The Boredom of the Brain Numbed Distance Student

25 very random things

2009-03-10T14:39:00.000-07:00

1. I'm not a natural blonde ;)

2. The only vegetable I won't eat is Okra (yuk yuk yuk yuk YUK!!!)

3. I can't eat wheat, dairy or soya :(

4. I was in an American documentary about childbirth which went out to 12 million viewers (but I never got to see it).

5. My favourite number is 2, I was born on 22nd, husband on 2nd and daughter on 2nd.

6. I had teeth when I was born.

7.I am crawling my way through a degree in Nutritional Medicine, which I will finish in 2012, just in time for the end of the world.

8. I see dead people on a fairly regular basis.

9. I love travelling, and hate staying in one place for too long.

10. I am terrible at throwing things away.

11. I was a bit of child prodigy, but peaked at age 11 and it's been downhill ever since.

12. I hate filling in forms and birthday cards and always make a mistake.

10. I love singing, horse riding, walking and being out in the fresh air, communing with nature.

11. I love scalding hot baths.

12. I talk a lot, and can't shut up once I get going.

13. I have written the first few chapters of about ten books so far, but my dream is to finish one and get it published.

14. I love cooking, but NEVER stick to a recipe.

15.My nickname is 'Mrs. Doolittle' as I love animals and think I can talk to them.

16. I once sat next to the marketing director of Playboy Enterprises on a plane to America. He was one of the nicest men I have met, and wrote to me for years afterwards. Our postman used to look at husband with respect at Christmas when the Playboy card came.

17. I have been kissed by Richard E. Grant, Uri Geller and Midge Ure.

18. I am addicted to computer games, especially Solitaire and Backgammon.

19. I have a secret passion for trashy Murder mysteries like Murder She Wrote and Diagnosis Murder.I also adore American Comedy like Friends, Frasier. And I watch Neighbours!

20. When I was younger I was a New Romantic, and had blue, red, pink green and orange hair (though not all at the same time).

21. I was a porker when I was young, and my nickname was 'Tank' (thanks to my sister Deb).

22. I am 1/8 Italian.

23. I used to be a church chorister and once sang in Lichfield Cathedral (the highpoint of my singing career apparently)

24. I love scorching hot weather and being warm - I put on a polo neck in October and don't take it off till March (I don't wear the same one obviously)

25. I am probably an alien.

Back from the mists of time

2009-03-05T13:09:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been a while. Can't really offer much explanation other than I couldn't be bothered and didn't have much to say. Not sure that last part has changed much, but I felt a rush of warmth for my old blog, and wanted to breathe some life into it, so here goes.
Anyway, I'm still here, and, can you believe it, still studying. I can't believe it either, but there it is. Time flies when you having fun, as they say, but not, apparently when you are studying via distance-learning. It's like purgatory. At least I'm still here, I believe some of my fellow students have dropped out, or worse. It's not for the faint-hearted.
Plus I have been diverted by the charms of Face Book, but it's becoming too much like hard work. At least on here I know no one is likely to read my blurb, it's purely between me and the cosmos. (but don't let that put you off - I don't mind the odd comment or two).
So if you would care to join me on my last few months of the longest journey of my life, please do.
I'd be glad of the company.

My Poor Neglected Blog!!!

2007-04-04T04:43:00.000-07:00

A recent comment prompted me to check on my blog, which has received scant attention this year.
I just seem to have been overtaken by so much stuff!! Will try to think of something interesting to comment on in the next week. But don't hold your breath...

Vote organic

2007-01-24T10:50:00.001-08:00

I was in Tesco's the other day, and overheard a very old man ask his equally ancient wife if she wanted the organic broccoli, as there was none of the 'normal' broccoli left. 'Organic? Ooooh no! I don't want any of that stuff!' she said, as though he had offered her pink sprouts from the planet Zarg.
I was stunned. Did this woman not realise that for probably the first fifty years of her life, she had eaten nothing else, because back then, there was only 'organic' produce?

This just confirmed to me that organic produce has had probably the worst marketing campaign since the Sinclair C5. In reality, it should need no marketing at all - it's just stuff grown as it's always been grown, for hundreds of years, until scientists discovered pesticides, allowing farming to become big business. Instead, it is thought of as the food of sandal-wearing hippies, or neurotic filmstars.

I always buy organic produce, not just for the taste, but for ethical, environmental and health reasons. I just object in principle to the direction farming is taking, with intensive farming, and GM crops, and the only way I can try to change this is to buy organic produce.

I'm aware of all the negative press, about how goods from abroad can't be guaranteed to be organic, etc. etc., but we all need to pressure the supermarkets to stock 'real' food, which has been produced in the way nature intended. I come from a farming background, so I do know what I am talking about. I know that the spray commonly sprayed on vegetables was so toxic that one needed radiation-style protective clothing to handle it.

I know it's expensive, but at the end of the day, we're just to used to having cheap food, clothes etc. Clothes are cheap because they are produced in third world sweat shops, food is cheap because it is factory-farmed. I prefer quality, and would rather go without than eat rubbish.
I believe a chicken should cost a tenner to produce - when I was a child, chicken was a treat we had on high days and holidays.I happen to think a chicken's life is worth more than £1.99, and would rather have an organic chicken once a fortnight, than a battery farmed bird two or three times a week. Also, if you cook as our grandparents used to cook, ten pounds is quite reasonable: roast on Sunday, curry on Monday, then use the carcass for a stew on Tuesday. Ten quid doesn't seem quite so bad for three family meals, does it? A lot cheaper than a pizza each, anyhow.

I make no apology for getting on my soapbox about this - it's my blog, and I'll moan if I want to!
But I would urge everyone to look beyond the price, and realise that food is probably the single most important purchase we make, so don't we deserve to buy the best we can? Buying organic, or free range from supermarkets may not be the perfect solution, but not all of us have access to local organic farmers, or can grow our own veg. At least when you buy an item of organic produce, you are effectively casting a vote, to say: I care about what I eat, I care about how it was produced, and I care about animal welfare, and I care about the environment.'
The quality of the food we eat is of paramount importance. It's all about the transference of energy. If a chicken has been raised in a cage the size of a shoebox, and had a miserable existence, what can its flesh offer you if you eat it? It certainly won't enhance your own existence.
Food doesn't have to be 'organic', but just look for food that has been grown in a way that Nature intended. Try buying from a local farmer, and yes, you will taste the difference, and feel it too.
Ignore the negative propaganda churned out by non-organic farmers, and MP's taking back-handers, and don't forget how much money some of the 'high-rollers' in intensive farming would stand to lose if we all went back to farming organically. If enough of us do it, maybe we can turn the tide, and return farming to the wholesome picture of rural industry that it used to be.
Vote with your food, now.

Happy New Year!

2007-01-18T05:16:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it's the 18th of January, and I haven't blogged for almost a month!
Still don't have much time, but just wanted to wish all a Happy New Year before it seems too
ridiculous.
I have been v.v.busy moving house etc., and am now back to studying hard again.
We still have boxes to unpack, but that's nothing new. When we moved out of our last place, we found boxes which had been moved three times, and had never been unpacked.
Maybe one day we'll open them and find out what's in them ( I wasn't organised enough to
label stuff back then).

All the best, everyone, will visit my regular blogs very soon - I've missed you!

Christmas Unwrapping

2006-12-20T14:51:00.000-08:00

I've done nothing for the past few weeks but pack stuff, unpack stuff, then wrap stuff up again for Christmas.
If you want to keep your stress levels down, I do not recommend a house move the week before Christmas, particularly if you blithely decide you can move yourself. Given that it took two full-size removal lorries to move us out of our previous house into our rented hovel, I think we were being a trifle optimistic. In the end, it took two weeks, about 25 car loads, five large van loads, blood, sweat, a few tears, some very good friends to do it, but we managed it. (You really find out who your real friends are at times like these - it's amazing how many 'bad backs' came on the day before!)

Still, we survived, and I'm finally back on-line, so just wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, especially, Chelley, Jag and Raven. Have a great time, y'all!

Happy Bert Day!!

2006-11-30T10:23:00.000-08:00

It's the 1st of December tomorrow which, as all of my nearest and dearest know, is Bert Day!

For those of you not in the know, Bert Day is named after the Sultan of seventies smalzch, the Prince of piped musak, the Emperor of Easy listening, the ultimate King of Swing - Bert Kaempfert!!
Who? Yes, well, he's no longer a household name, but I bet there isn't a single person alive who hasn't hummed along with one of his toons while in the lift at the shopping mall, or shimmied in the supermarket to his 'Swinging Safari''.
I grew up in the Seventies, my parents were big fans, and his music seemed like the soundtrack to my childhood, particularly at Christmas. We had a family tradition on 1st December that the first Christmas song of the season was always 'Sleigh Ride' by Bert Kaempfert. It was always a cause for huge celebration - even the dog used to go mad when it came on - and Christmas would then officially begin.

When I moved in with my husband, I brought with me a collection of things I couldn't live without, including my cat, all of my books, my piano, and an ancient scratched copy of Christmas Wonderland by Bert. Being the most trendy, most 'happenin' dude alive at the time, he could barely conceal his horror when, on 30th November, I reverently slid Christmas Wonderland out of its sleeve in preparation for the 'big day'.
'What's THAT?' 'You can't be seriously expecting me to listen to that!' were some of the more repeatable comments he fired at me. It was like I'd asked him to wear crimplene trousers.

I just ignored him, knowing that Bert would work his magic, and he'd be hooked.
He indulged me on 1st December, thinking that would be it, not knowing that I had also made a tape for the car, and Bert would accompany everything we did for the next 25 days.

After about a week, he stopped complaining, and I even started to see his toe tapping when he thought I wasn't looking. By the next Christmas, he was the one foraging in the LP cupboard on 30th November. The next Christmas, he was the one horrified to find that Bert was too scratched to play on our superduper new hifi system, and who then spent weeks trying to find a copy on CD, which he eventually had to have imported from Holland.
I didn't say anything - Bert had worked his magic.

The secret is that on that album, Bert has managed to capture every Christmas emotion going, happiness, excitement. jollity, anticipation, even poignant sadness, and it's impossible not to feel something Christmassy when you listen to it. It's just a winner.
I'm not sure how easy it is to get hold of these days - we have burned a zillion CD's to keep us going into the next generation - but if you happen upon a copy, just buy it.
It's canned Christmas, and you'll never look back.

Nutritional nugget number two

2006-11-08T04:07:00.000-08:00

Eat oysters! They are, as we all know, meant to be an aphrodisiac, but this is essentially due to their high zinc content. Zinc deficiency can cause male impotency, which may be where the association to zinc-rich oysters increasing libido evolved.
I am currently studying all minerals, and was astounded at how many times oysters appeared as being one of the best sources of most of them. Other seafood such as whelks and winkles are also good sources of minerals, as are seeds.

You can buy oysters tinned, and stick them in pasta, but obviously the best way to eat them is raw with a glass of champagne. I think me being sick after eating a raw oyster may ruin the romantic mood, however...

The legacy of the ever plunging butt line

2006-11-02T02:31:00.000-08:00

The cleavage is out, apparently. It is our buttocks which are now displayed, with waistbands which creep perilously closer to our crotch with every season's fashions. When 'low-rise' trousers came into fashion, I viewed them with suspicion. I knew this was trouble. I was a child of the eighties, when the only thing poking over your waistband was your collar, and even now, if anything below my ribcage is exposed, I feel as though I'm catching a chill.

That is my real problem with the 'low-riders'. They're so darned uncomfortable, especially in the winter, and they fall down all the time - it's just so annoying. It's now impossible to buy any trendy jeans which aren't cut to the crotch. I went out to buy myself a pair of new skinny jeans, hoping that now hemilines are narrowing, maybe they would use the extra fabric to raise the waistband! I searched high and low for any pair with a zip longer than two inches, but nope. I bought a pair anyway, but will just have to wear a nice, long vest with them to keep out the cold - so attractive.

I've also lost my waist thanks to low-rise waisbands, though I will agree that I've had to work harder to achieve a flat tum. I tried on a couple of skirts I've had for years, and I still take the same dress size, but doing up the waistband, which actually fastened around the waist, felt like doing up a whalebone corset. Of course, it could be just old-age, but I think we're so used to slouching round with our trousers hanging off our butts that our waistlines have become obsolete. It's evolution.

I also resent constantly having to view exposed underwear wherever I go. Having a coffee in a restaurant the other day, I didn't know where to look for a view that didn't put me off my gluten-free brownie. On almost every chair, women's bums spilled over their trousers, sometimes exposing pairs of dodgy knickers, and sometimes just lots of bulging flesh.
Even the slimmest of ladies carry some weight in that area, and some of these ladies had kissed slim hips goodbye a long time ago. In one way, it's nice that they felt so liberated, but for the casual observer, not so much.

I was going to take a picture with my phone and post it on here, but I read a piece on the 'Peeping Thong' pest at the University of Victoria. Women were outraged by photos of their exposed butts being posted on the web. I had to ask myself why, after idling counting at least six exposed thongs over coffee. If they were that bothered, they could always wear a vest...

Apart from the occasional glimpse of a designer logo on the waistband of their boxers, men remain largely untouched by this fashion phenomenon. Probably why it has hung around for so long. Look at all the fabric clothes manufacturers must be saving by leaving all of those hip bones uncovered, and I bet vest sales have gone through the roof, too, for the less inhibited among us, and those trying to avoid being on PeepingThong.com.

Am I the only woman that feels this way, or are there more of you out there that want to sit down in comfort, without the fear of exposing next week's washing (or ending up on 'Peeping Thong'!)?

Nutritional nuggets

2006-10-12T13:06:00.000-07:00

Thought I might periodically share some nuggets of useful dietary info with you, as I discover them on my course.
As you know by now, I have excluded quite a few things from diet, and sugar is one of them. Sugar is bad, bad, bad! Just don't eat it!
The WHO (World Health Organisation) guidelines for RDA (recommended daily amount) of refined sugar is....zero. We just don't need to add it to our diet, as we obtain our energy from so many other sources.
Unfortunately, most of us have a sweet tooth, and there is an alternative! It's called Xylitol, and you may also have heard of it as Sorbitol. It has none of the negative effects on blood sugar and teeth that normal sugar does, and you need to eat far less, as it is very sweet. This link will take you a site that tells you all about its positive benefits, http://www.xlear.com/xylitol/ but the great thing about it is that it's perfectly natural.
Even better, you can now buy it in Tescos! As with everything remotely healthy, it is quite expensive (around £2,75 for 225g -eek!). The good news is that as you cut down on sugar, you will need to eat less and less, and 225g will last you ages. I bake my legendary breakfast muffins with it, and it tastes great.
Try it and let me know what you think.

American Graffiti? You were never in the running...

2006-10-11T12:26:00.000-07:00

The entrance to Juliet's balcony in Verona, where you will find the most pointless notice in Italy - if you look closely on the left, you'll see that the entire wall is covered!

Here's a close up of the wall.

American Graffiti may be the name of a famous film, but when it comes to the real thing, the Italians have cornered the market.
I went to Italy in the summer, and was staggered to find a rash of graffiti almost everywhere I went. I was re-visiting places I had previously been to, and didn't remember graffiti being quite so ubiquitous, but maybe it has always been there. The disappointing thing for me was that it was so indiscriminate - even the Doge's Palace in Venice had been scrawled on. Obviously, so many tourists visit Venice that it could have been German or English graffiti, but having seen five or six Italian cities all similarly daubed, my bet is that it was homegrown stuff.

I did a bit of research, and the very Italian-sounding word 'graffiti' is actually an Italian word! Though the first daubings were found in Turkey, the Romans were huge graffiti artists, so no wonder the Italians are such prolific vandals - it's part of their culture. Now I am part Italian, and don't feel the need to immortalise myself by scribbling on city walls, but maybe my need to blog comes from some latent graffitic tendency!

I know some people consider it to be an art form, and maybe that does work in very urban settings, but please, you Italians - keep your marker pens off the marble!!

See you later, procrastinator........much,much later

2006-08-31T13:22:00.000-07:00

I am the world's worst procrastinator.
Instead of studying today, I have updated both of my blogs, answered all of my emails, played a couple of games of Solitaire, made lots of 'vital' phonecalls, stared into space, talked to the cat, and even done some housework.

Does anyone else have this problem, or is it just me?
Please reply, replying to you will give me another excuse not to do any work.

Living on light

2006-08-30T11:38:00.000-07:00

I have successfully used nutrition to cure my own serious medical problems, and I know it
works, but to maintain my health, I need to cut a LOT of things out of my diet: wheat, sugar, dairy, soya, red meat, processed food, alcohol and some pulses. Don't get me wrong, I love healthy food - I'm one of the few people who drool over tofu and broccoli, and alfalfa sprouts, quinoa, and I think seaweed salad is yummy. (honest).
My six year old has yet to be convinced, however, and prefers sausages and fish fingers.

I don't like having to cook lots of different meals, and manage to cook for my family while still avoiding all of my taboo foods, without my six year old picking up on how healthy her diet is (except for the time I gave her seaweed - she didn't like that, and was backed up by one of my friends who threatened to call social services if I gave it to her again!)

Still,it's easier than you might think, if a little taxing to think of new recipes, but sometimes, oh how I long for a straightforward bacon sandwich on white bread with ketchup.
Or clotted cream ice cream with caramel sauce and nuts, or banoffee pie, or, chocolate brownies, or a hazelnut latte, or, well you get the idea that I sometimes fall off the wagon spectacularly.

I was particularly interested, therefore, to hear about a bunch of people who don't eat anything at all, called Breatharians. ( I like 'Freshairians better!).
(http://www.angelfire.com/stars3/breathe_light/breatharianism.html)
Well, I have read in the Celestine Prophecy that very evolved souls could begin to absorb energy from around them, negating the need to actually eat, and this seemed to be the same sort of thing. I understand the concept, but this bunch seem a bit dodgy. One of them, a certain Wiley Brooks, is currently running a course for billionares only. Well, that should keep the riff raff out. http://www.breatharian.com/WileyBrooks-altinate.htm

Given my chosen course of study, I am naturally a little sceptical about the validity of this claim, especially as the body posesses a highly evolved digestive system. I am open minded, however,as I think we are all programmed to eat far too much. It's big business at the end of the day - the profit margin on food is higher than pretty much anything else.

Also, if everyone were to live on light, I'd be out of a job!

You are me and I am you?

2006-08-23T05:47:00.000-07:00

I have recently become intrigued by the theory that each of our souls can be living thousands of lives simultaneously.
Is this the reason that we are drawn to other people, because they are somehow like us, when in fact maybe they are us?
Is it another explanation for people 'being on our wavelength'?
And are our 'soul mates' literally that, extensions of ourselves?

Well, you have to admit it's a point to ponder, which somehow seems more plausible the more you think about it.
I sometimes think I get a glimpse of 'other me's' doing things that I wish I could do - are they all living my life, but have made different choices/decisions? (and why are they having more fun than me?!!!)

Can we tap into these collective experiences and learn from our collective mistakes somehow?

Wheat-free breakfast muffins

2006-08-17T04:00:00.000-07:00

I'm going to share my 'top-secret' muffin recipe with you.
They are packed full of goodness, and contain all you need to start the day with a happy bod!
They are not very sweet, so be prepared, or add more sugar (if you must!)
I am addicted to them, and there is disappointment all round if we run out!

Wheat-free breakfast muffins

2oz/60g rolled oats
9fl0z/260ml milk/water/fruit juice/soya milk (basically any liquid, depending on your particular dietary intolerance!)
60z/170g flour (I use a mixture of rice flour and Dove's Farm gluten-free)
20z/60g linseeds
2tsp baking powder
2tsp bicarbonate of soda
sprinkle of salt
2 eggs
2-3oz(60g-70g) sugar (I use a mix of fructose and xylitol)
1 tps vanilla essence
0.5 tsp mixed spice
3floz/90ml olive oil or melted butter
2-30z/60-70g) mixed nuts/seeds
150g blueberries (or any fruit)

1.Grease muffin tins with butter. Preheat oven to gas 5-6 or 190-200C/375-400F.
2.Combine oats, linseeds, bicarbonate of soda and liquid in a bowl and leave to soak.
3. In another large bowl, sift flour, baking powder and salt. Add the blueberries and coat well with the flour.
4. Now add the eggs, sugar, vanilla and oil/butter to the oat mixture and mix well.
5.Pour the wet mixture into the dry and mix well - batter should be lumpy but no dry flour should be visible.
Add more liquid if necessary until thick but not too sloppy.
6.Spoon into muffin cases, or into muffin tin, and bake for about 20 mins until firm.

I add lots of other fruits, even organic tinned fruit, using the juice, but fresh fruit is better. Fresh apple is lovely too - add a little more spice.

Let me know what you think!

Back to life, back to cat pee.

2006-07-21T13:14:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm back. Got back from Gatwick at 2am last night. The plane was delayed, but actually made it home 20 mins earlier than scheduled. Can airline pilots speed? Ours did seem to be on a bit of a mission - he touched down like a brick, (I think I have whiplash!) then proceeded to continue through the airport at about 80mph for about a mile. He took one corner so hard and fast, I'd swear the wing tip touched the ground, and we were all convinced that he'd forgotten he was still driving the plane, and was planning to join the M25 and drive home.

Had a great time, but it's harder coming home to a house that isn't your own, especially when it smells of cat pee. We think our cat has been routinely peeing in our pot plants in protest at no longer having a cat door, and somehow we didn't notice the smell until we'd been away and the heat brought it out. Either that, or my mum shut next door's cat in while she was watering the plants, and won't own up to it. Either way, it stinks, and is adding to the general misery of returning home. I've managed to fumigate most of the offending areas, but I just can't pinpoint where the last few smells are coming from.

I looked on the internet for ways to get rid of cat pee smell - did you know there is a special 'Black Light' which shows up exactly where the pee is? Apparently, pee has a crystalline structure which glows under fluorescent light - how groovy! (http://www.urine-off.com.au/) I haven't yet managed to track down a UK supplier for these, so if anyone knows where I can get one, please let me know.

Well, Italy has given me lots of 'blog-fodder', so watch this space for some (hopefully) interesting observations on all things Italian. For the moment, though, I need to pee-off and get some pee off.

The clouds have passed..

2006-07-03T03:11:00.000-07:00

Just to let you know that I'm in a much better mood this week (thanks for your support, Michele!)
The sun is shining, and all is well. I get freaked out actually by how different I feel when it is raining - it really affects my mood. England is probably not the place for me to live then!
Strangely, I do love places like Norway, which hardly has the best weather, but it's somehow different when coupled with dramatic scenery.
Having said that, I'm off to find some sun for two weeks, hence the cheery mood. I can really do with a holiday, so am going off to visit the remains of the Roman Empire, and aim to come back refreshed, with lots to blog about.
See you soon..

Newsflash

2006-06-27T14:04:00.000-07:00

Just to let you all know, I've changed the name of the blog.
It seems to suit my plummeting mood better.

I have barely seen the light of day for over a week - my little sweetie has been
ill with measles (yeah, OK let's not get into the whole MMR thing), and so I haven't even
been out to do the school run.
It also coincided with Hurricane Hormone (see previous blog), so things have just gone
from bad to worse.

I did drag myself around the gym, but in the evenings everyone there is so young, fit and healthy, which just depressed me more. I prefer the geriatric shift during the day, where the mean age is 65. It's the only time I still feel young and pert.

For the zillionth time I ask myself why I didn't go to university when I was young and carefree, not now when I have a family and am knackered all the time.
Of course the answer to that would be that I've only just decided what I want to do when I grow
up.
It's just that when you're (allegedly) grown-up, you have so much stuff to do that gets in the
way of anything you may want to do. Hence I sit here slumped over my books at 10pm, and writing this blog because I'm too bored and tired to do any studying.

Being a student of Nutritional Medicine, I can't even make life easier by buying convenience foods, because they are, as you know, the work of Satan. As are microwaves and non-stick pans.

Anyway, enough of this drivel, which apparently noone is going to read anyway, judging by the total lack of interest I have attracted lately. I'm going to give up and watch telly.

Manic menstrual Monday

2006-06-26T08:19:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling a bit grumpy today.
So I thought I would devote this post to naming all the things which turn me into
a grumpy old bag. Maybe you would like to share some of your grumps too, if you can be bothered...

Unripe avocado.
My period. (Don't get me started on this one)
Shopping.
Housework.
My mother.
My mother-in-law.
The rest of my family.
Rainy days.
Not being able to think of anything for my blog.(because I have my period)
Better blogs than mine (which is pretty much ALL of them).
Being disorganised (because I have my period)
Women who breeze through their period without any problems.
Greasy hair.
Spots.
Hormones.
People who try and cheer me up.
People who don't try and cheer me up (the gits)
Giving up caffeine (why did I choose this week?)
Not being able to find a decent house to buy.
Living in a rented house the size of a shoe box.
Realising my husband will be home in ten minutes, I haven't started dinner, I have no idea what dinner is, and there is no food in the house because I hate shopping.(because I have my period)

Sorry to depress you.
Still, I seem to have identified a common theme - I don't think the Evening Primrose supplements are working...

Living on light

2006-06-19T03:13:00.000-07:00

I have successfully used nutrition to cure my own serious medical problems, and I know it
works, but to maintain my health, I need to cut a LOT of things out of my diet: wheat, sugar, dairy, soya, red meat, processed food, alcohol and some pulses. Don't get me wrong, I love healthy food - I'm one of the few people who drool over tofu and broccoli, and alfalfa sprouts, quinoa, and I think seaweed salad is yummy. (honest).
My six year old has yet to be convinced, however, and prefers sausages and fish fingers.

I don't like having to cook lots of different meals, and manage to cook for my family while still avoiding all of my taboo foods, without my six year old picking up on how healthy her diet is (except for the time I gave her seaweed - she didn't like that, and was backed up by one of my friends who threatened to call social services if I gave it to her again!) Still,it's easier than you might think, if a little taxing to think of new recipes, but sometimes, oh how I long for a straighforward bacon sandwich on white bread with ketchup.
Or clotted cream ice cream with caramel sauce and nuts, or banoffee pie, or, chocolate brownies, or a hazelnut latte, or, well you get the idea that I sometimes fall off the wagon spectacularly.

I was particularly interested, therefore, to hear about a bunch of people who don't eat anything at all, called Breatharians. ( I like 'Freshairians better!).
(http://www.angelfire.com/stars3/breathe_light/breatharianism.html)
Well, I have read in the Celestine Prophecy that very evolved souls could begin to absorb energy from around them, negating the need to actually eat, and this seemed to be the same sort of thing. I understand the concept, but this bunch seem a bit dodgy. One of them, a certain Wiley Brooks, is currently running a course for billionares only. Well, that should keep the riff raff out. http://www.breatharian.com/WileyBrooks-altinate.htm

Given my chosen course of study, I am naturally a little sceptical about the validity of this claim, especially as the body posesses a highly evolved digestive system. I am open minded, however,as I think we are all programmed to eat far too much. It's big business at the end of the day - the profit margin on food is higher than pretty much anything else.

Also, if everyone were to live on light, I'd be out of a job!

Wax has waned.

2006-06-02T12:03:00.000-07:00

I love London, and try to go at least a couple of times a year. I must admit, though, the bombings really shocked me - I had been walking my daughter around Tavistock and Russell Square only a couple of weeks before they happened. It all just seemed a little too close for comfort.
Still, not wanting to let these things rule our life, we decided to return, this time staying in Greenwich, an area we had not previously explored.
We managed to stay for five days without travelling by tube once! Instead, we used the
river transport, which was fantastic, and much more fun. I was amazed that it wasn't more popular with commuters and tourists, though I must admit it was the first time I had ever thought to use it.
You get to see all the sights, and can get to within a short distance of many of the major attractions.
View from London River Transport.

We also went to Madam Tussauds, which I would not recommend. I thought looking at dummies of famous people sounded a little dull, and only really went to get into the Planetarium. To our disappointment, and everyone else's, judging by the moaning going on in the queue, the Planetarium was closed.
Having already got the tickets using my Tesco clubcard vouchers, we went in anyway. The tickets are normally around 20 quid a throw, and had I paid this, I would have felt tempted to register my displeasure by chucking a large brick through the window.
It was dull, dull, dull!!!
It seemed to please the foreign tourists, who were behaving as though Robbie Williams really had turned up with a glint in his eye. They were all fighting to get their pictures taken with 'the stars'. I had to restrain myself from shouting 'They're just dummies, you dummies!!!!' Granted, some of them were very lifelike, (though some were crap, and some I just had no idea who they were) and I appreciate that it is very skilful to create these figures , but frankly, I just don't see the point of it all. They were about as exciting as a Top Shop window.

Ginger rubs shoulders with
the 'stars'.

Is this Ivana Trump, or
Joanna Lumley?

Brad, with a bad case of sunburn.

Is this just the ennui of advancing age talking? Am I just a cynical old bint, or does anyone else who has parted with a crisp twenty for this 'attraction' feel the same?Judging from the restless mob in the queue, the only stars most people had turned up to see were in The Pleiades...

Oh Blog off...

2006-05-07T13:19:00.000-07:00

I've been waiting for this to happen. Yes, at first it was a novelty, then it was quite therapeutic, but ultimately, I knew it would happen. Writing my blog has become just another chore: Feed cat, finish assignment, feed husband /child, do washing, make beds, write blog.

At first it was a joy to ramble on regardless, without the restrictions of word counts and referencing. Now I feel the pressure to come up with something new every few days.
Does everyone else feel this responsibility for their blog?
Does it start to rule your life?
Do you lie awake at night thinking of things to say?

Mine is but a humble blurb - some blogs I've seen rival the Times for news, views and pics - this must take some serious effort.

How do you do it without it taking over your life?!!

Maybe I'm just a lazy little blogger........

Solitaire's the only game in town...

2006-04-20T03:10:00.000-07:00

I'm back after a particularly traumatic house move. I'll spare you the details, but if I say that five days before were due to move out of our house, we still didn't have anywhere to live, you get the gist of it. And now, after weeks of packing and unpacking, assisted by grouchy husband and bored, whingeing child, sitting on my bum studying, alone and un-pestered, suddenly seems a much more attractive prospect.

So here I am, and of course, I can't just get straight down to it. Must check all my emails, have coffee, eat chocolate (hey - I'm not a qualified nutritionist yet!), and of course, update my blog!!
Priorities first. Then, although I will try and fight the addiction, I know I will have a game (or two) of Solitaire before I start.

I can't count the amount of games of Solitaire I have played since starting this course. It helps me concentrate, or so I tell myself. I need it to get my brain into gear before I try to study. Really, I'm just an addict. I'm not sure what the attraction is, though I do find it almost meditative. My particular poison is Spider Solitaire, medium setting.
Not too easy, but not too hard (the idea is not to have to THINK!).

I've tried the others, Freecell etc., but they just don't cut it. I even have the occasional game of Chuzzles, but it just depresses me. I can't get beyond level 13, and the fluffy little critters stay disturbingly imprinted on my eyelids for hours afterwards, which can't be a good thing. So for me, Spider Solitaire is where it's at, and I don't care who knows it. I may be a complete saddo, but I'm proud, despite constant derision from my family (hmph! as though they could talk, the hours they spend on virtual race sites and 'Paperdoll Heaven').

I did get a bit twitchy a while ago when my daughter told her teacher that Daddy's hobbies were football and motor racing, but Mummy 'likes playing cards on the computer'. Hmm. That did hit home, making me sound like the saddest saddo in Sadtown. I did cut the hours down after that, and now have my addiction under control!
So, now it's just the odd few games during the day, when I need a change from molecules and enzymes. After all, you have to admit, 'Solitaire' is a pretty appropriate diversion for a 'Lonely Learner'!

Virtually Existing.

2006-03-20T12:05:00.000-08:00

I actually went out the other day. I felt the sun's warmth kiss my pale skin, with its unhealthy grey pallour, so typical of the student (or other long-term prisoner). I noticed that the crocuses were out, the daffodils were starting to sprout, and that I had missed the snow drops altogether. Spring was upon us, and I had almost let it pass unnoticed.

Obviously I do go out, to do the school run, or for some vital errand that can't be done online, but I have been so engrossed with study that I just don't notice anything any more. I don't meet people if I can email them, or go shopping if I can get it online. Even going out for a walk has become something I do just to stop myself seizing up at my desk. I just don't stop to enjoy anything any more, and I seem to live in a virtual world, because it saves time.

My husband has just been invited to compete in an international Formula One race. He meets up every week with a load of friends from all over the world, and races against them. He speaks to them almost every day, and knows them really well. In reality, it's a virtual race taking place online, against people he's never actually met. Can you call these real relationships? I call him a sad techy git, but that's another matter - we all do it these days.
I had resisted this way of life until starting my course, but am now as bad as anyone else, but I don't ever want to forget that there's a real world out there.

So I'm going to try and work a couple of hours a week into my schedule, just to sit and notice things, to meet a real person for lunch, or go to a shop and touch the real clothes hanging on the rails, or go for a walk, and actually see what's happening around me. I'm trying to get this course finished in three years, but I don't want to feel as though I've wasted three years of my precious life when I might as well have been behind bars.

It's music, Jim, but not as we knew it........

2006-03-14T12:23:00.000-08:00

I used to be a huge Simple Minds fan. I last saw them in concert a couple of years ago, and they are still one of the best live bands I have seen. I used to love the huge, expansive sound they had, with the weird and wonderful chord sequences.

When I was younger, and and in a band, we all used to spend
ages trying to play the chords in the latest Simple Minds single. They were always impossible to duplicate - we were convinced that Mick Macneil, the Minds' keyboard player, had an extra few fingers.
I often used to find our (extremely talented) keyboard player slumped over his DX7,
sobbing 'It doesn't exist, it just doesn't f***ing exist'.

It was those magic chords that gave Simple Minds' music its wonderful, other-worldly quality, and as soon as Mick left the band, the magic left the music. I tried to like the next few albums, but they just didn't have 'it' for me. They slipped another album out last October, which I heard a track from the other day, and well, it wasn't a happy experience.

I just love the Minds so much, and it grieves me not to like anything they do, but this song was really just pants. For those of you who have heard the album, it was 'Dolphins', which contained such memorable lyrics as 'Dolphins swim around'. Weeeeell, yep, they do, but is that the most profound comment you can make about them? Apparently not, as we go on to hear Jim Kerr warbling that 'Dolphins drag me down'. What, literally? Metaphorically? Either way, it was starting to leave me cold, and the music wasn't much better.

Later fans may not agree with me, and certainly I saw on the web that someone had been so moved by the song that they had made their own tribute video to it, so maybe I'm just being picky. Or maybe I just remember better days, when their music made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, for all the right reasons.

It crossed my mind that maybe they were coming up with such dreadful stuff to try and lure Mick out of hiding. I sincerely hope it works. Mick, if you're out there, please come back before things get any worse. At the very least, you could always mail them a couple of chords......

The cat spat on the mat

2006-03-11T08:47:00.000-08:00

The people buying my house came back for another look today. I had scaled down the house status from 'showhome' (please, please buy our house) to somewhere between 'lived-in' (don't want to look too needy, but you still haven't paid your deposit) and 'total pig-sty' (can't back out now, suckers!).

They looked around again, then we had coffee and chatted about the house in general. Now, there isn't really much wrong with our house - it's quite new, but for some reason, I remembered that the extractor fan in the bathroom didn't work. It's not a big deal, but I started to feel uncomfortable about it, and when I feel uncomfortable, I start to ramble. This is not a good thing. My mouth goes into mach one, and in order to avoid any uncomfortable silences, I will say ANYTHING. The trouble is that it's not usually the silences that are uncomfortable, just the things I say.

In the wake of many an inappropriate comment, I've often wondered why I do this. I think I have an over-developed sense of guilt. I'm not a Catholic, but I should have been. I'd make a really good one, though I would never be out of confession.

Anyway, today, there was no stopping me.
The silences got longer, as we ran out of polite conversation,and they tried to think of more things to ask us about the house, and I steamed on, rabbiting about any old rubbish. (don't mention extractor fan, DON'T mention extractor fan).

Having already blurted out that we still didn't have anywhere to move to, and that the deeds of our house were missing, I thought I needed to find some safer subject matter, so waffled on about the cat. He's got a bit of a weight problem, and I thought it would be vaguely amusing to tell them how he can no longer fit through the cat door. The cat, who doesn't like people mentioning his weight, shot me a look which would have gained him instant entry through the gates of Hell, and moulted huge clumps of hair onto the carpet. (How can they just DO that at will?)

Obviously, this made me slightly more uncomfortable. My brain searched desperately for a relevant subject. So I thought I'd tell them, quite topically, about all the big, slimy hairballs he's been hoiking up onto the carpet recently. The comment hung in the air like a silent fart in a yoga class. There was tumbleweed, and everything. I was aware of some slight tension in the air, but couldn't think why. I did a mental check - I hadn't mentioned, sex, religion, politics, or even the war. Then realisation dawned. It's not just any carpet with big slimy hairballs on it. It's not even my carpet with big slimy hairballs on it. It's a soon-to-be-theirs carpet, with big slimy hairballs on it, which, judging by their faces, were getting bigger and slimier by the second.

After that, it was all a bit blurry. I think I recovered the situation, but I think I may have inadvertently dropped out that the extractor fan in the bathroom didn't work......

A moving experience

2006-03-10T04:03:00.000-08:00

Why does moving house in this country (UK) have to be so bloody difficult?
The whole process is too long-winded and tangled up with legal rubbish.
I think it is all designed just to keep estate agents and solicitors in a job.

So far in our move, which should be one of the most straight forward, as we have a cash buyer in rented accommodation, and we are moving into rented ourselves, someone has managed to lose the deeds to my house, which meant that we couldn't exchange contracts this week. This meant that we then couldn't commit to our rental house, and as a result have now lost it to someone else. AAAAAGH! I thought that moving into rented would make things easier, but it just means that at the moment, we don't have anywhere to move into.

If we had to commit to the purchase when we put in our initial offer, as in Scotland, it would make things so much more straightforward, and you could just get on with it. As it stands, you are just so vulnerable until you exchange, which can take ages. I have spoken to friends recently who had packed up all of their stuff, had the removal van waiting outside half full, and then had a phonecall to say that the deal was off. (They were exchanging and completing on the same day - not recommended, but I have done it before. Sometimes there is no other option).

How crap is that?!!!!!!

No wonder it's meant to be one of the most stressful things you can do, but probably only in the UK. Wish me luck.....

Onion, cucumber and apple salad.

2006-03-09T01:30:00.000-08:00

I was given the basic for this recipe years ago by a friend from India. Since then, I've experimented and added my own bits to it.

Basic recipe

2 Large Onions, peeled.
Lemon juice
Sea salt

Slice onions thinly, and lay the slices out on the bottom of a large flat dish. Drizzle the lemon juice over the slices until all of them have had a good soaking. Then sprinkle the sea salt over the slices, not too generously, but make sure all of the slices get a sprinkling. That's pretty much it. my friend used to then cover the dish with cling film and let it marinate in the fridge for a couple of hours, but I serve it straight away. It's great with Indian food, but also with any salad dish.

Variations

I have added cucumber or apple slices/chunks, or both, to the above recipe, and they taste great prepared in the same way. The version with apple tastes great with cheese and biscuits.

Enjoy!

(PS - I have a slight internal struggle about publishing this recipe: as a student of Nutritional Medicine, I wouldn't normally advise adding salt to anything, but as I always say 'moderation in all things' is the key. Just promise me you won't eat it every night!)

Peak Time

2006-03-06T12:28:00.000-08:00

I didn't ever watch Twin Peaks in the eighties, but bought Series One on DVD a couple of years ago, and loved it.
Wanting to know whodunnit, I went out to buy Series Two. Couldn't find it anywhere. I've since discovered that's because it doesn't exist!!

Thousands of people worldwide are crying out for the release of Series Two, but for some unknown reason, the TV companies holding the rights won't release them. There is an online petition with over 27,000 signatures so far, but still no joy.
I beg anyone reading this to go and sign it for me, even if you don't care less - I must find out who killed Laura Palmer! (but please don't mail and tell me - I'd rather wait for the DVD!)

Thinking about it, this happens so many times, and it just makes me so angry. Every time I go into my local supermarket, I can't buy the nice product I discovered last time, because it doesn't sell more than two cases a week, so they discontinue it. Every time I go to buy my child a toy she has seen on TV, it's not available in the UK until next year. We are only allowed to buy what 'they' want us to buy, when 'they' want us to buy it. (Can't really understand that with the toys, though - by the time the toy is available, she's lost interest and moved on to something else, so they've lost a sale. Duh?)

So, I want you to go out to your local supermarket tomorrow and complain about something you can't find. (they are the worst offenders - massive stores bigger than a football pitch, but apparently not enough room to stock both varieties of Pataks pickle?) Anything. Unless you live on chips, beans and cornflakes, there's bound to be something they've decided you can't eat again. Just give them a hard time, and remind them that the consumer is still king.

Hello, and Welcome to my ramblings.....

2006-03-05T12:51:00.000-08:00

I remember hearing the name of the film 'The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner', as a child, and for some reason, the name stuck in my mind. It seemed to strike a chord with me; it really made me stop and wonder what runners thought about while they ran for miles and miles, and how lonely it must be. I don't think I ever saw the film, actually - did do a bit of long distance running for a time, though, and all I ever thought about was if I was going to be able to take my next breath without having a heart attack.

Now, years later, I'm studying for a degree, full-time by distance-learning, and it is very lonely, and the name just seemed so apt. I miss talking to people, just to get all my thoughts out, so I thought I would start this blog as a bit of therapy.
So, watch this space for ramblings on a wide variety of subjects, born out of boredom and the need to communicate!