Some things I need to get off my chest - by Polly

My New Year list - by Polly

Random thoughts in my head right now - by Polly

My Summer list by Polly

Things that make me feel grown up - by Polly

Polly's favourite smells

the hall cupboard in montese

granny's larder (in particular the savoury biscuit tin)

proper coffee

sunblock (particularly clarins but any will do)

the forno in montese

anything papa makes

papa's aftershave

emilia after a bath

washing that's dried outside

jasmine

good extra virgin olive oil

Polly's Guilty Pleasures

grease is the word

custard tarts from the queen's park cafe

70% - i've gone from ordering one pkt to three on my sainsburys shop

the real hustle, bbc3

gripping things with my toes - this can be anything from the bedsheets to cushions to shannon's sweatshirt while i'm lying on the sofa (he hates it)

walking through south hampstead wishing i could afford to live there

stalking cillian murphy in queen's park

chewing my lips

papa's salsa verde on ANYTHING

looking at other people's photo albums when babysitting

loose women but i miss sheree and don't like jayne macdonald

other people's blogs - i'm addicted and can waste hours going one from blog to the next getting lost in the process

shipwrecked

and of course topshop, but i don't feel guilty about it in the slightest!

Polly's town(s)

this was very hard as there are so many places i love in all the places i've lived, so here are just a few....

Australia

greville st. melbourne - i had my first flat here as a single lady and i felt very grown up. there are great shops in greville st and it is also home to the lovely foccaccia bar where the lovely foccaccia boy used to work.

metropolis (used to be on acland st. melbourne) bookstore - a proper bookstore with lots of browsing to be had.

the doulton pub, melbourne. scene of many laughs in the good ol' days with the ladle. we once spent a whole day in there being ridiculous. it's also where i met shan.

the campari at the george, melbourne.

the walk from st kilda to ormond point, melbourne. i used to do this walk of a morning and meet the ladle on the top of the hill before going to acland st for a coffee. the view across the city is fantastic.

the laneways in melbourne - you would never know that down these little alleyways lurk so many fantastic bars, restaurants, galleries and shops - always inspiring.

T'Gallant winery, Victoria for their yummy pizza and delicious wine.

Melinda's house in lorne - scene of some amazing times, lots of laughs, yummy food, great wine and some extremely drunken moments.

drinking frangelico in the cicciolina back bar

the stuffed vine leaves at termini (and the duck pappardelle!),melbourne

coffee and breakfast in melbourne in general, beats anything you get around here

London

little venice - where i grew up and a beautiful spot for a walk

hampstead heath of a summer evening

the tate modern and the v&a - great exhibtions and great shops!

queen's park - has saved my life since having milly

comfort station, cheshire st - my friend amy's shop full of wonderful treasures

to'sho' - i can't describe the feeling i have when i walk down that escalator....

habitat - always finding covetable things that i can't afford

portobello on a friday

borough market

the warrington pub - beautiful building

the 46 bus - because it doesn't really exist and is full of actors and extras

the mushroom risotto at the salusbury, queen's park

liberty, yes, auntie frannie it is very special

ikea - especially the marketplace. i almost get a to' sho' type feeling when i'm in there!

Italy

the sound of montese in the summer - scooters zooming by and children shouting from the pool

montalbino - where shan and i got married, a very special place

bologna - scene of many happy memories from my youth

venice - the most beautiful city in the world especially at 6am when there are no tourists around

and finally lying in my hammock on the balcony of our room in tulum, mexico. had just found out that i was an aunt and it was truly one of the most special moments ever.

Polly's "I secretly love..."

duncan bannatyne
liam from the factory in corra
dermot o'leary
daniel auteuil
stewart copeland
dustin hoffman
nigel havers
the boy from the foccaccia bar in melbourne
yves montand in his youth
gael garcia bernal (no secret)
kevin mccloud
james blake
beck
and in my youth i was known to have a soft spot for shakin' stevens and boris beckerwunderkind

ps. immodesty blaize

Polly's Desert Island Discs

Tiny Dancer - Elton John because it's the one i love to sing along to with a fake microphone in my hand and real emotion in my voice
Philosophy - Ben Folds Five because i play it to mills and she loves it too. we sing to it in front of the mirror
Meglio stasera - Ennio Morricone because fran and i love the version in the pink panther
Copacabana - Barry Manilow because i love a bit of cheese and i once got an american friend to write down all the words for me so i could memorise it and i still know all the words to this day
Sexx Laws - beck, just because
Love Cats - The Cure, reminds me of some fun times in the '80s
Lady - Mojo because melinda and i find it hysterical and the whole lady/ladle thing. i'll always remember getting out of melinda's car in front of my house and it was playing on the radio and she turned it up really loud.
All night long - Lionel Richie because it was the last song i played at my wedding and the crowd went wild!!

Would save meglio stasera.

Book: Room with a View - EM Forster

Luxury item: Battery operated DVD with box set of Sex and the City. If I could take a person it would be Melinda. We'd have so much fun dancing to 'Lady'.

Polly's "All I want for Christmas is..."

for milly to sleep through

a cleaner

for the dust to disappear

some sunshine

for milly to grow some hair

a top shop voucher for ever day of the year

someone to show me how to use skype so i can joke with the ladle

david gest to come and tell me some ridiculous stories and make me chuckle

to wean myself off the crap tv i watch ALL day

4 calling birds

Polly's 'Some things you may not know about me...'

some things you may not know about me are...
that i call the area where i live, the 'ghetto'
that i feel the need to read the number plate of every car i walk past, or 'something bad will happen'
that punctuation mistakes make me angry, especially misplaced apostrophes
that grammar mistakes make me angry
that when i read magazines i have to read every page, including the ads, or 'somethng bad will happen'
that i secretly wish i was an actress or a singer
that i am scared of birds and butterflies - in fact anything with wings
that i enjoy ironing
that it took fran and i about 5 days to work out the time difference between uk and italy after the clocks had changed
that i once watched bridget jones twice in a row with the ladle
that i find animals acting as humans very amusing indeed
that i think cats are really evil
that i make emilia listen to 'meglio stasera....' many times over while i memorise the words

Polly's 'i don't understand...'

i don't understand...


why carol vorderman feels the need to wear party frocks for countdown

why they served ferrero rocher at the ambassador's reception

why emilia doesn't laugh at my jokes or love my singing

why there's never anything good on telly on saturday night

how my flat can get so dusty

why australia is so bloody far away

the wardrobe department at gmtv

how the ladle and i can laugh at the same things a million times over

how shan manages to snore through the night and not hear emilia

how emilia manages to snore through the night and not hear shan

why everyone in queen's park has a bugaboo

why top shop don't reward me with free clothes for my loyalty

the sienna miller/kate moss obsession

Polly's i like list

I like…
emilia's little toe
isi's laugh
talking nonsense with the ladle
shan in stripey tops
papa's tomato sauce
my morning coffee
drinking campari in the sun
to'sho'
looking at my wedding photos
gael garcia bernal
tootsie
uncle benny and auntie franny taking emilia for walks