Thursday 8th November

My daughter says I should write a blog - she says I'll enjoy it.  I've never written a blog before - not quite sure how to go about it.  However for our year on the boat in France I did keep a journal so I imagine it's pretty much the same sort of thing.

Last night we were disturbed, or I was anyway, half the night with a gale force south easter blowing through the trees outside our bedroom window.  Means summer is really here - the Cape Doctor and all!  Actually I don't mind the wind, stops it getting too hot.

Thia morning Phoebe, our toy poodle was due to have her haircut.  Our regular dog groomer moved back to Johannesburg at the start of the year.  We weren't at all happy with the people he sold the business too so were thrilled to hear that he has come back and opened a new salon.  When Colin (my husband - you'll hear more about him) dropped Phoebe at the salon he asked Eugene (the groomer) what had happened in Joburg.  He told him it was terrible - the area where he grew up has been taken over by Nigerians wieldingAK47s (all of them?)  The mall where he was planning his salon was overrun by an armed gang, a security guard shot, and all the businesses held up.  That sort of thing doesn't even make the national news any more.   So Joburg's loss is our gain - Phoebe looks beautiful and while she was pleased to see us when we picked her up she didn't want to leave Eugene.   

Phoebe is terribly lonely since her companion, our beloved Maya, died last month.  We will definitely be getting her another little sister but not till after Christmas, which we are spending in Singapore - can't wait!

I went to my aqua aerobics this morning - a great class as always.  Anita must be the best aqua teacher in the world - I've been going for nearly two years now and every class is different.   Find them quite exhausting - so am happy to collapse onto my bed afterwards to write.

I have just put my first novel, Pieces of a Puzzle, up on Amazon and plan to get my next two up as soon as they come back from the formatter and the person who is designing (after thousands of back and forth emails) my covers.    I am within spitting distance of finishing my fourth one then have another one about two thirds through.  Not that I've written these overnight - it's been two and a half years now! I do find that I need a deadline otherwise I'll never get finished so I create artificial deadlines for myself.  The current one, Fisherman's Dream (named after the shop we had in Hermanus over 30 years ago),  has to be finished, proof read, checked etc then formatted and be up and running by the end of November.  Quite what happens if I miss this deadline I don't know but obviously it's too dreadful to contemplate.

Need to go and make some of my flat seed bread now.   Quite delicious and very easy.   (Tastes very whole wheaty - which is odd as it has no wheat whatsoever).
With guacamole (or mashed avo, or a sunflower seed pate or hummus), and a basic salad makes a great meal.  Raw vegan cuisine at it's easiest.

Ingredients
I cup flaxseed, ground in blender or coffee grinder
1 cup sesame seed, also ground
1 cup seawater (or pure water with say 1/2 t salt)
1 cup tomatoes - I prefer the taste of the little cocktail tomatoes
1 cup baby marrows/patty pans or a combination
3 - 4 large onions, or equivalent in small onions

Method
Process all except the seeds in the food processor till fine, add the seeds.  If your food processor is too small, just combine the seeds with the rest in a large mixing bowl.
Roll into large balls - I use a serving spoon then wet hands - this quantity makes 12.  Press flat onto teflex sheets on the dehyrator tray.  Flatten as much as desired with a potato masher - wet it first to prevent sticking.

Dehydrate at 40 degrees C for about four hours (depends on thickness of the bread rolls) then turn over, removing the teflex sheets.  Dehydrate about another four hours - depends how thick and how dry you want them - for a picnic quite dry like biscuits otherwise more of a bread consistency.

Now that took a lot longer to write than to do!

Till next  time :)