It has been ages since I last did one of these posts!
I've been a bit quiet over here lately, so here's what I've been up to lately:
Reading
I've been working my way through a very long book over the last few weeks - 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami. Strictly speaking it's three books, but it was cheaper to buy them all in one volume. Although large, it's easy to read and there aren't many characters to keep track of. It's an unusual book, vaguely referencing George Orwell's book 1984 and set during a fictionalised version of the year 1984. Narrated by two and then three characters, the plot is surreal and covers a parallel universe, a religious cult and strange beings. It's a good read - and I always enjoy books that are set in Japan!
Watching
We are enjoying the new season of For All Mankind which explores an alternative history where the Soviet Union is the first to land on the moon. It's now on season 5, and with each season covering about a decade we've now reached the 2010s. After losing the space race the US ramped up their space programme with significant investment which means that they are far ahead when it comes to technological innovation. This season takes place mainly on the well established Mars base and while I'm not finding it quite as exciting as the first few seasons it's still very watchable.
We've also just started The Testaments which I think is shaping up really well. I'm enjoying seeing a different perspective on the world of The Handmaid's Tale.
Finally another series that I'm part way through is Twenty Twenty Six, a spoof documentary following the organisation behind the World Cup, and a follow up to Twenty Twelve which was based around the Olympics. It's really funny!
Enjoying
I am really appreciating the glorious weather that we've had lately. I love seeing the garden come to life in spring, and I'm spending as much time as I can either in the garden or admiring it from the house. It makes such a difference to my mood when the sun is shining.
Crafting
I decided that I wanted to get my watercolours out again, and so I decided to attempt a small painting each day in May. Each day I'll fill a page depicting something in my garden. It's early days, but so far so good! I have a tiny sketchbook, about 12cm square, and I work very quickly aiming for just a quick impression - I just do a quick sketch in black pen and then add paint. In no way do I claim to be an artist but I really enjoy working on these little paintings.
I also have some more miniature craft kits to work on which I have been sent to review. I will be sharing those shortly!
Sorting
When my Dad died last year he left behind his life's work - an extensive archive of our family history. It was all filed according to his own personal system, and I took on the job of sorting it all out, choosing what to keep and how to organise it all so that it made sense to me. He also had a lot of things related to local history that it would have been a shame to throw away, so I was really pleased to find a local historian that shared many of his interest and happily accepted some boxes of artefacts and ephemera. It's a relief to have the job done, and I discovered lots of really interesting things that I'll be keeping accessible so that I can look through them from time to time.
Looking forward to
We are having work done on our house at the moment with the replacement of some of the bathrooms. It's something that we've been putting off for years and it will look amazing when it's done, but I'm looking forward to being on my own in the house again!