Strawberry Cake Time

Yes - I know what you are thinking....this whole sponge cake thing is going a bit far but I was in a desperate rush to whip up a quick cake for friends who came to visit on the weekend and when one only has 30mins before #1's piano lesson, what better way to listen the the practice notes of "Jelly on a Plate" (played ultra carefully by a right hand) whilst quickly beating the cake mixture to creamy loveliness in the kitchen......a great stress reliever too!!

Lemon Cake Time

Ahhh - the joys of a real cream cake.

I would like to say that I actually made the Lemon Curd as well but I would be lying and instead used a Waitrose special.

The versatility of a classic Victorian Sponge cake should not be underestimated when it comes to easy peasy desserts.

Putting my foot in it?

I have finally made the big time and recently had the following rant published in the local newspaper......

"Having recently moved back to Crickhowell, I have become increasingly saddened and consumed by a daily paranoia that occurs when taking my children anywhere within a two metre distance of our driveway.  Does anyone suffer it?  It’s called “Watch out for dog mess!!”.

How can such a beautiful town allow itself to fall foul to four legged beasts that like ghosts, appear to descend upon our pavements on virtually every route into town and leave excrement that not only creates mayhem for all who step through it, but increases the risk of hydatid disease. I suggest you look it up on http://www.hpa.org.uk/ as I don’t want to spoil your reading pleasure whilst chomping down on coffee and cake but in essence, it’s a condition which can and does kill humans and current evidence suggests that the main areas for hydatid disease in Wales are Powys, Monmouthshire and farms on the southern slopes of the Brecon Beacons and the Black Mountains.   Oh – that will be this area then?

I am not a dog owner  but given the high availability of rubber gloves, plastic bags (recyclable of course) and a little scoops that are available in buildings called “shops”,  is it really that difficult for dog owners to clean up after their little (or big) pooch? 

I suspect many a dog owner will read this and think that “this does not relate to me because I clear up after mine” and it’s a shame to tar you all with the same sticky scoop but clearly there are some rogue rotties out there who clearly do not give a “poop”.

Why should I berate my young children for getting mess on their shoes when it’s not their fault?  Why should I have to go through the horror of the “retch” when cleaning infected shoes? Why should I have to wear wellies to walk along a public footpath which has turned into a criss-cross intersection of mutty motorway mess?  And by the way,  just because it’s a “footpath in the country” and “no longer a pavement “does not mean you don’t have to clear the mess up either….. it would appear that some dog owners have forgotten this small and sometime large point (please excuse the pun)."

Raising a tail for health and mental happiness.

Mrs “ Non” de Poop  


I decided not to use my real name for fear of having to sign autographs.....

Its been a while I know....

There is no excuse really for not posting anything up over the last week or so except to say that I have been quite busy literally doing nothing. (and YES - I do mean literally).  The new job has shown me that levels of boredom can reach epic proportions of quick snap depression and the sad fact is that unless I do something about it soon, I could fall into an abyss of really not wanting to bother doing anything!  (Something my new work colleagues have already warned me about and appear to be already suffering from).

A quick synopsis of my "new" working day (all 444 minutes of it).

• Arrive and complete timesheet
• Make tea
• Do some photocopying
• Listen to anecdotes of what valley individuals can occasionally get up to
• Lunch
• Play with Excel and create a mail-merge ( whoo hooo - I suggested that I create a letter)
• Listen to more anecdotes
• Make tea
• Complete timesheet
• Go home

Ahhh - my parents must be so proud that three years of university really showed me how I could contribute to society.  

Its a manic rush in the morning to get #1 & #2 ready for school, make their lunchboxes, prepare #3's nursery bag and (in between the nappy change) spoon-feed her porridge but this morning I discovered that I could go to the toilet and nurse #3 on my lap whilst also brushing her teeth....a saving of at least 2 mins before getting everyone out of the house by 0815. 

God - this post is boring isn't it? 

 

I have gone mad....

With reference to my last post - this is currently the winner of " how not to use initiative".

Two men are referred to a job that involved taking a water storage container apart.
When after 4 hours had passed and they were due back at base, someone was sent out to investigate their whereabouts.

Upon arrival at the location of the water storage unit, the men were found leaning against the water unit, clutching plastic beakers and looking rather bloated.  (You can see where I am going?)

It was put to them that they had been "some time" when the younger one quickly ran off to relieve himself and the other (in charge) lamented that it was taking them longer than anticipated to empty the unit.   (The size of a domestic household oil tank)

The supervisor just calmly took off the top of the container and tipped the water away.

I kid you not.........

I might just go mad

Since being successful at a recent interview and accepting the job, there has been a persistent and slight gnawing suspicion that I might struggle with a complete culture shock when returning to the "office environment".

The team is very friendly and the quick wit of the Welsh in on tap throughout the day, along with the ability to talk incessantly about inane banter for precisely 444 minutes a working day.

Today however, whilst talking about what some "business" tenants will complain about and expect an immediate response to, my jaw dropped at around the same time as my first line of defence to mental sanity.  Here are three of the best:

• Can you come and sort out the toilet seat - it moves when I sit on it and there is a screw on the floor
• There is a spiders web in one of the back windows
• What shall I do about the daisies growing outside

Initiative it would seem, is rather selective..........

Ahhh - Real Music!

I am in music heaven and had forgotten what it is like to be able to put a set of headphones on and lose yourself in sound that I am in control of selecting and listening to without screams of anguish from #1 & #2 in the back of the car.

Their usual selection is as follows:

• Walt Disney Themes - only certain selections from Lion King, Hi Ho (Snow White) and Beauty and the Beast allowed.
• Abba Gold - EVERY SINGLE ONE
• Fleetwood Mac Greatest Hits (#1 adores The Chain)
• Green Day - American Idiot (#2 adores but we had to remove from sight since skipping over the swear words became too much of a parental responsibility when moving at high speeds in the car)
• Times Tables (sheer pain for myself)
• Animal Jungle Songs - say no more

Due to an evening of absolutely NOTHING on the television worth wasting my sight on, I have retreated to the computer and reclaimed the use of my ears for pure enjoyment of blocking out the real world with a lovely new pair of headphones (the last lovely pair had an unfortunate accident with the hoover a few weeks ago and floated off to headphone heaven unnoticed by me as I was trying to unravel them from the hoover's innards) and submerging myself into a magical world of me, myself and I.

Tonight I have really enjoyed listening to The Black Keys on Spotify and could not place my finger on why I enjoyed listening so much to their Brothers album.  A quick email to a very knowledgeable individual who works in the Music Business pointed out that the lead singer of The BK is Dan Auerbach whose album "Keep it Hid" I was given to by another very knowledgeable individual who knew instinctively that I would love it.