The Joy In Life

I had a very thought provoking conversation with a friend the other day about doing things that brings us joy, not in the outcome but in the process. I thought I should brainstorm the things that make me calm and contented and this is what I came up with:

• A tidy bedroom - this may seem odd to anyone who knows me because I am an extremely messy person but a tidy room is a sure-fire way of making me motivated and happy.
• Getting things done - similarly this may seem odd as I am a chronic procrastinator however there is nothing more satisfying than being productive.
• Looking forward to things - as someone about to finish their second last year of school there is nothing that brings me greater joy than daydreaming about the future. I'm most excited to travel, for uni and for moving out (although who knows when the last one will actually happen).
• Cooking - I don't actually do this as much as I would like to firstly because I am ridiculously busy and secondly because, as mentioned earlier, I am a massive procrastinator but when I do manage to get myself into the kitchen I love to whip up some yummy sugar free snacks.
• Seeing my friends - this is probably the most obvious one and also probably the most common among anyone, no matter who they are, but there is nothing better than catching up with friends to boost my mood. Give me a hot drink, some sun and a couple of lovely friends and I will ask for nothing more.
• Going to the city - I live about an hour out of Melbourne which, for Australia, is fairly close. I usually find myself in the city at least once a week, usually before 9am, and I love exploring the city then; its so quiet and calm with hardly any people in there at all at that time.
• Laughing until my stomach hurts - this laughter is not just chuckling softly this is lying on the floor begging for the pain to stop. Physiologically speaking this is good for both your happiness and your stomach muscles. Whats not to like?
• Setting goals and sticking to them - this might be cheating a little as it kind of falls into the 'getting things done' category but I think this needs its own little category. Whether it be committing to practising my cello everyday or posting a blog post every Saturday (this is the 8th week in a row and I am very proud of myself) actually sticking to my goals fills me with the utmost joy.
• Girl power playlists - nothing can get you feeling fine as quickly and efficiently as a girl power playlist can, of this I am sure. 8Tracks has some great compilations that make even the most mundane chore fun.
• Sitting in the sun with a book - living in Australia means I get the privilege of actually seeing the sun for a large portion of the year and an hour soaking up the sun is an ideal part of any day, just as long as I manage to not get burnt!

This is what I do to bring joy into my life but I think the list is no way near long enough yet and hopefully it will expand hugely with time. What do you enjoy in life?

xx Gemma

Lumos

An illuminating Harry Potter tag. (Yes that was indeed a Harry Potter pun).

1. What is your favourite book?
The first question and already I can't decide! I think probably Prisoner of Azkaban or Order of the Phoenix (but I also really Halfblood Prince and Deathly Hallows).

2. What is your favourite film?
I do enjoy Prisoner of Azkaban and I love Deathly Hallows part 2 as it holds fond memories of going to the midnight premier (I was too young to go to all the others!)

3. What is your least favourite book?
My least favourite book would have to be Goblet of Fire. I was really scared the first time I read it and can't seem to shake my hesitancy towards it.

4. What is your least favourite film?
Again I would have to say Goblet of Fire. I enjoyed the storyline of the fourth so I have no idea why I dislike both the movie and book so much but that's just the way it is I suppose! I also am not a massive fan of the Halfblood Prince movie as I think a little too much artistic licence was taken with here and it deviates too much from the storyline of the book (burning down the Borrow was definitely not in the book and, as the Borrow appeared in the next movie, completely unnecessary in my opinion).

5. Which parts of the books/films made you cry?
I don't think I have ever full on sobbed in Harry Potter but I may or may not seem to get something stuck in my eye when Fred, Sirius, Remus and Tonks die.

6. If you could hook up with any character who would it be?
Dean Thomas definitely. Although having said that almost all of the Potter cast had incredible transformations and are incredibly attractive so...

7. Who is your favourite character?
Luna or Ginny. Both are such strong women, in quite different ways, and it makes me so happy that they were/(are?) friends.
Edit: Narcissa Malfoy is also incredibly kickarse and I do have a very large soft spot for her.

8. Who is your least favourite character?
I must no tell lies so I have to say Umbridge. Most Harry Potter characters have at least one redeeming quality (or at least a good back story as to why they don't) however Umbridge is not one of them.

9. What is your least favourite line?
"Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?" - Albus Dumbledore
 or 
"You're not going mad. I can see them too. You're just as sane as I am." - Luna Lovegood (after being introduced as a very odd/slightly mad girl because it was really not a comforting thought to Harry).

10. What would your patronus be?
I think probably a cat however if I was living in the world of Harry Potter I am sure there would be many magical creatures that I would identify even better with.

11. If you could have the invisibility cloak, resurrection stone or elder wand, which would you choose?
I would choose the invisibility cloak as the stone could not fully bring people back from the dead and the elder wand just creates trouble. Also who wouldn't want to be able to turn invisible?!

12. What house would you be in?
I think the Hogwarts houses represent personality traits that everyone has a bit of so you could argue any house really (although I really struggle to see myself as a Gryffindor) however on Pottermore I am a Hufflepuff and I think this is fairly accurate.

13. If you could meet any member of the cast who would it be?
I think it would have to be Evanna Lynch (can you tell I have a bit of a crush on Luna Lovegood?) because she seems like the least 'famous' of all of the HP cast and I think we would get along really well (and really what's the point of meeting a cast member if I cant become best friends with them!)

14. If you were on the quidditch team, what position would you play?
This is tricky because I play so little sport that I cant relate it to anything. Having said that I did use to play netball so I might be an alright chaser. I think I would probably enjoy being a beater as it would release a lot of pent up frustration haha.

15. Were you happy with the ending?
That depends. I really love the ending of the books in that Voldemort dies in a very human way but the ending of the movie I didn't like. I thought they changed it quite a lot from the ending of the book (although I enjoyed all of the Deathly Hallows part 2 aside from how Voldemort dies) and having him burst into little pieces of paper, or whatever that was meant to be, wasn't very symbolic of the whole 'no matter how much power you hold in life, all die equally' thing that the book represented so well. Maybe I just analyse Harry Potter too much.

16. How much does Harry Potter mean to you?
This is such an odd question because surely anyone who does a Harry Potter tag would answer with something along the lines of 'a lot/heaps etc'.
Harry Potter is my go to series if I have had a bad day and I need cheering up or even if I just have nothing new to read. It has shaped so much of my primary school life and I am eternally grateful to J K Rowling for the amazing world and characters she has introduced me to.

This was a slightly nerdy post today for which I apologise, hopefully you all love Harry Potter enough that you are able to forgive me, but when I saw this tag I immediately knew it was something I had to do.

xx Gemma

The Wickedest Witch There Ever Was...

Last Thursday my sister, Kate, went to see the musical Wicked and came home insisting that I see it. This sounded wonderful until I realised that the show finished that Sunday and that I had three days left if I wanted to see it. I didn't want to go by myself (as I like to share my enjoyment of musical theatre with others) so Kate said she would go see it again with me (that's how badly she wanted me to see it, the dear).

We had a quick bite to eat at a lovely little Indian restaurant in the city (which was both super cheap and really delicious) before heading off to the show.

It was incredible! I thought it was quite different from the 'stereotypical' musical sound (it wasn't the same sound as Mamma Mia and definitely not like Les Miserable at all) but the music was amazing and the storyline had me laughing and hanging off the edge of my seat. For the past week me and Kate have had the soundtrack playing whilst we wash the dishes and I have been singing all the songs non stop. And if I happen to now follow most of the cast one Instagram well, no one needs to know.

It was such a brilliant show, I am so happy that I got to see it before it closed and would recommend it to anyone who has the chance to see it!

xx Gemma

Favourites Of Life #02

Live

Yesterday I had brunch with my family and my best friend's family. I was actually really sick but managed to feel better just for the time we had with them. I must admit this picture is actually from the other week however because I was sick I couldn't take any pictures so you just get to see my lovely chai from last week!

Read

I started baking again this week! I got 'I Quit Sugar' by Sarah Wilson as a Christmas present and now use it as my go to recipe book. The recipes are simple and delicious and, as non of them contain any sugar whatsoever, there is never any guilt upon eating the little sweet treats

Listen

For far too long my wonderful friend Iona has been telling me to listen to Hozier and finally I did myself a favour and downloaded his song 'Take Me To Church'. The song is so so catchy and a wonderful thing to sing at the tops of your lungs!

Sunshine And Surf

As I mentioned in yesterdays post I have spent the last week camping on the east coast, in a national park in New South Wales. Unfortunately, due to the lack of electricity I had to make my use of my phone, and by extension its camera, sparse. This meant I didn't get any pictures of the actual holiday, which is a shame as the beach where we stayed is probably my favourite beach in Australia. I did however get to take a couple of pictures during our stop over (the drive is eight hours!) at Lakes Entrance. It was a lovely day filled with sunshine and laughter, as well as an absolutely delicious chai.

Favourites Of Life #01

Live

I went camping this week with my whole family to Salt Water Creek, close to Eden, a small fishing village in New South Wales. It was so lovely to go to bed as the sun set and to catch up on the sleep my body was obviously craving (I think I averaged around 11 hours of sleep throughout the week!). A lovely, rejuvenating trip; the only complaint I have is that I may have gotten a little bit sun burnt and my skin is now horribly dry. Ah well, what can you do.

Read

This week I have adored scrolling through Tamira's blog - Lipstick With Some Sunshine. She takes absolutely beautiful pictures and has successfully made me want to convert my entire bedroom into only light, baby blue tones. She also has a wonderful series about blogging that I have found incredibly useful and inspiring. If you have not read her blog before you should definitely start.

Listen

I have always been a massive fan of Adele and whenever I run out of music to listen to I find myself heading straight back to this incredible woman. Although the image is of her album '21' I also absolutely adore her lesser known, earlier album '19'. I cant imagine ever not liking Adele; her songs make me want to cry in the rain, in a very satisfying, soul nourishing kind of way.

Hello

So I've started a blog! This sounds ironic coming from an avid Tumblr blogger but I don't really think of that as blogging because, in my case, it doesn't actually involve any use of skill as I just admire how cool everyone else is. I have decided to make a proper 'blog' blog because, although i really do love Tumblr and all it's greatness, I really just blog about TV shows that I am addicted to and, after reading a whole issue of Frankie in a day, I am beginning to think that I have recently been surrounded by far too much commercialised journalism. I have, I am sad to admit, been shockingly out of touch with any sort of inspiring thing. So here begins a new chapter in the book of my productivity! Hold on to your hats and, if possible, grab onto something sturdy because this is going to be a wild ride!