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7Apr2019

| Charlie Alford

At average walking pace, I walked 12.8km around the Melbournian docklands. Just made it in under 2.5 hours – didn’t think I could do it! Especially at the 7km mark after we came off the freeway bridge, I was hot, dehydrated, and had a stitch. Thoughts of “why am i doing this, kill me now” were squashed when I looked up and saw the Royal Childrens hospital.

It became apparent quite quickly in mind, that if all those tiny humans can fight there respective illnesses and not give, I can’t and won’t give up. So with 3km left I put a rocket in my heels and slowly descended Parkville.

4Apr2019

| Charlie Alford

Someone said this to me today, and it resonated. 2019 will feature a lot of challenges, changes and choices that will characterise the next chapter of my life. It’s full of indecision and fear of the unknown. But the important thing to remember… there is a flicker of light, and hope at the end of the road.

2Apr2019

| Charlie Alford

International Children’s Book Day is here.

One of my favourite authors growing up was Enid Blyton. My book shelves were lined with her adventures and the above quote has always stuck with me. Although I’ll admit, I can’t remember where I read it, only that it was Enid that wrote it.

31Mar2019

| Charlie Alford

Ananas comosus

More commonly known as the pineapple, even though the species have no relationship with pines or apples.

Pineapple is also not native to Hawaii. The world associates the fruit with the island due to the mass production that occurred over the 20th century. It is a key feature of the ‘Hawaiian Pizza’ and is now so meshed into the Hawaiian culture that when it rains on a otherwise sunny day, the locals refer to it as “pineapple juice”.

The Pineapple origin story begins in South America, and was brought to the world by Christopher Columbus and to Hawaii, by Captain James Cook.

Did you know pineapples save lives? It is a great source of Vitamin C, and has enzymes that help with digestion and acts an anti-inflammatory.

Which is why I decided pineapple would be a great addition to my afternoon smoothie experiment. I wasn’t expecting Woolworths to deliver a full size pineapple. This is where it helps to check what exactly is included in the bundle packs.

So I did what any rational Xennial (those of us caught between Gen X and Millennial) would do… I googled.

Step 1: Cut the head and bottom away.

Step 2: Cut the pineapple in half

Step 3: Using a sharp knife cut an inverted triangle around the core.

Step 4: Cut the pineapple in half vertically and then slice horizontally about a cm

Step 5: Guide the knife between the shell and flesh.

Step 6: Pull away the bite size pieces and try not to eat all in one go.

The good news. No writers were harmed in the disassembling of the pineapple. A handful of pieces were pulverised in the afternoon smoothie and the rest lay asleep in the fridge ready for another days snacking.

In addition to saving lives they also make a great inspirational quote: