Day Out in Leeds and a Gig

On the 16th of March Sam and I had booked to see the Mary Wallopers in Leeds. I had heard the band a bit and thought they were good so I invited her along with me. Then Jac said she was free in the afternoon so we arranged to have an afternoon out together first. I had gift vouchers from Sam for The Bookish Type, the queer bookshop in Leeds, so I wanted to go there. I haven't been since it moved to its new location so I was excited to do that. Then we had plans to go to the museum and then for tea, before Jacqui went home and Sam and I went to the Academy for the gig. 

I drove into Leeds but had to park in the St John's centre, which was kind of fine but I wasn't sure about what happened later at night. So I parked and then walked through to The Light to meet Sam and Jac, who had been to the cinema beforehand. We sat for a bit and then we walked down to The Bookish Type. There were plenty of books that looked amazing but I settled on three, two of which I got with the vouchers. 

Then we walked up to Leeds City Museum which I've been past a thousand times but have never actually looked round. It's Miffy's 70th birthday and there was a special exhibition of her, which I wanted to see, so we headed up to that first. It wasn't huge but it was fun and we got some cute photos. Then we headed into the ancient world part, which had cool stuff about the Romans and the Greeks and the Egyptians. They have a real Egyptian mummy! He is a priest called Nesyamun and it was SO cool to see. I tried to be respectful because he is after all a real human, a real dead human. The museum is basically his gravesite now. I appreciated seeing it. 

There's also a bit about the history of Leeds and stuff but I wanted to get back to the car before the shopping centre shut. I needed to leave my books and also swap my bag for one that was better allowed into the gig with not a load of stuff in it. I walked back down through the shopping centre and asked a man about how to get back to the car after the gig and he was really helpful. Yay for helpful staff!

Then I walked back to The Light (it was a lot of walking) where Sam and Jac were already in Turtle Bay. I had vegan jerk "chicken" with rice and beans and dumplings. It tasted really nice but I would have liked a bit more gravy. Jac had to go and then Sam and I sat for a bit longer. I had some pudding and she had a drink. 

By the time we walked up to the Academy it was almost 7pm. I hadn't booked access for the gig but Leeds Academy is usually pretty good at letting me get in quickly and getting the lift so that I can get a seat in the balcony. That is exactly what happened and it was absolutely fine. Sam and I were seated right at the back of the balcony by 7.10pm! 

The support act was a group called Sexy Tadhg and they were REALLY bizarre but SO good. It wasn't like a band but more like an experience! It was fun. I liked them, I would see them again. Then the Mary Wallopers came on about 9pm. They were SO good. Like just a lot of fun and very politically engaged (they had a Palestine flag on stage with them) and they chatted a bunch of funny stuff. They played a lot of lovely songs and I really enjoyed it. I would see them again next time they tour, definitely. 

They finished about 10.45 I guess and we walked out. Sam hotfooted it down to the station and I walked back to the car. I can't even tell you how much the nine hours of parking cost me!

But it was worth it, it was such a lovely day.

Various things in the Miffy exhibition. I love the one of her friend on roller skates!

Here I am in Miffy's chair

How amazing is this fella 

The three of us in Turtle Bay

Vegan jerk chicken

And a salted caramel brownie

Mary Wallopers!

They are very talented

I will definitely see them again

And here are the three books I bought and Sam's one (bottom right) that I brought home for her so she didn't have to carry it

Afternoon out with My Cousins

As you have probably understood if you've read my blog for any amount of time, I don't have any siblings but I do have two cousins who are a lot younger than me but who are like my brothers; I love them so much and I'm so grateful to have them. The eldest one, Rob, has a wife, Beth, and a son, T, who is nearly two. They wanted to come up and meet our new cats as they didn't see them at Christmas, so we organised for them to come up in mid March. We decided we would meet in Barnsley for lunch and then come back to ours for a bit. This worked out well for me because I had booked an optician's appointment for earlier in the morning. So Lee and I set out early and I went into Specsavers. He went to park and then joined me. I chose two new pairs of glasses as I didn't feel I needed new sunglasses - I often wear my contact lenses on holiday and just ordinary sunglasses and I think the old ones will be fine for a bit longer. The good news is my eyes are getting better as I get older so my prescription is slightly less terrible than it was!

After we had done there we walked round the market for a bit and then we went to a piercers where I had my conches pierced. I wanted some different jewellery for two of my cartilage piercings in my left ear. I know I could have just bought them online but I wasn't sure I could get the CBRs out myself, so I went into the shop instead. I bought two horsehoe rings with spiky ends, and the woman changed them for me. A bargain! 

By this time it was just before twelve o'clock so we went into the Market Kitchen in the market hall. We knew it would be busy so we were both looking for a table and finally I got one. Rob and Beth were just parking so they wouldn't be long. And then they had surprise Peter with them! We weren't expecting that at all! So that was a joyful bonus! 

The good thing about Market Kitchen is that there are about ten different counters where you can get all different types of food, so we could all have something different. Beth went for pie and mash from one of the very typical cafes. Rob went for a thali from the Indian place, which looked amazing and which I'll have to get. Peter went for 'Spudz' which were roast potatoes that he got layered with lasagne and cheese and all kinds of stuff. Lee got a chicken burrito. I was displeased because the Thai counter has gone! Which I always get! I should have got curry but instead I went for a vegetable kebab from the Turkish place. It was fine. 

Then some of us went to Dolly's Desserts for pudding. Baby T was told to hold my hand as we walked over, which he did, very well. I ordered a creme egg brownie and ice cream. T then wanted to hold my hand AND Lee's all the way back to the table. He is such a cutie! 

After we had eaten we went to a couple of stalls in the market and then into a couple of shops. T insisted on trying on some pink Converse which were SO CUTE. We headed back to our house. The kittens were NOT impressed by the small child. Katniss isn't keen on new humans anyway, but she definitely didn't want to meet him. Kiki usually loves people but she was very skittish. Small children are very unpredictable aren't they. T went all over the house exploring and finding cat toys to play with. The rest of us played Mario Kart a bit, two at a time. It was nice to just sit and relax and play with T, actually. 

We had a bit of tea around 6pm. Just bread and some fillings and some crisps. T got into his pyjamas and had some milk so that he would fall asleep in the car. They left about 7pm I think. It had been so nice to see them all! 

I was wearing a Scarlett and Jo dress that I got off Vinted last year or the year before I think. I love the sort of faded pattern of the skirt. It was warm enough as the weather had turned a bit cold again. Plus it looks fancy while still being comfortable. 

I didn't get a picture of all of us which I'm annoyed about, but here's the pictures I did take:

Vegetable kebab with cacik and rice 

And my delicious brownie. The ice cream was a bit odd so I wouldn't get it again

Here's T trying on Converse in Sports Direct

T found the cat toy to play with

And we took some selfies too

T was thrilled that Lee would let him strum the guitars and the ukulele. He was very pleased with himself

And here's my lovely dress just before I got changed at 7!

Films of the Month - February

I forgot to do this at the end of my February posts, so we're a bit out of time. Never mind, it doesn't matter to anyone except me, probably! I have finally caught up on blogging for the first time since about the beginning of December last year. I've really had a lot going on. I'm behind on writing too so I'm trying to rectify that. I know I've been stressed and I've also been working a lot more which leaves less time for writing and crafting. I ought to give myself a break but also... Hmm! 

Anyway, here's what I saw in February:

I followed Aubrey Gordon for a while, and I've listened to a couple of her podcasts, so I'm aware of her. I know a lot of people who loved this film and who even met her and attended Q&A sessions and stuff. I just hadn't got round to seeing the film. So when I saw it was on iPlayer I watched it. I did like it. I'm also fat obviously and I know what it's like to inhabit a body like ours. I did like a lot of it, but I thought some of the director's choices were ...interesting

I saw Joy on Netflix - it's a film about the pioneer scientists who invented IVF. It's brilliant, I would really recommend it. The three leads were great 

I read Small Things Like These and I love Cillian Murphy so I was excited to see the film. I thought it was okay. The book is very short so it didn't really expand into a full film I don't think? But it looked good

I saw Back to Black in the cinema when it came out and wasn't wowed by it, but I fancied watching it again so I did. I think I enjoyed it more the second time around. It is well done, but I do find it a bit odd. It misses out loads of Amy's life and it just feels a bit wrong. Maybe not enough time has passed since she died? I don't know

My mum and I kept talking about Maria, which is about the opera singer. It is glorious. I generally liked Angelina anyway and she rarely misses, but she's absolutely immense as Maria Callas. I loved this, I highly recommend it

I had had this on my list for ages and finally got round to it. It's about an eighth grader who does vlogging and who has all the worries about being that age. I really liked it, it's cute

I know I've seen this before, the film adaptation of the Matilda musical, but I couldn't remember it. And maybe the reason is that it's just not very good. I liked the musical enough, I guess, but this just loses some of the heart of it. I won't bother again

Lee and I finally got round to watching the new Wallace and Gromit, from Christmas. We both liked it. It was great to see Feathers back and the voices of a lot of people we like (like Reece Shearsmith). I will have to watch this again to see what I missed

I can't remember how I came across this film but it's about a lesbian teacher during Section 28, it's really good and I would recommend it

Finally Lee and I watched Wallace and Gromit: the Curse of the Were Rabbit, which we think we've only seen a couple of times. We liked it

Trip Out with Lee

Ever since I went to Wild Cafe in Marsden back in November, by myself after I had seen a client who loves there, I wanted to take Lee. I thought he would like it and I wanted to go back. We had a free Saturday so I booked a table for us at noon. We ran some errands first and then set off about 11am. We got there about 11.45 and Lee was befuddled because you park further up the lane and then have to walk down to the cafe and the wellness centre (which I also really want to try at some point). There were only a couple of tables taken so we went straight to ours. 

I have to say that I think service was a bit slow. And there were plenty of members of staff available. BUT then I was thinking that maybe that's the point - it is a wellness centre and it felt kind of nice to be just kind of sitting, with nothing else to do, chatting to each other. Life has been really busy for us recently so it was nice. I won't complain too much. 

I had an elderflower lemonade which was one of the nicest things I've ever drunk. Lee had a karma cola which he liked. Then for food he went for avocado on toast which I had last time. He had it without feta as he doesn't like cheese. He had roasted harissa potatoes too, I had a couple of them and they were nice. I went for Thai peanut tofu curry. It was SO nice. It had SO many peanuts in it which I really like as I love them. It was nice and spicy and just tasted lovely. A good choice for me! We also shared some hummus dip, which tasted lovely but was really quite liquid which I found a bit weird. 

We had decided to go to Lick in Holmfirth for pudding so we didn't have any in Wild Cafe, but we had a hot chocolate each. It was so good. We had it with dairy milk but it was also available in vegan milks. It was actual chocolate flakes melted, which was delicious. I think the cream was vegan squirty cream. It was a lovely treat!

We drove into Marsden itself and parked. There aren't tons of shops but there were some charity shops so we had a wander in those. We looked at the river which was lovely, and it was tempting to sit out in the sunshine at the pub, but we didn't. Instead we drove to Holmfirth. They're doing roadworks right in the middle of Holmfirth but we managed to get parked near the bus station so then we walked around and went into a few shops. We bought bread in the bakery and butter and cheese in the cheese shop, and then went into Lick. It's all vegan ice cream and I just love it. I went for peppermint stick, which is new, and chocolate. I usually get a tub but went for a cone. Lee had strawberry and chocolate. 

We looked at the river in Holmfirth too. It was very pretty! It was nice and warm and I only needed a cardigan to walk around in. My cardigan was my pink zebra print one, I have been wearing it a lot recently. I was wearing a Joe Browns dress that I got last autumn. I love it, and it has pockets! I had grey Snag tights on underneath, and my boots. I'm not yet out of the boots! 

Elderflower lemonade with delicious flowers in too 

Thai peanut tofu curry, also with edible flowers

Lee and his avo toast

The hummus, which I wouldn't get again. Fortunately there are plenty of other things on the menu to try next time!

Such a nice hot chocolate - very recommended

Looking up river in Marsden

And looking down river - I love the mill at the end with the stilts

I was wearing new earrings that I had got just a bit before when I was at Meadowhall. They're from Accessorize and they were in the sale for just a couple of quid. I love them, they're green and I just love the colour

Standing on the bridge in Holmfirth with Lee

Ice creams from Lick

Looking at the river in Holmfirth

And finally my dress when we got home

Glossop with Helen

On the 5th of March I first of all had a long meeting with a client, and then I drove to Glossop to see my friend Helen. Lee is working in the office in Sheffield on Mondays and Wednesdays now which is really odd for me and the cats, who wander round all day looking for him. But it has meant that I have been working on Wednesdays because the house is quiet so I get lots of stuff done. My meeting went fine and then I got dressed super speedily and got in the car and started across the moors. It was a really beautiful sunny day and an absolutely gorgeous drive over, listening to a podcast on the stereo. I got to Glossop about 12.40 and parked. I was pleased to find the car park and the machine took card, too! 

Then I walked round to A'bout Thyme. Lee and I went for breakfast there in December when on the way to Manchester to see some friends, and I loved how cute it was. Glossop is about halfway between Helen and I so it was ideal. I went in and it was busy, but there would a couple of spare tables. I got one and read my book for a bit while waiting for Helen. I ordered a coffee and it was lovely - just a little bit of peace. Helen arrived just after 1pm and we chatted for a bit then ordered food. I had avocado on toast with a bunch of other stuff, and some hash browns. It was lovely! I had a cold drink with food, then afterwards we both had another cup of coffee too. I would have had some cake but they were all gone by that time! Boo!

We said goodbye and forgot to take a photo of us, which was annoying. Helen had given up social media for Lent so we had talked about that a bit. I got home in good time, still in lovely weather. But of course as Lee wasn't home when I got in there was no one to take a photo of my outfit. I will have to teach the cats to do it! It was a nice afternoon out, though. 

Lunch. I will nearly always choose avocado on toast 

Lunch with Friends

On the 28th of February I went to Sheffield to meet up with Lolly and Georgina for lunch. We had been supposed to get together a couple of weeks before, when it was Lolly's birthday, but she wasn't well so she had to cancel it. So we arranged for the end of February instead. I worked in the morning and then left the house and drove to Middlewood tram stop to get on the tram. I was a bit early into town but I just went straight to Pho where we were meeting. It wasn't busy at all so I got a table and sat for a few minutes just scrolling on my phone before Georgina and Alfie arrived. 

It was so nice to see both of them, I haven't had chance to talk to Alfie for ages so it was nice to see him. Laura arrived not too long afterwards. We had presents for each other which was lovely and very exciting. Georgina also had a bunch of make up to get rid of and she was selling it to us like she was on QVC, it was so funny.

We ordered food. I went for the summer rolls as usual, but this time I got them with the This Isn't Chicken instead. I have to say, I didn't like them as much as just the vegetable ones. So I would get the vegetable ones next time definitely. I had the spicy tofu curry and it was lovely. We sat chatting for ages. Lolly and I went down to Costa for a drink afterwards; I had a hot chocolate to takeaway. I managed to get on to the tram with like a second to spare, and someone gave me their seat (I use a walking stick and struggle to stand on moving vehicles so this is always a big thing for me!) and I sipped my drink all the way back to Middlewood. 

I got home not too long afterwards. I was wearing a Scarlett and Jo skirt that used to be a dress and which I love, and my new Hamilton shirt. I had some Christmas money left over so knew I would buy one when I went and it was this - it says Awesome. Wow. It's perfectly me! I love it. I was also wearing my pink zebra print cardigan and I didn't need a hoodie as it was warm! 

This Isn't Chicken summer rolls - they were fine but I wouldn't get the fake meat in them again

Spicy tofu curry. Yes I do know there are other things on the menu but I just love this so much!

One of the staff members took this photo of us just before we left, I love it

And here's my outfit when I got home!

Meadowhall with Sarah

On the 27th of February I went to Meadowhall to meet up with Sarah. It felt like ages since we had got together, although she was there on my birthday. So it was nice to catch up! We had decided to meet at twelve at Yo Sushi. We used to go there all the time but haven't been together for ages. It's moved now, to just outside the Oasis, so Sarah was keen to see what it was like now. 

I set off from my house at about 11.15 and drove to Meadowhall in bright sunshine. I went in and bought a couple of presents that I needed, and then headed to Yo Sushi. I got seated and was waiting just a few minutes before Sarah arrived. It had been her birthday since I last saw her so I had presents for her, which she liked.

We ordered some hot food as well as grabbing things off the belt. I went for fake duck something which was lovely, but maybe a little bit dry. We sat for a while just chatting and stuff. It wasn't busy so it was fine. Then we went across to the Hotel Chocolat cafe because Sarah hadn't been and wanted to try it. 

Now, I've been three times there since it opened, and I've liked it each time, so I'm not really complaining about it, but each time that I've been they haven't had the cocoa whip available. They put it on top of drinks and it really makes them special, as it's not like anything I've had before. So it's a bit disappointing that it keeps not being there! 

I had a dark mint hot chocolate anyway, and it was lovely. We chatted more and then we headed back towards our cars. We went into WHSmith which is moving in Meadowhall so it's like an absolutely jumble sale at the moment. There really wasn't much left on the shelves but I did manage to get a couple of things I needed .Sarah headed to Boots so we said goodbye and I headed home. 

I was wearing my lollidot skirt that used to be a dress, which I haven't worn in ages but have recently pulled out again, and my Cheers Queers t shirt which I love, it's so cheerful. I had also put my [ink zebra print cardigan on which was fine for driving and inside the mall. 

Fake duck teriyaki and something, I dunno. It was nice but I'm not sure if I would get it again

Hot chocolates in the Hotel Chocolat cafe

Here are Sarah and I in the cafe looking gorgeous

And my outfit when I got home!