The Interchange #8

THE INTERCHANGE #8

I can't quite believe it but today was the last broadcast of my radio show The Interchange for this year. It's so strange because for me personally it actually signifies the end of my first year of university (although I'm still not quite finished yet with one exam, a ball, Pangaea festival, Flat 68 British Bake Off and a blood test to go, wooooo), as when I next broadcast again (hopefully), I will be a second year, which is kind of weird as it doesn't feel like that long ago since this whole adventure started... Doing my last radio show of the year also reminded me just how far I've come and changed for the better this last year, and I couldn't help but think back to my first couple of weeks of uni, when I decided I'd be brave, bite the bullet and just apply for a show and see what happened after wanting to do it for what seemed like forever. I didn't believe I could actually do my own radio show, running everything by myself, planning out the show from start to finish, taking control of the airwaves without the help of anyone else. But in spite of that, it was thanks to this blog that I came up with a promising idea for a show, 'The Sunday Playlist' and decided to throw caution to the wind and try my luck, and fate worked in my favour and gave me one of the best opportunities of my life.

For the last year I've been able to compile playlists almost every week, filled with songs and artists I love, as well as have an excuse to delve through the depths of the internet for new music and artists to play to the world (or all my five listeners) or the best of the classics already out there, and enhance my own music library, tastes, knowledge. I've been able to share the music I find with you guys on here, with the people who accidentally tune in and listen to my show, reach out to artists via twitter and share the love. I've met some amazing friends, learnt how radio actually works, how to construct a show from both the original core idea and weekly show ideas, into the finished weekly product. Having my radio show helped me settle in to university life a lot easier and quicker too, it made me feel like I belonged somewhere, it gave me an identity, and it's made my soul happy every single week. The happiness it gives me is unbelievable and I'm just so grateful and lucky that I was given this opportunity, and my love for music has grown even bigger than I ever thought could be possible. 

So on my last show of the year, I tried to play lots of feel good music as well as some wonderful new artists and music too including Alvvays, Tow'rs, Benjamin Booker, Yoofs and Calexico, all of which are definitely ones to watch. It was just a wonderful, wonderful show to top of a brilliant year, and with that I'd love to share with you lovely people today's broadcast and playlist!

You can listen to today's broadcast here :)

BETWEEN ME AND YOU

BRANDON FLOWERS

ATOP A CAKE

ALVVAYS

SPLITTER

CALEXICO

WICKED WATERS

BENJAMIN BOOKER

DARK WALTZ

TOW'RS (listen to it here!)

FOR HER

YOOFS

-THE INTERCHANGE-

STAR GIRL

MCFLY

THUNDER ROAD

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN

DON'T LOOK BACK INTO THE SUN

THE LIBERTINES

COME TO THE CITY

THE WAR ON DRUGS

DOO WOP (THAT THING)

LAURYN HILL

NO BUSES

ARCTIC MONKEYS

Oh Little Star

OH LITTLE STAR

The last week or so has been pretty up and down for me emotionally. It's felt a bit like a whirlwind of sorts, and despite that buzz of adrenaline and possibility, I kind of want it all to stop spinning for just a second so that I can place my feet back on solid ground, clear my head, see straight. And I'm going to be honest dear readers and tell you that last night all this emotional upheaval completely took its toll on me and I just had to let it all out, have a good cry, get it out the system, think things through long and hard to try and find out why I was feeling the way I did, get to the root of the problem. I won't delve into what I realised, or what was causing the problem, but I will say that today I'm slowly picking up the pieces from the wake up call, and starting to feel a bit better about everything, which is a nice way to feel. However the reason why I'm writing this post is because last night whilst I had my moment, I tried to sort out all my tangled feelings and emotions by writing everything down, as I always do. Nothing too out of the ordinary, but when I read over what I'd written this morning, I was kind of shocked at how negative I had been towards myself. 

When you see all your thoughts written down on paper like that, it makes you realise the tone and direction of your thinking patterns and for me it made me realise how negative and awful I can be towards myself. I put myself down so easily, I'm so quick to criticise, crush my self esteem, forget my self worth, and honestly it kind of upset me to see how badly I can treat myself. In this world people are always going to hurt you, break you, trip you up, put you down, but if you're doing all those things to yourself, without the aid of someone else, and being the toughest critic of them all, then what hope do you really have? How on earth are you supposed to be happy, content, at peace? The world doesn't even need to bother with breaking you down if you're taking care of doing that yourself, but it really shouldn't be that way, and last night made me realise how crucially important it is to be nice to yourself, love yourself, take care of yourself. You don't stand a fighting chance at getting the life happiness you always wanted and deserved if you don't. It's so, so important to be good to yourself, think positive thoughts, be your own best friend not your own worst enemy. You need to constantly remember your self worth, protect your self esteem from the bullets of others or your own, and truly, truly believe that you deserve and will find happiness in every aspect of your life in which you wish to seek it. You really do deserve it and owe it to yourself. So this morning as I came to all these realisations, and I wasn't sure what to do about it all next, fix what needed fixing, I decided to write out my feelings again, but this time in a positive way. I wrote out this poem or song of sorts, called it 'Oh Little Star' and all the words came to me so easily, almost like they were meant to be said, and because it's helped me feel so much better about everything, I thought I'd share it with you and hopefully help you feel a little bit better about yourself and life too.

So thanks dear readers for reading this rambling, emotional, personal post, I hope you like what I've written below, and just remember to love yourself. It's so, so important <3

OH LITTLE STAR

Oh little star, oh you wanted to shine,

And that isn't wrong so please don't you cry,

Your spark is fading so quickly, it's dimming,

When instead you believed that this time you'd be winning.

You're slipping out of orientation,

I don't know where you're adventuring,

But it's not wrong to pine for more than that.

If you want to glow brighter you will one day soon

Make sure you place your trust in the light of the moon

On your own you're spinning wildly round and round,

Tumbling so quickly to the cold solid ground.

Resist the fall, relaunch yourself into the night,

You have to believe that you'll soon shine so bright.

Maybe aim higher than you ever did before,

Arch through the pain, allow yourself to soar,

Oh little star you're crumbling before my eyes,

Don't let this tumble be the root of your demise,

Twist and turn, rotate into the future's gaze,

Surrender yourself to the night, a glow in a flame,
Notice your glitter reflecting in the moonlight,

Don't dwell on your scars from a previous fight.

Oh little star your aching but it isn't all bad,

Don't forget this isn't the worse that you've had,

Oh little star you're far stronger than you seem,

You're nice and you're good and you're fuelled by your dreams,

Oh little star you will once again rise,

Ablaze in a spiral to the greatest of heights,

Oh little star you're going to dazzle them all,

Oh little star, believe me, you're the best of them all.

Brandon Flowers, The Desired Effect

BRANDON FLOWERS, THE DESIRED EFFECT

I was beyond excited a month or two ago as I happened to be in the car when my Dad tuned into Radio 2, and who should the lovely Jo Whiley be interviewing on her brilliant evening show but one of my absolute favourite musicians, the incredible Killers frontman Brandon Flowers. I've had a thing for Brandon Flowers since 2009 when I discovered The Killers album 'Day & Age' (one of my all time fave albums), at aged fifteen years old, which subsequently went on to change my life completely, crazy as it sounds. When I discovered that album I was young and impressionable and yearning to explore the realms of the music world but didn't really know how or where to start. The Killers provided me with that gateway, the path that lead to this massive and ever fruitful and glorious discovery of music that I've never strayed from since, and if it wasn't for them I would probably have ended up listening to The Jonas Brothers forever and ever the end. See what I mean about changing my life? Anyhow ever since 'Day & Age' I've been in constant awe of Brandon Flowers and followed his musical progression closely, always trusting of whatever venture he brings out next as in my eyes he can't ever really do no wrong, and so when I heard on said Jo Whiley show that he was going to be bringing out a second solo album, I was ridiculously excited to hear it.

When the album in question, 'The Desired Effect' (2015), was released on May 15th, the reviews that came pouring in were so gushing and full of praise that I knew I'd have to get my hands on it sometime in the very near future, especially after falling completely in love with the first release off the album 'Can't Deny My Love', but I didn't quite expect to be getting my hands on it so soon. Nor did I expect to subsequently be able to write a review that's actually kind of current and relevant either, but here we are thanks to my absolute darling of a sister who bought 'The Desired Effect' for my birthday without me having any clue at all. And now it's with absolute joy and pleasure that I get to share with you my own gushing review of Brandon's second solo album, because uuuughhhhhhhh this album is literally just insane. If you liked Brandon's first solo album 'Flamingo' (2010) which was rather fabulous with some gorgeous little gems like the beautiful 'Crossfire', 'Jilted Lovers & Broken Hearts' and 'Was It Something I Said', then I promise you 'The Desired Effect' is going to completely blow your mind.

People have been raving about 'The Desired Effect' for the last couple of weeks, enthusiastically singing its praises, and so naturally I was curious to see if the album would actually meet the high expectations I had begun to accumulate, but honestly I was worrying for nothing because Brandon exceeded those expectations completely. He's truly outdone himself with 'The Desired Effect' and writing a review that does this album justice is an unbelievably hard task. If all I wrote was five words that simply said 'listen to this album now' that would be more than enough, but because my love for this album is so strong and ever growing, I'm going to try and convert into a stream of passionate words all the feelings swirling within me as I listen to the album on repeat. If I had to sum up 'The Desired Effect' in two words, it would be pure magic because that's exactly what it is, simply magical. I've never heard anything like it before and doubt I will again. With a strong eighties influence that captures the beautiful transcendent, futuristic, intergalactic almost notion that colours most of the music produced in that era, gorgeously intertwined with dashes of electro, pulsating percussion, a captivating mirage of instrumentals and sound effects, this album is truly one of a kind and an absolute treat for the ears. It sparkles, glitters and pines with a throbbing energy that picks you up for the mesmerizing ride instantly as soon as opener 'Dreams Come True' begins, right up until the majestic closer 'The Way It's Always Been', ten musical masterpieces later. Brandon's lyrics are simple yet introspective, stunning, whilst his vocals soar with hope, ache with emotion, crusade across your being and transport you to this bizarre, wonderful, brilliant stratosphere where 'The Desired Effect' lives, breathes, dazzles. 

Every single thing about this album is perfection. How on earth do I fault it I have no idea. I don't have it within me at all, especially with my adoration growing with every single replay (of which there have been about twenty in the last hour), and if this feeling of absolute perplexity and enlightenment in the best way possible, is the said desired effect that Brandon envisioned when writing, producing and crafting this masterpiece of an album, then by god he's more than succeeded. 'The Desired Effect' is easily going to go down as one of my absolute favourite albums, and I just know that I'll still be marvelling in awe at it ten, twenty, thirty years down the line and most definitely even longer, as will the millions of other people who have helped Brandon reach the deserving place of number one yet again. So as I end my own short but gushing review, I feel the most fitting way to conclude is by leaving you with those five words I mentioned earlier, because I feel they say it all: LISTEN TO THIS ALBUM NOW 

-The Desired Effect is available now and can be purchased via this link :)-

Flower Power

FLOWER POWER

Firstly apologies for the lack of posts the last weekend. I happened to be rather busy as it was my birthday and for once I actually had quite a few things planned, including my now notorious 'Cheese Fest' (which was an almighty success!), going home for a couple of days, watching Pitch Perfect 2 at the cinema (aca-awesome), not doing any work and lastly just consciously relaxing and enjoying the time spent with the people I love. It was absolutely wonderful and I don't regret a single minute of it. I saw out eighteen in one of the most bonkers and incredible ways I could have ever imagined, surrounded by an impressive amount of dairy goods, insanely good (bad) music and some of the best people ever, and welcomed in nineteen with a few surprises and a whole lot of love from my simply amazing family (plus the incredible 60th Eurovision!). This whole weekend has reminded me how lucky I am in so many ways, and not a single minute goes by when I don't fully appreciate everyone and everything I have around me in my life right now. It's taken a while to get to this place but every single part of the journey, both good and bad, has been so, so worth it in the end.

Anyway back to the point of this post, after that nice little ramble (some things never change no matter how old you get), whilst I was home the fam and I happened to visit one of our local country parks Elvaston Castle, an absolute favourite of ours and a place that holds for me personally so many vividly wonderful childhood memories. I adore that place so, so much and just when I thought I knew it like the back of my hand, it turns out they did something completely and utterly different and amazing in the last couple of months: they installed the most sublime flower garden I have quite possibly ever seen in my whole life. It was breathtakingly beautiful, hence the incessant need of mine to take a good 200+ pictures out of courtesy, and somehow do justice in capturing the stunning sights I saw before me. Flowers are a natural phenomena that just make me swoon ever so much these days, because they're oh so simple in design and yet oh so marvellous once you stop to marvel at their intricate beauty. I love them to a ridiculous amount, something that is mirrored by the ridiculous amounts of photos I take of them (have you seen my Instagram lately?!), which is why I would love, love, love to share with you my pictures from said amazing flower garden, and hopefully remind you to stop once in a while and marvel at the awesome-ness of flower power.

 

18 Things I've Learnt Whilst Being 18

18 THINGS I'VE LEARNT WHILST BEING 18

Today is my last day of being 18, and honestly I'm actually really sad to see it go. As far as years go, it's been one of the best although not quite for the reasons I was expecting. My year began rather wonderfully with a trip to London, where I had the time of my life with my amazing family, and from there on in it only really preceded to get better and better. Of course like every year, I had my expectations about what would happen to me and like always I got it very wrong. In retrospect, I think I'd conclude that for me eighteen has predominantly been about change. A lot of things have changed in all aspects of my life, some good and some bad, some expected, some completely unexpected, but as I reach the eve of my 19th birthday I can see clear as day that all those changes, every single last one, have been absolutely and resolutely for the best. I needed all these changes, because they've consequently lead me to where I am now, which is basically the happiest I've ever been. 

For me eighteen has been a year which I unexpectedly ended up dedicating to me, in the sense that this really has been my year, where all these changes, events and actions have lead towards making me a better person and building my life up into the life I've always dreamed of having. It's been full of learning more about who I am as a person, making me a happier, more confident and self assured person, pushing myself out of my comfort zone and spreading my wings and seeing what I find. I've got to do, enjoy, try and find all these things that are important to me or that I've been wanting to do or have been hoping to find for so, so long. When I turned 18 I thought I was done with all that developing, and I was pretty content with my life and who I was, but this year has shown me that both me and my life had the potential to be so much more than that I ever dreamed could be possible. There was still some growing and changing left to do, and it's been one heck of a journey but I don't regret not a single minute of it whatsoever. How could I? So as it comes to an end, although I'm so sad to see eighteen go, the nicest thing of all is that I'm beginning 19 as the best version of myself yet, and with a life I'm truly so happy with and eternally grateful to have. Also as if things couldn't get any better, I'm also beginning 19 off with a Cheese Fest too, full of cheesy music and a whole lot of cheese, therefore with the way things are looking right now, I guess it can only get better and so with that, here are the top 18 things I've learnt from this year (apart from the ones I've rambled on about in this post so far...)

1) I'm a very adventurous cook in the kitchen (eg. when I thought adding cider to fairy cake mixture would be a good idea, or when I had to be persuaded not to add beetroot to spaghetti bolognese).

2) How to appreciate, embrace, be proud of and enjoy being single, and just be happy being a one woman show.

3) I love being independent and having the freedom that comes with it.

4) A Levels are waaaaaay harder than university but all that hard work is completely and utterly worth it when you see just where it gets you.

5) Friendship is an amazing thing and I've been lucky enough to make so many new friends this year, as well as see my friendships from before uni get even stronger, and it's amazing to see how despite distance, time and changes, you can see someone again and it's like you've never been apart.

6) Manchester is a ridiculously amazing place that continues to wow me every single day.

7) Sometimes you need to trust life a bit, and  that everything will work out alright in the end (so try not to worry so much!)

8) Modern Family is quite possibly one of the best TV shows ever created.

9) Wear trainers to clubs (a la Manchester style) because then you can go to town with all them funky dance moves. 

10) Accept that the past is the past, and even though it's so nice to remember it, it's also so important to look to the future and what lies ahead, as well as ensure you're making the very most of the present.

11) Keep on going, even when it feels like you can't or like it's the end of the world, because life has some amazing things in store for you around the corner, and anyway the tough times make you so much stronger.

12) If you're not happy with something, be the change. If you want to be healthier, do exercise, eat healthy, if you want a better social life, make plans and organise things, if you want to get better grades, work harder, if you want to talk to that cute guy at the bar, you be brave and go talk. Don't be afraid, override that fear, you really can do it, and often the only person stopping you is yourself!

13) It's okay to be different to everyone else and not follow the crowd.
14) Appreciate your family and the people you love, and every moment you get to spend with them, because you never know when it could all be taken away from you. And when you have to leave them behind as you go out into the world and spread your wings, you'll miss them a lot more than you ever thought you would or could!

15) It really is okay to have frizzy hair, and if anyone makes you feel otherwise, go give their hair a ruffle so they have frizzy hair too, and make them see that the world won't end (*cough cough* Mum *cough cough*)

16) Enjoy all the little things in life, no matter how small, and try and see the beauty in the world around you. Also enjoy those special moments too!

17) Don't be afraid to try new things and step out of your comfort zone, as it's amazing to see just what you can achieve as well as learn more about yourself and who you are as a person.

18) To love and accept myself for everything that I am and everything that I am not, know my self worth, believe in myself and what I'm capable of, and remember that as far as people go I haven't turned out too badly in the end.

♥

Brassai

BRASSAI

I'm currently avidly reading Grace Coddington's wonderful, wonderful autobiography 'Grace: A Memoir' (you can expect a gushing review very soon dear readers) and near enough every page is adorned with an incredible list of notable figures within the fashion industry, as well as a smattering of famous celebrity faces, so reading the book has been rather like receiving a fashion education of sorts. I keep hurriedly writing down and then googling all the names Grace pulls out, and that is subsequently how I discovered the absolutely brilliant Hungarian photographer Brassai, whose work just seems perfect to write about in order to transport us away from this dull, grey Manchester day to the magic and promise of 20th century Paris.

Brassai was a famous 20th century photographer, film maker, writer and sculptor who moved to Paris in the mid 1920's to further his love of the arts and subsequent career within them, and crafted his signature name using inspiration from the town Brasso, where he grew up. Originally pursuing journalism, he later began venturing into photography, using it as a medium with which to capture his love and adoration for the beautiful city of Paris. Brassai's photography is evidently a visual ode to his adopted home, and interestingly the majority of Brassai's gorgeous black and white photography focuses on exploring the streets, people, architecture, society and atmosphere of Paris in the midnight hour, when a misty, alluring darkness has fallen only to be interrupted by a mirage of translucent and dazzling white lights. Searching through Brassai's archives are a real aesthetic pleasure, with the serene romanticism appealing so strongly to my ever yearning nostalgia. He captured an aesthetic of Paris and its people that many don't often see, and in such a way that his photographs almost intensify and mystify that beauty. There's the shifting focus and soft, gentle tones of grey, black, white set against piercing silhouettes and beads of light. I'm normally afraid of the dark, yet Brassai's work to me reminds me that there's a hidden and unique beauty to be found there, you just have to look at the world through the right perspective. His work is simply a joy, and so with that I'd love to share with you some of my favourite photographs from Brassai's incredible collection.

To find out more click here

-All photos belong to Brassai-

'Souper' Tomato & Carrot Soup for Students

'SOUPER' TOMATO & CARROT SOUP FOR STUDENTS

For the last nine months I've been at uni, I've been too afraid to make soup. They say it's one of those dishes that's just so typically student, but I've avoided making it like the plague. Whenever my Mum used to make soup for us at home, it always looked like such a detailed, time consuming process and I could never quite figure out how she managed to somehow produce this amazing bowl of incredibly tasty soup from seemingly nothing. What did she put in, how did she go about doing it, what was her secret? Honestly I still don't know and it still confuses me, but yesterday dear readers, along with taking advantage of being able to use cheesy puns like 'souper', I decided I would throw caution to the wind and instead of using valuable revision time for my exam, I would of course make my first ever soup. 

The surprising thing was like everyone pretty much says, but I stupidly chose to ignore, making soup it turns out, is actually pretty easy and rather satisfying for the soul too. I feel a little bit silly now for being too scared to attempt it for so long, but nevertheless I'm also rather happy as it means I have a new recipe to add to the ever growing collection I've acquired at uni so far, and I can also proudly declare to the world that I can finally make soup. It's pretty awesome, and the nice thing was the recipe I followed was completely derived from one of my favourite past times: winging it. Instead of religiously following that nice looking but rather complex Jamie Oliver recipe I found, and all the others that use gorgeous ingredients that my student budget unfortunately doesn't quite accommodate to if I want to eat for the next few years, I decided I'd take inspiration from what I found on le intraweb, see what I had in the cupboard that was similar-ish and work from there instead.

The result was sooooo tasty (not to blow my own trumpet there but had to be said), something I completely wasn't expecting in the slightest, due to 1) me winging it with the recipe and ingredients, and 2) my lack of having ever made soup before. So that's naturally why I thought I simply had to share this whole soup making experience with you guys, as well as give you my nifty little home made recipe that's super cheap and super tasty (big pluses when you're a student), and if you do end up making it, please do feel free to tell me what you think!

(Also I hope you like the so-bad-it's-good pic of my soup. One day I'll take real nice high quality pics like every other blogger, but today wasn't that day and anyways, I feel like it perfectly fits the whole student viiiiibe.)

❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀

INGREDIENTS

(makes two portion)

1 x carrot
(49p for 7*= 7p per carrot)

1 x small/ medium onion

(55p for 7*= 7p per onion)

1 x can of tomatoes

(31p*)

1 x clove of garlic

(75p* for 4 cloves= 18p per clove)

3 x tbsps of olive oil

(99p* per bottle)

2 tsp tomato purée

(37p* per tube)

1/2 a cup of hot water

1 tsp basil

1tsp oregano

1tsp chilli powder

1 chicken stock cube

*price at Lidl at time of writing

❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀ ❃ ❋ ❀

RECIPE

1

Chop the onions and carrots into chunks, then in a frying pan cook the onion and garlic in a splash of oil until the onion is golden brown.

2

In a saucepan add the carrot, tomatoes, oil, tomato purée, water, herbs & spices (don't turn on the hob yet!).

3

When the onion and garlic is cooked add to the saucepan and then turn on the heat, stirring the soup to blend all the ingredients nicely together.

4

When it starts boiling switch to a lower heat and let the soup simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure nothing burns or over boils!

5

Once it's thickened a bit, turn off the heat. You can either blend the mixture if you own a blender (most students don't- I certainly don't but boy do I wish I did!), or eat it as it is, which is what I did and personally think is better as I love being able to taste all the different textures.

6

Eat it with a nice slice of buttered toast or crusty bread and give yourself a pat on the back because you just made one 'souper' nice bowl of soup my friend.

The Interchange #7

-This pic was taken when I went to the lovely little Federal Cafe & Bar in Manchester's Northern Quarter-

THE INTERCHANGE #7

Today was my seventh broadcast of my radio show 'The Interchange' on Fuse FM, and with the microphone actually working super duper well for once, things went pretty smoothly and I had a really, really brilliant time. For once finding the new music to play on my show was incredibly easy, as was picking the songs for the second half of the show, and it reminded me again of how many amazingly talented new artists are out there, making such wonderful music whilst waiting to be discovered and given the respect and acclaim they deserve. Today's talent pool included Cathedrals, Knox Hamilton, Joe Marson, PHOX, The Wildbirds and Little Scream, all of which are phenomenally good at what they do and I'm crossing all my fingers and toes that they each carve out that often difficult path to success and share their wonderful music with the world. The artists on the second half of my show included Coldplay, The 1975, Noah & The Whale, The Wannadies, Bruce Springsteen and The Maccabees, and overall there was just a gorgeously happy vibe throughout. I just could not stop smiling, singing and dancing along, so with that I'd love to share today's playlist with you lovely people and hopefully it'll make you feel rather happy too.

The Interchange is live on Fuse FM 1-2pm on Sundays.

You can listen to today's show here!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

WORK IT OUT

Knox Hamilton

THE HERON & THE FOX

Little Scream

LOVE & SOUL

The Wildbirds

HERE WITH ME
Joe Marson

1936
PHOX

HARLEM

Cathedrals

-THE INTERCHANGE-

PELICAN
The Maccabees

CHOCOLATE
The 1975

VIVA LA VIDA
Coldplay

5 YEARS TIME
Noah & The Whale

BECAUSE THE NIGHT
Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band

YOU & ME
The Wannadies

Tips For A First Time Runner

TIPS FOR A FIRST TIME RUNNER

I've been meaning to post about running for quite a long time and my whole experience with it all, but never really got round to it till now, because exam time is always, always the time when I get most productive in every other part of my life except the part which matters most: revision. So voila, here we are, and anyway they say that revision and exercise go hand in hand, which is exactly what I tell myself when I sneak off in the morning for a run so that I can prolong starting my work. Running is something that I have steadily grown to enjoy immensely over the last nine months or so, and a bit like Drake, it's exactly a case of 'started from the bottom now we here' (and by the bottom I mean the very bottom). I love running to keep fit, I love running because I'm bored, because it's a nice day outside and I want to be out amongst it all. I run when I've indulged in delicious but naughty food the night before, I run to ease period pain, I run so that I have an excuse to listen to music, and at uni I run for the social aspect. But for a long, long time I thought that running was something that was just completely inaccessible to me. I just didn't think I could do it, and yet over the last nine months I've managed to completely surpass my expectations and self limitations, and achieve things I never thought I would ever be able to do. Therefore for quite a while I've been thinking it might be a good idea to share my story and tips with you, should you be wondering whether or not to take up running too, because as a first time runner who's been through it all so recently I figure I'm in a good position to impart some of the things I've learnt so far, and maybe inspire you to start running too....

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MY STORY

-Back in 2011 when me & my friends did the 5k run for charity (although my attempt at running was very, very poor)-

So last August, it dawned on me that I hadn't done any proper exercise in an awfully long time, what with college not demanding I do two hours of compulsory exercise a week (not that I ever did any actual PE at school anyway as me and my friends were too busy singing, dancing and being very, very weird). Plus I'd packed in the gym two years previously and I'd never really been the sporty kind of girl, nor was I that into dancing, hence I found myself in a bit of an exercise-less rut. I'm not an obsessive moderator of my health, but I do like to make sure I'm being relatively healthy and taking care of myself and my body, and yet I back in August I suddenly found that my not doing much exercise began to really bug me, so naturally things had to change. At school I was always very mediocre at PE, but I distinctly remember that running was the one thing that I was absolutely hopeless at, especially long distance running as I'd always been one to thrive off the rush of sprinting as fast as I possibly could, with the wind pulsing through my hair, pushing my body to see what speeds I could achieve. And yet despite all that, for some reason I decided that clearly if I was going to do some form of exercise, it would obviously have to be running, the form of exercise I was inexplicably bad at. In retrospect it wasn't a very logical decision at the time, but in spite of that I now regard it as being one of the best worst decisions I've ever made.

I began running a 3.7k route at home around where I live in Derby, and it's a route I still love to walk in the evenings. I didn't know a lot about running or exercise in general when I started, nor did I own any sportswear or the proper trainers, so I winged it instead, wearing my old PE shorts, a baggy top I'd normally sleep in and the lightest pair of pumps I owned. I put some upbeat tunes on my iPod, braced myself to face the great outdoors and began running once a week, sometimes more, or sometimes not at all. I'll admit the motivation to actually get out the house and do it was and still is is one of the hardest things about running, as was the embarrassment I got when I saw people I knew (eg. when I passed my driving instructor twice in one run) or the feeling I'd get when I got back, something very similar to a warmed up version of death. Honestly in retrospect I'm not even really sure why I ever stuck with it, but I suppose with it being my only form of exercise I figured it would be a good idea to probably stick with it for the foreseeable future.

My whole attitude and feelings towards running took a complete U-turn when I went to university and decided to join my uni's running club, 'Run Wild'. I'll be the first to admit that it was rather difficult at first, especially having gone from having no idea how to run properly, and overall it's been a huge learning curve. Sticking with it has taken a lot of perseverance and motivation, but I can't stress to you how glad I am that I didn't give up. When I began with my running club they started pushing us straight away, taking us on 2k, then 5k, then 6, 7 and eventually 9k runs all around Manchester (it was a fantastic way to get to know the city and make it feel more like home). They taught us important stretches to do before and after runs, they made us do drills on speed, endurance, stamina, that left me feeling like I was about to collapse, but in spite of the toughness it has always felt like we're a team full of support and positivity, and they never leave a person behind. On some runs I've been the last person to finish, on others I've been one of the first, on some I finish feeling like death, others I feel a tad like Usain Bolt, but regardless of how far I go or how tough the run is, I always finish feeling incredibly proud of myself for making it to the finish line and utterly amazed at my ability to do things I never dreamed I'd be able to. My new found running knowledge has also lead to me deciding to embark on solo runs near where I live, now that I know how what I'm capable of, how to stretch properly and take care of my body, and I've finally gotten over my red tomato face syndrome (I always end up going bright red whenever I go for a run). Plus I'm hoping to run some 5k races over the summer and hopefully attempt the Manchester 10k next year, things I never dreamed would be possible for me a mere nine months ago.

I've finally found a form of exercise that I've managed to make work for me, and it's a wonderful feeling, so with that I'd love to share with you some of the tips I've learnt below...

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My Top Tips & Advice

-The group picture taken after we ran 9k, which for me is the furthest I've ever ran before!-

Always stretch before you go for a run, it literally does make the world of difference. If you don't know any stretches, take a look online and teach yourself some because honestly it really will help you so much.

 If you have a local free running group, join up! Or likewise persuade a friend or family member to take it up with you. It's nice to have some company and someone to persuade you to keep going .

Invest in a pair of running trainers. Again, this really does help, even if you do really like those flowery pumps you started running in. It helps cushion and protect your feet, as well as literally giving you an extra bounce in your step. They don't have to be expensive either, mine were only £20 from Sports Direct.

 You don't need fancy running clothes to go running. Literally just a pair of shorts or leggings, a baggy top, a sports bra (hate to admit it but they really do help), whatever you're comfortable in, and your shoes, will do.

 If going red or being sweaty makes you feel embarrassed when you're running, get a sassy slogan top. For example my fave top to go running in says 'I'm red, enough said', which has literally given me a new lease of confidence because people can't point out what you already know (although they will point out that you're red anyhow, trust me).

 Stay in your head space, and what I meant by that is keep all your attention resolutely in your head and mind. It sounds weird but make sure that's the only place you're present, and don't let yourself start thinking about your legs and how much they ache, because once you do it's pretty hard to recover from as it's all you'll notice. The longer you stay firmly within your head, letting your mind wander off, the longer you can keep going and your legs will strangely ache a whole lot less.

Drink a good amount of water before you run so that you feel adequately hydrated, and drink even more than that after your run to replace the water you'll lose whilst sweating.

Learn a good breathing technique that involves breathing in for longer and exhaling for longer (making sure all the air is out of your lungs between each breath helps avoid the pesky issue of trapped wind). You're like a machine that needs all the energy it can to keep the wheels turning. My favourite is doing a quick two breath inhale in succession, with the first lasting one second and the other lasting four, before exhaling for as long as I can. Try not to fall into the habit of taking lots of quick breaths as you won't end up getting too far.

Sounds a bit weird but run with your mouth open! It helps evaporate the excess saliva you'll naturally produce whilst running, and means you don't need to stop to spit it out.

Start off doing smaller distances where you try not to stop (although the occasional stop is never a bad thing) to help accustom your body, find your groove and best breathing technique,   and then gradually build it up.

In my opinion it isn't about how far you run or how quick you do it (although it is a nice accomplishment) instead I feel running is more about pushing yourself little by little, seeing your fitness gradually improve, giving your body a good old workout, and making it to the finish line every time. If you want to cut your run short, do it and just try again tomorrow, or likewise if you feel you can push yourself further then try that too and see just how far you can go.

And lastly as Dory once famously said in 'Finding Nemo', just keep swimming, or in this case running. You're far more capable than you lead yourself to believe!

Apocalypse for Beginners by Nicolas Dickner

APOCALYPSE FOR BEGINNERS BY NICOLAS DICKNER

Considering how often I go to the library here in Manchester, ie. on a pretty much weekly basis, I probably ought to have a few more book reviews up here on Moustashie, and yet for some peculiar reason I do not. Hmmmmmmm.... I suppose it's for a number of reasons, including the fact that I tend to read a lot of books years after everyone else has plus the book has to be really good in order to inspire and provoke me to write about it. 'Apocalypse for Beginners' by the Canadian author Nicolas Dickner is one of those books, which I picked up out of curiosity both because of the zesty, bright colours adorning the book cover and the rather intriguing sounding blurb. It looked like a promising read, and as a matter of fact, it was that good that I actually even managed to finish it in three days, so with that, let me tell you a little bit more about it.

Originally written in French but translated marvellously into English by the super talented Lazer Lederhendler, and of course definitely not released in 2015 but instead 2010 (writing current, highly relevant reviews unfortunately doesn't seem to be my forte), this incredibly quirky, gorgeously original, interesting little novel tells the story of Canadian teenagers Hope Randall and Michel Bauermann. Set in Dickner's home town of Rivere-du-Loup in Quebec, Canada, although later branching out to Tokyo, Japan, the story spans the time period of 1989 through to 2001, and as the title suggest focuses primarily on the idea of apocalypses. The novel is narrated in a quirky fashion by Michel, who describes to us in zany but beautiful language his unique close friendship with new girl Hope and the subsequent adventure they embark on, as well providing the third person narrative for Hope's later excursion to Japan. However interestingly, it takes a good three quarters of the novel for us to finally learn Michel's name, which only occurs when his mum calls him dinner one evening. This unique take is slightly annoying at first, as we as readers have no idea who the person telling us the story actually is. However as I progressively read the novel I realised that I actually rather admired Dickner's strange technique, as it allows the attention and intrigue original devoted towards the narrator, to instead be re-aligned towards the baffling character of Hope Randall.

Therefore with the lack of Michel's identity for a significant portion of the book, we are forced to set our sights on getting to know Hope Randall, who along with her bizarre mother Ann descends upon Michel's life and quiet Canadian town like a supernova full of light, excitement, ramen noodles, bundles of gorgeous intelligence, a racing electric mind and a history defined by a continuous series of imaginary apocalypses. The two quickly become close friends, however the beautiful, clever, independent Hope is not all that she seems, with her secret being a rather quirky, incessant family trait  that has marred and troubled her family for years. It involves each Randall being born with an compulsive need to pre-determine and contrive the date of the end of the world (aka. an apocalypse), something that Hope's mother Ann is in the midst of at the beginning of the novel, and subsequently killing themselves when their prediction doesn't come true. It sounds rather peculiar when written down, but it some how seems to make perfect sense in the novel, thanks to the quirky narrative Dickner sets up right from the very first page, which quickly informs us that this story isn't going to be quite like all the others out there.

When Ann's predicted date comes and goes, she signs herself away to a lifetime of alcohol abuse whilst Hope, who unfortunately doesn't manage to avoid inheritance of that pesky little gene, goes on to discover her own date: 17th of July 2001. Whilst initially we see Michel and Hope's relationship return back to some sort of normality, and we see them get ever closer as Michel's evidently deep awe for the magical Hope continues to grow, their friendship quickly re-aligns itself around Hope's personally predicted impending apocalypse, and when a series of fateful signs appear to confirm that Hope's predicted date could be true, the story suddenly takes an unexpected turn. As Hope jets off impulsively to Tokyo Michel is left lonesome in Canada, and although the ending did bug me a little bit at first, I have to say that upon reflection I can conclude that it's actually very cleverly done, with the novel essentially haven given you all the answers the book's ending leaves you grasping for. All you have to do is think hard enough to find them.

'Apocalypse for Beginners' is unlike anything I've ever read before. but I mean that in the absolute best way possible. It's a complete gem of a book written in such a beautiful, zany, literary manner and certainly one you'll never forget. The novel revolves around a completely unique and almost baffling main plot that is carried out by a series of cleverly constructed, truly wonderful characters and all against a back drop of perfectly described scenery, imagery and a wrought out tidal wave of emotion. Furthermore Dickner also cleverly and effectively employs such a wide range of literary devices through out the novel too, truly colouring it as a one of a kind book that's very much in its own league. It's a book that I know will stay with me for a long, long time to come and has quickly entered the list as one of my favourites. It's just fantastic! 

So whether you're into your quirky, unique stories or not, I highly, highly, highly recommend you pick up copy of 'Apocalypse for Beginners' and give it a read and make up your own mind about it (you won't regret it I promise).