New Home

I have a new website and blog home over at www.emmasoutherden.com so am defunking the old Hope and Angkor, would love to see you lot over on the new site though, follow me on Twitter for regular updates.

Anders just asked for 12 desert island books, with no more than 10 minutes to think about it. I suppose if I was stranded on a desert island I would want some books I could get my teeth into, but also, things that would make me feel good; you know, something life-affirming; books that I love and feel connected to. They are not necessarily going to be the most erudite but there would need to be something thought provoking in there, and maybe something practical. So here they are:

Thomas Hardy - Far from the Madding Crowd
Jack Kerouac - On the Road
Nelson Mandela - The Long Walk to Freedom
Michael Ondaatje - The English Patient
Margaret Atwood - The Blind Assasin
Kira Salak - Four Corners
Simone de Beauvoir - The Second Sex
Jean Rhys - Wide Sargasso Sea
The Dalai Lama - Freedom in Exile
Sylvia Plath - Ariel
Ray Mears - Outdoor Survival Handbook
Encyclopedia of Herbal Medicine

my baby cousin (aged 28 and already mother to two treasured boys)is about to have her third baby, a girl this time! Thinking about the whole process has (once again) brought back the experience of giving birth and the deep connections that emerge and remain inextricable between individuals present at the birth of a new life.

like me, my cousin has a partner who is, let's just say, a leeeetle bit squeemish. So, remembering the watertight support network surrounding me at the birth of my child (yes, my friends had worked out a roster of who could be with me and when should things start to heat up), I offered to be there for the arrival of the new baby should it be necessary. I couldn't have done it without my man there to get me through it, but having my close friend there too when Vi was born gave me so much strength, and has created a bond between all four of us that I am sure will never go away.

Whatever the events of the next few days, we cannot wait for the new arrival, and to give her and her Mummy the love they deserve.

next month i turn 31. Owww, how'd that happen? I thought I would be all glamorous and stuff by now but I still bum around in scruffy jeans and t-shirts that haven't fitted since before I got pregnant. Most days I do not have time to brush my hair. So what is suitable attire for a woman in her 30s looking after her little baby on a daily basis but sometimes wanting to put on a pretty dress and some nice shoes? Hmmm, if anyone is wondering about birthday presents, see below (;-)):


































































































































dress from Alexander McQueen; earrings from Anthropologie; bag from Mulberry; stripey dress from Alice Temperley; shoes from Toast.

ch ch ch ch changes

hard to believe Violet is already three and a half months. Life has become more intense, exhausting and joyful in so many ways. Our feet barely touch the ground these days. Our heads very rarely touch the pillow. And it looks as though, with a bit of good luck, we will be leaving our happy little flat in Greenwich this summer and moving to a new house in the countryside, complete with garden and maybe even an allotment. I can't wait to get my wellies on and my paintbrush out, though not necessarily at the same time. I will miss so much about our life here by the river. We met here over a decade ago (was it the Traf or the Cricketers?) and became best friends here, we caroused at the Cricketers pub (dec.), we drank tea at number 21 (as was), we scoured the market (now defunked) for threads, we had picnics in the park, we fell in love and drank tequilla and danced to Billie Holiday, we had our baby, we have our brilliant and beautiful friends without whom we will be lost. Thanks for the memories Greenwich, and for all we will be taking with us.

howies booty

howies: good clobber

hubba hubba

my gorgeous man, my best friend, my soul mate. I am so excited about spending the rest of our lives together, raising our family and having some fun whilst we do it. You make me smile whenever I think of you.