The Untied Kingdom? - the British thread 2021

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  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    Chilly here in south west London. We went for a long walk before lunch, had the rather nice baguettes we bought while out for lunch and then retired to bed for naps. Now lazing about before cooking stew and dumplings for tea. It's that sort of day, where a stew sounds like a good idea.
  • Ethne AlbaEthne Alba Shipmate
    It seems as if every last child in the village is out and about; trampolines, bikes, dens, just wandering about.
    It is really lovely to listen to.

    Sunshine being enjoyed by all the greenhouse seedlings, alas the nights are freezing cold still.

    The tops of four hawthorn trees are in the process of being turned into a garden path . Sorry about our shredder-noise neighbours!

    Am going to have to decide between french beer or red wine. If beer then the matter can be left. If wine, a bottle needs to be opened soon.

    Decisions decisions
  • KarlLBKarlLB Shipmate
    I would say beer on first principles but my experiences of French beer aren't encouraging.
  • Piglet wrote: »
    The BBC weather page said it's 12°, but I reckon that's b*llocks - it felt much warmer than that.
    Met Office says it was 16 degrees at 5pm.

  • PigletPiglet All Saints Host, Circus Host
    edited April 3
    That would seem more like it. :)

    Breadsticks and smoked salmon pâté have been made. I may have been a bit over-zealous with the Tabasco in the pâté - it comes out in such tiny drops you feel as though you need to shake the bottle again or it'll make no difference, but it's got quite a kick!

    I've even got a Plan written down for the order I'm doing things in tomorrow (which includes going to the corner shop to get the orange juice I forgot to get today - can't do carrots in orange juice without it ...).

    I'm sure something will go wrong, but it hasn't quite yet.
  • NenyaNenya Shipmate
    We've had a lovely day - went for a walk with some friends this morning and had a picnic in the hollow of the hill we climbed and it was positively balmy, out of the chilly wind. This afternoon Nenlet1 and son-in-law plus in-laws came over and we sat on our patio for tea and cake and then stir fry à la Nen with wine, followed by cheesecake and fruit and cream and coffee and chocolate and it was just wonderful to be together. The weather was much kinder than I'd anticipated as well - we were able to sit out until 8pm, albeit in coats and rugs towards the end.

    Agenda tomorrow: chocolate and roast lamb and watching the rugby. Not necessarily in that order and the rugby-watching is not going to involve both of us.

    Very tired now so am heading for bed.
  • SandemaniacSandemaniac Shipmate
    The Knotweed and I headed into the wilds of North Oxfordshire & did a circular walk around Cropredy we've been saying we should go outside of festival time since 2008 and we finally did! Starting in Cropredy we went to Wardington and Edgecote before heading to Chipping Warden, where I wanted to find the plaque commemorating the death of Essex and England fast bowler Ken Farnes.

    The sun came out part way round and what started as a bit of a trudge turned into a glorious spring walk as the wind dropped away to nothing, and it became perfect walking weather.

    We pulled one of our usual stunts in Wardington, somehow managing to find another bellringer to chat to despite their being no-one much around, and I found my plaque in Chipping Warden - apparently in Northamptonshire, which made today the first time we've been out of the county since last July 1st!

    And thence home in time for a takeaway and the cricket club pre-season Zoom.

    It could be worse....
  • May the Risen Christ bless you with hope, joy and peace on this Easter Day.
  • Alleluia! Alleluia!
  • MiffyMiffy Shipmate
    Happy Easter!
  • PigletPiglet All Saints Host, Circus Host
    Happy Easter, one and all!

    It looks like a nice day here so far - long may it continue!

    The ham is starting its journey to doneness in the slow-cooker, and I'm pottering about here for a wee while until I need to get up and start getting other things organised.

    Enjoy your day, however you're going to spend it.
  • BroJamesBroJames Purgatory Host, 8th Day Host
    Happy Easter everyone.

    (Slightly nervous about getting everything working for a reasonable live stream from church)
  • PuzzlerPuzzler Shipmate
    Getting ready to go and SING in church. Small choirs are now permitted. Yesterday we recorded a service of Lessons and Carols for Easter which will go online today. This morning we have Holy Communion, with three hymns, two anthems and the Gloria.

    After the recording yesterday a fellow singer said she was going home to start baking and preparing food. As it is just Mr Puzzler and I, no preparations have yet been made, other than shopping, and definitely no baking.
    I then went for a garden visit to my son and family in the sunshine.
  • Happy Easter!
    I got up late this morning as we were playing games til the early hours, so my walk might be this afternoon. No-one else is up yet.
  • DooneDoone Shipmate
    Happy Easter! A lazy day for me today ☺️.
  • NenyaNenya Shipmate
    Happy Easter! It's gloriously sunny here this morning.

    I'd forgotten about getting the lamb into the slow cooker this morning and am grateful to @Piglet for the reminder. :smile:
  • KarlLBKarlLB Shipmate
    Piglet wrote: »
    Happy Easter, one and all!

    It looks like a nice day here so far - long may it continue!

    The ham is starting its journey to doneness in the slow-cooker, and I'm pottering about here for a wee while until I need to get up and start getting other things organised.

    Enjoy your day, however you're going to spend it.

    You realise I had to read "I'm pottering about here for a wee while....." twice before I realised we weren't in TMI territory...
  • Happy Easter, everyone.

    My parents (jabbed) are at church, I (unjabbed) am at home, watching it on their church's livestream. I can't remember the last time I was entirely alone in the house ...
  • Ethne AlbaEthne Alba Shipmate
    Happy Easter!

    Another ‘not fully jabbed’ person here too, watching folk walk along the road to the short church service.

    Here the wind is up and our fences are rattling ominously
  • I thought I was going to be watching the actual live service but it seems to be something they'd prepared beforehand, and done really nicely, with clips of church members doing readings and the vicar doing the sermon.
  • MrsBeakyMrsBeaky Shipmate
    I am ridiculously excited because in a little while we are going to walk round to have lunch in the garden with daughter number two and family. The first time we've seen them since Christmas. They managed to meet up with Little Beaky and family in a park on Good Friday so it really feels like things are picking up.
    It's not very warm here on the South coast but it is gloriously sunny so hurrah!
    Happy Easter one and all
  • DoublethinkDoublethink Shipmate
    Happy Easter folks.

    I have gone so far as to marinate some lamb, we’ll have to see if it works ...
  • PriscillaPriscilla Shipmate
    Happy Easter!
    We had a joyful service in church this morning. Everyone took flowers, bunches or pot plants, so there was a display at the front. The journey home on the mountain road was beautiful - brilliant blue sky with airoplane con trails, and several hang gliders flying off a particular ridge.
    We’ll be going for a (socially distanced) amble in a local country park this afternoon. It’s the landscaped site of a local mine, my dad was a surface worker there in the 50s, and the father of one of our university friends was involved in the development of the site.
  • BoogieBoogie Shipmate
    Chilly and sunny here.

    I’ve just been for a walk through the park and it was really quiet - but passing people’s houses on the way back there were lots of fence painters. And Mr Boogs is about to do ours and join the trend. :mrgreen:
  • Really sunny here, with a chilly wind. The footpaths we were following were seeing traffic, but not too bad. Lots of dog walkers, some bikes, not as bad as I suspect the Forest has been. I know here has been busy as I've had a string of emails telling me my Geocaches have been found.

    Finally got out to test the Adventure Lab and take some better photos. It works, now just to finish the tidying up and publish it, and submit the other two geocaches I placed for approval. It's a four mile loop through fields around a village looking at the military and industrial history, which is all well and good until we have to walk 4 miles to access it and 4 miles back. So today's walk was 11 miles, nearly 26,000 steps.
  • Priscilla wrote: »
    We had a joyful service in church this morning.

    Likewise - we just fitted everyone in safely!
    The journey home on the mountain road was beautiful - brilliant blue sky with aeroplane con trails, and several hang gliders flying off a particular ridge.
    We weren't far away yesterday (mountain road between Ogmore Vale and Blaengwynfi). A sad amount of litter around though - grrrr!

  • Priscilla wrote: »
    We had a joyful service in church this morning.

    Likewise - we just fitted everyone in safely!

    Same here - quite a few visitors, but some of our young families were missing. Another 10 or so, and we'd have been Too Full...
    :open_mouth:

  • Wesley JWesley J Shipmate
    edited April 4
    Well done, Curiosity killed!

    Happy Easter, all!

    Glorious sunshine here too, in Continental WesShire, yet somewhat chilly with a cold wind from the north. Next week's forecast is below-zero temperatures again at night, and just in the low teens during the day. Re-use of proper woollies has been instigated, after light woollies or just shirt or t-shirt. :)

    One annoying thing about spring is the boyracers (or manracers) who are out and about much more, including open car windows and blaring boom-boom stereos; and motorbikes trying out senseless highspeed acceleration on the village roads. Luckily, this happens mostly in the late afternoon and evenings, and at weekend evenings, less so during the day, when they're out in the countryside!

    Today, I'm having, Doone-like, a lazy day, and Monday is off here too. Zoom kirk has been done, and will be.

    Great fun to read of Shippies going jabber-walkies, or non-jabber walkies. It's good to be outside. :)
  • Indeed, and it's quite sunny and mild here, which usually brings out the Yoof on their off-road motorbikes, roaring dangerously hither and yon...but AIUI the Police have cracked down on them recently, and several bikes have been confiscated and destroyed...
    :naughty:
  • MMMMMM Shipmate
    We had a lovely, safely distanced, masked, sanitised etc service in the churchyard. Lovely to see everyone, and try and recognise them under the masks and shaggy hair!

    MMM
  • Happy Easter everyone!

    Am sat with laptop on the kitchen doorstep which tells you how sunny it is, though the wind may drive me inside soon. Watching the birds and the bees go by. Not incidental to my enjoyment, Hotel Chocolat do excellent online sales.

    Pork shoulder is defrosting. MuminElmet has made her Simnel muffins (just cake in a muffin tin) but has forgotten to add the marzipan, so we'll be having fruitcake and a chunk of marzipan later on.
  • PendragonPendragon Shipmate
    Happy Easter!

    We were (current capacity) full this morning: some people I didn't recognize, and a few returnees who haven't been, or who were coming mid-week, recently.

    The highlight was finally getting Dragonlet 3 baptised, after two isolation related postponements!! This did mean I actually had to do some Ironing this morning, to carefully try and remove creases from the 80 odd year old silk christening gown. (My mum's family one). It was a good service, and lovely to have the sun streaming in.

    We had duck for lunch. Some of the accompanying greens were grown by Dragonlet 1 at school.

    I currently have a large pile of eggs sitting beside my bed so that we can ration them out. I was very pleased that Brother and Sister in Law gave the Dragonlets clothes instead.
  • Had a nice walk this afternoon, then Skype with son and family. Just been watering (would you believe!) the garden as it's been very dry. sheets soon to be brought in and dinner (yes, roast lamb) to be prepared. I was worried that we'd have lots of smoky/noisy BBQs around, but the cool wind seems to have discouraged them.
  • FirenzeFirenze Shipmate, Host Emeritus
    Having done the warm Spring weather yesterday, back to chilly and windy. Sat in my summerhouse for a little, watching the daffodils tossing their heads in sprightly dance and listening to the thumping of the compactor as next door continue to build Edinburgh’s second airport in their back garden.
  • PigletPiglet All Saints Host, Circus Host
    I've had a lovely day with my brother and sister-in-law, who brought Flowers (tulips and hyacinths) and other Assorted Goodies including CHEESE and CHOCOLATE. The gammon came out very nicely (I'll definitely do it like that again), and the gratin dauphinois was a hit (I've just finished off the couple of spoons of leftovers for supper with some more WINE).

    I knew that something would go wrong, and it was the carrots. I'd set them on to cook just before D and L arrived, and with one thing and another, I forgot about them. By the time I stopped forgetting about them, they were cremated. :blush:

    No matter: everything else went down a treat, and we had a very nice afternoon.

    Now I think there may be some Cadbury's mini-eggs with my name on them.
  • KarlLBKarlLB Shipmate
    Our pork shoulder was off despite being Use By tomorrow (thanks Sainsburys) but picked up a lump of leg at the Co-op... slicy roast pork instead of pulled then.
  • MMMMMM Shipmate
    Lamb, mint sauce, yorkshire, roast pots, brussels and broccoli cheese here washed down with some of the Christmas champagne.

    Now sitting in the window with the evening sunshine streaming in, reading a book (supposedly) and finishing that bottle of champagne, until Antiques Roadshow starts.

    MMM
  • PigletPiglet All Saints Host, Circus Host
    edited April 4
    The mini-eggs are no more (although there's a spare packet in the cupboard, which I'm trying to ignore).
  • FirenzeFirenze Shipmate, Host Emeritus
    Small but costly free-range bird stuffed, buttered and in the oven. Chilean Chardonnay in the fridge.
  • PigletPiglet All Saints Host, Circus Host
    Sounds good, Firenze, as long as the Chardonnay isn't too oaky. :)
  • Wesley JWesley J Shipmate
    edited April 4
    Post Easter-Christians' jabber-walky / Chard'nnay not okay, if too oaky! :)

    To your health!
  • FirenzeFirenze Shipmate, Host Emeritus
    Piglet wrote: »
    Sounds good, Firenze, as long as the Chardonnay isn't too oaky. :)

    It was Patria Nueva - very light on oak and with a lovely applely palate.

  • Piglet wrote: »
    The mini-eggs are no more (although there's a spare packet in the cupboard, which I'm trying to ignore).
    You can't ignore a cupboard, it won't like it.

  • TheOrganistTheOrganist Shipmate
    Church with a small socially-distanced choir.
    Hymns Jesus lives! Thy terrors now; The Day of Resurrection; Alleluia, Alleluia! Hearts to heaven
    Motets Sing joyfully; Ave verum corpus Byrd
    OrganChrist ist erstanden BWV 627 JS Bach

    Choice of music limited by number of singers allowed (8) and not having a page-turner in the loft.

    Son #1 cooked today: Garlic prawns with pain rustique; Saltimbocca alla Romana with wilted fine-shredded kale, purple broccoli and parmentier potatoes; Tarte tatin with natural yoghurt. Accompanied by a bottle of Vouvray, followed by coffee and marc de champagne while dark chocolate bunnies were consumed 😋
  • Roast beef and trimmings for lunch and we went to the in-laws garden for tea.

    Today we are taking eldest son back up to York.
  • BoogieBoogie Shipmate
    The North wind doth blow and we shall have snow ...

    Yes - it has snowed here and there’s an icy wind blowing. Plenty of sunshine too, so a nice day to look out on. 🙂
  • Just a quick walk this morning as it is snowing here too
  • Here in south Wales it is cloudy bright, dry and 7 degrees. My sister in Norfolk has snow.
  • Penny SPenny S Shipmate
    edited April 5
    Cold out. I have managed to clear the groundcovering geranium rotundifolia from another square yard of raised bed, and fixed the bordering string of little logs with bits of broken tubing from a failed arch.
    Now waiting for a delivery, and contemplating the current rash of gremlin activity.
    1.) Hiding a small file of notes of what I did on Saturday, under the correct name in the correct folder. It has just turned up after being invisible yesterday after being looked for under the correct name and in the correct folder and by a wild card search. 2.) Hiding a larger file for much longer - I don't know when it disappeared after the 22nd March, but it was unfindable all last week, turning up yesterday afternoon under an obvious name in the correct folder. The attempt to rewrite it had been meh. The time lost is too much.
    3.) My grandparents' clock has been stopping for no reason. 4.) My mother's clock from when she left teaching at one school has also been stopping for no reason. I have to own up to not being as organised at winding them as I should, but they are currently stopping while there is plenty of energy left in the springs.
    I know randomness means that things happen in clusters, and the human brain looks for patterns where there are none, but sometimes it does look a biit organised. OTOH, I tell myself, if this is all they can manage, that's not too bad.
    It had been looking a bit threatening of snow. Small, widely separated, bits of white stuff are flittering by the window. Sometimes it is several seconds before I see another one.
  • ThomasinaThomasina Shipmate
    Lovely day yesterday, strolled round the garden and saw several young noxious weeds that need attending to, but by whom? They need digging out and I tend to fall over doing things like that. However, might have a try
    .
    Very cold today and it snowed earlier, went out to fill the bird feeder and came in smartish!
    But its deceptively sunny and bright now.

    No one came near me over the weekend, so enjoyed my own company, and had a jacket potato (I'll own up - McCann's frozen) and some bits of cold chicken I found in the freezer. With Plenty of Butter! :)
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