On my to-do list… a part of a Steampunk inspired Burlesque costume I’m going to be making.

I think asparagus has a bad rap. At least in my own humble upbringings it was certainly considered a terrible vegetable. Lumped with the likes of brussel sprouts and artichokes (I have yet to try the latter but I adore the former now) it never got the beginnings it deserved in my culinary adventures.. Asparagus was certainly not a vegetable that I ever really saw myself eating one day, much less loving. But now its almost a staple vegetable in our household when its in season/I have cravings/we can afford it. It definitely deserves to be on more plates than it currently is. If its treated well it will reward you with a very special meal.

Because I haven’t been eating asparagus for very long my own experiences with it have been limited. I know what I enjoy with it, but I wouldn’t say that I’ve had any real culinary adventures. Not really experimented. So this cookbook is going to be an interesting project for me, especially starting off with a ‘main ingredient’ that I don’t know too much about. I’m really rather looking forward to discovering new things about this lovely, crunchy, sweet vegetable.

Pairings that I’m already familiar with, and enjoy:

Salmon, poached eggs, rocket, chicken, rice, hollandaise sauce, mushrooms, sesame, ham/bacon, spinach, tuna, dill, parsley, tomato, and various soft and hard cheeses.

Ideas that I’m interested in trying:

Citrus fruits – such as lemons and limes – but also grapefruits for colour and pizazz, watercress, pasta, flowers (yes, flowers), peas, mint, lamb, couscous and chillies.

And I’m certainly open to other suggestions. I want to go light, fresh, simple and easy with the majority of these recipes. Things that complement the season of Spring/Summer and the fresh, sweet crunch of the vegetable itself. Although I’m not closed to the idea of heavier foods, as the hollandaise sauce, ham/bacon and cheeses no doubt implies.

A quick brainstorm of ideas:

• Asparagus with poached eggs on toasted Turkish bread, with hollandaise sauce.
• Asparagus with poached eggs on toasted Turkish bread, with dill dressing.
• Asparagus, baby spinach and rocket salad with poached egg, and a hollandaise sauce.
• Asparagus, baby spinach and rocket salad with poached eggs, and a dill dressing.
• Pan fried salmon on a bed of steamed asparagus and baby spinach with a dill dressing.
• Asparagus risotto.
• Asparagus tart (with soft cheese and/or hollandaise sauce… possibly with mushrooms as well).
• Steamed asparagus with a sesame dressing.
• Asparagus fritatta.
• Asparagus quiche.
• Salmon, egg and asparagus salad.
• Tuna, egg and asparagus salad.
• Couscous, salmon, pea and asparagus salad.
• Asparagus, watercress and salmon salad.
• Asparagus and sesame salad with warm poached chicken.
• Salmon and asparagus parcels.
• Salmon and asparagus sushi.
• Tuna and asparagus sushi.
• Couscous and asparagus salad with feta.
• Asparagus, beetroot, baby spinach  and walnut salad.
• Minted pea, asparagus and lamb salad.
• Prosciutto wrapped asparagus

I just have to try this… it sounds delicious and I’ve been looking for a lavender recipe to make. That it combines my love of dark chocolate is a definite plus for me. It looks very decadent.

Recipe can be found here.

This is a quick, not-exactly-to-scale mock up of our home’s layout. I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how it could be improved and a big thing that I’ve had on my mind is floor coverings. So I’ve been measuring the rooms up to get the square metreage so that I have an idea of what new floors may cost, depending on what I go with.

At this stage its tiles in the laundry and toilet (at the moment, they’re murky, ripped lino that’s very unattractive) and possibly the kitchen (which is also the same unattractive lino…).  Although I may choose to go with wood floors in the kitchen as I’d like to have wood flooring right through the loungeroom, hallway and bedrooms. Eventually. And wood flooring in the kitchen would add a cohesiveness to it. But the tiles… well… they’d look better, I think.

Anyway, that’s what’s been on my mind this evening. Amongst other things… that we won’t be going into here. Yet.

Sadly, Sam and I aren’t in any position right now to undertake the kind of renovation work that I would really love to do… but I see this as an opportunity rather than a setback. It means I have longer to dream, and plan and really decide what I want. So today I went browsing on Flickr for inspirational photographs. I put together a Gallery of them, which you can see here. Truly inspirational.

One of the photos is of the Keep Calm and Carry On poster. I absolutely MUST have one of those in my house, along with a Victory Garden poster. So I’m on the look out for them now =]

What a horrible waste of my Mum’s effort and money.

I left school, and got a job – and the majority of my pay I’m sad to say went towards buying lunch. Because I was too lazy to make it at home, or wanted the flavour-filled goodies that you get at cafes and delis. You know, you go in thinking “I’ll buy a sandwich, I’ll be good today”, and if you’re lucky you’d walk out with a greasy bit of chicken in a bun with some ‘salad’. If you weren’t… it’d be a large box of chips.

What a horrible waste of my money and health!

I’m definitely paying for that now (and many other stupid things that I done when I was younger).

Then, I moved in with Sam. And every day without fail I would make lunch for him. Not always healthy and nutritious (often falling back on packet pasta) but at least I’d started to see the benefit of making food at home to take to work. It saved money, and I enjoy being in the kitchen nowadays so that was always a pleasure. And it felt good doing something for Sam, at a time when he was doing so much for me.

I do wish that I’d had more interest back then in healthy food. Good food. I might have continued the act of preparing his lunches otherwise. And not simply given up when I started working also. Citing “being too busy” to perform such a simple task.

With that one simple slip, I fell back into buying my lunches. And working at that God-forsaken deli they became progressively worse.

…

Its now two years later, and the subject of food is becoming ever more important to me. Eating well, and making sure my food is fresh and healthy is something that I need to start taking a more active interest in. So I’ve been looking into food and diet, NOT going on a restrictive diet that people do for weight loss, but making sure I eat the right things each day.

I thought I’d share a system for lunches that I’ve started to put together.

Let’s start with the basics. Calories – they are important and a good way to help you decide just how big your lunch should be. Here’s a nifty website that will help you calculate your daily requirements: http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm
I’m not in it to lose weight (yet!) because for now I just want to eat what my body requires to maintain its current state. But if you want to, that’s fine too.

Breakfast should be the meal where you get most of your dietary requirements, its simple logic. You need the energy et al to help you function. Lunch is the next biggest meal and dinner the smallest.

“Eat like a king for breakfast, a prince for lunch and a pauper for supper.”

I’m aiming for 800 cal for my lunch, but you can choose how much you want.

Lunch-box breakdown:
I’ve separated my lunch-box into six categories BUT they’re not all necessary. I want my lunch to look fantastic so some things will probably never find their way into your lunch-box.

– Base
– Proteins
– Vegetables
– Fruit
– Condiments/seasoning
– Garnish

A good ratio for the categories above is 1:1:3:2:1:1 respectively.

Possible bases (half a cup is a good amount for these, or its equivalent. If you’re more active go for one cup):
Bread
Pasta
Beans
Potatoes
Bran
Rice
Cereal
Couscous
Lentils

Possible proteins (
Eggs
Milk
Tofu
Yoghurt
Fish
Cheddar
Chicken
Beef
Lamb
Tuna
Salmon
Seaweed
Feta
Cream Cheese
Blue Vein
Camembert

Vegetables:
Peas
Broccoli
Carrot
Onions
Tomato
Corn
Celery
Asparagus
Cucumber
Capsicum
Avocado
Spinach
Rocket
Spring Onion
Beetroot
Mushroom

Fruit:
Apple
Apricot
Cherry
Peach
Plum
Blueberry
Raspberry
Strawberry
Grape
Mandarin
Orange
Coconut
Kiwifruit

Condiments:
Mustard
Rice Vinegar
Balsamic Vinegar
Dill Dressing
Soy Sauce
Viniagrette
Yoghurt
Pesto
Dip
Sweet Chilli
Tartare Sauce
Mint Sauce
Lemon Juice
Pepper
Honey

Garnishes:
Sesame Seeds
Nasturtiums
Snow Pea Sprouts
Lemon Wedges
Lime Wedges
Onion Rings
Nuts
Seeds
Grated Carrot
Parsley
Chives
Coriander
Dill
Mint
Chilli

The lists are by no means exhaustive or exclusive, these are based on my personal tastes, and Sam’s. But the plan is to create delicious balanced meals for lunches. Often utilising (and for most people, the dreaded) leftovers.

Anyway, I felt like sharing. XD

I’ve got a new job. Yesterday, two of the girls that I work with were talking to the manager of another store and happened to mention that I travel from Rockingham every day for work. If I go with Sam that’s roughly an hour to an hour and a half each way. That’s a lot of travelling. And its very exhausting. She said she was actually looking for someone to work in her Rockingham store (she owns two cafes) and suggested that I pop in and see her at some point. They called me over (in my uniform for my current job!) and introduced me. We chatted for a bit, then she told me to visit her the next day at the store in Rockingham.

Well, I’ve just come from there. I walked in the cafe, she turned around and saw me. And all excited told me to take a seat. She’d told the rest of the staff about me (apparently she’s actually been pretty impressed with what she’s heard of me from various people) and they’d all been eager to meet me. Then she said, if I wanted the job it was mine. And, how soon could I start? My new job starts on the 4th of December, which is a Saturday I know. But… what can you do? Hopefully she won’t put me on, because that’s also the day of my sister’s baby shower.

I’ll be earning more money per hour, and I’ll be getting more hours. The work is a bit easier, too. It seems a lot less busier than the cafe I’m currently working in. So that’s great news. It means I know I’ll be able to handle it pretty easily. I’m very excited, but very nervous at the same time. When I start thinking about it too much I start to feel a bit ill. I’m pretty much throwing away a secure job after all, and I’ve not left one job for another before. I’ve always felt uncomfortable with that idea. New jobs are for when you’re unemployed and there’s no real risk involved. Ugh. I should stop thinking along those lines.

It’ll be great. And I’ll be fantastic.

I’ve got lots of energy now, its been a real boost to my mood. The prospect of more money, and a job that’s five minutes away from home (walking) has really lifted me.

So, I guess this brings me to an update on where I’m at right now. Well, I’m currently nervously awaiting the tests, and test results, to see what’s wrong with me. I’m trying not to get too stressed out by this but its hard. I’ve known for a few months or so now that I’m not quite right when it comes to my health, so when the results came back a few weeks ago for my blood tests I wasn’t surprised to hear that there IS something wrong. Until I go into hospital at the end of the month though for more tests I won’t really know what it is. I will say this though, I’ve had enough of being tired, weak and sick all the time. You’d think after all the illnesses that I’ve suffered over the years that the fates would give me a break. Seems not.

Sam and I bought a house back in April. Its a strain on us financially, but its good to own the place we’re living in rather than renting. My biggest headache, where looking after the place is concerned, is all the lawn. I’d rather just have it all ripped up and planted out with garden beds and paved everywhere else. We can’t afford that right now though, and with the sprinkler system on the blink (which we can’t afford to get fixed, and have no idea what’s wrong with anyway) the lawn is dying. Its a horrible, prickly yellow and looks terrible. I hate going outside and looking at it and with summer fast approaching its only going to get worse. Other than that, the house is great.

I’ve been experiencing a great deal of restlessness lately though. Being sick I don’t have the energy to do much, nor do I feel generally inspired to get out there when all I want to do is sleep. This is increasing the level of depression and laziness that’s been threatening to overwhelm me as well. There are a great many things that I would like to do, but its finding the effort to do any of it that’s proving a sore point. Both internally, and I’m sure, with my husband as well. I’m pretty frustrating when I want to do something but can’t be bothered. A bit of a sooky lah-lah, as it were. Just to give you a rough idea of what big ideas and dreams of doing things that are going around in my head right now…

1. Photography: Would anything else be on the top of my list right now? Its something that I adore, but just don’t seem to be able to encourage myself to do it. I thought about doing the 365 Project, but I don’t like the regimented feel to it. Being forced to do something stifles me.
2. Lose Weight and Get Healthy: A BIG issue for me right now. I feel uncomfortable in my size, and dislike the fact that I’m so unfit. I eat reasonably well. Although I will admit that sometimes the temptation to eat what’s bad for me is overwhelming. I have a problem with giving into my desires. If only my cravings could be for healthy things, like fresh broccoli and dip. That would be good. And if only the thing I most wanted to do in the evenings really WAS to go out for a walk/jog.
3. Craft: I love making things with my own hands. Papercraft especially. One of my favourite things to do is to make birthday cards, anniversary cards, invitations… To surprise people with a personal gift that I’ve poured all my efforts into. But I do love knitting as well. And sewing. And a myriad of other crafts that I’d be here all night listing.
4. Writing: I wish, oh how I wish, that I could write more often. I used to be quite prolific when I was younger. During a very dark period of my life. I still am, to this day, quite proud of much of what I wrote. Although I will admit that it wasn’t all that Fantastic. Really. But I like it, and so that’s what matters. I just wish that I still had that energy. That drive. The passion to write, and to express myself with words.
5. Food: I love, love, love food. Everything about it. Its such an exciting subject. I love the tastes, the smells, the textures. I love combining ingredients that you might not automatically think would work well together and creating a delightful dish. I love being thrifty and making gorgeous food. I love being able to splurge, and cook up a veritable storm in the kitchen. I hate feeling obliged to cook dull, depressing meals. I love originality. And oh BOY do I wish I had the financial means to really express myself with food.
6. Self-sufficiency: I want a lot of things in life, but this is definitely up there as most important to my psychological well-being. I know, I know that sounds like a load of hogwash but believe me when I say – if I was able to, if I was given the opportunity, I would gladly give up a lot to be able to live self sustainably. I’d love to grow my own food, to make my own clothes. To produce my own energy, and collect water from the skies. And from the ground. There’s a whole lot more to it than just that though, and I’d be here all night if I was to ramble on about how much I want to achieve in this goal.
7. Gardening: This is one thing that, although its at the bottom of the list, could equal any of the others in importance to me. I love watching things grow. Delighting in the first shoots of a bulb. The excitement of the first bud blossoming into a floral display. The green, the growing, the vibrancy. It excites me. Making something grow by my own hands. Digging in the rich soil. Designing the display, reaping the rewards. Its very satisfying.

All of the above are things that are very dear to me. And I wish I could find the time, the energy and the money to indulge them more often. But as I said, I struggle with this at the moment. So many potential hobbies the excite me and help to pull me out of my rut, and I can’t seem to bring myself to do it. I make fitful efforts here and there. Brief bursts of enthusiasm and energy. But it quickly dies away, leaving me feeling as though I shouldn’t have tried in the first place. That all I had to look forward to was disappointment and depression. I hate that. I know I’m capable of a whole lot more, but I’m really rather terrible for not bothering to try.

Lazy? Perhaps. Scared of failure. More likely.

There’s also the isolation that I’m struggling with at the moment. Moving down to Rockingham was for many reasons the right decision to make. Living in the city was becoming ever-increasingly difficult for me. The depression I was feeling was really starting to take its toll mentally, physically and emotionally. I quite often felt drained and just driving south to visit our parents would be surprisingly energising. And they’re hardly in the country, really. Moving here, where we’re still close enough to the city that driving to work is not TOO much of a chore but far enough away from the city itself that we can feel we’re not apart of it, was one of the best decisions we ever made. Rockingham, although it has its bad reputation for being a bit of a hole, often feels a lot like we’re living in Bunbury again. And we’re near to the beaches, which are vastly superior to Bunbury in my opinion. And lets face is, better than any Perth has to offer. Our favourite beach is one that is not as popular as the main beach in Rockingham, either, so we don’t exactly feel overwhelmed by strangers whilst we’re there.

The fact remains though. Living down here, we’re sort of in limbo. We’re not near enough to our friends and family in Bunbury for us to really be able to see them, or socialise with them. And the same can be said for those we left behind in Perth. Its just not a distance that people are willing to cover to visit us. And going up there leaves a lot to be desired as well. We have to factor in fuel, and driving time. We have to leave earlier than most people to get home at a decent time and have to spend more just to get there than everyone else. Its frustrating, and even though I feel the pain of being separated from the society of others I know Sam feels it more keenly than I do. We’re leading a pretty lonely, disconnected existence. Perhaps this explains why I feel more energy being at work than I do at home nowadays. The simple act of interacting with other people helps to boost me. Even if they’re simply colleagues, and customers. (I say simply colleagues… I do consider some of the people I work with to be friends, also. Just for the record)

And on that rather lengthy note, I feel like calling it quits for now and signing off.
Until (hopefully) tomorrow,
Goodnight =] xx