The year is 2014 and the month is February. These are, of course, fairly obvious observations to make but February is a rather important time of the year. For those of us in the northern hemisphere it is a month in which temperatures continue to hit new lows and heating bills continue to hit new highs. For those of you in the southern hemisphere it is a month in which temperatures continue to hit new highs and heating bills continue to hit new lows. Lucky buggers.
Most importantly, however, it is the month in which we have to accept that it really is no longer 2013. It is the month in which we find out whether those new years resolutions we made will actually come to fruition. Has that arbitrary ‘I-will-be-more-organised’ suggestion in your conscience actually come to anything? Will those trips to the gym last? Have you eaten your weight in chocolate already? *guilty* It is also the month in which we should probably stop writing 2013 in our diaries. If you’re like me you won’t stop this until June but there’s no harm in trying. In fact, if you’re like me it’s also the month in which you should probably get back to editing that website you set up last September…oh wait – that’s what I’m doing now, ta-dah welcome to February everyone, welcome to Prancing Through LIFE.
The great thing about February (other than the fact that the pronunciation of the first ‘r’ is optional) is that you can actually start to see how the year is shaping up.
You can see what’s happening in ART & FASHION:
Oh Alexander Wang – you dog.
You can see what’s happening in LITERATURE:
Well – sort of…January is quite a dead month for literature which usually makes it quite a good time to catch up on some classics. However, in and amongst the literary void this past month lies Nathan Filer’s The Shock of the Fall. Those of you who have read it will no doubt be able to recall that it is a brilliant portrait of mental illness. Sadly I am not one of those people. I spent January reading Brave New World and pacing through The Hunger Games: Trilogy. It was time well spent.
You can see what’s happening in FILM, THEATRE & TELEVISION:
Unlike literature, film, theatre and television do quite nicely over January. This may have something to do with the fact that it’s awards season and directors like to cash-in on the buzz that comes with it but we would never be quite so cynical over at Prancing Through LIFE. Anyway, Steve McQueen’s 12 Year’s A Slave is probably the pick of the bunch. Chiwetel Ejiofor gives the performance of his life and Lupita Nyong’o is perfect. Then again you probably already knew that.
You can see what’s happening in MUSIC:
*blushes* *jaw drops* *faints*
And, finally, you can see what’s happening in LIFE…or Prancing Through LIFE to be more precise. With it being a new year and all, there are indeed going to be some changes to PTL. Don’t worry I will still ramble on about all the important and slightly less important things which cross my mind when I get the chance – that’s a given. However, it gives me great pleasure to announce that there is now a Prancing Through LIFE family.
After months of going solo, PTL now has a team of brilliant editors who you will get to know and love over the next few months. These wonderful people will take over the respective sections of Prancing Through LIFE and source articles from new and exciting writers along with some PTL favourites throughout the year. Most importantly, however, they will help PTL fulfil its raison-d’être. They will use it as a platform for people to share their cultural interests, life stories and viewpoints, as they introduce a new range of people to the site. Also somewhere along the line I will hopefully have a play about with the layout of the site so that it looks a little bit more professional and, if we’re lucky, Beyoncé may finally answer my calls and agree to write for a piece for the site. She did it for Maria Shiver so who knows. Regardless, though Prancing Through LIFE is back and it is here to accompany you as you prance through life this year and beyond.
Keep prancing and happy February.
Sam
Sam Prance is the Editor of Prancing Through LIFE. He studies French and Italian at Edinburgh University. His favourite novel is Cloud Atlas and he has Madonna marathons on a regular basis. He is currently writing this auto-bio in the third person. He will now stop writing this third person auto-bio in order to save himself some embarrassment.
If you’re interested in getting involved with PTL – drop us an email on prancingthroughlife@live.com.
(Images sourced from: www.style.com and www.bbc.co.uk)