Blog Stalking Clean Eating With a Dirty Mind

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Clean Eating with a Dirty Mind, Cooking, Dairy Free, dessert, Food Porn, Paleo, Primal, Real Food, Recipe, San Diego, Sea World, Trifle, United States, Wordpress

Clean Eating With a Dirty Mind Header
(Image from CEWADM)

I want to tell you about a fabulous woman. We have never met in the flesh, but I follow her gorgeous blog. It’s called Clean Eating With a Dirty Mind (CEWADM).  I can’t even remember how I found her. Probably through one of my random WordPress searches.

She lives in San Diego. At least, I think she does. She’s irreverent and funny and she conducts amazing experiments with paleo-oriented recipes which she tests on her non-paleo partner and various friends. If they make the grade, she posts them on her blog. I kind of wish I lived in San Diego so she could use me as one of her foodie guinea pigs. San Diego has Sea World, too…

(Image from Comic JK)

Sidebar: For those of you who aren’t aware, LM and I sort of, kind of, follow a paleo-ish diet. With LM’s dairy and shellfish allergies, and my problems with gluten AND a real interest in eating less sugar and less processed food, a sort of paleo/primal/Weston A. Price/’real and traditional food’ hybrid is slowly evolving at Casa TSL.

Paleo Chocolate Pecan and Praline Cookies by CEWADM
(Image and recipe from here)

That being said, a lot of the recipes in CEWADM fall under the category of ‘sweets’. And, as mentioned, I try not to eat too much sugar. So, for a while, I looked but didn’t touch. The blog was a source of food porn, but I hadn’t tried any of the recipes. All that changed with the Paleo Chocolate Pecan and Praline Cookies. Seriously good. Seriously. Even for non-paleo peeps.

And then, I might just have mentioned that LM’s favourite dessert of all time was trifle. Just in passing, you understand…

Guess what happened? THIS happened…

The oh-so-fabulous Vanessa at CEWADM created a paleo (read: dairy free) trifle recipe for LM. More specifically, she created two trifle recipes for him – a peach crunch number and a raspberry chocolate hazelnut version. HOW COOL IS SHE???

Check it out…

Paleo Trifles by CEWADM
(Image and recipe from here)

Go and check out Vanessa and her fab’ blog, including the special trifle recipe, (here) before she gets her cookbook deal. Trust me – you don’t have to be paleo to appreciate it!

TSL Hits 100 Blog Posts! Blogging Lessons Learned

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100 Posts, Benjamin Disraeli, Blog, Blogging, Blogging Lessons, Chris Garrett, Darren Rowse, Ed Sheeran, Feedback, Nike, ProBlogger, Rita Mae Brown, Starting a blog, Sydney, Thank You, Wordpress

I began ‘This Sydney Life’, my ‘starter blog‘ on 2 February. That’s almost four months ago now. Today is my 100th post. It’s a bit of a milestone for me, so I thought perhaps it might be time for a few moments of navel gazing reflection…

Good judgment comes from experience, and often experience comes from bad judgment.  (Rita Mae Brown)

I had been thinking about starting a blog for a while. If it wasn’t for LM suggesting I ‘just do it’ (Nike – you can pay me later), or for WordPress offering such an easy entry into blog-land, I would probably still be thinking about it. Often, it is best to learn by doing. You’ll make mistakes along the way, but that’s all part of the learning. That was my first lesson.

My second lesson is that even a technologically challenged girl like me can blog. You don’t have to be a whiz on the computer. And, while it may not be perfect, it’s actually not that hard. Near enough sometimes can be good enough. Not always, but sometimes.

My third lesson in this ‘learn as I go‘ blogging adventure was that ideas for blog posts are everywhere. Almost all of these ideas are not new and have already been written about before. The challenge is to put my handwriting on it. Add my voice. I think we human beings are naturally drawn to things that are more personal, but as a blogger, I’m still coming to terms with this. It continues to be the hardest lesson for me. I’m sure I’m not alone in this – it requires a level of bravery to share bits of yourself when you write. What if people don’t like it? What I do know is that the more of myself I put into a post, the more comments I get*. And, comments are blogging gold. I love it when you guys take the time to comment. Thanks for every time you do.

I feel a very unusual sensation – if it is not indigestion, I think it must be gratitude. (Benjamin Disraeli)

Before I took my leap of faith into blog-land, I had done some reading on the subject of blogging. I even went as far as to read Darren Rowse and Chris Garrett’s ‘ProBlogger’ book. A girl should always be prepared, I reckon’. Every article I read said I needed to find my ‘tribe’ or ‘posse’. The people – often fellow bloggers – who would stick with me as I fumbled my way through learning about blogging. I had no idea how I was going to achieve this. I didn’t even know where I should look. It turns out I needn’t have worried. They found me. My blogging buddies are the biggest reason I am still blogging and (inside my head) I thank them for their support every day.

My band of blogging buddies come from all over. Some have been with me almost since I started, and some have come on board more recently. Their blogs are dedicated to a variety of things – food, health, photography, every-day life, quirky finds, design, and more. To date, I have never met any of them in the real world. I don’t even know what most of them look like. Yet, they check in with me almost like clock-work. They tell me when I have written a good post, when a post has made them laugh or when I have made a particularly special find. I can often tell when a post hasn’t been as successful by what they don’t say. They are warm. They are supportive. They are funny. They are consistent. They know who they are and I thank them, every one.

(Image sourced from here)

The other thing all the articles and books say about creating a blog is to find your niche. I’m not so sure I’ve been entirely successful in this. ‘This Sydney Life’ is written from Sydney, but it’s not exactly about Sydney. It has morphed into a blog about stuff (read: design, good craft, art, performance and very occasionally food) that turns me on. I’m sort of OK with that; it is my blog after all. But, I am interested in learning what you think I could make better? What do you like? What don’t you like? Is there anything you think I should change? Do you have a favourite post? I would greatly appreciate some feedback from the people who matter – those who check in and read my blog (that would be you!)… And, if you do, I thank you (in advance!)

One last thing before I finish up. If you have somehow made your way here because you’re thinking about starting a blog (and you’re still reading – Wow!), all I can say is ‘just do it’! Really. If I had known how much enjoyment I would get out of this blogging gig, I would have started so much earlier. I just love it.

That’s it for the navel gazing. We will resume our usual programme tomorrow!

*Please note I said comments. Not hits. If I just want hits, I’d be posting lots more about things like a video clip of Ed Sheeran‘s Lego House!

And, the Oscar goes to…

Tags

Blog, Blog award, blogger, Kreativ Blogger, Liebster Blog Award, Psychedelic Furs, Sydney, The Princess Bride, Thrill of Brazil, Versatile Blogger, Wordpress

As I write this, I have been a blogger for two months. Yep – two whole months. Can hardly believe it myself.

I had been considering a blog (read: talking about the possibility) for ages. I had been (still am, for that matter) a blog stalker for even longer, sitting on the sidelines marvelling at all the incredibly talented and creative people out there in cyber-space. Then, one day LM suggested a ‘starter blog’, as a way for me to dip my toe in the blogosphere water and see what the temperature was like. And so I did – WordPress is my friend! – AND I’m here to tell you the temperature here in blog-land is just fine… I may stay a while.

I’ve fallen in love with blogging. It’s my new favourite thing.  I’m still a newbie. I’m still finding my feet. But, I have connected with some amazing people from around the world. There is a wonderful sense of community in blog-land. It’s a friendly, happy place (for the most part). Piffle! I just read that back to myself – Does it sound a bit too much like I’m describing Disneyland? 

Anyhoo, over the past month or so, a few of my fellow blogging buddies have very kindly recognised This Sydney Life by nominating this blog for a few blogging awards.  For the most part, these awards involve recognising the blogger who nominated you; nominating more blogs; and telling your blog readers a few tidbits about yourself.

To be honest, I’ve been holding off responding because it’s much, much easier to write or post about almost anything other than yourself.  Truly.  But, I’ve been feeling ungracious.  It’s been on my mind.  I like to think I was brought up ‘proper’.  So, the time has come.  Here goes:

A huge shout-out to the four wonderful, yet very different, bloggers for my Versatile Blogger award nominations.

• I have to start with the gorgeous In Pursuit of More, a wonderful blog from Canada about living with a little less to gain a little more.  It’s chock full of recipes and Shira writes with so much enthusiasm.  She always makes the day seem brighter. I am now addicted to her kale pesto!
• Marina Chetner’s U.S. based photography blog is filled with beautiful photographs and tales of Marina’s travels.  She’s an Australian who has lived on both the Eastern and Western coasts of the U.S. Her blog makes you wish you were with her in her travels.
• Zac the All Black is written from the perspective of Zac, the Tibetan Terrier.  Zac lives in Melbourne.  He’s a most chatty pup. Bella (the poodle) is especially fond of this blog.
• Frozen Moments is about life off the beaten track, and one a very long way away from Sydney.  Jack and Barbra Donachy provide an amazing insight into life above the Arctic Circle.  (They also describe my blog as vibrant! Gotta’ love them for that!)

• The Kreativ Blogger award nomination came from My Daily Creativity, where Angela is sharing her 365 days of creativity.  Thanks Angela!

• And, the Liebster Blog award nomination comes from Kitty’s Dolceforno, a luscious offering of baking from the delectable Kitty who (in her own words) is “A graphic designer who bakes as a hobby and obsessively takes pictures of her efforts.” Cheers Kitty!

As for my nominations, it’s a hard thing to do, pick out of the many fabulous offerings.  I find new and interesting blogs almost daily.  So, this list is a taste of some of my regular favourites.  Here’s to you.  I think your blogs are wonderful…

• Textile and Terrain – Harriet, and sometimes Nina, have a slight obsession with flowers and fabric.  They source beautiful (and often unexpected) finds with gorgeous images.
• The Walkup is one of my more recent finds. Keren’s most gorgeous blog is about art, design, interiors and all sorts of other goodies.  Yum!
• A Design For Wife is a “super keen bean”.  She lives in London (my other home) and her blog explores her love of design, clean lines, charity shop raiding, baking and the like.
• Layyla Over the Rooftops of the World is a collection of things and images and themes that fascinate the lovely Layyla from Poland.  Often, they fascinate me, as well.
• WhatIMeant2Say – If you want to laugh out loud, this is the blog for you.  A forty-something mother and teacher in San Antonio, Texas talks about her life with Cap’n Firepants, Dimples and (my favourite) Wonderbutt.  Oh yes – she hates giving personal details about herself.  You join the dots.
• What We Like NYC is a curated guide to New York city and I wish I’d known about these four before I visited last year.  If you are heading to the big apple, you gotta’ check this out!
• Arhitektura+ is written by a Sydney based architect from Serbia.  She showcases architecture, design and interiors from around the globe (and she has a great eye)
• Sweat Like Mambo is where the fit and fun Mambo chronicles her daily life.  Well worth a visit.
• bfarhardesign is design grad’, Becky’s place to document her ideas and inspirations.  It’s a fabulously colourful blog – very upbeat.
• everydaysparks is where Cate puts stuff she sees which you may not.  It’s a lovely, quirky wee find and it’s sure to make you smile.
• Magsx2 – this blog is the emporium of interesting things that you probably didn’t know about.  Mags posts daily about interesting things, usually in video format, and it’s kind of addictive!
• I Me Mine is Danielle’s vehicle to share what she loves with the world.  I particularly like her insights into Perth, WA (the most geographically isolated city in the world!)
• A Global Garnish – very lovely blog written by a serious foodie and traveller with a talent for the written word.  Just gorgeous.

Now, the dreaded 7 Things About Me… I can’t really take this that seriously. This will be available to the world FOREVER (and all that). How about I just give you 6 truths and 1 lie. You can try and work out the lie.

My favourite movie of all time is ‘The Princess Bride’.

My first cassette (which pre-date CDs for anyone born after 1980) was the Psychedelic Furs, ‘Forever Now’. I still love it.

I hardly ever do fingernail polish.  My toes are always OPI ‘Thrill of Brazil’. (These are not my toes.)

The celebrity I most resemble is Mae West (when she was alive).

My favourite colour is orange.

I have visited Dayton, Ohio THREE times.  

(I have no plans to return at this time.)

LM and I both have monocular vision.  His lazy eye is the opposite to mine.  It’s impossible for us to look each other in the eye.

'I SEE YOU' (Actually, not really)

Wow!  If you are still with me after that epistle – thank you for wading all the way to the end!  I’m going to finish this post here.

Oh, not quite – have a fab’ Easter, all of you.