December 2009

1 active bambiWell, here we are, 1st December already! 

On this day, my mind turns to Christmas decorations.  Since my days of venturing in & out of the loft carrying heavy boxes are numbered, we've got our Xmas tree & decorations down, but very little is going back up.  I've given my beautiful six foot fibre optic tree away to a neighbour (sob, sob) and the decorations I'm not using are going (yes, you've guessed it) for sale on eBay.  I've also cleared out another five pot plants.


Meanwhile, out in our paddock, we had evensong from quite a flock of starlings.
2 Did you know?
Eliza Acton is thought to be the first in England to publish a recipe for Brussels sprouts. In her Modern Cookery of 1845, she suggests pouring a buttery sauce over them, or tossing them in butter and a spoonful or two of veal gravy.
Today, there are ever more exciting ways to tempt our palette, like brussels flash-fried with bacon and a few spoonfuls of crème fraîche.
3 We've been into London this evening for dinner with Caroline and Ollie.  First, and at last, there is a facility on Witham station to buy coffee after noon, so I could get a Cappuccino for us to share on the journey.  Then went to a Vietnamese restaurant near Liverpool Street and a good meal and natter.
4 Spoilt or what?  Tonight we've been dining at the slightly posh Camelot restaurant at Five Lakes again, courtesy of their latest offer of "3 courses for two people with a bottle of wine for £40 all in".  More good food and good company.  My gorgeous three courses were chicken liver pate, sea bass and Christmas pud, all with posh trimmings of course.  Delicious!!
5 More eBay listing as this is another free listing weekend, so I'll list items I'm not prepared to offer for 99p - again.  Not having too much luck with these, partly because some are pick-up only - very large framed pictures that I can't package - so my audience is limited.  Still, patience is the thing....
6 16 eBay sales this weekend, another record.
7 I'm not making great progress with my Xmas card making.  I seem to be a bit lacking in inspiration.  Perhaps I'll just have to make several of the same few designs.
8 This day is always remembered in our household as it is the day John Lennon was shot in 1980.  Yes, believe it or not, that's 29 years ago.
9 You know, I'm not sure exactly how much of the hype I believe about global warming.  After all, this planet has been through heatwaves and ice ages long before man could ever have affected it.  I've just read that this decade "is 'by far' the warmest since instrumental records began, say the UK Met Office and World Meteorological Organization" and that "This year is set to be the fifth warmest on record".  However, it seems not all researchers agree about the doom & gloom messages that generally get the headlines.  Click here for the full article.
10 On this day in 1979, stuntman Eddie Kidd accomplished a "death-defying" motorcycle leap.  During the spectacle he crossed an 80ft gap over a 50ft sheer drop above a viaduct on a 400cc motorcycle.  Experts said a fall would almost certainly have ended in disaster.  Kidd, who was only 20 years old at the time, completed the stunt before a stunned group of spectators, fans and press, at a disused viaduct on the River Blackwater, Maldon, Essex.
11 Went for a haircut today and decided to grow my fringe out so had more than usual cut from the ends to help the two lengths meet up, if you see what I mean.  So it's shorter than usual and I knew I wouldn't like it  :-(
12 08:00 Oh dear, no electricity.  We've been having a lot of power cuts recently, often in the early hours of the morning.  Our main fuse box trips out so the power does not come back on.  We've been flipping the switch to regain power and that's been fine, until this morning.  The switch just immediately trips out again, so we are powerless.  I've made a call to our insurers as we have Home Emergency cover and an electrician is coming, but not until sometime between 16:00 and 19:00.  The emergency gas stove is out so that we can have a hot drink.
11:00 The problem isn't solved but we've got power back, having spent ages unplugging everything, everywhere, learning which switches control which lights and ring mains, then isolating one by one to find the problem is the living room and kitchen ring main.  But everything is unplugged and still the power trips out.  And why would this keep happening in the middle of the night.  I suspected our older fridge or freezer, but they are both disconnected now.  Finally, Crow discovers a switch behind the television unit - no plug, just a switch.  We turn that off and power can be restored.  As soon as it is switched off, the main box trips, so that is the culprit.  We rack our brains and remember that this is the pump in the septic tank.  It comes on randomly (like a fridge) to pump water out of the tank when it reaches a certain level.  Everything makes sense, except how to fix it.
18:00  The electrician arrives as we need to know whether the problem is with the internal switch or something outdoors.  It's the latter of course.  We don't really have a clue what the consequences are if we don't run the pump for a number of days.  I guess we're about to find out.
13 A little venture out into the garden to wrap up our outdoor taps for winter, tidy up some pots, canes and stuff and start clearing out the potting shed.  I removed the cucumber plant (which rewarded me with one final surprise cucumber), melothrie and basil, but what shall I do with the four plants currently drying and still full of chillies?
Harvest:  Leeks, jerusalem artichoke, cucumber, chillies, melothrie.
14 I've made 46 Christmas cards.  It's not enough, but I've got to get them in the post so now it's time for writing and envelope labelling.  Luckily I've found a pack of shop bought ones to supplement my own.
We have been warned that winter is coming ...
15 ... but of course, I didn't take any notice.  Now I'm looking at my dying broad beans.  They've grown far more than normal in the unusually mild weather we've been having and now that the tables have turned, the frost has bitten them.  I've covered them with fleece.  Better later than never you may think, but the truth is it would have been better yesterday then today.  Never mind, I'll just have to plant more seeds in Spring.
18:00  We went out for a drink with old friends and "old boys" (that includes me) from our old workplace.  It was nice to chat for two or three hours with people we hadn't seen for quite some time.  I wasn't driving so after three drinks I was a little bit tipsy.  Still, I haven't been tipsy since this time last year.  I only usually drink a glass or two of wine if we go out for a meal with friends (and I'm not driving) or we entertain at home, otherwise I'm tee-total.
16 Whoa!  The first really heavy winter frost.  Everything is white and it's only 1 degree Celsius.  As a consequence, the grass closest to the house, which didn't get any sun, is no longer white by the end of the day, but is still a bit crunchy.
Crow was dragged out of bed this morning by the early arrival of an engineer to look at our septic tank pump.  Very efficient and a new pump fitted in about an hour.  Pump switched on and power uninterrupted so problem solved!  What a relief.
17 It's Mum-in-law's birthday and we're supposed to be there but we are all unwell (including Mum, who is suffering after effects from her flu jab), so it's all off.  Just a quiet day at home, waiting for the forecast snow to arrive.
Midnight  I'm off to bed and the snow has been falling for about three hours now.
18 08:00 Well, here we are under at least 4 inches of snow and it's still falling.  It all looks very pretty and we are lucky enough to be able to choose to just stay in our warm home, only popping out to end our chicks and explore the "different look" to our grounds.  Sadly, my lovely newly grown, young pampas is a collapsed heap under the weight of snow.  Sob, those beautiful fronds are not going to recover from this.
11:00  Isn't is wonderfully quiet after snowfall?  Very few cars are passing down our back road and according to the BBC website, the closest back road which we usually take to get to the main road  is closed due to an accident.
12:20 We were due to have a visit from a contractor to empty our septic tank, a job which is long overdue.  Didn't think he would turn up, but here he is!
13:00  I was hoping for a trip to the gym for a swim today, but we've decided to be better safe than sorry.
15:30  It's freezing out there - literally.  There was the tiniest bit of thawing.  I only know this for sure because an icicle has formed on one of our steps where water must have been dripping during the day.  Snowing again...
19 Confined to base by the snow as our back road looks like a sheet of glass.  Emergency clearance work needed on the net tunnel, due to weight of snow on it.  Wish we'd done this yesterday when the snow was soft.  It's almost impossible now as the snow is frozen.  Spent quite a while reaching up and brushing with a broom and using muscles I normally don't.  So now they're hurting and I seem to have twisted my neck a bit.  What a sorry state.
As for the fruit cage, well I'm expecting that net to snap.
We were also due to go out to dinner with friends tonight, but we cancelled as the overnight freeze began at dusk.  We had a visitor at 10:00 this morning who said his car temperature gauge read -4C, and I'm not even sure it got above zero at all today. 
Even if we ventured out in our 4x4, we would be sunk if we met something coming the other way on our road.
20 A little more snow overnight, but not the "heavy snow" that was forecast.  There's even a little warmth in the sun, so I'm hoping a thaw will start.
21 I've read that Russell T Davies says he is very proud of the story that marks the end of David Tennant's reign as the Time Lord.  For me, it's just going to be a sad start to the new year, because I think David Tennant has been the best Dr Who ever.
22 Storybook WolfVery sad to read today that the photographer, José Luis Rodriguez,  awarded the Wildlife Photographer of the Year award, may have faked his entry, called Storybook Wolf.

There is an investigation to find out if he used a tame and captive "model" animal in breach of competition rules.

They have been sent evidence, apparently from rival photographers, that the pictured animal is a wolf called Ossian who lives at a zoological park near Madrid. A wolf expert, quoted by Finnish nature magazine Suomen Luonto, which revealed the allegations, also said the wolf appears to have been trained to jump the gate, because a wild specimen is likely to squeeze between the bars.
23 I've found a cute pattern for earflap hats in my latest Crochet magazine, so I've got started tonight.  Want to make hats for Crow's daughters as stocking fillers
24 Just got the house ready in time and the duck in the oven as mum-in-law arrived for her brief Xmas visit.
Oops, the first hat is finished but it's a very strange shape and only suitable for someone with a very pointy head.  The trouble is, the magazine is American and their wools have different names and weights.  I always check my tension but over the size of a complete project, things can still get out of shape.
25 Hoorah!  Not only is it Xmas day but my garden is all green again and my chicks are happier, running about exploring again.
Aah, success with the second hat in a different wool and it is cute.  I always think "fun" hats are the best.
26 Just how did two cheeky moorhens get into my fenced off veg garden?  Something must have really scared them because at the first sign of danger they run away very quickly.  Only if the danger is greater and/or closer, do they take flight.  These two obviously took flight and landed in the veg garden and now they can't figure out how to escape.  Sadly, the only way to remove them was for Crow to frighten them again so that they took flight to freedom.  Soon after that was done, would you believe it, a pheasant was wandering around in there.  Two "firsts" in one day.  We left him as he would just fly on when he got bored.  Fortunately none of the birds seemed interested in eating my chard or leeks, or I might have been forced to shoot them (joke!)

I've saved the first hat - I unpicked it, back to the base cap and refinished to match the shape of the successful one.  Now, whose a clever girl then?
27 Time to get creative with leftovers.  First, tonight is bubble & squeak with the leftover cooked Xmas veg, supplemented by the chicken & duck livers & kidneys.  Then, a little harvest from the garden to provide leeks and carrots (the last ones) for my chicken broth.
Harvest:  leeks, carrots
28 Back to the gym which was hard work after a 5 day break and no swim because it's full of kids.  Bah, humbug, I hate the school holidays.
29 Flying ChickenSwam for an hour this morning (before kiddy time) to work up an appetite for a late lunch at 2pm with four friends.  We went to The Chequers at Goldhanger - our best local eatery.  When I booked they warned me there was a restricted menu, but it still had about 30 choices on it!!  Excellent.

Despite our "no presents" rule, they brought some body lotions and shower gels for me, a DVD for Crow and a flying chicken.  Mmm, one of the Farmyard Flyers range, very silly and I can't possibly describe it so here's a picture and if you master the art of making it flying it emits three long cock-a-doodle-dos on its journey.
30 Crow's daughters and one boyfriend arrived at lunchtime for the rest of the day and staying over until tomorrow.  So, it was Christmas all over again!  They had instructions not to go overboard with presents and only to buy me something useful with a chicken on it, like a tea-towel.  Well, not only did I get a chicken tea-towel with its own special hanger, they also gave me a chicken keyring with a laser light incorporated (and when you press to use the light, it crows), a hard wearing chicken shopping bag and and  and "extraordinary chickens" wall calendar.
31 Well, the girls left at about 11:15 and our next visitors arrived within 30 minutes.  This was just a flying visit from our best mates who now live in Portugal.  Normally we would at least have a meal with them but their flight was cancelled before Xmas (because of the snow here), so their UK visit is cut short as the next available flight wasn't until 27th.  No more visitors expected now until Sunday.
Thought I'd lost my pond hippo as it had completely disappeared from sight in our frozen pond.  I feared it had split in the freeze-thaw process, split and sunk.  At last our pond is nearly thawed and there it was - upside down but still floating.  On this topic, I keep reading that having a floating object in your pond stops it from freezing over.  I have to say that in my experience, that's poppycock.  Just as well, we have no pond life to look after.