NAFAI (naaarf aye) anyone?

Did you have this acronym when you were like 16 or was it specifically a  Zimbabwean teenage thing we had going - scribbling it all over our satchels and school books in bad Goth inspired calligraphy. Zimbabwe and Goth in same sentence - picture khaki and dark bottle green. Oh, sorry, that was my school uniform for a while.  Euuuugh, damn that facebook, all these old names and memories appearing on my screen! Shami Khan am still looking for you - Google me godamn it!

Anyway, back to the acronym - it stands for “No Ambition and F*”k All Interest” and that kinda sums up my lack of doing almost anything interesting or productive for the last few weeks.  I mean things have been done… all same same routine ticking over in a mechanical sort of way,  we’ve dealt with colds, and trips, family visits and school, nightmares and a toddler in our bed far too much and the only creative thing I’ve achieved apart form daily dinners is lots of crochet. Lots. I’ve escaped into the almost silent meditation the wool and hook offers, creating mostly scarves for the family but I’ve also made a clutch bag, and have started my first freeform piece which requires a little more thought.  But my head is in a real funk - too many thoughts and ideas and concerns jostling about in too small a space - but you don’t need to be a part of it - there are enough other, more enjoyable things to go and occupy your time with, I am going to make myself a cup of tea now and maybe these pics will inspire!

 

The problem with flying to the sun?

Remember this post?

Did I give you the detail that MOL and E brought their weekend trip to Israel forward by a week so that they would be away with the Chi over the same weekend I went on the yoga retreat? 

And then I found out that the retreat was actually taking place at some financial services training centre, so  it’s appeal went out the window and I opted for Jerusalem and sunshine. 

And the Bokke have been playing like superstars and they have made it to the final this Saturday.

We  leave for Jerusalem in the morning, and when I Google “World Cup Rugby” and “Sports Bars” and “Jerusalem” I get a few listings about line dancing in Tel Aviv but nothing about great venues to watch the most beautiful game in Jerusalem.

Hmmmmm, I think I may be in the dog box on Saturday night.   

Is it just me?

My sister is staying over and every evening we compete for the laptop. She wins, mostly cause my brother has commissioned a long boring piece of work from me so I graciously concede, and that means no writing (here!); no reading, but a bunch of photos have been framed and hung and I even got to shorten some curtains.

Have you ever had the universe nudge you so hard you practically get the message brand across your body? Metaphorically I mean?

I’ve had 10 days of it. First some jobs came my way interesting enough to nudge me into action, and then the school teachers spoke to me about extending Chiara’s school hours so she can move up to the three year old class in the new year.  And then I went shopping and there are just so many things out there I really really want that the urge to work and earn has risen strong in me. It’s been galvanising. Sort of. Galvanising can be a fairly slow motion to the queen of procrastination.  Watch.  See when I next post about this.

So what have I been passionate about this week?

• The Rugby.
• Sticking up for Gordon Brown!  I wish he would stop the spin electioneering and just go do.  The last thing I want is a toff boy (aka Cameron) gaining any more ground with his saber rattling. 
  
• The Rugby.
  
• Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip - just the best thing on the small box at the moment - fast paced, light, brilliantly acted - unfathomable that it is not to be continued past season one. (have I mentioned this before?)
• The Rugby.
  

In other news my daughter sprinkled an entire tube of purple glitter in the conservatory this afternoon.

Everything shimmers.   

more food facts.

My Waitrose delivery has just arrived, with lots of new things for the freezer and a quarter tub of melon sorbet was just tempting me taking up too much space, so I ate it.

What would you do?

In other news I have been writing and writing (not here I know), and reading and cooking and cleaning and all the normal shite.

Today my younger brother arrives for two nights and I am making comfort food.

The End!

snapshot of a week..

For the last three days our broadband just stopped working at about 7:30pm and only reconnects in the morning, am hoping this will not be a long term thing and in the meantime  moderate withdrawal symptoms have been experienced, (not nearly as bad as no strong black coffee first thing) but I have read the physical papers, finished SunDog and been in bed by 11:30 which has left me feeling totally unsurprisingly refreshed. 

Here is a glimpse of the last 6 days:

 

Those Flamingos… in Kensington. Really.

The soup… from this book over which more fuss should be made because I have yet to make a dish out of it that hasn’t a) worked and b) impressed (although the mushroom  duxelle one was rather a labour of mud love).  We came across Galton Blackiston on this trip to Norfolk almost a year ago and I refer to him often.

It goes like this:

1 X butternut (+- 800g)
75ml olive oil
50g butter
1 X med onion peeled and finely sliced
1 X clove garlic
1.75litres white chicken or veg stock
275ml single cream
fresh parmesan, grated

• Preheat oven to 200^OC
  
• Peel butternut, remove seeds and cut into small cubes, place is small roasting dish and drizzle with olive oil, season and bake until it softens and begins to brown
• in a large saucepan melt butter and cook onions and garlic until soft - add stock and bring to boil. 
  
• Add butternut and cream and bring gently back to boil, simmer for 20 min and whiz through food processor.  (He suggested pushing the liquid through a fine sieve as a last step but that was too Michelin star for a Saturday dinner - the blender was fine enough for us.)
• To serve, gently reheat without boiling, stir in parmesan and season to taste.
  If you are using a bouillon stock like I was - go easy on extra salt as the parmesan can take it over the edge.

In other news I experienced American women networking first hand and realised that they are a different breed from this hick town girl from Chinhoyi.  I think I was the only antipodean in the room and it was in.tim.id.ating. bah!

Viva the Bokke!

There is NOTHING more exciting that a well played game of rugby played by my team in the lead up to the world cup.

NOTHING!

 Our boys are looking FINE!

cabin fever

Yep,

it’s getting to me, I think I need to go for a swim.

She’s better, energy level are way high and i need to catch up again! 

on the couch

Today we found out more about croup than we wanted to know.  It involved a trip to the hospital, a few racing hearts and any  weekend plans scuppered in exchange for the couch.  We’ve been banned from seeing children - at least until Tuesday.

Not that the couch didn’t feature highly in weekend plans - what with the Rugby World cup, cricket, and Israel playing England soccer (oooo the conflict!) E was more than happy to have an excuse to stay home and hibernate. 

 So what do you do if you are housebound with a child that needs to be still and quiet and a man who needs to watch men play rough?

I got this girlie mag to drool over, and some of this, 

and we made my second most favourite spaghetti recipe (which I’ve written out below) and a good night was had by all, even the Chi who got to watch too much strawberry shortcake, and is currently splayed out next to me on the couch with the cat curled in her arms.

 

  

 

 

Spaghetti with fresh tomato

• 500g ripe (best you can lay your hands on) tomatoes; peeled, seeded and chopped
• splash of olive oil
  
• small handful fresh basil leaves, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• salt, pepper and pinch of chilli
  

Put tomatoes in a bowl and mix in all the ingredients (salt, pepper and chilli to taste), mix well, cover with cling film and set aside for min 30 minutes, longer if you have time for the flavours to mingle and he remove the garlic. Cook spaghetti until al dente, drain and toss into raw sauce et voila!

Its one of the simplest, freshest dishes but don’t bother making it if your tomatoes ain’t ripe.