TARRAGON & THYME

 .... when I was a tad younger (as were we all) was a busy day. We ended up going to the Butchers and came back with: A Pork Pie - well that has gone eaten in wedges with Tomato ketchup.  Yum A cooked Gammon Hock for sarnies, salads and if any left a Quiche during the week 1 kg of Chipolata Sausages for breakfasts and Toad in the Hole and Sausage Bake 2 x 500g bags of Beef Skirt designated for a Stew and homemade "Cornish" style pasties 1lb of unsmoked Back Bacon for breakfasts or sarnies A small 1.5kg Beef Topside joint - that has gone A Chicken a hefty one; for Roast chicken, perhaps a curry and a stir fry. Plenty to go at for this coming week. We had the roast Beef yesterday, cooked simply on a bed of onions, with some water, mixed herbs, pepper in.  This forms the basis for the gravy.  The meat is then covered in foil and cooked for about an hour and a half.  I try not to overcook the meat, and we have it medium rare. In the meanwhile, if I am cooking roasti...

 It has been a busy day here today.  Lots of sorting going on in small doses finding craft work that needs completing and making a workable list. More washing, and drying going on, usual household stuff on what has been a cold day.   The grill on my gas cooker is playing up and will not light.  Perversely, the small oven lights beautifully.  OH said that he will have a look to see what is going on with this. It is probably something simple. I have sorted out my tumble drier as well, given it a good clean down, emptied the Condensor unit and given that a good clean out.  That is another good job off the list. It is a very good tumbler and soon gets things dry.  In the summer I bung everything out apart from undies.  I do not like them flapping on the line! In the winter though, I do not like damp washing around the house.  I do not mind airing it in the house, but no damp washing as it does not do my joints any good.  Oh for an Aga a...

 Just to let you know, I have been sorting and cleaning, and backtracking on myself for the past two days, but gradually I have managed to sort the Craft Room/Study out of all those extra items.  I have found items that I had forgotten about, and I also know where there are more items of a similar kind, so gradually those items will be amalgamated to one central pile and they will most importantly be all together.  That will be a novelty.  This room has been scrubbed out within an inch of its life and means that hopefully I should be able to set too now and work at my sewing machine, or indeed my many UFOs  worked to completion.  Well that is the plan, and I am hoping that in practice this will be very achievable. I still have a lot to do, but it has given me a boost in that I have at long last got this room all sorted out just how I want it. I am going to chunk away now at the Back bedroom probably just of an evening so that I can make use of the day to ge...

I have always been brought up with the attitude to look for the best in each and every day even if things on the surface look particularly bleak.  It need not and should not always be about our own egos, but about helping others as we go along. Even if it is just what you call normal everyday things.  To the recipient that simple assistance or act could mean the whole world to them no matter how small. When you are in "no man's land" you do not always see things as they should be seen, especially if that little voice hammering away in your head convinces you that you are below par.  Even if the day is not particularly easy, remember it is a means to an end and the goal is to get through it. Remember the following day is a brand-new page. I was a bit out of sorts yesterday, but I had spent the whole day stripping out and washing out the study/craft room. All walls, skirtings and floor have been scrubbed. Pulling furniture out re-homing spiders - outside OH is not keen...

 ,,, for a stock up on the meat front. Today we have purchased a small rolled Loin of Pork for dinner this evening, have also bought the bones home, which will be roasted and form the basis of a stock.   They will be put into one of the slow cookers to extract the goodness with some various veggies that need using up.  Cannot waste them or the goodness in them. Very much looking forward to this.  It was a very good price. Serving it with mashed potatoes, shredded steamed cabbage, petit-pois, calabrese, carrots, roast potatoes, onion and courgette.  Yum.   Today, I have chosen not to add lard to the roasting pan as I still have plenty of dripping for roasties and do not want to overload the poor old fridge!  Perhaps will do next time we have a bit of Pork.  Normally as a rule either the first or second week of December, I buy in a piece of pork especially for making the dripping for over Christmas.  I like either Pork or Goose f...

I have my feet up at the moment as I am not firing on all cylinders.  Am therefore taking a little time out as that is what the body and soul is asking for.  My arm is still playing up which is also restricting what I can do at the moment in any event. I am managing to crochet okay as it is a gentle pace that I am working at. Therefore, a change of tack is needed.  I cannot sit still and do nothing I am just not built like that.  Even when listening to the TV (I listen a lot) I usually have something else on the go and sometimes am even writing a post for the blog. At the moment, I am sat in the warm trying to finish my crochet blanket project.  I think I may need a little more wool for it to get it to the length that I want it.  However, once completed it will be a good job out of the way with.  At least I am adding more rows rather than it just sat staring at me.  It is a throw for the front room so that when I am sat down, then I will...

 I have decided to try and have at least one night off the Blog per week in order that I can deal with stuff that is often piling up in the background.  Think that this is going to be a day as needed and not any set day in the bigger scheme of things as we will all appreciate that real life does tend to overtake things quite quickly and fundamentally changes what had been planned. I have been driving myself to distraction today.  I have new Hex Bottles - can I find them - not at all. Who loses bottles!  A project I have to do (fortunately it has not been started) needs them.  I also need them to decant other things into and get them squirrelled safely away.  I have some items that I have been collating together to deal with and some posts in relation to them, so I hope I find the bottles soon. Today I have had a labelling session on some of the recent preserves.  This has involved me writing labels for 20 jars.  Seven of them for the Crab App...