Weekly Musings

2017 - Week Twenty

'Starting over begins with looking inward. It means ridding yourself of distractions and paying attention to that inkling you've been ignoring... the more stressful and chaotic things are on the outside, the calmer you need to get on the inside.'

(Oprah Winfrey)

This week has been another quiet one, filled with wholesome activities like baking, dog walks and yoga - miles away from the crazy busy past few weeks where I've been running myself into the ground, it's been bloody nice! On Monday I got a new poem up, read it and my one from Sunday here.  That evening I made a lovely turkey mince chili con carne for tea; it's been ages since I cooked something proper after work, and I actually found it therapeutic.



The track I've chosen this week comes from Camila Cabello, I heard it on the radio whilst driving home from work on Thursday and it has been my jam over the weekend - it sounds great super loud in the car! (FYI - radio edit starts at 1.45)

On Wednesday I took Ferryn onto the football field at around 9pm for a run around, where I managed to find a beautifully preserved (what I assume is a) fox skull just lying in the middle of the pitch - such a lucky spot! I am intending bleaching it to add to the collection on my hallway wall. I baked some shortcrust pies with some leftover chili as the filling when I got back, and took them to my parents' for tea on Thursday. It was Ferryn's first birthday so Mum had bought and wrapped up a few presents for her, she is SUCH a replacement grandchild, its ridiculous!

On Friday I baked a chocolate cake for Tasha's birthday, and finally finished Sex and the City, which I have been watching for the past few months. I woke up to gorgeous sunshine sneaking through the curtains yesterday and got ready to go for a spot of shopping at John Lewis with my mum, indulging in free coffee and cake once we had finished because we have a reward card each; it's the only reason we signed up for them! We got the strawberry and rose Victoria sponge, and the Earl Grey tea loaf and shared them. I am always impressed at the selection of goodies they have on offer, they are traditional but with a unique twist to keep things fresh.

Last night a few of us went to Hannah's in Knutsford to celebrate Tasha's birthday. We had nibbles to start, Hannah made a tasty paella for main, and I took the cake I had baked for dessert, washed down with some fizz. It was fun to have a chilled Saturday night in just catching up and reminiscing about our school days - though I'd like to think we are not past it just yet!

 Today after a rejuvenating early yoga class at the gym, I went into Didsbury to the Makers Market, a cute little collection of stalls that moves around various locations in Manchester and Cheshire, selling everything from vintage tea sets, to homemade ice cream, and dog collars to quirky artwork. We went quite late on so a lot of the food was already sold out, (probably a blessing for our waistlines as they have some incredible stuff on offer) and they had a live community band playing which gave it that quaint village vibe.  We settled for a coffee in Saints and Scholars before heading home to tuck into a pork joint that had been roasting away. Since getting home I have watched the first episode of a mini series I was recommended by Abi called Big Little Lies; if you are a Desperate Housewives/ The Affair fan check it out, I am totally hooked already!