Tuesday 30 December 2014

Chapter 72: 2014 Is A Thing Of The Past....

Hi all,

I hope you all had a great ChristmasJ. So with the New Year looming, what are your plans?! My friends and I are planning to go away to Manchester which I can’t wait for! Now usually I’m not a fan of New Year but I am keen to ring it in and have a “fresh start” well away from 2014. 2014 has had its highs and lows for me like I’m sure it has for all of you too. I have continued with this blog and had so many views and so much support from all of you. I just want to say a massive thank you for that! Think my favourite blogs of 2014 were:




According to my page views, these were your favourite blogs too! I have to say though, these were my peaks, so I’m not sure it’s going to get much better than the above!

In terms of my personal life this year... Here are my main highlights:

  • My sister getting engaged. Ahh... this was such a happy time, right at the beginning of the year as well. I knew from 2013 that my future Brother-In Law was going to pop the question as soon as she beamed about how he had treated her to Hoar Cross Hall and a trip to Paris on Valentines weekend. All I did was give Adam one look and he mimed, “Please don’t say anything!” Literally had to be the biggest secret I kept for 4 months! Totally worth it though... I know Mammy is looking down and is so happy for her and her new ventures coming her way J xxx
  • Next would have to be getting a promotion at work. I was so happy when I got this as I've never had one before. I do love my new job and I love working for the company as it is a great place to work for.
  • Both my sisters purchased new houses in a lovely area! Although they aren’t as close as they were to us, I am so happy for them as I know their futures will be so bright being where they are now J.
  • Our family holiday to Devon was absolutely amazing back in May. Last time we went on a family holiday was before my sister had her children and we went to Florida back in 2004. Obviously there was a massive piece missing from the group.... But we know Mammy was there in spirit xxx. The kids loved it so much as there was quite a lot to do there and the beach wasn't far away. Think we will be making a yearly thing of it which will be fab! We also booked to go away in March 2015 – me, Dad, Esther & Adam are going to Arizona & Vegas! A massive holiday of all inclusive food & drink, horse riding and gambling – what more could you want?!
As for my New Years Resolution? Well... I have a few... One year me and my best friend since I was 16 made a list of things we wanted to achieve. The list was pretty big. Quite a lot of it contained things such as learning about history and politics so that we could engage in interesting conversations with our ridiculously smart lad mates who studied the likes of Theology, Philosophy, History & Law at University. Did we do those things? No. No we didn’t. We will one day though! Right, Charl? J. However I do like the idea of making a list this year. One of the big things for me is concentrating on my script writing and being proactive about getting it noticed. However, the main thing I want to do for myself: to believe in myself and to give myself more credit. All my life, I have been pretty dependent on others giving me the encouragement I need to do things for myself. My family are the people I turn to for this and they never ever fail to make me think I can do anything possible. But the thing is, I need to actually realise this for myself. I know who I am and what I’m about and what I want... However I need to take the courage of my convictions. Someone said this to me once, I won’t say who, but it has only really made sense to me this past year.

I am currently reading a book recommended by my Aunt Elise entitled, “The Prophet” by Kahlil Gibran. The following piece really spoke to me and made me reflect on what Joy and Sorrow really is.



Live and learn everyone. The mistakes we made this year will NOT be a thing of 2015. Believe in yourself, do the things you always say you will do and don’t let anyone or anything make you think you are less than what you are. Hold your head high and may the things that got us down before, give us strength going forward.

On that note, I’m going to leave you with one of my favourite songs of 2014:
Sigma ft. Paloma Faith - Changing.

Happy New Year everyone! May 2015 bring you all strength, love and most importantly, happiness.

Big Love.
T.x

Tuesday 23 December 2014

Chapter 71: Stressing Over What???

Christmas is a very joyous time of year for many. It’s a time for reuniting with family and friends, having a lovely meal and drinks, sharing stories and piling on the pounds without a care in the world. However, for me I really dread Christmas shopping. I used to be so organised... When I worked at The Clothes Show a few years ago, we used to get paid cash in hand for our time with the addition of £100 bonus. Was pretty cushty looking back... I literally did my Christmas shopping the next day in one go. Granted it was a stress, but I had a routine and it worked!

A few years later, I found myself unemployed. With Christmas looming all I kept thinking was, “how am I ever going to budget getting Christmas presents with the income of job seekers?” Like this wasn’t already a stressful enough time, I was searching for jobs every day and EXTREMELY actively. The stigma that comes with being unemployed always riles me up, because I have been there – twice over. It’s not a pretty experience, but only YOU know in yourself how well you are doing with your job search – no other fucker and their small minded opinions can take that away from you. If you have ever been on job seekers, you will know that you are required to apply for at least 20 jobs a week – I was searching for at least 40 jobs a day. Of course, I couldn’t fit this in my job seekers diary which needed to be filled out and checked by an officer during sign on. So it shocked me that I actually got told off by an officer for filling my book in... too much. Are you fucking kidding me? I’m DYING to get a job and you can’t be arsed to do your own and check my book because you’re too lazy? The God damn irony of the situation actually filled me with anger. Nevertheless, although I was unemployed, this was probably the only year I was stress free. I budgeted everyone I was buying for and everyone LOVED their presents. I was delighted that even though I was in a bad place personally, I was able to put a smile on my family and friends faces; this was enough to make my Christmas.

Since then, Christmas has gradually gone downhill for me and for obvious reasons. Without one of the most important people in my life, it won’t be the same for me. My mother was the one who was my rock throughout unemployment and she had such a love and zest for Christmas; without this, I really can’t be bothered with it. The Christmas before she passed I told her I really didn’t like Christmas any more. She said “WHY?!” in her fiery passionate tone. I said “Because I associate it with you falling ill.” “Patricia.” She fired back, “you HAVE to love Christmas BECAUSE I love Christmas. Do you understand?” Believe me; I’m trying to work on this.

Since being employed and having the money to not even care about a budget for presents... sometimes this can be more stressful. Like I said in a previous blog, “Mo money, mo problems.” My sister told me when I was on the minimum wage working in retail, “Trish, the more money you have, the more problems it can cause. The more money you have, the more your spend. Sometimes it’s best not to have so much money because you appreciate the smaller things in life.” The point I’m trying to make is; money can’t buy happiness. So don’t be getting stressed over Christmas shopping- even if you haven’t finished it yet. I said it last year and I’ll say it again – Christmas is about spending time with the ones you love. It’s not about lavish presents and spending loads. It’s the thought that counts. My Dad is a very talented painter and has designed his own Christmas cards this year which to me, I find is way more thoughtful than just giving one from a pack. Here's just one of his designs:



I gave one to my friend and her family and she couldn't get over that my Dad had made it. All of his designs are so beautiful, others include a glittery Robin with a holly branch and a man pushing his daughter on a sledge which is so sweet! – I’m not at all biased!

Anyways, keep positive thoughts this time of the year guys. Although it can be difficult, please embrace the time you have with the people you love J.
Festive love,

T.x

Tuesday 9 December 2014

Chapter 70: "I'm Not Feeling Cute Today..."

Arguments... they happen all the time. Sometimes we argue so much and feel so strongly about winning that we forget what the argument was actually about. I have been a victim of this many a time. Anyone who knows me, knows I'm quite a feisty person. Anyone who knows me also knows I'm as stubborn as they come. Okay, now I'm really underselling myself... Basically I think a good argument every now and then is healthy! I don't think I'm the only woman to think this though... Am I?

My sister inboxed me last week on Facebook with a video from Buzzfeed called "If Girlfriends Were Honest When Arguing." Have a look at the video for yourself. FYI: It's best to view this blog on your laptop rather than your phone as the video won't display otherwise:


I think my all time favourite of this is, "When I say it's nothing, it's literally EVERYTHING! How do you not know that?" LOL. So true though, right? It's almost textbook when a woman says that though? It's like this:

Come on guys! You must know this by now! Hehe! Jokes :). I also enjoyed, "I've been planning my argument for days now, so good luck winning. I've got a TIGHT defence."

I then had to see if there was a man's version. let's face it ladies, I think we would like to understand the male brain and how it works when we are shouting our heads off at them for no reason, right?


LOL. I'm sorry this is too much. But I can understand their frustration as well. Why on earth would we feel the need to ask men, "which of my friends do you think is hot?" I can see why men might think we are a bit mad in the head... But men... you're a bit cray too! "Why do you need that many guy friends? I mean why? Why do you need that many guy friends?"

After seeing these videos, I then stumbled across this little beauty...


If only men behaved this way when a wedding was approaching! Haha! What kind of world would we live in then? The point is, as much as we can complain about men and women, we wouldn't really have them any other way. I mean if men behaved like that in the Groomsmaid video.... well, that would just be weird right?!

Ladies & gents, would you want your partner to be honest in arguments? Or would you prefer a gender switch for a few days? Women not being bothered and men being bothered in an argument? Women not acting paranoid about which of her friends are hotter and men being late instead of women on date night? Let me know your thoughts on the back of here, contact me on Facebook or tweet me @triciabaxter.

'Til next week peeps!
Big love.
T.x

Tuesday 2 December 2014

Chapter 69: An Ode To My Everything

The past few weeks I have been writing on and off, because it has been my families Birthday's. They all fall two weeks between one another; my Dad's, Laura's then Esther's. Last Tuesday was Esther's Birthday. She woke up that morning and said, "29 and feeling fiiiine!" I love that about her, she always comes out with the funniest comments and always knows how to put a smile on my face :).  I love celebrating with them and most of all I love spoiling them. So this is just a short dedication to them and a blog of appreciation for everything they do for me. My family are the people who make me who I am today. They listen to me nag, dissolve all of my worries, shower me with love and give me all the confidence and strength I need. They have been with me at my worst... My Mammy was my angel when I was unemployed. She would have given anything for me to get a job a few years ago. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, because although I thought that was a bad time of my life, it was in fact one of the best times because I spent so much time with my family and they were some of the best times of my life.

These bad things that we only think are bad in our lives, really aren't when we think about it. It's all relative really... when something happens and we say, "I can't believe this is happening to me", there are so many more worse things that can occur in life and they happen around us every day. Bad is the person on the street who has nothing but a blanket to cover them up. Bad are the starving people in Third World Countries who would do anything for even a sip of clean water. Bad is a loved one being taken from right under your nose and nothing you do will be able to prepare you for the grief that will follow. We must take solace in the fact that we have a roof over our heads, our health and the people in our lives that we can take for granted on a daily basis - something we have all been guilty of.

So right now, I want to take the time to say... Baxter family, thank you for everything you do for me day in, day out; you really are the best people in the world. Love you all very much xxxxxx

You're with me at my worst,
You're with me at my best.
You're with me through everything,
Especially when I'm put to the test.

Through thick and through thin,
There you will always be...
You put a smile on my face,
And bring me so much glee.

No matter what life throws,
I know I can count on you.
And no matter what life throws at you,
You know I am there for you too.

So it is with a heavy heart,
That I must confess.
My dear family you really are.
Nothing but the best.

T.x.