June Chats 2016

Welcome to a new post!

Guess who's finally back! Yes, I am still alive and exam season is finally over. Thank goodness! I hope everyone else that had exams did well, and if your one's are still going - good luck to you, you can do this! :)

I can't even tell you how desperate I was to come back to blogging. I missed it so much, but since I wasn't really sure what the best post would be to kinda get back on track, I decided to start a little series that I could do whenever I feel like writing something a little more personal and longer but don't have any ideas, or I just don't have much time to write.

I want this to be a little blogpost featuring some moments of my month, things I feel like that I want or need to talk about, making this blog a little more personal than it currently is. Sometimes that might only feature places I went to in the months, other times I might be talking a little bit about politics and things I've been loving. There's many things that could happen in these posts, but I'm really exited for it, and I hope you are too.

Exam season

I've been moaning about this for weeks, but I feel it's something I have to mention, as it took up most of my month and freetime. It actually started in the middle of May, and there were only two weeks that were properly stressy. I ended up not doing as well as I would've liked in some of my favourite subjects because of that, but oh well, I guess that's life and I need to accept that. So far, I only know my marks in a few ones since most teachers had to do a lot of A-level stuff, but at least there were some uplifting ones in between. It all finally finished on Friday (the 24th), and I cannot tell you how happy I am. Now all I've got left to do is finish my comic for Arts class till Monday (only 3 pictures to go yay....), write a speech for Further English, do a voluntary Chemistry presentation and hand in 1000 words for German class. But these things worry me slightly less than exams. So yay for finishing. See you back in Autumn exams....:D

Driving lessons

I'm not sure whether I've ever told you on my blog before, if you follow my Twitter (@dancingitrain23) you will have probably heard, but I've been taking driving lessons for about two months now. I've got another one in an hour from writing this, meaning that after today I'll be half way through! :o I also might be going on the Autobahn today....kinda scared to be honest. I'll tell you how it was when I am back. Update: It was horrendous. I hadn't driven the petrol car before, only the diesel one, and it turns out that I definitely prefer diesel....We didn't drive on the Autobahn, but that'll probably be happening on Tuesday. We'll see how that goes (prays to drive the diesel one).

Brexit

Seeing as I am German, you might think that Brexit hasn't affected me that much, but it actually has. Seeing as I have a lot of dreams including England throughout and after my A-levels, I did quite a lot of reading. I'm not the person that has a very high interest in politics, but I felt like talking about it. I pretty sure I would've voted to stay in the EU to be honest. Not only because I am scared of change, but because I didn't really see that many positive points in leaving. I understand why some people would want to leave, but only to a certain point.

What I don't understand is why people have to manipulate others in order to succeed in what they think is the right thing to do. Why can't you let people make a decision upon real facts? Another point I wanted to mention, in which I understand the 16-17 year olds, which are not able to vote is, that the older generation basically decided their future. I am not saying that these people shouldn't deserve to vote nor that it doesn't affect them. I know that that's how democracy works, but I can totally understand what these people feel like. People that had planned to study and travel in and around Europe will now have a lot more difficulties and probably higher prices, less chances to get into certain stuff etc. I understand why they are mad. I'm upset about it myself, because it is very likely to have a high influence on my own further education.

But on the other side, who knows what positive effects this might have on all of us. It'll be tough, but we have to keep in mind that there's always a little rain before the sunshine.

If you think that the decision wasn't the right one and you are from the UK, HERE is a link to a petition which has already been signed by over 3 million people in order to get a second chance to vote. I can't guarantee that anything's going to happen though..

Orlando

Another political kinda topic I obviously had to mention was Orlando. I literally cannot believe what happend at that club. All of it, done by one person. It's terrible, and I really hope that one day my grandchildren will be able to hear about this in class and think how weird and shit a world must've been like when people weren't equal and got killed for being attracted to the same gender. I only hope that the U.S. will learn from this situation and finally do something about their gun laws, at least in the slightest. This should've never happend, and I am praying that nothing like this is ever going to happen again. People shouldn't suffer or die because they love someone of the same gender. That is not right, and not what we stand for in today's society, in my opinion.

Workout update

Well, this is completely different, yet I wanted to mention it. For around a month now I've been doing Anna Saccone-Joly's workouts with her personal trainer Lucy, and I am loving them. I've been seeing some proper results on my body, and I feel so much stronger and better. I love how there's a new workout for each week, which really gives me the strength to power through. There are always one or two moves I hate, but it is so worth it, and whenever I've finished the 3 rounds per day I am sweaty and happy as hell. If you haven't tried them yet, I'll leave a link HERE. They are incredible, and you don't even need any equipment, nor a gym!

Talking about the gym, I actually haven't had to chance to go that often this month, due to driving lessons and school. I've also ended my contract for the end of August, as I am probably going to have even less time in grade 12, and I feel like the price doesn't work out for me. It's a way to get myself out of the house, but that's also the tricky part with only little time and no drivers license. I never use many machines, apart from the cardio ones which I could easily do outside for free, meaning I am basically spending 35€ a month on stuff I don't really use. Instead I decided to invest in some weights and smaller gadgets and train at home. In that way I'll be able to do whatever and whenever I like. Maybe I'll sign up again one day, but not till I have more time, money and a car to do so.

If you workout from home, I'd love to hear some of your favourite workouts and gadgets to try! :)

Weather

The weather has literally been going crazy this month. One day it'll be pretty Spring weather, next day it'll be burning hot and two days later I have a driving lesson and the streets are flooded. The past two days have been mentally hot (till flooded streets during my driving lesson), yet today we are back to slightly warm but not hot weather. I'm very exited to go to the pool though as soon as it's nice again, as now I've finally got the time to do so. 

I still need to get a new bikini as mine was kinda small last year already, so leave me some ideas where to look below. I'd love to hear your ideas! :)

Also need to hurry up and buy some new shorts because I literally have one pair left which has gone a little big on me since I've been working out and another one that I bought last year and is now too small cause I gained so many thigh muscles. :D

I got some really cute sandals though, which I cannot wait to wear!

Blogging

Now obviously I had to take a step back from blogging for the past few weeks, which is why there weren't many posts, but I am more than exited to finally get back on the road. I've got so many ideas that I am hoping to get on here real soon, and I'm also thinking about doing a blog makeover (Any suggestions/ideas/inspirations are very welcome!). There's an exploring trip planned, some outfit shoots, challenges, back to school stuff etc - so get exited! I definitely am! :)

Wedding Season

If you haven't read my Wedding Season Inspiration post yet, definitely check it out - I loved creating it!

I actually happend to write that one a day before I was going to a wedding at the beginning of June. And let me tell you - that wedding was phenomenal! They didn't do a bling bling full on wedding, and it was in a very weird venue at first thought, but it was the prettiest party I've ever been to (not counting the goose poo on the playground). They got married in the church and the party then went on at a sea which had a beach club within. The weather was literally so nice compared to what the news had predicted! It was such a magical place, especially at night with fairy lights and candles everywhere. There were palm trees and the beach, and everything that you need for a beach type wedding. We even got our own wine glasses with our names on! There were performances, and  an amazing and very delicious cake - it was literally perfect. 

2016 goals update

There will hopefully a be a full post about this at the end of the year, but as we are already halfway through the year, I thought I'd give you a little update about how I've been doing so far. If you haven't read that post yet, HERE is a link.

I mentioned that I wanted to keep on teaching myself some Swedish with an app that I've had for quite a few months now. There have been days where I've been doing very well, yet I tend to forget doing my daily session quite a lot in between. It usually depends on how much I've got to do that day, or how lazy I was. But I'm still enjoying it quite a lot, even if I can't say much.

Caring less about what other people think of me, is definitely a point I had a lot of thoughts about in the past few months, and I actually feel like I've gotten a lot better at it. I still get shy when I am supposed to talk to our American exchange student in class, as I have these thoughts buried that she's going to think I'm an absolute piece of wannabe-british crap. Weird I know. But yet, I have stopped caring about it in a lot of other situations. I care a lot less when I'm out and about or when I'm choosing my outfit or deciding whether I want to wear make-up that day or not, for example.

I'm not quite sure how well the parts about writing and reading more have been going. I have definitely not been writing more. I wrote a lot more blogposts, but due to school I haven't had the time or mood to write that often. I actually started using a book called "642 things to write about" which I bought last year, and I had a really nice idea for a new story, which I even posted on here, but apart from that, it hasn't been going that well. I actually think that's quite sad as it really is a passion of mine. Guess I've got some things to work on during the summer break. :)

Reading wise, it definitely depended on school as well, but I've come up with a little routine, meaning I'll read at least whilst having lunch and dinner. I also make sure to always have a new book ready for when I finish one, so I don't find an excuse to not read. So far I've read 16, currently on my 17th, meaning that so far my Goodreads Reading Challenge of 30 books in 2016 is going quite well so far. I am hoping there'll be a lot more than 30, but we'll see. Any book suggestions are always welcome! :)

Sorry for talking way too much about myself today, but I guess I need to accept that if I want to include more personal posts. :D I'd love to hear about your month! What were your favourite moments? What's the most awkward experience you've had this month? Let me know :) xx

Have a great day! ♥

Love, Jacqueline Xx

A writer, a laptop and a midnight

Welcome to a new post?

Get a bowl and put in a writer, then add one laptop, a slice of music, and sprinkle with some midnight writing vibes. And there you have the perfect recipe for a midnight writing session.

I don't think I've been properly talking about my love for writing on this blog, yet when I didn't know what post to do today, I found this script that I had started writing in the middle of the night after I'd kidnapped my brother's laptop. I actually think it sounds quite good compared to what I usually write when I start a new story.

I hadn't planned on writing this at all, but the story kinda flew in my head in the middle of the night, and I had to start writing. That's what usually happens in moments when I should be sleeping or studying. Writer problems, I guess.

I thought for today's post I'd give you a little insight into my writing. I don't usually write stories in English for some reason, but somehow ended up doing this one in English. Please keep in mind that my grammar might not be the best in the middle of the night. I don't know if I'll ever keep on writing on this story, but who knows what might happen. It's not a lot either even though I had more ideas, but I guess a girl has got to prioritize her sleep on a school night. 

Make sure to leave me a little review what you think so far, and if I did keep on writing whether you would like to see more of it or not. I'd love to hear your thoughts! :)

And suddenly, when our eyes crossed, it was as if I was finally free. As if everything single stone on my chest that had been dragging me down finally fell off of me. The world around us stood still. Our eyes focused on each other, the outside – faded. We both knew it was wrong, terribly wrong. Yet, we weren't able to stop. A bond seemed to have occured out of the middle of nowhere, holding us together like an umbilical cord a mother and it's growing baby. In that moment, I never would have even guessed in my farest dreams what would soon be coming. I never would have guessed, that one day I would find out that the world as I knew it, was only half the cup of truth. If I only I would have known, that only days after this awkwardly, beautiful meeting, my life would smash and crumble out of all it's angles.

It was the day past graduation. Everyone seemed to have left before the morning rise, because when I awoke, our small, antique, German village was so silent. I felt the emptiness creeping through my veines.

Summer. Six weeks full of freedom. Weeks without nasty schoolwork and annoying school mates. I didn't even want to start thinking about the after. University was never something I'd looked forward to, yet it felt like my only choice. I'd never been one of those extremely intelligent people, and whenever I heard a teacher yell my name, I would basically crumble up in my chair and pretend not to exist. To be honest – I hated school. I hated it even more than I hated my fake friends.

But if I would've only started to demand anything else than a university degree after my graduation to my dad, he would have killed me. Not literally of course, but still.

It was almost midday when I finally managed to drag myself out of bed, and almost stood on a big fat patch of orange wool. The patch hissed angrily at me, before it stood up and strangled out of the room. I yawned. One day that cat would get itself killed by it's habitat of choosing the most unfitting sleeping spots.

The sky was clear, making space for the sun to warm up the country. My parents were still at work, creating the perfect opportunity to grab my stuff and finding a good spot to photograph.

I had the perfect plan for a whole summer related folder, which I would hopefully be able to secretly hand in, to receive an internship with one of my favourite artists in Paris. If I wouldn't at least try to fight for it, I'd regret not trying one day, no matter what my parents view on it was.

All they kept telling me was that I had to go to university in order to receive an amazing job afterwards, and earn more money than I could ever get hold of otherwise. They kept telling me how hard they'd work in order to make my dreams come true and provide me with a good future, yet for me these dreams I was fulfilling, where only expectations I had to achieve. They were my parents dreams, not mine.

My thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the sound of the door bell. Immediately I crouched behind the kitchen counter. I wasn't in the mood to socialize, neither to be confronted with the weird talk that went through town, by one of Mama's strange tea companions.

The most recent talk was about all sorts of weird catastrophes happening around the world. Cyclones in Bangladesch, hurricanes all along the european coasts, red rain in London, cat floodings in Albuqerque. The list went on and on and on, but neither of them wanted to believe that these were probably the consequences of climate change.

I'd already given up talking to them months ago, when they talked about a former classmate of mine from Primary school, Miles Parany, who they thought had vanished because a bat had kidnapped him. Sometimes I truly wondered, why they weren't getting any professional help. It was mental.

When I was sure that enough time had passed for the person to be gone, I hurried upstairs and grabbed my bag. I threw in a few bugs as well, since I was too lazy to make myself some proper breakfast. I'd rather get myself something on the way in one of the old bakeries along the main road.

They'd been existing for over three centuries, and still going strong. At least there was one thing that we'd kept from the good old 21^st century and it's technology. The bakery bits had been the best food in town for many years now, after the bombs had destroyed most of our reservations. I've only once seen something as a Schnitzel or Sunday Roast, and that was in my textbook in school.

Whilst I was strolling along the roads through town, history always repeated itself in my mind. I don't think I would ever be able to forget those times. How could I, with it taking up most of my childhood years?

It actually looks a lot less on here than in my document, but I guess I got to live with that. I hope you enjoyed to have a little bit of different post today. I'd love to hear your opinions, and also whether you would like to hear more about my writing on this blog. :)

Have a great day ♥

Love, Jacqueline Xx

ASOS Summer Wedding Inspiration Board

Welcome to a new post!

As Spring has arrived (it's actually been raining for the past few days, but I mean it's supposed to be Spring right?), so has wedding season. I personally love weddings. The vibe, the dressing up, the being together and celebrating a huge day with a couple.

But I guess, not everyone has found a perfect outfits to weddings this year. Therefore, I went onto ASOS, as you might know I love doing, and picked out quite a few lovely pieces, which will hopefully be able to inspire you. I feel like weddings are those kinds of days where you can finally get that slightly higher priced dress that you've been eyeing up for months or even wear something nice and simple you've got in your wardrobe.

As I know that not everyone's the dress type of person, I have also picked some other one-piece objects that I thought would be suiting the occasion. There are some shorter bits, some longer bits, and I also tried picking a few different styles of outfits. Everything is linked below the pictures, so if you want to have any further information, all you need to do is click the caption.

Chi Chi London High Neck Cutwork Midi Prom Dress

ASOS Woven Cami Maxi Dress With Pleated Skirt

Missguided Crochet Detail Strappy Swing Dress

ASOS Fit & Flare Tea Dress in Floral Print

ASOS PETITE Off The Shoulder Midi Prom Dress In Bright Purple Floral

ASOS Embellished Waist Maxi Dress

ASOS Lace Ruffle Yoke Skater Dress

ASOS PETITE WEDDING Lace Top Pleated Maxi Dress

John Zack Petite Lace Bodice Midi Prom Dress With Cut Out Detail

ASOS Lace Insert Maxi Dress

ASOS Floral Embroidered Shift Dress

Love Triangle Lace Maxi Playsuit

Little Mistress Tall Floral Printed Culotte Jumpsuit

ASOS Kate Lace Mini Dress

ASOS Occasion Mesh Ruffle Maxi Dress

ASOS WEDDING One Shoulder Structured Bow Dress

ASOS Crop Top Lace Midi Dress

ASOS Cami Wrap Front Jersey Jumpsuit with Peg Leg

ASOS TALL Jumpsuit With Cross Front

ASOS Strappy Midi Prom Dress In Lilac Floral

ASOS TALL One Shoulder Occasion Maxi Playsuit

Well, I hope you found some inspiration. I absolutely enjoyed browsing through the ASOS website to find these outfits, and now I really wish I wouldn't already own a dress for the upcoming weddings. I just feel like there is always something pretty to find on ASOS, no matter what kind of clothing item you are looking for.

Are you going to any weddings this year, maybe even getting married yourself? Let me know, and tell me what you'll be wearing. Oh, and I'd love to find out if you ever want to get married, if you aren't already :)

Have a great day ♥

Love, Jacqueline Xx

P.S. I do not claim any copyright for these pictures. All rights etc. go to their owners! I am not using them to gain money, but instead to inspire and help out!