Three Documentaries To Make You Think

For this post, I thought I would talk about something that I've been enjoying a lot lately; documentaries.

My mum is the kind of person that is always watching interesting documentaries, and we always end up having conversations about them. After deciding I want to study Sociology at university, I thought I should start watching things like that to help me to start thinking about society and the way things work more. So I started to watch documentaries, and I found all of them very interesting. I thought I would share a bit about the ones I find particularly interesting with you guys :)

Please let me know if you have seen any of these and let me know if there are any documentaries I should watch!

GirlHood

I really enjoyed this one. I always find these types of documentaries interesting when they follow young people who have gotten involved in crime, like the ones where they send kids who have gotten into a lot of trouble to prison for the day to make them realise where they could end up.

This documentary follows two girls in America who are serving time in a Juvenile system and it tells the stories of how they got to where they are. It was interesting to see just how people's backgrounds and things that happen to them can influence the things they do and it makes me wonder that if it wasn't for those circumstances, would they have acted differently?

TalHotBlond

TalHotBlond really got me thinking now. It made me realise that you can't trust people on the internet so easily because you don't know who they really are. You could think you're talking to someone the same age as you, but they could turn out to be some random person who is making up everything you think you know about them.

This documentary looks at the story of three people, a 48-year-old man, a girl who we are led to believe is 18 years old and a man who was murdered.
The story starts when 48-year-old Thomas Montgomery starts playing online casino games that also have chat rooms. This is where he meets the user Talhotblond. An 18-year-old girl. As they begin to talk, he realises that she wouldn't want to talk to a 48-year-old man, so he pretends to be a young marine. They go on to have an almost two-year romance. This is until his wife finds out and write a letter telling the girl exactly who he is. Once this had happened, Talhotblond started talking to one of Montgomery's co-workers, and she starts to play with both of them. The co-workers, who were once friends were no longer friends and led to a real life murder. Montgomery murdered his co-worker.

So you may think that this is where the story ends, but it doesn't end there. The most shocking bit comes at the end, and I think this is the most disturbing and frightening part of this whole story. The 18-year-old girl was never the one talking to Montgomery. I won't tell you who the girl was, you will have to watch to find out, but it is incredibly shocking.

I don't want to say too much more because I feel you need to watch it to be able to think about it properly. But this is the documentary that really stuck with me and me question how much trust I put in people who I meet online. This is definitely worth the watch!

West Of Memphis

Out of all the documentaries I watched, I think this one had to be the one that I found most interesting. It was also very shocking to see how this happens to so many innocent people in America. It stuns me how murderers are getting away with such hideous crimes and how it's becoming common that people are wrongly accused.

This documentary follows The West Memphis Three, three men (or boys, as they were so young when they were arrested) who were accused of brutally killing three young boys. The accused were Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelly, and James Baldwin. Echols was even sentenced to death by lethal injection. They were accused of killing the three young boys as part of a Satanic ritual. Why were they accused of this? Because they were different to other people. They didn't do the same things everyone else did, and they were from poorer backgrounds. Obviously being different means they must be brutal murderers
*insert eye roll here*.

They were released in 2011 after evidence showed that they were not linked to the boys in any way whatsoever. When you watch the documentary, the story of what happened is really surprising regarding some of the marks that were found on the young boys. And the revelation of who actually murdered them is heart breaking. The thing that struck me most with this documentary is that this always happens to the lower class people. Just like in Making a murderer, these boys were poor, and it disgusts me just what money can let people get away with. Another thing again that disgusts me is how they take advantage of people, in this documentary they did the same thing they did to Brendan Dassey, they manipulated a confession out of someone who wasn't mentally all there. I don't understand how people can get away with this kind of stuff. I highly recommend watching this, it is really, really interesting.

I hope you guys like this, I know I enjoy writing it. I will definitely be writing posts like this again in the future. What other documentaries should I watch? Let me know in the comments.

P.S, all of these can be found on Netflix.

NutriBullet Smoothies - My first creation

Georgia here and I'm really excited for this post because this smoothie recipe is amazing and I'm really excited to share it.

What will you need?

• Spinach
• Bananas
• Strawberries
• Blueberries
• Raspberries
• Water
• Flax seeds and goji berries (Optional, but I thought it was a good touch. Did you know that 30g of flax seeds contains the same amount of antioxidants as 60 cups of Broccoli? Or 100 slices of whole wheat bread!? Its crazy!)

Here's how to make the smoothie -

1. Place two handfuls of spinach into the blender. This smoothie contains 50% greens and 50% fruit. 50% of spinach is about two handfuls.
2. Now you can add the fruit. Half the banana, chop the heads of the strawberries and throw in the blueberries and raspberries.
3. Now you add the flax seeds. Measure out 30g of the flaxseed and goji berry mix (I got a bag of this from Holland and Barret) and sprinkle it on top of the smoothie mix.
4. Finally, add in water up to the max line of the nutribullet cup, or until the ingredients are covered. Once they are covered you can attach the blade and blend!

I really hope you guys enjoy this recipe, I think it tastes amazing. Will definitely be sharing more recipes when I start trying new things. What's your favourite smoothie combo? Let me know in the comments!

Hello, 2017.

Hi blog,

Long time no see! I've been thinking about writing again for a long time now and now I have the motivation to come back and 2017 will be the year where I start blogging regularly. There's so many exciting things going on in my life right now and I would love to write about them.

As the new year approaches I find myself feeling really excited. Usually I don't look forward to the new year starting, it never really feels any different. But this year I feel different, this is the year I'm going to put myself out there, enjoy myself more, stop worrying and finally do the things I've said I'm going to do like eat healthy and exercise more. 2017 hasn't even started yet but I can feel that it's going to be a good year. I'm turning eighteen, I'm going to university in September and I just feel like its going to be a good year. I can't wait to see what 2017 holds for me. I know that I'm just going to have fun, I'm not going to worry as much, I'm not going to overthink. I'm just going to have fun and enjoy life.

I also feel really motivated with getting healthy. I got a Nutribullet for Christmas and I've been reading up on their six week transformation plan and it sounds amazing. I haven't felt motivated to eat and do better in a long time but after receiving this gift I feel motivated and its a really nice feeling to have. I'm going to eat better and be more active. I also got a Fitbit for Christmas and I'm determined to reach my step goal everyday. I won't beat myself up if I have treats or whatever, it happens. I'm just going to try and do better but still enjoy life. I plan on sharing this kind of stuff on my blog. In fact, I'm starting today and will be sharing my favourite smoothie recipe so far with you all.

As I reflect on 2016 I realise that I am really, really happy. Possibly the happiest I've ever been. I have awesome family, friends, a job and the things to come in 2017 are so, so exciting. Who knows where I'll be this time next year. I can't wait to find out.

So hello 2017, I can't wait to see you.

Why won't companies take a chance on young people?

If you're a teenager and looking for a job then I have a feeling you will be able to relate to this blog post.

As I'm now approaching the end of my first year of college I feel like I'm ready for a job. I now know the kind of work to expect from college and I feel like I can now manage my work and a job. 

I first started looking for jobs just after I started college last year. I didn't have any luck then but shrugged it off, thinking that I will put my focus onto my college work and I would look next year. Now I've started to apply for jobs again. All I hear is one thing. No, no, no and no. Why? Because I don't have any experience. This is beginning to make me angry because no where will take a chance on young people like myself. I know I'm not the only one and it isn't fair. We are trying to get experience but how can we when no one will take a chance? I have applied for so many different places over the past few months and it's starting to get me down. It's like we're not given a chance because we don't have experience but how are we suppose to get experience when no one will take a chance? I do have some experience due to having to complete 30 hours of work placement for my course but it's obviously not enough.

It makes me not want to bother because getting no's every single time is just making my hope disappear. Why don't companies take a chance on us when they can pretty much mold young people like myself into whatever they want?

I don't know if it's the same in the rest of the country but I know it's like this in Worksop and even in some of Sheffield.

What are young people suppose to do to get onto the career ladder? If you have any tips or advice or know of any companies that would take a young person on part time then please comment because I would love to know.

Thanks,
Chronicles xox

YouTubers: Idols or Glorified Sales people?

In recent years the popularity of YouTube has sky rocketed, with a new breed of celebrity emerging, many of those being in what is now called 'Team Internet'. Many YouTube stars are now bringing out their own products, getting book deals and even going on tour. To many people, mostly parents, this is an incredibly shocking thing. How can people make money from just sitting behind a camera, talking about themselves, different products (that tend to be too expensive for most viewers) they have (possibly items brands have sent them) and playing games and talking about them? This now leads me to the question, Are YouTubers idols or just glorified sales people?


Many of today's YouTubers have an influence of today's young people, more so than they would have on young people five or six years ago. Many of today's youtubers give off a squeaky clean image, as if they are the most perfect people who never do anything wrong. Examples of YouTubers would be people such as Zoella, Niomi Smart and Alfie Deyes. There are many more of them. This is a brilliant thing because these YouTubers are giving a positive influence to young people and they're also making young people aware of problems such as anxiety and are helping them to find ways to over come and help them to deal with the anxiety. They also support charities and do things like auction off a pair of shoes or take part in a twelve hour broadcast for the Stand Up To Cancer event. Now although they do all these good things there is a side to it where they could possibly be taking advantage of us young people. In a way, we pay for their living, their life that is very obviously full of luxuries. Many of their videos are based around products they have have, which are likely to have been sent to them, some of these costing a lot of money. Money that many young people don't have. By talking about these many of their viewers will want the product, just because that particular person spoke about it. This in turn is earning them money as well as making other companies money. So are they just glorified sales people who also share parts of their lives that they want to? When they bring out their own products they also ask you to go and buy it, which many people do just because of the fact that it's a product made by that person. The products usually aren't cheap either. This makes the YouTubers lots of money and allows them to buy houses reaching into the millions price wise as well as many other luxuries. That's money that many of us will most likely never have. So are YouTubers these lovely, normal people who can be brilliant idols to young people or are they glorified sales people who take advantage of their fans to build their own fortune? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

P.S, this isn't my opinion, I just want to see what other people think. 

Pear Shape Book Review

Hey guys. I recently read a book that I enjoyed so I thought I would do a review. Hope you enjoy :)

Books like Pear Shaped are my favourites. It's the type of book that makes you laugh, smile and cry and it's also so good that you don't want to put it down until you've read at least another chapter. 

Pear Shaped, written by Stella Newman,  follows the life of Sophie Klien, a pudding developer from London. It tells the story of how Sophie falls in love with Mr right but realises that Mr right isn't so right after all. Sophie meets a guy in a bar on a Friday night and at first he seems perfect and they have everything in common but as time goes on we realise that  James, the guy from the bar, isn't so perfect. He has money and thinks that he can do what ever he wants because of that. He's in his forties and wants someone half his age who looks a certain way. He wants someone who's stick thin and doesn't eat much at all. He even goes as far as telling her how he likes her but he doesn't think he can settle for someone who looks like her, someone who isn't a model. Sophie struggled with this a lot and at first she thought she should be the one to change. She lost her confidence for while but she got it back and realised that she deserved better. 

 It made me realise just how important it is to love  yourself and do what you love. No man should tell you what you can and can't do.I like how Sophie realises that in the end and that she doesn't let him ruin her life completely. She picks herself back up and finds someone who will love her for her. 

Another great thing about this story is learning more about the dessert industry and how it all works. I also like that Sophie goes on to do something she loves and sticks to what she thinks is good instead of listening to her sleazy boss. 

Overall I think this was a good book but towards the end after Sophie and James had split it dragged a lot and I must admit I did only skim through some parts. Even though the book did drag towards the end it did give an important lesson that I think a lot of readers can learn from. 
I did enjoy the book but it wasn't one of my favourites. 

What's the last book you read? Recommend me some good books with an element of romance in them in the comments :) 

Nutella Recipes

Hey guys so I've been loving nutella lately and lots of it. So I thought I might try some different ways of eating it. I found these recipes  that are amazing and thought I would share them. I hope you enjoy. Share your favourite recipes below :) 

This recipe is for a nutella hot chocolate, it's easy and delicious and only uses a few ingredients. 

You will need: 
Milk
nutella
Cream 
Marshmallows 
A mug 
A pan

Step one:
Fill up your mug with milk. I usually fill my mug up pretty close to the top but I leave enough room to add in cream later on. Once you have got your milk in your mug go ahead and pour it into your pan.

Step two:
Turn the heat on and stir the milk with a wooden spoon until it's just starting to get hot. Once its hot grab your nutella and add two tablespoons to the milk.

Step three: 
Stir the milk and nutella mixture until the nutella has melted. Once it has melted pour the hot chocolate into your mug.

Step four:
This is the best part, adding the cream and marshmallows. You can pretty much do what you like with this. I added on a load of cream with mini marshmallows.

Step 5:
ENJOY 

Now this recipe didn't go as it was suppose to. They were suppose to be fudgy and chewy but instead they're cakey and crispy. (In a good way) I was kind of glad they went wrong because they turned into whoopie pie style things. And what makes this even better is that you only need four ingredients!

What you will need: 

1/2 a cup plus one tablespoon of flour 
1 extra large egg
1 cup of nutella 
1 tsp of baking powder 
Nutella to add into the middle 

Step one :
Add all ingredients into a bowl and then mix together until it forms a dough that has no visible egg or flower in it. 

Step two: 
Take pieces of dough and roll them into little balls. Don't make them too big and try and make them the same sizes. Once you've done that put them onto a greased baking tray and then put into the oven. You know they're done when they're light brown with little cracks on the top (you will see what I mean in the finished picture) 
Extra tip, when you're rolling the balls put a little bit of oil or cooking spray on your hands to stop the dough from sticking to your hands.

Step three:
Once cooled turn them over on the tray and match each cookie up to another one of a similar size. 

Step four:
Spread a little bit of nutella on one of the flat sides of a cookie and then sandwich with another cookie. Once you've done that sprinkle a little icing sugar on top and you're all done!

I hope you like these and be sure to share pictures if you try them!