Exploration of Vegan Eating

Hi friends :)

Recently, I posted my first article on TUGG Mag, so I figured I would share it here too. The monthly topic was 'exploration', so I decided why not explore vegan eating?
I found it kept me feeling energized, light, and overall feeling super healthy. It made me so much more aware of eating, and overall I think it was a great learning experience.

You can read it below, OR here: http://tuggmag.blogspot.ca/2014/05/exploration-of-vegan-eating.html

I also set up a mini-tumblr including some basic vegan recipes I made throughout the week. If you'd like to check it out, you can find it here: www.grapefruit-slices.tumblr.com.

Are you vegan or enjoy eating this way? Let me know!
xx
- ♡ Alex ♡

The 1975 Concert (My experience)

At this exact time last week, I was on my way to pick up my friend to go to one of the best concerts I've ever been to; The 1975. If you haven't heard of them you're missing out; if you do know them, you know how incredible they are. The band consists of four members; Matt Healy, Adam Hann, George Daniel, and Ross MacDonald. Their music style is 'indie/alternative rock' - and they are absolutely AMAZING.

The two of us had tickets to see them. The show was GA, and we didn't arrive until later but still got wicked seats. After seeing 5 Seconds of Summer GA I was wary of going to another show, but the venue for this show was 10x better and waiting in line was so much more organized, the whole event was less chaotic. Or maybe the fans were just more chilled out. 

Doors opened to the Kool Haus at 7, but the one complaint I do have is that I feel that was WAY too early. The band doesn't come on stage until 9:45- and although there are two opening acts, many people inside are extremely obnoxious in that time. Me and my friend had a really awesome spot, definitely within the first ten rows, until two girls decided to shove through EVERYONE and felt the need to constantly push my friend up, leaving us separated the entire show. I mean, honestly; come early if you want a good spot and stop being the obnoxious twats and pushing through everyone who waited longer than you did. A lot of people were rude and pushy and the bands weren't even on stage yet. 

The two opening acts were Sir Sly and the Bad Suns. I've only heard of the Bad Suns, because I'm totally in love with the song 'Cardiac Arrest'. Both bands were good, but there was a lot of wait time between both of them. You can check out their EP's on iTunes- I bought the Bad Suns & it's totally amazing. 

(Left; Sir Sly || Right; Bad Suns)

Finally, around 9:45, the lights started dimming and we all knew that meant The 1975 was coming on. And all I have to say, is they were absolutely INCREDIBLE. One of the best shows I've ever been to by far. I was right in front of Adam, and Matty came over many times right in front of me; it was insanely amazing. Matty is adorable and they sounded sooo good live. Matty was awesome with the crowd. They're the type of band who just don't care; Matty was drinking wine straight from the bottle and smoked a joint on stage. Words cannot express how amazing the show was. All the fans calmed down after they came on and we were all just a giant group enjoying the music.
They played pretty much the whole album, I believe. (There was an encore if you're wondering). The show lasted from around 9:45 - 11:15 (ish). Words cannot explain how amazing the whole experience was. I would see them again in a heartbeat.

After the show, me and my friend tried to get merch. There were shirts, sweaters, and signed cds. The prices were really reasonable- shirts $25, sweaters $50, signed cds $20. However, every single tshirt sold out, which was really disappointing because thats the one thing I wanted a ton. Even the larges/xls sold out- I watched the very last ones go. I ended up with a sweater, and my friend bought the cd. I was really disappointed in everything selling out because I would have thought at this point in the tour they would know how much stuff to buy. I would've boughten the shirt + cd if the shirts weren't gone.

The opening band members all came out and you could meet them, but me and my friend just wanted to leave and they were pretty busy, plus my phone was totally full. I do regret not going to get pictures now though.

Overall, the concert was incredible and I DEFINITELY recommend seeing them if you get the opportunity.
Performance: ★★★★★
Overall experience: ★★★★☆

xx
- ♡ Alex ♡

Participating in World Vision's 30 Hour Famine

Hello friends,

I'm back- again- but I've got a plan, and I'm determined to stick to it.

Today's post is a more serious topic, and it's my experience in recently participating in World Vision's 30 Hour Famine.

The famine is hosted each year in support of world hunger. It involves giving up food for 30 hours straight, and only drinking liquids is allowed. This year, the famine ran from April 25-26 (12:30pm Fri-7:30pm Sat). It was a really unique learning experience, something I really took a lot from doing.

The first few hours of Friday weren't too bad. One of the tips on the website was to not do to much, so I finished up a school project and had a Gossip Girl marathon. Around 8:30, though, I really started feeling hungry. It didn't help that my family got takeout from my favourite restaurant- which, I assure you, I skipped. One thing I realized in those few hours, though, is how much I thought about food, especially once it was taken away from me. So many times, I thought about getting up; grabbing a snack; and realized I couldn't. I never realized how much I really did eat/think about eating until I couldn't, and that was something that bothered me a lot. The fact that not eating for only a few hours made me constantly think of food, showed me how privileged I am to always have it just a few meters away. I drank a lot of tea and water, because I needed to stay hydrated.
I stayed up pretty late, so that I could sleep a fair bit into the next day.

Saturday wasn't too bad, which surprised me, because that was a long time. To be fair, I had a bit of a cold, so my appetite wasn't at 100%- so that made fasting a bit easier. Again, I was amazed at how many times I was thinking about getting food.

I finished off the famine with a meal at my Grandma's that evening, since we don't see her often. It amazed me how even though I didn't feel hungry, I ate a lot. I can't imagine how challenging it would be to be constantly living without food, and probably not having as much as I had afterwards. I especially cannot believe this happens daily to people just like us all over the world and is something we have not been able to solve yet. I really learned from this experience and will be doing again for sure next year.
If you are interested in participating, and are unable to give up food, you can also give up other things- technology as an example for 30 hours!

To learn more about the famine, you can visit the World Vision Youth Website here.

xx
- ♡ Alex ♡