upDate & romanTic views...

long time no see, am I right?

after a troublesome, nerve racking computer issues, I just decided to make my post on another computer until my main one is off its blues...

 

so, much has happened!

I turned 25, and had a couple of lovely parties, I went trift shopping, had romantic dinners with my sweetest, saw expositions, and changed dramatically my hair color.

now the trouble is:

how to put you guys up to date with all of this?

 

I'm foreseeing an intense blogging spree...

wich is also a good change of air, since I've been studying like crazy these last days (and still am) so, I guess these blogging sprees will be my coffee break from the horrors of spanish book's analisis, fonetics & morphology projects, and syntaxe tests...!

 

***

 

let us be as chronologically has we can, so... my valentines dinner with my dearest:

 

because we are poor translation students we often work out the best deals possible, and for our romantic dinner we bought a voucher especially for the occasion, wich allowed us to enjoy a really expensive dinner for about 12€ each, drinks not included.

 

 

we went to a quaint little restaurant that served the best portuguese delicacies and I just fell in love with place, the decor and dimmed lighting...

 

 

these were the starters:

boiled quail eggs, raw cod fish with chikpea, octopus salad, goat cheese in olive oil, dry-cured black boar ham, cow cheese slices, black olives, and bread from Alentejo (portuguese region)

 

kind of makes me proud of being portuguese when I look back at these delicious dishes.

at least we have good food.

carrying on...

 

 

 this was part of our main course:

pataniscas de bacalhau (deep fried battered cod fish), peixinhos da horta (deep fried battered bell peppers), sauteed mushrooms, and an assortment of farinheiras (potuguese smoked sausage) and choriços (portuguese pork sausage, fermented or grilled).

 

to more on these delicious foods, wikipedia has a fair to decent descriptions available.

 

 

 after that we went to my dearest's house where we had more wine, with ice cream and watched some horror movies.

the perfect romantic evening.

 

I know this is extremely late but...

happy valentines day to all the ghouls out here!

 

xoxo

 

 

special Thanks and special Books

oh my... 

I really need to make a new video for my youtube channel.

to all the new subscribers I'd like to give a BIG thank you, for the kind words and happy thoughts, you guys know I'm always here to give you an answer for your questions (it might take a while, but I'll do it) and be sure that more videos are coming!

so... THANKS, YOU GUYS ROCK!

and now... books!

 *I know, my face shows my tiredness...*

"Ritos e Mistérios Secretos do Wicca" it's a book that shows the wicca neo pagan religion in an historical and anthropological view, with an introduction to the rites, philosophy and such. it's a very interesting book actually.

*I think this one is self explanatory heehee*

my boyfriend is a very intellectual man trapped in the body of a drunkard.

just kidding!

we just love booze and books.

Furry Corpsie

yesterday I had a present expecting me on my email inbox..!

my beautiful lover has given me a present; my own Furry.

 *to get a commission done from my boyfriend please go to:*

http://lusoskav.deviantart.com/

we talked about it, and he finally found time to do mine.
he does this type of work and much more elaborated scenarios as commissioned by his clients.
and I can tell you, that he does everything you can come up with.
everything.

my cute little alter ego has elements of an arctic fox, an okapi and some goat/deer type animals.
so here's some inspiration:

the Okapi

 "The name "okapi" is a portmanteau of two Lese words, oka, a verb meaning to cut and kpi, a noun referring to the design made on Efé arrows by wrapping the arrow with bark so as to leave stripes when scorched by fire. The stripes on the legs of the okapi resemble these stripes on the arrow shafts. Lese legend says the okapi decorates itself with these stripes, adding to the okapi's great camouflage."
- Wikipedia

the Arctic fox

 "The arctic fox has a circumpolar range, meaning that it is found throughout the entire Arctic, including the outer edges of Greenland, Russia, Canada, Alaska, and Svalbard, as well as in Subarctic and alpine areas, such as Iceland and mainland alpine Scandinavia. The conservation status of the species is good, except for the Scandinavian mainland population. It is acutely endangered there, despite decades of legal protection from hunting and persecution. The total population estimate in all of Norway, Sweden and Finland is a mere 120 adult individuals."
-Wikipedia 

the deer alike




"The word "deer" was originally broad in meaning, but became more specific over time. In Middle English der (Old English dēor) meant a wild animal of any kind. This was as opposed to cattle, which then meant any sort of domestic livestock that was easy to collect and remove from the land, from the idea of personal-property ownership (rather than real estate property) and related to modern chattel (property) and capital.^[1] Cognates of Old English dēor in other dead Germanic languages have the general sense of "animal", such as Old High German tior, Old Norse djur or dȳr, Gothic dius, Old Saxon dier, and Old Frisian diar."
-Wikipedia
 
gorgeous animals, mixed with fantastical imagination... it can only go right. <3

the Folly times Came...

before the photoshoot I had to grievously watch what I was eating.

but after the photoshoot...?

well...

 *It's Munchies Time!!*

my lover took me to an amazing restaurant with several styles of Asian foods.

and this was only the Japanese area.

the place was incredible, really. it had a very real oriental feel to it, super calm and with the perfect marriage of the old Asia and modern decoration styles.

one of my favorite details was that the waiters and cooks were all in costume, I'm so sad I completely spaced out on taking a picture with them...

it certainly had a steady clientele, and mostly you could see were business men and women. and as every properly mentally developed person, they did not give us one single look of disdain.

and believe me... in my country that is seldom. 

I swear to you I ate so much my stomach engorged out of my ribs and I felt the happiness and glow of a pregnant woman...!

except I was pregnant with Asian food.

*Yummy things make my Belly smile* 

yes, and ice cream.

and wine too, actually.

what happened next?

this happened.

all over my body.

35 minutes of the hardest workout of my life.

and if you ask me if it was worth it, I'll have to say: Yes!

I had an amazing, romantic time with the person I love the most in my life, in this gorgeous restaurant with Asian mouthwatering delicacies.

I think I've come to the conclusion that you can really have your cake and eat it too.

you just have to workout after it.

see ya soon my dearies!

Remember the year Past...

It is now a quarter past 6 a.m. and my sleepy eyes are having trouble keeping closed.

so what did I decide? 

to take a trip down memory lane with this past year...

 and try and find some resolutions for this brand new year. we all know new year's resolutions are usually made before the end of the year, but what's important is that it comes at a right time for you.

in no particular order:

let us take a peek at 2012...!

*Skav, Pookie and Me at our University campus*

2012 was my second semester of my first year of university. I felt I was finally doing something very productive and it really opened doors for other wonderful aspects of life like having new experiences and making friends, as you can see!

these two made me laugh throughout the year, still missing some very important people here...

*Me, Suspy and Anna at Piccadilly Circus *

crossed a wish on my bucket list: visit England!

while I was there I did much "bed hopping" on my girlfriends' houses. first at my suspy uncle's house in Kingston, then in London with Suspy's friend Anna, after that in Peterborough at my friend Maria's boyfriend shared house, then back to Kingston.

uff.

I had the enhanced opportunity to visit England with people that were or lived there, therefore I'm quite secure of myself that I saw a few things for someone that was just there for 11 days...

   *Mother's idea of Gothic Cakes, still Adorable*

Turned 24... feels more like 104.

still, it was a nice age. which I am almost about to lose. 

I thought I had 6 months to go. what happened is that this count was from 3 months ago...

 *They're going to rip my face off, I know it*

Went to the Lisbon Zoo for the second time in my life since my childhood, it was a joyous day, I assure you. my dear suspy accompanied me, as she could no longer listen to my incessant rants on wanting to see a real life Okapi. my most adored animal in the African wild.

sadly because it was very early in the year the okapis had to be kept inside, which sort of defeated the whole purpose of going but I had a tremendous time!
by the way, this was a real conversation between the guy doing the bird show and me:
 bird guy: "do you guys know how to tell the difference between a girl bird and a boy bird?"
me: "THE COCK??"
bird guy: "errr... no. the bicks."
there were children present. yet another proud moment for Corpsie...

      *hmmm... wine from a Box never tasted So good*

Had my very first experience eating in a clandestine Chinese restaurant. this place seemed all the rage by the way people were talking about it, but it proved to be quite mediocre to be honest.

the "creme de la creme" was the dish we ordered: chicken chop-suey with vegetables and almonds.

they gave us peanuts and peppers.

we stared at each other with an incomprehensible look on our eyes, holding these plastic cups, surrounded by hipsters with a "bad attitude" because they are so "edgy"  breaking the law with forks.

it was worth it just for the laugh of it.

*oh mee gosh... I looked so chubby. must do a before and after post!*

Visited the birthplace of Portugal; Guimarães.

I went with my dearest love, Skav and two friends we made in the Vagos Open Air metal festival. we actually went there not also to see the sights and breathtaking views (as you can see) but also to see other friends we made at that same festival. with was and amazing time and I feel so blessed to have met incredible people like these.

*First day of Vagos Open Air*

went to my second Vagos festival, it was even better than the first, and I'm not just talking about the amazing company I had, it was everything.

this festival will live on in my heart as long as I live.

no matter what, every year this will be a constant in my life, to see old friends and make news, to listen to the amazing bands and headbang the living lights out of my brain.

I love everyone there.

*Sashimi is Good for You*

was finally able to put a stop to my self indulgence and started exercising and started setting some income aside for nutrition appointments. when I arrived there I weighed close to 59kgs.

now I have 54kgs.

the best advise I can give to anyone wanting to lose weight is:

you MUST really want it. 

*started Dating my best friend of 9 months, Skav*

he was and still is my best boy friend.

I love him dearly, and although we sometimes head-bump often, we soon remember one another that the love is always there.

I love to love you Odin Love.

he likes it when I repeat one word incessantly.

*Davey Jones & Sweetpea's 1st litter* 

my beautiful guinea pigs had their first babies, and they came out perfect. all of them found loving houses through a very kind lady that owns a pet store (animal friendly, against puppy mills and that sort of nonsense). she gave me a huge bag of high end food as a token of her appreciation.

*Prom King & Queen and they're assassinated actress*

had an awful good time at a Halloween costume party, my beloved and I went as prom king and queen. I spent hours it seemed on the makeup.

turns out I was only very drunk.

and of course, hanging around with my dear friends...

these were the highlights I think.

I'll have to make a post on funny pictures just because I've been looking for them, so many memories one can easily forget when you're as brain damage as me.

*Sigh*

Occult spells and deep red wine, but all I see is love

Before the Christmas Eve sparkles down upon us, my dear lover Skav and me went shopping for some warm clothing to keep our lovely pale bones protected from the humid cold that prevails in this country.

I ended up buying some lovely things, but that will constitute another post for sure. ;>

We came upon the most adorable book fair on our way to the shopping mall, and I couldn't stop myself from getting my tiny fingers on some occult literature!

these were all rescued, second-had or donated by publishers. I find this wonderful because the thought of giving new love to an old book just fills my heart with glee.

I completely adore the smell of old books.

the touch and feel of it never ceases to please me. the way the pages crackle and the sound they let go among the collected dust of years past... sheer heaven.

I tend to go for the original language; no translations please; and I know how odd that may sound coming from a translations student. but then again most people think the only job translators have is to sit down and convert a text from one language to another, like reading a story and telling it to another person.

this could not be farther from the truth.

 when I come to this blog, I'm not working. 

I'm just having fun.

I have many particular rules on what language to buy books, but if interest rises I won't mind putting up a few bullet points on the subject. ;>

we shopped until dinner time; and might I say, the entire odyssey of taking ones clothes and trying out new ones, while trying to navigate through a multitude of young teenage girls with their daddy's MasterCard, and withstand the furnace of a heat in the dressing rooms, is enough to make one despair and desist on buying a single sock!

*My darling spouse opening his gifts from his truly*
 

if there's one thing my partner knows about me is that, I do love to eat out at a proper restaurant where you can actually sit down, talk and order a bottle of wine.

sometimes we cannot indulge in these wishes, but since we were already there and it was late, we thought it wouldn't hurt to check out the restaurant area of the shopping mall we were in. 

soon enough we came upon this lovely Italian restaurant (which I'd been itching to try for the past weeks) and the lovely lady at the front door was handing out coupons for a free pizza! 

sadly to say I did not take pictures of the place or the deliciousness of the steamy pizzas, has I am still getting used to carry a camera around and the excitement was a little too much...

you will have to settle for this very unforgiving, and oh so unflattering photo of me laughing among a sea of reds and yellows with wine on my smile and love in my face.

*my darling spouse understands my taste for fine dinning!*

I do believe this is it for now my dears, Yule is almost here and there is much work to be done tomorrow, stirring syrup cauldrons, baking gingerdead men and cooking pumpkin pie (for, I now realise, a very Halloween-themed Christmas... hm.)

have a very special Yule with your loved ones,

that is my wish to you.

<3

something sweet, something savoury, on a rainy day

I´ve come down with a nasty bug this weekend.

my boyfriend was sick and I stayed with him at his house to care after him, and for the second time in our relationship, we cant's stop ourselves from sharing love germs.

I'm happy to say my tender love and care nursed him back to health.

so, while he went to the shop to get us some goodies for us to cook dinner, I stayed cozy in the sofa wrapped around a mountain of blankets, with ice on my cheek (yes, my tooth is acting up again...) and warm salt in my chest (I'll explain further) for the cough and pain.

he came home with a bag of groceries and romantic chocolate to bright my gloomy day.

 made me melt like a lollipop on a summer day.

I love you my dearest.

now... the salt in the chest:

when I was in England I became very ill with something very similar to this pesky bug. fortunately my friend's boyfriend was studying to be a doctor, so we quickly knew what ailed me and gave a Lithuanian home remedy called a warm poultice, or a cataplasm as it is also known, made out of regular household items.

this can be used to relieve pain, inflammation and accelerate the process of healing.

Lithuanian Salt Poultice Recipe

1 cozy sock

1 packet of table salt

1 frying pan

1 spoon 

Preparation

pop the salt on the frying pan and stir smoothly with a spoon.

continue doing so, and touch the salt with your finger now and then to see how hot it is.

when it reaches the point where it's too hot to poke it, slide the salt to the sock with the spoon.

secure with a knot in the sock and put it on top of your chest over your clothes.

and relax.

see you soon my dearies,

xoxo