My 2016. A hard political year and my changing views on social media.

I have to say, despite its bad press, that 2016 has actually been kind to me personally. I have had some fabulous times with family and friends, I still love my flat, I finally left the job I had been doing for over 10 years and didn’t like, and started a fantastic job, which I love. My health and weight is not totally sorted, but I am working on it. Finally, I have realised that I can be totally happy without a man in my life, and this is a good feeling. When I do meet someone suitable I know that they will have to be someone who can enhance my life.

Sadly this year has seen many deaths, not just celebrity deaths, though there has been so many of those, but deaths closer to home. Many of my friends have lost people this year and my heart goes out to them. It must be very hard when life goes on around you but you feel like your life has been irreparably altered in a bad way.

We have all noticed the huge numbers of people in the public eye who have died this year and I am not sure if it is a lot worse than normal or if social media has just broadcast these deaths in such a way that it seems more real, more tragic, more part of our lives? Maybe it is a combination of both? In a time where news is spread online, especially by social media, it may seem like life is worse because we know so much so quickly, so vividly and in so much detail, however, this year has been relentless.

We have also seen some ridiculous political mistakes in 2016. Firstly we saw the stupidity and nastiness which accompanied Brexit; a country divided by a referendum. We then went on to witness mass insanity as Donald Trump was elected president of the United States. A vile, racist, misogynist who openly promoted sexual assault! (My personal opinion.) I dread to think where politics will go in 2017, we can only wait and hope. We have seen the war in Syria escalate and millions of people dying, being injured, losing their whole lives and everything they lived for.

The saddest thing I have seen this year is the video of a professor from Aleppo basically saying goodbye to the world. As far as he was concerned the world had abandoned his country and his people and massacre was imminent. This professor was using, what seemed to be, a mobile phone to record and broadcast his message. This showed me that he once had a job as a professor, he had a mobile phone, and he was just like we are. What is there to stop this happening in Britain, in our lifetime? (It seems unimaginable, but maybe it did to the professor from Aleppo?) We need clever, strong, articulate, decisive people leading our country. We need people who are there for all people of all classes. I can’t imagine who would be like this, I can’t think of who would be able to do the job, but I do hope there is someone who will step up.

Sadly social media has played a part in the way people look at life. I certainly have spent far too much time on it in the past and, am ashamed to say, changed my Facebook profile picture to a sad one after a relationship ended. I would never do that now, but cringe that I ever did.

Don’t get me wrong, social media has a place in our modern lives, especially in keeping people connected who live in different countries. It is good for highlighting issues and making people laugh, but it must not be the ONLY way that people interact. There is nothing as good as sitting having a cup of coffee or a meal with friends and talking face to face.

I personally have taken off most of the pages and groups I followed on Facebook, deleted many people and am trying to put less on there. I had got into the bad habit (don’t ask me how it started) of putting on FB who I had coffee with, who I went walking with, which night out I had been to, who had come round for dinner or coffee and this was boring me, so it must have been boring others. I have stopped doing this after a discussion with a friend who had really studied the effects of social media on teenagers. It really made me think about things that I had been pondering for a while.

I do have to say that one thing that needs to stop on social media is making people feel guilty enough to “like” or share things. Liking a post will, sadly, not stop someone having a disability or cancer. No one should beg for likes because they are old or ill or want sympathy. No one has a need to show how fast a post can travel round the world......it’s been done to death. Lastly, be careful what you share on social media. If the police put a lost child/ person post I will happily share it, however, a personal post may not be what it seems. Someone may not be allowed to see a child for valid reasons and they could track them down through social media if a picture was shared. If you know the person who put the original post and know it is genuine, that is not a problem. The same goes for potential criminals, share police posts only, what if it is someone with a vicious vendetta rather than a genuine post.

There is a fantastic piece online from a man called Simon Sinek. It is called Simon Sinek Explains the Millennial Paradox.  He discusses the younger generation, what they expect in life, their upbringing and how technology affects them. It is really worth going on to You Tube to watch. I only saw it a few days ago but it has made me think even more.

I think my message for 2017 is to think before you do anything, think of the impact on other people, the planet, and life in general. Be sensible but also have fun; be responsible but also be happy. Live your life to the full while still considering how it will impact those around you.

Happy New Year

Season's greetings

To the lovely people who read my blog: 

Whether you celebrate Christmas in the traditional sense, celebrate your own kind of tradition, or just enjoy spending time with family and friends;

  Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

What's In The Jar?

What’s in the jar?  These were the words I commented when seeing a picture, on a selling site, of an unlabelled jar of yellow gloop. Now common sense says it is honey, the caption said it was honey......I am not so sure.

 I saw the offending article by accident, on Facebook market or whatever they call it. This was purely accidental as I pressed the wrong button and, for some inexplicable reason, this site has its own Facebook button! This prompted me to look for other weird items on the aforementioned site........there were quite a few.

Firstly, £5 notes. Why are the new £5 notes being put up for sale for stupid amounts of money? Are people that greedy and desperate to make money that they will try to sell the new £5 notes? I am sure someone will want them but will they really want to pay so much? The first handful may have been worth something but I do feel it has got out of hand.

What makes people try to sell a grimy old sofa? A good condition sofa I can understand, a grimy dated looking sofa.......I don’t think they will make much money.  Quite a few worn leather sofas appear to be up for sale and a lot of corner sofas...... maybe families want to sit separately again. What made anyone buy a silver sparkly sofa I cannot imagine; but they are now selling it.

The same goes for shabby clothes. Some of the things I have seen would be turned down by the rag man. Just because you want to get rid of some old tat does not mean that anyone wants it. Just because you, at some time, decided a shiny, luminous tracksuit was a good idea, does not mean anyone else will. Also, modelling the item is not always the best idea because if it looks bad on you, it won’t sell. Presumably if it looked good on you it would not be for sale.

Sweet and diet products seem to be sold under the miscellaneous section, I personally think they should go under the “wouldn’t touch it with a barge pole” section along with the urine stained mattresses and the pressure sore cushion. The white thigh high boots with dubious streaks can also go in this category.

There are some things that seem unlikely and far too good to be true. Who would sell an unopened Samsung Galaxy Edge for £1? Or, at the other end of the scale, ask £400 for an Iphone 5S when the 7 has been released? 

To be honest if you are selling something for literally a few pounds, why not be generous and give it to a charity shop? Is it really worth all the hassle to sell it and will anyone decide to make the effort to go to your house to collect it?

What's in the jar???

Rock it Billy........and his two mates of course.

The amazing Billy 2 Mates blew the sky apart above O’Neill’s pub in Woking on Friday night with a fantastic rock set. 

Proving one hundred percent, that live musicians still rock, were Billy Irvine on lead guitar and vocals, Vic Cox on bass and vocals and Daryl Patto on drums.

In an extremely professional, energetic performance, Billy 2 Mates blasted out music from The Black Keys, Kings of Leon, Oasis, Jimi Hendrix, Paulo Nutini, The Killers, Blur, Stevie Wonder, The Stereophonics,  Royal Blood and more. The crowd in O’Neill’s were on their feet and filled the dance floor rapidly as the infectious, enthusiastic sound from these three accomplished musicians belted out across the pub in an electric performance that would rival, if not knock out quite a lot of the so called performers we see in the charts these days.

The powerful, foot tapping beat, accomplished rock guitars and brilliant rapport with the audience helped this effortless performance go from being a band playing in the pub on a Friday night to a total, full on, gig experience.

A lot can be said for a band that gels so well and performs so passionately with obvious technical skill. In an age where people want a quick fix to stardom it is refreshing to see a group of guys who perform because they love what they do and they do it so well.

Billy is an old school mate and I can say that he has a lot more than 2 mates. Whether it is family, friends or the old school gang, everyone who came to watch the band perform had a blast. I totally recommend this fabulous band to any music lover.

For anyone who does not get the musical reference in the title please go onto You Tube and look up the song Rock It Billy  by singer T Graham Brown.

Billy 2 Mates in action ( apologies for the photography)

Our Consumer Driven Society

Over consumption of goods is something that we are all guilty of on some level. Whether it is food, books, music, clothes, hobbies or larger items, most people have something they overspend on or accumulate too much of.

I have always considered myself fairly minimalist except for my books and Filofax collection and even they are neatly contained. However, I have noticed that the Filofax/planners are a little bit of an obsession and wonder about clearing some out. Most of them have been given, bought with birthday money or second hand. Now don’t get me wrong I use my planners, each one has a different use (diary, addresses, financial, blog, etc) but I do have to stop myself buying unnecessarily.

Dresses, specifically second-hand dresses, are now becoming a little bit of a problem because you feel so self righteous buying a good dress for between £4 and £6 and want to buy every brilliant one you see. Luckily I am good at telling myself that I don’t need them all and that I can only wear one at a time.

I have never liked having too many things around me and the things I have must be well organised. The ideal of minimalism is something that is part of me. When I downsized from a 3 bedroom to a 1 bedroom place last year, I gave things away. The more space you have the more you seem to accumulate. I could have sold things but giving them away felt better. I actually felt physically lighter for having given things away and for owning less.

It is easy to sort out the things you own and get rid of what you don’t need. I regularly go through my books and see if there is one or two that I can get rid of. A few months ago I gave away a planner and I am always happy to put something in a charity bag when they are put through my door. Sometimes you do need to reevaluate what you own because your priorities and needs may have changed. Over a few years I managed to amass a sizeable bag of ribbon. It was only when I was getting some out recently to use on a present, that I decided that I had too much and had a clear out. It was not wasted as I passed it on to someone else but I felt better for doing it.

Sitting with a box, a drawer or a pile of belongings and sorting through them is quite therapeutic. Some things make you think and prompt you to do activities you have forgotten about and there are other things you realise you will never need again. Yes, if you dispose of something there is a chance that you may regret it, however, you can’t keep everything all the time and you need to consider the likelihood of never needing it again being far more likely.

Everyone has their Achilles heel and I have mentioned that mine are books and planners, but this does not mean you can’t be sensible. Really ladies, will you ever need all 20 black dresses? There must be some you can give to charity? Men, do you think you need 6 boxes of nuts and bolt and similar toolbox debris?  The first step to a more uncluttered life is to think about what you really need. If you have a hoarder's nature then take it really slow. Maybe do the one in, one out method until you feel more comfortable with disposing of things.

My current dilemma is that I feel I have too many clothes. I can’t wear all of them due to weight gain but am in the process of losing weight so am holding off  a little longer before having a clear out. I did weed out a few bits when a charity bag came through the door but I am also giving myself a clear out deadline. Just this week I put 25 items of clothing aside for the next charity bag. If I haven’t started dropping the pounds by a certain date then I have to start clearing out. Goals make de-cluttering so much easier.

I have read, with great interest, many articles about minimalism and am happy that I do a lot of the little things that come up in these articles. It’s the small things that you do daily that keep your life organised. For example, I have always dealt with my post as soon as I get it. The envelopes and anything else which I don’t need gets recycled and the post itself is dealt with, filed etc. That is one less job to do at a later date.

One very important way of having less clutter in your life is not coveting what other people have. It’s fine to see something and want it but when it gets to having things to keep up with other people, then that is destructive. You may not need the things someone else has and you may waste money that you can’t afford and still get no joy out of what you have bought. Be selective in what you buy and make considered decisions rather than buying on impulse. We have all bought something on a whim and regretted it and been mentally kicking ourselves for ages, but we should learn from that the next time.

I have rather a lot on my Amazon wish list right now. Some of the things are potential presents for up and coming birthdays and some things I want. If I still want them when I have birthday money or want to treat myself, then I will buy something. If not, it stays on the list or gets deleted. Sadly it is too easy to buy things with a few clicks of the mouse and a credit card so impulse buying is actually easier these days.

We need to consider what we are buying and the impact it will make financially, in regard to being clutter and even environmentally. If you have something you can use but still replace it for no real reason, then you could just be creating more waste. Always try to give things to charity if you don’t want them as someone else may have a use for it and it isn’t filling up the overfilled landfill sites.

Physical consumption is not a replacement for happiness, yet we hear the phrase “retail therapy” far too often.  The world of advertising has taught us that if we have had a hard day then we need to treat ourselves and that the only way to be content is through owning something or having a treat. (I have done this many times with chocolate.) I am quite happy, for example, with reading a book from the library, buying it second hand or buying it new. There is often more pleasure in buying a book in a charity shop as it is more about the book and the pleasure of reading it rather than owning it. Yes, I keep some books but they are ones I will re-read.

Owning a £300 handbag is an extravagance and I would be happier knowing I had bought a bag for £5 in a second hand shop. Labels and status symbols have no effect on me. I like the Filofax planners but am happy to have one second-hand or buy a Paperchase planner. I have never seen the purpose in buying branded clothes. Yes, quality is better but it is not better because it has an expensive price tag. The quality is in how the garment is made, not that it was made by the latest designer

If you find that your home is messy and cluttered and you have far more things than you will ever need, then you probably need to start de-cluttering. You will be surprised how lighter and happier you are when you are not surrounded by too many possessions. If you own a huge amount of stuff then start small as it will be an overwhelming task. Only you can decide how much something means to you and whether you want to keep it. You may realise that you like something but know someone who would have more use for it. You will find that giving things away is very rewarding and a lot easier to do than you think.

Update 12.10.2016

A big fat apology for the lack of posts recently. I have changed jobs and been really busy. I am working on a new piece and will get my head down and get on with it. My new job is fantastic and fewer hours but still full time so I win all round.

Somehow I have managed to fill the extra hours with meeting friends for coffee, extra reading and catching up with everything. This is week 3 of my new job so I must get my head down and get writing. See you soon lovely people. :-)

Brush Demon.......let the paint flow.

Hidden away in the depths of Somerset is a small company which paints war gaming miniatures and box art for war gaming products.

Brush Demon is a fabulous company with very high standards and a meticulous eye for detail. The founder member of the company, 28 year old Ben MacIntyre spends long hours at the painting table as well as sharing his passion with others while teaching at occasional painting workshops. Client meetings, marketing and training take up the rest of his time.

Brush Demon was born in the summer of 2014 after Ben had been painting as a hobby and as a job for other companies for over ten years. (Including a stint working in the industry leading company Games Workshop during and after his college years.) He decided to start his own company to paint miniatures as there was a demand for painted figures of a high standard for both the manufacturers of these products and their end users. Not everyone has the time or ability to achieve the level of painting they require at the games table.

Brush Demon offers multiple levels of painting standard depending on what the client requires. A man who uses his figures regularly at the gaming table will not need the top standard of painting which a company who sells the product will request, however the lowest standard that Brush Demon produces is still far superior to that of the average person painting his/her collection as a hobby.

The painting levels are as follows:

Tabletop level: “A simple yet effective paint job allowing you to get great looking armies on the tabletop in a quick and cost effective way.”

Collector’s level: “High quality paint jobs equally suited to life on the gaming table or in the display cabinet.”

Showcase level: “The best of the best. These take pride of place in your cabinet and only come out for special occasions.”

The beginning stages

I recently visited Ben in the Brush Demon painting studio and saw the meticulous detail that was involved in painting a figure. As well as a huge collection of paints and painting paraphernalia there are two big bookcases full of reference material which has been collected over the years. No detail is too small and Ben works with the client to ensure that they get exactly what they want.

The Brush Demon studio.

Brush Demon takes on commissions from individual clients and bigger companies too. They also have worked on product ranges associated with a variety of film, TV and computer games licences. There are numerous magazines and books worldwide in which work from Brush Demon has been published including popular magazines such as White Dwarf and also many pieces of box art also featuring their work.

A recent feature in White Dwarf magazine....... always good to be featured in print.

Having witnessed some painting in the Brush Demon painting studio, I can say that the painstaking attention to detail is amazing. The techniques used to create the layers of paint are so fine but add colour, definition, shading and detail that create a precise and realistic figure. (OK, some are more fantasy than realism but they are still painted beautifully.) As well as the usual smaller models, Brush Demon also takes on larger commissions and regularly paints large sets of models too. The patience and care needed to paint miniatures to such an exacting standard takes hours of preparation and dedication. Whatever the challenge Brush Demon will take on the challenge and “let the paint flow”

Just a small selection of Brush Demon work.

There is not much time for recreational painting when you do it for a living but recently  Ben put down his business paintbrush to paint a piece for The Age of Sigmar open day at Warhammer World. Ben's piece in the duel category won him a Bronze Golden Demon. Fabulous result!

The winning model and the bronze golden demon statue.

Brush Demon has a fabulous website   www.brushdemon.co.uk

Brush Demon Facebook page is also easily accessible and there is a link from the website.

You could also follow Brush Demon on Instagram.