The dishwasher is sitting there, and for the last few days it has been smugly concealing all the teaspoons we have.  Side plates ran out this morning, and bowls are nearly out, and yet the dishwasher is still not ready to run.

This is because I have had one of those bad, bad weeks where I have eaten out or had takeaway food nearly every night.

I’ve had a series of run-on meetings, where you start in the Council House at 10 or 12 (I’m back to nocturnal again this week, so there is no time to do anything before a noon meeting) meet, have maybe an hour off before another 4 or 5, followed by a resident or local party meeting in the evening starting at 7 or 7.30.  There isn’t time to get home before meetings, and certainly not time to cook.

So, I’ve been taking the easy way out.  I know I can sit in the carpark of a residents meeting, phone the chinese takeaway round the corner from me, and they will have delicious unhealthy food all ready for me to swing by the shop on the way home.  There is no waiting, no Nigel Slater syle 30 minute fast food, it’s just ready, and tasty, and convenient.

And expensive of course, comparatively. Although in a city like ours, there’s enough competition to make sure there isn’t too much in it.

And because I’ve not been using pots and pans, it’s taking forever to fill the dishwasher and we’re running out of the important things.  So there is yet another appliance sitting there telling me I am not running my life quite the way I planned to.