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!