Tea Stains and Daisy Chains: lifestyle

Found on Instagram: Absolutely Bear

12:22

Work hard, play (sport) hard

21:40

I would have entitled this post 'Work hard, play (sport) hard, and blog hard', but that (as well as being slightly less catchy) would involve me having (even vaguely) successfully done so... Sadly, during my first year at uni, I haven't written a single blog post. I suppose I could have made myself write some, maybe late at night instead of going out drinking, but I don't think blogging should ever be forced- if you want to write, then write. If not, don't stress.

But anyway, here I am a year later, blogging again! Let's hope I haven't completely lost it...

Seeing as it's the Olympics at the moment (woo!), I thought I'd share some tips I've learnt this year about how to be involved in a competitive sport at uni and also keep on top of your degree at the same time, preferably without having a complete breakdown. I am, of course, no expert. I'm not at the top of my class, nor at the top of my sport, but then I guess that's pretty much the norm. (If you're a 16 year-old currently competing in Rio, I'd suggest you stop reading now- I think you've got this).

This was actually probably the hardest thing about starting university for me- I wanted my course to go well and to get good essay marks (I know first year doesn't count blah blah) but I also wanted to get really into rowing and train as hard as I could. Now don't get me wrong, there are so many other sports that don't require anywhere near as much commitment as rowing, but me being me, of course I chose the one that involves early mornings and two sessions a day (I'd definitely recommend it, by the way). So here are some tips (from someone who definitely never gets stressed and definitely never eats chicken nuggets in bed as a way of coping, and has certainly never cycled alone to a field with a bottle of wine...)

Get involved straight away. It may seem like too much to take on a new sport when you arrive at uni for the year and are being bombarded with reading lists and deadlines, but do it anyway. If you don't sign up and go along to meetings in the first few weeks, you might find it hard to ever get round to it once term starts properly and you remember what 'busy' actually feels like.

Keep a diary. Not for writing down your every thought (although please feel free), but for keeping a track of everything that is going on each week. Work out what you have to do for your course and allocate each task to a certain day, as well as filling in your training sessions. If you've got an essay to write, plan it in for a lighter training day so that you don't suddenly remember about it the day you've got two sessions and an hour in the gym, which just so happens to be the day before it's due.

Be flexible. Whilst you can have the best intentions (see above), sometimes things just crop up. These might be extra training sessions, extra reading for a seminar the next day, or spontaneous nights out/ naps. Having a plan is great, but if you feel like your life is being dictated by it then that's not really ideal and will probably just cause more stress. As cliché as it sounds, you kind of just have to go with the flow when this happens; do what you can but don't freak out if you don't manage to do absolutely everything you had planned.

Prioritise your work. I don't mean prioritise your work over your training, I mean prioritise the most important parts of your course. Now this really depends on the type of person you are; if you're like me and feel like you're going to fail if you don't read every single item on the 'suggested reading list' before a seminar, then listen up. Just chill out a bit- as long as you've got a reasonable grasp of a topic before a class then you'll be fine, no one is expecting you to have read everything under the sun on Descartes before a seminar. And if anyone has, then good for them, but they probably didn't do 90 minutes on the erg followed by a water session the day before.
Look after yourself. Sometimes it seems ridiculous that on top of all this rushing around you still have to find time to feed yourself/ tidy your room/ wash your clothes/ change your sheets/ go food shopping etc. As gross as it is, I often realise that my sheets have turned yellow and my carpet has collected what seems to be an entire head of hair. It's at these times that I remind myself that while I want to study hard and be at the gym 24/7, I can't live in a pig's sty (I apologise to all the pigs out there, I think my room is probably worse). So, try and set aside some time each week to sort out the rest of your life- put some washing on and give your floor a quick hoover, it shouldn't take very long if you give yourself some time to do it.
Eat well. It goes without saying that if you're training most days then you've got to eat well. So this means making sure you're eating fruit and veg (I find keeping some frozen veg in the freezer works best), as well as carbs (lots and lots of carbs) and protein etc. While you could pretty much eat whatever you want because of how many calories you're burning, if your diet is really unhealthy all the time then it's not going to do you any good and you won't have much energy for getting your work done. Personally, I do a weekly online shop, which means I can plan my meals easily beforehand and don't have to spend time doing a big shop in a supermarket. I also have a cheap and cheerful smoothie maker which is great for whizzing up some fruit before a training session.
Sleep well. Whilst realistically you will probably be running on not very much sleep most of the time, don't over do it. With a sport like rowing especially, where you have early morning sessions, make sure you at least think about getting a bit of an early night a few times a week. Alternatively, make napping your new best friend.
Treat yourself. Even if you feel like you have a million and one things to do, it's important to take some time out every now and then. Maybe this is just to watch Netflix for a bit, eat chicken nuggets in bed (which I have definitely never done...), or hang out with a friend. Basically just make sure you're not spending every waking hour either working or working out.
Be okay with not being a 'typical student'. Not that that's really a thing anyway. But people (mostly older people, I find) seem to assume that all students lie around in bed all day and generally don't do a lot. And of course, you will probably have friends who do this to varying extents, and sometimes you'll be smug, sometimes you'll be infuriated, and sometimes you'll be insanely jealous. There you are making your third meal of the day before you rush off to some lecture or other, and someone shuffles into the kitchen, blinking in the daylight and asks whether you've got 'a busy day'. Before you respond with some sort of insult, remember that you love your way of life (most of the time), and they probably love theirs too.
Be okay with sometimes missing out. If you enjoy a night out, then I'm sure you'll manage to fit some into your busy schedule, but there will sometimes be sacrifices you have to make. Maybe you've been away all weekend at a competition so need to catch up on work, or perhaps you're on drinking ban during the last two weeks of term (hardest weeks of my life...), but just try and tell yourself that it will be worth it when you get a PB or win a race/match. Your friends (if they're anything like mine) will probably get sick of the response 'Sorry I can't, I've got rowing', but if they're good friends (like mine) then they'll respect what you do.
Remember you're not superhuman. Sometimes it's impossible to do everything. Most coaches don't want you to jeopardise your degree for the sport, so if you're really struggling to keep up with the work, and you're genuinely trying, then missing a few sessions isn't going to do much harm. As long as you talk to someone and don't just not show up, then no one is going to think any less of you for taking some time off.

I hope some of these have been helpful and that you are able to work hard and play sport hard this year.

If you need some more advice or have any tips of your own, please feel free to leave a comment below!

beauty

Purchased in September

14:09

annie sloan

DIY Shabby Chic Mini Wooden Drawers

11:46

In my last post I said I was possibly going to try a DIY project with the mini stationary drawers I'm taking to uni. I didn't really think I'd ever get round to it, but as it turns out, I was bored today and fancied getting a bit creative. You'll be pleased to know that it only took a couple of hours, so it's not the kind of project that takes the whole day or weekend or anything. Even better, you can do this with any piece of furniture you want to turn vintage! Here's what you'll need:

1 set of mini wooden drawers (IKEA is probably your best bet)
Chalk paint (I used Annie Sloan's)
Soft clear wax and soft dark wax (again, Annie Sloan's is great)
A couple of paintbrushes of varying sizes
An old cloth or rag of material
Sandpaper
Paper, a pencil and a ruler
Acrylic paint for decoration (I used black)

Step One- The painting

Before you start any painting, you'll want to lay down some newspaper to protect the surface you're working on. You could do it outside if it's sunny, but it's useful to be at a table to get the best stance when you're rubbing down later on! Once you're all sorted with your old shirt and your radio blasting, you need to take the drawers out of the main 'chest' and coat each one with your chalk paint. I only did the front and sides because I didn't see much point in doing the inside or the back, but it's up to you. Don't worry about being particularly neat; if you miss a few spots then that will only add to the vintage effect. Lay the drawers out to dry and then do the same with the actual chest (again, I only did top, sides and the small edging on the front). Leave everything to dry for a while, preferably a good few hours.

Step Two- The waxing

First, take the clear wax on a paint brush or an old cloth and rub it into each of the painted areas of your drawers and chest, almost as though it's a moisturiser. The next bit's a bit scary, but if you want that shabby chic look then it's got to be done! Take the dark wax and paint some onto one of the sides of a drawer. It will look very dark and horrible, but that will all change! Using a dampened rag or cloth, rub in the wax (always going in one direction) so it smudges, making sure you exert quite a lot of pressure. Continue this until you've got your desired effect, also using the sandpaper to help scrub off some of the wax so that the white paint, or even the wood, shows beneath. It looks quite good to have darker bits around the edges, but you can create any sort of look that you want. Once you've done this with each side and each drawer, do it to the main chest, coat everything in the clear wax again and leave to dry.

Step Three- Drawing the Design

Now, if you like the minimalist look, you could just leave your drawers at that, but I decided to add a design on the front to personalise it even more. Obviously, any design would work, but if you're not used to painting then keeping it simple is probably the best idea. If you know the kind of thing you want, head over to Pinterest and have a look around; that's what I did! Instead of cracking straight on with the paint, it's best to measure out the area you want to apply the design to, and then make a paper replica as a sort of template. For mine, I measured the height and width of the chest (from the inside of the border around the edge) and cut my paper to the right size. Then, I measured the height and width of the drawers and transferred all of those measurements on to the paper, which then created the horizontal shelf in the middle as well.

Next, draw your design onto the paper, remembering that you don't want a complicated bit to fall on the edge of one of the drawers, or on the middle shelf. When you're happy with it, transfer the corresponding section onto each of the drawers using a pencil. Press quite lightly in case you make a mistake.

Step Four- Painting the Design

Once you're pleased with your pencil outline, you can begin to apply the paint! I used black acrylic straight from the tube, as any water would just be resisted by the wax coating I applied earlier. I'd recommend taking each drawer out and painting it individually, as it's just easier to work with and I'd use quite a fine paintbrush if your design is detailed. Once you've done one layer of paint and it's dried, you might want to apply another layer to create a cleaner finish. Finally, put all the drawers back into the chest and join up any broken lines (e.g. over the middle shelf).

All that's left to do now is fill your drawers with stationary, make-up, jewellery or anything you fancy!

I hope you enjoyed this DIY tutorial- please let me know in the comments section below!

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article

Is this your idea of a healthy relationship with food?

10:32

As I was scrolling through (and largely ignoring) the articles on the Daily Mail Online app this morning, this one particularly caught my eye. Of course, this is by no means the first product to be launched as a 'zero calorie' alternative, but the fact that this isn't even food seems to take things one step further.

Diet foods vs zero calorie 'foods'

Don't get me wrong, I have no problem with the ever-evolving array of 'diet foods', which are now available in most supermarkets. These ranges, such as Morrisons' 'NuMe' and Sainsburys' 'Be good to yourself', offer people the chance to make healthy choices, whilst still enjoying good quality food. However, by removing all nutritional value from a product, just because it tastes nice and contains 'too much' fat or 'too many' calories, surely turns the whole idea of a healthy relationship with food on its head? Food is our fuel. Imagine pitching 'zero calorie noodles' to a group of starving farmers in Mali; the concept would be simply bewildering. We eat to give us energy and encouraging people to forget this is not going to solve any problems.

The problem of obesity

As we all know, some of our diets do contain a higher number of calories than necessary. However, in my opinion, trying to tackle this problem by giving people what they want, only without the calories, is only going to cause more issues. Having these calorie-free options available seems to simply enforce the idea that we can't learn to control ourselves around food. Are we really so desperate for chocolate that we need to stick a 'listerine strip-type product' in our mouths to get some satisfaction? Surely if it's just the taste we crave, then eating just one square of actual chocolate would do the trick and wouldn't result in dramatic weight gain. This would also encourage a healthy relationship with food, something that seems to be somewhat compromised by a calorie-free option...

Eating disorders

Is it really surprising that 1.6 million people in the UK are affected by an eating disorder, when food is labelled by the media and advertising as so distinctly 'healthy' (good) or 'unhealthy' (bad)? By offering these so-called 'unhealthy' foods in a zero-calorie form, the implication being made is that eating these foods results in weight gain and eventually, obesity. However, it's perfectly possible to enjoy 'bad' foods as part of a balanced diet. In fact, as part of treatment for eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa, sufferers are encouraged not to distinguish between healthy and unhealthy foods; they are told that there is no such thing. In many cases, the sufferer has eliminated all these 'bad' foods from their diet and must now learn to re-introduce these 'fear foods'; something which is unsurprisingly difficult when surrounded by the message that these foods should only be enjoyed in flavour-form, without the calories, fats and sugars.

Unfortunately, as the levels of obesity continue to rise, it's unlikely that these products will be removed from the market any time soon. But hopefully, people will start to realise that the suggestion that calorie-free 'food' offers a healthy alternative, is a complete contradiction and simply makes 'zero' sense.

Harriet x

advice

10 Reasons Why You Should Volunteer in a Charity Shop

11:48

Are you a busy student, struggling to find time for a part-time job, but desperately wanting some experience? Maybe you're unemployed, retired, or perhaps you just have some spare time on your hands. Whatever your situation, giving up a couple of hours a week to help in a charity shop is something I would definitely recommend. I've been volunteering at my local Oxfam for several months now and have been really impressed by the number of people who regularly buy and donate. However, without a consistent supply of new volunteers coming through the door, it's so difficult to truly fulfill the shop's potential, due to there simply not being enough hours in the day! So, I've come up with ten reasons why YOU should volunteer at your nearest charity shop, such as Oxfam:

Volunteering means that you are doing your bit for charity and it feels great knowing that everything sold generates money for those in need.
A charity shop is a friendly, low-pressure environment for learning new skills. For example, you can learn how to be an efficient till operator, serve customers, organise and sort stock, cash-up at the end of the day and fill out paperwork, all of which will be transferable to any job you may get in the future.
As well as the more practical skills above, you will probably find yourself growing in other ways, such as in confidence and social skills. In my case, the first few times I worked on the till, I was terrified and used to silently beg customers not to buy anything so that I wouldn't have to speak to them! Now, I want to pull people in off the street to give me something to do and I'm perfectly happy to have a little chat!
You will undoubtedly meet lots of interesting people. Whether it's the customers themselves, or the other volunteers, there are plenty of lovely people around to get to know. (You'll probably meet a few odd balls too, but that just adds to the fun of it!)
Unlike with a job, there isn't too much commitment involved. The shop is lucky to have you at all, so if you want to go away for the weekend, as long as you let them know, that should be fine.
You can give as little or as much time as you can. I only do one afternoon a week at the moment, while others are in almost every day.
The fact that you've volunteered says a lot about you as a person and will look impressive on any CV, application or personal statement that you come to write.
If you have an interest or talent in a certain area, you can 'specialise' in it; for example, a lady in Oxfam used to work in the leather industry in Italy, so she now prices and researches handbags for the shop. Others know a lot about fashion or books, so price those items. Or, if you're like me and fancy trying a bit of everything, then your role can be more varied!
The manager of the shop will usually be happy to write you a reference for any job you may apply for in the future.
Finally, you'll be one of the first to see the new donations and you may find some great bargains!

So, what are you waiting for? If you can, get down to your local charity shop as soon as possible and offer your services!

Harriet x

advice

10 Simple Ways to Feel Happier In Your Daily Life

20:38

Is the monotony of your daily routine wearing you down? Try these very simple ideas for a couple of weeks and see what happens...

Set your favourite radio station as your alarm. I would personally recommend Radio 1 for an enthusiastic and motivational start to your day, or Classic FM for a more leisurely awakening. To be honest, anything is better than incessant beeping.
Introduce something to your breakfast routine. Instead of staring blankly out of the window with your bowl of cornflakes, why not read the newspaper, the chapter of a book, or write a ‘to do’ list for the day? You may find that this takes your mind off anything you’re not really looking forward to doing in the day ahead.
Try to make sure you always have something to look forward to and pin it somewhere obvious, like your mirror. Even if it’s simply watching a film or going out for a drink with a friend, it might help you stay motivated through the more mundane tasks.
Listen to music or the radio when you’re doing things you find boring, such as washing-up or cleaning. I find that this takes my mind off things and makes it a lot more enjoyable!
Think of something you could do on a regular basis to treat yourself. It could be as simple as buying a coffee on the way home from work every Tuesday, having a takeaway every Friday night, or having a relaxing bubble bath each weekend. Or, if you do these things anyway, choose something different, like making a monthly trip to the cinema/theatre. Maybe if there’s a day in the week you find particularly stressful, treat yourself at the end of it.
Try to be more aware of ‘simple pleasures’. It might sound silly, but once you start appreciating little things like the smell of cut grass, the comfort of a cup of tea, or the colour of the sky, your mind-set could become more positive.
Do small but caring things for other people, such as making them a cup of tea, or even just sending them a nice text out of the blue. Not only will this make a difference to their day, it will probably make you feel good too.
Be observant of what’s going on around you. Say you’re on your way to work, or doing the shopping, try to notice the people who pass and the conversations they are having. Something someone says might make you smile, or you might pick up on things you would usually ignore.
Give yourself an achievable goal for each week and pin it up somewhere visible. This might seem unrealistic, but having even the smallest of goals might stop weeks rushing by, unnoticed and unaccounted for. It could also help give you a small sense of achievement, even when other parts of your life are difficult.
If possible, make the place where you spend a lot of your time (the office/ car/ kitchen/ desk/ workshop) reflect you in some way. Just personalising it with a colourful coaster or an ornament might make you feel more in control of your work-space and remind you to stay productive.

I really hope you try at least one of the above- you've honestly got nothing to lose! And please do leave a comment telling me which (if any!) you have found helpful.

Harriet x

Found on Instagram: Absolutely Bear

Work hard, play (sport) hard

Purchased in September

DIY Shabby Chic Mini Wooden Drawers

Organisation Essentials

It's been a while

Making Time for Art

Sunday Teatime

Is this your idea of a healthy relationship with food?

Diet foods vs zero calorie 'foods'

The problem of obesity

Eating disorders

10 Reasons Why You Should Volunteer in a Charity Shop

10 Simple Ways to Feel Happier In Your Daily Life

Is the monotony of your daily routine wearing you down? Try these very simple ideas for a couple of weeks and see what happens...

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