Weekly Rundown

I completely forgot to write a post for yesterday but it was kind of just as well because if I had I wouldn't have realised that this is my six hundred and sixty-sixth post. Be afraid. Be very afraid!

This week has been a lot more relaxed than last week, something I’m eternally grateful for because after all the excitement and travelling last Friday and Saturday I’ve spent pretty much the whole week just longing for my bed. Yesterday I got to have a lovely long lie-in, doing nothing more taxing than filling in the pages of my newest Book Journal and watching films. Exactly what I needed, even if I still couldn’t help waking up at 7:30am!

This week I’ve been taking a break from knitting Hattie, the doll I’ve been working on. Well, I’ve made her one outfit and cast on for a scarf, but 12 stitch rows of garter stitch are a little wearisome and I needed something to work on while I was away last week so I’ve been working on a monster instead. I’ve gotten the body finished but wasn’t feeling one hundred percent during the week and couldn’t be bothered with the effort of knitting dinky little arms and legs so I’ve not made any progress with it recently.

It’s not something that I’m going to let languish on my needles though. This week I’m aiming to try and get at least two limbs finished and the rest done the following week and all sewn together. I’m not sure exactly where my little monster is going to end up but I’m tempted to take it into work for my desk as my little elf person is a bit out of place there all by himself.

I’ve been well stuck into my OU this week as well. Reading all of the books for this section of the course has really paid off because I’m just whizzing through the material, rather than having to stop and read to a certain point before I’m able to continue. Despite doing practically no OU work the week when I was away I still managed to finish that chapter on Friday and got a little way into the next one the day before I was technically due to start it.

I’ve got a few more evenings in next week so all being well I’ll be able to crack on with the last two chapters and start work on the final assignment next Saturday. Kind of scary to think how close to finishing it I am now. We’ve even been talking about my graduation ceremony this week. I’m hoping it’s in Edinburgh so we can make a long weekend of it and visit the city when it’s slightly less crazy than it was at Christmas time.

Now that I’m all up to date with my OU reading I’ve also got freedom to read whatever book I feel like, completely guilt-free. I’ve gone to The Lord of the Rings because it’s about due for another reread. I had been determined to read the illustrated edition this time around but thus far I’ve managed approximately one chapter and the rest has been on my Kindle.

The problem with the illustrated edition is that it is most definitely not portable. Had I tried taking that to Manchester with me I would’ve needed another suitcase (and a whole table to myself on the train so I had somewhere to put it while I was reading)! It’s also somewhat expensive and valuable and so not the sort of thing you can read in bed while you’re drinking a cup of tea (as I found out with my illustrated edition of The Hobbit, luckily it hasn’t stained). So for practical reasons I’ve been reading it on my Kindle and then just visiting the illustrated edition to check out the pictures. It’s working well for me so far.

TV viewing has been sporadic this week. After having a lazy day at home last Sunday I didn’t get to watch the episode of Bones my in-laws had recorded for me on the Sky+ and we’ve been out of the house most evenings this week so we’ve not seen too many episodes of Criminal Minds either.

The Two Ronnies, on the other hand, we’re sailing through. They’re not too long, about 45 minutes, so are the perfect length to watch with a hot drink in bed before snuggling under the covers and reading. Some of the jokes date the episodes a little bit, at the moment there’s a reference to Uganda’s General Amin at least once an episode but on the whole I’m enjoying it. It seems like a good thing to follow The Good Life with.

This week I’m hoping to get stuck into the A to Z Challenge, focusing on the entirely random collection of music I have on my mp3 player/other assorted songs that I like. I’m also hoping to continue to post books reviews and extra posts some days as well, but I’m hoping to use this as a chance to get well and truly caught up with the other blogs I follow and actually post some comments on them to say hi as well!