In my defense I’ve had a decent excuse for not delivering on the promise to post a catch-up on Friday.
A couple of impromptu dates with my lovely husband!
Really, there is nothing like full-time parenthood to make one really appreciate time alone together.
Japanese on Friday evening. At my suggestion! This is quite amazing considering that I loathed all forms of Japanese food when Don and I first started dating (yes, utterly philistine, I know). I’m still not big on sushi and sashimi (perhaps too delicate for my unsophisticated palate?), but have come to love many other forms. Now I even crave miso, when previously it made me gag.
While I went for my favourite ton katsu, Don bravely chose the teriyaki eel. The eel was actually quite wonderful, I’d definitely consider it for next visit.
Next on my forcing myself upon food I previously found disgusting list – ramen.
Yes, I’m still taking photos of every meal – am just sparing you all from the experience! I’m planning to print them all in a blurb book when the year is over. Oh planning! we won’t talk about the book of Italy that we were planning to make (or all the other things I’ve planned and just not got around to yet).
We commenced our Saturday with bacon and eggs – bacon cured by Don and eggs from the backyard chickens at the babies haus!
The backyard eggs were so yellow!
And the eggs from the backyard chickens are quite a bit smaller than those from the supermarket.
By Golly(!), I want some chickens of my own! Unfortunately, I really don’t think they’d play terribly well on the deck.
We then, after a visit to K-Mart for some laundry supplies (bucket, washing basket, nappy-san), we set out to the footy, watched the ducks play a woeful game in the rain and admired the gorgeous rainbow of “our team sucks”.
It was the first time as members that we’d not sat at ground level and the view was definitely superior, even though the play was not.
Then dragged ourselves to Pasteur for some quite excellent pho:
And indulged in a spirited game of “count the hipsters” on a lovely walk home after which we enjoyed some wine and You Only Live Twice which Channel Seven ruined by chopping off the last few minutes and going straight into a Kevin Bacon movie (C7: both homophobic and incompetent). Why we watched it on teev, I’ve yet to fathom, seeing that we own the Connery and Moore Bond collections.
Today we hauswerked briefly then ventured out to DJs so that Don might spend the remainder of his You are awesome! $500 DJs voucher and for me to attempt to spend my $250 Holy Crap, you’ve survived 5 years at Marie Celeste six-months-late one.
As an aside, Dishy Boss gave the most wonderful and lovely (and interminable) heartfelt speech when presenting me with my award at the staff meeting. Everyone has been commenting that until they heard the speech they did not realise how marvellous I was, I respond that I’m happy to expand on my wonderfulness if and as required.
Back at the shoppering, Don was much more successful than I – eventually scoring a new sportsy-coat and wallet.
I’m finding that DJs has become depressingly either 20-something-ish or uber-matronly (Don found this too – which would explain the eventually above) and it is very difficult to find anything that is not granny or MDL1.
We will not even talk about my attempt to locate shoes! I loved the ones below, but as all my fashion consultants agree, they are really more suited to Bessie.
Today, I managed to acquire a quite lovely vanilla orchid fragrance, which was ridiculously inexpensive. I’m almost out of the L’Occitane which replaced the Crabtree and Evelyn – neither of which are available any longer – what is it about me and discontinued fragrances?
The lovely Joan was given a $200 Myer voucher for being all around awesome and wishes she had a DJs one, so we’re talking swapping vouchers.
I’m thinking surely there would be something at Myer that is more between the granny and teen!
1Mutton Dressed as Lamb
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what? you've never had ramen?!
that must be fixed, immediately.
(and preferably from ichi ban boshi outside kinokuniya in TGV.) it's fantastic, comforting winter food. and so yummy.
Oh god, I dress almost entirely in DJ-sourced things – I must either be granny or MDL! (Perhpas they also have a speciality in “middle-aged lawyer ladies”).
We were going to take my 8yo budding Swans fan this weekend but the weather kept us away (as it never would from the rugby – sigh). Maybe next home game we'll be there! (She's a Red Rookie).
(By the way – your verification process called me a nerd. Please have a word).
Well, I've unwillingly *tasted* other people's ramen before, but have never been a fan. Because I am an unexperimental coward, I always have ordered the katsu curry at Ichi Ban Boshi. I haven't been there for an age though, definitely not since my newly acquired love for Japanese! Don (who is a huge fan) is keen to try the ramen place at Eating World – which apparently is stellarly brilliant. Perhaps next non-child weekend.
Jano, DJs did used to have lovely, covetable things! I find this season is underwhelming though. There may actually be lovely, sophisticated lawyerly garments, but people would fall down and die with laughter if I tried any sort of sophisticated professional route.
You missed a particularly dismal performance on Saturday, so made the right decision – I'd hold out for a game we might actually win!! Although who knows when that might be?
well you know how much I love sushi .. but I have never been able to being myself to taste eel – I will one day! by the by, do you think a cheapo tent would be adequate for a 14 yr old girl for 3 nights??
Harriet!
The eel tasted like the sea(!), but not at all fishy, if that makes any sense at all.
Depending on the conditions(conditions not being howling winds or torrential rain), I'd say a cheapo tent would be excellent for three nights! We stayed in ours for two nights – one of which was raining fairly constantly. Was quite cold though, but then it is still quite cold in super-fabulous-canvas-arabian-nights tent.
Thank you, I might purchase one and let the brat go to camp .. I'm currently weighing up the “rewarding bad behaviour” against 4 days of peace for the rest of us.
The lack of fishiness makes me actually think I would like to try the eel sooner rather than later, will source a nice Japanese place I think!
Having lived with a teenage girl, I think peace is worth anything!
I hope you locate some delicious eel – although I thought the whole eel was a little overwhelming.