June, you have felt kind of surreal. (Sorry this is a bit late! Hopefully you enjoy the post anyway…)
Favourite part?
I think it’s pretty obvious my exams weren’t the best part, but they they’re over and done now.
The best part of my month definitely has to be holiday to Ireland with my three best pals. I did a whole blog post about it so I won’t go into full detail here, but I couldn’t have thought of a better way to start my summer holidays!
Before that though, I had a lovely few evenings out with my friends celebrating the end of our exams. It was lovely to have some time with them without the stress of exams hanging over us.
A few days after returning from Ireland, I spent a day in London. A spent the afternoon mooching around Covent Garden and Charing Cross Road, making sure to stop off at Foyles bookshop – one of my favourite places in the world.
I spent that evening in the Southbank Centre, at an evening with Caitlin Moran, hosted by Gemma Cairney, where she discussed her new book (the second in a trilogy, following How to Build a Girl), How to be Famous. It essentially turned into a discussion on feminism, Britpop, masturbation and girl gangs. Afterwards, we had the opportunity to meet Caitlin and for her to sign our book, and I still can’t believe that I met one of my first feminist idols and told her that, I too write about my vagina on the internet.
Best read?
As you can imagine, at the beginning of June I didn’t have a huge amount of time for reading. However, I did read Henry VIII: The Quest for Fame by John Guy as a less strenuous way of cramming for my Tudor exam. I also read The War on Women (and the Brave Ones Who Fought Back) by Sue Lloyd-Roberts, published posthumously and finished by her daughter Sarah Morris. This book is incredible. It made me cry, feel hopeful and hit me in the gut. I urge everyone and anyone to read it. Sue Lloyd-Roberts is definitely a person whose work I’m going to look more into – her writing is so concise and full of knowledge she really hits home her point.
I also read I Knew Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou. I have always loved Maya Angelou’s poetry, she captivated me as soon as I read one of them for the first time, even more so after having listened to her recitations of some of them on YouTube. Again, this book cut through me. It was visceral, and beautiful and heartbreaking and I can’t wait to read more of Maya Angelou’s autobiographies.
Favourite tunes?
ABBA (as always). But Stevie Nicks has my back on late trains back from London.
Favourite watch?
Paddington 2. I laughed, I cried. I will cry every time I watch it. I also watched Rebellion on Netflix and would highly recommend. The characters were all so interesting and complex and I do love a bit of historical drama.
I feel like it goes without saying that I, like the rest of the UK, is currently watching Love Island. I am in love with Jack and Dani, and as you can imagine, I detest Adam.
What did I learn?
Not having structure is horrendous. I need structure. I now have nothing to fill my days and am so completely grateful for the days I have work.
What’s happening next month?
The first half is a little bit empty, but the second half is jam-packed. I’m going to Paris, I have family events and I’m going back to Wales for a couple of weeks.
What’s been on my mind?
Well, for the first couple of weeks I was focused on my exams. They take over your life and as most of mine were on consecutive days, I didn’t have much time to switch my focus from subject to subject.
Later on, I kind of stopped ‘thinking’ so much. It was nice but also kind of difficult to have nothing at the back of my mind. I’ve been thinking more about things I actually want to be doing, like writing, reading and furthering my own activism.
Favourite blogger/vlogger?
ScreenPrism. I live for video essays on my favourite films and TV shows. I love them so much and I think they’re also a great way of keeping my mind on literary analysis through the summer without any stress and actually enjoying it.
I have also watched a load of zero waste and, oddly, list videos with random facts about the royal family. Don’t ask me about the second one, I honestly have no idea… In regards to zero waste channels, Sustainably Vegan and Madeleine Olivia are some of my favourites.
Favourite post?
I actually have a choice this month! I think my favorites would be my very first What I Eat in a Day and my Ireland post. I love food and cooking, and I really enjoyed putting together my What I Eat in a Day and I definitely want to do more in the future.
Biggest inspiration?
I don’t know to be honest with you. I felt a bit stagnated for the past week, partially because I’ve been ill but mostly because I’ve had nothing to do with my time (which, as a statement, I know is not really true there’s loads of stuff I could be doing, I just have done yet).
Any other favourites?
My new sunglasses! They make me feel a cool feminine (hopefully less problematic) John Lennon and I am living for it.
If you liked this post you might like: May 2018 | Monthly Wrap Up
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