Tuesday

Housework plan is to hoover tonight and concentrate on the kitchen tommorow.

Put a couple of bids on e bay for items for my birthday - following my golden rule "never bid more than a fiver for anything". A little silver butterfly brooch and a green jade bowl. Also bought a snuff bottle for about £6. I bet it is not remotley as rare and as made of jade as they say it is but it looked a sweet little thing anyway. Probably dyed serpentine or onyx.

Will look nice on my trinket table anyway (if it turns up - this is ebay - don't count on anything until it lands on your doormat)

Later edit: Got the butterfly brooch. Someone else but a bid on in the last minute but it was 60p less than the bid I had put on.

Back on home soil

Couldn't update my blog in France as much as I would have liked to as my parents net connection kept going down.

Did get to go to the Roman ruins at Sanxay in the end. Went to Vouvant and Mervent as well.

Terrible journey home on Monday because of the tube strike. Had to catch a bus from Liverpool St to Victoria and that took about an hour.

Back at work now. It sucks as much as ever. Another person in my dept of 7 has resigned - after only 6 months.

Mom called up last night. Pool still is not finished. Cover not on and pump for the cleaning robot still not installed.

Wednesday

Yesterday went to Partheney. Had a walk round the old town and took a lot of photos. Then went to check on Jill and Mick's house - currently undergoing signification renovation.

Was supposed to be going to some Roman ruins today but Mom decided she wanted to clean up the house before Grandma arrives with Dad tommorow. We finished pickling the beetroot and set some raspberry vinegar to soak. Should be ready for the next stage in 7 days time.

Wind howling and blowing a gale today. No rain yet though.

People working on the pool for the third day in a row now! It looks like the lining is going down.

Sunday

Slept terribly last night. My sun allergy was itching like crazy.

Got up at 8.30. Dad decided he wanted to pickle beetroot so put two huge pans on the stove. Then went and took the dog and left me to watch it. The kitchen was filled with steam and the stench of beetroot.

There was some really ugly beetle in the garden. Like a stag beetle but with these huge long feelers. It could move really quick too. Mom got it in her net and slung it over the hedge at the bottom of the garden.

The hosepipe came off the wall while Dad was concreting and got water everywhere.

Whatever the French is for Saturday

Got up about 8.30 am which is really late for me. Had woken up an hour earlier but sat in bed and finished my first book. One down. Three to go.

Then Mom showed me some photos of the snow last winter. Really deep and great big icicles.

Took the dog for a walk about 11 am. We found some lettuce leaves by the gate and were really confused until we went down to near the veg patch and found Marie (neighbour) had left Mom some lettuces there. We picked a couple of butternut squashes for her and took them to her house as we walked Polo.

After the walk we dug up a load of potaoes - well Mom did the digging I put them in the bucket. Also we picked some more squashes and some sweetcorn. We tried to get some of the salsify but it had not done well. Soil too tough for root vegetables to go down very deep really.

Had melon and chicken and salad for dinner. Stayed out in the sun too long as my upper chest is now bright red. My arms are fine though.

Slept through the hotter part of the afternoon.

Later on had a rabbit stew for dinner. Later when it got dark Dad got out his telescope and we looked at the moon. Then it clouded over.

First full day

Woke up a couple of times in the night. At one point when it was raining on the roof I thought it was someone typing on a PC keyboard.

Got up about 8 am and took the dog down the lane with Mom. Then we went to Super U to do the shopping. On the way there we saw a camel. Circus in town and this being France they had just tied the camel up by a roundabout to chew the grass there.

On the way back a chap was driving a lorry full of lions round the supermarket car park to advertise the show. Seemed pretty mean on the poor lions.

Deadheaded some roses and picked some raspberries when we got home. Nice salad for dinner.

Dad has a terrible cold and was taking his frustrations out on the gates by "fixing" them.

Arrive en Francais

Well it is about 8pm at night here and I have pretty much just got to my parents house.

Got up at 6am. Did all the last minute washing up n stuff so I don't come home to a stinky flat.

Left the house at 10.00am. Got the train at 10.38 to Victoria. Met Dad there just before 12. Proceeded to catch the Stanstead Express from Tottenham Hale.

Flight was delayed at Stanstead. They didn't bother to tell us but we had to wait ages to board at the gate.

Mom picked us up at Poitiers Airport. About an hour drive to the house. Short tour of the veg garden - by the way it is raining here!!!!

Cup of tea and Mom is now peeling spuds for dinner, which is in the oven. Chicken and butternut squash n garden veg.

Saturday - countdown begins

This morning was spent trying to organise my stuff for flying out to France on Thursday. Figured if I put my various clothes in piles on a towel on the lounge floor then I will know what I have of what and when everything is together and dry then I can attempt to stuff it in my case. Trying not to wear anything that I want to take with me.

Bought a cardboard gift box yesterday to put my evil free crackers in so they don't get squished in my case.

My jade butterfly necklace arrived this morning and it is very beautiful.

Played Civ 4 for a bit. Wiped out the Egyptians and the Dutch.

Deep fried some sweet potatoes last night. Heavenly! Had the same again for dinner tonight. I luv teh calories!

Moar Chips

Last night I continued my journey to deep fried potato perfection - this time using my new potato cutter. I made the oil a little hotter too.

Only Tuesday

Tuesday today but I feel tired enough for it to be a Thursday. Slept ok though. Just really need my holiday.

Disaster of disasters the chatbox on CD2 was working early this morning but it was not by the time I got to work. UES one down too. Xatech's main site down as well (they host the kind of chatbox we use). Maybe the lonley and desperate will all be on TS tonight.

First use of my fryer last night. In case you are curious yes they were amazingly, crunchtastically delicious!

Sunday

Played a little Civ 4 today. Was on Thurd's TS server a bit.

My fryer arrived yesterday. My cute baby, one person fryer. Alas I have no potatoes so the chips will have to wait until tommorow.

Drama and potato croquettes

Someone hacked a freind's TS server yesterday evening. Circumstantial evidence points to some members of the extended ES community who think this kind of shit is funny. My freind had to cancel his credit card and wipe his PC in case he had a keylogger. The hackers made out they were German but they sounded too faux German to me. I went on the chatbox at the same time as the prime suspect and told him if he was responsible he was a shit and not fit to walk the face of the earth. I also said if any member of the wider community was found to be responsible I would rip out their liver with my bare hands.

Inbetween all this I was popping in and out the kitchen making potato croquettes. Mashed potatoes, salt, pepper, egg, ground almonds, dried shallots and dried parsley. Shape em then bake em. You could deep fry them but I don't have a fryer yet.

Tuesday

Sunny in the morning. A alarm of some kind was going off for ages outside work and was very annoying. Kept stopping and starting.

Enough leftovers from last night's leftovers to have for tea tonight. Nearest I have to a cooking free night.

Leftover surprise

A day of using up leftovers creatively.

Half a bottle of passata and some turkey mince. What to do?

Made meatballs with the mince, an egg, ground almonds, evil free flour, garlic, herbs, salt and pepper.

With the passata made a sauce with oodles of smoked paprika, mushrooms, green beans, some honey, garlic, olive oil, Chinese cooking wine and salt.

Then baked the meatballs in the oven for a bit. Then added them to a dish with the sauce in the oven for a bit longer.

Leftover surprise is once again edible! Not just edible but very very nice!

Sunny Sunday

Hot day today for once. 28 degrees. I was a good girl yesterday. Weeded the front garden so I can slob about for the rest of the weekend without feeling guilty.

Played Civ 4 this morning. Then slept through the heat of this afternoon. Talked to Gorz on MSN in the evening.

My magnolia has a flower that is gradually opening. I hope the sun does not burn it before it is fully open and I can get a photo.

Friday

Nice sunny warm day. Went to the pub at lunchtime for a work birthday. Had lemonade and chips.

To Bruges!

Yesterday was the annual work day out and we went on the Eurostar to Bruges in Belgium.

Got up at 4.30am. Left the house at 6. Took the bus to Westminster and then walked over the bridge to Waterloo. Got some good pictures of the London Eye and Big Ben while I was walking. I like London better at the crack of dawn when it is quieter.

Arrived at Waterloo just after 7am. Me and Dorrell were the first there. Kenny arrived not long after. Jude was almost last and I didn't think she was going to make it but in the end we all got there and got on the train.

Because the tickets were just given out by Marion in the order in which you turned up I ended up sitting next to Dorrel. Jude and Simon Braidley were sat behind us.

I began to feel a little queasy as the journey progressed and made a mad dash for the loo. I was really, really sick. Only just made it in time. Then found out the flush on the crappy Eurostar loo didn't work. Too late and I suppose it was at least better than me throwing up all over the train.

Felt horribly nauseous for the rest of the journey to Brussells and then we had another hour journey on a local train to take us on to Bruges. Felt very ill on that too but I was not physically sick again.

We then had a short bus ride from the station to the city centre. I actually felt better once I got on the bus.

We went to a Resturant called (I think) Pannier D'or in the main market square. The starter was a piece of smoked salmon. I could eat that. Then a tiny bowl of tomato soup which they assured me had no milk in so I could eat that ok. Then the main course was a horror. All the non vegetarians got some barely cooked horror of a roast beef thing with croquette potatoes and the worlds nastiest ever horror mush of reheated, unidentifiable vegetables. The vegetarians got just the potatoes and the veg horror mush. I could not eat the potatoes as they were coated in breadcrumbs (Rich ate mine) so I was left with a plate of something that I could easily have thrown up several hours earlier. I picked a few mushroom looking things out of it and was left hungry. The dessert was an apple pie that I could not eat either.



Anyone reading this please do me a favour. Do not go to this restaurant. They had seemingly edible food that they were serving to their regular diners. They seemed to think that as a group booking we could be palmed off with hardly edible stuff that could honestly have been recooked leftovers. It was nasty. Also the service was really slow and we wasted too much of the day waiting inbetween courses in there.

After that we took a short walking tour of the city and pootled about for a bit. Then took a canal trip which was really good - although the boat was moving quite fast so it made taking photos quite tricky.

After that we headed back to the train station and commenced the journey home. It was early evening by this time. Everyone else was pretty much rat arsed by the time the journey started and we continued in this vein. Tins of cherry beer seemed to be quite popular and Alibhe (who I was sitting with on the way back) had a couple of cans of Kronenberg.

Christine was trying to look at Phil's red underpants and Steve was trying to gross everyone (most especially Phil) out by talking about when he has his wing dang doodle pierced and showing round photos of said procedure on his mobile phone.

Got into Waterloo just before 10pm. Took the tube to Westminster. There was a mouse on the platform that was freaking a few people out. Waited a while at Westminster for a bus. Bus was delayed in Brixton because two complete fucktards would not pay the bus fare and would not get their ugly moronic asses off the bus. The bus driver would not move until they did.

Got home about 11.15 pm. Uploaded my photos to my PC. Had a bath. Got to bed about half past midnight.

Got up at 6.15 this morning. Left later than normal to collect a parcel from the post office but the depot is closed today due to industrial action. Will have to collect it tommorow. Just want to go back to sleep right now.

Sunshine!

The sun was shining this morning. First day that has been like this in ages. Forecast is good too.

Called in at Waitrose on the way to work to get some stuff I can't get elsewhere. Going to give that evil free bread another try. Could be a coincidence I was ill the last time I ate it. Very expensive though at £2 for a tiny loaf.

Sunday

Got up about 9am. Had some glutano crackers with honey. Altered the straps on my new dress for Wednesday. Managed to stab my finger with the needle in the process and get blood on my new, light coloured dress!! Managed to scrub it all off I think.

Lunch I had a baked potato with tuna.

Slept for a while in the afternoon.

Saturday

Got up about 9am after having some upsetting nightmares.

There was some sunshine early on so I took a few more photos of my shiny things.

About 10.30 had a baked potato with tuna and mayonaisse.

Talked to Amber and Gorz on MSN until about 1.30. Then went to sleep until about 5pm.

Then watched "Metropolis" (2001). Amazing film. Every scene a work of art.

Then talked on MSN and the chatbox for a bit.

Friday

Back at work today but still feel gruesome.

Plan of action was to keep eating small amounts all morning so as neither to let any stomach acid build up nor eat so much that it made me sick. As of lunchtime seems to be ok. Still feel horribly dizzy though.

Very tired and dizzy in the afternoon. Got through the day. Got home and slept for an hour before cooking dinner.

Poorly Thursday

Still unwell. Not at work today. Woke up about 6 am, had a cup of tea and fell back asleep until 11am. Got up and had another cup of tea. Then some more of the soup from the big pot I made yesterday. Went back to sleep at 1 pm until about 7 pm. Got up had a couple of baked potatoes and a bath and went back to bed about 9 pm. Got up around midnight and was sick. Spent the next couple of hours shivering and feeling terribly nauseous.

Still sick

Slept from 8.30 pm until midnight last night. Then I woke up and could not sleep again properly. Every time I closed my eyes I was sleep MSNing people. In the end I got up and took some Kalms (herbal sleeping tablets) at 3am.

Woken up by the alarm at 5.45 am. Watched the birds at the back door (door closed) as they all fled to the trees for some reason. I noticed a ginger tail moving along the path in next door's garden and thought there must be a new ginger cat in the neighbourhood. The face of a large fox emerged from the gap between the fence. He came right up to the back door and we were almost nose to nose before he noticed me. Then he ran to the middle of the garden and turned back and looked at me for a bit before dissapearing into the bushes by the old bench.

Then two squirrels decided to get amourous on the roof of next door but ones shed. For the zoologists reading they did it once, danced around the shed roof then did it again.

By 6.30 the garden was quiet again as all the critters began to hide from the waking neighbourhood and all it's noises.

I dragged myself to work despite feeling horrible and very dizzy. My perceptions are somewhat sharpened too. When people's feet made the train platform move slightly I felt it right in my head and it was unbearable.

Threw up at 10.40 am and 12.10 am. Mostly acid. Than again at 12.30 mostly the jelly I attempted to eat at lunch. Then again just before 1pm. and a final time about 2pm. I then went home from work.

Got home and had a small amount of rice and some water to try and help settle it. Slept from 3pm until 5.50 pm.

Got up and decided to use the precious bag of chopped, frozen sweet potato I have been hoarding since last Xmas to make soup. Can only get it at one supermarket (Waitrose in Bromley) that I hardly ever go to.

Not well

I feel awful today. Really lightheaded and freezing cold. Am breathing only thanks to the awesome power of sinutab.

Took a ginger sweet to break the feeling of sickness - then threw up. Nothing worse than throwing up ginger.

The diagnosis of the folks on the chatbox, mostly Slide, was that I have cholera.

Went home from work at 4.30. Had two baked potatoes for tea. Spoke briefly on the phone to Mum and then went to bed.

Monday again

Booked my annual leave from work. Let my folks know when and they booked the flights and e-mailed me to confirm. Ah sweet technology!

Weather grey and cloudy still. It rained on the way home from work and I got very wet.

Had rice pasta, tomato paste and tuna fish for tea. Big plate. Very Goood!

It is Sunday

Got up at 7.15 am. Was wide awake by then. Had two evil free apple pies for breakfast with a cup of tea.

Found the 2001 anime "Metropolis" on Amazon for £4. A freind had recommended it and I thought at that price it was ok. so I ordered it.

Sunny outside early in the morning but serious heavy black clouds in the corner of the sky.

Spent some of the day sitting by the fire, with a hot cup of tea and a blanket reading about spring in Japan. It is almost August.

Ah Saturday

Went for what I thought would be an hour long nap at 8pm last night and woke up at midnight (to the sound of my neighbours having a loud "discussion").

Nodded off again. Woken up sometime in the early hours by the "discussion" getting slightly louder.

Finally got up at 7.45am. Put a load of washing on and had a cup of tea. Chatted in the chatbox on and off.

News reports more widespread flooding :(

Had fried potatoes for breakfast.



My wildflower seeds arrived in the post. Going to wildly throw them around the garden in hope of some colour this year or even next.

Big thunderstorm at lunchtime again. Chatted on MSN to a freind and his freind in Malaysia. Slept from 3 until 6. Got up. had a cup of tea. MSN'ed some more.

Sweet Friday

This morning it was dark like a morning in winter. By lunchtime the sky was black and a torrential thunderstorm resulted.

Then brilliant blue sunshine all afternoon.

Crazy weather!!

My cheap leopard jasper chip necklace from Pugster.com arrived. Ordered it about 3 weeks ago. Some things from the US take ages to arrive and others are here really quick - even if they are dispatched just as quickly.

Had a tin of smoked tuna and an avocado for tea.

Thursday

Today was actually a nice day until mid lunchtime. Warm, sky was full of clouds but fluffy white things mostly not endless suffocating grey.

They are installing a new phone system at work so have to switch off the old one. No phone for an hour so they said! Sweet bliss!

An hour turned into two and then into the rest of the afternoon!

It began to rain as I was coming home.

I decided to make a chicken curry for tea. As I was opening the cupboard a load of toasted almonds fell out and went bloody everywhere. Then when I tried to use a bamboo skewer to get out the ones that fell at the side of the fridge I stabbed my hand on it.

We shall fight them on the peaches

My toes are still bruised. Slapped a load of arnica gel on them last night and some more this morning.

Was woken up between the hours of 3 and 4 am by helicopters outside. Someone probably shot someone else again.

I looked outside at the sky at lunchtime and thought "that sky is a really funny colour". Then I realised it was blue. That is how used to endless grey cloud I have got.

Got home in the evening. Had chicken, avocado and corn chips for tea.

Peaches are the deadliest of fruits

This morning my toes were bruised. I blame Del Monte.

They hurt. Good job it is at least warm because no way could I have worn my boots today. I say it is warm. I mean cloudy and warm with only the occasional peek of sunshine. More heavy rain forecast for later today.

I ordered some wildflower seeds at lunchtime - doubt anything will grow but given the crazy weather we are having the plants might be fooled into thinking it is spring. I am suffering from a severe lack of summer colour and an overdose of overwhelming greyness. Not just the endlessly grey sky but none of the normally colourful summer plants seem to have come out anywhere. Summer just has not happened.

My cheap necklaces from silverspeck.com (pearl, carnelian, onyx and aventurine) arrived as did my 4 gig keydrive.

Had a chicken stir fry for tea. Not bad!

Monday Morning :(

Got up at 5.45am as always on workdays. Mercifully my eyes did not put up too much of a struggle against my contact lenses today. Every time I am spared war between eyeballs and fingernails it is a blessing.

Saw something curious on the way to work. A seemingly full plastic bottle of milk that was lying in the road by the little Tescos shop on the corner. It was gushing milk from a hole in the side of the bottle almost like blood from a wound. The milk was running in streams all down the road. It would have made a good photo were it not for the fact that had I approached nearer I am sure a car would have run it over and I would have ended up covered in milk. "No use crying over spilt milk" I thought and carried on to the station.

Warm but oppressively cloudy again this morning.

For lunch I had a bag of maize crisps, that have no evil milk or wheat in them, and a little pot of peach jelly with bits of fruit in.

Got home about 6pm. My parcel from lakeland.co.uk arrived so I now have some more electric candles and a good, non metal, pan flipper thing I can use in my woks without scratching them.

For tea had two baked potatoes with salt, pepper and vege marg.

Expecting Sainsbury's with some shopping between 8 and 10 tonight. They arrved about 8. Earlier the better then I don't have to stay up late.

Had an accident while putting the rice in the cupboard. A tin of peaches fell from the highest shelf and landed on the three smallest toes of my right foot. It hurts!!!

Sunday in Mid July

At least it has not been cold today. Almost sunny until about lunchtime when heavy cloud began to cover the skies.

Got up about 8am and had a cup of tea. About 30 minutes later I had some rice cereal with soy milk.

Spent some time on the chatbox where Tater was in fine form (in the Taterest sense of the phrase) and deeply upset about some proposed legislation that would lead to the banning of certain breeds of dogs in the US.

Read some more of East Wind Melts The Ice. Watched another episode of The Dream of the Red Chamber. For lunch I had more rice pasta with garlic and tomato sauce then I had a bowl of mixed tinned fruit to follow.

Went into the garden for a few minutes. Sprayed the peach coloured rose which has been in poor health this year. The yellow rose though which is right next to it has never been doing better. Put some plant food on the poorly rose and on my cherry tree and on my Japanese maple.

Went for a sleep about 1.30 but was woken at 3pm by a massive thunderstorm. Lay there listening to it for a bit and then got up and made a cup of tea (rooiboos, 3 sugar cubes, soy milk). Thunderstorm was huge but only lasted about 20 minutes.

Sweet Lazyee Saturday

Got up about 8am this morning which is really late for me. I am normally up at 5.45am on a weekday.

Then I cleared out the bottom shelf of the food cupboard and chucked out everything that had been open a long time or was out of date. Mostly things like dried chick peas which in the real world I do not have time to soak overnight and boil for an hour. If I need em again I am getting them in a tin.

At about 9 am I had a glorious, post payday breakfast of two gluten free apple pies.

I watched 3 episodes of the Dream of the Red Chamber and worked on a literary dilemma with a friend on the chatbox in the morning.

Had a tin of smoked tuna fish for lunch out of the tin. Pure weekend decadence!

Then read East Wind Melts the Ice for about 30 minutes before I felt terribly sleepy. So I napped until 5pm.

Got up and resumed my chatboxing.

Listened to the sound track to the Dream of the Red Chamber and some other Chinese music in the evening. Lit my lanterns and put some other candles on. All twinkly!

Had rice pasta with tomato and garlic sauce in the evening.

Chatted on the chatbox and MSN a bit.

It's Friday Evening!!!

Well finally work is over for the week.

It was payday today. I was bad. I spent £30 on books - got "The Abode of Love" by Kate Barlow, "Catch Me Before I Fall" by Rosie Childs and "East Wind Melts the Ice" by Liza Dalby. All non fiction - the first two autobiography.

I also ordered some more of those electric candles from lakeland.co.uk.

Then I saw a silver and jade fan shaped pendant on exoticandoriental.co.uk and I fell in love. I could not help myself. That was another £27.

So in return I have given up smoothies for the month to save money.

Just waiting now for Tescos to deliver my food shopping. I have a baked potato in the oven.

Kendal Mint Cake

Ever wondered why Kendal Mint Cake is described as a cake when it fact it is an unbaked slab of pure sugar?

The world is a curious place ........

So tired!

Work was hard, hard, hard today. Final push to get the exam results ready.

Last night I was so tired I fell asleep 3 times on the sofa. I really need the weekend.

Tonight I had this baked potato with tuna and mayonaisse for tea.



Spent some time on the chatbox and on MSN. So glad it is payday tommorow. I ordered my shiny things for the month today - coming from Silver Speck in the US so they may take a while to arrive.

And so it is Wednesday

Another hard fast working day. Got through it as best I could. It was cloudy until late in the afternoon when the sun peeked out just a bit.

Came home and had rice pasta, tuna fish, tomato paste and mushrooms for tea.

Picture of the day is the Buddah on my shelf at work. He has lots of papers flowers arranged behind him which my colleague Vicky made some time ago.

Day 1 - July 10 2007

Well welcome to my blog.

Reason for starting - if I dissapear, die, lose the ability to type them folks that knows me will know to come here to find out what the diddly poop is going on.

Saw a big black crow bird on the way home from work. He had got a piece of something that looked like nougat off the pavement. Think he was going to stick his beak together.

Work was horribly busy. I am so tired and it is only Tuesday. I decided on payday (Friday) I would order some more cheap necklaces from the US - the carnelian chip one will be good in Autumn and at Xmas. The onyx one will be nifty at halloween and for funerals. At only £4 they are fab and a bargain. Normally have to have pendants as I am tiny and necklaces are too long for me.

I am also going to buy more of those electric tealight candles from lakeland.co.uk. A couple more packets. So pretty at Xmas!



Dreaming of payday keeps me sane.

For tea tonight I think I will have some garlic grilled mushrooms and just for once I want not to eat tuna fish tonight. I have eaten it almost every day for a week. Cheap, easily storeable, versatile protein - but I would like one day a week without it!