Forgive Me

Forgive me Father

For I have sinned

It's been 2 years since my last MacDonald's

Maybe more

I can't remember for sure.
It wasn't my fault.
I was tempted.

I said no initially.
Even turned my nose up at the thought.
Made some comment about the horrible nutritional value.

But

Then someone said those two words ...

Hash browns


I LOVE those hash browns. I know I shouldn't. They're deep fried, oozing grease. Any resemblance to an actual potato is purely coincidental. I looked over at John who was taking the office orders and gave in. I asked if they did the meal deals like they did in Canada. My favorite was the sausage and egg McMuffin with cheese, hash browns and a coffee.

They do that here too

(drat)


So I had a MacDonald's breakfast. My first one in years I'm sure. And I'm embarrassed to admit I loved it.

The sausage had a slightly different flavour to it, almost seemed like a hint of anise spice perhaps and the cheese seemed tangier. The coffee? Well I forgot to mention to John that I take it black so it came back looking a little creamy but I drank it anyway.

I didn't need lunch (and I felt guilty) and by the time dinner rolled around I hooked up with my flat mate for a movie and we went to a pub for dinner. So what did I have?

Bangers and mash with onion gravy and a pint of Guinness.

It was a pork and potato kinda day I guess.

8:32 PM

8:32PM

Thursday December 27th

It's pitch black outside

The ice cream truck has just made his second pass around the block.

This is a strange country.

Keeping The Tradition Alive

Mention the vegetable 'Brussel Sprouts' to many people and they turn there nose up at you and make a face and say something along the lines of BLECH! But my thoughts on this reaction are one of wonder. As in, I wonder how your Mom prepared these little mini cabbages for you? Were they boiled within an inch of their life until they were a gray green mushy mass on your plate with nothing but butter and salt for seasoning?

That is just wrong.

Brussel Sprouts can be a tasty side dish. This is how my Mom has always prepared them and I say give this a try before you completely write off the vegetable.

Brussel Sprouts A La Mom

Trim your sprouts by removing damaged or bug infested outer leaves, cut a small slice off the bottom, and cut a small X in the bottom stem. This helps them to cook evenly so you don't end up with mushy leaves and hard centre cores.

Place sprouts in a steamer basket and steam until just barely tender - they should be 'tender crisp' to be perfect.

Rinse with cold water to stop them from cooking, and set aside in the pot until your sauce is done.

Sauce:

Chop bacon (that would be smoked streaky bacon here in the UK)

1 slice bacon for each 1 cup of sprouts
Brown bacon in fry pan on medium heat, until it starts to crisp up
Add 1/2 cup onion, diced finely
Stir onion and bacon until onion is translucent and bacon is nicely crisped but not burnt !!

Add 1/4 cup white vinegar and 2 tablespoons white sugar to the bacon and onions. Stir together until sugar has dissolved.

Toss sauce over sprouts, put pot back on burner
Add some fresh ground salt and black pepper to taste.
You can also add a bit more vinegar or sugar, depends on how strong the flavor of the sprouts are.

Once the sprouts have reheated and flavor is right - serve with a smile (Mom added that bit)

Now, after you've tasted this recipe and you still turn your nose up at brussel sprouts then you can always play this game.

'Twas the Night Before Christmas

'Twas the night before Christmas
And all through the flat
A wee creature was scurrying
Because we don't have a cat

Yes the little critter is back.

A while back when I returned from one of my business trips my flatmate had informed me she saw something brown, furry and moving one night in the lounge. That was months ago and I never saw it so I was starting to think perhaps she'd imagined it or something.

But...

On Sunday we were sitting in the lounge and we both heard it. A wee little scurry sound and we both looked at each other, then towards the corner we heard it. But couldn't see anything. Again I started to doubt and said, it must have been a leaf falling off the plant or something.

But...

Yesterday

Yes, the night before Christmas

B was in the kitchen when she saw something scurry out of the corner of her eye move from behind the fridge to behind the hob. Then a little later she saw it again, something moving, brown, furry and wee move from out behind the hob back to behind the fridge again. This time she stood a bit further back from the edge of the counter and waited and watched. Then she saw it, quite clearly this time scurrying on the floor along the length of the bottom cupboard back to behind the hob again.


We have a mouse.

It doesn't surprise me really. This place is so old I'm sure they have quite the network of paths all throughout the tenement. This week the temperature has really dropped outside, we even had frost on the ground Sunday morning. So I'm sure the wee little critters have moved in and up to try and keep warm. There must be access holes to the walls in behind the fridge and hob and that's how the little guy is moving around.

B the fastidiously clean person that she is got in the kitchen right away with the vacuum to make sure there is nothing for our friend to eat (our kitchen is usually very very clean, but you can never be too sure). And also hoping that the noise of the vacuum would scare him away.

I've still never seen him, but somehow it just seems a little appropriate to have a Christmas mouse this day in our flat.

But boxing day, he needs to go away back to where he came from.

Things To Do In York

I apologize for the lateness of getting this posted. I've been drafting it for close to 2 months now and just can't seem to finish it. So enough already here it is in all it's incompleteness...

-----------------------------------

Continuing on with the October vacation. Took a 4 day mini-break and travelled to York, England. Pretty easy to get there via train, Glasgow to Edinburgh, then switch trains and it's a direct line to York.

We booked a B&B that was a convenient 15 min walk to the city centre. But to get there initially we grabbed a taxi from the train station as we had no idea where we were going. Got a great cabby who gave us some fabulous commentary as he drove us to our destination. Tips on what to see, which pub to check out etc.

Now I'm not going to go into a day by day detailed analysis of everything I did but I will highlight for you the things you really should see & do.



Under the 'To Do' list, have a cheap lunch by grabbing a Cornish Pasty and sit on a park bench to people watch. (notice how beautifully displayed it is, I should be able to sell this as a print ad or something).





The river Ouse runs through the town and you cross it as you walk towards the old town from the train station.



It really is such a cute little town, every block there's something picture worthy. Be it something as mundane and ordinary as a mailbox..

Or something as spectacular as the ruins of St Mary's Abbey .




Or something as quaint as a line of bicycles.











But the big draw is the York Minster.


When I was eating the above mentioned Cornish Pasty the church bells started ringing so I shot a wee video (the quality is horrid I know)



The weather wasn't all that great while we were there for our little city break. I think the sun came out the day we arrived and then again the day we left but cool cloudy days are good when you're on your feet all day.

A lovely, lovely town. I'd go back in a heartbeat.

Winter

Well there's no denying it now. Winter is upon us.

I picked the wrong day to forgo the long wool coat. I went on a little excursion out to Ikea yesterday with the idea that I'd then walk down to the Braehead shopping mall afterwards. When I had walked out the store to the darkness (it was only about 4:00) I was greeted by blowing wet snow.

Great.

The intention of getting to the mall was 1 - to be indoors, and 2 - to try and finish my Christmas shopping. But I was just not having any luck. I had my mental list written but couldn't find anything. Oh for The Bay or Zellers where I know where to find what I wanted in the store. I'm still not all that familiar with the shops here so that was a bit frustrating.

So after walking around the entire mall the first time I gave up on Christmas gifts as I wasn't able to locate anything on my list. So second tactic was to attempt to look for some boots. As you've heard me say before I have very small feet so finding shoes is almost impossible. But with a boot I can get away with something that is perhaps a bit on the larger size as I can wear some thick socks and then also as it surrounds your leg it won't fall off. But that was a bust as well. Seems most stores don't have anything under a size 4 when it comes to boots.

So spend the whole day out, got chilled to the bone and came home with nothing other than a box of light bulbs for one of the lamps in the lounge.

But it did get me out of the house.

Darkness

Walking to work this morning the light was eerie. The sun had started to come up but it was the first morning where the street lights were still on, so is seemed strange.

It only took 2 blocks and they turned off and then it seemed normal again. But it once again reminds me I'm in a different part of the world. As I'm further north than Vancouver in the summer it's great as the days are soooooo long. But in the winter it's the opposite, the days just keep getting shorter and shorter and shorter. And it's not even the winter solstice yet.

Walking out of the office tonight I noticed that there is already a Christmas Tree behind the reception desk. Picking up some vegetables at the Sainsbury's store I heard Elvis crooning how he'll once again be having a Blue Christmas without me (so why doesn't he call?). B&Q has their live potted Christmas Trees for sale in the parking lot.

Last year this time I think I had more time to prepare for Christmas as I hadn't even started work at this point. Now I'm just so consumed with monthly statistical reports, training plans, reference manuals I just have no time or energy to think about writing Christmas cards, Amazon.ca or .co.uk wish lists and I realize I'm running out of time.

I know Christmas is NOT about gifts and materialism. But there is something about taking the time out to think about those you love and wanting to give them something just to remind them that you do care. It's not about how much money you spend, but (and I know this sounds cliche) but it's the thought you put into it. And that's what I feel bad about, I just don't seem to have the brain power enough at the end of the day to be able to do that. But I'm trying not to stress about it.

So if you're expecting a card or a gift from me, it might be a bit late.



Other thoughts. I was going through my flickr photos. There is this great tool where you can click on Archive and look at what pictures you took on a particular day. I looked up my shots taken on Dec 6, 2006. I hadn't started work yet so was still into my daily routine of just walking out the door and wandering the city.

This was the day I found the Science Centre and walked the River Clyde into City Centre. It was a beautiful sunny day, I watched a 3D Imax movie, got lots of exercise walking. It was a good day. Some day (soon) I hope to have the freedom and flexibility to have a day like that again.

A Macaroni Pie, 2 Sausage Rolls and a Haggis Pie

Culture is a funny thing.

When you think of culture, what's the first thing that pops into your head?


Race?
Religion?
Dress?
Music?

How about lunch...

I frequent a sandwich shop called Greggs pretty much every day. It's cheap, quick and the food isn't half bad. I can get a spicy Chicken wrap and a cup of tomato soup for £2.64 which is good for the budget.

Today though I started thinking about those cultural differences when the guy in front of me ordered a macaroni pie, 2 sausage rolls and a haggis pie. The haggis reference is a given, but then there is the fact that this is a carb grease & pork product laden meal. Not a vegetable in sight. And did I mention the Iron Bru to wash that nutritious meal down with?

Other offerings that are common in the various sandwich shops are prawn cocktail sandwiches, i.e. small prawns swimming in mayonnaise in a roll. Tuna and mayo, chicken and mayo, cheese and mayo. In fact when I think of it pretty much every sandwich is swimming in mayonnaise, and don't forget the popular sprinkling of sweet corn, (I still don't understand that one).

There are TV commercials dedicated to the promotion of getting people to eat there 5 portions of fruit and veg per day. And no, chips don't count as a portion of veg. In a country where everything is either deep fried, greasy or covered in mayonaise I'm amazed I haven't gained 20 pounds.

Must be because I drink Guiness - it's good for you ;>)

Because It's Ladies Night

Saturday was all about hangin' with the girls.

Early afternoon I met with a downstairs neighbour for a light lunch and coffee at a new Deli that opened up on Park Drive, Sonny & Vitos Deli Cafe. Then I hopped the underground to meet up for an afternoon at a Day Spa to get my hands and feet pampered with a manicure & pedicure.


I will be honest, the treatments themselves were not the best I've ever had, but the staff were so warm, friendly and very accommodating as there were 8 of us coming and going and making last minute changes.

After the spa, we then went to Mags house for tea, cakes and chocolate and the inevitable yak fest that happens when women get together. The lemon cupcakes were particularly yummy.



The evening ended with us moving to another house and en route we purchased some wine and Chinese Take-a-way. Once dinner was inhaled (we were all starving by this time) we moved into the lounge to watch the ultimate chick flick, An Affair To Remember.

I've never seen this movie before other than the small clip that was used in Sleepless in Seattle. I swear throughout the movie they couldn't decide whether Cary Grant's hair was to be gray or dark as it keeps switching back between various scenes (major continuity error there).

But it was a fun day all around, just hangin' out with the girls.

Some Dry White Toast, 4 Fried Chickens and a Coke

My smile muscles hurt :>)

The Grosvenor Cinema on Friday and Saturday nights has what they call the Late Night Throwback. For a measly 3 pounds you can go to the 11:30 PM show and watch something from the past. Last nights' flick was something from my Top 10 List.

The Blues Brothers


Here's some trivia for you. This was the first movie our family watched on video. And I'm not talking VHS, but Beta. The movie was so long (over 2 hrs) it was on 2 tapes.

There is so much about this movie that I just love. The look, the sound, the car crashes. Has anyone ever managed to count up the total number of police cruisers that were demolished in the making of that iconic chase scene at the end?

But for me, it's all about the music.



The sound track is a who's who of the Blues scene and to this day, 27 yrs after it was released it still holds up.

James Brown
Aretha Franklin
John Lee Hooker
Ray Charles
Cab Calloway

Then there is the music that's playing in the background. Classic R&B all the way.

Well OK, the car chases are pretty cool too.



I was grinning from ear to ear all night and I couldn't hold it in anymore when Ray Charles started singing Twisting and I started dancing in my seat.



I am SUCH a geek.

Things To Do When You're In Glasgow

Had a friend come for a visit this month. In celebration of her arrival I contacted a winery in Chile and paid then an exorbitant amount of cash to get them to release a special vintage just for her. Just look at that face, it was soooooo worth it!



She's actually seen more of Scotland than I have as this was her third trip so the trick was to do things she hadn't done yet. So here's what we did....

First up, the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum.



Not only is it a fabulous piece of architecture but so much to see once you're inside. Make note though, if you want to take a tripod (a must for taking pictures without flash) you need to get permission. I felt so 'professional' walking around with my media slip. It made me laugh though, the application had nothing to do with permission to take pictures of the artwork. It was more about Health & Safety, don't want anyone to trip on your equipment (give me a break).

Next up The Burrell Collection



Some rich guy collected a bunch of stuff and then dumped it on the city to deal with when he kicked the bucket. Ok, not really. Here's the official blurb:

"When Sir William Burrell and his wife, Constance, Lady Burrell, gifted his collection of over 9,000 works of art to Glasgow, the city acquired one of the greatest collections created by one person. William Burrell had been an art collector since his teens, and the collection is made up of a vast array of works of all periods and from all over the world."

So an interesting collection on a massive estate, but the best part for me was the field that had Highland Cows. They are sooooooooooo cute!



When I look at them I can't help but think of that Bugs Bunny Cartoon



Next up, just a nice day walking the City Centre to take a look around. Another beautiful sunny day which is great for playing tourist.



Not that you can tell from my black and white shot. It's always fun to try and see a space differently even if you've walk the area daily. Everyone was busy taking shots of the GOMA, but not me. I was taking a shot of iron work across the street.

The Palace of Holyroodhouse. I've been to Edinburgh a bunch of times but have never managed to see the Palace. Also there is this cool Abbey ruin on the grounds out back. In addition there is also The Queens Gallery. So well worth the ticket price.



After dinner waiting for the next train back to Glasgow I thought it would be fun to attempt some night shots with my tripod. This was also the night I figured out the trick with using the self timer to remove the chance of camera shake (why was I the last to figure this out?).



The Hunterian Museum & Art Gallery. This is part of the University of Glasgow. I've been to the Art Gallery a number of times. It's nice and small so not too overwhelming to the culturally uneducated brain like mine. But I'd never been to the Museum part as it's been undergoing a massive renovation this last year.



Parents - take your kids to this. They will be completely grossed out by all the pickled things in jars (and I'm not talking Grandma's canned peaches). Too cool! Also, like the Art Gallery it's not too big and has lots of interactive displays.

Linlithgow Palace - this is one of those places that you can see from the train as you travel to Edinburgh from Glasgow. I can't believe it's taken me a year to get here when it is so close.



What a way to relive your childhood. Remember those days playing, climbing trees pretending you were in a castle. Well how about climbing all around a real castle, up turrets, down into the depths, finding little rooms hidden away. And it was a spectacular day. The only downside was we missed being able to get into the church next door as it was operating on winter hours and was closed already. Well it just gives me something to do next time I need to entertain a visitor.

Culzean Castle - another day trip out of Glasgow by train. You travel to the little town of Ayr and then catch a bus to the gates of the estate.



This was one of those cold, misty, foggy days that would befit a scary movie. But no wind so other than being a bit damp it wasn't too bad. This would be a great place to come in the summer as the Castle is part of a huge estate with lovely gardens. As it is autumn the leaves were starting to change and the colours reminded me of Ontario.

We timed our visit just right and caught a guided tour by a lovely little old lady that just kept getting side tracked with her script (too funny). And should you have a nice wad of cash just laying around and are looking for a place to rest your head the Castle is also a hotel.

Glasgow City Chambers - another must do in the city.



Tours are run twice a day and are free. It's a lovely building and the tour guides are very entertaining.

So there you have it, all done easily by day in and around the city of Glasgow. Just makes you want to jump in a plane to come and visit now doesn't it.

Right now where was I....

London (Sep 28 - 30)

September 28th after a soggy day's meetings I decided to spend a weekend in London and fly back to Glasgow on the Sunday rather than Friday night. So what did I do to keep myself occupied?

Saturday Morning - Breakfast (well a very very late breakfast)

I found a small cafe run by an Italian family and I grabbed a baguette with bacon, avocado and just a touch of mayonnaise (it's safe now that I'm out of Scotland) and a coffee. Just a block away was the Thames and a lovely wall to perch on and enjoy the view and peace & quite as I ate.



With serenity restored and tummy fed I jumped on the tube to head into city centre. Didn't really have anything in mind other than explore the city with my camera.



I later hooked up with a friend from Vancouver that had also just moved to the UK a few months ago. She's not really someone I knew all that well but it was still nice to connect with a fellow Canadian and compare experiences on moving to a new country.

Then came the highlight of my trip, the whole reason for going. I have been waiting my whole life for this experience (OK that's probably stretching it a bit).

It's........



Yes I finally got to see the musical Spamalot. There is nothing more enjoyable then experiencing something where everyone else around you is of the same mind set. I think I can confidently say that the majority of people that purchase a ticket to see Spamalot are all Monty Python fans and consider The Holy Grail one of their favorite movies. Much of the dialogue was taken word for word from the movie. All the best characters were there, the Black Knight, the Taunting French Soldier, Killer Bunnies, and don't forget Dennis. Now some of the scenes were reworked a bit and an extra character was added along with a few new songs. And one particular song from another Python movie (I won't say which one) was even written into this - and everyone in the audience joined in by about the 3rd note. It was a great show, and will not disappoint any true Python fans. I left with a HUGE grin on my face.

Right, so that leaves me heading back to the burbs with a growling stomach. As I had met my friend earlier in the afternoon I wasn't really hungry for dinner before the show as I'd just had tea and a scone. Now it's quite late and I'm realizing the glass of red wine I had at the theatre was not substance enough. Once I'm off the tube I wander over to High Street and walk into a Kebab place that looks good. I get a grilled chicken shawarma that is just loaded with chicken, and tomatoes, cucumber, hot peppers, lettuce and lots of hot sauce and some yogurt. It's so loaded down with filling that I can't properly fold the pita its resting in to eat it like a wrap. It was soooooooo tasty, yum. I was too hungry to take the time out to take a picture, so you'll just need to use your imagination.

Sunday - I take the tube back into city centre again but to Victoria station to drop off my suitcase at the Left Luggage depot so I don't need to drag it around all afternoon as my flight doesn't leave until after 5PM. It's a beautiful sunny day and I wander over to Pret A Manger and grab a baguette, bag of crisps, some water and a little something for dessert.



How could you NOT enjoy something like that hmmmm? It was tasty.

I did the complete touristy thing in sitting on the steps in Trafalgar square & people watched for a while eating my lunch. The sun was nice and warm and there was not even the hint of wind. Once finished I then wandered over to the National Portrait Gallery as I'd never been in there before. If you ever get the chance, go. Lots of great historical paintings there. When I was a kid I remember my Mom having a set of books called 'The Life And Times Of" and then various historical pictures. I recognized many of these paintings from the book on Queen Elizabeth, it was very cool.

So all in all my trip to London was very low key and it was something I really needed because of all the busyness and chaos of the last few months of work. The weather cooperated and I got to take some pictures, see some theatre, walk around and get a little culture as well as some rest and relaxation.

Note to self, do this again - perhaps Paris next time.

This is a Holding Post

Just realizing now how far behind I am in my postings, so this is just a holding posting. I've been to London, Linlithgow, Ayr, and currently in York. Seen castles, palaces, abbeys a cathedral or two and more than my share of clouds, gray sky and drizzle.

Been taking lots of pictures and am only about 2 days behind in posting them. So you'll have to check out my Flickr site to keep you going until I get the chance to sit down and organize all my thoughts and can do a proper post here. Realistically that won't be until Saturday as when I go back to work Wednesday I know it's going to be crazy as always.

Until then....

Ta.

Food, Friends & a little Python

Monday night one of our first Glasgow friends but who has since moved back to the US came over for dinner. B & I lived in he & his wife's flat for the month of November.

It was great seeing him again but reminded me of how much we miss hanging out with him and his wife. They are good people.

So, company for dinner means one thing. Need to cook something tasty. How about:

Penne Alla Amatriciana

1 500g package penne pasta
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 oz pancetta, sliced thin & julienne (ok to substitute Parma Ham if you can't find)
1 tbsp sliced garlic
1 white onion fine dice
1/4 tsp chili
1 oz dry white wine
4 oz chicken stock
2 Roma tomato, julienne
6 oz tomato sauce
2 tbsp Italian parsley leaves
salt for seasoning
Parmigiano Reggiano

- In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook the pasta until al dente, or around 5-6 minutes
- Heat a large skillet over medium high heat
- Add the Olive Oil and sauté the Pancetta until it begins to crisp
- Add the diced white onion and cook until becomes tender
- Add the chili and garlic and just cook thru, but don't brown
- Deglaze the pan with white wine, and add the stock- Add the Roma tomatoes, tomato sauce and the cooked pasta
- Season the pasta with salt to taste
- Finish the pasta with the Italian parsley
- Toss the whole pasta mixture and transfer to a bowl and sprinkle with grated Parmigiano Reggiano

Then Thursday had another friend over for dinner and a rehearsal. Didn't take a picture of that meal so you'll just have to take my word for it that it was good.

Saturday for a change had a friend come over for brunch! Now that is a meal that I normally don't do for company. I'm more of a dinner girl but there were strawberries on sale and a loaf of bread in the fridge so this is what I came up with

French Toast with Sweetened Cream Cheese & Strawberries



Not much too it really. Just make some French Toast
- dip pieces of bread in a mixture of eggs, vanilla, milk a little bit of sugar and cinnamon
- as you fry them up in butter (I didn't say this would be healthy) keep the finished ones warm in the oven
- when all made up then take a pack of cream cheese and mix in some sugar, vanilla and cinnamon all to taste.
- take two pieces of French Toast and spread the inside with the cheese mixture and a layer of sliced strawberries and place one on top of the other
- serve with 100% pure Canadian Maple Syrup.

Yum

On to other news. My travel free month of September is not to be. Heading to wonderful downtown Leatherhead (just outside of London) for a days meetings. But will treat myself to a weekend in London after. This time I was smart and I've already purchased my ticket to Spamalot

Don't think of it as entertainment but culturally educational. Here's a clip that gets into socio-economics etc etc etc.

New Music & Jelly Belly's

Purchased a new tripod this week so was all gung-ho to get out there and try it..... and it's been raining all weekend. It's coming down in buckets as I type this. I guess summer truly is over. Finally turned the boiler back onto the timer again as it was getting too cold at night and first thing in the morning.

So no sunshine I needed to find something to take a pic of to try out my new toy.




Music...

Picked up the new Arctic Monkeys album a few weeks ago. LOVE IT! And this single is absolutely fab, makes me want to dance around the flat every time I hear it.

Understanding Me

This little video short... what can I say. If you watch it and understand the humour, art, vision then we are like minded.



I might add to this post a bit later as I want to do some research as to who these guys are and what they're up to now.

Love it, love it, love it.

Sleep, Must Get Sleep

So the 'students' in the flat below me decided to have another party this morning. Yes, this morning as it was after midnight when they got started. I was just to that point of ALMOST going into that deep sleep we all crave when I was awaken by the thump, thump, thump coming from downstairs.

Yes I know I could have dialed 999 but I really just couldn't be bothered as I kept telling myself I'd get used to it and then drift off. And I didn't, because then the loud voices started, I swear they have a Foosball table down there. When I woke up at 6:30 this morning I could still hear them. When I finished dinner and was heading to the evening service I could still hear them.

They've stopped now, but it seems the party has moved to the flat on the other side of my bedroom wall. Well it's still early so perhaps they'll be done before 11PM (I can hope can't I?).

On the up side, the sun came out today which inspired me to take some pictures in front of my bedroom window. You can tell how incredibly tired I am looking at the bags under my eyes. I took a nice long nap when I was done.

Tonight, I've taken 2 Gravol to attempt to knock myself out so I can get some much needed sleep. No I don't do this on a regular basis (drug myself up) but a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do to get her beauty rest.

Waxing Poetic on Nutella

Oh Nutella
Why do I love you so?
Is it your chocolaty goodness?
Your hazelnut nuttiness?

Toasted brown bread
A glass of milk
And thou....

Heaven



Aaaaaaand now you're probably wondering what? why? Here's my thought process.

I'm celebrating a week that has involved no planes, trains or automobiles. It's a lazy Saturday where I've been lounging around doing a whole lot of nothing and really enjoying it. Had a late breakfast, a shower, read some blogs. Might hit a charity shop later this afternoon as I got a text from a friend about a way cool dress that she found that should fit.

Later tonight will join B and her folks for an early dinner. Which started me thinking I haven't had lunch but if I'm having an early dinner then I can't really have a normal lunch as then I won't be hungry. Sooooo.... Nutella toast and a glass of milk. The perfect snack.

Yum.

Ya ya I know

I realize it's been a while since I've posted. But I just can't believe any of you out there want to hear me go on and on about my work. And that is pretty much been the focus of the last 10 days.

I've been really good about not putting in the marathon hours but the days have been quite stressful so when I come home I usually grab a nice afternoon nap, then when I get up it's time to cook dinner and when that's done it's bed time (such an exciting life I lead I know).

But it's not all bad.

Went to a movie Friday night "The Walker" murder mystery set in Washington DC with a stellar cast. Then off to a pub to meet up with a few of the girls for dinner.

Saturday went to Edinburgh again to do some shopping and came away with a few fabulous vintage pieces. If I can get my act together I'll do a bit of a fashion show to post the results (but one piece needs to be altered so I'll wait until that's done as it's my fav).

Sunday was it's usual busy pace, rehearsal early as we were on team for the morning service. B's parents are in town so they came out and we all went for brunch afterwards. Sunday night was the going away party for a fellow St Silasite (one of my first connections at the church) as he's moving to Inverness.

Looking at the week ahead I've got some plans in the works already. A movie quiz night Tuesday with friends, Wednesday discussing Kitchen renovation plans and later in the week I need to tackle roasting a chicken that's been sitting in the freezer too long.

See nothing too exciting.

But - if you've got any burning questions for me out there, please drop a comment and I'll answer you here and then perhaps my postings will be a bit more regular.

Ta for now.

Life goes on

Here's the weekly update (I do seem to recall mentioning a while back that it may come to weekly updates once I started working)

The weekend
- Saturday was a girls trip to Edinburgh. It was a grey misty rainy kinda day but the temperature was warm so that made it bearable. First stop was a journalist photography exhibit at the Scottish Parliament. Some heart wrenching photos but inspiring just the same. Then a little lunch at a funky cafe on High Street. Walked around and caught some of the hub-bub going on as various actors were shamelessly flogging their shows at all the local theatres. Then a pint at The Blue Blazer (old man's pub off the beaten track). As we were working on our second round a ruby match got out and all the fans started to pile in and the singing began. Next up a little shopping in the Grassmarket area full of cool vintage shops. Lastly we finished the day with a play called 'Marry Me A Little'. Then hop on the train home.

* I've posted pictures from that day on my flickr site which you can access via the link on my side bar.

- Sunday was church and B and I were on team so early wake-up call in order to make the rehearsal. It was a good service and I really feel like I'm finally learning all the new music so can enjoy the moment rather than panicking trying to remember how the next song goes.

The Week

The pace of things at the office is slowing down a bit in that the phones aren't ringing as much. This doesn't necessarily mean that my life gets any less busy, but it does mean that I finally get the opportunity to do the 'management' type things that I'm supposed to do. I gave my first performance appraisal for one of my staff, had some 6 month reports (more pie charts and bar graphs - goody) to do for a Trustee Meeting, a client conference call and trying to mentor a junior staff member that has some low self esteem.

I also have a number of self study courses or on-line modules that need to be done in the next few months. I can't really do them during working hours as I get too many interruptions. So the plan is to try and do at least 60 to 90 minutes a night during the week. Reading all about pension legislation and management skills should put me right to sleep.

Thursday (today) I am flying to our head office in London for an editors meeting for the company staff magazine. The editors are a rotating group made up of a cross of employees from all the UK offices. A few weeks ago an email went out looking for volunteers and one of my staff that knows I've been dabbling in writing said I should definitely put my name in. I did and I got it so off I go. It feels so decedent to be flying to London and back same day (keep those BA miles piling up) but I'm not liking the fact that the cab is picking me up at 6AM as I'm on the 7:30 flight. It will be a long day but should be fun.

So that's my life in a nutshell to this point. Hope to have some more interestsingesness (yes Mom I know that's not a word) things to blog about on the weekend. But right now work has been all I've been thinking about lately so that's what I must write.