Yes, I realise we're over a month (nearly two) into 2018. Classic me, better late than never.

This is a post I didn't think I'd be writing.

Being honest, I'd sort of given up on most things. Including this blog.

2017. What can I say? It was a strange year, it had ups and major downs but I'm back and trying to be better than ever. Will 2018 be my year.

This blog has been majorly unloved over the past couple months and sometimes these things happen.

Hopefully, I'll be getting back into blogging with a post a week; this depends on whether I have something to write about as well as having the time. The content of SmileyBlondeee is not something I want to produce for the sake of it, only if I want to share.

Since I have been behind, I'll be sharing some of the thing I managed to do both this year and last with some cute photos and info. Plus, I've got lots of cool things coming up- I'll talk about these in a follow up post.

If any of you are interested in what I've been getting up to whilst away, go check out my instagram ! Also at the bottom of the blog, I've really been loving it.

Thanks for reading!

Back soon xoxo

Have you watched this film? I recommend you do, although make sure you've watched the first- you got to if you want to understand...you get me?

Anyway, if you have no clue and you're just reading this for the something to do, here's some context.

The original Blade Runner was released in 1982 and directed by Ridley Scott, the films set in 2019 and was pretty out there with its predictions (if you ask me). Anyway, the film stars Harrison Ford as Rick Deckard, a 'Blade Runner' who has to hunt down the replicants...

Blade Runners- people assigned to assassinate replicants.

Replicants- androids that look like real human beings.

...basically four replicants commit some bloody crimes and Deckard is brought out of retirement to track down the androids. Blade Runner, of course, has a lil love problem when Deckard low key falls for a replicant and certain points imply to the audience that Deckard himself is a replicant. I did write a blog post on it a while ago which you can read if you click...THIS (more in depth).

So, I'm going to refer to this new follow up as 2049, for ease. In 2049 you do get my little love, Harrison Ford, back again and one of my holy grail man crushes...Ryan Gosling. I kind of forgot that Gosling was in this new film, to be honest, I didn't plan to go see it- spur of the moment, you know.

The cast of a film is something that can really influence the audience, 2049 has a cast that I was mostly unfamiliar with besides Gosling, Ford, Jared Leto and Robin Wright. For me, it worked, I liked not focusing so much on the actors and just getting in to the film world.  Although, will say Jared Leto creeped me out intensely and I was a little distracted by Ryan Gosling (no surprise).

For me, the star of the film was most definitely Gosling as K. 2049 is the first thing I've watched him in since Lalaland in January, which is a bit different to this. It was always going to be hard to compete with that, partly because I'm still very much in awe of Lalaland and everything about it. Alas, he's done it, I like him more, I LOVE him more. This film definitely shows how versatile he is as an actor to go from one end of the spectrum to the other, well done pal.

Harrison Ford is simply Harrison Ford. How can you not love him? Do feel that his role as Deckard was, in some aspects, comic relief- I can overlook. Plus, K and Deckard seem so similar, one necessary factor for the narrative of the film. Still can't figure out whether I prefer young Harrison or Gosling, there's something for you to ponder.

In terms of character, K is one that I like. We see some of his backstory, he has depth to him which is always enjoyable and he's lonely- which adds a little bit more to his story and how much we all like him more than maybe we should. Deckard is still Deckard. Leto plays Wallace (aka the new Tyrell) and is creepy af, he makes fake people, kills them and has no iris- his eyes are just white and it's weird. Leto's performance in the film is something that did leave me disappointed, partly because he's on the poster yet has like four scenes, if that....just meh.

A change in director can be make or break for a piece of cinema, particularly with something as risky as a sequel, let alone one to a film released 35 years prior. However, Villeneuve has been responsible for some popular films- Arrival, Prisoner, Sicario etc. I haven't seen Arrival, but I know a lot of people enjoyed it and that it has got some similar themes to the ones we see in Blade Runner. Villeneuve said himself that he was aware of the immense pressure he was under, the original has some hardcore fans that probably viewed the prospect of a new film terrifying- some sequels have been utterly disastrous. Film is an art and with art you have to take risks, this is what Villeneuve did and it worked out pretty well. 2049 has a fluency to it, a cohesion that links back to Blade Runner; it has some nostalgic feels, some cool new twists...I love it.

One thing I wanted to mention was the narrative. I'll admit that throughout the whole first half I thought that the plot was so predictable but then, we get to into the peak and bang I was surprised. Will say, the little twist made me slightly sad for K, these things happen.

If I was to say anything, it is more visually impressive than anything else. Don't get me wrong the narrative is interesting, the characters are cool, the scores wonderful but there's just something about it that left me a little underwhelmed? I don't know, it's probably just that nothing could of beaten Blade Runner.

Having said that, I'd recommend going to watch this film, only if you've watched the first. I can't imagine it making much sense without the context and the familiarity.


            

Christopher Nolan returned with yet another stunning picture. Telling the story of the epic evacuation mission that became a turning point in World War 2, recreating Dunkirk was set to be an ambitious challenge and he has done it.

 I have both my Twitter feed and Instagram on my blog, you can probably tell I like Harry Styles. I've always been a big One Direction fan and as you can imagine when I realised that the boys were going to start making their own music, I got super excited.

Sylvia Plath. Ted Hughes. Both poets and both very popular in the South Sefton English (particularly Lit) department. Me, Lauren and Sally had been planning a Plath Pilgrimage for weeks on twitter before it was given the good to go! In November a couple of us hopped on a mini-bus and travelled down to Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire. We had the best time ever and I'm finally sharing it with you!

For those of you who don't know, Sylv was American and came over to study at Cambridge. This is where she met Ted, who was from a large village in Hebden Bridge, in 1956 they married and later had two children. Sylv and Ted were married until her suicide in 1963, they'd had marital problems as a result of Ted's infidelity and Sylv's mental health which could change daily. After Sylv's death, Ted didn't get his happy ending and some may say he didn't deserve one. In 1969, six years after Sylv's death, his lover Assia Wevill killed herself and their four year old daughter, whatever anyone wants to say about him, no one deserves the loss he suffered.

A lot of people do blame Ted Hughes for the death of Sylvia Plath, her gravestone which reads 'Sylvia Plath Hughes' was repeatedly vandalised by those who held Ted accountable for Sylv's suicide. In fact, Wevill killed herself and their daughter in the same way as Sylv, after this many claimed that Ted had been abusive to both. I love Sylv and I love Ted, as much as I can understand the criticism Ted received I do hold the judgement that no one knows the true mental state of either women or their relationship with Ted; to blame him would be unfair even though he should have respected Sylv if he loved her as much as he claimed.

We left college sort of early, we had planned to get the train but in the end a min-bus was more practical. On the way there me, Sally and Joanna talked about the wonders of Spotify and were just really looking forward to getting there. I was nervous, I'd never thought about going to pay my respects to Sylv and now we were almost there, it was a just strange feeling.

After getting off  the bus we walked around and went to Sylv's grave. It was poignant and super emotional, some of us had more of a connection to her than others but being in a graveyard in general is upsetting. Sally, who introduced both me and Lauren to Sylv, did have a few tears, which set me and Lauren off; for us who have idolised Sylv for years now it's heartbreaking to see her grave and know that this isn't what she would have wanted. Sylv is buried above the now lively, community in Hepstonstall; the problem many of us have is that she didn't like living in Yorkshire. It was dark, dreary, boring and certainly not New England, the fact is she's stuck here forever and has no say, so at least we could say something for her. Again, maybe this is why Ted seems like such a villain; he obviously knew Sylv loathed the place, why lay her to her rest away from all the things she loved- her home, mum, the sun etc etc. It doesn't seem right.

When we'd visited her grave, we stopped for a little while in a cute cafe in Hepstonstall. We had hot drinks, cake and a little chat, then we headed down to the town. I loved the centre, it was quirky and had such a nice atmosphere; of course we had a browse in a small bookshop, I caved and bought Jane Eyre and Ariel (featured in the picture above).

For lunch, most of us brought our own food and to eat we sat in a beautiful park. As we just sat, taking in the nature you could sort of see how this place could be an inspiration for creativity. The weather that day was rainy and it was dark, I can imagine Hepstonstall being particularly haunting because of how it's laid out. Now, it's modern and made for tourists with galleries, parks, small cinemas, shops, cafes and more but back then it wouldn't have been much. For someone like Sylv who'd lived in cities most of the time it would have been a massive shift, add this to the fact she had depression, how a place that in mid-winter was always dark did her good is questionable.

Next we took a look inside a cute and rather expensive gallery, then stopped in a lovely little cafe. Some of us wondered off to explore and some stayed, then came the soap shop which also sold candles, hand creams and more. Put it this way, they got a bit of good business from us; then we slowly headed back to the mini-bus and travelled home! The ride both ways was like a rollercoaster, Hebden Bridge is up a lot of narrow country lanes and massive hills; I bet you can only imagine the ride there and back. That was it our trip to Hebden Bridge, the best college trip I'd ever been on!

The only way I can end this post is by writing a thank you to Sally:

Sal, you introduced me to all things Sylv. In fact, in some senses I feel like you introduced me to everything I missed out on; the beauty of poetry, the fun learning can bring, the fight of feminism. For  all of these, I couldn't thank you enough, in my last year of college the Hebden Bridge trip was an extraordinary way to top everything off. You're one of those teachers that goes above and beyond for pupils and people think back about not only what a wonderful teacher you are but what a wonderful person! Thanks for being such a legend Sal!

I'm sure you've all heard about this book, if you haven't then you've most likely seen the upcoming film trailer floating round Facebook. I wanted to know what all the fuss was about and now I give you insight because I finished the book a couple of days ago- I'm low key obsessed!

Everything Everything tells the story of Madeline Whittier, Maddy for short. Maddy is sick, she hasn't left her house for seventeen years because she's allergic to everything. Olly is the boy who moves next door, he wants more than to see Maddy through only her bedroom window. Everything Everything is about the crazy things we'd do for love and the risks we'd take.

What will you get from this book? Tears. I cried reading this SO MUCH. Maddy has only just turned eighteen in the book and I've only just turned nineteen, for me it was heartbreaking because Maddy had no real friends and mine are everything to me. She's got no freedom to do anything I can do day to day, she's a prisoner in her home yet she doesn't realise this because she knows no different. If anything this book is a symbol of inner strength to me, I can't imagine staying in my house all day everyday for years and years- it takes someone with a lot of hope and belief.

Olly, let's talk about Olly. He changes Maddy's life, literally. I bet he thought he'd move to California and have a pretty simple life and then everything changed, for me I think he knew straight away that Maddy was more than just a girl. She helped him have a new lease on life, appreciate the world he took for granted. It's super cute how he knows Maddy for such a short space of time and is fascinated with her and not the illness; I think it's important to emphasise that point, of course Olly was worried about her but to him she was just Maddy, Mad, the girl he loved. He goes above and beyond to make Maddy feel normal, loved, accepted. Whilst he's doing all this, he's got his own problems at home and his sister and mum to worry about but he doesn't let this effect his relationship. It's clear the Olly has a lot of compassion and a lot of love, he uses it all on other people and luckily Maddy gives all hers to him.

This is basically a post with me gushing about Maddy. When we first meet her she's so upbeat and positive although she's never been outside, what I think is worse is one large room in her house is glass so it gives the effect of being free. I couldn't cope with this, there's nothing written in the book about Maddy being depressed or lonely (at first) and I can't understand this. Olly becomes her companion, she wants to spend every minute of every day with him and this is when she truly feels alone- I presume because she's never known anyone other than Carla (her nurse), her mum and the teachers she has never met in person! Read this book and you'll have such a high regard for Maddy- I know I keep going on about it but it's true. What I love most, is being with Maddy whilst she discovers what love feels like for the very first time. She immediately has strong feelings for Olly that makes her gravitate towards him, some may say this is the effect of never being round boys and really having contact with Olly, I disagree. The first time they kiss Maddy asks 'Is it always like that?' to which Olly replies 'No, it's never like that' and then she writes how everything has changed. A chemistry that's so strong, Maddy puts herself endanger to live a life with Olly. Just beautiful.

Besides these two, the only really important characters are Maddy's mum and Carla. Maddy's mum play an important part in the narrative, from about mid-way through the book it's evident that something isn't right. I mean if Maddy's that ill you'd think she'd put her foot out the door and she'd collapse, also this isn't giving anything away if you watch the trailer. Without going into too much detail we later realise that Maddy's mum isn't as perfect as she seems.

Nicola Yoon has gone above and beyond in this extraordinary debut novel. Her writing flows in such a way that you end up reading hundred pages like it's ten, you can't put this book down and if you do you're thinking about picking it back up. Everything Everything is just a stunning read, we're reading Maddy's point of view so we identify with her immediately. Also, have to point out the cover which is so beaut! Cannot recommend this highly enough, read read read!!!!!

It's been a long time since I've done one of these, I'm trying to get back into reading and this book really helped me. I got sent Dreamland a couple of years ago when I still wrote for the Guardian's Children's Book Site, it's a pre-published copy and obviously now it's published but I never got round to reading it. After finishing my previous book, I decided that I was going to give it a go and no lie I'm a bit obsessed. I read so much of it in two days and that was only because I was busy, it's such a unique story and it intrigues me a lot! I've had dreams about it and I just can't get it off my mind, plus it's quite unknown and I just thought it deserved a little praise.

International Women's Day has been observed since the 1900s, a time when there were turbulent changes in society and the rise of radical ideologies. A collective day of global celebration and unity, a call for gender equality. Although are progress from then to now is amazing, it's sad to know that over 100 years later women are still effectively controlled by patriarchy and the fact that they're a woman not a man!

I think that this IWD is different to previous years, simply because Donald Trump is the President of the United States. Remember when he said Clinton was disgusting for going the bathroom, if women choose to fight for their country sexual assault should basically be expected, how about the fact it's all good to rank women by looks. These are just a few of many and perhaps the one that angered women the most was the fact that if we have an abortion we should be punished. I don't really want to go on one big rant but a woman's body is her own and whatever reason she may have an abortion for is her own personal business.

On a positive note, women have shown such strength. January saw the Women's March, I only wish I could've been apart of one; it was humbling to see all of the support given to women and men marching all over the world. After all our place is in the resistance, fighting for our rights and it has been for such a long time!

I class myself as a feminist, I completely support the concept of feminism- the advocacy of women's rights on the ground of equality of the sexes. However, it's hard to define and all we can do is keep learning about it to develop our understanding. Feminism is about liberation, choice, freedom, equality- feminism is different for everyone but women should support each other.

A lot of women inspire me to be a feminist, to be proud and to strive until I get wherever I need to. Tanya Burr, Lea Michele, the PLL girls (Troian, Lucy, Ash, Shay), Adele are just a few but they're all celebs, in terms of real people one person stands out to me. Our Sal, the best English teacher you could ask for, a role model and inspiration! Sal introduced me to poetry, plays and feminism- I wouldn't be as passionate about women's rights today if it wasn't for her. Lauren would agree with me, she's all about politics and it's been a pleasure to see her motivation for all things women evolve in these past two years.

Whether you're a feminist, a supporter or not. Surely it's common knowledge that equality is necessary, whether someone is male, female, gay, straight, bisexual, black or white because we're all human. The fight isn't about who's 'winning' or who's gained the most power, it's about equality. WE ARE ALL EQUAL, LET'S FIGHT!