The wonderings, ponderings and other 'ings' of me. Lifestyle, review, news and opinion posts. Chic with a hint of sarcasm... hopefully!

Monday 30 May 2016

It's just a Phoneless Day

So the other week I left something at home that, when carrying it enables me to breathe freely and without which I feel a bit lopsided.   My phone.

Yep all day at work without my Android.  I’ll wait while you all check yours are within reach thereby allowing you to bypass the feelings of panic and woe I suffered…. Got it? Good.  My first thought after realizing what I had done was Balls! FOMO* full on attack-hugged me as I pondered all the things I couldn't do or be involved in for a whole Eight. Hours!  


My predicament made worse by the fact that the I.T. guy that sets up my temp girl laptop was late so I couldn’t even check my social media sites on a p.c.  I hung around the empty office (no one else gets in as early as me) acting all twitchy like I had just chased a 10oz latte with a couple of espresso Martinis**


After what was realistically about 5 minutes but felt eye strainingly*** longer I decided to go to Hot Numbers, a well-known coffee shop hang out for freelancers and students with MACs and laptops.   Walking in was odd – my coffee consumed without first appearing on Instagram I sat for a full 45 minutes with nothing to pay attention to but the people around me. 

I’ll admit 10 of those were a little ‘dreamt I turned up to work naked’ uncomfortable, but sooner then I expected I settled into just watching the world go by.  I saw commuters and tourists alike enjoying the sunny morning.  I laughed as I saw two women cycle past, their bicycle bells shaped like a ladybird and a hamburger (when did the novelty bell become a thing?) I was really and truly just present.  It felt kind of magical.

This got me pondering other aspects of my life that took me out of just being, like TV.  Anyone that knows me, knows my addict status when it comes to my two dimensional friends.  So when I first met Emma a blogger who goes by 100DaysNoTV I was in awe/confused at the concept.


But now I’m wondering if being constantly tuned in might be distracting us from our own undiscovered creativity.  

Would JK Rowling have gotten around to writing the adventures of Mr Potter had she a smart phone that buzzed every 30 seconds?
Would updates on twitter have distracted Stephen Hawking from learning about the everything?  
Would Dave Grohl have joined Nirvana or formed Foo Fighters if he'd been instagramming his guitars and drum kit instead of playing them?

This isn't a ground breaking concept, nor does it mean I'm signing out of social media and selling my telly.  I still need to know how Rick is going to handle Neegan and when dragon lady is going to kick evereone’s arse and get to the God dammed iron throne

But I am trying to find a better balance between technology and creativity.  If I get it right I'm hoping more magical moments will occur.
  
*Fear Of Missing Out, seriously where’ve you been?!
** something I unfortunately have first-hand experience of.  
** what? It's a word!



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Wednesday 18 May 2016

#CambsMeetUp - Catesbys Event

What happens when a couple of fabulous gentlemen who love the Provence way of life want to bring that dash of French chic design to a store in Cambridge?  Well you get Catesby's on Green Street, that's what.  One of those 'I'll just transplant my salary directly into your account' shops that beckon you in with dark wood panelling and gorgeous little trinkets at every turn.  Which, coincidentally enough, is exactly where I found myself last Sunday morning... this stuff isn't just thrown together you know! 

The lovely Clashing Time invited me and a tribe of bloggers (is that right? I've no idea if we have been given a collective noun or not yet?) to this independent treasure for the latest #CambMeetUp event which I had been looking forward to for ages!



Neil and Jonathon, the owners of the store welcomed us in with joyful abandon, talking about why they love interior design, France and Cambridge. They got me totally on side when describing themselves as 'the anti Primark' of the high street.  Insisting upon a 'buy less love it longer' mantra I was won over by this unusual yet refreshing sales pitch.  Luckily for them the store is besieged with the cutest bits and bobs for you to find and love for longer in your home, many of the girls picked up a bargain or two before they left.   






When we were done with shopping we headed upstairs to the cafe where we had been provided an instagram friendly breakfast over which we could catch up or introduce ourselves.  Blogger friends like Lifesacatwalk and ClaireBellaMakes were around and I even hung out with some new faces (hello FashionistaBarbie, SuitcaseandSandals and The Trove) as well.  It's here we got to meet the lovely Julie from Cambridge Satchel CompanyJulie is is a big fan of Catesby's and seemed only to pleased to chat away to us, proudly showing her latest bag and pictures of her gorgeous dogs in equal proportion.




All of which now means I'm left with a dilemma.   Do I save up to redesign my home, buy a new satchel or get a boxer puppy!?
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