Yo Ho Ho and a Bottle of Rum!!! Lots of Rum!

My favourite rum - Angostura 1919
Photo credit: Lime.tt

Yesterday we went to the Day 2 of the three-day Angostura Rum Festival. Anyone who knows me knows I love festivals, and when I was in London, if I could make it, I would be at some festival, including their Rum Festival, which featured rums from all over the world. So when I saw this, I was already there. Hell...I mean, the word "rum" does it for me, so I was there.

The festival was aimed at showcasing our local rums and the amazing things one can do with them, as well as allow true rum lovers to understand the history of our rum and how rums are made, and our world-famous Angostura bitters. In case you did not know, Angostura bitters are as awesomely Trini as I am. Write it down. There were tours of the distillery, rum lectures, demonstrations with rum in both cooking and bartending, rum samples and Master Challenges for chefs and mixologists.

The heat drove me from the outside to the cooler activities on the inside, like the rum lecture, which surprisingly was not as boring as I thought it would be...ALTHOUGH...I did close my eyes for a couple minutes. That I blame on the free cocktails, the heat and a very taxing and tiring 5-day work week. But the presenter was engaging and very knowledgeable about his rum.

Daiquiri...mmmm
Photo credit: Lime.tt

The festival was okay. It was not quite what I expected after all the amazing reviews, but it was a good day out anyway and for just TT$50. There are very few things you can do for $50 so kudos!

It was extremely hot though and I wilted immediately until we got indoors, into areas like the rum shoppe and the cooking demonstrations, which I did not know you needed to buy chits for, but anyway...

Note to organisers: The entertainment was awful awful awful. Wow. We were not the only ones who thought so either, but then they were brought on so late that perhaps it was anticipated that people would be too drunk to notice and too spirit-happy to really care.

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Foodie Love - Pesto! Pesto!

Del Mano Shadon Beni Pesto
Photo credit: Del Mano

I just wanted to share my latest find.

This past weekend, we went to Upmarket, which is a very cool roving gourmet market. Needless to say, you are going to do things at such a thing

- Part with a lot of money
- Gain some poundage

I did both. I loved the variety of stuff, and it was pretty good stuff, including the awesome assorted gourmet cupcakes (I bought a six-cupcake box).

But I really loved the pesto guys from Del Mano! I loooooove pesto and so of course, I bought pesto. What I liked was their variety of pesto, which included roasted sweet pepper, watercress, shadon beni (similar to cilantro), roasted melongene (eggplant), traditional basil and I forget the other one. lol. We got the pepper and shadon beni versions.

I got home tonight, starving and tired and whipped up some pasta and roasted sweet pepper pesto. Nothing better, lemme tell you. It's also for lunch tomorrow, which means gym is mandatory in the morning. This weekend I will find other things to do with this awesomely delicious find, possibly paired with something from a grape. Vegetables and fruit servings - easy!!

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Sweat is the new Zoloft

It's almost like a blogging renaissance up in here. Trying to dig myself out of a funk and exploring all avenues, including writing and gymming it.

Now while I have no desire for this to become a fitness blog, I do (try to) go to the gym at least 4 times a week, so you're bound to get a blog about the gym, diet or fat people adventures every now and then.

I have found the gym to not only be great for the waistline but also for my mental health. Looking back, every time there was a crisis in my life (and by crisis, I mean tabanca or some kinda love stress), I would first probably have a cupcake or 20, and then find myself in the gym to sweat away the bad mojo (and the 20 cupcakes). I found that over the last 2 weeks when I did not go to the gym or worked out in any way, shape or form, I was depressed and sour - allowing the things we push aside and try to cover up with affirmations to wash over me.

Now that I am back on track, I am aiming to be "that" girl again - the girl who smiles a lot and goes out and lights up people's lives! Sweat is the new Zoloft, people!

I am also the sarcastic, blunt girl and I have a message for all the fat people in the world. If you are not freakin' Beyonce or Halle Berry, or you are over 250lbs, you're not in any type of programme to look like Beyonce, and KFC is gourmet cuisine for you, then don't have anything to say about MY weight gain! Okay? I will tell you as it freakin' is!!!

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(Un)Wired for War!!

My Sony Walkman

The war against weight gain is hard. Working out is hard. Working out is tedious. What can be worse than working out - besides not being able to enjoy a 6-pack of gourmet cupcakes without guilt?

Working out without music.

I had gone through quite a few MP3 players, via sweaty workouts, rainy workouts and MP3 player drops and spills. So when I was looking for a new one, I passed over the Apple group and looked for something cheap, practical and convenient.

I bought two players. The first was the Sansa Disk Clip+, which cost less than $US30 and is pretty sturdy. But the one I was really looking forward to getting was the Sony Walkman, which is a wireless, hardy, waterproof MP3 player. I love it so far. No more worrying about sweat totally screwing up my player, or rain destroying my investment. I also hate running with the headphone cords flying about, so this is perfect. I gave these headphones a test run this morning and I think the earbuds were too large as they kept slipping out of my ear. But have no fear - the player comes with Medium earbuds already "installed", but with Small and Large back up buds in the box, so I have changed the buds and will hopefully have a better experience with them tomorrow as I plan to burn off this Twix mini bar.

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Trying to treat my Blogaphobia

I come here ever so often and look at the page and think, what on earth am I supposed to write here? I have never been this  blocked, but I know it is as a result of a few things.

- I am just busy and inevitably tired. I have crazy days - full days - and by the time I get home, the last thing I want to do is blog or, sad to say, read your blogs. I do try and I do read a blog or two now and then but it is not easy. I know I spoke at length about my daily existence here.

- As a result of being busy, there is nothing really exciting to talk about. lol. I doubt you want to hear about my meetings, days spent slaving over a hot laptop, treating with interns, oddball callers, vendors and colleagues. Do you?

- When I do the "exciting" stuff, I don't feel like blogging about it either.

- And more importantly, being back in the smaller pool that is Trinidad, as opposed to the wide gulf that was London, I feel more exposed and less inclined to say what's on my mind. When I had an anonymous blog, this was not a problem, but now the things I could talk about and want to talk about, I don't feel like this is the place in which to talk about them.

I could maybe just cross over to the dark side and become a giveaway blog (the horror!). But no...something will work out soon. It's not just here either. I don't tweet, I don't pin. I do Facebook, so there is still life in this social media machine! But feel free to leave your suggestions as to how I can resuscitate it all.

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