Pages

Thursday, 4 March 2021

Up Your Board Game Skills With These Tips*


Image Source - CCO Licence


If you are the kind of person who is really into board games, you will know full well just how exciting and amazing they can truly be. As geeky as it looks to the rest of the world, for us gamers it’s just another great way to pass the time. And just as there are good and bad board games, so are there good and bad board game players. If you are keen to improve your board game skills, there are a few things that can really help, so let’s take a look at what those might be right now.



Play The Part


One thing that can really help is if you spend a little more time and energy really trying to play the part of a board gamer. That means that you have all of the necessary equipment, for one: a set of your own personalised dice from SkullSplitter Dice, some fancy card sleeves for your Magic: The Gathering decks, and so on. The more that you are playing the part by having these kinds of things in your possession, the more you are going to bring to the table, literally, and that will improve your skills no end.


Embrace a wider selection of games It would be easy to assume that focusing exclusively on one board game is the best way to master it. On the contrary, enjoying a range of games will be beneficial as you’ll gain transferable skills and learn to solve problems more logically. For example, you can borrow some of the aggressive tactics used in Monopoly to gain an advantage over your opponents in other games. As well as traditional board games, you can try digital versions found at popular casino sites. Table games may aid your board game playing skills too. Similarly, there are video game versions of many classic board games. So, even when your friends and family aren’t available, you can brush up on your skills by playing against the computer.



Read The Instructions


It’s always going to be easier to master a specific game if you know the instructions inside and out, of course, so that means you should aim to read the instructions every time without fail. As long as you do that, you are much more likely to get as good as you want to be at not just those specific games but also any games that might be looked into in the future too. That’s because a lot of board games do share certain elements, so the more you get used to them, the more you will be able to pick up new games with ease.



Have A Practice Run


It’s always worth having a practice run for a new game, especially if it is particularly complex. Ideally you can do this as a group, but if you want to come to the group prepared, you could practice on your own at home first. There are plenty of places online you can go to legally play games for free now, so you should be able to practice pretty much any game you might be about to play in real life. Consider downloading Tabletop Simulator for somewhere to practice your games.



Get Brain Training


All board games are going to be improved by you having a better ability to think logically and clearly - well, except for those games which are almost entirely luck - so the more you use your brain in other circumstances, the easier you will find it to win board games with your friends. Spend some time brain training in other ways, and you are going to find it translates over to the board game world very well, thereby increasing the amount that you win and improving your standing amongst your friends. The more you put into it, the more you receive.



post signature
Twitter | Instagram | Bloglovin | YouTube | Tumblr | Pinterest | Facebook


*Collaborative Post

Tuesday, 2 March 2021

My 2021 Workout Playlist



I love doing a little bit of exercise, and nothing helps more to get me into a good Pilates or Dancing session, than my 'pump it up' playlist! This is the playlist I've had to motivate me for the past year (with some VERY recent additions), and are all songs I love to have a dance to, even if it's just one of the songs as a super energetic solo bedroom dance session...

Don't judge!

The whole playlist is just over 20 minutes, which is just about all I can do before giving myself a nasty asthma attack - but that 20 minutes is a good workout for the body once or twice a week. So today I wanted to share the songs I use, and see if anyone has similar ones. Here are the songs I listen to for my warm up, cool down and the main session for workouts in 2021!

Warm Up - 2.47 Minutes


Main Exercise - 16 Minutes (approx)



  



Cool Down - 3.33 Minutes



The good thing with the Zumba songs is they have a dance routine for each of them which I can then do if I'm doing my own Zumba session. And the MNEK one has an accompanying dance from a DVD I had years ago - so I just wing it when the rest come on and try and get in a lot of stretches, squats and jumping jacks during that part.

My warm up and cool down both have a 60 second jogging on the spot as well as numerous stretches to make sure I don't hurt myself!

What are your songs for working out? And do you prefer an upbeat playlist or a more relaxing one? Let me know! Hope you have a great day and keep safe :)


post signature
Twitter | Instagram | Bloglovin | YouTube | Tumblr | Pinterest | Facebook


Wednesday, 3 February 2021

A-Z Of My Favourite Songs | 2021


I've thought of another A-Z post to share with you all! I won't lie, I love doing these sort of list posts, they're fun to do, and it's a good brainstorming session for the alphabet! Today, are a list of songs that I am loving right now for each letter!

A - Alexander Hamilton - Hamilton OST
B - Bad Blood - Taylor Swift
C - Confident - Demi Lovato
D - Dreams - Van Halen
E - Everybody (Backstreet's Back) - Backstreet Boys
F - Freaky - Jesse McCartney
G - Guns And Ships - Hamilton OST
H - Her Majesty - Frock Destroyers 
- Immigrant Song - Led Zepplin
- Judas - Lady Gaga
K - Kings & Queens - Ava Max
L - Let's Groove - Earth Wind Fire
M - Machine - We Three
N - No Excuses - Meghan Trainor
O - One Last Time - Ariana Grande
P - Promise The Stars - We The Kings
Q - Queen Of Hearts - We The Kings
R - Really Don't Care - Demi Lovato
S - Sweet Melody - Little Mix
T - Thunderstruck - AC/DC
U - Ugly Heart - G.R.L.
V - Vacation - Simple Plan
W - When It's Love - Van Halen
X - XO - We The Kings ft. Elena Coats
Y - Youth - Troye Sivan
Z - Zombie - The Cranberries
# - 1999 - Charli XCX


Are any of the above favourite songs of yours? And what are yours for all of them? Let me know! Hope you have a great day and keep safe :)


post signature
Twitter | Instagram | Bloglovin | YouTube | Tumblr | Pinterest | Facebook






Friday, 29 January 2021

Costs To Consider When Selling Your Home*


Pexels. CCO Licensed.

Selling a home can sometimes be an opportunity to make money. However, it’s important to also consider the various costs involved when selling up. Below are just some of the expenses involved when selling a home that you will need to budget for. 

Agency fees/commission

Most people use an estate agent to help sell their home. If you do choose to use an agent, you’ll have to pay a seller’s fee or commission. This is usually paid after the sale is made - some of the money you get from the buyer then goes towards the agent. Technically, it’s the buyer paying the agency fee/commission, however it comes out of the value of your home so you’ll end up earning less money from the sale. Most estate agents charge about 6% commission. 

Energy performance certificate

An energy performance certificate (EPC) may need to be acquired when selling your home. This is a document that assesses the energy usage of your home to ensure that it is energy-efficient enough. EPCs typically cost between £60 and £120. If you bought your home less than 10 years ago or have had a energy assessment within that time, you’ll already have a valid EPC and won’t need to apply for a new one. There are sites online that can offer more information on property certificates such as EPCs. Other certificates may be necessary when selling certain other types of property. 

Solicitor fees

To handle all the paperwork when selling up, it will usually be necessary to hire a solicitor. This solicitor will also be able to help with any paperwork involved when buying a new property. There are solicitors that specialise in this process (known as conveyancers) and there are more general solicitors that may handle property matters along with other areas of law. You should consider whether you want to hire a conveyancer or a general solicitor. Legal fees typically cost £850 to £1500, not including local search fees. 

Property taxes

In some cases, you may have to pay tax on your home. This could include capital gains tax if it is a second home or inheritance tax if it is a property you recently inherited. A financial advisor may be able to help you understand these taxes so that you can budget for them (the likes of inheritance tax could be a very large sum). 

Moving and buying costs

It’s likely that you’re not only selling a home but buying a new one. You should also consider the various costs involved in buying a new home - this could include cash on a new property/a down payment on another mortgage, stamp duty tax, a home survey and various other fees. You may also have to consider the cost of hiring a moving company to transport your belongings to your new home. The value of your home may be able to cover all of these costs, however you may have to pay certain fees before you sell your home. Bridging loans are sometimes an option for covering these expenses, but may not be ideal if you want to avoid debt


post signature
Twitter | Instagram | Bloglovin | YouTube | Tumblr | Pinterest | Facebook


*Collaborative Post