My 17th Birthday!

Last Tuesday, the 15th of September just so happened to be 17th birthday! To be honest, it only feels like yesterday since I turned 16-this past year has seriously flown in! So I thought in my next blog post I'd write about what I got up to for my birthday last week. So here it goes.......

Like every weekday morning I got up at around 7:30am (or thereabouts) to open my presents and cards with my family before my Dad went to work and my sister went to school. I was a bit sleepy headed I must admit, I am by far more of a night owl rather than a morning person. However, I received some lovely cards and presents including a Beatles t-shirt, hoodie, purse and lanyard that I'd picked out in Liverpool back in May, jewellery, Cathy Cassidy's Looking-Glass Girl book, a new hat (of course!), chocolates and some money from my family and close family friends which I'm going to put towards purchasing a new camera that I've been saving up for. So a huge thank-you to everyone for their kind gifts of money! I am extremely excited to buy my new camera which I'll be able to use to take photos for my blog, for personal photography and I also hope to experiment with the film features in order to create a YouTube channel. I received some truly lovely gifts and my Mum even managed to find wrapping paper with my all-time favourite fictional character Peter Pan printed on it! How cool was that!? Yes, I get excited about the simplest of things in life!

After Mum and I dropped my sister Laurel off at school that morning, my Grandparents came down to visit with my birthday card/present. I had music tutoring in the afternoon meaning that time would be too tight if we decided to go out for lunch so instead we went out for a birthday breakfast, which was lovely! My music tutor arrived at around 2pm like he does every Tuesday afternoon for my bass lessons. I know not everyone would be too chuffed about having education of any sort on their birthday but I for one was actually quite happy! My music tuition is never something I dread as I enjoy it so much and like I said before I am now learning to play songs rather than learning the basics like I started off with. Now, if I remember right last week I was learning to play the bass line to Band on the Run by Wings which was great! As you all know by now, I am a huge Paul McCartney fan so actually learning to play one of his songs is absolutely amazing! All I'm waiting for now is that all-important phone call from Paul himself inviting me to come perform live on stage with him! One can dream right?!

Anyway, after Mum and I picked my sister Laurel up from school, it was a mad rush back home to make dinner because just a short while later I would be heading out to The Gaiety Theatre to see a Beatles tribute band. For dinner, Mum made me probably one of my very favourite meals; roast chicken, mashed potatoes and vegtables-mmmmm! It makes me seriously hungry even just to think about it!


Me and my birthday cake (please excuse the bad lighting!)

And of course it wouldn't be a real birthday without a cake; or at least not in my world! Ever since I was little I have always had a major obsession with birthday cake. As weird as it may sound to some, I think that there's something really exciting about birthday cake; always have and probably always will! So of course everyone sang Happy Birthday to me, took a few photographs (which I'll try and add to this post in the editing stages), made a wish and then I attempted to blow the candles out but there's always that one that chooses to be difficult and takes a couple of attempts to finally blow out! But we always catch it out in the end!

After blowing out the candles, we soon realised that time was ticking on and that I needed to leave the house soon or I'd be late! So it was kind of rush round the house as I flung everything I needed into my bag, popped on a coat and hat and tied up the laces to my Dr Marten boots. Thankfully, we made it to the Gaiety Theatre in time for 7pm for me to meet my friend Heather. Once we met up, Heather and I went inside out of the cold (typical Scottish weather!). Thankfully, the doors to the actual theatre itself were soon opened meaning that we were able to find our seats in plenty of time before the show began at 7:30pm. It looked like the theatre was almost a full house so fortunately, when Mum and I had booked the just tickets a few weeks earlier there were a couple of seats remaining in the second row which of course we snaffled up meaning that we had a great view of the stage! The show itself was absolutely brilliant! Both Heather and I couldn't get over how a like the gentleman playing John Lennon looked in comparison to the real thing-it was unbelievable! If you closed your eyes, it could easily have been the real band performing right there in front of you. Overall, both Heather and I really enjoyed the show and would definitely go again if they were to come back in future! If you'd like to read more about the Cavern Beatles show click here to be directed to the review link on my music blog.

 

After the show, Mum picked us up and gave Heather a lift back home on route to our house. Heather had surprised me with a lovely card and gift which I opened when I arrived home. I don't know how she managed it but a few weeks ago when we went shopping together and popped into the town's new record shop, I'd been eyeing up a Beatles record and unbeknown to me as I later discovered Heather bought it for me as surprise for my birthday! I was absolutely delighted about that! Thank-you so much Heather! To finish off my special day I tucked into a delicious slice of birthday cake before heading to bed just a short while later.

Before I go I just want to say a huge thank-you to all my friends and family for the lovely cards and kind presents that you kindly gave me for my birthday! I really appreciate it! I also want to say a huge thank-you to everyone for the sweet birthday wishes you sent me across my social media sites; it was so lovely to read them all! Here's to a great year as a 17 year old-I wonder what adventures it'll bring!?

Anyway, I shall love you and leave you all for now!

Sending you love, peace & Best Wishes,

Rob, The Hat Hippie xxx

 

Hello September!

Hello World! 

I thought it was about time I wrote an update for my blog seeing as it's been a few weeks since my last post. During that time the schools here in Scotland have returned following summer break and I believe that the schools down south have also followed suit during the past two weeks. With that being the case, I have been extremely busy throughout the past few weeks and haven't found the time or the inspiration if I'm being honest to sit down and write a new post. It's quite late right now and I'm a little tired however I don't feel ready enough to fall asleep just yet so thought I'd make use of my time to write a quick post for you lovely people!

Like I said above the schools have resumed following summer break and so has my home tutoring. This year I'm going to be focusing on art, music as well as working on the John Muir award which focuses on the natural environment and conservation. I have tutoring five days a week and oh my goodness is it going to take a while to get into the routine of having tutors at random times each day. But we'll get there eventually (I hope!).

As some of you may already know I play bass guitar and have been doing so for the past two years or so. I absolutely love playing bass particularly now that I'm at the stage where I hear a song by my favourite band and am able to pick up my bass and learn to play it almost immediately which is extremely exciting! So I'll be continuing to learn bass for the next year as part of my schooling which I couldn't been any happier about!

 During my art sessions which I only started a few weeks ago, I have already produced a bunch of art work using a range of materials and of course doing a little experimenting with Photoshop as well. Since the new term started I've produced a range of drawings/paintings of natural objects such as shells and flowers and in that short period of time have developed particular love of watercolour and line drawing. So I thought from time to time I might take a few photographs of my artwork and post them up here on my blog and share them with you lovely people as well as keeping track of it for my own future reference.

As we all know it's now September and summer is unfortunately behind us for another year much to my dismay. Without a doubt, autumn and winter are beautiful months for the scenery and the colours in the trees however I am not a fan of the cold weather that goes alongside that. As you'll have read in my previous blog posts I suffer from CRPS (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome) which is affected and aggravated majorly by the cold and damp weather. It's only been September for just a few days and the weather is already reminding us that summer is now over. And with that has come an increase in my pain levels which has not been fun at all! So my trusty companion; my hot water bottle has shown face once again for yet another year. To whoever invented the hot water bottle; I thank you! I seriously don't know what I'd do without one nowadays.

Just as I was saying above we are now in the grand old month of September and despite my moans of September signifying the start of the colder weather, it also has its good points. September is my birth month and on the fifteenth of the month, I turn seventeen years old which is an extremely scary thought! It doesn't feel that long ago since it was my sixteenth last year. My goodness, the past the year has flown in so quickly!

So anyway, I just wanted to share this brief post to keep you all update to with all that's been going on in my life throughout the past couple of weeks. I am now going to edit and publish the post before making a start on another of my future blog posts so do keep an eye out for that; it should be up in the not so distant future! If you haven't already make sure to click here and give my Facebook page a like to keep up to date with all of my latest news!

Sending you all lots of love, peace and best wishes,

Robyn xxx

 

The Final Week of the Summer Holidays 2015

 

Me in Castle Douglas

Last week was the final full week of the Summer holidays here in Scotland and I can't help but wonder where on earth have the Summer holidays gone!? They've seriously flown by this year! Although I think I say that every year! You blink suddenly it's all over and it's back to business; back to school!

Anyway, my final week of the Summer Holidays was certainly nothing short of crazy; I've quite literally been here, there and everywhere and could do with a wee lie down to be completely honest! Seeing as I count myself as a lifestyle blogger, I thought I'd share what I've been up to with you lovely people! So sit back and relax with a cup of tea (or a nice glass of lemonade!) and enjoy reading about my busy week!

To start last week off I met up with a lovely friend of mine, Daisy who I've known since we were around five/six years old. I lost touch with Daisy when I moved house as well as school when I was in Primary three and bumped into her once every now and then after moving. As I grew older

I decided to join Facebook and managed to get back in contact with Daisy, discovering that we share a lot of similar interests (particularly in music). So it was really lovely to finally meet up with Daisy after such a long period of time and spent a few hours chatting and catching up in Costa-it is however, a wonder that the staff didn't shoo us off as we were in there for hours! Hopefully, it won't be too long until we meet up again!

On Tuesday, we visited my Grandparents and as it was such a lovely day I was able to spend some time wandering round their garden with my iPod taking photographs of all the lovely flowers my Granddad grows there. Stupidly, I'd ignored the fact that it was a nice day; the perfect day for taking photos and didn't bother to bring my camera with me to get capture my surroundings. I was however, pleasantly surprised with the picture quality that my iPod produced and successfully managed to take a handful of decent photos.

 

My lovely Mum and I at the theatre

 We then enjoyed some yummy Chinese takeaway for dinner from one of the local takeaway's, before Mum, Gran, my sister Laurel and I travelled to Glasgow to catch the opening night of "Dreamboats and Miniskirts" at The Kings Theatre. I am huge fan of the musicals and love going to the theatre so without a doubt I had a great night! I'd previously seen "Dreamboats and Petticoats" back in 2012 which was set in the 1950s but if I'm being completely honest I preferred the sequel as I was more familiar with the music, fashion and the era in general. However, I must admit the highlight of the show for me, was the scene set in The Cavern Club in Liverpool where the actors took on the role of John, Paul, Ringo and George as they performed Twist and Shout. As you'll probably have worked out by now, I'm a huge fan of The Beatles so this particular scene really made my night! And of course I had to sing along although I'm surprised I didn't clear the theatre as I'm such a terrible singer!

The following day my Mum, Laurel and I took my Grandparents on a trip to a lovely town here in Scotland named Castle Douglas. We visit Castle Douglas at least once every year, sometimes more frequently than that depending upon just how busy we are. The drive there is lovely as there's so much beautiful scenery to take in along the way! It is in my opinion Scotland at some of it's very best!(providing that it's a nice day of course!)

Castle Douglas itself is a lovely, quaint, little town with some fabulous little shops and cafes for a much needed snack or even a spot of lunch. As we arrived, lunchtime was quickly approaching and we all felt a little bit peckish and in need of a bite to eat. With that in mind we made our way to the Designs Café which we only discovered a few years ago after a family friend recommended it to us. Designs Café sell a range of delicious sandwiches, toasties, soup, daily specials and even home baking. For lunch, I decided upon the chicken fajita featured on the daily specials menu which came accompanied by a lovely salad, all of which tasted great and could easily have fed a small army!

Our lovely lunch was followed by a browse round all of the lovely independent shops in the area. There was an amazing bohemian shop selling goods such as clothes, jewellery and house accessories which I thoroughly enjoyed wandering round and raking through the clothing rails. I couldn't leave this fab shop empty handed and instead left with two boho cushions and a gorgeous throw for my bed. Amongst the other shops we visited my sister and I couldn't help but pop into a little toy shop that we loved as young children named "Jenny Wren". Despite the fact that we're a lot older now it's still good fun to look around and reminisce about all the toys and cute little bits n' bobs we used to play with when we were little. And of course a visit to Castle Douglas is most certainly not complete without a visit to the ice cream shop next door! The only problem was that there were so many different flavours to choose from leaving in deep deliberation over what to pick. Eventually, I decided to be boring and completely unadventurous and opted for chocolate ice-cream. But oh my goodness was it absolutely delicious!

On our way home from Castle Douglas, Mum pulled into a little lay by beside Loch Ken so that I could take full advantage of the beautiful scenery and the unusually lovely weather (for Scotland that is!) and take a few photographs. So I spent a good half hour or so snapping photographs of the loch which I'll eventually get round to editing. I think that'll be a job for when the weather's bad and I have nothing to do! 



The sunset over Dunure

Needless to say I was exhausted by the time we arrived back home but still to accompany my Mum on a trip down to one of our very favourite places, the small fishing village of Dunure. My sister was invited to a movie night at a friend's house so we decided to take a short drive there and enjoy the stunning scenery on offer! I somehow managed in the short time between arriving home from Castle Douglas and popping back out again removed my camera from my bag meaning that yet again I missed out on a photography opportunity! Typical!

The following day was of course Thursday which meant I had my radio show at 3TFM from 1-3pm. Every week during my show I pick a "Dream Theme" which helps me plan out my playlist for the show and gives my lovely listeners the chance to request the songs they want to hear during the show. Last week's theme was a follow up to a show I hosted a few weeks a few weeks ago named "Girl Power" which celebrated the best female artists to brace the music industry. So as you've probably guessed by now last week's "Dream Theme" was of course "The Best of the Boys". So in the space of just two hours I attempted to squeeze in as many of the best male bands/singers into my show as I possibly could. That particular theme could easily have gone on for hours as there are so many amazing bands/singers that deserved to be included on the list!

Colourful beach huts in Kirkcudbright

 On Friday my parents, my sister and I decided to pay Kirkcudbright a visit. Kirkcudbright's yearly art trail happened to be on so we managed to visit a few of the stops and have a look around the artwork. Up until then I'd never been to Kirkcudbright before which is a little strange I suppose. Following a mooch round Kirkcudbright we also visited a place named Gatehouse of Fleet which has an old mill situated directly beside the river with a cute little café and tourist information centre hidden inside. We decided it was the perfect time to take a break and enjoy a much needed refreshment from the café. As we sat outside in the cafe's patio which looked onto the river we spotted a heron in the distance closely studying the water surrounding it for fish. Unfortunately, it was too far in the distance from where we happened to be seated for me to actually get a decent photo of it-next time perhaps! The peaceful surroundings was the perfect place for a café and I for one could have easily sat there for hours enjoying the sweet sounds of nature-pure bliss if you ask me!

To finish off our busy week my Grandparents treated us to dinner at The Stage Door our favourite restaurant in Ayr on Saturday. The Stage Door is an extremely popular restaurant inside The Gaiety Theatre located in the town of Ayr. I've been lucky enough to have dined there with my family on numerous occasions since it first opened a couple of years ago and not once have I ever been disappointed! The menu has something to suit everyone; the prices are great and the portions are huge! My Mum, my friend Heather and I had breakfast there one morning and couldn't believe just how big the small breakfast was! It was seriously unbelievable! The food itself tastes and looks absolutely amazing which is all the more reason to dine there! And of course my diner there last Saturday lived up to my previous expectations and was just as good as I remembered it to be! So if you're ever in Ayr and looking for somewhere to eat; The Stage Door is definitely worth a visit!

Last week was indeed a busy but great week however all good things must come to an end and so do the Summer holidays. Today, the schools here where I live have now returned which for so many means early morning rises, homework and wearing a uniform. So to all my lovely readers who've already returned or are due to go back to school in the not so distant future; I send you all my best wishes for the coming school year!

Lots of Love, Peace and Best Wishes from,

Rob (The Hat Hippie) xxx

Edinburgh Fringe Festival August 2015

Last Saturday, my family and I took a day trip to the city of Edinburgh to enjoy all that the Edinburgh Fringe Festival had to offer. So starting the day off I enjoyed a mooch round the stalls situated in the Grassmarket. And much to my delight there was even a couple of record stalls! I'm currently a bit obsessed with vinyl records and enjoy the experience of visiting record stores/stalls and finding exciting hidden gems as well as some great bargains. Needless to say I did NOT leave the record stalls yesterday empty handed-that was just too difficult I'm afraid! Now all that's left to do is save up some money and actually buy myself a record player so that I can actually listen to what I've bought!

Just a little further along the Grassmarket, I visited one of my very favourite shops in Edinburgh, a fabulous vintage shop named W. Armstrong & Sons. Armstrong's has remained a firm favourite of mine throughout the years and is always a highlight of my trips to Edinburgh. It's like walking into a jungle of colours. Everywhere you look there are clothes, shoes, hats and even jewellery hidden in every nook and cranny possible. There was a selection of dresses from almost every era you could ever imagine hanging from the ceiling high above your head.

As you can probably imagine I was in my absolute element as I raked through the rails and walked round the store in awe. Oh goodness! Now I sound a little bit geeky! But seriously you'll never have seen anything like it before! In fact the shop size of the shop in itself is deceiving; it's like walking into a Tardis. The front of the store is small room covered in rails of clothing but if you continue walking down the corridor you pass a line of changing room which are amazing in themselves. The changing room walls are covered in colourful and exciting murals-I could just stand and stare at them all day! Past the changing rooms is a further two rooms filled to the brim vintage clothing and accessories. What's not to love?!

As always, I usually leave Armstrong with a bag in hand and of course this particular visit was no different to the others. This time I left with a beautiful black velvet jacket similar to one I'd seen my style inspiration Stevie Nicks wearing in photographs. When my eyes fell upon as I worked my way through the rails I instantly knew I had to try it on! Funnily enough, it perfectly matched the outfit I was wearing so in my opinion; it was meant to be! I also tried on two velvet dresses but unfortunately, they were too big for me!

We left Armstrong and followed the road to Greyfiars Kirk where another of our favourite shops is. Joe is a cute and quirky store that sells a range of accessories such as bags, hats and jewellery. My sister and I have loved this shop since we were little because of all the cute, girly bits n' bobs they sell. To this day we still love it as they have something to suit almost everyone! Another plus side about Joe is that they sell hats so of course I took full advantage and tried on a bunch of different hats (as you do!). Eventually, I decided upon a black top hat which my Mum purchased to put a way in advance for Christmas so I'll have to wait a few months before I finally get to wear it! But it'll be worth the wait in the end!

Lunchtime was dawning and a trip to Edinburgh for us in never complete without a visit to the Muscle and Steak restaurant situated in the Grassmarket. I've loved visiting the Muscle and Steak for lunch ever since I was little and as always the food never disappoints!

Following lunch, we made our way onto the Royal Mile which was heaving with people coming and going from all angles. There were street artists, performers and people handing out leaflets advertising shows that would be on throughout the festival. We had a browse round the stalls at another of the many craft markets in the city that day. I could have easily spent a fortune as there was so many lovely handcrafted goods that I fell in love with! 



This photo doesn't do it justice as to how busy the Royal Mile actually was

The Royal Mile was so busy that you could barely see beyond your nose which was not much fun as I was sitting in my wheelchair. When there is as many people as there was; they barely notice what's below them meaning that I am at very high risk of being bashed and bumped. Not an experience for the fainthearted might I add! With this in mind we didn't hang around on the Mile for very long and escaped into the safety of one of the side streets.

The side street was built on a hill, which isn't unusual for Edinburgh but thankfully we opted to go down the hill instead of climbing up it-much easier on the wheelchair I have to say! Although the downwards slant can be a little nerve-wracking having someone push you in a wheelchair. Thankfully, I got down the hill safely in one piece.

On the way down we popped into some more shops (surprise! surprise!) including a shop named "Enchantment" which sold a bunch of fairy-tale inspired goods! It caught my attention as we passed by so I definitely had to pop in for a browse! Also on the street was a shop I'd visited previously whilst in Edinburgh named "Miss Katie Cupcake" and was desperate to go back for a look round. The shop is filled with cute, vintage chic gifts and accessories which you just can't help but fall in love with! Everywhere I looked, I spotted something else! It's definitely worth a visit if you're ever in Edinburgh!

After, popping into a handful of other shops along Cockburn Street we then made our way to Princes Gardens and took a seat in one of the almost non-existent empty park benches. I of course had my the digital camera on hand so spent quite a bit of time snapping photos of buildings surrounding the area. The architecture on some of the buildings is quite spectacular if you look closely enough. So as you can probably imagine, I now have quite a number of photos to go through and edit! Ooops!

Edinburgh was extremely humid and we were all ready for a nice, cold refreshment to cool us down a little-I seriously don't think I could permanently live in a city; they're far too warm for my liking sometimes! With that in mind a visit to the nearest Starbucks and Costa was in order. Surprisingly, quite a few of the branches along Princes Street had a large number of steep looking steps to access them which isn't ideal for someone like myself. We just continued walking until we found a Costa branch up another side street which thankfully on the flat. Sitting down with a much needed chocolate cooler in hand, I managed to connect up to some Wi-Fi so I could catch up with what was happening in the world.

Next, we visited the West End Craft, Art and Design Fair situated in St John's Episcopal Church. There was over a hundred stalls filled with some amazing handmade goods. The highlight of the fair for me was a stall ran by a lady named Holly who sold some fabulous paintings as well as cards and prints of her artwork. Instantly falling in love with Holly's artwork I had to purchase a couple of her cards and one of her prints-they were just too pretty not to! Holly, herself was such a lovely lady and got chatting to me about the hat (funnily enough!) I was wearing that day. Everywhere I go I always manage to get speaking to someone and like I said before, it's usually about one of my hats! Anyway, Holly's artwork was so unique, quirky and overall; right up my street! If you'd like to check out some of her work and fall in love with it just like I have, then be sure to click here!

After browsing through the craft market we decided to call it a day and head back home as time was ticking on and we had a couple of hours drive ahead of us. So until next time; farewell for now Edinburgh!

 

Plans for Future Blog Posts

Hello Lovely People!

 

Firstly, I hope that you're all well and that life is good! Secondly, my apologies for being so quiet around here of late. Time flies by so quickly and all of a sudden it 'hits' you that you haven't written a blog post for a little while. Hopefully, I'll be able to get myself back on track soon enough and have plenty of new posts up for you to read in the not so distant future (I hope!).

Lately, I've been doing a little brainstorming about what content I hope and intend to write on both of my blogs over the next little while. I want to keep my blogs updated as regularly as I possibly can and don't want to sit down and deliberate over what to write next. There's seriously nothing worse than writers block! I am pleased to inform you that I have in fact had a few blog post ideas which I've taken note of and as I write this other ideas are still popping into my head. 

Another idea that has been at the back on my mind for quite a number of months now was creating a YouTube channel to coincide with both of my blogs. Perhaps a channel for this blog "The Hat Hippie" and another for my music blog "Jukebox Rhapsody"? Like I said it's something I've thought about attempting for quite a while now however, the thought of sitting in front of a camera talking to myself initially seemed rather daunting I must confess. But as you'll be aware, I've been hosting a radio show every week on 3TFM which meant that I've had to talk away to myself for as long as two hours! So let's face it if I can talk live on radio for two hours straight with people listening; I can talk in front of a camera and create a ten minute video to post on YouTube. 'It can't be that hard!' says the bold Robyn. I'll certainly give it a good shot and see what happens! With that in mind, be sure to keep an eye out for my first video! As I'm currently making a list of future blog post ideas, be sure to let me know if you'd like to see me write about something in particular or if you have any video ideas for either my general channel or my music channel!

For the past number of weeks now, I've been hosting a weekly radio show on a Thursday afternoon alongside the odd fill-in slot at other times throughout the week. I have a radio slot scheduled again for this coming Thursday afternoon (Thursday 13th August 2015) between 1-3pm (UK time), so if anyone would like to tune it would be greatly appreciated. To listen online click here or download the TuneIn Radio app.

Anyway, I will go for now and leave you with this short (but sweet!) update. I will be back soon with a new blog post so stayed tuned!

 

Love, Peace and Best Wishes,

Rob (The Hat Hippie) 

xxx

A Message to All Those "Professionals" Out There!

Hi Out There!

 

My apologies for being so quiet around here during the past few weeks, so much happens and you sort of loose track of time and then realise "oh! I haven't updated my blog in a while". These things happens I suppose but hopefully I'll have plenty more posts in the near future to make up for the quiet period-I'll give it my best shot anyway!

Anyway, today's post is a little bit of rant which I apologise for in advance. However, it's good to vent your frustration somewhere and hopefully if I do it here on my blog, the right eyes will read it and somewhere down the line it'll contribute to making things easier for someone else in a similar situation to myself. One can only hope it will have a positive impact at some point but in the meantime I'll use this platform for my own benefit. So here it goes.......

Because of my health I have had ALOT of "professionals" involved in my life ever since I was little. If I'm being completely honest with you; I absolutely hate it! When I was younger it didn't bother me too much, I just got on with it, attended the medical appointments and I suppose didn't think too much more about it. Now is unfortunately, a different story. I suppose having attended so many meetings and medical appointments over the years eventually takes it's toll.

I'm a little sick and tired of listening to the bright ideas that "professionals" who barely know me think are the right way forward for me. Well, I'm sorry but they're not! Not everyone is the same and just because something works for one person doesn't mean it'll be the right thing for another! I'm sure these "professionals" are used to walking into a room and repeating the same old script that they say to everyone they meet each and every day. What they always fail to remember is that they're speaking to someone with feelings and hearing them talk about me and my life in a particular way is pretty painful sometimes. They make you look at yourself in a completely different light and make your life seem alien in many respects. Quite often after the many appointments I attend due to my health, I get home and end up in floods of tears after hearing what was said to me which in turn makes my pain levels worse as my nervous system doesn't react well to stress and upset.

When I was younger I'd walk into a room full of medical professionals who would talk in what often felt like a foreign language. Making decisions about my treatment wasn't as much of a concern to me back then however, as you grow older you're suddenly flung in the deep end and Doctors want you to make the decisions. I often scroll through Facebook and see other people of my age discussing their worries and talking about the decisions they have to make regarding school/college which of course are important and have a major impact in the life. However, if I'm being completely honest I often envy their stress and concerns and wish I was making their decisions instead of decisions regarding the likes of medications and what steps to take next in my treatment. In many respects I feel like an old soul stuck in a teen's body, I struggle to relate to people of my age which might sound a little odd. Growing up so quickly at such a young age and trying to explain the emotions and how it affects you as person to people is difficult. One minute you're wanted to sit in a meeting and discuss extremely personal subjects with a bunch of strangers and then the next minute another "professional" thinks you're just like any other teenager and treat you as if you're clueless which REALLY irritates me! Like I said, I have nothing against others of my age but I find it difficult to be someone I'm not. At this point in my life I've been through a lot, experienced a lot of things that very few of my age already have and yet some "professionals" just presume I'm like any other teenager and should be acting and participating in things that others of my age do. Perhaps had they suggested some of their ideas a few years earlier it would have been different. But it's too late now I'm afraid, I can't be an "adult" and have to make mature decisions one minute and then put my "teenage" brain on the second I step out of the hospital. It unfortunately doesn't work that way; I'm either one way or the other. I am who I am and everything that I've been through has shaped the person I've become, I've matured and learned a lot over the past few years. I'm extremely proud of how much I achieved in the past year in particular and want to focus on making life as good as it possibly can be and more importantly standing up and speaking out about the issues that I alongside many other people are facing on a daily basis!

To be honest, I am now at the stage that I'm about to snap at the next "professional" who thinks they can suggest their useless ideas when A) I have already empathised of numerous occasions that my answer is 'NO!' and B) they haven't taken the time to really get to know me and see that I'm not the "typical" teenager. I am seriously considering handing them a piece of paper with the link to this post and telling them to go read it. Perhaps it would make them stop and think? Perhaps they might realise that before making presumptions they need to instead, look at the situation and at each individual as a person. 

As you'll now probably have gathered I am sick and tired of people trying to class me as something I'm not and just presuming that because something suits one person it'll suit and appeal to everyone. Well hello!-It won't! We are all unique (in a good way of course!) and when someone says 'NO', it should taken as 'NO' providing that the outcome's not going to cause harm to anyone. I hope that one day the point I'm trying to make will be taken seriously and perhaps those who need to take notice will do just that. I'm just one person sitting here in my room, on my laptop writing about my frustrations here on this minute space on the internet, if I'm lucky a few people might even sit down and read it. Through just even one person stumbling across this, I sincerely hope I can change perceptions and perhaps even gain the support of others to spread this message further. I can only imagine that I'm not the only person out there who feels this way and hope that through what I write I can find those that feel the same way and together, I hope we can get the message out there!

 

On that thought, I shall leave you with that thought and bid you farewell for now!

 

Sending you lots of love, peace and best wishes,

 

Rob xx

Life Update: Dreams Do Come True

Hello Lovely People!

How are you all doing? I hope that wherever you live has been blessed with some much needed sunshine. Certainly, where I live we've had a decent amount of sunshine however, it is Scotland after all and unfortunately the rain is never too far away but any sunshine is better than none I suppose! If you've been keeping up to date with my blog posts over the past four or five weeks you'll know it's been a pretty crazy but exciting few weeks for me! So much has happened and to be honest it's went by like a whirlwind! How is it that all the good things in life go by within a blink of an eye?
In just the space of a few weeks some of my biggest dreams have come true. Some of which I've waited years for to actually happen. If I were to go back in time to this time last year and tell myself what the up and coming year would hold; I don't think I'd actually believe it. The strange thing was that I was out and about today when I came across a framed picture of a dream catcher with the words "If you really want to catch you dreams you have to chase them" underneath. It was really appropriate considering everything that's happened during the past little while so of course it came home with me. So from now on, every time I look at that picture up on my bedroom wall, I'll fondly remember all of those precious memories and more importantly that dreams really do come true!
Like I said above, all my dreams that came true during the past couple of months have taken a long time to happen! I've had to overcome a lot of diversity and challenges throughout my entire life but the past four years since my knee surgery has been the toughest of them all. I'm sure at some point I'll write in more depth about all that has happened perhaps in a book (if I can actually make that dream a reality!) or even in this blog and explain in more detail just how difficult it's been. I feel really proud of everything I've overcome and the dreams I've achieved by doing just that. More now than ever, I feel extremely inspired to go out there and make every single one of my dreams come true.
As you'll know my radio dream has become a reality and I owe a lot of thanks every single person that helped me get there! I honestly mean this when I say that I love every single second I spend at the station, live on air hosting my very own show! I get such a buzz from it; I love learning new things, improving my skills and techniques and meeting such lovely people in the process. Having this amazing opportunity means the world to me and I'm cannot begin to express just how grateful I am for being given a chance.
Another of my biggest dreams was to meet Stevie Nicks from the legendary rock band Fleetwood Mac and thanks to an amazing charity named Rays of Sunshine my dream finally came true! I don't think I've ever met anyone quite like Stevie, she is truly a wonderful woman and a huge inspiration to me. Everything she said to me that night; the advice and the encouragement really meant a lot and will inspire me for the rest of my life. A short time after my wish was granted, Rays of Sunshine sent out a press release about my wish to some of the newspapers and the story was published in my town's local newspaper which was pretty exciting! We received the news that it had been printed whilst I was on air at the radio station so Mum and I popped into the supermarket on route home to pick up a copy. I quickly flicked through the pages in the shop to find the article but didn't properly read it until we got back into the car. I remember scanning through the article and having to double take when I noticed that Stevie herself had made a comment! Never in a million years did I expect to read the words "It was truly a pleasure to spend time with Robyn. She is definitely a girl with a plan, and she is not letting this get her down. She may actually save the world. I wrote her story in my journal where it will live on. Rock on Robyn! Love, Stevie Nicks." I was completely and utterly shocked but incredibly touched that Stevie had taken the time out of her day to contribute to the article and say such sweet things about me. Those words mean the absolute world to me and I can't thank Stevie enough for her words of wisdom and encouragement!
I sincerely hope that one day in the not so distant future I will find a way to help Rays of Sunshine for making my dream come true. That evening made such a big impact in my life and without Rays of Sunshine it would never have happened. I am going to have a good brainstorm about what I can do to say Thank-you them for granting my wish and hopefully find a way to help them make other young people's greatest wishes come true!
No doubt, you'll have come across my previous blog posts about my trip to Liverpool and seeing Sir Paul McCartney in concert. I've wanted to visit Liverpool for such a long time anyway, but combining it with another of my greatest wishes to see Paul McCartney in concert was something I'd never have even expected to happen! Liverpool is such a beautiful city and the people who live there couldn't have been friendlier! I instantly felt at home there and cannot wait to go back! Seeing Paul McCartney was for me one of those "pinch me" moments. I'd missed out on seeing him live on a couple occasions so this was as you can imagine an extremely special experience! I know some people would argue otherwise but in my opinion alongside so many others Paul's still go it! To see a gentlemen of his age play for as long as he did and not once show an sign of exhaustion was incredible! The music of course, speaks for itself and to actually hear those legendary songs performed right there in front of me was mind-blowing! I still can't believe I saw Paul live and have promised myself it certainly won't be the last time!
I could quite literally go on forever about the amazing few weeks I've but getting to the long and the short of it is that dreams do come true so never give up trying! If they don't work out for you the first time there's a good reason why it wasn't meant to be. Please just don't give up hope because when it finally does happen it'll be extremely special and completely worth it-I can assure you of that!
I shall love you and leave you for now, so if you haven't already make sure to catch up on all my latest blog posts here at www.thehathippie.blogspot.co.uk and also on my music blog www.jukeboxrhapsody.blogspot.co.uk! I'm planning on compiling a list of ideas for future blog posts to keep me busy over the coming weeks and months so if any of you would like to see me write about something in particular make sure to leave a comment below, on one of my social media accounts or by email through the contact form. Any ideas will of course be greatly appreciated and I'll do my absolute upmost to write about them here on my blog.

Thank-you so much for stopping by! I really appreciate all your love and support! It means the absolute world to me!

Lots of Love & Best Wishes,

Rob (The Hat Hippie) xx