Friday, 23 March 2012

Charlie Chaplin - The Greatest Speech Ever Made


Charlie Chaplin, the man famous for comical silent movies, made the most inspiring speech I will ever hear in my life. Watch the Youtube video, the person who posted it cleverly put relevant videos and pictures in the background.



Wednesday, 14 March 2012

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups Cupcakes

I was inspired by something I saw on Pinterest and I was feeling a bit adventurous today so I went on a hunt for Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and made cupcakes out of them.

What did I use:
- Cake mix
- Eggs
- Butter
- Milk
- Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
- Reese's Peanut Butter Chips
- Icing sugar
- Cocoa powder
- Peanut butter

Quick breakdown of what I did:
- I used cake mix instead of making the cupcake mixture from scratch. This Reese's Peanut Butter cupcake adventure was a procrastination cooking session and it meant I didn't have enough time to make a cupcake mixture from scratch as I usually do; I was supposed to be studying. Even so, I used milk and butter in place of the water and oil that the cake mix instructions requested.
- With the mix ready I spooned a tablespoon into each cupcake holder and then added the quarters of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups as well as the Reese's Peanut Butter Chips.
- I covered the Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and Reese's Peanut Butter Chips with another spoonful of cake mix.
- They went into the oven and I made two icings, a chocolate one and a peanut butter one and layered them in the piping bag.
- After they were done cooling I did simple icing. 
- I think I might try this with Lindt Lindor truffles next.









Thursday, 1 March 2012

Soundtracks to Your Life - Getting Over Someone

One of my friends is doing an article about songs you should bang to. Regularly check http://d-is-for-danger.blogspot.com/ for the list, I'll let you know when he does eventually finish that nasty mess. I do hope that Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites by Skrillex makes it onto that list.
I call this list of songs that tackle different stages of a break-up the product of uncanny timing, what with the bang chart inspiration and going through my own sort of break-up. I also went to try and find out what the break-up stages were and then I added in my own bits. Hey! You might need this list soon cause break-up season appears in June/July then again in September. I did focus on a lot of mainstream music so you should know most of the songs.

Realisation
This only applies if you're the one who's leaving. In this stage you've had enough and have thought about it for a while, it's not a spontaneous decision. The decision process probably looks like this, click here.While you were thinking you were probably listening to certain types of songs. I have found that British artists rock at realisation. Adele*, of course, belts out a few because she had a difficult relationship with her boyfriend who in the end broke her heart and made her gloriously rich. My favourite song is Melt My Heart To Stone by Adele even though Turning Tables and Tired come in a close second and third. Melt My Heart to Stone doesn't make sense in terms of present day furnace calculations but the the song makes sense. Kate Nash puts out Foundations about crap times she's obviously had and Coldplay takes a piece of the cake with X&Y. Erykah Badu is the only artist that doesn't fit in the Brit category, listen to Call Tyrone for a good laugh at an angry black woman. 

"Each and every time I turn around to leave I feel my heart begin to burst and bleed"

Sadness
Person: When I'm sad I try to sing along to songs. Then I shut up and realise that there are worse things than my sucky life.
Adele: I don't get it.

So you've broken up with your significant other and you're crushed. It doesn't matter whether you were the dumper or the dumped one. You can still be a sad, lonely loser. You'll go through turbulent emotions, being normal is your high of the day and your lows are depressed lows. Never fear, things might not be okay now, but things will get better. In the meanwhile I suggest you listen to Maroon 5. They have a range of beautiful songs dedicated to heartbreak. Most of them are found in their It Won't Be Soon Before Long album; I didn't really like Hands All Over because it sounded a little too country to me. However, my favourite track is Just a Feeling from Hands All Over. Weird how these things happen. Better That We Break, also by Maroon 5, is second and it's from It Won't Be Soon Before Long. It's Over by the Cheetah Girls, don't laugh at the artist, is also good. No one can doubt the power of ballads so All by Myself by Shirley Bassy and Tears Dry on their Own by Amy Winehouse are perfect fits.

"This is more than goodbye, when I look into your eyes you're not even there"

Angry
You eventually get tired of feeling sad and start to realise that you're better off without that person. People get angry because they forget to forgive. I don't recommend listening to anyone of these songs when you are angry. They are just angry songs. Internet Friends by Knife Party is a really cool song with an epic beat about some angry British Girl who wants to kill you because you blocked her on Facebook. Breaking Dishes by Rihanna is about roasting marshmellows on your car's burning tyres and bleaching your clothes. Both are really angry dance songs. For the purpose of quietly meditating and plotting a psychopathic attack then I suggest you listen to Dickhead by Kate Nash and I Learned From the Best by Whitney Houston. If your planned attack on the person fails then you can listen to Why Won't You Die by System of a Down.

"You blocked me on Facebook and now you're going to die"

Acceptance
You eventually get over minor plots of revenge, being angry at the person and at yourself. You realise it is just wasting your time and it's better to forgive and move on. You might even apologise to the person for your behaviour during the relationship because you'll be able to think in an unbiased manner. If you feel like saying, "You're a sorry excuse for a ..." then you're probably still angry and you've got a while to go. Songs that remind you that you've broken up with someone but don't make you sad or angry anymore are Somebody That I Used To Know by Gotye Feat. Kimbra and Sober by Kelly Clarkson. Instead of being angry, you can remember the good and the bad times for what they were and move on.

"Now you're just somebody that I used to know"

Then you'll meet somebody else, sometimes even if you were married, and repeat the cycle. 
Good luck!

*The people who hate on Adele and complain about her music have not only managed to deafen themselves to one our generation's most astounding singers but have also failed to comprehend the depth of her song-writing ability. When you're alone and lost, listen to Adele because she'll help you realise that you're not alone. She manages to reach down into your soul and pluck your heart strings.