Books vs. Kindles

I always found this such a funny argument that comes up all the time. I own both and don't see why people have to have either one or the other! They're both great and I wouldn't want to have to choose between them!

Books
I love the smell and feel of books. There's just something about opening a new book and getting that fresh page smell. The sound of pages turning is also great. I could spend hours in bookshops and I actually ended up using up nearly the whole hour I had in between the train I missed and the next one just browsing the local Waterstones the other day.
The smell of old books is also amazing. I don't even know what it is but the browning pages and musty smell is so nice.
The downside to books is that they are so expensive! However, trawling through sale shelves and secondhand bookshops always produces some hidden gems! Some of my favourite books were found in an amazing secondhand bookshop in Northumberland!

Kindles
The most obvious difference: Kindles are one size and can store thousands of books without changing shape which makes them so much easier to carry around and fit into bags.
The books are cheaper on the kindle and the one I have doesn't have a lighted screen so it's literally an electronic book which is really nice! It's also a really handy feature that you can download a sample of any book then once you've read it, you can buy the book fully!
I also think they're really handy because it is connected to your amazon account and 3G so if you want to buy a book, you can search for it on the kindle shop and download it there and then, then read it straight away without having to go to a shop and buy it, or ordering it and having to wait for days on end for a book you want to read then.
The downsides are that it isn't the real book so you don't get the feel or smell of pages. I also find the more recent versions of kindles that are trying to be cheaper iPads because that isn't what kindles are for! They were designed to be a device that you could store and read books from, not play games! I think the lighting is a good idea but the rest of it is pointless. It defeats the whole point of it being a reading device!

I love them both and they're both good, just at different times and in different situations! I tend to carry them both around in my bag because I tend to have multiple books on the go, normally one actual book and at least one book on my kindle! I don't have a preference particularly but I like having my favourite books in book form; it's just nice to be able to have them there physically.
Tell me your thoughts!
Jess xx

Lazy Day

I found out today is that you can now pin some things straight from another website if you want to! It's actually the most handy little thing EVER. I didn't know you could do this until yesterday because I basically spend my life on my phone and don't use a proper computer very often. It's actually such an awesome feature and it increases my love for Pinterest just a little bit more.
I've been needing a lazy day pretty much since I started revision. Lazy days are the best because it means you can do what you like and just relax. My stress levels have been way over normal or healthy lately so I'm quite glad that I finally get to have a (in my opinion!) well-deserved break. I've spent the day in bed with the laptop browsing Tumblr, Twitter and many other amazing websites. I've read a bit, tidied my room a bit (well overdue), showered and I only really got up (if you can call it that) at 12! It's been so nice to just have a me day. It's also been nice to not have to concentrate on anything in particular and just getting to do what I like, when I like. I've changed my mind about what I want to write for this blog post about 3 times today. I've written half a post, run out of steam and just started again which is actually really nice because I don't have anyone telling me what to write or that I need to write about one thing or another. I can write about what I like and if I change my mind then it doesn't matter! When I tell some people that I write a blog as a break from essay writing and college, they don't understand because surely writing a blog post is just even more writing, right? I find that just writing whatever is in my mind at the time is actually such a relief from writing essays that have structure and go towards a grade. Essays have specific subjects and a question to answer while the only thing a blog post has to do is fit with the title. Even then that's not really a given!
I've run out to say for this post so I'll post again soon!
Jess xx

I'M BACK!

It's been an entire month since I blogged last time but happily I only have one exam left right at the beginning of June so I can start blogging properly again hopefully! I've missed it so much, my life has been overrun by work, I've had literally no social life up until now! I finished my last exam this side of half term today so I decided to hop on a train after college and travel to Reading where I bought some new nail polish! I bought three bottles of Essie nail polish and let me tell you, it was SO worth it. I bought Tart Deco, Tea and Crumpets and Turquoise et Caicos. They're all such gorgeous colour that are so perfect for summer, whenever it turns up... either way, I love them to pieces. Im currently wearing Tart Deco and it's just amazing! It's a light solid peach colour and I love it! It was so quick to dry and it was really easy to apply with a really small amount of it going on the edge of my fingers which I'm really happy about! I'll definitely be buying more, totally worth the extra few pounds and the colours are amazing!

From Instagram - Tart Deco, Tea & Crumpets (left on right pic) and Turquoise & Caicos (middle on right pic).
How cute are they?!

I also treated myself to a Krispy Kreme doughnut to have on the train home today which was awesome, I had one that had what looks like little pieces of oreo cookie on the top and it's so nice! I've also been meaning to start The Paris Wife for over 6 months now but I've been so busy with college work that I haven't had time! I'm glad to be able to finally have time to be able to read a book that isn't related to college or Ancient Romans/Greeks though! It's a nice change! I've missed reading and I've ended up having to use every spare moment, be that a train journey or 5 minutes before bed, to do a little reading of something completely different from my courses. Over the last month or two, I've been reading The Great Gatsby off my kindle app on my phone and to be honest, I didn't really think it was that great. It might have been because I was having to read it in so many little dispersed bursts that the plot line was lost on me, but I don't really understand why it gets such high praise. It didn't really seem to go anywhere for me and the so-called big secret and mystery of Mr. Gatsby and who he is was quite dull frankly. Maybe I need to re-read it all in one go so it flows better or maybe it just isn't a book that I enjoy. There are plenty of other books out there though so I can live with not liking one!

Yummy doughnut and The Paris Wife; excited to get into it!

Apart from today, nothing interesting has happened in my life in the last month! My exams have been pretty good and I've also had minimal breakdowns which is always a bonus so all in all, it's been an alright month!! I can't wait for exams to be over though so I can get back to doing things I enjoy like blogging!
Talk soon! I have lots of ideas for posts!
Jess xx

It's time to grow up, little wildflower.

I went shopping with my mum on Saturday which was awesome! We don't spend enough time alone together so it was good just having a girls day out. The main reason we were going in the first place was that I've been eyeing up some polka dot loafers in New Look for about 2 weeks so I decided to go and buy them! With my student card discount, I bought them for about £11 instead of £13 so I'm really pleased that I got to save money! They're gorgeous and really comfy so I'm super happy with them.
Mum also bought me this really gorgeous tunic dress from White Stuff, again polka dots!
If you haven't already figured out, I'm a bit of a spot lover! I find polka dots so cute! They make everything look amazing!


Absolutely love these shoes!

This dress is so pretty and comfy!

 

I've finally finished my classics notes for the Greek tragedy plays which has made me incredibly happy, I spent Sunday writing the last of them and I'm so glad they're done! I just hope that I've done them right now...
I found a really lovely song on YouTube which was suggested after listening to a couple of Lewis Watson songs (go and check him out, seriously. He's amazing!) and I've been listening to it for 5 days straight, not even joking. I haven't listened to any other song unless I'm listening to TV or the radio. It's called Little Wildflower by Andrew Simple and it's easily become my favourite song. It's another acoustic but what else is expected of my by now?! It's a gorgeous song and the lyrics are actually so relevant. I listen to it whilst revising and doing my work and most other times at the moment because I'm so stressed, I'm literally ready to crack at any second so it calms me down and makes me happy. I can't even put into words how much I love it! Listen to it and see for yourself! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpWz6TiYj6o
It was actually sunny today which was brilliant, always means everyone is in a good mood! Unfortunately, I then went to the extended project exhibition at college with my family to find that mine wasn't on display which was quite disappointing and upsetting because I worked really hard on it!
Ah well, things can only get better!
Jess xx



20 days

It's been 20 days since I last posted.....work truly has taken over my life. After Easter, I've basically been working the entire time. I went on a biology revision course for one week in Easter which surprisingly turned out to be quite fun! The people there were great and I ended up learning a lot of stuff that I didn't really understand before! Hopefully it rubs off properly and I can remember it all in my exams!
I have literally been eating, sleeping and working 9am-11pm every day so I'm shattered. I've had at the most, 8 hours sleep each night since about Christmas so it's really starting to catch up now and it's not nice, I can tell you that!
On a brighter note, I got a timed Ancient history essay that I wrote before Easter back this week, I got 23/25 which is an A so I'm super happy! Hopefully I can do that in the exam!
I also went to see The Host last weekend which was just amazing. Me and my friend kept laughing through it though because some parts were rather cliché and hilarious so that was pretty fun!
My life is so so boring now it's unreal. Nothing exciting is happening until the end of the year really which sucks! We had to do our 2nd year enrolment forms this week too so I finally got to say I'm dropping biology! This also means that I don't have to take it after half term so I finish biology after my last exam on 3rd June so I'm really happy about that!
I finished my extended project and have handed it all in now so I'm REALLY excited to find out what grade I got! My teacher predicted me an A so if I got that or an A*, I would be so happy! It would really make me feel proud because I've worked hard on it, and it would be nice to actually get an A* for a subject overall!
Anyway, I don't have time to write long blog post so I shall post again some time soon I hope!
Jess xx

EASTER!

Happy Easter everyone! Sorry about the long wait in between posts again, for the millionth time, work has taken priority. But this last week has been as awesome as it has crazily busy!
On Monday I went to a UCAS convention at Reading Uni with college which was quite fun! The English talk I went to was pretty boring, mainly because the lecturer was just dull and because I don't even want to do English, I was just there to take notes for Kate! Reading is actually one of my possible choices for Uni so it was nice being able to look around and see what it's like. I actually really liked it but some of the buildings were a bit boring and dull looking. We then went and spoke to loads of reps from different Universities and got prospectuses which was actually really useful! I had a really good chat with the lady at the stall for UCL which helped me understand what it's like living in London. I think overall I picked up about 15 prospectuses when I only went in for 7!! It's funny how you literally go in and just pick up any that look interesting, even when you have no intentions of going there!

So many!!! There's Exeter, UCL, Reading, Durham, Birmingham, Warwick,
Bournemouth, Leicester, York, Aberystwyth, Edinburgh, Royal Holloway and King's College.

I also ended up going to UCL for a taster day on Wednesday which was amazing. We had loads of lectures which was fantastic and the lecturers were all just brilliant. The building we were in was really nice and splat bang in central London, I walked down to Oxford Street and back in under half an hour! It's definitely helped me judge if it's somewhere I could see myself going, and I really can! I'm honestly so excited because it's also one of the best Unis for my course, so if I get in, it will be so amazing! Just need to get AAB first...

On Thursday, because it was the end of term, me and my family went to watch The Croods. Its been ages since we all went to the cinema together so it was nice having a bit of family time out. It was actually a pretty amazing film, it was so funny! It reminded me of Ice Age a bit at some points and seeing as that's one of my favourite films, there's nothing wrong with that!

I went round a friends house to watch some band films (All Time Low are so funny backstage!) and it was really nice catching up with my secondary school friends because they're awesome! It was a lot of fun just sitting around and eating pizza and chatting whilst awesome music goes on in the background.

Now finally on to today.....EASTER! I love it so much, it's like a chocolate Christmas! Chocolate makes me happy so this is always a good time for me, especially when I need something to keep me going whilst working!

SO MUCH YUMMINESS. yay! And also Crème Eggs, which are my favourites.

Sadly, despite the yummy chocolate, I have to do work, so I'll be back sometime in the next week I assume! Byee!
Jess xx

Birthday birthday birthday!!! Yay!

So it was my birthday on Wednesday and it was just perfect! I got some really lovely presents which were fabulous (pictures to come further down!) and I went out a couple of times!
I went to lunch at Maison Blanc, and it is literally my favourite restaurant/cafe ever. It's a tad expensive but SO worth it. Their cheese and ham crossaint is to die for. I also took away the cutest little Easter bunny cupcake, it was pink and strawberry flavoured and the icing sparkled! It tasted so good!

How adorable is that?! Shame that one of the feet broke in the box!

I also went out to tea with my family at a local (ish) restaurant and that was also fantastic! We go there on special occasions and I decided to have something different from the ribs this time (mainly because it wasn't on the menu), but I had belly pork instead which was divine, and it had some of the best crackling on it that I've had in a long time! 
Even though I knew about quite a few of my presents this year due to me picking out quite a few of them (Crew warehouse sales always have the nicest clothes but you always need to try them on just in case!), they were amazing! The presents I didn't know about were also great, my family and friends know just what to get me!

Navy & white cardigan from le parents, Crew warehouse sale.
Teal cardigan from my grandma, White Stuff.
Fan photo album and white pen from Lauren, Paperchase.
Navy star scarf from parents, Crew warehouse sale.
Fox scarf with button details from grandma, White Stuff.
Navy patterned scarf from Zoe and Cecilie, not sure where from!
Aren't they all gorgeous?!

I love that I got 3 new scarves, even more to add to my rapidly growing collection which makes me rather happy!
My auntie got me this Radley purse and I love it so much, it's unreal! it's made to look like a letter!

Absolutely love the address and the Radley dog on the stamp, so cute!

The stitching on the back is even done to make it look like a letter!

I went out driving at Mercedes Benz world yesterday and it actually went so well, I'm super happy! My provisional still hasn't shown up yet which is annoying but I'm quite glad that I still get to drive around on their road track instead of being on the road with proper drivers; I'd be too scared!
I did my extended project presentation on my birthday too which was so scary...I hate talking in front of people like that, I always mess up or sound really shaky! My teacher said I did pretty well though which is always good!
I got an email this morning (well, Thursday, but I only saw it today!) from the ceramics teacher at college that my pot has been fired! I get to collect it on Tuesday which is awesome!
On Friday, I went to Café Nero with my friend Katie and this guy I've seen around (new friendship acquired!) and she showed me a game called Happy Jump. It's honestly more addicting than Malteasers. It's like Doodle Jump but much more awesome because you're a JELLY. You collect coins to buy items for the jelly, you can even change to cupcakes or ice cream! There's even a Zombie jelly which is just awesome! It's just adorable. You have to avoid flies but the only way to kill them is to eat an apple and zoom through them with your added speed! It's probably going to turn in to my app that I turn to when I get bored! The best part is that it's free!

One of the most addictive games in existence...

Today is one of the few days that I've half taken off as a relaxation day. I did some work this morning when I actually got up...(accidentally missed breakfast because of this...oops!) and now I've had a long shower, taken my nail polish off, eaten some birthday chocolate from my grandma, browsed Pinterest and written a long overdue blog post! I'm going to paint my nails light blue in a bit too, it's either a cute Spring colour or a cold Winter colour so it fits with the stupid English weather at the moment which seems to be fluctuating between the two!

Best chocolate ever - thank you Grandma!

I'm going to a UCAS convention at Reading University with college which will be great fun! I get to sit through a talk about English at Uni (no intentions whatsoever of doing that but college forced me to go to one...so I picked the most interesting sounding one) and then one about Oxbridge which should be fun...kind of! I really want to go and talk to the reps of the Unis and get prospectuses though, that will be interesting!

I'm beyond happy that it's the Easter holidays on Friday, it'll be nice not having to wake up super early every day and then revising with a hot chocolate whilst sitting on my bed!
Jess xx