Weekly Music Challenge #5- A Song That Reminds Me Of Someone

Hello readers! This week's leg of the challenge is to share a song that reminds me of someone, so without further ado I present you with this:

'I Walk The Line' by Johnny Cash

This song reminds me of my Grandad. It was him that got me into Johnny Cash, as my Mum bought him the 'Live At San Quentin' CD to play in his car, which I listened to more thoroughly during my two week's work experience, when my Grandad used to drive me to my placement. The reason why I chose this song in particular is because once when we were listening to it, my Grandad sang his own version of one of the lyrics, that he said he once sung to my Nan at a dance to make her laugh, so whenever I hear the song I think of that. :)

Thanks for reading! 

The Sims: You're Playing It Wrong!

Hello readers! To celebrate the fact that I've managed to get The Sims 3 to work on my PC (admittedly only base game version at the moment, but still at least I can play!) I've decided to dedicate this Friday's post to my all-time favourite computer game- The Sims.

Back before I reset my computer & I was playing Sims with World Adventures, will reinstall soon now I've got my game to work!

As those of you that know me in real life know & those of you who don't have probably guessed, I love The Sims & have done since I was about 9 or 10. I recall the early days of playing Sims 1 on the PC & Playstation- PC version is definitely the best! Then when Sims 2 arrived- finally they could properly grow up & be a bit more like real life! And then Sims 3- at last an open neighbourhood! I loved them all & I feel that the versions have improved over time (although Sims 4 looks pretty shit, but let's not go into that). Although I'm not the proper 'hardcore gamer' type, I can say that Sims is the game that can keep me hooked for hours, & once I've played I'm addicted for a good few weeks after.

I know what some of you are thinking- "How on Earth can you play it for hours? It's so boring!" Well, in response to that, I give you the post's title, which is a quote I once used semi-jokingly in conversation with a friend of mine who did say it was "boring"- you're playing it wrong. That's right. An open game where you have the ability to do pretty much whatever you like & I reckon that you're playing it wrong. Well, not wrong as such, as there is no wrong way you can play The Sims, but I feel as though you're not making the most of what the game has to offer. Allow me to elaborate:

There are a few different types of Sims players:

• The Killer

This is the person who plays Sims purely for the sake of killing off their characters, be it by fire, drowning or death by flies.

• The Builder

The person who, at some point in the future, would love a career in interior design & uses the game's tools to express their creativity. Or people who just really enjoy building houses &/or community lots.

A house I built this week. Bottom left- downstairs & right- upstairs. :)

• The Virtual Life Liver

The person who creates themselves & their family or friends as Sims & plays the game with them, in a way living a virtual life through the lives of their Sims. This type of player may also 'live out' any fantasies they have with celebrities &/or fictional characters.

• The Storyteller

This is the person who uses the game to play out stories for their own original characters, although they could also do it with their favourite fictional characters. Either way is good.

Those of are four main categories I'd put Simmers into & I can honestly say I've been in each category at some point in my life as a Simmer. I used to enjoy killing Sims off in my younger days, on many an occasion on Sims 1 did I trap a Sim in a room full of chairs & set the firework off. Death by flies was a favourite of mine in Sims 2, which had some of the best deaths (& life experiences, for that matter) out of any of the games. Building wise, usually this isn't my cup of tea & I put my families into the pre-made houses, although recently I've felt like building a couple of things, including the house in the photo above. I also built a rather bad nightclub/bar, but what can you do with only the base game?

Once in Sims 2 I did create my family, however, after my Sim-self was beaten up, I decided to delete this virtual version, besides, I prefer to create my own original characters. Which brings me to the present day Simmer me, who is a storyteller- I create Sim families & give them stories, as families & for the individual characters. My current family are based on characters I've thought of for a novel which I may or may not get round to writing.

The main Sim in my current family. :)

Personally, I feel that storytelling is the best way to play The Sims. The game itself gives you the ability to create whoever & whatever you like & truly unleash your imagination, something I feel is best taken advantage of. The Sims 3 especially allows this, what with all the customisable clothes, furniture & enhanced Create-A-Sim, plus the open neighbourhood means that there's less time spent in front of loading screens. I always find with The Sims that I always keep advancing the story in some way, making my Sims work on their skills, relationships or any other activity that I feel fits with their story. This is what makes this game so addictive for me, as, when I do manage to pull myself away, I find myself thinking about what could happen next. How do I continue the legacy of my Sims? It's this freedom & creativity that makes the game so brilliant & this method of play being the one that makes the game fun & keeping you on it for hours.

Sure, killing Sims is fun, but there are only so many ways in which you can do it, even on Sims 2. Building can be fun too (as I have found this week), but it can get tedious after a while (which is why I don't do it often). And I imagine it must be quite amusing to simulate (no pun intended) real life in the game, although can be rather tragic when your Sim-self gets beaten up, killed or worse, expelled. Hence why storytelling is the better mode of gameplay, & can in fact incorporate all of these elements.

The Father of my current family. Looks pretty sad for someone who's watching TV...

At the end of the day, it's up to you how you play The Sims. We're all individuals & I am just one among the many Simmers here on Planet Earth. I personally prefer to play the way I do & find it more fun to play out my stories, but if you prefer to play it another way then that's absolutely fine. Who am I to tell you how to play The Sims? I can give advice, but as I've said, each to their own.

I hope you've all enjoyed today's post! Any Simmers out there want to share their gameplay method? If so, feel free to leave a comment! :)

Happy Simming folks, & thanks for reading! :D

The game I eventually want to play. It looks AMAZING! :D

Weekly Music Challenge #4- A Song That Makes Me Sad

Hello readers, this Music Monday post takes a more sombre tone as the challenge presents itself with the task of me finding a song that makes me sad. Although, much like songs that make me happy, songs that make me feel sad are a matter of circumstance, out of all the songs I know I can name one that will always bring a sadness with it when heard. Here's the song:

'Everybody Hurts' by R.E.M.

The reason why this song makes me feel sad is because my Godmother died unexpectedly a few years ago & this was the song played at her funeral.

And that concludes tonight's post, thank you all for reading!

Of Bobbles & Art, Food & Fitness- A Week in Review

Hello readers! Back to the personal stuff this Friday as I treat you all to an insight to what I've been up to this week.

Let's start with Monday, aside from blogging on here, I decided to try out my new nail bobbles whilst re-watching series 1 of In The Flesh. I did get the nail bobbles last week but had nail polish on, which chipped/was picked at over the weekend so I removed it Sunday evening so that I could try out the nail bobbles the next day. They're Avon brand & will soon be released, I managed to get them as demo version thanks to my Mum being an Avon rep, & come in 3 different colours- purple, green & pink. I decided to buy the purple & green ones as these are two of my favourite colours. I opted to go for purple this time, which I used alongside a Rimmel 60 second purple nail polish that I've had for ages, & I'm happy to say I'm pleased with the turn out, although will admit having 3D nails is rather an odd feeling! But I do like it, here's a photo of the outcome:

Both hands & in the centre is what I used :)

Not a lot happened Tuesday, went out driving & finally booked my driving test. So far I think it's going pretty well, thankfully managed to do an almost-perfect bay park when asked to do so by my driving instructor!

Wednesday was a good day. You know when you just have those days to yourself, & you manage to do a few things you really want to do? Well that was Wednesday for me. After doing a few household chores I sat down to do some art in the afternoon, did an ink & watercolour version of a design I've drawn quite a few times. Turned out ok, here's what it looks like:

I think it would have looked better without the eyeliner though

After that I started watching Game of Thrones whilst starting my attempt to get fit (which I'll elaborate on in a bit) by using the exercise bike. I think exercising at the same time caused me to miss a few bits, but so far it seems ok, looks like it's something I'll have to watch more of to properly get into. Once I'd finished this I decided to make a DIY vest from an old Green Day t-shirt, something I've been meaning to do for ages. I used a rotary trimmer for a smoother cut on the sleeve area then measured out the v-neck & cut using scissors. Unfortunately I have no 'before' photo of the shirt, but here's what the vest now looks like:

I went back to my art once this was done, started doodling based off of this reference sheet I saw on Pinterest, then decided to draw a profile face, which ended up being a realistic-looking Philip J. Fry that I am rather pleased with. I also updated my deviantArt account that night to continue with my art stuff, feel free to check it out, I've also included a link at the top of my blog as well.

My Fry, am guessing his eyes are blue, don't think it's ever stated.

Thursday involved me walking around my neighbourhood collecting Avon books for my Mum, which then led to me heading to my Grandparents' house to collect some bacon I asked them to buy for me so I could make a BBQ chicken & pasta bake for dinner that night. I also went round to my friend Reema's house & had a good catch up with her, whilst there she introduced me to a favourite food of hers called 'cake rusks', which are like hard cake slices, but then you dunk them in tea & hey presto! Cake! All in all a very nice day.

Finished pasta bake, very tasty!

Which brings me to today. Continuing on the social path, this evening I went to my friend Vlada's house to hang out & have dinner. The plan was she cooked mains & I cooked dessert. I chose to make pancakes with strawberries & chocolate sauce as they'd been on my mind all week, which, with Vlada's help turned out to be more of a success than my last attempt at pancakes- plus I made the chocolate sauce from scratch, something I've not done before, which also turned out well & dessert (which we actually had before dinner itself!) was a success! Vlada's Mum made us trout with rice & Vlada prepared the salad- a very nice meal!

Mmmm... strawberry & chocolate pancakes... :)

As well as all the above, I have, as I briefly mentioned earlier, been attempting to get fitter, which so far is failing. My love of food exceeds the damn I give about my body size & I really need to work ore exercise into my daily routine- unfortunately all my hobbies tend to involve sitting down. Next week I plan to actually get my arse into gear though, stop putting things off & actually working to keep the calories off rather than using exercise as a way to earn calories to eat more food.

And that's all for now, I hope you've enjoyed tonight's post! If you've been up to anything interesting this week, why not share in the comments?

Thanks for reading! :D

Weekly Music Challenge #3- A Song That Makes Me Happy

Good afternoon readers, welcome back to Music Monday & the weekly challenge. This week's challenge is to tell you about a song that makes me happy, which I do have to consider quite a bit as various songs make me happy at different times, depending on my mood, what's been happening etc.

Thinking through the songs that I know & how they've made me feel, I have come to the decision that the following song will be the answer for today's challenge:

'Game Freak' by Ghost Town

The reason why I've chosen this song is, not only because it is a favourite of mine but because one morning as I came into college, this song came up & instantly my mood went from average to good, & by good I mean the kind of good where you deem it necessary to dance down the corridor & into the classroom (which I did- thankfully no-one was around!).

So readers, what's your 'feel good' song, or songs? Feel free to leave your comments below!

Thanks for reading! :D

"I Am A Partially Deceased Syndrome Sufferer & It Is Not My Fault"

WARNING: INCLUDES MILD SPOILERS FOR THE SHOW 'IN THE FLESH'

Hello readers, today I'd like to take the time to tell you about & recommend one of the most brilliant, captivating shows that has ever graced television- In The Flesh. In case you can't already tell by my choice of adjectives, this show is a favourite of mine & something I feel is quite underrated for how exceptional it is.

Poster for series 1, featuring protagonist Kieren Walker

Let's begin with a brief overview of what it's about:
In The Flesh is a BBC Three drama set after a zombie breakout, known within the series as 'The Rising'. In the series, the zombies (or Partially Deceased Syndrome sufferers, as they are known) have been rehabilitated so that they can be re-introduced into society. The first series follows a young man called Kieren Walker as he is re-introduced back to his family & life in the northern town of Roarton, a place with strong views against PDS sufferers & one of the first places to put into effect a Human Volunteer Force to protect against rabid PDS sufferers (or "rotters" as the townspeople put them). The second series continues to follow Kieran as well as focussing on other characters & follows the story of there being a possible second rising, with the pro-living party, Victus & the Undead Liberation Army both in search for the first risen & building prominent forces in Roarton.

After first reading about this series in the TV guide, I thought, "this looks good". I like zombies & as I was (& still am) reading Darren Shan's 'Zom-B' book series, which also focusses on the revived & thinking undead, thought that the ideas in this show seemed interesting- I liked what Shan had done with the undead so it would be good to see another spin in a similar direction. But me being me, plus having coursework & illness in the family, forgot about the series when it first began & wasn't reminded of it until a couple of weeks later whilst at home one afternoon having lunch, where I thought to myself- "what could I watch while I eat?", then remembered In The Flesh.

After one episode I was hooked. It was so excellent & engaging & I had so many questions as to what was happening, what was going to happen & why things were a certain way that I just had to watch the next episode, which was thankfully also on catch up! It was brilliant- I rarely felt this way about TV shows so I eagerly anticipated the finale, which happened to be on that Sunday (which was also Easter Sunday that year, although I found In The Flesh way more exciting!).

Needless to say I was glad that a second series was commissioned, which turned out to be just as good as the first- plus it was twice as long! Again, the series left me with questions & continued to build on the excellent characters & concept introduced in series 1. I loved it. Had to watch the first two episodes on my laptop at uni, but relished in the moment I could watch it as it aired once I came home. It became, as I put it to my Mum, the best & worst thing about the week- best because there would be a new episode, worst as I had to wait another week for the next!

But what makes this drama so amazing? What elements of the show allow it to be so gripping, to the point where I sacrificed an hour that could have been spent doing coursework (which meant a lot to me at that point in time) in order to see where the story was going. Well, allow me to explain:

• The concept

Typically, when someone says 'zombie drama', you think blood, guts, gore & plenty of people's heads being ripped open. Not in this series. It's seen briefly in flashbacks, but one of the things I really like about this series is the way in which the zombies/PDS sufferers are portrayed. In the series', a drug called 'Neurotriptyline' is used to artificially stimulate brain cells that PDS sufferers can no longer make, which enables them to act as they did when alive, although they can no longer feel things physically or perform functions such as eating. I think it's an original & realistic take on the zombie theme & really brings to mind how humans deal with death & what it must be like for someone who has died to be back with a family/friends that loved & mourned them- this is especially compelling in Kieren's case, I won't say why as I feel this is a key part that is better discovered by watching the show.

• Well written characters

If there's one thing that I love in a series, it's great character development & I personally feel that In The Flesh does this excellently. Let's start with Kieren- at first he seems like anyone else would in his situation- guilty about what he did in his "untreated state" & nervous about seeing his family again. As the first series progresses we learn there are deeper reasons for his feelings & actions & he develops even further as a character in series 2. His 'B.D.F.F' (Best Dead Friend Forever), Amy Dyer, is another excellent asset to the show, providing a positive outlook on having a second chance at life & having a sunny disposition that contrasts yet compliments the more sombre themes & atmosphere in the show. Another character that I feel progresses excellently is Philip- I won't give away too much but let's just say he doesn't turn out to be what you'd first expect! Admittedly, all the prominent characters have great depth which is delivered superbly across both the first & second series.

Amy, Kieren & Simon- image from series 2

• Implications & in general just being well written

One of the things that initially had me glued to In The Flesh was how well written it was & the way certain things are implied rather than being blatantly stated. Again, these are things I don't want to spoil about the show so I won't say too much, but for me it was these things that left me with questions that kept me watching the show. I'm not saying I wouldn't have watched it if things had been more blunt, as looking back I'm pretty sure I would, but I liked being able to question, guess & make judgements for myself. Overall, the series' are very well written & provides not only a fresh take on the zombie theme, but also on the themes of discrimination, love, death & acceptance.

I don't think I can recommend this show enough. It really is fantastic & feel everyone should, at the very least, give it a chance. Both series combined are 9 episodes long, so that's only 9 hours to spare, which can be done in whatever time scale you choose- one a night, one a week, or you could go all out & marathon the whole thing in one go! Currently only the second series is on iPlayer, but I'm sure if you Google it you can find the first series online.

So there we go, my show recommendation, I would say "of the week" but I really do recommend it all the time- it is amazing!

Thank you for reading, now enjoy In The Flesh! :D

DVD Cover- available from Amazon for £15 :)

Note: I take no credit for images used in this blog post.

Tales of the Haunted Youth- Seeing Ghost Town Live

Good evening readers, welcome back to Music Monday & my second detour from the challenge. In today's post come another gig review, this time for a band called Ghost Town who played in a city close to my home town.

Allow me to start with a brief introduction to the band & how I got into them. Ghost Town are an American 4-piece electro-rock band, consisting of Kevin (vocals), Evan (electro), Alix (guitar) & Manny (drums). I got into them a couple of years ago when my friend Tom played me their song 'You're So Creepy'. After that, I gave some more of their songs a listen & purchased their 'Party In The Graveyard' album & 'Bare Bones EP'. Although I haven't followed the band that closely in recent times, I do enjoy their music so thought it would be a great opportunity to go & see them play live, seeing as they were coming close to where I live.

Now onto the gig itself. I went to see them last Wednesday (4th June) with my best friend, Laura & it was great! Prior to the show there was a signing in a HMV close to the venue, which we both attended. I was quite surprised at the turn out as Ghost Town aren't what I would deem a well known band, but there were a fair amount of people there which was good. Me & Laura bought copies of their new album, 'The After Party', to be signed once our turn to meet them came. It was nice meeting them, was very brief but we got to hug them & say "hi"- they're really nice guys. We did have a photo taken with them but it was done by a professional who hasn't yet put any of the signing photos on Facebook.

My signed album. Band members from L-R- Alix, Manny, Kevin & Evan

After the signing, we had a wander round the shops before heading to the venue as we had an hour to kill. Once at the venue & once inside, we visited the merch stand & I got the 'Tentacles' t-shirt of theirs that I'd wanted for ages, as that's one of my favourite songs of theirs. It also happened to be the song they played second in their set, which I was very pleased about!

Overall they did a really good set, the venue they played at was small & there was a good crowd which became alive with energy once the band started. Said energy was spread by the band, who were great to watch & had a fantastic stage presence. It was fun being in the crowd, jumping around & singing along, although I did have to give up on jumping at one point as I had my hair clipped up, which knocked on a ledge I was stood near.

As well as 'Tentacles', they played other older songs such as 'Wasted' (which they opened with), 'Off With Her Head' & 'You're So Creepy'. They also played a couple of newer tracks which I didn't know as well, but 'I'm Weird' was stuck in both mine & Laura's heads afterwards. I'd say this is my favourite of the newer songs.

Once the set ended, the crowd was yelling for an encore, which thankfully happened- & it was acoustic! This was a nice touch, with Kevin asking everyone to sit on the floor whilst they played the final two songs- 'Skeleton' & my other favourite, 'Game Freak', which was brilliant acoustic!

Overall, a brilliant gig, very energetic & fun- me & Laura both enjoyed ourselves very much! I'd recommend giving Ghost Town a listen, if you're into rock with some electro, almost dubstep-esque beats with lyrics relating to the supernatural & paranormal, you'll enjoy their music. Here's a link to their music on Spotify.

And here are some photos of them live:

There we go folks, I hope you've enjoyed tonight's post! Thanks for reading! :D

Much To Do Over Summer...

Hey readers, hope you're all well this good night! Tonight we're back onto a more personal post, although I'm now considering doing the insights into my personal goings on as a monthly thing rather than fortnightly, like a round up. Or just do whatever I feel like. We'll see...
Anyway, in tonight's post I thought I'd share some of the things on my summer 'to-do' list. Every year I think to myself "oh I'll do this, that & this over the summer & it'll be great!", & every year most of what I plan to do rarely happens. This year though I have more time off than usual thanks to the way Uni works, so hopefully I'll get to do a bit more than usual.

So, without further ado, here are some of the things I'd like to do this summer:

• Learn to drive

Now this is top on the list of accomplishments & the most likely to get done out of everything, as I do know how to drive, I just need to brush up on everything & pass my practical test. Was quite nerve-wracking getting back into a car after about an 8 month break, but I was fine once I got back on the open road. I'm currently doing a 12 hour intensive course with my test at the end, so far done 2/12 hours so fingers crossed this goes well!

• Read

One day I want to just sit down & read. I love doing this & unfortunately the amount of coursework I've had to do at Uni hasn't afforded me this luxury. I've managed to keep on track with Darren Shan's 'Zom-B' series as they've come out, but they're relatively short books with a fast pace so I can get through them rather quickly. I do have a 'to-read' list, which includes 'The Maze Runner' trilogy, a Young Sherlock Holmes book I got for my birthday & book called 'Pure', which is the start of a dystopian series which looks quite interesting.Also I do want to re-read 'harry Potter' at some point- that would be amazing as I haven't read it in years & it is my all-time favourite series!

Showing some of my 'to read' list, plus a Green Day DVD & '2312', which I ought to finish at some point...

• Do art for fun

I really want to improve my illustrative skills, & although over the years they have gotten better, I'm still not as amazing as I'd like to be, so I best get myself some practice. Also, after my uni course I've started to lose passion in it a bit, so I feel getting back down to doing it for fun will revive my mojo ready for a fresh start in September.

Part of my 'art for fun' will be updating my deviantArt & RedBubble accounts, especially RedBubble as I wouldn't mind getting into t-shirt design. :)

• Play instruments

Especially my guitar, as I really enjoy playing it but don't get as much of a chance to do so these days. Would like to get back into my bass guitar as well as I've barely played it.

Mum's old Gibson Hummingbird Replica, lovely guitar

• Watch & re-watch series

Now I have plenty of time to procrastinate, I would one day like to sit down & marathon a couple of series I've been meaning to get into, which are 'Supernatural' & 'Game of Thrones'. But then I also want to re-watch 'Ouran High School Host Club' as it is just brilliant & I want to do a minimalist series based on it.

Ouran High School Host Club mug I bought myself yesterday. I shall use it to make commoner coffee :)

• Get fitter

Oh yes, the typical summer thing, get fitter, although I don't want to get fitter so I can flaunt myself, but for ages I've wanted to lose a bit of weight & now I don't have the stress of coursework leading me towards indulging in comfort foods, I can focus on working some exercise into my daily routine. I plan to combine this with watching things using the exercise bike that my family tends to use as a coat stand.

• Socialise

Well of course, my friends are awesome & I hope we'll have many good times this summer. :D

And I believe that is it. I know I mentioned before about a project I started but I have since scrapped it as it was a daily deadline, & aside from this blog I don't want deadlines this summer. Need to stay chill, & relaxed, & as stress free as possible.

So what are your plans for the summer readers? Doing anything interesting? Why not comment below? :D

That's all for tonight, I'll be back Monday with another gig review. Thank you all for reading & good night!

(Brief note- although the title is a parody of a Shakespeare play, I would like to say that I am not actually a fan of his work. Especially that one, but that's a topic for another day,)

Weekly Music Challenge #2- My Least Favourite Song

Hey readers! Back to the challenge this Monday, with item numero dos on the list being my least favourite song.

Now at this current moment in time I don't have a least favourite song, am too busy focussing on the music that I do like! But if I did have to pick a least favourite, it would be this:

(Image isn't mine)

'Jar of Hearts' by Christina Perri

What I dislike about this song is the way that it's sung- there's something about her voice when she's singing the chorus that I really cannot stand! I want to say it's pathetic but I'm not sure if that's the right word to use, but to me that's how it is.

Although I'll admit I don't mind her song 'A Thousand Years', but then that reminds me of a plot to a manga by Bisco Hatori (which I should probably check out at some point).

That's all for tonight good readers, if you'd like to share with my your least favourite song, leave a comment! But if not that's cool too. :)

Good night! :)