I like this New Moon!

Today has been great for me! It's a good start to the lunar month I must say.
I have received another gorgeous, hand picked from the garden, bunch of tulips. They are multi-coloured and absolutely lovely. This time the student was brave enough to bring them to the office for me himself and coped very well with all the extra attention he got for being so thoughtful.
Two tulips have bloomed in my own little Andy planted patch.
My best friend Rhonda has brought in piles of chocolates every day because her son sent her a large box. He's working in a chocolate factory.
Tonight I had my monthly massage and I was intending making it every 6 weeks to save money. It was so divine, I spontaneously booked another for 4 weeks from today! Surely there is something else I could go without :-)

The Lollipop Shoes by Joanne Harris

Chocolat
The sequel to 'Chocolat', a long time favourite of mine, 'The Lollipop Shoes', is every bit as delicious as the original. I felt I could smell the chocolate and taste the sumptuousness of the feast described. It is just a pleasure to read.

Fairy Tales
Woven into this story are fairy tales told to Vianne by her mother and the theme as I have previously mentioned of the 'Red Shoes' and the allure of glamour and brightness when life is glum. There are other fairy tales throughout this novel in various forms. I love the imagery and the retelling.
Celebrating Life and Love
This is a story about the value of love and the awakening of living to the fullness. It has all the magic of the first novel, culminating in the mouth watering feast that decides the fates of the central characters. The administering of sweetness to the random and forlorn characters that frequent the shop, highlights how lonely and loveless strangers can create a warm circle of friends.
Shadows
The villain in this novel is not the church but a dark magician who appears so like Vianne, yet intends evil. The bad witch who sees this loveless reality

"....by then we'll all be sand, except for the One who has always been; the one that builds pyramids;raises temples; makes martyrs; composes sublime music; denies logic; praises the meek; receives souls into Paradise; dictates what to wear; smites the infidel; paints the Sistine Chapel; urges young men to die for the cause; blows up bandsmen by remote control;
promises much; delivers little; fears no one and never dies,
because fear of Death is so much greater than honour, or goodness, or faith, or love...."(p448)

frightens me more than the previous villain in Chocolat. The manipulative woman who entices and lures the teen to turn her power to satisfy lust and manipulate others is scary.

I wish I still had it to read and I'm going to check ebay for another Joanne Harris book as she is a writer that never fails to lure me into her story in an enticing way.

Dieting and Chocolate

I have being doing great with my exercising and have improved my fitness. I am using an exercise machine and started off being able to do 6 kms in 20 minutes and now can do over 8. It is taking a lot more to get my heart rate up and I feel generally better.

My diet however has not been sustained, so I am not losing any weight. I find low carb diets work well for me, but the chocolate always continues to beckon me. Low Carb chocolate is expensive and doesn't scratch the itch. I am going to have to just bite the bullet though and deprive myself of this pleasure to get the weight off.

I will have to satisfy myself with reading about it, perhaps at Chocolate Dreams.

Yummy

I am reading another book by Joanne Harris "Five Quarters of the Orange". I loved "Chocolat". The book was sensational as well as the film. The current read is terrific also. I find her books talk about food in a very delicious way. They inspire me to be mindful about cooking. Does it have this effect on anyone else?
Speaking about mindfulness about food, in Victoria there is 'Australia's largest slow food festival' happening at the end of this month. 'A Taste of Slow' , doesn't it sound amazing. What could be better?
Joanne Harris's website lists 11 books she has written. I am not sure why I haven't devoured them all yet, but I certainly intend to. Make sure you read the about the author link for a smile.

Henna Powder, reading and lack of chocolate...

I have bought some henna powder. I remember back in the early nineties I used henna to color my hair. It wasn't grey then so I wonder how it will go. I know, all this obsession with hair is so unlike me. I wonder if the moon is in Leo or something, thus affecting my hair concern.
I have been continuing to enjoy my reading and have a pile of books that are distracting me from corrections. I really do find reading an effective way to cut off from stress. I love it.
I have ran out of chocolate tonight. I usually have a stash somewhere. The only chocolate in the house is Andy's dark chocolate Bilby that he has hoarded since Easter. I want to eat it .... it might go off!! I won't though because I respect others chocolate boundaries. I mean I couldn't very well scoff the bilby down and then expect that my own stashes would remain safe. I mean it is a fragile trust we all have with our individual pockets of chocolate.

David Almond & Baci

Just finished reading 'The Fire Eaters' and I wholeheartedly agree with the reviews on the back cover. It was a delightful book. David Almond is a great writer and his books are always refreshingly different to me.
I love reading. I have a couple more Gary Crew books to read now.
I am tired tonight so I shall retire early with my book and my Mothers Day 'Bacio'. I love those chocolates as much for the love notes inside as the delightful chocs. I also like the silver and blue wrappings and I think the star design is divine too. I think they were created by someone with very similar taste as me!

Home fires burning

The cold weather has set in. I lit a fire tonight. I love a fire and I enjoy it once it's started but coming home to a cold house and having to collect wood and make a fire seems too much work when I am cold. It is also not good for the environment! I am going to have to find an alternative heating solution. We put jumpers on most of the time because we aren't home long enough to bother with a fire, which realistically is only viable if you are going to be home for a length of time. I am concerned that if we get a more convenient form of heating it will be overused. Decisions decisions!

Today both my children were unwell. Tom was collected early yesterday and stayed home today. Ash was collected early today. I am feeling a little ordinary also so I am really glad it is the weekend. I would like to stay in bed all weekend and read and eat chocolate. I have some movies to watch also. This is a fantasy because there are a few things I really have to do!

A good day was had by all

I loved today. It was one of those flow days when things fall into place and plans work for everyone. Here is a photo of a corner of my home that I particularly like at just that time when the sun comes in the window.

I made a bit of progress on a project I am working on today and found a few useful tools that will add a lot of value I think.

I rearranged appointments successfully so everyone got their needs met - I love it when that happens.

I made some good decisions about my mosaic. I haven't put them into action and I realised today there is not a hope of completing it before going back to work on Monday, but that's ok, because I want to do it properly. I am getting clearer and clearer about how I want it to be. I'm in no rush to get it right. I'm enjoying the process.

I'm feeling happy, creative and very grateful about my life. Just like I was when my daughter Asha rang to say she had a surplus of chocolate and could we help her out. Here's a picture of Tom with a mouth full.

I went for a lovely walk tonight and bumped into an old friend who I discovered lives just around the corner. It made me realise how far I have come in the last 10 years and how much I love my life.

I enjoyed window shopping. I prefer that to shopping in the daytime. The crowds of shoppers don't allow you to stand and stare. The lighting always makes things look better at night.