Yay, yum, haha

Morning walk

I walked to and from work again today. I thought I might wake up more weary than usual or run out of energy during the day after yesterday's efforts, but I didn't. Yay. I've walked just over 16,000 steps (or 10kms) today, well over my goal of 10,000.

Yummy smells from (home made) dinner tonight: sesame oil and toasted sesame seeds, fresh mint and basil, fresh lime juice, passionfruit pulp. Yum. 

Speaking of cooking, on Sunday I was frying a pan full of small bacon pieces. There was a loud POP and a piece of bacon shot up into the air and landed on my head. Haha.  

Evening walk

NaBloPoMo: Day 22

I love that there's a word for this in Iceland

When I crossed over Morell Bridge on my way home from work tonight, I could smell the eucalyptus trees at the top of the river bank. The rain always makes the smell stronger. I love the smell of eucalyptus. 

I cooked steak for dinner and it was a little underdone compared to how I usually have it (it was rare, rather than medium) but it was tender, juicy and delicious.  

I know we've only had a couple of days of hot weather, but I'm looking forward to being able to sleep under a blanket tonight. 

NaBloPoMo: day 6

The clouds looked a little lenticular this afternoon

I should probably plan more exciting weekends when I'm participating in NaBloPoMo because I don't have much to report for my Sunday. Mostly more sleeping. And some resting. 

I emerged from my bed at 1.30 and then I got back into bed for a lie down at about 4.30. I did leave the house in between though. 

I made some protein balls too, improvising the recipe as I went along. They have linseed meal, pecans, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, coconut flour, shredded coconut, coconut oil, molasses, maple syrup and cacao powder in them. 

Well, they would have been balls but I was too lazy to roll them (and didn't want to get my hands dirty), so I pressed them into tiny patty pans instead. I had exactly enough mixture to fill all the patty pans I had in my pantry. 

Spicy, decluttering, greenery

Ghost sign on Victoria Street, Albert Park

I made a tasty chicken curry from scratch for dinner tonight. I had most of the spices already (including fenugreek seeds, of all things!) so I thought I might as well make the curry powder rather than buy it. I used a coffee grinder that a friend gave me to make the powder - much quicker and easier than trying to make a fine powder in the mortar and pestle, that's for sure.  I love the smell of all the different spices. I made enough powder to make several more curries.  

I cleaned out my bathroom cabinets and laundry cupboards this afternoon and got rid of quite a lot of stuff. Well, all the half-empty products I no longer use are sitting in a box while I work out where to dispose of them. Although they aren't strictly hazardous chemicals, I don't want to empty them down the sink. Next weekend I plan to do the kitchen, including that one draw full of random crap that everyone has somewhere in their house (the one with duct tape, sparklers, a cigar cutter and widgets with no readily discernible use.) 

We bought some new indoor plants yesterday to replace the ones I bought years ago that eventually gave up and died a while back. We got a spathiphyllum (aka peace lily), a syagrus and a fittonia, which is the prettiest little thing.  A bit of greenery always brightens up the place, doesn't it?

Delightfully lazy, loud snore, good saves

I've had such a delightfully lazy weekend. My Saturday and Sunday continued in the fashion of Friday—sleep, books, tea—and it was lovely. I finished one book and I'm more than three-quarters of the way through another. I only left the house a few times—to vote, eat a burger and buy groceries. 

I went back to sleep this morning after an hour or so on my phone reading the internet, but I woke myself up around 10.00am with a loud snore, which made me laugh. 

I dropped a carton of eggs and an open container of tomato paste today when I was fussing about in the kitchen, but I caught them both they hit the floor. I'm both clumsy and highly coordinated.

I made my finest batch of spaghetti bolognaise for dinner. I threw in some bits and pieces that were lurking in the fridge—olives, artichokes, baby spinach—that would otherwise have just gone off. Delicious and waste-saving. 

The Dressmaker, dinner, laughing

A two-in-one ghost sign on La Trobe Street

I enjoyed The Dressmaker last night. It was funny and sad, and the scenery and cinematography were stunning. And the costumes! Gorgeous. 

We had another tasty dinner tonight, partly because I made potato salad and cucumber salad again. I reckon I could eat both every night. I have a very high boredom threshold for food I enjoy. We also had corned beef and curried cabbage. 

Dylan Moran is doing stand-up on the telly as I write this. I love listening to Luke chortling and guffawing. It's my favourite sound. 

Street art hotspot, Sausage Saturday, lean and pointy

This little guy looks quite Seussian, no?

A few months ago I discovered an amazing street art hotspot in Windsor called Artists Lane, which runs parallel to Chapel off Green Street. I visited again today after my pilates class. 

 

Don't mess with this sword-toting woman

Hippo, birdy, giraffe, oh my!

Sausage Sunday has come early this weekend. It's Sausage Saturday! As well as potato salad, I made a German-style cucumber salad with dill and sour cream.  T'was yum. *pats belly* 

Now it's time to watch The Dressmaker.   

No post from me yesterday. I felt lousy most of the day and the high point was when I got home and crawled into bed to sleep. And this photo. I'm so lean and pointy! 

Yummm

I mentioned in my previous post that I'm on a modified diet, but that doesn't mean I've been deprived of tasty, tasty things. This morning for breakfast I had homemade potato salad with bacon and boiled egg, avocado, cherry tomatoes and feta. So good. 

For lunch I had beef curry, which I made from scratch. I totally improvised the spice mix, but it was yummy. Go, me. I made a big pot of it, so I have tasty lunches for the week ahead. 

I had delicious sweet strawberries for an afternoon snack, but I can't take any credit for those.  

(If you're wondering what I'm not eating, I've cut out all added sugar and most carbs because bad gut bacteria love that stuff.)

  

Short day, friendly food, crunchy

I only have to be in the office for three hours tomorrow because the firm's Christmas party starts at noon. Free food and drinks and a short working day. Awesome. 

Luke and I are going to a 100 per cent FODMAP-friendly restaurant on Saturday for dinner. I will be able to eat EVERYTHING on the menu at Foddie's in Albert Park (I will try not to order everything, however). Gluten-free stuff is fairly common these days - I've even seen gluten-free options in country bakeries - but meals without onion and garlic (which contain fructans) are much harder to come by.

Luke made the crunchiest ever crumbed chicken drumsticks for dinner. Delicious. 

  

November: day 11

My new hair, as cut and photographed 
by Angela at Razor Dolls

Can you believe it? I walked to work again today! Twice in one week! I woke up early again and got out of bed early again and got to work even earlier than on Monday. Who'da thunk?

My early start this morning was mainly because I was off sick with a migraine yesterday* and I had a LOT of sleep, so my body decided it had had enough well before my alarm was due to go off.

I don't feel quite so much of a physical wreck tonight. This  exercise thing must be good for you...

***

Luke made crumbed chicken drumsticks for dinner. He is an expert crumber, They were crunchy outside and deliciously tender and juicy inside.

* Also the reason I didn't post a blog yesterday. I'm not officially signed up for NaBloPoMo, so whatevah. 

Vexed no more, a little pop, mountaineering

Lady Leviathan poking about at Hamer Hall for

  Summersalt Festival

I think I've solved a conundrum at work that has had me vexed for several months. I won't bore you with the details (it involves an invoice and sums), but I very much enjoyed that A-HA! moment, I can tell you.  

Another new foodie fixation: toasted pumpkin seeds. They give a little pop and plump up slightly when you heat them in a frying pan, and they are deliciously nutty. 

Luke and I are off to Mount Buller this weekend with his family. Another mountain! I'm becoming quite the mountaineer. 

Current culinary fixations and thwarted creativity

Yarn bombing, Swanston St 

I have developed a mustard fixation. I can't get enough of it. Wholegrain and dijon, in particular.  I love it on steak. I love it on lamb and on pork. I like to dip dill pickles in it. I make salad dressings with it. I would have scoffed at the concept of a mustard sommelier not too long ago, but now I want be one. 

My other culinary fixation right now is the combination of avocado, cumin, lime juice and coriander. It's delicious and fresh and zesty. Mmmm, smashed avocado...and salad dressing...and guacamole, of course.  

Luke snoozes on the couch quite often and he looks so cute I can't resist taking photos of him. I have so many pics I could start lukenappingonthecouch.tumblr.com but for some reason he isn't as amused by this idea as I am. Don't stifle my creativity, man!

I bought the new Kitty, Daisy and Lewis album, The Third. I like it.  

Winning at falling #2, sharp folds and muffins

I've been winning at falling again, like when I slipped on the rocks at Snobs Falls on our road trip.  This time I fell over in the lift lobby of my floor at work and there were no witnesses. I could hear someone coming though, so I had to spring back up and carry on, which I did because I didn't hurt myself. (I tripped over my own feet walking in new shoes.)

We don't send much snail mail at work anymore, except for most of our monthly bills, which I sent out last week. I find it very satisfying to fold the bills perfectly into thirds, with two super-sharp creases. 

I got my little container of green grapes from the fridge at work last week and noticed someone had put a much larger container - of the same brand - right next to mine and it was also full of green grapes. I felt as if I'd stolen its baby. And...er... eaten it. 

I have a batch of mixed berry muffins cooling in the kitchen. I can't wait to eat one. 

No debate, coriander love, zebra pups

I went to the gym tonight and I didn't even spend all afternoon debating with myself whether I would or wouldn't go. Will I? I should...but I'm tired. Nah, I won't...but it will do me good. Yeah, I'll go. Tonight I just went. I wish that happened every time I intend to go to the gym.

Have I mentioned how much I like fresh coriander (cilantro for any Americans reading)? I used to dislike it - the smell and the taste - but now I can't get enough. I had a handful of it on my green curry for dinner last night and tonight. Coriander is good for you too, which is nice. Usually the foods I can't get enough of aren't nutritious.  Mmm...chocolate. 

My zebra plant is having lots of babies. I just googled zebra plant for that link back there and apparently the babies are called pups! PUPS! Or offsets, but henceforth I shall call them pups. I need to move the mother plant and pups into a bigger pot or plant the pups in their own pots.  A job for the weekend. 

Fake Friday, sunshine and pavlova

Today was the last day of the working week for me. I now have four days off. Yay! I don't have any special plans; I'm just worn out and need a rest. I've had a pretty full-on year and haven't had a week off since Christmas. (I'm not taking a week now because I went into negative leave at Christmas and it's taken months for me to catch up.  I don't want to use too much of what leave I on resting at home.)

I probably will leave my bed/couch/house though. I have an appointment with a neurologist about my migraines, and dinner with the girls on Friday night. I might get a massage, maybe an eyebrow wax and tint. Thrilling stuff, I know.

Happily, the weather is on the improve from tomorrow, with sunshine and milder temperatures than we've had for the last month or two. Good timing, me! 

I've had delicious mini-pavlovas for dessert the last two nights. Makeshift pavlovas, anyway - pre-prepared meringue nests with whipped cream and berries, no cooking skills required. I did whip the cream though.  I have enough for the several more serves too. It's pavlovapalooza. 

I've worn different pairs of new shoes to work the past two days and have no blisters or tender spots.  

Three types of ordinary happiness

As I crossed the footbridge over the freeway this morning, a woman approached with a miniature schnauzer on a leash. The dog stopped and, resisting its owner's tugs of the leash, poked its head through the railings and paused to watch the traffic surging towards the tunnel.

A little further along, a black dog ran towards me with a big stick in its mouth. It stopped and looked back for its owner. It waited, stick still in mouth. Then when its owner caught up, it started wagging its tail and took off again.

Not long after I got to work, an online friend posted this Leunig cartoon on Facebook:

(I tried to make this bigger but it didn't work. Sorry.) 

Three minutes of happiness borrowed from a dog! 

I also experienced the happiness of both partners in my team being away. It was even more relaxed than yesterday.

And the joy of arriving home to the aroma of corned beef. Luke had it bubbling away on the stove. We had it for dinner and it was delicious, especially with a scrape of zesty dijon mustard. We have leftovers too. 

JBPM: day 22

The city disappeared today

Today was super foggy. The city was hidden when I left for work and I couldn't see the bay from my office until the afternoon, but most of the metropolitan area remained shrouded in fog all day. In fact, the fog is forecast to linger in some parts of Melbourne until tomorrow afternoon. I like fog. 

For lunch today I had a bowl of the lamb and vegetable soup from Sue Shepherd's new(ish) range of FODMAP friendly products. It was nice to have a hot meal instead of my usual lunch of sushi rolls. I can't eat onion, garlic or gluten so sushi is the easiest quick meal option for me, but it's not the ideal winter repast.  

I made the avocado and lime rice again tonight, but this time I didn't measure anything and it was even better. It's so quick and easy to make too.  

Have a look at these pictures of a gorgeous 144-year-old wisteria tree in Japan. Stunning. 

Here's a song from Norah Jones' other country band, Puss N Boots. 

JBPM: day 20

Dan the nursery cat

He looks stern, but Dan was friendly and enjoyed my pats. His owner at the Glasshaus nursery in Richmond said a lot of people take his photo and post it to Instagram, so maybe he's tired of posing for the snaparazzi. It must be tiresome being a celebrity. 

I think it's funny and a bit odd when people give their pets human names. My family had neighbours once who called their dog, a collie, Kirsty. I wondered if they had a child would they call it Lassie. (They didn't. They had three boys.) 

I cooked three recipes from Pinterest for dinner tonight. Three! New dishes I haven't made before, too -  lime and coconut chicken, avocado and coriander rice, and a mixed berry cobbler. The cobbler wasn't quite right - it didn't rise much, for some reason, and it was a little well done around the edges  - but it was yummy, especially with a generous dollop of whipped cream.  

Speaking of food, I had the blueberry pancakes with lemon curd and creme fraiche at Moth to a Flame for brunch again today. SO good. It was accompanied by the perfect hot chocolate too.  

Luke is watching funny videos on YouTube and roaring with laughter. I have been laughing at him laughing. He has one laugh that goes "HAAA-HAAAH!" that I find particularly amusing. 

JayBloPoMo: day 1

I've decided to change the name of my daily blog posting efforts for July from PerbloPoMo to JayBloPoMo. It just sounds better. Still silly, but better. Now, on with the glee! 

I mentioned yesterday that my firm has moved offices. That happened a couple of weeks ago. I didn't want to leave my sunny corner location, but my new spot is pretty good too. We're on the 38th floor and we have a great view out over the bay on one side, and towards the hills in the east on the other. If Eureka Tower wasn't where it is, I'd almost be able to see the roof of my flat. 

The new office is a few more blocks from home.  It takes me 40 minutes to walk it in the mornings (when I walk it; lately I've been oversleeping and catching PT), but tonight I walked home along the river instead of through the city and I did it in 35 minutes. I reckon I'll struggle to shave much more time off. 

It was lighter when I left work tonight. Surely the longer days can't be noticeable yet? We're only a couple of weeks past the shortest day. Or have I just not been paying attention? I have actually been leaving on time most days since we moved offices because my workload has been much more manageable. Wooh. I'm enjoying that. It almost feels like a novelty. 

I cooked celeriac on Sunday for the first time. I think it was the first time I've eaten it too. I smashed it to go Cumberland sausages and really liked it. I'm not one of those people who loves their vegies, but my celeriac smash was a hearty winter warmer. Next up I'm going to make soup with it. 

Day 24: Funny fox, little pops, perfect choc

Luke and I have been watching the documentary Wild Planet: North America on Sunday nights. Although the narration is cringeworthy at times, the footage is amazing and tonight's scenes of a red fox hunting rodents in the snow had me chortling. This isn't from the same documentary, but it's the same hunting technique.  

The foxes can hear a mouse in up to one metre of snow and, even more remarkably, they are far more successful in finding a mouse in snow when facing north. The foxes use the Earth's magnetic field to help pinpoint the location of their prey. Isn't nature amazing? 

Little pops

We had corned beef for dinner tonight and it was delicious. We had it with wholegrain mustard. I like the way the mustard seeds pop gently between your teeth as you eat them. We have enough leftovers for dinner tomorrow. 

Muffin Break at Australia on Collins does 
excellent hot chocolate