21 Things I Learned in 21 Years

Sunday 26 March 2017

21 Things I Learned in 21 Years
So today marks my 21st birthday. I'll no doubt be spending it hungover with the people I love the most and I wouldn't have it any other way. I'm writing this post in advance but lets hope McGowans didn't defeat me last night and I just danced the night away into the early hours of my 21st year of life (check out my snapchat- michellealicex to see if that was the case haha).

As last year I wrote a very emotional Letter to my 18 Year Old Self, this year I thought I would share 21 things that I learned at 21. Grab a coffee, this is going to be a long one!

Before I head straight into the post, I thought I'd quickly share with you what I wore for my 21st! I took these photos yesterday before I headed out (priorities haha) because I just couldn't wait to share my outfit with you!




YOU DO YOU
Say what you feel and don't hold back. Communication is key in life and expressing what you love can be so fulfilling. Starting this blog has been one of the best things I could have ever done and sharing it is even better. If I had have shyed away like my 15 year old self probably would have done, I really don't know where I would be today. Nobody cares about what you're doing as much as you think, as harsh as that sounds it is true. Everyone has far more things to be worrying about.

CATS ARE THE BEST
It definitely didn't take me 21 years to learn this, but the crazy cat lady that I am just feeds off their love. My cat Harry although stunning, can be a little cold sometimes (breaks my heart really) but his little face makes you so happy.


DON'T LOOK FOR LOVE
-It'll find you. I am a huge advocate of loving yourself before anyone can love you and one thing I learned over the years is that don't look for love, because it will find you. It comes when you least expect it (heck, even when you don't want it) and don't let it pass you by. Looking for love, in my opinion, only gets you something that you're settling for. Enjoy your time single with no ties to anyone, it is SO FUN however if someone comes along that can make you very happy, embrace it with open arms and see what happens!

EXPLORE MORE
I'm definitely well travelled but I want to see more, I just want to see the world. Spending last summer in San Diego taught me that I'm still so young and that I should enjoy myself and travel while I still can. Even travel Ireland more, I have grown to appreciate our Emerald Isle and I need to see more of it because there is so many beautiful places only two hours down the road.

SET YOURSELF GOALS
-and exactly how to achieve them because that is how you see results.

CELEBRATE EVERYDAY
Life is short and so unexpected. If my school years thought me anything, it would be that you never know when your world can be flipped in a second. When I was in fifth and sixth year in secondary school, two girls died on two separate occasions, quite unexpectedly. The deaths of two girls was a slap in the face and the reality check we all needed. Even though I only knew these girls to see, they both had such an impact on my life that I can't fully explain. All of the petty drama is ridiculous, do all of the school/ college work with a smile because at least you have the opportunity to do it. Celebrate everyday you have here with your health and tell everyone who you appreciate that you love them because who knows when they could be snatched away from you.

YOU'RE SHIT AT KEEPING IN CONTACT
As you go through life, it is destined to happen that you'll drift apart from friends but I'm the worst at keeping in contact with people. I can be just so focused and caught up with what I'm doing and time just goes by in a flash. It is something that I really want to work on about myself.

TIME MANAGEMENT IS KEY
Less Netflix and scrolling on Instagram, you'd be surprised how much you get done!

POST THE BLOODY INSTAGRAM 
-and stop being such a fecking perfectionist!

STOP MIXING YOUR DRINKS
Mixing cocktails with wine and all the vodka on offer never ends well haha.

YOU'RE IN CHARGE OF YOU
With so much hatred in the world (looking at you Donald Trump) you need to be in charge of you and you can't control anything else. Throughout that whole time in history, between the US election and Brexit, I found the world to be a very negative place with everyone complaining about how useless all of the world's political systems are and about how the world is essentially doomed. That time thought me that at the end of the day, we may have powerful people above us that decide what we can and can't do, however you can't let them dull your sparkle. You are in change of whether you're going to make this world a happier place to live and that will not go unnoticed.

YOU CAN READ PEOPLE
I have a very good intuition about people but at the same time it takes a lot for me not to like someone, which I think is a good thing. I'm not one of those people who get irritated very easily by those around them so I tend to like most people I meet however trust your gut, when you meet someone and you don't have a good feeling about them, it is generally true.

EAT ACAI BOWLS ALL DAY EVERYDAY
My love for them started in San Diego and I will never look back.. Healthy and tasty- you can't go wrong 💕

DON'T HOLD BACK ON THINGS YOU WANT TO DO BECAUSE OF OTHERS
Luckily I feel like I actually don't do this very often.. Some could call it selfish but at the same time, you need to do what you want to do and letting someone else hold you back from that will only lead to regret.

COFFEE ISN'T THAT BAD
And you have 2 and a half years of working in a pub to thank you for realising that one.

JUST IGNORE THE DRAMA
It is too draining and life is too fecking short, but at the same time..

LET NO BITCH PUT YOU DOWN

You shouldn't let anyone treat you like shit and talk down to you. There is a difference between constructive criticism and letting someone talk crap about you, even if it is to your face.

TAKE CARE OF YOUR SKIN
Taking off your makeup every night and moisturising can be a pain but so worth it in the end. Brushing your teeth after a night out is a pain on another level, but I have to keep working on it haha.

NOBODY HAS A CLUE WHAT THEY ARE DOING
It's not just you. As I come into my final weeks of university, it is safe to say that although some may look like they have a plan, they are just as terrified as you.

YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT WILL COME IF YOU JUST ASK
Chancing your arm can never be regretted, the worse they can do is say no and you never know what can come from it!

DUN LAOIGHRE IS ALWAYS A GOOD IDEA
It is my favourite place in Ireland and it always makes me so happy. Plus, Scrumdiddly's is there which makes it so much better!

I find it hilarious even looking back at the letter I wrote to my 18 year old self last year, even since then I have faced so many obstacles and have grown up so much more than I could imagine. I know that I'll look back laughing at this post too because I have so much ahead of me and so much more growing to do. These are my favourite posts to write and I hope you have enjoyed reading this one.


When I Don't Have a Bee in my Bonnet

Thursday 16 March 2017

When I Don't Have a Bee in my Bonnet

For a while there, I really was on a roll with blogging. I constantly had something to say, a new opinion to share and a topic that I just felt needed to be discussed. For me, that's not all the time though and that's ok.

About two weeks ago, I sat at my laptop to write a blog post and I just had nothing. A list of ideas but none that truly inspired me at that time. Why I'm so sporadic with my blog posts, is because I can't assign myself a time to write. Words just come to me at the most random times and I'll have a full post written in five minutes flat. Sometimes I'll wake up at 3am full of inspiration and ideas or I'll be sitting on the train and so many thoughts fill my brain.. I just can't control it.

I have started writing posts that you may not even see until June, I just get a spurt of inspiration and just have to write it all down, at this stage I probably won't even come back to that post until June!

Sometimes it doesn't even come down to inspiration, sometimes I just don't have a bee in my bonnet and I'm content with what I'm doing with nothing to share, which is ok too. Over the last few months I have made some hard hitting posts, when I wrote Let's Talk About Consent, it was a huge issue around that time, similarly to my opinion on Valentines Day and What I'm Doing with my Life. All very current topics in my life at the time but sometimes I'm happy out, pottering around taking blog pictures and heading in and out of college, spending time with my friends just enjoying my life.

In the past I have tried to force out some blog posts, but they just aren't the same. I have just learned the hard way over the last few weeks to have a few photos pre taken and just whip out the laptop when the ideas hit. In fairness there are so many bloggers who I turn to for inspiration who help so much but when the words aren't flowing, there is not much I can do.

                                                                        TOP / TROUSERS / BOOTS / BAG / JACKET

Aside from all of that, lets talk about this outfit! The top and trousers are both Topshop (linked above), so is the bag but it is very old stock. I never thought the trousers would suit me but I tried them on on a whim one day and was pleasantly surprised, plus it feels like you're just wearing pyjama bottoms so they are ideal! The boots are Topshop too would you believe, and they are on sale so get your hands on them while you can. I got them when they first went on sale because my ASOS black boots (aka the loves of my life) eventually became a bit too worn and just a bit too scaldy.. This coat is H&M old stock however the one I've linked above looks the exact same. Sunglasses are Penney's, unreal for €3!

I really hope you enjoyed this post! Don't forget to follow me on my social media which I linked below. I'm having a real Instagram moment lately and loving every minute of it so make sure to head on over and follow me there. I hope you have a wonderful Paddy's Day and enjoy the long weekend.







Reasons to Smile with PD Dental

Sunday 12 March 2017

Reasons to Smile with PD Dental
Smiling is one of them amazing things that can just light up a room, it is true- its infectious. Sometimes we can get distracted by the woes that life throws at us but it is important to bring it all back and appreciate the little things that brighten up the everyday.
IT'S SPRING
YES finally a bit of sun. This week the sun came out and it was one of the first days this year that it actually felt like Spring. There is something about it makes it being sunny that lifts everyones spirits and puts everyone in a good mood.. Plus, there is nothing better than Ireland when it's sunny.

Kate LaVie got a new kitten and all of her photos of him on her Instagram stories are to die for (insert all of the eye heart emojis). 

This week, a professor's children walked in on him doing an interview with the BBC and it's hilarious.. You have probably seen the video but if not, you're welcome! 
If you know me in person, or you may have noticed in my blog photos- I never smile with my teeth. I have always got passing comments about it and it has been noted so many times but it just feels weird. I am far more comfortable smiling without my teeth for some reason, I know I don't have the worst teeth but they are far from perfect being not the straightest and not the whitest. When PD Dental got in touch to offer a teeth whitening session I jumped at the chance.

On arrival I had a consultation with the lovely ladies in the office and then was given a full scale and polish followed by laser teeth whitening which was all done in the space of an hour and a half.

I would recommend PD Dental for whitening if you're looking for a few shades lighter and a good clean- the staff are so kind in there and they left my teeth looking brand new.

Laser teeth whitening is €150 and the scale and polish is €50 and you can find out more about them on their website here.

Happy Sunday everyone and I hope you have a great week.



Algorithms & Why Bloggers Hate Them

Monday 6 March 2017

Algorithms & Why Bloggers Hate Them
Algorithm, one of those words that give me slight PTSD (thanks to first year computer Science) and needless to say it is one that bloggers just don't get on with.




You may hear us all go on about sharing our content on various platforms and asking everyone to like their pictures.. Why is that you may ask? Yep it's thanks to algorithms that social media platforms put into play in order to get the most meaningful and best personally tailored content for each user.. 

The first major change that came about was Instagram's change from showing posts in chronological order to showing the posts that you interact with the most, first. This caused outrage within the blogger community, understandably, as the old way allowed us to be shown to a wider audience and not just the one Instagram has chosen for us..

It's not just Instagram, it happens on Facebook too and it can be very frustrating at times.

When you have put so much work into a blog post and say have 500 odd likes on Facebook, sometimes the reach can be as bad as 15 people despite it being the prime time when my audience is active. The higher your number of followers, the less likely you're content will be seen in proportion generally.. It can be a little disheartening to say the least.

Any blogger will know, that blogging can be difficult, it is a 24/7 job that has gotten quite a bad rep in the past. That said however I fecking love it and wouldn't have it any other way and by staying true to yourself, and not trying to do shady things to get followers, it can be the most rewarding and enjoyable hobby out there.

Let's just talk about this outfit for a moment. Topshop was once my one true love in life but in recent months, I have just moved on. Don't get me wrong, it still is probably one of my favourite shops to wander around and have a browse but the trend pieces are just wildly out of budget for this broke little student. That being said, I couldn't resist this white jumper that I saw, the sleeves are just to die for. I paired them with my ripped Joni jeans and these new black boots (you just can't have enough right?) that are actually on sale at the moment! I threw on these new Penney's sunnies (absolute favs) and my Penney's belt which is looking very worse for wear these days haha.


Well I hope you enjoyed this little post and got a better insight to the little world of blogging! Make sure to check out my social media below and give them a follow if you are any way interested. Have a fab day.