A little about a big piece of news

Well...eh... We told our families over Christmas, and our friends more recently. And I guess I should have posted here... I'm just too shy about it...

Trave and I are engaged and are getting married this September!

(wasn't that hard to write after all!)

I did not tell work, (not the sort of things that comes up easily in a conversation: "By the way, on the subject of last month's sales performance, I'm getting married!" Not really...) but my boss spotted my ring this afternoon. Then became RED RED RED like a perfectly ripe tomato. I guess everybody in the company will get the news before the end of tomorrow! Gossips tend to spread faster than essential work information in some places!!!

So I guess I'll have to face many queries from curious workmates in the next few days.

eeeek!

Latest delicacies

We bought a grill recently. Not any grill, it claims to be a "Lean, Mean, Fat Reducing Grilling Machine". I can simply imagine a hip-hop background to this chorus. Oh dear, now they are trying to make ads rhyme too!!!

In any case, it's great, and we can enjoy kebabs in January. The ones on the picture shows smoked tofu kebabs with a lemon & herbs marinade. Very nice.


I did not have any room left for a dessert...


And yesterday, I made a cauliflower and broccoli flan which was delicious. I made the pastry with 1/3 wholemeal flour, 1/3 plain flour and 1/3 millet flakes. Precook the pastry for 15 min.

For the filling, parboil medium-size broccoli and cauliflower for 10 min (cut into small florets). Arrange the florets in the pastry case. Then melt 3 TBSP butter, fry a chopped onion in the pan, add 2-3 TBSP flour, 150ml milk, 6TBSP veg stock, 50g grated cheese. Season to taste. Pour on top of broccoli & cauliflower. Sprinkle with grated cheese. In the oven for 15 min.

Chain reaction

BA have cancelled all their flights from Heathrow next Tuesday and Wednesday. And ticket prices with Austrian Airlines have doubled if not sold out. So I have had to cancel my trip to Vienna (business).

So I had to cancel the car rental agreement, since I needed a car to go to the airport. And this means I won't be able to go to a workmate's 40th birthday celebration which takes place 10 miles from where I live. I cannot really cycle there on a Friday night in the middle of winter and the last train coming back is at 9.30 pm... So no birthday party for me. :(

BA cabin crew are going on strike because they disagree with the new sickpay policy. The company has reduced the sickpay allowances apparently. I sympathise with workers when they have a good argument to fight for, but when I heard that on average each BA cabin crew worker claims 22 days off per year, I just think this is totally wrong. Why should I support this?

I am sorry to see again that because of some abusing the system, people who are really ill and who really need the allowance will suffer from the new measures. 22 days a year...

My TMA marks

Of course I would keep quiet if they were bad, but this is not the case so I'll show off. I am especially proud because the module was about information and finance, and numeracy is not exactly my strong point.

So tada.... (rolling drums)

Information Management: 85%
Finance Management: 77%


I am now starting the final module, on Customers and Quality Management. I will sit for the final exam in October.

Yesterday's board games

We decided to remove the dust-covered sets of draughts and chess and have a game or two. I knew from the start that was a mistake. I know that Trave is so much better than me.

And I was VERY confused to be reminded that the draughts board was the same as the chess board. As far as I was concerned, a draughts board ought to be wider. As the game went, we kept argueing about the rules. So we looked it up on this fantastic tool that the WWW is, to discover that once again, the Brits do everything differently from the rest of the world. (is this why I am in love with one of them?) There are English Draughts rules on one side (board is 8x8) and International Draughts rules on the other (10x10 board), the latter being the ones I know. A few variances exist, my favourite would be Lasca, because I like the idea of mixing Jenga with Draughts. So, mystery solved. None of us was cheating but we knew different rules. Needless to say that Trave won easily. ("Fingerz in ze noze" as the French say when they achieve something without much effort)

Then came a game of chess... no comment... it did not last long enough to comment upon.


We finished with a game of Scrabble. By then half of the bottle of wine had gone. Maybe this is the reason why I WON? Yes, I won!!! Despite whining everytime Trave had a tripple count word (he gets them EVERYTIME, seriously) I finally found my way through to victory, hey hey!!! 279 for me and 271 for him. Sweet victory...

German curling in Vienna

The reason for my absence was that our customer in Vienna had requested a technical training for all their mechanics Some 20 mechanics from all over Austria came to the headoffice in Vienna for a week long training, and Wednesday was 'our' day. I flew with a workcolleague who has a technical background, which was quite helpful at times!

The evening beforehand, we went out for a couple of games of 'Eisstockschiessen', which I just discovered is called 'German Culing'. We did the training & curling last year as well, but with -16°C... This year was just slightly below zero so it was comfortable. German curling is really fun. The equivalent to bowling I guess. Except you're outside on the icerink.

And the following picture shows my pride after my perfect shot. I swear I did not cheat and I really got the Stock to stop where it did. And our team won (not thanks to me despite this wonderful shot) so we did not have to pay for the dinner afterwards!

Last Sunday baking

I was away most of this week. Let's see what happened in the last seven days...

It is a tradition where I work to bring cakes on your birthday. Most people choose Mr. Kipling as their annual supplier. I rely on the local greengrocer to provide me with fresh eggs and fruits, and look through my various recipes. This year, I brought:

- Oat & Raisin biscuits
- Iced Chocolate Traybake
- Crunchy Top Lemon Cake

I'll give you the recipe for the Oat & Raisin Biscuits, which are really easy to make and very healthy too!


Makes ~20 biscuits

4 TBSP butter
125g caster sugar
1 egg
50g flour
1/2 TSP salt
1/2 TSP baking powder
175g rolled oats/porridge oats
125g raisins
2 TBSP sesame seeds

mix all the ingredients together and place pingpong size balls onto baking sheets, into a preheated oven for 10-15 minutes.

================

Recette des biscuits aux flocons d'avoine et raisins secs:

4 c. soupe beurre
125g sucre en poudre
1 oeuf
50g farine
1/2 c. café sel
1/2 c. café levure
175g flocons d'avoine
125g raisins secs
2 c. soupe graines de sésame

mélanger tous les ingrédients, placer des petites boules sur des plaques et passer au four pendant 10-15 minutes.

Yesterday's Scrabble game

Trave won yesterday's game, again! I am the Trivial Pursuit master, but he is the overall winner at Scrabble. The score yesterday was Trave = 291, me = 276. Here is a shot of our game: we used ALL the letters.

Walter Moers - Der Bonker

Comedy, Adolf Hitler, Comic, drei meter stahlbeton, kapitulier doch

I came across this video through a review about the new film by Dani Levy, Mein Fuehrer, and the argument whether or not one can laugh about Hitler or not. Reviews are not kind.

Birthday in Munich & birthday present

It was my birthday on Monday. I was in Munich for work but we were not successful in our negotiations and lost the deal :( The only positive aspect of this failure (therefore finishing early) is that instead of spending all of my birthday in a meeting room, we had time (with our German distributor) to go into town and visit the Neue Pinakothek, which I wanted to visit during my last stay in Munich, when I took a few days holidays. It had been really hot and sunny during the entire week beforehand, during which I was working. On my first day of 'freedom' in Munich, it started hailing and snowing. So that museum visits became a necessity to avoid boredom. Except all museums were closed on Mondays... Ggrrr... So I am glad I saw the Pinakothek this time!

I left the UK on Sunday afternoon and came back home a few minutes before the end of my birthday, when Trave was waiting for me with a great present: the last CD produced by Ali Farka Touré (he died in March 2006).



I had heard of him and read about him quite a lot but did not actually know his music, which I am listening to right now. I like it very much. African blues, if you want to know the style. Fantastic.

My only frustration compared to, say... Amadou & Mariam, is that I do not understand the words, but the CD leaflet offers a summary of each song subject in English.

Right, actually, the song I am listening to now, "Savane", is in French, so forget what I wrote above!

Vegetarian paella

I know, it's not the real stuff, but it was really nice nonetheless!

Vegetarian paella for 4 people:

400g paella rice or arborio rice
1 tsp saffron
1 tsp cumin powder
1-2 chilli powder
1 onion, sliced or chopped
1 red pepper, cut into chunks
1 green pepper, cut into chunks
1 green chilli pepper, finedly chopped
100g baby sweetcorn cobs, halved in their length
1 litre veg stock
100g frozen peas
100g unsalted cashew nuts


1. Heat some olive oil in a large and deep frying pan and fry the onion. Add the rice and spices, stir it a bit, then add the vegetables (except the peas & nuts).

2. Add all the stock and cook for 30 minutes, until all the liquid is absorbed and the rice is cooked.

3. Add the peas and cook for a further 5 minutes. Meanwhile, roast the cashew nuts under the grill.

4. Serve the rice in preheated plates and sprinkle with cashews. (if you mix the nuts to the rice, they loose their crunchiness)



Paella Végétarienne

Je sais, ce n'est pas la 'vraie' paella, mais n'empêche que c'est super bon.

Recette pour 4 personnes:

400g riz spécial paella rice or riz arborio
1 tsp saffran
1 tsp cumin en poudre
1-2 piment en poudre
1 oignon, émincé ou haché
1 poivron rouge, coupé en morceaux
1 poivron vert, coupé en morceaux
1 piment vert, haché
100g mini maïs, coupé en longueur
1 litre bouillon de légumes
100g petits pois congelés
100g noix de cajou non salées


1. Chauffer un peu d'huile d'olive dans une grande poêle á haut rebords. Y frire l'oignon, puis ajouter le riz et les épices. Mélanger et y ajouter les légumes (sauf les petits pois et noix).

2. Ajouter le bouillon et cuire pendant 30 minutes, jusqu'á ce que tout le bouillon soit absorbé et que le riz soit cuit.

3. Ajouter les petits pois et cuire pendant 5 minutes. Pendant ce temps, passer les noix au grill.

4. Servir le riz dans des assiettes préchauffées et saupoudrer avec les noix de cajou. (ne pas mélanger les noix au riz, cela les ramollit)

Sweet pursuit

I made a spicy vegetarian paella, which was yummy! This was followed by a game of Trivial Pursuit (I won again). I mean: I WON AGAIN!!! To be fair with Trave, we played a French edition, so I had an advantage, although it was Junior level, so that was not a REAL challenge! I also had a good reason to win: the rule was that we could eat one chocolate per wedge earned. The difficult bit was to choose one each time...

Maybe I should consider cycling through a MUCH longer route to and from work to compensate this excesss of sweetness intake.

Starting the year with Pablo

I just thought I would post this poem by the great Pablo Neruda.

Muere lentamente quien no viaja,
quien no lee,
quien no oye música,
quien no encuentra gracia en sí mismo.

Muere lentamente
quien destruye su amor propio,
quien no se deja ayudar.

Muere lentamente
quien se transforma en esclavo del hábito
repitiendo todos los días los mismos trayectos,
quien no cambia de marca,
no se atreve a cambiar el color de su vestimenta
o bien no conversa con quien no conoce.

Muere lentamente
quien evita una pasión y su remolino de emociones,
justamente éstas que regresan el brillo a los ojos
y restauran los corazones destrozados.

Muere lentamente
quien no gira el volante cuando está infeliz con
su trabajo, o su amor,
quien no arriesga lo cierto ni lo incierto para ir
atrás de un sueño
quien no se permite, ni siquiera una vez en su vida,
huir de los consejos sensatos...

¡ Vive hoy !
¡ Arriesga hoy !
¡ Hazlo hoy !
¡ No te dejes morir lentamente !
¡ NO TE IMPIDAS SER FELIZ !

I found the following English translation on the web and cannot say if it is an 'official' translation.

He who becomes the slave of habit,
who follows the same routes every day,
who never changes pace, who does not risk and change the color of his clothes,
who does not speak and does not experience,
dies slowly.

He or she who shuns passion,
who prefers black on white,
dotting ones "i's" rather than a bundle of emotions,
the kind that make your eyes glimmer,
that turn a yawn into a smile,
that make the heart pound in the face of mistakes and feelings,
dies slowly.

He or she who does not turn things topsy-turvy,
who is unhappy at work,
who does not risk certainty for uncertainty, to thus follow a dream,
those who do not forego sound advice at least once in their lives,
die slowly.

He who does not travel,
who does not read,
who does not listen to music,
who does not find grace in himself,
she who does not find grace in herself,
dies slowly.

He who slowly destroys his own self-esteem,
who does not allow himself to be helped,
who spends days on end complaining about his own bad luck,
about the rain that never stops,
dies slowly.

He or she who abandon a project before starting it,
who fail to ask questions on subjects he doesn't know,
he or she who don't reply when they are asked something they do know,
die slowly.

Let's try and avoid death in small doses,
reminding oneself that being alive requires an effort far greater than the simple fact of breathing.
Only a burning patience will lead to the attainment of a splendid happiness.

Open up

As read on Courrier International:

During his inaugural speech, Joseph Kabila ("Democratic" Republic of Congo) claimed that prisons' doors would from then on be wide open to criminals, blablablabla... 34 prisonners convinced their guards that thanks to President Kabila's speech and presidential amnesty, they were free to go. So the guards opened the doors. 6 of them have now been condemned for assisting prisonners to escape.

Vodka lemon

Vodka Lemon is a simple story about simple people. An ex-soldier widower from Armenia tries to make ends meet with the 7 Dollars a month he receives as a pension. He lives with one of his three sons and his granddaughter. Every day he takes the bus to visit his wife's grave. One of the other passengers on the bus is a widow, also going to the cemetary, who works at the Vodka Lemon shop.


On the subject of Vodka, here is a short translation of a story one can read on www.ogoniol.com:

Just to clarify: I do not understand Russian, I found a French translation of the Russian article on Courrier International. Click here for the whole article in French.

"The (Russian) Authorities have just launched a low cost Vodka brand in order to fight 'impure/denatured' alcohol. This is the first measure of the government fight against alcoholism."
I know that a lot of Russians have recently become ill or even died from denatured Vodka. (This is why the government is trying to nationalise alcohol production/retail) However lowering the price of alcohol does not seem to me to be the best solution to reduce alcoholism.

The article goes on. A few entrepreneurs have had the brilliant idea of selling distilling machines for home use, so that people can make their own Vodka and don't get poisoned. I'm not sure it's the way forward to suppress denatured Vodka. If everybody makes their own, and potentially sell their home-made stuff, how can you tell what's in it??? In any case, distilling machines are selling like hot cakes. Some (richer) people have even had their distilling machine tailor-made, with pipes AND TAPS straight into their living room. I am sure that even Vodka Bar down town does not have that.

Sandwich ideas

Unlike most of my workmates (if not all), I do not eat sandwiches at lunchtime. Mostly because I find sandwiches boring. I like the sorts I make, but not so much I would eat them everyday. Here are a few ideas:

Cheese and mustard:
Tried for the first time 2 weeks ago from an airport sandwich shop. Actually very nice!
Spread the bread with a thin layer of mustard and fill with your favourite cheese and lettuce.

Cream cheese and chilli peppers:
Tried for the first time a week ago from a petrol station sandwich shop. Amazing the culinery discoveries you can make whilst travelling...
Mix 300g of cream cheese with chopped red and green hot chilli peppers & parsley.

Celery, carrot and tofu:
Grate equal quantities of carrot, celery sticks and firm tofu. Add some yoghurt or mayonnaise or a mixture of both. Season with salt and pepper.

I am willing to try any sandwich recipe you may recommend. I love roast veg and mozzarella ciabatta but not really the fastest sandwich you can make at home, is it?

Submitted!

Forgot to mention earlier that I had just submitted my assignment: what a relief!

Trave has now revealed the box of chocolates he kept hidden all this time since Christmas. These are the wonderful chocolates from the Chocolatiers Glatigny in Alençon, which were a gift from my Auntie and Uncle. One of the best chocolates I have ever eaten.

Happy New Year!

Given my exam submission deadline, I have to admit that we did not do much at New Year's Eve.

With a nice meal cooked by Trave and a glass of Merlot, we watched Dark Water, which I gave to Trave for Xmas. Scary, spooky movie... It really gave me the creeps. To the point I had to hide my face from the screen and block my ears a few times. A very good film though. I have just seen on the IMDb that an American version of this movie was produced in 2005. The Japanese one dates from 2002. I really recommend the film, but don't watch it on your own in a damp flat...