Showing posts with label Book. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Book. Show all posts

Weekend Learning's

Tuesday, 6 October 2015

The first weekend of October. Something changes in the air in October in London. Yes the weather, obs! But the menus at the markets have changed. There are now warm apple, pumpkin and cinnamon turnovers and hot spicy mulled wine. There are chimneys billowing white mist into the crisp blue sky. People are wearing burgundy and mustard coloured throws. There is a nip in the air but a warmth in the spirit, an English Autumn is vibrant and idllic! Also, while pottering around London, as one does, one noticed a lot of new things. Christmas decorations? Really? One cannot believe! This year has flown. And what a year it has been. This is what I learned; 

  • “Like a wild flower; she spent her days, allowing herself to grow, not many knew of her struggle, but eventually all; knew of her light.” - Nikki Rowe
  • I love to read. Sometime back home I would stop reading for long periods of time. I find I struggle to get into books. Now with my trusty iPad and kindle app, I have successfully finished three books since I moved here. I know for big readers a book every two months is not impressive but I am on my fourth book since I moved here and enjoying getting lost in my books more and more. I have been reading such scary books that I sometimes get too scared to go out into the hall, let alone get out of the bed and have to watch an episode of Friends to try and relax before bed… funny! I know I am silly… stop laughing!
  • "Remember: the time you feel lonely is the time you most need to be by yourself. Life’s cruelest irony."Douglas Coupland, Shampoo Planet. I strongly believe in inner reflection. 
  • There are so many health places in London. Honestly, healthy, vegetarian, vegan, lactose-free, animal friendly, green, organic and biodegradable eat-in / eat-out restaurants are the new black… it seems. I have many favourites, I am yet to find a smoothie place where I truly love the menu. Most places do juicing but I think they water a lot of them down and we all know me and a smoothie – a love affair in a plastic sippie cup. I had a great one at Crussh this weekend – The Bliss Blend - Mango, pineapple, peach, bananas, coconut milk, bliss blend booster. (I took out the orange juice and yoghurt you will see on the menu, cannot have those on the The Migraine Diet). Was a little Saturday morning treat! Their branding is terrible though… it pains me. Just saying.
  • I finally finished Grey’s Anatomy Season 11. I cried like a blubbering little wet blanket, and I LOVED IT! Really was not the same watching it alone. I used to watch it with my little Sis, at least then we would cry together, and then laugh at each other. Quote I loved the most, Owen’s quote; "We're supposed to feel; we're supposed to love and hate and hurt and grieve and break and be destroyed and rebuild ourselves to be destroyed again. That's human; that's humanity. That's being alive," he told Amelia. "Don't avoid it. Don't extinguish it."
  • I think its a joke that peanut butter says “once opened consume within 3 months”. Three months… do people really have that much self control that they can keep a jar of peanut butter for more than three months? Wow. A jar of peanut butter lasts me about eight days, sometimes a little more but three months… never! 
  • "I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where. I love you simply, without problems or pride: I love you in this way because I do not know any other way of loving but this, in which there is no I or you, so intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand, so intimate that when I fall asleep your eyes close."Pablo Neruda, 100 Love Sonnets.

I hope you have an incredible Autumn week my fallen leaves. There will be no Weekend Learning’s next week, I am going on an adventure with my favourite sun baby!

Xoxo


PS. "Your flaws are perfect for the heart that is meant to love you."


Eat, Pray, Love.

Friday, 22 October 2010
A book to love.
Like most women I loved... correction, love the book. Most women are told to read it when they are going through something. A breakup perhaps or a failed job or even just a rut in their lives. I know whenever I’m having a bad patch I think back to Eat, Pray, Love and try to remember how Liz got through it. Obviously you cannot jet off to India! But finding a great Italian place like Bella (see here for review) or having a local Yoga session with my local guru can substitute.

A 32 year old Elizabeth Gilbert had a home, a husband, and a successful career as a writer. However, she was trapped in her marriage and often spent the night crying on her bathroom floor begging for God to show her the way. After the divorce she decides to take the year off to travel to find her balance.

She spent four months in Italy discovering pleasure in food (Eat). She spent four months in India, finding her spirituality (Pray). She ended the year in Bali, Indonesia, looking for "balance" of the two and found love in the form of a dashing older Brazilian (Love).

After a lot of bad reviews and the “its too long” comment I finally made it to the big screen. I must admit I went in there with the ‘Lets just get this over with’ attitude. I actually thought it was lovely. Even though I’m not a huge fan of Julia Roberts fat fake top lip (no I’m not jealous I just loved her natural!), I found the movie calming and inspiring.

My favourite part of the book was also the Italy bit. I looved how she went from restaurant to restaurant displaying her view into words and laid them down in her book so I could swim in those little black Italian sentences. Every meal, every cobblestone, every shred of old roman wallpaper was clarified into luxurious plush Italian romance. Hell, I want to go to Italy! But in the film it was a little thin to say the least. (Thin and Italy... Don’t mix)

As always with books-turned-films they left out a lot of intricate details which I believe could have added a splash more charm to the film. I struggled to connect with the characters as deeply as I did with the book characters. Oh well. It was pretty. I still loved the book and the movie will be great for a little rainy day snuggle.

Xoxo

PS. "L'amor che move il sole e l'altre stelle. The love that moves the sun and the other stars."
 —  Elizabeth Gilbert *sigh

Italy, I want more.


Bunny & Bear Bookmarks

Thursday, 30 September 2010

Bunnies!
Bears!
How to bunny!

I am a little embarrassed to say that reading is a new part of my life that I forgot and left behind for a large chapter of my life. And when I restarted reading, I discovered I have strange little habits that come with it.

For example I am big into book smelling. I am sure that many people obtain this habit throughout their years of literature learning's but for me, it is like a little first impression or introduction to a book.

Another is the price placement. Not where the price is placed but where I put it. I love finding old books that still have the price on them. Books from Exclusive Books actually have the month and year on their price sticker. So after I buy a new book, I peel off the price and stick it into the back cover. This way I also know its my book and a double addition is that I wont have a yicky sticky patch on the back of my book in a few months. *Bler!

The last peculiar thing I do is to do with the bookmark. When I start reading the book I choose any flat object around me to be a bookmark. It could be an empty, opened envelope. Or a sticker I got in a kiddies pack on the way to Durban. Or an old post-it I got that reminds me of someone special. And then when I’ve finished the book, I leave it in the book. I do not know why, it is just one of those things I do that don’t make sense. Maybe it is because that little sticker or envelope reminds me of the time and place that I first opened that book and keeps that memory in there. *weirdo!

These little bookmarks are so cute! I’d love to change a habit and have a different bear or bunny in every book in my bookshelf! I love this little quote from the website;

It always helps to have good friends hold your place when you’re in need of a little break.

You can buy bears here and bunnies here. Happy reading folk!

Xoxo

PS. I love a little Ninja rabbit nestled between two pages!
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