Just Humans Being...

We always make large amounts of food and enjoy using the leftovers. We like colourful meals, as we've mentioned before on the blog. Cooking healthy vegan food really doesn't need to be complicated and each of these dishes were on the table within an hour... Which is quick for those of us who love to cook!  The sauce from this brown lentil cottage pie started out as a spicy miso gravy and before that it was a bean chilli. The lentil mixture was topped with potatoes mashed with leeks, which were slow fried in soy sauce. Served with steamed carrots and kale and red cabbage, braised with seasame seeds, soy sauce and freshly squeezed orange. The previous day's brown lentil mix and red cabbage reheated and served up with dry roasted cauliflower and potato wedges, steamed kale and pureed carrots, swede and turmeric. The next day, we put all the leftover vegetables into the food processor, along with some scrambled tofu, mushrooms and garlic left over from

Making that journey along an unfamiliar road is scary, leaping into the unknown and choosing to do something new and different. Saying YES to everything can really be exhausting, though once you get into the flow - it gets quite addictive. Consequently, we have ended up working more than we imagined and have given away more money to charities, moved house and are moving again. Life takes so many exciting twists and turns and we have stopped worrying whether we are doing the right thing. Over time, saying yes has got easier and now it's second nature. On the odd occasion we look at each other and wonder what the hell we are doing, but mostly we just laugh hysterically and go for it! Here's Shonda Rhimes giving an interesting and inspirational talk about her year of saying Yes.  My Year Of Saying Yes To Everything  We have both noticed a real shift in the way we see and deal with situations. No longer fearful of the worst case scenario, we find it easy to com

What an incredible year we have had... We downsized to spend 12 months in a sweet little house with the most stunning views of the sea. We were treated to an amazing holiday in Canada, thanks to our kind and beautiful friend Richard... It was fantastic to spend time with Richard and his fabulous family...  We adore them all very much and will always be grateful to him for his incredible generosity! We had lots of new work opportunities come our way, which have kept us extremely busy and have enabled us to continue living here - The price for a bit of luxury! We now work in more stunning properties and we also spent the summer season at the youth hostel with a lovely team... All the kidlets are happy living their alternative lives...  2 of them own a caravan, 2 of them live in that caravan, 2 of them gave up their flat to do a long term house sit and all of them have exciting plans ahead. We have come to realise that for us, our

Wishing you all well and for those of you who partake in the seasonal festivities, we hope you are having a happy and fun time! We had our annual family get-together early this year and enjoyed a weekend in a snowy Somerset. We stayed in a beautiful former church with all the kidlets, where we exchanged our usual Secret Santa gifts, ate, drank, played games and music, laughed and chatted pretty much non-stop! As the snow fell, we said our goodbyes and we travelled through a blizzard up to Stoke-on-Trent, where we sampled the delights of retirement village living with Granddad Gerry and Nana Stip-Pep! We then went on to Snowdonia, just the two of us and stayed in a little Welsh stone cottage, just outside Betws-y-Coed. There we experienced a big thaw with lots of flooding and then it snowed again! We returned home to lots of work and were busy up until Christmas Eve, but have now chilled out for a few days. It's just us and the kitties at home in this little ho

I love the summer. It's my favourite time of year. This year has been particularly bountiful with regards to long periods of uninterrupted sunshine and I have needed no encouragement whatsoever to step outside and sensibly and gradually expose my body to the rays. Over a period of many weeks I have gradually bronzed in a way that has been beyond my grasp for many years due to the whims and vagaries of the British summer. Finally, after careful immersion I have achieved a level of poise and confidence not unlike say mild smugness. Now don't get me wrong, it is by no means a deep tan, a swarthy layer of earthen masculinity but it is most definitely noticeable to those who may have whispered the words "pasty" or "wan git", It has been not just a surprise but a crushing blow then to discover that my new found glow has not only been completely ignored, but my lovely wife (who too possesses a not unenviable tan herself has been the centre of attention be

We were travelling home from Falmouth last night and followed this spectacular storm. When we got home it was still raging and probably lasted a couple of hours - this is the view we had from our bedroom window at 1am this morning looking towards Plymouth, which is some 40 miles distant. It was an incredible show, with a constant succession of flashes. Kay and Sime xx

The ladies next door have been giving birth in the field. Their babies are like any other babies - they sleep, they feed, they follow their mums everywhere, they run around, then fall asleep again.  These little beauties are completely unaware of their fate... But we know... And this is one thing which makes living here difficult. How can people eat other beings without feeling terrible?     It just doesn't make sense. Both the posters are from the  Cornwall Vegans  website. If you are in Cornwall or will be on Saturday 22nd April - do support this event! Perhaps you have been considering veganism - this  Vegan Starter Kit  will help you to get started and if you have any questions, need help or ideas for recipes - just ask, we are always happy to talk to folks who want to change their diet for the better. And in case you haven't seen this on iplayer - Here is  Simon Amstell's Carnage . Please, please think seriousl

Spring is supposedly here, though not sure it has truly arrived in this area of Cornwall and it seems like everyone who lives outside of Portmellon is experiencing warmer, drier weather than we are.  Our hibernating season has been a long one this winter, so even though it still has been quite chilly and wet - we thought it was about time we just got out there... We met up with a friend for coffee on Sunday morning in Mevagissey and are happy to report that the newish cafe on the harbour,  She Sells  has very nice coffee and vegan smoothies. It's been months since we walked round Meva, so afterwards we had a walk to the end... Kitty in the window... Not for sale! Heading back up the hill... Caerhays Castle beach - Porthluney - just before sunset... Dusk on the Fal Estuary. Canada Goose watching at Ruan Quay... The Fal is quite high at the moment. Swans further down the estuary... We love taking what we

We made a pact a few years ago that we would only leave Meadowcroft if we found somewhere really special to live. One of the most important things featured on both of our lists was to have stunning views, so when we found our French house - the view just blew us away! We are still waiting for the sale to go through and so far, it's been nine months since our offer was accepted... The notaire discovered a slight glitch in that the terrace was actually owned by a neighbour. It was then agreed that the present owner of the house was to purchase the terrace and shortly before the sale went through the neighbour unexpectedly died... His estate is now being transferred to his brother, who is more than happy to sell the terrace and we have been asked if we would like to continue to wait.  We are not in any rush and know that our little house will be worth waiting for...   Maybe the exchange rate will be more favourable by the time we go through the sale and in the mean

It's two months since we moved into our little home and despite the fact that it's rained every day since we arrived - we love it! We sleep with the curtains open and wake every morning seeing the sea, although some days the mist has meant we don't see anything for a while, but it's fascinating having such a vast view of the open sea and the coastline into Devon. We see the changes in the weather and the colour of the sea. The blustery and gale force winds bringing rough waves and then days of mill pond calmness. We see storms coming in, the dark clouds and glimpses of blue sky. From the kitchen we look down on Portmellon, which is very pretty and at night is like a Mediterranean hillside village with twinkling lights, next to a glistening sea. We are living in this small space and it is wonderful. Life feels simpler, we have definitely slowed down and just enjoy being cosy and snug with the kitties... We all seem to sleep more too, whic

We recently watched a wonderful film about Jhamtse Gatsal - The Garden Of Love And Compassion and the Buddhist Monk, Lobsang Phuntsok who decided to build a safe and educational haven for many underprivileged children living in poverty in the Bhutan/Tibet area. Photo taken from here This man is such an inspiration, the way in which he genuinely cares for the children and is dedicating his life to making a massive difference to so many. Please do read all about it here... Tashi And The Monk  and watch the  Film Here  for free...  Perhaps it will inspire you to think more about ways to give and help others and to understand the positive impact giving makes on not only those you wish to help, but your life too! And there's more... Becoming Minimalist - 9 Ways Generous People See The World Differently. It really does get quite addictive - but in a very nice way!!! ♥

EE Cumings quote taken from here. You only have to do a quick search on the internet to see that laughter is becoming big business.  There are clubs, online courses and therapists dishing out ideas to bring laughter into your life...  How bizarre is that?  People need to be taught how to laugh and of the health benefits it brings, which incidentally are huge - but what has happened? Why don't folks know how to laugh? It is such a basic instinct and yet, we're not doing it... Well we do , but lots of you don't.  We know how our mental health influences our physical health, so no wonder laughter is now seen as an important ingredient for  healing illness.  There is so much fun to be had if you spend time with people who make you laugh, so if you're not getting enough - seek out others who share the same sense of humour, who can help you change and before you know it...  You'll be enjoying a good belly laugh every day, crying with laughter a