(Now) Funny Childhood Memories

Just this afternoon I overheard a mother talking about her child's sand shoes and this reminded me of a childhood memory I'll never forget.  I can tell the story and laugh about it now, but back in the day, it was embarrassing beyond words.

At this point I should mention that English is my second language which I began learning in pre-school.  My Mum, although quite fluent in English at the time, doesn't have a clue when it comes to some everyday Aussie terms.  And after this story, I'm sure you'll agree with me!

I was in year 1 and the class was going on an excursion to the beach.  A list of items for parents to pack on the day was sent home and amongst other things, "sand shoes" was listed.  Mum and I had never heard of the term, but as it was a trip to the beach, we both assumed that sand shoes =  flippers.  On the morning of the excursion before school (last minute is my Mum's signature style), I remember rushing into the local Toyworld and buying bright blue flippers.  I ended up arriving late to school so Mum came with me to class to apologise to the teacher and explain why we were late. 

So there I was, flippers in hand - still in their plastic packaging, standing in front of the class... only for the teacher to tell us both that "sand shoes" actually means sports shoes!  It was horrible at the time.  So horrible.  I ended up wearing normal school shoes to the beach.  Eighteen years later... whenever I hear the term "sand shoes", it brings me back in time to that morning in year 1.

If only we had the internet in 1992 to google "flippers"!

Numero Uno

Welcome to my blog!  This will be an outlet for sharing my thoughts on life and reviews on things/places I like or dislike.

Reflecting upon the past week, there have been a couple of events worth blogging about.

STELLA MCCARTNEY FOR TARGET 2010

First, the launch of the 2010 Stella McCartney for Target range.  I was pretty excited about this, as I loved the lookbook shown on their website.  The clothes this time around were much more suited to my style.  So I arrived at 7.45am at the Brisbane CBD Target store with a colleague, ready to hunt down the styles I wanted.  There were less people than I expected lining up, probably about 35 or so.

My #1 lemming was the Tulip Shaped Trench below but in navy.  I'm travelling to Hong Kong in a few weeks' time so I thought this would be perfect for the weather over there.  Unfortunately, the cut looked horrible on me.  The shoulders were too big and it flared far too much from the hips.  I knew it was going to be tulip-shaped, but didn't expect it to be that tulip-shaped.  (Certainly doesn't look it from the photo).  It was also unlined which I think is unreasonable for the price.  No matter - I just saved myself $249!



From http://www.target.com.au/





The other lemming I had were the wide-leg pants and these didn't disappoint.  I ended up getting both the navy and black.

From http://www.target.com.au/

I also came away with the very popular black lace tee, but I may return it or give it to a friend/relative because it feels scratchy against the skin. 

What I absolutely hate about these Designers for Targets launches are the profiteers that come out and buy a trolley-full of items to sell at a ridiculously marked-up price on Ebay.  I'm feeling quite satisfied that as of last night, none of these overpriced items listed had bids on them.


CONVICTION RESTAURANT, EMPORIUM

There is a steak restaurant at Emporium (Fortitude Valley, Brisbane) I love called Three Bistro (same owners as Restaurant Two) which has been taken over for six weeks for the filming of a reality TV show on Channel 7 called "Conviction Kitchen".  The concept involves 11 ex-criminals operating a restaurant under the direction of British-born Melbourne-based chef Ian Curley with all profits going to charity.  More information can be found at http://www.ourbrisbane.com/food-and-drink/conviction-emporium

I wish I had read the review on the website above before visiting the restaurant last Wednesday night as I would've ordered the lamb instead of our steak for 2 dish.

If you look closely at the photo below, there is a camera man in the background filming the staff reception table. 

I've never heard of Ian Curley but going by his food concepts, I'm not a fan.  First of all, instead of serving butter with the bread, garlic aioli is provided instead.  When I queried this to the waitress, she told me that the head chef doesn't like serving butter with anything.  Hmm... Mr Curley needs to make a trip to Tetsuya's and try his truffled butter!  Apparently he also refuses to cook meat well-done, which is something I've never understood about chefs.  Yes, you may not think that well-done meat is the best way to enjoy it, but you should adopt to the customer's preferences at the end of the day. 

Mister and I ordered steak for 2 ($77; I really can't recall the name of the steak, something unusual), and it was rather disappointing in terms of flavour.  The steak was very tender, but no jus/sauce of any type was provided and there definitely was not enough flavour in the meat itself to leave that out.  The bone marrow side was just strange and didn't seem to complement anything, the salad was sour and the lemon wrapped in fabric was also strange.  Maybe I'm not a true foodie enough to appreciate this dish...

The kipler potatoes (I think were $8) we ordered as a separate side, on the other hand, were so delicious!  So flavoursome and well-cooked.  Probably the best kipler potatoes we've had at a restaurant.

Creme brulee is by far my favourite dessert of all time, so when it appears on the dessert menu, I don't bother reading the rest of the list :-)  This one was served with green apple sorbet and tea cake ($16).  It had a great caramelised crust and very creamy so it was a happy ending to the meal!

The service, although friendly and down-to-earth, was obviously amateur.  Our waitress kept referring to customers as "youse" and totally forgot about serving bread until just before our mains arrived.  But apart from that, I thought she was pretty good for someone with limited experience in her role.

The restaurant will be open for a few more weeks and you should definitely make a booking if you're interested in seeing behind-the-scenes of a restaurant reality TV show.