four, encore!

trig tagged me for a meme which sounded pretty familiar to me ... so i grabbed my shovel and started to dig through my archives - indeed, i had done this one before a year ago! so today you'll get an updated version of this meme:

4 jobs I’ve had in my life:
no changes here, though i could add call center agent (*ugh*) to that list now!

1. secretary
2. programmer
3. barkeeper
4. artist

4 places I have lived:
wow, no changes here either!

1. one year in london, england right after i graduated from commercial college
2. two years in wels, upper austria because my first job was there
3. a month in vienna, austria because i did not know what to do with my life
4. and now for the last three years in linz, austria

4 places I have been on holiday:
cool, this question is new but ... uhm ... i have to admit that i am not a big holiday person. holiday means "relaxing at home". so, have i done anything spectacular? i don't really think so, what a shame!

1. i was in praia da rocha near portimão in portugal right after graduation. a typical austrian ritual called "maturareise" where the only goal is to booze the time away with your soon to be ex-classmates. i remember the delicious food though since i was not into heavy drinking at all - okay, the odd beer every now and then, but mostly i remember avoiding the sun (my fair and frekled skin does not respond very well to hot hot heat!). so a few of us where always looking out for cheap places to eat delicious regional food - oh, and i remember drinking quite some port wine!
   
2. alright, the flagship europe trip on the river danube two years ago was pretty cool. my class at university chartered and renovated a cargo ship, and went 2000 km on the river danube from linz to the black sea. i recently (re-)uploaded a few pictures, maybe you want to check them out?
3. last year i spent a few days in london - a decade after my year as an au-pair i found that trip pretty spectacular too! a very nostalgic trip indeed!
4. looks like i don't even have a 4th trip to share! sorry, that's it as far as big holidays are concerned! i've had lovely day trips with my ♥ though and we where talking about a longer getaway this summer ... gosh, i am a couple now ... and i am just starting to realise that!
   

4 of my favourite foods:
hey nice, that one was not in the meme last year either! i hope i can narrow my favorites down! they have changed quite a bit over the last couple of weeks since i completely altered my diet.

1. one of my favorite foods still is roasted potatoes in every way, shape or form. i constantly invent new variations. actually, i just love love love anything with potatoes. really a-ny-thing!
2. blueberries! i ate them a lot as a child and i sort of rediscovered them this summer. i always had some in my fridge the last couple of weeks - i just love fresh fruits and veggies now and always have plenty in my fridge - but blueberries are my favorite. they are just perfect for nibbling!
   
3. just like trig before me i'd have to add our christmas meal to this list. it is not very spectacular, not even christmas-y, but totally loaded with memories. mama tried to make something different once, we all where devastated.
4. a brandnew favourite is fish! it is not easy to get quality fish at a reasonable price here and i am just learning about various types of fish and preparations. i am sure i will get better at this, a few of my fish dishes have been merely disasters!
   

4 places I would rather be right now:

1. it is not so much about "where" these days ...
   
2. ... it is more about being with my ♥. that's about it, really.
   
3. but he is out of town for another week.
   
4. i am not a clingy person but i'd rather have him here right now.
   

since i am not up to date with who had done this meme already i'd like to leave an open invitation - if you want to join in and do this meme too: go ahead, i'd love to read your answers!

trig, thanks for tagging me!

perfectly normal

the lovely burekaboy tagged me for a meme about 6 weird food facts and it did not take me long to come up with food related weirdness! i honestly thought that there was nothing really weird about me, not food wise and not in general ... errrr, but who am i kidding?! my eremite lifestyle only makes me think i am perfectly normal, but when i socialise and i find myself outside of my bubble, i always discover that my daily routine might not be so normal after all ...

1. i just hate to eat off of colourful plates when i have a main course. white, my friend, white is the only way to go when it comes to dishes!! that can go as far as me not being able to finish a dish because the colourful surface of the plate shines through my soup or the pattern looks disturbing on the edge of the plate. i can eat my cerial in a red bowl though. hm. what's up with that? that never occured to me!
   
2. i only started to eat raw tomatoes like half a year ago. i was already 30 years old. i always hated them, gosh, even the thought of a raw tomato made me gag! i remember that my mother once forced me to at least try a wedge of a raw tomato (i was about 4 then) and i literally puked on the plate. she never forced any food of my dislike on me again.
   
3. a disturbing thing i feel the need to share: i had a stupid phase a few years ago where i did not eat anything for three month. i am not proud of that, but since i never was a skinny girl a personal crisis kind of knocked me over the edge. i felt miserable the whole time, i did not loose any weight whatsoever and i finally figured out that i had to work on my state of mind rather than on my dress size. i have not looked back since and i am totally going for healthy instead of skinny these days ... and i proudly work my booty! boys totally dig that :)
   
4. gooey food is my kryptonite! the mere thought of a slimy semolina dish makes me gag. remains of my childhood, i guess. i actually can eat that stuff now, i even make it myself from time to time, but thinking of gooey food still triggers my gag reflex.
5. i can not stick to recipes. at all. usually i check the ingredients and completely ignore the directions. i only obeyed the exact recipes in home ec when i was 13. maybe that's because i copied my mamas "a little bit of this, a little bit of that" cooking style since i was 7 years old.
6. i usually align my plate, cutlery and glas when i have dinner. call me crazy, but if it is not a right angle, it is a wrong angle! ocd, anyone? i always think that this might be a bit strange after all when i catch myself suppressing the urge to allign the things on the table when i dine in company.
   

phew, now you know ... that was actually fun!

do you want to join in? vasilisa? dianka? daniela? i want to leave an open invitation to this meme, because i guess i am the only foodblogger that did not participate yet ... so if you want to join in (it seems as if most of you already have) - just go ahead and leave me a little note!

bizarre meme

i have been tagged for the "bizarre meme" by rosa's yummy yums and since doing meme's and quizzes online is really fun and one of my favorite things to do on the net (i know, this might be a little lame) - apart from reading blogs of course! so here we go!

take the first book that you find underhand, open it on page 18 and copy what’s written on the fourth line from the top:
it is from a book i am currently reading because i am finishing my baccalaureat. it is called architektonische grundelemente und ihre dynamik (architectural basics and their dynamics): der punkt ist für ihn sowohl null-punkt wie beginn der materialisierung ... short sentence. i know!

what was the last program you watched on tv?
the thirsty traveller on the travel channel - i just love that show!

without verifying, try to guess the time it is?
about 23:30?

check out. it is:
23:54

which noise can you hear apart from the one of your computer?
since its sunday night i don't hear anything. the north side of my livingroom is facing up to a busy street though and normally i would hear traffic and trains ... oh! i can hear a lonely car now!

when did you go out for the last time and what did you do?
i went to an exhibition at my university yesterday evening.

what are you wearing now?
hey, it's sunday night, i am in my sweatpants and in a shirt with a stain on the belly ... i look like a mess - thank god i am single!

before you started this meme, what were you looking at?
i was watching a few episodes of sex and the city. i just love that show. i am thinking of buying the whole back cataloge ... i know it is crazy. but i think i might really need to own the dvds ...

did you dream this night?
i don't remember dreaming anything ... i have to admit that i was a little hammered last night after the exhibition ... and whenever i am a little drunk i sleep like a log!

when did you laugh for the last time?
yesterday evening, with my friends. oh, and today when i heard something fun on the radio.

what’s on the walls of the room in which you are?
some photos from my trip to the black sea and a big map of europe.

did you see something strange today?
no, not really. oh, wait, yes! i found a living caterpillar in my fridge today. this is the fun part of having a box of organic vegetables and fruits delivered every week ... i just hate tiny litte animals, everything from spiders to moths they just freaks me out! so as i was throwing the little fellow out of the window onto the neighbours terrace i was squeaking like a little girl!

what do you think of this meme?
oh, i love memes and online quizzes!!!

which was the last film that you saw?
i don't remember going to the cinema in the last two years. what a shame! but to my defense: i worked in a cinema for like 5 years and i could watch every movie for free (that is why i saw amelie 9 times). suddenly i find it very unreasonable that i would have to actually pay 7 euros for a movie! that's probably one of the reasons why i did not go to the movies lately. or maybe because i just want to own the dvds ...

if you became a multimillionaire overnight, what would be the first thing that you’d buy?
i'd probably want to buy a house or a flat. i am pretty low key and i have really everything i need. what i don't have is a place i can call my own. maybe i should start working on that. but then again, i would have to find myself a decent job first and forget about being an artist.

tell us something about you that we don’t yet know
i like to belive that i am psychic. i think of a person i haven't seen in a really long time and the person calls me the very same day. i also think that i can sense certain things. i think foreboding is the proper english word. that is cheesy, i know.

if you could change something in the world apart from culpability and politics, what would you change?
i would erase prejudice and jealousy

do you like dancing?
i love it! i don't mind being the only one starting to hit the dancefloor if i hear a good tune!

georges bush?
how can such a stupid person become president? i guess it is all about connections and election fraud ...

which name would you choose if you had a girl?
if i would have a girl i would definitely name it after my beloved grandmother who i still miss dearly. my grandmothers name was theresia, which is a little oldfashioned - i think i would probably give my daughter the middle name theresa. and first name? i like anna, and maybe ruth. i have not really thought about girls names before. although i would really like to have a girl as my first born. i was the first child of my mother and my mother was the first child of my grandmother. this is a cool female tradition i'd really like to continue!

and if it was a boy?
picking boys names is easier: jonas, daniel, david, jonathan, jan, till, ...

have you ever thought about living in a foreign country?
i am really in love with london. i have lived there already ... but since i am really rooted here in austria, i think i could never really live abroad.

what do you want god to tell you when you go through the doors of paradise?
i'd ask him why the hell he did not answer whenever i cried for help and asked for a sign of god ... where where you, master of the universe, when i was in dire need of help from above?!? and what is the meaning of life anyway???

which are the 4 other bloggers that you'd love to tag:
everyone who wants to do this meme is invited to join in the fun!

things to eat before you die

it has been going on for quite a while now and i did not expect to get tagged :) but ulrike tagged me! but give me a minute, that one is tricky ...

1.) jambalaya (preferably on location in the gulf coast area of the usa)
2.) white truffles (from piemont, italy)
3.) fried green tomatoes (again preferably on location in the usa)
4.) i could never live without good austrian farmhouse bread. good bread is a substancial part of my diet, it has been my culinary companion for all my life. i could feast on farmhouse bread (fresh from the oven) and plain tap water drawn from the springs of my hometown (freistadt draws its water from waterprotection areas around the town). it is soft, absolutely delicious and i can really tell a difference if i compare it to the tap water here in linz.
5.) there is a "taboo food and drink" section on wikipedia. though i could never eat a cat, a dog or a guinea pig, i have eaten rabbits before as my grandfather was breeding them when i was a little child. i was playing with them, sure, but when they ended up on the dinnertable they where not the fluffy little animals anymore, they where just food. incredibly tasteful food my grandma had prepared for us. i have to admit that the fluffy little rabbits where haunting me and i have not eaten much rabbit ragout anymore since i witnessed by accident that my favorite bunny was being slaughtered when i was like 5 years old. gosh, this is a horrible childhood memory ... but i was going somewhere with this last thing to eat before i die ... call me crazy, but i always wondered what some insects taste like (there even is a a scientific expression for "eating insects"). sure, i'd have to overcome my sense of disgust first but i think i might try one of these fried little buddies. after all, it is rather common to eat them in non-european cultures. try everything at least once, right?

Blogged with Flock

a foodbloggers meme around the world

i have been tagged with a nice meme by chili & ciabatta! i am crazy about collecting foodblogs and this is just the perfect meme for this addiction! so here we go:

1. please list three recipes you have recently bookmarked from foodblogs to try: this would be alu paratha by "food, in the main", the espresso bars by "bakingfreak" and the red radish and arugula soup by "la tartine gourmande"
2. a foodblog in your vicinity: there are not many foodblogs in my area, i wish there was a foodblogging map or something ... angelika is from austria and my sister is not too far away either.
3. a foodblog located far from you: the foodies in australia are on the other side of the globe!
4. a foodblog (or several) you have discovered recently (where did you find it?): my most recent discoveries: i came across sailu's food a few weeks ago as i was looking for indian recipes. and i found saffron hut's link in another blog (but i can't remember where i found it)
5. any people or bloggers you want to tag with this meme: anyone who is inspired by this meme should feel free to answer the questions! happy meme-ing!

meme!

i have been tagged by ostwestwind and i gladly respond:

four jobs you’ve had in your life

1. secretary
2. programmer
3. barkeeper
4. artist

four movies you could watch over and over

1. when harry met sally (gosh, i love this movie!!)
2. the big lebowski
3. my big fat greek wedding
4. the truth about cats and dogs

four places you’ve lived (apart from the town i was born and grew up in i only lived in four places)

1. one year in london, england right after i graduated from commercial college
2. two years in wels, upper austria because my first job was there
3. a month in vienna, austria because i did not know what to do with my life
4. and now for the last two years in linz, austria

four websites you visit daily

1. www.orf.at (federal broadcasting)
2. diestandard.at (female version of an austrian newspaper)
3. de.wikipedia.org (everyday i have to look something up)
4. ufg.ac.at (my university)

four tv shows you love to watch

1. friends
2. kind of queens
3. all kinds of cooking-shows
4. all kinds of diy-homeimprovement shows

four of your favorite foods

1. potatoes
2. pole beans
3. apples
4. chips

four albums you can’t live without

1. ten - pearl jam
2. nevermind - nirvana
3. reality bites soundtrack
4. singles soundtrack

four places you’d rather be

1. london, england
2. at a beach / in warm weather (freezing my ass off in austria right now!)
3.
4.

four people who are now obligated to do this to their blog

i would like to invite (update: seems like many people have already done this one! like kalyn, who i originally wanted to invite too). i pass it on to two of my favorite foodblogs though:

apartment food hobos
tea time

my kitchen

i wanted to post a picture of my kitchen for the kitchen meme the other day but i could not really capture all of it ... so it took me some time to create a photomerge and show you where i live and cook. as i said before the kitchen was the only one i could afford, it does not even really fit into my flat (the fridge had to be set up on the other side of the room). i usually prepare my ingredients on the table or the broken vintage cinema popcorn machine where the kettle is situated right now.

the room is not big at all, the other side looks like this:
but i love it here. i just need some space for myself to be creative and to be able breathe!

kitchen meme

i have been tagged by ilva to do a kitchen meme and i am very excited! i feel very welcome to the exquisit round of foodbloggers! thanks folks!

(since my internet at home is not working at the moment, i will take the pictures later, drag my laptop to university and upload the pics tomorrow)

1) Show us your kitchen ( a picture) and tell us what is it about this place that reflects your own personality. my kitchen does not reflect my style of cooking. i am an art student, i have no money and this is simply the cheapest one i found. i does not even fit im my flat. i just could not afford a decent one *g*. cooking has a big tradition in my family though. i used to help my mother in the kitchen from a young age, maybe 5 or so. washing salad, cleaning vegetables ... by the age of 10 my sister and i where cooking whole meals for 5 people. when my grandmother passed away last year i asked my grandfather to give me one of her pans as a thing to remember her by. he gave me a tiny little pan which i always found very amusing ... why did she have such a minipan since she was always cooking for at least 5 people?!? now it has become one of my most used kitchen things since it is the perfect size for a single gal like me. my grandmother has always been a great example on how not to loose your nerves in the kitchen. i still miss her a lot.

2) Open a cupboard (the one you feel to open), take a picture and tell us what we see.
as i am trying to change my eating habits at the moment i bought some pretty out of range food (buckwheat, amaranth, spelt wheat flour). new tastes, new flavours! seasoning is also very important for me. as well as having good oils and vinegars in store

3) Present us your favorite kitchen-based household appliance.
i only have a mixer and a brandnew electric scale. i use the scale every day, it's probably the most important household appliance i own.

4) Take out the ingredients you like the most, the ones you always keep stored.
garlic, garlic and some more garlic!

5) My little steel friend: present us to your favorite cooking/baking recipient.
that would be the pan with the lid!

i want to pass on the torch to the flying apple since angelika was very supportive about my whole "hey, i'm gonna start up a foodblog"-thing ... :)