Jagaara, IYES & Tei Shi

One of my favourite half term indulgences is losing myself in music and so that is exactly what I have been doing this week. Actually, even the thought of half term gave me a little surge in the final week before the holiday as I looked ahead to festival season to get me through grey days. I wanted to share these three artists in particular as they have provided my repeat tracks to get me through planning, marking, cleaning and tidying but also travelling (of course) this half term. I hope you'll like them too!

Jagaara - Faultline

The modern day Corrs (not at all really, in fact that's probably actually a little offensive), Jagaara are three sisters from my neck of the woods. They are playing Field Day this year, so I discovered them through my 'line-up research'. Currently they only have two tracks, and I adore them both. Faultline is my favourite though, with an eerie yet epic instrumental, gorgeous vocals and a sound that generally gives me butterflies. Must listen!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wuFjq0LB47s (turns out the video's quite good too; some nice train-track shots and good colours)

IYES - Simmer

Last Thursday I went to see these guys at a most intimate venue in Hoxton, Hoxton Square Bar & Kitchen. I'd never actually heard their music before, but a friend invited me along because she knew they'd be my kind of thing! 

I loved the duo's raw sound, their chemistry and the fact that you could really tell they were having lots of fun! Male vocals were really present live, which is something that is missing in their recorded materials, and I did get the giggles over tambourine 'playing' (it is not a real instrument!!) but it was still the sort of gig that made me miss singing SO much and despite having not previously listened to their tracks, instilled a sense of nostalgia in me. They performed a song called 'Lessons' towards the end of the set which was absolutely beautiful, but unfortunately has not yet made an appearance on the Internet. One to watch out for though I reckon!
https://soundcloud.com/weareiyes/simmer-live

Tei Shi - Nevermind The End

In contrast to the innocent and straight-up nature of IYES' music, another artist brought to my attention by the lineup for Field Day 2015 was Tei Shi. Her sound again stirs nostalgia within me, with a simple instrumental that has an almost Spring-like feel. On the other hand, her lyrics bring to light a darker side (irony not intended), nevertheless a dark side that makes me feel all empowered every time it comes on as I'm walking along anywhere. In my opinion, the contrast just works! The EP this track comes from, Saudade, is on SoundCloud - enjoy!
https://soundcloud.com/tei-shi/nevermind-the-end

My happy place[s]

I miss the sky.
I miss fresh air.
I miss aimless wanderings, a leisurely pace, strolling.
I miss space, time, safety and security.

Sand between my toes.
Sun in my eyes.
Mud. Everywhere.

London is magical in its own kind of way, but I'm definitely incredibly homesick at the moment.

The winter has been a hard one. Never before have I found myself wanting to hibernate LITERALLY ALL THE TIME. Yet this year I have become the biggest fan of the indoors; primarily the biggest fan of my bed (luckiest piece of furniture alive... ahem).

Somehow I have found myself swerving between weekends spent working far harder than I like to, or those spent cramming in as many social activities as I possibly can in a desperate attempt to pick myself up from my slump.

I don't know though. The fact that I haven't felt inspired to write lately, despite several weekends full of beauty, has been playing on my mind. As I wandered along to choir rehearsal this evening (the most welcome almost-mid-week slice of respite), I suddenly found words filling my head. And although they weren't the words I was expecting, I thought I'd go with it. So here I am, possibly about to have my first small moan about living in London.

Those rare, sunny days are best spent admiring the patterns the blinds make.

Finished one book...

... sort of started another.

Trying to make 'art' out of my lesson planning.

Days at home are best spent drinking endless cups of tea.

The most photogenic blinds?

I adore it. I really do! But I think when I look ahead to a move in the future (moving into another property, not moving out of London; despite everything, I see myself here for the foreseeable future. Completely) I decided this weekend that I need to be within reasonable walking distance to a green space.

Dog-walks have proved to be a lot more pleasurable than I could have ever imagined!

In the summer, I'd consider myself to be perfectly positioned when it comes to green spaces. There's Finsbury Park, Clissold Park, Abney Park Cemetery, Markfield Park, Downhills Park, to name a few! Yet in the winter when the cold is as bitter as it has been, even on a sunny day, these green spaces seem worlds away. So this weekend, I actually didn't even leave the flat, which would have previously been completely unheard of in my world!

I'm great at making the most of London, if money were no object. But in the winter months, I have not yet found the solution to winding down without spending, and with my New Year's Resolution not going all that badly at the moment, I'm trying to be stricter with myself this year! I'm also great at doing a lot (when I do let myself out, I sure make the most of it) but I can't seem to manage a day where I do some work, and some play.

A slightly over-extravagant day spent in Chelsea; admiring greenhouses at Chelsea Physic Garden

See in an ideal world, I could spend a Saturday doing a little work (like I'm probably supposed to), and then I could go for a leisurely stroll around 'the park' to break it up, or to energise myself first thing in the morning, or to wind down in the evening before eating myself into a sofa coma. Alas.

Half term is fast approaching (THREE SLEEPS), so I'm hoping that I might take a day or two to venture out into the big, wide world beyond my duvet (it does get as far as my sofa with me as well... apparently a very sorry sight) and have a go at unearthing some happy places for those weekends where I need to get out, but don't want to be out out!

I think the problem of late has been that I'm so familiar with what I've left behind in Norfolk, that my mind keeps taking me there. It's easy to think, 'oh, if I was in Norwich I could go for a walk around the lake', 'oh, if I was at home I could play piano for a while', and it is hard to draw parallels here. But ultimately this is still the very beginning of my London adventure. There is still so much to discover.

So, discover it I will.
Consider me on the search for my happy place[s].

Liquicity

Almost 4 weeks into the new year and resolutions are going well; last night upon my return from choir I drank my Sleep Tea and read a chapter of my book and despite having a SEVEN WEEK stint between pay-days, I am somehow still clinging on to some funds! (Known to spend everything I have in the space of a week or two, believe me, 'clinging' is impressive)!

I've kept myself busy with little outings at the weekends, but have been careful not to over-do it so have had plenty of hibernation time as well!

However, perhaps not particularly restful was the weekend just gone which saw the arrival of my 'little' brother's 21st year (you know when your younger sibling reaches another milestone it just means you're moving ever closer to the next one yourself; scary!). On Friday night we headed to the first Liquicity event to reach London, and it was amazing!

I'm always a little nervous about going out on a Friday night having been up for so many hours beforehand! As such, I never expect to last beyond 1 or 2 and an additional hurdle by the name of 'Dry January' left me even less confident of my surviving than usual. Yet somehow I'm still here to tell the tale. (I had also been invited to join the birthday boy again the following night, but I think that might have been considered a little too wild in my 'old' age...)

On the other hand, Friday nights are actually the perfect time to go out as they mean two days of recovery and because the night is so far away from the morning, part of me always feels like it's another day in itself (just me?) and so extends my weekend; who's complaining?

I was good to myself and had a small 'lie-in' (I believe my alarm went off at quarter past 6 instead of quarter to) on the Friday morning, hoping that I'd feel super refreshed and ready to go!

A good day had at school (finally, they're settling back into routine!), my female companion (ok, that sounds dodgy, but I needed someone to keep me company otherwise it would have just been me amongst a group of boys. Ew.) arrived in plenty of time for girly chats, catch ups, cups of coffee and pizza before the birthday boy descended upon us. I felt ready!

The last Liquicity event the boys had been to was in Belgium, and all being HUGE fans of Belgian crowds, we weren't really sure what to expect from the Brits. Stood in the queue to get into Village Underground we overheard one [gentle]man exclaim that he was 'giddy with excitement', which I think was possibly the complete opposite extreme to what we were expecting at such an event in England! Having ripped said guy and his group of friends, he ended up losing them and spent his night desperately trying to mirror my brother's friend's expert dancing skills (too funny to watch). He sure was giddy, but he wasn't such a bad guy!

6 solid hours of dancing to Rameses B, Hugh Hardie, Fliwo, Champion & Maduk, with the occasional trip to the bar for water to re-fuel, my abs were ACHING the morning after (and even the morning after that actually - I should go dancing more often)! Village Underground was an incredible venue (mental note made), the crowd were generally pretty fun (you can tell we're starting to move in the same circles because there were even some familiar faces from the Med School night!) and most importantly my brother had an awesome night and I was in bed before 6am; a result for all I reckon!

Definitely be making an appearance again if Liquicity returns to London... I might even make my brother and his friends take me with them next time they head off to the continent!

(Photos stolen from Liquicity Facebook & Twitter pages. I was far too busy bouncing up, down and all around to take a decent picture!):

Fliwo - https://twitter.com/Liquicity/status/556211977186713601/photo/1 - Twitter

Photograph by Aron Klein for Here & Now - Facebook

Photograph by Aron Klein for Here & Now - Facebook

Welcome, 2015

It's been a long time since my last post; I must have got lost somewhere amongst the madness that is the month of December!

While part of me is convinced that all events that occured would totally fit into one post, the other (more sensible and logical) part says 'move on, Laura'... so, whizzing past a Selfridges cinema experience (Paddington was AMAZING), decorating the Christmas tree (and the rest of the flat), a concert in Boughton not Broughton, carol singing on a floating jetty at St Katharine Docks, Christmas Jumper Day, elbowing our way through throngs of tourists to that infamous ice slide at Winter Wonderland where we also drank yummy hot Rekorderlig, take-away afternoon tea and Christmas trees galore at Columbia Road Flower Market, 'merryment' at St Martin-in-the-Fields, the school nativity, tending the bar at the City Chamber Choir concert, and finally heading home for Christmas where we'll pretend everything calmed down before this list burns a hole in the page!

Home was glorious as always - just look at beautiful Norfolk!

So we reach that time again, a new year has begun! After a party torn between adulthood and our teens to see it in, we have just returned from a bracing walk along the canal and finally, the world has come to rest, just for the remainder of today but it's enough.

People keep asking me what my new year's resolutions are, but unlike last year (and I think even the year before), I have a much less clear idea than usual. I think maybe because as 2014 drew to a close, I felt more content than I have done in a long time; those small fragments of life forever floating around without a true sense of where to go have finally found direction!

'Do more of the same' would be far too boring for me though, so this post may rest a while to give me time to formulate a plan!

I have embarked on Dry January again with a view to keep going until March (having succeeded last year, I dare to actually go public with my intention this year; too much confidence?), but I'm not sure that can constitute any sort of 'resolution', particularly as it won't last the full length of 2015 (the summer of 2014 taught me that)!

With a little time passed, I hope I have decided on three achievable resolutions for this year...

1. Read!

I'm preferably a writer, not a reader. But I love to lose myself in a book when the mood takes me, and with a lack of internet connection on my laptop preventing me from losing myself in iPlayer or Netflix instead, now is the perfect opportunity to set the ball rolling (and a book even awaits me on the pillow beside me for when I've finished writing)!

2. Look after myself. Rest.

This is something I've always prided myself in being good at, but I seem to have let it slip again this academic year, resulting in a 12-week-long cold. Finally rid of it, I'm determined to keep illness and fatigue at bay... wish me luck and expect far too many cat posts thanks to more weekends spent at home.

3. Set goals for money saving.

I'm ashamed to have two resolutions that I'm almost entirely sure I've had before, but I hope I've at least re-phrased them? I am and always will be a lover of spending, but I really need to prioritise where my money goes. Having had a wardrobe clearout at the weekend, clothes shopping is a looming temptation, but instead a new bed is top of my list, which I figure links nicely to resolution number 2? Already got my Sleep Tea for Christmas, now I just need somewhere as comfortable as my bed at home to lay my weary head!

I'm really very excited for 2015 because I came out of 2014 so happy and feeling very accomplished (not entirely sure why, but hey, I'll go with it) and I can only imagine that much more of the same is in store! 2015, let's do this!

One woman's struggle with a train window

'Escaped to the country' for a spot of Christmas shopping when the mere thought of attempting it in London gave me severe palpatations.

I haven't visited Cambridge in such a long time, and I missed it. Just under 50 minutes on the train (and only 20 from my front door - train (I timed it, because I was late as ever)), I figured I could spend just as long travelling to various shopping areas in the capital, so a spontaneous decision was made!

Even more spontaneously, I text mother on the off chance that her and dad weren't already headed for an incredibly busy weekend, only to discover that their Saturday was also clear of any social events, so we arranged to meet!

After my panicking that I was going to be the last person to set foot on the train, probably as the doors were closing, despite waking at an unearthly time on a Saturday, I actually made it in good enough time to walk allll the way to the front so that I'd have less walking to do at the other end (genius).

The journey was beautiful; forgotten music from the depths of my SoundCloud in my ears, magical colours in the sky and a distant mist making for a very pretty vista. Directly opposite me sat a woman beneath an open window which shewas trying desperately to close to no avail, to my left (I sit sideways on trains; naughty) two suited men discussing photo shoots and football, and on the 4 seats in front of me, a middle aged lady with a foul mouth and a lacy jumper I'd probably wear too if I were 20 years older.

I arrived only fifteen minutes later than mum and dad, but already they had gone ahead and found a place for a hot drink. So I joined them, and we said our hellos, caught up on important events from the past week or so, and decided on a plan of action for the day!

Admittedly, on my last Christmas shopping excursion, I left feeling a strong sense of alliance to Norwich. I feel as if I might have actually written about it a year or two ago! I decided that Cambridge did not feel quite as festive as it should, and that the lack of independent shops made finding small and unique gifts quite difficult. 

Nevertheless, it felt so good to be back in the city; it's definitely still one of my favourites, at any time of year! I walked through all the little back-streets to meet mum and dad, admiring unusual door knockers along the rows and rows of cute terraced houses. No twinkling lights on trees in windows yet, but a wintry chill in the air still had me feeling festive.

A second mug of Earl Grey to kick-start me again after my early start and hypnotic train journey, and we were off! One thing Cambridge certainly is equipped with is an abundance of Charity shops. So while mum and I were actually managing a 'sweep browse' of Primark, dad was browsing in charity shops along the road. When we reconvened, he produced a Moomin book to add to the collection; I do adore Tove Jansson! This might even mean I actually get around to doing some reading over Christmas (I doubt I'll get beyond children's literature, but it's a start at least?)!

It's not usually necessary to spend much time at the Grafton Centre end of Cambridge, but we lost ourselves in Hawkin's Bazaar for a good amount of time; me dropping almost everything I touched, mum making cringe-worthy jokes about her purchases to the shop assistant and dad trying his hardest to pretend he wasn't with us (not really, we're all as bad as each other)! Playtime over, we popped in and out of a few more shops via biscotti and olive tasting before making our way to the city centre.

One huge advantage Cambridge does have over Norwich is Fopp. Fopp! I love Fopp! In fact, I could spend a lifetime in Fopp. On this occasion I had a time restriction in the form of our lunchtime reservation, but I still managed to make three film purchases. A notorious film novice, I have recently been expanding my film horizons, and Fopp is a place I like to buy the ones that jump off the shelf at me (sometimes literally) because they're often only £3, so even if I discover they're not for me, I've not even spent the price of a cinema ticket! Elf, I'm sure will be watched within a matter of days, but I think I'll save the other two for more dedicated film-watching time.

Once upon a time there was a Christmas hat impaled on that chimney.

Lunch was at Pizza Express, in the most fancy Pizza Express I have ever set foot in! Set in the historic building of Pitt Club, this restaurant did not even have signage outside, so it was very quiet indeed. There was no piped music, the floors were carpeted and books and black and white photographs of club members lined the wooden panelled walls. We all said as we sat there that we could quite easily forget where we were (and on a side note, the Christmas menu looks amazing)!

After lunch, we wandered along the most historic part of Cambridge, past the different college buildings which looked particularly glorious in the winter sun! Another point to Cambridge comes in the form of Heffer's bookshop, where mum and dad lost me in the children's section as I spent Christmas money on a plethora of picture books (perhaps for school, perhaps for my own reading pleasure).

We definitely picked the right end of the day to be in the area, as the setting sun behind the buildings made for a very beautiful skyline above the market. Before I knew it, it was time to head back. Of course we stopped for a final tea along the way, and to give me chance to sort my mass of shopping bags. Absolute saints that they are, my parents took most of my purchases home with them to avoid me having to take them on a million train journeys back and forth between Cambridge, London and Norfolk. So I left with two small bags; my DVDs, school milk bottles with paper straws for future cocktail drinking, my Moomin book and a Christmas present to pass along.

Despite knowing that I'll always see them again relatively soon, saying goodbye to my parents is always sad, and I don't know why but saying goodbye at train stations always seems that little bit more moving. Films have dictated that time will pass in slow motion, and tears will be shed (they weren't, but you get the scene I'm setting). A fond farewell said to Cambridge, mum and dad, I headed back to the Big Smoke for an evening in the cinema with my dear cousin; I just never stop!

London Aquarium on a 'relaxing' weekend

What better way to spend a Friday night than with fish (and champagne)?

Last Friday saw my first 24 hour stint in a long time with farewell drinks for my TA, carol singing at Leadenhall Market for the Christmas light switch on, dancing my heart out to Anile, Etherwood and Keeno at MedSchool in Elephant & Castle and then finally rolling into bed at half 5/6am, having woken up at a similar time a full 'day' before. Feeling a little too 'old' (at least on a Friday) for all that these days, I was rather looking forward to a quieter time this weekend, and very excited for fish!

I've probably been to the London Aquarium before, but when Hunstanton Sealife Centre (please imagine I said that in my overly enthusiastic with a hint of sarcasm voice) is on my doorstep at home, we've probably never felt the need to journey to such a place; I certainly didn't have any recollection of a visit anyway. After my incredibly fun experiences of Zoo Lates at London Zoo, and Science Museum Lates at (you've guessed it) the Science Museum, I decided that London Aquarium must be done as soon as it caught my attention!

Gone are the days when you could stroke these guys...

A complimentary glass of champagne upon arrival, I was more than happy! There is something truly wonderful about not feeling obligated to move aside for small children struggling to peer into tanks! Instead it was initially a little more like the battle upon entering an already sardine-like tube train, elbows out and everything! However as some people raced ahead to find the next bar, we decided to take our time.

So stingrays evolved from sharks. Who knew?

Determined to get our money's worth, we oggled at the weird and wonderful in every tank, waiting patiently to read signs that would inform us what said 'weird and wonderful' were actually called (the Fox-faced-rabbitfish had to be my favourite name, although I wasn't entirely sure where the name came from...)! It transpired that shark tanks are pretty hypnotic, and before we knew it, it was twenty to ten (we had arrived at twenty past seven)! So we tore ourselves away and went to find the penguins!

Drunken seahorses.

Pretty piranhas!

Unanimous oohs and ahhs echoed around the crowd as we eagerly anticipated their descent into the pool for a swim. Sadly it never came, but they still looked sweet waddling around their enclosure (if a little trapped; the murals on the walls of the world beyond where they now live seemed a little cruel)!

Penguins waved goodbye to, the rest felt like a come-down (although a fish swimming through a tiny tube adjoining two tanks was a pretty entertaining highlight (perhaps the alcohol was kicking in by this point)). Before we knew it, we found ourselves exiting and we came out by the arcade and McDonalds; quite the opposite to the inviting entrance!

More sharks...

... just because they're sharks.

Once we were back along the Southbank, we decided to venture into the festive enclosure where this year's Winter Festival awaited us. We discovered a Christmas tree maze (magical), a 'lodge' serving all the Rekorderlig, and an incredible array of inviting Scandinavian food stalls. After a wander around to make sure we were about to make the best drink (and maybe food) choice, we settled on a table and chair straight out of Ikea in the lodge for a tipple. As we sat there, our minds turned to the intriguing food stall situated right outside the lodge, and before we knew it we were tucking into a mighty burger and a meat ball sandwich with lingonberry jam and some sort of gravy; yum!

The rest of the weekend was pretty restful; on Saturday evening we returned to Southbank to try out another food stall and to catch up with friends not seen in far too long (I even managed to get a little something for Christmas while we waited)! On Sunday I finally saw The Shawkshank Redemption (in bed, of course), and loved it, before my 'relaxing' weekend was topped off with Linkin Park at the O2 Arena; so much nostalgia!

I'm definitely starting to feel fully festive!