Busy Feet

Over the last few weeks my shoes and I have been rushed off our feet. Several cross-country trips have been endured in our trusty yet very dirty little Fiesta and many scary tasks completed. Unfortunately, my last post was a negative in anticipation of the hell-ish week which was last week.. and yet when it actually arrived.. it was alright. I am yet to know the success or outcome of my meetings etc but I felt like I deserved a treat.. so I bought myself these little pink roses.

I know traditionally flowers should be bought by a man as a gift.. but you don't need a man to have pretty flowers. I deserved them so I bought them.. a motto I rely on too much (and probably why I have so many shoes).

Since the rubbish part of the week ended my comfy boots have taken me to some shops without much money spent luckily.. for my bank balance..and so what of next week? I need to keep my slippers on and get my head down on some work.. but that seems such a dull idea.

I think perhaps I'll just waste/reallocate time to playing with my little friend here. She's settled in well and is busy learning what she can bite, chew, attack, eat and sleep on.. it's a tough life. I think I want to swap.

P.S. A recent purchase of some new tights has left me to conclude that you don't need to pay big pennies for nice tights. I bought some black 150 dernier from Asda for £3 and they're looooovely.. get yourself some.

 Growing older without growing up..

Since our last meeting I've had a birthday.. not a big one but a birthday all the same. I've also bought some new shoes. A connection? Perhaps.. the beige heels were for birthday drinks and the animal print with birthday pennies. Otherwise I feel the shoe and birthday link breaks away.. as most things appear to be unlinked to the growing old process.

Last year (in birthday years) was very much a 'getting through it' year. In the middle of a three year course it neither felt like the beginning of the end of anything and so expectations for last year were so clear.. survival. This year however, is very much the end of something. The race is on and the end of my three year itch is fast approaching.. but where to go next?

The last few weeks have thrown up opportunities to posh-frock up and present a more solid version of myself than I feel, to potential employers. More are lined up and so it would appear that progress is being made, lessons learned etc.. I'm not so sure. It's hard to move onto the next chapter before you've finished the last few lines of the previous.It's just premature.

For the time being, I'll be focussing on my juggling act and also on finding a cosy chocolate brown jumper dress to match some new tights I was given as a present.. any help in this quest would be much appreciated.

The only new chapter.. scrap that.. new book I wish to share with you is Belle. She is a beautiful bundle who has moved in to take advantage of the garden and space and to liven the place up a bit. So far I've not had much of a chance to get to know her but very much look forward to sharing her with you all.. once I've had fun having her all to myself!

and obviously.. a picture of her paws will follow :)

Not so new beginnings... 

Every year how to celebrate 'New Year' seems to be topical and of great importance for most.. and I usually, get dragged into believing it is an event worth celebrating despite my heartfelt hate of the meaning of New Years Eve. A new beginning is sold as a chance to 'right the wrongs' of the previous year as if to suggest last year was a wash out and a chance to stage a miraculous development into a thinner, healthier, more successful version of yourself. How can we begin to become a thinner version of ourselves when we still haven't drunk the cupboards dry of all the odd bottles and haven't even opened all the Christmas biscuits from various persons who clearly do not know you that well "Dark Chocolate... Thank you!" Euggh. 

What I hate about new year and in particular new years resolutions the most, I think, is the rather ungrateful way in which we assess our last year on the planet as if to insist we could have achieved so much more had we have just be thinner and healthier etc etc. With some exception, I'd say 2012 was a bloody good year for me. I worked as hard as I could, spent as much time with my loved ones as I could, got the most out of limited money including treating myself frequently, went on holiday (twice), went to the Olympics and managed to finish the year surrounded by the people I love the most. How can I improve on that? 

Well obviously this year should be something of a transition of sorts for me and 2013 could turn into something of a big year.. but aren't they all? No one can really say they stood still for 2012 and even if they did there is a big reason to be pleased with that.. They didn't lose anyone, didn't make any big risks that didn't pay of, didn't go for a dramatic hair cut and spend 6 months in hats, didn't get ill or flooded out of their home or sent to war etc etc.. This New Year business is really quite morbid you know. 

and so my new years resolution is.. more of the same please. No one really likes change. 

Friday Night

After a week that felt longer than would be measurable on a ruler, Friday seems a complete wash-out. All I want to do is sleep but since going to sleep at 6pm would make we wake up at 4am I found myself something to do.. I donned my onesie and treated myself to an episode of Homeland. With fresh orange juice.

Anyone who knows me, knows I have a slight fetish for think/fluffy winter socks.. but fluffy socks and a onesie? Please... Its not December yet. And so I de-sock.. and to my horror unearth the most disgusting winter toe nails you ever did see. Oh.The.Shame. Chipped nail polish is not the most unsociable of beauty laxes, especially not in winter, but I usually pride myself in exceptional toenail grooming.. Which made me think, when did I get too busy to paint my toenails? It's a task I usually enjoy, along with my a self-manicure and eyebrow tweeze.. It just makes you feel neat and proper.. so when did I let this slip?

I removed nail polish from my fingers yesterday that had been chipped for well over a week, Oh.The.Shame.

Clearly a busy schedule is to blame, I have spent longer than I can remember apologising to friends I've not had time to see and apparently now I'm letting myself down too.. this isnt on. How can we be ready to face any challenges a day can bring when underneath our tights and socks we're vastly under-prepared? It's an insult to shoes.

So I had a stern word with myself.. and a tweeze, ex foliate, moisturise, floss, polish and brush. And when I get up in the morning (after what appears to be a long overdue beauty sleep) I'm painting my toenails. Bright Pink.

Firstly, apologies for missing weeks without any shoe updates.. but you know how it is.. it gets cold, you put your winter boots on.. and just keep them on until March.

Secondly, apologies for no pictures.. there are two reasons for this: 1. Winter boots are just winter boots. 2 I've lost my mojo.

I used to relish the opportunity to take some time with my camera and get pictures of things I was up to (and which shoes I was doing this in) but my enthusiasm for these things has dwindled and I find I'm mostly walking to places quickly in boring shoes.

I'm not sure how to get my mojo back.. but I think I may force myself into taking one picture a day of something that took my interest and sharing it with you all..

I hate this weather.. it upsets me.

"If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude" Maya Angelou

After a pause in proceedings it would appear the seeds of change are sowing.. and I'm not just talking about the weather. Since the last entry I've stacked up a wealth of pictures of my feet and shoes in many sunny places, and even some with friends but with it now being the very last day of September.. it doesn't seem relevant any more. The fact is, the month of September is largely associated with a change of shoes and for most, new shoes. From the age of 5 most children will spend the summer holidays choosing the best shiny black school shoes they can find, followed by a new plastic lunch box and pencil case of course. From a very young age we have been taught to prepare ourselves for change, not just in the weather but maybe to a new school or classroom and part of our preparedness is to pick shiny new black shoes.. I still feel September makes me need shiny new shoes. 

So if pencils and shoes set us up for the changes we inevitably face in life.. that must be why I have a whole bunch of them. And a Tupperware fetish. I do find it strange however that despite having strong links to a school.. with this removed, I still feel September has strong links to change. Pretty pumps wearing is now closely linked to hypothermia without tights and the flip flops are already gathering dust.. last years winter boots have already made their annual début.. Last year being an important part of this shoe progression.

 People can become obsessed with comparing people to one another and situations, places, products and even days to others they have experienced which I personally find redundant. Comparing past and present will mostly lead to dwelling on the past and remembering what could have been or what was lost.. it rarely leads to embracing the future, or change for that matter. The last few months have contained some small occurances of change I've wanted to avoid.. facing the inevitable it always a bitch. However, in the face of change I'm going old school.. I'm shopping for new shiny black shoes. 

 "Reunited..and it feels so good"

Well apologies readers I know it's been a long while since my last blog.. it's been a very busy few weeks! As you can see from my first picture here I have been reunited with my beloved Norfolk Wellies.. they were housing several spiders and lots of dust. As neglectful as it may seem, despite two weeks together they didn't actually breathe any fresh air.. it's not my fault.. it was flip-flop weather. A reappearance of the sun was so exciting it prompted many outdoor trips where tanning and ice cream devouring were a priority. What better way to get outdoors than to look at a map and just think "Right.. north, east, south or west?". South it is.. Our Birkenstocks and Converse enjoyed escaping to Bury St Edmunds and eating Sunday lunch in The Bushel.. whilst lunch was nice dessert was amazing. Not only did they have some amazing cakes and puddings but all served with different flavour Movenpick ice cream.. NOM NOM NOM. Whilst on another trip to the south we also visited Banham Zoo.. I had to limit myself to one picture from my trip which was so difficult.. so many beautiful animals lounging around in the sun. So here is a very cute, hairy donkey.

One of my favourite parts of our British summers is having daylight right into the evening.. it just feels like there is so much more you can do every day. My time in Norfolk was all about stretching out as much daylight as possible and squeezing in as much as possible. Being situated close to such pretty scenery means getting your shoes on and going exploring.. be it just walking around the local area or packing some good reading material and heading to the coast.

On this particular trip to the coast the mission was one of fishy origins.. Mackerel. Tipped off that the North Norfolk coast was being visited by a fishy tribe we followed our flip-flops to the sea and set up rods.. and camping chairs.. and the latest edition of National Geographic.. I'm more of a fishy 'spectator'.  The night at the beach was a very pretty one indeed however and a great opportunity to take some lovely snaps of a very orange sunset.. and of course my tootsies playing in the sand.. again I've had to limit photographs to save you!

Whilst at my Norfolk retreat I often spend large amounts of time amusing myself.. which usually coinsides well with reading and work I need to catch up on.. it's great for reading with a clear head and no distractions. Whilst strictly being on holiday I did pack my work folder and managed to get a lot done.. (whilst sunbathing with the dog, naturally) and feel good to have got a head start. I do, during this time feel a little guilty about merrily laying in the sun whilst friends are back at home, a little neglected perhaps. I don't think neglect is the correct word maybe.. it seems life for most people is very busy these days and meeting up with friends and loved ones can take as much planning as a military operation.. Isn't it a shame we don't just knock on each others doors anymore.

Once south had been tried and tested we travelled further north to Wells.. the most North I have been in Norfolk in fact! A pretty seaside town is a good description of Wells and as such... FISH AND CHIPS!!!!!

From chips to crabs.. and crabbing in particular.. possibly a new favourite hobby of mine and potential Olympic event for 2016??!? Whilst the chips in Wells were fab.. the crabbing not so much.. so onto Blakeney for better crab opportunities.. which were bigger.. and scarier! May have run away from one crab.. not my proudest moment. The picture of our crabbing net however only has tiddlers in it so please don't think I'm that much of a big girl. 

Some other favourites from my time in Norfolk are playing scrabble in the garden of an evening with a glass of wine.. perfect.. especially when you can take several points for spelling out 'penis' on the board.. magic. 

Other than that my time was spent on one thing and one thing only.. The Olympics.. Nuff said. 

(P.S reader.. apologies for the 'all over the place' layout of this blog entry.. I may investigate a new host for this blog as the layout tools available really are.. well.. shite.)