"There is no use trying," said Alice; "one can't belive impossible things."
"I dare say you haven't had much practice," said the Queen. "When I was your age, I always did it for half an hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."
Through the Looking Glass
Hello all!!! I have not posted in a very long time. Few reasons for that: firstly, I felt I have not many interesting things to say and secondly, I have been away on a 5 week summer holiday and frankly when you are on holiday, you are allowed not to do things that you usually do. But I am back now. Last two years have been very, very stressful at work (in particular the last one), so this holiday is exactly what I needed. Things are much better at work now, I am relaxed and my batteries are totally recharged and I am happy. I am busy and productive and I am enjoying life. But let's see how my summer holiday looked through the pictures: I went to the beach almost every day of my 5 weeks holiday. I loved the water, but even more, I enjoyed the sunshine on my skin. It was hot, over 35 degrees, just how I love it ( I ADORE being hot):
Saw some interesting and beautiful sights. One of them was The Old Bridge in Mostar in Bosnia and Herzegovina where water is cold/ freezing/ clear/ beautiful:
I had many, many, many coffees and some seriously good food. Amongst others, figs (my favourite) and water melon (you have to have lots and lots of water melon in the summer. It is a must):
I celebrated my birthday and had a few beers (these pints are not all mine!!). My mum and I made my birthday cake. As it is the tradition in our family, the cake is made very late at night. Not because we want to but because we are busy and only have time at the end of the day. I remember as a kid waking up late at night going to the loo, only to find my mum in the kitchen making a birthday cake for me, or my sister, or my dad. At the end of the day, after working and doing all sorts of other things, she could only get time to make it late at night when everybody was asleep. Even though she'd have to get up early the next day for work, we never had a birthday without her making a cake. And it was always delicious, as was this one we made together at midnight (full of walnuts and chocolate), just as my birthday came. My mum making sure we had our birthday cake on our day is one of my best memories of my childhood.
And so, my summer has been more than fabulous. I spent good quality time with people I love; I read 7 books in 4 weeks (only one rubbish, i.e. John Grisham; all the others were actually quite heavy going and not what you'd call a summer read, but I enjoyed them all). I came back to London recharged, refreshed and full of energy to do and see things. I hope you all had a good holiday and you soaked up the sun until the next summer. The weather is grey in London now but I am o.k with it. We actually had a good few sunny days here too and I managed to squeeze in a few barbecues when I got back home to London. I'll leave you with my favourite tune of the year. The new Arctic Monkies' song. I cannot stop listening to it and I cannot believe how good they still are. Turn up the volume, here is to a fantastic and great autumn:
This weekend has been pretty good. Lots of sunshine and warm weather, lots of spending time with friends, and of course Andy Murry won the men's single finals at Wimbledon. The match was so amazing, it 'almost' made up for the fact that Britain didn't win it for the last 77 years. Finally, Murry did it! What a wonderful and strong win. So good to see someone working hard, pretty much all their life and finally getting that trophy!
In other news in Boye By Red corner, I twisted my dainty ankle last Monday. I was not a happy bunny for a few days, having had to miss work (when there is too much to do), being in pain, spending too much time in the A & E, not being able to run for a whole week and having to sit on my sofa for hours on end. But, it really does not matter. I did not brake my leg, I am not in pain anymore and I had my first run in 6 days and it didn't hurt or swell up more. And then, Murry won today, so really, things can only get better from now on.
On a slightly different topic - London and myths about London. First one is that London is grey. That one is true. It is grey very, very, very often. Well, a lot of the time.
The second one is that it rains all the time. That one is very untrue. It might have been in the past, but it really doesn't rain much these days. Yes, we do get rain, but definitely not as much as people think we do, and not as much as some other places do.
Now, I'd like to start a myth that is very true. We are all familiar with the term "English Rose". I don't know where it comes from, but it might come from the fact that British are very keen gardeners. Maybe not, but one thing I do know is that London is covered with roses in June and July, every year. Wherever you turn, there is a beautiful rose tree or a rose bush. Just in my street, there are at least 10 front gardens with rose blossom. So, here is a selection of roses, just in my neighbourhood. God knows, how many more there are all across the town:
As you can see, there are so many, that the last ones are even coming through a fig tree. I took so many more pictures of these beautiful flowers in just one hour, but this is it for now.
I hope your week starts off on a good note. And, do look up, maybe there are beautiful flowers around where you live too, it's just that you haven't noticed them yet.
Hello all!! I am not exactly known for having green fingers but this spring, I've tried to make my terrace that little bit prettier. I don't exactly know what I am doing, but I am giving it a go. So, here are some of my fruits of labour from the past month or so. My first ever roses. I love them:
Over the years I have grown rosemary successfully quite a few times, but in the end, the ice always killed it. This year I am marrying lavender and rosemary in the same pot and am definitely bringing them in in the winter. Also, I can't wait for the bees to start visiting my lavender. They love it, and I love watching them at work.
Tomatoes are one of my favourite vegetables (well, actually they are a fruit, but like most people I eat them with savoury stuff) and this year I have planted my first. I am startng on a small scale and have only planted one pot. Fingers crossed I get a few this summer. They are already looking pretty, I think:
In other news from Boye By Red corner, I have started knitting my first ever baby blanket. I don't subscribe to "boy wears blue, girl wears pink" way of thinking, so I decided to do a blanket for a friend's baby in colours I really like. I got the yarn before the baby was born and now that little Thomas Ameer has arrived, he will have the most unique blanket ever. That is, if I ever finish it. I keep making mistakes and have to re do big chunks all over again. Never mind, I am enjoying it and I hope he will too.
A friend recently put up new shelves in my sitting room. I have just randomly put stuff on that has been lying around the room, so it is not looking how I want it just yet, but soon enough, I am sure it will:
Lately, I have been loving mint tea. I buy it from a local Turkish shop and then serve it in a traditional Turkish tea glass. The smell and the taste is divine:
And for the end, my latest purchase. Blue pumps. Isn't the colour beautiful?
Lately I have been enjoying the sun and amazing things that London has on offer.
To celebrate Igor Stravinsky's 100 years of Rite of Spring, friends and I went to see Fabulous Beast's interpretation of the work at the Sadlers Wells:
The poster looks great, doesn't it? Well, the performance wasn't that good, but the music was absolutely beautiful. If you want to catch a more interesting and compelling Rite of Spring, head to you tube and watch Pina Bausch's version. Stunning. I was lucky to have seen it a few years ago (with Pina Bausch herself coming out at the end to bow). Here is the link to a part of that performance:
Then to start off the long weekend this Friday, a friend and I went to see this year's blockbuster exhibition, Light Show at the Haywards Gallery. Not all of the work captured my imagination, but I still recommend it, if it comes to where you live. A number of different artists have made light installations using, well, light as inspiration. Some of the stuff made me giggle and wander like a kid, and other,... well, I spent very little contemplating it.
Later that evening, we enjoyed a sunset on the Thames. I never tire of the site from the river:
As well as enjoying some cultural life London has to offer, I also spotted some seriously trendy and iinteresting looking people:
And whilst shopping for my veggies at the market, this caught my attention:
So, what's on your cultural menu this month? I've got a few more dance performances planned for the next few weeks, and of course new Almodovar's film, I Am So Excited. Can't wait for that.
Hope your week has gotten off to a good start. And whatever you do, don't forget to enjoy it and savour the moment. Red xx
Lately I have been eating healthy and fresh food. Carrot and coriander soup and fresh from the market strawberries:
I bought myself a few treats. Summer dress from Joy:
And cheap and cheerful earrings and less than cheap but fabulous mascara:
Also first lilies of the year arrived on my coffee table:
All that with the sounds of Charles Mingus from his revolutionary album, Ah Hum: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPoK1lryfh4 Have you treated yourself to something delicious or pretty lately? And what are the sounds playing on your ipods? Red xx
I am very lucky. As I work in a school, I am lucky to have half term and two week breaks every few months. The job is rewarding but very, very stressful at times, and believe me, by the time it comes to half term, we are more than ready to take a break and forget the children, the teaching, the arguments, the noise,...
And so in preparation to the upcoming two week break I have armed myself with some seriously interesting reads. From next week I will be spending most of my days filling an arts application to the British Arts Council and another one to a Theatre Festival in Manchester. I find these things difficult to do and it will take a lot of blood, sweat and tears to get them right. But hopefully at the end of that, I will have receive money to fund the performance I am working on immigration in the UK.
First book on my coffee table is Pointing the Finger about Islam and Muslims in the British media. It is very rare that Muslims receive a positive treatment in the newspapers here (across the board; even the left wing press has its suspicious moments). This is a collection of essays about the press's misrepresentation of Muslims in the West, that in my view contribute to the ever growing Islamophobia. I stumbled upon this book in my local library and I can't wait to start reading it and using it as part of my research for the performance:
Next on the list is Refugee Boy by Benjamin Zephaniah. In this country he is more known for his poetry than his prose. This book is about a refugee boy coming from Ethiopia to England, running away from war. Not easy when you are left without parents in a strange land where you don't know anybody. Again, this will feed right into my research for the performance on life of people fleeing their country and looking for safety in strange lands where politicians decide your faith and want to send you back to war zone:
Then I have Haruki Murakami's Sputnik Sweetheart. I read this book years ago, but I need something that I know is good and will cheer me up. Of course, it is not a happy book, (it is Murakami after all), but I know I will enjoy the writing and the story. I rarely re read books, but this one is an exception.
So, my next two weeks are sorted. It won't exactly be a holiday as I will be working every day, but I will be doing something I love and am interested in.
What book is on your coffee table? A novel, a book of poems, or something political you can get your teeth into?
I leave you with this:
Random? Sure. But random is good, right?
Have a wonderfully random and happy rest of the week. Red xx
