love those cupcakes

A bit of a do

I'm attending a posh-ish work event in December and need something suitable to wear so I decided to go for this Diane von Furstenburg little number which I bought online from here (with an unexpected but very welcome reduction).   

     

                             

I don't usually wear dresses (can't remember the last time I bought one) so wanted something that wasn't too over the top.  Not sure about the bare arms, though.   I may just have to cover those.

Christmas is coming

There are some definite indications that Christmas is on its way.  The shops are full of Christmassy stuff, the tree and lights were turned on in our town at the weekend and the Christmas magazines are pouring into the house.  But there is one other sure sign that Christmas is coming, the return of my favourite seasonal hot drink.

 

Yes, the Gingerbread Latte is back! It just shouts "Christmas".  And I am in serious danger of over indulging.

In or out?

With the settling in period over, it was time to make the decision about whether the kitties should be given the freedom of the great outdoors.  As the two cats we had previously came and went as they pleased, and didn't seem to come to any harm, we decided to take the big step of opening the door to the garden and letting Billybob and Buzz outside for the first time.

 

They were so unsure to start with.  And they looked so little amongst the shrubs and trees.  It was a case of sticking together and popping back into the house at regular intervals.

   

But Billybob was soon brave enought to suss out the Buddha. 

 

Of course, a week on it's a different story.  We let them out for an hour at a time and they love being outside.  They look longingly out of the windows when they're indoors and we've even found Buzz trying to open the door himself though he can't quite manage it.....yet!

Looking at these garden photographs, I'm reminded that I haven't emptied the pots of the remains of their summer plants.  Is it too late to put in Spring bulbs?

Eleventh hour, eleventh day, eleventh month

 

"But the past is just the same, and War's a bloody game.
Have you forgotten yet?
Look down, and swear by the slain of the War that you'll never forget."

(Siegfried Sassoon)

 

 

Irritants

Oxford University researchers have listed the top ten most irritating expressions or phrases in use today.  They're in a book called "Damp Squid", which was given that particular title because so many of us mistakenly talk about a damp squid instead of a squib when something fails to meet expectations.  I was interested to find out which expressions  made it into the top ten so here's the list:

 

1 - At the end of the day

2 - Fairly unique

3 - I personally

4 - At this moment in time

5 - With all due respect

6 - Absolutely

7 - It's a nightmare

8 - Shouldn't of

9 - 24/7

10 - It's not rocket science

 

I do find most of those irritating, particularly number 2, along with its close relative "very unique", and I know I'm guilty of using number 6 and probably a few others.    One that isn't on the list but would be in my top ten is "don't ask" .   Why do people say "don't ask" when you've already asked them about something?   I recently bumped into an ex-colleague and asked "How's the job?".  She replied "Don't ask".  But I already had!   So, tell me, which expressions get your goat? (And there's another one).

 

Kitchen nightmare

It seemed such a good idea to have the kitchen remodelled.  We'd been thinking about making changes for a (long) while and eventually took the plunge.  We found a company who could come in and do everything, from ripping the old one out to refitting the new one, and come in they did. Two weeks ago.  This means we have been without a kitchen for two whole weeks. No hob, no oven, no washing machine, no dish washer, no kitchen sink.  The cupboards had to be emptied (obviously) before the work started and the dining room became the designated dumping area for pots, pans, utensils,food items, appliances, cookery books, glasses etc.  I hadn't realised we had so much stuff, even after a thorough sorting and discarding of the out of date, chipped and no longer needed. 

The dining room is also where we've set up a kind of field kitchen.  The old fridge and freezer are in there along with the  kettle, toaster and microwave oven.  At first I thought "Well, that's OK.  We'll manage with ready meals and beans on toast, and we can hand wash a few clothes to tide us over".  But after two weeks, the situation's driving me mad.  And the kitchen is nowhere near finished.  Laundry has mounted up (there's only so much you can wash by hand in the bath) and dealing with it now means driving to Aunty M's with black bin bags full of clothes and bedding and a box of Bold liquitabs.  Any washing up has to be done in the bathroom. We'd intended to use paper plates and plastic cutlery but discovered that beans on toast and paper are not a good combination.  And as for plastic knives and forks......  A simple task like filling the kettle means a trip upstairs as the washbasin in the downstairs cloakroom is so small the kettle doesn't fit under the tap.  And we're sick of eating microwaved ready meals, necessarily of the vegetarian variety.  You know the ones I mean.  Pasta bake, lentil shepherd's pie, stuffed peppers and the like.  They may be handy to have in the freezer for occasional consumption but eating so many of them has made me realise something. They. All. Taste. The. Same.   So, today we've been out for Sunday lunch and real food.  (Giant Yorkshire puds filled with vegetables and gravy followed by rhubarb crumble and custard).

Due to a few hiccups, like the wrong sink being fitted and a granite worktop being dropped, it seems we'll be without a functioning kitchen for at least another week. So, if anyone has any vegetarian recipes which involve cooking with microwaves, please share them with me!