Life Hacks: School/Health Edition

I am extremely happy to announce that this will be my first collaboration on my blog! This post is in collaboration with Kaila, one of my absolute favourite bloggers. I hope to be doing many more collaborations in the future (and definitely more with Kaila). Click here to read Kaila's post for some more life hacks!

1. Oranges

The smell alone of oranges can reduce stress! This is perfect for the stressful time of semester leading up to exams or just any other time of year that you feel stress getting to you. It has been found that eating OR smelling an orange can reduce stress by up to 70%.

Memphis; Birthplace of Rock 'n Roll

Many of you will know Tennessee as being the place where Miley Cyrus is from but another, more influential singer/actor was from the same state. I am talking about Elvis Presley, the king of rock n' roll. I was surprised to learn that Elvis was actually born in a small town in Mississippi and I was lucky enough to visit the exact location. Seeing the roots of such an influential man was life changing for me. The house was small and built out of white painted wood. It was nothing special but it housed a very special person.

The Fosters

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'It's not where you come from, it's where you belong'

By far one of the most inspirational television shows I have ever watched is 'The Fosters' on FreeformTV. The show is described as 'a one-hour drama about a multi-ethnic family mix of foster and biological kids being raised by two moms'. This show deals with a large range of issues relevant to todays society that is not necessarily discussed in other shows. This is the reason why I (and so many others) love the show.

The forbidden love of foster siblings, Callie and Brandon, has to be one of my favourite love stories of all time. I am still holding out hope that these two will end up together (they are endgame, I'm sure). These two are a perfect pairing, the only barrier being the fact that they are 'family' and therefore forbidden to be together. I feel like now is a perfect time to remind you that they aren't biologically related so hang on to the hope that they will get a happy ending. This relationship can only be compared to that of Romeo and Juliet only without the fatal tragic ending (hopefully).

Once When I Was Little

"I could dream more then. I could believe more then that the world could only get better"

When you are little you can believe whatever you want. No one has clouded your thoughts with the 'reality' or 'normality' of life. I think that this is when we are completely ourselves. I think it's sad that we believe that our dreams could come true only when we are young. If only we could grow up with belief in those dreams then maybe the world would be a different, magical place.

"We could build a rocket, fly to the moon. Leave Tuesday morning, be back for noon. And there wasn't nothing, nothing that we couldn't do" 

James Morrison portrays this so beautifully in his song 'Once When I Was Little'. If you haven't heard this song have a listen, hopefully it will bring you back to your childhood dreams like it did for me. And if you are young and still believe in your dreams, then hold onto that for as long as you can because truth is, we all grow up too fast.

- Nicole Marie Ranz

Insomnia.

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Sleep is one of the most wonderful things we do as human beings. When we are asleep we are in a state of calm, where no one and nothing can hurt us. We are just there, comfortably lying still for hours letting our body rejuvenate. But now I begin to wonder, why is sleep such a struggle if it is so good for you? Just like why do we struggle to exercise regularly if it's so good for us?

Lack of sleep can be enough to singlehandedly make a person go crazy. And I am saying this, lying in bed at 2.13 am trying desperately to go to sleep. Me writing this shows how much I am failing while simultaneously going insane.

To some degree I think everyone will experience some form of insomnia in their lifetime and the question is, what causes our insomnia?

Personally, I go through spouts of insomnia. I have a few good weeks of going to bed with no problem whatsoever. That then moves onto not being able to sleep without reading a book for half an hour before hand. This then evolves to being unable to sleep even with hours of reading. This is the stage I am in right now.

But why does this happen?
There is an endless list of possibilities.
For me, it's probably my anxiety.
For others, it could be something as simple as drinking too much caffeine too close to bed.

Yet here I am, 2.17 am, lying in my bed with my laptop and a grumbling stomach trying pass time until the sweet escape of sleep takes over me.

You know what they say, 'Sleep is like a time machine to breakfast'.

- Nicole Marie Ranz

The Great Ocean Road; Victoria

I'm sure most Australians have heard of the Great Ocean Road but if you haven't, it's basically a long road that follows the coast of Victoria (for the most part). Recently, I went on a family adventure along this road and was amazed at the whole experience - both in a positive and negative way.

Let's start with the positives.
The atmosphere around the whole road was an amazing experience and something that I will remember forever. Most of the towns that you will stop off at are quiet and small, creating a much different feel than the city life I am used to.

The view was beautiful. There is no doubt about that. Australia is known for it's beaches and these definitely did not disappoint. It is a once in a lifetime experience to see these views and I 100% recommend. I will, however, point out that if you have driven down Highway 1 in California then this won't be all that different.

The Fashion of Hanna Marin

"You can tell a lot about a person by their shoes" - Hanna Marin

I'm sure we all know the television fashion icon, Hanna Marin, from Pretty Little Liars who has been blessing our televisions with her girly but edgy style for six years. I would love to take personal inspiration from her style however her usual heels don't suit my lifestyle of studying and university. However, I can still admire her classic sense of style even though I usually never dress as girly as she does.

Here are a few of my personal favourite outfits she has rocked over the years.
Sorry in advanced for the quality of the photos - I wish I could have found better ones.

There is no doubt that Hanna can rock the formal wear.

I don't know what it is about the combination of the snakes skin jacket and blue shirt that I love so much!

Animal Testing & Make Up

Testing makeup on animals was something that I never had an opinion on. For some reason I never thought of researching what companies test on animals and to what extent. Recently, my opinions have changed and I now feel disgusted at the amount of large companies who still test on animals.

I was pleasantly surprised at some of the brands that are animal cruelty free (look at the picture for a full list). There are some really great brands who sell quality products like too faced, tarte, urban decay, Anastasia, Bare minerals, Hourglass and NARS. These are all amazing brands (but somewhat expensive). If you are looking for cheaper brands than elf and NYX are two great brands that I recommend.

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I realised that I do not own anything from these mentioned brands (except one make up brush from ELF and the naked palette from Urban Decay). I am so disappointed in myself that the few make up brands that I do own are all brands that test on animals in one way or another. The most important thing out of this post to remember is: make up is not a necessity. It is something that has been created by society and in all honesty, the world wouldn't end without it. For this reason, it makes me sick that people can hurt, torture and kill innocent animals for something so superficial.

- Nicole Marie Ranz

Top 10: Teen Drama TV Shows

The Vampire Diaries

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Although this show does revolve around supernatural elements, it still involves the innocence of teenagers in high school. And, the first few seasons have been done VERY well. The show displays the ups and downs of young love while still thrilling the audience with an encapsulating storyline. Definitely one to add to your list of 'teen' shows.

Gossip Girl

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To me, Gossip Girl screams 'drama' and is one of the legendary must-watch shows of all time. I guarantee you will be drawn into the lives of Manhattans elite and never want to leave. I mean, who doesn't want to live the life of rich and popular Serena Van Der Woodsen?