Hey there,
My mum recently bought a the New iPad 5 as the iPad which mum had been given from work was being restored to factory settings and we just needed a new one to replace that one...don't even ask. But she bought this really boring, red faux leather stand up case = BORING. I've tried to convince her that they have nicer looking ones which are just as functional as that one, she's having none of it. But why am I telling you this? As I got lost in designer, fandom, funny cases which I fell in love with as they were just so creative and functional.
These range from cheap to expensive and all over the world-wide web.So here are my top 10!
10. Marc by Marc Jacobs Mareika tablet book. I'm not a big designer fan but when I browsed through Selfrides site under Cases and covers I fell for the Blue version. I love the Leaf Embossed look and the royal blue is classy, the black version is a shame but still looks good, but the coral was nice but not very me. If you know what I mean.It has pockets for extra pieces of paper, or whatever you might hold in there, and it's wipe clean which means goodbye tomato soup stain. It's pricey though at £85 which is a shame, but what was I expecting with designer?
9.TED BAKER Dixi Floral-Print tablet case. I saw this one and thought of my mum, I had tried to make her buy this one as it was very her. But like I said in the intro...none of it.It's a hard case which means it can take a tumble on its back, but on its front it's as protected as David Cameron in a working class pub on a Saturday night. It's pretty and cute, which isn't very me, but the print is classy and TED BAKER fans must love this. And at £39 that is a half reasonable price too.
8. Angry Birds Case - Red Bird . Who doesn't love Angry Birds? Though I got bored of the game after I got stuck on a level, I still love the look. The red wasn't my favourite bird, but when I looked to Ebay and Amazon I found hundreds of others ranging from blue, black, yellow and the pigs. Ranging from booklet cases, rubber and clip on hard backs like this one. I liked this one the most. It's pretty cheap which is a nice bonus and the wipe clean thing is brilliant for a clutz like me.
7. Inkybobboy's Vintage Dumbo Comic. THIS IS SO CUTE! I loved Dumbo as a kid, and with the vintage comic look it is so adorably cute. This is from RedBubble which sells graphic designer, artists work onto t-shirts, ipad cases(as we're seeing), mugs, stickers and posters. It's a really cool site and a lot of cases will be from here (As i love it so much!). Problem with RedBubble's clip-on-cases is that they aren't dockable, which means you have to take them off to dock. But back to this case. I love this case and reminds me of watching Dumbo as a kid, really brings the flying circus elephant back to life.
6. Verso Prologue Case. I am a sucker for anything that looks remotely vintage, obviously the notion of getting a "vintage" iPad case is impossible as they are modern but this does a good job of impersonating vintage. It has a cover to protect from scratches but a reviewer said there was no magnet to keep it shut which is a shame, but also they said it lay flat which eliminated this problem. It also has a pocket on the inside of the flap for your little bits.But for £34.95 this isn't to bad. I love this, it looks like a book...though it won't smell of book though :(
5. Smythson Mara Collection Case. This is the most priciest of all the cases i'm showing you at £325, but it looks stunning. This is why it falls at number five. It comes in a number of colours like blue, leather brown, and orange, but I love the yellow. It's a prop-up case which means I could(though never going to happen with that price)comfortable watch movies without getting neck ache or sitting in a weird position. Like many of the others it has a pocket to fit things in. But really the whole thing I love about this case is the yellow...I don't even know why. But that price is a total deal breaker to me.
4. Grove's Bamboo Case. This case is just stunning...that is all. The bamboo used for the case is precision case and comes with all the mod-cons. The speaker holes are cut in and also the camera lens is also cut in so you don't have to take it out all the time. The case cover can either be; wool for £159 which is gorgeous, plain leather for £159 again, engraved leather in black or tan for £169, or custom for £199. So it's a bit pricey but you cannot put a price on quality. The cover has magnets for wake-up/sleep lock (which my mums current case doesn't have and really annoys me)and the flap doubles for a upright stand. I really love this case and it looks just so good. Grove hasn't started selling the ipad cases yet but they will be out fall of 2013...so not long. I would put myself on the waiting list...but it's not my iPad.
3.Urban Cow's handmade leather case. I'm a sucker for leather, especially handmade leather. It's a proper roll up case, I saw it and I thought upon first site "You could put archaeological hammers and brushes in that and it would look so authentic". It has a little pockets to slide you paper pad into and i love the little strap to shut it in. Weird obsession. Everybody seems to love Urban Cow, with a 113 positive reviews they're doing something right. And especially at that price, £50.94 I call that a leather bargain.
2. Olipop's Unseen University case. I must confess I am a huge Terry Pratchett fan, I've read over 30 of the continuing series. My favourite being Carpe Jugulam, total piss take of vampires and is so funny when you compare to the Twilight series vampires. This is an incredibly personal choice, I have recently been tempted to but a Terry Pratchett 3/4 baseball shirt with the same print. But I love it, buy my mum not being a Terry Pratchett fan might not find it as awesome.
1.Gemzi-ox Paws-Jaws case. Why? Because I think it's bloody hilarious. Yes, I have the sense of humour the same as a 10 years old But I love this. It's a really funny parody, and who doesn't love cats? Especially kittens! This is why it's number 1 as I have a silly sense of humour and would definitely but it if this way my iPad and not my mums. I'm disappointing it isn't now. WANT NOW!!
Friday 4 October 2013
Monday 30 September 2013
Reading List: Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
Hello,
Book 1: A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
Let's start with a plot to this rather disturbing and interesting novel.
A Clockwork Orange takes place in a futuristic city governed by a repressive, totalitarian super-State. In this society, ordinary citizens have fallen into a passive stupor of complacency, blind to the insidious growth of a rampant, violent youth culture. The protagonist of the story is Alex, a fifteen-year-old boy who narrates in a teenage slang called nadsat, which incorporates elements of Russian and Cockney English. Alex leads a small gang of teenage criminals—Dim, Pete, and Georgie—through the streets, robbing and beating men and raping women. Alex and his friends spend the rest of their time at the Korova Milkbar, an establishment that serves milk laced with drugs, and a bar called the Duke of New York. The first night in the novel the gang of "droogs" head out onto the streets and attack a old man and a rival gang, they later steal a car and drive to a writer and his wife's cottage in the countryside. They rape and attack the writers wife while the writer watches as Alex sings "I'm singing in the rain". They later go to a old woman's house to steal and rape, Alex is attacked by the woman and eventually beats her to the ground. He attempts to leave but once outside he is attacked by his own "droogs" leaving him for the police. He is sent to prison, after the woman dies, for 14 years in a overcrowded prison. Alex is then selected to go under a new form of Aversion Therapy which he is subjected to a videos and music which under a serum makes Alex violently sick when he thinks of violent acts. He is released from the prison being considered harmless to society, kicked out from his own home he is beaten by his old "droogs" who are reformed police officers. While trying to find help from the beating he comes across the home of the old writer. The writer over time recognises Alex, who had raped and killed his wife years before, and tries to make Alex commit suicide by blasting the music used in the Aversion therapy through his walls. He jumps from the window and is admitted to hospital. In hospital Alex is told that the Aversion therapy has been removed. Alex then returns to his life of crime not feeling sick anymore but tires of his life. Later after tiring from this new lease of life he decides to leave the gang and he looks to his future.
My review/thoughts/what I personally picked up on:
I really enjoyed the book, it's gritty view on the teenage sub-culture really interested me. Even though I got lost in the slang which Alex and his gang members used, I actually had to have a glossary up on my phone while reading this. The slang, Nadsat, used is a mixture of Russian and Cockney English and makes feel removed from Alex as a character. It also removes us from the violence is also causing, also the way the slang is used lacks remorse "Ultra- Violence" meaning rape. Burgess used Nadsat as this is the way he believed teenagers would be speaking in the future. This is contrasted in the way that the adults speak, the adults of the novel speak in a predictable manner. His parents speak in parental cliches, doctors in medical jargon, the police only speak in law and order terminology. It highlights the differences between the generations and how disconnected they are from each other.
The way society is seen in the eyes of Burgess is very interesting and twisted, the way he sees the youth culture. The way teenagers are represented in the novel are that they non-conformist and yobs. The only teenagers identified in the book is Alex, a rival gang who Alex and his "droogs" attack in the first section of the novel, and two girls whom Alex spots in the record shop and takes them to his home then rapes them. They are shown as evil almost, Alex's gang attacks others, the rival gang is about to rape a woman when Alex shows up in the first chapter, and the two girls are meant to be not much older than 10 and bunking of school. A newspaper article is read by Alex and his probation office which is on "The Modern Youth" and the chaos they are causing.
"The old in-and-out" aka. Sex is a way of showing power in A Clockwork Orange. Rape is a common feature of this novel, Alex and his "droogs" when they go to Mr. Alexander "ultra-violence" (rape) Mrs. Alexander while he watches. Alex does the same to the two girls bunking school. Deltiod, Alex's probation officer, grabs Alex's balls when in discussion with his to assert his dominance over Alex. The whole novel though boils down to controlling something through somebody, through many different methods but sex. Mr. Alexander saw Alex as a way to bring down the government, The Minster of the Interior saw Alex as a guinea pig in the Aversion therapy and also removal of the treatment, and Alex using violence and threats to control his own gang then buying them back once he's hurt them. Burgess shows the society as power hungry, greedy and will exploit others to get there way.
I personally loved this book, it's still current and examples of the treatment are still being used in places such as America to "reform" gay men (that is just sick personally), the way the government will always be partially true. The character of Alex is brilliant and the end, was just right and mature. I would recommend this book to anyone.
I just still can't watch the movie...I know what happens but images of it made me have to turn it off. Too much. But brilliant book.
Book 1: A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
Let's start with a plot to this rather disturbing and interesting novel.
A Clockwork Orange takes place in a futuristic city governed by a repressive, totalitarian super-State. In this society, ordinary citizens have fallen into a passive stupor of complacency, blind to the insidious growth of a rampant, violent youth culture. The protagonist of the story is Alex, a fifteen-year-old boy who narrates in a teenage slang called nadsat, which incorporates elements of Russian and Cockney English. Alex leads a small gang of teenage criminals—Dim, Pete, and Georgie—through the streets, robbing and beating men and raping women. Alex and his friends spend the rest of their time at the Korova Milkbar, an establishment that serves milk laced with drugs, and a bar called the Duke of New York. The first night in the novel the gang of "droogs" head out onto the streets and attack a old man and a rival gang, they later steal a car and drive to a writer and his wife's cottage in the countryside. They rape and attack the writers wife while the writer watches as Alex sings "I'm singing in the rain". They later go to a old woman's house to steal and rape, Alex is attacked by the woman and eventually beats her to the ground. He attempts to leave but once outside he is attacked by his own "droogs" leaving him for the police. He is sent to prison, after the woman dies, for 14 years in a overcrowded prison. Alex is then selected to go under a new form of Aversion Therapy which he is subjected to a videos and music which under a serum makes Alex violently sick when he thinks of violent acts. He is released from the prison being considered harmless to society, kicked out from his own home he is beaten by his old "droogs" who are reformed police officers. While trying to find help from the beating he comes across the home of the old writer. The writer over time recognises Alex, who had raped and killed his wife years before, and tries to make Alex commit suicide by blasting the music used in the Aversion therapy through his walls. He jumps from the window and is admitted to hospital. In hospital Alex is told that the Aversion therapy has been removed. Alex then returns to his life of crime not feeling sick anymore but tires of his life. Later after tiring from this new lease of life he decides to leave the gang and he looks to his future.
My review/thoughts/what I personally picked up on:
I really enjoyed the book, it's gritty view on the teenage sub-culture really interested me. Even though I got lost in the slang which Alex and his gang members used, I actually had to have a glossary up on my phone while reading this. The slang, Nadsat, used is a mixture of Russian and Cockney English and makes feel removed from Alex as a character. It also removes us from the violence is also causing, also the way the slang is used lacks remorse "Ultra- Violence" meaning rape. Burgess used Nadsat as this is the way he believed teenagers would be speaking in the future. This is contrasted in the way that the adults speak, the adults of the novel speak in a predictable manner. His parents speak in parental cliches, doctors in medical jargon, the police only speak in law and order terminology. It highlights the differences between the generations and how disconnected they are from each other.
The way society is seen in the eyes of Burgess is very interesting and twisted, the way he sees the youth culture. The way teenagers are represented in the novel are that they non-conformist and yobs. The only teenagers identified in the book is Alex, a rival gang who Alex and his "droogs" attack in the first section of the novel, and two girls whom Alex spots in the record shop and takes them to his home then rapes them. They are shown as evil almost, Alex's gang attacks others, the rival gang is about to rape a woman when Alex shows up in the first chapter, and the two girls are meant to be not much older than 10 and bunking of school. A newspaper article is read by Alex and his probation office which is on "The Modern Youth" and the chaos they are causing.
"The old in-and-out" aka. Sex is a way of showing power in A Clockwork Orange. Rape is a common feature of this novel, Alex and his "droogs" when they go to Mr. Alexander "ultra-violence" (rape) Mrs. Alexander while he watches. Alex does the same to the two girls bunking school. Deltiod, Alex's probation officer, grabs Alex's balls when in discussion with his to assert his dominance over Alex. The whole novel though boils down to controlling something through somebody, through many different methods but sex. Mr. Alexander saw Alex as a way to bring down the government, The Minster of the Interior saw Alex as a guinea pig in the Aversion therapy and also removal of the treatment, and Alex using violence and threats to control his own gang then buying them back once he's hurt them. Burgess shows the society as power hungry, greedy and will exploit others to get there way.
I personally loved this book, it's still current and examples of the treatment are still being used in places such as America to "reform" gay men (that is just sick personally), the way the government will always be partially true. The character of Alex is brilliant and the end, was just right and mature. I would recommend this book to anyone.
I just still can't watch the movie...I know what happens but images of it made me have to turn it off. Too much. But brilliant book.
Monday 23 September 2013
My reading list!
Hey there my lovely but tiny readership,
I'm a A-Level English student at a sixth form in my local area and have recently taken my AS Level to receive a mix bag of results. At the start of my year 13 English course we were as a class given a reading list which we were encouraged to read for further depth of reading and knowledge of literature. The list contains of 76 different titles which I am to attempt of reading half of them by the end of my year. I so far have read 6...3 of them were read before I was actually given the list. Lucky really! But I intend to read as many as possible for personal interest and I feel I'm missing out on modern literature by reading cruddy women's romantic literature which end the right way but the wrong way...how juxtaposed is that?!
But what has this got to do with you lovely people...reviews that's what. Every time I cross a book on that list I will review it. So once every 3 weeks...at worst...I will review a new book. I intend to talk about my personal feelings on the book and how I understood it and any interesting sections and discuss them here...basically I'm doing my own revision for English and reviewing books for pleasure. And sure it looks lovely on a UCAS statement if I say I read a lot of books and do online reviews...just won't give them my blog name...I know sneaky.
I will review the 3 books in short turn before I finish my current book, which isn't on the reading list but is interesting, these books will be Anthony Burgess's Clockwork Orange, Joseph Heller's Catch-22, and Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar. I hope you enjoy my reviews on this book and it is my my mission to inspire me to read more books, but also to encourage you...yes reader, you...to read these books to. I hope you will share my enthusiasm with me.
Keep a close eye out for reviews soon,
Ta ta!
I'm a A-Level English student at a sixth form in my local area and have recently taken my AS Level to receive a mix bag of results. At the start of my year 13 English course we were as a class given a reading list which we were encouraged to read for further depth of reading and knowledge of literature. The list contains of 76 different titles which I am to attempt of reading half of them by the end of my year. I so far have read 6...3 of them were read before I was actually given the list. Lucky really! But I intend to read as many as possible for personal interest and I feel I'm missing out on modern literature by reading cruddy women's romantic literature which end the right way but the wrong way...how juxtaposed is that?!
But what has this got to do with you lovely people...reviews that's what. Every time I cross a book on that list I will review it. So once every 3 weeks...at worst...I will review a new book. I intend to talk about my personal feelings on the book and how I understood it and any interesting sections and discuss them here...basically I'm doing my own revision for English and reviewing books for pleasure. And sure it looks lovely on a UCAS statement if I say I read a lot of books and do online reviews...just won't give them my blog name...I know sneaky.
I will review the 3 books in short turn before I finish my current book, which isn't on the reading list but is interesting, these books will be Anthony Burgess's Clockwork Orange, Joseph Heller's Catch-22, and Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar. I hope you enjoy my reviews on this book and it is my my mission to inspire me to read more books, but also to encourage you...yes reader, you...to read these books to. I hope you will share my enthusiasm with me.
Keep a close eye out for reviews soon,
Ta ta!
Friday 20 September 2013
Thursday 19 September 2013
Lets explain my name...
Hi,
Obscure blog titles confuse me. They don't often reflect the content of the blog, neither do they give any explanation of why the blogger has chosen to choose such a name. So I thought I would go out on a limb and explain my title.
Obscure blog titles confuse me. They don't often reflect the content of the blog, neither do they give any explanation of why the blogger has chosen to choose such a name. So I thought I would go out on a limb and explain my title.
This is the Oxford dictionary definition of the the term punk. To me the punk culture was different, to the definition. It was a social revolution of art, music and freedom of expression which united people together. It was a clear cut revolution. Stemming from the Hippies of the 60's this subculture made their own thoughts loud and clear and weren't afraid of the consequences. The Sex Pistols attacking the Monarchy and social conformity, Vivienne Westwood creating controversial clothing in a controversial names store "SEX" (any need to explain that one?). Politics was changing again...well it doesn't stop, but...and people weren't happy, again. Yelling about it was fine!
To me punk was a social outlet of not really giving a flying hippopotamus about how others saw you, and group of people who also felt that the norms and values of society were constricting there choices in life. So the only way they could do this was vent through fashion, music, books, and even film.
The name if my blog is simple. I want to be part of this punk subculture, but I'm 40/30 years late. It sits on its last legs unfortunately. So the title is "Trying to be Punk" for that reason. The tag line "...but not doing a very good job" refers to my lack of care about politics and joining in with the social change and actually doing a rather stunning job of conforming.
So this explains my strange title of a blog. I will try to post stuff regularly. Fashion, books, films, me out an about. Rubbish like that. I hope you enjoy me rabbling.
Beth x
To me punk was a social outlet of not really giving a flying hippopotamus about how others saw you, and group of people who also felt that the norms and values of society were constricting there choices in life. So the only way they could do this was vent through fashion, music, books, and even film.
The name if my blog is simple. I want to be part of this punk subculture, but I'm 40/30 years late. It sits on its last legs unfortunately. So the title is "Trying to be Punk" for that reason. The tag line "...but not doing a very good job" refers to my lack of care about politics and joining in with the social change and actually doing a rather stunning job of conforming.
So this explains my strange title of a blog. I will try to post stuff regularly. Fashion, books, films, me out an about. Rubbish like that. I hope you enjoy me rabbling.
Beth x
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