Cooking lesson !

I've realized that my not being able to cook is a problem so I have decided to ask my friends to teach me (and my mother, I hope at some point she will reveal the secrets of her irresistible satay sauce recipe to me so I can share it on this site!). I had my first lesson today with my friend Bharti. The menu consisted of these classic Indian dishes: Tarka Dhal, Dry Potato Curry, Jeera Rice and Chapatis (Indian flat bread). I prepared the meal for 6 people and under Bharthi's wise guidance I'm proud to report that the meal turned out to be very tasty. I will be posting the recipes on the 'My Stuff' page as soon as I can. Hope you will be tempted to try some of them out ! Lots of love tt.

Photo (c) Sylvie Bardet

Etta, Chaka and Gladys

My wake up song this week is a live performance by 3 great singers : Etta James, Chaka Khan and Gladys Knight accompanied by the wonderful BB King. It is the classic blues song : "Ain't Nobody Business". Music like this makes you glad to be alive! Hope you enjoy. Lots of love tt.

Slightly foxed editions and Persephone Books

Reading a memoir by the late Richard Kennedy of his youthful apprenticeship at Leonard and Virginia Woolf ‘s Hogarth press. It’s refreshing to see Virginia Woolf remembered as rather vibrant and sophisticated and not simply depressive, and the eccentricity of writers even running a printing press ( I mean that’s as absurd as an artist running a record company!) is heart-warming. The Bloomsbury memoir is coupled with ‘A Parcel of Time ‘, where Kennedy describes his childhood and how it is affected by the First World War. I’m really enjoying this book but what I am really dotty about are ‘Slightly Foxed Editions’ who publish it [link]. I’ve eagerly collected all their titles since I discovered them about two weeks ago! These are books you want to hold AND touch. There are some really exciting independent publishing houses now that understand that reading is not solely a visual activity but also a tactile one. Another great bonus is that often they are re-publishing books that have been unjustly forgotten and unavailable. Persephone books [link] is another fine example of this. They publish gorgeous editions – using a fabric design for the book’s interior which match the mood and date of the book. ‘Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day’ by Winifred Watson is my current favourite, how could we have lived without this book for so long ?!! Lots of Love tt

+81

My wake up song this week (a rather exciting week, a belated surprise birthday party had been arranged for me and although I suspected some thing, I thought it involved an elaborate new lighting system for my apparment and not a party !!) is by the truly fruity & delightful Deerhoof. '+81' is a song of such epic loadiness that it should really be the theme of a cool children's TV show that you never understood as a child but mourn wistfully as an adult... anyways, I hope you enjoy !! Love tt

ps : sorry I couldn't embed this video on my blog. Please follow the [link]

City paradise

Last week I saw some films at the animation festival in London. 'City Paradise' by the film maker Gaelle Dennis really caught my eye. I hope you enjoy it ! Love tt