August

Why has it suddenly gotten grey and cold? Why is the sky getting dark so early? Why has August disappeared so quickly?
WHAT IS GOING ON?!

No, but really, I find myself looking around in a bit of a daze wondering where the last month has gone. Summer seems to have flown by and now - two weeks into the new school term - feels like a distant memory. But what great memories they are!

This month I:
- Went to Iceland. And it was brilliant! [Read about it: here, here and here.]
- Enjoyed getting involved in another church's holiday club - all the joy with none of the responsibility!
- Finally ticked "Cycle to Longside and back" off of my to-do list.
- Took part in the Travelettes' daily Instagram challenge, which was a lot of fun.
- Started plotting a bunch of new projects at work, which I'm very excited about!
- And enjoyed a random wee road trip to Macduff Aquarium like the big kid that I am. 



I read:
'NW' is the story of four Londoners trying to build lives for themselves beyond the estate in which they grew up, and it's the first of Zadie Smith's books I can actually say I enjoyed. Bravo!

The way everyone talks, I feel like I should have known who Caitlin Moran was long before I downloaded this book. I didn't, but after reading it I kind of wish I did. Part autobiography, part call to arms, 'How to Be a Woman' takes a humorous look at life as a woman in present society and explains why feminism is still necessary today.

A personal account of the May 1996 disaster on Mount Everest, in which eight people lost their lives, 'Into Thin Air' is both gripping and devastating and made me encounter just about every emotion known to man.

It's practically compulsory to list at least one John Green book every month. This is the story of two boys named Will Grayson who bump into each other quite by accident one night. It was a cute read, but I found it a bit too far-fetched to have the same emotional impact as his other books. 

I'm not sure I should even list this as a book given that it only had 77 pages. But I didn't realise that when I downloaded it, nor when I started reading it, so list it I shall. 'Three Cups of Deceit' seeks to uncover the truth around "humanitarian" Greg Mortenson's "charity work". I'm not familiar with Mortenson, nor his organisation, but it certainly made me consider how much we really know about the charities we give our well-intentioned money to. 

I watched: 
The start of The Great British Bake Off, which I'm delighted to have back on our TVs!

'Beginners', 'Zero Dark Thirty', 'The King's Speech', 'Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince', 'Robot and Frank', 'Four Last Songs' and 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' ..which is about as many movies in a month as I normally watch in three!


All in all, August was a really good month -- the perfect balance of downtime/adventures and exciting work-related things.

I'm excited to see what September brings..

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