Making Muffins

It didn't matter that it was 40 degrees celsius... I had intended to make muffins and that's exactly what I did!
Not just one batch, but three... and this time, I filmed it because so many times people ask me how I do this and that and as I don't follow recipes, I can't always give definitive answers.
So if you're really keen, here's a video of me making banana, coffee and chocolate muffins on a very very hot day!

Your Opinion or Silence Preferred

I love my hairdresser, I really do, but sometimes I dread going there.

Why?

Because I know the ninety minutes or so I'm going to spend there will be full of my own and only my own opinion.
My hairdresser loves to chat. Actually I'm not sure if she loves to chat, or if she simply feels it's her duty to do so... So no matter what I say in response to whatever subject comes up, she always agrees with me.

One time it was almost comical the backstep she took when she had misinterpreted something I said, and was going along with the opposite opinion until she realised that wasn't the side I was on...

The hairdresser I had when the kids were babies was definitely the best I've ever had. I miss him! He was quick, thorough, did exactly what I wanted, was very affordable and didn't talk! PERFECT!

This current one is good but definitely below the very high bar my perfect hairdresser set.
She's quickish.. thorough, does exactly what I want her to do. Is reasonably priced but feels it's her duty to chat. I sometimes feel like telling her "Look, you really don't have to talk to me. I'm pefectly fine to sit here and flip through this mindless magazine while you work your expertise" but how can you say that in a nice way?

So as I'm only there once every two months or so, I let her do her job knowing that it's a small price to pay for good re-colour!

Communicating....

Sometimes I just want to say

"Could you just shut up"

Seriously.

I'm on the brink of it….

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Back at Work

Is there many things more depressing than returning to work after leave? The longer the absence, the harder it is to get yourself into the swing of work...

I returned to work kicking and screaming today. I didn't want to go! and it was worse because Deno and the kids were home. But I got myself there, turned on my computer where I found 552 emails waiting to be read by me. Obviously, a lot of those are junk emails (building notifications, shift swaps, etc) so I just hit delete, delete, delete.

While that may be fun to do, it's very easy to delete something that isn't really junk mail and I hope I haven't done that! But that delete button was my friend today...
After my first break I felt like I'd never even been on leave! Funny how quick your mind reverts back. Order is restored whether I'm happy about it or not!

And over the course of the day I managed to read most of those emails (or delete) write a couple of lengthy potentially non work related emails (I added the word potentially to cover myself should a work person read this!) and catch up on a lot of reading material... luckily it was slowish and I was able to ease myself back in.

Holidays? What holidays?

Bring on the weekend!

Being green in a non convservational way

Well I knew it was coming… the last week of Xmas Bake Off's at work!

I wasn't able to participate in the first two bakeoff's, but the third and final bake off was for a christmas cake.

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love to bake. Unfortunately, passion does not equate to ability…
But even knowing that about myself, I put my hand up to bake the Christmas Cake. I had been thinking about it for a while, as is my way.

What type of cake would I bake? I wanted to do something different so I went with a white chocolate type cake. I really don't know what to call it apart from "check what's tasty in the fridge and chuck it into the mix" cake

I didn't make a traditional xmas cake, I made a xmas tree shape cake, decorating it with green icing and different candies for the tinsel and xmas tree balls.

It was a messy business! And I was a little embarrased because Sandy and her kids were over as I was icing it and there was just green green green everywhere!!! It was a mess!! The counter tops, the utensils I was using, my HANDS, everything was GREEN!

I'm not bad at "inventing" new cakes but I'm terrible at decorating!

So I was hoping that I would win this bake off for our team just for the originality of the idea and I'm very happy to say that WE WON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WOO HOO!!
I'm not even sure what we won but just the fact that we did was enough!

Of course, the first thing I did was forward a copy of the email stating we'd won to Deno.
Would you believe, while we're lying in bed last night waiting to drift of into sleep in each others arms he says "Aren't you embarrassed to be taking that thing to work tomorrow?" (Talking about the cake)

Thanks honey! Always quick to tell you what he really thinks!

I was getting a little worried as no one was eating it until halfway through the day when I got a knife and cut the whole thing up into pieces!

So now I need a fresh idea for my next cake! Any thoughts?

Working in a call centre...

A couple of customers...

Today I had a customer whose first language wasn't English. These are the type that often bring a certain degree of interestingness to their calls!
He asked me if we'd received his payment and I said yes, then he asked if I could send him a "Bill Enquiry".
I repeated that phrase a few times and he insisted, that's what he wanted, a bill enquiry.
I could have brought up my Virgin Mobile Bill, I have a few enquiries about that!! Or may be my electricity bill which is always horrendously large but I have a feeling that wasn't quite what he was wanting... I clarified and discovered he actually wanted a copy of his bill sent out.
"Well certainly sir, I can do that for you!"

I had another lady today who was quite frantic. "Do you have my fire?" she asked. "Fire?"
"Yes, My fire, is it with you?"
Well I'd like to think I can sizzle from time to time but…
"I'm not sure I understand you"
She was getting very annoyed now.
"Is my fire with you?"
"By fire, do you mean gas?"
"yes yes! Gas, that's what I meant. Is my gas with you?"
Actually I knew she meant gas right away but it's sometimes fun to drag it out just a little…

The moral of this story is....

I can really get quite obsessive about things at times (Deno I can hear your "oh really" from here!!!!)

There's a certain young lady in my team at work who's having a birthday this weekend. I offered to make her a cake as that's what I like to do. Now when I offered this to her, I already had something in mind! Lately I've been making cakes with a ton of fruit in them. Apples, oranges, bananas, strawberries... whatever I had in the fridge! Then I'd add things like yoghurt or cream.. whatever I had. I just like experimenting. That was the type of cake that I thought I'd make for this young lady's birthday.

However when she knew I was making a cake, she wasted no time telling me she wanted a chocolate cake. My excitement waned a little as that's my least favourite cake as you can't really put fruit with it and she specifically said 'no bananas" as she doesn't like them. She's also allergic to nuts and coconut... So I felt a bit limited!

Still the challenge was there. She's into labels... Guess, Louis Vitton, etc, so I thought I'd make a theme cake. I asked her what label she liked best and she said. "Playboy"

I'm finding out that the moral of this story is DONT ASK!
LOL

This cake was all I could think about! What ingredients was I going to use? How would I decorate it? Which baking dish was I going to use to bake it in? Was it going to have the playboy picture on top or would I trace out the playboy shape for the cake?
I would go over this constantly! Deno and I would be watching a movie and he'd ask me something about the plot of the movie and I'd have to fudge my way through an answer because I hadn't really been watching... I'd been thinking about the cake!

This week the countdown was on... Four days till I make the cake, Three days till I make the cake, Two days till I make the cake... Tomorrow I make the cake!!

I told you I'm obsessive...

Needless to say, I accepted the challenge and last night made the chocolate Playboy cake!! I was pretty happy with how it turned out.

Now I just have to hope it survives the journey to work!!

And as I have bakers insecurity, I'll be wondering all day if people are eating my cake and what they're thinking of it.....
ARRGGHH!!