Summering on the cape

#97 'Run' from home to my home town

Clocked up a few more kms this evening. To be honest I was all keen at work then I found I didn't have any socks, so decided to flag it and cycle instead but then I came home and saw a couple policemen parking their cars and getting out their stab-proof vests so I thought I'd run past only to discover that the stab-proof vests were probably bullet-proof vests and the police ment were standing behind the treeline next to the pavement and they were still there when I got back only there were two! police! men! with! big! guns! instead! of! one! which meant they were there for a couple hours at least. Not sure what it was all about - I was trying to look cool on my way past, y'klnow, like I wasn't a bit interested when really I was gawking like a little kid. No shame.



#74 Cook risotto from scratch

I thought there was a recipe in the Edmonds but it turns out the recipe is something like 'Start with a packet of pre-prepared chicken risotto...' which is absolutely useless for my needs. I thinks there's one in the Jamie book.

NB. I think Boyfriend and I are in a bit of a competition over who can cook the best chicken. i did one last night which he loved and tonight he did one that I loved... Maybe it's not really a competition but just using up what's in the cupboard because there isn't any food left in the house.



#42 Send a snail mail postcard to nieces

I'm starting this one tonight and will hopefully get the postcards off tomorrow. I was going to use the cute slightly bug-eyed kiwi but I sounded a bit manic on it so I chopped it up and used a yellow heart instead. I'm not entirely sure of the address for the australian lot so it might take longer than I'm hoping it will.



Update #100 Send Power company the key to the house

You may remember this as a particular challenge of mine. Well, the meter reader turned up on Saturday sans key. He hasn't received it yet. He was very cheerful about the whole thing and said that he used to have our estimated meter reading filled out before he even drove past our house. :)

Don't have more police, just give out pies

#86 Complete A-Z reading challenge - authors

Eisler, Barry "Choke point"

About an assassin and his latest mission. Includes an old girlfriend, a new country, an old friend, a new enemy and a new girlfriend.

What did I think?
This I think is number three in the series. Easy to read although squeamish readers may not enjoy the fight and kill descriptions. (Plus if he is a smart assassin why does he make so many mistakes after deriding them in others? Perhaps because he's human?) One of the issues bought up in the books is the challenge soldiers face when they come back home. They are taught to kill and to fight and to stay alive. They see terrible terrible things. When they get home we expect them to just integrate back into society without any problems. This make the character a bit more 'real'. Two comments - One. [hearsay from the 60s] there are high rates of spousal abuse in marriages where the husband is trained for war but doesn't go- he has no way to release the tension built up inside or to prove that he has learnt the lesson. Two. Soldiers who have been to war years ago will still not talk about what they have seen due to trauma. Have we any reason to believe that today's soldiers will get any different treatment? (Actually three comments.) Three. I have heard of someone's grandfather who will not talk about the war. He didn't go to war. He was a conscientious objector in WWII. What must he have experienced in that era of intense patriotism that he still will not talk about it? (Okay. Four comments.) Four. It's not just the soldiers who suffer.



#87 Complete A-Z reading challenge - titles

"Fat" by Rob Grant
A cast of characters all dealing with eating and body size issues. Best characters - sad wasting little Hayleigh and furious Grenville. Worst character - exposition girl who's name I can't be bothered looking up. (She's the myth de-bunker of the novel.)

What did I think?
Fantastic. A book that takes the mystic of dieting, shakes it by neck until it's dead and then chows down. Yes. There are unhealthy fat and thin people out there. Yes. School uniform sizes are going up. So yes. There is a problem. The main 'fact' that annoys me so much it practically makes me froth at the mouth - The BMI. Based on calculations from an insurance company. Goal posts shifted some years ago so that a previously healthy individual was now a overweight individual. No allowance for ethnic background. No allowance for an individual who lifts weights regularly. No allowance for All Blacks. It drives me CRAZY when I see magazine articles still touting this as an essential tool in your body diagnosis. There are much more appropriate measures out there. e.g. waist measure vrs hip measure; waist measure vrs height measure; do your jeans still fit? *froth* * froth* This is discussed in the novel. If nothing else it will make you question what you think you know about health and other weighty issues. (Except for the smoking thing...I haven't quite got my head around that one.)



Reading is going to be postponed on the list for a bit. I've started "Night Watch" by Sergei Lukyanenko. Can't put it down, I'm finding it that interesting. I'm surprised because I don't usually enjoy translated material. It always feels as if there's something missing. A gap between what was meant and what is written. There is a movie based on the book which is where it came to my attention.

#8 Make fudge
Made it. Tastes great. Looks like dirt. Not marking off until it's successful. My sister used to make this when she was 8. How hard can it be?

#100 Send Power company the key to the house.
I received the receipt from the power company today. Hurrah!

pizza boyee?

Aaah. Tricksey #100 Send Power company the key to the house. Almost stymied by the universe again. The envelope with the form and the key was in my bag and I almost bought it home with me. However, it was posted this afternoon. I'm not going to mark it off until I get the 'received' receipt from them After all, lots of things can happen between now and then - fire, flood, famine...well, maybe not famine as I'm baking Anzac bikkies tonight. I don't think they are going to be as successful as the peanut brownies - the mixture looked a bit dry. Not enough golden syrup. I MUST buy measuring spoons.

Wot duz yr hart tel u

Peanut brownies. Ahh, how delicious you were. Another recipe from the Edmonds (#35) down. If I make them again (and I think I will) I'll let the peanuts cool down before mixing them in. They were a bit warm after roasting and kept falling out of the mixture which meant I had to keep stuffing them back. They were also concentrated in certain areas not spread through. The peanuts on top are on purpose though - I think it helps the look of a biscuit to have something tasty on top.

#86 Complete A-Z reading challenge - authors.

Doyle, Roddy "Not just for Christmas"
A heartwarming tale of two brothers who finally come face to face after not seeing each other for over 20 years.

What did I think? Well, I feel like I cheated with this one. It's part of an adult literacy series. therefore it's short. It's short, but it's good. A bit of tension, some laughs and a sweet ending. It feels like a longer book condensed into a plot outline. Great quick read.


Alas, poor #100 Send Power company the key to the house. It feels like the universe is conspiring against you and you are not meant to be completed. I've had the key but not the form; I've had the form but not the key; I've had the form and the key but no envelope; I've had the form, the key and the envelope but no postbox; I've had the post box...but no envelope with the form and the key. It's been at least 3 years since I first tried to get you done. Tomorrow I will make a concerted effort to finish you off.


#76 Attend films I want to see - by myself if necessary. Not so much attend as watch for this one. I haven't seen "Brokeback mountain" yet. Good 'ole library DVD collection. Hopefully it will come through before the weekend so I can watch it when my boyfriend isn't here. He's seen bits and says "it isn't [his] thing".

#68 Replace lightblubs with eco-friendly ones . I'm not planning to replace them all - just the lightbulbs that we leave on for a long time. I have bought two as a starter and plan to replace the lightbulbs in the lounge when they go. They are frosted so we won't get the same 'star-burst' effect as we get now but that's okay. (The lampshade is slatted (original retro 70s) so un-frosted lightblubs shine through and cast a groovy shadow on the ceiling. It used to annoy me but now I like it.)

Am feeling quite tired so I believe that '#73 Have a regular nap on the weekend ' will get an airing this weekend. I used to have a regular nap on Sunday afternoon when I was cycling a lot. Now I don't feel that I deserve it. Maybe I could convince a friend to go cycling with me again on Sunday morning (maybe to a cafe??) so I can feel virtuous again. About having a nap at least.

Maybe I will #5 tomorrow.

Added another 15 km to my cycling total #13

Started #87 Complete A-Z reading challenge - titles with Alta by Mercedes Lackey and "Bowling alone: the collapse and revival of American community" by Robert D. Putnam.

Started #20 Learn 10 poems by heart. The first one to learn is the Jaberwocky by Lewis Carroll. Actually it's learn again becuase I used to know it but I keep getting one of the verses misxed up with another one. practice, practice, practice.

I think I'll work on #100 Send Power company the key to the house tomorrow. All I have to do is find the spare key...