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Mamma Mia: I would go again

Last week I joined the huge hype surrounding the new Mamma Mia film out in cinemas. I always feel a little dubious when it comes to the second film of a trilogy or more because a small part of me worries that none of the following ones will be as good as the first. From experience they never usually are.

Take Shrek for a rather childish but brilliant example and the first that came to me. The first one is brilliant, full of wit and classic lines which are frequently referred to in adult conversations today. Neither second nor third is anywhere near as good, in my opinion of course.

Whether it’s my personal preference in the songs, or the fact that it brings cheesiness to another level, I personally felt that Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again was better than the first film and this might be the first time that I have discovered this.

I am glad to say that the majority of people that I’ve spoken to agree, though there are some bah-humbugs among them.

Not being the biggest fan of Abba, what I love most about the first Mamma Mia is definitely the feel-good factor. Of course I knew every word to every song (who doesn’t?) and agree that Piers Brosnan has a questionable singing talent. I also cringed at some of the cheesier moments but overall I loved it and it has been a go to choice of easy watching whenever I need cheering up or my good mood to remain.

I thought the same and more of the second film. Most of the songs were ones I hadn’t actually heard from Abba and I definitely liked the set list better. They were a pleasant surprise and what surprised me further was when my friend had to ask if that was Cher singing Fernando at the end. Duh.

Gutted that Meryl Streep didn’t appear until the final scenes, I particularly loved the christening scene where she sings ‘My Love, My Life’ with Amanda Seyfried in a beautiful duet. I loved how it mirrored the similar scene in the first film with ‘Slipping Through My Fingers’ as the chosen song. Just perfect.

I thought the film was cleverly written and seeing Richard Curtis’ name in the writers credits made me aware as to why. The old and young versions of Rosie and Tanya were as brilliant as each other, having found Julie Walters and Christine Baranski fabulous in the first one.

Not only did the female young and old versions live up to the comedy of the first but the male youngsters were also brilliant (and better singers too).

I also thought that Lily James did an epic job and played her part extremely well, getting fully involved and having as much fun on screen as the audience was watching.

There were some classic comedy lines throughout and one of my personal favorites was one Rosie says to Tanya: “My soul mate may actually be carbs.” and Tanya replies “Mine must be wine.” Highly relatable to many of us, I think. Though it might just be to me.

To those haters out there who are focusing on the cringe-factor, is that not the entire point? As cheesy as a lot of moments were, that is how the show is intended and as cringe-worthy as they are, they are supposed to make you laugh, which they did to myself and everybody else in the full cinema at the time.

As much as you hate Abba, as much as you may hate cheese, give the film a chance and see for yourself. You cannot come out of it anything but happy and you will be singing the songs for days.

Ultimately, I loved the entire thing, am not ashamed to say and would definitely go again. Until then, I’ll just keep on brightening my morning moods with the soundtrack on repeat.

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Fearne Cotton: Happy Place, a review

Over the past few weeks I have spent a lot of my free time listening to Fearne Cotton’s podcast series called ‘Happy Place’. The series is made up of a selection of episodes where Fearne interviews a variety of people from big names to the unknown, but all special in their own right.

They discuss very openly with relevance to these individuals lives ambition, coping with stress and living, but ultimately it’s about how these people build their happy places. I only discovered this series after spotting Fearne’s Instagram post about the surprise extra but final episode – oops – and I’m very glad I found it in time.

From Dawn French describing how she skims through life grasping every bit of it that she can and talking about the beauty of writing in the countryside. To Paloma Faith expressing her amazing ability to focus on her own success and not look left or right to compare with others and admitting that she never really learnt to sing until she got famous. To Stephen Fry talking openly about mental health and the great work that the charity ‘Mind’ do daily. To Fearne’s Yoga instructor come brilliant friend, Zephyr Wildman, discussing losing somebody extremely close and how you overcome this so that you can carry on living.

All of the conversations had throughout the series are so interesting in different ways and Fearne directs the interviews with a confidence to pause a moment at the more poignant messages so that you’re constantly gripped and just want to continue listening to the next episode, and the next.

However, it wasn’t only the engrossment that I had to these chats that kept me hooked, it was also the act of actively unwinding and relaxing while listening. I realise that I’ve touched on this before but there’s something about being aware of stopping and listening that truly relaxes you.

One night last week I was feeling a bit stressed, a feeling that seems to crop up fairly frequently in the bustle of life, and I took myself upstairs to my room to chill out. Having discovered the podcast series that morning when I listened to most of Emma Willis’ interview, I chose another lady who I love and admire and decided to press play on Fearne’s interview with Dawn French.

While I lay on my bed getting comfortable and ready to listen to the entire show, I thought why not go down stairs and join my Mum who was fairly ill at this point and just laying, dozing on the sofa so I knew she wouldn’t mind my suggestion of turning off the television and just listening a while.

Admittedly, about five minutes in we were both snoring away at opposite corners of our comfy sofa and that is certainly no reflection on the series but rather how shattered we both were. But each time I woke up and listened to a bit more, I thought to myself how lovely that moment was. How lovely it was in this day and age to have the black box in the corner of the living room switched off. How lovely it was to feel that chilled out and just be listening. How lovely it was to be sharing this moment with my Mum. How very real but very moving each bit of the conversation I could hear was.

Granted I had to go back and listen to the episode in full realising that I’d in fact slept through most of it, but I did this in the middle of the day on one of my days off so sleep wasn’t as desperately needed as it was on the first day I heard it.

I’ve not yet listened to all episodes but the ones I have heard have been thoroughly enjoyable and I’d happily replay them all over again, picking up on things said that I’d not noticed previously.

There is a lot about loss and life being temporary. There is a lot about success, ambition and what drives these individuals. There is a lot about appreciation or letting go, not worrying too much about things that stress you out. All in all it’s a deeply insightful glimpse into life and it really makes you think.

If you’ve not already done so, go and listen. I just know you won’t regret it.

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The calming influence of lavender

When life gets a little overwhelming, which it can do for us all, we have a variety of tricks up our sleeve to help us cope. Whether it’s taking a short break, having a large glass or seeking out a good friend, or all three and more, there are ways we seem to manage situations.

I wouldn’t say that I’ve mastered my coping mechanisms yet but I wouldn’t expect to have done at the ripe age of twenty three. However, I find I’m learning new methods all the time, avoiding those that don’t help and using the ones that do.

One day recently I felt particularly stressed. I had lots going on in my head, lots of writing to do from home, a busy shift at work and I didn’t know how I could fit everything in. A good friend of mine picked up on this a slotted a small care package in my handbag which I noticed upon arrival at the hospital to visit my Grandad that evening before a big operation – perfect timing I’d say. This put a smile on my face and gave me strength to keep that smile for my Grandad, not knowing what the next few days would hold.

Now, my friend is a firm believer of the healing, cooling and calming influence that lavender has and it’s many uses. We always joke and shout “put some lavender on it” no matter how dire the situation may be and how ridiculous the suggestion of lavender to solve it may seem. I’d be the first to make this joke and laugh while sat looking at my open wound on my knee waiting for her to find the trusty cure and dab copious amounts of lavender on it.

So, of course, inside my care package was a roll on lavender tube, a spray and eye drops to make a dig at how often my eyes look still drunk from the amount of alcohol I consumed the night before. I wouldn’t say that I’m fully converted, but I am beginning to turn to lavender for more reasons and more frequently.

Aside from the supposed healing affect it has, I find lavender so calming. The spray my friend gave me is one which should be sprayed on pillows and bed linen before you go to sleep to help relax you into a deep rest. Nature Love is the make, Aromatherapy Pillow Mist is the product, T K Max – go and hunt it down. It also states on the bottle that it can change the mood of the room if you spray it at any time of day. You can trust me on this, especially as a previous non-believer, because it really works.

The other night I lay restless and agitated and couldn’t figure out why. All evening I’d not been able to keep my eyes open so I knew how tired I was. It then came to me that I hadn’t sprayed my special spray and instantly after applying it, I felt calm and soon drifted off into a deep sleep.

Some of you will be on the side of my friend and where I’m headed, always having known the calming affect that lavender has. Others will be wondering how I put up with the strong smell at night. This spray however produces such a pleasant smell as it’s mixed with vanilla too and it’s so subtle but so effective that you hardly notice the impact until it’s not there.

I find I’m reaching to lavender in stressful situations more and it instantly chills me out. When travelling I’d often dab a bit on my pillow when I felt anxious. During new work environments and scary London offices I put a bit on my wrists to sniff when I felt like I didn’t belong. When I lay at night thinking I’m not good enough or stressing about my future and things I can’t change I dab an extra amount to get that whiff of calm. Whenever I feel stressed I have my roll on bottle to hand in my bag and I grab it, dab it and feel the soothing effect.

You may still be a non-believer, but trust me and give it a go. Try for yourself to see the calming influence that lavender has.

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A happy place, an inanimate object and a spot of hypnosis

Hypnosis is something that I’ve never really considered before. My dad had a stint of attempting to learn it after he’d spoken about it at the pub one Sunday afternoon and I’ve occasionally listened to a few of Paul McKenna’s tapes for relaxation, but I’ve never considered it as a form of therapy.

This wasn’t until a friend of mine was doing a course and needed people to practise on for her qualification. Being intrigued, I said yes.

On the afternoon of my session, I was extremely tired having been working hard so was about ready to fall asleep in the chair, especially after I felt the comfort as it reclined back. We chatted and because I was merely doing it so that she could get signed off, I hadn’t really anything particular to get sorted (though I’m sure I have loads really). After our chat I opted to go for self esteem. Mainly because she said she could do that within the time frame that we had but also because often my self esteem has been a little poor.

So we chatted for a short while and then my friend vanished for a little while longer to create her script and then it was time. Time to go into trance (or fall asleep).

When my friend returned to the room we began. Firstly, I was to picture the point of a pencil and focus on that entirely. Unless I’m remembering something really good or really bad, my memory doesn’t usually come in images, as far as I’m aware at least, so I found this task quite difficult. After a while of trying and going through a list of inanimate objects that I could potentially see, we settled for a bubble and continued.

I then had to imagine being in my happy place and I opted for, as always, the beach. I’ve always found something quite relaxing and uplifting about being by the sea. Walking along a cobble beach and looking out at the never ending ocean that meets the sky on the horizon. For me it’s always been a place where I realise how small I am in this huge world and seemingly my troubles all drift away.

This is why the beach was my chosen happy place and I could vividly see myself walking out into the water, the tide washing over my feet. After hearing my hypnotist count down from ten to one, I remember nothing else that was said until I was being brought back into the room.

I was definitely in a trance. She said herself that it’s easy to tell when people are faking it and it took me a few attempts to go so I definitely went. I know I did. Whatever was said during the time I was under is unknown to me but will hopefully have impacted on my subconscious and improved my self esteem. Also, the session took about forty minutes but it truly felt like five had passed, another way I can tell that it happened.

The feeling I felt after the session was that of total relaxation. I didn’t care at this point whether I felt more upbeat about myself or not, I felt drunk on chill. I was walking around in a world of my own as if on mood enhancing drugs and it felt so good. I would definitely do the whole thing again just for this feeling to return. It was similar to the feeling you get when you take that first sip of wine after a really busy day, but I felt like I’d had a bottle when I’d had none at all.

Over the following few days when I was discussing my experience with others and they asked if I’d noticed a difference, I said that I hadn’t. Aside from the amazing feeling after, nothing had really changed. Then again self-esteem is something that isn’t black and white and I thought to myself that maybe I’d notice over time.

Someone who did notice is my boss and lovely friend, who said she’d seen a massive boost in my positivity and high spirits immediately. She also commented on the fact that during situations when I’d usually get stressed out, I’d managed to stay much calmer. Now, she knows me extremely well so I completely trust her word and I do feel great.

If anyone is considering having a go at hypnosis, even if you’re not certain about why, I’d say do it. You’ll feel amazing after and you will get benefits from it, you’ve just got to trust in the person in control and let yourself go.

 

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The Greatest Showman, the greatest soundtrack

Granted I’m a bit late to the show, but last night I finally went to see what all this major hype was over the new film The Greatest Showman. Most people that I’ve talked to have been more than once, some have been four or five times. That’s almost fifty quid spent on their tickets alone. Not to mention the food and beverages consumed with it. Madness. With this knowledge though, I was ready to be impressed and knew I’d be highly disappointed if it didn’t live up to my steep expectations.

While writing this at my desk I have the soundtrack playing on repeat. It’s 9:25am and I’ve already listened through the entire track list three times. Once while getting ready and prancing around my room pretending that I can sing and dance, longing to be talented enough for the west end (just one performance, I think it’d be fun). The second listening came on my drive to town, blasting it out of my car stereo and, having now nailed the correct lyrics, singing at the top of my lungs not caring who’s looking in and laughing. The third now, while writing this with a big grin filling my face and happiness working it’s way down my veins.

If that last paragraph doesn’t scream out how much I loved the film, then while watching not once did I want it to end (despite being exhausted with backache), tears filled my eyes on numerous occasions and I wasn’t at all disturbed by the bearded lady that I had been forewarned about. In fact all I thought was what a cracking voice she has! Barnum’s (Hugh Jackman) two daughters were the cutest little girls and the first tears came during their rendition of ‘A Million Dreams’. More followed during Barnum’s casting and acceptance of the ‘oddities’, those not allowed to be seen in public even by their own parents – how dare they? Even more came when Barnum was being a sod and didn’t allow them into the upper class party so they stormed in singing anyway.

As you are probably fully aware now, I was very impressed. The show was great, the story very interesting and a good depiction of the time in which it was set, despite critics claiming that it doesn’t do the story-line justice nor effectively express the celebration of humanity. Yes, through a twenty-first century lens the actions of Barnum appear deranged and mean, the act of singling out black people as ‘odd’ is extremely racist and using these people’s peculiarities for his own financial benefit is cruel, but in my opinion that’s not the point of the film.

Personally I’m with the public on this one. The story is set in a completely different time to today, besides, if we don’t hang too tightly to the Barnum story, the film claims that he was doing a good thing in the view of his cast. That’s the message I take from it. He may have seen it as a money making ploy, but they saw it as a purpose and him giving them friends, even family that they’d have never found in society if it wasn’t for him. Plus he learns that he’s a bit of an arse eventually and changes his ways.

The message that no matter how different you are, you will always find your people, a group of people who love you and accept you for exactly who you are. That’s what I took away, and that’s why it’s such a feel-good film. Not to mention the eye candy in Hugh Jackman and Zac Effron, who I’ve not seen the sparkle in until this film. If you’ve not already been, go go go. I’m off to listen to every single song, all over again.

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The Sober Diaries and a very NOT sober me.

I’m thoroughly enjoying listening to The Sober Diaries by Claire Pooley while getting ready each morning or any other free time I find in my days (not much). I love an audiobook. I love how you can choose to sit and enjoy in peace or continue to listen while getting other stuff done at the same time and feeling a boss at multitasking while doing so.

The book was originally a series of blog posts by Claire who decided to go teetotal after realising quite how much alcohol she consumed daily and how much it was beginning to take over her life. Full of detailed research but also tremendous wit, Claire takes you through the stages of her noticing that things were getting bad and then her time without any drink at all.

She humorously tells stories of hiding the left-over bottle of red in the back of the cupboard away from the children and then fancying a tipple at 11am on a Sunday so using a mug to disguise the booze. She also discusses her denial about having a problem due to choosing classy drinks such as Chablis and declaring herself a connoisseur rather than a lush.

As well as these hilarious tales, Claire also shows thorough research into the topic of alcohol such as why ‘hair of the dog’ is called ‘hair of the dog’ and how drinking through a hangover seems to help with the logic that they use ethanol to cure ethanol poisoning. She also tells of body parts which are harmed by excessive alcohol consumption and how dangerous it can be to your physical and mental health leading to liver disease, depression and many more things.

Despite being interested and aware, I tend to tune out to the negatives because I love my wine and feel in control of my drinking (mostly). It does make me force myself to remember the last day I had without any alcohol though and when my memory fails me I just pour another glass.

Joking aside, the book is a witty and insightful glimpse into how alcohol can take over and change your life, as well as a comment on how much our society relies upon it for a good time like any time at all. So on that note I decided to come up with times it is entirely acceptable to drink a whole bottle of wine.

As you can probably tell I haven’t taken the main message from Claire’s book on board and still enjoy many a tipple throughout the week. It’s OK to do this. It’s OK to go to a pub on a Friday night and if there are two of you sharing a bottle you’ll obviously make sure that you have a minimum of two bottles. That’s one each and it’s only fair. Around friends houses the same applies. The non-tight arsed among us will usually bring a bottle when invited around friends so it’d be rude not to finish it.

When you come home after a long working day and open a bottle then realise there’s nobody else home to share with you so you finish the entire thing, that’s fine, an evening is a long amount of time. A celebration (and there’s always a reason to celebrate) that too is a perfectly acceptable time to drink the bottle to yourself along with (I’d imagine) much, much more. Dutch courage for the dance floor or before meeting your new date, those reasons are also just fine.

However, when you find yourself having a bottle before 9am or hiding the contents of last nights leftovers at the back of the cupboard to consume early the next morning disguised in a mug, then maybe have a rethink.

I’m not there yet, so will most definitely enjoy some of the good stuff tonight – cheers!

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A Dog’s Purpose

If you’re reading this post and are yet to see the film, stop reading immediately and watch it. I won’t give too much away but A Dog’s Purpose is the perfect summary of the happiness and comfort that dogs bring to so many lives.

We’ve only ever had one dog in my lifetime at home, we’ve always been ‘cat people’. They say you’re either one or the other but I completely disagree. I have loved all the pets we’ve ever had and love the one and a half cats that are still with us, dearly. I say one and a half which kind of has two meanings. Lily was the runt of the litter so her growth is somewhat stunted and Frankie only decides to live with us for six months of the year, prancing around our village like he owns the place for the rest. Which one is the half can be up to you. Of course I love them, however I do understand why some people prefer dogs. When I come home, if I’m in a bad mood and need cheering up, though Lil will snuggle on my lap (or look at me angrily because I disturbed her sleeping, turn around and drift off again), it’s not quite the same greeting as you get from dogs.

I have plenty of friends with dogs and as I enter their houses, I’m instantly smothered with so much love and happiness from every one. They run around as if they’re constantly grinning and anything can make their day from a delicious treat to a stick that’s bigger than the one from the last walk. If you feel sad and enter a house with dogs you’ll soon be smiling. Or if you’ve had a stressful day and head to some open land with a bunch of merry pups, all the stresses will fly away from you.

After I watched this film I really missed all the dogs I know. The ones I go walking with most days and the ones I frequently visit, always happy to see me. The film really pulls on your heart strings and makes you warm to a certain dog and his story. It shows how much they mean to everyone and how important they are in this world. Dogs can bring even the strongest servicemen to tears through the love that they have for one another and that’s special.

In America, I’ve seen some of the cutest dogs going. To be honest I say this about most dogs I see, but then every dog I see is pretty cute. The sniffer dogs standing at work, amazingly intelligent and well trained with a sign attached to them that reads ‘DO NOT PET’, now that’s just cruel. I desperately wanted to pet every one I saw and relieve them from their shift to join me on the rest of my travels. Sadly this couldn’t happen and they had to carry on working.

I even saw some rather adorable puppies waiting in the departure gate at JFK international airport and hoped that they’d join us on the flight. I have no idea why they’d be in the departure gate otherwise, but I saw none of them on my flight.

So if you decided that my writing is more important than the film and you’re STILL reading, seriously go and watch A Dog’s Purpose. Trust me, you won’t regret it, you’ll just love and appreciate our canine friends that little bit more because they are truly amazing.

I’m gradually turning into more and more of a ‘dog person’ and feel that’s only going to increase.