March, Be Good To Me

'Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush.' - Doug Larson.

'Spring is the time of plans and projects.' - Leo Tolstoy.

'It's 9 months till Christmas!' - Me.

How are we already in March?! What have I been doing for the last 2 months I ask, as I sit here knowing I'll be asking the same question in a couple of months time, still overspending, listening too loads of show tunes and debating whether a 12 box of krispy kremes are a good idea. CORRECTION - always a good idea.

I'm pretty excited for this month to commence, things are happening! I'm visiting Sheffield twice within the month to visit Sheffield University & Sheffield Hallam University, which means this month is decision making time. Sheffield is about 3 hours away from where I live in Essex so I've roped my beloved mother in to driving me one day (I can drive, I'm just scared of my own car) and catching a train the next time. It only dawned on me the other day that if I choose to go to Sheffield, 3 hours is a trek of a time away from Home, so I really will be moving out - insert Billy Joel's well good song, Movin' Out - but I'm excited to get to see the campuses and see what may possibly be in store.

Another big deal is one of my best friend's birthday. I'm travelling to Farnham (not as much as a trek as Sheffield) for his 22nd birthday and of course I'll over pack, and naturally I'll overspend and yes of course, I'll drink too much beer. They're not called Birthdays for no reason, right? I wanted to say what I got him for his birthday on here, but until he gets it, I'm not going to give it away - in case he's peeking. I've been to Farnham's a couple of times and I've now nicknamed it 'The Shire', mainly because I think it resembles the town in The Lord of The Rings. 

Finally we have Mother's day. I love my mum, like literally she's a babe. I'll be taking a couple of days off work this month, one of which I'll be taking her out for Afternoon Tea at the Hamyard Hotel in Soho. A post to follow soon!

I'm hoping this is going to be a good month and to get to speak to a lot of new bloggers and get improving on my blog!

Till Next Time,

Ellie 

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A Day In London

It's Valentines day today right? Of course I'm right. Either that or I'm completely unaware of the day. I'm aware though, aware of all the couples on the central line licking face or of all the dine in for £20 meals from M&S (which could totally pass as a meal for one, just saying). I've never really been bothered about V-Day, understandably because I have neither a boyfriend nor have I ever had a boyfriend to 'celebrate' this glorious day full of helium balloons and strewn petals, which is enough to make me gag, even more than the face lickers on the tube.

So who better to spend this day with than my invisible 5'7 boyfriend with a well cut beard and preferably specs? My mother of course. The light of my life, the 5'2 bobbed, ray ban wearing spectacled woman in all her Liz Earle glory.

Even though I drag myself up to the city everyday for that mudane task called work, today was a Saturday, meaning yes, I will drink gin and yes I will drink lots of it. Before that though, breakfast called. Me and Susan headed to Smiths of Smithfields where the smell of bloodied meat covered in sawdust loomed and screwed up lottery notes loitered the floor outside Fabric Nightclub. I wanted to be classy and order a Bloody Mary, but then I realised that was way grown up and more importantly, I don't like tomato juice. We dished over eggs and bourbon biscuit and cream milkshakes and I moaned about my single exsistence whilst mother told me all the reasons to not rush, 'learn from me' she said 'the right person will come along'...yeah mum, in 199never.

Next stop was too the 5th happiest place on earth, asides from IKEA, Costco, ASOS's nightwear section, and Subway at 1.30am after you've been out, reeking of vodka & red bull. Primrose Bakery is a tiny haven of cupcake and baked goodness. Located in Covent Garden, it's as cute as they come and you know it's good in there because you can smell the gingerbread loaf from outside. Today mother treated us to some cupcakes which included Malteser and Cookie Dough. She dragged me away somehow as my saliva slid down the cake cabinet displays.

 

Hungry right? I know, sorry. 

So then...and this is where it gets exciting, I went to see a musical that I've literally been dying to see since 2013. How this is possible I don't know, seeing as it only came to Broadway last year but you know when you have that deep intact feeling of 'for gods sake, make a musical of this so I can have my dreams fullfilled' well they made the musical, and godammit, they made a good one. Beautiful, The Carole King Musical is a gift from god and fuck, it was amazing. Yes I said fuck, emphasis on it.

I know it was that good because I've wrote a whole seperate post on it, but like don't read it if you get bored to tears because it's just me crushing hard on Carole king. Underline Crushing.

Check it out here! My Review of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical

After the show, I went home where I was surrounded with yet more people on the tube with flowers and uncomfortable closeness and hand holding. I wondered if my inner introvert was just really acting out on today of all days or if I was just immune to affection? Still curiously wondering. 

It turns out spending February 14th, a Saturday, National Ferris Wheel Day (because thats's what it really is) with my mum was what I actually needed. As well as the cupcakes made of pure sugar and Jesus's love, the Greenwalls tins of Gin & Pink Grapefruit Tonic, an episode of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and a musical about an inspiring queen of music was the perfect v-day. V for Victory because these cupcakes were victoriously delicious.

Till Next Time!

Ellie

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Beautiful: The Carole King Musical

 

I know you shouldn't always say 'This was the best day of my life' because sometimes you should have higher goals, like you know getting married or being able to eat a 12 inch subway, so I'll say this was the best day of my life so far. 

I'm a little bit obsessed with someone. That someone being Carole King. Who? did I just sense someone say? Who? Oh just Carole King who's written over 400 songs, had her first hit at 16, made an album which stayed in the charts for 17 weeks in the 1970's and you know, is a music ledgend. I get why you may not know her, she was more of a 40's/50's/60's/70's gal but just happened to dominate music with her amazing melodies and her raspy mellow voice. I could gush over Carole all day, but first let me tell you about a musical, which was made about her life. THANK YOU JESUS.

 This is Carole. Glorious Carole.

A brief synopsis for you all. Carole wants to write songs, not be overly famous, just write down all the beautiful things she has to say and for the world to hear them, not teach like her mother suggests. Lucky for Carole she plays a song for a record producer who tells her he'll buy her songs and give it to another band, such as The Drifters. Carole is okay with this because all she wants to do is write songs and that makes her happy. Enter Gerry Goffin, who she later marries, who just also happens to be a lyricist and can fit his words to match Carole's melodies. Perfect right? They marry, kids come along, they sell hit songs and live blissfully.

Ah...if only it was that easy. They go head to head with their best friends and lyricist partners Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil, who are equally as good as Carole and Gerry. The pair's roll out songs for The Shirelles, Bobby Vee, The Righteous Brothers and later, Dolly Parton. It's all well and good until Gerry, Carole's beloved husband, doesn't want to live the comfy suburb life with Carole and wants more on his plate than he deserves. I won't give much away but you see Carole go through tough times but eventually she picks herself up and writes an record which captivates the world, Tapestry.

Again, I don't want to spoil it because it all has to be seen to be believed and enjoyed. To start, the sets, costumes, the music is something I can't even go into without sobbing and overall, the actors. King is played by Katie Brayben, who is a gift. She is the pure essence of Carole and when she took her bow at the end, I felt myself getting choked up because I felt I was watching the real Carole King. Goffin is played by Alan Morrissey, who made me hate him but love him so much (at one point I even mumbled, what a dickhead, in a quiet theatre...yeah) but he makes up the expection I had of the pair. 

I just loved this show. I left feeling as if I had been watching the real Carole King sing through her songbook history and better yet, it was so accurate to her book she wrote. Every song she sang and every word was meant and this show just, well, there are not enough words to describe this triumph of a musical.

King is a extraordinary woman. Her talent is everlasting and influential, she is the eptiome of a humble person with an amazing gift. As Carole says, and I now live by:

You've got to get up every morning with a smile on your face
And show the world all the love in your heart
Then people gonna treat you better
You're gonna find, yes, you will
That you're beautiful as you feel 

Thank you Carole.

http://beautifulmusical.co.uk/

 

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Dry January

So, you know when you joke that drinking is a hobby and then you do that laugh as if to say 'BUT I'M NOT AN ALCOHOLIC!..hahaha' but then you kind think, oh fuck, I do class Gin as a friend. I do love going out for a drink, preferably a £7.99 bottle of Prosecco after a hard week at work, ensuring you wake up the next day unsure of what kind of sandwich you made the other night. I wanted 2015 to be a year of change but what better way was there then to call it quits on the united front of gin lovers.

Cancer Research UK had been harping on about Dry January for a while and the thought of doing it made me wonder how I would possibly cope, so I decided not to do it. However after a bit of a guilt talk and the weekly £7.99 saving, I figured it would be best to try it.

I signed myself up on the 1st Jan, probably still drunk from the NYE party I went to before (where I drunkenly cooked 12 nuggets and they still tasted fab; they were consumed with flutes of Aldi prosecco and the best of Donna Summer in the background) and I'd say my biggest supporter was my mother, who told me of all the great benefits I would reap from this.
They are:

1. Your skin will look great!
2. Imagine all the money you will save!
3. You have no friends anyway, so you can't go to the pub!

The last one, I admit, was pretty spot on from Susan. I'm an Introvert and a half, so the latter really did apply.

Over the last 31 days sure I have saved money and mum was right, my skin was doing pretty good but I have to admit, after a long week of sitting at your desk dreaming of 5.30pm, a Bombay Sapphire wouldn't go amiss. Part of the fundraising included a pack that Cancer Research UK sent me. It contained a wristband, beer mats (ironic really), fundraising sheet and some plastic cards in which you could hand out if anyone was willing to fund your non drinking.

However, this was all for a good cause, and I raised a great amount of money which I fully admit I'm glad I didn't spend shaking off the hangover blues the next day. I'm happy to say I tried something new year this, not entirely sure that I'll be rushing back next year, but it's for a good cause!

Get Donating! http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/

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