How to comfort a Grammar Nazi

A not-so flamin' June

Well it hasn't been much of a flamin' June, more like one flamin' day of June.. and with less time spent on my new country commute to Reading, it would be great to have some sultry, summer evenings to enjoy, whilst I'm not tearing it up and down to London for five days of the week.

I do love the month of June though, despite the weather this year. Before the longest day, when the nights draw out to 10pm, and there's a sultry hush up and down the street, William Wordsworth's "A Night in June" comes to mind:

The sun has long been set,  
The stars are out by twos and threes,
The little birds are piping yet  
Among the bushes and trees;
There’s a cuckoo, and one or two thrushes,
And a far-off wind that rushes,
And a sound of water that gushes,
And the cuckoo’s sovereign cry
Fills all the hollow of the sky.  
Who would “go parading”
In London, “and masquerading,"
On such a night of June
With that beautiful soft half-moon,
And all these innocent blisses?
On such a night as this is!

Ducklings on the River Test

It was time for another amazing Ploughman's lunch at the Mayfly and we saw these cute little ducklings floating by. See if you can spot the trout...!

Falling For You by Jill Mansell

This was a new author for me so I didn't know what to expect. I presumed a light hearted chick lit read with a nice, easy going story - and that's exactly what I got - plus a generous helping of familiarity (the author lived and worked in Bristol and the story was set in Bath, where I was born), along with some fantastic storytelling and great plot twists. I guess that's what separates good writers from great writers... the ability to take life and make amazing books out of it, conveying a whole range of everyday emotions with such beautiful writing.

I am a big fan of village story telling. It's fascinating what goes on behind closed doors and you can always have a close knit cast who weave in and out of each other's lives. Falling For You does just that. Maddy is single and the one chap she wants, she can't have. Sound familiar? Of course! But as the story develops you find out why, the history behind the two families and the reasons for the hatred. Mansell charts Life's ups and downs for this brilliant set of characters and it's all so believable.

Unfinished 30 Things

Last week's bucket list reminded me of the things still to do on my 30 Things list from 2012. Oh dear, four years later and I'm no closer to ticking any of them off! I just had a peek and some of them don't seem anywhere near as important as back then, so that's cool. These, however, are still on the agenda:

• Sort out proper storage for my favourite belongings
• Walk the beautiful Jurassic Coastline
• Finish writing The Dalton Bridges Saga
• Self publish an informative eBook or a children’s book on Amazon
• Catalogue my last 10 years of travels
• Take a weekend TEFL course

Bucket list

Continuing with my "Being Happy" series, something that always puts a big grin on my face...

Who doesn't love a bucket list!

I've placed an X by all the things I've done - some are sad though, but, each experience whether good or bad, exciting or terrifying, shapes you as a human being and defines your life:

Gone on a blind date
Skipped school X
Watched someone die X
Watched a pet die X
Seen the Grand Canyon in person
Flown in a plane X
Served on a jury
Been lost X
Travelled to the opposite side of the country X
Been to Europe X
Swam in the Ocean X
Gone south for the winter
Gone on a cruise
Cried yourself to sleep X
Played cops and robbers X
Recently coloured with crayons/pencils X
Sung karaoke, a solo or duet in church X
Paid for a meal with coins only X
Made a prank phone call X
Laughed until some beverage came out of your nose X
Caught a snowflake on your tongue X
Had children
Lost a child
Had a pet X
Been skinny-dipping X
Been fishing
Been boating X
Been downhill skiing
Been water skiing
Been camping in a trailer/RV X
Been camping in a tent X
Driven a motorcycle
Been bungee-jumping (ripcord jumping)
Gone to a drive-in movie
Done something that could have killed you X
Done something that you will regret for the rest of your life
Rode an elephant or camel X
Eaten just cookies, chips, ice cream or cake for dinner X
Been on TV X
Stolen any traffic signs X
Been in a car accident X
Been in hospital in the past 24 months
Donated blood
Gotten a (speeding) or any type of ticket in the past 12 months
Gotten a piercing X
Driven a four door vehicle X
Been married
Been divorced
Fell in love X
Fell out of love X
Paid for a strangers meal X
Driven over 100 mph X
Written a published book/story (poem) X
Eaten snails
Been scuba diving
Gotten a tattoo

How about you?

Springtime London Fun

Royal Albert Hall

Theatre, food and great friends = springtime London fun!

Lemon sorbet

Inside the theatre at Wicked

Wicked

Nanban in Brixton

Mojiko Yaki curry

Chill Box naughtiness!

Dill and cucumber infused G&T