jasmineconquers-blog

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Snuff Mills, Brassmill and Grounded

ums up the weekend perfectly. 

My brother and his gf were down from South end visiting my parents. So me and Esta popped into Bristol to meet them also. Friday night we walked the dog who was very excitable (aren’t all dogs?!) and then we went to the Brassmill. The Brassmill is one of my favourite pubs in Bristol although it’s really more the outskirts as its in keynsham. 

 It's a cosy little pub and we just ended up playing the Logo board game all night. It was hilarious and very noisy as we are quite a competitive family. It was a good laugh though.

 Saturday then comprised of a dog walk to Snuff Mills think that's the slang name though as dad calls it Oldbury Court. Not sure what the proper name is but it a lovely long walk. It was good our dog Rubes was so well behaved she loved getting muddy, walking in the water (she still is very scared of going where the water is deep and just watches the other dogs) need to get her in a pool/lake with me in it at some point but it's much too cold at the moment.  So yeah all in all it was a great walk and I felt good as I'd done some exercise.  The only bad bit was two dogs had a fight one was on a lead the other wasn't and the owners hands were covered in blood, the dogs were yelping really loudly in pain and it was awful to watch the owners trying really hard to separate them. The woman just walked off with her dog after - like her dog had been bitten on the neck and was oozing blood why wouldn't you pick it up and carry it to the nearest vets. It was just bad owners on my accord - one freely admitted her dog goes for other dogs - so begs the question why did it not have a muzzle on and then the other owner was letting her dog run around. I don't know the inns and outs -- it happened just after we got there but it was very unpleasant. I hope the poor dog is okay though. Hopefully it is a lesson learner for the other owner whose dog was absolutely fine. What I didn't know is if a dog is attacking another dog you should cover its eyes and head in something so it can't see and then it lets go as it can't see. That's definitely a life lesson.

After this long walk much of Saturday was then spent sleeping and cuddling up with Esta - since moving to Wales I've learnt this is called a cwtch. cwtching.

Sunday spelt cafe time and we chilled in grounded, had a smoothie and a much too sweet lemon drizzle cake. I then went to meet my friend Suzie at the gym and we spent a whopping 2 hours in there which comprised of 12 minute run, legs and core work out which we used instagram video tutorials to direct us - it was actually REALLY HARD and we literally died - ok not literally but you get my drift it was BLOODY painful! Then we did shoulders and arms. And finally rounded it off with a swim and jacuuzi. It was a shame as Esta came with me dressed in her gym clothes with her swimming cozzie on but on route said she needed to sit in the cafe and get work done and decided she couldn't spare 30 minutes to then chill have a swim and relax in the jacuzzi. Not sure what to make of it - everytime we plan to go to the gym or swim or anything like that she finds a reason why she can't do it. It's quite annoying - she used to do it with her ex all the time. Think I need to raise this point with her.

Anyway finally get home to relax - and Esta starts moaning... WOMEN! It's our mission to moan - surely - and I say this as a woman!

[jasmineconquers-blog]

Valentine’s day

Sorta how I spent MOST of the day LOL!

was supposed to be making Esta’s valentines day present today but I’ve been so poorly that I literally had a duvet day then dragged myself to the gym to make myself feel better. Where I ran, biked, then swam a good few lengths before coming to the realisation that I need to go swimming more often as my stamina and technique is off.

As we are making valentines gifts this year - I had the idea to get one of these but it will take too long to ship (so I will save this as a present gift for another opportunity) Esta LOVESSS skulls so she could decorate it which would be fun and cool

My next port of call was Hobbicraft for Papermache that I could decorate with paints and other stuff to look cool and write something personal on the inside

https://www.hobbycraft.co.uk/mini-mache-treasure-chest-9cm/568540-1000

and/or 

a papermache letter for her initial which I could paint and then write words which represent her on

Both are VERY thoughtful, money-saving to go with our theme and unique 

Half of me is tempted to be like nah fuck it as things aren’t great on the partner front at the moment - we’re not really acting like a partnership and the communication is beginning to fuck up but I don’t think i’d forgive myself if I didn’t make her/get her something

Jas x

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Hannah Gadsby

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5aE29fiatQ0 

So this australian comedian has a show out called Nannette. I watched it earlier this morning on Netflix and WOW! It had me on the edge of my seat. 

She talks A LOT about growing up as a lesbian and gender identity and the persecution and life experience that comes with that. It was a real eye opener.

For myself: I’d always ALWAYS known that I liked girls from about 7 and did all the experimentation and stuff but never persued it as everything around me led me to believe a girl HAD to be with a boy and there wasn’t another option. I just wasn’t exposed to that even as a notion/life option.Whenever I got tipsy my mind would wander or in day dream moments my mind would wander but it wasn’t until my early 20′s that I really explored that avenue. I’m glad I did as I now am being my true self and I’ve never felt happier. 

But Hannah Gadsby sheds SO much light on this and on how she uses comedy that I believe everyone SHOULD go and watch this. She’s an inspiration! <3

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When your partner gives you flu

Literally how I feel. Sore, fuzzy, throbbing head, red and uncomfy nose, tickly persistent cough and sore throat. I am very annoyed. 

And to make matters worse Esta has fucked off to Spain for 4 days and is sunning life up whilst I’m stuck back in rainy England. ughhhhhhhhhhhh

Hating life right now :/

Don’t think I’ll be in the best mood when I see her tomorrow

[jasmineconquers-blog]

Free yourself

I like to plan things, see the route I will take as I build for the future.

 I’ve had lots of reflection time today and I’ve realised that I have been depending on others which isn’t something i’m used to as I’ve always had to fend for myself and been let down. I’ve lost a bit of my edge - the strong, independent woman. I’ve taken my eye off the ball and become complacent in a love bubble of hope and lost sight of where I came from.

It’s definitely time to buckle up and make my dreams come true for myself - no waiting around on others, no half assed attempts just live in the moment and chase what I desire - fuck waiting around on others to hopefully share my vision - life has the potential to be so short and so great all at the same time. 

It is what I make of it. 

Anyone who wants to tag along for the ride is a bonus. 

My refreshed, positive mindset starts today 

Jas 

x

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For a long time I’ve not really been sure of who I was or how I fit. I think I’ve always tried to find my place and realised it’s okay to not have a set place or be a ‘type’ of person. I’ve embraced being ‘just me’ 

I’ve gained so much self-esteem and confidence which I have my partner and friends to thank 

[jasmineconquers-blog]

Ethical Animal Tourism Thailand

 So me and Esta are off to Thailand in April EEK!

So far said schedule looks like 

Day 1: fly to Doha then to Bangkok

Bangkok

DAY 2: taste the magic of the night tour 

DAY 3: 1/2 day floating market tour

reclining Buddha and The Grand Palace in afternoon

Chinatown in the evening

DAY 4: Fly to Chiang Mai

have a wander - try to find a tour for hill tribes 

Day 5: Chiang Mai city and temples tour 

check out Deck 1 in evening

Day 6: exploring in the am and early afternoon

4pm garden cooking class with locals 

Day 7: Fly to Phuket 

night markets and bars

Day 8: Beach club - cafe del mar 

or  dreams

stay 11am till sunset 

I can’t really decide on this one. Cafe del Mar will be playing amazing music but it’s a saturday and i’m worried it will attract all the pretentious, instagrammy noobs which make everyone feel self-conscious. And dreams looks more chilled and relaxed vibes. But I wouldn’t want to miss out on an amazing day at Cafe del Mar because I was worried I wouldn’t be about the crowd being prettier, makeup plastered and greek god/goddess bodies. It’s a hard one. Hopefully Esta will make this call for me. 

Day 9: venture to the Similan Islands 

Day 10:  speed boat tour Phi Phi Island

Day 11:  Kayaking and beach - weather permitting kayaks

Viewpoint for sunset and stargazing 

Day 12: Beach day 

Monkey Hill - don’t get attacked by monkeys EEK!

Day 13: Fly home

Now this looks like an AMAZING itinerary - Me and Esta are like super UBER excited.  The teacher in me likes to plan things but I’m chill enough to go with the flow as long as i’ve got things up my sleeve to pull out as suggestions so we’re not just wasting time and missing opportunities 

I’ve been doing lots of research.  The problems lies when we’re in Chiang Mai as there are LOTS of elephant sanctuaries (where you don’t ride Elephants) but i’ve been doing my research and there are bad trip advisor reviews

I read this guardian article 

https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2018/aug/11/how-ethical-is-the-elephant-sanctuary-youre-visiting 

which gave me sanctuaries/venues to research 

Now the first one and the one listed as most ethical have quite a few bad reviews which is concerning - 

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g293917-d601884-Reviews-Elephant_Nature_Park-Chiang_Mai.html#REVIEWS

So we’ve got 29 Terrible and 40 poor which equates to 69 - SIMPLE MATH

mostly around booking but Mooken04 mentions elephant mistreatment which is CONCERNING! Cove77 and Anna2981 also give damning reviews which are worrying! ‘TheLove0fTravel also leaves a shocking review. It makes me wonder what research the guardian did when writing their article. I asked our travel agent at STA travel Leela who recommended Tong Bai but it has 20 trip advisor reviews over the past 6 years and they’re all good but it comes up literally like nowhere on google, it’s not in any news articles or documented which begs the question why? I then turned to a friend Stefan as he has recently visited ENP and he said that it was humane despite the massive group sizes and hoards of tourists. 

On face value videobloggers, bloggers, youtubers and major news articles sell this sanctuary yet hoards and hoards of tourists visit this sanctuary and other sanctuaries which can’t be comfortable for the elephants it must be extremely distressing. But then that comes back to the question of elephant tourism. A means of sustaining the lives of elephants and the cost of their well-being and mental health due to mistreatment and abuse. 

I did begin to research Thailand and elephant tourism but honestly I got too emotional and it was crippling me so I stopped - it’s shocking now that there is not enough land/jungle to release all of the elephants in sanctuaries or working elephants in shows, circuses and on stage as Thailand has become more developed. I’m sure there is a similar picture for other animals in different parts of the world

Hmm... 

Me and Esta have decided to give elephant sanctuaries a miss this time as we wouldn’t want to support the abuse or mistreatment of elephants but we have agreed to donate money to the WWF 

https://support.wwf.org.uk/adopt-an-elephant?pc=ASF001001&ds_medium=cpc&&ds_rl=1262308&gclid=Cj0KCQiAtP_iBRDGARIsAEWJA8i1eFPQPuDL_JHbh4dlTIxAYwCMYbAesZahyI5SPLmBmLzHtPWn7gEaAv-pEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

[jasmineconquers-blog]

Pottery update

Our finished pieces. You can definitely tell one of us is a femme and the other is a tomboy LOL  We balance each other out to be a good fit lesbian couple tho ^_^

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SANDSTORM!

I think this is what this board game is called. 

Either way - it was great fun! You have to collect all of the items and the boat without getting suffocated with sand. We died and ran out of water. Definitely worth a game. Think it’s easier with more players. 

But the 3 of us ended up drinking posh m and s prosecco and chatting the night away. Sometimes all you need is your friends to have crisis talks and action plan the way forward. It makes everything better, more positive and puts things into perspective. 

A problem shared is a problem halved and all that 

Hopefully i’ll continue to see my friends more frequently - it sucks that I live miles away to Wales. Think Lors will come visit me in half term tho so that’ll be amazeballs 

x 

Jasmine

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Sundays are made for mid day walks

Nothing I love more than a good walk in the the great outdoors. Fresh air and time to think. It was a bit chilly and muddy today tho. Rubes enjoyed getting really muddy - it’s like she got as dirty as possible for the hell of it!

Something spectacular about German Shepherds - so intelligent, loyal and energetic. 

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The best hot chocolate in Bristol

Whenever I come to Bristol I get really excited about visiting Cafe Amore!

The inside is full of quirky artwork and decor - a blast from the past and I love that they have a variety of juices to choose from. Snapple is my fave with the fun fact in the cap. 

It just feels cosy and comfy. Lots of pokey and hidden corners to get lost in and have a cosy cuppa.

It was where I had my first date with Esta ^_^ and she loved it! It’s a real hidden gem. You could easily pass it and not realise how wonderful it is inside. 

Definitely one of my favourite places in Bristol. 

[jasmineconquers-blog]

Give up chocolate for February

I love this doodle by #doodlesbysarah   perfectly sums up the feeling of just needing to float away from all those thoughts cramming your brain 

This campaign is like dry January when you stop drinking in January but instead of stopping drinking for February you give up chocolate. Now me and my friends we all LOVE chocolate. I think i’m addicted.

 I’m addicted like if I am not eating chocolate then I am thinking about it. There’s nothing chocolate can’t solve really. 

I really would not last long at this! AT ALL!

This looks good. Dinner in the sky over the 02. I wish you could could do this over a beach though - would be SO much more beautiful. 

I think I need to do it for the experience though. 

Inside of the cake that was supposed to be a heart but ended up upside down and being a butt instead (according to Esta) LOL!

Wish me luck on finding a practical diary for dates and info and a cheeky valentines day card for Esta. I’ll keep you posted. 

xo 

Jas

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Miscellaneous Shit

It’s been a busy weekend! We’ve been working on completing this puzzle of the Marauders Map from Harry Potter. It’s very tricky. It’ll make some lovely framed artwork after as it’d simply mesmerising to look at all of the intricate details :-) It seems to be taking FOR-E-VER though grr! I’ve never been one of those extremely patient individuals when it comes to puzzles. I start off well and then I become increasingly impatient and bored and go into a dark hole and abandon it. Then I come back to it and go through the whole process again 

As promised a picture of the Batman Lego cake. In the end I wasn’t able to do the bat symbol inside as Esta couldn’t remember where the bat cookie cutter was and there unsurprisingly quite tricky to source at short notice. I did try to make a cookie cutter from aluminium foil (after some Google research listed this as an option)- I got a great shape but it wouldn’t cut a damn thing LOL 

The filling ended up being a heart shape. Which came out really well. It’s a shame the same couldn’t be said for the icing. I rolled it out and placed it on and the two corners snagged slightly causing 2 small holes so I very silly me thought I could put more icing over those holes and smooth it out. It didn’t quite pan out so the cake had 2 bat capes either side ;) or at least that’s what I told Esta’s family - oh dear! It went down a treat though.

We also went to a lovely Place called Dotty Pots in Penarth where we decorate a plate and a small pot which we will use for a tea cosy. Esta being a Batman fan decorated it accordingly with the phrase Bat tea  Batty about tea :-) 

After originally saying I didn’t want to go TOO pink which apparently Esta couldn’t believe such words came out of my mouth (honestly - I’m not a pink girl at all really, i’m most definitely a purple girl, pink makes me feel sick I love rose gold though) I ended up using pink as a big chunk of the plate palette, along with purples, blues and a nice turquoise for swirls. It ended up looking great but I’ve been notified that the colours change in the kiln so it will be interesting to find out what they look like in a weeks time when we pick them up. 

 It was an excellent mid day activity - we spent roughly about 2-3 hours there and it was very therapeutic and relaxing.

Th

Meet Al 

he’s HUGE but such a cutie. He’s not very cuddly though more demanding. Food, Go out, Strokes. 

 We recently went home to visit my parents and he got very cuddly with us. He isn’t much of a poser so this is a rare moment of beautifulness ^_^ I love dogs but I am very much a cat woman .

Ok RuPaul’s drag race and cwtches on the sofa are calling.

Tomorrow brings new adventures - I’ll be heading into the gym for the first time in a good few weeks and my last day of freedom before I have my first EVER supply agency school job. Wish me luck. (Heading back into the classroom for a few weeks before my new/permanent job starts eek!)

Jasmine

XOXO

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I’m going to make this for my lego obsessed girlfriends b’day!

https://www.montaguehotel.com/ski-and-surf/the-ski-lodge

https://winterville.co.uk/attraction/backyard-cinema

Our trip to London at xmas

Reccomend The Good Hotel (It’s on a BOAT!)

) 

Right time to go be productive and get sh*t done. 

I’ll let you know how the cake goes :)

x

Jasmine 

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We shine bright

I live for those moments. 

Jasmine x 

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The 10 reasons why I left teaching.

My 10 reasons:

1) Nurture: The timetabling nightmare 

TOO MUCH FOCUS on maths, english and anything else that gets assessed at the detriment to arts, humanities and emotional well-being

2) It kills curiosity and risk taking 

Wrapped in red tape and everything is a rush rush rush - SO MUCH TO GET IN

3) Scrutiny / accountability 

OFSTED   Observations kill teachers     SLT and MENTAL HEALTH 

P R E S S U R E  never ends

4) Assessment and progress

KILLS CHILDREN’S SELF-ESTEEM

5) Workload

UNREALISTIC 

late nights   early mornings 

working holidays 

6) One box doesn’t fit all

LABELLING NOT NURTURING

7) Funding cuts 

UNREALISTIC        detrimental 

8) OFSTED

Schools paint faces on    outstanding for catchment area

it’s all a facade      it’s all lies

FAKE NEWS           depends on the cohort/catchments   

Propaganda         Fake data  

9) Positive Impact

Quirks         Self-esteem           Challenge             Grow people not robots

10) Constant changes and well being 

POLITICS   F*CK OFF 

Political agenda’s kill schools

The above gives my picture, my experience. I felt so sad after 4 years to leave. I knew i’d miss working with children. I know i’ll go to another job and it will be completely different. 

That’s a journey that awaits me. 

I start my new job soon. 

 For now I have some time for me. 

To grow, to rebuild, to strengthen and to live. 

x

Jasmine