Zevon and Zwan

No it’s not a new comedy duo or an exciting brand of mineral make-up. This was the second week of my attempts to broaden my musical knowledge and horizons. I listened to Warren Zevon’s I’ll sleep when I’m dead. It appears to be a great hits compilation, which makes the fact that I’ve never heard of him rather worrying. The song that really stood out for me was ‘Mr Bad Example’. Lyrics are a very important part of music for me even if I’m groaning at how bad they are.

I also took in Zwam’s Mary Star of the Sea. I enjoyed this and may well borrow it again at some point.

So I won't be making any additions to my iPod this week. I’ve now listened to 2 artists beginning with A and 2 beginning with Z. So it’s back to B. There seem to be loads of groups who have a name beginning with B. I could easily spend several weeks here exploring groups that I’ve heard of but don’t know anything by.

Dear Heart and I were discussing the other night how limited our knowledge of David Bowie is. We can give general facts (mismatched eyes, married to a model) and have a passing knowledge of his best-known songs but that’s it. So this week I’ve got a load of Bowie albums to listen to and I will be looking him up in some reference sources to try figure out what all this thin white duke/ziggy stardust stuff is about. If nothing else it will improve my performance at music quizzes!

Abundance in the universe

What a marvellously abundant weekend. My allotment is producing crops of all kinds. Peas, French beans, Runner beans, Potatoes and masses of courgettes. I was rather perturbed when Dear Heart suggested that I put it all into a soup and blend it up! He just doesn’t appreciate the delights of freshly picked, home grown produce.

I was a bit stuck for what to do with the courgettes. I have an awful lot and they are rather big. Happily someone pointed me in the direction of The Healing Foods Cookbook: The Vegan Way to Wellness. I’m always keen to read new vegan cookbooks and found this book contains a marvellous (and easy) recipe for courgette and tarragon soup. Dear Heart loved it (and he doesn’t like courgettes) and his sister had two bowls and asked for the recipe.

Blackberries also seem to be growing everywhere at present and a few scratches are small price to pay for such delicious fruit. The freezer is starting to look a bit full though…

Things are coming along very nicely with the redecoration of my study. When Dear Heart went out to buy plaster at the end of last week I hopped in the car with him and we visited an army surplus store that he’s been raving about for a few months.

I picked up a green shirt (£2) which just needs a few darts to make splendid fitted shirt for winter wear. I also got a green long sleeved top (£3) which is very soft and just needs a few adjustments to be perfect! My best buy had to be some heavy cotton fabric. I think they might have been tablecloths at some point. I can’t decide if I want to make a dress or a bag. Work on these will hopefully be among the first projects I undertake in my newly renovated room!

This does put my clothing purchased total up to three items for this year, but I don’t think that’s too bad for the end of July.

Enjoy the sunshine

Raspberry juice

It's amazing how a small quantity of something can go such a long way.

It's my turn this week to prepare the food for our Thursday lunch group. I'd been thinking about various things to serve and it definitely seemed to be the time of year to go with fresh fruit for dessert. Rather annoyingly the market seemed to be full of peaches, apricots and nectarines imported from all over the world and a real lack of English fruits. Anyway I needed to make up my mind so I grabbed a pineapple and a couple of punnets of raspberries. Then like a complete fool I put them both into the same cotton should back and headed off with the bag thumping against me with every step I took. And, of course, the raspberries were between me and the pineapple. I only realised when the bag had a big circle of pulped raspberry on it and so did my dress.

I took the raspberries out and re-wrapped (the remains of) their paper bag around them and put them in my other bag. I put them right on top so that they wouldn't get crushed any more. Then when I got to my destination and had a chance to reorganise my bags I moved them to the bottom of my shoulder bag. This was the one that came with Easy Living magazine and the fabric seems to be quite waterproof.

So I got home to discover a puddle of juice at the bottom of my bag. Everything in the bag was marked by raspberries juice in some way.

I'm looking on the bright side here. I gave everything in my bag a wipe over and it all looks much brighter. I also had to wash my cotton bags that I use all the time. In all honestly they could probably do with washing at least once a fortnight. The marvellous weather means that they'll be dry in no time. So everyone's a winner in this apart from the poor raspberries. Maybe it's time to start growing my own?

Black and green

I've been wearing black and green (clothes not chocolate!) for the past three days. It's been too warm for jeans (not that I'm complaining) and it feels like the height of luxury and decadence to smooth body so fine on to make my legs look a little bit sparkly as they peek from my skirt.

I'm assuming that my move back to wearing green and black (my favourite colours) means that I'm feeling like me again! I've even painted my toenails green and have been wearing green bracelets.

I was interested to see this take on wearing green clothes. I've also been adding more green items to the collage on my study wall. All the different shades of green look so good together. Alas it's going to have to come down as Dear Heart and I are working on transforming my study into the perfect room for me to do my stuff in (that'll be sewing, writing, reading, yoga and feeling creative then). We took the carpet up last week. Chipped the plaster off the chimney breast to expose the brick underneath. Stripped the paint off the door to reveal the wood. Dear Heart is going to sort out the plaster on the walls, sand the floor boards and paint it all in a nice neutral shade. Except for one wall which is going to be covered in cork tiles so that I can use it as an inspiration wall.

I'm rather excited by this prospect. I've been taking a break from eBay but I have several boxes taking up floor space in my study that I just want to sell so that there is no clutter! Photographs will hopefully follow at some not to distant point!

Do dead people watch you shower?

I must say it's not something that has ever worried me, but it clearly bothers enough people out there (and isn't there quite enough to worry about as it is?) for Harper Collins Australia to publish a book on it. And the author has a myspace page on the subject.

So let's talk about nicer shower related things like the new Lush emotibombs which are essentially bath bombs for the shower. I'm always sad that I can't make use of bath bombs because a) I only have a shower, b) baths are too time consuming, c) the water in a bath is never hot enough and d) baths are not very good for the environment. Hence I imagine that I will be making a trip to Lush this week to examine the goods in person.

Enjoy the sunshine today and remember not to grumble about being too hot!

You only find it when you stop looking

I ache all over today. Yesterday I did half an hour of rowing. It's much better exercise (and harder work) than I'd ever imagined. Despite the indecisive weather we had a fabulous time. A picnic on the river bank (supplied with style and Pimms by the divine Miss Mimi) followed up with half an hour actually on the river. Dear Heart and I took an oar each and attempted to make our way up and down the river without tipping our passenger overboard or hitting any other vessel. Lots of laughter.

Today I discovered this lovely link to an office where they have a had a decorated cubicle contest. It's so creative and fun. I guess it must be a good place to work. Isn't it totally marvellous what you find on the Internet when you are looking for other things altogether?

Last week as part of my ongoing quest to expand my boundaries/horizons I selected a couple of CDs pretty much at random from the 'A' section of the library. My choices(?) were Talkie-Walkie by Air and Move Along by The All-American Rejects. They were OK. I listened to both several times and did occasionally find myself singing along. I always though Air looked painfully cool and hence scary so I was pleased to find the album quite accessible and not too hip for me! I won't be adding either to my iPod just yet though. Off now to select something from B or Z.

A change of clothing

At reported at the start of the week, I just don't want to wear any of my usual summer stuff. I'm bored of my uniform of linen skirts and tshirts. My DM sandals need repairing. I just don't feel inspired in what I've been wearing. I also feel very middle aged (although I'm sure this is just my perception).

I used (until about 7 years ago) to wear lots of black. I think this was a reaction to the colour clashing 1980s. However I also realised that I wore black when I wanted to feel invisible. So I made a real effort not to wear black all the time and to let some colour into my life. Which has been great. But I'm wondering if I can now trust myself to wear dark colours again. A sign of maturity and reflection that life has it's ups and downs maybe? Or just accepting that recession is on it's way in and the future could be dark...

Anyway I allowed myself not to make too much of an effort yesterday and wear whatever I felt like to work and I ended up in something pretty much like the image below.



The only major differences are that my tshirt said Alice Cooper, my shoes are sparkly and my bag is my fabulous (yet ancient) Wonderbag. I felt very comfortable and oddly energised and me. In fact I think that I might be wearing skirts a bit less for a while and giving my jeans more of an airing.

I have an on/off relationship with jeans. I wore them as a teen, but preferred jogging trousers as I did a lot of sport. Then I went off to university with two pairs of Wranger body glove (they did exactly what they said on the tin). Then I decided that jeans were not for me and started wearing a uniform of black leggings (matt or shiny), tshirt and green DMs. I didn't get back into wearing jeans until about 5 years later I visited the Easy store at an outlet village somewhere, tried on one of the sample pairs and begged to be allowed to keep them. I have worn jeans since then but it's always been a real labour to try and find a pair that fit. I'm seeing this latest development as another 'jeans are good' phase.

I'm also betting that I'll fall madly in love again with my skirts and dresses at some point in the next few years.

Yeah I made it myself!

A week or so back I wrote in this post about buying my bulk vinegar and making my own surface spray.

I am very happy to report my experiment a success. Despite my procrastination over making it up, it actually took no time at all (2 minutes max). I was a bit concerned about the cloudy white colour and strong vinegar smell on inital use. however the following day the mix seemed to have settled down and was clear.

It's very good at what it does. My stainless steel kitchen surfaces came up looking lovely and shiny after using it.

So no need to purchase anymore trigger bottles when I can simply refill the one I have. I might try it in the bathroom next.

Stretch the boundaries

I'm feeling a little bored with myself at present. Probably the result of some long working days/weeks. I have lost inspiration for lunch preparation. I thoroughly dislike every single item of clothing I own. In fact all I want to wear are old jeans and lots of black.

So it's time to stretch the boundaries, leave my comfort zone and find some inspiration. I'm going to borrow a random music CD from the library every week. Maybe I'll go in alphabetical order. Maybe I'll pick letters at random. Anyway, however I choose I think this will introduce me to new artists. I might discover something amazing and it will certainly give me some different viewpoints.

And, Dear Readers, feel free to suggest things I should try. I rather like the thought of all the undiscovered sounds lurking on the shelf, just waiting for me to give them a try.

When London is feeling lovely

I had to go into London on Friday for a meeting. I wouldn't say I dislike London, but I often find it hard work. It's noisy, polluted and full of people! However, on Friday, London was at her most charming.

The trains were all running well. I kept getting a book out to read on the tube and discovering that I had already reached my stop. The shops were vibrant and full of exciting things to look at (if not actually buy). I ventured into Zavvi on Oxford Street and wanted to stay all day to listen to the amazing music they were playing. I finally made it to the Japanese Centre on Piccadilly.

I was sensible and wore flat shoes all day, but I had a pair of heels tucked in my handbag for my evening excursion - a visit to the Japanese Embassy. My grandfather was a Japanese Prisoner of War during WW2 and became involved in a reconciliation programme. This also provided opportunities for grandchildren to work towards reconciliation and friendship. A reception is held every summer to promote friendship between our two countries. As ever I had a marvellous evening. I spoke to a number of interesting people, got to admire the decor and drink champagne.

Everything ran smoothly on the way home and by 10 p.m. I was eating chips on the sofa with Dear Heart.

However I'm very glad that I don't have to travel into London everyday. It is so easy when working in the big city to think that everyone else is having a more fabulous, cooler time than you are. So instead of enjoying what you have you are always searching for the elusive 'cool' people and the centre of the action.

I'm glad that I rediscovered London in small way. Maybe I'll do some museum (and pub) visits over the summer with Dear Heart.

5 of seven

Today is my fifth working day in a week of seven. So roll on Sunday. It's proving to be a particularly busy week even outside work. It's my week to make lunch for our shared thursday lunches (and hopefully we'll put somethign about them on our blog soon). So last night I shot out of a meeting, ran across twon in the rain with my shoes rubbing the back of my feet raw to make the bus so that I could get home and make dinner and lunch. I made the bus but it then broke down so I was home just as late as if I hadn't run. I'm certain that there is a lesson in there somewhere.

I did manage to get all the food prep done (and the girls where sweet enough to say it was very nice) but by the time I'd finished clearing up the kitchen at 9.30p.m. I was really ready for bed. So no drum practice last night. In all honestly it probably isn't the best week to want to do anything at home. I was hoping to get away early today but once agian I'm busy, busy, busy.

Tomorrow is another manic day, but it does feel good to be alive and occupied!

Learning to play drums

Dear Heart plays guitar and has done so for many years. He's also very into home recording, writing songs and so on. He sounds good when he plays, like the spirit of the music is into him.

I did not do well with recorder at school. I took up a violin for a few months until the school suggested that my 'talents' might be better occupied elsewhere. And really this has been fine. I've accepted the 'not a musical bone in her body' label quite well. Yes, it would be nice to do karaoke that sounded ok, but singing in the shower is fine for me.

Dear Heart purchased a drum kit a few months ago and is already pretty good. Years of playing various bands has clearly paid off. The thing is I've always fancied learning to play the drums. So I've got a book on learning drums from the library and had a go last night. It was good fun and I wasn't even doing anything fancy.

I'm thinking 10 minutes a day. I don't have to be amazing but it would be really nice to be able to knock out a beat and play along with Dear Heart. I'm a little scared that I won't be able to do it but that's what life's for. Being scared and then trying and if you fall picking yourself up and keeping trying until either it works or you really cannot justify going any further. I commit to trying and learning something new no matter how small my learning my turn out to be.

Oodles of noodles

I had lunch today with two friends. We popped to the noodle bar, started chatting and almost forgot to order! I like to try something different everytime until I've worked my way aroudn the menu and have decided which dishes are my absolute favourites. This probably works best because of my vegetarian/vegan diet. Few places have a long list of things for me to try although my local chinese does such a long list of tofu dihes I'm hard pushed to say which ones I've tried and which ones I haven't.

So I ordered noodles, tofu and vegetables in a broth. I was expecting a little bowl, not something that you could bath a baby in. To think that I was woried about making my 5 a day today. I wasn't quite sure how to eat it (it came with a ladle), but did manage to finish it. It's also a very good dish for anyone who wants to work on their listening skills - you can't talk and use a ladle/chopsticks/fork/spoon.

I think a very light dinner will be in order tonight.

I'm too old...

To stay up drinking until 4 a.m.

Not to eat a proper well-balanced diet

To be terrified of dogs

Not to clean my shoes or make sure my clothes are ironed and stain free before leaving the house

To run out of essential cooking ingredients

But I'm sure there are a million more things I'm too young for.

What is the universe trying to tell me?

I'v got one of those weird things going on.Bascially it's where something that I normally would devote minimal attention to turns up and I keep coming across references to it.

So last year I was reading this frankly bizzare book called Faghag by Robert Rodi. The book goes on about The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. Not being familiar with The Fountainhead, I looked it up on wikipedia, thought 'hmm' and moved onto my next read. But then it kept turning up in everything I read. Finally When there was a reference to it in a Meg Cabot novel (one of the Heather Wells series) I gave in and read it. I don't think it was life changing, although it was very interesting and I gave it to a couple of other people to read. I had to read it thought because I kept thinking it might be the universe trying to tell me something!

The other week I picked up Simon Doonan's book Beautiful People from the library shelves pretty much at random. I thought it was very funny indeed. It put me in the mind of Andrew Collins (Where did it all go right? and Heaven knows I'm miserable now, but not his third volume, That's me in the corner). Then I pick up the Sunday Times style magazine whch I read every week and he's got an article in there. And now Gala Darling has picked upon him in Carousel! So what is the universe trying to tell me this time?? Answers please.

Petticoats

I've never been able to see the point in slips and petticoats (unless it's some kind of underwear as outerwear look). However today I am wearing dress with a quite full knee length skirt. It's made of a light cotton. Add in strong breeze and I find that I having to walk down the street with bunches of skirt in each hand to avoid revealing my underwear to. This is not a good look. Presumably this is part of the reason (other than making the skirt look really full) that women in the past wore petticoats.

Sadly this interpretation is not mentioned in the wikipedia entry about petticoats. I do actually own 2 knee length petticoats. My sister and I used them for dressing up when we we younger. I recently redid the elastic in them with thoughts of wearing them to a rock club or something. However, I thinking that perhaps the time has come to dig them out and put them to their proper use of protecting my modesty (while making my waist look teeny). It seems pointless having garments tucked away in tin trunk if I never take them out and wear them.

I'm feeling a bit uncertain about my usual summer uniform of linen skirt and tshirt. I want a change. And the only person who can make a change in my life is me. If I can't change my clothing a little with the resources I already have then how can I change anything else? Remember your life is the life you chose (and I mean that in the most positive way possible). Stop wriggling and start living.

Summer Naturals

I like to use vinegar and bicarbonate of soda for cleaning. However, despite the supposed trend towards natural products it's been getting increasingly difficult to find white vinegar. BoS is widely available but in tiny tubs.

Happy last year someone wrote to the Guardian Weekend magazine with this query and someone suggested a site called Summer Naturals. I ripped the page out, stuck to the front of fridge and promptly forgot all about it until recently.

I purchased 5 litres of vinegar and 2 kilos of BoS. It's been great to be able to fill up both a glass bottle and a spray with vinegar. I'm planning on filling up a pretty jar with BoS and I'll need to find a suitable container to store the rest in.

I'm also going to give making my own table spray a go using the recipe here. I'll report back her and let you know.

And remember life is not a rock video but it's not a dress rehearsal either.

Less than fabulous

Today I am feeling somewhat less fabulous than I think I should be. My life is amazing and I should be totally aware of this. Instead I fear that I'm going to have a hissy fit and complain that I feel like I took a wrong turn somewhere and I'm really just ordinary. I'm not sure what has bought on this need for more romance in my life. I think part of the problem with life is that every time you figure out the solution, the question changes (I believe Disraeli said something similar about the Irish question). So I make myself feel uncomfortable by trying to find the right balance of spontaneous and planned. Planning makes me feel powerful, but spontaneous is fun.

I'm going to resurrect a trick I learnt form a book called Family Baggage by Monica McInerney. you write a list (I used to have mine in the back of my notebook) of things you can do. Start simple (peel potatoes, sew a button on, pitch a tent) and add to it everything you think of something. Then at moments of doubt, have a read through and realise how amazing you are and what a wealth of experience and knowledge you represent.

Although I had do a bit of search to remember the title and author of Family Baggage I just discovered that the book I 'm reading at the moment (Those Faraday Girls) is by the same author.

A super weekend

I can't believe it's Monday already. The weekend just flew by. Saturday I got up early so that I could visit my allotment before the heat of the day got too much. Everything is growing really well. I bought home some baby spinach and more strawberries.

Dear Heart and I headed into London early afternoon togged out in our best rock gear. We were booed into a charming hotel in Richmond. We weren't there for long enough to do more than drop off our bags and head out again. We were both a bit peckish by this point so we had lunch at The Orange Tree before boarding the bus to Twickenham.

I couldn't believe the crowds of people or the queues for the ladies toilets! We totally lucked out with our seats as we were at the very top of some stairs and didn't need to squeeze past anyone. then it was several hours of dancing, singing along and getting totally caught up in the atmosphere. As Bon Jovi only decide on their set list shortly before the gig we just didn't know what we were going to get. What we got was totally amazing with a few surprises.

The is was back to the hotel for a few hours sleep before getting the train home. Sunday was spent in best 'rock star' style pottering around the house, sipping wine and topping up my hair colour with more henna.

I've got really busy ten days coming up so I'll have to make sure that I'm super organised so that I eat well, exercise, stay calm and don't collapse at the end.

Living on a prayer

Such excitement. Tomorrow I'm going to see Bon Jovi in concert. I've been listening to their Cd's recently and discovering albums that I missed (How did Bounce manage to pass me by completely?) and rediscovering old favourites (slippery when wet, anyone?).

Dear Heart and I have been speculating what might be on the set list (bonjovionline lists previous set lists should anyone be interested) and how often Jon will forget the lyrics.

I find myself rather amused by what I consider to be appropriate wear and rather freaked out by my need to dress appropriately to see a band, by which I mean that I should dress like some version of them. For example, to see Alice Cooper I wore my goth princess dress with fishnet tights and long lace-up boots. But I'd consider that totally wrong for BJ. So I'll be dressing like the girl next door with a slight rock accent (jeans, Harley-Davidson vest and khaki shirt dress).

I'm looking forward to this evening where Deart Heart and I will get ourselves in the mood (just incase we weren't already) by watching BJ on You tube while supping beer or wine (although I do think Bon jovi wine would be going a step too far).

The five a day diet

Back in 2005 the Guardian did a focus on healthy living (although I have no doubt that they've looked at the subject since). One piece challenged 3 volunteers to eat nine a day and see how they got on. Amit's comment really sums it up for me

"To fit in nine portions, you have to have breakfast, otherwise you end up with too much to eat later in the day. You have to drop the junk snacks, which I am fond of. You can't even think about a nice bag of crisps when you've still got an apple or a banana to eat on top of your lunchtime sandwich. "

Fitting in five a day has been on my mind recently. I was really very keen on a few years back when I looked at my (then vegetarian) diet and realised that I wasn't consuming much in the way of fruit and veg. After a few months I had gotten into the habit and stopped worrying abut it. However, I recently purchased Glamour (just for the Benefit lip gloss - this was before the days of The make up diet) and it had an article about five a day.

I realised to my horror that I had slipped. This was mainly due to eating more than five on some days and rather less on others. I got to work on making a few alterations to my diet and discovered that if you are eating your quota you don't have room for much else.

The problems of what a portion was has continued to plague me. I have a handy portion guide on the side of my fridge. However what do you do when you have a bunch of 18 radishes and (according to the chart) a portion in 10? Do you eat 9 on each occasion? Or 10 in one go and 8 later? Eat all 18? Buy more radishes? What exactly does a bowl of salad look like and how does a bowl translate into the square, deep container that I am putting my lunch in?

After faffing around with bowls and the like a simple solution presented itself. I would just weigh the stuff. My 8 radishes that I prepared as a snack for today turned out to be well over the required 80g. I rather suspect that yesterday's carrots were a great deal more than 80g.

So I'll carry on using the scales, work at that 5 a day and maybe (very unsure about this) try 6 a day at some point in the future. I do agree with Helen in the article though - eating this takes some planning! But do Iahve anything that much better to do???

Chinese food

For some reason I have a real craving for Chinese food. I can almost taste the noodles and bean sprouts. I'm wondering if this has been bought on by reading not one, but two books set in Hong Kong. Although now i come to think of it a recent post on veganlunchbox featuring noodles and portabello mushrooms seems to have been featuring in my food daydreams as well.

Maybe I can work some noodles into my dinner experiment tonight.

Our lunchbox share starts tomorrow otherwise I might gives serious thought to visiting a Chinese buffet for lunch!

Twas a cough that carried her off

I really do have the most frightful sounding cough. I'm really uncertain as to what the best remedy is. A hot toddy? Enchinacea? One of the homeopathic remedies that have seemed to do the trick in the past? Some kind of mustard poultice (one of my ancient household management type books must cover how to whip one up)?

I must say I'm feeling rather wobbly although less feverish than last week. My colleagues are suggesting that an afternoon nap would do me the world of good so I suppose I should go home before my barking gets me mistaken for a seal or a large dog and I get sent to the zoo/Battersea/Outer Hebrides.

Recovery

I must start by apologising if I've sounded grumpy or negative over the past few days. I've got a rather nasty summer cold and it's making me feel very tired.

My colleagues have assured me that now my symptoms are full blown I am on the road to recovery. I do feel somewhat improved. I can concentrate again. I don't feel as if everything is too much effort. I found lunchtime Pilates energizing (instead of dozing off in class as I did last week). My sense of smell and taste has returned. I had a lovely light lunch of baby carrots, strawberries and speedy peanut dipping sauce.

My working day is proving to be pleasant rather than a chore. I must be careful not to overdo it though. Yesterday I slipped along to my allotment to pick some strawberries and ended up weeding the carrots and onions in the heat of the day.

Oh and this cold has lead me to make the more pleasant discovery of how delicious Gin and Grapefruit Juice are when combined together.

I'm feeling optimistic about the week ahead and actually smiling!

the make-up diet

Yesterday I had an appointment at the Benefit counter in Boots. I was looking forward to half an hour of hearing about the latest products, oohing and aahing over colours and packaging and just generally feeling pampered. I've been watching my money with the thought of buying a few items.

Anyway I got there on time and both the assistants were engaged with other people. So I hung around and examined all the products. Then I examined the again. Both assistants were showing no sign of lifting their heads. So I wandered around a bit more. It was 20 minutes after my appointment was due to start by this point. I was feeling very self concious and thinking that even if they did finally acknowledge me I was going to be cutting things a bit fine to make my bus. So I left.

And as I walked away I felt a sense of relief and puzzlement. Why had buying expensive make-up been so important to me? I've got so much make-up and quite a bit of it is Benefit anyway. I really don't need anymore eyeshadow, foundation or lipstick. I wasn't going to be there to buy something I needed, I was there because I felt the need to find something to buy. So I decided no more make-up until I've used up what I have. If I want to be pampered I'll book in somewhere for a massage or a pedicure.

Here's to using what we have before buying more.

It's a good day...

For sitting in the park at lunchtime. The sunshine feeling extremely welcome on any patches of bare skin. Alas it also caused me to notice the smears of fake tan around my ankles. I initally thought that it was some kind of bruising (possibly bought on by yesterday's rather intense yoga session).

I'm not really a fake tan type but I have on occasion purchased Holiday Skin only for it to then sit in the bathroom cabinet unused. I do hate to see things go to waste so useing it up seemed a great idea as it would clear a small space in the bathroom cupboard, make my legs less dry and make them slightly less pale.

I have been wondering if its tendancy to leave smears of brown and orange is because it'sthe formulation for pale skin. I assumed that this would be less intense that the regular formula. However, the manufacturers obviously consider that the paler you are the more colour you need!

I've only got quarter of bottle to finish up but I'm having to use it in very small amount to avoid looking like I've been tangoed. Believe me it's back to being pale and interesting at the end of the bottle.

What shape am I then?

I've always found Trinny and Suzannah a bit of an inspiration so I decided it was about time I read their book about body shapes. However, I found it very difficult to decide what shape I was. Then I thought that maybe I had a skewed idea of my assets and faults and that was causing me to fail to fit into any of the ten different body types.

So I asked Dear Heart to have look. He was very good when I was undecided over my face shape. He immediately told me that it was obviously square. So we went through the book and he kept saying 'no' every time I asked if I was this shape or that shape. Eventually we got the end with no decision reached. the best we could come up with was that I was some kind of mix between a skittle and an hourglass.

I am now tying to feel good about having a unique body shape and thinking may be this is why I used to have such problems getting clothes to fit (which was what inspired me to start making my own in the first place).

Rather sad that I'm not actually an hourglass (sounds so glamorous), but I am the same shape as before I read the book so I am still divinely glamorous ( inn my mind anyway).

Recent web wanderings

I thought I'd share with you a couple of websites I've wandered across recently.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/thread/ I'm not quite certain about this effort from the BBC. It looks interesting but I find the video format rather annoying. Still it's good to know that the BBC are taking an interest in such things. Guess this is a watch this space.

I've suggested this one http://www.mealopedia.com/ to friend who wants to shift (quite) a few pounds, isn't terribly experienced in the kitchen and is cooking for one. I'm disappointed by the lack of vegan options. However, I thin it could provide real inspiration via the random menu selection.

I've spent the last few days trying to find a cannelloni recipe that doesn't include spinach or mushrooms as Dear Heart isn't keen on either of them. I'm not terribly keen on simply pumping pasta tubes full of cream cheese (vegan or otherwise) so this has been a bit of struggle. I finally decided to just make a really thick tomato and soya mince sauce to stuff the tubes and to top it off with white sauce. I hope it comes out OK.

Colour therapy

This is what I simply love about the Internet. Yesterday I mentioned that was feeling drawn towards the colour red and I was going to do some research on colour therapy to see what it meant. then I checked my emails this morning and discovered that I had a comment from a colour therapist. She explains what feeling drawn towards red means and has her own blog http://rainbowrevolution.blogspot.com/ It's totally gorgeous and just the thing to look at on grey UK days. Thank you Leanne.

I extended my salad experiences today. I sliced some fennel yesterday, tossed it in a tiny bit of oil and popped in the oven for a bit while some bread was baking. Today I had it mixed with spinach, walnuts and raspberry vinegar. total yummy.

Random thing - I keep typing 'missed' when I mean 'mixed'. Is this something Freudian? Or just my brain being a bit rebellious?

What to wear this week

I’m still getting into my stride as regards summer clothing. I really like to plan in advance what I am going to wear so that I don’t have to waste time in the morning. Last week I had a few days where I was very uncertain so I am going to lay it out here. I’ve checked the weather for the week and it doesn’t look very good. I may however utilise a tip I read somewhere about wearing a summer dress but carrying tights and a cardigan in your bag.

Monday – Black and white floral skirt, green top, linen jacket and green shoes

Tuesday – Jeans with red dress and white sandals

Wednesday – Black linen skirt and red sleeveless t shirt and thongs

Thursday – Jeans with white blouse (this is one of my home made, pattern free efforts) and black velvet jacket in case the temperature plummets

Friday – I will be at an exhibition so I will wear a linen skirt and jacket with a scarf. My DM sandals broke last week (I have had them for years) so if I haven’t managed some kind of repair I’ll need to think of something else to wear.

Saturday – Usually I wouldn’t worry about what to wear on a Saturday but I will be at work doing a summer reading promotion. This will require me to dress like a holiday rep/travel agent. I think I need some extra research for this

I‘m intrigued that I mentioned red several times here and that I am wearing red today (my red ‘in cahoots with the sun’ dress – Yeah I made it myself by Eithne Farry). What does a craving to wear red, when green is my colour of choice mean? I think I need to browse a few colour therapy websites

I do hope the week turns out warmer than predicted. I really crave a few lunch times in the park and dinner consumed ‘al fresco’.

Right said Fred

I spent Saturday helping my sister move into her new flat. She hired a van which Dear Heart drove. Dear Heart and I are rather experienced when it comes to moving house and we always relieve any boredom (or worries about the crashing, breaking and grinding noises coming from the back of the van) by doing rather clichéd impressions of removal men. I always think of the song ‘Right said Fred’ about removal men attempting to move some unspecified item and drinking lots of tea.

You can enjoy this rendition of the song with an amusing lego animation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhIFfasz6Ec

Twitter

I have signed up to Twitter and you can find me at http://twitter.com/midorigreen

I have mixed feelings about whether this was actually a good idea. On the one hand it's a like the best bit of Facebook with any annoying applications. However, I'm rather uncertain as too why anyone would actually be interested in odd statements confirming that I'm eating lunch or listening to music or have just seen someone in a pink hat.

Is this the shape of things to come? Will we all sit in our houses in years to come (apart from some kind of service class who will be actually doing stuff like growing food and removing waste) just updating our activities moment by moment?

I do hope that doesn't sound too depressive. I iced the cupcakes last night and consumed quite a bit of icing while trying to get the correct consistency. I don't usually eat much sugar so I think it might have disturbed my equilibrium today. Note to self: do not consume cupcakes (even if vegan and homemade) for breakfast.

Lovely lunches

I've been having the most delicious lunches this week Yummy salads with lots of spinach. Then for dessert a tub with a layer of cooked rhubarb (from the allotment), sliced strawberries and topped off with shavings of home made melon sorbet.

Tomorrow I'm going out for lunch because our staff sports and social club has a new chef. I ran into him on the way to my yoga class on Wednesday and he told me about the yummy stuff on the menu including three meat free salads. I thought it would be rude not to give it a try.

Other exciting lunch based news is that I've joined force with a couple of the girls at work and we are going to take it in turns to make each other a packed lunch on a Thursday. Results will appear on our new blog http://librarylunches.blogspot.com/ No entries yet but do visit it in a few weeks once we've got going.

Now I'm off to ice the lovely vegan cupcakes I made last night following (very loosely) the recipe from galadarling.com I think mine will be somewhat less colourful!

A state of constant change

I tend to forget that the Internet is changing all the time. That just because something isn't on the Internet doesn't mean it will never be. And just because something isn't there doesn't mean it will never be.

It's only when I look through and update the bookmarks on my Google homepage that I truly realise the state of change. I've deleted a number of blogs from the list because either they have disappeared themselves (ton of bricks on blogger - not updated for at least 18 months), the blog has vanished (sewing my shadow on - this was a terrific blog where they author recorded her impact on the environment day by day. She now writes Life in Elgin which I find a little too local to be of interest), or they have moved to new blog (Primary consumer).

I think it's inevitable that bloggers go through ups and downs just like any one else. They will have times when they blog three times a day but there will be times when other stuff comes first. I must remember this and then I won't be disappointed when blogger vanish!

Happily Vegan lunchbox is back for a few posts, Gala Darling is settled in NY and posting daily and even Cooking Cute have managed a few posts. Brocantehome, Little Sips of Tea and Wardrobe refashion are daily visits I'm still hoping Kenny at Vegan lunchcast will pick up again.

I'm sad to see that Everything Vegan is up for sale. I always found something useful when ever I visited. I'm intrigued to see that when I search for dead blogs I have visited in the past the names have often been picked up elsewhere and they are alive under new owners. So I'm optimistic for the future - who knows what great blogs or websites are waiting just over the horizon?

Am I there yet?

As my regular readers know(and my stats suggest there must be some of you) I try to walk a couple times a week for my health (physical and mental). One morning a week I usually get off the bus part of the way to work and walk the rest of the way. However I have been mystified by the distance recorded on my pedometer and how this compares to the time it takes me to walk.

So I decided that I needed to know exactly how far it was. I did consider finding a paper map and measuring the route with a piece of string, but I decided to try the Internet first. This lead me to discover an amazing site http://www.mapmyrun.com/ There is also a .co.uk version of the site but it doesn't seem to have quite the scope of the .com for some reason.

Basicallly you draw a line showing the route of your run (and you can add points of interest) the site will then calculate all kind things including the distance. The run can be stored against your profile (useful should you decide to make use of the training log). You can also search for runs other people have entered.

As it turned out my pedometer is not measuring the distance correctly. What's more puzzling is that it appears to be doing fine on my Saturday walk. Still with this new site I won't need to worry too much about using the pedometer to calculate my distance. Which also means I won't be buying a new pedometer every couple of years.

On the subject of exercise I see I haven't yet mentioned the amazing Pilates class I'm taking on Monday lunchtimes. Prior to this my only experience with pilates was trying an video version of it with a friend aged around 13. We got bored after 3 minutes. So either I've matured, require less demanding exercise or it's just the amazing instructor because I'm really enjoying the classes and I feel fabulous after.

However I've had to jiggle my exercise routine around a bit as a result. It would appear the Pilates and Yoga use the same muscles. Hence Yoga on Tuesday lunchtimes was a teeny bit painful. So I 've shifted my morning walk to Tuesday and Yoga to Wednesday and that means I can sit in the park and eat my lunch today.

Summer must be here

How do I know that summer must be here? Because last night I put my winter clothes away and got out my summer ones. I'm really thrilled (as usual) to discover that I own so many lovely things. however, I am slightly surprised at the vast quantities of shoes that I have unpacked.

Quite frankly the weather has been so changeable Iwas begining to think that I would just be in my winter clothes right through to October with the odd day here and there taken care of with a few pieces I have made. I am slightly nervous about the chilly temperature predicted for the end of the week but who knows wth weather. It's all chaos theory anyway and sometimes you just have to take a chance.

I am thinking that while delighting in my summer clothes I may plan in advance a few combinations for chillier days.

I'm also going to try and look after myself this week. I seem to have had a few very busy weeks with work and other things. I feel exhausted, am fretting over small things and just don't feel right. My puff pastry wouldn't puff. My eating habits are all over the place (either nothing or too much). I've missed a number of exercise opportunities. A friend suggested that I check my biorhythms and rather amusingly they do seem to be on a downward spiral at present.

Last week I purchased some delicious looking spinach at the market. Then on Saturday when I popped to the deli to do our grocery shopping I discovered raspberry cider vinegar and lemon infused olive oil. So I am planning lots of delicious salads. I simply can't decide which dressing to enjoy first.

So here's to a week with lots of salad, exercise and early nights followed up (hopefully) by lashings of blogging, creativity and cupboard clearouts.

I'm so looking forward to sharing my adventures with henna, updates on allotment and share the joy that having a study slowly emptying of clutter bring.

the Icing transformation challenge and my week so far

In Monday's post I refered to the Icing Transformation challenge (ITC). This is from the amazing galadarling.com site which I've raved about before. This post http://galadarling.com/article/icing-transformation-challenge-announcement
gives you an idea of what it's about. Essentially choose a couple of things you want to comitt to doing for a month to improve yourself physically and mentally.

My diet is pretty good, especially now that spring produce is arriving at the market. I'm doing fine exercise wise although I must start going to lunchtime yoga now classes are running again. I've decided to do facial exercises and use EFT to work on my fears and worries.

I saw Eva Fraser do a talk and demonstration at the Vitality show and am interested in the idea of exercising facial muscles to stop them sagging. Alas there is a long waiting list for her book at the library and I'm not certian if I should buy it instead. In the meantime, I've found another book on the library shelves. It still about facial exercises but by a different author. I'm giving it a try and doing the excercises daily as sugegsted. They only take about 5 minutes so I should be able to fit them in although you couldn't really do them in public unless you wanted to look very odd. Wonder if I should do before and after pictures?

I want to try EFT for various things that I get worked up about. I also want to see if it will help with my fear of dogs. I often come across dogs when I am out walking. The trail is also jsut the kind of place that dogs are let on their leads and run around. I just freeze when I see them and think that they will attack me. I also don't like walking past places where there is a barking dog even if it behind a high fence. Clearly if I got to grips with this fear then my walks would be stress free without me scanning the horizon for potential threats!

Joblist wise I am doing very well. I took photographs of some more Sindy stuff on Monday. Tuesday I uploaded to my computer. Last night I edited the pictures and wrote the descriptions. I also cleaned the bathroom.

So all in all things are progressing well. My seeds (planted Saturday) are sprouting. I even used up the last portion of cauliflower and millet mash last night (I used vast quantities of chilli powder to mask some of the taste). Feel I should make cupcakes this weekend to celebrate!

May the tofu be with you!

I made it!

Last week, I was worried about not managing to complete tasks I set myself and thought the reason might be because I was setting too many. I read The Tipping Point this week and it really bears out that humans just can't manage too many things at one time. I found the book amamzing and am now telling Dear Heart to hurry up and finish it so that we can discuss it!

So I set myself 3 things to do (buy a birthday present for Dear Heart's Dad, sort out my seeds for planting and clean the bathroom). I'm happy to report that I did all of them. The present took no time to order from Amazon. The bathroom cleanng was also quick to do thaks to the wonders that are e-cloths. However, I need to do it weekly and then it will take even less time.

I got very inspired about seeds and found a way of making pots from newspaper using an origami type method. I made up a load on Saturday and planted out in them things like tomatoes and aubergines. Sunday, I did a long session at the allotment. I planted half of my seed potatoes (rest next week). I also planted out my Pumpkin and Courgette seeds. I marked where they were palnted with wine corks. This is a really good way of making use of the cork and helps with spacing and weeding in weeks to come. I must take a photo as they look very cool.

In addition to my three tasks I also sorted out some of the Sindy stuff I have and put some of it on eBay. I also stayed on schedule and walked on Wedneday and Saturday and I've been eating really great food. The mushrooms I bought from the market this week were amazing. I had the last few with some watercress, cos and little dressing for lunch yesterday. In fact it was such a nice meal I had the same thng for breakfast today with radish slices instead of mushrooms. My belly feels very happy.

So tasks for this week are to clean the bathroom, sort out another chunk of sindy stuff and take part in the Icing Transformation challenge (ITC). A seperate post will cover the ITC!

This week I will...

When we last met I was perplexed that jobs seem to hang around on my joblist for a week or three before I do them. I think I worked out part of the reason why and it's very simple. I'm scheduling lots of things for me to do. Far too many. My average weekend job list contains between 13 and 20 items. So I need to firstly concentrate on core jobs and then add in maybe one or two extra things every week. I've got a jobs to do now and a long term jobs list so if I have space I can simply add one (or two at absolute max).

The other thing is that I'm not certain having jobs on a list actually motivates me to do them. I write shopping lists but I can walk around the market and pick up what I need without looking at it. It's simply there for reference. It's the same with jobs I set myself to do. I know what needs to be done. Maybe I need to listen to myself more.

So this week I've got a order a birthday present for Dear Heart's Dad, clean the bathroom and sort out the seeds for my allotment. I've very excited about planting the seeds and think there will be a post about this, maybe with a plan of where they will go, coming in the near future.

I'm also sorting out some Sindy type dolls and accessories ready to list on eBay. I've got 2 Sindys, a Farah Fawcett Major, a Covergirl Darci and various clothes and accessories. But I'm only going to do this if I have time.

Heres to a productive week!

Could do better...

If my weekly resolutions were graded like a school report, this week's would definitely read 'Could do better'. Last week I set myself three very simple tasks and pretty much failed to do them. It's not that I've been doing nothing. However, I failed to decide which item to put on eBay, only managed one and two half present bags and haven't been anywhere near the curtain. I forgot to take a picture of the bag I did make with a little heart and gingham ribbon.

Reading through the daily/weekly/ongoing job lists in my daybook I can see that often a task will appear for several weeks before I actually do it. Does this mean I need a warm up period? That I'm not really serious about carrying out the tasks I set myself? That I'm setting too many jobs? I think I'll monitor this for a bit and read up on effective list making and task scheduling.

It was a pretty good (and busy as ever) week.

Friday I went to the Vitality show where I indulged in a few eyebrow wax (with scary lady who told me in NY accent that my brows were very bushy), found out about facial exercises (Eve Fraser certainly does not look her age) and got a water filter in a goody bag!

Saturday Dear Heart picked up his new car. He asked me to go with him which meant I had to sit around in the show room for a couple of hours while the salesman went through various checks. However, there was a copy of Vanity Fair in the waiting area. I've always thought that VF was way too high brow and high fashion for me. When I actually began to look through I was pleased to see more text than pictures and proper articles. A new discovery for me to indulge in occasionally!

Sunday, some chums came over for lunch. Much wine (and quantities of vegetables) consumed. Much laughter. They were also happy to take the goody bag water filter off my hands. I rounded off the evening with a delightful chat with my folks.

And finally I'm still completely obsessed with Gala Darling and iCiNG. Makes me think about baking some vegan cupcakes and trying out the icing tools I've never used. Wander across for a peek yourself and don't forget to sign up for cupcake.

I resolve

Inspired by Galadarling.com my three resolutions for this week are:

• To put at least one item on ebay - that pile of stuff that came from my parent's house has gotten smaller but there is still a way to go.
• To make 2 present bags - I've got an idea about dolphins, waves and desert islands that I want to try out.
• To repair the curtain in the front room - it only needs a few stitches!

Etsy and Easter

I've had a lovely Easter weekend. I've worked on my allotment (chilly but bracing!). I've been busy sewing while the snow fell outside. I finished off a skirt, turned a top into a sort of jacket for summer wear and put the finishing touch to a bag or two.
I was quite pleased to find inspiration to sew returning. Last week it took me three attempts to do a present bag, although I did finally come up with this. It doesn't show up brilliantly in the photo but it's a cocktail glass. I've also finally got around to putting some of my stuff on Etsy (Do feel free to visit http://www.prettylittleparcels.etsy.com/).

My sister came for a late lunch on Saturday so I had a go at the pot roast from vegan lunchbox. As I followed the instructions exactly and didn't make any changes as I'm prone to do, I'm mystified by the result. It was delicious but it served two with a scrap barely big enough for a sandwich over, not the serves 4 with left over for lunch as the book claims! Pity as it really was very tasty.

I'm feeling quite refreshed and ready for a new week at work. Let's hope there's some sunshine so that I can give one or two of my new wardrobe items an airing!

Trying to stay on track

I didn't post an update to my weekly tasks on Monday and there was a good reason.

I had a hectic week, as I was quite busy with a big event for work. It all went splendidly. One glorious bit was Mimi, knowing that I'd been in really early and running around, bought me in a smoothy. I hadn't had time for breakfast so it was just what I needed. It made me feel really special and supported. Thank you Mimi. If I compile a list of the nicest things that have happened in my life I think that will be on it.

I planned to spend part of Sunday writing letters and catching up. I got up early, made a good start on some paper work when we heard from one of Dear Heart's sisters. She was coming up to London for the day and did we want to meet up for lunch? We rushed around, leapt on a load of buses and trains and had a marvellous lunch on Gerrard Street. I got to visit one of the Chinese supermarkets and bought many delicious things.

However, it also meant that I didn't get all the stuff I wanted to done. I couldn't face the thought of posting and adding the same tasks to my week list. So I made sure that I left work on time to put a dent in my tasks.

I pleased to report that I published one of my draft posts (Talking books), made start on the tie pouches and finished the top.

I dyed some of the t-shirts. However, for some reason we don’t have a plug for the sink in the utility room. I had to produce a complicated arrangement of plastic tubs and weights to stop the dye draining away. The colour of the t-shirts is a lovely olive green and covers the staining, but it's not even. However, this gives the garments a designer, Per Una kind of look. I think with a bit of appliqué and beading it could even look intentional!

Here are my Mother's Day creations. I put a poem inside the card that I found here http://www.thetoymaker.com/Holidays/MothersDay/1Mothers.html This is great site and find it very inspiring.



The flower on the front of this card is actually a brooch. I was really pleased with the way this turned out.

And I have laid out paper, envelope and pen on my desk so that I can start on my long overdue letter to a friend as soon as I get home tonight. It’s been on the job lists in my notebook for way too long.

I’m not setting any new tasks as such this week, although I anticipate sorting through the seeds for my allotment, a second round of dyeing and running up a skirt and a few other bits.

Talking books

This is one of the posts I began writing after I had a few days at home in January. I don't listen to talking books very often. Although I like the concept of putting them on my ipod, the whole thing of having to put them on my computer and then transfer is not something that I'm likely to do. Not when I could just rip open the covers of the print version and begin devouring the words straight away.

However, occasionally the library has a title that I want to read only in audio format. This has been the case with 2 titles by the wonderful Laurie R. King. In fact, I must say here that if you haven't yet discovered her Mary Russell series stop reading this and log onto the website of your local library instead.

Anyway, I decided that I would enjoy a talking book while I was at home for a few days anyway. I had plans to do house work type stuff so a talking book seemed ideal to make the tasks more interesting.

It actually proved to be more of a challenge than I thought and is clearly a skill I need to develop. First of all I had to remember to actually listen to the story and not just filter it out and think about other stuff. This was particularly difficult when I was doing something like washing up. I began to realise how noisy my home is and how noisy many of the activities I undertake in my home are.

Sometimes I'd run out of tasks but want to get to the end of the disc before moving to another area of the house. No problem, I thought. I'll just sit here at the table and listen to the last few minutes. I then realised that I find it very difficult to do nothing. I picked up magazines and papers to flick through. Examined plants. Picked at my nails.

It took my much longer than usual to get into the story. However, once I was into it I wanted to just carry on listening. As discs had a running time of about 14 hours, there came a point when Dear Heart arrived home that this just wasn't going to be possible.

So all in all, I think I need to practice listening to talking books. I think this will generally will help me to become a better listener. I'll be better at paying attention to everything that is said. I won't be so impatient if the story doesn't come to the point straight away. Maybe I can listen to some of my favourite books in audio and appreciate them even more!

Did I do what I said?

Of course I didn't. Despite resolving last week that I would publish posts that are currently in draft form, write a long letter to a friend and take the bags under my desks to a charity shop, my actual completion rate was very poor. I did manage to drop the bags off at a variety of charity shops. However, the letter remains unwritten and despite posting several times last week none of the posts were actually ones that I had begun and abandoned.

So this week I am going to sort out those posts, write the letter and post photographs of my mother's day creations. I might also figure out how to use the weekly resolution logo from Icing who inspired this weekly thing in the first place.

I did do loads of sewing. I made it to the sewing shop last week and got some dye and some zips. so over the weekend I refitted a pair of trousers and put a zip in. then I cut out a top and got about half way through it before I ran out of time. this week I want to finish the top, dye a load of t shirts, make some pouches out of ties and turn an old pair of trousers into a dress. Will I get it all done? I intend to give it my best shot!

Vital Wheat Gluten

I've often read about vital wheat gluten in American cookbooks. It seems that rather than knead a ball of flour in a bowl of cold water for hours to get seitan, you simply mix the powder up with water and you're good to go.

You can buy it online, but it would mean ordering a load of other stuff to make the postage worthwhile. Then today I wandered over to the market to purchase some oats and noticed they had gluten powder! I can't wait to give a go. I'll be able to make loads of recipes I've dismissed in the past. Yippee!

I tried the cauliflower and millet mash again last night. This time I dipped it in flour prior to frying ass suggested by Rose Eliot. It ended up being more like a hash and actually rather reminded me of my Dad's corn beef hash. This was probably due to the large quantity of veggie Lea and Perrins added. It was certainly more tasty then the original but still not something I'll be breaking my neck to produce one the two tubs in the freezer are gone.

Cauliflower and millet mash

I bought some millet a while back for making a lemon tease cake. It turned out OK but not something I'm rushing to make again. I was flicking through Rose Eliot's Fast, fresh and fabulous last week when I spotted a recipe for cauliflower and millet mash. Cauliflower is in season so it seemed the ideal lunch solution.

Alas I had a portion for lunch today (and there are 3 more in the fridge) and it wasn't very nice. It was edible but not something I'd want more than a small portion of. It's left a funny taste in my mouth.

I take great pride and pleasure in lunch preparation so I really dislike this sort of thing happening. The other three portions will be going in the freezer (think it might be OK as a shepherds pie topping on night's Dear Heart is out) and I need to think of something I can eat for lunch for the rest of the week. I have two frozen portions of nice soup so I'm half way there.

The moral of this tale is never cook huge portions of a new recipe. Maybe it's something about millet? I've still got a bit left so I shall be visiting vegweb in my ongoing quest to discover a way to make it tasty.

Unfinished thoughts

I've gotten into the bad habit of getting an idea for a post, adding it as a post and then saving it as a draft to polish and post later. But, and this is the problem, I don't. I let the idea sit there idling. I dislike this and want to clear up the unfinished ideas in the same way that I like to use up abandoned packets at the back of the cupboard.

I've had a very good couple of weeks. A few days at home making a top from scraps of fabric. A visit from my grandparents which included a huge bag of fabrics and trimmings they were clearing out. A sample of hair conditioner given to me while buying new soap in Lush. An afternoon at the Theatre (The Vortex -must add some Coward songs to my ipod). A lovely new green coat from Dear Heart's mother. Very garlicky home made spread.

My new favourite blog is Gala Darling's Icing. I love the weekly resolution that she is currently posting. I write my jobs for the week in a little notebook (often sprayed with perfume). These posts have made me think a bit more about my list and to move on from simply listing dull routine tasks. It's nice to be able to tick off having done the washing but better still to tick off written letter to friend or repaired boots pushed to back of cupboard.

I think my first resolution for the week is to complete at least one abandoned post. I also want to write a long letter to my friend Sean and take the bags of stuff under my desk to a charity shop or two.

Have a marvellous Monday, dear readers.

Happy Birthday Dad

This is the present bag I made for my Dad's birthday. It's his birthday today so I'm not spoiling the surprise. I tend to find it quite difficult to work out what to buy for him as he seems to want for nothing (which can only mean he's very content?). Here are the back and front views of the closed bag.

Here is the open bag. It contains a couple of pairs of trousers (a sort of cross between jogging bottoms and pyjamas). Just the thing for wearing on the days he works from home. In the smaller pocket is a Starbucks - for the days he has to leave the small town in the country he resides in and venture into big smoke.

I usually make up present bags for specific people or occassions. However, I've had a little time recently and made up these two that I have no immediate use for.

There's this drawstring bag with three hearts.

And this little yellow bag which has turned out to be exactly the right size for a CD.

I'm thinking of putting them on Etsy. It's a bit scary though. The first few sales on Ebay were a little worrying but once one has picked up the form and knows the procedures it's OK. Selling sometjhing you've made yourself is putting your work (your art?) up for public discussion. It's good to do thing that frighten you though so I'll give it a go in the near future.

Are you getting enough?

Sleep that is. Every time I look at a newspaper or magazine there seems to be an article on sleep. The quality of my sleep seems to go in cycles and it has little to do with how tired I am. Sometimes I go to sleep as soon as I go to bed, sleep deeply all night and wake up just before the alarm. Sometimes I can't get to sleep and have disturbing dreams when I do . Then there are the nights when sleep doesn't leave me feeling at all refreshed (often rather disturbed in fact!).

One thing the articles all go on about is that you need a routine (no long lie-ins at weekends) and you need to start winding down before you go to bed. This weekend I made an effort to get up at 8.30 a.m. on both days. OK so it's not 5.30 a.m. as it is during the week but it's not that much later. I certainly felt tired by about 8pm on each evening and going to bed around ten was not too much of a struggle. I read a few pages as I usually do but couldn't manage more than that because my eyes were closing. I woke up this morning before the alarm feeling refreshed and cheerful.

You need (so one article suggested) 1 hour of sleep for every 2 hours you are awake. I shall keep this little formula in my head over the next few weeks and see how well it applies over time. It worked out fine for this weekend. It's also a useful reminder that tiredness is often about dehydration, low blood sugar and boredom as much as a need for actual sleep.

If anyone does like the idea of getting up at the same time every day (which if you work full time is probably going to be very early) Steve Pavlina wrote this great piece on it. It's true that early rising does give you more time. I got lots done this weekend. I've got a few days off at the end of the week and I intend to get up early and make a good start on the day. Of course it's much easier to get up of bed when Dear Heart has already turned on lights and the radio and crashed his way around the bedroom before departing for work!

Froth on the Cappuccino

I'm having one of those great weeks where you keep discovering new things. I can't walk around the library without finding armfuls of stuff I want to read. I love discovering new authors. I've also found a load of new blogs that I've added to my bookmarks. It's tricky to know if a blog will be a continuing pleasure. sometimes bloggers cease to blog or they begin to write about topics that you're not very interested in. We'll have to wait and see.

One of the books I picked up to enjoy was Froth on the Cappuccino: how small pleasures can save your life by Maeve Haran. I've read this kind of book before. It's the same kind of thing as Wear More Cashmere: 151 Luxurious Ways to Pamper Your Inner Princess. What marred my enjoyment was the way in places the book seemed to encourage wastefulness (e.g. clutter so that you can declutter and then clutter again). Where green suggestions were made they were often followed by very non-green ideas. For example, a piece on the joys of recycling was followed by one on the joys of takeaway coffee in a styrofoam or cardboard cup with plastic lid. the section on 'buying yourself flowers' did mention fake flowers, but cold have gone further by suggesting that you buy them during the winter when real flowers are imported or grown in hot houses. Just because supermarkets sell cheap flowers doesn't make it right to buy them.

Maybe I'm taking it a little too seriously.

My photos

I just find it so hard to believe we are midway through January. Time to start blogging again on a regular basis!

Once again January is an alcohol free zone for me and Dear Heart. I've been taking the opportunity to set in place routines that I want to follow over the year and have been trying to spend more time working through my sewing to do pile. After a few weeks break over Christmas I'm now walking again on Saturday mornings. However bits of the trail have been rather soggy. Last week part was even flooded, luckily it was just before my turn around point. I'm now wearing wellingtons when I walk on this particular trail.




I'm making good progress on my fabric sewing to do pile and once that's sorted I'm going to start making gift bags to use up my fabric stash. Here are some pictures of present bags I made around Christmas.

Jingle bells and let it snow bags used snowflake sequins that were a table decoration (and destined for the bin) at a party and a bell from a long ago eaten chocolate reindeer.

I was also quite pleased with these gift tags made from magazine cuttings and fabric scraps. I couldn't find (until it was too late) where I'd put the Christmas cards from the previous year to make tags from.

and more Christmas bags...

Just for variety a few birthday bags

Here is the apple pie I made for our Thanksgiving themed dinner in December. I veganised Linda McCartney's recipe that uses cream cheese. I was delicious and there was enough left over for me to enjoy some for lunch the following week. One the subject of food, my lovely sister bought me a stick blender a a Christmas present. She didn't think it was a particularly great thing to give me but shrugged as it was on my list. I love my stick blender. No more batch blending of soup which resulted in soup dripped all over the work surface. Dear Heart will eat almost any soup as long as it is blended. He claimed the simply lovely carrot soup (from the garden of Vegan) that I made last weekend was the best soup I had ever made. Pretty high praise for a few carrots, some stock, dill and soya milk. I did make home made bread to go with it as well. the really easy bread recipe takes so little time and it's so nice to have fresh hot bread with home made soup.

That's all for now but more photos soon of some sewing projects I'm working on.

The trials of technology

I've got a number of photographs that I want to share and have planned an entry including them as they also illustrate what I've been up to lately. Alas every time I've sat down with my computer to sort it out something crops up. It's either a Norton update and scan, or a a software upgrade or not being able to find pictures that I'd edited on Picasa or blogger refusing to let me log in. Then the machine runs very slowly and I always seem to think that 9 p.m. is a good time to start doing these things.

I shall have to make a rule (similar to one I have for new sewing projects i.e. not after 7 p.m.). If all goes well tonight might indeed be the night that I get my pictures online. Watch this space!

Clothing I bought in 2007

1. 1 pair tights - following boot sole crisis - new


2. 2 pair socks (came as a two pack) - for the moonwalk with lovely padded bottoms - new


3. Gold shoes (for hen party) - second hand


4. Thongs (sandal type things, not knickers) - secondhand


5. Boots - from Bourgeois Boheme - new


6. Necklace - From the Vintage Fair - new


7. Jeans - From Oxfam. Old ones had actually worn out. - secondhand


8. Sequined dress - Christmas party dress crisis - new


9. Black velvet dress - Further panic over Christmas party - new

I didn't think I'd actually bought that much, but listed here it seems like lots. Also the ratio of new to secondhand was 2:1. I'm going to try and make it less then 9 items this year. However, I must confess I bought a new dress today. This is a further consequence of Christmas party panic. I saw the dress prior to Christmas and when I saw the price was much reduced bought it.

I'm going to buy less in 2008. Surely I must have everything I need...

Advance planning

In previous years I've spent a bit of time every week wandering around the shops looking at clothes. I'd see what was new in, try on an item or two and plot what I might buy.

This year I'm trying to only buy things I really need and that I cannot make myself. I've been wearing the clothes I already own. As a result I've haven't been planing what I might wear because I know it's going to be something from my current wardrobe.

Tonight is the work meal and rather than planning what to wear well in advance I only started to give it any real thought last weekend. I think on reflection this has been a mistake. Apart from anything else my body shape has changed slightly as a result of more exercise and better diet. Alas this means I'm not as curvy as I used to be and so some of my slinkiest party wear doesn't look quite so hot.

I had a panic at lunch time and ran around the shops trying things on. However, I couldn't help but think that I could have replicated many of the effects I admired. What I need to do in future is have a look around a month before an event that I want to dress up. This will give me time to make alterations and additions.

I'm wearing a little black dress that I bought when I was 16. I hope it works out OK. I need to wear it with attitude! I'm considering adding a floor length net skirt for future years. I'm also very keen now on the idea of making some slim satin trousers in dark grey. I've heard satin can be difficult to sew with though.

Next week I will post pictures of my latest present bags. I'll also try and get my head straight and embrace the festive season!

P.s. This is post 100!

Leftover carrots

What to do with leftover cooked carrots? Soup would have been the obvious answer, but since I'd just made a huge pot of rustic lentil and tomato from The garden of Vegan (only minus the pasta and blended so that Dear Heart would eat it), I needed something else!


Dozens of food/vegan blogs later I came across this post.

http://www.shespillsthebeans.com/kitchen/2006/05/chard_fritters.html


Inspiration struck. I had a go with carrots and ate them zapped in the microwave for lunch with a little tub of vegan mayo. Very nice. I was thrilled when a co-worker spied them on my desk and commented on how delicious they looked! She probably didn't know that they were carrots dressed up to look fancy! I should have taken a photo, but I'm sure this won't the last time I make this.

Great to have something go well today. I went to renew my bus pass and realised that I had forgotten my photo card. Then I went to the market to begin purchasing items for this weekends Thanksgiving themed brunch club. As I got close to the vegetable stall I realised that my carefully drawn up shopping list (highlighted and all) was still sitting on my desk.

Think I need an early night.

Use it up...quick

Every so often I am gripped by an urge to use up all the foods that are in the freezer and the pantry. I can see that at one point this probably prevented the cupboards from over flowing. I did have a tendency to pick up new and/or interesting looking products while wandering around the supermarket. I'd buy just in case the shop never ever had it in stock again (that's logic, right?).

However as I've moved away from shopping in supermarkets I tend to buy stuff as I plan to use it. I impulse buy less. The types of food I'm buying have also changed. The pantry is much more likely to be stuffed with dry goods than anything else.

However, I'm still feeling that I need to use up stuff. This ranges from the last spoonful in the jar to any unopened packets (why aren't they opened? I can't have needed to buy them that much). The freezer is quite full at the moment with frozen beans, blackberries and peas.

Then I spotted an item that I could use up and satisfy my urge (for the present anyway). I bought a load of bananas really cheaply at some distant point in the past. I prefer my bananas green instead of ripe so I froze the lot. I'd eaten most of them but there was half a box just waiting for me to get the urge to eat them. Trouble is where the weather wasn't too warm this summer the urge for frozen stuff wasn't too strong.

I put them to defrost and then made banana choc chip bars from one of the Sarah Kramer books. 4 minutes in the microwave and - yum!