Ha! At least they weren't putting the unoccupied chairs onto the tables....
Mind you, even that would have been better (and easier) than trying to put the occupied ones onto said tables ...
In "Lark Rise to Candleford", the writer as a girl loved reading and used to go to the local library. This was presided over by a grumpy caretaker who had no interest in books. If he thought she was staying too long, he would ostentatiously start sweeping around her feet.
P.S. I'm another fat-cutter-off. Not even keen on crackling.
The concert went OK with my thumb being an annoyance but not a complete hindrance from playing, but attendance would have have been better if it hadn't started at the same time as an absolutely ferocious thunderstorm. Apparently our neighbourhood got the worst of it, and this morning I spotted several quite large trees that had literally snapped in half. People who've been to our garden this morning report that it's survived more or less. Won't need to water for a bit though
Particularly red braised in the Chinese manner. Cook gently for several hours with soy, star anise, shaoxing wine, cassia bark and a little sugar, until the fat is meltingly tender. Though roasted until crunchy with crackling also works for me.
Glad to hear you made it through the concert more-or-less undamaged, La Vie!
Despite my devotion to BACON, pork in most other forms is a meat without which I can quite easily live, and I don't get the attraction of crackling at all; you aficionados are welcome to my share.
Supper this evening was DUCK BREAST, with green veggies and the remains of the potatoes; I gave the latter a few minutes in the popty-ping, followed by some more minutes in the oven along with the DUCK, and it all worked out rather nicely. I gave them the company of some Yellow Tail Malbec, which is velvet in a glass.
I just walked into the handle on one of my kitchen drawers and caught the nerve point on my knee. Got to the floor before I fainted and now have a VERY sore knee. I am ridiculous 😆
Not ridiculous - accidents can happen to anyone - but certainly deserving of sympathy (and a glass or three of WINE, for Medicinal Porpoises, you understand).
Not ridiculous - accidents can happen to anyone - but certainly deserving of sympathy (and a glass or three of WINE, for Medicinal Porpoises, you understand).
Thank you for your sympathy-
My family would tell you that my lack of spatial awareness is unparalleled.
On this occasion I have partaken of a glass of Pastis and sparkling water 😍
I have always been able to eat anything that stays still in front of me long enough, though my dear, dear brothers recent diagnosis of Crohns may explain why, after extensive research I came to the conclusion that only two things give me cataclysmic flatulence.
I am very sorry to hear about your brother's diagnosis @Sandemaniac . And about your knee @MrsBeaky .
I'm afraid I'm not (in Christian love, of course). He's spent so many years trumpeting loudly about having life so, so much harder than everyone else and generally making everyone else's a misery that I'm thoroughly enjoying him finding out that, when it actually is harder than everyone else, if you never gave anyone else any sympathy, they won't give it you back. By the time he's 90 I might have mellowed a bit. But probably not.
Pork belly is anathema. Another Jack Spratt here. Checking my freezer, my supplies are low, apart from several lean pork slices. I’ve almost used up all my batch-cooked meals too. The fridge is nearly empty, but I’m running stocks down as I’ll be away for a few days next week.
I need to plan my trip, especially what to wear. I’ve been preoccupied with other things, especially the roofers, who have now finished. It’s been a bit noisy, but otherwise they have not given me much trouble. Nor have they eaten any of the biscuits I bought specially. I’m hoping the scaffolders can come and remove that tomorrow. Even better if they come in the morning, so I can go to my French group in the afternoon.
Good choir practice this evening, including sight singing of several pieces with just the right level of challenge.
I am very sorry to hear about your brother's diagnosis @Sandemaniac . And about your knee @MrsBeaky .
I'm afraid I'm not (in Christian love, of course). He's spent so many years trumpeting loudly about having life so, so much harder than everyone else and generally making everyone else's a misery that I'm thoroughly enjoying him finding out that, when it actually is harder than everyone else, if you never gave anyone else any sympathy, they won't give it you back. By the time he's 90 I might have mellowed a bit. But probably not.
Ok. Sorry. I missed the sarcasm in "dear dear brother." We should have [sarcasm]tabs[/sarcasm]...
About to set off home, via a bit of sightseeing from my few days away. By the time I get home husband will have set off for a weekend away so life won’t get back to ‘normal’ till Monday. I have à clothes swap party to go to tonight and a civic event on Sunday. The only thing on for tomorrow is to find a fellow local writer on a worm farm stall at the market to catch up with a few things.
It’s been lovely to have a proper catch up with my friend and to explore an area I’ve not been to before.
As for fat on meat. I was never keen even when I ate the stuff.
I am very sorry to hear about your brother's diagnosis @Sandemaniac . And about your knee @MrsBeaky .
I'm afraid I'm not (in Christian love, of course). He's spent so many years trumpeting loudly about having life so, so much harder than everyone else and generally making everyone else's a misery that I'm thoroughly enjoying him finding out that, when it actually is harder than everyone else, if you never gave anyone else any sympathy, they won't give it you back. By the time he's 90 I might have mellowed a bit. But probably not.
Ok. Sorry. I missed the sarcasm in "dear dear brother." We should have [sarcasm]tabs[/sarcasm]...
I've used those before, should probably have done so here...
We had a splendid day yesterday, visiting my mother for the first time since my husband's TIA. It felt great to be able to see her again. I drove there and back and thoroughly enjoyed driving.
My husband can drive again, as of today. Usually my husband does most of the driving when we travel together, as he regards himself the "better" driver. I drove almost 200 miles yesterday, and I can't remember the last time I did that in a day. I think I'm going to push for a more equal split going forward.
Good idea @Sarasa. Mr P always insisted on driving so I have had little experience of long distance driving and I struggle to drive for more than an hour.
I’ve just been researching travel for my next but one trip at the end of July about 30 miles away. The course starts on Sunday with a meal at 7pm - or properly on Monday at 9.30am. An easy drive but Parking costs about £10 per day and is not onsite. Public transport on Sunday is pretty dire for that journey and not easy on Monday morning. I’m almost considering getting a taxi!
David didn't like being driven, and I was never a very confident driver anyway, so it worked out fine. I thought very briefly about driving again after he died, but decided I probably couldn't justify the expense, and I certainly couldn't now, as I'm only 5-10 minutes' walk from work.
Mrs Beaky - sorry about your knee - that sounds like a nasty old tumble you took! BF is right - WINE is the answer.
When I was coming home this evening it managed to be wet, windy, warm and sunny all at once. You can tell when it's summer in Scotland - the rain's warm.
When I've mustered up the energy, I shall pootle over the road to get F&C, because Friday.
AIUI, rain in Wales (especially in summer) is regarded as *liquid sunshine*.
A warm day again in Arkland the Clement, with a pleasantly fresh south-westerly Breeze. This has given me the chance to do some Work, to wit, more Scraping of Flaky Paint from the decks - the parts which form the roof of the living accommodation. I've evolved an idiosyncratic way of tackling this task - I sit me down on a small Fishing Stool, and wield a Hoe to scrape up the worst of the flaky bits, putting the largest pieces into a Bucket. The smaller flakes are sucked up into my trusty old Bush wet-and-dry hoover.
Neighbour T, as she passed by, was pleased to see that I was wearing my Hat, as she had instructed.
About 75% of the area involved has been done - the rest (which is not so bad as regards flaking) will have to wait until tomorrow, or perhaps Sunday, as I'm now feeling rather achy and tired...not surprisingly, as I forgot about Lunch, and realised at 5pm (after at least four hours' worth of scraping) that it was time to imbibe some liquids, along with some protein and carbohydrates.
Two GAMMON STEAKS and a load of Crispy Potato Slices, maybe with some BAKED BEANS, should restore the jaded tissues. With a glass of WINE, of course.
Hope your knee is feeling less sore today @MrsBeaky.
I am now home, feeling very fat and very tired after my holiday. I managed to get to the clothes swap and nabbed a winter frock. No use at the moment as it is very warm here, but should be useful later on.
It was @North East Quine rather than me that was contemplating more driving @puzzler. I haven't driven since 2012 and really ought to start again as I'd like to be able to have the option of using the car every now and then. My husband is a terrible passenger so he always used to do the long distance drives even when I did drive. Is there anyone you know going to the course @puzzler or a WhatsApp group you can join to organise some car sharing.
The end of term nears, and this lunchtime husband en rouge and I went for a very delicious lunch at a posh Italian place.
Tuesday is World Book Day, and I thought I had it all sorted out after sourcing a Willy Wonka costume on Vinted for €3. This plan met a bit of a hitch after I saw the weather forecast announcing it's going to be 36° . New plan: I have found a blue man's shirt (ie the shirt is blue, not the man who wears it ) in a second hand shop, and have spent the evening working on cutting it down to child's jacket size. Add a white t-shirt, beige shorts and bunny ears and dada! Peter Rabbit. I doubt he'll keep the jacket on, but Peter loses it in the story so we're all fine.
I remember once spending every spare moment of the week before World Book Day knitting a jersey just like Katie Morag McColl’s, my daughter having announced that this was who she had set her heart on dressing like. The jersey came in useful for the best part of a year.
PS if you don’t know the Katie Morag books, by Mairi Hedderwicke, you should remedy this gap in your knowledge at once, if only for the illustrations.
Mr Whibley also doesn't like being driven, so for holidays etc. he always drives. However, my job sometimes involves trips away, and my parents used to live 175 miles away, so I've a reasonable experience of longish trips on my own.
However, my parents are no longer around and I was prevented from driving following a head injury (I recovered completely, but had to surrender my licence as a precaution) in 2022.
So when I found myself driving from Hull to Sheffield for a meeting in January, it only occurred to me a few miles in that this was by far the longest (about 1 1/2 hours) drive I'd done, and possibly the first motorway, for 3 years. And I'd forgotten to download any podcasts!
We filled in our *I-Spy* books, or annoyed our siblings, or ate too much CHOCOLATE, or made words from the old-style registration letters (for example, WRS xxx spelled WATERCRESS).
When Mr F was a child, in the days before motorways, when you drove through actual towns and villages, he and his cousin played Pub Cricket. You scored according to the number of legs on the inn sign, lost a wicket if there were none. One game broke up over a dispute of the number of legs in The Shepherd and His Flock.
The best I could come up with for motorways was Truck Alphabet - how long before you spotted, in order, hauliers beginning A, B, C etc
By the time I remember car journeys as a child it was usually just me and my parents, my two brothers being much older. We didn't play games apart from "I Spy" but we did look out for interesting pub signs and flowers. We also sang songs - at least, my mum and I did, my dad being the silent type and also the driver.
I've been out for coffee and am now home; Mr Nen is out at a car event. We had some lovely soft rain first thing this morning, although Mr Nen consulted his weather app and assured me that despite the evidence of my own eyes it was simply overcast and not raining at all.
mOne game broke up over a dispute of the number of legs in The Shepherd and His Flock.
I recall something similar happening whilst I was "batting" when we passed a pub near Hastings called something like The Battle Inn, with a sign inspired by the Bayeux Tapestry.
... The best I could come up with for motorways was Truck Alphabet - how long before you spotted, in order, hauliers beginning A, B, C etc
David's family had very specific hauliers they'd look for: "Eddies" (Eddie Stobart for the uninitiated) being the most obvious - extra points if you notice the girl's name on the front; Prestons of Potto (because it made his mother giggle - she had that sort of sense of humour); James Irlam (not sure why) and Norbert Dentressangle (because called Norbert) - quite common in Kent, where D's sister lives.
It's been a glorious day here; currently 20° and mostly sunny with a bit of a breeze. After a luxuriously long lie, I had an amble down to Tessie's, stopping at a café en route for some lunch (a very decent chicken Caesar salad followed by a piece of CAKE). There had been some classic cars around the Cross, but by the time I got there there was a rather beautiful, Inspector Morse-style Jag. No matter; they'll be back on the last Saturday of the month for the summer, so I'll catch them at some point.
I had a snoozette when I got home, and when I woke I could hear drums beating outside; I went out to have a look and it was an Orange band (having lived in Northern Ireland, that's something I can easily do without).
I'd intended to buy a STEAK for supper, but as it's so warm, I changed my mind, and got cold meat and salads instead.
28 degrees here but there’s quite a breeze, so not too unpleasant when I walked to and from the hairdressers’ just now.
I have no idea what I want to eat this evening. Not a lot, apart from ice cream. Maybe some salmon and pasta. All this salad and fruit is having an effect on me,
Went on a supposedly quick nip into town to collect a prescription for Mr F, but ended up with two heavy bagfuls including cherries, lemons, mangoes and frozen parathafrom the Asian shop, and raspberries, puddings, bread and soup from Tesco. But for some reason their new stand did not include The Grauniad which we always buy on a Saturday.
It was at this point I discovered just how few newsagents there are nowadays. I must have walked half a mile of cafes and restaurants (Japanese, Korean, Indian, Vietnamese, Chinese, Iranian, Italian) shops selling tea or vales or 2nd hand clothes or tinselled tat, before finding one stocking newspapers.
All of which left me too zonked todo much besides fall asleep in front of the TV.
High 20s here, far too hot for me. I went and did some leafleting before it got too sunny and then headed into town to talk to the guy that is publishing my book. I couldn't find him at first, but after a coffee I had another go and tracked him down on the market stall he was running for his worm manure business.
This afternoon has been very lazy, though I have gone through the book and sent a list of corrections to the proof copy (its a very slim volume).
Poor you, Karl - I'd hate 30° too. From what I've been reading, we got off lightly in Madrid with 35°; they're heading towards 40° in parts of Spain now!
@Baptist Trainfan - Chicken Balmoral is a chicken breast stuffed with haggis and served with a whisky and cream sauce. And yes - it is a dish fit for a king.
It's still 75F here in Arkland the Dry - about 24C - and heading for 90F by Tuesday! Pilates may have to take a back seat next week, so to speak...the studio is always pleasantly warm or cool, as required, but it's the effort required to get there that is so enervating.
However, the Breeze today enabled me to get out on deck again, and carry on with Scrape Ing the flaky Paint. A small area still remains to be done, after which I shall take a break until slightly cooler weather returns.
I did remember to have Lunch today - CHICKEN in a Madeira sauce, with Rice and Mushrooms. Very nice, but the Chicken Balmoral sounds even tastier...
Comments
In "Lark Rise to Candleford", the writer as a girl loved reading and used to go to the local library. This was presided over by a grumpy caretaker who had no interest in books. If he thought she was staying too long, he would ostentatiously start sweeping around her feet.
P.S. I'm another fat-cutter-off. Not even keen on crackling.
I'm another Jack Spratt. 🥓
Despite my devotion to BACON, pork in most other forms is a meat without which I can quite easily live, and I don't get the attraction of crackling at all; you aficionados are welcome to my share.
Supper this evening was DUCK BREAST, with green veggies and the remains of the potatoes; I gave the latter a few minutes in the popty-ping, followed by some more minutes in the oven along with the DUCK, and it all worked out rather nicely. I gave them the company of some Yellow Tail Malbec, which is velvet in a glass.
Thank you for your sympathy-
My family would tell you that my lack of spatial awareness is unparalleled.
On this occasion I have partaken of a glass of Pastis and sparkling water 😍
I have always been able to eat anything that stays still in front of me long enough, though my dear, dear brothers recent diagnosis of Crohns may explain why, after extensive research I came to the conclusion that only two things give me cataclysmic flatulence.
Food.
And drink.
If I avoid those, I'm fine.
(And cholesterol...)
I've been out to my usual Thursday evening meeting and on the way back there was a Chilly Wind and Spatters of Rain. We so need rain.
Now planning to gatecrash @Boogie 's party for the chocolate brownies. (I'm assuming they are chocolate.)
I'm afraid I'm not (in Christian love, of course). He's spent so many years trumpeting loudly about having life so, so much harder than everyone else and generally making everyone else's a misery that I'm thoroughly enjoying him finding out that, when it actually is harder than everyone else, if you never gave anyone else any sympathy, they won't give it you back. By the time he's 90 I might have mellowed a bit. But probably not.
I need to plan my trip, especially what to wear. I’ve been preoccupied with other things, especially the roofers, who have now finished. It’s been a bit noisy, but otherwise they have not given me much trouble. Nor have they eaten any of the biscuits I bought specially. I’m hoping the scaffolders can come and remove that tomorrow. Even better if they come in the morning, so I can go to my French group in the afternoon.
Good choir practice this evening, including sight singing of several pieces with just the right level of challenge.
At least I don't have to think about dinner tonight as we're going out to a tapas and wine tasting.
Ok. Sorry. I missed the sarcasm in "dear dear brother." We should have [sarcasm]tabs[/sarcasm]...
It’s been lovely to have a proper catch up with my friend and to explore an area I’ve not been to before.
As for fat on meat. I was never keen even when I ate the stuff.
I've used those before, should probably have done so here...
My husband can drive again, as of today. Usually my husband does most of the driving when we travel together, as he regards himself the "better" driver. I drove almost 200 miles yesterday, and I can't remember the last time I did that in a day. I think I'm going to push for a more equal split going forward.
I’ve just been researching travel for my next but one trip at the end of July about 30 miles away. The course starts on Sunday with a meal at 7pm - or properly on Monday at 9.30am. An easy drive but Parking costs about £10 per day and is not onsite. Public transport on Sunday is pretty dire for that journey and not easy on Monday morning. I’m almost considering getting a taxi!
Mrs Beaky - sorry about your knee - that sounds like a nasty old tumble you took! BF is right - WINE is the answer.
When I was coming home this evening it managed to be wet, windy, warm and sunny all at once. You can tell when it's summer in Scotland - the rain's warm.
When I've mustered up the energy, I shall pootle over the road to get F&C, because Friday.
A warm day again in Arkland the Clement, with a pleasantly fresh south-westerly Breeze. This has given me the chance to do some Work, to wit, more Scraping of Flaky Paint from the decks - the parts which form the roof of the living accommodation. I've evolved an idiosyncratic way of tackling this task - I sit me down on a small Fishing Stool, and wield a Hoe to scrape up the worst of the flaky bits, putting the largest pieces into a Bucket. The smaller flakes are sucked up into my trusty old Bush wet-and-dry hoover.
Neighbour T, as she passed by, was pleased to see that I was wearing my Hat, as she had instructed.
About 75% of the area involved has been done - the rest (which is not so bad as regards flaking) will have to wait until tomorrow, or perhaps Sunday, as I'm now feeling rather achy and tired...not surprisingly, as I forgot about Lunch, and realised at 5pm (after at least four hours' worth of scraping) that it was time to imbibe some liquids, along with some protein and carbohydrates.
Two GAMMON STEAKS and a load of Crispy Potato Slices, maybe with some BAKED BEANS, should restore the jaded tissues. With a glass of WINE, of course.
As I don't have choir tomorrow (J has decreed that we are on holiday ...) I may indulge in a further glass of WINE.
Nen, you might have been right about how much one drinks when one's WINE comes in a three-bottle box.
But it is Friday ...
I am now home, feeling very fat and very tired after my holiday. I managed to get to the clothes swap and nabbed a winter frock. No use at the moment as it is very warm here, but should be useful later on.
It was @North East Quine rather than me that was contemplating more driving @puzzler. I haven't driven since 2012 and really ought to start again as I'd like to be able to have the option of using the car every now and then. My husband is a terrible passenger so he always used to do the long distance drives even when I did drive. Is there anyone you know going to the course @puzzler or a WhatsApp group you can join to organise some car sharing.
Tuesday is World Book Day, and I thought I had it all sorted out after sourcing a Willy Wonka costume on Vinted for €3. This plan met a bit of a hitch after I saw the weather forecast announcing it's going to be 36°
PS if you don’t know the Katie Morag books, by Mairi Hedderwicke, you should remedy this gap in your knowledge at once, if only for the illustrations.
However, my parents are no longer around and I was prevented from driving following a head injury (I recovered completely, but had to surrender my licence as a precaution) in 2022.
So when I found myself driving from Hull to Sheffield for a meeting in January, it only occurred to me a few miles in that this was by far the longest (about 1 1/2 hours) drive I'd done, and possibly the first motorway, for 3 years. And I'd forgotten to download any podcasts!
How did we all survive trips before podcasts were a thing.
The best I could come up with for motorways was Truck Alphabet - how long before you spotted, in order, hauliers beginning A, B, C etc
I've been out for coffee and am now home; Mr Nen is out at a car event. We had some lovely soft rain first thing this morning, although Mr Nen consulted his weather app and assured me that despite the evidence of my own eyes it was simply overcast and not raining at all.
Splendid!
That's absolutely excellent!
David's family had very specific hauliers they'd look for: "Eddies" (Eddie Stobart for the uninitiated) being the most obvious - extra points if you notice the girl's name on the front; Prestons of Potto (because it made his mother giggle - she had that sort of sense of humour); James Irlam (not sure why) and Norbert Dentressangle (because called Norbert) - quite common in Kent, where D's sister lives.
It's been a glorious day here; currently 20° and mostly sunny with a bit of a breeze. After a luxuriously long lie, I had an amble down to Tessie's, stopping at a café en route for some lunch (a very decent chicken Caesar salad followed by a piece of CAKE). There had been some classic cars around the Cross, but by the time I got there there was a rather beautiful, Inspector Morse-style Jag. No matter; they'll be back on the last Saturday of the month for the summer, so I'll catch them at some point.
I had a snoozette when I got home, and when I woke I could hear drums beating outside; I went out to have a look and it was an Orange band (having lived in Northern Ireland, that's something I can easily do without).
I'd intended to buy a STEAK for supper, but as it's so warm, I changed my mind, and got cold meat and salads instead.
I have no idea what I want to eat this evening. Not a lot, apart from ice cream. Maybe some salmon and pasta. All this salad and fruit is having an effect on me,
It was at this point I discovered just how few newsagents there are nowadays. I must have walked half a mile of cafes and restaurants (Japanese, Korean, Indian, Vietnamese, Chinese, Iranian, Italian) shops selling tea or vales or 2nd hand clothes or tinselled tat, before finding one stocking newspapers.
All of which left me too zonked todo much besides fall asleep in front of the TV.
Chicken Balmoral for din-dins.
Is it wrapped in tartan?
This afternoon has been very lazy, though I have gone through the book and sent a list of corrections to the proof copy (its a very slim volume).
The problem with that was having to steer with your knees while filling in the book!
(Cross-posted with @Baptist Trainfan)
21 is heat. The 27 we've been subjected to is torment. And I've got to endure 30 at Alton Towers on Monday. If I never post again I probably melted.
@Baptist Trainfan - Chicken Balmoral is a chicken breast stuffed with haggis and served with a whisky and cream sauce. And yes - it is a dish fit for a king.
However, the Breeze today enabled me to get out on deck again, and carry on with Scrape Ing the flaky Paint. A small area still remains to be done, after which I shall take a break until slightly cooler weather returns.
I did remember to have Lunch today - CHICKEN in a Madeira sauce, with Rice and Mushrooms. Very nice, but the Chicken Balmoral sounds even tastier...