Dear Santa

It’s nearly Christmas and the year is almost over! I can’t wait.

Every year we get just a little busier around this time with christmas parties from work to friends to family.

Every year there is also a stand-off period ; tension mounts over who will host christmas day until finally someone gives in. Last year was us and I honestly wouldn’t mind doing it again, but I’m waiting for the right amount of tension to build ..  🙂

On my wish-list this year are some unconventional items:

– a painted living room

We moved in to our place in 2009. It was a repossessed property to begin with and since moving in we have slowly (very slowly) made small changes to make our house a home.

 

What remains now is purely decorative work. I have made up my mind to paint our living room , which is a pale green colour that only belongs in a clinic or hospital in my opinion. After months of debating and procrastinating, I have set up our first visit to get a quote done and get the show on the road.

Second on our wish-list :

– a cat 

Animal rights activists out there might cringe that I’ve put an animal on my Christmas wish-list but I can assure you that I intend to keep the cat even after Christmas is over.

Our search started a couple of weeks ago and we quickly learned that this was serious business. Here are some things we had to consider and do:

– Send applications to the relevant pet adoption agencies with full details of our current positions (e.g. working hours, age, commitments, future plans for children etc ). The agency then needs to assess our property and suitability for keeping the cat.

– Get quotes for a cat flap with an identity microchip built in ( one chip goes into the door, one chip goes into your cat . No other cats allowed! )

– Beware of scammers! Search for reviews on every website you use. We found a website called kittensforadoption.co.uk which ‘gave away’ kittens for free (a first sign that something was not quite right) and they immediately asked us for our details when we sent  an enquiry to test the site.

And so the search continues. If anyone out there has had any experience of doing this for the first time, we would love to hear from you any tips and advice you might have !

Until next time 🙂

 

The Counsellor : Review

Hello everyone and welcome to several new followers! Nice to have to here and I hope you stay , or forget you ever signed up.. Either way, you stay.

Where was I..

Ah yes.

The Counsellor

Don’t be blinded by the number of stars here. Ridley Scotts’ new one runs out of steam very fast.

Set in Mexico, the story follows  several people involved in what appears to be drug trafficking. I say it appears this way because the movie never actually specifies any of this. First impressions had me admiring Scott’s nonchalant approach to the plot and script . This movie does not give a s*** about whether you understand what is happening. I liked that at first.

Then it just started to piss me off.

Why does everyone want the Counsellor dead? Why does Javier Bardem look so frazzled all the time? And why are there cheetahs everywhere ?

As it went on, I started to feel a little sorry for this A-list cast who were somehow roped into making their way through a C-list script. 

Between the terrible dialogue (which includes Cameron Diaz explaining what it means to be a cheetah..) , we also get bombarded with constant references about living with bad life choices and the meaning of grief.

Apparently joining a drug cartel is not enough of a sign that you have made a bad life choice.

If you have any different thoughts on this , the movie I mean, I would love to hear them! Who knows.. you might change my mind 🙂

 

Me time : the worst time there is

It’s been a sick month. 

The Urban Dictionary defines ‘sick’ as:

‘Crazy, Cool, Insane’ . For example: ” Man, that trick was sick yo ”.

That my friends, is not what I mean.

After a bout of stomach problems -> cysts -> endometriosis -> surgery  , I am now at home ”chilling out” and ”relaxing”.

To those not well acquainted with my personality, my idea of relaxing is a hot bath with a candle and good music ( preferably 60’s or 70’s rock although I’m not completely against 80’s pop either.. ) . This lasts about   one hour and is perfectly enough.

So you can imagine how thrilled I was to learn that I needed to stay home and relax for one week.

Surgery was on Saturday. By Monday I was rocking back and forth , dreaming about coffee shops and gyms and going to the toilet ( don’t look at me like that, dreams don’t always make sense) .

By Thursday I was out of the door. And here’s where I went:

Fish in a Tie, Clapham Junction

Pumpkin soup with shavings of parmesan and some sort of weird bread ball in the middle.

Whitebait. Ignore the heads and it tastes fine.

Chicken escalopes with a mustardy sauce. Fish and chips at the back.

I have a feeling I’ve written about this restaurant before but I’ll say again; the quality is outstanding particularly for the amount of money you pay . My soup starter and chicken escalopes were £7 . Perfect!

I don’t know where I’ll go today. I’ve been to Lidl too many times to mention and they’re starting to get suspicious, I can tell.

 

What not to wear

Winter is here.

Almost every year, I hunt for the right coat, right scarf, and right shoes. Clothes and footwear in the UK are not built to last , and it is more expensive to repair than it is to replace altogether. Fact.

Also, I like to change my look regularly.

Of course, ‘not-freezing’ and ‘looking stylish’ at the same time is an impossible thing to do. If you think its’ possible, just look at yourself in the mirror.You’re either very warm and look like you’re wearing bubble wrap. Or you’re very cold, but tailored and sveldt. So which do you go for?

Coat – Joy , Boots – Urban Outfitters, Scarf – Topshop

I want to say I go for the warm options… But it just never happens that way.

That’s all from me for tonight, wishing you luck in finding your winter clothing!

 

 

Keeping calm.

Finally took that Yoga class.

 

I don’t know what to tell you.. A review of any sort would not do it justice at this stage, or any stage really. Yoga is quite simply a life-style. One does not just do Yoga. One must be Yoga. Calm… zen … bullshit. Sorry.

My idea of ‘calming my mind’ is taking a bath. Trying to put my right foot behind my head , is not my idea of calming my mind.

My not liking this form of exercise is not at all a reflection on Yoga itself. I know people who do it regularly and swear by it, and I don’t disagree with the benefits they get from it. As an exercise, it really works.This has probably been my most active year yet , and I still hurt the next day in places I didn’t expect ( my toes hurt, my back hurt ).

But, it’s not for me. As the instructor told us to ‘feel’ our worries ‘flow’ out, I was well aware that I was in-fact in a Virgin Active gym. I was not on a beach in Bali. My worries will not flow out of me. They will go by my actively doing something about them, which does not include arching my back like a cat or making a to-do list.

That’s all for tonight!

Review Me Vee – sans Zen.