Meeting Maggie

On Wednesday night after work, I made my way over to Hawthorn for the Melbourne leg of Maggie Alderson's book tour.  As I've fough my way through various commitments and challenges to find time to write and read more, Maggie has become one of my favourite writers.  She's an accomolished editor, columnist and novelist and a lovely and genuine person to boot.  Talk about being an inspiration and an aspiration! 

She was just as lovely and charming in person as she comes across through her witty tweets.  As her new novel, Shall We Dance, is set in a vintage store, she bought along some of her vintage finds for show and tell and spoke about vintage friendships - and making an effort to preserve relationships and communication with old friends - something I've written about and thought about a lot myself.  It saddens me to no end when I lose touch with people and I hate that maintaining friendships is sometimes such a chore and as hard as you might, people slip away...

Maggie is one of a handful of people who manages to get me out of bed early on a Saturday morning (sometimes it's B who's the one getting up as I beg him to go to the shops and buy me the paper so I can read Maggie's column - poor guy).  Her column is something I always manage to relate to.  It's been published for over 10 years and I hope it never ends!  Maggie's husband is Serbian, and she tells me he and their daughter are currently in Belgrade, the most vibrant underrated city in Europe.  Wish I could be there too....

And to top off a great evening, I ran into Semi Expat and got to meet Carly and Sophie.  Hooray for blogging friends.

Spent!

Is it just me, or is there an influx of books and films glorifying the concept of shopping addiction?  A beautiful woman breaks up with her boyfriend/her dog dies/her friend steals her wedding date and she spirals out of control and consoles herself by shopping?  In the end, prince charming comes along and saves the day.

But the reality is a lot harsher.  Living beyond ones means is a lot more dangerous than one may hope.  Credit cards come with a whole lot of spin - the promise to help you lead a better life and enable you to live your dreams, go on that vacation now, buy those Prada shoes now and all the while earn points for rewards (towards useless things you'll never use, like a rice cooker or foot spa).  But chances are if you need expensive debt to achieve your dreams, they are not meant to be, or there is a better way to achieve them.  If you cannot afford to pay for those shoes now, chances are you won't in 40 days when the bill arrives.  Key is to budget!  Put away some money for rent, for food and for shoes and buy things once you've saved up for them.

If you're battling existing debt, you will know how hard it is to actually pay it back.  Living costs will continue and it will be increasing difficult to go old turkey on your old lifestyle.  To not be able buy that new lip gloss on Saturday (as well as the coffee and pastry and scarf and sunglasses...)

It is a serious matter.  One that can damage a relationship.  Hiding new purchases from your boyfriend or mother?  Not just a fun thing all girls do, it's deceipt and can be harmful to your relationship.  Own up, you will feel a huge burden lift from your shoulders.... You will no longer be afraid of that envelope and the phone calls that follow should you be unable to keep up with repayments.  Get your loved ones involved to help you consolidate and get back on track.

Avis Cardella's memoir of her dark shopping years is on it's way to me.  Interesting to see her take on the issue and how she overcame her shopping addiction.  Review to follow.

Give away time!

My 200th post happened sometime last week, but my RSI prevented me from doing much on the computer.

Thanks to some lovely contacts, I am giving away a copy of The Accidental Renovator by Barbara Biggs...

I also have a heap of girly goodies to go with it... make up, fragrance samples, skincare, magazines!

The Accidental Renovator: A Paris Story" :

When Barbara Biggs, incorrigible writer, romantic and renovator, was in Paris just after the heat wave in 2003, she didn’t speak French and didn’t know anyone there. Instead of looking at art galleries and museums, she likes to look at real estate.

When she saw a cute little apartment overlooking a park, she asked the agent if he’d accept an offer. He said no. So, just for fun, she put in a ridiculous offer to enhance her buyer authenticity. She was thrown into chaos the next day when the agent rang to say it was hers.

Four months later, when settlement happened, she’d discovered that French builders are unreliable. She thought she’d be clever and bypass that problem by taking an Australian builder with her to renovate. Only trouble was, it was her next door neighbour who she’d only known three weeks and dated twice.
When they arrived in Paris a week later, neither spoke French, Bruce had no tools, no car and didn’t know where to buy anything. Within three days, they couldn’t stand each other.

To survive, Barbara had to meet people. She joined the Lazy Pigs Millionaire’s Club and met a swag of fascinating and eccentric Parisians. 

This story is about the underbelly of Paris social life with her nightmare renovation as a backdrop.
A funny and engaging story. Armchair tourism at it’s best.

I also have a heap of girly goodies to go with it... make up, fragrance samples, skincare, magazines!

Rules are simple:

1 entry for leaving a comment on this post, a bonus entry for being a follower.  Happy to ship anywhere in the world.

Don't be shy!  Good luck.

(Entries close 23:59AEST - 31 May 2010)

Decadence: Desserts by Philip Johnson

Philip Johnson is my favourite chef from my favourite restaurants in the world - E'cco Bistro in Brisbane.  Whenever I am visiting my parents and it's a special occasion I jump at the chance to eat there.  I am going again in two weeks!

"e'cco, a modern Australian bistro, is located on the city fringe of Brisbane's CBD. The bistro brought new life to a historic tea warehouse in a once un-fashionable district near the Story Bridge end of the City. When Philip Johnson took over the site, the ground floor was completely refurbished as a smart but unpretentious space, the perfect showcase for his distinctive cooking style... "

The menu is exquisite! The flavours are extraordinary together and are presented amazingly but without fuss.

One of the biggest regrets with my life style is that I do not have time to cook anything other than the wretched "quick dinners"... a stir fry or similar. However, with the long weekend coming up, apart from catching up on some readings, I am intending to cook... a lot!  French toast, scones, a roast and of course a lovely dessert.

Good timing then that the long-lusted-after Philip Johnson dessert book  Decadence has just arrived.  I maybe on a shopping ban, but not a book ban!

There are 90 outstanding dessert recipes in this amazing book.  I'm making the semifreddo from the cover tomorrow!

Another never fail favourite recipe of Philip's is the Breakfast Trifle.

Serves 6




200g (2 cups) rolled oats

250ml (1 cup) apple juice

200g chopped rhubarb

100g caster sugar

1 granny smith apple, peeled, cored and quartered

500g fresh strawberries, hulled

3 tsp honey

125g (½ cup) Greek-style natural yoghurt

150g fresh blueberries

Greek-style natural yoghurt, extra, to serve

20g (1/3 cup) shredded coconut, toasted, to serve



Put the oats and the apple juice in a bowl, mix well, then cover with plastic wrap. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour, or overnight, to allow the oats to soften.



Put the rhubarb, sugar and 100ml water in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Bring to the boil then reduce and simmer until the rhubarb is tender. Add the apple and continue to cook until the apple is tender but still holds its shape. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.



Mash half the strawberries with the honey, then stir into the soaked oats with the yoghurt. Slice the remaining strawberries.



Divide half the oat mixture into six serving glasses, and top with half the sliced strawberries, blueberries and rhubarb mixture. Repeat with the remaining oat mixture, berries and rhubarb mixture. Top with a spoonful of yoghurt and sprinkle with the toasted coconut.