Penultimate Weekend in March

I was really busy the pentultimate weekend in March, the one before Easter, but I thought I'd combine everything into one post! It was a lovely but busy weekend, I'm not really sure how everything ended up happening at the same time!

On the Friday night Sam and I had tickets to go see Gaslight Anthem in Manchester. They're one of our favourite bands and we first saw them together in February 2009! I haven't seen them as often as she has, but I fancied seeing them again so we got tickets. It was at Manchester Apollo which is terrible for parking and for getting food nearby, so Lee and I had a bigger lunch and then I set off over the A628 at about 4pm.

However! I was just in Hollingworth, just before where the Glossop road joins and which is one of the busiest roads in England probably, when the car broke down at some lights and refused to start again. A man drove past me and told me I was in the way - like yeah! No shit Sherlock! I am not actually just stopped here for the fun of it! However then a different man pushed me on to a side road so at least I was safer and the traffic could move properly. I rang Lee who set off in my car, and then a local shopkeeper told me to go in if I needed anything, which was nice. And THEN a different man helped get my car on to the pavement so it was safer. I am glad for these strangers!

Lee arrived about 5.30 and we phoned the breakdown people and then I set off in my car to Manchester. Fortunately I managed to park just across from the Apollo and met Sam, and we went into the nearby pub for a drink. We ended up sitting outside but it wasn't too bad, and then we joined the queue to get in and got in very soon after doors opened. We had seats upstairs so headed up there. Emily Wolfe was the support act and she was pretty good, I've seen worse support bands. Then Gaslight Anthem were excellent! I really enjoyed myself and I'm glad I managed to make it! Lee got taken home and our car was left outside our local garage to be looked at!

On Saturday morning I had a very big lie in, and then Lee and I headed to Rotherham to buy a new sofa. We had been looking for one a few weeks before when we were also looking for a new mattress, but nowhere in Barnsley really sells sofas, hence heading over to Rotherham. There's a Sofology there but there are also about a zillion other sofa places! We had a look round a few and then went to German Doner Kitchen for lunch. I wasn't sure if they had anything vegetarian but they did, and it was actually really nice. We also went to Morrisons to buy Easter eggs for each other. We went into DFS where we saw a sofa we both really liked and which means we will actually get rid of both of ours! We got done quite quickly and got home about 3pm I think.

I did some cross stitching for a bit and then I got ready to go out with my mum, my friend Katie, and her mum Kath. Katie and I see each other quite often but it's ages since our mums got together so we thought it would be nice if we did. I booked a table at Qubana which is one of my favourite places in Wakefield to eat, and we arrived there about 5.45 for a drink first. 

Our table was ready at 6.30ish so we sat down there. My mum, Katie and I shared a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc which was really nice. We all had tapas - my mum and I shared hummus and bread and patatas bravas, and I had manchego cheese and she had pork tenderloin. Qubana has upped their vegetarian choices recently which is really good. We had dessert too, I had vegan chocolate fudge cake which was lovely. The only thing was that the service was a bit rubbish; we would definitely have had another drink if we had been offered!

Katie's dad picked us up at about 9.15 and took us back to my mum's house, which was really nice of him. I had a couple of glasses of wine with my mum and stepdad and Lee came to pick me up before we went home. It was a nice civilised night out! I was wearing my new Hell Bunny dress which I bought off Georgina recently, but I didn't get a picture of it. I did like my make up, though!

On Sunday morning Lee and I tidied the bedroom and the stairs ready for the new mattress to come on the Monday morning, and then I had a shower and had lunch, and then set off to Huddersfield. I had tickets to see The Motive and The Cue which is a National Theatre recording of a play starring Johnny Flynn, Mark Gatiss, and Tuppence Middleton. Johnny Flynn is playing Richard Burton, being directed by John Gielgud, to play Hamlet. It's really good and I really enjoyed it. Because it's the play it's quite long and has an interval, so we had the most delicious brownies in the middle. 

I got home about 6pm and relaxed for the evening because I had been so busy! 

Here's a ton of photos:

I love it when the band name is on the venue outside

Here we are sat having a drink outside the pub

Emily Wolfe! 

And Gaslight Anthem! Or maybe Aslight Anthem, as I couldn't see the G from my seat!

They played two of my favourite songs so I was happy

Here I am ready to go out on Saturday evening. My lipstick was a Body Shop one and it's really moisturising so I really liked it

Here we are in our booth in Qubana! It is a nice place, I recommend it if you're in the area!

Manchego cheese and hummus. The hummus was lush, there just wasn't a lot of it

Fudge cake and ice cream

Not a great photo of Katie and I due to the low lighting, but still nice to get a photo of us! I do love her, she's funny and fun and we've been friends since 2002 when we met at uni!

Here's my brownie in the cinema on the Sunday, it was so nice!

And here I am when I got home - a leopard print dress that I do love wearing, teal footless tights from Snag, and my zebra print cardigan! 

Lunch and Shopping with Lolly and Chloe

On the 21st of March I went to Meadowhall to meet up with Lolly and Franklin and Chloe. We met at Costa at about 10.30 and I had a latte and a chocolate twist, and then we did some shopping!

I got new socks from Primark and some perfume from there, why are the queues always huge at Primark though? We went into a shop that Franklin and Chloe were very excited about where you buy kawaii Japanese stuff from gumball machines. I had a go with two and was pleased because I got one of the Little Twin Stars and a Hello Kitty figure! I love Hello Kitty and I like Little Twin Stars so this was ideal for me. It was fun! We had a good look round Yours but I didn't buy anything. I did buy some stuff in Flying Tiger including some birthday presents for my stepcousin and a new bath mat for us. I got some wax melts in Yankee Candle, some new ones to try. Then we went upstairs to Las Iguanas where we had decided to eat.

I had a veggie chimichanga which came with a ton of refried beans, and a mango mocktail which was fizzy and delicious. The service was a bit crap which was rubbish because it wasn't that busy. I feel like they could have easily sold us more drinks and maybe a dessert each if they had tried. But it was fine!

We then went into Lindt where I got an Easter egg for Lee and some other bits. I also got some of the milk balls for free because there was a voucher on my card!

By this time it was about 3pm so we said goodbye to each other and I walked back to my car and drove home. I rested for a bit when I got back because I was so tired - I had been sort of under the weather for over a week and still needed to rest. In the evening I just relaxed, which was good as I was out the next three days too. 

I was wearing a Topsy Curvy dress that I bought off Chloe recently. I absolutely loved the pattern but missed the dress from the company themselves, so when Chloe was selling it I jumped at it. It is the middle size whereas I usually go for the bigger one, but it still looks fine on me I think. I matched it with my teal footless tights from Snag, and my pink zebra print cardigan that came from Simply Be. I was a riot of pattern and colour and the cashier in Yankee Candle told me how much she liked my outfit!

Here we are in Las Iguanas, we sat right at the front which is a nice enough place to sit

Chimichanga, it was nice!

My glorious outfit. I love the colours of the dress

And here are the socks I bought. I wanted patterned ones but they only had patterned trainer socks! So they'll have to do!

Lunch in Mytholmroyd with Nathaniel

On the 14th of March I went to Mytholmroyd to see my friend Nathaniel. He lives over in Lancashire and we've been friends since 2006, but have only met in person a few times. And not for years! But we had been emailing back and forth and decided to meet up, and decided that Mytholmroyd was basically in the middle between us. There's a lovely little vegetarian cafe called The Blue Teapot that I booked us into. I set off in plenty of time and listened to some lovely music on my drive. The M62 was clear and I went some places around Halifax that I haven't been before. 

I go to the cafe at just about ten to twelve and met Nathaniel outside. Our table was ready just about twelve for us. There are literally only about ten tables inside so if you do go be sure to book because otherwise you might not be able to get in! As it's all veggie I had a hard time choosing but decided to go for Welsh rarebit. It came with salad and coleslaw and was absolutely delicious! I had two decaf cappucinos too which were also really good. 

We sat chatting for ages and then I bought cake to take away for Lee and I later. I got an Easter slice and a chocolate orange brownie, and we shared half each. They were both lovely. 

Nathaniel and I went for a little walk. I obviously know that Ted Hughes was born in Mytholmroyd so I googled and it was just round the corner. It was over the canal and up a hill but it was a nice walk, so we looked at that. It's got a blue plaque and you can also rent it out as a holiday let which would be amazing! Then we walked up the road to where there's a clog factory. Really cool to see but we didn't buy any. They're all handmade there though which is nice. We walked down past the canal and under a couple of bridges before coming back up on to the main road and then over the river bridge where we looked at some art and a very cute map. 

We walked back to the car park and said goodbye because by this time it was about 2.30 and I didn't want to be late back and get stuck in traffic. We took a photo of us and then I drove back listening to the Dropkick Murphys who I haven't listened to in ages! It was a really lovely day and I was so glad to see Nathaniel again.

When I got back I had a nap because I was absolutely exhausted; it had been a busy week. I was wearing my Wednesday t shirt and a skirt that used to be a dress, and grey footless tights. Oh and my DM boots, as usual! 

Here my Welsh rarebit with a delicious chutney

On the bridge over the canal

Ted Hughes' childhood home

The clog factory

Looking the other way along the canal

We walked along, this was the bridge we had just come from 

We walked under this bridge which was really low, even for me

Ducks! There were some Canada geese too and they all wanted us to feed them

I love it when daffodils are out and these were lovely

We walked over the footbridge over the river Calder, this is the vehicle bridge

This modern art was at the other side

Weird but I quite liked it

A map made by locals, some of the annotations really made us laugh

Another part of the river

And here we are just before we said goodbye!

Lunch and the Theatre in March

On the 13th of March I went into Sheffield to get a welded bracelet and to meet my friend Philippa for lunch, and then in the evening I went to Huddersfield to go to the theatre with my friend Sam. So here's what I did...

I left home at about 10.00 and drove to Sheffield and parked at Arundel Gate as it was the closest to where I was going even though I know it's expensive. I had an appointment at 11am at The Owl and the Pussycat piercing shop on Norfolk Row to have a permanent bracelet done. I saw this a few months ago when someone I know online got one. Basically they weld a loop shut on a bracelet so that it can't be removed. I mean of course you could break the chain and honestly I could probably pull mine loose if I tried hard enough, but obviously I won't. But I loved the idea of a permanent bracelet. I have several ear piercings that I have never taken out, and my nose piercing. But I wasn't sure if I could stand wearing a bracelet for ages, so I found a string bracelet I had been given and started wearing that all the time in January. I found it didn't bother me and didn't impact me using a mouse, so I thought getting a silver one would be fine. I googled and found that this shop in Sheffield does them, so I made the appointment. 

I had time to go get a coffee first, so I went into Marmadukes to order a takeaway one. While I was waiting I took a picture of my new Harris tweed bag. I really like the patterns and I saw a bunch of them when I was in Edinburgh but I couldn't justify the expense. So I looked on Vinted and found this one for £25 including postage. And when it arrived it was brand new! It still had the tags on! I swapped over immediately and I absolutely love it. It's comfortable for me to carry, too. 

I got the bracelet done in no time at all and then walked on to Fargate to go into some shops. I love the bracelet so far, no complaints from me! I went into Lush and talked to the assistant about haircare, and bought some new shampoo and conditioner. She gave me some samples too which was nice of her! I then went through to Orchard Square to go to Waterstones because I had another gift voucher from my birthday left. I ended up with four books on Buy One Get One Half Price, and they all look ace, I can't wait to read them all. I also bought a Big Issue off the seller near there. 

Then I went to Mama and Leonie's just round from the Crucible to meet Philippa. I haven't been before but she suggested it and it was close to where I was so that was good. She was already there so we ordered soon and the food came quickly. I had a vegetable calzone and then a pancake with ice cream and chocolate sauce. They were both nice! Philippa and I then went next door for a drink and then said goodbye at about 3.30pm. I was home not much later so I did some cross stitching for a bit before heading back out at 6.15 ish to go to Huddersfield.

Sam had asked me ages ago if I wanted to go to the theatre and I had agreed and paid for the ticket and everything, but then I had totally forgotten what we were going to see! I couldn't have told you if my life depended on it! I decided to just not worry and turn up. I struggled to park but made it into the theatre in time to go to the loo before we took our seats. And then a member of my book club was two rows behind us so she came to speak to me! How weird.

The play was about women in the Miners' Strike in 1984 and 1985. There were three sisters and two of them were married to miners, and the youngest's boyfriend was a police cadet. It had songs in it too, and it was really good. It was funny and poignant. We both liked it. Then I looked at Sam's programme at the end and realised that the middle sister was played by someone I know on Facebook - she's a friend of a friend but I hadn't recognised her at all! But she was brilliant. 

I got home about 10.30 and sat in bed eating bread and butter and hard boiled eggs, which was delicious! Oh the last photo is a photo of me and my mum and dad in about 1987 I think. This photo stood on top of a cabinet in my grandma's living room for as long as I remember, and I inherited it from her house. The frame was broken so Lee and I bought a cheap one from Dunelm and I put it in. I love the photo so much - aren't I so cute?! And now it's up on our bedroom wall.

This is the cross stitch I'm working on at the moment, isn't it lovely? It's quite simple, too

New tweed bag! I love the colours. Now I want a purse to match... 

My welded bracelet! 

And the underside

These are the books I bought in Waterstones

Veggie calzone

And my delicious dessert. Philippa and I always get dessert and it's always so nice

Here's the stage at the theatre

And this cutest photo of me and my parents

Mother's Day 2024

My mum and stepdad had been away in Gran Canaria for a week, but got back on the 9th of March, just in time for Mother's Day. I had had a bit of a busy week and on the Saturday Lee and I went and bought a new mattress which was thrilling as you can imagine, and then I went to my friend Sarah's in the evening to hang out with her. Lee booked for the four of us to go to Fox House Inn near Holmfirth on Mother's Day. Lee and I went just before Christmas and it's really nice homecooked food so we thought it would be nice for all of us. 

On Sunday morning I had a shower and scrubbed and shaved myself too, it was about time and I really needed it. Then we sorted some stuff out in the bedroom and got it nice and tidy before we set off. We arrived about 1.20 and my mum and stepdad weren't far behind us. 

My stepdad said he would drive them home so my mum and I ordered a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc to share, which was lovely. We had also already decided that we would share a starter and a pudding because the portions are big and my mum and I couldn't have managed all those courses. So we shared garlic mushrooms, Lee and my stepdad had Yorkshire puddings (which are worth the trip to the pub by themselves). Then I had veggie carvery which was just the vegetables and Yorkshire pudding, and delicious, but not TOO much! My mum had the seniors carvery which was similar in size to mine and likewise it was a good amount of food for her. My stepdad had meat and potato ale pie and Lee had garlic chicken supreme. It is all homecooked and delicious food and just so nice. 

Lee had chocolate sponge for pudding, my stepdad didn't have one, and my mum and I shared some ice cream. It was honestly so nice, it's such a nice pub and feels like a bit of a luxury but the prices aren't stupid.

We left about 4pm and my mum and stepdad came back to ours for a couple of hours, so that they could see the cats and stuff because I'm not sure they've seen them since Christmas! My mum and I shared a bottle of English sparkling wine that Lee's mam and stepdad bought me for my birthday. It was really nice!

After they went home I just relaxed for the rest of the night which was nice. I had been wearing a Hell Bunny dress that I bought off Georgina Grogan/She Might Be Loved recently. I love the pattern on it, but I knew it was going to be too low necked on me. But I also knew it would most likely look fine with a tank top underneath. And it does! My mum couldn't tell that it wasn't supposed to have the black bit there. I love the dress and I think I'll be wearing it a lot. 

I was also wearing my teal blue footless tights from Snag, as I love the colour of them and they match the dress, and a pair of Converse that my mum bought me for Christmas. They're off Vinted so didn't cost her very much, and I love the sparkles on them! I haven't worn them before but they're really comfortable so I'll definitely be wearing them again soon!

Here's this lovely dress! Up close it's herons and roses and stuff and is just really lovely. I am so glad I got this from Georgina!

Teal footless tights and second hand Converse with a sparkly bit at the heel

I even put some make up on! Here I am i nthe car when we set off. My necklace says I Am I Am I Am which is from a Sylvia Plath poem. My friend Stacey bought me this for my birthday and this was the first time I had worn it. The lipstick is a Models Own one and I love the coral colour, it really brightens my face. You can also see all my greys in my hair in this photo, which is fine

Garlic mushrooms and brown bread - I would have struggled to eat all this myself but it was nice

Here's all four of us when starters arrived

Lee's Yorkshire puddings, honestly I could eat these right now

My veggie carvery - they did have a nut roast but I honestly thought this was more than aedquate for me. I say this not to judge anyone else's food choices but because I know my personal limits

And finally the English sparkling wine that I had, it was nice!

New Tattoo

What did you do with your Leap Day this year? Anything wild or exciting? Or was it just another day? I love Leap Days - they always feel so full of potential. To try to harness that, I booked a tattoo on the day when my regular tattooist Nini opened her books just before Christmas. It felt like an auspicious day to get tattooed. 

I was considering getting faces of Poppy and Jasmine to match my tattoo of Ivy's face, but the space was a bit small. Then I considered getting silhouettes of Poppy and Jazzy but decided this is something I might do in the future. So I decided to get flowers instead - poppies and jasmine, so that I know they're for my lovely cats but other people might not. I left the design with Nini and she definitely delivered - one poppy surrounded by jasmine. I absolutely loved her concept and then I waffled as to whether to get it coloured in or not. You may know that it turns out I have an allergy to a lot of red/pink/purple inks, and my body makes the tattoo very swollen and itchy and raised, and eventually most of the ink falls out. This was the case for the rainbow on my foot, so I've now had it coloured in with yellow and green and blues, instead. It is entirely fascinating that this happens, but also really, really annoying. I've paid a lot for those tattoos! 

So I decided I would just get Nini to do lines and shading, and if I decide later I want colours, I can always add them. Nini mainly works in black and grey now and she's really good at it. She is based at The Ink Station in Heckmondwike by the way and I love her - she always seems to get what I'm going for. I've also been tattooed by Kimi there and I really like her style too. 

I was thinking this tattoo would be smaller than it's ended up being, but Nini was absolutely right and put it so that it's in a good position however my arm is. That's why she's a tattooist and I am not. It only took about an hour and wasn't too painful - the worst bit actually was having to sit with my arm at an awkward angle for all that time! 

I absolutely love it and I am so glad to have it!

Films of the Month - February

February was an incredibly busy month for me so I didn't have a lot of down time to watch films. But I did manage to watch twelve films and they were a pretty good set, too! Here's what I saw:

I had been seeing hype about Good Grief, Dan Levy's new film, and also a lot of criticism of it too, so I was intrigued enough to watch it. The main cast are all really good, but it isn't brilliant. An odd one

I wanted to watch Heath Ledger so I watched The Dark Knight. I have seen it before but not for ages, so I enjoyed it 

Lee and I watched The Whole Nine Yards, it's one of our favourite ridiculous films and it seemed appropriate since Matthew Perry is no longer with us and Bruce Willis is unwell. It's very funny if you haven't seen it

I finally watched Oppenheimer because I really wanted to see it but I knew it was going to be a lot. And it really was. I watched it in two separate parts which helped I think. Cillian is great. I have read some criticism of it and I think a lot of it is valid. I'm glad I watched it but I'll probably never watch it again

This came up recommended to me on iplayer so I gave it a go. It's from 1949 so one of those classic Hollywood type of films. I liked it, I would recommend it if you like classic old films

Netflix recommend Poms to me - it's about seniors living at a residential community thing who decide they want to be cheerleaders. It's cute, funny, it passed some time for me. Diane Keaton is great

It was a cosy Sunday afternoon so I watched one of my faovurite cosy Sunday afternoon films. I really want to watch the TV show, too - I started it but tailed off so I need to watch it properly from the beginning

I can't remember where I came across this film, but I like Timothy Spall so I gave it a go. It's about a group of people who hate flying and who are undertaking a course to try to get over their fears. They end up stranded in Iceland. It's pretty quirky and fun

Lee and I watched Wayne's World together which is another of the ridiculous films that we both love despite ourselves. I suspect we will watch the second one soon too

I was reading about this film, about Emily Bronte, somewhere, and thought it would be good to watch. I really like Emma Mackay too, she's really good in it. I'm not sure it's the best thing ever written about Emily, but I did like it. Plus of course Haworth always looks beautiful

I've seen the first few series of The Sopranos so I was intrigued by this prequel film, about Tony Soprano's early life. It's really good, I would recommnd it

Finally, on Leap Day, the very last day of February which doesn't usually exist, I watched Crossroads, because it was on Netflix and I like Britney. It isn't the most amazing film in the world but it was cute and funny