Hello from Adelaide

Do you remember, just last Sunday, how I talked about spring being on the horizon in Perth?

Let me tell you, it's not on the horizon in Adelaide.

Adelaide is cold. And rather wet. And windy. And cold!

View from my hotel room shortly after arriving

On the plus side, Adelaide is just 3 hours flying time from Perth and I got upgraded to a 'deluxe' room.

Adelaide Crowne Plaza hotel

I'm not sure what the difference is relative to the 'standard' room, but this one is nice. It's also dry and warm, which have become key priorities. For those who follow AFL football, it also seems that the Brisbane Lions are staying here ahead of their game in Adelaide on the weekend.

In my time before the end of the day, I braved the rain to re-introduce myself to Adelaide. It's a city I tend to play down in my mind, as being small and dull and without much happening (I think I need to view somewhere in Australia as less populated and less serviced than Perth...), but it's none of those things really. As I discovered on my first adult trip here nearly 10 years ago, it's rather nice.

The city centre has a good mix of architecture...

Adelaide Arcade

Parliament house

...and in an advanced move, instead of green men (to cross roads), red men (to not cross), and flashing red men (finish crossing but don't start), Adelaide has intersections with green men (to cross) and red men (to not cross) and a counting down timer (to judge your dash across the road with careful consideration).

Not all intersections have this but those that did made me very happy indeed. I don't know why this isn't done everywhere!

There are also shops aplenty, and one particular shop that tugged at my heart very insistently.

It was, of course, a food-related shop. At the bottom of the Myer shopping arcarde is a softserve frozen yoghurt shop called Menchie's. It has flavours like marshmallow, red velvet, chocolate chip cookie dough, angel food cake, and chocolate peanut butter, as well as the very necessary natural tart.

I wanted it. I really wanted it. Unfortunately, even for me, frozen yoghurt is not a good match for frozen hands, and so I constrained myself to looking without tasting. If time and weather permit, I may yet return!

Have you explored or re-discovered any new areas lately?

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Work lunches

When it comes to work snacks, I have no trouble at all thinking of ideas. I also have no trouble taking time to pack / prepare the snacks in question. There is always fruit, at least two pieces. Then some selection from cereal, dried fruit and nuts, home-made muffins, English muffins, yoghurt, or even over-day yoghurt and oats, sometimes in rather decadent form.

This is still in first place for my best work snack for 2012.

Snacks are easy. What I struggle with is having a proper lunch in there, and not making lunch a variation of the above foods. I would be quite happy with fruit, cereal and yoghurt for lunch every day, but I think it's probably best for vegetables to feature sometimes too.

Given that I have relatively little time before work most mornings, and I leave the house at 6am two days per week (gym before work), I have been trying to address the lunch challenge by using dinner leftovers. This sounds like an obvious solution, but several years ago I was convinced I wouldn't like dinner food at lunch.

I suspect the shift (I actually do like dinner food at lunch!) may reflect the extra variation in my dinners now, relative to a few years ago, in large part due to experimenting with a broader range of vegetarian and vegan dishes. Here are some examples from the last few weeks.

Purple fried rice was just as good the next day as it was the night it was cooked

(and just as entertaining in colour).

Green salad with raw mixed nuts and dried cherries...

...with a wholemeal English muffin.

Maple and balsamic roast vegetables and tofu - 

I made another batch for the sole purpose of having it for lunch.

This is a re-used photo, but if you picture this as  a messier version served in a tupperware container,

you have my work-based variation of four-bean mix with salsa, capsicum and nutritional yeast, invariably also with crackers.

A less exciting combination - chickpeas with stir fry vegetables. 

I think chocolate may have followed.

But lest we think cereal has disappeared completely...

...it hasn't, quite. My discovery of almond milk is keeping it firmly tethered in place, if nothing else!

Do you see how much milk is on the cereal? This would have been unheard of 6 months ago.

I figure cereal with almond milk is at least better than dry cereal, which was my previous standard. Right? Right.

What do your weekday lunches look like? Any more ideas you'd like to share with me? 

Or are there others that are similarly cereal / snack inclined?!

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Some (phone) pictures

Parramatta is, I think, the slightly dirtier cousin of central Sydney. It turns out it's also the scene (or near to it) of recent Sydney shootings! Still, putting those things aside, it has provided me with some things to look at and eat around the work components of this trip.

Here are some of them!

Our two-bedroom apartment at the Meriton hotel apartments has two levels

I have the upstairs bedroom, with an adjoining bathroom that is bigger than any I've had in my life (two basins!)

Sunday's dinner: Shared ginger tofu stirfry, mushroom and tofu stirfry, and rice at 'In the mood for Thai' , Parramatta
(Not photographed very well, but very enjoyable)

We don't have easily visible sunrises in Perth, given we're on the west coast - seeing the sun rise is thus a novelty

Early morning running route; Parramatta river

Also passed on my early morning running route

Monday's dinner: 'Nimbin' woodfired pizza with spinach, pumpkin, capsicum and mushrooms, plus toasted sesame seeds, minus the listed garlic sauce - provided by the appropriately named 'The Bite'  Italian restaurant.

We also don't have Aldi in Western Australia. In other words, I got to visit a new supermarket. The excitement!

There were many new (to me) products. I wanted cereal, but a large box of cereal for 3 remaining mornings wasn't very justifiable, especially as I'm travelling with a colleague and can't eat cereal for dinner. Muesli bars were a compromise.

A new chilli chocolate was not being compromised on! 

The Children's Hospital at Westmead has a Starbucks coffee stand. As we don't have Starbucks in Western Australia either (we don't have anything :P ) this pleased me too. Until I tried their cinnamon dolce latte and wasn't even able to finish it. Never again.

Tuesday's dinner: Stuffed vine leaves, Lebanese bread and assorted dips at  Sahra Lebanese restaurant, Parramatta

And that, I think, is quite enough from my phone's camera.

What has your week involved thus far? 
And have you tried Lebanese food - I quite liked it, but wasn't hungry enough to try any of the main vegetarian meals.

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Thoughts whilst flying

Well, technically these aren't thoughts whilst flying so much as thoughts ahead of flying, scheduled to go out whilst flying. But that reads as far more confusing.

However we phrase it, I should be somewhere between Perth and Sydney at the time this goes out (Qantas willing). I'm a little peeved that my next four days of work training are in the same city as last year's work conference (my heart pines for Melbourne...and also Mr Bite, who is in Perth), but in truth it probably won't matter too much. I think this trip will leave little time for things other than work, and if it does, we're at least staying in a part of Sydney I've never been before - Parramatta.

Although my weekend has been interrupted by travel, we managed to squeeze quite a lot into it prior to my flight at midday today. Here are some of the more enjoyable components. Cleaning and washing don't make the list...although they are enjoyable when done, so there is that.

Western Australia Symphony Orchestra (WASO) Star Wars and Beyond Concert

That's right, we actually went to a concert. It's rather an exciting event in our household, given it only happens once a year or so. This one was in honour of Mr Bite's birthday, with two tickets to the concert being a joint gift from my family and me (the 'me' component only being fair, given my participation in the gift :P ).

We hadn't realised until Friday that the concert was on May the Fourth, a date that is known by some as Star Wars day (say it outloud and you should realise why...). As the concert title suggests, there was more than just Star Wars music - pieces from Indiana Jones, Harry Potter, Jaws, and other popular films featured too. The link was that all were composed by John Williams, a quite prolific composer who celebrated his 80th birthday this year.

Apologies for the phone camera quality...

...at least the first has some level of focus...!

It was a very enjoyable night, and there was something really fun about hearing familiar 'popular' pieces played by a symphony. The conductor, Anthony Inglis, was wonderful too - very interactive and really an attraction in his own right.

Boots

Or alternatively phrased, the onset of truly autumnal weather. I don't have pictures of the weather, but I do have pictures of the boots I was able to wear because of it.

Pictures in two lighting options, in fact, because it was rather challenging to get black ribbon on black boot to come out.

I love the black ribbon.

Over-day oats with applesauce and yoghurt

I am obsessed with this at the moment. Plain nonfat yoghurt with apple sauce and oats, thrown together at some stage early in the day (or pre-work, on a work day) and eaten at lunch or in the afternoon, has been happening a lot.

Sometimes even with chocolate chips.

With yoghurt to use up before I went away, last night it even happened at dessert (although sadly, in a chocolate chip free way).

What are you up to this Sunday / weekend?

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What I've enjoyed this month: February 2012

Another month is over and 2012 is now two-twelfths of the way through. Eek.

February is actually quite a hard month for me to review. It has been one of the busiest, most hectic months of my working life, and I have found myself feeling more than a little overwhelmed on more than a few occasions. Without boring you with the details of my work life, there are impending deadlines that have quite a bit of importance, and I suspect that full relaxation will continue to elude me for a little while longer. A preliminary deadline passed on the 22nd February and things have been somewhat calmer since then, but the final, conclusive deadline is the 14th March. I'm certainly looking forward to our trip up north to Exmouth over Easter!

Although there are some obvious downsides to this work-related busy-ness, there are upsides too. The main one is that is that I'm still intact. I have been a bit distracted, a bit (anxiety-driven) sleep deprived, and had semi-amusing memory lapses (names, mostly, and things like getting in the shower before I am fully undressed - something I really thought I had mastered by now), but I am in one piece. I am quite proud of this.

Putting work aside, there have also been other good things this month. Here are some of them.

This view...

Cottesloe Beach, Western Australia

...taken the evening of my brother's birthday dinner, this photo reminds me that I am lucky to live near the coast and makes me think that I should make an effort to visit the beach more regularly.

This picture isn't bad either.

Cottesloe Beach, Western Australia, again

Fixing (hopefully) my plantar fasciitis

This might sound like an odd thing to list. And, granted, it is a bit of an odd thing to list. But I started February with a right heel that was incredibly painful to walk on when I walked bare foot or in non-supportive shoes - which in summer, was most of my shoes. The verdict was plantar fasciitis, most likely as a result of my over-pronating (rolling in) feet and the lack of shoe support, outside of my running shoes, over the last few warmer months.

Just for fun, my right hip and upper back also joined the party, which meant that I was finding routine movements surprising hard 4 weeks ago. I've now used almost all of my annual physiotherapy health fund rebates, which with 10 months of the year still to go isn't exactly great, but the plus side is that my heel is now fine, my back is back to normal, and my hip is improving.

My new work bag

This isn't actually new any more, as I bought it in the post-Christmas sales. The zips on my previous, black work bag gradually lost all zipping ability, so it was with some relief that I found and bought this replacement. It usually takes me a while to find the 'right' bag but this one appeared within a few hours of arriving at the shops.

Although I bought this in January, it's only after two months of use that the bag is starting to prove its worth (and it is worthy!). I can fit A4 documents in it (just, if sideways, or sticking out the top, if upright), it has usefully located and sized pockets, and the zips are still going strong.

Finding kale, using besan flour, and returning to smoothies

All worthwhile discoveries / re-discoveries.

My enjoyment of homemade ice cream and frozen banana soft serve deserves a mention here too, as I have really become quite obsessed.

Picross 3D

Another slightly random entry to this list, but Mr Bite's Nintendo DS Picross 3D game has been one of the few things to quickly and effectively distract and relax me this month. This game requires all of my mental energy, which means there is no energy left for niggling doubts or anxieties. Perfect. It's also rather fun, and I'm on a private mission to catch up to Mr Bite (he's on the Hard level, I'm on Easy...).

As an interesting aside to this point, did you know that researchers in England are trialing Tetris in emergency departments, for individuals who experience traumatic events or injuries? Playing Tetris and other visuospatial games in the aftermath of trauma has been shown to reduce the intensity of later trauma-related flashbacks and intrusive memories. The theory is that trauma-related information can't be encoded in detail when the brain is using its visuospatial resources to play Tetris. This reduces the risk of post-traumatic stress disorder and related symptoms. From my experience with these sorts of games as an anxiety reduction tool, I can see how this could work!

How has your February been? And how do you reduce anxiety when you're in the midst of a busy patch?

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A weekend

Cooler weather.

Consecutive days below 30'C. Overnight temperatures as low as 14'C. We can sleep with the windows open and the quilt on. And venture outside without having hot air scorch us. Perfect.

A new baby.

The first to a friend in 2012. What's more, the first to one of my school (vs. university / work) friends - and thus the first to a friend who is actually younger than me! 

Surreal. And a beautiful little girl.

A trip to the local library.

Something I always love. And now I have travel books calling my name. 

Work.

It's been many, many months since I've worked for any length of time on the weekend. But a nauseating To Do list hovers over me like a tidal wave about to break, and I suspect weekend work will be needed again before the month is out.

 Things will improve after February, though, and I can get through one month. I just have to breathe. And swim if that tidal wave does crash.

Kale.

I thought it didn't exist near me. It turns out curly kale is at the fruit and vegetable markets I visit every week...they just usually sell out before Sunday.

I hope I like it after months of considering it beyond my reach!

What has your weekend involved?

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Returning to work...and a container confession

Today, I am somewhat sad to say, was my first day back at work for 2012. The sadness doesn't come from any aspect of the day, or even work per se - rather that the break is over and the busy work stretch I have ahead is starting.

Still, I can be (and am!) grateful that I had an enjoyable enough break to not want it to end. And that by returning on a Thursday I am starting with a 2 day work week, which is rather a good arrangement.

I looked back over my I'm Dreaming Of... post yesterday, where I'd noted things I was hoping to do over the break. I was pleased to realise that I'd managed almost all of them: reading, some photography practice, baking and cooking (albeit mostly before Christmas), some shopping, some blog updates, time outdoors, and even cleaning the blinds. I didn't, however, wash the windows, clean the fridge very well, or re-organise the pantry. I guess I know my priorities ;)

Given that today marks a return to work, with packed lunches and snacks, I thought it might be appropriate to reveal something about my relationship with Tupperware-like containers. You see, I have a slight obsession with them. Particularly the small ones.

It's starting to cause storage problems.

I am also rather fond of using these containers to store and/or organise pre-prepared food in the fridge.

This latter tendency is a bit more hit-and-miss - there are some weeks when I bemoan my lack of organisation in cutting things up in advance - but my small plastic containers get a lot of use during the working week.

Some of them are perfect for cereal, dried fruit and nuts, or even yoghurt.

Others are better suited to a whole packed lunch, and are almost like a lunchbox.

 As I type this, there are six containers or similar in the fridge. In addition to the watermelon pictured above, there are washed grapes (albeit not in a container as such)...

Washed salad leaves and perhaps a surplus of chopped carrot...

And three smaller, single-serve options...

With mango...

And two serves of dinner leftovers, vegetable and tofu stir fry to be precise...

Fortunately, there are some benefits to an obsession with plastic containers. For a start, they are re-usable, and so my use of disposable plastic has reduced. They also allow me to look past some of the commercial packaged snacks that used to catch my eye in the supermarket. The idea of paying for individual packaging when I can use a brightly coloured container instead...well, it's not so appealing.

I do think, though, that it is time to stop expanding the collection. There is only so much space in our kitchen. What's more, I wouldn't want to neglect other categories of possible items. I'm thinking that my bowl collection could do with some attention this year...

Do you have obsessions with any dishes, containers, or kitchen utensils? 

And do you pack work lunches or snacks?

(As an addition, lest the above pictures paint an excessively healthy version of our kitchen, I should note that a whole section of the pantry is currently filled with chocolate!)

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