Oh my GODDDDD is there any need for so much rain?!

It’s been raining for what feels like 10 years (it’s been about a day or two) but I am FED UP OF IT! It’s so depressing, doggy walks are wet and miserable, my house is absolutely filthy because I’ve given up trying to stop my dog from walking in when she’s soaking wet and muddy, and I am well and truly LOSING THE WILL TO LIVE.

On the plus side though, it’s November WOOHOO which means that it’s basically Christmas. And that I am feeling this year. And I’ll tell you what else I’m feeling… Spain. I moaned last week about how I’m just not feeling Autumn, and I’m moaning this week that I’m just not feeling the rain, but one thing is for sure – I won’t be moaning next week. That’s because I’ll be back where I belong, in SPAIN!

That’s right, it’s true. I’m going back to Spain. I might have got a tiny bit drunk and booked a flight and am going to completely gatecrash my parents’ holiday next week (don’t worry they are super cool with it and with them, it’s always an open-ended invitation), so next time you hear from me I’ll have stopped moaning and be happy once again! I’ll be working from there for the week and am eternally grateful that I now have a remote job that enables me to work anywhere in the world.

So yeah… sod Autumn and sod the rain, I’m going back to Spain to get a final dose of sun and wonderfulness before the year’s out. But before I go, I have some AMAZING recommendations for you this week.

Reading

Small Great Things by Jodie Picoult

I finished this book and it was amazing. Like so amazing that I went to bed early and spent about 4 hours finishing the majority of the book.

I mentioned last week that I think Jodie Picoult is an expert storyteller, and I love to read her books for inspiration for my own. In fact, that’s kind of why I love reading most books, I always depict different authors’ styles and ways of structuring their books for inspiration for my own. But Jodie Picoult always amazes me as you can clearly tell the depth of the research she does for her stories. And I always love an author who gives me goosebumps and can make me smile and cry within a minute of reading a few sentences, and she never falls short of the mark.

This book followed the story of three main characters – a Black nurse accused of intentionally killing a baby, a white supremacist (the father of the aforementioned baby), and the public defense lawyer brought in to defend the nurse. I found it particularly amazing how Jodie Picoult, as a white woman, had the courage to lead with a Black character, but I think she did a fantastic job of portraying the cultural nuances to which we’re accustomed and also the white privilege that many of us have.

The book covers many themes, but undoubtedly the predominant one is racism. I had to stop reading at times and take a breather because the white supremacist character got too much for me, and all I could think about is the fact that people like him actually exist. My blood boiled, my heart wept, and my head was spun in a thousand different directions throughout the course of the book. But I absolutely devoured it and would wholeheartedly recommend it to everybody. GO AND READ IT (as always – I can send you my copy if you promise to give it back!)

Watching

HYPNOTIC

Oh my GOD. I haven’t been so terrified by a film since I watched Split – the most TERRIFYING film of all time EVER – a few years back. I was so scarred by that film that it haunted me for years, and I feel like this is going to take its place.

I watched this with an unwilling James, who I think just watched it because he’s exhausted everything else on Netflix. I told him I fancied it as I am intrigued by the power of the human brain and how it can be manipulated to a point where it then begins to manipulate itself. He told me I was going too deep and this film would be nothing like that, well guess who was wrong?! It wasn’t me. The film was deep and it was everything I wanted and expected, minus – you know – the fact that I didn’t sleep after watching it.

I always see people looking for Netflix recommendations, so look no further. It was a brilliant film, entirely believable and kept me on my toes pretty much the whole way through. Though I recently posted about my phobia of wasps and enquired about hypnotherapy, and rest assured, I will NOT be getting it after that film!

Listening

Cold Heart PNAU Remix – Elton John and Dua Lipa

I keep hearing this song being played and I have to say I absolutely LOVE it. For some reason it makes me feel really Wintery and Christmassy, but that’s probably because of the time of year that is coming up. I just want to go out and dance to it.

Before You Go…

This time a year ago, those of us here in the UK were preparing for our 2nd lockdown. Was it the 2nd, or was it the 3rd? I think it was the 2nd. I can’t remember. But what I can remember is how down I felt over it. November was miserable, December moreso, and it was difficult to imagine how life would ever return to normal.

A year on, we’re still not out of the woods – COVID is very much still a prominent part of our society, but there is no doubt that we have returned to a semblance of normality, at least here in the UK anyway. I have met with people recently who have all commented on the same thing – about essentially losing a year of our lives – but how wonderful it is to be able to see people again.

With every day that comes, I count my blessings that we are in a more fortunate position than last year. I really, really struggled with lockdowns 2 and 3. Part of the reason I write this 5 Minute Coffee Corner series is almost like an online journal that I can refer back to, and as I write this I decided to look back to what I was posting about this time last year. If you’re interested you can see the posts The 5 Minute Coffee Corner: October #4 and The 5 Minute Coffee Corner: November Week 1. I read them and it made me feel that emotion that is both crushingly sad, and happy at the same time. What is that emotion? Melancholy? I remember exactly how I felt writing those posts at this exact time last year, the despair I felt when they made the wine bar close, the unfairness of the UK’s tier system and how it so obviously favoured the South of the country. The panic of whether I’d be able to pay my bills. The frustration for those businesses who had already been so affected by the pandemic and were forced to close their doors once again with minimal support. And the worry that the most vulnerable amongst us wouldn’t survive the Winter – not because of the cold – but because of the isolation and despair.

Those days feel like so long ago, yet simultaneously feel like yesterday. I will forever be grateful that 2020 is over, and whilst we are nowhere near in the clear, I am grateful that right now, we are not in the same position we were this time last year. I started this post by sharing that I booked impromptu flights to Spain – if that doesn’t convey the stark difference I don’t know what does.

After all of my moaning, I think I can live with the rain. Go give your loved ones an extra big hug, I will too.

See you next week!