Ink Update (2021 to 2026)

Having picked up the metaphorical pen a bit more of late, along with looking back over my previous posts I came to the realisation that I’ve been a bit lax when it comes to the subject of tattoos. And specifically how my collection of ink has expanded over the last few years.

In fact, since May 2019 I have seven new pieces to share with you. So I suppose the best way to do this would be in chronological order!

We will start way back in April of 2020 when the world had gone slightly mad and consequently my planned ink had to be postponed. In fact it wasn't until  July 2021 when I was finally able to get back to my tattooist Saint Heywood at Acadia Tattoo in Macclesfield.

The tattoo itself was inspired by a dream that Simon had had that involved Peter Pan & Wendy flying together. I wanted the design to represent Peter Pan flying slightly ahead, encouraging and supporting Wendy to fly along with him. This very much represents Simon and I; Simon as the ever youthful Peter guiding, encouraging and supporting Wendy (aka me). Providing me with the confidence and self belief that I feel with Simon by my side, pulling me along to achieve what I may not always realise that I am capable of.

A few hours of lying down and keeping still and I was able to take this awesome creation home with me...

Moving forward to September 2022 and I headed once more to Macclesfield, and this time moved my attention to my left leg for some 'Good Fairy' magic.

Line work completed

The finished piece

I also used this visit to get a small star added to my arm in remembrance of my Dad who had passed away earlier in the year.

Star for my Dad

It wasn't long before I was back at Acadia in November 2022 to start work on a leg piece for my right calf. This piece would ultimately have additional pieces added in July 2023 and June 2024 and honors one of my all time favourite Disney attractions; It's A Small World. With the art style being that of Jerrod Maruyama.

And I'm sure I could add more to this piece...just need to decide on what!

Whilst I had a small addition (the little Dutch boy) to my leg in June 2024 the main reason for visiting Acadia Tattoo was to get this amazing piece of ink completed...

Maleficent and her dragon

A couple of months later in August 2024 we found ourselves visiting, what has become one of our favourite places, Amsterdam. We were there on a special mission as Simon had been asked to display some of his art in a store in the Zeedijk area of the city. So we decided to commemorate the visit and our love of the city with 'XXX' tattoos. The triple X is the symbol of Amsterdam and can be found all over the city from flags to lampposts and more. We booked ourselves in at Blue Blood Studios with the lovely Coral.

Blue Blood Studios, Amsterdam

With our tattooist the lovely Coral

Waiting in style!!

Nine months later, following our vacation to Walt Disney World, it was time for some more ink and this time I wanted to represent another of my all time favourite attractions; Haunted Mansion. But as this was going to be placed on my left leg close to my existing Three Good Fairies I wanted to incorporate something from Sleeping Beauty as well. We came up with the idea of replacing the Madame Leota character from the Haunted Mansion with Sleeping Beauty herself, Aurora.

Linework and some of the black aspects

How amazing is this finished result!!

Pretty chill, enjoying a coffee mid-inking!

So to this year and in May it was time to represent another Walt Disney World attraction that Simon and I had fallen in love with during our two vacations last year. Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway is a delightful, engaging and deceptively complex ride with a catchy signature tune which seems to reflect our current attitude to life...'Nothing Can Stop Us Now'. This tattoo is my first Disney tattoo to include Mickey & Minnie along with the ride's mascot Chuuby and surrounded by some Disney inspired flora!

Getting inked

All done!

'Nothing Can Stop Us Now!

Well it is now August 2026 and we are just a few weeks away from our next Disney vacation so I wonder what is going to inspire my next piece of Disney ink?!!

Fifty-something and Who Gives a FXXK!

So I feel compelled to write a piece about the trials and tribulations of being a woman in her fifties...and one who is getting closer to the end of that particular decade.

And the reason why I thought I would throw my thoughts and experiences into the metaphorical hat is because if I'm being honest I'm a little bit fed up with the 'whoa is me' approach that seems to be prevalent across these here interwebs.

In particular those who feel the need to express what they are going through, how hard it is but at the same time how 'amazing' they are for putting it out there and sharing their 'wisdom'! Along with a need to let everyone know that they are getting close to the magical 50 number and what a milestone that is!

FFS! Yes being a woman brings about a whole load of challenges and yes getting older means we have a load of new shit to deal with and yes it's not all rainbows and unicorns but you know what...that is all part of being the amazing people that we are. 

My own personal opinion is the more we scream and shout about it the more fuel we add to the stereotypical view of how a woman is supposed to be as she moves her way through life.

Now I'm not saying that this transition is plain sailing and nor am I saying that some have it better or worse than others, but we all go through it, we all deal with it in our own way but do we really need to shout about it from the highest rooftop?

I appreciate that sharing ones experiences can be beneficial to others out there; we no longer feel like 'the only one' and that can be comforting. I just think there are ways that this can be done without making it an 'all about me', 'look how I'm coping', 'how amazing am I?' type of thing.

So, having said that, I am now going to make it all about me and tell you how getting older and all that that brings has affected me, and what I have done (if anything) to keep on going!

Being ‘blessed’ to start my periods at the age of 10 or 11 it didn't surprise me that menopause symptoms started appearing from my early to mid-forties onwards. The usual mood swings, a few hot flushes and disrupted nights sleep; all the classics! I was able to cope and carried on pretty much as normal (whatever that means!). Although I do remember apologising in advance to my team at work for any future mood swings as I began to recognise them kicking in! My periods gradually faded away after about a year or so of irregularity before they were eventually no more - woohoo! And while I had all the classic symptoms I'd kept away from any HRT or fancy 'supplements' simply because I hadn't felt them necessary. I was coping. And being a bit stubborn I was in no rush to take anything that I didn't have to.

At the age of 50 I was diagnosed with breast cancer which was discovered on my very first mammogram! (Last Day...) Within weeks of being diagnosed I was having a lumpectomy followed by a course of radiotherapy which were all successful and I have thankfully, been clear ever since. Around this time my menopause symptoms were in full affect, but that then put me in a peculiar situation. The information at the time around HRT came with warnings about links to breast cancer so you can imagine that as time wore on and symptoms became more prevalent my options felt limited. I didn’t want to be taking anything that could cause me more issues around breast cancer. And even when evidence started to come out that some HRT approaches were safe for those who had experienced breast cancer it still just didn't sit right with me.

So what did I do? Well, basically, I put on my metaphorical ‘big girl pants’ and simply got on with it. As I saw it I could either let those symptoms control my life or simply rise above and carry on. My ethos has always been to simply try to stack the odds in my favour by keeping active, eating clean whole foods, avoiding alcohol and taking the time to meditate; has this approach helped me? Who knows, but I do feel in the best shape I have ever felt even with the odd hot flush and disturbed nights sleep.

Nor was I going to let turning a curtain age define me either; after all (and to quote a cliché) age is but a number. So I’ve reached 58; I am living my life to the best of my abilities and saying yes to new opportunities, yes to travel, yes to new adventures and more importantly yes to life. None of us know how long we have on this mortal plane so we best make the most of what we have!

Life is for living so get out there and live it to its fullest and don’t let anyone grind you down!

As Christopher Robin once said ‘You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem and smarter than you think’.

London Baby!

The end of April saw us take a weekend trip down to London, a chance to meet up with friends old and new, enjoy the vibe of the city and attend a very special event that we had been building towards for a fair few weeks!

The Friday was our travel day making the best use of Uber and a direct train into London St Pancras which only takes about an hour and a half from where we live. Although when we boarded the train it was very packed and at one point it looked like we would be standing all the way. Thankfully after a couple of stops we were able to grab a couple of seats, and because a fellow passenger saw our predicament of trying to find seats near each other, they moved so that we could sit together!

The next stage of our journey gave us chance to get our steps in for the day as we walked from St Pancras to our hotel in Shoreditch; a 50 minute walk...with 2 cases...in unseasonably warm April weather. So before we set off we needed coffee and a sweet treat, and EL&N was the perfect choice with a gorgeous piece of Dubai cheesecake to share!

Making our way across London

We found our hotel with ease, grabbed our room keys and found our 'home' for the next three nights.

Our home for a few nights

Once we had sorted our stuff it was time to find some food, and after a quick scan on Google maps we found an Honest Burger close by which, from previous experience, we knew would suit us perfectly. Halloumi fries, burgers and onion rings for the win! 

Back at the hotel and I had nails to paint ahead of the event we were attending the following evening.

Our Saturday started slowly followed by the very important task of finding breakfast! Google maps is our go-to when looking for good restaurants and today did not disappoint. We found a place called Lantana offering food with an Australian vibe and we enjoyed their take on a full English breakfast and an amazing avocado on toast. 

Full English Aussie style

Avocado on toast!

We then took a walk around the local area and realised that we were in the 'City of London' area which meant it was very quiet with hardly anywhere open, thankfully we did manage to find somewhere for a coffee before returning to the hotel and formulating a plan for the day. We needed to work out where we were going for the event, what time we needed to be there as well as factoring in time to get ready and making sure we had something to eat as we knew once we were at the event food would not be an option!

With a plan in mind we headed out to a restaurant called Meat Up in Hoxton Square where we had the most amazing burgers and steak frites! And it definitely set us up for the evening ahead. 

Back at the hotel it was time to get glammed up and then take a walk over to the event located at Simon Drakes House of Magic. It was a lovely evening and although we had a case of 'stuff' to take with us we opted to walk the three miles and avoid just sitting in traffic and paying for  the privilege! 

Getting our steps in!

The event was hosted by our very good friend, the always delightful Miss Kim. It had been her idea to use the event for the official launch of Simon's art book. Over the past six years he has been quietly producing artwork under a pseudonym which has generated over 60 pieces (and counting) of art along with a healthy social media following. 

All the artwork is produced digitally, is highly detailed, is strictly 'adults only content' and can take many, many hours to complete. But the benefit of creating digitally has meant that wherever we go Simon can take his 'easel and paint' with him from train journeys to vacation time to sleepy coffee shops. As his portfolio began to grow we realised that we needed a medium in which to display the artwork rather than relying on our phones and social media accounts and so the idea of producing a physical art book was created. Drawing inspiration from the 'Taschen' art books in his collection Simon set about creating the book taking care to encapsulate the art and their meaning, resulting in a book of 43 images and more. We were then able to print a short limited edition run of 20 hardcover editions.

Books prepped and ready to launch

We spent the evening chatting with some lovely people, introducing them to Simon's art and by the end of the evening we had sold 3 books. Not knowing what to expect when we decided to put the book together and take the plunge into self publishing, we were both pleased, and surprised, with the reception it garnered. 

At around midnight we began the walk back to the hotel; time to reflect on the evening and enjoy the relative calm of the city in the early hours of the morning. 

Looks like we picked a busy weekend to be in London!

Once back at the hotel and still feeling awake despite the hour we decided to push the button to launch the book online and ensure that social media posts were all set for the morning.

We awoke to messages from both Australia and New Zealand asking if we could ship there...when setting up the online store we had focused on the UK, the US and Europe not expecting to get interest from further afield. We quickly jumped online and created shipping options for down under and by the end of the day we had orders placed for both Australia and New Zealand and a third for the US!

With the admin tasks of the day completed we headed out to enjoy a very bright and sunny day in London exploring the sights and sounds of Shoreditch and Spitalfields. At lunchtime we met Miss Kim and our new friend 'The Barnoness' (who was wearing the most amazing latex skirt!) for lunch at a pub called The Gun just across from Spitalfields Market where we enjoyed a traditional Sunday roast beef. 

After a couple of hours we said our goodbyes and explored the local area before finding a spot for a coffee. After such a wonderful and filling lunch we decided to stop by a Marks & Spencer food hall and pick up some nibbles to have back at the hotel that evening.

Monday was our day of travelling home and we decided that there was no rush and to just take a steady approach to the day. One thing we have discovered being retired is the benefit of making the time our own with no longer a need to be running to a schedule unless it's one we create for ourselves. So once we were ready to check-out of the hotel we grabbed our bags and made our way back to Lantana for another amazing breakfast.

We walked to St Pancras and remarked on how busy it seemed and then we spotted lots of people wearing medals and walking rather delicately which was when we made the realisation that the previous day had been the London Marathon so consequently today was travel day for a lot of those who had taken part. 

We checked the train time home and decided that we had time for another visit to EL&N for coffee and cake before heading to our platform with time to spare. 

As our tickets had no seat assignments we made sure to be at the platform, and the front of the queue, to give ourselves the best chance of finding seats. Sure enough once the gates to the platform opened it was a mad dash to get those precious seats but thankfully by walking a little further towards the front of the train we walked onto a fairly empty carriage and snagged a couple of seats together. It became apparent very quickly that the train was very, very busy and we guessed that was a direct impact of the marathon weekend and likely the reason why no seats had been allocated. The journey home was uneventful with the exception of the train travelling slower than normal so we did end up getting to our home station 22 minutes late (claim for the delay made and compensation a few days later received).

A fun and productive weekend!

And home!