Why Are They Always On Their Phone?!

As I write this post I am doing every calming method in the book.

Breathing in and out, counting ten, imagining being on beach...

But it doesn't seem to be working.

Does anyone else share my frustration?

The frustration of a friend/ partner or child who lives their life on their phone.
You have to call their name so many times that that you give up and whatsapp message them instead. It seems as if they spend hours scrolling through the same stuff of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and all you are trying to do is save them from becoming emotionless robots.
Long gone are the days of face to face conversations or asking how someones day was.
You'll be mid-conversation and you realise that they have checked-out out and checked-in to a new conversation on whatsapp, leaving you feeling unworthy of their precious time.
Meanwhile you give up and they pick and choose when they want the restart the conversation again. You, being left on 50% energy from this mediocre conversation don't pay attention as to where the conversation is going but wait! they laugh, that means they were actually listening and also means you told a joke that was actually worthy of their golden time.
You look over to acknowledge your prize for joker of the year and no.
By no I mean it wasn't you that made him laugh, it was that stupid group chat.
The group chat that has their phone buzzing 24/7 and apparently deserves more attention than you. The day goes on, private joke after private joke, you being left as a third wheel to a relationship with a mobile device.
Then, the magic words pass their lips "my phone died", but of course you act disappointed and frustrated "damn, stupid iPhones".
Now, it is your chance to to have a real conversation, you get a little bit nervous as you've been preparing for this ALL DAY but then they look as if they are going to say something and you feel proud and excited all at the same time because they are actually making an effort with you and they say "I'm tired, Goodnight baby"...And the frustration begins all over again. Welcome to a day in the life of a modern day relationship :)

Why You Should Stop Feeling Sorry For Yourself

We have all done it and probably will do it again sometime in our not-to-distant future.

Feeling sorry for yourself. If you're like me then the reason you feel sorry for yourself is because it feels good. When you feel sorry for yourself what you are really telling yourself is that you are a better person than the situation that has been dealt to you. And that is a very arrogant way of thinking.

It would be a better attitude for us to think 'Damn, I didn't get that job. Better luck next time'. The trouble comes when something really hard happens and we chose to stop and milk it for attention. There is no progress in that and it gets us nowhere. It can also be quite annoying.

When you go to the gym. You are not building your muscles. You are literally tearing them down. When you lift weights you are doing damage to your muscles. The reason your muscles grow is because your body goes into repair mode so that next time you lift the weight, it won't hurt.

It is like that with our emotions too.

Once we experience something hard. It tears us down and really hurts.

We screw up and embarrass ourselves or lose a job and have no money. But honestly, there is not a bad thing that won't return a greater blessing. We will always come out stronger and life will throw a lot of pain at you, to the point where you think it is all a joke.

But why shouldn't we feel sorry for ourselves?

We shouldn't feel sorry for ourselves because it stops us from gaining that emotional muscle. We can either have the blessing of a stronger character or the instant gratification of self-pity.

What we have to do instead is to ask ourselves what we can learn from the situation.

If it was our fault, we have to take ownership of what we did.
If it wasn't our fault, then we have to realise that there are no flowers without rain.

I have to check myself everyday for thoughts of self-pity. It won't come overnight but if you want to be successful in life then take every chance to grow and adapt, including the shit situations!

Why Is Being Patient So Painful Nowadays?

It is true.

For me, being patient is almost as painful as watching grass grow.

I have a lack of patience. In fact, our generation has a lack of patience. Living in a generation where we can solve many of our problems with a few taps on our phone has drained our generation of any patience that was originally there.

Thank you, technology for your ability to turn a generation of kids who had the patience to solve Rubix Cubes, the patience to think of 100 different type of Neopets names (90's kids, please tell me you know what I am on about? If not you were robbed of a significant part of your childhood) and the patience to watch movies when they actually came out on DVD.

This development of technology has made us believe that if we want or need something we can and should get it when we want. This is unrealistic and puts a stupid amount of pressure on...

Our Education..."Why have I not learnt everything I was told in lecture today? I am going to fail!"
Our Careers..."I should be further in my career by now, I am not going to make it like I thought I would"
Our Relationships..."You need to change now, otherwise we can't be together"

Dramatic, but realistic thoughts that have developed because we have been built to believe anything can happen at a snap-of-the fingers.

We need to be taught the art of patience and waiting and I don't mean waiting for something to be dropped into your hands but working hard and striving, knowing that your hard work will not instantly be paid off.

How painful does that sound? But it's life and something that we all need to accept!

Recipe Of The Week: Chewy Cookies!

INGREDIENTS	METHOD
175g Unsalted  Butter	Pre-heat oven to 170 degrees and grease baking tray
225g Light Brown Sugar	Melt the Butter and leave to cool for 2 minutes
100g Granulated Sugar	Stir in the sugars until it is thoroughly combined
1 Tsp Vanilla Extract	Add the Egg, Egg Yolk and Vanilla and beat for 5 minutes
1 Medium Egg	Add all the dry ingredients and fold in choice chips
1 Medium Egg Yolk	Using a cookie scoop, portion the cookies onto the tray (4-6 per tray)
275g Plain Flour	Bake for 12-13 minutes and cool for 10 minutes
1/2 Tsp Bicarbonate of Soda 1/2 Tsp Salt 325g Milk Choc Chips

"White People Music"

Man, I have been asked this a lot.

I don't limit myself to one genre of music but it is only when I listen to pop or an alternative genre of music that I get asked this question. Though technically "white people music" isn't a genre, it is just a way of segregating people into groups. Music can be powerful but what is unity without segregation in this generation? 

Just a quick reminder that music has no race. Just because it may appeal to one race more than the other means nothing. Listen to what you like and enjoy, whether it is the most overplayed song on the radio or an unknown song from Soundcloud. Music is music. 

*listens to Lady Gaga*

  

Surprisingly Tasty Apple and Cinnamon Squares!!!

INGREDIENTS	METHOD
1 Cup All Purpose Flour	Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees and grease square tin
1 Tsp Baking Powder	Sift together Flour/ Salt/ Ground Cinnamon and set aside
1/4 Tsp Salt	In another bowl, mix together Butter, Brown Sugar and White Sugar
1/4 Tsp Ground Cinnamon	Stir in Eggs and Vanilla into the Butter mixture
1/4 Cup Butter (Melted)	Mix flour into the mixture and fold the apples and walnuts in
1/2 Brown Sugar	Spread mixture into a square tin
1/2 White Sugar	In a bowl, Mix together the remaining Sugar and Cinnamon
1 Egg	Sprinkle over the top of the mixture
1 Tsp Vanilla Extract	Bake for 30 Minutes and cool for 10 Minutes
1/2 Cup Chopped Apple
1/2 Cup Chopped Walnuts 2 Tbs Brown Sugar 2 Tbs Ground Cinnamon

12 Hours In London