Hello readers!

It is December, which means Christmas is around the corner! Now, I love Christmas; less so for the gift giving part and more for the fact that our family comes together for a smashingly good meal (prepared by yours truly), we drink lots of good booze and generally a good time is had by all. It’s also a rare day when all the family don’t work (the joys of a retail business) and more often then not, there’s no pressing agenda to be back at work the next day either, although with Christmas on a Sunday this year, we won’t have the extra days off like previous years.

This year though, it will be the smallest gathering I will have ever hosted for the dinner at my parent’s house – barely any extended family (aka the drama llamas) and most likely just the addition of my partner and our Border Collie, Neo, who my parents adore but my brother is terrified of. However, thanks to the La Niña phenomenon, it appears very likely that we will have a cold Christmas this year, and my usual planning has gone right out the window. With the chronic fatigue and the medication still screwing with me left, right and center, I was thinking along the lines of a barbecue; everyone gathered round and cook your own proteins. Preliminary forecasts however, are pointing to the need for puffer jackets and scarves for the day, so it looks like I’ll be wrangling the dinner in the kitchen with a completely blank mind – the only thing I have on the menu is mulled wine, which I’ll rope my brother into making. The ingredients I know I will have for sure on the day are Glacier 51 Toothfish and some form of Wagyu beef. I will certainly take any suggestions on board, factoring in the means I have to cook at my disposal – an ANOVA sous vide system, hibachi grill, stove, oven, induction stove. Almost be tempted to hot pot the day, but that might be too extreme of a departure from the spirit of the day and my level of cooking skill.

Alas, Christmas is still about 4 weeks away, and the more exciting story is that Australia is in the round of 16 for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Granted, we are up against Argentina, but stranger things have happened. I haven’t been watching any of the matches as sleep is a struggle at the moment (vivid dreams, nightmares and insomnia) but Twitter (for now) keeps me updated with the happenings, as does my brother who is religiously watching every match then complaining of being tired. Brothers, am I right?

Anyway, for now, it’s just a holding pattern for me. I have started my morning walks with Neo again (as my partner conveniently broke his toe the other night) and it’s been really nice being out in the morning sun. It’s actually helping me wake up for the day, but I get home exhausted every night, and that is before I consider dinner. To combat an Uber Eats addiction, I have subscribed to YouFoodz so that I am eating better for the one meal I have a day (dinner) and will probably change over to Macros once I get used to the portion sizes and am focusing more on the specifics of my diet (and it will probably be from next year with Christmas and all that). I should be able to provide some feedback/review the experience in about a fortnight’s time as my first delivery is not scheduled until this coming Friday the 9th.

In the meantime, look after yourselves and each other, and remember that a baby step forward is better then no steps at all.

Bx