Life is gentle and mellow at the moment.
After a fairly tumultuous few years, it’s a joy to be able to kick back and take things a bit easier. Big Boy and I have started walking each morning – it’s amazing how interesting and beautiful our neighbourhood is at ground level…
My aim is to get 8,000 steps a day.
I know it’s supposed to be 10,000, but I’ve decided to give myself 1,000 steps off for every five years over forty. Actually, I worked backwards from eighty, and figured I’d only be up for 2,000 steps a day by then.
I was happily walking in my red Zennis, until I realised that my face was getting a heart-shaped “raccoon eyes” tan. Now I alternate my sunglasses when I walk…
This sign made me laugh – Big Boy (23) won’t hold my hand any more, but he does stop me from getting run over when we’re crossing roads…
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The bag making craze continues – I’m happily sewing away on my old industrial machine while listening to David Attenborough’s Life on Air on Audible.
I’ve turned an old paella rice bag into an iPhone and house key holder for use when visiting the neighbours…
A scruffy piece of green leather became a zippered clutch bag (thanks again for the tassel, Nancy!)…
I found a book of designer dress samples and sewed tetrahedral jewellery bags…
At dinner with my old school friends Anita and Alison, we decided that these teeny Windstopper pouches were the perfect size for condoms (Anita and I have sons, so “condom” is never a dirty word in our homes)…
My darling friend BJ’s baby was ten days overdue. I promised to make her a bag for each day – here’s the completed collection, minus the one I’d already given her…
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We’ve been eating microwaved corn. Would you like to know how we cook it? It’s really the easiest thing.
Step 1: Buy super-fresh corn still in the husk…
Step 2: Don’t wash it, don’t peel it, just stick it onto the turntable plate of your microwave. Set power to high and microwave for 2½ – 3 minutes. We like to turn it over halfway through to ensure even cooking. Peel carefully (it will be very hot) and eat…
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My young friend Luca drove me to Reverse Garbage – it’s been a while since I was last there, but it hasn’t changed much (although everything is massively more expensive than it used to be)…
I picked up a handful of zippers while I was there – a couple of them were damaged, so I turned the pulls into earrings…
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On Saturday, we held a Japanese themed vegetarian dinner party. For starters, we served miso eggplant, sesame spinach and a dressed salad…
On Sunday, we had dinner with my mum. She ordered softshell crab in salted egg yolk for me – it’s my favourite!
I love that her local restaurant only has signs in Chinese, but it does make ordering tricky. “Point and chew”, my friend PeteV calls it…
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I don’t have any new bread formulas or techniques to share with you, as I’ve been enjoying the rhythm of baking familiar loaves each week. This was a double batch of our high hydration sourdough – five of the six loaves went to neighbours…
The high hydration focaccias, however, are always eaten by my boys…
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As I said, life is gentle and mellow for us at the moment. I hope it is for you too. ♥
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
Cannot say life is mellow right now, but we are hanging in there and doing the best we can to cope with all the stuff, some of it not that great. But that’s life, right? Phases of joy, phases of a bit of trouble, we keep calm and carry on!
I love microwaved corn, but Phil insists it’s “not the same” as his method… (can you see me rolling my eyes to the ceiling?)
nice to know you are in such great phase… ENJOY!!!!!
Sounds like you are having a great time. Reverse Garbage sounds like a really cool place. here is a place in Houston called Art Asylum that is similar. It was always fun going there but now I have moved into the country where there is nothing. :(
Love your photos of the neighbourhood. They really brightened my morning (thunderstorm rolling around here). Thank you for all your wonderful postings. Enjoy your Spring.
Lovely pictures from your morning walks. Enjoy the mellow life. You deserve it. 🌹🌷
I have never tried to microwave corn. Maybe I should next time we have some fresh corn in the house. The zippered bags look so cute. Once things are ready outside for the winter I will have more time to sew. I promised one of my boys a pouch big enough to store his school ruler and all his pencils and pens in. That’s going to be a long pencil case! 😉
oh Celia, you made me laugh so much, right now!! Will come back for detailed comments once my (flu) fever is gone.
Hurray for microwave corn. I make it for my mom all the time. And those little condom pouches are awesome.
How lovely it is to walk every morning .
NeXT year i’ll retire and so walking is in my future plans.
For now on I’m working and doing the best of each day :):):)
Love your daily pics.
Enjoy this time!
Celia, you made my day! I don’t have to do that many steps if I deduct according to your formula and I used your Chinese method to stew my chicken. You commented on Mimi’s blog. The chicken turned out nice and tender. I boiled it in the beginning for about 5 minutes . Right now I’m microwaveing my corn for my polenta tonight. Have a great week and thanks again.
Well, well, well… you have been busy. I have been seeing all of those bags but missed the rice bag. Very cute. I love miso eggplant, it’s a firm fave at our house. A lovely story Celia.
Very Mellow Celia. Lucky neighbours. Seeing your loaves, I am reminded to buy myself a slasher, or at least a razor blade, to do some fancy stuff- so far, fear of self harm has stopped me. Cute condom purses- a clean word for girls too. Your craft work always amazes me- the recycled rice bag is a beauty and the zipper earrings- very punk.
I guess I should consider doing four thousand eight hundred steps then? I can see the oval over the road- it’s calling me, but so are the hungry King parrots, and the bread dough.
I know they say the days are long yet the years are short… and while I don’t want to wish away time, I look forward to seeing how my children will grow up. I hope I have as wonderful a relationship with mine as you do with yours. Love the look of that vegetarian party! x
Probably not a very mellow thing to do, but you should start a market stall!
I love walking around my neighbourhood too, though I call it my ‘old person thing’ these days! Your bread is looking lovely as always :D And my twelve year old son won’t hold my hand, boo!
Love the repurposed rice bag, all of your little bags are lovely. Beautiful neighbourhood photos and the thought of you with heart shaped tan lines made me 😂
Good for you on ALL of the above :)
Celia, you are so creative. Love all those beautiful bags you are doing.
Life is far from mellow and gentle at the moment as you know! But life is good and keeping us all on our toes. I love that you’re so inventive – those earrings made me laugh xx
You make such good use of your time, and I must let this inspire me ♡ I’m also aiming for mellow life post-treechange & travel. And, create time at least 5 days a week to do some steps. Not only is it good exercise but a mobile meditation practice.
Laughing my head off – why do I think that ‘condom pouches’ may not be high on most young men’s agenda even tho’ most may have one ‘in hope’ in their pockets? If I had your lovely green neighbourhood I just might to want to move back to my original surrounds . . . if I could afford it :) ! Enjoy!!!
I’m so glad you are in a mellow place, Celia – and I think heart shaped racoon-eyes would be really neat. I love the rice bag, what a great idea. Peter and I bought Garmin fitness watches to encourage us to do our 10,000 steps – it’s fun, we got a bit competitive and I began to wonder if we’d end up pushing each other off the curb because we were sprouting our ‘stats” at each other. How lovely to see bluebells – I haven’t seen those for so long.
Gentle and mellow is such a good thing! Love all the photos and did have to chuckle at the thought of your heart shaped racoon eyes 😀
Wow, looks like you’ve perfected the sourdough, they look amazing! Still waiting for the marshmallow recipe, though…ooooh, you said mellow, not mallow.
So I did, Matt. Nonetheless, here you go.. :)
https://figjamandlimecordial.com/2010/09/26/homemade-marshmallows-first-attempt/
https://figjamandlimecordial.com/2014/10/23/homemade-raspberry-and-passionfruit-marshmallows/
Love your work Celia! Your bread looks amazing! I’m planning to have a go at some of your beautiful recipes in the school holidays. My friend Trish came with her sourdough starter and baking wisdom to help me get started last week and my first attempt wasn’t too bad… I’m planning to give it another go this weekend. I had no idea the prep stage was such a lengthy process. I’ll send her a link to your blog as she also loves to cook and I’m sure she would love your tips and recipes too. Happy cooking!
How lovely that you can enjoy a mellow lifestyle now, you certainly deserve it. Things are certainly not mellow here, though I am home alone this weekend enjoying myself.
Love your bags, all the shapes sizes, rings, handles etc. They look so professional as do all the things you make. You are so talented Celia
I’ve enjoyed seeing your photos, Celia. You are such a clever lady making all these wonderful things. Have a great day xxx
Celia, I love the sound of that, “a gentle state of mellow.” I’m in a rhythm of baking sourdough loaves twice a week, and it is very mellowing. May life always treat you gently.