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Saturday, June 3, 2017

Be kind to your body

Hello and good morning. As I was sitting here eating my breakfast while browsing the internet, I suddenly remembered, it is not recommended to eat at the office desk. I'm not sure why that is, possibly because it encourages you to rush food and get back to work, or, that you should concentrate on every mouthful and let your taste buds savour the moment without interruption. 
I must say, I don't go along with this, for me eating and looking at a screen go hand in hand. I eat more slowly while reading or watching a video. My breakfast has just taken me 25 minutes to eat.
I know a certain person, won't name names but someone I know well, who shoves his food down his throat at breakneck speed. When I am in his company eating a meal he always berates me for eating so slowly. He says I should eat it while it is hot because it will be cold before I am finished. I could never understand why this should be a problem, hot food cold food what does it matter. I think the fact that he is overweight says a lot about his eating habits. 
 Food digestion starts in the mouth, by chewing food and mixing it with saliva not only adds to the enjoyment of eating by titillating your taste buds, it also starts the breaking down process in preparation for it moving on  through the gullet and into the stomach. If you are going to force feed yourself your body will not be able to extract all the nutrients it needs, and you will probably end up with one awful belly ache as it struggles to break everything down.

I like the saying, 'your eyes are bigger than your belly', yes, it happens to me sometimes, but not very often. I nearly always eat everything on my plate. Occasionally I stop eating before it's all gone, and put it in the fridge for the next day, but not very often.

When I am at home all day my breakfast takes me 25 minutes to consume, my lunch 40 minutes, and my dinner 45 minutes. Admittedly when I was working full time I wasn't able to give so much time to eating, but now I am retired I am more mindful about how I should treat my body.

I prefer to eat alone, because I can concentrate on every mouthful, even in front of a screen. When I am in company I find it difficult to have a conversation and eat at the same time. My mum told me never to speak with my mouth full, and yes it is rude if your friends can see what's going on in your mouth.

I never stick to set times for my meals, I have approximate times, depending on whether my previous meal has gone through me quickly or slowly. I wait until my stomach tells me it is ready for more. Breakfast is about 8am, lunch between 11.30 and 1.30pm, dinner between 5 and 7pm.

Eating tons of food at a fast pace is basically self abuse. I sometimes read about eating challenges where people sit round a table scoffing vast quantities of one type of food, eggs comes to mind. Some of these people must be totally oblivious to the damage they are causing themselves. Indeed some of them do die. I would like to see this type of challenge totally banned. Aside from the health point of view, there is a moral issue that to publicly fill yourself to bursting point is an insult to those who don't have enough to eat.

To wind up, are you a slow eater or a fast eater? Do you watch a screen while you are eating, like me, or not? Do you eat alone or with others? Do you put too much on your plate, or is the quantity just right? Do you have a cooked meal at lunchtime or something lighter? Do you have a cooked meal in the evening or is that high tea time? Questions questions questions, come on, tell us your scoffing habits, or tell me to mind my own business, ha ha.

Thanks for popping in, have a nice weekend, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

Friday, June 2, 2017

A visit to Brick City, a Lego Exhibition.

Hello. Here are a few pictures of the Lego Exhibition on display at the moment at the 20 21 Visual Arts Centre in Scunthorpe, until the 20th of June. I was dead impressed with this. Warren Elsmore is an artist who gets to play with Lego all day long, a job I think many would like to do. He has had this passion since he was a young boy, now he is living his dream. I will leave you to look around. 









There is more information on his web site. 

So, what else have I been doing. The quilt is divided and and cushion pads/beds made. Now I need to make the covers.

I am giving the Summer House a makeover, some of the paint has faded so it's getting a lick of paint using the small sample pots. No buying new, I will use what I have.

It's good to see so many of you are still enthusiastic about walking, thanks for checking in with your miles. If you haven't already done so you can go to the 1st of the month post any time to update your progress.

That's lunch eaten, now I'm going to get on the sewing machine. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

Thursday, June 1, 2017

Calling all walkers, report here please.

Hello. My visit to Hull yesterday. First I drove to Barton to have a look at the exhibitions in the Ropewalk Galleries. One was closed due to installing new exhibits, the other was a series of paintings which illustrated Spurn Point, didn't like them much at all, and of course the prices were ridiculous. .

Then I caught the bus to Hull. The fountains in the city centre were advertised as something special, I was expecting them to be arty, colourful, and maybe a bit showy with background music. Like dancing fountains. Don't know where I got that idea from. Nope, It was a splash pad, with jets of water coming up out of the ground and lots of little children having fun playing guess which one is going to spurt next, and let's see what happens if I put my foot on this one. It was a gloriously hot day, ideal for a splash about, kids and mums alike were enjoying it. I remember seeing the fountains in Bradford five years ago and they were shooting up as high as the buildings. Maybe that's why I thought these would be the same. Sorry, no pictures, it is frowned upon to take photo's of small children in their underwear in a public place.

Next stop the Ferens Art Gallery to see the pictures from the Sea of Hull, you may remember that everyone was painted blue and photo's were taken at various locations in the city centre. I was hoping to see more pictures than what had already been shown on the internet. There were two that I hadn't seen before, a lot of naked people were photographed on the Humber Bank with the bridge in the background. They weren't blue, just their own naked skin in the buff. The blue ones I had already seen, albeit in a smaller screen size. Have a look at this report in the Hull Daily Mail on the opening day.

Also part of the Skin exhibition are several nude sculptures by Ron Mueck, some of them larger than life, some in miniature, all of them perfect in every detail. They are so lifelike you have to get up close to see where every hair has been inserted into the model. I was not allowed to take any photo's in the gallery, but if you check out this BBC webpage, there is a picture of the Wild Man. The man is a giant perched on a giant stool, the top of my head came up to his nipples. The rest of the exhibition was fascinating, nude lifelike bodies of different sizes.

I wasn't long in Hull, the bus journey took ages because of the heavy traffic. I picked up a few yellow stickers at Tesco in Barton. A nice cauliflower for 48p marked down from £2, TWO CHUFFIN POUNDS, good grief. Bags of salad leaves for 16p.

The duvet has been deconstructed, and is now three separate pieces, now to start sewing.

Hands up anyone who uses resealable packs as they are supposed to? I find that they are such a faff to get the two sides to stick together that I don't bother. I cut them off completely, fold over, and seal with a clothes peg. Simple. To the manufacturers, get rid of them and knock a couple of pence off the price.

Here's a thought, are young people losing their observational skills? I presented this at the checkout at Wilko, girl scanned it and held out her hand asking for 50p. Hey girl, open your eyes, what does it stay there? I do despair, no wonder the tills are being replaced by self serve, brains are no longer required to be a checkout assistant.

Now to the most important part of today's post, THE WALKING GROUP CHECK IN REMINDER. Come on, are you a bragger, or a fessing up participant, ha ha. Have you broken all records with your walking, or have you failed to get up off your bum? I am a bit of both. I will get on with it when I feel like it, or I can say stuff it, I'll not bother today. I am able to ease up a bit on the three mile daily walks because I have clocked up a few extra miles on longer walks. It's like a deposit account, today I have 570 miles in the bank. On the other hand, if I take my eye off the ball for too long there is a possibility that I might fall behind. I can't let that happen.

So how are you doing? Let us know so we can admire your stamina or give you a kick up the bum to get on with it. Only joking, don't get too hung up about the numbers, just do as much as you can. It needs to be enjoyable, not a slog.

Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Making crafty and useful stuff with fabric.

Hello. It's a lovely morning and I want to get on the bus and go to Hull, so here is a quickie. The notebook cover I started on Monday is finished. They are so easy to make, sew strips of fabric together with the machine. Add cross stitch and sequins, make a lining for it, and blanket stitch the top and bottom together, making inside pockets to slide the front and back cover in.  
Front. 
Back.

Inside front.

Inside back.



My next project. Unpicking the stitching on a duvet to separate the layers, which will then be cut up and made into cushions and pet beds.



Phew, I'm busy. Don't forget, walkers unite, it's the last day of the month. Tomorrow is check in day for the Walking Group, we want to know your mileage, whatever it is. I know some of you are forging ahead and doing splendidly, but it isn't a race, it's all about taking part. It's about doing some walking, it doesn't have to be marathons, you just need to get up off your bums and walk.
Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

Tuesday, May 30, 2017

Motorcycle gear for sale.

I haven't owned a motor cycle for many years, the last one was a Honda CX500 custom, which I sold more than 20 years ago before I moved house. But I kept the gear thinking I might buy another one, one day. Well that day has never arrived and I have moved on, no point in hanging onto my leathers, so they have to go. As well as the gear I am modelling here, I also have a good quality, padded waterproof oversuit. 
I've had a card in the local shop window for a month, no enquiries. I asked a friend who is a biker if he knows someone who might be interested, he goes on rallies and belongs to a club. He said he could ask at the club next time he goes. He might get there tonight after work, but if he doesn't he offered to photograph and put it on Facebook for me. I suppose I could do that myself but I don't want the faff that goes with it, people enquiring, coming to have a look, haggling over the price, etc.

This morning I had a brainwave. I don't need the few quid it would fetch, why not give it away, easy peasy. I don't want to put it on Freecycle or Freegle or whatever, you don't know who is coming to your house for it. I rang the guy who does the motorcycle training and he said he could find new owners for it. So, I have just delivered it to him, and hopefully some young trainee who perhaps can't afford to buy new, will get some benefit from it. Makes me feel better, gets it out of my house, sending it off to a new life with a new owner.

What goes round comes round. Janet gave me a lovely jacket, and a lady has dropped off an unwanted duvet with me this morning and I will turn it into cushions for the church. Recycling, reusing, repurposing, keeps stuff out of landfill, got to be good for the planet.

Second post today, that's ya lot. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

Inspiring you to walk.

Good Morning, having a flick round the internet before I get off my bum and do something. Noticed this on Twitter which might be of interest to some people in the UK, especially those who love walking. Yesterday was the start of The Great Big Walk, organised by the Eden Project. It's aim is for five groups of people to walk five different routes starting at Batley Yorkshire, in 21 days. They will be stopping off along the way meeting people at community events. Destinations are Scotland, Ireland, Wales, the South West, and London. Have a look at the web site to see if they are coming your way, you might want to go out and cheer them on.

Here is a little video



They are not coming past my neck of the woods, but no matter, I am happy to walk alone, but if you are looking for company, see if they are coming your way. Anything that promotes walking for exercise has got to be a win win situation.

Catch you later. Toodle pip
Second post done, no more today. xxx






Monday, May 29, 2017

Heidi learning keyboard skills.

Hello. It's goodbye summer and hello autumn here today. Damp and drizzly all day, now chucking it down with rain. Blow that for a game of soldiers, I'm not going out for a walk today, no sireeee. Twas a bit quiet at Crafty Club this morning, just the two of us, made a change because I could actually get a word in edgeways instead of battling against the banter going backwards and forwards across the table. Last night I machined a few pieces of fabric together to make a book cover to take with me. I added some cross stitch to it. 
This afternoon I made some more shopping bags, now I have 14 to sell on the cat stall next month. Owain the Welsh weather man kept me company, he is now a presenter on BBC Radio York, and his lively chat keeps me entertained.
My lunch today was a big fat sandwich. I am really getting into them now, and they are getting fatter and fatter as I stuff more filling into them. For dinner tonight I made a pan of this whatever you like to call it. A chopped onion, three mushrooms, handful of frozen peas, and broad beans, two pieces of frozen spinach, and some Quorn mince. It's sort of mild curryish with turmeric and vegetable granules for seasoning. Instead of water I gave it a slosh of cranberry juice. Served on a bed of tagliatelle. There is enough for two more meals which I will eat tomorrow and the next day. It's very tasty, and filling.  

Now I am being interrupted, Heidi's nose is two inches away from this keyboard, she is demanding my attention. I'm not going to get much more done tonight so I might as well give up. Perhaps I can get her to write the blog posts in future.


Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip.

Sunday, May 28, 2017

I'm in the pink.

Hello. I've had a nice day today. Did my walk straight after breakfast, a bit more painting on the garage door, made some plastic flowers on sticks, gave them to Janet to put in her pots, and she gave me a jacket that is too big for her. As you can see it fits me perfectly. 
Now I'm going outside to water the flower beds, then I have to get something ready to take to Crafty Club in the morning, need to start a new project that can be transported in a bag. Something small.

Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon. Enjoy your Bank Holiday Monday.
Toodle pip

Saturday, May 27, 2017

Saturday summary

Hello. We've had a couple of downpours today, not as much as those down south though. I was outside painting the garage doors, and had to hurriedly retreat indoors as the heavens opened. The job might get finished in a few days, I have a short attention span so I am doing it a bit at a time. Pity I haven't got enough of the same colour paint to do the whole lot, never mind, no one else will have doors like mine. 
The car was loaded up this morning, cat litter is flippin heavy, my poor springs. The Focus Estate is a good workhorse. A local cat litter factory has a clear out every so often and offers the cat rescues round here the old stock which they can't sell for one reason or another. Some of it is contaminated, a mixture of two or more different varieties, this happens when the packing machines change over from one to the other. Some of it is old stock which the customer no longer requires. Before they dump it in landfill they tell us to come and collect what we want. The men this morning were very helpful, getting it out with the forklift truck and helping us load it into the cars. It's good of them to offer it to the rescues first before it gets chucked, saves us a lot of money. 
I went to town this afternoon, needed to stock up on nuts and seeds for my breakfast cereals. Aldi for the nuts, Holland and Barrett for the seeds. While I was there I had a look at the new exhibition in the Arts Centre. Some amazing Lego models, I'll post some pictures soon.

I have decided to get rid of my motorcycle gear, I'm never going to ride a bike again so not much point in hanging on to them. I have a leather jacket and trousers, boots, helmet, and full waterproof suit. There's a couple of bike shops and a training centre on the way to town that might be able to make use of them, but they were closed today so I'll have to go back another time.

I am beginning to feel a bit out of touch with the pop world, it's all moved on since I was a teenager screaming at the Beatles. There is a big outdoor Radio1 pop concert on over the border in Yorkshire this weekend, and I've never heard of any of the performers. I hadn't heard of Ariana until this week. I have no idea who these up and coming young stars are.

Soon the pop festivals start, and I have to admit I have never been to one. The only festival I have been to is a truck festival. I can't see the point in being trapped in a crowd peering at some dots leaping about on a stage. You can look at the big screen but you might as well watch it at home in the comfort of your arm chair. Nope, I don't fancy that at all. Years ago I did see The Rolling Stones at Stafford, I was lucky enough to be at the front, and The Kinks and The Honeycombs at our local  dance hall, quite a small venue. Years later I saw Meatloaf at the NEC and Cher at Sheffield. That's about it, never been to a pop festival.

The sky looks very angry, looks like another storm is brewing. The cats are in and I am going to watch something on yooootoooob, so I'll sign off. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

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