Twist really is the New Twerk

Nowadays, there seems to be nothing more admired and sought after than the past. Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr... you don't have to look too far or too hard for a #vintage or #retro. We all want the romance of the past but we just can't get it. Why? Because we're not in the past. We're right here right now. Fashion has changed. Technology has changed. Music has changed.

Or has it? 

For those of you who haven't heard of a band called Postmodern Jukebox, you're missing out. Big time. The concept is simple; take modern songs and redo them with a retro twist. They do everything from Nickleback in Motown style to Iggy Azaleas Fancy in a 20s swing style. It shouldn't work but it really, really does. Founder Scott Bradlee, who also plays the keyboard and guitar in the band, is a genius. Well done, Sir. 

I love listening to PMJ, especially on a Saturday morning whilst making breakfast with my sister. And you won't believe how much it improves the bedroom cleaning process. But when one of my good friends, Tim, asked me if I wanted to go and see them live, I'm not going to lie. I was dubious. I loved the band and listened to them incessantly, but the show was in Camden, I was beyond poor and I wasn't really sure that - dare I say it? - they would be a good band to see live. Quite a few of their numbers are kinda slow and although they have a huge niche fan base, I wasn't sure if the crowd would really be my kind of thing. But Tim, being the trooper that he is, had promised to come and see a Drag show with and so I figured that I owed him one. And what could be the worse thing to happen? I wouldn't have a good time. Whatever. So we brought our tickets, booked a hostel for the night and soon we were getting the coach up to London. 

After a couple of quick drinks at a (really bloody expensive) Wetherspoons, we made our way to Dingwalls, the venue. It turns out that PMJ had actually had such a high demand that they had played another show immediately before the one we were going to see and had allowed themselves a 20 minute or so break. Amazing. One of the band members was outside getting some air and chatting happily to a couple of the fans, calling one over by name which she seemed thrilled about. A lot of people were dressed up in 20s or 50s grab and there was a really cheery atmosphere. Okay, so maybe this wasn't going to be so bad. 

Tim and I managed to get to the very front of the stage (yay) and as soon as the band came on, I knew that it was going to be absolutely amazing. The entire band were so in synch and the singers voices were to die for. The three girls singing, Robyn Adele Anderson, Ashley Stroud and Cristina Gatti each have an individual sound, belting out the songs and really getting the audience involved. When they came together to sing a couple of songs such as Ellie Gouldings Burn, their vocals were out of this world. They sounded freaking beautiful together. 

I fell in love that night. PMJ have a 'tambourine guy', also known as Tim Kubart, who danced wildly around the stage through a number of the songs, waving a tambourine around. Now, I never really thought that there was much skill to playing a tambourine, but I was proved very wrong. When he knelt down and handed me a tambourine to play with him, I'm not going to lie, I considered running away with him. I really did. Anyone who can have so much enthusiasm and energy for the tambourine, jumping around the stage and having the time of his life, has my vote. 

There was also a tap dancer dancing directly in front of us on a small square. Alexander MacDonald is genuinely amazing.Dressed in the old school stuff, complete with braces, he gave everything, adding to the music with his tap dancing. I've always loved tap and to see someone so skilled right in front of me was brilliant. I wouldn't hesitate to run away with him either, to be honest.

Tim (my friend, not tambourine guy) and I were absolutely living the dream. I know his love for Ashley is real and it's deep. The girl cast a spell over him that night that will never be broken. The audience were really loving the music, but none of them seemed to be really dancing. They were throwing their hands in the air and cheering, really getting into it, but just not dancing. Now, I'm a dancer. I don't mean that in the way that I can dance, more that I love dancing. Badly. And so the fact that it didn't seem the 'done' thing to start dancing wildly didn't stop me from... well... dancing wildly. I may have elbowed a couple of people, but it got us a wider space and was so much fun. I loved it. 

After the show was over, the band, despite having to get a coach to Amsterdam or somewhere within the hour, stayed around and chatted to the fans. Tim and I were really lucky to actually be able to meet nearly all of them. Nearly every single one were like, 'hey! You were the guys dancing in the front!" which I'm not sure is a good or a bad thing but they seemed to be pretty happy that Tim and I had so much enthusiasm. Tambourine guy was especially nice, as was Robyn. She told us that we deserved extra time talking to her because of our dancing and that we should have elbowed more people out of the way (this was quickly followed by 'I didn't mean that! I love the fans! I don't wish harm on anyone!!!...*whispered* but elbow them out the way). 

All in all, it was an amazing night and I would really recommend that if you can get tickets, get tickets. You won't be disappointed. It makes for an unusualy night (where else could you hear (and enjoy) someone rapping in Yiddish?!), different from the usual gig that you would go to and I promise you will love every moment. Their music is individual and ridiculously catchy and the members are so humble and welcoming. 

They're touring again around September time and I promised that they would see me and my awful dance moves again. It's a promise I fully intend to fulfil. 

Definitely check out their youtube channel here and their website here. Go go go!

M x  

Tambourine guy, Tim Kubart.

Tap Dancing supreme, Alex MacDonald. 

She was so lovely to talk to and has a voice that has to be heard to be believed, Robyn Adele Anderson. 

Adam Kubota, upright and electric bass player who spent an age talking to us and was hilarious. 

Group founder, arranger, keyboard player and guitarist, Scott Bradlee. 

I'm Back! I Promise!

So again, it has been a while. 

I'm pretty sure that a large percentage of my readers have disappeared and abandoned me and hell, I don't blame them. I spent the best part of a year making myself sound interesting (trying to, at least) so I would have one or two followers and what did I then do? I mistreated them and pushed them away. It's the age old tale of the blogger who didn't blog. It always makes me sob. 

But I'm back and fully planning on keeping my page alive and kicking from now on. We had a health scare, but we're well and truly back to health. 

At least, here's hoping. 

So this is going to be the post that I have done once or twice before where I tell you, the readers I'm not sure exist, what has been going on with my life. 

University

So I finally finished my first year at Bournemouth and am no longer a fresher. It was an uppy downy time in which I didn't know if I were coming or going. Literally. So many times I was close to throwing in the towel and filling in my Tesco application form but the thought of £9000+ debt for jack all is actually a pretty good incentive to keep on truckin'. I know a lot of people who dropped out and I wish them all the luck in the world, but the thought of phoning my mum and telling her I'm coming home is one that will, more than likely, keep me in Bournemouth for the complete four years, come hell or high water. 

I really did enjoy it though, and now that I'm not there for the summer, I really do miss it. I made some incredible friends, four of which I am living with next year, and I'm looking forward to a huge night out when we're all back. It's already long overdue, 

I managed to pass my first year too! Which, you know, is a bonus. 

Work

So I am currently temping. In Devon, where I usually live when not at uni, there are precisely zero job opportunities. Your options there are one of two; 

1) Be a waitress in tiny cafe or restaurant. This involves working for the minimum wage and often having your tips taken away from you because the owners know that you can like it or lump it. This job, more often than not, includes the pleaser of being abused by holiday makers who think that your purpose in life is to serve them and you are an emotionless shell (read last years entries on the perils of the chip shop)

or 

2) Make a very strict budget for the summer accounting for every single penny that you can possibly scrape together and then stick to that budget very very firmly because there is no freaking way you're going to get a job which isn't option A. Devon is a beautiful place but it likes to stick to what it knows. And what it knows is holiday makers spending money in cafes. 

So I'm staying with my sister in Guildford which has significantly more summer job opportunities than at home. I've been working with an agency and have had a couple of random jobs doing different things. Variety is the spice of life, as they say. It's odd being in Guildford when I know that all my friends are at home in Devon doing summery things. The only people I know here are my sister and her boyfriend and they work all through the day whereas I mostly work during the evenings. I'd be lying if I said that it didn't get lonely some times, but it has been absolutely beautiful weather here so I've spent quite a lot of time out in the garden reading. 
Hopefully something a little more involved and permanent comes along soon though. 
But hey who. 
Mustn't grumble.

Play
For someone who has a ridiculous amount of minus money, I have been up to some pretty exciting things. 
Apart from the usual binging of TV series on Netflix (hello Orange is the New Black. I'm looking at you), I've actually been able to get out and do some things. 
My friend and I, Tim, went to see an absolutely amazing band called Post Modern Jukebox in Camden. I couldn't afford it and I shouldn't have gone but by jove am I glad I did. I won't say too much about them now because I fully intend on doing a blog post about them soon (see! more posts! Alive and healthy!) but I will say that they were incredible and such lovely people. They all took the time to hang around afterwards and meet the fans even though they were preparing to go to Amsterdam (I think) an hour after the show. They're one of my favourite bands at the moment and I'm really glad I got the chance to see them. 

I also managed to get back to Camden again and see Bianca Del Rio at the Black Cap. As mentioned in a previous post, I really love the american show Rupaul's Drag Race, a reality show that is kind of an "Americas Next Top Model" but searching for the next drag superstar. It's absolutely amazing, the campest thing you have ever seen and will give you real hope that if these men can look like gorgeous women, with a dash of make up you could be freaking gorgeous. The most recent series hasn't long been finished and I managed, after a long battle with the internet, to get tickets to go and see the (spoilers) winner. Bianca Del Rio, real name Roy Haylock, is more of stand up insult comic than the usual all lip synching, all dancing drag queen. She can read an audience like no other and it was so much fun to see her unleash her quick wit on the audience. I always love going to the Black Cap and the night was so much fun, even though I ended up spending way - and I mean WAY - more money than I intended to. Or have. 

I was home in Devon for a week or two too and managed to have a couple of really good nights out with people I haven't seen in months. It's always nice to see them and have a catch up, especially as a lot of them are at uni and not at home at the same time as me. Devon may not have the clubs and bars that Bournemouth does but it has some amazing people who keep me laughing all night and that, my friends, is priceless (which is good because, you know, you may have caught onto the fact that I am broke). 

So yes. I am very much missing my beautiful Bournemouth and am also longing for the rolling fields of Devon, but it's nice to be here with my sister making some of that dolllaaaa. I guess you can't really complain when there is nothing really to complain about. There is always going to be something else that you want to be doing or someone else that you want to be seeing, but I love my sister a lot and spending so much time with her is really nice. She's a good ol' gal. 

Here's to being back! 

I'll see you soon (and that's a promise!) 

M x 

January Blues Are Being Blown Away.... At Last.

The time? 7.30AM. And I'm yet to go to sleep. I have uni in 2 and a half hours. My room is clean, my itunes has been tidied, new music has been downloaded and coffee has been made. And I'm feeling particularly cheery. Don't get me wrong, I'm not expecting it to last. After doing an 'all-nighter', it's not common to remain so happy for the entire day but I have to say, I'm feeling good. 

The last couple weeks I've been, to put it in a word, grumpy. I think it's probably down to the fact that I have done very little except eat and sleep. It's not particularly good for the ol' energy levels and as a result, I've felt drained and sluggish. I can't imagine that I've been particularly charming to those around me (whoops) even though I've tried to paint the smile on my face and keep on truckin', but as I'm sure you know Reader (if you're out there) that sometimes that is easier said than done. 

January seems to have been a pretty tough month for everyone though so I can't lay claim to it. The amount of times I heard the words 'I can't wait for January to be over' is off the scale and I can't say that I was disagreeing. Having said that, I actually had a pretty amazing January.

As mentioned in a previous post, since moving to uni, I've developed another obsession. Yes. I have an obsessive personality. I accepted that a long time ago. Move on. 

There's a show in America called Rupauls Drag Race. I won't go into it now, mainly because I probably won't stop, but it's a competition to find Americans Next Drag Superstar. It's drag queens. It's the campest show you will ever see in your entire life, that I can gaurentee. It's incredible. So anyway, a couple of queens that were on the show have a band with another queen and they just so happened to be playing in Camden in January. I managed to get ahold of some tickets and so off I went with my friends for what really was one of the best weekends of my life. We managed to get to the very front of the stage (excluding the VIP area) and my favourite queen in the world ended up coming through the crowd and stopping right in front of me. Call me a Fangirl, but it was incredible to see her so close up. See kids...One Direction wouldn't be able to freely walk through the crowds. Always like the unusual stuff. I could talk about the show for hours which I'm sure nobody wants so I'll just throw a couple of pictures in here. 

Detox

Vicky Vox 

Willam Belli

I was also then taken to a cabaret show by my sister for my birthday present. Although I was dubious as to if the show could match up to the one that I had seen 2 days before, it really did. With burlesque dancers, fire eaters, acrobatic performers and a master of ceremonies who could only be described as fabulous, it really topped off an amazing week. Unfortunately, I didn't manage to get any pictures but I have some gorgeous memories. That counts for something, right? 

 I then came home from London and was thrown straight into an exam which I hadn't revised at all for - organisation is still not a strong point. But we'll so how that went when I get the results back. 

So although I moaned and complained about January from start to finish, it actually brought me some of the very best times. I guess it shows that you have to focus on the good things and be positive. 

 I hope the cheeriness I'm feeling lasts. I've not felt this uplifted for a while so fingers crossed it's a sign of things to come. 

We'll just have to wait and see.... 

Until next time. 

M x 

Hey There, Old Gal.

The time is 1.13AM and it has been 2014 for exactly one week. I have been 20 for 3 days. Time flies, huh. 

A lot has already happened and I'm already feeling pretty positive about the year ahead of us. 

The first week of the year is always a pretty busy one for me. Within the first day or two, my family usually bugger off back to their various corners of the country and it's back to being just me and my mumma at home which is, frankly, accompanied by a big sigh of relief. It's lovely to see the famalam but having us all together in a house that is too small to fit us is just frustrating. So then the christmas decorations are taken down. I know that mum would rather take them down on the 6th of January when the 12 days are over but unfortunately I ruined that with my oh so inconvenient birth. Whoops. She likes to have the decorations down before my birthday so that celebrations don't overlap or aren't confused or something along those lines. I'm not really sure. But they're always down which means endless trips for me up three floors and then a ladder climb into the attic. Needless to say, this is not my favourite way to bring the new year in. It's a pain in the arse.

But then it's my birthday! Yay. 

Or not.

My birthday sucks. By the 4th, everyone is poor. Everyone is hungover. Everyone is preoccupied with other things. Everyone is going back to school/college/uni. Everyone bloody well forgets! 

How they forget about the great day that gave the world me is beyond me but, they do. 

So I never really have a great birthday but hey who. It just means that I've developed that 'I don't really care about birthdays' attitude that adults have... yuch. Old before my time, I'm telling you. 

However, this year I made my way back to Bournemouth during the day and went out with some of my uni friends. It was a really good evening actually so I guess the crap birthday streak managed to end after 20 years....Yay?? 

Anyway. It's back to uni tomorrow and I have a tonne of work that I need to get done because, you know, nothing got done over the holidays. They're holidays for gods sake. Stop judging me. 

So it's 'goodbye' to Christmas Laziness and a lukewarm 'hello' to Reality. Nice to see you again, I guess. 

M x 

New Year, New... Never Mind.

2013 is nearly over, kids. NY parties are being planned all over the world (not just in New York... geddit? Never mind) and I am once again wondering what to wear to greet January the 1st.

Social media sites are being bombarded with 'New Year, New Me' messages and great long statuses about how amazing/crap/boring/exciting/life changing/miserable 2013 has been and so here is my contribution to the masses. 

I wouldn't say that I am a different person from the person that I was this time last year. I don't even really look particularly different other than my hair colour and length. I'm still the disorganised, forgetful, scatty person who loves absolutely anything that is covered in glitter and can be labelled 'camp'.  But then again, I don't think I really wanted to be a different person.

I live in a different place and I am no longer at Axe Valley (Praise. The. Lord.) but other than that, I don't think I have really changed. 

I'm an Aunty now? Does that count? I'm jobless. That's new. I have become well acquainted with my overdraft. That's not fun.  And I've met more people than I ever thought that I would. I guess when I thought of this time this year this time last year (decipher that), I didn'tr

 think that I would be here. I knew that I'd be at uni and that I'd have a load of work to do and I'd be living in Bournemouth with people I didn't know at the time but... I don't know. I don't think I ever thought that it would ever actually happen?? After applying to uni the first time, not going and then returning to TAVCC, I guess that I felt in a bit of an endless cycle. It felt that the whole process was going to end in nothing again and to be honest, it was horrible. But it turned out that it wasn't a cycle and here I am now. 

Hip hip horray! 

I did have some really good times in '13 though. You want a list of my favourites?? Fine. Pushy... 

Emily Hayward

Okay, so not a moment as such, but a person that I got closer and closer with throughout the year and really do love. Girl be cray and I've said so many times in the past that she really isn't 'my type of person'. She's loud and opinionated and pushy and stubborn and....okay I think it may actually be that we're too alike. But it works this time, okay? She took my hand and dragged me through the last months of sixth form, provided endless teas, coffees and fry ups and she's a home away from home. Prom was made enjoyable because of her and I miss her a lot a lot a lot when I'm at uni. 

(I'm also stealing her cat. We have a contract) 

Splashdown 

The week before I went to uni, myself and the 'gals' all went to Splashdown in Poole. I have been bugging them to go to Splashdown for bloody years and they had always fobbed me off with 'yeah we will'. We even set a date and made plans once and Evie cancelled the day before. I'll never forgive her for it. But anyhoo, we got there in the end and it was a really good day. Subways followed by mahoosive sundaes at TGI's aferwards. Hellooo? Yum. 

It was a really nice send off to Evie and I. Thanks, girls. 

Carboot Sales

I hadn't been to a carboot sale in bloody yonkes because I had a job that meant I had to work every sunday at 12 and I just couldn't get there and back and still be on time. However, this year I went to one nearly every single week during the summer. I'd stay at Monica and Sophies flat after a night out and then Monicas amazing 'rents would bring us to the carboot sale the next morning. Score! I was only late for work once when I came home and then fell asleep whilst getting ready and so... yeah. Bosses weren't too happy but I got there in the end? 

Anyway. I picked up some amazing stuffs and my book collection grew ten fold. When is that not good?! Hint: Never. 

Thanks to Mary and Andrew for putting up with hungover Megan every week and for buying me coffee/tea/food every week. Stars! 

Oh and cheers for the wake up calls, Mon! 

James

My little baby boy. My nephew. I've always wanted to be an aunty and from August, I a finally am. James is just beautiful and I love him so much. I can't wait to watch him grow up and say 'I love my Aunty Megan more than I love my Aunty Becky'. Because he will. Fact. 

This could go on for a while and is in danger of becoming sickly so I'll cut this one short. 

I love you, James Willam. 

Uni 

This doesn't even really need an explanation. It's incredible to be away from everything that you know and to be dumped in a flat with 6 people you don't know. I love it. I've made some amazing friends and some even more amazing memories. Knowing that this is just the start of another 4 years and (hopefully) a career is ridiculously daunting but change is what life is all about, I guess.   

I can't wait to see what else it brings me. 

And 2014 is already look pretty exciting. I have tickets to see the amazing DWV on the 22nd in London. They're a band made up of three drag queens, two of which were on Rupauls Drag Race, a kind of 'Americas next top drag queen' type show which is camper than anything you have ever seen before. The bottom two have to lip synch for their lives each week, for gods sake. It really is too much for me to handle. But I can't wait to see them!! 

I also have tickets to see another drag show in Bournemouth. The Supreme Fabulettes. 

Whatever. I love Queens, okay? 

So I don't know what else 2014 is going to bring me, but whatever it is, I'm sure it will be fabulous. 

I hope you all have a fantastic new year and 2014 brings you absolutely everything that you want it to. 

And if not, just whack on that good ol' song, "Don't worry, Be happy" and have a cup of tea. It fixes everything. Really. Try it. 

M x

More Books. Whatever.

"You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me."

- C.S. Lewis

Oh, hello! 

So my life has pretty much completely changed since the last time I added a blog post to my archive. I'm now officially what they call a 'student'....bizzaro. I've moved in to my halls and share an amazing little flat with 6 other people (all of whom are very nice (so far)). It's always a mess. My room is set up with all the crap that I rammed, jammed and threw into boxes. It's always a mess. Our recycle bin is constantly filled with empty bottles and cans because, hey, we're students. We're always a mess. 

So far, my course is brilliant and every lecture and seminar reaffirms in my mind that I want to do PR. The lecturers are fantastic and they really know what they're talking about - something you would very much hope, but to know that they do is reassuring. The course is quite small with only 60 odd people on it and so I'm looking forward to getting to know everyone and fingers crossed remembering their names. I'm bloody useless with names! It's been a nightmare so far! 

I could sit here writing about the ins and outs of my first two weeks of freshers and that's what I thought I was going to end up doing, but you know what? Nahh. I've just been online and looking at books for one of the assignments that we have. The 'Writing for PR' unit requires a portfolio that needs to include a review of a book that has won, been shortlisted or longlisted for the Man Booked award. Obviously, this means that we're going to have to read a book. Who'd have thunked it? So I was quite looking forward to finding a book and having a read because, as we've already established, I love me a good book. But I know that my enthusiasm isn't shared by all and there are a couple of people who really aren't keen, trying to find a book that they've already read to review. There really isn't anything wrong with that, but personally, I still find it baffling that someone wouldn't want to read and I feel incredibly lucky that I do. Sure, there's the argument that if the book's that good, it'll be made into a film and then you're not missing out, but you are. So much. And what about the books that aren't made into films? There are millions and millions of books that will never be made into films and a large percentage of them should never be. When authors write a book, they make something that is special to them and most of the time, that comes across in their writing. You can feel their passion for their characters and tales and when that's made into a film, a lot of it is lost. As is the individuality that every reader has. Sure, you can CGI in a magical battle or a gigantic explosion, but it'll never be the same as when you see it in your own head. 

Having said that, I do love films and they're fantastic for bringing books to a wider audience. (Did someone say Harry Potter?) I just can't imagine not feeling a little bit excited when looking through a book shop or ordering online and waiting for them to be delivered. 

And then there is also the benefits of reading. In my first lecture we were told that if you want to be successful, you have to read. Read read read read read. Okey dokey, I can do that and I want to do that. But if you have a career goal that means that to be good at it, one of the best things you can do is pick up a book and you hate doing that then it's going to make life hard. And miserable. So I feel pretty lucky. As the God that is Dr Seuss said... 

"The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go."

In fact, the amount of times I've been told this week that you have to do something that you love? I might just look into book publicity.

Speaking of waiting for books to be delivered, I've just ordered a couple and I cannot wait for them to get here!! 

Good Omens - Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett 

Jonathan Strange and Mr Norell - Susanna Clarke 

The Book of Lost Things - John Connolly

Come on, Mr Postman. Deliver them!! 

 

M x 

Goodbye, Devon. Hello, Bournemouth.

I've not blogged a lot this Summer. Why? Well, I've been pretty bloody busy. I can't say that anything extremely eventful has happened to me, but I have been kept sufficiently occupied to seemingly abandon this little blog of mine. Well do you know what I say? No more! It's time to dust off the interweby cobwebs and bring out the cyber vacuum cleaner.

And now, for those that care, here's a post on what I've been up to in the Summer of 2013.

Work

As previously mentioned, I worked in a fish and chip shop for the summer. Lovely. That beautiful heatwave we had? Yeah, I didn't see any of it because I was working every day in an absolutely horrifically hot kitchen. It's safe to say that the boss really doesn't give a damn about his workers and point blank refused to get any form of air conditioning. Charming. I previously wrote about how I was head of house. In theory, it was a very good job. I got a pay rise, I got three days off a week and I didn't have to do half the amount of work that I was required to do as a waitress. Reality? The pay rise was by 75p, I worked at my other job 2 out of the 3 days I had off and usually ended up waitressing for my remaining day off and I ended up doing far more work than I was supposed to be doing which I really wouldn't have minded doing, except I was pretty much just doing my old job with a whole load more crap to do. Also, my discovery of the summer was tourists are jackasses. Yes, I understand that you're on holiday and are out looking for a nice evening/time. No, that does not mean that you have to be an absolute jerk to anyone that you come into contact with. People can be downright rude and by the end, I had simply had enough of it. So if you were one of the customers that were screaming in my face (especially the particularly charming woman from Essex) then I have this to say to you; badly done. 

But the good news is that I am officially finished there. I've handed in my apron (and kept my name badge) and so I now, thankfully, done with working in chip shops. I've done my time. Never again. 

University

This is where things get really exciting. I am finally packing my bags and making my way to university. It's been a long time coming and I really cannot wait now. I'm studying Public Relations at Bournemouth. My A level results turned out to be absolutely shocking and it's something that I will never forgive my school for (see previous post explaining the absolute shambles of my exam day) so well done, Axe Valley. You've managed to mess up every single year of my sixth form education without fail. And yes, I know that I have to take responsibility but the things that have happened just shouldn't have and I can't help but feel incredibly let down. But anyway. Bournemouth accepted me and I, by some miracle, managed to get into the Halls that I wanted to as well. I move on the 15th of September which is hurtling towards me far too quickly, really. I've started (yesterday) sorting out my clothes. This is most definitely the largest item on the agenda but boy oh boy do I hate washing and ironing. Weep. Sob. Expect future posts all about moving in and Freshers. EEP! 

Baby James

I am now an Auntie! The very biggest of congratulations to my brother and his fiancée, Nadine. James William Ruddy was born on the 28th of August and he's absolutely gorgeous. I've been waiting to become an auntie for so long now and it's amazing to finally have a baby in the family. I'm the youngest in my family and so there's never been a baby around for me to see growing up and coerce into being a badass. Honestly, absolutely every little-person thing I've been seeing I've been wanting to buy. The money I've slaved away for is trying to spend itself on every pair of booties, every soft toy, every hat with ears and every rattling, noisy, fluffy, adorable thing that I lay eyes on. Welcome to the World, James. I hope it's kind to you. 

M x