Anika's Blog

Did I publish this before? I don’t remember. Also, I’m sleepy.

© Anika Mae 2007

… so I thought I’d do one for this week’s photo, as an antidote to the two weeks of pink pube pictures.

umph

By the way, I’d like to let you know that I’m not the sort of raging narcissist who generally posts pictures of myself exercising, but I’m trying to have some variety in these weekly photos.

Linda likes to help any wildlife she can on her farm (apart from spiders and foxes), which includes leaving nettles and thistles growing for butterflies. They lay eggs on the nettles, then when they’re er… hatched? fledged? they feed on the thistles. I’m rubbish with wildlife myself so I don’t know if this is a Red Admiral or the other species she said was around.

Newly-hatched butterfly feeding on a thistle © Anika Mae 2011

The fence fund is still short, but Linda was given five temporary fence panels and managed to make them into an enclosure at the front of the barn, so now the birds can get out enough for a proper sunbathe. Makes for better pictures too (although the sun was so bright at the time that I’ve got a lot of blown-out turkey heads).

Relaxed turkey stag © Anika Mae 2011

Turkey Photobomb © Anika Mae 2011

Ok, if you’re not used to (live) turkeys he probably looks like a sci-fi monster with intestines in the wrong place, but all that blue means he’s a super-chilled out dude. The curious hen is called Point.

© Anika Mae 2011

So, it rained. It could have been worse, and the wind wasn’t as bad as predicted, but it was more than a drizzle. Skin is waterproof though, and with my hot water bottle in a backpack I stayed warm. Unfortunately the ride left without me! People had been gathering on The Level since noon (at which point I was having breakfast and wondering if I really wanted to go outside at all), and they were too wet and cold to wait for the 1.30 start time. A few people were left packing things up when I got there, so I waited for them and then we and a few other late arrivals headed off to find the ride. We found them at the end of a shortened route but feeling more enthusiastic and talking to the police about going around a bit more. I made it for that extra little ride around Kemptown.

Sorry if you were looking out for me! I expect it’ll be back to fun and suncream again next year.

Here are some pictures of me that I like from other people’s uploads: One Two Three Four Five Six.

And some others I like. This one amuses me, this is just lovely, I know the boy with the horn and he’s also lovely, I’m going to get some of these pants, aww, wet paint, lol, sweet pigtails, and way cute.

I went to my first camping music festival recently. It’s a bit embarrassing that I’m nearly 28 and hadn’t been to one before, but I’m bad at organising things in advance and also totally square (I’m an introvert who likes to get enough sleep; spending a weekend camping with thousands of people could result in some serious grumpiness).

This year I went to Meadowlands. There was an epic chap-off scheduled between Professor Elemental and Mr. B the Gentleman Rhymer and it was only a few miles from Brighton, so I got a pop-up tent and train ticket to Glynde. I think a lot of people stayed away because the weather wasn’t great that weekend, and cheaper tickets would have helped too. It was tiny, but at least everything was in tents so we didn’t have to huddle against the wind. The Bang Said The Gun spoken word tent was a lot of fun; my friend is really into poetry and I’m not really, but we both enjoyed most of the acts; recommended if you’re in London or the Edinburgh Festival. Penguin Café Orchestra were the headliners on Sunday and seemed a bit surprised to get an encore. There were also a bunch of teenagers going crazy at the front towards the end of their set, which was totally adorable. The chap battle was sweet, of course.

Now I’m hoping the rain holds off for the Naked Bike Ride. I did it in 2008 when I was just starting to cycle again, but then in 2009 I sprained my ankle, and last year someone died. Nothing’s gone wrong so far though and it’s only two days away! I also seem to have convinced my friend to by some rollerskates and join in :).

Oh, and does anyone fancy taking me to a strip club? It’s been a while, and since I don’t believe in being stingy in strip clubs I’ll probably have more luck here than asking my friends. Preferably not a weekend night; I don’t like the atmosphere then.

In time for the Naked Bike Ride on Sunday.

© Anika Mae 2011

FormSpring flagged your question as abuse and hid it, which wasn’t really a problem because it was still answerable, but then I was slow with my answering and I suppose flagged questions are automatically deleted after a week or so. Please resubmit your question if you’d like me to answer it.

1 largeish block of tofu* (not silken)
A big bunch of summer greens, chopped**
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dry chilli flakes
1 tsp tamarind paste***, dissolved in a little warm water
2 tsps cornflour, dissolved in a little cold water
Some soy sauce****
A couple of pinches of sugar
Some cooked quinoa from last week that my housemate forgot to make lunch with (it was half a cup dry, or maybe a bit more)

*I get mine from Asian shops rather than healthfood shops (or supermarkets) if I can help it. The healthfood shop stuff is all super firm, which I think people find less scary, but I like the smooth texture of softer tofu. This one is the best I’ve found (but there’s no Kung Fu Panda on the packs in Yum-Yum). Oh, and you’re supposed to drain tofu by squishing it in kitchen towels or something, but I just gently press it over the sink with my hands and hope for the best. When I’m frying it like I did today it doesn’t really matter because the extra water cooks off.

**Leafy cabbage or kale would work, probably chard too. Spinach would be ok but I prefer more robust leaves for this sort of thing.

***Or 1 tsp lemon/lime juice, or 1/2 tsp wine or white vinegar.

****Light soy sauce is better for cooking than dark, and you’re less likely to overdo it.

Chop the tofu into small chunks. Heat up a large non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat. Put in a tsp or two of oil and tilt the pan to spread it. Lay the tofu chunks into the pan and leave them to cook.

Heat a little oil in a small frying pan or saucepan. Fry the garlic and chilli for a few seconds, then pour in the tamarind water. Leave to simmer, topping up with water if it gets thick. At some point add soy sauce to taste, and sugar if you feel like it.

When the tofu is lightly browned, turn the pieces over to cook on the other side. When that side’s done too, put some more oil in the pan and add the greens. Turn the heat up a bit and stir frequently.

Meanwhile, pour the cornflour water into the sauce and mix it up. Add some extra water if you think you’ll need it to easily coat your stuff. Leave to simmer.

When the greens are cooked (but still green and not soggy, you don’t need to teach your veg a lesson), stir in the quinoa and sauce and cook for a few more minutes.

Put it all on a plate and eat it. Actually, put it on two plates and give one of them to someone else, because this made two pretty good servings.

© Anika Mae 2007

Sorry I haven’t posted anything else since last week. I’ll try harder!