Stereo Kicks

hullo hullo!

I have been recently catching up on my x factor uk-- despite my attempts to not procrastinate... The internet is too powerful. I am fetched with the band (boyband just sounds insulting) 'Stereo Kicks'. Watch the clip below

Swoon. Swoon. Swoon. They are just asaghsjadkf. Yes I am wading into dangerous waters here but some of them are just too adorably handsome. I wouldn't say I'm in love with the band but I do see their potential.. It hurts to say this but they definitely can sing better than One Direction.. As a retired directioner, it hurts to admit it. But let's be honest. I do agree that some boys (aka Charlie especially.. maybe Jake) needs some voice coaching. But they have potential!

Let's not even talk about Barclay and James <3 <3 <3 No guessing who are my favourites hey? Here's another of their best performances (in my opinion):

I hate how they are coming in the bottom two, because honestly they are good. I think people have a prejudice against them because "There are eight of them! It's ridiculous" and "Their a boyband!". I'll be honest, I had the same attitude when I heard about them.. But if you just give them a chance!!

Let me know what you think. I'm smitten >.<

Diet

My ballet mates came up with the idea of going on a diet all together for christmas. The first thought that entered my mind was "Diet?? these girls are already stick thin?!". It was slightly maddening and made the girls which were not so thin, a.k.a me, feel self-conscious. I mean we do dance in freaking leotards. Everything, every little bump of fat, is on highlight.

So I considered the diet. It is based around calorie counting. The plan is to consume three meals a day of 600 calories, with allowance of additional fruit and vegetable snacks. In all, 1800 calories should be consumed each day. In my opinion, this quite mild as 1800 is the minimum daily requirement for teenagers. So it is not 'extreme'-- it is quite safe.

Additionally, we are supposed to eat clean during this time so no fast food, candy, sodas and desserts. This will be the most challenging for me. However I do feel that I will benefit from this restriction. Today, the average American consumes 22 teaspoons of added sugar annually; this amounts to 35 kilograms of sugar a year. * This is quite alarming!!!!!

*sigh*... Anyhow I do have some mixed thoughts on this diet... First of all, why are we doing this? To lose weight? To get fit? To have fun?! Personally the reason I would go on this diet would be to lose weight. Let's be honest, it wouldn't hurt to lose a little more (5kgs please?). 

My second doubt was, is 1800 calories enough a day? We dance ballet 4-6 times a week for up to 2.5 hours. Was 1800 calories enough to fuel our energy? I did calculate the amount of calories I needed in a day <<apparently 2900, on days I dance>>. This is a 1100 kcal difference! 0.0^ !!!

My third doubt was that counting calories does not necessarily mean that you are eating healthier or better! I believe in clean eating more than counting calories. I believe in eating as much food as you desire as long as it is natural and healthy, i.e. meat, fruit, vegetables, homemade goods etc.

I was quite skeptical about the diet and did have several discussions with my mum and friends. My mum encouraged me to just try it because she liked the idea of us girls doing something together. I agree, it's nice to do something as a group. I had no doubt we would provide each other support throughout this experiment of sorts. My friends didn't really think it was necessary and didn't understand my motive for this diet. Which to be honest, I skirted around sharing my real reason. For some reason when you say you want to lose weight, hardly anyone is encouraging. Just because I want to lose weight does not mean I am going to become anorexic and starve myself.

*another sigh*

I kept bouncing back and forth between decisions. Should I go on a diet? Should I not? Should I go on a diet? Should I not? I kept going in circles again and again and again..

In the end I decided I would try it out. To see how I would cope.

Currently I am tracking my calories on the app myfitnesspal. There are studies showing that just tracking what you eat everyday helps you lose weight easier. It makes you more conscious of the food you eat, which is never a bad thing. myfitnesspal is easily one of the more audience friendly diet apps. It is also free! Bonus! It hosts a database of millions of food and to log in your entry, you simply have to type which food you eat. myfitnesspal will calculate all the nutritional values for you. I don't need to calculate the amount of calories I ingest everyday, myfitnesspal will calculate it for me.

What surprised me was that the foods I ate on average everyday (before starting the diet), weren't that far off 1800 calories. But maybe this is because I am conscious of what I am eating. Instead of eating some chocolate, I will have a plum. Instead of eating waffles, I will restrain and remind myself that I CAN eat healthy and under 1800 calories!

Regardless of being on a diet or not, I would recommend others to try recording what they eat everyday in myfitnesspal or any other calorie counting app. I was quite astonished to see that my diet consists mainly of carbohydrates!!! Time to eat more veg for me!

where is the sun?

It's cold in Finland. And only going to get colder as we near the winter seasons. Oh how I wish I was back in Singapore, to feel the sun embrace me.

At the Marina Bay Sands

One's downfall at Marina Bay Sands

Featuring a friend's shoes from Cotton On.

I am going to apologise for the lack of posts during the last 2 months, but I am also going to be providing worthless excuses. Yes I am busy that is established but I am going to try to update as regularly as possible. However, this might not be as frequent as you and I hope due to my studies and the fact that I have to update 4 other blogs for school (Personal Project, French, Husky News and Music). 

Do teachers really think we have tons of spare time?

Please don't answer that.

Of course they do. Yet they give us an abundance of excuses and reasons why they could not mark our essays/tests/investigations and so forth.

I'm complaining as usual. But isn't that what teenagers do? We complain? Don't we? Or am I the only one. This line reminded me of the line sang by John Lennon in Imagine.

Till next time

nights out

The nights are getting colder in southern Finland, and especially after my summer in Singapore, I am always freezing. Tonight I'm comfortably dressed for the weather in an autumn 'sport' jacket by Mango.

I bought this bright little firecracker in a sale in Stockmann, I can't remember the exact price but it was affordable. I'm wearing a pair of Abercrombie & Fitch jeggings and my god are they comfortable. These are my second purchase EVER in A&F and I have to say they are so worth every dollar. First I have to say that I don't shop at A&F often because gosh the prices are overwhelming like what the hell, how many people can buy a top for €40? And second, they don't have A&F here in Finland, but even if they did I think I would come in more for the extra dose of perfume then to actually buy something... Yes I mean the clothes are gorgeous but they are so expensive!!!! The main reason I bought this pair of heaven was that Abercrombie & Fitch on Orchard Road were having a sale for their denim. I bought these jeggings for only 48 SINGAPORE DOLLARS! That's like dirt cheap, compared to their normal prices of 156 + dollars etc. And have I mentioned how comfy they are? I can sleep in them or even do an arebesque (view picture below!!)

AND can I please mention how the salespeople / models in Abercrombie & Fitch are like perfect and so gorgeous.. To be fair I was disappointed by the boys as no. 1 no shirts were off and 2. they weren't that cute. But the girls? So so so gorgeous and the girls I talked to were very friendly and helpful... AHHHHHHHH As soon as my bestie and I walked out of the store, we straight up, shamelessly declared "We are so going to work there or at least try to one day". Yes I know the whole concept of only pretty people working there is horrible and unfair, but there is something so appealing about the store; perhaps it's the perfume they spray everywhere.

I'm also wearing a pair of classic heels from New Look, just high enough to give me some height but not enough to topple me. To be fair, half the reason I wore heels today was because I knew we were going to be driving to the restaurant >.< hehe.

It's around 8:30 pm in the pictures and you can see the sun setting in the background. 

talk again soon

school starts and homework begins

Friday was my first proper day of classes at school. At the end of the day, I already had tons of math questions, a presentation to create (all in french mind you) and an advertisement to analyse for homework. (-.-') Now I'm sorry but didn't school just start? Honestly did my teachers get loads of homework as a kid and just want to torture us for revenge? Because it seems like it.

Honestly I am already tired. Of everything. I just want to go to sleep and wake up in Singapore.. Where I can have all the ais kacang and satay to eat. Aiyaiyaiyayai. Eessshhh so sick of school. This holiday has really made me unproductive and lazy... But still. School which has never been a chore, I used to love it, is now the definition of boredom. 

But perhaps it is only boring because classes have just started and we are mostly doing introductions....

We'll see..

Who am I kidding! 

Anyways, I've got to go back to my homework (and personal project brainstorming eurgh)

how to be alone

this is possibly (probably) the best video I have ever watched on youtube. And we teenagers of our generation have watched a lot of youtube videos..

How to be alone is a poem written by Tanya Davis.

No summer. do not end.

Hi guys, just to clarify, I started writing this post 4 days ago and just finished this today.

Its the end of summer and the rush to get everything done  before leaving the country has begun. I'm leaving Singapore tomorrow and I still have a list of things to buy (things I need in Finland that are way cheaper here; which I do not think is rare for someone living in Finland-- the land of high tax)...

In my list are

- last minute gifts for my friends

- junk food for my brothers to sell at school (don't ask..)

- 10 (maybe more) boxes of contact lenses for the year..

- a Billabong pencil case

- face cream and/or wash

- Nair wax strips

etc..

and of course: the list of food I have to eat

- bean curd beancurd beancurd

- satay

- slurpee (cola and green apple mix)

- bubble tea

- teh tarik, teh halia, tea o limau. the list of tehs continues...

- paper tosei

- egg prata and fish curry

- milo dinosaur

I've been in Singapore for a month and a half and I feel like it's been a week or two at most.. It happens every summer at home. There can be no limit on the amount of time you spend with friends and family... And of course with summer concluding, another of school approaches.

This year at school, I will be in grade 10. This practically means PERSONAL PROJECT in the IB. This whole summer I've been stressing on what topic to base my project around. I'm sorry but the IB can be incredibly dense at times. Honestly you give 15-16 year olds a project to do for an entire year (which you now is fine.. its bearable) but then to not give us any limits or restrictions for the topic?! Like what the freaking heck. A boy last year did his project on "why the freaking owner of Manchester United FC should leave". -.- . I don't know..  Right now I'm just feeling stressed but honestly can't be bothered to think about it. I just want to skype my cousins in Singapore (yes at this point of the blog, I'm in Finland).

It's been really frustrating trying to think of a project topic that

1. I'm passionate about

2. Genuinely interested in

3. and has some substantial facts behind it..

I do not want to do a whole project with no substantial and valid information backing it. Gosh, why oh why do the IB NOT have any restrictions! It's so frustrating. I'm frustrated.

Right now I really can't be bothered with it...

bye. love.