New album releases, the final meetups, and #JezWeDidIt

one.
It was my friend's 19th birthday so we all met up for some drinks and some bantz, it was really nice to see some people from my sixth form who I hadn't really met up with this summer (and obviously we'll all be separating very soon) - it was my first time playing Kings, if you haven't played it, you really should, it's a heck of a lot of fun.

two.
My friend Isabella was the first to go off to University so she threw a little leavers afternoon tea kinda dealy at her house before she left which was really cute, still hasn't quite sunk in that everyone's leaving and moving on!!

three.
Ben Folds' new album was put online and I think it's so so good, the album is split into two parts so you have like ordinary songs and then the second half is all instrumental with an orchestra. It makes me wonder why more musicians don't use orchestras. Ben Folds is one of my favourite musicians ever so I do pretty much love everything he does anyway, but I'm generally just a big fan of a lot of instrumentation in music so this album is a winner for me.

four.
Troye's new album's come out as well and I like it so much, it's got that same Troye music aesthetic chilled vibe kinda thing he had going on in the last album but it's all new songs so it's not like he's doing the same thing again . . . if that makes sense. Basically, he's done some really catchy shiz, and I love Troye's music - I like that his music is good in its own right and not just popular because he's a big YouTuber, and I'm not trying to throw shade at any body but I think it's good when a person's work can to an extent be separated from the celebrity around them.

five.
I met up with a few friends for a sleepover which was really cute, I'm really enjoying meeting up with groups of people before we all split off because you don't know when it's going to be possible again. We watched the One Direction This is Us film which was surprisingly pretty good (okay, lowkey I'm 1D af but let's pretend I had to be forced into this one), 10 Things I Hate About You (which is a classic) and lots of episodes of Friends - I'm pretty certain the only reason anyone hangs out with me is because I have a Friends DVD box set.

six.
I've finally gathered the motivation to start filming videos again, I'm not sure if anyone noticed but I haven't uploaded in a month because I just haven't been in the right mindset, but I filmed a few in a day and I'm starting to feel it again which is good.

seven.
It was my friend's 19th birthday so we went out for a meal at a pub which was fun - it was nice to hang out with a bunch of people who I might not see again at least for a while.

eight.
Okay, vegan discovery - vegetable and houmous sandwiches are the bomb diggity. I haven't tried any vegan butter alternatives so I don't really have sandwiches anymore, but my Mum picked me up one while we were out and yes, they were very good, 11/10 would recommend.

nine.
I'm overjoyed at the fact that Jeremy Corbyn won the leadership election, and with nearly 60% of the vote! This is the most optimistic I've been about politics since before the general election - bring on 2020!

ten.
Laci Green uploaded this video to the MTV Braless YouTube channel about celebrities being problematic and it got me thinking about how problematic everyone was, I knew before that no one was perfect but I think it's important to remember this when criticising others and it's probably something that I needed reminding of.



How have the past couple of weeks been for you?

Bloglovin | YouTube | Tumblr | Twitter | Instagram

Childhood nostalgia, my first election, prom and vlogging

one.

Okay so y'know how in my last one of these posts I was saying that I was planning to book a holiday? IT'S BOOKED! We're going near Blackpool and I'm so excited, this caused me so much stress in trying to find a place to accommodate such a large group which wasn't so expensive but y'know what it's booked now which is just great.

two.
It was my friend's birthday so we went out to Westfield on the weekend and for a meal at Fire and Stone, and it was really lovely (obviously). One of the people who came is actually one of my closest friends and she moved away a couple of years ago so I don't really her much anymore, so it was really nice to see her again. Then a bunch people left, and the remaining people all went to Starbucks for a little catch up and that was super cute too.

three.
I have fallen in love with the app Hatchi. Since getting my new phone, I have been able to download a bunch of new apps (my old iPhone had half the amount of space so sometimes downloading things was a bit of a pain - having to delete 100 photos to update an app? No thanks) and Hatchi is one of them. It's like a Tamigotchi (nostalgia attack) but on a much bigger, brighter screen. I'm yet to have any deaths yet, and I've been taking great care of Ringo and Kanye - I'll be sure to keep you updated!

four.
I decided to re-watch all of the Spy Kids films over the space of about 4 days and it's been so lovely to have, after revision or homework and whatnot, a bit of time just to watch something a bit childish. I have to say since watching them I've wanted to start implementing the phrase 'oh shit-ake mushrooms' into my everyday language.

five.
I feel as if I mention one of Marina's video in every addition to this series, but the topics she talks about are so important and I want to do at least something to bring awareness to it. This video is about how being 'colourblind' is racist, and I think this is important because I know people who I actually consider myself to be well acquainted with who don't see why it's problematic to not see race, and it is because it basically gives the illusion that racism doesn't exist anymore - which it does.

six.

I had my sixth form prom and in all honesty, I didn't love it. There were bits of it I enjoyed, but my anxiety was at an all time high. I felt very awkward most of the time and essentially felt like I couldn't breathe for about 2 hours by which time I had retreated to the toilets to sit on the floor and try to calm down and I didn't feel comfortable coming out for nearly an hour. One of the reasons I went was because I really wanted to be able to do a 'screw you anxiety' moment because I was super anxious, another reason I went was because everyone around me was pressuring me to go. I don't blame them, it's not their fault if they don't get how anxiety works, I'm just annoyed with myself.

seven.

The election... bloody hell. I'm fortunate that in my constituency I got a Labour MP, but we have a majority Tory government and the thought makes me feel sick. Also, my Philosopher teacher pointed out that the Conservatives and UKIP combined got half of the votes which means half the country voted for these far right parties, and that terrifies me. My parents tried to make me feel better by telling me the first time they voted Margaret Thatcher got into power and they had a Tory government for 18 years (which is arguably worse) and that this is a good election to lose because the economy is not doing well and is only going to get worse, so if that happens under a Tory government we'll probably have a Labour government next time. It's just strange, I wasn't all that optimistic for the election after the election poll, but I feel very powerless right now. Also, Ed's stepped down as leader which makes me sad because I genuinely believed he had what it takes to be a good leader. Although, Nigel Farage didn't get his seat so I suppose that's a silver lining of sorts.

eight.
Why didn't I continue with Peep show when I watched the first series a couple of years ago? I've managed to binge watch the first three series in the space of a week, it's just hilarious (and it actually makes me not look awkward)

nine.
I've returned to the world of vlogging and I decided to vlog election day which was also my prom day, it's not the most cheery vlog but there's a lot of comic sans in there so it's all good.

ten.
I've been listening to Ben Folds and Nick Hornby's album Lonely Avenue pretty much non-stop this week, I don't actually own it unfortunately (thank goodness for Spotify) and it's just great. Nick Hornby is one of my favourite authors and Ben Folds is one of my favourite musicians so the collaboration is brilliant, I've been listening to 'A Working Day' a lot because there's one line in it that really makes me laugh:

'Some guy on the net thinks I suck and he should know, he's got his own blog.'

I just wonder whether David Cameron says that about me when I complain about the government.

How have the past couple of weeks been for you?

Bloglovin | YouTube | Tumblr | Twitter | Instagram

I'ma let you finish but Ben Folds Five are one of the greatest bands of all time

I was considering doing an entire post dedicated to music that isn't so well known but is really good and well worth a listen, the focus being on the band Ben Folds Five, but then I realised that I love them too much to dedicate just a fifth of a post to them. My favourite bands are The Beatles and The Smiths, but Ben Folds Five are way up there and sometimes they're equal to The Beatles to me, which is a sweeping statement to make but that's how good they are, seriously.

I first listened to Ben Folds Five when I was about five years old and I think the song that stuck with me most at that age was Jackson Cannery, although I didn't know it was called that for years, I just called it the 'stop the bus' song because the first line of the song is 'stop the bus'. I majorly got into Ben Folds Five (opposed to just knowing a few songs) when I was about ten or eleven years old, and when I was sixteen I was lucky enough to see Ben Folds Five live as they reunited for a tour and a new album.

Ben Folds Five are by far one of the best bands of all time, Ben Folds' solo work is pretty awesome too. Ben Folds Five set out to prove you don't need a guitar for rock music and so the piano is the focus in their music, for a pianist obviously this is a selling point, but their songs are genuinely so so good. If you keep on reading, I'll give y'all a breakdown of my favourites (for which reasons) because I love all of their songs, they're one of the few groups who don't have any rubbish songs, it's really quite a strange thing.

I know Rockin' the Suburbs isn't a Ben Folds Five album, but I couldn't leave it out as it's probably one of my all-time favourite albums and it's still Ben Folds so y'know it's not a completely artist.

THE SAD SONGS:

1. Boxing
2. Brick
3. Smoke
4. Missing the War
5. Evaporated
6. Mess
7. Thank You for Breaking My Heart

THE 'I'M DOING ME SO P*SS OFF' SONGS:

1. Philosophy
2. Underground
3. One Angry Dwarf and 200 Solemn Faces*
4. Draw a Crowd
5. Do It Anyway

THE SING IT OUT LOUD SONGS:

1. Jackson Cannery
2. Philosophy (again, seriously amazing amazing song)
3. Where's Summer B?
4. Underground (another repeat, versatile band man)
5. Sports & Wine
6. Uncle Walter
7. Best Imitation of Myself**
8. Video
9. The Last Polka
10. One Angry Dwarf and 200 Solem Faces
11. Song for the Dumped
12. Kate
13. Battle of Who Could Care Less
14. Army
15. Erase Me
16. Michael Praytor, Five Years Later
17. The Sound of the Life of the Mind
18. Draw a Crowd
19. Do It Anyway

I could pretty easily do the same thing for Ben Folds' solo work, but I think Ben Folds Five are marginally better at least for me and I wouldn't want to overwhelm you with good music.

Who's your favourite band/artist?

*If I ever became famous this would be the song I'd sing to my high school buddies
**Fun fact, my Tumblr username came from this song - see if you can spot it

Bloglovin | YouTube | Tumblr | Twitter | Instagram