So, the blog is up!

It's not perfect, and I have some tweaks to do, but the first two blog posts are published. The posting schedule looks like:
Main/big post every Monday.
'Tips' post on a Wed/Thurs
Link roundup on a Saturday (Weekend Reading)

The two posts that are up are:

How I finally fixed my sleep issues (for once and for all)

Three Fundamental Life Skills

I feel excited, but also sort of overwhelmed... blogging has changed SO MUCH since I last did 'serious' blogging. 

So, I organised to go and see my friend who lives in a town in Suffolk this weekend. In lieu with 'try and use alternative transport' and 'I don't really want to drive in the dark on Friday night' I looked up trains and buses and what have you.

And basically, it's shit. There's a relatively straightforward train journey there on Friday, but to come back on Sunday I have to take a train, a bus, a tube, and another train.

To get a coach on Sunday would mean a journey that would take SIX HOURS as opposed to 2 hours 15 minutes by car. (And that six hours doesn't even include the travel to/from the coach stop).

And the cost of this? At least twice as much as the petrol would cost to go by car!!

I think, maybe, touch wood, my period might be ending.

At least, no cramps today! And far less bleedage everywhere.

Money is going to be an issue reaaaal soon.

I worked out my budget and I basically have nothing left over after paying rent/bills/food. I really need P. to get a job that earns actual money. But no call from Waitrose yet :(

I spent pretty much the entirety of today playing Hearthstone, listening to music, and lying down with my eyes closed. I am not sure if that was a good day or a bad day.

I made this for dinner:

https://instagram.com/p/6acIcvJUwj/?taken-by=interfaceleader
(Edit: instagram's embed code doesn't seem to work... blah!)

It was super tasty.

So! I totally have money to burn occasionally spend on frivolous things. Like shoes! And clothes!

So I am going to buy these shoes with my next paycheque -- assuming my size comes back into stock anyway D: They are so prettyyyy!

I also desperately want to buy this dress, but it is way too expensive. And I would never have occasion to wear it. But it is so beautiful.

I want to buy myself a new top, as well. But I haven't found the right one. I used to have this lovely silk top with a belt that I LOVED. But it finally went at the seam, and I had to get rid of it :'( Haven't found anything I like as much yet...

Sooooo... the last week I haven't had internet, as I was housesitting and the internet was meant to be transferred from one phone line to another and instead got cancelled.

It actually ended up being rather nice. I did LOADS of reading. I walked over 60 miles over the week. I got a free foot massage from one of my webdesign clients XD And I got to hang out with two cats, drink hot chocolate, sit in front of a log fire, and generally have an awesome time....

.... and get paid for it.

Some bits were stressful. The house has this ancient coal-fired range cooker, and I nursed it like a baby I was so afraid it would go out (it heats the whole house, does the hot water, provides the cooking etc.) Also they had an aviary, and one of the birds died on Sunday :( Which was fine, he'd been sick and I'd been warned but it still felt a bit like... oh blah. Also I then had to handle a dead pet, which is kind of gross.

Also living in someone elses house is a bit weird.

Anyway. Home again now, and need to crack on with work. I have SO MUCH web design work it's ridiculous... which is either a good thing or a bad thing depending on how I look at it XD

I am consistently amazed at the number of people willing to let me live with them.

So many good friends xx

Officially back in the UK. Off to a housesitting gig on Friday. Lovely little farm out in the country.... with wood fires and an aga :P Haha, we'll see how well I cope.

LJ is crashing my computer o.o

My leaving do:


Such an amazing feast!

Someone rec me some Loki fic. Or good Sif fic. I'm not fussy.

I'm on a train tomorrow. Need something to read.

So I've been feeling a bit ropy since I left my gym - I took up karate again but that is only on a Saturday. I try and get to zumba classes, but with my commute I miss them more often than hit them... :'(

So I decided to look back into gyms, and I found this awesome FREE outdoor gym in Oxford that's more or less on my way home :D

It has a pull-up station amongst other things ;)

ALSO it's outside, and I feel like I don't get outside enough either! Now that's it summer, it stays light and hopefully warm enough that I can go.

So this is my tentative plan:

MONDAY / WEDNESDAY / FRIDAY: Gym & hand-weights - 50-60 minutes

• Warm-up - 10 minutes on treadmill


• Legs / Abs / Arms  (10 minutes on each, varying exercises)


• Cool down - 5 minutes on cross-trainer


• Stretch - 5 minutes

TUESDAY / THURSDAY: Zumba - 1 hour

Basically try my damndest to make it, but if not, so be it.

SATURDAY: Karate - 2 hours

SUNDAY: Gentle walk - 1-2 hours

Also, I am going to try and quit sugar again. We'll see how it goes o.o

Food plan for this week

MONDAY:
Breakfast: Yoghurt with seeds & nuts
Lunch: Baked sweet potato with side-salad & proteinball
Dinner: Home-made burgers & salad

TUESDAY:
Breakfast: Porridge with almonds & dried fruit
Lunch: Greek salad & proteinball
Pre-zumba: Nuts and fruit?
Diner: Chicken casserole (zumba night so eat late)

WEDNESDAY:
Breakfast: Porridge with almonds & dried fruit (I always have this, as I make it at work)
Lunch: Sweet potato & Salad & proteinball
Diner: Mixed-bean soup

THURSDAY:
Lunch: Mixed-bean soup & proteinball
Pre-zumba: Nuts and fruit?
Dinner: Ready-meal (zumba night so eat late - I usually get an innocent veg pot)

FRIDAY:
Lunch: Greek salad & proteinball
Dinner: Mac 'n' cheese with broccoli & salad

SATURDAY:
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with veggies
Lunch: Ham & beans & cheese on toast
Dinner: Chicken kievs and vegetables


SNACKS: Nakd bars (raw whole fruit bars with no added ingredients), yoghurt, nuts, fruit, dark chocolate, carrot and celery sticks


I miss my blender - green smoothies are SO AWESOME. But never mind. No point buying a new one until I get to the USA.