The Never Have I Ever List

Nearly a year ago today I wrote a post on drinking games for fresher's week, and I included my all-time-fave "Never Have I Ever". But we play it a little bit differently. Instead of each thinking up something to say, we read from a list of things which I have saved in the notes on my phone. The original list was written in 2013 (when I had just finished school and was celebrating in Ayia Napa), and we've added to it ever since.

Anyway, I decided that the list was just too good to not share with you all, so here goes...

NEVER HAVE I EVER...
• Fraped someone

• Failed a test 

• Been to a funeral 

• Blackmailed someone

• Had a job

• Stalked my ex on social media

• Had a pet

• Kissed/dated someone 5+ years older than me

• Had a piercing

• Cheated

• Been in trouble with the police

• Played on a sports team

• Hit someone

• Smoked cigarettes

• Drunk alcohol

• Bought underwear for someone of the opposite sex

• Been overweight

• Purposefully tried to make someone else jealous

• Been underweight

• Had a crush on someone in the room

• Stalked my ex's new girl/guy on social media

• Done a season overseas

• Got a tattoo

• Gone on a tinder date

• Been 'the over woman/man'

• Been late to school

• Been proposed to

• Kicked someone out

• Been engaged

• Kissed/dated with my friend's ex/someone they used to see

• Got kicked out of a club/bar

• Been with someone/dated someone 3+ years younger than me

• Been to a wedding

• Lost all my stuff on a night out

• Been bullied

• Been on tv

• Kissed someone who's in the room right now

• Been on a blind date

• Pretended to be gay/straight

• Lied in never have I ever

• Been late to work

• Smoked a cigar

• Been friendzoned

• Been go karting

• Been in the back of a police car

• Been bungee jumping

• Broken up with someone via text message

• Been in an ambulance

• Had a crush on a teacher

• Fallen over in front of everyone

• Found my cousin on tinder

• Had my phone stolen

• Been speed dating

• Done something I regretted

• Kissed someone in the rain

• Gone on a pedalo

• Kissed someone different race to myself

• Had my heart broken

• Wet myself

• Had a shout out on the radio

• Professed my love to someone whilst drunk

• Go skinny dipping

• Been in a car crash

• Failed my drivers test

• Done karaoke

• Broken a bone

• Dated a co-worker

• Cried because I was drunk

• Drunk dialled someone

• Broken somebody's heart

• Thrown a party without my parents knowing

• Passed out from drinking

• Used a fake id

• Stolen something

• Been a bridesmaid/page boy

• Fancied someone so much I stalked them

This list probably seems a little bit tame for the more seasoned of you never-have-I-ever players, so if you were looking for a more raunchy list which is definitely NSFW and probably not suitable for anyone sober, then click here!

P.s. If you want to share the list with your friends then please credit me!

P.p.s. DRINK RESPONSIBLY!

House Horror Stories I

The fact that I have enough material to write a series of posts on this just shows that my housemates and I had quite a few housing nightmares during our second year... This will probably be a long post.

It did get to the point where, if something could go wrong, it did. However, I will say that I don't lay the blame on my landlord, who actually went out of his way for us quite frequently, or our lettings agent, who were pretty quick to fix things when they went wrong. I think it was just extreme bad luck, and at least we can laugh about it now!

So, let's start at the very beginning. My housemates and I signed for our house pretty early on, at around Christmas time of our first year. The house that we decided on was being renovated, so when we moved in everything would be new and extended, which was very exciting. We were also promised plenty of bathrooms with large showers, loads of kitchen space, a utility room and brand new furniture in all of the bedrooms. Plus, no rent to pay over the summer months, when the property would be empty anyway. An offer we couldn't refuse.

Bit premature luv

Fast-forward several months, to the beginning of September, and we received a phone call from our landlord. He apologetically explained to me that our house was not yet ready, and probably wouldn't be ready by the time that our tenancy agreement began, but that he would keep us updated with the situation. At this point we weren't really panicking, we didn't need to move in until a while after our tenancy began, and we were told that it should be ready before then.

The next few weeks were pretty stressful. We were getting constant updates on our house and its progress, but we could tell that it wasn't looking good. Eventually, the beginning of the tenancy came around and the house wasn't ready. The panic set in as we realised that despite our best hopes, the house would not be ready for when we wanted to start moving in. But, we did still think that it wouldn't be long before we could. 

In the meantime, our landlord sorted us out some temporary accommodation, which turned out to be another house in the area that one of his friends owned. Which eased the panic slightly, as we thought we might have to stay in a hotel in the meantime. However, the house we were given as temporary accommodation had no oven, one shower, had to have a fridge and freezer put in for us, as well as a microwave, and didn't have enough bedrooms. This meant that two of us would have to share. 

Ooooh, cosy

A few days after our original moving in date, I headed up to Birmingham with most of my stuff, to move into the temporary house, and to store some of my stuff at the still-under-construction house. I don't think I had quite prepared myself for the house that I walked into. We were under the impression that the house could be ready any day now. What I was met with was a house that didn't even have a roof or walls in parts, no floors, no plaster, still to be plumbed, no electrics, and that was no where near being close to 'finishing touches'. It was quite a shock.

Luckily, my bedroom was finished. So I was able to pop most of my stuff into my room, and see how it would look. I was thrilled with how it had turned out, with new furniture, plenty of storage and a huge window, which let in plenty of light. For the next couple of nights, I stayed on a friend's sofa, because our temporary accommodation was also not ready for all of us.

We didn't have to pay for our temporary accommodation, and our landlord didn't charge us rent throughout the time we weren't living in our house. He also compensated us for the cost of moving our stuff from house to house, which we had to do in a taxi, despite them only being roads apart. But it was still incredibly disruptive. We started the term in a house which we hadn't signed up for, which we could end up moving out of on quite short notice. We soldiered on.

This is actually one of the only pictures I have of our temporary house, lol

Nearly a month after the initial phone call, we finally received confirmation that we could move in to our house! It still wasn't totally finished, and there would still be builders in and out, but we would have our own beds. It was very welcome news. It wasn't too long until they house was basically finished. A few small touches, such as toilet roll holders and bathroom cabinets were yet to be put in, but we could cope. 

Finally, towards of October, our house was finally finished and ready for us to host a moving in party! But that's another story...

Things You Need For Fresher's Week

This September I will be entering into my third, and final, year of university, however the memories of fresher's week are still fresh in my mind, and I suspect will be for years to come. Eeek, nostalgia. If you are heading off to university this next academic year and you're not sure what to expect, look no further. I'm a veteran student who's gone through many a freshers (and refreshers) week.

Loz & I luvin' life in various different outfits during 'freshers fest'

Beside the usual essentials that you'll need for uni (which you can find here), you'll probably need a few extra bits and bobs if you are to survive your first few weeks. 

HANGOVER CURES - If you are someone that chooses to drink during freshers week, like the masses, you'll find yourself drinking many nights in a row. There's nothing worse than feeling ridiculously ill from the night before whilst getting ready for another night out. So be sure to pack whatever it is that usually makes you feel better, apparently pears can work miracles, I prefer a good old can of diet coke and binge watching netflix.

A GOOD WALLET/BAG - If you're going to be going on lots of nights out you need somewhere to put your stuff whilst you're out. I never venture out without my handy clutch bag and in fresher's I took a shoulder bag out with me every night. Something small that you can keep close to you is perfect, nothing too valuable. A cheap primark bag will do! Same goes for your wallet, make sure that the one you take out with you does the job but doesn't cost a fortune.

PARACETAMOL, COUGH SYRUP AND ORANGE JUICE - Fresher's flu is unavoidable during fresher's week I'm afraid. You just have to accept your fate, and go down like a hero. My mother sent me off to uni with 8 packs of paracetamol/ibuprofen and I used almost all of them (it wasn't just me.. I was like the pharmacy of my halls). Since there's not much you can do to avoid getting sick, you just have to make yourself not feel as bad. Pre-buying things like cough syrup mean you don't have to search for a pharmacy in your new alien city, and orange juice solves all illness problems.

My saviour

LOTS OF MINUTES ON YOUR PHONE - During my first week at university I spent lots of time in the early morning on the phone to friends from home. One night as I cowered over the toilet bowl, I cried down the phone to my friend who managed to convince me that dropping out before I'd even been to a lecture was not a good idea. I'm very thankful. Expect to phone home and phone friends more than you would regularly.

PROPS, COSTUMES, FACE PAINTS - Have a look at the themed nights that your university runs to get an idea of clothing or fancy dress that you might need. For example, if there's a neon night, make sure you pack some neon clothes and paints. Not everyone gets really into their costumes during these first few weeks, but it's fun - so why not! I found that there wasn't as much fancy dress as I thought there would be throughout the rest of the year, so I'm glad that I joined in during freshers.

MARKER PENS - You're likely to be given tons of random t-shirts for fresher's events, bar crawls, etc. all with 'witty' boxes to fill in such as 'please return me to..', and for this you'll need some pens to fill them in. Possibly not an essential, but I still have my tshirts with their original writings and they're quite hilarious to look back at.

ALL OF THE FOOD - After all that partying you're not going to want to be slaving over a cooker all day, or walking miles to the nearest supermarket (not having a car is so killer). So be sure to get your grocery shopping in when your parents drop you off, that way you might be able to get them to pay for it too! Pick up lots of quick and easy meals, especially if you're someone who's hardly cooked for them-self before.

Finally, if you want to be properly prepared for your manic week of partying, make sure you get as much sleep as possible in the weeks leading up to it! Enjoy and stay safe.

Hating Your Best Friend's Boyfriend

It's an awkward situation, one that a lot of us have been in before. After weeks of your friend going on about this guy, you meet him and you hate him. Sometimes you can't even put your finger on what it is, other-times it's blatantly obvious. Immediately you secretly write him off and pray that they won't be together forever, or you'll have to hide your hatred during their wedding day (you'll obvi be bridesmaid). You plot and plan his demise (ok, not literally) but you know you can't let on to her. 

Third wheelin'

So what do you do?

SPEND TIME WITH HIM. You might hate him now, but once you get to know him properly it could be a different story. After all, clearly there is a reason that she likes him, and hopefully after spending some time with him you might see it too. Plus, if they have stuff in common and you have stuff in common with her, surely you'll be able to find something you guys can talk about or bond over.

SPEND TIME WITH THEM TOGETHER. Seeing how they interact and how "into" one another they are could help you change your mind on him. It might help you to see that really they are suited, and that he isn't so bad after-all. Alternatively it could go completely the other way, but you've just gotta' take the risk!

DON'T LET HER KNOW. Although she'll probably be able to figure it out (depending on how well you're able to hide your emotions) telling her that you don't like him is a no-go. Her knowing that you don't like him is unlikely to change her opinion on him. Instead, she's likely to think that you're just being a judgemental cow or that you're jealous, and that's not going to get you anywhere.

BE SUPPORTIVE. There's always that temptation to say "I told you so" when things go wrong, but if they get back together or work things out, you're going to look bad. Instead, try to have her back with things. Eventually she'll probably see that she was an idiot, but she doesn't need you to tell her that to figure it out. She'll do that on her own.

THIS CHANGES NOTHING. You're still going to be friends whether she has a boyfriend that you like or not. Things aren't going to change drastically, perhaps the dynamics might alter slightly, but it's nothing you can't cope with. Just enjoy your friendship, don't let things like this get between you.

Second Year in Photos (Part 2)

January

As a January baby, this is one of my favourite months. As a university student, it means refreshers fest and getting back to "the grind". I spent much of January celebrating and partying with all me chums (top row & bottom left). We also had the lovely surprise of finding a rat in our house, which had made itself at home over the Christmas holidays! I've been so kind as to spare you guys the gross photos, so you can have my artistic example instead (bottom right).

February

February was equally full of fun and frolics. My chums and I attended a cocktail making event as part of the fundraising for UoB marrow soc (top left). Valentines day cards from anonymous sources a.k.a. my dad and my bessie, lol (top right). Feeling fab 'n' fresh at our regular student union night out... #theawkwardmomentwhen you have to crop one of the twins to square the photo (bottom left). My friend Joe made the long and tedious trip from Plymouth to visit (bottom right).

March

March brought with it a fair amount of birthday celebrations - they always seem to come in bunches. I trekked across to Norwich and partied with the freshers, as well as friends from back home (top left), before returning back to reunite with friends on a night out in Brum (top right). As always, all of my essay deadlines coincided with all of the nights out and culminated in me getting ill. Here I am with my lifelong pal, bunnyhops (bottom left). Finally, we discovered a thief in our midst when my housemate's chocolate was taken during pre drinks one evening. We're still looking for the culprit (bottom right).

April

Easter break meant a month spent back at home with family (top left & right), as well as out and about with friends. I visited both Whipsnade (bottom left) and Knole House (bottom right), both of which were absolutely stunning.

May

As a student of an essay-based subject, it's work all year round, which means it's actually quite quiet in the exam period. Of course, I kept myself busy, as usual. Baking with the boy was a welcome break from revision (top left) and my trip to oxford was amazing (top right). Becca and I hit the bullring (bottom left), and I popped back home for my cousins's wedding celebrations (bottom right).

June

Finally, end of exams meant even more celebrating (as if we ever needed an excuse). As a member of the bloodsoc committee I took part in a #nationalbloodweek "photoshoot" on campus (top left). If you didn't see the campaign, it's definitely something worth checking out. We enjoyed vale fest, particularly the facepaint and flower crowns (top right). I had giggles with my favourite lads and future housemates (bottom left). Then enjoyed gradball with the boy (bottom right).

Second Year in Photos (part 1)

Second year had absolutely flown by, just like first year did. It's been full of ups and downs, lots of essays, probably too much partying and tons of laughs. With the end of exams looming I decided that this was appropriate procrastination, so here it is... I'll post part 2 after my last exam, if I'm not too busy partying!

September

I didn't ever get round to posting a blog post on the disaster that was our house's delayed reconstruction but it was in a pretty dire state the day we were due to move in... Yep, that's our kitchen, and it has no roof (top left)! Cue having to move in with my friend Becca for several days (bottom right) before our temporary house was free for us to move into. Still, we had a good time (top right). Our temporary house wasn't the greatest of arrangements with Jenny & I having to share a double bed (bottom left).  

October

Jenny & I remained on speaking terms despite having to share, not only a room, but a bed for what felt like a lifetime to both of us ;] (top left), and as soon as we were in our new house she cooked up a cracking roast for us all (ok, so we did help..), as a moving in celebration (top right). My mum sent me a cute fleece to match 'olaf' from frozen, and to keep me warm when we refused to put the heating on... #studentproblems (bottom left). The fleece didn't work that well, because it wasn't long before I got a cold. Jenny kindly volunteered to drive me to sainsburys to get cough medicine, but we may have accidentally rear-ended someone on the way there (it was terrifying, but not really anyone's fault). The police drove us home! (bottom right).

November

At the beginning of November my friend Becca and I popped along to our local blood donation centre to donate blood, me for the second time and her for the first! (top left). My housemates and I, threw a halloween house party which was buckets full of fun and a really good way to christen our new house (top right, bottom left). Vale fireworks are a definite event for the calendar if you live in Birmingham, we popped along and enjoyed the cold, rain, and a beautiful firework display (bottom right).

December

End of term means lots of nights out and lots of fun. My end of term was no different. It ranged from three way spoons in bed (top left), to getting married at fab to a complete stranger (top right). Plus, lots of trips to all of the vodbull events, just can't get enough (bottom left & bottom right).

Christmas & New Year

There's nothing quite like going home for Christmas. Spending time catching up with family and friends is always well needed after a long term at uni, and good home-cooked food is always welcome in a student's diet. I slugged with my sister (top left), had good grub with school friends (top right), and ate my weight in roast potatoes on Christmas Day (bottom left). Then, when I was missing uni the most, I had a wonderful catch up with my bestest for New Years (bottom right).

Oxford Comma

This week I was invited by my lovely friend Matt to visit him in Oxford for his college's guest ball. With the offer of (extremely fancy) food, drink, a catch up with friends, and dressing up, I decided I'd be stupid to refuse. Oxford is a pretty easy commute from Birmingham so I hopped on a train with my new tiny suitcase (I'm famous for over packing) ready for whatever Oxford wanted to throw at me.

As expected, Matt's college was gorgeous and he gave me a behind-the-scenes tour of the campus, whilst I took hundreds of photographs and lived like a tourist. The college costs £14 (!!!) to look around, but is absolutely gorgeous so I would recommend it if you ever find yourself in Oxford with nothing to do!

 

I don't think it's possible to take a bad photo of that place, it's spectacular.

The dinner was black tie and boasted four courses as well as a champagne reception beforehand, so once Matt and I were done with wandering around the college's many beautiful corridors we suited up and headed to the hall where the dinner was being hosted.

Any hardcore Harry Potter fan recognise the stairs? Yep, I went two of the greatest education centres in Britain in one day, Hogwarts (well, the stairs) & Oxford. 

The meal was lovely and the company was even better. We thoroughly enjoyed giggling at how inept we were when it came to the copious amounts of cutlery and glasses we had been provided - apparently it's outside in for cutlery and the biggest glass is for water, who knew!

I also spotted Constantine Louloudis at the meal, which thoroughly excited me. Please say that at least one of my readers knows who is, because only one other person did.

After lots of giggles and all the food we could handle we strolled back through the perfectly manicured courtyard to Matt's room where we all socialised in the best way possible... With drinking games. A couple of glasses later and we were on our way to Wahoo. I would describe Wahoo as the hottest club in town, but that's mostly because I had to take a break from dancing step outside several times for fresh air.

Writing a Blog

This is probably the thing I get asked about the most. If you have a lot to say then a blog is the perfect way to say it. Yes, it takes work and a small amount of skill, but it can be super rewarding and if you're passionate about writing then blogging might be for you!

Bloglovin' is great for catching up on missed posts and your favourite blogs

YOUR PLATFORM: There are quite a few ways for you to get your words out there. Your blogging platform is the website you use to publish your blogs on. For example, the current platform I use is blogger, which is Google's blogging platform. However, there are quite a few different platforms out there, such as wordpress or tumblr. I've found that wordpress and blogger seem to be the 'big ones', but it just depends on your preferences as to what you want to use.

WHAT'S IN A NAME?: Naming your blog is one of the hardest things about setting a blog up. You could make it relevant to what you'll be writing about, or make it personal to yourself. Try not to expose too much personal data about yourself though - you might not want to make it you full name for example. If you want your blog to be anonymous then that's cool too, just rack your brain and pick a random name. Hopefully something people will remember!

YOUR DOMAIN: I have a purchased domain, which I got from godaddy.com. If you're just starting off with your blog, it's probably best to leave this for a while, because you could end up spending a fair amount of money on a website which you don't ever use! However, if you do choose to have your own domain you will have to, firstly, purchase a domain, and then install this on your platform. There are plenty of tutorials on the net to help you figure out how to do this.

This is my (quite boring) header, which was made on paint

YOUR LAYOUT: Most blogging platforms make it quite simple for you to change your layout up to personalise it to your tastes. You can usually add a header image, which will add character to your blog. Header images can easily be made on image editing software such as photoshop, or if you're not that fancy you could even have a go on microsoft paint!

WHAT TO WRITE?: There are plenty of beauty, fashion or lifestyles blogs on the net. If you want to write an eye-catching blog you'll have to search for innovative ways to attract readers. Try to think of original ideas and write about what you're passionate about. Think about your target audience - what would they want to read? What would they be interested in?

HOW TO GET READERS: In order to get people to read your blog you have to publicise that it's there. That might mean sharing it on social media such as facebook and twitter, or commenting on posts from similar blogs so that they can then click back to your blog. Another great website is bloglovin.com which will notify people when you post to your blog. Try not to spam people with your blog, it will most likely put them off and usually isn't appreciated. A much better way is to write things people are interested in and then will share to their friends.

Epilating

I've always been a shaving girl; it's cheap, it's easy and it gets the job done. However, I wanted to search for a better solution to hair removal because having to repurchase razors all the time whilst your hair grows back thicker and darker wasn't doing it for me any more! I'd heard of epilating before but hadn't really bothered to look into it further because I thought that epilators were really expensive and super painful...

However, whilst I was looking through the Amazon sale I came across a whole load of affordable epilators, and after some research (on YouTube) I found that it wasn't really as painful as I thought it was, so I decided to bite the bullet.

I bought the Braun Silk-épil Wet and Dry Epilator because I had read that epilating in the bath/shower was much less painful, and this epilator is waterproof! Plus, I had a bit of Christmas & Birthday money to burn. Thanks to my free student trial of prime, it came the next day, but annoyingly I had to wait another few days to use it because its charger plug is for use in 'shaver only' plugs, and I needed to order an adaptor.

Someone once commented that it was like a 'multi-tool' and "why does it need a torch?!"

I've been using it for a couple of months now which has given me the chance to properly test it out and get used to the pain (!!) and I have to say I'm pretty happy with my purchase. It's easy to use, holds charge really well and does the job I bought it for. I use it to remove hair in all sorts of places (lol) and each is different so I'll go through each bit individually.

LEGS: the first thing I tried epilating was my legs. It was quite painful... bearable, but it did make my teeth clench. I couldn't really do large areas at a time, plus had to do it pretty slowly. The pain is sort of like tiny pin pricks and goes away as soon as the epilator has passed that patch of skin. I think the reason it hurt so much was because I've shaved my legs for a really long time, and the hairs have grown to be pretty thick and coarse, which is always going to hurt more. So, instead, I tried the epilator in the shower, which was much less painful. You do have to be careful that you actually get all of the hairs though, which involved some contortion, or a quick touch up after the shower whilst still wet.

Hot dogs or legs? I epilated my right thigh and left my left thigh to demonstrate - but I'm not sure it's that obvious.

UNDERARMS: this sound like it would be mind-numbingly painful and I was pretty scared before I went through with it, but I actually think that it was less painful than doing my legs! I didn't even try battling this 'dry' because I was terrified, but doing it in the shower is pretty much painless. You can feel that the epilator is working but it really doesn't hurt too much at all. I think it's because I try not to shave my underarms too often, and actually used to pluck the hairs out (I don't have that many, yeah it's super weird but it's worked in my favour!). If you have previously waxed your underarms I'm sure you'd be fine.

BIKINI LINE: yes, I even braved the bikini line. It took quite a while to build up the courage, and although I could feel the pain of it, it really was bearable and wasn't as bad as I had feared. However, this is another area which I have waxed before so I think the weaker hairs made it much easier. The more you epilate the easier it gets too, and I now don't even wince whilst doing it.

UPPER LIP: having dark hairs can be such a pain and I've always used creams to either remove the hair on my upper lip or to bleach it. However, seeing as I had the epilator and because the creams can be awkward and messy to use I decided to give epilating a go. I first used it in the shower, and the pain was bearable but did reduce me to tears. Also, being in the shower, it made it impossible to see which spots I had missed, so I finished it off out of the shower but whilst my skin was still wet, which also hurts but you can get through it.

And that's it folks... I am loving having an epilator, but it can sometimes take a lot of time. I'm hoping that it will be worth it for the future when hopefully my hairs will be much thinner and less noticeable!

What A Girl Wants

Just a little side note here - my blog has reached 10,000 views! I'm very over excited and so pleased. Thank you so much to everyone who likes what I write and thanks even more to those who share it with their friends/family/pets, it means so much to me!

I have four female house-mates and one male house-mate (bless his little cotton socks). I think at times his experiences in our house would be described as hell-ish, but he doesn't seem to mind... too much. One bonus he does have, other than living with five beautiful ladies, is getting unlimited advice on women (whether it's asked for or not...). Sometimes he'll ask me what I think a girl would prefer and it's down to the individual lady, but other times I know exactly what she'd want - it just depends upon the issue we're discussing. Anyway, it made me think, what do girls really want? So during a lecture (oops) my brain got buzzing and I jotted it all down and here I am FINALLY sharing it with all of you!


So, here goes... Reading it back it's sort of more of a guide to first dates, but that's cool too right?

COMPLIMENT HER. I'm sure that this goes for guys too, but a compliment never did anyone any harm. Be truthful and genuine, what did you first notice about her? What do you find attractive about her? Personal compliments are the sweetest and always brighten someone's day. Try to let her know you're interested without sounding creepy - there's a fine line!

MAKE HER LAUGH. First of all, you want to be with a girl who has the same sense of humour as you and the best way to find this out is to make light hearted jokes and hope that she finds them funny. Play it safe with the jokes, probably best not to delve into any deep issues, even if you are trying to make light of them. Show your sense of humour, get a sense of hers. Try not to be too sarcastic because it can be quite hard to sense sarcasm when you first get to know someone, and you don't want her to accidentally take you seriously.

LISTEN TO HER. This sounds like a dumb thing to have to say, but take in what she's saying. Even if you're not actually interested get her to expand on the things she's talking about by asking questions. If it truly is really boring to you then you can always ask a question which tries to change the subject!

BE "CHEEKY". Sometimes it's important to show your playful side. Flirt a little and maybe even throw a couple of euphemisms in there. If that's not your kind of thing that's still cool, you'll find other ways of flirting and letting her know you're interested.

DON'T BE SHY. There's nothing worse than a surplus of awkward moments. First dates can be super awkward anyway so you don't want to make them worse! Show your true colours and be confident about it - what's the worst that could happen? Try not to be over confident or cocky though, that's a total turn-off.

USE YOUR BODY LANGUAGE. If you're into her then you don't have to just let her know vocally. Think about what your body language is saying - how you are sitting, how close you stand next to her, how you use your hands when you're talking to her, or what you're looking at when she's talking to you.

ASSESS HER BODY LANGUAGE. Read what she is telling you without really telling you. Her body language will tell you everything you need to know, and show you things that she can't hide.

The Implant

It sounds like something from a sci-fi film or a dystopian novel; an injected implant which sits just under the skin and controls the way your body work. When you put it that way it sounds pretty scary, but realistically it's just a small tube which stops you from getting pregnant. Contraception is something which is mostly about preference. You have to find something which works for you and will be the best for your body, habits and needs. I chose the implant because it worked for me, and here I am to sing its praises.

The implant releases progestogen into the bloodstream, this imitates the hormone progesterone, and stops your body from releasing an egg. In addition to this, it also thickens cervical mucus (yuck!) and thins down the lining of the womb. If there's no egg, then there's no chance of conception, and with these added factors, a much lower risk of pregnancy. It's pretty effective (about 99%), with only 1 in 1000 women getting pregnant whilst using it as contraception. That's the scientific bit.

The implant can be fitted at most Sexual Health Clinics or GP surgeries and is inserted under local anaesthetic - so it shouldn't hurt! It lasts for three years, but you can have it removed before then if you need to. You can also have another one fitted as soon as you have your old one out. Because it's just sat underneath the skin in your arm you don't need to worry about remembering to take a pill, in fact, you don't actually have to do anything, which was brilliant for me.

How revolting.

I did get a fantastic bruise on my arm as a result of having it fitted, but it only lasted a couple of days and was easy to hide. That's another thing, it's almost impossible to notice the implant in your arm unless you specifically feel for it.

Of course there are downsides to any form of contraception and the implant isn't any different. It can disrupt your menstrual cycle which leads to odd timings on periods, or no period at all (which I actually think is a wonderful bonus), and then there are other side effects, which aren't so different from other forms of contraception, such as headaches, acne, nausea, etc. but you can get your implant removed if this is the case!

Once you have the implant removed your fertility should return back to normal straight away (unlike the contraceptive injection), and you can even breastfeed whilst using it. Of course, you have to remember that like all a lot of other forms of contraception, the implant will not protect you against Sexually Transmitted Infections, only condoms will do that!

I have found that the implant was perfect for me and I have a couple of friends who agree. If you find that taking the pill is hard to remember, or even if you want something that's a little more worry free then this is probably what you're looking for. Then again, I have yet to have to have mine removed - maybe it'll be a different story then!

If you want to know more head over to the NHS choices website, where you can look at information on all types of contraception and find out more information!

Finding a Decent Guy

The other day I sat down with one of my housemates and we realised that, despite having different tastes in men, we still have core values or qualities that we'd like a guy to possess. It reminded me of a while back, when I was scrolling through tumblr and I came across a hilarious post on 'fuckboys' (excuse her french but, I mean, she has a point). So I decided to write a blog post, perhaps misleadingly titled, because I want to help you to spot the dodgy guys, the ones you should probably avoid at all costs.

I've already found the man of my dreams

THEIR MOTHER. If they treat their mother badly but still expect her to do everything for them, they're not worth your time. You can easily learn how a guy will treat you from how he treats his mother. In fact, you can easily learn how a guy will treat you from how he treats any other women, or other people in general. Watch how he treats waiters, barmen, pizza delivery drivers, taxi drivers, even his friends, if that makes you uncomfortable it's probably a tell-tale sign of his true personality.

THEIR PAST. Listen to how they speak about their ex girlfriends, or girls they used to see. This is a really big indicator of how they will go on to treat you, or speak about you. If they tell you that all of their ex girlfriends were crazy or 'psychos', you may want to think about that. There may be a reason for it... If they're a serial dater, that's also a big no-no. Yes there are probably decent guys who are stuck in the dating game, but there may be a reason why they've been single for so long, or gone through so many women.

THEIR HOUSEMATES. If you go to their house, look at their relationship with house-mates. How they get on with the people that they live with will help to show what they are truly like. Also, the kind of people they live with will probably affect their behaviour. I hate to say it, but a house of 'lads' is probably bad news.

THEIR HABITS. It seems like a stupid thing to say, and I'm not saying we have to restrain ourselves to fit to "gender norms" here, but I like to think that chivalry isn't dead. Guys who offer to pay, go out of their way for you, open doors and are polite are the kind of guys you want to look for. Be wary of those who seem too self interested to pay attention to such things. Nearly every girl wants a gentleman.

THEIR SEX LIFE. Now, I'm not saying you should hop into bed with someone as soon as you meet them, though of course that is your choice, but when it does come down to it, guys that assume that they don't have to use a condom are guys that you want to avoid. If they're assuming they don't have to use a condom with you, they've probably assumed it with other people too. Sex is about conversation and consent, if he's trying to sleep with you without discussing contraception first, he's not exactly a 'keeper'.

THEIR SIBLINGS. Only children as well as boys who were babied are the ones to look out for. If they were spoiled by their parents they're likely to act that way as they continue on in life. You want someone who is independent and self-sufficient. There's nothing worse than a guy who has to return home for his Mum to do his laundry because he doesn't know how to use the washing machine himself.

THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR FRIENDS. How they treat your friends is nearly as important as how they treat you. Trust me, your life will be hell on earth if your friends don't get along with your guy. You want him to treat your friends with respect, and for them to like him, or at least see why others could. The same goes for your family, if they don't get along with him, it's not going to be plain sailing for you, but it is also likely to be for a reason.

Everyday Racism

I am mixed race. When I have to fill in an ethnicity form I usually have to tick "mixed - any other mixed background". My mother is Chinese, Oriental or Asian, my father is English, European or White. Both my parents were raised in the UK, my Mother in Surrey and my Father in Hertfordshire. Ethnically I'm of two races, but nationality wise I've always been British, so have my parents.

The first time I can remember ever encountering outright racism was when I was in year 7 or 8. Two girls at school were arguing and I took the side of my friend. The other girl shouted at me to "go back to your own country". I was baffled. I've never even been to Asia. At that point, the closest I'd come to going to Asia was going to China Town, and the nearest country to Asia I'd travelled to was Holland. Not that it even matters. I was British, always had been.

I guess I'd lead a sheltered life. There was only one other Oriental girl in my year, she was mixed race too. My primary school had taught acceptance and there were never any issues. Secondary school was never terrible, I think this is the only incident that I can recall, but it wasn't big incidents that were the problem. It isn't big incidents that I take issue with. It's casual racism.

I get that it's all well and good and funny to make jokes with your friends about particular things. You call them out for their stupid behaviour, you make fun of them for having a fit mum/dad and you joke about things together. However, I do think there is a line that cannot be crossed, and I don't think everyone understand it.

If I want to make fun of my own race, joke about having small eyes, how all tourists are Asians, or about eating dogs, that's fine. It's funny. That's what comedians do - they pull fun at themselves. However, when someone else starts to make jokes about something like that, it's not funny any more. You've crossed that line, and I've started to feel uncomfortable. Imagine someone making a joke about your insecurities - your acne scars, your large nose or your weigh-gain. That's not funny, that's just uncomfortable. Perhaps there is some level of hypocrisy here, it's okay for me to do it, but not for  you. However, this is the same for most of our insecurities - I don't want you to make a joke of something which I am very aware of, but cannot change.

I think that's not all that bugs me either. People talk about white privilege, and I'm not sure I fully understood what that meant, but now I'm beginning to. I think that, as a person who has been described as a banana (yellow on the outside, white on the inside), it's easier for me to voice my concern. There is a culture of us taking things for granted, that's just the selfish nature of humankind, but when that self entitlement extends to issues, such as race, it becomes an even bigger problem. White people (and it feels weird to refer to them like that, having always considered myself as one) don't see the issue. 

I think we believe that there are racists and then there are accepting people. Two categories. You can only belong to one. Either you're racist or you're not, and you can't be racist if you have a black/asian/latino friend. Whereas, I'm starting to believe that it's more of a scale. It's human nature to be afraid of things that you don't understand, or that aren't normal to you. Ethnic minorities fall into this because people are wary of people who are different to them. In this way, we are all racist to an extent. Perhaps racism isn't the right word, because I don't think it's hatred, I think it's fear, but it's the word I'm going to use to put my point across.

And there's another problem that I've realised, and it's an issue for several different races, and that's that my race, my ethnicity is being fetishised. Ever heard of yellow fever? I'm not talking about the viral disease, I mean the growing trend of a sexual preference for East-Asian women. White, Caucasian men want to date 'nice Chinese girls', because they believe that they are better sexual lovers, submissive and subservient, as well as exotic. Vomit. If I have one more guy tell me I look 'exotic' or that he's never had sex with a Chinese girl before, I will scream.

What I'm trying to say is, please think before you speak. Think about whether that joke you were about to make was actually funny, or just poked fun at someone's ethnicity. Think again about the things you say, whether they could be taken the wrong way. There is no harm done in thinking twice, I know I sure will.

Backsliding

Backsliding, as defined by urban dictionary, is "sex with someone you were previously dating or hooking up with. Specifically after a falling out or a bad breakup and tends to make things more complicated." Basically, it describes that moment where you end up in bed with your ex, when you probably actually shouldn't have ever spoken to them again. Hilariously, it can also mean "to revert to sin or wrongdoing, especially in religious practise", which isn't dissimilar.

The do-we, don't-we debate

I think we've all done it, or we know someone who has, and we've witnessed the drama which ensued. Ordinarily, there is usually a reason for a break up, and rekindling that relationship for purely hedonistic reasons, doesn't really seem worth it. And most of the time it probably isn't...

I used to think it was an awful idea, a mistake that one should strive to not make. I didn't think that it could help things in any way, but I have to say that my opinion has been somewhat changed. Yes, there are circumstances and situations where this would help no one because things would get even more messy, but there are other situations where it isn't the worst thing you could do.

For some relationships this can mean closure. It sounds silly but going back to an ex after a break up can help you to realise just why you broke up in the first place, and can help you move on. Of course, there are other ways to do this, and sleeping with them may not be the best way. In fact, it probably isn't the best way, but still, it could help.

Alternatively, it can just end up a big mess. Longing out the end of a relationship minimises your chances of a clean break and ultimately just ends up with more heartache. A friend of mine continued to sleep with their ex for a long time after their official break-up and had no qualms about it. A year on and they're finally done. It might not have been the perfect situation, but it worked for them. Did it lead to more heartache? Possibly, but I don't think they have any regrets.

So, whether it is a drunken mistake or a lonely midnight request, it's one that you should probably avoid. If you know you'd regret it the next day, that's when you know it's not right for you.