Saving money

They say life is all about sacrifices, and since being here, I've had to make quite a few when it comes to food and clothes especially. But it's definitely taught me a lot about what I actually NEED to get by, and what I want 'just because'. Of course, I haven't been able to resist temptation completely - Amazon is my new favourite store and I've bought more from there in the past nine months that I have from all the online shops I've shopped at in my life. I can't help it, I'm a gamer geek...and I love books, it just works out so well...

So here's what I've discovered, I'd rather spend money on games and books than food and clothes...yep, that's right. Weird, huh? Strangely enough, I can live without buying myself new clothes, even though I'm limited to two pairs of trousers, three tops and three pairs of shoes (no biggie for guys, but the ladies out there will understand). But if a new Square Enix game comes out, I'm there, baby! A book sale at Amazon? I've got bells and whistles on, dammit. And with the exchange rate the way it is, games are sooooooooooooo cheap here, what's a girl to do?

But I haven't been throwing money away, no no no..! I've bought a whole salmon in an effort to, not only boost my seafood intake, but save money as well. A WHOLE SALMON, people!! Now, those of you who know me, know that fish and I aren't the best of friends, so you may be questioning my sanity. But I have pictures as proof! I've also resisted all urges to call for takeaway and walks down to the local chippy.

So what do you think you could/couldn't give up in the name of saving money? Would love to hear from you!

Too many celebrity chefs

If there's anything England has a surplus of, it's celebrity chefs. Here, they're a dime a dozen. For starters, there's the infamous Gordon Ramsay. To be honest, I was a big fan of Gordo back home. I watched Kitchen Nightmares every week, rushing home from doing the groceries to get back in time to catch the start. But here, he is so over-exposed, I'm not at all fussed if I miss an episode or three. And the whole cheating on his wife thing didn't help either.

Then there's Jamie Oliver, possibly the MOST annoying celebrity chef on TV, constantly popping up in ads for Sainsbury's. At least shows are on only once or twice a week, but ad breaks are around every 15 minutes - not so lovely jubbly.

For a while, I found Hugh Fernley Whittingstall quite entertaining with his River Cottage program. It was really refreshing to see a chef who was doing something for the environment and making the most of seasonal fruit and veg. And some of the dishes were so unusual, I just had to keep watching to find out what he would cook next: squirrel offal skewers, manish water made with the head of a goat and goat offal...hmm...detecting a pattern here?

And then there's Heston Blumenthal, the chef famous for making ridiculous things such as hot ice cream. I find his strangely clinical approach to cooking a bit off putting, but I did enjoy his take on historical feasts. The things people ate in Victorian England, Tudor England, etc. were weird enough, seeing Heston's take on it was even more interesting. Still, I'm not about to rush off to his restaurant.

But wait, there's more...Ainsley Harriott, Lloyd Grossman (I cannot stand this guy, he is sooooooooooooo annoying), that guy on Masterchef, etc etc. There are just so many cooking shows, celebrity chefs are multiplying faster than rabbits. Somebody stop them before they take over the world!

Missed 'Heroes' for the first time ever

Ok, I wasn't going to say anything, but I'm having trouble getting over it. Yesterday, I ditched 'Heroes' in favour of a documentary about Japan's obsession with fish. Yes, a DOCUMENTARY ABOUT FISH! It's crazy, I know. I used to watch 'Heroes' religiously; during the first season, almost every episode seemed like a cliffhanger. Sure, season two was short, but I didn't think it was as bad as other's have said. Season three; things were slowly grinding to a halt and now, season four has completely lost me.

Ever since the show first started, I wondered how it would stop itself from turning into an X-Men rip-off, and I think they did a pretty good job of it...until now. I'm no X-Men fanatic, but I've seen enough of it to know that this season of 'Heroes' is pretty much the plot from the last X-Men movie. Rounding up mutants and removing their powers sounds rather familiar...Next thing you know, Magneto's going to show up to lead the resistance.

And the characters...I don't think I even want to get started on the characters. Suffice to say, it's time to wipe the slate clean, blow them all up and start again. And no more painting the future!