Juggling by the Sea...

Me, with a view, and a laptop.

The good news? An AirBnB that I like, sent me a discount code to use before the end of January. The bad news? During a particularly busy flurry of indie-publishing activity, I'll be going on holiday! Yep, a mini-break is a-coming. Because it's only five minutes since Christmas, and because I've got loads of stuff to do, this isn't ideal. I'll need to juggle! But look, it'll be fine. There's free wifi and I'll pack my laptop. Life's too short not to use the discount code, right? That's what I'm telling myself anyway.

Writing News 

The book cover is DONE. Woohooooo! Now I need to do a final read through (there were changes after the last final read through so I need to check them). Then I'll upload the manuscript. That'll give me a publication date and a link for pre-ordering. We're nearly there, folks! Watch this space!

This film will live forever in my head
and I'm more than happy with that.

Culture 

If you read my outpourings last week about All Of Us Strangers, you won't be surprised to hear that I went to see it a second time. I love it. It's possibly my new favourite film ever. Big talk, I know. Besides that, I've started a rewatch of  The Office: An American Workplace. It's so lovely to check back in with Pam, Jim, and the gang. Elsewhere, Shrine Pods are dropping episodes for the new series of Trigger Point, so I'm watching that in order to listen to the podcast, and then the new series of Off Menu has started. It makes my Wednesday mornings. 

My bastardised, but oh so
tasty, rameny ricey broth dish.

Food and Drink
My issue with ramen is that noodles are messy. Sorry, didn't you ask? I'll tell you anyway. You see, I'm already prone to regular spills without adding the extra drips that broth-soaked noodles bring. But the flavours? Ahhh, they're the best. I've started making a stash of broth to freeze, so that I've got a ready lunch, full of all the good stuff. Instead of noodles, I add rice. Apologies to ramen purists everywhere. My t-shirts are grateful for the reduction in stains. Anyway, for the broth I used this recipe. It's sesame oil, garlic, ginger, chilli, spring onions, turmeric, soy sauce, miso paste, peanut butter, tahini, stock, coconut milk, and lime. Chop everything and heat it up. Simples.

Out and About

In a bid to engineer Fun Times whilst on my mini break, I found myself wandering the aisles of Smyths toy shop. Other than the odd click and collect order for a niece or neph's birthday present, it's not a shop I know well. Imagine then, if you even can, the absolute thrills I got when perusing the boardgames section. The only board games I remember growing up were Monopoly and Scrabble and I wasn't a fan of either. But it's a whole new world these days. There were dozens and dozens of games I'd never heard of and I spent a happy Sunday morning investigation the options.* It's not going to be a regular jaunt for me, but next time I'm looking for holiday entertainment, I know where to go.

So wish me luck as I prepare to juggle. Will I get the pre-order date and complete the manuscript read-throughs whilst attempting to have downtime by the sea? Who knows? Who cares?! All we can do is our best.

Have a lovely week, folks.

*For closure, here's what I bought. Incohearent and Beat That. Larks!