My dissertation is finished and my last essay handed in, so I have now finished my degree! The universe has rewarded me by bringing some beautiful weather after two solid weeks of rain. The lilac and clematis are flowering, so my walk to campus is now even beautiful. The plants have been appreciating the weather even if I haven't. I am now giving my brain a rest by re-watching all six series of Doctor Who and am looking forward to being free to read whatever I like for the first time in three years (The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is first on my list).
Spring is finally here, and in my eyes that is definitely a reason to be cheerful! The weather has been beautiful in this corner of the world, and I am made impossibly happy by all the spring flowers that I see everyday on my way to university.
Venice was, as expected, utterly beautiful. We arrived on a gorgeous sunny day and got to take in the city from the sea as we caught the water bus from the airport. We were blessed with a stunning sunset too as we ate looking out over the lagoon. We spent our days in Venice wandering the city and taking innumerable photos of alleyways and canals. We managed to sneak in to Saint Mark's Basilica one evening right before mass started: the air was completely thick with incense and I stared up at the gold mosaics in awed silence.
After Venice we took a train up to Aviano and spent a few days relaxing, eating amazing food and resting our tired feet after exploring most of Venice.
Life has been hectic lately. I had my wisdom teeth removed a couple of weeks ago, meaning that I spent one week languishing whilst taking lots of pain medication and having very little sleep, followed by another week desperately trying to catch up on my uni work. But, there are always things to be cheerful about, like...
Getting flowers and Junior Mints from my boyfriend for our anniversary
Winning sweets in one of my classes (which made me feel like I was back at school again)
Listening to Laura Marling's beautiful new album
Spending the weekend watching movies and drinking many, many cups of tea
{Picture found on tumblr, although I'm afraid I don't know the original source. Please contact me if it belongs to you }
I have gone back to uni early in search of a job and work experience, and so I am the first to move into our new house. At first, I felt a little nervous being in the house on my own. I have taken the cozy attic bedroom (yay for attic bedrooms!), so I felt a little isolated at the top of the house - one little person rattling around in a house of empty rooms. But my parents came to bring me my things at the weekend, and now it feels a lot more like home. They brought me some beautiful flowers, which have been giving the mantelpiece some colour. We spent most of the day cleaning, but had a delicious meal at Giraffe Cafe. So my reasons to be cheerful are 1) my lovely parents who gave up their time to help me scrub the kitchen and 2) the house starting to feel more like home.
Today I am very cheerful, as I have finally finished the quilt I have been making. I was getting quite frustrated towards the end, as binding the edges was very fiddly and time-consuming (not helped by the fact that the binding I bought was not very wide). I do still need to add the quilting, as it is only tacked in place at the moment, but I will be doing that by hand. For now I am breathing a sigh of relief that the main construction is finished.
Recently I have been entertaining daydreams of driving off into the unknown, exploring the world, having adventures, and living in a tipi in the wilderness. Clearly, this is not a practical dream, so rather than gathering together my worldly possessions and disappearing into the wilds, I made a mixtape about it instead.
1// Drive On // Avalanche City
In the car on the way to the city
In the morning it was foggy on the windscreen
We talked about the day ahead
And shouldn't we just run away instead.
2// I and Love and You // The Avett Brothers
Load the car and write the note.
Grab your bag and grab your coat.
Tell the ones who need to know.
We are headed north.
3// Blue Ridge Mountains // Fleet Foxes
Let's drive to the country side,
Leave behind some green-eyed look-a-likes.
4// Travel Light // Laura Marling & Johnny Flynn
I travel light and that's the life for me.
5// Badman//Newton Faulkner
Please just run away with me
Oh please just give me fields and trees
Oh please we can find all we need.
6// Run // Vampire Weekend
It struck me that the two of us could run,
Worlds away from cars
And all the stars in bars
7// (Let's Go) Get Lost // Patrick Wolf
Come on and run
Come get lost with me
Slip away discreetly
You're my love
Come away with me
Till we run on empty
Today I watched Tom Ford's A Single Man while I was sewing. My cheerfulness comes from the fact it is a stunning film, rather than from the movie itself: based on Christopher Isherwood's novel, A Single Man is a poignant and melancholy tale of George Falconer, a gay man coming to terms with the death of his lover. The narrative is gracefully pieced together through flashbacks depicting George's memories of his partner. Colin Firth's acting is, of course, impeccable and he perfectly conveys the utter heartbreak of losing someone you love.
The 1960s settings and costumes are gorgeous - I am completely in envy of the Mid Century house which George lives in. The soundtrack is also beautiful, and I love the song, Swimming, which is on the player at the bottom of the post.
