One of my favorite things to take home as a souvenir is a local newspaper from the places I visit. This goes for Northern Wisconsin as much as it does for Beijing, China. Headlines, opinion pages, and even obituaries give a vivid representation of the culture and atmosphere of any given place. So, when Wreck This Journal gave instructions to glue down a random page from a newspaper, I was ecstatic!
I got so excited I actually ended up using four pages in the journal to paste down various parts of The Daily Telegraph from London. I clipped the title, interesting tidbits, and a few other little things to bring back some great memories of the U.K. Who would have thought my Wreck This Journal would also serve as a scrapbook?!
First up, I clipped out the iconic title The Daily Telegraph. I even added the price block of 90p, of which I always keep that much handy in a bowl on my nightstand. It’s a nice reminder of how much I always kept in my pocket, so I could buy a newspaper each day to read in the park. I tried to draw the Union Jack as the backdrop, but it turned out a tad odd!
Next up, I attached some clippings that are so English they really capture the essence of London. Quirky headlines, the BBC schedule, and a spot of trivia are in every newspaper. This particular issue of The Daily Telegraph is one of the older ones I have, dating back to 2009, (hence PM Brown). In the bottom corner of this page, I tried to document where and when I got this edition, but as you’ll see my memory got a little fuzzy, (I had to whip out my journals to find the date)!
A newspaper just isn’t complete without mention of the weather. The weather is a moody thing in the U.K. and I love how people talk about it as if its a member of the family instead of a natural phenomenon. The rain isn’t just something that waters the garden, but rather a temperamental cousin that makes you carry his umbrella.
During my last trip to London, I became quite reliant on the weather section in a free daily newspaper, The Metro. I actually started to learn the Celsius standard from experience rather the relying on a converter. I knew 18°C and partial clouds meant I needed a hoodie and an umbrella. As is happens, the same goes for 27°C and sunny, (sometimes the “cousin” makes surprise visit).
Finally, I clipped the enigmatic crossword puzzle. No day is complete without at least trying to crack the clues and complete the puzzle. Strangely, I have better luck on U.K. puzzles than I do with American counterparts. I haven’t completed the puzzle I clipped, but I will someday.
I’m already anxious to go back! Meanwhile, I’ll be living vicariously through my television during the Olympics later this summer!
– – –
Sadly, newsprint is starting to go out of style, but I have hope that it will never completely die out. How else will we:
- do paper mache
- make origami hats
- have cheap placemats
- protect the table from a painting project
- save clippings for a scrapbook
- potty train puppies
- pack fragile items (shredded padding or wrap)
- lift ink with silly putty
What else should go on the list?
– – –
c.b.w. 2012
how else will I deep my job at my newspaper if it goes out of style?
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All the more reason to stick with the tradition of newsprint! 🙂
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How will we start fires in our backyard fire pits or protect our floors when we paint the walls?
Nice journal pages! A lovely way to preserve memories of far-away travels. 🙂
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Ooo, good ones! 🙂
Whenever I miss London, I always flip my journal open to these pages. 🙂
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This brings scrapbooking to a new level.
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Lol! 😀 I figured London had to be part of my Wreck This Journal as its such a fixture in my life.
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Put over our heads when we forget the umbrella.
Make Brownie Girl Scouts sitting pads
Love how you did these pages! Do I see a London journal/scrapbook on the horizon?
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Ah, yes the newspaper will protect us from the “cousin” that catches us by surprise! 🙂
I already have several London journal/scrapbooks. I’ve made one for each trip so the memories are always in collected in one place. 🙂
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Last month, I came across a copy of Wreck this Journal at a bookstore in Toronto. I picked it up, flipped through it and thought “THIS is the book that C.B. has created so much beauty in?” Hats off to you! Seriously, you are amazing.
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Thank you so much for such a kind compliment. You’re so sweet to say so. 🙂
Wreck This Journal has taken me on a creative adventure I never thought would come to pass from such a small book!
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Your comment about the weather made me laugh out loud. So true!! Very well put!
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Lol! 🙂 I never truly understood that element of British culture until I found myself immersed in it for so long last year. Now I get it and the rain feels like part of my family. 🙂
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emergency loo roll?
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🙂 Hahaha! In a pinch it’ll work.
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not that I’ve ever tried it of course…
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not that I’ve ever tried it of course… 😉
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I’ve brought home coins and postage stamps but never thought to bring home a newspaper from my travels. What a great idea! Whole new ideas for travel journals are now spinning about in my head, especially using the daily weather forecast on each day’s page. Hmmmmm….
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Very often, I’ll record the weather in my journal, but I love the color of newspaper weather reports. Plus, I just love maps!
p.s. Its fun to make a journal out of newsprint, too. 🙂
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Such a cool idea! And the fact that you had some neat papers to choose from makes it more exciting!
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I don’t have room to keep full newspapers, so this is a nice and fun solution to preserving travel memories! 🙂
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Here in Scotland the weather isn’t a temperamental cousin but an psychotic uncle you wish would move to Patagonia. Permanently.
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Lol! 😀
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Don’t forget making paper boats to float down the street when it rains! I really need to find this version of Wreck This Journal on my upcoming trip to Arizona
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Bah! Hit the wrong button! It seems the “American” version has different pages than the “Canadian” version! Who knew!
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. . . and I’ve come to find its different from the current version in a number of ways. In particular, the fire page is no longer part of the journal!
I hope you get one and have fun!! 🙂
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Oh, I forgot about paper boats! How fun! 🙂
My version is an older one . . .
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Fill in words in the crossword to see how far you get before writing yourself into a corner.
Always better than doing the cryptic properly.
Jim
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Lol! Will do. 🙂 There were a few puzzles I did last summer that made my head spin!
The cryptics drove me nuts. After a while, I just started making things up to make me laugh. Maybe that’s what they’re going for when the create them!
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Without newsprint, I wouldn’t be able share with a child how you can tear it smoothly from top to bottom, but not straight across. It’s a sight to watch them try for themselves.
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Love this! 🙂 I remember discovering this as a child!
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The ‘cousin’ has been particularly tempramental this week resulting in flooding up here in the north of England a newspaper over the head would not have helped unless you were attempting a papier mache bust of your own head. We are a little weather obsessed here in the UK mainly because the weathermen rarely get the forcast right unless they are forcasting bad weather lol
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I heard about the flooding and I hope everyone is okay. What a mess! Maybe all those newspaper can be used to sop up all that water.
We have a joke in Arizona that all the weatherman who fail everywhere else come here because there’s nothing to predict. All they have to say is “It’s going to be hot and sunny” and they’ll be right every time. 😉
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