Monika now (as a Tubster) and when she was a new mother.

I have made two sensational meals this week. One I have called ‘3 Bad Men Pasta’ on the basis that it cost about €15 to make. It is a Pasta dish and the recipe is:

Penne Pasta
3 Peppers/Paprikas (Yellow/Red/Orange) – thinly sliced
I Red Onion – finely sliced
2 Cloves Garlic
100 Grams Chorizo Salami
150 Grams Black Pepper Salami
10 Sun Dried Tomatoes - sliced
1 Small Bunch Rucola
Olive Oil

Heat the oil in a frying pan and add onion and garlic.
Fry until onion is soft and brown.
Add peppers and fry until soft.
Add both salamis and cook for about 5 minutes
Mix in Rucola and sun dried tomatoes
Combine with cooked pasta and mix well

I find that it is enhanced by a sprinkling of Parmigiano with Peppercorns. (This is such a fantastic cheese – but very expensive even though they make it practically next door. And incidentally – all the cats love Parmigiano- but without peppercorns).

Cate says the Salami should be diced – not sliced – but I am not prepared to compromise on this one as you don’t get the same flavour with dices as you do with slices.

This one will certainly find its way into my Recipe Book. The other one was “Viennese Pepper Hotpot” and is a ripper. I will give you the recipe later.

I should add that I don’t measure anything at all and it is all done by feel. This works for me because I am just a natural born chef but you out there are basically on your own with the quantities of ingredients.

This may be a drawback when I come to publish my book but I will get someone like Nigella Lawson to help me.

Since they arrived here both Monika and Sissi have rarely ever meowed. There has just been an occasional squeak.

Over the last two days Sissi has started meowing a lot and we thought she had found her voice. It appears however that she has just reached that level of maturity in cats that makes them think about fooling about with cats of the opposite sex.

(Hmm.....six months old....about the same age as the average guy starts thinking about it!)

She certainly has a touch of the Paris Hiltons about her at the moment and spends a lot of time crawling along on her tummy with her bum in the air.

I have spoke to the vet and I am to call her in a week so that we can book Sissi in for the appropriate action.

I provide the following article from the Austrian Times and ask you to think about the sentence “More than 50,000 people will be hospitalised in skiing accidents on Austria’s slopes this season”.

Jumping Jehoshaphat – that’s more on an annualized basis – and after allowing for population sizes, than are killed and injured in the USA each year by guns (That number is 100,000).

More than 50,000 serious injuries expected on slopes
By William Green

More than 50,000 people will be hospitalised in skiing accidents on Austria’s slopes this season, safety experts have predicted.

The Committee for Traffic Safety (KfV) said today (Tues) it expected 56,000 of the nine to 10 million people who will ski in Austria this winter season will end up in hospital.

The KfV added there had been 58,100 people severely injured during the last winter season.

KfV said every second badly-injured skier and every third seriously-injured snowboarder had suffered broken bones last year, and 32 per cent of injured skiers and 17 per cent of injured snowboarders had suffered muscle or tendon injuries.

Knee injuries were most common among skiers (26 per cent), and wrist injuries among snowboarders (17 per cent), KfV added.

Anton Dunzendorfer, the head of KfV’s home, leisure-time and sports division, said: "More than a quarter of accidents are the result of excessive speed and risk-taking."

He said people headed for the slopes for the first time this season should be calm, choose a ski area appropriate for their ability, warm up and take numerous short breaks.

That’s it BE CALM! You have somehow found yourself on the Black Run. You speed has increased to 105 kph. Remain Calm. Lean over as far as you can – put your head between your legs – think about the Austrian Health System - kiss your ass goodbye!

Anton Dunzendorfer?