family – Page 4 – M J Mallon YA Author and Poet

Prom 2016: Churchill College

13528985_917698925005600_6799915062229292699_n[1]

It’s been a few weeks since the prom – 1st of July – time to let the dust settle and reflect on the event of the year! I know my daughter loved every single minute of her prom, and judging by the above photo it certainly looks like her friends were excited by the prospect too!

Better not leave the guys out!!

13557822_917699198338906_2053490696581653455_n[1]

There had been various discussions about how to get to prom with suggestions ranging from overpriced limos, to a Scooby Doo van, but in the end Georgina went in her boyfriend – Joseph English aunt’s car (photo courtesy of Joseph’s mum – Giovanno.)

13592705_10209134431493771_3210474227019500735_n[1]

It must have been quite a moment, walking up the red carpet and that backwards glance from my daughter, Georgina tells quite a story. (photos courtesy of Giovanna.)

13558894_10209134370972258_5864761700793171802_o[1]

I fell in love with the dress! We found it on an outing to Ely, at a Prom Dress, Ball gown, Cruise Wear and Cocktail Dress shop called you guessed it: Something Special.

It was hanging on the rack by the changing room. I suggested that Georgina tried it on, and that was it, all the other dresses paled into insignificance. It was the one. EEK the price was frightening…. but I figured perhaps in the future she might wear it again… Anyway to soften the blow she kindly offered to pay half with money she’d saved up from her Saturday job. I wrote about our day out in Ely and a whole bunch of other things on this blog post: Hugh’s Weekly Photo Challenge – Faces

Here’s a photo of the dress detailing its full length, and little train. (Photo courtesy of Giovanno.)

13600255_10209138746641647_6438372149030973493_n[1]

Such a wide variety of beautiful dresses, and glamorous young ladies!

I’d like to give a shout out to Gina’s tutor at her secondary school – Stephen Creamer who took some wonderful professional photos of the prom. Whilst I can’t share his photos on this post without permission I’d like to mention his website : Steven Creamer Photography

We had a very special visitor at prom – my mother in law. It was wonderful that she was able to share in the occasion. She is now nearly ninety. She is such a remarkable woman – still able to travel all the way from Edinburgh to Cambridge on her own at her age. The next big family occasion will be her 90th birthday in September. Here she was smiling happily – the ‘wee woman with the big zest for life,’ so pleased to be here to share this occasion with her two granddaughters, Georgina and Natasha.

WP_20160701_008 (2)

After the prom was over I jokingly said to my daughter, ‘Now it’s time for old clothes and porridge!’

Not sure how impressed she was by that suggestion…

Porridge might not exactly be the best form of food at the moment.The poor wee lamb has had a touch of either belly ache or heat stroke or perhaps both. Oh… this turned out to be a nasty tummy bug that afflicted me too.. Better now.. So don’t forget to wash your salad, avoid swallowing dirty water while kayaking, take care in the sun, drink lots of water, rub in that sun cream folks. Oh, my! I’m beginning to sound like my mother!!

Bye for now. My bitmoji has had a wardrobe change – it’s just too hot for long sleeves!

bitmoji-1789884155

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

My fun (totally not serious but nevertheless 90% true,) author bio on Wattpad – Link below.

Marjorie Mallon was born in Lion City: Singapore. She grew up in a mountainous court in Hong Kong. Her crazy parents dragged her spotty soul away from her exotic childhood and her much loved dog Topsy to the frozen wastelands of Scotland. There she mastered Scottish country dancing, haggis bashing, bagpipe playing and a whole new Och Aye lingo.
As a teenager she travelled to many far flung destinations to visit her abacus wielding wayfarer dad. On one such occasion a barracuda swam by. It stopped to view her bikini clad body, longing to take a big bite. With dogs' fangs replacing barracudas' teeth, she returned to her mother's birthplace: Kuching, Cat City. There, Blackie, a black-hearted dog sniffed her frightened butt, whimpered and ran away! Shortly after this extraordinary event an angry female Orang-Utan chased her unfit ass out of the Malaysian jungle believing that she was a threat to her babies! She still monkeys about, would love to own a cat, or a replacement Topsy but refuses to entertain murderous dogs, or over-protective monkeys.
It's rumoured that she lives in the Venice of Cambridge, with her six foot hunk of a Rock God husband, and her two enchanted daughters.
After such an upbringing her author's mind has taken total leave of its senses. When she's not writing, she eats exotic delicacies while belly dancing, or surfs to the far reaches of the moon. To chill out she practises Tai Chi and Yoga on the crest of a wave. If the mood takes her she goes snorkelling with mermaids, or signs up for idyllic holidays with the Chinese Unicorn, whose magnificent voice sings like a thousand wind chimes.

She is a child of the light and the dark. Her motto is simply this: Do what you love, stay true to your heart's desires, remain young at heart, and inspire others to do so, even if it appears that the odds are stacked like black hearted shadows against you...

My Links:

My Kyrosmagica Review of Emmy & Oliver

My Book Review of Emmy & Oliver by Robin Benway

Goodreads Synopis:

Emmy’s best friend, Oliver, reappears after being kidnapped by his father ten years ago. Emmy hopes to pick up their relationship right where it left off. Are they destined to be together? Or has fate irreparably driven them apart?

Emmy just wants to be in charge of her own life.

She wants to stay out late, surf her favorite beach—go anywhere without her parents’ relentless worrying. But Emmy’s parents can’t seem to let her grow up—not since the day Oliver disappeared.

Oliver needs a moment to figure out his heart.

He’d thought, all these years, that his dad was the good guy. He never knew that it was his father who kidnapped him and kept him on the run. Discovering it, and finding himself returned to his old hometown, all at once, has his heart racing and his thoughts swirling.

Emmy and Oliver were going to be best friends forever, or maybe even more, before their futures were ripped apart. In Emmy’s soul, despite the space and time between them, their connection has never been severed. But is their story still written in the stars? Or are their hearts like the pieces of two different puzzles—impossible to fit together?

Readers who love Sarah Dessen will tear through these pages with hearts in throats as Emmy and Oliver struggle to face the messy, confusing consequences of Oliver’s father’s crime. Full of romance, coming-of-age emotion, and heartache, these two equally compelling characters create an unforgettable story.

My review:

Emmy & Oliver is a YA Contemporary romance with believable, lovable characters that draw you into the story making you want to read more. Emmy & Oliver are the two central pins of the story. Everything revolves around Oliver and his old friends. He returns home following a lengthy disappearance after having been kidnapped by his father, and is reunited with old friends, and family members. Things have moved on a lot in the meantime. His mother has remarried and he has two twin half-sisters. His old friend Drew now has a boyfriend. Oliver expresses his emotions at all these changes in an utterly convincing way. As the novel progresses we begin to understand how he felt towards his father, (whom he still loves,) and his mother, and how he feels now.

I really loved this. It wasn’t trying to be over the top, gushing romance, or poor me I’ve been kidnapped feel sorry for me story. Instead it went for the gentleness of feels. That’s how I’d describe it. It had the perfect mix: believable storyline, cute romance (s), – between Emmy & Oliver as well as tidbits of Drew’s gay romance, wonderfully engaging characters, and fantastic dialogue. The dialogue really held it together in a very cohesive way. It made me happy – while I was reading Emmy & Oliver I was editing my own YA dialogue in my current WIP, so this gave me bags of ideas and inspiration. So a big Thank you to the author Robin Benway for his awesome dialogue!

Moreover, Emmy and Oliver’s friends, Caro and Drew are so likeable and engaging too.

I loved the interaction between Emmy, Oliver and their parents, this was first class. Their parents’ overblown anxiety and protectiveness following Oliver’s kidnapping is so understandable, but Emmy isn’t one to be held in check. She goes surfing on the sly, and has other plans that she hasn’t told her parents about…. So this is also a story about growing up, new opportunities, new paths, discovering who you are, and cutting those parental apron strings.

My only criticism was this:

Towards the end of the book Oliver’s dad gets justice for his crime and Oliver doesn’t seem to react much, which seems odd given that he still loves his father.. the story loses a bit of its believability at that point. I think this could have been remedied and explored by adding a chapter in the POV of Oliver at that precise point… Consequently this dropped a star in my rating otherwise Emmy & Oliver would have been a solid 5 stars.

Nevertheless, if you like a slow burning YA Contemporary romance, with masses of tender feels, and family centred issues this is the one for you.

Highly recommended. It is sad, heart-warming, and insightful, a witty exploration of family life.

I marked it a favourite – just saying!

My rating 4 stars.

DISCLAIMER: “As of 13th September 2017 we are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.”

My opinions are my own and any reviews on this site have not been swayed or altered in any way by monetary compensation, or by the offer of a free book in exchange for a review.

Amazon UK Kindle Edition: http://amzn.to/2xfgHh8

Amazon UK Paperback Edition: http://amzn.to/2jGwHFL

Amazon UK Hardcover Edition: http://amzn.to/2jEH9gU

Amazon UK Audiobook: http://amzn.to/2jFYYfE

I hope you enjoyed my review.

Author’s Website: Robin Benway

Have you read Emmy & Oliver? Do leave a comment I’d love to hear your opinion.

Note: Photo of book edited with InstaSquarer program developed and designed by Thomas Tsopanakis.

Bye for now,

file

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

My Links:

Hugh’s Weekly Photo Challenge Week 18 – Sweet

InstagramCapture_8b8bc5f3-3600-48ef-befa-99d0467e2a69

I’ve taken the perfect photo for Hugh’s Weekly Photo Challenge, except it’s not Easter related, so no Easter eggs, bunnies, or such like. Never mind, you can’t get more sweet than this sticky, tasty Chelsea bun which I had the pleasure of eating at Fitzbillies in Cambridge. Ooh, I’ll definitely be going back…. Look at that – doesn’t it make your mouth water?… heaven. Talk about sweet perfection. Yum.

Fitzbillies Chelsea buns are famous, now I can see why. It’s so glossy, and beautiful it’s almost criminal to eat it – but I did and it was de -li- ci-ou-s!

I went to Fitzbillies with my eldest daughter, adding to the sweetness of the day. She’s just back home from university. I took a lovely photo of her but she asked me not to put it on my blog as she didn’t like it! Humph. So instead I thought I’d put up this old photo of my two daughters taken many years ago looking particularly sweet. My youngest Georgina is on the left posing for the camera and Natasha is on right looking all sweet and smiley. This cute photo graces my desk as I write.

WP_20160324_001

Here’s me looking hungry just before I was about to devour my Chelsea bun.

InstagramCapture_cc49cd1a-b30e-446f-b3b1-925d6af6d145

I’m so glad I visited Fitzbillies: http://www.fitzbillies.com/

The café features in the novel I am currently editing. As well as my daughter’s lovely company, a visit there gave me an opportunity to check out the ambiance, the buns, the décor and perhaps add some finishing touches to that particular chapter… Wannabe authors are always up to something! Obsessed, we are obsessed! But that’s okay as my daughter Natasha writes too. She understands!

Now I am personally acquainted with Fitzbillies scrumptious Chelsea buns, it’s bound to add a certain something to the writing mix I reckon.. Don’t you?

It was a lovely day, and we followed it with a visit to the Fitzwilliam Museum to see their current exhibition: Death on the Nile: http://www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/news/secrets-ancient-egyptian-artisans-show-death-nile

Very fascinating.. Death on the Nile: Uncovering the afterlife of ancient Egypt runs from now until 22 May 2016. Admission is free. Before you go don’t forget to have a Chelsea bun!

I came across a review of the Death on the Nile exhibition on WordPress.

Here’s a link to that:

https://semperexplorandum.wordpress.com/2016/03/11/exhibition-reviews-ancient-egypt-special/

Do pop over to Hugh’s blog to join in his photo challenge: http://hughsviewsandnews.com/2016/03/22/hughs-weekly-photo-challenge-week-18-sweet/

untitled

Do you have a favourite sweet that you like? Or a café that is your no. 1 haunt? I’d love to hear your views.

Bye for now.

file

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

My links:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Marjorie_Mallon/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kyrosmagica/
Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/kyrosmagica/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/20419289-marje-mallon
Tumblr: http://kyrosmagica.tumblr.com/

#SundayBlogShare: Happy Mother’s Day Vibes

Hi Everyone.

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY. HOPE YOU HAVE AN AWESOME DAY.

This mother’s been playing around with a new theme. I’d love to hear what you think of it. Do let me know if you like it.

I took the header photo at Cromer this New Year and somehow the image ended up looking more like a painting than a photograph so I thought I’d feature it on my blog. The jumping image above is from Pixabay, and seems a fitting image for my Sunday message today: Those happiness vibes are on their way, jump for joy, Summer’s coming!

The lovely Suzie from Suzie Speaks https://suzie81speaks.com/ has a wonderful Sunday Hastag: #SundayBlogShare, on her twitter account @SundayBlogShare.

I will be following this #SundayBlogShare with a three day three quote challenge from Heena http://heenarathorep.com/ which will also be on the theme of happiness.. more about that soon.

My #SundayBlogShare is all about the many aspects of life that make me happy.

In no particular order:

Sunshine. Yes those rays awaken me out of my winter grumpiness. I just love you Mr. Sunshine. I’m not a winter person so when Spring arrives I sigh in relief, at last the Summer’s coming…
Beaches and the sea. I’ve always had a fondness for swimming, and beaches. This stems from childhood – I’d always be swimming, splashing around in an outdoor tropical pool, or a beach somewhere. I grew up in Hong Kong. My dad ‘s not your typical run of the mill Scot, he hates the cold weather so he did the unthinkable, he escaped abroad, and married my mother, a Malaysian lady many years his junior. Rascal! He’s always been a wanderer, in fact if he had been born today perhaps he’d have had his own travel blog! That’s a thought. A lot of my friends thought I had such a lucky time of it going to visit my dad in far off places, but I missed him when he was away. To name a few of the exotic destinations he’s worked in: The Middle East, Far East, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Caribbean, Africa, Senegal, Hong Kong… you get the idea.. Quite the adventurer..
Eating. Yes I love my grub, be it savoury or sweet, spicy, asian, or good old-fashioned shepherd’s pie.. I love it all. I might have a skinny body but my little rounded tummy proves it.
Family. Are so important to me my daughters are such a light in my life. I am so proud of them both, they’ve grown up to be such wonderful young women. I’ve been with my hubby since I was a teenager, can you believe that? Young love, it is the strongest, most passionate kind! The extended family are my rock too. I feel very blessed and fortunate to have such a lovely, close-knit family. We might not be perfect but we are always there for each other.
Mum. Being a mum is great and having a great mum is awesome. We mothers deserve a huge pat on the back.
Friends. Where would we be without our pals? Pretty lonely and miserable I’d say. My network of buddies include those I’ve known for too many years that I’d to care to admit to, friends I’ve met in Cambridge, and pals I’ve met through social media. You’re all fabulous.. Love you all.
Edinburgh. I love visiting Edinburgh – my old home town, that definitely makes me happy. My mum, dad, brother, and in-laws are still there, as are my old school pals! So it’s always nice to go back and see everyone. I particularly love to go up during the Edinburgh Book Festival, and The International Festival, which are both in August.
Books. I adore reading, how those printed words transport you to a very special place, stirring up your emotions, making you laugh, cry or shout in protest. There’s nothing that makes me happier than reading a particularly sad book!
Writing. Of course this would have to appear on my happiness list. The writing part gives me great joy as I create, but I have to say the editing is an altogether different experience, it is a troublesome kettle of unwieldy fish!
Theatre. Film. Dance. I love going to the theatre, and to dance shows. So whenever I can, I take the opportunity to go. Both of my daughters are keen too, my youngest is a dancer and my eldest has always been fond of drama. Each August I always make a bee-line for the Edinburgh International Festival. I’d love to go to the cinema more often – this is on my to do list – when I pop along I enjoy it so much.
Art. Photography. I love art, and photography. I’m not an artist, but I appreciate the value and beauty of artistic endeavours so much. I have developed quite an interest in photography which I hope to explore more in the future.
Cats. I love cats, but sadly I don’t own one, my husband is allegedly allergic… it’s a shame really. I could just see myself as one of those writers with my cute muse the cat.. I can see all my imaginery instagram photos… perhaps I could borrow one? Any offers? A black cat would be good, or a cool ginger one with bags of character…
Travelling. I love to travel to widen my horizons, though recently this has been difficult due to lack of funds.. !! Ah, having an eldest daughter at University has really cut into the household budget in a very nasty way.
Baking. I’m not really a savoury cook, unless it’s curries, or stir fries, those I can happily do. My hubby is better at roasts, meat and fish dishes. I tend to be more of a sweet cook. I love my puddings, cakes and biscuits…
Being a bit silly. I think I missed the ‘How To Be A Grown Up Workshop,’ so I’m still prone to being somewhat teenage-like at times. Personally I think that’s an asset if you want to be a children’s author. So no problems there.
Alternative Therapies. I have a fondness for aromatherapy oils, reflexology, and all those weird and wonderful therapies out there. I am also curious about the Zodiac, and the Chinese Zodiac too….
Crystals. I love crystals. The colours, different shapes and properties of crystals fascinate me.
Blogging. Goodness me I can’t believe I nearly forget to mention that! That would be remiss of me. Yes, I love blogging. It’s such a wonderful way to make friends with like-minded people from all over the world to share thoughts, feelings and observations. It’s the best.
Haiku. I’ve discovered that I love writing Haiku… If it wasn’t for my blog I’d never of thought of writing haiku. I’m so glad I did.
Jewellery. Another love of mine… how could I have left it to last? My favourites are earrings and bracelets. They can be costume jewellery, or more expensive, it doesn’t matter as long as they catch my eye! I hope I might be getting some little pieces for Mother’s Day.
Chilling. Relaxing and doing things my own sweet way makes me happy. I’m not one to rush through life, though I do hop about a bit.. My Chinese Zodiac sign is the rabbit!

This post has been waiting patiently for me to write in response to an earlier ditty that I did about the things that annoy me: https://atomic-temporary-67364188.wpcomstaging.com/2016/02/10/one-liner-wednesday-you-piece-of-chicken/

Oops I have to confess that my moans outweigh my happy vibes! That doesn’t sound good…..Life is all about balance, so there you have it the Yin and the Yang of my happy dragon is somewhat overpowered by my stroppy, ferocious, dragon!

Perhaps you’d like to join in and do a Yin and a Yang post too about what makes you happy and what makes you sad and/or stroppy!

Have a very Happy Sunday everyone, and a Happy Mother’s Day too! I’m going out later for a coffee/lunch with my daughter… what are you all doing?

Bye for now,

file

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

Hugh’s Weekly Photo Challenge week 13 Love

WP_20160214_001

What do I love? The answer lies in so many directions that I am almost staggered wondering what to post. I love my family, my hubby, my friends, writing, blogging, books, crying… wait a minute I said crying. What? I mean to say that I love books that stir the emotions, make me cry, get me reflecting….

I just finished one such book, boy did it make me cry, Me Before You By Jojo Moyes.

So I love all sorts of things. But one of my great loves is my old home town of Edinburgh. I just love visiting Edinburgh lapping up all that this great city has to offer.

If you’re a regular visitor to my blog you might have seen my posts about Edinburgh. So surprise surprise my photo this week is something I came across whilst in Edinburgh this half term. I found it in a place that I have many fond memories of. The photo was taken in The Botanic Gardens, right outside an art gallery. Yes, I’m kind of partial to them too…

I don’t know quite what it was about this particular statue that grabbed my attention, but whatever it was it gripped me. It might have been her tummy, I have one of those, I may be skinny but my tummy has always been a bit rounded. Or it might be the way she was twisting her arm behind her back in a yoga stretch. Perhaps that was it. Anyway the fact that I noticed her was saying something as on this trip I was busy spending time with family, oh and eating a lot. That is one of my other loves. I ate lots and lots of Asian food. My mum is a wonderful cook, so we had many tasty meals but as well as this we visited a particularly fine Malaysian restaurant in Glasgow called, Rumours Kopitiam. By the way kopitiam or kopi tiam is the word for a coffee shop in Southeast Asia. The interior of this little restaurant wasn’t exactly flashy but the food was excellent and the lunch menu’s really good value for money. Our waitress had a great sense of humour she asked my daughter if she liked chilli, she said yes, so she made sure that she was more than adequately supplied with lots of them! That’ll teach her….. The Singapore noodles were to die for. So if you are in Glasgow give Kopitiam a go.

On this week away I didn’t really do much in the way of blogging or Instagram. Or visit half of the places I had intended to. Which isn’t like me but all that eating, and chatting to family was taking up all of my time. This statue wasn’t having it she just begged me to photograph her, she pointed her belly at me accusingly and twisted my arm! What astonished me about it all was this. When I came back to Cambridge I did some research and found that she had just been moved back to this particular spot. I came back to Edinburgh Botanic Gardens and so did she…. A pair of kindred spirits. How sweet. She is Reg Butler’s cast bronze sculpture, entitled Girl. She is now to be seen outside Inverleith House, right beside the gallery of modern art.

More about her reappearance here:

http://www.rbge.org.uk/about-us/news/stories/butlers-girl-comes-home

So a bit of a meandering kind of love but there you have it. Hope Hugh approves. This is my entry for Hugh’s photography challenge this week.

http://hughsviewsandnews.com/2016/02/16/hughs-weekly-photo-challenge-week-13-love/

Hope you like my photo and my tale of my many loves: eating, reading, writing, art, statues, and spending time with family in my favourite Scottish city, Edinburgh. Sorry, Glasgow, I love you too!! Especially your Kopitiam….

unnamed

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

Haiku Horizons: Monkey

monkey-1176162_640

In honour of the Chinese Zodiac Year of the Monkey I thought I’d join in Haiku Horizon’s prompt which happens to be Monkey.

https://haikuhorizons.wordpress.com/2016/02/14/haiku-horizons-prompt-monkey/

I watched a very interesting TV programme last night, Chinese New Year The Biggest Celebration on Earth. I hope to complete a children’s book about Chinese New Year so I was drawn to watching this. It featured the Snub Nosed Monkey, such a charming fellow. These monkeys are an endangered species. They have been hunted to near extinction. That is beyond horrible……. but the good news is there is a rescue operation in hand. A dedicated man looks after these charming fellows and collects their nuggets of poo so it can be analysed to check their health. That must be quite a job, plastic gloves are a prerequisite, but he takes it very seriously. In fact he is so skilled that he can glance at each sample of poo and tell exactly which monkey produced it! Quite an unusual skill.. He must love those monkeys..

Do find out more about the snub-nosed monkey, he seems to be a delightful monkey full of character:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_snub-nosed_monkey

More than one billion people travel from the cities to the countryside at Chinese New Year to be reunited with their families at this all important time. Can you imagine? That is a huge migration of folk, involving all manner of transport: plane, car, motorbike, and police car…. The Hairy Bikers couldn’t rev up in their usual style in China without the necessary documentation so they ended up travelling in the back of a police car! These Hairy fellows learnt how to make Congee, a warming porridge made of pork, rice, and spring onions, served at the roadside to travellers returning to see their families at Chinese New Year.

This programme continued to fascinate me with its commentary on the Ice City, a massive winter wonderland carved out of massive slabs of ice in Harbin, the largest city of Heilongjiang province, in China. It is so cold in this province of China that the elderly locals are acclimitised to the extreme cold. These hardy pensioners dive into a swimming pool to engage in a spot of …… ice swimming! The thought just sends me into an extreme shiver ……

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harbin

My haiku:

The snub nosed monkey,

Forest high flier, cool dude.

Keep him protected.

Hope all you Monkeys out there are having a very Happy and Prosperous New Year. I’m a rabbit in the Chinese zodiac…. I like to hop about and put my feet up with a good book. What about you?

unnamed

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

One-Liner Wednesday, Writers Quote Wednesday and #BeWow: Coffee

coffee-956225__340[1]

I had the idea for Linda’s One Liner Wednesday #1linerWeds after reading fellow blogger, Brian Lageose’s post about the woes of aging: https://lageose.wordpress.com/2013/10/25/10-more-signs-that-your-body-just-isnt-what-it-used-to-be/

My one liner is: He would kill for a coffee.

Brian’s wonderful post has a multitude of one liners which I have highlighted below in bold. These ones particularly made me laugh:

You wake up in the morning and you aren’t really sure who you are.

Tick. Sometimes I wake up and have this uncanny feeling that I am my mother…. apparently we looked the split image of each other when I was born. The older I get the more I seem to look like her….. Other times I get dead limbs…. you wake up and your body just isn’t living… your left arm or right arm, or whatever part of your anatomy has died a death. A sort of living nightmare of what it will be like scenario, scary, so in terror you slap that unresponsive limb until it submits. One slap just doesn’t do it so you really hammer at it until it gives in. Sigh…

Things hurt that shouldn’t

My knees creek. If I could oil them I would but sadly that isn’t an option. Oh and cramp, it strikes whenever it fancies. One evening I’d been grocery shopping. I backed my car into the drive and a vicious cramp struck with no warning. Thank goodness I wasn’t driving anywhere far. I jumped out of my car and did a little cramp jig, hopping about, hoping my neighbours wouldn’t spot me!

Your bladder has been secretively removed and replaced with a defective piece of crap made in China.

Yep, so true. I pee all the time, this is annoying especially when I am right in the middle of watching my favourite TV programme. I have to get up and pee. When I’m shopping I need to take a break at regular intervals to pee, etc. Then my daughter says: “You have to go again? You’ve just been mum.” Ah, the joys of youth, she just doesn’t have a clue what it is like to need the loo. Really need it. Sadly one day she will know….

Coffee = A Will to Live.

No. 4 on Brian’s list ain’t me! I’m still a youngster!!!

Okay that’s a bit of a joke but I can function without coffee in the morning… Nevertheless Brian’s words sum it up for so many: “For someone my age? The coffee stops me from taking your life when you ask an otherwise innocent question about how my day is going. Not kidding.”

Brian’s brilliant one-liner about coffee brought me back to a particular experience many years ago. My brother had travelled down from the rugged shores of Scotland, from the capital city Edinburgh, no less, to visit me in Cambridge. Everything went so well to begin with but ……the very next morning disaster struck. He greeted me looking a bit dishevelled and started riffling in my cupboards. His horrified expression suggested that he was getting more and more distressed. In a terrified howl he uttered the words he hoped he would never have to say: “Where is the ****ing coffee?” I can’t remember his exact words so I might be doing him a disservice here but an expletive or two might be in order to convey his sense of total utter outrage.

There was no coffee. Not a grain. Nada.

My heart sunk. I knew in that moment that the last grains had been mercilessly boiled, and drank the previous evening. What a terrible sister! As an avid morning tea drinker I had forgotten all about the coffee that my brother craved to kick start his day. His messy hair seemed to stand up in spikes of rising accusation. His face turned grey . He looked as if he wanted to take the word coffee and slice the ending off (coff…. ee,) to replace it with coffin. Mine. He began pacing to and fro, and then in one swift movement, he grabbed a cigarette, and made for the door. He tried to open this exit way barring his escape but it was locked. Oops. His turned back to me, eyes wild with fury. I rushed to get the key. I opened it. He slammed the door behind him. But if looks could kill I’d be dead. Past tense. Finito.

Shortly after he returned, caressing his precious coffee jar. He put the kettle on to boil. He poured that first exquisite cup, that elixir, he drank it, replenishing his soul.

He returned.

A human.

Thank heavens.

I had been spared!

But my stress levels had hit the roof! I needed a calming herbal tea to recover.

Hope you liked my one-liner Wednesday!

I’m sure Brian and many of you morning coffee drinkers will identify with the sheer horror of such a disastrous moment!

If you’d like to join in with this regular Wednesday blog event here’s the link to Linda’s blog:

http://lindaghill.com/2016/02/03/one-liner-wednesday-you-know-that-feeling/

This is also my post for Colleen at Silver Threading’s Writer’s Quote Wednesday and Ronovan Writes #BeWow: Be Wonderful Wednesday and Be Writing Wednesday: http://silverthreading.com/2016/01/27/writers-quote-wednesday-bewow-ian-mcewan/

be-wow-blogger-image[1]

https://ronovanwrites.wordpress.com/bewow-blogshare/

This might seem like a strange #BeWow post but my point is this: if you can take an unfortunate experience and turn it into a lesson then I do believe it can be a wonderful thing to do. I have never forgotten this experience. It is now indelibly stored in my memory in large exclamation marks…. !!!!

We all learn from our mistakes! We all make them, nobody’s perfect. We’re all on the same path, some young, some a little older than others but we are all walking our way towards the twilight of our lives. So let’s support each other. Laugh at the ups and downs and whatever you do next time you have a family member visiting make sure you don’t neglect them like I did. Little things can make their visit wonderful. Whatever you do don’t forget to have a full jar of coffee, a glass of their favourite wine or whatever creature comforts they crave. These little treasures really can be a lifeline to make them feel at home.

Here are three wonderful quotes about the undisputed joys of coffee:

heart-1082147__340[1]

“What do you want?”
“Just coffee. Black – like my soul.”
― Cassandra Clare, City of Bones

“Black as night, sweet as sin.”
― Neil Gaiman, Anansi Boys

What about you? Are you a morning coffee, or tea drinker? Do comment, I’d love to find out.

Bye for now. Off to make myself a coffee….. This is what I need in my cupboards just in case… and those cakes look scrumptious too!

6938059-121729743_4-v1

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

Hugh’s Weekly Photo Challenge Week 10 Faces

InstagramCapture_735e4855-5fb9-4781-aaef-9120366326b2[1]

When I saw Hugh’s Photo Challenge this week I knew that I had to join in the fun.

I had just the photo in mind, and here he is, Mr Frowning Tree.

Isn’t he extraordinary?

I photographed him some time ago when I was working as a Christmas temp at John Lewis. I was on my way to work one morning, and there he was greeting me with that wretched face. I had to stop and photograph him, I couldn’t walk pass without doing so. I have to admit that on that particular morning I just wasn’t in the mood for work. He knew it. I knew it. I just wanted to spend time blogging or writing!! Anyway, I saw his sad face and his monumental frown had me in stitches. He knew what I was thinking: There is nothing as fulfilling as spending time being creative. So that sad tree kind of frowned in sympathy, cheeky so and so….

Today, I was with my daughter in Ely. We were prom dress shopping. We went to a charming shop called Something Special and we found just the right one. The amazing thing was it wasn’t one she had picked. I spotted it! C’est Moi, the Fashionista! It had no price tag on. Eek, but she tried it on anyway, and I prayed it wouldn’t be too expensive. It fitted her like a glove. This in itself was a big bonus as she is so petite that finding a dress is no easy feat. This is the moment when she transformed from a very pretty sixteen year old into classy, and beautiful. The dress is simple, elegant, with just the right amount of detail for her to look like a total knock out.

She just loved it. Of course this midnight blue gown was way over my intended budget. I tried to make her see sense but as we left the shop, she kind of worked her magic on me. Of course she convinced me!! We only walked a few yards down the road, and then we were heading our way back to the shop much to the shop assistant’s amusement and the rest is history. Anyway, that sad tree has a lot to answer for, he’s probably chuckling now, cracking his bark, with splinters of spontaneous laughter. My poor wee bank account…..

So how did my daughter manage to work her magic on me?

Easy.

We mothers just can’t resist their daughters when they look so beautiful. But, as an insurance policy she promised to get A’s and B’s in her GCSE’s and to help with the price tag…. Clever lass. So I can’t complain. Perhaps this will spur her on to do extraordinary things….

This is when my day out with my daughter turned into an extraordinary day.

We had such a lovely day in Ely, it was such fun. The sun shone. We walked down to the waterfront and took loads of photographs. This is a common interest as we are both photography mad. I banished the thought of my money blues by suggesting that we visit a free event at the Babylon Gallery. Yes free, can you imagine? The Gallery is right on the waterfront. There is a very interesting exhibition at the moment called Time and Time Again, by Helena g Anderson from 20-31 January. Today is the last day, so hurry if you want to go see it. It totally took my mind off the state of my bank balance. In fact it was such a wonderful idea to go, as my daughter is doing GCSE Textiles and is a keen photographer and this exhibition really inspired her. The main theme of the exhibition is “an opportunity to look at the changing nature of time on the human condition, where one sees the body deteriorate but the soul remain omnipresent. Women and girls were photographed in 10-year increments, ranging from 0 to 100 years old.”

Startlingly we recognised one of the photographed faces, a friend of my daughters. Isn’t that quite amazing? It can only happen in Ely you know, you must visit!

More about Babylon Gallery here: http://www.babylonarts.org.uk/gallery/view,time-and-time-again-helena-g-anderson-2031-january_1906.htm

My photos of Ely will shortly be on my Instagram account so if you’d like to see them please follow the link: https://www.instagram.com/kyrosmagica/

I just love Ely. It is a must see place to visit, with its beautiful cathedral, lovely places to eat, riverside restaurants, and independent bookshops. Moreover, I just love spending time with my daughters, even when they cost me a fortune. I even found a dress for the Bloggers Bash too. It was in the same shop, fortunately the price wasn’t in the same frowning price tag league!!! But it was really pretty. So two dresses bought in one day, ouch…. what a day!!

Yes, I’m intending on going to the Bash again this year. I went last year and it was such fun. A day not to miss….

More about the Bloggers Bash this year via Sacha Black’s blog. The date is 11th of June, so do put it in your calendar. By all accounts it sounds like it’s going to be an awesome event. I just can’t wait.

http://sachablack.co.uk/2015/10/01/the-bash-is-back-the-second-annual-bloggersbash-2016/

And my account of last year’s event:

https://kyrosmagica.wordpress.com/2015/08/02/the-bloggers-bash-oh-what-a-day/

Want to meet the organisers and attendees from last year? :

https://kyrosmagica.wordpress.com/2015/08/05/meet-the-bloggers-who-attended-the-first-annual-bloggersbash-held-in-london-on-august-1st-2015/

bloggers bash 2016

Here’s the link to Hugh’s blog if you’d like to join in his photography challenge:

http://hughsviewsandnews.com/2016/01/26/hughs-weekly-photo-challenge-week-10-faces/

Here’s Hugh’s advice on what to do if you want to join in:

This week take a photo of an object that looks like it has a face. Rather than taking photos of the faces of people or animals try and capture an object that looks like it has a face.

Want to join the fun? Here’s what you need to do.
1. Take a photo of an object that looks like it has a face.
2. Create a new post on your blog entitled “Hugh’s Photo Challenge: Week 10 – Faces.”
3. Add the photo(s) you have taken to the post and tell us a little about what you are showing.
4. Create a pingback to this post or leave a link to your post in the comments section below so that other participants can view your post.

Bye for now,

file

Marje @ Kyrosmagica XX

RonovanWrites #Weekly #Haiku #Poetry Prompt #Challenge #77 Year and New

InstagramCapture_0940be22-d13a-4063-b5ac-3823e1cdd390[1]

This week for Ronovan Writes Haiku Prompt Challenge I’m going to share with you some photos of myself and my family that I took on the 1st of January just before the fireworks were scheduled to be set off the award winning pier at Cromer. If you managed to see my previous post you will have seen that we are taking a short New Year’s break in Cromer. https://atomic-temporary-67364188.wpcomstaging.com/2015/12/31/happy-new-year-2/

The photo above is of one of the finale fireworks, isn’t it absolutely wonderful?

Here we are huddled together trying to keep warm, we stopped for a quick hot chocolate, just before the display.

InstagramCapture_b7c40bfc-af83-45f6-923e-29868051b1cc[1] InstagramCapture_aaa0479c-2bd7-43fb-b0ff-1a7ff73f772c[1].jpg InstagramCapture_52fe5ac4-17db-4c21-a784-5f17767a663d[1]

The fireworks were spectacular, and my only regret is that I didn’t have a good enough camera to do justice to their beauty but nevertheless here they are in all their wonderment:

I just loved how this one turned out, to me it looks like a pretty present with a sparkling lid, and the one immediately after it resembles some kind of beautiful sea creature.

InstagramCapture_81e6e213-f597-48d0-a0eb-42a0dba906da[1]

And this particular fellow is an explosion of flowers.

InstagramCapture_6c9b49ea-7aa3-49cc-a354-5f7743682e15[1]

And this the biggest fizzing lollipop you are ever going to see!

InstagramCapture_27a0b4d1-1631-4f58-8e28-f4518438e581[1]

As to this one, it looks like a giant creepy crawly to me!! What do you reckon?

InstagramCapture_f1cc16dd-aee4-4157-993f-a428b2393e6e[1]

They were all so amazing that they inspired me to write a haiku with them in mind:

A New Year Divine

A New Year divine,

So sublime the heavens smile!

Fireworks in motion.

Followed by a Tanka:

A pretty present

All wrapped in shimmering light

Perhaps it is real?

A momentary delight

Sending our senses reeling.

A tanka consists of 5 lines and 31 syllables.

Each line has a set number of syllables see below:

Line 1 5 syllables

Line 2 7 syllables

Line 3 5 syllables

Line 4 7 syllables

Line 5 7 syllables

Here’s the link to Ronovan’s blog to join in with his weekly haiku prompt:

https://ronovanwrites.wordpress.com/category/haiku-prompt-challenge/

And his excellent advice on how to write a haiku, I like to refer to this from time to time to refresh my memory:

https://ronovanwrites.wordpress.com/2014/07/03/how-to-write-a-haiku-poem/

Bye for now, hope you liked my haiku and tanka.

A most glorious and Happy New Year!! I know Christmas is over but I couldn’t resist this farewell cartoon!!

file (6)

Love Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

Edinburgh Festival: Photographs of My Art Gallery Visit

A fantastic motto to live your life by, Martin Creed’s message: Everything Is Going To Be Alright. Keep positive folks…. Yes, Everything is alright, my mum is doing really well after her operation, I’m so pleased, and relieved. She’s such a strong lady, I’m in awe of her really I am. My brother mentioned that he thought he’d have to wheel her out of the hospital after her operation but no my mum was up on her feet telling the nurses she wanted to go home! Amazing!

I thought I’d share with you this visit to the Scottish National Gallery Of Modern Art. It was one of the highlights of my trip to Edinburgh as I got a chance to go out with my mum, just the two of us, which was a treat in itself. She is still a bit delicate after her operation, no dancing for a while yet, so we had a coffee and a chat in the café and afterwards I did a super fast tour, while she read a book and had a well deserved rest.

I always like to pop into these two art galleries when I’m in Edinburgh. This time I just managed to go to Gallery One, but that’s alright as Gallery One is my favourite, it’s always full of inspiring art, has a lovely shop, and a coffee shop too. It is well worth a visit if you are ever in Edinburgh. Currently there is an exhibition of Roy Lichtenstein’s work at Gallery One, as part of Reflections, which is on until 10th January 2016 so still plenty time to see this free exhibition. The gallery is located at 75 Belford Road, Edinburgh, EH4 3DR, and is easily accessible via bus.

These images caught my eye as I went up the stairs, I liked the idea of looking through the window panes and seeing the view divided into six panes of awesomeness! So I nipped down to the café and told my mum that I wanted to take some photos, and then I popped up the stairs to snap these two images. Yes, I was running around that gallery like a sprinter. We were on a tight time frame, it really was a flying visit, as I was going out later in the day to the …….. yes you guessed it, the Book Festival.

Here’s another view of the same spot from the outside, with a Miró sculpture in the foreground.

Oh and on the way out…. I came face to face with the Sunken Statue, on the way to….. the bus stop!

Kind of sinister isn’t it? This is what happens to you if you spend too much time in art galleries you sink into the concrete of life and partially disappear! That unsuspecting lady and her child making their way out of the gallery better watch out, they’re heading for a Doctor Who moment if you ask me, they’re following the straight line to oblivion! Poor unsuspecting fools. Yes, the sunken statue doesn’t look too happy does he? Can’t blame him, whatever has happened to his nipples? They look hammered in. Must be the shock, poor chap!!

Links:

https://www.nationalgalleries.org/

http://www.culture24.org.uk/art/art399888

https://www.nationalgalleries.org/visit/modern-one-23559/room-displays/reflections-creed-lewitt

http://martincreed.com/

Hope you enjoyed my post, have you been to any wonderful art galleries or sculpture parks recently? Or had any Doctor Who moments recently?

Do comment and let me know, I’d love to hear from you.

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

Share this:

My review:

Moreover, Emmy and Oliver’s friends, Caro and Drew are so likeable and engaging too.

My only criticism was this:

Nevertheless, if you like a slow burning YA Contemporary romance, with masses of tender feels, and family centred issues this is the one for you.

Highly recommended. It is sad, heart-warming, and insightful, a witty exploration of family life.

I marked it a favourite – just saying!

My rating 4 stars.

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: