In my opinion cities can be divided by their preferable season. For example New York is an early autumn city whereas Paris is a spring city all the way. With that in mind I'd say that Berlin is a summer city. Especially during the summer Berlin knows no boundaries between nature and the cityscape. The green effortlessly blends into the industrial cement and glass and old stone buildings and graffiti of downtown. It's almost like Berlin knows no rules, or no one cares. The atmosphere feels free. Parks are full and dads are pushing strolls on their morning walk with an opened beer in their hand. Live music spills on to the streets from nearby pubs. The woman sitting opposite of me in the U-Bahn has tree branches peeking out of her handbag. She is probably an artist, I think to myself. No one else seems to wonder; this is normal in Berlin.
Exams are over and the spring is (more or less) here! These pictures are from a sunny day a few weeks back. I'm so excited for the warmer winds but at the same time I am experiencing wardrobe troubles, as I have nothing to wear for this so called in-between season (admittedly a hyperbole to the max but still). It's not cold enough for me to wear a jacket but it's also not warm enough to wear a top alone. It makes me want to pull my hair and run screaming to the nearest clothing store every single morning. The thing is, for some this may not be a problem, but for those who are like me and are trying to aggressively save up for the summer's travels and other shenanigans, this becomes a problem. That being said, this semi-maxi dress with long sleeves is probably the best thing to wear for this weather. Also, it's comfy AF and works with any type of shoes you could think of. So basically if you see me wearing this dress everyday then there you go, now you know why. It's because I'm smart.
Oh god, only two days until exams! Who else is a major stress head? If you are, do not be afraid. I have the perfect stress hair tip for a stress head. It is called a pull-braid-going-fishtail and even though it sounds ridiculously complicated, it took a braiding noob like me only ten minutes. I obviously did not come up with the idea but I found a tutorial for it by the Cute Girl Hairstyles. (What a cute name also.) I will put the the link to the video below.
Since it is an exam season for a lot of people, I took it upon myself to find 5 ways to reduce stress. (You're welcome. Now you don't have to buy that expensive wrinkle cream. See? Coming here was the right choice.)
1. Visualise success
This tip was given by Dr. Mike, in his advice video for NowThis. According to him you need to concentrate and picture yourself succeeding in whatever stresses you out (his idea was a date but fuck that who needs a love life when you can have exams, am I right??). This will create positive signals in your brain and reduce your stress levels. In my opinion watching this beautiful man is already enough to reduce stress levels. Anyone else suddenly feeling sick?!
2. Blow cool air onto your thumb
... Yeah... this one is definitely a bit tricker, especially if you are out in the public and do not want to look like a lunatic. No worries though! Public stalls are not only good for a good old stress sob. You can do other things in there as well, such as blow air on to your thumb. I saw this tip on the Buzzfeed body hacks but I think I'll definitely let you guys try it out first...
3. A Good Old Stress Sob
No description required. We all have done this. Don't lie.
4. Meditate
"Research suggests that daily meditation may alter the brain's neutral pathways, making you more resilient to stress" - Robbie Maller Hartman, PhD
5. Look constipated
Just kidding. This is an old trick my aunt taught me. You have to inhale until you feel like your lungs will burst. (Don't be a sissy this is a badass inhale I'm talking about here, it won't work otherwise.) Then hold your breath and count to 5, after which you can exhale. This is particularly useful right before exams if you tend to blank out due to stress. This has to do with the body's reaction to stressful situations due to the survival mechanism ingrained in our DNA. For example, if you almost get run by a bike, your body enters into this stress mode that is vital to survival, but not so nice in the long run if you are trying to get work done. Taking a long-ass breath signals to your body that everything is ok and therefore breaks you out of the stress mode.
+ 1 - Have your hair on fleek
It obviously reduces stress when you can look fabulous while stressed the F-out. This way you know that you will always have the back up option of finding yourself a rich spouse.
Ok that was it. I hope you have a great (stress free) day.
