They're Singing Deck The Halls, But It's Not Like Christmas At All...

So, Christmas has been approaching for some considerable time now and around the Christmas period, everything that goes on seems to be a lot bigger. Things go on in your head that normally would just pass through as normal and then you'd get on with your life but at Christmas, an honest side comes out in people, I interpret this as being honest with myself, not anybody else, just me. The reason for this being if I told people what did go on in my head, other people would soon find out and those people will multiply at an exponential rate until I am stuck in a position where everybody knows my thoughts. Not cool. So yeah, under the honesty umbrella, there can be many different things that can be troubling... Feelings towards other people, pressure of exams/college/work, being afraid to tell people what you really want etc... So over the Christmas period I have been doing exactly this and finding the odd surprise, which is always going to happen, but it is not these surprises themselves that are where you find out who you really are, it isn't until you start to deal with these surprises that you find out how strong your character is and whether you have the desire to fulfil what you find out. 


The quote in the picture (above) was found when I was 'stumbling' on stumbleupon.com and even though my persona suggests otherwise, deep down I am a bit of a romantic. Therefore this quote kinda meant something to me when I read it, because, it is correct in what it says... You shouldn't just settle for second best or someone who isn't going to get the best out of you and vice-versa, you need to find that one person where you both feel something unequivocal and true. I'm not saying just sit around and wait for that person, go out, have some fun and be awesome while trying to find that one. At first, the prospect of finding that person may seem quite daunting but don't be afraid to fail sometimes, be afraid not to try.


To conclude my Christmassy post, I have added a rather well lit American household.

I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.  ~Charles Dickens

Sunset.

Eighteen, Diciotto, Dix-huit, δεκαοχτώ, Mười tám.

So, I'm 18. At last I can stop using my fake ID because I have my own perfectly legitimate one now. But what does it mean? Does it change anything? Physically I am no different but the fact that I am 1 year older means a lot of things: I can legally drink, vote, purchase cigarettes but most of all, I can sign my own consent forms. At first, it took me a while to actually get ID'd, I went out locally and nothing, I even went to the supermarket, purposefully to get asked to show my ID, and nothing. This was until last Saturday when I took a cheeky trip to Skipton for a night out in Strata. And finally I got ID'd, it wasn't really that great to be honest, I don't even think they looked at it, which was a bit of a let down which I quickly forgot about once I was in there. 12-0330, cheeky pull, takeaway and home. A better night than I anticipated.


Anyway, soon this blog will be changing to primarily a photography blog as I am purchasing a DSLR camera which I aim to get as much use out of as possible as I need to get a portfolio together so that I can start up my own part time business when I eventually hit University.


Anyway, the bottom line is, being 18 isn't too different apart from much needed freedom. The next blog should have some pretty sick pictures on so I shall see you next time.

If Music Be The Food Of Love, Play On.

Now for a cheeky insight to my music taste. Many people think that my taste is terrible because it doesn't consist of modern, mainstream music which, in my opinion, is all the same and doesn't have any meaning to it. So my ipod, Nero consists of a vast array of music ranging from Motown to Queen to Plan B. It often gets slagged off by numerous members of my 6th form centre and even some of my teachers! But as far as I'm concerned it is quite clearly a top class range of music.

I'll start with Hall & Oates. I knew the odd one or two of their songs without knowing it was them and then it wasn't until I got into Private Eyes, then I checked out what else they'd done on Spotify and found a load of their other stuff and that was when I fully got into them, I imagine them to be my driving playlist (when I eventually do start driving that is) because of their prominent rhythms throughout their songs and sing-along-ness of them

Next is Marvin Gaye. He's simply a soul legend. If there is any artist that you want to play for a cheeky evening with a girl, he's the man. Just listen to him, What's Going On, Let's Get It On etc, and even his early stuff with Tammi Terrell is still top.

Next, The Four Seasons. Only recently got into this since realising that they sung Beggin' and then realised that they sung a shed load of songs that I didn't even realise. The voice of Frankie Valli and the songwriting of Bob Gaudio created a sound that lasted a generation and still can be heard now and still everybody knows their hits. I don't think there has been anyone or ever will be anyone who has the vocal range of Valli and have the quality and power in the Falsetto range.

Finally, we will have the only modern artist that I can listen to a full playlist of, Plan B. His most recent album, The Defamation of Strickland Banks is actually pretty decent for something modern. Because the album tells a story through the songs, all of the songs lead onto one another and there is mixture of soul and rap so it mixes it up a bit which is good for those who get bored of the same sound going on and on for 50 minutes. So yeah, if you want something modern, get on it.

And It Just Hit Me.

So Thursday was my 6th form Summer Ball, with all the people who I have known for at least the past 5 years and it was a top night. Danced like a pro all night (as usual) and yeah was even better than I expected. But spending that one, last night with all of the people who I've grown up with and chosen to be around for a chunk of my life and in a matter of 2/3 months, they'll be gone. For the past 10 months since I made the decision to re-sit the year I have just got on with it and not properly thought about how it would be but then yesterday, I was laying in bed and then it just hit me that I really wasn't going to be around those people day in, day out, ever again and yes, it's the same for everybody else but in the same way it isn't because I've got a whole year to wait to be in the position that they're going to be in. Yeah, I'll obviously just get on with it and just go with the flow but it just made me think about whether I'd made the most of my years with my friends and stuff, I suppose I do have great memories but there is always going to be the thought of well maybe I should have done things differently to make more of the people around me.

Don't Quit

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow--
You may succeed with another blow.
Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor's cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out--
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

A View From The Bridge.

So over the past few days I've read A View From The Bridge by Arthur Miller about 3 times over to help with one of my friend's drama revision. I read it this time last year at the end of my AS Drama course and enjoyed it then but reading it again, and again, with the accents obviously it really is a top class piece of play writing.


Even though there are essentially 5 core characters in Eddie, Beatrice, Catherine, Marco and Rodolpho, I personally think that the key to making this play truly understandable is Alfieri, he is the narrator of the play and he makes clear what is going on in each section, he also highlights the more important social and moral implications that Miller is portraying thorough the story.


Anyway, you should read it. Twice. Or more. But for me, it hasn't just been reading the play, it's also been good to have fun and spend time with a friend who is also going to university in September and also who I haven't really spent that much time with in a while.