Love The Rains Down In Africa

I was hoping to catch up with Twitter and Facebook this morning, but alas, there is no power, so I shall begin my threatened long blog of the day on the laptop, and post it later. It rained last night. That lovely kind of rain where it just comes straight down, nice and steady, getting into every parched little crevice, and giving everything a bit of water. It all looks green and inviting now, so, having pocketed my sunglasses first as a precaution, not having been outside for so long, I went for my first proper stroll of the month, noticing various things that have not done so well during the month of me being glued to my computer. I believe that I am directly responsible for the untimely demise of some previously pretty spectacular annuals, which is not a good thing.

The most noticeable thing of all, apart from my skin having taken on a somewhat deathly pallor, was the definite air of squishiness about my person. It’s not as bad as I expected really. It’s fairly obvious that if you’re going to sit on your bum for a month or so, there will be consequences. And the cheese pancakes certainly haven’t helped either. But I’ve been blessed, so far, with a very tolerant constitution. Possibly the abuse to it in my younger years made it realise that it would just have to make the best of things. But I’m feeling the guilt now. So December, apart from Christmas day that is, will be a fairly holy month of healthy eating and exercise. It’s very easy to lose weight. When I was younger I used to starve myself in the quest for the perfect bod, but truthfully, you really do stay thinner if you eat quite a lot. It’s all in the timing. The secret is to stop eating at around three in the afternoon, and let your body get on with whatever other things it’s supposed to do, as it slows down, and while you’re sleeping. Chocolate is allowed instead of supper, and of course, occasionally, booze, but never as well as a meal, always instead of. A good breakfast and lunch is all you need to eat. Toss the eating after dark and you’ll be gorgeous in no time! So you see, I do now and then, share something useful.

I had a look at my planned final battle scene for Shadow People, and considered getting stuck into it tomorrow, and having a rest today, but I know that I won’t. That’s a new little secret that I’ve learned this past month. If you want to be a writer, you have to write every day. Even if it’s just a few lines. I think that if you lose touch with what you’re doing, even for a very short while, it gets harder to get back into it. I do anyway. Maybe my muse is more sensitive than she should be, and takes umbrage to being ignored at all. So I won’t let a day go by without letting her in again.

I’m looking forward to watching a movie or two also, and regaining control of the remote. That shouldn’t be too difficult. I’m a bully at heart really, all of us ladies are. The birds could do with getting around a bit more as well. They’ve been NaNoing too, and have gotten quite comfortable hanging around me, or rather on me, all day. Jack and Diane have taken control of the yard, which is a good thing, although they have developed a passion for Sweet Basil that has left me with none to cook with. I hope that no one will now suggest that they should be tastier than most if I were to cook them. Especially now that they are about to become parents. Tut, tut! There are four eggs in Diane’s messy nest now, and I’m really looking forward to meeting whoever pops out of them.

Before I stopped eating birds of any sort, I never really liked the taste of turkey anyway. It’s one of those traditions that a lot of people follow because everyone else does, I suppose, leading to most of the bird being tossed in the bin afterwards. I strongly believe that everyone is allowed to do whatever they choose to, and generally only concern myself with my own karma, which always requires a lot of work anyway. I am not as sweet as I look. And I don’t like holding forth and lecturing those people who do eat these things. Even though I don’t, I still do cook them for all the carnivores around me, but I never waste a bit. That makes me feel slightly better about the whole thing. So, leftovers into a stockpot please people! Turkey broth will make you a very nice soup as I recall, and that turkey guy who never got to see the sun will have served a purpose slightly greater than ending up in the rubbish. I won’t apologise either, if you now tell me that I’ve put you right off turkey altogether, because I really won’t be sorry at all. That was holding forth, a bit, wasn’t it? Aah well.

Till next time friends. xxx