Fact: I don’t make New Years resolutions. My reason? They never really feel concrete enough. I suppose ‘get more sleep’, ‘stop eating so many cupcakes’ and ‘actively use your gym membership’ sound great in theory – but in reality, I always feel like they a) aren’t specific enough and b) are merely pipe dreams. ‘Resolution’ by definition (thanks, Oxford Dictionary) is: ‘a firm decision to do something’. And that’s all fair and well. (I’m sure New Years resolutions work out for some people but, truth be told, I am not one of them.) My New Years resolutions have never been ‘firm’ or even ‘decisions’. They tend towards the spectrum of…
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5 Useless Skills I’m Great At
We’ve all got things we deem ourselves to be great at; skills that aren’t particularly useful – but we’re kind-of-sort-of proud of them nevertheless. Not to toot my own horn or anything, but I’m kind of good at these 5 things (and they’re almost entirely useless). 1. Quoting Dirty Dancing I’m not ashamed to admit it: I’ve seen the 1987 version of Dirty Dancing 9 times (and counting). I can quote a large portion of the film – not just the famous “nobody puts baby in the corner” line. And, in case you were doubting my dedication, I’ve got a plant named Frances. There’s something about the film that I…
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A Beginner’s Guide To Being Above Average
The truth is: we can’t all go to space or, climb Everest or, write a one-hit-wonder that catapults us to fame overnight. But you know what we can do? We can throw away the empty toilet roll. And sometimes, that’s all that’s needed to improve someone’s day. On a day to day basis, it’s often the little things that count most. So here are 15 bits of unsolicited advice about kicking everyday mediocrity to the curb, from an 18-year-old who a) has a lot to learn about life, b) (probably) gets too little sleep and, c) is happy spending all day in her pyjamas. “Great things are done by a…
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To Summarise: You’re Going To Be Fine
Dear Storm At thirteen you think you have everything figured out. You’ve got these big dreams and even bigger ambitions. Your future plans are typed out, taped into a notebook – your equivalent of set in stone – and you think you’re ready for whatever’s coming. The plan is to finish high school with all A’s and then dive right in to a journalism degree. You think you’ll work for a newspaper, write words that change the world, live in an apartment with French windows and a view of the ocean. You want to meet a boy who likes symphonies as much as you do and sip caffeinated drinks until…
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On The Edge Of Normality
I had an image of myself, gliding gracefully into Work Life. I’d start my first day with a cappuccino in hand, sunglasses on my head; the wind rustling my hair just enough to get that ‘movie moment’ likeness. With a denim jacket slung over my arm, I’d glide across the streets in my four-inch high heels (like they were no big deal) and enter the towering building resembling Jessica Pearson from ‘Suits’: tall, elegant and ready for anything. But that’s not what actually happened. I ditched my high heels for sneakers before even stepping a foot out the front door of my house, tugged on the denim jacket two blocks…
