Sometimes I just have to talk about the book I'm reading, and I think now is one of those times. Marisa de los Santos is the author of this book, Falling Together, as well as two previous books called Love Walked In and Belong to Me, which I've read previously and fallen in love with right from the beginning. She has an amazing way with words, I could try all day and wouldn't be able to describe it properly, but somehow it just makes me smile the whole way through. Her writing feels good, as if it were lighting a sort of inner warmth inside me as I take it in. It's like the feeling of comfy clothes and fuzzy socks, as you curl up in a patch of sunlight with a hot drink on a cold day. And it's so easy to get caught up in the characters. Her last book, Belong to Me, was a sequel to Love Walked In, so we really got to know those characters, and I'd always hoped to read another story about them, but the three main characters in Falling Together have been easy to get attached to as well.
You know, a really cool coincidence, is that Marisa de los Santos is from my old town, and when I read that I wondered sometimes if she ever went to the same places that I did, and I might see her somewhere. Then she started coming into the coffee shop that I worked in. I wasn't sure it was her at first, but as I kept seeing her now and then I eventually knew for sure that it was. I never said anything, that I recognized her or that I love her books, I get way too shy to say things like that, and the two authors that I've met previously at book signings left me sort of awkwardly gushing my happiness at getting to meet them, which although was true just didn't come out how I wanted it to. So I preferred to just admire her from afar as she sat writing on her laptop just a few feet from me, drinking coffee that I had served her. While I'm reading this book, I keep wondering if she'd been writing it then, which is a pretty cool thought that I could've been present for part of it's creation.
“...if you stay in it for any length of time, like anyplace else, a cafe becomes a world.”
- Marisa de los Santos
Sunday 23 October 2011
Tuesday 18 October 2011
mistakes
"Freedom isn't worth having if it doesn't include the freedom to make mistakes." - Mahatma Gandhi
Came across this quote on Twitter and it really got me thinking back to a time when I was young and insisting on something quite similar to what this quote is saying. And since I talked about freedom on here the other day, seems appropriate to also be talking about the outcome of having freedom and what our choices can bring, which yes, sometimes it does mean that we make mistakes.
I remember being 17, and getting to that point where I realized that my choices were my voice in the world, and I wanted my voice to be heard. Even if that meant that I stumbled along the way, and made mistakes, to me it was better than just doing what I was told and not making my own choices, not letting my voice be heard. And yes, once I had that freedom to make my own choices, I ended up making a lot of mistakes. But here's the thing about mistakes: sometimes they can inadvertently lead to other opportunities, and take you on a completely unexpected path, and sometimes the outcome of that can be a really good one. Honestly, when I look back at the events in my life, some of the worst things I went through lead to some of the best things that ever happened to me. And when I think about it, I don't know if I'd be where I am now if I hadn't made some of the mistakes I did. And when you look at it that way, it really was worth it. Mistakes are just a part of life, and sometimes they're necessary to teach us important lessons. And who knows, sometimes they may even be part of our ultimate destiny.
Came across this quote on Twitter and it really got me thinking back to a time when I was young and insisting on something quite similar to what this quote is saying. And since I talked about freedom on here the other day, seems appropriate to also be talking about the outcome of having freedom and what our choices can bring, which yes, sometimes it does mean that we make mistakes.
I remember being 17, and getting to that point where I realized that my choices were my voice in the world, and I wanted my voice to be heard. Even if that meant that I stumbled along the way, and made mistakes, to me it was better than just doing what I was told and not making my own choices, not letting my voice be heard. And yes, once I had that freedom to make my own choices, I ended up making a lot of mistakes. But here's the thing about mistakes: sometimes they can inadvertently lead to other opportunities, and take you on a completely unexpected path, and sometimes the outcome of that can be a really good one. Honestly, when I look back at the events in my life, some of the worst things I went through lead to some of the best things that ever happened to me. And when I think about it, I don't know if I'd be where I am now if I hadn't made some of the mistakes I did. And when you look at it that way, it really was worth it. Mistakes are just a part of life, and sometimes they're necessary to teach us important lessons. And who knows, sometimes they may even be part of our ultimate destiny.
inevitable, I suppose
So, on Sunday night my throat started to feel a bit scratchy and congested. Sometimes it can be nothing, and go away soon after, or sometimes it's the first sign that I'm coming down with an illness. I didn't sleep very well that night, and yesterday morning I wake up and my throat is worse. Didn't feel too bad otherwise, besides feeling a bit run down, but as the day went on my joints started to feel achey, and at times I felt either quite cold, putting on jumpers and wrapping up in a blanket, and then later feeling quite warm. But then, if my temperature was up a bit, that would mean it was killing off germs so that would actually be a good thing. In any case, I went out early yesterday and got the grocery shopping done before I felt too crappy, and got the laundry done, so I had the rest of the day to laze around (good job that yesterday and today are my days off from work!) and just spent time watching a chick film and reading my book. Drank my vitamin drink, a nice cup of hot coffee, and later on some soup, stayed warm and as comfy as possible. It's never fun to not feel well, but it's good when you have the chance to slow down and give yourself a rest. So far this morning my throat feels nearly back to normal, and I feel a lot less tired than I did yesterday, so hopefully whatever this is I'm fighting it off *knocks on wood* and after I spend one more day today indoors relaxing, I'll be feeling more myself again tomorrow when I'm back in to work. And Adam's finally putting the heat on in here, so maybe having the flat a little warmer in here will help too. This weather and this time of year always seems to make it inevitable that I'll start to feel under the weather at some point. But at least for now I seem to be getting through this one easy enough.
Sunday 16 October 2011
free
The word liberal comes from the word free. We must cherish and honor the word free or it will cease to apply to us. -Eleanor Roosevelt
Just wanted to share these wise words this morning. Freedom is the reason that I've called myself a liberal all of my life... without freedom, what would we have? Too many politicians would take away too many of our rights, if given half the chance... the right for women to have a say about what we do with our bodies, the right to our religious practices, the right to express ourselves freely. Let's not give the people who would do these things any more power than they already have. Freedom isn't something that should be taken for granted.
Just wanted to share these wise words this morning. Freedom is the reason that I've called myself a liberal all of my life... without freedom, what would we have? Too many politicians would take away too many of our rights, if given half the chance... the right for women to have a say about what we do with our bodies, the right to our religious practices, the right to express ourselves freely. Let's not give the people who would do these things any more power than they already have. Freedom isn't something that should be taken for granted.
Saturday 15 October 2011
already?!
I'm starting to see little signs of Christmas already... a Christmas advert was on telly the other night, and I've seen Christmas cards and a few decorations in shops on my street. I suppose it's partly that Halloween isn't a big deal here, and there's no Thanksgiving, so when this time of year rolls around, they jump right to Christmas. But wow, how did it get to be nearing Christmas time already?? This year has really flown by.
The weather is starting to get quite chilly too, which is a bit of a shock after the beautiful weather we just had so recently. Last night we went out to a pub for a meal, and I was freezing in my light jacket. Think its going to be about time to get the winter coat out...
I wish we'd had some nicer weather over the summer, so at least I could feel like we'd had a proper summer and could move on to cold weather now... there are really a lot of things I look forward to at this time of year... the holidays (I'm still planning to celebrate Thanksgiving!) and the "festiveness" in the air, hot drinks, warm clothes, snuggling on cold nights :) maybe we'll even see some snow this winter, that's always kind of fun. There's always something special about each season. But if Autumn could go just a bit easier on us... one thing I'm not looking forward to is standing outside waiting for the bus in the cold, so if we could sort of break that bit in gradually you know...
In the meantime, here's a video that's good for some summer memories. This is the current song I can't get out of my head. Reminds me of summertime and being young and making happy memories :)
The weather is starting to get quite chilly too, which is a bit of a shock after the beautiful weather we just had so recently. Last night we went out to a pub for a meal, and I was freezing in my light jacket. Think its going to be about time to get the winter coat out...
I wish we'd had some nicer weather over the summer, so at least I could feel like we'd had a proper summer and could move on to cold weather now... there are really a lot of things I look forward to at this time of year... the holidays (I'm still planning to celebrate Thanksgiving!) and the "festiveness" in the air, hot drinks, warm clothes, snuggling on cold nights :) maybe we'll even see some snow this winter, that's always kind of fun. There's always something special about each season. But if Autumn could go just a bit easier on us... one thing I'm not looking forward to is standing outside waiting for the bus in the cold, so if we could sort of break that bit in gradually you know...
In the meantime, here's a video that's good for some summer memories. This is the current song I can't get out of my head. Reminds me of summertime and being young and making happy memories :)
Tuesday 4 October 2011
feeling like Autumn
Well, after one last beautiful day yesterday, it looks like our Indian summer has come to an end. Today is cloudy, chillier, and the breeze is really making it feel like October. I wonder though if I'd be a bit more in the mood for Autumn if I were back in the States, where by now everything pumpkin-flavored is out in shops, American football season is in full-swing, and Halloween decorations will be hanging everywhere. Here you won't find anything pumpkin-flavored, one or two football games will be on each week, and although kids do go trick-or-treating, Halloween isn't too much of a big deal. Actually, it seems like they just skip right ahead to Christmas here. There's already a Christmas card display up when I went in the card store today. Crazy.
Had kind of a busy day today, nothing exciting but plenty to keep me occupied. Went out this morning to get my brother a birthday card, and to print a couple of my sunrise photos I took last week, and pick out frames for them. Then I've been re-arranging the photos on our walls, trying to find the best spots for each. It's such a shame that we can't put any more nails in the walls, since we have so much empty wall space that could be put to use. If I had it my way, this place would look like a photo gallery. Someday I hope we can live in a place where I can do just that. Really, the photos I take that I'm most proud of need to be displayed where they can be appreciated, not just sitting in my computer files. I may not have a career path or anything else I do that I can be proud of, but I do have my photography, and I want the photos I create to be my creative contribution to the world, so to speak.
Getting off topic though, I have to say I really do love living here. This flat is perfect for us at this point in our life, I love the layout and the big rooms and all the windows, I don't love going up all the stairs but then again I suppose it's good for a bit of exercise. I love how I can walk right out onto our street and have all the shops right here where I can find just about everything I need. People always ask me why I'd want to live here instead of the States, don't I miss if there, etc. And yes, there are things about living in the States that I miss, mostly things that I associate with each time of year that aren't the same here, like I mentioned before. I know I'll especially miss having a "traditional" Thanksgiving next month, although I'm trying to convince Adam to have our own celebration with me. But there are things here that I also didn't have when I lived in the States, that I would miss if I wasn't here. Really, there are upsides and downsides to both places, and fundamentally there's not a whole lot of differences between the two, when you look at it. All in all, I think I'm lucky to be able to call both places home.
Had kind of a busy day today, nothing exciting but plenty to keep me occupied. Went out this morning to get my brother a birthday card, and to print a couple of my sunrise photos I took last week, and pick out frames for them. Then I've been re-arranging the photos on our walls, trying to find the best spots for each. It's such a shame that we can't put any more nails in the walls, since we have so much empty wall space that could be put to use. If I had it my way, this place would look like a photo gallery. Someday I hope we can live in a place where I can do just that. Really, the photos I take that I'm most proud of need to be displayed where they can be appreciated, not just sitting in my computer files. I may not have a career path or anything else I do that I can be proud of, but I do have my photography, and I want the photos I create to be my creative contribution to the world, so to speak.
Getting off topic though, I have to say I really do love living here. This flat is perfect for us at this point in our life, I love the layout and the big rooms and all the windows, I don't love going up all the stairs but then again I suppose it's good for a bit of exercise. I love how I can walk right out onto our street and have all the shops right here where I can find just about everything I need. People always ask me why I'd want to live here instead of the States, don't I miss if there, etc. And yes, there are things about living in the States that I miss, mostly things that I associate with each time of year that aren't the same here, like I mentioned before. I know I'll especially miss having a "traditional" Thanksgiving next month, although I'm trying to convince Adam to have our own celebration with me. But there are things here that I also didn't have when I lived in the States, that I would miss if I wasn't here. Really, there are upsides and downsides to both places, and fundamentally there's not a whole lot of differences between the two, when you look at it. All in all, I think I'm lucky to be able to call both places home.
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