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The week that was…Chicama, Michael Jackson and the Bristol hum

August 21, 2016 By Poppy Dinsey 1 Comment

Oh I really do like writing these Sunday round-up posts. I forgot they take forever to write but hey! They make me feel like a proper blogger again 😀

This week I’ve been watching…

Two things in particular stuck out for me this week, the first being Linda Geddes’s 12 minute BBC Future video on “the mysterious noise driving the world mad”.

Since the 1970s, many people across the world have reported hearing a faint humming sound. To some it’s a low pulsating sound, to others it’s more of a buzz. Whether you hear it as a quiet rumble or a constant vibration, it’s inescapable and irritating…especially given nobody has been able to explain where it’s coming from.

This haunting short looks at “the Bristol hum” in particular, as the south west city has an unusually high number of people all reporting to hear the same as yet unidentified sound. Unplugging the fridge, router or phone doesn’t help, but leaving Bristol can provide some relief.

It’s a gorgeously curious phenomena, although that’s easy for me to say as I am not being plagued by it. Is it some sort of government conspiracy? Or is it, quite literally, all in the head? And if the latter, why do multiple people hear the same thing in the same places?

It’s a beautifully paced film with some great interviews, almost tip toeing on the edges of sci-fi thriller. You can see why people in some cities have been driven mad by this anonymous hum.

Watch it here.

The second thing that really stuck out for me this week came from the BBC again: Phoebe Waller Bridge’s Fleabag on BBC Three. I already wrote about my love for the show in last week’s The Week That Was, but having now seen the fourth episode it deserves another shoutout as the Hugh Dennis scene caught me completely off-guard and moved me to tears.

I was watching it in the bath and generally feeling quite moved by the relationship between the two sisters as we’re getting to know them better, then the Hugh Dennis scene kind of came out of nowhere and really knocked me for six in its simplicity. Maybe I was being hormonal, but I thought it was special.

You can watch the fourth episode here, but obviously start from the beginning if you’re yet to watch the other episodes. I love how the stories are developing.

Sticking with the BBC Three theme for a sec, the third series of People Just Do Nothing started this week and whilst I haven’t had time to watch the first episode yet, the trailer reminded me why Grindah is still my number one lyrical don…

I find it hard to imagine there’s anyone out there left to discover the Kurupt FM greatness, but all of the first and second series of PJDN are on iPlayer and you should start there before treating yourself to series three. I CANNOT WAIT TO WATCH IT.

Naturally I relished Bailly/Pogba/Zlatan’s general greatness on Friday night but I also really enjoyed G-Nev’s return to MNF and thought this interview was really honest. Can’t be easy to have to go back to your old job because you’ve failed so publicly at trying something new. It’s worth a watch as he’s very candid in it. I don’t think you need to like football to find it interesting.

Of course I also saw Tickled, the new documentary that delves into the murky underworlds of competitive endurance tickling (yep, it’s a real thing!) and I blogged about that in full here. It’s dark.

I’ve visited…

I went to Chiswick on Tuesday to visit the Sipsmith distillery. It was a really fun tour as I’ve already covered here but aside from the actual Sipsmith bit, it reminded me how much I love this part of London. I’d never really walked around the residential streets of Chiswick before as I’ve only visited for dinner in the past, but my goodness…it’s up there with Kew I reckon for #dreamhousegoalz. I have spent a lot of time on Zoopla since Tuesday.

Then we’ve been in Cheshire since Thursday night for my mother-in-law’s birthday, meaning I’ve had the perfect excuse to go to The Hollies (aka my dream farm-shop) and stare longingly at all the food. I’m worried that browsing the shelves of this place (and, errrr, nibbling the cheese samples) is one of my all-time favourite hobbies…

I’ve been listening to…

I feel like this week has flown by with nary a song played, but I did put Bad on in the car when I got fed up of how crackly the 5 Live Olympics coverage was on the M6. I long for the day where 5 Live is remotely pleasant to listen to in the car. Maybe that’s what the Bristol hum is: 5 Live desperately trying to reach across the airwaves. (I’m bitter because I got a new car radio fitted JUST FOR 5 LIVE and the signal is still shocking).

I’ve been eating and drinking…

I tried new Kings Road restaurant Chicama on Sunday night. It had only been open a couple of weeks at that point and we weren’t intending to go but as our fave Italian next door was unexpectedly closed (gotta love Italians in August, they know how to live life right) we thought we’d give this exceptionally trendy-looking place a go.

It’s from the same folk as Pachamama in Marylebone (which we’ve not tried) and we weren’t sure what to expect but the menu promised “Peruvian seafood” and there were enough vegetable dishes for me to make it enticing. Plus the open plan pink marbled decor was pretty much my dream million dollar kitchen so I was happy just to spend an evening in what felt like a Pinterest board come to life.

Without a doubt, the standout dish was the fried aubergine with plantain miso and crushed pecans. It doesn’t look handsome, but it was an exceptional interpretation of the humble aubergine – even rivalling the similarly sticky miso version from Kurobuta a few doors down.

The chimichurri & huancaína sauce with the roasted cauliflower was another favourite and ST said the Tiger’s Milk oysters (apparently delivered fresh daily from Cornwall) were the best he had *ever* had. He doesn’t throw around accolades like that very often, so they must have been very nice indeed. The Piura Porcelana chocolate dessert was also ruddy nice.

It was great food all round really, but you can tell it’s a recent opening and they’re still tinkering with the menus. If you get irate about food arriving in stages, like we do, then you may find your patience pushed. The food is worth it though. Price-wise, let’s just say you know you’re on the King’s Road.

From one glam location to another…Oxford Services!

I’ve never been to a Harry Ramsden’s that doesn’t include an hour long queue in the driving rain and bitter gales blowing off Blackpool beach, so to just be able to walk up to a counter and get a plate of Harry Ramsden chips without any fanfare seems slightly surreal to me. Anyway, this unexpected motorway treat reminded me how much I love chips with mushy peas and beans and loads of vinegar, so I was happy. It may not be the most balanced meal choice but hey, it’s better than some sad bean burger nonsense from Burger King. And we all know service station calories don’t count.

Courtesy of my mother-in-law, I tried my first florentine this weekend in the form of a very special M&S one with dark chocolate, brazil nuts, chilli and coconut.

They’re from their “Spirit of Summer” range so I doubt they’ll be sticking around in the shops for long but if you’re in an M&S and you appreciate that dark chocolate/brazil nut/chilli/coconut is a great combo then you MUST try them.

Lastly, I can finally say that I have eaten a Paul A. Young chocolate. Not just one actually, but TWO. By the time this post goes live, I suspect I’ll have had a bunch more too…

I can’t remember when I first read about Paul but it was aaaaaaaages ago and I’ve been meaning to try his award-winning chocs ever since. I knew how many accolades he’d received and as the store had recently been crowned one of the top ten chocolate shops IN THE ENTIRE WORLD, I was a bit giddy when I realised ST had bought a big box of them for his mum’s birthday celebrations. I’ve never tasted a salted caramel chocolate quite like the one I had last night from this beautiful box of treats. SUBLIME. (Thank you Sue for sharing them, I’m not sure I would have!)

I’ve written…

Feels like tonnes but hasn’t been really, although I’ve written some pieces for City airport this week which have made me desperate to book a holiday. Have you been to Bern? I think I really need to go to Bern.

Blog-wise, I’ve linked to my Tickled review and Sipsmith distillery tour posts already but I also wrote about a cake of ketchup and cornflakes from the Biff, Chip and Kipper books and a review of Greek restaurant Opso. If you only read one thing I write this week though (well, apart from this post you’re reading right now) please let it be this post I wrote on meningitis and the friend I lost to the horrible disease.

Next week, I’m looking forward to…

Working through some ideas I’ve had, my Adidas sale order arriving (assuming by some miracle I don’t hate it all), enjoying a long Bank Holiday weekend and maybe deep cleaning the oven and the dishwasher – two tasks which I enjoy far more than I should.

Want more? Last week’s edition is here.

An important post about meningitis…

August 18, 2016 By Poppy Dinsey 6 Comments

It’s always at exactly this time of year that you’ll see fluffy spider-like thistle seeds (at least I think they’re thistle seeds) blowing in the wind. They’re peaceful, aren’t they? And no matter how old you are, it’s really hard to resist trying to catch one as it gracefully bobs past you. They move so slowly it’s like they’re almost suspended in the nothingness, just poodling along doing their own thing, unless of course you catch one and elevate it to genie-like status as you make a wish.

thistle

My friend Daniel would always catch them (usually to be annoying and blow them in your face or pretend they’re a massive spider) and after one shift at work when we’d seen a particularly high number of them we nicknamed these silly seeds ‘Daniels’. When they started blowing through the cemetery after his funeral a couple of weeks later, it seemed fitting that they’d made an appearance.

This August marks eleven years since Daniel died. It’s easy to remember the anniversary because the thistle seeds start blowing in the wind. The first one I see always takes my breath away a bit, but from then on they just serve as a gentle reminder of a hilarious young guy who made long Sundays at work easier.

It was a time of my life that I can only describe as bizarre. A few short months before Daniel died, another friend – a mutual friend – had passed away. We’d been to her funeral together and I had led the eulogy, so to then be at his funeral so soon after was like some sort of cruel out-of-body experience.

I was on holiday when it happened and my best friend gave me the news when she picked me up from the station. My family were still in Spain. It was all so sudden and seemed like the kind of thing that perhaps could have been a massive wind-up given Daniel’s character, but I knew that it wasn’t because I’d had this exact harrowing conversation about our other friend a couple of months prior. They are words you don’t forget, especially at 18 years old.

I’d seen Daniel the day before I went on holiday, he’d had a cough that we were nagging him about. A couple of days later meningitis had killed him. There isn’t a long drawn out story, it was a terrifyingly quick escalation despite the fact he was a strong, fit, healthy teenager. He was about to learn to drive.

A couple of weeks after the funeral I started my first term at university, with a framed picture of him on my shelf in my tiny halls bedroom. I probably should have realised it would lead to loads of awkward conversations as these new uni BFFs – ya know, the ones you met five minutes ago – would ask who the gorgeous guy in the picture was.

I wanted to tell them about him though, partly because I didn’t want to just forget he’d ever existed – he was a great guy – but because I wanted people to know that meningitis doesn’t just happen to babies or to people with purple rashes or in TV shows. It wasn’t like I was trying to bring down the Freshers Week party, but I wanted people to know that meningitis is serious and at the age we were at the time, we were prime targets.

So I was really pleased to see a post about the meningitis vaccine on Buzzfeed yesterday, specifically targeting young people about to head off to university.

Meningococcal group W (Men W) has historically been rare in the UK but since 2009 year-on-year cases of Men W have increased and continue to do so. A particularly aggressive strain of Men W is causing disease in all age groups but there has been a significant increase in university students, so Public Health England are campaigning to all new students under the age of 25 to make sure they’ve had the MenACWY vaccine before heading to university.

The Men ACWY vaccine was introduced across the UK in August 2015 and as the name suggests, it offers protection against the four groups of meningococcal bacteria A, C, W and Y.

As well as checking you’ve had the vaccine, it’s really crucial to understand the signs and symptoms of meningitis and septicaemia. This handy infographic from Meningitis Now details the common signs and symptoms but it’s really crucial to remember that someone may not have all of them and they can appear in any order.

Most importantly, you mustn’t “wait for a rash” before seeking medical treatment. The rash is probably the most famous symptom of meningitis but if someone is ill and getting worse, you need to get medical help immediately.

Early recognition and prompt treatment– especially antibiotics for patients with meningococcal disease – can be life-saving. You have to trust your instincts and get medical help immediately.

Liz Brown, Meningitis Now Chief Executive, has said this about the campaign…

“Young people and particularly first year university students are at an increased risk from meningococcal bacteria which can cause meningitis and septicaemia. Early signs can go undetected, and in young people can be put down to a bout of the flu, or even a hangover.

In the UK every university could experience at least one case of meningitis amongst its students within the first term. Meningitis can kill within hours. For those who survive, many are left with life-changing after-effects.

Up to a quarter of students carry the bacteria that can cause meningitis compared to one in ten of the general population. Over 12 per cent of all cases occur in the 14 to 24 age group, with first year students being at particular risk.

It’s vital that those going to Uni this autumn are not complacent about the threat of meningitis – we urge them to take up this lifesaving vaccine before they go.”

I know my readers are typically older than uni age (god, doesn’t uni seem a lifetime ago?!) but you will no doubt know people who are starting university this September. Please make sure they’re vaccinated and know what signs and symptoms to look for.

Recognising meningitis early can literally be life-saving. And if you don’t feel well it’s really important to let people know and to trust your instincts. The symptoms can be frustratingly similar to flu (and hangovers!) which is why it’s so important to look out for your friends and get help if things seem to be getting worse.

There is an FAQ on the vaccine here as well as all sorts of helpful information on the signs and symptoms. There’s also a free helpline for anybody who is looking for answers or support.

And if you are a #cool #young #teen reading this about to go off to uni then have THE BEST time. I am very jealous, it’s a bonkers and fabulous few years. You’re in for a treat!

Hopefully this post doesn’t seem like scaremongering. I know you’d do the same though if you’d been lucky enough to meet him.

The week that was…Fleabag, saganaki and Elvis Presley

August 14, 2016 By Poppy Dinsey 2 Comments

Oooooh it really has been a fabulous week and I am enjoying writing these posts SO MUCH. Your lovely feedback on last week’s made me realise I was so right to bring this format back. So thank you! x

This week I’ve been watching…

I’ve been thoroughly enjoying Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Fleabag on BBC Three. It’s so perfectly written, worryingly relatable, and just such a joy to see complex, complicated female characters on screen. Because guess what? Women lie! Women can be selfish! Women can do terrible things! It’s a great programme and I’ve never seen a sitcom where you feel so personally invited into someone else’s world. I am particularly fond of Claire.

I went to embed the trailer but I am aware my grandparents read my blog and there was a lot of sex/swearing/tampon shopping (yep, just in the trailer) but you can see a one minute snippet here or just throw yourself straight in and catch up on the last four episodes on iPlayer. New episodes are uploaded on Thursdays.

One for true crime fans who aren’t averse to awful things, I watched Thought Crimes: The Case of the Cannibal Cop earlier this week. I found a magical page on Sky On Demand where all the documentaries are hidden (how did I not know about this page?!) and as I was obsessed with this case when it was in the press back in 2013, it was downloaded immediately.

I was in Australia when the story of the “cannibal cop” first broke and I vividly remember staying in the hotel to watch the drama unfold on some weird American cable chat show (ya know, because why not fly half way around the world to just watch telly on the bed?) and whilst I was adamant about my take on things back then, this documentary had me flipping between “LOCK THE MONSTER UP AND THROW AWAY THE KEY” and “well, I guess people are allowed to be weird!” every three minutes. I’ve never felt so unsure about something.

If you’re not familiar with the case, a New York City cop – Gilberto Valle – was arrested after his wife discovered he was spending time in chat rooms describing detailed plans to abduct and eat women. What was unusual about this case though was that it could be argued that he hadn’t actually broken the law, as fantasising about being a cannibal is obviously abhorrent but it isn’t illegal. Valle claimed all the scenarios he described in chat rooms were simply fantasies, which made this an unprecedented legal case as putting someone in jail for their thoughts – however depraved – is a slippery slope. Would he ever have actually hurt anyone? Or was it all just fetish fan-fiction? It’s a great documentary and whilst his mum has stuck by him, I’d be amazed if anybody else did.

Oh and if you don’t have Sky then whilst looking for the trailer I found the full-length doc is actually on YouTube. (Probably illegally but hey, if you’re going to argue about whether something is legal or not this is the documentary to do it over.)

I have of course also been enjoying The Olympics with my favourite moments being the floor routines from Team USA’s gymnastics superwomen…

And then anything at all that that involves the O’Donovan brothers…

Then this afternoon, just before hitting publish on this, I’ve enjoyed watching Bailly being a don and Zlatan’s BPL debut. God, I’m so pleased football is back.

Let’s skip over the fact I’ve also watched a tonne of CBB this week and am genuinely considering watching Ex on the Beach when it returns, solely for more Bear. I am ashamed.

I’ve visited…

I went to Regent’s Park on Friday evening to catch the last few glorious hours of sunshine with my best friend Katie. I forget how pretty Regent’s Park is but it’s near enough perfect, especially when you’re lying on a blanket under a tree full of squawky parakeets. I forgot to take pictures, but I’m sure you can imagine the blue sky and silly parrots.

Not technically a visit as I didn’t leave the house, but *I* had a visit from Sophy Robson on Thursday as she came over to film a video. It was all about Instagram and what we love/hate about the platform, so look out for that next week. Also, how amazing are her nails here? CAN YOU IMAGINE DOING YOUR OWN NAILS THIS WELL?! (And this is after more than a week of wear!)

Then yesterday ST and I drove to Suffolk for a big family BBQ to say goodbye to my cousin Eve before she leaves for a year of volunteering overseas. I would never be brave enough (not to mention selfless enough) to go and do what she’s doing, but I know her talents and kindness will be put to great use and we’ll have her back very soon. So proud of you Eve!

Yep, this cake (from The Linton Kitchen) was as yummy as it looks.

I’ve been listening to…

I heard Love Me Tender on the radio for the first time in ages on Monday and it set me up for the week musically. All of the below songs are long-standing favourites and calm me more than most things can, especially Scarlet Ribbons. I consider myself *exceptionally* lucky to have seen The Browns perform it live in Nashville last year, only a couple of months before Jim Ed Brown passed away. It was beautiful.

I’ve been eating and drinking…

This week has a had a bit of a Greek theme, starting with a lunch “meeting” with Sian on Monday (we were definitely just chatting and eating tzatziki) at King’s Cross restaurant The Greek Larder.

I was thoroughly impressed by my pie and as I have very high pie standards, you can take my recommendation to eat here in good faith. I’ll be going back with ST as soon as possible for dinner, preferably with elasticated trousers as there was so much on the menu I’d like to try. I’ll probably go on a Tuesday, as should you if you’re considering a visit, as they sell their bottles of wine at takeaway prices on Tuesdays. Yep, lovely Greek wine from £8 a bottle. DON’T MIND IF I DO. (Also, I am a big Greek wine fan and want to learn more about this subject. If you’re a Greek wine expert who happens to read this – can you teach me things please?!).

Having enjoyed my first visit to The Greek Larder and realised that it *is* in fact possible to find decent Greek food in London, I was THRILLED when Katie said she’d booked Opso in Marylebone for her birthday dinner on Friday night. It was the best meal I’ve had for the longest time, having probably not had something so yummy since….well, Greece. It deserves its own standalone review post so I’ll write that tomorrow but for now, LOOK AT THAT SAGANAKI! (Update: The review is now up! Here).

I’ve discovered grilled peaches, which are very much worth investigating – especially if combining with oodles of cheese a la this dolcelatte and peach pizza recipe which I blogged earlier this week…

I also remembered this week how much I love adding a hefty heap of chilli flakes to Heinz baked beans for a simple dinner. I haven’t got a photo of this, but just imagine beans on toast with runny poached eggs and then make this imaginary picture spicier. If you’re not adding chilli flakes to baked beans then TRY IT.

This was also the week that I discovered food delivery app Uber Eats and my life changed forever. I don’t live in a great catchment area for Uber Eats, but there are a handful of places that will deliver to me at lunchtime and one of those is Tossed. I’ve had a Tossed delivery via Uber Eats three times this week. No shame.

The below wrap doesn’t look a lot, but it was easily the best wrap I’ve had in a LONG time…

It wasn’t just nice because it was delivered warm and lovely directly to my desk, it was nice because it was JAM PACKED with grilled halloumi, kale & red cabbage, cucumber & mint relish, red onion, houmous, pomegranate, coriander and supergrains. Even the wholewheat wrap itself was lovely. Gah, I can’t stop thinking about this wrap. I am one step away from ordering a skywriting plane to tell the whole of London about it. TRY THIS WRAP IT IS VERY VERY GOOD.

The hot halloumi pot is great too btw, but it’s not quite the wrap…

If you haven’t downloaded Uber Eats yet then you can have a free lunch (well, £10 credit – can be used at dinner too!) by using the code eats-4lxgz. If you use that code you’ll get £10 of free food and I’ll get £10 of free food, so I’ll be buying you lunch and you’ll be buying me lunch – sort of – without either of us having to spend any actual money! THE DREAM. I’m not being paid by Uber to say any of this btw, but if we all get lunch for free then I will GLADLY bang on about it.

Lastly, a little shout-out to Sainsbury’s G&T in a can. Canned G&Ts are a great invention but often don’t taste very nice. Fine for a train picnic, but not ideal if there are other options. That all being said, I picked up the cheapest ones I could find in the Sainsbury’s fridge on Friday to take to Regent’s Park and these £1.50 ones were actually really nice. So how’s that for a great tip eh? ONE POUND FIFTY.

I’ve written…

All sorts! This on a childhood fuelled by bright yellow custard. My thoughts on Instagram Stories. A piece on general Fantasy Football related dread. All the lovely cakes at The Landmark afternoon tea.

Then there’s loads of sartorially inspiring women from throughout the week here. And if you want to shop, there’s my fave grey pieces, 11 pieces to snap up in the sales, a gorgeous edit of wrap dresses and tops and all these MARVELLOUS frilly pieces.

Next week, I’m looking forward to…

Going up to Manchester, finally seeing Tickled, taking a tour of Sipsmith’s gin distillery and more football. I’m always looking forward to more football.

Welcoming back Fantasy Football (and a permanent state of dread)…

August 11, 2016 By Poppy Dinsey Leave a Comment

The Premier League returns this weekend, along with the familiar state of dread which I lovingly throw myself into as a Fantasy Football manager.

Out of every hobby I’ve ever had, playing Fantasy Football is up there as one my all-time favourites. Making “perfume” out of crushed petals on the mean streets of 1993? Nothing on FPL. Dancing to Blu Cantrell in Guildford nightclubs as if my very future depended on it? Fun, but hardly the same as agonising over what order to put your subs in before the clock strikes 11.45am.

But for a game which I absolutely adore, it doesn’t half ruin my life.

“Maybe you should just stop playing it”, came the suggestion from my husband one cold February morning.

“Why? SCARED I’M GONNA KICK YOUR ASS?!” I shouted back. And I would have shouted, because I can’t talk about anything FPL related without speaking at least three times louder than necessary.

“No it’s just you don’t seem to enjoy it. You’re really quite stressed.”

“Well I wouldn’t have to be stressed if my Captain would actually BOTHER TO DO SOMETHING, THE SELFISH OVERPAID GIT!”

Etc etc.

I think what I like most about #FPL is how it’s slowly making me hate myself, my weekends, my favourite players and my marriage.

— Poppy Dinsey (@PoppyD) February 6, 2016

I’m very new to FPL, having only played for the past three seasons. Last season was the first time I kept a sustained interest past Christmas. Maybe real things like “my wedding” had interfered with my ability to obsess in previous years, but last season I gave it everything I had. I still didn’t do very well – only 2025 points – but I came second in my main mini league and beat a couple of know-it-all bloke mates which was more than enough reward for the hours, days and weeks I’d dedicated to reading advice from strangers on the internet. There was one gameweek where I was in the top 5000 of the whole game, I’m still trying to make sure my family understand that I’m not joking about wanting this fact on my gravestone.

I’m hoping I’m not going to repeat so many of my classic mistakes for 16/17. I bought and sold Ander Herrera three times last season just because of some strange maternal instinct, all the while avoiding buying Kane for weeks on end as I watched myself plummet down the league tables. I took far too much guilt into the game, worrying that individual players would receive a formal letter if I dropped them to the bench. If I sold them? I’d have to tell them to their face and give ten reasons why. Sorry lad, it’s just not working out.

Then there was the fact I couldn’t stomach the idea of having Liverpool players in my team. It wasn’t until the very end of the season that I realised that maybe, just maybe, having Coutinho wouldn’t kill me. Obviously Klopp benched him as soon as he was in my team.

I’ve realised I need to be more ruthless with friends and family this season too. Whenever I’d see a last minute injury update on Twitter I’d “do the decent thing” and pass on the news to fellow owners. Why was I doing that? WHY WAS I BEING SO NICE? This season, pals, you can do your own 4am Twitter stalking and make your own mistakes. I’ll suppress that smile as you transfer in somebody I’m 98% sure is being rested after international duty. I’ll let my husband miss the occasional Friday team deadline. You didn’t realise there was a double game week coming up? Your problem.

I’m going to try to be less rash in general too. I don’t need to make transfers mid-game because I’m furious/elated/drunk. I can wait til midweek. I am an adult who should be able to display some degree of control over their impulses.

Perhaps just “generally concentrating” would help me as well, so that I don’t repeat silly mistakes like buying the wrong Ayew brother. Villa’s relegation will prevent that particular scenario from re-appearing, but Gray vs Gray is a disaster waiting to happen.

As much as the whole thing stresses me out to the point of anxiety, I don’t think I could love FPL more. Every weekend is jam packed full of excitement, EVERY game matters. It’s not just about avoiding making plans that might clash with United, I’m avoiding weekend plans left right and centre because who knows? Maybe one of my subs will have to start and yes actually, I really would rather watch Bournemouth than be “outside”.

Perhaps it’s some form of Stockholm Syndrome, but I think I’ve genuinely fallen in love with Jeff Stelling. Just seeing the ads for Soccer Saturday’s return has sent me giddy. I went to see Watford play a pre-season friendly at QPR a couple of weeks ago just so I could see two of my team staples – Deeney and Ighalo – in the flesh. It was embarrassing how exciting I found the whole thing, whilst also a relief to watch them play without the crushing torture of worrying how many points they’d bring me. Watford lost 2-0.

I don’t have high hopes for my FPL performance this season as I find it easier to carry around a familiar sense of disappointment than to get distracted by potential glory, but I do want to better my overall rank and I really desperately want to beat my husband.

Over the next 48 hours I suspect I’ll change my Captain choice at least 400 times. I’m not confident with my squad selection, but I can’t look at it anymore because it’s making me feel sick.

Hurry up Saturday, I’m not sure I can wait a second longer.

Wanna join my league? Click here or the code is 934694-248410. There’s no prize, but we can torture each other on Twitter.

The week that was…Sunken Cities, disco beats and Scientology

August 7, 2016 By Poppy Dinsey 6 Comments

I’m going to try and bring back these diary-style weekly round-up posts because I’ve missed them and they’re fun to write. So if you’ve been wondering what I’ve been watching/listening to/stuffing in my gob…you’re in luck!

Let’s get on with it 🙂

This week I’ve been watching…

I’ve been out a lot this week so my telly consumption hasn’t been anywhere near the dizzying heights of usual, but I did make time yesterday to watch Sky Atlantic’s Going Clear: Scientology and The Prison of Belief. This Emmy Award nominated doc is very much worthy of your time, even if you think you know everything there is to know about Scientology and its crooked ways. I was moved to tears more than once and it’s a gorgeously paced film, being insightful and revelatory without being overly salacious or sensational. The story of Scientology is sensational enough on its own, it doesn’t need to be made “more” dramatic. This is a brilliant documentary and it’s on Sky On Demand.

I’m ashamed to say I’ve also become a bit hooked on CBB. I’m fascinated by what a complete nob Bear seems to be (it’s making me wish I’d watched Ex on the Beach) and I think I fancy Lewis a bit (PLEASE DON’T JUDGE ME) and it’s all just very easy half-asleep-in-bed viewing, isn’t it?

I’ve visited…

I joined my Mum at the Sunken Cities exhibition at the British Museum on Thursday afternoon. If you’re not familiar with the exhibition (I wasn’t) then basically it’s about the history and culture of two lost cities of ancient Egypt that were recently rediscovered. These cities have been submerged under the sea for over a thousand years, but have now started to be excavated by archaeologists and – miraculously – everything from perfectly preserved gold jewellery to colossal statues have been discovered and transported to London. It’s just staggering to see these items on display knowing they’ve come from the sea floor, especially once you realise that only around 3% of the spoils of these sunken cities have been excavated so far.

I’ve been to Luxor and have a very vague knowledge of Ancient Egyptian religion, but this exhibition really brought the beliefs and practices to life. It was so well curated and if you do go, the audio guide is worth paying a bit extra for to ensure you really understand what you’re looking at. You don’t “need” the audio guide, but when it’s busy and people are standing in front of the descriptions of things it definitely helps and offers added insights.

I’ve been listening to…

It’s been a bit of a disco-esque week for me, with these three MASSIVE BANGERS frequenting my headphones the most. If you’ve seen someone suppressing an intense urge to boogie on the Central Line this past week, it’s probably been me.

I’ve been eating and drinking…

The best thing I ate this week was probably last night’s kimchi pancake and tofu bibimbap at Beni Shoga in Imperial Wharf. I only discovered the joys of bibimbap at the end of last year but I am a woman converted. Scraping away the crispy rice from the bottom of the dolsot has to be one of the most rewarding food experiences there is, so much so that I’d place it above the satisfaction of cracking the sugary top of a créme brûlée. I can’t pretend to be particularly familiar with Korean food, but anything which involves rice, chilli sauce and raw egg is always going to win me over.

I tried Honest Burgers for the first time this week, visiting the Bank branch on Tuesday. It was good, but I’d presumed it would be the best veggie burger of my life and was then disappointed when it wasn’t. (That crown is still held by Fulham’s Chosen Bun). The Honest Burger veggie option is a vegetable fritter made with sweetcorn, cauliflower, tomato and shallots and – like all their burgers – actually comes with chips! HOW TERRIBLY OLD FASHIONED. I was surprised by how impressed I was about the inclusive chips. The meal was cheaper than a comparable meal at GBK or Byron, but I do have a soft spot for GBK and as a veggie I’d probably choose GBK over Honest. Does that make me really uncool?

After Sunken Cities, I went to The Landmark London for afternoon tea with my mum. I will post a proper review next week (DONE: here), but as you’ll probably be able to tell from this pic it was VERY NICE INDEED…

Booze-wise I’ve only tried one new tipple this week and that was the new small batch gin from Bill’s…

We had it as part of our Olympicnic on Friday night (ST would like me to point out that “olympicnic” is his pun, not mine) and it’s worryingly drinkable. We drank it with elderflower pressé, then an apple pressé (anybody who shuns gin and juice is just an idiot) before moving on to humble G&Ts. It’s a really nice juniper-y gin.

We ate at Bill’s for breakfast today too actually, so it’s been a bit of a Bill’s-fest.

Can more breakfast options come with hummus and sweet chilli sauce plz?

I’ve also gotten back on the popcorn wagon (argggggggh) thanks to a special offer I spied in Sainsbury’s. I bought more multipacks of Sunbites Sweet & Salty than any sane adult should and they’re my 3pm BFF.

Last but not least, I remembered how much I love the Cacao Orange Bounce Balls this week. I’ve blogged about my love for Bounce before but bloody hell, the Cacao Orange is such a fantastic choice. Like a healthy Terry’s chocolate orange – but BETTER.

I’ve written…

I haven’t blogged much on here at all this week (well, except for this extremely important edit of vases for under £40) but I’ve been sharing my favourite outfits from Instagram every day over on WIWT. I’ve also written about shirts and shoes. There’s been some freelance pieces too, but I’ll shout about those once they’ve been published.

Next week, I’m looking forward to…

Having lunch at Greek Larder, my best mate’s birthday, heading to Suffolk for a family party and THE PREMIER LEAGUE BEING BACK.