Great Expectations

"Everything I have ever done, I've done for you."

-Finn, Great Expectations

Not all stories have happy endings. Some of them are unrequited. Sometimes I worry about becoming a Havisham? Living stuck amongst the dust, the burned down ruins of a life that's made up. What if its all for not. Continually disappointed by great expectations, living a life of limits on where my mind should wander. Unfortunately I'm not built that way. I still wish for something hopeful, where every Stella finds her Finn. Some days it's harder than others. Life is not about Cinderella. Here I am grocery store wandering, creating petitions for happy endings, making peace with bad decisions, searching wildly for better conclusions. Everything is for something else.

Lesson #30: Be happy with what you have.

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Hallo

"Have I not told you that what you mistake for madness is but over-acuteness of the sense?"

-Edgar Allan Poe, The Tell Tale Heart

True artists will tell you that it's about being uncomfortable with what might happen. They want to hear you scream into the night, see what can't be seen, find your inmost internal fear. It's not a life worth living if you don't get goosebumps and run, jump and grab out, or feel pale sweat on your neck. There is no cure for the things that go bump in the night. We all get one Halloween. We all get one night of restless sleep to remember we're never alone. The real haunt is in your head, it's about facing what you swear you won't. Take that deep breath, and walk right in. Open your eyes, get a good look, you get one night, use it wisely.

Lesson #29: Know what haunts you.

The Dutch Landscape... at your home.

I have just spotted today on Casa de Valentina blog the following colourful carpets  works of art:

Above: Landcarpet The Netherlands, from Florian Pucher.

Above and below: Liz Eeuwes offers you the possibility of having the tulip fields of Lisse under your feet.

Adriana Calcanhotto in Amsterdam

Brazilian singer Calcanhotto is going to perform on the 29th October at Bimhuis, in Amsterdam.

Piet Heinkade 3

1019 BR Amsterdam

020 7882150

Cake in a Mug (Bolo de Caneca)

(Post bilíngüe. Em português, veja depois da versão em inglês.)

Essencia de Amora blog

Diva Diz blog

Eu Capricho blog

Um No' e Nada Mais blog

Divina Cozinha blog

Afonso Loureiro blog

Now that is getting cold, you are all alone and wish to savour a chocolate cake...
and not making lots of cutlery and bowls dirty...
or waiting a lot...
Here is the solution: cake for one ! Easy and ready in three minutes !
Just follow the instructions below:

Ingredients
1 large egg
4 (table) spoons of milk
3 (tb) spoons of oil (sunflower)
2 (tb) spoons powder chocolate
4 (tb) spoons of sugar
4 (tb) spoons of flour
1 (t-e-a) spoon baking powder

Place the egg in a large mug (300ml) and beat it well with a fork. Add the oil, sugar, milk and the chocolate and mix well. Add now carefully the flour and mix. Finally add the baing powder and mix it delicately. Place the mug in the center of your microwave oven, cross your fingers and turn it on for 3 minutes at 750W. Good luck !

Note: Again: use a LARGE mug - otherwise half of it will come out and your cake will look like a brown mushroom or a monster. Please resist to the temptation of opening your microwave oven to check how things are going on. You can have you cake with ice-cream or topped with nuts, chocolate sprinkles, Nutella or jam - if you wish. Do not share this recipe into two mugs. This recipe is for one cake. If you need to make two cakes, just prepare one and when it is ready repeat the whole process for another cake.

Greetings from Holland blog

Eu sei, eu sei, essa é uma receita batidíssima e que anda aparecendo muito em blogs brasileiros de culinária por todo lado. Então resolvi também testar e postar por aqui. Sabe quando da aquela fominha de comer um bolo de chocolate e você não quer utilizar uma forma, fazer sujeira e esperar muito ? Essa é a solução ! Bolo para um !  Eu fiz o primeiro para meu filho, deu certo e repeti o processo para fazer a segunda caneca para minha filhinha.. Aprovado. É muito fácil - mas siga 'a risca as instruções. Vamos lá:

Ingredientes

1 ovo
4 colheres (sopa) de leite
3 colheres (sopa) de óleo
2 colheres (sopa) de chocolate em pó
4 colheres (sopa) de açúcar
4 colheres (sopa) de farinha de trigo
1 colher (café) de fermento em pó

Preparo
Coloque o ovo na caneca e bata bem com um garfo. Acrescente o óleo, o açúcar, o leite, o chocolate e misture bem. Adicione a farinha e o fermento, e mexa delicadamente até incorporar. Leve ao microondas,  por 3 minutos na potência máxima (utilizei 750W). Enquanto espera, cruze os dedos e faça o sinal da cruz . Boa sorte !

Dicas
* A caneca deve ter capacidade para 300ml.
* A medida da colher de fermento deve ser rasa.
* Resista a tentação  de abrir a porta do forno.
* A receita e' para UMA caneca.
* Se quiser fazer dois bolos, use a receita inteira para cada caneca e coloque cada uma no forno separadamente.
* Sirva o bolo com coberturas, caldas, castanhas ou sorvete.

Blind

In faith there is enough light for those who want to believe and enough shadows to blind those who don't. 

-Blaise Pascal

Ok so I might be making it up as I go along. Some days, I have no idea what I'm doing. I can't tell you what's right and wrong. This doesn't seem to be multiple choice. Life is an essay test. I don't know the rules, I'm not sure if you kneel or bow, when you dip your hand in the water, I'm not exactly sure what it means, and I have no idea how long you should pray before going back to your seat. I drift off to places in my head, and standing still with my eyes closed, sometimes makes me feel like I might topple over. I prefer to make it up as I go along, I'm trying the best I can to be what would be described as a good person. So in the morning, I say hello in the hall way. I think about the best stuff in people. I ask God to help my friends. Some might think it's time wasted, but if one action, creates another positive reaction, then what we believe maybe trivial. The time I spend saying thank you is my time well spent. I've never been good at letting go, in fact I suck at release, deep breathing exercises, and reaching REM sleep. Sometimes I feel faithless, a failure at letting things happen, but I say hello in the hall way, and I hold the elevator for some guy on the second floor, and I smile at a stranger, and I take a deep breath, and try to have faith. If it doesn't mean anything, then what does it mean?

Lesson #28: Do the right thing.