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Rushing in...rushing out!

February 28, 2016, 6:05 am
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This is a fairly quick post today, but I didn't want people here at Fat Dormouse to feel unloved! I've been posted regularly at The Teapot, as I'm journalling my thoughts about 40 Acts, but I still want to pop in here at least once a week!

I would like to offer agreatbigfat Dormouse welcome to Jean from A Very Grand Pressigny. Happy you wanted to join us, Jean!

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 We went out for dinner yesterday. Mr FD has been doing lots to help some friends set up their TV, and computer and other techie things, so to say Thank You to him, they took us out to dinner. We went to a restaurant not too far from here, called La Murette

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It was very nice - I had eggs cooked with lardons and spinach for starter, carbonade for main, and vanilla cream with red fruits and chantilly for dessert. Very enjoyable!

Dinners planned for this week are:
TODAY: Steak with vietnamese dressing & sweet potato wedges

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MONDAY: Roast vegetable and harissa cous-cous

TUESDAY: Aubergine burgers, pitta and coleslaw

WEDNESDAY: Italian pork (slow cooker recipe) - this isn' t the exact rtecipe, and I'm using fresh peppers rather than marinaded from a jar, but it gives a flavour of what we're having.

THURSDAY: Pork again, with baked potatioes from the slow cooker.

I'm off to Liverpool for the weekend, so I won't be posting next week...Hopefully I'll have time to catch up the following Tuesday (full working day on Monday) 

Of course, I want to say Thank You for your comments... Lovely people!

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PomPom, I saved you some lamb and chickpeas...(Actually, it wasn't very nice, as Mr FD followed the wrong recipe. Never mind!)

Hard Up Hester Thank you for the advice on wandering Followers. I kind of let the furore about Google Plus etc pass me by!

Kezzie: Did you make the vegetarian lasagne? For non-vegetarians Mary Berry's lasagne recipe is very nice!!

Busy Little Chicken shepherds pie with sweet potato topping sounds yummy!! I'm putting your swap parcel together, but time seems to be going so quickly at the moment!! 

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Sorry it's so rushed today...Hopefully it will be less rushed next time. Have a lovely week, dear Peeps!!


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Stupendous Swaps!

March 8, 2016, 3:35 am
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I love swaps!! Even though I have had one bad experience - I sent a rather hefty package to a swapee in New Zealand and got nothing in return! - I am always optimistic...And when I joined in Mad About Bags' Send A Little Love swap I was right to be!!

I was paired up with Rae, and although I think Real Life got in the way, as it does sometimes, and the parcel was a little late, it didn't matter, as she was incredibly generous. Thank you so much, Rae, for all the lovely things you sent me...



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This package was waiting for me when I got back from my weekend in Liverpool...But I couldn't open it until I'd recharged my camera battery!

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Inside was an interestingly bulging bag

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Filled with an array of goodies!!

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sweeties!!

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A camper-van eggcup & creme egg!!

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                                                  Glittery gel pens and heart shaped confetti!!

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 Ribbons, and flowers and glue to be crafty with!!!

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Four catnip mice - one each for the Very Bad Cats!!!

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A handbag/phone charm and a lovely star hanging ornament!!!

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    Lovely pink earrings!!! And some Rose bubble bath (which I've forgotten to photograph!)


Thank you so much Rae, for your generosity! This was a wonderful parcel to open, and I'm extremely grateful. You have been a wonderful swap partner & I hope you like the things I sent you.






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Lost a bit of interest

March 13, 2016, 6:34 am
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Hello Dear Peeps!
I hope everyone is well and not too chilly. The temperatures have risen here, but my study still feels chilly - the old stone house takes a while to warm up.

I meant to update this blog on Tuesday but couldn't be bothered - how rude! Trying to keep two blogs goping is a bit time consuming, & I want to try to continue with the Teapot because I'm blogging about 40 Acts. Even so, I had to do a mammoth catch up on Friday as I'd let that slip too.

Mr FD has been in the UK collecting a car which we have been given.  He left on Wednesday and is due back later today. I've quite enjoyed this little break being by myself., although I've been lazy about food...
WEDNESDAY evening I picked up a pizza from the van as I came home (no dancing tonight). I ate half.
THURSDAY: I ate the half pizza from yesterday with HM coleslaw
FRIDAY: Jacket potato with beans & cheese.
SATURDAY: bought pasta sauce, jazzed up with extra veggies & bacon bits

On Thursday I had an opthalmologist appointment in Clermont, and saw that "Room" was being shown in VO at the cinema. So I treated myself to lunch out - goats' cheese salad & a beer - and then went to the pictures!
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I'd already read the book, but even so, I found the tension almost unbearable. An excellent film which I thoroughly recommend.

The rest of this week's menu planning looks like this:

TONIGHT: Confit de canard, roast potatoes, green beans
MONDAY: Spicy roast vegetables with rice.
TUESDAY: Mary Berry lasagne
WEDNESDAY: Casserole from freezer.

Next weekend we're off for 5 days with the Cyclo Club to La Londe in the south

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The cyclists will be cycling. I may do some gentle walking, but Sylvie and I are also thinking about sneaking off for a day at the Thallasotherapy centre nearby. I'll also take some drawing stuff and my Kindle - must pop a few more books on there!

Thank you for your comments, as always. I'm sorry I've been so lax in blogging recently. I'm afraid it will continue over the next few weeks because of Stuff Going On (good stuff though!)

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I'm back with news of another Stupendous Swap.

March 29, 2016, 1:16 am
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Hello, dear Peeps!

I think that things are getting back to normal now...40 Acts is over (although I haven't really finished, and will be continuing with Acts that I missed in the last couple of weeks), we have been away (twice!) and the Easter weekend is coming to a close. It's been rather sparse over here at Fat Dormouse, so I apologise for that.

I will tell you about all the lovely things that we've been doing - either here or at The Teapot - but first I want to tell you about the lovely swap that I did with Busy Little Chicken. This was "Share Your Country" organised by Creative Chaos.

As usual, I forgot to photograph what I sent Busy Little Chicken, but you can read her blogpost about it over here. The one thing I did photograph was the Zentangle chicken that I sent:

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I was sent lots of delightful things in return:
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Some pamphlets and information about Norfolk, where BLC lives, and some proper "English" teabags ! I can enjoy a cuppa while improving my mind!

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Some lovely scented Norfolk lavender - it's on my desk, and every now & then I give it a squeeze and breathe in some relaxing lavender scents!

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A personalised recipe book!! I can slip the cover off & add it to another book if I wish. I may actualmly use this for my weekly menu planning instead - I haven't quite decided.

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CHOCKLIT! Always popular! Unfortunately, Mr FD saw this so I'll have to share! No adding it to my Secret Chocklit Stash!


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A dinky cat-lovers charm, which I've added to my handbag.

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and a bag and postcard showing landmarks local to BLC. The bag has already been used many times for carrying my art supplies on our various mini-holidays.

I have had two lovely swaps from Busy Little Chicken and Rae. Thank you both very much for being such generous swap partners...You have almost wiped away the memory of the failed New Zealand swap from a couple of years ago. Thank you! 


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Easter Weekend...

April 2, 2016, 4:07 am
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I'm slowly getting myself back into the usual routine - but I'm finding that the weeks are getting busier again (which is not a bad thing, but it does, as many of you know, mean the weekends become fuller of things you Must DO, instead of things you Want To Do) But I have managed to find time to blog! No menus today, just a post about our weekend away with our friend Danièle...

 I spent 2 hours this morning sorting outr my bills for March - it's not that difficult, but it just takes a while, scanning and sending copies of attendance sheets, checking (and double checking) the names and file numbers of students, checking dates against my diary and so on. Still! Finished for another month and hopefully the cheques will start rolling in soon!!

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I've started writing more letters - I joined in with Silver Pebble's "Real Letter Writing" swap. I received two lovely letters, and have sent two back. Plus I wrote a letter to mum while we were away, I've written to a couple of old school friends, and to a neighbour oif my mum's, who has moved south to be in a Hospice nearer to her daughter. It's lovely receiving letters too, but I'm enjoying writing them (even though I've not got that much to write about) If you'd like to be added to my list of people for me to write to, then send me an email with your address. I splurged a bit on the Paperchase web site, so I now have some lovely writing paper to use!
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We had a lovely Easter weekend: Good Friday isn't a bank holiday in France, so I had a couple of lessons to give, but as they were in Clermont, I thought I'd take the opportunity to go to the Good Friday service at Church. It was a joint French-English service with the Eglise Reformée and it started quite late. So I popped into ILS (the language school for whom I do some work) to catch up on news and do a bit of photrocopying - and to leave my car in their car park! - then I went into the city centre. I wouldn't shoip on Good Friday normally, but I wanted to get a gift for the Rector & his wife, so I thought it would be "OK" to pop into a couple of shops - I bought them a bottle of wine, a pot of artichoke paté and some mini Easter eggs. Then I went to a reastaurant that we often go to in Clermont (mostly because it serves food throughout the day) and I had a prawn-and-avocado salad. That's another of my Good Friday traditions - I don't eat meat on Good Friday. The servioce was good, but a bit long, and I'm glad I went, especially as it was the only Holy Week/Easter service I got to!

On Saturday I had to do some ironing, and I had to finish off a special present. This was because we had been invted to stay at a Gite with our friend Danièle, her family and friends. This was to celebrate her 70th birthday. To be honest, I felt really honoured to have been invited as part of her close circle of friends: when I said this to her she replied that she wanted to celebrate this time with the people who had been closest and most supportive when her husband Paul had died (If you scroll down here, you can read a little more about Paul and saying goodbye to him)

I made a scrapbook that people could write in during the weekend:
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 There were pages to sum up Danièle in one or two words:

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 A page to write a longer message for her to read at her leisure...

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 A page to write our hopes for her future...

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 A page to write our memories of our first meeting, or a funny story...

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A page for the family to write on (her four children, their partners and her 5 grandchildren were all there...)
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 A page to stick photos, or put them in the pocket...

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 Some Bible verses...

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and then, on the last page a photo of Paul, and a verse that was read at his funeral:
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I will be joyful in God my Saviour. The Sovereign LORD is my strength;
he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
he enables me to tread on the heights.


I hope she likes the book.

Every meal, the table was beautifully decorated with candles and twigs...and my camera battery died! So no photo of that. I hastily put it on charge...so here's the table later on during Saturday evening's dinner...Looking not quite so pretty!

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The food was quite simple - with over 30 people to cater for, it couldn't be anything else! We started Saturday's meal with rather strong Mojitos, and bowls of houmous and tapenade. Then lots and lots (and lots...and lots...!) of Flammekeurches with salad

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Then there was birthday cake!!
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The following day, Easter lunch was a chicken tagine with cous-cous followed by apple tart. In the afternoon, there were walks of various lengths - some went for a short stroll, others (me and Mr FD) managed about 5 km, while others were out for hours. This group included Danièle's son, Sylvain, his partner Aurelia, and their dog, Arlo. Arlo was a bit tired when they got back!

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There was much sitting around, relaxing, chatting, drawing, playing... and then more food!! The evening meal was boiled potatoes, salad, Lyonnaise sausage, and sarrason ( a type of salad sauce made with creme fraiche, shallots, herbs etc) and then fruit salad. We left on Monday morning feeling very well fed!

We had a wonderful weekend! I leave you with Arlo and Aurelia:

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Crosses, cats and cooking...

April 10, 2016, 5:53 am
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Hello again, dear Peeps. I am sorry I'm not blogging very frequently at the moment.. There's no real reason, save generally being quite busy, but I shoulodn't forget my loyal readers. Thank you for popping by.

The sun is shining today - as yesterday. Yesterday I forced myself to go for a walk - I had bought two delicious cakes, so felt we had to earn them! Mr FD went riding with the club (although he returned 20 minutes later having had leg spasms. He just thinks they were because it was quite chilly, despite the sun. He's gone oput today instead.) I walked for about 7 km which isn't bad for me - my feet and knees were hurting quite a bit at the end, especially on the downhill bits, but I was very glad that I went.

The other thing I did yesterday was finish a Zentangle.
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It's for the good folk in the 40 Acts team. I hadn't meant to use colour, but I made a complete hash of the pattern, and it came to me that the gold pen might cover it over; once I'd done gold, it looked daft by itself so I added the silver, and then thought I might as well go the whole hog, so I used the red and green. I'm not sure I prefer it to a monochrome look, but it works for me.

So, food this week has been planned thuswise:

TODAY: Veal stew with some potatoes, and broccoli and green beans.

MONDAY: Lemon & Thyme roasted cod. As Mr FD is fasting (I've rather given up on fasting, I'm afraid!) we may have this with just salad. But possibly with some boiled potatoes too, as his "tank" will be a bit drained from today's ride.

TUESDAY: Pork meatballs -
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I'm not using veal in mine, just pork mince. 

WEDNESDAY: Oven baked red pepper risotto
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I'll be at my dance group tonight, so I try to choose something either slow cooker-y or easyish for Mr FD to cook - not that he is incapable, by any means, but I just want to make life easy for him! I only have one lesson, because it's school holidays, which finishes at 12.30. My dance group starts at 6 pm. I could go home & come back again, but it's 30 minutes each way, and once I was home I'd probably not bother to go back. I was hoping to visit a friend, but she's out for lunch, so I may do a bit of Noz-browsing, then find a sunny spot (if it's sunny!) to relax and read. I might also do a short walk - but if I'm doing the two full dance classes I don't want to exhaust myself beforehand!!

THURSDAY: I had planned Majorcan tumbet - not sure now. We'll see. If we have it, we'll also have a couple of fried eggs with it. I'm teaching in Clermont in the morning and then shopping in Clermont too, as my Roanne student has cancelled his lesson for the next few weeks.

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I want to try to find a seamstress who can alter a pair of trousers...I bought an expensive pair of black jeans from Long Tall Sally 4 years ago, when I was at my plumpest. I then lost weight soon after so they have hardly been worn. Rather than buy a new pair of black trousers (which I need) I'm going to pay to have these altered. I know there's one in Clermont so I'll pop there before I compe home on Thursday.

FRIDAY: Orange & Herb chicken, rice and veggies.

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 Thank you for your recent comments - sorry (again!) I've not been good at replying!

KEZZIE: I think Danièle liked the book - she said she did, anyway!! It was fun to make, as well.

SWEET POSY DREAMS: The cake not only looked good, it tasted pretty good too!! I hope you ejoy reading the blog, and maybe you can find some links to recipes you like too.

(from the post before last)
ARIL: I also did an Easter swap through a forum (Ship of Fools) but I'm still waiting for my gift....It will be a Pentecostal swap at this rate!!

POMPOM: I thought you might like this week's LolCats - Tabby Road!! (snort) Ialso think you might like this one:

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MICHELLE: Glad you liked the Chicken Tangle - I was pleased with it, as was...
BUSY LITTLE CHICKEN - I hope it looks good framed!


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As requested by PomPom: a shopping list.

April 14, 2016, 12:59 am
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For some reason, Pompom expressed an interest in seeing people's shopping lists...

Who am I to refuse?!

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Here is mine for this week. 

As you can see, it's neatly set out in sections - veggies, fruit, household goods etc. It's a little sparser than usual, as we need to tighten our belts this month - it's thin on the ground work-wise, due to school holidays and students cancelling lessons due to illness (6 hours of lessons cancelled! Ooh, that's going to hurt!) Having said that, I did go to Noz yesterday and buy a load of socks for Socks for Refugees!

The P-G-M in the fruit section is shorthand for "Pineapple, grapefruit, mango" which goes into Mr FD's breakfast fruit salad. The "Sq bread" refers to "square bread" - prepackaged bread I use for toast in the morning. 

And I can spell cat food and cat biscuits, but somehow these two items have evolved their own spellings: "cat fud" and "cat biskits". Who knows why?!

Actually, as I wrote that, I remembered why it became "Cat fud":
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From this Gary Larson cartoon.

Speaking of cats, we have had some problems with one of the cats peeing on the stairs, but with 4 in the house we haven't known which cat was the culprit. Mr FD has threatened to buy a motion sensor camera to find out which one it was, but I resisted, thinking of the cost ("Oh they're only about 30€!" he says gaily) Yesterday our friend lent us his super-duper wildlife motion sensor camera, which Mr FD has gleefully spent time adjusting to get the perfect shot of the offending (offended-against?) area. We now wait for the cat to do the business....

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Yes...and that's another story, when I start planting up the pots on the balcony. Sigh.


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All the Usual Stuff - and a kind of Giveaway.

April 16, 2016, 5:17 am
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Hello dear Peeps: I hope all is well with you. I'm fine, and generally feeling good. Which isn't always the case...My friend Cathy is due to arrive here for the summer next week, and then the weekend after I'm off to Munich for a weekend course..."Come and Grow: Say “Yes” to God’s Call to Service will enable lay persons to gain a fuller understanding of their personality style and God given gifts to empower them to creatively serve God’s people." It sounds interesting.

Well, you've seen my shopping list, so here's what's being made from it (although a couple of things have changed since writing the list)

TODAY: Piri-piri style sausages - or something similar. With sauté potatoes and green beans.

TOMORROW: Frugal Queen's Pulled Pork. But, in the true style of FQ, I tweaked the recipe to fit what I had! So I used some pulled pork seasoning (which I bought at Lakeland but didn't really like) instead of the pâprika, I used Barbecue Sauce made by one of the congregation at church instead of ketchup, and I added a dollop of Korean hot marinade sauce that I had in the fridge. I'm using the past tense, as it's cooking now, ready to be reheated tomorrow, for lunch. We have friends coming who have wanted to try pulled pork for a while, having been seduced by the advert that's on British TV at the moment.

I bet mine's better! We're going to have it with jacket potatoes, coleslaw and salad. And I'm planning on making a Victoria sponge for dessert.

MONDAY: Salmon & sweet potato fishcakes (already made & in the freezer), coleslaw and chippies.
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TUESDAY:Not meatballs - this link is to Jack Monroe's site which is a boon for anyone who is trying to reduce costs. She is a great recipe writer who has known poverty and has had to make the most of not very much money. We'll have these with rice and a tomato sauce.

WEDNESDAY: Pork & parsnip cobbler. Some friends gave me 4 massive parsnips during the week. I've made a soup with two and will use the others in this recipe. I won't be faffing around with suet though for the cobbler - I use Rose Elliot's scone mix, with cheese.


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THURSDAY: I'd planned a veggie + bits of meat from the freezer stir fry, but Cathy's going to come for dinner when she arrives here. As we don't know quite when that will be, I'm thinking I might make something ion the slow cooker instead - a kind of aubergine/ rice/ pork mince/ tomato layered dish, as I have a pack of Uncle Ben's microwavable rice to use up and I don't like it just as it is. Then it can just cook gently until she arrives and not spoil.

FRIDAY: Probably have the planned stirfry tonight - as I bought some Amoy stir fry sauces in Noz for 75 cents. I think the black bean sauce.

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If you're trying to reduice food waste - and, let's be honest, we all shgould be, this link to Jack Monroe's site may well be of interest to you: Don't Throw That Away!

Thank you for your comments - as always.

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TRISH & POMPOM enjoyed the two LolCats - I forgot you were a Beatles fan, Trish! It was a very suitable one for you! 

Thank you to MICHELLE & KEZZIE for their compliments on the zentangle cross. I was quite pleased with it.

KEZZIE - we didn't have the risotto in the end. As Mr FD said, it's hard to make risotto when you haven't got any rice. Ooops. Shopping fail!

ANG appreciated the "family shorthand" on my shopping list. Yes, Ang, "s'wich cheese" does mean cheese for sandwiches. As for the type, it rather depends what there is. I got a blue cheese for Mr FD and a Tomme de Montagne as well. Last week we had very indulgent Brillat Saverin.

For those like CRAFTY IN THE MED who are waiting to find out who the phantom Pisser is - since the camera went up thzre's only been one piss on the stairs and we can't tell from the photos who it was! In fact it didn't seem to have been captured on the camera, so we are a little confused. Still, it's now in video mode, so maybe this will be more successful.

POMPOM was querying the shopping list organisation, where I put "puddings" in the dairy section. This is because I buy little potted puds for Mr FD - I don't generally eat puddings, so these are things like fruit (or chocolate!) mousse, mini cheesecakes, or posh yoghurts. Which are found in the chiller cabinets.
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CHERIE - I think I have to be organised on a list as otherwise I'd be wandering round the supermarket, having to go back to fetch things I'd forgotten. This is my "definitive" list too - there's often an on-going list that gets transferred to the organised list on shopping days. Mind you, it's not foolproof - I forgot to pick up the milk yesterday! Maybe because I went to another shop that I'm not used to, so I was a bit hither-and-thither anyway.

I've run outof ideas - and reasons - to zentangle. Is there anyone out there who'd like a piece of  original zentangle inspired art doing ? Let me know in the comments section and I can get on with it... I've done lots of different themes: music, chickens, sheep, crosses, knitting, dragons, angels... Just leave a comment and I'll be in touch! And if you're not sure what I mean, here's a couple of examples of work I've done:
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Saturday rolls round again

April 23, 2016, 1:52 am
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Hello dear Peeps. I hope you have had an enjoyable/productive/whatever week. I didn't have much work on, but still managed to fill the time doing lots of things. But also by not doing lots of things!! I am expert at filling an hour doing not-a-lot. Which can be, in itself, an enjoyable activity.

I've done some crafting - an 18th birthday card for my niece in Canada - which I forgot to take a photo of. ("Of which I forgot to take a photo"? - That should be the correct form but no-one says that now do they? Should I, as an English teacher, teach the correct form, or the vernacular?) I think I may tell you more about my crafting endeavours over at The Teapot. You'll need to pop over there. 
(but not quite yet - give me a few hours to post!)

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(Picture of one of the Lewis Carroll stained glass windows at All Saints Church, Daresbury)

Our food this week has been nice. The concoction that I made on Thursday was much more enjoyable than I imagined it would be...I had 250g of beef mince, a packet of microwavable "Mediterranean rice", half a jar of tomato sauce and half a dead-ish aubergine. I browned the mince, and an onion, and added a few wrinkly mushrooms, and the tomato sauce. Meanwhile I sliced the aubergine softened it in the oven for about 10 minutes. I microwaved the rice and added it to the beef mixture. Then I layered it in the slow cooker and gave it about 3 hours on "High". Finally I made a cheese-and-mustard sauce which I poured over the top, finished with some breadcrumbs and grated cheese. 15 minutes in the oven and there you go! Dinner for three plus leftovers (with a bit of padding) for another 2 dinners.

This week I have planned:
TODAY: Minted lamb pastieswith HM coleslaw (I have an enormous white cabbage to use up!) and salad. Possibly some potato wedges too, but there's the pastry already so we probably don't need potatoes too.

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SUNDAY: Thai Chicken & Coconut Ricewhich looks quite easy to make. There's no vegetables involved in it, so I may make a salad to start, or a chicory-and-orange salad to go on the side.
 
MONDAY:Chicken and pepper pastaMr FD is in charge of this as my teaching commitments mean I don't get home until nearly 7.00 on Monday evening. 
 
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TUESDAY: Red bean and mushroom burgers. More salad, and sweet potato wedges. OR maybe with bread rolls. 

WEDNESDAY: Pepper crusted salmon with garlic chickpeas Mr FD is in charge of this one, as I'm at my dance group in the evening. He's cooked it before. The chickpeas are lush, and would complement any vegetarian quorn-y fillet or whatever, should you be vegetarianly inclined.

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THURSDAY: My friend Caireen will be joining us for dinner, as she and I are flying to Munich on Friday for a conference-y/workshoppy type thing. She's staying overnight as I can pick her up from Clermont on Thursday afternoon, and we can drive to Lyon airport on Friday morning. She is vegetarian, so we'll have avegetable curry, with naan bread. I have various curry sauces/pastes lurking in the fridge so I'll use one of those and a load of vegatables. Nothing sophisticated, I'm afraid!

Mr FD will be fending for himself on Friday & Saturday evenings, but I would imagine that a pizza from the van may feature on one evening, and something from the freezer on the other. 

I am becoming very aware that the top shelf of the fridge has been taken over by jars and I don't really know what's there, or how old it is. I think there is a half used jar of mincemeat that could be coming up to its 2 year anniversary...My designated job for the weekend is to clear out the fridge, give it a good clean and toss/use up the jars...That may mean a marmalade cake as I think there's a couple of jars of marmalade too. Here's a link to an article + recipe from Nigel Slater- I chose this link rather than a straight-to-the-recipe link because I think he writes about food so well.

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DRUM ROLL.... The phantom stair pisser has been unveiled! We have discovered, thanks to the wonders of modern technology (our friends' wildlife camera) that it is beautiful little Bib who appears to be the pisser. It is happening infrequently, so we are thinking that either she has been frightened by Millie and is marking territory, or that she doesnh't consider the litter trays to be clean enough, or that the door to the toilet where the litter trays are has been shut too much for her to open it. We are keeping the camera running, and endeavouring to make sure that other possible factors have been eliminated. 

No-one has taken me up on my offer of a zentangle. Sad face. It was a genuine offer, as I like to have a reason to do these things, rather than just plucking a subject out of mid-air. So do please get in touch if you'd like a zentangle.

Or if you'd like to receive a letter. I'm trying to write more letters, since joining Silver Pebble's Letter Writing Exchange. Sadly the two people I was assigned (one to write to, one to write to me) don't seem to have liked my letters very much. My receiver hasn't acknowledged my letter, even though it's been about two months since I sent it, and I wrote back to the person who wrote to me, and she hasn't replied, and it's been almost a month. Still...I suppose people have lives and it's difficult to find the time to write a "proper" letter. 

So, if you'd like a letter, send me an email with your address, and I'll happily write one to you. I'm running out of people to write to!

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I hope everyone has a good week. I'll try to get round to a blog post when I get back from Munich, but I'm not promising.
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Conference in Munich

May 3, 2016, 8:54 am
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Hello dear Peeps!

I am back from my weekend in Munich. It was a very interesting conference, looking at the Myers-Briggs personality indicators, and how this affects one's spirituality. The speaker, Denise Crenshaw, from the University of Michigan, was engaging and really interesting.

The time was spent in a beautiful conference centre, Schloss Furstenried

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But, oh dear! The food!! It was resolutely Germanic!

FRIDAY EVENING: We had a bit of salad provided (if you were quick!), a very stodgey rice & cheese thing, mushroom sauce and enormous bread dumplings - about the size of a tennis ball! Dessert was fruit, I think.

SATURDAY LUNCH: A clear soup with mini bread dumplings, a slab of some kind of pressed pork, rather sticky spatzel with spinach (a type of noodle) and celeriac, followed by a yoghurt-and-raspberry dessert.

Coffee and cake on Saturday afternoon was delicious - I had a lemon drizzle-type cake, but there was a tiramisu-black forrest combo, or a chocolate/vanilla marble cake to choose from. Very good.
 
SATURDAY DINNER: Salad to start (mostly green stuff, or sliced bread dumplings in sauce!), a rather rubbery quiche, or sausage,  with some well cooked potatoes. Fruit for dessert.

We left before Sunday lunch - that may have been the piéce de résistance but somehow I think not!

But everyone was very helpful and pleasant - the sisters who run the centre, and all the staff too. I hated feeling unable to communicate, as none of them spoke English! Luckily, there were several people at the conference who spoke both English & German, so they were able to help when necessary.

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I need to spend some time processing what we did and learned at the Conference, but - should you be interested - I came out as a INFP personality type (this a really quite frighteningly accurate description!). When we looked at Spiritual gifts, I scored quite highly on "Mercy" (as well as on Teaching and Encouragement) I think I need to ponder quite what this means, both in general, and for me in particular.

I meant to do that this afternoon, but somehow time (and the things I had to do) ran away with me and I didn't have time. Never mind, it's a Bank Holiday on Thursday (Ascencion Day) and I only have one student on Friday so I'll have time then. I need to make a White chocolate & ginger cheesecake to take to a friends for dinner on Thursday night but that's all. But I do want to start on another zentangle, using a red squirrel as inspiration. I'm also working on Kezzie's suggestion of a TARDIS zentangle too. So lots of things to keep me busy!!

To finish with, during the conference we were put into our "personality type" groups, and asked to write a prayer, encompassing the themes of the weekend. It was really interesting seeing the different types of prayers that were produced, but here is the one that my "NF" (iNtuitive Feelers)  group produced

Dear Lord,
Who knows and understands all things,
Who became incarnate to understand our humanity,
Who created us as unique and marvelous beings,
Who loves us as we are:
You have called us to grow as leaders to manifest your love in our congregations, in our communities, in the world in which we live.
We come before you to ask that you open our ears and hearts to hear and discern your will, and that you fill us with such grace that we may go forth to apply the ideas and knowledge of this weekend to our lives and to inspire the communities into which you have placed us
In the name of Christ our Lord, who is an ever present beacon.
Amen
 
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Losing Followers, Schlosses and Squirrels.

May 7, 2016, 4:19 am
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I see I've lost another Follower...Sorry, whoever you were that I didn't quite hold your attention - or maybe you feel I hadn't visited your blog enough. That's true, actually - I probably don't visit some of my followers' blogs very much. I apologise if that's you. I will try to be better at doing so.

I thought I'd show you a few more shots of the Schloss where I was staying for the conference last weekend:
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This is the back of the Schloss, from the gardens where we were able to wander, and pause, and chat.

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This fountain was always playing - the sound of trickling, tinkling water was lovely.

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One of the statues that were scattered around the garden

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 A shaded "alley"

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A small chapel (sadly locked) in the garden. On Sunday morning, I went for a wander and found myself singing various praise songs here by the chapel. Heavens knows what the ordinary townsfolk of Munich thought as they passed by, walking their dogs in the park just behind me!

I wanted to give a gift to say Thank You to Denise, the main facilitator/speaker at the Conference. She told us a story to illustrate how her personality type can be easily distracted from the details of a project: she had been sitting in the Schloss library a few days before the conference started, mulling over details, when her eye had been caught by one of the many red squirrels that inhabit the trees around. She had no idea what it was - apparently North American squirrels are different - and had got rather excited by this strange beast. All the other organisers were blasé "Oh, yes, it's a squirrel" but she had been delighted by its movements.

So I have zentangled a Red Squirrel as a gift:

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I'm quite pleased with it. Not so much with my photography skills. Here's another effort:

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 I hope she likes it!

I have finished a zentangle for PomPom - she thought a tree would be nice - which I have sent to her. I'll show you that when she has received it. I have also been working on Kezzie's TARDIS zentangle which is nearly finished too. I need your address though Kezzie - I can't send you a letter if I don't know your address. I'm mulling over Trish's request for a Beatles zentangle - I have an idea, but it's not quite formulated yet.

Does anyone else want a Zentangle drawing for them? All subjects considered! It's nice to have a few projects to be working on! I am considering either trying an Etsy shop, or selling on Facebook perhaps. Has anyone had any experience with that? I have lots of original zentangles just sitting in a folder, with me not knowing what to do with them.

I'll update menus tomorrow. See you then!
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This week's menus

May 8, 2016, 4:56 am
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Hello dear Peeps. I hope you are having a good weekend. I am. Yesterday I finished a zentangle for a friend, caught up on some blogs, and went for a walk with friend Cathy. This morning I skived off church, and did some watercolour painting, and wrote a letter. I enjoyed lunch on the balcony - although it was a bit breezy. The wind blew some of my crisps away! This afternoon I think I will swap my clothes over: autumn/winter for spring/summer. There are some things (long sleeved T-shirts, jeans etc) that are out all the time, but I think it's time to put fleeces and thick pullovers away for a while....athough I do usually keep one fleece out, just in case!!

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 Not me - my sneezes arrive when the grasses are flowering, which is more like June/July

So what are we eating...
YESTERDAY: I cooked Mary Berry's "Lasagne Express" and we had that with chicory and orange salad.

TODAY: Hairy Dieter's Light Chicken Cordon Bleu, with potatoes and carrots. I think I'll serve some asparagus with balsamic vinegar as a starter, and I bought some peaches on Friday. They are still rather hard, but if they have softened  I may have one for dessert. If not, an orange.

MONDAY: The rest of the lasagne.

TUESDAY: Hairy Dieters'Pan Haggerty with baked beans.

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WEDNESDAY: Pasta and vegetarian sauce. Mr FD's remit. Basically I give him an idea and he does what he likes! (so it probably won't end up being vegetarian!!)

THURSDAY: We're going to Lyon, with Friend Cathy to pick up her friend at the station. We are going to go out to this restaurant

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FRIDAY: Chicken in a Thai sauce that Mr FD brought back from the UK. We'll have this with stir fry veggies and noodles

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We have decided to give Bib smaller portions of food more frequently. When I took her half pouch out of the fridge & popped it inthe microwave for a few seconds suddenly there was a flock of cats around my feet. No Bib though... 


THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS...
I will take your Zentangle suggestions on board, & will contact you when I've done them. PomPom's tree is on the way to her.

Thank you DAWN for your comment on an Etsy shop.I wonder if a FaceBook page might be easier - I know someone who does that - but I shall bear it in mind.

KEZZIE, I got your email & will send you a letter soon-ish. The outdoors was lovely at the Schloss. Espêcially in the Spring sunshine with the birds all singing.

MICHELLE - your horse is on the list! I'll try and do him to sort-of match the ram.


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PomPom's Tree - and other (possible) Zentangles!

May 11, 2016, 12:17 am
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Hello, dear Peeps! Thank you for your lovely comments!

Pompom has received her zentangle tree, so I thought I'd show it to you (both here, and at The Teapot!) (I'm showing off!)

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It was fun to do.

Thank you for your suggestions for Zentangles to do. My to-do list is:
  1. Kezzie's TARDIS
  2. Trish's Beatles
  3.  Michelle's horse
  4. Bevchen's fox
Any more for any more? I can't guarantee when you'd receive your Zentangle, but I'm happy to work on one. Just leave me a comment and I will add you to the list.

Thank you too for comments about sales outlets - ETSY seems to be the more popular way to go, so I may explore that. Busy Little Chicken says it works for her.

The lasagna was good, Kezzie and Pompom. I think I prefer it to a traditional lasagne recipe. If you make it, I hope you enjoy it too.

The Pan Haggerty worked very well too! We recently bought a lid for the frying pan (instead of relying on a chopping board!) and for the first time the pan haggerty was well cooked!! We had it with broccoli and baked beans. If you make it Bevchen Confuzzledom, I hope you enjoy it too!

Nearly Martha - I apologise! I changed my wardrobes over, and the weather broke! Is it your fault, or mine?! Still, it's not too cold, so I can layer reasonably successfully!

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No cats...but a giraffe was seen!

May 13, 2016, 12:43 am
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We went to Lyon yesterday. Friend Cathy was meeting her friend Shiela from the train, and wasn't sure of the way. We love Lyon, and are always happy for an excuse to visit, and go to a restaurant (!) So we drove over, and showed Friend Cathy the best place to park etc for when she takes Shiela back to the train.

We arrived at 4.30, and took the metro to Part-Dieu station, so Cathy knew the way, and then (because I'd been hankering after it) decided to go to the Cat Café,
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We hopped on the right bus, but by then it was 5.30 and the streets were getting very busy. Despite the Bus lanes, the bus was taking forever, and we had to be back at Part Dieu to meet Shiela at 7.00, so (slightly reluctantly on my part) we got off the bus at the gates to La Parc de Tete d'Or instead.

This is a beautiful, huge park in the centre of Lyon, and we had ended up at a part of it that we didn't know. We just wandered a little, enjoying the balmy (but slightly drizzly) weather, and admiring the deer that were there. And then were very surprised to see a giraffe grazing the treetops! There was a small zoo there - free of charge. So we watched said giraffe, flamingoes and pelicans, various small marsupials, and parakeets. We admired some baby monkies, and fleetingly saw a lioness strolling nonchalantly through the undergrowth. I am not a keen supporter of zoos, but this seemed a reasonable one. It certainly passed the time before we needed to be back at the station.

We met Shiela, and took the metro back to the Park-and-Ride where we'd left the car. Then a quick 7 minute walk to the restaurant. It is one of a chain of brasseries in the Lyon area, run by Paul Bocuse (about the equivalent level as lovely Michel Roux junior in the UK) and we almost always go to one when we go to Lyon for a meal. This one was L'Ouest

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I had rather yummy chicken and coconut samosas, followed by some delicious beef, with a shallot saucer and creamed potato. Then profiteroles, and a coffee. Mr FD had paté en croute, with beef. Cathy had the samosas and then loin of pollock with fennel and preserved lemon, while Shiela chose a fresh vegetable bruschetta, followed by the fish. With three of us having profiteroles, and with apèros, coffees and a "pot" of wine, it was just under £30 each. Not cheap, but certainly not too expensive for a lovely meal that I couldn't have cooked so well at home.

Mr FD kindly drove us the hour back home, while the rest of us snoozed or sang along to Divine Comedy on the CD player.

Even though I didn't get to the Cat Café, it was still a lovely afternoon & evening in Lyon.

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On a roll!!

May 15, 2016, 7:27 am
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Definitely on a Zentangle roll this weekend...

Finished Kezzie's TARDIS zentangle AND started and finished Trish's Beatles one.

I won't show them to you yet - I'll wait unttil they've recieved them.

An,d now I really do need to get some fresh air! I've been at my desk all weekend - having a lovely time!!
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Food this week.

May 16, 2016, 3:29 am
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What are we having this week?

A good question - I need to look at my notebook!!

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This is my notebook - with a pile of balancing birds, and the slogan "Les petits acro-birds"! Quite dinky...

Anyway.
YESTERDAY: Lamb with mediterranean vegetables. It was very tasty. I added the tail end of a jar of Arrabiata pasta sauce, and some onion gravy granules to thicken the gravy. We had this with roast butternut squash, green beans and roast potatoes.
TODAY (Monday) Chilli & rice.

TUESDAY:Coconut and squash dhansak -though I've just realised I gave my tin of lentils to the Food Bank collection in church yesterday ("I won't be using those for a bit..."!!)  I have got some dried lentils though, so I'll cook those up instead. No problem!

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WEDNESDAY: Beef & asparagus stirfry This uses oyster sauce which we haven't got, but Mr FD  - who will be preparing this - can miss it out. I have some other packets of stir fry sauces so he could use one of those instead. I'm not bothered!

THURSDAY: Quick salami tart, potato wedges, coleslaw & salad. This tart is a cinch to make - ready made puff pastry, covered with a pesto base, layered with slices of salami, sun dried tomatoes and (as I have some to use up) marinaded peppers. Sprinkled with grated cheese and popped in the oven. Done!

FRIDAY: Sausage casserole.

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source

 SATURDAY: Mexican steak burritos -  although I will be using a lot less steak in my fillings, I think!!!

As always I'd like to thank you for your comments - everyone has been lovely about the tree zentangle. Bless you. Kezzie's TARDIS tangle, and Trish's Beatles ones should be on their way tomorrow.

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I don't mean this kind of tangle!

CAROLE -  I'd be happy to do a hare tangle for you. I will need some way of contacting you. I don't "do" Google+ so I don't have any link to you. Do you have a blog? Please let me know. And keep trying with the zentangling - I think it's a great de-stressor!

POMPOM: A cat café is as it sounds - a café with cats that you can stroke and snuggle with as you drink your coffee. I believe it was a Japanese "invention" but there are several in Europe. There is also one in Denver, and one in Colorado Springs. Are they anywhere near you?

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 BEVCHEN: you really should try to go to Lyon. It's a beautiful city, full of history and fascinating places. And ghood shopping too!!! I really like it.

KEZZIE: I shall look forward to finding out which book you're reading when you do your May "round up"... When mum read the first draft of my novel (it never got further than the first draft!) she sniffed and said "there's too many descriptions of food in it".  (She also said there was too much sex, but that's another story!!) But then, I like reading about food. (No comment on the sex!!!!)

In fact, for your delectation here is an extract from my book "Teaching Donkeys to Dance": (It's slightly informal language as the main character is writing to her friend...)

We began with little puff pastry things full of lightly curried crab, served with more champagne. Then we had smoked salmon, blinis and a horseradish cream served with a huge dollop of caviar. Then a soup, which was escargots in a light creamy broth, with a puff pastry hat on top of the little tureen that it came in – they were gorgeous. I was starting to wonder whether pudding was next, but no – the fish course appeared next! This was monkfish in a lobster sauce. Luckily, the French really know how to do portion control, so although I was worried about feeling totally stuffed, I was okay about fitting everything in. But just in case, the next thing we got was something called a “trou Normande” (literally a Norman hole – it’s an apple sorbet served with calvados. It is supposed to clear your palette between the fish and the meat courses, as well as somehow making room for all the other food that is still to come). Meat next – pigeon breasts in a wonderfully wine-rich sauce, served with tiny Duchesse potatoes and courgettes stuffed with a sort of mushroom pate. Then a plate with three different cheeses, and a mound of salad with nuts and raisins, and a delicious dressing. Of course, all of these courses had a different wine with them as well. And then (finally!) pudding, which was a small but really intensely flavoured portion of chocolate mousse, made with milk, dark and white chocolate swirled through it. 

Goodness me, I'm hungry! I think I'll go and have some lunch!


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Dormouse Doings I

May 21, 2016, 3:06 am
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This is a shameless lift from "Grasshopper Days" posts on "Herding Grasshoppers" blog. I will write up my menus tomorrow (probably!!) but here's a quick post for now:

DORMOUSE DOINGS
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OUTSIDE MY WINDOW... The sun is shining, and it is one of the hottest days so far. I'm looking forward to eating my lunch and reading on the balcony. I'm hoping tomorrow will be as good, as I've bought some plants that will need potting up, and the balcony still needs a good tidy up!

HEARING... A "peaceful music" selection on YouTube.I can't "do" songs with words (which are, indeed, "songs"!) when writing, but I wanted some music. It's nothing great - a bit like the background music when you go for a massage - but it is calming and pleasantly anodine.

PONDERING... Can I really teach this calligraphy workshop this afternoon? I'm starting to doubt it!

PRAYING...I'm not really. But the relatives of those lost on the EgyptAir plane crash are on my heart. Life nowadays seems so much more precarious. I'm not sure that statistics bear that out, but it's my perception.

THANKFUL...For Mr FD who completed our tax form yesterday. A job I could do, but I'd rather not!
 Also thankful for our cats - despite being woken by Pomme walking all over us, scratching our heads (Wake Up!!!! NOW!!!) at 6 am this morning. Bib has just arrived on my desk, with her characteristic little mew, and curled up, nose in the crook of my elbow. When she's like this I can't help but forgive her bitey pissiness.

WEARING...jeans, a long sleeved T-shirt and a knitted tunic.

GOING...to teach a calligraphy workshop this afternoon! 

READING...a new book by Jojo Moyles which has already gripped me. It's fairly light, but it's interesting.
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LOOKING FORWARD TO...a glass of white wine, elderflower cordial and sparkling water! But it will have to wait for this evening! Also a sausage sandwich for lunch!! Miam-miam!

HOPING... that Mr FD finds a job soon. He's been applying for quite a lot of things, but we are well aware that his age is against him, no matter that he's got years of experience behind him. Thankful though that I have work, and that what I earn keeps us going. We won't starve.

IN THE KITCHEN...Nothing much at the moment, but later on today we'll be having Mexican Steak burritos

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IN THE LEARNING TEACHING ROOMS...Grasshopper (?) home-schools, so she talks about her work with her teenagers. I'm teaching various groups this week - in Clermont I have some new students so I'll be doing my standard first lesson - talking about their needs, expectations etc. Then they have a lot of my family photos, and have to ask querstions about them to put the names on a family tree, and match photos to names. I think it's a good activity as it gives the opportunity to use lots of different tenses, and can be done by all levels, in different ways.

AROUND THE HOUSE...We've added two more litter trays (that's EIGHT now!) to try to encourage Bib, the phantom pisser, to stop pissing on the stairs. It will be a mammoth effort keeping them all clean! One is outside on the balcony, the other on the ground floor. I have also put two bowls of biscuits on the stair where Bib pees, in the hope she won't pee where there's food. We will see.


Thank you for the inspiration, Grasshopper (Sorry, I'm not quite sure what to call you.)


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Gardening and Gastronomy

May 22, 2016, 3:38 am
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Hello dear Peeps!
GARDENING NEWS...

I hope all is well with you. Yesterday was a gloriously warm and sunny day: today is grey, overcast and with a few spit-spots of rain. It's still warm though. Mr FD and I started work early, and have planted lots of things! 
I was going to post the Gardening News here (as you can read from the title) but it got a bit long and unwieldy, so I have posted the Gardening part over at The Teapot and you can pop over there to see what we've been up to. Here's aphoto to whet your appetite though:

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IN OTHER NEWS....
 
 Trish has received her Beathles zentangle, so I can show it off here:

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She seems to be quite pleased. It's not a very original idea, and I admit to copying the silhouettes - I'm not that artistic! - but  I am happy with it as a piece of ZIA.. 

When I know Kezzie has got her TARDIS one I'll show you that. I'm now working on a horse for Michelle at Boulderneigh . I'm not sure when I'll finish,as I think the next few weeks will be busy, but it's nice to have something to pick up from time to time.

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The Calligraphy workshop went well. Everyone (except one lady) produced something they were pleased with, to take home. The unfortunate lady was left handed and I struggled to be able to help her. We tried all kinds of pens, and then I suggested she tried doing flourishes on her normal handwriting, but she didn't, finally, seem too bothered. My friend, who roped me into it in the first place, said that Paulette was probably just happy to be there for the company.

For my payment I'd asked everyone to bring socks...so I have another 16 pairs to send to Socks for Refugees. I must parcel them up this afternoon. Martine (my friend) has however suggested that I should ask for some remuneration so will be giving me some advice about how much to bill the Association for.

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News on the Pissing Cat. As I said yesterday, I bought a couple more litter trays AND triedputting bowls of biscuits on the top stair where Bib tends to pee. We thought it was working until I looked more closely at one of the bowls of biscuits. They looked particularly soft and swollen. Yes! She'd been pissing into the biscuits!! Well, as they were soaking up the urine, and it wasn't going all over the wooden stairs, and they're not too expensive we've decided to call it a win-win situation and continue to put them down! And the other bowl of biscuits on the other side of the stairs seems to be as popular as ever - all the cats are eating them!

AND NOW... Food this week...

Yesterday was steak burriotos. Very yummy, with lots of salad, tomato salsa and guacamole.

TODAY: Fish stew BUT this isn't the recipe I'm using. I got the one I'm using from a blog, but I don't know which blog now. D'oh! Luckily I printed the recipe off but I can't link to it now. My recipe uses the same "broth" ingredients, but just white fish and prawns, instead of all the other exotic fish mentioned in the recipe.

MONDAY: Falafels, salad, pita, houmous.
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TUESDAY: Parmesan Pork Chops, garlic broccoli and smashed rosemary potato. This is from a blog with some fantastic sounding Slimming World recipes - two chubby cubs - but while the recipes are fab, the blog part is a little "fruity" . I find it hysterical, but if you're easily offended, you might want to just scroll down to the recipe itself. I can see I may be linking to this blog quite a lot.

WEDNESDAY: Duck breast and duck potatoes from the freezer and green beans. Mr FD is in charge. It's our 31st Wedding Anniversary today but I'm still going out dancing without him!!

THURSDAY: Pasta, with corizo and courgette in arrabiata sauce. No recipe. Just cooking really...

FRIDAY: Don't know. Maybe we'll go out for our anniversary. That would be nice.

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Thank you for your comments, as always.
JULIE: I rather like this music if I'm working - a bit ethereal and odd, but I do like it! Maybe it's something you'd enjoy too.

POMPOM: We saved you some tart but you didn't arrive. We're having it for lunch today! It was yummy. Let me know if you go to the Cat Café!

KEZZIE: We enjoyed the lentil and squash curry (although the coconut yoghurt made it a little too sweet for my tastes) I too aml reading a book partly set in France during WW1. It is V good (see yesterday's post) Please let me know when you've got your TARDIS zentangle.

As Kezzie enjoyed it, here's another snippet from "Teaching Donkeys to Dance" by Fat Dormouse. Our heroine, Katie, has arrived in France on her way to a new life in France. Forced by circumstances to travel alone, leaving her fiancée back in England, she is alone on her first night.



She had made herself some sandwiches before leaving the house that morning, and so sustained herself on these as she drove down the motorway. The driving rain made the first part of the journey difficult, but after about an hour the clouds began to thin and the sun shone weakly.  Katie began to enjoy the journey and sang along to the Crowded House CD that was playing. Rob had suggested she took a few days over the journey, but she had already booked her hotel room at Chartres for that night, and so pressed on without stopping. It was some distance and she was slightly concerned that she would not be able to find the hotel. However, the directions from the motorway junction that the hotel had sent her were clear and easy to follow, and she was booked into her room and soaking in a hot bath well before dinnertime.

Because she had got up early that morning, Katie did not plan on staying up late; besides, being alone in a hotel, with nothing but French programmes and CNN news on the television did not make for an enticing evening. Taking her paperback book into the restaurant with her, Katie was one of the first to choose her meal. She read for a while but began to get distracted as the restaurant filled up; she imagined stories about each of the guests. There was an older couple, seemingly respectable, but in fact a pair of assassins on their final mission before they retired; the good looking young man in the corner was eating his last meal before a sex change operation; the pair of young girls were running away from provincial life to become dancers at the Folies Bergeres – they were certainly beautiful enough for it, she thought; the older gentleman – who really was very distinguished – was… Katie couldn’t decide on the backstory for him and was unconsciously staring at him, when to her horror, he raised his glass to her. Blushing with confusion she dropped her eyes to her plate of mixed crudités, only to start with embarrassment as he pulled out the chair and sat opposite her.
“Mademoiselle,” he began.
 

“I’m sorry,” she stuttered, “I really didn’t mean to stare at you, it’s just that I’m a bit lonely and I was wondering about you – Oh, God, that sounds even worse. What I mean was –“
“Mademoiselle do not worry. I, too, am a little lonely, but,” he held up his hand, “I am respectably married and on my way home to my wife after a conference in Boulogne. I do not suggest any naughtiness but perhaps we could share a bottle of wine, eat our meals together and talk. You seemed sad yet somehow hopeful when I saw you. I thought that you would be interesting to talk to.”
Katie smiled at his impeccable English, spoken with a strong accent.
“That would be nice. Thank you. My name is Katie Harmer.”
“And mine is Charles Logisse. I am pleased to meet you, Miss Katie Harmer.” He turned to the waiter and ordered a bottle of the house red.
“The house wine here is very good,” he explained, “I am not being cheapskate. I know because they buy it from my vineyards.”
Charles smiled, his eyes crinkling in an attractive manner.
“Your vineyards? I am impressed,” Katie said. “Please, tell me about how you got into the wine business.”

So her charming companion told his story, of how he rescued his grandfather’s failing vineyards in Beaujolais area, bringing them from near ruin to a small but successful business, supplying independent hotels such as this with a good vin de table. In return, Katie recounted her history of the decision to move to France, and the trials of finding the home that she so longed for. She considered unburdening herself to this amiable stranger, telling him of her growing doubts about Rob’s commitment to their new life in France and, to be honest, to their life together; however, things were still confused in her own mind, and she wasn’t exactly sure of what made her feel this way, and so she decided to keep her counsel. 

“So,” Charles summed up, “I was correct. You are sad because you have left your fiancé, your friends, and your family, but you are hopeful, because you have anticipation of a good new life in this little town where you have bought your apartment. Is this not so?”
“Yes, that is right. I am sad – but thank you, Charles. You have helped make this evening, my first evening in France, much easier, and extremely pleasant. I have enjoyed talking to you.”
“And I to you, my dear Mademoiselle. Your fiancé is indeed a very lucky man. If I were he, and if I were not married, of course, I would not have let you go so easily. I pray, have a good night’s sleep and a pleasant onward journey. I leave very early in the morning and so will not be here for breakfast, but I thank you for being a wonderful dinner companion.” He took her hand and bowed over it. “Goodnight, Miss Katie Harmer.”
“Good night, Charles.”

Katie leant back in her chair, watching him as he left the dining room. She sipped the last of her wine, musing on how much she had enjoyed the evening, and the attentiveness of Charles, as he had concentrated on what she wanted, on how she felt, which was so different to the casual way that Rob treated her, assuming that she would be there to supply his needs on demand, be they for food, companionship or sex. She began to understand how much Rob took her for granted, and, being honest, how much she treated him in a similar way. Not for much longer, she decided; this would be their opportunity to change the way they treated each other, and to build on what they had between them. The future was indeed bright, and she could look hopeful.


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This and that...cabbages and Kings !(Not really!)

May 29, 2016, 3:31 am
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Hello everyone! It's lovely to welcome you here, whoever you are and however you get here, whether you decide to stay or to move on. 

This week has been busy - and I think it's possibly how Things Will Be for a while (although I am finishing with one student next week, so that will cut down a little of the work.) This month I think I have earned the mosty I have ever earned, since I've been working for myself, which is good, as August is likely to be a "thin" month.

Because of working a lot, I don't have free time to plan, so yesterday morning was spent catching up on Lesson Summary e-mails (for my phone students), planning my Wednesday lessons, and preparing all the bills for May.  I did some more planting on Saturday afternoon – the balcony looks very good now, especially with an astro turf lawn!! One of my students had put artificial grass around his swimming pool and had some off-cuts he was going to throw away. I asked if I could have a bit, and now we have a tiny lawn on the balcony!! Three out of four cats quite like sitting on it, while the fourth is very suspicious and avoids going near it!

Then this morning I finished preparing for other lessons in the week. I hope to start a new Zentangle today (sorry, Michelle, your horse is being put on hold as I have a paid commission! Oooh, exciting!)
I know Kezzie has received her TARDIS zentangle, so I can show it to you now:

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 Although the idea itself wasn't original, the design and zentangle bit was all my own work...

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 I'm quite happy with it. And it was certainly different! Both Trish's Beatles zentangle, and Kezzie's TARDIS have challenged me quite a bit!

I'm preaching and leading the service for the next two Sundays. This is not a problem, save for the fact that I won't have time to write the sermon until next Saturday, and so I'll have to choose the hymns a bit "blind" (as I can't wait till Saturday to let the organist know what we're having.) so they may not be very well linked to the theme. Mind you, I do wonder how many people notice that I try to link the hymns with the theme anyway!!

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Despite being busy I've had the chance to catch up with apèros at Friend Cathy's - once at her house, and yesterday here. I was hoping we could sit on the balcony, but it poured down, with some dramatic thunder and lightening. 

This week's food is planned as being a simple as possible... Things got moved around last week, and we didn't go out on Friday. Instead we had the duck breast (that had been planned for Wednesday), and the pasta dish from Thursday was moved to Saturday, as I ate lunch out and was too full for dinner. Mr FD cooked himself liver (yuckity yuck) for his dinner, and was Well Pleased.

In fact this week's food is so simple there's no recipes! 

TODAY: Roast chicken, and everything that goes with it. I bought a big one, as I plan to use it for…

MONDAY: Chicken and vegetable stir fry. Mr FD will be preparing this, as Monday is a get home around 7.00 day.

TUESDAY: Chicken-and-bacon pasties, and vegetables of some kind. 

WEDNESDAY: Sausage casserole – or something else with sausages. Again, Mr FD is in charge, so he can decide.

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THURSDAY: I’m not sure. Something quick-ish as I’ll get back from shopping about 6.00. I think there may be a couple of things that need eating in the freezer.

FRIDAY: We are out tonight at a “Northern night” at the Relais d’Urfé. The owners of this restaurant hold monthly “international” evenings, where various ex-pats in the area get together (not just English ex-pats) to eat and chat. It’s quite cheap as well, & the food is generally cooked by one (or several) of the participants. Last month was a German evening – I didn’t go, but Mr FD said there was lots of pork products on offer – and this month, a friend from t’North of England is providing the food. I offered to help but (rather snippily) was told No thanks. I think it will be my turn (scouse and pickled red cabbage) another month.

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Northern cat in flat cap. (and what appears to be a polonecked jumper!)

Thank You for comments - I love getting comments from people, so thank you those who do make the effort.

TRISH was complimentary about the extracts I've posted from "Teaching Donkeys to Dance" - my unpublished novel. 

ANG - we are fighting slugs at the moment....courgette plants decimated, lettuce plants (bought yesterday!) munched to the soil level, and seedlings gobbled. I don't want to use slug pellets but we may be forced to if we require any veggies to grow. On a good note, we harvested our first three strawberries - delicious!!!

KEZZIE: Please don't call Bib gross. (smiley face. Honest. Not a reprimand!!!)  She just pees in the wrong place. Actually, now we have added another 2 litter trays there does seem to be slightly less misplaced peeing. Fingers crossed anyway.

 FINALLY....
 ...here's a bit more from "Teaching Donkeys.." Just for Kezzie, it's another description of FOOD!!! Katie, and her fiancé, Rob, are having lunch, while preparing to view the houses that they might buy in the countryside of France...


A few minutes later Katie and Rob were toasting each other with L’Aperetif de la Maison, a kir made with white wine and sirop of chestnuts. A pale, woody brown, the drink tasted tantalisingly of sweetness, and of autumn, with a tang of the forests that surrounded the village.
“It’s a strange flavour, but I think I like it,” Katie said, tipping her glass towards Rob.
Rob hesitated.
“Yes, it’s OK – but I think I’d rather have a pint of Bass.”
“Philistine!” Katie broke off as the waiter brought over two plates. With a deal of ceremony, he placed them before Katie and Rob.
“Bon appetit,” he said.
They surveyed their plates – a mound of green salad leaves, studded with nuggets of foie gras and walnuts, dressed in a smooth vinaigrette.  Katie picked up her knife and fork, and then paused, a small smile on her lips.
“This is it,” she whispered. “This is the start of something good. No, something great. I can feel it. I can tell.”
“It’s only lunch,” Rob protested. “No need to go over the top about it.”
“No. It’s more than just lunch. It’s our first meal in the place where we’re going to live.”
“You’re just getting stupid and over dramatic now, Katie. We don’t know that. We might find all the houses are crap.” Rob took a huge bite of his salad and chewed pensively. “But I have to say, the salad is good.”
Katie looked down at her plate, and bit back a retort. Why get the trip off to a bad start, she thought. The houses would be perfect, and the only problem they would have would be deciding which one to buy. Looking up, she smiled at Rob, and said,
“That’s the first time you’ve eaten lettuce without complaining about rabbit food.”
“I know – but there’s something different about the salad here. It’s more interesting, it isn’t just iceberg lettuce, it’s stuff with frilly edges and it actually tastes of something. And the dressing is so good…” He wiped a hunk of baguette around his plate, soaking up the last few spots of vinaigrette.
“And the foie gras?”
“Fantastic. One of my favourite things – just don’t think too hard about how it’s made!”
Rob picked up the carafe of wine and poured himself another glassful.
After a plateful of meltingly tender boeuf bourgignon served with gratin dauphinoise, and a little bundle of green beans, Katie sighed.
“I couldn’t eat another mouthful. That was delicious.”
“Well, I’m not turning down the cheese board. Just look at that.”
She turned around to see the waiter wheeling an enormous trolley towards them, laden down with cheese of so many different varieties Katie thought it would be impossible to name them all. But not for the waiter, who was rightly proud of the huge choice of cheese that he was offering.
“Bleu d’Auvergne,” he gestured with his knife towards a creamy looking blue cheese. “Forme d’Ambert” Another blue, “Saint Nectaire “, this time he indicated a cheese with a strangely unattractive greyish-orange rind. Its flesh however looked delicious, a semi firm texture, and a whiff of the forest about it. “Crottin de Chavignol.”  His knife hovered over a cheese that looked suspiciously like droppings.
“Hey,” hissed Rob, “I believe crottin means goat turd, or something like that. D’you fancy a cheese made of goat shit then?”
Katie hesitated only for a second.
“I’m very full,” she said, glaring at Rob, “But I must try some of that delicious looking cheese, thank you.” And she pointed to the small, greyish-white circles of goat’s cheese.
The waiter placed one of the pieces on her plate, and passed it to her. After Rob had made his selection, and their bread supply had been replenished, Katie cut into the cheese. The interior was creamy white with a slightly flaky texture. It certainly didn’t look as though droppings of any sort had been used in its manufacture, even though the aroma was strongly that of goats. She took a bite, and, as she relaxed, she realised how tense she had been about trying this new cheese, allegedly made from the waste product of goats.
“It’s delicious,” she said. “Really, really nice. You should have tried it, Rob”
“No thanks,” he snorted. “I’m not trying anything made from goats’ shit. Stinky creatures. I don’t know how you can put it in your mouth.”
“D’you know, sometimes you can be really pathetic…” She took another mouthful, and pointedly looked out of the window onto the typically French square. Even in the depths of winter, with a grey sky, clouds laden with rain, the place looked inviting. The Christmas lights were twinkling, strung across the street from lamp post to lamp post, the words “Joyeux Fêtes” wishing the townspeople a happy and peaceful holiday. The huge tubs, empty now, Katie could imagine full of bright geraniums, and the trees, stark in their winter bareness, would be softened with the green of leaves and blossom. She couldn’t do it, she couldn’t stay angry with Rob for long, not today. Not with this being the day that they find “their” house.
“Coffee?” she asked, brightly, turning back to face him.
“Coffee? Not on your Nellie. Not yet. Have you seen the puddings?”
“Where?” She craned her neck to see them.
“No, not there. Over by the entrance. I saw them as we came in. They look gorgeous.”
Katie looked over to another trolley, this time covered with a glass dome. Inside she could see gateaux, creamy puddings, bowls of jewel bright fruit and other delicious looking desserts.
“Rob, can you really fit one of those in?”
“Fit it in? I’ve been saving myself for one of those. One of those profiteroles, please,” he said to the waiter, “With loads of cream on it.”
“Madame?”
“Nothing, truly, thank you.” Bravely Katie tried out one of the phrases she had been learning. “J’ai bien mangé. C’’était un bon repas.”
“Merci, Madame. Vous désirez un café?”
“Oui, merci” The waiter left.
“Look at you then, with your fancy French phrases.” Rob seemed to be mocking her.
“Well, at least I’m trying. You could’ve taken lessons with Madame Duchovie too, you know. In fact if you’re planning on starting a business here, then you really should be learning.”
“Oh, there’ll be plenty of time for that when we’re living out here.”
He tossed his spoon down onto his empty plate, and sighed contentedly.
“That should keep me going, I think…At least until this evening.”
“I should think that would keep you going until the middle of next week! We’ve eaten loads.”
Katie drained her coffee cup, wincing a little at the strength of the bitter brew.
“Come on. Let’s get the bill and go. Otherwise we’ll be late meeting Piers.”



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Just a bit of fun!

June 3, 2016, 9:38 am
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 One of my Facebook friends posted this...


It's harder than you think.... No using Google!!!! Every answer must start with the last letter of your previous answer. . Its fun...Who doesn't love a game of Scattergories? Come on! Try it!!!

Name - Alison 
Animal - Narwhal (it's a whale.)

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Girls name - Linda
Colour - Aqua
 Movie – A matter of life and death


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Something you wear - Hat
Drink - Tea

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Food - Almonds
Item in the bathroom– Shower curtain
Place - New Brighton

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Reason to be late– No petrol in the car BECAUSE THE BLOODY FRENCH ARE BLOCKADING THE REFINERIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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I promise I only looked on Google for the pictures AFTER I'd completed it! Why couldn't I think of any foods starting with "a"? There must be loads of them!!!

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