JenTheJourno

Now that the sun has decided to make an appearance, so has the impractical footwear. Why do people (and by ‘people’ I mean 15-year-old girls) immediately whip out the flip flops the moment the first ray of sun shines on their bleached blonde hair? Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind sandals, as long as they have decent support for the feet. Flip flops have no support. They are noisy. They fall apart after three outings. They hurt your feet. Do not wear them. Invest in a sturdy pair of sandals (you may have to spend a bit more than you would for a pair of Primarni flip flops, but they will last so much longer). I’m not talking about granny sandals (and I am especially staying away from the topic of socks and sandals - that’s for another day), just sturdy footwear with a solid sole that will survive more than one trip to the shops.

I am aware that this post is slightly hypocritical, as I have worn my fair share of impractical footwear in my time, but flip flops, in my opinion, should be forced down the Room 101 shoot without delay (preferably with their owners still wearing them)…

I was recently reminded of this common debate by a friend who is currently going through this very debacle with her husband-to-be.
They are engaged. They have a house to call their own. Said house now feels a little empty. What to fill it with? Something that cries or something that leaves brown marks on the carpet?
Let’s look at the pros and cons to help them decide … 

Baby pros:
.Enjoyable process to make the baby
.Complete unity of two people in one new form
.Can call yourselves a proper family
.People will stop and speak to you to coo at the new life in front of them 

Dog pros:
.Protection for you and your property from intruders and uninvited guests
.Good exercise - encourage you to go on long walks
.Someone/thing to talk to, although beware that you might find yourself saying things like ‘roo’s the cutest? rawr you’re the cutest’ and ‘roo wants to go for a walk?’
.No need to worry about rats, mice, squirrels etc … your dog will kill/eat them 

Dog cons:
.Leg humping
.Hairs everywhere … everywhere
.Brown/yellow stains on the carpet
.Shredded post, and possibly shredded postman

So, faced with the facts, what do you think they will go for? … Mel, Dave? Let me know.

Why on earth do people - and I’m talking about British people, as it’s all we seem to talk about - moan about the weather? It’s winter. It’s meant to be cold. If it wasn’t cold, it wouldn’t be winter. We have the exact same seasons every year - you know the drill: first it’s spring with the little lambs, then comes summer where the kids are off school and the entry prices to absolutely everywhere increase by 50 per cent, then it’s autumn when all the leaves decide to fall off the trees and mess up the garden … then, oh yes, the dreaded winter. It’s cold, it occasionally decides to snow - but, let’s be honest, we don’t get proper snow in Britain. Go to Sweden or Austria where they get proper snow, and they know how to deal with it. We, in Britain, cannot deal with snow. The tiniest flutter of a snowflake and we bolt the doors, cancel all the trains, planes and anything that moves and refuse to leave the house until the first daffodil sprouts its little yellow head.

So, how can we combat the winter blues? Pop pills? Take a duvet day? Stay in watching Jeremy Kyle? No. Nobody should put themselves through that - J Kyle, I mean. Get out of the house. Stop your moaning. Get on with your life. Because, before you know it, summer will be here and we will be moaning it’s too hot. Until then …

Ok, slightly belated, but Happy new year!
Let’s hope 2012 brings as much fun and excitement as 2012!
Keep in touch. Jx

I have had an exciting year, interviewing some really interesting people for articles. Some that stick in my mind …

Marco Pierre White
Denise Van Outen
Ben Shephard
Adee Phelan
Markus Lupfer
Aldo Zilli
Atul Kochhar
Sue Devitt
Leighton Denny

Right, I have just discovered tumblr. so I am going to try to write a synopsis of my last year in a few posts … here goes …