Wired help

Lately, there has been little to bring a smile to my face at work.

But every now and again something comes along to lighten my mood - like the offer of another pair of hands to help me out with some of my more tedious tasks.

So, without further ado, I'd like to introduce my new assistant...

Unfortunately he's only temporary and is moving on to bigger and better things on Friday.

I shall miss him.

Two things...

... that have brightened my return to work this week.

Hoping that maybe, possibly, I might be in with a teeny weeny chance of winning this fantastic giveaway from Silver Pebble.



Her jewellery is so beautiful - do pop over and have a look. Be quick though - I think the giveaway ends tomorrow.

And then I discovered this story on another blog, and it has made me chuckle all day. If you need cheering up then go and read this - I can't get the vision of it out of my head.

Easter Sunday

Lots of chocolate eggs (I survived my no chocolate and coffee for Lent!) and cooking dinner for my mum and my in-laws.

Smoked mackerel pate (my very own made-up recipe):

Get out the food processor and whizz together 4 smoked mackerel fillets, 400g of cream cheese, a bunch of chives, lemon juice, horseradish sauce and black pepper to taste. Put into ramekins (this quantity made for 7 generous servings) and chill until ready to serve. We had it with crispy rolls and green salad.

Followed by Delia's roast lamb with onion and rosemary sauce and then Nigella's heavenly rhubarb meringue pie from How to Eat.

Wish I'd got a picture before it all got eaten.

Progress report

Readers of a nervous disposition please look away now - the following blog post contains pictures of a graphic nature which many may find disturbing.

Before:

Please excuse the mucky trainers - at this time of year I only tend to get my legs out when I'm going for a run.

After:

Let's just say Famous Dave's fake tan was not a resounding success. Please note the tide marks around my toes - believe me, it looks even worse in real life.

My legs look like they've been creosoted and my sheets are stained in a most disturbing manner.

David Dickinson eat your heart out.

It's arrived!

My parcel from the Beauty Bible:

Just look at all those goodies!

There's probably about £150 worth of stuff there, so that's my first concern put to rest - but I now have others to take its place.

Like I have to try a fake tan.

Right now.

We've been away for a few days (more of that another time) and I've already missed one of the deadlines for submitting my opinions, so today has seen me undertaking a major deforestation program on my legs a few months earlier than I was hoping for. Then there was the exfoliating and the applying with a special mitten to get my head around. Now I just have to wait until the morning to see if I've been tangoed.

By the way, don't let any impressionable young children follow that last link - apparently it may turn them into happy slappers (not to be confused with the unhappy slapper that I will look like tomorrow morning if this all goes disastrously wrong.