Lately

A gorgeous day on Skomer

Lately I've been

reading: Fingersmith by Sarah Waters.  I've never read anything by her before and saw that this one was recommended as one of her best.  I'm about three-quarters of the way through and I'm definitely enjoying it, but after tearing through the first half I reached a bit of reader's block, so I put it down for a while and now I've resumed it once more.  It's interesting because I think a lot of us assume we know what Victorian life is like, but this shows a darker side to the usual 'posh person' or maid stereotypes. 

watching: too much! I'm at university now and am studiously ignoring the pile of books I've just got from the library.  At the moment it feels like all my favourites are back on - GBBO, Gogglebox, the Graham Norton Show - and so there's so much iPlayer and so little time.  I really enjoyed Victoria, despite the snottiness that surrounded it, and I'm going to watch the new series of Ordinary Lies (I hope they've still got the funky little theme tune).

Speaking of snotty, I went to see Bridget Jones's Baby the other day, and I really don't care what critics thought.  I laughed out loud, and had a really good time. Emma Thompson was a scene-stealing obstetrician, although I was slightly confused by a couple of cameos given to actors who really could have been given actual roles, such as Shazzer and Jude's partners. When it comes to upcoming films, I'm looking forward to Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, as well as Denial. 

listening to: Christine and the Queens, whom I saw on the aforementioned GN Show, and loved immediately. Check out It and Narcissus is Back.

eating: student food, woe is me!  In fact, I've been a bit better this time, and have been cooking actual meals as opposed to toast and pesto pasta.  One of my favourites things to cook is Sabrina Ghayour's lamb and sour cherry meatballs, but I've not had the patience or money to add every single ingredient and cook it for quite that long, so I've made my own simplified version. Of course, despite my best intentions, I've been snacking like mad on pretzels and amaretti biscuits.  Niche, I know. 

London Calling

pricy ane?

I've probably said this before, but I love London.  I live a few hours' drive away, so I usually make do with the odd day-trip here and there, but a few months ago a friend and I decided to bite the bullet and actually stay there for a couple of days. We rented a gorgeous Airbnb right on Brick Lane, aka hipster central (I say this fondly).  I think sometimes Airbnbs can be hit-and-miss, but ours was definitely a hit, despite the initial horror of unlocking the door only to find people inside - luckily they were the cleaners, rather than other double-booked guests. We didn't meet our hosts, but they left a very sweet folder of tips and recommendations, which was thoughtful.

My parents visited Shoreditch a year or so ago and were amazed to find themselves usually being the oldest people there. Walking around, I could really see what they meant. It is a hub of young, arty types with beards.  What was weirder to me, though, was the fact that this art hub was nestled right next to the City.  You could turn a corner and go from graffiti'd lanes full of ironic jumpers to Suit Central.

One of the brilliant things about Shoreditch is the fact that there's always something to look at.  Almost every building had something quirky about it, whether it was the design of the building itself or just street art of a giant cobra.

I am so hungry right now

Obviously you can't really go to Brick Lane without getting a bagel.  Generally I am not a big bagel fan. I find them too much hard work - too chewy, unwieldy and sticky.  But Brick Lane bagels are something else, particularly the salt beef bagels.  Not only is the bagel itself far softer than standard shop-boughts, but they are seriously stuffed to the brim with tangy tender beef. The ladies behind the counter may be slightly brusque (to me, anyway, a sheltered small town girl), but they are very generous with the salt beef.
However, salt beef bagels are not the only thing worth a pilgrimage to Shoreditch for.  Brick Lane is also the home of Dark Sugars, the ultimate chocolate shop.  When you step in and are instantly breathing in pure chocolate with a hint of air, you know you're onto a winner.  When their hot chocolates involve actually hacking off slivers from a lump of solid chocolate, it's a double win.  Those hot chocolates are the stuff of dreams. They're practically a pudding.  Needless to say, it's ruined hot chocolate for me forever and I will never be able to drink it from anywhere else again.

LOL

Did I mention that my friend pretty much took the reins completely when it came to what to do, where to go etc?  Well, she did, and it was a good thing - I am one of the most indecisive people in the world, and I think she knew if she left it to me we'd never get anything done.  One of her 'suggestions' was going to see a comedy show.  I've never seen live comedy.  I get easily embarrassed and I was convinced that I would be cringing throughout. How wrong I was.
We went to the Comedy Store on a Wednesday, which meant that it was the Comedy Store Players' night of improv.  I had even less clue about improv, and wasn't really familiar with many of the players (clearly I don't listen to enough Radio 4, because my dad was).  It requires audience participation (two words that would usually strike fear into my heart) but only a little bit, and only if you want to. The 'games' are all explained here.  Needless to say, I had an amazing time, and part of this was because everyone - audience and performers - also seemed to be really enjoying themselves. The atmosphere played a big part in making it such a good night.

London is currently under construction

On our last day in London we went to Skygarden, which is at the very top of 20 Fenchurch Street, aka the Walkie-Talkie building. I was pretty amazed that it was free to visit, only requiring booking in advance for entry.  Even that was less of an issue than I'd thought - my friend had somehow booked us tickets for three weeks' time, but they let us go on up anyway, complete with our going-home suitcases.
The gardens themselves are unfortunately a sideline to the amazing view of London that you get from the vast windows, so most visitors are staring out rather than looking in. From there you can see St Paul's, the Tower of London and Tower Bridge, as well as other assorted skyscrapers. Photos-wise, I am always amazed at the people who manage to get beautiful blue-sky photos, or stunning sunset shots.My photos are almost inevitably shades of grey, but I love London all the same.

What the Fudge

A couple of months ago our neighbour brought us some of the best fudge I've ever tasted, and trust me when I say as a fudge fan I've tried a fair bit. Said best fudge was (of course) homemade, using Nigella's vanilla fudge recipe.
It's taken me this long to try making it myself because I was scared, and I might have had a good reason. Fudge bubbles up a LOT.

Toil and trouble 

The thing with fudge is patience - and if you're using a sugar thermometer, make sure it works. I'd like to blame that for my less-than-stellar results, but they also say that a poor workman blames his tools.

The blob 

As you can see, my fudge didn't set. It wasn't far off, but it wasn't exactly choppable, either. The flavour was fine, but consistency? No bueno. Time for plan B.

Roly poly 

I took advantage of the fact that my fudge was super malleable, and rolled it into walnut-sized balls.

Chocolate chestnuts 

The obvious solution to any culinary problems is to cover it in chocolate, and this worked out pretty well. I used dark chocolate which stopped the extreme sweetness of the fudge from being too overpowering. Keeping them in the fridge also keeps the chocolate crisp and snappable.

Lately

A recent dishy purchase

Lately I've been
reading: Diary of an Ordinary Woman by Margaret Forster.  This book totally hoodwinked me.  It's written as if the author, Margaret Forster, has been presented with a collection of diaries written by Millicent King, who was born in 1901 and kept a record of her life from 1914 until 1995.  The idea was that Forster was given the diaries to edit and perhaps publish.  What I didn't fully grasp was that Millicent King is a work of fiction, as is the entire book.  It's amazing because Millicent is such a believable character, as are so many others in the novel, and she has such a strong narrative voice.
Next I'm planning on reading The Mitfords: Letters Between Six Sisters by Charlotte Mosley.  After reading Brideshead Revisited I became quite interested in Evelyn Waugh and the others of his generation, and so I've read a couple of books about that sort of period (Bright Young People by D J Taylor, Paula Byrne's Mad World).

watching: TV-wise, The Secret Life of Four / Five / Six-Year-Olds.  Like Gogglebox, this was something that I thought sounded awful when I first heard about it, and then as soon as I watched it I fell in love with it. Some of the lines the kids come out with are absolute gems - who licked the cake? "A giant bird came down... a mini-beast!" They're also so insightful at times, like when a six-year-old explained the concept of a democracy.  Really addictive viewing.
Film-wise, I saw Spectre and really enjoyed it, thanks to the amazing cast (mainly Ben Whishaw, if I'm being honest), although I can't help but find 'Bond girls' a bit ridiculous in this day and age. The film I was more excited about, though, was Star Wars: The Force Awakens. I've seen it twice already - the first time being the midnight showing because I'm a cool cat - and loved it both times. No spoilers, but Han Solo and Leia have always been my number one favourite film couple.

listening to: mostly (slightly cheesy) 60s stuff, like this gem from the Shangri-Las, Leader of the Pack, and Da Doo Ron Ron by The Crystals.

eating: everything.