It's time for lunch

I've been meaning to write about packed lunches for a couple of weeks now - the importance of them to children (and adults), the mixing of socially acceptable food with healthy family food, belonging to both peer group via food and lunch box choice and home by having things your mum or dad packed for you.

Somehow I just can't write a decent post or article about this though. Truthfully I think I have over thought it, I've written an essay plan, for my course on it; written an exercise on how packed lunched evoke the different senses and done lots of thinking.

So there it is, thought I'd write something, it is fascinating; brown bread in the 1970's, Cup a Soup's in the office - but never anywhere else, Wagon Wheels and houmous and bread sticks. I can't write it but I'd love to have your thoughts on it? What's healthy and acceptable to the peers? What is unacceptable to your peers, or was? What is downright fantastic? (e.g. Wagon Wheels)...

Quickie Update

I've been to the gym three times this week. Loved it every time, apart from the bit where a piece of equipment accidentally fell on my head today that is. But is is great, only challenge is to not eat everything I can lay my hands on when I get home as I really do get blood sugar wobbles afterwards. Managed a handful of nuts, a little dark chocolate, and an early lunch today so not too bad.

Don't let anyone tell you it is a phase....

But my new one, as of yesterday is the gym. Had a very respectful induction with young man who didn't fall over laughing when I said I preferred seven minute sessions, and intended to go down to dress sizes on this by popping in twice a week for two or three of these mini sesh's.

He was very kind in fact and showed me all the new fangled equipment - a TV in the screen of the treadmill. And the less new fangled; apparently the rowing machine hasn't changed since my last visit, oh um, five years ago. That was a touch embarrassing to admit, but pretended I had been very busy with my babies.

I might even go again today. Will have to have a shower first though.

Fifty Pounds Richer

We'll be quids in after our power cut, fifty quid to be precise. Apparently the electricity company are obliged to pay out fifty pounds to each domestic customer who has no power for eighteen hours, then twenty five for every twelve hours afterwards.

Although the food in the fridge and freezer nearly came to that, and we had fifty pound excess so could not claim on the insurance, so probably it all means nothing.

Nothing, nothing at all.

I had a dream...last night

And it was quite disturbing. Henry the Eighth, and his horse were in it, plus me and some carriages. We had to run away from some horses that had gone bad. The evil in them was coming out of their noses in the form of toxic smoke and one sniff and you were dead. Henry the Eighth had some shoe trouble and was looking for some casual shoes to wear whilst running away from the toxic horses. He had some smarter boots but I was worried they would hurt his feet after a while so hunted for his shoes to no avail. I think we just got away in time.

What does it all mean, and is it connected to me having a cold, and incidentally thinking about getting some white low Converse as summer shoes? Horses and kings of England I don't know about!

Difficult Days

It's been a tough couple of days; we had a power cut yesterday, from ten in the morning. I have to say I'm not sure I realised how much I relied on the phone, internet, and lights. Heating we managed without as we're got a wood burner so at least the living room was warm but in a hark back to old snobbishness about Hastings days all I can say is; 'The bloody countryside!'

This would never happen in the city, or at least not for over 24 hours; for some reason it took that amount of time to find a generator that worked so we can have electricity at least temporarily. Apparently something caused the local sub station to blow up and catch on fire meaning a little block of houses near me were all affected. We don't have a gas light, and the battery camping light - oh, yes, maybe I bought a kids one because I preferred the way it looks, and it did not really work. And the other lighting epiphany was that candlelight isn't actually very bright at all. So we could only just about read with torches, which isn't fun; we tried to watch a film on the computer but it ran out of power; and we sat in near darkness before having a cold wash and bed.

Oh, and in the end, all the food in the freezer has gone bad. It'd have been OK if we'd cooked it up in the dark last night and had a party. But we didn't as I naively assumed the freezer would be OK if I didn't open it and that the power surely would not be off for more than 12 hours.

Right, normal service resumed, grump over.

Bubbly Budget Booze

Oooh, I've discovered a new drink. In my brief phase of low carb dieting I started having vodka, soda and a slice of lime. Lush once you get used to it, and tonight I decided to have another. But shock horror, we were out of fresh lime. Knowing my area, and I do, I decided the chances of a walk to procure a fresh lime would probably be unproductive so I decided on lemon. And here's my budget, bubbly booze recipe:

Ice
1 or 2 shots of vodka
Fizzy mineral water
Thick slice of lemon
Dash of PLJ (or other) lemon juice

Mix together in a tall glass, sit back and enjoy.

Particularly good in front of the new fantastic Glee, see E4 tomorrow at nine pm if missed tonight, or ingredients missing, and Mondays are acceptable decadent telly watching nights. Glee is camp, fun and full of songs, with a little drama. Love it. Any other favourite drink/TV combo's?

Shall we have some more questions?

Talk about self conscious blogging, but recently on my Creative Writing course, which actually encompasses all styles of writing including blogging, the teacher described it as a very interactive process with lots of questions to engage the reader. I realised I consciously did do that a year or so ago, and have slipped back in to simply noting things down and expecting you, dear readers, to know I love comments, and involvement. Maybe that is not good enough though and we must have more questions.

So - what do you think? Would it seem a little false if I ended more posts with a question? Or is it an excellent way to get reader participation in the blog?

I blog...therefore I am...

a bit boring at the moment. I've just re-read some old posts and realised I've been a bit lacklustre of late, both with my blogging and in life. In all honesty I can say I've been a bit bored; sometimes having it all (or at least without a job) is actually, ho, hum, not enough and bit well, dull.

However new day, new year, new me, I've had a lovely morning doing 'art' I've got a fabulously funny friend coming to visit this week, and I'm all excited so I must note the following:

1. I need to stop smoking for various reasons but these are the current ones;

• The pictures on the packets make me feel a bit ill, and I really don't want a diseased heart/lungs.
• I don't want the children to see me smoke.
• It's cold outside.
• See above, so I could put my pyjamas on earlier if I stopped.
• It's expensive unless you brave dodgy cheap shops and do special looking down techniques to get the bargain stuff.

2. I made a lovely vegetarian possibly beef style stew last night and just had it for lunch.

3. Must remember I really like soya chunks, see above.

4. I must get some soft pencils, I'm almost obsessing about how much I need them, even if truth be told I very rarely use a pencil.

5. It's like really cold, and I'm pleased I've discovered the delights of long sleeve tops underneath short sleeved ones. Sort of a t-shirted baggy tank top look.

6. That is all for now, except I really like to blog.

Sledges are out again today....

We so could be in the Alps, or at least Wales couldn't we? And this picture is so J - absolutely photo posing face.

P.s. yes, these are really my children, honest.

My etsy shop

I've just started to populate this with some handmade or upcycled goodies, many more to come, watch this space: http://www.etsy.com/shop/tattyhousehastings

We (will do some more) sledging again today...

It's snow day mark two. Honestly in my day, the village school used to open nearly every day, just closed whenever the boiler broke, which was probably a euphemism for a snow day now come to think about it.

We did some sledging

We couldn't face walking as far as the West Hill, particularly as was worried we'd all get cold and wet. Well knew we would.

So instead we wandered down the street pulling our supersonic (more of that later) sledges, called for some friends and found a great little hill on the edge of the East Hill. Sometime after we'd be sledging down it causing it to become a great slippery ice rink of a hill we realised it was actually a shortcut to some houses and middle aged ladies kept trying to walk up with bags of shopping.

However, that did not deter us, we risked the railings leading to the frozen reservoir on one side, brambles on the other and sped, I say, sped down the hill. Our friends had a more sophisticated version of a sledge which was a much more sedate ride, which dare I say I preferred.

We only had two big tantrums between us, laughed at each other, particularly at unskilled turning skills and had a brilliant time. Roll on tomorrow's snow day!

It's a snow day today. Yay! Just need to venture down to town and see if we can get a sledge. If not the bodyboard will be put in to use again. Without me on it this time, as now M more important think he'll be working even on snow day. Shame.

My World will get better a bit bigger soon

Things are changing in the tattyhouse this week; smallest child is full time at school (with the proviso that we pull her back to part time if she gets too tired), M starts a new job - and we're all very proud of him, and I, um, have registered to do two courses. Of course (geddit) I could not just start with one but am about to undertake hopefully, quite low level morning a week courses in Art and Design and in Creative Writing. Not sure I have a novel in me, and have only just realised I have a 'voice' so am keen to just keep trying on the basics; i.e. write stuff that makes sense and does not bore people too much.

And as for Art and Design, I'm really excited about that too - and its local and up the hill which always makes me happy. Rumour has it we might do some lino printing too and I can't forget how utterly satisfying making marks in to lino with a sharp scraper is. I think the last time I did it was during my GCSE's when I did a project on my hands. Or it might have been washing up, but I remember talking lots of hand photos and have a nice unlined one to look back on.

We're all going to be busier than ever - but planning is a great thing. Oh, and I've got a lovely moleskin diary to write it all in so I don't mind.

Falling apart at the seams...

OK, so remember my neck issue where possibly stress made it a bit itchy and red. Well it turns out, after a visit to my helpful nhs pharmacist I am actually suffering from fungus neck. It sort of is better than my fungus face episode a number of years ago, as it not on my face. But is sort of ten times worse as it looks so so ugly and it really hurts.

Luckily there is an answer and it is some supersonic athlete's foot cream. Which is a fungus too, although hopefully a different kind. Oh, and lovely pharmacist said; 'Ooh, it looks red and a bit wet.' Grim.

And I've got some spots on my chin.