Another one bites the dust...

http://www.journallive.co.uk/north-east-news/todays-news/2012/02/11/iconic-morpeth-bookstore-appleby-s-to-close-after-roadworks-cause-major-slump-in-trade-61634-30308368/

I love this bookshop.  It's independent.  It's quirky.  It's a little bit old fashioned. 
And it's closing forever...

That's another loss to add to that of Borders, Waterstones in the Metro Centre, The Book Inn in Billingham.

What's the difference between a dodo and a bookshop? Not an awful lot these days..

I went into Waterstones in Newcastle today - about half the floor space of the old shop - and tried with no success at all to buy a book which was published to some acclaim in September.  So I've resorted to Amazon. *

Amazon, reputedly, are considering opening high street shops.  If they do, I suspect it'll be the first nail in their coffin.  But we're desperate for GOOD bookshops so if they think they can make a go of it, then I wish them well.  In the meantime, the purchasing of books from places like Appleby's is becoming a rare treat, not the norm.  A sad day for Morpeth.  A very sad day for me!

*POSTSCRIPT:  Have since bought the Kindle version for £1.49 as opposed to £8.99 for the pb...!

Where did my weekend go?



Mary's philosophy on a WW2 propaganda poster courtesy of the keep calm o matic website!

It's late Sunday night.  I've spent eight hours today writing an essay for my course... and then I scrapped it.  It needs to be submitted on Wednesday and I'm not sure how I'm going to manage to do it, to be honest, but it just wasn't good enough to hand in.  I'm beginning to have serious doubts about whether doing this course was a good idea: I think I've probably bitten off more than I can chew.  I love the reading and the research but I haven't got the time to do it properly. My confidence has been badly knocked by the last assessment and I'm starting to think I'm just not cut out for this after all.  Perhaps it would be better to walk away and just let it be.  I'm commited to the end of the academic year, but come September, I may be better to just walk away from it, cut my losses and admit I wasn't up to it after all.  Maybe if work was different, maybe if I had more time and energy, maybe if I'd done it a few years ago things would have been different.  Or maybe not.  Who knows.  As it is, I suspect this will be another 'something else I've almost done right, but not quite'!  Story of my life!!  Still, the kitchen is almost finished and it is looking good.  I should be grateful for small bonuses!

On the ninth day of Christmas...

...someone decided, Scroogily, to spoil the fun and send me back to work!  The tree is still fabulously green, the mince pies are still fabulously mince pie-y and the last place I want to be tomorrow is on the train heading for work!  I'm not ready to give up on Christmas.  Just a reminder: you've got till midnight on Friday to access the Christmas stories and then the whole lot go back in their box for another year along with the Christmas decorations!  Best cake?  My sister in law's Christmas cake.  She'll even give you the recipe! Click here for  Jen's cake!

Ring out the old, ring in the new..

It's early New Year's Day and I'm drinking a final cup of tea before I head off to bed.  I probably should be washing up the stuff from tonight's supper but I can't face it without sleep so instead, I'm burning the midnight oil.  I'm usually quite emotional on New Year's Eve but I saw 2011 out dry-eyed. I'm not sad to see it go, although it's not been a bad year - far from it - but given my propensity to dwell on the things that haven't been glowing, I suppose I was only thinking of the less pleasant changes it has heralded.  This doesn't really do 2011 full justice, so I decided to give some awards for 'bests'.  This is what I came up with:

BEST BOOK READ:   The Seville Communion by Arturo Perez-Reverte - fabulous to the very last line.
BEST FILM:  The King's Speech - especially Helena Bonham Carter's performance.
BEST SONG: The night will always win by Elbow - just as moving live.
BEST THEATRE MOMENT: the final night of Love Never Dies in London - all the stops pulled out and then some!
BEST BALLET MOMENT: Camina Burana in Birmingham in June - electric!
BEST TV MOMENT: that punch in Downton Abbey on Christmas Day! - about time too!
BEST SILLY MOMENT: being part of the crowd outside the Adelphi Theatre stage door on the last night of LND who blocked the road in Maiden Lane and forced a taxi to turn back!! Surreal!
MOST EMOTIONAL MOMENT:standing across the river from the new Royal Shakespeare Theatre and feeling I'd come home again and had begun to reconnect with the person I used to be.
BEST PURCHASE: My Kindle! No competition...
BEST CAKE: from Totnes - yum!
BEST NIGHT'S SLEEP: Jury's Inn, Birmingham - every time!
BEST PLACE(S) VISITED: tie between Greenway and Coleton Fishacre in Devon - and Devon itself.
BEST CONCERT(S): tie between Adam Ant - only 30 years late and Cleo Laine - inspirational.
BEST DECISION: Applying for the MA course (might need reminding of that during this year!)
BEST DISCOVERY: Brindley Place and the Jewellery Quarter in Birmingham - unique!
BEST MOMENT: Interviewing Robert Parker of BRB for the Friends group at Durham - absolutely priceless!

Not a bad old year, really!  And Neil Gaiman has set me right for 2012 already.  I love his New Year message so much, it is going to be my mantra for the year. http://journal.neilgaiman.com/ He's a genius!

Happy New Year!

What day is it supposed to be again...?



Birmingham Christmas Market 2011

I love these days between Christmas and New Year when it stops mattering whether it's Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday; when the fridge is still full of lovely food and there are chocolates, nuts and hunks of gorgeously seasonal cake all over the house; when friends  arrive to swap presents and catch up over coffee; when you don't have to leave the house unless you really want to; when the Christmas tree still has needles on and the lights are still working; when you can stay in bed until you are ready to get up and stay up late until you are ready to go to bed!  I have ventured out for haggis (for Hogamanay!) and smoked salmon from the supermarket but other than that I've been holed up in front of the fire, toasty and warm, working my way through Christmas biscuits and lots of books on Shakespeare for my uni course.  It's all going to come crashing to an end before long, and I'm going to have to turn my mind on Monday to the mundane nature of the rest of my life, but at this present moment, it is truly fabulous to be so indolent and self-indulgent.  Best cake :  Dundee Cake from Aldi, dripping with orange syrup, packed with fruit and studded with almonds.  Delish! (and cheapish too!)

EXTRAS! EXTRAS!

Want more info on this year's story?  Visit the extras page!

I didn't believe my ears...

Sitting wrapping presents early this morning beside my lovely Christmas tree, I thought my ears were deceiving me when I heard this on the radio news. 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-16302375

See?  Drover is not as daft as people think!  And there's at least one other good plot there... 

Copies of the new story arrived yesterday and are being posted out to the usual suspects today- pleased with the way it looks!  Extras page will be up and running by tonight so pop back soon and have a look!