Mental Illness Is No Joke

Over the last month or more there is something that has really been on my mind so following on from my recent Instagram post with regards to Mental Health Awareness, I thought I would head on over here to get my opinions down in writing in my little space that I occupy on the World Wide Web! After all, that is what a blog is all about no?

People may or may not always agree with what I have to say and that is absolutely fine. It’s my blog and I write my thoughts and life experiences down. You don’t have to like it and you certainly don’t have to read it. With that said I am writing about a sensitive subject today and would love to know your thoughts or even experiences with what I will go on to talk about because I find it very interesting what you all have to say also.

I won’t beat around the bush and get straight to my point. Mental illness or poor mental health is not a joke. It never was and never will be so it angers me incessantly when people use it in a ‘jokey’ way. It is neither cool, funny or OK to call people ‘crazy’, ‘psycho’, ‘mental’ or any other words linked to mental illness in a derogatory manner or as a means of insult. It actually reflects more on the person calling others names than it does on the person it is being aimed at. It is in fact a very serious illness that should be taken far more seriously than it currently is because people that take part in this behaviour, in my opinion, are part of the problem.

What My 20’s Taught Me

My 3rd decade is rapidly approaching (tomorrow in fact) and I got to thinking about a number of things lately.

What have my 20’s taught me? What valuable life lessons have I learnt? Would I do anything differently? If my 30 year old self could meet my 20 year old self what would the wise old me tell the naive young me? What advice would I impart?

You Can’t Live Without H2o

A human can go for more than three weeks without food (Mahatma Gandhi survived 21 days of complete starvation), but water is a different story. At least 60% of the adult body is made of it and every living cell in the body needs it to keep functioning. So there you have it, you cannot survive without water…..Micellar water that is!

Heartbreak: An Honest Encounter

Believe it not I started writing this blog post 2 years ago!! It has sat in my drafts ever since. I have edited it, added to it, removed parts, even at one time I deleted it! Each time it has had a very different tone. When I first read it back months after initially writing it, I felt like I was reading something written by someone else. It certainly wasn’t ‘me’ at all and in actual fact quite a surreal experience to see just how affected I was by everything at the time of my first draft. I will warn you now it is long!

Fast forward 2 years and how things have changed! I am finally ready to publish my inner thoughts on the subject. What I went through and how things are on the other side of the nasty experience that is a broken heart….

When In Rome…

A while back I put together a (very long) post about my wonderful weekend in the beautiful city of Rome. I rambled on (and on….and on, sorry!) for a while about how great the place was and reminisced about all the amazing food I consumed. This post is going to be more about tips and places I really enjoyed that I would recommend others to visit. If you have an upcoming visit planned then read on. I like to research a new place before I visit and I would have loved to stumble across a post like this when planning my getaway. So I will get straight to it and I hope the information I have put together will help you plan a successful trip to this beautiful city. (Beware, it is a text-heavy post!)

A Weekend In Rome

So if you follow me on Instagram you will have seen that recently I flew off to Rome for a long weekend with my lovely boyfriend. Rome was one of the destinations on my never ending list of places to visit that had been on there a while, never getting that tick next to it. I finally got the chance to go and it certainly did not disappoint the travel bug I have inside of me.

After living away from home in a different country for many years I find that when I return to the UK, as much as I adore the place that will always be my home; I never truly feel ‘at home’ and can’t seem to place roots here and settle. It’s a hard battle to fight year after year and time and time again I find myself fleeing. Anyone else that has traveled or lived in a different location will understand, whether it’s as little as 3 months or stretches into years. I get SO excited when I get to explore a new location and I also get super sad when it’s time to leave. I find I can attach myself to new places quite easily, which can be quite detrimental…it’s definitely the daydreamer Piscies inside me.

Thaikhun // Surrey

A little while back I got to visit a new Thai street food restaurant on their opening night in Guildford, Surrey. Thaikhun Guildford is part of the growing chain which now boast an impressive 9 restaurants. I took along my sister and best friend to try out the place; having both been to Thailand and are huge fans of Thai street food I thought they were the perfect guests to accompany me. We were greeted on arrival with funky cocktails in take away style boxes and welcomed in Thai which was a unique touch. Don’t worry though as all the staff had t-shirts with the basics printed on them so you could understand and respond if you wished to. We were then shown through to our seats.

Sugar Dumplin Caribbean // Surrey

I recently got the opportunity to head along to The Atrium in Camberley, Surrey to try out their latest addition to the Rolodex of eateries they boast. This time round it was Sugar Dumplin – a Caribbean and rum restaurant. As we arrived and headed towards the sound of steel drums from inside I was instantly transported to warmer climates by this wonderful sound and the outside decor. It was light and colourful as soon as you approached the entrance, on walking inside you were hit with an aroma of what can only be described as home cooking that came from the heart. We were greeted by the happy, bubbly staff and shown to our seats and offered cocktails which we let them choose for us on recommendation of their personal favourites.

Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium // London

I was a very lucky girl last Christmas to receive an awesome gift from my sister and her husband, a visit to Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium! Now, if you don’t know me then you may wonder why this is especially awesome….if you do know me then you will totally understand. For all those not in the know, my name is Gillian and I am a crazy cat lady through and through. This magical feline Narnia is situated just off Brick Lane on Bethnal green Road and in passing looks like any other London cafe. However, once through the magic door at the back of the cafe you become surrounded in stuff cat dreams are made of!

The Boyfriend Shirt

Shirt: Gant* | Jeans: Topshop | Shoes: Topshop (similar)| Bra: ASOS

Every girl needs a boyfriend shirt in their catalogue of clothes. It is an essential staple item and something you can throw on and really never go wrong with. They are comfortable and stylish which makes for a winning combo in my books. This shirt is from the new Gant Rugged collection and it’s gone straight to the top of my favourites out of the many many striped shirts I own. It’s a really breathable material and the oversized fit gives you a cool boyish edge which I have given a girly twist here by wearing a lacey peach harness bra underneath.