shiny blogging nonsense

January over and not a Christmas tree lying in the back garden disposed of. Only today did I finally remember to put out the green bin containing empty Christmas cracker boxes, wrapping paper inserts and various other seasonal recyclables.  The month saw the end of the longest cold / flu type thing I’ve ever had and the start of a month working solo while a replacement is found to sit at the other desk.  Weekends were taken up with a half birthday party for the why-the-hell-not of it, visiting friends London, wandering around Kilkenny and holding a baking class for my friend's 12-year-old’s birthday party. In between the weekends my moleskine filled up with lunches and dinners, a little bit of culture and plenty of sitting on the couch commentating on the ads and falling asleep during the programmes. I have slipped on the ironing, but not on the fruit and veg. Alcohol has kept itself to the weekends, chocolate has not. Fish and red meat need some work, but I've re...

For my friend's daughter's 12th birthday I am bringing her to a concert. Not one the cool kids would go to, but I don't think either of us would claim to be one of those. We're going to a piano recital in the National Concert Hall.  I loved the National Concert Hall when I was her age. I loved it, even though I fell asleep every time. I have no doubt I will do the same this time. So I booked the tickets and we started to plan. She can come to my house after school on Thursday evening, have dinner here and get changed. If it's ok with you, and with her, she can stay over and I'll drop her to school on Friday morning?   Thursday evening is choir after school. Her Dad will drop her over afterwards. Unless she has a rehearsal for a performance. She can't remember. She'll check. They have a rehearsal but she can't go to the performance, so no rehearsal for her. Grand so,  sorted, easy.   Realising that I will have to send her off to school with a pack...

Monday Got up, had porridge, went to work, grabbed a coffee, work work work, maybe lunch, maybe not, work work work.    After work, went to class, busy busy, January, resolutions, packed up, went home.   Arrived home, chop chop, one butternut squash, two onions, two sticks of celery, one carrot, one red pepper, four cloves of garlic, two chillies, roasting tin, oven on, 45 minutes, big pot, stock, simmer, season, blitz.  Next, one broccoli, one onion, two sticks of celery, stock, simmer, cream cheese, season, blitz. Next, pasta, boil, sauce, lunchbox. 9.45pm. What? How? Dinner, CSI, bed.   Tuesday Got up, went to work, grabbed a coffee, had porridge, work work work, pasta lunch, work work work.    After work, went to my parents, delivered soup, had dinner, read Herald, laughed at crackly TV reception during Rice Krispies ad, asked questions about Home and Away, flamin' gallah. Back home, undecorated the Christmas tree , took out He...

“And so this is Christmas and what have you done”. No.   “Simply having a wonderful Christmas time”. No.   “Back to life, back to reality”. More appropriate, sure, but certainly not better.    Today was the longest working day of my life. Well, since at least the 5 th  of January 2010. Getting up to an alarm, putting on a suit that only shrunk slightly over the Christmas. Porridge with mixed berries, natural yoghurt and honey for breakfast. Packed lunch of chicken, green salad and brown bread. A healthy start to the year.  Tap tap tap... bored.    Luckily I have lots of good plans (if not good money) to see me through the month. A party of sorts for no reason, a weekend in London, a night away in somewhere. Hopefully these plans will give me something to write about around these parts.  As per everyone else my Christmas involved some sort of cold / flu thing, having nightmares about eating yet more turkey and ham, eating more ...