Monthly Archives: January 2019

Sunday Sevens #57

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49900099_10161556783635271_6636356257714274304_oHurrah! It’s the first Sunday Sevens of the year! I had fun collecting seven pictures from my week, which began with a walk with Riley to the local park. He was sporting his new jacket. I thought he looked very fetching! 🙂

I am determined to make 2019 the year I hit 2000 miles in the #walk1000miles challenge. So far this month I have walked 171 miles. If you are competing in the challenge, how are you doing?

Music:

Voting for this years Classic FM Hall of Fame has opened. I chose three pieces of music which make me stop and reflect.

hall of fame 2019

My Choices in Hall of Fame

My choices were:

  1. Rachmaninov’s 2nd Symphony
  2. Elgar’s Nimrod
  3. Max Richter’s On the Nature of Daylight

Which pieces of classical music would you vote for?

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Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra

Sunday, David and I attended a concert of Mahler’s triumphant 5th Symphony at the Liverpool Philharmonic. It was one of the best performances of the symphony I had heard!

Collecting:

This week I managed to complete my 2018 collection of Beatrix Potter 50ps. My latest find was Peter Rabbit munching on carrots! All I need now to complete three years worth of 50ps is the most rare one, Jemima Puddle-Duck.

Have you found any collectible 50ps in your change?

Peter Rabbit 2018
Maxi Climber

Exercise:

David bought an exercise machine to add to our well equipped gym. In his work’s shop he spied a Maxi Climber. It was a good purchase at only £20! It retails for over £100! I’ve only had a 10 minute session on the machine but my limbs ache!

Book I’m Reading:

I am reading the second of Minette Walter’s medieval novels, The Turn of Midnight. Even though I didn’t rate the first book much, I decided to give the second installment a go.

What books are you reading at present?

The Turn of Midnight
RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch 2019

RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch:

This weekend is the much anticipated RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch. I did my count on a blustery Sunday during lunch-time. Thankfully the birds put on a good show. I had five species frequent the feeders, mostly the usual visitors! My count was as follows:

  • Seven starlings
  • One blue tit
  • 15 goldfinches
  • 23 pigeons
  • One robin

What species of bird have you seen in your garden?

That was my week, how was yours?

Thanks for reading,

Christine x

Thanks to Natalie at Threads and bobbins for devising the series.

A Year in Books 2018 – October to December

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A Year in Books

Sorry this post is a bit late. I’m still trawling through the backlog of planned blogs for the end of 2018!

I aimed to read 40 books by the end of the year, and I can happily say I reached my target, by reading 41. Thanks to Laura at Circle of Pine Trees for creating the challenge. For 2019 I will keep the target at 40, which I think is a manageable figure. Do you fancy joining in?

Below, find reviews of the books I read in the final quarter of 2018. What books have you enjoyed this past year?

The Girl in the Spider’s Web – David Lagercrantz

I enjoyed the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo trilogy, so imagine my surprise when I found they had rekindled the series. It may be written by a different author but the same cast of characters feature. Although the plot is a slow burn the narrative soon picks up and races through to the end, leaving the reader breathless. I would have loved more Salander in the story but nonetheless it’s a good start to the continuation of the series.

Have you read the two new sequels? What were your impressions?

The Girl in the Spider’s Web David Lagercrantz
After You

After You – Jojo Moyes

I enjoyed Me Before You and even laughed/cried at the film. So I purchased the sequel After You. However the story was not as good as the original. It followed Louisa Clark coming to terms with life after Will. There was still moments of joviality interlaced with poignancy but it didn’t pack as much punch as the first book. I will probably read the third installment once it comes out in paperback.

Have you seen the film? Do you think it kept true to the novel?

The Comfort of Strangers – Ian McEwan

Why, why, why do I keep doing this to myself? I keep subjecting myself to the dull, banal writing of Ian McEwan! Again I was disappointed in yet another of his novels. I can’t recall much of the plot which I found rather vague. The third person narrative really detracts from the reader caring a jot about the characters and the horrors that happen to them. The plot, a couple holidaying abroad befriend a man who invites them back to his home where they meet his crippled wife. I had heard a radio adaption of this book in the 90’s which I found deeply unsettling. However the book I just found boring.

Perhaps you felt differently?

The Comfort of Strangers
The Road

The Road – Cormac McCarthy

The bad writing just continues I’m afraid with this depressing post apocalyptic novel. A film was also made starring Viggo Mortensen. If the film is anything like the book, then I’ll pass. The plot is of a father and his son travelling a road to the coast after the world has been decimated by some kind of cataclysm. Anguish and misery pour from this novel in floods. Reading scene after scene of human desperation in a ravaged world devoid of food and warmth is hard to stomach. The conclusion leaves the reader unsatisfied and I wonder if the ulterior motive of the author was to depress his audience? I was shocked to read that the book won a Pulitzer Prize!

Maybe you had a different experience of this novel?

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society – Annie Barrows and Mary Ann Shaffer

My choice of books were not going well this quarter. I decided to try another book that has been adapted for film and which again I’ve not seen. The issue I had with this novel was not the plot, which was rather twee but the language. I found that it seemed too modern for the 1950’s. The plot, a writer comes from London to Guernsey to research the German Occupation and in the process finds herself among a colourful cast of characters.

Have you read the book? Seen the film?

One Day in December
The Literary and Potato Pie Society

One Day in December – Josie Silver

I really wanted to like this book, I really did. The advertisement for the book kept popping up on my Instagram with rave reviews. So I downloaded a copy. The premise, a girl on a bus makes eye contact with a boy whom she looks haphazardly for over a year until she eventually meets him but there’s a catch. I won’t ruin the plot for you if you enjoy rom-coms but I felt rather bored with the characters and the sugary sweetness of it all.

Perhaps you felt differently if you’ve read this book?

9780857056436The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye – David Lagercrantz

I seemed to get into this second sequel to the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo trilogy much quicker than the first. The characters were more detailed and the story I felt was much better than the first Lagercrantz uptake of the series. Salander featured much more and the plot was fast paced. Its not a patch on the Stieg Larsson originals but I enjoyed it none the less.

Have you read this book? What were your impressions?

I’m struggling to find books for 2019 that really grasp my interest. Have you any suggestions on books you think I would enjoy?

Thanks for visiting and happy reading!

Christine x

Planning Ahead -2019

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A new year and a fresh clean calendar to fill up with events, days out and holidays. I am really excited for what 2019 brings! Below are just some of the theatre visits already booked.

Julian Bliss – Mozart’s Clarinet
Les Misérables at the Empire
Macbeth at the Epstein Theatre
  • Mahler’s 5th Symphony at the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic
  • Shakespeare’s Macbeth at the Epstein Theatre
  • Les Misérables at the Liverpool Empire. David wasn’t enamoured with coming along with me, but the last time I saw the show was some 20 years ago, back when I felt sad and lonely. I vowed that if Les Misérables came back to Liverpool again I would take David. Poor David!

Also in 2019, I will continue to participate in initiatives such as:

Big Garden Birdwatch
A Year in Books
30 Days Wild
Sunday Sevens

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At the time of writing I’ve leaned that 2019 is the Year of Environment for Liverpool. I look forward to the numerous events taking place across the city.

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This year, (thanks to Sharon at sunshineandcelandines for the suggestion), I’ve decided to have a go at participating in Postcrossing, a website which connects people via postcards.

Llyn Idwal
Coniston

2019 is also my fourth year of wild swimming. I am already planning on swim/walks to places on my bucket-list, such as Llyn Idwal in Snowdonia and Coniston, the Lake District.

It’s looking like 2019 is going to be a busy year! What events/holidays are you looking forward to in 2019?

Thanks for reading,

Christine x

Goodbye 2018…and Hello 2019!

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Happy New Year from Christine, David, Artie and Riley! Here’s hoping 2019 is a year full of love, laughter and friendship!

It’s taken a while but below find the annual video sharing the most memorable moments of 2018. Here’s hoping 2019 will just be as wonderful!

I want to thank you all for coming on the journey with us!

Thanks for all your support,

Christine x

A New Years Jaunt to Keswick

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For the past three years, David and I have headed out for a walk on New Years Day and 2019 wasn’t any different. This year we managed to take smiley Riley along with us. We got up at the ungodly hour of 5.30am (it was still dark) and headed up the M6 towards the Lake District. We took the usual pit stop at an eerily quiet Lancaster Services before driving the remaining 1.5 hours, arriving in Keswick just before 9am.

After booting up, with Riley on lead, we headed towards Portinscale and the western shores of Derwentwater. We spent a good two hours walking to and along the shore of Derwentwater. We passed alpacas in a field of the Lingholm Estate, discovered Hawes End jetty was being rebuilt and picnicked before a resplendent Blencathra and Skiddaw in the strong winter sunshine. Whilst David took pictures, Riley and I paddled in the shallows of Derwentwater and ran chasing sticks along the shoreline. I was surprised at how quiet the lakeside was. It was only after 11am that the crowds started to arrive, by then we were heading back towards Keswick. It was a perfect day and a wonderful start to the new year!

Below find a collage of pictures from our time at Derwentwater.

Riley in Entrust NT Hands
Riley meeting his first sheep
Riley and David at Derwentwater
Low Brandlehow Jetty
Nichol End
Riley at Hawes End
Christine and Riley

We walked back to Keswick and joined the throng among the bustling streets. There were just as many dogs as there were humans in Keswick and I relished the chance to share this dog friendly town with Riley. Indeed Riley seemed to enjoy himself and attracted quite a few adoring fans. While we stood outside the Old Keswickian chip shop waiting for David to come out with a portion of chips for Riley’s humans, people approached Riley asking to stroke him. It was like he was a celebrity!

Riley at Keswick
The Jaws of Borrowdale

David and I settled on a bench alongside the eastern shore of Derwentwater to eat our chips while Riley chilled at our feet. I think the 10 miles walking had tired him! To end the day, even though the afternoon sun was fierce, we took Riley to a very busy Friars Crag overlooking the Jaws of Borrowdale.

We retraced our steps back to the car and tiredly headed back home. Riley slept the three hours home while David and I made another short stop at Lancaster Services for a restorative Costa coffee. All in all it was a positive beginning to the new year and one I shall remember for a long time to come. Riley at the shores of Derwentwater was a dream come true, but where in the Lake District do you think we should walk him next?

Thanks for reading,

Happy New Year!

Christine x