7 things you shouldn’t do when dating a teacher

Posted in Thoughts by Joanna Malefaki

So, today’s post is about deal breakers when dating a female teacher. So, if you want luv forever avoid these things. If you wanna break up, then print out this list! 😀 😀

So, here is what you shouldn’t do:

💔 Send text messages full of spelling mistakes

It is so hard to get out of teacher mode, so if you send a text message full of spelling mistakes, she will notice and probably be put off. What’s worse? You may receive a text message or a comment on your bad spelling (OK once or twice acceptable, but more than that, then there will be trouble :p). Do be careful of the following common spelling mistakes 😀 :

your vs. you’re

ad vs. add

loose vs. lose

their vs. there

💔 Use bad grammar

Sure, a slip is fine, but not all the time. When on a date, refer to your grammar book!!

💔 Lose her favourite pen/notebook

She has a ‘thing’ with her stationery. A good pen is sacred. Her favourite notebook is precious. Don’t touch it, don’t lose it. Just don’t mess with her school supplies!

💔 Complain about the stuff that go missing and end up being at school

I guess teachers often take stuff from home to work. She is on a tight budget and needs lots of props for work. Her home is where she finds most of the things she can take into work 😀

💔 Not listen to her whine about work

I guess this applies for every profession, but dating a teacher means that you are with someone who is thinking about work 24/7. She talks shop…… a lot.

💔 Not be supportive towards her studies

As teachers, we study a lot. Teaching is about constant learning. So, there will be days when she will sit in front of the pc spending endless hours searching for the perfect material to use with her ‘kids’.

💔 Moan about holidays

OK there a couple of unacceptable ‘moans’

#1 Moaning about not being able to take spontaneous holidays. Yeap. Forget about that. Not gonna happen during a school year.

#2 Moaning about having to spend lots of money on holidays. Well, let’s face it, teachers can go on holidays during Christmas, Easter and Summer. All high season periods lads.

So, avoid these things and you will remain in her good books. Happy Valentine’s everyone. Of course, this post is humorous cause your teacher girlfriend is amazing!!!!

Special thanks to Deirdre for the ‘moaning’ tip ❤ ❤

Please do subscribe to my blog if you liked what you read. It does help me out a lot (look at the sidebar on ways to follow ❤ ❤ ). Connect with me on Pinterest / Twitter/ Instagram. Please ‘pin’ this post if you enjoyed it.

Thanks for stopping by.

xox

8Feb2016

9 things I learnt from being a ‘failure’

Posted in Thoughts by Joanna Malefaki

Everyone shares success stories. How to make money, how to be a super-duper business woman/man, how to succeed here, there, and further. Well, this post is about failing. Being a failed business woman. THIS is not a success story….. or is it? It’s more about me, finding myself, and learning from my trial and error. I will use the word failure but more for dramatic purposes. In my view, my story is a story of an unsuccessful business venture, but it is also a story of redefining myself, looking back and learning.

My story

I am an English teacher. In 2007 I opened my own language school in Crete, Greece. I had been teaching English for quite a while. I had also spent many years developing professionally. I had an MA and I was working on getting more teacher qualifications. I had worked for other English langauge schools and my previous employers were happy with my performance. My students loved me. Taking the next step (opening a business to teach English as a foreign language) seemed natural, expected even. So, I did, with my sister. In 2014 when bills and tax just kept piling up and the number of students remained the same and too low, we closed the business. It was not an easy decision. It was a very long thought process, but we decided it was time to pull the plug.

I was so sad. While people did not say it to me, I could feel it. They felt sorry for me. I had failed as a business owner. Why me though? Wasn’t I good at teaching? Was I not a good teacher? A person? What did I not have? I spent months thinking about the things I could have changed. What would have happened if I had chosen X approach as opposed to Y? 7 years went down the drain…. or did they?

Guess what? Two years later, the sad days are over. Today, I am doing a job I love (I teach English online) and I have learnt so much because of this experience. When you fail, you reflect. Reflection leads to finding yourself.

I am strong(-er)

I put my heart, soul, and hours into something that did not work out. I went through mourning stages for a professional loss. There were days when I was doubting my capabilities, but today I am fine. My world did not end. The world ends only when you die. You can handle everything else.

I cannot control everything

Yes, you can control things that are tangible, in your surroundings, but you cannot control everything. How was I supposed to know that in 2008, Greece was going to be struck by the biggest financial crisis it has ever faced? The control freak in me was shattered.

Better sorry than safe

I took a personal, professional, and financial risk that failed, but if I hadn’t, I would always be wondering,” What if…” Now it’s not a ” what if” any more, it’s a “been there, done that”.

I am a fighter

I stuck to my guns for 7 years until it was time to let go.

I don’t like letting go

I am a workaholic. I love my work. My language school was my “baby”.I was hoping for better days. They did not come. Letting go is hard.

I take risks

There was a fifty-fifty chance of success. I didn’t succeed, but I did take a risk. I tried and then came error.

I am a dreamer

I wanted to start my own business. I really wanted to. My emotions got in the way of my critical thinking. Our wants are not always our needs. What we want may not always go the way we want it to. Just because I wanted something to succeed so badly, doesn’t mean it was going to.

I am not a girl boss

If you want to be a business woman, you got to take action when people/customers are not honoring your agreement. When someone does not pay, the service should be cut (In Greece you have to issue a receipt for a service even if you do not get paid that month. The government assumes that at some point you will get paid and that’s why you get taxed). I cannot afford to be a softy. I was running a business not a charity!

I am not a failure

Just because I failed, doesn’t mean I am a failure, and anyway, what is a failure? This could have been my “when one door closes, another one opens”. I learnt something about myself, my life, my priorities. So, instead of a failure, let’s call me a learner. At this point, I am more like, ” So you closed your language school? Eh! Big woop!”

My story pin.jpg

Thanks for stopping by. Don’t forget to subscribe somehow cause if you don’t, you will miss out on all my fabulous posts :D!

❤ ❤ ❤

27Jan2016

Top tips on how to avoid plagiarism: being a good blogger!

Posted in Blogging, Thoughts by Joanna Malefaki

I teach academic English (English for university level studies) and one of the biggest challenges is helping learners avoid plagiarism. So? Well, I have been a let’s say, “lifestyle/beauty/planner” blogger for quite a while now, and have noticed that lots of people are plagiarising without even realising it. So, today I decided to go into ‘teacher mode’ and talk a bit about plagiarism and try to help you avoid it while giving you some writing tips taken out of a uni course!!I know we are not in academia, but we write and we need to follow some sort of writing etiquette.

But first, let’s take a step back and define plagiarism

What is plagiarism?

If you write something that you read somewhere, were inspired by someone else and got an idea, but you do not mention that person in your blog post, then you are plagiarising.

A more proper definition? According to the Cambridge online dictionary, plagiarism is

to use another person’s ideas or work and pretend that it is your own.

http://www.dictionary.cambridge.org

So, how can you avoid plagiarism?

Before I answer that question, let me just make a few points clear:

I will be using the word cite in this post. Citing means mentioning the author/website you got ideas or parts of a text from. We do not just cite people. We need to cite websites as well. Have a look above at how I quoted the Cambridge dictionary.
Can all words be paraphrased? No. Key words cannot be paraphrased. How will you paraphrase the word tennis or piano without sounding weird? It’s not possible. Also, there is something called common knowledge which of course does not need to be referenced and does not mean you are plagiarising. What am I talking about? Brad divorced Jennifer. We all know this. Greece is in recession. We know this too!These things are general knowledge, so they do not need paraphrasing or referencing. If I were to write a blog post about ways DNA affects beauty and were to do research, then I would definitely need to reference,cite someone.

Is plagiarising a big deal?

Yes, yes, yes. It’s stealing. It’s disrespectful and finally place yourself in the plagiarised person’s shoes. How do you feel? It can also get you into big trouble.

Tip 1: All about permission

First of all, check for copyright restrictions of what you decided to use in your blog post. Maybe the person who has inspired you has a license or copyright regulation that does not allow copying.

If you are not sure, then you should try to contact the writer. Leave a comment, tweet or email that blogger and get permission to use his/her ideas/words.

Tip 2: Quote or paraphrase?

Once you have permission start looking at the text you want to reproduce in your own blog post. How well do you understand it? Is it easy to paraphrase or will you need to use a direct quote?

If you read something that is too difficult to paraphrase, then don’t. Use a quote instead. You are more likely to mess up if you do not have the language to paraphrase. You may be thinking you are paraphrasing when in fact you are not.

Tip 3 : A good paraphrase

Paraphrasing to avoid plagiarism does not mean changing a few words. Nope. You need to change the structure and wording of the other person’s text. You need to use synonyms, different word forms and sentence structure/word order. YOUR TEXT SHOULD NOT LOOK LIKE WHAT YOU ARE PARAPHRASING.

How can paraphrase well?Any suggestions?

Well, take out your thesaurus.Also, find derivatives and then rewrite. Once you have finished rewriting, rewrite again. A great way to avoid plagiarising is by redrafting the other person’s text as many times as possible. You want to say the same things but in a different way.

Note-taking (on paper) is a good way to a paraphrase. What do I mean? Look at your original text and make notes, jot down the information you want to use and try to change the words while doing this. Reducing the words is actually a safer option (summarise). In fact, summarising instead of paraphrasing may be the only way to go. I always tell my students, ” Try to make a long text, a very short one. Paraphrase in a sophisticated way. Go from long version to short version”.

(Summarising: make a text shorter. Paraphrasing: say something in different words. You should paraphrase and summarise)

Extra tip 2

Google your work. Yes, you read correctly. Put your paragraph in Google’s search engine and see if it comes up. If you see your text is popping up in the search results, then you are not doing a good job at paraphrasing.

What about tags/challenges?

You may ask, “What about tags, challenges, linkups?If someone challenges me, do I still need to mention them? They already know I will be using their idea”. Of course you do!! Even if another person knows you will be writing something based on their work, you still need to cite them. Linking that person’s website does not mean you will lose readers (tick the open in new page option when you link other websites), it means you are being a considerate blogger!

Ok so I paraphrased/summarised. Now what?

How do I cite (reference)?

Make sure you mention the original source in your work. Link that source to your post. I read somewhere on blah blah’s website does not count as citing!! Say who wrote it and where you found it. If it’s a book, mention the book and author. If you do not want this (mentioning the book title in your actual post, use asterisks and have an acknowledgment or reference list at the end of your post!!I strongly suggest though that you mention everything in the post, not at the end.

E.g. X in his book “title of book” (you can use “” or put the title in italics) mentions that Direct quote OR papraphrase.

Finally, plagiarism is not only about stealing other people’s ideas/words. You can plagiarise pics as well. I will talk about that in a later on post.

I hope you enjoyed this post. If you want to read more about plagiarism, check out my writing/blogging page.I talk about plagiarism in an older post. Still want more info? *You may want to get R. Harris’s this book on Amazon It has tips on how to improve your writing and looks at plagiarism in detail (especially unintentional plagiarism).

Do subscribe to my blog if you like what I have to say (it does help me out and thanks if you do). Connect with me on Pinterest / Twitter/ Instagram.Maybe even give my Facebook page some TLC? Don’t forget to ‘pin’ this post 🙂 Remember the comments section is all yours. OK!! Enough with the promo!

Thanks for stopping by 🙂

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12Jan2016

You have two blogs? Tips to make it (kinda) work

Posted in Blogging, Planning, Thoughts by Joanna Malefaki

I have been an educational blogger since 2013. In September I started a 2nd blog because I cannot keep on bombarding my (edu)readers with girlie/lifestyle posts. That’s how this blog was born. But as 3 months have gone by, I can tell you that it is not as easy as it seems. Today, I am going to share with you some of the things that have worked for me and some that I am still trying to figure out.

Things you need to ask yourself

Why am I blogging?

This is probably the most important question. What do you want to achieve through blogging? For me, at the moment, blogging is a source of fun and pleasure. I enjoy it. I like sharing my thoughts, interacting with you guys, and learning (because you do need to do a bit of research for some posts). I also think that blogging is an outlet for my writer/author aspirations. When I was a kid, I wanted to become a writer. I actually wrote little books (yeap).

Niche vs. no niche?

Next thing you need to think about is whether your blogs are going to be focused on something or more general blogs. I have one blog that focuses on teaching English as a second language. That’s my niche. I mostly actually write about English for Specific Purposes which is teaching Business and Academic English. So, I have somewhat of a niche within a niche.

Regarding this blog though, I am still trying to find my voice. I do know that a lot of my posts have to do with planning, beauty, being colourblind, and shopping/reviews. I guess this all goes under the lifestyle umbrella (?).

Finding a voice and deciding on what you will be focusing on takes time. You also see what your readers like and if you like the same things, this may help you.

Do I have the time?

This goes back to the first bullet point. Why are you blogging and do you have enough time to blog? Intertwined these two folks.

Since one blog is not enough, are there any benefits of having two? Can one help the other?

For me, yes. I have been edublogging, but cause I am a wacky edublogger, I did write various loose-r edu blog posts. Posts about planning, books, being colourblind, even how I spent my summer in the UK. So, I was able to reblog/adapt the posts here.

You can get readers from one blog, read your other blog. I do have lovely teachers who read my edu blog,they pop over here as well, and follow this blog too (thanks dears xxx), but I do not bombard my teacher friends with the blog posts on this blog. “So, what should I do?” you may ask. To share (with your existing readers) or to not share?That’s the question! I guess this is up to you. I do not like being pushy.

How I am going about….’doubleblogging’

Social media: Because I didn’t want to bombard the people who were reading my educational posts with my ‘lifestyle’ ones, I decided to make different social media accounts. So, this blog has its own Twitter/Facebook page/email account. My Instagram is mostly for here and my Pinterest board is for anything.

Making it work: I plan. A lot. I write down my ideas for both blogs and then try to squeeze in posts. Getting ideas is easy. Finding the time to write is difficult. This is probably the biggest challenge. It is very hard to keep two blogs going because I am a full-time teacher.

Sharing and promoting is also very time-consuming. I do schedule posts and I am using Buffer, but it is still hard to promote what I write. So this is something you need to think about as well (referring you back to bullet point numero uno).

So, that’s all folks. These are my thoughts on having two blogs. A few suggestions on how to make it work. I am still learning though. I will be back with a follow-up post. No worries.

Now, this is the part where I beg for subscribers and followers etc. etc. But anyhow, here goes. Do follow my blog if you want to read more from me. Connect with me on Pinterest/ Twitter/ Instagram.Maybe even give my Facebook page some TLC? The comments section is all yours. Check out my writing/blogging page for more posts about blogging/writing.

Blog post pin

Thanks for reading.

Joanna

5Jan2016

You look too pretty to be good at …..anything

Posted in Beauty, Thoughts by Joanna Malefaki

So, before we start, let me just say that this post is not about me saying how hot I am (which I ain’t by the way). It is more about assumptions about women… made by women. Yeap!!

I mean being underestimated by a woman stinks. Especially if there is a connection between looks and effectiveness. Don’t girls know we gotta stick together? I mean c’mon! So, here is my story.

Some background info

I am a teacher and teachers get observed. That means someone comes into your classroom, watches you teach and makes suggestions on how to improve.

The pretty teacher

I am a normal looking teacher/woman. Nothing special, and if you ask me (and others) I could lose a bit of kilos here and there. But, I manage, and at 40,I feel fine about the way I look. Now, the next thing I want to ask is, “why do some people (in my line of work and other professions of course) assume that if you want to look decent/good, you probably focus more on your looks and less on your job (teaching)?” My answer to that is, ” OM freakin G”.

Now, I am going to tell you a little story. I like girlie stuff (Really? You couldn’t have the guessed that now, could you?). I do not go to extremes, but I like a bit of makeup, my comfy heels and my nice perfumes. When I go to class, I do pay attention to the way I look. is it the most important thing? Nope. Does it matter? Sure, why not?

I was going to get observed and it was a Friday. Friday at work in the UK also means going to dinner or the pub (Yeah, if I am going to go out, I will put in extra effort to look presentable. Sue me :p). So, I spent 5 mins using a curling iron, I put on a bit of makeup on, perfume and went to work. I looked OK. When I walked into the office, I got a few compliments. A nice ambient atmosphere. We also talked shop. ” What are you going to teach? Can I see your lesson plan… yada, yada, yada”. And then, this. One of my (female) colleagues said, ” So, X will observe me. He doesn’t care about whether I look good or not. He will focus on my teaching”. Me , “…..” .

edited photo

Excuse me? Should I have gone to work with a paper bag on my head, a wrinkly shirt, and smell of a cheapo deo spray? So, if I am blonde (fake blonde), wear makeup, and nice clothes, will someone automatically think that I won’t be good at my job? That I cannot teach? My co-worker made the assumption that I put effort into my looks because I was lacking as a teacher! And this was a woman! Tstststs (that’s the Greek sound of disapproval).

I wonder. Do looks really matter? Will you automatically think that if someone looks horrible, they are better at their job? I guess you won’t. So why is the opposite so easy to assume? And why would a woman be the one to say that to me? Mind boggling!!Sad even!

FYI: my observation went great!

Have you ever faced these kind of prejudice/bias? Feel free to comment below. This is the part where I beg for followers :). Subscribe to my blog if you like what I have to say. If you don’t, gimme another chance. Check out this post.Connect with me on Pinterest/ Twitter/ Instagram.Maybe even give my Facebook page some TLC? Remember the comments section is all yours. This post was first published on my edublog. I have adapted it here. Thanks for reading!

Makeup (2).jpg

2Jan2016

On the brink of 40? Oh man!!10 overgeneralisations to think about.

Posted in In your 40s, Thoughts by Joanna Malefaki

So, there are numerous urban myths and loads of overgeneralization about when a woman turns 40. What she can or cannot do. What has/ will happen to her. Let’s see a few, let’s have a laugh, and let me, the almost 40-year-old, tell you what I think.

Overgeneralisations

#1

Things start falling apart (healthwise). Hmmm. Not sure how I feel about that. Unfortunately, there is some truth in that one though. I do know that I already have back and knee pains but I think that’s cause I am fat, not 40. You do need to start being even more serious about your gyno and other health-related issues though.

#2

You need to invest in your skin care. No more creams labeled ‘first signs of aging’ for you gal. Nope. You actually gotta kick it up a notch. Get grown up skin care. But do you? I mean, for me, the best skin care breaks down to 5 things:

Good genes
Sleeping
Relaxing
Not stressing
Drinking loads of water (mental note to self: drinking coffee does not count as water!).

#3

You can’t lose weight the way you used to. Yeah. It is harder, but not impossible. Cutting down on the chips does help (mental note to myself. Stop eating junk food).

#4

Your biological clock is ticking like crazy. Ummm. Nope. Mine isn’t. I love kids, but I don’t look at them with envy. I do not worry about not having children. I actually think that this is cause I am around kids all the time (I am a teacher) and I have a good relationship with my ‘kids’ (students).

#5

Single? Not married? Something is wrong with you. If you are not married by 40, you probably never will be. Or you will probably find another poor soul who has something wrong with him (:p).Oh and what’s worse? You may now be called a freakin….. ‘spinster’. Really? Nope. It just means that you were:

In the wrong place at the wrong time (the ‘one’ wasn’t there with ya).
You have been busy with other stuff.
You have had relationships but you didn’t wanna marry those dudes.
You are at an age where compromising is really, really hard.
You were just unlucky.

You just don’t wanna get married!

#6

You can afford big girl stuff. Hmm. I guess you can. I see 20 year olds wearing designer bags and I am still buying from Zara? Well, yeah.While I would love a Chanel or Mulberry, there is no way I am gonna spend a fortune on them. I prefer to travel. And anyways, I am a teacher for God’s sake. We are underpaid!

#7

Your going out stamina is the same as when you were 20. Yeah…. Ummm…. Nope. I, for one, need a whole day to recover from a hang over. I sleep all day after a night out late.

Pins 40s

#8

You’re 40, you can’t like girlie stuff. You are mature. Yeah right! I like stickers, fluffy stuff, pink. I draw a line here. If all the other overgeneralization may/do have some truth in them,this one doesn’t!! It can’t!!

#9

You start freaking out about your age when you turn 40. Hell yeah!!! Haha. This one is (this one as in….. me).

#10

You are more wise. You have your crap sorted out. Yeah……. Nah……

BUT

Oh! Just forget about the overgeneralizations. Life is short. 40 is just a number. Have fun. I know I am.

This was written on the 2nd of January. The 8th of January is my big 4/0. I’ll let you know how I feel then :). Check out my latest post on how to glow and look natural at …. 40 (I know. I know. It’s just a number).

Happy Bday to all the other cappies out there!

xxx

29Dec2015

“I have no goals miss” said the Greek kid

Posted in Thoughts by Joanna Malefaki

I am an English language teacher (EFL) and I teach kids/teenagers and adults how to speak and write (communicate) in English. On the last day of school, and since I am really into planning and micro-goal setting, I thought I’d ask my students (teenagers) to write an essay about their goals for 2016 and what they are going to do to make them happen. I thought it was a great idea. “Think of something you want to achieve and say how you are going to make it happen”. Ummmm. Nope. My students hated the idea, and me being a stubborn/bad teacher, I insisted. I said, ” You must want to achieve something! Even if it’s going to a higher level of LOL (League of Legends=video game). I want you to tell me how you will become better at playing your game!” Their response, ” But that’s not a goal miss!” Slap in the face, but there is hope. So, again I said, “Anything! Have a little/big goal and tell me how you will make it happen”. Total distress!!On ALL sides. My students insisted.” What goals miss! I have no goals!”

From a teacher’s perspective this made me wonder about my teaching. I mean, OK, maybe I shouldn’t have set this as homework. Maybe the essay preparation wasn’t enough.

But

when thinking about my kids, this, the ‘no goals’ was bad for many, many reasons.

Scenario 1

My kids are not mature enough to have, say, big goals. But they must have some!! What kind of world is this where teenagers say, ” I don’t have any goals miss!”? It’s sad. It’s scary!!

Scenario 2

Living in a material world. If you get everything served on a silver platter, why, oh why, would you have goals? If you get anything you want, as in material (and since we live in a material world), what would you want to achieve that is not material? What goals would you have? Just a thought people….

Scenario 3

It’s because they are Greek kids living in the days of recession where money is tight, there is a lot of depression, and the news are just bombarding us with everything that is not working. Do my kids have no hope, hence, no goals? That’s so sad. That makes me feel sad. Is this generation becoming a generation of kids with no hopes for the future?

I love my country. I have suffered because of the recession, but I am OK. I have hope. I think things are getting better, but there are moments like the one I just described that REALLY make me wonder if I am living in a little bubble. My LaLa land.

This post was originally posted on my edu blog, but I am looking at the bigger/non educational picture here.

Do follow my blog if you want to read more from me. Connect with me on Pinterest/ Twitter/ Instagram.Maybeeven give my Facebook page some TLC? Comments section is all yours. Thanks for reading.

27Dec2015

My 5 a night out

Posted in Beauty, Thoughts by Joanna Malefaki

So we have all heard about our 5 a day as in the five vitamins/foods we need to consumer every day but what about the 5 going out essentials? What about my #5aniteout?

I am going to write a post that will hopefully turn into a chain/tag. If this were an educational post, I would probably be tagging other edu bloggers, but because it isn’t, if you feel inspired, go for it. Write a post and let me know what your 5 essentials for a night out are. They can be anything beauty/makeup/accessories/clothes related BUT they have to be five of your all time classics. So, here are mine in no particular order.

My going out essentials (pin).jpg

Makeup

The moment I started wearing Estee Lauder Double Wear stay-in- place makeup I knew it was the One. It doesn’t budge, it makes your skin look healthy and glowy, and did I say it doesn’t budge? It’s just fabulous. Love. Love. Love.

Double Wear

Cosmetics

I don’t really use eyeshadow which is why for lips I am all about ‘bold’. Go for it!! Favourite lippies from Bobbi Brown and YSL.

As mentioned earlier, I don’t do eyeshadow (cause I am colour-blind and I am scared I will mess up). I do do mascara though. I like using different ones and layering up. My favourite brand at the moment is L’oreal. I love the wands and the product!

Makeup

Mademoiselle

I love Coco Mademoiselle (Chanel). I have been wearing this for years. A bit goes a long way. I often spray it in the air and walk into/under the mist.

Shine Booster

I have blond hair and the Charles Worthington London Shine Booster is my favourite product. Whenever I am in the UK, I stock up. It makes my hair so shiny. It’s fantastic. If you haven’t tried this one out, you really need to!!!

Hair Spray.jpg

Earrings

Last but not least, while I am a bag lady, I do love my earrings, and a night out is never the same without a bit of bling. I like sparkly, shiny, handmade and statement earrings.

So, these are my #5aniteout. Let me know what you think of this post. What are your going out essential? If you do write a post or do a video, please let me know and I will add your post to my post. Do follow my blog if you want to read more from me. Connect with me on Pinterest/ Twitter/ Instagram

5 a night out with effects

Thanks for stopping by. Have a lovely day/night.

Hugs,

Joanna

22Dec2015

Gift guide for your colourblind friend: #Blogmas Day 22

Posted in Being colourblind, Thoughts by Joanna Malefaki

I am partially colourblind which is why I thought I’d write a ‘different’ gift guide! I am going to help you buy something for your colourblind friend. Just cause we are colourblind doesn’t mean we want everything (your pressies) to be black and white. We do like colours, we just need a bit of help with them. Extra info: 1/12 men and 1/200 females are (partially) colourblind.

So, I will give you gift ideas and how you can make them better for you buddies 🙂 Let’s say colourblind friendly.

Safe bets

Books, cds, perfumes, food, drinks, notebooks, dvds….

Tricky but …. giveable

Board games/card games/games

UNO is difficult to play if you are colour blind. If you really want to get this game though, I would suggest writing what colour each card is on the card (that’s what I have done). Same goes for any other board game that is colour coordinated (e.g. monopoly). Thinking of getting a snooker table? Use a permanent marker on the balls that are the same colour. Put polka dots/numbers/squares/ stripes to make them look different because of the design, not the colour :).

Makeup

Makeup companies continue to change the name of the colour of a product into something more catchy. OMG (I am sick of saying how inconsiderate/unfair this is but anyhoo, just a girl… no power). If you decide to buy your friend makeup, put labels with the a colour description on the product (nail polish, lipstick, eyeshadow). If you buy an eye palette, help your friend out by adding an extra sheet where you number the shades and then why not make suggestions about what goes with what? ❤ Bottom line just label everything. Say what colour it is (maybe even add if it cool/warm tone or if it summer-y or winter-y).

Christmas pic 2

Clothes

Get whatever you think your friend will like, but again, add a sticker or label the tag on the piece of clothing you got. I would suggest avoiding too many colours cause it’s hard for us to colour match/coordinate.

Pens/pencils/paint

Again use labels/stickers

How to describe a colour

We (ok I) don’t really care if it’s navy or royal blue. We just need to know that it’s blue and it matches with X, Y, and Z. If you think the tone/hue is important, explain why. Make it easy for your buddy to know how to match/use your present.

Christmas pic 1

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Thanks for reading. This post is very close to home. If you want to read more about the challenges of being colourblind check out my sidebar.

xxx

10Dec2015

11 blogging habits: Do you see any of yours here?#Blogmas Day 10

Posted in Blogging, Thoughts by Joanna Malefaki

My blogging style

I have been edu blogging for about 3 years now, but it’s only been three months since I started this blog where I write about makeup, shopping, planning and other ‘girlie/lifestyle’ posts. A while back I wrote a blog post about my blogging style for my edu- blog inspired by a teacher called Zhenya) and I thought it would be a good idea to repost my original post but adapt it and talk about my writing style and blogging habits now. So, let me begin by saying that I find it weird when someone calls me a blogger and this actually defines my blogging style. I am a blogger but I don’t feel like a blogger (then again, what does that feel like?). Do I make sense? (Nah) So, anyway, let’s get down to business! What are my blogging habits? How do I blog?

Blogging habit #1

So, I guess from what you can already see from the first lines of this post, I blog the way I talk. For me, blogging is like chatting with my friends over coffee and cakes. So, if you expect me to be more ‘proper’ forget it! Actually, my blog posts are more like spontaneous speech moments (is that even a word/phrase?) and less like a written text. I have a blurt-y blog.

Blogging habit #2

Checking: I spell-check and read my texts once, maybe twice. So, one of my weaknesses is that you may come across a little mistake, a typo or some odd dangling modifier in my blog posts (Luckily, when people spot a mistake, they let me know so I edit. You know who you are : ). Why do I do this? I do not know! I am a teacher for God’s sake! I should be checking my writing already!! Maybe when you always correct other people’s mistakes, you stop noticing yours, or your brain just gives up on you and doesn’t respond to your mistakes or yada, yada, yada. I think it is mostly cause I don’t consider blogging as part of my job. I don’t think it is teaching. It is something fun for me and my ideas bubble up, so when I want them to come out, that’s what they do. They pop out!! I blurt em out!! I also do not really realise/comprehend how many or if anyone reads what I write, so I am like, “Eh, it’s me writing to myself. You just need to check once, twice and then publish”.

Blogging habit #3

I stay up late at night or do not take a siesta cause I want to write a blog post. You want something even worse? I wake up at night and take notes of the things I want to share. I actually have a pencil and a note pad on my bedside table (seriously… should I start worrying about habits #2 & #3?).

Notebooks

Blogging habit #4

To write or not to write?: I have unfinished posts. I have a lot of ideas about things I want to write about. I start writing one post and then start writing another one. The one that inspires me the most is the lucky duck post. It’s the one that gets finished first. The other posts just sit around waiting for TLC. I often write the outline of a blog post on the post’s page. That way I have the backbone ready when I come back to it later. The posts that take longer to write are the ones that have the unfinished ‘statuses’. They are also the ones that require research. Writing about my thoughts on an issue is easier than reviewing a product.

Blogging habit #5

I write about the things I am interested in. My blogging is like a me, me ,me fest. I write about the things I enjoy, and hopefully someone else, in a land far, far away will like it as well.

Blogging habit #6

My writing style is simple. I don’t really use fancy words. I sometimes cross reference, I cite, I plan more, I draft and redraft. On a more personal note here: I do feel that my writing has improved a bit since I first started blogging, so that is rewarding.

Blogging habit #7

I like chain or blog challenges at least as an edu blogger, cause as a newbie lifestyle blogger I haven’t really taken part in tags and stuff. I enjoy taking part in them. They are like taking a road trip with others.

Car in rural Crete

Blogging habit #8

Playful blog posts: I use emoticons or smiley faces (sometimes sad faces : ( as well). I use direct speech. I like using bullet points, but I rarely use numbers in my lists. I like using color as well. I think it adds character to my blog posts and emphasizes some of the points I want to make (but I am colour blind so sometimes i forget what colour I have been using :p)!

Blogging habit #9

I try to write regularly, at least three posts a week. Sometimes I stick to my plan, others I don’t! At the moment I have been very good cause I am doing #Blogmas and have written at least one post a day (which by the way is generating a lot of traffic so it’s fun and productive).

Blogging habit #10

Once I have written a blog post, I start sharing. I share on Facebook, Twitter, Stumbleupon, and Pinterest. I also schedule my posts on Buffer. I sometimes promote a post on Instagram as well.

Blogging habit #11

I pay attention or at least try to pay attention to my pictures. I try to have a white background and pretty things in my backgrounds. I think I need to invest in a camera (for dummies) and it is on my wish list. Unfortunately being colour blind limits my photo editing capabilities cause I have no freakin idea what’s going on with me colours!!!

Blogging habit that tops all the other blogging habits

I ramble, but I guess you already know that cause of the name of my blog : ) (see top of this page).

Notes to my future blogger self:

I need to proof read and edit myself more, and then even more.
I need to get out of my comfort zone and maybe even write about something I don’t really know that well.
I want to improve my writing skill. I need to look into courses on writing (maybe even creative writing).
I need to stop using the word so so much.

A final note

A friend of mine once told me “Joanna, you really like laughing at your own jokes” I think that applies to my blog posts as well. I smile when I write cause I think I am funny and I draw joy from my posts. I edu blog cause I love teaching and I have a lifestyle-ish blog cause I ❤ pretty things!!

Almost done….
I am really thankful to the people who actually read, comment and share my posts. It feels like I am doing something right in the Blogosphere. Having two blogs is not easy. I hadn’t thought it through carefully.

Chania, Crete: my town

Feel free to comment in the comments section (I love reading comments btw so go ahead and write in the comments space, that’s your space). Remember to subscribe to my blog if you like what you read. I am @mypinkrambles on Twitter/ Instagram. I am also on Pinterest. Catch up on all my #Blogmas posts.

Talk to you tomorrow!!