5 Guilty Pleasures

Ok, technically Carly didn't tag me for this, but hey ho, i'm doing it any way.

Buffy/Angel/Firefly - actually pretty much anything Joss Whedon, love sci fi, love his humour, as for the cast of Firefly, mmmm, bad thoughts. ;)

Miss Marple/Poirot/Morse - y'know, people getting murdered in posh houses in the country and stuff. I am not nearly old enough to be watching miss marple but i love it!!! Oh and Midsomer Murders, no where on earth has a higher body count, it would make Tarantino proud.

Comics - yup, i used to collect, chaos mostly, Purgatori and stuff, I even have a small collection of action figure. Hmm, sci fi, action figures, can you say uber geek?

The Crow - totally hooked, even tho only the first film and the series are really worth watching, I have the figure, the graphic novel, some comics, some related books, the dvd's some eps of the series on tape, stills, a poster, not obsessed, nooo.

Wrestling - love it, don't care if it's cheesy, these guys are awesome athletes, and i love o watch and chant and i even trained for a while a few years back. I am going to my third 1PW show in March, which will be their 3rd weekend doing shows here. :)

actually, I seem to be guilty pleasure girl, that's my five and i've not even started on food, drink, pink and fluffy stuff, etc.

tension and shopping

mmm, bought some scrummy new boots at the weekend, will post pics of those soon, promise, in fact might have a total boot whore post and show off my little collection.
I keep thinking about my cute boots waiting for me at home, and the furries, to stop me from getting too stressed.
I have an exam on friday morning, yuck, and weds i find out if i passed my autocad assessment, or whether he spotted my mistake and i need to retake it, then to top it off, i have Councillors being stroppy with me. Working for local government would be so much easier if it weren't for councillors, and policies about consultation It's daft really, the public complain about us wasting there council tax money, but we wouldnt waste nearly as much if we were just allowed to get on with the jobs we are trained for, its this answering to people who don't understand the issues of what we do that leads to waste. So there. pfffffffffffffft. :p
Yes, that was a vent, and yes sticking my tongue out is the last refuge of the frustrated, but hey, I am frustrated, so it's allowed.
I think i shall pop to Habitat on the way home and look at the pretty things.

P(l)ay Day fun

I love pay day!!! I bought curtains for the bedroom, good foundation from clinique (after i had the girl plaster my whole face in assorted gunks), a new saucepan in pastel blue, and an aquamarine cushion to tie the colour splashes in the curtains in with the rest of the bedroom, there will be photos in due course. I feel fabulous. I didn't shoe shop in the end becauase my feet hurt from wearing heels for the first timein donkeys years, so i came back to the office and switched back to trainers.
Ah the bliss. I shall of course be broke again by monday. lol

Where's your head at?

My mind has been all over the place the last week or so, i am Pms'ing, doing exams and assignments and feeling poorly.
Oh dear, could i whine just a little bit more?
Odd day so far, but not neccessarily a bad one. Other than the above obv. I have my first assessment for Autocad today and i just finished my second accident investigation assignment, so taking tommorrow off from homework before getting stuck into studying for next weeks exam.
Apart from feeling so nauseaous things are good, my foot is improving and i walked to work today. A dog tore apart my rubbish bag over night so i had to clean it all up in my PJ's before my bath this am, but i blow dryed my hair for the first time in ages and ended up buying a new hairbrush (£7, the most i've ever spent on one).
Tonite, after the assignment i shall curl up in bed with a milky drink and try to unwind properly at last, me my lava lamp and my Paul McKenna "you're too wonderfull" CD. lol. Girly bliss.
And tommorrow is payday.

Toast for your Tum

Furthering my recent re-obsession with food and cooking, I have created a new blog, called Toast for Your Tum, the link is on the right hand side in the me & munky links section on this blog. I will be using this as a place to store recipes and my notes on them as well as other food related comments. It will not be as regularly updates as this blog is, but I will try to update it at least once a week. Hope to see you in there.

The Cook Report

Nearly slipped my mind, I meant to fill you all in on the Sea Bass.
I steamed it so it was flaky, but moist, perfect. It's quite mild, but has a bit more flavour than cod, if you haven't had it, so it was about right for me really.
The sauce was a cup of white wine, a cup of cream (i'd recommend double) the juice of half a lemon and half a vanilla pod, (i also drizzled some lemon juice directly on the fish while it cooked) and a tsp of minced fresh coriander. Bring to a gentle boil, turn down and stir while simmering till fish is ready, drizzle over fish. It's also good if you fry strips of chicken in it. :)

prophetic posting

so i got home tonite to discover next door are tunring their little covered car port area into a formal garage orroom or something and the beams are 6 inches over the boundary, meaning on my property. I wouldn't mind frankly exceptialready have a problem with the drainage that side which is wreaking havoc in the kitchen, legally they are requiredto notiy me, whicch they didn't and i may be selling in 18 months and it will de value the property. I hate dealing with stuff like this, so i phoned my parents for advice, girdedmy loins and went over there, nice as pie to try andd sort things out. At first it looked like it was gonna betricky but as soon as their chap heard me say "legally if you work within a metre of the boundary you should get my permission" he recomeded they cut it back. I hate this,i feel like a bad neighbour even tho' i've done nothing wrong. It's very stressful. AAargh. At least i didn't have to get the council involved. Sheesh.
Then it turns outbecause i didnt do a safe disconnect my assignment didn't save to my mem stick,so i can't work on it tonite. I guess i shall kick back with a CD and work on my website and drink till i stop feeling stressed.

I don't care if monday's black

Q69 just told me something interesting. Today is expected to see this years highest suicide rate. Why? Because it's the 23rd, most people still have a week before they get paid, and the pressures of Christmas spending are mounting up. It's also a monday, which is never a good thing, and the 23rd is significant in itself. 23 is believed to be a highly significant number, Crowley believed it, Robert Anton Wilson wrote about it, Discordianists are also firm beleivers that 23 is a major player int he numbers game. So, will lots of people bring their stay on earth to an abrupt and sudden end today? I knew about 23, i just didn't realsie they were expecting lemming like behaviour today.

Other than that, Mark, Phil and I went to Leamington Spa on Sunday, which is a very pretty town which we saw very little of, although we had pannini's for lunch in a nice little bistro where we were served by a very pretty girl who Phil made "well you would wouldn't you" comments about. Mark tactfully pretended he doesn't even see other women now he has me, and i said, yeah probably. lol.

Since i failed to take any photos yesterday, here's one of Lichfield Cathedral

Lichfield Jan 06

Friday recommendation

I mentioned yesterday the pianist Julian Thomas, and he is fabulous!!!
http://www.julianthomas.com/
check it out.

Tonite is the night i attempt to cook sea bass in a white wine and vanilla sauce, cross fingers for me, it would suck to mess it up. lol.

What else. Hmmm, The boys are both down i think this weekend so i reckon my studies will be interspersed with play time, yay!! Mark hasn't been down since Tuesday and i'm missing him now.

feed the raven heed the crow, sharp the sword and string the bow

The Pianist Julian Thomas
Within Temptation
Jo came to visit last night, she got to me about 11pm, put the boys to sleep and theen we sat in the corridoor and chatted till 4am. Finally we crashed out until the alarm clocks that are the boys woke us at 8ish. lol, oh well who needs sleep.
She left here at 12 and then i wondered to town. Alll in all i only got a couple of hours study done, which isfrustrating. I was studying hard when i fell asleep for 2 hours. ooops. Anyway i got the outline of my assignment sorted so thats the main thing.
Jo introduced me to two new bands while she was here, the pianist Julian Thomas, he's brilliant!! And Within Temptation who i knew of but hadn't really listened to before .
Not much else to report really. I'm still tired but i'm gonna stay up and record Bones, coz its just the right level of trashy TV for me.
Interesting side note, the dress makers where the singer from within temptation gets all her dresses is the same one who made Jo's wedding dress, in Holland.

friday fish, counting and stuff

I am postponing fish, do not fancy taking fresh fish to class tonite, will not help my popularity.
Still looking forward to it tho.

I added a hit counter, it starts from 4pm today, and will run evermore. mwahahahahaha. or something.

Not at work tommorrow so will find time to post pics of the cathedral we visited at the weekend.

it's a happy bunny life?

I am a little weary but i slept well last night, went to bed early and passed out next to Mark, never woke once that i know of, till he got up.
Trundling happily enough through my work today, and got a class tonite, last chance to practice before the assessment which i am opting to defer till next week, i want to be sure i'm gonna do ok.
In a little while Graham is escorting me to the fish markt, to meet his fish man (the man he buys fish off, not half man half fish) and make a purchase for steaming tonite. I am a bit nervous as i am slowly reintroducing myself to fish, i used to love it as a kid, but went off it in a big way when i was about 12 and am just coming round to the idea again. Maybe one day I shall overcome my mushroom issues too. lol.
Oh, and Jo (pronounced Yo) and her two kids are over from holland and will be sleeping on the air bed tonite. Yay! looking forward loads to seeing her. Got tommorrow off as study leave too, so i don't have to rush out with her in the morning.
Will let y'all know how the fish goes.

What day is it again?

I just sent an email making a reference to the fact that it was monday. Of course i then realised it isn't it's tuesday, and i'm exhausted, and as soon as my boss comes back i am going on study leave if he will let me.
Cooked bolognaise last night, Tammy was my fab veg chooper and it was delicious. Mark oddly put in a request for it tonite for tea so that's handy.

Food glorius food

Continuing over from fridays recommendation, i had a wonderful weekend cooking. I wanted to test my new steamer, and Marks brother was visiting, so I indulged myself this weekend.
Friday i did steamed prawns and salmon in a cheese sauce, with pasta and stemed veg. Can i just say, yumm!!!
Saturday, we had bagels for lunch, and for supper i did steamed chickenm in morrocan spices with sauteed potatoes (with fennel), and i baked a fairly low fat cake.
Sunday I did a nice traditional beef stew, and it was delicious.

As for what we did, well Mark was sick all saturday so we did nothing really, and sunday we visited lichfield, which has a really impressive cathedral.

Mangoes. that's all i have to say.

It's Friday and that means it's time for your Toasty recommendation of the week.
I love food, it's no great surprise to anyone who knows me that i spend lots fo time thinking about food. Of course i am far to lazy to make the most out of this specific obsession, I am happy to eat whatever i throw in the microwave first. But I do appreciate the efforts of others to develop succulent and delicious treats!!
So you may have guessed by now that todays recommendation is a food related one. It is.
This blog http://www.chocolateandzucchini.com/ is fabulous, it has wonderful recipes and a delightful style to it and it links to loads of other foodie sites. Go and discover and enjoy!!!

Roundabouts - but no swings

I think we are due a little bit of Ville in our lives about now.

Whew, i'm in that totally exhausted and totally wired too. Good day. Spent hours travelling to, studying at and getting back from college, did my presentation, one of my great fears conquered. Yay!! actually by the end of i was kind of enjoying myself,i amvery excited about my double mini roundabout, how sad is that!!! Then i got home and my t shirts had been delivered, 1PW shirts, one for me and one for my fella, of course i have already cutthe kneck out of mine coz i hate that about t shirts.
New series tonite on sky 1 - called Bones that i am looking forward to watching, and recording for future obsessing. generally life is sweeeeeet.

i'll get by with a little help from my friends

I have awesome friends, in every area of my life. Right now I am again reminded how good they are and how much I owe them. I have needed a lot of favours to complete my latest assignment and without the quality of friends i have i would still be panicking and stressed and barely halfway through at the 11th hour, as it is i finished and i feel good about it.
As a bigger picture, my friends have helped me over the last year or two to explore my life and find out what i want from it, they tie me to my past and they lead me into the future, they have been endlessly patient with me while i explore and learn and they have been there for me everytime i have been looking for support. Mum thinks it is a testament to me that they are my friends, I think it is a testament to them and I am just damn lucky, certainly my karma has never been good enough to deserve them. I include old and new friends in this, Graham, Warro and Timbo for all there recent help, Vibs for her consistancy over the years, Mark, who is my boyfriend, but is also a good friend.
Thanks guys. You rock!

Download 2005

here we are under the dunlop bridge, just a few of us.

Dunlop Bridge 1

at the dunlop bridge

Plans for the disorganised

Right, well, I am not one of the most organised people ever, far from it, i live in perpetual chaos. Problem with that is i love to organise, i love to plan and i love things tidy. My nature is to be a messy pack rat, but i crave minimalism and order.
Well A friend at work has just admitted to having a laugh with one of the others about how i have a plan for everything, getting engaged, married, having kids, my funeral, qualifications the lot. Of course on a day to day level i am rubbish, but i've got the five year plan down!
Ah well. Such is life.

you are you are, i am i am!!

Yay!!! Wrestling was fantastic! love it!!! Mark and I took his littlest brother this time and he seemed to enjoy it, the show was fantastic. The audience were a little odd, there was a guy who just wanted to shout "kick im in the head" to everything, someone else had the nerve to heckle Bret Hart, grrrrr. But generally it was a great night. Met Al Snow again and got his photo, met Sterling James Keenan who is just lovely!! did the rounds, bought the Cruel Twist of Fate DVD, yay for me. ;) Got the DVD cover signed by SJK, The BLue Meanie and Jodie Fleisch, will collect more on it next time perhaps. :)
We had amazing seats,m we were in the second row on the raised section and i was next to the railings. Tanaka had his head smashed into my railing, i had to step back, and then Jeff Jarret was walloped into it by AJ Styles, it was soo cool, Jarret was flailing and i got a slap. yay!! how cool.

for the piccies check out
http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/view?p=999&gid=9035200&uid=3920848&members=1

gogogo

Okay then, this weeks Friday recommendation, is The Go Team.
Purveyors of slightly odd music, very cool. Not only that, but the website is brilliant, imaginative and a joy to browse.
Get involved!!!

if you steal anything more from me it won't be my house that's empty, it will be my heart!

ah, the dulcet tones of the Harem Pilots. Hmmm, it's friday and come lunchtime i hope to have a new recommendation for you. I have some investigating to do.
In the mean time visit www.kittenwars.com for uber cuteness. :)

the hardest to learn was the least complicated

I love the indigo girls.
School turned out to be fun last night. It always is really, it's just dragging myself there in the first place that isn't, and frankly i could use the time at the moment.
Gonna take study leave this pm and go home and try to get this report started as the weekend is gonna be another busy one.
1PW wrestling on Saturday - yay!!! how excited am I!!! I hope AL Snow is wrestling again!!!


Sunday I am doing a pheasant casserole and hopefully Warro is gonna come by to sample it with us. Hmm, may need to clean the furries if I am asking people over for food. lol.
Wel, so far it's been a fairly productive day, just need to get lots of work done this afternoon at home now.

school spirit

I have class tonite. I spent some of today working on my nottingham coursework, now i have to go to Cad class. Couldn't feel less like it. Shattered, and just want to go home.
Anyways, here is a picture of the bunnies, Eric is the big fluffy white one, and Esme dissaproves.



for more dissaproving bunnies check out http://www.birdchick.com/adventures/rabbit/index2.html

Fastest year on record

it's official, 2005 was the fastest moving year ever. I did more than in any other year, i achieved personal and professional goals, and the time flew by. I have no idea what happened to it all. 2006 is promising to be a quick one too, and even more to cram in, can't believe its wednesday already!!!
I've been blogging nearly a year now and am wondering, partially prompted by Carly's recent move to type pad whether paying for a blog wouldn't be worth it this year. Hmmm. Watch this space.

New year and back to work

Well, it's been a busy and lovely Christmas. A week at my parents home, back for 1 night then a weekend at the in laws. Then finally home to relax. Mark is moving in this year. We haven't set a date yet but we have been reviewing the finances and I just cancelled sky tv. lol, not even moved in and i'm already comprimising. heehee

We went to the Arkwright New years eve for a couple of drinks with John and Kathey and the Dragon, who is lovely. yay!!

I didn't take many photos this time oddly. But here are a couple of my siblings and their partners.
Piers and Denise

Elissa and David