The Return Of Old Friends

A gaudy peacock butterfly soaking up food and sunshine

I have felt all a bit pampered over the past week .

Three days of dressing  up clean and tidy. Three days of city travel, good food and socialising.

Three days of West End Shows, family catch ups,and urban sightseeing

It has been fun.

Now I am back in my slightly ripped Walking Dead T shirt

The feet are grubby in my crocs

And the faint smell of chicken poo is coming from my knees after a few minutes kneeling over " Nettle"( the new chick who Sorrel adopted)

Funny how quickly normality returns

Anyway

The tortoiseshell and peacocks in the front garden

This summer has heralded the welcomed return of the butterfly
Over the past few years the buddleia bushes that I planted in the back garden have been quiet and lonely but this year's warmth and sunshine has resurrected the populations of the cabbage white, red admiral and peacock species around the field and garden.
Every time I see them, beavering away around the Bosom's' cabbages, I am transported to those long hot summers of my childhood ( we all have this memory do we not?) where butterflies filled the  air above your parents' herbaceous borders and squadrons of wasps drowned themselves in your tall glasses of orange squash  which were left unattended in the sun
I have delighted in their return.

Pea Froth? give over!

For lunch ( and wait for this one) I had Soya Curd, Beetroot and Nasturtium Leaves as a starter with Double Baked Ribblesdale Pudding and Smoked Croquette with pineapple pickle as a main. 

Yes we went to vanilla Black ,a favourite restaurant of Chris' for lunch, and yes, to my untrained eye the menu did look just a tad over the top.... But I must say, the intense flavours on some of the tiniest food piles I have ever seen in my life, were all rather impressive to say the least. chris chose a Brie ice cream which sounds absolutely bizarre, but which tasted divine and my pud ( Roasted White Chocolate and Cep Mushroom Custard and Tarragon Cream Cheese) did boggle my mind somewhat, for I didn't really understand the flavours that were on my plate.

But the experience was a wonderfully indulgent one and set me up perfectly for A CHORUS LINE over at the Palladium

Now I know I  am a bit of an oddity , but I am one of those rare creatures that actually enjoyed Richard Attenborough's film version of this all-American Musical. The stage version is much faster paced and more vibrant and I enjoyed it just as much as the movie production from 1985.

Leigh Zimmerman was especially impressive in her role as the aging and slightly shopworn dancer Sheila.....but after all, she does have all the best lines.i gave the whole glittery production an impressive 8/10

We were back on the train home by 6.30, after a lovely treat day out......

But after that " experimental" lunch... I was glad of the selection of Marks & Spencer sandwiches we bought at Euston before we left

Chick

Not a good pic but just to let you all know that the chick survived the night

On the train at the moment

They have no coffee service!

So a scotch egg will be totally out of the question

It's Back!

Silver Fox Hollywood and the delightful Mary Berry

No, not series 4 of The Walking Dead...but The Great British Bake Off!
Ok the contestants are all the same as last year......ageing queen, fat queen, yummy mommy, token black girl, Mary Berry look-a-like , irritating know all, sweet girl that cries a lot.....
But I don't care
It's mindless, light hearted, middle class entertainment that's a joy to watch
I love it....
BTW
Off to London tomorrow to see
A CHORUS LINE
Tits and ass.......tits and ass
And I'll say it again
TITS AND ASS

Ps...for those that don't know..the BAKE OFF is a BBC 2 programme that sets weekly challenges to a dozen or so amateur bakers.......as usual one is kicked off every week .......
Pps tits and ass is a song in the show
Ppps That is A Chorus Line and  NOT the Bake Off

A Little Miracle

Lying in bed early this morning, I had already formulated a somewhat lively blog discussion about " email etiquette" in my head, before I had even put a dirty foot into a grubby croc shoe.

But subsequent events have put paid to all of that interesting banter.

Another one of the refugees was killed and eaten by badgers overnight. A small and pretty Araucana " forgot" to make it back to her hen house before dusk and had roosted herself away in thick undergrowth .

 I have noticed that this occasionally happens with hens that are not used to free range greenery....no matter how much you try to " imprint " them on their home coop, they seem slightly overwhelmed with the total freedom of the great outdoors and wander off like Jenny Agutter did in Walkabout.

Two casualties out of 33 hens is not a bad loss rate given the way the refugees suddenly appeared 

Unfortunately the little araucana had a newly hatched single chick with her and of course there was no sign of it when I scoured the bushes and nettles by the pond, the exit point for the badger run.

But I was sure I heard  a faint " peep peep" of a distressed chick somewhere about., though I could not be totally sure.

I was not the only one who heard something

For out of a far coop, a fat broody and over motherly Buff Orpington called Sorrel lumbered over clucking loudly to herself .

She waddled past me and pushed her way into a patch of nettles only to reappear seconds later with the lost  araucana chick in tow. 

If I had not seen it with my own eyes , I would never of believed it.

Foster mum and chick are now set up in their own house safe and sound.

A heartwarming little tale

Operation Open Day

My new " high tech" publicity sign

We got home last night just as the six village helpers were beavering away on the field, shutting up hens and wiping blind cockerel's arses. I was very grateful for their help, for not a single hen had been lost in the process.

Now that Kentish Baptisms, Flower Show Shenanigans   and village funerals have been done and dusted so to speak, I can now concentrate on the allotment open day which is only two weeks away. With hospital shifts, the odd community council meeting, Samaritan training and a forgotten day out to London to see A Chorus Line, that two week prep time has been cut down to around 8 days

EIGHT FRIGGIN' DAYS!

I haven't even measured my bunting out yet!

Ok I have already received a load of items to sell and raffle ( thank you Jean Lacey for the latest and most welcomed additions) and the kitchen IS starting to resemble a hoarders paradise

Chris is going all a bit " thin lipped" at the state of the kitchen

But nothing is ordered, collated and listed as yet.

Cake bakers need to be conscripted, leaflets need to be delivered and a full risk assessment has to be completed for the day ( don't get me started on that one)

Operation Open  Day has begun

Freaked Out!

Sleeping  in someone else's bed can be fraught with perils

I nearly wet myself at 6am this morning

When this monstrosity reared its voodoo head

My mother in law was given it years ago

It's eyes follow your every movement

Allo Allo?

Mon dieu ! That iz an impressive saus- age!

Last night we joined Chris' brother's family for a meal at a local restaurant. There were around 17 of us all told, six of whom spoke exclusively French and no English .Seeing that my French speaking abilities are basic to say the least, trying to explain anything of our life in Trelawnyd was virtually impossible
Having said this, the French family have a Breton background, which apparently has language similarities with Welsh.and so by the end of the evening, when the red wine was flowing more freely, I am sure I heard snippets of words that Auntie Glad would have understood and enjoyed.
However for the most part, and to my lingering shame....I did what most British people do when faced with a potentially embarrassing " sorry I don't understand you" situation

I spoke English in a slight French accent!

Broadstairs is a pretty little town

And see those beach huts?

Chris' family own one!