Because I know y’all are a bit curious, the following is what happens when Cas is left home alone in Meadow Towers and she decides to invite illyna and Neko over to drink wine, eat pizza, and generally have a gossip session.

Because I am more than a little bit drunk right now, any typos are going to remain because, well, I don’t care.

For the record, Cas is typing this because illyna is giving Stitch a hug and drinking wine, and Neko is making shoe sculptures and documenting the whole process with the digital camera.

Mr David Tennant was an integral part of the evening, as were wikis, pole dancing, tales of newts, people meeting people, blowing shit up (this was most important) and how to speed hair growth by lying upside down.

Pictures will be uploaded tomorrow because I’m not sure any of us can remember our Flickr sign-ins!

Oh, odd socks were also deemed to be important.

Neko is going to take over the typing now…

….and now Cas has the camera, which means I will be in pictures.

I’m not sure this should be allowed. illyna thinks it is all a bad idea (but is thrusting her chest out for photo’s of her t-shirt with its great quote) so I think she does not get to be the sensible one anymore. Hurrah. Fridge pictures are now starting. If I could remember how I’d link to my dads flickr page (search on ‘bebrowed‘). He has a whole series of fridge-light pictures. I think I’m about to go steal the camera to make an ‘homage’…. illy! I demand the camera!

illyna- you type. Oh, Cas is being pictured with Stitch. Who has given up his coveting of the shoes and has gone for hugs with Cas, the hussy. And lets not forget Mr David Tennant, who we ARE going to watch, honest, once we are done being silly…

illy isn’t witty enough to type right now. I keep plying her with wine, but, well, it’s not working. I feel sad 🙁 And now Neko is doing strange yoga on the floor and I really think it is time I stopped live blogging my evening and started watching David Tennant some more.

But how cool is it that I have friends who I can live blog an evening with!

(The shoes are now going in assorted household appliances. It really is time to reclaim my camera…)

I do like shoe shopping. Oh, and yes, I am still alive.

Whilst I get my blogging self back in gear, I need your opinion on something.

Do I keep this pair of shoes or not?

They are totally impractical, insanely over priced, but they are also just so pretty. I’ve been wearing them round the flat all evening and… I love them, but I know I should take them back because I won’t get the chances to wear them… But they are so pretty!

I’m not sure if I want y’all to say “be sensible Cas, take them back!” or if I want y’all to side with my frivolous side and say “You’ve been working insanely hard lately Cas, and deserve to treat yourself”. If I am being honest here, I will admit part of the reason I am debating so hard is because I only brought these (in the green) a few days ago.

Can I really justify two pairs of expensive, frivolous (if gorgeous and actually wearable) shoes in one week?

Time to review a book I think.

Before I go any further, I must point out that this is one of the books given to me free to review by Penguin Books. The only impact this has had is that it meant I got to read some books I might not otherwise have stumbled across. Nor are the Amazon links I’m using here affiliate links. All I get out of these reviews is the joy/horror of reading new books and sharing them with you 🙂

The Book – Just Listen by Sarah Dessen

The facts:
Paperback, 400 pages, ISBN 9780141322919, pub 05 Jul 2007, £5.99, Puffin

That last – Puffin – is a bit of a flag. Puffin is the childrens/young adult imprint of Penguin so if you’re an adult-book-snob, this won’t be for you.

The blurb:
“I’m Annabel. I’m the girl who has it all. Model looks, confidence, a great social life. I’m one of the lucky ones. Aren’t I? My ‘best friend’ is spreading rumours about me. My family is slowly falling apart. It’s turning into a long, lonely summer, full of secrets and silence. But I’ve met this guy who won’t let me hide away. He’s one of those intense types, obsessed with music. He’s determined to make me listen. And he’s determined to make me smile. But can he help me forget what happened the night everything changed?”

The review
As I’ve already said, Puffin books are aimed at the younger end of the market and I’d probably pitch Just Listen to the 15+ girl market, give or take a few years depending on maturity. The writing isn’t so simplistic or childish as to put adult readers off, but it has been pitched to its intended audience and you might find it takes a little while to get used to the style.

From the blurb it’s fairly self explanatory that this book wants to give you a view from the other side, a sneak-peak into the life of the popular girl. To be totally frank, this immediately set my back up and set me out to loathe the book from the start – the ‘popular’ girls made my life unmitigated hell at school, so why would I want to read about them for fun!? Even ten years on, empathy is a bit much to ask for. The opening of the book didn’t exactly endear itself to me either. Far too much scene setting and overly conscious ambiguity. Oooh, look, little miss popular has a secret and her life isn’t so great after all!

I got all that from the blurb.

But I stuck to it because, well, I was curious as to what exactly had happened to bring about Annabel’s fall from grace, and I’m glad I did. Somewhere about chapter three or four I found I was getting caught up in the story and I didn’t put the book down till I’d finished it with a lump in my throat at three in the morning. Personally, I’d have stopped the book one chapter earlier but I can appreciate why the author felt the need to wrap all the loose ends up with a pretty bow.

I never totally warmed to Annabel and the villain(s) of the piece lack any subtlety of character, but the supporting cast are total gems. If anything, the middle sister, Whitney, made the book for me and I’d willingly read more about her. As for the plot, yes it is a little predictable in the grand sweep, but I will admit to being knocked by the main plot revelation. Either kids books have got a LOT darker lately, or my own segue to sci-fi/fantasy in my early teens spared me some fairly gruesome YA fiction!

Would I recommend Just Listen?
For the intended audience: yes, though a qualified yes. I might be being overly prudish, but I’d suggest that parents of younger teens read page 263 to 265 first, if only so they can be prepared for questions that might arise.
For older readers: maybe. It depends on your own personal taste and tolerance for highschool girls and all their neuroses. I enjoyed it but I’m not convinced I want to read it again.

Three mugs of tea.
(More about the rating system used can be found on the about page).

Those of you who have been following Bright Meadow (and me) for the last few years might remember that each year I run the Race for Life for Cancer Research UK. My reasons for doing it are personal and already documented here on the blog.

This will be the third year in a row I’ve paid for the pleasure of running/jogging/walking/staggering the 5km around the Southampton Common (and yes, it is as far as it looks) in order to raise money for cancer research. All I ask of you is that, if you are so inclined, you sponsor me to do so.

As I’ve said, I’ve already paid to do it – anything you donate will go directly to Cancer Research UK to fund research. I don’t even get so much as a free t-shirt, which is exactly as it should be.

So, what next? Easy. Click on this link – www.raceforlifesponsorme.org/BrightMeadowYearThree
You’ll be taken to my online sponsorship page, and then all you have to do is click on the bright pink “Sponsor me now” button and follow the on screen prompts. If you are UK based and pay taxes, don’t forget to click the ‘gift aid’ option as it means your donation automatically grows by 28%.

Between us we’ve already raised over £350 in the past two years, so let’s keep that total going up. The page stays open for donations till the end of July, though I race this Sunday, so if you want me to race in memory of someone, let me know before then 🙂

And that’s all I have to say, other than this will be the only event I ever ask for money for through Bright Meadow. Please give something – 10 pence or 10 pounds, whatever you feel comfortable with, it all helps. According to Feedblitz, there’s currently 106 people reading through RSS. If each of you just gave £1, that’s £100 right there.