Saying Goodbye to Jukebox Rhapsody!

Hello again!

Firstly, I hope you're all doing well and that life is treating you good! I just wanted to share with you all something I've been considering doing for a little while now. As you'll probably have gathered, I'm always looking for ways in which I can improve and develop my blog in order to make it the best that it can possibly be! That of course brings me to my announcement; I have decided to bring my music blog Jukebox Rhapsody to a close and instead, combine it with my main blog; this blog. 
By doing this, I will hopefully be able to focus on maintaining this blog on what I hope will become a more frequent basis. Not only this, I hope that I will be able to spend more time building my YouTube channel and allow that to grow in the coming weeks and months. I still intend on writing about concerts I've been to, album reviews and anything else that comes to mind to do with music but instead of posting it on Jukebox Rhapsody, I'll post it here on The Hat Hippie. 
I still intend on keeping Jukebox Rhapsody open to the public so if anyone wants to check out any of the posts I've written in the past; the opportunity's still there to do so. And of course, it's also nice for me to go back every now and then to relive all of my amazing concert memories from this past year that I've written about over on Jukebox Rhapsody!

I've had great fun creating and working on my music blog since I started it at the beginning of the year but after much thought and consideration, I feel sure that this is the right step for me take. It'll allow me to give my full attention to The Hat Hippie blog, it's accompanying YouTube channel and all that is yet to come in the future. I have lots of ideas and am very excited to start exploring and sharing them with each and every one of you out there. So stayed tuned!

Finally, I want to take the time to say a huge" Thank-you!" for continuing to support and read all of my blog posts over the past year! I really hope that you'll continue to enjoy what I write in future and continue to pop back and visit my blog from time to time to see what's new in the weird and wacky world of The Hat Hippie! 

But until then, I send you all my love, peace and best wishes, 

The Hat Hippie xxx

1 Year of The Hat Hippie

Hello Everyone!

 

Today marks exactly an entire year since I posted my very first blog post here on The Hat Hippie and I thought I'd write a little post in order to celebrate! I can't quite believe it's been a year since I clicked published on my very first post on the 12th November 2014. If you're new to my blog and would like to read my very first post click here and if like me, you've been here since the beginning why not go read it all over again!?

It's certainly be an exciting and eventful year since I first started my blog! On reflection, I can't quite believe all the amazing things that has happened this past year and I'm so glad that I decided to create it when I did. Had I not, I wouldn't necessarily have had a way of looking back and reliving all those memories that I've made. For me, it's amazing to think how much I've grown as both a person and in confidence during the past 12 months and I'm so proud of all the things I've managed to achieved!

Some of my biggest dreams have been made a reality this past year; it's been a long battle over the years with my health and it was nice to finally have some good things happen for once! In such a short period of time, I've met some lovely people who have truly inspired me in many different aspects of life and I'm such a lucky girl to know and have met all of these people!

My dream of being a radio presenter finally came true and I currently have a weekly show on a Thursday afternoon which is the best thing ever! I've learned so much during my time at the station, had some good laughs and of course, have enjoyed playing some great music and hosting a show! There's still ALOT for me to learn but just like living life, I learn new things each and everyday! So a huge thank-you to everyone at 3TFM for having me on board and making me so welcome! I really appreciate it!

A huge thank-you to all my close family and friends for the love, support and encouragement you've given me throughout my entire life! I don't know where'd I'd be without it! I want to say a huge Thank-you to my Mum in particular who is my hero and biggest inspiration! Without her I wouldn't have the confidence or oomph to do everything I've done. She's always there for me whenever I need a hug or some encouragement! Words cannot describe just how much I love you, Mum! Thank-you for all that you do!

Finally, I want to say a huge "Thank-You!" to you, my lovely readers, my amazing friends! Every time I click publish on a new post, it's so lovely to receive all the lovely comments and messages you send me! They put a big smile on my face and encourage me to work hard and fight for what I believe in! Your support throughout this past year has been absolutely incredible! You all never fail to brighten my day and I hope that I can bring a little light or cheer to your day in some shape or form!

Really!? A whole year of "The Hat Hippie"!? How, did that even happen!? It's certainly been one incredible year and I can't help but wonder what this next year will bring? I suppose I'll just have to take each day as they come and watch the year unfold and I hope you'll all continue to join me on the journey!

 

But until then, keep dreaming!

 

Lots of Love, Peace and Best Wishes,

The Hat Hippie xxx

Opening My Local Pharmacy!

Hello Out There!

Just over a week ago I was asked to do something very exciting, something that I never expected to do at 17 years old yet alone as an adult. It really hit home to me just how cool this was when I read an article about Ed Sheeran doing something similar the day before. So that pretty much says it all doesn't it!?

Anyway, I was asked by the staff in my local pharmacy if I'd come along and open their newly refurbished store. Without a doubt I said yes! The staff in the pharmacy have known me since I was just a little girl and helped me out a lot throughout the years during the times that I've endured numerous operations and treatment. They're such a lovely bunch of people and have always put a big smile on my face no matter how miserable I've felt with pain, recovering from surgery and attending medical appointments. I really don't think they realise just how much of an impact they have had in my life. So as you can imagine, it was a huge honour to actually be asked to take part in this event!

I thought rather than writing a huge post like I normally do, I'd write a brief post and share some of the photographs that my Mum took on my behalf to show you guys. The local newspaper was actually there to take some photos when I cut the ribbon, officially opening the shop; so that was exciting! The photo was actually in latest edition of the local newspaper so I'll try and take a photo of it and might pop it up on my Facebook page for those of you who'd like to see it.

At the opening, there was a buffet filled lots of yummy food for us all to help ourselves to which was lovely! They even surprised me with a huge bouquet of gorgeous flowers and a lovely present which was so sweet and unexpected! So a huge thank-you to the everyone at my local Lloyd's Pharmacy! You seriously have no idea just how much it meant to me!

Below, I have attached some of the photos taken at the event so I hope you enjoy taking a look through them all!

 

Having photos taken for the newspaper

 

 

A wee close up

 

Karen and I

 

Such a beautiful bouquet of flowers they surprised me with!

 

I know this was a shorter post than usual but I just wanted to share another of my latest adventures with you and of course it's nice for me to pop back in future and look back on all of these lovely memories! Anyway, I hope you're all doing good and that life is treating you well! I promise I'll be back again very soon with another new blog post so make sure to pop back in the not so distant future!

 

Until then I send you all my love, peace & best wishes,

 

The Hat Hippie xxx

The Day I Met Joe Sugg!

Hello!

Last Saturday, the 24th October I finally met one of my all-time favourite YouTubers, Joe Sugg also known as Thatcher Joe. Joe has recently published his very first book Username: Evie and has embarked on a UK tour to promote it and meet some of his millions of subscribers in a range of cities up and down the country. Last month, I was one of the lucky few to fight my way through the mad internet rush in hope of getting tickets for my sister and I to meet Joe during his tour. Somehow, I managed to get on to Ticketmaster and before I knew it; I had received an email notification to confirm that I'd successfully managed to book tickets to meet Joe Sugg-brilliant!

The month flew in pretty quickly and before I know it the day had arrived! We were going to meet Joe Sugg! Despite it being the weekend, it was a fairly early morning for us so that we could pick up my Grandparents who were accompanying us on the journey to Glasgow and get there in time for the signing to begin as we didn't fancy being at the very end of it to be completely honest! So I flung a mug of chicken noodle soup down my throat, (strange breakfast, I know) got dressed, covered up my ghostly face with a layer of makeup before flinging on my Dr Martens and one of my many hats. And I was ready to rock and roll!

I've created a short vlog which I've posted on my YouTube channel which you can view via the link at the bottom of this page and see more of what happened, but I thought I'd give you a brief account of the event anyway. The video is nowhere near perfect as I have so much to learn but I certainly enjoyed creating it and I hope you enjoy watching it!

We arrived at the St. Enoch Centre where the signing was being held and already, there was a large queue of people waiting despite the fact that there was still around a hour and twenty minutes (something like that) until the event was due to begin. So we followed the line down the shopping centre until we reached the end which constantly seemed to be growing longer as more and more people joined it. Around ten or twenty minutes later, we were approached by a member of security who asked us to come with him. So we followed him to the very front of the queue where he opened up a separate area designated to people with mobility/or health problems and cannot stand for any length of time in a long queue.

As we stood waiting, I kept refreshing my social media pages in hope of any updates from Joe to pass time as we waited. After a while, my iPod decided that it no longer wanted to cooperate with me and that it didn't want to connect to the WiFi. Thanks mate! It was around this time that I heard people in front of me mention that Joe had just posted a video of the queue from the floor above us on Snapchat. Surprisingly, no one seemed to have spotted him but word spread like wildfire and it became a little trickier for Joe to film sneaky videos of the crowd.

Our tickets were soon scanned and each ticketholder was finally handed a pre-signed copy of Joe's book Username: Evie. Seconds later, one of the security guards began ushering some of us into a room which was set up for Joe's meet n' greet. This was probably the first Youtuber even that I've attended that actually went smoothly. On previous occassions, there was always a problem in some shape or form because of my wheelchair. So I was impressed with how this was handled at this particular event. Aproaching one o'clock, Joe showed face, again from the balcony vlogging everyone waiting downstairs. As you can imagine and will be able to hear in my video, the room was filled with loud screams of excitement. So, a word of warning to you in advance; don't put your volume up too high whilst watching the video!

Seconds later, a door on the left hand side of the room opened as a few people stepped out into the room followed by Joe Sugg with his camera in hand, vlogging us as he entered. I'm extremely excited to watch his Glasgow vlog in hope that I might be able to spot myself. I mean, how cool would that be?! As soon as everyone caught glimpse of Joe, the room erupted in excited screams-what a welcome!

No sooner than Joe was standing behind the screen, the first girl was called up to meet him followed by her friend and then me. I stood beside the screen waiting for my turn and was then waved over by one of the security guards to let me know that it was my turn to meet Joe. So I followed his lead and walked behind the screen where Joe was standing right there in front of me. It all happened pretty quickly as they was a thousand people waiting to meet Joe. I said hello to Joe, got a wee hug and one of the many security guards offered to take a photograph for me which made life so much easier for me as I have the world's shakiest hand thanks to my CRPS. So Joe and I posed for a photo which actually turned out pretty well I have to say and the security guard handed me iPod with an image of Joe and I showing on the screen. I thanked him for doing the honours and of course said thanks to Joe as well. Just as I was heading out to find my Mum, it hit me that I hadn't said goodbye. So quickly I turned round and said goodbye to Joe before making my way back over to Mum. And the moment was over. Obviously, I didn't get to chat with Joe for too long but he came across as very sweet and genuine person.

After my sister, Laurel had met with Joe we made our way out of the ST. Enoch Centre and met back up with my Grandparents. Mum and Laurel popped into Lush in Buchannan Street to pick up a few bits n' bobs whilst I waited outside with my Gran and Grandad trying to conncet to the city Wi-Fi to post up my photo. As I scrolled through my social media accounts I noticed that there was still wristbands left for another meet n greet with Joe and his friend, roommate and fellow YouTuber Caspar Lee in December when they are visiting Glasgow to sign copies of their new DVD "Joe and Caspar Hit The Road". Now, I don't have the world's best sense of direction but I was pretty sure that Argyle Street wasn't too far away and it turns out I was right. After asking my Gran where exactly it was, I realised it was literally just a little further down the path from where we were standing. 'Perfect!' I thought, that would make the perfect Christmas gift for Laurel. So after a bite to eat and a refreshment from Costa, Mum and Laurel popped round to HMV in hope that the wristbands wouldn't have sold out. During this time I sat in Costa with my Grandparents, constantly refreshing the HMV Argyle Street twitter feed keeping up to date with just how many were left. A little while later Mum and Laurel reappeared with the good news that they'd managed to get hold of two tickets/wristbands despite the fact that all of Joe and Caspar's fans were beginning to flock the store after Joe's signing. So we were pretty fortunate I must say! And of course, that's one Christmas gift off the list!

It was absolutely freezing in Glasgow and the sky was filled with icy rain so it was fair to say that we didn't hang around for too long. Instead, we headed back home to my Grandparent's house and tucked into some delicious Chinese takeout before we made our way back home to watch the X Factor on TV. I had a brilliant day and am very excited to meet Joe again and of course meet Caspar for the first time in December, perhaps I might even vlog the occasion again! But in the meantime, I hope you enjoyed this post and the vlog I filmed to go along with it. It is nowhere near perfect but I certainly had a lot of fun creating and will enjoy watching it in future!

 

I Have Finally Joined YouTube!

Hello Folks!

I just wanted to let you all know that I've finally created a YouTube channel and have posted my very first video! Please check it out, give the video a thumbs up if you enjoyed, subscribe to get notifications every time I post a video up on my channel and finally, make sure to share it with your lovely friends! Before I go I just wanted to tell you that I have something very exciting happening this coming week so make sure to pop back soon to hear all about it! 

A huge Thank-You to each and every one of you for all of the support! Words cannot describe just how much I appreciate it! 

Until next time i send you all my love and best wishes! 

The Hat Hippie xxx

Hospitals & A Bad CRPS Flare

Hello!

It's been an eventful few weeks since I last posted here on my blog and you may have noticed that I mentioned on my Facebook page that my knee has been playing up lately, causing me quite a bit of pain and discomfort. Despite giving it plenty of rest and keeping it elevated as much as I possibly could, it didn't seem to improve any. In fact, it probably got worse if anything.

So after feeling pretty miserable all weekend it was off to the doctors surgery on the Monday morning to see my GP. We are pretty fortunate when it comes to our doctors surgery as they'll always do their best to fit you in as soon as they possibly can and last Monday was no exception. They managed to fit me in that morning roughly just an hour and a half after Mum called that morning. That's almost unheard of in today's society!

So after a shorter than usual tutoring session that morning, my Mum and I made our way across town to the surgery listening to the radio as we went.  Listening to the radio is by far one of my favourite past times and is great when going to a medical appointment as it helps divert my mind from worrying about it. After attending so many hospital appointments throughout the years, you'd think it wouldn't bother me too much, but for whatever reason I still get quite worked up about going for one.

Anyway, we arrived in the surgery car park just as they were playing the new ELO song which actually reminded me a little of another song. We were a little early so we sat in the car for a further ten minutes or so, which was much better than sitting in a waiting room, whilst I sat there deliberating what song it reminded me of. Then it hit me! It sounded like Golden Slumbers by The Beatles (my favourite band-in case you didn't know!) I quickly pulled out my iPod and started playing Golden Slumbers to compare the two songs. My poor Mum must get sick and tired of me having mad, geeky moments about music-she has the patience of a saint to listen to me rambling on all day long! But in all seriousness, go look up the two songs and have a listen! I mean it might just be me, but that's exactly what it reminded me of. Oops, I've just realised that I went off track enthusing about music (again!) Sorry folks!

Inside the surgery we spent a further twenty minutes or so waiting to be seen as it was extremely busy and they were running a little late. There really wasn't a need to complain though, as these things happen and they were good enough to actually fit me in at the last minute. After twenty minutes of watching I don't know how many different faces come and go and for me, counting the faded outlines of squares on the carpet (the things you do to past time), my name was finally called.

After explaining to the doctor what was going on with my knee, he gave it an examination, asking me questions about my most recent visit to hospital and what motions they used when examining my knee as that was really when my knee began flaring up. Apparently, the motion they used in hospital, which almost looked like they were popping my knee out of place and back in again, was actually to test the ligaments that had been created during my knee surgery back in 2011. I was told to rest my leg just like I had been doing and was prescribed yet more pain killers.

By Wednesday, my pain levels had grown worse and I spent the day in bed and for a little while in the afternoon curled up on the sofa feeling absolutely miserable. This was probably the worse my pain had been for a while. It was at the point that it had me in tears so that said a lot. My Mum decided to get in contact with the hospital and managed to get in contact with my pain management consultant's secretary who arranged for me to see both my pain management consultant and my othopedic consultant the following day which we were so grateful for them arranging.

So the next morning it was a 6:30am rise for us in order to get there in time. Quickly, we ate a spot of breakfast, got dressed and were out of the door before we knew it. On route to hospital, we picked up my Grandparents and hit the motorway in the morning rush. Fortunately, we managed to make it in time for my appointment.

After finding out where exactly to go for my appointment, (no one seems to know where exactly anything is in the new hospital) we were then told by a receptionist that my consultants had been called to theatre and they had no idea how long they'd be. Mum and I decided that we'd go get a coffee from the hospital coffee shop when we bumped into my orthopedic consultant on route. It turns out that he hadn't been called to theatre afterall, so we followed him to the plaster room where he had a look at my knee and decided to send me for an X-ray. It had been a good two or three years since I last had one actually. We were sent through what was like a secret corridor which led to X-ray department and let the receptionist know that I was there. After a fairly short wait, I was escorted through to the X-Ray room by a student radiographer who said that I'd been the most stylish person to step through their doors that week if not ever. Yes, even on a hospital visit, I still manage to wear one of my hats and a pair of Dr Marten boots because let's face it; it just wouldn't be me without them! But anyway, it was a nice compliment!

The radiographers who  took care of me that day were extremely lovely which makes a  huge difference! Some of my last X-rays were taken at an adult's hospitals and they barely uttered a single word to me and didn't even bothered to crack a smile-is it really that much to ask?! I mean, I was only about 13 or 14 at the time!

After being made to bend my knee in a variety of awkward positions, standing as still as I possibly could, the radiographers were satisfied with the images and sent me back through to the plaster room to find my pain management consultant dressed in his blue theatre gowns. He had to take a quick phone call, so my orthopedic consultant had a look at my X-Rays which thankfully looked normal. Although when it comes to my leg "normal"  is completely different to the average person's leg.

The long and the short of it was that last time I saw my consultant, which was around a month or so ago, whilst he was examining my knee, my fibula may have knocked against one of my nerves and upset things after it being moved around as much. There isn't much holding my knee together meaning that everything is kind of floating around, hence why my fibula could have hit against one of the nerves. There's isn't anything that they can really do to fix this so he suggested that I keep my leg well rested and that I wear a splint as much as I can over the next few weeks to keep things secure. So as one of his fellows ordered the splint, he popped out to go collect it.

During this time, my pain management consultant returned and asked me about what had happened over the past few weeks with my knee. I explained the situation to him and he also suggested me wearing splint on my knee. So everyone had a wee laugh about how two great minds think alike when my other consultant returned. I had to sit on one of the hospital beds as they fitted the splint which is extremely heavy and makes me feel like a robot, but I'll ride the storm and put up with it in hope that it'll help. Since I was there my pain management consultant also gave me a course of acupuncture in hope that it would help with my pain. Obviously, I wasn't able to see what he was doing as I had to lie on my side, but apparently my consultant used a lot more needles than he'd previously used when I had acupuncture.

So I was eventually sent home to rest my knee and to try out the knee splint for the next few weeks. I am most definitely not a fan of it as it's so heavy, however Ive got to do what I've got to do.

Anyway, I shall go for now but until next time I send you all lots of love and best wishes!

-The Hat Hippie xx

My Advice to CRPS Sufferers

Today, I thought I'd share my advice for other people out there who, like me suffer from CRPS (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome). As you probably know already from reading my previous posts, I've suffered from this condition since undergoing knee pioneering surgery back in 2011 and was finally diagnosed with the condition in early 2013 by which point it was too late to actually attempt to cure the condition. 

I was just 12 years old when I had my knee surgery and at just 14 years old  I was diagnosed with CRPS (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome) so I guess I was pretty young and I still am in many respects. As I write this I sit cuddled up on my bed with my hot water bottle on my knee due to my pain flaring. Not much fun! This got me thinking and I thought I'd write my advice for other people in similar situations to myself. There is very little information out there for CRPS suffers particularly by people who suffer from it themselves and by someone of my age. So I thought I'd share the little knowledge I have and I'm sure there's plenty more for even me to learn over time. I am no expert! I don't think anyone really is to be completely honest which leads me onto my first piece of advice.

1. Don't be afraid to be honest with your consultants as no one knows you better than you! Whilst doctors, consultants and specialists are counted as "professionals" even they don't always know what the perfect cure or solution is for you. CRPS or even chronic pain in general is something that needs to be investigated in a lot more detail than it already has. I personally, under hospital guidance havd tried numerous treatments such as using a TENs machine, anti-epileptic medications which have apparently shown effective results in people suffering from nerve pain and even acupuncture. Some of which have helped to some degree but alongside any relief that I did experience came other problems. I still haven't found a solution and instead have to manage my pain levels to the best of my ability. People in the medical profession are just human and are still learning just like you and I so don't be afraid to let them know that something isn't working for you or if you don't want to go through with a treatment because "the doctor knows best and I can't question them". Don't worry, you can because ultimately they're not the one going through everything that you are. And let's face it; no one knows you better than you!

2. Never give up hope! You never know what tomorrow might bring, it might just be the day they find a cure or a way to relieve your pain levels! New cures and treatments are being discovered each and everyday for a large number of things. Tomorrow might just be the day that they'll find the one to change your life!

3. Play close attention to what triggers or increases your pain flares and look at ways in which you can minimize these triggers or perhaps get rid of them altogether. For me things such as stress and upset play a big part in triggering off a pain flare so over time I've had to step back and take a look at what I can do in order to prevent myself from becoming stressed, anxious or upset to avoid my pain levels becoming any worse than they are. Another personal pain trigger is cold and damp weather which living in Scotland is pretty difficult to avoid I must admit. It's actually something that I'm currently struggling with quite a bit due to the fact it's approaching the colder months in the year. And I'm currently having to use techniques and coping mechanisms that I've learnt over the past couple of years such as carrying a hot water bottle wherever I go and the simplest of things such as wearing warmer clothes, resting my leg and using art and music to take my mind off of it. It doesn't take the pain away, but it certainly helps me to cope with it and prevent it from getting any worse. There will be many different ways of dealing with pain triggers and not everything will work for you, but my advice is to try things out and over time you'll discover what works for you.

4. Don't be afraid to say no and make people aware of your capabilities! Perhaps you may have heard of the spoon theory and for those of you who haven't, I suggest looking it up! It explains the daily capabilities of a chronic pain sufferer perfectly. Pain is such a debilitating thing and sometime makes enduring the simplest of tasks a real challenge. You're only human and can only do what you can do! It doesn't make you a failure to say 'no, I can't manage to do that today'. Sometimes people won't always be as supportive or as understanding as you'd hoped they would be but, you know what?! It could easily be them in your situation and they don't know what might happen tomorrow so always be proud of yourself for what you can do because you're doing good! It's the scenario of whether the glass is half empty or half full and sometimes the most difficult of situations bring you to facing that scenario face on. And trust me, it hasn't always been easy to be positive in past, but I can finally say I think i've finally got there!

5. Never compare yourself to what you once were or even the people round about you. This isn't an easy thing to do, I must confess, it's something I'm still learning not to do. It's so easy to look back at a time when you didn't suffer from CRPS and feel absolutely crap that you can't live the life that you once used to lead and do things that you once used to do. Always, focus on the positives, be proud of what you CAN do and the person that you've become because of all that life has thrown in your direction.