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Our fridge magnets don't stick to our fridge, which is annoying. Fortunately they will stick to the fusebox cupboard next to the fridge.
Which is good, because any kitchen of ours would feel totally wrong without a cut-out Divine cavorting with Bettie Page and a fifties housewife, next to a "Entering Provincetown" sign.
Oh and the cat paperclip miaows when you press it to put something in it, which confuses our actual cats no end.
I bought this umbrella from the Woolworths in Brighton years ago, it was raining really hard and I grabbed the cheapest umbrella I could find. Odd to think now that when I bought this Woolies was still selling enormous quantities of "Pick 'n Mix" and showed no signs of stopping.
This is my longest serving umbrella to date, I forget how long exactly but it must be at least five years, and I put that longevity down to the Ugly-Tiara-Wearing-Kitten picture that decorates one of the panels (The cover it came in, which I have lost now, featured the same picture, but with diamante sparkles on the tiara. Gorgeous.) No body ever wants to borrow this umbrella because of the kitten picture. I know this because, when I offer it to friends who need it, the expression on their faces speaks volumes as they weigh up the indignity of getting soaked against the embarrassment of carrying the Ugly-Tiara-Wearing-Kitten umbrella. Nine times out of ten they will choose getting wet, and, if they actually do opt to borrow the umbrella once, they never will again be caught without their own rain barriers. By the same token if I were to leave it somewhere by mistake I can almost guarantee it would still be there when I went back to get it, because it never gets taken by mistake.
This post doesn't really have a point to it, other than the advice that if you can find an umbrella that features a hideous decoration that you can manage to carry off, it will be yours for years.
It is very rare that I can find all three of the crinkly mice at any one moment in time, so I took a photo to commemorate this historic event. As you can see two of the mice have lost their noses, but the mouse in the middle has lost his eye which gives him just a bit more character. They all originally had tails, but those lasted less than a week.
These are by far the most popular of the cat's toys, mainly because they make a really good crinkly noise (hence the highly original name I have given them) which the cats find very enticing. If you want to get their attention all you have to do is squish one of these a little bit, and their eyes become huge waiting for you to throw it. Nancy will tentatively pounce on a mouse and bat it around which is really sweet, but Edith really throws herself into the hunt. She does spectacular leaps and twists in mid-air in her determination to catch her foil prey.
I love throwing these for the cats, but as I am always on retrieval duty I tend to get bored before they do. Particularly because Edith has a bad habit of stuffing them as far under the sofa as she can. I sometimes wonder if seeing me try to get it back is a large part of Edith's enjoyment of the game.
More water lilies!
That is all.
I checked my iPod for this week's weather forecast when I woke up, and what I saw was this:
That is thunderstorms every day for the next week. Ok then, note to self: Do not leave the house without an umbrella for the foreseeable future. Although, the temperature will be much more in my comfort zone, and I am happy about that!
It was still fairly sunny after we'd had breakfast in town (I had the most delicious wholewheat waffles with yogurt and fresh fruit, tasty yet not outrageously unhealthy.), so we decided a walk would be a good idea before the predicted thunderstorms rolled in. We headed off to one of our favourite local lakes, whereupon we discovered half the town seemed to have had the same idea.
It was particularly lovely out there today, because about a third of the lake is currently covered in water lillies. I had a great time taking photos, which is always a good way to spend a Sunday morning. The only thing more fun then taking loads of pictures is then playing with them in Picnik to get an interesting effect. I've darken the leaves and water a lot in this one, so that the flower looks much brighter. I didn't really have Doc leaning out over the water with a lighting rig, just so I could get a pretty picture of a flower. That is mainly because I don't actually have a lighting rig, but that isn't my point here.
You might well get more water lilly pictures this week, I did go a little bit snap happy.
Edith is such an attention whore. Today she has been following me around demanding fuss, when we weren't both asleep, and then she patiently posed with her paws on my flip-flops until I grabbed my camera to get a shot.
Nancy on the other hand isn't much of a poser, and she seems to be zooming around the house a lot more these days. I actually saw her chasing her tail yesterday! It was a pretty amateur attempt, but it was so nice to see her behaving like a silly kitten. Even though the pheromones diffuser doesn't seem to be doing much for Edith's, um, behavioural issues, it does seem to be really helping Nancy relax and that is pretty impressive in itself.
And yes, you are getting a photo post about the cats because I really haven't done anything today. It was either this, or I'd have had to take a before-and-after shot of the bathroom floor. Edith's prettier.
Top Blogging Tip: Whenever your pet looks cute take a photo (this one is from about a week ago). It will come in handy on a slow photo days.
Or, maybe, when it's the final episode of the "Torchwood" mini series, and you really have to concentrate.
Oh, Ianto...
When Doc asked what I wanted for dinner, his suggestion was something with corn-on-the-cob cooked on the grill (UK Translation: Gas Barbecue, I s'pose would be closest. That's too long to keep typing though, so excuse me whilst I adopt an Americanism for the sake of expediency. On occasion I have been known to say "Zee" when spelling things over the phone here, because otherwise it takes forever as apparently many Americans have no idea it should be "Zed". Poor things.)
I suggested tuna steaks with steamed broccoli, would be yummy with the sweetcorn. Then Doc said he could probably grill the broccoli too, so we thought we'd go super healthy and throw some courgette (US Translation: zucchini) on there too. Doc found a recipe for an orange sauce for the tuna, which was mayonnaise, freshly squeezed orange juice, orange zest and chives.
It was AMAZING, all of it was so delicious and just so... Yummy... happy sigh...
Doc C. The man can cook.
Now that our Pilates classes have come to an end I'm trying to keep practicing at home. I already had a lovely yoga mat from Gaiam, so I was set for the mat work.
When we visited Washington last year I got a Gaiam toning ball, which comes with an instruction DVD, but as I hadn't ever taken a proper class I had no idea what I was doing really. It's much better using it, now that I understand what the instructor is saying.
More recently I bought a Gaiam CorePlus Reformer, that clover shaped thingy in the photo. It's four looped resistance cords, which you can use to sort of mimic some of the range of exercises you can do on a Reformer machine in a Pilates studio. Considering an actual reformer is a couple of thousand dollars, and this was less than thirty, I thought it was worth a go. Frankly I prefer the instructor on the toning ball DVD, but the exercises seem to be quite effective now I'm getting the hang of keep the loops on my feet.
Hopefully using these bits of kit will add some more variety and options to my home Pilates practices, which has to be a good thing, if only because it'll keep me from getting bored.
And, yes, the swanky green yoga mat bag was also from Gaiam! I really like their stuff ok? It seems to me to be good quality, without being outrageously priced (plus they have a great sale section on their website!) and it doesn't hurt that they keep their products in similar colour ranges so nothing clashes. I find that restful.
This is another photo from the Krispy Kreme in Winston-Salem, the whole sign reads "Hot Doughnuts Now". Krispy Kreme franchises also have neon lights in the window with this message on, and they only turn them on when the doughnut machine is making fresh doughnuts. Yum!
I'm thinking this might make a fun computer wall paper, but it would require a lot of will power to ignore such an emphatic message. It's probably for the best that instead I have a wallpaper expressing the joy of a beautiful typeface (fellow typeface fans can dowload free wallpapers here), so I was able to enjoy my after-gym protein bar (which actually was bloody delicious, I'm stocking up on Luna Bars, especially the Peppermint Chocolate Stick ones. Yummy!) with a small soy chai latte, followed later by my sensible packed lunch of an apple, a stick of low-fat string cheese, roasted pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries and raisins.
You see, I may blog a lot about cupcakes, doughnuts and ice cream, but that's just because it's more fun to post about the exceptions to my usual food rules.
So I was thinking about my tattoo, and, although I really liked the idea of having a tattooed charm bracelet, I can't quite imagine having the confidence to rock it in the work place. My key is only two inches long and less than half an inch across, which is tiny really, and I still can't quite believe have a freaking tattoo.
Then I thought it might actually be more fun to be more literal about the charm bracelet and make, say, a dozen replicas of the key to wear on a chain on my right wrist, so the tattoo wouldn't be hidden but it would look like part of the jewellery from a distance. I leached out the skin tones and flipped the photo to give you an idea of how one of the key charms might look. Just imagine 11 more!
Of course, now I need to work out what on earth I would make them from.
In my mind's eye I think this would look great in a nice glossy black acrylic, like something you'd get from Tatty Devine, but although that would give me a great end product I know full well that I don't have the patience to accurately make an 12 identical keys by hand.
It's time's like these when a girl really wants her very own programmable laser cutter thingy, which I bet would also make world domination a breeze. sigh.
Ooh! I wonder if there is an Etsy artisan out there who could be commissioned to make this for a reasonable cost? I may need to investigate...
...Why, yes there is! It would be $2 a key I think, but I'm confirming I've got that price right before I commission anything. Still, a custom charm bracelet to match my tattoo for under $30? That would be fabulous! Squee!
Edith was curled up on the sofa looking all cute, so I went over to give her some fuss and, just as I was telling her how beautiful she is, I noticed she's got a fat lip. When I examined more closely I could see a pink mark on the grey skin of her mouth, which looks like a small scrape. Of course there isn't any point in me asking how she did that, particularly because she probably doesn't know herself. In only the past 24 hours I have seen her:
Any one of those could have done it, I suppose. She doesn't seem to be too bothered by it, but she clearly does not want people looking at it. I'm like that when I have an imperfection too, so I'm just going to leave her alone for today, but I will keep an eye on things and whisk her off to the vets if necessary.
Post script I managed to take a photo of Edith's injury, but she wouldn't pose for long:
Doc announced this morning that he was going to look at bikes today, with a view to purchasing one. When he moved to London he brought his trusty bike, The Beast, with him
and I remember sitting on the grass outside the National Portrait
Gallery when we first started dating and seeing him come cycling up and
thinking what a handsome devil he was, so I was all for him getting
another bike. For the past year or more I have been trying my best to persuade him that it would be a good
investment in his health, both physical and mental, because the man
needs to burn off energy some how!
There are some really good bike shops in town so Doc didn't have to travel far for his fix. He was gone for about three hours, I didn't go because I would just have been in the way really and I wanted to watch more episodes of "Fantasy Island", then I got a text announcing Doc C was a very happy man. The smiley face I super-imposed on this picture looks positively dour in comparison to the expression he had on his face when he got home with his new friend.
It's a Tarmac made by Specialized, with an all carbon fiber frame, so it weighs a whole 17 pounds. That's slightly less than the cats weigh, and you definitely can't get anywhere at all on them.
This is another picture from our trip to Winston Salem.
I find insects and flowers don't need any air brushing, but they do benefit from being cropped, before doing some slight alterations in exposure and colour.
I was minding my own business uploading some photos over at Picnik and I noticed a banner promoting their new touch up suite.
These tools are a premium feature, so you have to pay to get access to them before you can use them on your own photos, but they are AMAZING. I can't decide which I like best, the mascara simulator, the wrinkle remover, the insta-thin or, the supermodel's friend, the air-brush.
Suddenly I feel the need to re-visit my wedding photos, or, at the very least, my Facebook profile photo. Got to look good on Facebook, just in case your nemesis happens by.
***Ten Minutes Later***
What? I just took a very relaxing nap, and then drank a nice cup of tea!
I asked Doc this morning if he'd noticed any change in Nancy, and he tentatively said she seems to be more relaxed and playful. That's what I think too, although it's hard to know if it's the pheremone diffuser or just us hoping that Nancy is chilling out a bit. I'd love it if this turned out to be a long term solution for Nancy's skittishness!
She has definitely been playing a lot more, I love this series of photos from the weekend, and Nancy also seems less nervous around Edith.
As I mentioned on Saturday we had lunch at Krispy Kreme. Doesn't that look delicious? I had a glazed sour cream doughnut, a glazed chocolate doughnut and half of a chocolate iced doughnut. Doc had a glazed sour cream, a glazed blueberry doughnut and the other half of the chocolate iced doughnut.
I know, I know, not the healthiest lunch in the world. To be fair we actually only asked for four, and the chocolate iced doughnut was added to our order by mistake. Then the girl at the till told us it would be cheaper per doughnut, if we bought a dozen. Doc did actually consider that deal for a moment, but I stood firm. Two and a half doughnuts was more than enough, thank you.
And they were delicious.
It must seem very inconsistent of me to be so happy with losing weight, and then tuck into a big pile of carby, sugary goodness. This is the thing that I always find difficult with sticking to a set diet, because I enjoy food a lot. So I am particularly pleased to find that calorie counting, combined with regular exercise, helps me control my weight. Understanding exactly how many calories are involved here, and how my body metabolises those calories, means that for me this has to be lunch, not just a snack, and that makes a bigger difference than I would have thought previously.
Doughnuts for lunch still have to be accounted for. So in anticipation I'd had a high fibre cereal with 2% milk for breakfast, and when we got home we had low fat veggie meatballs with wholewheat pasta for dinner. Add in the walking around Winston Salem, and those doughnuts really aren't such a huge deal. I mean, they aren't exactly the most nutritious thing in the world, but as an occaisional treat that's ok really.
Edith is enjoying having a human around today, so much so that she's doing a lazy version of the Hula.
Or maybe it's her Tommy Cooper impression, it's hard to say.
One of the things that is slightly frustrating about living thousands of miles away from one's Mother is that she can't really see when you've dropped a lot of weight. It's all very well to say, you've lost 25 pounds and even translate that into stone and dress sizes, but nothing quite beats a visual. I really didn't want to do a before-and-after, because, well, that would be simultaneously hackneyed and embarrassing to me and this is supposed to be a good thing!
Then I woke up this morning and thought "You know, I bet I could put three pairs of my jeans on".
And I could.
The first pair were my size 12 capri jeans, the second pair were my size 14 Diva jeans and the third pair were my carpenter jeans, which are men's jeans so I don't know what size they would translate to (by the why all three pairs of jeans were purchased from Old Navy, so they are cut on similar proportions and are US sizes). I should add that I did this with ease, and no show horns were required to get me into any of the jeans.
This is a new record for me, as a teenager I was once able to put on two pairs of of my jeans at once.
Doc was sort of mesmerised by the whole spectacle, and gladly documented it for me with the camera so i could show my Mum! And the rest of the internet!
Oh! I had completely forgotten that I had put together this montage of a feeding frenzy from the whale watching trip we went on when we visited Provincetown.
My favourite picture of the set is probably the second one, because you can see one whale breaching and the circle of bubbles indicates where the other whales are going to be. The whales have located and surrounded a shoal of sand eels, and they all come up out of the water and lunge back into the water, trapping, capturing and eating the eels.
It's just so impressive that they can communicate such a complicated combination of pin-point positioning and precise timing. It's like synchronised swimming, but without the fixed smiles and flowery swimming caps.
Although I bet the sand eels don't see it like that.
Doc bought this T-shirt from the Clothing District, a great shop in Boston, when we were on holiday in March.
Generally speaking, you can rely on Doc to have an appropriate and interesting T for any occasion. This one, for example, is perfect for teaching summer session, taking your wife for a coffee or watching "The Prisoner" on DVD.
In the second parcel that we got last week from my lovely Mum were all sorts of treasures, such as Revels (they're bags of chocolates, and there are several different flavours all mixed together so you can never be 100% sure what you are going to get. No "Forrest Gump" references please.), drinks coasters with definitions of our names on (Doc didn't quite know what to make of those, but I knew Mum included them as a joke), our DVD box set of "The Prisoner" (Yay! Sixties paranoia and sci-fi at it's finest) and an adorable cup shaped bird feeder.
Doc has set up the feeder on the balcony, and the birds seem to really like it. They are still very wary, so my photo is not from the best angle but I couldn't move without spooking the sparrow. In this photo you can see the green cup shaped feeder, but not the pole it stands on. I'd say that the feeder looks like a stylised tulip, it's very pretty.
It's hilarious to watch small birds stand on the rim of the feeder to eat the seed, but then decide they want some variety in their dinner; so they mix things up a bit by jumping into the seeds and shuffling it around with their feet. The seeds go everywhere!
Naturally the cats love this new addition to the balcony, Nancy in particular enjoys standing on her hind legs and having a good chatter through the screen door.
Here's the bird mobile in place in my office. I've played around with the photo a bit in Picnik to get the birds to pop a bit.
I'm pleased with how it's turned out, and I like watching the birds drifting around in the breeze.
By the way, Edith did manage to chew threw one of the wires overnight, but it could have been worse. I'm fairly sure she didn't actually eat of the fishing line, because it wasn't a lot shorter than in should have been.
Still, what is she like?
These are three of the polymer clay birds in position hanging up in my office window. You can barely see the smallest one, which is at the top of the wire, because it blends into the window frame so very well.
I was determined to turn them, and their polymer clay friends, into a mobile this weekend. So that's pretty much what I did today.
There are some pretty simple rules to making a mobile, which I found by the simple expedient of googling "how to make a mobile". Essentially you start from the bottom up, and at every stage you check that the weighting is working for each level. This is easier said than done, particularly when you have Edith around and she is convinced you are playing a game with her.
In the end I snipped a wire coat hanger into four straight batons, I was planning to twist them into little eyelets at the ends and in the middle to tie the birds to, but that was not going to happen. Naturally I got out my faithful hotglue gun, and just put beads of glue over each knot and over the raw ends of the wire batons.
Finally I glued one of the small birds into the hole of the bird house, and painted it metallic silver.
All I have to do now is find somewhere to put the thing, so the glue can totally harden over night. Again, the difficulty is a floofy cat without a clear idea of the difference between a human possession and a cat toy. Or maybe the problem is that I believe in the illusion of the difference between those things, whilst Edith knows the world is merely there to entertain her. On balance I think it may be the latter.
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