The Girls

I have to admit I don’t get together often enough with the girls from school, with most of us at uni and Kaliope busy working we struggle finding the time but when we do such as tonight there is nothing better.ciok
Dina, Belinda, Kaliope and myself met for coffee at the local Toscani’s, we all ended up having Cioks (utterly dreamy italian hot chocolate), so having them again.

The big news of the night was that Belinda now has a boyfriend, a fellow chem eng student from Lismore and like Stewart and Dina, they are in all the same classes 🙂 – Had a few collective awws for Bindy over Jason. Spent the rest of the time talking about life, shopping, our guys, family and uni/work. Making plans for a Sunday shopping in a few weeks and hopefully a get together of some sorts for the guys to all meet each other. I am going to visit Kaliope her at work (Tsiknaris Hair)next tuesday to get my hair done 🙂

It was one of those nights when you leave with a smile that stays on your face for hours. I miss my girls when we don’t get together enough. Damm Uni.

I just watched the final Alias episode for season 4 and it gave me a total fright – I jumped in my chair but what a cliffhanger, cripes hey, man they have a lot of explaining to do next season.
This is my Kaliope girl, the violin playing, remedial masseuse, apprentice hair dresser and all round full of fun.

Kaliope

Happy Birthday Mum

Happy 54th Birthday Mum 🙂
Hope you have a good day and enjoy having a birthday in Iceland again.

Matthe and I are surving quite fine 🙂

X marks the spot

Stolen from Nadine
So tired at the moment, woke up at 3am this morning and couldn’t get back to sleep before had a 3hr nap before to prepare me for work tonight 8-12 and I start uni at 8am in the morning – argh.
Night before woke up at 5am and couldn’t get back to sleep.
This means I have gone to bed quite early both nights between 6 and 8. Silly sleep.

[ ]I am a cuddler.
[ ] I am an okay dancer.
[x] I am a morning person.
[x] I am a perfectionist.
[ ] I am an only child.
[ ] I am Catholic.
[ ] I am currently in my pajamas.
[ ] I am currently pregnant.
[ ] I am currently single.
[ ] I am currently suffering from a breaking heart.
[ ] I am okay at styling other people’s hair.
[ ] I am left handed.
[ ] I am married.
[ ] I am obsessed with my myspace.
[ ] I am online 24/7, even as an away message.
[ ] I am shy around the opposite sex.
[ ] I bite my nails.
[x] I can be paranoid at times.
[ ] I currently have a crush on someone.
[ ] I currently regret something that I have done/am doing.
[x] I curse frequently.
[ ] I don’t hate anyone.
[ ] I enjoy country music.
[x] I enjoy jazz music.
[x] I enjoy smoothies.
[x] I enjoy talking on the phone.
[ ] I have a car.
[x] I have a cell phone.
[x] I have a hard time paying attention at school.
[ ] I have a hidden talent.
[x] I have a lot to learn.
[ ] I have a pet.
[ ] I have a secret that I am ashamed to reveal.
[ ] I have a tendency to fall for the “wrong� guy/girl
[ ] I have all my (real) grandparents, none of them have died.
[x] I have at least one brother and/or sister.
[x ] I have been in a real relationship.
[ ] I have been in a threesome.
[x ] I have been to another country.
[x ] I have been to Europe.
[x] I have been told that I am very smart.
[x] I have been told that I have an unusual sense of humor.
[x] I have broken a bone.
[x] I have Caller I.D. on my phone.
[ ] I have changed a diaper/nappy.
[x] I have changed a lot over the past year.
[ ] I have cheated on a significant other.
[ ] I have done something illegal.
[ ] I have friends who have never seen my natural hair color.
[x] I have had major/minor surgery.
[x] I have had my hair cut within the last week.
[ ] I have had sex with someone I was not in a relationship with.
[ ] I have had the cops called on me.
[ ] I have kissed someone I knew I shouldn’t.
[ ] I have kissed someone of the same sex.
[x] I have mood swings.
[x ] I have no idea what I want to do for the rest of my life.
[ ] I have passed out drunk at least once in the past 6 months.
[ ] I have rejected someone before.
[x] I have seen The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
[x] I have seen the television show The O.C.
[ ] I have tried a drug that is illegal.
[ ] I have watched Sex and the City.
[ ] I have watched the television show Spongebob Squarepants.
[ ] I like Shakespeare.
[ ] I like the taste of blood.
[x] I love to cook.
[x] I like to sing.
[ ] I love Michael Jackson.
[x] I love my friends.
[x] I love sleeping.
[x] I love to play computer games.
[x] I love to shop
[x] I miss someone right now.
[ ] I own 100 CDs or more.
[x] I own and use a library card.
[ ] I practice a religion that is not considered mainstream.
[x] I read books for pleasure.
[x] I shave my legs.
[ ] I sleep a lot during the day.
[ ] I strongly dislike maths.
[ ] I think Britney Spears is pretty.
[x] I was born in a country other than the US.
[ ] I watch soap operas on a regular basis.
[x] I will try anything once.
[ ] I work at a job that I enjoy.
[ ] I would classify myself as ghetto.
[ ] I would get plastic surgery if it were 100% safe, free of cost, and scar-free
[ ] I can name all 7 of the dwarfs from ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’.
[x] I am currently wearing socks.
[ ] I hate summer.
[x] I am tired.
[x] I love to paint/draw/sketch/sculpt.

Pumpkin Soup

Growing up I never had a taste for pumpkin probably because I had never tried it, however after a few Guide camps where you took what you could, I started to like pumpkin. Then when we were at the Casino for dinner one night after Sean had played netball down the coast I decided to try the pumpkin soup – so very very yummy. So when my friend Beth was telling us about this wonderful pumpkin soup recipe she had found on the net, I thought I have to try this and oh my kitchen, it was wonderful 🙂

Yesterday I made a double recipe, using a whole butternut so I could have some for lunch and the rest to freeze for later lunches. mmmm 🙂

BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND APPLE SOUP WITH BACON
Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

2 slices bacon
1/2 medium onion, chopped fine (about 1/2 cup)
white and pale green parts of 1 large leek, chopped fine and washed well (about 1 cup)
1 large garlic clove, minced
1/2 bay leaf
1 1/4 pounds butternut squash, seeded, peeled, and cut into 1-inch pieces (about 3 cups)
1 medium Granny Smith or other tart apple
2 cups low-salt chicken broth
1/2 cup water plus additional for thinning soup
2 tablespoons sour cream or crème fraîche

Accompaniments
Sour cream or crème fraîche
chopped unpeeled apple

In a skillet cook bacon until crisp and drain, reserving 1 1/2 tablespoons fat. Crumble bacon.

In a heavy saucepan cook onion, leek, garlic, and bay leaf with salt and pepper to taste in reserved fat over moderate heat, stirring, until softened.

Add squash, apple, peeled and chopped, broth, and 1/2 cup water. Simmer mixture, covered, until squash is very tender, about 15 minutes, and discard bay leaf.

In a blender purée mixture in batches, transferring as puréed to a clean saucepan, and add enough additional water to thin soup to desired consistency.

Whisk in sour cream or crème fraîche and salt and pepper to taste and heat soup over moderately low heat until hot (do not boil).

Serve soup topped with crumbled bacon and accompaniments.

Makes about 4 1/2 cups.
Gourmet
October 1994

From – Epicurious

Helen’s notes:
I have never added the Leek and just use chicken stock powder for the broth.
I use what ever apple is in the fridge and rarely thin it out with water, instead adding a bit more sour cream and blending it with sour cream in.
I always skip the salt and just add a few more bay leaves.

A Very Lemony Chicken

Since the parents are away, it gives Matthew and I more time to be creative with what we cook. Before we went shopping yesterday, we drew a list of who was cooking what night and what ideas they had, well last night was me and I decided I would try to re-create a prepared roast chicken I had bought from the shops a while ago – Olive Oil and Garlic Chicken – it was amazing.

I started off with a chicken, cut the slit connecting the skin to the meat so I was able to put stuff under the skin, crushed a few garlic cloves and slid them under as well as a few slices of lemon, hoping for a garlic taste with a hint of lemon (hoping). Then I prepared the stuffing, adding a couple of cloves of garlic and some lemon juice as well. Then I stuffed the chicken, placed another slice of lemon at the opening of the chicken and stuffed some more garlic cloves in round the lemon slices.

Basted the chicken with garlic infuesed olive oil that I had made in the morning with a couple of drops of lemon juice in it. Put in to roast and plaved the veggies in 30mins later all basted with the same olive oil.

Well the veggies were perfect, roasted golden, right texture and a wonderful hint of garlic and lemon. However I very much went overboard with the lemon in the chicken 🙂 couldn’t taste any of the garlic but sure could with the lemon.

Lesson for next time – cut back on the lemon 🙂

At home

Yesterday Matthew and I arrived home.
Relativley un-eventful flight, watched a couple of movies, played some blackjack and poker, looked down over the sea and land, deciding where we were and then confirming it with the map on the tv, playing with my camera taking long exposures.

Sean picked us from the airport, then we were homeward bound, looking at the sights, seeing what had changed. After putting on some washing, I headed back to Sean’s place to get ready for a day at the races – Brooke had given us member’s and gate entry passes, so we were able to enjoy the day in resonable style, placing bets with Brooke’s father or the counter in the bar, cheering on the horses, consulting the form guide to decide the best choice and then sometimes winning 🙂 A very, very fun day out until the flight caught up with me and I started falling asleep on my bar stool :O, After the last race of the day, Sean and I decided to skip dinner out and just go home so I could sleep and sleep I did for 12hrs or so.

Today was cricket as usual and a fun day it was, apart from the fact that it was the semi-final (they lost), Brooke, Emma and Donna all came out for the afternoon when the boys were batting, I had gone and vistited Barb and her family while they were fielding. So a girlish afternoon was had in the very warm winter sun.

Just had dinner, dreading going through my photos tommorow and heading off to bed.