HTMW Recaps: October 2018
I normally add a quote to the beginning of each post that sums up or enhances my writing. However, I’m going to use my monthly recaps as an opportunity to sum up the month – be it the mood, the weather, my feelings… Anything really. October has been surprisingly warm and sunny on the most part, unseasonably so, and we’ve enjoyed the prolonged summer before winter kicks in. I love this time of year – the leaves changing colour and that last week before the clocks go back. I find October quite an atmospheric month, and this year hasn’t been an exception. My quote for the month reflects the shift into autumn, particularly focusing on the leaves changing colour – my favourite part of the season!
‘Now Autumn’s fire burns slowly along the woods and day by day the dead leaves fall and melt.’ – William Allingham.
In January 2017, I announced I was going to start monthly recaps on my blog. If you missed last month’s recap, you can find it here.
Once again, I haven’t really left London in October. If I’m honest, I’ve been craving an escape from the city, so made sure I got in a couple of walks on Hampstead Heath this month. I also spent a day out in Essex with G as well, which was lovely. The month has been quite busy, and it feels like an age ago since Mum was here at the start of October!
Autumn has well and truly kicked in now, with temperatures finally dropping and the clocks going back. I’m making the most of the chilly days and dark nights, before I head off for my six bonus weeks of summer very soon. I’m going to miss a lot of the UK winter this year!
The Highlights
Mum’s visit at the beginning of the month.
We spent a lovely weekend enjoying Japanese food, taking a boat to and exploring Greenwich and generally relaxing. We also saw a wonderful live performance of Holst’s The Planets by the London Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall, which was just fantastic. I found myself close to tears as the music swelled around me. My favourite track is Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity and it was sublime listening to the orchestra playing it so beautifully.
Pushing myself out of my personal comfort zone by going on a… DATE!
I won’t go into too much detail, since this is a part of my life that I like to keep private, but I really pushed myself out of my comfort zone this month by going on a date with someone new. It’s given me a burst of self-confidence as a result and I was super proud of myself for taking the jump. I actually even had fun! Dating isn’t as bad as I imagined…
A wonderful rainy day.
P suggested to spend the afternoon exploring the V&A as it was so grey, cold and rainy out. We spent a lovely few hours getting into every recess of the museum, before heading home and cooking sausage and mash – the perfect rainy Sunday dinner! Whilst the V&A isn’t my favourite museum, it is well worth a visit, particularly for some of their paid exhibitions and their great gift shop!
Walks up on Hampstead Heath.
So needed, especially as the weather has been remarkably sunny and warm on the whole in October and I’ve not been out of the city really since August. I’ve spent a few hours up on the Heath during the month, including one Saturday where we spent some time in a pleasant beer garden soaking up the last of summer. The following Sunday we showed C around during her all too brief visit to London. It’s one of my favourite places in the city, and provides me with some peace and tranquility that you literally can’t get anywhere else here really.
A shopping trip at Lakeside Shopping Centre and a Chinese takeaway.
G and I spent the day at Lakeside, where I found my dress for the JG Awards and she got me back into earrings… It was so nice to shop with someone new, who encouraged me to try things I otherwise would have left on the hangers! Without G, I would definitely not be wearing the dress I picked to the awards! In the evening, we indulged in an excellent Chinese and watched films – the perfect quiet Saturday night in!
Visiting the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition.
I go every year and it never disappoints. T and I spent nearly two hours in the exhibition, browsing the images and reading the captions alongside each one. I think this is one big reason why I love WPY so much – the detailed captions and explanations which explain exactly how the images come about. They really push home the perseverance and patience that the photographers must exercise to capture the precise photograph they want. Highly recommended to anyone with any interest in photography, or who loves the natural world!
Seeing Alt-J live at the Royal Albert Hall.
Wow. I had super high expectations for this show, and I was not disappointed. I’ve seen Alt-J once before in Wolverhampton, roughly four years ago. They were great then, but they’re really grown up and come into their own. Their sound is the same, but the visuals and the whole set has vastly improved. The light show was incredible, as was the 3D sound system they used. An amazing evening!
A spooky Jack the Ripper walking tour for Halloween.
The perfect low-key thing to do on Halloween! Our tour guide was excellent, giving detailed insights into what life would have been like in 19th century Whitechapel. It was quite historical and focused on the victims, rather than glorifying Jack the Ripper too much. I thoroughly enjoyed myself and would recommend – these tours run any time of the year, not just on Halloween!
Some really great TV and movies this month!
So many good shows! We finished off Bodyguard, then P and I spent one Monday evening indulging in two movies based on Stephen King novels – Misery and Carrie. The films were chosen on the basis that we were nearing Halloween and we wanted something a bit scarier. However, neither was so frightening that I had to shut my eyes or hide behind a pillow! Misery in particular was an excellent film – if you’ve not seen it I’d highly recommend it! We also binged on Killing Eve this month (just brilliant!), the new series of Making a Murderer and discovered a light-hearted animated show called Big Mouth that I’ve been watching on and off throughout the month.
The Lowlights
Losing my monthly travel card *rolls eyes*. Such a nuisance!
I mean, honestly. Here I am, buying a travel card to try and save money each month and then I go and lose it. And it wasn’t registered, so I couldn’t even transfer the funds over to my new card. And I wasn’t even drunk when I lost it! It meant that I ended up spending more money than I wanted in October on travel, which was a pain.
Posts This Month
Six Weeks: Australia and New Zealand.
In which I outline the trip to Australia and New Zealand, including all the awesome stuff I’m going to be doing like snorkelling the Great Barrier Reef, spending my 30th birthday on an overnight boat trip in Doubtful Sound and catching up with my wonderful friends in the southern hemisphere.
My 2018 Reading Challenge Book of the Month – October.
NB: The list on my reading challenge post is constantly updated as I tick off books that I’ve read and add new books I want to read, so flick back to it from time to time to keep up to date with where I’m at!
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari.
This book was recommended by my colleague P and I was a little annoyed with myself that I left it until October to read it, since everyone has been talking about it this year! Still, I’ve finally read and finished the book, and can understand the hype!
Harari explains some complicated matters very clearly, with great easy examples to follow. For the first time ever, I actually properly understood modern economics! The beginning of the book was particularly interesting, when Harari focuses on the rise of Homo Sapiens and speculates as to how our species became so dominant across the planet. I also enjoyed his conclusion – a view into what life could be like on Earth in the future, and some stark warnings about the impact humans are having on the world.
This is an important book of our time, that should be read by as many people as possible. Harari has also published Homo Deus and 21 Lessons for the 21st Century. I would be interested to pick up both books in the near future. I’d like to know what else Harari has to say about the state of our planet, its politics and the future of humankind.
GoodReads rated this book a solid 4.45/5. I’ll go slightly higher and give it a 4.5/5.
Next up in November: One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez.
In October, I also read:
Me and Mr Darcy by Alexandra Potter.
A light and easy read that was meant to be interspersed with Sapiens, but which I actually finished in just a couple of days.
Emily has all but given up on love when she embarks on a trip to England to spend a week on a Jane Austen book tour. She meets Spike Hargreaves, a journalist sent on the tour to find out why everyone loves Mr Darcy. Emily finds him repugnant and avoids him at all costs.
The last thing Emily is looking for is love, but when a mysterious stranger starts appearing at every opportunity, she finds herself beginning to fall for him… I won’t spoil the ending, but this is a great read for fans of Jane Austen and her writing. The plot is easy to follow and the ending is slightly obvious, but it was a pleasant read none the less – perfect for a holiday, or for when you need some downtime or a break from another, more difficult book!
Mail Obsession: A Journey Round Britain by Postcode by Mark Mason.
This is the third book by Mason that I’ve read, and the one I have enjoyed the least.
Mason writes about the UK in a way that generally makes me want to get out and explore my home country more, but this book was missing something. Although he filled it with his usual high number of interesting facts, he didn’t travel quite as much for this book and I missed that element of his writing. He is the master of taking the most mundane things and making them seem interesting. In this book, he spends the night at a service station. Hardly the most exciting of destinations, and yet he encapsulates every person’s visit to a service station perfectly and with some wit.
Not his best book, but recommended none the less, especially if you’re already a fan of his other books as I am.
Instagram Pictures of the Month
My photos this month were all from London, bar one throwback shot from New Zealand which corresponded with my itinerary post about my upcoming trip there. There was an autumnal theme this month, as you’ll see…
I choose these three images based on which got the most likes on Instagram and then tell the story behind the picture. Disclaimer: They are not necessarily my favourite photos!
Autumn is Coming, Belsize Park, London.
Taken on the last true day of summer. It was so warm out that we sat in t-shirts in the beer garden and chatted for several hours, before walking home through Belsize Park. The light was turning golden and the sun setting as we arrived at this crossing. I enjoyed the way the church picked up the light and almost seemed to reflect it. The leaves on the trees also shone. I took a quick photo and we passed on, walking down into Camden. We stopped for one more drink and then walked the last bit home through Kentish Town, tired after a day in the sun.
Autumn at the Pergola, Hampstead Pergola, London.
This is the second time I have visited the Pergola, and this time I loved it more than the first time. With autumn kicking in, the leaves were turning burnished orange and gold. There were fewer people there than the last time I visited as well, and it was more peaceful and relaxing. We strolled around and watched a girl doing a music video in Hill Gardens before being asked to leave so that the area could be closed.
Pink Sky at Night, Moorgate, London.
Once or twice a week, I walk from work up to Old Street and catch a bus home. I tend to walk with P, and we will chat about work and what’s been going on in our lives. Then, on the bus, I have a pleasant hour listening to one of my podcasts. On this particular evening, we popped into M&S on the way, and came outside to this spectacular pink sky as twilight set in. A beautiful sight!
Coming Up in November
What a busy month I have coming up! As well as spending a long weekend back in Wales, I’m also heading back up The Shard for a second time, going to a talk being given by Levison Wood and it is our annual awards ceremony at work. Plus, I need to prepare for the fact that I’m going away at the beginning of December…
