Suburban Lush

Dinner for One

I've been house-sitting for a friend the last couple of weeks and, while I've been enjoying not ever having to wait for the bathroom, I'm particularly enjoying the chance to cook whatever I want for dinner without having to consider anybody else's likes and dislikes. This means that I have eaten lots of fish, which John hates, and no potatoes, which my flatmate Fiona adores and cooks with every meal. I've been eating mostly vegetarian meals, and only eating meat when I can afford to splurge on a nice steak. John on the other hand requires some time of meat (but not fish!) with every meal, and so we eat a lot of mince and chicken drumsticks at home.

Two meals I've enjoyed most are this brussel sprout recipe for smitten kitchen (and yes, I'm enjoying being able to get away with cooking nothing but a giant plate of brussel sprouts for my dinner!); and a simple meal of farfalle dressed in a sauce of garlic, parmesan, parsley and chili oil (all buzzed in the food processor until smooth), tossed with a large handful of baby rocket. Mmmmmmm.

And yes, I know I didn't do an October Review, but I'm pretty sure nobody missed it. Obviously I tried out a whole heap of recipes for thanksgiving, I saw District 9 and finally got around to watching Amelie (which I didn't think was as good as everyone said it was - a case of too much hype I think). And I went on a couple of hikes, but did no other exercise whatsoever.

Me. Right Now

I've been sick. A cough which tears through my body, a fever, sore muscles, sore eyes, sore head. But I'm on the mend now, and feeling more like myself.

I'm house sitting. A beautiful house. Quiet. A train journey in to work. Time to recuperate, think about what I want, enjoy my own company.

I had a friend visit from New Zealand. I didn't realise how much I missed his company until he came, and then went again. We played tourist, hiked, hung out. Laughed and talked about nothing of consequence.

A morning cooking class, making hot and spicy Thai curries. Afterwards, a glass of wine and a long chat with a good friend.

Sleeping in a bed by myself. Without John. Not seeing him every day. For the first time in 5 years. Making the effort when we do see each other - short skirt, good meal, proper conversation. Its like dating again, taking less for granted, enjoying spending time in each other's company.

Julie & Julia

I just saw Julie & Julia. I read the book several years ago (I think it was a Christmas present for my Mom which I promptly "borrowed") and enjoyed it for light, fluffy reading. The movie satisfied in the same way. The kind of movie that needs to be watched with girlfriends, while sharing a big bucket of buttered popcorn.

The two stories of chef Julia Child and blogger Julie Powell merge well together, with a smooth transition between the two. Meryl Streep is fantastic as Julia Child. A couple of the girlfriends I went to see the movie with thought she was a bit over the top, but then admitted that they had never actually seen footage of Julia Child. Amy Adams is adorable as Julie Powell, and Stanley Tucci and Chris Messina both put in good performances.

Its a light-hearted movie, with no brain activity required. Perfect for a mid-week night out. And the best scenes? Those when Julia Child's sister (Jayne Lynch). I almost died of laughter.

Resolution Redux - August Edition

Somehow it is September. What happened to the rest of the year? So, how have I done with my non-resolutions?

See more movies: I watched The Time Traveler's Wife, Taking of Pelham 123, and Mesrine, which I thoroughly enjoyed and wholeheartedly recommend, provided you don't mind sub titles. I watched the original Jaws on DVD, which was a first for me, and also Wolverine.

Read more non-fiction books: I've finally finished EB White's letters. I really enjoyed it, even though it took me so long to read. I've also read Falling Leaves by Adeline Yen Mah, which was inspirational. And I'm currently reading Some Times in America by Alexander Chancellor which, while an amusing read, is a little too full of name-dropping for my liking.

Try two new recipes a month: Corn Fritters have been on the menu this month, as well as a new chocolate chip cookie recipe. I also tried out a divine bread and butter pudding which I will try to get up on here before too long.

Explore local sights: We did a bus tour with our friend Susan from NZ, went to Belfast Taste and Music Festival, walked in a couple of country parks, checked out a lovey new restaurant, and went to the Tall Ships Festival.

Do more hiking and work to improve my overall fitness levels: I haven't been so good with this one lately. I've not felt very motivated for the gym, and there haven't been many interesting hikes to go on. The one exciting hike I had wanted to go on was cancelled due to weather warnings.

Say yes more and take all opportunities presented to me: Well, I think the number of local things I've attended is a good indication that I haven't said no to many offers. Also, I went to see Chicago with some family, and had a nice dinner out with a new friend.

Not too bad for this month, but I must work on getting out on a few more hikes in September.

The Time Traveler's Wife

I went to see The Time Traveler's Wife last night and, well, I wasn't impressed.

I loved the book. Absolutely loved it. And I was a little nervous about going to see the film. I understand that a movie has time-constraints, and needs to maintain a different pace from a book. And to be honest, The Time Traveler's Wife probably wasn't a bad movie, just not the kind of movie I enjoy.

This book of complex human emotion was turned into a simple love-story. Call me heartless, but love stories bore me. And I was unable to look past Eric Bana's terrible acting. How does that man still have a job?

Looking around the theater at the end of the movie there was no shortage of tear-streaked faces, so I assume that most people enjoyed it more than I did. In fact, my flatmate who I saw it with, who also loves the book, really enjoyed it and wept copiously. So maybe it was just me.

My flatmate wants to see Lovely Bones with me when its out. Will I watch it, probably. But then, I didn't really like the book.

Quiet

A quiet week with not much to report.

Sunday I walked in both Ness Country Park and Roe Valley Country Park with my hiking group. Nice, easy walks with cake at the coffee shop to finish.

Tuesday night we went to see Taking of Pelham 123 - thoroughly enjoyable and a good escape from reality.

I've been strangely tired all week and fell asleep after work on Wednesday, before waking up to attend my polercize class.

Thursday, a quiet night at home, making chocolate and vanilla cupcakes for a commission and skyping with my Mom for her birthday (Happy Birthday Mom!).

Now its Friday. Plans for the weekend? Out for a fancy dinner tonight with my extended family for my Aunt and Uncle's 40th wedding anniversary. And the Tall Ships are in town so I will probably check that out on Saturday. No plans for Sunday, but I might spend the day pottering around in the kitchen - I'm thinking a big pot of soup, some sweet treats and maybe a casserole for diner.

Hopefully I'll have some stories and photos for you on Monday.

Local Tourists

Our friend Susan from New Zealand is on a big trip at the moment (lucky girl) and came to visit us for the weekend, arriving on Friday afternoon and leaving on Monday. It was lovely to catch up, and we had fun showing her the sights.

I left work early on Friday afternoon and met her off the airport bus. That night we went out for some traditional Belfast pub culture: dinner at The Crown Drinking Saloon (I highly recommend their steak & Guinness pie!) and a few pints at a couple of old pubs - Kelly's Cellars (an old IRA hangout) and The Garrick, where we met up with a few friends. We'd planned a party for Saturday night so Friday was just supposed to consist of a couple quiet drinks, but we didn't end up getting home until 3am.

Saturday we checked out the St George's Markets (one of my favourite thing to do on a Saturday morning in Belfast), and the Pride Parade which, while not a typical Belfast experience, was very fun. It was very nice for John and I to see the parade. When we first arrived in Belfast we had an experience on a bus where a gay couple sat down near an older man and the older man got up and moved to the other end of the bus, as far away from the couple as possible. As a result I tend to joke about Belfast being "the least tolerant city in the world", but the Pride parade showed that people are working on being a bit more accepting.

We partied on Saturday night and consumed far too much alcohol (Jagerbombs were probably not a good choice) so Sunday morning was a bit subdued. However we rallied on Sunday afternoon and headed out on a bus tour which was interesting and informative, and also didn't require any effort on our part!

It was a good weekend, and a nice excuse for us to head out and do the touristy things in Belfast that we hadn't gotten around to doing yet.

Resolution Redux - July Edition

We're a few days into August and I still haven't updated you on July. Also, it looks like I totally missed a June Edition. And June is too long ago for me to try to remember what the heck I did that month!

See more movies: At the cinema, I saw the latest Harry Potter, The Hangover and Public Enemy, and watched Sense and Sensibility on DVD.

Read more non-fiction books: I'm still working my way through EB White's letters. Really, I must read more of that book - its good, but it would be nice to get it finished and start something new.

Try two new recipes a month: I haven't spent much time in the kitchen lately, but I did try out a new Peanut Butter Cookie recipe. And I made Rajmah, a divine red bean curry recipe from Smitten Kitchen, that will definitely be made again.

Explore local sights: I checked out Orangefest, which is definitely a Northern Ireland experience, and a friend and I took ourselves on a personal tour of historic Belfast pubs one Saturday afternoon. I also had dinner at The Crown Drinking Saloon, an iconic Belfast pub.

Do more hiking and work to improve my overall fitness levels: I've been pretty good with the gym, and have done a couple of hikes - Trosnan & Slievenanee, and a weekend on the Antrim Coast

Say yes more and take all opportunities presented to me: I've been feeling a little anti-social this month, but I did join a polercise class with my friend Zoe.

"Orangefest"

The 12th of July weekend is a four day weekend here in Northern Ireland. It is an annual protestant celebration, commemorating the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. For weeks in advance Union Jack flags are raised, crates are piled up for bonfires, and drummers practice on the streets, but the main action starts on the 11th night, when huge bonfires are lit. The itself 12th consists of parades, drumming and marching. During "The Troubles" this was a weekend of huge conflict and, even now, many residents leave Northern Ireland for the weekend as resentment flares up and fights start.

This year the tourist board started marketing the 12th as "Orangefest", a show of cultural diversity. While many people still left Belfast, we were unexpectedly there as all our plans had fallen through (insert rant about various peoples' unreliability here!). The centre of town was quiet on the 11th night and my friend Zoe and I headed out for an informal pub crawl of Belfast's historic pubs. It was quite a good night to be out, as we didn't have to wait in line for drinks and got a seat in every pub we visited, and the atmosphere was friendly.

Because the 12th was a Sunday parades were held on the 13th, and John, Zoe and I decided to head out for a look. Of course we stopped at a couple of pubs first, because what is a celebration in Northern Ireland without a couple of pints of Guinness? And then we joined the masses to watch the parade in the rain before getting so bored and wet that we needed to desperately seek a pub for another recovery pint. Unfortunately it appeared that all pubs were shut while the parade was on, but after much searching we found one - Kelly's Cellar, a staunchly Irish pub, rumoured to be an IRA meeting place, was apparently the only pub open in Belfast.

And yes, there were some riots, but all in all it was a pretty quiet weekend for Belfast.

Lists

Four things I have done in the past week:

• Caught, and mostly recovered from, a stomach bug. Really, not pretty. I had two days off work, and probably should have taken more time off. On the plus side, I'm looking a bit thinner now!

• Had a visit from my parents. Unfortunately I was sick most of the time they were here, so we didn't catch up as much as we were hoping, but I really enjoyed seeing them. They were here for a week, and we managed to squeeze in some shopping and a few dinners. My uncle, cousin and aunt were also over from the mainland, so it was a big family catch-up.

• Watched Sense and Sensibility for the first time. And enjoyed it. Quite a nice way to spend a Friday night when you're stomach is still a little too fragile for drinking.

• Paid late fees on a library book. I'm horrified that it is taking me more than a fortnight to read a  book at the moment. I must get myself back into the reading habit.

Hopefully next week will be a little more exciting. We have a 4 day weekend due to the 12th of July. We originally had plans to head to the Galway for the weekend with one of our flatmates, but she decided at the last minute that she didn't want to go and, as she was going to drive there, we had no other way of getting there. Might head to Dundalk for a night or two with our other flattie and see where she grew up.