5 pretty things #1

corkboard in my study; purple ribbon and flowery cuteness courtesy of my mum :)

Whitby, England

Sunday | recent purchases + photos

Hello everyone!

How are you doing? Are you good? Good. 

I was getting my fashion fix over at Boffism, reading her blog post about Jewel Rhi, an online jewellery shop. I clicked my way over to Jewel Rhi, and treated myself to two gorgeous pieces which I'll show you (when they get here). I have too much jewellery already, BUT I also have too much work to do and decided that I needed a pick-me-up. So there we go. Shameless retail therapy. Moving on!

I love eyeliner, but sometimes it does not love me, especially during the warmer months with all the smudging and what not. I found this gel eyeliner by Maybelline and I'm in love with it. It's very easy to use and is perfect for the vintage-liner look. Most importantly: it IS long lasting. Win. Recommends.

Maybelline Lasting Drama gel eyeliner in 02 Brown, €11.95

using the gel liner

This next bit is less of a purchase, and more of an acquisition. My dad was in England for a couple of days and picked these up for me: 

official Mockingjay pin and magnetic bookmarks

Obviously, I was ridiculously happy especially when you take into consideration that I'm TECHNICALLY an adult now. Kids would look at me and be all, LOL GROW UP.

Today the family hit Mamma Mia (the restaurant, not the movie) for some Sunday lunch. Forget the lunch, I love their lemon sorbet. Freshness. I don't have a photo of that, but here's a picture of some old balconies

 *** FIN ***

Unpopular Opinion

The Eurovision sucks.
And it's a collosal waste of resources and money. 

the general mood last night

And Malta got through to the final with a lot riding on a certain lame [and already overdone] dance move coupled with pyrotechnics. So now, when Malta loses (again) and the singer returns to us, morning TV shows will ask the usual questions and say the usual things that people devoted to the Eurovision say every time we lose (and that's quite often). There will be hours (or minutes) dedicated to every agonizing detail about our failure to win a pointless competition. These questions or statements may include:

Why didn't we win with such a sensational act?
Why didn't we win with our originality?
[my personal favourite]You know what? It's because everyone votes for their neighbours, and we don't have any neighbours!
It's unfair.
There should be a board of judges to decide on the best performance. Then it would be fair (we still wouldn't win). 
We'll win next time! We didn't even get through to the finals last year, issa next time we'll do even better!

I don't actually understand the Eurovision much anyway. No singer or group becomes really famous as a direct result of the show - with the exception of ABBA that is. Most of Malts's really good bands and singers have probably gained more from not participating in the Eurovision. Because the Eurovision is a euro-mediocre show for euro-mediocre acts to showcase mediocre music.

But yeah, well done to all involved for actually getting through to the finals instead of being a waste of approx. 400,000 euros like some other acts (who didn't get past the semis) have been in the past. Keep it up, good luck, etc...

K

The True Feminist strikes again!

You'll remember that some time ago, I wrote about my reaction to a certain article by a certain Charlene Valentina Giordimaina. Well, she and her very ignorant views are back on the scene, and we now know that her limited views are not restricted to women's rights. She's also a big, hulking homophobe. Take a look of these images, from eweandme.blogspot.com 
Disclaimer: These images are from a FB group called 'The Catholic Vote'.

GOD FORBID THAT THE HOMOSEXUALS AND PRO-GAY MARRIAGE PEOPLE SHOULD HAVE A VOICE!

Basically, she's asking people to send out emails to Maltese MEPs, urging them to vote against this particular bid for equal rights. What a selfish so-and-so. Not only does she lack logic and common sense, but she lacks empathy too. It's all well and good for her - she can marry any man she wants. Why should she care about whether or not people who happen to fall in love with someone who has the same lady-or-man-parts as them? I'm baffled by the fact that this kind of hateful attitude exists in 2012. Baffling, worrying, frustrating. But that's not all.

It's harmful to our family and society. Charlene, if you happen to be reading this right now, I address you directly.
What's harmful to families and society is are hateful attitudes like yours. Yes, you are a hateful person. You're hell-bent on spreading your blatant intolerance for anything which does not conform to your Catholic ideals (news flash sweet-heart, not everyone on this island is Catholic, how dare you speak for them?). And these 'problems' that you list? They're problems for you because they tell it like it is. You? You're homophobic, what you practice is homophobia. Hate speech IS a reality, and so are hate crimes (if you follow the news). Homophobia is akin to racism, sexism, antisemitism and any other kind of discrimination because it is just that, DISCRIMINATION. Education is the key to preventing homophobia, and this is a problem for you. Would it be a problem if you had a child who was viciously attacked for being gay? No, that wouldn't happen to you. How could your children possibly catch the 'gay'? I'm sure you have a very nice exorcist on hand. But let's just say that your child turned out to be gay. And you eventually get enough sense into your thick head to accept that. Wouldn't you want his or her classmates to be educated to know that everyone should be treated equally? Why are these 'problems'? Because they're honest and call you on your bullshit (pardon my use of the word)?

There is nothing wrong with being gay (what IS wrong is using religion as a means of justifying homophobia/discrimination).Why the hell is it any of your business who other people choose to marry, Charlene? As for the 'assault on the innocence of children' - that's  a stinking heap of manure right there. You want to know what is damaging for children? Being forced into perpetuating whatever ignorant, discriminatory views that people like you hold. Having your views imposed on them as the singularly correct view. Problems of conscience should be arising for you, Ms. Giordimaina. 


My friend wrote an excellent response here
Read about the Fight against Homophobia here
Sign the petition here

My Top 12 TV Series

In no particular order, I give you some of my absolute favourite (and somewhat addictive) TV series! Why? Because I've got a lot of things to do and I need to procrastinate.

1. The Borgias

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2. The Tudors

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3. Sex and the City

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4. X-Men (90s version)

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5. Pretty Little Liars 

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6. Spartacus: Blood and Sand, Gods of the Arena, and Vengeance

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7. Skins 
8. Misfits
9. Blackadder 
10. House MD 
11. Avatar: The Last Airbender 
12. The Walking Dead

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Looking at this list, a part of me thinks that I should watch less TV shows. The other part of me is too busy watching TV series to pay attention.  

Photo-mish-mash

So Instagram is available for my little android tablet now. What does this mean? Easier photo sharing for me and my blog posts, with funky pseudo-vintage effects. Hurrah!

stickers, for the inner child

recent purchases from play.com and ebay

a beautifully illustrated page from The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman

purdy notebooks for study motivation #disneywin

Aaaanywho. This girl has to get to work now, so have a great weekend  y'all!

Kelly

Survival Instincts

Easier said than done, my little cartoony friend

So exams start at the end of this month, and assignment titles are starting to roll in. Notes? Check. Colourful pens and highlighters? Got 'em. Coffee? Yep. Study-system? Totally. Motivation? Eeeech...

Motivation is the fuel that every student needs to get through their course. Without motivation, how can anyone bring themselves to study, or better yet, write a 5,000 word assignment or whole dissertation? Truth is, without motivation, we're going nowhere fast. So...anyone know of a good motivation-monger in Malta? Can I buy some online?

Didn't think so. Today I want to talk about different ways to stay motivated. I'm not saying that these will work for everyone, but hey - it couldn't hurt to try.

Survival Kit


1. Something to cheer you up
This can be anything from your favourite TV show (in moderation!) to a strange little soft-toy which bursts into a fit of hysterical laughter on your command. You're more likely to be a happy student  if you're a happy person first.

2. Set goals. Big ones. 

Then work towards them, no matter how big they are. Choose an ideal to work towards and you'll have a reason to study again. Motivation, BOOM. Dream job? Dream course at university (this is for A-levelers mostly)? Dreaming for a chance to study abroad? GOALS GOALS GOALS. So many to choose from, it's simply a matter of choosing your favourites and sticking a pin in them.

You can have a different kind of goal. Plan a few post-exam days abroad, or a weekend in Gozo with friends. It'll definitely make you feel better.

3. Naps
Sleep deprivation and looming exams/deadlines - we've all been there. I don't know about you guys, but when Mr. Sandman hits me, nothing I'm reading seems to make sense any more. So here's what you do - place a bookmark in the book, leave your notes on your desk, set a timer for 30 minutes and just rest. Last time I did it, I had a nap and woke up feeling refreshed and ready to study on into the night. Or at least, late evening.

4. Flashcards
Relatively easy concept. You go through your notes, pick out THE most important points or quotes, and write them on bits of paper or card. Read through these flashcards once a day and you've got yourself an exercise in memory.

5. Anti-people-noise-protection
Also known as 'music' or 'ear plugs'. Now in terms of music, I recommend choosing something instrumental because words can be quite distracting.

6. Treat yourself
I don't mean that you should buy yourself a present every time you study or get a good grade, but you should definitely do something after a day of productivity:

• go out for a quick drink with friends 
• watch a film or a couple of episodes of your favourite tv show (guilt-free)
• Ice-cream
• fancy teas/coffees (I like to treat myself to M&S goodies once in a while)
• early night (a valued commodity these days!)
• an hour or two of gaming 
• bake something yummy 

Anyway, I've got a presentation to finish, so that's all from me for now.

Kelly