Challenge within a challenge: A better understanding

For anyone who reads this blog, you will know that for the past few months I've been in a reading mode. I'm making the most of this in case it blows over. I've set myself two reading related challenges already; reading an autobiography for every film I want to see at the cinema but miss, and the Gilmore Girls book club with my friend Hayley. This challenge however will I'm hoping make me a better friend, in an area I'm not that familiar with; mental health, and in particular anxiety.
There are a few people in my life who suffer from anxiety, depression and maybe other mental health issues that I'm not aware of. I'm not going to say who these people are, because it wouldn't be right. But from my perspective I don’t know that much about mental health, and I'm sure I'm not alone.

I could read textbooks about them, but I don’t want to end up preaching what I read, because I don’t think that would be helpful to anyone. Anyone who is going through any mental health issues, know what they are going through, they don’t need an outsider to explain what they already know.
This is what I'm going to do instead. I love Buzzfeed, it’s a great site which has articles about random acts of kindness and random lists and quizzes mainly.  They asked the Buzzfeed community which books help them manage their anxiety, and a list of 23 was given.

As part of my other two book related challenges, I've already read two off the list. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, which is on the list because one Buzzfeed reader said; ‘This book allowed me to find comfort in discovering life is not all it’s cracked up to be.’ And reading The Bell Jar I completely understand that point of view. It’s part of my Gilmore Girls book list, so I’ll go into my detail my views on that book in a later blog post.

The second book I read is Yes Please by Amy Poehler. I absolutely loved this book, it felt like it was an older friend having a chat and giving words of wisdom in a humourous way. It didn't feel like a very successful comedy actress who had won a fair few awards.

The reason Yes Please on the Buzzfeed list is because Amy: ‘…teaches you to be powerful, goal driven and outspoken. Amy also made me realise that being sensitive is OK.’

Amy was very encouraging in the book that it’s okay not to have everything together at times, and that it’s okay to be you, and that there are pressures in life that everyone goes through.

There is one part of the book which I really do want to do for someone. The actress Aubrey Plaza (who if a film is made about my life will be playing my cousin Miriam) showed up at the airport for Amy dressed up in this crazy fancy dress outfit, just to make Amy smile as she was going through a tough time. So not only do I want to be friends with Amy Poehler, I wouldn't mind being friends with Aubrey Plaza as well.

So to people I know suffering from anxiety or any other mental health issues; I'm not sure if my reading some books on a list will make any difference or impact. But I guess reading them and working through the list in some sort of way tells you that I'm thinking of you and that I'm always here for you. I may even buy you a copy of the books that are really good. And of course I’ll be willing to dress up in a crazy costume for you as well when you need it.

Challenge within a challenge: Alice’s birthday

Today is one of my best friend's Alice’s birthday. We've been on a few holidays together and we're all about self improvement. We used to go to circuit training together which we nicknamed MBS aka Mind Body and Soul. This meant, talking on the way there, then exercising the body, and then talking on the way back for soul!

Yesterday we all went out for a meal and to see a play in St Albans. We ate at The Beech House which did really good food and then we saw a Tom Stoppard play called The Real Thing. Tom Stoppard is a renowned playwright, so felt very cultured going to see the play!

I wore a dress for the occasion; a brown spotted dress, but because we were busy eating and then watching the play, I didn't get a chance to get a picture of me and Alice. So here's one of us doing what we do best, laugh.

Because I wore a dress, I made a donation to charity. I asked Alice what her favourite charity is, and she said it’s the MacIntyre charity, which provides education, learning and support for children, young people and adults with learning disabilities. Her sister Jodie goes to one of their day centres and they provide a really good service.

Happy birthday Amp (which stands for Al My Pal), welcome to Club 30!

Thoughtful presents: When life gives you lemons

A few weeks ago my friend Jen was at a bit of a low; work was getting very busy and there were some other things going on as well.

Usually when someone is down my go to is cake, but Jen is very healthy living so that wasn’t going to work. I turned to my trusty Pinterest and found a great pin that I thought I’d give a go.

I created a little bag titled: ‘When life hands you lemons, make lemonade.’ And as you can see I included things that were lemon; lemonade, lemons, lemon shortbread and because Jen likes Girls Aloud I got her Hello magazine which had Kimberley from Girls Aloud on the cover….in a lemon
dress!

I didn't know when Jen was in as she’s a busy bee so I left it on her doorstep, and it gave her a bit of a boost, so I think it did the trick.

Challenge within a challenge: Baby talk

On Sunday I went to the baby shower for my old pole teacher Lucy. Until about a year ago I went to pole classes every week, and Lucy was my first pole teacher. She was a great teacher and I learnt lots of moves.

She’s having her first baby in a month’s time and the baby shower was organised by my other pole teacher Lauren. And it was great fun; there was lots of food, lots of baby talk and I learnt lots of baby info which someday I’ll find useful.

We had a pass the parcel game, as well as guess the baby picture and a design your own diaper.
There was also guess the baby size, weight, due date and length.

I wore a dress to the baby shower; a polka dot brown dress from Dorothy Perkins and I asked Lucy what her favourite charity was. She went for the Garden House Hospice which is a local charity. She said she chose that charity because they did a lot for her Nan.

It was a great afternoon and I left with a lovely baby of my own….a food baby. Yes Pedro the food baby returned!

Random act of kindness: A piece of cake

There seems to be an unspoken rule that you shouldn't talk to people on trains. When I was at uni, whenever I went on a long train journey I made a point of talking to a stranger, so I felt like I had achieved something.

                                           The only picture I have of me on a train.

Since then I don’t really talk to people on trains anymore and that’s a shame, as you never know who you’re going to end up meeting.

I was in London on Wednesday evening going to do some volunteering at an event (which is today or yesterday depending on when you’re reading this) and I took the tube. Upon sitting down like everyone does you look around and generally start to do a bit of people watching. I smiled to a woman sitting near me and noticed that it looked like she’d just been crying or was about to. Her eyes and nose looked a little red and swollen. And unless you’re a Hollywood actress who;s skin doesn't change colour when you cry, these are usually human signs of some tears.

I know all too well over the past year about tears, particularly when you’re in public and trying your best not to cry as you know everyone will stare. For me it takes my skin around 20 minutes to go back to normal skin colour.

I looked over again at the woman and she smiled, although it seemed that it was a smile that was hard to master, as if she was too sad inside to fully smile. For some reason at that point I knew I had to do something, but didn't know what.

So this is what I did. I’d just bought a Boots Meal Deal and part of it was a piece of Red Velvet cake, still in its packaging. I tore a bit of a random envelope in my bag and wrote: ‘Smile. It’s going to be okay. Have some cake. Enjoy!’ Then upon leaving the train I handed this woman the cake and note, and she said thank you as I was making my way off the train. I briefly looked back and she smiled at the note, and looked like she was to cry again, but I hope tears of happiness and relief, and not sadness.

It was a simple, spare of the moment thing that I did, and I've made a conscious decision from now on to always carry a chocolate bar or something similar with me, and some post it notes. You never know when somebody needs a pick me up. And it would be great if you were inspired to do the same. You don’t have to say anything when making the gesture, I didn't and as a result the woman may have thought she wasn't alone in whatever she was going through.

A random act of kindness can really be just a piece of cake.

Challenge within a challenge: Everybody needs good neighbours

Last year I was walking with a friend and we entered his road a different way to usual and there was a nice old school building which had been converted. My friend had lived on the street for nearly a year and this building was just up the road, yet my friend had never seen it. He's a very busy guy, and mainly used the back door for his house as his car was parked outside the back gate. But it saddened me that he hadn't had the time to walk up and down his street to see what was right by his doorstep. He was like Zoolander, only being able to turn right on catwalks.

I don’t think my friend is alone is this either. If you’re a busy, career orientated commuter, getting from your home to the train station is probably the main route you need to know in daily life.

Back when I was young we knew our next door neighbours quite well, and my parents know of quite a few of the neighbours in their street still.

But when I think of the places I've lived I didn't really know any of my neighbours. Uni halls don’t really count as everybody knew at least one person in each of the halls on campus. Once we were in uni housing, I didn't know my neighbours then, well heard them as they had a habit of watching Home Alone 2 repeatedly at 1am in the morning (I've no idea why.) We did know our neighbours in the supermarket Pak Foods and the Total petrol station opposite, and they gave us free boxes when we were moving out. In my first flat I didn't know any of my neighbours (apart from Ben number 2 which I said about in a previous post.) In my second flat I knew my flatmate, and I knew of our next door neighbour, but never met him through stories my flatmate told, as he had a bit of a reputation for being a ladies man.

I’ve been in my current flat for nearly 3 years now and I know our neighbours in the flat below during the baking exchange. I live on a street where there are lots of shops and have been in a few of them, but I don’t really know much about them or any neighbours that live above shops like I do.

So that’s why for 30 days I'm getting to know my neighbours. And one of the things I've done is on Saturday I delivered close to 40 invites to neighbours on my street inviting them for a drink at the local bar in a week’s time. One person said they couldn't make this drinks but would like to go to another drinks, and another person could make the date I said and thought it was a brilliant idea. Some people may show up and not text beforehand, so I'm looking forward to seeing who shows up.

Challenge within a challenge: Your final dose of positivity!

Evening all. Well it’s Sunday night and you may be having that dread of Monday morning coming up. If that is the case, then here’s my last lot of positive quotes to get you all fired up for the week ahead.

A dream is just a dream. A goal is a dream with a plan and a deadline.

Don’t wait for the world to recognise your greatness. Live it and let the world catch up with you.

The best revenge is showing them that life is better after they’re gone.

Let your smile change the world, but don’t let the world change your smile.

If you accept the expectations of others, especially negative ones, then you never will change the outcome. Michael Jordan

The harder I work, the luckier I get. Gary Player

Success is walking from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm

You never really learn much from hearing yourself talk. George Clooney

Old ways won’t open new doors!

I am, two of the most powerful words. For what you put after them shapes your reality.

So what how did I think the challenge went? Well to be honest I thought it was pretty easy. At uni I used to love writing memorable quotes in a diary and I stopped doing that some years ago, so it was nice to start that up again. I may start that up again, or keep to reading one positive quote a day before leaving for work.

I’m looking forward to putting all these quotes in a book and sending them to Humaira. You never know when you need a bit of positivity!

Challenge within a challenge: Getting back in touch

If you have Facebook, what’s your number? One friend’s number is 2,421, another friends number is 689. Mine is 431 and that number is how many friends I have on Facebook. They’re a combination of family members, school friends, work colleagues, course mates, friends from uni and anyone else that comes into my life. The number isn't something to brag about, because I only stay in regular contact with a fraction of that number.

So this challenge is simple; to contact 30 Facebook friends who I haven’t spoken to in 2 years or more, or rarely or not at all.

In the first half of the month I've had 10 replies so far, which I don’t think is too bad a response rate. I've contacted a few old work colleagues, old family friends, old uni friends and people I used to go to pole with.

I thought I’d focus on 3 people that I contacted, the first being an old uni friend called Leanne. She was in the group of course mates that I was friends with and even went to her mum’s birthday party with her. But like some friendships it faded when she left in the third year. Most of the messages I send are along the lines of; Long time no speak, what are you up to these days?’ And Leanne replied to that; she’s living in London and working in recruitment, which is a far cry from our Journalism degree.

Another person I contacted was a guy called Matt who used to go to Quaker camp when we were growing up. He’s now working for a bank and living in Wales.

The last person I contacted was a bit of a risky one, but what’s the worst that can happen? The message just gets ignored, which in the grand scheme of things is pretty minor. Around 5 or 6 years ago I went out with a guy who lived in the next door set of flats to me. His name was Ben, but known to everyone as Ben number 2 as he was the second guy in a row I went out with who was called Ben. We saw each other for just over 2 months, but were friends for around a year after that. Then we had an argument and the friendship faded soon after.

Ben number 2 was going through a tough time when we were seeing each other, work was very stressful and he had some personal issues he was dealing with as well. Looking on his Facebook he looked very happy with his girlfriend. I sent a message saying that I was really happy that he was happy and that it looked like he was in a good place, as when I knew him it was quite a trying time, and I wished him well.

To my surprise he replied the same day! He said that he was very happy, living with his girlfriend and learning to enjoy life more. He hoped I was well and that he’d seen I’d done loads of great things and that I was loving life which was awesome.

It’s funny how someone who knew you a long time ago can pretty much sum you up in a sentence or two. I love how this challenge is going. I know I'm not going to get replies from everyone, but I’m excited to see who else I get replies from.

Random act of kindness: The bank of cakes

I'm with Natwest and I prefer doing bank transfers face to face then doing it online. I tried online banking once and it’s actually quicker for me to pop to the Natwest which is less than a 5 minutes walk from my flat. If the contact I’m transferring to is on the mobile app then I can transfer the money fine, but anyone else I’d rather get a human to do it for me.

A few  weeks I go I went to the bank and saw it was being refurbished. I waited 15 minutes in line before being told I was in the wrong queue and then had to queue another 5 minutes before the manager said she could transfer the money in her office. I asked why there couldn't make signage while the refurbishment was going on, but they said it was early days and they were still figuring things out.

Once I got home I felt kind of bad as I thought I was a little short with the manager, and realised that during the refurbishment quite a lot of customers may get frustrated with the building works and take it out on the staff. When working at a local venue I know that the customer can sometimes ‘shoot the messenger’ when more often than not the systems the staff have to work with can’t be changed.

I thought about what I could do to give the staff a bit of a boost and I could only think of one thing….cakes! Cakes and biscuits make everything better. So I made a batch of chocolate brownies (with a 5 minute microwave recipe which Charlotte doesn't think counts as baking,) and took them into the local branch a couple of weeks ago. The manager was very surprised, but appreciated the gesture.

I gave a little card and said that until the refurbishment was complete in March, I’d make some cake or biscuits once a week. A few days later I got a lovely email from the manager.

So far I've made non cook biscuits, banana slices, a sponge cake with sprinkles in the mix (a birthday present from Jen and Mark) and as a result I've had one of the builders at Natwest ask if I was married, because if I wasn't two of his guys wanted to marry me!

Each time I go into the bank I meet different members of staff, and I always like seeing their reaction. I’m known as the cake lady.

Challenge within a challenge: Take me back to Nashville

On Friday night I took my sister Lisa to Nashville Nights, which was a night of country music at Under the Bridge, a music venue at Chelsea’s football ground. It was her Christmas present and the company kept popping up on my Facebook, so I looked at what they did and realised it would be perfect for Lisa…..and I was right.

Lisa loves country music. I reckon it must be coming on for nearly ten years she’s liked country music (sorry if I've got that wrong Lisa!) She’s not one of those that just likes Taylor Swift, who has long left country music. She likes Brad Paisley, Miranda Lambert, Kacey Musgraves, Kelli Pickler and Sugarland to name but a few.

In 2012 we went on holiday to Nashville and we had the best time. I could probably write a whole blog on the trip, but I’ll summarise it by saying that the people of Nashville are really friendly and we managed to get on TV while we were there!

Friday night crept up on us quite quickly and as soon as we walked into Under the Bridge Lisa recognised the song playing straight away. In fact for most of the night she knew the songs, and I would ask who the song was by and she would reply; 'I love this song!'

I recognised a few of them, so I wasn't too in the dark with all the country songs. And it was a great night; Lisa finally found ‘her people’ and she was smiling non stop. I asked if this was a weekly thing would she go every week, and she would. There was spontaneous line dancing and we even made the big screen as I Instagrammed a picture of us drinking.

Once we left we did have a very long journey. We left a little later then originally planned as Burning House by Cam came on, a song that Lisa absolutely loved, so I thought it would be okay time wise to stay a little longer. Wrong! I got my cities confused as I thought London is the city that never sleeps, when in fact it’s New York. I remembered what time the last train back from Kings Cross to Hitchin was, but didn't realise that the tubes stop running way earlier. In short we had to get 3 buses and by that point we missed the last train home. But fear not, my brain although overloaded with country songs, did some thinking and realised that at St Pancras, trains to Luton ran for much longer.

It then turned out that a couple of guys we were hanging out with also made the same mistake and we ended up catching up on the train as well.

Now I did wear a dress, a black and white one from Dave's stall. Pairing it up with a pair of heels Lisa said that I had legs for daayysss! And with every dress I wear I make a donation to charity. So which charity did I donate to? Well I wanted to donate to a Nashville music related charity, because of loving Nashville and Lisa’s passion for country music. But it’s pretty hard to find a charity where you can make a donation. I looked on a few country music based charities, and there was nowhere on the sites to make a donation.

I did find one to donate to in the end. One of my favourite country songs, because it’s so fun and stupid is Red Solo Cup by Toby Keith. When me and Lisa were in Nashville she would sing it often, and it was the holiday theme song. She even bought a red solo cup while we were there. I even requested the song twice at Nashville nights, but alas it didn't get played.

Toby Keith has a foundation which supports and runs OK Kids Korral, a home for children battling cancer, and it’s been running for ten years. So the Toby Keith Foundation received a small donation this time.

All of Friday night was brilliant (even with the long journey home). I think I got Lisa a pretty good Christmas present and I’d highly recommend Nashville Nights to anyone as it was a great night out…..just make sure you check your train times before you go!

Challenge within a challenge: What would Beyoncé do?!?

This weekend was none stop fun with great things happening on Friday and Saturday night. I’m going to focus on the latter today and Friday tomorrow!

So last night Linsey and I went to see a show called What Would Beyoncé Do?!? It was a stand up show by comedian Luisa Omielan. I came across this when trying to find something to do this weekend, and was looking on Ticketmaster and came across it listed. It’s a phrase that Linsey and I use quite a bit, but neither of us know when we started using it.

Neither of us had heard of Luisa before, but by the end of the show we felt like we were best friends with her. It was brilliant. I was laughing from start to finish and a lot of things I was nodding and agreeing with. And I forgot how many great songs Destiny’s Child and Beyoncé had done, as they were played throughout the show.

Once the show finished there was an after party and it was like a school disco. Lots of old school songs; No Diggity, Summer Nights and What a Feeling from Flashdance were particular highlights.
By the end of the night, my cheeks ached from laughing so much and my feet ached from dancing. That’s the sign of a good night out!

The dress I wore was one I’ve had for around 3 years, but have never got round to wearing. I got it from an old work colleague and it’s quite a bold colour. So when deciding what to wear, I thought with the them; What would Beyoncé do? Well of course she’d go for the bold, bright dress! It's from a shop called Love Label which I'd never heard of.

(GIF credit to the organisers of What Would Beyoncé do?!)

With every dress I wear, I make a donation to charity and Beyoncé co founded a charity called Chime for Change. I went to a concert for the charity 3 years ago at Twickenham, so was aware of the work it does. So I've made a donation to that charity. The charity focuses on raising money for projects promoting; education, justice and health for girls and women. What’s great about the charity is that you can choose which project your money goes to.

Now….what would Beyoncé do? Well she’d obviously donate to every project, but I haven’t got the bank account of the Queen B. So I've donated to the project to protect 250 immigrant women fleeing violence, because Beyoncé, Kelly and Michelle back in the day sung about being Independent women. The project trains volunteer attorneys to lift women and their children from the violence and help them become self-sufficient. The amount I donated will be for one trip to a local court.

So if you please check out Luisa Omielan’s comedy and check out the work Chime for Change does.

Challenge within a Challenge: Postcard Art- What does the gallery look like?

The postcard art challenge was a lot tougher than I thought. I'm creative, but being artistically creative I'm not so sure.

I did struggle to think of what to draw each day, and most of the ideas came from Pinterest and not from my little brain.

Below is what is I created, as you can see a bit of a mixture. I should have been more creative in what I used to create art with. I just used pencils, colouring pencils and pen. If I do another arty challenge, glitter and paint will make an appearance.

And here are my five favourite pieces. Any guesses as to who the person is on the bottom right? She’s a famous actress.

I think my favourite piece is the one of the left of the woman who looks like she’s looking at the stars.

I can’t wait to receive Lizi’s postcard art gallery from Spain. Who knows if it will have any Spanish influences. Maybe I should do a little art gallery viewing in my flat. What do you think?

Challenge within a challenge: The bucket list

This month I'm also creating a bucket list. Some people like to go up the Empire State Building, swim with Dolphins, climb the Sydney Harbour bridge. A bucket list has endless possibilities. Everyday my friend ‘Echo’ (not her real name) and I are sending each other a thing each day that we’d like to be on our bucket list.

It’s quite surprising that my friend wanted to do this challenge; because I remember going on holiday with her to Prague and me and Alice were setting fun goals for each other, and she didn't agree with that sort of thing and refused to take part. So it’s interesting that we’re doing the challenge.
Seeing someone’s bucket list is revealing of their character and ‘Echo’s’ list is as random as she is normally. Her ideas spark off ideas for me as well as it’s broadening my horizons.
We started at the end of January, and here’s what’s on my bucket list so far:

Go wing walking
Do the dirty dancing lift
Go to Comic Con
Dance on a bar
Go on a long haul flight in first class
Do a voiceover for either an animated film or TV programme
Visit at least half the states of America
Go to the Superbowl (Echo also had this on the bucket list.)
Go on a golf buggy
Go in a big lorry either driving or as a passenger
Crowd surf

Before the challenge I didn't have a bucket list, which may be surprising as I'm all about goals and challenges. So I'm looking forward to seeing the list once it’s completed.

Challenge within a challenge: The comeback is always stronger than the setback

At the start of the today I thought I’d list the second set of quotes I found for the positive quote challenge. Little did I know I need a little pick me up myself, as today a job I really wanted came back and said although they really liked my video (yes not only did I have to do a covering letter, I also had to do a 2-3 minute video about why I wanted the job) and ticked lots of the boxes, I wasn't being put through to the interview stage. So if anyone has had a knock back today then these quotes are for you!

Sometimes when things are falling apart they may actually be falling into place

It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you don’t stop

Talking about me behind my back? That means my life is obviously more interesting than yours

You’ve got 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to smile?

Every new day is chance to change your life

Worrying does not empty tomorrow of its troubles. It empties today of it’s strength

Chase your dreams, you might catch one. Debbie Phillips

If you can’t  fly, then run, if you can’t run, then walk, if you can’t walk, then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward. Martin Luther King Jr

The comeback is always stronger than the setback

Your vibe attracts your tribe

And here are some of my tribe!

Challenge within a challenge: Strong women replace strong films

It’s awards season and the big name, critically acclaimed films are out in force. This means that there are a fair few films that I want to see but can’t thanks to 2016 being the year of no cinema.

My friends Coops and Fran wanted me to see The Hateful 8, which I didn’t and instead I read #Girl Boss by Sophia Amoruso. It’s about Sophia Amoruso who went from high school dropout to founder of one of the fastest growing online retailers in the world, which is Nasty Gal.

Alongside Me Before You, this is another new favourite book. My friend Linsey bought it me for Christmas and I loved it. It was brilliantly written and the style it was written it felt like a best friend was telling you about her life and not a founder of a very successful company.

I could wax lyrical and quote from the book all day long, but I've picked two parts which stood out for me. The first part was all about sigils which I’d never heard of before. They are abstract words or symbols that you create which embed your wishes. It sounds kind of whimsical, but a fun thing to do.

Sophia also said this, which I found very useful: ‘Don’t get so focused on one particular opportunity that you’re blind to other ones that come up. If you think about one thing, and talk about it all the time, you’re being too obsessive. You might ruin it. If you let yourself meander a bit, then the right things and the right people fall into place.’

I also wanted to see The Big Short starring Steve Carell and Ryan Gosling, and I heard great things about it. I read Patsy Kensit’s autobiography and I picked it at random from the library. Before reading it I didn't really know much about her apart from that she was married to Liam Gallagher at one point. So it was an interesting to read that she had been a child star who still had an acting career today, and had been married 3 times, and her dad was friends with the Kray brothers. She had a varied life full of highs and lows and it good to read how she bounced back from the lows life gave her.

I don’t think the films and books connect in anyway, maybe that’s something I should try and do in the future and make some sort of connection.

Challenge within a challenge: It’s only words

My friend Alice and I managed to complete the 30 day challenge where we sent each other 30 words. In the next few weeks I’ll put on the blog what Alice thought of the challenge, but for now here are our first 10 words for the challenge.

My first ten words were:
Kinesics
Annus mirabilis
Alacrity
Uxorial
Bogart
Reticulate
Fealty
Shhibboleth
Rugose
Ignominious

Alice’s first ten words
First-foot
Annuannus horribilis
Pernicious
Cornucopia
Benthos
Soirée
Rambunctious
Accoutrements
Cinephile
Flapdoodle

My favourite words out of this selection are flapdoodle which means foolish talk and cinephile. Cinephile means a film enthusiast, which is what I am!

Now an explanation about the picture above. Several years ago my sister Lucy got me a credit on one of my most visited sites IMDB. She did this through buying me a producing role on 'The 1 second film.' The 1 second film was created and what followed would be 90 minutes of credits of everyone who contributed. The money raised from being a producer or other credits went to the Global Fund for Women.

They've since taken down my credit on IMDB (boo!) But at least I have the print out Lucy did for me.

Challenge within a challenge: Keeping a track on laughing

As simple as it sounds, there’s nothing better than laughing, or seeing other people laugh. And laughter can be found anywhere, even in the most unlikely of places.

For five years during my gap year, uni holidays and a year after uni I worked at an old people’s home in the dementia unit, ironically called Forget Me Not. I served breakfasts, which with people who have dementia isn't the easiest thing to do as they like to walk around a lot. Whenever I tell people about my time at the old people’s home, I get asked whether it was depressing to work there, and the truth is it wasn't. Each resident had their own character, their own sayings and catchphrases and half the time it felt like being in a sitcom.

It’s always a good thing to surround yourself with people that can make you laugh. These pictures below are of my friend Jas and I at my 21st birthday. I can’t remember what she said, but it made me laugh hard.

And with YouTube it’s even easier to find things to make you laugh in a second. For my second challenge for 30 days is to keep a laughter journal. You have to write down one thing everyday that makes you laugh hard.

5 days (well I'm on my 6th day now) in and there is a variety of things that make me laugh. So here are some of my highlights from the first five days. Unfortunately I can’t film conversations that I have with work colleagues, but most other things can be found on Youtube.
Chris Martin and James Corden’s carpool karaoke 
Dennis Quaid saying Saoirse Ronan’s name
Chris Kamara’s football commentary
Nick in New Girl saying; ‘CeCe your mouth was writing a cheque your body can’t find’ ‘Hair blocks sound.’ ‘You better not be fake drinking on my Valentines Day bar crawl!’ Yes those statements aren’t funny just reading them, I guess it was all in the delivery. I couldn't find a clip of those parts of the episode, but here’s another clip.

I’m looking forward to finding out what else I find funny in February.

Challenge within a challenge: The final 9 songs of the 30 day song challenge

The weekend is here, a chance to chill out, and listen to some new music perhaps? If that's your sort of thing, then check out the last of the song choices my friend Linsey and I made in the 30 day song challenge.

Day 22: A song that you would be the theme song to a TV show about your life
Linsey- Good Riddance (Time of your life), Green Day
Me- This Year, Cooper
I heard this song on an advert for a new series of Keeping Up With the Kardashians. Now don’t judge the song based on that association, it’s a great summertime song that’s subtly uplifting at the same time.

Day 23: A song by your favourite band
Linsey- You're my Waterloo, The Libertines
Me- Hello World, Lady Antebellum
My two favourite bands are Lady Antebellum and Mcfly. I didn’t want to torture Linsey’s ears with McFly. So I went with Lady A instead. My all time favourite album is Need You Now, and Hello World is one of the songs off that album. (Thanks Lisa for the photo)

Day 24: A cover song
Linsey- Wonderwall, Ryan Adams
Me- Fix You, Naturally 7
I first heard about Naturally 7 on Hamish and Andy as I think they’re more popular in Australia then in the UK. They were recently on and were set a challenge of singing a chart song and then it seamlessly blending into the original version. The results were pretty amazing. This cover is brilliant and is definitely a band I’d want to see in concert.

Day 25: A song that makes you angry
Linsey- Hole, Violet
Me- Scream, Michael and Janet Jackson
During uni and about a year after if I got angry then I would dance, and this was known as angry dancing by my friends. I remember one time at uni I was so angry after cooking dessert for a guy that in the end didn't eat it, that I asked my room mate Vicky to leave the bedroom for 15 minutes (which was the time it took for me to calm down) while I angry danced. My dancing wasn't anything special, it was just me busting a move.
The last time I angry danced was back in 2009, I've mellowed a bit since then. It was when I was going to Australia with my family to visit our family friends which included my friend Tom. Tom had known about the trip for nearly a year and he made a mistake and booked a holiday for most of the time we were going to be there. I was so angry that he made that mistake that even after angry dancing for 40 minutes, I was still angry. But a lot fitter afterwards. This was one of the main songs I danced to.

Day 26: An acoustic song you love
Linsey- Suck it and see, Arctic Monkeys
Me- Always be my baby, David Cook
My sister Lisa was obsessed with season 7 of American Idol. She didn't watch any of the other seasons as it was a big commitment. I think our whole family during that season knew the names and musical style of most of the contestants. Brooke White, Michael Johns, Jason Castro, Carly Smithson anyone? The winner and Lisa’s favourite contestant was David Cook and he really was great. He really made each song his own. And when it was Mariah Carey week he covered her song Always Be My Baby. It’s different from the original and sounds like it should be on the end credits of a film.

Day 27: A song you make fun of
Linsey- Hopeless Wonderer, Mumford and Son
Me- Score Tonight, Grease 2
I’m going to say this out loud, I like Grease 2. There’s a small amount of people who prefer Grease 2 over the original. My sisters and one of my managers in my first job out of uni are the only people I know that like Grease 2. Yes the original is good, the songs are memorable, but the songs on Grease 2 are something else. Where else would you find a song about bowling, reproduction, being a cool rider and the seasons? Special mention to the song Turn Back Time, I really think it’s some of Michelle Pfeiffer's finest work. Score Tonight is a song that could be mocked but having a dance routine involving bowling is quite impressive and needs to be seen to be believed.

Day 28: A song that is your workout song
Linsey- A Forest, The Cure
Me- Far From Over, Frank Stallone
This is another song that I discovered on Hamish and Andy. A few years ago one of the listeners made the discovery of Frank Stallone and how he was the more talented Stallone brother. What started was a campaign by Hamish and Andy to get Frank over to Oz so they could meet him and furthermore put on a concert. It was a big success and this was the main song he is known for. At the time there was a phone in about how listening to this song first thing in the morning, improved productivity. And this song does make me row, run or cycle faster when I'm at the gym.

Day 29: A song currently stuck in your head
Linsey- Can't Feel my Face, The Weekend
Me- Sweeter, Gavin DeGraw
Guess what…it’s another song I heard in a trailer. The trailer was for the film Christmas with the Coopers which was quite a good Christmas film.

Day 30: A song that you haven't listened to in a while
Linsey: I heard love was blind, Amy Winehouse
Me: Lessons Learned, Carrie Underwoodhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mSm19ETQvg
I've got quite a bit of country music thanks to my sister Lisa, and this is from one of the albums she had. This song appeared on shuffle and I forgot how good it was.

Challenge within a challenge: Letter writing

It maybe old fashioned but I love letters. I love writing letters and I love receiving letters, because in the age of technology, to receive a letter in the post that isn't a bill is quite a rare thing. The other week I wrote a letter to my friend Michelle to arrange a baking session, rather than text because she said she didn't receive letters that often. And she loved receiving the letter as it was a nice surprise.

Talking about my letter writing challenge today is perfect timing as I received a letter, well postcard in the post today, completely by surprise. For any supporters of my 29 challenge I did last year, you would know that one of my key achievements was writing a film in a week. A couple of weeks prior to me writing I met the author David Nicholls at the Radio Times festival, and I asked him for some advice on writers block. He gave great advice and a couple of months after finishing my screenplay I sent him a letter thanking him for his advice and saying what I had achieved as a result.

Today I received this in the post.

So one of my challenges for the next 30 days (which I started at the start of the month) is to write a letter a day. It’s that simple. I've got a rough idea of who I want to write some of the letters to, and a few friends have given me ideas of different people to write to as well. Getting replies isn't important at all, I just like the thought that somebody is going to get some post that isn't junk mail. Something old fashioned that can brighten up their day.

Challenge within a challenge: A positive quote a day part 1

One of my challenges I set myself in January was to write a positive quote a day. I thought January was a great month to do this in as it’s usually quite a dull, cold month. So some warm, bright positivity wouldn't be such a bad thing.

Originally I was supposed to do the challenge with Humaira but I think she was too busy, so I just went ahead and did the challenge anyway.

With February still being a bit cold and dull, I thought I’d give you the first 10 quotes of the challenge. Most of them didn’t have who they were said by. For some reason Instagram isn't a big fan of putting this little detail on pictures.

Day 1- The expert in anything was once a beginner

Day 2- Tough times don’t last, tough people do
Day 3- You have the same amount of hours in the day as Beyonce!
Day 4- Don’t live the same year 75 times and call it a life. Robin Slarma
Day 5- Early on I learnt not to take things personally. Karren Brady
Day 6- I've realised that cutting people from my life doesn't mean I hate them. It simply means I respect them.
Day 7- If you can’t stop thinking about it, don’t stop working for it
Day 8- Say yes and you’ll figure it out afterwards. Tina Fey
Day 9- Your value doesn't decrease based on someone’s inability to see your worth.
Day 10- Forget all the reasons why it won’t work and believe the one reason why it will!

Minimalism challenge update: Gratitude

One of the parts of the minimalism challenge I did was to practice gratitude. And to do this I had to write a long list of everything (and everyone) you are grateful for in life. 

I hope I haven’t missed anyone of, and if I have my apologies. Here goes!

My parents who provided a stable upbringing and being supportive of my blog and crazy ideas

My sisters, even though I may annoy them sometimes it's good to know they are always there

My Grandad for being my cheerleader

My flat, even though it's single glazed, it's a roof over my head

The location of my flat, it's very convenient.

Electric whisk, a real timesaver

My TV

My Ipod

I have a job that pays

A running car called Jimmy

Charlotte for putting up with me

The friendships I made at school and how they have continued

A gym that is opposite my office

The ability to learn new things

Countryside on my doorstep

How mine and Humaira's friendship continues after overcoming a big hurdle

My continued friendship with Rock and how it's grown

Staying in contact with my shorthand teacher Jo

My friendship with baking buddy Michelle even though it came through a breakup

My continued friendship with Faith even though we don't live together anymore

My friendship with Linsey, what started off being pole sisters, we now are each others support in 

career and the decisions we make

Whatsapp for improving friendships and relationships with sisters

My friendship with Mel who I met on the National Trust holiday

My friendships with uni friends in general for lasting so long after uni; they don't just magically survive.

My friendship with Laura who even though I've known since 2009, it's in the past year our friendship has strengthened.

My friendship with Zoe for always providing me with encouragement.

Anyone who reads my blog

My friendship with Coops and Fran which came from a friendship Coops originally had with my sister.

My health, touch wood no aches or pains yet

My ability to have a good time without drinking.

Being able to talk to all my relatives