Life

A weekend in June: Hotbox, Dinerama & Dinosaurs

- Michael 2 Comments

Well, June has been hectic. In fact, wait a minute, it’s JUNE? And it’s July IN TWO DAYS? When did this happen? I have no idea where my time has been going lately. It seems to be slipping away faster and faster (along with my money). Just this Friday I’m moving (again) to Bow Road, so if any of you are East Londoners, mine is a Gin & Tonic (no cucumber, god help you if I find cucumber in my gin).

Secret Cinema - Force Choke

Force choke – Photo by Arthy

But why has June been so busy I hear you ask? Well I’ll give you a snapshot of just one weekend to really hit it home. It started with a gig on the Thursday, the Movielife to be exact, at the Electric Ballroom. A whole heap of my friends were down from Leeds as well as a bunch of people from London. The Movielife are one of those bands that helped shape half the people I knows music taste. They got big in the early 00’s before breaking up and continuing with various endeavours (Vinnie, most notably in I Am The Avalanche). This meant that while it was a Thursday, a rather large amount of booze was consumed, and by the end of the set I had no voice left.

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Easter 2015 Pt.3

- Michael 3 Comments

Early on the Sunday morning of my trip to see my parents on the Isle of Mull at Easter (see parts one and two) I woke up to see my Aunt & Uncle off for their ferry. We were also thinking about a couple of different walks we could perhaps fit into the day, planning low lying ones to avoid the rain. Little did we imagine that on opening the curtains we’d be greeted with an absolutely stunning view across the Loch with a thin band of low lying cloud leaving the peaks clear.

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Mini Spinach & Ricotta Quiches and a Picnic

- Michael 11 Comments
Spinach, Ricotta & Chorizo Quiches
A miniature victoria sponge with cream and blackcurrant jam
Pouring Prosecco
Quiches and the cooler of dreams: Gin & Brie
Mini Victoria Sponges

 

It’s absolutely glorious outside, so here I am sat inside blogging. I say that but I’ve spent the last couple of days outside making the most of it and I’m simply inside now as it’s Sunday evening and the Women’s World Cup is on. Last weekend, when it was momentarily warm on the Saturday, I squeezed in a picnic with some friends in Finsbury Park. It was a good excuse to try out my rather nifty new picnic basket (sent to me by the guys and gals across at Joules) and for me to do some summer baking. I opted to make mini spinach, ricotta and chorizo quiches and some mini victoria sponges.

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Bake With Maria: Chocolate Savvy

- Michael Leave a comment

A couple of weeks ago I was invited along to Bake With Maria in Swiss Cottage (and I meant to write about this then but life has gotten in the way, it’s all been a bit hectic!). For those that don’t know, Bake With Maria was started by the lovely Maria a number of years ago. She started out by teaching people from her own kitchen how to make delicious bread, before the demand grew too strong and she had to make the move to her own specialised teaching kitchen space, the Baking Lab, which opened in November 2011. Maria and her small team now run a number of different types of class, moving away from just the bread.

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Easter 2015: Mull Pt.2

- Michael 7 Comments
Glen More

It’s time for part 3 of my trip to Scotland! However, before I get started I’m going to have to start pitching to you I’m afraid. This weekend myself and a few other friends are walking the entirety of the South Downs Way. That’s all 100 Miles in 4-5 days. We are raising money for Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders  and all donations are much appreciated. Our donation page can be found here. Help us raise our target!

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