2012 – The Year of the Cheesecake?

Posted on January 1, 2012 by paul

Happy New Year!

What does 2012 have in store I wonder? Mrs Cheesecake and I were talking about the highlights of 2011 this morning and I released she was able to list many more personal achievements than I. Don’t get me wrong I am intensely proud of her but also quite a bit jealous. I need to set myself some proper goals for a change. So here goes… (you can mock me about not completing them later in the year, say August?)

Project Cthulhu

I have started to save, thanks to some generous relatives at Christmas, and my first goal will be to get the design finalised and my first 3hr session booked. I reckon for around Easter. We shall see. The next update will be over on the project page. (See the link on the right hand side of the page)

He Don’t Have What We Call The Social Skills

I’m not too bad when I talk to people online and if I’ve known you for a real life for a while I’m ok as well but when it comes to meeting people for the first time I am still a bit of an oaf. I need to try a bit harder to get on with people. I’m just terribly shy, underneath all the bluster I mean. I’m nice most of the time, honestly.

On The Cusp of Less Rubbish-ness

I was going to call this section of the post On The Cusp of Greatness but if I am being 100% honest with myself greatness might be aiming a little high. Less rubbish seems a much more acceptable and achievable goal.

So what is the grand plan I hear cry? Well it is only a matter of days before the 2012 challenge begins in earnest. I plan a 500km run in 2012 (I must be off my fucking chump). I managed 20000 sit ups in 2011 but I think this endeavor is considerably upping my game.(I’ve joined a gym and got a new pair of trainers and everything). Why am I doing it? Really just as personal challenge. To see if I can manage it I suppose. I need to loose some weight anyway so why not try some incredibly foolish way to do it.

I’m sure there will be further progress updates in the future, either that or I’ll be dead. We shall see. Time will out as they say.

Fuck it I’m bored of wittering now (that probably doesn’t bode well for all these lofty bloody goals does it?)

ho hum

Later

What do you get the Cheesecake who has everything?

Posted on December 25, 2011 by paul

Merry Festivities everyone! I hope today is treating you well. As has become traditional over the last few years Mrs Cheesecake and I have spent the day, just the two of us, in our little house. The wind may be blowing outside but inside all is cozy and very relaxing.

Later we have the twin delights of Dr Who and Downton but before the tv takes over my day entirely I thought I woud share details of all the fabulous presents I received.

A new wallet (I have to admit my old one was getting a little ragged looking around the edges)
A TARDIS iphone cover
A Kindle
Thermal socks (I’m wearing them now and can confirm they are very toasty)
A leatherman multi-tool
5 ebooks
Some cash toward Project Cthulu (I expect some genuine movement on this plan in the New Year, stay tuned)

Quite a haul eh? I know I am an extremely lucky Cheesecake. I hope everyone else got what they wanted. I certainly did.

Have a spectacular festive season. Be good, look ok for one another and read stuff.

Later Xmas Chums

Pablo Cheesecake and The Game of Shadows

Posted on December 19, 2011 by paul

Though we finished work last Friday today was our first proper official day off for Christmas. What did we do then?

First off a trip to the cinema in a very wet and miserable Nottingham. We decided to see the new Sherlock Holmes. My overall impression was extremely positive. The additions of Stephen Fry and Jared Harris to the cast were perfect. Harris makes a wonderful Moriarty (I kept catching glimpses of his father in his performance, all a bit spooky) and Fry is just as good as Mycroft. I going to go out on a limb here and suggest this is a better film than its predecessor. The scale is much larger than before and Downey Jr and Law have a rather marvellous chemistry/bromance going on that is very evident on screen. You never question the two performances for a second.

After the cinema a huge Chinese buffet beckoned (I am still full now hours later). We also did a bit of last minute shopping. Mostly for ourselves it has to be said. I got a Gruffalo pen and a new notepad. I dont need either of them but I did crave them.

No it’s not a self portrait….cheeky.

Once we got home I decided to do about of online shopping. I have received a few Amazon vouchers so it was time to load up my new Kindle with some choice items. After a bit of browsing I have 5 new ebooks and a Leatherman multi-tool.

Finally to round off the afternoon I sat and watched Laputa – Castle in the Sky. I am a huge fan of Studio Ghibli and this is my favourite. I just adore it. If you haven’t ever seen it I suggest you seek it out now. Go on, bugger off……Now, I mean it….

Bye bye

An Elementary Cheesecake

This Made My Year

Posted on December 17, 2011 by paul

This morning I cracked open my review copy of Hell Train by Christopher Fowler. I’ve been looking forward to reading it but have managed to hold off starting it because I had other books to read first. Bottom of the first page I saw the following

Woot!

Mrs Cheesecake will tell you I came over all emotional (I am a big softie really). My little review website is on that page and just look at the other names on there. I was genuinely stunned (still am truth be told).

Here’s a link to the original review I wrote of Roofworld.

…..Thats all really, I just wanted to share.

Cheerio

An Extremely Pleased Cheesecake

Been Far To Long Again Hasn’t It

Posted on December 6, 2011 by paul

Honestly I really do like writing a blog. I know that may seem like an out and out lie but it really is the truth. I have just been pretty busy of late and whenever that happens the first thing to suffer is my Mid Life Crisis. I promise I will try harder next time. Anyway on with the latest (long awaited?) update.

A Fat Man Busts a Gut in 2011

The finish line is clearly in sight, only 500 sit-ups to go. Another arse spankingly daft personal challenge very nearly complete. Side effects of this nonsense? weight has dropped from 17st 8lbs down to 15st 11lbs. The crazy thing. I plan on doing something just as fucking stupid next year. I want to lose another couple of stone. What epic foolishness have you got planned then? I hear very few of you cry. Ok I am going to run 500 kilometres. I shit you not. I have my gym induction booked for next week and everything. I might even by some new trainers. 10km a week for 50 weeks should do the trick. I even get 2 weeks off for good behaviour. I’ll update this topic again next year when I am up and running (Oh suit yourself).

Tis The Season To Be Cheesecake

Christmas is just round the corner. I am looking forward to it. Two weeks off work and lots of tasty treats. I am a big fan of Christmas. My usual grumpy demeanour is slightly less grumpy than normal. I do hope there is snow (one of my earliest memories is of snow, always warms the old cockles). I have also have snagged a crackin gift for Mrs Cheesecake. I think she will like. Some nice lateral thought has gone into this one. My main gift is going to be a Kindle. Hmmm gadget-tastic. There is bound to be more swag on the day. I’ll probably post about it.

Lets not forget though, Christmas isn’t just about presents. There is some crackin TV to watch as well.

Only Scotland Could Do This

So it was a bit windy the other day back in the Auld country and needless to say the social networks were abuzz with all the action. What did the cheeky young scamps christen this weather related phenomena? #HurricaneBawbag. Yup, only Scotland could name a hurricane after slang for the scrotum. I salute the entire country for the best hashtag in the history of Twitter.

Till next time

Adios Amigos

Oh before I go. I forget to mention Brian Blessed is now on Twitter. Follow him, you know you want to.

CHEESECAKES ALIVE!!!

The name is Cheesecake….Pablo Cheesecake

Posted on November 11, 2011 by paul

Music is a huge part of my life. When I was young I had a bash and lets just say I didn’t set the world alight with my efforts. Enthusiastic yes, talented less so. That said I still have a strong appreciation for good music done well. Irrespective of the genre, type, style as long as it is performed well it has the ability grab my attention and maintain it.

Let me try to give you an example. Earlier today I was sitting down to write a book review. I tend to chuck iTunes or Spotify on in the background as a bit of music tends to get my old brain working. Half way through I realised that I have stopped writing and instead I’m day dreaming about being a spy. Where had this thought come from? The book I was writing about had nothing to do with spies but some how Bond had managed to sneak in there.

Before I go any further I should clarify when I talk about Bond I mean this guy.

Sir James Bond

What do you mean ‘Who is that?’ Dude it’s only David Niven as Sir James Bond from the 1967 version of Casino Royale. The closest thing you’ll get to perfection my friend.

The music though is the key. If it is done well I am so easily distracted it is frightening. The track in question was this marvel.

This is a work of Burt-Bacharachien genius. Brashy and ballsy but also delicate. Jazzy and epic at the same time. I adore the multi-layered sound. I can’t drive but this always makes me day dream about driving a sports car along a long stretch of winding road somewhere in the south of France. (I have no idea where this comes from either. It’s good though isn’t it).

The Return of The Curse of the Brown Trousers

A while back I wrote about my panic after buying a brown pair of trousers. After their arrival and I tried them all appeared to be well and I thought that chapter of my life was over. NOT SO. After a only a couple of weeks this happened.

Fucking Annoying

I bent over and bloody things only ripped on the arse. Weird thing is I dont even have that big an arse. If anything my arse is somewhat lacking. The good news is that fortunately Mrs Cheesecake is a dab hand with a needle and thread and she swooped in and fixed them. I’m pleased to report they haven’t ripped since.

Coffee

I have a love/hate relationship with coffee. If I drink to much it gives me a headache and makes me a a bit narky. So much so that I made a decision about a year ago to stop drinking it. I have over the last couple of weeks I have start to dabble again but on a much smaller scale. Why? Because it is time to get myself down to Starbucks and get myself a redcup. The Eggnog Latte will be mine. Oh yes it will.

And Finally

I got these in the mail this week and I had to share.

Awesomeness in book form

The only question.Where to begin?

Enough of this light hearted procrastination…..onwards!

Toddle Pip

The Venerable Sir Pablo Cheesecake

Pablo Cheesecake vs That There London

Posted on November 6, 2011 by paul

It’s not very often that Mrs Cheesecake and I get the opportunity to head of to the big city but yesterday we had a perfect excuse. Mrs Cheesecake is a rather huge fan of Michael Sheen (don’t believe me? check out www.michael-sheen.co.uk, all her own work don’t cha know). Anywho, we had scored some tickets to go and see Himself (that’s what he is known as in our house) as Hamlet at The Young Vic.

As the show wasn’t on until 7pm we decided we would check out a bit of the city we hadn’t experienced before. I should state for the record I was also jonesin for a Starbucks Eggnog latte and figured I could cater for coffee habit along the way.

So prior to the show – Borough Market. Awww man this place is food porn of the highest order. Every direction you turn there are loads and loads of specialist vendors hawking their wares. It is a blissful assault on the senses. Within the first 100ft we had walked past someone making grilled garlic king prawns, someone else selling hot mulled wine and another selling pates, relishes and many varieties of salami. Best part, without a doubt, LOADS of free samples. I just didn’t know where to start.

Eventually, after much umming and ahhing, we ended up joining a queue for a stall called Roast to Go. The queue was pretty long but I took this to be a good sign, turns out it was totally worth it. I got a salt beef, mustard and pickle sandwich while Mrs Cheesecake had turkey and cranberry. It may have been the best sandwich I have ever eaten (and I really do mean EVER!)

More wandering about and I got to try some splendid cheese, an exceptional terrine and a great wild mustard relish. I think that if we had the time, the cash and the inclination we could have spent the entire day at there.

The evening found us at The Young Vic and we had pretty epic fucking seats, 4th row ain’t at all shabby. We’ve seen a good modern take of Hamlet before, starring the Tenth Doctor and Jean-Luc Picard, but this interpretation was a different class. The performances were all mesmerising but Sheen was exceptional. Nothing better than a bit of live theatre.

I reckon that’ll do for now. Much as I enjoyed visting that there London. It is nice to be back in our little house, fussing the cat on the sofa. I have some serious mooching about scheduled so best be off to do it.

Laters Taters

Ohh by the way, before I forget, after such a hectic day it may not be a massive surprise to discover that I completely forgot about, and didn’t manage to get, the coffee I was hoping for. Perhaps next week.

A Week of Cheesecake

Posted on October 22, 2011 by paul

This week a bring you a random assortment of the stuff that has happened in our house

The Seven Day Sandwich

Mrs Cheesecake and I enjoy watching Man vs Food. I you haven’t ever seen it I strongly advise you check it out, it fucking rocks. Anyway it got us to thinking about all the strange a delicious looking foods that our American cousins have access. How easy would it be to replicate this sort of culinary adventure in the UK? We decided we would give it a go. We set our sights on creating a Reubens. The primary ingredient is salt beef. Just to make things interesting we thought we would have bash a preparing our own salt beef. Turns out this takes the minimum of seven days. The beef has to be soaked in water that contains various herbs. Was it successful? We will find out tomorrow. I am hoping for something along these lines.

Paging Dr Cheesecake

A few months ago I entered a competition to appear in a book by the publisher Abaddon. Bugger me if I didn’t go ahead and win. The prize was to have an academic named in one of the appendices in the novel Savage Knight by Paul Lewis. I decided the nominate Mrs Cheesecake instead and today the book arrived. I had a rummage and low in behold on page 279 the following….

This may be the coolest fucking thing ever. I’m sort of jealous I gave the prize away now. She’ll be in print forever. Immortality achieved at last.

2011 Challenge Update

We are well and truly in the final stretch. After nearly 10 months I have managed over 16000 sit ups. Less than 4000 to go. Happy days. Actually that is not entirely accurate. I have to think of what I am going to do in 2012. I’ve done the huge cycle trek (500km in 2010) so I am looking for suggestions for next year. No not chin ups I am to tall for that. Perhaps I should come up with some sort of weight training program? I’m sure I can come with something. Hey you never know one day I may not be fat anymore. Stranger things have happened. Admittedly I’m unsure what these stranger things are but you get the gist.

Ohh before I forget, if you feel the urge you can still donate to my just giving page. Well I say mine. It is one that I share with my amigo @Seabrie. Together we are Two Fat Men. Impressive non?

Sunday Night Whimsy

I am a creature of habit. After a long hard week I enjoy putting my feet up and giving my self over to the Lords of Whimsy. What, you may ask, is this? I have this theory that someone, somewhere invented a rule that every Sunday night there has to be a lavish looking TV show on. Disagree? I submit the following as evidence. Hamish Macbeth, Monarch of the Glen, Lark Rise to Candleford (known as Lark Rise to Bumble Fuck in our house – I don’t know why either), Spooks, Downton Abbey. Now don’t get me wrong. These shows ain’t Shakespeare but but sure as hell are entertaining.

Oh well enough of this jibber jabber

Stuff to do

Laters Taters,Adios

Mr C

UPDATE

Just realised this my 150th post. Can’t let this go by without a Fuck Yeah! I can also pretty much guarantee that there will be 150 more. I mean where the hell else am I going to waxy lyrical.

Lazy Technology

Posted on October 16, 2011 by paul

Does tech enhance our lives and make things easier or does it just make us big old amorphous lazy blobs? I’ve been thinking about it and after much pondering I think I’ll go with the second conclusion.

Why would you come to that staggering conclusion Pablo?

Well, basically because I am lying in bed writing this post on my iPhone. Fuck – even for me that is lazy. I mean seriously I’m in bed writing a blog post on a phone. It’s not even difficult.

On second thought perhaps this is a good thing? Maybe horizontal blogging is the future? If it catches on remember you heard about it here first!

A Random Ten Things

Posted on October 14, 2011 by paul

Tonights post is brought to you by ten random things that have occurred this week in my life.

I’m obsessing about sandwiches again. This time something called a Reubens. Mrs Cheesecake has bought into the lunacy and we are going to prepare our own salt beef brisket. Takes about a week to do so don’t be surprised if there us another update re: this in about seven days time.
So iOS5 landed this week. Based on what I have read on the interweb I have had a hassle free update. Some others have had some issues. I guess I have been lucky.
Fantasycon is going back to Brighton in 2012. The same team that were responsible for this year’s con are going to be running the show again. Same hotel as well. I am pretty keen to attend I think. This year was a great deal of fun. Lots of real nice folks there this time out so I don’t see why it shouldn’t be the same again next year.
This years annual challenge is still going strong. To recap 20000 sit-ups in 2011. This week I have hit 15700. Possibility of completing challenge remains highly likely.
Werewolves continue to usurp my reading list. Poetry as well. Truly a eclectic mix.
I bought a body warmer. This must herald the return of the 1980s. I look forward to the return of day glo socks. They were fucking great.
I have admit defeat and concede that the pumpkins have not performed as well as I would have hoped. I think again the great British weather is entirely to blame. Next year there will be greenhouse and hopeful slightly more successful crops. The parsnips will get picked this weekend. My hopes for them are sightly higher.
No movement on Project Cthulu yet. Perhaps in the New Year If I’m lucky.
Tomorrow my brother in law is coming to visit and we are off to see The Three Musketeers. I have a great love for Frenchie styled movies. I love the numerous versions of The Count of Monte Cristo and also The Three Musketeers so this should be fun.
Messing about with my phone earlier I captured Freya up to mischief – No I don’t know what she is doing either. I’m sure she is up to something though.

Cat in a bag

Nighty night,

Sleep Tight,

Don’t panic there aren’t any bedbugs that’ll bite….

Just me hiding under your bed

Pablo Cheesecake

A Mid-Life Crisis Waiting to Happen…

Author Archives: paul