Positivity

I received a comment in Chinese to one of my blogs - awesome, I was so chuffed and thanks to Google translate I could read it in English. We English speakers are quite pompous in a way, we assume (rightly I suppose) that the entire world understands what we're saying and because of this we often don't bother to understand their languages. I took French at school but really, outside the classroom what do I know? I used to read a French decor magazine to try to keep up, but eventually it fell away. We are, it seems, positive that the world will hear us.
Most people will have read The Secret, a lesson in belief. I met a young man, about 25 years old, he had uprooted himself and his wife, after reading the book, and left his small town in the Free State because he was positive that all his wishes would come true in Cape Town. Unbeknown to him his mother and siblings had reached the same conclusion and they all met up in Cape Town and by now I have no doubt their lives are fullfilled.
Dale Carnegie brought out the book The Power of Positive Thinking, last century (I love saying that)and the self help has continued from there. It's really rather difficult maintaining so much focus and being Mary Poppins on a daily basis. I have put my message out to the universe and I believe that it will be received and what I have asked will indeed happen. But we become impatient and want to keep sending memos and there are so many things we want (being greedy or needy or whatever). But positive thinking does help, we need to have something to believe in and I do believe that we control our own lives to a great extent by our actions and thoughts.
The love of my life goes into hospital tomorrow for a procedure, more about it next week. In the meantime please send him some positive thoughts and to my good Reiki friends please send some distance Reiki to Rowland, as I will be doing and I know all will be well.

Tuesday Tip

It being Meatless Monday I was slicing potatoes to make oven chips. Fish and chips for supper, it would have been aubergine pasta but we're having that tonight instead. I'm certain not everyone buys Mcwhatsits oven chips but if you don't know how to make your own, it's so easy.
Peel (or not) your potatoes, cut in half and slice at an angle so that the potato looks like chips. Dry your chips in a teatowel, put into a roasting pan, add about a dessertspoon or so of olive oil, toss around and into the oven at around 180. After half an hour I add the fish if that's what we're having, otherwise cook for about one hour. Delish.

Excess

Do you ever get the feeling that there's just too much in a world where there's too little?
We really enjoy movies and apart from a drought when our kids were young we were regular cinema goers. We watch the movie shows on TV and remark how much we'd like to see certain (most) films. But, there are just too many. I don't know what the annual output is from Hollywood and beyond but we certainly can't keep up. Fortunately, because there are so many, most of them quickly appear in the DVD stores or on TV. But we still don't have enough time to watch them all.
How about food. For the last few years we've been bombarded with sugar. One side saying how bad it is, diabetes raises its ugly head (yes, even in our family), children are becoming rounder (not in our family I'm happy to say) and while all the debates go on, what do the manufacturers do, they add more sugar! A few years back Black Cat Peanut Butter, our favourite, was given a redo, instead of containing only peanuts, it suddenly had sugar added. Major outcry from thousands and we now have it listed as "Original". And my beloved Special K, another make-over, now it's too sweet and I'm looking for something else.
But it doesn't end, there are so many Barbie dolls, Fashion dolls, Brats (real and vinyl) etc. etc. that the poor overprivileged child is at a loss when she has to pick one.
The bottom line is that we have come to expect more and more. I'm really looking forward to the next Harry Potter movie, because it isn't following hot on the heels of the previous one. Does anyone under the age of 25 understand how you can salivate with expectation? Yuch that sounds awful but I think you know what I mean.
Was it Mr Barnham who said "Leave them wanting more"? I'm not sure but who ever it was was so right.
And yet, there are more people starving and living in abject poverty than ever, ever, ever.
Do they care that Brangelina are rumoured to be breaking up, do they care that Richard Branson may buy a bank and frankly, do they care how much sugar is in my peanut butter. I think not.

Say what?

Gender-wise, what is the opposite to misogynist?

Tuesday Tip

Rolling pastry is particularly difficult in this hot weather but no matter if you make your own or buy ready made here's the tip to really thin pastry, Instead of flouring the board, place the pastry between two pieces of cling wrap and roll it out. It's amazing how easy it is.
When I first saw this on one of the cooking programmes I thought it wouldn't work but happily it does and you don't have to keep adding dollops of flour.
Have a good one.

Words

Every so often a word comes into common usage, in the right or wrong context and can at times become annoying. Pre is one of my pet peeves and I would get tired of hearing people announce "it's no criteria" when something was up. My new best non-friend is "investment"
I am invited to attend a course, lesson, talk etc and my "investment" is only Rxyz.
Folks, it's not an investment, it's the cost of the event, just as that pre-owned car is in fact second-hand (or third).

Tuesday Tip

Sorry it's late, pesky computer broke but we're up and running again.
Two tips today, one to help in the heat and one in a similar vein to Cabbages & Kings.
When invited to a dinner party (which you will of course attend having accepted the invitation, not so Sandra?) please don't take a bunch/bouquet of flowers to the hostess. A charming gesture but, she will be quite busy when you arrive and probably won't have time to find a vase and arrange the flowers and it looks a little tacky to have them lying in the guest basin for the evening. If you feel compelled to give flowers, please give a ready made arrangement.
For the young mothers who are dishing out ice cream in the hot weather, dip the ice cream scoop into water between scoops and the ice cream won't stick.
I heard a lovely story of a lady who told her children that the bell they heard from the ice cream man was to let everyone know he was going home.

Fireman Fred is not a swear word

Sara-Jane and Jeremy have been dropped off at 6.15 each morning (aagh) for the last three days, I drop Jeremy at daycare and Sara-Jane comes to work with me, she's helping with some paper sorting.
This morning Jeremy and I were discussing music, he likes the Parlotones and Panic at the Disco, not too shabby. He started singing a song but stopped and said "but I can't say that word Granny". Too true. He then told me about swear words and pointed out that the worst one is "the F word" but, he doesn't know what it is.
"Perhaps it's Fishcakes" I suggested. "No". "or perhaps Philadelphia?" "No"
He was clearly pondering all the f words he knows when he pointed out that Fireman Fred isn't a swear word. Thank goodness. For those who don't yet have preschoolers there is this wierd way of learning the alphabet which takes perfectly simple letters (as in a-z) and complicates things by giving each one a title as in Annie Apple, Bouncy Ben, Clever Cat etc.
It makes an adult want to say sugar or even funky.