Little quaint poems

These are poems that are short and sweet that just float into my head.

Today I bought a bright red balloon
From a man with a yellow kagool
I bought it so that I could float away
So that I would not have to go to work today

Halloween poem

Hallow there
It's what you've all been waiting for!
My Halloween poem!

Creep, creep, creep
So loud that I cannot sleep
Pumpkin cut smiles, flash flakes of shattered light,
guiding me safely as I tiptoe through the black baked night.

as Black lucky cats chase liquorice bats, we sit by buttercup tea lights and hear the younglings giving elders a fright.
Hear the heckled children’s cackle, dressed in sheets, echoing trick or treat, as they lose their teeth in sticky soft sweets.
Knocking on anonymous wooden doors, and bruising their faces on ancient tree’s claws.

Crisp torn leaves crack against your window pane,
cobwebs become tangled in your golden wavy hair.
an owl’s screeching: a love lost
Manipulative mirrors, remind you of memories withered,

The vampire bite's cold makes you shudder;
the creeping begins again to end your slumber
the whipping wind clings to your tired lungs,
you tried to break loose but it got tangled and now you've choked.

Diary of a confused, angry 13 year old

I thought it would be a good idea as I was rifling through some old dusty boxes this weekend at home in Lancaster. To look through my old diary from my 13-14 year old period. How funny it is to look back at how awkward and uncool I was. I thought it might be interesting to compare a diary entry from today to my 13 year old self.

24th October
I woke up in a bed too small for me. This is not my bedroom. Well it used to be. A few years ago. Now is is painted pink and blue adorned with typical girl's kitsch decoration. My 8 year old sister jumps on me to get out of her bed. She is dressed in a cat suit. I don't ask her why as she is always dressed up. I signal for a hug but stubborn Lily insists that all her hugs have been exhausted by mum this morning and I will surely have to wait at least till the afternoon for mine. I ponder whether to force myself to go out to run, but it's raining. Mother and I hurriedly walk 5 miles to a discount fabric shop that we thought closed at 12, but closed at 2 on Saturdays. We then walked into town in the rain. My umbrella barely covered my head. People I past knew, excite at my hair. I'm used to it now. I write a piece about being a poet at a young writer's event at Lancaster's newly refurbished "clinical" library. The piece will be exhibited at some point. I won't be here to see it. Mother gets agitated at having to wait. Outside there was a parade of dancers. Curious.
We have coffee at a mainstream cafe. I see my other sister. The dormant transvestite got angry we took the best seats. He can wait. I see a past friend, I hope we can become friends again.
When we go home, I eat and eat and then I'm too full to think. I collapse and read my book, then filter through old dusty boxes for memories forgotton.
I hate X factor.

October 24th 2002
Dear Diary
I went for a long walk with Dad last night it was really nice because I haven't been outside for a few days. It's nice to talk to Dad too.
I haven't done any homework yet- yikes!
I went to Matalan with mum and Lily and Charles and Harry. Mum bought Lily a witches outfit for Halloween- so sweet. After that we went to Asda for some food! We haven't had ANY food this half term. At Asda we looked at some clothes. I tried on some combats, they looked huge, I looked like a house.
When mum was starting the mini-bus it didn't start so she had to go back to Asda to phone Dad to phone Neil the mechanic. Me and Hababs went back to Asda to buy some more snacks. Neil came and fixed the bus quick. I don't know why it didn't work in the first place.
I'm going babysitting soon.

Vegan Pumpkin Pie

I made this vegan pumpkin pie for the very special monthly night at Tiger Lounge named "Your Mama's cookin’'" A quaintly eclectic night combining a knitting lesson, bring your own cake stall, vintage tea cups and a lindy hop lesson adorned with classic swinging tunes from the 1920’s- 50’s. A night which takes you back to a simpler period where all you needed was rock and roll tunes and delicious cake to have a swell time!
Ingredients: Hot Water pie crust
250 grams of vegetable shortening or suet (looks like white maggots but makes the pie flaky!)
400 g of plain flour
2 teaspoons of suma dairy free margarine
175 ml boiling water
2 tablespoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
You will need a circular cake tin/ pie dish, rolllling pin, and wooden spoon.
First we shall make the pie dough! Mix together the shortening, margarine and hot water in a large bowl until thoroughly blended. The shortening will make it look bumpy, don’t worry it will dissolve in the oven. Add flour, baking powder and salt mix to form dough and then knead. Wrap in cling film and put in the fridge to chill for 3 hours then think of something better to do than watch the fridge door impatiently. After waiting patiently for your dough to chill, flour a surface and cut in half the dough, one half for the base, the other the top. Then roll out your dough with the rolling pin in a circular style shape. (*Tip I find it best to hover the pie dish with the pastry to get an approxiamate idea of the shape.) Then line the cake tin with 1 half carefully making sure the dough is thick enough to hold the filling and you have rolled out the right shape to cover the cake tin. Fold over the edge of the dough over the pie dish chopping away excess with a knife.
Now for the filling
Ingredients
A pumpkin (small or large) :)
350 ml of soya milk
5 ounces of granulated brown sugar
2 teaspoons of cinnamon
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1 table spoon of golden syrup
No egg, (brand name) Expensive but worth shelling out, (get it) as it binds the mixture. Follow instructions on packet.
Pre heat the oven to gas mark 4/ 180“C
My cutting of the pumpkin was very basic. I used a large knife to cut from the top of the pumpkin then slide down to quarter the orange beast. You can also cut open the top of the pumpkin to make a lid, then scoop out the flesh. Scoop out the seeds ( you can toast these later on if you so desire ) Use approximately 5 tablespoons of pumpkin flesh and whisk together with the egg replacer and soya milk. Then add spices and syrup and pour into your pie base. Tip* You should place your pie base in an oven for 30 minutes or so so that it hardens before adding the mixture as if you put it in all together only the pie lid will cook well and burn before the base catches up! Finally roll out your other half of the dough and carefully lay on top of the cake tin, again cutting of any excess pastry to neaten up. (Tip* This may take a few goes as the pastry may tear, but be patient and keep rolling till you get the perfect pastry lid! You can place cling film over the dough to cut down on tearing!
You can use any spare dough to make a funny picture on the centre of the pie; I did a pumpkin and the initials of “Your Mama's cookin’ and used bat cookie cutters for halloween.
Brush soya milk or blend with fingertips around the pie crust to fill in any holes and smooth out. Don't forget to cut two lines on the surface of the pie to let the pie breathe.
Then pop your pumpkin pie in the piping hot oven and wait 30-40 minutes until centre is firm! The pie crust will brown and become very crisp first, but the filling and base will take a while longer! but you were clever and popped the base in beforehand ;)
While you are waiting you could fill your time with making some delicious vegan cream to go with the pie.
Ingredients: 4 tablespoons of soya milk
2 tablespoons of granulated unrefined sugar,
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract,
1 tablespoon of corn flour
2 tablespoons of oil.
Whisk in a blender until smooth and creamy for about 2 minutes then chill for an hour, and then pour over your scrumptious pie and bop to on the hop!
If you can keep your hungry teeth from the scrumptious pie, pop in the fridge over night to harden the mixture, therefore it will be less sloppy!
Pumpkin seeds
Well you must be wondering what on earth you are going to do with them seeds! Well don't feed them to the birds or toss haphazardly in the bin, line your stomach instead!
Pop the seeds in a boiling pan of water for 10 minutes and cover
Then line a baking tray with oil and pop the seeds in and cover with salt or sugar!
Tasty not so instant snack!


( I am still waiting for my prize for my vegan gingerbread cookies from the last “Your Mama’s Cookin’” )
Your Mama’s Cookin’ is a monthly night at Tiger Lounge, 5 Cooper St Manchester, Every 2nd Wednesday.

My life in Manchester (and Eccles)

I have been most busy in Manchester. I have been here less than a month and done so many fun things!
I've been to an organ museum in Eccles, where my friends and I played on an Wurlitzer organ and played a fun little tune, taught by a dear old man I wanted to take home and adopt as my grandad (mine is rubbish, £5 book voucher, for my birthday thanks a lot!) We were given a tour of the old school organs and the lovely old people gave us tea and biscuits. I say "lovely" there was one right mean woman who wouldn't give me my raffle prize as I picked my own number from the hat! Chances of that! And their prizes were only old birthday cards and a pen saying "I've been to the Wurlitzer Organ musuem and had lots of fun." They said they didn't have much funds for good raffles prizes, the pen and paper museuem over the road gets all the good ones. We watched grainy Laurel and Hardy clips accompanied by the whimsical tune of a live organ playing whilst enjoying dirty black coffee and dry biscuits.I stole some of their raffles prizes and some biscuits rather cheekily, don't know what I'm going to do with that organ musueum magnet that doesn't even work! Although the sticky post it notepad that came with it seems quite handy, but the sticker on the post it doesn't work either! :( I searched for Eccles cakes, even though I can't eat them due to being vegan, it was hard to find Eccles cakes in Eccles, curious that. Eventually found some in a chip shop! Think I'll make my own novelty Eccles cake shop. They really should cash in on that as it's one of the only things it's got going for it. Oh and of course it's fine fine pet shop we visited that smelt of bleach and contained staff that were apparantly stationery objects and greeted us with stares of shock and wonder at any young people taking strange steps in the streets of Eccles.
Other fun stuff I've done, I set up my own vegan/veg society at uni called vegsoc. Got loads of people interested, but lets see who attends the meetings. Also set up my own sewing society, with my first meeting this sunday!
I also went to a fun night called "yo mama's cooking" Where there was a bring your own cake sale, knitting and dance lesson all with a 1950's theme! I shall be attending this event regularly! I won the bake sale, with my vegan gingerbread biscuits. Although my competition was a burnt chocolate cake! I am still awaiting my prize too!
So lots more Manchester fun to be had.... x

Mancunian bound

Today I shall be moving to Manchester. I have not packed, am still in bed and not entirely sure how I am getting there. But I'm sure I shall make it somehow. I am very excited about the new life I am going to have. Lots of poetry readings lined up and I am taking a dressmaking course at this quaintly sharp named shop called Rags to Bitches. So many new streets and corners yet to be explored and I'm looking forward to blackberry picking along the canal and vegan baking with my friend Natalie. There will also be new vegan restaurants for me to explore, wonder what sort of recipes they will have? I intend on sitting in cafes in the northern quarter and drinking coffee with soya milk and vanilla syrup whilst scratching through my notepads, trying to scramble a poem together. I still really need to read the mammoth amount of books I have, still sitting in the cardboard amazon books, longing for their pages to be bent and read. Today is a gloomy, humid rainy day, not the best start to my new chapter but it'll have to do. Right off to do some packing...

My birthday week

I have had a most exciting birthday week. I wore my beautiful hand made dress made by Eleanor Ruth Callaghan from the band the Bobby Mcgee's. I got a curiousely lovely amount of presents, including a fox necklace, sewing books, marmite, Paddington bear and a pet rat named Pandora! I ate vegan chocolate drops in the car on the way to my birthday day out and spilt them on the car seat and on my dress! Oh sugar! I couldn't decide where I wanted to go, the Lakes, exploring new green surroundings and possible swimming in a unfound lake? Or shopping in Manchester? I decided Manchester. I wonder if that was the right choice and am still pondering whether it was. As the dark grey clouds hovering above Manchester made me want to turn back and live in the high hills of cumbria. Although when we got to Manchester I purchased some lovely blouses and was heckled at by passers by "Hello Alice in Wonderland!" Marvellous! I also got my photo taken with my friend for an obscure French magazine. A bit like Vice but not trash apparantly. Then we had lunch at Cafe cup, scrambled tofu yummy. And porridge. No tea spoon for me though :( I was a little scared at the prospect of reading there in September, but I think I will be ok.
I decided I wanted a birthday picnic, so me and my friend drove back to Lancaster and ate vegan chocolate cake with vegan ice cream on top on a beach in the car with the windows open as my friend was too scared of the creepy crawlies on the beach stones.
I want to live on the beach
Just so that I can always eat seaside treats
In the evening we can dance to the bread and butterflies melonchonly lullably
and forget that we ever have to say goodbye
I made strange steps in the sand
I wondered how you felt when we first held hands
I'll sit, wait and wonder for you
whilst constantly searching for nothing to do.