The washing up liquid we have in the kitchens at work is called Gremsoap. I thought this was a weird name until I had to use it, and realised it looked like gremlins that have been squished into a pulp and then run through a sieve... Delightful eh?
I'm not sure I really want to use it to wash my mug and glass now...
Unplanned writing that just spills from my mind...
Thursday, 25 February 2010
Sunday, 7 February 2010
Chocolate for Girls
Most evenings we unwind with an episode of 'West Wing' or 'House', accompanied by a good cup of tea. Sometimes we enjoy a little bit of chocolate or some other delicious but slightly naughty snack. We usually share whatever snack it is we have, but a couple of nights ago we had both chosen different bars of chocolate. My fiance was happily tucking into bar of Montezuma's finest 70% dark chocolate, whilst I enjoyed fig and orange dark chocolate by Seeds of Change. Whilst my fiance made the tea I was amused to read what was printed on the back of my bar:
"Open this wrapper and, summoning all the willpower you can, hold back for just a moment.
First, breathe in this chocolate's aroma: Trinitario cocoa giving the chocolate it's rich complexity. The delicate orange zest with tangerine overtones. All imbued with fragrant figs, ripened under the hot Aegean sun.
Now taste.
By the way, we only use figs from female fig trees (the males being inferior, are discarded). Sexist? Fruitist? Unashamedly yes."
It made me chuckle, especially when my fiance declared, "SEXIST chocolate?", his eyes wide with horror. It reminded me of Yorkie bars a few years ago when they boldly stated that they were 'Not for Girls.' Well, here I have found a far tastier alternative for us women than nasty Nestle. And my fiance was most miffed when I refused to share my chocolate, because it was chocolate for girls... ;)
"Open this wrapper and, summoning all the willpower you can, hold back for just a moment.
First, breathe in this chocolate's aroma: Trinitario cocoa giving the chocolate it's rich complexity. The delicate orange zest with tangerine overtones. All imbued with fragrant figs, ripened under the hot Aegean sun.
Now taste.
By the way, we only use figs from female fig trees (the males being inferior, are discarded). Sexist? Fruitist? Unashamedly yes."
It made me chuckle, especially when my fiance declared, "SEXIST chocolate?", his eyes wide with horror. It reminded me of Yorkie bars a few years ago when they boldly stated that they were 'Not for Girls.' Well, here I have found a far tastier alternative for us women than nasty Nestle. And my fiance was most miffed when I refused to share my chocolate, because it was chocolate for girls... ;)
Wednesday, 3 February 2010
A Wonderful Winter Wedding
It was crisp and cold, bitterly cold in fact. The kind of cold that pierces your bones. The sun was bright and the sky a brilliant blue. "Tell your friends they're mad for getting married in January!" my auntie said. Mad? I think not. This is the second January wedding we have been to, having gone along to one last year. We even considered having a winter wedding ourselves but things worked out a little differently to how we had expected. My visions of wearing a long, flowing Medieval inspired gown with dripping ivory sleeves were swapped for somewhat different ideas...better ones in fact ;)
But back to the story I am telling. After an interesting car journey which involved a crucial part of motorway being closed and being forced through the irritating one-way system of a historical Surrey town, we arrived safely in Oxfordshire at my auntie's idyllic little home in the middle of nowhere. Partly thanks to TomTom, and partly thanks to my map-reading skills :D
After changing in her warm little abode into our finest clothes, we headed into Oxford, where we spent a couple of hours with a friend who is studying Architecture at Oxford Brooks, sipping coffee (of course it was tea in my case), examining his newly purchased OS maps of the area, and putting the world to rights. Then it was off for a brisk walk along the river, baring the freezing winds because we had that beautiful winter sun beaming on our faces. Our friend left us at the church as he headed off to work on an assignment.
My friendship with the bride to be came about due to a spoonful of serendipity. My bus was late on the day of my first A-Level English class, and when I got there, unable to breathe from the running, there was one seat left, next to a pretty girl with a short wavy brown bob and glasses. I sat down, and once we were set work, I introduced myself to her. From then on we naturally gravitated towards each other in our English lessons, and soon developed a great friendship through our shared love of Shakespeare and our shared dislike of our teachers vague use of the word, "vague"! As usual university and mission trips abroad came and went, but although we saw each other a lot less, we stayed firmly in touch, praying for each other, sending letters, Facebook messages etc. She met her fiance at university, and last August they got engaged. Lots of excitement. We met up at the end of December to catch up, but with both of our heads full of wedding planning that dominated our conversation for a good hour at least.
The church was beautifully decorated - for an ex-warehouse friends and family of bride and groom had done a stunning job, with pretty drapes, ribbons at the end of chairs, lanterns along the aisle, fairly lights and ivy decorating a pretty arch for the newlyweds to sit beneath. When the bride entered, looking so incredibly beautiful, I don't think my face has fought so much between smiling and crying. It was a moment of pure joy, and the whole day followed in that form. There really is something so very special about seeing someone you love make those all important vows with the love of their life, watching them make a commitment before God, surrendering themselves completely to Him and His will for their life together.
The day was filled with wonderful memories: God, white, sunshine, cold, cake, purple, hearts, prayers, silver, social justice*, fairy lights, ivy, blue, fun, joy, wonder, beauty. Many happy things.
With our wedding now only a few months away it was inevitable that our thoughts would turn to that now and then. There was no stealing of ideas, but there was the spine-tingling realisation that it would be us getting married soon. It brought on excitement and joy for us both, in anticipation of the vows we will be making before God, our family and friends. We've been looking forward to it for so long and now it is a lot closer, with February set to be the month of manic planning and the fine-tuning of details (with a few obligatory things left to the last minute, of course!)
It would have been rude to dwell on thoughts of our own wedding for too long, however, and we were absorbed into the fun, laughter, and pure joy around us. Our friends are right where God wants to be, and this beautiful day was just the start of that next chapter in the exciting plans He has for them. It wasn't just a celebration of what they have in their love of each other, but a celebration of the things to come. And we are there to support them every step of the way. Congratulations to them both!
*this is key to what the bride and groom do in their work, and was a key component of the day.
But back to the story I am telling. After an interesting car journey which involved a crucial part of motorway being closed and being forced through the irritating one-way system of a historical Surrey town, we arrived safely in Oxfordshire at my auntie's idyllic little home in the middle of nowhere. Partly thanks to TomTom, and partly thanks to my map-reading skills :D
After changing in her warm little abode into our finest clothes, we headed into Oxford, where we spent a couple of hours with a friend who is studying Architecture at Oxford Brooks, sipping coffee (of course it was tea in my case), examining his newly purchased OS maps of the area, and putting the world to rights. Then it was off for a brisk walk along the river, baring the freezing winds because we had that beautiful winter sun beaming on our faces. Our friend left us at the church as he headed off to work on an assignment.
My friendship with the bride to be came about due to a spoonful of serendipity. My bus was late on the day of my first A-Level English class, and when I got there, unable to breathe from the running, there was one seat left, next to a pretty girl with a short wavy brown bob and glasses. I sat down, and once we were set work, I introduced myself to her. From then on we naturally gravitated towards each other in our English lessons, and soon developed a great friendship through our shared love of Shakespeare and our shared dislike of our teachers vague use of the word, "vague"! As usual university and mission trips abroad came and went, but although we saw each other a lot less, we stayed firmly in touch, praying for each other, sending letters, Facebook messages etc. She met her fiance at university, and last August they got engaged. Lots of excitement. We met up at the end of December to catch up, but with both of our heads full of wedding planning that dominated our conversation for a good hour at least.
The church was beautifully decorated - for an ex-warehouse friends and family of bride and groom had done a stunning job, with pretty drapes, ribbons at the end of chairs, lanterns along the aisle, fairly lights and ivy decorating a pretty arch for the newlyweds to sit beneath. When the bride entered, looking so incredibly beautiful, I don't think my face has fought so much between smiling and crying. It was a moment of pure joy, and the whole day followed in that form. There really is something so very special about seeing someone you love make those all important vows with the love of their life, watching them make a commitment before God, surrendering themselves completely to Him and His will for their life together.
The day was filled with wonderful memories: God, white, sunshine, cold, cake, purple, hearts, prayers, silver, social justice*, fairy lights, ivy, blue, fun, joy, wonder, beauty. Many happy things.
With our wedding now only a few months away it was inevitable that our thoughts would turn to that now and then. There was no stealing of ideas, but there was the spine-tingling realisation that it would be us getting married soon. It brought on excitement and joy for us both, in anticipation of the vows we will be making before God, our family and friends. We've been looking forward to it for so long and now it is a lot closer, with February set to be the month of manic planning and the fine-tuning of details (with a few obligatory things left to the last minute, of course!)
It would have been rude to dwell on thoughts of our own wedding for too long, however, and we were absorbed into the fun, laughter, and pure joy around us. Our friends are right where God wants to be, and this beautiful day was just the start of that next chapter in the exciting plans He has for them. It wasn't just a celebration of what they have in their love of each other, but a celebration of the things to come. And we are there to support them every step of the way. Congratulations to them both!
*this is key to what the bride and groom do in their work, and was a key component of the day.
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