This week’s small pleasures #404

Thistles and Kiwis

The wind has blown, the rain has fallen and the sun has shone this week. Thursday and Sunday were both glorious days, sunny and warm that made us forget all about winter. The tui are enjoying the kōwhai flowers, and there are magnolia to be seen everywhere. And…I treated myself to some black pudding for Sunday breakfast. Perfect!

But the biggest small pleasure this week was having Karl home from Europe (Malmö, Copenhagen and Athens). He arrived back early Sunday afternoon, very tired of course after the long journey (we are really far away down here), but glad to be back. He brought me a Moomin tea towel and another Moomin mug for our collection, which was perfect.

A quick trip

I flew up to Hawke’s Bay for work on Monday, returning on Tuesday. The weather was good, the work was fine, but to hear more tales of the devastation caused by Cyclone Gabrielle and, when flying over the area, seeing signs where recovery has still to take place, was quite sobering.

In the basket

There was a welcome lettuce, aubergine (eggplant) and a couple of red onions, along with mushrooms, carrots, potatoes, kumara and of course, avocados in the Wonky Box this week. As much as I love avos, you can have too many. I picked up more (still a bit expensive) asparagus to enjoy with my dinner on Saturday, a big bunch of oranges, some rainbow chard, tomatoes (I know…totally out of season but I had such a longing for them) and these red pears which I have still to try.

What’s for lunch?

On Saturday, I popped into (relatively) newly opened Salut Pies on Victoria Street. After being good with lentils, beans and tofu most of the week, my body was craving something else, and this mince and cheese pie filled the need. This is no petrol station pie (if you are from NZ you will get this reference), but a pastry shell filled with really good beef mince, peppery seasoning and just the right amount of cheese.

On Wednesday, I went to Pickle & Pie for one of their new chicken caesar sandwiches, a good addition to their menu for the warmer months. Sunday was sunny enough to eat lunch outside, so I made myself a plate with hummus, braised fennel, lettuce, tomato, olives, radishes, a dollop of the new truffle infused taramasalta from Elysian Foods and some pitta. It really made me feel like summer could be a thing.

Simple things

  • Watching all the people walking their dogs while waiting for the bus on Saturday morning.
  • Listening to this great cover version of Grover Washington’s Just the two of us by Willowbay. I love the original and love this too.
  • Spending Saturday evening reading a crime novel instead of watching a crime serial.
  • Sitting in the garden, reading, while waiting for Karl’s return.
  • Finding time to switch off and appreciate things.
  • Looking at Friday’s sunset.

What were your small pleasures this week? Here are some other blog posts from a few fellow bloggers looking at the good things in life. Also entered in the weekend coffee share hosted by Natalie.

Thistles and Kiwis is a Wellington, New Zealand based blog written by Barbara, who likes cats, summer, good food and pretends to garden.

You can find Thistles and Kiwis on Facebook, and also on Instagram @thistlesandkiwis.

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Published by Thistles and Kiwis

Loves summer, sunshine and cats. Beginner gardener, likes eating, cooking and reading about food

38 Comments

  1. My biggest pleasure has been spending a few days in the Mountain Zebra National Park with excellent company and good weather prevailing; communicating with my scattered children on our return; and having purchased the week’s groceries before eight o’clock this morning, which leaves the rest of the day ‘free’.

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  3. That chicken Caesar sandwich sounds and looks so good! My biggest pleasure this past week was our long hike and lunch out yesterday; two of the boys came with us and we explored a whole new area of our state. The views from on top of the castle were incredible.

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  4. Glad to read that Karl came back safe and sound.

    Lovely to have lunch outside. Spring really is coming to your part of the world.. Even though fall is tapping on our shoulders, we are still having lunch outside, too.

    Thanks for the mention!

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  6. Everything you post sounds so delicious. That pie really looks yummy! (I don’t totally get the reference but I can figure it out from context–we have convenience stores and gas stations that also sell mediocre food). I am curious about one thing though: you refer to work trips, and you seem to travel a lot. What kind of work do you do? I don’t mean to pry but just a hint at the sort of job would be lovely.

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  7. That Chicken Caesar sandwich looks interesting, what kind of bread do they use? And the lunch platter looks very good too. I might copy that one. Thank you once again for linking to me.

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  8. My sister was a Moomin fan; the mug and tea towel are cute. Mince and Cheese is definitely the king of pies and, after such a virtuous week, a well deserved treat. Petrol station pies…get the reference but we’re pretty partial to a Wild Bean visit in this house 😊

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    1. Thanks – I am very pleased with the mug and tea towel. Yes you can have too many avocados when 1) you are the only person in the house who eats them (unless hidden in a salad) and 2) they just keep coming faster than I can eat them!

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  12. Hi Barbara, I’m glad Karl is back home with you and yes we’re a long way away down here as I’m about to find out again next week! Those red pears look fabulous. All the best for the week.

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  13. Pingback: 7 swans go swimming? – Touring My Backyard

  15. The Moomin towel and mug are cute.

    My food share includes a recipe called “Baking Sheet Spice Shrimp with Vegetables.” It’s tasty. We put it over a bed of quinoa to add a bit to the meal. My other share is that my 14-year-old wanted to cook dinner. He experimented with a meatloaf recipe using ground turkey. It was another tasty meal.

    Great coffee post. Thanks for sharing.

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  16. More Moomin! How fun! One of my friends is a collector and she has a whole cabinet dedicated to them. Her biggest problem is that she recently try ran out of space in her show-cabinet, and had to place some items elsewhere. LOL.

    Your week and all the yummy food sounds wonderful. Do you often travel for work?

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    1. I think we must have almost a dozen mugs now? I need to count them! They are such a good size as well as fun.

      Pre Covid I travelled a lot for work, but it stopped for a bit but picking up again this year.

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  17. Beautiful Moomin tea towel and mug! All the food look delicious. My small pleasures this week were riding my bike in the sunshine and explore lesser known places in the city. Thank you for the mention and for your weekend coffee share. Have a wonderful week ahead!

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  18. Fun, fun, all of it! And beautiful photos, as always. Again I’m captivated by your new Moomin treasures. (How thoughtful is Karl?!) My son Jeremiah’s girlfriend also collects Moomin goodies. I can’t wait to share your post with her! (And thank you for your very kind mention of my blog!)

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