I fundraised and named a Guide Dog puppy Rachel, in loving memory of my Mum. She is born and I’ve been sent a photo - a full Golden Retriever who was born on the 5th February 2018, Mum Isobel and Dad Pascale. What a gorgeous wee teddy bear!
It's certainly a most useful and positive way in which to remember a Dear Departed parent, relative, or friend.
It amazes me to realise in how many different ways dogs can become such wonderful helpmates, and companions, to people facing various challenges*. Full marks to all engaged in this work of 'Co-operation with Creation', if I may put it like that.
IJ
*I hate the term 'disabled' - 'differently enabled' is better - or am I being over-patronising?
It's a very misty, moisty day here - fog interspersed with bursts of quite heavy rain. Fine by me, as it helps to clear the sn*w.
Considering the day, we had quite a decent turnout at D's recital - fewer than usual, as a lot of people would have been at Good Friday devotions elsewhere - but enough to make it worthwhile.
I've had a lovely day. Mr Nen left early to get to a classic car event, so I allowed myself the very rare treat of taking breakfast back to bed and ensconcing myself there for most of the morning. I then met a friend for coffee and we spent three hours together. Now home and looking forward to dinner once Mr Nen gets back (I seem to have bypassed lunch). There will be stir fry and wine. All most satisfactory.
That does sound like a good day, Nenya, though I think I'd have been quite tempted by the classic car thing - I love old, beautifully-kept cars!
It's been a glorious, if not very warm day here. Although all we've done so far was a trip to Costco, we now have enough comestibles to last us quite a while. I love that feeling when the freezer's full of neatly bagged-up sausages, minced beef and whatnot, and I know we can cobble something together whenever we need to.
Easter Vigil service this evening, which should be quite enjoyable, then just the big one in the morning* and then we can relax for a bit. We've been invited out for supper tomorrow evening by a couple in the choir, so I don't even need to think about Easter lunch - we'll just have scrambled eggs on toast.
* D. has two services tomorrow, but the informal one with the band shouldn't cause him any worries.
There is so much chocolate in the rouge household it's ridiculous. People keep giving it to us to console us in our difficulties. It's going to take us months to get through it all (although rest assured I am making heroic efforts in this respect)
I went to see baby en rouge this morning. He had a lung infection a couple of days ago after inhaling his milk but he's now getting over it like a champ. Going to church this evening.
Zero chocolate here - I’ve only four kilos to go to reach my target. Onwards and downwards!!
We had a super service this morning, with a really good turnout. At the end we processed round the outside of the building singing Thine be the Glory” accompanied by cornets. I was surprised to find it really moving.
Keir was a good dog and guided me round like a pro.
I'm imagining La Vie and M. en rouge next Easter, trying to remove the chocolate from all over baby en rouge and wishing that chocolate had never been invented ...
We had a Jolly Good Gulder™* this morning - Schubert's Mass in G, Come, let's rejoice by Amner and the usual joyous Easter stuff. It's nice to get to sing the tune Maccabaeus again (it wasn't in the book we used in St. John's owing to the words having not been written when it was published), and although it's in the book we use here, the words have been messed about with: "Yours be the glory", indeed!
The other thing that's nice about not being in St. John's is that we no longer have to get up at ridiculous o'clock for the New Fire service, as we have it on Easter Even instead, which is much better.
* Northern Ireland term for loud, joyous and possibly raucous singing
I'm imagining La Vie and M. en rouge next Easter, trying to remove the chocolate from all over baby en rouge and wishing that chocolate had never been invented ...
You know, the voice of experience says that it is not the chocolate on the baby that is the problem - it's the chocolate on the carpet, and the curtains, and anything else that was remotely in reach (and even those things you thought baby couldn't possibly reach) that have you tearing out your hair in frustration.
We have a picture, somewhere, of triumphant first edition sitting in his small baby chair ( he would have been about 18 months at the time) which had been strategically placed in the middle of a large plastic table cloth on the floor. The epicentre of the chocolate explosion is clearly young sir (one look at his face tells you that!), but the blast radius was more than 6 feet!
Go, bébé rouge, make sure you get to the chocolate first next Easter!
Wow, well done, Boogie! Is that with Slimming World?
We're holding back on chocolate till tomorrow - Nenlet2 is coming home late this evening with his partner and we're having a big family meal tomorrow chez Nen. Can't wait to have everyone together!
The Intrepid Grandson was given a small chocolate reindeer recently (his mother doesn't allow a lot of chocolate) and he said rather plaintively 'I'm not having any more'. It took me a while to realise that that wasn't by choice!
The Episcopal Garments now all have to be of XL size, owing to the weight I've gained (mostly tummy-wise) since being put on my current meds about 2 years ago. The said Garments are nice and comfy, just right for a Scruffy Old Git.
This is not, IMHO, entirely a Good Thing, though, given that I (like most of my family) have always, till now, been Tall and Thin, but it seems it can't be helped.
Mind you, I think it was while being measured for my (first) wedding suit in 1978 that the tailor remarked, 'My word, Sir, you are a funny shape....!'.
We have a picture, somewhere, of triumphant first edition sitting in his small baby chair ( he would have been about 18 months at the time) which had been strategically placed in the middle of a large plastic table cloth on the floor. The epicentre of the chocolate explosion is clearly young sir (one look at his face tells you that!), but the blast radius was more than 6 feet!
My parents have a delightful photo of me aged about two, discovering the delights of a jam donut
In my experience jam is nearly always red (or at least, reddish), and always sticky.
I think our recent economy drive (which included not buying any WINE, and consequently not drinking any*) may have resulted in a very slight reduction in the porcine girth; I put on a top the other day that until recently would have been uncomfortably tight, and it was just tight, but not uncomfortable. This, combined with the prospect of Spring and potential ambling weather, might be just the spur I need.
* This state of affairs didn't extend to Sunday evening, when we were invited to supper with friends, and generous quantities of WINE were consumed ...
I'm having wine with my supper of beans on toast this evening, followed by the remains of the Easter chocolate (my share of it anyway - I guess I'd better leave a bit for Mr Nen, who is down the pub with his mates).
Back to work tomorrow after a fortnight of leave. Yikes. Hope I remember how it goes.
Last night I got to a recording of QI - last of the next series, which is based on P. Slightly odd to see an all female panel, except for Alan Davis, but such a reminder that we're used to seeing the reverse - one token woman on a panel. Much kudos to Sandy Toksvig, who has continued doing her own warm up (she used to do this for the News Quiz too) - including leading the sort of game that the warm up comic usually does - the most intelligent person in the room. It was so much more pleasant to be around than a jaded warm up comedian, who aren't always that great and often feel cynical in their attempts to work the audience up into a frenzy. Continuous recording barring one break to tidy up the set, re-powder the panellists to stop the shine - again a great contrast to the recording of a lot of other TV shows.
wow - good for you.
that's one of the shows I'd dearly love to be at a recording of
I really need to pay more attention to the Edinburgh Fringe programme and try and get to one of the shows they record there - though getting the time off to go and see it would also be an issue
Unfortunately it always seems to be "just a minute",that they bring up here, which I'm not very keen on
@Wet Kipper Free tickets to recordings come from different companies - QI (and Top Gear, Love Island and a whole lot more) come from the Applause Store and those shows are mostly filmed in London or the outskirts (Pinewood, Maidstone, Elstree), other production companies use SRO - (Graham Norton, Mock the Week, Blind Date) - again filmed mostly around London. Blind Date was at the ITV studios last night too. Hat Trick organise their own audiences (HIGNFY) and that's filmed in the London ITV studios. There are other companies too, and I'd have to go back to the group I know to track other shows down.
The BBC is now doing more outside London, a show that travels that is worth seeing is The Infinite Monkey Cage, Round Britain Quiz was recorded at the Fringe last year - the tickets for the Fringe seem to hang around longer than those at the Radio Theatre.
i get emails every so often from someone, might be Applause store, when they have last minute tickets for things - sometimes they are recorded in Glasgow / Edinburgh because they are produced by BBC Scotland, whether they are for local radio/TV or national. But i know that most things are Manchester or London
I had a quick look around on the 2018 website for the Edinburgh Fringe, but couldn't see any references to BBC recordings
I'm on the mailing list for the BBC (and Applause, SRO and HatTrick) and received notifications of shows at the Fringe - so much so that I dithered about coming up for a couple of days - I suspect lack of accommodation and/or not being able to get the time off was the issue.
BBC recordings aren't released that far in advance, none of them are - and you only hear a week or so before whether you have tickets or not. You can cancel if you do it more than 24 hours in advance and give a reason.
WK, I'll have your tickets for Just a Minute if you don’t want them - I'm always pleased if we turn on the car radio when we're home on holiday and it's on!
I was going to say that any references from me to impending Spring should be ignored, as we got a few inches of sn*w last night but it appears to have turned to rain now, so maybe I won't.
Yes, we were supposed to do the weekly shop - including tonight’s dinner. But the sight of all that snow streaming past the windows - sometimes horizontally - was too much.
So we are having a slightly fusion meal of lamb kebabs, couscous and tzatziki followedby cherry clafoutis.
(Tomato SOUP for tea, with a nice MARMITE sandwich!)
But what is this sn*w of which you speak? We've had a quite mild day, albeit with strong breezes, and occasional showers of ra*n, here in the bottom right-hand corner.
I'm cooking a very English combination for supper - stuffed cabbage (admittedly using rice with chicken and leeks to stuff it and chicken stock for the liquid) followed by a very experimental bread pudding. We had some brown gluten free bread that is apparently not worth eating as the brown is an artificial additive - treacle or prunes, so I'm using it up in a mix where that won't matter. I'm not sure how well it's going to work with swapping in soya milk too.
Sort-of kedgeree at Casa Arachnid, made with smoked mackerel and sort-of remoulade, grated celeriac in mustardy yogurt. Yum.
No snow here either, but otherwise filthy weather. We've just had an ice-cream van drive by though, I think they follow the motto of the US Postal Service. "Neither snow nor rain" stops them from delivery.
I adapted Firenze's chicken with apples and cider recipe posted in Heaven for today's lunch, and it worked quite well - it would probably have been better if I'd had raw chicken to start with, but what I had was part of a ready-cooked chicken. I think it was more my thing than D's - he's never quite sure about fruit in savoury dishes - but I enjoyed it.
We've now got rain, and even the odd rumble of thunder, and it was chucking it down when D. went out a few minutes ago. Fine by me - it'll help get rid of the sn*w.
Yes, we were supposed to do the weekly shop - including tonight’s dinner. But the sight of all that snow streaming past the windows - sometimes horizontally - was too much.
So we are having a slightly fusion meal of lamb kebabs, couscous and tzatziki followedby cherry clafoutis.
Firenze, that sounds a good deal more than slightly fusion.
Well, I am an Englishman who had German Jewish parents, married to a Scotswoman and living in Wales ... We've also lived in Portugal and West Africa in the past. Our food is a bit eclectic: for instance our Christmas Eve meal is entirely Portuguese (Caldo verde soup, Bacalhau a braz, Portuguese-style rice pudding), on the other hand we make sure we eat haggis on Burn's Night and St. Andrew's Day. We eat quite a few types of cold "continental" sausage (sometimes with rye bread) for lunch. And my wife made sure we had Welsh saltmarsh lamb with local potatoes and leeks on St. David's Day.
I’ve had a lovely morning, we met up with Bruce and his owner for a free run. He’s working brilliantly and is now two and a half years old - where did that time go?
An Irishwoman living in Scotland and multicultural as all get out.
O dear - my apologies....
And mine (forgot you were Irish).
It's a much nicer day here today, although still rather cool (-2° and a bit blustrous). There's a group of ladies who serve afternoon tea in the Cathedral hall on a Thursday once a month, and D. suddenly remembered about it, so we trotted along. It was very pleasant - nothing elaborate, just tea and a few* home-baked wee buns - but very good company and an enjoyable way to spend the afternoon.
No choir practice tonight as it's the week after Easter and we get a break, so a lazy evening awaits.
A fine-looking trio, all looking very enthusiastic, and keen..
ION, just back from lunch with a friend, at a new pub in our parish. Chicken, Gammon, and Mustard PIE - very tasty.
IJ
Aah, PIE. This takes me back to my boyhood. There was just mum, dad and I but not a lot of cash, although with hindsight their smoking habit played a part, Cheap and cheerful was the order of the day, Sunday's joint did for three days (roast, shepherd's pie and cold with bubble'n'squeak and chutney) and Thursday was often PIE day. It was often meat and potato pie. Sometimes if was potato and meat. In any event it was good and the pastry was the best part of it. Pastry makes or breaks a PIE.
Comments
Rachel's a beauty!
It amazes me to realise in how many different ways dogs can become such wonderful helpmates, and companions, to people facing various challenges*. Full marks to all engaged in this work of 'Co-operation with Creation', if I may put it like that.
IJ
*I hate the term 'disabled' - 'differently enabled' is better - or am I being over-patronising?
Considering the day, we had quite a decent turnout at D's recital - fewer than usual, as a lot of people would have been at Good Friday devotions elsewhere - but enough to make it worthwhile.
Now having a nice spot of sofa-time.
I've had a lovely day. Mr Nen left early to get to a classic car event, so I allowed myself the very rare treat of taking breakfast back to bed and ensconcing myself there for most of the morning. I then met a friend for coffee and we spent three hours together. Now home and looking forward to dinner once Mr Nen gets back (I seem to have bypassed lunch). There will be stir fry and wine. All most satisfactory.
It's been a glorious, if not very warm day here. Although all we've done so far was a trip to Costco, we now have enough comestibles to last us quite a while. I love that feeling when the freezer's full of neatly bagged-up sausages, minced beef and whatnot, and I know we can cobble something together whenever we need to.
Easter Vigil service this evening, which should be quite enjoyable, then just the big one in the morning* and then we can relax for a bit. We've been invited out for supper tomorrow evening by a couple in the choir, so I don't even need to think about Easter lunch - we'll just have scrambled eggs on toast.
* D. has two services tomorrow, but the informal one with the band shouldn't cause him any worries.
IJ
I went to see baby en rouge this morning. He had a lung infection a couple of days ago after inhaling his milk but he's now getting over it like a champ. Going to church this evening.
Happy Easter everyone.
We had a super service this morning, with a really good turnout. At the end we processed round the outside of the building singing Thine be the Glory” accompanied by cornets. I was surprised to find it really moving.
Keir was a good dog and guided me round like a pro.
Amen!
We had a Jolly Good Gulder™* this morning - Schubert's Mass in G, Come, let's rejoice by Amner and the usual joyous Easter stuff. It's nice to get to sing the tune Maccabaeus again (it wasn't in the book we used in St. John's owing to the words having not been written when it was published), and although it's in the book we use here, the words have been messed about with: "Yours be the glory", indeed!
The other thing that's nice about not being in St. John's is that we no longer have to get up at ridiculous o'clock for the New Fire service, as we have it on Easter Even instead, which is much better.
* Northern Ireland term for loud, joyous and possibly raucous singing
You know, the voice of experience says that it is not the chocolate on the baby that is the problem - it's the chocolate on the carpet, and the curtains, and anything else that was remotely in reach (and even those things you thought baby couldn't possibly reach) that have you tearing out your hair in frustration.
We have a picture, somewhere, of triumphant first edition sitting in his small baby chair ( he would have been about 18 months at the time) which had been strategically placed in the middle of a large plastic table cloth on the floor. The epicentre of the chocolate explosion is clearly young sir (one look at his face tells you that!), but the blast radius was more than 6 feet!
Wow, well done, Boogie! Is that with Slimming World?
We're holding back on chocolate till tomorrow - Nenlet2 is coming home late this evening with his partner and we're having a big family meal tomorrow chez Nen. Can't wait to have everyone together!
Mrs. S, trying to abide by the rukes
Yes, Slimming World. These last few pounds are by far the hardest to shift, but the teacher is a really nice girl and very encouraging.
The Episcopal Garments now all have to be of XL size, owing to the weight I've gained (mostly tummy-wise) since being put on my current meds about 2 years ago. The said Garments are nice and comfy, just right for a Scruffy Old Git.
This is not, IMHO, entirely a Good Thing, though, given that I (like most of my family) have always, till now, been Tall and Thin, but it seems it can't be helped.
Mind you, I think it was while being measured for my (first) wedding suit in 1978 that the tailor remarked, 'My word, Sir, you are a funny shape....!'.
IJ
My parents have a delightful photo of me aged about two, discovering the delights of a jam donut
IJ
I think our recent economy drive (which included not buying any WINE, and consequently not drinking any*) may have resulted in a very slight reduction in the porcine girth; I put on a top the other day that until recently would have been uncomfortably tight, and it was just tight, but not uncomfortable. This, combined with the prospect of Spring and potential ambling weather, might be just the spur I need.
* This state of affairs didn't extend to Sunday evening, when we were invited to supper with friends, and generous quantities of WINE were consumed ...
Back to work tomorrow after a fortnight of leave. Yikes. Hope I remember how it goes.
Good luck!
Last night I got to a recording of QI - last of the next series, which is based on P. Slightly odd to see an all female panel, except for Alan Davis, but such a reminder that we're used to seeing the reverse - one token woman on a panel. Much kudos to Sandy Toksvig, who has continued doing her own warm up (she used to do this for the News Quiz too) - including leading the sort of game that the warm up comic usually does - the most intelligent person in the room. It was so much more pleasant to be around than a jaded warm up comedian, who aren't always that great and often feel cynical in their attempts to work the audience up into a frenzy. Continuous recording barring one break to tidy up the set, re-powder the panellists to stop the shine - again a great contrast to the recording of a lot of other TV shows.
that's one of the shows I'd dearly love to be at a recording of
I really need to pay more attention to the Edinburgh Fringe programme and try and get to one of the shows they record there - though getting the time off to go and see it would also be an issue
Unfortunately it always seems to be "just a minute",that they bring up here, which I'm not very keen on
The BBC is now doing more outside London, a show that travels that is worth seeing is The Infinite Monkey Cage, Round Britain Quiz was recorded at the Fringe last year - the tickets for the Fringe seem to hang around longer than those at the Radio Theatre.
I had a quick look around on the 2018 website for the Edinburgh Fringe, but couldn't see any references to BBC recordings
BBC recordings aren't released that far in advance, none of them are - and you only hear a week or so before whether you have tickets or not. You can cancel if you do it more than 24 hours in advance and give a reason.
I was going to say that any references from me to impending Spring should be ignored, as we got a few inches of sn*w last night
So we are having a slightly fusion meal of lamb kebabs, couscous and tzatziki followedby cherry clafoutis.
Is Outrage!
(Tomato SOUP for tea, with a nice MARMITE sandwich!)
But what is this sn*w of which you speak? We've had a quite mild day, albeit with strong breezes, and occasional showers of ra*n, here in the bottom right-hand corner.
IJ
Hope it turns out well...
(The stuffed cabbage sounds good, too)
IJ
No snow here either, but otherwise filthy weather. We've just had an ice-cream van drive by though, I think they follow the motto of the US Postal Service. "Neither snow nor rain" stops them from delivery.
[whispers] Firenze's Scottish ...
I adapted Firenze's chicken with apples and cider recipe posted in Heaven for today's lunch, and it worked quite well - it would probably have been better if I'd had raw chicken to start with, but what I had was part of a ready-cooked chicken. I think it was more my thing than D's - he's never quite sure about fruit in savoury dishes - but I enjoyed it.
We've now got rain, and even the odd rumble of thunder, and it was chucking it down when D. went out a few minutes ago. Fine by me - it'll help get rid of the sn*w.
An Irishwoman living in Scotland and multicultural as all get out.
Firenze, that sounds a good deal more than slightly fusion.
O dear - my apologies....
IJ
Keir wanted to bring him home!
Keir, Tatze and Bruce.
ION, just back from lunch with a friend, at a new pub in our parish. Chicken, Gammon, and Mustard PIE - very tasty.
IJ
It's a much nicer day here today, although still rather cool (-2° and a bit blustrous). There's a group of ladies who serve afternoon tea in the Cathedral hall on a Thursday once a month, and D. suddenly remembered about it, so we trotted along. It was very pleasant - nothing elaborate, just tea and a few* home-baked wee buns - but very good company and an enjoyable way to spend the afternoon.
No choir practice tonight as it's the week after Easter and we get a break, so a lazy evening awaits.
* well, quite a lot actually ...
Congrats to your young Welsh table tennis player, Anna Hursey. Making the news here.
Aah, PIE. This takes me back to my boyhood. There was just mum, dad and I but not a lot of cash, although with hindsight their smoking habit played a part, Cheap and cheerful was the order of the day, Sunday's joint did for three days (roast, shepherd's pie and cold with bubble'n'squeak and chutney) and Thursday was often PIE day. It was often meat and potato pie. Sometimes if was potato and meat. In any event it was good and the pastry was the best part of it. Pastry makes or breaks a PIE.