Caught this whilst surfing dry land. Pretty good huh?

DINNER
Starters: Fresh British Asparagus. I bought 2 packs of it yesterday for £3. It's a taste of heaven!
Welsh Lamb Chops
New Potatoes with fresh Parsley
Salad a la Moi with Lettuce from Greenhouse

Walnut Dream Ice Cream

Chatting to my friend Mary on the phone, I told her about our broody hen and how she's following the eggs around, laid by the other 3 hens. She's now squatted on the new nest that the others' made, on the floor of the house, since she was occupying the 'official' nest box. Anyways, Mary has a few animals (tame ones) and suggested that we could have some fertile duck eggs to under her to hatch.
Ducklings! All cute and fluffy! Hatched by a chicken. Well, I can already see a line of them waddling along the garden path, eating all slugs in the vicinity. Apparently they don't eat plants and all they need is a swimming pool. Well, a big bowl of water for them to dip and splash in would do. There may be a use for that bath in the garden after all..........

When the Goddess created vegetables, she decided to create one very special vegetable that would give humans a hint of the heavenly delights to come. So she created asparagus.

One more 'Britains Got Talent' show before the final to go. I know what I'll be watching tonight.
Weatherwise it's been a showery sort of day with a bit of sun in between.
Delivering meals on wheels this morning. One client had locked her door and wasn't answering my knocks, so I rang head office as you are supposed to when this happens just in case they've had an accident. After ringing and giving details, I thought I'd go back and check again. The door was open and she was sitting in the kitchen.
'I fell asleep and forgot to leave the door unlocked', she said. 'Ah well, at least your're ok' I said, a bit relieved. She is in her 80's after all.
So I rang them up again to say that she was in but was asleep and all was ok.
Then another 2 clients surprised me by being in when they said they were going to be out. I was going to leave the meals for them and lock the door on my way out.
So it's been a bit of a day for things not going the way they were predicted. I had 12 clients to deliver to in all and was starving by the end of my rounds as I hadn't had any breakfast.
My last client kept me chatting, she does love a chinwag, and my stomach was rumbling away and I was looking for a pause in the conversation to say 'right, I'd better be going then' but she didn't seem to pause for breath and kept coming up with new topics of conversation.
I was brought up to think that it was rude to interrupt someone when they are talking, but I was getting near my limit when she started a new topic. I waited for that break and got it. Normally I'll stay and chat with her for ages, but sometimes I just need to go.....

DINNER
Starters: Fresh British Asparagus with lashings of butter
Stuffed Aubergines with leftover stuffing from Peppers last night
Mini Salad a la Moi, only small lettuces in greenhouse

Walnut Dream Ice Cream

Mr A isn't a fan of aubergine, but if it's disguised then he'll eat it. I roasted the aubergines, scooped out the centre, mixed it with last nights rice n tomato stuffing and put it all back in and baked it in foil. Very yummy it was too.

I've got paperwork piling up. It's all in neat piles waiting for me to sort it out.
I have to let the tax office know all my income. They tax my pension already, what more do they want?
So, it's fiddly tax forms, bank stuff where I have to move money around to try and get the highest interest. I actually can't be arsed as I haven't got that much to get interest from anyway.
Every day this week I've thought that I'll sort it out tomorrow. So, I'll sort it out tomorrow then....

Had a visit from Liberty this afternoon, she came with me to get the eggs from the chickens and water the greenhouse. The broody hen, who isn't laying any eggs is still sitting on an empty nest box. The other 3 hens have made themselves a nest in the corner of the house, on the floor.
I can hear the pitter patter of rain on the see through plastic roof of the kitchen.
Been playing that game 'Untangle' that I put the link to a couple of posts back. Mr A says I'm obsessive but I just enjoy playing it. I like untangling things, it's a pleasureable thing to do.

Right, one more sherbert lemon then I'm off to bed.

DINNER
Starters: Fresh British Asparagus

Stuffed Peppers with Basmati Rice in a Spicy Tomato Sauce
Salad a la Moi, lettuce from greenhouse

Walnut Dream Ice Cream

I left the Rhubarb Crumble in the slow oven, to keep warm for after dinner and forgot all about it! It's been in there for over 24 hours, so it's well hard. Not so much a crumble as granite.
Still, musn't crumble!

Ooooo it's wet and miserable weather wise today, putting a dampers on an otherwise cheerful soul. Mr A came home early as he'd finished the job. Waterproofs are hanging on the airer above the Rayburn drying out. He's in his office, singing along with Jerry Lee Lewis, sounds like he is in a good mood. I can hear his foot tapping, can also feel it, vibrating through the wooden floor. The track 'Money' is on.
That style of boogie woogie piano playing is what got me interested in playing the piano in the first place. That stomping kind of music spoke to me. It said this way to carefree abandon and foot tapping enjoyment.

Again, I'm proving my true love by not making too much of a fuss (got to make a little though) tonight as Mr A watches football which is on the same time as Britain's Got Talent. I've been following B.G.T since it started so I'll be on the laptop while footie's on. My son's coming down (he lives above us, up the stairs) to watch it so I'm outnumbered anyway. The reason I'm not making too much of a fuss is because it's repeated tomorrow on ITV2, so I can catch it then. Still, it's not the same is it? I missed The Apprentice last night to watch it, but I know I can watch a repeat of that later in the week. I did see on the opening page of Yahoo, that Michael got the boot. No surprise there.

Had a much needed delivery of coal, he hadn't been for a few weeks and we'd run out. Mr A ensures that we have a large stock of firewood, so won't get cold. Last I heard, when Mr A saw him last, was that his wife had had an accident. I asked him how his wife was and he replied that she had died on the 2nd of the month.
Wow. I gave my apologies, but no words came, what can you say to someone whose partner dies after falling down in the home? Something you don't expect to happen, I guess he was taking time out to organise things and grieve and so he didn't do his usual rounds.

Mr A brought in a bunch of wild flowers, the scent from them pervades the room with a sweetness and pretty white flower in bunches on a stem. Looking it up in the wild flowers book he found out that he was wrong in thinking it was wild radish, so he's looking again in the book.
Still looking....
Thought it might be Shepherds Purse, but no.
Still looking....
Apparently it is Thale Cress, or 'Arabidopsis Thaliana' which I think would make a lovely name for a spoilt little girl.
'Arabidopsis, dinner's ready!'
Hmmm, maybe not. On reflection, more apt for a Greek restaurant.

Starters is ready, so I'm jolly well off..........

DINNER
Fresh Tuna with Fennel from the garden (the fennel, not the fish)
New Potatoes
Salad a la Moi

Walnut Dream Ice Cream

I just fried the tuna in the frying pan and sprinkled fresh fennel on top. The fennel bush is beautiful, delicate fronds like some underwater wonderworld. It was pruned earlier right down as it had grown to about 5 ft, it is now about 2ft and strong. To think that I bought it from a supermarket in one of those little containers as a kitchen herb, to use then reuse the pot for something else.

I treated myself to some Belgian Truffles. OMG they are the best chocolate ever! I don't like any old chocolate, so try to limit a small amount, but good quality. Mmmmm I'm eating one as I write this.

Madame Broody hen is still sitting on the nest box, keeping the other hens' eggs warm. Just as well I kick (not really kick) her off once a day to collect them, as she then goes and has something to eat, I don't think she'd bother to eat otherwise. She's all fluffed up, easy to spot her amongst the others.

Another dull day, where's the sunshine? It lifts the spirits and makes people happier.
I am going to be a steward at the fantastic Workhouse Festival in June. It's a small festival with a great atmosphere. I had the best time last year and met some great people. It was the year that I got drunk and gazebo crashed a late night gathering of 5 people, being loud, rude and funny, (well, I thought so, and they laughed a lot.) There's a good line-up of bands and performers I mostly haven't heard of from all over the world. The other Scarabellas will be there, so we'll be singing our little hearts out. and hopefully selling more c.d.'s. If anyone is into a small, friendly festival with great music then come along. It's near Welshpool, so lovely scenery around.

Watched 'Britains Got Talent'. I love these sort of shows where people can shine. I thought that 'Flava', an original young dance troup would get through to the final but they were pipped at the post by a duo of 8 and 9yr old dancers called 'The Cheeky Monkeys'. They were very professional, you could see that they had spent a lot of time practicing their set and they were very good with cheeky personalities that lived up to their name. The other act that got through was a 13yr old boy who sang like an angel. You could tell that he'd get through to the final as the audience reaction was so fantastic, they loved him and gave him a standing ovation. He was very good, very shy as well which added to his charm. Pity when his voice breaks, hope it doesn't break before the final on saturday.

After reading 'Darkmans' a novel by Nicola Barker, which is one of the best books I've ever read, I just finished an earlier book of hers called 'Clear.' Bit disappointing as it's nowhere as good as Darkmans. I lent my copy of Darkmans to Brenda after she stayed for the weekend and she is loving it. She texted me to say that it just gets better and better. This is true. You don't want the book to end, it's that good!
Now reading Dean Koontz, 'The Husband.' I enjoyed his 'Odd Thomas' books, they were fresh, well written with good plots and intriguing characters. Still not a patch on Darkmans though.....

This new layout is quite different, what with a subtitle and summary available at the head of a new posting. I still haven't been around visiting friends' blogs. Tut, tut, no wonder the comments on my posts are dropping. I haven't kept up with Juzzzy's exploits, is he still in love? Jackfrost, and Prydwen, both funny blogs which I usually go and visit for a cheerup. Right. Well, I'm going to jackfrost's blog to wish him a happy birthday as a start.

DINNER
Tonight Matthew, I will be scrummaging around in the larder making a meal of whatever's there. Eggs will be featured along with homegrown lettuce.

LAST NIGHT'S DINNER
Cauliflower Curry
Basmati Rice
Salad a la Moi

Rhubard and Apple Crumble
Walnut Dream Ice Cream

Today has been wet and stormy, so I've settled in, like the hen who's gone broody, and sat indoors, ignoring the weather outside. Just a couple of brief forays, out to get wood and coal, then pinch the eggs from under the fluffy bum of 'moody broody', the name given to our broody hen by Liberty (nearly 4).

Here's a great game called 'Untangle' which has kept me glued through umpteen levels. I think that this game might be on the level I'm on, so go to start if you want to start from the beginning.
Enjoy!

Untangle

DINNER
Organic Pasta Twirls with Peppers, Courgette, Onion, Garlic, Tomatoes and Mushrooms
Salad a la Moi, Lettuce from the Greenhouse and fresh Parsley

Walnut Dream Ice Cream

My older grandaughters are visiting for a couple of days and being both veggies, it a meal without meat tonight.
Molly will be 15 next month, and Eve 12 the following month. They are both growing fast, though Eve is outgrowing her older sister, and me! Molly is a size 6, being small framed, I can't ever see her being a large size.
There's footie on, so I'm missing the Apprentice, apparently it's a big game, so I've conceded the tv over to Mr A tonight. We've been watching old episodes of Father Ted on the laptop instead.

Mrs Black Hen is still sitting diligently on her nest. The other hens manage to get in with a quick lay first thing before she gets settled in for the duration as there are 3 eggs sitting under her, very warm I might add.
So, looking into getting half a dozen chicks to pop under her, or some fertilised eggs. Mr A wants to encourage her broodiness, I'm of a mind not to mind if we just get a dummy egg and wait till she loses interest. However, I'll go along with whatever works out.

I am now a great-aunt! My nephew has only gawn and had a little girl, called Charlotte! My sister and her husband emigrated to Australia many years ago, but we keep in touch and it's good to know the family line will continue...My sister is older than me, so I'm really glad that she's a grandmother, like me, I started having children (one) younger than her so I had that advantage I guess. Her husband sent some photos of the new 'bub', with a lovely one of my sister holding her with one arm and the other draped around the new mum. Ah!

Tomorrow Molly, Eve and I are going into Carmarthen so I can get their birthday presents. They go off cherry picking next month, so I won't see them for a while. After receiving an M&S gift voucher and finding it a great present, decided to get one for Molly (15), though whether or not she'll find a size 6 is doubtful. For Eve (12) I'm not sure if a gift voucher is what she wants, so will ask tomorrow.
Last trip into Carmarthen I took a pile of old L.P's, great to finally get rid of them and I didn't want to just chuck them away. Found a lovely thai silk sky blue top in a charity shop last time, lots of compliments when I wear it. Why anyone would give it away is beyond me, mind you it's quite a small size, so maybe they outgrew it.

I got a text from Orange, my phone provider today. It said that the good news was that my current plan was the best one available for me! What a waste to send a message that was stating the obvious! I have a pay as you go tariff. I get billed only for the calls and texts I make and that's it. No phone rental, no deals with 'free' minutes or texts. It's cheap, my usual monthly bill is around £10, and that includes a few quick phone calls, it's mainly texts though.

After a lot of driving, I'm looking forward to an early night and a read in bed.

DINNER
Lamb Curry from left over lamb from Sunday
Basmati Rice with 2 Cardomom seeds
Salad a la Moi with Greenhouse Lettuce

Mmmm smells delicious, bubbling away on the Rayburn at the mo. Mr A is putting up an extra nesting box because one of our hens has become broody and is sitting on the nest box nearly all the time, so the others can't get a look in. There are 2 nest boxes next to each other, but for some reason, they won't use one of them, they always use the same one. This also happened at our last house, different chickens, same hen house.
Mr A came back unexpectedly from his job, he was supposed to be away for the week. He tried ringing but I was outside so didn't hear the phone. It was good that he caught me doing something useful, watering the garden, rather than sitting with my feet up reading! Someone's going to say 'and why shouldn't you?' but I would be feel guilty if caught out slacking!
The rest of Scarabella came round to my house last night for a singing rehearsal. We were all a bit tired, so the energy was quite low. We practiced 'Kung Fu Fighting'. This is a song which was popular in the 70's, a funky, silly song but we want to put a good version together. Carol's doing the funky electric guitar sound, and occasional karate-type sound effects - 'hoo ha!' sort of thing...........

I had Liberty, (4 in July) for a visit this afternoon. We sat on the swing seat and I told her a couple of stories. First one was the 'Princess and the Pea', the second one was 'Sleeping Beauty.' A couple of times during the story she made suggestions, changing the story a little. One change was that the witch, who made everyone go to sleep in 'Sleeping Beauty', also fell asleep, as she didn't get out of the castle quick enough!

Not a particularly sunny day, but at least it was dry. Flowers are popping up everywhere, the rhodedendrons are out now, beautiful lilacy mauve colour.

DINNER
Readymade Vegetable Lasagne

I've got Scarabella coming round to my house for a rehearsal sing tonight, so I can't be faffing with cooking, so it's a pop in the oven number.
I didn't recognize this site with the new makeover. It's a bit harsh and stark to my taste.

Just went to pick up the eggs from the hens and discovered a hen sitting on the nest box. It's a bit like discovering someone on the loo! Seems like they should be left in private to 'do their business.'
Been playing games after discovering a good site. All simple point and shoot stuff, or puzzle and board games. Good to have a bit of light relief...

Mr A went off to work for the week this morning, so on my onio this week.

DINNER
Ham and Mushroom Tomato Sauce
Organic Pasta Twirls
Salad a la Moi, lettuce from the Greenhouse

Ooo it's raining again today. I did my 'meals on wheels' run and was a bit late. Some of my clients can be quite grumpy and moaned about it coming later than usual. I apologised and explained why I was a bit late, (following slow tractor). Most of my clients sit surrounded by bowls of sweets, I haven't been offered any. If I were in their position I know I would offer the person coming round with my meals a sweet!

We got woken up at 6am with a loud squarking from the chicken run. Mr A rushed out there to find that something, cat or a fox, had grabbed one of the hens through the bars of the door, the only place where there isn't netting. Some ruffled and missing feathers, but dignity intact with them all laying eggs today. As Purple Dragon informed me, they start making the eggs a few days before they actually lay them. So if one is disrupted today, it may not lay in a couple of days time. There was only one day with just 3 eggs which we put down to rainy weather.

LAST NIGHT'S DINNER
Lamb Curry, made from Welsh Lamb Chops
Basmati Rice with 2 Cardomom Seeds
Salad a la Moi

Walnut Dream Ice Cream

TONIGHT'S DINNER
Fried Cooked Potatoes
Asparagus Ham
Napoli Salami
Gherkins
Olives
Salad a la Moi

The Asparagus ham sounded good, it said that it was flavoured with asparagus, so I'll report back whether or not it did what it said on the tin.

Rainy, dull day, after yesterday's glorious sunshine it was a bit of a damp squid. (Or is it squib?)
I had a lovely day shopping yesterday. There is a shop called 'Nomads' which is full of Indian and Indonesian clothes and odds and sodds. Beautiful lamps, so I got one, for £10. The shade is made from wicker, giving a soft sultry glow to the room. It's a bit art deco, it was needed as the previous lamp stopped working. I also bought a little top. It is finely knitted short, and lilac, tying at the front with 2 long ends. It is very pretty, but I thought I could probably knit, or crotchet one myself as it looks an easy design. So, I've got the tape measure out, and will see how far I get. I love crotcheting, haven't done it for a while, very soothing thing to do. I also bought a dress in a lovely olive green. Sleeveless, with a hood. It'll go great with the lilac top. I'd forgotten how much pleasure shopping for non essentials can be! Finally, I bought a flat statue of an oriental dancing lady. In rich golds, maroon and yellow, it's from Indonesia and stunning! It's 70cms high and gives the impression of movement from the curves and shape of it. She has an elaborate head dress and earrings. As it is flat, it can hang on the wall.
I hear Mr A's car arriving back. It's been a long day for him, driving to the office, about 3 hours travelling time. Still, I know he likes fried potatoes, so life is good.
Only 3 eggs today, rather than the usual 4. Either; a)Mr A snaffled one first thing, or 2) One of the hens was put off laying by the rain.
American Idol on tonight, down to the last, 3 I think. I missed it last week, footie, especially Arsenal, take preference with the t.v. I got the 'Independent' last saturday and their t.v. guide doesn't list ITV2! Mind you, I could always check online.

Sang to the tune of 'I Feel Pretty' from the musical, err, whoops, can't remember which one. Pretty old anyway, so younger readers may not know it, but it's a well known song. Take my word for it.

I've been shopping.
Pavement hopping.
I've been shopping and
topping my tan,
as I skipped through,
ye olde streets of
Carmarthaaaaaan.

I've been buying.
Garment trying.
I've been exchanging,
rearranging my bra,
as I purchased,
and perused along the Welsh
bazaaaaaar.

Who's that scruffy lad in that doorway there?
Who could that Big Issue seller be?
Such a scruffy dog,
such a scruffy cap,
such a scruffy smile,
such a scruffy lap
such a scruffy, male version of
meeeeeeee!

I am home now.
Peeling spuds now,
boiling water,
and making some tea,
so that Menu,
of the Day becomes
reality.

It's about time I had another meal from the Sushi Bar in town and since I'm going for rehearsal with Scarabella, I'll get my fix.
Another lovely sunny day, sounds of birds singing, washing machine whirring and the occasional car passing by.

I just dyed my hair. It said mahogany, but it's more dark rich brown, still the grey hairs have been covered over, not that'll fool anyone that I'll need i.d. to buy alcohol..........

Ho hum, still feeling a bit drained from that awful 24hr virus and have learned that a friend of mine also got who lives in Swansea, so it's certainly doing the rounds. I hope none of you get it. If you do, here's a tip, take a bucket everywhere you go with you......

DINNER
Pork Chops
Boiled Potatoes
Salad a la Moi with Lettuce from the greenhouse

Well, after having 4 symptom-free days, my mate, the very lovely Brenda, came to stay for the weekend.
The invitation included a party on saturday night at a loosely based community who lived nearby. About 7 families live within and around an old abbey, having restored, rebuilt and generally done up several buildings, making it absolutely unique, a real feast on the eyes of original architectural delights.
We went into 2 different houses, both very different. The first one had stone walls, lots of different rooms, like a warren, the stone floor curved up and down, worn smooth by a century or 2 of people walking on it. The second house was mostly open plan. A huge room with a balcony running along one side. The balcony had interesting woodwork, a centrepiece of a sun with rays coming out from it was beautiful.
On the walls were oars and swords. I had an hilarious moment when I realised the words,
'oars and swords'
sounded very much like a posh person saying,
'odds and sods.'

In this huge room was a proper bar, with an electric blue neon sign lit up and proclaiming 'bar'.
I shall go back a bit and start from the arrival of myself and the lovely Brenda.
No, I shall start before then, when I got a text from a friend, Anna, who was already there, saying,
'where are you?'
It was 10 oclock and the lovely Brenda and I were faffing around, still at my house. It was time to go.
Mr A decided to stay home and watch footie on t.v.

We came to the outside fire first. An ingenious device of a metal drum from an old washing machine contained the fire, the many holes around the drum of it throwing off starry shadow lights around us.
I knew a few people there. The person who invited me, Andy, was the stepdad of Georgie, who I used to give piano lessons to. Then there was Anna, my ex daughter in law, her partner and her 3 children. Bran, 5, Eve, 11, (12 in August) and Molly, 14, (15 in June). Anna, being the cosmic person that she is had 2 of her children on highly auspicious dates, the winter and summer solstice.
Molly has only recently started to wear skirts, she looked lovely in a mid calf black skirt and skinny top with boots. Eve looked cool wearing her dad's old hat and trousers. These are 2 of my delightful grandaughters and it was lovely to see them. After a bit of a chat, we decided to mooch over to where the dancing was...and landed up in the huge balconied room.
Initially, the music was awful. No catchy rhythmn to dance to, though believe me, we tried, and ended up in a standing around, jigging conversation.
Then someone found a cd of 70's disco hits.
Yes! There was 'Car Wash', 'We are Family' and several other songs that got us yelling, dancing and generally making a lot of noise.
Since the lovely Brenda and I sing together in Scarabella, we are incorrigible when it comes to singing harmonies - any time, any place, we get the harmonies together. No shame or embarrasement, well, from us anyway, probably the grandaughters were a bit taken aback, though they know me by now and were not surprised..

As I was the designated driver, only a couple of mouthfuls of some awful vinegary red wine passed my lips, so I didn't have that excuse for making a right exhibition of myself, performing some very dodgy dance movements that owed more to a 'performance artiste' style than any convential moves.

Earlier, at the outside fire, I was just thinking 'I'd love a cup of coffee', when Andy asked,
'would you like a cup of Polish coffee?'
Would I hell!
'Let the grains settle a bit before drinking it he advised.
I took a mouthful, to find that my mouth was clogged with lots of coffee grains, they were spilling out over my lips. I couldn't speak.
After spitting and spluttering, I moved to the kitchen area to wash my mouth out with water, listening to the guffaws and chuckles that accompanied my distress by my so called friends. They were very amused at my discomfort.
'Cag I ag um awta', I asked the lady who is called Sky (yes, don't ask).
With much pointing I managed to get myself understood.
'Do you have any sugar?' I asked, as that is how I like my coffee.
'We have some, and it sounded to me like she said 'zylo shite'.
'It's made from birch', she said, pointing to the packet.
Blow me, it was too. Very nice though and substituted for the real thing just fine.

It was getting on for about 2am, the grandaughters having gone for bed, that we considered going back to get a good night's kip.
'Do you fancy some Walnut Dream', I asked the lovely Brenda. 'It's a kick arse ice cream.'
After extolling the delights of the said ice cream, and her saying that she wasn't a fan of ice cream and not really bothered, that the lovely Brenda let the truth flow.
'That's fecking fantastic! The best ice cream I've ever had!'
Yes! Another fan added to the growing list of Walnut Dream admirers. (I should be getting sponsorship money from Morrisons with all this free advertising I'm doing for them.)
So, delightfully sated with ice cream we make our way into different rooms and both had a good nights kip.

This morning, 2 of Mr A's friends turned up for a day of fishing. So they went off, rods in hands, bait in boxes, headed for the beach, a mile away.
Myself and the lovely Brenda had a cheese picnic, this consisted of:

Vintage Cheddar and Pickled Onion
Y Fenni (made with Mustard Seed, quite hot and spicy)
Organic Llanboidy (the best Cheddar in the world)
Amsterdam, a sweet, creamy hard cheese
Bowl of Olives, Gherkins and Capers
Poppyseed Crackers
...........and half a glass of Tawny Port. Mmmmmmmm, full bodied, rich flavour, not too sweet, and strong.

The boys came back fishless from their trip but looking and feeling very relaxed. A good day out by all accounts.
The lovely Brenda drove off homeward bound with some lettuces and eggs as her party favour.
I got stuck into the laptop watching yesterdays 'Britains Got Talent', which I'd missed whilst being sociable.
Seemed that all the acts from Birmingham were crap, the judges were in a bad mood, the audience were yelling 'off! Off!' to many of the would-be pretenders of the talent crown, and there was one last final act to go.
A 12 year old girl, looking very old fashioned and nervous, with her mum and dad hugging her and wishing her luck from the side of the wings.
She sang 'Ave Maria.'
It was a knock-out. The judges were delighted and thrilled, saying that she had a special talent and a huge voice to come out of such a small frame
She sang in a rich contralto, sounding much more mature than her years allowed, like a seasoned opera singer, without the wobbly vibrato, just pure power and timbre.
So, good for her, good for her mum and dad who were thrilled, as, needless to say, she got 3 'yesses' from the judges and is through to the next round. All were saying that she should go far with such remarkable talent.

So, that's that so far. Mr A is barbequeing the dinner, as I have far too much talent to waste cooking whilst I could be enthralling readers with my blog. He is a wee bit peed off because the sausages we have to cook are made from quorn.
'Fecking quorn!' He yelled dismally, upon said sausage discovery.
'I hate fecking quorn! I won't eat these!'
I am, meanwhile, typing happily away at the table, blithley ignoring his cries of dismay.
Tough.
Get over it.

DINNER
Tomato and Basil Sausages (made with quorn, eaten just by myself)
Salad a la Mr A made with Lettuce from the Greenhouse
Bbq'd Red Peppers
Fresh Home made Bread

We then had a discussion about whether or not the greenhouse is part of the garden, as I amended my menu to say that it is lettuce from the greenhouse rather than from the garden. Mr A said it was the same thing, I disagreed, saying that lettuces grown in pots in a greenhouse weren't technically from the garden, as such, sort of thing, if you know what I mean...................

DINNER
Morrison's Best Cheese n Tomato Pizza, with 3 Cheeses
Salad a la moi. First of my giant lettuces grown in pots in the greenhouse.

Mr A rang about an hour ago. He had broken down and was awaiting the A.A., to tow him home. It's a pump thing gone wrong. At least he doesn't have to go into work tomorrow, and our mechanic just lives next door. Mr A has been felling some troublesome trees for him, so bartering work done on his car for it.

Now fully recovered from the dreaded lurgy that seems to be doing the rounds, hearing more and more from people that know people who also had it.

The wild meadow flowers are so exquisite at the moment. I couldn't resist and have a little glass full of Pink Campion, Ladies Bedstraw, Bluebells, Periwinkle and Forget-me-nots. All our flowers grown from seed are starting to come into their own. I've transplanted Marigolds, Dahlias, Lobelias, and Aubreecias into the garden. The globe artichokes are taking off which I'm pleased about cos they are one of my favourite vegetables. Mmmmmm with butter.............. The lettuces in the greenhouse have started to bolt, so have to be eaten, even though they haven't yet hearted up fully. They are massive! I've got about 40 of them in there, looking like the Day of the Triffids with the size of them!

Tomorrow there's a May Day party, starting from the afternoon nearby in a community who are housed in mixed houses, from an Abbey to a yurt. About 6 or 7 families live on a shared piece of land with interesting houses. They usually have May celebrations and a New Years Eve party there. So my mate Brenda is coming late afternoon, have something nice to eat then we'll go and investigate the outside fire before entering the rave barn for a nightfull of bopping.

I bought a lovely selection of cheeses today. (Cutting edge post this one.)
Some extra strong Cheddar and Pickled Onion.
Amsterdam Cheese, Sweet and tasty.
Llanboidy, the best Cheddar in the world, and Y Fenni, a Welsh Cheese made with Mustard Seeds. Tangy and yummy. Also bought a jar of Garlic Chutney. I had to stop the car for a mini picnic on the way home to taste the cheeses and chutney! Mmmmmm delicious!

I have a new client for the meals on wheels round, making a total of 11 people to deliver to. The last lady I visit is always up for a chat, she reheats her meal on the microwave later on. We talked about books today and which authors we like. We discovered that we both enjoy Agatha Christie.

I've just finished an amazing novel called 'Darkmans' by Nicola Barker. She has been nominated for several awards this book was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. It's not like anything else I've read! Original writing in style and content. A long story in a true story telling mode with all strands woven together, interweaving to make a pattern that isn't predictable. If you have the time, read it, it's worth a read but you will need to set aside a few days for it as it's huge. Mind you, the ways she writes there's a lot of space between the lines and often just a word for a line so it pads out.

Right. Time to go and shut the cold frame up and get a lettuce from the greenhouse, checking that the hens are ok on the way. There are steps up the terraced garden and the chickens are in their run on the opposite side of the steps to the veg garden so they are passed everytime anyone goes up the steps. My son, daughter in law and grandaughter live in another wooden house at the top of the steps, so the stairs get a lot of action!

DINNER
Chicken Soup, with Celery, Carrots, Potatoes, Onion, and Chicken
Walnut Dream Ice Cream

Well. Mr A is on the mend, the anti-biotics helping. I was feeling pleased with myself for not getting the bug. Separate towels, beds soap etc. But then!
Monday I started to feel really tired, not myself at all. Oo Oh.
Then tuesday I was laid out with vomiting and runs, both at the same time if you see what I mean. It was one of the most awful days within memory, constant rushing to the loo...often not in time. Blah blah, if you didn't want to know the gruesome details, well, too late........

Today, I felt much better, which was odd, because the bug that Mr A had lasts longer than a day....

He just told me this evening, that a friend at work told him that there is a viral infection doing the rounds where you get diarrhoear and vomiting for one day, then recover. Oddly enough, that's exactly what I had. So, the sneaky old virus got it's wicked way with me after all.
How strange?
Anyway, much better, but unable to drink or eat hot things, as the stomach acid has burnt my windpipe. I can eat ice cream though....

There's other bits and pieces of news from the wooden house, but that'll keep till another day. The soup is now ready.........