"She went to him. She adjusted, became a quieter more subdued person. She didn't kill, but she seemed to die a little."
Re-reading from many years ago. Even though it’s set in the seventies (kind of) it feels really modern. I wondered why no film had ever been made of it and then discovered someone did make a series pretty recently, but it was cancelled after one season so I’m not sure if I want to watch it when you don’t get to see the whole story.
"No one played songs here. No one listened to music or told stories. They didn't even realise not doing those things made them bad people."
Been on my reading list for awhile and managed to get a large print edition (the only option) out of the library. The large print, coupled with the opening chapter being from the point of view of an eight year old, made it feel like I was reading a children’s book… but it’s definitely not a kid’s book. It’s a really great, but brutal, story with two converging timelines. There’s Māori sprinkled throughout which I didn’t understand, but it didn’t stop me from enjoying nor understanding the book - I only realised as I finished that there was a glossary at the back of the book!
Quickly, before the month ends, here’s what I’ve actually listened to in September (even if it wasn’t released in September - although I think a lot was) as far as albums and EPs go:
And some of the other albums I’ve been listening to since last time include these fine folk: Berwyn, Bashy, Vibe chemistry, Corto alto, Beth Gibbons, Lava La Rue (I love LOVEBITES), Clairo (Sexy to Someone is superb).
Note: Kaeto: Bold move releasing an album/mixtape without No Body and Don't Ask on. But still six billion out of ten.
When I stopped cycling I envisaged having about three years off for a decent rest, but eventually getting back into it. Of course that never happened (it’s just far too expensive compared to running to do for a hobby) so I’ve stuck with running, wearing my banana cycling cap most of the time. I did technically get to wear it once or twice cycling, but not properly.
And now I never will. Annoyingly the peak has snapped in the washing machine (it really needed a wash) and look mum no hands are sadly no more.
I will have to find a new identity.
Despite being in Aberdeen for seventeen years this is the first I’ve heard of Code The City! I could have (in theory) done all of these although I suppose only realistically since 2022 after moving from the Shire to the City; However, my initial excitement was rapidly dampened when I remembered I still don’t have a laptop - in fact it’s been since about 2016 when I last had a (Pentium III) laptop. And there is also no way I’d actually be allowed to spend all weekend doing something like this. Still, it’s neat that this event exists at all.
Maybe one day.
"Such were the thoughts of the young Mrs Touchet. Much later, when she was older, she wished she'd voiced them. At the time, four talkative men - two of them jovial, one vampiric, and the last just incredibly loud - were altogether too much for her. They were four sides of a box through which no noise of her own could escape."
I’ll try to leave it as just three quotes. I had more though. And I’d made some notes with page numbers that I forgot to finish before I returned the book to the library, so presumably that would have been even more quotes.
Anyway, there was a character that I envisaged as Matt Berry, but I can’t recall who now, perhaps William. And I found it really interesting how it blended fact and fiction and by the end I had to look up whether some bits actually happened or not.
"Not for the first time Mrs Touchet was struck by how much more passion maybe aroused by phantom damage done to female 'honour' than by anything actually done to a woman herself."
I am trying to restrain myself and not blog all the quotes I saved.
"Even as an adolescent, William fatally overestimated the literary significance of weather"
I finally got around to joining the library so more quotes I’m afraid.
"Try a strap or belt at shoulder width around the elbow crease. I swear it gives me magic super powers. It's so easy and comfy for me, I can stay up for a while, come up and down on my toes, walk in a bit. All good. Without a belt I got nothing and I'm just hanging out on the top of my head."
Amazing tip I found on Reddit for getting into the wheel pose in yoga. Don’t know if it’s a placebo or actual magic, but it works. Without this I’m too scared to even try.
Note: Maybe one day will figure out something more self-hosted than Strava embeds
Wanted to write a post about running the amazing Les Calanques trails in Cassis. Realised I might as well just figure out including what I already have on Strava here. I can’t say I’ll be making many of my Strava activities public, but I can’t see the harm in making ones that are no where near home public.
When it comes to holiday destinations, A is driven largely by what she sees on Instagram. It was just pure luck on my side that the pretty harbour town of Cassis happens to be next to the Calanques National Park. So my main holiday worry was whether the trails were going to be open during fire-risk season - I figured I should get at least one day out of the seven we were there. As it was I managed two trail runs. In theory I could have done more, but it meant getting up early after we’d stayed up late drinking, it’s much hotter than Scotland, and it was on holiday and so not all about me.
Some notes:
Obviously there is much more to explore here than the relatively tiny bit I got to run, but longer distances are probably best not in August. I was happy I got to do this loop once. Absolutely stoked I got to do it twice.
These are the ten most recent posts (not counting any note drivel), for older posts see the Archive.