art – Page 23 – that lemon life

Welcome to 2018 and Happy Anniversary

Hola everyone.

And welcome to a new year. I seriously can’t believe it’s 2018. Time is just flying by, it’s crazy.

You’re probably wondering where I’ve been the past week – at least I hope so – and I’d really really love to tell you that I spent my days watching movies, going out, meeting friends and family and basically just chilling, but unfortunately I can’t. I mean, of course I did all of these things, but today has only been the first day of uni and I’d really be up for a good holiday, what do you think? If there is one thing I haven’t been doing the past three weeks, it’s chilling and relaxing. I had one day I did nothing for uni and that was christmas eve. Apart from that, uni has been running and overtaking my mind day after day and I. CAN’T. STAND. IT. ANY. MORE.

I know, I know, stop whining Laura. Actually, I do have a reason to be happy, because in less than a month, I’ll be sitting at home, having completed and hopefully nailed all of my exams and finished my bachelor thesis. You can’t even imagine how much I’m looking forward to the 1st of February. The first day of semester break. I can’t wait.

But enough of that. What has been going on in your life? I have to say, as much as I had to work and study for uni, there actually happened quite a lot the past weeks. I am currently about to finish my application for uni (wish me luck guys), my first ever bachelor thesis finished alway through (yey), I’ve had the best christmas in years and new year’s eve was amazing too. I spent both events with my parents and my family, but I’ll tell you more about that in further posts. I of course have some pictures in my pockets, so stay tuned.

To be honest, I am actually so excited for this year. There is so much on my list, it’s nearly overwhelming. The concert season starts next month and if I’m not mistaken, I seriously have at least one concert scheduled for every single month until August – expect for May and June, but I’m more than positive that there is still more to come. I can’t believe I’ll be seeing two of my favorite people again this year – Martijn and Ed. It will be the third time seeing my favorite ginger and actually the fourth time seeing the cutest DJ on earth. I am so excited, I don’t even know how to articulate it. And holy moly, in March I’ll fly to London with my parents to see Fall Out Boy. So crazy. So awesome.

And there are so many amazing movies coming up. The first Infinity War movie – I’m already so excited. And Oscar season. And so many horror movies. And so many more. And oh my god, so many albums are coming up. Fall Out Boy, The Wombats and and and. I’m just really really excited.

And let’s not forget that I may or may not be moving to the UK in September. But honestly, if I start thinking about it I may get a panic attack and start to cry, so I’ll stop talking about it right now. Isn’t it crazy how a thing can both light up and break your heart?

So yeah guys, that’s just a little update from me. Here’s to 2018. Oh and guys, tomorrow is a really exciting date – it will be the two-year anniversary of this blog. It makes me so speechless. And I don’t even know how to thank you all enough. I mean, these past two years on here have been two of the best years of my life. And I got to share it all with you guys. You can’t imagine how happy this all makes me and how much this on here means to me. Seriously. Thank you all so much. And happy anniversary.

As always, I hope you’re all doing good and that 2018 has been good to you so far. I wish you all an awesome week and please don’t hesitate to leave a comment or thought down below. And, as always, thanks for reading. x

My New Years Resolutions

Hola everyone.

The new year is literally just around the corner and in prospect of this I’ve been thinking pretty much about 2017 and what I achieved and what I’d like 2018 to be like and what my goals are.

I have to say that 2017 has been a pretty crazy year for me. I mean, I started off the year with my last month of living in Berlin and then I got back and continued university and recently I found this amazing university course in the UK and just an hour ago I started applying for it. I mean, how crazy is that? And I flew to Zürich to see Ed and then to Amsterdam to see Martijn. And I got to visit three new cities in the UK – Liverpool, Blackpool and Manchester – and flew to Paris with my mum and got a new, unbelievably beautiful tattoo there. I just started writing my first Bachelor thesis and I’ve just got this semester until February and then the last one and then I’ll be already finished with my Bachelor in Vienna. I seriously can’t believe how fast the time has flown by. And apart from all these huge things, I accomplished so much more and made so many more experiences and and and. I met new people, started new friendships, had quite an amount of exams, attended looots of concerts and started a job as a magazine journalist. I cried a lot but laughed even more. Went on many adventures and got out of my comfort zone. And when I look back at it, I don’t think I’d change anything (apart from all the bad stuff that happened and is happening in the world right now, but let’s not get started on that).

But there is a new year coming up and I want it to be a new start, a new beginning. A new year to meet goals, turn dreams into reality and so so much more. So I thought why not make a list of my personal new years resolutions? Let’s go.

I really want to stay the optimist I am – it doesn’t work all the times, but sometimes it’s the only thing that brightens up a shitty day
I want to dive even deeper into the topic of my heart – music.
I want to experience more, learn more, see more, hear more, feel more.
I want to meet new people, new cities, new cultures.
I want to get even more out of my comfort zone. Of course it’s scary, but those are the moments life turns from good to exciting.
I want to stay healthy.
I want laugh louder, cry harder and live every moment to its fullest.
I want to show the people around me that I love them and that they literally mean the world to me, because they all deserve it.
I want to go to as many concerts/festivals as I can – those are my happy places and I’m kind of addicted, so…
I want to read even more books, listen to even more songs and bands and watch even more movies.
I want to meet up with my friends and family as often as I can. I know it’s hard, because we all have our own lives and own tasks and jobs and so on, but when I look back I don’t remember the hours I spent scrolling through twitter on my phone, I remember the evenings I spent with my friends, drinking a Chai Latte and laughing about stories of when we were young.
I want to stop pressuring myself so much. I know I’m a perfectionist and that’s actually something I like about myself, but that changes when I start treating myself badly.
I want to continue working as hard as I do now or even harder (I know this kind of doesn’t go with the resolution above, but I’m sure there is a way to combine those two things).
I want to cuddle even more with my family and my pets.
I want to take even more pictures, cook more meals and maybe find a new fascinating hobby I can be passionate about.
I want to try out new things and new activities, maybe some kind of sport or something like that.
I want to try and start being punctual – this is actually the toughest aspect of this list, I am literally never punctual.
I want to go to sleep earlier and change my sleeping schedule – it’s slightly getting out of hand right now.
I want to be nicer to the people I love, I want to forgive more and stop freaking out because of little, stupid things I will probably have forgotten about an hour later.
I want to finish my Bachelor and try to get the best grades possible.
I want to nail my two Bachelor theses.
I want to keep faith and believe in myself, even when the times are hard and I feel like everything is getting too much (like now, when my to-do-list is literally far too long – I can do it and I know it).
I want to get into BIMM (the university in the UK) and find the cutest little flat ever.
I want to continue being this curious and childish and easily excited and funny.
I want to love more.
I want to continue writing this blog, as I love it so much that I can’t even describe it.

So guys, there you go. Those are my new years resolutions or let’s say those that I can think of right now. I’m pretty sure I could come up with about a hundred more if I had more time. But I want to try and make every single one of them and stick to them. Mostly because they all mean quite a lot to me. And I think this way 2018 can’t be anything but another amazing year.

But guys, what are your new years resolutions? Do you even have some? And do you stick to them? This is actually my very first time of writing them down like this, so wish me luck. And guys, I wish you all a happy new year and I hope you’re all doing good. I wish you all the best. Thank you so much for 2017. It’s been an amazing year and I’m more than thankful that I could spend and share it with all of you. Thank you. And, as always, thanks for reading. Here’s to 2018. x

My Songs of 2017

Hola everyone.

The year is really coming to an end, isn’t it? I think not even my shock can change that. And as the year is ending, I thought I’d look through all of the songs I added to my playlist this year and then make some kind of list of my songs of the year 2017.

And what a year it has been. There were so many amazing songs and albums published. Ed has pretty much taken over the year with his album “Divide” and became the most streamed artist of 2017. And I’m so proud of him. I really am. And Paramore. Their new album “After Laughter” is pretty much breathtaking. And Nothing But Thieves surprised us all with their amazing new album “Broken Machine”. And I found my love for the fascinating Tom Rosenthal and his beautiful, calming songs. And Fall Out Boy teased their new style of music with three singles and I can just say, I’m pretty stoked for their new, upcoming album which is being released in the first half of January. And Martijn also released so many amazing songs, not to forget the show in Amsterdam I went to. I still can’t really believe that I experienced that. So crazy. And also all the other amazing, unbelievable concerts I attended. I flew to Zürich to see Ed – one of the best nights in my life. I saw Paramore and The 1975 in a matter of three days. I went to a festival to see Kings of Leon for the second time and had some kind of reunion with Two Door Cinema Club in Vienna, the one band it all started with. And so much more. What a crazy, amazing year it has been.

So, without further ado, here is my list of the songs of 2017. Please enjoy:

The Killers – Mr. Brightside
Saint Raymond – Night Crawling (Re-Edit)
Bad Decisions – Chills
The Hunna – Sycamore Tree
Hippo Campus – Monsoon (live)
Ed Sheeran – How Would You Feel (Paean)
BØRNS – 10,000 Emerald Pools
Fall Out Boy – Young and Menace
Paramore – Rose-Colored Boy
Kristian Kostov – Beautiful Mess
Kraftklub – Chemie Chemie Ya
Sidney Bechet – Si tu voics ma mère
Imagine Dragons – I Don’t Know Why
Martin Garrix – Pizza
The Wrecks – Favorite Liar
Nothing But Thieves – Amsterdam
Tom Rosenthal – Bob in the Rain and the Lizard of Hope

All of these songs mean something to me. Some of them are my favorite songs of an album. Some are songs I’ve been listening to basically 24/7. Some of them are songs that I just recently fell in love with all over again. And some are connected to really important, lovely memories of this year – whether it was a special moment at a concert, a nice evening on a holiday trip or a track in a movie. They all mean something. And through that they’ve all become a part of me, a part of myself.

And also, it seems like I wasn’t the only one who had the idea of doing some kind of musical summary of 2017 – Spotify did too. So they made some kind of list and statistic of my year on Spotify. And it’s pretty fascinating, I have to say. But it describes me in the very best way.

I think it perfectly shows what I enjoy most in music. The only thing that shocks me is that Martijn is missing from the list. But I think it’s so funny that the list of my favorite artists starts off with Tom Rosenthal and Ed, both really slow, calming musicians and then it does like a 180 degree change towards the more indie rock and pop zone with Nothing But Thieves, Fall Out Boy and Paramore. Also, I’m actually pretty proud of the amount of minutes I’ve listened to music – 17.408. That’s like 12 whole days. How crazy is that? Especially when you look at the amount of minutes of 2015 – just about 4700, I think. That’s a pretty huge increase, I’d say.

So yeah guys, there you go. That’s my musical year. And actually I already have so many concerts planned in 2018 – I think I’ve never had so many concert tickets waiting in my drawer. And I can’t wait to attend all of them. And I can’t wait for all the albums, songs, concerts and festivals that are waiting for me, waiting to be published, waiting to be attended. I’m really excited to see what 2018 has in store for me. And until then I’ll just enjoy what 2017 gave me. And I hope you do too.

Also, guys, I won’t be posting anything on Monday, as it’s Christmas, of course. So I wish you all an amazing Christmas and nice holidays and happy days with your loved ones. And I hope you enjoyed this little post. And, as always, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment down below and thanks for reading. x

Christmas Is Coming

Hola everyone.

First of all, sorry for not posting anything last Friday. I had my last exam of this year in the evening at 8 o’clock and I basically spent the whole day studying and preparing for the exam and then I just didn’t have any time at all, to be honest. So yeah, I’m sorry.

But the positive thing is, the exam was pretty easy and I think I pretty much nailed it and since then I’ve been in such a good and christmasy mood. Which also quite surprises me, as I felt anything but christmasy the last few days and weeks. I actually thought it would stay like that – but here I am, feeling the whole christmas magic filling up my heart. It’s actually so shocking that christmas is just around the corner. And that the year is really coming to an end. It feels like days ago that I came back home from my time in Berlin. So, so crazy. But I guess we are all also pretty much looking forward to 2018. At least I hope so, because I am, honestly. I mean, 2017 has both been one of the shittiest years for the world and one of the best years for me. So it’s kind of complicated to really decide on how to look back at this year. So I really do hope that 2018 is going to be a better, even more amazing year for me, for us, for the world. Because we really need it.

But that’s not what this post is about. It’s about feeling all christmasy, so let’s get right to it. So, my parents just came home today from their vacation and actually, yesterday, I had planned on going to a ball. I mean, I seriously have one of the most amazing dresses ever. I’ll once show it to you, I promise. And it would have been the ball of my own school, so yeah, I had planned on going. But then I basically lost every single sense of motivation I had. I remember standing in front of my mirror, dressed in this beautiful, breathtaking dress and I just didn’t want to go. So I stood there, looking at myself, and then I suddenly had a really cool idea. Because last year, when I got home for the holidays from Berlin, my parents had already put up the tree and the house was all christmasy and I loved it so much. So I had the idea to do the same for them and put up the tree myself. At one o’clock in the night. Yes, I was this motivated.

So, I took out my phone, put an indie christmas playlist on (thanks Spotify) and got to work. And it was so soothing, I can’t even describe it. Do you know the feeling when you’re just so comfortable and happy, that it feels like you’re cuddled in a big pillow made of happiness and love? Because that’s what I felt like right there and then. I mean, it still took my quite some time to finish the tree, but I enjoyed every single second of it. And now I’m sitting here, the tree right across me, sparkling with its shiny lights. And I still get this bubbly, happy feeling. I guess christmas has really got me now. And my parents were indeed really surprised and happy when they saw the tree today. And that just made everything even better.

And I, of course, had to take some pictures of the process and the tree. I really hope you enjoy them. And maybe I can transport some of my happy feelings to you through them. That would be amazing.

But guys, have you also already put up your tree? Are you feeling all christmasy? Oh, and please, tell me what you think about the tree. I got inspired for the colors when I walked past the big tree at university – it’s also blue and silver and gold. And I thought, oh wow, that really looks cool. So I just reconstructed this here at home, for us. And I am actually really proud of the outcome. But what do you think? And what do your trees look like? I’m really curious to know. And yeah, I wish you all an amazing week and I hope you enjoyed this post and the pictures and, as always, thanks for reading. x

Another Day – Another Concert

Hola everyone.

As you already know me so well, you know that I love going to concerts. It’s like food or the air I breathe, I need concerts to survive. I mean, how boring would life be without live music? Oh my god, I can’t even imagine. So dull.

So, in order to not let my life become some kind of boring or dull, I just had to visit another concert and thankfully Nothing But Thieves, one of my favorite bands, decided to pay us a visit. And holy moly, it was soooo amazing. I don’t even know where to begin, no joke.

But first let me tell you something about the band. I first got in touch with them about two years ago while dreaming about flying to the UK to attend Reading Festival – which my mum and I then also did, as you all know. I remember falling more and more in love with their music and their style and just the band overall. And when I finally saw them at Reading, I was head over heels in love with them. Especially with Conor, the lead singer. He’s literally the cutest ever and was so emotional at the show at Reading. So when they announced their European tour, I just had to see them again.

I am indeed a really really big fan of their music. They somehow sound like nothing I’ve ever heard before. And Conor’s voice is so damn unique, it’s fascinating. And they sound so damn good live, oh my god. I would say that they perfectly fit into the lane of music I love. They are a little bit poppy, a little bit slow, very emotional and deep when it comes to the lyrics and then suddenly they get all loud and heavy and full of amazing beats and guitar riffs. And all of that topped with Conor’s angelic voice. It’s literally everything I could wish for. So yeah, that special mix is really what gets me.

And exactly a week ago it was finally time to see them again. Crazy that it was only just a week ago, feels like it ages. The concert was in a pretty small venue in Vienna and completely sold out (props to them). I actually loved the venue, as it had stairs in the back so I didn’t have any problems with the sight. I hate when there are only tall people in front of me, I mean, I’m not the smallest person ever, but especially at concerts platforms come in pretty handy for me. And my mum was happy about that too. So thankfully we didn’t have to worry about not seeing anything.

So we got in and that first support act was already playing – a band called Airways, which I funnily enough already knew beforehand, as one of their songs (it’s called “Mate”) is part of Spotify playlist. So it was no surprise for me that they were amazing. And then the second band came – called The Xcerts – and they were just as amazing as the first one. I really have to applaud NBT for picking such good support acts. They really were a perfect pick. And also the music they played before NBT finally got on stage. Two Door Cinema Club, Foals, The Killers – all the big hits to get us all hyped up. And it worked, I really have to admit.

And yeah, then they finally came and god, was I happy. The started off with “I’m Not Made By Design”, which was a perfect start. And then they basically continued playing all the big hits, switching between their old and new album and fast and slow songs. It was really really really amazing. I especially enjoyed “I Was Just A Kid”. I don’t think I never headbanged that much at a concert. I mean, I didn’t headbanged like you’re probably imagining it right now – but I did like the Laura version, the easy version. And I was soooo hyped up, holy moly. I screamed, danced, sang my lungs out and enjoyed every single second like it was my last one.

And as I already said, they were so damn amazing. They really are one those bands that sound like 100000000 times better live. Which is pretty hard if you know how amazing their albums sound. And Conor was so freaking cute. I could really see that he was really comfortable being there on that stage. I remember him being all nervous at the Reading show. And comparing it to last Friday, I really do get all proud inside. Because he and his band made so much progress in the last year and I’m so damn happy.

But what I especially love about Conor is his humor and his awkwardness. Like, he danced around and smiled and I enjoyed watching him with his bandmates so much. They really are an amazing pack of musicians. And you could sense that they love what they’re doing. Oh and I loved the part when it was just Conor on the stage, with his acoustic guitar that is far too big for his body, but let’s be honest, that just adds even more to the cuteness. He sang a cover of Tom Petty’s “Free Fallin'” and yeah, I of course teared up a bit. It was just too emotional.

And, of course, their last song “Amsterdam” really was one of the highlights. Until that point the energy had built up more and more and then when the song started it was ready to burst and it nearly blew the roof off, no joke. The dynamics was freaking breathtaking. We all jumped and screamed and sang and I felt so alive at that moment, I felt like the happiest person on earth. So I really have to thank NBT and their support acts for again creating a night that I will surely never ever forget. Thank you so much for making me so happy. See, that’s why I love music so much. It’s literally my happy place.

So yeah guys, there’s that. Another unforgetful concert and another story for me to tell and another reason for me to love music and concerts and bands. It all makes me so happy. And I really hope that you enjoyed this little post too. Please don’t hesitate to leave a comment down below. And, as always, I wish you all an amazing weekend and thanks for reading. x

Happy Friday

Hola everyone.

Right now it’s eight pm on this Friday evening and I’m sitting in my apartment in Vienna, thinking about what I should tell you guys first. Fall Out Boy is playing in the background and to be honest, I couldn’t be happier.

There is something quite exciting and also slightly frightening happening tomorrow, which also partly happened today. Let’s get right to the point. I am currently taking my IELTS exam. The exam that determines your level of English and the one exam that decides whether I’ll be able to go to a university in the UK or not, because in the UK you need to have a special level in order to be even allowed to apply. So yeah, you could say that this exam is pretty important and the results are even more. Wish me luck guys.

I have to say, I can’t really tell you how I feel about the exam – I’m taking writing, reading and listening tomorrow – because on the one hand I am really nervous because the results are so important for my future, and on the other hand I’m super excited because I just love the English language so freaking much and I know that I am good at it so I actually look forward to showing off my skills a little bit. It’s a little bit complicated.

But today I already had the speaking part of the exam and as far as I can tell, it went pretty pretty good. I had to talk about my family and friends and education and that kind of stuff, so it wasn’t that hard to come up with good answers. But I think it really showed that I was quite nervous, I literally couldn’t stop talking. The examiner had to always stop or slow me down, I was just babbling on and on. I mean, not that that’s something bad. Actually I think it’s far better to talk too much than not enough. But yeah, that was that part. I am really happy that it worked out and I can’t wait for the results, really.

And apart from that another really amazing thing happened today. God, how long has this day been? I feel like I’ve been awake for 40 hours. Anyway. Today, I tried to get tickets to see Fall Out Boy I’ve on their next tour. I actually tried getting some yesterday, but the presale didn’t work at all, so I really placed all my bets and hopes on today. And guess what? I seriously managed to get some pretty awesome seats and I am literally internally screaming in happiness. I mean, how awesome is that? I really got tickets to see Fall Out Boy, one of my favorite bands on this planet. And not only that I’ll be seeing them for my birthday, no, I’ll also be in London, my favorite city ever. Oh my god.

Unfortunately, this amazing band again decided that my country isn’t worth a visit, so, as always, I have to get to them if they don’t come to me. And thankfully I really do have the most amazing, coolest parents on earth, who said that they would make my big wish come true and fly to London and see Fall Out Boy together with on my birthday weekend. I could start crying just by the thought of it. I can’t even begin to tell you how thankful I am. Sometimes I seriously have no idea what I did in order to deserve such awesome parents. And oh god, I love this band so much, I can’t believe this is happening. Holy moly.

So yeah, that was my day. After the exam I went for some christmas shopping and now I’m back home and already thinking about which part to prepare for first – writing, reading or listening? To be honest, I’m really not that nervous about tomorrow. Because I know my abilities. And I just love this language. I know I can do it. And I just have to tell that myself over and over again.

But guys, how was your day? I hope you had an amazing Friday. And I hope you enjoyed this little update or whatever you could call this. I’ll of course keep you updated on my IELTS results. And yeah, until then I wish you all an amazing weekend and, as always, thanks for reading. x