More Coco ?

To say that The Allure of Chanel

attributes authorship to Paul Morand is of course true, but is probably also true that is it written by Coco Chanel.

This book, beautifully illustrated by Karl Lagerfeld, is the result of Coco Chanel’s invitation to Morand to visit her in St. Moritz at the end of World War II.

He notes their conversations, which were brought to light only after Chanel’s death in January 1971. In this book, Chanel tells of her life from her very lonely childhood, through her career and her relationships with some of the men in her life.

Some of several delightful sketches by Karl Lagerfeld

It is apparent that Morand attempted to make himself invisible between the reader and Coco’s raw, sharply written accounts of her life. Written in the first person as if transcribed from Chanel’s own words, I have a feeling that I was experiencing Chanel’s world through her own eyes.

If you have read any other accounts of Chanel’s life, or seen some of the films that depict it, you know that she was a woman who forged her way forward in business using determination great natural talent, and that her journey was not an easiest one. Miss Chanel’s life was a process of amazing revelation, a deep interest in uncovering the genuine, and in defining beauty as truth. Evenso, Coco at times seems to have not a lot of patience for other woman–she had very few female friends during her adult life, and some of her harshest words are reserved for her description of others of the same sex.

A life born and lived so many generations ago, readers are duely warned that some of Chanel’s writing contains certain personal prejudices that are at times direct and a can be offensive. Also the controversial period of Chanel’s life during World War II seems neither fully depicted or, as far as I could tell, . The text is very well written, quite frankly honest, and as I mentioned beautifully illustrated perfectly by Karl Lagerfeld.

To be completely honest, you maybe would buy this book for the wonderful illustrations alone. This is not an easy read due to Chanel’s blinding perceptions, as some are quite scathing. But finaly, I found that most of the book provided a clear look inside the voice of Chanel from her self, and so a worthy read for those interested in piecing together an understanding of Chanel’s great style and empire.

Coco Chanel Quotes

Chocolate Art

kerry@chocart.com.au

Sculpted chocolate by Sisko Chocolate.

JEAN-PAUL HEVIN – PARIS

CHOCOLAT MICHEL CLUIZEL – NEW YORK

Beach Hut of the Week

Facing out to sea, these beach huts at Mudeford in Dorset are on one side by Christchurch harbour and on the other by the Solent.

No 164, Mudeford Spit, Dorset

There are over about 350 little coloured beach huts along Mudeford Bay Spit – a good strole of narrow sliver of sand, bordered on one side by Christchurch harbour and on the other by the Solent.

All privately owned, many are available to rent over the summer. No 164 is a newly built hut facing the sea, with an sleeping area upstairs, kitchen below with fridge and cooker, it also solar-powered lighting, so you don’t have to worry about finding a coin for the meter.

Sunbathe on the local sand dunes, or you could go walking through the relaxing nature reserve at Hengistbury Head just near the spit, or hop on the ferry to Christchurch harbour which has many great restaurants and Pubs. The hut Sleeps six peple.


If you maybe want to Book it you could try 023 8073 0956;

beach-huts.com

The Mexican Spitfire

Lupe Vélez (July 18, 1908 – December 13, 1944) was a Mexican film actress. Vélez began her career in Mexico as a dancer, before moving to the U.S. where she worked in vaudeville. She was seen by Fanny Brice who promoted her, and Vélez soon entered films, making her first appearance in 1924. By the end of the decade she had progressed to leading roles. With the advent of talking pictures

Vélez acted in comedies, but she became disappointed with her film career, and moved to New York where she worked in Broadway productions.

Returning to Hollywood in 1939, she made a series of comedies. She also made some films in Mexico. Vélez's personal life was often difficult; a five year marriage to Johnny Weissmuller and a series of romances, were highly publicized.

She is often associated with the nicknames "The Mexican Spitfire" and "The Hot Pepper"

Emotionally generous, passionate, and high-spirited, Vélez had a number of highly publicized affairs, including a particularly emotionally draining one with Gary Cooper, before marrying Olympic athlete Johnny Weissmuller (of Tarzan fame) in 1933, and later, in 1938, Mexican actor Arturo de Córdova. About her romance with Cooper Marlene Dietrich said "Gary was totally under the control of Lupe"

The marriage with Weissmuller lasted five years; they repeatedly split and finally divorced in 1938.

In the mid-1940s, she had a relationship with the young actor Harald Maresch, and became pregnant with his child. Vélez, following her Catholic upbringing, refused to have an abortion. Unable to face the shame of giving birth to an illegitimate child, she decided to take her own life.

Vélez committed suicide in 1944.

Her suicide note read, "To Harald: May God forgive you and forgive me, too; but I prefer to take my life away and our baby's, before I bring him with shame, or killing him. Lupe." She retired to bed after taking an overdose of sleeping pills.[3] According to newspaper accounts, her body was found by her secretary and companion of ten years, Beulah Kinder.

Andy Warhol's underground film, Lupe (1965), starring Edie Sedgwick as Lupe, is loosely based on this fateful night, suggesting that she was found with her head in the toilet due to nausea caused by the overdose. Another report says she tripped and fell head-first into the toilet, knocking herself unconscious and drowning. However, Kinder reports finding Vélez having died peacefully in her bed.

Beautiful things...

About The Big Cheese

The phrase “big cheese” originates from the Persian and Hindi word “chiz” which means “thing.” In 1886, Sir Henry Yule wrote that “it was common among Anglo-Indians” to say something is “the real big chiz.” The “big chiz” became “big cheese.” The phrase is most commonly used to refer to someone of importance or, in the least, someone who thinks he/she is the big cheese.

Talking about cheese, when a Uruguayan ship ran out of canon balls during an 1865 battle against Brazil they fired the next best thing: stale Dutch cheeses. It dismasted an enemy ship.

Breakfast Darling ?

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so it's essential that you make the most of it. But really it's not that difficult to get a good deal of nutrition from your morning meal.

Here are some really good healthy breakfast options to help you prepare a a great start that will keep you going all day.


Granola Fruit Kabobs

"This is a great dish to serve at morning gatherings and meetings. It serves like an appetizer, but makes for a very healthy and satisfying breakfast.

Low Carb Pumpkin Pancakes

"Serve with your favorite topping. Be sure to make the pancakes a little smaller than usual since they're a little fragile (no flour to hold them together as well as standard pancakes)."

Porridge and berries


Use oats and skimmed milk to make your porridge, then add any berries such as strawberries, raspberries or blueberries and honey. This is a great way to start the day as the oats have a low GI (Glycaemic Index) this tells us that oats do not raise the blood glucose level very quickly, which is good as it can help stabilise the appetite. Just go easy on the honey!



Beans on toast


Beans (whether they are just ordinary baked beans or kidney, borlotti or black eyed beans) also have a low GI like oats. They are full of soluble fibre, which helps keep you full for longer and can therefore help you manage your weight. Serve the beans on granary toast and pass on the butter; a great, low- fat breakfast.



Bagel with reduced fat cream cheese and smoked salmon


Bagels are high in starchy carbohydrates, which help kick start the body into action for the day after a fast of at least eight to 10 hours. The smoked salmon provides the body with omega-3 fat which is essential for the body. Many of us eat far too much saturated fat (which is bad for us) and not enough omega-3 fat that is vital for our health.

Fruit and yogurt


Try adding your favourite fruit to a small pot of low-fat or diet yogurt for breakfast. A small pot of yogurt counts as one of your three portions per day of dairy foods, essential for the teeth and bones.



Bacon, tomatoes, beans, mushrooms and toast


For those of you who can’t resist a cooked breakfast at the weekends try this. It really is a healthy twist on a traditional fried breakfast; grill the bacon, tomatoes and large, flat field mushrooms; if you



Crumpets and fruit spread


Crumpets are a starchy food (they should be the basis of every meal). The only problem with crumpets is the tendency to add lots of butter to them. Try a fruit spread, a great way to top them without adding all the calories and fat in butter.



Muesli and soya milk or low-fat milk (such as semi-skimmed or skimmed milk)


Swiss-style muesli has milk powder added to it, which increases the calcium content of this breakfast cereal. Add calcium-enriched soya milk or semi-skimmed milk and you have a bone-friendly breakfast!



Pure fruit juice and iron-fortified breakfast cereal


Next time you are in the cereal aisle at the supermarket, spare a few minutes to check out the labelling on the packets. Not all cereals are equal when it comes to the vitamins and minerals that are added to them. Iron is a mineral that is added to many cereals, try sultana bran or bran flakes, drink a glass of pure fruit juice such as orange or grapefruit and the vitamin C that the juice contains helps your body to absorb the iron more easily.



Smoothie


If you really can’t face breakfast try to have a smoothie instead. If you fancy trying to make one yourself (easy if you have a hand blender) then fruits such as berries, apples and bananas are great with some milk. All those antioxidant vitamins in the fruit help boost your immunity.



Scrambled or poached egg on granary toast


Eggs are not bad for us! It is what you do with them… Poaching or scrambling eggs with a little milk is a good way to incorporate them into your diet – they provide valuable protein. Scrambled eggs on toastis a much better choice over a fried egg sandwich.

And some more healthy options for you below

Gluten-Free Pancakes

Submitted by Dawn S.

Whole Wheat Apple Scones

Submitted by gifford

Strawberry Smoothie

Submitted by spitz123

Steam Fried Eggs Over Easy

Submitted by kjf916

Strawberry-Oatmeal Protein Pancakes

Submitted by Anonymous Breakfast Lover

Strawberry Banana Bonanza

Submitted by Iluvfitness

Blueberry Mango Energy Smoothie

Submitted by FinestBerries

Sugar Free Low Fat Raspberry Crepes

Submitted by Sugarfree

Healthy Blueberry Bran Muffins

Submitted by FinestBerries

Whole Grain Blueberry Orange Pancakes

Submitted by 5minvid

Our Sunday afternoon Walk

Just a short walk from the centre of Ubud, in the centre of Bali, up a small hill, down a little path through the rice fields, is a lovely little place for afternoon tea, organic style.

And on the way there is a little villa for rent,

Quite tempting, as long as you have a bike or scooter.

The Meaning of Life ?

So, what's it all about then,

Why do you want to know the meaning of life?

Often people ask this question when they really want the answer to some other question. Let's try and get those people back on track with some "pre-meaning of life" advice:

If you're questioning the meaning of life because you've been unhappy and depressed a good bit, click here.

On a related note, if you want to know the meaning of life because you feel useless and worthless, click here.

If you want to see our answer so that you can prove your intellectual prowess by poking holes in it, click here.

If something awful just happened to you or someone you care about and you don't understand why bad things happen to good people, click here.

If you would like to help the world but most of the rest of the world seems completely insane, click here.

If you wonder why there is so much hatred in the world, click here.

If you wonder why there is so much violence in our society, click here.

If you really don't care about the meaning of life, you're just surfing and ended up here, click here.

If after perusing the questions and side issues above, you're still wondering what life is really all about, you may be ready for the next step in this exposition on the meaning of life. Of course, if you're like most people, you've read all of the above links and now you want to find out what other revelations the authors of these related sites will offer next, so click on to:

The Meaning of Life - Part II

Comments? Bored? Email is virtually free, so if you like you can Email us here.

Did you know that...

SIR FRANCIS BACON (1561-1626)

- died of pneumonia caught while stuffing a CHICKEN with snow

as part of an experiment into cold.

I love you in 101 different ways,

Those three little words,

"I Love You"

hold a lot of meaning, but there's more ways to say them than you think. Here are 101 different ways for you to verbally express your love to your sweetheart.

♥ I adore you.

♥ I am infatuated with you.

♥ I appreciate you.

♥ I can't live without you.

♥ I can't stop thinking about you when we're apart.

♥ I cherish you.

♥ I dream of you.

♥ I live for our love.

♥ I love being around you.

♥ I need you by my side.

♥ I need you.

♥ I respect you.

♥ I value you.

♥ I want a lifetime with you.

♥ I want you.

♥ I worship you.

♥ I yearn for you.

♥ I'm a better person because of you.

♥ I'm blessed to have you in my life.

♥ I'm devoted to you.

♥ I'm fond of you.

♥ I'm lost without you.

♥ I'm nothing without you.

♥ I'm passionate about you.

♥ I'm thankful for you.

♥ I'm yours.

♥ Me and you. Always.

♥ My love is unconditional.

♥ Our love is invaluable.

♥ Take me, I'm yours.

♥ The thought of you brings a smile to my face.

♥ Ti tengu cara (to female) or Ti tengu caru (to male).

♥ Together, forever.

♥ We were meant to be together.

♥ You are a blessing in disguise.

♥ You are an angel from God.

♥ You are like a candle burning bright.

♥ You are my crush.

♥ You Bring me to life,

♥ You are my everything.

♥ You are my heart's desire.

♥ You are my life.

♥ You are my one and only.

♥ You are my one true love.

♥ You are my reason for living.

♥ You are my strength.

♥ You are my sunshine.

♥ You are my treasure.

♥ You are my world.

♥ You are precious.

♥ You are the light of my life.

♥ You are the reason I'm alive.

♥ You bring happiness to rainy days.

♥ You bring joy to my life.

♥ You cast a spell on me that can't be broken.

♥ You complete me.

♥ You drive me wild.

♥ You fill me with desire.

♥ You fill my heart.

♥ You give me wings to fly.

♥ You had me from hello.

♥ You hold the key to my heart.

♥ You inspire me.

♥ You intoxicate me.

♥ You lift me up to touch the sky.

♥ You light my flame.

♥ You light up my life.

♥ You make me hot.

♥ You make my heart skip a beat.

♥ You make my world a better place.

♥ You mean the world to me.

♥ Aku Cinta Kamu

♥ You rock my world.

♥ You seduce me.

♥ You set my heart on fire.

♥ You simply amaze me.

♥ You stole my heart.

♥ You sweeten my sour days.

♥ You turn my world upside down.

♥ You turn the darkness into light.

♥ You're a dream come true.

♥ You're a gem.

♥ You're a twinkle in my eye.

♥ You're absolutely wonderful.

♥ You're all I want.

♥ You're as beautiful as a sunset.

♥ You're beautiful.

♥ You're charming.

♥ You're enchanting.

♥ You're heavenly.

♥ You're my angel.

♥ You're my perfect match.

♥ You're one in a million.

♥ You're priceless.

♥ You're so sexy.

♥ You're the apple of my eye.

♥ You're the best thing that ever happened to me.

♥ You're the best.

♥ You're my diamond in the rough.

♥ You're the one for me.

♥ You're the one I've always wished for.