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Showing posts from June, 2017

Mood and Food - Morning Routine

Does anyone else wake up and feel exhausted? Like you ran a midnight marathon... I generally turn in around 11pm - not ridiculously early; I have shit to do, but I am by no means a night owl any more (being 30 is knackering!)! I wake up around 7am and normally get up 30 mins later - God bless the snooze button! So I am getting around 8 hours a night, so why do I feel knackered before I am even in work? I started to suspect this tiredness, and the resulting foul mood that lasted all day, was nothing to do with the amount of sleep I was getting (quality of sleep is a different subject!) but was rooted elsewhere. A few months ago I actually sat down and made a record of what I was eating.  What we fuel our bodies with has a huge effect on everything: mood, energy, happiness, stool consistency! The result: I was completely reversing any gains or progress I made in the gym, and worsening how I felt.  It wasn't awful - the odd KFC, or pizza, but it was devoi...

Meditation, Mindfulness and Finding The Time To Relax

I can't relax. I don't have the ability.  I was hyperactive as a child, so maybe this is where it comes from. But I can't relax.  I try to put this to good use.  I try to be productive all the time, but the downside of this is I get more stressed out if I am not productive, I feel guilty when I do relax and I end up very frayed and burned out regularly. The first time I felt truly relaxed as an adult was 8 years ago, on my first trip snowboarding in Sauze D'oulx in Italy.  I had had a rough year and I remember sitting down on the mountain one day and feeling at peace.  I was physically drained but I was fired up with adrenaline and I was completely alone on this section of mountain.  It was snowing, it was cold, I had a wet arse, the clouds had closed in so visibility was low.  And I felt safe and happy for the first time in a year. I think this was my introduction to meditation, looking back. I am no expert, but I fee...

Photography. Thoughts On

Some years ago, I worked for a well-known photography retailer.  As an avid photographer, this seemed a dream.  But the mixture of low-pay and having tasty gear waved in front of your face all day long took its toll.  I left and stopped taking photos as I felt my kit was not able to replicate the image I saw in my head. I have since realised this is not true at all, having enjoyed using a few different iterations of the iPhone to take photos. But 2 years ago, now in a position to do so, I bought myself a Canon 70D.  I use a mixture of lenses:  Canon 50mm f/1.8  Canon 24mm f/2.8 Sigma 10-20mm f/3.5 Canon 70D with Sigma 10-20mm f/3.5 The big advances have been in the way the photographer can edit and share their photos. So here is a list of my favourite apps for editing photos (all on iOS, not sure about Android!) --- Darkroom |  Lens Distortions |  Lightroom |  Photoshop |  Mextures --- I...

The Life Of The Funeral - Pt. I

This is my first blog post.  Ever What will my blog be about? Music Photography Design My Band My Cats About me: I'm James, I am from East London, I am 30, I play in a band called Counties, I take photos occasionally, I am studying Interior Design from home. I will try to post weekly at least.  Let's see how long I can keep it up! My social media: Instagram: @thelifeofthefuneral Twitter: @CountiesJames My band: Insta: @CountiesUK Twitter: @CountiesBand