Up ‘North’ on business

Happy weekend all! I’m so glad it’s the weekend. This week has been fairly busy. I left the office on Wednesday afternoon to drive up to Derbyshire as we had a customer workshop Thursday and Friday. Now I live in the South (of England), Southampton to be exact. I would class myself, obviously, as a Southerner. And I know Derbyshire isn’t actually in the North, it’s in the Midlands. However, anywhere past Reading is pretty much North for a Southerner. So it felt quite northern to me! I love the northern (and midland!) charm that people have – the more-willing-to-help and polite people seem to be. Southerners can get swept up in the rat race and become a bit impersonal. So it was nice to be there.

But anyway, we got there around 7ish, checked in and then headed out to find some food. I Googled the area and found there just so happened to be a Jamie’s Italian nearby… After a nightmare of driving around trying to find a car park nearby (literally seeing the restaurant but not actually being able to get to it). Finally after parking and walking in the FREEZING cold (it’s colder up north Winking smile) we made it!

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I straight away needed a hot drink so ordered a peppermint tea. It came in this beautiful heavy little tea pot. I asked the waitress where I could buy one but she couldn’t remember. Ahh well.

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Sorry for the terrible photos, the lighting was terrible and I only had my IPhone.

And then we were seated. I ordered mini chilli’s stuffed with tuna and herbs with the starter.

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Now call me boring but I already knew what I wanted for the main as I’ve already been to Jamie’s before for my hen do and I loved what I ate then. So I went for it again: the turkey Milanese.

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Again, appalling photo. Basically it was turkey with a light crumb topping with mozzarella in the middle and an egg on top. Ohhh it was just as good, maybe even better, than I remembered!

Then we went back to the hotel and to our rooms.

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Though the bed was lovely and comfortable I just couldn’t sleep. It’s really hard without Ben and without my usual home comforts. And what was really annoying was in the morning I could hear other people’s alarms going off, like the vibration and standard IPhone ringtones. I’m such a light sleeper it woke me up (30 mins before my own alarm). And what was worse was that one of the people was clearly having issues getting up as they kept snoozing it. I wasn’t happy.

The hotel had a gym so I thought I’d keep up with my running schedule and run on the treadmill.

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I am hugely impressed with anyone who runs regularly on a the treadmill, and for long distances. I forgot how much I hate it. I like to zone out and just run, occasionally checking my Garmin for pacing and times. I hate having the stats right in front of me. I find myself counting down either seconds or 0.1 of miles. Seriously I couldn’t run further than 3 miles, and that was hard work.

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So I pretty much ran 3 miles, starting at a pace of 8.30mins/mile and then jumping it up to 7.30min for around 1-2mins throughout to get some intervals in. Normally I find this absolutely fine outside, in fact I tend to run faster intervals. But honestly, I just couldn’t bear it.

Then it was shower and, because we were with a customer, time to look smart!

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And then breakfast time.

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No porridge for me. All they had was the makings for a full English, cereal, toast and fruit. So I had a plate of bacon, scrambled egg, tomatoes, mushrooms and a cheeky bit of black pudding. And then had a bowl of fruit salad afterwards. It was good but it definitely didn’t fill me up as well as oatmeal usually does.

Then on to our meeting in the world’s warmest room. I’d much rather be too warm than too cold but even I was starting to get a sweat on in this tiny room where 12 other people were crammed in. And then a buffet lunch. I hate buffets. I love them, but I hate them. I like to have a plate full of food and leave it there but with a buffet you go for a little bit and then a little bit more and before you know it you’ve had about two large platefuls! Well, maybe you have more restraint than me?

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This is the only photo I could sneakily take without my fellow colleagues looking at me like I’d lost my mind. Believe me when I say this really wasn’t it…I said last post I’m more of a protein lover than a carb lover and I felt quite bloated and uncomfortable after eating so much bread as I’m just not that used to it. OK the above doesn’t really show much of a carb fest going on, but bare in mind this was one of the plates I had…

Then after a long afternoon of a continuation of the long, warm meeting we headed back to the hotel and decided to just eat there as it was a lot easier than venturing out into the cold again and going through that painful process of parking and walking miles.

For starter I had salt and pepper squid with a chilli jam sauce. Again poor photo due to trying to be inconspicuous.

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And for main I had a Moroccan chickpea stew with couscous.

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Both courses were really good, surprisingly good actually as I usually find restaurants at standard hotels aren’t that good. I was missing my normal food from home though. I know that sounds silly but though I enjoy eating out and eating different food from usual, I find it quite taxing (maybe not the right word) when it’s every single meal. I don’t usually eat a big meal in the evening and so when we parted to go to our rooms I needed to stay up to just digest. Which actually wasn’t an issue considering my room had Sky! What a luxury! Actually my room was pretty darn good. All the coffee and tea was Starbucks! So obviously I took some home with me…

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How generous is that??

I wasn’t planning on doing another run at the gym the next morning but just wanted to mosey around at the weights and maybe do some rowing as I quite enjoy that and I never usually get the chance to go to a gym. However, I woke up raring to go and jumped on the treadmill (OK maybe not jumped) and did some really good intervals (7min/mile!) for three miles with a warm down. Still boring as hell but I had the energy to fuel me (all those carbs I expect).

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Though I wasn’t in the gym mega early – only 7am, it was still a surprise to see so many people at that time in the morning. Normally in the week when I go out to run in the morning no one is about and it’s dark and quiet. It was a shock getting into the gym and it’s practically pulsating with all this energy and movement going on. I just wasn’t prepared. I barely say good morning to my husband at this time in the morning let alone have full on conversations about what I go up to last night.

I had some time so I thought I’d have a look around as it was quite a big gym with loads of equipment. I found myself a Power Plate! I’ve never used one before but had always been intrigued.

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It was the strangest feeling, all that vibration going on and trying to do squats and lunges. Not entirely pleasant I must say. I managed two sets of squats and lunges and called it a day. Maybe I’ll try again some time but I just wasn’t sure about it.

Then another day of meetings (and another buffet) then a long drive home. I was so glad to be back home with Ben and Alfie. I just made myself a quick omelette for dinner and went to bed.

I do enjoy going away for business and staying in hotels and eating out but it gets tiring. You miss the comforts you’re so used to at home…that night-time hot chocolate, good night kiss from the husband and the furry dog lying on your chest in the morning staring you down waiting for his walk. You forget how lovely home until you’ve been away Smile

Do you go away on business a lot?

Do you enjoy staying in hotels?

What do you prefer: running outside or on the treadmill?

Creamy dreamy WIAW

Happy What I Ate Wednesday, people! It’s that time again.

 

I think that most people are intrigued about what other people eat. I mean obviously WIAW is clear evidence – it has a huge following. But I’m pretty sure that even people who don’t have as keen an interest in food and fitness have a bit of curiosity.

Everyone eats. But everyone eats different foods, different amounts, at different times and even for different reasons (we can try and convince ourselves that chocolate is a good sustaining fuel but really who are we kidding??). And I think people are nosey and like to know what their neighbour is doing. Whether to compare, trade notes, or just curiosity for curiosity’s sake. And I’m a great believe in food bringing people together.

Sorry random tangent!

Riiiight, on to the good stuff. I’ll share Saturday’s eats just because it was so darn tasty.

As I mentioned in the last post I did a really scenic 7 mile trail run in the snow. I never eat breakfast before a morning run. I know I probably should but I like my sleep and I don’t want to get up earlier than I have to. Plus I love getting back from a run and really enjoying my breakfast. Yes I could just have a snack beforehand but honestly, I literally wake up, walk Alfie and then run – pretty much 20 minutes from waking up I’m outta that door. I can’t run if I’m digesting.

But anyway, so I finished the run and decided it was that time again. PANCAKE TIME. It has been too long! I used THIS recipe but also added 1/2 cup of pumpkin puree to get some really beasty, chunky pancakes.

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Yep, I am not ashamed to say I wolfed all those bad boys down no problemo.

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With a side of PB2 which I intermittently smeared over them. Oh it was divine! Oh pancakes how I missed you.

So then after some housework and mooching about we had lunch. I’ve been really loving my soups lately. And as we actually didn’t have that much food in the cupboard since the snow prevented our weekly shop, chicken soup was the perfect choice to just kind of throw the dregs of the freezer together and hope for the best (really selling this aren’t I?).

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Basically chicken with a lot of frozen veg as we had nothing fresh, apart from a couple of lonely onions. But it was goooood. Especially with the cold weather. I also had a side of (unpictured) roasted butternut squash. I have tried putting the squash in the soup while it cooks but it’s just not as good as roasting it and then dipping it in the soup – is that weird?

Hmm I’m sure I did some fanscinatingly interesting activities on Sunday but I can’t quite remember them…maybe watched some reality rubbish TV, read a magazine…took Alfie for a walk in the snow…usual Sunday leisure activities post-household chores are complete.

Then dinner! I have found my latest favourite recipe. And unfortunately cannot recreate it until I get more pumpkin puree *sobs uncontrollably*. But apparently Waitrose sells it and my parents shop there quite a lot so I might put in an order to them Smile

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OK I realise it doesn’t actually look that appetising. However, it tasted amazing. I didn’t use a recipe, I just kind of threw some bits and pieces together due to lack of alternate options. Ben refuses to eat pumpkin (can I get a collective, whhaaaaat??) so he had a corned beef sandwich…enough said.

Creamy Pumpkin Pineapple Chicken (serves 1)

  • 1 tsp. oil of choice
  • Clove of garlic, diced
  • 1 small white onion, diced
  • 1 chicken breast, cut into cubes
  • 1/2 small tin of pineapple and 2 tbs. of pineapple juice
  • 1/2 cup of pumpkin (I roughly estimated this, I probably used a bit more to be honest) 
  • Big dollop of light Philadelphia
  • 1 tsp. paprika

– Fry the onion in a little oil until golden, add garlic and fry for another minute before adding chicken.

– Add the pineapple, juice and pumpkin.

– When heated through add the Philadelphia and paprika.

– When all combined and heated through feel free to add some random veggies to bulk it up a bit (that’s what I did!)

It was creamy, dreamy and I didn’t want it to end! The hint of sweetness from the pineapple really complimented the creaminess of the sauce. Seriously, this needs to be in your life. I am devastated that I have no more pumpkin.

I have to say that Philadelphia is my saviour for meals. It can liven up anything. The other night when I had fish I didn’t have anything apart from vegetables to accompany it. Now I’m not much a carb fan. You can take your rice and pasta and, to some extent, bread. I’d much rather have some more protein or fat, like cheese. So I roasted up some butternut squash and added a dollop of Philadelphia and blended it all together.

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I had the fish with a herby/spicey sprinkle, veg and roasted creamy, dreamy butternut squash.

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It rocked my world. It rocked my taste buds! Really delicious. And really easy.

In the evening we treated ourselves to some ever so yummy but probably not healthy at all Krusher dessert.

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It’s basically angel delight. You mix the powder with milk (I used almond milk) and then put it in the fridge for 5 minutes and it goes all airy and thick. Then you sprinkle chocolate sprinkles on it and voila. Done. Creamy and dreamy Winking smile

On Sunday we did a task that has really been too long not done. Bathing Alfie. Oh he was not impressed. He literally stood in our bath with a look of absolute indignation on his furry face. He didn’t even try to escape for the futility of his situation, but just shot daggers at Ben and me. But afterwards he smelt so clean and lovely and he was so fluffy!

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He still needs a haircut though…

On a fitness-related note. I’ve been trying to get the runs in early this week as I’m off to Derby on later today until Friday for work and though I know the hotel has a gym I can’t guarantee I’ll be bothered get there. So I ran 6 miles on Monday.

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It was a good run but my route was all over the place trying to find a safe place to run without a) falling over in the snow and b) getting hit by cars. I’ve found I have to run on the road to guarantee that I won’t hit any ice but then I can’t guarantee I won’t get hit by cars!! Nightmare.

Then yesterday I ran 4 miles with intervals spread through it.

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So I’m pleased I’ve banked some runs in early. Today I’m off out at lunch with the guys from work but I’m seeing this as more of a recovery run than an intensely fast run.

Now please don’t judge me. I’ve had my Garmin a while now. Until recently, I haven’t ever connected it to my laptop…I  know, that’s terrible isn’t it? I finally did it on Monday after getting hassle from the people at work for being such a technical dunce and seriously what have I been missing?? Full stats of every run, splits, maps, times, average paces, fastest paces, PBs. Oh wow!! You could waste hours analysing your runs. I haven’t. Yet…

Annnd lastly, here’s what I’m wearing today!

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Yay new jumper from Next!

That’s all I’ve got! Have a lovely day Smile

What’s the best thing you’ve eaten this week?

What do you prefer, carbs or protein? A warm crusty piece of bread or a lovely roast chicken?

Distorted thinking

Hi guys. So the snow is melting but apparently a cold spell is going to hit the UK this week. I’m sorry, isn’t it cold enough as it is?? Hope everyone is coping well and the snow didn’t cause too many issues.

I mentioned in my last post that I was really fed up because not only did our trip to Wales get cancelled due to the weather but I also missed my 5.5 mile run. I know missing this run isn’t a big deal in the great scheme of things. I know it isn’t going to affect the half marathon. I honestly know this. But it still worried me. How ridiculous is that?

Anyway, so I was determined to run on Saturday as I didn’t want to miss another run, and especially the longer run of the week: 7 miles (not hugely long to all you running pros out there but long for me).

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So I put my trail shoes on as they have the best grips and set off to our little local country park: Manor Farm.IMG_3508

I decided to go with a trail run because honestly the pavements were a nightmare. Seriously icy and slippery. So I figured that more fresh snow was needed to help keep me balanced. The scenery was beautiful but it was a hard run. Like running on sand. My pace was forced to slow down to around 9 minutes/mile. But I enjoyed it immensely.

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The beautiful scenery helped clear my mind and let me just run without focus.

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And without so much as one falling over incident (which is good for me considering how clumsy I am) I got my 7 mile run in.

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Though I loved it and felt so good afterwards I still felt angry I’d missed the other run – like I hadn’t done enough for my training. I realise this is absolutely ridiculous thinking. After feeling down about it while I was getting showered and sorted for the day I realised how stupid this thinking was. I should be proud of the run I just did! And in snow no less! I don’t know why I had that ridiculous mind-set about the ‘lost run’. I think I’ve just become so focused on running and hitting certain targets I’ve missed the bigger picture. Why do I run? Not just to hit PBs and feel a sense of achievement. No. I run because first and foremost I love it. And I loved that 7 mile run. I need to focus on the achievements not the failures.

And I need to know that every run doesn’t have to be amazing. I need to slow down on my longer runs. Take it easy or I will injure myself. 9 minutes/mile is the perfect pace for me to run longer miles.

I’m sorry if this post has made you want to shake me – I want to shake myself!! If anyone else gets like this, please tell me! I can’t be the only one out there who sets themselves such high standards and gets angry when they don’t reach them – even when it’s due to logical and rational reasons!

What high standards do you set yourself?

Do you have a routine you always follow and hate it when it gets messed up?

Snow day

So I didn’t get to North Wales. Snow hit Southampton (and pretty much every place we would have driven through to get to North Wales) which just made it impossible to go. It was a real shame as we were looking forward to heading up there and celebrating my granddad’s 80th birthday with him. But the weather was just ridiculous.

Ben was able to quickly change his holiday into a day working from home but I wasn’t so lucky. Well, it depends on your perspective. I got to chill and do what I wanted all day whereas Ben had to be on his laptop working. It also means that I’m not off tomorrow either. Ho hum!

But back to the snow. It started snowing a little bit as I left work on Thursday night.

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And then by the time we woke up in the morning on Friday there was a beautiful blanket of snow covering everything.

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This was the view from our bedroom window. It became clear quite quickly we wouldn’t get to Wales Sad smile

I took Alfie out for a walk first thing and had my running gear on as I foolishly thought I could go for a run afterwards.

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Alfie absolutely loved the snow. Bounding through it like a happy puppy. I quickly came to realise I wouldn’t be going running. It was just too risky to fall over and break my ankle or something similar.IMG_3478

I felt so annoyed. Not only could we not go to Wales anymore but I couldn’t do my planned run either. I was really frustrated. I know it’s silly but I hate it when my plans are ruined. It also meant I didn’t know what to do with myself at home. I couldn’t run, couldn’t chill out with Ben as he was working…So what does any normal person do? Watch TV. What does Anna do? Start a big clean of course!

I cleaned the fridge completely.

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Not much in there as we didn’t expect to need much as we were away for the weekend. Perfect timing considering the snow and not being able to get to the supermarket. Confused smile

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I cleaned all our cupboards out and rearranged them. OK it doesn’t look that organised but it’s better than it was. Don’t you just hate it when herbs and spices just cover the cupboard in herby/spicy dust?? (Just me?)

After my mad cleaning dash, I had a really delicious lunch of a turkey omelette with cranberry sauce on the side. So good! That’s officially all the turkey from the freezer gone no. Sad times.

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At the moment with food Ben and I are having to be quite creative and thoughtful about our meals as we don’t actually have that much in! We walked to the mini Tesco’s down the road but obviously everyone else had the same plans and we couldn’t get a huge amount. Just fresh vegetables and fruit really. So we’re eating out our freezer!

Though I missed my run on Friday, I’ve been loving listening to the Marathon Talk podcast and basically immersing myself into all things running-related, like websites and magazines. I read a great post by this lovely lady that really struck a cord with me.

I’ve been dreading the longer runs that I have coming up. Not dreading, maybe just feeling quite anxious as I don’t usually run 6+ miles on a regular basis. But this post and the article Ashley mentions really honed into my head that I should make my pace a lot slower for longer runs. I think I’ve just been so concerned with maintaining a certain pace that it’s been so tough. OK I know I haven’t done any ‘proper’ long runs yet but it’s all relative I suppose as to what you call a long run. It didn’t made me feel a lot less anxious about it. I really need to stop over-thinking things and getting myself all worked up. So what if I don’t get an amazing time at the half-marathon! I need to set a stake in the ground for this one to then beat next time around anyway Winking smile

Despite the snow, Alfie still got his run in though. He ran around the garden like a crazy dog! I videoed just a segment of it. Apologies for my clearly inept videoing skills!!

Alfie in the snow

 

And then after his mad dash around in the snow…

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Alfie was quarantined to the kitchen as he was soaked. Those big old puppy eyes no longer work on me anymore!

Right, I’m off for some lunch and maybe a cheeky episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians!

Have you been affected by the snow?

Do you enjoy long runs? Any tips?

Table for one, please

Hi all! Hope the week is treating you right. Almost the weekend!

This week has been slightly different for me. It started as normal but then Ben had to go to London for two days for work which left me home alone. Luckily last night I was off out with my friends to the cinema to see Les Mis. I never usually go out in the week just because with finishing work and getting home it’s always so late. So this was a totally new thing for me (sad I know).

I was so worried that I wasn’t going to arrive on time for the 7pm showing as where I work is quite a long way from where the cinema is. I left work at 5pm thinking I would be cutting it fine as I wanted to grab a Subway just before as I wouldn’t get chance for dinner beforehand. Well, I arrived at the cinema a full hour before I was meeting my friends! So I skipped Subway and decided to go to Nando’s instead. There was no way I was sitting in the tiny little Subway for an hour.

I’ve never been out for dinner on my own in a restaurant and I’m sorry to say I was quite embarrassed. The waitress sort of looked sorry for me as she said “Just you?”. I felt I suddenly had to justify why I was alone, assuring her that I was meeting actual friends later.

I’m happy to say though that I found the experience very liberating! It was nice to sit there and just chill. I ordered a double chicken breast pitta with mango and lime sauce (is it a sauce? a marinade? a dressing?) with two sides (I was hungry!).

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[Apologies for the bad photo] The sides were corn on the cob and mushy peas. It was so good. There was even a large slice of pineapple in the pitta!

I couldn’t resist getting a couple of pick ‘n’ mix sweets at the cinema either…but I have to say I was a lot more restrained than I usually am at the cinema. Normally when I get sweets it costs a fortune and I feel so sick at the end of the film. So I was quite proud of myself (OK it might have been that I had literally just been out for dinner…shhh).

Now, the film. I have to admit that I really wasn’t looking forward to Les Mis. Like dreading it. All singing? Depressing storyline? French revolution? Sounded like a nightmare. I was going for the social element rather than the film choice (as social as can be going to see a movie).

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HOWEVER! As soon as the first song began I was enthralled. It was AMAZING. Goose bump amazing. It was so good that the audience CLAPPED at the end of the film.

I was buzzing at the end of the film. By the time I got home it was around 10.30pm and I just couldn’t get myself into sleeping mode so had to read for a bit. This is old lady Anna who usually goes to bed at 9pm. It’s a once off I’ll admit Winking smile

Ben’s back tonight so that’ll be lovely. And then tomorrow we’re driving to North Wales for my granddad’s 80th birthday party. All very exciting. However, there have been several snow warnings which is concerning us a bit as we have a long drive ahead of us. We’ll just have to judge it tomorrow before we leave.

Before we go I have a 5.5mile run planned which will be great considering we then have an over four hour car journey. I get so bored in the car. But luckily I’m one of those people who doesn’t feel sick reading in the car…though I’m guessing Ben might want some company haha.

Have a lovely weekend (I’m sorry I know we’re not quite there yet), I’ll be back on Monday!

Have you seen Les Mis? What did you think?

Cinema snacking – do you buy treats? Do you take snacks with you? (I did take a couple of apples with me as well of course).

Solo restaurant eating…yes or no?