Tootie Fruitie
Mood:  mischievious
Topic: Elisabeth's Entries
I just made a new dessert = I am so happy!

I was sitting around having eaten leftover ratatouille,which incidently turned out marvelously (oh organic ingredients taste so good!), thanks Stephen, and was lamenting that we ate all the cookies and we have no butter for baking cakes or anything.

But we had those damn plums from last week's box which we have been avoiding by hiding in the vegetable drawer. And then it hit me: make a plum pie with out the crust! I added a bit of raspberry jam, a few strawberries, sprinkled with a brown sugar/olive butter/flour mixture, baked at 190 C for about 10 min: et viola:

It has all the good taste of a pie, without the fatty crust. Must make again!

Tonight I'm studying for the Driving Theory test which I'll be taking on Thursday...will she fail, or will she pass? Brrooomm, brroooom....

Man, I can't wait...
Topic: Stephen Says
E&I are looking into activities in South Carolina and I must say, I am pumped. It's been a long, long time since I've been to the proper south and I'm looking forward to the cultural experience.

These are the things I want to do in Edisto:
-Get some groceries at the Piggly Wiggy and some veggies over at the Geechie Boy.
-Maybe for a nice night out, grab a bite at Buck's Pizza or Noble Roman's Pizza, but more likely I'll be cravin' some propah southern vittles at the Sea Cow's Eatery or Po-Pigs Bo-B-Q.
-Some nightlife at Coot's Lounge (Which sounds like a place that I'll fit right in at)
-And before I leave, I'll be sure to get some souveniers at Clawdaddy's.

I can't wait. It's going to be weird.

And the question of the day is...
Topic: Stephen Says
Should Prince Harry go to war?

My vote: why not?

After all, like most people who flunk out of school (Seriously; the ginger-haired wimp had to cheat in art class. Who on earth needs to cheat in art class?), he was given the choice: get a job or join the army. And of course, when you're royalty you don't work unless it's to keep you’re 'good' name out of the tabloids because you still haven’t caught on that that somewhere; anywhere in England there is a paper out there willing to pay thousands of pounds to anyone who can come up with a story on the royal family, no matter how ludicrous that story may be.

(Hmm, I sense a get rich quick scheme…)

So he joined the army and, after a bit of confusion about which army he had actually joined in the first place (I assume that on top of flunking out of art, he also flunked history as he had no idea that England had in fact not been conquered by the Nazi’s and that dressing up like one is considered poor taste.), he did his training and is now a soldier.

Man, I would love to see his hazing video. If Canadians can produce hazing videos as extreme as we have done in the last few years, I’m fairly certain that British ones set a new level of depravity.

So now, having avoided getting a job, Harry has completed his training and has (oh shit!) realized that he’s now got a job. As a soldier. And that means he’s going to have to go to, um, war.

Now far be it on me to wish death upon unemployed leeches who sponge off the tax payer while maintaining a lifestyle that is so much richer than those tax payers who foot your bill (Next week’s article: The royal family as yobs: there is no difference) but I think that sending the man who’s 3rd in line to the throne to Iraq is a very good idea.

After all, the lad has no direction, no real skills (Other than somehow managing to pull hot girls & strippers at clubs)(And he still doesn’t understand where all these stories about him come from…) and no real personality other than being the so-called black sheep of the royal family. With luck he’ll go to war and see the reality of everything first hand and maybe then he can grow a social conscious and maybe be a little like a human and a little less like Britain’s answer to Patrick Bateman.

Yeah, right.

Anyway, I’ve ranted enough, really. I’m just procrastinating because I’ve got to do some dishes and get dinner on and it’s ratatouille and I’ve never cooked it before and I don’t really want it but Elisabeth’s got her heart on it and we need to use this big box of organic veggies up because we’re going to get another one next week. This organic box of food is a little like real-life Tetris – every week food comes and if you haven’t eaten it all, then it begins to pile up. So you need to find meals throughout the week that fit all the foods into it otherwise you’ll keep getting more and more food and then it’s game over.

Mind you, it’ll be game over for me if I don’t get dinner on, so…

A rant that will inevitably probably piss someone off
Mood:  happy
Now Playing: E upstairs playing the piano with her headphones on so that all I hear is the thumpa-thumpa of the pedals.
Topic: Stephen Says
Well what can I say; Friday was a pleasant night out in Greenwich and Saturday was borderline apocalyptic. I was up at about 8:30, having only gone to bed around 4/4:30ish and in dire straits with respect to my need for food since, as is the norm, little to no food was consumed the day previous. E&I left the flat with promises to return with food and I hit the corner store, wolfed down 2 chocolate bars as we headed for the market and, eventually ate at a very nice but so over priced it’s not even remotely funny organic breakfast place that catered to a steady stream of yuppies just popping by for their soy milk latte as they wrap up their Saturday morning jog. And by jog, I mean excuse to walk around thinking to themselves ‘Someone please look at me. I’m beautiful.’

It was during the meal that I realized that I was going downhill and, perhaps, it was not a good idea to stay in London. We got on the DLR (Free for some reason) and things were cool until we got to Canary Wharf and I threw up, oh, pretty much everywhere. Serves them right for not putting garbage cans anywhere. So yeah, I coated pillars, glass doors, etc. and the funny thing is that no one reacted. No one pointed & laughed of avoided me or gave me a dirty look. We got outside by the water & I was feeling much better but my face was pretty drippy and I didn’t have anything to wipe my face with. Luckily E had a spare pair of knickers on her person so that I could blow my nose & make myself as presentable as possible until we found a public restroom where I could wash up. Everything else was pretty easy going – caught the tube & train back to town and, after a bath, I had a snooze and dined on freezer pizza for the rest of the day.

The Guardian was giving away a free copy of Super Size Me so E bought that and we watched the film that is weird to watch when you’re already aware of all of it and making a go of being organic already. According to my wife; it’s a nice companion piece to The Corporation & Not on the Label. It certainly makes a lot of sense in relation to The Corporation which, I’m realizing, is a documentary that gets better & better as time goes by because of the way that it’s affecting my thinking when dealing with random corporate idiocy and/or evilness.

Anyway, as I got in yesterday morning, I grabbed a copy of the Woking Informer that was hanging around outside our flat. This is the fabulously informative (ahem), free (except that it’s 25p where sold) weekly paper about Woking. This week’s front page scandal: “Church furious at ‘seedy’ sex shop.” That’s right folks, Woking wants it’s very first sex shop and many people (Primarily church-goers, according to the article) feel “the enterprise would give the town a poor image, attract undesirables and lower the moral tone” of the area.

Excuse me?

Woking, already in the top 20 crap towns? Woking with it’s alien & airplane statues? Woking of the horrible damp and dark tunnel? Woking with it’s nightlife so pathetic that people actually go to Guildford instead of Woking? Woking whose existence is based on being either a feeder town for London or a source of low-cost houing for people on the dole? Woking whose tunnel is pasted by food and vomit (Not mine) on a Friday night? Woking whose contribution to literature is that H.G. Wells hated it so much that he had is aliens blow it up first? Woking whose most famous (And I use the term loosely) living person is a Portuguese transsexual who won a reality T.V. show? That Woking?

The Woking of the high moral tone whose only modern claim to fame is that it has… a mall? I mean when you’re selling your town on the fact that it’s got precisely what every other town has, you know you’re in serious trouble.

But apparently for some, a sex shop that will stock “videos, books, magazines, marital aids lingerie and ‘ancillary items’” is crossing the line.

Yet again, I’m bowled over by the way in which people who claim to be spiritual are so utterly scared shitless of s-e-x. I suppose that if you wanted to do something to make the town better, you could address it’s ever increasing homeless & rough sleeper problem. The fact that it’s got a huge percentage of people with mental health needs that aren’t being met. You could address the fact that there are huge issues with bored & under-stimulated youth, binge drinking and the fact hat the council is more interested in holing up in it’s brand new offices that look ever increasingly like one of Saddam Hussein’s former palaces (read: bomb shelters) than providing the people who pay their salaries with the basics of safety, health and hygiene around the town (Does the pay-toilet in the market count?).

Or you could lobby to ban a sex shop. Good for you, religious community of Woking. You’ve buried your heads in the sand once again and are showing just how out of touch you are with the world in general. Keep up the good work protecting your own petty & narrow scope of what you try to define for others as being right. Next time I’m dodging puddles of vomit in the tunnel, I’ll think of you. Next time I hear how the council is cutting basic services that should be provided to all people, I’ll think of you. Because, God forbid, somewhere out there, there might be a person with a vibrator. Having an orgasm.

Or maybe people will do the right thing and just ignore your silly little petition and realize that the one thing that Woking doesn’t need is yet another discount sports clothing store and then I’ll be able to find out just what those ‘ancillary items’ are. I’m hoping they’re going to be cream filled chocolate penises.

Mmm…penises.

bleah
Mood:  lazy
Now Playing: KRS-One
Topic: Stephen Says
It's my team building day today. Where we try to build. As a team. you know, team building? Previously, this has led to nothing but destructon. Looking forward to it.
It's also going to be a theatrical drama for human development style thing out in Greenwich park which will be interesting all in and of itself. At long last, that which I studied is coming home to roost.
Should I survive the day.

Cake cake cake
Mood:  hungry
Now Playing: Marvin Gaye
Topic: Elisabeth's Entries

All day in front of a computer...where's my brain?

So we kind of went back on the no-drinking thing for 4 days, and we ended up in the pub last night. I was almost tempted to smoke...which I've given up for good since Dec. 2005.

But it's almost like, once you break one rule you've made, it's so easy to break more. Why is self-discipline so hard?

So in 24 hrs, we'll be boozing it up in Greenwich, really not contemplating that question.

It's still chilly in England-where's spring yo?

Optional
Mood:  flirty
Topic: Elisabeth's Entries
Hello from Flirtville, UK. It's Tues. evening, we're home from work and have eaten dinner, there are dishes to do, and lunches to make, and I'm feeling flirty!

Stephen's back from his sleep-in shift at work. We're not drinking at all this week (I mean the next couple of days) because we've a piss-up in Greenwich to look forward to on Friday.

Stuffed peppers for dinner and books to read for dessert. I've learned how to spell dessert now. Which is an achievement for a 24 year old.

Thought for the day: If you had 2 bananas, which would you eat last?

Yay! Our First Organic Veggie Box
Mood:  celebratory
Topic: Elisabeth's Entries

We just received our first delivery from Abel & Cole of an organic fruit & veg box. We've got local organic celery, lettuce, onions, potatoes,
courgettes, plums and non-airmile oranges & pears.

Not to mention a bottle of bio-laundry detergent!!

Wheee

Bye Bye Body Shop
Mood:  happy
Now Playing: Daniel Barenboim-
Topic: Elisabeth's Entries
Here is a copy of a letter I am sending to The Body Shop with the pieces of my "Love Your Body" customer card:

April 16 2006

Mrs. Elisabeth Allin
31 Dorchester Court
Oriental Road
Woking, Surrey
GU22 7DN

To Whom It May Concern:

I have been a customer of the Body Shop for eleven years. I have always relied on the Body Shop as a trustworthy alternative to other cosmetic companies for many reasons. I was first attracted to The Body Shop because of its position on animal testing and recycling/refilling of the plastic bottles. In addition the products seemed more natural and reliable than other leading brands.

Through the years I’ve heard rumours that the Body Shop, while not testing its products on animals directly, doesn’t actually exclude ingredients that have been tested on animals. Yet, due to the quality of the products as well as the fair-deal campaign, I believed I was purchasing a more ethical product.

I also enjoyed using your products. Please check my “Love Your Body” customer number 600403622. I happily used up the 8 purchases on my first card and enjoyed the resulting free gift. I have now used my second card twice. But as you can see from the enclosed contents, I will never be using it again.

What’s the straw that broke the camel’s back? The Body Shop selling out to L’Oreal.

I believe people like me are getting very tired of multinational corporations dominating the market, and blurring the lines between their own competing brands. I now find myself going further and further underground for my cosmetics, clothes, food and holidays as a result.

Just to give you an idea of what kind of customer you are losing, here is a current inventory of The Body Shop products in my bathroom that I will happily use up and never repurchase:

1. All in One Face Base 03 *
2. Almond Oil Conditioning Hand Wash
3. Aloe Vera Daily Moisturizing Lotion SPF 15 *
4. Brazil Nut Moisture Mask
5. Camomile Gentle Eyemake-up remover
6. Enhancer (silver) from the Colourings range
7. Hemp Body Butter
8. Lemongrass deodorizing foot polish
9. Lip Butter *
10. Lip Palette
11. Warming Mineral Mask
12. Lip Scuff
13. Corrective Prebase 04 White
14. Mascara VO2 *
15. Eye Definer 05
16. Blush
17. Eyeliner-Bright Blue (Liquid)
18. Corrective Prebase 02-Green
19. Eye shadow
20. Eyeliner smudger (tool)
21. Foundation Brush
22. Mini hair brush
23. Decorative bobby pins
24. Perfume Oil-vanilla *
25. Tea Tree Oil (10ml) *
26. Home Fragrance Oil (Tropical Crush)
27. Shea Body Butter *
28. Mango Body Butter *
29. Foot exfoliator pad
30. Body Brush

*Indicates a repeat/regular purchase

In addition I have purchased from time to time products from your For Men range, as well as your gift packages.

My suggestion and purpose of writing this letter is to suggest some changes you could make to win customers back:

1. Offer a fair-trade, organic range that is toxin free.
2. If you must stick with L’Oreal, then I suggest that you are seen to be putting pressure on their purchasing and manufacturing habits.
3. Offer a recycle/refill point at ALL your stores for your product containers.
4. Embark on high-profile fair-trade and environmental conservation campaigns.
5. Consider introducing a do-it-yourself range where customers are invited to purchase the raw-materials to make their own ethical cosmetics, and perhaps offer workshops in select branches.

Until something changes, I will actively campaign against The Body Shop.

Thank you for your time, I hope I haven’t wasted it.

Sincerely,


Elisabeth Allin

<<<

I've also done a Toxic Inventory of all the cosmetics in the house, and it's not a very pretty picture. But perhaps more on that another time.

Happy Easter!

Spring Low, Sweet Haricot
Mood:  lyrical
Now Playing: Norman Kember on BBC4
Topic: Elisabeth's Entries

Norman Kember, the English ex-hostage is speaking on BBC4 of his whole "ordeal" in Iraq, and frankly, he sounds like a misguided but disturbingly well-intentioned fellow. The way he's speaking sounds as if he's describing a holiday, as if it was no big deal. He agrees he was probably naive, but this was just what he had to do. And when asked about difficult parts of his peace mission, like say the kidnapping, or Tom Fox's last words, he simply says "Oh, I can't remember." "My mind must have just shut off" and then laughs. There is definitely something odd about him, and slightly irresponsible.

I'm expressing the above opinion only because it's an about-face from my opinion only a week or two ago. There was a lot of criticism in the papers after his release and I recall hotly defending his actions to Stephen (who agreed with me). I thought it was important for civilians and peacemakers to try and repair damage where perhaps the military and governments were too overstretched to handle.

I thought, who cares about the cost?, its good that people have such strong convictions, and are brave enough to put themselves in danger to help others.

Only now, Norman Kember truly sounds like a selfish Christian who was not interested in helping anyone, but rather was interested in talking to them, and showing Iraqi's the strength of his faith and to demonstrate that not all Christians hate them. Even better, how would you like to be a Christian yourself? Imagine how content that would have made Mr. Kember feel? To have risked his life, having proven indisputably the strength of his convictions, and then to have a trophy to bring back: "Look, I lead x amount of people to the Lord!" Hallelujah.

Meanwhile, what the Iraqi people need least is more religion. They require less division and confusion. What I wish Norman Kember had said he went to Iraq to do was to help Iraqis, perhaps rebuild their communities (bring a nice injection of western cash, instead of western religion). He could have used his interaction with the Iraqi public to help steer the government in the right direction. A well-intentioned peace activist is not inspiring. A peace activist who actually creates peace is something awe-inspiring.

Instead, he's achieved nothing and yet would do it again (without getting kidnapped of course).

>>>>RANT OVER<<<<

Stephen's making yummy potatoes and we'll probably end up in the pub somewhere today. I'll drink to world peace, I assure you.