Anne of Green Gables

Sometimes I forget to write about my reading. Sometimes I don't do as much reading as I want. For someone who is so passionate about education, books, and the importance of reading and writing, I am terrible at writing book reviews.

The only way to become better at something is to actively work on it. So, I'm making it a small goal of mine to write about my reading so that I can become better at it.

While 2018 was the year for voraciously consuming new books, 2019 has been a chance to fall back into old loves and stories that touch my heart with happiness and nostalgia.

One of those old loves came to me in the form of Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery.

I stumbled across a beautiful hardbound copy of this novel in a bookstore in Bury St. Edmunds. It's beautiful green wallpaper cover art with gold foil wording and the sweet red-headed face of Anne Shirley enticed me in.

I already have an old copy of the book that was my mothers but I'm sure Anne would agree that sometimes we just have to buy the beautiful thing because it makes our eyes and heart happy.

One of my favorite childhood memories are the times Mom and I would curl up and watch the movie-version with Megan Follows. My Mom was never much of a reader but she loved the story dearly and passed on her love of the movies to me. I must say, that as someone who usually very much hates the movie compared to the book, this is one of the instances where it holds up very well. It combines some scenes and stories for the sake of time, but overall it follows the book exactly and that is what I love about it.

Re-reading the book felt like catching up with old friends. Familiar but different because I was a grown person. I teared up several times throughout the book feeling so much empathy for Anne in the beginning and understanding now how much Matthew and Marilla truly loved her. I laughed at all the scrapes that Anne got into and the responses of her loved ones. I sobbed fat tears at the end when Matthew passes after telling Anne how proud he is of her.

The imagery and language in this novel are gorgeous and I almost wish I hadn't watched the movie before reading it because I think imagining Green Gables and Avonlea would have been a special treat for me as a child.

It truly is a timeless classic that I think will always be beloved for those who are looking for kindred spirits like Anne.

Warwick Castle

For our quick weekend away, I found a Groupon for a stay at the Knight Village on the grounds of Warwick Castle. I was a little worried that Warwick Castle was going to be a bit corny and commercialized and geared towards kids based on the website but I was pleasantly surprised by how quaint our cabin was and beautiful the castle was.

First off, we stayed in these cute little cabins that were decorated in a medieval style with modern amenities. It even had a little room with bunk beds for a family. Although the cabin was lovely and the staff kind and helpful, the bed was so uncomfortable and squeaked every time I moved in the night that I got very little sleep. 

We went during the offseason so there weren't many people staying and we even had the dining room to ourselves for breakfast. We had to pre-order breakfast and we both got an English breakfast. I don't know why I keep ordering English breakfast. I don't enjoy beans generally but especially not in the morning and I really don't care for meat in the morning either. And I'm picky about my eggs. Why do I keep ordering it? Thankfully, Brandon is a big eater and finished off most of my breakfast although neither one of us ate the beans. Would it be rude to order English breakfast without beans? Anyway, breakfast was saved with the fresh warm croissants and pain au chocolats that were brought to the table. This girl is a sucker for fresh warm bread. The dining hall also plays inspirational movie-like music that makes you feel like your loved one is going into battle on a three-song loop so that was fun and interesting. 

After breakfast, we checked out and walked up to the castle. If you stay at the lodge, you access the gate with your key card and walk up to the castle without having to talk to any staff members which this introvert really liked. There weren't any queues or waits to get into the castle. 

The castle itself was interesting. It was a bit cheesy that they had wax figures in many of the rooms, but the architecture was impressive and the dungeon suitably creepy. I did find that there was a lack of historical information available and would have loved to know a bit more about the people of the castle. I know I've read a book about the Warwicks but it would have been nice to get a bit of a refresher on the history. 

It was a weekday so there were several school groups that were touring the place as well. Most were quiet and respectful primary kids but there was one group of older primaries that were very loud and unruly. However, as someone who has had that class whose personalities clash and with students who have a hard time self-regulating, I sympathized with the poor teacher. Just be aware that if you go on a weekday, there will most likely be field trips with children. However, I think on weekends and during big tourist seasons, they have a lot of outdoor activities for kids so it was nice to avoid that as a childless couple.

The grounds were probably my favorite part of the morning. It was a sunshiny cool day and viewing the town and fields below from the top of the tower was beautiful.

It was nice to do a quick night away from home and responsibilities and connect with Brandon. We've been together for nine years this November and spending time exploring is my favorite way of connecting with my love. 

Shakespeare Country

I've become absent-minded about American holidays. Not seeing them in the calendar of my British phone makes it difficult to remember which ones are coming up and which ones my husband will have off of work. Of course, he always has Veteran's Day off. I knew I didn't want to hang around the house for three days so when I saw a Groupon for a lodge at Warwick Castle, I knew I wanted to have a super short getaway. 

Stratford-upon-Avon is very close to Warwick Castle so when we drove up late Sunday morning, we started there. We started in the birthplace of Shakespeare. The place where he lived most of his life and had many connections to the area. 

If you're going to see the birthplace, tickets to see all five houses are not much more expensive and are good for an entire year (I love this about some British attractions!).

We only managed to make it to three of the homes in the area that have a connection to him. I think we'll go back in the Spring to see the other two though since our tickets will be good.

First up, the birthplace. This is the home that Shakespeare was born in (the picture below with the baby cradle is the room he was thought to be born in though the cradle isn't original) and we walked on the original stone floors that Shakespeare would have walked as a child. It was a charming home. His father was a leatherworker who had a workshop in the home and sold his goods out of the window into the street. As you can tell, the door frames were quite a bit shorter in areas than my 5'11 husband. 

Shakespeare's New Place, the largest home in the town during his time and the place he lived in with his wife and daughters and died in, was destroyed by an owner in 1759 who was quite tired of tourists annoying him in his home. This was before Britain's extensive conservation laws. All that stands now is the foundation, gardens, and the museum-like area that was built on top. This was a quick stop as the house no longer stood there.

And lastly, we visited Hall's Croft which was the home of Shakespeare's daughter, Susanna Hall and her physician husband, John Hall. This home was really lovely and decorated in the style of the time. Upstairs, there was a small exhibit dedicated to medicine and John Hall. The gardens outside this home were really lovely as well.

After we visited the Shakespeare homes, we walked down to the Holy Trinity Church. Everything is within ten to fifteen minutes walking distance if you go from the Birthplace to New place and then walk down to Hall's Croft and head down towards the church afterward. The outside of Holy Trinity Church is beautiful and the graveyard extensive and old as all of them seem to be here. The inside is gilded with beautiful architecture and chandeliers. This is the resting place of William Shakespeare. You have to pay a "donation" recommended four pounds a person to access his gravesite in the church but it was worth it to walk down and see the statue that was commissioned by his family after his death and is said to be the only accurate likeness of his actual looks. His resting place spot with the curse is pictured below. Shakespeare knew that because he was famous, he was at risk of grave robbers digging up his bones after his death hence the need to curse the man that steals his bones.

I've never been a big fan of Shakespeare's work but I am fascinated and respect the fact that Shakespeare completely changed the face of modern language and so many of his words and phrases are still used by us today. It was interesting to see the charming place that he called home.

Disappointment

I had to cancel our January trip to Iceland this week.

I was so disappointed and disheartened.

I rarely get excited about things but I was so looking forward to our first trip to another European country. I was ecstatic at the chance to see the Aurora in all its shining glory and on my birthday!

But Brandon doesn't have his passport yet. He hasn't even gotten all the paperwork to submit his paperwork and I knew that we would be heavily relying on chance to get it on time.

I'm frustrated with him because of his procrastination. Friends told him to get his passport done when he got here. I told him he should get it done when I was getting mine done. And here we are... No passport and a canceled trip that I was very much looking forward to.

I'm trying not to let bitterness and resentment cause me to be angry with him. Iceland will still be there next year. Although, if I'm teaching next year it will be harder to get away and it most likely won't happen on my birthday...

I'm embarrassed that I told friends, family, and Instagram that we were going and now we are not. I'm jealous that friends who were planning to go around the same time will still be going and I will have to listen to their stories, drive them to the airport, watch their dogs, and see their photos all while knowing we could be experiencing the same thing.

I'm disappointed. I'm bummed. I'm frustrated. I'm annoyed.

I know it isn't the end of the world and that this is a small blip on our plans. I know that we will plan another trip and could possibly do two trips for the cost of Iceland. But I'm still sad.

I'm afraid his passport will show up in time and I will regret canceling the trip. I know it wasn't worth the risk and I know how lucky we were to be able to get a full refund when canceling. But if it shows up in time, I might just lose it.

I know all this comes from a very privileged place but I need to wallow in my feelings for a bit and be frustrated with my husband.

Iceland was in my grip and it was pulled from my fingertips and it's okay for me to be sad about it for a while.

Book Club: The Night Tiger

I started a book club.

It was a lot of work finding women who were interested and nearby in creating a group that's focus would be on a different book each month. I used Bumble BFF to find them and had to weed through flaky unresponsive people to find the five women plus me that will make up our group. After I chose the first book (we will rotate so everyone gets a chance to choose), we finally met up at my home this Saturday to get to know one another, chat about the book, and eat the large spread I put out. 

It was so interesting getting to know everyone and even though the conversation got off topic a bit, we had some really great conversations about The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo.

This book contained everything you could look for in a book. I understand why it was chosen as a book club favorite: it has romance, murder, mystery, and supernatural elements. Everything anyone could have ever wanted.

I spent most of the book really trying to figure out how the author was going to tie in all the various plots, murders, and mysteries that came up. A consensus that our group came to was that we were disappointed by the lack of connection in the end. We were disappointed that it didn't all tie neatly together but I think that is also what makes this novel interesting and unique compared to other mystery-like books. For once, I hadn't figured out the end of the novel halfway through the book and I appreciated that it did totally surprise me.

I, personally, loved the characters in the novel although one group member had a great dislike for Shin but I found that the characters all had a sense of realness to them that you don't always find in other novels. They all had varying and interesting points of views, unique voices and perspectives, and relatable flaws that made them feel more like real characters. Often, I'm disappointed in character development in novels but I found that I really enjoyed all the characters in this one. 

One thing I didn't like about the novel was the ambiguity of the supernatural and death. The author never really confirms the legends, myths, and dreamlike death world that readers experience and that left me feeling a bit unsettled. The book was focused on realism with supernatural elements and I really wanted confirmation on the author's perspective of what was true and what wasn't. That doesn't come and I think it is left open-ended for each reader to decide what they believe is true.

Overall, I found this to be an interesting and engaging novel with characters that felt real and mostly had believable motivations. I would definitely recommend it as a book club book as we all had a lot of opinions and things to say about it. I felt like it was a good choice, to begin with. 

I have to include a picture of a bit of the spread I made that night. I was so excited to create a beautiful cheese board for the first time and I must say, I think I did a great job. I ended up having so much food that I used several different boards (plus a veggie platter and homemade bread). I had a lot of leftover cheese at the end but it won't go bad in my home. 

It was a lovely night full of getting to know one another, connection, and literature. This is exactly what I was looking for when I started this group and I hope it continues as long as I live here. 

Oxford

When I got to England I was eager to see so much of this tiny country and I was willing to drive to make it happen. My husband isn't a fan of long drives but he's willing to sit in the passenger seat as I navigate and find my way to wherever I want to explore. Oxford was truly lovely and I know that we only got to see a piece of it. A tip for anyone else traveling to Oxford, use their park and ride bus system. Or at least look for a large car park before leaving the house. We ended up street parking and had to go back every two hours to put more money in which really put a cramp in our plans. 

Even with the terrible parking situation, we were able to walk through the city, see parts of the university, library, the Bridge of Sighs, and visit the Oxford University Museum of Natural History (which is free and very cool by the way!). There are so many more museums and sights that I want to see next time we visit Oxford but this was a beautiful introduction to a piece of English History on a warm summer Saturday. 

Thankful

It is officially the first of November. The time when many Americans start reflecting on the things that they are thankful for in their lives. I don't want to be a basic person who hashtag's blessed at every opportunity but I must say that I am feeling more and more thankful for this life of mine.

Photo by Toa Heftiba

More than at any point in my life, happiness has been sinking into my pores. I don't think I have ever felt more confident and happy with myself in my adult life. Even at this weight. Even being unemployed. Even when I fail.

I have been falling in love with this country. I've never felt so connected with a place since we've been living this nomadic military life and I'm already feeling deep sadness at having to leave even though it won't be for years.

I have been feeling more and more creative. Working on projects, printables, and writing. I've never had the creative bug bite me like this before.

I've been feeling connected. I've made some friends. I've started a book club. My social life has never felt this good. This may just be a season right now but I'm trying to enjoy it while it lasts.

A job opportunity has cropped up. I have an interview next week. It's for a substitute position. At a High School (I am K-8 certified) but I will be back in the classroom learning and gaining experience and adding some important income and fulfillment to my life.

Brandon and I are good. We will never be perfect because perfect couples don't exist but we are happy. He makes me laugh every day and I miss him when he's not around. Things are so much better than they are bad and I'm grateful. Marriage is full of seasons and they aren't always easy but right now, things are good and happy.

Our home is cozy and warm and full of the things I love. It's located in a tiny village that I love and feel very connected with. It might be in the middle of nowhere with terrible roads but it is ours and I am so enamored with it.

I'm even grateful for the little things like good wine, slow cups of tea and coffee, Autumn scented candles, homemade bread, and good cheese.

I've never asked for much in my life. I want to travel, have good friends, and do something that adds meaning to my life while enjoying the journey with my person.

For the first time, I feel like I'm on the right track to having everything I ever wanted.