Inspiration from the strangest place

A light hearted post for that terrible day of the week....


That ever elusive muse of mine has popped up at the most awkward and inconsiderate of times lately.

Mainly while I'm at work, and in my job, there is definitely NO room for blogging. The best I can do is type a quick memo/note into my phone - a subject rather than a post - and hope that the urge is still there.

Now that I'm back at work, I have been engaging in the real world. I know what is happening outside of the worlds of Peppa Pig and Giggle and Hoot. And it's all thanks to having breaks and access to the news.

You see, in my household, we have over 100 episodes of Peppa Pig. We watch them on a regular basis. And if the television is on and DD is around, it's on ABC4Kids. Because really, who needs their kids who are far to young to understand seeing the horrific footage that's been on lately from around the world?

So I've been trawling through news articles. Devouring them. Hating the crap that goes on, and loving the left of field stories.

That's why when I found the article about the University of Washington actually working out mind control I instantly wanted to go grab my tin foil hat. You know, like in the movie Signs? Because seriously, who is really going to want someone else controlling their actions through mind control? The article says you'd have to be a willing participant, but really???

It's things like that story which have made my return to work a little easier to deal with. It's the adult contact, and it's the stimulation to different parts of my brain that Peppa just cannot get anywhere near. This is what I mean...

Now there's almost 30 seconds that you won't get back again. 

But really, my muse has been hiding in news stories about day to day life all along. Whodathunkit?

Guest Post

Do you have meat-free nights?

Many Australians grew up on meals of “Meat & Two Veg”. The idea of eating even one meat-free meal a week can be a bit daunting. Where to start? How do you ensure you’re getting the proper nutrients? But probably most importantly, why bother?

Eating just one meat-free meal a week can make a big difference. Since adding meat-free meals to our weekly meal plans I’ve noticed a reduction in our grocery costs – meat is expensive! It has also forced us to be more creative in sourcing recipes and we are trying meals that we’ve never tried before and learning new cooking techniques.

There are also the health aspects. A recent BBC study* found that adding an extra portion of unprocessed red meat to someone's daily diet would increase the risk of death by 13%, of fatal cardiovascular disease by 18% and of cancer mortality by 10%. That’s a little scary! By simply reducing the amount of meat you eat by one portion a week you can make a big difference to these statistics.

And then of course, there are the ethical considerations – with the affects on animal welfare and the environment. For many, these are important considerations yet the idea of going completely vegetarian is too daunting. By simply reducing the amount of meat eaten each week can help to ease these considerations. By buying ethical and sustainable meat during the rest of the week can also help.

A big deterrent for many people is actually knowing what to cook. Luckily, the internet is full of great vegetarian recipes and ideas. There are many fanastic vegetarian blogs (The Veggie Mama is one of my favourites) and a lot of the big recipe websites have great vegetarian sections. Most of the recipe magazines that can be found in supermarkets and newsagents are including vegetarian recipes now and of course there are fantastic cookbooks on the market, catering for simple, every day vegetarian recipes or something more fancy.

In a few weeks I’m going to be taking part in the Meat Free Week Challenge, a chance to raise some money for animal welfare and practice my vegetarian cooking at the same time. I encourage you to check it out.

If a whole week of meat-free meals seems a little too much for you, check out Meat Free Mondays, an inititave started by Paul, Stella and Mary McCartney (yes that Paul McCartney). There’s a cookbook plus lots of great recipes and support on the website.



* statistics from here

Cassie blogs at The Flying Drunken Monkey about her constant struggles with housework, her attempts to be more organised and her little monkey, Lily. You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter

Monday Menu Plan

Ok, so today I'm linking up with A Dose of Dannie for her Monday Menu Plan.

Mine is likely to change, depending on my mood, the weather and what DD is doing at the time I decide to cook. 

But so far for this week we have:

Monday: Chicken & Mushroom risotto with baby spinach. Courtesy of a one pot meal pack.

Tuesday: Chicken Muffins with a potato and garlic filling - Lenards. Most likely to be served with salad.

Wednesday: Steak and veges.

Thursday: Marinated steak (Masterfoods Marinate in a bag - Red Wine & Garlic) and salad or veges.

Friday: Grocery night. Likely to be Maccas or KFC - both are on my way home

Saturday: Chinese - going out for my Nan's 73rd birthday

Sunday: BBQ I think, with the in laws. Or whatever my MIL decides we're having. On these nights, I'm not picky, because I'm not cooking it or washing up after it lol


We're a pretty boring bunch here. This weeks plan is slightly more extravagant than usual thanks to packet mixes and marinades. 

What's on your menu??