Who's A Little Pickie Now?

Some of you have commented on Rosie's fondness for a "Picky Lunch" - this past weekend I have learned something new. Norfolk has its very own "Little Pickies" - this is the name used along the north Norfolk coast for the Little Tern.

This is because they skilfully ‘pick’ fish from the sea with their bills. They will only fly a short distance from their nest site to forage. They feed mostly on Sand Eels and young Herring, by plunge-diving to catch them, and will also feed on shrimps and small invertebrates. The number of eggs they lay and the survival of their chicks is largely dependent on food availability.

Little Terns weigh the same as a tennis ball. The male carries a fish to attract a mate; and they live – and breed – into their 20s; migrating to West Africa every year. 

The National Trust report that in 2014, a little tern was found to have died at Blakeney, having been ringed as a chick in Lincolnshire 21 years previously. The bird, a female, had an egg inside, so was still breeding at 21, having migrated between England and Africa 19 times during her life. 

There are now less than 2000 breeding pairs across the UK- 20% of them on the North Norfolk Coast. But they do not lay their eggs in sensible places - their camouflaged nests on the beach get washed away by high tides in stormy weather. The National Trust have been using "little tern decoys" to encourage them to safer sites, slightly further inland. And it seems to be working! 

The Norfolk Coast Partnership is working with the RSPB, National Trust, and Norfolk Wildlife Trust to help protect and conserve these birds - whose forked tails and aerial acrobatics make them the 'swallows of the shoreline'

I learned al these facts from the NCP "Guardian" magazine [read it online here]  Melinda Appleby has even written a Little Tern 'shape poem'

Fake News; It is not true that drug pushers have been growing marijuana plants on Blakeney Marshes, because "they want to leave no tern un-stoned"!

We Seek Your Kingdom

Earlier this year, the LICC [London Institute for Contemporary Christianity] commissioned a new hymn. Here it is - it was released in April. The tune is the well known "Eventide" [Abide with me]I think the words speak for themselves - a challenge to the church to meet the needs of our world at this time, as we continue to see the changes forced upon us by the pandemic.

We seek your kingdom throughout every sphere

We long for heaven’s demonstration here

Jesus your light shine bright for all to see

Transform, revive, and heal society 

Before all things, in him were all things made

Inspiring culture, media, and trade

May all our work serve your economy

Transform, revive, and heal society

 Peace, truth, and justice reigning everywhere

With us be present in our public square

Fill all who lead with your integrity

Transform, revive, and heal society 

Forgive us Lord, when we have not engaged

Failing to scribe your heart on history’s page

Make us again what we were made to be

Transform, revive, and heal society

 Faithful to govern ever may we be

Selfless in service, loving constantly

In everything may your authority

Transform, revive, and heal society

Holt! Who Goes There?

Not a misprint- it's Anne Holt, Scandi crime writer. I am quite fond of detective stuff, and there has been some good Scandi stuff on TV. We've just watched the latest Beck on BBC4. Frustratingly the BBC site gives a link to the original 1960s radio plays - but they are not currently available to listen to. But you can watch the latest 4 Beck TV episodes on BBC i-Player.

I have not read any of the Beck stories, but I have read Jo Nesbo [Detective Harry Hole], Henning Mankel [Wallander] , and Stieg Larssen [Lisbeth Salander -The Girl With...] I did not know Ann Holt at all until May. I picked up one of her books in the Mobile Library Van. "Death of the Demon". It had a positive comment from Val McDermid on the back. [I like Val D, she's a knowledgeable woman and a good writer, so decided to try it] I really enjoyed it. It featured a detective, Hanne Wilhelmson

Then I found "What Dark Clouds Hide" - which is part of AH's other series. These are about a husband and wife team, Detective Adam Stubo and Johanne Vik [psychologist] It was the last in the series AS/JV series, but I managed to get hold of "Punishment" - the first of the 5, which helped set things into context. 

When the mobile library van returned last week [it broke down in June!] I stocked up on these - two Vik/Stubo, one Wilhelmsen [this latter is only half as thick as the others]. This is probably best defined as 'overkill' !!

Holt was formerly Minister Of Justice in Norway, and writes with an in depth knowledge of her subject. [I cannot imagine Liz Truss, or Michael Gove who have been MofJ in the UK producing literature of this quality!!] She has been writing for 30 years and is Norway's best-selling female crime writer.

She deftly breaks up the violent, challenging storylines with off-beat police procedurals, and the struggles of ordinary family life and relationships. And yes, her cops all have complicated back-stories, just like so many other fictional detectives.

The Norwich libraries seem well stocked with the books, so I should be able to work my way through them quite quickly. It seems bizarre to sit in the peaceful Norfolk sunshine reading of crimes in the Norwegian snows...

The Vik/Stubo series has been published under the overall title "Modus" and you may have caught some of that on TV a few years back in BBC4s Saturday night Eurocrime slot. 

If you like the other Nordic Noir writers, give these a go. Bob is sure Jo Nesbo is actually Welsh, and insists on pronouncing his name "Jones Bo" - and by the way the JN website says Harry Hole is pronounced with the o as in pool, and the e as in ethnic. Harry Hool-e! So now you know.

Sunday Night: watch out for Professor T, the Belgian detective, in a new series on ITV starring Ben Miller [this time in English, and not subtitled] and French detective Baptiste returns on BBC

Heel For Heel, And Toe For Toe...

I love this Scottish folk tune, so toe-tappingly cheery. This is a recent recording of "Mairi's wedding" - produced under lockdown. 

I have been looking into the history, and the lyrics was originally written in Gaelic, in the 1930s to honour Mary MacNiven, The music was an old Scottish folk tune. Mary was a Scottish Folksinger, who won a gold medal at the National Mod [a music and culture festival, similar to the Welsh Eisteddfod] in 1934. Subsequently in 1936, new English lyrics were written, and it was renamed The Lewis Bridal Song/Mairi's Wedding - intriguingly, Mary did not marry until 1940 [to a sea captain] In 1959 dance steps were devised for the tune. The song has been popular for over 80 years, and the dance is frequently performed at Scottish weddings.

The reason I have been humming it to myself for the last couple of days is that I have treated myself to some new shoes. My ancient blue canvas plimsolls have got so thin "if I stood on a thruppencer I could tell you if it was 'eads or tails" as my Grandad would have said. 

My new ones [from Muji] have an arch support built in, and are exceedingly comfortable. They are water repellant, organic cotton. I am happily skipping along, heel-for-heel and toe-for-toe.

Mairi MacNiven lived to the ripe old age of 92 - all that singing and dancing clearly kept her fit!

Cuts And Crosses

I have been doing a few more of the little cross stitch motifs in the evenings whilst watching TV **- and then the other afternoon I fetched my Big Shot Due-Cut machine and my WRMK envelope maker down from the box in the loft and had an afternoon of papercrafting. There are a number of weddings/wedding anniversaries coming up, so I wanted to make a batch of cards for them.

I used the Tattered Lace die cut I bought a few years back. I'd got a folder of 12" heavy scrapbooking paper- which provide cream and french navy for the cards, and a patterned design which made the envelopes.

With the trimmings from the cards, I was able to make some gift tags ready for the gifts I'll be making for some babies due soon.

I decided the little gift tags with the magazine would be more useful as little cards - so here they are.

Some I decorated with a tiny bow, others I attached with my rivet punch. That was not too successful - I had to put a small punched cover over the inside of the rivet as it was a little sharp.

I still have Aida cloth and threads left - plus the 8 gift tags which came in the original kit.

**Yes I did watch the match on Sunday night [first time since 1966 that I have watched an entire football match on TV] I am a little sad that England lost - but really sad about the way some of the players have been verbally abused since. It is absolutely disgusting.

Let's just recognise that Marcus Rashford is going to be remembered for years to come - not because he missed one penalty, but because this courageous young man stood up to the self-centred politicians, to ensure that children got the food they needed. God bless you Marcus - thank you for what you have done for the country

In the Great Scheme Of Things, feeding the hungry matters infinitely more than scoring a goal. 

.

Picky Pakoras

If my #word365 is 'adventure' then that has to include being more adventurous in the kitchen. I wanted to try making some pakora/bhaji type snacks. My Meera Sodha book had just one recipe, and that used a lot of red and green chillies. Too spicy for me. 

But I liked the fact that she baked rather than deep-friend them. I found a recipe online here. I made some as part of our 'picky' lunch, with little dishes of 'mango chupney' on the side.**

ingredients [makes 8]

• 1 large carrot
• 1 small potato
• ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• Twist black pepper
• ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 heaped teaspoon curry powder
• 1 tsp dried coriander​ leaves
• 75g chickpea [gram] flour

method

1. Grate the carrot and potato
2. Add all ingredients into a mixing bowl (except the chickpea flour)
3. Sift the chickpea flour (to avoid lumps) on top of the ingredients in the bowl.
4. Mix all ingredients together thoroughly,using your hands. Once everything starts to combine then compress with your hands until everything is wonderfully melded together.
5. Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
6. Spoon dessert sized spoon dollops onto the baking tray. Compress down slightly .
7. Bake in a preheated oven 200°C for about 25 minutes. You want them baking really hot in order to cook through and crisp a little on the edges (but not to burn).

The recipe says "Enjoy with mango chutney right away as a starter, snack, or as part of a curry night medley. They work nicely cold the next day in a lunch box. Alternatively, reheat under a grill for a few minutes." - but we ate all of them immediately.

** 'picky lunch' is Rosie's term for a meal where you can pick and choose - more fun than 'buffet', don't you think!

 

Less Passion In The Bedroom, Please!

It was just before 7am. I brought two cups of tea into the bedroom, and set one each side of the bed. "Good morning, darling, I love you!" I said. Then I opened the curtains to see what sort of day it was. And took a step back

Look! A tendril from the passion flower outside was creeping through the window, ready to take over!

"Triffids!" I declared. "We must make sure to get out there and prune it back later, before it takes over, and strangles us i our sleep" [Bob sipped his tea silently, I think he thought I was over -reacting]

But later in the day we went outside with secateurs in hand to do the trimming. I love passion flowers and was really pleased when this appeared in our garden. 

A previous neighbour planted one her side, and it spread across to our garden. The next neighbour uprooted it, but ours thrived. Last summer it grew all over the satellite dish next door [do people still use them? or are they just left there as a reminder of obsolete technology?]

When we got to Ferndown, there was a runner bean 'pyramid' in the garage. I never did get any beans grown. But it came with us in April, and I used the frame to support the passiflora.

As you can see, it has worked quite well - but now at the top, the plant is clearly making a bid for the neighbour's dish and our bedroom window.There are only two blooms open at the minute- and more than 30 buds waiting for their moment to shine. 

If you don't know how the Passion Flower got its name, read this

Books, Bugs, Bargains

One thing I'm enjoying in retirement is having time to visit other nearby villages. On Saturday morning we went over to Horsford - a 20 minute drive - to explore, and enjoy the Yard Sale. There was a very friendly atmosphere. We parked close to the school, and bought a map [£1] Fortified by well filled bacon baps and mugs of tea, [£8] we set off.

The street names were rainbow coloured. Apparently this was done towards the start of the pandemic as a thank you from the community to the NHS. There were well over 40 sales pitches - including the Parish Hall and the Methodist Chapel. Because it was primarily a school event, a high proportion of the sellers are were young families, with children's clothes, toys and books - but also bric a brac and small pieces of furniture. Bob bought two screwdrivers to refurbish [£1] Here's my haul... 

Two children's books [£1] cookbook [50p] A lovely magnetic dress-me-up book [only 20p] Three yards of pretty ribbon [50p] and a brand new bug viewer [50p]  It was 11:15, coffee-time, so we  went to the Parish Hall. Splendid tea and cake, eaten in the fresh air [£2]

We walked back to the car and I broke my £1 item-limit by spending £4 on this large fuchsia in a 10" pot. I hope it produces good blooms. We gave away our map to a couple who had just parked their car, but were some distance from either of the places where they were on sale. 

Food and map - £11 purchases £7.70 total spend £18.70

The bug viewer is excellent - very simple to use. Rosie came over later and we spent a while studying an ant in detail.  The Bug Book is really informative. Once again I was surprised by the range of Ro's knowledge of creation.The magnetic book is from Jojo Maman Bebe and features their children's clothes. I put all the pieces on a metal baking sheet to enable Rosie to see and select outfits. 

I think I really got my money's worth with these. 

I'm not sure about the cookbook - Thomasina is very fond of using lots of chillies, which I don't like. 

All in all a lovely morning, my Fitbit recorded a step count of 10K+ and the weather stayed fine. 

The people were all friendly. Strangest comment was when one seller told us that the previous chap had asked, in all seriousness "Do you have any guns for sale?" We were as baffled as she was by such a question. 

Guarded Remarks

Last Sunday afternoon, we went for a walk around the ruins of the castle at Castle Acre.

This is an amazing earthwork, and we enjoyed clambering up to the walls, built with Norfolk flint - a castle of some sort has stood here since Roman times [when the Romans were trying to keep Boudicca and her Iceni warriors from causing trouble] It is sited on 'The Peddar's Way' - the ancient Roman route which was later walked by pilgrims to Walsingham.

The Romans would have kept troops here- a garrison - to repel those warriors. I found myself thinking about Paul's words in Philippians chapter 4

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4;6&7

The word guard there is from the Greek word for garrison. That suggests quite a lot of protection. Later Bob was looking for some A3 paper- and tucked inside the large flat packet, there was one of Steph's artworks. She did this [I think] during her A level years. It is a mixed media painting/printing/collage piece, with hands clasped in prayer, and those verses from the epistle on the right, and reflective metallic paint . I found a clip frame and hung it up.

The photograph has not come out too well - so you cannot see the words clearly. But I am so glad to have found it again, I love these verses.

Fishing For Compliments

I used to make meatloaf a lot in days gone by, a good way of using up leftover meat, padding out a small amount with veg and breadcrumbs to stretch it...Good served hot, or cold, with salad, potatoes, bread, or other carbs...

The other Saturday in the Guardian, Yotam Ottolenghi posted a meatloaf recipe using with canned tuna. He suggested it for picnics. I have to say it turned out way better than I expected. Delicious with new potatoes and salad on a Sunday, and great sandwiches on Monday - nothing else added, just some ketchup spread on the bread. Tuesday with mash and veg. I forgot to take photos. Follow the recipe, chill it well, and then store in a Lock&Lock. I used some leftover regular bread - no pita to hand, and only 2 garlic cloves, and I had no parmesan, so I substituted some goats cheese. Here's the article [and his picture - mine actually looked just like the picture!!]

Serve slices of this tuna loaf with a salad or, even better, stuff them into sandwiches. For a picnic in the park, fry and cool the slices before transporting, but if you’re serving them at a garden picnic at home, set up a DIY sandwich station with a selection of filings, and let everyone create their own sandwich.

Prep 15 min, Cook 55 min, Cool 2½ hr, Serves 4-6

220g cherry tomatoes
½ onion, peeled and roughly chopped (40g net weight)
3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
80g parmesan, cut into roughly 2cm chunks
40g tomato paste
30g mayonnaise
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1½ tsp ground cumin
1 tsp sweet mild paprika
¾ tsp chilli flakes
2 eggs
150g pita, torn into roughly 2cm chunks
Salt and black pepper
3 x 160g tins tuna in olive oil, drained and the oil reserved
60g baby capers, drained
25g basil leaves, finely chopped

• Heat the oven to 200°C and grease and line a standard 9cm x 24cm loaf tin 
• Put the tomatoes, onion, garlic, parmesan, tomato paste, mayonnaise, mustard, cumin, paprika, chilli flakes, eggs, bread, half a teaspoon of salt and plenty of pepper in a food processor, then pulse to a rough, wet paste.
•  Scrape the mixture into a large bowl, add the tuna, capers, basil and two tablespoons of the reserved tuna oil, then fold to combine. Spoon this into the lined tin, and mould the top into a loaf shape. Brush the top of the loaf with a tablespoon of the reserved tuna oil.
• Bake for 45 minutes, basting the loaf with a bit more tuna oil after 15 and 30 minutes,then remove and leave to cool for 15 minutes. Unmould the loaf, transfer it to a rack and leave to cool completely for about two and a half hours. Once cooled, carefully cut the loaf into 2½cm-thick slices and brush both sides of each slice with some of the remaining tuna oil.
• Heat a large, non-stick frying pan on a medium-high heat. Once hot, fry the slices, in batches if need be, for two minutes on each side, or until they have a nice golden crust. Serve with salad or in a sandwich.

Made it on a Saturday afternoon - and it fed us well for three days. Bob was very positive about it. More fish, more salads...our diet is improving.

Reduce, Refuse, Reuse, Recycle

It's "Plastic Free July" again. It's 30 years since the term "compassion fatigue" was coined to define the burnout which affected caregivers, and their ability to nurture [and then the way that people 'switched off' whenever charity appeals were shown on TV] Is there an equivalent 'eco-fatigue'? Are we being so determined to bring home the message about saving the planet that we are just turning people off? 

What's the point of recycling my rubbish and using a water bottle/reusable coffee cup when the rest of the people in my office are using disposable cups and single use bottles? What difference does my action make?

How can young Mums use washable nappies when nurseries refuse to take children unless they are in disposables? And the NHS/GPs will no longer use glass and steel syringes needing to be sterilised, when they find single-use ones quicker, cheaper, and more hygienic. 

And once travel bans are lifted, it seems that many people will be jetting off all over the place- one short hop flight to Europe in September will wipe out all the green activities they did from January to August. What's the point? Some scientists are saying we have already gone too far...

It is hard, and none of us is perfect in this regard. We all have inconsistencies. Everybody reading this is doing so on a device which has a lot of single use plastic in it! My daily medications from the pharmacy come in mixed material packaging - I commended the manager of the pharmacy for sourcing my Vitamin D capsules in a recyclable bottle - but the next time they came in a foil/plastic sheet inside a cardboard box again. 

Whilst I am annoyed that Sainsbury's teabags are now 'fairly traded' and no long 'fairtrade'., they have at last moved over to plant based compostable plastic in their tea bags. But other things on my weekly shopping list still have some sort of plastic wrapping.

Steph has been telling me about OPRL - the On-Pack Recycling Label scheme. This independent, pioneering, expert, ethical company works across industry in Britain to enable manufacturers of all goods [food, clothing, homewares etc] to have a consistent labelling system so people can quickly spot what may be recycled and what can't. 

This not-for-profit company is doing superb work making it easier for the consumer to see what their packaging is made from, and how best to dispose of it.

You will have seen the OPRL symbols and not realised there was an award winning campaign behind it.

There are well over 600 companies now using the scheme - and more are joining each week. If I must buy something in a plastic container, it is helpful to know if and how I can recycle it. 

This sort of thing is so informative. And now they are introducing a range of labels to show whether containers can be refilled

Yes, the ideal situation would be no plastic - but there are times when we can refuse packaging, and if that is not possible, we can re-use it- and hopefully recycle it. 

I love the fact that my veg now comes from a very thoughtful supplier 

• the cucumbers are naked [and grown less than 5 miles from the outlet] 
• serve yourself loose veg goes into paper bags - which I reuse and eventually recycle 
• pre-weighed stuff [eg apples] does come in plastic bags, but they are generously sized and very loosely knotted at the top. It is easy to untie the knot and then I have an A4 sized bag which can be used for all sorts of things before it goes to landfill
• the soft fruits are in recyclable plastic trays, or compostable pressed paper.

Our village shop/Post Office sells loose fruit and veg too. I visited the new Refill Shop in Dereham recently, and felt the price mark up was a bit too much. I've not reverted to glass milk bottles either. 

But I am doing a little, here and there - and I am sure that is the right way forward - for all of us.  It's Wimbledon fortnight [well done AELTC for working hard to reduce plastic use, and having an environment day last week - do check out the details] so I will close with some favourite words from the late, great Arthur Ashe

That's My Name, Don't Wear It Out!

 So here are nine products - can you name them?

Easy! you probably said

1. Pritt stick
2. Biro/Bic
3. Hoover
4. Stanley Knife
5. Crocs
6. Velcro
7. Elastoplast
8. Sellotape**
9. Pringles

I'm aware that non-UK readers may have a few different names like BandAid, ScotchTape etc - but you probably agreed with most of my answers.

Except not one of these items pictured is the pukka, branded product - the vacuum cleaner is a Sebo, the shoes are from M&S, the crisps are from Lidl ...

Whilst you might feel honoured to invent a product which becomes a household name, your company lawyers will be frustrated when other people infringe your trademark. [I could mention caterpillar cakes....]

The ballpoint pen was invented by Hungarian journalist Lásló Bíró and chemist brother Gyorgy. They patented it in 1938 in Paris [and again in the US in 1943] In 1945, Marcel Bich bought the patent rights from them, and founded his BIC company. But the picture above is an unbranded copy.

James Spangler, a night watchman in Ohio suffered from asthma. He made a gadget using a fan, a silk pillowcase and a broomstick to collect the dust. He gave one to his housewife cousin Susan Hoover, to see how she got on with it. She loved it and showed her husband William, and in 1908 the Hoover Company was founded.  [the picture above is a Sebo] 

Sellotape was first developed in the 1930s - made from Cellophane - and that name was trademarked, hence they change from the initial C to S.

Pritt stick is marketed by the Henkel company - and the inventor's young daughter called it a "Pretty stick". Frederick Bauer developed the saddle-shaped potato snack for Proctor and Gamble in 1956 - and in 2008 his cremated ashes were interred in a Pringles tube [these are notoriously difficult to recycle due to the mixed materials used in construction]

And Velcro was patented by a swiss chemist in 1955 - the name comes from the two French words velours [velvet] and croché [hook] - a hook-and-loop fastening inspired by the hooked burdock seeds which clung to his dog's velvety coat. Velcro refers to both the product and the UK company. 

When Steph had a Saturday job in Button Boutique, Leicester, she was insistent that I called their fastenings 'hook&loop' because it wasn't genuine Velcro. 
Six of these names are now in the Oxford dictionary - Hoover, Sellotape, Stanley Knife, Velcro, Elastoplast - and biro [which has lost its trademark status, although BiC remains ®]

The Velcro company has produced a truly cringeworthy video just in case you didn't know how much they value their name...

Perhaps I should end my blogpost ©Angela Almond!
 ** in the US it is Scotch Tape - and in Australia it used to be called Durex - this caused great embarrassment to a teaching colleague from Oz, who told his bemused class of 15 year olds to 'stick these homework sheets in your book with some Durex later'. Poor chap returned to the staffroom, and asked us "Did I say the wrong thing?"

Tut! Tut!

We had a drive, and a walk, and then I said "We're quite near Swaffham, shall we go and try and find a cup of tea?" I wasn't looking for luxury 3-tiered cake stands with scones and fancy sandwiches. Just a cuppa and a slice of spongecake. I was sure that one of the twee little tea places would have survived the pandemic and still be serving afternoon refreshments to the good folk of central Norfolk...

We parked in the Market Place- and there, just across the road was "Tutankhamun's Emporium - bar- bistro-gallery" 

And we knew that was where we wanted to go!

Friends, we were not disappointed. It was a real treat

You will recall that in 1922, archaeologist Howard Carter, under the patronage of Lord Caernarvon, uncovered the tomb of King Tutankhamun. The wonderful gold death mask, thousands of artefacts...And the Carter family came from Swaffham. Howard spent much of his childhood in the town, living with his aunts in Keeper's Cottage. His nephew Harry was art teacher at the Grammar School [and produced over 200 of the Norfolk town signs]

The town museum has one room devoted to Howard - but on the whole, I think Swaffham is missing a trick here. Tut! Tut! What about a blue plaque? Children love all that Ancient Egyptian stuff and treatment of the bodies after death [ weighing your heart against a feather, wrapping your body in a roll of loo paper, pulling out your brains through your nose with a bent paperclip*] They cheerfully 'walk like an Egyptian' round the classroom, and write their names in hieroglyphics. And Howard Carter is the guy who started the craze- it is the centenary of the discovery next year. 

Enough ranting, back to the Emporium. As we entered we realised the decor was 1920s/Egyptian themed. Art Deco lamps, Hieroglyphs on the walls, Pharoahs' thrones- and a huge Sphinx opposite the bar. The Eye of Horus** was on the ceiling. We were shown to our seat [very comfy sofas towards the back of the cafe] and given menus. 

There were plenty of other happy customers. It was drizzling with rain - and two cyclists had been able to bring the bikes inside and leave them safely where they were not a trip hazard. 

Sue Allen, the owner greeted us, and explain that Howard was her Great-Uncle. 

She started this Egyptian themed eatery a couple of years ago - and it has managed to survive lockdown.

Howard's portrait stares at us from the wall, and the back of the room is lined with cabinets full of souvenirs of visits to the Nile region. So much to see and take in!

I was utterly fascinated by it all. The staff made us so welcome too. "When do you close?" "When the last customer goes!" the waitress said cheerfully.

But what of the food? the menu went far beyond the tea and cake [check out the facebook page] Mediterranean themed dishes, tapas - they even cooked 'off-menu' stuff for the cyclists [Could you do us scrambled eggs on toast, please? - Yes, they could] 

The choice of cakes was excellent - Bob had coffee&walnut, I had almond&blueberry sponge. Huge slices! The tea and coffee were both very good too, at competitive prices. 

Thank you to Sue and the staff for giving us a lovely time. The atmosphere was warm and welcoming [background music not too loud, easy-listening relaxing stuff from the Bacharach era and also some 1920s favourites] 
Even without the Egyptian decor [which was, frankly, quite crazy -in places, but such fun] this was a good place to visit. I can think of 10 year olds I know who would love peering into the glass cabinets, taking selfies by the Sphinx, and trying to decipher the hieroglyphics - happily occupied, whilst their Grans ate sponge cake.

Come on Swaffham Council - get planning an Egyptian themed carnival or something! Celebrate the local hero and attract some customers for the other good little shops in the town.

*I may have some of the details a bit wrong here!

**Eye-of-Horus. A heads-up Only Connect starts again on July 12th

Domestic Disasters

Not really disasters - just a few things that might have turned out better...

first - back when we first got Cornerstones, we received an M&S voucher from a good friend. At the time, they had 'towel bundles' on a 2-for-1 offer. I bought 4 bundles, 2 in a navy-ish dark blue, and two in a slighter saxe blue. I had plenty of brown [1979 wedding present] and white towels back in Leicester then, and random coloured ones. 

Gradually the coloured ones have gone to Waggy Tails Dog Rescue, and I am a little more organised. Most of my towels are white or blue. Until last week - when I unpacked another box, and found a white towel in the top used as padding. With odd yellow stains on it. I put it in the wash with a load of bedding. I've often washed this bedset before with no trouble - white/pale blue duvet and pillows, deep blue bottom sheet. 

Not this time! I now have a grey-blue towel in the collection. I shall have to search out some Dr Beckman's Glo White as I did once before, and see if I can restore its whiteness.

second - it is a couple of years since I gave Liz some Lock&Lock 'Eco' boxes for her birthday. They match the regular L&L, lids are interchangeable - but these are made from waste plastic which would otherwise go to landfill. 

But, when I was doing RosieCare the other week, I decided I should check through the fridge and discard anything which was 'past it'. This was when I discovered an issue with the dark green boxes I had not foreseen.

You cannot work out what it inside them, the plastic is almost opaque. So, unless there is a label, you have to remove the lid to determine the contents. Also, they are very efficient at sealing in odours. 

I retrieved a box from the back of the bottom shelf and opened it. Phewee! even with my intermittent sense of smell, this did not seem good to me. Furthermore, the contents were strange colours, and the liquid had separated into and oily goop. I discarded it all and washed the box thoroughly with hot soapy water. I thought I was being helpful...

If I'd known this box was Jon's Kimchi, I would not have discarded it.

I am SO sorry!! [I do hope he's forgiven me]

third - the soup. I'd done my usual thing, of making a stock and cooking up the veg lurking in the fridge- but this time I added in some leftover roasted veg. Unfortunately there were four cloves of garlic in the mix. The soup went into the freezer, and freezing somehow intensified the flavour.

Boy, was it strong! [neither of us managed to finish our portions] We will not be having any trouble from vampires round here 

Bob generously said that I have been quite adventurous with my cooking lately, and had some great successes, so the occasional disaster is nothing to worry about. In the grand scheme of things, grey towels, discarded kimchi and inedible garlic soup are pretty trivial matters.