We've been planning our road trip to New England since October, but only really sat down this weekend to properly plan the itinerary. All the hotels were booked before Christmas but we only had a vague idea of what we wanted to do in each place. One of the things we were pretty certain we'd be doing was driving up Mount Washington. Let's just say I'm glad I did some research, because it's an insane idea!

Paper is all around us. We write on it, read from it, screw it up, but some artists do far more with it and create stunning pieces of art. Papercraft takes the ordinary and turns it into the extraordinary. These examples demonstrate the potential for beauty in even the most mundane everyday items.

Last night was a good night; good food, good wine and Barcelona FC lifted the Champion's League trophy. I may have jumped around a little, and sent ill advised text messages to a couple of United supporters and I refuse to apologise for not supporting the English team, not least because my mother was born in Manchester and grew up a City fan before moving to Birmingham and being converted to Aston Villa as a teenager.

Myself and the recently crowned Miss Birmingham, Natalie Cutler, both attended VMF's most recent food champions evening. Mr Brown decided that he'd rather interview Miss Birmingham than me, can't possibly think why...must be the sash.

So I'll do my own review.

I have fond memories of playing with candles as a teenager, trying to create interesting patterns and shapes with the melting wax and carving patterns into them (which I have a scar to prove thanks to Stan Collymore scoring for Aston Villa while I was simultaneously carving a candle and listening to the game on the radio), so I found this video quite mesmeric.

Bluebells have always been one of my favourite flowers, and the last few years I have made the trip in late April or early May to the Bluebell Woods at Yoxall Lodge. Here's a selection of this year's delights.

I was in a bar recently and was asked if I'd like a drink, so I  replied "I'll have a Jamesons and coke please". I may as well have said "I'll have a chalice of freshly squeezed blood from the cutest fluffiest kitten you can find". What is so peculiar about a woman drinking whiskey?

The Premier League season finished less than a week ago and already the rumour-mill is in full swing. So-and-so's staying. No, he's going. He's going here, or there, or maybe even there. His best friend's girlfriend's hairdresser's dog-walker told me - it must be true. Arrgh, enough already! I awoke one morning earlier this week to the news that Brad Friedel had signed for both WBA and Liverpool (neither of which is actually true...yet, anyway). Until Messrs Brown and Harrison decide to tell me something's actually happened, I believe nothing.

Alessandro Del Piero - that's it. What do you mean that's not enough? Ok, fine. Maldini, Totti (the most aptly named footballer ever), Cannavaro....need I go on. Ok, so none of these are actually the reason I fell  in love with Italian football, but they sure help.

Now this topic may be slightly last week, but I thought I should explain the 'Moldovaness' in my bio. For about a week either side of the Eurovision Song Contest I became ever so slightly obsessed with the Moldova entry, thanks to @StuartJHarper (who also happens to be a Serie A Z-list celeb, but more of that later). I may have consumed a few too many glasses of wine when he suggested I download the Moldovan Eurovision entry by Zdob Si Zdub, but hey it was only 99p, and our friendship is hopefully worth more than that.