This is not a book.....yet it is a book

Surrealism

Noun

A 20th-century avant-garde movement in art and literature that sought to release the creative potential of the unconscious mind. One of my favourites Surreal Adjective Having the qualities of surrealism; bizarre: "a surreal mix of fact and fantasy". (haha, that's me!) How it all began It was a normal working day, I have no idea which one, recently I think...I have slept since then! "Hey Sleepy, have you seen this? Keri Smith, she's done these books and you'll love them!" (I am paraphrasing, I reiterate I have slept since this conversation took place.) There on amazon (we occasionally use it as a search tool and I in no way encourage you to buy from them, use independent where possible or at least proper book people if not *stepping down off my soapbox*) was a list of books. But these titles were like cat nip to me: Wreck this journal Finish this book How to be an explorer of the world The guerrilla art kit For a full list see Kerri's Page When I got home I did a little tinternet searching and found her blog, which is equally intriguing but kind of left it at that. There was no chance of these books being in the library, and with 'wreck this journal' as a title it didn't take a genius to work out why. So I'd look into getting them at some point. A week or so passed and I found myself in a bookshop and after mulling around for some considerable time, having picked up something for everyone but myself, I saw it. A name I recognised but wasn't sure why. A title that was winking at me and tickling at my brain, whispering 'you know you want to read me....pick me up, go on what harm could it do?' Little did I know that this little book and its cute title would shake my little booky world! Cracking the cover Instead of a generic introduction Kerri starts with 'Notes to the reader/user' after a note about the book there are three things to remember  1. Trust in your imagination. It is the source of all true journeys 2. Things are not always what they seem 3. Anything can happen  Are you hooked yet? I was! It took me all of a day to read from cover to cover. Now I say read....each page is a task to be completed. But what she is suggesting is.....surreal. Cut out this page, draw on this page, stick this page.....It's just not what a book should be, but then it is called 'This is not a book' This book is dragging me kicking and screaming on a surrealist path; each task is seeking to release the creative potential of my unconscious mind! I am determined that, no matter how wrong it feels to rip out pages or deface a book, I will complete ALL the tasks in the book...and then move onto the next book, and the next (yes that was a hint to anyone who may feel like buying me a present). I think my mind could use some creative unlocking!! Where to start? I have no idea! I really don't want to cop-out and pick any easy task that doesn't challenge me. However I equally don't trust myself to do that so I have chosen this page to start with, but I am handing the reigns over to you. Yeah, yeah...cop-out, I know! All you have to do is choose a number between 1 and 221, post it in the comments and I promise to carry out the task this leads me to. If I get more than one response I will put them all in a hat and pick at random. Lets set a deadline of Sunday 12pm (GMT) and what ever the task I will report back on my progress next week. A little gem to end on ;-)

A bit of a surreal week

My life is being taken over this week so today I thought I would set the tone, tune in on Thursday to find out how my world is being turned upside down ;-)

Have a great week folks!

There's a New Lover in Town

WANTED: AMBASSADOR FOR LOVE

Applicants must believe in love in all its guises and be its advocate to people from all walks of life. The ideal candidate will have a great eye for body language and experience of archery, although desirable it is not essential as all necessary training will be provided. Flexibility and commitment are essential in this role. Excellent retirement package available.

To apply wish on your nearest star.

view original here

Alan had been doing this job too long, it was time for some new blood. His aim was wonky, and he had got to the point where he didn’t care if the arrow missed. The powers hadn’t been happy for a while, he hadn’t been hitting his targets in terms of happily married couples and to top it all off the divorce rates were going through the roof. The inference was that society was spiraling out of control and it was all because his bad eye was throwing his aim off. Or was it?

The sun was setting over the ocean; the pinks and salmons of the sky were dancing on the waves. Couples were walking hand in hand yet no arrows were being shot, no love was being fostered as the moonlight crept closer. Why? Because of one distraction; there on the deck of her beach house, where she sat every night, mug in one hand book in the other, until the moonlight wasn’t sufficient to light the words.

He could sit and watch her for hours; the way the dying light would shine off her red hair and make her skin seem almost luminescent in its paleness. Sometimes he would catch a smile tickle at the corners of her full lips or a stray tear escape from the corner of her green eyes. Though green didn’t quite cover the complexity of the jewels that glistened and shone, like diamonds set in a beautiful piece of jewellery; the hazel flecks adding complexity and wonder that could captivate even the most closed of hearts.

The advert went out today and there had already been a couple of interested parties. Interviews were tomorrow and training would be complete by weekend, then his life would begin, with her.

“So where do I apply then?” came a voice from behind.

“I’m sure the ad said on a star” grumbled Alan.

“Yeah, from a modern age gramps don’t really trust the stars to get my message there on time.”

“Really? So what makes you think you are the best for this job with such a disregard for the ancient traditions?”

“I never said I don’t dig the old stuff. I just won’t leave things to chance.”

“Well I’ll take that into consideration blondie. But for now toddle off and leave me be. I’ll be in touch if I think you can handle the role.”

“Oh I can handle the role.”

At this Alan broke away from his vigil, “GO AWAY. Can I make myself any clearer? I am busy and I will contact you tomorrow!”

So that was my take on Cupid. If you took up the challenge from last week feel free to post your link in the comments. I'd love to see your take on a myth of your choice.

Are They Planets or Nuts....

My bloggy BFF is having a baby.........(pause because I still get excited for her when I mention it).......In the mean time she is going through what all mums do; Baby Brain. Why this isn't an official clinical condition I don't know!! So during the course of this debilitating condition, where she will be surrendering as many functional brain cells as possible to her developing child, the only known treatment is to limit multi-tasking. You can read more about how the treatment is going here where you can also hear about her call to share our nuts at the same time! You ready for my nuts??

Prince Charming Conundrum

I spent most of my childhood imagining and dreaming about the day my Prince Charming would ride in and sweep me off my feet. The day when I would be special; the centre of someones universe. I had the wedding dress planned even before I fell for the Other Half, which is some feat given how long we have been together.

Are we all waiting for our Prince to ride in on his steed? Is this what every girl wishes on the stars for? Do we wish for love and to be the centre of someones universe? Will we ever get it?

The reality? Your prince may arrive but he is the centre of your universe too and you end up spinning around each other. There are compromises to be made. The things you do are for mutual benefit. Then your universe experiences it's own big bang and your planets  re-align. They begin to spin not around each other but on the same orbit around the infant planets that have just been born.

Life and love take work and Prince Charming doesn't exist. This is a life lesson that we need to learn. You will never be the centre of someones universe because you will want to light theirs too. So why do we still swoon over films where the boy gets the girl? Where the boy sweeps her off her feet and they live happily ever after? Do we still secretly wish on a star that we could be whisked away?

Did Disney set me up for disappointment at an early age? Or is the definition of Prince Charming more flexible than we are lead to believe?

So, join the fun and share your nuts ;-) link up here or at Kicking Corners.

It's a Tickly Tuesday Folks

Tuesday tickles....

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I love the fact that it is only the paper at the end that appears to be having any fun, I want to be the paper :-)

Oh and why not, a Tuesday tune....

I just loved the little suitcase, so cute ;-)

Anyway, happy Tuesday. What is keeping you smiling this week?

Aaarrrgggghhhhhhh!

I avoided switching on my laptop last night to type today's post in advance and I have been avoiding this empty page all afternoon!!

It isn't that I have no ideas, my ideas are just like little seedlings in a greenhouse; some dozy gardener forgot to come water and feed them! They haven't grown up to be big and strong. And they certainly aren't bearing any fruit!

view original here

How do I kick my lazy ass out of this duvet that I have crawled under? How do I avoid all the interesting things that distract me when I am tucked up warm and cosy? How do I pluck up the motivation to tend my little baby ideas?

I know, I will give myself even more to do. I seem to work well under pressure so here goes!

Challenge time! Who's with me?

Slight deviation from fairy tales....myths! Or legends, I'm not really picky. The rules are simple; find one, favourite or random it doesn't matter, tell me in the comments which one you have picked. Then you have 300 words to re-write it, twist it, tell us what happens next, any or all of the above. Or hell for those who are more artistically minded give us the photographic or pictorial version! Post it and link back here ready for next week.

Lets hope inspiration strikes for my chosen myth....Cupid

Good luck and may the gods be ever with you.

So to leave you some cupid related tunes (because we couldn't find a clear winner...by we I mean me and my Facebook / Twitter friends!)

And yes just an excuse to include some 30 Seconds to Mars

:-D

When worlds collide

*Randomness Warning - Babbling of a puddled mind contained in this post*

So I have been wandering today, off the beaten track and regular readers will know this means trouble for my mind!

I ended up sat under a favourite oak tree of mine in my local park, doing my best to try and write. However the only thing I could come up with was a rambling few lines of a poem I have re-written six times in the last few weeks! I ended up thinking about the last month and half, analysing things to see if I could pin point when my writing started to clam up.....That is when my mind wandered!

I wondered if I am the only one who sees my life as different worlds; work, family, friends, writing etc.. Rarely do these worlds mingle completely, occasionally the edges blur but in the main they remain separate. Don't get me wrong, this isn't by design it just kinda happens.

Sometimes though these worlds collide with such force that the collision shatters one, if not both worlds. If you are really lucky one world survives just with a few extra valleys and mountains to navigate. What is never evident in the immediate aftermath of such an internal apocalypse are the fractures created within.  Those small cracks can soon turn into huge chasms. How do you survive in your remaining worlds without being sucked into the darkness within?

There are shards of a broken world floating in the aether but there is no Bastion to save Fantasia this time, there is no saving this world. Maybe it is time I focus on limiting the damage the collision caused within.

Wow, that's depressing. Ever think of a topic for a post and it seems like a great idea at the time, but when you actually tap it out it has suddenly ripped something dark and depressing out of you? Something that you knew existed if you were honest but you hadn't meant for it to all spill onto your post. However with no time left to change it the only option is to hit the publish button and hope y'all can see the random way my brain copes with things.

Happy Random Thursday ;-) What random deep thoughts have you been thinking lately?

Just to lighten the mood ;-)

Proud Mummy Moment

Yesterday munchkin number 1 was on telly.

A little background; My eldest plays for a local girls football team (soccer to my stateside readers) Burnley Girls and Ladies. They are affiliated with the male professional team Burnley FC; who Dad has supported since he was knee high to a grasshopper! So when the professional team asked if the girls would like to play on 'The Turf' (the stadium's name) during the half time break, of course the answer was 'Hell Yeah!' When they came and asked if some of the girls would like to be player escorts, there were some very excited young ladies (Mum's and Dad's too but shhhh!). All this for a game that was going to be televised.

So it comes to the night of the game and it was snowing....in March snow and below zero temperatures....never the less in their shorts the girls were professional and cute and had huge smiles on their faces. Munchkins team even won their mini half time match! I am only a little gutted that me and munchkin 2 had to stay at home and only caught fleeting glances of the girls, I mean seriously it looked freezing. But I am so proud of all the girls from the club. It's just a shame the professional team didn't win.

Yes I was so stupidly proud that I paused the telly and took a photo!

And yes Burnley is cool enough to play Foo Fighters before the players come onto the pitch.

I'm not a football fan.....honest....ok maybe just a little....sometimes.....

Pages and Smiles

Stories read and stories told

Until throats are horse

The young hear tales of old

Content and tired no words I say

After a very happy

World Book Day

Our costumes, because you asked so nicely ;-)

Happy Weekend Folks!

WORLD BOOK DAY :-D

IT'S WORLD BOOK DAY AND I AM SOOOOO HAPPY.

Ok, I know I am a book geek, even so that reaction could be a little exaggerated. But I love it; a day dedicated to books and kids and all things booky fun. I have be green with envy for the last few years; dressing the girls up as their favourite book characters and dropping them off at school or nursery with staff dressed as their favourite characters. I would sulk off to work to be grumpy until home time because I couldn't join in the fun.

This year is different, this year there has been 3 costumes to organise and I am even more excited because the theme at work and school is fairy tales. Could life get more perfect? (well actually yes it could....such a fabulous topic has way too many choices it took me ages to pick one!!)

The red cape is complete (made from a fleece jumper and bloomin good, if I do say so myself!). Gretel has stones in her pocket and Cinders has her rags ready. I just wonder if her Fairy Godmother will show up and turn her into a princess before the day is done?

So Happy World Book Day everyone. What story you will be sharing today?

Oh and to continue the 'keep smiling' fun this week, lets have a little bit of The Hip Hop Librarians

Stand Back, She May Detonate at Any Moment

We all know this feeling ladies, those moments when we are emotionally unstable. When the slightest thing may make you explode in a rage of fury or just as easily make you break down in floods of tears. We are doomed to feel unable to control our emotions on a monthly basis, or Heaven help us a full 9 months during pregnancy!

So for those of us caught in this infuriating trap right now here is a little light relief ;-)

The last one is my favourite, and I love the way they undress first...it cracks me up!

And a little Bruno Mars to remind you all that you're amazing just the way you are!

Your mission, should you wish to accept it, is to find some kind of funny clip, image or song that makes you laugh out loud and put the link in the comments below. Don't forget to subscribe to the comments and then you will be notified of everyones lol moments as we go through the week. Lets keep each other smiling!!

Goo for now.

It's Awards TIme

Last week I mentioned two awards that had been bestowed upon me and my little blog. As yet I have not paid them the attention they deserve. So here goes!

Katie at Nested has passed on this lovely award to me.

Now it has no rules so I am just going to basque in the glow of such a lovely award from one of the few blogs that I read with a truly authentic voice, thank the lovely Katie and then bestow the award on the blogs I will mention in a minute.

My second award came winging it's way from my favourite photographer and friend Lee Johnson. This is a guy with impeccable taste and an eye for what works, so the fact he has passed this award on to me makes me smile...a lot! Thank you Mr Johnson!

And to the rules...always with the rules, sheesh.

1. Thank the blogger who nominated you and include a link to their site. (Check!)
2. Add the Versatile Blogger Award picture to your blog post. (Check!)
3. Nominate 7 fellow bloggers that you’ve recently discovered or follow regularly and include a link to their site.  (Ooooo, I will think about this one...stay tuned!)
4. Let them know you have nominated them. (Yeah, yeah. Let me decide already!)
5. Share 7 random facts about you. (Well 7 is my lucky number but I think y'all know everything there is to know about me by now. Apologies if I bore you!).

7 Random Facts About Me - Because I'm not random at all ;-)

1. I love panda's. To the point I have a tattoo of one!

2. I have way too many unfulfilled ambitions which includes learning to play the bass guitar.

3. I name my cars...generally strong male names (and I need ideas for a new addition to our family - the Other Half has brought home a beautiful new play thing but it has no name. Ideas on a postcard please)

4. I love the Ocean; it's sound, it's rhythm. Especially sailing on it, however I don't like swimming in it!

5. I close my eyes if I want to experience something more deeply.

6. I read faster on my Kobo but prefer the feel and smell of a book in my hands.

7. When I was younger I bleached my hair to get rid of the red highlights that ran through it. Now I actively colour my hair varying shades of copper and red.

The Magic 7 Blogs

Getting not one but two shiny awards for utter greatness:

Deb at Kicking Corners

Jewels at Frazzled and Frumpy

The Masked Mom

Michelle at Buttered Toast Rocks

Larissa at Pappa is a Preacher

Adam at Blogs and Boulders

aeye at Shouldn't Life be More Than This?

These are all fabulous blogs and apologies to these wonderful writers that I have not been as dedicated to my reading of blogs as I should lately....forgive me? (fluttering eyelashes and everything!) What I am trying to say is nip over, take a look and leave them some love!

Finally I will leave you with this tune that seems perfectly appropriate to me at the moment.