Sunday, 2 December 2012
The Good Old Days....?
It's funny, if you've ever spent time around grandparents, and even parents, there comes a time when soon enough they would say something like this:
"Well, back in my day...." or
"I remember the good old days, when...." or
"Things just aren't the same as they used to be...." and
"You young people are spoiled these days, we never had anything like..."
Kids laugh it off and think in all seriousness "wow, you must have been around when the dinosaurs lived!"...
Friday, 30 November 2012
Determined...
Life can hit pretty hard sometimes... and often when you least expect it...
I have admired the courage of people I know, who recently suffered terrible angst...
One family had their young teenage son die through an unexpected tragedy...
The other family had their son go missing for four days... with the weather hitting all time lows and the highest recorded temperatures for this month EVER!
Yet, both had an amazing strength and resolve to trust God regardless...
Fortunately for one family, their son who went missing was found and is now in hospital recovering from sunburn...
I have had my own share of extreme trials, and I am reminded that these times can shake us to the core... yet, I have found that my hope & faith in God has given me the strength to face these times and know that ultimately He will work things out for my good... according to His promise in Romans 8:28
Monday, 26 November 2012
2nd chance...
I was thinking this morning about all the cool stuff my family have made with recycled timber... and it was in hot demand by specialty furniture shops in their locality... and you can see some of it in my previous posts...
Then, I thought that I'd like to share another cool thing my dad made...
This recycled timber coffee table was made from old verandah posts and an old road sign... that seemingly had no further value in the eyes of the owner.... the house was condemned to be demolished and the road sign made redundant - to be replaced by a new aluminum sign...
It reminds me, that sometimes in life, we can feel that we have messed up things up so big - that there seems no further value in what we do or who we are, or maybe even feel that our "best before date" has expired (lol)...
But nothing could be further from the truth!! In the eyes of the Creator you always have value, and He can take the broken pieces of our lives and remake us into something new... and can help us leave a legacy that will live on to inspire others...
A new creation, with new value, new hope, new purpose... that which seemed destined to destruction, now destined to be cherished once again!
I guess that's why I like recycling things, and this old sign really does have "dry weather only" now... :)
May you discover new purpose and hope today, and a fresh vision of your destiny according to His plan & purpose!
Friday, 23 November 2012
Frugalness and other stuff....
Being an indie musician... I don't have corporate dollars backing what I do... so being frugal has become a necessity, to enable me to pursue doing what I love most! Thus, I have become a bargain hunter! In all reality, I really don't like shopping very much... but when I do, I love checking out the op-shops, garage sales and markets or savvy boutiques that sell that "something different"... I love things that have a story behind it, maybe even a bit quirky, antique or even just uniquely creative...
Here's a groovy little cupboard I picked up recently, something small to make my very bland hall look a little more interesting....
I can appreciate the creativity in others, and admire their handiwork, craftsmanship, planning, creative genius or maybe even the ruggedness of shear improvisation when materials have been in short supply...the simpleness of "necessity is the mother of invention!"
The next challenge is making it work practically with where I have intended for it to go (having already mulled this over before I purchase it... but not always :)!)... Not only do I like being creative... I also like being practical! (Which is probably a rare trait in creative people! Haha...) I like to blend that "unique find" with something modern... hopefully creating a harmonious mix of that reminiscent of a bygone day with a more contemporary setting...
Having just moved recently, it was time to downsize and re-organize! But also an opportunity to find something "new" that would be more space efficient... since cupboard space is sadly lacking in my town house... I've come up with some cool retro ideas for storage...
This pic displays lots of my interesting finds... an old sea chest... now filled with memorabilia and stored in my retro cane bookshelves, with photo albums and vintage leather suitcases... all these items (except the photo albums) came from scouting around recycle shops etc... (as opposed to boring plastic tubs etc.)... and it didn't cost me anymore than what plastic storage tubs or a cupboard would have!! Bonus!!
The previous owner tells me that the metal trunk came on journey with his grandmother from Tunisia... and had been tucked away ever since in a lovely old home in the outer suburbs of Sydney... but now, was sadly being parted with as the "Victorian" era home was being made ready for new tenants, and all its former goods and chattels were being sold off...
The old suitcases each have their own story... the top one was given to me by a friend for baby sitting her doggies... it had belonged to her father who was a missionary... the other two leather suitcases came from a Op-Shop in a small country town, and the little blue case came from a garage sale and was once a school bag...
The last "find" I would like to show you today...is this charming old clock. It came from an Op-Shop also...
Unfortunately it doesn't work anymore and I did consider taking it to a clock doc to get fixed... but then the reality is that it would cost me a small fortune to have it restored... so I decided to appreciate its aesthetic beauty... with the clock having its hands poised - capturing a moment in time that could have long been forgotten... save for the relic of its stalwart build that has enabled it to stand. It was made by Gilbert Clock Makers in the USA, in 1911.
Here's a groovy little cupboard I picked up recently, something small to make my very bland hall look a little more interesting....
I can appreciate the creativity in others, and admire their handiwork, craftsmanship, planning, creative genius or maybe even the ruggedness of shear improvisation when materials have been in short supply...the simpleness of "necessity is the mother of invention!"
The next challenge is making it work practically with where I have intended for it to go (having already mulled this over before I purchase it... but not always :)!)... Not only do I like being creative... I also like being practical! (Which is probably a rare trait in creative people! Haha...) I like to blend that "unique find" with something modern... hopefully creating a harmonious mix of that reminiscent of a bygone day with a more contemporary setting...
Having just moved recently, it was time to downsize and re-organize! But also an opportunity to find something "new" that would be more space efficient... since cupboard space is sadly lacking in my town house... I've come up with some cool retro ideas for storage...
This pic displays lots of my interesting finds... an old sea chest... now filled with memorabilia and stored in my retro cane bookshelves, with photo albums and vintage leather suitcases... all these items (except the photo albums) came from scouting around recycle shops etc... (as opposed to boring plastic tubs etc.)... and it didn't cost me anymore than what plastic storage tubs or a cupboard would have!! Bonus!!
The previous owner tells me that the metal trunk came on journey with his grandmother from Tunisia... and had been tucked away ever since in a lovely old home in the outer suburbs of Sydney... but now, was sadly being parted with as the "Victorian" era home was being made ready for new tenants, and all its former goods and chattels were being sold off...
The old suitcases each have their own story... the top one was given to me by a friend for baby sitting her doggies... it had belonged to her father who was a missionary... the other two leather suitcases came from a Op-Shop in a small country town, and the little blue case came from a garage sale and was once a school bag...
The last "find" I would like to show you today...is this charming old clock. It came from an Op-Shop also...
Unfortunately it doesn't work anymore and I did consider taking it to a clock doc to get fixed... but then the reality is that it would cost me a small fortune to have it restored... so I decided to appreciate its aesthetic beauty... with the clock having its hands poised - capturing a moment in time that could have long been forgotten... save for the relic of its stalwart build that has enabled it to stand. It was made by Gilbert Clock Makers in the USA, in 1911.
Back in the Kitchen...
Feeling frustrated with all the "junk" that is in the food in the supermarket these days... I decided it was time to try some baking again... Sigh... seems that anything "yummy" is loaded with fat, sugar and salt... and a host of artificial additives, colours and preservatives...
I remember listening to a radio show once... and the announcer was interviewing someone who had been employed by a major food company... and was literally paid tens of thousands to come up with recipes that would be addictive!!! He openly admitted that all those recipes typically have as their core ingredients: FAT, SUGAR and SALT!!!
Hmmm... well it's interesting... since people used to eat this stuff all the time and would be healthy and not fat... so why has it changed?? Well, food ain't what it used to be! Wheat has been so genetically altered it's not funny! Modern wheat & oils actually make you hungry because the body can't process the modified nutrients and it does not realise when it has had enough... Sugar & salt have become modern man's poison.... but it seems that that's only the "icing on the cake"...
Being an asthma and allergy suffer all of my life - I've always tried to be careful with what I eat... It seems lately though, that no matter what I do, my allergies have gotten worse... so I decided it was time to change tactics!!
After much research... I've decided to go relatively grain and diary free... and so far it seems to be paying off... I'm about two weeks into my new way of eating and I've lost weight and starting to feel healthier...YAY!!! I do love diary though, so occasionally I tend to have some cheese and yoghurt, and have cut out milk in my coffee etc... but I'm going to see if it makes much difference if it is cooked.
Pretty much, I am trying to eat food in more of its natural state...the way God intended it to be eaten... and not according to all our modern concoctions of it! So that gets rid of a LOT of foods commercially available...
But wait... what am I eating?? Cut out wheat and processed sugar and there's not much to choose from!! Basically, that leaves anything that is meat, fish, vegetable or fruit, natural sugar like honey, maple syrup etc and some diary and FAT!!! Yep... butter, beef dripping, organic coconut oil... for cooking.. since they are more stable and have higher cooking temperatures, and olive oil for salad dressing and cold foods etc... so probably pretty much like the Atkin's or Paleo diet... with maybe a few slight variations...
I've cut out all processed foods, and I'm trying some different things like: Quinoa, Almond Meal, Besan Flour (made with chick peas), arrowroot powder (tapioca starch) - to replace flour. But I've also given Spelt flour a go for the first time today... it is an "Ancient" grain... more like the original wheat that ancient people ate... not the modern flour of our day that has been genetically modified, cross bred and so on, to become a culinary and gastronomic disaster... being a catalyst to the increase of allergies, Celiac's disease and so on...
So, how do I eat this stuff??? Haha! that's the fun part... trying to find alternatives and how to prepare them properly...
Well, I've been very busy today and invented a spelt and besan flour chocolate cake... and much to my delight it was a winner the first time round! I also made my own homemade chocolate...although my second attempt was much better than my first... it needs a little more tweaking - but it's still quite palatable :)
Spelt & Besan Chocolate Cake: (makes two loaf pan sized cakes)
2 cups wholemeal spelt flour
1 cup besan flour
1 tablespoon arrowroot powder (tapioca starch)
6 teaspoons gluten free baking powder
4 free range organic eggs
1 1/2 cups full cream milk
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 cup honey
100 grams butter
teaspoon organic vanilla essence
Here's my cakes...
1) preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius and grease two loaf pans with coconut oil
2) Melt butter and honey over low heat. Remove from heat and mix in sifted cocoa powder until all lumps are gone.
3) In another bowl, sift flours and baking powder & mix together until evenly folded in.
4) Gradually mix in eggs and milk, followed by the butter, cocoa and honey mixture. Mix until all ingredients are blended well.
5) Grease two loaf tins with coconut oil. Pour cake mixture into tins.
6) place into the oven and cook for about 40 minutes.
7) Allow to cool for about 5 minutes then turn out onto wire rack to cool - I covered mine with a cotton tea towel to help keep moist whilst cooling down
8) Enjoy with some Greek yoghurt and strawberries :)
And here it is served with a dollop of Greek yoghurt & strawberries... It isn't as sweet as store bought cakes, but it is quite nice once you get used to the slightly different taste... it was also quite filling and this small slice was pleasantly satisfying.The reason it is so filling is because spelt and besan flour are very high in protein (as well as the eggs)... and are much lower in carbs... so you feel full quicker and eat less!
Homemade Chocolate:
150-200 grams coconut oil
2 - 3 tablespoons cocoa powder... depends on how strong you like it!
1/2 cup honey
Now it seems a bit tricky getting the honey and cocoa to blend evenly with the coconut oil... but after a couple of tries... I found that instead of having the oil too liquid from being melted, that the other ingredients blended better when the coconut oil was not far from room temperature... it it was too much hotter then it just remained impossible to blend them together!
1) So, make sure the coconut oil is soft almost melted.
2) Mix honey and cocoa together until all cocoa lumps are gone.
3) Now mix coconut oil in to the cocoa and honey.
4) Place the chocolate mixture into an aluminum lined tin, silicon muffin tray or chocolate molds. Decorate with cashews, dried fruit etc.
5) Allow it time in the fridge to set (at least 20 minutes or so... depending upon how thick it is)...enjoy!
You need to store in the fridge as it has a low melting point.
here's my chocolate slab... with cashews :) - this is very filling also, because of the coconut oil... although it is a saturated fat - it is healthy for you and filling - so you don't need to eat much at all to be satisfied.
I remember listening to a radio show once... and the announcer was interviewing someone who had been employed by a major food company... and was literally paid tens of thousands to come up with recipes that would be addictive!!! He openly admitted that all those recipes typically have as their core ingredients: FAT, SUGAR and SALT!!!
Hmmm... well it's interesting... since people used to eat this stuff all the time and would be healthy and not fat... so why has it changed?? Well, food ain't what it used to be! Wheat has been so genetically altered it's not funny! Modern wheat & oils actually make you hungry because the body can't process the modified nutrients and it does not realise when it has had enough... Sugar & salt have become modern man's poison.... but it seems that that's only the "icing on the cake"...
Being an asthma and allergy suffer all of my life - I've always tried to be careful with what I eat... It seems lately though, that no matter what I do, my allergies have gotten worse... so I decided it was time to change tactics!!
After much research... I've decided to go relatively grain and diary free... and so far it seems to be paying off... I'm about two weeks into my new way of eating and I've lost weight and starting to feel healthier...YAY!!! I do love diary though, so occasionally I tend to have some cheese and yoghurt, and have cut out milk in my coffee etc... but I'm going to see if it makes much difference if it is cooked.
Pretty much, I am trying to eat food in more of its natural state...the way God intended it to be eaten... and not according to all our modern concoctions of it! So that gets rid of a LOT of foods commercially available...
But wait... what am I eating?? Cut out wheat and processed sugar and there's not much to choose from!! Basically, that leaves anything that is meat, fish, vegetable or fruit, natural sugar like honey, maple syrup etc and some diary and FAT!!! Yep... butter, beef dripping, organic coconut oil... for cooking.. since they are more stable and have higher cooking temperatures, and olive oil for salad dressing and cold foods etc... so probably pretty much like the Atkin's or Paleo diet... with maybe a few slight variations...
I've cut out all processed foods, and I'm trying some different things like: Quinoa, Almond Meal, Besan Flour (made with chick peas), arrowroot powder (tapioca starch) - to replace flour. But I've also given Spelt flour a go for the first time today... it is an "Ancient" grain... more like the original wheat that ancient people ate... not the modern flour of our day that has been genetically modified, cross bred and so on, to become a culinary and gastronomic disaster... being a catalyst to the increase of allergies, Celiac's disease and so on...
So, how do I eat this stuff??? Haha! that's the fun part... trying to find alternatives and how to prepare them properly...
Well, I've been very busy today and invented a spelt and besan flour chocolate cake... and much to my delight it was a winner the first time round! I also made my own homemade chocolate...although my second attempt was much better than my first... it needs a little more tweaking - but it's still quite palatable :)
Spelt & Besan Chocolate Cake: (makes two loaf pan sized cakes)
2 cups wholemeal spelt flour
1 cup besan flour
1 tablespoon arrowroot powder (tapioca starch)
6 teaspoons gluten free baking powder
4 free range organic eggs
1 1/2 cups full cream milk
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 cup honey
100 grams butter
teaspoon organic vanilla essence
Here's my cakes...
1) preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius and grease two loaf pans with coconut oil
2) Melt butter and honey over low heat. Remove from heat and mix in sifted cocoa powder until all lumps are gone.
3) In another bowl, sift flours and baking powder & mix together until evenly folded in.
4) Gradually mix in eggs and milk, followed by the butter, cocoa and honey mixture. Mix until all ingredients are blended well.
5) Grease two loaf tins with coconut oil. Pour cake mixture into tins.
6) place into the oven and cook for about 40 minutes.
7) Allow to cool for about 5 minutes then turn out onto wire rack to cool - I covered mine with a cotton tea towel to help keep moist whilst cooling down
8) Enjoy with some Greek yoghurt and strawberries :)
And here it is served with a dollop of Greek yoghurt & strawberries... It isn't as sweet as store bought cakes, but it is quite nice once you get used to the slightly different taste... it was also quite filling and this small slice was pleasantly satisfying.The reason it is so filling is because spelt and besan flour are very high in protein (as well as the eggs)... and are much lower in carbs... so you feel full quicker and eat less!
Homemade Chocolate:
150-200 grams coconut oil
2 - 3 tablespoons cocoa powder... depends on how strong you like it!
1/2 cup honey
Now it seems a bit tricky getting the honey and cocoa to blend evenly with the coconut oil... but after a couple of tries... I found that instead of having the oil too liquid from being melted, that the other ingredients blended better when the coconut oil was not far from room temperature... it it was too much hotter then it just remained impossible to blend them together!
1) So, make sure the coconut oil is soft almost melted.
2) Mix honey and cocoa together until all cocoa lumps are gone.
3) Now mix coconut oil in to the cocoa and honey.
4) Place the chocolate mixture into an aluminum lined tin, silicon muffin tray or chocolate molds. Decorate with cashews, dried fruit etc.
5) Allow it time in the fridge to set (at least 20 minutes or so... depending upon how thick it is)...enjoy!
You need to store in the fridge as it has a low melting point.
here's my chocolate slab... with cashews :) - this is very filling also, because of the coconut oil... although it is a saturated fat - it is healthy for you and filling - so you don't need to eat much at all to be satisfied.
Thursday, 15 November 2012
Random thought for today -
Remember the seaside photos I posted the other day? Well here's one the creative ideas I had of using one of those images + another pic taken that same day... I've then added some effects and topped it off with my random thought for today... I hope it inspires you!
I'm still working out how to do this properly... it's been a while since I've done any creative stuff on the computer using photos etc... any useful tips? Please do share! :)
Wednesday, 14 November 2012
Flowers and other Creative Stuff!!!
When I'm not making music... I tend to get creative in other ways... maybe trying my hand at baking... arranging flowers, doing flower arrangements for weddings of friends and family, creative photography, internal decorating, making or remaking clothes, drawing and painting, improvising and recycling things in a practical way, card, jewellery & gift making...and I've even recovered a couple of lounges and bar stools!! I can add making doggy jackets to that list too :)
Here's some of my flower arrangements... I can't show you a pic of the lounges though... I have replaced them now with leather lounges... as they are better health wise...(not harbouring dreaded dust mites!!! Which I am allergic too...)
Unfortunately I haven't got pictures of most of the stuff I've made and I've since given it away! But here are two pics I would like to share with you... displaying some of my smaller flower arrangements and decorating... creating that "country cottage" feel... but also because these pictures display the creativity and talent of other members of my family!
My brother made the large kitchen dresser (oops! forgot to move the shoe before I took this pic...LOL)... and my dad made the table and chairs... it was Christmas time 2011 when these photos were taken... so prezzies and decorations were on the table - waiting for guests to arrive! And now Christmas 2012 is almost here...wow this year has flown by - so it seems! Most of the people in my family are cleverly creative... must run in the genes! :)
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