Photo challenge Part One

So I have been half arse doing this photo challenge. I was meant to be taking a photo of something every day of July but I didn't actually start it until about the 10th and most of these pics were taken on the same days so it's not quite the right idea... No matter it's still good to practice with ,y camera.

Flower In A Window

Ok so it's not really a flower but it's a plant. It's a succulent that I put into a tea cup because I thought it'd be cute and because I wanted some plants in my room that hardly need to be watered. These little things actually die if you water them regularly so they are perfect for my casual/forgetful approach to looking after things.

Free Shot

 I just really like this pic and it shows how cold it's been lately.

A Pet Outside

This is a bit of a cheat perhaps since sheep are always outside but they are also my only pets. Perhaps I should have brought one in to make it a contrast XD

An Item You Recently Acquired

I made a special trip to Typo while I was in Wellington as I always like their notebooks. This is one of the three that I bought.

Something Green

Me and Mum had a pretty serious day of work last week and we had two truck and trailer loads of green waste to take away.

Free Shot

 For some reason I have never noticed this house before but I really like the shape of it.

In The Sun

Winter sun at the beach.

A Statue Of A Dog Or A Horse

This is in Feilding and the dog has a man with him but I figured most statues of horses would have a human on their back anyway.

So theres my first 8 pictures. If you like the sound of this photo challenge head on over to the original post on my sisters blog.
http://tomorrowsheretoday.blogspot.co.nz/2015/07/photo-day-challenge-july.html

Photography Fun

Today was unusual for me, a theme this weekend that I feel I've really needed. Today I went to my first bloggers brunch club and I was pretty nervous before I left but everyone made me feel really welcome. I was very impressed, the other girls seem so much more accomplished than me, working with suppliers and businesses while I'm just over here writing to myself. It was nice to hear their views though and to hear that blogging doesn't have to take over your life and small is nothing to be ashamed of. We all start just for the love of it and I don't need mine to pay the bills so I'm happy to let it roll along quietly. I got so wrapped up in listening and talking that I forgot to ask for their blog details and instagram names! Duh! Oh well I guess I will just have to go to the next brunch and ask then.

 After brunch club I decided to take the long way home as the sun was shining and I wanted to take photos. I had seen a road sign on the way down pointing to a town that I couldn't remember visiting so I decided to travel back via that way. As it turns out the town wasn't really a town at all but about 6 building around a round about which I guess is why I can't remember visiting it before.

Next stop was Marton where I found a cute park that I've never seen before. It didn't look it's best really but you can just tell that it would be beautiful in the spring and summer so I plan to go back when the leaves return.

There were loads of ducks on the pond but there was a trio that really caught my eye because they had funky hair do's like this guy! They started off on the pond as they were a bit nervous but once I crouched down to take photo's of other things they got a bit cheeky and came up on the bank to see if I had any bread hiding in my pockets. Unfortunately I didn't but I will try to remember to take some when I go back.

On my way out of town I saw this nice church and played about with the sun behind the cross. It didn't come out quite how I planned but I still like it.

I headed home and picked up Mum and convinced her to come out to Kai Iwi beach with me as neither of us had been out there since the floods. We knew the bridge was broken but it was still a bit of a shock to actually see it first hand. I of course had to test it out and walked over the broken bits to stand on the end.

There was a lot of rain last night so the rivers where all running dirty and have made the sea a strangely appealing muddy colour. You wouldn't catch me swimming in it but it was interesting to watch.
I'll leave you with one final photo of a shell that was on the beach. It caught my eye because of the strange worm like patterns on it.

Armageddon Expo 2015

Oh my gosh where do I start! 
Yesterday I went to Armageddon Expo in Wellington and it was awesome! I'm still squeeing so bad that this post will be all over the show so sorry about that but comic con guys! Comic con!
Unfortunately I have a very dull friend circle so no one that I know wanted to go but comic con is so worth going to that I didn't mind going alone. Wellington is a three hour drive away from my home (usually just over two actually but there are so many road works atm) so I left early in the morning to make the most of the day.
The con didn't open until 12 and since I arrived early I went and checked out an art gallery where they had fantasy themed pictures. I'm not usually an art fan but when the paintings have dragons in them they can hold my attention longer! I didn't take any photos as I'm never sure if I'm allowed to take pics in an art gallery and I'm too shy to ask.
Anyway! After a lunch of cheap and nasty chinese food and a sneaky visit to a Typo store to stock up on notebooks (which you will hear more about later) I headed for the con!

I think one of the main attractions at comic con is the cosplay. I wish I was brave enough to dress up as my favourite character and I really admire the dedication that some people put into their costumes. Maybe one day I will. I didn't actually get many photos as it's hard enough to get a good pic in a crowded place when you have the guts to ask someone to stand somewhere to pose for you but I'm a wimp. I did jump in on this pic though. They were actually posing for their friend. Last year they did a cosplay parade on the main stage which I thought they should have done this year too cos then I could have got some good pics XD

The stalls are the second best attraction for me at con. I know that I should say the celebrities are a big draw but NZ is such a small country that they only seem to get vague secondary T.V characters to appear here and I usually haven't even heard of them. So stalls! I find it very hard to buy geeky stuff in my home town and even the bigger out lying towns seem to have little choice so I tend to go a bit crazy at con and do my whole years geek shopping at once.

 Can you blame me though when they have stalls like these?! If only I was rich I could buy so much more.

They also had some activity stalls and a whole wrestling ring. I thought this bash a knight was pretty cool. I didn't really fancy a go myself but I sat and watched for a while.

Just about all my purchases this year seemed to have a Lord of the Rings theme. I'm a sucker for it. I bought these two necklaces because the price was pretty good and although the quality isn't amazing I have wanted the key and leaf for a long time but have never been able to afford them in any form.

 And I've saved the best for last. I bought a sword! Meep! I've wanted one for years and tbf it's only a half size but that's ok because it's a Hobbit sword! It's Bilbo's sword Sting and I love it and want to carry it everywhere with me. Isn't it awesome!

I'm so in love with my new purchases and don't be surprised if they appear again at some point. Have you been to Comic Con this year? Did you buy some totally cool items too? I'd love to know what you got.

A Little Colour Therapy

I've been having a bit of a rough lately but over the last few days I really decided to do something about it. Little life changes can make a big difference and my new fad at the moment is colouring in pages!
Perhaps lame but pretty fun and they give me just enough to concentrate on to stop me stressing about other things. I don't want to blah on about my problems today I just wanted to share my pictures with you XD
Enjoy!

Game Review: Fantasy Life

This game had something of an advantage with me before it even started simply for being an RPG. I'm not necessarily a competitive person but I dislike losing and lose interest quickly if I can't complete levels easily. This usually leads me to puzzle games with hundreds of levels that allow quick progress or RPG's where I can move at my own pace.

Fantasy Life was something of an impulse buy for me really. The game store was having a sale and I just happened to have some money set aside. The back of the box looked ok and I was pretty sure I had read about it somewhere on the net so I just went for it. Best snap decision ever!

The basic idea is to choose a career and complete quests to master your skills. There are 12 'Lifes' to choose from and you can chop and change at will. Learning skills in one Life can give advantages to another and I would definitely recommend dabbling in as many as possible. Another bonus to having more than one Life on the go is that you can complete quests while also moving along the main storyline. If I was to start the game again (which I probably will at some point) I would start all the lives as soon as possible and collect as many of all items that are lying around as almost everything will have a use later.

There is also a main storyline which will open up new areas on the map but to be brutally honest I found it rather dull and charged through it as fast as I could. It involved a fair bit of reading which I found to be rather tedious but if I had spent more time training up my levels instead of rushing through it all at once it would have perhaps been more bearable.

Another mistake that I made simply through ignorance was to start and settle in a career that didn't focus on fighting. I wasn't aware that the main quest would involve me having to defeat monsters and half way through I had to swap to paladin and train up simply to make any more progress. If I had spent more time trying out other Lifes I would perhaps have been more prepared.

One advantage to rushing through the main quests was that it opened up the full map to me pretty quickly and now I can level up in each new Life quicker as I have access to more ingredients/monsters/tools/materials etc. So I don't regret the way I chose to play but next time I will try something different. Of course the main joy of an RPG is that you get to choose the way you want to play and how fast you want to move. They are also plenty of side quests to keep you occupied and help you earn experience and new items too so it should be long time before you get bored.

My favourite game of all time is Harvest Moon and although this game is slightly different it has ranked a very close second for me. If it had the option of starting up a farm after the main quest I could play forever! There are animals available in game, pets to help you fight and a horse to ride, which is a nice touch. Another reminder of HM for me was collecting items from around the map which can be sold to make money or, even better in my opinion, used in recipes or quests later. It gave me more of a purpose to collecting everything I saw.

So in summary Fantasy Life is a great game. Recommended to anyone who likes the Harvest Moon series and although the main quest can be a little dull at times it is relatively short and opens up new map areas so can be forgiven.

8/10

A Somewhat Depressing Post About Depression

Today has been a busy day. A day for keeping busy, for distracting myself and trying to change my attitude to life. I like to tell anyone who will listen (which is next to no one) that I am a strong and independent person who does what she wants and doesn't care what other people think. In truth, at the moment, I am none of these things and that worries me. More than I am already worried since anxiety seems to be my new go to mode. I have been sliding into a destructive pattern lately, feeling worthless and miserable and it's time for it to stop.

My first move was to tell my boyfriend or whatever he is (we are supposed to be fuck buddies but it has become more complicated recently and I hate complicated) that I don't want to see him for awhile. Everything he says and does lately seems to make me feel insignificant, petty or boring. He doesn't mean to make me feel that way and tbf he's treating me pretty much the same as he always has. The problem is my self esteem is at an all time low and anything less than praise or being the most important person to someone else is leaving me depressed. Pathetic right? Especially since I used to be so strong in my belief of myself. I've told him not to contact me mostly because that means that I won't be disappointed when he doesn't. I won't be constantly checking my phone, stalking his fb page or getting annoyed when he hangs out with his friends while I sit alone. I won't feel worthless or boring when he doesn't txt me or invite me over. I guess this either makes me seem like a horribly needy person or makes him sound like a terrible friend and perhaps both are true at the moment but neither of us mean to be these people and things will change. They have to.

I'm striking out on my own for awhile. I need to find that girl that I know is inside me that can be her own hero, her own cheerleader and her own best friend. I need to learn to rely on myself again as I am the only person that I can trust to understand and take care of my feelings, to boost my moral. How can I expect anyone else to want to spend time with me when I can't stand being around myself.

That's a distressing thought for me since I really used to love myself (perhaps too much) I was unique and daring, witty and adventurous. I used to be interesting.

I don't really know where I'm going with this. I guess I just needed to tell someone how I'm feeling, that I'm trying to change and that I'm determined to succeed. Today was a good start. I stayed away from facebook as it always seems to depress me. Everyone saying how great their lives are, how much fun they had with their friends and I can't help but compare them to my miserable, lonely existence. Most of it is lies of course but lies can still hurt. Facebook is optional though so why do I still punish myself by trawling through it everyday? Why not opt out? Because I'm weak, I want to know what I'm missing, I want to get a cheap thrill by posting some crap on my page for attention but then I feel cheated when no one sees it or I only get two likes. Well enough of that. I'm not good at fishing for attention so I'll stop trying. No more Facebook every minute of the day. Instagram however is still allowed XD

Today I've kept busy and tried to achieve things to boost my sense of purpose. Firstly I baked some cookies and iced them, they didn't turn out as well as I hoped but my expectations are always too high considering I'm a novice baker. I also made crème brulee which is an easy recipe and always turns out well so that cheered me up. 

 

I went for a walk as exercise is good for the endorphins. We are looking after my Uncle's farm dog which is kennelled during the day so it felt good to give her some freedom and explore a paddock with her. I was thinking of starting up a routine of squats and sit ups but I'm not sure I'm quite that motivated!

 

Next I decided change is good so as well as cutting myself off from humanity I figured I should do something positive. I settled on moving my desk into the lounge since it's the only warm room in the house and it means that I can do some projects to keep my mind busy without suffering in the cold. I've been meaning to move it for a few weeks now but never found the motivation.

To feel good inside I need to like the outside so I changed all my ear bars to bright colours and comfy studs. I put my fav ring on my finger and swapped my necklace for one that has a cute disc which says 'Dream' on it. It seemed appropriate. 

 

I've also changed around the layout of my room, made it more airy and moved my bed closer to the window. I've disabled my tv and dvd player in there as I have been reading a book before bed the last few nights and it has really aided my sleep and eased my bad dreams. So no more screen time before bed for a while and that includes my phone and gameboy. Half an hour of reading will serve me better and it's not like I'm short on books. 

 

After posting this I plan to break out my colouring book and felt pens as that always seems to relax me but still keeps me occupied and gives me a sense of achievement when I finish a page. A little stress free therapy.

I'm not sure whether to be worried or impressed about how easily I can pretend that I'm ok to everyone that knows me. Maybe I'm just such a moody cow most of the time that they don't notice when it's actually serious. Perhaps I internalise too much, after all I don't confide in anyone when I'm feeling good so how would they know when I feel bad. Ultimately though I am the only who can help me so I think admitting to myself that something needs to change is a good step.

I'm sorry for blahing on. I guess I had more to get off my chest than I thought. I will keep you updated with my return to my former arrogant, weird, hopefully interesting self. Wish me luck!

The Bitch Can Bake

Life has been pretty slow around here lately. The grass is barely growing and the weather has been pretty terrible so work is patchy at best. This week I have managed to do 2 hours in two days so far. I am also house sitting in the evenings though which is lucky for my bank account but not quite a substitute for a real pay check.

The upside to lack of work though that I have energy to burn around the house and at the moment my new little fad seems to be baking. I've done sugar cookies, dog biscuits and cupcakes in the last 2 weeks as well as getting a bit more adventurous about making dinner.

What I really want to write about though is a new experimental recipe that I've been playing with. In my head I like to call it Lembas after the elven bread in the Lord of the Rings but I think Traveller's Biscuit is perhaps more accurate and lowers expectations!

The weird part in all this (if it wasn't weird enough that I try to bake fictional food) is that the idea originally came to me from making food for a dog. The dog biscuit recipe I have is so simple and lends itself so well to adaptations that I wondered if it could be made palatable for people. Turns out it can! Well palatable to me and Mum but we aren't fussy eaters.

Anyway! My plan was born from laziness really as I have been doing a lot of house sitting lately and I hate having to cook in kitchens I don't know, also it seems like a lot of effort for one person. So I decided I would make a meal in a biscuit, a 'complete and balanced diet' to keep me fuelled while I was away with minimum effort. Ta dah my travelling biscuits were born!

The basis of the recipe is oats and flour which I could say are my carbs, eggs and chorizo for protein. Carrot, leek and parsley for fibre and vitamins. Beef stock for flavour and salt and cheese for fat. Pretty well rounded huh.

Of course all the fresh ingredients can be swapped in or out or added to. The amounts change depending on what I have in the fridge at the time or what I fancy. My ultimate hope for these biscuits is that I can use them as exercise food, for long walks with the dog or perhaps even exploring by myself whether by foot or by car. They have a flexible consistency so don't crumb in the pocket and wouldn't break if accidentally sat on. They can last about a week with out needing to be in the fridge and taste alright hot or cold. They aren't a five star meal but they have everything necessary and if followed with a chocolate bar I reckon they could keep someone going all day. As a side bonus they are even safe for my furry friend if I feel he needs a snack.

So there you have it. The latest instalment of the weird things that I come with to fill time in the winter. What odd things do you do to while away the dark hours?