Crush ‘n Brunch

I have a new celebrity crush – Nathan Fillion…

You see, Elizabeth got me totally hooked on a TV series called Castle in which the gorgeous (or as one of his scripts says “ruggedly handsome) Mr Fillion portrays the lead role of Richard Castle, a mystery writer who ends up helping the police solve homicides, based on what he would write in his novels.  What I also enjoy is that in some episodes he plays poker with some of my favourite real-life authors, like James Patterson and Michael Connelly.  I don’t know what I am going to do when I have no more episodes to watch (eek!)

On other news – Mom and I seldom get to spend some quality time alone, so I thought I would treat her to brunch this past Saturday.

We went to a place in one of the little villages close by.  The place is called Die Ou Pastorie (translated, The Old Manse).  The house used to be home to the Dutch Reformed Minister, but is now privately owned by a local family, who live upstairs, while downstairs has been converted into a homely shop with all sorts of interesting things to buy, from homemade jams, to rusks, to secondhand clothing, to new clothing, to chunky, arty jewellery.  The place is a gem!

We sat in the garden…

 

 … where we had the creamiest cappuccinos and breakfasts with a difference.  Mom opted for vetkoek (a doughy breadroll-like South African dish) which was served with savoury mince, Marmite, cheese, homemade jam and real farm butter. 

Wanting something out of the ordinary, I ordered an African breakfast and well, it was amazing!  It consists of stiff African maize porridge, topped with two perfectly fried eggs, which are smothered in white sauce which in turn is sprinkled with beef biltong (jerky).  I loved the way it was presented – on a leopard print plate, complete with a porcupine quill to finish it off.  I also had a fresh farm roll with homemade jam. 

Onto more other news…  Work as I’m sure you have gathered, is keeping me incredibly busy.  But I’m not complaining.  In fact, I am loving my job!  I was told at my interview that stress levels can be high sometimes, particularly during month-end.  I have been through two month ends already, and I can honestly say that on my side, they have been virtually stress free (early days, I know, but still, it’s a good start).

I am anxiously awaiting the results of my 6^th novel-writing assignment.  I neglected my writing for quite some time because every time that I would open a clean word processing document, the blank white page would taunt me – so much so that I couldn’t get a word typed down.  Hopefully the dry spell is over now.

Anyhow, I best get some work done – before I get caught loafing. 

See you on the flip-side!