It’s my favourite week of the year: birthday week. I’ve never really been one of those people who squeal on and on about their birthday for ages beforehand and demand that many different festivities are organised for them, who expect special balloons with their age on and feel deeply, genuinely hurt when not everyone within a four mile radius remembers that it’s their “special day”. I will admit, however, that I do get a little tickle of childlike excitement as the dates on the calendar flick over towards my dedicated day of enforced joy. It’s mental muscle memory, isn’t it? Because it was the most thrilling thing of all when you were small, knowing that your birthday was drawing closer and that soon there would be a day entirely about you.
Different now, of course. Maybe I’ll manage to do something that’s “entirely for me” at some point on the 28th November but mostly I think I’ll be ploughing through work (it’s the busiest work time of the year) and perhaps, if I have time, perusing Vestiaire, the second-hand luxury clothing platform, to see what else I can buy that will be totally and utterly unsuitable for me. (Honestly, this pre-loved thing has taken a really bad turn since my Vinted post. I will update you soon but it’s safe to say that my purchases thus far have been 80% a complete waste of cash.)
Before we reach Thursday, though, we have my selection of recent “five favourite things” and boy is it a strong turnout this month. At least four of the five things have made me whoop (embarrassingly) with joy and the remaining favourite, the lesser-favoured runt of the litter, has still left me feeling pretty pleased with life.
Historically these favourites posts have been Youtube videos and I have no intention of changing that now that I’ve moved the blog to Substack: you can read a little bit about each favourite if you scroll down past the video screen but for the full energy, maximum enjoyment experience, click the play button and settle on in for a cosy chat:
November Favourites
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Rivals
This the thing I just can’t stop talking about: the Disney adaptation of Jilly Cooper’s book, Rivals, which is as brilliant as any TV can possibly, possibly be. It deserves an entirely separate post and I will get around to it, but in short: it is just unapologetically outrageous, bold, sex-strewn and nostalgic with some of the best acting I’ve seen in years. Danny Dyer (I know!) takes the thespian biscuit as Fred-Fred and Nafessa Williams (as Cameron Cook) is just the most ballsy and brilliant antidote to the 1980s misogyny, beating men at their own game right up to the closing scene.
Oh God I’m overexcited just trying to write about it – the costumes! The music! Everyone doing “the birdy song” at that garden party! LADY IN RED! I just haven’t enjoyed anything on the telly so absolutely and so thoroughly in ages. I’d go straight back in and watch it again, if just to gaze at Aidan Turner smoking in the bath/driving angrily/kneeling naked in front of his wife. I’ll be back with a more exhaustive list of things I like, fear not.
All Fours
And now moving on from the book (or one of them) that informed my teenage sexual awakening (oh come on, wasn’t it the same for all of us in the nineties? An intro via the much tamer Forever by Judy Blume, followed by a full-on Jilly Cooper shag-fest?) to the book that’s dropped my jaw in my forties: All Fours by Miranda July. I mentioned this in the Books n Chocs roundup (if you haven’t read that yet then you must, it’s the most important post of the year!) and my opinion stands: this is just totally bonkers and although some parts of it tested my suspension of disbelief powers, the majority just had me happily entranced. It’s about a woman who plans to go on a solo road-trip – the really long-distance, brave type – and stops half an hour into it to set up camp in a motel room. She spends $20,000 having the motel room interior-decorated and furnished (I told you it would test your suspension of disbelief) and never actually has the road-trip, instead having a non-touching highly-charged sexual renaissance with a young married guy who’s totally into her but doesn’t want to cheat on his wife.
To be quite honest it’s not a sexual renaissance at all, really – this woman is pretty well, er, charged before she even sets off, but that’s a small point.
Anyway, like I said last week, not one for Aunt Maud as she recovers from her hip operation, or your kid’s year four primary school teacher for her end of term present, because this is “eyebrow-raising” in many places, but what a conversation starter!
Arket Slouch Boots
Seems pedestrian to talk about boots after we’ve done two bonk-fests but I do really very much love these slouch leather boots that I bought from Arket. Soft, soft leather and a comfortable, non-threatening heel but with a pointed toe that looks smart and polished. I bought them before I cracked into Rivals but actually now realise they have a distinct eighties vibe!
Watch the video to see them in action. You can find them online here* – I wear a UK6 and find them true to size. No zips so be wary re calf width!
Disclaimer
More TV, this time with Cate Blanchett and a storyline that has an about-turn so HUGE that I daren’t say much more in case it spoils it for you. I really disliked the first three episodes of Disclaimer, to the point of almost giving up on it, but please stay with it until the end. It all then makes sense.
Honestly, if you’ve seen it and I say to you “Kylie’s boob” then you’ll know exactly the scene that almost made me nearly switch the whole thing off. It was so unbelievably cringeworthy. But then so absolutely clever when you thought back on it from the final episodes! Bravo. I’ve seen very mixed reviews of this but can only think that the bad ones have come from the people who abandoned ship before the twist…
Aveeno Rich Oat Balm
Last favourite: Aveeno’s Rich Oat Balm. At the time of writing this is £6.60 on Amazon (here*) and I can’t imagine it ever being much cheaper. This is – unsurprisingly, considering the product name – a rich balm that feels instantly soothing and calming yet manages to feel as robust and lingeringly moisturising as a far more expensive sort of face product. The texture’s lovely. It’s brilliant for travel, because no heavy pot, and though it leaves the skin most definitely feeling well-oiled, there’s no greasiness to the residue. It’s a great, intensive treat for winter-dried skin.
Right, I’m off to start something new on the telly. An hour each evening, that’s our allotted time, TV dinner in front of the fire! This is 44, etc…
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