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Tuesday, September 2nd, 2008
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10:13 am
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Friday evening, I'm having a wake for my uncle, Shane Winter, as he always liked a good night out on the town. You're all invited, should you wish to attend. Venue is as yet undecided. There's a facebook event here: http://www.new.facebook.com/event.php?eid=29421525737
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| Monday, September 1st, 2008
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12:26 pm - RIP to my mother's brother.
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| Monday, August 25th, 2008
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4:42 am
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It has been a while.
A quick precis of this month:
- Jerub incremented, and there were awesome visitors
- EKKA!!!! Now we have a full wine shelf :D Considering the next holiday being to the granite belt or gold coast hinterland ...
- I did my tax and my finances - savings > debt by the end of this week, I think. Hooray!
- Jerub got sick
- I got sick (I'm almost better)
- Jerub is sick again
- work has deadlines
- 3 more of my friends are pregnant - it is totally going around.
- I think I volunteered to help run LCA2010, should we win the bid
- I cleaned out the garage, only to have the remote run out of batteries
It's been a full month. Less suck than July. Although I could have lived without the sick. Lost my voice, sinus infection, sore throat, cough, blah. I can't take OTC drugs for anything, just about (allergies, etc), so now I have a controlled drug to take, which is kind of cool (sounds cooler than what it actually is, though).
I've rediscovered lemon and ginger tea with honey. MMmmmmmmmmm.
I've had many awesome and cool friends drop around to keep me company, cheer me up, and adminster hugs. I love you guys :) Thank you so much! You are all full of win.
I need new glasses. These frames are reaching the end of their usable lifespan - a record 4 years.
I am in love with living on the southside again. I have a view, everything's nearby, I can walk places, the busway is awesome, and the traffic noise is soooo much less. I've found two good cafes, but I'm always open to more suggestions :) I am loving having 8 supermarkets in a 10min radius, including an IGA that stocks jolt in multiple flavours. We've found fantastic thai and indian resturants, which have been awesome when we've been sick.
Admittedly, my neighbours are totally fail. Hopefully that's going to be resolved soon, though.
I bought myself a new winter jacket, since my old one died. It's sexy and warm. I need new jeans though.
The Ekka was AWESOME. I should consider competing with chocolate fudge, white bread, and a couple other things, though. I mean, geez, that's the best we can do? That sucks. And hey, I might win something. Also, rides. They are SO MUCH BETTER when I can see what is going on. Yay for contact lenses! Although I did acquire some bruises in fascinating places - no, you can't have a look :P
I'm awake at a truly ungodly hour. Stupid coughing waking me up. Still, I should e going back to sleep shortly, and it has improved greatly from say, thursday.
This week is looking up. Work deadlines, money, seeing Dad and maybe Mum and my brother this week, as well as awesome friends - I can't wait :) BRING IT ON.
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| Wednesday, July 23rd, 2008
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2:24 pm - July: month of colossal SUCK
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What's happened so far, this month:
- 10 days not being able to eat
- Jerub's work burned down
- got that flu and spent a week on the couch
- had the real estate agent bitch me out for something I was unaware of
- dropped my laptop, which broke it
- I've seen nearly every sunrise, due to a vast change in sleeping patterns, which haven't settled down yet
So 3 weeks of this month have been chockers of suck and lose.
I suppose it can only go up from here. And I have been handling all the various dramas with rather more than my usual grace, which I guess is good.
*sigh*
All I want right now is a boring, uneventful, no-drama week. A holiday, if you like, from this cruft. Where I can work in peace without something crappy happening.
Oh, and I've got work deadlines, which have slipped chronic, because I've been too sick to work most of this month. And that's doing terribly interesting thing to finances.
Right now I want someone warm and comfortable to curl up with for a week or two until I feel better.
current mood:  exhausted
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| Monday, June 2nd, 2008
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11:59 pm - Time for another one ...
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So I want to throw another party.
This time, a wine and cheese appreciation party.
Deal is: bring a matched wine and cheese, with accompaniments (eg, fig jam, quince paste, walnuts, pear, whatever and appropriate crackers/bread).
Go to as much or as little effort as you like.
I'll supply wineglasses, and the venue of My House.
How's that idea sound to people?
current mood:  contemplative
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| Wednesday, May 21st, 2008
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8:56 am
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Happy Birthday to Me!
current mood:  cheerful
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| Tuesday, May 13th, 2008
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9:51 am - Birthday party!
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I'm having a birthday party this weekend. I'm turning 27, and two friends of mine are also celebrating their birthdays at this gathering, maybabies that we are. There's a facebook event, http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=10209152788 . It's got a fair few people attending, so it might get a touch crowded.
6pm to midnight, food provided, byo alcohol and a fold-up chair. At my New House. Email/etc privately for the address.
Please rsvp here, on facebook, or via email (or mobile if you've got my number), so I've got an idea of numbers.
:)
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| Monday, May 12th, 2008
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6:19 pm - Of cars and rocks and miscellaneous stuff.
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The car hit a rock Sunday morning, 3am. so, in the last little while, we have:
- found the one and only place in brisbane that sells tyres that is open on a sunday and purchased two tyres
- had mother's day lunch 2hrs late with the in-laws
- had the car serviced, wheels aligned and balanced
- gotten two of the three quotes required to get aami to fork out for a new mag
jerub's been wonderful, handling most of the administrivia, while I sat in a corner and dealt with anxiety. Well, tried to anyway.
Sigh.
Aside from that mess, the weekend was great.
I've lost 3kgs in the last two weeks. At this rate, I might be at my goal in a couple of months. That would be nice, so I don't have to buy new clothes (I dislike clothes shopping intensely).
Some musing triggered off by various blog posts around the web, as well as the whole trying-to-lose-weight thing ...
I've been thinking about body acceptance lately. I'm pretty secure in my appearance; I think I'm a fairly attractive young woman. I don't hate any one part of my body. I dislike the size it is, but that's more a question of the magnitude of the shape, rather than the shape itself. I think my feet are pretty. I like my hands, even though they are small enough to make a lot of things a bit harder for me to do. I like my nose, my lips, my eyes, my eyebrows (invisible that they are), my hair, my ass, my calves. I have some quibble about my breasts, because they aren't in a commercially-available size, and they are kinda a bit saggier than I'd like. My thighs annoy me occasionally, because they aren't an ideal shape for stay-up stockings. My tummy jiggles when I run, which is uncomfortable. I wish my arms were stronger, so I could lift things more. I could live without the hormonal acne. But I think my freckles are cute, and I like being lily-white (so long as I don't have to go outdoors). The scars, I do not like. I am learning to live with them, though.
There are relatively few particulars I'd change about my body. I'd like to be smaller, because I find that when I'm lighter, I take up less space, and my body feels more comfortable to be in. I'd like to be stronger, because, well, handsprings are really cool. Also, I am too lazy to buy new clothes, and most of my nice clothes are smaller than I am, currently.
I have my fat and ugly days, usually hormonally influenced, this is true. I will be in tears over how much I differ from my in-the-head ideal. I know it's irrational, and totally doesn't match with reality, but unfortunately, reality doesn't have a lot to do with it when I'm like that. And, judging by some of what I've been analysing about my own behaviour lately, it's more an expression of generalised anxiety than anything else - I'm basically looking for something to get upset about, and it's the most convinient channel for that, sometimes (incidentally? not today, my anxiety has a slightly more valid target to overreact to).
I like my body. I wouldn't go so far as to say as I'm proud of it, but it is, at least, a good place to start.
That seems to me to be an odd attitude to have, particularly for women, in this day and age. I don't wear makeup or jewelery or accessories; I think I look fine just as I am. I don't dress fashionably; I do often aim for a certain level of elegance in my day-to-day wear, but I'm happy to rock jeans and a geeky tshirt as well. I know that when I take some time to choose what I am wearing, and how I style my appearance and expressions, I can turn heads on the street, and have, at various times. And I know that this is true, no matter what the number on the scales is.
So I want to change my body into something a little smaller. I can look sexy, desirable, elegant, beautiful at any weight; but I don't feel comfortable as I am. Comfort wins over laziness, so I'm doing the non-lazy thing of changing my body shape in order to feel comfortable.
Explaining this to people when I say "Sorry, it looks lovely, but I'm on a diet at the moment" is getting old, again. No, I'm not fat. No, I don't think I'm unattractive. But my thighs rub together a bit, I can't buy a bra retail, and my (very fine) ass doesn't fit into my second pair of jeans, or my nice going-out pants, and I don't feel like buying new clothes when I've got perfectly good ones right here. It doesn't seem to be a motivation that people, in general, can understand. I fall back on 'It's for my health; heart disease in the family, you know' far too often. That's *a* reason, sure, but it isn't *the* reason, by a long stretch. It's like the only reasons a woman has to change her figure these days is, basically, appearance. There's a feminist rant in there somewhere, but today has been long, and so is this entry, so I'll think about that another time.
current mood: contemplative
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| Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008
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8:20 am - Cooking and such
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I've been cooking lately. Last week, for instance, I cooked the following never-before-tried things:
- risotto with pine nuts, chicken and baby spinach
- chicken satay sticks (I cheated and bought the satay sauce)
- plum sorbet
- dark chocolate and orange sorbet
- fresh asaparagas spears sauteed in garlic and butter
- poached eggs in a saucepan
- gnocchi! by hand! from scratch!
I've cooked the following things I've cooked before:
- german grain bread (in the breadmaker, again with the cheating)
- cheese souffle
- thai green curry with coconut rice
- plum lamb stirfry with fresh veges and noodles
- cabonara sauce
- lemon and pistachio biscotti
This week I'm going to try to make raspberry frozen yoghurt, mint sorbet, and maybe lemon sorbet and possibly vanilla bean gelato if I'm feeling up to it. I also want to make a penang curry, something indian, better gnocchi, maybe ravioli, more bread and anzac biccies of course. I've decided for the forseeable future, if I want frozen goodies (eg, icecream) I will make them from scratch, myself. I think this is a good way to cut back my consumption of such things, as well as learning all sorts of wonderful stuff.
I enjoy good food. It makes the day far more interesting when I can enjoy what I eat so much more.
current mood: cheerful
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| Monday, April 21st, 2008
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7:45 pm - living life through the senses
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I am a sensualist. This will come as no suprise to those who know me well, I am sure. I love to touch, to taste, to smell, to listen.
Tonight, steve had a work function, so I decided rather than mope, I would celebrate my senses. I lit a candle (ylang ylang and lavender) and planned an indulgent feast for one.
Red wine, a souffle made with red liester cheese, fresh asparagas, mushrooms, with dark chocolate and orange sorbet to follow.
The bechemal sauce is made, the cheese melted into it. I'm waiting for it to cool a little more before I add the eggs, drinking a glass of red wine and looking at the candle. My favourites list has been playing while I cook, and I've been dancing as I created in the kitchen.
I made the sorbet yesterday; I can confirm that it is a near-perfect combination of orange and good dark chocolate; soft in the mouth, melting in an explosion of flavour. Mmmm.
I am happy to go at my own pace this evening. I enjoy cooking for my friends, oh yes; I also enjoy cooking just for myself. I can dance, I can sing, I can taste, I can just slow down and savour the moment.
It's been a very long time since I've had a night like this - and it feels good.
current mood: hedonistic
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| Friday, April 18th, 2008
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9:54 am - Food, glorious food ...
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I made gnocchi from scratch on Wednesday, with a simple cabonara sauce. I think they could do with some work; maybe a touch of garlic, or cheese, or herbs in the gnocchi - but I can always make them again.
I've been thinking a lot about food, and about different dietary restrictions, and how to make food awesome. Steve's lactose intolerant, and needs lots of carbs. I need a minimum of carbs (or at least, a controlled amount). Mum (who I'd like to have over for food more often) is gluten intolerant, and Dad hates 'fancy' food. My brother can be fairly adventurous, but needs to be talked into it, and occasionally needs to be dairy-free, depending on his health. Another friend is allergic to sesame.
Cooking for the range of tastes and requirements can be a challenge. One-pot meals, like the risotto I made the other night, are sometimes chancy affairs, since each individual serve can't really be tweaked all that much.
It's all good fun.
This weekend, I want to make bread. Not sure what, yet - we'll see.
current mood: thoughtful
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| Wednesday, April 16th, 2008
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11:21 am - Awakening
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I've been under a lot of stress lately. A lot of stress. Since early March. One of my symptoms of stress is that I can't spare the energy to be creative. My work suffers, and I can't bear the thought of cooking something that doesn't come from a jar or a box.
The cloud seems to be lifting a bit, though. Yesterday I got all creative in the kitchen, and made my first ever sans-recipe risotto (pine nuts, baby spinach, chicken with asparagas spears seared in butter and garlic to serve). I also taught myself how to poach eggs with a saucepan and a slotted spoon. I feel like making some toasted-flour biscuits featured in the chocolate and zucchini blog; I've been seriously thinking about how to make gluten-free gnocchi and inviting mum over for a three-course, gourmet gluten-free feast (egg-drop soup to start; walnut and blue cheese gnocchi; pistachio and lemon sorbet to finish. Or something like that).
I find myself contemplating how to do a thai-flavoured risotto; shredded kaffir lime, coriander, seeded red chilli, fresh green beans and fresh grated coconut are springing to mind. Or Indian; pumpkin cooked in cumin and cinnamon, mashed and added to the rice with a generous sprinkle of paprika, garam masala, fresh tomatoes, and suitably-spiced meatballs.
I'm thinking about the lovely granite benchtops, and thinking about making berry tarts and croissants by hand. I'm thinking about growing fresh herbs, mint and thyme and sage and rosemary and basil and coriander. About duck pancakes. About savoury waffles for breakfast on a Sunday. About cloves and oranges and crepes for dessert. About ginger and nutmeg and biscuits.
I am, for the first time in ages, excited about the possibilities of my spice rack and pantry. I can't wait to get home and riff off on a theme from a cookbook; about mixing and matching flavours on an impulse. I want to feel a loaf take shape in my hands; I want to fill my house with gorgeous smells. I want to learn new things, new flavours, new techniques.
It's been so long since I've felt this way. And it's a good way to feel :)
current mood:  creative
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| Friday, April 11th, 2008
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6:05 pm
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Eight years ago today, Stephen and I started dating.
My, how time flies.
current mood: happy
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| Sunday, March 30th, 2008
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6:05 pm - More Stuff.
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So there is more stuff. Kitchen Stuff.
( behind here )
Hooray for less stuff.
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| Thursday, March 27th, 2008
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7:40 pm - The cleanup begins ...
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and as part of that, we've got some stuff we want to give away. It's being posted here, and a couple other places, and is fair game for whoever asks. We'll be taking the computer gear to humbug, and donating the other stuff to charity if there's anything left.
The list is ( behind the cut ... )
I'll be adding more stuff as we go through. At the moment, this is just one room of the house. No prizes for guessing which one ;P
current mood:  busy
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2:03 pm - Good news, for a change of pace.
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So, we got the place we applied for yesterday. Which means we'll be moving on the 7th or the 8th of April.
We need to get packed. I have some boxes courtesy of a handsome young man, and will be getting more soon. We also want to move just about every we own into the garage so it's easy to move it. We're going to attempt to sort things so that we've gone through and thrown out/made a give-away pile before then.
I'm looking for help putting our kitchen, our library, and most of our office into boxes. And move furniture downstairs, on Sunday next week, from about 1pm.
I'm looking at doing a lunch of pizza (pizza hut and domino's are up the road), or we could explore the culinary experience of the nearby indro food court, if people prefer. In the area is also a red rock noodle bar, a subway, and maccas. Other suggestions welcome :)
Please let me know via email, mobile, or reply here.
current mood:  excited
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| Wednesday, March 26th, 2008
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5:40 pm
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So, depending how things go, we may be moving next week. Depending, of course, on rental applications, which are ... interesting. Very interesting.
Which is going to total my weekend. Because now I have to pack. My life needs to go into boxes. And I seemingly have a rather full life.
Hmm.
Well, I guess I'll just have to see what happened with the application I put in today.
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| Tuesday, March 25th, 2008
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5:34 pm - It never rains but it pours ...
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Thus far, this month has been unilaterally bad.
1. My first ever car accident. I forgot about a pole momentarily, and now the car is being repaired. Should get it back tomorrow or Thursday.
2. The house was burgled overnight. We lost an ipod, a mobile, a laptop - and a full set of house keys. The forensic guy came at 4.30pm, just that little bit too late to get a locksmith in, so that's happening tomorrow morning first thing.
3. The body corp guy wants the plasterer to fix the ceiling on Sunday, because apparently it's urgent. If it's urgent, fuckwit, why has the hole been there since December? Doesn't sound 'urgent' to me.
Hopefully, this is all the bad shit I'm due this year, and it's all over with. I think life is about due to look up.
By the way - I'm thinking of moving house soon. Seems like a good idea. May need some assistance - paid for with hugs and appropriate refreshments (lunch/dinner/caffiene/snacks/etc), plus warm fuzzies for doing a good deed. Stay tuned for details.
current mood:  cranky
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| Wednesday, February 20th, 2008
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8:36 am - A week and a bit in review ..
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It's been a fun week.
Monday was pretty standard. Failed to injure myself at personal training, which was good.
Tuesday and Wednesday were uneventful, except that the bastard housemates stole my icecream. A note was left inside the tub this time - we'll see if that works.
Thursday I had an aromatherapy session, where I learnt that I am feeling tired, low, and otherwise not so hot. Really, ya think? Anyway, it was fun, and now I have a few essential oils I intend to make good use of, as soon as I get an electric burner. Anyone know where I can find a reasonably-priced good one?
Steve took me out to Two Small Rooms on Thursday night. It was ... well, not bad. But I think I much prefer Bespoke, Joseph Alexanders and Isis. We went to Onyx for cocktails and jazz after dinner, which was pretty good - they have a new cocktail list, hurrah. Although my favourite bartender - the guy with the dreads - wasn't on, pouty. Oh well, a good night.
Friday was ... friday. Went out to 3 monkeys to see a friend up from canberra, and catch up with other friends :) It was awesome. We bailed around 11.30pm, because I was trashed and staggering. Very, very tired.
On saturday, we cleaned up the house a bit, and had a BBQ with a similar group of friends. It was a good night, with strange beer which is now looking for a home. I really need to talk to those people more than once every six months ... sigh. I suck at keeping in touch with people.
Sunday was a lazy day, as I came down with a lurgy. Sore throat, muscle soreness, occasional fever, headache. It sucked. I spent most of the day sleeping and/or reading. Wanted to knit, didn't feel up to it, boo.
Monday I called in sick to PT, because yeah. Like hell with the way I was feeling. Tidied up the house a bit, blah. Felt yuck.
Tuesday I decided not to go down the coast - too tired, too sick, and I realy didn't want to overnight in case it got worse and I had to do my sleeping-upright trick. Got a call from the day spa I have a (fantastically cheap) deal with - they're moving to goodna :( So they wanted to know if I could come in before they moved and get stuff. I said, sure, and got a body wrap and foot massage. They still owe me a hand massage, but that's okay. I'm sure I'll get that done soon. It made me feel lovely all over. I cooked a roast for dinner, even. That was good. Need to do that more often, I think.
Today is O-day at UQ. I was going to help out with the humbug stall, but last night ... well, I woke up every 10 min to blow my nose, except when I woke up with a nightmare. I really dislike nightmares. A lot. I couldn't sleep for half an hour after that, I was too scared. Sometimes, the ability to resume a dream after a brief period of wakefulness is incredibly cool, and sometimes, it really, really isn't. Last night was one of the latter.
Hopefully I'm over the worst of this cold.
current mood: tired
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| Wednesday, February 13th, 2008
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10:08 am
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So I've had some pretty bad stuff happen over the years. I need to write about it, amongst other things, but I don't want it out there for all the world to see. I've created a brainfuck filter. Comment if you'd like to read/comment on stuff in there. I would appreciate it.
Some of it's not very nice, and may venture into TMI territory.
current mood: strained
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aiofe's journal
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