Vince is cooking something delicious-looking for dinner, and I walk into the kitchen to spy a bowl of green peppers, chopped and ready to put in the stew. As I pass through, I grab a piece and throw it in my mouth as a little pre-dinner snack while he’s cooking.

“SPIT IT OUT!” Vince hates me stealing ingredients he is chopping. I keep chewing.

“No, seriously, spit it out. Spit it out now. I will tell you why.”

I reluctantly take the half-chewed piece of pepper out of my mouth and go to put it in the bin. “What’s the big problem?”

“I chopped that pepper with the same knife and board that I chopped the raw chicken in the stew.”

Lesson learned: Stop eating veggies Vince has chopped for dinner.

It’s so rainy & cloudy outside that at 11.50am, as I type this, the sky looks as though it could be 6 o’clock. The simple fact that it is warm enough to be rainy, however, makes me ludicrously happy and I walked to work with a spring in my step (leaning sideways against the wind). This weekend is (for me) relatively quiet – a buddhist meeting here, some birthday drinks there – and I”m really looking forward to it. It will be nice to spend a little time at home with Vince after being away last weekend, and recharge the batteries a little. Vince is rehearsing two short plays at the moment, so between that and my buildup to the band’s tour at the end of March, I get the feeling our ability to spend time together will be severely limited in the next month.

We’ve been here before, many times, and I feel lucky that we are both secure enough, and independent enough, to not feel abandoned or clingy. I like having my own stuff, my own interests, that he is always a part of and included in, but that he doesn’t feel the need to participate in all the time. For me, that independence is an important aspect of a healthy relationship. I think it’s a big part of why we work as a couple – we don’t ever really get into those arguments, familiar to many actors/musicians, where your spouse says ‘why are you always rehearsing?’ or ‘can’t we ever spend time together?’ or ‘you need to dedicate more time to me’ etc etc. That would drive me insane. Yes, there are times when the balance is off and we hardly see each other for weeks, but we both recognise that there are also phases when we have lots of free time to spend together. Recently, there have been relatively few of those, but it’s definitely made me realise how much I treasure those moments and turn things down sometimes so I can be home with him instead – not out of a feeling of guilt or obligation, but a desire on my part because I miss him. Likewise, I would never make him feel bad for taking a role or shooting a film on the only weekend I am free that month (this has happened), because he has to pursue his own career and his own success as an actor, and I completely support him in that. (I actually felt a little bit glad because it meant I got to watch the Cooking Channel all day in my pyjamas and no one was around to tell me otherwise.)

So this weekend I will enjoy the relaxing time at home, and look forward to seeing Vince again in April.

I’m not really sure what to write about today. My week has been quiet, but I’ve been preoccupied with reading live blogs and updates from Libya and New Zealand – one nation fighting for freedom and one nation fighting to save people. Both have seen death this week, but both have seen courage and bravery. I’ve seen a lot of cynical posts on Facebook and Twitter, as well as on comments pages, about the revolts in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya – but I find them inspiring and faith-affirming. Yes, there are those who might be there to radicalise and promote intolerance under a new kind of regime, but mostly I have seen the youth of those countries standing up for what they believe in. We need more youth around the world with that kind of courage. I have to believe that the good kind of change is coming for those people, because they are so determined to make it happen.

I was lucky that the two people I know well in NZ were not in Christchurch when the earthquake hit – one had only left a day or two before. But again, the courage and bravery of people helping to rescue others, bring clean water, food and supplies to those stranded, and take care of strangers, is inspiring. My heart broke for this girl, who posted on Amanda Palmer’s blog (see the comments) about losing her entire family, but people as far away as Melbourne offered her a place to stay, help, love, support, kindness. I hope reading those comments made your heart sing, like they did for mine. The best of humanity can be seen around us even in the darkest places, if we take the time to look.

I was so exhausted by the time I got back from our upstate trip yesterday afternoon that I didn’t have the energy to post a blog. We had a fantastic weekend and worked out a really good first take of one of the new blues tracks, which has a crazy awesome guitar riff. It’s catchy. I crashed on the couch for a few hours before I had to head out to a meeting about the show I co-wrote in 2009 and am in the process of doing re-writes on with the other Dysfunctional ladies (well, I say I’m doing rewrites, but as usual Amy Overman is doing most of the work and we’re all nodding at her). I was knackered but I wanted to catch up with them.

Back at the temp job today and down to reality with a bump. The prospect of our tour to the Caribbean coming up in four weeks is propelling me to work hard and earn money now, so I can make the most of our time there and enjoy it, but I really struggled to get up with the alarm this morning. Going away with the band usually reverses my sleep schedule, as we’re up until the wee hours and sleep in late, so the first day back is always brutal. I’m not feeling too bad, but very pleased I can go home tonight and get to bed early. This week is relatively quiet for me, so I’m making the most of it!

If three days in the freezing cold Catskills makes me not want to come back to real life, imagine what I’m going to feel like when I have to leave a week of playing gigs in the Caribbean – temp jobs will never seem so dull as that first day back will be! However I’m determined to make the tour a springboard for the rest of the year being a success, financially and artistically. I don’t want to just come home, be depressed about being back in a temp job and do nothing with the momentum. I plan on getting new headshots, taking some classes and getting in front of agents, back on the audition trail, play regular gigs with the band, and get somewhere. Gotta happen this year.

I wrote a blog post for the band blog today, so I will share it here as today’s offering:

After an awesome (late) night, with Hank, Darren, Sergio and Sean recording into the wee hours (Tobias and I both crashed out way before them), we finally dragged ourselves through the shower and out for a late brunch at the awesome Cassie’s Cafe in Roxbury. Bob, owner of Cassie’s, has been a great supporter of Coyote Love ever since we started coming up here, playing our songs on his radio show and being a great friend. So imagine our amazement and joy when we walked in to get something to eat and saw this on the blackboard:

They named a freaking BREAKFAST after us! We were blown away. Of course Hank ordered it, and everyone else in the band had a bite of the delicious-looking blueberry pancakes.

As someone whose life revolves around thinking about her next meal, this was just too cool. To have someone name a meal after our band? Only celebrities get that!

We also bumped into Terry Doyle, who interviewed us yesterday on WIOX, enjoying a cup of coffee at Roxbury’s. That’s what is so awesome about this community – everyone is part of the town and involved in it, from running the community radio station to serving coffee at Cassie’s to pouring drinks at T-Bar to supporting the music and arts scene. We are always grateful to come up here and feel like we are even a small part of this thriving community, and to be included in such a special way (for a foodie, like me) – it was just the icing on the (gluten-free) cake. Thank you Bob and everyone at Cassie’s for taking such good care of us!