I definately want what I have not got...

Wants:

(1) Time, time, time

(2) To be miraculously excused from work this week

(3) To have a few seconds to gather my thoughts

(4) Long afternoon walks in the crisp autumn air

(5) To NOT have to teach people who couldn't care less about things that I couldn't care more about

(6) LOTS of bubble baths and soothing music

(7) Time for my sorely neglected garden

(8) Money for my sorely neglected garden

(9) Patience

(10) A whole uninterrupted day with my father

Actualities:

(1) No time...well, probably slightly less than that when you think about it

(2) Normal working schedule plus extra precious day lost with make-up lessons

(3) This is my second...enjoy

(4) Not happening due to fact that am teaching through the best part of the afternoon

(5) Lots of lessons with many children that do everything in their power not to touch the piano all week long

(6) Hah! See item #1

(7) Double Hah!

(8) Sob

(9) Will chastity do?.....

(10) Brother in country therefore parents generally unavailable.

On a brighter note, I have wednesday free. Will have bath then. Will hope wedding organizes itself. Off to bed so I can at least lie down while fretting. Back to Mersyndol time of month again too, so that's just an added joy. -Gotta love dealing with all this and substantial pain and IQ loss. What fun. But hey, there are people everywhere with worse problems right? ...Why is that never as comforting as it should be? Would like a cuddle about now, but Mr went to bed 2 hrs ago and is now in happy snore land.

Am going to try and dream of relaxing things that I don't have time for.


Remember relaxing drive to waterfall with Mr. Remember gorgeous picnic on spongy grass and the sheer bliss of having him all to yourself for a fortnight.

Might die of stress but probably not...

I have spent all morning giving myself a plate-shifting mega-migraine. This is easily achieved. Simply sit down and try to create a 'Wedding Production Schedule'.

I have created one but I doubt it's very useful. One should at least give wedding party members some kind of schedule to blithely ignore though.

In other news, Mr mowed the lawn for me this morning like a good little muffin. Points awarded. I made Samurai soup and Chilli Spring Onion rice in quantities that would frighten even dedicated catering companies (v.good plan though =no cooking/thought/planning needed for 3 days at least. Am v.v.clever). Heading out to 75 billionth dress-fitting this evening (blergh) and am smoking too much. I am nervous and anxious, so sue me. May do zombie makeup on self before fitting just for fun. Seamstress will surely be chuffed with outstanding creativity and whacky sense of fun. Seamstress may be less pleased with fake blood spilled on expensive and time-consuming work-of-art that is wedding dress. Seamstress may care less if plied with substantial amounts of alcohol...will consider.

My cat is cute.


She was sleeping on my bed when Mr unceremoniously dumped a pile of clean washing on her. She looked around a little and went straight back to sleep. Funny little umerow pudding:-)

I'll tell you why Mr and Lydgate are nobs...

Here's why; Mr decide that a fun way to spend the evening would be for me to make Lydgate into a zombie. he boiled 'blood', I used a woefully inadequate makeup kit. I still think he looks more 'Eric Draven' than Zombie. They the ran around the house with Lydgate striking various Zombie-esque poses while Mr snapped away. Someone should tell Lydgate that still cameras don't record sound. He 'grrr-aaaahhhed' and moaned his way through half an hour. Then they had casserole and banana bread and settled down a bit. I do apologise to anyone out there who knows anything about makeup. I had NO latex, NO brushes, one mangy and mostly dry basic palette, no blues except for a garish aqua eyeshadow, and a serious dearth of effctive cosmetic contact lenses (used to have a cats-eye yellow pair but they disappeared years ago).

Anyhoo, that's how we marked '2 weeks until the wedding'. Unlikely to forget it in a hurry:-)....Nobs.

15 days to go....

Yup, 2 weeks from tomorrow the grand hitching occurs. I'm still supposed to work next week, and like all brides, I can't get my head around everything at once. I had a dress fitting last night, and although the dress is magnificent, the body underneath is disppointing. Any waif-like people out there; this dress design would look fantastic on you!

Maybe it's a symptom of my scattered and stressed mind, but at this point, I am basically eating the same thing every day. It's wonderful, comforting, healthy and easy. I don't crave anything else. It's nice to go into the kitchen and not have to think about what to create. Mr is probably getting a little bored, but then he's quite happy to chow down on a pasta snack with some added frozen veges or 2-minute noodles.

I have refined my Chilli Spring Onion Rice and am now convinced it is utterly perfect. These days I am adding finely chopped celery (2 stalks) and a handful of peanuts and dressing the served portion with a drizzle of soy sauce.

I eat a small bowl of this with some steamed greens on the side. Early in the week it was Bok Choy, Gai Lan and English Spinach, but having run out of the aforementioned, it's been broccoli for a couple of days (good thing I'm one of those odd people that adores broccoli) occasionally supplemented with some brussels sprouts.

This combination of flavours is perfect. I have awarded myself a Michelin star for sheer brilliance. In other news, the RSVP list stands at 20 of a potential 15 with 18 confirmed 'other' guests (ie those that are bringing their own picnic). Wish they'd hurry up and ring,-it's difficult to sort out food quantities without the correct numbers!

I'm also busy trying to memorise my wedding vows. Shakespeare is much easier. I am having nightmares about forgetting them on the day. I will also almost certainly drop Brett's ring, stand on and tear my dress and develop a nice big nose zit. Harbinger of doom, me.

Right, deep breath. Get shoes on and walk to station. Try to be enthusiastic for music students. Try to stay awake after at least 3 nights of severely broken sleep patterns due to constant worrying about wedding issues. Try to get some sleep in forthcoming weeks. Try like hell to remember not to panic. Don't worry about people that haven't returned messages etc. They do not hate you. They are simply busy. Everything will be OK. Won't it?

Duh

Note to self: Kiwi's do NOT ripen on the vine. Perhaps you should thunka this before giving Mr the go-ahead to cut it all back,-thereby losing at least 60 fruit.

For one who spends a good deal of time on the web, you would think it would have occurred to me to look this up earlier.

The only reason I figured it out at all, was this;

9am I head down to the washing line in t-shirt and uggs (v.v. attractive) to grab clean clothes. I notice a lone kiwi in the grass fallen from Mr's pruning efforts. I grab it with the intent of throwing it into the garden and notice that it has some 'give' to it. I take it inside with a weird mixture of elation and trepidation. I cut it open and lo! Perfectly ripe Kiwi sending out a fragrance so spectacular that I have to pop it into my mouth post-haste...and lo again! Waves of orgasmic deliciousness flood through my mouth.

The perfect kiwi. The kind you dream of tasting but have never bought in a shop. Those fellas are poor and anaemic cousins to the taste of this thing, much like a shop tomato compared to a sun-warmed garden tom straight off the bush.

I grabbed some secateurs and a basket and busied myself saving whatever fruit was left....6 kiwis are now sitting on the kitchen windowsill ripening....6!!!

Although I feel like the world's largest nob, I comfort myself with the thought that I will know better next year. (Please let us still be here next year! Please let real-estate lady not be lying when she told us we could have a loooong lease).

A pleasant walk down to Lawson in the chill breeze has me planning a spring bulb display...I am gagging for daffodils, jonquils, hyacinths and forget-me-nots (not bulbs but work well trailing in amongst them). Will be spending some of 'wishing well' on bulb purchases (as well as new fridge).

Am waiting for new batch of Chilli Spring Onion Rice to cook. Am obsessed. V.delicious and v.non-fat. Will serve this to Mr this evening with a chilli-garlic stir fry.

Meeting with Minister this evening re: final wedding format...nervous...but why?

Dress fitting tomorrow...excited. Dress will be nearing completion and am gagging to see it in all it's (brilliantly deisgned) glory=P

Trip to the Riff with mother tomorrow to source antipasto and cheeses in bulk for picnic baskets...will put my overwraught mind at ease for a few minutes.

Day 21

No weight change. That's OK,-I've been laid up this weekend with Cysts, so exercise has been nil....also had Cheezely, biccies and pickled onions yesterday,-may not have helped but sure was fabulous:-)

The promised drive past veges happened(!) and as a result some really gorgeous fresh celery was purchased.

Having recently read that the Samurai diet was based largely on brown rice and veges, I decided to get creative and make a nice Japanese-style meal with very little fat and lots of goodness. For those that aren't privvy to Japanese traditions, they eat small quantities and usually have rice with a meal rather than bread.

I am also very taken with Ken Watanabe in general...lol

So here's the meal, with recipes to follow;

Samurai Soup

prep: Soak 1 tbsp Szechuan peppercorns in 1tbsp kecap manis, 1tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp mirin, 1 tsp Chinese five spice, 1 tsp garlic granules, 1 tbsp sweet chillit sauce & 1/2 cup water until corns are squishy

Soak 3/4 cup pearl barley for 3 hours in cold water, rinse and drain.

Ingredients

( as well as the above) 1 large white onion, finely diced, leaves and stalks of 1/2 bunch of celery (top half), 3 L Massel Chicken Stock.

Method

Soften onions in a little stock and add sauce/spice mix til fragrant

Place celery tops in food processor until finely chopped and add to pot

Add soaked barley and stock and boil (rolling) for 1 hr

Just before serving, add 2 packets of crushed rice noodles (vermicelli) and a handful of crushed toasted sesame seeds. Serve with

Chilli Spring Onion Rice

In a microwave safe bowl combine the following;

1 cup brown rice, 4 tbsp savoury yeast flakes, 2 tsp chilli flakes, 1 tsp ground ginger, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 2 tsp massel chicken stock, 3 cups water.

Microwave on High for 30 min or until all liquid is absorbed. Fold through chopped spring onions (2 large,stem and stalk or 3-4 small)

Serve as a side dish.

A plate of steamed greens with toasted sesame seeds would also go well with this meal, bok choy or gai lan would be my suggestions. Steam until just green and drizzle with 3.2.1 sauce ( 3 tbsp soy, 2 tbsp mirin, 1 tbsp splenda + generous whack of toasted, ground sesame seeds).

'A good, functional and healthy body is the ultimate fashion statement' -Kiyokazu Washida

The Pipes, the Pipes are callin'

The mountains Highlands are swathed in mist, The long-weekend stretches out before us lazily. Mr is lighting the fire and Cath...is in a mega-Scots cooking frenzy:-) My mind is full of gorgeous things, mountains and heather, crofter's cottages, heros and poets, tatties and leeks, barley and oats, love and survival, chill wind and warm woollen wraps, log fires and great books, lovingly made quilts and soft beds, candlelight and a pair of strong arms.

On a day like today hearts and tummies call out for thick hearty soups and grainy breads warm from the oven. So after a thrifty and pleasing trip to the grower's market this morning, I am armed. Bubbling on the stove is a fabulous pot of Winter vegetable Chowder.

There is something very pleasing about a big pot of soup. A cauldron of steaming wholesomeness. A marriage of flavours and a smell that wafts through the cottage saying 'Home', 'Safe' and 'Comfort'. Combine this with the smell of baking bread and you will remain happy and peaceful all afternoon.

This is a simple soup but I highly recommend it to anyone who needs a good dose of home.

CROFTER'S CHOWDER

2 medium white potatoes

1 parsnip

1/2 a sweet potato

1/3 head of cauliflower

1 brown onion

1/2 a leek

1 clove garlic, crushed

2L massel chicken stock

2 tsp ground cumin

2 ears of corn kernels

30g Nuttelex

1 tsp mixed spice

Salt and pepper to taste

2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Brown onions and leeks in Nuttelex, add garlic and spices

Add all vegetables (chopped into 1cm cubes or thereabouts)

Add stock and a bay leaf and boil on a slow roll for 1 hr.

Allow soup to cool then whizz in food processor until smooth and creamy.

If you like a creamier soup, add 1 cup soy milk at the end and bring back to heat slowly.

Serve with crusty grained bread straight from the oven.

Robert Burns

O Mary, at thy window be!

It is the wish'd the trysted hour.

Those smiles and glances let me see,

That makes the miser's treasure poor.

Day 19, switch to McDougall's MWL 12 day plan

This will still be mostly raw, but will allow me a potato, or porridge or some brown rice. Why?
(a) it's suddenly cold. My body yelled at me this morning to put something hot in it.
(b) I have been very weak on this raw diet,-very
(c) Because I have a tiny fridge I can't have the variety I would like in my raw diet and I'm bored.
(d) I just can't take it anymore, It feels too much like restriction and punishment.

Sorry to disappoint anyone following this, but I have done 18 days of raw and am left unconvinced. I know that raw food is optimal for health and will continue to eat mostly salads, but I need the variety of a bowl of porridge in the morning, or a hot soup in the evening.
The other silly thing about me on a raw diet was that I rarely had the energy to exercise. If that's the case,-what's the point? You can't be healthy while eating salad and sitting at home.
I am passionately vegan and will always remain so, but I'm not sure I can be passionately 'raw'. I'm not entirely convinced that it is the optimal diet for me. I'm a Scot fer chrissakes. Cold weather is my norm as is porridge and barley soup with potatoes and kale. I'm meant to clamber about mountains like a bloody goat, not wobble about weakly like a heroin-chic runway model.
I will still weigh-in in 2 days and we'll see what happens. I have always trusted Dr McDougall's advice, research and judgement,-I doubt he'll let me down:-)

day 18...all new

Nothing turned out today. Mr and I set out for Newcastle at 10.30am. At 12.30pm we were at Wahroonga being warned by big flashing road signs that we were to expect substantial delays between Wahroonga and Cowan. Quick calculations assured us that we would be in Newcastle by about 3pm. BBQ over, everyone leaving, Mr's brother obligated to fire up the barbie again for our sake, tired parents wishing the day was over etc...so we turned around, only to meet Good Friday traffic on the way back too. So, 3.30pm and we're still in traffic,-this time mountains traffic.
4.30pm we finally arrive home. Mr has bought hot chips on the way home. I have a small plateful and enjoy them immensely. We watch 'The Seeker' (Based on Susan Cooper's immortal series...despite the presence of Chris Eccleston,-disappointing) and then the much anticipated 'Beowulf and Grendel' (Gerry, Gerry,-your name rhymes with Berry),-also disappointing, although interesting from an anthropological point of view.
Cath gives up and finally joins the two halves of mum's 'Room with a View' quilt. Good. Cath then discovers that all her poppy templates are incomplete. Grrr. Redraws poppy templates and decides that sewing and cutting is best left for tomorrow.
Mr settles down to 'Buffy-fest' while Cath trawls the web.
All in all, a disappointing kind of day. No great wins or losses. Just a 'ho-hum' kind of getting-through-it-all.
Finally check Lydgate's blog and am incensed but too tired to do anything about it.
Today is the kind of day you plan great things. A pre-shoot meeting, a set-up for days to come. It would b awful to die on a night like this, with a pervading sense of 'almostness'. Here's hoping.

Day 18

I cheated. Because I was feeling so awful yesterday I ended up eating cooked food for dinner last night. I'm not going to beat myself up though,-back on the wagon as of this morning! I know it sounds weird but my tummy was really churning and needed a 'glue' like substance, so I had a very small amount of pasta. Without getting too graphic,-salad was just going straight through me (or back up again).
Today is shaping up to be a looooong day. Mr and I are just about to set out for Newcastle for his neice's 2nd birthday. I have made a big salad to take down and am hoping to resist the temptation of a vegan sausage:-) It is finally cool enough for a jumper and raining...hard weather in which to maintain resolve! BUT, I have to remind myself that I only have 12 days left to go! (6 days until my second last dress-fitting).
Mr has just made himself baked bean toasted sandwiches and the smell is filling every sense! I'm hoping to stave off the desire for hot things by drinking litres of tea.
Oh well, I shall fill my weekend with quilting and keep my mind occupied.
Weigh-in in three days also keeps a firm head on my shoulders!

Day 17

Is it only day 17? That doesn't seem fair somehow. I seem to have been on this diet for years. Not a good day today, I am coming down with some kind of evil virusey-thing and feel like I've been run over. I have dragged myself out of bed and ingested food, but am not liking the chances of making it down to work this afternoon. This really sucks because I already have tonnes of makeup lessons to give. I also hate being a pain-in-the-ass for Liz and Dawn, our two beautiful admins. They are so good to me and letting them down is awful. I'm afraid I may have to though as walking to the station feeling like this is well nigh impossible.
Usually I'd just consume a can of 'V' and soldier through, but my tummy wouldn't take it today. All I can bear is cold water. Even my lunch-salad is sitting badly.
5 minutes later
Lunch is no longer sitting badly. Is no longer in tummy.
Have called work and cancelled for today and feel awful (physically and socially). Am supposed to drive down to newcastle tomorrow morning for Mr's neice's 2nd birthday too...here's hoping it's a 24 hour thing. OK, have to sign off,-bathroom is calling (again).

March 19, endeavours and such

Oh it has been a lovely day. I haven't eaten enough to fulfill the caloric needs of a rat, but I'm not hungry.

What I have done is cook a real 'boy' meal for poor old Mr (who has been slaving over a hot stove for the past couple of weeks while I do my 'raw' thing. So here it is, Seitan steaks, kumera mash and cajun veges with gravy. You should have seen his face light up:-)

There is an alarming plume of smoke in the valley. The smell of bushfire wafts about in the night air. I knew there was something odd about this summer...no fires. Now that we have hit an odd heatwave in autumn, here they are. There has been no rain in the past three weeks either, so I'm sure the RFS are worried. This gets me thinking back to Fire Man (who I dated for a year or so). the handy thing about that little liaison was always knowing the fire status of the Blue Mountains..and he had a lovely chest hair configuration. Shame he too was gay. I have an extraordinary, thus far badly utilised talent, of dating gay men. I'm sure there must be some way of turning this to my advantage..so far no joy though:-)

In other news, this is the first place I've ever lived that has a 'holy' loo.

Holistic New-Age guru's would no doubt assure me that this situation is optimal for 'cleansing' and 'reconnecting'. I think it's just sweet. My loo has leadlight, Whoot!

Mr (bless his holey socks) has been working out. We have decided that his man-boobs look less 'booby' and that his sweet tummy is disppearing. He is worried about his 'love handles' but I never noticed that he had them in the first place. I think he's just about perfect. It just tickles me that he's working so hard to be gorgeous for our wedding (whilst being simultaneously annoyed that he has lost 2kg in a week). Mr's diet plan goes like this;

(1) eat 100g of crisps every night instead of 250g

(2) do 15 push-ups and 25 crunches of a morning

(3) Eat meals loaded with fat and carbohydrate at 10pm+

My regime?

(1) raw foods all day (fruit, wheatgrass, spirulina, salad)

(2) walk miles and miles in baking sun

(3) watch scales obsessively

-Guess who's having more fun?.....

Mind you, he didn't screw up his metabolism at 15. Ah yes, the diet-monster strikes very early in girls. This results in bodies that are taught, whilst still forming, that they will be starved and therefore tend to hoard fat at any and every given opportunity. I even went on some insane 'Orange Diet' at 13. Nothing but oranges for 10 days. I dropped 5 kgs and screwed up my metabolism beautifully. I didn't care. I was skinny.

Censorious types may be thinking 'Why the hell would any parent let their 13 year old daughter do such an insane thing?!'. Many girls have mothers (in fact, most). Mothers tend to control family diet. Mothers have similr body-dysmorphia issues as their daughters. My mum was undiagnosed, but certainly borderline anorexic until she was married (and for quite some time afterward, judging by early photos).

Anyhoo, on a lighter note, here is Mr's changing form for your perusal:

I know he looks a little 'bunny-in-headlights' in this shot, but....awwwwwwww:-)

Well, that's it for me today. Fires in the valley, raw diet intact and working, childhood diets picked apart and an afternoon of work to get through tomorrow before the delicious and highly anticipated 4-day Easter weekend. I may be the only woman in the world not worried about missing out on chocolate...don't really like it much (excepting Josophan's Mayan Chilli cups...very very good, but I won't fret!)

Day 16

Whoo Hoo! It's overcast and cool! This means lots of cooking for Mr, lots of quilting for me and a nice long walk with minimal sweatage later on. Ideas of lovely bubble-bath starting to percolate too...hmm, cedarwood, ginger and gardenia oils added, ryuchi sakamoto on the stereo, long lazy thoughts allowed to amble where they will.
Yes, the bath must be indulged in, then cooking, then quilting.
Ooohhhh, I just adore days-off! No teaching this afternoon, just hours and hours of being in my own company. Utterly fantastic.
Here's a weird blast from the past; was just 'poked' on Facebook by one of my first boyfriends. Lovely fella,-turned out to be gay (should have picked it from the bizarre obsession with Kylie Minogue and Whitney Houston). Odd to see him after all these years. Facebook is a strange thing indeed.
Almost guaranteed there will be another post later complete with photos and recipes of today's endeavours. I'll do my best, but as always, you'll probably have to forgive the appalling photography skills-)

Day 15 On the Downside

According to the standard BMI I still have to lose 10kgs to be in the optimum weight range for my height. Bloody hell,-there is no way in hell I can achieve that before the wedding. Guess I'll have to go for a lot longer than 30 days huh?
Current weight: (groan...this is so awful) 76kgs
Goal weight: 66kgs
Note: In High School I weighed all of 58kgs and considered myself 'a little on the heavy side'.
Stupid Goal: To attempt to reach 70kgs by wedding day
Eventual goal: To reach 60kgs and stay there.

It just struck me that I am obsessing about my weight. But how does one make positve changes in this regard without being entirely honest and eternally vigilant? I mean, I can't just trundle along and hope that the weight will fall off can I? (Sigh) what this essentially means is that anyone reading this blog who is interested in weight loss will be happy and contented, but everyone else (i.e. those that like interesting thoughts of any description) be warned.
THIS WOMAN IS ON A MISSION AND HAS A TENDENCY TOWARD OBSESSIVENESS. THIS WOMAN IS SICK AND TIRED OF NOT RECOGNISING HERSELF IN THE MIRROR. THIS WOMAN NEEDS TO FEEL FIT AND SEXY AGAIN. THIS WOMAN HAS REALISED THAT LIFE IS TERRIBLY TERRIBLY SHORT AND THAT ACTION MUST BE TAKEN NOW. THIS WOMAN IS OUT TO RECLAIM HERSELF AND HER LIFE'S POTENTIAL.

Day 15

HALFWAY MARK.

PRO'S;

(1) 4.2 kilos released into the big wide universe for someone who needs them:-) (9.24 pounds)

(2) Newfound sense of self-discipline

(3) possibility of looking good on wedding day (and enjoying wedding night)

(4) More energy

(5) reduced appetite

(6) Lower shopping bills

(7) Reduced carbon footprint (no fossil fuels used for cooking)

(8) Clear skin

(9) water intake increased substantially

(10) wine and cigarette intake decreased substantially

CONS;

(1) Haven't been cooking for Mr, and feel that he's getting the wrong end of the deal

(2) Can't afford to buy all organic so may be ingesting more pesticides than I'd like

(3) Would have liked weight loss to be more substantial and miraculous somehow...

(4) Am starting to get a little bored of the 'mono' diet

(5) Really hate wheatgrass,...no really.

(6) wish for Claudia Schiffer's body now and do not have. Annoyed.

So, all in all, more pro's than con's. It is quite a difficult diet to stick to for the results I must say. I think I lost simlar amounts when I was doing 'Weight Watchers' without the extremity of food limitation. Having said that, I hate having to pay someone to weigh me every week and to tell me what to eat when I know I am perfectly capable of doing it myself.

Oh well, I fully intend to continue this until the wedding, and if things continue, should be able to shed another 4 kgs or so. Even Mr's parents would have to notice an 8kg weight loss? -I know my dressmaker will:-)

Oh the dreaded wedding photos that will be eternal testimonial to my success...or failure.

Might speed things up a little and chuck the wine completely until then I think. Wonder if chickpeas (cooked) are slowing things down any?..hmmm, how will I stay full without the protein component? hmmmm....

Good News! received a water filter today from Mum as a gift. Yay! No more trapsing down to her place to fill large containers! Now,-how to install the damn thing....(excuse me while I waste my entire morning fussing with water gadgets).

Day 14

Int. Morning. Gradual crescendo of party sounds. Champagne pops. Adults celebratory cheers etc.

MS/SA Cath: Four point 2 kilograms. Four point two! That's good, right? I'm in some shock. I guess I thought it would stop working or some such. Am suitably amazed. I did experience some serious trepidation when faced with the scales this morning. All the 'what if's?' crowded into my foggy morning brain and almost stopped me hopping on. Then I thought 'better the devil you know' and stepped onto the white-square-of-death with a wince and looked down squintily. The magical 4.2 has made me happy-ish for today. I am not happy that I have to go in to work, but am resigned to the facts of earning and living.

C/U: Conspiratorially. What if this conitnues to work? ....Nah. I'll hit a plateau,-it always happens. Still...it's starting to become very exciting...the thought that I may be quite slim for the wedding-day. Does that make me shallow?

MS/HA: Good place to sign goo for the day. I'm looking up ever so slightly so any double-chin is impossible for you to see, and we're avoiding my back view all together. Well, at the end of the day, you don't need to be slim after all,-you just need a camera man who knows what they're doing and is sensitive to the female plight.

End Scene

Day 13

Where has my appetite gone? Can someone give it back please? A green smoothie and a salad is not enough to exist on for one day surely? Why is my tummy saying 'No thanks,-I am quite replete'?
Guess what we pickedup today? -our stupidly expensive wedding rings. I only hope we don't get robbed. Mr's is especially pretty, although I may have a challenge getting it on him on the day...but then again, this is the kind of thing that makes wedding guests chuckle and relax.
I also had my 'trial' makeup session. Very pleasing. Lovely Dora managed to do me a 'face' that was gentle and soft and still left me recognising the face in the mirror. Relief surges. the last two times I was 'made up' by a professional i ended up looking like a drag queen/hooker.
Unfortunately it is Sunday which means that work looms on the horizon and the week begins. It is easier to deal with due to the nice 4-day weekend coming up. I have been promised a drive past growing veges and a possible trip to market-thingies. Note that please witnesses, He promised.
Mr's mum and dad dropped in today for a quick visit and did not comment on weight loss.
This means either
(a) my parents are fibbing to keep me happy and motivated or
(b) the weight loss is truly insubstantial and not able to be seen by others.
Either way, it has left me feeling a little less shiny. Soldier on Cath, Soldier on.

Day 12 non-dietary

Finished the quilt top for the Tiger-Muffin!

I am now aching to make a quilt in rosy pinks, beige, celery, lavender, lilac whatever just not so goddam bright! Good thing I'm not drinking much these days...this is not the quilt to work on with a hangover.

All that remains is to bind and back and 'quilt' (see funny wavy patterns on red bits done with mysterious magical 'quilting foot' that looks like a swiss-army-knife and has yet to be purchased).

Next project to complete is mum's Colour-wash with applique poppies. Some serious miscalculations have resulted in some fairly dodgy 'repair' work needing to be done, but I think I can pull it off.

See what I mean? A bit 'oopsy' on the amount of squares in each row for starters....(that's Mr's foot top-right,-doesn't let silly quilting endeavours stop him playing 'Destroy all Humans' on his PS2). Please tell me this can be saved?! That's way too much fabric and money to have to scrap. I am planning to applique though...maybe I can 'cover' mistake bits with conveniently placed poppies?

I was also thinking of adding just a few random ears of wheat and some bluebells...or would that be too much? I'm thinking of that beautiful scene in 'A Room with a View' when Julian Sands Sweeps Helena up into a passionate kiss amongst poppies and wheat on the Tuscan Hillside. Maybe that's the quilt's name? I've had no 'lightbulb' moments so far...yes, I think I will name it 'A Room with a View'. Good.

Day 12

Nice picnic at Blackheath park,-although very nearly cancelled due to mother and brother both having individual volcano moments consecutively. Enter dad and Cath,-much appeasement and finally enough success to ensure a peaceful picnic. Did I mention there is a HUGE huntsman above me on the wall? This means I am more distracted than usual.

Picnic-menu-a-la-lockley:

Wholemeal sourdough rolls, seitan, vegetarian lunch-meat, mixed tuscan olives, artichoke hearts, brown rice mushroom and soy pasties, sourdough loaf (sliced), massive Cath-Salad, apples, grapes, balsamic dressing. Very satisfactory. No prizes for guessing what I ate:-)

Extra huge happies provided by 5 tiny muscovy ducklings in the duckpond. I probably should have joined in more with conversation but I was distracted by the little fluffy gorgeous things. I did try to take a photo, but my camera is not exactly 'flash' and the little ones were just so tiny...the shots I did take require a microscope to identify the ducklings amongst the foliage.You'll just have to trust me,-they were cute.

Bloody spider is just sitting there like a malevolant furry thing. It has beady eyes and too many legs (not for a spider, just too many in general).

Now, I'm not generally someone to comment on the news, but two stories in the Herald really caught my attention today.

(1) Eight fish who guard the health of million

At Broughton's pass, near Appin, 8 rainbow fish are subjected to Sydney's water supply. If they don't like what they're swimming in, they have the power to shut down much of Sydney's supply system. They are working under the supervision of the Animal Care and Ethics Committee, and are exchanged regularly and given holiday' periods. There have been a couple of unhappy fishy moments, but apparently only because of electrical faults and pump failures. I just find it amusing that with all our high-tech oh-so-impressive machines that ping, and our mega-giga-kilo-gatrillion byte computers, our water supply is a bunch of guys watching a bunch of fish to see if they're wiggling a little abnormally.

(2) Carnivorous Canvas

A lovely lass thinks that innards are beautiful and wants people to see 'the seductive beauty of life'. Her fridge is stocked with tofu and she doesn't eat meat (feeds her 'subjects' to stray cats, but just loves to paint dead things. She really reeled me in with the line 'Sometimes slaughter can be very beautiful' (this in reaction to having steaming cuts of dead-stuff laid out for her on the snow to peruse). To quote;

"The translucent layers of skin, the labyrinthine maze of arteries, the fluid organic forms. It's a metaphor for indulgence and temptation'. Statements like this are why artists are often called wankers. Coming to a living-room wall near you...

So, another day, another salad. I'm fine thanks. Green smoothie for brekky, waaay too much salad for lunch, considering not having dinner at all (still full). Mum, Dad and little bro all noticed the weight loss and peppered me with 'how-did-you-do-it?' kind of questions. This is very satisfying:-)