Stratford Upon Avon

One of the best things about moving to the South West of England has been the opportunity to visit so many places that I never thought I'd get the chance to see. 

Places that had always really appealed to me...but not quite enough to merit the journey or the weekend.

One of those places is Stratford Upon Avon. Is it supposed to be hyphenated? I'm not sure, but I think it looks silly, so, hyphens omitted, let's get on with it.

I am an English graduate, and as such, I have come to resent Shakespeare and his body of work with a very great and pure strength. However, a recent visit from a fellow lover of literature inspired a visit to the place where it all started. 

I will admit, my expectations were not high; a recent visit to Oxford informed me that the very famous towns in this neck of the woods are so packed with tourists and other visitors that you don't see or enjoy very much at all. So, imagine my delight when Stratford had a summery, sunny buzz, with most people lolling around in the sun with an ice cream, instead of trying to bump into me. 

There is, naturally, a wealth of Shakespeare-themed attractions to visit (including one 'what if Shakespeare was a time traveller?' museum, because of reasons), but given the sun and the heat and the extortionate cost, we elected to stroll around and behold anything worth beholding from the outside.

Also, shopping.

My favourite spot was definitely down by the river, with all the little boats and picnickers, with the Royal Shakespeare Company building looming in the background. It's a bloody glorious building.

We strolled along the river from the RSC towards Shakespeare's grave. Again, my expectations were not high, because I have a certain amount of resentment for anywhere that asks for payment to look at history that has been treated disrespectfully, or barely cared for (here's looking at you, ALL of Rome), but I have to say, £3 to see such a well cared for memorial in such a beautiful church seemed reasonable. And the money very clearly goes towards the upkeep of a very old building, and not towards building a glass and chrome annex with a gift shop and a cafe in it, or anything.

I hate when old places do that.
Plus, the staff were nice and it was shady and cool (and I had already resorted to removing various items of clothing to deal with the heat).

Also, you could dress up. So, yay.

There were such a lot of strange and wonderful shops to explore, too. Antique shops, Aladdin's caves full of vintage baubles, beautiful bookshops...

My animal-mad visitor found a dog friend to talk to, so, she was happy. I wish we had asked for the pup's name; he was old, and every time someone stopped petting him, he stomped his paw like a little grumpus.

Look! History! Shakespeare's birth place and Anne Hathaway's cottage.
At least you can't complain that I don't bring you any culture.

I am definitely adding Stratford Upon Avon to my list of places to visit around Christmas, I bet it's even more lovely!

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Book Club: #Girlboss

Every now and again, I make a list of resolutions to attempt to make myself a better person.
For example, I joined a gym and now I'm in pain all the time.

Another recent resolution was to read more, the first step of which was to finish the book that's been sitting by my bedside for the last few weeks:
#Girlboss.

This book was a gift from my husband not long after I started Web And Nest (I had been looking for it for a while!), although I have to admit, I binge watched the Netflix TV show loosely based on the author's story before I read the book.
I never do that, honest.

I have read numerous reviews of the show, and while I enjoyed it, it didn't paint the fictionalised Sophia in the best light; she was selfish, short-tempered and entitled. And apparently, this was the 'fluffy', nice version, fiction cunningly disguised as millennial-inspiring fact.

It's been cancelled after one season, anyway, so moving onwards.

Anyway, for those of you who are not familiar with the, somewhat insane, story of Sophia Amoruso, here it is in a nutshell;
Chronically unemployed, a misfit and a troublemaker, Sophia bounced from job to job before starting her own company, selling vintage clothing first on eBay, then through her own site. Her shop grew at an unbelievable rate, and was named the fastest growing retailer of 2012. Impressive, given that it started in one woman's bedroom, and she handled every aspect of the business by herself.

At the beginning of the book, there is a joke about selling vintage clothing seeming very glamorous, unless you are the one emptying the pockets and rinsing and Febreezing everything a hundred times.
This resonated with me, deeply. Deeply.

(While I was reading the book, I did a bit of Googling, only to discover that Nasty Gal filed for bankruptcy in 2016, and has been purchased by BooHoo. There are also a wealth of stories about how the company totally screwed over lots of its, largely female, workforce; firing women during, or just before, their maternity leave, or firing someone with a chronic illness, who needed the health insurance to get a kidney transplant. Harsh, if true. Still. It's an impressive story, for the most part).

I don't know what I was expecting when I started this book - I didn't think it would be a 'How To' guide (even though that would have been super useful), or an autobiography, but maybe a blend of both. It is marketed as a memoir, when it is, in fact, more like a little compendium of uplifting insights and confidence building mantras. There are extracts written by a variety of 'Girlbosses' - business owners and bloggers, mostly. I'm sure these are very impressive to read, if you have heard of any of these women; I had not.

Sophia Amoruso extols the values of being a bad ass bitch - setting your sights on something and working hard until you get it. She advises prioritising customers before anything else, surrounding yourself with good people and never being afraid of looking stupid. From the tone of the book, it's also extremely clear that she has no problem talking about her success and being proud of what she's got. Grating and boastful at some points, but admirable, none the less.

All her points I agree with, wholeheartedly - it's up for debate whether or not the Nasty Gal company practised what their former CEO so loudly preached. I never ordered anything from them, so I wouldn't know.
With the value of hindsight (unhappy employees telling their stories, the company going bankrupt, etc.), it would seem that Sophia Amoruso was not the best business woman after all, but oh man, that woman knows how to market herself. Even if you don't know a thing about her company or her achievements, chances are you've heard of her, or her book. There's no denying that, when judging this lady-book solely by her cover (tsk tsk), she is fearless, sharp and scary.

It's a good read. It's funny and insightful. It's a useful little book if you are attempting to start your own little venture, even if only because it teaches you one very valuable lesson; fabulous marketing can hide a lot of sins.

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