Back to grey...

... the weather that is.

After a brilliant weekend weatherwise, today has started out grey, not unlike my mood. Partially because I am feeling bloated after the weekend's excesses in food and booze comsumption (food descriptions below), but also because I'll have to take the blasted exam in June anyway because it would only make sense.

The long and short of it is that to defer my entry, I would have to formally withdraw from the June sitting. This also means that I do not get my exam fees transferred, but I will have to pay a discounted rate for Dec. Should I sit this exam and fail, I will have to resit it in Dec, at the same discounted rate, so either way I have to pay, ergo, I will have to sit this exam.

Friday night I went to a churrescaria which I've passed by a few times previously but have never been in. A churrescaria is a Brazillian grill, where they cook meat on skewers and slice portions onto your plate as they pass through. Miss Angola has been there a fair few times and suggested a while ago that we should try it out. Given that the last time I'd been to a good one was when I was in Brazil a few years ago, I was up for a couple of caiprinhas and as much rare grilled beef as I could consume. My favourite cut is the picanha, which is the top rump cut which is often divided up into other cuts at the butchers. Lightly seasoned and grilled, this is the closest to a perfect bit of meat that I could wish for (my favourite is a rare, oak smoked ribeye). I probably ate about half a kilo of picanha, along with some salt and garlic beef, rare grilled lamb, chicken with an accompaniment of various salads. It was really good, and I'll definitely be going back for more next time.

Saturday I had Miss Angola and friend over for lunch. We had a light salad with cherry tomatoes, boiled new potatoes and marinaded artichoke hearts with some fresh sourdough bread from the local market square 5 mins from where I live. (I will be taking photos and posting them at some point very soon, given that I now know where to buy an adaptor cable for my digital camera to the PC). After that, since it was a beautiful day we grabbed a couple of bottles of wine and sat in the sun sipping our drinks and feeling totally relaxed. Later that evening there were a number of events going on, but I decided to take the opportunity of OH being away and totally pampering myself at home. I have a long leisurely bath and listened to some music that Stornisse had sent over. After that I watched a dreadful movie (Perfume) and it was in French rather than the original English version which meant I lost a bit in translation. I also had a large portion of Thai green curry which my friend Therese had cooked up under my supervision on Thursday, and was happily tucked in bed asleep by 11.30pm.

Sunday again was another lazy day. Up and some breakfast: fresh coffee, scrambled eggs and an apple turnover with a mango and lime smoothie. I love fresh coffee, and always make it in an Italian espresso maker. Because its one of those cumbersome contraptions that has various bits that need to be fitted together before its put on the stove, I very rarely bother apart from the occassional times when OH and I sit down to a leisurely breakfast on the weekends. Given that OH's plane in was delayed, I put some music (funnily enough I had a few Lyttleton tracks on...) and read the papers (...then discovered Lyttleton had passed away. RIP) while having a relaxing breakfast. A while later, OH got back and hopped in the shower while I made some tea as a friend who was in the neighbourhood popped in to say hello. We had some cheesecake which I'd baked a few days previously. The day finished off with sweet and sour chicken from a recipe I tried out, and it was delicious with some steamed rice and stir fried vegetables. OH commented that I could have improved the recipe with Sharwoods Sweet and Sour Sauce. I stamped on his foot under the table.

This week is looking pretty mixed. I'm (half) celebrating my birthday on Weds evening but its going to be study all the way until then. The main event of the week is when OH and I are out to celebrate our 3 year Tolerance Period (aka anniversary) on Saturday. I've booked a table at a supposedly fantastic restaurant, and with 8 courses on the deluxe degustation menu, you can be sure to find a post with pictures and drooling descriptions.

Unless it turns out to be a disaster, just like last year.

I promise to post that story soon...

Friday Choon...

... via Stornisse.

Stornisse sent me a USB with lots of music at my request, and on it was this gem. This is a orchestral version of Alma Llanera, and judging by the matching shell suits worn by the musicians I think there is a back story to this. I think it was the conductor who got the kids out of Venezuelan shanty towns and then taught them how to play various instruments and then formed the Venezuelan Philharmonic Orchestra, or something along those lines. I'd welcome the correction.

Have a good weekend! Its sunny here and at 19° the terraces are beckoning after work with some rays and a cold beer!

Alma Llanera
par Danidescalza

Blah blah blah...

... or not in the mood.

Normally I take something that has happened, or something that I realise in the course of everyday life and blog about it, often with a ham-handed segue into or off the topic discussed and end with an attempt to be humourous. This week I can't be bothered, so I'm just going to type what's on my mind and what's happened.

***

Last Friday I had a bit of a meltdown and started panicking about the exams that I have coming up in June. Apart from having received my books late, and the amount of detail I am required to know for this exam, I have been suffering from apathy and the thought that I have plenty of time to cover the material before the big day. I now realise that this isn't the case, and that I will surely fail this exam unless I (a) go into hermit mode and do nothing but study; (b) defer my entry to Dec 08 and really up the ante and make sure by November I can rattle everything off by heart; or (c) sit the exam and fail anyway, but at least I know what I'm supposed to face at the end of the year when I resit it.

(a) is unlikely to happen since I have to work, and staying in 3 days in a row is enough to drive me crazy. Coupled with the fact that my boss is out for the next 10 days and I have to be in work early as well with a non-lunch break to cover the phones, it is not going to happen. I have already looked into (b) and made enquiries over deferring. I may have to pay the enrollment fee again, but I guess that its not that much. (c) is the most likely and sensible option. Given that I know I'm not going to pass first time around I might as well have a look and sit the conditions before raising my game and doing it properly in Dec.

***

Miss T from Oz has finally neared the end of her visa application. Hopefully in a fortnight we will be looking online together in real time and I will be a bundle of excitement while she books her one-way ticket back to London. Its been far too long and I miss her lots.

***

My sister is semi involved with a tennis coach. I have no problem with this apart from the fact that she has low self esteem and is already tremendously infatuated with him. They live in different countries, which should they have a relationship I would totally support, knowing the difficulties of a long-distance relationship having spent 18 months jetting back and forth between London and Geneva to make sure that OH and I are right for each other. In the end it payed off and I am glad that we invested the time and money to make it work because we work so well together. My qualms about this guy is that he is almost my age (27) and my sister has just turned 18. I find that a bit creepy and I am not sure how to approach the subject without her feeling that I am trying to interfere.

Furthermore, they are already talking about 'love' given they've only met twice. I am not too comfortable about this.

***

I have given up the mantle of hausfrau and I have instructed OH that he can deal with the issue of cleaners. Having interviewed an agency the other day, that would be my preference despite it costing slightly more. The agency has insurance cover as well as 2 people operating on a professional level. The independent cleaner will start this Saturday and we have decided that she has a 6 week trial period. If after this it is not working out, OH has the task of telling her that.

***

It's my birthday in a week. I was all up for a little party and getting a little hammered, but now I'm not so keen and feeling a bit blasé about it. I've even had trouble telling OH what I want this year, since there really isn't much I can ask for (apart from the Kenwood Multichef and a variety of obscure cookbooks and paraphernalia). I am however looking forward to the 8 course meal that OH and I are having on the 3rd to celebrate our anniversary. We will have been together 3 years, and this meal should hopefully make up for the absolute disaster that we had last year.

***

As I have mentioned my boss is away for 10 days leaving me in charge. It will either be manic or calm, depending how things go. The saving grace is that its a 4 day week next week by virtue of the 1st of May being a holiday (my birthday, ehem...) The drawback is that everyone normally takes the Friday off and has a long weekend. I will be working. However, there is another Bank Holiday on the 12th of May which I am excited about, and I desperately want to go away somewhere for a break.

***

I am on another diet. I need to lose some weight and tone up before I see my mother in July. Otherwise I can already hear her dulcet tones lamenting the fact that I am not making the most of my youth to be toned and fit. On the other hand, I might just not bother and tell her very kindly to shut up and have more botox done so she can't move her mouth to criticise.

Okay, I was being well harsh on the last bit, and I'm too vain to want to look like a walrus on the beach so I will have to lose some weight for my own benefit.

***

Sorry for lack of funny this week. I've had lots of inspired posts, but then I got to the point where I just couldn't be arsed.

Friday Choon...

I don't normally subscribe to the hip-hop/R&B genre (or whatever this fits into) but after hearing it from a friends iShuffle I'm actually quite hooked on this tune. Not the dramatics in the video mind you, I get pissed off when they make music videos into short films and interrupt the flow of music.

GAAH.

Thank fuck its Friday. Its been an incredibly long week. Have a great weekend!

Wyclef Jean feat Akon & Lil Wayne - Sweetest Girl
par Yannicklord

Working 9 to 5...

...or more like 7am to 2am as the case may be for OH.

In the last few months OH has seen an influx of work. This has resulted him going from one project to another, with hardly a moment in between to sit down and have a cup of fondue tea and a palmier. As a result with my 8 to 6 hours I have had a lot more time than he has, and accordingly have taken up the mantle of hausfrau (Actually I've always been more of the hausfrau given my tendency to neuroticism in wanting things done just the way I like them, but that's another discussion).

So, with crunch time at work due to start now and me pulling longer hours than normal, I got home a few days ago to prepare for a casual evening in with some friends coming over for a preliminary wine and cheese session before the main event on Saturday. As I got changed, I threw my shirt and vest to the floor onto what constituted the pile of whites and then realised in horror that I hadn't done any of the laundry I was supposed to do, and as a result we were about 6 days behind. This would normally not be a problem, but it meant that I was now out of undershirts and I only had 4 shirts left until the weekend. (These are the shirts that you buy on a whim, and wear them once and decide that they will be back-up shirts since there is something minutely wrong with them but you can't pinpoint at that moment.)

At that moment I decided as per the earlier post on getting a cleaner, something had to be done then and there. 4 phonecalls later I had appointments for 2 different cleaners to come round and be interviewed for the position of cleaner/housekeeper. So far I have interviewed one cleaner that has come on recommendation from a friend, but have my reservations about her.

I may be unfair in judging a book by its cover, but I have a feeling that although it will start off well, this lady might prove to be problematic in the future. Little things like her saying that she'll do 'special things' like 'clean the windows' and 'polish the floors' only when we are away on holiday has already elicited a raised eyebrow from me. The other thing is when I mentioned that I would only require her fortnightly for 4-5 hours to do a thorough clean and the ironing, she came back saying that she required weekly work, and not fortnightly. So far I have struck a bargain with her, that she should come once a week but for 2.5 hours instead.

The thing is, I have been introduced to this potential cleaner through a friend, and because of the sob story she has told me (being let go from a contract because the family that she currently covers 5 hours per week for is being transfered to the US) I feel bad in being cold and turning her away at the door with a 'Don't call me, I'll call you' exchange. As a result I have agreed for her to come for a trial run next Saturday. I really am a big softie at heart.

In the meantime I will fret and wring my hands in despair over the knowledge that I may be getting myself worked up into a state over something that may be unnecessary. I also have to interview another cleaner on Monday coming, and will give them a trial run as well. The problem is, how long do I leave the place between trial cleanings? Its already been 3 weeks since we last donned some Marigolds and taken a vaccuum cleaner to the nooks and crannies, and while it is not a tip, I may be unfairly influenced by the amount of dust that will be cleared in the most immediate cleaning.

So, having had this post turn into a bit of a directionless rant about my inability to say no/sack a cleaner, I am tempted to pick up the phone and speak to my mother. However I am terrified that she will berate me for not having trained me as a true tai-tai and to have learnt from her how to dismiss staff with a sideways glance and flick of her freshly manicured talons.

I will update on this, but in the meantime I need to practise my stare for Housekeeping 201...

Things that interest me...

... are plentiful, but over the years I have come to realise that a true passion of mine is food.

Now for those who know me, you may wrinkle your nose and point out that this has always been the case. However, I now realise that I am more discerning and picky with my food, and its now definitely more a case of quality rather than quantity, although sometimes I wouldn't say no to the quantity.

Having been in Switzerland for nearly 5 months now (and plenty of trips into France), I miss Asian and Oriental food. Given that the UN is a feature of this city with good representations from all countries, I am surprised at the generally piss poor execution of the food at Chinese and Japanese establishments here. Okay, I'm not asking for Nobu or Hakkasan quality food in every outlet, but for a decent price I would seriously give an arm and perhaps even a leg for some proper fried rice and a good bit of roast duck that is still moist and juicy, and not roasted until dry as jerky before attempting to rehydrate it in oyster and ginger flavoured sauce a la confit. Even sushi: I'd give up part of my Japanese heritage and maybe even the entire drinks cabinet for a good bit of chicken katsu and some well made sushi. All for a decent price. Its not even for want for lack of ingredients since it is all available; it is not that I crave the Anglosized versions of these cuisines; it is just bad execution at very high prices (a portion of crap fried rice is about $20, or £10, and the portions are 3/5 of a normal takeaway box).

The problem is probably down to have been spoilt. While London is not a fun place should one find that their budget is enough to cover 2 rolls of toilet paper and a packet of fags until the end of the month, it is by no means a difficult place to find some decently priced, fantastic cuisine, albeit attainable with a bit of patience and some travel. For example, the good value dim sum in Chinatown, the gaggle of Vietnamese places out of Shoreditch, the place at the end of Brick Lane next to the Royal London Hospital, the Royal Oak pub in Borough, the slap up breakfast outside the Porchester Baths, the fantastic kebab in Little Iraq on the Edgware Road. These are things that make me miss London when Other Half and I contemplate another pizza or pasta dish when we are late home and too tired to cook.

Anyway, back to the point about my interest in food.

Since the selections for cuisine here are somewhat limited, I have decided to experiment more at home with various cooking techniques and cuisines. While I've always been reasonably good at executing dishes, they've always been rather same-y. Roasts, pasta sauces, stir fries and curries are my main forte. While the ingredients change and the flavours vary, its pretty much the same thing on rotation.

That decision has mainly been influenced by the fact that OH and I now have our own place and not a lot else to do in the evenings. While not huge in its layout, the kitchen has the virtue of being a more-or-less separate unit from the rest of the apartment. Coupled with the fact that its just the both of us, I have commandeered the spatula and the sink, and love wielding my chopping knives without fear of decapitating OH (he can be found on the sofa on the laptop or watching current affairs) or someone barging in demanding to know when I'd be done using the oven. It is a wonderful feeling, being the Head Chef in your own kitchen, even if it is only in churning out experimental dishes which OH acts as guinea pig and makes suitable noises of appreciation or otherwise. Also, I'm starting to collect bits of kitchen paraphernalia which I've always thought quite bourgoise in having, but now I own it I tend to use it lots (although so far its only the coctail shaker and the walnut citrus juicer).

So, as soon as I find my camera cable which seems to have disappeared in the move, I shall start posting random pictures of meals I have prepared. I might even take a leaf out of Parshan Warsi's book (she who owns the Indian takeaway empire in the UK and supplies supermarkets with their own brand ready meals) and start a sideline in making spring rolls to sell through the local supermarket.

As soon as I finish up on this economics section on supply and demand...

Friday Choon...

A bit mainstream, this one, but its so good. And I like the cello, and the cellist...

Timbaland - Apologize
par Timbaland

Have a good weekend y'all. Going to be in London for the bi-monthly haircut and dim sum event...

Passive/Aggressive

Eg1:

Me: *sigh*
OH: What’s wrong?
Me: Nothing, nothing. *sigh louder*
OH: TELL ME WHAT’S WRONG.
Me: Well, I don’t want to sound like a nag, but could you please not leave your jumpers on the floor?
OH: Why?
Me: Well, I picked one up earlier and it had lots of down fluff stuck to it. I think it came from under the bed.
OH: Thank you, it doesn’t matter though
Me: Well, I’m sure it doesn’t matter but I know dust mites can gather and I don’t want you to have your eczema aggravated.
OH: Sorry dear, I’ll pick it up next time.

Eg2:

Me: *sigh* *TUT TUT*
OH: What have I done now?
Me: Nothing, its nothing. *storms out of room*
OH: What??
Me: Well, you know how I said to separate the wash?
OH: Yes…?
Me: Well you didn’t separate the wash and there was a black sock in the white wash.
OH: And…?
Me: (losing temper now) Well it might have stained the whole load, that’s what. I mean can’t you pay just a little attention to the tasks that you have to do???
OH: ???
Me: (goes on) You do't understand. It might just be 'one sock' to you but what if the sock was red? What if the sock colour RAN in a WHITE wash???
OH: Calm down dear, its only a sock. Besides, do you wear red socks?
Me: (almost bursting a vein) That is NOT THE POINT, *splutter splutter* THE POINT IS...
OH: Calm down. Now look, we’ll get a cleaner to sort this out.
Me: Oh... [small voice] And to sort out the ironing... (happy now we’re getting a cleaner so we don’t have to deal with this anymore)

Parodies...

This is one of the funniest things that was sent to me. I may be a bit behind on this but its still a great laugh. Watch clip 1, then clip 2 in that order.

Clip 1



Clip 2



There's more on YouTube.com

Enjoy...

End of Week Choon...

... an oldie but a goodie. Puts me in a nice relaxing mood for the weekend.

Have a good one y'all!

Massive Attack - Teardrop
par blackcandy