A Few of My Favourite Things...

There's something about the way the world looks after a rainstorm in spring... Everything seems so alive, so vibrant that I wish there was a way to capture it, in a way different to taking a photo. I want to be able to smell the damp air and hear the birds singing and feel the weight of the atmosphere... I love it, the colour, the way the light under the trees is a soft, dark sort of green... It makes me remember that the world really is beautiful place. 

I find peace in curling up in bed at night during a thunderstorm, allowing the rain to lull me into a peaceful sleep amongst cosy blankets and soft sheets. 

I love the first mug of tea on a cold winter's morning, feeling it warm you right to the core. I love ending the day with a great-scented bubble bath and a good book, before settling into clean sheets and having a dreamless sleep. 

I love dressing up, doing my hair and makeup and feeling incredibly confident in myself. I love dressing down and loving how natural I look...

I love days where I can take my time getting up, when I can properly taste my breakfast and drink my tea and watch the world go by...

Things I've Learnt Recently...

• if you don't feel like washing your hair, plait it, sleep on it, then curl it the next day. Also, dry shampoo is your friend.

• going out in shorts and a crop top isn't as scary as it sounds.

• sunshine makes me sleepy???

• blood tests aren't scary.

• dresses are super easy to wear and look adorable, yet literally no thought goes into picking one out and putting it on. Easy peasy cute outfit.

• blogging, working, and completing my college course is difficult; I suck at time management and basically want to sleep all the time. I'm trying though.

• blogging about little things I've learnt makes me feel productive when this post took two minutes.

Love to you all ❤

A Blog From my Bath

Hello, I am currently in a bubble bath and haven't written any decent content in a long long time! I am absolutely terrified that I am going to drop my phone but I'll attempt to write a post for you all...

Today I wanted to write about how you don't notice yourself making progress, you don't notice the little changes until they've all summed up and become a big change.

The thing that I've noticed this most with recently is my work, and how I get on in my workplace. When I first started working at a DIY/hardware store, I was totally out of my comfort zone, I felt anxious every single day and I hated it, absolutely despised it.
But now, while I still struggle with the hours (6:30am or there until 9pm?? No thank you!!), I am actually quite proud of what I've accomplished. I now have the knowledge and ability to sell screws, locks (such as the ones that go in doors, 6-pin locks and such), power tools, and much, much more, because I've given it time, And tried to better myself.

People always assume that they're terrible at something simply because they've not been doing it for very long, or they've not given it a chance.
I've done this too... I'm fairly certain that I've written about my first job, you can find it if you have a search around, but I was there for all of about a month before giving up. Sure, at this time I was also struggling with confidence issues, both in myself and outward confidence, but I gave up instead of allowing myself to grow.

*blog is now being continued from a coffee shop*

I think what I was getting at after being sleep deprived and exhausted is that you have to allow yourself to grow, and you have to struggle a bit before things start to get better.
For example, I went to work on Monday.  Before going to work, I had a bit of a panic attack, but managed to quiet it and get in my car and go to work. Sure, I was a crying a little while driving and felt absolutely terrible the entire day but I did it, and am stronger now. Yay.

I understand that sometimes, it is so incredibly difficult to push yourself to get out of bed when all you want to do is shut the world out, switch off your phone and cease to exist for a couple of hours, but that's not always possible. You'll notice yourself getting stronger, day by day.

I hope you're all doing well and keep pushing yourself to be better.

Love,
Dottie x

LIVE REVIEW: The Skints @ The Frog & Fiddle, 05/05/17

After catching The Skints supporting Less Than Jake in October last year, I absolutely had to head down to the Frog & Fiddle in Cheltenham to see them on their 'Nice Time' Beer Run Tour. 

I'd like to start off by saying how awesome the venue is! All old beams and craft beers and old-style pub, and the gig room is quite literally an old barn, pretty great! 

I had a Nice Time....

So, after I'd grabbed a beer from the bar, I headed into the music room to see the support act, who was a DJ, and there was about 3 people in the room. Jamie Rodigan was playing some pretty cool reggae/old two tone stuff, but nah, I wanted to drink my beer and save my legs. 

The first support band was all-girl punk band, The Tuts. Playing proper raw punk with pretty harmonies, The Tuts challenge everything that you think a punk band should be, even wearing sparkly clothes with Dr Martens! I've only even seen one all-female band before, and The Tuts definitely blew them out of the water! It's clear that the girls are all very switched-on and politically minded, singing songs about how their gender will always hold them back in the music industry, and how we need something decent to vote for in the upcoming elections. Definitely check out their songs Tut Tut Tut, and Always Hear the Same Shit. 

Jamie Rodigan played another DJ set as The Skints' team was setting up, and this time it was a lot more fun, with everyone singing along and dancing to the super fun reggae and ska hits, from Bob Marley to Madness. 

Finally, finally it was time for the band that all 200+ people in the barn were waiting for - The Skints! As much a dance band as a reggae band, it is impossible to confine The Skints to just one genre. It's so easy to get caught up in the chilled out, yet insanely fun sound of the band's music, Opening with Up Against the Wall Riddim (I think?), the entire audience was immediately bopping along. 
We were also treated to a cover (which I didn't know, sorry!), the ska-tastic Friends and Business, and The Forest for the Trees, along with so many others from previous albums, Rise Up, Rubadubdub, and Rat-at-at. 
Closing their main set was Cutlure Vulture, and of course everyone, band and audience alike gave it their all, singing and dancing as loud, and as much as possible. To chants of "one more set!" from the audience, guitarist/vocalist Joshua Waters Rudge crept back onstage behind a potted tree, which was part of their stage decoration. He was shortly followed by the rest of the band, and we finally got to see main vocalist and drummer, Jamie Kyriakides, who donned an acoustic guitar and played Sunny Sunny all stripped down. The most amazing experience I've had at a live gig was when I closed my eyes as they were playing this song - it felt like it was just me and the music, and it was so odd to see so many people when I opened my eyes again! 
The sound of The Skints is an odd one; it's so bass-heavy, you can feel yourself moving because of it, but over the heavy low end is such a chilled out reggae sound, it's such an odd combination - but it works. The Skints sure know how to party, and picked the best venue to do so!

Before they left the stage for the final time, Joshua hinted at touring again over summer, after new music was released, so maybe stay tuned for an album review?