Sunday was mother's day. I cooked a meal for eight people. Roast potatoes and sweet potato, lemon roast chicken (a recipe from when I stayed with gillpolack), steamed green beans and snowpeas with toasted macadamias, and tomato basil tagliatelle for starters. Dessert was mini pavlovas with a spoonful of cream, a drizzle of passionfruit pulp and defrosted "summer berries".

My mother said it was the best mother's day since 1984 (my birth year) and 1986 (my brother's birth year).

Also, my beans were NOT oversteamed. They were a bright and juicy green, with just the right about of crispness to them.

We had guests as well - the exchange student who stayed with us most recently and his father, and my Italian lecturer friend Daniela and her friend (also a lecturer) Michele.

Gillian - the roast chicken was a brilliant success. Thank you for sharing that delicious method with me! You and eneit would be proud of me, as I orchestrated the whole thing with perfect timing and almost singlehandedly (the only thing I was assisted with was the carving of the chicken). I also cooked with an oven that was almost overflowing - 2 large chickens and a whole bag of potatoes and three sweet potatoes. Mmmmm!

Weekend in Adelaide was joyful! =D

I landed on Thursday evening and my mother took me to meet my brother's new girlfriend Jess ... 19, one quarter Maori, one quarter Scottish, the rest mostly Hong Kong Portuguese with the possibility of some Chinese somewhere. She is, in a word, beautiful. And not just physically. She is the most confident, open and friendly girlfriend James has had yet! (Although, his first ever girlfriend, and one other, still remain very dear in our - the family's - hearts).

On Friday morning I took the cats to the vet. Oscar was chipped (there was hatred glared at me for the rest of the day) and had his claws trimmed (possibly, the chipping didn't bother him as much as the claw clipping - this might be where the hatred comes from). It too him all weekend to forgive me. Indi was scanned for her barcode (hehe) and will be registed on the national register. She also had her claws trimmed but didn't even blink at it.

As a treat, I purchased a toy (feathers on the end of a bendy-ish rod, Oscar ignores it, Indi loves it and tries to play with it by herself even) and a cat bed for Indi. Oscar already has one. She loves that too. It's very cute to see her head just peeking out of the entrance to the little set up. Heh.

Then just2draw came around. He took pictures of the cats! (Here, and here. Also here.)

We went to lunch at a little Malaysian cafe/restaurant I discovered last time I was in Adelaide (August) called Kopi Tim on Gouger Street. Very yummy Hainan Chicken Rice! And then just2draw kindly took me past my mother's office to collect something and then dropped me at the Bead Hive on Pulteney Street for my next catch up (a couple of hours with miss__scarlet spent creating a necklace together, as she is very experienced, to display a large bead of Venetian glass that one of my Italian lecturers gave to me).

From here I managed to get a lift with miss__scarlet to my old workplace and caught up with a number of people there. It was good.

Then I rushed back to the city (only a couple of blocks from these offices) to meet Manda. I ended up wandering on Rundle Street briefly and bought a leather bolero. My necklace, created that day, was also admired by a prefessional jewellery maker! (one of the staff in Blue Chilli on Rundle Street).

Then Manda, her boy and I made our way to T Chow restaurant. We caught up with a number of people there (approximately 8 others). Food was good (well, the noodles and ice cream were ... the chicken was not as good as on other occasions, though not bad either).

Then I dropped past Kami's house ont he way home (scored a lift from Moni!).

Saturday saw me go to the doctor - a number of blood tests and check ups were done, plus the first of the three Gardisil vaccinations. I'm being tested for Coeliac generally and also the genetic Ceoliac test (not requiring gluten antibodies to be present in the blood, and predicts risk of developing Coeliac disease).

My day did get better though, as all the unconfortable and needle bits were over and done with early! I went with Moni to the supermarket and grabbed a few things (primarily cat food for Oscar and Indigo) before rushing to the Central Markets with my mother and brother to meet up with his new girlfriend for lunch.

James was disappointed as we spotted a school mate of mine (from primary school) and although I wanted to catch up with the friend and reconnect, I was hoping to avoid it then as then was not the time. Unfortunately his dad hailed us over, and I foolishly went (and then couldn't extract myself until it was time to leave for the next thing I had planned). I will look forward to the opportunity to get to know Jess properly though, next time.

I then caught up with Darius. We went to Marion to try and find him a shirt and tie for his sister's wedding, then to the beach to talk and walk, and I scouted for washed glass for his dad's aquarium - something I always automatically do when I'm on a beach. After that, we dropped into his house before heading out again (past the cemetary to visit his grandfather's grave) and then up the hill to get chicken and chips. We ate in the car at the look-out near my house, and shared a bottle of rosé (plastic cups! hehe).

On Sunday, I went to the wedding that had been the reason for my visit. It was nice, though not my style. (miss__scarlet, I'll fill you in when we catch up, instead of writing it ... Hopefully people will put up photos on Facebook, but I know Elisa already has on MySpace).

The reception was High Tea. I had a lactose allergy moment. It was unpleasant, though my own fault (I would try a sandwich from the non-lactose free plate on the off chance it was the same as from the lactose-free plate...). I vomited. Heh. But I felt better after that!

The bouquet toss is something else to write about. I'll do that in a separate post.

Then I dropped past Darius' dad's house and petted their cat and caught up with Darius, his brother and his brother's girlfriend. I also watched a tiny bit of Australian Idol before I headed off to meet Manda and her boy for dinner (stew. cooked by boy, was very tasty in fact!).

Then I had a ridiculously small amount of sleep before I had to rush for the plane. I slept on the plane, but it couldn't land quickly enough. For some reason I was nauseated in the last twenty minutes of the flight (a lot of turbulence, but not the scary kind, just the uncomfortable kind ... I don't usually get motion sickness).

And that, folks, was my weekend.

Oh, btw, ph8 - that Bengal community I mentioned is here, http://community.livejournal.com/bengalcats/ and the particular cat (perhaps her colouring, and her owner's photography skills as well ...) that I like looking at is Nikita - http://community.livejournal.com/bengalcats/267159.html

Aside from promised links ...

My weekend was good. Spent time with my mother and my aunt (plus her kids). I'll be moving in with my aunt in mid-November (which is good, because it affords me a little more space, means all my belongings are in one house, and I feel a little more relaxed about accessing the internet, using the tv, using the washing machine, and food there - not that I feel uncomfortable where I am, I just feel more comfortable there).

We had curry on Friday night. Saturday we ate out in Balmain, then had dinner with my aunt and her children where we watched The Phantom Of The Opera on dvd (first time for me), and Becoming Jane (first time for my aunt and me, mum saw it in the cinema). Sunday we were lazy, and finally went to Leichhardt to by food for dinner, and had a drink together (I purchased a second hand copy of Pride & Prejudice to read this week). Dinner was a roast! Yum. And I cooked soup for lunches this week!

Hopefully I can return to dancing this week.

I'm really looking forward to being in Adelaide next weekend, and the weekend after. It will be good to have some time on my home turf. It's a very busy weekend though. I have to take the cats to the vet in the morning, then I'm meeting just2draw for lunch. The afternoon includes various appointments and a catch up at the place I used to work at. Then it's dinner at my favourite Chinese restaurant with several friends. The next day includes breakfast/coffee with Moni, lunch with my family to meet my brother's new girlfriend Jess, then a catch up with Darius. The next day is a wedding! Followed by a catch up with Manda afterwards.

Whew!

And the weekend after looks just as busy. ZOMG.

I'm looking forward to seeing my cats =X