Welcome back! It’s a new year, it’s a new life… but I’ve not written for a while, so we start back at Halloween and a lovely trip to the cinema with the youngest to see the beautiful The Wild Robot.
What a wonderful film, the perfect antidote to the rest of the day trick or treating. The following week, eerie atmospheres brought fireworks…
Around the same time we started to enjoy streaming The Perfect Couple, Alma’s Not Normal and other things that must have been eminently forgettable as I can’t remember them, but normal life paused for a while as we were incredibly saddened by the sudden, tragic death of a colleague of over two decades which really hit home. In one of her last texts to me, she described me as a ‘constant friend’ and I felt very honoured to have received that accolade. She was a mentor and her death left a lasting effect on many.
There also came unsettling news stories such as natural disasters and the inevitable victory of Trump, but thankfully spirits were lifted by another trip to Comic Con Liverpool and a wonderful experience meeting a childhood hero – yes, my parents were apparently that cruel – from Gremlins, an almost Christmas story. I didn’t get chance to ask Billy Peltzer, or Zach as I can now call him after I gave him a Gizmo badge, whether Phoebe Cates was as beautiful in real life as in the film, but I’m sure the answer would have been yes. It’s always such a great day out. We saw several other stars and spent lots of money… I might even let B watch Gremlins at some point.
In the meantime, we’ll keep watching nice things on Disney such as a much more lovely tale about displaced creatures at wintertime in the clever animation An Almost Christmas Story, a story all about a misplaced owl which I’d shared on social media a few years back and obviously resonated what with our upcoming fifteen year anniversary of visiting said Rockefeller Centre tree.
Watch it next Christmas.
Talking of beauty and elegance, a quick drink in the opulent St Peter’s in Liverpool (famously the church in The Golden Vision) before a breathtaking doubleheader of a gig by Gruff Rhys and Bill Ryder Jones who is been desperate to see / hear for years and the Philharmonic was the perfect setting for the experience. Here’s a little taste of their genius:
What a gig: Bill – who I was lucky enough to meet a few years ago to discuss all things Everton – even brought on a primary school choir to enhance some of the best songs of his most recent album; it must have been well past their bedtime but who cared when it was such a special occasion?
The next day, a fortuitous day off brought with it a trip to see the equally impressive Wicked, a cinematic joy. I truly can’t wait for the second part to be released. And another came later in the month with Paddington in Peru then starting at home (sporadically, no binge watching at this time of year for us) the likes of Skeleton Crew, Squid Game, Black Doves and Missing You which all started positively.
As the delectable Kate Beringer once said, Christmas Day it came and went in a flash, so busy were our social calendars what with parties and nativity plays and Christmas Extravaganzas – all lovely experiences to attend – that we looked forward to a rest. I bought myself my two favourite shirts from my childhood to celebrate, and we really did have a lovely time together alongside a few nice lie ins which were the main thing! We even made it out for a walk on Christmas Day afternoon and the sunset was spectacular.
This year promises much and several exciting opportunities for positive change, so I’ll endeavour to keep you updated throughout 2025… whatever happens. The most widely anticipated arrived via email and was shared over a cosy Christmas drink in the local.
Happy new year to all who have taken the time to read this; writing it is a Sisyphean task but it is quite cathartic because it’s so sprezzaturan, especially recently.
Until next time.