Simple things...

          The simplest things in life are often the best, those things that bring a smile to your face and joy to your heart, because they are so often unexpected.

          Today, the great British summertime returned, with thunder and lightening, and a spectacular amount of rain. I decided that pumps probably weren't weather appropriate, and then I remembered my wellies.

            I'm used to grimacing and getting super irritated if I step in a puddle by accident, so today, as I was watching a really beautiful woman in the most beautiful sari (and amazing shoes) on the other side of the road, I naturally expected auto-anger to occur as I heard the familiar and unwelcome sound of my foot meeting a puddle.

           I don't think I can accurately express the joy I felt when I realised that stepping in puddles is exactly what Wellies are for. Instead of auto-anger, the 5-year-old me reared her head, and I spent the rest of my walk actively seeking out puddles to wade through. 

           Today was one of the best days I've had in a long time, because I was able to walk along with a huge grin on my face, despite the rain, and the clouds, which would normally be such a downer on my mood. 

           I almost wish that I could experience something like that every day, but the truth is, that we're generally so caught up with whatever's going on, that we forget to look for the things that nature offers us, to bring a smile to our face.

          I think that, from now on, I will always look for something that will make me smile, bring me a moment of quiet joy. Whether it's looking for puddles to walk through, or listening to the wind rustle through the leaves of the trees. Sometimes you have to look for beauty, or happiness and in doing so, you find a positivity which you might have otherwise missed.

        I hope your day has been a beautiful as mine :D

   

        Thanks for reading! Laura

                                         xoxoxoxox

WOW!

        So, last night, London hosted the Olympic opening ceremony, which lasted just over 3 and a half hours, and was thought up and directed by Danny Boyle; English film producer and director.

http://topnews.in/light/people/danny-boyle

           The show began with pastoral England, showing farmland, children playing around maypoles, and generally showing London as it was before the industrial revolution began. One of the moments of utter brilliance from Boyle, came with the forging of the Olympic rings, which represented the Industrial Revolution in England, a video of the rings coming together can be seen here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19021659

            This moment, was truly awe inspiring, and I love seeing all the faces of the volunteers, and how they were so awestruck by it, so proud to be a part of it. Even sitting at home, I had tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat, and what really made me smile, out of everything going on, was the look on Kenneth Branagh's face, of joy, amazement and pride. Branagh was playing the part of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, and read a short monologue from Shakespeare's The Tempest. Which, to me, was such a wonderful thing, (mainly because I go to Brunel university, and study English Literature) and I was thinking about how incredible it would have been to have volunteered to help out in the Olympic opening ceremony, and then be rubbing shoulders with the likes of Kenneth Branagh. 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2180114/Olympics-Opening-Ceremony-Guide-London-festivities-American-viewers.html

             Other things which showcased both Boyle's genius, and a very British sense of humour, was the part of the ceremony where Daniel Craig went to pick up the Queen in the role of James Bond himself. It was heart-warming, and charming to see our Queen acting alongside Daniel Craig (some might say a national heart-throb?...) and it was so plain to see that she thoroughly enjoyed it, as did the nation. 

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/olympics-opening-ceremony-james-bond-queen-elizabeth-355449

   

          The next surprise was Sir Rowan Atkinson's appearance on the keyboard. It was a clever move on Boyle's part, (as was the entire ceremony) as Mr. Bean is recognised throughout the world, and the British people have loved Atkinson since the days of Blackadder. 

         I was so pleased that Boyle dedicated a whole section of the show to the NHS, and the work that goes into Great Ormond Street Hospital, having both staff and children performing; something with was truly, truly beautiful and inspiring to watch. The way that villains from popular British children's books were used as a metaphor for the nightmare of having a terrible illness, was really well thought out, as was the children being rescued from these villains by the ultimate nanny; Mary Poppins. I must admit, I did get quite excited seeing J. K. Rowling reading a section from Peter Pan, and even more excited when Voldemort appeared :)

http://www.hypable.com/2012/07/27/jk-rowling-opening-ceremony-london-olympics/

http://www.hypable.com/2012/07/27/jk-rowling-opening-ceremony-london-olympics/

            The energy of the ceremony captured me, the use of dance, and of our musical heritage and culture was really great, and unifying in a sense, because of the way that artists such as the Beatles, Prodigy & Dizzee Rascal, among others, have wide-spread fame throughout the world. I liked the use of music throughout, although, putting the Bee Gees on as Fiji was walking out did get a tiny bit confusing from a commentary point of view ;D

             I could go on about this, mentioning everything that I loved about it, but honestly, I loved every second. The way that every single person involved was thought of, the workers, even those who'd apply to help, but weren't able to had their photo on one of the dresses of the county name bearers. I loved that Sir Steve Redgrave carried the torch for the very last part of its journey, I loved how happy David Beckham looked driving a speedboat up the Thames, I loved that the young athletes were the ones to light the cauldron. 

http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/news/4459807/David-Beckhams-up-to-speed-on-Olympics-speedboat-stunt.html

    

              The cauldron though, is...incredible. There is not any other word to describe it, it was well thought out, genius, and totally originally. Unexpected, everything, and more. Made up of 204 copper petals, which rose up to form the beacon as a whole is indeed a fantastic piece of engineering. 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/jul/28/london-2012-olympic-cauldron-bets-refunded

http://www.goolecourier.co.uk/news/local-news/olympics-young-athletes-light-games-cauldron-1-4783480

http://560wgan.com/Seven-young-athletes-light-Olympic-cauldron/11435222?newsId=156164

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/photos/olympics-slideshow/olympic-cauldron-seen-alight-during-opening-ceremony-london-photo-235814736--spt.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/news/9434130/Olympic-Cauldron-lit-by-seven-young-British-athletes.html

     

            Thanks for reading! Laura

                                             xoxoxoxoxox

London Olympics

       Although some of the football games for this years Olympics have already been played, today sees the last day of the Olympic torch relay, where it will end up in the Olympic stadium in London, where the opening ceremony will be held.

http://www.london-attractions.info/olympic-stadium.htm

                  

Photo taken by my mother, Michelle :)

         This was the Olympic torch being carried through Grays, Essex on the 6th on July 2012, by Mr Donghai Liu from Beijing. It was such a proud moment seeing the Olympic torch being carried down my road, standing with friends and neighbours. We even received some free Coca Cola :)

        Since London won the bid to hold the 2012 Olympic games, there have been many critics who have believed that the entire event will be a shambles, from opening to closing ceremony, where the games will be handed over to Brazil, for their games, which will begin in the summer of 2016.

       The Beijing Olympic ceremony, back in 2008, still resonates in my mind as one of the most spellbinding and mind blowing phenomenons that I've ever had the pleasure of watching unfold. I only hope that the London team have come close to that, which, actually, judging by the reaction of people who had the opportunity to watch the dress rehearsal on Wednesday night, they seem to have done so.

         Regardless of whether the opening ceremony goes swimmingly well, or whether there are a few hiccoughs; and let us be honest with ourselves, it wouldn't really be quintessentially British without any hiccoughs; but all that aside, people are excited about it. 

        There's so much which has been kept secret about it, even down to who will be lighting the beacon inside the stadium. Which I think, has successfully added to the excitement.

         Whatever happens this evening, I'm sure the Olympics will be really fantastic for Great Britain, and hopefully we'll keep a decent amount of those medals at home ;)

          Thanks for reading! Laura

                                           xoxoxoxox