Busy Bees

Still A Beauty :-)

It may be nearing the end of the season but it is still pretty magnificent ....

The Wrap Up

Well it has been and gone.

On Sunday I made some refried beans (recipe here) just that I didn't use an onion cos I was out of them and I used a tin of tomatoes I found in the pantry instead of a fresh one. This gave me three bowls which was, three meals :-)

I splurged on some Turkish bread ($3.50) so I also has toasted cheese sandwiches as an option (4 meals). These were speckled with cherry tomatoes from my two bushes as well as avocado (from a friend's tree).

Tuesday breakfast was a mango ($1.75).

Oh, and I bought a bottle of coke ($1.86) cos I had so much money left from the Challenge :-)

So that was my final meal combinations and it left me with $7.73.

In conclusion - I certainly didn't eat as many fruit and vege ... although with money left over I certainly could have eaten more. A pot of vege soup - maybe with some lentils or something would have been easy to make for less than $7 and could have gone with my toasted tomato, avocado and cheese sandwiches. I had to think more about what I was going to eat - and took the easy way of eating the same thing for two or three meals - but that wasn't too much of a trial.

All in all, with some planning, I found this quite easy to do. I enjoyed all of the food I ate. I didn't get bored with any of the food, and I obviously still had options for alternatives. I didn't feel deprived at all. Yes I would certainly recommend it for those weeks when money is short :-)

Ausbuy ...

I have long been a supported of the Ausbuy Guide ( a booklet that lists Australian owned companied) ...

Actually to back up a little, this is the order of preference that I used to apply to my purchase of food -

• West Australian owned and made,
• West Australian made,
• Australian owned and made,
• Australian made,
• everyone else.

Depending on the budget there was a cost factor also taken into consideration but in an ideal world :-)

Since thinking about food miles, that has changed somewhat - Western Australia is a long way away :-) but, back to Ausbuy...

The Ausbuy guide makes it easier to assess products I might need but haven't already thought about. Breakfast cereal is a good example - I never buy breakfast cereal so, now that I do shopping for work, I was able to look it up and check out which companies are Australian and which are not. It also works with being able to check that companies I support haven't gone overseas when I wasn't watching.

As well as food it also covers things like funerals, travel companies, games and toys, newspapers, technology and, well the list goes on.

For $2.20 (from Woolworths) it is an excellent investment :-)

Al Gore Rules!

Just wanted to take a moment to brag ... I was given a voucher by John's family when they came to visit - with a general hint as to how they would have spent it. Fortunately this hint correlated perfectly with ideas of my own so I am now the very proud owner of Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" (the book).

Great book, great photography! I will do a review when I have finished reading it - although I am not really sure you could ever *really* finish reading a book of this magnitude!

So, thank you family for your generosity, it has kept a smile on my face ever since I picked it up :-)

Almost Awake

Yes I am almost awake - I have been so tired over the past few days I have been sleeping 18 hours +.

Fortunately I have been blogging in my head so today is the day that I actually get to post all of my musings :-)

And yes I will be trying to catch up on everyone else's blog over today and tomorrow ... subject to naps of course :-)

Yes I Live In Heaven

I am constantly amazed at the wildlife that appears around my house. The past few days have bought me a blue butterfly that I am yet to identify.

This morning was it a bell-bird I heard? And then there is another one which sounds a bit 'bellish' but has more of a whistle than a tinkle. Then the usual morning chorus took over and those two got lost in the crowd.

And why did the kookaburra laugh last night when it almost always is the first bird of the morning.

I can find four different types of spiders (and no my fingers aren't going anywhere near them) that are happily catching up bugs of all sorts. Another new bug to me was something that looked a bit like a cicada but the body was over an inch long and it was bright green (not like the cicadas I grew up with). I have no idea how big its wings were as they were carefully being wrapped up by one of my pet spiders :-)

The garden is well and truly overgrown - yes I must do something about that - but it is home to what must be a good hundred little lizards (so it may be weedy but it is obviously 'green') that scatter everytime I dare to walk near the garden beds.

And the frogs are still here - although I haven't seen them I certainly hear them ;-)

Yes I love in heaven...

I Have A Dream

"All persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free..."

Abraham Lincoln

If only it applied to all countries and if only it applied today ....

Elana Kats-Chernin

I first heard of Elana, and her work Russian Rags, through Phillip Adams adoption of the music as the theme for Late Night Live. And oh how I hated it - with an absolute passion!

Then when Phillip called it "Dance of the Wombats" (or Waltz of the Wombats until someone told him it wasn't a waltz) something happened, I could 'see' the wombats dancing and the tune took on a whole different meaning. Each night I would listen to it and try and pick out different instruments - was that a calliope I heard one night - and as such I began to appreciate it more and more.

When I first started listening to classical music, I tried to see the 'picture' that correlated with the sounds. Now, unless it was something easy like Peter and The Wolf, I invariably had no idea of the 'story' (if there was one) behind the pieces so it was left to my imagination as to the images I created. I am sure it isn't a 'proper' way to enjoy music - and I have no idea where I got the idea from - but it worked for me.

I found it interesting then when I heard the 'Wombats' for the first time that I forgot to imagine and to listen but that I just went 'yuk, horrible' and shut my ears to any other possibilities. It took significant cajoling by Phillip to make me give it another go - and oh the joy for doing so.

Yet another lesson I have learned this year :-)

Hmmmm...

“The things I write about are mainly religious or metaphysical – I’m concerned with relations between human time and eternity at the odd points where they meet and illuminate each other, for example where matter becomes immortal, or spirit enters time ‘for a season’ ”

Les Murray

Poddies Rule

This has been the last live week of Late Night Live before we move to the summer series. I have decided that this will be a double dose of good news because we now get to enjoy a 'best of ' 2007 and because Phillip has assured us he will be returning to do his 17th year. I also have a huge amount of podcasts to keep me running until the live shows return :-)

And speaking of podcasts, Phillip proudly announced that there has been 8 229 489 downloads of LNL podcasts between 1 February and 30 September of this year!!! I have more than my share of this number to the point that I am no longer sure I can hold the title of Gladys and probably should be calling myself a Poddie instead :-)

Phillip also mentioned, as a throw-away phrase, that he was sure that only 3 of his listeners had read the Australian Constitution - doesn't that make me one of the elite! I must admit I have read the Constitution a number of times over the years and (until I moved to the east coast) had a dog eared copy sitting in my bookcase for easy referral. And, should I *ever* get my stuff moved over, it shall be there again. Surely there are more than 3 of us ....

So while Phillip has been doing a week of 'thank yous', I have decided to add one of my own - thank you to the LNL team for the immense enjoyment and knowledge that you have prepared for me in 2007. It is not only my favorite hour of the day but with podcasts, I can repeat the pleasure over and over and over.

See you in 2008 and we shall do it all over again :-)

Ho Hum, The Challenge Continues

Yes only a few more days to go ... Is everyone else as bored with all of this as I am?

I made fresh pasta on Friday night - served it with a herby sauce. No cost involved.

Saturday morning I had leftovers for breakfast.

Saturday lunch was toasted Turkish bread spread with mango chutney (pantry) and then filled with cheese (fridge), lettuce (75 cents), tomato (40 cents).

I didn't feel like eating last night.

Total amount left to spend $14.58 and 8 meals left.

Long Live Clem's Legacy

Clem Jones has passed today.

Clem Jones AO was the Lord Mayor of Brisbane from 1961 to 1975.In 1961, Brisbane was a city with no town planning, many unpaved streets, limited water supply, and few areas with sewers. Through the 60's, Jones successfully led the council to develop a town plan, seal roads, improve drainage, and connect sewers to most of the city. The city council, under his stewardship, purchased city properties to build underground car parks, which were then topped with public parks and gardens. In the suburbs, land was acquired for open space and parkland. Work started on the development of the Brisbane Botanic Gardens.

During the 14 years that Clem was Mayor, he refused to be paid a cent for his services.

A surveyor by profession and cricket ground curator of some renown, Clem's civic service continued well after his retirement from politics through his membership of many civic, sporting, and professional bodies, such as the Darwin Reconstruction Commission following Cyclone Tracey, the Western Queensland Flood Appeal, and his election as delegate to the Constitutional Convention in 1998. His vision, enthusiasm, and energy have made him a commanding force in many projects, including aged and disabled persons care, World Masters Games, and Queensland football. His honours include the key to the city of Brisbane and recognition for his contribution to sport with an Associate Membership of the Australian Sporting Hall of Fame.

I have chosen this as today's Good News Story - not because he has passed, but because he lived.

Acknowledgement to Wiki and The Australian Of the Year pages for research assistance.

$21 Update

Last night I had some potato salad (potatoes (purchased), eggs (from fridge) dressing (from fridge and garden) and parmesan (from fridge)) and two salad mini wraps (lettuce(purchased), tomato (purchased) and dressing (from potato salad) in mountain bread (from pantry)) for dinner. Total cost of purchases $2.70.

Breakfast was left over potato salad.

Lunch was two of the miniwraps - same ingredients plus with a little cheese (from fridge) and a different dressing (from fridge).

Total cost of purchases $1.50

I have now have $15.73 left to spend and 12 meals to spend it on :-)

It's Cassie's Birthday

Comment Graphics at pYzam.com

Cassandra is the one of the most awesome young people in my life - she is clever and fun and caring and all 'round phenomenal. And she is the foster bearant to some of my bears.

Happy Birthday my Special One - love you

Song for Australia

Long live multiculturalism!The only thing better than the song is the story behind it :-)

Food Miles Decisions

I have resolved my coffee quandary - assuming that quality and price are comparable, I shall be purchasing my coffee locally. And I may have found an organic coffee farm closer than Byron Bay too - even less miles :-)

I am still meditating on my love of bubbly water - yes I can drink lakes of it. Now it is Australian but there are food miles involved in getting it to me - not to mention the bottle it comes in. So I have decided to treat myself to one bottle a fortnight (as a transition) and otherwise I shall be drinking water, re-using existing bottles - from the tap. I am thinking that icy water might be an equal substitute so I shall give that a go. All in all reducing my food miles to nil.

I have heard of a restaurant that sources EVERYTHING withing 10 miles of the kitchen. I love this and shall have many posts on it to come. But I have figured that if a restaurant can successfully run with that basic criteria then surely I can do that too - or at least give it a damn good try.

Again I shall post my decisions as they come along :-)

Today's Status Report

Last night I threw together all of the leftover or half-empty packets of pasta shapes and, once cooked, mixed them with a sauce made up of a tin of tomatoes (85 cents), chillis (from the garden), a handful of shredded cheese (from the fridge), and half a chopped onion (22c). Made enough for three meals.

So I have $19.93 left in my food budget to take me through to lunch-time next Tuesday.

Besties

This is Miss A, Miss K and Mountaingirl taken today at the Mexican lunch :-)

Mexicali 3

My contribution to the lunch (example of a plate to the right) was some salsa themed dishes and the guacamole (or gwaq if you prefer). These were made up as I went along but I have included my recipes anyway.

As well as the other dishes on the table we also had a bowl of funky lettuce, some sour cream, some hot sauce.

Colorful Salsa

1 tin corn, drained
3 tomatoes, diced
1/2 red onion, finely diced
Juice of a lime

Fruity Salsa

1/2 small pineapple, diced
1 large mango, diced
1 avocado, diced
2 tomatoes, diced
1 green chilli, deseeded and slice finely
Juice of a lime

Guacamole

3 large-ish avocados, mashed
2 tomatoes, diced and drained
Cracked black pepper

Mix to your hearts content - and if you are going to take a photo, wipe the side of the bowl.

Note: I would normally consider putting in a little chopped red onion, hot sauce and maybe some sour cream if I wasn't making this for work.