Currently #08

I love Winter, but what I'd give to be back here right now...

Reading :: For Esme - with Love and Squalor by J. D. Salinger. When you have a Mum who wrote her university dissertation on Salinger's works, you can bet I've been gifted a copy of each of his books over the years! Of course I've read The Catcher in the Rye and loved it but have somehow managed to avoid reading any of Salinger's other books, so really it was high time I picked something else of his up. Since I've been at uni I've been reading so much for philosophy and history that reading fiction has sadly had to take a bit of a back seat so I've really struggled to read much over the past few months. This has meant that 'For Esme' is perfect because it's a collection of Salinger's short stories - making it a bit easier to dip in and out of when I have time to read. I'm usually not the biggest fan of short stories but I'm actually really enjoying this so far. Salinger writes beautifully so I'd recommend it to anyone who's interested at all, even if you don't usually enjoy short stories. 

Eating :: Mince pies of course! Before I got back from Exeter last Friday I had only had one mince pie - being eleven days into December having only eaten *one* mince pie is just unheard of for me, but hey, student living I suppose! Anyway, to make up for this shambles I've been making my way through more than my fair share of mince pies. Mince pies and mulled wine are just perfect at this time of year. 

Thinking about :: How much everything has changed in the past year. I guess I always knew that 2015 would hold a lot of change, what with A Levels and leaving home for the first time to go to uni. Still, looking back to the start of this year, it feels as though things couldn't have been more different. Meeting a lot of new people has taught me so much about myself. And oddly, although I've really enjoyed my first term of uni, I've had a bit of a knock on the self-confidence front over the past few weeks which I didn't really see coming. But that's something to leave for another day. 

Watching :: Still Once Upon A Time, obviously (isn't the new series so addictive?!), but mainly Strictly Come Dancing. Possibly a surprising addiction but I just love SCD. I've been watching it with my Mum and Gran since I can remember and it really gets me in the festive mood as I've come to associate it with the run up to Christmas. I can't believe it's the final on Saturday and can't wait to watch it with my family!

Loving :: Being back at home and knowing that I'm going to be reunited with my best friends on Saturday! I really miss my uni friends but it's so lovely to be back home in my own bed and have proper homemade meals. I missed my Mum and Gran so much and the same goes for my best friends. It will be so nice to catch up with everyone and hear how uni's been going for them. I always get nostalgic at this time of year so to be around my best friends and family will stop me from feeling down in the dumps, which I was starting to a little by the end of this term. 

I hope you're all getting in the festive mood, I definitely am - in fact, I'm going to go and paint my nails a nice Christmassy red right now and get out Michael Buble's Christmas album!