How going out travelling gives me a sense of freedom (A personal post)

Hello everyone! Just a random "off the top of my head" kind of post today. 

As the above title states, I want to share something more different, and it's also on a wee bit of a personal level too. Especially when I have to do this on an almost daily basis. 

For what I do in my line of work, I am required to travel to various place across the country. Even on days where I am not traveling, or traveling to anywhere for work related things, I still find the time to go out traveling to places I haven't been to before yet, or just want to revisit somewhere mainly for nostalgia purposes. That being said, I have just come to realise that doing all of this makes me feel lucky to work in such a competitive & growing industry, where I have the privilege to travel to so many different places, which make me feel alive & free.

I'll get on to explaining that...

*The above picture is the view of Leeds, which was taken from the balcony of the room I had my IOPC Youth Panel Conference in*

Even from a very young age, I was constantly moving around different places, I have lived in a total of 6 different places, and went to a school & college that was not located in any of the 6 places I had resided in. Every other weekend, when I was with my dad, we'd always go out somewhere by train or by car.

I remember this where my love for travelling manifested from.

Fast forward to now, where I have a Saturday job that's in a another county, and I travel to different places across the country for industry related meetings or conferences.

On a more personal note, I enjoy nothing more than having the freedom to go out and have a wander, as this helps my mind to adjust into a positive mental state by clearing all of the negative thoughts that are trapped inside it. Especially going on long walks or train journeys that take up the whole day!😂

Sometimes, there have been times where I didn't think I would have the confidence to be able to travel long distances by myself, as I always carry a small fear of: "What's going to happen?" But then I have learned that the more I do these kinds of things, the more confidence I will gain when travelling long distances. Especially that it really helps me to feel more independent as a person.

*I began this post on the 24/9, but didn't finish it until the 25/9*

A message from yours truly on Christmas Day

Hi all and Merry Christmas!🎄❄

I hope each and every one of you are well, whilst spending this special day the way you want it to be.

I'm going to make this fairly short and sweet, as I'm intending to relax throughout the festive break.

"Christmas time is all about filling the day with love and happiness. It is also important to cherish your important people in life - Freinds and family.

However, Christmas can may well be a sad time for some people out there.

So do yourself a big kind favour: Be that good samaritain this Christmas, by spreading the festive heartwarming joy to everyone you know. 

You'll easily end up being their appreciated gift this year."❤💚

My best nostalgic moment of all time

It's been a week since my last appearance, due to me focusing finishing College for the summer and going out to work. But here I am again in my free time, looking for ideas for my upcoming posts, when... ker-ching! I know what to post today!

As the above title states, this is a happend something which relates to ME, so it's not going to be a public educational post.

However, please do feel free to read if you are interested.

On this day in 2018... (29th June)

At 3:15pm, I was walking around my School car park trying to look for my taxi, when I happen to see my first ever taxi escort (when I was in reception class) having a conversation with my current escort; Kay.

Although, I've technically seen her around for 3 months by then, but when I first saw her for the first time in which seemed like a decade ago, I was like: "No way! That can't be her, my first ever escort who I haven't seen for ages!" Her name was Lee by the way.

Whilst Kay and Lee were enjoying their conversation, I walked up behind Lee's back and tapped her on the shoulder, then said: "Is your name Lee?" She replied with: "Yes." Then I asked if she knew who I was and replied with: "Yeah, I think so? You do look familiar"

I began to tell her who I was and how she used to be my first ever taxi escort during my first 2 years of School. Her next reaction made music to my ears, as she said: "Oh yes! You've grown so much since then!"

I sense in my head, this is right when she started getting flashbacks in of all these memories of when she used to be my first ever taxi escort, by playing with my toys before School started and tickling the palms of my hands whenever I slept in the taxi on my way home. I can tell by her reactions that she was just as happily heartwhelmed as I was when we began sharing our nostalgic memories to one another.

After our introduction, I said to Lee: "I saw you come back 3 months ago, and I wanted to go up to say hello to you, but I thought you wouldn't recognize me." She replied back with: "Well so you should, as I would've recognized you!"

I added on that our text driver used to be called Mel and if Lee still remembers her back then, which she does.

Finally, she said: "Aww, bless you. You've really made my weekend now that you've told me all that." As she still couldn't believe how much I've changed during all these years since we last saw each other, but Lee hasn't changed one bit, which made me recognize her in the first place. I was honestly amazed how she still looked the same the whole time.

I remember thinking to myself that this nostalgic moment made my weekend too.😊

That's the end of that.

Thank you for taking your time to read through my happy nostalgic story. Please feel free to let me know about what your thoughts are on it and I shall be back very soon with a normal educational post.

Are you with or against 'society'?

This is something fascinating which I've been thinking about lately, as this is proven to be a rather popular topic of discussion to gossip about nowadays; Being that this is the 21st century!

To put these questions in simpler terms:

Do you like to blend in or stand out?

Do you care about what people think of you or are you not bothered?

Do you enjoy being popular or unnoticed?

In relations to all of the above questions, just simply enjoy being who YOU are, regardless if you like to follow society or not.

Scenario 1:

You are a keen sports person, and you follow one of these 'social media influencers' who looks ultra fit, with their six pack, pressed out chest, pressed out pecks, ripped limb muscles and their muscular body. You suddenly decide, you want to look and be EXACTLY like them. So, you therefore start finding ways to build up your muscles, as well as working on your intended six pack. Eventually, you then have this strong thought in your head saying: "I really think people will be impressed with my new and improved body. I can't wait to see their reactions!"

This is that very same voice telling you to push yourself, to encourage you to become a member of 'society'. 

But in reality, you only have an intention of modelling yourself into that influenced person, due to your inside voices telling you to change yourself, just so you can impress your community, as well as your friends and family. FACT: If you watch Love Island, you would see people behave like this ALL THE TIME. In which, lead to 3 unfortunate deaths of those involved with the programme... (Names will be kept anonymous)

Truth to be told, only improve your body if it is to benefit your health.

(The attached picture, shows you an example of what society wants people to look like, just to impress their audience)

 

Scenario 2:

You are a lover of branded clothes, you have a lot of branded clothes, but at the same time, you feel like you don't have enough branded clothes. So you therefore decide to get more branded clothes there and now.

After you feel satisfied with your amount of branded clothes, you now have a happy feeling that you will be able to impress your community, by having so many branded clothes.

However, bare in mind that almost ALL of these branded clothes cost A LOT of money. This will make people think: "This person must be rich if they can afford all of these branded clothes." Which is partly true, as there is a limited budget on how much you can spend on ANY clothing, not just branded clothing.

My final point is, there is absolutely no shame at all by wearing non-branded clothing, as it shows that you have no interest with joining society, including what other people think of you.

(The attached picture, shows you an example of what society wants people to look like, just to impress their audience)

All of this pretty much sums up my discussion about this chosen topic.

Thanks for taking your time to read. I'll be interested to know whatever your thoughts are on society. Please stay tuned for more content!

My favourite life quotes

I thought about doing something relatively different for this kind of post; Since I personally think that everyone needs a fairly decent amount of hope from time to time. Which is why the above title explains my chosen topic.

*This is something which I very much struggle with already, and talking about it really does help*

 

*I also strongly advise everyone else to do the same, as one of my goals for this blog, is to encourage people to discuss their inner feelings more openly to a wider audience, so that they don't feel 'alone' by thinking they're the only ones who suffer from their demon thoughts*

 

(Courtesy of: https://www.facebook.com/officialknowledgeispower/)

How can listening to music benefit you psychologically?

I'm sure by now, most people can relate to how music can help you gain positive thoughts in your head. Which is why, I feel the need to further detail on this thoughtful experiment, to help people have a more better understanding of how it works.

*Here are some common quotes, which I hear and see a lot in relations to the benefits of listening to music*

 "Music is my life"      "Music is my escape" "Music makes me feel free" 

All of the stated quotations are correct, in relations to how does it make people feel. But the topic goes far deeper rather than just using basic quotations. On that note, let's dig in!

If you were in a depressed mood, in which, you intend to find a way to lift your mood clouds, but at the same time however, you don't feel motivated enough to be doing something physical.

In this case, listening to music would be the answer to that problem.

All you have to do now, is find one of your favourite songs, grab some headphones or earphones, sit back and............. let the words, rhythm and instruments take control!

This psychological procedure allows the music to overpower your mind of current stress. Meaning, it clears away all of the negativity. (This procedure can also be used to bring back nostalgic memories. See - https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/2374978378533176995/8313501195419048471 )

What part does the words play?

The words create a meaning for every song. With that just said, it can be to do with love, memories, motivation or even life. They help you to think about people or something in particular you did previously, by listening to its meaning. In terms of love, the words of certain songs you listen to, makes you think about people or even just one specific person whom you love the most, by the written lyrics of the song which suite the person's personality. In terms of motivation, some songs tend to use repetition words in their songs, which can help boost your motivation to do something, in the way that they say it.

  

What part does the rhythm play?

The rhythm helps to create an enjoyable and catchy beat for us to play along to. Perhaps dance along to as well? (If that helps you) Playing along to the rhythm of a particular song, can help us to just focus on all the creative ways you can drum or tap along to, to ensure you keep up with the beat to help you get better and better. This way, you won't be able to think about anything else, other than something you're really enjoying in the moment of time. 

What part does the instruments play?

The instruments seem like another way of giving all songs a different meaning to them. By that, they create many different themes for whatever suits your characteristics best. Weather it's rap, soul, jazz, rock, pop, classic, cartoon, house or folk. Everyone has a different personality. Mine, for example, would very much vary from all of them. This is due to me always having a passionate love for music in general.

As always, thank you for taking your time to read through. Please feel free to let me know how music benefits YOU as a person. I shall see you in my next post. Laters!

"Feeding your motivation"

In this post, I want to give you all a lectured insight, as to how you can "Feed your motivation". It actually turns out to be really simple! Just simply keep on doing what makes you happy. 

For instance, running makes you happy, and you have a keen interest of becoming a long distance runner.

But... to be able to reach that long-term goal, you need to have the dedication to work hard, as well as push hard to be able to get to where you want to be.

However... you also need to be aware that there are physical and mental obstacles, in which, you HAVE to face, as well as finding a suitable navigation (both physical and mentally) to boost your confidence towards the next level in terms of reaching your goal.

One way of doing so, is looking for inspiration around you. Watch some videos about that certain interest which makes you happy, to see if you can copy their tricks and tactics, in which, helps THEM to succeed in relations to finding their motivation. Or you can ask your friends and family to help give you encouragement, by telling you that they will ALWAYS be proud of you, for who you are, what you are and how far you've come and still progressing to for fill your motivation.

From time to time, you may experience these random depressing feelings, where you suddenly feel like you're not trying hard enough, therefore, you don't feel like you're ever going to reach your goal, let alone chasing it down. This is EXACTLY the type of feeling which can throw your motivation right off guard. To keep refuelling it, you need to convince yourself that these are all lies, in which, this depressed feeling is telling you. The best way to overcome it, is to keep on reminding yourself of all the progress you've made over the years. Alongside that, think of all the encouraging words your friends and family say about you, in purpose to give you that motivation, which will really help you to think more about where you want to be.

To put all of this long advice in basic terms - It's all about the focus! Only think about success!

(The above picture shows me finding my motivation; by working out)

Thanks for taking your time to read. Comment down below if want any advice on motivation and I shall be back soon with another post. Bye for now!   

The difference between seeing Christmas Day as a child and an adult

Hey everyone, I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. (Eventhough it was celebrated differently this year... Thanks COVID-19😒) With that said, I want to give you an interesting lecture on how kids and adults tend to see Christmas Day from a different perspective.

Say if you were about 7 years old, you typically write up to at least 20 things on your Christmas list, as you would have been into playing with toys back then. Therefore, you instead see Christmas Day as "getting more toys day" rather than wanting to knowledge the actual meaning of celebrating Christmas.

However, in respect of this point of view - when you're that age, you only get the opportunity to get new toys a few times (maybe 3) within a WHOLE year. So I understand why kids feel the need to have as many toys as possible, so that it allows them to experience using their imagination, as well as playing and expanding it. Believe me, I used to be the EXACT same person when I was that age - it was really good fun while it lasted!

But eventually, when you become 13, you start to realize that Christmas Day is about spending it with friends & family whilst enjoying a special meal together - instead of worrying about how many presents you receive that year. More to the point, you also start to slowly come out of the habit of playing with toys, as you feel like you need to take up more grown up hobbies. Examples given: Skateboarding, drumming or drawing. I think I started to get out of the habit of playing with toys when I was around that age too?

Thanks for taking your time to read this and I'll be interested to know how you used to see Christmas Day when you was a child. Merry Christmas!        

Nostalgia: The best feeling in the world?

Today, I feel like lecturing you all about this feeling called "Nostalgia." It creates a mixed bag of feelings when talking about a certain topic. Let me go through them all...

MUSIC: Say you chose to listen to a song you fully remember from a certain year, (for instance: Bruno Mars ft Mark Ronson - Uptown funk, 2015) you will then instantly get this message into your mind saying: "Ohhh, I remember this song when it first came out! It was such a big hit back then! I remember listening to this song loads of times when I was at a School Disco with my friends!"  Instantly followed by a series of flashbacks taking yourself & your mind back to that very moment where you remembered exactly where you was when you heard that song. More to the point, it allows you think about your childhood memories back when the song first originated.

FOOD & DRINK: *Same scenario as the previous topic* Another instance would be, you drink a can of coke, instantly followed by a series of flashbacks going back to your favourite moments as to where and when you drank coke the most. To be more realistic here, there is 'literally' no better feeling than to have a drink of coke on a hot sunny day by the seafront. And yes, I've encountered this feeling loads of times, so I know how to explain it thoroughly. With all that said, this is a feeling which mostly takes you back to summertime.

In terms of food, you eat something which you've ate during most of your childhood - E.g. Pizza. Immediately after consuming it, you get the same series of flashbacks taking you back to all of your favourite times where and when you ate it. It could be at a friends house, party or even somewhere abroad.

PLACES: If you had a favourite place of all time, which you also happen to have spent most of your time growing up in, you go back there, and suddenly... all of your previous memories (including childhood) come flooding back to your mind. You begin to process all the parks, convenience stores, supermarkets, retail shops and even houses/flats around you, to help bring back all the fun times you had whilst living in the area back then.

PHOTOS: When looking back at either a family picture, picture with friends or a picture of yourself at a location, your exact in that moment memory will instantly come back to mind whilst saying to yourself: "Ah, I remember that exact time I was there! I also remember really enjoying myself too!" This type of happy memory gives out a positive outlook for your adulthood life, as well as looking back on it to reflect on how far you've progressed from that winey child turning into a mature adult.

EXPERIMENT: If you combine all of these topics together... you'll create the PERFECT nostalgic memory!!!

Thanks for taking your time to read this blog. Please do feel free to let me know what one of your favourite nostalgic memories was and I'll be back very soon with another blog. Bye for now!

*DISCLAIMER* All of the chosen topics for this conversation were all based from MY childhood memories.  

My psychology on The Backyardigans

A week ago, I thought about feeding my nostalgia by watching a kids TV show I used to adore - The Backyardigans.

After watching it, I realized that it was purposely created to encourage children and their friends to develop and use their imagination, as well as to go out and 'play with your imagination.' As a former fan of this programme, I can 100% empathise with the logic used in the making of this programme and can totally relate to my said statement above - "Play with your imagination" Let me go into more detail about that quote...

When I was a child, I really thrived on using my imagination and I've always spent a large portion of each day trying to find more ways to expand it. (I can think of loads of other cartoons to use as an example related to this, but I'll save that for another post)  *This is where this programme comes into play* The characters in this programme first showcase their adventures by playing in their backyard in their neighbourhood; For example - Going on a mission to Mars. They then imagine themselves going to that very place with about 1 or 2 other characters to begin with. During the adventure, the other characters will pop up as either the bad guy(s), a land owner or even an animal - To be against or help out with the main characters involved.

But the one aspect which really stood out in this programme, is that they performed their own musicals in every episode, which seems to inform the watchers what is happening in the moment, as well as what are they going to do next. Of course, it can't be a musical without a bit of comedy involved! This helps to liven up the storyline in relations with how the aimed characters are going to react... It could either turn out good, bad or ugly - Get it?!

Obviously, there HAS to be a happy ending at the end of every episode of a kids TV programme, so the characters cheer, (whilst reflecting on their adventure) then one of the characters' stomach rumbles, one of the characters asks: "Is that your stomach rumbling? Are you hungry?" The hungry character reply's with: "Yeah, lets go back to my house for some cheese toasties!" I like how the creators use this realistic ending, as going on a long haul adventure makes you hungry, right? Therefore, this could influence children to do the EXACT same thing after they come back from their own little adventure with their friends to make the day more fun. I know I used to do this with my friends after we've played our little adventure as well. Anyway, the characters end the episode by performing another musical by reflecting on their whole adventure, with the song also telling them to stay tuned for the next episode.

So, that brings an end to my thoughts on one of my childhood shows, hope you enjoyed reading and feel free to let me know what you think!