A true story.

Lady makes delicious mushroom and pine nut lasagne for dinner – a creation of her very own. She always makes too much food, and because the man in her house is not in her house, she has twice as much as she can eat.

Lady eats half. Yum. Creation is voted a success by a majority of one. She saves the other half and puts it in the fridge. Food normally lives for weeks in the fridge before going off – but this is an exception. Lady gets up early in the morning for work and puts half of the left over lasagne in a tub for her luncheon.

Cooled throughout the day by icepacks it is just-so when lunchtime arrives, and she gobbles it down at her desk. Thus – food goes unwasted. A triumph for her, her kitchen, and her dustbin (which smells).

She is prideful of her economical ecological non-food wasting ways and vows to continue along new paths of goodness.

She also decides to put the recipe in the book she is writing. She then decides that rather than just selling the book (via Lulu, which was the original plan) she will post the artwork to her blog for readers and feeders looking for easy veggie meals that don’t come on wheels or in tubs from the supermarket.

However – as her life is not all lasagnes and nonsense this may take a while. She has only written three recipes out so far, and has taken no photographs. She is also not a chef, nor does she ever intend to claim that title.

She enjoys writing in the third person present, though finds it confusing.

Oooh lala.
I have been away for some time, haven't I?

I am too tired - is that an excuse? Should I make one?
I was holidaying in the sun last week - although the sun was also holidaying, so it rarely shone. However I did manage to spend a fucking ridiculous amount of money, which is always nice.

Other tiresome updates include my first ever hen party - pretty much what I expected, drunkeness, 'wild women' with a license to be lewd, a male stripper (shudder) and dancing with/avoiding/fighting with 'stags'. Why are men even more ridiculous and pawing when they are drunk?

I won't regail you with every detail - however one particular ass-face sticks clearly in my mind, for yanking on my hair as I walked past. Totally unprovoked. I have short fucking hair - it's not like it was even easy for him to get a handful. Anyway. After much insulting screeching (aimed at him) and tears (I am a crap drunk who vows never to drink again every time I touch the stuff. Please, if I am drunk and you see me remember only one thing - forget everything I said, and never remind me of what horrors I did.) we made up. He was a fool though. I think he may have thought my hair was a wig - which is insulting in a makes-me-laugh-you-fool kind of way.

Anyway. Eurgh. Fool - pulling my hair.

Also, after great indepth discussions about porn during holidays with the missus he decided, while I was out henning it up, to see for himself what all the fuss is about.

Sheepishly he informed me the following day, worried perhaps I will discover his illicit brush with sex-on-the-net and judge him a dirty old perve (he is right, this would likely be my reaction, I am reactionary). After confessing his sins to me, the minister, he is absolved, and vows, mainly on the foul taste left in his mouth from that experieince, that it is not something he plans to do again.

I tell him some people like to feel dirty.

Today I skived off work for a bit, drove 50 odd miles, bought rubber gloves, created lasagne (yes, created) avoided washing up for as long as possible, cried a little inside over the Subtext debacle and the fact that it is STILL not done (for fucks sake this is killing me - why do I do this to myself), vowed to fill in the application for a volunteering position at the women's refuge that has been lounging on my sofa for weeks before I actually meet up with them next week, and drank water as I am still cleansing my system after Saturday.

Good/bad news is I have another hen party next week, then weddings for the following two weekends. Will I ever have a normal blood:alcohol level? This is all after swearing off the stuff after the Notts 'Drop in the Ocean' music festival at which I got so utterly tanked my missus came home to find me asleep in the garden. *Sigh*

In parting, a big knob in the tennis world said today that women should not get the same amount of prize money as men for winning Wimbledon. He based this on the 'fact' that it is the only tournament that still has unequal prizes, and that men are better at tennis. I'm sure Maria Sharapova is better than my missus at tennis, proving this theory instantly wrong. I declare him, for sheer idiocy and mindboggling stupid arguments, a foolish fooligan. He may have been called Andy - I am not a tennins fan.

After than diarrohea of brain draining nonsense I bid you adieu...

Cohabiting couples in the UK may be on their way to receiving them same rights as married couples!

According to the BBC more than three-quarters of couples live together before marriage (me included – though not before marriage, that implies I actually want to get married), and one in four children is born to parents who are cohabiting.

If the new law is introduced (this won’t be until 2007, at least) cohabitees could make the same financial claims as divorcees and lawyers have suggested the entitlements should apply after couples have lived together for two years.

I hope that like me you’re thinking ‘Wow, a step in the right direction! Down with heteronormative marriage practices!’, if you are, you are about to roll your eyes and groan.

Daily Mail columnist Melanie Phillips told the BBC changing the law would undermine marriage.
She said: "This idea that society is changing and therefore the law has to change to keep up with it is wrong, in my view, historically the law has led the progressive dismemberment of marriage by stripping it progressively of meaning.”

So, is Melanie actually saying that the law shouldn’t be changed to keep up with changes in society? If this is the case, how widely does she want to apply this theory? I mean, back in the old days it was perfectly legal to kill a Welshman with a crossbow on a Sunday. Thankfully this is no longer the case, as of a year or two ago. I would imagine this is a positive law change reflecting a change in society – no?

Ok, that’s a little different, but isn’t the premise the same – refusing to adapt laws to a changing society is utterly ridiculous.

In summation – Cohabiting couples in the UK may be on their way to receiving them same rights as married couples. Can you see a day on the horizon when marriage is not the be all and end all of coupledom in our society – nay, of everything a girl is brought up to do in our society.
Horray!

Guinea pig eats spaghetti

Photographic evidence of this amazing animal kingdom discovery. Eddie, the gourmet, came back for more.

It is done

Never one to wait around, once I had the idea to cut me hair off I had to go out and do the deed. So, for your pleaseure, before and after photos.



I also had my beard styled.

Because blogs are great for self obsession

I am currently sporting a bob with a fringe in a light pink shade - with extensive roots of a dark blonde. I don't care much for long hair anymore, and despite my fear and loathing of the hairdresser am thinking of going to have it chopped.

Because I'm a wash/sleep on it/go kind girl with a bad realtionship with my brush I need something low maintenance and designed to be scruffy, but that can be combed smart if the mood takes me. So - I amthinking along the following lines: Justine Frishman (fromerly of Elastica) Brody God-knows-what (formerly of Distillers) Carrie Brownstein (Sleater Kinney).

So far these are the best photos I have managed to find.

Any suggestions? A little help? travellingpunk at gmail dot com

I need clear and unmistakeable instructions for the hairdresser otherwise they will create me a coiffure that's as dull as Paris Hiltons. I may have to let him indoors cut it for me as a last resort. At least then it has no chance of looking overdone...

Artists impression. Can they cut pointy?

Female bonding?

My neighbour asked me if I wanted to come a cosmetics party at her house. Thinking it would be good to be friendly with my neighbourgh and also a good opportunity to nosey around her house, I said I would go.

That is until I though of the following:
I am broke, as usual - so no new things for me
I only buy cruelty free makeup (which is not the stuff that was on sale)

So, instead of going to the 'party' I have updated the Subtext site and eaten home made burritos.

Cosmetics parties eh, strange idea.
They have plus points - community, friendship, bonding, talking, sharing.
They have miuns points - promoting the use of makeup (it couldn't be any more normalised), encouraging excessive consumerism.

Personally, despite the good points, I don't like the idea. The whole evening would be wrapped up in expectation (of the host) guilt (of the guests) and, I imagine, a frenzy of purchasing things you don't need.

What do you think? Good idea, bad idea? Have you been to one?

I would probably go to a cruelty free one though...

Astounding powers of observation

"Oi pink hair!"

Pink hair?

Well, it was worth shouting that little gem of wisdom across the street at me. God, you're so insightful and charming.

Marry me.

Why feminism benefits men

From the horses mouth.

"Women can go out to work and earn money to take me on holiday."

I don't think that's quite the point...

Pole Dancing - Women, Men, Dancers, Opposers duke it out

The BBC magazine site's hosting an interesting debate on the benefits of poledancing as an exercise activity. You can read it here. Some interesting comments, some downright nonsense, some male pole dancers and a surprising amount of men speaking out against it.

Choice quote:
It's exercise, is it? So you'll all be wearing trainers then? Jill Arscott, Brighton

Interesting reading.