The Moussaka was a raging success! Oh so tasty. And it tends to get better as the days go on which always amazes me, but it seems to happen with most saucy type things like this. Anyway - I didn't drop it, even though it was probably just as heavy as the previously dropped one. The secret is oven mitts! Not tea towels, which was my previously preferred method of removing steaming hot fare from the oven. Check out my recipe & some pics here.
Yesterday Mark & I took the babies out for a stroll in the evening sun. It was gorgeous, we took them up to the park and let them off the lead for a run. They bolted around like maniacs, and kept eying people off as if they were going to eat them (this was Arnie mainly, Jeff was happy barrelling after the ball Mark & I were throwing for him). Arnie can't seem to get used to walking properly on the lead. He pulls, veers of in random directions and just generally works his hardest to annoy the cr@p out of Mark. Jeff on the other hand, hates walking on grass. I know! He's a DOG!! It's because there seem to be a lot of bindis at the moment, and they stick into his little paws. When we get off a bindi patch, I bend down and remove them all from his paws, but the poor bugger is scarred from the pokey experience.
Not long now and Mark & I will be off and away to Vanuatu!! I can't wait. We've discussed doing the Advanced Open Water PADI course as we are both Open Water divers who never do anything with it - we figure we might as well take the chance we've got to refresh and do some diving! I'm really excited - diving still scares me so I can't wait to do it and work my way towards not being terrified!
I'm off to see the Oral surgeon at lunch time today. I've got this ridiculous looking fat lip that's been there for about a month now. It was MASSIVE at one stage and didn't appear to be getting any better, but just as my appointment rolls around, it goes down and is now not even nearly as offensive as it was for the past 4 weeks.
- B xx
Monday, October 25, 2010
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Sunday 24 October 2010
What a miserable day weather-wise!! We had gorgeous sun yesterday, I got out in the yard in the morning to do some tidying up - I had mown the lawn on Friday afternoon, and wanted to finish off the edges. But a fight with the whipper snipper ensued, and I've only been able to complete about 1/4 of the job. We have 3 whipper snippers. One is battery powered, and cuts about 3 blades of grass before it's out of juice. One is electric, and once the line that cuts the grass has gone it won't come out again and you've got the take the whole thing apart, feed it through manually and then keep snipping. The third one is petrol powered, but can't be started because my Dad wrenched the rip cord out once when he was feuding with it. To be fair, the electric and petrol ones were both given to us by my parents because when they break one, they simply buy another. Mark is very handy and plans to fix the broken rip cord, and we're going out today to buy something to fix the feeding problem too. Then hopefully we can do the edges together and complete the job in half the time.
When I was doing my 3 minutes of edging, Jeff took a dislike to the whipper snipper (battery powered). He decided firstly to try and bite it. Obviously it came as quite an offensive shock to him to almost have his nose removed by this noisy apparatus. So then, much to my delight, he decided to bark at it! Jeff almost NEVER barks. He can bark, as we discovered on a puppy-play date with my brother's pooches a few weeks ago. He just chooses not to - nothing really excites him enough to warrant a woof. But he barked and barked and barked at the whipper snipper!! I like it when he woofs because I feel like he's expressing himself. I think Mark thinks I'm a bit mental for thinking this.
I've revived my garden! Check out some pics and details about it here. I'm really happy, gardening makes me feel calm and I love being amongst all the green. I'm excited about possibly growing with my own hands food that we can eat!! I grew a million tomatoes about 2 years ago, and I've got those in again and some other stuff - chilli, capsicum, lettuce etc.
Because it's such a horrid rainy day, we've let the dogs be inside since this morning. Jeff curled himself up into a little ball so I covered them with a blanket. They are such big babies, I love them!! Arnie hasn't moved since I covered them over, he's all snuggled in the blankie and lovin' it.
I'm going to retry the ill-fated Moussaka today. Wish me luck.
- B xxx
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Friday 22 October 2010
Last night when I got home I went out into the backyard to see the pooches. Arnie was waiting at the door to greet me - cute little head peering up, waiting for a pat. But Jeff was nowhere to be seen! I called out, "Black dog!" as I often call him, but he didn't come. I left the house to search for him and walked up the street calling his name for a while until I heard Mark shout my name. So I went back and Jeff was wagging his whole self waiting for me at the door! When I asked Mark where he was, he said he'd accidently locked him in the garage 2 hours earlier!!
I expected to find my motorbike (oh yes, forgot to mention...I bought a motorbike!) torn to shreds and all sorts of other chaos - but nothing. Li'l Jeff must've just curled up and had a sleep!!
I expected to find my motorbike (oh yes, forgot to mention...I bought a motorbike!) torn to shreds and all sorts of other chaos - but nothing. Li'l Jeff must've just curled up and had a sleep!!
Oh about the motorbike - it's a lime green Kawasaki Ninja. It was in pretty bad shape when I got it, and Mark did loads of work on restoring it to get it ready for rego. A few weeks ago he rode it down and got it all registered, so now it is sitting waiting in the garage for me to...ummm... ride it. I need to get my licence and I really MUST stop putting off practising!! I am thinking I might just book the two day course and force myself to learn to balance in time. Since I only learnt to ride a bicycle a few months ago, riding a motorcycle is quite a step up you see.
- B xx
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Thursday 21 October 2010
Oh so much has happened!! Blogging is hard to keep up with, I really must be more diligent!!
Jeff turned 1 at the weekend! I got him and his little brother Arnie MASSIVE bones to celebrate. They walked around looking like furry little barrels with legs for 3 days afterwards and needed about 1/2 their normal amount of food because they were still digesting these ridiculously large bones.
Mark and I have been moving towards a Primal lifestyle. I'm starting another blog to track our progress, challenges and general lamenting of the absence of all things sweet and processed in our diets. Actually, to be fair, our transition so far has been pretty positive. Luckily it hasn't been Easter Show time and I haven't desperately wanted that big bag of fairy floss. Check out my new blog here: A Primal Life: Our Story.
On Tuesday this week I was in hospital with the worst tummy pains I've ever had. Mark was a gem, sat beside me the whole day while they poked and prodded me, wheeled me off for this or that test. Now he's contracted some weird Himalayan Nose virus (he's got a cold...) from his time keeping me company in the emergency room. I was there from 7am to 9pm, and they still don't know what was wrong with me. I'm becoming more and more suspicious of doctors and medicine in general. I've spent heaps of money on specialists and tests, missed work for this or that and they still can't work out what keep going wrong in my belly. I had been on a great run though, and then had quite a lot of KFC - so perhaps Primal living is the way to go for me.
Soon Mark and I are going to Vanuatu for a very looked-forward-to break. Mark hasn't had a proper holiday in about 5 years (apart from the 4 days we spent in the retirement village that is Forster in June...) so we are looking forward to getting some sun, relaxing and coming back refreshed. Hoping to do some diving while we are there too.
That's the shortened version of debauched for now. There is probably loads of stuff I could moan about but so much has been happening that it is all I can do to just stay above water!! Oh oh oh, one awesome thing - my Aunt wanted to get rid of some Tupperware containers she had, they were collapsible and in OK condition but didn't fold out all the way any more. I called Tupperware and asked for them to be replaced and they gave me brand newies!!
Oh also, I rescued my plant from my Bondi days from the clutches of the plant killer that is my mother. I can't believe how little water she must have been giving them!! The frangipani has NO leaves at all yet!! They are now safely on my front porch where she can't harm them any more, and where the dogs can't eat/knock over/dig/gratuitously tear to shreds/wee on them.
- B xx
Jeff turned 1 at the weekend! I got him and his little brother Arnie MASSIVE bones to celebrate. They walked around looking like furry little barrels with legs for 3 days afterwards and needed about 1/2 their normal amount of food because they were still digesting these ridiculously large bones.
Mark and I have been moving towards a Primal lifestyle. I'm starting another blog to track our progress, challenges and general lamenting of the absence of all things sweet and processed in our diets. Actually, to be fair, our transition so far has been pretty positive. Luckily it hasn't been Easter Show time and I haven't desperately wanted that big bag of fairy floss. Check out my new blog here: A Primal Life: Our Story.
On Tuesday this week I was in hospital with the worst tummy pains I've ever had. Mark was a gem, sat beside me the whole day while they poked and prodded me, wheeled me off for this or that test. Now he's contracted some weird Himalayan Nose virus (he's got a cold...) from his time keeping me company in the emergency room. I was there from 7am to 9pm, and they still don't know what was wrong with me. I'm becoming more and more suspicious of doctors and medicine in general. I've spent heaps of money on specialists and tests, missed work for this or that and they still can't work out what keep going wrong in my belly. I had been on a great run though, and then had quite a lot of KFC - so perhaps Primal living is the way to go for me.
Soon Mark and I are going to Vanuatu for a very looked-forward-to break. Mark hasn't had a proper holiday in about 5 years (apart from the 4 days we spent in the retirement village that is Forster in June...) so we are looking forward to getting some sun, relaxing and coming back refreshed. Hoping to do some diving while we are there too.
That's the shortened version of debauched for now. There is probably loads of stuff I could moan about but so much has been happening that it is all I can do to just stay above water!! Oh oh oh, one awesome thing - my Aunt wanted to get rid of some Tupperware containers she had, they were collapsible and in OK condition but didn't fold out all the way any more. I called Tupperware and asked for them to be replaced and they gave me brand newies!!
Oh also, I rescued my plant from my Bondi days from the clutches of the plant killer that is my mother. I can't believe how little water she must have been giving them!! The frangipani has NO leaves at all yet!! They are now safely on my front porch where she can't harm them any more, and where the dogs can't eat/knock over/dig/gratuitously tear to shreds/wee on them.
- B xx
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Thursday 12 August 2010
Last night I had the world's most stressful, demanding workout. I made a mental note - if it looks easy on the website, it is not and I should most certainly stay at home. Frankly, I don't know what I was thinking signing up with these crazy ex-Army dudes in the first place. Mark was really into it. The things we do for love hey?? But really, I do like this crazy gym - it's called Crossfit, they are all over Youtube doing MENTAL stuff. It makes me do things I never thought I would, push myself to the point of almost puking... They even have a wall where all the people who have puked after or during a workout have their name immortalised. It's a badge of honour to have pushed yourself that hard - a badge I hope never to achieve! Last night's pain involved 15 rounds of 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups and 15 squats. It looked so easy when I read it!! But in 25 minutes I only made it to 13 rounds, even though I was given a sub of doing my pull-ups on the rings. I sobbed like a little child, mainly because I knew that after 10 minutes rest they were going to make me do another 8 rounds, or however many I could complete in 12 & 1/2 minutes. Torturous. There was a lady next to me who I was matching round for round and then she suddenly called "Time" as if she'd finished. I know she cheated!! But when I got home I discussed it with Mark and we decided she is only cheating herself, which made me feel better. =)
- B xxx
- B xxx
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Sunday 6 June 2010
Firstly, I must say how bloody quickly this year is going!! I can't believe it is June already. Soon enough (2 weeks, 10 working days!) I'll be finished in my job and heading up to Forster for 5 days of sun (hopefully), fun (definitely) and relaxation (without a doubt). We had planned to go for 7 days, but we've got to come back earlier because I've got to have a final test to diagnose what I'm fairly certain is coeliac disease. I've been pretty ill the past couple of weeks, but I feel like I'm starting to turn a corner now.
The reason I think I might be turning a corner is because my wonderful boyfriend Mark has spent loads of time doing research into different diets, health regimes etc and we've started on a raw food kick. We're doing loads of awesome juices (lots of green juices but some fruit as well) and trying to eat 2 out of three meals raw each day. This is proving to be difficult but an awesome challenge. Mark discovered (and is somewhat in awe of...) a dude called Dan MacDonald and has been watching his YouTube posts with excitement. He even befriended him on Facebook, then I jumped on the band wagon and did it too!! Dan talks a lot about his diet and being "present" - experiencing everything that is going on around you and really living for right now.
Needless to say, we're slowly moving towards being shaggy-haired hippies ourselves and loving it. We're not even close to being raw food vegans, but we're certainly eating much better and feeling better for it! Today we drove out to the Eastern Suburbs and bought a second-hand wheatgrass juicer and Mark is going to sort us out a tray of fresh grass tomorrow which should be great!
To go with our new-found hippydom, we've begun discussions on how possible it might be for us to convert a bus into a motorhome. Now this might sound crazy, but check this out: The Alice Project (it's basically my dream convert-o-bus, only missing a toilet/shower). You can see the possibilities for yourself!
Winnebago-style travelling is something I've wanted to do for quite a few years - I'm really not the camping type, but I've wanted to get out of the city and live a peaceful, simple life for a while but hadn't really had the right circumstances or I guess the right person in my life to do it with before now! Mark is really handy when it comes to constructions and repairs, but also he's totally into the idea! So watch this space - bus updates to follow...
In other news, on Friday night I made a Moussaka. I started at about 6:30pm, and it wasn't finished until about 10pm as I grilled all the veggies etc before I made the sauce (yes, I could have multi-tasked but I was also managing the needs of two puppies and a boyfriend). I served some out into a container for my Dad because he likes eggplant and my Mum rarely cooks it and covered the tray to pop it back into the turned off oven to cool down. As I went to put it in the oven I must have touched one of the still warm shelves and the fright caused me to drop the entire dish onto the door of the oven, upside down. So my perfectly, excessively time-consuming moussaka was ruined - but not lost.
Handy-man Mark came to the rescue with a turner and a big spoon and scooped what could be salvaged into a container. So now although it's not in the perfectly formed layers it was originally in, it is edible and oh-so-tasty. Can I just add a warning though - if you ever make a moussaka and you happen to use 1kg of mince as I did, combined with all the other ingredients it really is too much to go into one baking dish and it will inevitably end up on the door of the oven. So you see, it was never my fault. It was bound to happen given the sheer contents and therefore the weight of the baking dish.
Mark is in a very cool band and sometimes they do open-mic nights. I missed the last one they did last Monday night but I'm going along tomorrow as I think it's going to be the last one for a while - their drummer's wife is having a baby soon so I think they wanted to get one last gig in before he's relegated to sleeplessness for 12 months. I'm not sure why they are doing two so close together, but there you go. One of the guys' in the band has a GF who I don't really get along with - she's one of these people who likes to exclude people who do not lavish her with attention I think. Anyway, I am just going to try and stay out of her way and not let her bother me. I don't like catty, bitchy-girl behaviour so none of it sits well with me.
One thing about Mark...he's 38, but acts much younger. It's weird for me - I forget how much older he is and am so impressed when he knows a lot about stuff - but he's had a lot more years than me to develop this knowledge. (I am writing this because I've been teasing him a bit recently about being an old bloke and I expect at some point he'll probably read this so I'm just using the internet to reinforce my views on his oldness). We play quite a lot of video games together - our main ones have been Super Mario Brothers on Wii and Lego Star Wars on Wii. He always accuses me of killing him, pushing him into lava etc. I'd like to use this forum to deny the allegations and state uncategorically that at no time during our play have I caused his character to die. In fact, I've carried our team to victory repeatedly. *pokes tongue out at Mark, who does not have a blog so cannot retaliate* Maybe you'll start your own blog hey babe? Ha! =)
Mark's puppy Arnie lives with me at the moment as his older dog has some behavioural issues that rub off on Arnie when they're together. Arnie and Jeff get along so well and he's learning more and more every day from Jeff. Jeff has been moving into adolescence I think and is pushing the boundaries a bit but he really is such a great dog. Still loves cuddles and just hanging out and he's SO good looking! Because we've been doing a lot of juices we've started to feed the pups a mix of raw oats, cooked brown rice, kangaroo mince and the pulp from the juices we've made. They love it!! They also get a chicken wing to chew every day but I think I need to revise that part of the plan as they seem to finish them about 3 seconds after they've been given them!
I've been putting off reviving the Ark because I can't decide on the next genre to cover. I'm dreading doing rock because it is just SO broad and will take AGES to complete - especially given how inconsistent I am with this! So can anyone suggest a good genre for me to get back into it with?? I've done Metal and Punk so far...
- B xxx
The reason I think I might be turning a corner is because my wonderful boyfriend Mark has spent loads of time doing research into different diets, health regimes etc and we've started on a raw food kick. We're doing loads of awesome juices (lots of green juices but some fruit as well) and trying to eat 2 out of three meals raw each day. This is proving to be difficult but an awesome challenge. Mark discovered (and is somewhat in awe of...) a dude called Dan MacDonald and has been watching his YouTube posts with excitement. He even befriended him on Facebook, then I jumped on the band wagon and did it too!! Dan talks a lot about his diet and being "present" - experiencing everything that is going on around you and really living for right now.
Needless to say, we're slowly moving towards being shaggy-haired hippies ourselves and loving it. We're not even close to being raw food vegans, but we're certainly eating much better and feeling better for it! Today we drove out to the Eastern Suburbs and bought a second-hand wheatgrass juicer and Mark is going to sort us out a tray of fresh grass tomorrow which should be great!
To go with our new-found hippydom, we've begun discussions on how possible it might be for us to convert a bus into a motorhome. Now this might sound crazy, but check this out: The Alice Project (it's basically my dream convert-o-bus, only missing a toilet/shower). You can see the possibilities for yourself!
Winnebago-style travelling is something I've wanted to do for quite a few years - I'm really not the camping type, but I've wanted to get out of the city and live a peaceful, simple life for a while but hadn't really had the right circumstances or I guess the right person in my life to do it with before now! Mark is really handy when it comes to constructions and repairs, but also he's totally into the idea! So watch this space - bus updates to follow...
In other news, on Friday night I made a Moussaka. I started at about 6:30pm, and it wasn't finished until about 10pm as I grilled all the veggies etc before I made the sauce (yes, I could have multi-tasked but I was also managing the needs of two puppies and a boyfriend). I served some out into a container for my Dad because he likes eggplant and my Mum rarely cooks it and covered the tray to pop it back into the turned off oven to cool down. As I went to put it in the oven I must have touched one of the still warm shelves and the fright caused me to drop the entire dish onto the door of the oven, upside down. So my perfectly, excessively time-consuming moussaka was ruined - but not lost.
Handy-man Mark came to the rescue with a turner and a big spoon and scooped what could be salvaged into a container. So now although it's not in the perfectly formed layers it was originally in, it is edible and oh-so-tasty. Can I just add a warning though - if you ever make a moussaka and you happen to use 1kg of mince as I did, combined with all the other ingredients it really is too much to go into one baking dish and it will inevitably end up on the door of the oven. So you see, it was never my fault. It was bound to happen given the sheer contents and therefore the weight of the baking dish.
Mark is in a very cool band and sometimes they do open-mic nights. I missed the last one they did last Monday night but I'm going along tomorrow as I think it's going to be the last one for a while - their drummer's wife is having a baby soon so I think they wanted to get one last gig in before he's relegated to sleeplessness for 12 months. I'm not sure why they are doing two so close together, but there you go. One of the guys' in the band has a GF who I don't really get along with - she's one of these people who likes to exclude people who do not lavish her with attention I think. Anyway, I am just going to try and stay out of her way and not let her bother me. I don't like catty, bitchy-girl behaviour so none of it sits well with me.
One thing about Mark...he's 38, but acts much younger. It's weird for me - I forget how much older he is and am so impressed when he knows a lot about stuff - but he's had a lot more years than me to develop this knowledge. (I am writing this because I've been teasing him a bit recently about being an old bloke and I expect at some point he'll probably read this so I'm just using the internet to reinforce my views on his oldness). We play quite a lot of video games together - our main ones have been Super Mario Brothers on Wii and Lego Star Wars on Wii. He always accuses me of killing him, pushing him into lava etc. I'd like to use this forum to deny the allegations and state uncategorically that at no time during our play have I caused his character to die. In fact, I've carried our team to victory repeatedly. *pokes tongue out at Mark, who does not have a blog so cannot retaliate* Maybe you'll start your own blog hey babe? Ha! =)
Mark's puppy Arnie lives with me at the moment as his older dog has some behavioural issues that rub off on Arnie when they're together. Arnie and Jeff get along so well and he's learning more and more every day from Jeff. Jeff has been moving into adolescence I think and is pushing the boundaries a bit but he really is such a great dog. Still loves cuddles and just hanging out and he's SO good looking! Because we've been doing a lot of juices we've started to feed the pups a mix of raw oats, cooked brown rice, kangaroo mince and the pulp from the juices we've made. They love it!! They also get a chicken wing to chew every day but I think I need to revise that part of the plan as they seem to finish them about 3 seconds after they've been given them!
I've been putting off reviving the Ark because I can't decide on the next genre to cover. I'm dreading doing rock because it is just SO broad and will take AGES to complete - especially given how inconsistent I am with this! So can anyone suggest a good genre for me to get back into it with?? I've done Metal and Punk so far...
- B xxx
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Friday 21 May 2010
I have quit my job!! I am sad to be leaving as I've really enjoyed working at my employer overall. However, I work with someone who can only be described as a beast and I'd rather singe my eyebrows with a cigarette lighter than put up with it anymore. So hooray!!
It's been a long time since I updated Debauched - few reasons include general miserableness with all the work drama, some health issues I'd had etc; busy-ness with my wonderful boyfriend of 4 whole months!!; my dog-related issues.
We'll start with the dog...I got a companion for Jeff. At first, it was wonderful - I'd rescued her from the pound and she was a little cutie (in a very ugly kind of way). Anyway, after about 10 minutes of doting over her, I realised she was an absolute menace. She would wiggle her butt so much in order to push Jeff out of the way when it was time for any kind of attention. She was destructive too - ripped things to bits, chewed on everything and I believe she weed in the house out of spite. Anyway, after about 8 weeks of trying in vain to train her with positive & negative reinforcement and ignoring her completely at times, I realised it was to no avail and I had to surrender her to the pound. It was the most heartbreaking thing I've ever done, she was only a baby and they told me they'd need to put her down. :(
My health issues have been suitably annoying but are getting much better now. I've had all sorts of tests and seen specialists. I saw a "General Physician" at first - they had absolutely no idea what was wrong with me, so they sent me to a glorified GP...When I got there for my first appointment, his name was right above the word "Geriatrician". I was annoyed to have been sent to an old person's doctor. And even more so when he told me I was his only patient younger than himself! Anyway, I'm now at the point where I should have the final test soon to confirm my suspected condition - coeliac disease. It's annoying but very manageable through a gluten-free diet. But since I have to keep eating gluten till I have the final test, I'm currently experiencing a free-for-all where I am eating things I would normally consider off limits, and becoming quite plump as a result.
Because of my plumpings I've been trying to run as much as possible. I set myself a goal this week of 16km, and I am 4.7km away from achieving it with a plan to run tomorrow. (My running week goes from Sunday to Saturday.) It's been good actually to get back into running - I'd had about 6 weeks off completely, and before that with all my illness I'd been only running intermittently so it's been good to have a weekly goal and get a few good runs done each week.
Me and this new man (Mark) have been on for about 4 months now! Time has flown. He is great - he's really fun, an animal lover and really quite the spunk. The other week we had a lovely "date" - we went out for dinner and saw a movie. This is something I've never really had before - I've never really been on dates. Even though we spend basically every night together, he still makes the effort to ask me out, dresses up and takes me somewhere he know I'll like. He's a real catch!!
These days, Jeff can only be described as a cube. A cube-o-lab. He's SO adorable - he just has this beautiful little face, his cubesque body and his whole back half wiggles when he wags his tail. It never ceases to please and delight me how excited he is to see me whenever we've been apart for more than about 10 minutes. He's taken to leaping in the air when I let him in the house now; he just wants to touch his little wet nose to my palm. He follows me all around, which can get annoying when he's constantly under foot, but it's really very sweet. And the drool!! Whenever I am eating, preparing dinner or he can smell food within a 2km radius he gets this huge stream of drool out the side of his mouth. Sometimes both sides. When I put him outside, I could swear someone was out the trying to murder him the way he moans. When I take him around to Mark's (he's got two dogs that Jeff likes to play with) he's just as bad, but it's even worse because Mark's oldest dog cannot stand to be outside when we are inside. He does not understand that he is a dog, I'm sure of it. He shoves Jeff out of the way for pats with me when we're there too. He thinks he deserves all the pats because he is the biggest. He's pretty cute though and it's quite funny to watch Jeff jump around him and lick his chops all the time.
Tomorrow night I am holding a Sashimi night at my house. I'm quite excited actually - my whole family, apart from my wayward younger brother, is coming and it should be fun! I need to find some Sake from somewhere though - I've googled and found a couple that people have recommended so hopefully I can get one of those! I may have over-committed myself somewhat...I'm making Peking Duck Pancakes, Rice Paper Rolls, Sashimi (obviously!) and Teriyaki Chicken...we'll see what happens.
Guess that is all for now. Must revive The Ark. Must revive The Ark. Must revive The Ark.
- B xxx
It's been a long time since I updated Debauched - few reasons include general miserableness with all the work drama, some health issues I'd had etc; busy-ness with my wonderful boyfriend of 4 whole months!!; my dog-related issues.
We'll start with the dog...I got a companion for Jeff. At first, it was wonderful - I'd rescued her from the pound and she was a little cutie (in a very ugly kind of way). Anyway, after about 10 minutes of doting over her, I realised she was an absolute menace. She would wiggle her butt so much in order to push Jeff out of the way when it was time for any kind of attention. She was destructive too - ripped things to bits, chewed on everything and I believe she weed in the house out of spite. Anyway, after about 8 weeks of trying in vain to train her with positive & negative reinforcement and ignoring her completely at times, I realised it was to no avail and I had to surrender her to the pound. It was the most heartbreaking thing I've ever done, she was only a baby and they told me they'd need to put her down. :(
My health issues have been suitably annoying but are getting much better now. I've had all sorts of tests and seen specialists. I saw a "General Physician" at first - they had absolutely no idea what was wrong with me, so they sent me to a glorified GP...When I got there for my first appointment, his name was right above the word "Geriatrician". I was annoyed to have been sent to an old person's doctor. And even more so when he told me I was his only patient younger than himself! Anyway, I'm now at the point where I should have the final test soon to confirm my suspected condition - coeliac disease. It's annoying but very manageable through a gluten-free diet. But since I have to keep eating gluten till I have the final test, I'm currently experiencing a free-for-all where I am eating things I would normally consider off limits, and becoming quite plump as a result.
Because of my plumpings I've been trying to run as much as possible. I set myself a goal this week of 16km, and I am 4.7km away from achieving it with a plan to run tomorrow. (My running week goes from Sunday to Saturday.) It's been good actually to get back into running - I'd had about 6 weeks off completely, and before that with all my illness I'd been only running intermittently so it's been good to have a weekly goal and get a few good runs done each week.
Me and this new man (Mark) have been on for about 4 months now! Time has flown. He is great - he's really fun, an animal lover and really quite the spunk. The other week we had a lovely "date" - we went out for dinner and saw a movie. This is something I've never really had before - I've never really been on dates. Even though we spend basically every night together, he still makes the effort to ask me out, dresses up and takes me somewhere he know I'll like. He's a real catch!!
These days, Jeff can only be described as a cube. A cube-o-lab. He's SO adorable - he just has this beautiful little face, his cubesque body and his whole back half wiggles when he wags his tail. It never ceases to please and delight me how excited he is to see me whenever we've been apart for more than about 10 minutes. He's taken to leaping in the air when I let him in the house now; he just wants to touch his little wet nose to my palm. He follows me all around, which can get annoying when he's constantly under foot, but it's really very sweet. And the drool!! Whenever I am eating, preparing dinner or he can smell food within a 2km radius he gets this huge stream of drool out the side of his mouth. Sometimes both sides. When I put him outside, I could swear someone was out the trying to murder him the way he moans. When I take him around to Mark's (he's got two dogs that Jeff likes to play with) he's just as bad, but it's even worse because Mark's oldest dog cannot stand to be outside when we are inside. He does not understand that he is a dog, I'm sure of it. He shoves Jeff out of the way for pats with me when we're there too. He thinks he deserves all the pats because he is the biggest. He's pretty cute though and it's quite funny to watch Jeff jump around him and lick his chops all the time.
Tomorrow night I am holding a Sashimi night at my house. I'm quite excited actually - my whole family, apart from my wayward younger brother, is coming and it should be fun! I need to find some Sake from somewhere though - I've googled and found a couple that people have recommended so hopefully I can get one of those! I may have over-committed myself somewhat...I'm making Peking Duck Pancakes, Rice Paper Rolls, Sashimi (obviously!) and Teriyaki Chicken...we'll see what happens.
Guess that is all for now. Must revive The Ark. Must revive The Ark. Must revive The Ark.
- B xxx
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