Strawberries in a Bottle

There isn't much reason to why I'm blogging about this lovely bottle of beer other than I had it on a deliciously warm day last week and got rather tipsy (I swear I've become such a lightweight recently!). It's like strawberries in a bottle and it's local - produced on the green, green shores of England - we like (but seriously who am I to fuss about local ingredients when this girl ain't even local herself).

But what really caught my eye was the proud small print proclamation that it's vegan. A random thought later (no, actually I'm still holding on to that random thought) ... can vegans eat yeast? Well, I know they do since I've seen more than one vegan munch down on a slice of toast and gulp down a beer but doesn't that defeat the whole purpose veganism or don't yeast forms count? Go on, shoot me down.

Tea and Cake ... with a Teaspoonful of Tolstoy and a Dash of Larsson

I don't think there's ever a bad time for a cuppa and cake. A slice? Oh go on, make it two. I actually got round to making a lemon and poppy seed cake a few weeks ago but I can't for the life of me remember where I got the recipe from. If I'm truly honest with myself, it was probably a recipe I boshed together myself and thank heavens on this occasion it turned out just right. I do remember I used oil instead of butter, which points to the dissection of a muffin recipe along the way and yogurt for moistness. Ahhh... and then there was the lemon drizzle - just in case the yogurt only did half the job. I really must go find the recipe!

On a more literary note, if you've been through my Flickr stream you'll notice the constant presence of Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace by my lamp. I've been trying to get into the book for months and months (actually it's closer to years and years now) but that entry point just keeps alluding me. I seem to go backwards more than I go forward but I live in hope that one day I'll be determined enough to finish reading the darn thing. Until that day I faithfully dust off the covers every now and then before moving to more exciting books ..... like Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy. I'm on book 3 at the moment and I can't believe how many other people I see on the tube and bus reading one of the books in the series. I actually had a full conversation with someone on the bus *shock horror .... really? In London?* about the books. It really is the little things that bring people to talk to each other :) For me it all started with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo in a little corner of one of the many Starbucks dotted around the city with my usual brew - skinny latte with an extra shot, please.

KL Cravings

I found my KL foodie wish list whilst clearing up my desk at work today. Surprisingly it only had 4 wishes on it.

Koon Kee in Petaling Street, Chinatown - Wanton and Sui Kow
Foong Foong, Ampang - Yong Tau Foo
Yong Tau Foo Stall, Bangsar Lucky Garden Market - Chee Cheong Fun (with the little dried shrimp embedded in the noodles) with Soy Sauce, Oil, Sesame Seeds and Green Chilies
Jalan Imbi - Pork Ball Noodles

I only made it to 2 places when I was in KL. Poor showing for someone who was there for a month! I will be home again in May but until then, the sweet dreams continue ...

'Tweet ...!'Tweets the Tweeter

Believe it or not I have finally caved in and signed up for a Twitter account ... something I though I would never do. And I'll tell you why too ... I read about Tweet What You Eat, described as a 'Twitter-based food diary'.

I've kept food diaries before and they are very good at keeping me terribly conscious of what I eat but as most diaries go, I've always been too update it lazy after awhile. Perhaps, just perhaps, I would be better this time. So far I'm on 230 calories today and it's past 3PM. If I'm very, very good for the rest of the day, it means I can have dinner of 1700 - 3 Big Mac meals plus dessert!

Theft!

I have very recently found out that my photographs and blog contents have been copied off my Flickr account and from this blog to be featured on another blog - WITHOUT my permission or knowledge. Needless to say I was very angry when I found out....it really is just plain theft. I did visit the site (which I'm not going to promote by giving out the address) but apart from it being written in what I believe is Burmese, there is absolutely no contact information on the blog. After my initial anger had died down, I was going to pen a very polite message to this person asking for the removal of all copied material - a heck of lot more courtesy than this person ever showed me! But with no means of contacting this person, I seem to have hit a bit of a dead end.

However, an interesting view did come out of all this. On the day I found out my material had been copied, I was letting my frustration flow out to Stuart (alright - having a bit of a rant and rave) and he said I should be flattered that someone wanted to copy my work. Interesting viewpoint but I still rather sticky hands be kept away. I take the photos and write my blog purely out of enjoyment and love for the subject matter. I don't particularly go out of my way to advertise my blog but if others do come upon it, I hope they enjoy it as much as I do. I have, however, decided to mark the photographs that I post through my Flickr account. I never thought I would have to, but hopefully it will act as a slight deterrent to those terribly syrupy sticky (honey or golden syrup?) fingers from flinching any more of my stuff.