I am currently on holiday but thought I should acknowledge a milestone for my little blog. It is now two years since I started blogging properly. When I get my teeth into something, I generally stick at it for a while but doing this for two years was totally unexpected. My blog birthday is here and I am grateful to all the wonderful readers and contributors who have helped me get this far.
Looking Back
Although I had a free WordPress blog for a while, I rarely used it. Once in a while I would write a book review or poem but it was very much a hobby.
Then, at the end of May 2022, I made a decision to blog regularly and establish a site that celebrated the things that I enjoy. In doing so, I became a part of the brilliant blogging community. As a result, I have made some blogger buddies and appreciated making valued connections and friendships.
Things I Have Achieved
At the time of writing, I now have 983 followers, written 671 posts and welcomed many wonderful guest posts.
I have also joined an incredible group of bloggers called ‘The Climate Change Collective’ where we celebrate environmental initiatives. Each month we take turns to write posts, including recent research and practical methods to help fight global warming.
Here is our May article for you to have a look at:
Thank you so much for supporting my blog and taking time to respond to my articles with comments.I really appreciate the love my blog has felt and look forward to another year of producing lifestyle articles. If you haven’t already followed the blog, please consider it.
On it’s second blog birthday, I think I will have to raise a glass in appreciation for the blogging community.
It has been a while since I sat down and wrote a book review post. I have been busy working my way through several great books and they are finally coming to an end. So now you can expect a bunch of bookish posts, starting with my Frazzled book review.
Frazzled- A brilliant book about mental health
As a long term fan of Ruby Wax, I noticed she had some books out and ‘A Mindfulness Guide For The Frazzled’ had been a number one best seller a few years ago. It seemed like a good place to start. So I got myself a copy and read it straight away. Usually if I am reading non-fiction it is biographies I go to. This book is partly personal but is also an exploration of the topic of mindfulness. A uniquely original text.
In A Nutshell
Ruby has completed a Masters in Mindfulness for Oxford University. This book takes us through what mindfulness is and what it meant to her when she struggled with depression.
I remember her famous TV show, ‘The Full Wax’ which used to get 14 million viewers. She would spend time with celebrities up close and personal, chatting and winding them up. I especially enjoyed her interview with Goldie Hawn and the crazy one with Donald Trump where she managed to make him squirm.
This brilliant red book is organised into helpful chapters, such as ‘How our brains work and the science behind mindfulness.’ She also goes into detail about how to introduce mindfulness practices when parenting. She intersperses factual information with her own funny reflections (always shown in a different bold font).
I learned so much about how the mind works from this book. Ruby has a way of explaining things that really grabs me. She is an expert writer and her anecdotes are so personal and funny. It has really opened my eyes to some important ideas relating to looking after my mental health.
Final Thoughts
I really enjoyed this book. It was well organised and written in a relatable way. The funny moments were balanced with serious examples and I now want to read Ruby’s second publication. I can totally recommend checking out her writing, especially if you are wanting to know more about mindfulness.
Hopefully you were intrigued by my Frazzled book review and will check out one of Ruby’s books. Thank you so much for taking the time to read my article. For another intriguing book recommendation, check out my Apples Never Fall review and maybe consider following my blog for more of the same.
In celebration of the fact that my book has now gone on sale at a cheaper rate on Amazon, I wanted to share another snippet. The Kindle version is approximately half price for the next month and I would love some new readers. Check out my dramatic book and maybe snap up an ebook if it takes your interest.
At the time of me writing this the UK version is £1.75 and the US version is $2.18.
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The Fathers, the Sons and the Anxious Ghost
Extract from Chapter 19 (Max)
Today we all sat around a table, going through every line and discussing possible staging. The director, Mr Simmons, was very helpful and guided us kindly through each scene, suggesting ways we could alter our tone and bring out the characters appropriately. He was a legend in school, and we all took what he said very seriously, often taking time to note down his suggestions. My scripts ended up covered in copious notes, which I would probably have to type up later in order to make sense of them. The reviews for last year’s play were outstanding, and none of us wanted to let the others down. We all badly wanted to pull off a masterpiece and the concentration on our faces must have looked intense.
My phone vibrated and I caught it in time to send it to voicemail, but everyone seemed to glare at me as I tried to play it down. Dad then texted me, and I could see that it flashed up with the words ‘pizza later?’ This brought out a smile, which distracted me from what I was about to say. “Keep up, Max,” Mr Simmons nudged, supportively.
Lisa repeated her cue to me and I managed to get through a few sentences correctly, even pausing for effect whilst showing a concerned expression on my face. A small clap came about as I completed the monologue, and a few more people read their lines before we were stopped and told to get a drink or use the washrooms.
Taking the opportunity to message Dad back, I agreed a time and he said he would pick me up. It was great because I hadn’t seen him for over a week now. I wondered if he had been around Sam’s house, but he hadn’t mentioned it and I hadn’t bothered to ask. With Sam and me, the less said about our two dads at the moment, the better.
Since we both discovered them together, we had been a bit emotionally scarred. I mean, I love gay people. I love my dad. I always thought Sam’s dad was great. But putting all of those elements together at the same time freaked me out. It would just take some getting used to I supposed, and the last thing I wanted was for it to drive a wedge between Dad and me.
It was partly my fault though that Mum found out; as in my distress I had messaged Chloe for support and she had told her nan, who just happened to be my neighbour, old Ruby. So taken aback, Ruby had gone straight around to tell my very surprised mum, who immediately flipped out, threw a toaster across the room, nearly hitting me and chucked everything that Dad possessed into bin bags, dumping them in the driveway.
Anyway, that was over with; the dust was settling, and it was important that Dad and I got to spend some quality time together. When he came to pick me up after rehearsals, he nodded at me to get in the car and drove off quickly, hardly speaking all the way there. When we sat down in Pizza Bob’s, I made the first move and asked him what he had been up to.
He was friendly and relieved that I was still speaking to him. I was, of course, likewise pleased that he was not holding a grudge. We managed to make some small talk and he mentioned how bad the football game had been the previous night and how our favourite team’s manager was appalling and should have been sacked. We definitely agreed on that. It made him laugh when I did an impression of the ignorant goalie who was basically not even paying attention when the striker came by and scored from up close. Dad seemed at ease with me, so I considered bringing up Josh, my old teacher.
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Thank you for checking out an extract from my dramatic book – ‘The Fathers, the Sons and the Anxious Ghost’. I hope that you enjoyed it and maybe even found it intriguing. Check out Another Book Extract here.
