JSC: Happiness is...

 Hello!

 You are maybe wondering what JSC stands for. It stands for July Song Challenge, and is a challenge I have invented for myself using the daily prompts of the Fat Mum Slim July Photo Challenge.

 Basically the original challenge is to take a photo each day of the month on a specific theme. I decided to twist it to pick a song that I feel suits each theme and share it with you, my readers, along with the story of why this song is important to me, and why it fits the theme if it isn't obvious.

 The story of my challenge is that I decided I wanted to choose a song a day for all of July, and that each song must have a theme. I wanted the themes to come from an external source rather than me making them up as I wanted a real challenge where I may have to really think to find a song that fits.

 My friend Kylie (click green link for her blog) had done the FMS photo challenge a previous month which was how I had heard of the monthly challenges and I decided it would be a good source of a daily theme. So, please note: I don't have any links or endorsement with Fat Mum Slim or the photo challenge; I'm simply using it as a source of daily themes.

 Day 1's theme is "Happiness is..." I had to think for a bit, as there are many songs that make me happy but in the end I settled for Love Changes (Everything) by Climie Fisher.

 This was my second-favourite song for a bit - my favourite being Is This Love? by Alison Moyet. The reason why the latter is not my happiness song is that I just feel Love Changes (Everything) is more upbeat and therefore better fits the theme.

 It a song that makes you happy and hopeful and you just want to get up and dance to it! Well, I do; who knows, I may be in a minority, but you cannot deny that it is a song that fills you with hope - even if things are going badly, love can change everything.

 Plus it is a beautiful and well-produced song that is simply nice on the ears and I think would make enjoyable listening - and make you happy - even if you couldn't understand English, because the tone of the song is just so positive.

 I wrote a post about this song when I first started this blog two years ago, at which time I was obsessed with the song; feel free to check it out.

 So, I intend to pick a song a day. I probably won't post daily, as I once did that for a bit and I saw these posts got less views than others on the blog, which suggests that people maybe don't have time to see each daily post before the next one arrives. So I'll probably be posting three or four days worth of songs at a time.

 I hope you enjoy them! Also, watch out for none-song-challenge-related posts as there will be some of them as well. I have a post linking royalty and music planned to celebrate the birth of the royal baby, who is due some time this month, so watch this space!

 Thanks for reading,

 Liz x

Song: Love Changes (Everything) - Climie Fisher - 1987

Pictures of You

 ¡Hola!

 Today I got a lot of work done on one of the video projects I have going, which is good. I've also been to zumba, which was very enjoyable as always, although somewhat tiring! But I do love it.

 I have been listening a lot to Pictures of You by The Cure.

 I discovered this song the other day when I was listening to A Letter To Elise on YouTube and someone said on the comments that it sounded like Pictures of You. I had been meaning to listen to the latter anyway as it tended to come up on the related videos section on YouTube and I was keen to see what it sounded like.

 I listened and decided it sounds a little bit like A Letter To Elise, but not a great deal, and it is by all means a song completely in its own right. I have definitely heard it before, probably on one of our old family car cassette tapes which are full of Cure songs. However, I had sort of forgotten about this song until I rediscovered it the other day. And I'm glad I did rediscover it!

 It is very beautiful, as are a lot of Cure songs such as A Letter To Elise which I mentioned in a previous blog post. The musicality is brilliant; the pacing flawless. The full version of the song has a very long intro (during which, be warned, there is some flashing, psychedelic imagery in the video), and normally I don't like long, self-indulgent intros, but this one is actually gorgeous and adds so much to the song. It lifts the song from being a very nice song to almost a work of art; a story with a prologue, beginning, middle and end. And the video is bizarre but I like it!

 I have to go now because it is raining very, very heavily and we may end up with lightning in which case I will have to turn off the computer. So, I will sign off now.

 Happy Monday! I hope that whoever you are, wherever you are, you're having a nice day ♥

 Liz x

Song: Pictures of You - The Cure - 1990

D of E and the Cranberries

 Hello! 

 Well, today is the first of July, and I have had a very busy day training for my Duke of Edinburgh's Award expedition which I will be going on this month. In training we learnt first aid, navigation techniques and how to pack a rucksack properly - although I did remember the rucksack bit from the last expedition I went on!

 I've been on many Duke of Edinburgh's Award (D of E) expeditions - I have achieved the Silver Award and am now working towards my Gold Award. For readers overseas who may not be familiar with this award, it involves doing, on a regular basis across a period of time: voluntary work, a sport or physical activity and a skill. 

 We also have to go on a series of camping expeditions in places like the Lake District and the Yorkshire Dales (both very beautiful parts of the world). For the Gold Award we also have to go on a residential course in which we do some sort of volunteering. 

 I really enjoy working towards my D of E, because I get to learn new skills and I have made lots of great friends in the process. And if I achieve my Gold Award it will be presented to me at one of the royal Palaces by either the Duke of Edinburgh (Prince Philip, the Queen's husband) or the Earl of Wessex (Prince Edward, the Queen's youngest son). Which would be absolutely amazing!

 There are many songs which I associate with D of E expeditions for various reasons; usually because I hear them on the minibus on the way there and they become stuck in my head for the whole trip! But sometimes, they are just songs that felt particularly relevant and which I just keep playing again and again in my head to keep me going on the harder days when it rains on us or I'm homesick or everyone's exhausted.

 Days like that can be so hard. But for every moment when you think you are going to give up, there is a moment of magic; reaching the top of a mountain and gazing down at the view below; seeing the sun break through the clouds after the rain; seeing gorgeous baby lambs frolicking; chatting and laughing as a group; wandering through long, waving grass with the wind in your hair; those moments that make it all worthwhile and make you say to yourself; "I am so happy I chose to do this."

 One D of E song for me was Linger by the Cranberries. 

I feel I should tell you that although the full video is worth watching properly when you have time; if you are in a rush you can skip to about thirty five seconds in, which is when the song actually begins.

 I had known this song before, but was reminded of it when it came on the radio in the minibus before what was, if I remember rightly, my very first Silver expedition to the Yorkshire Dales. I love this song - it was on a cassette tape that my family used to play in our car (yes, along with the Cure, for those who read my last blog entry!) when my brother and I were younger.

 The song on the cassette was a live version and Dolores O'Riordan did a lot of working the crowd, shouting, "I wanna hear you!" and whatnot towards the end of the song; something that always amused my brother and me.

 Hearing the song again on the minibus on the way to D of E put a smile on my face, and I was chuffed that I could remember it as it had been ages since I'd last heard it.

 It is a beautiful song, and Dolores O'Riordan has a unique and very lovely voice. This song is also quite unique, I think - unique and haunting and a pleasure to listen to. It is nearly twenty years old; something I cannot believe. It has not lost any of its beauty - I believe that it will always be perfect and precious and quite simply a stunning song.

 I will probably end up writing more about D of E songs over this month - as well as just about songs I love generally. For those of you who don't know, I have challenged myself to blog every day that it is possible to (ie whenever I am at home with Internet access) in July. 

 It will keep the blog full of new content for you to read, and will also be writing practice for me - I love writing and would love to be a full-time writer or author one day in the future.

 Thanks for reading,

 Have a great July,

 Liz x

Song: Linger - The Cranberries - 1993