Five things on a Friday #12 and #13

Ok i missed last week's Five Things post. Mostly because I had a flu thing all last week and so nothing much really happened. So i'll throw in a few extra wee snippets this week.

1) the weather! Yes, it's March but it's been like a mini summer. Mostly that means there have been long sunshiney days (of which i haven't seen much working indoors and all) as well as gorgeous sunsets and not to mention great views of the moon, venus and jupiter in close proximity. Sunday and Monday produced great clear skies and views. Even managed to see the red planet Mars. Nice.

Top Venus, middle Moon, bottom Jupiter

2) talking of planets. I read a tweet from Charlie Todd mentioning that the planets were in alignment and that they (over in USA) would be able to see it around 4-5pm EST (9pm here). So I tweeted him a picture of what I could see that minuted and he Favourited it! He favourited MY tweet. Well cool. Charlie Todd in case you didn't know is part of the founder of Improv Everywhere. And in case you don't know who they are well they're responsible for the no pants day on the New York Subway. It takes place in January each year. Obviously pants in America are trousers so it's people on the subway in just their boxer shorts or pants (as we call them).

3) Charlie also gave a great Ted talk that you can view here...



4) last week I went to Ryan's primary school as they were having an open night. By the way, it's also my old primary school and my mum's and most of my family's. Anyway, they were having this open night to try to raise much needed funds for the basics. When I went in it hadn't changed and yet it felt different. The corridors felt much smaller and narrower. The main sports hall/dinner hall also seemed much tinier now that i'm older. In the main hall was a little art gallery of paintings done by each class. Primary 1 (Ryan's class) were hand prints on canvas in various colours. You could buy them for £5. My sister duly did. Very cool. We headed down to the P1 classroom so Ryan could show us where he spends most of his day. It was filled with pictures on the wall they'd drawn, there were balloons with each month written on them and below were a list of names and dates of each of their birthdays. In the back left hand corner was one computer, i'd say a good few years old. One computer for the whole class of about 20 kids. Back right hand side was the house where they can play. Front right was the painting table. Paint pots, paper etc. Nice But also on the table that night were old register books from when the school opened to the recent past. I managed to find my name in there, along with my old class mates. We found my mum and my cousins too. It was good remembering all this stuff. We were allowed to have a look at Ryan's tray too. Inside was a large white folder with his picture on the front. This was where the teacher recorded his progress and stored all his drawings and stuff. The reports were good. It suggested he felt like he always has to answer every question the teacher asks. He got a bit upset if it was wrong. But he now knows that it's ok to be wrong sometimes and she gives him more thinking time. His reading and writing are coming along a treat (we were worried a little while back) and he's very good at sums. In fact when he goes home from our house every night first thing he does is get out his book (homework) and reads or does his sums. I came away feeling good about his progress but i also felt a little bit sad about the state of the school. It's a small school with only about 100 kids. It's close to my heart and perhaps i need to think of ways I can help it get more funds... Maybe that could be my next purpose?..

5) work has been frankly shit the past few weeks. Not that actual work. I love my job and what i do but the atmosphere is pretty low due to various things. Hopefully it'll pick up again soon because it's actually a good place to work. If only the..... nah i won't say any more. But, however, I decided to give spin class a miss again on Monday and went to see Contraband at the cinema. I seem to say this all the time but i quite liked it. Mark Wahlberg is his usual self but is really quite good. And i liked Giovanni Ribisi. He's pretty intense when acting don't you think? I'd give is 3/5 on the Ange movie scale. Not an official scale, just mine.

6) if you've been reading here for a while you'll know one of my all time favourite (if not THE favourite) blogs to read is Pacing The Panic Room by Ryan Marshall and his lovely family. I've been an avid reader for about 3 years now and I've watched as his family grows and takes turns and never fails to amaze with the love the shines through in his wonderful words and pictures. Anyways Ryan was on Twitter but kinda stopped tweeting but thankfully did take up Instagram in a huge way. Both he and his wife Cole's pictures are really great. Recently Ryan started a series on Instagram called #LifewithSMS It's about their little boy LB suffers from SMS. The pictures are so great and Ryan gives an explanation about what's happening to LB in the picture. In this post Ryan gives a fuller explanation in his post An Instagram Series: Life with SMS I urge you to head over and have a read. I did not know what SMS was until I read it on his blog a while back. If nothing else you'll see that LB is a gorgeous little boy and Ryan's pictures capture moments of time that for me give a little insight on how their days are spent coping with a kid with SMS. I say coping onlt because i'm not sure what else to say because from the outside looking in they appear to cope really well and never seem to complain. The pictures are always filled with meaning and there's laughing and obvious love and brilliant little moments. There's also cool posts on jobs, Tessa Tangerine (their smiley little girl), and Ryan's own thoughts about growing a family together with Cole. I love it. Enough of me rambling. Go over and visit. You won't regret it.

7) Thornton's strawberry fondant pigs. 'nuff said. I cannot get enough of these sweets. I am a huge chocaholic and Thornton's Moments are a fave at Christmas time, especially the strawberry sweets. But then *cue angelic lah lah lahing* i stumbled upon the kids sweet section. You know the one with the little dancing bear lollipops, the mini fudge pieces and then..... the strawberry fondants pigs! As soon as i read it my mind whirred into action and thought could this be the same strawberry from the Moments box?! YES IT COULD. It's all I can do to get into own of a weekend and purchase my 5 for £3. They're sooooo tasty. I'll be a piggy too if i don't stop eating them though! oink.

8) I bought a nice cute little summer outfit from Zara last week. I say summer but it's actually black shorts and two very smart drop hem t-shirts, one black one white. Classic shades. I cannot wait to wear them *crosses fingers and prays for good weather this year*.

And that my friends is all we've got time for just now.

Angela x

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Mission 2012, update

Remember this post from December 2011... Angela's Mission 2012? have a read...

Well today I ticked off number 2. Do something for Sport Relief. Granted, I would have liked to have done something sporty or adventurous but it was a cake sale at work put together in a few weeks and raised nigh on £90 (at the time of writing this post). Not bad at all i think. It's always something that will go to a wonderful cause.

It's nice to know that people will gather to bake and buy and eat cakes all in the name of a good cause.

Lovely.

End of post. This was a wee short post today. I'm still a bit ill and although the sneezes have stopped i'm left with a red sore nose from sub-standard tissues.

Onwards.

Angela x

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Mid week mid flu

Right now i am in the middle of the biggest dose of flu i've had for a while. It's not that bad being that i'm still going to work and all. Actually it is that bad. I probably shouldn't be going to work. Today was the worst day. It started at the weekend as a sore throat and swollen glands. Monday was blocked right ear. Tuesday was running nose and sneezes. Today is red nose, heavy eyes, running nose and pletny more sneezes. stay away. You have been warned. Well, you can stil read here.

Angela x

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Five things on a Friday #11

...On a Monday!

1. Hair. if you know me you'll know how much I have a sense of dread every time I have to go to a hairdresser. It's because I've had so many disasters with either cut or colour. You see I feel that most hairdressers don't know how to cut curly hair properly. And when I ask for mid blonde highlights I really don't want to end up with bright orange streaks. I did get my hair cut and coloured at Jones and Payne when I visited London last year. I highly recommend them if you are near to them. That was April. So I plucked up the courage and did a bit of research on hairdressers in September and chose a salon that came with a high end price list to go long with it's high praise reviews. Granted the cut was fine but she totally didn't do the colour I wanted. I asked for my own natural colour on top with sort of ombre/dip dyed lighter ends. I got the lighter ends but what I ended up on top was a mahogany shade akin to Cheryl Cole in her reddish X Factor heyday. Totally too dark for me and actually it put me on a downer until it had grown out a bit. Anyway...I've ummed and aahed for ages and decided I'd stay closer to home and tried one salon in town that I've always avoided. However, when I went to book the appointment I was seen by the hairdresser who'd be doing my hair. She was a lovely girl who seemed to understand exactly what I wanted. Last Saturday was D-day and it has turned out fine. I wouldn't say I'm blown over by it. The cut is great, I only want a tiny bit snipped off the ends. And the colour is cool but I could do with a few more lighter ends. But at least I'm no longer really dark. It's actually nice and beachy for the summer coming in. Woo. Oh and all credit to her for blow drying it big and curly with only a round barrelled brush. It was really lovely then.

2. Got a lovely little spray tan. It's amazing that a tan (albeit a fake one) can make your outlook a bit more sunnier. Even if only for a few days. It's not every week I indulge in this form of beauty therapy but every once in a while, you know, it's nice to feel good. I'm probably a psychologists dream client talking that nonsense.

3. I had the house to myself for a few hours on a week night. It was lush. I made dinner watched tv on the big telly. My little 17" tv is great and all but sometimes it's good to watch things on the big screen. Simple things eh.

4. I discovered this article, via Ste Doyle on Facebook, about introverts. It's called Why the world needs Introverts and it's from The Guardian. As an introvert myself I was delighted with the idea that we aren't  weirdo's with nothing much to say and that we in fact complement extroverts. So stop putting us down, okay. Have a read though. It's pretty good.

5. ill Manors by Plan B. Brilliant! A look at last summers London Riots and what has gone wrong in a society where young people feel detached and alone. Not condoning them by any means but trying to give a view as to the whys and what can be done to ...help (for want of a better word). Really interesting too is his interview where he explains a bit about the song. Here....Enjoy.

Angela x

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Solitude and Dreams

Solitude. It can be a lonely thing, solitude. But it can be good for the soul. A time to reflect on your life with the clarity that being around people can't ever bring. I like doing things on my own. Mini adventures. I'm out there doing stuff, free as a bird. No one to answer to. No one to fret over when they're away...what are they up to, who are they talking to. Hastily checking their phone when they go to the toilet and hoping it goes into sleep mode before they return so that you're not found out. Free.

As I entered into my thirty fifth year on this earth last week I wondered if I'll always live a life of solitude having these mini adventures by myself. I hope not. I want to have mini adventures and share them with someone special. Someone who deserves to join me on these mini adventures. And big giant huge adventures too. Life is an adventure of sorts in itself. Or so they say. It certainly seems to be holding something back for me I feel. My best adventure is yet to come. I've a feeling it won't be long until I'm on it, if my dreams and intuition are anything to go by. You see I have huge dreams. Vivid. Like the sort that when you wake up you believe for a split second that you're there. But you're not of course. Not yet anyways. But you will be. It won't be long.
I often wonder how people go about putting their dreams in motion. Where do you begin? How do you get it all started? Who can help you?

When I was little I dreamt of becoming an architect or designer of some sort. I used to design the inside of caravans. Don't laugh. That was when I was about eight. I've still got those drawings. And one I did of Micky mouse. It's pretty good. Anyways I digress.

What is your dream? Is anybody out there actually living their dream life? or has life in general gotten in the way. Did you always think you'd be sitting in an office banging on about some guff that you read in a book or heard at some dodgy conference run by folk who aren't experts (exclamation mark). I'll bet very few people in this life are living out their dreams. That's my guess.

So, the dream life... Where do you begin? How do you get it all started? Who can help you?

Angela x

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5 Things on a Friday #10

Ok ok I'm again a little bit late with this post. It is Sunday after all. But here goes.

1) my cake baking skills came into their own last week. I baked two batches of cupcakes and decorated them. Then I quickly rustled up some of my famous mars bar ay bake cakes. Tasty, tasty, very very tasty, they're very tasty!

2) Linda came back to work after he maternity leave. Just for two days a week but the place is so much brighter with her around. We can go back to our laughs and sayings for the book we'll eventually write. It'll be called. Shit Administrators Say... ;)

3) had another two cheeky days off. They're not really cheeky. I do actually deserve (and need) them. I w meant to only have Friday off but I took Thursday off too. It was my birthday on Tuesday and well, it didn't go to plan so I took time out.

4) I got to spend time with Connor on his own without Ryan. He's funny and charming and has a killer wit for a two year old.

5) I saw This Mean War this week. I like a rom com, I'm a girl after all. It actually was pretty funny at parts and was a surprise. Tom Hardy is so lovely, even with his wonky teeth (all part of his charm). I wonder if this will be a film he will regret making. Maybe not but with his roles being more of a serious nature I was pleasantly surprised at his comedy value. Did I also mention how hot he is? He is. It was a good rom com with a bit of action, not real action but some. Reece Witherspoon is her usual smily, blonde, beautiful self. Does she ever look bad? I don't think do. Worth a watch.

Angela x

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Cabana - NOTD by Laura Mercier

So I gave in to some hype that surrounded a beauty product. Nothing new. This time nails. The colour Cabana. This colour is from the Laura Mercier spring 2012 range (sold out most places). It's a true coral. I don't want to say coral pink because it leans towards orange too depending on the lighting. All I knew from the descriptions and previous posts I'd read was that I didn't have this colour in my now extensive nail polish collection and I had to have it. It sold out most places but i managed to order it from House of Fraser website for £12.50, the last bottle!

It arrived 5 days later and I set about painting it on. In the bottle it looks pinky coral. On my nails, on my pasty white skin colour, it definitely leans towards the orange side of coral. I wore it for a few days but have decided its not for me. It is a beautiful colour, just not on my skin tone. I mean, when I saw it on The Beauty Look Book blog I wanted it immediately. Honestly, go check that blog out for the true colour that made me fall in love with it.

In the pics below I still can't seem to capture the true colour whether in artificial light or day light. It's a cream colour that dries to look jelly like. I painted two coats but I could still see nail below. Go for three if that kind of thing bothers you. It doesn't bother me really. The formula was good for application, as was the brush. The brush is kinda wide, well not too wide but wider than say a Chanel brush. Bonus. What i will say was that it was fiddly to apply, the brush was attached to a big chunky lid. It would have been okay had the brush been longer length but I had to make sure I didn't touch nails with the lid when moving on to the next nail, if you see what I mean. It was a bit awkward to hold the lid/brush in my hand. But back to the actual brush. It held enough formula on it that you could cover the whole nail in three strokes. A thin layer obviously.

this is probably the truest colour capture

I tend to skip a top coat. I'm lazy, what can I say. This chipped after two days of normal wear. But that's nothing new. I've yet to have a nail polish that didn't chip without a top coat. From high end to high street, they all do. But I get fed up with one colour on my nails for too long so change it or take it off anyways. 

Overall I'd say the application was good. The brush was good, the brush handle not so much. It would really suit someone with a darker skin tone than my pasty white Scottish hands. I've no doubt in the summer it'll be hot!

I'm giving it 2.75/5 on the Ange beauty product scale. This is a fake scale of mine so don't take it too seriously. Oh and I'm also now selling it if you're interested. Used once!

 Angela x

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Pink lips? ok then...MAC Viva Glam Nicki

Ever since i can remember I've been searching for the perfect pink lipgloss. I thought I'd found it a few times back in the day but they were either too sticky, too 80's, too bright or just not me. Then for years all i wore on my lips was Burt Bee's lip balm from the cute yellow tin with the bee on it. It smells minty and does my lips wonders. It's never far from my side. I can't really take Vaseline on my lips. To greasy and thick and gloopy. Then i bought a couple of MAC lipglasses a few years back, Underage and Angel. Underage is a beige nude gloss that kinda goes streaky on my lips. It's nice though. Angel was a limited edition about 5 or 6 years ago (I think?). It's more a pale cream pink. It was my go to lip colour of choice for a night out (rare!).

Lately, for about a year now, I've gotten more and more into lipsticks. All from MAC. I bought Shy Girl and Hue which are really pretty similar shades if I'm honest. Shy Girl is a bit darker than Hue. It's a creamsheen. Hue is a glaze finish. I prefer Hue. It's a pale nude pink, less pink more nude really. It feels good on and i like wearing it for every day wear. I shy away from bright colours... or so i thought, until recently.

This week i bought the MAC Viva Glam Nicki. This is the collaboration with Nicki Minaj. I don't care for her much but since i bought the bought the OPI Pink Friday Nicki collaboration i decided I'd get this one. It's all part of my 'step outside my comfort zone' from my 35 things in my 35th year list. Also, 100% of the cost goes towards the MAC Aids foundation. Helping a good cause as well as getting nice pink lips. 20 bonus points.

It's a bright yellow pink. I don't see the yellow myself (I never really understand those brand descriptions). On me it's a pink edging towards fuchsia with still a little warmth in it. It's a satin finish which feels nice on me. I wore it on the weekend and like to wear a thin layer then blotted out with my finger. Just enough bright pink for me.

I tried to swatch it (below) but you can never really get a true representation of the actual colour, can you.

it looks a bit coral here. perhaps that's the yellow in their description

love the red accent on the packaging (for the MAC aids foundation)

this is with a flash and is a bit out of focus. Much more pale pinker here than real life 

 Angela x

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listed: 35 things in my 35th year

Photo: HeyYoyo on Etsy

Yes. That's right. It's approximately three days until I begin my 35th year. I know! I don't look it, right?  I feel that as a 34 year old I haven't done as much as I'd like (or that society probably expects me to have done) at this age. So we all know that if you write things down then you're bound to stick to them, right? Right. Here below is a list of things I want to accomplish, achieve, do, take part in, live in my 35th year. Feel free to join the ride, kids. #35in35th hashtag it up!

1. a road trip north, south, east and west
2. wear pink lips
3. a sunshine holiday
4. show off my iPhonography - it's pretty cool
5. go out dancing, in heels!
6. ride my bike to work 2 days per week (disclaimer: in summer!)
7. bake more cakes
8. have a dinner party
9. be 8 stone, consistently
10. see a movie at the IMAX - hello Batman!
11. meet new people that like me just the way I am
12. wear a skirt to work regularly
13. eat less sweets and chocolate
14. Alton Towers day trip!
15. try not to bother what anyone else thinks about me. I'm awesome.
16. get full series of a tv programme and watch them all (LoveFilm) what do you suggest?
17. get some cools photos of me done
18. say "yes" to a social outing when I want to say "no"
19. make some of the things from my Crafty board on Pinterest
20. collaborate with someone on a project
21. keep my skin healthy
22. finish reading the book on my bedside table
23. get an international check in on Foursquare
24. tweet a picture from somewhere AMAZING
25. have more faith in my gut instincts. They're usually right.
26. get this blog sorted. If anyone wants to help me please shout!
27. see a real life Banksy (this has been on most of my lists)
28. don't keep new clothes in the cupboard 'for a special occasion', wear them now!
29. blog more, and for others
30. catch a sunrise and sunset in the summer
31. meet some of my favourite Twitter people whom I've not yet met
32. step outside my comfort zone at least once a fortnight (I know, it's me we're talking about though!)
33. stop buying stuff and things. Stuff does not define me
34. write a letter and send it every month
35. laugh, smile and be thankful

Angela x

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5 Things on a Friday #9

1. It actually felt like Spring this week for the first time. I'm soaking it in. Snow is predicted next few weeks. Boo.

2. Ryan learned to type on the iPad. For a five year old this is pretty cool, considering the iPad keyboard is all in capitals it can be hard for him to recognise the letters as he's learned the shape of them now. Actually, I just looked down (I'm typing this on the laptop) and the characters on this keyboard are also in capitals. I hadn't really thought about that until now. Here's an example. If you ask him about the letter A, he'll draw a circle with a line down, a lower case, but on the keyboard it's obviously a different shape. Like I say i'd never really given this a thought but imagine as a kid seeing different letters from the ones you are learning? He'll be quick to learn all the letters both lower and upper case soon enough at school but he's pretty savvy as a five year old so i'm sure he'll pick it up on the iPad soon enough too. As long a she knows how to type Fireman Sam into YouTube he's happy.

3. I had a little trip to Edinburgh last weekend and got my fix of yummy beef quesidilla from Illegal Jacks. Yum.

4. I treated myself to lots of new bits n bobs including some gorgeous Laure Mercier coral nail polish. Jelly like and so great for spring/summer.

5. I found more great blogs to read. Love it when that happens by chance.

I know, a bit of a lame list but to be honest things are quiet around these parts lately.

Angela x

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