personal

Reasons to be Grateful: 18

Experiment, week 18. This week’s five things which have made me happy or for which I’m grateful.

  1. Long-Tailed Tits. I’m seeing these delightful little birds — one of the smallest in the UK — more and more in our garden. They seem to especially like the Silver Birch tree (below). Until a couple of years ago I would see a small group maybe a handful of times a year. This winter they’ve been regular visitors and have got on the bird watch list almost every week. And now I am seeing a pair most days. Hopefully they’re going to nest somewhere nearby.

    2. Spring Dawn with Tree

  2. Smoked Chicken. This has become a staple in our house. Waitrose do individual smoked chicken breasts which are less expensive than buying carved cooked chicken and much tastier. So we now keep a couple in the fridge as a stand-by. They make a great salad.
  3. Daffodils. Yes, I have to say daffodils again. I think they’re my favourite flowers and I love being able to have inexpensive bunches of daffs in the house.
  4. Robins Singing. It is definitely Spring. The robin is singing almost continually. I woke up at 4.30 this morning and got up because I was uncomfortable. It was still dark, but the robin was singing away in the trees in our garden.

    5. Spring Dawn with Moon

  5. Dawn. One of the nice things about getting up early is seeing the dawn, which is so often just as lovely as sunset. And one of the few pleasures of winter is that you can get up at a sensible time and still see dawn. This morning dawn was beginning to break about 5.30 with some very subtle lemony hues, grey clouds and a crescent moon in the east. Having taken a few photos (both of the above) through the study window, I retired back to bed for a few more hours sleep.
amusements

What? More?

So our other local auction house has a sale coming up this week. It contains the usual eclectic and eccentric mix of le bon dieu c’est quoi. Here are some of the “highlights”.

A cartoon by Rudolk Pick, signed and dated 98, showing an African gentleman in smart attire and smoking a pipe, riding a zebra alongside a muzzled lion cub, watercolour, framed

A carved bone erotic couple, an erotic bone bottle and a four section bone erotic inro

A paperweight in the form of a flag pole with the Swastika at full mast

A small carton of plated items including a cheese dish with goat finial

An American sterling centrepiece bowl on tall loaded foot, a Greek 925 bowl, and a pair of loaded 925 dwarf candlesticks
[Loaded with 12-bore cartridges, presumably?]

A stuffed snowy owl in a glazed case, and a stuffed grouse
[I never cease to be surprised at the amount of taxidermy that’s around]

Six flying ducks wall plaques and two seagulls, a quantity of character salt and peppers including chickens, mice, farmer, postman, etc., sauce pots …

A pair of impressive decorative ewers, the bowls supported by two cherub figurines, and garlands of flowers

A splendid large Victorian glass dome enclosing a display of stuffed jay and parakeet, with outstretched wings, in grass surroundings

A large Chinese tilework guardian lion with paw on brocade ball

A mixed lot incl. an old Shell petrol can, miniature straw boater, silver banded walking stick …

An unusual mannequin decorated with vintage fabrics, flowers, beads and glitter fairy wings

An attractive French clock garniture in gilt-metal and bronze, of Louis XVI design, the bell-striking movement by Vincenti, with painted enamel dial, in drum case on gazebo support, with two-light candelabra side pieces … c.1900

A bronze figure of Christ crucified by Rossini
[Have we been being mis-sold all these years, or has Herod had a name-change?]

A taxidermy specimen of a red squirrel, with grasses, in glazed case, c.1900
[Yes, and there’s more!]

Two decorative halberds.

The ultimate in ironing boards by Lauraster, the frame combining a constant steam action with integrated iron, including two covers.
[Which sound more like an instrument of torture!]

A carton of good reference books incl. cokkery [sic], gardening …

A rare 1950s orange-painted basketwork globular linen basket, probably by Lloyd Loom, on a metal stand
[Another instrument of torture? Or is it a cat basket?]

And finally …
… an Imari chamber pot …

I think we’re just going to have to go and have a look at this collection!

current affairs, ramblings

Crossings Out

So the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend Dr Rowan Williams, is standing down in nine months time. Appropriate timing? Is he being transmogrified into the Virgin Mary?

Meanwhile he has plenty of time to come out with a few more inanities.

Today, the day that he announced his pregnancy capitulation, he has said that wearing the cross does not offend non-Christians.

How can he possibly know? He isn’t a non-Christian.

Oh! Maybe he is! After all he’s Archbishop of Canterbury. It’s well known that Archbishops of Canterbury can believe six impossible things before breakfast. Recall too that memorable line from the Eric Idle version of the “List Song” in the ENO production of The Mikado:

Bishops who don’t believe in God
Chief Constables who do.

Full lyric here (complete with a couple of errors) and a video on YouTube (the list Song starts about 4m15s in).

links

Did You Miss … ?

Links to a few recent and interesting or curious items you may have missed.

Here’s a series of three posts about the bacteria in your belly.
Part 1 — Babies
Part 2 — Adults
Part 3 — Disrupting the Balance

Scientists clone cashmere goats in bid to increase wool production. What you mean they haven’t managed to make it 5% nylon yet?

An ancient Greek warrior’s helmet has been dredged up off the coast of Israel.

Still on the ancient, palaeontologists reckon to have discovered a previously unknown species of hominin, nicknamed the Red Deer Cave People, who liked venison and lived around 14,500 to 11,500 years ago in China.

And finally to another strange species of hominin … Apparently an Italian perfumier has created a special perfume just for Pope Benedict XVI. So much for clerical vows of poverty and chastity. It’s all a load of old goats!

current affairs, environment

Hobby-Horse News

Oh God, it’s a hobby horse news day! Not content with creating a brouhaha over Susanna Reid’s cleavage there are two other news stories at the moment which are guaranteed to wind up the clockwork in my hobby-horse.

First of all there’s the report that Daylight Saving Time (aka. Summer Time) may well be bad for you.

Apparently putting the clocks forward an hour plays havoc with our body clocks and circadian cycles.

Well yes, of course it does. Haven’t you ever noticed?

Apparently this may be a contributing factor to an increase in heart attacks following the Spring clock change.

I wonder why I keep saying that we should abandon Summer Time and keep GMT the year round.

The majority of the global population doesn’t keep Summer Time (see the map here), so why do we need to? People increasingly work flexibly these days, so it shouldn’t matter that, within broad zones, we all have a clock which says noon when the sun is directly overhead (as GMT defines for the UK).

Secondly, we’re told that SE England is running out of water and that the water companies are about to impose hosepipe bans.

I don’t see why this should come as a surprise. Yes, we’ve had a couple of dry winters. But we also use excessive amounts of water.

Many years ago we were advised by our masters that we should shower rather than bath because it uses less water. This, however, created two problems which clearly weren’t foreseen. (A) that people would have more powerful showers, and spend more time in the shower, so they often use just as much water per shower as they for a bath. And (B) that people will shower every day; some even several times a day.

Neither is necessary, unless one is doing a really dirty job. And frankly most of us aren’t.

Back in the good old days we used to bath once or twice a week, or if we fell in the duck pond. Which was fine as long as we had a decent wash every day. The majority of jobs, and our environment, are now a lot less dirty than they were. So why do we need to shower every day?

Answer: We don’t. A good daily wash with a shower a couple of times a week is fine. This is what I do and I don’t think all my friends are too polite to tell me I smell.

That though is only part of the water problem. We flush too much water down our toilets unnecessarily. Loos do not need flushing after every pee. Or if they do, a quick 1-2 litres is enough, not the 4 litres even most modern dual flush cisterns provide. I also get incensed when I see people hosing down their houses or washing the car and leaving the hose running water away down the gutter while they polish and buff.

But the water companies are not blameless. We know many water companies are struggling with old Victorian water mains and sewers. But they really do need to do more to stem burst mains as soon as they appear and not leave them running water to waste for days, weeks or even months. Not only would this save loads of water but it must also save money in the long run.

Meanwhile, yes, let’s have a hosepipe ban and let’s have it properly enforced. Then let’s install water meters on every property. It seems the only thing that Joe Public understands is being hurt in the pocket.

Now remind me why most of us live in the driest quarter of the country? Oh, maybe it’s something to do with sun and warmth? But then again, maybe not; after all this is England!

beliefs, nudism

What's so Shocking about Breasts?

BBC TV Breakfast presenter Susanna Reid has accused viewers of over-reacting to sightings of her cleavage.

Oh FFS! What’s so shocking about breasts? Even whole breasts, let alone glimpses round the edge?

Answer: Nothing!

Women have breasts. So do men. Women’s breasts are multi-functional. Men’s aren’t. Men are allowed to show theirs. Women aren’t. How is this logic? Where is the problem?

Answer: In your mind!

Who cares whether the breasts in question are on TV, at the supermarket, in my front room, or on the beach? Why should that make any difference?

We all know, give or take the odd interesting scar, what’s under these pieces of fabric we call clothes. So how does it matter if the fabric isn’t there? If everyone was naked, wouldn’t we find it obscene that people wanted to cover themselves up?

Come on people, get a life! Bodies and nudity are normal. They aren’t de facto sexual, or criminal, or dirty, or “not nice” — except in your mind. Try getting real and getting comfortable with bodies; try being body and sex positive for once. Try adjusting your mind.

Yes, it’ll change your outlook on life — for the better. And who knows, you might actually like it!

And remember: If you see anything God didn’t make, throw a brick at it!

Good call, Susanna!

books, food+drink, personal

Listography : Cookery Books

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Oh dear, I just know I’m going to be in trouble now because Kate’s Listography this week asks us to nominate our top five cookery books.

Cookery Books! I ask you?! Who needs cookery books?

What do you mean? Of course I cook! Bloody well, I’ll have you know! I always have done. At 12-ish (yes, that’s 50 years ago!) I kept house for my father for a week while my mother was in hospital, and he had a 3-course hot meal every evening when he came in from work.

I learnt the basics at my mother’s knee and then honed them as a student. I haven’t looked back since. OK, so I don’t do fancy fancy stuff, or cakes, or clever puddings. I can do them, but I choose not to because I don’t need to or want to. But I do cook good things, from fresh, as you’ll see from the recipes I’ve posted here. (Type recipe in the search box on the right to get a list.)

But I hardly ever use cookery books. We have a couple of shelves of them and there are only two I use with any regularity at all (ie. about twice a year).

The first is Florence Greenberg, Jewish Cooking. And no, not because I’m Jewish, because I’m not. I bought the Penguin paperback of this when I was a post-grad student because it looked useful. And it is. Despite not being illustrated it is good on the basics and has some superb recipes. OK so it doesn’t do anything non-Kosher, like pork and offal, but so what? That’s easy: you just adapt recipes.

Thanks to Noreen, who brought this book with her when we got married, the other cookery book I use is the two volume paperback of Farmhouse Cooking by Mary Norwak and Babs Honey. No illustrations and no basics. But lots of good hearty recipes for just about anything you can imagine — as as you’ll know if you look at the recipes hereabouts we are people for good, hearty, wholesome peasant food with a minimum of faffing around.

Beyond these I might skip through the odd book for ideas, but seldom more. And I do also have a folder of recipe ideas. If I have a clue what I want to do but need to brush up on how to do it then I tend to use this new fangled interweb thingy called Google. Almost everything you’ll ever need is online!

There’s only one thing I hate more in the kitchen than the recipe book as bible, and that is scales! Unless you’re making cake, where the correct proportions are critical, learn to do it by eye! Cooking is all about having confidence!