Tuesday 17 January 2017

Oh Hey 2017!

Hi friends! I thought it was about time for a little life update. I'm still working at Lush - they offered me a permanent position after my temporary contract ended and I had to say yes. I have no idea how long we're going to be in this part of the world for but earning some money and seeing one of my favourite ethical brands from the other side seems like a good thing to do with my time. Unfortunately the major downsides are the commute into London - I spend around 3 hours a day getting to and from work - and, it turns out that I'm super allergic to Lush! This doesn't surprise me, I'm allergic to everything from dust to chilli and from cats to pineapple but finding the right meds that work and don't make me drowsy has taken a while and a lot of my days off have been spent in bed dealing with hideous sinus pain. Stupid body! The major bonus, and I mean major, is that my work is only a ten minute walk from Yorica!


This Soho vegan ice cream spot just gets better and better, I can confirm that the crepes are blooming excellent and I will be going back for more soon.

I still feel a little like my life is on hold but Nick and I are making travel plans, I can't tell you where I'm headed yet or for how long but if it all plans out it's going to be a super exciting adventure. Talking of adventures I recently applied for my provisional driving licence! When most of my peers were learning to drive I was drifting around the place in a drug and alcohol induced haze - I couldn't even get through the day without my trusty bottle of vodka so I knew that getting behind the wheel of a car wasn't an option. My life is considerably more sober these days and with one eye on living somewhere rural in the not too distant future I'm biting the bullet and hoping that my epic spacial awareness skills are helpful. Wish me luck!

I've been reading a lot recently, possibly even more than usual. The library around the corner from me finally re-opened (after three months!) so I'm all over that. I also got some excellent books for Christmas including Peter Singer's The Most Good You Can Do which made me have a look at which charities I donate to and why as well as working out how I can be a more effective donor.


I just finished Roxane Gay's latest book Difficult Women which I would highly recommend. It's pretty heavy going but well worth the read. I read some of Marian Keyes' non fiction alongside it to give myself space to process Roxane's writing and to make sure that I could sleep at night.

I've also been doing a little writing elsewhere. If you'd like my amazing (if I do say so myself) Yorkshire pudding recipe then check out my recipe post on the Infinity Foods website. I use the Follow Your Heart Vegan Egg and this is one of my favourite uses for this cool new product. 


I also wrote a piece for Infinity with some of my top tips for going and staying vegan to tie in with Veganuary. If you haven't taken the plunge yet, are a vegan newbie, or are unsure if you're going to be in it for the long haul then have a gander

Nick and I have also been spending a bit of time with some lovely veggie friends of ours who live just around the corner, they mentioned that they were heading towards veganism so I thought I'd give them a helping hand. So far I've cooked them tofu scramble (which they loved) and taken round a selection of vegan cheeses from Nutcrafter Creamery and Vegusto (which they also loved) so hopefully I've made veganism seem both easier and more delicious than they'd expected. Now I just need to work out what to make next time!

10 comments:

  1. those look like good yorkshires! :) x

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  2. Good luck with your driving! I just updated my provisional licence - I had a few lessons as a teenager but didn't have a good teacher sooo...they stopped. Now to pull my nerves together to take more lessons!

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  3. Oh my God, how did I not know that you work at Lush??? I'm sorry that you're allergic, but I'm also super making heart eyes right now because I'm obsessed. Like...how much I love Lush is a prob haha

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  4. Oooh, I love Lush! We used to have a Lush counter here inside the Macy's. But it sadly closed a couple years back, so I haven't been using as much of their stuff. But I do love it so much! What a cool job! Also, that ice cream/crepe situation looks amazing.

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  6. I hope you are able to find a solution to your allergies soon!! That crepe and ice cream look amazing!!

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  7. Oh, that sucks about the allergies. I was in Lush the other day picking up some Dream Cream and my eyes were watering from the smell by the end of it.

    Good luck with the driving! I am sure it will all be fine. :)

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  8. Oh those crepes - they look like a work of art. Allergies definitely suck though, as do commutes.

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  9. Good luck with your driving lessons! Expensive but one of the best investments I've made. In ideal world I would travel everywhere by public transport but it's simply not possible in the UK.

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  10. what a sweet post. Sorry to hear that you are allergic to your fun job at Lush!! But, that doesn't totally surprise me. I love their products, but I can hardly go into one of their stores anymore. The aroma is so intense! I don't really know what a Yorkshire pudding is. Even after watching the Great British Baking Show, I still don't really understand what British people mean when they say "pudding." For us it's like custard. Good luck with your driving lessons! Will that help your commute be shorter? I hope so!

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