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Jeremy Loops concert at Perranporth, Cornwall

September 14, 2016

The campervan couldn’t get into the main car park at Perranporth by about three inches, so we parked on the cliff-top, which gave us a beautiful view of the bay and sun beginning to set into the ocean. It isn’t often bands we like venture into the South-West and we were gutted when Jeremy Loops tickets for Bristol sold out before we had chance to buy some; however it was the perfect excuse to go to Cornwall when we saw he was playing there too. We’d never been to The Watering Hole before – it’s a cafe/restaurant/gig venue literally in the middle of the beach. It must’ve been a right pain in the bum to get all the band gear over there! The tickets said the doors opened at nine, so we got there about ten minutes early, sorted out our wrist-bands and bought a drink to sit outside with and watch the sun sink into the water….

Monthly Memoir – July

The whole of July was pretty much about our holiday in America. The few days before we left were spent frantically researching where we were going, and the few days after were spent unpacking, washing, and trying to get over jet-lag. We had three weeks away and began in New York, getting the AmTrack train down to Washington DC, picking up a hire car and driving to New Orleans via Nashville and Memphis, and then following the coast East to Orlando to spend the last couple of days in Disney’s Magic Kingdom and Universal Studios. Wow! I’m exhausted just remembering it! We covered ten states of America (New York, New Jersey, District of Columbia, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Florida.) Phew! ….

Pride and Prejudice and zombies

I haven’t read the book by Seth Grahame-Smith, and I’ll be honest I was sceptical, but after seeing the trailer for this film, I couldn’t wait to watch it. I wasn’t disappointed….

Full Review of Glastonbury Festival 2016

This year will be known for two things: the referendum and the mud. I hardly saw an act that didn’t mention both of those things. I’m sure you will have heard about both from plenty of other people, so I’m not going to dwell on either. This is going to be one long post about the entire five days, so fetch yourself a mug of hot chocolate and if you don’t quite make it all the way through, just leave the tab open and come back again later! ….

Willow blossom and fedge update

(A fedge by the way is a cross between a fence and a hedge, in case you were wondering.) You may remember (though you probably don’t) that several years ago I had the dilemma about what to plant in the lower garden in order to provide some privacy quickly. If you want a quick catch-up, the post is HERE; and then please read on for an update…

Making a pineapple and walnut cake – a picture guide for beginners

These pictures were taken when I made my favourite cake to celebrate twelve years of this blog. The recipe is nothing particularly special or exciting, and now that the Great British Bake-off is such a hit, this is probably incredibly tame, but I thought I’d share it anyway. (At least I’m assuming that’s likely the case – I’ve never actually watched the show apart from one Children-in-need episode.) There’s a possibility you’ve never put pineapple or walnut together in a cake before, and now is your chance to be inspired! …

Re-arranging the living room – phase one

I am beginning this post on the 25th March, though I am sure that by the time you are reading this, it will be several weeks later. Today, after talking about it very briefly last night, we suddenly decided to completely change the layout of the living room. It’s a pretty big rectangular room, so you wouldn’t think it would be too difficult to sort out; but with three doorways, a staircase and a fireplace, it proves a little tricky….

Birthday dinner at The Kingsdon Inn, nr Somerton, Somerset

It was my birthday! And what better way to celebrate than going out and have someone else cook for you. And clear away. Yeeees! I absolutely love eating out. It’s just such a pity that one meal out for the four of us costs about the same as our weekly shop from Tescos. But you see, (as I sometimes remember to remind myself) if you did it every day, it wouldn’t be special, would it? My lovely daughter, Rain did the research, and hunted out all restaurants within a reasonable distance that served Duck, being that duck is my favourite meal. The Kingsdon Inn came up as one of the top twenty restaurants in Somerset, and when my husband phoned to check food serving hours, it turned out you need to book well in advance if you want a table. We were lucky and got the second-to-last one; which is not what you’d expect for somewhere truly out in the sticks….

How to exercise in public without worrying about your arse.

This is an ongoing struggle for me and I’ve written a lot more about it than I expected to! I suppose I am picky when it comes to choosing clothes anyway, but not being your average size eight gym bunny, I have certain requirements when it comes to covering myself at the gym or exercise class. “Covering myself” being the operative words here – I am not going to be wearing a crop top and hot pants….

Victor Frankenstein starring James McAvoy and Daniel Radcliffe

This review is coming from the point of view of someone who has never read Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or seen any other film about it, and first thing I can say is that I don’t think that mattered at all, and may have even been better that way. I mean, Mary Shelley wrote the book in 1818 where-as the film was set roughly 1870s I would say, judging from my recent in-depth research into the late Victorian period. I couldn’t find any definitive information on this online either, so perhaps the film-makers deliberately kept the date ambiguous. It peaked my interest though; particularly as the beginning is set at a circus…

A Classic Evening with Rebekah Smith in Pilton

Pilton Parish Church kindly left the heating on all day so that it would be warm enough for us to watch this classical recital last night! My husband and I have talked about going to something like this for a while, and when the opportunity fell into our laps (or rather, into our village), it was a chance not to be missed…

Star wars, The Force Awakens review

December 25, 2015

To be honest, I’m not sure there’s much point to this review – you’re either going to see this film (or most likely have already seen it), or you’re not. Well, this comes from the perspective of a non-Star Wars fan, which may help make up your mind if you aren’t sure whether to accompany your partner who is! We went to see it in 3d at Cardiff imax cinema….