Buy my book! Coming up Roses by Sarah Laing

Vampires and bats August 2007

I was terrified of vamires as a child, and went to bed with a clove of garlic under my pillow. I was scared out ofa Mayan ruin in Palenque, Mexico by a pack of bats. Now I am embracing my fears. Otto flies the vampire around the house, saying, "I vant to suck your blood." They are made out of felt with wire in their feet so they can hang from high places.

New lampshade August 2007

Gus tipped over my lamp and its 1950s plastic shattered. So I had to buy a new shade. It was offensively beige, so I covered it in vintage fabric my friend Helen gave to me years ago.

Baking bread August 2007

Ever since I got the Eve Lane memorial Kenwood, breadmaking has been easy. 1 tablespoon of yeast into 2 cups of lukewarm water, and a little sugar to motivate the yeast. Then I tip in 2 cups of flour, a tablespoon of salt and oil, and turn on the mixer. Sometimes I put in carraway seeds or fennel, sometimes I put in olives and rosemary. Then I put in 3 more cups of flour of varying shades, and mix for 10 minutes. A couple of hours later, it will have risen -- if not, I curse, then fill a bowl with boiling water and stick it in the oven with the dough to steamily rise some more. Then I take everything out, divide the dough into two buttered tins, preheat the oven to 220 degrees c, and wait another half hour before sticking the tins into the oven to cook for 20 minutes. I remove the bread from the tins, turn the oven off and let the bread dry out in the oven for another 5 minutes. Then we have thick slices with melted butter. Yum!