There are certain things us Brits just put up with, heck even embrace. I thought I’d include a few of them in a little video for you…

I’d love to hear yours too. The comments box loves you!

M xox

there’s a rumour that a certain fruit based named company might be bringing out a piece of technology that’s getting everyone in a bit of a stir.

apple how we heart thee so… roll on 27th january and more importantly july when we can finally get our hands on the iphone on steroids!

happy thursday awesome peeps!

m xox

p.s. sorry for the lack of audio at the moment, youtube is failing me… i’m working on it!

i was lucky enough to get tickets to see stereophonics on friday night – made a million times better by the fact that they were playing bristol… something that never happens. you see, bristol is a thriving city with an active music scene and yet still no decent gig venue… but i diverse…

here’s a clippet from the gig, i really hope that you enjoy!

if you get a chance, they’re well worth checking out live… a night that i’ll never forget

i thought that i’d break away from the posts you normally get from me, which tend to involve the loss of a mobile phone, the breaking of bones and the general embarrassment of being me. instead, there’s been a flurry of really cool websites recently, so i thought that i’d share some of my favorites with you.

for those who don’t live in my bubble, my favorite site, without doubt is twitter. depending on where you are and who you know that uses it, your experience of twitter can be very different, but for me it acts as a great tool for communicating with friends all over the world in a simple effective manner. if you want to see a more eloquent description, check out wtfistwitter.com. having said this, a number of my friends have now worked out it’s a good way of checking up on me – so don’t say i didn’t warn you!

if you love twitter, the chances are that you’ll also love these other sites…

• tweetscan.com – this is a great way of tracking any tweets that contain keywords or usernames that you specify

• quotably.com – a tool for tracking conversations revolving around tweets from or in response to usernames of your choice

• twittershare.com – a desktop widget that allows you to share files, music and video with your friends on twitter

• tweetburner.com – allows you to keep track of what happens to the links in tweets shared with you, by you, friends etc

• botanicalls.com – twitter put to a practical use – those poor plants will no longer feel neglected when you spend so much time at your computer!

here’s a random selection of some other sites i love (and when i say random, i mean random!)…

• sxswscurvy.com – following the flu epidemic at sxsw, this was enough to put a smile back on my face – there’s something about not suffering alone that makes me feel better – selfish i know

• postsecret.com – after the moving presentation by frank warren at sxsw, i’ve fallen in love with this site – it really makes you grateful for what you have in your life

• a.viary.com – quite possibly the most beautiful design tool i’ve seen to date

• http://producten.hema.nl – a really random site whose design never fails to make me smile

ok, random post complete, i hope there’s something new in there for you to discover. i’d love to hear from you with any sites that you’d recommend…

happy easter!

having chatted with a friend at the weekend after a number of drinks, the usual chestnut otherwise known as the super power conversation arose…. so this leads me to ask if you could have any super power, like ANY super power in the world, what would it be?

for me, the simple answer is that it would be to see into the future so that i could prepare for situations and always make the right choices. don’t get me wrong, i don’t believe in regrets and all situations are learning curves. However, if we applied this super power to the miami sleazy 65 year old guy telling me his wife was into open relationships, i could have avoided that bar at all costs… just a thought!!!

it was argued that perfect timing would actually beat this super power, but i beg to differ. so go on, do share… what would be yours?

happy monday x

i know i’m rather masculine (yeah right) but i’ve never understood why when i meet people for the first time, they’re surprised that i’m a girl. in uk it’s not as if mel is ever used for guys – however i don’t think that’s the case in the states. so now i’m walking around town with a guy’s name – great! it’s not even as though i can use my full name as i can’t pronounce melanie without sounding stupid and feeling like i’m in trouble with my mum.

to make matters worse, apparently i share my name with a drive in. i wanted to be incredibly touristy and get one of their t-shirts but they all said “why not drive into mel’s?” and i don’t know why but that kind of makes me feel dirty and want a shower…

so no random stories today (if i’m honest i’ve got a bit of a hangover and can’t remember all of the things that have happened – there are quite a few, trust me) but i’m having birthday celebrations tonight, so watch this space!

m x

p.s. thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes, although you may want to take note that by finishing your email telling me i’m now officially old makes me cry, every time, without fail.

p.p.s. not sure if you saw my post where i said that i have the face of an angel, but if you did, i totally revoke that statement as the people at heathrow would appear not to agree – i was searched 3 times on the way out – seriously have you ever heard of anyone using mascara to harm anyone?

no – not enough outfits!! you see, it’s all to do with the way that you approach the subject!

so, i went to see a flat that i was considering buying and as we entered the second bedroom, the estate agent turned to me and said “this would make a lovely study” to which i responded “or shoe cupboard”. she laughed and said that i was very funny, but to this day, i’m still not sure what was so amusing?!?

i decided that with the view that i’ll probably be downsizing, i should clear out some of my beloved shoes. therefore they were split into 3 clear piles, 1. charity shop, 2. ebay, 3. keep forever! they say a picture speaks a thousand words, hmmmn….. how many do you think these would equate to?

then i heard a sniffle from another wardrobe and realised that i had forgotten my favorites – the pink and red section…

i think it’s fair to say that ebay and the charity shop still came out quite well from all of this…

the problem is that you guarantee, the moment i throw away a pair of the gorgeous shoes, i’m going to wear an outfit with which they would have gone perfectly…. not so sure i’m any good at this “clearing out your life” thing… oh well we can but try!

i do have one confession to make though – i’ve kept probably the crumiest, oldest, most decrepid boots in the world! i can’t help it – i love them…. and you never know, one day i may wake up to find that the boot fairy has fixed them! until that day, i’ll sit here and look back with fond memories of their hay day

gotta love route 66! if any one has these boots brand new, please let me know and i’ll donate my left arm in return.

m

so it’s official – austin ROCKS! it appears that whilst in austin, there isn’t a closing time for bars and you don’t have to pay for drinks – my idea of heaven. so needless to say, i’ve been making the most of the situation – i am british after all.

it had been a really good night (probably a little too good) and i was probably an hour or so later to bed than i should have been. it will come as no surprise then to hear that i overslept the next day and woke up at 9.50am when i was due at a presentation for 10am. i got showered and changed in super quick time and literally ran out of the hotel.

all was going well, i walked towards the convention centre. as i walk for longer and longer i realise that i don’t actually recognise any of the buildings (i should probably add at this point that i was wearing a skirt and boots). i stopped to try and get my bearings only to have a cop car pull up next to me (like my use of americanism there?). The guy winds down his window and asks me whether i knew that there was someone following me.

to my dismay, as i turn around there’s a really shifty guy right behind me – i didn’t have a clue. he then goes on to explain that i’m in a really dodgy party of austin and shouldn’t walk there alone. this was when the dilemma occured. he told me to get in the car and he would drive me to the convention centre. now what’s a girl to do? should i carry on walking and being followed by some random freak or get in a cop car that could be a fake?

i decided the safest option was to get in the car. the guy then kindly drove me all of the way to the convention centre and walked me in to the centre to make sure that i was safe…. you don’t get that in britain. so there you have it, don’t walk alone in dodgy neighbourhoods, don’t get lost – but worst case scenario – the austin cops rule!

woo hoo…. it’s finally here – spring has well and truly sprung and i had my first tops down day of the season (on my car that is of course!). there was a slight obstacle to face in putting the top down as i’m not actually strong enough to click the roof into place, but after admitting defeat and asking a “strong man” to help, i was on my way.

as i was driving along the high road – that’s not what it’s actually called, it’s a road and it’s up high – so that’s what i tend to call it, i actually had to find my phone to take a picture as you could look down and see the mist below you…

it’s fair to say that it was breathtaking – quite literally. as i got to the bottom of the hill and turned the corner, it actually turned out that someone had a bonfire. this in turn meant that not only did i now have BIG windswept hair which seemed like a good idea at the time, but i also now smell of smoke – god the people at work are going to love me!

on a completely separate note – i am proud to announce that i am now an official girl geek! following the recent event that i was at, i was given this zimki t-shirt and promised that i would post a picture of it to prove that i’ve worn it. well there you go – i’m a geek and i’m proud of it, just don’t tell too many people (i do actually really love it – is that bad?)

the other day, one of my friends sent me a link to this site, so being a new site tart, i decided to sign up and check it out. it’s fair to say that i fell in love with it when it said my closes match was scarlett johnsson (if only!)

i loved this site even more when they didn’t match me to any men!!! after i had mentioned the site to my friend, we uploaded her photo to see who she was compared to – only to find out that she looks like Eddie Murphy, even though she’s white and really petite. maybe it’s not so reliable after all…?