#100happydays, challenge accepted :)

Halloooo!!

First of all I'd like to thank everyone who bothers to read what I have to say every week x) Really, thanks :)

As most people, I try to do great and amazing things. It is nice to make your parents and grandparents proud, it is nice that people admire your hard work and persistence. But sometimes it is hard to remember why you started. Why you did what you did in the first place.

But life isn't about one great achievement after the other, it is about what is in between those great achievements. And that you don't always have to do mind blowing things to make yourself happy.

And that is what this blog post is all about. I did my great year abroad, I did the graduation of college thing and now I am making plans to move abroad again. But what I really truly enjoyed during my one month being at home, were the little things. Seeing my eldest friends, a random skype conversation at 2 in the morning, finding the right nail polish,... Every day there was something that brought me joy.

Loads of people asked me: "And? What are you going to do now?" or "Any plans going on holiday this summer break?" To both of this questions I had one answer: "I don't know" And it was amazing to say (for once, I really liked saying that phrase). I literally didn't have a clue what the month of July would bring. As it turned out I didn't go on a holiday far away and I didn't go to a festival. I stayed right at home and enjoyed every second of it.

I'd like to share 5 examples of the little things that brought me joy during this month.

1) Going to the nearest lake with my sister to escape the warm weather and cool off ! (Yes, this is a video, so you can click on it and watch it and then click here to read the blog post ;))

2) Finding the exact colour of nailpolish I was looking for!

Romper room by Essie

3) One of my eldest friends came by to watch a movie, but it turned into a slumber party. We colour coordinated my nail polishes, watch Bridget Jones's diary and eat American pancakes.

4) Finally figuring out how to add the Instagram Widget on my blog. And how to add the pictures of my other blog posts under each blog post.

5) And since I quit the scouts this year (because I was more abroad than in the country) I decided to go to the "bezoekdag". It is one day during the 14 days camp that the parents can visit their children on the camp location. I had a blast. I saw many many people that I hadn't seen in almost a year!

Perfect location for a camp

These are a few examples of very day to day things that made me feel very happy during this month. And I hope you can find things that made you happy in the last month.

Whilst I was skyping with Amal, my very good friend from college, she mentioned the 100happydays hashtag. It is quite the commitement, but I think this hashtag states exactly what I am trying to say in this blog post. So, challenge excepted!! Watch out, Instagram! x)

As always, thank you very much for reading!
xo - Sara

10 years

#movietime

Halloooo!!

Another movie 'review' for you. It is actually more a tip x) I'd seen the trailer couple of months earlier, but since I recently graduated from uni, this was the perfect movie to watch.

2011
Director: Jamie Linden
Actors: Channing Tatum, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, Rosario Dawson, Justin Long, Oscar Isaac, etc
Length: 100min = 1h 40min
Family proof
Genre: Comedy, drama

Occassion
If you are a newly graduate, this movie is something to watch and start wonder. What would it be like to see all your classmates in 10years time? Who will stay the same, who will become famous, who will be married and have kids? Funny things to think about.

Mood
If you are feeling a bit melangolic about graduating high school or uni. That is when I saw the movie at least. Or if you just like to see Channing and Jenna in a movie together again after their hit Step Up.

Plot summary
10 years after high school, there is a class reunion. Some changed, some didn't grown up, some just stayed the same and some found closure.

My thoughts on the matter
It made me wonder who I will see again in 10 years time and how the relationship will be. After all, that moment, those 3years, are over. We all will go our seperate ways, we will never be in one classroom listening to a professor trying to teach us something. No more stressing together about the exams. This movie made me actually look forward to 2024 :)

The cast is sublime and convincing, although I found the story line with Channing's character and Rosario could have been explained a bit more, because now it is just a lot of guess work. I love the open ending though :) The moment Reeves (Oscar Isaac) sings his song, it is magical. I actually have that song on my iPod! Love it!

Quote from the movie
Reeves: I'm not a rock star, I'm just a musician.

Videos
Enjoy watching these videos I found on the world wide web!

Trailer

Popsugar Entertainment interviews

Source
IMDb and YouTube, of course. 

Thanks for reading :)
xo - Sara

It is waaaay too hot

Halloooooo!!

I hope you all enjoy the summer! Here in Belgium, temperatures are getting out of hand. Really. So that is why we all search for things to do to cool off :)

I went to a lake with my sister earlier this week! Enjoy the lovely video first :) 

Het meer van Rotselaar (it's a lake)

This lovely lake is perfect for an afternoon of chilling. The entrance costs about €5 and you can stay as long as you wish!

On Thursday, the temperatures went up to 30°C here in Belgium, so my sister and I decided to go to the lake to cool off. And man it was a lovely lazy Thursday afternoon in the middle of July :)

I read, bathed my feet in the cold water, I listened to Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix on my iPod, had good chats with my sister and dozed off in the summer heat.

Some of my summer essentials

 

 
1) A good book (or two)
At the moment I am reading "The Devil wears Prada". It was a birthday present from my sister and her boyfriend and they also gave me "Revenge wears prada: the devil returns". But, since it's been 4years since I've read the first book, I have to reread it, because otherwise I can't follow with the sequel.

I am also listening to an audiobook on my iPod. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. I never really was a fan of e-readers, now that I have one, I could not live without it. So, why not try an audiobook I thought? But, I didn't chose some random book to listen to. No. I read the first 4 Harry Potter books again and by the time I finished the fourth, I was dreading to read the fifth book. I can't stand that Umbridge women (but who can?) so I always end up super angry and frustrated when I read HP and the Order of the Phoenix. I actually managed to read the book only twice. My other 3 attemps were just hopeless. So now I thought: maybe listening to it will help! And it sure does! Ok, I still get irritated, but not as frustrated as I normally would be :) + I improve my English by listening to Stephen Fr and I can listen to it wilst cooking, driving, cleaning, etc.

2) SUNSCREEN
This is SUPER important! I know you all like to get a tan as soon as possible, but I assure you: you tan wilst being protected by SPF. Your tan lasts even longer when you are tanning with sunscreen on! But, the ideal situation: buy tanning in a bottle. It is the safest way to tan. Your skin stays young and healthy+ you minimalize the chances to skin cancer! This is something people always seem to forget! Be melanoma smart!

3) Water
As the weather is sooooooo warm, you sweat A LOT so you "lose" a lot of fluid. And since water is the main component of the human body, it makes perfect sense to make sure that water is replenished :)

This is what it looks likes!!

I hope you enjoyed reading the blogpost and that you consider going there if the weather gets out of hand again ;) Or any lake/see nearby where you live :)

Thanks for reading!
xo - Sara

Man of Steel

#movietime

Hallooooo!

Another #movietime blog post today! But that was probably pretty obvious since that is the title of the blog post... Anyway, I hope you share my opinion and that you can appreciate my movie tip! If not, well, than we agree to disagree ;) 

Man of Steel
 
2013
Director: Zack Snyder
Actors: Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Russell Crow, Diane Lane,...
Length: 143 min= 2h 23min
Family proof
Genre: superhero

Occasion
As I just said: it is family proof. Perfect acceptable to watch with basically anyone or just by yourself. But it is always more fun to watch a superhero movie with a superhero fan :)

Mood
I watched this movie after seeing basically every Marvel film there is. So I was already in the I-want-to-see-a-superhero-movie-mood. But every other mood of "I want to look at someone drop dead gorgeous for 2 hours" or "I want to see some action": this is your go to movie. However, it's not that kind of movie you can start, do something else and expect to be able to follow when you are back. You have to pay attention if you want to understand the story. Well, if you are not familiar with Superman as I am/was.

Plot summary
Clark Kent works various jobs. From fisherman to waiter. He lives the low key life (haha, LowKey, Loki, get it, get it!? Hahah! Ok, sorry, I'll stop), but due to an invasion of his own kind, he is forced too choose: to save his own kind or to save the people he grew up with.

My thoughts on the matter
It is my first Superman movie. I have seen the serie Smallville and even some episodes from the serie Lois&Clark, but never ever a movie. And I am glad for that fact, for this movie explains everything what happened before he started working as a journalist. I have no idea what the other movies are about or how their storyline is evolving, but I really liked this one. They left the end open, so I am expecting/excited to see a sequel. Can't wait for Badman vs Superman to come out :)

The special effects department for sure did have their hands full. No man can crush into a building like the Kryptonians can. Or fly for that matter. This could be a good date night movie. There is some romance, but also a lot of action. The guys can watch Amy Adams for 2 hours, whilst the ladies can drool over Henry Cavill. Win-win situation I'd say. But you have to be open minded about the impossibilities of the action.

Quote from the movie
"You think you can threaten my mother?" - Clark Kent

Videos
Enjoy the videos below I found on the world wide web.

Trailer

Moviefone Unscripted

Graham Norton Show S13E11

 
Cinemasins

Source
IMDb and YouTube, of course.

Thank you for reading! :)
xo - Sara 

50/50

#movietime

Hallooooo!

No weekly blogpost about my adventures in London for this week. Something new I'd like to try! Whenever you see the title #movietime, you can expect a film 'review' (or actually a movie tip). A movie I'd recommend :)
 
50/50 

2011
Director: Jonathan Levine
Actors: Joseph Gordon Levitt, Seth Cohen, Anna Kendrick, Bryce Dalles Howard,...
Length: 100min= 1h 40min
Family proof
Genre: Comedy, drama

Occasion
You can watch the movie perfectly on your own or with friends. Maybe not watch it with your parents, because there is a scene in a nightclub and I think that might be slightly awkward. But that is up to you :)

Mood
You are just in the mood to see a proper movie with a grown up subject (cancer), but secretly you just want to watch a comedy because you are not that grown up. This is it. A comedy about cancer. And no, they are not making fun of cancer, but the way they portrayed the main character dealing with the diseas is wonderful and refreshing.

Plot summary
Adam (Joseph), 27 years old, writer of radio programs, eats healthy, runs everyday and has a girlfriend. Life is looking good. The day he is diagnosed with a rare form of spinal cancer, his life makes a one eigthy turn. With the help of his best friend (Seth), his mother (Diane) and Katherine, the therapist (Anna) he learns the true values in life.

My thoughts on the matter
When I first read the plot summary, I thought the subject was waaay to heavy. But when I saw the trailer and saw which actors were starring in it, I just had to give it a shot. And man I am glad I did that! The movie is actually funny. The way his best friend reacts when Adam shaves his head. The way his best friend tries to use Adam's cancer as a pick up line with the ladies. The way Katherine has no clue what she is doing in the therapy sessions with Adam. It is funny, but they do not laugh with the diseas. It is the serious character in the movie and that balances out the funny perfectly.

Quote from the movie
Adam: A tumor?
Dr. Ross: Yes.
Adam: Me?
Dr. Ross: Yes.
Adam: That doesn't make any sense though. I mean... I don't smoke, I don't drink... I recycle...

Videos
Enjoy watching these videos I found on the world wide web.

Trailer

Moviephone Unscripted

50/50 cast on Ellen Degeneres show

 
Interview with Anna Kendrick

Sources
IMDb and YouTube, of course.

Thanks for reading :)
xo - Sara