Wednesday 24 February 2016

#thatsugarfilm

We got around to watching this a few weeks ago (yes - this is a scheduled post).

I'm still thinking about it. I mean personally, if you've decided to go down the path of cutting refined sugar from your diet it's probably not going to teach you anything new. But it was still enjoyable in it's own way. 

Hubby joined me, despite saying he didn't want to - so that was good because he's having trouble fully committing to kicking sugar.We paused it a few times and chatted about things - mainly around the 65 levels of sweetness thing - he told me about a really interesting thing in the States where they have whole teams of biochemists who are employed to find molecules which will get you addicted to things. 

Anyhow, if you haven't seen the film here are some links.  






No matter what you think about the whole 'quitting sugar' thing I think it's a great movie to watch. It was interesting to see how tired he looked at certain points - that said - you've got to remember there was a touch of the 'hollywoods' in there. I found it funny that he kind of grew his hair and looked disheveled in the middle of the film but in the post sugar closer he'd had quite a noticeable hair cut - which made him look a lot better on it's own. Oh well  - what can you do?

Tuesday 23 February 2016

I want a ...I want a ... I want. A.....

I still remember exactly where I was when I first heard this song.  I adore Amanda and the Dolls.



Monday 22 February 2016

Shhh....

Things might be a bit quiet here for the next 3-7 weeks. I'm on three weeks full time work placement for uni - which will be a shock after not actually working a day since late November last year!  This is backed up with a full report on the placement and 2 assignments for two other units all due 11th April.  So...

Anything here between now and then is either scheduled or me procrastinating. 

Friday 19 February 2016

8/52 -My first hedgehog!

8/52 plus bonuses. 

That's right - my first live, wild hedgehog.  

Too cute & gosh they move fast.  Hence my early week 8 post. 




Thursday 18 February 2016

52 Foods - #7: Coconut and berry muffins - little tarts

This was a goodie.  And yes, another one from Sarah Wilson.

We tried some sugar free muffins the other day and they were gross. So gross they didn't make it here - the only place they made it was the bin to be honest.

So I went into these ...  feeling unsure - but they were great. The full, official recipe is here: triple coconut blueberry muffins, but I made some changes and will have another crack with a few more variations - I think these could be amazing as a Portuguese style tart - which is how ours kind of came out.

So.  Here's what I did - as I said - entirely based on the linked IQS recipe above.

Ingredients

3 eggs.
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted.
2 teaspoons rice malt syrup. Left it out - I didn't have any
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract. I used essence 
3/4 cups coconut milk. I used 200ml - because that was a full pack
1/2 cup coconut flour, sifted. I used plain - I didn't have coconut + added about 1/4 cup more as the mix was a bit wet 
1/2 teaspoon baking powder. Left it out - I didn't have any
1/2 cup fresh blueberries, plus more for topping. I used frozen - which was a bad idea - it solidified my coconut oil! ***


Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180ºC/350ºF/Gas Mark 4 and grease a six-hole muffin tray with coconut oil or line with baking paper.

2. Whisk together the eggs, coconut oil, rice malt syrup, vanilla and coconut milk together in a mixing bowl. Stir through the remaining ingredients. I stuffed up here and added in the wrong order - bad I know. Which is where I think the tarty taste came from.

3. Scoop the mixture evenly between the muffin holes and push a few more blueberries on top. Place in the oven to cook for 25-30 minutes or until slightly browned on top.

Mine rose - then dropped completely but they were so good - they were so "custardy" they were amazing - we ate them hot, straight out of the oven for afternoon tea and as hubbys post gym snack. Yum.  We'll be making them again - we have one more punnet of berries in the freezer (they were $2 a pack! woo hoo!) and working on getting them more tart like. A word: I don't think this version would be much good stored or frozen.  I'll look at making some texas or savory muffins soon - or maybe even try some of Sarah's "Meffins" (Meat Muffins) - I do have an amazing Stephanie Alexander base for muffins which is basically fail proof.


*** I'm also thinking some yoghurt or chocolate, coconut oil and frozen blueberries might make a really yummy desert.

Wednesday 17 February 2016

Now reading*:The Alchemyst



Yes, a kids book, well, young adult fiction. Really enjoying it.  Have moved on to book two

I'm really hoping to scream through the full series before uni goes back.  

*Also - Not reading, I'm listening. 

Tuesday 16 February 2016

Chicks really dig it.

Sorry.  Can't help myself.  Lets blame autoplay on youtube. 


Shake & quake

A quickie - I will revisit this one in a few weeks. 

So the other day, before the period which shall be known as self imposed university based torture started (*SIUBT for short?) I was thinking about earth quakes - ya know - as you do. 

Being Aussie - they've not been a big part of my life. I'm told we felt the quake in Gloucester (NSW) when the 1989 quake hit Newcastle - we were visiting my paternal grandparents AND I have very clear memories of driving on to visit my maternal grandfather who lived in red head (newcastle) after the quake. He lost his entire front wall - yes - to the house.

So this leads me to - being prepared for a quake. I've decided to come up with a system and "go bag" (or a few) which means I will be able to leave the house with the dog super quickly if I need to. *edit: Since writing this up and scheduling it the Christchurch quakes happened.  While I'm on the North Island and didn't feel it - it's strengthened my resolve to get a kit made up. 

Obviously there are a number of constraints on what you would take, where you would go etc - but at the most part I want to be able to say "I need X from the garage, Y from the laundry and his bed which doubles as a secure crate."  

Ideally this would mean we could grab our personal files with passports etc, a change of clothes*, clip the lead on the dog and walk out the door. 

So I've asked on some forums I tend to hang about on, I also asked on a facebook page I'm a member of and I'll report back, after "S.I.U.B.T" to report on what makes it on the list. 



Bonus photo: The boy. Road tripping at Christmas time. 



*change of clothes - would be packed in a human go bag. 

Saturday 13 February 2016

Friday 12 February 2016

Revisiting post #1 - one month in.

Excuse me?  How are we half way through February?

I thought I'd revisit the 5 goals I  mentioned in post one - mainly because the first post popped up in my feedly the other day and I'd already forgotten what I'd said - so lets have a quick look back.


But, before that  - I hate Feedly.  I really hate it - I wish google reader would come back.  Blurgh - I use feedly on an android and feedly is always doing strange things - like spitting up really old posts. Anyhow - engugh whinging. 



  1. I have said yes to a 52 photo challenge.
  2. I will cook (or prepare) a new recipe ever week. 
  3. This year we're hoping...I  can study a little more and work a little less. I'll let you know how that goes for me. 
  4. Sew more is self explanatory. I missed my machine which "she" was in storage. 
  5. New skills - polish up the sewing, learn more about photography, take some "moocs" (Massive Open Online Courses) I participated in a few last year and loved them.  This year I am determined to get this one done!


So where am I on this?
  1. The photo thing is progressing well.  The dog has not featured too heavily yet.  Winter may change that. 
  2. The food challenge is going along OK - some weeks I cook 2 or 3 new things and save them up & forward post.  I think this is OK - I'm going to change the parameters to 52 new foods in the year.  Honestly there are weeks when we eat the same or a similar meal multiple times.  Last week for example was steak and potato bake, steak and salad and beef enchiladas followed by chicken and salad - so not ground breaking - but the week before that we had 2 new things. So it all averages out. 
  3. Uni isn't back yet.  I'm trying to rev myself up and get a head start. I keep promising "today" or "tomorrow"  I know starting ASAP - which I can do - will pay off.  Maybe today!
  4. No sewing is happening :( I've cut some patterns, and matched some fabric but I need a little bit of batting and some more interfacing and some other notions - money is tight and I'm just not into cracking out the machine at the moment. 
  5. New skills - slowly. I'm working on the MOOCs.  I've kind of fizzed on the photography. There is a book which is about to be released (the 4th ed) it comes highly recommended - maybe it will help re-invigorate - or maybe the "personal study" will have to go on hold while uni takes front and centre. 


Other points: Lots of E books are being listened to -  I'm enjoying that and the quitting sugar thing is going well.    

Thursday 11 February 2016

Having less.


I'm enjoying having less, this isn't usual for me - I love having stuff.  I still do love having stuff. I have stuff in boxes in the garage which won't be unpacked - but I have it.  Just because. It is special, I'd love to pull some of it out but there isn't enough space. Also things (like 3M hooks) don't stick to the walls in this house. 

However....we've got a lot less of other things. Two bath mats - down from who knows how many - one in use, one in the wash. Three sets of sheets and matching pillow cases. It makes things less complicated and I'm loving it. Even more than that, I'm loving having less food in the house. I love getting to the end of the week and having next to nothing in the kitchen. 

It's been a kind of tight few weeks financially, right now there is no veg in the fridge.  We've got some wraps, a lemon, chili, some garlic, ginger, mayo, mustard, eggs, butter and bacon from the freezer. The freezer is... um...  well.  In terms of actual consumable human food there is one chop, a bag of peas, some bread. The rest is dog food. 

So tonight will be bacon and eggs.  Maybe with beans. Probably in wraps. But it's not a bad thing. It's great. 

We've pulled meals together from very little this week.  An old family staple - curried tuna on rice one night.  A big curry (different kind - don't worry we weren't "over curried" this week). Mashed veg - which I was going to turn into pumpkin soup but I enjoyed it too much on toast. Roasted pumpkin and cauliflower slow roasted in a pan with lots of chili, garlic and ginger. It was sooooo good. Left over curry on toast for one of us last night. 

Point is, not much is going to waste, we're buying just enough to get us through the week. Because we're trying to be sugar free most of it is fresh and used up within the week or fortnight.  Lots of fresh meat, wraps, salads. It's not all good healthy meals - we've found a reasonably decent frozen pizza. There was copious "meals" which included lots of toast and butter.  

Not sure what this week will bring. 

But all in all it's good. It's healthy, it's tasty and I'm really loving it. 

Wednesday 10 February 2016

An "original" by me. Basic curry.

Kind of based on a vindaloo - this was super yummy and fast to make. I mentioned this in an earlier post - it was so good and sugar free. 

I call it an original because I didn't follow any particular recipe - but lets face it - a curry is a curry and I'm sure this has been made countless times in countless homes. 

Curry paste
*** Please note I eyeballed all of these measurements. 

1 teaspoon chilli powder
1 teaspoon Cumin
"a good crack" of pepper
2 teaspoons of minced ginger from a jar
2 generous teaspoons of minced garlic - also from a jar
2 generous teaspoons greek yoghurt (can use more if you need or want)
1 heaped teaspoon coconut oil - very soft but still solid.  You could probably use olive oil or omit if you want. 
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Mix everything together in a cup - it will be a very wet paste.

We added this to three whole chicken breasts and let them simmer til they were done.  2 were removed and sliced and eaten for dinner. 

The third was sliced, added back to the pan with the pan juices (there was a lot). 

We added a can of chick peas, a small handful of rice and a can of crushed tomatoes. This was left on the lowest setting until the rice was soft. 


A nice, almost too bitey curry.  

Absolutely yummo!

Tuesday 9 February 2016

Chicks dig it

Yes - two from me today.  I really wanted to talk about the MOOCs earlier but I didn't want to miss my Tuesday Tune either - especially because I rarely say "oh this is my favourite band/song/version". 

The Foos are in my top 5 but I can say - this is my fav Foo Fighters song  -  I adore it!  

Again, I give my age away but I had this taped onto VHS and watched it over and over and over. 

Ah... vintage foos.  *sigh*

Generator.  Foo Fighters. Live at the Chapel. 


Monday 8 February 2016

MOOC - It's educational!

A quick one from me this morning - and a Tuesday Tune from me this evening. 

One of my 'not resolutions' this year was a bit of extra personal study  - specifically to finish one 'Massive Open Online Course' (a MOOC) on conflict resolution.  https://www.open2study.com/courses/negotiation-and-conflict-resolution

I'll be honest - this is my third attempt at this course - I tired once in September last year and ran out of time, then enrolled again over Christmas and just didn't bother and this time around I was sat on the laptop frantically cramming the last two modules in - I power through two units then kind of loose steam.  Oh well.  It's free, there are no ramifications :) 

But what I will say is that the content is really interesting and I highly recommend the course. I've learnt a lot. I could have taken a lot more on board but it's been a good place to start exploring the theme. 

At the end of the course you get a little certificate which lists your grades.  It's not worth much, but it shows you're committed to learning more on the topic and I suppose that's a good thing. 

I've also completed courses on writing for the web and user experience for the web and Indigenous Studies for Australia and New Zealand which was really fabulous.  I found it really interesting and did it just before the move to NZ - I really wanted to try and get a basic feel for Maori culture. I also found it really interesting to read along with the subtitles and pause and practice some of the Maori words  - I don't think it helped too much - my grasp of the language is appalling - but it was the only place I could access that kind of resource at the time. 

I'm also trying to finish up the photography class - which I have thoroughly enjoyed. I've certainly learnt a lot from it - and I enjoyed Shane's delivery too. The art of photography.

The next round of classes kicks off on the 15th Feb (2016) and I really urge you to jump on board and give something new a try - https://www.open2study.com/courses

Full disclosure:  You can also 'earn badges' - little drawings earned for posting on the forums, completing courses, doing quizzes, getting 100% in a course. I ill admit - this is totally my thing. I love it! I really wish I could crack that elusive 100% !!!

Finally, this is just one of many providers or suppliers - if you don't find something that interests you have a look for another provider. 

Sunday 7 February 2016

6 of 52


I spent a few hours in the rose garden this week.  It was a lovely way to recharge. 

Saturday 6 February 2016

Yuck. I broke.

I broke.

I didn't cave in to some amazing looking temptation.  I just broke. We had a lazy night - fish and chips - which isn't great but is totally OK sugar wise. Then we had ice cream.  That was planned.  Unfortunately it wasn't rich and creamy and amazing - it was average. 

I went into it knowing it was 20% sugar and I actually didn't enjoy it all that much because I was so overfull from dinner  - our local chippy - Mr. JJ's does a $6 meal with a piece of fish, battered sausage, scallops, crab stick and a heap of chips -  usually share one and top up with salad but last night we got one each and we didn't (actually couldn't) finish our meals!

Anyhow I went to bed with a head ache and woke up feeling all cold and flu-y and gross.  Could have been a coincidence but yeh.  All in all a huge waste of a 'cheat meal'.  :(

I'm glad I felt shitty because I've not really noticed much improvement otherwise.  I don't feel energised, my skin doesn't feel better, I'm not noticing much change at all - and yes I am being careful.  No I'm not consuming copious amounts of hidden sugar in other forms - I'm not stacking each meal with sauce or other hidden sugars.






Images taken from THIS BLOG. which is a good read.

Also - who only has a teaspoon or one tablespoon of sauce on their food?  Not me!  My chips usually swim in sauce.  I love it.  I do miss it. 

Point is - close to one month in - not feeling any amazing, startling, great results - but like a few other things I've tried maybe it's a case of feeling worse if I went back to my old ways. Pretty impressed that I can count the times I've broken.

Two occasions I've had like 1/4 spoon of sugar in my coffee,
I licked a bit of condensed milk off my finger the other day - on purpose
I had that sports drink - which was gross - as I mentioned here a few days?  weeks? ago
I had two kiwi fruit the other day - they needed eating up
and last nights not great ice cream :( Interestingly the ice cream didn't make me sick - which I've long thought might be the case - I don't think I'm actually lactose intolerant - I've just thought it was a coincidence / there was something more complex there.  I've always known that I get more of a flair up from lactose if I've been eating poorly - and I think this is more evidence of this. 

Still craving cordial and sweet drinks like no one's business.  Actually think the cravings are getting worse but I'm still staying the path.

This week we're trying a coconut and blueberry muffin which is apparently very yummy.  We'll see

Thursday 4 February 2016

Another one from 52 photos That makes this image # 5.3 & so dog stuff


Sorry. Not sorry. 

Here's your third image for the week. This is why I promised my friends that he'd be in 50% or less of my images for this challenge. Otherwise it would be the #356dogchallenge

Can't help myself. I love this little face more than anything in the entire world. 

Here he is just being cute with his chew treat in a kong. I'm trying to teach him that kongs are fun and good things come from them. We're also trying to teach him that it's totally ok to hang out in the backyard on your own for extended periods of time. All the cool kids, eh, dogs do it. Seem's he's conveniently forgotten this fact.  

My freezer is currently full of doggy treats.  Honestly - I could start a weekly post all about that - This week we've got an old icecream container full of water and some kibble - with one of his favourite toys - a rubber ball frozen into it - I'm hoping he realises what the ball is and tries to get it out. There's about 1/3 of the ball sticking out from the ice. 

We also have 3 or 4 "pupsicles" -in there at any stage at the moment.  I think these ones are all tuna, "tuna juice", kibble and some have peas in them. They're just a different way to deliver breakfast and give some enrichment. 

I also have the above shown kong, in 1/2 of an old milk bottle - I cut the bottle up to hold the kong upright while I froze a bully stick into it - the bottle also provided a clean vessel to put in the freezer - I do try to limit dog slobber possibilities in my freezer.Problem is I don't exactly know how I'll get the kong out of the bottle to give it to him. Enrichment for Mumsy that one.

So much other dog stuff going on in my life. I will share but I am cautious about writing too much - I'm not an expert - just documenting what is and isn't working for us. 

An outtake



We live about 10 minutes out of town - in a place where it's not really safe for the dog to be let off leash for his walks. 

In town we have some lovely spaces for walking, but the off leash parts are a little hair raising. It's always jam packed with runners, cyclists and other dogs. 

Last week we discovered this little gem, 10 minutes further on from us.  Just over a council boundary. It's off leash, well maintained and so far we've only seen one other family, and some yoga students there. 

It's not perfect - there is a major road on the other side of those buildings and if a naughty little dog ducked under that wind break - which surrounds the other three sides this dog mum would have no hope in getting him back - but it works for us.  We let him off well away from the road, we keep him close and the first sign of naughtyness is met with being put back on leash.  It's amazing how quickly he tows the line when he knows I'll follow through on my threats of being the fun police.  Also, it's not as big as it looks in the photo - the full lap is only 500 meters - but it's full of good smells and it's perfect for a big romp for a little dog. 

He gets home and just zonks out.  Such a shame we can't get there in the mornings.


Tuesday 2 February 2016

Fried Cauliflower - Another one from 'I quit sugar"

A quickie from me for this weeks 52 foods. 

This: https://iquitsugar.com/recipe/cauliflower-fried-rice-with-chicken/

Simply amazing. 

We ate it two days in a row - day one: No chicken but added mushrooms and bacon as we had some to use up. Day two - just added bacon.  Yes - we often buy mushys with good intentions. Then don't quite get to eating them and they need to be urgently used up.

As a side note - I didn't enjoy it reheated. Nothing else to add -  it was simply sensational.


Not my image. Link



Sheena

The Ramones. Sheena is a punk rocker. 


I came to the Remones late.  Very late. Triple J used to have a weekly show called the J files (still available occasionally on double J). Some weeks I enjoyed the content, some weeks I switched off. The week Joey died they played a Ramones special and I was hooked. The went on to colour some of my other choices - Mach Pelican who I have featured here and the Spazzys mainly. 

I also love then I discover bands weaving in and out past each other - and younger me adored the fact that both the Ramones and They Might be Giants had played CBGBs at times. 

Monday 1 February 2016

Hey! Dat's my photo! 5/52

"Moosey" the $0.50 christmas reindeer jumps in on the action this week.  Scottie would have been peeved - but you know - there was a moosey to catch. 



The "amazing" thing about Moosey is that he's over 12 months old now.  He has lost an arm and he does need one of his antlers patched up  (again). He has had some other surgery - but all in all for 50 cents he's lasted very well - AND much MUCH longer than most other toys - including most special pet toys we've tried out.