The Barefoot Contessa

I have a new obsession, and that obsession is The Barefoot Contessa.

After moving house we found to our dismay we didn't have a TV aerial on the roof. Now I have been "anti-sky" for a long time, and don't see why on earth I should be paying for thousands of channels that are filled with tripe?! To my horror instead of a TV aerial we have a sky dish. I had to shell out for freesat. Some gems of freesat include menandmovies and menandmovies+1 not to mention babestation.

What freesat does have is the foodnetwork! Hoorah! Especially as it is filled with American programming. The Barefoot Contessa, with Ina Garten, is my absolute favourite. An American Nigella? Stateside Delia? Yes! All her recipes contains cups of sugar and sticks of butter. I can even forgive her heinous disregard for actually measuring ingredients.

I have made her sticky buns, for Christmas Eve as follows...

Awesome Massive Nerd Tour

http://www.badscience.net/2010/12/im-doing-this-awesome-massive-nerd-tour/

Hoorah, Ben Goldacre is doing a tour! Simon Singh, Brian Cox and Robin Ince will be there too.

Lunar Eclipse

Yesterday was the first time in 372 years that the Winter Solstice conincided with a lunar eclipse. (I have been informed that this event is called a Selenehelion, by all means google it)

I left the house at 6:45am, shuffling through the sludgy melty snow to the train station when I saw it. I just wasn't expecting it to be so awesome.

I remember about 15 years ago being woken by my dad to see a lunar eclipse. It is safe to say I was not best pleased. Apparently my room was the best place to see the moon from, as it had double aspect windows and looked out on to the garden and not the road with the street lights.

Well this was definitely different. I have never so acutely aware that I am standing on a rock hurtling through space. It certainly put the morning commute in to perspective. I wonder what people thought 372 years ago on the Winter Solstice?