Title: I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You

Author: Ally Carter

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Synopsis (via Goodreads):

Cammie Morgan is a student at the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women, a fairly typical all-girls school-that is, if every school taught advanced martial arts in PE and the latest in chemical warfare in science, and students received extra credit for breaking CIA codes in computer class. The Gallagher Academy might claim to be a school for geniuses but it's really a school for spies. Even though Cammie is fluent in fourteen languages and capable of killing a man in seven different ways, she has no idea what to do when she meets an ordinary boy who thinks she's an ordinary girl. Sure, she can tap his phone, hack into his computer, or track him through town with the skill of a real "pavement artist"-but can she maneuver a relationship with someone who can never know the truth about her?

Cammie Morgan may be an elite spy-in-training, but in her sophomore year, she's on her most dangerous mission-falling in love.

Review:

For those of you who haven’t heard, this is the first book in a series that’s attacking the universe of teen girls. No film or TV series yet, as far as I know, but I have high hopes for one in the future. This is the kind of book that even girls who think of reading as a chockingly boring pastime can get carried away in.
Now, the only reason I had a copy is because it came as a “free gift” in a magazine. (Seriously, the whole thing of calling gifts free- if they are gifts, of course they’re free!) I don’t usually go for gossipy, giggly, terribly-written lit. In a strange way, though, I do relish a little silliness sometimes, so I brought the book on holiday with me.

So, here is a list of characters and what you can expect from them.
Cameron/Cammie/”Chamelion” Morgan. Cammie is perfectly happy in the Gallagher Academy for geniuses and geeks, until she meets Josh.
Josh. The amazing, cute, hot, sweet guy. Every book needs one.
Bex. One of Cammie’s best friends. A Brit who has looks that everyone is jealous of.
Liz. The other best friend, a mini genius and maths+tests+homework-

obsessive.
Mr Solomon. Hot new CoveOps teacher.
Mrs Morgan. Cammie’s mother and headmistress. The kind, understanding and beautiful mother we hear about in movies.
Macey. New roommate, who comes out of her strop in the excitement of getting Cammie and Josh together.

The book starts with a clutch of normal girls in a, well, totally abnormal school- a girls’ boarding school for spies in training. A school where they are experts in fourteen languages by the time they’re in sophomore year, and have tests in “Covert Operations” which ask them to find out what Mr Moskowitz drinks with his doughnuts.

Whilst doing just this, Cammie Morgan magically awkwardly collides with a guy who immediately appears to her as an epitome “normal boy”, who, naturally, she has to lie to about her reason for retrieving a coke bottle from a bin, and who, naturally, she has to fall in love with.

Luckily, Josh is intrigued by this girl who has a cat called Suzie that likes to play with bottles (lie), who is “home educated- for, like, religious reasons” (lie). But she is completely in adoration of him, and a secret relationship blossoms. (Not a lie.)

Whether it’s over Josh’s belief that Cammie is a homeschooled out-of-townie who spends her summers in barns in Mongolia or not, Cammie is sitting on a rainbow. Amidst all the exhiliartion, Cammie finds herself guilty over making herself up, but there’s no way she can tell Josh the truth about why she’s studying phD-level chemistry- the Gallagher Academy is a secret to the outside world.

My first thought: close to crap. How freaking cliché can a writer get? Everything reeked of barely-hidden cheese.

Then I got further into the novel, and gosh, was I addicted! It was a fun and fast-paced lil story and I didn’t want to leave it when torn away. My copy now has a host of turned-down page corners and wrinkly sections where I dropped it in the bath; yes, I read it in the bath.

And my final thought? This book is special. Sure, I could say that about almost every book I read, but it’s true. Never again will I say popular books aren’t deep and all that. This book deals with in a way that should connect with you all. To be honest, our lives and emotions as young teenagers are pretty cheesy anyway. Plus, the whole Cammie and Josh thing is just sooo cute.

-Barista Sabita-

Image: I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You (Disney-Hyperion)

Darn you, teenage skin. Will you please stop breaking out in spots all over my face? No matter how hard I scrub my face, these stupid red spots won't stop appearing over my skin. So how the heck do you prevent this?

Eat. And drink too, for that matter.

No, not anything you want. I'm just saying that there are certain foods that are good for acne. I've found that these foods really do help in alleviating those cursed red thingamabobs across my forehead.

Garlic

Yeah. It stinks. My theory is that it stinks so much that all the bacteria just scatters away from your face. Anyway, garlic bread is really tasty.

Fish

Contrary to popular belief, fatty foods is not actually the cause for spotty skin. Thank you, Omega 3.

Red grapes

If you're a fruit person, like me, you were probably really excited to hear that red grapes help clear those unwanted red parasites as well. Eek! Red grapes, come to mama!

Nuts

Nuts are your best friend for anything health related. They have a whole heap of minerals and other healthy stuff that are beneficial to your skin.

Water

This is essential. I hate drinking water, but I ditched fizzy drinks altogether for a little while, so I could get used to water, and do you know what I found? It really helps you both physically and mentally. Water makes EVERYTHING better.

Who knew eating could make things better? And all this time, all I thought it did was make me fat. Well, I'm off to eat now.

-Barista Mia-

Images:  David Pursehouse, Lonnie, Andrew McFarlane, Iain Buchanan, Ryan Hyde

I'm a senior and to all you other seniors out there getting ready to send out college apps: DON'T FREAK OUT!

I know. That's the worst advice anybody could give you. How could you NOT freak out at a situation such as this one? This basically determines our life paths! Well, I just sent my app to my dream college and yeah, avoiding PASS (Post Application Sending Syndrome), as I like to call it, is near impossible. But I have learned a few ways to calm yourself down when you send your app and to keep yourself calm after sending the deadly thingamabob.

1. Realize that getting rejected is not the end of the world

I'll admit it. Those big red rejected stamps looks scary. But college rejections don't look like this, so don't worry.

Face it, guys. Rejection isn't the end of the world. It'll probably break your heart, but it could be worse. I'm serious. Getting accepted might be the most important thing to you in the world right now, but you have to step out of your little 12th grade box and take a look at your life. College is only a small portion. Anyway, rejection builds character once you get over it.

2. Be optimistic

You see those orange, red and bluefaces? Those are students infected with PASS. And no, you don't want that. You want to be the yellow face that is immune to PASS.

No, I'm not saying look forward to an acceptance, because it might not happen. Expecting the good is not the best idea. But have an optimistic approach to everything. Let whatever happen happen. If I don't get accepted into *enter dream college here*, fine. And nope.That's not sarcasm, people. Just look at the positive side of everything.

3. Have a backup college that you would be happy to go to

Harvard's my backup. What's yours? (Just kidding!)

Some people tend to pick backup colleges just for the heck of it, but that's not good. It's not like you would ever consider going there if you got accepted. Okay, they might not have the Ivy brand name, but they should be colleges you are super excited about. Do a lot of research, talk to students who go there, and find backups that fit your personality and studying philosophy.

4. Move On

This picture really makes me want to go to the beach. But, y'know, winter and all that.

Instead of waiting restlessly, concentrate on finishing your senior year with stellar grades and having fun. For me, I think I'll be focusing on my hobbies. Dance, write, play, and work on this blog. Do everything to keep your mind off the college apps that are sitting on the admissions officers' desks. 'Cause like I said, life goes on and college is only a small portion of what you'll be going through.

(This may or may not have been my way to calm my own PASS. It's surprisingly helped, so I hope it helps you too.)


-Barista Mia-

Images:  Sean MacEntee, Anders Rune Jensen, Patricia Drury, Wayne Silver

• Eat chocolate spread out of the jar

Don't know about you, but I still see the beauty of a (large) dollop of Nutella on a (large) spoon. I've never understood the point of putting it on bread when you can have it on its own...

• Blast music

Blasting music- blasting it at unhealthy decibels, and blasting it so that the special hormone in the brain that makes people go crazy for One Direction comes out for a dance. And singing along to your favourite songs, not caring if you're out of tune or that someone will say you have disgusting taste in music.

• Eat lunch with no, um, manners

Isn't it bliss being able to luck your fingers without feeling totally humiliated? To add as much salt as you like without having to listen to a lecture from your mum? My personal favourite is to sit on the sofa whilst on Facebook. Yeah, I manage to keep the sofa clean... I do... Oh, that picture's not of me- I'm not quite so cheesy. Plus, I wouldn't be eating salad when I could choose what junk food to strip-the-cupboards-bare of. Salad? I mean, salad?!

• Think about your crush

I'm one of those unlucky people who, like a deep sea fish, changes colour from pink to scarlet at any mention of crushes. We all need privacy to think. Being alone is the perfect time to sit back, look expressionless, and go on a "woe is me, he loves me, he loves me not, he doesn't even know I exist!" cruise. Though maybe not in those exact words.

-Barista Sabita-

Images: Christine Coleman, Yuliya Libkina, Ksenia8, D. Sharon Pruitt

Brilliant, outstanding, witty, clever, memorable, whatever. Here are three characters from books, movies and TV that I personally think deserve the Novel Prize for Fictional Charisma (no, there is no such thing... Is there? There needs to be.) What do you think about these characters? What are your favourites? Let us know in the comments!

Jace from "The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones"

I've just finished reading City of Bones, or COB as I like to call it, and have been marvelling at what a brilliant character Jace is. His sarcasm and wit really do sparkle as brightly as he imagines them to; he pokes fun at anything and everything, and gets a huge kick out of being irritating. He is a deep character, but he also sent me to bed shrieking.

Bella from the "Twilight" series

You're thinking: Bella's a boring pig-arse and Kristen Stewart can't act. I'm thinking: she may seem boring, but in fact she's a very unusual girl. She reads Jane Austen novels "for the fun of it" and doesn't want to check her emails for days. I bet she doesn't even have a Facebook account... She's self-contained and intelligent. And she must be pretty depressed to choose to study maths when she could be gossiping. But then Bella simply doesn't do gossip- she's in a world apart, quite literally.

 Arthur from "Merlin"

This is just an old TV show, but I had to include this blast of mighty self-centred Princeness. Arthur is like an older sister- he verbally (and physically) bullies his servant Merlin and episodes end with a stream of bossy orders- "Merlin, you're such a girl's petticoat!" "And now, my room needs cleaning, my horses need exercising, my stables need to be mucked out, my clothes need ironing, my armour needs polishing, and when you've done all that, you can be a dummy for my wrestling practise." Wouldn't you just love to have Arthur as a sister? Yes, I'm sure you would.

They haven't confirmed the separation yet, but I don't think it's ever too early to produce a list of the reasons I loved the J-Bros. I mean, who would ever miss a chance to post pictures and GIFs of the three cuties? It's a pity that these boys have hit a hard rock in the road, but hopefully, they'll sort things out.

To be honest, I'm not too thrilled about all those drug rumors and Kevin's wife apparently faking her pregnancy for publicity and all that, but let's just brush that aside and look back to the Jonas Brothers glory days. Oh, how I loved them.

1. They're actually a BAND

They actually play the instruments as they sing, which is pretty rare in this age of pop. Well, yeah, with only three people in the group, they have to bring more musicians to play as a full band, but when they play acoustically, my gosh. Kevin really gets into the music.

2. They write their own songs

All their songs have some kind of story to tell and they have songs to fit every mood. I can rock out to some of their faster songs and cry in my bed as I listen to their more emotional songs. That's totally awesome.

3. Two words: Camp Rock

Need I say any more? This is where I first encountered the hotness of Joe, the cuteness of Nick, and the plain dorkiness of Kevin. I CANNOT BELIEVE KEVIN IS MARRIED! Sorry, that was random, but OMG. I still remember his funniness in Camp Rock. *sobs*

4. They're good looking

*shrugs* They are. Don't you dare deny it! And their hair. OMG their hair is paradise! Those curls! THOSE CURLS!

5. They're funny



I'll let the video speak for itself.

6. They have the cutest relationship ever

I know. They're brothers. They're supposed to have good relationships. Yadda yadda yadda. BUT LOOK AT THEM! I'M DYING OF CUTENESS OVERLOAD!

7. They're nice to their fans. Yay!

Fine. I never met them. But considering the stuff I hear, I'll take a guess and say they are indeed nice to their fans. They stop for pictures, sign stuff, etc.

Wait. Was I supposed to write this entire blog post in past tense? *shrugs* I guess my mind's not ready to say good-bye to the Jonas Brothers yet. I'm hoping they can straighten out their problems... It's kind of sad that their tour was only a couple days away when they cancelled everything. But you know what makes me even sadder and more depressed? THEIR TWITTER IS MISSING! OMG WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO WITH MY LIFE NOW?


-Barista Mia-

Image: Dominique Dinh

Title: Starkissed
Author: Brynna Gabrielson
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform

Synopsis (via Goodreads):

Kissing movie star Grant West may be every teenage girl’s dream, but when it happens to Sydney Kane, it’s nothing but a nightmare. Sure he’s cute, but having her face plastered all over celebrity gossip blogs is not something she’s interested in. Now cheerleaders are trying to befriend her, reporters won’t stop calling, and her mother keeps chasing her with a curling iron so she won’t be caught by the paparazzi with flat hair ever again.

Forgetting Grant is all Sydney wants and Colin, the guy she’s had a crush on since seventh grade, seems like a pretty good way to do it. Then Grant shows up at Sydney’s door begging for a second chance and the more she gets to know him, the more she isn’t sure she wants him to go away. But with Grant in the picture, Colin is backing off and she definitely doesn’t want that. Everything is a mess and Sydney doesn’t know what to do, who to choose, or how to make those pesky cheerleaders leave her alone. She only knows one thing for sure, being STARKISSED isn’t a dream come true at all.

Review:

4/5

*WARNING: very slight spoilers*

I picked this up hoping for a cutesy read because I wasn’t in the mood for studying. Starkissed turned out to be the exact thing I needed. A cute, romantic comedy that is impossible to put down, I read it in two hours nonstop and I never noticed the time ticking by.

As a rule, I’m a sucker for storylines where a rock star/movie star boy falls for an ordinary girl. Because, hello? Harry Styles anybody? And this book was so my style. I think the biggest thing that sold me was the characters. Especially Sydney. She’s so lovable and relatable. I could definitely feel Sydney’s pain with her being the only plain one in her family. And honestly, I believe everyone has felt that way at least once in their lives. When she was being compared with her sisters at school, and when she was comparing herself with her sisters... If Sydney were real, she and I would be best friends.

But the best part? First of all, I’m not very emotional, which leads to occasional emotional attacks in which I cry for hours straight nonstop, but that’s a different story. I could literally feel Sydney’s pain and happiness. My heart beat so fast whenever Sydney’s was. My heart broke when Sydney’s did. My heart leaped when Sydney’s did. I haven’t felt so connected to a main character for a long time. I think it’s got to do with me and her having so many similarities personality wise, though I would definitely say she's so much braver than I am. I could see myself acting as she did, and I could see myself thinking as she did. We would totes be crying on each others' shoulders as we bathe in our un-awesome-ness.

From time to time, I would find myself hating Syd’s family (See? I even made a nickname for my fictional best friend!). They would sometimes really piss me off. Leaving Syd to go to NYC themselves? I hate you! But I got to know them better, and eventually got to understand them at the end.

And the two boys. Hm. What should I say? They’re confusing. There’s no other way to put it. But I’m not saying they’re confusing in a bad way. It was a good kind of confusing, because it got me guessing about who Syd would end up with, though I knew who it would be. Speaking of which, although I knew who, I still speculated. It kept me on the edge of my seat, hoping Syd would end up with my favorite guy character.

The epilogue was epic. Nice touch, Brynna Gabrielson.

If I had something bad to say about this book, it would be that there weren’t enough scenes with Sydney and THE HOTTEST BOOK CHARACTER OF ALL TIME. More, I say, more!

I would recommend this book to anyone who’s looking for a quick, fun read that will make you fall in love with the characters and every teenage girl out there.

Oh and P.S. I don't like the cover. I thought Syd was supposed to be a brunette? But whatevs.


-Barista Mia-

Image: Starkissed

I'm sorry. But I had to bring that up, because I just came across the most horrifying thing I've ever seen in the history of this universe. It's almost as bad, no, it's as bad as Friday. For those of you who missed the hype back in 2011 or just want a reminder of how bad it was, here's the Friday music video:



Yeah, it was that bad. Do you remember now? I sure as heck do and I won't be watching the video again. *secretly watches it one more time* I don't know what it is, but I just love watching dumb things. It's funny and I like to bathe in the funniness, okay?

Do you guys remember Rebecca Black x2 from last year? You know... the two girls who were talking about how hot they were and stuff?

Here's the video for y'all who want to watch it. A little warning, though, your ears might just die.



The reason I'm showing you guys these horrible songs is that there's a new song and video in YouTube world, baby!

Anyway, Rebecca Black and these two girls, whoever they are, had better watch out because this song is about to break some ears. It's about Chinese food and how awesome it is and how the singer absolutely loves it. No, I'm not joking. Not surprisingly, it was written by the same dude who wrote Friday. Ugh. He really needs a new job.

I have so many things to criticize about this video.

1. What's with those random subtitles?
2. This little girl, Alison, went clubbing, then hugging, then got hungry? Are you serious?
3. She just starts to point out all the stuff she likes.
4. She meets a panda and goes frolicking in the meadows with him.
5. That panda turns out to be that rapper in the Friday video.
6. That panda hangs out with little girls and plays monopoly. Only because monopoly rhymes with broccoli.
7. He actually raps about Chinese food with this creepy smile on his face. Uh. Pedo bear alert?
8. Then these geishas just pop up and start to dance.
9. The panda flies out of the roof on a rainbow.

Shudders. This is what I imagine happens during the process of writing the song.

Writer: So what do you like?
Alison: Uh, I don't know.
Writer: Oh, come on. Just tell me anything you like.
Alison: I like pandas, and food, and China. I wish I was Chinese.
Writer: *ten seconds later* Wrote this for you.

To be fair, though, Chinese food is pretty awesome, I guess. What do you think was the worst song of them all?


-Barista Mia-

I’m not going to write about Take Me Home, or Little Mix’s new (uh, fairly new) album, although I do love these and they are great for rocking out to whilst eating chocolate with your friends. 1D are terrific, but they’re not, well, deep, are they? Do you really want to listen to them singing about having parties with girls whose daddies are dentists when you’re feeling down and out? It’s my opinion that we all get the miseries from time to time, even if some people are more, unfairly, lucky than others. If you ever want something new to listen to that’s still uplifting but not so in-your-face-we-have-everything-cheerful, look up Sara Bareilles' new album, “The Blessed Unrest” on YouTube. After one listen, I was in love. It’s a beautiful combination of creative ramblings like the ones normal people don’t actually do but that I think everyone should, and your classic love gumph; “Cos Ah caaaaaaaan’t have youuuuuuuuu.”

No, these songs really are inspiring. The single, “Brave” pretty much voices exactly what I need at the moment...



Then there’s the song “Satellite Call”, which reminds me of the night sky and the universe and a whole lot else.



Then there’s “I Wanna Be Like Me”, which I think a lot of us could find something worthwhile in. Lying in bed eating ice cream and thinking you wanna be like yourself is sure to cheer you up, as soon as you realise it’s true!

Overall, the album has a brisk but dreamy tone, as if Sara is talking in a stream of conciousness out of her brilliant creative mind (which, may I add, I know nothing of except what she shows in this album,  because I had hardly even heard of her before finding it.) Oh, and “Brave” has even been compared to Katy Perry’s “Roar”, yes! In actual fact there’s not much similarity except that the opening bars of music sound the same, and loosely, both the songs are about getting guts and bein’ brave. And magically turning into animals. Well, that’s just Katy. Sara, on the other hand, is perfectly happy with descriptions of gravestones and constellations and little black dresses.


-Barista Sabita-

Image: The Blessed Unrest

I'm a movie freak. I check the theaters for new movies that are coming out daily and watch every single trailer that pops up anywhere. And as for IMDB, I check it almost five times a day, no joke. It's not like the site updates that often, but I like movies and I like to stay on top of things THAT much. Anyway, while I was browsing IMDB almost a year ago (I think), I discovered that a remake was on the works. And not any old remake, a Romeo and Juliet remake. Cue excited screams here.

Okay, okay. To be honest, I'm not the biggest RJ fan. I feel like Romeo and Juliet are two stupid young people who are just so stupid that I can't even handle life right now. BUT! I really do love watching the movies. Don't ask me why. Maybe it's the kissing, the romance, or the sheer handsomeness of Romeo and the gorgeousness of Juliet (who doesn't like watching good-looking people, huh?). One thing's for sure, though, I cannot wait for RJ to hit theaters in Korea.

I've been keeping tabs on this remake for a while now and it's just DAYS away from releasing in America, so I thought it would be time for me to introduce you guys to the stars of this new RJ remake. Eek! I seriously cannot wait to watch this movie! The actors are too awesome and ugh.

Anyway....

ROMEO!!!!!!!!!!

Douglas Booth

Isn't he the perfect Romeo? Those cheekbones and jawline of his are going to kill me. Definitely someone to go all "Romeo, Romeo. My true love." over. Oh, and by the way, he's British. *squeals*

And Juliet <3

Hailee Steinfeld

Hailee's someone I've been keeping an eye on for a long time. Since her debut alongside Matt Damon and Jeff Bridges in True Grit, it's been hard to not notice her. And what's more? Her long, brown hair is perfect for Juliet.

Friar Lawrence

Paul Giamatti

That beard! If that's not Friar Lawrence-y enough, I don't know what is!

Tybalt

Ed Westwick

CHUUUUUUCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKKK!

Lord Capulet

Damian Lewis

I have a love-hate relationship with Lord Capulet. Let's see how Damian pulls this character off. I reckon he's one of the most difficult to play.

Benvolio

Kodi Smit-Mcphee

I still remember him as the little kid in Let Me In. He's grown so much!

Ugh. I can see the movie already! I can't freaking wait! For now, nobody touch me or I will explode of anticipation. I have high expectations, people. HIGH EXPECTATIONS.

Oh, and to close, here's the trailer to the new Romeo and Juliet adaptation:

There are shivers down my spine.

-Barista Mia-

Images:  Walking With The Wounded, Hailee Steinfeld's Twitter, Justin Hoch, Greg Hernandez, Damian Lewis's Twitter, Kodi Smit-Mchphee's Twitter

Sometimes, I can't resist the power of YouTube. It's pulling power is too strong for me to turn my head away from its pure awesome-ness. Well, anyway, while I was browsing around, I came across this super hilarious video. The marketing team for the Carrie remake that is coming out later this year made this video, and, well... take a look!



What do you think? I'm pretty sure those "unsuspecting civilians" were actually actors, but it's cool nevertheless. The idea is great and it's just... ugh. I can't even begin to explain how much I love this video. I wish I had enough money to pull off a prank like this to my friends. I CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF ITS AWESOME-NESS. Oh, mighty marketing people of the Carrie remake, you art thou awesome. (Sorry about my overusing the word "awesome", it's just an awesome word. And it describes this awesome video perfectly. Pun may have been intended. The truth may never be known.)

While I was watching this, I was reminded of another video that I watched a few months before. This one's pretty funny as well. A Brazilian TV show (I think) conducted this prank and it's brilliant. A bit of a warning for those who are scared of ghosts though. That little girl is creepy.



This video and the video above are just pure genius. Where do these people get these ideas?! And where can I get one, so I can scare my friends?


-Barista Mia-

Those cloudy, freezing autumn weekends when all your friends are away having fun and you're slouching at home on the sofa with a headache. Drowning in boredom, but can't be bothered to make yourself presentable enough to see anyone. Now, guys, weekends are finite, and always worth making the most of! Before we know it it's Monday and we have no time to Live Life. So here's what you should do to embrace your Sundays.

• Take the headphones out. True, we all love to rock out to "Roar"- What's that? You're fed up with a hundred repeats of "Roar"? Awh. Poor Katy. But too much music does give you a groggy head, and then it's less easy to get on with stuff. So throw down your phone and give your ears, and eyes for that matter, a break.

• Go for a walk
Okay, newsflash! Going for a walk is not boring! If you live near some countryside, escape into the woods where the feeling of total aloneness is electrifying. Seriously. If you're not feeling too happy with your life ATM, you can lie down and look at the leaves. I'm not an anthroposophist or a psychopath, but nature has actually been proven to cure messed up emotions. Yes.
If you're not lucky enough to have any nice woods or fields near by, a trip to the shops is just as nice. I may tell you to ditch the iPhone for a time, but I'd NEVER, in CAPITALS, NEVER tell you to stop buying chocolate, crisps, sweets...

• Bath!
If you're really tired and just can't get up, clean yourself up by soaking in a bubble bath. Ooh, warm water on a grey day. Beauteous.

• Get the horrid stuff out of the way
That homework that's sitting on the table. Get warm and make sure your brain's reasonably clear, and tackle it! I find if I just can't concentrate on it, I find going away and making myself just think over the topic helps.

• Try something new today!
Cough, no, I don't work for Sainsbury's, but I'd love to try my hand at TV adverts! It's fun to be ridiculous. See something you think is interesting- it could be anything, from a song to a survey- and bring out your creative side. Instead of passively playing the song on your iPod, play it on the piano. Interview all your friends on Facebook for no reason whatsoever. Write a poem when you're out in the woods. If you like drawing, shade the Periodic Table different colours. Plait your dog's hair. (Just tacked that one on from my amazingly creative mind, har-har-har.)

So, what do you guys think? What do you do on homie Saturdays and Sundays?


-Barista Sabita-

Images:  RelaxingMusic, Franck Mahon, dana robinson, Steven S., Brian Richardson

I have maladaptive daydreaming, so I'm honestly not an expert at this subject. But I thought it would be fun if both you and I could learn together. I seriously suck at concentration. If you follow me on Twitter, you'll probably see me tweeting about ballet, One Direction, and other things rather than the SAT IIs, which I'm taking in less than a month (eek!). I barely even study for it because, hello? Internet.

I used to be much better at concentration, like when I was studying for my SAT Is, but the IIs are a big problem for me. I just can't seem to stop daydreaming and watching YouTube videos. I'm sure there are others like me, so I'm going to share with you some of the tips I learned recently about concentration. Hopefully, these tips will help both you and I with concentrating because neither of us don't want to end up failures... right?

1. Before you start anything... RELAX

Being agitated before starting your work is the worst idea ever invented. Worries will be running through your head and you won't be able to do your work properly. For example, if I study un-relaxed, I get worse scores on my practice SATs and I get super stressed over wrong answers. But on the other hand, if I'm relaxed, when I get answers wrong, I look over them and try to understand where I got things messed up. See? Much better to have a calm mind than an occupied mind.

2. Make a checklist

Seeing all the day's tasks laid out before you in your head can be really daunting. But if you write all the stuff you need to do down on a piece of paper on your wall, you'll have a much clearer picture of what to do. Keeping track of things in a visible way will give you less stress and give you a feeling of control over your day. Also, when you place a tick next to the stuff you've done, you feel really good about all the things you have done that day.

3. Turn off your Internet

I'm aware that Internet is sometimes necessary for your studies or work or whatever, but when you don't need it, turn it off. For me, my main source of Internet is my cell phone, so I turn off my 4G and WiFi. That way, I won't end up tumblring, tweeting, or doing other stupid things I shouldn't waste my time on especially when I'm freaking STUDYING FOR MY SAT IIS! Ugh. Where art thou, concentration?

4. Reward yourself

When I have a reward to look forward to after I've completed my studies, I find it much easier to push myself to finish everything and to study more. When I don't have a reward, I don't really have much incentive to study hard, but if I tell myself I can watch ballet and eat chocolate after doing a Literature practice test, I push myself to finish the test. When I don't have anything to look forward to, I usually end up somewhere deep inside my mind, daydreaming. With rewards waiting for me at the end of the day, I can actually finish my day's work much quicker too.

As I said, I'm still learning about concentration myself, but I'm pretty sure that these tactics work. My concentration improves when I use these tips. The only problem is actually using these tips of mine. Now that would make a whole separate blog post.


-Barista Mia-

Images:  RelaxingMusic, AJ Cann, Roland Tanglao, John Loo

I remember the first day I went on the new setout of Facebook and saw the thumbs up button in the message tabs. ("You can 'like' messages? Now my life is perfect!") Gone are the days of awkward end-of-convo smiley messages when you don't know whether it would appear desperate to send another or if it would seem rude not to reply.

But in my eyes, FB is still lacking in a lot of possible shortcuts that would make messaging so much easier. But then, I am exceptionally awkward, so naturally I... 

Anyway! Here are my dreams of the stickers or emoticons a perfect Facebook tab would include:

• The "duh" sign.

This is for that horrifying moment when you're in the middle of a heated debate with your crush or someone, and are doing all you can to make yourself appear witty, and pose an ingenious rhetorical question. Or so you imagined. The moment you've pressed Send you realise you need some way to let him know your power is so great that he can't even see where it ends. And yeah, other than actually saying that. In comes the "duh?!" sign- "Helloo-oo, can't you see how sarcastic I'm being here?!”

• Then, there are the times when you've said something, ahem, a little too sarcastic (there is such a thing as too sarcastic? Wow.) We wanna quickly assure them we don't mean to rude. Like this! That's right, a large head with a tiddly brain, and my crude Snapchat doodling.

• Typo alert! A big fat cross through a big fat mistake- a fun alternative to writing the (often obvious) correction ever time Autocorrect cocks up.

• If you can't be voters to set up a worldwide campaign to bulky Mark Zuckerburg into introducing these tactics, why not just go have a nice cry ( ":::(" tears) and resort to good old fashioned words by having a little experimental game? See how far you can get answering "haha", "lol", or something like it, to every message. It can actually become pretty hilarious. See for yourself!

So, I think it would be cool to have these, but what do you guys think? Any other ideas? I wanna hear them! 

-Barista Sabita-

With everyone plucking out their eyebrows nowadays, where has the appreciation for eyebrows gone? All I see on the streets are lines on people's faces where their eyebrows should be. Yeah, it looks messy at times, but a lot of people can actually pull heavier brows off. Plus, it really brings out the eyes if you have lighter eyes.

Now with the deficit of eyebrows, let's take a look at some non-mutilated brows. Check these celebrities out. And let's all admire their gorgeous, thick, bold brows, because we all need to.

Mila Kunis

Do you see how nicely those eyebrows shape her eyes? Or even her entire face?

Keira Knightley

Eyebrows are like the equivalent of hair on your head. You're bald without it and it makes you look like Golum.

Anne Hathaway

I have strong reason to believe that much of these stars' success comes from de eyebrows.

Cara Delevigne

As much as I like eyebrows... uh... Well, at least she can pull it off. I wouldn't try it if I were you though, unless your name rhymes with Cara Delevigne.

Emmy Rossum

Look how happy those eyebrows are making her :) Aw.

Camilla Belle

You see how classy them eyebrows make her look?

Lucy Hale

We have a prime example of beautiful eyebrows right in our TVs!

Lily Collins

Ugh. Thick brows suit her so much that it makes me want to cry.

Sigh. Looking at these pictures just make me jealous as heck. Asian isn't necessarily the best race for eyebrows unfortunately. Well... at least these people exist for me to ogle over their eyebrows. You guys be showing off those eyebrows for me as I can't get me a pair of those.

-Barista Mia-

Images:  Gage Skidmore, Paul Bird, Mingle MediaTV, Cara Delevigne's Instagram, Pulicciano, Joella Marano, Lucy Hale's Instagram, Gage Skidmore

So everybody's pretty much watched Britney's new "Work B**ch" music video. And you know what? She looks freaking amazing! Anyway, for me, on top of ogling over THE Britney Spears, I can't help but think of the past decade or so of Britney's career. I mean, she started from "Baby One More Time" and all the way to "Work B**ch", winning a billion and one awards along the way.

Well, now that her new single is out, the time has come for us to take a look back at our favorite Britney music videos.



No list of Britney's best music videos would be complete without her first. Look at her! 16 and already fabulous.



The sheer weirdness of this just makes me fall in love.


IT'S A CIRCUS! Need I say any more?



The first time I watched this video, I fell off my chair in shock at seeing a naked person on my computer screen. That pretty much makes this entire music video memorable to me.



Ah. The classic Britney Spears music video. The diamond sparkles, the air hostess uniform, the sexiness oozing out of every single move Britney makes. Sigh.

Ugh. This woman and her pure awesome-ness is going to kill me one day. I swear.


-Barista Mia-