October is coming to an end. The leaves are turning brown, umbrellas are becoming a permanent accessory and every morning when I open the blind I have to wipe away all the condensation to see out to the dark clouds and grey sky.
Despite it being a fairly uneventful month (working Monday to Friday and not going on any particularly exciting, touristy adventures on the weekend), I've enjoyed watching autumn wash over Wimbledon and found a few things to smile about.
In no particular order, here is a list of my favourite things from October...
Despite it being a fairly uneventful month (working Monday to Friday and not going on any particularly exciting, touristy adventures on the weekend), I've enjoyed watching autumn wash over Wimbledon and found a few things to smile about.
In no particular order, here is a list of my favourite things from October...
1. Fox and Bear: D and I stumbled across these two gorgeous heat bags at TKmaxx early in the month. It's starting to get pretty cold at night and before we resort to buying a heater, these two snuggle bags take the edge off. Two minutes in the microwave and they are delectably warm and delicious-smelling. Fox is D's, he's the fox (obviously) and Bear is mine, he is the owl (obviously).
2. Scenic walks to work: Since receiving the incredibly humbling and exciting news of my new job, days have been passing exceptionally slowly. It's as though my constant willing for the new year to arrive sooner, has made the time between now and then seem so much longer. Every day a test of my patience until January arrives.
Until then, I am continuing my supply teaching and (if I'm brutally honest) thoroughly not enjoying it. It's not that it has become any more or less unpleasant, it's just so average in comparison to working in a castle. There's no other way to put it... How can you compare having your hair pulled by a group of rabid five-year-olds and working somewhere where the students hold doors open for you? I know exactly how. You can't.
Finding my way to new schools each day is a huge challenge for me because I have directional issues. Honestly, I have no idea which way I'm going most of the time and rely heavily on Google maps and friendly people in the street to point me in the right direction. This is usually the most stressful part of my day (not a great way to start) and most of the time, arriving at the school is such a relief that wiping kid's butts and dealing with kids who like to lick others, isn't such a big deal.
Although my walks to school are mostly rushed or in a bit of a panic because I got off the bus too early, I try to remain calm and take time to look around. The day I took the photo below, it was pouring with rain and the colours of the plants were so vibrant. Between dodging puddles and ensuring I didn't poke passer-by's eyes out with my broken umbrella, I managed to snap some photos of my walk to school. The grass was so green and the bushes were glorious shades of red and orange.
Sometimes it requires inordinate effort to remain calm on these hectic mornings. I have to remind myself that I'm in London (for goodness sake) and just enjoy my time here. Taking photos of bushes (even if people think I'm a crazy woman) for instance, reminds me how beautiful this part of the world really is.
3. Paul: There's a new man in my life. His name is Paul and he makes a fine passion fruit tart. I had a friend from high-school visit a few weeks ago and she wanted to go somewhere nice for tea. I decided Paul would be perfect and as we entered, I knew it was the right choice.
Coloured macarons filled the display cabinets, decadent chocolate cakes sat irresistibly on the counter and piles of fresh bread were stacked up elegantly. The staff all wore adorable outfits with little white hats and that made paying almost four pounds for a tart, completely worth it.
4. Saturday Breakfasts: It seems to have become a little D and S tradition. Sleeping in, watching the rain fall, sipping on a cup of tea and eventually making our way downstairs to cook up a feast.
It's a team effort. Everything has to be ready at the same time, so it's action stations - Thundercats are go! The smell of bacon wafts through the house, while the eggs sit patiently waiting for their execution, the pan sizzles and spits, emitting smoke that covers the kitchen in a thick (and delicious) fog. The kettle bubbles and hisses, anxious to fill our mugs and magically turn a bag of leaves and some sugar into a sweet concoction of hot tea. The microwave bings to remind us the beans are done, the toaster pops and within moments, the mess we've made is transformed into a meal...
Bacon and eggs on toast with avocado, baked beans, fresh fruit, tea and juice. Magnificent. Oh and yes, that is a packet of custard donuts. What can I say? I'm an eating machine.
5. Camden Markets: Camden is glorious. It's so alive; the music, the markets, the food stalls and the people. People everywhere. The streets are so filled with pedestrians that sometimes you forget it's a street and get a fright when a car beeps from behind you.
The markets are very diverse. There are hundreds of clothing stalls with dresses and jumpers hanging on every possible space. Each of them having their own special deals and ways of convincing you that theirs is better than the same item three stalls up. There are some really lovely clothing stalls too, with handmade pieces and unique bits and bobs. The food stalls smell incredible. Asian rice and noodle dishes, burritos, tacos and nachos, fresh donuts and pastries, fresh orange and lemonade stalls and everything in-between. The craft hall is amazing. Lots of gorgeous photography and canvases of beautiful art. There's jewellery made of scrabble pieces and clocks made of old records. All sorts of recycled goods turned into wonderful treasures.
6. Ruby Sparks: I had always intended to see this film in the cinema, but missed my chance and since then, it had quite slipped my mind. So I was pleasantly surprised when D suggested we watch it because I had a feeling I'd like it since seeing the trailer all those years ago.
Don't get me wrong, it's no life changing About-Time-kind-of-film (if you haven't seen the film About Time, stop what you're doing and go watch it), but it's still pretty fantastic. I love Paul Dano, I think he was brilliant in Little Miss Sunshine and it was great to see him in this role. It was the first time I'd seen Zoe Kazan and I thinks she is wonderful, so animated and well-suited for Ruby. I'm not going say what happens, aside from the fact that this is not your run-of-the-mill love story and that's why I like it.
Full of creative ideas and interesting observations of people's relationships, it makes you stop and think for a while.
Five smiles out of seven.
7. Halloween: Halloween isn't a big deal back home, but over here it's taken over most shop fronts and at least one isle in supermarkets. face paint and kids costumes, sweets and bags to carry sweets, pumpkins, spider webs, ghosts, witches and severed body parts... You name it, it's hanging up somewhere in Wimbledon and I love it. I'm not a fan of scary things, at all. But decorations and creepy looking things behind a shop window are fine... So long as nobody is jumping out in a costume from somewhere, everything is okay.
D and I took great delight in selecting our pumpkin to carve from the Sainsbury's across the road. Naturally, I took a solid ten minutes deciding which was best and covered in the least amount of imperfections and mould. Whilst D picked up about three before deciding which one he wanted and walking off about twenty seconds later. I agonized over which to choose and ended up getting two because I couldn't choose... Little did I know I would be returning about two hours later to buy another.
I took progressive photos of our crafty Saturday night (yes yes, I know- we're party an-i-mals) carving pumpkins because I felt this occasion should be documented.
In a few days it will be November, which means that men all over the world will start letting their mo's grow and it's socially acceptable to start getting excited for Christmas (woo hoo!). I am so excited for the festive season to begin. I pretty much spend the whole year looking forward to Christmas and even though this year will be very different from what I'm used to, I can't wait to experience it.
Xxo