March - A Month in Review

13 Facebook Recommendations:

I have now completed 2 recommendations, so I'm still slightly behind. But I've had lots of suggestions from you lovely lot, so I'll soon catch up.

13 Recipes:

I did literally bugger all this month. All of my cooking involved at least some pre-made ingredients (such as the Old El Paso debarcle  

13 Meals Out:

No meals out this month, due to March being tighter than a gnats chuff, money wise. But I've got a few ideas for places next month, so watch this space!

13 Random Acts of kindness:

I'VE BEEN NICE!!!! Finally have 2 ticks for this box, get in!

13 Letters:

I've bought some nice paper and envelopes, so this will start to happen very soon. And going back on my word, I did say I wouldn't say who was getting a letter before I wrote it, but I have decided one of the letters will be for Ethan to have when he is older. A letter from the past, talking about the first year of having him in my life. Nobody will read it until he is an adult. (Yes, this is the same comment as last month, to show how little I have done about the letters)

13 Blogs per month:

3 months in a row. That's right, look impressed.

13 Family days out:

The unseasonable weather has scuppered quite a few plans this month, so we have some catching up to do with this.

13 New Foods:

My first real disaster, thanks to Old El Paso. I won't be going back..

£13 for Charity per month:

Well ahead of the game on this one. 5 donations done. And you can still sponsor me here

13/30 Autographs:

I really need to crack on with this!

13 (minimum) Postcrossing:

Bugger, I forgot to post these!

13 (minimum) Geocaches:

It's been snowing, shut up!

13 @Replies or Retweets from famous people:

Literally nothing to add to this. Unusually quiet on Twitter this month 

Well, I've got better at being nice to people, but not quite got the hang of leaving the house yet. I'm sure that will improve as I'm going to the shop to buy sweets and pop again!!

It's been a long month.

Facebook Recommendations - Kashiwa Daisuke ‎– Program Music I

Kashiwa Daisuke - Program Music I

Well, this is unexpected.

I should start by saying, I am in no way a Muso. I have an iPod filled with podcasts and Radio 4 comedy shows and very little music. That's not to say I have no musical taste, it's just fairly safe to say when confronted with something as unusual as this, I'm very much a layman and simply don't have the words to review it and do it justice. But I've never let a lack of ability stop me doing anything before, so I'll give it a go.

Unlike my previous DVD review, I'm actually writing this as I listen to it. And so fair, I'm managed to completely avoid describing the music in any way. Let's start with a little introduction to Kashiwa Daisuke himself, taken from Last.Fm

Born in Hiroshima, Kashiwa Daisuke (柏大輔) started off as the composer and guitarist of post-rock band yodaka in 2001. Being inspired by the band's psychedelic sound due to a post-rock approach, and by Maurizio Bianchi, he started a solo project in 2004. As a solo artist his idea is to create not only acoustic, but also electronic filmy soundscapes and atmospheres, by melting together a variety of classic instruments, spoken word snippets, and crisp beats. With a proper amount of ambient music, all of these form an exquisite sound experience.

I'd say filmy soundscapes is absolutely right, it sounds like a bit of arty film soundtrack, but you can't get used to it. As soon as you relax and think you know where it is taking you, something unexpected will happen. This will be impossible to understand unless you hear it for yourself, I'm going to see if there is a sample on YouTube.

Even better, I have found Track 1 in it's entirety so you can listen to everything I have so far. Please let me know if you do, I'd be genuinely interested in other peoples thoughts on this

Right, that's track one finished. I'll go and cook some dinner and get on with track 2. This living blogging thing is easy, I reckon the NME will snap me up after this. Is the NME still a thing?

Right, Ethan is tucking into potato skins, and I'm back on track 2. A very similar vain obviously, but this seems more jazzy and upbeat. It's like something you would get played live in a bar, but if they had 3 different pianists, all playing different songs and one is untuned. And I don't mean that in a bad way either!

Bugger me, a drum roll. I wasn't expecting that.

It has really slowed down now, something far more peaceful... but you can't relax. Whoops, I was right, complete change now.

An interesting moment there, with what sounded like an orchestra full of beautiful violin players, accompanied by me, who has never even picked up a violin, standing closest to the mic and trying to keep up.

Bloody hell, this has all gone a bit weird. It's not a good as the first track in my opinion.

And that's it finished. Well, I didn't really know what to expect from that, and I certainly didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did. Listening to it, especially Stella, was really rather relaxing, I recommend anyone reading this should at the very least give it a go. You never know, you might open up a whole new world.

Right, I better go, Q Magazine are on the phone offering me a job....

Facebook Recommendations - Help Needed!

Guys!!!

I need more Facebook Recommendations please. Ideally DVD's, but also CD's and Books. Anything that you think I'd like, and I'll give it a go.

The only rule is, I can't have seen/listened to/watched it before. But you won't know what I've seen, so hit me with anything and everything and we will see what I can come up with.

Thank you. I love you xx

Facebook Recommendations - About Schmidt

I don't want to give anything away about the plot in case somebody reading this hasn't watched it themselves, so here is my non-review

The first thing I should say about this and all my Facebook recommendations is that I'm not doing any research into them at all. So I know literally nothing about them, apart from what it says on the DVD box.

So, going into 'About Schmidt', I was expecting it be a comedy. Quotes such as 'Hilarious', 'Terrific, a very funny movie' and 'Hilarious - a comic treasure' lead to me believe it was going to be light-hearted and amusing, but it was neither of those things.

Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed the film. It was an engaging story with an excellent performance from Jack Nicholson, but it was a dark film, rather than a dark comedy. His character is a realistic hero, in that is uncompromisingly human. Flashes of genuine compassion are mirrored with flashes of incredible selfishness  This isn't your average Hollywood film. There is no real bad guy, no lessons are learnt and everything is wrapped up with a neat little bow at the end. If you like a bit of melancholy, then this is the film for you.

Random Act of Kindness - No Fun March

I wasn't originally going to count this as a challenge, but being honest, it totally fits. I decided to do it on the spare of the moment, I've not nothing from it personally (not even weight loss, I've certainly not been eating healthy, just eating unhealthy things I don't like that much) and I would go so far to say I've hated doing it.

On the plus side, I have been able to raise more money than I thought I would, so I would like to take this chance to thank the people that have sponsored me.

So thank you very much to Sarah, Alex, Katie, Mum, Dad, Hazel, Harry and Phoebe, Leigh, Sharon, Denise, Vicky, Andy, Evie and Julie. Bloody good eggs, each and every one of them. Together they have saved Africa, so hopefully nobody will have to suffer as much as I have this month. Because isn't that was Comic Relief is truly about?

The end is finally is sight, and I have got big plans for Easter Monday. I'm going to be back on the good stuff in a big way. There will be pictures!

Trying New Food - Cheesy Baked Enchilada

On Saturday, for our Anniversary, I decided to cook cheesy baked enchiladas for Katie and I.

For those of you keeping score, the reason this doesn't count as one of the 'cooking from scratch' challenges is because it was from a kit. This kit:

Now, not only was this the first time I've cooked Mexican, it's the first time I'd eaten Mexican, but I thought I was onto a winner here. No peppers or any of that dirty business, I just needed to add chicken and cheese! I love chicken and cheese. What could wrong?

It turns out, I had overlooked a small, but vital point. This meal tasted absolutely fucking disgusting. The pack comes with half a tonne of tomato sauce and some spicy powder nonsense, which you careful mix together, cover the chicken and then the next step was to bake it in the oven, but it might as well have been to pour it straight down the toilet, save everyone involved some time and some unpleasant chewing.

This time next week though, I'll be able to eat takeaway again, and we can put this whole unpleasant episode behind us. 

 

Future Charity donation - Tree of Hope

This is a slightly unusual blog post even for me. Because I haven't made this charity donation yet, but intend to in the near future. So the purpose of this blog is mainly as an aid to memory for me, but also to raise awareness and maybe if someone else's heart strings are tugged, you might throw a few pounds Freddie's way.

https://www.justgiving.com/Swan-Freddie/ (Thank you to Charlie for bringing to my attention)

Freddie was born on the 1st June 2010. A few hours after he entered the world he was taken to the special care baby unit and we were told the devastating news that they suspected he had a syndrome although they weren't sure exactly what type of syndrome it was.




Over the past 2 years Freddie's list of health issues has grown considerably -
Myoclonic epilepsy
Sleep apnoea
Metopic suture
Microcephaly
Small airways
High arched palette
Reflux
Stridor
Plagicocephaly
Hypotonia
Atrial heart defect
Milk protein allergy
Narrow pelvic bones
Curved thigh bones
Food aversion
Gastrostomy tube fed
Clenched toes
Curved index fingers
Adducted thumbs
Inturned eye
Low set ears
Inguinal hernia
Constipation

Sparse hair growth
Severe global developmental delays




Hes had 5 operation,has around 20 different doctors and therapists and has to take 9 doses of medication a day. He has severe global developmental delay so is unable to walk or talk. The doctors still don't know what type of syndrome Freddie has so we have no idea what the future holds for Freddie. We don't know if his life expectancy will be shorter, if he will learn to walk and talk or if he will ever live an independent life.



We just really want Freddie to be able to live a normal, happy life like any little boy should. But unfortunately having a child like Freddie can cost a lot of money. We aren't able to go down the our local shops and buy toys for Freddie they have to be bought from specialist shops and come with a very big price tag. So we are hoping to fund raise to help buy Freddie some of the equipment he so very much deserves. Initially we really want to get Freddie his first trike. We can't get Freddie a regular bike as they don't cater for his needs so it has to be custom made.
We would also like to get Freddie some sensory equipment. Freddie loves different lights and sounds and he finds sensory environments very relaxing.


Despite everything Freddie has been through is always incredibly happy. He really does lighten up our lives and we appreciate any help you can give us.



You can read more about Freddie here

Random Act of Kindness - Carly Smallman vs Volkswagen

I finally did something which I can say is a random act of kindness. My definition for this is doing something for someone, ideally someone who doesn't know me, when there is nothing to gain for me in helping.

Firstly, this is Carly Smallman

She is a musical comedian that I follow on Twitter. Today she mentioned that she was experiencing bad customer service from Volkswagen and was asking for help in finding contact details for someone in authority.

I've had a bit of experience with complaining about shoddy customer service, and I use the excellent website http://www.ceoemail.com/ to, you guessed it, find the direct e-mail addresses for CEO's. It's funny how quickly things get done when you drag the big bosses into it.

So after pointing her in the right direction for the CEO address, Carly found the name of the direct of Customer Quality that she wanted to copy in on the mail, but didn't have contact details for her. Google was drawing a blank, but I did find the woman in question on LinkedIn. Carly isn't on the site, but I offered to forward the complaint to her, which Carly e-mailed to me. Job done.

So this might be a template to how I will help people in the future. Using my main two superpowers. Complaining and googling. Take that, 'The Man'

Trying New Food - At Chilli Banana

Last night was a fund raising night for my sister-in-law and her colleagues who are going on a trek along the Great Wall of China. I've mentioned them at great length before, but if you want more information you can follow them on Twitter, like them on Facebook or sponsor them on JustGiving.

We went for a banquet at the Chilli Banana on Lark Lane in Liverpool, and the following is the stunning delights that awaiting us:

 To Start

Satay Ga I - marinated skewers of chicken, served with peanut sauce and fresh cucumber pickle
Po Pia Tod - Thai spring rolls with savory filling and sweet chilli dipping sauce
Tod Man Pla - Spicy Thai fish cakes with cucumber, red onion and peanut ajat
Pla Song Kreuang - Tempura Catfish strips with fresh sour mango salad
Si Krong Moo Tod - Spare ribs marinated in ginger, garlic and coriander

I tried all of these, even the catfish, and honestly it was all gorgeous. It turns out, the best way to eat fish it to cover it in so much spice, it doesn't taste like fish anymore. Winner!

To follow

Gaeng Keowan Gai - Thai green chicken coconut milk curry
Gai Pad Met Mammuang - stir fried chicken with cashew nuts and dry chilli
Nua Sawan - 'Heavenly Lancashire beef' topped with crispy basil leaves
Gung Kratiem - King Prawns stir fried with garlic and black pepper
Pla Neung Menow - Steamed sea bass fillets with lime juice and chilli

To be honest, I was less taken with the main courses. The curry was totally overpowered with coconut, and I really cannot stand that stuff.  The stir fried chicken and the beef were both lovely, but the prawns and seabass were left untouched. In fact, the seabass looked like it have been untouched by a chef as well. It basically had it's head and arse cut off, it's guts ripped out and a fucktonne of spices dumped on top. Maybe next year my challenge could be to write a cookery book?

For desert there was Eaton Mess. I'm not sure it that is a traditional Thai pudding, but it certainly hit the spot.

The was also a rigged raffle (No, I didn't win anything, why do you ask?) and a quiz at which I was utterly useless. We were only saved from utter humiliation by Alex's Rain Man-esque Dingbat skills.

All around it was a fantastic night. Great food, great company and a great cause.

Charity Donation - Cancer Research UK

I had no plans to make a second charity donation this month, until I saw that my friend Hazel and her daughter Phoebe are running the Race For Life for Cancer Research UK for the first time.

I wanted to sponsor them not only because they (with Hazel's son Harry) very kindly supported me in my own fund raising efforts, with the kids donating their pocket money to the cause, but Hazel is one of those people that you just feel lucky to know.

Obviously this isn't the kind of thing I'd ever actually tell her, that would be awful, but Hazel is one of the kindest, most generous people I know, not only in the 'would give you her last pound' sense, but also with her time. Many times she has been there for me with wise words about my personal life, and I know I'm not the only one. So I was both proud and delighted be able to support her in this cause, and I'd love it if someone reading this would throw a few pounds her way as well. (I know I ask for that a lot, but if you reading this then you are clearly a good egg)

You can sponsor Hazel and Phoebe here - Hazel and Phoebe Race for Life!

A meal out - Villa Venezia

For my Mum's birthday, we all went to the Villa Venezia near Tranmere Rover's. Apart from Ethan amusing the staff with his usual combination of self confidence and hunger, it was an uneventful, but very pleasant evening.

As previously mentioned, I'm not a fan of Italian food myself, yet find myself in the odd position of having a favourite Italian restaurant, so I do feel able to compare the two.

Firstly, despite being a much larger room, it feels far more cramped in the Venezia. They pack the customers into every available space. A sensible move business wise, but you can't help but feel a bit of overzealous fork work could see you knocking someone's drink into their lap 3 tables down.

Also, you aren't getting a lot for your money. I paid over £16 for a rack of lamb, and while I know lamb is expensive, you really are just getting what it says on the tin. No potatoes or veg included in the price, so as far as nights out go, it can be a bit of a dear do.

But everyone had a nice time, and my Mum loves the place, so that's really all that matters.

Charity Donation - Comic Relief

Yet again, I started the month by donating another £13 to Comic Relief. The event that caught my eye this time was a 24 hour blog by the comedian and angry man Michael Legge who you might remember was one of the first people to send me a message for my Twitter challenge.

I donated to Legge for 2 reasons. I thought it would be very difficult to keep blogging for 24 hours (which he didn't) and I also thought there was a good chance he would call me a cunt in his blog (which he did).

Which he didn't blog for the entire 24 hours, other things he did do on his webcam for our viewing pleasure was watch Mrs Brown's Boys, cook and eat a massive roast dinner and fall asleep for 2 hours.

You can read the entire Red Nose Blog here and his reaction to Red Nose Day itself here

Catching up with March

Well, March has been an odd old month. It started off with illness all around in the Hughes-Stewart household, followed by trips to the hospital and all manor of fun stuff. Not only did that keep me from blogging, but it kept me from having anything to blog about!

As the month went on, things picked up with regards to blogable antics, but I didn't have chance to sit down and actually write them down. So I'm going to attempt to do that now, with each challenge getting a separate blog entry.

I've said blog far too often already. Blog.

Anyway, in a none challenge update, for those of you that remember, or care, I decided to give up sweets, chocolate, crisps, fizzy drinks and takeaways for March to raise money for Comic Relief. People have been very generous but in hindsight it was a bit stupid of me to decide to do a challenge for an entire month. Some people did rubbish things such as giving up Facebook and Twitter for 24 hours and raised just as much money, and now Comic Relief is over, Africa is saved, nobody is homeless and I still haven't tasted the new cherry flavour Coke Zero. Why hasn't there been a whip round for me Lenny? Why?

Anyway, best crack on.