Erica

@briteeyedviolet.bsky.social

701 Followers 245 Following

Optimist with a slight northern side and soft spot for Wales, parkrun and cats. Bookshop blogger for fun, copy editor for hire. www.thebookshoparoundthecorner.co.uk

A photograph of a wall of books.
A photo of a small sign by a road, bearing the words: SLOW. Free range children & cats.
A photograph of the pale blue shop front of The little bookshop. A series of big panes of glass is filled with books.
A photo of two paperback books, one on top of the other. Both are red and titled Writers’ & Artists’ Yearbook. The bottom one is from 2002, the top one is 2007. The bottom one is roughly an inch think, maybe more. The top one is around a third bigger.
A photograph of a grey, cloudy sky that looks like a duvet covering as far as the eye can see, which isn’t that far thanks to the cloud. At the bottom of the image are the round tops of three dark green trees.
A view of the orchestra area from the ground floor of the Royal Albert Hall.
A photograph taken from the floor of the arena area of the Royal Albert Hall, looking up towards the stage and organ. Directly in front of us are the backs of other people who are sat on the floor too. In the middle, a small white blob is actually the bust of Sir Henry Wood.
A small, delicate, pale pink flower comprising two small and two slightly larger petals in a sort of oblong shape, sticks out of a stem next to a big, green leaf.
A cereal bowl is half-filled with tiny wild blackberries.
A photograph of the front of The Beverley Bookshop. The top is a long banner with the name, then a big window which appears dark inside and shows lots of lovely books. It's not really dark inside, this is just the result of my bad photography.
A photograph of a bookmark and book being held up in front of a dark red curtain. Both are monochrome. The bookmark is black and white and represents Store 104, a bookshop in Rochester, Kent. The book is grey and white, the cover shows an image of an open door, with another open door through it. The book is Air by Christian Kracht.
A photograph of a book on a lap. The book is Mapp & Lucia by E F Benson.
A photograph of the front of Store 104 in Rochester. There's a big window with a lot of reflection, but we can still see that there are books on display.
A photograph taken from my seat in the Choir East section of the Royal Albert Hall. Most of the bottom half of the image is illuminated blue-white for where the orchestra’s equipment is in position (the musicians themselves are not yet in position). The rest of the image shows the red seating of the audience, facing towards us. Within the orchestra, the nearest section and therefore the easiest for me to see is the percussion section, which is filled with a range of instruments and music stands.
A photograph of the front of Drake the Bookshop. It has a black frontage with the name in orange letters. A big window is full of books. There are also some branded barriers marking off a seating area out the front.
A close-up photo of a tabby cat. Dolly is lying on her back with her paws up near her chin. So the top of her tummy and her throat are visible in all their furry gloriousness.
A photo of a sleeping tabby cat.
A photo of a light brown insect that I believe to be a cricket. It’s around one inch long and is sat on the frame of a patio door.
A photograph of the front of Real Magic Books in Wendover. There's a large window with the name of the bookshop on the glass.
A photograph of the bright yellow frontage of The Best of Times Bookshop and Cafe in Broadstairs.
A photograph that mostly shows long grass of varying types and heights. The bottom half of the image, which contains a few ox eye daisies, is in shade. In the top left, we can see a part of a metal frame for a piece of garden furniture (you wouldn’t know from the picture, but it’s a swingy chair).
A photograph of a wall of books on rows of shelves. The books are all facing forwards so we are bombarded with a range of cover art and titles.
A photo of a tabby cat asleep on a bed. We can see her head at an upturned angle, and her legs stretched out across the image, with two paws as a central focus of the image.
A close up photo of the top half of a sleeping tabby cat. She is all fur and sleep.
A screenshot of a Facebook post dated 31 May 2014. It contains the text: This weekend I’m looking after Kate Mouse as part of Twitter’s #twcheesetours, so today I took her to meet a pirate mouse at Maidstone’s independent children’s bookshop. Then under the text is a photo showing, from left to right: a small brown cuddly mouse, this is Kate Mouse and she’s approximately four inches tall. Then there is a small, white homemade paperback book of the same height, on its cover is a line drawing of a mouse reading a book, with the caption Little Mouse Books underneath. Next to it is a model pirate ship that’s around twice the height of the book, stood on the deck is a white mouse that’s the same size as Kate. For context: at the time I briefly lived in Maidstone. Sadly, the sweet children’s bookshop closed down some time later.
A selfie of a man and a woman who are smiling, stood in front of a polling station sign.
A paperback book, the top two thirds is a black and white photograph of a marble bust of a woman. Below are the words: Penguin Classics, George Eliot, Middlemarch.
A photograph showing a carpet of green leaves with a good infill of bluebell flowers. The carpet is interrupted by the occasional young tree trunk, with trees and bushes getting more dense in the background. Sunlight shines through the canopy, which opens into glimpses of blue sky. As an additional observation, the only sound is bird song. It is a beautiful sight experience.
A photograph of a sleeping cat. She is a tabby and she’s sprawled across a pale grey blanket. Paws and tail stretching out in front of the curve of a fluffy tummy. She looks peaceful as she sleeps.
A photograph showing the top edge of a Basildon Bond letter pad and a pen. They are in an area of grassland. At the far side of the view are gorse bushes covered in flowers. Further back is an assortment of trees, with a bright blue sky above. In the foreground, tree-shaped shadows indicate that I am located in the cool shade on a sunny day.
A portrait-oriented photograph focused on a tabletop in a pub. Sunlight shines on the empty, slightly crumpled, paper wrappers of two fairy cakes on individual porcelain saucers. The dark background is out of focus and provides a contrast to the yellow and orange paper wrappers. It contains the silhouette of a person sat in front of a window. To my untrained eye, the background reminds me of a Hopper painting.
A photograph showing a mass of green, grass-shaped leaves that belong to bluebells. We know this because lots of tiny bluebell buds can be seen near the top of the bunch of leaves.
A photograph of the book Watling Street by John Higgs.
A photo of me viewed from behind. I’m wearing a parkrun run director top, my hair is loose, on top you can see a pair of bunny ears. I’m stood in front of a crowd of people in brightly coloured running kit, as they listen to me giving the pre-parkrun briefing in Dunorlan Park, Royal Tunbridge Wells.
A photo of a sleeping tabby cat, all fur and paws and tail curled in an oval.
A photograph looking across part of a bed covered in a pale grey, lightly striped blanket that’s lying in ridges. In the foreground is a high ridge, where a leg is covered. Then we have the back of the head of a small, cuddly toy sloth, which is looking towards a mug that’s resting on the bed. The mug is white with a faded graphic showing the chemical composition of tea. In the background, a white radiator is on a blue wall. The bottom of a dark blue curtain is just visible, along with some hints of light to indicate a nearby window.
A photograph of a sleeping tabby cat, curled up in a ball and looking all contented and soft and furry. Her two white-socked back paws are pressed against a raised area of blanket that conceals me.
A close up photograph of a beautiful brown moth that looks like a crinkly brown autumn leaf.
A photograph of a cube measuring four-by-four blocks of wood. Behind it is a cardboard box bearing the words: advanced soma cube.
A photo of me in a vaguely running posture. There’s a running number attached to my left thigh. I’m wearing black, cropped running leggings and a magenta pink T-shirt that’s branded for the race. In my right hand is a half pint of beer, my left hand is in a thumbs up position. I have a very big smile on my face.
A photo of a sleeping tabby cat, curled around on herself, all legs and fur.
A photo of part of the route for Royal Tunbridge Wells parkrun in Dunorlan Park. The entire path is very, very muddy. In the foreground is a wide puddle. Then we have squishy mud, then another puddle, the infamous Hippo Dip with ankle-deep water sitting on top of mud. Then a slippery, squishy, muddy continuation of the path as it slopes upward. Despite appearances, I love this muddy water feature. I feel like a five-year-old when I jump into it and make a big splash as others wimp out and walk around the side.
A photo looking into the window of a secondhand bookshop. In the middle is a book with the wording: C.F. Tunnicliffe. A sketchbook of birds.
A photograph of a theatre programme for The Playboy of the Western World by J M Synge. The programme is being held up in front of the brutalist setting of the entrance to the Lyttleton Theatre inside the National Theatre in London.
A photograph looking inside a white paper bag. Through the bag we can see the words “vintage society”. In the bottom of the bag are four original Care Bears: Funshine bear, Bedtime bear, Tenderheart Bear, and Friend Bear. When they get home they will join Wish Bear and Cheer Bear. Just four are needed to complete the collection.
A photo of part of a sleeping tabby cat on top of a pale grey blanket. The cat is all legs and tail and fluffy tummy, with a fluffy white chin also on display.
A photo of a silver coloured hard back book. To one side of the cover is a white rectangle contains black text: Heat Lightning by Helen Hull. In the bottom left corner is a black and silver logo to represent the publisher Persephone.
A photo of two people wearing a single inflatable dachshund costume and stood behind a parkrun sign for Royal Tunbridge Wells. They are smiling.
A photo of a champagne glass containing Baileys. In the background is a blurred bookcase holding Christmas cards.
A photograph of a CD case being held in my hand. The cover is black and white and depicts a white cup and saucer containing a black drink, placed upon what appears to be a dark, wooden surface. The CD has text at the top: Louis Sclavis, Benjamin Moussay, Unfolding. At the bottom are the letters ECM to represent the label.
A photograph of part of a letter dated 03/12/2025. In red and bold at the top are the words: your tap water may be contaminated.
A photo inside a laundrette. Six silver, industrial-looking washing machines are in a row, some appear to be in use.
A selfie of a smiling woman with a view of the sea in the background.
A terrible photo of a room full of people. It is very dark and mostly blue-tinged. No one is easy to see because of the bad photography.
A plate of food. The left half of the photo shows some green spinach leaves, sliced orange, and deep pink pomegranate seeds. The right half of the photo shows part of a fish finger sandwich on seeded granary bread. The ends of two fish fingers can just be seen poking out, with a squished of thick, dark tomato ketchup between them.
A photograph of a paperback novel: New York 2040 by Kim Stanley Robinson. The cover contains a picture that’s vaguely recognisable as a flooded, futuristic Manhattan.
A selfie of a group of rain-soaked but smiling people holding the sign for Rheinpark parkrun.
A photograph looks more king down into a large, almost bowl-like mug containing warm milk and a miniature whisk. To one side is a small tray containing two dark chocolate pots of large, dark chocolate buttons to pour into the milk.
A glass of beer with the words Bruges zot. In the background is another glass of beer but the words on the - definitely different - glass are out of focus.
A photo of a man in a blue shirt looking quizzically at two glasses of beer. The glasses are both differently shaped, rounded glasses.