The Myths Of Being A Lifestyle Blogger

Hey Everyone!

So today I'm writing about 'The Myths Of Being A Lifestyle Blogger' I know I have only been writing TRLOA for just over a year now, however I have noticed some things being said both online and also away from the computer screen about being a lifestyle blogger.

One of the biggest myths I've come across is that lifestyle bloggers have ''perfect lives''
Someone once said this to me in real life and I honestly just stood and stared at them in shock. My life is far from perfect I can assure all of you. As a seventeen year old Irish girl in Fifth Year with a Leaving Cert next June and Summer exams in little under a month, my life isn't ''perfect'' and trust me, never has been.

From reading other blogs, it's easy to assume lifestyle bloggers have perfect lives. We cut out the imperfections and blemishes both in our appearances and life stories, mentioning the ''good bits'' or as I like to call it ''the highlights reel.'' People compare our ''highlights reel'' with their ''outtakes'' and ''behind the scenes'' of their lives. You will rarely seen my ''outtakes'' or ''behind the scenes'' only the ''highlights.'' These will be completely parallel, they will never meet nor will these be identical.

I write about the good things in my life, a funny joke with friends, a photo I took of flowers and everything in between, emphasising even a small moment in my life that made me smile. I rarely write about waking up at 3 am every night from vivid nightmares or just for no reason, with my heart thumping with fear about the Leaving Cert, school, exams or  worrying about getting enough points to go to the college I want. That is the reality of my life, the fear of failure and a fear of underachieving in life, not the 'perfect life' apparently all lifestyle bloggers have.

Another myth or stereotype is that ''Lifestyle bloggers are too obsessed with themselves and their own lives''

I've been told that by writing about my life that I am ''vain and self obsessed'' and also ''want everyone to fall in love with my life.'' I never started The Random Life of Aveen as a means to 'brag' or to try put others down. I started blogging because I love writing. Writing is a huge part of me. I've been writing a diary since I was ten years old and I'm eighteen in September. That's a lot of notebooks about my emotions, life, hopes and ambitions.

I really don't want people to fall ''in love with my life'' Not trying to be self-deprecating but as stated earlier, my life isn't perfect. I don't want others to try mimic my mistakes or the ''good things'' I've done in my life. Everyone has their own lives and life paths to lead and this is mine. You just know about my life path as I write about my life.

Lifestyle bloggers aren't obsessed with themselves. We post photos of everything and anything that has meaning to us. I used to post photos back in 2013 of attending mental health conferences, award ceremonies, visits to tv sets, Croke Park and lots more. This was because that's what my life was like during Transition Year hence the title ''The Random Life of Aveen'' This year I'm in a serious school year, and next year will be even more so. Which is why I post photos of even the small things in life that make me happy, we all need something, however insignificant they appear to be, to make us feel happy.

I may post a lot of selfies and in the eyes of some people that's a sign of being ''shallow and vain'' and that I should stop ''obsessing over my appearance'' How does taking a photo of my face or clothes for my blog deem me as being a vain and shallow individual? It's become a more socially accepted idea to hate your own body with every ounce of your being than to realise that we're stuck with our bodies for the duration of our entire lives. 

We're always going to want to change an aspect of our appearance. I wish I had better eyesight, a smaller nose and lots of other things but I don't let that dictate my life. Nobody is perfect and we have to realise this. The idea of hating ourselves and picking out our flaws and imperfections, and doing the same with complete strangers is getting out of control.

 Judging a person merely on their appearance, not their personality, intelligence, humour, laugh, smile, music interests, hobbies and much more is just ridiculous. This ideology completely limits people into thinking that if they're ''pretty'' that's all that matters in life. That's not the case. I'm not pretty at all but I don't let that and the opinions of others stop me from achieving the best I can in life. I like to think that I make up for those ''flaws'' in my personality, I try to be kind, smile, laugh and be myself. 

The next time you call a lifestyle blogger, or anyone for that matter, those sort of names, think again. Just think about what you're thinking and saying about people you know in real life or only know from the laptop screen. I get various off-the-cuff comments about my blog, personality and appearance, in both real life and online,  but I don't let them get me down any more. So long as you know you're a good person (and act like it) and try your utmost best in life that's all that matters. 

So I hope you liked this blog post about the myths of being a lifestyle blogger. It took a long time to write this but I feel it conveys exactly how I feel about the myths surrounding being a lifestyle blogger. Thanks for reading this and you can comment below if you have any opinions on the post. 

Of course, blogging isn't all negativity, I love posting every week and I've made so many friends by blogging. 

Stay Strong, Happy & Fearless!

Aveen xx

You Use Your Words As A Weapon Dear.. But Your Blades Don't Hurt When You Have No Fear..

Hey Everyone!

So it's the end of yet another week. It's absolutely shocking to realise that it's nearly the end of January. It seems like literally only yesterday that we were all ringing in the New Year and stuffing ourselves silly with chocolate and other yummy stuff.

At this moment in time, I'm firmly back to school having been back for over 3 weeks now, time flies when your mind is distracted with studies I suppose. My teachers have been absolutely delightful with overloading me with homework. Today I missed out on badminton and instead did homework. I started at 10.30 this morning and including lunch at one, was finished everything by 5 pm. The absolute joys of Fifth Year. I actually had a lot of homework, I had homework in every subject, questions in German, Irish, Maths, English, Ag Science and History really do add up drastically. Not forgetting the business notes on household and business management.

So I learnt all those so I'm free for a while. The reason I was doing my homework today is because I'm going to the other side of the country (again) to drop my brother back to University. I'm slightly delighted that he's going back. He's been home for 5 weeks (University Christmas holidays are ridiculously long) so I'll be a ''part-time only child'' as my parents call it. So I'm very much delighted that he'll be going back, I was running out of sassy comments to use..

In other news, a supermarket (ssh it's Tesco) opened a new building and closed their old premises. The new premises includes Costa coffee too. On the opening day the place was absolutely full, it felt like the entire town was in the store! Obviously, I went to Costa straight after school and got a hot chocolate with marshmallows and cream which was simply amazing. I live quite near the new shop (it's one of the biggest in Ireland at the moment I believe) so I can walk down to Costa, and walk back up if I want. To me, it's a huge development for the ''small town'' I live in! (PS it's completely awkward when you bump into some of your teachers there, just letting you know *coughs awkwardly*)

So again, I'm sitting here and it's a Saturday night. Another huge development is that I have joined Snapchat! If you want to add me on Snapchat tweet me and I'll send you a DM (Direct Message)of my username. I've already sent some hilarious and terrifying Snaps to Grace but I think they're funny.

On another note, the title of this blog post comes from the song ''Words As Weapons'' by Birdy (who's my age ironically) and what I'm about to discuss has been on my mind for a while.

People I know in real life have been literally trying to use my words on this blog as a weapon against me. It shouldn't be this way, and it irritates me so much that people are spreading rumours that I'm gossiping about everyone I know in real life on my blog (Which I can guarantee is not the case). There are a few people who have taken these rumours seriously, which is somewhat childish as there's concrete evidence that I've said nothing. ''Your blades don't hurt don't hurt when you have no fear''  and another thing, ''Your arm will tire throwing stones my way''  

What's been happening has been quite mild in comparison to things I've experienced in my life, but I'm not standing for it. Nobody has the right to use what I love (blogging) as a method to try ''get back'' at me. I'm maintaining my moral high ground and leaving it at that. 

And on a more positive note, I have my Irish interview on Saturday for the Gaeltacht! Wish me luck! (I've been learning Amhrán na bhFiann and been feeling patriotic the past few days) 

Stay Strong, Happy & Fearless!

Never let anyone get in the way of doing what you love,

Aveen xx

To convince you all to add me on Snapchat, here are a sample of the Snaps I have sent.. honestly.

I'll let the captions speak for themselves! 

I'm Only Human, I've Got A Skeleton In Me. But I'm Not The Villain, Despite What You're Always Preaching.

Hey Everyone!

So another week has passed in The Life Of Me. It's hard to believe there's less than a month left in 2013. It seems like only yesterday that everyone was panicking over the year having a ''13'' in it, now it's steadily approaching the start of 2014. It makes me think back and reflect on what 2013 was like for me.

At this precise moment, it's nearly 10.30am on a Wednesday. I'm meant to be in school but I'm ill, which sounds fun however when you lose your voice and are too tired to function, it's not so fun. Thankfully my Mam gave me my laptop so I've been here for the last hour going through emails, blog comments and procrastinating editing the YouTube video I filmed recently with Grace from Dainty Sprinkles (illness is my excuse)

I know I mentioned very little about last week, well off the top of my head I don't really remember it. I got all my Christmas test results back from my teachers and I'm delighted with my results, I won't go into detail about them but I got honours in all of them, even maths! I freaked out in the maths exam (which is always an adventure) and I was convinced I had failed, in the end I got a B. To say I nearly cried with joy is an understatement! 

Another random result was Business. In Ireland an A2 is 85% - 89% but an A1 is 90-100%. I got 84 in business and my teacher wouldn't let me have the A *cries* I was still delighted with a B1 though! Those were the two funniest results to get back (if getting results back is funny, which it isn't) 

On Saturday I was at Grace's house (which you can read about in a previous blog post) On Sunday I went with my parents to one of the shopping centre's in Dublin and shopped til we dropped. I spent all my money in Penneys and got a Starbucks Hot Chocolate which was so delicious and one of my favourite Starbucks drinks ever. 

Subsequently on Tuesday and Wednesday (today) I've been ill, which is never a bundle of laughs. On Tuesday I woke up with a sore throat and practically lost my voice in school throughout the day, after school my parents and I drove to Limerick to collect my brother from University. Which is a couple of hours drive, both ways. So I sat in the back of the car surrounded by blankets and with a pillow, continuously falling asleep. 

According to my parents and brother, I develop a sense of humour when I'm ill or as they put it, delirious. Unfortunately for all you lovely people I can't mention the jokes as they were quite inappropriate and I would never be able to walk into school ever again. 

So the last day of school is Friday, hopefully I'll be back in because the last day of term is always fun (and it's a half day woop) So hopefully I won't be coughing my lungs up next time I write a blog post! (or drinking Lemsip because let's face it, it's like dead bodies. Dan Howell reference ssh)

Stay Strong, Happy and Fearless!

Aveen xx

*From Tumblr* 

I love this photo because my nickname is The Goat (three year old cousins are very creative) 

HOT CHOCOLATE! Starbucks are just amazing. 

*****Lyrics: Paramore ~ Monster*****

Now Is The Most Interesting Time Of All

Hey Everyone!

Apologies for being late with my blog post this week. It's Mid Term this week thankfully, however I was given simply tonnes of homework for the week! Thank you very much teachers, you're all far too kind. But on the bright side, I've finished most of the work already, all I have left is my public speaking speech, like 2 maths questions and revision, woop!

So how was my week you ask? Well...
It was a somewhat stressful start to the week. On Monday I had like three tests in the first few classes. First up was Irish, where I had to write two 2 A4 pages about why Lisín was the main character of Hurlamaboc (I came up with a far more accurate term for this short story, which I probably shouldn't mention, seeing as it's quite rude) The test went really well for me and I got a mark I wasn't expecting (An A, first time ever in Irish) Afterwards it was a history essay test given to both history classes, to decide who will be in which class. I had studied Lenin and Stalin in lots of detail and briefly revised Mussolini. You can guess which person the question was about.. Mussolini! Wahey!

To add to the stresses of exams that day. I walked up to my locker and discovered I had forgotten my locker keys! Yay! So I had to phone my Mam and ask her to bring them down (which she did, 5 minutes before class) Usually when I'm on the phone to my Mam I'm very panicky and anxious because, well, I call her when it's an emergency! This time however, I think I probably fractured my motivation and I was ''so done'' with Monday and it was only 8.30 in the morning. Fun times.

The rest of the week was much calmer, some teachers were absent but left work, which I didn't mind to be honest. The week was fairly quiet, I visited my Nana twice during the week (Best grandchild ever) Soon Friday rolled around, time seems to go by slowly when I'm wishing for the opposite. I had free double Maths and I wrote a small blog post about a quote in my journal. Ironically the last thing I've written as I think I have Writer's Block again. Marvellous.

''Last night I was flicking through my school journal, every week there is a quote on the top of the page. As you may know, I am positively obsessed with quotes and their advice and meanings. There was one quote in particular that had a profound effect on me.

''Now is the most interesting time of all''

It is a simple sentence, with a powerful and effective meaning. Perhaps that's what startled me so much. My interpretation of the quote is reflective of my life path at the moment.

''Now'' for me is from this minute, until I sit my last Leaving Cert exam in June 2015. It feels like a marathon of hurdles I must overcome to reach my goal, my dreams and my ambitions for my future. My future, what I want, what I desire. 

''Now'' is when I make the possibly life altering decisions. What I'm afraid of most is, that I will not achieve those goals. That all these years of work will be in vain. It's a terrifying and panic inducing thought. What terrified me most however is, NOW, is the time that decides this. I'm plagued by fear and a crippling anxiety that, something's going to happen, that I'm going to slip up somewhere between now and my Leaving Cert year (2015)

It is all focused on Now, and how I play my cards. This, supposedly is the most interesting time of all. It doesn't feel like it. Walking around school like a zombie, bags under my eyes from a lack of sleep that no make-up could ever cover. See there was an exam or two to study for.. I don't find that interesting. A nicer term to describe a generation of people with tired, lifeless and prematurely aged eyes and stress and anxiety levels higher than Mt Everest is just, sad.

A generation of genius' yes, but also a generation plagued by fear in our hearts. A fear of not ''living up to our potential'', that we will be the person who had it all, had a bright future.. but messed up. I promise you all, and myself, I don't want to be that person. I wouldn't wish that upon anyone. I guess now is a time to start doing something, because, now is the most interesting time of all apparently. 

Hope you enjoyed that and aren't filled with too much guilt over not doing homework (like me)

Stay Strong, Happy and Fearless,

Aveen xx

PS. I will be doing a bonus blog post about HALLOWEEN!! Stay tuned! xx

Tayto Park, Zip Wires, Slushies and Shouting at Maths Equations!

Hey Everyone!

So it's been another rather bonkers week in The Life Of Me. I posted a VERY brief  update on Thursday during a free study class (when I should have been doing maths homework but priorities) So I'll be telling you about what's been happening and how at this moment in time I'm buzzing with adrenaline, excitement and happiness, a rarity indeed.

So on Friday, I had my usual classes, double maths followed by Irish, break, German, Business, English, lunch, History and finally Ag Science. A fun Friday (sarcasm is dripping in this sentence) No I must admit I like my teachers and they're all brilliant so the classes are fine. However I get many comments because I'm studying Ag Science, which is supposedly for ''farmers sons'' and nobody else. However, my uncle has a farm and I have a genuine interest in the subject, I never knew learning about sheep would be interesting (lambs need to be fed at least 1 litre of colostrum within 24 hours of being born, random fact of the day there for you!)

Enough about Ag Science for now, I've over 20 pages of notes to learn so you might hear more about the subject in the future. In English we had a free class (substituted by my maths teacher funnily enough) and my English teacher had already told us what work to do. Suddenly my maths teacher says to us in this monotone voice that we also had a four page essay. My jaw literally dropped and I thought the class was going to riot, thankfully he was only joking. I nearly cried though, I need a few days notice to mentally prepare myself for an essay!

When I got home on Friday I was doing my maths homework which was simultaneous equations, which are easy, but with three variables! DUN DUN DUN, my OCD was showing. I got so irritated with one of the questions that I literally started shouting at it. To be honest, it's not the first time I've started shouting at a maths question, every day since Third Year it's practically happened! Don't judge me!

After school on Friday I went to Spleodar, or in other words, Irish Club. I go every week for a couple of hours on a Friday where we all speak Irish, play games and basically have '' a bit of craic!'' and every year each club in the country meets up somewhere, this year we went to Tayto Park!

I had actually never been to Tayto Park until today, but it was brilliant. Our club was split into smaller groups and I was with seven other girls who I knew. We were allowed to go on two activities, we chose the Zip Wire and The Sky Walk.

This all seems fine until I realised something, I'M SCARED OF HEIGHTS. I have an insane fear of heights, the dark, claustrophobia, failure, dogs (yes really) and more. So I was walking up the building (below is a photo) and I was thinking, in Irish, I'm scared of heights! Tá eagla orm faoi airde! Oh mo Dhiaidh. (Oh my God) but the girls were great and I did it! I went on the Zip Wire with Saoirse and I loved every second of it! We landed and I was literally shaking from the adrenaline!

Afterwards we went for lunch and went back to the Sky Walk. We were given the option of going high, medium or low. I decided, ''Oh everyone else is going on the high one, I might as well too!'' Oh Aveen, you're scared of heights haven't you realised this? So I went on that, and it was literally like in a movie, the ropes started shaking and at times I couldn't reach them, but I got through it, with a lot of deep breaths and reassurances.

I finally believed the phrase I read in Divergent by Veronica Roth, "Becoming fearless isn't the point. That's impossible. It's learning how to control your fear, and how to be free from it." 
I can't become fearless, what is the point of life if there's nothing to frighten you or make you reflect differently on life events? Life is boring if we did not have any emotions, including fear, it's what makes us possess our shreds of humanity. I can't be fearless, nobody is perfect, we have to appreciate our flaws and not less them posses us and destroy our inner selves. Having fears makes us unique beings and who we truly are. 

However, in short seconds of life, we can become fearless. It is in these moments we keep our fears under control and are no longer oppressed by them. I think we should live for these fleeting moments, let them consume us and possibly, maybe, actually become truly fearless, should being fearless in every minute of our lives be possible. 

So I'm going to stick with saying ''Stay Strong, Happy and Fearless'' in every blog post, I'll be referring to not letting your fears hinder or oppress you from achieving your dreams. If your dreams don't scare you, they're not big enough, you aren't dreaming big enough, or allowing yourself achieve your utmost potential. 

Be fearless in the smallest moments of life, and you will feel invincible. 

Some Photos From My Week! 

Aoileann and I at Tayto Park! 

More selfies

Aoileann, Kate and I at Tayto Park :)

Slushies ! 

The Sky Walk! 

Part of the Zip Wire and the Slide

Zip Wire! *Wheeee*

Height of the Zip Wire from the ground (Looks distorted as I  was sitting down on the grass!)

So, that's about it for this week!

Hope you all had a brilliant week and an amazing week ahead! Let me know what you're up to in the comments below! 

Stay Strong, Happy and FEARLESS,

Aveen xx

Alone, not lonely.

Hey Everyone!

So it's the end of another tiring week. I knew Fifth Year would be exhausting, but not this much. One thing I don't like about Fifth Year is that you do lots of work and time consuming activities but I can't really write about any of them as they're deemed (by me) to be too boring and lack luster. Oh well, I can live like a hermit for a couple of years, it won't kill me.

I had a few tests during the week and I was happy with my results. I had a free double German and study afterwards so I let my mind wander and wrote a poem (Not depressing or sinister I swear, it's quite optimistic believe it or not!)

Something else of interest to me was the fact that people in my year in school read/know of my blog?! I know I post links to my Twitter & Tumblr, however I didn't think people would actually read my random musings? This has made me feel slightly more cautious and conservative about what I express here (I wasn't really outspoken here to begin with) as for some reason I feel more comfortable sharing my views/life with random strangers than with my peers in education? It's a strange thing really, I feel more comfortable sharing everything with ''strangers'' however I don't feel all you lovely readers are strangers though! You are all a part of my life now, and support me by commenting, emailing and tweeting me. Even by reading this, I feel I nearly know you.

I know some people consider people who read their blogs ''their fan base'' however I consider you all my friends and people I would like to know properly some day in the future. It's easier to tell someone who won't judge you what's going on in your life rather than telling someone who knows you and may judge you for every single world you utter. I was talking to a real life friend of mine about making more YouTube videos because of being offered the partnership and everything, so hopefully in the weeks to come I will record a new video. Wahey.

So that's about it from me for this week. Next week should be more interesting as I'm going to see Othello with my English class on Thursday, September 26th, along with other things going on that day. Should I mention that this might be my last blog post as a sixteen year old?! DUN DUN DUNNNNN. Dramatic ending. Yes, it's my birthday on Thursday and I'll be seventeen! Wow, that was a quick year wasn't it? I think my blog is nearing it's six month old birthday then too! *Counting when I first starting properly blogging on a weekly basis, not my mediocre attempts!*

Playlist for this blog post:
The Strypes ~ Blue Collar Jane
The Strypes ~ Mystery Man
Kodaline ~ One Day
Kodaline ~ Brand New Day
Kodaline ~ Pray

*It was a Kodaline day for me today!

.

A photo from my ''Room Tour'' on the JOALLAP collab blog I'm part of! Find it here!

Here's a photo I saw on Carrie Shade's 'Against Suicide' page, I think it's so truthful and accurate.

So that's about it from me this week!

Stay Strong, Happy and Fearless!

Aveen xx

My ''poem'' wahey

Alone, not lonely. 

I am alone, not lonely. 

Sitting in class, on the outskirts. 

The crowd everywhere but near me.

I sit, silent and diligent.

In my own, perfect world.

For being lonely would imply I desire company.

I am alone, on my own terms

and above all, my decision and choice.

I am not alone, with my thoughts,

dancing softly in my mind.

A constant buzzing, never leaving me in darkness.

One can never be truly alone, however some can be lonely.

Not me though.

For when I possess thoughts, a pen and paper. 

One can never be truly lonely or alone. 

UPDATE: A Bet I Had, oops.

Hey Everyone!

So this is a not so brief update on The Life Of Me. Last week my English teacher gave my class the essay title of ''The unexamined life is not worth living'' which is a title of one of my blog posts recently. I jokingly said to my friend of Maeve's Fashion that ''If I got an A1 in the essay I would post it on my blog!'' as I was expecting a B or a C as it was such a tricky and difficult title.

So, to my shock and delight, I actually got an A1 on the essay and I'm staying true to my word and posting it on my blog. (Even though I found out that practically everyone in my year knows I have a blog but oh well!)

The Unexamined Life Is Not Worth Living ~ Aveen Edition!

''The unexamined life is not worth living'' is a famous quote by the Greek philosopher Socreates. Socreates was a man who discovered a great wealth of knowledge and will have his actions echo in time and live on after his death. As a philosopher, Socreates was generally not hypocritical in his words, therefore he claims to have lived ''The examined life'' as he believed than living ''the unexamined life is not worth living''. However, what does he mean by an examined life and an unexamined life?

First of all, everyone has a life. Everyone has a past, present and hopefully a future. Our lives are constantly changing with every decision we make. For example, you are given homework in a certain subject. Unknowingly, you have a number of options to take, to do the homework and achieve a good result in a future exam. Another option is to not complete the homework and possibly fail an examination in the future, why? You made the decision not to do your homework, this slightly changed your life path and life experiences. 

However there is a different between living whilst making both good and bad decision, but having new and utterly surreal opportunities due to these decisions, and just merely existing in this world. In other words, being a normal human being who makes mistakes, or trying to be perfect and living without questioning. Only existing in the world is something which should never befall a person. Existing means just being on this planet doing the exact same thing daily, never questioning your thoughts and actions and never wondering about what would happen if you did something different for once. It is living in ignorance, or a lack of knowledge. Obviously when you are in school you do the same thing daily, it's what you were told to do, getting an education is the key to your future and how to leave the state of existence and actually live your life, on your terms. 

However living is different to the state of existence on this planet. Living is taking risks, obviously not ridiculous ones, and accepting that they will change and edit your life path and future in unfathomable ways. Living is like the ''Dauntless'' in the book Divergent by Veronica Roth. They do absolutely anything they want. They jump off fast moving trains and they learnt not to be fearless, but how to keep their fears under control. Nobody is perfect enough to be fearless, that would merely be existing, not facing your fears, not feeling the simultaneous rush of adrenaline rush through your body and mind. Also no fun or chaos in their life.

The Dauntless inspired the protagonist, Beatrice (later known as Tris) to join their faction. Tris was born and raised ''Abnegation'' faction, they are selfless, help others and aim to be invisible and not disturb others. They live in a state of existence and Tris' will to live overcame that. The Dauntless are happy and free, something which so many people are not. They do not live to exist, they are living, questioning, expanding their wealth of knowledge, breathing oxygen and adrenaline and excitement swirls in their veins. The Dauntless are examining exactly what the small world around them has to offer. They lived in one small dilapidated city in a dystopian fantasy world, so why can't people live and not just exist in our society?

Our world is huge. There are so many different lands, seas, cultures and nations to visit. To broaden your horizons is to live. Living life on the edge gives you opportunities you never thought were possible, until they materialised. With merely existing, those opportunities would never occur. As only existing on this planet, you would go to school, work hard, graduate college, get married and have children, end of story. You would not question anything or attempt to find your true inner self. What a lonely and depressing existence indeed. If you're living and not just existing, you would begin to question and discover your inner self by making decisions, accepting imperfections like fears and expanding your wealth of knowledge by learning life skills, about diversity and culture, not just what you learnt off by heart in a school textbook for a test. That is the difference between living your life to your utmost potential and just merely existing, never pondering or doing anything unusual or different with your life.

You are a human, along with everyone else, and you have one life. (Unless you believe in reincarnation, however I'll stick with having one life for the time being) It is up to each and every individual to live the best life possible and not just a miserable existence. Mark Twain once said, ''Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do, than by the things you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover'' This quote is very strong and effective, it makes one realise what may happen should they only exist in the world or lead an unexamined life. Such thought would not occur of you lived an examined life, as you would have fulfilled probably everything you had wanted (within reason) for you and your future.

I believe the unexamined life is not worth living. Once you realise you have only been existing you become filled with regret. Over what would have been. Everyone should aim to live an examined life and to dream impossible dreams. It is not too late for anyone my age to begin leading an examined life, to be remembered and to live on after your death is a beautiful thing. However should you be older, it may be too late as you've lived an unexamined life, and an unexamined life is not worth living.

*** So, I guess that's my essay! I hope you enjoyed it or if you're confused on any part of the essay just ask me about it, I'll be more than willing to answer any queries!

**************Hi to everyone in school who has found my blog and never told me. Awkward moment this week when I found out the majority of my peers knew about my ramblings!

Stay Strong, Happy and Fearless!

Aveen xx

People Throw Rocks At Things That Shine..

Hey Everyone!

Hope you're all feeling amazingly wonderful, a contrast to me at the moment! Don't worry, Fifth Year is just an exhausting year so far. I barely have any free time at the moment, ironic seeing as for the past year I've been incredibly bored. I think it's better this way, so busy I can't dwell on past experiences as much, I very much live in the present and future now which I'm grateful for. So here's what I've been up to for the past couple of weeks!

I've mainly been doing school work (how interesting) and studying and homework. For the past couple of Friday's I've gone to Spleodar club after school. We speak Irish for a couple of hours and chat to other people in the school ''as Gaeilge'' it sounds like torture but it's actually so much fun and has really improved my Irish.

As you might know (Mar is eol duit!) my Irish isn't the best. I mean, I'm not fluent however, like everything, I give it my best effort, so I was little miffed and irritated in class during the week. We're studying a poem at the moment and discussing the various imagery and everything related to the poem, IN IRISH. I understand what the teacher says and one morning, the teacher asked me -in Irish- to talk about the poem in my own words, which I did to the best of capabilities. However, a person sitting across from me, in front of the teacher, decides to look at me and starts laughing and smirking at me as I was trying to explain the poem. I'm sorry, but I think you're a little old to be doing absolute rubbish like that. Others commented on what the person did, so it wasn't my imagination. To be honest, that's pretty low, and a little rich seeing as they missed the notes. Don't try make a mockery of others when you don't even know what's going on, it's irritating, hurtful and downright disrespectful. (Rant over)

Apart from that act of immaturity, everything else in my week went by fine. In Irish again (this class seems to be where all the gossip happens) We were discussing the verb, brath, to feel. My teacher begins to say it's like 'feels' or ''emotions'' My teacher said feels! I nearly freaked, and had danisnotonfire feels because of it. It was quite hilarious, in the midst of all the Irish, the teacher says ''Feels'' Highlight of the day.

Next week in school, a Holocaust survivor, Tomi Reichental is coming to talk to history students in my school. I attended his talk two years ago, I got the opportunity to meet him at the end and get a copy of his book signed too which was surreal.

Last Sunday I was also in Limerick aka the other side of the country! We were bringing my brother back to university, he's in Third year now. Wow, I remember him getting his Leaving Cert results, oops my Leaving Cert is in two years.

I haven't really been posting many photos on my blog for the past couple of weeks, as I felt I wasn't taking very many, as it turns out I've taken nearly 5 a week. How did that slip my mind?

With my cousin Owen, family banter and playing hide and seek! (I told him I was hiding in the attic, oops)

My new favourite album, definitely recommend it!

Perks of going across the country!

What can I say? I get scared easily.. especially by my own reflection!

Found another bottle with my name on it! (No more bottles have names on them anymore!)

Playlist for this blog post:

The Strypes album ''Snapshot'' it's so fresh, unique and different! 

Stay Strong, Happy and Fearless,

Have a brilliant week and I'll chat to you all soon!

If you want a chat, tweet me, email or leave a comment down BELOW! :) 

Aveen xx

Something I'd Like To Clarify With Everyone..

Hey Everyone!

So I'm writing this ''bonus''  blog post to address something which has arisen in my life both on the internet and in my 'real life'. As you can probably guess, it's about this blog, The Life Of Me.

As I've previously written/typed, people I know in real life and on various social networking sites have started to find out that I, Aveen, have a blog. There's no problem with this, it's just that I'm a little shocked that people in REAL LIFE, who know me, are reading and possibly judging what I say here.
This is kind of my little corner of the internet where I express what has been happening in my life, both the previous week and in the past. (I've a post coming up soon about something I did when I was 7, it's hilarious) However, back onto what I saying earlier.

Blogging is not vanity. People believe that because I write about my life, I'm vain, self obsessed and shallow. This is not the case! I write about my life because I enjoy writing! Blogging is a way to get to know other people with similar interests and a method to improve spelling, grammar and punctuation. I don't blog to try brag and impress people with what I'm doing with my life. I blog because I enjoy it, also because I'd like to be a writer someday.

Think of it this way, blogging is my hobby. Most people play sports like football and hurling for their hobbies. (I play badminton too for mine) I'd like to ask the question, would you openly insult people for playing on a soccer or hurling team? I certainly hope you wouldn't, so why would you insult someone for having a hobby online? People who play on teams often win trophies/shields for winning competitions, however if a blogger wins or is nominated for something, they're considered to be sad, shallow, vain and to have ''no life''? Where are we all getting this assumption? Blogging and playing a sport are quite similar in ways, they're both a hobby and a way to know more people with a similar interest.

I don't see why there is such a negative stigma towards blogging, according to comments on a Daily Mail article (link is here ) Blogging supposedly takes up time away from school, well listen clearly. Blogging does take up time, especially if you're dedicated, but, so do sports and training sessions for them! In fact, they take up more time, teams may be training a couple of nights a week, blogging for me and a few others takes up a couple of hours on a Saturday and whatnot.

Also, what is so ''funny'' about blogging and being a YouTuber? People I spoke to would try stop themselves from laughing when they found out. I'm going to be honest, YouTube offered to make me a partner in YouTube recently, however, I didn't accept it. Why? Well first of all school work, and the backlash I would receive in school for being a partner in YouTube. The comments and snickering are immature and silly, and I've only uploaded three videos. Can you imagine what would occur if I was getting PAID to make the videos?

It's a vicious circle and it has to end. Being honest, at first I was a little taken aback at the backlash I was receiving from people, but it's not going to stop me from blogging and YouTube. I won't be posting on YouTube for a while, due to school work but in holidays expect something from me. People may think it's ''funny'' that a girl from their school is blogging, but it's my hobby and something I thoroughly love and I'm passionate about. You have your GAA and soccer, I have my blogging. I don't insult you for doing what you love, what gives you the right to do the same to me and fellow bloggers? Nothing.

This is something I felt I needed to address, 

Stay Strong, Happy and Fearless

NEVER let anyone get you down.

Remember, people only rain on your parade because their jealous of your sun and tired of their shade. 

Aveen xx

Life Lessons

Hey Everyone!

This is just an idea I concocted in work over the past few days and is similar to the trail of thought I've been thinking in the past few days. It's about what you can achieve with your life and how to make it happen, I think. I'm still not quite sure, but I have my earphones in listening to Paramore so it should be philosophical.

This very minute, the very second you're reading this seemingly useless and unimportant blogpost (which it probably is in the long run) could change your life for ever. In one split second, you can change everything, whether it's by wiping the slate clean or escalating further into an abyss of trouble (I don't know what you're all personally like but okay) but YOU can change your life path in mere seconds. It's all about decisions.

It's difficult trying to type exactly what has been reverberating in my head, into one clear linear line, apologies if any of this sounds disjointed, trust me it will be. I mean you can  do so many amazing things in your life, the possibilities are simply endless. You can get inspired or get depressed, it's your choice, ( that sounds so disgustingly blunt) you can ace a test or fail a class. It only takes a split second to change, possibly your entire existence, you're MEANING for an existence, everything you believed was important, your reasoning for your actions and life. Everything can be changed in the blink of an eye.

So basically, you can fall in love or fall in hate. That one little moment you look at someone can decide everything. You can either love that person, or hate them. A split second choice, a label even. (Another rant on labels is needed) That decides your entire relationship with that person, how you treat them, interact with them, everything. All because of that split second choice you made once you saw them.

You can speak the truth, or lie and cheat. Tell the truth, be accepting of the consequences, or lie and cheat, feeling the even deeper repercussions for doing such a thing. Lying and cheating really doesn't get you anywhere, especially at the expense of someone else. That one person then receives the treatment you should have received for lying, cheating and deceiving. All because of your one second decision, something can change your life or perhaps, most dangerously, the life of another person

Another huge thing I believe is trust. It's hard gained and so easily lost. You think you can know a person, however you can be so incredibly incorrect. That person you may have had trust in, can so easily lose/break that. It's scary really, how one little action can cause that loss. ONE action, one decision a person makes, can change their future regarding you for forever.

Life is crazy, I know that by now. I once said to my friend Thyra that, ''Life is a roller coaster, we shall scream the whole way through' but perhaps it is difficult to enjoy it constantly. I once believed that happiness in life was a destination, but, when I look back on everything, it's not. It's a way of travelling through your life. It's how you get through everything life puts you to the test on. To be honest, the only thing you can do is embrace life, it can be so difficult, especially when life puts you down. Especially when it's by a person, but you have to embrace the divine chaos that life can be. The more interesting and varied your life is, the more experiences you will have. The more lessons learnt, more methods with coping on those dark listless days. Ways to help you be happier in your journey that is your life. You only get one shot, it's up to you, to make it count.

Oh and, on another note. Be positive. Even in your darkest moments, think of something that you're looking forward to, even if it's a bar of chocolate or a programme on television. ANYTHING. To keep you focused on your life, and more importantly, not to end it.

This is what terrifies me most about life, how easy it is for your possible reasons of existence to alter themselves, it scares me endlessly.

Sorry for this random post, it's just been echoing in my head for days,

Stay Strong, Happy and Fearless

Aveen xx 

Playlist for this blog:

Paramore ~ Grow Up

Paramore ~ Part 2

Paramore ~ Last Hope

Paramore ~ Proof

Paramore ~ Hate To See Your Heart Break

Day 3! What People Misunderstand The Most About Me..

So to start with, I'm so sorry  I haven't been blogging!! :( I was working practically all week and simply didn't have enough time to blog about anything! I'm in my cousins house at the moment using his iPad, which is pretty savage I must say. After this I'm going to m other cousins wedding so that will be fun. Ill try take as many photos of the evening part as possible and post them in my weekly post!                                                              

So as you can see, it's Day 3. What people misunderstand most about me. To be honest when I looked at the title this morning, my heart sank slightly. There's some elements of my life which I've kept quiet and yet, I've spoken openly about here on this blog. This is going to a deep topic, I just know it! As I type this I honestly have no idea what to write about.

In a way, there's so much people don't know about me, and in another, especially here, you know nearly too much about me. But, as I sit here listening to Kodaline and typing whatever comes into my mind, I realise, that STILL, the thing everyone misunderstands about me the most is why I can be honest and open with people I barely know, I'm not sure what it is, but I able to open up to people I know only very slightly for some reason.

It really is a serious flaw (among many, many I possess) I have, so much so, for a while I simply stopped talking to new people. in case I said too much and freaked people out with my honesty, something I really don't want to do as I actually like people occasionally!

This flaw revealed itself yet again only a few days ago, which made me realise its a huge flaw I possess. I can't really go into details with this one particular incident, as it is somewhat personal and also slightly relates to the workplace, sorry!

However it also brings me onto the honesty I convey on this blog, there are people from America, Russia, Australia, China, UK, everywhere! Reading this blog and probably know more about me, a small town girl  in Ireland and you all probably know more about me than most of my peers in school! Is that a little crazy? ;) Possibly.

See what I mean? My honesty is my weakness in many ways, and is definitely the most misunderstanding I receive from others. People think I am a dramatic, attention seeking person when, to be honest, (oh the irony) I'm too honest!

So that's it for now, I'll be writing soon!
Stay Strong, Happy and Fearless,
Aveen xx

Something I haven't quite told you all about..

Hey Everyone,

I have literally just read my friend Grace's latest blog post about DCD, and I became inspired to tell you all about me and issue's I have, (obviously not as serious as DCD, but they're issue's to me)

I like being honest with people, I can be a little too blunt with how I speak to others and particularly in what I write. (That's why some of my posts are edited after I post them!) So before I change my mind, I'd like to tell you some things about me you might not know. It's kind of like ''Write My Life'' instead of the ''Draw My Life'' on YouTube!

So I'm sixteen and live in Ireland. I like where I live, I'm a local and most of the older population recognise me instantly just by looking at my face (I look like my mother's side of the family, and they're well known among the locals) so I've no problem with people like that. It's the younger people, my generation, so to speak. I had a happy childhood, my family life was (and still is) good, I encountered problems when I went into the education system (like everyone says)

In Third Class, when I was eight/nine, (I went to an all-girls school, that's an important part of what I'm going to say/type) I can recall a sudden shift/change in how everyone perceived me. I don't know what caused it, it has plagued me for half my life as to why everyone suddenly changed their views and opinions about me almost simultaneously and practically at the same time. My peers became, in ways, quite cruel towards me and, in short, began bullying me. I won't go into details of the actions (mainly mental and psychological things, like most girls do, so I always felt that it was all in my head, it made me also believe I had the problems, that I was one who was wrong) but this lasted until I was nearly thirteen. Let that sink in. Yes, 5-6 years of practically constant  hurtful comments, screaming at me, drama, backstabbing and so much more. It's something that doesn't exactly help a person with a developing mind and being the typical insecure person.

Secondary school (High school for anyone in the US or wherever) was a little easier for me. My older brother was there with all his friends, they felt like a safety net for me. An ally. Someone older to help. The girls who bullied me in primary school mostly were in completely different classes to me. Which I was extremely grateful for. I've had several drama's during my years in secondary school, (and  I've two more years to go!) losing some friends (literally) and growing apart from some, which is to be expected in secondary school, I referred to it as ''Growing Pains'' as we all changed and matured (some quicker than others, some not at all)

In TY, last year, I had a lot of spare time in comparison to previous years. So I spent a large chunk of my time, reflecting on memories, previous experiences and just on my life in general. Then the flashbacks started happening. I'd put memories of primary school and some secondary school experiences at the back of brain during the previous years, hidden by world's of music, books, my slightly insane imagination and of course the internet. To hide the pain, to try forget. However as I had more spare time, they slowly crept back into the front of my brain, and, I couldn't handle it.

I was so upset over the memories of what had happened to me for so many years, I fell into a depressive state of mind. I knew there was something wrong, it wasn't right to think the way I was thinking (negatively) and presuming the worst was going to happen, always.

So, I went to see a Guidance Counsellor in my school, I visited her several times and spoke about my primary school experiences. It felt so much better to have the experiences out in the open. it was like a weight was lifted off me, the burden of so many years gone. It felt as though the scars inside me were finally healing.

In January, I cracked again. One morning, I just couldn't get up. I felt like the world was against me. (I still do sometimes, but then I try remember to think positively) I wrote a lot of poetry during this time, I went back to the Guidance Counsellor and it really helped in the long run. In the short term I thought it was the most stupid thing I could ever had done. But when I look at the difference in my diary entries from now, and from then. It's astounding how negative and depressed I was.

I'm flicking through my diary and see a poem called 'The Cracks' I wrote in January. In February I wrote that ''I know I'm broken into pieces. However that doesn't mean I can't be fixed'' In April I said '' I have my spark back. I know my cause/meaning of my existence and I crave to fulfil it. I do read over my diary entries and laugh. I presume many would expect me to be the average teen. However, I do not WANT to be like the others. I want to be Aveen. She's not perfect, but she's real. She makes mistakes, she's not pretty but she can be smart and kind-hearted, even to people who don't exactly deserve it.''

So how am I now? I'm actually okay. Everything is good at the moment, which I'm so grateful for. Writing this blog every single week helped me in ways you might not even imagine. It gave me a purpose during some tough months, knowing I wanted to do something interesting and tell you all about it. Doing things during TY that I might never be able to achieve again. So thank you dear readers. You really helped me through a tough time.

I know that these battle's are not over. But I'm so much stronger now than I was, and that has to count for something. The next couple of years are going to be difficult and I will get stressed, however I'm better now. I can cope with more now, and I know my warning signs.

Also, tell someone if you're feeling how I did. Let someone, anyone, know. A problem shared is a problem halved. I confided in my friends and family who helped me in ways I can barely fathom at times. Even just the little things can help.

Stay Strong, Happy and Fearless,

Aveen xx

If you ever need a chat, please talk to me. I'm not a professional but I'll always try help in any way I can. I'll leave a link to my Twitter and you can DM me for my email address or whatever suits. But if you need a professional, GO to one. It seems like the worst idea when you go at first, but when you look back, it'a good decision. 

Playlist for this blog

 Kodaline ~All I Want

 Kodaline ~Lose Your Mind
 Kodaline ~ Pray
 Kodaline ~ Perfect World
 Kodaline ~ All My Friends

 Kodaline ~ High Hopes

Yes, I listened to their EP. Check it out, it's amazing!

My Twitter https://twitter.com/AwkwardAveen
Grace's post about DCD:  http://daintysprinkles.blogspot.ie/2013/06/the-missing-pieces-1-in-nutshell.html

If you ever feel alone, there's always someone around (incl me)

Some quotes I would look at to remind of how I wanted my life to be. x

Majestical summer adventures.....!!!

Hey Everyone! 

Long time no update! (6 days, the HORROR!) I definitely think ''The Quickening'' is upon us. Seems like only yesterday I was typing about sitting in the garden getting a tan and sobbing over Allegiant! So, now it's time to tell all you lovely people about the past week! 

So I was up to my usual activities this week, being the typical procrastinating perfectionist I am. On Monday I went to my friends house to sing songs and rehearse for a competition we had coming up. We were meant to be singing ''Some Nights'' by Fun, which i really enjoyed. To rehearse I had to leave work on time at 5 instead of doing overtime as usual. On Thursday I received a text saying ''Practice cancelled, call me when you can'' I discovered that the competition we were entering was CANCELLED. All our hard work was for nothing. Being honest, i was actually kind of relieved. I was terrified about singing on stage, I even had some solo lines, which I was terrified about. The girls found it strange that I could speak aloud with confidence but would only sing loudly if coaxed to. To be honest, I use my voice to speak, to make a point, debate and for knowledge. Never for singing! So it was something different and slightly terrifying for me.

 I was working for the majority of the week which was fine. On Wednesday, I had the day off so I went to get my hair cut, seeing as I haven't had it cut since I went to London in March! The hairdresser was great, as always and cut nearly 2 inches off my hair! The most I've ever had cut off, like ever! (Before and after photos posted below!) but I was happy she cut off so much, the ends were becoming a little raggy. I actually have quite thick hair so she had to thin my hair out a little too. I was happy with the result, she even french plaited the fringe section for me. 

I had Saturday off from work so I went shopping in a shopping centre in Dublin with my parents, it was really good, especially because I was using my own money which I felt extremely proud of! (Sorry bank account) I'll be posting another update about what I bought and did that day for all you fashionista's! 

So today is Sunday, I got up late and went down the town with my Mam. I bought myself a new book too, it's written by an author I quite like, Sophie Kinsella. The book is called ''I've got your number'' I've read her Shopaholic series which I simply devoured! So I'm excited to be reading her latest book, she always make me laugh! I visited my Nana today too, she's 91 and absolutely adorable. To be honest, she was asleep the majority of the time I was there so I went on Facebook and chatted to my aunt too. (Grace and I had a very interesting conversation on FB while I was there!) I don't know about you, but I'm feeling 92! ;) 

As I'm constantly on the internet, I was on YouTube and saw a youtuber I like called Alex Day had uploaded a video called ''Big girls in costumes'' I watched the entire video and to be honest, I know he was using satire, I was kind of offended. I'm not the skinniest girl or the fattest girl ever but I felt a little upset that in this day and age people still say comments and judge people based on their weight. This video has caused such outrage on YouTube, Alex had to make it unlisted and wrote a full explanation on Tumblr about it. Still, I'm offended from it. I take jokes quite easily and love a laugh (in work I'm called the posh kid and I find it hilarious and speak in a posh accent for the craic too) but weight is a sensitive topic in this day and age, with rising numbers of teenage girls (and boys) being diagnosed with anorexia and other illnesses along with all the body bashing our generation does to each other, it was a bad topic to be satirical about. I was a little disappointed and I thought of the video constantly on Saturday when I was buying a dress to wear to my cousins wedding, seeing as I might be ''too big'' for certain styles according to others. 
 * I felt that that kind of needed to be addressed as it's something I've been thinking of constantly since I first watched it.

Playlist for this blog
Muse ~ Undisclosed Desires
The Killers ~ Mr Brightside
Macklemore ~ Can't Hold Us
Daft Punk ~ Get Lucky (stuck in my head at the moment!)
Robin Thicke ~ Blurred Lines
Fall Out Boy ~ Thanks For The Memories

Some photos from my week!

An awkward selfie I posted on Instagram and got 32 likes? 

New haircut! (After)

 

The new book I bought, review soon!

My new lock screen. I chose it because I always laugh when I see it

A quote I saw during the week and thought it was beautful

I was in Starbucks and thought this was hilarious. Oh Beliebers..

Another book I was reading earlier in the week. I've read it so many times, it's become practically torn.. :(

Stay Strong, Happy and Fearless,

Aveen xx

Don't let anyone get you down about yourself, it's not worth it. If someone judges you, it doesn't define you, it defines who they are.