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miwahni
30 December 2023 @ 12:21 pm
The index card is yellowed and crumbling, my mother's handwriting almost illegible as the ink has faded over the years. But the recipe for my grandmother's biscuits is still good.

Ingredients (Imperial measurements)

3 cups plain flour                1 tsp ginger
3 tsp cream of tartar           1 tsp allspice
1 1/2 tsp bicarb soda          3 eggs
1 1/2 cup sugar                  3 Tblsp dessicated coconut
1 1/2 cup raisins                 1 1/2 cup dripping
2 tsp cinnamon                   A little water

Method



Mix together flour, bicarb and cream of tartar. Add sugar. Rub dripping through. Add all other dry ingredients. Add beaten eggs last.
Bake on a greased tray 10 - 15 minutes at 350 degrees F.

These taste like childhood Christmases.
 
 
miwahni
26 December 2023 @ 10:30 pm
There, it's official! I have no idea what that cabbage is doing but he's going to lose a finger if he's not careful.
There, it's official! I have no idea what that cabbage is doing but he's going to lose a finger if he's not careful.
 
 
 
miwahni
26 December 2023 @ 12:46 am
Twenty years ago today I created this account. I've hardly posted here in the longest time but I couldn't let the anniversary go past without acknowledgement. So much has happened in the interim - moved interstate, changed jobs, changed employers, changed jobs again. A daughter in law and two grandchildren have come into my life.

I'm far more settled now, emotionally and financially than I was twenty years ago.No longer wondering how I'm ever going to get through, but rather enjoying the journey. I barely recognise the person I was twenty years ago.

But it's all good. And I've learned that whatever troubles me today will pass. Tomorrow will be better and the next day better again. Until suddely it's been twenty years.
 
 
Current Mood: thoughtfulthoughtful
 
 
miwahni
28 January 2021 @ 10:13 pm
teapot
That’s either the most advanced pair of knickers I’ve ever seen, or teapot design has had a radical overhaul.

Being worn by a lady but it's 100% food grade!

I was shocked to hear on the news today that the UK has instituted a travel ban on its citizens, and anyone returning to the UK from overseas must quarantine for 14 days. We have not been able to leave Australia since March 2020 without extenuating circumstances and I assumed other countries would be doing likewise.Same with hotel quarantine. Tennis players in Australia at present for the Australian Open have been whinging about being locked down in quarantine for 14 days; I'm actually surprised that the event is proceeding.

Now I  understand why I found it so hard to convince booking.com that I couldn't actually travel to Scotland last July. Airbnb were really easy to deal with - I just had to point them to the Smart Traveller website and they could see the travel ban was in place, and my booking was refunded almost straight away, but booking.com kept insisting I could travel. Right up until the hotels where I was booked to stay cancelled the bookings themselves.
 
 
Current Mood: confusedconfused
 
 
 
miwahni
25 January 2021 @ 11:49 pm
Has anyone read any of The Witcher books? I bought the first one, expecting it to be all blood and gore, and was surprised to find it was much more than that. This led to me buying the next book The Blood of Elves which I also enjoyed. I plan on reading the rest of the books once I get through my current TBR pile.

 And this is weird, but over the last few months I've had a few people start following my reviews on Goodreads. Now considering that I didn't post a review at all during 2020, and my previous reviews weren't that great, I just don't understand this. Is it some sort of scam? The followers are generally people who haven't set up any sort of reading list.  Not sure how they'd find my reviews, let alone think they were worthy of following.

Speaking of TBR pile, I've just started in on <i>His Dark Materials</i> and it's hooked me from the start. I love it when books do that.
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Current Mood: contemplativecontemplative
 
 
 
miwahni
23 January 2021 @ 09:58 pm

So the govt is saying that due to shortages, the Pfizer vaccine may not be here as early as next month as originally proposed, and we may need to wait a bit longer. I don't see that as a drama - it's not like Australia has a pressing need at this point, and the govt has already said that it's unlikely that the ban on overseas travel will be lifted before the end of the year, and anyone coming into Australia has to go into mandatory quarantine. So I'm prepared to wait. As much as I'd like a vaccine, I figure the longer it takes to reach our shores, the more likely it is that any issues with the vaccine have been dealt with, or at least announced.

At a Little Paws Kitten Rescue meeting this morning, and one of our commitee members' phone started ringing - her ringtone was the theme from Star Trek! So then we started talking about various Sf shows etc and she pulled out her face mask, which was made of Dr Who fabric. So I showed her my carry bag which is also Dr Who. Instant bonding!

Also if you're not sure how long you should be washing your hands for - try reciting the Star Trek Intro "Space - the final frontier." It takes approximately 20 seconds to recite with appropriate gravitas, which is the time you need to spend soaping up. And how many times have I then found myself humming the rest of the theme song? Go on, you  know you want to!

On another note, I bought a kayak today. Time will tell whether this was the biggest waste of money ever or the best lifestyle decision I've ever made.

 
 
Current Mood: fullfull
 
 
 
miwahni
19 January 2021 @ 09:16 pm
It was nice to see that John Barrowman dropped in on Ianto's shrine at Mermaid Quay last weekend - <a href="https://metro.co.uk/2021/01/16/torchwoods-john-barrowman-breaks-hearts-with-visit-to-iantos-shrine-13914288/"> story here </a>. Nicer still to know that the shrine is still there, all these years later.

Bodie-cat was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism recently. He'd been losing weight yet ravenously hungry - meds have now helped stabilise things and he's slowly regaining the weight he lost. He put on 430g over the last three weeks, which I'm pretty pleased with. And I'm NOT feeding him Swiss Roll *g* .
 
 
Current Mood: contentcontent
 
 
miwahni
12 January 2021 @ 09:37 pm
For ali15son
Had to dig out an old portable drive to find this - hope it helps.

2ndeyes6
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Current Mood: happyhappy
 
 
 
miwahni
09 January 2021 @ 11:43 pm
For the first time since 2012 I couldn't get a Sherlock calendar from amazon.com this year. There was one on the UK site but they won't post to Australia, and it wasn't available on the Australian site. I thought I'd be clever and went back through all my old Sherlock calendars until I found one where  January 1st was a Friday, and 2016 seemed to fit the bill - but that was a leap year, wasn't it, and it will only be good until the end of February. Then I had the bright idea of looking up the company that produces the calendar - and bingo, it's in stock and they ship to Australia. One new Sherlock calendar coming my way.

The Dr Who special was interestingCut for spoilersCollapse )
 
 
Current Mood: okayokay
 
 
miwahni
07 January 2021 @ 08:51 pm
What terrible scenes coming out of the US today; the result of a total narcissist stoking the cult of personality to the limits. I've heard that the US economy was doing well until Covid hit, and that a lot of people believe Trump made their lives better - but to try and overturn the principles of democracy is just shocking. I sincerely fear for the country's future, when it is so divided; I don't see how it can start to heal.

And bad news in Queensland today too. We had gone 113 days without any local community transmission of Covid 19 but today a cleaner at one of the quarantine hotels tested positive to the UK super-infectious strain. There are warnings out for anyone who caught the same trains or visited the same places as she has over the last few days to get tested and isolate for 14 days, even if the test is negative. Fingers crossed that there is limited spread and brought under control very quickly.
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Current Mood: worriedworried