Out of interest, what did you do re the 2 cheats? Cast them into Outer Darkness?
Well, maybe “cheat” was a bit strong because I caught them before the exam started while checking calculators, but they had intention to cheat: one had formulae written in pencil on the back (I rubbed them out) and the other had a formula on the display (I turned it off & on and cleared the memory). I am mean
I've just made a double batch of onion bhaji! Now the kitchen smells like your local curry house, in spite of the cooker hood which vents directly to the outdoors - I expect to find hungry sheep lining up in the lane.
Sorry for the double post, got distracted by food (no surprise there...)
For those of you who expressed an interest in the runaway horse we 'rescued' on Boxing Day, the hairdresser informed me today (hairdressers are always the best source of gossip) that the rider had been an 'older man' who had sustained bruises and a cracked rib or two when the horse was spooked by mountain bikers who came charging down the hillside. He is fie now, apparently - thanks for your concern!
I love bhajis, made them a few weeks ago. Glad the horse and rider are fine.
Beef and mushroom curry for tea here and then I have to phone a student about 8pm (distance learning means being flexible about what time you teach).
You wouldn't care to toss an onion bhaji or two in my direction would you @The Intrepid Mrs S? They are one of my favourite things, and I'm also starving and my husband won't be back for an hour!
Glad to hear the rider of the mystery horse has made a good recovery.
Onion bhajis sound lovely - like Fineline, I've had them in restaurants, but it's never occurred to me to try making them myself. I might have to put that right.
Lunch chez Piglet today had a slightly Indian flavour too: we had baked potatoes with Coronation chicken. At least that's what I call it - chicken and grapes in curry-flavoured mayonnaise. Whether it bears any relation to real Coronation chicken, I've no idea, but it was really quite good.
It's another cold, bright day here: -14° but feeling like -20. Better go and put some warm clothes on before heading out to choir practice.
I say it as shouldn't, but these do not resemble restaurant bhajis - they are lighter (baking powder in with the gram flour!) and have chopped fresh coriander in.
Sorry, @Sarasa - I've frozen them all, as they heat up well and if you are entertaining it keeps the last-minute fuss down to a minimum.
Message from my brother tonight, to say that they had had cassoulet made with wild boar sausages and it was awesome! (He didn't specify what recipe they used.) Unfortunately my boot is too small to contain the carcass I saw at the side of the road the other day - it was MASSIVE!
Hmm. I now ardently desire Sossidges for my tea, but none are to hand, and I doubt if Wild Boar, or Welsh Dragon, varieties are available locally.
Any suggestions as to which Emporia are likely to yield up such treasures?
Well, you could nip up to Selfridges/Fortnums/Harrods/Borough Market on the train - but what about W++tr+se or even a good local butcher? Of course, if there's a Farm Shop handy ...
We did a spot of restaurant research at lunchtime today: one of our favourite places changed hands last summer and was taken over by a small chain of Maritimes craft brew-pubs. We hadn't tried it, mostly for fiscal reasons, but decided we'd give it a chance.
The food wasn't bad: D. had fish & chips, and I had butter chicken (Canadian term for a mild chicken curry, rather like a korma). The portions were huge; the curry sauce was very nice (although the chicken was a bit tough) and the f & c not bad (but by no means the best we've had here, and not as good as in their previous incarnation).
I doubt that we'll be going back though: the service, while friendly, was very slow, the place was cold* (and the food could have been warmer too) and the wine was more expensive than it needed to be. We'd been lucky to get a parking space right outside, but it was limited to an hour, and we were pushing it to get finished in time; if we'd got a ticket I'd have been tempted to send them the bill! I don't blame the waiting staff: there appeared to be only two of them, and when we went in the place was quite full.
I’ve had an odd day, I was supposed to do marking but next door have the builders in and I decided to put it off til next week when it will be quieter and do other work instead. But then we had some exciting news and now I’m hypomanic and can’t concentrate!
You’re making the marking sound attractive!
To make things worse I’m teaching tomorrow morning which also makes me hypomanic; I’m likely to be high for days!
I'm well on the way to dispensing with my hair, however the process is not yet complete. What remains would, at times, make Alfred Einstein proud. However I have recently purchased a rather nice Cap, herself having decried that my previous, though cosy, "made my look silly".
The young peoples' noise level related only to their possessing excess energy after being kept indoors at Break on a day of cold and less-than-clement (though not exactly inclement) weather.
I am about to become next door in the “let’s annoy the neighbours” game. My lovely builder came around this afternoon and confirmed that my plan for a downstairs loo is possible, and he can start in a couple of weeks. It will involve digging up a concrete floor and chiselling into walls, but can be done and will be done.
Good luck, Daisydaisy - it'll put a shed-load of extra value on your house!
When we lived in Belfast we had one put into the cupboard under the stairs (it already had a window, which helped); it cost £450 (about 20 years ago) and the bloke who did the work reckoned it would add about £2,000 to the house value.
When we were selling the house, it was quite fun opening the door, saying, "here's the cloakroom" and prospective buyers saying, "ooh, it's got a downstairs loo!".
Hypomania means low grade mania, it’s a recognised subset of the bipolar range, when you have signs of mania but are not psychotic. It’s my fairly regular range, as I am seldom depressed or have full mania.
Oh, I don’t mind them having the builders in, it’s a fact of life and they are very good friends of ours. I can mostly rearrange my work around distractions.
I’m having a latte at the moment and then will get dressed and switch the computer on so I’m ready to teach in about an hour or so.
Our house came with a downstairs loo in the cupboard under the stairs. Unfortunately the people who had the house before us were a lot shorter than us so we have to duck to get in there. We could heighten the door, I suppose, but we've only been here sixteen years so haven't had the opportunity yet.
Lol! Yes, 4 foot 11, I seldom have those kind of issues, mine tend to be the reaching cupboards variety (I have a proper kick stool in the kitchen).
2 hour tutorial finished (on ethics and communication in end of life care). Might go for a walk now to wind down.
Hypomania means low grade mania, it’s a recognised subset of the bipolar range, when you have signs of mania but are not psychotic. It’s my fairly regular range, as I am seldom depressed or have full mania.
Thank you for explaining, I was a little confused.
Re height, I had to be careful when putting up such things as mirrors. I'm 6 feet tall, the former Mrs BF was 5 feet one-and-a-half-inches* (she was most insistent about the half inch....).
*She still is, BTW, and (I have to say) looking very fit and trim for her 68 years!
My husband is 6 foot and hides things on shelves I can’t reach. But it is a situation I was well prepared for as my twin brother is over 6 foot tall...
I can identify with Heavenlyannie - I'm about 5'1½" too, and D's being nearly 6' is very useful at times!
Went to the farmers' market this morning, and managed to get some of the very nice CHEESE we had at a dinner-party before Christmas, but sadly discovered that the charcuterie place next door to the cheese shop has stopped doing their lovely smoked ham.
Then after lunch in a rather good Asian place, we (unsuccessfully) continued our hunt for an electric snow-shovel, but we did manage to score a good deal on a new toaster, as ours really wasn't working very well - even at the hottest setting it hardly singes the bread, but burns it if you run it twice.
I think we've got about enough supplies in to feed us if the predicted winter storm really hits and we get snowed in.
As part of the downstairs loo project I’ve been putting up wall cupboards and had to decide how high to put them - I’m roughly 5’5” now, but anticipate gradually becoming more vertically challenged, as one does over time. I finally decided on standard height with a mini step ladder.
This evening I’ve been trying to get my feline housemate to go outside but she is too quick for me. I guess she’ll use her own exit when she gets desperate, but I suspect she’d rather knot her legs than do that.
Lol! Yes, 4 foot 11, I seldom have those kind of issues, mine tend to be the reaching cupboards variety (I have a proper kick stool in the kitchen).
I am 5' tall, and I have reached the point that it is not safe for me to climb on stools. The top shelves in my kitchen are empty, and I have a lot of stuff sitting on my counters permanently.
Well, the sn*w that we were promised waited until about 8:30 this morning before starting (they were predicting it would start at about 4 a.m.) but it's been coming down in tiny flakes
with fairly grim determination pretty much ever since (it's currently just after 12 noon).
Wee flakes, big sn*w, as they say over here; I'm not particularly hopeful of our chances of (a) getting up the road that leads to our road*; or (b) if we do, getting into the drive.
I hate sn*w.
The choir was rather depleted, as the ones who either live out in the country or haven't got their own transport didn't make it, but those of us who did made not a bad fist of things.
* They tend not to start ploughing or treating the roads until it starts to ease off, and are usually even slower at weekends (because nobody works on a Sunday, do they??).
Many moons ago, I used to work in Luton and drive what was essentially a motorised rollerskate, an Arkley SS - mainy fibreglass body, with very wide wheels. You can imagine what that was like on sn*w.
I would sit in my dingy north-facing office and watch the snow begin to fall, and my heart would sink You have my most sincere sympathy!
Well, I’m having a lovely morning. I’ve been to the shops, then done my Monday morning work efficiently and am having a break before writing a tutorial this afternoon. I should be teaching this evening but it looks like we don’t have many students registered and my co-tutor, who is leading, might decide to do it by herself.
And it’s been announced that my eldest has won the National Cipher Challenge, a UK under 18s cryptography competition which is sponsored by GCHQ.
Sounds as if MI5 will be looking to sign him up any day soon!
Here in DragonLand we went swimming and then did some washing, with a second load just spinning as I write, however I am now looking out of the window with apprehension as it has Clouded Over.
Comments
Mrs. S, reluctant shepherdess
For those of you who expressed an interest in the runaway horse we 'rescued' on Boxing Day, the hairdresser informed me today (hairdressers are always the best source of gossip) that the rider had been an 'older man' who had sustained bruises and a cracked rib or two when the horse was spooked by mountain bikers who came charging down the hillside. He is fie now, apparently - thanks for your concern!
Mrs. S, glad horse and rider were reunited
I love onion bhajis, but I've never attempted making them. I usually get them reduced in the supermarket.
Beef and mushroom curry for tea here and then I have to phone a student about 8pm (distance learning means being flexible about what time you teach).
Glad to hear the rider of the mystery horse has made a good recovery.
Lunch chez Piglet today had a slightly Indian flavour too: we had baked potatoes with Coronation chicken. At least that's what I call it - chicken and grapes in curry-flavoured mayonnaise. Whether it bears any relation to real Coronation chicken, I've no idea, but it was really quite good.
It's another cold, bright day here: -14° but feeling like -20. Better go and put some warm clothes on before heading out to choir practice.
Sorry, @Sarasa - I've frozen them all, as they heat up well and if you are entertaining it keeps the last-minute fuss down to a minimum.
Message from my brother tonight, to say that they had had cassoulet made with wild boar sausages and it was awesome! (He didn't specify what recipe they used.) Unfortunately my boot is too small to contain the carcass I saw at the side of the road the other day - it was MASSIVE!
Mrs. S, one-woman wild boar sausage marketing board
Any suggestions as to which Emporia are likely to yield up such treasures?
The food wasn't bad: D. had fish & chips, and I had butter chicken (Canadian term for a mild chicken curry, rather like a korma). The portions were huge; the curry sauce was very nice (although the chicken was a bit tough) and the f & c not bad (but by no means the best we've had here, and not as good as in their previous incarnation).
I doubt that we'll be going back though: the service, while friendly, was very slow, the place was cold* (and the food could have been warmer too) and the wine was more expensive than it needed to be. We'd been lucky to get a parking space right outside, but it was limited to an hour, and we were pushing it to get finished in time; if we'd got a ticket I'd have been tempted to send them the bill! I don't blame the waiting staff: there appeared to be only two of them, and when we went in the place was quite full.
* It's not often you hear me say that.
To make things worse I’m teaching tomorrow morning which also makes me hypomanic; I’m likely to be high for days!
hypo=low
hyper=high
(I gave up hair a long time ago, in favour of an environmentally-friendly solar panel. On cold and/or wet days, I wear a Hat.)
The young peoples' noise level related only to their possessing excess energy after being kept indoors at Break on a day of cold and less-than-clement (though not exactly inclement) weather.
When we lived in Belfast we had one put into the cupboard under the stairs (it already had a window, which helped); it cost £450 (about 20 years ago) and the bloke who did the work reckoned it would add about £2,000 to the house value.
When we were selling the house, it was quite fun opening the door, saying, "here's the cloakroom" and prospective buyers saying, "ooh, it's got a downstairs loo!".
I’m having a latte at the moment and then will get dressed and switch the computer on so I’m ready to teach in about an hour or so.
2 hour tutorial finished (on ethics and communication in end of life care). Might go for a walk now to wind down.
Thank you for explaining, I was a little confused.
*She still is, BTW, and (I have to say) looking very fit and trim for her 68 years!
Yes, those nice little steps they use in libraries etc. are Very Handy Things!
As are twin brothers, of course, if they are conveniently to hand.....
Went to the farmers' market this morning, and managed to get some of the very nice CHEESE we had at a dinner-party before Christmas, but sadly discovered that the charcuterie place next door to the cheese shop has stopped doing their lovely smoked ham.
Then after lunch in a rather good Asian place, we (unsuccessfully) continued our hunt for an electric snow-shovel, but we did manage to score a good deal on a new toaster, as ours really wasn't working very well - even at the hottest setting it hardly singes the bread, but burns it if you run it twice.
I think we've got about enough supplies in to feed us if the predicted winter storm really hits and we get snowed in.
As long as we don't have a power-cut ...
This evening I’ve been trying to get my feline housemate to go outside but she is too quick for me. I guess she’ll use her own exit when she gets desperate, but I suspect she’d rather knot her legs than do that.
I am 5' tall, and I have reached the point that it is not safe for me to climb on stools. The top shelves in my kitchen are empty, and I have a lot of stuff sitting on my counters permanently.
with fairly grim determination pretty much ever since (it's currently just after 12 noon).
Wee flakes, big sn*w, as they say over here; I'm not particularly hopeful of our chances of (a) getting up the road that leads to our road*; or (b) if we do, getting into the drive.
I hate sn*w.
The choir was rather depleted, as the ones who either live out in the country or haven't got their own transport didn't make it, but those of us who did made not a bad fist of things.
* They tend not to start ploughing or treating the roads until it starts to ease off, and are usually even slower at weekends (because nobody works on a Sunday, do they??).
Many moons ago, I used to work in Luton and drive what was essentially a motorised rollerskate, an Arkley SS - mainy fibreglass body, with very wide wheels. You can imagine what that was like on sn*w.
I would sit in my dingy north-facing office and watch the snow begin to fall, and my heart would sink
Mrs. S, praying for a sn*w-free winter
Mrs. S, geographically challenged
And it’s been announced that my eldest has won the National Cipher Challenge, a UK under 18s cryptography competition which is sponsored by GCHQ.
Here in DragonLand we went swimming and then did some washing, with a second load just spinning as I write, however I am now looking out of the window with apprehension as it has Clouded Over.