Good morning swingers and mixers, welcome to Day 69 (nice) of Rosalia Rambles Redundancy Review.
Day 69 (nice).
A milestone I was looking forward to for a while.
Not because of any significance. This day holds no relevance to my redundancy journey, or even to my personal journey.
But I have been writing semi-regularly enough to reach the fabled funny number: Day 69 (nice).
Yes I am immature as fuck for revelling in this, but goddamn this is a small victory I am milking to hell.
That and I did not sleep at all last night because it turns out when you have been withdrawn from caffeine for a while that going back on it means you end up staying up till three in the goddamn morning just thinking.
Convention anxiety is also not helping me right now, though my partner was once again there to talk me down.
It has been almost six years since my last convention, and I really want things to go well as this is also my first time entering the VTuber space in an offline capacity – having been adjacent to the space since 2021.
Yeah… nah, not feeling writing a proper review today. My head is too foggy from lack of sleep, so I am just going to include the definition of “nice” as my thumbnail image.
69 days… nice.
Thank you for reading this brief edition of the Redundancy Review. Hopefully you got a bit more sleep than me and can beat the Monday blues off better than I can right now.
Good morning brewers and roasters, welcome to Day 68 of Rosalia Rambles Redundancy Review.
I have found the solution to my spacing out issue I have been experiencing.
It was caffeine.
What I was experiencing was caffeine withdrawal combined with antidepressant withdrawal.
It has been so hot and humid in the UK recently that I have not had any desire to make a hot coffee or the energy to make a cold coffee, instead choosing to drink copious amounts of water and canned soft drinks to beat the heat.
Whilst this helped me beat the heat, my body is used to a regular intake of caffeinated substances and so if I am not able to consume any or, like in this case, completely forget to consume any, the withdrawal symptoms tend to onset pretty quickly and usually abate once I have remembered to take in caffeine.
In today’s instance, my partner made me a mocha shortly after I crawled out of bed and then I had an iced mocha around two hours later as part of my lunch, which has led to me feeling the best I have in a couple of days. My mind and instincts have been the best they have been since my spacing out started.
Initially I could have fixed it yesterday after a shopping trip, because I had considered picking up a Relentless due to a long week but initially decided against it due to not wanting to be wired out of my mind for a D&D game – which was a good decision in hindsight because yesterday’s game was one of the best sessions I had in a while.
Hopefully with the temperatures cooling down I remember to imbibe the blessed substance.
For now though, we have today’s review, another exciting installment of…
Rosa Eats Her Way Around Shrewsbury!
I really need a dedicated logo for this, perhaps something like an axolotl with its mouth wrapped around a burger.
And no, no GenAI to get one quickly. I have standards and would want to pay an artist to create this.
Last night I was thinking about wanting to go out today. I usually go out every day on a walk for my lunch hour but today there was no need to go out except for the sole desire of leaving the flat, as we had already gone shopping for everything we needed for the week and did not need anything extra for tonight.
Thankfully, my partner felt the same, and after much deliberation of where we might want to go for a sort of brunch, we settled on a local bistro-style restaurant known as “The Ol’Chemist”.
We have been there a few times for meals at all hours except dinner, and in this instance we had specifically arrived just in time for them to start serving their lunch menu, where something in particular caught my eye.
But first, drinks.
My partner, pictured in the background, had a Cookies & Cream “Freakshake”, which looked absolutely fantastic, whereas I settled on a nice, simple, iced mocha as mentioned previously.
The tall Collins glass made a nice change for how iced coffee beverages are normally presented to me, along with a minimal amount of ice that reduced how slushy the drink ended up after it sat for a while, experiencing minimal slush and making it perfectly pleasant to sip on as we waited for our food, with it coming in at the very small price point of £3.95 making it all the more enjoyable for being £1 less than drinks of a similar quality.
However, what I was particularly excited for was what I ordered off the lunch menu: Beef Sliders… sort of. When I went to order our lovely waitress told me that the kitchen is out of the beef they used for the slider, but they would be happy to substitute in either chicken or, what I selected, brisket.
These were absolutely phenomenal, potentially being even better because of the brisket being used instead. As someone who absolutely loves pickles in all forms, the chunkiness of how the pickles were cut and placed on the surprisingly soft buns made me very happy, with the sheer amount of melted cheese only improving the taste.
For these two sliders it cost £9.95, a bit pricey in terms of wanting a simple lunch especially compared to some other cafe offerings around town, but for the price it absolutely hit the spot, definitely being filling enough to keep me going until I make dinner later tonight.
If I were looking for more I possibly would have added a portion of fries to go along with it, but I was more than happy with what I got, especially as the vibes were immaculate and the staff were lovely.
That does it for today, thank you for reading today’s edition of the Redundancy Review. I am very glad I have found my rhythm as we have an exciting milestone tomorrow that I would not want to combine any days for. Wherever you are I hope you can enjoy your Sunday and make the most of it before Monday arrives again.
Good morning cockerels and dewdrops, welcome to Day 56 of Rosalia Rambles Redundancy Review.
So, I tend to start work at eight in the morning. Usually meaning that I wake up around half seven to get myself ready in time, being a remote worker and all has its benefits in that regard. I tried to mimic this pattern after my redundancy as well, waking up the same time and trying to get to work.
You might think “wow, that is one hell of a morning person attitude”, and you would be right.
Except I am not a morning person. Not in the slightest.
I am forcing myself to be one though.
It comes from the fact each job I have had has been remote, meaning I have flexibility to set my own working hours so long as I complete the required amount of hours each day. When I first started out I mainly used this flexibility to sleep in some days, before having the realisation: starting at the earliest point my contract allows means I finish the day earlier as well.
From that point on I have kept the same habit for over four years at this point. I start work at eight in the morning, I finish at half four in the afternoon with me very rarely staying past this point as well unless it was mandated for whatever reason.
When it was just my day job that had this routine, it worked out fine enough – especially when I still lived at my parent’s place and had way fewer responsibilities than I do now. However now I am balancing my contract role, my daily writing practice in the form of the review, cooking meals, and finding time to relax, so, it gets hard to keep up with it all sometimes.
Weird thing to say when I am coming up on two months worth of doing this almost every day, but hopefully you get what I mean.
This is also why I am such a caffeine fiend, a caffiend if you will. One way to make up the energy deficit between the time I wake up and the time I really should be waking up is the love found in the bottom of a cup of coffee… or a bottle of Lucozade… or a can of Relentless when I really need to get stuff done.
Speaking of getting stuff done, I should really do a proper review, and today I am extremely thankful for it being Hololive Tuesday because Advent dropped a shit tonne of announcements as I slept that gives me plenty to discuss – from a 3D live concert for their second anniversary to the subject of today’s review, the first of five original songs that build upon the pre-established lore of Advent.
“Genesis” tells the story of Advent before they are placed into the prison that formed the background for their debut lore, exploring the chaos and mayhem all five members got up to. It is an incredibly funky beat, which is not incredibly surprising given all of Advent’s originals and covers all complement their voices perfectly.
True to their form as a group of convicts, this song embodies the themes of freedom that are common among Advent’s originals, with one of the opening lyrics being:
“I knew I was meant to be,
Livin’ life so fast and free”
The first verse is also packed with references to Advent’s lore, with Shiori (my fave) getting the lyric:
“I have awakened to wisdom beyond my understanding”
Playing into her role as the Archiver of Advent, collecting forbidden knowledge that would lead to her imprisonment, followed by Bijou coming in shortly after with:
“Don’t blame me if I shine too bright
Can’t help it if I start a fight”
Which ties into her lore as the Jewel of Emotions, being so radiant and beautiful that humanity would wage war in order to keep possession of her.
One small detail that I like in the music video as well is the attention to continuity about the background of Nerissa. In all of her current models she has her her-right our-left horn shattered, restricting the power of her demonic might, but this video canonically takes place before Advent’s imprisonment, and so:
She is portrayed for the first time with both horns intact, which is an incredibly cool thing to highlight.
The themes of freedom and enjoying yourself come back in full force for the bridge before the final chorus, with each member getting their chance to contribute:
“Let your worries go
Gonna show you how to lose control, ready?
You’ve got to free your mind
Leave your restraint behind
Be outrageous
The chaos is contagious
Come on, you know what time it is!
It’s our genesis!”
…I know I should not be reading trans allegory into this but… I just have to, it is what I am best at. This bridge speaks to me on such a personal level as someone who has had to go through a lot in terms of trying to find myself and find a style I am comfortable in, and in a strange way, Hololive has helped with that.
The girls often talk about reaching for dreams together and working hard to get where they want to do, something I often find inspiration in because if they are able to overcome their own hardships; I definitely should be able to as well.
To transition is to leave behind who you were before, and become the person you want to be, free from the reins of societal pressure to live out your truth, and Advent’s themes of found family & freedom have always spoken to me in that regard.
Plus, I have to shout out how insane it is for their second anniversary they have decided to go “yeah we are releasing five original songs in the leadup to our 3D anniversary concert”. The dedication and passion on show is insane, and I am very much looking forward to seeing the conclusion of this project.
And now, time for the obligatory thing I have to do whenever I talk about Advent…
…she is so pretty oh my god I love her vibe so much.
That does it all for today, felt good to actually write a proper review again… even if it took close to seven hours to actually finish off and put out there. I hope wherever you are you can have a relaxing day and things do not bring you down too much. Thank you for reading.
Good morning hyperboreans and ice climbers, welcome to Day 53 of Rosalia Rambles Redundancy Review.
Birthday party for my friend went extremely well yesterday, and I am going to include a picture of the picnic-ish spread I put together below.
So the bread and coleslaw are homemade with everything else being from the three for £8 deli/picnic section of M&S which made for a pretty diverse range of items included on the table. The bread went down an absolute treat as well, pairing perfectly with a bit of salted butter or a splash of my special “bread dipper” oil, vinegar, and oregano mixture.
The Magic: the Gathering section of the night went by incredibly fun as well, despite the bodge job format we created being a little jank with good pulls opened by all – even if the main hangout bit only lasted three hours due to my energy levels plummeting off a cliff the moment the game ended.
Which leads into how I am feeling today, that being extraordinarily relaxed without having imbibed any of my CBD gummies to reach this state of zen, and I honestly do not know what specifically to attribute it to.
Is it the fact I exhausted my social energy after a somewhat hectic week?
Is it me being comfy in my own space when a week ago I was up in Scotland?
Is it just my mind finally giving me a break and letting me rest without feeling guilty about it?
It could be any of those factors, but the main point is feeling relaxed and not having any major stresses coming in my direction currently.
Times like these do give me a chance to think though, and in something that feels hard to do in today’s climate, think towards the future. The world is in a fucked up place for a lot of different reasons, which makes it hard to make plans for the future when everything feels hopeless.
But even as it does, I still find myself wanting to move forward. To find a better tomorrow and work towards it, especially as a trans person in the UK. It seems like every day the ruling class wants to fuck us specifically, and every day I will find a way to continue living my truth and my best life – be it through pushing myself further into social deviance, looking for ways to support those who need it, or even just stubbornly refusing to bow to pressure and keep existing out of sheer spite alone.
As someone who once did not think she would find happiness and had a limited life expectancy beyond the age of twenty, I consider each day of life I have lived past the point I thought I was done a gift. Through hardship, doubt, and pain, I will keep moving on and writing this story.
No matter what.
But, now it is time to come to the review, and this time we return to one of my favourite topics. That is right, it is time for another exciting episode of:
Rosa Eats Her Way Around Shrewsbury!
When it comes to my food reviews, I have gone here, there, and everywhere thus far but one of the most common threads between all of my food reviews is the humble burger. I have had cafe burgers, restaurant burgers, and fast food burgers, but there is one place in town that I have a particular soft spot for that I have not talked about until today.
Yup, I am talking about Wimpy today.
Wimpy is a well-established fast food burger chain in the UK, claiming that they were the first to serve hamburger based meals all the way back in 1954,having celebrated their 70th anniversary last year as part of this history. It was only fairly recently that I have started going to Wimpy, and in the beginning I did initially have misgivings over the prices.
It eventually found a spot in my heart, and it is a place I return to for simple comfort whenever I need it.
Went out to Wimpy today for an early burger breakfast/brunch as I had found myself craving their specific brand of food, with me ordering a meal of Double Original Quarterpounder Cheese with chips and a coffee thick shake.
The thick shakes I have a particular fondness for, as the price of £4.50 for the amount you get in a glass and how incredibly dense they are, lasting well into my meal and beyond. The hit of coffee in this particular one is also fantastic, providing a much-needed burst of caffeine into my system early in the morning.
Shortly after ordering, my food came out.
Now, you might be wondering, why does this plate scratch an itch for me? On the surface it does not look anything spectacular, and in all honesty, there is not much glitz or glamour here. The chips are your standard fast food fries, crispy with a little hit of salt, and the burger is two patties with a processed cheese slice each, shredded onions & lettuce, and the special sauce in a floury bap.
But that is exactly why it satisfies me so much, because it evokes so much simplicity. It reminds me of food from a burger van at a local fun fair or school fete BBQ, the most no-frills meat imaginable prepared plainly brings me an immense amount of comfort due to that oddly nostalgic feeling.
It is a vibe I get whenever I visit Wimpy’s, especially later in the day when they turned the music on and it is a nonstop roll of hits from the 80s whilst I eat food that reminds me of simpler times, the perfect mood to set up for the day of relaxation I have had today.
That will cover everything for today. Thank you for reading this edition of the Redundancy Review, I hope you have a good day wherever you are and can take it easy this weekend.
Good morning backmarkers and wooden spoons, welcome to a rare double feature for Day 47 & Day 48 of Rosalia Rambles Redundancy Review.
Do not expect this to be a common thing, I mainly wanted to enjoy my remaining time in Scotland yesterday and did not have the energy or wherewithal to write an edition on my overnight coach home… where I got stuck next to a drunk and could not actually sleep at all… which meant I was very knackered upon my return home, conking out for around three hours before waking up now to commit to a review.
But not just any review, a rapid-fire series of reviews based on a bunch of things I did up in Scotland from stuff I ate during my travels up to things I found on my way, intentional or otherwise. No mental check-in today either because I am fully relaxed and just wanting to talk about a bunch of things all in one go. Ready?
Let’s go.
Arctic Coffee – Café Latte
A soft spot in my heart for getting a bunch of coffee down my gullet that is both economic and easily carriable in public places. Purchased for £2.35 from a Tesco Express, it kept me going on my early start journey to Scotland over the several hours I was coachbound.
Admittedly drinking one of these in one day (like I so often do) is probably not the best idea with its absurdly high caffeine content of 50mg/100ml, which makes it a higher caffeine concentration than most energy drinks currently on the market. Was it very much needed for close to ten hours of travel? Oh yeah, just not one I can recommend in good conscience for mimicking my methods.
M&S – Chorizo and Cheese Pot
Rather than buying a sandwich to carry on with me or risk rolling the dice on whatever might have been available at the extended stop location, I decided to buy a three for £8 deal on M&S picnic/deli snacks and carry those in my backpack as small things to munch on considering my hunger during travel can be wildcard unpredictable sometimes.
Though I have to say, I was a little underwhelmed by the chorizo and cheese pot. The chilli cheddar had a decent amount of kick to it but outside of that the chorizo was just passable really, it needed some kind of oil or marinade to really wake it up. Asda provides a similar product which is chorizo slices with manchego and I remember scarfing that down in no time at all. I will likely not buy this pot again.
M&S – Antipasti Medley
The antipasti pot however I will definitely buy again. Whatever the various foodstuffs were marinated in gave them an amazing flavour, and when it comes to deli olives & vegetables this pot managed to include one item I have an insanely soft spot for: marinated garlic cloves.
Something about marinated garlic gloves in a deli context just makes my brain go all happy. I am someone who loves garlic in general and being able to eat a whole clove packed with the flavour of what everything else was soaked in scratches a psychological itch that left me thoroughly enjoying each bite as I continued up north.
Happy Chippy – Pizza Crunch & Chips
One of the few things I requested of my brother as part of my visit was that one night we go to a Scottish chip shop and I try something I would not be able to find down south. Whilst the prospect of deep-fried haggis sounded… interesting, the moment he said the phrase “pizza crunch” to me, my curiosity was piqued.
It is exactly everything I would have dreamed of from a Scottish chip shop – a deep fried half mushroom pizza. Crunchy, crispy, and salty in a way that stimulated all of my taste buds, I could not have asked for a better welcome present to a country I need to visit way more often.
Stereo – Crimson Zero Mocktail, Buffalo Cauliflower Wings, and Double-Cooked Chips
Stereo was a place I had not even heard of twenty minutes before I patronised it, initially only looking it up as I was needing to find a place to go to the toilet and like any self-respecting trans woman in the UK, the prospect of going into a public bathroom terrifies the shit out of me. Stereo not only provided much needed relief with a gender-neutral loo, this vegan LGBT bar provided an incredibly wholesome lunch for a reasonable price of £21.75.
My cocktail was an alcohol-free drink called the “Crimson Zero”, containing Giffard AF Bitters, apple juice, sugar, and Franklin & Sons Ginger Ale. Considering I am not someone who imbibes ginger ale on the regular, this surprisingly hit the spot for me, providing a much needed cooldown after pavement pounding across town for a pee.
The star of the show was the Buffalo Cauliflower Wings though, florets encased in a delicious beer batter, drenched in a tangy buffalo sauce, and served with the sleepy hit of garlic aioli. It was a pleasant surprise to find something so delicious and filling as an incidental to my quest, with the salty chips just adding to the spectacle. I will definitely return to Stereo in the future, with full intention.
Heavenly Desserts – Cookie Blast Milkshake and Lemonade
After finishing my lunch and concluding my quest for shopping, there was one thing I wanted to cap off my Saturday excursion: a milkshake of some description. My first port of call in the St. Enoch’s centre did not have any milk in, so I took to Google maps to see what places were nearby that could scratch that itch. Ideally I would have wanted to find somewhere a little more independent, but considering the aesthetic of this place, it was a good time regardless.
The presentation really stood out to me here, as the tall and skinny glass is not something I have encountered when it comes to ordering milkshakes at a restaurant before, usually getting a wide brim glass with cream coming out the top. Though when I think back to that situation along with how far I had walked to get to that place, they could have served it to me in a paper trough and I would have gulped it down happily.
Lemonade added both to act as additional hydration and to fulfill the bisexual stereotype of having two completely different drinks to satisfy two cravings at once. For £10, I could have done a lot worse for myself in wanting a sweet treat, but I definitely want to explore more independent offerings next time.
Shawarma King – Large Mixed Shawarma Wrap
My final port of call for food before starting my travel home was a recommendation from my brother that paid off in spades. Before I had settled on my pizza crunch on Friday I wanted to try a doner kebab from Scotland, which led to me being told about Shawarma King – a multi-award winning kebab house just a stone’s throw from the city centre.
As someone who has frequented various kebab/burger/pizza houses in my home base of Shrewsbury, including one that completely reshifted my perspective on how good a doner kebab could be, I went in with fairly high expectations…
…and came out completely blown away.
This was my first time having a proper shawarma kebab as opposed to doner meat, and the quality difference was noticeable from the first bite. The meat was flavourful, juicy, and not at all tough, complimented by the soft wrap it was all wrapped up in, the salad and sauce bringing it home for a frankly transcendent experience of what takeaway kebab could be. For £7.50 as well, this wrap offered more than most places have presented for a way higher price, and I will return to experience the euphoria once more.
Outside Glasgow Queen Street – Stupid Bit of Pavement That Knackered My Ankle About a Year Ago
When I visited Glasgow about a year ago for my brother’s wedding, I ended up rolling my ankle on an uneven bit of pavement that really put a limit on my ability to walk around which hampered my exploration efforts with a friend of mine. I walked past that bit of pavement this time, and decided to exact my vengeance.
Take that, you shitty bit of nonoptimal infrastructure.
Finish
Eight reviews done in rapid-fire fashion covering various points of my weekend away in the northlands. I think that more than makes up for missing a day.
Thank you for reading this strange edition of the Redundancy Review. Normal service will resume tomorrow with Hololive Tuesday on the agenda once more. I hope your Monday is not too taxing and you find some time to relax.
Good morning wanderers and travellers, welcome to Day 45 of Rosalia Rambles Redundancy Review.
This review comes from the seat of a National Express coach as I head towards Glasgow for the weekend to see my brother, sister-in-law, and nephew for the weekend.
It was something I said I would do once my redundancy money came through, to make an effort to travel up north and spend some time with them since I have not really had a chance to do so after he moved up there.
The issue was trying to find the right weekend, usually being occupied most of the time with one thing or another, but my redundancy initially presented an ideal opportunity to take some time away.
I feel a lot better than I did yesterday, with my therapy session helping a lot in regards to organising my feelings and understanding specifically what they were – in a way, what I am still processing grief from my initial redundancy.
Whilst my contract work is entirely within my remit and an industry I am familiar with; I no longer have the relatedness of my colleagues like I used to, along with a good chunk of the work feeling hollow compared to what I was doing before.
Trying to disconnect myself from the role is helping to some degree, in that I am here to do what my terms stipulate and nothing more, but I do desire to return to something where I can exercise my passion properly.
The idea of becoming a more permanent freelancer did come up during the discussion as well, that once this current contract ends do I feel I would do better throwing myself into companies as a free agent, never staying in one place too long for risk of becoming bored or complacent again.
Part of this weekend is to do some soul searching away from home, using being in an unfamiliar place to do some proper thinking at the same time as not trying to think about work.
How delightfully oxymoronic.
Today’s review is going to be the exact spot I am sitting in, specifically, seat 2A of a National Express coach.
I have a particular soft spot for coach travel over train travel. The former definitely takes a lot longer to reach my destination, but considering the prices of the latter in the UK, the extra time spent is well worth the savings in my opinion.
Seat 2A is a lovely little tip I picked up from a travel blogger shortly after I had returned from a long coach trip last year, advising that reserving this seat provides extra legroom due to the assisted travel seat in front.
Ever since I strive to book this seat. Being around six foot tall usually means my legs can get cramped in standard seats, but with this lovely tip I can stretch my legs out without disturbing whoever is sitting in front.
It is especially good considering the length of my journey today, a lovely eleven and a bit hour stint with a handful of stops in-between. My Steam Deck is charged, my phone is loaded with music, and I got about a litre of coffee.
Let’s rock.
Thank you for reading this shorter travel themed Redundancy Review, I hope you can relax over the weekend and take whatever time you need for yourself to unwind. For me I am going to settle into my seat and absorb myself into my own world.
Good morning idols and divas, welcome to Day 39 of Rosalia Rambles Redundancy Review.
True to form with the weekend, this is the first time I have woken up feeling somewhat relaxed in a long while, especially considering how many challenges I ended up encountering during my first week of contracting.
That said, I have not slept in like I was anticipating. It is currently 8:48am as I start to write this which is not all that long past my usual wakeup time of 8am, I feel a small amount of grogginess in me but not to an overwhelming degree like on the weekdays.
Regardless, my cortisol levels will probably thank me for not feeling stressed right now, letting my body slowly return to normal before it inevitably begins all over again on Monday.
Something that affects me greatly in terms of my career path is how hard it is to trust my own emotions at points. My mind is often in a state of flux due to both estrogen and the way my brain has always been which makes it difficult to settle on how I am actually feeling on things, leading to confusion and uncertainty within myself.
Returning to the tech space has, without a doubt, made my stress worse – which is weird to consider that when my state of being before that was unemployment, something that makes anyone stressed regardless of background. But even though my unemployment was stressful, I was following a plan to try get myself set up as a writer of sorts.
Would it have made me anywhere near as much money as I make in the tech space? Most likely not, at least not for several years.
Would I have been happy living on the back of my creativity? I definitely think I would be.
My intention is to still make the most of this contract, because whilst I get stressed I am still able to prove that I am able to do the job day-to-day, it is just a matter of trying to find the appropriate coping strategies that help ease the pain.
I think that is what might drive the conflict within me. On one hand I am fully capable of doing tech-focused roles especially in regards to QA, being able to navigate my way through a vast multitude of problems and proving the adaptability that so many people compliment me on.
But conversely, the life I am so good at leading puts me at odds with living a lower stress lifestyle. The tech world, especially the startup space I have worked in for the last three years, moves fast and does not let up in terms of presenting challenges. I recognise that I am the person I am today because of how many challenges I have faced, but at the same time I desperately want to stop being challenged so I can focus on other areas of my life.
A much longer mental check-in than I had anticipated this morning, but the topic kind of rolled naturally to me.
This leads us on to the review, and whilst I was not able to put out a proper review yesterday, I have got another exciting episode of: “Rosa Eats Her Way Around Shrewsbury” for you all – this time with an extremely new restaurant on the scene.
When I say The Gate is extremely new, I mean it only opened on July 2nd this year, a mere 17 days ago at time of writing. A dual offering of a brunch menu during the day and a steakhouse menu when evening rolls around, it provides a unique twist to a historic underground location.
The location has a bit of personal history for me and my partner as well, as the Traitor’s Gate used to contain a burger restaurant called Lyon’s Den which unfortunately closed a while back – though it is with only a twinge of sadness I say that, as new management in the final days of the Den led to a severe drop in quality, service, and atmosphere of the establishment.
But regardless, we were excited to return to a familiar venue with a new purpose for a good meal. Full disclosure, whilst pricing will be talked about in the review, the meal was paid for by my parents as it was my dad’s birthday meal (thanks mum and dad!).
It was surprisingly quiet for a Friday evening, for the longest time we were the only people in the restaurant with a handful more coming in as we were getting ready to leave. My partner asked about it as we were leaving and we got told they get more busy on the weekdays than the weekend currently, which is a good sign that their dual-offering is working.
We ordered our food, and admittedly it did take a while for our starters to come out to us, but considering the quality of what we received, it was no detriment in the slightest.
I ordered the Buffalo chicken wings as a starter, which came with four full wing joints, for a total of eight wings for £7.50. It even came with a little bowl of water to wash your fingers off afterwards which was definitely needed.
The sauce was the perfect blend of sweet, spicy, and rich, with the chef definitely not skimping on the amount put on the wings, that said the amount of sauce did not negatively impact the crispiness of the wing too, the skin being perfectly crisp to compliment the flavour of the sauce – with the experience only being elevated by the addition of the blue cheese dip served alongside it.
When it comes to blue cheese, and by extension, blue cheese sauces, I can usually be a little apprehensive of them tasting more like the mold than the mold enhancing the flavour of the cheese. But this sauce was the perfect compliment to the wings, an amazingly creamy accompaniment to a very generously portioned starter for the price.
It was a similarly long wait for the mains to come out, which our lovely server Callum did apologise for as he brought them out, making a point to say everything is cooked freshed, but taking into account the quality again, it all makes sense.
My main was the appropriately titled “Elephant Classic” burger, with my standard addition of a fried egg, bringing the total price to £19 for this absolute beast-sized burger, accompanied by a side of hand-cut chips. (£17 without the egg)
Is this the priciest burger I have reviewed thus far? Yup, beating out my Beefy Boys offering by over £5.
Do I think the price is worth it? I absolutely do.
The patty on this burger was thiccc, you can tell it is thick because I added an extra C on to how I described it. It was easily at least a half-pounder – in actuality I would guess the patty was closer to a full pound than anything else given how dense it was, and despite that density the inside was not dry at all, still being perfectly juicy.
That said, all shows need their supporting actors, and the hand-cut chips were an absolutely perfect co-star. Crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, and perfectly seasoned with salt & pepper, they needed no sauce to accompany them, standing out perfectly on their own merit.
One side I specifically asked to order was the creamed spinach, my personal favourite side when it comes to matters of steak. Admittedly when it came out I was a little worried, the cream sitting in the dish with the spinach itself looking a little plain made me think I was going to be underwhelmed.
The exact opposite happened.
Despite its appearances, it was one of the best bits of creamed spinach I have ever had.
One of the main dangers when making creamed spinach is that it will come out soggy and bland due to the fact spinach contains a great deal of water which can severely dilute the quality of the sauce. But this humble plate exceeded all expectations, the spinach was moist without being soggy, the cream and the leaf itself were perfectly seasoned. If not for the fact I was sharing it with the table, I would have happily eaten it all myself.
When it came to desserts I was too full of meat and dairy to even consider going further, so I finished my meal with a mocha (which I forgot to take a picture of) that delivered an insanely strong hit of coffee, serving as the ideal finisher to a delicious meal.
That said, my partner had a dessert of a churro sundae, which I will include a picture of here because it was an absolute spectacle of a sweet treat.
For a new restaurant on the scene, I did come in with a fair bit of skepticism. But I walked away wanting to return, and wanting to recommend this place to the highest degree.
Independent restaurants are the heart of towns and cities, bringing immense amounts of variety amongst the big chains that can often dominate. I can wholeheartedly recommend The Gate, I am wishing them every success in the future.
That was my longest food review in a while, with a lot of passion being translated onto the page. But I hope it shows how much I love food as part of my life, and makes you curious to try The Gate.
Thank you for reading a much more substantial Redundancy Review today. I hope you can take a relaxing Saturday wherever you are, treat yourself to some good food, or if you are able, treat your friends to good food too. The best memories are made around a dinner table with people you love.
For more information on The Gate, visit their Linktree page here – it will let you view both their menus, book a table, and visit their Facebook page for even more info: https://linktr.ee/thegateshrewsbury
Good morning burgers and fries, welcome to Day 19 of Rosalia Rambles Redundancy Review.
Yesterday’s review was quite fraught with emotion and sadness with the time after having me feel very out of it and a bit spacey, wondering what was going on.
Then I remembered something.
We are coming up to the start of the month.
I am a transgender woman, and have been on estrogen for the last three years now. It is undeniably one of the best things for my mental state/happiness, similar to every step I have taken when it comes to transitioning, making my life actively better.
But, obviously, it does come with some side effects. The most notable of which is the development of a monthly “cycle” for myself similar to what those with a uterus experience, commonly referred to as “periods”.
Now, I am obviously lacking in one biological aspect when it comes to it, and that means I do not have to deal with anything related to blood or pads – a fact I will always be relieved by. That said, I do deal with a majority of other symptoms too, including:
Extreme fatigue
Irritability
Cramps in the torso region
Mood swings
Brain fog
So, yeah. My mind is currently flooded with hormones and that is why I was catastrophising things so hard yesterday, it is actually incredibly hard to think straight when my brain is being like this, so reviews might look a little different until things settle down again.
I did have at least one rational thought during the day, which was thinking about how I have been seeking comfort in familiarity recently, be it video games, food, or old gaming Youtube videos. There will be a time where I elaborate a bit more on this, but right now the brain fog is too strong so I am going to push through.
Despite the issues going on right now, I would still love to be hired for live writing projects. When I am in a rhythm and routine I can push through the period brain to continue to make beautiful projects, and I would be elated to have the chance to work like that again.
Part of my activities yesterday was going shopping at Sainsbury’s with a friend of mine, getting the chance to do a big shop at a location I do not often have the chance to go to – a lot of my friends have offered to go shopping with me at all different places to give me company or help me out… it is really appreciated, especially on days when the loneliness gets hard.
That is unrelated though, the main thing I found at Sainsbury’s was an old favourite drink of mine.
Califia Farms is an American brand that specialises in plant-based milk alternatives, which includes a range of coffee drinks – my personal favourite of which is their “Mocha Almond Latte”, which feels weird to say cause I associate “mocha” and “latte” as two different drinks, but considering how nice it tastes I am not too bothered with the semantics.
This specific drink has been very hard to find lately, and whilst I was initially hyped to see it again I think the recently reviewed Galaxy Mocha Frappe powder might have overtaken it as my cold coffee drink of choice. It goes down smooth enough, but I think I have been spoiled by being able to make barista-style drinks at home.
It is providing my much needed caffeine boost early in the morning, but right now I think the main thing I appreciate it for is the convenience more than anything else, the ability to just open the fridge and have a massive amount of cold coffee ready to go. I know that sounds exceptionally lazy, but when my brain is this bogged down in emotions and hormones, it is the little things which help a lot.
Shorter review, for a brain short on juice. Thank you for reading all the same, I hope to soon be back to providing the high-quality content you all love.
Good morning dreamers and memers, welcome to Day 18 of Rosalia Rambles Redundancy Review.
Despite a sleepy start yesterday, I pushed myself to go to Asda with my partner to buy some supplies for dinner. The humidity was killer, but I knew it was the right decision to go outside and have a walk.
Keeping in the routine has been hard, especially with how my headspace has been lately. I have been sleeping in harder than I have meant to and that means the review comes out later than usual as well. Whilst the routine is still there, the adherence is definitely slipping.
I have talked about it a lot in previous articles, but there is still a fair amount of hurt over how things have played out – every time I think I might be close to starting to heal past what happened, something else crops up or my mind reminds me of things and the pain comes back.
It is hard to reconcile what I want from my career right now as well. I am exceptionally skilled in Quality Assurance, and I have admiration for the idea of going into a senior role to act as a mentor for newer QAs, to share my stories in the hope of building their careers in the way others have for me.
My production credentials are strong, at my first time on the bat I managed two projects simultaneously for an American pharmaceutical company, delivering on time with a healthy budget. This is not to mention how many times I stepped in to help manage other projects when other producers were on leave, even with the missteps I made.
I demonstrate my love of writing every day, even on days like today where I keep tabbing away from the document and focus on something else. I have several instances of using my writing skills in my previous role, from creating proposals for a wide range of clients, to writing scripts for several different project types.
But… I do not know which path to take.
Here is where I would usually do my call to action for wanting to work on live writing projects, but today is going to be a little different. If you read my story and have any kind of career guidance for me, please get in touch. I have the skills to pay the bills but I need some help with what direction to take.
The review today returns to “Rosa Eating Her Way Across Shrewsbury”, with my all time favourite cafe in town, a cozy little venue known as “The Ploughboy”. My partner and I tried it on a whim one day, where it quickly became our favourite spot for cheap but wholesome eating.
Yesterday I got my standard meal, with one small addition to keep me going to the evening – a sausage, bacon, and egg sandwich with hash brown added to it for extra density, paired with a large mocha.
There are no real frills with this one, and that is exactly what I like about Ploughboy. A homely meal prepared quickly for a reasonable price, which at £7.15 for the sandwich and £3.20 for the mocha made this one of the cheapest full offerings I have reviewed yet.
The egg was cooked perfectly with a runny yolk, the bacon was at the perfect consistency for me with the fat cooked properly but the meat itself not being overly crispy, and the crunchy hash browns added the right amount of padding to make this basic brunch last me till the evening without breaking the bank.
Ploughboy is a simple joy for me in town, and a place I return to time and time again.
I am going to call it here for today, as I have gone from rambling to waffling very quickly. Thank you for reading this edition of the Redundancy Review, have a relaxing weekend whatever you do and enjoy time with your loved ones.
Good morning miners and crafters, welcome to Day 12 of Rosalia Rambles Redundancy Review.
Made it through the hottest day of the year so far pretty alright honestly, the temperature readout on the fan in my bedroom said it was 26 degrees Celsius this morning and in general the inside of the flat feels more pleasant to be around.
That said, this morning feels a lot worse for me due to encountering other sources of stress last night. I am not going to go into too many details but the short of it is fighting for what I am entitled for due to my unemployment status and that being made difficult because of the administration company handling the situation.
Woke up feeling tired as hell because of it, and it sucks knowing I can not attempt to start fixing things until tomorrow – will probably try to take today a little easier to try to keep my energy reserves intact.
Considering I have been temporarily screwed out of what I am entitled to, why not consider helping me out and hiring me for some writing work? If these reviews prove anything I can tackle a wide-range of topics and I have plenty of experience in writing professional copy for all sorts of projects.
With the weather being so hot yesterday, cool drinks were on the agenda, and something I picked up on a recent Asda trip really helped out keeping my temperature down.
(I mention Asda a lot in these reviews, I am not sponsored – just a fan)
As a small introduction, one of my goals this year was to learn how to make perfect frappes in my blender. I have a variety of supplies all around the kitchen along with different recipes to try out, but success is currently limited.
Cue my surprise when I saw a mocha frappe powder from my favourite chocolate producer, Galaxy. I picked it up and was excited to try it out.
On my first time of using the powder, I followed the blender recipe on the packaging exactly:
100ml of milk
100g of ice
4 heaped teaspoons of powder
This… did not turn out so well. The mixture was delicious but it wasn’t as sippable as I would have liked it to be, often needing me to poke it with a spoon to get it to pour.
I was not deterred though, and I tried again a little later with the following recipe:
200ml of milk
125g of ice
4 heaped teaspoons of powder
Not only did this blend together better, this went down so smoothly. Hitting the exact spot I wanted from a homemade frappe – creamy, chocolatey, and a good hit of coffee, along with making a greater quantity of drink.
In Asda this powder cost me £2.98, and with current milk prices of around £1.20 for 2 pints, it is extremely cost effective to make homemade frappes with this, something I very much appreciate in my situation.
That about covers everything for a slow Sunday redundancy review. Wherever you are I hope you are able to relax today and take things easy, you definitely could do with some chill time.
Galaxy Mocha Frappe powder is available at Asda and Tesco in the UK.
Rosalia Rambles 