It’s been a while…

It’s been a while since my last blog post – two and a half years to be precise. Even before then I wasn’t posting regularly. Looking back, I don’t quite know why I stopped blogging – I enjoyed it, was connecting with a number of people from around the world and had big dreams for my blog. In 2017 I made 52 posts and had over 11,000 views from 5000 visitors to my site. 

I feel quite disappointed that I just stopped blogging, I’d made huge progress on my blog from 2016 where I only posted 22 times and had 436 views from 153 visitors. It would have been great to see where my blog was at in January 2021 and the growth I had made. Nevertheless, we can’t dwell too much on the past.

2017 was a great year for my blog!

Surprisingly enough though, my blog still did get a fair amount of traffic since I stopped back in July 2018. Whilst it’s not anywhere near the numbers of 2017, it was still nice to see people had visited my site and read some of my ramblings. The majority of my traffic in this period came from my movie, tv and video game reviews. Thus, thanks to a little new year’s resolution motivation and WordPress stat confidence boost, I am back in the world of blogging!

Given my enjoyment for review style writing and of course my enjoyment for watching movies and playing video games, I’ve created a brand new blog specifically for movies, tv shows and video game reviews. I would be highly grateful if you could check it out and give it a follow – www.thepausemenu.co.uk. I’m planning to post at least 5 times a week on this blog and the content will mostly be reviews of the latest movies, shows and games as well as general entertainment news. 

But I will also be back blogging here on my personal blog. This will mostly be about my boring everyday life, my adventures (when we are out of lockdown) and parting my wisdom to the world through my ramblings. I’m hoping to post at least once a week and rekindling some of that blogging form from back in 2017!

Let’s make 2021 the best year yet and thanks to all of those that have stuck around.

“Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.”

Mother Theresa

World Cup 2018 Predictions – Semi Finals & The Final

We’re onto the BIG games now! As mentioned in the previous post, these predictions are based on who I believe will make it out of the group stage and in what order and then who faces who in the knockouts, but as a general feeling as to who I think is gonna have a good tournament, this is it!

The first of the two semi finals pits France up against Brazil. Whilst I think Brazil are a definite force to be reckoned with and can understand why they are in fact favourites to win the competition, I think they will be up against it against a well rounded France team. Brazil undeniably have one of the best attacks at the World Cup but I think France can near enough match them man for man and that should see the French through to the final.

The second semi final is a repeat of the 2014 final and this should be a tasty encounter as Argentina attempt to seek revenge! For me however, Germany just seem to have that togetherness as a group whereas Argentina are somewhat reliant on the little magician Messi. Again, this will be a close encounter but I think Argentina will just fall short, setting up for a France vs Germany final.

The moment you’ve all been waiting for… my predicted winner of the 2018 World Cup final! Sadly I do think it will be back to back final heartbreak for France following on from that dramatic defeat to Portugal at Euro 2016. I’ve said it numerous times, but Germany just have that cohesion which really does count at major tournaments, coupled with their previous tournament experiences, I think it will be back to back World Cups for a very impressive Germany team.

Agree with my predictions? Or think I’m completely wrong and Japan are going to all way and prove everyone wrong? Let me know!

Peter Rabbit Movie: Review

Peter Rabbit is a 2018 3D live-action/computer-animated comedy film based on the stories of Peter Rabbit created by Beatrix Potter. The film stars Domhnall Gleeson, Rose Byrne and Sam Neill, with the voices of James Corden, Daisy Ridley, Margot Robbie and Elizabeth Debicki.

James Corden seems to be the celebrity equivalent of Marmite – you either love him or you hate him. Personally I think he’s great and I love some of his previous works; Gavin and Stacey is still one of my favourite shows of all time! For me James Corden is absolutely fantastic as Peter Rabbit in his latest offering, and considering he just plays the voice of Peter Rabbit, he steals the show!

Overall the story is very simple, it follows the ongoing feud of Peter and his friends breaking into Mr McGregor’s garden whilst he tries to deter them. I was a little disappointed with this as I thought the story would follow more of an adventure, this does mean however it is easy for younger viewers to follow the story due to the lack of complication. There’s plenty of slapstick comedy as well which younger viewers always love and there are a few humorous moments for the adults as well. One of my favourites was when the fox, Mr Tod, did the ‘walk of shame’ the morning after a party in which his chest hair had been shaved off!

The animation is great for the most part, there are a few dodgy moments, in particular a fight scene between Thomas McGregor and Peter Rabbit, however for the majority, the animation and aesthetics of the characters is pretty flawless. Some of Peter’s friends look fantastic, in particular Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle who must be the most impressive animated hedgehogs I’ve ever seen – in fairness I think this is the only animated hedgehog I’ve ever seen! I would liked to have seen a lot more of the woodland critters in the film, but sadly there are only a couple of scenes which they are present which was disappointing as they feature so prominently in the Beatrix Potter books.

A lot of reviews have criticized the film, I have seen a number of comments saying that the film is an insult to Beatrix Potter, one in particular said the following “Listen carefully, and you can just about hear the sound of Beatrix Potter, turning furiously in her grave.” I think this is extremely harsh and unjust, Peter Rabbit has such a huge fanbase it was only a matter of time before he entered the world of film. In my opinion Sony do a grand job of appealing to a new generation of Peter Rabbit fans.

Go and watch, wait for the DVD or avoid altogether? – This is definitely a film which will appeal to the younger viewers, and with Easter coming up this could be the perfect film to take them to the cinema to watch!

Rating: 6.7/10

2018

How in God’s name are we in March already! It’s been around 4 months since my last blog post and that’s due to the craziest of months I have had!

Over the past 4 months I have been busy with the following:

• Celebrated my 21st Birthday

• Visited Dublin

• Started a new job

• Moved out of my house

• Visited Disneyland Paris

• Moved back into my house

• Christmas and New Year festivities

• Celebrated my friends 21st birthday

• Visited Thailand

• Celebrated my girlfriends 21st birthday

As you can see the past couple of months have been hectic to say the least so blogging sadly went down the priority list, never the less I’m back now and eager to report on my trips!

Also, the challenge of £5,000 in 4 months didn’t go quite to plan, however it was definitely a good starting point in helping me save more money. I will probably be doing a similar (more realistic) challenge in the coming months so keep posted!

21

So it’s finally here, the grand old age of 21. I have had a wonderful day and been spoilt beyond my wildest imagination, maybe growing old isn’t so bad after all!

After a fun day yesterday of Halloween games and films, it was an early start today as my excitement took over like the big kid I am! I have been well and truly spoiled my amazing family and girlfriend – I have a trip around Europe next year to look forward to and enough cash to own a Ferrari (at least for an hour or two!). 

In traditional Charlie Brown style I spent the day playing Laser Quest before having all you can eat pizza for lunch – big kid indeed!

I’m off to Dublin tomorrow for 2 nights and the celebrations don’t stop there as I’m having a family/friends party on Saturday night – yep I’m really milking this!

So I guess being 21 isn’t so bad after all!

£5,000 in 4 months?!

Today is the 1st of October. I need roughly £5,000 in savings by the 1st February. Yup I’m screwed! Due to a certain someone’s 21st birthday and having booked a trip to Thailand, its safe to say I need to be saving as best as I can these next couple of months! 

Currently, I work Monday to Friday 9 to 5 in an office job. My wage from this is already pretty stretched out to cover my expenses, petrol, food etc so it’s unlikely I will be able to save any significant amount from this. This means I am going to have to find alternative methods to earn £5,000 in exactly 4 months!

This means I have to be earning £1,250 a month, on top of working full time! It looks to be a damn near impossible task, however I am fully determined and that’s why I am going to document everything and update you guys on a monthly basis to ensure I am on track.

So far, I’ve looked into a possible part time evening job, doing some freelance writing and doing car boot sales, but is there anything else you guys can think of which I could do to earn a bit of extra cash and make those cocktails on the beach in Thailand that little bit sweeter?! Let me know in the comments!

Why Normandy is a History Lovers Paradise – Part 1

So last month I visited Normandy in the north of France for a week, for yet another holiday this year! Normandy is infamous for its history, cider and cheese, and having visited a number of times when I was younger I was looking forward to going back to really appreciate and learn about the history (and drink the cider!).

If you are a history lover, or love learning about new places, Normandy offers all of this in abundance. Normandy is home to some of the most famous beaches in the world – the D-Day landing beaches. D-Day was the allied invasion of Normandy during the second World War and the key to liberating Europe from Nazi control. 

Today the five beaches; Omaha, Gold, Juno, Sword and Utah are stretches of golden sand and picturesque landscapes, however 70 years ago it was a very different story. Over 425,000 Allied and German troops were killed as a result of the battle of Normandy and it is clear to see the devastation left behind. There are numerous cemeteries and museums scattered all around, showing how significant the battle of Normandy was in history. 

We stayed in the coastal town of Arromanches, remembered historically for its place in the Normandy landings and in particular as the place where a Mulberry harbour artificial port was installed. The artificial port allowed the disembarkation of 9,000 tons of material per day following D-Day. There are some remnants of the Mulberry Harbour still present surrounding Arromanches, and there are even some pieces on the beach which you can go and explore. 

Nowadays Arromanches is a popular spot for tourists and there are several restaurants and bars in the town, as well as a number of different museums and souvenir shops. 

At the very top of Arromanches is the fantastic 360 degree cinema, which lets you experience 20 minutes of unseen D-Day footage with full surround sound in a very unforgettable way. I would highly recommend visiting the 360 degree cinema if you ever happen to be over that side of Normandy as it really is a great experience, and does an especially a good of a job of explaining the importance of the infamous Mulberry Harbour.

Just 20 minutes away from Arromanches is the Normandy American Cemetary. The Normandy American Cemetery honours American troops who died in Europe during World War 2 and is situated overlooking Omaha beach, one of the D-Day landing beaches. The Normandy American Cemetery is actually where there opening scene of Saving Private Ryan was filmed. The Cemetery is such a humbling place to visit – there are over 9,500 individual memorials, and the rows and rows of white crosses really does make you realise how lucky you are.

Daniel Craig as Bond

So with Daniel Craig confirming that he will return to reprise his role as James Bond for a fifth film, I’ve decided to look back and rank his previous roles as Bond. *Please note I am solely focusing on Bond’s performance and not the whole film itself*

4. Spectre

Spectre seemingly looked to be Daniel Craig’s last outing as Bond and frankly if it had been his last outing I would have been disappointed because I felt as if Craig still had unfinished business as Bond. Out of the four films I feel as if this is the weakest ‘character’ – what I mean by this is in terms of character development of Bond it was the weakest, Craig’s performance was great as usual however. I just felt as if Bond had become too predictable and too similar to previous films. I also felt as if Craig’s character was a lot more reserved than what we had seen in previous outings and there were times where I felt as if the character could of just been any spy and not the infamous James Bond.

3. Quantum of Solace

Quantum of Solace is a fine example of some of Daniel Craig’s grittiest performances as Bond. Here we see how Bond really takes matters into his own hands and there are a number of examples of brutal and breathless this new Bond is. There are a number of scenes in which Bond goes AWOL and this a theme throughout the film. The only issue I have was how a lot of the time I didn’t understand the rational behind his actions, however this was perhaps down to the plot more than anything.

2. Casino Royale

Casino Royale was Daniel Craig’s first outing as Bond and if I’m honest, when I first watched it I wasn’t overly impressed. However having re-watched it a number of times since, I may have been too quick to judge. It was a huge task for anyone to step up and replace Pierce Bronan (who in my opinion is the best Bond of them all), and in fairness to Daniel Craig, he came in and completely revamped the whole James Bond franchise. I like how ruthless Bond is in Casino Royale and how Daniel Craig’s character brought a whole new style to Bond. Bond was always known as classy and elegant almost but with the introduction of Craig, Bond became more brutal and in my opinion, more realistic.

1. Skyfall

Skyfall is definitely my favourite of Daniel Craig’s performances as Bond. I love how there is a huge focus on Bond’s past and how the film shows that there is a lighter side to him, rather than just a cold blooded killer he actually shows compassion – evident lengths he goes to in protecting M. Skyfall is also where we see a real nitty gritty Bond which I enjoyed seeing, it gave a sense that he isn’t untouchable which is often suggested in a lot of action films with a male protagonist.

What do you think of Daniel Craig as James Bond? Let me know in the comments!

Premier League 17/18 Predictions

After an exciting start to the Championship, our attention now turns to the return of Premier League! Being an avid Manchester United I’m so excited for this new season to start and can’t wait to see how things pan out.

In my excitement I have decided to attempt to predict what the Premier League table will look like come May.

1. Manchester City

2. Manchester United

3. Chelsea

4. Arsenal

5. Liverpool

6. Tottenham

7. Everton

8. Southampton

9. West Ham

10. Crystal Palace

11. Leicester City

12. West Brom

13. Watford

14. Newcastle

15. Bournemouth

16. Stoke

17. Swansea

18. Burnley

19. Huddersfield

20. Brighton

I believe that the Premier League will return to Manchester this season and I think it will be extremely tight at the top, however I could just about see City edging it. I think last seasons champions Chelsea will have a good season but won’t be able to achieve such heights as they did last year.

I think Arsenal will take the last Champions League spot in fourth with Liverpool not too far behind. I think Tottenham may struggle this season, especially playing home games at Wembley. I also think Everton will have a decent season after they have had a very good transfer window.

I can see Southampton, West Ham and Crystal Palace all achieving top 10 finishes. Mid table is so hard to call and teams will only be separated by a few points, but I can see Leicester and West Brom having a fairly successful campaign.

Sadly I think it will be straight back to the Championship for Huddersfield and Brighton, however I believe Newcastle have more than enough to stay up and achieve a decent position. I also think Burnley’s Premier League run will be over, but as always I think the places in and around the relegation zone will be as tight as ever.

So there you have it, my Premier League predictions for the 2017/2018 season! Let me know what you think!

Championship 17/18 Predictions

After two long and painful months away from football, the season finally kicks off this weekend, starting with the return of Championship football. Whilst I am a huge Manchester United fan and obsessed with the Premier League, I am a big fan of pretty much every football league, especially the Championship. I’m by no means an expert but I know my playoffs from my Preston’s! 

In anticipation for what looks to be an extremely interesting season on the horizon, I have decided to attempt my own prediction of the Championship table come May 2018.

 

I strongly believe Aston Villa will win promotion back to the Premier League and I think they will do it in style, finishing top of the league! With veteran John Terry in defence and talisman Jonathan Kodija upfront, I can see Villa bullying a lot of teams throughout the course of the season. I think Fulham and Middlesbrough will have great seasons as well chasing Villa all the way.

Who ends up in the playoffs positions is anyone’s guess but I can see Wolves definitely being in contention after a number of great signings in the summer. Sheffield Wednesday are always a contender so have to be up there and I can see Hull having a good campaign following on from their relegation last season.

I can see Birmingham having huge improvements on last season’s campaign with a top half finish under the leadership of Redknapp – hopefully they will be able to build on this and we will be able to see them in the Premier League in a couple of years’ time! I think Sunderland have a lot of issues to address on and off the pitch and until they get these sorted out I can only see a mid-table finish for them at best this year.

I think it will be a season to forget for Millwall, Bolton and Burton with all 3 ending up in the relegation places. As much as I’d like to see them all stay up, Bolton especially, I do think that the step up from League 1 to the Championship is extremely difficult. That being said, I can see Sheffield United having a great season, finishing well above any relegation battle.

So there you have it, my Championship predictions for the 2017/2018 season! Let me know what you think!