Welcome home to 4101

Bonjour peepsickles!

So it's been really rather a while since I posted, and quite a bit has changed. 

To update in a nutshell:

• I've moved house twice
• I've been a year (and then some) in my new job
• And I've been on many wee adventures in the meantime!

But I'm back in 4101, and I do love it. 

I've been trying to decide on a specific focus for this blog, however I think it's probably easiest to fall back on the running commentary style around outings, adventures, new ideas, and general shenanigans. Expect many a food shot. Yes, I am one of those.

But for now, I'm settling into my long weekend, having spent the first day of it pottering happily around my apartment, and watching 2 seasons of Miranda. Utterly tremendulant.

Back in Vegas

Brisvegas, that is.

Not too much to report; life chugging along, Christmas mad as usual. Heading to Byron for Chrimbo and nye plans - looking forward to that!

Xx

Sunshiney haze daze faze...

Got a surprising amount done today. I've been ill since Wednesday when I took the day off, but had an event meeting on Thursday, and a work dinner at the end of the day, so I went in. Dinner was cancelled. Should have gone home after the event meeting!

Have since spent yesterday and today largely in bed asleep.

What I did see of today was rather gorgeous! Lots of sunshine, and warm! Well...12 degrees warm.

Went for a cycle, visited Brick Lane Coffee and thought of Angie, came home and then suddenly got in cleaning mode, and managed to clean:

• my bike
• kettle & toaster
• dishes
• the bathroom
• and washed a rug.

Then I made an amazing guacamole, and whacked it on toast with tomato, olive oil, lime juice and cracked pepper.

It was fantastic.

The.End!

Sneaky present posting action

Did some sneaky present posting today. Trying to keep quiet about it until it gets to its recipient!

I seem to have many loose ends to tie up at the moment, both in my work life and my personal life, so that's keeping me busy, and I'm enjoying trying to keep it all organised and under control - I get an odd sense of satisfaction from it!

In other news: I received a parcel from the wonderful Angie on the weekend. 2 discs of photos from our December travels, and some ampelmannchen cookie cutters which I'd been lusting after since Berlin! Huzzah!!

I'm now off to meet Z for a long overdue catch up over a glass of vino. Nothing better to take the sting out of your Monday. :)

Xx

kung hei fat choi!

No alarm this morning. Forgot to set one last night upon return home. I see that I managed to pour myself a pint of water with lemon juice, but didn’t actually manage to drink it.

Sort some files; hang yesterdays washing up. Curse the broken clothes airer.

The local off license provides breakfast provisions...smoked back bacon and parsley; milk & eggs. A copy of the Sunday Independent.

I’m rubbish at cooking bacon – and I forget to put oil in the pan, so my bacon sticks to the base of it, becoming bacon pieces as I chisel it off the pan. Try not to burn my scrambled eggs; while attempting to have toast pop at the right moment and not overbrew my earl grey.

I am off to meet some friends in Chinatown – it’s Chinese New Year. Chinatown is packed full of people, more than I’ve ever seen before. I try to flow through the crowd, but they are not moving. Small children lag behind their parents, garnering a swift jerk of the wrist every now and then. I wouldn’t want to be responsible for small children in a crowd like this; it would be so easy to lose them. I realise my efforts at moving in this direction are futile, so I backtrack and head west down Shaftesbury avenue. South into the Chinatown strip; the dragon has changed direction and the crowd have condensed into this street to allow ti to pass, all the while craning their necks and generally blocking the way.

I arrive only 10 mins late to meet them; K is already there and has been waiting in line for some time. S is still stuck in the crowd. We all manage to get a table after not too long and are rewarded with the most delicious dumplings I've eaten outside of Sydney’s Ashfield! Mango bubble pearl tea goes down a treat until the staff opens the side door to watch the dragon, and an icy wind gusts through the place. I try to shut it but realise two things:

_1. There is a doorstopper holding the door open, so they’ve obviously got it open for a reason

_2. There is a large cos lettuce hanging from the overdoor hinge. Welcome, 2011 – Year of the Rabbit!

And wouldn't you know it, when we go to pay I realise that my wallet’s not in my bag and have a small panic that someone has taken it out of my bag in the crowd. 

Cue K weaving her way through the crowd to an ATM and S and I fending of 6 or 7 attempts by staff to take our (short) payment plate. Quelle amusement. 

I get home to find my wallet on my bed. :)

saturday cycling adventures

Cycling up the canal, past broadway market, on a grey and drizzly afternoon, my flatmate and I are in search of towpath cafe. Some of the buildings behind Hoxton are really quite amazing. My head is filled with dreams of living in a studio, of freezing chills in the winter and compulsory mittens due to the lack of double glazing, and addition of high ceilings. It’s all very idealistic but if I’m honest, I like things to be comfortable. I’d bitch about the cold no end! But it’s nice to imagine myself working away at a massive desk, which fronts on to a great tall double hung weighted window. I can look out the window across the canal and the semi-industrial buildings to the cyclists and walkers going by. People on roof terraces.

We arrive at our location to find only shuttered doors to greet us; we’ve missed them for the day. ‘10am til dusk’ is a somewhat loose timeframe; depending on your idea of ‘dusk’.

We leave the towpath and head up de Beauvoir road to find Tina. Tina overlooks her subjects from some height. She rules with Victoria sponge and an iron fist. Her power is in her flat white microfoam and bonsoy selection. Tina's gilt-edged face is eyeing us...

Tina is a figurehead; a picture, rescued from a dusty thrift shop. But damn, she makes a good brew.

Cycle on to howl at the moon; plan for one drink; stay for 3. Stumble into a rugby fancy dress birthday party...stumble out again...roll down to the pizza shop after several ciders. Meet up with a friend in motherbar on old street and dance to dated hip-pop. Overheat, leave the club; fend off unwelcome drunken advances. Free my wheels from their chains and breeze down the road towards home, dodging the drunken east London hipsters all over the road.

It starts to rain on my face, and I smile.

We're a long way from home, Toto.

A few things have made me very aware of my distance from home, recently.

First: Seeing my friends homes and businesses flooded

Then: My grandpa getting sick

Now: Tropical Cyclone Yasi

I feel quite removed from the first and last events in a strange way, actually. When they first occur, it's as if here they exist in some distant vacuum, because the news-media haven't picked the story up yet. Amazing what a difference that makes. Also quite intriguing to see the effects that social media has on the spread of this type of story, but I digress.

My colleagues are a perfect case in point here, as most of them don't have family or close friends in Australia. Due to lack of media coverage here they are mostly completely unaware of the event itself, but following that, also of the scale of it. You almost have to superimpose a weather image over the top of Europe before they begin to realise the gravity of it. It's a bit hard to be fully emotionally involved in an event no one else around you has heard of!

My grandpa is still not well but he seems to be very slowly improving. I am crossing my fingers this continues.

I've been crossing my fingers and toes for the people of Far North Queensland too...gosh they've had such a battering of late. Tough cookies they are, though. Kudos to them for having such an unflappable and good natured attitude towards events that would challenge most people. xx