Weekly Musings

2017 - Week Two

'Yeah, she's a circus. But soon you'll want to run away with her and never come back.'

(J. M. Storm)

Aum went back to school this week, so I could tick off a few things on my to do list which had been festering there for a while, including getting my car bulbs changed (Ferryn and I had a lovely little wander into Gatley for a coffee at Coffee Fix whilst it was being done) and dragging myself back to yoga/ the gym. On Tuesday my boss bought me some beautiful La Duree macarons as a present from her trip, which perked up the week. Those who haven't tried them, if you're ever in Paris or London (or various other places around the world) go and buy some, they are pricey but incredible. I recommend the rose or pistachio varieties - DREAMY.  

My days were also freed up for more house viewings, so despite crossing the one I really liked off my list since last week as I decided it was a tad too remote, on Friday I found a little gem with great potential for way under my budget, so fingers crossed the vendor likes my offer! That evening Chris came round and made an amazing paneer and chickpea curry, and I also got a new poem up on Instagram, read it here.

Yesterday I babysat for a few hours in the morning for some extra cash, and then did a food shop with Mum in the afternoon. It was my first fully vegetarian big shop, which I am quite proud of. I don't think I'll ever be a 100% non meat eater, but I have definitely reduced the amount I consume; I started with a goal of a minimum of three veggie days a week from August, and intended upping it to five days a week this year, but I have actually not eaten any meat (still some fish) since New Year's Eve. I have not only found it pretty easy to do, but the more time passes the more I find myself not wanting to eat any, and I generally feel much healthier and less sluggish/ bloated.


 
Last night I stayed in, had a bath (whilst listening to Phantoms vs Fire who I have discovered is brilliant, see track above), and finished the bottle of wine I started with tea on Friday. I also, perhaps prematurely, logged back into my Pinterest account to chart some ideas for new rooms in whatever house I end up in. I haven't been on it since I bought my flat, so it was quite satisfying looking at my old pins and seeing how they have come to fruition in my current home. For anyone who is interested, you can have a gander at my boards here.

Today was the first session of Chris's latest venture, 'Make A Ditty With Chris' - a little kids guitar/ music jamming lesson to be held fortnightly at a cafe in Withington called Boho Utopia. It is proper funky and bohemian, with a creative space upstairs full of beanbags and material drapes on the walls. I thought I'd go along to be supportive (nothing to do with sampling their scrummy looking all vegan menu...) and chilled out with an almond milk latte browsing Pinterest for new house ideas whilst he was occupied for an hour.  

 

His niece was taking part, so together with his brother we all ate brunch afterwards. I had the breakfast which included sausage, beans, avocado, toast, tomatoes, mushrooms, halloumi and black pudding, and I was pleasantly surprised at the non-meat equivalents, especially the black pudding, I wouldn't have noticed the difference!

I am now back at the boat with him and the dogs for the night; it is the perfect place for a lazy Sunday, fire on, lots of brews, and I made a feta, red pepper and kale filo tart for tea which was delish. Feeling refreshed ready for the coming week, when hopefully I will have secured a new home! 

Weekly Musings

2018 - Week One

'I don't cry wolf, I make wolves cry.'

(Leya Noir)

Happy new year! I can't believe how quickly the last one flew by. 2017 was a complete whirlwind rollercoaster (albeit a bloody great one) and as well as having a ball, meeting some fab new people and going on a record breaking twenty one plane trips, I can honestly say I'm really blummin' proud of myself. I learnt some valuable lessons which have changed me for the better, and in doing so shaped the year into what I wanted and deserved it to be. Here's hoping the theme continues and 2018 is just as badass. Track for this week is the return of the one and only JT, with a decent song, unlike the shite he returned with a few years ago.

 

2018 got off to a flying start with a substantial lack of hangover, pretty much a miracle for a January 1st. After a lengthy lie in, I spent the day lounging on the barge with Chris, eating pizza, watching Black Mirror and napping. I don't care what anyone says, a day like that is always going to be up there with my faves. His six year old niece Izzy came for a sleepover that evening, so we had proper hot chocolate, marshmallows and all, and watched The Goonies (which I am embarrassed to say I hadn't seen before). Fitting three people in a little double bed wasn't the ideal sleeping arrangement, but years of kipping at festivals and house parties stood me in good stead. 

The following day I went to my mum's to collect Ferryn, made cheese toasties for lunch, played some card games and Izzy taught me how to work my new record player (cheers to Chris for the hipster Xmas pressie). She's a top little girl, but boy were we knackered once she'd gone home - being at work again on Wednesday meant a bath and early night were necessary afterwards!

My first few days back were relatively painless, Aum had playdates on two of the three days which meant I still had a bit of time to get back into the gym, get some poetry up (read it here) and get my nails done. I had tea at Mum's on Friday, where she made a beaut parmesan and butternut squash risotto, and on Saturday I went to view three houses with her, one of which I REALLY liked, and am considering putting an offer on. In the afternoon my auntie and cousin came shopping with us in Stockport, where I absolutely cleaned up in Primark. I spent just under fifty quid and got a '70s style jumper, a khaki pleather pleated skirt, some tartan culottes, a pair of blue velvet boots, tights, underwear and some pj tops. Love a good haul! 

On Saturday evening I went out for food and drinks with Emily, Smeed and Jonny, none of whom I had seen over Christmas so it was fun to catch up. We had a cocktail in Victor's before eating at Sigiriya, the relatively new Sri Lankan restaurant in Hale that I have wanted to try for ages. Em and I shared a starter of spinach and cheese tikki (similar to croquettes), followed by two different seer fish curries; one with Sri Lankan spices and mustard powder and one with coriander, mint and chillis. I rarely eat rice so had a tandoor roti to accompany, and shared a bottle of red wine with Jonny. It was all gorgeous; flavoursome, a bit different and decent portions, but it did cost us forty two quid a head so I won't be going there every week!

We went for another cocktail in Riddles in Alty afterwards, and then to The Con Club where we stayed until closing. For a spontaneous night out that was only properly organised that day, I had a lovely evening, and Chris collecting me after he'd finished DJing, so I got a free ride home too!

Today I viewed a stunning house, but I think it will go for quite a bit over the asking price, which unfortunately would push it out of my budget. I popped to mum's for lunch, and then after a quick run around the footy fields with the dogs (and a bath for them both after they got covered in mud) we watched Will Smith's new Netflix film Bright, had paella, and I am now about to have a massage as Chris needs to practise his techniques from a course he did yesterday. It's a hard life...

Weekly Musings

2017 - Week Forty (Part One)

'Rather a broken bone than a heart of stone.'

(K. Tolnoe)

This has been one hell of a week, and it's not over yet! Those of you that are observant may notice I am writing this on a Friday evening instead of my usual Sunday, and this is because at the crack of dawn tomorrow (4am to be precise) I am heading to the airport for a quick jaunt to Hamburg in Germany with my dad and sister. As I am sure we will cram lots of antics in despite only being there for 36 ish hours, I thought I would do a separate post recommending stuff to see, food to eat, and mainly, establishments to drink in when I get back on Sunday night, so check back in for that!

Back to this week, and I HAVE to tell you about the most incredible dessert place I tried out on Tuesday with my friend Timna - Icestone Gelato. It is on Oxford Road in the city centre, just near Footage, and I sampled the peanut butter waffle, which had the obvious peanut butter on, as well as chopped up Snickers bars and caramel sauce, served with vanilla ice cream, man it was good!

That evening was Matter of Sound's fifth Band and Bean event at Grindsmith in Salford Quays, and although one band cancelled very last minute (grr) we had Lyons and La Zel, and Taff Jr playing, who were both perfect. The former have a reggae feel to their material, and the guitarist manages to beatbox whilst simultaneously playing the flute which was quite the spectacle! I have stuck a video of them performing on the night above, as my track of the week is in part two of this post, but I didn't want you to have nothing to listen to as you read, and they are a cracking little duo. 

On Wednesday a group of us met up for food at Byron Burger on Deansgate, as a last goodbye to Laura who leaves to travel around South America/ Australia and New Zealand next week. I had the Oreo milkshake, and chose the Byron Burger (a beef patty with bacon, cheese, burger sauce, red onions, tomato and lettuce) and shared sweet potato fries with Ellie. The food, when it finally arrived, was classic and tasty, but the service was shocking; it took the waiter ten minutes to come over for us to order drinks and get the menu, and over forty for our food, which considering there was only us and one other table was unacceptable in my eyes. We had chosen there as we had a voucher for 50% off food, but despite the discount I wouldn't rush back as my experience was marred because of our excessive wait.

Yesterday I went into Manchester with Moj to check out Manchester Food Festival in Albert Square. I got crab fritters from Holy Crab (omgosh, amazing!), rhubarb flavoured prosecco from a cute little metal trailer and we sat and listened to Larkins who I saw at a Sofar Sounds a couple of years ago who happened to be performing inside the tent. We went for an espresso martini by the open fire in Albert's Schloss afterwards, and a final cocktail in Impossible before heading home.

Today I packed my case and am heading to bed soon ready to be up with the birds!

Weekly Musings

2017 - Week Thirty Nine

'If you laid in your own thoughts, would you sink?'
(Anie Hart)

I started Monday by getting a poem up on Instagram, read it here. The beginning of the week was fairly unremarkable, so I will stick my track for this week in below; it is one that I am sure you will have heard as it is everywhere, but you can't ignore the public opinion when it is this en masse, Cabello is killing it!



On Thursday I went on a date with Moj to a restaurant that we have both wanted to try for a while - Randall & Aubin in Manchester centre. It is the second branch to open, the first being in Soho, London, and is predominantly a seafood and fish place, famous for its fresh oysters. We got the French dozen, served with tabasco, lemon and an onion relish, and they were delicious. As a big seafood fan, I was surprised at how different they tasted from everything else I have previously tried, and varied so much in flavour from the cooked and battered variety, which I sampled whilst in Boston a couple of years ago. 

For main I actually had one of the starter dishes: six Manx scallops served with pancetta and a caper, lemon and garlic butter dressing, and ordered a side of potato gratin to accompany. I would recommend R&A to anyone who likes a chance to dress up and go somewhere a bit classier than the average eatery, but are still conscious of overspending; it is a tastefully decorated, well thought out venue with a tasty menu to suit all budgets. The bill with a tip came to approx 30 quid a head, which I think is reasonable for two mid-price-range courses, albeit that being sans alcohol with my current sober status.

On Friday Aum had a random day off school, so we invited his friend Anay over for a playdate and then I took them for lunch at Pizza Express in Hale, an easy go-to. I tried one of the new pizzas, the Campana (pork and fennel sausage, garlic oil, tomato, mozzarella, friarielli and parsley) it was so huge I had enough to take home for my tea as well! That evening I met up with Lydia and Tasha at The Elk in Hale for a couple of drinks (though still just coffee for me) it was mint to catch up with them both and we had a proper gossip/ giggle.

Yesterday I had a chilled day, cleaned the flat and got some washing done, then rewarded myself with my first alcoholic drink in three weeks at Laura's leaving party for her going travelling, which was at The Con Club. She is a super popular girl so there were lots of people to mingle and chat to, and I surprised myself by not going too overboard on the espresso martinis - I actually feel pretty perky today! I have just got back from having tea at Mum's but apart from that I had a lovely little lie in and then walked the dog today, top Sunday.