Spring is in the air and we all know what that means. Yup, time to spritz the house and make it ready for the new season. We got sent this grey storage trunk from Wilko. It is spacious and it looks great. There is a detachable washable lining. This is perfect for laundry, toys, anything you can think of really.
The trunk costs £30 from wilko.com and we highly recommend it.
In a world that is so divided I was excited to head to Annabels to hear Sophie Scott, editor of Balance Magazine and Author and Peace Activist Stephen Fulder of What’s Beyond Mindfulness come together for a talk on mindfulness and love. Stephen Fulder was full of wisdom and Sophie Scott was adept at getting the wisdom by asking great questions. Fulder says that we have to love ourselves. It comes from within. He has spent time in Israel educating people to look differently at themselves and others. A 10-year-old Palestinian boy was so moved by Fulder and his words that he told him that he had seen so much suffering that he was sure he human heart was cold and hard, but meeting Fulder meant he then knew there was goodness in the human heart. Fulder says people have to tell themselves I am a whole human being. I love myself. That people have to be a friend of their spirit. We have to allow ourselves to be the shape we are.
When it comes with dealing with difficult and negative people he says that first; you have to look at the person. No automatic pilot. See the person and look at their pain. There will be a lot of ignorance and blindness. Protect yourself by not digesting the stuff. Refuse to let it get to you. Don’t let it get inside. Feel steady and stand your ground. Listen but do not take it in. See the buttons but do not accept it. Say ‘I see you, I see this, I let if go’.
Stephen Fulder is a buddhist but he says being buddhist does not mean taking everything but you have to challenge your ego. If you are the one in the wrong saying sorry has wisdom to it. It is gone, it is finished. A line drawn on the water is just gone. Started afresh in the garden of now.
We are conditioned to run after goals but we can stop and just be mindful. Be happy with our lives and who we are. Rather than just chasing the next thing. The key is joy.
This was a wonderful talk to discuss how we can heal division and conflict both at a societal level and also within our families and communities. https://annabels.co.uk/events/
Here is a link to a recent article that Fulder wrote for Balance on using mindfulness to heal conflict. https://balance.media/
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What’s Beyond Mindfulness is a life-changing guide on every aspect of modern life from using mindfulness to resolve conflict to how to age wisely, deal with tiredness, find fulfilment at work and make friends with your body, heart and mind. It’s a uniquely practical exploration of Buddhism in everyday life that will appeal to people of any faith and to those of none. What’s Beyond Mindfulness was a bestseller in Israel for 18 weeks and is written by leading Peace Activist Stephen Fulder, founder of the Israel Insight Society which has been at the helm of peace talks between Palestinians and Israelis and guided thousands of people in Israel and worldwide in exploring Buddhist teachings. The book is endorsed by Jack Kornfield and James Baraz.
The book is available here.
This National Margarita Day on February 22nd celebrate in style. Be inspired by the beaches of Acapulco and the iconic, ageless cocktail created by Margarita Sames in 1948, who famously said of her instantly classic concoction, a Margarita without Cointreau is not worth its salt.
This year marks the 170th Anniversary of the House of Cointreau – a celebration of all things Cointreau, the heart of cocktail culture and a key ingredient in over 350 classic recipes, including the famous Margarita. Bringing together generations of loved ones, Cointreau is the heart and soul of cocktail culture, and its bold orange flavour and incomparable freshness have solidified its role in cocktail history.
Celebrate the origins of this iconic cocktail with delicious, innovative Margarita inspired cocktails from Cointreau, as well as the classic itself.
Original
The classic, created by Margaret Sames herself.
Ingredients:
30ml Cointreau
50ml Blanco Tequila
20ml Fresh Lime Juice
Method:
– Shake with ice
– Serve in a salt-rimmed margarita glass.
The Spicy Margarita
Bring a little heat to an iconic classic by adding jalapeno and cilantro to your Margarita. Your taste buds may walk on fire, until the subtle sweetness of Cointreau washes over the flame bringing that perfect balance to life.
Ingredients:
30 ml Cointreau
50 ml Tequila
20 ml Fresh Lime Juice
2 slices Jalapeño
2 sprigs Cilantro
Method:
– Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass and add ice
– Shake and strain into an iced rocks glass
– Garnish with cilantro and a jalapeño spiral
The Pina Margarita
Nothing brings the beach vibe to life like fresh pineapple juice. Adding a cinnamon-sugar rim provide an indulgent, sweet taste you wouldnt usually get from a margarita – expect the unexpected.
Ingredients:
50ml Tequila
30ml Cointreau
20ml Fresh Lime Juice
10ml Fresh Pineapple Juice
Method:
– Shake all ingredients with ice-
– Strain over ice in a cinnamon sugar rimmed rocks glass
– Garnish with pineapple wedge
The Matcha Margarita
A modern twist on the classic, the vibrant colours and complex flavours will be the highlight of your Margarita Day soiree.
Ingredients:
30ml Cointreau
50ml Tequila
20ml Fresh Lime Juice
½ tbsp matcha green tea powder
Method:
– Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass
– Shake with ice
– Strain over ice in a rocks glass
– Garnish with a lime wheel
The Berry Margarita
The perfect bright, pink twist on a classic, bringing the sweet tastes of summertime to life – inviting to even the most timid tipplers.
Ingredients:
30ml Cointreau
50ml Blanco Tequila
20ml Fresh Lime Juice
3-4 blackberries
Method:
Shake all ingredients with ice
Fine strain over ice in a rocks glass.
Garnish with blackberries.
Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to be exhausting, expensive or filled with Chocolate, Champagne and Rose Petal bath’s. Take the pressure off and just make sure you make it delicious.
Guaranteed to be on your table in five minutes, La Famiglia Rana formerly known as Giovanni Rana have a whole selection of delicious, restaurant quality, filled-pastas for you to prepare. We recommend you surprise your loved one with;
CHICKEN AND SMOKED PANCETTA TORTELLONI WITH SPINACH AND CREAM INGREDIENTS
1 250g pack of Rana Chicken and Smoked Pancetta Tortellon
i 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 shallots
1 cup heavy cream
4 packed cups fresh baby spinach leaves
salt and freshly ground pink peppercorn to taste
METHOD
Thinly slice 2 large shallots; heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat until it shimmers. Add shallots, season with salt and pepper to taste, and sauté until just wilted, 30 seconds to 1 minute In the meantime, cook the Tortelloni according to package instructions in generously salted boiling water. Add the spinach to the skillet and the heavy cream; cook until spinach is wilted and sauce is reduced. Transfer sauce to a large serving bowl and add pasta. Serve immediately
What’s more we have some;
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
To create a romantic setting place flowers in a diagonal line along the table, you can also gently place a table runner or a soft coloured fabric underneath the flowers and use flower petals to frame the composition. The fabric will work best if it’s a contrasting colour to the flowers, allowing them to stand out. A linen tablecloth in a light grey palette balances the candy pink and pastel green plates, with mismatched napkins for a fun touch. As a final romantic touch, light an unscented candle to give a soft touch of light and serve a delicious plate of your partner’s favourite La Famiglia Rana pasta. Happy Valentine’s Day and… buon appetito!
The pasta can be purchased from various Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and ASDA stores throughout London or on Ocado.
Public Health England (PHE) has launched its first ever Start4Life campaign to help parents introduce their baby to solid foods.
Official advice is that most babies should not start solid foods until they are around six months old. By this point their bodies are better able to cope with solid foods and they are more able feed themselves. They are also better at moving food around their mouth, chewing and swallowing. The last UK Infant Feeding Survey showed that three-quarters of parents had introduced solid foods by the time their baby was 5 months old.
A new survey of 1,000 mothers of young children conducted for Public Health England found that common myths persist about the signs a baby is ready for their first solid foods, including:
The survey revealed that many parents have concerns around weaning with more than a quarter saying they didn’t feel confident when they introduced solid foods to their baby. Choking topped the list of worries about weaning, with mums also concerned about allergic reactions to new foods, how much food to give their baby, and concern that their baby won’t eat enough or will reject food.
A brand-new weaning hub has been launched on the Start4Life website to help parents during their weaning journey. Packed with NHS-approved advice and tips for each weaning stage, plus simple, healthy weaning recipes for different age groups, it puts everything parents need to know in one place. It also includes new videos showing the signs that indicate babies are ready to wean, how much food to give, and weaning tips from other parents.
Public Health England nutritionist Orla Hugueniot said: “Introducing solid foods is an important stage in a baby’s development. It’s a great opportunity to guide their taste preferences and help them learn healthy eating habits that will stay with them for life.
“We know that parents have lots of questions about weaning and that many feel nervous about it. That’s why our new weaning hub on the Start4Life website puts all of the NHS advice in one place, helping parents to be more confident and enjoy this big milestone in their child’s life.”
Developed in partnership with parents, the weaning hub makes it easy for parents to find answers to their weaning questions and get information relevant to their baby’s age and weaning stage.
The campaign is being launched as part of the Start4Life programme, which aims to help parents adopt healthy behaviours during pregnancy, birth and their children’s early years.
To find out more visit: www.nhs.uk/start4life/weaning
photo credit Lis McDermott
Thanks to solar power, Jamaica’s future is bright in Ira Poyser’s visionary debut novel, which imagines the Caribbean island as a powerhouse of economics, sport and global affairs.
By Lucy Bryson
It’s portrayed as an idyllic island blessed with blue skies, white sandy beaches and warm Caribbean seas. But away from the affluent tourist spots where holidaymakers sip expensive cocktails to reggae music lies a country struggling with crime, violence, poverty, inequality and unemployment. For all of Jamaica’s accomplishments – most notably in sport, music and culture – it has for decades remained reportedly stuck in an economic quagmire.
UJA – The Book That Changed Jamaica, cleverly imagines a future in which Jamaica escapes the impasse and lives up to its immense, untapped potential. The country harnesses one of its greatest natural resources, solar energy, to variously lift itself out of poverty and bolster its athletics talent to Olympic, world-beating dominance.
Ira Poyser’s impressive work of fiction fuses real-life events with fictional characters to create a hopeful – and realistic – vision for post-2030 Jamaica. Not without reason did respected Jamaican newspaper The Daily Gleaner describe it as having “bright, provocative moments” and succeeding in “challenge us to reflect”.
The date is a key one; Jamaica is currently several years into its ambitious Vision 30 Plan, described by the state as a “strategic road map to guide the country to achieve its goals of sustainable development and prosperity by 2030”. The book contains numerous references to real life events and characters, too. There are ‘cameos’ Jamaican dancehall megastar Shaggy, track legend Usain Bolt, and even American indie musician Ezra Furman.
A contemporary, sexually-charged romance, UJA – The Book That Changed Jamaica tells the fictional story of Khadeen and Orson “Awesome” Matisse – a power couple like no other. Orson is a former 400-metre Olympic champion who goes on to become Jamaican Prime Minister, while Khadeen is a beautiful, intellectual heavyweight with an aspirational vision for the future of the country. Set in Jamaica, New York, Chicago and Manchester, UK, the book spans a time period from the 1960s to 2031. It follows the pair’s turbulent relationship and the repercussions of publishing ‘Universalizing JA’, a book which sets out to convince their countrymen to harness the power of solar energy to transform Jamaica’s entire future.
But with great power comes great responsibility, and the most powerful couple in the country struggle to adapt to their new role as leaders.
Alongside the dramatic ups and downs of the central couple’s relationships, Poyser threads in a story of athletic achievements, a giant, uber-destructive storm, and a sports superstar – presumed dead after the storm – with a severe case of amnesia.
Doping scandals, mistaken identity, sexual transgressions (this is a fairly racy novel in places) all have a part to play, and readers also follow the fortunes of the pair’s son Leo, captain of the Jamaican Athletics Team, as he struggles to discover who he really is and where his true strengths lie.
As Orson and Khadeen overcome their differences to find their missing son, they also fight for Jamaica’s place on the world stage and discover the true strength of their own relationship.
Poyser, who splits his time between Kingston, Jamaica, and Manchester, UK, writes with warm wit and humour, and in an easy, relaxed style. But he also pulls no punches and tells it like it is; there’s an undercurrent of violence throughout, which reaches a bloody conclusion at the end of the book, before once again taking a positive turn. His book is by turns challenging, romantic and adventurous – much like Jamaica itself.
UJA – The Book that Changed Jamaica by Ira Poyser (Sculpture Enterprises) is available now on Amazon, priced £5.09 in paperback and £4 as an eBook. For more information, go to Ira’s official Facebook page.
Ready for a crime wave? Here are Frost’s top three psychological thrillers.
Connections in Death by J.D Robb. The latest Eve Dallas thriller. Unadulterated entertainment. Out now.
When recovering drug addict Lyle Pickering is found dead of an overdose, it looks like a tragic accident. But his sister Rochelle knows better, and so does Lieutenant Eve Dallas. Lyle was murdered, and the evidence points directly to his old street gang.
As Eve and husband Roarke track the killer through the city’s dive bars, drug dens and strip joints, another body is discovered. With connections growing between the living and the dead, and the body count on the rise, Eve knows she needs to close this case fast, before the killer’s lust for power turns the city’s streets into a bloodbath.
The Buried Girl by Richard Montanari. A terrifying read that will stay with you. Out on February 14th.
A haunting, nerve-jangling psychological thriller from Sunday Times bestselling author Richard Montanari set in a small town hiding a very dark secret.
When New York psychologist Will Hardy’s wife is killed, he and his teenage daughter Bernadette move into Godwin Hall, a dusty, shut-up mansion in the small town of Abbeville, Ohio.
Meanwhile, Abbeville Chief of Police Ivy Holgrave is investigating the death of a local girl, convinced this may only be the latest in a long line of murders dating back decades – including her own long-missing sister.
But what place does Will’s new home have in the story of the missing girls? And what links the killings to the diary of a young woman written over a century earlier?
55 by James Delargy. Brilliantly done. Will keep you breathless until the last page. Out on 4th April.
*** There were 54 victims before this. Who is number 55? ***
A thriller with a killer hook, and an ending that will make you gasp!
Wilbrook in Western Australia is a sleepy, remote town that sits on the edge of miles and miles of unexplored wilderness. It is home to Police Sergeant Chandler Jenkins, who is proud to run the town’s small police station, a place used to dealing with domestic disputes and noise complaints.
All that changes on a scorching day when an injured man stumbles into Chandler’s station. He’s covered in dried blood. His name is Gabriel. He tells Chandler what he remembers.
He was drugged and driven to a cabin in the mountains and tied up in iron chains. The man who took him was called Heath. Heath told Gabriel he was going to be number 55. His 55th victim.
Heath is a serial killer.
As a manhunt is launched, a man who says he is Heath walks into the same station. He tells Chandler he was taken by a man named Gabriel. Gabriel told Heath he was going to be victim 55.
Gabriel is the serial killer.
Two suspects. Two identical stories. Which one is the truth?
James Delargy has written one of the most exciting debuts of 2019. He masterfully paints the picture of a remote Western Australian town and its people, swallowed whole by the hunt for a serial killer. This novel has been sold in 19 countries so far and has just been optioned for film.
So, Catastrophe is back for a fourth series. When we left, Rob had just had a car accident while over the limit, so there are a few issues to get hold of in the new series, aren’t there?
Yes! We have set ourselves up with a bit of a puzzle to work out. When we started writing it we were like “Oh shit, why did we do that?” Because it was a massive thing to end on, and it exposed them a bit. It was a secret he’d been keeping for an entire series, and we’d just gotten to a point where she’s saying to him “We don’t work on our own – this is it. I don’t really work as a single unit anymore.” So a declaration of being together forever, and then the car crash, and so we were thinking: “We can’t have them break up, because where’s the show? We can’t have him in prison, because that would be ridiculous.” But obviously it had to impact on them. But they have a good relationship, despite all the bickering and fighting, so we just felt like they’d get through it. But it would have to have ramifications for the rest of the series. And Rob is looking for answers, looking to be a better person and fix himself. He’s on a different journey to her. And he’s also in a neck brace!
Yeah, whose idea was that?
[Laughs] I can’t remember. I think it was mine. But these things come out of conversations, and a lot of it comes out of our weird hive-brain. We wanted to have it on for a few episodes, so there is a physical reminder of the bad thing he’d done. But also, you could have some fun with it, and it’s hard to take someone seriously when they’re wearing a contraption like that.
Does it get easier to write, because you know the characters so well now, or is it more difficult, because you’ve got to find new stories, and you’ve got to stay true to their back stories?
It gets more difficult, if I’m honest. You definitely know the characters better, so you’re definitely drawing less on your own life, and more on what has gone before for those characters. There’s more texture there, there’s loads of things that make it feel like they’re fully drawn characters – not just Rob and Sharon but those characters around them. In a lot of ways it’s more satisfying, because you know them so well, and you’ve got all those back stories you’ve drawn and the history of all the characters, but at the same time thinking up new stories, even for the other characters that surround us, like keeping Fran and Chris fresh, and wanting to introduce new characters but knowing they really have to count, they can’t be using up screen time and not justifying it – it was really hard. It was the hardest one yet. And also we’re aware that people really like the show, and it means a lot to us to keep it so that people continue to give a shit about it. We want to talk about stuff that might have an impact, and then we want to make it funny on top of that. It’s a slog.
You said you use less stuff from your own life now, but do you mine the experiences of your friends for material? When someone’s telling a story from their own life, does part of you wonder if you can fit it in?
Yeah. It’s actually more what I observe than people telling me stories. Occasionally, yeah. Everyone’s got their own shit going on, so here and there that happens. And I think people are aware that I do that as well, so if they are going through something, or they’re telling me something that is quite a vibrant story, they’ll assume that I might have a little bit of it on the show.
They’ll see it played out in technicolour in the next series…
Well, they’ll see it playing across my face first, as I’m listening!
Apparently this is the last series. Do you get emotionally involved with the material, and is it quite difficult to say goodbye to the characters at the end of it?
Yeah, it really is and was. And not just Rob and that relationship. We spent the best past of five years sitting in a room together, writing this stuff – forget about the filming aspects. So yes, it’s really hard. It’s hard to say goodbye to all of them. I love Fergal and Chris and Fran and Dave, and that they won’t exist anymore is a bit of a weird thing. But guessthey will exist, because the show’s still there. And I think I’d be sadder, if we did keep going and ran out of ideas for those characters. I’d feel worse seeing them onscreen not being at their tip-top best. But it was emotional filming the last scene, and all of those characters, when they had their last scene, as it was being ticked off I found myself getting a bit maudlin. But at the same time, I don’t think it’s going to hit me until I’m half as year down the road and I suddenly realise there’s a really big thing missing from my life that made me really happy.
So you’ll suddenly be found weeping in the frozen food aisle at Tesco.
I think I’ll be lying down, I’ll collapse between feminine hygiene and dairy.
There’s a tendency for TV shows to either paint life as glorious and sexy and wonderful or hellish and agonising – is Catastrophe self-consciously trying to find the reality?
Yeah. That was a big part of it. I would say one of the very first conversations with Rob was about showing a real marriage. The real truth of a marriage, and how it effects the romance of it, and when kids come along, and when family interferes, and when your own hang-ups and addictions and illnesses intrude –just the shit that everybody has to deal with. It was a big manifesto that we had for the series. Also I think that’s just how we write. I find it harder to write something that is a bit more heightened, that wouldn’t be my natural skill area. Not that I don’t like watching comedy like that, I just find it harder to do.
Both Catastrophe and Motherland show that being a parent isn’t all baking cakes and tucking in sleeping children. Do you think it’s important that people understand it’s okay to be frazzled by it all, and not love every moment?
Oh completely. If I get stopped, or if someone wants to say they like the show, that’s a huge big part of it. People say “That show came into my life when this particular thing had happened” or “I’d just had my second baby, and I wasn’t coping.” Stuff like that. I think when people see that kind of thing onscreen they feel less isolated, and less like they’re a shitty parent. That’s a big part of it for me. When we’re writing it, it’s something that we have in our mind a lot, both for Catastrophe and Motherland. I love showing Julia or Sharon at their wits’ end, not being able to cope, but I also like showing them coming out the other side, getting through it. I think that’s also important – people watching need to see that. It can’t be nihilistic. I don’t want people to dread watching it, I want them to feel that everything will be okay.
However bad things get, Rob and Sharon have the capacity to make each other laugh. Do you think that’s one of the keys to navigating life’s more problematic moments?
Yeah, oh my God, completely. So many terrible moments and awful arguments or real tragic events are cut through with two people just laughing together. I think it’s everything.
Ultimately, do you think that Rob and Sharon are happy?
Yeah, I do. I think they’re different characters than they were at the start. They’ve both been boxed about by life a bit, and there’s less idealism there from Rob, and more resignation from Sharon. And certainly over the course of this series, shit does happen to them. But I really hope that by the time people get to episode six – which is one of the worst ones in terms of what we do to them – I really hope that when we see them at the end, that’s the big take away – that they love each other, that they came through it all and still love each other
Excellent interview with the amazing Sharon Horgan thanks to Channel 4. Pictures courtesy of Channel 4.