" It's astounding. Time is fleeting..."

So today is just under a month until I turn 30 : s  Boy how fast time has gone since I started writing this blog - it seemed so far away!

So how do I feel?  A little nervous, a little frustrated but overall not too bad.  The main problem is it's hard enough realising that your in your late 20s, but trying to think that I'll be joining the 30 somethings soon is mind boggling!  There's nothing wrong with it (many of my friends are older than me) but it just doesn't seem right.  Why me!  Where did my 20s go?

Overall, I have just not been thinking about (which is the best thing for it) but it's hard for it not to slip back in there.  

You see, my problem is, I still feel that I haven't achieved enough before this birthday and one month is just not enough time to do it all in.  I know that I won't turn 30 and be trapped in my house apart from going to work, but for some reason, that's how my mind sees it.

I know many girlfriends of mine that have got passed the 30 mark, so there is light past the birthday, but I'm still scared : s

I think the thing that made me think of it the other day, was the change that I will need to make to the title of this block.  It is currently Route to Thirty and I have decided I am enjoying writing it so much that I don't want it to end, but the title needs to change.  I want it to have the same chatty, blog manner where I natter about life but I will be past 30.  Do I really want it to be Route to 40?  That makes me feel even older so soon from this first great shock.  But what else am I heading towards.  I'm not planning on having children at the moment, I'm not getting married and I hope to have a proper job soon so don't want it to be Route to Work (that and it sounds lame).  It will be a Route to something I just don't know what.  Maybe to growing up?  Maybe I don't want to do that yet.

That's the main problem, I don't want to grow up!  I prefer my life as an adult but now want to stay this age (kind of like an adult Peter Pan, lol).  I don't want to be the old one in the club that still likes dancing to hits - it makes me sad, I will always like dancing!

I know I'm probably looking into this too much but hey ho, I'm a woman hitting the 30 sign without being able to drive - it just doesn't seem right!

Well, for now, I'm going to stay in denial and watch some Mad Men which makes me feel sophisticated, young and on the pulse.  If your not watching it, you just don't know what your missing!

To cheer us all up, my title today is from one of my favourite musicals of all time, The Rocky Horror Show.  So get your dancing boots on and click the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opOsgzzDPdw&feature=related

"The info from what she reads, makes her a total fox"

Reading.  One of those things I was forced to do by my intellectual father, who liked nothing more than to engulf himself in a book.  He wanted me to be academic, I was academic but I also knew what I liked and didn't like.  And some of his choices (including 3 men and a boat) just didn't rock my boat of imagination - it made me want to sleep!

I gave up on books after my GCSE's and didn't find them again until university, when suddenly all I wanted to do was read and absorb the words from every page.  And this wasn't just academic books, it was plays, autobiographies and fiction - I wanted it all!

I read books for a weird reason - I am a front cover reader.  I choose books because I like the cover, then I read the back and if I like both, I buy it.  In general, this has always worked for me as I am picky about what I read and if something looks boring from the outside, the design probably goes with the text - why wouldn't it!

This doesn't mean I stick to one genre or anything, I have read Stephen King to more contemporary writers like Matt Beaumont (love him, have loads of his stuff ("E" is good and "The Book, The Film, The T-shirt") and his wife's a writer too (Maria Beaumont) - have a look at her stuff too).  I also like plays by people like Mark Ravenhill and Patrick Marber.

There is something about a book, that I don't think I would ever get from a Kindle.  It's not just about the words being on a digital screen (which I hate by the way, because it hurts your eyes a lot quicker - wait until Kindle readers start going blind by using theirs too much) but it's the feel of the pages, the fact that if it's borrowed or 2nd hand, the people that have gone through the same emotions when reading the text, being excited about finding the book in your bag and desperate to read.  That's what makes reading a book so great!

One of my favourite collection of books that I have ever read has to be Red Dwarf.  Being a big fan of the series and intrigued by the books, I decided to borrow my dad's copy.  As a fan, these books were amazing!  I used to lie on the bed and read them whilst imagining the different characters saying the words - it was like the words truly lifted off the page.  I also like the fact that different episodes appear in the books but they are only part of the bigger picture, which was even more exciting!  I am very lucky that one of mine is actually signed by two of the cast - I was like 16 and the book was originally my dad's but soon became mine once it was signed.  I also have a book signed by Danny Wallace and Rich Fulcher (Tiny Acts of Rebellion is hilarious - seen it live and read the book) - by chance, not even on purpose originally : )

I am currently reading the great How to be a Woman by Caitlin Moran.  I have to say, it has been while since I have laughed and nearly cried on transport because of a book.  She has completely covered the feeling of growing up as a woman and not really knowing how to become one.  I also love her references to the world around her - so many of her childhood memories are things I remember too (which makes sense, as she's probably only about 5 years older than me).  If there are any woman out there who haven't read this (it's won at least one award and I'm probably one of the last to read it), you must!  Well, I say must.  As long as you are an open minded and open person in general, I would suggest it.  If your not, maybe leave it.  It will make you cringe and laugh quite intensely, but that's what I like about it : )

You see, the great thing about a book is the connections or disconnection from your life causing an amazing form of escapism that one hardly ever finds in any other art form.  I tend to work in stressful environments and a book is the only time I can remove myself from my work and just feel relaxed (especially if my phones off).

So if it's been awhile since you've read a good book, give it a go.  Whether its by reading a book suggested to you or being radical like me and choosing a front cover : )  By the way, I haven't read the Fifty Shades of Grey but did hear them taking the piss out of it in the comedy tent at Latitude Music Festival.  I actually wanted to read it cos the one with the mask on the cover - I own that mask, so I wanted to read it.  What can I say?  I'm weird, LOL

Blog title based on the amazing Mark Grist's "I Like a Girl That Reads" comedy poem: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWwXJT4LA5A&feature=player_embedded