Fun Friday Links

I thought time would go a bit slower now that I'm on maternity leave, but I've been so busy that the weeks are flying by. My due date is now two weeks away and I'm trying to do a lot of things I know I won't have time to do for a while once the baby is born (or NEVER AGAIN if some people are to be believed - did you know that once you have a baby you'll never be able to get a manicure/pedicure/hair cut/read a book/etc EVER AGAIN? It's chilling, I tell you).

Anyway, I have had time to find a few fun links, because what's a Friday if you don't have something online to procrastinate with?

- This is just silly fun, but as a Friends fan I had to include it - a Tumblr dedicated to Chandler Bing dancing on things.

- Have a look at these photos and read the interview with the photographer who photographs a vision impaired school's prom each year. If you don't get a bit emotional while reading it, then you are DEAD INSIDE.

- Mad Men is back, yay! So we can expect to see it on Australian free to air TV in about two years, I guess? Hopefully not. But in the meantime, have a look at this list of Los Angeles filming locations used by the show to look like New York in the 60s.

- So many celebs have Twitter accounts these days, so you have to wonder how often they check to see who's talking about them. Jimmy Kimmel not only makes them check, but he makes them read out the mean Tweets people are writing about them. Hilarious.

Happy weekend everyone! Seen anything else cool online? Let me know in the comments!

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Adventures in Cooking - Macarons

I have been wanting to try baking macarons for aaaages, mostly because of all the ones I've tried from shops have been nice, but too sweet to enjoy completely. So I found this recipe on Taste and decided it seemed simple enough to try myself. I didn't photograph the process because I wasn't sure they would work, so I didn't want to photograph all of it only to not be able to post them in case the macarons ended up in the bin.

Anyway, I tried them and they worked! It's a miracle!

I was nervous because I've never really baked anything that involved vigorous egg white beating, but I took my time, followed the recipe and everything went smoothly!

They're not as pink as I would have liked, mostly because I didn't want to overdose the mixture with pink food colouring so I erred on the side of less is more, and the filling, though nice, felt like it could be a lot lighter (the white chocolate and cream is quite dense, although not too overwhelmingly sweet). I think the secret to getting macarons right is beating the egg whites until they really do form stiff peaks, and piping them onto the tray properly. Although I couldn't seem to get some of them not to have the little kick of the piping bag on top of them.

I also think I probably should have baked them on a lower temperature for about another five minutes, because they are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside as they should be, but they collapse a bit too easily once you bite into them (or hold them too firmly), but other than that they're really nice. Not too sweet, not too almond-y (I hate really, really almond-y flavoured things.

I'm quite pleased with my efforts!

I'd like to try using hazelnut meal next time and do a choc hazelnut macaron and photograph the process, so we'll see if I have time to do that before the bub arrives.

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Monday Morning Melody - Xavier Rudd

I heard Xavier Rudd's Follow The Sun a few weeks ago and forgot about it. Then I heard it again last week and remembered how lovely it is.

The melody is nice, but there's something about his voice and the lyrics that serve as a nice reminder to slow down and just take things as they come.

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Fun Friday Links

So it's Winter now? Or is it? Melbourne clearly has no idea, because the weather this week has been all over the shop. I kind of love it. Except when I've just hung washing out and it suddenly starts POURING and then I get totally FURIOUS.

But enough weather chat. Let's look at some links, sha ll we?

- First of all, I made a pretty big announcement yesterday - did you see it?

- Les Chats Ninjas! (Translation: The Ninja Cats). They are the most discreet spies in the world. Trust me.

- Animals with British accents. There's nothing else really to say. Mostly because I'm laughing too much at the gorilla farting.

- Barack Obama is a cool dude. Read this and watch the short video.

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Crafty Lady - A Patchwork Quilt. And an Announcement.

I've been busy lately. Busier than I've ever been in my life, I think. Which is why for the past few months this blog has been a bit patchy with entries.

One of the things I've been busy with is patchwork quilting classes. It's something I've wanted to do for a while, and knowing the basics of sewing I wanted to learn more skills to create quilts for various things.

I finished my first quilt this week - what do you think?

This is a baby quilt, intended for a newborn to lie and play on when on the floor, and when it's a bit bigger it can be a bit of a comfort quilt for the bed or the couch.

The retro bird fabric was the first fabric that I chose, then I selected the other fabrics to compliment it. Retro animal prints seemed to become an unintentional theme,with green and orange featuring heavily in the bordering fabrics. I've already chosen my next quilt pattern - this time it will be a quilt for my husband's and my bedroom, so I've definitely caught the patchwork bug! I've been having lessons here, and I can't recommend them enough. The fabric is fantastic, the staff are helpful and it's just a lovely environment to sew my first baby quilt in!

Which leads on to my Announcement. That's right, an Announcement with a capital 'A'.....

Here at Chez Boredom Abounds we are expecting a baby! Our first baby, to be specific! And it's due in just three weeks. 

THREE WEEKS, PEOPLE.

Which is why there have been weeks where posting has been very light - I've had a great pregnancy, and while I was exhausted in the first three or four months, I didn't suffer morning sickness (nausea and extreme food aversions, yes. But official morning sickness? No, thank goodness). But the since Christmas things have been a bit manic, and I was unwell enough in February to have a few days in the hospital for some anti-biotics and rest. Now I'm on maternity leave and enjoying nesting, relaxing and anticipating the arrival of our baby.

I don't often reveal much of my personal life here, because that's not what this blog is about. I'm not a mummy blogger and I don't intend to become one, because there are a lot of great parenting and mummy bloggers out there, so I'll let them keep doing their thing! I hope this blog can remain an entertainment/lifestyle blog, and while we will announce the baby's birth, I'll continue to keep the focus of Boredom Abounds By Julia on books, movies, TV and other stuff. Other stuff may occasionally include baby related stuff, but my husband and I will try to keep our personal lives private.

Still, I wanted to announce our exciting news because all of my readers are so important to me, and also because if I disappear at strange intervals it's because my attention will be focused on bonding with the bub. And also trying not to lose my mind from sleep deprivation! As always, I thank you for your continued support of Boredom Abounds By Julia and I hope you keep reading!

So, that's my news. How you doin?

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Retail Therapy - Quirky Jewellery

A couple of months ago I was randomly browsing a jewellery sale on ozsale.com.au and these three items grabbed my attention.

The earrings are cute for casual outfits, and the necklace is just something a bit quirky and different - I love how the chain of the necklace has little silver joins throughout that sparkle a bit. Makes it more interesting than your usual plain silver chain.

This jewellery is all from Fleur Envy.

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Monday Morning Melody - Rebecca Ferguson

I've heard this a few times in the past week and only found out yesterday that Ms. Ferguson is a UK X Factor contestant. She has a gorgeously bluesy voice, so this track is really worth a listen.

Lovely, no?

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Fun Friday Links

My cold has finally, finally started to go away, thank goodness. Kleenex should make me a key stakeholder with the amount of money I've spent on bloody tissues this past ten days.

Anyway, let's move on to more exciting things. Here are this week's links!

- So often you hear about bad customer service stories. But over at Mental Floss, they've got 11 of the best customer service stories, and they're lovely to read.

- Baby red pandas playing in the snow! This will make your day one thousand times more bearable, I promise.

- Via the Fug Girls, you have to check out these 20 amazing hotel rooms. The treehouse one looks really, really relaxing. Some of the others....not so much. I suspect they would make me feel a tad psychotic.

- I don't have a cat, but these hilarious cat sleeping positions kind of make me wish I did, just so I could take photos of it sleeping and make amusing cat macros. Because the world just doesn't have enough cat macros.

Happy weekend everyone!~

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Glee Highlights - Season 3, Episode 13: Heart

One thing I love about Glee's seasonal episodes is that they really commit to the theme - the sets, the costumes, I love it.

This episode was okay in my book. A few mediocre moments, but mostly enjoyable. So, let's get stuck into the highlights!

Rachel's Dads

I love that we finally met Rachel's dads. And that "honesty, respect, dance" are the foundations of the Berry family!

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Monday Morning Melody - Jason Mraz

Jason Mraz has a new song out. It is lovely.

There's not really much else to say (except that I think he should cut his hair). He just writes really, really lovely songs. You can see him sing it live on Ellen here.

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Fun Friday Links

I am in the throws of the head cold will NOT GO AWAY. Day five, people. Day FIVE.

So anyway, let's look at some links to distract ourselves from the mucus fest that is my life right now.

Sorry - that was an overshare. Oh, well.

- First of all, Happy International Women's Day!

- Is this the GREATEST letter ever written to a weather man? Hint: it contains the sentence "you're more awesome than a monkey wearing a tuxedo made out of bacon", so yeah, it basically is.

- This is a couple of weeks old, but if you grew up in the 90s, please check out these 48 pictures that perfectly capture the totally rad decade that was the 90s. If you do nothing else today, please look at picture 34 to remember how ugly the internet used to look.

Okay, that's it for this week. I need to recover from looking at all the happy pants in those 90s pics. And maybe blow my nose for the one BILLIONTH TIME.

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Glee Highlights post - Episodes 10, 11 and 12!

So, so behind with Glee. I've been watching, but just haven't had the time to update my blog. So tragic.

But the upside to this is that you get a bumper highlights post! So let's get started, shall we?

Episode 10: Yes/No

Mercedes and Sam's Ode to Grease

Apparently they filmed this at the school that was used in Grease as Rydell High. It was a cute homage to Grease, but I think it was kind of out of context.

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Oscars 2012 Fashion Hits and Misses

Well. After lacklustre fashion at the Golden Globes, I am quite pleased with the range of colour and style on the red carpet. Which is obviously why they have the Oscars: to please me, of course.

So. Let's check out the fashion!

But first please enjoy Jean Dujardin making a funny face.

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Monday Morning Melody - The Crystals

This is probably my all time favourite song from the sixties. It's everything great about girl groups, about young love and about meeting the man of your dreams.

Blogging will resume as normal this week - I've been hella busy, sick and just worn out. I have almost finished my Oscars fashion post, and there should be another mammoth Glee post just as soon as I watch last week's ep.

My life, it is crazy.

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