Oriental Shopping.

I'm not quite what to say about today. How shall I put it? Suffice it to say this afternoon did not go according to plan. Rather than catching up on paperwork as I'd planned the whole afternoon was taking up making and fielding phone calls. Expect the unexpected.

Yet today was not without merit. I managed to catch up with my friend Thomas. I thought I was supposed to be bringing him a copy of the book but when I got there he already had one. What he hadn't done was pay me which he duly did. I think I have now covered my costs on the books I bought for the launch.

At lunch time I popped into the market to see my Chinese friend. Rizlas and lighters bought I went to see my other Chinese friend in the oriental supermarket. I emerged with fresh supplies of the evil smelling but wonderful tasting shrimp paste and some more up to date fried shallots to adorn my various Far Eastern dishes. Cost a lot but one pays for good produce. I then moved onto an Indian shop and finally secured the prized coriander with the roots attached. I've never found that in the nearly 7 years I have lived here. Hurrah!

My loose plan was to meet with Dory some time this week. With the prized coriander root I decided to invite her here rather than a trip to the Fu Hao. So on Friday she will come round for a feast of Thai BBQ ribs followed by an old favourite of Thai market food, belly pork stir fried with coriander root, garlic and five spice then braised in chicken stock with fish sauce, soy and sugar along with hard boiled eggs. It is heavenly! I'm looking forward to seeing Dory. She has almost recovered from her shoulder injury and I seem finally to have put behind me the whooping cough that afflicted me last time we met.

Back at home I was pleasantly surprised to discover that my hurried formative assignment was rated as good. Hopefully that means I don't have to delve back too hard into the dreaded databases. "Tosca" is playing, not listened to Puccini for a while, and I'm perusing work already done. Tomorrow I will download my selected papers and look at a critical appraisal tool for an an example they have given us. Finally feel that I'm headed in the right direction for the first time since I started this module.

So back to work I go. Until next time.

I Heard a Voice.