Today I Give Myself Permission to Indulge #atozchallenge

Letter I“Indulgence”, even the word itself sounds a bit naughty, much like a piece of contraband blowing in the wind. Maybe because it connotes an element of excess or avarice.

However, I’m here to advocate for a little indulgence every day, indulgence that is neither excessive nor avaricious. As indulgence is often linked to the concept of self consciousness, we often feel that we should not indulge ourselves or that we should indulge everyone else ahead of ourselves. There is often guilt associated with our indulgence, often diluting what could be positive outcomes and effects.

Indulge doesn’t have to be time consuming, lavish or expensive. The key to indulging is to pursue whatever feeds your soul and nurtures your spirit. It could be for as little as 15 minutes out of your day, it could be for an hour. We all need to take time for a little self-care, so that we can carry on for those who count on us.

So, let me introduce you to some of my favorite indulgences:

red sox at Fenwaypeanut butterfoot massagebushwalkinghabit of reading

cleaning laughter

 

 

 

 

 

 

No raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens here.

Rather, and with apologies to Julie Andrews:

Baseball with Red Sox

And peanuts with butter

Massage for footsies

Makes my heart a flutter

A great stack of books all tied up with string

These are a few of my favorite things

Laughter and smiles

And tears of pure joy

Walking the bush

With hubby and my boys

A road trip to somewhere

Adventures it brings

These are a few of my favorite things.

By the way, who really needs bread with peanut butter? Or a knife? Or a plate?

Give yourself permission to indulge your soul without guilt daily. Fifteen minutes just for you. It could be something as simple as enjoying fresh air after being stuck in air-conditioning all day or catching the sunshine on your back and face after a cold spell. The best indulgences are probably free.

dominant thoughts

Today I give myself permission to indulge.

What are some of your favorite indulgences?

Whip Me, Beat Me, Butter You Up….Canadian Style

To all of you who stumbled upon my blog believing you are in for the maple leaf foody version of 50 Shades of Grey you have a wonderfully kinky imagination. If you also experience a sense of disappointment as you read on to find that the playroom is in fact a kitchen and the only implements out of the drawer are a spoon and knife, then to you I say “laters baby, you’re going to have to find your kinky eatery elsewhere.”

image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons – Kelly Sue De Connick

For the rest of you, I would like to introduce you to my latest favourite indulgence, whipped peanut butter. This post was inspired by your comments to my Paying the Blog Love FAward post as it seems that on a quick sampling of my blog readers, whipped peanut butter may not yet have made it to the shores of the US of A. Be prepared to be wowed by this product for it is the rock star of peanut butter. So good in fact, it has its own Facebook fan page and its own dedicated chauffeur driven national tour vehicle (check out the pics on the page).

I am amazed that my American readers have not had the opportunity to experience the guilty pleasure of whipped peanut butter. Not so long ago, we lived in a world where Australia was always 6-12 months behind the US in terms of product, movie, music and television show releases. Take for example, The Bold And the Beautiful, which I will never publicly admit to watching. Until recently we down here were watching Ridge & Brooke get engaged for the first time…. allegedly …..whilst you guys over there were watching their children celebrate coming of age… allegedly. I say allegedly, because I don’t watch it, well not when I’m not bedridden anyway. But here, now, we are experiencing the marvels of whipped peanut butter whilst you apparently are not!

There has only ever been one brand peanut butter that has graced my pantry and that’s Kraft. Never oily, never dry… a whole lot of crunchy….just superb. Imagine my unmitigated delight when I noticed a new Kraft kid on the block on the supermarket shelves, a total no brainer.

[Dear Kraft marketing gurus, if you are reading this then we will be at home all week to take delivery of that case of whipped peanut butter you have lying around at the back of the warehouse…I won’t even tell my blog readers about the 20 cases you have already not sent me… as I reign in my pulsating desire and sensuously lick the excess peanut butter from my fingers and wipe my smeared keyboard].

So here’s what y’all are missing. Whipped peanut butter is a light, fluffy smooth version of the product. It spreads beautifully and doesn’t stick to the roof of your mouth or to your utensils. Washing the empty jar is a dream and it tastes the same as its heavier siblings, but aerated. I image it makes a fantastic foundation for a dip or satay sauce given its consistency. Fantastic on toast and even better on thin multigrain rice cakes, it’s an all-purpose jar of pleasure. Even better than se…semolina!

So good in fact, we import the whipped product from Canada. Yep, Canada! Canadian air must be really something for Kraft to fly the product all the way down here. Especially when the non whipped product is manufactured here in Australia – take a look at Exhibits A and B below. This well travelled peanut butter can fly half way around the world but somehow can’t make its way immediately south of the Canadian border. I’m sure there’s some logic in this…somewhere. I will figure it out just as soon as I finish my peanut butter and honey delight.

Exhibit A:

Made in Australia

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Exhibit B (hale the rock star):

Complete with Canadian air!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There’s only one thing to do in these circumstances my US friends and that is to storm the Canadian border and insist on your right to a whipping!

In the meantime, well played, Canada, well played…. I will gladly send you all our Vegemite supplies in exchange for your whipped peanut butter cache. Just what you always wanted, Canada – Australian prime quality yeast extract, And yes it really is as hideous as it sounds!

What is your favourite sandwich spread? Have you ever tried Vegemite? Would you want to? What’s your favourite accompaniment to peanut butter?