The past two days, Mo and I have hit the coffee shops so I can get some reading done for work (Mo listens to me complain and does Mo things). Today we chose Spyhouse.

Spyhouse is one of my most frequented coffee shops in Minneapolis (others include Second Moon and the Dunn Bros in Linden Hills -- just because it has a nice sofa and is across from the co-op). The decor is all mid-century, and tea is served in a pot with a Pyrex tea cup. It's possible that it borders on too-trendy-for-its-own-good, but I don't mind.

Since I think only in lists lately:

-- I had a 'real age' body assessment at the gym yesterday, and it turns out my body is conveniently the exact same age that I am. They said that I could have the body of an eighteen year old if I did the right things, but frankly, I prefer the body I have now over the one I had back then.

-- I bought something off the ebay today. Nothing big, but I'm excited, so I hope it lives up to the excitement. I shan't jinx the possibility of it showing up unscathed by mentioning what it is.

-- While I admire his tech-geekery, I'm afraid I don't share it, but I still love Stephen Fry's blog. The blessays are my favourite.

-- Every few hours, I have to tell whomever's nearest to me that, 'I can't wait until it's summer.' It's true. Here's another fact: it's supposed to be between -30F and -40F tonight. Let me convert that to Celsius for European readers -- oh wait, I can't, because I've frozen to death.

-- Since it's clearly impossible to go outdoors, I've taken up some exciting new hobbies, which have given me insight into the minds of animals. For example, although the dog will hold still through her willingness to please, it's pretty difficult to incentivize the cat to stand on said dog's back.

So, I did take a few photos in London, but not so much blog-fodder photos. Here are some of my kitchen plants instead:

To summarize the trip, S was able to see a lot of fun and noteworthy things, and I've gone off London. It's just not right to holiday in the city in which you used to live and which wore you down when you did so. All future holidays will be spent in the middle of Ireland or northern Minnesota (ie, places where there's nothing much to do except take a walk if the weather is favourable).

Luckily, though, the holiday set me up for an exciting return home. I'm really happy to be back, and I've got a lot of ideas banging around in my head. Some of my plans for the coming year:

-- Keep a written journal. I've never had much success doing this, but I've made a few small, month-sized notebooks; a new journal for every month will keep me interested!

-- Expand the garden in the spring. Duh. I was thinking about this year's garden when I was still harvesting last year's veg.

-- Start a garden/vegetable diary and photolog (not on-line, though), with an eye to turning it into a Blurb book when the year comes to an end. I'd like to document the process from the very beginning (planning the year's garden, searching for plants), from different angles (growing my own veg, buying from the farmer's market, etc), and throughout the year (coping with gluts of certain crops, learning to preserve/freeze the extras). It would be halfway between a photo book and a journal -- something inspiring, which I'd like to have around.

-- I also want to throw together a Blurb book of my favourite photographs from the past few years. Mainly for myself, as I've been shooting only digital for a while and don't have prints, but I may make it public as well. It's funny -- working in publishing has taken the shine off finding a publisher (vs self-publishing/POD services like Blurb). I would much rather do it all myself and sell two copies than to convince somebody else to have faith in it and then worry about selling through a print run.

-- I've joined a gym, and I'm really excited about getting back in top shape. I went from running four times a week to taking long walks almost every day to. . . sitting around, not doing much of anything. It's cold out, is my excuse. It's sad how quickly one loses one's endurance when it comes to running, but I've started from scratch before, so I know it's not really that hard to get back into it.

-- S and I are taking ballroom dancing lessons, starting next Wednesday. Much excitement.

-- I'm going to get some simple dress patterns and cheap fabric and make a few casual dresses for myself. I'm tired of people asking if I sew my own clothes and having to answer 'no'. Of course, I said I was going to make skirts back in September, and that never happened.

-- Speaking of things that seemed to never happen in September, I also swore I would finish my zine. I did, and I made several copies, but never got around to doing anything with them. I've got a couple of other handmade paper items (bookmarks and to-do index cards) wanting a home, so maybe I'll check out Etsy.

Who has time for holidays with all these plans? Not me. Starting now.

You like fuzzy grey cats, right? Answer: Yes (If 'no', go back and try again). Here's the one I keep around for cuteness.

She caught a mouse today. Well, I say 'caught' -- she may have just found it. I've seen maybe three or four mice in or near my house since I moved in, and they've all been dead. Out in the open. No clues to where they came from or how they met their demises. (Probably just some witchy curse on the house. Tra la la.) She was pretty excited about it -- I was less so.

So, we're off to London on Monday. A few favourite things until I find my way back to a computer:

-- Chocolate pudding.
-- Minnie, when she's asleep.
-- Making things from paper.
-- Saturday mornings.
-- Crosswords.
-- Cats cuddling.
-- Packed lunches.

In a great big surprise to absolutely nobody, I managed to overindulge this holiday season. See, my birthday is on the 22nd of December, and it's just a slippery slope all the way down to the end of the year. What's more, S and I are leaving for London on the 14th of this month, and we all know that vacations don't support friendly eating habits. So the next two weeks are going to be a bit spartan for me.

The breakfast of the new year. I'm actually really into it. I mix in a serving of bran-type cereal (it's less pretty when it all gets mixed together) and enjoy. An old copy of Vegetarian Times said to start the day with a protein-y breakfast rather than a carb-y one, and I buy it.

I'm totally off cakes and cookies for a while. The thought of them makes me a little queasy, actually. I've always been amazed at the sheer numbers of baked goods that foodie bloggers (vegan ones in particular) turn out (who eats it all?), but it really surprises me to see folks still coming out with cookies and brownies and cakes after the holidays. My sugar tolerance is obviously not up to scratch. This is my own sweet allowance for the time being:

Chocolate pudding (sugar free, fat free) made with almond milk. And a whole banana. I love pudding. And yogurt. I promise I am actually eating foods that require chewing, too!

Lastly, a cat and her bag. I'll spare you the photos actually being on the page, but click here (proud) and here (crazy eyes).