cardinal cyn

i dug a hole

2012-02-12T17:02:00.000+11:00

I often winge that Meyles can spend all weekend messing around in the garden, and by the time the weekend is over, nothing looks any different! I tease him that all he does is 'dig a hole and then fill it in again'.

See that garden bed here? That needs a root-barrier dug in around it so the roots of the fig tree (to the right of the pic) don't suck all the nutrients out of the vegie bed Meyles is building.

So I dug a hole.

I used a special trenching shovel - it's narrow so you don't have to dig up so much dirt.

The trench had to be 20cm deep so the root-barrier material would fit.

Meyles fitted the root-barrier into place with the cordless drill thingy.

Then I filled in the hole again and you'd never know anything was under the surface.

Meyles was so impressed at my neat shovelling work he is now talking about trusting me to mow his precious lawn! Do you know what an an honour and a privilege that would be?!

Unbelievable!

chicken n chickpea burgers

2012-02-11T19:26:00.000+11:00

I got this recipe from my friend, Karen, who highly recommended it. I sort of 'adapted' it a bit to the the ingredients I had on hand. As you do.

Ingredients: chicken mince, chickpeas, chutney, curry paste, spring onion. (It also needs salt.)

1. Whack the chicken mince into a bowl

2. Drain the chickpeas. Rinse, and mash up a bit with a fork.

3. Chop and add the spring onions

4. Add 2 tbsp homemade curry paste
(the recipe said to add 2 tsp curry powder)

5. Add 2 tbsp homemade Cheeky Chilli Chutney
(the recipe said to add 2 tbsp mango chutney)

6. Mix it all up

7. Form into burgers (this made 13)

8. Fry em up like this in not much oil

9. Serve em up with my friendly neighbour's (Sal) fantastic Rhubarb Relish
(the recipe said to use more mango chutney) and garden fresh veg or salad

10. Enjoy!!

Chicken n Chickpea Burgers
500g chicken mince
400g tin chick peas
2 spring onions
2 tbsp mango chutney
2 tsp curry powder
Salt

book review: the lollipop shoes

2012-02-11T13:01:00.001+11:00

This great piece of chicklit,The Lollipop Shoes (Joanne Harris), is a fairytale for grown-upsand sequel to Chocolat. The sceneis a chocolaterie in Paris, with Yanne and her two daughters strugglingboth financially and to live anonymously without any history to attract anyundue attention.

The story

At first the appearance ofthe gregarious but ruthless Zozie, is welcomed into the family as she breathesnew life into the struggling business. She builds unusual but secretive friendships with Yanne’s oldestdaughter, Annouk, who is grappling with school yard behaviours. Zozie, however,has her own dark secrets and reasons for her devious manoeuvres. A male suitoroffers financial security to Yanne, but will he love Yanne the way the‘river-rat’ Roux once did?

As the threads of this storyintertwine and build to a climax, Yanne must decide to either pack up and moveon, obeying the call of the wind, or to unveil her anonymity and fight to saveher family, business and self-respect.

food porn

Many mouth watering descriptionsof rich chocolate blended with cinnamon, cardamom, vanilla and bitter orange areprovided to bring alive the simmering flavours which insistently but silently lure.If you enjoy food porn, you will enjoy reading the descriptions of scented, spicedand beautifully crafted handmade chocolates.

what i thought

I enjoyed this book a lot. Beinga fairytale (having a touch of the woo hoo) I found the story intriguing and enjoyable.This is a great story to get into which doesn’t take a lot of effort. Light entertainmentwith all the elements which make chick-lit so enjoyable.

Recommended

one week later, fitness test from hell

2012-02-08T13:33:00.003+11:00

It's one week later and I did exactly the same fitness test from hell that I did a week ago.

Except it wasn't the same.

I have better stats! Yes I do!

See how knackered I am in this photo, but with the sly look of self-satisfaction on my face! Yes!

Stats since last week:

Pushups: 3 more than last week (still girly ones, e.g. from the knees)

Squats: 1 more than last week

Killer Pull-ups: 4 more! (that hellish iron bar across my walker thing)
Situps -

(normal): 3 more
(weight): 8 more! (I didn't do them properly last time I think)
(straight arms with weight): 5 more

Boxing sort of thing: 2 more

40 m sprint I still did this, but can't find my stopwatch to time it

And then there's the run. For 1.6ks. Last week I did this in 15:21. Today? See for yourself! (below)

No wonder I look so knackered.
And so damned pleased with myself!

the fitness test from hell

2012-02-01T16:52:00.001+11:00

I did my own fitness test today - sort of copied from what I could remember from watching Excess Baggage. I like the philosophy of this show because they have an overall wellbeing approach to health. And I do think that guy with the pink mohawk needs a jolly good punch in the throat. Yes I do.
However I didn't have much of that 'overall wellbeing feeling' at the end, I can tell you! See this pic for evidence of that!

This is the basic equipment I used to emulate all the tests. I did a series of how-many-of-these-can-you-do-in-one-minute and timed myself, noting down my results.

I did pushups (girl-ones, i.e. from the knees), squats, pull-ups (killers), situps (3 different kinds), a sort of boxing thing (without boxing gloves or anything to box!), a 40m sprint and 1.6km run.

Left: See this monster? I didn't use it today, except I unhooked that horizontal bar and used it for the killer pull-ups.

See below for my resourceful use of equipment...

I laid an exercise mat over the base here, and slid the horizontal bar from the 'monster' through the supports. I linked my watch so I could watch the second-hand (don't want to do a second more than I have to!). So my pull-up consisted of me laying down with my head up this end, grabbing that horizontal bar and lifting myself up to the bar. I don't think my form was terribly good, mind you. But what a killer!

After these do-many-as-you-can-in-one-minute exercises, I finished off with a 40m sprint - which I couldn't work out how to time on my own using the walking machine. But I did it anyway. And then I had a go at a nice, light 1.6km run! I did the run/walk in 15:21. I was hoping to do it in under 15 minutes, but there's a goal right there! I'll aim for that next time.

I was knackered at the end, sweating buckets, I was. See the top pic for how freaking scary I looked. (You should've felt it from my side!)

i just made ice-cream!

2012-01-31T13:23:00.003+11:00

this is my ice cream maker. it's red! that middle bit goes in the freezer for 24 hours before use.
when i turn it on, it spins around and a paddle inside stirs the mixture.

here's the ingredients for vanilla ice cream.
a word about vanilla bean paste - always, always use this
stuff. NEVER use vanilla essence. the difference in the quality of taste
will mean once you try this, you'll never go back

this is what it looks like when the machine is churning.
the outer silver rim here is turning, and the red paddle stays put.
You can see the icecream thickening up as it freezes against the
sides of the bowl.

now the ice cream has finished churning, and I have
turned off the machine and removed the internal paddle

Spooning into a 1 litre container. Ready to eat.
Or keep in the freezer.

tester! Yes! the topping is a mixture of
hazelnut meal, dark chocolate and coffee.
nom nom nom

4 survival rules for ikea

2012-01-30T09:38:00.000+11:00

my friend irene and i ready to go in. we didn't
look this enthusiastic at the other end!

It’s true. I went to Ikea yesterday,and have lived to tell the tale!

It was my first ever trip. Itruly had no concept beforehand of the magnitude and energy this would involve.Ikea is not a place where you just ‘swing by’ to pick stuff up. Oh no.

You go in
You spend the day
You emerge a different person(mainly because you feel 10 years older!)

4 rules to survive Ikea:

Rule 1: fortify yourself with coffee

As the Ikea experience will take several hours, you would be wise to be well hydrated, and fortified with caffeine beforehand. Even though I had my trusty water bottle in my handbag, my water was soon gone and I was very thirsty by the time we emerged. Ikea hosts its own cafeteria where we et lunch (allowing its customers to maintain their shopping experience without the interruption or inconvenience of leaving the store.) However I had a sixth sense that buying their coffee from the press-button-cafeteria-machine would perhaps not be a wise choice, so waited until it was all over red rover for my next caffeine instalment.

Rule 2: take note of the carpark

I took a picture of the carpark level where we were as I have no sense of direction in a new environment – specially when I cannot navigate by the stars. (I once lost my car in one of these carparks, and wandered aimlessly for hours, blubbering, until I found it sitting alone in the dark, and it was the most beautiful Datsun 1200 I had ever seen.) It cost us $30 for the carpark yesterday as we had spent just over 6 hours there. Some of that time was spent in the ‘recovery coffee shop’ however the bulk of that 6 hours was toughing it out in Ikea-land.

Rule 3: wear comfy shoes

Once you go in, there’s no going back. Cleverly, Ikea have you entering one door, moving through the entire shop (so you walk passed everything) and exiting through another door on a different floor of the building, several hours later. There are arrows on the floor to keep everyone moving in the same direction. By the end I couldn’t wait to sit down somewhere - somewhere there weren’t hundreds of people moving about.

Rule 4: stay within budget

meyles driving home at speed!

Prices are very reasonable. And I can understand why someone may overspend in a place like that. Thankfully we had a clear list of what we were looking for, and as Ikea don’t stock shower heads and were out of stock of the magnetic knife holders, we resorted to a few cushions, pillows, stable table, and storage box thingy. The mirrors we wanted wouldn’t fit in the car, so we didn’t buy any.

the olds wanted to go to church

2012-01-26T08:40:00.002+11:00

The Olds invited me to go to church with them while they were visiting last weekend, so I googled directions and off we went. I know this pleased them tremendously.

We arrived at 11am. People greeted us in a friendly fashion. I had never been there before, and quit the Adventist church over 10 years ago, but the place is just as networked as it always has been!

As soon as I saw this guy, I knew he was the speaker for the day because he was dressed in a suit. Everybody else was casual (see the geezer in the background).

He was animated and loud, e.g.
"...by the maaaarrrcies of Jeeeeesus!... This is where you say 'aaaa-men'"

A few quiet 'amens' would be murmured in dulcet tones.

This girl played the piano beautifully. She has a confident touch, a rapport with the congregation and delivers a beautiful rendition of "Great Is Thy Faithfulness". Just quietly, this brought a tear to my eye. I love singing.

There were also other modern songs and a team of 3 singers and a bass player (who turned out to be my cousin!) which provided great music for group singing.

Most people sat towards the back of the building. The front was largely empty, but not completely so. Most people were 30+, however a few adult-student types were also present.

Oh, and it's a scientific law that if ever I go to church, a wriggling toddler will sit directly behind me.

This is the view from where I sat. I also noticed the Ole Lade's head had tilted forward and her eyes were closed. And she wasn't praying either!

Afterwards everyone mingles around chatting. This is where the socialising, invitations for lunch, and networking connections are made. (Note the time on the clock. 12.35. The preacher went overtime!)

This is a nurse who worked at the hospital where I had surgery from breast cancer in September 2010. She asked me if I was related to Lindsay Sleight (my brother) when I booked into the hospital and she attends this church. She said hello and enquired after my health.

This is my husband's cousin. She is very friendly and social. She is a teacher who teaches a couple of my nieces and nephews. She loves to travel and eat good food.

This is my cousin, who plays a mean bass! And her husband.

So that was my visit to an Adventist church with the Olds. I found the atmosphere quite welcoming and relaxed. The people were friendly. The sermon was (I found) disappointing. I do love a good sermon when it's well structured and delivered well though. But they are rare.

If the Olds ever want to go to church again when they're visiting, that's where I'll take them again. But do you see what I mean by 'networked'? Everyone is related or knows someone who is married to someone who used to be married to an uncles cousin's grandfather twice removed!

random acts of niceness

2012-01-23T08:30:00.001+11:00

Niceness: amiablypleasant, kind, pleasing, agreeable, delightful

I’ve never thought much aboutniceness except that somehow I had the idea that it was largely part of yourpersonality – you either had it or you didn’t. But more and more lately, I’mbeginning to recognise that niceness is also a deliberate choice, a practisedhabit, a chosen attitude, something that we build into our characters bychoice. Like paying it forward, sort of thing.

I’ve been on the receivingend of niceness and it feels great. Oncesomeone gave me a generous gift of a beautiful dress. Another time, my friendMeegs sent me unexpectedly in the post a selection of Tassie goodies just outof the blue.

will you be old and grumpy or old and sweet?

When I try and think of timesI’ve been nice to others, I have to admit it strains my brain. I’m appalled atmy own un-niceness (a word). It would seem I don’t have it naturally. I alsobelieve that as people age, the habits they practice through life become morepronounced. That’s why people either get ‘old and sweet’ or ‘old and grumpy’.So I think unless I choose to practice a bit more niceness in my life I’m goingto end up a grumpy old bugger, waving my walking stick around angrily at ‘theseyoung people of today’ and complaining loudly about everything.

example

This week I was challengedand excited by an active group of readers of one of my fave blogs craigharper.com.au who asked his readers to report in on random acts of kindness. The responseswere overwhelming and delightful to read. Popular acts were paying anonymously for coffee, helping neighbours with gardening things, but Banjo reported this:

Hilarious!!!Remembered I’d seen a front yard of weeds down the street, so popped mygardening gloves in my pocket and wandered down….to find them all gone! Bugger.Kept walking and then saw the town’s “Mr Growly Grumpy” in his front yard.Gathered all of my courage, stepped onto the forbidden territory of hismanicured front lawn and asked “Would you like a hand with anything?” Left 30mins later with a bag of gorgeous fresh cucumbers and a new best buddy Continued my walk, handing outconversation and cucumbers to everyone I encountered (including some Polishbackpackers in a minivan). Smiles all round and I arrived home with a cucumber,a dozen tomatoes, 2 zucchinis, and a bag of lemons. The circle turns prettyquickly around here! What a great way to start a weekend

Risk factor

Niceness will cause you to stepout of your comfort zone. It carries risk – you may get rejected. I guess we’llall have to decide whether or not the risk is worth the potential paydirt.

Call to niceness

why are people so unkind?

So you must know where this blogis headed, right? Are you going to join me in practicing deliberate niceness? Thismeans being conscious of demonstration opportunities and not letting chances slipby un-niced (another word). It also helps and boosts morale if we can share anyniceness stories here via comments where we can all see them and be encouraged.This is not limited to the next few days. You can add a comment at any time in thefuture here, and be assured someone (at least me!) will read it and be encouraged.So your niceness will be doubly effective by sharing your story.

Come on people! Be nice!

book review: the mascot

2012-01-22T20:11:00.000+11:00

This book, The Mascot (byMark Kurzem, published 2007), tells the truly astonishing story of the author’s father, AlexKurzem, and his amazing survival during WWII.

The story

Alex was a 5 year old Jewishboy who was hiding as he watched his family and whole community get murdered by aGerman-led execution squad. Hiding inthe forest for some months, he was eventually captured by soldiers. One soldierdiscovered Alex was Jewish and made him promise never to let anyone know of hisJewishness and to forget everything of his past life. Alex then became the soldiers’mascot and travelled with the soldiers for some time. He became well knownamongst the Nazi troops, all the time keeping his Jewishness a secret, and forgetting his own name.

Afterwards, Alex lived with a Latvian family and in time, he grew and immigrated to Melbourne,Australia where he married and had children of his own – none of whom knewanything about Alex’s history or his involvement in the Nazi activities. Eventually, Alex begins to share his secrets, triggering a search to find outwho he really was. This search led to amazing discoveries and stories fromothers who corroborated the truth.

My reaction

Words include: powerful, remarkable, shocking, tragic, beautiful. I read this book within a fewdays and could not put it down. I found the story at times repelling, but compelling at the same time. I am grateful that my meagre understandingof history and the impact of war into the lives of people has been extended greatly bythis book.

60 minutes

I found this link to a US 60Minute story about Alex Kurzem – who lives in Melbourne. (click the video, and you'll have to endure a commercial first before the real story starts.)

I highly recommend this book.

quirky street art in melbourne

2012-01-18T09:16:00.000+11:00

"Creativity mixed with cheap"

That's how I would describe Melbourne quirky street art. Even the graffiti has style.

This seat sits proudly on a street corner in Fitzroy. Look carefully to see the blue car behind. This is an initiative of the local Council - a shared car with a dedicated parking bay. If you drive <10k km per annum, you can pay a monthly fee for the shared use of this vehicle.

What do you think this is?

a) post box
b) fire hydrant
c) coffee machine

Mysteriously solid, wooden double doors open directly onto the street in Fitzroy. Iron hinges and hand-fashioned bolt lock create a sense of protective strength for those behind these doors. The two metal moons and cutout stars, coupled with graffiti, create a firm sense of safety from external forces.

Eating and seating. These are two recurring themes in Fitzroy.

Graffiti on the wall of a Spanish tapas restaurant. A booking was made one month in advance and we were placed on a waiting list. At the last minute we scored a table for 8.30pm. The food was incredible - beef cheek so tender it was scooped apart by a spoon.

A very busy Fitzroy cafe called The Vegie Bar. Incredible fresh dishes with a global influence. The philosophy is 'food should not be overworked and have minimum human involvement'. An outstanding cafe for quality, price, atmosphere and happy staff! Top marks, guys!

Left: A cleverly painted window at street level provides street art as well as internal privacy. As I clicked this photo a lady coming down the street stopped and waited for me to finish, before hurrying by on her way to church. I wished her happy new year but she did not respond.

Above: Hidden amongst main thoroughfares are alleyways full of atmospheric cafes, teeming with hungry lunchtime patrons - a mix of business suits, grunge, gym junkies and penniless arty types.

Below: Cafe security consists of a garage-type roller door. Competition between cafes produces outstanding service and quality food. It's hard to buy a bad coffee here!

Below: Bernadette Robinson's outstandingly versatile voice is showcased in this Australian play as she combines story telling and songs by Edith Piaf, Billie Holiday and Maria Callas to deliver a most moving and beautiful experience. Songs for Nobodies

A couple of hotties get dolled up for the show

Bikes are a popular form of transport. There are also frequent banks of pushbike hire around the city. Pickup from point A and drop off at point B. Cost is very reasonable and anything less than 30 minutes is completely free!

I liked the 'frowned upon' message in this sign

Above: Trams are distinctly 'Melbourne' with their constant ding ding. Crossing the road and walking across the Bourke Street Mall is particularly hazardous for the visiting tourist.
Below: A wall of art by the Vietnamese School kids covered a construction site on a busy street

all about food

2012-01-16T08:39:00.000+11:00

Susan of mighty acorns blog fame challenged me to answer some questions on food and cooking.

spinach & feta pie with pinenuts and cheeky chilli chutney

spinach and ham tart

1. What, or who inspired you to start a blog?
My very good friend, Irene. I like to write stuff. I love the challenge of finding the words to express complex concepts in simple, understandable terms. Irene saw this in me and encouraged me to blog. Thanks Irene.

2. Who is your foodie inspiration?
Always Jamie. Hell yeah. I have a bunch of his books and his recipes are always full of flavour and not too complex. I like the way he communicates.

pinwheel sausage, leek & cider gravy, mash, apple salad,
baked apples & yoghurt

3. Your greasiest, batter-spattered food/drink book is?

Jamie's 30-minute meals

4. Tell us all about the best thing you have ever eaten in another country, where was it, what was it?

I just et a beef cheek on cauliflower mash at a Spanish tapas restaurant in Melbourne (not exactly another country, but what the heck). The beef was so tender you scooped it apart with a spoon. We booked the table a month in advance and had to go on a waiting list and scored a table.

6. What is the one kitchen gadget you would ask Santa for this year (money no object of course)?
a robot that cleans up after me

7. Who taught you how to cook?

cauliflower and broccholi cheese macaroni

the Ole Lade gave me a good grounding. And then I started taking notice of what I ate and took to creating my own tasty and healthy meals using advice, tv shows and recipes

8. I’m coming to you for dinner what’s your signature dish?
Chicken tagine followed by home made chocolate ice cream. Also Jamie's Cheeky Chilli Chutney, and anything with lots of fresh veg from our garden. I love the challenge of making new recipes to use a glut of fresh produce from the garden.

9. What is your guilty food pleasure?

Lindt milk chocolate with roasted hazelnuts. Coffee.

10. Reveal something about yourself that others would be surprised to learn?
I could happily live on cold toast with real butter and vegemite for the rest of my life

asian chicken with cashews

spinach filo pie

Finally…tag 3 other bloggers with these questions…like a hot baked potato…pass it on!

cato garden farm

40ish, single & starving

sherylyvette.com

beef hash, roast potatos, beans n bacon, goddess salad

pizza - made from scratch, cooked in frypan

grilled salmon, rice, guacomale n flatbread, zucchini salad
and strawberry spritz

a fish called cardinal cyn

2012-01-09T16:05:00.001+11:00

sexy, huh?

I heard myself saying all sortsof ridiculous things designed to convince Meyles that today was not a good day forme to start swimming. When I ran out of excuses I realised two things:

1. Meyles' Care Factor = zero

2. If I didn't swim I'd feel disappointed with myself

So...

I put my togs on and packed my swimming bag
I drove to the pool, arriving at 9am, noticing the sign said “water = 24degrees”. Nice
I slapped on a bit of sunscreen, pulled on my sexy swimming cap and gogglesand stuck my earplugs in my ears
I entered the water
[insert expletive of choice] it was freezing! Certainly not 24 degrees! It’s 24 degrees outside, so getting in thewater should be hardly noticeable except that I’m wet! Holy crap!

wax ear plugs. you soften then shove them in your ears

Within about 30 seconds of reacting to the water, I took off slowly downmy lane. I realised much later that it didn’tfeel cold anymore. It just felt normal. Better than normal. Wonderful, in fact!

The trick with swimming is togo slow. Otherwise you will drown beforeyou get to the other end of 50m. (Mind you, I had to stop and breathe for about 10-15 seconds at the end of every length. But still.) Turned outthere was about 5 other people in the pool and I had my own lane the entire 45 minutesI swam. In that time I completed 22 lengths of a 50m pool. That’s 1.1kms! Not bad for my first swim in about a year!

i cheat too

I feel so damned impressed withmyself. What a fantastic exercise at thistime of year. Swimming in beautiful waterunder a blue sky, working hard while not feeling hot and sweaty. I remember why I love swimming so much.

Then I plugged in my stats tomy new phone app: www.myfitnesspal.com and was staggered atthe calories burned:

· 45 mins of ‘swimming laps, freestyle, light effort’ =433 calories

That's more than I eat in a whole meal lately!

I am already planning my nextswim.

doing it all wrong

2012-01-07T18:37:00.002+11:00

it's important to approach the 'tower' in an appropriate manner

Today I experienced my firstHigh Tea. It was rather grand andfabulous. But when I got home I used myCardinal-Cyn-Investigator skills to discover to my amusement, that we did it all wrong.

a bit about the rules

Traditionally “High” refersto the height of the table – e.g. not eaten off a low coffee table, but rather,a proper ‘high’ table. And it’s allrather formal and has a plethora of rules surrounding the etiquette involved(not that we knew this, or if we did – no one took the slightest bit ofnotice). High Tea is supposed to beserved at ‘tea time’ – i.e. between 5-7pm, and special treatment ranges fromthe way you treat your napkin (never call them serviettes), to stirring yourtea in an anti-clockwise direction whilst not allowing your spoon to touch the sidesof the cup!

what we did

Yeah well we completelystuffed any rules. I think we must’ve brokenevery rule in the book.

· We did our High Tea at 12noon, and laughed loudly at swapped stories
· We hooked into all the food in the wrong order (we ate from the bottom up,instead of from top down from ‘the tower’)
· We left our mobile phones on the table (thehorror!)
· We grabbed food straight off the plate, instead of using utensils, and scoffedour bread rolls whole without breaking or cutting them into bite-sized pieces
· We used a knife (instead of a fork and spoon) to cut cakes in half so wecould all share a bit
· Some of us had the audacity to request coffee (!) instead of tea (I won’tsay who that was….) And then… after the arrivalof tea/coffee, blew on it to cool it! (Shocking, I know)
· Our serviettes (oops, sorry… napkins) were treated like aprons and usedin whatever capacity we wished, scrunching them up and dumping them on theplates when we’d finished. (Oops)

The big idea

Turns out the main thrust of HighTea is to enjoy other people’s company. It’sa social occasion and meant to focus primarily on conversation and connection withthe others. And in this regard, I believewe got this bit absolutely right. Yes. The enjoyment factor was way up there, and companydelightful. So all is not a disaster froman etiquette perspective, although I doubt very much whether any of us give a tossabout the etiquette. Ha ha!!

Want to know more about the ruleson High Tea in Oz? Take the test on how yourbehaviour would measure up by clicking here. Then fess up by leaving a comment. Tell us if you've ever done High Tea and how your etiquette measured up!

the light at the end of the cycling tunnel

2012-01-02T17:42:00.004+11:00

ready to start!

The tow-ball has arrived

It’s only taken 3 years. This hadnothing to do with my constant pleas to get a tow-ball so we could attach thebike-rack and transport our pushbikes to wonderful bike tracks. But it did have everything to do with thefact that Meyles wanted to hire a trailer (for one lousy day) over year end sohe could do a job in the garden.

Whatever. We now have lift-off!

Stockton bike track

We launched onto the Stockton bike track on the weekend. It’s beautifully situated along the waters’ edge and took us about half an hour in one direction. Just enough time to get to Lexie’s On the Beach for a couple of their bracing long blacks, before plotting an alternative route back to the car.

I have never seen so many people swanning around, 3-abreast right across the path, with dogs off leads, sniffing and cocking legs everywhere. It was not a ride we could relax into or get a rhythm going, because the bell on my bike might as well have been made out of terry towelling and the locals have not yet learnt to use the track in such a way that everybody can enjoy it.

But it’s still a great track and would be worthwhile for another ride at a time when it’s not so populated by a plethora of untethered canines.

this morning on the grahamstown track

Grahamstown Dam bike track

This track was discovered quite by chance as we were driving past yesterday and noticed a bike track snaking along through the trees and along the dam edge that went for miles. The whole time (about an hour) we saw less than 6 people – 3 of them on bikes themselves. We saw kangaroos and lots of water birds including black swan, cormorants, musk ducks (one was displaying), great egret and the usual wrens, pied butcherbirds and magpies.

We were so delighted with this discovery that we plan to do this ride again. Soon. And explore track in the different direction. It seems to go for miles. I can’t find any info on it on the web, so it seems it’s not that well known.

Fernleigh track

This is a most beautiful track, but it can be overpopulated too. Users of this track have been more educated to keep left and keep dogs on leads. This track is full of beauty and hosts the most amazing old railway tunnel. Here’s some pics:

This tunnel is 200 metres long - we stepped it out one day

You lose sight of both ends when you're in there, and it has a curve in it

seeing the light at the end of the tunnel

and you emerge into beautiful, dappled light

like they say... there's no app for this

a touch of the woo hoo

2012-01-01T20:03:00.001+11:00

Artemisphoto

Rabbit things

The life of a wild rabbitinvolves being born, eating, sleeping, reproducing, being safe and secure inhis burrow, running like hell away from any danger, and if he’s a lucky littlerabbit, dying peacefully in his sleep without being eaten, shot, run over, orcontracting mixie (or similar). Sounds likea great life. Or not.

markuso

People things

The life of a person involvesnearly all of the rabbit stuff (minus contracting mixie but includes multiple otherhorrible disease-like stuff).

What does a person havethat a rabbit doesn’t?

I mean, apart from theobvious biological differences, what’s the stuff that separates homo sapiensfrom the rest of the animal kingdom? Imean, if one day Joe Bloggs wakes up with fur all over him, long ears and afluffy tail with an insatiable desire to munch on carrots and reproduce, what’sJoe Bloggs got that makes him of a sort of ‘higher order’ than poor ole Bugs?

Salvatore Vuono

A touch of the woo hoo

Occasionally I will meet aperson who describes themselves as “spiritual but not religious”. What’s ‘spiritual’ really mean? Is this the difference between man and beast? Or does it mean the spiritual person is vagueand mysterious? Spirituality seems to be a fuzzy term which meansdifferent things to different people, and has a touch of the woo hoo about it. So I wonder what the definition ofspirituality is? Any ideas?

What my feebleunscientific brain thinks

In my understanding, what makes people different to rabbits is:

· Joe has the capacity to reason, analyse, choose and discipline himself
· He has a range of emotions and the ability to be self-aware, along the capacityto, at times, identify others’ emotions and respond appropriately to achieve adesired outcome
· He can learn, add skills to himself, build things, create stuff, designbridges (for example)
· Initiate and build relationships with others, maintain them, andstrengthen or weaken them, fall in love, and trust (or mistrust) someone else

So, is this what it means to be ‘spiritual’?

What Stephanie said

I asked StephanieDowrick (author, public speaker, spiritual and social commentator, retreatleader and Interfaith minister) this exact question: what was her definition of ‘spirituality’? Here’s her response:

OfficialStephanie Dowrick Hi Cynthia: I mean it in terms of "spirit": theforce that connects us to one another, to the familiar material as well aseternal life and, for some, connects us also to God. We feel it physically whenour spirits rise or our spirit is at peace - and we can feel this even if ourphysical "self" is weakened by age or illness. You will find muchmore in Seeking the Sacred. Thanks for your interest and HNY to you too!

So. Sounds like a slippery little sucker. Maybe a bit like ‘the force’ from Star Wars? What do you think?

Comments invited

Is this the first sign of myears growing longer, my nose twitching and I am finding carrots more and moreirresistible? Don’t answer that! But what’s your definition ofspirituality? Do you agree with Stephanie Dowrick? What do you think spirituality is? Is it the relationship stuff that’s intangiblethat exists between people? Something more? Or less?

Please share your thoughts –anonymously if you like. Come on and waxlyrical!

the day after the week before

2011-12-29T13:27:00.004+11:00

The bathroom scales

Got to get back on track with myhealth goals. I’m still too scared to geton the scales since last Friday when I had lost 3.6 kilos towards my overall goalof 8. Within a day or so I will be brave enough. Perhaps.

After the tsunami of Christmas treats, pies, rocky road, cakeand slice, I can’t wait to get back to good, fresh, Meyles-garden stuff.

Here’s an example:

Zucchini Cakes With Tzatziki & Fresh Garden Salad

Here we have my fabulous zucchini cakes made with a coupleof zucchinis, spring onion, cottage cheese, herbs and cumin. These are very tasty and go beautifully with thetsatziki (a couple of cucumbers blitzed with greek yoghurt, S&P, cumin. All served with fresh garden salad and salmon,this made a beautifully satisfying and fresh lunch which gives energy and doesn’tmake me feel tired afterwards.

Pickled Cucumber

Yesterday we picked yet another dozencucumbers. After giving away a few dozenof these babies, I decided to have a crack at pickling some. We love the little gherkins you get in a jar fromthe supermarket. So let’s hope they turnout something like that. These have to waita week before the pickling process does its work before we can taste them.

Peppermint Tea

Finished off with peppermint tea– also grown in our garden. This can be madeusing fresh or dried peppermint. It is thebest peppermint tea I’ve ever had – 100 times better than any of that shop-boughtrubbish.

Eat well, live long!

dunny report

2011-12-26T12:26:00.002+11:00

This here is an example of the Christmaspresents exchanged at our family gathering yesterday. The humour and culture within my family reallyappreciated these – Aussie humour mixed with Christmas themes. Some of the reactions from my gingerbread dunniesincluded:

Where did you get these from? Did you make them?

Yes, we made them. From scratch.

Where did you get the idea from?

I started to think I’d have a go at making a small A-frame gingerbread house. But I couldn’t find a pattern on the internet and then Meyles suggested off-handedly that I make a dunny. This idea delighted us both so we googled Australian dunnies to look at pictures and get some inspiration.

Did you make slabs of gingerbread and cut the pieces from that, or did you have a pattern?

We made the pattern first. We drew it on paper and cut out the pieces. Rolling out the pastry, I worked out that once the pieces were cut, it was not wise to move them because they’d change shape. So it was best to cook them on the paper they’d been rolled and cut out on.

Meyles also had to make a moon-shaped cut-out tool for the hole in the door. He made this by rolling and folding a piece of stiff plastic pinched from the cover of some book! A bit of sticky tape sealed the deal.

What did you use for the toilet roll?

The whole thing sort of developed as it went along. The toilet roll is the bottom half of a milk bottle lolly.

Is there anything inside the dunny?

Some discussion surrounded whether or not anything was dropped inside the actual dunny itself – a chocolate bullet, for example. This will remain a mystery to be discovered by the fortunate (or unfortunate) eaters of these babies!

Last bit

I spent ages making these babies, and thoroughly enjoyed the finished product. And I was delighted with how they were received. My sister laughed and enjoyed the delight of them and checked out the snakes who were also slithering down the inside of the dunny.

stop quitting

2011-12-22T17:44:00.000+11:00

>> This is what I'm going to look like at 100!

I havenoticed something that’s reasonably common for those who ultimately fail in their sincere efforts at achieving their health goals. Not everyone is like this of course. Like, I’m sure you and I would never dothis.

Most are able tolose weight. But only for awhile. They can’t seem to makeit an ongoing lifestyle thing in order to achieve their ultimate goal. A bit of stress comes along, or they getbusy, or it becomes just too hard. I could be dead wrong. And this is just an observation on mypart. It may even occur, that otherssuccessfully lose weight for a while, and then after they quit trying so hard,they put all the weight back on again, undoing all the hard work they tried sohard to achieve. Then they feel badabout themselves. Awful, in fact. Like crap. They quit. Then they feel worsethan before they even started, and eat more, and put on more weight and so thecycle continues.

So Sherlock, what’s the answer?

Wellit’s a closely guarded secret, because surely if it was widely known everybodywould have done it by now, right? Hardly anybody knows this, so listen up peoplewhile I wax lyrical on my own opinion on the matter. As a person who has experienced exactly thisscenario for a number of years, and also successfully lost 30kg and maintainedit for several years (before allowing a few kilos to creep back on), I am stillin a position where I have an opinion on this secret and as readers of theCardinal Cyn blog, after much soul searching, I have decided to share this withyou, my loyal readers. Ready?

Stop quitting ffs!!!

Nowthat I’ve shared that secret with you, dear people, I wish you all a merryChristmas and happy and healthy new year. [pause]

Oh? You want to know HOW to stop quitting? Ohhh! OK that’s easy. The trick is, you just startyour healthy lifestyle, right? And whenyou fall off the wagon (which I promise you, you will), you just wake upthe next day and get back on. It’s thatsimple. If you fall off the wagon 1000times, get back on 1001. If you do this forlong enough, you will discover two things:

Your new lifestyle starts to feel normal
And when you fall off the wagon, you can’t wait to feel normalagain

Bye bye feeling bad about yourself

Bye bye doing yo-yo diets

Bye bye cycling through failure

Hello feeling damned impressed with yourself

Hello new and lasting change

Hello looking so damned sexy you could cry!

Hello to friends and colleagues who can’t stop complimenting youon how freaking good you look

One more thing: no one fails until they quit. So it's simple. Don't.

book review: in the sanctuary of outcasts

2011-12-21T10:36:00.000+11:00

In the Sanctuary of Outcasts, Neil White, memoir

Thisbeautiful book, by Neil White, is a memoir of 18 months the author spent inCorville Prison, USA, for bank fraud. Corville Prison is an isolated institution which served not only as aprison facility for US Federal prisoners, but also served as home to the‘secret people’ – a community of leprosy patients, who are also cared for by asmall group of nuns.

By his early 30s Neil epitomised the meaning of success with the world at his feet. Marriedwith two small children, Neil was a self-made man with a glittering and fast-moving businessof glamour, power and status.

Thensuddenly, Neil is plunged unwillingly into a collection of society’s mostfeared and unwanted people – criminals and leprosy patients. The outcasts.

Asthe layers of self-reflection and honesty are acknowledged, Neil begins his owntransformation. He begins to see himselfmore honestly. Concurrently he learns about leprosyand the cruelty and stigma that sufferers of this disease must endure. He begins to build friendships with the 'outcasts' and learns from them. These significant friendships have a huge impact. He notices that his initial horror and revulsion at the sight of the‘secret people’ disappears as he learns to respect and love them.

Finally, in a sanctuary for outcasts, I understood the truth. Surrounded by men and women who could nothide their disfigurement, I could see my own.

Withinthis unlikely mix of leprosy patients, nuns and felons, this story is powerful andmoving. Very real and very, very readable.

Highlyrecommended.

tis the week before christmas

2011-12-19T08:26:00.004+11:00

Tisthe week before Christmas, and all through the ‘hood
The smell of great cooking is smelling so good

Thewashing is hung on the line outside
In hopes that the rain will soon subside
The cat is sprawled in his favourite chair
Unalarmed by the kookaburra’s call in the air
And Meyles in his sunscreen and sensible hat

Istending the veggies to make them grow fat

Theneighbours have put their Christmas lights on

Andpressure to conform is second to none

Theirstwinkle and blink with syncopated passion

Whileours sort of cough in a half working fashion

Ourneighbours are louder and friendlier now

Andwe’ve scored some invites to barbies and chow

TheOlds are coming in a while to stay

I’llmake up the bed in the spare room today

TheOle Lade will drink coffee and fall asleep in a chair

WhileBull will watch cricket and get the TV to blare

We’llmeet at The Swamp for Christmas Day lunch

I’mmaking a salad with lots of nut crunch

Cooby’smade pudding with sixpence money pieces

Andtrifle and ginger balls will arrive with the nieces

We’llswap gifts together and share some cheer

Andmiss those who couldn’t make it this year

We’lleat till we’re nearly ready to burst

Butnot without singing grace together first

Sohave a good time with your family and kin

And a safe and merry Christmas from Cardinal Cyn

the tale of two vinnie's

2011-12-16T20:22:00.001+11:00

I listened to someone todayas they told me about their weight loss story. I won’t say who it is because I don’t want them to be embarrassed but Ido want to share their story because I believe they have valuable stuff to sayand share.

For the sake of convenience,I’m going to use the name of Vinnie in this story.

Vinnie 1

Vinnie works in the service industrywhere they are on their feet all day and have one-on-one contact with multipleclients throughout the day. If Vinnie sleeps in of a morning, it’s not uncommonto skip breakfast and rush off to work without it. That means Vinnie will rely on snacks ofeasy-access food during the day, which is usually junk food. Clients often bring gifts, especially now atChristmas time, of homemade bickies, cakes, and snacks which Vinnie eats. Vinnie is often too busy to take a properlunch break, so the reliance on snacking and quick-access foods like cakes andslices is usual.

Vinnie has worked in this wayfor years. Recently the doctor toldVinnie to lose weight.

Vinnie 2

Vinnie works in the serviceindustry where they are on their feet all day and have one-on-one contact withmultiple clients throughout the day. Vinnie wakes up and 6.30am every day and eats a protein based breakfast– usually omelette with vegetables with wholemeal toast. Vinnie keeps a lot of easy-grab good qualitysnacks at work – raw nuts, fresh fruit, sliced lean meat, vegie sticks,yoghurt. Clients who like to bringVinnie presents of sugary food, are thanked profusely, while their gifts areshared with co-workers and other clients, with an occasional indulgence. Vinnie doesn’t get over-hungry, so thetemptation to chow down junk is lessened. Vinnie tries to take a lunchtime walk every day, but if that’s notpossible, Vinnie always eats a salad roll or buys a chicken salad nearby.

Vinnie has worked this way foryears and has energy to burn.

The value of planning

There’s no denying that in orderfor Vinnie 1 to become Vinnie 2, some serious planning needs to take place - planningof meals, times and food choices. These thingsdon’t just happen. And I can guarantee you,that preparing a proper healthy meal, is quicker to prepare than going out to buyso-called ‘convenience’ or ‘fast-food’.

Which do you find most attractive?

One of these lifestyles has ahigh chance of providing a long, healthy life for Vinnie.

Comments? Input is welcome.

book review: the whisperer

2011-12-13T21:54:00.001+11:00

Whisperer = a person who is able to communicate subliminally.

(So imagine a‘Whispering’ psychotic killer)

This book, byDonato Carrisi, is about a team ofpolice on the hunt for a ‘whisperer’ serial killer who kills multiple kids bypsychologically training others to do the killing for him.

The maincharacter is one of the investigative team, Mila, who has her own dark history. The team is led by a brilliant but eccentriccriminologist, Dr Goran, whose personal life is in ruins. Within the team the dynamics ebb and flow,with a developing respect between Mila and Dr Goran.

What i liked

The developmentof the characters within the police team and the relational dynamics betweenMila and the other members of the team.

What i didn’tlike

1. Grislydetail of death or descriptions of murders

2. Gettinginside the heads of the sickos doing the murders

3. Thedisjointed climax with significant developments on every second page which werenot unpacked in enough detail

4. There wasa mind boggling number of murdered bodies

5. The attemptby the writer to create twists to the tale which seemed (to me) to be more melodramaticthan readable

6. The wayit ended

On the whole Ididn’t enjoy this book. I persevered throughit for the sole reason that I am due to facilitate the discussion about it at thenext bookgroup meeting. Otherwise, I wouldnot have finished this book. I’m glad it’sover.

Not recommended.

check-in 5: eat less move more

2011-12-10T09:10:00.001+11:00

Christmasis going to come along and stuff me up I'm sure. And we have a full-on foodie weekend this weekendtoo. So I will have to really pacemyself. I will order wisely at restaurantsand cafes, don’t fill up on bread, limit alcohol intake, and share desserts.

Here’s my stats to date:

Overall Goal: Lose 8kg

Current Loss: 3.3kg

I’m almost halfway there!

Weeklyupdate

Aftera couple of weeks of maintaining my weight, I thought that my food intake musthave been gradually increasing without me realising it. I can eat more so inconspicuously which makes iteasy to slip into denial and think, ‘I’m not doing anything different’.

It’salways about food with me – specifically about overeating. So I readjusted my food intake and had just fruitfor afternoon tea. And the last threemornings I've seen the scales drop. I amnow 3.3kg down! I am delighted withthis.

I'mfeeling so good about myself though. Andmy clothes are all starting to feel much more comfortable.

Moving more

I have noticed that I need to stretch my calvesboth before and after exercise. With my exerciseroutine of walking, yogalates, weights and stretching, I can feel myself gettingstronger. Squatting up and down to put groceriesaway in the crisper at the bottom of the fridge is effortless now.

If / when the weather warms up I may even introduceswimming. We have a beautiful pool just upthe road a bit. It completely knackers methough, swimming! But I do love it.

Eat less move more blogs:

Check-in1

Check-in2

Check-in3

Check-in4

Any comments orsuggestions? Input is welcome.

the big A

2011-12-07T09:29:00.001+11:00

Fat, Sickand Nearly Dead

Have youseen the stuff on telly lately about this guy who made a documentary on his ownstory back to health called “Fat Sick and Nearly Dead”? I went on the website and read his testimonial – great stuff. He took a couple of mates, a generator and a juicing machine and took off on aroad trip to talk to people and do a documentary on his own fight back tohealth and fitness.

It’s verymotivating reading other people’s stories. So when I find stuff thatmotivates me, I take note. Because I have to keep feeding my white dog! Also he had a rare disease which I can’t even pronounce, was on heaps of drugsand now he’s on zero medication!

I think that the guy in the ‘fat sickand nearly dead’ movie probably used doing a movie about himself as hisaccountability. There were times when he waited in parking lots, while hismates were inside eating and drinking. Hismates weren’t on the same diet, so things got tough for him at times.

the Big A and Popularity

Accountability has an unfortunatepopularity profile because of images of judgment from others, but it’s possibleto make it work for you creatively and gently.

the Big A

One of the reasons I started the ‘eat less move more’ blog initiative was to keep myself accountable. Because I need more than knowledge and motivation. I need some accountability too. So knowing I am doing something very public that other people are watching helps keep me on track!

any ideas?

Do you have any creative accountabilityideas? What are they? I’d love to hear about them. So leave me a comment.

feeding the black / white dog

2011-12-02T11:14:00.001+11:00

Black Dog Diet

If you want to undermine your own efforts towardsa healthy goal, then go ahead and feed the black dog. Pay attention to those feelings of needing comfort,convenience and emotional support via unhealthy behaviours. Reinforce those thoughts that tell you:

· I hate exercise

· I don’t have time to exercise

· It’s too hot outside (or too cold, toowindy, too hilly, too late, too early)

White Dog Diet

If you want to give yourself the best chanceat winning your goal, then feed the white dog. The White Dog inside you eats the following:

It's your health.

It's your life.

It's your decision.

Which dog will you feed?

check-in 4: eat less move more

2011-11-30T07:58:00.001+11:00

It’s my health.

It’s my life.

It’s my decision.

See previous eat-less-move-more blogs here:

Check-in 1

Check-in 2

Check-in 3

Week 4 Report

In the last 4 weeks of my eat-less-move-moreinitiative, I have achieved the following:

Goal: lose 8 kilos Current Loss: 2.5kilos

Things of note

1. The first 2 weeks saw the fastestloss. Motivation was high.

2. The second 2 weeks has slowerloss. Motivation is at medium level.

3. Loss of focus makes it hard to regainthe high motivation, once lost.

4. Loss of focus occurs due to eventssuch as leaving a job, having a birthday and receiving 3 boxes of chocolates asgifts (!), having an anniversary, entertaining at home (all occurred duringlast 2 weeks)

Motivators

Different things would no doubt motivateothers. Here’s what motivates me:

1. I get on the scales and seesuccess. Success breeds success.

2. I feel good psychologically at theend of a day when I have stuck to my plan of exercise and food intake.

3. I feel great physically when I eatwell and exercise hard. My eyes areclear and I lose the dark rings under my eyes. I feel energetic and alert. Mybelly is flatter.

4. I have a gentle accountability withmy blog-readers whom I have committed to report to.

5. Feeling my clothes become roomier andfeel more comfortable.

Next steps

1. Do a reality check with portion size bychecking in with CalorieKing.com.au This meansI enter in what I ate for one day and see how this measures up to the recommendedcalorie intake.

2. Maintain exercise routines.

3. Keep focused and pay attention to my 5motivators.

Final comments
I'm very happy with my results so far. I don't mind slow progress. Slow is good. Slow means the changes I'm making are being integrated into my lifestyle and can be maintained. Now that I'm past the initial enthusiasm and into the nitty gritty daily grind of eat-less-move-more, this is where the discipline starts and the changes implemented now will have more impact on my long term lifestyle. I'm also pleased that my previous excuses about being menopausal were all just me in denial. I CAN lose weight. My body is quite capable of it. And for that I am very grateful indeed.

book review: the elegance of the hedgehog

2011-11-25T19:26:00.001+11:00

This unusually named book – The Eleganceof the Hedgehog (by Muriel Barbery) – sparks such a sense of curiosity inme. But what a book!

Set in modern France, this translation isthe story of an equally unusual concierge, Renēe, who, exhibits a facade of ashort, fat and grumpy concierge in a grand Parisian apartment building. But this is no ordinary concierge – Renēe hasa secret and is living a lie. Under herprickly surface, Renēe is cultured, educated, well-read and extremelyknowledgeable – more so than the rich and professional residents who live inthe building – the same people who find her invisible, due to classdistinctions.

At the door stands a courier, chewing what must be a piece of gum for elephants, given the vigour and range of mandibular activity to which he is compelled

As it happens, two other unusual people livein the same building, and as these 3 somewhat eccentric individuals begin tobuild a relationship across the class divide, the ‘Hedgehog’ (Renee) begins to beunveiled and revealed.

This book is not one to read if you are in ahurry. And it’s not always lightreading. It is, however, charming, at timeshilarious, and also moving, with a level of insight and depth that is more meatythan your average novel.

I would recommend this book to anyone lookingfor a novel with teeth.

kissing in movember

2011-11-21T08:24:00.001+11:00

It’s not unusual to see all manner of reallybad facial hairdos during Movember. In fact,I kind of think that the worse they look the better for Movember, for some sillyreason. It’s the bad ‘dos’ that stand outand you remember. Plus, there’s an underlyingsense of humour in the whole movember theme, which renders bad ‘dos’ suddenly cool. But only for the month of movember!

Facial hair styles of the Hunter:

- Full Beard – could be the ‘justcovered’ look, or contain considerable length extending from the chin down. This style means a bloke is demonstrating his blokinessand alpha-maleness, however it needs to be groomed to be truly effective. Management of this style for kissing purposes wouldbe a challenge for both parties.

- Goatee – a mature style, signifyingdignity and passion, which can be worn well or done rather badly. Kissing with this style would, in some ways, presentthe most complex challenges as the Goatee is often cropped quite short and wouldbe rather bristly.

- 3-day Growth Scruff – This is a very sexylook, but must be well maintained within the context of the overall personal presentation. Must always be presented with impeccablepersonal hygiene. Limited difficulties withkissing, although caution is advised.

- Burns – Not quite a beard,but still has some facial hairy bits. Perhaps the bloke is not very decisive. Or a non-committal type. Burns work really well coupled with a Goatee or3-Day Growth Scruff look. Or they can workjust on their own. Burns present no problemswith kissing at all.

- Chinstrap – the most unfavouritestyle of women everywhere! This is aboutattention. If you’re going to spend timemessing with shaping a Chinstrap to look so weird, why not channel that energy into mowing the lawn and doing the edges!? Kissing? Who wants to kiss a wanker anyway?

- The Tom Sellick Mo – the mo on its ownis said to be the most difficult part of facial hair to cope with. It needs constant maintenance and carries highrisk involving bits of bodily fluids and food getting stuck in it, and carries challengeswith snogging. For a bloke to take on the challenge of the mo,signifies that he loves a challenge and will not be intimidated by things whichare difficult. The Mo can also go horriblywrong and scream ‘sleazebag’. So it may notbe for every bloke.

- Handlebars – this style ups theante on the Tom Sellick Mo. It goes an extrastep and signifies that this bloke is willing to groom his facial follicles constantlyto perfection. Although some difficultiesmay be associated with kissing, with practice these can be overcome by attemptingalternative directional approaches.

- The Tiny Bottom Lip Patch – What a lot of workmust go into a tiny little patch of hair. This is akin to maintaining the Victor for a squareinch of grass. It can look good though, and when it works, itworks extremely well. Few, to no kissingissues here.

- Mutton Chops – if you want to looklike a small, furry animal has died on your face, grow Mutton Chops. The bloke who wears these well deserves admirationas they are a bold and brave statement. Ifyou can get past the visual impact to the kissing stage, then go for it!

- Clean Shaven – seems very unusualthese days, but this style presents no problems with the passion department, asthere’s no hair to get in the way of kissing. But doesn't fit well with Movember either!

This brings me to the issues of kissing duringmovember. Meyles, who supports mens healthwholeheartedly, wears his facial hair year round. This means I am constantly faced with the issueof kissing what feels like a toilet brush against my face which scratches and canleave a rash on my delicate skin.

After extensive research, experts of facial hairissues such as the scratchiness against skin stuff, recommend that blokes use shampooand conditioner on their facial hair to soften it and reduce the ‘toilet brush effect’.

Roll on Movember!

the great french toast cook-off

2011-11-19T12:23:00.001+11:00

the kitchen opened at 8am for competitors to prepare.
note Shaun's new shorts

the virgin marys went down very well indeed. fire extinguisher and all

the Nelson Team have been watching MasterChef!

and the Meyles team have been watching Junior MasterChef!

the final offerings which will go to the judges

now the judges must decide....

check-in 3: eat less move more

2011-11-12T20:44:00.001+11:00

Two weeksinto the eat-less-move-more initiative and I am a whole 2 (yes 2) big oneslighter. I can’t believe it! I am delighted.

About feelinggood

It’s a greatthing to be working towards something of value (physical wellbeing) and seeyourself edging closer to your values. It’s a great feeling psychologically too. I feel good about me.

I have moreenergy, and when I put my makeup on in the mornings I fancy my face looksthinner. My belly is flatter and my workpants are more comfortable. I don’t havedark rings under my eyes. My eyes areclear and I am not tired after lunch.

Eating less

I am gettingused to eating less. It’s almost likeevery meal I am satisfied, but only just. It’s a very useful exercise to remind myself about portion control andvolume of food which I actually need. It’s much less than I’d like!

Reportrequest

I’d love toget an update from my eat-less-move-more buddies – PR and Reven (see check-in 1 of eat-less-move-more). How are you guys going with your goals of:

PR – losing 5kilos, 20 pushups, fitter by forty
Reven – reducein-between-meal snacking

Readers request

A big thanks to Jono and Sags who provided infoon Facebook about snacks. Really good. Any comments and suggestions are most welcome andencouraged, and it would be great if they could be put here – on the blog – so thatreaders who don’t access the blog via Facebook can also benefit. So. Anychance? Thanks guys. (refer check-in 2 of eat-less-move-more)

Challenges coming up

In the next week I have several events to manage,e.g. my wedding anniversary (24 years)! Anight out with the girls at work (my work contract finishes). And I also have a birthday coming up. So it’s going to be a challenging week for me tonot overeat.

Any suggestions about managing my upcoming weeklychallenges would be great.

Let’s hear from you. And PR and Reven too!

bookgroup anniversary: 1 year on

2011-11-10T21:17:00.002+11:00

We have justcelebrated one year of a successful bookgroup. Our celebration consisted of lunch with dishes of food which representedthe countries in the books we have read over the year including Malaysian, Vietnamese, Spanishand English tasty dishes. Sangria rocks!

Over the pastyear these are the books we have read:

· Eat Pray Love	· The Book Thief	· The Angels Game
· The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo	· The Girl Who Played With Fire	· The Elegance of the Hedgehog
· The Great Gatsby	· Tuesdays with Morrie	· Lady Chatterley’s Lover
· The Happiest Refugee	· A Spot of Bother	· A Tale of Two Cities
· Jasper Jones	· The Guernsey Literary & Potato Pie Peel Society

We read abook a month and meet for breakfast at a cafe once a month to discuss the book andcatch up on any other girly gossip while drinking coffee and eating eggs ontoast. What a great bunch of women!

The mosthated book

Eat PrayLove. This is unfortunate because I wasthe only one who liked it! Yes, I didget bogged down in India, but enjoyed the rest of the book greatly. Everyone else hated it and can’t stop sayinghow self-possessed the writer was. We alsodidn’t do so well with classics – especially when the first sentence of a booktakes a whole paragraph on the page.

Most enjoyedbooks

· TheHappiest Refugee – without fail, we all found this purepositive enjoyment

· JasperJones – loved it and so did our husbands!

· TheGuernsey Literary & Potato Pie Peel Society – could possibly be at the top of this list. So gripping andbeautifully written. My mum loved it too.

· TheAngels Game – this sparked great discussion. I could not putthis one down.

· TheGirl With The Dragon Tattoo; and The Girl Who Played With Fire. What could I possiblyadd to these? These books have taken theworld by storm. Excellent reads.

Bring on the next 12 months. There is a world of great stories out there justwaiting to be devoured.

Have you read any good books lately? Do you want to recommend a book? Please let us know by leaving a comment below. Thanks.

eat less, move more: check-in 2

2011-11-05T16:34:00.001+11:00

I’m a loser, folks. Yes I am. 1.2 kilos down, another 6.8 to go! Ihave also lost 8cm off my bust, waist, hips and thighs.

Support

I’m also very glad to have two loser friends who share my quest:

1. PR, who’s goals are to be fitter by forty, losing 5 big ones, 20 pushups and fit back into her ‘magic pants’

2. Reven (my big bro) who wants to avoid ‘grabbing and snacking’ between meals

It’swonderful to have the online public support of other losers (used in theappropriate sense of the word) to make this eat-less-move-move initiative bothfun and successful. Fun, because thereare others who can share their knowledge and experience; and successful, becausewe will also provide a gentle accountability for each other just by doing thistogether.

What I’veDone This Week

Exercised 6out of 7 days for at least 45 minutes each time. Exercise has been walking, a session ofyogalates (yoga + pilates), and a 1.5 hour bikeride, during which I felt every bump, and pothole like it was a crater. Oh my poor butt.

I alsoregistered with CalorieKing.com.au (free) to get an idea of my suggestedcalorie intake and portion control and the split of calories between fat, carbsand protein. This has been most helpful.

Challenges

Overeating. Especially when we went out for tea Wednesdaynight. I was hungry. I ordered beef & veg stirfry and thentried not to eat all of the delicious noodles with beef & veg. I ate too many smarties with coffee at theend. Still, it could’ve been worse, andThursday was another day. I have also had a few hunger headaches which I manage by eating something wise (most of the time).

Tips onSnacking

Reven, youwondered about ideas on avoiding ‘grabbing and snacking’. I blogged on that topic here but wouldlove further comments and suggestions of any lurking losers out there who wouldlike to contribute their ideas. Me? Make your snacks protein based – nuts, forexample.

It’s Not TooLate

If you feellike you’re missing out not joining in, then it’s never too late to start the eat-less-move-morechallenge. You can still jump in and letus all know what your goal/s are and how you are going to do it. You too can be a loser!

Comments

Anyone isencouraged to contribute to this conversation – loser or not. Jump in! Click on comment and wax lyrical!

eat less move more, check-in 1

2011-10-29T11:22:00.000+11:00

Roight. I’m back from holidays and my pants are fine ifI don’t have to breathe. And as much as itpains me to do so, I am going to eat less and move more. My aim is to move towards my value of physicalwellbeing by making small adjustments to my lifestyle which will be embedded inmy habits and last long term. I don’t expectsudden or dramatic results. Slow is good. Slow means long lasting change and ultimatelysuccess. Success is when I reach my weightgoal and am psychologically accepting of my weight and physical wellbeing.

goals

1. Lose 8kilos. A trimmer, taughter, and terrific-er(a word) bod

cardinal cyn plan

1. Eat less

2. Move more

3. Monitor the results, analyse, adjust and repeat

tools of trade

1. Journal – monitor my food, exercise and weight. I also have an app on my phone which helpswith this. Technology! So it must be good, right?

2. Report my results via this blog to keep me accountable.

· How often? At least fortnightly. Probably more.

· For howlong? At least until Christmas. Probably longer. Let me just say, that losing 8 kilos will takeme a lot longer than Christmas. But the commitmentthat I’m making right now, is until Christmas. This doesn’t mean I will stop doing everythingat Christmas, it just means that I can choose to re-commit, continue, or not atChristmas.

3. Gain social support. If any of my blog-readers would like to join me on this quest,or provide an occasional comment to encourage me that would be wonderful.

Invitation

Dear Cardinal-Cyn-Blog-Reader,(yes you!) would you like to join the masses of ‘Cardinal Cyn eat-less-move-more’enthusiastic types who would benefit from being trimmer, taughter and terrific-ertoo? Yes? Good! Thenplease do the following:

1. RSVP via commentsand tell the world (accountability). OK,you can still remain anonymous via comments if you choose.

2. Identify your goals. You may have variations on the theme. But please indicate what you are aiming for. You need at least one measurable goal, but no morethan 3 or 4.

3. Identify your plan. This is about HOW you will achieve your goal. (It may be the same as mine, or your own, or pinchedfrom someone else. But share it with us inshort dot-point form.)

4. Do it now.

There. I’m on my way to achieving my goals. If anybody else would like to join in and movetowards their own goals with me, I’d be delighted. So come on! RSVP now!

garden variety widow

2011-10-26T20:15:00.004+11:00

Meyles spendsevery spare moment outside in his precious garden. He wouldn’t so much as look at another woman. No, he wouldn’t. He’s too interested in worms and chook poo toso much as glance at another woman. Ifit doesn’t have roots and leaves and you can’t pick it, pull it, smell it,admire it, or eat it then he’s not interested!

That right,folks, I am a fair dinkum, true-blue, garden variety widow!

And thethings I put up with! This is what Ihave to suffer:

1. Nothingis ever as fresh. I can never go to cafe or restaurant and order salad orvegies, because they are all as limp as a wimpy handshake, and have brown bitsin them from being in the fridge too long. Ewww!

2. Supermarketstuff is crap. If everI go to the supermarket to buy fresh stuff it’s all just crap bycomparison. So I am never satisfied withquality from anywhere else.

3. Nothingelse has any flavour. Halfthe time the fruit is green, the vegies are old and everything comes out ofcold storage where it’s been gassed, frozen, or stored for ages.

4. SometimesI never want to see spinach again. I love spinach. But just recently we had so much of the stuffwe gave away buckets of it and ate it at every meal. So when we went out to breakfast and my eggs camewith a big generous serve of… you guessed it… spinach on the side, I thought, “Ohcrap! Not more spinach!”

Life for aGarden Variety Widow sure is tough.

the last supper

2011-10-23T18:52:00.000+11:00

It’s the lastnight of freedom before we both face work again. Major downer :( So to cheer ourselves up, we made a Jamie tea:)

CatherineWheel Sausage: buy a string of good quality snags, untwist and push the meattogether, wind it up & secure with skewers, stick fresh sage in the gaps,season & grill
HorseradishMash: mashedpotato with horseradish cream mixed in for a kick
Apple Salad: the bottom layer has ryvita bits spread with creamed cheese,lemon zest, apple and lettuce
Sage &Leek Gravy: madewith sage, leek and cider and thickened with flour
StuffedApples: thestuffing is delicious – egg, almonds, apricots & sugar. These were cooked in the microwave andbrowned off under the grill when the sausage was finished being grilled.

This recipecomes from Jamie’s 30 Minute Meals book – the best recipe book I have everowned. It's called “30 Minute Meals”because of the time it’s supposed to take to prepare the meals. Ahem… errr… it took Meyles and I 50 minutes fromscratch. But even so, we’re happy with that. Next time it will be quicker, because wewon’t have to keep checking the book every 5 seconds.

I love this bookbecause the meals in them are full of flavour and puts combinations of food togetherwhich are delicious. If you haven’t alreadygot this book, then do yourself a favour!

Be warned though - the kitchen ends up a freaking mess!!

soaking up beauty

2011-10-22T10:45:00.001+11:00

There’ssomething about soaking up beauty that does it for me.

Itre-balances and re-sets perspectives.
Itreplenishes the soul.
It makes mesort of expand on the inside.
It’s like therapy.

Beauty can be ‘soaked up’ via various means

Tasting (Probably did too much of this one):

Tasting beverages and foods like Yahava Koffee, wines, and the Fremantle pub that serves paddles of beer tasters
Laughing about the heat in the chilli food which made our mouths burn like hell in Fremantle

Kindness:

Receiving kindness from friends who accommodated us, met with us and gave time for us
Good conversation with good friends who love and accept us
Meeting up with friends from years earlier who are delightful and fun to be with

Visually:

Whales atCape Naturaliste, WA
Wildflowers enmasse which are a sort of understated wild but fragile beauty
Black Boys(Grass Trees) which are everywhere in WA
Identifyingbirds and animals I haven’t seen before – moaning frogs, splendid wrens, emuwrens, and a dirty great big tiger snake I nearly stepped on!

Enjoyment:

Appreciatingthe little extras that are provided to make our stay in our accommodation moreenjoyable like complimentary fudges, candles, DVDs, CDs, good coffee
Takingadvantage of the beautifully laid out boardwalking tracks along the coast inAlbany, WA

I have to getmore of this into my life – this kind of beauty. Soaking up beauty via various means istherapy for my soul. Some of this beauty was soaked up unexpectedly inunplanned ways, while others was planned for. Both are good – so just bring it on.

We arrivedhome yesterday to a happy cat and bad smell in the ensuite (something about thepipes drying out). The garden hasgrown. The lawn needs mowing. We have a mountain of washing to do and anurgent need to go grocery shopping. Workis looming on Monday….

So althoughwe know that life is not realistically a long holiday, in short spurts holidays certainly balance out the routine of working life, bring a window of joy andadd beauty (and kilos) to your life in the most enjoyable way.

Thank you Mark and Gayeleen for yourkindness, friendship and hospitality. Thanks to Kerrie and Warrick for your fun company. Thanks to Kaye and the whole Sinclair clanfor that great dinner out at the Red Cray. Thanks to Henk for meeting us on the last night. You guys have added spice and beauty to ourlives in fantastic ways!

daggy dressers

2011-10-11T01:08:00.000+11:00

Why do some people dress so freaking daggily (a word)?

Lots of job advertisements call for applicants who have 'a high standard of personal presentation', meaning they have to look sharp. But there are some people who just look so... well, how can I put this... so daggy! And this is not just about job applications, it's about being appropriately presented.
Now I know we are not all built like Elle Macpherson, or have big budgets, but there are always options for budget clothes to dress all different shapes and sizes. Despite our setbacks we can still make the best of what we have.
It's true that our personal presentation may not be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth about us, but it's an indicator, a door-opener, a sign of respect. Everything about you says something about you. It's why people dress carefully and specifically for weddings, funerals, job interviews, and dates. This is a way of demonstrating respect for the family, the panel, or the date.
I have a sort of vague theory, which is not water tight or based on anything but my own observations. But it goes sort of like this: what you feel about yourself on the inside is sometimes expressed externally by how you present yourself. By this, I mean that your personal presentation can sometimes be linked to a person's self-esteem. If they feel good about themselves they will look a million bucks. But if they feel bad about themselves they express their own self-attitudes in dressing down and daggy.
If my theory holds any water at all, then it's not a problem of just buying new clothes or spending money. The reason why people might start to present themselves in their best light is if they feel better about themselves. It might not be an easy or simple solution.
However I also believe that self-esteem and wellbeing will both benefit from each other. There is always a bit of each that rubs off on the other. So stepping up the 'looking sharp' stakes could, in a small way, build the self-esteem.

Any comments? Comment away.

the slap

2011-10-07T18:57:00.000+11:00

Ever had akid sitting behind you kicking the back of your seat on a plane?
Ever had toside-step a tantrum in the supermarket?
Or hadtrouble hearing a conversation in a cafe due to the screams coming from thenext table?

Last night wewatched the first episode of The Slap – a tv series on the ABC based on the novel byChristis Tsiolkas. A young kid – maybe4ish – was wildly swinging a cricket bat in a vicious manner which, if itconnected, could cause serious harm to another person.

As theparents were not responsive to the immediate danger of the situation, anotheradult nearby intervened. The adult grabbed the bat and shookthe kid giving him a good talking to. The kid reacted by viciously kicking the adult in the shins. The adult slapped the kid back – hard.

And then all hell broke loose.

So the next 7episodes of The Slap will be exploring the various attitudes and perspectivesto this unfortunate event.

But lastnight…

The slapped kid’sfather is pressing charges against the slapper
The slapped kid’smother is angry at the owners of the house, even though the owners didn’t dothe slapping
The kid whogot slapped is hugged and soothed by his mum
The guy whosehouse it happened in was glad the slap happened because it woke him up to thedangers of the near-affair he was just about to have with a younger woman
Another adultwas horrified someone hit a child
Another adultfelt the kid deserved all he got

There’s no denyingit was an impossible situation. So. If you had been there and witnessed the slap, whatwould your reaction have been? Would you:

Have been theperson to jump in an intervene, but without slapping?
Have been an observerbut secretly glad someone else did the slapping?
Thought the adultwho slapped the kid was totally out of line?
Other (please explain)

What’s your responseto the slap?

Yes People

2011-10-03T09:56:00.003+11:00

win / lose

Yes People: Exhibiting external agreementcoupled with simultaneous internal disagreement. Placing others’ needs above their own. Saying one thing with words, but anotherthing with actions.

Yes Peopleare locked in a prison. Life for them is about pleasingother people and saying yes when theyreally want to say no. Yes People learnthat things are easier if they don’t rock the boat or draw any undue attentionto themselves. Yes people want tohide, blend in, shut up instead of speak up, appear helplessand demure and let others come to rescue them.

Yes Peopleuse ‘fuzzy language’. Coupled with ashrug, a sort of slow, fuzzy response to even the simplest question will oftenbe enough to turn the questioner aside and learn not to ask anymore. They deflect - don’t answer anything directlyor clearly, making any verbal response fuzzy and vague. This will train others never to expect toomuch.

Yes Peoplealso use complaining as a handy tool. Bybeing passive, others are forced to take the reins leaving Yes People to ‘kickthe horse’. In this regard Yes Peoplebecome manipulative. Alwaysside-stepping responsibility to force others to pick up more than their fairshare.

Yes Peoplecannot maintain such a mindset without consequences. And theconsequences are devastating long term. Relationshipswould be the big loser here. And the consequencesof such behaviour doesn’t stop with the Yes Person themselves, but spills over intothe relationships around them as they systematically lose the respect of others.

What can YesPeople do to help themselves? This is nota prison which is easy to break out of. Dothey know they are in prison and do they want to be free? What are the bars in the window which keep themlocked inside?

What are yourthoughts or comments on Yes People, and setting them free? Comments welcome.

a special place in hell

2011-10-01T19:51:00.000+10:00

There will be a special place in hell for certain types who operatethe Australian telecommunications industry.

Everybody knows that when you’re in the shop to sign up for anew phone you get prompt service, and many promises by fast-talking sales peoplewho reassure you that this product will meet your every desire. They are attentive and responsive. They are so confident in their product that youkind of start believing that they actually know what they’re talking about.

And you make the fatal mistake of leaving the shop before thephone works properly. You believe the liethat, “No you have to wait an hour until all the internet connections align.”

Logically, I know this will turn bad. I know that in spite of bringing home a shiny newmobile with all the buttons and bells that sooner or later (and it turned out tobe sooner) I will need some actual service from the provider. Now there’s a foreign concept – service from atelecommunications provider!

So I have spent my long weekend (so far) fighting with the shopstaff and the technology and ringing various carriers and being given wrong information(on multiple fronts) and still – the phone is not working properly!!!

But still, the staff in the shop assure me it is their favouritephone, in fact, they have one themselves! And this problem is very unusual…etc etc. After 2 hours of this, I came home believing (wrongly)again that all was well.

Unbelievably the most enjoyable part of my day today was doingthe ironing!

This, folks, should give you some context into my emotional responseto the situation. Why oh why, does everythingneed to be so freaking complex? Pop servers,outgoing ports, incoming servers, exchange accounts, technicians who disagree…ffs!

Yes folks, there will be a special place in hell. If not for the telecommunications staff, then atleast for their products.