Steph Paints: Zootropolis

So I was given a new sketchbook for Christmas and I was stuck on what to use if for. It's taken 3 months but I have finally decided to use it for 'Most anticipated films of the year!' Starting from this month I will post a painting every couple of weeks of the films I am most looking forward that month.
This month is 'Zootropolis' who doesn't love a Disney right?! Animal based Disney films have always been my favourite, The Lion King, Oliver And Company, Lady And The Tramp, Finding Nemo, A Bug's Life, I could be here forever.

This film has a pretty awesome voice cast including Ginnifer Goodwin voicing Judy Hopps; a cop Rabbit, Jason Bateman voicing Nicholas P. Wilde; a con artist Fox, Idris Elba voicing Chief Bogo; a Cape Buffalo, Octavia Spencer voicing Mrs Otterton, you guessed it an Otter. And even Shakira voicing Gazelle; a popstar!
Definitely a must see for me!

Free App Friday - Duolingo

Apple's Free App of the Year!

Learning and speaking another language always seemed like such a cool thing growing up. Most of the kids on my favourite shows could speak another language, at least a little, and I wanted to be just like them. I wanted to impress people when I ate out at restaraunts and didn't stumble over the Italian names. (A skill I have yet to master. Also, I was eight, I never went to restaurants, unless you count McDonalds.) I wanted to be able to greet everyone in French and rant angrily in Spanish - something I still cannot do coherently in English.

I wanted this so badly as a youngster that I tried to convince my parents to buy me Rosetta Stone. But, sadly, my dad declared it a rip off - as he did with anything that wasn't free - and insisted on trying to teach me the limited Spanish he knew from his times living up in the mountains in Malaga, where he was surrounded by other English people. Safe to say that by the age of ten, I knew all the Spanish swear words and several jokes about his friend with the name C. A. Jones, but couldn't ask you how you were.

Then, at the ripe old age of 21, I found Duolingo.

To level up, users have to gain Lingots. These are gained by finishing a skill and practicing for several days in a row (even just for five minutes, if that's your goal). You can then use those Lingots to use in the store to buy things like Power-ups and Bonus Skills (which includes some hilarious flirting translations).

My nephews (well, two of them, 6 & 7) were intrigued by the little green owl icon on my phone (don't act like that isn't the cutest green owl you've ever seen) and decided to play it. They sat quietly for over an hour guessing the words and learning new phrases, cheering as the owl celebrated their ten day streak with them. I mean, I completed the other nine, but they wasn't paying attention enough to that, they were just happy they were winning their game. It's been a few weeks now and pretty much the only word they remember is 'Hola!' which they like to yell at random moments at the top of their lungs.

Duolingo is great as long as you don't mind the Spanish word for sandwich being stuck on repeat in your head at all times. (It's emparedado in  case you were wondering. See, the app works!)

Duolingo is a free app (doi!) that  can be found on both Android and Apple phones. Whether you're serious about learning a new language or just want to go at your own pace, Duolingo allows you to set your own targets and goals. And there's an online version too, so you can practice on your phone and on your computer. There's even a little reminder that pops up on your phone when it's time to practice.

There' a whole range of languages too - I have no idea what they are because I only chose Spanish, but there is a pretty impressive range. (Okay, with a little research, I found out that there are 23 different languages - all completely free!) Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portugese, Swedish, the list goes on.

Founded by Louis von Ahn and Severin Hacker (Please, take a long moment, those names are really cool) and built on the belief that 'free education will really change the world' this is a handy, well intentioned app that benefits everybody. The language-learning platform is constantly adapting and creating new ideas, with new courses for languages such as Hungarian, Hebrew and even Klingon in development. In the last year or so, Duolingo has released a new programme that allows teachers to use the site in schools and focus on each individual student's strengths and weaknesses when it comes to languages.

The app is easy to use and comes in different categories - from basics to medical talks to pronouns. And it uses both written and audio forms of learning, so you can hear and speak the sentences as you learn them. You can even add friends and compete with them.

The Living Sitch - with a boyfriend

So, when me, Billie and Steph were discussing the topics and subject we could talk about/post about - we wanted the posts to relate to each other, to get three different viewpoints on a the same type of issue. The first ride we realised and then went with was the fact we all have different living situations; I live with my boyfriend, Billie lives by herself and Steph with her parents and brothers. 

I took the adult step in August 2015 to move in with my boyfriend - it was fast. We had technically only been together for 5 months, ideally we wouldn’t have even mentioned it for the next 6. But situations arose and long story short, the most logical ending was us moving in together. We discussed it, in length, and we believed in our relationship, that although it was a lot earlier than either of us would’ve liked, so we took the plunge. 

We’ve been in our little house for 6 months now, we’ve had highs and lows aplenty in those six months and now we find ourselves ready to celebrate a year together.
It was a culture shock, living a lot more independently than I am used too. I come from a household with a doting mother, she did a lot for me, more than I like to admit as a 23 year old. I should’ve done more, and now I do lot more. I, however, enjoyed the challenge, my first real grown adult step in life. I rent - I live with a boy! (I know, I know). 

Living with a boy is strange to begin with. Living with a person you’ve never lived with before is weird. You come from completely different households that do small things different ways. I come from a household go wash tabs, he from cap in the washing machine. I come from a household that ate cheese (a lot of), he hates cheese, can’t even stand the smell. I come from a household filled with veggies, he doesn’t like those either. It’s a lot of learning and a lot of compromise. 

I don’t like gammon, he loves gammon, we buy it bi monthly. He doesn’t like veggies, I love me some veggies, I buy frozen bags so I can have side portions. 

I am terrified of spiders - he gets rid of them. 

We balance each other in a lot of ways - I like to do the washing up and the clothes washing - he’ll scrub that oven until it gleams, same with the bath and that nasty bit of mould crawling in from the window. We take turns cooking, take turns doing the food shop, take turns vacuuming. Once you find a balance it easily settles into a routine of sorts. 

We annoy each other - of course we do! Neither of us have lived with a partner before, sheesh, neither of us had spent more than a few days with each other consecutively, and now here we are, seeing and interacting every day! He will almost always, leave his towel on the floor. EVERY DAMN TIME. It’s not even that big a deal, and it frustrates me to no end. I can guarantee I annoy him in certain little ways too! But we moan to each other, we have a joke that we sound like an old married couple - he’ll remember to pick the towel up for a week, then forget again. It’s not going to change and I’ve accepted that I’ll probably be picking the towel up for the foreseeable future. In the grand scheme of things - I’m okay with that. He’s accepted that I’m going to fill the house with as many books as I possibly can - it’s compromise.

It’s a strange and sometimes hard adjustment, I not being used to constant interaction, go quiet and into myself, and he believes something has upset me. It’s cute but this is just the time I would be in my room having some ‘me’ time. Now, he knows what this is and we both understand the importance of me time. Times to ourselves, it’s a necessity. 

Sure, from time to time I’ll miss the simplicity of living with my parents - less rent, instant food, far less housework. I miss my dog more than words can comprehend, my little bundle of constant affection that could brighten any day. But, I wouldn’t go back now, I don’t think I could. I enjoy my ‘own’ place. I like being able to make it myself; I recently bought a bookcase and I made and decorated it myself. I have come to understand the term ‘house proud’. 

I made a big step - one I do not regret. I get to wake up to my lovely boyfriend every morning (usually annoyed cause he’s a outrageous bed hog), but it’s a really nice way to wake up. 

I’m going to stop now, because I’m getting soppy and no-one wants that. Look out for future posts from Billie and Steph about how they find their living situations. And let us know about yours! We’d love to hear from you. Also keep an eye out for more ‘stalgia Sunday, Free App Friday, reviews and Steph’s drawings - they’re amazing :-)

Free App Friday: Marvel - Contest of Champions

This week’s Free App Friday deviates into mobile gaming. Mobile gaming is a big market, the introduction of the iPhone and the App Store, mobile gaming is a big deal. There are thousands upon thousands of games available for your phone through the App Store if you’re an iPhone user, and the various different stores for the various types of Android powered phone; such as Google’s Play Store, which is the one I use for my Nexus 6P.
Browsing through the millions of apps available for your smartphone can be a tiresome task, going through them all and deciding if this app is worth it? It’s a lot of effort, there’s a lot of apps! I know I’ve spent more time than I like to admit, just scrolling and scrolling and scrolling and scrolling, trying to find something I can get invested in. An app I won’t mind that takes up more memory than I would like, especially as I don’t have much to spare. Do any of us?

So flashback a week ago, when I found myself browsing (again) and I found Marvel Champions - unless you’ve been under a rock, superheroes are a big deal these days. They are now mainstream entertainment - with a different superhero movie coming out in cinemas at least three times a year, Netflix have the rights to at least 3 different Marvel superheroes so now they’re taking over the small screen too.
And now they have reached an even smaller screen (although many a joke have been made that my phone screen is not actually that small..), Marvel Champions is a fighting game featuring various characters of many levels of fame; from Wolverine to Black Panther, Captain America to Black Bolt - there’s many a hero to suit the different degree of superhero knowledge around today.

The concept of the game is to go on quests to compete against Kang; the challenger. You then win crystals, gold and other components needed to level up your heroes and uncover higher lvel ones. It’s a fun to play game, that involves planning and strategy, using your heroes wisely on these quests. You can join an Alliance with other players and go on Alliance quests. This game is a good way to kill time - and kill your battery (just a warning). Once you get the hang of it, it doesn’t seem as complicated as it might at first. The actual fighting concept of the game is also easy to grasp - swipe right to attack, hold right to strong attack and hold left to block. You can then read your opponents and know when is best to do all of these - and for someone who's mobile gaming catalogue stretches as far as Head's Up and Ninjump, I picked this up surprisingly quickly. 

For a free app that doesn't acquire (well, as far I've gotten, Level 8!!) any in app purchases, I highly recommend this app. If you have any fun mobile games that you'd recommend please let me know, I love to try new ones out! 

P.s. As a side note for those of you who do read this blog, it is mainly going to be me (Katy) posting for the next week or so, due to Billie and Steph having a whole load on in their personal lives, just a heads up! Expect lots of ranting reviews and inconsistent weekly's! I try, I fail, what can I say?

'stalgia Sunday: X-Men: The Animated Series

I grew up watching a lot of television, I don’t want to regale you of how I didn’t have that many friends and didn’t ‘play out’ often - what a fun tale! I was fine with it, it genuinely never bothered me. So, instead, I read a lot of books and watched a lot of television. 

TV shows when I was younger were great - Cartoon Network ruled the roost, with the likes of; The Powerpuff Girls, Tom & Jerry, Scooby-Doo etc, then I discovered Fox Kids. 

What a revelation. 

Fox Kids was great, unfortunately it ceased to be in 2002 and I remember being incredibly sad about this, for then, where was I supposed to watch one of my favourite TV shows? On repeat?!

X-Men: The Animated Series. What a show. X-Men are my favourite concept from Marvel. (Apart from the film franchise, don’t talk to me about the film franchise. EVER). This TV is the origin of my interest and I did all the research on the mutants and even read some comics online - the only comics I’ve ever read to this date have all been X-Men related. 

The TV show was great - yes it adapted and changed the comic storylines more than the films and yet because it sparked my interest I’m okay with that? I’m a massive hypocrite apparently. It featured the X-Men right however, their personalities were the focal point of this show. The gruff and moody Logan/Wolverine.The charming and smooth-talking Gambit. The calming and steadfast Storm. So many personalities, that the clashes between them were an appeal, just like real-life they had many differences, and they had to resolve those. It knew when to be serious and when to inject some humour in, a well-balanced show.
It was also all about team-work and putting as your differences and problems to come together to defeat the greater evil - even when that is your own teammate (Dark Phoenix Saga). 

Now, this is going to be a long one, a whirlwind of emotion as I talk to you about Rogue. No, no push that movie version from your mind, that is not Rogue. Rogue is not a moping, whining, sad woman. NO. Rogue is a bad-ass motherfucker, a southern belle that will beat you up for looking at her wrong. Rogue was my first and forever role model. 

The yellow and green suit, the green/brown cool-ass bomber jacket, the big beautiful curls. Rogue was/is everything. She was the best. She could and would take down any man, any mutant, anything. Why? Because she’s Rogue. She could fly, she could break down walls (literally), she could touch you AND KILL YOU.
Rogue was a great character for these reasons alone, but also because she was full of so many layers (like an onion…). She knew she could save so many lives, so she sacrificed every being able to touch a person - even just a hug, for the sake of mankind. How can you not love her?
That is the beauty of this show - so many of the leading characters were female, and they were powerful, they were equal, they were flawed - and that was okay! This was such a good show for me, as a female to grow up watching. 

Right, i’m going to move on from the outrageous love I have for Rogue. I mean, I definitely could’ve gone on, but you should just watch it and fall in love with her yourselves. 

Another reasons this show was one and still definitely is one of my favourite - superpowers. I always, always, always wanted a superpower, even just a lame one. C’mob this was a show about a school for people with superpowers (mutant gene - therefore just evolved humans but SUPERPOWER). Behind Hogwarts - I wanted to be able to go to Charles Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters. 

Essentially, for a kids TV show about people with superpowers - it was definitely accessible for adults. Hell, I found out it was on Netflix and binge-watched it in about 2 days. So you guys, go and do that. I mean, bring snacks and settle right in. You’ll thank me!

Free App Friday - Rightmove

Back again! A somewhat consistent, recurring series that we hope to continue along with ‘stalgia Sunday and a few others that will pop up sometime in the few weeks - but we all work shifts that change every week, without fail, so it is entirely dependant on that! We are aiming for weekly, but for now it might be bi-weekly as we settle into routines and plan fitting this blog in around our everyday lives.

So, back to Free App Friday, last time I focused on Instagram, this time is about the Rightmove app. I moved in my new, and first house without my parents, and with my boyfriend six months ago (more on that in a post coming your way soon! Shameless promo) and the process was made incredibly simple by this app. It’s so incredibly easy to use, the layout, the steps and then being able to contact the estate agents - so impressively easy to navigate.

This isn't going to earn any design awards, it’s basic, it’s blue and green - the company’s colours. It’s simplistic but not for an innovative design, just because there’s no need to over-complicate it. That’s why it works.

Whilst using this app, you are able to set price points, the type of living you want - whether that be a flat, a house, a house-share, or a house-boat! The distance of the surrounding area, all done in the form of simple drop down boxes.

Then scrolling through the houses, flats etc, it gives you snippets of information, all the important  stuff, so you don’t have go trolling through jargon and numbers - just the essential information that will make or break whether you will even consider that house. It (if it is available) will give you, photos and floor-plans, view it on a map, school checkers (if you need it), and then two bright orange buttons enabling you to call or email the estate agents dealing with that house, I mean it when I say this app is simple!

I found my lovely little two bed through this app, and I adore my house and making it my own. And I may have never found it without Rightmove.

Come back every (other, potentially) Friday for more great free app recommendations! If you have any free apps you love and can’t live without, let me know!

Deadpool - by Steph

So this is a quick sketch I did after watching Deadpool with these two lovely ladies the other day. This film is by far the best Marvel film I have ever had the pleasure of witnessing. It is everything a Marvel/Deadpool fan can expect and more! (Just ask Billie.. Or maybe not... She might just make inhuman noises at you)