sick

Good things about the flu?

• The lovely boy brought me the orange juice that had I asked for and the chocolate that I hadn't.
• Then he got the flu too, so I had a sick buddy.
• We watched a dvd that we actually BOTH enjoyed (Ghost Rider), and made a game of identifying the Melbourne locations.
• Scotch really sooths a sore throat.
• And dragged ourselves out of the house on Sunday morning for breakfast with an old friend (and his new 'friend') at CERES.
• We planted (well, I watched him plant) a mini orchard in our front garden.
• We heckled Ian Hewittson's sausage-like fingers as they fondled cuts of meat. Shudder
• Homemade pizza for dinner and a decent night's sleep at last.

wednesday struggle

Hmm, struggling a bit for Wednesday. I know I'm trying not to write anything negative, but I spent the whole day feeling miserable and uncomfortable. Like I had a thin film of something over my skin that caused me to be fidgety and irritable - it's purely psychological though (or hormonal, dare I say it). That's the challenge though, even on the worst days there's always something good, so here goes:

• escaping to my book at lunchtime, then indulging with a coffee flavoured with irish cream
• a dance rehearsal that got my blood circulating and blew all the nagging thoughts and self pity out of me. Those girls are so good for me
• a warm embrace in which to sleep.

Yeah, I guess that's not bad for a Wednesday struggle.

a tuesday night for new things

Ok, my new discovery of pierogy (Polish dumplings) for dinner probably outweighs most other good things in this otherwise ordinary Tuesday. So here's the recipe (ingredients in bold):

For the pierogy

1. boil and mash three large potatoes (I used a combination of sweet potato and desiree)
2. fry two finely chopped onions in butter
3. combine potato and onion with nutmeg, salt and pepper
4. cut a big circle out of a stack of won ton skins
5. place a teaspoon of potato mixture in the centre of each circle
6. brush the outer edge of each won ton circle with water and fold in half, pressing down the edges to make a crescent-shaped dumpling
7. add to a pot of boiling water, without overcrowding, the dumplings will float to the top when cooked
8. remove dumplings from water with a slotted spoon and place on plates.

For the sauce

1. finely slice quarter of a small cabbage and six spring onions and saute in butter
2. when the cabbage has reduced in size, add three tablespoons of white wine vinegar and a few pinches of chopped dill
3. fry until liquid has reduced, then add two heaped desert spoons of sour cream, stir and season
4. serve over pierogy and garnish with extra dill.

a monday night of finishing

• finishing the cauliflower and cabbage soup - much nicer than it sounds, especially with yoghurt and dill
• finishing another teddy bear, seeing his friendly face atop his fat furry body for the first time and imagining the little boy that's going to hug him
• finishing the choreography I'm teaching to my students, picturing the costumes, the final performance and smiles on faces.

weekend with the RACV

• a great night out, with a friend's band and drunken ramblings
• an early morning back at dance class again with a fellow out-of-town tribal enthusiast, followed by a chai and a chat
• a fabulous coffee and two hours of quality time with my beloved while waiting, in my car in the Safeway carpark, for the RACV
• a relaxing ride on a delicious, feels-like-spring morning and an hour of quality time reading my book while waiting, in my car in the Safeway carpark, for a tow truck
• a casual stroll down Sydney Road, some clothes shopping, a beer and my book
• a meal of bread and cheese and wine shared with good friends and wonderful conversation
• a sense of relief that my car is in good hands and is hopefully on the mend.

dinner with an old (but new) friend

• meeting a friend from across the sea
• comparing life experiences and lessons learned
• seeing how someone has learned to own her life
• and being proud of her, though you didn't know her before she owned it
• sharing plates of moroccan food
• mint tea and
• creme caramel

ordinary wednesday

day:

• lunch paid for by work
• warm olives, good wine
• not much work

night:

• students that braved the cold night out to come to my class
• seeing them enjoy learning my choreography
• going home to pasta with left over pumpkin soup, hazelnut chocolate and couch snuggling

a wintry tuesday night and an icy wednesday morning

• a boy who brought home ciabatta after I'd thought about asking him to
• a pot of spicy pumpkin and sweet potato soup (paired with fresh ciabatta)
• an unexpected extra episode of The Simpsons
• a boy who repaired my puncture so we could cycle to work together in the cold

a cold monday evening

• an evening at the pub for $10 roo and wine night - even if you're both vegetarian (sort of )
• an empathethic friend to console a fellow 30 year old
• a missed call to let him know I'm on my way home
• a cup of peppermint tea before bed

week end goodness

• a bike ride on a crisp, sunny morning
• a glass of wine with breakfast
• a conversation with chickens
• a visit to the vegie patch
• a meal cooked over an open fire
• a meal eaten while wearing beanies and fingerless gloves
• a finished teddy bear
• a tiny new human