MARATHON SLEEP? I did at least fourteen hours last night. And even when I tried to get up I just ended up sleeping again. "Drugs" didn't come into it either as I took nothing nonprescribed (ie nothing except methadone).Last night I was in a very dire mood. On reflection what happened was that I topped up a little too much drink on top of an already mournful "humour" and ended up feeling quite morbid.
All I seem to do is eat and sleep. So maybe there is something in that SAD thing. Otherwise it is what they call "atypical" depression - that is depression with increased sleep and appetite and a reactive mood - rather than the flatline or "worse in the morning, better in the evening" typical of more "traditional" downers.
Zhu told me the the curry ingredient I'm probably looking for is 八角 (ba jiao in Mandarin; bat gok in Cantonese - both mean "eight sides" referring to the "star shape"... It is in fivespice and I did find it in my local supermarket (eventually) but held of purchasing it when I saw a jar full of whole Stars. Aparently the spice degrades quite rapidly when pulverized ...
All I can say with any authority so far about the elusive Chinese curry is that it almost certainly contains: onions, garlick, ginger (not overpoweringly so) and star anise (again not overpoweringly). The colour is distinctive: most Brits will know what I mean, it is a mid yellow-orange-brown colour NOT red - this again must be a clue. (As I've said before I cannot vouch for curry sauces in other countries. It seems to be elusive enough just to capture the one you get here...
And so the search continues!
You must need all that sleep!
ReplyDeleteHi Gledwood,
ReplyDeleteMy hub and daughter in law are both accountants so my life tends to revolve around finances. I do hope you friend will come down under. He will onbly see redback spides if he moves old sheets of corrugated iron where they tend to lurk. I doubt very much that he will experirnce tho old outdoor loo where they sometimes sot on the toilet seat. Our hospitals have heasps of antivenine for emergencies. Tell him ther will be no problem and if he doesn't go to Sydney he won't have tp worry about trapdoor spiders anyway. give him some encouragement. He is missing a beautiful country.
Have you tried taking vitamin D during the winter months when you don't get to see and feel the sun ... supposed to help with SAD disorder, especially if you are craving carbs more than usual - which is what most of us do anyway in winter spuds spuds and more spuds in any shape or form *!*
ReplyDeleteAkelamalu: surely must've :: didn't sleep nearly as long last night...
ReplyDeleteHelen: what about mouse spiders tho!...?!?
(joke!)
Bimbimbie: I haven't tried vit D you get a lot of it in carrots, don't you..?
Enjoy the sleep.I sure could use some.
ReplyDeleteSounds like you may need some light therapy.It has helped me in the past this time of year. Gloomy weather makes for a gloomy mood.
I'm sure there's something in SAD, too. Keep us up to date on the curry saga! Love from Simi and me xx
ReplyDeleteGLED - Carrots do not have a lot of Vitamin D, the only really good way for your body to produce Vitamin D is to be exposed to sun-light. Otherwise, fatty fish, such as salmon, mackrel... sardines are good too as is tuna, catfish and eel.
ReplyDeleteVitamin D is called the "feel-good vitamin" and it puts you in a good mood. Studies have found that people living in countries with a lot of cloud cover or darkness lack Vitamin D and get depressed easier. (I used to drink it pill-form during the Dutch winters).
hey gled. feeling a bit SAD myself. I love sleep so much.
ReplyDeletehope you are feeling a bit brighter. wasn't the sun lovely yesterday?
Preposterous: Did you use one of those full-spectrum lightboxes? Or just a "natural light" bulb...? I've heard that unless the light is above a certain power it's basically not worth bothering with ... is that right? I don't know the ohms/amps/vaults/amounts ... lux? candelas? whatevers I dunno them but I know they gotta be HIGH to snap you outta the pitsome winter blues...
ReplyDeleteo and btw my blog is NOT blue bc of depression... someone once said that might be depressing me... blue is an oceanic colour to me... I only use the expression "blues" because others understand it... to me melancholia is grey toning into deepest cavernous black!
Welshcakes: o yeah I have narrowed it even further. I'm pretty sure Chicken Oxo plays a part... seriously!
Nicole: I love oily fish. Not so much into white fish myself but a nice bitta sardines or sild are my favourite canned fish... actually fresh too. Yummm! I love fish. Apart from the swimming, fresh fish is my big +++ of why I think it's good to live beside the sea
Lettuce: erm... can't remember!