It's an extra long one for me as I also took next Tuesday and Wednesday off. The break between New Year's and Easter can be just too damned long sometimes so I treated myself to an extra few days. I've decided that for at least one day this weekend I'm not going to get out of my pyjamas at all. I'll get up, park myself on the couch, and try to make a dent in the stuff I've got backed up on the PVR. I won't even bother to make the bed. I'll just leave everything arranged in a me-shaped cocoon for when I eventually go back to bed that night. It's gonna be awesome.

Also awesome? These cookies, the first batch of which is in the oven even as I type this.  The recipe popped up in my reader the other day and I knew right away I'd be making them because I loooooove those Cadbury mini-eggs. Thank god they just come around once a year otherwise I'd be out running a whole lot more than I am right now. You know you're over halfway there when the batter tastes great (although with a cup of butter and two cups of sugar, I'd defy any recipe not to taste good at that point). It's a case a sheer willpower at the moment to not take a spoon to the bowl and polish it all off right now, because between the butter, sugar and the mini-eggs...oh man, it's calorie heaven, let me tell you. 

And the verdict is...

 
Wow, it totally worked!!


Well, mostly, if I must be completely honest...
    

So my dough-rolling skillz clearly need some work! I thought I was keeping the roll tight but clearly this was not the case, or else I just need to over-compensate a bit to account for separation that might have happened during the second rise. The bread should look like second picture all the way through, but you know what? I'm going to refer to it as "rustic", heh. 

I'm attempting bread today. 

And we're off! 



After two hours: it actually rose, and passed the poke test! 



And now we roll...


Cinnamon sugar plus some raisins, what the heck. In for a penny, in for a pound, right?


 
Tres cute! All snug as a bug in a rug! 

And now another 2 hour rise. Good job I didn't start this any later than I did! The bread should be going in the oven around 9.30.


Right on time!

Must resist urge to pull up a chair in front of the oven and watch it bake

So in about forty minutes from now we'll see how I succeeded on this spur of the moment baking experiment!

ETA: oh my goodness, I can smell it already. YUM. This is going to be torture!

ETA2: seriously, if you could bottle the way my apartment smells now, you'd make a mint. 

ETA3: 5 minutes to go!


Done!



    




It's probably for the best that I'll have to wait until tomorrow to actually taste it. I have a feeling I'd eat myself right into a carb coma if it was cool enough to cut into now. Here's hoping the texture matches the aroma although even if it was the toughest bread around I'd still eat it because anything that smells this good cannot be all that bad!

I'm curious to see how well the rolled layers held together. I don't know if I was keeping the dough tight enough when I was rolling it off the counter but if it doesn't stay together quite as well as it should, you know what they say, right? Practice makes perfect!

Pictures of the cut loaf to be posted tomorrow! Until then, enjoy the wonderful cinnamon-y bread smells that I can assure you are wafting from the pan!

 A few little somethin'-somethin's to celebrate the end of a damned long week:







There are two bananas mixed in there somewhere so it's totally healthy. 

Why yes, my apartment does smell terrific!

If you haven't heard of Adele yet, you're in for such a treat. She's a young British singer-songwriter with a voice and presence that'll give you goosebumps. I can only imagine how her talent and expressive abilities as a singer are going to deepen and mature as she gains experience. She already sounds mature beyond her years and as a personality she seems extremely lovely and gregarious. Check it, all you other 'singers' and 'artists' who  wouldn't know what to do with faced with a live mike and no backup dancers. This is how it's done:

NPR's Tiny Desk Concert

Various video links

Rolling in the Deep

"21" (full album preview via NPR)

It's been quite awhile since I've bought a CD or have been so interested in a new artist. I'll be making a trip down to HMV very shortly to pick up her new album, "21". 

Pied de Pepper, that's how.

My feet get pretty rough, what with the running and the sandals I usually wear all summer. This stuff is the only thing I've found that actually softens my feet and keeps them looking and feeling smooth. I haven't had any for quite awhile and the state of my feet tells the tale - dry, rough and cracked. And lately my hands have been drying and cracking something terrible, which is not a problem I've ever had before this winter. I kept meaning to pick some up but for whatever reason never managed it, but tonight  I just had to take a quick detour to the Lush store on the way home. This stuff works wonders not only on my feet but also my hands, which stands to reason really - if it helps my feet, it'll work just about anywhere (and does - it's a lovely all-over body lotion with a light, spicy scent). I've used Pied de Pepper in conjunction with the Volcano Foot Mask, which is also divine (and which also makes a great hand mask because it's a bit messy to put on so the first few times I figured if it's all over my hands anyway, might as well do a mask out of it. Worked a treat!) I'll be picking up some of that soon, but for now the Pied de Pepper is a total R-E-L-I-E-F. 

Also a relief: I'm getting my hair cut on Thursday. I'm overdue by *months* and it looks terrible. I'm also way overdue to colour it, so between the look and the grey, I've just resorted to wearing it back in a ponytail. It's just about bra length and basically all one length, so overall very shapeless - a couple of inches are coming off for sure. I think I'll wait until summer to go short (with our freezing cold snap lately I'm just not feeling the short, cute cut) but my plan is to go about shoulder length - I'm taking these pictures of Gwyneth Paltrow to my stylist. I like the slight angle of the bob, too. Overall it's a longer version of the short cut I've had done in the past, and I know the bob style is one that works very well for my hair and my face shape (the short cut in particular looked terrific, and I loved it a lot).

One idea I'm mulling is adding a side-swept bang to the longer bob cut. I can't find a picture that matches exactly but this sort of idea. I think adds some playfulness to the style, but I keep asking myself just how much that bang is going to annoy me once it starts to grow out. The answer? Probably a lot. I haven't had bangs since high school and I remember they were a *bitch* to grow out, not to mention the constant pushing them out of my eyes, so I'm still contemplating. Personally I think they'll work better with the shorter bob, a la Nicole Richie (I mean seriously, how cute is that second picture, right?) So I have a feeling that's what I'm going to do - just get some length off now and some shape put back into it, and then take it short for summer. Maybe by then  I'll have reconciled myself to having bangs again!

Seems like any damage that was done when I last kissed the pavement while out running was mostly confined to the day of the fall, and even that was limited to a bit of swelling and stiffness in my knee and tenderness in my shoulder. Long about Tuesday I entered the purple, green and yellow phase  with the bruising on my shoulder but it wasn't particularly sore by that time. I eased off any exercising for a few days of course, but as the week progressed with no signs that my knee was out of whack, I slowly began doing my usual in-home workouts but limiting the jumping or squatting moves. By the weekend I felt ready to get back out on the road which I did with no ill effects at all. Best part? I stayed on my feet the whole time, heh.

I was really looking forward to getting out for a run today but we're at the start of what is forecasted to be about a week of rain, and while I've gone out in the rain before (out here on the Wet Coast it can hardly be avoided) i just wasn't quite in the mood today. So I went down to the gym and hit the treadmill for an hour. Turns out I'm actually running faster than I used to be, which I had sort of suspected as I noticed I was getting around my usual routes a bit faster than I did before. My average 5k time was always about 37 minutes or so but my pace now seems to be about 34 or 35 minutes. I did a speed workout for half an hour where I slowly increase the speed each minute, then spend ten minutes running at the top speed before gradually coming back down. It was fun and I felt great, and it was gratifying that my starting speed was quite a bit higher than I used to run on the treadmill. Of course at that time I was a good 30 pounds heavier so I've no doubt that's a factor in my improved speed. 

I didn't have any errands to run today so it was nice to just come back from the gym, have a good hot shower and then putter around the apartment for the rest of the day with hockey on the television in the background (it's Hockey Day in Canada today so CBC is All Hockey, All The Time). I'm trying a few new recipes today, too: Kale and Eggs (scroll down) which was so yummy. I love kale, and it paired really well with the eggs for a fast, simple recipe that was a perfect post-workout meal. Right now I've got a pan of vegetables roasting in the oven (with another pan waiting to go) along with some garlic, so trust me when I say my apartment smells amazing. For supper I'm making this pasta with lemon and garlic, which is why I'm trying the roasted garlic recipe. I figured I could have done the garlic as the recipe suggests, but then thought that roasted garlic would be a pretty tasty substitute.

Speaking of that spaghetti, time to do some zesting and squeezing!

 

My left shoulder, courtesy of a tumble I took while out running on Saturday. It goes rather well with this:



As well as this:



I do so love to spread the joy around, you know?

Despite the look of my knee, it was my shoulder that took the brunt of the impact. There I was, running along and enjoying a crisp, sunny Saturday morning when the toe of my shoe caught a piece of uneven sidewalk and just like that I was hitting the cement. I hit with my right hand, hence the bruise on the heel of the hand, then came down on my left forearm and knee, followed by my shoulder. There wasn't even a second to realize what was going on - one moment I was up and the next down - so no chance to try and regain my balance and stop the fall. 

To say this happened on a main thoroughfare goes without saying, right? 

I got right up and walked to the end of the block, feeling like a right idiot and also just so mad for a few reasons. One, there went the running for the morning and the rest of the week as I did a quick check on my knee and saw the big scrapes, so I knew there'd be some soreness and swelling happening. Two, this pissed me off because my knees have been so good for the past two years or so (KNOCK ON WOOD) but I'm always half holding my breath hoping nothing sets them off again. Falling on cement is not exactly treating them nicely, is it? So I'm thinking shit, is this going to be the thing that gets them swelling again? Then three, I was on a schedule that morning as I had to be downtown for 11.30 in order to meet my friends who were helping me pick up the couch. I also wanted to go to a great bagel place about a fifteen minute walk from my place in order to pick up some bagels for them as they really like these bagels and I thought it would be a nice surprise to have them on hand when we went to pick up the van. My plan was to get in an early run then on my way back stop in at the bagel place and carry on home, getting back about 10am to have time to shower, have breakfast and then catch the Seabus downtown. 

When the fall happened I was almost at exactly the furthest point from my place and the bakery, and had I packed my bus pass LIKE I NORMALLY DO this wouldn't have been a problem. However, I didn't for whatever stupid reason, meaning I had to walk the rest of the way home. So on top of all the other reasons to be mad, there was the additional 'insult to injury' that chances were excellent I wouldn't have enough time to pick up the bagels, and I was also getting some almond butter from the same place for a co-worker (they make it in-house) so I just wanted to get that all done in the morning. 

Basically I swore and cursed at myself the entire way back (as bus after bus zipped merrily by me) but I motored along and decided to take a chance on the time and kept going to the bagel place. I made it back home and pretty much just threw what I needed for the day into a bag and headed back out again. I made it downtown on time and after a start to the day like that, was fortunate that nothing else went pear shaped. I only had a minor amount of swelling on the front of my knee, as one might expect, but aside from some stinging and a bit of stiffness and soreness, didn't experience any pain there at all even though I carried on walking on it for basically another 45 minutes. My shoulder was sore, though, and my hand became progressively more tender as the day went on, although it's fine today, aside from the bruising. With running off the agenda for the rest of the week I decided to just go walking today and my knee was perfectly fine. What swelling there was seems to have gone so I'll just take it easy and if nothing else happens this week go out for an easy, short run on the weekend. And remember to PICK UP MY DAMNED FEET. 

I guess 2011 is the year I start approaching adulthood, what with getting a microwave and chest freezer. The growing up process continued over the weekend as I acquired a couch and coffee table. Both are secondhand, and it's a futon couch (which I tend to think of as not a 'proper' couch) but at $60 for both I couldn't pass it up. I've been contemplating couches for ages now and while I initially wanted a 'real' couch, I soon came to realize that issues relating to the layout of my apartment would seriously impede getting one inside. At first I thought the problem was after getting it in the living room which is around a short L-shaped hallway/corridor that leads in from the front door. My worry was always how to get a three-seater couch around that bend, and what if it didn't fit? There was no option to try and bring a couch in over the balcony - I'm a good ways off the ground. And getting a two-seater love seat style was also out of the question as I wanted something I could lay down on and stretch out my legs. 

After a lot of thinking I eventually decided against getting a proper couch because I just wasn't confident I wouldn't have issues with getting it to the living room. In actual fact, I eventually realized that this was the least of the problems associated with a couch. Coming home one day I was standing in the hallway preparing to unlock my door when I was struck by the fact that as my door is located along one side of the hallway and not at an end, bringing a couch to the door would mean the couch would be parallel to the door and would have to be tipped up on its end so it could be positioned perpendicular to the door in order to bring it into the apartment. I'm not sure how clear that visual is but basically there is no room in the hallway to change the orientation of any couch longer than, say, a love seat so really, my problem wasn't how to get it around the L-shaped bend in my apartment, it was getting it through the front door in the first place. 

That officially put the dream of getting an actual sofa on hold until such time in the future when I'm living in a place that is better positioned for moving large pieces of furniture into. It's a shame because I saw a couple of really nice couches that totally fit what I was looking for but there was no point if I couldn't get them into the apartment, which was not something I wanted to find out at the time of delivery. So I went back to the thought of a futon couch because I knew I'd be able to bring that inside in pieces, so the issues with layout and whatnot wouldn't be an issue. I figured I'd just get a simple frame as I already had a futon which, even though it was ten years old, would be fine for me to sit on until I got a new one. Turns out the wood frames are more expensive than I was prepared to pay. I mean, I like futons but honestly, most futon couches do look like they should be basement furniture, if you know what I mean. So being asked to pay $400 or $500 just for a frame annoyed me to no end. 

Over the holidays I settled on a basic black metal frame figuring what the hell. I was tired of thinking about the whole couch thing and just wanted something that fit my needs and budget. I was going to pick it up this month but then last week a friend forwarded me a sale listing from their internal whiteboard. A co-worker of hers was selling her futon couch. The futon was only a few years old, the frame was wood, and it came with a green/red/neutral cover. The price was $50 but if I wanted to coffee table too I could have both for $60. Since I did actually want a nicer wood framed futon this sounded very promising, and when I saw the picture I immediately told her I'd take it. On Saturday I rented a van and friends helped me pick it up and then assembled in my apartment. I think it looks really good:




After we had it set up, the three of us sat in it and were surprised at how roomy it is. You'd think that it might be a bit of a tight fit for three adults but that wasn't the case at all. In fact, I remarked that we still had room for a few chip bowls between us! And the futon was incredibly comfortable, not to mention I can lay down and stretch out on it completely. So all in all I was pretty happy with how it all turned out, not to mention I can finally stop thinking about couches (and devote even more time to contemplating a new computer, but that's another story!)

It seems weird, though - like, I have furniture, wow! I've never accumulated any sort of furniture because for a long time I was moving a lot. I looked at any significant purchase in light of how I'd feel having to carry or move it up and down stairs at least once a year. That generally put the kibosh on most things and I just got used to living light. Furniture was just never a big priority for me, and it's not like I ever felt the need to host lots of dinner parties or whatever, so what I had worked just fine for me. But even though I've already had a thought or two along the lines of  'okay, that's more stuff to move should the time come' I will admit that I'm quite happy to have it. I mean, if push came to shove and I ended up moving somewhere far away, I'd be fine to sell it or just leave it behind. But in the meantime it's so nice to come home and have something set up that's cozy and comfortable. I mean, it's starting to look like a real living room. How cool is that? My next plan is to get an extra chair, like a recliner-type deal, and start to put more things up on the walls. I have a whack of pictures I've been meaning to frame for ages, so this is good motivation to get on that. 

Sometimes this growing-up thing can be fun!

Over the weekend I dropped my landline in favour of my cellphone, figuring I didn't need to be paying for two phones when I don't really use either very much in the first place. The only reason I was keeping my landline was for long distance calls because for a long time there just wasn't a comparable plan for the cell phone. But now that there is a similar plan it really seemed to make sense to get rid of one phone, plus this is 2011 and it's about time  was dragged kicking and screaming into the Century of the Fruitbat, to borrow some words from Terry Pratchett. 

So out to the Telus store I went on Saturday and in about ten minutes had the order submitted, including porting my landline number to my cell phone because that's my main number which I've had for ten years, and I didn't feel like having to notify all and sundry that I now had a new phone number. At this point I would like to note that earlier in the week before deciding to do all of this I contacted both Telus residential and mobility to confirm that my television services (I get Telus TV) would not be affected when my landline was switched off. I was pretty sure the TV service was connected to my landline, and if that service went then obviously my television would be affected. However, I was assured by both residential and mobility that this would not happen. ASSURED.

The transfer was completed this morning. When I came home tonight I had no television service. But of course.

The best part was, when I logged onto my residential account, there was no mention of Telus TV at all. Like, talk about wiping information from your account lickety-split. So after spending some time with both residential and mobility (as each sent referred me to the other several times during the course of the conversation) basically my options were either to port my number back to residential so they can re-establish the line to be used for the TV services, which meant I'd have to get a new phone number, or have another phone line installed for the TV services (a dummy line, essentially) and keep the number I ported to my cell phone. Since the whole point of doing the switch was so I didn't have to have a new phone number, I opted for Door Number 2. 

And of course a technician has to come out to install the new line, and of course they have to come in to the apartment - funny how they can cut off the line without anyone coming out, but not to set up a new line, even when the physical hardware and whatnot is already existing, you know? The earliest date I was originally quoted was January 19th (!) but the guy I was speaking to didn't want me to wait that long, especially given this was their damned fault in the first place for not advising me of the correct procedure in terms of the effect on my TV services. So now he's going to try and have a technician come out either Friday or Saturday. Knowing my luck it'll be Friday and I'll have to take time off work. 

I made sure to let him know that should there be any activation charges associated with this that I would not be responsible for them, and he assured me - ASSURED! - that this would not be the case. Yeah, I'll be calling back to confirm that a few times. I just can't imagine that the service will just be up and running with the same packages etc. I previously had, and there not be some problems. 

Gonna be a fun weekend.