o is for oktoberfest

Buttons loves beer!

Well, this has been one of the busiest weeks of my life!

We moved into our new place last Saturday and then I flew out to Stuttgart for a work conference on Monday morning.  Not the best timing (stupid landlord) but the royal treatment I got at Oktoberfest more than made up for it!

I really enjoy visiting Germany, primarily because ich kann ein wenig Deutsch sprechen!  It's fun to speak another language and feel pretty certain that you know what you're saying, and what is being said back to you.   But because of the move I didn't have much (well, any!) time to refresh my memory, so I flew out on Monday convinced that I'd be just smiling and nodding my way through the next few days.  But I surprised myself - I got in a cab and the words tumbled out, I remembered much more than I thought I would.

I started learning German at school when I was 12 and loved it.  I immersed myself in it whenever I could - I had a few pen pals in Germany (one I've recently found again! Hi Chrissy!) and my nan used to love the show Derrick which used to be on SBS. She would put the sound on for me so I could hear the German and she would read the English subtitles, so we'd both be happy.  One year my teacher gave me some German recipe books and I loved poring over them.  I used to make the jam filled terrassenkeksen from one of the books at Christmas time.  The last time I formally studied the language was about 14 years ago, when I did it at pre tertiary level in Year 11.  I was fine with reading and writing, but the oral examinations scared the life out of me, which put me off studying it at uni.  I really wish I had now.  Well, I wish I'd done a lot of things at that age ;)

But, anyway, it's amazing how adequate my schoolgirl German has proven over the years when I've paid a visit to Germany, and how much I remember within a very small space of time.  And even though most people there speak English very well, making an effort to speak the language is always appreciated and gets a good response, in my experience.  And it's so much fun too!

I had meetings on the Monday - it was a miracle I was lucid really, as I had been up since 4am and had two beers at lunch (that would make anybody sleepy!) - and then that evening was the gala dinner before the next day's conference, which was held at a restaurant called Kern's Pastetchen in the city.  The restaurant is quite famous for its wine cellar and wine shop, so we were certainly in for a treat.  The meal was spectacular.  I was prepared a lovely vegetarian alternative for the courses that involved meat.  This was the menu:

Appetiser: Pumpkin pudding with herbs and roasted pumpkin seeds (pictured above)

Soup: Cream of tomato soup (it was white but tasted very tomato-ey)

Entree: everyone else had a venison terrine, I had a salad of avocado, pine nuts, pumpkin seeds and schnitzel mushrooms.  This was my favourite dish!

Main: Poached egg on sautéed spinach with noodles and kohlrabi

Dessert: Plum dumpling with quark (like a cream cheese) ice cream and plum compote.  I loved the ice cream, it was a tongue-tingling sour sweet taste, and very creamy!

A late night ensued, as you might imagine - despite pleas of feeling tired I was cajoled into coming along to a piano bar where I was given amaretto sours and we sang along to the various piano songs until very late!

The conference was the next day and was really fun - I love meeting new people and mingling, so was in my element really.  The lunch at the conference was really good.  Lots of potatoes and dumplings :) It was so hot as well!  Every other time I've been in Germany it has been freezing cold (once in Munich it was -8 degrees every day and I had come very ill prepared!) so I had only brought cold weather clothes.  Nor had I been to the waxer.  Ooops!! ;)

We had a long lunch break so I took that opportunity to explore a bit of Stuttgart.  What a charming, beautiful city it is.  Church bells regularly sliced through the air as I wandered the Königstraße and the Schlossplatz.  Being too hot and sweaty to go clothes shopping (!) I looked at the architecture, bought an ice cream and sat on the grass and people watched instead.

Boots! In 30 degree heat!  I was dying....

I love foreign language bookshops too.  I get a huge thrill out of seeing my favourite English books in other languages and seeing what the title translates to :)

The conference ended late in the afternoon and after a brief power nap (see this post!) I did my hair "Fräulein style" (a plait on each side then put on top of the head with bobby pins) and headed off to the Wasen! A trip to Stuttgart's Oktoberfest was organised by the company hosting the conference as hospitality to the international guests and a thank you to their staff for a job well done.  I love places that have a "work hard, play hard" philosophy!

We took a tram there, and then wandered around to soak in the atmosphere. Two colleagues decided to part with 250 euros each and buy lederhosen!!  It was like a fun fair, with glittering sparkling roller coasters and rides, including one with "thriller" eyes!!

I was not talked into getting a dirndl (traditional female outfit, as worn by my colleague above) but I'm keen to get one if there's ever a next time :) I was fascinated to learn how one ties one's apron on the dirndl is indicative of marital status (steeped in tradition, way before Facebook!).  If the bow is tied on the left, the girl is single; on the right she is married or otherwise taken; tied in the middle means "it's complicated"; and tied at the back means she's widowed.  I had fun looking at all the aprons and seeing which way they were tied :)

We were taken to the first tent (or hall, it was, rather) and had only been sitting for 60 seconds when we were given a litre of beer to get stuck into! Fantastic!! And excellent beer it was too.

There was a band singing traditional Oktoberfest songs (rock style!) and everyone in the place was singing along, standing up on the benches, dancing and clapping.  It was a great atmosphere!  Everyone was smiling and happy and having a good time.  We were served dinner soon after the first few rounds of beers - it was much needed, to soak it all up! - and I had the speciality Käsespätzle, which is cheese noodles, and salad.  Everyone else had half a roast chicken each, and bread.  I was with about 20 people, so the whole table smelled like chicken!  The beer had gone to my head at this point, as I remember it smelled pretty darn good!

I got the impression that, compared to the Oktoberfest in Munich, Stuttgart's Oktoberfest is very much a local festival and not as touristy.  It was so charming and relaxed, with no one getting rowdy or annoying, as I half expected.  I was told many tales of Australians at Munich's Oktoberfest - apparently there's a line outside the embassy every morning during Oktoberfest of Aussies who have lost their passports in the midst of all the merriment.  I'm sure that's an exaggeration..... ;)

The evening passed with more beer, getting up on the benches and dancing, singing along to songs.  I was feeling the effects of my few beers and enjoyed singing "Twist and Shout" at the top of my lungs!  It was all over by about midnight and we got taxis back to the hotel - we took one look at the tram stop and thought not - it was like Jolimont station after a game at the MCG (if everyone had been drinking!).  No chance of an early night - more piano bar, more drinking, more singing, more dancing!

I absolutely loved Oktoberfest.  I can't believe I've lived on the doorstep of Europe for nearly five years and this was my first time!  I thoroughly recommend it!

I also recommend, when visiting Germany, chuck the low-carb plan out the window.  The bread there is phenomenal.  I brought some Brötchen back with me :)

Have you ever been to Oktoberfest, or to Germany? 

how to hide your tired eyes

If you are absolutely hanging because you made the mistake of moving two days before you needed to go abroad for work (!), been up since 4am and need to be alert and awake for conferences, meetings and lots of socialising, here's my sure fire tip to hide those tired eyes:

1.  Procure some chamomile tea bags from conference coffee station.

2.  Place tea bags in a glass of cold water for about ten seconds, just to get cold and soaked through.

3.  Set alarm for 15 minutes, squeeze excess water out of the bags and place one on each eye.

4.  Lie back and let your mind wander!

Not bad considering I couldn't see! ;) 

5.  When alarm goes off, remove bags slowly from eyes and look in the mirror - you'll see that any puffiness will have subsided and the combination of coolness, gentle pressure, aromatherapy from the chamomile scent and 15 minutes of rest has made your eyes bright!

6.  Do hair "Fräulein style" for Oktoberfest! 

What's your best tip to feel less tired when you have about 15 minutes to spare? :)

monday mantra

found via Beckyblog

how to break out of a running routine rut

source

It's Friday!! (puts head on desk)

I don't know about you guys, but the last few months have been a bit insane.  Tomorrow, Tom and I are moving!  We're no longer tenants living like rats in a basement flat, but homeowners! We also won't be living in central London any more, which is a bit sad, but we've done a bit of reshuffling of priorities and have realised that with all we want to do with our lives, something has to give somewhere so the other stuff has half a chance of happening.  So, we're off - we're going to have a break from city life and see how we do out in the country!  We're going to be about an hour out of London now, in Buckinghamshire, just on the fringe of the Chilterns and not far from Oxford.  It's so gorgeous and green.....some of the villages nearby remind me of The Vicar of Dibley (which was actually filmed nearby!)   We've got everything we need in our little town, about 20 minutes walk away, and the surrounding countryside is going to be wonderful to explore.  From what I've seen it's full of interesting walks through fields and woods and by the rivers, country pubs, farmers markets and antique shops.  I can't wait. 

But, as I said, it's taken quite a lot to pull this plan together and the last few months have been pretty full on - we've renovated our new home (from a distance!) and have had to go out regularly to check in on things, we've also been buying furniture, having scary meetings with banks and all the rest.  I think this is the ninth time I've moved in six years.  It's been really stressful at times.  But last weekend we went out to see it all finished, and with the smell of new paint and carpet heavy in the air, the place had been transformed and we knew in that instant that all the stress and sleepless nights and insane busyness had been worth it.  We have really outgrown our old flat in the city.  I'm sad to be leaving the area, but we're both so keen for a change!

And we all know that change is good.  

As you can imagine, with all these balls to keep in the air and also my decision to pull out all the stops and get the full first draft of my book done, it hasn't been the best time to stay motivated with a running routine!  I've done my best but I'm no where near as fit as I was when I was training for the Big M.  I've struggled a lot with this whole concept of "giving myself a break" because of all Skinny Latte's critics, they don't come much tougher or meaner than myself. 

For the past five years - or perhaps I should say three, because that's when life returned some semblance of stability! - I have tried to find a way of sustaining the healthy habits I formed while losing weight and getting fit so that I can maintain everything I worked so hard for.  The aim is not to be controlling or "on a diet" or anything like that, but just to be mindful and to be living consciously, and by doing that ideally I will catch myself before any emotional eating, lack of exercise because I've been too tired/busy, or any other behaviour or thoughts that aren't helping me, spin out of control.  I try to be compassionate but also not let myself off the hook all the time either.  I remind myself that it's up to me to make the life I want; I have the choice to eat food I'm not hungry for or whether to flop on the couch instead of going for a run.  I try to be honest with myself about where my priorities are and try not to be too damning of myself because I let life get in the way sometimes.  But it's a tough balance to strike, and I know I'm far too hard on myself.  Once upon a time I was stoked to be able to run for 20 minutes without stopping....these days I give myself a hard time because I couldn't run a half marathon with a day's notice!  Gee, talk about rough! I think I need to walk my own talk a bit more. 

Anyway, this was meant to be a post about running! :)

Even though I have been very busy, and despite the very pleasing fact I do have a full finished first draft of my book to show for my lack of running lately, I think one of the problems is that I was very bored with my routine.  I do the same runs, in the same places. I haven't had any events to train for either, and that's usually my biggest motivator.  But being bored is not an excuse for doing sweet F A.  I know that, you know that.  So let's do something about that, shall we? :)

source

Over the past week I've been trying really hard, amidst the moving madness, to break out of the rut.  Here are some things that have helped me:

source

1.  Change the music you listen to while you run.

This is a fantastic rut-breaker and probably one of the easiest changes to make - low effort but high impact!  Put some new tunes on your mp3 or iPod and you'd be surprised what a spring it puts in your step just having something different coming through your headphones, rather than songs where you know every lyric and every beat that you're almost on autopilot.

Skinny Latte readers have recommended the following songs to me in the past as their favourite workout songs, what are yours?

• "Hide U" by Kosheen
• Coffee + TV by Blur
• Transmission by Joy Division
• Hey Boy Hey Girl by Chemical Brothers
• Rebel Rebel by David Bowie
• Standing Next To Me by Last of the Shadow Puppets
• History Never Repeats by Split Enz
• "Circus" by Britney Spears
• Are you Gonna Be My Girl (Jet)
• Cows (Spiderbait)
• Holier than Thou (Metallica)
• Black Betty (Spiderbait) 
• Everlong and Long Road to Ruin by Foo Fighters
• "Don't Bother" by Shakira

Another thing you could try is getting a ready made playlist which is timed and comes with some coaching in between the songs.  I recommend checking out AudioFuel's Adrenaline Junkie 2  - the guys there sent me a complimentary copy to try out and, to my surprise, it was fantastic!  Just what I needed to add something fresh to the routine.  It's a great pick me up and the coaching bits come in at just the right moment - "you're on the home straight, stay strong!"  I also really liked the sprint intervals that came in too.  The way the beats are set up it's impossible to run slow, so if you want to challenge yourself and step it up a notch, as well as listening to something different, it's a great option!

source

2.  Register for an event!

This is the perfect motivator!!

If you're a beginner, why not register for your first 5k?  If you've done a few halfs, maybe it's time to consider giving the Big M a try?  Or a 16 miler?

Or, if you're a seasoned runner coming back from a little break, why not pick a distance that you know you can do but that perhaps would be a bit of a stretch at your current fitness - for me, that would be a half marathon.  Then you have something not too scary but very exciting and worthwhile to be aiming for!

For me, this is my plan once Tom and I are settled in to our new home: do a 10k in October, November and December, and a half marathon in November.

If you're in the UK, my go to for finding events in my area is the Runner's World Events calendar.  Put in your area, the distance you want to do, and the dates and see what comes up!

source

3.  Change your route.

Luckily this is going to happen for me without even trying (!) but if you're not moving to a new place and want to shake up the scenery a bit, have a think about other routes you could run along near you.  Maybe there's some roads you haven't gone down?  If you're in London, why not hop on a tube or bus to Regent's Park, Hyde Park, St James' Park or Clapham Common?  Oyster cards are light and can be carried easily in your hand or in a zip on your running pants or a spi-belt.  Or maybe there's a nice park near your workplace - bring your gear to work and head out after you knock off.

There's also a new thing that's just started in London called Home Run, where there is a guided run back to your area, and they take care of your bags, etc. while you're running and meet you at the other end.  Sounds like a winner to me - I don't fancy running from London all the way to my new home though, it's about 40 miles :P

source

4.  Get yourself some new gear!

I tend to run in pretty daggy things most of the time.  Ok yes, I wore eyeliner to the marathon.  But that was it, everything else was very low maintenance!  But I think it's nice to replace your old, feral looking gear and get something nice and comfortable to run in that makes you feel fabulous.  Splash out on a new running top in your favourite colour, or a new pair of capris or shorts.  You'd be amazed what a difference it makes.  And when you've got something new to try out, you've got to get out there and show it off :)

source

5.  Become a coach or a running buddy

This has been another surprising motivator for me.  Coaching Tom to run 10k with me and getting to experience a race together was just fantastic.  Seeing him transformed from a couch potato to someone who could run 10k and enjoy it was hugely satisfying, and realising that I knew far more about running that I thought I did was a big confidence boost!  He's been feeling a bit sluggish lately too so we're going to try and do another 10k together before the year is out.

If there's someone in your life keen to give running a go with you, take them up on it and run together!  It's so motivating, and makes the time go so much more quickly than when you're on your lonesome :)

Or, and this is something I'm keen to do in my new community, join a harriers group or running club!  Sweaty Betty have running clubs at most of their locations throughout the UK, and you can also find out about groups in your local area through sites such as Runner's World or The Running Bug.  Keep a look out for flyers in your local sports stores too - or just use your old friend Google!

Well, those five tips are usually what breaks me out of a rut with my exercise/running routine.  Now for the tricky bit - following my own advice! :P

source

What about you?  Any other tips for breaking out of a running routine rut, or a rut in general?

i had some dreams, they were clouds in my coffee

my victory latte - the morning after I finished my draft

Thanks for the feedback on the manifesting dreams podcast!  I hope you enjoyed it.

I thought it might be nice if I wrote down some of the key points from the podcast for you, so here you go - in no particular order (!), some notes from Aunty Latte and Aunty Creative Sprite (mostly the latter!) on manifesting and going after your dreams:

• Everything will unfold the way it is meant to happen.  
• Let the process of achieving your dreams express who you are.  Nicole, for example, loves road trips, so she centred her 50 states project around that.
• When you complete one dream,  the next one will come forward.  The only thing that changes is your desire and courage to reach into that well of dreams and pull something up.
• Dreams evolve with us.  The dreams you had at 16 compared to the dreams you have now are probably worlds apart.  Or perhaps you now have a different appreciation of the same dream; ie: it means something different to you now.  It will reflect who you have evolved into as a person.
• There is such a thing as the right time for a dream to happen, and that is part of the process.    
• Don't be afraid to do things alone, like travel.  Travelling alone is wonderful!
• Try to be centred in the present moment when you are living and achieving your dream - you've worked hard for it.  Enjoy it!
• Sometimes your realisation of a dream means a lot of change in your life, which also means change for the people in your life.  Sometimes they won't get it.  They aren't supposed to.  Be ok with that and keep going.  Part of the dream might require you to let things go to make room for the new.
• Sometimes trying to realise a dream brings about some heartbreak.  But there is no bigger heart than a broken heart: it heals in a different way, grows back bigger and gives you insight and perspective you may not have had before.  
• If things aren't happening and you keep hitting roadblocks, perhaps you are trying to fit an experience that is meant to be big into a framework that is far too small.  Think bigger! 
• You as a person need to grow, you are meant to step into the bigness of your heart's deepest desires and be the person you are meant to be.
• You have to believe it's possible; it doesn't matter how.  Let go of the how!  But you have to believe in your heart of hearts that what you want is possible.  Even if you only believe in it 5% - that's enough to keep it going.
• You are going to make mistakes, and you are going to be disappointed.  It's all part of the journey.  If you never get knocked down, you'll never know if you're doing it right.
• Share what you have learned with others.  Be generous with your wisdom; share your joys and commiserate over your mistakes and bumps in the road.  
• Continue to show up each day as authentically as you can, doing the best you can, until you truly believe that this is who you are and that this is possible for you.  Continuing to show up is what will get you there.
• Any kind of real, lasting change in your life has got to come from somewhere honest inside you.
• Sometimes you have to reevaluate your dream; if you keep hitting roadblocks, that can be a sign you should take a hard, honest look at your dream.  Are you trying to live someone else's dream?  Is what you're trying to achieve really lining up with what is in your best interests right now?  
• Sometimes you need to give it a rest and be ok with where you're at right now - take a break and chill out!  We all hit plateaus, both physical and emotional, especially if you've been through big changes.  Give yourself time to adjust to where you are in that moment.  That doesn't mean go back to your old ways or old habits, just keep moving forward and the ideas for what you need to do will come to you.  
• Don't confuse manifestation with control.  Think of it as a partnership with yourself and the universe; ideas will show up and it's your job to execute them.  When you lose sight of that and start to dictate or control how everything happens, you will inevitably be disappointed.  The only outcome you can control is assessing the situation and deciding where to go from there.
• You, and you alone, are the only person responsible for making your dream happen.  No one else is.  
• When you share your dreams with others, you will have your great supporters but you will also have your naysayers.  Stay strong and remember to take personal responsibility for your dreams and your happiness.  It's your dream, it doesn't have to be anyone else's.  We all have to find our own path.
• Celebrate your successes!! There are so many steps involved in making a dream a reality.  Savour each little victory along the way.  
• This is your life; there is no finishing line.  It evolves at a different rate for everyone and the time will pass any way.  You can't hit pause on a moment in your life.  Just decide to be the most fulfilled and happy that you can possibly be in each moment, because you deserve it.  
• Have fun!!
 

In a strange coincidence, since recording that podcast and thinking about what came out of it, I was reminded of this post, that I wrote just over a year ago.  In it, I listed a handful of things I thought I would like to have accomplished by 2015.  I realised that I've achieved 3 of them this year!  How cool is that?!  Isn't it funny how just putting it out there, in whatever form that might be, and then acting on the opportunities when they present themselves (instead of thinking "oh no, it's too soon" or "oh no, I could never do that!") can make things that once were daydreams a reality?

One thing I've also learned over the years about dreams and goals is that you are never obligated to them.  If something isn't working, you can change it. Sometimes you have to let go of what worked in the past when it stops working, or if things change, and find what works for you now.

The main thing is that whatever you're working towards should be making you happy.  I realise that life deals everyone a different hand and happiness is something not every one is lucky enough to have, but I think working towards it is certainly not a bad thing - in my case, I fought for it, insisted upon it and went to the other side of the world to find it.  Find your way, find your path.   

Every persons journey is different.  The main thing is that you're going somewhere.

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”

- Eleanor Roosevelt

celebration salad

celebration salad

Remember this post, where it really sank in for me that I now considered salad a special, to-be-savoured and looked forward to meal?  It's funny how it has reappeared in recent moments of celebration.  Once upon a time, my idea of "celebration food" usually involved one or all of the following: pastry, cake, chocolate, chips, cheese, ice cream, anything sweet, salty, creamy or crumbly.  Not that I don't still bring those out for special occasions, you understand (!), but it's funny how my idea of using food to celebrate has changed so much over the past six years.

Last month, I went away for nearly a week to finish my book.  It was a wonderful time.  I house sat for my friend the GP, in her lovely house in East Dulwich.  It was great to have an expanse of time ahead of me that was mine to fill as I pleased; no schedules, no plans, just as much writing as possible and the determination to reach the goal of typing "the end" on the first full draft.

My "office"!

With no schedule to keep to, I noticed how very in tune with my hunger I was.  I only ate when my body was screaming "food! Food!".  The rest of the time I was so preoccupied with what I was there to do that I barely thought about anything else.  And it was nice to prepare and shop for ingredients that were just for me, and therefore only my own tastes needed to be taken into account!  There were two lovely food shops near the house; a turkish grocery store with a selection of hummus that made my heart palpitate, and a French bakery that had delectable baguettes and croissants.  The grocers also had some lovely fruit, that was so photographable after the rain!

I love cherries.

yellow plums

breakfast: day 2

lunch/afternoon food: day 2

It was a blissful, albeit intense and mentally draining, stretch of time where the elemental facets of my existence (eating, writing, listening to music, doing yoga) felt like indulgences.  I had only my own whims and appetite to consider.  I assembled my favourite foods; hummus, dolmades, olives, fresh fruit, fresh pitta bread, and made platters that I grazed over most of the day while I wrote.  For dinners I would usually break about 9pm when my stomach was rumbling and make omelettes with artichokes and bunches of fresh garlicky chives from the garden.  My friend left me a pumpkin, which I roasted with chilli and handfuls of fresh sage (also from the garden) and then tossed through pasta or used in a salad.

Inevitable writing blocks were tempered with thicky syruppy amaretto on ice in a hot, deep bath, with the best of Nina Simone on repeat.

Exercise was a good unblocker too.  I ran two mornings I was there.  And in an attempt to drag some words out of myself I attempted to master headstand, the king of all yoga poses.  It didn't work (headstand, that is!). 

I stayed up writing most nights until 2am, until I had nothing left.   Each day I had "plot targets", in other words, I had to reach a stage in the plot each day.  I made the target every day!

writing detritus

On the last day, I remember having a brief lunch at about 2pm.  I didn't look up again until about 7pm when I realised I needed coffee if I was going to finish the book that night.  I wrote and wrote and wrote, barely aware of anything except that I was trembling with anticipation the closer I got to the end!  I finally wrote the last line at 10.19pm.  After taking a moment for it sink in, I rang Tom to break the news and spoke to him for nearly an hour, probably insanely high and ecstatic that I had reached my goal!  It was a chance to prove to myself that I could exercise the same discipline I applied to my running and fitnes goals when it came to my writing.  There really is no reason why I cannot do what I want to do.  I say "I don't have time", but that's rubbish.  I made time, and it happened.  There is still more to do, of course, but I am so much closer than I was before.

Finally,  after getting off the phone and sending about a million texts to anyone I thought might want to know, I realised I was starving.  And it was nearly midnight!

So I made myself this salad, and poured myself a glass of wine.

Celebration salad

• Watercress (or mixture of watercress, rocket, spinach, whatever salad leaves you like), enough to fill your bowl
• Fresh mint (not essential but very nice), as much as you like
• 4-5 thick slices haloumi, grilled
• Good quality fruit balsamic vinegar (I used pear)

Grill the haloumi, sprinkling the mint leaves over the top as you do.

Assemble watercress in your bowl, top with pieces of grilled haloumi and mint, drizzle over balsamic.  If you've never tried a fruit balsamic, might I suggest you seek one out?  They are delicious!  I love pear and fig, but I've heard blueberry is very good!

Every mouthful tasted exquisite.  It was one of the most memorable meals of my life.  

And now, having written this, I realise, especially when I look over the most memorable meals of my life (an Italian place in New York; the food at my wedding to Tom; this salad I've just described), that while the food was amazing and of great quality, it is the moments I remember, and that make the memories of every bite so much more potent and special.  I've eaten countless quesadillas in my time, but the ones I remember best are the ones served in the garden of that pub in Chalk Farm at our wedding.  I have eaten Italian food more times than I'd care to admit, but I'd never had someone take out a thick fold of 100 dollar bills and casually peel them off to pay for the meal like that night in NYC.  And as for salads, I eat them daily.  But this one was the best one I'd ever eaten.....because I'd finished my book.

What are your memorable meals?

breaking news!

Skinny Latte Strikes Back, this old blog, has been shortlisted for the 2011 Cosmopolitan Blog Awards!!

What an honour! Thank you so much to everyone who nominated me!  I just want to run up and down the street squealing, I'm so hyper and excited!! 

If you'd like to vote for me, here's how:

1.  Click here

2.  Enter your email address

3.  Click on "health, diet and fitness blog" category

4.  Click on Skinny Latte Strikes Back and then on "Vote Now".

5.  Tell everyone you know.

And you're done!

I seriously would be thrilled and amazed if you'd take the time to vote guys.  Seriously.  I will be your coach and cheerleader and weirdo blogging friend forever :) 

Normal service will resume tomorrow!  But until then....... *delighted squealing*!!!

manifestation: the podcast, featuring nicole!

Showing Nicole a good time in our favourite local pub!

My friend Nicole decided that 2011 was her year.

2011 was the year she was going to do something about her big dreams; dreams she had had for more than 20 years. After careful thought she distilled it down to four major things: to visit all 50 states of the US; to travel to Greece; to find her soul mate; and to find her soul job.

It's only September and Nicole has now done two of those four!  That's an excellent year's progress in my opinion :)

But more importantly, Nicole also decided that this was the year that if any of those four dreams didn't come about for one reason or another, she would begin the process of letting them go, and be ok with letting them go, so she has room for new dreams to come into her life.  She has realised that perhaps those two dreams she has achieved so far in 2011 had to happen first before the next two are ready to fully ripen.  Either way, she is open to the possibilities of whatever comes next, as there are always more goals to achieve and more dreams to dream.

We had many wonderful conversations about manifesting, and how wonderful it is when you are on the doorstep of making dreams come true.  We were having a chat very late on Nicole's last night in London, after a lovely dinner party with three quarters of the Antipodean Lady Mafia (and the boys), with a glass of wine close at hand, and suddenly Tom, having observed the two of us chatting, said "you should be recording this."

And so we did!

Please bear in mind that there was wine, lots of excitement and sleep deprivation involved in the making of this podcast.  I also say the "s" word at some point.

Bear in mind also, as Johan Hari said this week, that an interview is not an x-ray of a person's finest thoughts, it is merely a record of an encounter.

So, with that disclaimer out of the way (!), I hope you enjoy hearing what we have to say.  Hopefully you will feel like you were right there with us.

And Nicole is now in Greece, on her fabulous tour of the senses, living it up.  I hope she is revelling in every joyful, juicy moment of it.

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Download

source

How have you made / are you making your dreams come true? 
Do share in the comments below :)

monday mantra

source

how to have a great day

source

1.  Smile at people.  Especially on public transport :)

source

2.  Bring someone a cup of tea without them asking.

source

3.  Say thank you.

source

4.  Wear an outfit and some perfume you love.

source

5.  Walk outside and breathe fresh air. 

source

6.  Say "have a great day" to people.

source

7.  Read a book you love.

source

8.  Laugh.

source

9.  Smell something nice.

source

10.  Go to bed early.

What are your ingredients of a great day? :) 

And have a great one yourself!