tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13275022520736421212024-03-13T16:06:40.550+00:00 Roses and Rockets Roses and Rockets Roses and Rocketshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12436542254031152017noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1327502252073642121.post-44629779531844496252015-10-26T20:28:00.003+00:002015-10-26T20:28:57.560+00:00Love Yourself <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b>‘ If you want to soar in life, you must first learn to F.L.Y
( first love yourself) ‘ – Mark Sterling </b><o:p></o:p></div>
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I remember sitting in school being painfully bored when a
teacher would go on and on about positive mental health, having a positive view
of your body and mind etc and thinking would they ever just leave and go appear
on Oprah or something. But as I get
older I realise that my problem wasn’t the message the teacher was trying to
get into my teenage mind but the fact that as a teen I had no real idea who I
was so it was pretty hard to be
confident and happy in myself. I didn’t
know exactly who I was in my early 20’s either but in the last 12 months or
so I’ve finally, well, found myself .
Took long enough eh?! I think once you know who you are it’s important
to like who you are.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Loving yourself or even liking yourself are things so many
people find hard to do, often it’s because in our society people will say you
are full of it or have notions about yourself so for an easier life a lot of
people undersell themselves but at what cost? I was at a Damien Dempsey concert
a few weeks back and he talked about loving ourselves and loving what we see in
the mirror. I can’t remember his exact words but he talked about kissing a
mirror at night so when you look in it the next morning you can see the imprint
of your lips and how that should make you happy as there is nothing more
important than loving yourself and being comfortable in your own skin. Now I am
aware that it may sound cheesy to some people but that is ok. I think for those
of us out there who have struggled with self-acceptance, when you finally get
that break through moment and start to like yourself, you will appreciate
Damien’s message. I’m not saying that
you have to view yourself as perfect in order to love yourself, it’ s important
to recognise your weaknesses but not to
obsess over them and constantly criticise yourself as many people do. I think it is so important to appreciate
whatever talents you have. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I find as the months go past, the less I care about people’s
opinions of me, a person’s perception of you isn’t reality. If you want to know
why they think a certain way about you than ask them, consider their reply (if
you get one, sometimes asking people to back up their statement proves difficult)
and decide whether you think it is a fair point or just someone being rude/jealous.
If you don’t want to know then leave them to think whatever they wish! <o:p></o:p></div>
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Love yourself first and always. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Roses and Rocketshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12436542254031152017noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1327502252073642121.post-36772153162318198132015-09-25T01:16:00.002+01:002017-10-10T01:20:35.026+01:00Kayaking in Killarney with Outdoors Ireland. A must.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Kayaking is fun. Kayaking in the beautiful surroundings of Killarney, including Lough Leane and Innisfallen is something everyone should try at least once. I was so ignorant of the amazing nature that exists in my home county. </div>
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I've had this love/hate relationship with water every since a very scary water incident as a kid. My fear of water meant that the sight of waves at a beach or in a movie would make me feel queasy.I've never gone on the outdoor slide at the Aqua Dome and one time I pretty much had a panic attack involving a pier and a tourist submarine on holidays (long story..) So naturally last Saturday I decided to go kayaking in the lakes of Killarney, including the deepest lake in Ireland. </div>
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Why? Because I felt like I was missing out on seeing a beautiful part of the world. I started swimming lessons again late last year and that definitely helped me with my fear of water but I knew I would have to get out of my comfort zone with water in ore.</div>
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If you don't have any issues with water than the day will be a breeze, still possibly tiring depending on your fitness but it's good to push yourself.</div>
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<i>Tips for Kayaking: </i></div>
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<li><i>Enjoy your adventure, be prepared to earn your lunch</i></li>
<li><i>Bring a tasty lunch (you'll deserve it) and keep hydrated! ( I didn't and it did impact my energy levels, rookie mistake) </i></li>
<li><i>Remember that it is highly unlikely you'll fall out, ask for help if you need it and you'll get it. </i></li>
<li><i>Your arms may hurt but it's so so worth it! Doing some stretches when I got home helped. </i></li>
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Up the Kingdom<br />
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Roses and Rocketshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12436542254031152017noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1327502252073642121.post-73851431935571726612015-09-24T23:55:00.000+01:002015-09-24T23:55:02.547+01:00Book Review: Me and my mate Jeffrey In a weird way it's always a comfort to read about someone elses battle with anxiety. I use the word battle because that's exactly what it is, anxiety is a battle between the rational and irrational thoughts in your brain, it can result in both mental and physical scars. It can make you feel like the loneliest person in the world and make you lose interest in everything you love.<br />
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Niall Breslins book is a detailed account of his journey and often it is a hard read. But the most difficult parts to read are often the most valuable parts of this book as I know so many people who can relate to it and being able to relate to a situation is so important when you often feel like no one can possibly understand what you are going through.<br />
I'm not going to go into any detail of what is in the book as it really needs to be read cover to cover as it's his story to tell, not mine.<br />
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I've learnt so much from his story and I highly recommend it to anyone who has anxiety or knows someone who is in battle.<br />
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Roses and Rocketshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12436542254031152017noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1327502252073642121.post-29646882427143470092015-01-13T00:41:00.001+00:002015-08-05T16:33:35.884+01:00" In a Land of Make Believe, that Don't Believe in Me" Abortion and
Women's Rights in Ireland<div><font><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The world is composed of many things which will always stay the same. Waters chemical formula is H2O, 2 + 2 =4. It's just how it is, we live by it, accepting that some things in life can't be changed. When it comes to science sometimes the odds are in your favour and sometimes they aren't. That's life. Stephanie Roches goal was pretty fantastic. Outside of her football skills, there were of course some other factors to take into consideration such as gravity, velocity, angles, the positions and actions of the other players and so on. In that very moment, when all of these factors combined in a certain way, it was determined that the ball would end up in the net, there would be no other outcome and boy was it a good one. </b></font></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></b></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">When Sean Abott threw a cricket ball, the speed and angle at which it was thrown, the positioning of Phil Hughes, the part of his neck which was exposed, all of those factors in that very moment determined that Phil Hughes would pass away from his injuries. There was nothing that could be done. 2+2 =4 and on that day 4 was death.</b></div><div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></b></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">When a young woman in her 30's collapses and dies at home from sudden adult death syndrome, one fact which matters to her family is knowing there was nothing in that moment which could have changed the outcome. When you are thrown into a new scary world of grief you cling onto the fact that there was nothing that could have been done. No law of the land or medical intervention could have saved her in that moment. </b></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></b></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">When Savita Halappanavar became desperately ill and requested a medical termination, the fact is there WAS something that could have been done which may have saved her life. However the laws of the land,not science or sheer dumb bad luck prevented this from happening. The laws of this country played a major role in how this scenario ended. </b></div></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></b></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The fact of the matter is that these laws can be changed, the constitution can be changed.The world won't self implode if Ireland makes the necessary changes to man made laws. Yet we continue to live in a society which forces this made up world on us. People may argue that no we can't change the laws of the land because of X, Y and Z. I am well aware of the argument for the right to life of the unborn but I'm not here to argue for their rights, I'm here to say that I don't see my body as a vessel but this is exactly how the Irish government are treating it as witnessed in the recent case of PP v HSE. </b></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></b></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">My body is not a vessel, it is a canvas which I dress in a way that I choose. I keep my body healthy by the foods and exercise I choose. When something happens to my body which is beyond my control but not the control of medicine, I should be able to choose which medical path I want to go down. </b><b style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Why can't we look outside the man made box we have confined ourselves and realise that this system isn't working, because that's all it is. It's a system, not a true and undeniable fact of life. </b></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></b></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">These changes may offend people, make them feel uncomfortable but not changing things has resulted in the death and loss of dignity of women. How many more women and families will be forced to suffer purely for the fact that we were born female and live in a world where we don't get to determine what we do with our bodies.</b></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></b></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">It angers me because Savita didn't have to die, at the very least she could have been given a fighting chance. A chance whose odds were determined by the best possible efforts of medicine/ science and not by the inhumane shortcomings in our legal system. </b></div><div><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></b></div><div><font><b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Apologies for any typos. </b></font></div>Roses and Rocketshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12436542254031152017noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1327502252073642121.post-32460213503130660312013-09-01T01:04:00.001+01:002013-09-19T00:13:44.229+01:00Meeting Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter)<div>
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London has been incredible for me. I ventured off by myself on Thursday night and I've encountered lots of friendly people along my way. Pat Shortt and Daniel Radcliffe to name but a few. </div>
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Outside the Noel Coward Theatre</div>
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At around 10:15 tonight I met Daniel Radcliffe. I've been an avid Harry Potter fan since 2001. His performance today in the Cripple of Innismaan was captivating and so were the rest of the cast. It was an incredible day.<br />
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His autograph</div>
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I didn't get a picture with him as it was simply impossible to get my camera ready in time but chatting </div>
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to him was all I wanted. I've just uploaded a video to my YouTube </div>
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Thank you London !</div>
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Roses and Rocketshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12436542254031152017noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1327502252073642121.post-90908189357449348432013-04-06T12:30:00.000+01:002013-05-09T14:35:54.273+01:00Day trip to Aranjuez<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hello! Last Friday I went to the town Aranjuez with two of my friends. It was quite a dull day weather wise but a fun day nonetheless. I knew I wanted to return there as I was eager to do some walking in the hills outside of the town. Two days later I returned with Craig, we were armed with lots of fruit and reading to take on the hills. </div>
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The weather was a little bit better than my first visit, brighter and warmer. However, it soon lashed rain. It feels like it has been raining here on a weekly basis since November. Maybe I brought Ireland's bad weather with me when I left for Spain? Who knows, all I want now it constant sunshine, is it too much to ask for?!</div>
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Aranjuez is a quaint town with lots of history as it is home to one of the Spanish monarchy's palaces. I have no time for the monarchy of any country so I didn't visit the museum but this building and the grounds around it were quite pretty. </div>
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Royal Palace of Aranjuez, apparently built so the King could get away from the pressure of the city..bless his cotton socks.</div>
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We made our way to the hills. There was a sign just at the start of the trail which stated that the trail was of medium difficulty I was looking forward to a bit of a challenge. It turns out however that the sign was a total exaggeration and the hill was a lot smaller than we expected. No matter what which way we went, we couldn't get away from the view of the town and the many industrial estates around it. </div>
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Of what I've seen so far of the Spanish countryside, it doesn't excite me that much to be honest but I am eager to explore more of the country. </div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> We came across these sculptures about half way up the hill. There didn't appear to be any sign explaining what they stand for or who made them but I thought they provided a pleasant burst of colour on such a cloudy day. </span></div>
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As I have two dodgy knees I was quite proud of myself for not falling down this slippery slope. This was the most difficult part of the trail but as it wasn't part of the official trail route I don't think it really counts.</div>
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It was a fun day even though I got absolutely drenched from the rain. I love being in the outdoors, it felt great to get out of the city. </div>
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I hope you all had a good Semana Santa / Easter holiday!</div>
Roses and Rocketshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12436542254031152017noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1327502252073642121.post-21527203526316671692013-03-21T14:25:00.001+00:002017-10-10T01:11:55.517+01:00Moving to Madrid.<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Hey folks! I think its about time that I share my experience of life in the Spanish capital with you all.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">This will be the first of a couple of post, as I have been here for quite a few months now there are many topics I'd like to cover with you - preparing for the move, moving, looking for work, a house etc! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I want these series of posts to be as informative as possible as there are so many things to consider when moving to Madrid or wherever you are planning to go. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I am currently writing this post up in one of the primary schools I work in. I was very lucky to be placed in such a fun loving school. The children are bonkers but in the right way. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I guess the next thing to do is go back to actually go back to the very start of this journey. I</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> moved to Madrid on the 20th of August.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I had been planning on moving to Spain since January 2012 as I wanted to take a break from study for a while. At the time I had my undergraduate degree and was in the process of writing up my thesis for my postgraduate degree. I finished my thesis and handed it in one day before I moved so it was a crazy time for me as you can imagine. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">One of the main reasons I chose Madrid as my destination was the fact that one of my oldest friends was teaching there and had lots of great things to say about the city. As I would be properly leaving home for the first time I didn't want too stray too far away from the nest. I never had a problem with homesickness when I attended college as I was only a two hour bus ride from home (I know people who did experience home sickness even though they went home every weekend, everyone responds to it in a different way) but I wasn't sure how I would cope with living somewhere like Australia, it seemed so far away and my family have been through a lot in the last few years so I just <i>wasn't </i>ready to be on the other side of the planet. </span><br />
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<i style="background-color: #fffdf8; font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;">'</i><i style="background-color: #fffdf8; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #7d7d7d;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">Sobrino de Botin is officially the </span></span><span style="line-height: 24px;">oldest</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"> working </span></span></span><span style="color: #7d7d7d;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">restaurant</span></span><span style="color: #7d7d7d; font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"> in the world, it dates back to 1725.'</span></span></i></div>
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Roses and Rocketshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12436542254031152017noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1327502252073642121.post-20884026636531349092012-11-21T08:57:00.000+00:002012-11-21T08:59:36.209+00:00A trip to Segovia and Rapunzels castle<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TtLlhurkp-M/UKyT-sYfnpI/AAAAAAAABq4/p4BvzLmlifI/s1600/IMG_0695.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TtLlhurkp-M/UKyT-sYfnpI/AAAAAAAABq4/p4BvzLmlifI/s400/IMG_0695.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Hello! I thought I would share some photos from a recent trip I was on. A couple of friends and myself made our way to the historical town of Segovia. The landscape was beautiful and it was wonderful to get out of Madrid for a couple of hours. It was strange seeing mountains and sheep for the first time in months. I grew up in the countryside so being in a city for 3 solid months was a big change but I love it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">We visited the Alcázar of Segovia which is a stunning castle. This castle was inspiration for the castle in the Walt Disneys film </span><em style="background-color: white; font-size: small; font-style: normal; line-height: 10.666666984558105px;">Rapunzel and the </em><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">Cinderella</span></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"> castle at Disneyland. </span></span></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wAhDSoarESo/UKyUGoovdEI/AAAAAAAABrI/p8RwmV_Xfgw/s1600/IMG_0727.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wAhDSoarESo/UKyUGoovdEI/AAAAAAAABrI/p8RwmV_Xfgw/s400/IMG_0727.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">On our way to the castle we came </span>across<span style="font-family: inherit;"> this very unusal and detailed statue near the Aquaduct of </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 10.666666984558105px;">Romulus and Remus, the </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 10.666666984558105px;">founders of Rome, suckling on a wolf...</span></div>
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Segovia is definitely a must see place if you are ever up around that part of Spain. I think Toldeo is next on the list and then I will venture off to Morocco early next year. </div>
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Have a good day!</div>
Roses and Rocketshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12436542254031152017noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1327502252073642121.post-5601913674738179282012-06-04T15:46:00.002+01:002012-06-05T00:07:58.205+01:00A shocking tale of make-up expiration!<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #674ea7; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Hello! While I was organising my make-up the other day, I spotted an interesting symbol on my Urban Decay primer,it was a picture of a little jar with '6m' written above it. I've seen this symbol many times but I always thought it was something to do with the weight of the product or some jazz like that. I'm absolutely useless when it comes to anything with numbers!But then it kinda struck me like a brick that it <i><u>was</u></i> an expiration date and I was gob smacked to find out that eye shadow primer expires in <i><u>six</u></i> months?! Even if I wore eye shadow on a daily basis there is not a change in hell or high water that I would use the whole 25ml tube up. Of course when it comes to eye make up, you have to be extremely careful but part of me hopes that Urban Decay are just covering their backs. Anyway, this got me thinking about the expiration date on all my other products. I was pleasantly surprised by some and terrified by others!</b></span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oVEQm5eQjbM/T8y8vShcxuI/AAAAAAAAA3g/VFhpFm-Enzk/s1600/casualties22e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oVEQm5eQjbM/T8y8vShcxuI/AAAAAAAAA3g/VFhpFm-Enzk/s400/casualties22e.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: small;"><b><i>Bourjois Chocolate Bronzer -18 months; Soap and Glory: Righteous Butter 300ml - 24 months; Maybelline Falsies Mascara - 6 months</i></b></span></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: #674ea7; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">I always throw out mascara after 3 months as I find it gets quite clumpy and dries up pretty fast. You can decrease the amount of oxygen and bacteria getting into your product by twisting the brush when you are taking it out and putting it back into the bottle but I don't think it's smart to hang onto it for longer than 3 months.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b><i style="color: #8e7cc3;">Maybelline Colour Sensational lipstick - 24 months; Benefit's Hervana - 12 months; MUA eyeliner - 6 months</i><br /><br /><span style="color: #674ea7;">I was surprised by the short life span of eyeliner. I think, howeverm if you keep a lid on them and sharpen them regularly you'll therefore decrease the build up of bacteria and you could get a lot longer out of them especially if you just use them on the your lids.I rarely use it on my actual waterline.</span></b></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: small;"><i>Urban Decay Anniversary Palette - 12 months; Gosh blush - 36 months; Benefit Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow foundation - 12 months</i></span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: #674ea7; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">When I checked the expiry date on my Urban Decay Anniversary powder eye shadows I could have cried - 12 months...This is just unbelievable to me! No, no and no...There is not a chance that I am throwing my eye shadows out after just 12 months. I haven't experienced any problems with eye shadows that I have had for longer than 12 months and I have yet to hear of any horror stories!</span></b></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: small;"><b><i style="color: #8e7cc3;">Soap and Glory Sexy Mother Pucker lipgloss - 24 months; Benefit's Benetint - 12months; Benefit Pocketpal - 12 months</i><br /><br /><span style="color: #674ea7;">I've never been into lipgloss and this one by Soap and Glory never excited me or gave me voluptuous lips either, so I don't mind throwing it out even though I rarely used it. I've had it for under two years and even though it hasn't expired yet, I can already see that it has gone off colour and the ingredients are starting to separate.<br /><br />I've had my Benetint for about two and half years, the pocketpal came free with it so that was <i><u>a lot</u> </i>of Benetint product to get through. I used it every day in college but as you can see from the picture, I have <i><u>so</u></i> much of it left! I never liked how Benetint felt on my lips and the lipgloss was just horrible looking and felt sticky so my pocketpal was neglected. These Benefit bottles really last for ages but when they have an expiration date of a year maybe it would be better if it came in a smaller bottle and were a few quid cheaper as well!<br />I noticed in the last few months that every time I applied Benetint to my face, I was getting tiny little red bumps on my skin but as they soon disappeared I kinda forgot about it. I never really connected the dots. Looking back, it was obviously the bacteria filled little dots of Benetint which I was blending onto my skin which were to blame for these brief outbreaks.Gross right? I have no choice but to toss it out!</span></b></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #674ea7; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>I'm relieved that I only have a few products to toss out, from now on I'll be keeping an eye on all expiration dates. If you have any off colour products, products that don't smell or work as well as they used too then it's time to say au revoir!</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #674ea7; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Thanks for reading!</b></span></div>Roses and Rocketshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12436542254031152017noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1327502252073642121.post-22500494921167233702012-01-29T06:05:00.000+00:002012-01-29T06:05:34.096+00:00Online Abuse - The Never-ending Story ?<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><b>"I consider myself lucky as I have never been the victim of internet abuse." There is something fundamentally wrong with that sentence. No one should have to consider themselves lucky, internet abuse should not happen full stop. Like all forms of abuse, whether it's bullying (physical and emotional) in school, the workplace etc or being in an abusive relationship, all the focus appears to be on what to do if you are a victim. Victims are told various ways to help stop the abuse happening, they are advised to confide in someone they trust, make use of help lines etc. However, the focus is never on telling the abuser to STOP what they are doing, this part is just crammed in as a footnote. This seems so bizarre to me. </b></i></span></div>
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<i><b><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Too many people have cried themselves to sleep, self harmed and died because of abuse they received online. Yet it seems that people are free to do and say whatever they want about people they know or complete strangers as they can hide behind the anonymity of the internet. I am all for free speech but what about freedom from harassment? There is a difference between having an opinion and posting vile abusive messages on someone's youtube, twitter, facebook page whether as a one off or on a continuous basis. I don't think I'll ever understand how people can attack a person in such vicious ways, have they no respect for other people or even themselves? </span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>It is easy to tell someone to ignore it but you can never know how a person reacts to receiving hurtful comments, some may shrug it off, but for others it may chip away at their confidence because as soon as something hateful is posted it is not always easily removed from the internet or your mind.This is not a sign of weakness by the way, everyone reacts to every situation in a different way, it's part of the human condition. </b></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><b>Regardless of weather you are in the public eye or just some girl blogging from her bedroom, no one deserves to be the subject of a hate campaign. </b></i></span><i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>The internet certainly highlights how nasty and selfish people really are, always trying to catch people out, judging them by reading into every tweet or facebook status. </b></i></div>
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<i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>So what can be done to solve this problem? Do we make it the schools/parents responsibility to supervise their kids when they are online? However internet bullying isn't confined to those under 18 so do we bring in laws to punish offenders in the more serious cases? But who are we to judge what is serious or a minor form of harassment. Or do we simply say c'est la vie and allow bullying and abusive messages to be part of everyday life? </b></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><b>I really don't know, from what I've witnessed online a majority of humans seem to be, unfortunately, beyond the prospect of developing any kind of moral conscience. Perhaps</b></i></span><i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b> any hope I have for a hate free internet community depends on whether the leopard can change it's spots...</b></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b><i><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;">Again, I think that self respect is a lot of the problem but not a valid excuse. I leave you with this quote by </span></i></b></span><b style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><span style="color: black;">Laurence Sterne:</span></i></b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;">Respect for ourselves guides our morals; respect for others guides our manners.</span><span style="color: black;"> </span></i></b></div>
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<br /></div>Roses and Rocketshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12436542254031152017noreply@blogger.com4