The sale of the château is now signed, sealed and delivered (those were the actual words on the document). No changing my mind now!
In related news, I was rather chuffed to see that the selling price was $2,000 more than I thought I'd remembered from the offer; as you know, there had been two previous offers, one of which was a little lower, and I must have got them mixed up.
We had an early walk in the park as it’s time for the dentist now - boo! Annoying but necessary. They are good dentists so I shouldn’t complain. Followed by a little pampering my my manicurist, she comes once a fortnight and does gel polish so I always have nice nails. Today I will choose bright purple.
The movers (four delightful gentlemen) have been and gone, and the place feels very empty (although not as empty as it might, as I could take what I wanted and leave the rest). Felt suddenly sad after they'd gone, and had a bit of sniffage, but really shouldn't complain - as Boogie says, onwards and upwards.
I was speaking to my estate agent about where to leave the keys, and bless her, she's offered me a lift to the friend's house where I'm going to be staying (the friend's having cataract surgery today, so she can't drive).
I may have to resort to subterfuge to get rid of the several bin-bags of rubbish that have accumulated. I'd like to just dump them in the bin as I go out, but as it's -11° (up from -24°, feeling like -32, when I got up) I suspect the lid might be frozen solid.
I haven't got a definite date yet - I still need to sort out his Social Insurance number so that I can claim my rights in his pension - but I'm hoping it'll be early-mid February.
Gosh, things are moving quickly, Piglet.
A quiet day expected here, I got my marking done yesterday and need to read and summarised some papers for my literature review today.
Yesterday I found out my older brother had been admitted to hospital with a stroke but my eldest sister has since visited and it was just a small one and he is fine, though he needs keyhole surgery to remove what they think is a clot from outside his heart.
Thanks, Priscilla. I'm having a quiet, messing-about sort of day: my host, M., had cataract surgery yesterday, so she's out of action for driving anywhere.
This morning I have German class and I’ve made chocolate CAKE to take!
Piglet’s domestic godishness is taking hold!
But is it German chocolate cake?
More importantly, how's Echo doing? Will she be going to class with you?
Thank you, Echo is right as rain, the medication did its work and he’s completely back to normal, thankfully.
No, he doesn’t come to German with me as the lesson is two hours long and that’s just a little too long for his age. So Mr Boogs has him on German mornings. He does come to art class as it’s more informal - and I don’t have to concentrate as much - and I can wander out with him any time.
Great news @Piglet! Let's hope there are no hold ups on the pension front.
On the subject of German chocolate cakes Mrs Sioni makes an excellent Sachertorte. I should say that she usually makes an excellent Sachertorte because there was the day when we had a couple of brown biscuits. The mixture is quite sloppy so it was a mystery about what had gone wrong until she did the washing up and couldn't find the spoon she had used for the flour. That was of course because she hadn't used such a spoon or any flour .....
[...] No, he doesn’t come to German with me as the lesson is two hours long and that’s just a little too long for his age. So Mr Boogs has him on German mornings. [...]
I'm just glad they didn't win the war, or every morning would be a German morning!
Ok, I've been watching too much Dr Who recently and also have discovered Foyle's War on ITV, which I had missed the first few times round. Some very interesting historical insights, and a most decent sleuth too! - What do Shippies think of 'Foyle's War' anyway, I wonder?
It's midweek, and very chilly here, cold northerly wind blowing, adding the wind chill probably feels like -10°C or below. But we'll live. Daytime temperatures currently about 4°C, with nights below 0°C. It's the bleak midwinter, just that there's no snow!
4° and no snow barely registers as "midwinter", and certainly not as "bleak". [...]
Well, that's just why it's so bleak!
And it would be less so with a dusting of the white stuff and with lower temperatures! We haven't been below -5° this winter yet, and for me winter hasn't really happened without a few days of a sprightly -10°C or beyond! That's the real thing, and I want it back.
That, and snow. Gimme some snow.
I blame the Greta-diagnosed global climatic occurrences.
@WesleyJFoyle's War is a delight. Quiet, restrained acting from the lead and plots that don't either bore or make one laugh. There are calls for more episodes to be made...
Wesley dear, you could have all my snow if I could send it to you!
Cheque for the house banked (yipee!) - I wonder how much the Choir Pub charges for champagne?
I got to meet the new owners today; in my distress wussdom when I was leaving the house, I didn't realise I should have unplugged the computer modem, which belongs to the interweb provider (I'd taken the digi-box and remote back to the shop, and they said, where's the modem) ...
Anyhow, my agent arranged for me to be able to pick it up, and they seem like a delightful couple, and genuinely pleased that I left most of my furniture for them. I hope they enjoy living there as much as we did.
Gosh, things are moving quickly, Piglet.
A quiet day expected here, I got my marking done yesterday and need to read and summarised some papers for my literature review today.
Yesterday I found out my older brother had been admitted to hospital with a stroke but my eldest sister has since visited and it was just a small one and he is fine, though he needs keyhole surgery to remove what they think is a clot from outside his heart.
Prayers for your brother, Heavenlannie. I hope that all turns out well.
Yesterday Captain Pyjamas did something he'd never done before and decided he was tired and wanted to go to bed. He indicated this by arriving in the living room brandishing his pyjamas and then toddling off to his room and trying to climb over the bars into his cot. Alright then, point taken.
I start getting him ready for bed, and he clearly pronounces the word "jama". My work is done. 🥰
It's a glorious day here - currently -5°, but almost cloudlessly sunny, and due to go up to +2°.
My hostess sells marmalade oranges from her house at this time of year, and a whole load was delivered to the house yesterday, so people have been coming and going all morning. She also makes her own, so the place smells deliciously fruity!
I'll be making some bread at some point in the next day or two for the production of TOAST, marmalade for the spreading on of.
Pseudo-butter!?!?! Go and wash your mouth with carbolic soap!
My mum was a marmalade and jam maker too - my dad grew strawberries, rhubarb, blackcurrants (my favourite) and raspberries (which I also liked, but his plants sadly never yielded enough for more than about a single pot), and Mum would merrily preserve all through August and September.
Then Dad discovered the joys (!) of making his own wine*, and that was the end of the blackcurrant jam.
He also made an attempt at peapod wine, which exploded, leaving the shed where it was stored smelling like a distillery.
* most of which wasn't very good, although the blackcurrant one came out a very pretty rosé colour, and was quite potable, but frighteningly potent ...
I had an aged aunt who made parsnip wine that came in at roughly 19%: when freezers came in she took to pouring it into shallow tins, placing in the freezer and scooping off the ice, so ending up with parsnip firewater
My Mum’s chocolate cake was top notch. Im going to try a vegan version next as we have two vegans in our family. The egg white will be substituted with aquafaba. (You whisk the egg whites and fold them in to the mixture which is made with oil, flour and cocoa.)
Re. butter: a couple of nights ago we went to stay in our favourite little hotel in the Forest of Dean (affordable with special off-season prices). Quite apart from the lovely room and the 6-course tasting menu at dinner, the breakfasts are lovely as they use lots of local produce including this: https://tinyurl.com/v35zf33
Boogie, I'm not sure the aquafaba has quite the strength of egg white, a half teaspoon of baking powder wouldn't do any harm, it might make it rise to fantastic heights, that's all!
Almost all M's oranges have now been sold, but she's still got at least 12 dozen jars of marmalade in her basement - she didn't sell as much last year as she expected.
Meanwhile, I've made some fiddlehead SOUP for lunch; when I left the château I cleared out the few bits and bobs from the freezer, including a carton of fiddleheads that I'd frozen last spring. Though I say it what shouldn't, I think it's going to be rather good, along with some of the bread I made yesterday and perhaps some CHEESE.
Boogie, I'm not sure the aquafaba has quite the strength of egg white, a half teaspoon of baking powder wouldn't do any harm, it might make it rise to fantastic heights, that's all!
Piglet, my parents once made peapod wine.
We used to go fruit picking every summer, and one year we ended up picking pEas as well. The pea pods looked so lovely, we felt it was a shame to throw them out. “The Good Life” was on the television at that time, and there was a running joke about “peapod burgundy “, so Mam checked her wine making books and found a recipe. It turned out as a very pleasant white wine, which became like a very light sherry after a few years.
Last night I was building a minestrone, and for a change decided to use a mason jar of tomatoes I was given some months ago by a friend of mine. She doesn't do preserving by herself, but is put to work in the assembly line organised by her neighbours. I was the beneficiary of a very some very good sweet/savoury chow (great with meat pie), apple chutney, and the tomatoes. I tasted the tomatoes first. Transporting. It took all my resolve to keep from eating the entire jar by itself. The minestrone is for dinner tonight. Can't wait.
Comments
In related news, I was rather chuffed to see that the selling price was $2,000 more than I thought I'd remembered from the offer; as you know, there had been two previous offers, one of which was a little lower, and I must have got them mixed up.
It'll almost pay the estate agent's fees ...
Can I un-cross my talons now?
Onwards and upwards
We had an early walk in the park as it’s time for the dentist now - boo! Annoying but necessary. They are good dentists so I shouldn’t complain. Followed by a little pampering my my manicurist, she comes once a fortnight and does gel polish so I always have nice nails. Today I will choose bright purple.
Well done, Piglet, I hope the actual move goes smoothly!
I was speaking to my estate agent about where to leave the keys, and bless her, she's offered me a lift to the friend's house where I'm going to be staying (the friend's having cataract surgery today, so she can't drive).
I may have to resort to subterfuge to get rid of the several bin-bags of rubbish that have accumulated. I'd like to just dump them in the bin as I go out, but as it's -11° (up from -24°, feeling like -32, when I got up) I suspect the lid might be frozen solid.
Oh well, another chapter ...
Piglet’s domestic godishness is taking hold!
A quiet day expected here, I got my marking done yesterday and need to read and summarised some papers for my literature review today.
Yesterday I found out my older brother had been admitted to hospital with a stroke but my eldest sister has since visited and it was just a small one and he is fine, though he needs keyhole surgery to remove what they think is a clot from outside his heart.
But is it German chocolate cake?
More importantly, how's Echo doing? Will she be going to class with you?
Wishing healing for your brother, HA!
Thank you, Echo is right as rain, the medication did its work and he’s completely back to normal, thankfully.
No, he doesn’t come to German with me as the lesson is two hours long and that’s just a little too long for his age. So Mr Boogs has him on German mornings. He does come to art class as it’s more informal - and I don’t have to concentrate as much - and I can wander out with him any time.
On the subject of German chocolate cakes Mrs Sioni makes an excellent Sachertorte. I should say that she usually makes an excellent Sachertorte because there was the day when we had a couple of brown biscuits. The mixture is quite sloppy so it was a mystery about what had gone wrong until she did the washing up and couldn't find the spoon she had used for the flour. That was of course because she hadn't used such a spoon or any flour .....
Sorry about that, Echo! 🐾
Ok, I've been watching too much Dr Who recently and also have discovered Foyle's War on ITV, which I had missed the first few times round. Some very interesting historical insights, and a most decent sleuth too! - What do Shippies think of 'Foyle's War' anyway, I wonder?
It's midweek, and very chilly here, cold northerly wind blowing, adding the wind chill probably feels like -10°C or below. But we'll live. Daytime temperatures currently about 4°C, with nights below 0°C. It's the bleak midwinter, just that there's no snow!
It's currently -3° here, having gone up from -19° this morning.
And it would be less so with a dusting of the white stuff and with lower temperatures! We haven't been below -5° this winter yet, and for me winter hasn't really happened without a few days of a sprightly -10°C or beyond! That's the real thing, and I want it back.
That, and snow. Gimme some snow.
I blame the Greta-diagnosed global climatic occurrences.
Echo says that’s fine, he is very pretty after all. 🐾💕
Cheque for the house banked (yipee!) - I wonder how much the Choir Pub charges for champagne?
I got to meet the new owners today; in my distress wussdom when I was leaving the house, I didn't realise I should have unplugged the computer modem, which belongs to the interweb provider (I'd taken the digi-box and remote back to the shop, and they said, where's the modem) ...
Anyhow, my agent arranged for me to be able to pick it up, and they seem like a delightful couple, and genuinely pleased that I left most of my furniture for them. I hope they enjoy living there as much as we did.
Prayers for your brother, Heavenlannie. I hope that all turns out well.
Yesterday Captain Pyjamas did something he'd never done before and decided he was tired and wanted to go to bed. He indicated this by arriving in the living room brandishing his pyjamas and then toddling off to his room and trying to climb over the bars into his cot. Alright then, point taken.
I start getting him ready for bed, and he clearly pronounces the word "jama". My work is done. 🥰
But it's good to hear of the Gallant Captain's progress!
It's a glorious day here - currently -5°, but almost cloudlessly sunny, and due to go up to +2°.
My hostess sells marmalade oranges from her house at this time of year, and a whole load was delivered to the house yesterday, so people have been coming and going all morning. She also makes her own, so the place smells deliciously fruity!
I'll be making some bread at some point in the next day or two for the production of TOAST, marmalade for the spreading on of.
Don't forget, @Piglet, to insert some BUTTER* between the TOAST and the MARMALADE. It doesn't work without it...
(*or pseudo-BUTTER, if you have to)
My mum was a marmalade and jam maker too - my dad grew strawberries, rhubarb, blackcurrants (my favourite) and raspberries (which I also liked, but his plants sadly never yielded enough for more than about a single pot), and Mum would merrily preserve all through August and September.
Then Dad discovered the joys (!) of making his own wine*, and that was the end of the blackcurrant jam.
He also made an attempt at peapod wine, which exploded, leaving the shed where it was stored smelling like a distillery.
* most of which wasn't very good, although the blackcurrant one came out a very pretty rosé colour, and was quite potable, but frighteningly potent ...
This is an experiment.
Did you get a chance to church crawl St Mary Magdalene in Hewelsfield? Lovely church.
I use SR flour - do you think I should add a little baking powder too?
🤔
No ... never heard of it actually! Something for next time in the area.
Or you could just experiment and let us all know!
Meanwhile, I've made some fiddlehead SOUP for lunch; when I left the château I cleared out the few bits and bobs from the freezer, including a carton of fiddleheads that I'd frozen last spring. Though I say it what shouldn't, I think it's going to be rather good, along with some of the bread I made yesterday and perhaps some CHEESE.
I’ll be doing it tomorrow for my brother’s pud.
I’ll let you know!
We used to go fruit picking every summer, and one year we ended up picking pEas as well. The pea pods looked so lovely, we felt it was a shame to throw them out. “The Good Life” was on the television at that time, and there was a running joke about “peapod burgundy “, so Mam checked her wine making books and found a recipe. It turned out as a very pleasant white wine, which became like a very light sherry after a few years.
Just off the B4228, which is the main road from Coleford to Chepstow.
I'm inspired to take this up this year.