My Week — October 4th

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*blows off the blog cobwebs*

I think I have lost my mojo somewhere between France and Fleet.  I am not sure where I last saw it.  It actually might have been before France to be honest, maybe even before we went to Barbados in July.  I have no idea where I have put it.  I have looked in all the usual places.  Tried all the usual methods of recall and still it won’t show its head.

So I am trying to just coax it out slowly by pretending it’s around.  In a “if you build it they will come” type approach.   You know, if you pretend you are up for going to the party by the time you get to the party it will be the best party you ever went to.

Though I can assure you this is not going to be the best blog post I ever wrote so maybe that approach won’t work either.

Maybe I am just tired.   Maybe I just need a break and the mojo will come back.  I sort of hoped that Greece would do that and sadly, well, let’s say it didn’t and we all know how that ended.

My ankle is still buggered and whilst I thought it was getting better it clearly hasn’t been helped by two hours of driving yesterday, eight hours on my feet and then going up and down slopes and stairs in a hunt for at least a glimpse of 3G or wifi.    Today it feels like it is back to how it was the day I buggered it and that just pees me off as there is so much to do that can’t be done whilst limping on one foot.

Yesterday though was fun.   It was Blog On in Winchester, an event run by lovely Laura Seaton, and she asked me to speak on a panel about working with brands.  I am always terrified before doing things like that especially when its in front of 80 of your peers but Laura’s events are always really relaxed so I don’t know why I get my knickers in such a twist.    I also helped Annie get her props sorted for her session on photography editing, hence the pic above.   Two big piles of colour, one of  flowers and the other of sweets.    Sadly the lighting in the venue wasn’t really up to a session on photography so we had the bright idea of going outside but the nearest door let to an area behind the bins which wasnt exactly the greatest place to be but at least the light was natural and everybody seemed to appreciate the great props.  And the tips.  Keep an eye on Annie’s blog as she will be sharing her session online in the next day or two.

We flaked out when we got home and sadly didn’t have the energy to get up again and go out as planned.  Instead the lure of the sofa and rugby was all a bit too much.   Though let’s gloss over the rugby shall we?  We did enjoy a rather nice bottle of wine that we had been sent to review though.   From a company called Tanners, it was a bargain at just over a tenner.   I am a huge fan of white Burgundies and this didn’t disappoint.  It was really crisp and dry.   It would have been perfect with a roast chicken.  Though it was pretty good with our curry too!  And my only criticism was that we didn’t have another bottle!

We also snuck in a trip to Henley Literary Festival this week to see Lisa Faulkner talking about her love of tea and cake, and her addiction to tea pots.  Such a genuinely down to earth lady who has some great stories, and is passionate about food.  Not in a poncey way but in a heart of the family, social gathering kind of way.  It was wonderful to hear her talking but made me sad that we don’t see food as the same way in our house and don’t have those menu planning sessions and big family get togethers.   I did love her take on baking though, saying she is not a baker but more of a “tin filler”.    She says “we have a tin and it’s always got something in it.   It’s not a show stopper, its a plate of biscuits or some cup cakes but there is always something in the tin”.    That really made me smile and think it was a great approach to life actually.      That we don’t have to see everything as needing to be a show stopper, and amazing and perfect.     That our signature dish or a tray of shortbread that’s a bit burnt round the edges is more than fine if shared with friends.