black, white and read.

books, baking and other bits and bobs.

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When it comes to bags I am totally a size queen. This is perfection.

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HUFFLEPUFF AND PROUD

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Why I recommend 'How to Be a Woman' by Caitlin Moran to everyone

1. I am reading.

I got the book yesterday and in less than 24 hours I have read it all. Now, that was not an achievement for 2010 Lucy, or any previous year Lucy, all of whom could read like it was going out of fashion, but 2011 Lucy has been disgustingly lazy on the literary front. But this book has made me read as if reading was a pair of harem pants (which tbh should never have been in fashion in the first place). On the train I even managed to ignore my usual hobbies of discretely listening to other people's conversations or analysing them and imagining their shopping list and instead I read. Perhaps the reason 2011 Lucy is so bad at reading is because she's so nosy. This book is just so well-written and witty and true that I had to read it. 

2. I am (almost) at peace with hair.

I have waged war on my hair for years. Not just head hair, although that too has been a casualty, but all hair. Even the hair that grows on my toes, that blonde, barely there hair that no one apart from me can see, even that hair has taken a beating, or more accurately, a waxing. Recently, the madness has subsided a little and my toes haven't been attacked in almost a year, but this book has encouraged me to sign a Treaty with all of my hair. I'm not saying I want to let it all grow wild and never tame it at all, just that if it's there, it's there and that's okay. And if a book can inspire me to think that after years of bombarding my body with razors and creams and wax strips and tweezers, then that's a pretty amazing book.

3. I am a feminist.

So here is the quick way of working out if you're a feminist. Put your hand in your pants.  a) Do you have a vagina? and b) Do you want to be in charge of it? If you said 'yes' to both, then congratulations! You're a feminist. (pp. 79 - 80).

I've known I am a feminist for quite some time. I've read Bulter and Faludi and Kristeva and Greer. I like Madonna and wearing jeans and equal pay and voting and generally doing what I want. But sometimes I forget that I'm a feminist. In between all the general day-to-day stuff sometimes I just forget but this book reminded me and reinforced my ideas and that's something that not every book can do. 

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Reasons Why I Love Summer #1: fruity ciders.

I find the weather influences what I drink. Winter brings the uncorking of a bottle of red wine whilst Summer means fruity ciders. Over the last few weeks I have been slowly sampling the different flavours on offer. Some are better than others but all signal the start of beer gardens, BBQs and most importantly, warm weather. 

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Yesterday we had a Doctor Who themed party! Between us we dressed as Tom Baker, Peter Davison and Matt Smith varieties of the Doctor, a Roger Delgado variety of the Master and a handful of daleks. 

I baked this TARDIS cake for the occasion, and Shaun expertly made these daleks out of doughnuts. 

The actual episode was brilliant. Apparently it had really bad ratings (only 6.5 million viewers) but I put that down to the fact it had River in it. Apart from her, I loved it. It seemed to be much more plot based than usual, with less 'pow-pows' and 'booms' and 'bangs' and more 'hmmms' and 'hows' and 'i wonders' which I think is a good thing. The doctor is meant to be this awe-inspiring genius who leaves everyone around him struggling to keep up and this episode really did that. I wasn't impressed by the BBC's prop department or their SFX, although 'wow' at those aliens, but I was impressed by how it made me genuinely confused and desperate to know more. 

We also played Doctor Who: The Time Wars board game. The setup seems quite easy - you role two dice and move around a board answering trivia questions to help you collect different enemy cards until you have enough then you head for your finishing time zone and Bob's your uncle. But it is the trivia questions that throw a sonic screwdriver in the works. They are super hard. That is not just an excuse because I lost. Honest. 

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Barry M Instant Nail Effects over Rimmel Lasting Finish 260 Green Grass. 

Adore it. 

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These are my Easter cupcakes. I followed the recipe from 1001 Cupcakes, Cookies and other tempting treats, which in my opinion has some of the best recipes. They always turn out really moist and always rise perfectly. 

It is set out in a really good way too. For example there is a recipe for iced fairy cakes, then little notes which give you variants and they tell you what to add or leave out. So from one basic recipe you can make orange/lemon/chocolate/coffee/mocha/almond and nutty fairy cakes. 

I used the lemon variation of the fairy cake, by adding grated lemon rind to the cake mixture, and fresh lemon juice to the buttercream. 

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Actual Children’s Answers to The Question “What Is Love?” “Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.” - Chrissy, age 6  “Love is what makes you smile when you’re tired.” - Terri, age 4 “Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.” - Danny, age 7 “Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss.” - Emily, age 8 “Love is what’s in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.” - Bobby, age 7 “If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate,” - Nikka, age 6 “Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday.” - Noelle, age 7 “Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.” - Tommy, age 6 “During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was the only one doing that. I wasn’t scared anymore.” - Cindy, age 8 “My mommy loves me more than anybody. You don’t see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.” - Clare, age 6 “Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.” - Elaine, age 5 “Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Brad Pitt.” - Chris, age 7 “Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.” - Mary Ann, age 4 “I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.” - Lauren, age 4 “When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn’t bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That’s love.” - Rebecca, age 8 “When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.” - Karen, age 7 “You really shouldn’t say ‘I love you’ unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.” - Jessica, age 8

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It just made me smile.

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Elections for Student Council begin on Thursday 24th March at EHU. All students will be sent a link so they can vote online any time in between Thursday and the 31st. 

Question Time is on Wednesday 23rd (tomorrow) at 2pm in Hale Hall which lets anyone put questions to the candidates about what they would do if they were elected.

Kashka Georgeson (aka Pip) is running for Council Chair. I personally think she would be the bee's knees and would encourage everyone to seriously consider her when voting. 

For more info on Kashka, check out her facebook group:

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_170142109701914&ap=1

Or read her manifesto (along with all other candidates') on the SU website:

http://www.edgehillsu.com/elections

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I normally like to use locally sourced honey but I thought I would give Manuka honey a try. It is from New Zealand where beekeepers set up their hives in wild uncultivated areas in which Manuka bushes grow. The bees gather nectar from the flowers of the Manuka bush which is indigenous only to New Zealand. It tastes really good and also has therapeutic uses because it has antibacterial properties and can help with the digestive system. It is normally quite expensive so I would not usually try it but Hollands and Barretts has an amazing sale. 

The Penny Sale is a temporary sale which lets you buy one thing from the range and a second for a penny. There is a lot in the sale so you can buy two totally different things and get the cheapest for a penny. Amazing!

I also got some nettle tea. I have only ever really drank chamomile, peppermint and generic fruit teas but I never tried nettle tea before, so I thought I would give it a go. It apparently is really good for hayfever and asthma and I am always willing to try new remedies, especially now the pollen is going to get worse. 

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Saturday 26th March is Purple Day. It is a day 'dedicated to increasing awareness about epilepsy worldwide. On March 26th annually, people in countries around the world are invited to wear purple and host events in support of epilepsy awareness'.

Tomorrow Sarah and I are holding a bake sale selling purple cakes and all the money raised will go to Epilepsy Action charity. It will take place in The Street at EHU (the corridor outside the SU). Please come along and buy a cake and help us raise money and awareness for this good cause. 

http://www.purpleday.org/

http://www.epilepsy.org.uk/

The cakes are just regular sponge with a mixture of glace icing and buttercream icing in a variation of different pinks and purples with glitters and chocolate shavings on top. 

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This is my Mrs Whippy Ballistic bath bomb from Lush. It is one of my favourite bath bombs so far because of what it does to the water.

  The lighting is not very good in my bathroom (because I do not actually have a working light in there) but I hope you can tell that my bath water was bright pink! It also had this wonderful strawberry smell and the water is sort of silky because of the soya milk in it. It is brilliant for a girly soak and I came out feeling like a princess or a ballerina or an angel or some other generic feminine representation associated with the colour pink. 

http://www.lush.co.uk/shop/product/product/path/143_145/id/1074/bath-ballistics-mrs-whippy

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Today I went to Ikea. This is my first ever experience of the food they sell there: meatball and chips, Daim cake and Lingonberry pop. I must say they were really good and I'm currently looking for a recipe for Daim cake so if anyone has one, let me know :)

I also bought a new lamp, a throw and some cups, bowls and plates. I would have bought much more but my good shoulder angel kept saying "Do you really need that?" and my bank balance is very grateful for him, even if I was a little resentful at the time. 

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International Women's Day and Pancake Day!

Today is International Women's Day. It is an annual global celebration of women and of the economic, political and social achievements of women. Today is the 100th one so it is even more special than usual! There are lots of events going on today and over the next week (find local ones via the link below). Even if you don't attend an event, it is worth remembering all the successes women have achieved and considering those that still need to be achieved. 

I decided to incorporate IWD with today's other event: pancake day. This is my result:

I used a regular pancake recipe (such as Delia's http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/basicpancakeswithsuga_66226) and decorated it with fruits and sweets in the shape of the female reproductive organs. Some may say it is crude but I like it. 

My friend Sarah made these slightly less vulgar nipples:

My flatmate Emma made this not-at-all-vulgar-and-actually-quite-lovely heart:

More information: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/international-womens-day  

Here are the events happening in Liverpool: http://www.internationalwomensday.com/search.asp?page=1&country=221&town=Liverpool