Hello!

Can't find original source? If it's yours, let me know!

Hello! Bonjour! Salut! What Up!

I'm back after an unintentional blogging absence. There are a few reasons for this, which I'll run through briefly. There's also just other stuff I'd like to say, so here goes!

Holiday
Stevie and I took went on our holibobs to Rhodes waaaay back in July. It was lovely, we didn't do a great deal more than relax, sunbath, sleep and eat an un-healthy amount of meat and cheese. Heaven. Greece is such a lovely country and I feel so at home there, perhaps I have some greek in me? My skin-tone says no, my big-bum says yes. Who knows.

Unfortunately, my camera cable has decided to go walkies and so I can't share any of the pictures I took just yet. I think its hiding on the top shelf of my wardrobe, and I neither have the inclination or the energy to tackle clearing that out at the moment. Soon my pretties, soon.

Car
My beloved little Corsa broke down just before we went away, and when I say broke down, I mean it literally stopped working. While I was driving round a roundabout. Which was hilarious / mortifying / petrifying in equal measures. A trip to the garage confirmed it was the head gasket and it had blown. After some weighing up, I decided not to get it fixed and to get myself a new car. So I did, and am now the proud owner of a fun-to-drive, petrol-thirsty Mazda MX5. Not the most practical of cars, only having 2 seats and a soft-top, but my god do I love it.

Work
Work is work. Work is work on speed at the moment it seems, I have barely had time to breathe. Whereas in the past I'd bang out a blog post on my lunch break, they have been fairly non-existent over the past 6 weeks or so. Its quietened down now though, so I expect I'll be able to do that again, as well as eat. Aaah, eating.

Homework
I'm not sure if I've mentioned before, but I am currently studying towards my Chartered Institute of Marketing Professional Certificate. I've got an assignment due at the end of August so I've been working on that. I'm still nowhere near finished, and with the next two weekends full to the brim with hen-do's, weddings and christenings, I'm starting to panic about getting it done.
N:B - the course has made me realise that I do in actual fact, hate marketing. I wish I was joking.

Being Healthy
I bought me a bike back in February, it then proceeded to sit in my shed, neglected for a few months, much like my blog. A couple of weeks ago I dusted it off with the intention of getting a bit fitter. Unlike some of my other fitness endeavours, I've actually stuck with this one and in the past week have racked up 60 miles of cycling. Which I'm pretty pleased about? I really enjoy it and its made me realise what a picturesque part of the world I live in. I don't really have time on my cycle to work to take any pictures but on my next weekend jaunt I will definitely take my camera (the one I've NOT lost the cable for) and share some pics.

In other news, I have read so many books recently and I'm planning to share my thoughts on some of them with you over the next few days. I racked up an impressive (for me) 11 read on holiday, some good, some not so good.

So that's it really, I have no other excuses. I have some busy weekends coming up as I said; my little brother is getting married, my best-friends baby is being Christened and Stevie turns 30. I'll really be more organised and plan some posts around these events...promise...because asides from anything, it'll be really nice to document them and look back on in the future!

I hope you're all happy and healthy...back soon. xx

A book - K-PAX.

(credit)

I'm a bit late to the party on this one, as apparently its about 10 years old, and there's even a film starring Kevin Spacey about it. Who knew?! My sister recommended it when I was stuck in a book rut.

The blurb:
When a new patient is brought to a mental institution claiming to be an inhabitant of a planet called K-PAX, the hospital seems just the place for him. Yet, except for certain otherworldly abilities, the "alien," prot, appears to be perfectly sane. In taped therapy sessions prot is asked about life on K-PAX - its lifestyle, principles, foods, language. Prot paints a consistent and credible portrait of a glorious utopia painfully unlike our own and yet so possible, could we only erase from human nature its greed and cruelty. It becomes easy, even desirable, to believe in prot's identity and homeland. But prot insists that he must return home. As his announced date of "departure" approaches, staff and patients alike are thrown into turmoil: If he is mad, what will happen when the fateful day arrives? If K-PAX is for real...please, may they come along too?

My thoughts:
Read the entire trilogy (K-PAX, K-PAX II - On a Beam of Light and K-PAX III - The Worlds of prot) pretty quickly. 

A touching story that provokes you to think about life in general, how we treat people and how humans are indeed ruining our PLANET (if you've read it, you'll get it).

Despite that being the main theme, I found it up-lifting, incredibly sad at times- mental patients in catatonic states is never pleasant subject matter - and thought-provoking.

Perhaps controversially, I feel this would've been more poignant if it were left after the first book. That's not to say the second and third booked ruined it at all, but I do feel it became a little repetitive.

In summary, if like me you are about 10 years late then I'd recommend reading this. If you've already read it...as you were.

A book - Mrs Peregrines home for peculiar children

The blurb:

A mysterious island.



An abandoned orphanage.



A strange collection of very curious photographs.



It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive. 

A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

My thoughts:

I finished this book yesterday, after 4 days of reading. Before I continue, I have to say - this book annoyed me.

I initially downloaded it as a sample, having heard mixed reviews and have to say that I was gripped. The subjects it alluded to - psychological trauma following WW2, supernatural children coupled with the creepy photos all promised for a good read.

After purchasing the rest of the book...it all went a bit Pete Tong (typical). Far too early were the secrets of Jacob's Grandfather's past unravelled and the book turned into a teenage angst-ridden fantasy tale. Subjects were covered briefly but not followed up on or even mentioned again for the duration of the book. The authors portrayal of a Welsh Island, and Welsh people in fact were borderline offensive and I'd be very surprised if he'd actually done any research prior to writing. (An island with one landline phone? And running off generators? In 2011? REALLY?)

The book started brilliantly and promised a chilling read which it simply didn't deliver. The photos were a good addition, however it seems to me that the author found a bunch of photos he liked and then tried to construct the story around them, with half-baked characters and a weak plot. It annoyed me because it could've been so much better.

So although I read it quickly I think it was mainly because I found myself skipping over paragraphs towards the end, just because I wanted to finish it (justifying buying it I suppose) but had lost interest really. The ending hinted at a sequel, which I have already decided I will not be reading.

Have you read it? What did you think?