Yes, you're still eating Meat...

Lately I have been a little sick of some people I know claiming to be vegetarian or vegan who are still clearly not.

 I know it is a little rich to sit here and quote my own definition of "vegetarian" and "vegan", but I will say that only cutting out beef or pork does NOT make you a vegetarian. It also doesn't mean that you don't eat meat.
Meat is the flesh of another animal. Whether it be a cow, pig, chicken, turkey, or (shock) fish!
I don't understand why someone who eats chicken or fish would presume to call themselves vegetarian? You have simply replaced eating one animal with another! (Also, someone that chooses to remove all meat except fish from their diet is called a "pescatarian")
Please don't get me wrong, I think that any reduced amount of animal products consumed by friends or family is a wonderful thing! But I don't believe that people should take something like being a vegetarian and brand themselves as such, without actually living by the moral code that comes along with it.
I stopped eating meat because I couldn't stand the idea of causing the pain of another just to satiate my own unnecessary desire for their flesh.. it is slightly repulsive to me to be honest.
I do not begrudge others who don't feel the same, I truly am not going to walk up to you on the street and pressure you into becoming a vegan! But I don't believe that anyone that does choose to eat meat (from any animal) should then brand themselves as something they are not.

Rant over.

One Month to HOLIDAY Countdown!

I was going for a walk on my lunch break today and as I walked past the airport I saw the planes  soaring into the clouds, and I realised that we are leaving for our own holiday in only one month!!! EEP!

A plane coming in to land at Sydney Airport

 

In 30 days we fly out to Indonesia for a week of sun-bathing (with sun-screen on because I'm not silly....... and because I am pale as hell and don't suit blisters), swimming, enjoying cocktails and fresh fruit on the beach, and soaking up some beautiful culture! As I mentioned in a previous post, this is one of the things I had planned to do for this year that I can (very soon) cross off my list.. YAY!

 

So when we booked this holiday, I said to myself: "Erin, you're going to be a good girl this year, you're taking your health seriously for once, and you're going to go to the gym as many times a week as possible and become some sort of beach goddess in Seminyak."  -That lasted about 2 months... which is pretty good for me! Unfortunately during this time frame, my back - which has been a douche for a while now - started to give me  a little trouble. I ignored it for a little while, then when the pain became ridiculously unbearable I took myself off to the chiropractor in stead of the gym.

I still maintain that it was a great move on my behalf, as they found a few underlying issues there that could easily have become chronic issues had I not addressed them sooner.
Needless to say, my gym routine went out the window for a while as I was healing myself and re-learning how to stand.
Unfortunately for me though, I am now attempting to get back into a routine I had easily created months ago, and now seem to not be able to get back into: be up at 4:30am to be at the gym for a 5am start.... ughhhh. It's even more hideous written down!
This morning was my first day back at it, and I am feeling amazing! But I really did struggle when my alarm went off at 4:30.. I may have even gotten up to turn it off then crawled back into bed with my phone snuggled sweetly under my arm... But only for a minute! Then I realised how important it was for me to get up, so I did! (wonder of wonders!) - it didn't help that Domino was meow-ing constantly from the minute my alarm went off.



Our stunning villa in Seminyak

So I am trying to set myself a little goal of going to the gym as many mornings as I can until we go, doing yoga as many evenings as possible, and going for a walk in my lunch break when I can also - all in the hopes of being able to put on a bikini in Bali and feel confident when I get to that amazing pool (above).

Have you ever tried to set yourself a ridiculous goal such as this one? Are you a self-saboteur as well? What's your workout routine like?



 

A few reasons why I love Lush..

I went into my local Lush store today, and I always forget just how amazing it is in there! The customer service alone is worth the trip.
Here's why:

• I walked in, was greeted warmly & even recognised by staff
• She allowed me to walk around and smell things until I was ready to be approached
• I was listened to attentively, and felt like every minor concern I brought up was completely understood.... even while I explained my dislike of one mask simply because the texture put me off..
• I was offered a bunch of products for every concern, and the few I picked out were tested on my hands first - probably the most lovely part - she brought me over to the sink, where she began rinsing and lathering one hand, then setting a mask on the other - so that I could feel and smell them.
• I was given a free sample of one product I was unsure about, and when I bought all of my goodies, she invited me to a VIP night to test out their new range of scents. YAY!

That is basically a repeat of every time I've ever been into that store!
The best part of going into Lush is that I always walk out feeling so much better about myself than when I walked in!

If you've not heard of Lush, check out their products here. Most of their products are vegan, and nothing in their store has been tested on animals.

Some of the bits and pieces I picked up :)

Some masks, a spot treatment, toner, cleanser, perfume, exfoliant & glitter bar!

My favourite cleanser:

Fresh Farmacy

A new mask!

A little sample of Angels on Bare Skin

Commuting sucks

Just a word on why I hate commuting.
Lately I have been extremely lazy, and not waking up early enough to catch my train, which means in stead I am driving.... Naughty naughty, I know.
Besides clocking a LOT of unnecessary mileage on our new car, it also leaves me very frustrated by the end of the day, especially when there has been excessive traffic.... Much like this morning!
A car caught on fire  on the freeway that I travel on to get to work, and left all 3 lanes of traffic crawling. Although yes, this sucks, it meant I did get to take a pretty picture of the fog receding over the mountains:

Hawkesbury from Brooklyn Bridge

Definitely not one of he worst parts of commuting.. and I must admit: being awake to see the sun rise over the water every morning is probably one of the nicer parts of my day.

Long story short, I did eventually make it to work on time.. After narrowly avoiding another breakdown, and sitting through the regular city traffic.. PHEW!

Oh well.. TGIF right?!

Lunchtime retreat

Sitting in an office all day can start to make me feel a little cabin-feverish after a while.. So I decided that while the weather is unseasonably warm in Sydney to make the most of it and go for a walk during my lunch break..

Something cute I made on my walk

Besides the obvious relief of pent-up office-induced stress and boredom, it is good for while my back is out and I can't be at the gym in the mornings like I usually would, and I need to be doing something!

Lucky for me, my office is quite close to a river and a path!




Unfortunately, not too far along the path you come across this:

Sydney Airport

 ...stupid city ruining my peaceful walk :-(

Things I'd like to do this year

I thought if I write down some things that I have been meaning to do this year, then I might actually do them!

Things I want to do this year:

• Go to Bali - I already have this one planned for September, but I thought I'd add this one to the list mainly because I'm super excited to be going, and because it is something I want to do this year! ;-P (starting the list off easy)
• A cleanse!
• Go to the snow - Trav and I have a mutual  love for the snow and snowboarding (even though he is much better than I am), last year we managed to go down to the Snowy Mountains (3 hours south of Canberra) twice, and had so much fun there together! But this year it is half way through the snow season already and we haven't yet been :-( We will hopefully be able to go before we go to Bali.
• Renovate the bathroom -  this one is SO necessary! The villa we live in was built in 1980, and when Travis bought it the entire house was in nearly original condition (kitchen, carpet, paint, bathroom). So last year we renovated the kitchen ourselves, and we have painted the entire house twice (Ughhhhh! Painting is probably my most hated house-reno job so far!), but the bathroom is the one that we haven't gotten around to yet. Hopefully we can get it done by November at least! I am so excited to have a new bathroom already! 
• Teach Radley to shake - Radley is a lovely pup, who is so cute and snuggly, but he is very easily distracted. I would love to be able to teach him a few new tricks to distract him when he sees Domino - like shake and roll over - because at the moment he is woeful! 
• Cook a grand vegan feast! - I have wanted to try my hand at making a fabulous vegan feast for a while now, but I am still not super confident with  my cooking abilities.. So a goal for this year is to cook an amazing array of dishes to serve to friends or family and show them how delicious vegan food can be! (Unfortunately most of them still think all I eat is salad)
• Buy a new oven - I've been oven-less for over a month now... enough said :-( 
• Do a creative writing course - I love writing, I went to uni to become a writer, an editor, or a publisher, but became too scared of showing people my own work, and dropped out of the course. I'm not sure why, but I have always hated to show other people my own words... so I guess having a blog is a remedy of sorts. Now I think that I am finally comfortable enough to actually submit something, so I will give it a go! I will post more about the course once it starts...
• Finish all of the books on my "to read" list! Unless you couldn't tell by the ridiculous list above, I am a procrastinator from waaaaaaayyy back! I have trouble finishing things once i start them... (hence the list) and sometimes there are books that you may not be 100% enthusiastic about from the beginning, and those are the ones I have the most trouble finishing... Although I am proud to say that this year I finally finished Wuthering Heights, which I had notoriously picked up and put back down over 30 times before I finally did finish it....... needless to say I was devastated with the result....

If I think of anything else that I really should get done this year I'll make sure to add them, and I will cross things off as I finish them! 

Check out my Instagram, Pinterest and Goodreads for more! 

Another weekend gone..

I've always scoffed at people suffering on my social media from "Monday-itis", but lately I have been sighing and shuffling and generally moaning about having to go back to work on Monday.
I'm not sure why - maybe commuting, getting up early, being bored - but it is definitely getting me out of sorts.
It is funny though, because I don't hate my job, I generally don't mind public transport (though if my train is over 5 minutes late - that's when my inner Hulk emerges), and I enjoy having a schedule that I must follow every day as it keeps me organised and accountable.

I think my issue is that after I have been home all weekend with the dogs and Travis, and getting a chance to walk around in my "comfy clothes" with no make-up on - I miss being home. I love the idea of a day spent snuggling on the lounge in my happy pants and over-large t-shirt, with a series of whichever show I am addicted to at the time on and eating as much as I want. I LOVE those days. They're my absolute favourite! But I know that if I did that every day I would become fat, and severely deficient in vitamin D :-P ..But it is nice to think about those days, and hope that your weekend can include one of those days.. sometimes it can help me to get through the week!
But this is where I think the issue lies.. I look forward to those days relaxing so much that I am disappointed if I don't get to have one of those days on the weekend, and I end up depressed on the Monday, wishing I could have had just one more day to do NOTHING! Selfish? I think so. Lazy? Definitely!
I know that all of you have had a Monday back at work and wished that you could have had that one more day to sleep in, have a scrummy breakfast, then do nothing!

So.. back to the main topic! The weekend!
We had a productive Saturday: cleaning, bought a new vacuum (finally - we had needed to replace our haunted vac for ages!), washed the smelly puppies and then went out for dinner and drinks with friends.

Sunday I attempted to get washing done - and failed. Mostly because I was too busy catching up on Game of Thrones, and because I REALLY didn't want to do anything! :-P
...I finally finished season 3 of Game of Thrones at least! I think it helped to be in my comfy clothes for those final episodes.. I had a few moments of tear-induced hiccups, and I may have sobbed a few times (but it's ok because I was home alone).
I am kind of outraged that they ended the season half-way through the book! It frustrates me having to wait to see how they will create a few key moments in the book.
Have you read any of the series? You can see where I am up to on my Goodreads page. If you've watched season three, I am sure I'm not alone in my grief!

I think it is time for me to do more interesting things on the weekend. Travis mentioned my boring-ness, and doesn't know how I can stand to do what I do when I have nothing else to occupy my time (other than things that don't exactly excite me). Oh well. I think that is when the "each to their own" motto comes in handy. :-P
I am sure there are some amazing things to get up to in Sydney every weekend, and every week I plan to do something fabulous, but I lose the energy to do it as soon as Saturday rolls around, so maybe I need to set myself a weekly plan to do something fab every weekend!
Hmm.. that has me thinking! A new goal perhaps?


Don't forget to check out my Instagram and Pinterest for more!

What I'm reading at the moment

There hasn't been a time since childhood when I haven't been reading a book (or three). I have a stack of at least 5 books next to my bed (even though I generally don't read in bed I just realised.. hmm), and I have around 200 books on my digital reader I am attempting to work my way through (mostly the free classics that are complementary with the device).
I find it comforting to know that I have something to read when I am on the train, or relaxing at home. Which obviously leads to panic and depression when I have finished all of the books I was reading, and am left desolate and bookless until I can find something new (or old) to fill the void.

At the moment I am in the middle of the George R.R. Martin series A Song of Ice and Fire (who isn't?) and I am currently up to book four A Feast for Crows.



My slightly worn out copy of A Game of Thrones

For those that have never heard of A Song of Ice and Fire, or watched the HBO series Game of Thrones (where have you been?), it is a fantasy series set in the fictional land of Westeros, which focuses primarily on the fight for the coveted Iron Throne of Westeros, and indirectly on the lives of the Starks of Winterfell.
So it is basically told in lots of different voices of characters throughout the series, and each book changes narrators as George R.R. Martin picks and chooses who he will unceremoniously slaughter, much to your joy or dismay.

I won't give out any spoilers, because I have no interest in making enemies at this stage, but I will say that everyone I know that has read, or watched this series has become captivated, no matter if they are fans of the fantasy genre or not (generally I am not), so I encourage everyone to give it a read/watch.
...even though I can't get my very open minded boyfriend to watch it..(though I have a feeling that may be because I have already ruined it for him by gasping in horror and shock at every turn of the page.. and by telling him everything that has happened).

Generally as I read something modern, I will be tackling a classic at the same time so that I can give my brain a little respite. At the moment that classic is the Shakespearean "comedy" All's Well That Ends Well. It isn't much of an epic, and it is relatively light, though I still like to read Shakespeare in small doses, otherwise I find that I start thinking in iambic pentameter.

If you'd like to see more of what I'm reading right now, and what I've read recently, take a look at my Goodreads page!

If you're a fan of Game of Thrones, or just looking for a giggle, don't forget to check out my Pinterest  page.

My Little Family

Suzie

Suzie is a 6 year old English Staffy that we adopted from the RSPCA in May 2012.

Suzie 

She had kennel cough, fleas, was severely malnourished/underweight and had recently given birth to a litter of puppies.

After months of healthy meals and walks she gained weight and energy, and is now completely content to sleep on the lounge or bed all day until we come home from work. She receives lots of kisses, cuddles and food every day and is spoilt rotten by Travis.

Suzie likes: 

FOOD 

Lower back scratches

Crusts

Walks

Tug-of-war

Suzie dislikes: 

When we leave for work

Being outside

Raw carrots

Radley

Radley is a 2yo Kelpie x Staffy that we adopted from the pound the day he was to be euthanised in April 2013.

Radley - being cuddly

Radley was a stray who had been in the pound for months before we saw him on their "kill list" and decided to adopt him. 
He, like Suzie, had kennel cough and fleas, and his tail had been cut off at some point in his poor life.
Radley shadows everyone through the house - begging for attention and love. He is such a softie, we can't imagine what life would be like without him anymore!

Radley Likes

Ear scratches

Getting into cupboards

Chewing.....everything (my glasses, lounge cushions, books...) 

Broccoli

Chocolate - much to our displeasure

Radley dislikes:

The vacuum cleaner

Domino

Bedtime

Domino

I adopted Domino from the RSPCA as a kitten 4 years ago.

Domino - reading

She can be quite temperamental, but loves to snuggle with Travis in the mornings after I get up to go to work. 

She is very protective of her food, and if she can get to it, she will! 

Domino is like a perpetual kitten, she is slight, and very playful! As soon as the lights go out at night, she seems to think that means it's time to play! 

Domino Likes:

Sharing Pillows
Sitting on any computer/paper/book you are using
Staring at me until I wake up
Food
Attacking feet from hidden places

Domino Dislikes:

Being ignored
Dogs
Pills

Travis

Travis is the best boyfriend anyone could ask for, he is considerate, kind, and compassionate.

Of course we have our moments - someone forgot to do the washing up, or whose turn it is to turn the light off before bed - but neither of us would be happy if there weren't little things to argue about every now and then ;-) 

Travis likes: 

Triple chocolate chip anything

Sit-coms

Vintage watches

Snowboarding

Superhero movies

Travis dislikes:

Public transport

Olives

Chick-flicks

Working on weekends