First book of the year

This is the first book I have read in the new year (and the new decade), below is a review of it.

Eat, pray, love by Elizabeth Gilbert

I really loved watching the film of this book on Netflix, so I was really looking forward to reading the book itself. Luckily the book did not disappoint, although I found it strangely lighter in many places than the movie. The first part is thirty six chapters on enjoying food in Italy, as well as some story background and an introduction to Liz, I found it quite delicious. The middle section, Pray, is set in an ashram in India and features a lot of reflection on meditation. The final, Indonesian section, Love, seemed less well-defined as the eat and pray sections, it was about finding balance. I found the whole book was a very enlightening read.

I have changed my reading plan slightly for the year, while also working on a three year plan, covering the years 2019 to 2021. The three books below are helping with my mindful home and slower living projects.

 Below are four poetry books I hope will help guide me through the months ahead.

Musical Heroines

Below are my paintings and sketches of eight of my favourite musical heroines. You can listen to some of the wonderful music created by these women on my AmiloFinn playlist Music Mistress Please.

Jazz is inspired by Ella Fitzgerald, apparently she was Marilyn Monroe's favourite female singer and Marilyn gave her a small helping hand in the early years of her career. Songs I love Ella singing are My Funny Valentine, Every time we say goodbye, The lady is a tramp and a host of other jazz standards.

My ultimate rock chick is Debbie Harry of Blondie. The first music album I bought was Parallel Lines. She is responsible for my lifelong obsession with New York City. She is wonderful to watch and to listen to. Sunday Girl was my favourite song for a long while, nowadays I really admire Atomic, Call me and Rapture.

There exists a lovely film of Jacqueline du Pre's life called 'Hilary and Jackie' about her complicated relationship with her sister, it stars Emily Watson as the cellist. Listen to Jacqueline du Pre playing Elgar's cello concerto for a really moving musical experience.

My alternative songstress is Enya. She is a visual and aural treat, just listen to Orinocco Flow or Carribean Blue and watch their accompanying videos and you'll see what I mean. I don't know if I'd guess she was Irish from her music, but I do think there's definitely something of the mysterious, emerald isle about her. My favourite Enya piece is Boadicea from the Celts.

My favourite folk songstress is Joni Mitchell. My favourite song is the very famous 'Both sides now'. Other lovely thoughtful pieces are Woodstock, Chinese Cafe and a Case of You.

My pop princess is Kate Bush. I've loved Kate Bush for as long as I've loved Debbie Harry. My favourite music by Kate is The Ninth Wave, the B Side of the Hounds of Love album. I recently bought her triple album 'Before the Dawn'; a new live version of The Ninth Wave fills the second disk as Act Two. It is my favourite music to listen to; it helps me get to sleep.

Punk rock was full of rude, scary men, although some of them were also quite attractive. Siouxsie Sioux looks a little scary, but also very appealing, with very artistic make-up and very strong, tuneful music. My favourite song is Spellbound. I also love Happy House, Israel and the Banshees' version of the Beatles' Dear Prudence.

Sade was quite a unique act in the 1980s, sophisticated and soothing, a real 'Smooth Operator'. Favourite songs incude Your love is King, The Sweetest Taboo and 'Why can't we live together'.

Maybe my tastes are getting a little old, I think my daughter's list of musical heroines would include, Adele, Florence Welch, Amy Winehouse, Rihanna and Lilly Allen, among others.

Ten Years of Arts and Crafts

I don't consider myself good on home decor, but after discovering 'Kirsty's Homemade Home' in 2009 I thought I would make more of an effort to bring inspiring art and craft into my house. After Christmas 2009 I had a strong feeling that I needed to improve the overall ambience of my home. I bought picture books, calendars with pictures I could frame, prints, attractive frames, cushion covers and I specifically ventured into charity shops to buy knick-knacks. I'm not very materialistic but the things I bought I now find useful for the mindful meditation of homely things.

13 Books for 2020

It took me a long time to find 13 books I might like to read in 2020. 

I'm not sure how I'll get on, some of them may be too heavy, some too light. 

I'll see how I go.

First Six by Six Book Challenge - Film/Book tie-ins

1. Eat, pray, love by Elizabeth Gilbert

2. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy by John Le Carre

3. Different Seasons by Stephen King

4. The Kite runner by Khaled Hosseini

5. Stories of your life and others by Ted Chiang 

6. The Light between Oceans by ML Stedman

Second six by six book challenge - Autumn and Winter Reads

1.  My year of rest and relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh

2. Circe by Madeline Miller

3. The Hoarder by Jess Kidd

4. The woman who went to bed for a year by Sue Townsend

5. A gathering light by Jennifer Donnelly

6. The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton

 

Buddhism Extra

The Wise Heart by Jack Kornfield

Spring Term Therapy

January is a traditional time for making resolutions. According to quite a few studies it is also not a very good time to be making resolutions. March and the beginning of Spring are the best times to be making positive changes. The therapies I have been exploring in the Spring Term reflect the fact that January and February are still winter months, a time to enjoy indoor activities like arts and crafts, watching films, reading books, listening to music and playing games.

Lorna's Songs on YouTube

Twelve of my songs feature on the Lorna's Songs playlist on YouTube.



Stargazing
A song written with passion about an obsessive love which leads to a tortured, sleepless night.

Island of Happiness
This song is about the few wonderful times in life and love that are highlights in an otherwise bleak existence.

For What I Am
This song is about being yourself, warts and all, and finding love as a flawed being.

Alive at Last
Romantic hope is renewed after recovering from a broken heart.

Jazz
Jazz is a carefree, attractive girl, a popular, social butterfly, the singer of the song can only look on with envy.

That far away look
This song was written on a moonlit evening near the sea, when the cool air was full of promise and excitement.

The feeling's always there
The remnants of an intense love affair, the lover may have gone, but heartbreak takes much longer to move on from.

I can see you
A song written when I was seventeen, when I was contemplating future love and relationships and was rather apprehensive as to what awaited me.

Scorpio Eyes
This song concerns superstition and astrology. What does the second water sign of the zodiac have to say about love?

New Ways
My songs are mostly about love. This one concerns exploring new opportunities, possibly as a result of a recent break up.

Richard's Things
Richard's Things is a novel by Frederic Raphael. This song is inspired by the title rather than the novel itself. It is about a woman constrained by a possessive man and her attempts to break free.

Waiting for me
I wrote this song on a European tour in the late 1980s. It is about longing for adventure.