Well my reading hiatus is obviously well and truly over going by the pile of discarded books I've gone through. Not that you can really tell if you looked over at my ToBeRead (TBR) pile which is over spilling in all directions. Someone needs to stop me from looking at all things book related because at this rate by TBR pile is going to need another room... maybe even a house... all of it's own.
Still I shouldn't complain too much - I managed to read a few and toss a few aside that didn't grab me after the first couple of chapters which at least is a start even if the pile is gaining faster than I can work through it.
Weirdly the first two books I read recently were about books. Yeah I know. I have a problem.
The first, Paperback Crush, was all about those wonderful teen paperback series that were all the rage in the 80s and 90s. I still remember my collection of Sweet Dreams and Wildfire romances which I avidly collected each month. While the second book was a bunch of essays on books and reading.
Books about books was followed by books about being more environmentally friendly.
After all that nonfiction it was time for some proper relaxation so of course a book where women can only speak 100 words a day was the just the thing. And it was so good. One I can highly recommend. Then it was from no words to too many words with an apocalyptic sequel to a book I read last year where people hear voices.
Crime of course is nearly always on my reading list so it's no surprise that I read three in a row. In the Woods is the 1st in a series so naturally the others are now in my TBR pile. Even better there's a TV series coming out soon so that's adding to my list also.
Tami Hoag is always reliable and I'm really enjoying all of Jack Jordan's books so far.
What with heavy duty science fiction and some gripping crime it was chick lit reads to the rescue with all things light and fluffy. I totally loved all of these. Perfection in every way and just the thing to unwind.
Though the chocolate I ate while reading them may of helped a little...
It's hard writing a blog post when your heart isn't quite into it. Words seem pointless and meaningless when something horrendous happens. If you've seen the news you'll know what I'm talking about.
It hits hard in a way you never thought it would. To face the reality of hate. It's a hard thing to come to terms with. To realise that it is everywhere.
Yet despite all the hate there is also a lot of love. A lot of goodness. So I'm doing my best to concentrate on that and on all the good people in my life. My partner. My friends. My family.
I also have hope. Hope that one day love, compassion, empathy and acceptance are the norm and that hate has no place in the world.
Watching, watching, watching...
Yep the movie marathon watching goes on and on and on, and I've still got a long way to go to even remotely catch up.
Can I pray for the weather to turn chilly and rainy so I have an excuse to curl up on the sofa and watch movies all day?
"Goes outside to start a rain dance"
All The Presidents Men
Starring: Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman
Original release: 1976
Synopsis:Two reporters uncover the details of the Watergate scandal.
A gripping look into one of the most famous political scandals of all time.
The Way We Were
Starring: Barbara Streisand and Robert Redford
Original release: 1973
Synopsis: Two very different people begin a romance.
The lies we tell each other and the lies we tell ourselves pretty much sums up this movie.
It's kind of sad and wistful in way and yet in many ways a very realistic look at relationships and first loves.
Side note: Robert Redford's hair once again deserves an award.
The Electric Horseman
Starring: Jane Fonda and Robert Redford
Original release: 1979
Synopsis: A rodeo star steals his company's horse and rides into the desert, with a feisty reporter accompanying him.
And my Redford watching continues.
This time he's a rodeo star whose days in the rodeo are far behind him and now he's stuck staring in commercials for a living. Like the horse he rescues he's old and tired and longs for something more. A life of freedom, of simple things, of the way it use to be. The romance really is just an added note to help move things along but this really is a story about a man and a horse.
Out of Africa
Starring: Meryl Streep and Robert Redford
Original release: 1985
Synopsis: In colonial Kenya, a Danish plantation owner has a
passionate love affair with a free-spirited big-game hunter.
Gorgeous to look at but not much depth. This goes not only for the movie but also the romance which comes across as much less passionate but more like some kind of casual re-occurring fling which weirdly was probably much more closer to the truth.
Watch and wallow and don't expect much beyond the gorgeousness of it all.
Frances
Starring: Jessica Lange
Original release: 1982
Synopsis: The rise and fall of actress Frances Farmer.
It's hard to separate the myths from the facts and even now there's a lot of debate as to what actually happened to her, but either way you look at it Frances Farmer was a woman who struggled to fit in a world that expected her to conform to the norms of the day and the price she paid was a harrowing one.
A somewhat cold and detached look at a much misunderstood woman.
The Magdalene Sisters
Starring: Unfamiliar names
Original release: 2002
Synopsis: Four young Irish women struggle to maintain their spirits while they
endure dehumanizing abuse as inmates of a Magdalene Sisters Laundry.
Brutal and shocking and made even more so because these places actually existed and life inside them was no gentle Catholic charity but instead a place of horrific abuse.
Made all the more personal for me as my mum spent time in a Catholic Orphanage and the children were all pretty much treated as slave labour while there.
Everyone should watch this movie.
Philomena
Starring: Judi Dench and Steve Coogan
Original release: 1959
Synopsis: A political journalist picks up the story of a woman's
search for her son, who was taken away from her decades ago after she
became pregnant and was forced to live in a convent.
Another tale focusing on the Magdalene Laundries and still just as shocking.
After watching this and the above I seriously wanted to hit something.
84 Charing Cross Road
Starring: Anthony Hopkins and Anne Bancroft
Original release: 1987
Synopsis: True story of a transatlantic correspondence between a writer and a bookstore manager that developed into a close friendship.
Bookstore fix. You just know I needed it after watching 2 harrowing movies back to back.
If only this had been a romance...
From 31 degree temperatures to 18 degree temps. Yep Autumn has arrived in a mad rush and suddenly we are going from wearing very little to cardigans and socks. Not that I mind the sudden turnaround to the cooler weather because I looove this kind of weather. All crispy cool in the mornings and lovely sun during the day. Bliss. It just kind of came really fast... like literally one day it's so hot that you're lying on the cold lino floor just to keep cool and the very next day the temperature has plummeted to a rather chilly 15 degrees where only socks and a cardy will do.
Still this cooler weather is heavenly. So I'm happy to embrace it.
As for this months plans...
Reading
My reading has slowed down big time lately. Mostly due to the fact that I am trying to watch all the movies as well as tackling all the produce that our garden has suddenly sprouted. Bagging up tomatoes, chopped up peppers and rhubarb is seriously eating into my reading time. All of which means that my To-Be-Read pile is not getting any smaller.
Sigh.
365 movies in 365 days
Well I'm not insane... yet. Still give it time. I may very well be raving mad by the time I finish this project.
Thank God for Letteboxd which is helping me keep track of everything. If you're a movie fan I highly recommend checking it out. You can track what movies you've watched, rate them, review them and pretty much do anything with them. And you can compile a To Be Watched list. Which is something I definitely needed.
Get fit and healthy
Amazingly I am doing pretty good on this front. I've been going for an hour's walk most mornings and mostly sticking to eating healthier. I've even been doing the odd vegetarian only day which has been super easy for me to do. Next up a vegan only day...
I'm also keen to try water aerobics which my local swimming centre runs classes on so I may be off to buy myself a pair of togs soon... or not. Well just have to see if I can gain the courage to give it go.
Gardening
Never ending, though the rewards are definitely worth it. I've got a freezer full of lovely veg for the winter and my marigolds are bringing in all the bees like crazy.
Still there are parts of the garden that I have barely touched and those triffids I mentioned in a previous post are definitely looking more and more threatening so tackling them and the rest of the weeds is on this month's to do list.
Writing
I never seem to get around to this but I've definitely been feeling more and more like writing in the last few weeks with the head busy plotting and planning and writing. Now I just need to put it all down on paper...
