water races down

I needed to be in college about an hour ago, I've also a weeks worth of dishes to do so here I am. It's a grim day weather- wise but I'm on half term so all is well. I've rearranged pictures on the wall and moved some books around.

It's a good day.

Another  Red Cross winner. 

c

x

My head told my heart...

When I find myself with some spare change at the bottom of my bag after bills/ rent/ food/ bus fare have been paid for I don't usually spend it on clothes or necessities I've been in need of for weeks, it's not a deep, meaningful, philosophical motivation but I tend to spend it on books.
When I visit a place I like to pick up a book, and by dating and noting it's point of purchase it becomes my souvenir of choice.


When I see a mountain of books in a second hand shop, I basically have to buy one or my mind won't let me sleep for a few days.

 So today when I passed by the red cross store after spending all morning in the bank I popped in and added to the growing pile of yet to be read books on my windowsill.

I've heard such mixed reviews of On The Road that I've never forked out full price for it, but for less than 2 pounds I was quite happy to pick it up. And then when I opened it to write my usual date etc I spotted this little charmer, and in French! I was only weak for it...

I love a good story. I wonder what the story behind this is? And why whoever owned it was okay with parting with it when it was given to them originally with love.. and whether they gave it away forgetting where they had gotten it! or if it was time to let this old love go..

I just really want to know. Like, really.

C
x

I got a new camera recently. It's so lovely and I'm actually so delighted. I have had really awful luck with cameras in the past though. I broke a camera belonging to my sister at Oxegen. I broke two family cameras on two separate holidays with friends. I hope I don't kill this new baby too. 

I'm happier than Michael Landon was when he got his first Kodak, SRSLY.

So anyway, today I decided to go exploring my new town and to take some pretty pictures using various "modes" on my camera. There's 25 modes on my camera...There's sport mode, which undoubtedly I will never use. There's sunset mode, self portrait mode, candle light mode, children mode (I know, wtf kodak?).

Here's some of the places I saw. Take note of the modes, guys. 

This is on my way from college to town...I wandered down streets I hadn't been down before and I found my new favourite shop in Aix; BOOK IN BAR

There's my sneaky picture of Book in Bar. There's a café and they let you sit around reading their books. I bought The New York Trilogy by Paul Auster. woowoo

fountain #128219057429w39211e3ejsmxdskanjd

They are so obsessed and proud of Cezanne here. I knew that they liked him before I came but they have these little C's all along their roads. I cannot begin to count how many schools, restaurants, hotels and shops are named after him. Fair play to him.

The doors of this church were all closed when I walked past so I couldn't look inside but somebody was having a serious jamming session on the organ, I could hear. 

I guess it's kind of like once you've seen one little cute street you've seen them all but I still think they're all beautiful. Prepare for lots of pictures of the same looking street.

La Rotonde...the centre of the town...at this point I had gotten totally lost and found my way once again and I was starving so I bought my new favourite food. A POULET FRITES. It's pretty self explanatory. It's poulet...and frites...in a baguette. I get these on the drunken walk home at ludicrous times of the morning but now also sober. 

So that was today's activities. Over and out, amigos!

megan xx

Can I have some Pottermore, sir?

If you are in anyway like me, then Harry Potter pretty much defined your childhood reading. I still have my first copy, before all the hype began, from when I was 9. I love looking back on all the browning pages and various food stains and the childish handwriting on the front cover. I basically grew up with the book because any year they released a new story, I was always the same age as the characters [even though Harry Potter is technically set in the late 80's/early 90's].

Second Edition. Boo yeah.

The films came along and to be honest, they didn't exactly do much for me. I preferred the way I had imagined things in my head, even though I got the pronunciation of names completely wrong [i.e. Professor Snape was Professor Snapey and Hermione was something like Hur-MEAN-y]. Yet, the films did good because none of my siblings like reading much so by watching the films, I could finally discuss plot lines and who do you think will do what's with them. It also allowed me to taunt them about what would happen in the next film as the books were always one or two ahead [I'm actually an excellent sister, let it be known]. The films have gotten better and I have found the last one to be an excellent adaptation of the book, so much so that I am hopping off the walls to see the next one. My massive girl crush on Emma Watson, as previously discussed in "Ode To Emma" post, did help matters. We saw an advert for the latest film in Buenos Aires last week and me and my friends simultaneously "eeked". Out loud. Right there. In a really dangerous train station. Like a pack of giggling school girls. Facepalm.

Some people just go too far.

But everything good must come to an end. I was sad to see the last book's final page rest open in my hands as will the throngs of Harry Potter fans be when they leave cinemas in July. Yet, the time has come. Harry's story has run it's course and we must all grow up now and leave space for the next literary hero. Or has it?

Unless you've buried your head in a big, dark hole and stuffed cotton wool in your ears, then you will know of the mysterious Pottermore project that has been hopping from facebook to facebook and site to site this week. JK Rowling is not ready to hang up her pen, so it seems. 

The Pottermore website has nothing more than two owls [Hedwig style], a Pottermore symbol and JK Rowling's signature. Clicking onto an owl brings you to this Youtube video countdown. 

Apparently, there is going to be some kind of announcement in 3 days regarding the Harry Potter adventures. Daniel Radcliffe of the films claims no knowledge of the Pottermore project but says it would be "self-defeating" to play the role again after saying goodbye to it so is it safe to say that this is something of the ink variety from Rowling? Her lawyer would say nothing except that "This is not a new Harry Potter book". Poo to you, Sir.

Thoughts? Opinions? Where else can she take this story?  Is enough enough? Or is this your ultimate Harry Potter wish fulfilled? Another wizarding adventure? Yes please?! Or is it just a place for Harry Potter fans to meet and remember the stories? Answers on a postcard please.

S

Sources:

 Telegraph

LA Times

The News In Brief

I'm still up the walls here and none of girls have time to write seeing as they are having the time while I am still in my town working so much, I forget I am in South America. So the big "WOO, look at my South American adventures" posts will have to wait a little longer. 

Until

 then, here's the news in brief.

I am listening to;

Grouplove

My brother kindly showed me the gem that is Grouplove who sound like a big mix of Neil Young, Arcade Fire and Grizzly Bear. Have also inspired me to buy coloured feathers.

I am reading this;

One of my New Year Resolutions was to get back into reading. I have just finished "The Life of Pi" and I'm ploughing my way through this "modern classic". Next on my list is "Love in the Time of Cholera".



I want to say;

It's Megan's birthday today! HUURRAAAAAHH! I wish I could have figured out Argentinian post offices [I haven't seen a single one] to send her something but dear Megan, I'll buy you something here! I swears! I hope you are enjoying France [impossible not to] but lots of South American loooooooooveee.

I want to wear this;        

Modcloth.com; $99.99
All into the tribal markings at the moment.

I am wearing these;

Glass ring; €1.50 - Recoleta Market, Buenos Aires.
Silver plated ring; €5.00 - Bellavista Market, Santiago.
Funny freckles - Genetics.

I am quite enjoying this;

It's how I imagine me and my sister to be in a few years time.

This time last week I was here;

Parque de la Costa, Buenos Aires. Me, Lucy and Ciara spent the weekend in BA as a break from work and went to a theme park outside of the city. I went on my first roller-coaster. My face nearly came off. Terrifying but exhilarating. The swings were my favourite part.

This time fortnight I will be;

In Buenos Aires once again. I will have finished my placement here in Santa Fe in 2 weeks and shall be on my way to Buenos Aires for a final 4 days down under. I hope to hit Recoleta Market once again and go to a Copa America football match between Brazil and Venezula. It;s a hard life I lead really.

This time three weeks I will be;

AT HOME! For exactly a sweet, glorious 42 hours before I up and leave and go to...

In one month's time, I will be;

In the stunning, quaint county of Gloucestershire, England! I've been accepted once again as an EFL Teacher/Activity Leader in a boarding school/summer camp near Bristol for 5 weeks. I worked in England last summer doing the same thing and taught over 200 kids in the most intense enjoyable environments. Being paid for something I love and trips to London, Bath and Bristol included. Hurrah!

The end.
S

"Give me a sweater made from your smell and whispers"

3 posts in 3 days, I’m on a roll/need a life. The real reason I’m writing so much is because I have an exam coming up (it’s tomorrow actually) and I’ve just seen the exam paper for the first time. It’s American Cinema and even though I went to most of my lectures for this class, enjoyed it and found it really interesting, there’s no way I will be able to write two essays on any of the films we studied. Instead, I’ll tell you all about one of my favourite books. Sure, there’s always August. ;)

It’s called "Grab Onto Me Tightly As If I Knew The Way". I'm pretty sure I ranted at Ciara about how I sent the author, Bryan Charles, a message on myspace back in 4th year, telling him how CLASS his book was and he replied to me and I was so excited. Sorry Ciara.

I don't know if you can buy the book in Ireland. I got it on Amazon because I liked the artwork on the cover. It arrived by post and thus, I owned my first floppy paperback. I wish all paperbacks were floppy. Here they are more cardboardy if you ask me, except for the green Penguin Classic ones, they’re quite floppy. If anyone is reading this from the States, are ALL your paperbacks floppy? I'd love to know.

 

It was difficult to show the floppyness of the actual book itself on the camera.
You'd have to hold it and see for yourself.

Anyways, I absolutely adore this book. It's really funny and it's just beautifully written. Everyone should read it. After you do, visit Bryan Charles' Myspace page. He has put up pictures of some of the places he describes in the book and it's reeeeally interesting to see them in real life after you've imagined them to look completely different in your head.

Here's one of my favourite parts. I have many favourite parts. Seriously, own it. Or borrow it.

“ I want you like this, I swear I do, and I want you to peel back the layers of time and show me the past and smack me around but in a playful way like lovers and hit me again, punch, reach out and claw, stick your fingers in my mouth, peel back the layers of my face to the person I am or whoever I want to be and punch me, baby, with hands like pale birds diving away from earthworm scars and your eyes, holy shit, your eyes lit up like groovy blue storms, everything electric, your heart beating into your tongue and your tongue inside my mouth and speak to me please using only your tongue, write the words in my mouth with it, I want you I swear to peel back the sky and show me all that’s come before us and who we will be and all we will inevitably eventually lose.”  

Last I heard Bryan Charles was working on a book about Pavement! What a cool person. I'd like to be friends with him.

I'm going to regret this at 2 o clock tomozzle when I'm sitting in an exam hall watching everyone write reams around me. 

M