A-Z Guide to Happiness: T & U

T & U

I'm running out of days now so I'm having to double up on a few letters!!

T - Talking!!!!!

Ok, so it's not always easy to voice how you feel, but talking really really does help in several ways!
Firstly, if you're going through a tough time, you could talk to someone and open up to them and they'll be able to help you and support you through it, I've done this recently and I now feel more cared for than I have in a very long time because I know I have people that are there when I need an extra push.

It's also helpful because you don't necessarily have to talk about whatever's going on, but you could talk about other things. Use talking as a distraction! Talk to someone about random stuff like.. I Don't know, if they were an animal what would they be? If they had a super power what would they want it to be? Anything to keep your mind busy :)

Finally, you can help others! Someone could be really having a tough time, and just by dropping them a little message saying hey I hope you're ok, or inviting them for a coffee or something, they may not say yes or want to talk, but I guarantee if that person is in a bad place and you do that, you'll make them realise that they are noticed and people do care.


U - Underwear

This one does sound a little bit weird I know. I was struggling to think of something that begins with U, but the reason I've chosen Underwear is for your own point of view rather than others.

If I wear my comfy pants and bra etc that are really old but I Dont throw away because I like ot be comfortable, I don't necessarily feel attractive. Howeverrrrr, if I have a set of really pretty underwear, I honestly do feel more confident.. and confidence is always good nowadays! I struggle a lot with body confidence so putting on something that I feel I look good in, and I can look in a mirror and be like hey, I actually look sort of ok in this! it's a massive thing!!

What makes you happy??

Much Love

LJ xo

A-Z Guide to Happiness: S

S

Singing

I think I have always sung really from about the age of 6 or something. When I was in year 3 at middle school I joined the choir, and that was it from there really! I always loved singing and was always belting out the hymns in our assemblies.

I begged my parents for singing lessons and they always said no until one day I wrote my first song, after that they then let me go for singing lessons and within 3 years I had achieve grade 8 of the Rock School exams.

I studied music at college, which involved a lot of performing and I loved every minute of being on stage with my very dysfunctional family :) I was with such a talented bunch of musicians and I really hope they make it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB6_W7YzCmY

I love singing a variety of things from Rock to Country! My favourite is acoustic stuff though. I like to take chart songs and make an acoustic version. My old duet partner Harry was incredible, him and I always performed an acoustic set, he would play guitar and sing harmonies and I would sing the main melody, and if i say so myself it sounded bloody amazing! I'm gutted I don't get the chance to perform with him anymore (Adult life got in the way for me, and he's now at uni) as he is one of the most talented musicians I've ever met!

Another thing that's good about singing is if you are listening to music and focusing on the lyrics, it is a very good distraction against anxiety or things that are worrying you or making you feel low!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69PevoT0WOw

What makes you happy?

Much Love

LJ xo

A-Z Guide to Happiness: R

R

I love reading!

My favourite types of books are ones that have an element of mystery, maybe a bit of comedy sometimes, I quite like stories that are believable/true also.

Here are some of my favourite books:

- All of the Cathy Glass books! Cathy Glass is an author who is a foster carer, her books are all true and each about a child's story. A child that she has taken in temporarily, or long term, in order to try help them and their families. It is incredible what she does, and the things that these children have been through as well, but she never gives up on them and 90% of the time, she breaks through all the barriers and the child will open up and progress.

- Nothing left to Lose.. I LOVED this book. I was going to paste the blurb on here but is full of spoilers! It's basically a story about a young girl, tragedy, hierarchy, pain and love. I definitely definitely recommend it! On the Kindle it's only £1.94 - if you want to read a little more click on this link and you can see a bit about the book, but it does sort of give the story line away!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nothing-Left-Lose-Guarded-Hearts-ebook/dp/B00GGMQLFO

- The Body Finder - This is probably one of my more far fetched books that I've read, but I still love the series! If I remember right there are 4 books. It's basically about a young girl who is able to sense the echos of things that have been killed in an un natural way, she can also sense the imprint on the killer, this matches the echo. She finds animals that have been killed e.g a bird killed by a cat etc at first, then as she gets older she discovers other things, and eventually teams up with a group of other people with special talents to help solve crimes. Should totally read it if you want something that gives you a bit of an adrenaline rush as some bits are quite tense! It's an easy read too :)

I get very into my books if I'm honest, I can't help it. A couple of years ago on holiday I read 7 books in one week!!! I only took 3 with me, but luckily my dad had his kindle so i borrowed that for the week :) I do read very quickly, oops! I do sometimes maybe get a little toooo into my books lol, sometimes I actually have to try work out whether I actually did something or if that was a character in my book.. sad I know!! I just love it! :)

What books do you like?

Much Love

LJ Xo

A-Z Guide to Happiness: Q

Q

Shhhh... Quiet

Ok so this isn't for everyone, and it isn't always for me if I'm honest! But sometimes I do really enjoy just taking a step back, pausing and just listening to nothing, watching the world go by!

Sounds a little weird I know, but I used to just walk home from school and sometimes I'd stop, look up at the sky at the clouds going past, breathe and think for a bit.

I also like taking myself out and going to the beach or something, one of my favourite places to go is Brighton, I've only been once but I absolutely loved it. Being sat on the pebbled beach, watching the waves, people having fun on the pier etc.

What makes you happy?

Much Love

LJ xo

A-Z Guide to Happiness: P

P

Photography

I love love love photography, for me it is a hobby, I believe that I have got an eye for it and I am capable of taking a good photo, and I never believe that I'm good at anything! So having confidence in this is a big deal. My only set back is that I couldn't do it professionally as I do not have the technical knowledge i.e f-stops and lighting etc.

I did try to learn this when volunteering at a photography studio, however I was not taught what to do, the photographer 'teaching' me would set up the lighting and camera and get me to do the shoot, but I already had the eye for what looked good, the right positioning of the model and the camera, I had an issue with making it happen technically. I also tried reading up on it but I just didn't understand it, I learn much better by doing and putting stuff into practice.

Here are a few of my shots..

What makes you happy?

Much Love

LJ Xo

A-Z Guide to Happiness: O

O

O is for... Orange is the New Black

Following on from yesterday's Netflix post, I wanted to select OITNB as my happiness for the letter O.

If you haven't heard of this series I think you may be living under a rock. Especially if you're on facebook as you must have seen the latest girl that everyone has been raving about... Ruby Rose <3

There are so many different character's on this show and they all have completely different personalities, and most of them have two different sides to themselves as well.

You've got Piper, the start of the story / main character, and she has a nice loving side, then she has a kinda crazy psycho side where she goes a bit power crazy. Alex, who is more firm and controlling, but then also has a sensitive side. and it goes on and on.

I really like the character Tastee as she's often a lot of fun but has a slightly motherly side too and looks out for her friends :)

What makes you happy??

Much Love

LJ xo

A-Z Guide to Happiness: N

N

Ok, might be a little sad me saying this but Netflix!

I absssoluteelyy love Netflix, It's perfect when you want to watch a random film but not sure what as there's a massive range and I guarantee you'll find something on there that you've not heard of before.

Also I've found many tv series that are now my favourite shows through netflix. One of which is House.

I had already watched House before, but re-watched all the series earlier in the year thanks to Netflix :) House is basically a show full of sarcasm, emotion and a hint of comedy, all about Dr Gregory House's diagnostics team trying to solve medical mysteries. Honestly I'd really recommend it!

My other favourite show is Castle. I know, my two favourite shows are called House and Castle, I sound like I have some sort of weird property obsession but neither of which are at all related to properties :P

Castle is about a murder mystery writer who has a copy cat killer, so he works with the NYPD Homicide team to help catch the killer, he then gets a bit of a thing for the lead detective Kate Beckett and pulls strings to stay on the team helping them solve crimes and get more research for his stories. Again it's a show that has mystery, comedy and sarcasm. The actors really bounce off eachother with their witty remarks, I LOVE LOVE LOVE it! :)

Another show I really liked is Orange Is The New Black, if you haven't watched this yet then you need to!!!!!! It's quite a rollercoaster of a show, my favourite characters change quite frequently which is rare usually I tend to favour one person throughout the series but nope! Each episode partially tells the story behind each of the main characters. It's dark, sexy but also is actually pretty funny considering it's about a bunch of female criminals in prison!!!

What makes you happy?

Much love

LJ xo