Reading

...reading verse can be like eating chocolate, so much more pleasureable when you allow it to slowly melt inside you, so much less rewarding when you snap off big chunks and bolt them whole, all but untasted.

-The Ode Less Travelled by Stephen Fry

Walking on Sunshine

Last weekend, the Pumpkin and I ventured on unknown territory: we went shopping for outdoor sportswear. As you all know by now, I'm not adventurous nor am I an outdoors-y person. Don't get me wrong, I love brisk walks through nature just as long as they are followed by coffee, cakes and cute villages; hence our holiday to the pitoresque yet rugged lake district.

Stemming from a long line of fervent citytrippers, I've been brought up to believe that culture and shopping are the bare necessities of any holiday. Vacation is a time to spoil and enjoy yourself and not time to get back to basics which is also why I've never set foot in a tent. My family simply doesn't do nature so our trip to the Lake District is causing quite a commotion.

Seeing as neither of us have any outdoor gear we went in search of the perfect pair of walking shoes. I arrived at A.S. Adventure in my weekend stilettos and immediately saw that I was out of my league as I was surrounded by an army of big, brown and above all brutish shoes. Despite my reservations, I found a pair of shoes that fit perfectly and have pretty pink laces. I know, I know but I couldn't resist. I even got a matching pink fleece. They'll probably see this city girl coming a mile away, which might come in handy if I fall off a cliff.


On Sunday we decided to try out our shoes and went for a 15km walk. The roads in the lake district can be pretty steep, wet and rugged so we couldn't actually test all their capabilities, only check if they were comfy which they were. It was like wearing warm and fluffy slippers, too bad they made me look a tad butch or I'd be converted. The Pumpkin will confirm this, outdoor sportswear and I don't mesh well. And neither do long and unprepared walks because I was moving like a 90-year-old woman by the time we got back.

We've got our shoes and rucksacks now, so all that's left are the rain and windresistant outfits seeing as the weather over there will be 17°c and cloudy at best. I can hardly wait!

Raspberry Friands

I haven’t baked for weeks, mainly because I’m not allowed to eat any baked goods seeing as they’re high in cholesterol. It’s really hard to resist conjuring up pastries and cakes if you’re not supposed to use eggs or butter. I started using soy margarine now which should remove the dreaded artery clogging substance from my veins so I have to eat some “butter” but eggs or the yolks at least, are definitely banned.

Now that the picnic season is upon us, I’ve been lured into the kitchen once again to create some tasty bit sized summery snacks that will do my adorable polka dotted picnic blanket justice. I personally love a picnic, it’s the only kind of al fresco dining people without a garden can enjoy.

Anyway, I stumbled upon this Australian delight this week: blueberry friands, small cake like tarts with a little butter (which I naturally substituted with the soy equivalent) and no egg yolks! They were all out of blueberries at the market so I made a raspberry version. Feast your eyes on these babies:

• 50g soy butter, melted and cooled
• 100g icing sugar
• 25g flour
• 85g ground almonds
• 3 egg whites
• 80g blueberries or raspberries

1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Pop some cake cases into a cake tin.
2. Sift the flour and icing sugar into a bowl, and add the ground almonds.
3. Whisk the egg whites until foamy.
4. Make a well in the dry ingredients and tip in the egg whites. Add the butter and gently stir to make a soft, smooth batter.
5. Fill each cake case about three-quarters full. Top each with a few berries and bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown and springy.
6. Leave to cool on a cooling rack and dust with icing sugar.

Martians discover a book

No matter how many times I see this video, it cracks me up every time .

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip

When I had my wisdom teeth pulled three years ago, I was forced to stay at home for several days because I resembled a chipmunk who had OD’ed on blueberries. Luckily my friends lavished me with loads of box sets of, in their opinion, must see television shows. Yes, I am a child of the digital age and therefore watch too much TV.

Out of all of those shows, one stuck with me: Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. Seeing as the pumpkin also read Bossypants (how cute is that?), we started talking about live sketch shows and I remembered that Studio 60 is a lot like 30 Rock, minus the overall silliness.

Written by the talented Aaron Sorkin, who was also responsible for The West Wing, Studio 60 proves that TV can also be an art form and yes, you can quote me on that. Not many shows have such clever plotlines, snappy dialogues or realistic yet quirky characters brought to us by a phenomenal cast. Yes, my friends Studio 60 is amazing. It's a biting satire of television and an insightful behind the scenes look at what it's like to create a weekly SNL-like show but more importantly it's funny, heartfelt and dares to go the distance by tackling controversial topics with style and flair.

Aaron Sorkin is the heart and soul behind the series and in my opinion on of the best screenwriters in Hollywood. The way he is able to mix politics, cutting edge topics and genuine emotion baffles me. No matter what subject matter people throw at him, he delivers and rightfully deserved that academy award for best screenplay this year. It's still beyond me why they cancelled this show after only one glorious series.

Now the point I was getting at, was that I bought the complete Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip collection for the ridiculous price of 7,50€! Who knew topnotch entertainment came so cheap?

An Object of Beauty

The latest novel by actor / comedian Steve Martin is something very peculiar. I hadn't read any of his books before but I wanted to find out if, like so many actors turned author, he could actually deliver (as opposed to Ethan Hawke for example). An Object of Beauty is a without a doubt a very beautiful book, literally, if you get the hardback version at least, which is filled with lovely reproductions of the paintings that are mentioned in the story. The paperback version is pretty basic.

An Object of Beauty follow Lacy Yeager's career over the past 20 years as she takes the New York art scene by storm. There isn't a lot of plot or character development to tell you the truth, none actually but what makes this book interesting is Martin's depiction of the contemporary art world. It's fascinating to see how this world has evolved over the past two decades, how the economic crisis affected the art scene, how auction houses work, the value of beauty, the importance of modern American art,... if I'm boring you already than this book is not for you. If you're not interested in art, don't go there because that's all this novel has to offer.

Lacy Yeager seriously got on my nerves to be honest, because she's not particularly likable nor is she despicable, she's somewhere in that dangerous grey area where you just don't care. Instead of creating an actual human being, Martin has created a reflection of the zeitgeist which works well in this satire just try not to take anything seriously.

I expected more from Martin, a lot more. He is a good writer and was able to give a clear picture of something he truly cares about. As a non-fiction book, it would probably have been a lot better because the characters are flat and the story consists of Daniel Franks, a guy Lacy met at college who secretly loves her, telling us what happened to the object of his affection over the past years, so as a novel it doesn't really work. I am however intrigued by Martin. He's shown a lot of potential as an author and as an art connoisseur, it's just hard mixing both.

Thursday's trailer

Bossypants

I doubt there are people alive today who haven't heard of Tina Fey, former Saturday Night Live writer and creator of 30 Rock, or her equally renowned biography Bossypants. The cover alone, of this New York Times bestseller, puts a smile on my face.

Seeing as I'm not American and don't have the pleasure of watching SNL on a weekly basis, I was first confronted with the delightful Mrs. Fey when someone told me I had to watch 30 Rock because it was basically tha bomb (typo intended). Seeing as I'm always on the lookout for a new show, I followed her advice and haven’t looked back since.

30 Rock is based on her experiences while working on SNL. This show is silly yet realistic, outrageous yet relatable, the writing is excellent, the acting phenomenal (gotta love Jack Donaghy) and the characters are truly one of a kind. This show has it all really, if slapstick and crazed / neurotic people are your thing.

What I love the most about this show is the Tina Fey's character Liz Lemon, who tries to keep the writers, actors and her boss from causing total mayhem while at the same time trying to have some kind of (love) life, queue Jon Hamm, sigh... Anyway, this probably says more about me than I'd care to admit but I so totally get her. Despite her own freakish issues she is constantly mobilized to solve other people's crisises when all she want to do is watch TV and eat donuts. What's wrong with that? And yet, she still has a masochistic need to be needed, to be the puppet master because sometimes your inner control freak simply gets the better of you. Been there, done that.

So when the brilliant Fey's biography came out, I just had to read it. I tried waiting until the paperback edition but I just couldn't wait that long. Bossypants isn't a classic autobiography, it filled with chronological anecdotes from her youth, SNL, honeymoon, 30 Rock and naturally some life changing affirmations. Tina is just how I imagined her to be: self-deprecating, wise and above all honest.

Bossypants is a very funny memoir full of interesting behind the scenes gossip, musings on what it's like to be a female comedy writer and a little intimate details that make this book a joy to read. It's easy to relate to Tina Fey who is also a wonderful writer and someone every woman would want as their best friend basically. All hail Tina Fey!

Mindfulness

Thanks to the numerous tests, doctor’s appointments and meds that could have become fatal in hindsight, my panic attacks have been going through the roof lately. They started with mild hyperventilation about three years ago and whenever you least expect it, usually while doing the dishes or watching TV, they’ll pop up and hold you hostage for a couple of days.

These past few months I’ve been hyperventilating more than I care to say and on Friday I had a major panic attack seeing as I wasn’t supposed to take the meds my new doctor prescribed but naturally I had already taken them. I eventually got over it and forced myself to leave the house, something which has become stressful in itself at times.

Over the years I’ve become very sensitive to stress, emotional and physical ailments, unexpected events and even things I don’t particularly want to do are able to cause severe inner turmoil. I have a habit of ignoring all these things until there’s no escape and my body just shuts down, queue dizziness, nausea, chest pains and the feeling that I'm being suffocated, in other words a classic panic attack.

Now the new meds I got on Thursday were supposed to slow down my heartbeat, lower my blood pressure and basically calm me down, easing the blood flow to my head and making the noise in my ear less prominent. It actually worked until I read the accompanying leaflet which said it could be fatal for people who have or had asthma (that would be me). Needless to say, I didn’t respond well to that information.

Sadly, my tendency to hyperventilate isn’t something you can cure; only manage by being aware of the warning signs, avoiding stress and simply saying enough is enough. I’ve been advised to do more yoga and maybe try mindfulness to clear my head of negative thoughts which is why I’ve been meditating and breathing my ass of this weekend. It’s weird to think how something so easy (for some at least) and vital can be so hard for others, making me cherish every slow breath and moment of silence, even if it only lasts 8 seconds.

Soup Swap

This week I went to my very first Soup Swap, an American trend where you get together with a few friends and exchange soup. Over the years I have mastered the art of making soup for just two people but apparently when others makes soup, they make several liters otherwise what’s the point? Seeing as we have no freezer to store our remnants in, I make sure never to go overboard until this week when I finally got a chance to use “the big pot” to make a shocking 3 liters of soup!

Now the concept behind Soup Swap is instead of freezing the remains of your own soup, you take them with you to a Soup Swap gathering and well, swap them for other flavors. We all make enough soup for the other participants, roughly a liter each. I thus brought three containers of luscious cheesy broccoli soup with me and came back with recipes and cucumber, roasted tomato and banana soup. We’ll be having soup all weekend now, thanks to my fellow domestic goddesses.

Nancy Mitford

My quest for "quality" chick lit has lead me to several 1950s and 1960s romps. Of all the titles that have now found there way to my wishlist, none are as pretty as these Nancy mitford reissues by Penguin.

Thursday's trailer

Great Expectations

I've taken some time off this week to get a little writing done, consult some more doctors and attend my very first Soupswap (yes, it's exactly what it sounds like).

I'm actually really looking forward to locking myself up in our dark little study, just me, gallons of coffee, Molly and a blank computerscreen. What could be better? I just hit the 25,000 word mark so I'm on a roll.

"Slumming"

This week I indulged in some mindnumbing entertainment: chick lit and a thriller. Ok, I have to admit that both novels were predictable, lacking depth and eloquence but they were fun, sassy and made you want to finish them in one go which I almost did. I truely understand why people read this stuff and you shouldn't mock something before you've tried it.

What strikes me the most about non-literary novels is their lack of description, atmosphere and setting. It's all about dialogue and action, which I have to admit are things I also crave in a novel. Throw in a little character development and I'm one happy bunny.

First up was Sophie Kinsella's Remember Me. I had read one of her books last year when I was in a rather abysmal mood and truth be told, she lightened my day. I wouldn't dream of starting on her Shopaholic series but I'll give her standalone novels a go whenever the mood strikes me (which is once a year apparently). The novels starts off with Lexi, a twentysomething girl with an average job, great friends and a deadend relationship. Queue a slippery surface and some stillettos. She wakes up in hospital and three years have gone by. Apparently she had a car crash and can't remember anything that has happend from the crash until her stiletto slip up. Three years of her life: gone. Besides getting her driver's license, she has also lost touch with her friends, become a fahionista, her own boss and most shockingly has gotten married fulfilling every girl's dreams (in chick lit that is). Will she remember her past? Her husband? And naturally her lover? Ok, this book was cliched, predictable and flawed but also sassy, relatable (my inner Carrie Bradshaw hasn't died on me yet) and great if you're looking for nothing more than a book that'll put a smile on your face.

Next up was the thriller: The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly which was recently turned into a movie. Despite having read Stieg Larsson Millennium trilogy, I have to admit that I've never read a lot of thrillers / crime novels. I don't know why really. Anyway, Michael Haller is The Lincoln Lawyer simply because he works out of the back of his Lincoln, deep right? He has to defend Beverly Hills pretty boy Louis Roulet who supposedly beat up and threatened to kill a prostitute, something he naturally denies or we wouldn't have this novel. Haller investigates, discovers ties to a former case, Roulet confesses (it happens 1/3 through the novel so it isn't that big of a spoiler) and threatens Michael who is left with lots of ethical, judicial and parental dilemma's. It was all pretty straight forward stuff, lots of courtscenes, an ex-wife or two and some snappy dialogue. Oh and there's a slight twist at the end. I don't know if I'll read another novel by Connelly, it wasn't bad but I wasn't impressed either. That being said, I am secretly eyeing up a few crime novels, just to broaden my horizon.



So my slumming experiment wasn't a total loss. I'll never become a convert to Chick Lit or Thrillers but neither am I opposed to reading one once in a while. Sometimes it's good to lower your expectations because you just might be in for a lovely surprise.