Ask Lady Smaggle – Questions 31 to 40

Just ‘coz I’m a bit of a nosy parker… and a romantic… my question is about you & mister smaggle. anything you fancy divulging: how did you meet? how long have you been together? you have mentioned a couple of times that he’s younger than you – how much?

Alright I’ll tell you… It’s 2002. I’m in a theatre watching a play that my friend is in. All of sudden this tall, gorgeous blond thing walks on stage and my brain goes all ‘Well, hello delicious. Who the hell might you be?’. I’m a sucker for man who can act and he was doing the most perfect Scottish accent – swoon. We spoke briefly after the show and I congratulated him on his performance. My friend Gina who I was seeing in the show was watching this interlude. After he left she came up to me and said ‘Dude. Don’t even think about it. He’s fourteen’. Yeah. Awkward much. I was eighteen at the time so um… ew. In my defense he has been six foot freaking four since he was eleven with a baritone that rivals James Earl Jones. So bite me. Then we kept doing plays together and stayed in contact and then one day, four years later, when it was no longer illegal for me to touch him, we went to see a movie and well…. we will have been together for four years in March. He is spectacular. Totally worth the wait.

What places do you love in Melbourne, esp. for going out for a night on the town?

I love Shanghai Dumpling house and then just down the road is the Shanghai Club where we do karaoke. It’s awesome. Both are just on Little Bourke St at the start of China town. I also love the Toff for cool shows and Section 8 the bar next door to Shanghai Dumpling House. I also love the Westgarth Palace cinema, Mixed Business Cafe in Clifton Hill and Night Cat just off Brunswick Street… and those are pretty much the only places I ever go. Sad.

What recipe are you most proud of and can you give us the step by step instructions to make it?

Easily Smoosh’n’freezin.

It’s a no bake slice that you smoosh in the pan and freeeze. Hence Mr Squiggle naming it ‘Smoosh’n’freezin’.

Ingredients –

70 gms butter

1/2 cup condensed milk

250 gms Gluten free plain biscuits (or if your boyfriend is normal you can use Scotch Fingers or Milk Arrowroots)

1/2 cup of chopped apricots

1/2 chopped white chocolate (or more… I’m usually quite generous with the white choc in this recipe)

1/2 chopped sweet baking ginger

1/2 cup desicated coconut

1/2 cup chopped macadamia nuts

1 Packet of Milk or Dark melts

You throw the butter and condensed milk in a small saucepan and over low heat. Stir until butter is melted and mixture is all nice and mixed up.

Break up the biscuits with your hands into a bowl. Make sure to leave some chunks for crunchy goodness.

Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl. Add butter and condensed milk and mix well.

Firmly press mixture into a lined slice pan. REALLY firmly press the mixture. Only if you want it to stay together. If you want it to be a crumbly mess then don’t.

Spread slice with melted chocolate and place in the fridge until firm. Once you have removed it from the fridge let it reach room temperature before you cut the slice otherwise the chocolate will crack.

This is a great recipe because it’s all in 1/2 cup amounts so you can exchange any ingredients  – I’ve used cranberries, pecans, dried bananas… this recipe is so popular as well. I’ve never left a party without an empty plate when I take this.

If you could wake up with any skill – not superpower, but actual skill, like knitting or something – what would it be? In other words, what would you love to be able to do really well without any practice whatsoever?

Singing. Hands down. I wouldn’t say I’m a terrible singer… I can definitely be given a microphone with out fear of puncturing eardrums but a naturally amazing singing voice would be absolutely number one.

Do you have someone whose blog you read or maybe a writer/author/artist, you love their style, you think they are witty and smart and you just think you could be friends with them, like drinking wine and talking?

Oh great question! Yes. Yes and Yes. Daddy Likey. What Claudia Wore. Seth Godin. I actually laugh out loud when I read these blogs – Except Seth’s. I just silently nod in awe. I could prettily easily eat dinner with anyone at Design Sponge too. Actually, screw it. Let’s just have a big old dinner party and invite them all shall I?

What’s in the Smaggle Pack?

A hand crafted Smaggle made ring and some of my favourite tea, chocolate and lip gloss.

What exactly are you hiding in that hair of yours?

Right now…? You don’t want to know. Previous items include bugs, pen lids (after having my hair in pony tail at school all day I came home and washed my hair and TWO pen lids fell out of it), hair bands that I thought I had lost and we also had a yellow budgie called Buddy who loved to hide in it but sometimes he got a bit tangled and couldn’t get out and Mamma Smaggle had to rescue him.

What does Smaggle mean? why did you choose it as your nom de plume? do your family/friends know what it means?

Smaggle – violent affection. I chose it because it sort of defines me I guess. I’m really feisty and forceful but it’s only because I’m just so freaking excited about everything all the time. Plus it’s just a great word. And Mr Smaggle fought tooth and nail for the domain so we felt it was meant to be. Family and friends know the meaning and lots of them now refer to me as Lady Smaggle.

How would you classify your style? I tend to go off-duty-dominatrix/sexretary at work & blogger-casual in evenings/weekends, et vous?

I’m like an art gallery owner in the office. A gypsy in the jewellers workshops. I’m a kindergarten teacher meets house painter when I’m teaching – the kids are gorgeous but very dirty. I’m a fashion week wanna be when I’m out for dinner and on weekends. I experiment the most in my free time. I don’t really have an identity… it’s a bit bizarre actually.

Would you blog if you had no audience? What would your superhero/alterego look like/dress like? If you could rock one look you currently can’t for whatever reason (i cant rock dresses, because i haven’t the presence of mind to sit like a lady, for instance..) what would it be?

I blogged for three months before I made the site live. It was like a dress rehearsal to see if I could commit. So yes, I have blogged when I didn’t have an audience and I would blog without one again. Although it’s so much for fun with you guys around! I would do sleek sophisticated like Audrey Hepburn or Cate Blanchett. I can’t pull off this look because of my hair and general urchin like appearance, most of the time I look like a crawled out from under a rock. If I could I would wear long silk dresses with no accessories and fitted pants and blazers. I look weird when I try to dress too ‘neat’.

Love Lady Smaggle

xxx