These are a few of my favourite things

These are a few of my favourite things…

These posts do the rounds quite often, and as there is nothing easier than writing about oneself I decided to jump on board that bandwagon. I’m also distracting myself because I can’t find the inspo to finish my other blog. So, you guys get stuck with this, sorry about that. Anywhooo…. here are a few of my favourite things.

A – Author – Roald Dahl, or Cecelia Ahern. I can reread their books over and over.

B – Beverage – Tea or Water / Alcoholic would be Tequila or Disaronno

C – Colour – Yellow

D – Disney Film – Peter Pan

E – Exercise – Running

F – Food – I can’t believe I have to choose. Ok, pretty much any Mexican food.

G – Group – The Beatles. I also love One Direction, and I’m not even sorry.

H – Holiday – CHRISTMAS

I – Idea I ever had – starting this blog

J – Joke – A man walks into a bar. Ouch – so bad it’s good.

K – Kid – tied between my boys Oscar and Mason-James.

L – Lesson at school – my faves were History and Psychology

M – Musical – West Side Story.

N – Number – 6

O – Organisation – it has to be the Beagle Freedom Project who fight against animal testing, or All Out who campaign for LGBT rights around the world

P – Place – Disneyland. Or Strawberry Fields in Central Park.

Q – Quote – There are many that I love but these 3 are probably my favourite 1. A day without laughter is a day waster (unknown) 2. No one can make you feel inferior without your consent (Eleanor Roosevelt) 3. We accept the love we think we deserve (Stephen Chobsky).

You can read my 10 quotes to live by here: https://littlemicksmusings.wordpress.com/2015/10/01/quotes-to-live-by/

R – Romance – completely predictable but it’s Darcy and Bennett.

S – Season – Autumn because baggy jumpers and tea!

T – T.V Show – Friends (as if you even had to ask!) Castle and Charmed also rank highly

U – URL – YouTube, Word press, IG and FB

V – Vacation Place – dream vaca place is Peru (I wanna do Machu Picchu so bad)

W – Word – Glockenspiel – say it, it’s a great word to say.

X – eXpletive – too many to list… I swear a lot.

Y – Year – 1989, the year I was born, obvs. 2011 (Oscar was born) 2015 (MJ was born)

Z – Zoo animal – Penguins

THE END.

Wasn’t that fun?

Tell me your favourite things.

Xoxo

Micks

50 things to do when you’re sad

‘Pursuit of Happiness’ by Kid CuDi is, quite possibly, my favourite song in the whole entire universe (listen here). ‘Happiness’ is what we are all on the pursuit on, whether we know it or not. Sometimes, we hit bumps in the road, because as Kid CuDi sings “everything that shines ain’t always gonna be gold”. Some days really, well, they really suck balls. We’ve all had those days where we get home, look in the mirror and think, “well today was a COMPLETE waste of make-up).

I can hear you asking “What do you do to cheer yourself up when you’ve had this kind of day? What can possibly cure you of ‘Ihadashitday syndrome?” Funny you should ask…

Here are 50 ways to cheer yourself up.
DISCLAIMER: If these don’t work it’s not my fault, they are proven to work for me and a select sample of individuals (aka my family and friends).

1. Sometimes you just need to get it out. So cry.
2. Have a nice cup of tea. There are very few things a cup of tea can’t solve. If you’re putting the kettle on make me one too (milk, no sugar). Cheers.
3. Eat something. Anything that makes you feel better. Fuck the calorie/fat content. I would suggest eating Peanut Butter straight from the jar, it always works for me
4. Remind yourself that if Britney Spears can survive 2007, you can survive today.
5. Watch this and remember. You matter.
6. Lie on your bed and listen to the rain (if it isn’t raining outside, go to rainymood.com – it’s my new favourite website)
7. Roll down a hill
8. Get sweaty. In whatever way takes your fancy. Exercise = endorphins = happy happy.
9. Know that on one of my school reports my teacher told my parents I was thick. Quote ‘Michaela lacks the mental capacity’ unquote
10. Watch a Disney movie. Sing a Disney song. Disney makes life better. I’d choose ‘Aladdin’ – Robin Williams as the Genie, best cast choice ever – and ‘When will my life begin’ from Tangled.
11. Do what I said for number 10 but replace Disney with Christmas. My film would be either ‘White Christmas’ (just because of this scene) or ‘Muppet’s Christmas Carol’. The song would be all of them. I LOVE CHRISTMAS
12. Spend an hour on ted.com listening to inspiring, thought-provoking talks. I adore Sarah Kay’s ‘If I should have a daughter…’
13. Listen to your favourite album from start to finish. Music is the cure for most things.
14. Google Earth Stalk that one place you always wanted to go.
15. Jump on the bed – it’s still fun no matter your age.
16. Be around children. Their innocence is endearing, they are the better than any type of anti-depressant going. The same applies to animals.
17. Watch F.R.I.E.N.D.S. If you have never watched F.R.I.E.N.D.S this is probably why you’re sad.
18. Write a letter to the person that upset you. Or write the universe. Get it all out. Don’t worry about grammar and spelling, just get it out. Word vomit on that page. Then rip it up. Throw it in the bin. It’s gone. So is your anger and sadness.
19. Call your best friend.
20. Call your mum or that ‘mother-like’ figure you have in your life. Everything they tell you is pretty much true.
21. Ladies, Shave your legs and wash your sheets. Then get in bed and try to be sad. Try. Yeah. It’s impossible. Lads, you’re welcome to try it.
22. Get nostalgic. Look through old photos. Remember the good times.
23. Do your hair/make-up. Who cares if you have nowhere to go. It’s fun to glam up!
24. Scream into a pillow. Or just scream. You know, whatever works for you.
25. Email me, I’ll try and cheer you up. (michaelawright89@hotmail.co.uk) I didn’t win an award for being ‘the best shoulder to cry on’ at school for no reason, you know.
26. Write your bucket list out. Get lost in your dreams.
27. Go shopping. Cinderella is proof that a new pair of shoes can change your life.
28. Eat Mexican food and drink margaritas. You can’t eat tacos and be sad. It is simply impossible. (this might only work if Mexican food and tequila are your number one food/alcohol choices).
29. Watch ’50 shades of Grey’. Appreciate the perfect form of Jamie Dornan and laugh at how bad the movie actually is.
30. Look out the window. Imagine being blind and not being able to see what you see.
31. Look in the mirror and say out loud “I am enough”. Repeat until you believe it.
32. Remind yourself of this…
33. Know that when I was at university I got so drunk once that I threw up on my door. Then next morning I was hung over and had to clean it up. Be glad it wasn’t you.
34. Create a playlist/ make a mix tape of your favourite songs from your teen years. Play it loud and sing along. Try and remember the old dance moves. I bet you still know some of them.
35. Remember that tough times don’t last, but tough people do.
36. Draw/paint. On paper or yourself. Whichever takes your fancy.
37. Go for a walk, be outside and just breathe. Inhale deeply.
38. Whilst on said walk go to the park and feed the ducks. You have food, therefore you are their God.
39. Bake a cake. Lick the spoon. And bowl.
40. Some of the best days of your life haven’t happened yet. How cool is that?
41. Penguins. Look at pictures of them. Watch videos of them. Watch Happy Feet. No animal will give you more joy than penguins. Promise.
42. Bubbles. Bath. Facemask. It’s a no brainer.
43. Think of 5 things you like about yourself. Write them down. Tape it to your mirror. If you can’t think of 5 things, ask your nearest and dearest for 5 things they like about you. Tape THEM to your mirror.
44. Hard boil eggs. Throw them at the wall. This is best done outside. It has the same effect as plates but doesn’t cost you as much, and is less messy.
45. Take a nap
46. Do something nice for someone else – you can’t sprinkle a little happiness around without getting some on yourself.
47. Remember that it never gets easier, you just get better.
48. Nighttime – drive somewhere quiet. Lie under the stars.
49. Read ‘Rockettes, Rockstars and Rockbottom’ by Keltie Colleen. It will prove to you that you will survive.
50. Remember, I love you. Also, remember this

You’re welcome.

Xoxo

Micks

p.s what would you add?

p.p.s I was inspired to write this list after reading this

Eat. Pray. Love

Eat. Pray. Love.
If you work with me, chances are you’ve heard me raving about this book. It was a complete fluke that I bought it; I was at Naples airport on my way home (by myself) and I’d already finished my only book I hadn’t read on my iPad ( The Elegant Art of Falling Apart by Jessica Jones – AWESOME read) and I was bored waiting alone. So I wondered into the newsagents and bought the only 2 books that looked half decent that were written in English. One was ‘The a Day before Happiness’ by Erri de Luca, the second ‘Eat, Pray, Love’ by Elizabeth Gilbert.

I knew there was a movie adaptation with the original pretty woman, one Ms. Julia Roberts. I’d seen bits and bobs of the movie, I knew it was about a woman who went travelling. But that was it. Now, I’m not gonna sit here and write a blurb on the book, that’d be a bit boring. I am however, gonna talk about how rad the book is.

I believe that Liz and I (that’s right, I call her Liz. We’re pals in my head) are kindred spirits. She goes off travelling in search of answers, in search of some kind of equilibrium. And, Lord knows, that is what I am always doing. She meets some weird and wonderful people along the way – travelling is awesome for that – and she learns some pretty cool tings too.

I love a book that makes me think, and EPL does just that. I felt like I was going on her journey with her and as she learnt lessons, so did I (I realise that sounds a bit cray cray but you know, I felt involved) There are some passages in there that really rang true with me. The first one is this…

“People think a soulmate is your perfect fit, and that’s what everyone wants. But a true soulmate is a mirror, the person who shows you everything that is holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life. A true soulmate is probably the most important person you’ll ever meet, because they tears your walls down and smack you awake. But to live with a soulmate forever? Nah, too painful. Soul mates, they come into your life to reveal another layer of yourself to you and then they leave. And thank God for it”

As a girl, you are fed the “happily ever after” dream from when you are small. All the Disney movies have a ‘love story’ at the centre and it always seems to be a man who saves the poor, helpless woman. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie sums it up “ because I am female, I am expected to aspire to marriage, I am expected to make my life decisions always keeping in mind that marriage is the most important thing…” (Watch her whole speech on feminism here: http://youtu.be/hg3umXU_qWc – credit to Beyonce for bringing it to my attention).
We are sold this idea that every girl has her ‘one true love’ and that we won’t be complete until we find them. So, reading this view on ‘soul mates’ (which actually came from a dude) challenged everything that I’d been fed, but, for me, it actually makes better sense. You learn and you grow from every relationship (romantic or otherwise) and sometimes people are really crap, but them being crap to you teaches you about yourself and what you will or won’t accept from people, it reveals another layer of yourself. It also teaches you how to deal with assholes but that’s another story for another day.

The second passage is this…

“Only the young and stupid are confident about sex and romance. Do you think any of us know what we’re doing? Do you think humans can love each other without complication?… (Western men) think this pretty little girl will make them happy, make their lives easy. But whenever I see it happen, I always want to say the same thing ‘good luck’. Because you still have a woman in front of you, my friend. And you’re still a man. It’s still two human beings trying to get along, so it’s going to be complicated. And love is always complicated. But humans must still try to love each other, darling. We must get out hearts broken sometimes. This is a good sign, having a broken heart. It means we have tried for something”.

Falling down in life and love, well, it sucks balls to be quite honest. But it does mean you’ve tried, you’re living. It would be so easy to not out ourselves out there for fear of getting hurt, or fear of not succeeding but, that would be boring. Like the fabulous Brazilian man said to Liz ‘it means we have tried for something’. And I’ll take a few failures, and a well lived life over a safe, unlived life any day. The only thing I disagree with is that love is ‘always complicated’, I think we MAKE it complicated. We play hard-to-get and a whole lot of other games, we don’t want to reply to a msg too soon for fear of seeming ‘keen’. I’m not being funny, but if I’ve given you my number in the first place then you can pretty much assume I’m interested or ‘keen’. I’m not gonna wait an extra 5 minutes to msg you back. If someone is put off because you reply to a msg quickly then I think it’s them that has the problem, I’m just sayin!

The final one (because I really this is going on for ages) is this…

“In the end, though, maybe we must all give up trying to pay back the people in this world who sustain our lives. In the end, maybe it’s wiser to surrender before the miraculous scope of human generosity and just to keep saying thank you, forever and sincerely, for as long as we have voices”

This is the very last paragraph in the book.
I love this.
We can find help and support in places that you would never expect, from people you would never expect and we can then feel an overwhelming urge to make a big gesture to repay their help, to express our gratitude, when most of the time a genuine thank you is all that is needed.

I could go on. But I won’t.

Eat. Pray. Love.

Xoxo Micks

this blog originally appeared on micksmusings.tumblr.com