we have so much in common

Kylie considers motherhood at 35



Singer Kylie Minogue is afraid time is running out for her to have children, she has told Michael Parkinson.



The 35-year-old said becoming a mother would be "the best thing I've ever done", in a BBC One interview to be broadcast on Saturday.



"It's not too late, but obviously a woman of my age can't help but think about those things," she said.



Minogue said it would be "wonderful" to marry, but revealed no plans to wed her actor boyfriend Olivier Martinez.



[source]

giggling like the doughboy



I am not great at baking. I can cook, but my attempts at cakes, pies, and other assorted desserts usually don't go very well (although for some reason, I can make a wicked sticky toffee pudding and chocolate cheesecake). So you can imagine my surprise and glee when I managed to make cinnamon rolls last night. Real, homemade, almost as good as Cinnabon's cinnamon rolls. Mrs. Kitten Tosha very helpfully recommended Nigella's recipe for cinnamon rolls from the "How to be a Domestic Goddess" cookbook, and I must say ta muchly for the suggestion. The dough was rather alarmingly gloopy (a good cookbook should really warn you about things like this), and even Paul had a go at kneading it just in case it wasn't forming properly due to my girlygirl wimpy hands. It all turned out well in the end, and Paul's Dad should be happy with these birthday baked goods. Go me for only eating one roll last night! (It was broken anyway, plus I had to make sure that the dough was cooked properly. Oh shush.)



Paul said that cooking is an art but baking is a science (he may have stolen that quote from someone else, actually). I never did well in science class (except biology) and most of my studies revolved around art. This is probably why I can make a kick ass risotto but my one attempt at breadmaking resulted in a beige anvil.

just making sure that you're paying attention



I was getting bored with the colours I've been using on this site lately, so I changed a few things. One day, I'll come up with a decent design and tidy up this entire site. One day...if I'm ever housebound for weeks on end with nothing to do or wind up in a prison with an Internet connection.



There's this thing called The Bloggies happening now. While I'm not really keen on events that commend the same three bloggers year after year, there are a few very good blogs nominated this year that are worth checking out (ScorpioGirl being one of them). There are, of course, The Anti-Bloggies. How can you not love a site that has a picture of a grilled cheese sandwich on its opening screen? Exactly.



I can't offer any prizes, nor will getting recognition on this site lead to a fantastic job opportunity, the love of your life, or allow you to lose weight without dieting or exercise (I also have no idea where to get cheap Viagra or how to get you out of debt. Sorry.). What I can offer is this: a few words extolling the virtues of your blog, summarised in a slightly amusing category. Don't let it go to your head, and don't forget the little people. So now, without further ado, here are a few blogs that you may have overlooked but should really visit.



The "Don't Read This if You're Hungry" award goes to Blork Blog: Ed gave me My Very First Tech Writing Job© (from Kenner), but that's not why I've singled him out here. His vivid descriptions of the meals he makes along with the odd photograph makes his blog the tastiest thing on the Internet. On top of that, it's simply a well written, interesting, and diverse blog.



The "Thanks for Motivating Me to Keep Up My French" award goes to ni.vu.ni.connu: I am not putting this site here just because its author just happens to be Ed's better half - I liked her writing even before they got together so nyaaaah! Martine's blog is written in French and English, which has helped me to keep up my French skills (such as they are). She's a self-proclaimed Geek Girl, with a fascinating list of jobs under her belt (she's been on TV, you know!), who writes thoughtful and insightful blog entries.



The "Slightly Insane but Incredibly Cute and Funny" award goes to Quickos Daily News: It's a blog written by a hand puppet. I don't think I've seen a funnier and more original blog. Go see what I mean.



The "I Wish My Blog Looked This Good and I Wrote About More Interesting Things" award goes to Burnt Toast: Well designed, great photographs, excellent writing on a wide variety of topics, this blog makes mine look like it was rejected by KMart.



Don't get me wrong; I think everyone in my links list is well worth a read. I actually visit every one of those sites on a regular basis (except for you people who don't update very often - for shame) and I think each one is brilliant. I very rarely go through the links on other people's sites, so I thought it would be nice to highlight a few here. Now go off and do some reading. Shoo.

better now, thanks



I must confess, I usually buy my basil from the grocery store because I cannot grow the stuff at home. Even Jamie Oliver has trouble growing herbs like basil and coriander, so I'm not alone. I do still miss our basil plant, though. He gave us many good meals of bruschetta and pasta. We called him "Basil". I'm getting all verklempt now.



It's Shrove Tuesday today (that's Pancake Tuesday to you and me). Now here's an interesting fact: pancakes here tend to be very crepe-like and are traditionally served with lemon juice (usually that stuff that comes out of plastic lemons) and sugar. Since I'm a foreigner and everything we do is weird and terribly un-British anyway, I shall be making big, fluffy pancakes drowned in maple syrup. I used to adore Pancake Tuesday when I was a kid. Nothing but big discs of sweet doughy stuff topped with a bucket of sugary syrup and butter for dinner? FANTASTIC. Maybe one day someone will invent Chunky Kit Kat Wednesday.



Additionally, French toast or "eggy bread" is savoury, not sweet here. Maybe this is why you'll never find an IHOP in the UK.

little miss grumpy



I am in such a cranky mood right now. I feel like listening to the Smashing Pumpkins and writing sad poems about the basil plant that died on us recently.

my basil has died

what the fuck am I going to put on our pizza tonight?

i ain't using it dried

i think it did this out of spite

Or not. Anyway, I don't think I'm the only one who's feeling grumpy because I've had to contend with two very huffy people today and it's not even lunchtime yet. What the world needs is more chocolate. Specifically, more chocolate with a creamy Prozac filling.

one less visit to the doctor's

I rang the surgery this morning and spoke to my favourite receptionist (if I had a sarcasm font, I would have just used it two words ago). She's always miserable whenever I speak to her, which is amazing because you'd think that it would be difficult to pick a fight over a conversation about booking an appointment...but she can do it, oh yes. I'm surprised that I didn't recount my first pregnancy-related interaction with her a few weeks ago. It went like this:



[me] "I'd like to book a prepregnancy checkup, please." (because that's what all the books and web sites advise, you see)

[grumpy receptionist] "A what?"

[me] "A prepregnancy checkup. To make sure I'm okay before we try to conceive."

[grumpy receptionist] "So you want a pregnancy test."

[me] "No, I want a PREpregnancy or PREconception check. I'm going to be 35 soon and I think it's wise to see a doctor before we start trying."

[grumpy receptionist] "So how far along do you think you are?"

[me] (stunned silence) "Um...I'm not pregnant yet. Maybe I'm just misunderstanding something. I've read several books that have advised what they call a prepregnancy check. Do you not do those?"

[grumpy receptionist] "What would that involve?"

[me] "Erm...I'm not sure, really. A rubella jab?"

[grumpy receptionist] "Well, all girls have had one, so you don't need another one."

[me] (wondering where she got her medical degree from) "Yes but in Canada, we only get one jab when we're toddlers and not another one later like you do here. So I don't know if I'm still immune."

[grumpy receptionist] "You'll be fine. We don't do prepregnancy checks here anyway. It's just the NHS, so we don't do that."

[me] "Yes but I would still like to see someone because I have other concerns. For example, diabetes runs in my family and I have some questions about that."

[grumpy receptionist] "You can see Zoe, our diabetes nurse."



Fine. After 10 minutes of this stimulating conversation, she finally agreed to book an appointment for me with a diabetes nurse (who luckily, as I wrote previously, turned out to be lovely). Zoe advised me to ring back today to check and see if my rubella test was back...so you can imagine my joy when I heard the melodious sound of my favourite receptionist's voice at the other end of the phone this morning. I explained that I had a test done a week ago for rubella and asked if I could check the results. "IF they're back!" she snorted. Indeed. They had come back and I am fine; I don't need a rubella jab.



Someone please tell me that when I'm pregnant I don't have to deal with this surgery, the doctors at this surgery, or this idiotic receptionist. Otherwise, I can't be held responsible for anything my hormones may make me do.

out of sorts



I woke up this morning (da na na na na na) and thought it was Saturday (da na na na na). No really, I was completely convinced that it was Saturday:



[Paul, slightly surprised] "Hello!"

"Hi."

"What are you doing down here at this time?"

"I woke up so I decided to get out of bed." [mentally preparing a list of things to do before we set off for Warrington later in the morning]

"Would you like a cup of tea?"

"Yes, please."

"You do realise that it's Friday, don't you?"

*blink blink*



Yerrrs. Needless to say, I've been feeling a bit out of sorts all day. In lieu of one of my usual thought-provoking posts (*cough*), here's a list of amusing search strings that have led to my site this month.



pictures of people doing laundry naked

picture's of fluffy hamsters

chinese kitty meat song

ear poking

hanging wedgie pics

pictures of baby puppies doing naughty things

pictures of people rolling down hills

vw scented windshield fluid

wooly cows



Thank you, and have a wonderful weekend.