What Sophie Said

It’s a new month and that means it’s time for a new challenge. Yet again, I’m a couple of days late posting about my challenge, but the bonus is that means I can give a bit of feedback on my first couple of days. The challenge: walk to and from work, don’t take the bus. I should probably mention that this walk is 3.5 miles each way… I’ve been doing this for 2 weeks now, since moving to the new house, and have made it my April challenge to make sure I keep it up. Here’s the bonuses I’ve noticed so far: - It gives me a great slot of thinking time. As someone who has been struggling with panic for the last 6 months or so, I’ve heard it’s a good plan to give yourself some thoughtful time, which you can then block off and set aside and continue with your day. So far, that’s working. - It’s great exercise. A brisk walk at both ends of the day can never be a bad thing. I’m doing a fast walk for about 45 minutes each way, which is no bad thing. It leaves me feeling energ...

My name is Sophie, and I buy FAR too many magazines. That would have been my confession just six months ago. For as long as I can remember, I have loved the world of magazines. The glossy covers, the beautiful images, that mixture of beauty, fashion, life and advice. Monthly magazines, gossipy weekly magazines, it didn’t matter. I loved them, one and all. Looking back at the amount of money I must have spent on magazines over the years actually now makes me shudder. When you consider your average glossy monthly is around the £4, and I loved far more than one of them… Then, about six months ago, I graduated from university and ‘real life’ begun. I moved back home whilst job hunting, and began work in September of 2013. I realised more than ever that I needed to watch my pennies. Don’t get me wrong, I learned a lot about budgeting at university, but it took starting work and earning an actual salary to really make me think. Flicking through the November issue of a popula...