have anything against either film, they're just not as good when watching for the 10th time in probably as many weeks! And as for P.E, well it was most definitely <u>NEVER</u> my strong point. I was the person who couldn't catch the ball in rounders & despised cross country, whilst the rest of the group seemed to treat it deadly serious, like they were in the olympics.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The best thing about the place was probably a small handful of the people & getting to visit chip shop on a daily basis for my pattie butty! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">All in all, I think I enjoyed college a lot more & have learnt that people at college & uni are far less judgmental, not paying as much attention to the little insignificant things & basing their first impressions around whether they'll talk to you. So no, in my opinion school was probably not 'the best days of my life'!</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-20907742824238142162012-03-08T23:02:00.002+00:002012-03-08T23:04:16.083+00:00Breadcakes, Buns, Patties & Chip Spice!<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Until I came to uni last September, I hadn't realised how many words used in everyday life were unique to where I'm from! </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Being from Yorkshire, more specifically East Yorkshire, I use an awful lot of words & phrases which it seems the majority of my uni friends don't understand.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My first encounter of this was mentioning 'breadcakes', my new circle of friends looked at me like I was from a different planet, no one entirely sure what was meant by this. I have since found that it's very rare for people to agree on the name of the round bread commonly used for burgers! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I've since received the same bemused look when mentioning 'buns', apparently outside of Yorkshire, these are 'fairycakes' & a bun is bread - something I cannot get my head around!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Another thing I've learnt, is that we have our own special foods that no one else knows about! Despite knowing this all my life, I was even more amazed when I realised it's actually true. Chip spice is something I've introduced to people who I go to uni with, so much so that everytime I go home I return with numerous tubs for friends! Although it's called 'American Chip Spice', no one knows about it, in my opinion, the rest of the country are missing out, it's definitely beautiful & goes with anything!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The unique food I miss the most though is the 'Pattie' - a circle of mashed potato & sage that's been deep fried, it really is underrated, again, only available in the East Riding. It definitely reminds me of growing up & eating them most days for lunch whilst at secondary school! Everytime I go back up North, I have to pay the local chippy a special visit for my 'pattie in a breadcake' which I then cover in chip spice!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I definitely love having special foods which seem so secret!</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-40486164352308797682012-03-05T18:22:00.002+00:002012-03-08T23:22:12.547+00:00Oversized baby look? I don't think so...<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, last night, when I ventured out to McDonalds (my second home) for a nearly midnight snack, I entered to find people sat around in 'onesies' & a lad casually trotting about wearing a 'snuggie'...(had I realised this was allowed, I wouldn't have changed from my bright pink cow print jamas & massive slipper boots!) </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm sorry, but I didn't realise these were items I could walk to a fast food establishment in, even at 11pm, it still shouldn't be socially acceptable.</span></div>
<a name='more'></a><div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I really don't see what's so appealing about wearing an all in one suit, which usually has some horrible pattern on & is made from the awful material that I don't like the feel of. In my opinion, nobody over the age of 3 can get away with wearing a baby grow, the common thing I hear from onesie wearers is 'but they're comfy'. Many outfits are comfy (including my current joggers/vest top/hoodie combination) but I still wouldn't be seen dead in it. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The other thing I really don't understand is the 'snuggie' or 'slanket'. The blanket with sleeves - essentially a backwards dressing gown. I can think of no moment in my 18 & a half years of life where I've found myself thinking how much better life would be if I could have a blanket with arms & a pocket on my chest to put the tv control in. Why you would wear such a thing to go out in public I don't know, it's definitely something I can't get my head around! I was amazed to find you can get twin snuggies - a blanket with two sets of sleeves so couples can snuggle up together... What was ever wrong with an ordinary blanket or duvet?</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not sure if I'm just being really old-fashioned, but what happened to the days where people took pride in their appearance? Definitely a time & a place for pjs, onesies & snuggies.</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-45775462520742936772012-03-01T00:07:00.001+00:002012-03-08T23:04:26.179+00:00When will people stop jumping on the football bandwagon?<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, tonight saw England play a friendly against Holland and as expected, they lost 3-2.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The thing that annoys me most about international football (besides it's interference with the Premier League) is the many people, who don't care about the sport at all, who suddenly appear as if they're the worlds biggest football fan.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And before, you get all 'what does she know?' it turns out 'she' knows far more than most people think. As someone who spent 5 years going to Old Trafford to watch Manchester United play, I know more than most about football. I have actually seen England play more than once & have been to Wembley more than once to see matches. One of my more memorable matches being the 50th anniversary of the Munich air disaster one against rivals Manchester City.</span></div>
<a name='more'></a><div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But enough of my footballing experiences (although I could write a few hundred words on them), I have no problem with people who post about football & generally take an interest in it, but the people who can't name a single player (except the obvious ones like Gerrard), really irritate me. Yes, I can see that people want to back their national team, that's fine, but please don't pretend you know everything about it! Wrong criticisms of the use of cards & don't get me started on the offside rule, take it too far. It's often the same situation when many 'top teams' play (Manchester United/Liverpool/Chelsea/etc). People who've never posted a single sport related status in their lives suddenly come out of the woodwork with their opinions on the game (which they didn't watch, they're just hopping on the bandwagon or saw Match of the Day).</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm not saying people shouldn't support or follow England, I just believe people who are going to attempt to take an interest should at least try to make the effort when it comes to learning the rules & names of players.</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-71222181134388788882012-02-29T21:17:00.001+00:002012-03-08T23:04:35.604+00:00The life of living next to a busy rail line.<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Whilst casually sitting at my desk, refreshing my twitter/facebook feeds & realising iTunes manages to find my least favourite songs when on shuffle, I found my peace shattered by the screeching brakes of a passing train...</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For the last five months, I have lived beside what seems to be one of the most used railway lines in the country. It seems like there's a train passing every 10 minutes, the lovely silence of my studio being disrupted by the constant sounding of their horns, screeching brakes & engines running. </span></div>
<a name='more'></a><div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My least favourite train has got to be the one that sits outside my window every single morning without fail, engine running, just sitting there being noisy and often spoiling my much needed lie in. This is closely followed by the freight trains which pass regularly, causing even more noise than normal trains, these are usually the horn culprits. My hatred for these trains comes at 2 or 3 in morning, when you're in bed, literally nodding off when the rattling of an industrial train towing around 20 carriages wakes you up. This is made worse by people who don't live near trains saying 'why don't you just ignore them?' only people who regularly encounter such noise should be able to comment, the racket they make is IMPOSSIBLE to ignore.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Saturday night/Sunday morning, saw my first experience of maintenance works on the line, definitely the single most annoying thing about trains. It must have been about 3/4 times louder than a freight train. This huge machine, slowly passing at 2am, not the best time to decide work needed to be done. Social networking sites were covered in posts from people who had to put up with the awful noise as they tried to sleep.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The annoyance of trains doesn't just occur in the flat, it seems like everywhere I go a train is determined to make life unpleasant. I miss being able to make a simple trip to town that doesn't contain a 5-10 minute wait for trains to pass, I'm actually sure I've gained a sixth 'there's a train coming' sense. I can guarantee that if I'm in a rush, the beeping will begin, accompanied by the red flashing lights, this is followed by the slow dropping of the barriers as people run to cross before a train appears. Everyone then spends the next few minutes awkwardly standing in silence, waiting for a train to pass... The only good thing about this, is the perfect road crossing opportunity you gain from traffic coming to a stand still.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I definitely wonder why someone thought it would be a good idea to build a whole city, let alone a university campus which is split into two by a busy rail line. </span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6095792366753961083.post-51884677902873481222012-02-02T19:14:00.000+00:002012-03-08T23:04:40.266+00:00I remember when libraries were peaceful.<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Whilst browsing the Hull Daily Mail website, I encountered an interesting article about children as young as 9 being banned from libraries in East Yorkshire.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It amazed me to find how some of these children behave in public places, swearing at staff members, intimidating & hitting other library users & other acts of anti-social behaviour.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is it just me who remembers the days when libraries were peaceful places, where people could get lost in a book, or spent a bit of time searching the internet or a book to learn more on a topic?</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I was 9, I was busy having a childhood. If I did attend the local library (which I did, cause I was obsessed with reading) I certainly wasn't running about causing a fuss. Are the parents of these children not ashamed? I know I would be if they were my children. The library definitely isn't a nursery or childcare facility. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The job of a librarian is to organise books, keep the place tidy & assist users where necessary, not to control unruly children. This type of behaviour, which can be seen in many public places, makes me feel sorry for the teachers who have to try to control these children at school on a daily basis. If your child will harass strangers in a place of silence, what will they do to school property & other children?</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is however good to see that councils are taking steps to tackle such problems, hopefully making the library a pleasant place for other young people & the rest of society!</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0