I’ll spare you all from yet another bread post, but I really haven’t been baking much else lately. So here’s a slightly bizarre collection of miscellaneous photos from January – it’s been a fun month!
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My very first coffee of 2015 had a koala on it. I was hopeful that it meant I’d be able to spend most of the year up a tree, slightly stoned (hasn’t happened)…
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Do you read xkcd comics? They’re offbeat, geeky and quirky, and they make my hubby laugh very loudly…
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Pete said I wasn’t allowed to write…”In my kitchen there’s a chicken’s arse”… so the photos are in this post instead. Charlie asked me recently about prepping a goose for roasting. My Chinese mother insists that with any poultry, the oil gland of the bird should be removed before cooking.
It’s located on the “bishop’s nose”, and it’s the gland that secretes oil which the bird uses to waterproof its feathers. I trim it off and discard it…
I’m sure you’re all delighted to know that…(Pete reckons I’ve grossed you out)…
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On Polyxeni’s advice, we popped into Aquadisiac in Surry Hills to check out their fish. As well as saucer sized freshwater stingrays (at $800 each), they also have a giant Arowana on display.
He and I got into a staring contest…
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Happily, the garden continues to thrive. We normally can’t grow broccoli raab in summer – the seedlings usually flower straight away – but this year we have a bumper crop…
And for the first time ever, our Finger Lime tree is producing fruit! The dozen or so ripening limes make enduring the needle-like thorns worthwhile…
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Our friend Lucinda married handsome Dan last weekend. We’ve known Luce since she was born, so it was a very exciting occasion. I bought a silk kaftan to wear (the ideal choice for spanx-free dining) and then decided I needed new jewellery to go with it.
Luckily I had a string of 60 year old Swarovski starlight crystals in my stash…
Always one to leave things to the last minute, I finished this set on the day of the wedding…
As you can tell, I was pretty excited by the idea of a party…
I’m not sure either of them could have looked any happier…
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Finally, Oliver the Orange has come home! He was Big Boy’s favourite toy when he was two, and he’s been through five other toddlers since then. Twenty years is a pretty good innings for a stuffed toy, and I think he’s held up very well…
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How was your January? I hope you all had a great month too!
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
What a great candy box assortment of photos! So many happy things make me smile. I have my first sourdough loaf in the oven right now. Fingers crossed. The starter worked a treat. Thanks so much! Maz.
Maz, your sourdough has been AMAZING! I’m so impressed how artisan your loaves are looking! :)
You totally crack me up Celia! You know in Tokyo if you go to a yakitori joint you can get a stick of chicken bottoms? We called them the Parson nose when we grew up – I had no idea there was an oil gland there – eugh!!!
I’m afraid my IMK February post is all about the bread….you have been warned!
See Nancy, my mother would put each piece off the stick and cut off the oil gland before eating any of them! :) Your IMK post is going to be full of bread? What a surprise.. ;-)
Laughter from beginning to end! Well your photo of fun and enjoyment pure and simply kind’of puts the rest further back! Luv that fish . . . and yep, was also taught to remove ‘that’ part of the chuck’s bottom when I was first allowed near a stove! Not grossed out :) !
Eha, glad to know it’s not just something my mum does! :)
I always do as your mother said. I take the bottom off before cooking it.
My mother said the same and she isn´t chinese.
I love your necklace and your happy face.
I´m travelling and I have still a week far from home, But knowing that Buenos Aires is suffering 40º C I´m grateful of being sooooo far from there.
Your veggie garden is wonderful
I guess mine ´ll be dead of heat when I come back:( :(:(
Ale, I’m glad you’re not in the midst of the heat, but sorry to hear about your veg patch. Fingers crossed that it might have recovered a bit by the time you get home!
That is a cheeky post Celia, some gross bits ( the chicken arse) and some delightfully weird things, the odd stuffed toy and that fish. LOL
Fra, Oliver is NOT odd. He’s the most perfect stuffed toy in the world. It’s amazing how irresistible he is to kids (and adults too, for that matter!).. :)
I reckon if you’re not prepared to eat it, then and only then should it not appear in your post. I love the chicken’s arse! Never knew about the oil gland though. I bought a finger lime last November so hope we don’t have to wait too long for fruit. Love the bling and what a beautiful couple, and the users of that orange must be very gentle folk. Nothing would have survived our 3 let alone another 2 as well. Cheers, Maree :)
Maree, Oliver is just incredibly durable – he was used as a football for a bit of time, but after my two sons, he went to a family of girls! He is really the most adorable toy – Small Man has hidden him in his room now to make sure I don’t lend him to anyone else! :)
What a fun and interesting month you’ve had! Your jewelry is absolutely beautiful, you are quite talented indeed. What a fun stuffed toy, my boys would love it too!
Gretchen, isn’t Oliver beautiful? He just has the loveliest smile.. :)
Oliver the Orange looks brand new. What gorgeous crystals and you do make beautiful jewellery. What a beautiful young couple – I do love weddings. You are so funny about your spanx-free clothing options for dining! xx
Charlie, you know that I never let anything come between me and my food, especially not something like fashion! :D
OMG…. the 60 year old Swarovski starlight crystals are gorgeous! :) And Oliver the Orange looks brand new, love that you stil have him? all these years later.
Anna, thank you! And yes, Oliver is home to stay now! :)
I really enjoyed your lovely, quirky post. I loved the gorgeous crystals, the finished product looked fantastic.
Thank you! They were great fun to make too! (Even if it was a mad rush!)
Hilarious!
The chook’s bum part, I meant. Love that you have finger limes. Yum! And what a gorgeous photo of you, love xo
Hahaha…you know Pete, Liz. He thought the chook’s bum photo was completely gross… :)
What a lovely post! Thank you for sharing your beautiful January.
Have a beautiful day.
:-) Mandy xo
Thanks for sharing it with me, Mandy! :)
Ah Celia – this was the best! I’m so glad you posted the picture of the chicken arse – my mom called it the Pope’s nose but I wasn’t sure exactly which part it was. And I love that Oliver the Orange has come back home – he does look cuddly. Our youngest son just left to study for 6 months in Stockholm and he took his stuffed dog Spot with him. Little talismans of home.
Lynn, the poor clergy – bishop’s nose, pope’s nose, parson’s nose – they’ve all ended up as the arse of a chicken! :) When I first met Pete at college at 18, he had his stuffed dog with him too – as you say, lovely little reminders of home! :)
It’s been a glorious month here. So inspired by this site (and playing with Smilla) and like you getting further inspiration from the excitement and successes of the people I have passed her on to. Plus my little man is now three months old and has spent the month smiling chatting and doing excited squeals like a teenage girl. Add two adventurous toddlers and life is flat out but full of fun, and the odd tantrum (only occasionally mine)
Emma, three little ones, all power to you! How lovely that your little man is smiling and so happy! :)
Celia, you are the cutest! Your jewelry is beautiful!
Thanks darling. As you can tell, I was pretty excited about the wedding! :)
Loved reading all of this, you are so funny! What a beautiful bride too.
Jeannette, wasn’t she gorgeous? Just the most stunning dress on the most beautiful girl! :)
Starting my morning with a smile thanks to you Celia! By the way, who won the staring competition?
I did, Kim. Turns out I have a slightly longer attention span than a fish. Which is just as well, as fish don’t blink. ;-)
Love ‘spanx free dining’. You have had a fun month! :)
Ardys, it’s hard to enjoy a wedding when my fingers are throbbing because my outfit is too tight and it’s cutting off my circulation. I’m too old for that now! :D
Hilarious & cute. Love this post.
Thank you! :)
The fish reminds me of those funny little Sesame Street ‘alien’ characters “yep, yep, yep, yep, yep”! What a thrill to be growing some finger limes and I can relate to your spanx-free glee!
Jan, he really was like that! He was cruising around the tank like a submarine…
Cheeky Celia! And all this time I thought you were soooooo serious! Wonderful sense of humour! Thank you for the laugh! And Pete was right- I was totally grosed out! :P
Oh I am serious. ;-) Sorry to gross you out! :)
Ooh finger limes! They’re so amazing. I always thought you needed tropical weather to grow them as they all seem to be from the mid north coast and above but clearly you don’t!
We bought a grafted one which is supposed to produce multi-coloured fruit. This is the first year we’ve had any at all! :)
Hi Celia, long term reader (lurker) here! Love your blog! And laughing that while your blog is about food/recipes with the odd mention of jewellery making, my blog is the opposite — jewellery making and design, with the occasional recipe thrown in!
Melissa, thank you for delurking and leaving a comment! How glorious that you write a jewellery making blog! I’ll check it out, thank you! :)
Beautiful wedding and beautiful you :)
Ahh…lovely friend you are, Tanya, thank you! :)
Glad you answered who won the staring contest, because I could not stand the idea of being kept in the dark about it!
Cute fish, though…
and love your jewelry, and the beautiful shot of you, smiling as usual!
I am super excited because in February I will be joining your IMK series, and the pups are anxious to be featured… ;-)
Ooh that’s exciting Sally! I was all set to write you a long email asking a biochem question, but it’s been so busy I haven’t had a chance! Will probably be bothering you soon! :) xxx
This post sure made me smile! I love your sense of humor. I always remove that part of the bird. Since we raise and butcher our own birds it goes in one at butchering time. What an odd looking fish. Never seen something like that. Your jewellery looks beautiful. The cute stuffed toy looks like it’s still in perfect shape even after all these years. They don’t make them as durable anymore. Sigh…
Manuela, it must be a joy to have homegrown birds! I only remove the gland though, not the whole bishop’s nose, as it’s my favourite part to eat! :)
Most bizarre but awfully good fun Ms Celia. Sums you up in a nutshell :). I must say, the thought of spanx free dining is a really good reason to embrace the thought of kaftans once more in my life (and here I was thinking that the 70’s would never come back! ;) ). LOVE the neclace and the Arowana staring competition. I remember the Arowana was one of the hardest fish to get in my Animal Crossings game. I am in the process of saving up to buy a finger lime from Bunnings. They only sell red ones apparently and they are prohibitively expensive (selling for $23 more than you guys pay on the mainland) but I must have one for Sanctuary. Love the broccoli rabe. Never tried growing it but everything else brassica bolted this year so might leave it for a bit till I do try it. Another fine post Ms Celia. Certainly woke me up this morning. We never cut off the parsons nose. It was fought over in our family ;)
Fran, will the finger lime grow in Tassie? I thought it was a tropical plant, so we weren’t even sure it would grow down here. Do you have a lot of luck with citrus? The one we bought was expensive a few years ago, but it promised multi-coloured fruit grafted onto the one plant. We shall see – they’re all green at the moment. Linda Woodrow explained to us that it’s when you sow the seeds that make a difference to weather or not the plants bolt – we tried planting the raab after the winter solstice (after which the days are getting shorter) which I think makes them less inclined to bolt. x
They are selling them in our local Bunnings and citrus grow quite well here so I am just bunging ours in with the mix. I noticed that mine has a teeny tiny little fruit on it and more flowers so at the moment it is happy. I need to get my thinking cap on about when to plant seeds. Up till now I have been relying on the back of the packets but they tell fibs! I am going to attempt to grow broccoli raab. It’s my kind of food :)
I never knew that about the parsons nose. Various members of my family, and now the G.O. have an affection for it… only occasionally I am able to slip it to the cat as a treat.
You have such a way with aligning a month’s miscellanea into a stylish, fun must read makes me slightly envious!
Thanks ED! The chook’s bum would never make it to a pet here – it’s my favourite part! :)
Gosh that is THE BEST selfie ever. Happy face & good life, it just shows. Just like Oliver eh! Kaftans should never have wandered off. As for spanx . My vote is for a spanx free life. Your nimble fingers crafted such a beautiful set of jewellery & vintage just to top it off nicely. Bet the wedding was really swish. Peri
Thank you! The wedding was full of 28 year olds, we felt like old farts. But I was extremely comfortable in my kaftan and harem pants! :)
PS just love that fish. Watch it tho, he might be thinking what a tasty dish you would make. ; ))
He was huge!! :)
I’m glad to hear that you weren’t stoned up a tree with the silk kaftan and those beautiful jewels!! hehehehe
We call the bishops nose the parsons nose and I would be slaughtered if I didn’t cook the chook with it on!! I personally don’t like it but there is a fight on for who gets it!!
Jan x
There’s no fight in our house, that bit is mine! :)
I’m was really in need of a happy post and you certainly delivered with this one. I’m not kidding you, as soon as I can I’m going out to buy a whole chicken so I can inspect his butt. Can’t tell you how many chickens I’ve groped but I have never noticed this special little gland.
The crystals are gorgeous and that is a stunning picture of you. The bride and groom look so happy, it must have been a wonderful day.
Oh – who won the staring contest…the fish?
Di, I did. Turns out I can outlast a fish, which is just as well, as they don’t blink. I’m not sure he knew we were having a contest! :) Sweet, maybe best not to tell people that you grope chickens.. ;-)
I knew you’d win! Now you know I’d only check out the chicken in the interest of science & personal enlightenment ;)
Celia I love your comment about the kaftan and spanx free, I have a wedding to go to later this year and when thinking about dresses the same thought crossed my mind! :) Have had a ridiculously busy January, full weekends and not enough spare time. Priscilla is waiting patiently in the fridge for a free Saturday or Sunday, I want to take my time and not rush so I don’t mess up as I’m someone who always misses some crucial step in instructions. Hope to bake this weekend :)
Stefanie, everyone else there was in their twenties and tiny and wearing short little outfits. I didn’t even bother to try and compete…hahaha
Great fun in your world as always Celia, I love having a glimpse of it! Thanks so much for sourdough starter too, it’s slowly coming to life – plus it seems to have given the one I was slowly growing myself a kick up the bum, it’s suddenly so full of life it virtually exploded over the kitchen. Just baked with it (yum)and restraining it in the fridge! x
Andrea, I’m so happy to hear all your starters are working so well! :)
Hi Celia, my mum and I have been reading your blog for a good few years now but are much too shy to comment very often although I just felt a need to tell you how much we adore your posts and we love having a natter over a cup of tea about your latest adventures. We are truly addicted to the “in my kitchen” series and are inspired by your generosity and how proud you are of your boys.
Bec, what a kind and lovely comment, thank you so much! I feel like I’m sitting in the kitchen with you now, chatting over a cup of tea! :)
So right about the chooks bum, definitely makes a difference Celia :) Gorgeous couple and gorgeous jewelry too sweetie. How nice to have your wandering orange home to roost, littlej had a Toyota chicken that was dragged around everywhere for years. It slowly turned a shade of gray that no amount of napisan or washing could remove, I’m glad Oliver looks so handsome still :) xo
Oh, I was SO happy when Oliver came home! He’s staying here now! :)
Such a funny post! My family always called it the pope’s nose and Dad regarded it as a delicacy from boyhood (too fatty for me)……love your vintage crystal jewellery. You are such a multi talented woman!
Thanks Jaqi! It was always regarded as a delicacy in our family too! :)
A very bizarre assortment!! reading about the oil gland whilst I was eating lunch was fun…! ;) ha ha!
Your January sounds like a whole lot of fun :) x
Sorry about that hon! :) January has been a scream! :)
Ha ha! No worries!
Nice and varied! It’s like taking us for a house tour in and out! Interesting stuff, Celia!
Julie & Alesah
Gourmet Getaways xx
Strange and bizarre more like it, but thanks for reading Julie! :)
You look lovely in your beautiful crystals…fun post.
You’re very kind, thanks Karen! :)
Finger lime envy! On the list when we re-do the gardens after the renovation.
The thorns are a bloody nightmare – I tried to get to a fat lime yesterday and was prickled to death! :)
We also enjoy xkcd.com. This one is taped to our refrigerator: http://xkcd.com/854/
Hahaha! The boys are huge fans too!
Your post put a smile and chuckle on my face! good to now about the oily gland that needs chopping- I always love these tips that our mothers tell us- they are there for a v good reason! so wonderful that you recycle stuffed toys. lovely jewelry too !
Lara, not too gross? I was worried.. :) Did you see our matching glasses in the top photo? :D
Love xkcd! So so good!
My boys find the strips hilarious! I don’t get it all, so occasionally they need to explain to me. :)