Just a quick post while I'm on the train traveling home for the family birthday weekend. I say family because its my dad's birthday tomorrow, then my grandma's the day after then my granddad's and mine connectively afterwards. Yep I'm 20 on Tuesday! I don't want to grow up I still feel about 15...

Anyway I digress, I was at the station waiting for my late train to London and I was thinking of what I was once told about women traveling alone.

I can't remember who told me unfortunately but I think it was mainly about women in the victorian era... never the less women have moved on from then and we are a strong independent feminist movement, or something like that. So therefore I stress that the tips are not specific to woman, they are just from my point of view, and I'm a woman, so, there.

These are the rules to which I follow when I am travelling alone.

1. Always keep one hand free.
It helps with expected things like doors and ticket barriers and not so expected things also, its always good to be prepared.

2. Always carry a scarf.
Sounds odd but you can use it to cover the contents of your bag if you have one of those trendy bags without a zip or lock. Also if it rains it can keep your important stuff dry, like your phone.

3. Walk with a purpose.
This is mainly if you have to walk at night or your in a foreign place. Even if your just shopping, if you look like your walking with a purpose people tend to bother you less.

4. Don't trust pockets.
Coat pockets are usually large and are an easy pray for pick pockets or just for your stuff to fall out. also back trouser pockets, especially not your phone, you risk loosing it or sitting on it and you know one of them is going to happen. Or you'll forget its there drop it down the toilet like I did... twice, TWICE?!

5. Give yourself time.
For the love of god please give yourself time people! There is nothing worse than running for your train in heels, dragging your bouncing suitcase behind you. I'm the type of person who will arrive half an hour early for everything, but thats because I know what I'm like. My best friend will have a lecture at 11 and wake up 20 minutes before hand ... how the hell does she do that!?

There it is, my five rules whenever I am travelling, which is a lot lately. I'm off to have a frantically busy weekend I hope you have a lovely one too.

Why when we grow up do we loose that voice in our head which tells us to have fun, and gain a voice that tries to guess what others are thinking about you? 

As we grow we become more aware of our bodies and become self conscious of our 'big' thighs or our 'little pot'. Do you think children are worried about that? Hell no. They just want to dive on that roundabout mid-spin and dance to your own tune, Thats what I think life should be.

Now I don't mean go off and throw away your responsibilities. Go live in a blanket-fort and stuff, Nor do I mean be childish and immature to others. I just think it is important to find the simple things that used to make us happy when we were younger like for me it was singing and dancing, my grandma used to introduce me in a 'royal voice' to all her friends, "Ladies and Gentleman...", and I'd come out from behind the curtain singing and dancing whatever I had just learned that week. I still can't go a day without a little dance or a song, especially when I'm in the house and I'm supposed to be cleaning! Its amazing how much it really does lift your mood.

People like Jim Carrey, who are just one hundred percent in control and comfortable with every part of their body, are an inspiration to me as they don't care about wether or not they may look a bit silly because they are happy and they make others happy too. I say this because my boyfriend and I watched his stand up show ("The un-natural act") from the 90s last night and we were crying laughing, highly Recommend if you want a giggle and it also helps prove my point, if I have one... 


People usually describe me as a constantly happy person but I do still struggle to create my own happiness sometimes. Relying on others to make you happy only leads to being sad when your alone, I believe. If you are happy with your own company you will always be happy. Obviously friends, family or your 'other half' can make you happy too, enormously, but that should be an extension of your happiness not your bases.

There is no way we were born to just work and pay bills, life is too short to not strive for total happiness. You should never give up either, find what makes you happy and doing it as much as you can. Be your inner child and just let go a little. 






Here is a list of things that make me happy, let me know what makes you happy, I'm always looking for more things that make me laugh if anyone has youtube recommendations or something. 

• Stand up comedians - Jim Carrey, Lee Evans, Eddie Izzard 
• Dancing - Mainly 60s early 70s music
• Singing - Anything and anywhere even when I'm shopping
• Musicals - Hairspray, Chicago, Legally blonde, Rocky horror
• Funny youtube videos - Cats mainly, or dogs slipping on titles
• Trying on outfits - My own and in store 
• Decorating food - Like cupcakes 
• Making others laugh or smile - Small things mean a lot 

Yep, its that time of year again where we think "we can do this!" Yes this year my pancakes will look like those served at restaurants and funky coffee shops. My housemate set about buying some ready made mix for me (the worst cook ever) and the normal ingredients for her, she really wanted to make american style ones.

This obviously did not go as planned...

My first one was so thick and gooey it was described as a mash potato pancake, straight in the bin.

One bottle of pancake mix is supposed to make 6 pancakes, for a normal person. for me it made one large failure and 4 small thin crêpes.

Don't even get me started on the flipping part... flipping awful! ( if you pardon the pun)

2 hours and one very messy kitchen later our masterpieces were done!


Let me know how your pancake day went, tweet me at @_AlannaJade  x

As me and my friend walked back after our intense eight hour stint in the library at 10pm, we thought it was funny how only in uni is it completely normal to walk past people who are pissed outside of the pub as you are walking back from the library and tomorrow that could be you, depending on how many looming deadlines you have. 




Time at uni is different from normal human time, bed time is study time, 5 hours sleep is considered brilliant, 8 hours in the library is considered normal and breakfast?! more like grab your coffee and run. 



So for the rest of the walk home we each came up with quirky things that most students find completely normal that would be weird in normal day life, here they are..... 

1. Coming back from the library as others are going out and vice versa.

2. The Divide between the Students and Locals is bigger than the North and South divide.

3. Making a big pot of food and having the same meal four nights in a row.

4. Convincing yourself that because you need to walk everywhere it means your super fit.

5. Handing in the work a whole day before the deadline date and feeling like you're on point.

6. Finishing off your essay whilst getting ready to go out.

7. Pasta Is Life.

8. Sleeping in the library more than your bed.

9. Not getting out of your pyjamas for the whole day.

10. Anything can be  classed as breakfast, mainly crisps according to my housemate.

11. Finding different hangover cures is like a science experiment.

12. Going out with 78p in your bank account and coming home drunk.

13. Mum and Dad visit, Food Shop!

14. All semi-dieing in one persons bed to try and piece together what happened last night.

15. Coming downstairs to find someone asleep on the couch and shouting "who's is this?!" 

I am what you would call a film nerd. Studying TV and Film Production at college before coming to uni opened my eyes to a world of looking at a film, not just for the storyline, but for the directing, the score, the camera work, everything you would miss if you didn't know what you were looking for. Of course this does mean I can no longer look at badly made programs or films without huffing and tutting like my granny at a restaurant. I could blog about my love for films till my eyes were square but I don't have the time and I don't think anyone would have the patience. So two recent films I've just only just in the past week have been 'Birdman' and 'Into The Woods' so I thought id write about them. 



Birdman 
I personally thought the trailer looked a bit 'lad-ish' when my boyfriend said he wanted to watch it, but I am a lover of all films and open to all genres so after a really cruddy day we decided to go watch it, mainly so I could choke down my stress of uni with some minstrels and full fat cola. The films storyline was about a man who used to be really famous for playing a superhero (Birdman) in his younger days and never shook of the image, so in an aim to become famous again he directs, and stars in his own play which is stressing him and everyone around him, showing the hectic run up to opening night. 

Now thats all fine and dandy but as a sideline he somehow has the powers of Birdman like the control over objects and the gift of flight, its hard to decide if this is just him struggling to let go of his character or if he actually has those powers, most likely not but still. Oh and did I mention he has a voice in his head that talks to him and gives him careers advice? Yeah, he seems to be having an inward battle of being a good person and accepting he is a has-been or screwing everyone over for his craving of the stardom he once had. Aside from the deep and confusing storyline that was slightly bordering on pretentious, the cinematography was excellent! Using only invisible editing to look like the whole film was one continuous shot made it flow well and made it look more realistic. This coupled with the solo drum soundtrack keeps it different and quirky, more like a film you would see at a hip young indie film festival. 

This is definitely a film that is hard to put my finger on but I would still recommend it if you like phycological films about other peoples egos. Defiantly a film for film buffs and actors or people who  work in that industry and can relate. l'd give it a 4/5 for directing and camera work but a 3/5 for storyline and entertainment. 


Into The Woods
If you have seen the film you would have just sang that subtitle... Yes this is the new star studded musical to sing its way into our brains and then bug us for the next few weeks. However it is not your typical happily ever after shimmy shimmy musical this is like someone took all the classic childhood fairy tails and shoved them in a blender with Les Misérables. Based on a theatre production which is based on the original Grimm brothers tails, its a blend of dark and twisted parts with your favourite childhood stories such as Cinderella, Jack and the beanstalk and Little Red Riding Hood. I love the way all of the stories are linked in some way by this one woodland area that seems to possess a sickness that makes people act foolishly, très clever.

It also has some sharp witty humour which keeps it alive for people who think it maybe a bit too cheesy for them, the effectively make fun of themselves in a way. Although a lot of my friends said that it didn't live up to their expectations I toughly enjoyed it and can't stop listening to the soundtrack and the singing itself by the actors is marvellous and compelling. It did start to get a little confusing by the end, I don't want to ruin it but you really do have to concentrate on what is going on, its one of those films where if you pop to the toilet you will have no clue what is going on so eyes peeled. Cinematography nothing particularly different but the look and the feel of the film really did make the whole thing, if it was done in a slightly brighter and childish way the film would have gone so far that it would actually turn into cheese. 

Brilliant acting, Brilliant Singing, Brilliant script, I loved it. Would really recommend to anyone that loves musicals and twisted tails, all the actors are amazing and the stories are too. 7/10 for me because personally nothing can beat Les Misérables or the classic Chicago, but it is a really good film to watch if you just want to forget about everything and amerce  yourself in another world for about two hours.