LifeinanEnglishVillage

February

2010-02-08T23:18:00.000-08:00

Already .....I know I didnt update this and I may close this blog down and open a different one for food and recepes.....
January was a very long very cold month with a lot of snow - didnt go anywhere - although I did a rawfood workshop one afternoon which was great with Kate Magic who lives in my area ......it was a shame not more people were present but I still enjoyed it.......
My health still concerns me and I am so tired all the time, I also got 2 meniers attacks this month so I havent been able to do much at all - cant wait for Spring.......

New Year

2010-01-01T02:11:00.000-08:00

Mr Google posted before I finished writing the post - hm - but this year is going to be a year of change in a lot of ways - I really want to work on my health and I am fed up with being tired all the time, not being able to digest food, not being able to eat etc etc etc, every test I have never shows anything up but this country is so bad at diagnosing anything anyway ...so I am sticking to vegan food and adding more rawfood to my diet, learning as much as I can from books, lectures, you tube, blogs etc etc ......
I want to find a yoga class too, maybe a meditation class .....we will see where everything leads

Happy New Year

2009-12-31T23:44:00.000-08:00

Wishing you all a very happy new year - hope its a healthy one for everyone ...this is a year to work on my health......

This morning

2009-11-30T23:21:00.001-08:00

we got frost - the first this winter ....brrr and its freezing

Odds and ends

2009-11-28T05:11:00.000-08:00

we have been experiencing some of the worst weather for 100 years -our part of the country escaped the terrible floods that they have in the lake district but some of the winds were bad enough blowing out the windows in Sea Lane Cafe which is on the seafront - cars parked near there also had their windows blown out .....fortunately as I live 6 miles inland the worst that happened to us was our bird table blowing over! The rains were awful though.

this is some gluten free bread I made up the other day - it was ok but a little doughy and I dont like bread that way especially ......

Started on the Christmas shopping - I really only have 2 people left to buy for so may go into Brighton later in the week and finish off

Monday

2009-11-15T23:20:00.000-08:00

Well what a week end of weather - Friday and Saturday were full of very strong winds, heavy rains and yesterday was beautiful sunshine blue blue skies .....you would hardly believe the days before .....the wind was strong enough to blow over the bird table but that is all really - many trees were down in the area though and there were floods all over the place. My friend Cathy lives about an hour away from me and there was flooding further down her road and many trains were cancelled in the region ...today is just windy but a normal wind. ........

Friday

2009-11-13T07:25:00.000-08:00

A stripey mug I found in Brighton yesterday

crystals are bottom left, quartz, green - flourite - top lepidolite. For crystal information see The Crystal Bible by Judy Hall which is one of my all time favourite books about crystals.

And an update photo of Magic - she is settling more each week and beginning to be a loving cat - she still wont come to us but she loves being petted and rolls over and over for us .....

Its very windy out and force 10 gales are forecast for the week end - I was supposed to go and see Cathy this week end but I didnt in the end because the people she shares the house with have swine flu ...and now we have very windy wet weather with force 10 gales forecast for the whole week end so in a way it was a good job we postponed our week end together. Hope to go in a couple of weeks instead .....

not much

2009-11-09T02:49:00.000-08:00

going on this week, it turned very cold now so we need to have the heat on a lot more which I dont like (not least the heating bills) - very cold when I wake up early in the morning already.

Magic has taken to looking at herself in the mirror in my Dads bedroom - he has mirror doors on the wardrobes which are fitted and so mirrors are floor to ceiling - I am not sure if she thinks its another cat or what at the moment - she is continuing to become more friendly and loves to be brushed and rolls over for me to tickle her tummy. She eats most of what we give her so she is very good - she likes her breakfast EARLY though - I told her not before 6.00 am - she seems to be ok with that so far.

I know some areas of northern UK have had frost but not down here in the south so far.

I went for an allergy test on Saturday and it showed only one thing yeast - that makes a lot of sense to me as I did have Candida diagnosed at the hospital about 10 years ago so I think it flared up again. It means I have to do an elimination diet of 4 weeks or so of no yeasty products, bread, cakes, fruits, you can eat soda bread which is yeast free, or other things - just as long as its not yeast or sugar - I dont tend to eat things like pizza, or cakes, or dessert anyway ......I still cant eat cheese because of the mould connection to yeast but he said that mozarella is alright or a mild cheese, not blue cheese or strong cheeses. Or rawcheese because that is mould - its also penicillin? I can never have penicillin so this could be interrelated. My body reacts badly to rain and damp wet conditions too ......

October

2009-11-01T22:30:00.000-08:00

whizzed past, last week was a week of storms and torrential rains - the fish pond is nicely full now but it needs cleaning out so will do that later in the week - we have so many fish now. The little baby fish are so cute - see if I can get a photo .....yesterday the fog came in and the hills all disappeared - gloomy and dismal but it is better out there today ...
Magic is beginning to settle in nicely - she is a sweet cat - the only thing is she will run by my legs when its breakfast time and I trod on her yesterday .......poor cat ......she likes her breakfast early but that is ok because I usually am up at 6am anyway - I am a lark - she eats whatever we give her except rabbit and I am sure my niece is happy about that .......she has 2 pet rabbits ....she came to me yesterday and rubbed her little head around my hands when I was stroking her purring madly ...sweet cat.
Jill came on Saturday and we have now officially adopted her. She is all mine ......forever..I tell her this and she purrs so I think she likes us.

The weather

2009-10-26T06:51:00.000-07:00

is beautiful right now - it is my favourite time of year - I still didnt take any tree photos and we had a huge storm so many leaves are off and they look semi bare already.

I know halloween is coming up but we really dont celebrate it as much in this country as USA. I did get a pumpkin and am going to make some pumkin soup and I have a couple of black candles but that is about it for me this year.

Magic

2009-10-17T03:11:00.000-07:00

This is Magic my new cat - she is a rescue cat, 6 years old or thereabouts - we didnt know her name so we chose Magic as she is sweet and dark llike Black Magic Chocolates, its my Dads favourite opera (Magic Flute), she is full of secrets and mysteries etc......she likes her name I think as she looks right at me when I say it to her. She is very shy right now but I am sure she will be just fine.

I took this just after she arrived

She found the windowsill where she likes to look out (these are my Dads curtains, I dont like them)

She was left behind when somebody moved and the people who moved in didnt want her. She made friends with a lady up the road who fed her 2 weeks and then couldnt have her, so she was taken to Cat Protection and she spent 1 month in Tracys pen until I came along ...poor kitty ...she will be fine I am sure. She is all black, even her whiskers are black and she has black claws and a few grey/black mottled claws. She is a sweet cat.

Sweetcorn chowder

2009-09-15T23:30:00.001-07:00

I made this - it was just

2 potatoes chopped
1 onion chopped
1 litre stock
lots of frozen sweetcorn

saute potatoes and onion until soft, add sweetcorn and stock and simmer until soft

blend

was good

Brighton

2009-09-14T10:35:00.000-07:00

photos from summer when my friend Lydia was here

Brighton Pavilion - sorry a bit dark

In the grounds

We are working again

2009-09-11T23:16:00.001-07:00

I think so I am going to bring this blog back and add more foodie photos. Over summer I lost my beloved cat who died from a stroke - she did not suffer at all thankfully which is what I wanted - she was 19 1/2 ...so now I am in the market for a kitten - or 2 - and maybe a little dog later.

Our summer was busy with family visits, and friends and it was good to take a break from everything .......hope I am back now

There is still no diagnosis for what is wrong with me but much is dietary and I am no longer allowed to eat wheat or dairy ......I have suspected an allergy to dairy for a longtime now - so I l to read foodie blogs esp people who have similar issues to me. I love the rawfood movement and I am learning to include more rawfood in my diet again .....

Yes I am still here

2009-08-30T00:54:00.000-07:00

But mr blogger wouldnt let me post for ages - I dont know why and what was up with it but hopefully it is sorted now

blogging break

2009-07-05T01:32:00.001-07:00

I am taking a break from blogging, not enough happens to write about really so maybe in the Autumn I will turn it into a food blog! Not sure yet ...
Hope everyone enjoys summer - see you later

not much

2009-06-23T22:47:00.001-07:00

going on and google wont let me post half the time ....been a changeable month weatherwise and much cooler than it should be ......garden going nicely ....will get this going again soon

a Spring flower

2009-06-03T01:09:00.000-07:00

cos I love daffodils and there will be no more now until next year .....

nice weather now, its been warm and sunny since last week end ....flowers are all shooting up and pond is filling out nicely ....been able to sit out a few times too.

summmertime

2009-05-29T23:09:00.000-07:00

Worthing seafront - trying to look like the south of France

the beach is pebbles at the top and when the tide is out it is flat sand

the sand

Worthing pier

Saturday

2009-05-16T03:37:00.001-07:00

orchid

What happened to the writing below then ....sometimes Mr blogger does weird things ....

flowers

2009-05-14T01:31:00.001-07:00

rainbow

2009-04-28T00:36:00.001-07:00

this was a lovely rainbow yesterday evening taken from my back door.

I couldnt get the whole rainbow in the photo though .......I love rainbows....

Not much

2009-04-19T01:46:00.000-07:00

is happening at the moment - my brother was here during the last week so we had some good family times- went out for a meal to the Villager which is a pub in the village - we heard the fish and chips were good there but I would not go in there again. It was a nice enough pub, the food took 45 minutes to arrive, it was good but not worth the wait so we decided not to go in there again. I like the other pub in the village better as it has a very wide selection of food. The Villager also does not have any vegetarian food which is unusual these days - nothing .......not impressed.

I hurt my foot somehow, dont know what I did quite. I still cant put on a shoe except my summer sandals. Fortunately it is not cold so I can get away with wearing them outside but I dont know what I did. If it has not gone down in a few days I will have to go to the dr about it.

Still no diagnosis on the other problems either so I am totally unimpressed with our so called health services.

2009-04-04T05:50:00.000-07:00

I did make it into Brighton since I last wrote and went shopping - I hate shopping malls though - they are horrible places. I did get a couple of nice tops and a couple of t shirts and had a cup of coffee in the coffee shop in Debenhams. It was a nice day but since then we got our nasty cold weather back again. I also have been trying to walk every day 30 minutes. I was at my Dads mostly for the week as he was not well so I only got to be here for about 24 hrs - he is ok though - not quite sure what the problem is - probably just part of being 84 as my sister in law calls it.

toileteries

2009-04-04T05:46:00.000-07:00

Aubrey is the toiletries that I am currently using - they are vegan - completely chemical free and I can use them without hassel. I also have their shampoo although its not in the photo and the kingfisher is a natural toothpaste.....I dont like to harm the earth! (or me!!!)

that cat again

2009-03-27T02:10:00.001-07:00

oh but I am so pretty - that is why I am called Twinkles. SHE keeps taking photos of me.

sunset

2009-03-27T02:02:00.000-07:00

except I keep forgetting that blogger publishes everything backwards so the bottom photo should be first - sorry

this bottom photo was actually the first photo I took - I love to watch the sunset everyday and I still get up and watch the sunrise too.

Catch up

2009-03-26T00:57:00.000-07:00

oops I didnt realise so much time has gone by ..not that much has been going on. I went to the hospital yesterday to see the Consultant but he was not there so I saw one of his "team" who I have to say was useless. She was supposed to be reading the bottom part of my neck and was reading the top part which is alright, she didnt take any notice whatsoever when I told her about the pain spasms I get down my spine, neither did she believe me when I told her that when I collapse I cant move for as long as it takes to get the balance back. The whole thing was a total waste of time and I am going to make an official complaint about her inneficiency. She was supposed to advise me about treatment at the pain Clinic or the next step. She is just ignoring the whole thing and said she will send me to an artery Consultant ....what!!!!! And people wonder why I hate the medical services SO much.

Todays photos

2009-03-16T03:38:00.000-07:00

Miss Miowy - supermiowy today - I have no idea what she wants either.....sometimes, I dont know that she knows either.

Nyetimbers is from a local winery about 5 miles awy - its expensive but so good but reserved for special occasions because of the price. I meant to post this around my Dads birthday.

Kir Royale

Creme de Cassis - just a little to cover the bottom of the

glass and a touch more,

add champagne

Very nice

Flowers

2009-03-15T09:54:00.000-07:00

The first planting of the year

helibores and primroses from my Dads garden

His orchid that he got at the orchid exhibition we went to at the garden center yesterday ...

AQuiet week

2009-03-15T01:16:00.000-07:00

not much going on this week really, just conacting my doctor to see what the scan revealed but she still does not have the result......the scan machine could not read the whole of my neck because all the vertibrae are fused there so I have to have another kind of scan. There are significant changes in my neck whatever that means. I am going to the Consultant again on the 25th .....
My Dad and me went out to eat at the pub in the village called The Black Horse. Their food is good although I wish the portions were not so large. I got a beanburger which came with a nice salad and chips .....and a glass of wine.
We went to the garden center across the road for a browse and I got 2 boxes Spring plants, pansies, primulas, and planted them outside the front door at my Dads .....and then yesterday we went to an orchid exhibition there - I love orchids - he got one - I still might buy one myself. I got a peacelily ........it is good for purifying air so I will put it by my bed and hope that it helps the breathless fits I get. Its been a bad week healthwise......I am fed up with this one.
I eat healthily most of the time, I dont eat junk food, dont drink to excess ever nor even every day, I only use chemical free toiletries because otherwise I get allergy attacks from the perfume in them, so what did I do!!!!!!

In the garden again

2009-03-08T00:13:00.001-08:00

Here is my Dad on his 84th birthday which was on Friday opening a gift...it was a lovely day. We went to the garden center over the road and in the evening my nephew and his fiance came over and we all went out for a meal to the Indian in the village. It is a very nice Indian ....I had vegetable rice, chana sag (chickpeas and spinach) and vegetable curry, plus we had lots of poppadoms and pashwari nan ...it was a lovely evening.

rosemary

daphne aurora - such a beautiful

scent

anenome

miniature daffodils

Today is another lovely sunshiney day ....we still dont get much warmth in the sunshine however. I will be so happy when we get the warm sunshine and we can turn off the heat.

some lunch

2009-03-02T04:45:00.000-08:00

still experimenting with food photos - spinach soup - it freezes really well - rice cakes and guacamole

1 small avocado
1 spring onion
half red pepper

blitz in your mini chopper

and tomatoes

plus a banana which I did not photo

Wednesday

2009-02-26T02:51:00.000-08:00

seemed to be a long morning, I went in town and met my Dad there as he was going for an eye test - I did a little bit of shopping for 1 hr by myself first, then we had coffee together at the coffee shop in M&S - personally I preferred it before they spent millions so called improving it. We got a new cafe with windows overlooking the sea- very nice you may say - except they lowered the ceiling, its all brown like 1930s and most of the tables look at the wall not the sea - I find it really claustrophobic in there - its the same with the new foodhall they narrowed the aisles and its always crowded in there....not impressed. He went for an eye test and I sat and waited ages for him, then Boots was offering a hearing test and they tell me I need a hearing aid but I do know my hearing is going because I have meniers disease....but not at their prices. By the time we had finished everything it was 2.15 pm - late for lunch - it was nice to go out somewhere though.

soup

2009-02-23T00:28:00.001-08:00

Spinach and Butterbean soup

2 onions
1 tbsp olive oil
1 medium potato
1.4litres/2 1/2 pts stock
400g tin butterbeans
225g/8oz spinach
2 dsp lemon juice

Dice the onions and sweat them in the olive oil until they begin to soften.

Dice the potato and add to the pan along with the stock and drained butterbeans. Bring to the boil and simmer until the onions and potato are soft.

Add the spinach, lemon juice - do not overcook the spinach...I usually only cook it for 5 minutes -

Process in your food processor/blender until smooth. Season to taste

yesterday I switched one onion to 2 leeks - it was very good - it is such a beautiful colour too.

sunset

2009-02-22T00:36:00.001-08:00

This was the sunset last night - quite pretty .........we are enjoying lovely weather still which makes a nice change from all the cold, ice and freezing weather we have had lately. Hope it keeps it up.

out in the garden

2009-02-21T04:31:00.001-08:00

some heather

lilac crocus

yellow crocus

snowdrops

the fish appeared - so far seen 4 gold

ones and one black one and my

tiny silver fish

and here is where I talk to you all

We have lovely weather now - sunshine and very spring like - hope it lasts.

Scan

2009-02-20T02:40:00.001-08:00

was ok although because I am a kyphosis sufferer it is not a medical possibility for me to lie on my back - I would have been too high to go into the tunnel too so in the end the radiographer let me lie on my side and it worked that way. I still have to go for another scan, a different one that is specifically for necks - obviously there is some kind of problem there.......but it was only 20 minutes or so which is quite enough in there I can assure you. I have to go and see the Consultant for the results soon - although Worthing hospital is not known for its speediness!!!

Friday

2009-02-20T02:31:00.000-08:00

well I am sitting here waiting for Tom (handyman) to come and replace the water filter under the sink so we have built in drinking water again, also he is replacing the shower head, and going to fix my front door because the key wont turn in it anymore - good job I have a porch as the inner front door is fine.

Twinkles was super miowy 2 nights ago so she kept me awake all night - she was not too popular yesterday but she was a good cat last night - I keep telling her if she miows all night she gets yelled at in the morning but if she is a good cat she gets a hug - you would think at 19 she would know that by now!

We have dinner guests tonight, my friends Karen and Nigel who I havent seen in awhile - looking forward to having a good catch up. Karen is Twinkles Godmother - um long story - we went to see my kitties together when they were only 2 weeks old. She said "Can I be Godmother" and it stuck ever since. It is hard to believe that was 19 years ago.

We are going to have vegetable soup, roast chicken, savoy cabbage, broccoli, carrot and swede mash, roast potatoes and chocolate mousse plus I make a nut roast for me as I dont eat chickens and wine - of course - or juice or water.

It is pretty mild here now and the mornings are misty until the sun breaks through - some lilac and gold crocus are out in the garden and lots of snowdrops - will post photos later.......

not much

2009-02-17T22:52:00.000-08:00

is happening at the moment - I am going for a scan at the hospital tomorrow to see what is going on - I just hope that they can find something and then I can get appropriate medication and get my life back....I still cannot drive which is a real pain where I live and its hard going out by myself. So I dont get to go anywhere much - thank goodness for computers! At least I can chit chat with friends online and go grocery shopping on line these days.

I am just going to keep my blog ticking over and then hopefully once Spring comes I will be able to put more photos in and food photos etc.

We are all doing ok, everyone still here .........cat is very miowy though but I think she is alright otherwise.

I cant wait to get out and start making pots and doing my garden so I am now checking out lots of online sites for ideas and magazines and watching UK TV Garden - one of my favourite channels. I was watching Christines Garden, I l ike her - she is so down to earth about everything and I like that .....I want a big barrel outside my french doors so when I am sitting here at the computer I have something to look at other than the shed of the garden that backs onto mine. And I want to grow my own salad ingredients this year........and maybe strawberries and raspberries.

And of course

2009-02-07T03:45:00.001-08:00

in her favourite place on the radiator

2009-02-07T03:34:00.000-08:00

this is the view from my Dads kitchen window.

back garden

rosemary bush (yes it is organic)

to the right out the conservatory window

bird table in back garden

front steps and neighbour opposite bungalow

the fish pond

W e got more snow last night and it came on top of ice so it was dangerous going this morning ...we managed to get out however and I got home.......

Eventful week end

2009-01-26T00:47:00.000-08:00

It all started on Sat night when my Dad collapsed and I had to call an ambulance to take him to the hospital. Nobody quite knows what happened but it was not serious - we had to wait from 7.30 until 11 for a doctor - he still had not come at that time so I went home - my Dad stayed overnight and came home next morning. My nephew and his fiance kindly picked him up from the hospital as I dont drive now.
Then we had major storms all night, high winds, rain battering on the windows ....luckily no damage was done to my Dads property. The fish are ok as far as I know - at least, they are not floating on top of the pond anyway.
Twinkles miowed all night long on Saturday so I didnt get much sleep. Guess she didnt like the wind. I told her her Grandpa was alright but she missed him and kept going into his bedroom miowing for him. Cats just "know!"

Saturday afternoon

2009-01-24T08:11:00.001-08:00

sorry for typos down there, Mr google wouldnt let me edit for some reason. We are still enjoying sunshine here and frosty mornings. Either that or heavy rains and high winds, its like there is no inbetween.
Its a slow start to the year as I have not been able to go out much - it frustrates me not being able to drive as there are not a lot of buses where I live. I wish I could move but unfortunately nobody is selling - or buying - much right now because of the recession. I dream of living in the country and waking up to seeing green again instead of bungalows all around me. I miss that. It is greener where my Dad lives as that is classed as semi rural but I want real rural ..no street lights, so I can sky watch without the lights obliterating my view of the stars.
My cat is doing fine ...its hard to believe she will be 19 in 2 weeks ..wonder if she will make it to 20.

Still raining

2009-01-23T01:12:00.001-08:00

although we did have an afternoon of sunshine - have not seen any stars or the moon in awhile....

I love winter trees because you can see their shap more than in summer when they are full of leaves ....I love trees though. I am a nature lover....this sunrise was a few days ago.

Sunday

2009-01-17T23:12:00.000-08:00

Woke up to rain beating down on the window - we have stormy weather today - high winds and heavy rains .blah

The ice on the fish pond is all melted now and the fish have appeared - saw the 4 big goldfish, my baby silver fish who is 2" long and mama black fish ....no babies though, we have zillions of black babies in there so think I will probably give a few of those away in Spring and maybe get a couple of silver ones......I was worried about the fish in the ice but they survived - yipee.....

Frosty

2009-01-13T00:54:00.000-08:00

This is the view from the front door at my Dads place to the left

a bush

plant

another bush

It has been very cold and frosty lately - one of the coldest winters in years. Every morning the car and roads are inches deep with ice and frost - not nice. It has also been brilliant sunshine which is the worst weather for driving ......not that I can drive now but my Dad still does. There have been many accidents locally because of course people wont slow down whatever .....here are a few photos ....

lovely candleholder

2009-01-04T07:16:00.000-08:00

very 60s

2009-01-04T06:40:00.000-08:00

Twinkles again

Christmas meal

2009-01-04T06:37:00.000-08:00

even though its January I thought it was still worth putting it on the blog - I made the chestnut loaf from scratch

2009-01-04T06:35:00.000-08:00

twinkles

2009-01-04T06:33:00.000-08:00

playing with tree

tree

2008-12-18T23:47:00.000-08:00

here is the tree at my Dads place ....I am still putting decorations around the place ...so will post more as the holidays progress.

I made a chestnut and pecan loaf yesterday which is in the freezer now - hope its ok - and will make cranberry and apple sauce when I get back here on Tuesday ......

I am have major computer problems at my place so I can no longer access email there - but I will be back on Tuesday

Laurie if you read this hope your flight is good and be thinking of you ......see you soon .....

Twinkles was extra miowy again yesterday - I dont know what her problem is ....the vet says there is nothing wrong with her other than the fact she is almost 19, but she does miow - A LOT - it drives us nuts. Dont know what to do really but she is quiet a the moment a least...

today

2008-12-17T00:07:00.000-08:00

I signed up for a weight loss blog thing so Joanne if you read this I am saying hi - sorry this blog is getting boring so I made a resolution to keep it up to date in the new year with some food ventures, recepes, more photos of my area and my thoughts on life, and animals. I have not mentioned my love of animals although lots of my friends know this, it is one reason why I am a lifelong vegetarian. I do eat meat once in awhile but I dont care for it, so I am going to totally cut it out again - I dont know why I started to eat it once or twice a month, but its out .....I got myself a "turkey roast" for Christmas, its made from fake meat, and we have so many vegetables over Christmas I would not even miss meat at all...and I am making a chestnut dish for when my family all come as my sister in law is vegetarian also.
My cat is doing fine today ...she is up and down being nearly 19 .....after that .....just maybe I will get a dog!!!! It depends.....on lots of things.
We are in the midst of putting our tree up so when its done will add Christmas photos ....

It is still cold

2008-12-11T06:12:00.000-08:00

the view to the left of the front door

opposite, the railing belongs to my Dads bungalow

to the right of the front door

frosty it was as you see, been like this the last few mornings and then very brilliant sunshine - I dont like that kind of weather though ....makes treacherous driving conditions and there have been many accidents in the area because people wont slow down even though its very icy and you can be blinded by the sun any minute .....

My cat

2008-11-21T05:33:00.000-08:00

I took her to the vet and the vet was pleased with her - she weighed her and said she has put a little weight on which is good, because she is an old cat and was getting thin. She got her nails clipped and checked over and overall her health is very good for her age. The vet said that the miowy thing is just being senile ...cats can be senile like people. So she is good still ......maybe she will make it to 20, I hope so. Then I dont know about getting anymore animals!!!!

I am still into making soup right now, I love soup in winter and I just made butternut squash and sweet potato. It does not really warrant a recepe as it is only butternut squash and then if you weigh the amount of butternut squash halve it for the amount of sweet potato, I always use boullion powder for the stock ....as recommended by delia ....many aons ago, but I still use it ...and I an onion ...it was good.

It just is not inspiring me to eat raw right now as the weather is quite chilly here to say the least. I know a lot of people eat raw throughout winter but that is not for me...I dont think England is a good country to eat raw at this time of the year as it is not our natural diet....

Still did not hear from the hospital about tests ....I am going to the Dr on 3 Dec though which is the first appointment I could get with my own Doctor, so I can discuss everything with her and hopefully she can get things moving along ..this is getting ridiculous.

Today I wanted to go into Brighton but I had 3 little dizzy spells when I got up, so I decided it was not a good idea to go by myself.

My Dad and me went into Worthing but we could not find anywhere to park so we went home again ..Worthing is like that at this time of year ..so hopefully I can go shopping in Worthing on Monday morning and then home.

Twinkles

2008-11-17T03:36:00.000-08:00

is really concerning me now, she has been fine until now but she miows so much its riving us nuts...the last 2 nights she has sat outside the bedroom door and miowed on and off all night. When I am not here she walks around miowing too and she is drinking far more water than she should ...I know she has kidney failure but until now it has been stable, but I have a suspiscion that its becoming worse ...I made an appointment for her to see the vet on Thursday .....

I dont let her in at night because she does not behave...she walks all around me, sits on my pillow and licks any part of me she can reach, then she washes which can take anything up to 30 minutes or more, then she jumps down and goes and eats something, then the whole routine begins all over again so she is not allowed in at night. This has been for 2 or 3 years tho so its nothing new to her. Usually she is very good at night ....dont know what the problem is....

update

2008-11-16T03:13:00.001-08:00

still waiting to hear from the hospital about the tests

And I am wondering where to go with my blog, this time spending more time indoors has been good in some ways. I have found time to get back into my cooking instead of relying on ready meals ....I hate them anyhow so now I make nearly all my own food. I have found that eating a wheat free diet is a lot better for me...I wish I could find a good alternative to bread though. I get bored with ryevita, rice cakes taste like polystyrene ....so I am still experimenting.

I think that one of the best ways of eating is to eat food as near to the beginning of the food chain as possible, no processed food, no white flour, no sugar..I am working on it.

Dont even get me started on the subject of chemicals because I hate those with a passion ....if you follow the theory that God created our beautiful world, he gave us everything that we need to survive also....I am sure he did NOT give us processed chemicalised food .....that is man made ....and likewise with toiletries which we put on our skin .......chemicals have a lot to answer for where it concerns so many illnesses. Our bodies are not made for them......

So I try and use natural wherever possible ......it is hard ...and sometimes expensive ....but I think it is worth it in the long run.

Novmber already

2008-11-03T07:02:00.001-08:00

and still no further forward with a diagnosis for what is wrong with me ..this is getting ridiculous...still get dizzy several times daily and still cant go anywhere unless I am with somebody.
My friend from London came at the week end and it was so nice to see her, we did go into Brighton for a couple of hours and visited Infinity Foods, ate lunch in their cafe - lentil soup and a piece of rye bread - delicious...it was cold and then the rains started but mostly it was alright while we were there, the rains came on hard about the last 10 minutes as we were walking up the hill to the train station home....I brought a gorgeous handknitted blanket made in Nepal for my guest room, I wanted a new blanket in case of power cuts - what do I mean in case of power cuts - with the economy and gas the way it is I am positive we will get power cuts this winter!
It was a lovely week end though.....
I am here at my Dads place today, at least the cat is happy to see me- she and I are SO close ....I know that sounds crazy to some people but she has a special place in my heart ..she is such a beautiful gentle gentle cat....she gives so much.

nasturians

2008-10-23T03:30:00.000-07:00

they turned out to be really good this year - I love them...I think nasturtians are one of those flowers you either love or hate but I love them! I love their bright orange colours, and I have some yellow ones there too.

pots

2008-10-21T06:31:00.000-07:00

I just thought I would post them for posterity - they are all dying down now and I am about to bring them into the conservatory where they will reside throughout winter - I need to plant up my pots for Spring which I still have not done because of illness .......which is still the same ...if not worse ....no diagnosis still either ......

I am

2008-10-07T23:54:00.000-07:00

not going to blog for awhile, - because of illness I dont go anywhere - because lots of changes are going on in my life, because my computer is not working and I need to either take it to the shop or get a new one, because of lots of reasons but I will be back later

Worthing sea

2008-10-05T06:27:00.000-07:00

from the car park

I did go to M&S and go shopping there - that was the highlight of the week!!!!

The same

2008-10-05T03:15:00.000-07:00

healthwise, weatherwise - and pouring rain out there - you should see it - battering the garden, bringing down leaves,battering the windows .....sigh ...it would be so nice to see some sunshine and feel warm sunrays......maybe I am getting old but I am fed up with grey clouds and rains....a month in Madeira, Morroco or somewhere would be nice ....dream on!!!!

yellow roses

2008-09-29T07:00:00.000-07:00

I LOVE roses - any kind - these are in my Dads garden still

More wine

2008-09-28T03:37:00.000-07:00

just because I liked the label ....this is the counter top in my kitchen and the poster is a vegan food chart - I dont eat vegan all the time although I would like to, just maybe 70 percent. Some weeks its more....my kitchen is tiled white totally - the lady who lived there before me did the kitchen - I have lived at my bungalow just over a year! The units are white too - so I put food posters on the wall to try and bring some colour in there, plus I have herbs out too .....I still need to get a new blind though so the nerdy neighbours can't see in!

Not much happening

2008-09-23T06:18:00.000-07:00

because its been so grey here not really photo taking weather and I am still sick - this is the 6th week so I can't go anywhere really at the moment....I get too dizzy so I cant go out by myself ...its frustrating me no end as you can imagine....hope for a more exciting post by the end of the week.

Just because I love nasturtians

2008-09-18T01:44:00.000-07:00

a bit battered by all the rain tho, hopefully they will pick up now that we actually have some sunshine and I can get better pictures .....

The furry one

2008-09-15T08:18:00.000-07:00

found a beautiful warm sunny spot on my Dads bedroom carpet ....how DO they know where the sunshine spots are?

not bad for 18 1/2 I say .... a touch eccentric, but she is still doing fine ...

French Onion Soup

2008-09-13T02:44:00.000-07:00

I still haven't mastered the art of food photography but anyway, this was a really good recepe and very easy

Large Onions 2

3 tablespoons oil

vegetable stock 1 1/2 pts

Mixed herbs 1tsp

Yeast Extract 1tsp

salt and pepper to taste

Finely slice the onions. Heat the oil in a saucepan and saute the onions until golden brown. Add the remaining ingredients, bring to boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Serve with wholemeal croutons and grated cheese (or cheezly if vegan)

Sunrise today

2008-09-11T01:48:00.000-07:00

was really beautiful - this was at 6.30 am

I always get up early and as I mentioned in an earlier post the first hour of the day is my spiritual time, I often watch the sunrise, read spiritual books (right now I am reading Joyce Meyer) "The Secret to True Happiness" and I listen to some spiritual/sacred music, talk to God, or just "be" and often I read my favourite spiritual blogs ....just whatever I fancy doing in that hour.

A bit dark but

2008-09-10T03:26:00.000-07:00

me and ole furry

I was trying to get a photo to show off her beautiful markings here

doing what she loves to do the most, window watching .....she talks to her friends through the window too - lately there is a pale beigey cat that comes and he sits on the top of the back gate and talks to me, then he goes through the garden - he's a nice cat....there is one out there, a huge black one, she absolutely hates - you should hear her when she sees it!!!! She doesn't really mind being an indoor cat these days....she is deaf now ....cos she has lots of friends to talk to through the window ....

A favourite view No 2

2008-09-08T08:06:00.000-07:00

My favourite view again

And I love sheep too

A favourite view

2008-09-06T07:15:00.000-07:00

This is always one of my all time favourite views, The Seven Sisters in Seaford, East Sussex...I lived in Seaford 5 years and used to go walking here a lot - I miss that - and I went to school in Seaford too when my family lived there - when my Mum died it was 1 hr from Seaford to my Dad and along a very busy and dangerous road so in the end I moved back here ...long story ...but this is still one of my very favourite views. I definately don't miss that drive though!!!

Two posts today

2008-09-03T04:32:00.001-07:00

I didnt mention one of my fish died again - one of the new ones that I got last week - guess the poor thing didn't like being transported from the garden center - and I put the net on the pond now for Autumn so the leaves don't fall in the water ..we already had very cool weather and some leaves are already dropping ....

Things I love

2008-09-03T00:27:00.000-07:00

I forgot to bring a USB here so I have no way of uploading any photos ...so today I thought I would share a list of things I love

1. Music
2. My cat
3. Finding new outlets to buy local produce and organic foods
4. Friends
5. A Glass of good wine
6. Enjoying time with my family
7. Watching a good DVD with friends
8. Walking in the countryside
9. Cooking my own food or making raw food

4 Things that make me estatic

1. When something I cooked turns out great
2. A lap of furry warm purring cat
3. A beautiful sunset
4. Retail therapy

Clouds

2008-09-02T06:32:00.000-07:00

I love clouds and watching all the shapes and patterns ....cloud watching and sky watching is always one of my favourite passtimes.

Its been a few days

2008-08-30T01:23:00.000-07:00

but I was sick for 2 weeks with an ear infection that made me dizzy so I couldn't really sit here for long ...will catch up next week

2008-08-25T07:16:00.000-07:00

Here are my fish again - they dont mind the rain - the waterlilies were not the best this year but I think it is the same for everyone.....I love my pond ...one day I would like a tropical aquarium!

Some of the fish, I think my Dad and me have 5 at the moment - I have to put the netting on as soon as possible because the seagulls keep eating them - unless its the cat down the road - but I suspect the seagull!!!

An overview of the pond. I do the maintenance mainly ...not much ...the rock is a water feature.

This morning

2008-08-24T09:11:00.000-07:00

when I got up and looked out the front door what do I see - a beautiful sunny day - no - more rain, grey and overcast - cool weather - I am fed up with this ...WHEN are we getting summer ...it seems to have been raining for ever.

Sunset

2008-08-22T01:27:00.000-07:00

This was the sunset last night - I love sunsets and watch the sky everyday - in the morning I get up early so I can watch the sunrise and often I will meditate then too. The early morning is my "quiet" time and my day just not feel right unless I do this ......as we go along over the next couple of weeks I will share some of the other things I love .....

Wednesday

2008-08-19T23:35:00.000-07:00

It has gone quiet for a bit..gives me chance to catch up on everything here. I got my car back on Monday - I missed it! It was expensive and I sometimes wonder how much longer I can keep on having a car - they are just too expensive these days. It is still grey and rainy thus I have not taken many photos because of the weather - the only place I have been this week is into Worthing shopping. I did browse in M&S and got bits of food in there and that is about the most exciting news so far this week ...and the lift in their car park is working again YAY ....they have been revamping the store since about April and the lift has not been working for AGES ...we are getting a new cafe there with views to the sea so that will be great - if you can ever get in there. Hopefully wll have a photo next time!

A nice meal out

2008-08-16T04:53:00.000-07:00

Here we all are enjoying an Indian meal at TajDar the local in our village .....I am in the purple, next to me (with the long blond hair) is my youngest nephew and opposite him is my eldest nephew - my brother, at the end of the table my Dad and my sister in law ...the food is very good in there - however the evening was marred for me by the family who came and set next to us and were the loudest, noisiest people I have ever had the misfortune to sit with in any restaurant ever - don't people realise that some of us have hearing problems - if some poor person was wearing a deaf aid that night they would have caused total imbalance to them, - hearing aids can do that to you - they were so LOUD - I have tinnitus very badly and in the end I had to leave because it hurt my ear and was causing imbalance - not impressed with people like that! Fortunately we had finished the main course when they arrived .......good job! Hope it never happens again.

my car

2008-08-14T08:59:00.000-07:00

Most people know I believe in angels but today they protected me pretty well - yesterday when I drove from my place to my Dads which is about 20 minutes I sorta thought this car sounds loud - but I forgot all about it. My brother is around at the moment and we all went out to lunch at the pub down the road and I stayed at Fathers overnight which I usually do on a Wednesday. I went to Sainsburys to get some food on the way home and driving across the carpark my exhaust fell off!!! So I had to call out the AA man who removed it totally - then I went to the garage and got them to give an estimate etc - where it still is!!!! They should be able to do it tomorrow but I need a whole new exhaust - expensive!
Thanks angels - cos it could have dropped off driving along the A27 which is a dual carriageway very fast traffic - that would have been very dangerous esp as I have to drive in the outside lane because I turn right off there.

Catlove

2008-08-09T05:23:00.001-07:00

is concerning me somewhat because she is just not eating .....she will eat maybe 2 nights out of a week but not the rest of the week except for picking at a few grains of science diet. The vet gave her a vitamin injection and she ate that night but not since ..and lets not go into the antics of what else the vet wants from her!

My cat is 18 1/2 although she does not look it and does not act like it.....I still remember when I first brought her home - she was such a pretty kitten which is simply why I called her Twinkles....she did have a brother, the most beautiful stripey marmalade cat ever ...he was called Titian (tishy for short) and lived until he was 12 1/2..he died from kidney failure...he was a cat and a half! Far more boisterous and loud than his timid gentle sister. She is the gentlest cat I ever came across - never hurt anyone in her life. Both were prolific hunters in their young days and she would disappear for 3 days at least ...but as she grew older she stopped catching things and going off by herself. These days she doesn't go outside at all because she is totally deaf. So I am hoping she will pull through again ......

dinner

2008-08-08T06:37:00.001-07:00

this was my dinner last night, ratatouille made by me and cous cous

some of my cook books mainly vegetarian/vegan ....

The book case where my cookery books are ...the door leads into my kitchen and this is my hall.

tag

2008-08-06T04:53:00.000-07:00

Thanks Laura for the nice award. Lauras lovely blog is the one on my side bar. I dont know 7 other bloggers yet to send the award to since I am a new blogger butI will answer the questions.

1. Put the logo on your blog.2. Add a link to the person who awarded you.3. Nominate at least seven (not everyone knows seven who they'd feel comfortable nominating) a few other blogs.4. Add links to those blogs on your blog.5. Leave a message for your nominee on their blog.
The tag is this:
Name five things you want to do within a year

1. Sell my bungalow and find a nice apt with a sea view

2. Go totally vegan, and add more raw food to my diet - right now I am about 80 percent.

3. Cut all crap, sugar, caffiene out of my diet

4. Find more places to get handmade from and local produce

5. learn how to do my blog properly!!!! I know the basics now but I need to learn the rest.

NO No

2008-08-04T08:03:00.000-07:00

you are NOT blogging THAT ..you put me in my cage and told me I was going to see the nice (?) vet lady ....I am not speaking to you Mommol ......I do not like cars!!! MEOW WAHH (but we only got out onto the main road and came home because there was an accident and cars were jammed all across the valley...we rescheduled for tomorrow ...)

Books -

2008-08-01T04:56:00.000-07:00

I love to read ....I have many books although most are non fiction. I dont really read fiction ....there is so much to learn in this world. I love cook books...the above is what I am cooking from at the moment,

This is about conscious eating, planet earth, environmental issues connected with eating, and many other interesting things

Patti Boyd was George Harrisons first wife...this is her biography..This was a birthday gift from a dear friend ....

Some day I will learn how to put books I read down the side of my blog and begin a book list. I will save showing you my books etc until winter when there is nothing else to blog about!!!

gardens

2008-07-30T04:33:00.000-07:00

These photos are from the garden that we visited over the week end. The National Garden Sceme is nationwide...it is a charity and people apply to show their gardens to the public through the charity scheme. All gardens are of a very high standard and all proceeds go to charity. Most of them have tea, coffee and cake for refreshments and you can also usually buy plants.
These are victorian chimney pots which I love ...

clematis

home again

2008-07-29T23:25:00.001-07:00

I was in London for the week end which was a beautiful time - I love London - I spent Friday afternoon browsing in Selfredges and then I met my friend L from work. We went to a little Italian boutique where I purchased a skirt half price ....Friday evening we went out for a meal, Saturday L showed me Muswell Hill which I really like. It was the first time I explored that area of London properly and its full of beautiful little shops. I much prefer shopping in areas that have little exclusive shops, old fashioned type of shops, than high st places. We had a lovely salad at the garden center and a mutual friend cooked dinner for us. A South African chicken dish - very nice. Sunday we went to an open garden and sat in the sunshine and then went to a friends where we sat out in the garden and eventually ordered a Indian takeaway for dinner ....it was a great week end. No tourist type photos since I was not in the center of London....maybe someday I will do that.

Its me again

2008-07-23T22:31:00.000-07:00

this is my favourite passtime - I am an old cat now ...I love sleeping especially in the conservatory until it gets to hot out there and somebody comes to remove me.

but I do wake up sometimes - My Mommol is going away this week end and leaving me ...so my Grandpa has to look after me ...here he is .... He is 83...I live with my Grandpa. Mommol lives by herself in her own bungalow - its a long story but I am too old to move again so I stayed with Grandpa when Mommol moved. Mommol looks after him so she is often here anyway. I miss her when she is not here.

She said she will be back on Monday.

A walk

2008-07-22T10:30:00.000-07:00

This is the center of the village ....I try to go for a walk as often as I can because I am a chronic pain sufferer - I have a rare bone disease called kyphosis scoliosis which can cause a lot of pain....so lately I try and exercise ....

here is a lovely leafy lane

a little wooded area by the laneside ...

and when I get home here are 2 of the fish in the pond. I will try and get a better photo later - I think we have 5 fish in all at the moment although the seagulls keep sitting on the water feature in the center and looking interested at them.

Ole furry

2008-07-20T09:56:00.000-07:00

The furry purry again - I took this photo today - she is in wonderful condition for over 18 years old! She loves to purr and thats why she got the nickname "furry purry".

Farmers markets

2008-07-20T01:38:00.001-07:00

There is a lot of discussion going on about farmers markets lately - I just wish there were good ones around here - this area is sadly lacking and our local government seem to be more interested in destroying the countryside by building houses on it than using it to grow food for local produce for everyone. I would so love to be able to go food shopping at local farmers markets and buy local produce, local crafts for my home, local paintings and then I could support hand made. The farmers market in Worthing is only once a month and its not even very good then selling mainly breads, jams, local game, cheeses, plants but hardly any produce. Maybe I should start a campaign to get it going much better.

Another birthday post

2008-07-17T04:01:00.000-07:00

This is the beach cafe in Goring by Sea which is very popular. I wanted to go here and go for a walk on the beach so we did just that.

through here first

and this is the beach - when the sea is out there is a lot of sand.

and in the evening we had some champagne - a nice birthday.

A rose

2008-07-16T06:46:00.001-07:00

This is my rose

A birthday post

2008-07-15T07:41:00.000-07:00

some gifts because I love the paper - the above was from my Dad local champagne

It always seems a shame to throw out the paper so I took photos of most of it!

The week end

2008-07-15T05:24:00.000-07:00

This was the candle that I lit for my Mums birthday and I filled the candle try with fresh lavender from the garden and fresh mint. I really wanted a peppermint candle but I couldnt find one.

And I have been known to buy wine at the week end. As it is birthday week end I brought a better bottle than usual ....this is one of my Fathers favourite wines from France. I always love the shape of the bottle too. He got the glasses in Alscace, the region where the wine comes from in the days when he and my Mother travelled in France.They are special glasses for this particular wine. Sometimes we make a glass of Kir, which is Creme de Cassis - just enough to cover the bottom of the glass and a little more and white wine - The Frambois that you see in the picture is Raspberry lequer - I think you can see the Creme de Cassis bottle at the right of the picture.

My Mum

2008-07-13T01:23:00.000-07:00

Today would be my Mothers 85th birthday - even though she is in spirit now I still buy flowers for her for her birthday - my Dad always brought her flowers every year - as far as I know he did that every year for the 60 years they were together (married for 57) - we keep up the tradition! We missed sharing the same birthday by 6 hours.