Being Happy

Tuesday was the International Day of Happiness.

Lots of things in my life make me happy.

It goes without saying that top of the list would be my family and my friends, but I thought I would share a photo of something else that makes me happy.

Clothes.

And finding clothes I like, and which fit, at bargain prices.

I realise this may seem a bit shallow.

I have never been a follower of fashion, but over recent years I have begun to enjoy the buying and wearing of clothes more and more.

Finding this outfit made me happy.

Both items were purchased at an end of season £1 clearance in a Cancer Research charity shop.

The skirt is clearly mis-labelled as it states it's a 12 and yet it fits me.

A new outfit consisting of a gorgeous book patterned skirt, with a pretty plain top to team it with and £2 donated to a great charity.

What's not to love.

For World Poetry Day I shall share a poem I first read in a magazine over 20 years ago, I cut it out and pasted into a scrapbook which I still have.

I wanna be your vacuum cleaner

breathing in your dust

I wanna be your Ford Cortina

I will never rust

If you like your coffee hot

let me be your coffee pot

You call the shots

I wanna be yours

I wanna be your raincoat

for those frequent rainy days

I wanna be your dreamboat

when you want to sail away

Let me be your teddy bear

take me with you anywhere

I don’t care

I wanna be yours

I wanna be your electric meter

I will not run out

I wanna be the electric heater

you’ll get cold without

I wanna be your setting lotion

hold your hair in deep devotion

Deep as the deep Atlantic ocean

that’s how deep is my devotion

John Cooper Clarke


Today is As Young As You Feel Day which seeing as I'm doing this year of celebrations because I'm coming up to the big five-O is quite fitting!

Being a huge Marilyn Monroe fan this evening I shall be watching the movie As Young as You Feel  MM doesn't have a huge role in it and it was never going to be a movie to win any awards but it's just the kind of nonsense which helps to while away the time spent at the ironing board.

Colouring In

Hands up those who remember spending hours as a child colouring in squiggled doodles like the one below.

I would sit with my sisters and our huge selection of pencils and felt tips colouring in these random shapes to our hearts content.

Colouring in for adults has suddenly become a big thing these past couple of years with thousands of books out there to choose from. 
I am all in favour of this. 
I have never lost of my love for colouring in.
I enjoyed it as a shared activity with both my children when they were younger, trying not to get too bothered when they went outside the lines!

Last Christmas one of my friends gave me a colouring in book and some pencils.
She knows how much I value spending my half hour lunch break in the park as often as the weather will allow.
I really treasure the calming effect being outside brings and she thought an added stress busting activity would be for me to do a spot of colouring.
A really thoughtful gift.

With such a pretty book I had plenty of choice when it came to selecting a page to lose myself in on Colouring Book day.

Go and grab yourself some paper and pencils, you won't regret the time you spend absorbed in this most simplest of past times.


I have listed below my list of days to celebrate in August.

A couple may change due to other commitments and as of next week we are away for a few days so my posts may be a bit more sporadic, but it's all supposed to be a bit of fun and I don't want to get caught up in setting rules for myself about these things.

I hope you can join me as August unfolds and if anyone chooses to join in on any given day please let me know, I would love to hear from you.

We've already had

1. Yorkshire Day
2. Colouring Book

and ahead of us is 

3. Watermelon Day
4. Beer Day
5. Underwear Day
6. Jamaican Independence Day
7. Raspberries and Cream Day
8. Cat Day
9. Rice Pudding Day
10. Rhonda Fleming's birthday
11. Pakistan Flag Day
12. Vinyl record
13. Alfred Hitchcock's birthday
14. 3 hour rainbow seen in North Wales in 1979
15. National Day in Liechtenstein
16. Tell A Joke Day
17. Thrift Shop
18. Patrick Swayze's birthday
19. World Honey Bee Day
20. Amy Adam's birthday
21. Usain Bolt's birthday
22. Honor Blackman's birthday
23. Gene Kelly's birthday
24. National Waffle Day
25. Sean Connery's birthday
26. Alison Steadman's birthday
27. Bat Night
28. Bow Tie Day
29. Mary Poppins movie released in 1964
30. Toasted Marshmallow Day
31. Burger/ Eat Outdoors Day

Rest of June Round Up

My last post was just over a fortnight ago.

That wasn't part of my plan for June.

Then again when do things go to plan?

Everyone's ok but I'd be fibbing if I were to say that the last two weeks chez Jumble and Jelly have been plain sailing!

Enough of all that though, let's take a peek at some other news.

After a little discussion me, G and S have booked to go away to Amsterdam for 4 nights in early August.

Excited? 

You bet.

Amsterdam has been on my wish list for ages.

I went to the library and took out some books.

One is on self guided walks around the city and also for places such as Delft and Haarlem. We're not quite sure yet where else we will visit but Haarlem is definitely high on the list.

We need to go places and do things of interest to all 3 of us.

Last week I took S to Cambridge for her annual eye check up. The day was a hot, long one made all the more tolerable for S for our stop off at Five Guys so she could have one of their milkshakes.
The check up showed a minuscule cataract in S's left eye. It's something which can happen at an early age because of the condition she has, but it's nothing to worry about and is not likely to grow or require surgery for years and years.

My 90 day chuck out challenge failed after I reached 30 days. It started well enough when I had a really good clear out from our bedroom drawers and then went through the kitchen cupboards. I'm not too bothered as I regularly send items off to the charity shop. We may get a little cluttered at times but I'm not a hoarder.

A few weeks ago one of my school friends posted details on Facebook of an open evening at our old secondary school.

The reason for this special event is our school will soon be no more.

It's going to be demolished, it needed too much money to maintain the poor state it was in and so it was cheaper to construct a new one, which has been built on the school sports field.

The site the current school is standing on will then be converted into a sports area. 

Eventually.

The thing was the event was being held between 4 and 6.

How disappointing, many wanted to go but those hours are when lots are at work or travelling home from work.

Then just a few days beforehand they extended it by an hour until 7pm.

Hurrah.

I didn't want to pass up the opportunity of one last wander down those corridors and luckily neither did R, so he and I went together.

This is the door to my English classroom.

Our teacher used to have the girls and boys line up separately along here before going into class.

So many memories from just this one spot.

I left in 1984 and as you would expect during that time things have changed, but not as much as you may think.

Words can not describe how familiar it felt to once again be walking down the staircase (in what was known back then as the 'new block') as if I had just finished my maths lesson.

I will never forget that feeling.

Somewhere I hadn't set foot for over 30 years and yet it felt like I'd been there only yesterday.

We saw half a dozen others from our year group, the last time we had seen each other was the reunion last September.

We reminisced some more, took more photos and marveled over the fact our former headteacher was also visiting that evening and looking extremely sprightly at 86.

We had an entertaining afternoon out one Saturday in Eastleigh at their annual arts day.

The group of four acrobatic dancers showed such controlled strength as they threw themselves around this cage during their performance.

I loved watching the group of women all dressed in grey perform together. They are called Ceyda Tanc Dance and you can read about them and watch videos here. It was so inclusive, women of all ages and physical ability joined together in one rhythmic gathering, it was entrancing to watch.

Our favourite was definitely the couple on the left from Glasshouse dance who performed a classic boy meets girl tale with a twist or two along the way.

At the end they encouraged the audience to join them and dance along to Love Train. 

Some resolutely refused to get up and dance, I have to say that when the female performer approached me I jumped up and was happy to bop away with them. It seemed like the polite thing to do seeing they had entertained us so well.

I'm still settling into being at work for four days.

I have been trying to get a better handle on shopping and meal planning.

When the children were little it was so much easier.

Now with T sometimes being in for meal times and sometimes not, which can mean an hour before dishing up he'll say 'yes I'll be here to eat with you' and then suddenly his plans have changed, or saying he won't be in and then turning up, it seems I need to have an unending supply of meals which can instantly be adapted to suit.

And do you know what, I don't a limitless supply of food, time, money or patience to cater for each scenario and I've been finding it quite frustrating.

I am cooking from scratch so much less these days and I don't like that either as I have always tried to provide my family with a variety of foods. Then again I suppose this is just another change that our family is going through as the children are growing and doing more outside the home.

Only a couple of days left in June now but just enough so I can finish my posts for the month. If things go to plan of course.

Robin

All this morning at work I wasn't feeling quite right.

There was a nagging headache which didn't seem to want to go away and I was just generally feeling a bit bleurgh.

I was so pleased when lunch time rolled round and I could escape to the park for some fresh air.

For a change I decided to head to the little metal picnic tables and I'm so glad I did because as soon as I sat down this little robin flew over and sat next to me.

I can't tell you how you much better I felt for enjoying the company of this little one and I went back into work feeling lighter and happier and ready to face the rest of the day.

Weekend round up

Back at the tail end of January S began going to street and hip hop dance lessons with her friend A.

A has been doing this for many years and has won lots of competitions and has many trophies. Another competition was held this last weekend and S asked a few weeks ago if she could go along to cheer on her friend.

She then decided that actually she would quite like to enter the competition herself.

As it was a late decision she had to enter as 'a solo' which of course meant she would be dancing on her own.

We were so proud of S, not only did she feel confident enough after a few short weeks of going to dance to want to take part in the competition she was also confident enough to do it on her own.

She could wear whatever she wanted and seeing it was her first competition we took her into town on Saturday morning to choose something new to wear.

I don't have any pictures to show as S didn't want us to go and watch, she said it would make her feel more nervous!

Although she wasn't placed S did have a tremendous time with her friends and she enjoyed the whole experience. 

After S had chosen her new trousers and top she and A hopped on a bus back home to practice some more whilst G and I stayed out as we had other things to do.

First off we grabbed some lunch and headed to the park to eat.

Absolutely loved the choice of plants and colour combination on display in this flower bed.

From there we made our way towards a part of town called Northam. G wanted to check out a vinyl record shop as this was en route to our next destination. Whilst he was inside I stayed out in the sun and watched the light glinting on Shoal, a huge metal fish sculpture by Tom Grimsey. 
It was sad to see only a handful of shops occupied in this part of town, it was once full of junk/antique/second hand book/shops. I know councils are strapped for cash but this part of town could be so much more vibrant.

G was extremely pleased to find a Yes LP to add to his collection.
We took the footpath over the train track which leads to St Mary's football stadium, home of the Saints. Saturday's match was being shown on TV and although kick off was still a few hours away it was already a busy place with people getting prepared, constantly in and out of huge outside broadcasting vehicles.

From there it was just a hop, skip and a jump to our final destination of Shamrock Quay. This was the venue for a Hampshire farmers market event. Live music and classic cars were also on offer but I failed miserably on the photo front and didn't manage to take any at all. Too busy sat in the sun enjoying the atmosphere and a cup of tea.

Sunday was a quiet one.
S was out dancing, T was out socialising and G was out working. 
I stayed in and did a lot of the housework jobs I normally do on a Monday as this Monday held something different.
I wish I could say it was something interesting.
Last year I had root canal treatment on one of my canine teeth.
Unfortunately it didn't work. It seems that this tooth has two canals, something which I have since learned is very unusual in a canine.
So a specialist was needed.
I did some research and found one in Salisbury and that's where I went Monday morning.

I had to walk past a branch of Debenhams and as I did I spied these enormous paper roses on display in the window, aren't they gorgeous.

Step one of the treatment was undertaken and I now need to go back next Monday for it be completed. I was in that dentist chair for about 75 minutes and I have to admit that when I returned home I could quite easily have snuggled down and joined Malcolm for a cat nap. I think the concern over the procedure and the accompanying nervousness made me feel tired once it was all over and I was home again.
Keep your fingers crossed for me next week!

Two Days with Just the Two of Us

At work our leave year ends at the end of March.

I had two days annual leave left from my allocation and so I booked last Thursday and Friday off.

Thursday was mostly spent catching up with my friend G. 

It's always a delight to see her and we could just as happily passed another 3 hours away on top of the 3 hours we did spent chatting over coffee.

Friday was spent with the other G in my life, my husband Graham.

We had decided a little trip to Portsmouth was what was needed.

We trotted off to the local station, me (as seen below) wearing my new coat.

I say new, but it'll be no surprise for you to hear that it's not brand new, just new to me. 

My mum actually picked it up for me last year at a car boot. A lady was selling clothing at 3 items for £1.00 and so mum bagged this for me along with a winter coat for S and a top for herself. 

This is the coat's first proper outing as I have been a bit unsure about the colour. My previous winter coat was a lovely dark green and I felt this was a bit too luminous in comparison but my old coat has now been consigned to the recycling bin and so a change was needed.

Talking of needing a change, my hair needs dyeing looking at all that grey!

Arriving at the station in Portsmouth I had to snap Emma Hamilton and Lord Nelson after our recent trip to London.

Portsmouth had been chosen as our destination as G had been wanting to go to the Isle of Wight music festival exhibition at the Guildhall and all I needed to do was buy a birthday gift and that could be bought there just as well as anywhere else.

The exhibition is only small but there was lots of information and some great photos on display. I didn't really know too much about the history of those IOW festivals beforehand but now I know that the only act ever to be booed off stage is Kris Kristofferson and the only act to have been billed but not played is Mungo Jerry because they turned up too late!
This poster was used to advertise the 1970 festival and shows that a ticket cost £3.00. One website I looked at said that this amount equates to about £45 today.

On leaving the Guildhall I noticed that one of the rooms has a frieze painted round the top of the walls depicting each of the four seasons. The winter one was just above the door to the exit and I think it was the red of the robin or the child's coat which must have caught my eye.

From the Guildhall we went to the pub for lunch and then over to the shops where the gift buying proved to be more elusive than I had hoped. 
Whilst strolling around we wandered past a women's clothes shop and this sign on the front instantly reminded of the Pippa dolls I had when I was little. I loved playing with those dolls so much.

And so to Saturday.
T has just started learning to drive. I have agreed to take him out for some extra practice, but not on proper roads. So on Saturday afternoon G and I went out for a walk to explore the possible option of a small industrial park near to where we live. 
There were lots of boring looking modern offices and warehouses and then in among them was a building which had a bit of character but which very sadly was all boarded up and didn't look like it was still in use.

Also seen by us for the first time was this memorial to RJ Mitchell. It stands on the site of where the first Spitfire was built by Supermarine. Real history right on our doorstep.

We ended Saturday by watching The Duchess.

I read Amanda Foreman's about Georgiana The Duchess of Devonshire years ago and it's one which is still on my bookshelf now, a definite keeper. 

We both enjoyed the movie, the costumes and the locations are as stunning as you would expect, but it's not one we are likely to watch again and so it has been passed along to a colleague of G's for her to enjoy.

January

So here we are at the end of January and I'm on a day's annual leave from work.

Originally S was due to be off because of an inset day.

However the inset day has been moved further along in the week to Friday and G is off then anyway. 

I decided not to cancel my day off.

Firstly because I needed to use my leave by the end of March and secondly as we were having a little trip to London last weekend (more on that in another post) it would work out quite nicely having an extra day off afterwards.

I did think it would be lovely to have an extra day to myself, one with no commitments, to do as I pleased........

 but with feeling so rubbish last week I am playing catch up and so it's not quite the day I had envisaged.

Looking back to the start of the month I'm really glad we had arranged our day out to somewhere new, it was good having that to look forward after the festivities.

Then this weekend away at the end of the month was a huge treat.

I'm so pleased to have been able to read so much.

The first book was from my swap with Jo and it was the perfect gentle read for over Christmas and the New Year.

The second, a biography about Danny Kaye, was an interesting read about one of my cinematic heroes.

I'm not sure the author followed many different lines of research, it was more of a potted history rather than an in depth look into his life. 

Christmas at Cold Comfort Farm is a selection of short stories by Stella Gibbons.

I've had this for a couple of years and already read the majority of them so it was just a case of finishing the last handful and now this one will be off to the charity shop.

The final book is Birds of a Feather, a Maisie Dobbs mystery.

I was sent the first and second in this series by lovely blogger Kezzie after I had commented on a blog post she had written about them.

Jacqueline Winspear has now published 13 of these stories and I shall be adding them to my wishlist.

 They start off in the late 1920s and there has clearly been a lot of research concerning WW1 and social history of the time which makes them very entertaining and informative reads.

In the interest of sharing on the generosity of blogland if anyone is interested in reading these two books I would be happy to send them on.

Please leave a comment by end of Sunday 5th February and any names will go into a hat.

 If no interest them off to the charity shop they will also go.

I mentioned in an earlier post that I would save all my charity shop buys and do one post a month about them. Well purchases have been few and far between in January. In total I have bought 3 things.
The most I have spent on one item is £3.00 and that was on this polka dot back pack. It was practically brand new and long time readers will know of my love for all things dotty, this was a must buy for me.

The second item was a plain, long sleeved, v necked navy t-shirt. Far too boring to bother trying to get a photo of, but a good basic item to have in the wardrobe. 
Final buy was £1.00 spent on a plain black jersey pinafore which originally came from New Look. Love the fact it also has pockets.
This is an exceptionally rubbish photo taken at the weekend. I wore it to London and it proved to be the most perfect thing to travel and walk around in as it was so loose and comfy. 

Decision

Last year I made a decision.

I decided to stop attending my monthly book club.

It's held at the local library on the second Wednesday of each month and I've been going for a few years, in fact since the very first session.

I have read some wonderful books, ones which I would never have chosen to read otherwise, and I've met some lovely people.

But the thing is I don't get a huge amount of time to read. 

Back then I was travelling to work via public transport and had an hour a day 3 times a week with nothing else to do but read. Over the course of a month this was more than enough time to read whatever it was I had to read.

 Nowadays more often than not I don't start let alone finish the book of the month.

And I have sooooooooooo many books at home waiting to be read.

So back to my decision.

I would go along in December and say cheerio to the group.

Only when I got there it was me and one other, it seemed everyone else was busy with other festive stuff.

 We chatted for about 5 minutes and then went on our separate merry ways.

I decided I'd say goodbye in January instead.

 January's meeting rolled around but on the night G was home from work a little later than normal and by the time I was set to leave they would have been halfway through.

Never mind I thought I had (again!) not the read the book and as I was really only going to say I'm leaving I didn't think it would matter.

Due to time not being on my side I hopped in the car instead of walking as I normally would.

Only Saints were playing at home and the car parks were rammed with supporters who had left their cars to walk over to the the football ground and I couldn't get parked anywhere!

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for third time lucky in February.

Now I did say I didn't have as much time for reading as when I first started at the book club, which is true, but I have already finished the Twelve Days Christmas which was a present from Jo in our swap and am now nearly halfway through this biography about Danny Kaye.

G, knowing my love for this lovable all round entertainer, bought it for Christmas two years ago and it has sat on the shelf since.

As I have already mentioned I have so many others sat on that bookcase which I want to read and I think maybe it was the having to read which was issue.

Now I'm not under any time pressure to read and digest I am finding that I am sitting down and choosing to pick up a book.

And on a completely different subject, here we have T at the start of his young driver lesson. He can't wait to get behind the wheel and start lessons once he's 17 next month so as a Christmas present from us we booked him this taster. We could tell he enjoyed himself as he lost that teenager scowl from his face and it was replaced, for a couple of hours, with a smile.

Mostly a Mess

Finally our little home is looking a lot tidier.
Why is it that when one room is being decorated it affects the whole house?
Yesterday was spent putting S's room back together.
In order for that to happen new furniture was needed which was why last Friday G and S met me from work and we went for a spot of late night shopping in IKEA.
A new bed, wardrobe, chest of drawers and shelving unit were purchased and delivered the following day. I did make a couple of other purchases which you could argue weren't strictly necessary but let me tell you that once home again and sat with a cuppa, a couple of those cinnamon rolls certainly went down well.
Also coming home with us was one of their gingerbread house kits, the construction of which has become a favourite festive activity for S.

So this week has pretty much been taken up with S's room in one way or another. The sorting of the contents has resulted in umpteen bags of clothes, books and toys being donated to the charity shop. I've made three trips in all. There was painting to do and of course furniture assembly to complete and then everything had to be put into it's new home after which there was the chaos in the other rooms where items had been stored to deal. Fun, fun, fun!
The room isn't 100% finished, new curtains and bedding need to be chosen and S would like a full length mirror on one of the walls, plus there are hooks to be hung, but it's looking good.
It's difficult to get a good photo but you can get a good idea of the new wall colour from this photo. We spotted the lampshade at the car boot last weekend. S has a real thing for owls and the colour match for her room was perfect and so I was more than happy to part with the £2 asking price.

Down here in the south the weather has been remarkably mild and so I've been lucky enough to still be able to eat my lunch in the park each working day. It's been such a treat sitting in the sun admiring the golden colours of autumn all around me and then kicking up the carpet of leaves as I walk back to work again.

Another small thing which has made me happy this week is cracking open my first bottle of winter spice washing up liquid. I wrote about my love for this last year and I know there are plenty of others out there who share the winter spice love.

One evening when we couldn't face anything to do with decorating we decided to watch a movie instead and plumped for The Trouble With Harry which I had bought a while ago on the recommendation it would be a good one to watch in autumn because it's set in the autumn of a beautiful sun filled Vermont countryside. It's an off beat comedy, not what you would normally expect from Alfred Hitchcock, but it was very funny and just what we needed.

My Mucha jigsaw has been completed. She was tricky to do but she was well worth it as I think she's beautiful. I'll break her up in a day or so and then she'll be donated to the charity shop for someone else to enjoy and I'll start another.

My Weekend

This past weekend was spent a lot closer to home.

It began with a cuppa and a catch up with my friend G.

There was lots to chat about and as usual we could have nattered the whole day away.

One job which really needed doing was tidying my wardrobe and chest of drawers. It didn't take long to sort and with some kind of order restored I took the opportunity to count how many cardigans I have. 
I admit they are my weakness. 
I counted 50. 
Excessive?
Perhaps, but I love them.

We weren't sure about going to the car boot on Sunday morning due to the overnight rain but decided we'd pop along to see what was to be had.
G picked up a stash of records which he was thrilled with and my best buy was this tin for 50p.
It's going to be one of the items in my mum's advent box of gifts. I just need to decide what treats to put inside. I'm thinking shortbread.

A short while was spent in the garden, filling up various pots with daffodil bulbs,

before spending some time indoors with glue and glitter. Our boss is retiring at the end of this week and she is having a bit of a do on Tuesday evening. Colleagues who have worked with her for a long, long time want to decorate the room where it's being held with some of photos of her from over years. I volunteered to make some glittery pegs to hang the photos up with, I thought this would look more fun and festive.

Time with friends and family, odd jobs completed and of course the start of Strictly all added up to a gentle weekend to savour.

Summer

The first day of summer.
May yours be full of sun, love and happiness.

Bestie

When I saw that today is Best Friends Day I knew in an instant who this post was going to be about.

Before starting senior school you get to go on a taster day.

A day to look around the new school, meet the teacher who will be your tutor group leader and most importantly see who your class mates will be.

T and I met that day in July 1980.

We looked for each other on the first day of the new September term and the rest, as they say, is history.

We shared so much during those senior school years. This is us, aged 15 I think, after we had made ourselves ready for an evening up at the Top Rank.
T doesn't know about my blog and so I don't think it's fair to post a picture of her which is why she has a cat face!
We have only ever fallen out once.
And that was my fault and it involved me being stupid about a boy and not valuing our friendship enough.
She is the one I asked to speak to social workers on my behalf when we needed character references before we adopted and she was the one who at my dad's funeral when it all got too much for me came over and hugged me tight.
I am honoured to be able to say T is my friend.

About time

This is what happens every time.

Whenever life gets busy or there is something which is playing on my mind I become so wrapped up and distracted and it's always blogging, reading and posting, which takes a back seat.

I'm pleased to say though that this time the reason I have been preoccupied is because of something good.

I have been offered and have accepted a new job.

I'm in the last week of my time at the surgery and from next week I shall be employed elsewhere doing something very similar and I'm thoroughly looking forward to the new challenge.

This post is a mish mash from the last couple of weeks when my time and  energy have been diverted elsewhere.

There have only been a couple of clothing purchases.

 Apart, that is, from a bit of a splurge when in town recently.

We stumbled across the Cancer Research shop which was having a mega sale offering 10 items for £5.00. 

S and I rifled through the rails and between us found a nice collection of bits and pieces.

My favourite item though has to be this badger jumper.

Our local branch of Barnardos sell all items for £1.99 and so I snaffled this beauty for that bargainous price.

Over a couple of evenings G and I, with a tiny amount of help from S, put together this wonderful jigsaw.

All the sweets are in their 1980s packaging and we spent a lot of time saying 'oh I remember that!' Somethings haven't changed much whilst others have disappeared completely.

One Saturday we took the train down to Boscombe where we met G's brother P and his partner S for lunch. S had her birthday in February and we took her gifts with us. 

As you know I like a bit of a theme and this collection of presents is no different. We gave her an Avon Milk and Honey gift set, a Cathy Kelly book The Honey Queen and a bar of milk chocolate.

G and I have also managed to squeeze in an afternoon at the theatre. I haven't read Madame Bovary although I have heard it dramatised on the radio. G wasn't familiar with the story but after seeing this funny and clever adaptation we both want to read the original.

We have another trip to the theatre booked for May when we will be seeing The 39 Steps. Again neither of us are overly familiar with the details to this story and so for Mothers Day I was given a copy of Alfred Hitchcock's film version to help get us better acquainted.

Hopefully I'll get myself up to date with everything and manage to get a couple more posts done by the weekend.