Ooh Err Cantona

Any day that features multiple parcel deliveries is a good day in my book. The thrill! The joy! The excitement! Furthermore when the parcels come emblazoned with the corporate logos of Asos and Amazon, well it's the veritable epitome of a legal high. A committed customer of both for a number of years, I am most definitely part of the bargain hunting collective whose dedication to the cause is eroding the high street as we know it. Luckily for my ethical conscience I voted for Feministiskt Initiativ (Feminist Initiative) in the Swedish general election the other month. And j'adore free range eggs.

Item number 1 was always going to be the less interesting one: a grey waistcoat in mini houndstooth from Asos' own brand for a mere £12 in the sale.

You can't go wrong with the Asos sale, it's bargain mecca. Better still, it's seemingly neverending. They're good for more or less every type of clothing and accessory going, although their own brand can be a bit hit and miss, particularly shoes and jeans. I tend to buy something from Asos every month and I can't remember the last time I paid full price for anything. Frugal and proud.

The waistcoat was purchased to go with a royal blue polka dot tie for a pre-Christmas shindig in a slightly futile attempt to boost my hipster credentials. Futile on the basis that my beard growing ability is akin to that of a 5 year old's. I'm like Liu Xiang at London 2012, falling at the first hurdle. To make matters worse, the damn thing is too small. I even went up a size to 40" chest but to no avail. Hipster dream well and truly quashed. I shall file this one under 'don't even go there til you're a stone lighter'. It'll be in great company.

Item number 2 is way, way, way more exciting. You and the Night is a French (of course) art house flick about a young couple and their transvestite maid who invite a select group of people for an orgy, described in a review as 'a chamber piece of sex, surreality and the absurd'. Mary Whitehouse approved it most definitely ain't.

I came across the trailer whilst having a Camden Hells Lager in the Arthouse Crouch End cinema bar (http://www.arthousecrouchend.co.uk) and literally stopped mid-sentence to check it out. It stars no other than kung-fu fighting, seagull loving Manc United legend 'King Eric' Cantona as The Stud and judging by the trailer he prepared for the role by taking performance enlarging substances. Whilst I'm in no way a fan, up the Gunners!, the prospect of watching the uber alpha male ex-professional footballer crawling round a cage on all fours and (shock, shock, horror) kiss another man is just too good to miss. £11 well spent.

I've got a date to watch it this coming weekend with my friend Aimee, who's a fellow art house aficionado. I cannae wait, it ticks ALL the boxes

I'm a blogger, I'm a smogger, I'm a midnight togger

Roundabout this time 3 years ago, my ex and I was featured in a BBC2 documentary exploring different couples' approach to managing finances and the impact money had on the relationship. I was profiled as a care-free shopaholic with a penchant for t-shirts and free range eggs. As a minor claim to fame, I was subsequently described as 'a disaster, who buys t-shirts by the truckload' by the resident TV reviewer at The Guardian. Although there's probably an element of truth in that particular description, I prefer to view it less as chaotic disruption and more measured frivolity.

The basic premise for this blog is to chronicle my spending, a kind of visual representation of my bank statement. I intend to write a blog post every time I spend money on non-essential material things for myself over the next year or so and see if over time it causes me to re-examine my approach to parting with money.

The idea for the blog came from a hungover (me) conversation with my dear friend @JeanetteLeech on her sofa in Harringay. J is a writer by profession, check out her acid folk opus "Seasons They Change", and holds the written word in high esteem. She also undertook a 52 week blog project with her friend Jude the other year so she's got previous. Initially I figured I'd start the blog in January as a way of ushering in the new year but then as it so happens today is that most revered day of the month: payday. It all begins today therefore.

I've just returned home to Sheffield after spending 5 days in London. I work for Breast Cancer Care, the UK wide charity supporting people affected by breast cancer, and was down at our head office for a 2 day course and a project meeting, interspersed with leisure time. I can heartily recommend a visit to Institute of Sexology at Wellcome Collection which opened last week. Amongst the items on display are a rather impractical vibrator and a scary looking anti-masturbation device. The main focus however is on the pioneers of sex research such as Kinsey and Von Krafft-Ebing, the latter's 19th century work "Psychopathia Sexualis" introduced me to a whole range of sexual deviancies I frankly had no clue existed. 'Mania, or theft of, women's handkerchiefs' anyone?

I of course found some time to do a spot of non-Christmas shopping, and happened across the below garment in Zara's new Oxford Street flagship store

I'm by no means a Zaraholic, and at £19.99 it's possibly the most money I've ever spent on a single t-shirt, but it took me all of 5 seconds to grab it and run for the tills. As it turns out it was actually a rather crucial purchase as later that day I managed to wreck a shirt by attempting to iron it using the carpet in my hotel room as ironing board (yes, I really am that stupid). So if I'd not bought the t-shirt I would've had to walk round London at night with a bit of Travelodge stuck on me and that would've been a real disaster.