Room 101: Hiccups

I intend to start a little series of blogs called Room 101. If you've ever seen the TV show it'll be a bit like that and if not, it's basically a room where anything that you want to get rid of can go. You weigh up your pros and your cons and decide what to chuck in there

So the first item I  want to banish is hiccups. And the truth is, you don't think about them unless you have them. So I can understand why you must think there should be something that troubles her more than this. I don't mean hiccups along the way, I mean the actual squeaks of air that burst fourth after drinking fizzy drinks or laughing lots. What's the point in them? I'm sure a doctor or a scientist cold come up with a fantastical answer as to why we get these sudden, random acts of nothingness. It'd be Ok, but as far as I see they don't serve any purpose.

Agree/disagree? Email me at: stephcarfrae@yahoo.co.uk with suggestions  for my evictee to room 101. It can be anything - supported with a sentence or two about why. As alwas you can leave a comment below.

Thanks for reading,

Steph

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Have no regrets!

It's quite difficult to write new stuff in here as every week I write another blog @ www.yourhappinessfactor.net . I have been thinking recently what I would tell my younger self if I had a time machine to go back in and whisper into my childish ear and it'd be:

Have no regrets. The only you regret when you’re older are regrets you have from when you’re younger and had the opportunity to do them. The things you look back at and wish you had done in the future could be the things you have the chance to do now. So try not to leave regrets in your path so take every chance while you can.

Even if everyone tells you not to, if you're feeling it, do it anyway. (As long as it isn't illegal etc.) Even if it  turns out to have been the wrong choice, at least you'll be able to look back and say 'It wasn't right, but I had a go.' This does not stand for everything though. Don't pressure people into doing what they don't want to. Because, at the end of the day, while they could really damage their bodies if they get addicted to something, the blame will always fall on your doorstep. Your body is under your control,  what you do with it is up to you, don't let other people rule you or rule other people. They might feel that they don't have a choice if you behave in such a controlling manner. Because everybody has backstory's, as I say again and again, you can never know what's going on behind the closed door of their private lives. They may appear to be all smiley, all happy but more often than not, this is just a show.

If you have any questions about this post, previous posts etc. please let me know in the usual ways (either by leaving a comment below or on twitter (@steph_carfrae) and I will be happy to answer them. If you have any topics that you'd like me to discuss please let me know in the ways indicated above! Thank you for reading,

Steph

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Review of 'Love Letters' by Katie Fforde

I was way too excited to post this...I hope you like it

 

I have just finished ‘Love Letters’ by Katie Fforde. And I absolutely loved it. I was encapsulated by every word and it is a real page turner. While Laura’s character is much like my own, quiet but changed by her experiences at university, the revealing of feelings should, I feel, have taken place earlier. Then it would be a typical romantic book. But it wasn’t, because it kept me on tenterhooks until page 365, which is quite a feat in itself. It was a very ethicising read because the things that happened were so unexpected. Laura has dealt with the fact that Dermot does not return her love, and is settling down for the night at home when he nearly knocks her door down! Though it was hard, she had finally accepted that he didn’t want anything and was moving forward with her life when he comes crashing back into her life and turned it upside down. Again. There is a lot that happens in this book which ends with Dermot confirming whether its love between them or not – I think it’s very important that he has the last word in this case – and results in Laura Horsley landing her dream job.

A very fun read, and definitely relatable.

Thanks for reading.

Steph

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My Graduation and What I Have Learned From Uni....

My first year at uni taught me a lot about unrequited love. I think everybody goes through this at some point or another. It’s one of life’s things. You go through it, pining for the other person who doesn’t give a damn! And it’s hard, you’re always hoping that maybe just maybe you’ve done enough to stay in their lives. Your mind is a tricky concept. It’s built the idea of this person to be impossible to live without, but it’s all in your head. Honestly, trust me, I’ve been there a few times myself. My first proper “unrequited” love in my first year at uni, and though it was hard at the time and I always held a candle out for him in the moonlight, hoping he might realise…it was for the best. I probably wouldn’t have been able to handle it. So I’ve figured that unrequited love is ok. I had and still have this certain person’s  care and while it might not be in the way I want it to be, it’s ok, sometimes you’ve got to deal with the lows before you can reap the successes. Actually, having the care of a lot of people puts you in a good stead for the future, rather than just focusing on one person when love can fall apart at any time. Love is a very temperamental thing and it is easy to tip the scale.

 

My second year at uni I learned not to judge people based on their appearance. I made a lot more friends that way and though the beauty of some people may lie far within, if you look for it, you will almost certainly find it.

 

In my 3^rd year I dabbled (brownie points for the word?) in new experiences. Ones I had never known before, ones I’d heard about and ones that I had previously thought were out of my reach. Also I learnt to stop having regrets. If I loved someone, I made sure they knew because tomorrow is not promised and you never know when it might be your last chance to. They were a really incredible 3 years which I would not trade for the world. All the friends I made along the way have been amazing and I’ve been lucky to have them in my life.

 

Now the subject of my graduation comes up….I know MY graduation? I never thought it was possible….but I was thankfully proved wrong! (Not often you’ll hear me say that!)

 

The ceremony was a beautiful one. Held at Westminster Cathedral it was set to be an amazing day. The choir were sat in their pews at the front poised to sing their little hearts out. This was a catholic service – it was after all, a catholic university I went to! Westminster Cathedral was beautifully hot. This day was one of the days we had a heatwave…(I know, England? Heatwave?) but it was extremely sweltering in those robes! I was one of the first in the queue of graduants to shake the hand of the university’s headmaster and collect my certificate off to the side of the great hall. I remember at one stage having to put my thumbs up at one of my friends to convince her that she’d be Ok when they read out her name. I felt proud of myself when it was over, but was so relieved to finally take off my gown! And then we went to the afterparty on the university grounds and I met up with a few people I wouldn’t otherwise see. I was so tired I could only sip a cider! (That is not me, at all) and then we left pretty early on. A good end to a truly magnificent day.

 

Thank you for reading. As ever, if there is anything you would like my opinion on (be it a situation you're in currently, something that's wrong with he world or just general) don't hesitate to le me know. Either comment below or send me a tweet (@steph_carfrae) and I hope you're having a good day.

 

Steph

 

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Lyric Your Name?

  I had an idea last night....
I don't know if anyone will find this interesting or will want any so if this kind of thing would interest you please let me know by the usual means. Either comment below or tweet me (@steph_carfrae) Thank you!
So the idea was 'Lyric Your Name' and it was going to be an something I did for birthday presents o just for special occasions. Because everybody knows that lyrics can be 'so about me!' But that is generalised. There are a lot of people who can say that because they may relate to a lyric for a totally different reason to you. So my suggestion was that if someone emailed me a bit about the person that the lyric is for (either yourself or another) and I will (hopefully) write an uplifting lyric for you. And if I do well in this venture, I may be able to get musicians involved so that you don't just get your lyrics but you get music too. My email for this will be: stephcarfrae@yahoo.co.uk .
If you would be interested at all, please contact me in either of the two ways stated above. At first, the lyrics I write will be for free but depending on demand the price will go up! I promise not to judge anyone for difficulties/problems they've encountered in their lives. After all, I am looking from an outsider's point of view! It won't be a lyric about the whole of someone's life, just part of it.

Steph

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