I voted today – with my heart.

I cannot believe I am writing a political post!

I have just got back from casting my vote in the EU referendum and although I wasn’t surprised I am a little annoyed about how busy it was, there was quite a queue to get in at 11am!

Why was I annoyed? Of course I believe people should vote, people should care, it is our democratic right and we should use it! That is obvious. I am annoyed because when I last voted in the European Parliament elections I walked into the Polling Station and straight out with not a soul to be seen except some very bored officials. Only 35.5% of voters turned out in my constituency (35.6% in the country overall). It seems to me if more people had taken an interest in the EU and lobbied our EU representatives to petition on our behalf we wouldn’t be in this mess now.

Bad memories on paper,

Gosh, this is a really difficult one to write about.

When I was putting together my challenges three years ago, I was browsing other people’s lists and something about this challenge resonated with me…

Write all my bad memories on paper, burn this paper afterwards

I knew that during the course of 1001 days I had to turn a corner and move on and forget all my bad memories. At least if I couldn’t ‘forget’ them, I knew I had to accept that these memories have shaped who I am today.

Behind Closed Doors | B A Paris | Minireview

Official Blurb

 

Everyone knows a couple like Jack and Grace. He has looks and wealth, she has charm and elegance. You might not want to like them, but you do.
You’d like to get to know Grace better.
But it’s difficult, because you realise Jack and Grace are never apart.
Some might call this true love. Others might ask why Grace never answers the phone. Or how she can never meet for coffee, even though she doesn’t work. How she can cook such elaborate meals but remain so slim. And why there are bars on one of the bedroom windows.
Sometimes, the perfect marriage is the perfect lie.

 

My View (no spoilers)

#101in1001 Update – 40% done

Oh my, oh my, I only have 9 months to complete my 101 challenges in 1001 days and I am ONLY 40% through. A disaster! Although a lot of challenges are on their way I must admit some I haven’t a hope in completing, these challenges either need tweaking or replacing to become managable – heeeeeelp!
This is part of my 101 things to do in 1001 days project! You can see the complete list here Please help in any way you can – inspiration, guidence, or just encouragement – it all helps.

However on a positive note I HAVE completed another ten and they are all blogged about and here they are!

30% – 40% of tasks

Work an hour a month for Charity #101in1001 #20

When I set out my 101 challenges back in 2014 I had no idea how difficult some of them would be to achieve, not because the challenge is hard but because timing just doesn’t work out. If I had to set myself some other goals I would be far more realistic.

Doing something everyday for a week is fair enough, if you fail you just start again but doing something every month or every week for the entire challenge just shy of three years is impossible.

Sometime this week I shall become a Grand-Nanny!

Sometime this week I am about to be a Grand-Nanny! And I couldn’t be more excited and proud.

No not a blood Grandmother, thankfully I am a few years (I hope) away from that yet.

It is funny how things work out. When I first left college in the 1980s, despite being under qualified I was very fortunate to obtain a job working as a Nanny for three wonderful children. When I began work, the eldest had just started school, the middle was at part time Nursery and the youngest Sophie was just 18 months old.

Eat 10 New Foods – #101in1001 #74

Try ten new things to eat proved to be a lot harder than I thought it would be.  I guess I’m quite lucky really I’m not a fussy eater the only food that I’ve had trouble with is that some sort some for citrusy fruits (allergy) and coriander (yuck) but I found it really hard finding food I had not tasted before.

Go to a Karaoke Bar #46 #101in1001

One of the reason I like karaoke is that generally you have to be in a good place and in a happy mood to sing. Singing, like dancing is a happy thing to do. I have held numerous Karaoke nights at my house over the years, first with SingStar on the PS2 and then progressing to linking YouTube and a couple of microphone up to the TV. The parties have always been fabulous fun with a lot of tipsy people.
But I had never been to a public Karaoke bar….

Singing in public – that’s a bit different.

 

The Tea Planter’s Wife – Dinah Jefferies | Minireview

Official Blurb

Nineteen-year-old Gwendolyn Hooper steps off a steamer in Ceylon full of optimism, eager to join her new husband. But the man who greets her at the tea plantation is not the same one she fell in love with in London.

Distant and brooding, Laurence spends long days wrapped up in his work, leaving his young bride to explore the plantation alone. It’s a place filled with clues to the past – locked doors, a yellowed wedding dress in a dusty trunk, an overgrown grave hidden in the grounds, far too small for an adult…

Gwen soon falls pregnant and her husband is overjoyed, but she has little time to celebrate. In the delivery room the new mother is faced with a terrible choice, one she knows no one in her upper class set will understand – least of all Laurence. Forced to bury a secret at the heart of her marriage, Gwen is more isolated than ever. When the time comes, how will her husband ever understand what she has done?

My View (no spoilers)

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry – Rachel Joyce | MiniReview

Official Blurb

When Harold Fry nips out one morning to post a letter, leaving his wife hoovering upstairs, he has no idea that he is about to walk from one end of the country to the other. He has no hiking boots or map, let alone a compass, waterproof or mobile phone. All he knows is that he must keep walking. To save someone else’s life.

 

My View (no spoilers)