Recipes

One of my favourite pastimes, is to lie in bed at night, and examine and devour recipes!  Not just ordinary recipes ... they must be accompanied by mouthwatering pictures as well ... I drool over them and make may promises to myself to try them the following day!  It's much easier these days with modern technology : My tablet and cell phone are always handy, and I have almost forgotten what it feels like to hold a real magazine or book in my hands.

Back to recipes :  Another favourite pastime is to make a scrappie from my favourite recipes, and then to circulate them to my children, who in turn send them to their children!  This is a wonderful medium for sharing and we always have our favourites on hand wherever we may find ourselves.

I remember when Karen was in Switzerland doing her first year's work, she phoned several times for the pancake recipe! Ha ha!  No internet or cell phones or tablets those days! Eventually I think she mastered the recipe, and these days she entertains families with her famous pancakes as highlight!

Cecile has also shared her favourites and other Café recipes ... with the appropriate pictures!  

Daydreams are dreamt when I browse these recipes, and then I nostalgically make an attempt to try some of them, savouring each bite and thinking of my loved one!

Cheese and Marmite Scones

Retirement

Yes, three years seems such a long time .. and it certainly is!

As of today, 1 August 2013, I have officially joined the ranks of the retired!  After a working career of 40 years, a whole new life lies ahead!  What a wonderful thought that is - Now I will be able to do all the things which I have always dreamed of doing ... all my hobbies and crafts which have  been hiding in my hobbyroom cupboard, will now systematically be aired and put to good and challenging use!  What a blissful thought!

No more waking up in the mornings to the gentle, and sometimes not-so-gentle sound of music from the alarm clock and then 30 minutes later the merciless and insistent sound of the cellphone alarm which doesn't stop unless the phone has been groped for and very often almost flung across the room!

No more standing in front of the cupboard trying to decide what to wear!  No, I am not one of those wonderful angelic beings who decide the evening before, or even maybe a week in advance, what the mode of dress for day should be!  No, I have to think ... ummm yesterday wasn't washing day, this top doesn't seem too smelly and that one is perhaps not as creased as I think (maybe I should put the light on and just make sure!)  Good old standby scarves which have become a firm favourite of mine have saved many dressing problems.

I don't have to be as proficient in multitasking as I have been used to :  Mommy-mode at home, then bookkeeper-mode at work, then mommy-mode again as soon as the working day is over!  Now I'll have to find another mode for myself : maybe hobby-mode?

Retirement ... just think what that means :  one advantage is that I get to qualify legally for pensioner's discount at various shops and restaurants. I can even ride on the cable car at special price!  I am not too sure of the cobra-ride at Ratanga Junction!  Maybe that would be a bit to ambitious (fortunately I had my ride before I became a pensioner!)

Talking of pensioner's discount ... makes me remember that Fanie and I went for a delicious lunch a few weeks ago.  After the meal, we were appropriately mellow and relaxed and when I asked the girly-waitress about pensioners' discount, she said that pensioners get discount only on Mondays till Thursdays.  Weekends were for normal people.  Yes, I had a very difficult time to attempt looking NORMAL!  I had to make sure that my eyes were uncrossed, my twitch of my left eyelid was under control and I had to sit on my hands to prevent myself from picking my nose! When we paid our bill we congratulated ourselves 'cos we qualified for for normal fees!!  Yippee!!

1 August 2013

Cecile & Linay

A lot has happened since the last blog which I entered.  Fanie and I have become the proud great grandparents of little Linay van der Mark - she lives in New Zealand with Mamma Marcellé and Pappa Gerard.  Cecile and Gert are now proud  and doting grandparents.  Naturally we all think that she is the most perfect, most beautiful and most gorgeous little girl in the whole wide world!!