When did I become an adult?

I had the sudden realisation today that I'm a bit of an adult. Shocking, I know.

I realised this because there is such little spontaneity in my weekdays. It's all very structured, routine and....planned (ugh).

Proof of my adultness:

1. My week days look like this -- Breakfast - Work - Gym - Dinner.
2. I save.
3. Grocery shopping
4. I switch lights off because bills.
5. 9:30pm = bed time.
6. I know what headache means.
7. I complain about the noisy neighbours.
8. I has responsibilities (refer to point 4).
9. My high school friends are: married and/or have babies and think I'm the strange one.
10. I plan.

I thought I had more time but adulthood is catching up on me, quick.

Please send help. I'm not ready yet.

Source: hellogiggles.com via Radhika on Pinterest

Finding my zen

For a few weeks now, J and I have been talking about giving up TV for a little while. Even just a month.

By giving up, I mean not watching the news, the tv shows etc - anything that is on tv. We would probably still continue using the tv to watch movies and documentaries - anything we choose to put on. It all sounds doable except the news. About 80% of our TV watching is news and current affairs related. We're both such information junkies. Like I said to J, "...but I have to know what's going on in the world"

But do I really HAVE to watch the news every morning and evening?

Besides, I still have the internet. And Twitter. So it's not like I'm going to be a hermit. We just won't be watching crap like you tend to sometimes, when you can't be bothered getting off the couch and finding something else to do.

From an article called The Zen TV Experiment --

TV and the Illusion of Knowing

Marshall McLuhan says TV opens out onto an electronic global village. It would seem, rather, that it gives us only the illusion of being. It reinforces security by presenting danger, ignorance by presenting news, lethargy by presenting excitement, isolation by promising participation. The media confines reality to itself. And it limits knowledge by giving the illusion of knowledge. In the same way that the most effective way to deflect, diffuse and terminate a social movement is to announce that it has been achieved (the feminist movement must contend with this on an almost daily basis), the most effective way to deflect inquiry is to present it as fulfilled. TV acts in this guise as a thinking presentation device which offers non-experience as experience and not-knowingness as knowing.

It's not really that hard, I don't think. I think it will go a long way towards finding my zen. I just have to give up the need to know what the River Boys will get up to next.  ;-)

Happy New Year :)

There's something about the 1st of January that brings about a universal positivity isn't there? No matter how much people say you shouldn't wait till the new year to start new things and have new goals, we always want to make a fresh beginning on the 1st of January. It made me want to blog a bit today :)

Nothing particularly exciting to talk about, really. I'm spending New Year's day with the boy (#bliss), couch surfing and watching The Walking Dead. I am really torn about this show. Everyone I know has told me it's amazing and addictive but I really, REALLY dislike zombies and OMG, the gore factor is.... well, they kill a zombie, cut up it's stomach and go through its guts to make sure it didn't eat one of their missing friends...you get the drift?

On the other hand, the drama and the suspense is ridiculously amazing. It's an AMC show. The same people who made one of my all time favourite shows - Breaking Bad. So I'm giving Walking Dead a shot. Besides J loves it so I don't really have a choice. ;-)

The plans for the rest of the day involve a beach swim and then some KFC. Haha. Neither J nor I have had KFC for a LONG time. About 12 months for him and probably 2-3 years for me (I really don't like KFC). But the KFC double burger is back and J has to have it and well, I said I'll give him company and have a zinger  Happy New Year to us ;-)

Tomorrow it's back to the gym, back to work and back to real life.

#NaBloPoMo: Failed

I know. Another blog challenge failed. In hindsight, it was much too ambitious and foolish to take up in the first place. I'm trying to spend less time in front of a screen (outside of work) but blogging kind of necessitates screen-looking, no? This is especially true on the weekends where I would rather stare into space than look at my computer.

Also, my weeks are really, really busy with Spanish class 2 days a week so daily blogging was destined to fail.

Oh wellz. I'm not looking at it as a complete fail though. It's helped me enjoy blogging again. So don't worry my loyal readers (yes, all 3 of you) I will be writing - just not every day. :)

#NaBloPoMo - Paranormal Activities

Happy Diwali y'all. Diwali is the Hindu festival of lights (and fireworks). As a Bengali however, we celebrate Diwali as Kali Puja and simply put, is a festival honoring the Hindu Goddess Kali and her victory over demons.

I'm not one for religion but I'm definitely one for festivals. Indian festivals are AMAZING. Also, I love many traditions, customs and beliefs associated with Indian festivals. Anyway, I digress.  The day before Kali Puja (i.e. yesterday) Bengali homes usually light 14 candles to ward off evil spirits. While it feels nothing like Diwali here in Aus, I did do the 14 candles thing because I am paranoid and me no likey demons or ghosts y' know?

Then last night, we heard something scurrying on the roof. It convinced me it was something out of the movie Paranormal Activity (y'know that shit but totes scary movie about a ghost/paranormal being harassing the people living in the house). Anyway, J reckons its a possum but I had paranormal activity ideas in my head. It was the day before Diwali after all. I had blown out the candles. My line of defence was gone. The demons were out in full force and they were coming for me.

In bed I thought about the scene where she gets dragged out of bed by her feet (oops, sorry spoiler) and I struggled to fall asleep. Then I looked up and there was a strange orange light on the ceiling. Scurrying noises + strange light? Of course it was perfectly rational to shake J and ask him to look at the ceiling and figure out what it was while I stressed about being the star of Paranormal Activity Part 3.

It was a reflection of a light from outside, apparently. I laughed and let J go back to sleep. But I had managed to scare the shit out of myself. So, I did what I always do when I'm scared the ghosts might see me - I hid my head under the blanket.

Whaaattt?

*This post is part of the November NaBloPoMo blogging challenge.

#NaBloPoMo: Hangry

Got home and realised I'd forgotten to defrost the meat last night which meant dinner would take longer to prepare than anticipated. Cranky mode - On.

The last few minutes waiting for the oven buzzer to go off I totally had a little hissy fit. I was hungry and wanted food NOW NOW NOW.  I was, as we call it "hangry"

I bought this cushion for J because he gets very cranky when he's hungry. But the tables have turned and I'm easily the hangrier of the two these days.

In my defence...I did a Body Attack class after work and just a protein shake wasn't cutting it today. I needed CARBS and I needed it now.

My signature crankiness is always sleep related, but this is a whole new world of crankiness. I'm hungry, give me food or else....

*This post is part of the November NaBloPoMo blogging challenge.

#NaBloPoMo - Cleaning Day

I've spent half my day cleaning and inhaling fumes. Cleaning product fumes. And I'm feeling lightheaded and a bit woozy. I even vacuumed. I HATE vacuuming. It's usually J's job to do it but he had other exciting cleaning-related tasks to carry out so I had to (wo)man up and take charge of the vacuuming today. Yuck.

Exciting start to the weekend, I know. But the house is sparkly, neat and everything is in its place and I can sit back and enjoy the rest of the weekend :)

(Terrible excuse for a post I know, but it's the fumes...they've cleaned (pun intended) me out of ideas).

*This post is part of the November NaBloPoMo blogging challenge.

#NaBloPoMo: An (opposite of) Ode to Bras

I'm a bra girl. I am a firm believer of keeping your girls under control whenever you leave the house. I will put a bra on even if it's just to go pick up the Thai takeaway.

When I first started wearing a bra, I used to sleep in it. Can you imagine the horror of it? I was sure if I took my bra off for too long, my boobs would become ginormous overnight and I didn't want that kind of attention I decided. For a large part of my teenage years I wore a sports bra over my bra so I'd hide any hint of curves and look as flat-chested as possible. I know, I had issues.

I like my boobs now but they're still restrained in public. I will never buy a dress or top if I can't figure out how to wear a bra under it. I once fell in love with a dress with a very low back and questioned the bra placement. My friend said I'd have to go braless and that's where my love story with the dress ended. Braless? In public? Umm, no. I'm much too prudish in this regard. Some people do "no bra" dresses very well but I'm just not one of those girls.

This obsession with bra wearing isn't because I love bras. I loathe them. I wear them because of my aforementioned issues with Freedom of Breast-spression but the best part of my day is coming home and taking it off. Unhook, slide strap off and slither arm under, repeat with other arm. Grab bra from under sleeve and yank out. Bra gone. You know the drill. If you're in a strapless, even better - you can take the damn thing off in one swift motion! The pleasure of being unrestrained is unexplainable to a man. It's probably how they feel about going commando but it's not quite the same. Their privates aren't strapped in, they're simply held in place.

Weekends are good. You can be bra-less and 100% mark-free for longer. If we don't particularly have to be somewhere on a Saturday night, the decision making process often goes like this:

"Going out involves wearing a bra (and possibly heels too). Is the place cool enough/ is the food good enough to warrant giving up my bra-less state?"

Often, going bra-free wins over going out. Sad, I know. Old people like, I know. But honestly, sometimes it's really not worth the effort. Don't deny it ladies!

And then there's also the misery of washing them. Honestly, bras have been around FOREVER, so have washing machines. Why hasn't someone come up with a way to throw your bras in the washing machine without worrying it will come out mangled and shapeless? I have the additional misery of having to hand wash my sports bras as well. 2 bras per day, every day. Where's a maid when you need one?

Bra shopping? Don't even get me started. It's right up there with jeans shopping and bikini shopping. If you want your boobies well protected, you want to invest in a decent pair. But decent pairs are expensive. Plenty of cheap bras at Best & Less to choose from, I know. But then your girls will be more Less, less Best. Never mind that irrespective of price tag, finding a pair that fits just the way you want is just too much to ask for. I told you, don't get me started.

Dear "bra-burning" Feminists (forgive the cliched myth but it was necessary in this context), I totes get it. It's oppression and I want out. Literally.

And no, don't say it. I'm not going to wear an Ahhh Bra.

*This post is part of the November NaBloPoMo blogging challenge.

#NaBloPoMo: In which I get a tad defensive

I exercise. A lot. Many of my friends don't understand it. They tell me "but you don't need to lose weight."

But when did I say anything about losing weight?

Exercising for me is not fuelled by the need to lose weight but by the fear my heart will stop pumping one of these days and I will fall off the face of the earth. You see, poor cardiovascular health is a multi-generational inheritance in my family. Fear is a pretty strong motivator. Also seeing the definition in my quads and shoulder muscles is an added bonus. ;-)

Obviously, eating is also part of the big "Beat the Impending Heart Attack Plan". I eat healthy, very healthy. (There, I said it) I look at the back of packets to see the fat content, % of sugar, artificial ingredients etc. I buy the wholegrain / low fat/ less sugar version of most foods. I eat "hipster" food like quinoa, buckwheat noodles, rye wraps and stoneground 85% wholemeal bread. I cook at least 5 times a week, if not 6 - mostly because I struggle to find healthy takeaway food that doesn't cost the moon and the stars.

This is where most people start rolling their eyes because this "healthy eating" translates to living off salad and veggies only. This is followed by feeling sorry for me and my deprived food choices and very often even judging me as vain.

But I don't understand it. If you know me even a little bit you will know how much I LOVE my food and live for it (see my Instagram for proof) so why do you feel sorry for me? Healthy eating is more than salads. Because food is so important to me, I cook really delicious meals that are also healthy. I have an emotional relationship with food so I always cook food I enjoy eating so please, don't worry I'm not depriving myself. I just know how to cook food that will not clog up my arteries and kill me.

I'm aware that I sound a bit like a privileged whinger banging on about health, fitness and other buzzwords. But I'm not. I don't normally talk about my fitness or my food with people because you see it's no one else's business. I don't try to get anyone to think the way I do and don't judge anyone for eating differently or for choosing a different lifestyle. But a few things have happened lately that have made me feel very…judged. So I figured I'd vent and defend my choices because hey you know what? It's my body so these are my choices and I'll get sexy thigh muscles if I want them dammit!

*This post is part of the November NaBloPoMo blogging challenge.

Sweet dreams

So last night after my usual "Let's sleep/ Let's worry" dramas, when I finally fell asleep I had dreams.

Dream 1
I woke up in bed with someone pulling at my leg. Turns out it was my sister and she was trying to kill me. Except my sister wasn't actually my sister. It was my other sister - my sister's long lost twin, who we didn't know existed. I'm not sure why she was trying to kill me but she looked quite evil.

Dream 2
A friend and I are invited to some amazing party in Melbourne (I don't know why Melbourne and not Sydney). When we get there, we learn the Braxton boys are going to be there and we're super excited because you know, Heath's a druggie turned good who's just lost his baby and his girlfriend's a psycho. And he's hot. Brax has fake stencil tattoos but I'll ignore that, he's such a bad boy with a good heart. And he's hot. Casey, young, reckless and always in trouble but he's a good kid you know. And he's hot. Their dysfunctionality just makes them hotter. Except, they come out to party with us in the real world of my dreams and I'm devo. They're all ugly and white (not being racist, they've just got the whole Summer Bay tan going usually) and look nothing like what they do on TV. My real world of my dreams is shattered. The Braxton boys are ugly.

Conclusion? I watch waaaay too much Home & Away (cue for you to judge me. Both dreams are based of recent happenings on the show.) Seriously, I need a life and/or need to find something better to do 7pm, weekdays.

Come party with me

I've been having very fitful sleeps lately. Instead of winding down, my brain goes into overdrive as soon as it hits the pillow. My body's like "Yeah…let's go to sleep!!!" My brain is like "Yeah let's make To Do lists! Wait while we're at it, let's sort the To Do list into categories and colour code them too!!"

Body's like "YAYY! Sleep!"

Mind's like:  "Ok, to do list done now time to stress about how many "to dos" I have."

Body's like: "Sleep!"

Mind's like: "Holy shit, I will never ever achieve anything I want in my whole life because my To Do list is so long."

Sometimes German Shepherd dog neighbour joins the conversation "groooowl woof woof BARK BARK BARK"

And then Poodle dog neighbour wakes up and wants to join the party too. "rrrrfff, rrrffff, woof BARK rrrfff rrfff WOOF WOOF WOOF"

Body, still trying, "Sleep?"

Mind, now annoyed because dog neighbours have interrupted OCD list making and worrying over list making; gives up and thinks about things that did happen during the day and how it could have/should have/ would have been different. 

Body: "Ok, change sides, may be that will help"

5 minutes later... 

"No switch again, that will help. Ok wait no, lie on your stomach. No no, kick your legs about a little, that will definitely help and will definitely NOT wake up anyone else who happens to share the bed"

Mind: "OMG I am going to be so tired tomorrow."

To do lists. Worrying about to do lists. Worrying about done lists. Worrying about worrying about lists and not sleeping.

Body's like "I give up, here have some Restless Leg Syndrome."

And Body, Mind and dog neighbours party like it's your birthday all night long. 

Sleep comes in for a visit in the early hours but we're in a Friends with No Benefits relationship and he leaves as soon as his wife rings and shrieks to the world that it's 6am and it's time to start another day. Never mind that your previous day never actually ended. 

Olives can walk!

So last night, there was something on the floor and I thought it was an olive. (We had a Greek salad for dinner and sometimes my food leaves the plate and ends up on the carpet instead of in my mouth).

So, very confidently I grabbed a tissue and went to pick it up. As soon as I touched it, I shrieked. The olive was alive, had legs, was moving and wasn't very olive-y at all!

Meanwhile J is in hysterics because he knew it was a beetle or bug or some sort of horrible insect but enjoyed seeing me so convinced that it was an olive that had traveled from the kitchen, gone around a corner and ended up just outside the bedroom. (What? Olives roll around, they can travel long distances if they're fit and willing.)

I don't think I will be eating olives for a while.

Boys are mean.

Mondayitis evermore

Happy Monday! Haha jokes – Monday ain’t never gonna be happy unless it’s a holiday!

Image courtesy: hunchypiper.com

Getting a bit used to these short weeks ever so often…another one coming up next Monday for Labor Day here in Queensland. How good would life be with just a four day week? I would happily work 4x10 hour days if I could have 3 days off. I work almost 9 hours a day now anyway, so whats another hour? In an ideal world....

This weekend was pretty unproductive and I think I procrastinated most of it away. Of course, being unproductive didn't get in the way of enjoying some amazing food. I always joke to J about how much our lives revolve around food but it's true. We make such an effort to eat well and well, nothing makes me happier than a happy tummy.

Here are some of my Instagram (Follow me: missrbit) pictures of some of the good food I enjoyed over the weekend...

Saturday night - Chicken parmigiana at Nobby's Beach Surf Club. It was massive and dripping with gooey cheese, just as a chicken parmy should be.

.

Coffee. The addiction has only intensified over the last couple of years, so much so I have converted J (who previously didn't drink much coffee) to a pretty regular coffee drinker. The Burleigh area on the Gold Coast has heaps of good cafes doing excellent coffee, so every weekend I have plenty to choose from. On Sunday morning, we went to Canteen Coffee, hidden away in a little alleyway off James Street. If you like your coffee strong and your decor retro-hipster-chic, you will love Canteen.

The almond biscotti was good too though it wasn't as biscotti-like as I expected. I'm used to biscotti being hard, softening when you dip into coffee or tea.

Finally, J and I headed to Slurping Panda for Sunday night dinner. Slupring Panda is at Burleigh Heads too, tucked away in the Old Burleigh Theatre Arcade. We had a menu dropped into the mailbox and it looked very interesting so we had to try it out. The menu is a mix of different Asian cuisines, from Thai to Korean, from Japanese to Malaysian and so much more - I really struggled to pick just one dish to order.

We shared the Panko duck and pumpkin rice balls with plum dipping sauce and it was nothing like what I expected. In a good way! The batter in which the balls were fried was unbelievable, crispy and loads of taste!

For mains, we ended up ordering the Beef Pho (Thinly sliced eye fillet and wombok in ginger broth with mung bean noodles) and the Pork Japchae (pork belly, eggplant, basil, chilli, heirloom tomato and gai lan in oyster sauce with sweet potato noodles). Both dishes were incredible. They were full of fresh vegetables which J and I both love and most importantly, they tasted so food. The Pho tasted very typically Vietnamese with its mix of ginger and lime and the mung bean noodles blew me away with their taste! The pork belly is always a crowd favourite and it didn't fail to disappoint. It was sort of like a spicy Thai stir fry but with a twist. I was glad the sweet potato noodles didn't have a sweet potato taste to it (I hate sweet potato with a passion). I loved their slippery, glassy texture however and it mixed in so well with the rest of the fresh vegetables.

I think we're going back for more next weekend.