"Night time working" say the signs on the motorway.
I'm so glad it is. How odd it would be to never have the sun go down, to never see the stars again, to ruin plant life and sleep cycles through lack of dark.
I'm so glad it is. How odd it would be to never have the sun go down, to never see the stars again, to ruin plant life and sleep cycles through lack of dark.
On the first Tuesday in November, when other Americans were voting on replacement Senators, school board members, sheriffs, judges, and state constitutional amendments of international concern, all I had to vote on was one City Council Member-at-Large. One item to fill out on a ballot shipped all the over the ocean for an issue only of relatively local. One circle to color in. (Is this why coloring inside the lines is taught early and often in kindergarten?)
I love receiving ballots. They show I'm still tied to my roots, to local politics in a place I don't live in, reaffirm my connection to it. Even better, for the last several elections, they've showed up on their own. I didn't have to request them the way I have had to in the past; it still seems a little magical that the county's remembering to post them to me.
Many of the issues, large and small, on Election Day's ballots were resolved promptly. The one small race in which I voted, however, came so close that the county is having a run-off election.
And so, to my delight, another ballot came in the mail today.
I love receiving ballots. They show I'm still tied to my roots, to local politics in a place I don't live in, reaffirm my connection to it. Even better, for the last several elections, they've showed up on their own. I didn't have to request them the way I have had to in the past; it still seems a little magical that the county's remembering to post them to me.
Many of the issues, large and small, on Election Day's ballots were resolved promptly. The one small race in which I voted, however, came so close that the county is having a run-off election.
And so, to my delight, another ballot came in the mail today.
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printperson and geesepalace have safely arrived for a week's visit, although their landing was delayed by a manhole cover on the runway. The pilot had never encountered that complication before either.- As many other people already knew - but I did not - Charles Dickens was an avid amateur actor. The caption on a painting at the V&A of other people in Ben Jonson's Every Man in his Humour, a production that Dickens was also in, mentions this. It was hung amidst a whole collection of various actors playing various Shakespearean roles.
- Words recently looked up: pargeting, fane
The storm had not abated as of Saturday morning. It was still raining and gusting intermittently, blowing down leaves and toppling occasional limbs. The trees at the top of the nearby tree-covered hill are nearly bare of leaves now.
Despite the weather and warnings against travel, we went out for an afternoon in the Suffolk countryside. The rain was never too hard, but even in our compact car, I could feel the gusts. Later, walking in the drizzle, I could hear trees moaning with the strain of them. We drove through flooded sections of road on single-track lanes. By mid-afternoon, sunshine occasionally shown through the grey until wiped dark by sunset.
The land was gentle in its slopes and dips, crops and trees, quite likely idyllic in better weather. Bildeston is no longer as coherent a town as it certainly once was. A convenience store is the only business left on the town square. We passed three pubs, one of which doubles as a brewery, so the town is still doing decently well. The church was half-a-mile out of town; in that weather, it wasn't worth the walk.
By the time we made it to Lavenham, it was fully dark. The town is more sheltered and the weather had cleared. Its dense streets of often-whitewashed leaning half-timber buildings were a marvel, with bare-beamed glimpses within comfortable homes within. One was so precise and elegant that I wanted to find its hotel or restaurant name; but it was a house, not a business. The town came of age with the late medieval wool-trade and has one of the best preserved collections of fourteenth and fifteenth century domestic architecture. It's still thriving, or at least, thriving again, with a Co-op grocery store, a good variety of shops, if a little heavy on antique stores and galleries of artwork. At least they were the sorts of antique stores and galleries of artwork which looked accessible and affordable. The church closed at four, with the darkness, so I could only admire its grandeur from a distance.
It was the first time I was back to Lavenham since I was ten, and my family spent Christmas in the Swan Hotel, an enormous rambling conflation of half-timbered buildings. It snowed, and the countryside was beautifully picturesque. And so I have only ever been in Lavenham when daylight hours were scarce.
Despite the weather and warnings against travel, we went out for an afternoon in the Suffolk countryside. The rain was never too hard, but even in our compact car, I could feel the gusts. Later, walking in the drizzle, I could hear trees moaning with the strain of them. We drove through flooded sections of road on single-track lanes. By mid-afternoon, sunshine occasionally shown through the grey until wiped dark by sunset.
The land was gentle in its slopes and dips, crops and trees, quite likely idyllic in better weather. Bildeston is no longer as coherent a town as it certainly once was. A convenience store is the only business left on the town square. We passed three pubs, one of which doubles as a brewery, so the town is still doing decently well. The church was half-a-mile out of town; in that weather, it wasn't worth the walk.
By the time we made it to Lavenham, it was fully dark. The town is more sheltered and the weather had cleared. Its dense streets of often-whitewashed leaning half-timber buildings were a marvel, with bare-beamed glimpses within comfortable homes within. One was so precise and elegant that I wanted to find its hotel or restaurant name; but it was a house, not a business. The town came of age with the late medieval wool-trade and has one of the best preserved collections of fourteenth and fifteenth century domestic architecture. It's still thriving, or at least, thriving again, with a Co-op grocery store, a good variety of shops, if a little heavy on antique stores and galleries of artwork. At least they were the sorts of antique stores and galleries of artwork which looked accessible and affordable. The church closed at four, with the darkness, so I could only admire its grandeur from a distance.
It was the first time I was back to Lavenham since I was ten, and my family spent Christmas in the Swan Hotel, an enormous rambling conflation of half-timbered buildings. It snowed, and the countryside was beautifully picturesque. And so I have only ever been in Lavenham when daylight hours were scarce.
We've been in the house for a year-and-a-half or so. We bought the sofa in July.
Yesterday, at long last, the sofa came! It's deeper than I remembered and not as long, but it's comfortable and makes the room look bigger. Choosing a pale neutral was wise; it goes very nicely with the other things the room currently has.
Now if only there was running water this morning.... 12:40 pm and running water is back!
Yesterday, at long last, the sofa came! It's deeper than I remembered and not as long, but it's comfortable and makes the room look bigger. Choosing a pale neutral was wise; it goes very nicely with the other things the room currently has.
Family friends took us up into the Colli Euganei last weekend, odd volcanic hills southwest of Padova. After an hour at a Monselice festival, more market than seasonal produce, and walking up its hill to glorious panoramas in the noontime haze, we ate a wonderful lunch at a countryside restaurant.
Afterward, in the fading afternoon, we went to a frantoio, where olives are pressed the "traditional" industrial way. It's a small family operation, with the extended family in residence in the surrounding buildings. It was clean, compact, and redolent of grassy olive intensity.
Here is a photo of the first pressing: enormous granite millstones turn at speed, each rotating around its own axis and the joined axis at the center of the vat.
The crushed olives are then crushed again, beneath hundreds of kilograms of pressure, separating the oil from the olive paste which can then be used for tapenades and such. A final round of machining clarifies the oil.
Our incredibly dense day wasn't over. Our hosts took us back to their home as night fell.
Then we were off, too soon, for another meal, pizza at another friend's restaurant. Had we only more appetite with which to do it justice....
Afterward, in the fading afternoon, we went to a frantoio, where olives are pressed the "traditional" industrial way. It's a small family operation, with the extended family in residence in the surrounding buildings. It was clean, compact, and redolent of grassy olive intensity.
Here is a photo of the first pressing: enormous granite millstones turn at speed, each rotating around its own axis and the joined axis at the center of the vat.
The crushed olives are then crushed again, beneath hundreds of kilograms of pressure, separating the oil from the olive paste which can then be used for tapenades and such. A final round of machining clarifies the oil.
Our incredibly dense day wasn't over. Our hosts took us back to their home as night fell.
Then we were off, too soon, for another meal, pizza at another friend's restaurant. Had we only more appetite with which to do it justice....
With the right accessories, reality doesn't look so real any more.
We could not have successfully planned so rich and dense a trip if we'd tried. We sucessfully showed up in Venice as a total surprise trip for geesepalace's birthday on Friday; my most effective piece of misdirection was calling that morning with birthday wishes. A tranquil dinner at home, with J - whom we'd brought with us - and then sleep at the nearby B&B.
( Trip summary, in brief... )
geesepalace's birthday on Friday; my most effective piece of misdirection was calling that morning with birthday wishes. A tranquil dinner at home, with J - whom we'd brought with us - and then sleep at the nearby B&B.( Trip summary, in brief... )
The Goods Shed
Location: By Canterbury West train station in Canterbury.
( A brief description... )
Brasserie Blanc
Location: 71 Walton Street in Jericho, Oxford
( Pistachip soufflé, redeemed... )
Location: By Canterbury West train station in Canterbury.
( A brief description... )
Brasserie Blanc
Location: 71 Walton Street in Jericho, Oxford
( Pistachip soufflé, redeemed... )
A missive for you from L, cakemaker extraordinaire, and maker of the Bayeaux Cake, in response to hungry_pixel's questions:
hungry_pixel's questions: I started with a simplified cartoon of the soldiers and horses on paper and then traced them onto greaseproof paper the size of the sides of the cake. I used sterilised glass headed sewing pins to pin the pattern to the iced cake , making sure to put the pins through a drawing line. I used the longest pin I could find (easier to hold) and transferred the design onto the cake by carefully pricking through the outlines at intervals. Then the fun begins. I used a mixture of food colours, some powders, pastes, and liquids. Using a fine artists paint brush, kept for cakes only, and a clean white plate I mixed one colour at a time as you would water colours. I tested the colour on white paper first and using the cartoon as a guide began filling in the areas between the dots. Two sessions later the painting was complete. I then used coloured royal icing to pipe the outlines of the soldiers and horses. The writing was done freehand and was meant to look slightly wonky.
I have never been on a cake decorating course and don't believe you need to. There are plenty of good books out there to refer to. Buy a piping set, I started with a piping tube (Tala), and now use nylon bags with separate nozzles. Make a chocolate cake, or cupcakes, whip some cream and pipe swirls or stars on the top. In fact you can practise piping lines and stars etc. on the top of a plate. The first serious cake I made was a christening cake for C. This was successful and since then I've made wedding cakes, and anniversary cakes for family and friends.
I'm sure there are courses available through the internet. All the information I use has come from reading different books on the subject, mainly from the library, I actually treated myself to a cake decorating book this year, so I now own two books . Magazines also feature cake decorating occasionally and usually are worthwhile keeping. Fashions dictate how fancy or plain a cake will be decorated, nowadays many wedding cakes are minimally boring, but easy to do. Give it a try.
A local store acquired a distinctive sticker in its window in the last week. I did a double-take as I walked by, for there, on the sticker, on the local shop, was a Google red place-locating flag, the sort used on Google Maps when searching for locations. It was so strangely meta, a sticker derived from a virtual flag, advertising in reality its renown based on its pixel presence online.
For all I know, the stickers are common, but this was the first I've seen.
Speaking of geography, I pieced together more of Oxford yesterday. We went to visitdouble0hilly, meeting her, fresh from rowing, along the banks of the Isis. I'd always been to the Head of the River with other people and never put it into my mental map of the city until now. I also now know where Jericho is, Worcester College, All Soul's College, and a really poor cocktail lounge, among other places.
I've also learned how good a well-made Grasshopper is (but not at the poor cocktail lounge). There are a variety of chocolate liquors out there: any preferred ones among them you would recommend? This Grasshopper requires white chocolate liquor, but as I currently have no chocolate liquor at all, I would be happy to consider the merits of the whole range of them.
For all I know, the stickers are common, but this was the first I've seen.
Speaking of geography, I pieced together more of Oxford yesterday. We went to visit
double0hilly, meeting her, fresh from rowing, along the banks of the Isis. I'd always been to the Head of the River with other people and never put it into my mental map of the city until now. I also now know where Jericho is, Worcester College, All Soul's College, and a really poor cocktail lounge, among other places.I've also learned how good a well-made Grasshopper is (but not at the poor cocktail lounge). There are a variety of chocolate liquors out there: any preferred ones among them you would recommend? This Grasshopper requires white chocolate liquor, but as I currently have no chocolate liquor at all, I would be happy to consider the merits of the whole range of them.
I've known for a long time that tea was endemic in Britain, staple comfort drink and source of caffeine. I've observed all sorts of instances of this over the years. Nothing, however, had quite prepared me for today's class.
The class began at 1 pm. There were approximately 25 students. Every single last one of them of them had already drunk at least one cup of tea.
The class began at 1 pm. There were approximately 25 students. Every single last one of them of them had already drunk at least one cup of tea.
An axe would have been better, but I only could find a pickaxe or a battle axe. I'd forgotten, at the time, that I have a Playmobil chainsaw which would have worked even better.
C.'s mother is an extraordinary cake decorator. For the birthday party we went to this past weekend, in honor of the anniversary of the Battle of Hastings, she made a Bayeaux Tapestry Embroidery-themed cake. Behold.
( See two more sides of the cake... )
Edited to add: I've passed all your lovely comments on to the cake maker!
( Further edit: Now with photos of the whole cake... )
( See two more sides of the cake... )
Edited to add: I've passed all your lovely comments on to the cake maker!
( Further edit: Now with photos of the whole cake... )
As some of you know, I started a new weblog last month, called One Peppercorn. It's about the language of food, and is an excuse for me to pursue the meanings and uses of interesting food words as I encounter them in novels, histories, menus, manuscripts, conversation, and in the news. It's something I've been thinking of starting for years; C. and the stew project finally made it happen.
I don't intend to post about it often here, but did think it worth sharing today's revelation (a revelation to me as much as to anyone else, I suspect): what More's Utopia has in common with the Just William* books.
* None of which I've read.
In unrelated news, my home state has, for the second time, sent me an unsolicited ballot for a forthcoming election. I am delighted to be a part of democracy so conveniently.
Also, let me recommend to you the Retail Alphabet Game. (Americans stand more of a chance of getting most right than do people from elsewhere, but it's still worth a look, I think, if you're from elsewhere.)
I don't intend to post about it often here, but did think it worth sharing today's revelation (a revelation to me as much as to anyone else, I suspect): what More's Utopia has in common with the Just William* books.
* None of which I've read.
In unrelated news, my home state has, for the second time, sent me an unsolicited ballot for a forthcoming election. I am delighted to be a part of democracy so conveniently.
Also, let me recommend to you the Retail Alphabet Game. (Americans stand more of a chance of getting most right than do people from elsewhere, but it's still worth a look, I think, if you're from elsewhere.)
Le Tante Claire used to be a three-Michelin-star restaurant located on the site which now houses Gordon Ramsey's eponymous restaurant. It's been closed since 2002. In honor of this week's first London Restaurant Week, Pierre Koffmann, the chef behind that long-closed restaurant, brought it back to life for one week three weeks only on the rooftop of Selfridges, with the assistance of many of the now-famous chefs who also worked there back then. It's a pop-up restaurant, a current trend of temporary restaurants which coordinates well with the trend for underground restaurants.
( Lunch on the roof... )
It was a very good meal, even with the eventual dullness of the desserts, and the service was excellent. The superb sauces were, consistently, the best part of each dish. It was advertised as a reunion tour, but it's intriguing to think of it as an exercise in culinary history too, seeing how much further British cuisine was progressed in the past seven years, when it had already come so far. I have the identity of another chef down and have sampled one of his signature dishes; I'll know what people are talking about when they mention him or it; so it was educational as well.
Lastly, J is leaving us soon. She's lived in this country for several years, but is moving on. It was good to have appreciative company for the meal, for one of the final few times I'll see her while she's still based in London.
( Lunch on the roof... )
It was a very good meal, even with the eventual dullness of the desserts, and the service was excellent. The superb sauces were, consistently, the best part of each dish. It was advertised as a reunion tour, but it's intriguing to think of it as an exercise in culinary history too, seeing how much further British cuisine was progressed in the past seven years, when it had already come so far. I have the identity of another chef down and have sampled one of his signature dishes; I'll know what people are talking about when they mention him or it; so it was educational as well.
Lastly, J is leaving us soon. She's lived in this country for several years, but is moving on. It was good to have appreciative company for the meal, for one of the final few times I'll see her while she's still based in London.
Recent news articles on punctuation:
The exclamation point is not trademarkable!
Tim Berners-Lee apologies for forward slashes // in URLs. It didn't have to be this way.
Nearly a month ago now, Steve posted at Glossographia on a typology of quotation marks.
And finally, thanks to a question fromtheengineer, if you'd like to find out what font a particular piece of punctuation (or other printed character) is in, try What the Font, from My Fonts.
The exclamation point is not trademarkable!
Tim Berners-Lee apologies for forward slashes // in URLs. It didn't have to be this way.
Nearly a month ago now, Steve posted at Glossographia on a typology of quotation marks.
And finally, thanks to a question from
theengineer, if you'd like to find out what font a particular piece of punctuation (or other printed character) is in, try What the Font, from My Fonts.This was a one-off dinner, each course orchestrated by a different chef or chocolatier, in honor of the overlap of Chocolate Week in the UK and London's inaugural Restaurant Week. As a result of all the different agendas and personalities involved, it was only a coherent meal to the degree that each dish involved chocolate. To a degree, they were more in competition with each other than they were in harmony. As a result, I'll write about each dish separately.
( Six courses, all with chocolate, and a restaurant... )
In conclusion: I have no incentive to go back to the Amba Restaurant again. It disappointed me in a variety of ways, especially for a place which pretensions to fine dining. The dinner, however, had real highlights. It was an encouragement to use chocolate nibs regularly as, effectively a spice. I would love to learn more about cooking with chocolate pulp. And as a sampler of the restaurant, Launceston Place, the chicken & foie gras dish was a compelling invitation to try it out. All in all, a very mixed meal which would have worked better with better coordination, but was fundamentally a good idea.
( Six courses, all with chocolate, and a restaurant... )
In conclusion: I have no incentive to go back to the Amba Restaurant again. It disappointed me in a variety of ways, especially for a place which pretensions to fine dining. The dinner, however, had real highlights. It was an encouragement to use chocolate nibs regularly as, effectively a spice. I would love to learn more about cooking with chocolate pulp. And as a sampler of the restaurant, Launceston Place, the chicken & foie gras dish was a compelling invitation to try it out. All in all, a very mixed meal which would have worked better with better coordination, but was fundamentally a good idea.
Yesterday, or so my f'list tells me, was National Poetry Day. The BBC, in celebration, posted the nation's top ten poets. None, as brisingamen observed, were female. Five females made the also-ran list. She challenged her readers to come up with a list of (at least) ten female poets. Here's what I got out of reading all the post and comments responding to her challenge (although I have failed to stick with the UK):
Sappho, Bronte, Angelou,
Smith, Brown, Hacker,
Stein, Plath, Montagu,
Sexton, Bishop, Parker,
Rich, Duffy, Dickinson
Plath, Teasdale, Livesay,
Webb, Wright, Winterson,
Walton, Yolen, Katsuri.
"Female poets? Worthy? Pro?"
"I can't think of any, no."
brisingamen observed, were female. Five females made the also-ran list. She challenged her readers to come up with a list of (at least) ten female poets. Here's what I got out of reading all the post and comments responding to her challenge (although I have failed to stick with the UK):Sappho, Bronte, Angelou,
Smith, Brown, Hacker,
Stein, Plath, Montagu,
Sexton, Bishop, Parker,
Rich, Duffy, Dickinson
Plath, Teasdale, Livesay,
Webb, Wright, Winterson,
Walton, Yolen, Katsuri.
"Female poets? Worthy? Pro?"
"I can't think of any, no."
Fandom is so exciting this morning! There's the Octocon PR fiasco, on one hand, and, on the other, I finally followed through links to find out what the new Last Drink Bird Head awards are - and they're wonderful!
How lovely and apt to give awards for the following categories:
( Really good award ideas which promote reading and critical community participation... )
It's a whimsical, intelligent, and useful set of awards. I hope they continue for years to come!
It's also refreshing after the conversation I had with someone the other week who'd never heard of "fandom", let alone any particular one.
How lovely and apt to give awards for the following categories:
( Really good award ideas which promote reading and critical community participation... )
It's a whimsical, intelligent, and useful set of awards. I hope they continue for years to come!
It's also refreshing after the conversation I had with someone the other week who'd never heard of "fandom", let alone any particular one.
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